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A declaration of war is a formal declaration issued by a national government indicating that a state of war exists between that nation and another. The document Declarations of War and Authorizations for the Use of Military Force: Historical Background and Legal Implications gives an extensive listing and summary of statutes which are automatically engaged upon the US declaring war. For the United States, of the Constitution says "Congress shall have power to ... declare War." However, that passage provides no specific format for what form legislation must have in order to be considered a "declaration of war" nor does the Constitution itself use this term. In the courts, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, in Doe v. Bush, said: "[T]he text of the October Resolution itself spells out justifications for a war and frames itself as an 'authorization' of such a war." in effect saying an authorization suffices for declaration and what some may view as a formal Congressional "Declaration of War" was not required by the Constitution. The last time the United States formally declared war, using specific terminology, on any nation was in 1942, when war was declared against Axis-allied Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania, because President Franklin Roosevelt thought it was improper to engage in hostilities against a country without a formal declaration of war. Since then, every American president has used military force without a declaration of war. This article will use the term "formal declaration of war" to mean Congressional legislation that uses the phrase "declaration of war" in the title. Elsewhere, this article will use the terms "authorized by Congress," "funded by Congress" or "undeclared war" to describe other such conflicts. The United States has formally declared war against foreign nations five separate times, each upon prior request by the President of the United States. Four of those five declarations came after hostilities had begun. James Madison reported that in the Federal Convention of 1787, the phrase "make war" was changed to "declare war" in order to leave to the Executive the power to repel sudden attacks but not to commence war without the explicit approval of Congress. Debate continues as to the legal extent of the President's authority in this regard. Public opposition to American involvement in foreign wars, particularly during the 1930s, was expressed as support for a Constitutional Amendment that would require a national referendum on a declaration of war. Several Constitutional Amendments, such as the Ludlow Amendment, have been proposed that would require a national referendum on a declaration of war. After Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in January 1971 and President Richard Nixon continued to wage war in Vietnam, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution () over the veto of Nixon in an attempt to rein in some of the president's claimed powers. The War Powers Resolution proscribes the only power of the president to wage war which is recognized by Congress. The table below lists the five wars in which the United States has formally declared war against eleven foreign nations. The only country against which the United States has declared war more than once is Germany, against which the United States has declared war twice (though a case could be made for Hungary as a successor state to Austria-Hungary). In World War II, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Germany and Italy, led respectively by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, declared war on the United States, and the U.S. Congress responded in kind. In other instances, the United States has engaged in extended military combat that was authorized by Congress. In many instances, the United States has engaged in extended military engagements that were authorized by United Nations Security Council Resolutions and funded by appropriations from Congress. On at least 125 occasions, the President has acted without prior express military authorization from Congress. These include instances in which the United States fought in the Philippine–American War from 1898–1903, in Nicaragua in 1927, as well as the NATO bombing campaign of Yugoslavia in 1999, and the 2017 missile strikes on Syria. The United States' longest war was fought between 2001 and 2016 against the Taliban in Afghanistan. The Indian Wars comprise at least 28 conflicts and engagements. These localized conflicts, with Native Americans, began with European colonists coming to North America, long before the establishment of the United States. For the purpose of this discussion, the Indian Wars are defined as conflicts with the United States of America. They begin as one front in the American Revolutionary War in 1775 and had concluded by 1918. The United States Army still maintains a campaign streamer for Pine Ridge 1890–1891 despite opposition from certain Native American groups. The American Civil War was not an international conflict under the laws of war, because the Confederate States of America (CSA) was not a government that had been granted full diplomatic recognition as a sovereign nation by other sovereign states or by the government of the United States. In 1973, following the withdrawal of most American troops from the Vietnam War, a debate emerged about the extent of presidential power in deploying troops without a declaration of war. A compromise in the debate was reached with the War Powers Resolution. This act clearly defined how many soldiers could be deployed by the President of the United States and for how long. It also required formal reports by the President to Congress regarding the status of such deployments, and limited the total amount of time that American forces could be deployed without a formal declaration of war. Although the constitutionality of the act has never been tested, it is usually followed, most notably during the Grenada Conflict, the Panamanian Conflict, the Somalia Conflict, the Persian Gulf War, and the Iraq War. The only exception was President Clinton's use of U.S. troops in the 78-day NATO air campaign against Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. In all other cases, the President asserted the constitutional authority to commit troops without the necessity of Congressional approval, but in each case the President received Congressional authorization that satisfied the provisions of the War Powers Act. On March 21, 2011, a number of lawmakers expressed concern that the decision of President Barack Obama to order the U.S. military to join in attacks of Libyan air defenses and government forces exceeded his constitutional authority because the decision to authorize the attack was made without Congressional permission. Obama explained his rationale in a two-page letter, stating that as commander in chief, he had constitutional authority to authorize the strikes, which would be limited in scope and duration, and necessary to prevent a humanitarian disaster in Libya. Cold War, Declaration of war by Canada, Declaration of war by the United Kingdom, Just War Theory, Police action, Timeline of United States military operations, War on Terror, War on Drugs Kenneth A. Schultz, Tying Hands and Washing Hands: The U.S. Congress and Multilateral Humanitarian Intervention, Ch. 4, pp 105–142, in Daniel Drezner, Ed. Locating the Proper Authorities: The Interaction of Domestic and International Institutions, University of Michigan Press, 2003. The House of Rep, Republican Study Committee of War and Military Authorized Conflicts. 2003., Declarations of war and votes, Text of Declaration of War on Japan, Text of Declaration of War on Germany, Text of Declaration of War on Bulgaria, Authorization for Use of Military Force — signed September 18, 2001, House Joint Resolution Authorizing Use of Force Against Iraq — signed October 16, 2002, Instances of Use of United States Forces Abroad, 1798–1993, A partial list of U.S. military interventions from 1890 to 2006, U.S.-Africa Chronology On 11 December 1941, four days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States declaration of war against the Japanese Empire, Nazi Germany declared war against the United States, in response to what was claimed to be a series of provocations by the United States government when the US was still officially neutral during World War II. The decision to declare war was made by Adolf Hitler, apparently offhand, almost without consultation. Later that day, the United States declared war on Germany. The course of relations between Germany and the United States had deteriorated since the beginning of World War II, inevitably so given the increasing cooperation between the United States and the United Kingdom. The Destroyers for Bases Agreement, Lend-Lease, the Atlantic Charter, the hand-over of military control of Iceland from the United Kingdom to the United States, the extension of the Pan-American Security Zone, and many other results of the special relationship which had developed between the two countries had put a strain on relations between the US, still technically a neutral country, and Nazi Germany. US destroyers escorting American supply vessels bound for the UK were already engaged in a de facto war with German U-Boats. Roosevelt's desire to help the UK, despite the objections of the influential US isolationist lobby, and legal impediments imposed by Congress which prevented direct involvement in the war, brought the US to push hard against the traditional boundaries of neutrality. On 7 December 1941, the Empire of Japan launched an attack on the US naval and army base on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, beginning a war between Japan and the United States. Japan had not informed its ally, Germany, in advance of the attack, although the Japanese ambassador had informed the German Foreign Minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop, at the beginning of December that relations between the US and the Japanese Empire were at a breaking point, and that war was imminent. He was instructed to ask Germany for commitment to declare war under the terms of the Tripartite Pact should that occur. Hitler and Ribbentrop had been urging Japan to attack and take over Singapore from the British, on the theory that doing so would not only hurt the UK, but would also serve to help keep the US out of the war. According to the terms of their agreements, Germany was obliged to come to the aid of Japan if a third country attacked Japan, but not if Japan attacked a third country. Ribbentrop reminded Hitler of this, and pointed out that to declare war against the US would add to the number of enemies Germany was fighting, but Hitler dismissed this concern as not being important, and, almost entirely without consultation, chose to declare war against the US, wanting to do so before, he thought, Roosevelt would declare war on Germany. In fact, Hitler's declaration of war came as a great relief to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who feared the possibility of two parallel but disconnected wars - the UK and Soviet Union versus Germany in Europe, and the US and the British Empire versus Japan in the Far East and the Pacific. With Nazi Germany's declaration against the United States in effect, American assistance for Britain in both theaters of war as a full ally was assured. It also simplified matters for the American government, as John Kenneth Galbraith recalled: When Pearl Harbor happened, we [Roosevelt's advisors] were desperate. ... We were all in agony. The mood of the American people was obvious - they were determined that the Japanese had to be punished. We could have been forced to concentrate all our efforts on the Pacific, unable from then on to give more than purely peripheral help to Britain. It was truly astounding when Hitler declared war on us three days later. I cannot tell you our feelings of triumph. It was a totally irrational thing for him to do, and I think it saved Europe." Hitler's reasons for declaring war against the US when he was not obligated to were numerous. One was an emotional response: the Japanese tactic of using a surprise attack without making a declaration of war appealed to him - he had done the same thing when he attacked the Soviet Union with Operation Barbarossa in June 1941; indeed, he told the Japanese ambassador "[O]ne should strike - as hard as possible - and not waste time declaring war." Also, the prospect of a worldwide war fed Hitler's tendency towards grandiose thinking, and reinforced his feeling that he was a world- historical figure of destiny. As he said in his declaration speech to the Reichstag: I can only be grateful to Providence that it entrusted me with the leadership in this historic struggle which, for the next five hundred or a thousand years, will be described as decisive, not only for the history of Germany, but for the whole of Europe and indeed the whole world. Hitler's lack of knowledge about the US and its industrial and demographic capacity for mounting a war on two fronts also entered into his decision. As early as mid- March 1941 - nine months before the Japanese attack - President Roosevelt was acutely aware of Hitler's hostility towards the United States, and the destructive potential it presented. Due to this attitude within the White House, and the rapidly progressing efforts of the Americans' industrial capacity before and through 1941 to start providing its armed forces with the ordnance, combat aircraft and ships that would be required to defeat the Axis as a whole, the US was already well on its way towards the full-scale wartime economy which would make it the "arsenal of democracy" for itself and its allies. Finally, Hitler's deeply-held racial prejudices made him see the US as a decadent bourgeois democracy filled with people of mixed race, a population heavily under the influence of Jews and "Negroes", with no history of authoritarian discipline to control and direct them, interested only in luxury and living the "good life" while dancing, drinking and enjoying "negrofied" music. Such a country, in Hitler's mind, would never be willing to make the economic and human sacrifices necessary to threaten National Socialist Germany — and thus set the stage for a dangerously inaccurate view of the very nation that Hitler had stated in his unpublished Zweites Buch (Second Book, 1928) would be the Third Reich's most serious challenge beyond his intended defeat of the Soviet Union. The economic potential and racial composition of America had implications for Hitler's own ideological construct, indeed, how he saw Germany's current problems and future hopes. His central ideas of 'living space' and race held the key to his image of the United States. To Hitler the United States was a country with a white 'Nordic' racial core, to which he attributed its economic success and standard of living, and in which he saw a model for his vision of German 'living space' in Europe. The one advantage which the declaration of war against the US provided for Hitler was as a propaganda diversion for the German public, to distract them from the state of the war against the Soviet Union, in which Germany had suffered severe setbacks and an unexpectedly prolonged engagement. Hitler had assured the German people that the Soviet Union would be crushed well before the onset of winter, but that, in fact, did not happen, and there was little in the way of good news. The timing of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor enabled Hitler to angle his planned speech to the Reichstag in a more positive fashion, squeezing as much propaganda value out of it as possible. Hitler, in fact, put off the speech - and the declaration of war - for several days, trying to arrive at the proper psychological moment to make the announcement. Still, the propaganda motive was hardly sufficient to justify declaring war on the US, especially considering that doing so would create an otherwise "unnatural alliance" between two disparate and heretofore antagonistic polities, the United States and the Soviet Union. Joachim C. Fest, one of Hitler's biographers, has argued that Hitler's decision was "really no longer an act of his own volition, but a gesture governed by a sudden awareness of his own impotence. That gesture was Hitler's last strategic initiative of any importance." Regardless of Hitler's reasons for the declaration, the decision is generally seen as an enormous strategic blunder on his part, as it allowed the United States to enter the European war in support of the United Kingdom and the Allies without much public opposition, while still facing the Japanese threat in the Pacific. Hitler had, in fact, committed Germany to fight the US while in the midst of a war of extermination against Russia, and without having first defeated the UK, instead of taking the option of putting off a conflict with the US for as long as possible, forcing it to concentrate on the war in the Pacific against Japan, and making it much more difficult for it to become involved in the European war. At least to some extent he had held in his hands the power to control the timing of the intervention of the US, and instead, by declaring war against America, he freed Roosevelt and Churchill to act as they saw fit. From the point of view of Hitler and much of the German political and military elite, declaring war against the U.S. in response to the Pearl Harbor attack was a calculated risk in fighting the U.S. before they were prepared to effectively defend themselves. By that time, the German leadership believed that the United States was effectively acting as a belligerent in the conflict, given actions such as Lend-Lease of supplies to Britain to sustain their war effort, President Roosevelt's public statements, the deployment of American soldiers and Marines to Iceland, and U.S. Navy escorts of convoys across the Atlantic, which sometimes came into contact with U-boats; these acts, as well as America's previous intervention in World War I, led to the assumption that war between them was inevitable. As such, the decision was made to use the attack as a rationale for an official declaration of war in order to drive Britain out of the conflict by widening submarine operations and directly attacking U.S. commercial shipping. While Hitler's declaration of war against the United States eventually led to his downfall, initially it seemed successful in its objective of more effectively cutting Britain's supply lines, as the U.S. military's lack of tactics, equipment, and procedures for fighting U-boats caused 1942 to be the most devastating year of the war for shipping losses; the war declaration enabled the Second Happy Time for U-boats. According to Hitler's Naval Adjutant, Admiral von Puttkamer, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor actually buoyed Hitler's assurance in winning the war, and improved morale among the high leadership of the armed forces. Peter Padfield writes: The news [of Pearl Harbor] came as a surprise to Hitler although he knew of their intention to attack somewhere at some time and had made up his mind to support them if they attacked the United States. Now frivolously disregarding the huge financial and productive power of America and, according to ... von Puttkamer, blind to the realization that this power could be projected across the Atlantic, he gained renewed confidence in a victorious outcome to the war. His generals suffered from the same land-locked hallucination: his entire headquarters staff gave themselves up to 'an ecstasy of rejoicing'; the few who saw further 'became even lonelier'. Naval officers saw no more clearly than the generals. On 11 December 1941, American Chargé d'Affaires Leland B. Morris, the highest ranking American diplomat in Germany, was summoned to Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop's office where Ribbentrop read Morris the formal declaration. The text was: MR. CHARGE D'AFFAIRES: The Government of the United States having violated in the most flagrant manner and in ever increasing measure all rules of neutrality in favor of the adversaries of Germany and having continually been guilty of the most severe provocations toward Germany ever since the outbreak of the European war, provoked by the British declaration of war against Germany on September 3, 1939, has finally resorted to open military acts of aggression. On September 11, 1941, the President of the United States publicly declared that he had ordered the American Navy and Air Force to shoot on sight at any German war vessel. In his speech of October 27, 1941, he once more expressly affirmed that this order was in force. Acting under this order, vessels of the American Navy, since early September 1941, have systematically attacked German naval forces. Thus, American destroyers, as for instance the Greer, the Kearney and the Reuben James, have opened fire on German submarines according to plan. The Secretary of the American Navy, Mr. Knox, himself confirmed that-American destroyers attacked German submarines. Furthermore, the naval forces of the United States, under order of their Government and contrary to international law have treated and seized German merchant vessels on the high seas as enemy ships. The German Government therefore establishes the following facts: Although Germany on her part has strictly adhered to the rules of international law in her relations with the United States during every period of the present war, the Government of the United States from initial violations of neutrality has finally proceeded to open acts of war against Germany. The Government of the United States has thereby virtually created a state of war. The German Government, consequently, discontinues diplomatic relations with the United States of America and declares that under these circumstances brought about by President Roosevelt Germany too, as from today, considers herself as being in a state of war with the United States of America. Accept, Mr. Charge d'Affaires, the expression of my high consideration. December 11, 1941. RIBBENTROP. Kellogg–Briand Pact Notes Bibliography Genoud, François (ed.) (1961) The Testament of Adolf Hitler. The Hitler–Bormann Documents, February–April 1945. London., Hillgruber, Andreas (1981) Germany and the Two World Wars Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. ., Kershaw, Ian (2007) Fateful Choices: Ten Decisions the Changed the World, 1940-1941 New York: Penguin., Kershaw, Ian (2000) Hitler: 1936–1945: Nemesis London., United States Department of State (December 13, 1941) Department of State Bulletin. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office Martial law in the United States refers to several periods in United States history wherein a region or the United States as whole are placed under the control of a military body. On a federal level, only the president has the power to impose martial law. In each state the governor has the right to impose martial law within the borders of the state. In the United States, martial law has been used in a limited number of circumstances, such as directly after a foreign attack, as in Hawaii after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor or New Orleans during the Battle of New Orleans; after major disasters, such as the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 or the San Francisco earthquake of 1906; local leaders declared martial law to protect themselves from mob violence, such as Nauvoo, Illinois, during the Illinois Mormon War, or Utah during the Utah War; or in response to chaos associated with protests and mob action, such as the 1934 West Coast waterfront strike. It has also been used against civil protesters fighting for racial equality in the deep south Freedom Riders. The martial law concept in the United States is closely tied with the right of habeas corpus, which is in essence the right to a hearing on lawful imprisonment, or more broadly, the supervision of law enforcement by the judiciary. The ability to suspend habeas corpus is related to the imposition of martial law. Article 1, Section 9 of the US Constitution states, "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it." There have been many instances of the use of the military within the borders of the United States, such as during the Whiskey Rebellion and in the South during the Civil Rights Movement, but these acts are not tantamount to a declaration of martial law. The distinction must be made as clear as that between martial law and military justice: deployment of troops does not necessarily mean that the civil courts cannot function, and that is one of the keys, as the Supreme Court noted, to martial law. In United States law, martial law is limited by several court decisions that were handed down between the American Civil War and World War II. In 1878, Congress passed the Posse Comitatus Act, which forbids military involvement in domestic law enforcement without congressional approval. Throughout United States history are several examples of the imposition of martial law, aside from that during the Civil War. As a result of the Boston Tea Party, Parliament passed the Massachusetts Government Act, one of the Intolerable Acts, which suppressed town meetings and assemblies, and imposed appointed government, tantamount to martial law. During the War of 1812, US General Andrew Jackson imposed martial law in New Orleans, Louisiana, before repulsing the British in the Battle of New Orleans. Martial law was also imposed in a four-mile radius around the vicinity. When word came of the end of the war, Jackson maintained martial law, contending that he had not gotten official word of the peace. A judge demanded habeas corpus for a man arrested for sedition. Rather than comply with the writ, Jackson had the judge arrested. In 1843, Missouri sought to extradite Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, for the attempted murder of Missouri governor Lilburn Boggs. He escaped arrest with the help of members of his church, and was discharged on a writ of habeas corpus in the Municipal Court of Nauvoo, where he was mayor, even though it was outside the court's jurisdiction. People in the neighboring town of Carthage, Illinois, felt that Smith was abusing his position in order to avoid arrest. They requested that Governor Ford call out the militia to take Smith into custody, to which Governor Ford declined. A group of ex-Mormons published a paper called the Nauvoo Expositor which detailed Smith's alleged abuse of power. Together with the Nauvoo City Council, Smith ordered the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor. This caused an uproar in neighboring towns, which interpreted the order as an attack on the freedom of speech. Smith was charged with causing a riot, which the Nauvoo courts dismissed. Neighboring cities raised money for a militia to go and capture Smith. Governor Ford arrived in Carthage and sent word to Smith that if he did not surrender, Ford would call out the militia. On June 18, Smith declared martial law in Nauvoo and called out the Nauvoo Legion, an organized city militia of about 5,000 men, to protect Nauvoo from outside violence. Ford sent a group of men and abolished martial law. By this time, Smith had escaped into Iowa, but was convinced by his supporters to return. He was arrested for treason against the state of Illinois for declaring martial law. While awaiting trial in Carthage Jail, Smith was murdered by a mob. In 1845, Nauvoo was stripped of its charter for abuse of authority. This led to a series of conflicts known as the Illinois Mormon War. Tension between Utah territory and the federal government was strained in 1857 due to the influence of theodemocracy in the Governor Brigham Young's semi- theocratic government, Utah's rejection of federal appointees, and Utah's acceptance of polygamy and slavery. In 1857, President James Buchanan sent U.S. forces to the Utah Territory in what became known as the Utah War. The Mormons, fearful that the large U.S. military force had been sent to annihilate them, made preparations for defense. On 15 September, Young publicly declared martial law in Utah. It was widely circulated throughout the territory and was delivered by messenger to Col. Alexander with the approaching army. The most important provision forbade "all armed forces of every description from coming into this Territory, under any pretense whatsoever". It also commanded that "all the forces in said Territory hold themselves in readiness to march at a moment's notice to repel any and all such invasion". But more important to California and Oregon bound travelers was the third section that stated "Martial law is hereby declared to exist in this Territory...and no person shall be allowed to pass or repass into, through or from this territory without a permit from the proper officer." Brigham Young ordered the people in Salt Lake City, Utah to burn their homes and retreat south to Provo, Utah. Meanwhile, the Mormons harassed the approaching army. Eventually, Brigham Young was removed as governor and replaced by Alfred Cumming. On September 15, 1863, President Lincoln imposed Congressionally authorized martial law. The authorizing act allowed the President to suspend habeas corpus throughout the entire United States (which he had already done under his own authority on April 27, 1861). Lincoln imposed the suspension on "prisoners of war, spies, or aiders and abettors of the enemy," as well as on other classes of people, such as draft dodgers. The President's proclamation was challenged in Ex parte Milligan, 71 US 2 [1866]. The Supreme Court ruled that Lincoln's imposition of martial law (by way of suspension of habeas corpus) was unconstitutional in areas where the local courts were still in session. In response to the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, Chicago mayor Roswell B. Mason declared a state of martial law and placed General Philip Sheridan in charge of the city on October 9, 1871. After the fire was extinguished, there were no widespread disturbances and martial law was lifted within a few days. In 1892, in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, striking mine workers blew up a mill and shot at strike-breaking workers. The explosion leveled a four-story building and killed one person. The governor declared martial law. At the same time, a request was made for federal troops to back guardsmen. Over 600 people were arrested. The list was whittled down to two dozen ringleaders who were tried in military court. While in prison, the mine workers formed a new union, the Western Federation of Miners. Following the earthquake of 1906, the troops stationed in the Presidio were pressed into martial law service. Guards were posted throughout the city, and all dynamite was confiscated. The dynamite was used to destroy buildings in the path of fires, to prevent the fires from spreading. In 1914, imposition of martial law climaxed during the Colorado Coalfield War. Dating back decades, the conflicts came to a head in Ludlow, Colorado in 1913. The Colorado National Guard was called in to quell the strikers. For a time, the peace was kept, but it is reported that the make-up of the Guard stationed at the mines began to shift from impartial normal troops to companies of loyal mine guards. Clashes increased and the proclamation of martial law was made by the governor, eventually resulting in the Ludlow Massacre. President Wilson sent in federal troops, eventually ending the violence. On August 19, 1917, the Spokane office of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW, or Wobblies) was raided, leaders arrested, and martial law was declared. The military authority was the National Guard, controlled by the U.S. War Department. This occurred in reaction to a demand by IWW leader James Rowan that all prisoners of the "class war" (he meant Wobbly strikers and strike leaders involved in a statewide lumber strike) be released or Spokane would face a general strike. The repression of the democratic, radical union in Spokane and across the state took place in the context of the Wobbly-led loggers' and sawmill workers' ongoing strike for the eight-hour day and sanitary conditions in the camps. The IWW was militant, radical, vocal and consistently nonviolent. The larger context of the repression of the union was war hysteria, combined with employer opposition to union demands. The nationwide suppression of the IWW during the war involved physical violence, vandalism, and the imprisonment of hundreds of union members and leaders. During the events of the West Virginia Coal Wars (1920–1921), martial law was declared in the state of West Virginia. At the behest of Governor Cornwell, federal troops had been dispatched to Mingo County to deal with the striking miners. The army officer in charge acted, ostensibly, under the (selectively; accounts show that he only jailed union miners), and did not allow assembly of any kind. If his soldiers found any union miners, they immediately took them and imprisoned them. The jails filled up so quickly that he had to release miners. As it went, miners were arrested, jailed, and released without any sort of trial. After a time, when the trial of Sid Hatfield began, the military occupation and "veritable military dictatorship" (Governor Cornwell) of the army officer ended. Many of the miners were not released from jail. It was only the first of three times that federal troops would be called to quiet the miners in the West Virginia Mine War. In 1934, California Governor Frank Merriam placed the docks of San Francisco under martial law, citing "riots and tumult" resulting from a dock worker's strike. The governor threatened to place the entire city under martial law. The National Guard was called in to open the docks, and a citywide institution of martial law was averted when goods began to flow. The guardsmen were empowered to make arrests and to then try detainees or turn them over to the courts. During World War II (1939 to 1945) what is now the State of Hawaii was held under martial law from December 7, 1941 to October 24, 1944, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. After the war, the federal judge for the islands condemned the conduct of martial law, saying, "Gov. Poindexter declared lawfully martial law but the Army went beyond the governor and set up that which was lawful only in conquered enemy territory namely, military government which is not bound by the Constitution. And they ... threw the Constitution into the discard and set up a military dictatorship." On May 21, 1961, Governor Patterson of Alabama declared martial law "as a result of outside agitators coming into Alabama to violate our laws and customs" which had led to "outbreaks of lawlessness and mob action." The agitators were Freedom Riders, peaceful civil rights activists challenging the already-illegal racial segregation in the South. H.R. 5122, also known as the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 was a bill passed in the United States Congress on September 29, 2006 and signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006 becoming Public Law 109-364. In addition to allocating funding for the armed forces, it also gave the president the power to declare martial law and to take command of the National Guard units of each state without the consent of state governors. Macomb, Alexander, Major General of the United States Army, The Practice of Courts Martial, (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1841) 154 pages., Macomb, Alexander, Major General of the United States Army, A Treatise on Martial Law, and Courts-Martial as Practiced in the United States. (Charleston: J. Hoff, 1809), republished (New York: Lawbook Exchange, June 2007). , ., The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Edited by Iain McLean and Alistair McMillan, Oxford University Press, 2004., Black's Law Dictionary: Definitions of the Terms and Phrases of American and English Jurisprudence, Ancient and Modern. Henry Campbell Black. St. Paul: West Pub. Co., 1979.

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Wonder Woman, known for seasons 2 and 3 as The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, is an American action superhero television series based on the DC Comics comic book superhero of the same name. The show stars Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince and Lyle Waggoner as Steve Trevor Sr. & Jr. It originally aired for three seasons from 1975 to 1979. The show's first season aired on ABC and is set in the 1940s during World War II. The second and third seasons aired on CBS and are set in the 1970s, with the title changed to The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, and a complete change of cast other than Carter and Waggoner. Waggoner's character was changed to Steve Trevor Jr., the son of his original character. Wonder Woman refers to both a 1974 television film and a 1975-79 television series based on the DC Comics character of the same name. The 1974 television film called Wonder Woman directed by Vincent McEveety and starring Cathy Lee Crosby, was a pilot for an intended television series being considered by ABC. Ratings were described as "respectable but not exactly wondrous," and ABC did not pick up the pilot. Instead, Warner Bros. and ABC developed the 1975 television series, Wonder Woman, that fit the more traditional presentation of the character as created by William Moulton Marston, turning away from the 1968–72 era that had influenced the pilot. , which premiered in 1975, starred Lynda Carter and eventually led to the full series. Crosby would later claim that she was offered the chance to reprise the role in that series. Lynda Carter as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman, Beatrice Colen as Etta Candy (season 1), Richard Eastham as General Philip Blankenship (season 1), Lyle Waggoner as Steve Trevor and Steve Trevor II, Debra Winger as Drusilla/Wonder Girl Ed Begley Jr. as Harold Farnum in "Diana's Disappearing Act" and "The Fine Art of Crime", Christine Belford as Baroness Von Gunther in "Wonder Woman Meets Baroness Von Gunther", Eric Braeden as Captain Drangel in "The New Original Wonder Woman" and Donalsen in "Skateboard Wiz", Gary Burghoff as Alan in "The Man Who Wouldn't Tell", Red Buttons as Carl / Ashley Norman in "The New Original Wonder Woman", Michael Cole as Ted in "The Man Who Wouldn't Tell", Gretchen Corbett as Erika Belgard in "Wonder Woman vs. Gargantua", Bradford Dillman as Arthur Deal III/Thor in "Wonder Woman Meets Baroness Von Gunther", Ron Ely as Bill Michaels in "The Deadly Sting", Anne Francis as Lola Flynn in "Beauty on Parade", Leif Garrett as Lane Kincaid / Michael in "My Teenage Idol is Missing", Dick Gautier as Count Cagliosto in "Diana's Disappearing Act", Lynda Day George as Fausta Grables in "Fausta, the Nazi Wonder Woman", Frank Gorshin as Orlich Hoffman in "The Deadly Toys", Bob Hastings as the Gatekeeper in "The Pied Piper", David Hedison as Evan Robley in "The Queen and the Thief", John Hillerman as Conrad Steigler in "Wonder Woman vs Gargantua", Celeste Holm as Dolly Tucker in "I Do, I Do", Russell Johnson as the Colonel in "Disco Devil", Carolyn Jones as Queen Hippolyta in "The Feminum Mystique: Parts 1 & 2" and "Wonder Woman in Hollywood", Cloris Leachman as Queen Hippolyta in "The New Original Wonder Woman", Robert Loggia as Hans Eichler in "Wonder Woman vs Gargantua", Dawn Lyn as Whitney in "My Teenage Idol is Missing", Gavin MacLeod as Mr. Ellsworth in "The Fine Art of Crime", Roddy McDowall as Professor Arthur Chapman in "The Man Who Made Volcanoes" and Henry Roberts in "The Fine Art of Crime", Denny Miller as Carl Schwartz in "The Pied Piper", Mickey Morton as Gargantua in "Wonder Woman vs. Gargantua", Martin Mull as Hamlin Rule in "The Pied Piper", Eve Plumb as Elena in "The Pied Piper", Robert Reed as the Falcon in "The Pluto File", Roy Rogers as J.P. Hadley in "The Bushwhackers", John Saxon as Nazi Captain Radl in "The Feminum Mystique: Parts 1 & 2", Ted Shackelford as Pete Johnson in "Knockout" and Adam Clement in "Time Bomb", Beatrice Straight as Queen Hippolita in "The Return of Wonder Woman" and "The Bermuda Triangle Crisis", Philip Michael Thomas as Furst in "The Man Who Wouldn't Tell" (credited as Philip M. Thomas), Joan Van Ark as Cassandra Loren in "Time Bomb", Barry Van Dyke as Freddy in "Wonder Woman in Hollywood", Dick Van Patten as Jack Wood in "Beauty on Parade", Lance Kerwin as Jeff Hadley in "The Bushwhackers" Despite the muted ratings of the earlier Cathy Lee Crosby television pilot, ABC still felt a Wonder Woman series had potential, and within a year another pilot was in production. Keen to make a distinction from the last pilot, producers gave the pilot the rather paradoxical title The New Original Wonder Woman. Scripting duties were given to Stanley Ralph Ross, who was instructed to be more faithful to the comic book and to create a subtle "high comedy." Ross set the pilot in World War II, the era in which the original comic book began. After an intensive talent search, Lynda Carter, who had had a handful of minor acting roles and had been the 1972 Miss World USA and a Bob Hope USO cast member, was chosen for the lead role. For the role of Steve Trevor, the producers chose Lyle Waggoner, despite his dark brown, almost-black, hair not matching the comic's blond Trevor, who at the time was better known as a comedic actor after several years co-starring in The Carol Burnett Show. He was also known to Ross as having been one of the leading candidates to play Batman a decade earlier, but instead Adam West was signed. Waggoner was also considered a sex symbol, having done a semi-nude pictorial in the first issue of Playgirl. Although the pilot followed the original comic book closely, in particular the aspect of Wonder Woman joining the military under the name Diana Prince, a number of elements were dropped. It mainly omitted Diana's origin, including her birth on Paradise Island. The comic book Diana obtains the credentials of a look-alike nurse. Although the pilot shows Diana briefly as a nurse at one point, Diana takes on the identity of a Navy Yeoman Petty Officer First Class. One change, which was later to become synonymous with the show, was the transformation of Diana Prince into Wonder Woman by spinning. During the filming of the pilot, producers were trying to figure out a way to show how Diana Prince became Wonder Woman, when Carter suggested that she do a spin. Unlike the earlier pilot, the comic-book origins of the character were emphasized by the retention of the character's traditional uniform (the design of which was interpreted and executed by Donald Lee Feld, credited as "Donfeld") with the original setting and through the use of comic book elements. The series's title sequence was animated in the form of a series of comic book panels featuring Wonder Woman performing a variety of heroic feats. Within the show, location and exposition were handled through comic book-style text panels. Transitions between scenes and commercial breaks were marked by animated starburst sequences. In 1942, during the Second World War, American pilot Major Steve Trevor (Waggoner) bails out during an air battle over the Bermuda Triangle, location of Paradise Island. The island is home to the Amazons: beautiful, ageless women with great strength, agility, and intelligence. Amazon princess Diana (Carter) rescues the handsome unconscious Trevor and helps nurse him back to health. Her mother, the Amazon queen (Cloris Leachman; succeeded by Carolyn Jones and Beatrice Straight in later episodes), decrees that Olympic-style games shall be held to select one Amazon to return Trevor back to America. But she forbids her own daughter Diana, the princess, to participate. Diana states that since she is not allowed to participate, she does not want to be present for the games and will take a retreat to the other side of the island. The games are held with participants wearing masks and numbers, shown as Roman numerals in triangles on white sleeveless short tunic-dresses. Among the contestants is a blonde Amazon. During the events, the blonde Amazon shows exceptional skills and she ties for first with another Amazon. To break the deadlock, the "bullets and bracelets" event is decided as the tiebreaker, wherein each of the women takes turns shooting at the other; the one being shot at must deflect the bullets with her bulletproof bracelets. The blond woman wins the event, superficially injuring her opponent's arm. When she is pronounced the winner, she removes her mask and wig and reveals that she is Diana. Her mother, though initially shocked, relents and allows her to go to America. Diana's uniform as Wonder Woman, designed by Queen Hippolyta, features emblems of America, the land to which she will be returning Steve Trevor. A golden belt will be the source of her strength and power while away from Paradise Island. She has her bullet-deflecting bracelets and also receives a golden lasso which is unbreakable and forces people to obey and tell the truth when bound with it. As shown later in flashback, Hippolyta also teaches Diana how to transform her clothes magically into the uniform. Diana, as Wonder Woman, flies to Washington, D.C. in an invisible plane. After dropping Trevor off at a hospital, the heroine stumbles upon a bank robbery, which she stops. A theatrical agent who sees her in action offers to help make her bullets and bracelets act a stage attraction. Diana is hesitant, but needing money in this new society, she agrees. Meanwhile, Trevor's civilian secretary Marcia (Stella Stevens) is a double agent for the Nazi Fifth Columnists. She seeks to aid top spies in killing Trevor and opposing this new threat, Wonder Woman. Her first attempt is arranging for an accomplice to fire a machine gun at Wonder Woman during her stage act. Later, as spy activities increase, Trevor leaves the hospital but gets in a fight and is captured, prompting his "nurse" Diana to come to his rescue. Wonder Woman defeats Marcia in an extended fight sequence in the War Department. Having defeated Marcia, Wonder Woman thwarts a Nazi pilot who had plans to bomb the Brooklyn Navy Yard by using her invisible plane, and she rescues Trevor. With Marcia and the spy ring defeated, the film closes as Trevor and Brigadier General Blankenship talk about Trevor's new secretary whom Blankenship selected not only for her outstanding clerical test scores, but her decidedly plain appearance in contrast to Marcia: the bespectacled Yeoman First Class Diana Prince USNR(WR), Wonder Woman in disguise. The pilot film aired on November 7, 1975, was a ratings success, and ABC quickly authorized the production of two one-hour specials which aired in April 1976. These three productions would later be considered part of the show's first season. The episodes scored strong ratings, and ABC ordered an additional 11 episodes for the new 1976–77 TV season. The network began airing the episodes every few weeks apart at the beginning of the TV season in September 1976. After mid-December 1976, episodes aired on a weekly basis until mid-February 1977. A few cast changes were made between the specials and the series. Former Happy Days recurring actress Beatrice Colen joined the cast as Corporal Etta Candy WAAC, General Blankenship's secretary, thereby providing YN1 Prince with a subordinate. Three episodes featured Debra Winger as Diana's younger sister, Drusilla, a.k.a. Wonder Girl, in one of her earliest acting roles. One of the most memorable aspects of the show that was developed during the first season was the transformation sequence that changed Diana Prince into her superheroine alter ego. The sequence in the original specials employed a slow fade between two synchronized shots, both filmed with an overcranked camera to create a slow motion effect. A twirling Diana Prince's hair would fall loose as the shot transitioned to a twirling Wonder Woman holding her Diana clothes, which she would stow nearby in a closet or locker. (How she changes back to Diana is never shown, although presumably she must return to the location to retrieve her clothes.) To ensure both segments transitioned smoothly the camera was locked off (secured in place) while Carter's clothing, make-up, and hair was altered between identities, a process Carter said on a DVD commentary typically took about 45 minutes. The spinning transformation was later incorporated into the comics and into animated appearances such as Justice League Unlimited. (At the time of the series in which Carter starred, the transformation was depicted in the comics by way of Diana spinning her magic lasso around her body, with the lasso changing her clothes, a move that was incorporated in 1973. The original character changed much the same as Superman, by simply changing at super-human speed, her costume under her clothing, and her boots and tiara in her handbag or desk drawer.) The iconic explosion overlay most associated with the TV show was introduced after the third episode to mask the cut point between the Diana and Wonder Woman clips, meaning they no longer needed to be perfectly aligned. This allowed them to be shot without a locked off camera at more convenient points in the production schedule, when Carter was already in the appropriate costume. The slow motion aspect of the sequence was dropped, and Wonder Woman was no longer left holding her Diana Prince clothes. A thunderclap sound effect accompanied the explosion effect; both the explosion flash and its sound are apparently non-diegetic (only heard by the audience, not within the narrative world), as demonstrated by Diana changing unnoticed in a dormitory of sleeping women, in adjoining office spaces, etc. Generally the audience never sees Wonder Woman change back to Diana Prince, although there is one occasion when it is almost shown: Wonder Woman reveals her secret identity to her little sister Drusilla by slowly turning on the spot, but the actual moment of transformation is masked by a cut-away reaction shot of Drusilla (no thunderclap was heard). During season one, Wonder Woman has the ability to impersonate anyone's voice, which came in handy over the telephone. She did not use this ability during seasons two and three. The series began at a time when violence on television was under intense scrutiny. As a result, Wonder Woman was less frequently seen punching or kicking people the way she did in the early episodes. She would usually be shown pushing and throwing enemies or using creativity to get them to somehow knock themselves out (such as jumping high into the air to cause pursuers to collide). Despite the wartime setting, she almost never resorted to deadly force. The only exception occurs in the pilot episode when she sinks a German U-boat by crashing an airplane into it, presumably killing everyone aboard. Wonder Woman herself was occasionally overpowered by chloroform and poison gas, but she always came back in the second half of the show to save the day. In some episodes, her enemies learn the secret of her superhuman strength – her magic belt – and temporarily steal it, leaving her with average human strength. Her indestructible lasso and bracelets were stolen or taken away in one episode (leaving her defenseless against gunfire), but Wonder Woman recovered them by the end of the episode. (In the comics, Wonder Woman would lose most of her strength if bound by a man.) Season 2 establishes that Wonder Woman remained active from 1942 to 1945 and was honored by Franklin D. Roosevelt for her work against Axis attacks. Despite good ratings for the series, ABC stalled on picking up the show for a second season. This was because Wonder Woman was a period piece, being set in the 1940s, which made the set, clothing, automobiles, etc. more expensive to produce. While ABC had not yet committed, the show's production company Warner Bros. listened to an offer from rival network CBS. While ABC continued to make up its mind, CBS agreed to pick up the series on condition that the setting be changed from World War II (the 1940s) to the modern day (the 1970s). Changing the title to The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, the series was moved away from international intrigue to a more conventional police/detective action- type show that was more common in the 1970s. Princess Diana, aging slowly because of her Amazon nature, returns from Paradise Island after a 35-year absence (looking virtually the same) to become an agent with the Inter-Agency Defense Command (IADC), a CIA / FBI-type organization fighting crime, espionage, and the occasional alien invasion. Strictly speaking, Lynda Carter was the only cast member whose character continued into the second and third seasons (aside from a brief cameo appearance of Major Trevor (Lyle Waggoner) in Diana's flashback when she first encountered his son and a framed photograph of him seen on the younger Trevor's office credenza in season 3). The original Steve Trevor was revealed to have risen to the rank of major general and died in the 35-year interim between the first and second seasons, although Lyle Waggoner remained with the series, portraying Trevor's son, Steve Jr. As a child, Steve Jr. had heard his late father's stories of adventures with Wonder Woman during World War II. It is essentially confirmed in the second season première that his father never introduced him to Wonder Woman and that he had never even seen her photographed. It is similarly implied that he and YN1 Diana Prince were unaware of each other. Diana is taken aback by the younger Steve's existence, implying that his father had never spoken of the boy to either Wonder Woman or YN1 Prince. This was particularly striking when she spoke to Steve Jr. about knowing his father well, from the j-shaped burn scar on his right shoulder, to the 20mm shell casing that he used as a paperweight. Despite (or perhaps because of) the fact that Wonder Woman had fallen in love with the first Steve Trevor, the producers chose to drop any suggestion that Steve Jr. and Wonder Woman were anything more than good friends. Indeed, when an impostor posing as Steve Jr. attempted to seduce Diana, she made it quite clear that she had no sexual interest in him. Executive producer Douglas S. Cramer noted the difficulties in maintaining long-term romantic tension between leads, because the resolution of that romantic tension often results in the cancellation of the series. Since Waggoner returned in a technically new role, Diana's mother Hippolyta was the only other first season character to be seen or mentioned, though she was played by a new actress, Beatrice Straight, succeeding Carolyn Jones and Cloris Leachman in the role. The post-war fates of General Phil Blankenship, Etta Candy, and Drusilla / Wonder Girl were never revealed. Diana, Steve and Joe Atkinson (Norman Burton), a weathered IADC agent, received their orders from a "Charlie's Angels-like" character who is heard but never seen. Diana and Steve would go out and work the field while Joe assisted from the office. The Atkinson character was dropped after the ninth episode of this season, and Steve was given a promotion, becoming IADC Director, and Diana's boss, in the process. This promotion for Steve Trevor meant that Lyle Waggoner was seen less in subsequent episodes for the remainder of the series' run. In this season, the computer IRAC (Information Retrieval Associative Computer), more informally known as "Ira," was introduced: its first appearance is in season 2, episode 1, where Diana introduces her Diana Prince identity into its records, over IRAC's protests. Ira was the IADC's super-intelligent computer, who deduces that Diana Prince is really Wonder Woman, although he never shares this information with anyone, except Diana herself. Saundra Sharp joined the cast as Eve, Steve's assistant (the job held by Diana at the start of the season). Towards the end of the season, in the episode "IRAC is Missing," a small mobile robot called Rover was added for comic relief. An offshoot of IRAC who performs duties such as delivering coffee and sorting mail, Rover speaks with a high-pitched voice, occasionally makes "Beep Beep" sounds and, like IRAC, is aware that Wonder Woman's secret identity is Diana Prince. The theme song was re-written to remove references to the Axis, reflecting the series' new present-day setting, and the action depicted in the opening's animated comic book panels was similarly updated. Beginning with the episode "The Man Who Made Volcanoes," the opening title sequence was changed again to an instrumental and more traditional "action scenes" opening. The animated stars used before and after commercial breaks were dropped. The producers of Wonder Woman generally maintained her no-kill policy, although there were exceptions: In the episode "Anschluss '77" she is forced to destroy a clone of Adolf Hitler. Another episode made reference to a villain who was believed drowned following a previous unseen encounter with Diana/Wonder Woman. Unlike in the first season, Wonder Woman's sources of power (magic belt, bracelets, golden lasso) were never removed from her and stolen by villains during the two years the series was set in the 1970s. Other changes in season two included a slight redesign (again by Donald Lee Feld, still credited as "Donfeld") of Wonder Woman's uniform. The bustier was more flexible, featured less gold metal in the eagle wings in favor of red cloth background, and was cut lower to highlight Carter's décolletage and cleavage. The star-spangled bottoms were cut higher in the thighs, with the number of stars reduced, stopping below her hips, and rearranged in a more symmetrical starburst pattern. The bracelets changed from dull silver-grey to bright gold, and were noticeably smaller and thinner. Her tiara, appearing unchanged when on Wonder Woman's head, would flatten to become a boomerang, and its ruby star functioned as a communications link to Paradise Island and her mother the queen. Feld also introduced multiple new variants on Wonder Woman's uniform beginning in season two. She still wore the red-white-and-blue cape for special events or appearances from the first season, but without the skirt. (This variant could be described as Wonder Woman's "full-dress uniform.") A diving uniform was introduced—this consisted of a navy-blue lycra body suit with matching gloves, gold bracelets, flat boots, and a flexible tiara; this was featured whenever aquatic activity was required. The same uniform, with low-heeled boots and a gold helmet, was used to ride motorcycles. At first, Wonder Woman would switch to these newer uniforms by performing an extended spin in which she first changed from her Diana Prince clothes to Wonder Woman's standard uniform, then continued to spin until a second light explosion occurred and she would appear in one of the newer variants. However, this extended spin device was dropped for expediency and Diana was then able to change into any of Wonder Woman's uniforms in a single change. Wonder Woman's invisible plane appeared a couple of times in season two, and not at all in season three. The plane's shape was updated with the change in temporal setting, losing the rounded fuselage and modestly curved wings evocative of a World War II-era pursuit-fighter, in favor of a dart-like, delta winged jet. The show ranked 71st out of 104 shows for the 1977-78 season with an average 15.6 rating. With the beginning of the third season, further changes were made to target the show at a teenage audience. The title theme was re-recorded again to give it a disco beat, the use of the robot 'Rover' was increased for comic effect, and episodes began to revolve around topical subjects like skateboarding, roller coasters and the environment. (Feld also gave Wonder Woman a "skate- boarder's" uniform, which was also capable of use for training in any "extreme sport" in which she participated.) Teenagers or young adults were commonly used as main characters in the plot lines. Eve disappeared from the cast although she is mentioned once or twice. Episodes during this season showed Diana on assignments by herself far more often (particularly outside of Washington DC), and Steve Trevor had become Diana's boss and was seen less. Wonder Woman was also allowed to become a bit more physical in the third season and could now be seen throwing the occasional punch or kick. The writers also came up with several unusual ways for Diana to execute her spinning transformation, the most notable instances occurring in the episode "Stolen Faces" in which Diana makes the change while falling off a tall building, and the season two episode "The Pied Piper" in which she changes while strapped into a spinning chair. Diana also exhibited other powers, particularly in the episode "The Deadly Dolphin," in which she is shown communicating telepathically with animals (reminiscent of the "mental radio" from the comics, which was never shown on the series) and generating bursts of an unknown form of energy to scare away a killer shark. In the final episode produced, the writers attempted a "relaunch" of sorts by having Diana reassigned to the Los Angeles bureau of IADC with a new supporting cast. Though done in anticipation of a fourth season, the revamp was seen only in one episode ("The Man Who Could Not Die"), which set up an assortment of new supporting characters. These included Dale Hawthorn, Diana's new IADC boss, Bret Cassiday (Bob Seagren), a genetically enhanced man who was indestructible (the titular character of the episode), as well as a streetwise youngster named T. Burton Phipps III who inexplicably is allowed to hang out at the IADC. Also added to the cast was a chimpanzee who, like Bret, is also indestructible. This episode was actually the last to be produced and would have ended the third season, but was shown out of sequence with the two-part episode "The Phantom of the Roller Coaster." These three episodes aired by themselves in August–September 1979, months after the broadcast of the rest of season three, creating a mini-season, though they remain grouped as part of season three. CBS ultimately decided to move The Incredible Hulk up to the Friday 8:00 hour from 9:00 to introduce the new series The Dukes of Hazzard, but no further episodes of Wonder Woman were produced due to the lack of new cast members for a fourth season and low ratings. The show ranked 60th out of 114 shows for the 1978-79 season, with a 16.5 rating and a 28 share . After her first musical television special, Carter gave up the role to focus more on her musical career. In October 2014, DC announced an ongoing comic book series set in the Lynda Carter TV series continuity. The comic was written by Marc Andreyko. It was first published as digital chapters on DC Comics' website. Wonder Woman '77 Special #1 was published in May 2015. A second Wonder Woman '77 Special collecting further digital first chapters was published in September 2015.. A third special was published in April 2016. Wonder Woman teams up with Jaime Sommers in the crossover title Wonder Woman ’77 Meets the Bionic Woman. Wonder Woman teams up with Batman in the crossover team up Batman' 66 Meets Wonder Woman '77 writing by both Andreyko and Jeff Parker. This portrayal of the character strongly influenced the Wonder Woman comics. Most notably, the ballerina-style spinning transformation was incorporated into the comics. The spin has also been used in the animated television programs Super Friends and Justice League Unlimited. Reruns of Wonder Woman aired in syndication during the 1980s. It also aired on FX, Sci-Fi Channel and Nickelodeon’s TV Land in the '90s and early 2000s. The show has aired Saturday evenings on the "classic TV" network MeTV since December 28, 2013 as part of its “Super Sci-Fi” Saturday Night science fiction block. In the UK, the series has been syndicated on several channels. In 2006, Living broadcast the show every weekend as part of "Hangover TV." As of 2015, the series is shown on The Horror Channel. Columbia House with Warner Home Video released the series on VHS videotapes through their Wonder Woman: The Collector's Edition series from the late 1990s-early 2000s, which was only available through mail order subscriptions. Each volume contained two episodes. The Season Two episodes "The Pied Piper" and "Flight To Oblivion," however, were not included on the VHS releases. Warner Home Video has released all three seasons of Wonder Woman on DVD in various regions, both separately and in a collected edition. The pilot episode is included as a bonus feature on the February 23, 2010 Blu-ray release of . The complete series has been remastered in high definition and reframed for a 16:9 widescreen format. This version is available for purchase on iTunes and airs on MeTV. Mego Corporation released a line of dolls in 1976 to correspond with the TV series. The boxes originally featured Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman on the front flap. However, in 1977, her image on the box was dropped and the line was revamped with only the Wonder Woman doll being featured and revised. The Mego dolls included Wonder Woman, Diana Prince, Queen Hippolyta, Nubia, and Steve Trevor. The line also included separate fashion outfits for Diana Prince that were released in Canada. Various playsets were also created but were not released for sale. DC Direct (which creates merchandise for DC Comics) released a Wonder Woman statue in 2007 which is based upon the image created by Lynda Carter. In 2015, Hallmark released a Wonder Woman Christmas ornament bearing the likeness of Lynda Carter that also plays the intro to the television theme song. In July 2016, prior to Comic-Con International, the New York Times ran a story about Dynamite Entertainment. In it, best-selling author Andy Mangels was revealed to be writing a prestigious new intercompany crossover mini-series for the company, in conjunction with DC Comics: Wonder Woman '77 Meets The Bionic Woman, bringing together the Lynda Carter television character with Lindsay Wagner's fellow 1970s television super- heroine. The series was released in December 2016. After the success of , animated film based on the Batman TV series of the 1960s, Warner Bros. had stated that their executives are considering to make an animated film based on the classic Wonder Woman TV series, with Lynda Carter reprising her role by voicing the character; along with an animated adaptation of the comic series Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Wonder Woman is a 2017 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, produced by DC Films in association with RatPac Entertainment and Chinese company Tencent Pictures, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the fourth installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). Directed by Patty Jenkins from a screenplay by Allan Heinberg and a story by Heinberg, Zack Snyder, and Jason Fuchs, Wonder Woman stars Gal Gadot in the title role, alongside Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Danny Huston, David Thewlis, Connie Nielsen, and Elena Anaya. It is the second live action theatrical film featuring Wonder Woman following her debut in 2016's . In Wonder Woman, the Amazon princess Diana sets out to stop World War I, believing the conflict was started by the longtime enemy of the Amazons, Ares, after American pilot and spy Steve Trevor crash-lands on their island Themyscira and informs her about it. Development of a live action Wonder Woman film began in 1996, with Ivan Reitman slated to produce and possibly direct. The project floundered in development hell for many years; Jon Cohen, Todd Alcott, and Joss Whedon, among others, were also attached to the project at various points. Warner Bros. announced the film in 2010 and Jenkins signed on to direct in 2015. Inspiration for Wonder Woman was drawn from Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston's 1940s stories and George Pérez's 1980s stories about Wonder Woman, as well as the New 52 incarnation of the character. Principal photography began on November 21, 2015, with filming taking place in the United Kingdom, France, and Italy before finishing on May 6, 2016, the 123rd anniversary of Marston's birth. Additional filming took place in November 2016. Wonder Woman had its world premiere in Shanghai on May 15, 2017, and was released in the United States on June 2, 2017, in 2D, Real D 3D, and IMAX 3D by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received largely positive reviews, with praise for its direction, acting, visuals, action sequences, and musical score. The film set several box office records, and became the fifth highest-grossing superhero film domestically and 20th highest-grossing film in the United States overall. It grossed over $821 million worldwide, making it the tenth highest-grossing film of 2017. As of August 2019, Rotten Tomatoes has listed the film fourth on its list of the "Best Superhero Movies of All Time", and the American Film Institute selected it as one of the top 10 films of 2017. A sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, is scheduled to be released on June 5, 2020, with Jenkins returning as director, and Gadot and Pine reprising their roles. In present-day Paris, Diana receives a photographic plate from Wayne Enterprises of herself and four men taken during World War I, prompting her to recall her past. The daughter of Queen Hippolyta, Diana is raised on the hidden island of Themyscira, home to the Amazonian women warriors created by Zeus to protect mankind. Hippolyta explains the Amazonian history to Diana, including how Ares became jealous of humanity and orchestrated its destruction. When the other gods attempted to stop him, Ares killed all but Zeus, who used the last of his power to wound Ares and force his retreat. Before dying, Zeus left the Amazons the island and a weapon, the "Godkiller", to prepare them for Ares's return. Although she initially forbids Diana to be trained as a warrior, Hippolyta reluctantly agrees to let General Antiope, Hippolyta's sister and Diana's aunt, train her, only more rigorously than any other warrior. In 1918, Diana, now a young woman, rescues US pilot Captain Steve Trevor when his plane crashes off the Themysciran coast. The island is soon invaded by German soldiers that had been pursuing Steve. The Amazons kill the crew, but Antiope sacrifices herself to save Diana. Steve is interrogated with the Lasso of Hestia and reveals that a great war is consuming the outside world and that he is an Allied spy. He has stolen a notebook of the chief chemist Dr. Isabel Maru, who is attempting to engineer a deadlier form of mustard gas under the orders of General Erich Ludendorff from a weapon facility in the Ottoman Empire. Believing Ares to be responsible for the war, Diana arms herself with the "Godkiller" sword, the lasso, and armor before leaving Themyscira with Steve to locate and stop Ares for good. In London, they deliver Maru's notebook to the Supreme War Council, where Sir Patrick Morgan is trying to negotiate an armistice with Germany. Diana translates Maru's notes and reveals that the Germans plan to release the deadly gas at the Western Front. Although forbidden by his commander to act, Steve, with secret funding from Morgan, recruits Moroccan spy Sameer, Scottish marksman Charlie, and Native American smuggler Chief Napi to help prevent the gas from being released. The team reaches the front in Belgium. Diana goes alone through No Man's Land and captures the enemy trench, allowing the Allied forces to help her liberate the nearby village of Veld. The team briefly celebrates, taking a photograph in the village, while Diana and Steve begin to fall in love. The team learns that a gala will be held at the nearby German High Command. Steve and Diana separately infiltrate the party, with Steve intending to locate the gas and destroy it, and Diana hoping to kill Ludendorff, believing that he is Ares and thus killing him will end the war. Steve stops her to avoid jeopardizing his mission, but this allows Ludendorff to unleash the gas on Veld, killing its inhabitants. Blaming Steve for intervening, Diana pursues Ludendorff to a base where the gas is being loaded into a bomber aircraft bound for London. Diana fights and kills him, but is confused and disillusioned when his death does not stop the war. Morgan appears and reveals himself as Ares. He tells Diana that although he has subtly given humans ideas and inspirations, using Ludendorff and Maru as pawns in the process, it is ultimately their decision to resort to violence as they are inherently corrupt. When Diana attempts to kill Ares with the "Godkiller" sword, he destroys it, then reveals to Diana that she herself is the "Godkiller", as the daughter of Zeus and Hippolyta. He fails to persuade Diana to help him destroy mankind in order to restore paradise on Earth. While the two battle, Steve's team destroys Maru's laboratory. Steve hijacks and pilots the bomber carrying the poison to a safe altitude and detonates it, sacrificing himself. Ares attempts to direct Diana's rage and grief at Steve's death by convincing her to kill Maru, but the memories of her experiences with Steve cause her to realize that humans have good within them. She spares Maru and redirects Ares's lightning into him, killing him for good. Later, the team celebrates the end of the war. In the present day, Diana sends an email to Bruce Wayne thanking him for the photographic plate of her and Steve and continues to fight and give on the world's behalf, understanding that only love can truly save the world. Gal Gadot as Diana: An immortal Amazon warrior goddess who is the crown princess of Themyscira and the daughter of Queen Hippolyta and Zeus given to the Amazons to raise. Describing Wonder Woman and her appeal, Gadot said, "She's relatable. She has the heart of a human and is very compassionate, but her experiences—or lack of them, her naivete, really—make her interested in everything around her and able to view the world in a way that we'd all like to: with a genuine curiosity." On Diana's relationship with her mother, Gadot said, "Diana is a very opinionated girl. Her mother is very opinionated. Her mother is very protective as well, and they have, you know, the very natural clash that a mother has with her daughter, with their daughters, the first time they want to leave home." On taking on the role as Wonder Woman, Gadot stated, "I feel very privileged that I got the opportunity to portray such an iconic, strong female character. I adore this character and everything that she stands for and everything that she symbolizes." On Diana going to the world, Gadot stated, "When Diana comes to the real world she's completely oblivious about gender and society rules, that women are not equal to men." Describing Diana's relationship with her mother and aunts, Jenkins said, "She is the only child they raised together. And their love for her manifests in a different way for each of them." On working with Gadot, Jenkins said, "Gal quickly became the person I wanted to talk to about everything. We'd shoot together all day. And then on weekends, we'd be like, 'What do you want to do?' That's maybe not totally normal.", Emily Carey as 12-year-old Diana, Lilly Aspell as 8-year-old Diana, Chris Pine as Capt. Steve Trevor: An American pilot and the love interest of Diana. On his role for the film, Pine said, "I am an American pilot who's a spy. It's like a boy's dream: You're either a spy or a fighter pilot. The first thing I wanted to be was a fighter pilot a long time ago. I wanted to be Goose [from Top Gun]". As to how his mortal character would interact with an Amazon, Pine stated, "When I first read the script, it had elements of Romancing the Stone, kind of a very classic fish out of water. Two people that don't really bond well at first and they're butting heads and just fun, witty banter". When speaking about meeting the director and being cast, Pine said, "Patty is a pretty incredible human being. When we first met about the part of Steve, she sat across from me and essentially acted out the entire film over the course of a two-hour lunch. She was so specific, so articulate, and so ardent. I would've said yes just for Patty alone." Pine went through a workout regimen for the film, commenting, "I got in incredible shape for this film" but also joking "I was also wearing about 75 pounds of clothing. What I realized is that I made a major mistake, I got in great shape and they just put clothes over all my hard work.", Robin Wright as Antiope: The sister of Hippolyta, general of the Amazonian army, Diana's aunt and mentor. On being cast for the film, Wright said, "It's two-fold because when Patty Jenkins called me, the director, it was a three-minute long conversation. She said, 'I'm doing a movie about Wonder Woman. Do you want to be her trainer?' And I was like, 'Yes. Of course.' And the general of the Amazonian army. That was pretty cool." Describing her character mentoring and training Diana to be a warrior, Wright said, "It's a sixth sense that it is coming and I think that's also in the mythological story behind Antiope and Queen Hippolyta. They know it's coming and it's her duty as the aunt to her young niece to make sure she is the fiercest warrior of all time." On the Amazons fighting style, Wright said, "It's hand combat. Yes, swords and knives and arrows, but the precision that they have, right, as these warrior women; it's so nice to see that disparity between what we had in the day of just raw fighting materials and the guns and how easy that is in comparison." The message of the film, Wright stated, "is not just female empowerment. It's about love and justice. That's what the film's about. And what a great message to spread to our little ones." Commenting about training for the film, Wright said, "The most empowering was to get into that physical shape. So we were doing horseback riding training, weight training, martial arts, and 2,000 to 3,000 calories a day"., Danny Huston as Erich Ludendorff: An iron-fisted general of the German Army during World War I. Huston described Ludendorff as a "pragmatist, realist, patriotic, fighting for his country", further explaining, "he lost his son on the German front lines and was just quite tortured, diabolical, stubborn and believes that what he's doing is for the betterment of mankind." On his character, Huston said, "Ludendorff is a believer that war is a natural habitat for humans." Huston stated the film as an anti-war film and "somebody like Ludendorff would probably think that the idea that love conquers all is quite a naive concept. But finally it's true and sometimes the best way to examine mankind is from another perspective." On the genre of the film, Huston said, "It's Greek mythology. It's the origin of story and sometimes we need demigods to look at us to understand what our weaknesses are. It serves the mythological world.", David Thewlis as Sir Patrick Morgan / Ares: Diana's treacherous paternal half-brother, based on the Greek mythological god of war, who masquerades as a speaker for peace on the Imperial War Cabinet as part of his deceptive master plan of conquest and destruction. Describing the Sir Patrick persona of his character, Thewlis said, "Sir Patrick's entire drive through the other half of the story is to bring about the armistice. That's his whole intention no matter what's going on. He meets Diana and see [sic] in her somebody who is sympathetic to his cause, quite vehemently so.", Connie Nielsen as Hippolyta: The Amazon Queen of Themyscira and Diana's mother. After meeting the director for the role, Nielsen said, "Patty and I met in London, and we just hit it off from the get-go. We couldn't stop talking. What was supposed to be a one-hour meeting turned into a two-and-a-half-hour lunch and we just really got each other." She described Jenkins's directing style for the film as "She's also the kind of director that I really flourish under. She has very strong and particular and specific ideas about what it is she wants to say. She comes from a place of strength always. And so, when you are dealing with someone like that, you feel absolutely free to be vulnerable, to be creative, and I am a big researcher." On playing the character, Nielsen said, "It was a complete and utter pleasure and I absolutely loved every second of playing her." On her character being Diana's mother and Amazonian queen, Nielsen stated, "I'm queen and I'm preparing my child for a world that entails a lot of responsibility. So it was important to me to bring that into the character." She read The Amazons by Adrienne Mayor to familiarize herself with women warriors and said "I used what I learned in Mayor's book as a rallying cry for how I approached Hippolyta. And then, of course, what is a leader who is elected by her peers every year and has been doing this for a thousand years? That too was interesting to think about". Nielsen went through a workout regimen for the film, saying "I did six hours a day. You know, two hours of weight training, two hours of swords training, and then two hours of horseback riding"., Elena Anaya as Dr. Isabel Maru / Doctor Poison: The chief chemist associated with General Ludendorff who specializes in chemistry and poisons. On her role, Anaya said, "Well, it was a small role in this big ensemble, but it is an important character in the story. I'm going to be a big nightmare" for Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor. Describing her character, Anaya said, "Dr. Maru loves rage and enjoys people's pain. She's creating terrible weapons, and her purpose in life is to kill as many people as possible, and provoke as much pain as possible". She researched World War I and Fritz Haber, the scientist who created mustard gas, to prepare for the role. On the character's facial scars, Anaya stated, "I went to Patty Jenkins and asked, 'What happened to her?' And she said, 'She did it on purpose.' I was like, 'What? Patty, you're going further than I ever imagined.' She said, 'She wants to provoke painful suffering, so she tested her own gas on her own face. She wanted to know how deep this form of her gas would go, so she put it on her own face.' You can see half of her face is completely gone. This is the sadistic side of Dr. Maru". She also stated her character "is quite the opposite to the lead role of this movie, one of the strongest characters ever of DC comics, Wonder Woman. I can tell you that Doctor Poison is someone with a capacity to provoke so much pain." On Dr. Maru's relationship with General Ludendorff, Anaya said, "I think that they have a relationship based on loyalty. Ludendorff is a very tormented General that lacks self-confidence. That's why, in part, he takes these drugs that Dr. Poison gives him. They are from different worlds, but they complement each other"., Lucy Davis as Etta Candy: Steve Trevor's secretary who befriends Diana. Describing her character, Davis said, "She's a woman in a man's world and so being heard and seen aren't the easiest things, but it kind of doesn't deter her", adding, "Etta is unapologetically herself and I think that that's the thing that has drawn me to her the most". When asked if she was previously familiar with the character, Davis responded, "No. I wasn't. It took me a while to know that I was auditioning for Etta because even when I found out it was Wonder Woman, I still had no idea what the role was. It took a little while then I Googled the character". On Etta Candy's relationship with Steve Trevor, Davis said, "One of the great things that Etta gets to work with Steve Trevor is because Steve is not your typical man, in that he does entrust her with things that in 1918 probably wouldn't have been entrusted to a secretary of somebody who is quite important", further explaining, "So I think that [Trevor] needs her just as much as she needs that because now she's been given responsibility that she wouldn't have normally be given before, and equally he has somebody who could probably fly under the radar a bit. So he can trust the person who no one's really looking at"., Saïd Taghmaoui as Sameer: A secret agent and ally of Steve Trevor. On his casting, Taghmaoui stated, "I was among hundreds of potential candidates, and I slowly became the favorite", adding, "It wasn't easy. It took me three months. [I'll have to go through] extensive physical training.", Ewen Bremner as Charlie: A sharpshooter and ally of Steve Trevor. On his role, Bremner said, "I play a character who's enlisted by Wonder Woman to help save the world as part of a small, unlikely band". Describing his character, Bremner stated "He's a shellshocked soldier who's been discharged from the war and is brought back to help on a secret mission". On working with Jenkins, Bremner commented, "Patty Jenkins is a force of nature. She has fantastic vision, strength and enthusiasm, which is completely infectious and motivates a cast and crew of thousands to really go beyond themselves.", Eugene Brave Rock as Chief Napi: A Blackfoot demi-god, and a smuggler who trades with both sides of the war and knows how to get people across the front lines. On his casting, Brave Rock said, "I had no idea it was for Wonder Woman. I lost it when I showed up and I couldn't remember my lines. I didn't take it literally until a month later, I got a call saying I got the role and they wanted me to fly to London for a fitting." Brave Rock raised several concerns with Jenkins over the representation of the character in the film, particularly that he was not comfortable playing into stereotypes and that he was not keen on his character being simply known as "Chief". Jenkins responded by giving him some extra creative control over his character which Brave Rock says was "unprecedented"., Lisa Loven Kongsli as Menalippe: Antiope's lieutenant and Diana's aunt. Describing her character, Kongsli said "Menalippe is a fearless warrior with a strong justice needs. She lives with the other Amazons on the island Themyscira and exercising continuous battle to assist man in the fight for the good." On filming, Kongsli stated, "It's a blast. I've worked damn hard to make this happen, so it's absolutely absurd and fun all at once." Additionally, Mayling Ng, Florence Kasumba, Madeleine Vall Beijner, Hayley Jane Warnes and Ann Wolfe portray Orana, Acantha, Egeria, Aella and Artemis, respectively, all of whom are Amazons. James Cosmo appears as Douglas Haig, Steffan Rhodri appears as Darnell, and Dutch supermodel Doutzen Kroes portrays the Amazon Venelia. Samantha Jo was cast as the Amazonian Euboea, and previously played the Kryptonian, Car-Vex, in Man of Steel. Zack Snyder also makes a brief cameo appearance in the film as an unnamed soldier. Development for a live action Wonder Woman feature film began in 1996, with Ivan Reitman attached as producer and possible director. In 1999 the project became attached to Jon Cohen, who adapted Wonder Woman for producer Joel Silver, with the hope that Sandra Bullock would star. By 2001, Todd Alcott was hired to write the screenplay, with Silver Pictures backing the project. At that time, performers such as Mariah Carey and Catherine Zeta-Jones were also rumored to be possible candidates for the role of Wonder Woman. Leonard Goldberg focused on Bullock who said that she was approached for the role. Lucy Lawless, the star of , was also under consideration, though she stated that she would have been more interested if Wonder Woman was portrayed as a "flawed hero". The screenplay went through various drafts written by Alcott, Cohen, Becky Johnston, and Philip Levens, and by August 2003, Levens had been replaced by screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis. In March 2005, Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures announced that Joss Whedon would write and direct the film. Early drafts of his screenplay included Steve Trevor as the narrator, a fierce battle between Diana and her mother over Trevor's welfare, and after leaving Themyscira, his need to frequently rescue a Diana rendered helpless by the modern world. Whedon was not able to complete a final version of his screenplay, and left the project in 2007. Although Whedon stated in May 2005 that he would not cast the part of Wonder Woman until he finished the script, Kate Beckinsale was linked to the part. In 2010, Whedon admitted that he did have an actress in mind for the part, stating that "Wonder Woman was basically Angelina Jolie." A day before Whedon's departure from Wonder Woman, Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures purchased a spec script for the film written by Matthew Jennison and Brent Strickland. Set during World War II, the script impressed executives at Silver Pictures. However, Silver stated that he had purchased the script because he did not want the rights reverting; while stating the script had good ideas, Silver did not want the film to be a period piece. By April 2008, Silver hired Jennison and Strickland to write a new script set in contemporary times that would not depict Wonder Woman's origin, but explore Paradise Island's history. In 2010, Warner Bros. stated that a Wonder Woman film was in development, along with films based on DC Comics superheroes the Flash and Aquaman. Both Wonder Woman and Aquaman were still under consideration for solo film subjects as of June 2013. DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson said Wonder Woman "has been, since I started, one of the top three priorities for DC and for Warner Bros. We are still trying right now, but she's tricky." On October 5, 2013, WB chairman and CEO Kevin Tsujihara said he wanted to get Wonder Woman in a film or on TV. Shortly afterward, Paul Feig said he had pitched the studio an idea for Wonder Woman as an action-comedy film. The studio then began to search for female directors to direct the film. While Michelle MacLaren was the studio's initial choice to direct (and while she initially indicated interest), she eventually left the project due to creative differences. In 2015, Patty Jenkins accepted an offer to direct Wonder Woman, based on a screenplay by Allan Heinberg and a story co-written by Heinberg, Zack Snyder, Geoff Johns and Jason Fuchs. Of this version, Gadot stated that, for a long time, people didn't know how to approach the story. When Patty and I had our creative conversations about the character, we realized that Diana can still be a normal woman, one with very high values, but still a woman. She can be sensitive. She is smart and independent and emotional. She can be confused. She can lose her confidence. She can have confidence. She is everything. She has a human heart. This version was conceived of as a prequel to the first live-action, theatrical appearance of Wonder Woman, in the 2016 film, , placing Wonder Woman in the 1910s and World War I (a decision which differs from her comic book origins as a supporter of the Allies during World War II). As for story development, Jenkins credits the stories by the character's creator William Moulton Marston in the 1940s and George Perez's seminal stories in the 1980s in which he modernized the character. In addition, it follows some aspects of DC Comics' origin changes in The New 52 reboot, where Diana is the daughter of Zeus. Jenkins cited Richard Donner's Superman as an inspiration. In late 2013, Zack Snyder cast Gal Gadot in the role of Wonder Woman for the 2016 film, over Élodie Yung and Olga Kurylenko. Some fans initially reacted to this choice by criticizing Gadot's appearance. Snyder would later comment on his decision to cast Gadot, stating that he tested a "bunch of actresses, as you can imagine. But the thing with Gal is that she's strong, she's beautiful, and she's a kind person, which is interesting, but fierce at the same time. It's that combination of being fierce but kind at the same time that we were looking for. Gadot described Diana as having "the heart of a human so she can be emotional, she's curious, she's compassionate, she loves people. And then she has the powers of a goddess. She's all for good, she fights for good." She also said that Diana has "many strengths and powers, but at the end of the day she's a woman with a lot of emotional intelligence". As to how her character is different from her appearance in , Gadot said "We go back 100 years to when she's more naive", further explaining, "She's this young idealist. She's pure. Very different to the experienced, super-confident, grown-up woman you've seen". Gadot underwent a diet and training regimen, practiced different martial arts and gained 17 pounds of muscle for the role. Gadot was previously offered a different role (as a villain) in Man of Steel, which she declined because she was pregnant at the time; this allowed her to later be cast as Wonder Woman in the film's follow-up. Gadot signed a three-picture deal. She was paid a base salary of $300,000 for the film itself. Chris Pine was cast as Steve Trevor, a character he described as a "rogue-ish, cynical realist who's seen the awful brutish nature of modern civilization" and added that he is a "worldly guy, a charming guy". He signed a multi-picture deal. Lucy Davis' performance as Etta Candy is the first live-action cinematic portrayal of the character. As well, Elena Anaya's performance as Doctor Poison is the cinematic debut of that character. Nicole Kidman was in negotiations for the role of Queen Hippolyta, but was forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts with Big Little Lies. Principal photography on the film began on November 21, 2015, under the working title Nightingale. Among the film sets were Lower Halstow, Kent, and Australia House in England and the Sassi di Matera, Castel del Monte and Camerota in Southern Italy. Matthew Jensen was the director of photography, filming in the United Kingdom, France and Italy. Production in London concluded on March 13, 2016. On March 20, 2016, filming was underway in Italy. In late April, filming took place at the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, where a Wayne Enterprises truck was spotted alongside Gadot. Principal photography finished on May 9, 2016. Patty Jenkins and director of photography Matt Jensen said that the film's look was inspired by painter John Singer Sargent. Reshoots took place in November 2016, while Gadot was five months pregnant. A green cloth was placed over her stomach to edit out her pregnancy during post- production. To find the perfect location to shoot the Amazon island of Themyscira, the birthplace of Wonder Woman herself, the film's producers searched all over the world, finally settling on the Cilentan Coast: a stretch of coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea, located in the Province of Salerno in Southern Italy. It was chosen because most beaches in the world that sit below big cliffs disappear beneath the tide for part of every day. Production designer Aline Bonetto and her location manager Charles Somers considered 47 countries and visited several of them before they found what they were looking for. Bonetto explained that, "Italy had beautiful weather, a beautiful blue- green sea, not too much tide, not too much wave. Our effects team added some cliffs in post-production, and it was the perfect way to go". The estuary at Lower Halstow in Kent is featured in the scene in which Diana arrives at a Belgian creek to make her way to the warfront. Bill Westenhofer served as the visual effects supervisor for the film and Martin Walsh served as editor. On November 3, 2016, Rupert Gregson-Williams was hired to write and compose the film's music. He was joined by Evan Jolly, Tom Howe, Paul Mounsey, and Andrew Kawczynski, who provided additional music. The soundtrack was released on CD, digital, and vinyl the same day as the film. Australian musician Sia sang a song for the film, titled "To Be Human", featuring English musician Labrinth. Written by Florence Welch and Rick Nowels, the track is also featured on the soundtrack. The soundtrack also features samples from Wonder Woman's theme "Is She with You" from the soundtrack composed by Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL. Additional music featured in the film are: "Another Little Drink Wouldn't Do Us Any Harm" by Clifford Grey and Nat Ayer and performed by Edgar Trevor and Cecil Cooper; "Molly O'Morgan" written by Fred Godfrey and Will Letters and performed by Ella Retford; "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" written by Jack Judge and Harry Williams; "Sous les ponts de Paris" written by Jean Rodor and Vincent Scotto and performed by Lucienne Delyle; "I'll Walk Beside You" written by Edward Lockton and Alan Murray and performed by Ewen Bremner; "Green Grow the Rushes, O" written by Robert Burns and performed by Ewen Bremner; and "Schatzwalzer Op. 4" written by Johann Strauss II and performed by the Berlin String Quartet. Wonder Woman had its world premiere on May 15, 2017, in Shanghai. It premiered on May 25, 2017, in Los Angeles. The film's London premiere, which was scheduled to take place on May 31 at the Odeon Leicester Square, was cancelled due to the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing. The film had its Latin America premiere in Mexico City on May 27. It was released in most of the world, including in IMAX, on June 2, 2017, after originally being scheduled for June 23. Belgium, Singapore and South Korea received the film first, with May 31 openings. On April 17, it was announced that Wonder Woman would be released in China on June 2, the same day as its North American release. The success of the superhero television series Supergirl informed the marketing and promotion strategy used for Wonder Woman. According to Time Warner chief marketing officer Kristen O'Hara, they wanted to approach the Wonder Woman marketing campaign in a light manner, similar to how they did with Supergirl. O'Hara elaborated that the modest campaign route they took for Supergirl aided in establishing a large central fanbase among women well in advance of the series, which reportedly generated 5million female superhero fans in one week. They were then able to model over time, and grow that audience leading up to the 15-months-later release of Wonder Woman. Though neither the film nor the series are aimed exclusively at women, the latter's campaign gave them their first opportunity to begin collecting data about female superhero fans. In May 2017, a promo for Wonder Woman was released during the season finale of Supergirl, featuring a remix of the song "These Boots Are Made for Walkin' and Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) wearing Wonder Woman's boots. The promo included an appearance by Lynda Carter, star of the 1970s Wonder Woman, who plays the American president on Supergirl. The costs for television advertisements for Wonder Woman are higher in comparison to that of previous DCEU film Suicide Squad. Warner Bros. has spent over $3 million on advertisements for Wonder Woman, whereas they spent $2.6 million on advertisements for Suicide Squad. Ticket selling site Fandango reported that Wonder Woman rounded the final leg of its marketing campaign as the most anticipated blockbuster of summer 2017, according to a poll conducted by 10,000 voters, the biggest survey in company history. Separately, Fandango also found that 92% of people surveyed said that they are looking forward to seeing a film that features a standalone woman superhero, and 87% wished Hollywood would make more women-led superhero films. In May 2017, NASCAR driver Danica Patrick drove her No. 10 car with a Wonder Woman paint scheme at the Go Bowling 400 in Kansas and at the Monster Energy Open in Charlotte. Wonder Woman was released on Digital HD on August 29, 2017, and on Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray and DVD on September 19, 2017. The film debuted at the top spot of both the NPD VideoScan overall disc sales chart and the Blu-ray Disc sales chart. On May 31, Wonder Woman was banned in Lebanon after the Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel asked the Lebanese government's Ministry of Economy and Trade to block the film because its star, Gal Gadot, is Israeli. The Lebanese government did not ban Gadot's Fast & Furious films which did screen in Lebanon. On June 6, Variety reported that Algiers, the capital of Algeria, pulled the film from the "Nuits du Cinéma" film festival. On June 7, Variety also reported that a Tunisian court suspended the theatrical release of Wonder Woman after a lawsuit brought by the Al-Chaab party and the Tunisian Association of Young Lawyers to have the film blocked due to Gadot's Israeli citizenship, military service, and public comments in support of the Israeli military during the 2014 war in Gaza. Jordan was reportedly also considering a ban of the film and suspended screenings pending a decision, but on June 11, it was reported that the government decided not to do so, as there was no legal precedent for it. On June 30, Qatar issued a ban on the film. Some men were unhappy with women-only screenings held at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Austin, with some opponents of the gender-restricted screening stating on platforms such as Facebook that such screenings were discriminatory against men. A gay Albany Law School professor initiated a complaint with Austin's Equal Employment and Fair Housing Office claiming discrimination against male prospective customers and employees of the theater. The chain responded with an online statement saying the event "may have created confusion—we want everybody to see this film" and announced a similar event at their Brooklyn location. Tickets sold out in less than an hour, prompting the chain to schedule additional screenings. On July 18, Alamo Drafthouse proposed settlement offers of a Wonder Woman DVD to the complainants, stating "Respondent did not realize that advertising a 'women's only' screening was a violation of discrimination laws." Wonder Woman grossed $412.6 million in the United States and Canada and $409.3 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $821.8 million, against an estimated production budget of $120–150 million. Estimates for the number the film needed to surpass internationally in order to cover its production and promotional costs and break even ranged from $300 million to $460 million. Deadline Hollywood calculated the net profit of the film to be $252.9 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues, making it the 6th most profitable release of 2017. In May 2017, early tracking had Wonder Woman opening with $65–75 million, and possibly as high as $105 million. The film opened Friday, June 2, 2017, across 4,165 theaters and made $38.7 million on its opening day, including $3.7 million in IMAX. It was the biggest single-day gross for a woman-directed film, ahead of the $35.9 million opening Friday of Catherine Hardwicke's Twilight in 2008 and the biggest opening day for a woman-led comic book superhero film, ahead of Ghost in the Shell ($7 million). This included $11 million it made from Thursday previews, also the best start for a film directed by a woman, surpassing Fifty Shades of Greys $8.6 million which was directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, and the third-biggest of the year, behind Beauty and the Beast and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Of that, $1.5 million came from IMAX screenings. Earning a total of $103.3 million on its opening weekend, the film recorded a number of records: the biggest domestic opening of all time for a female director (surpassing previous record holder Fifty Shades of Grey), the biggest DC Comics release without Batman or Superman (ahead of Constantine), the sixth-biggest non-sequel comic book superhero debut ever, as well as the sixth-biggest June debut weekend. Its three-day opening alone made it the highest-grossing woman-led comic book superhero film ever (surpassing Ghost in the Shell). It was also the 16th superhero film to cross $100 million in its domestic box office launch. About 9% ($9 million) of the opening weekend came from IMAX screenings from 343 theaters. In its second week the film grossed $58.5 million, again topping the box office. It marked a 43.3% drop for its second weekend at the box office, better than the average 50–60% decline superhero films tend to see, and was a better second weekend than ($51.3 million) and Suicide Squad ($43.5 million). In its third weekend it grossed $40.8 million, finishing second behind newcomer Cars 3 ($53.5 million). It was the second-best third weekend ever for Warner Bros. and was nearly double what Batman v Superman ($23.3 million), Suicide Squad ($20.9 million) and Man of Steel ($20.7 million) made in their third weekends. It earned $24.9 million and $15.7 million in its fourth and fifth weekends, respectively, dropping just 39% and 36% despite facing rough competition from opening films and Despicable Me 3. It eventually became the highest-grossing film directed by a woman, surpassing the previous records of Jennifer Yuh Nelson's Kung Fu Panda 2 and Phyllida Lloyd's Mamma Mia!. By August 8, the film had garnered $400 million in ticket sales, becoming the second female- fueled film (after Disney's Beauty and the Beast), Warner Bros.' third-biggest movie (after Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises), holding the record of the highest-earning superhero origin film, replacing the previous record held by Spider-Man (2002). It also becoming the highest- earning film with a female director in terms of domestic earnings—surpassing Frozen (2013). Beyond the US and Canada, the film was released day-and-date with its North American debut in 55 markets (72% of its total release), and was projected to debut with anywhere between $92–118 million. It ended up opening to $125 million, including $38 million in China, $8.5 million in Korea, $8.4 million in Mexico, $8.3 million in Brazil and $7.5 million in the UK. In its second week of release, the film brought in another $60 million, including holding the top spot on France, the UK, Australia and Brazil. In the Philippines, it broke 2017 box office record for highest-earning non-holiday opening day—earning $4.7 million and becoming the 9th-most successful commercial film of all time as well overtaking the record set by Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The film opened in its last market, Japan, on August 25 and debuted to $3.4 million, helping the international gross cross the $400 million mark. The biggest markets of Wonder Woman outside North America are China (US$90million) followed by Brazil (US$34million), UK (US$28million), Australia($23million) and Mexico($22million). Wonder Woman received a largely positive response from critics, with some calling it the DC Extended Universe's best film, praising Jenkins's direction and the acting, chemistry between Gadot and Pine, musical score, and action sequences. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 93% based on 440 reviews, with an average rating of 7.64/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Thrilling, earnest, and buoyed by Gal Gadot's charismatic performance, Wonder Woman succeeds in spectacular fashion." It is the fourth highest-rated superhero film on the site. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on 50 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it an 85% overall positive score and a 73% "definite recommend". Critics commented favorably on Gadot's performance of the titular character and Chris Pine's Steve Trevor. Andrew Barker of Variety found the film to be more lighthearted than recent DC Comics films: Vox stated "Trevor is the superhero girlfriend comic book movies need". The San Francisco Chronicles Mick LaSalle lauded the performances of Gadot, Pine, Huston, and Thewlis while commending the film's "different perspective" and humor. Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun-Times described Gadot's performance as inspirational, heroic, heartfelt and endearing and the most "real" Wonder Woman portrayal. A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote that it "briskly shakes off blockbuster branding imperatives and allows itself to be something relatively rare in the modern superhero cosmos. It feels less like yet another installment in an endless sequence of apocalyptic merchandising opportunities than like ... what's the word I'm looking for? A movie. A pretty good one, too." Michael Phillips of Chicago Tribune compared the film to , noting that as with "the first Captain America movie over in the Marvel Comics universe, DC's Wonder Woman offers the pleasures of period re-creation for a popular audience. Jenkins and her design team make 1918-era London; war-torn Belgium; the Ottoman Empire; and other locales look freshly realized, with a strong point of view. There are scenes here of dispossessed war refugees, witnessed by an astonished and heartbroken Diana, that carry unusual gravity for a comic book adaptation." Katie Erbland of IndieWire commended its thematic depth, explaining that "Wonder Woman is a war movie. Patty Jenkins' first—and we hope not last—entry into the DC Expanded Universe is primarily set during World War I, but while the feature doesn't balk at war-time violence, it's the internal battles of its compelling heroine that are most vital." Alonso Duralde of TheWrap similarly felt that, "Diana's scenes of action are thrilling precisely because they're meant to stop war, not to foment it; the idea of a demi-god using love to fight war might sound goofy in the abstract, but Jenkins makes the concept work." Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post praised Gadot and Pine's performances as well the film's detailed plot and narrative while comparing of some slow-motion action sequences to The Matrix. Stephanie Zacharek of Time magazine hailed the film as a "cut above nearly all the superhero movies that have been trotted out over the past few summers" while praising Gadot's performance as "charming" and "marvelous" and commending Jenkins's direction of the film as a step forward for women directors in directing big-budget blockbuster films in Hollywood. Elise Jost of Moviepilot observed that "Gadot's take on Wonder Woman is one of those unique cases of an actor merging with their story, similar to Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark. Gal Gadot is Wonder Woman, and Wonder Woman is Gal Gadot." Jost praised Gadot's interpretation of Wonder Woman as the one in which Gadot "absolutely nails the character's unwaveringly positive outlook on life. She's a force of nature who believes in the greater good; her conviction that she's meant to save the world is stronger than her bullet-deflecting shield. She's genuine, she's fun, she's the warm source of energy at the heart of the movie." The Federalist suggests that Wonder Woman is "a story of Jesus". "The movie is wrapped up in faux Greek mythology, true, but there's no mistaking the Christology here." "Perhaps Christ in the form of a beautiful and kick-ass Amazon is all that our contemporary society can handle right now", stated M. Hudson, a Christian feminist. On HuffPost cultural critic, G. Roger Denson, who regards the superhero genre as a source of contemporary "Mainstream Mythopoetics" ("the making of new yet vitally meaningful, if not symbolic, stories filled with imagery reflecting, yet also shaping and advancing, the political, legal, moral and social practices of today"), wrote that the "No Man's Land" scene "that people are crying over in theaters and raving about afterward happens to be among the most powerfully mythopoetic scenes ever filmed at the same time it is one of the oldest myths to have been utilized by artists and writers after it had been invented by early military strategists and leaders." Specifically "used by director Patty Jenkins", the scene raises "the esteem for powerful yet compassionate women as heroes and leaders to a level equal with that of men for having won over a huge and adoring popular audience around the world". Steve Rose in The Guardian criticized the film for failing to explore the material's potential for "patriarchy-upending subversion". Peter Travers of Rolling Stone criticized the film's over-reliance on exposition: "Wonder Woman is hobbled by a slogging origin story and action that only comes in fits and starts. Just when Gadot and director Patty Jenkins...are ready to kick ass, we get backstory." "Gas was intended to win the war. On that much Wonder Woman is absolutely right." said David Hambling in Popular Mechanics. Rachel Becker of The Verge stated that despite the scientific liberties of using a "hydrogen-based" chemical weapon as a plot device, the film succeeds in evoking real and horrifying history. "First off, mustard gas is such a horrible, terrifying weapon, it doesn't need to be made more potent. But if you were a chemist bent on raining destruction on the Allied forces, you wouldn't do it by replacing the sulfur atom in mustard gas with a hydrogen atom. You'd know that sulfur is the linchpin holding together this poisonous molecule." Wonder Woman has been the subject of a discussion regarding the appearance and representation of female power in general, and of female action heroes in particular since her initial 1941 appearance in Sensation Comics, as she was created to document "the growth in the power of women", while wearing "a golden tiara, a red bustier, blue underpants and knee-high, red leather boots." She was blacklisted a year later in 1942 in the "Publications Disapproved for Youth" because, the group behind the list argued, she was "not sufficiently dressed". A few decades later, second-wave feminist Gloria Steinem's Ms. Magazine debuted in 1972 with an image of Wonder Woman on the cover. Historian Tim Hanley suggests that this move shifted "the focus away from female superiority to sisterhood and equality, essentially making her a mascot of the women's movement". This perception shifted over the years, as demonstrated in December 2016 when the United Nations decided to drop the title of "honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls" which it had given to the comic book character Wonder Woman a few months prior, in a ceremony attended by the actors who had portrayed her (Lynda Carter and Gal Gadot). The title was eliminated in response to a petition signed by 44,000 people which argued that Wonder Woman undermines female empowerment due to her costume, described as a "shimmery, thigh-baring bodysuit with an American flag motif and knee-high boots". The petition stated that "it is alarming that the United Nations would consider using a character with an overtly sexualised image at a time when the headline news in United States and the world is the objectification of women and girls". Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins responded to both the petition and to the U.N.'s decision by stating that she thinks "that that's sexist. I think it's sexist to say you can't have both. I have to ask myself what I would apply to any other superhero". The debate continued with the release of Jenkins's 2017 film, Wonder Woman, which according to the BBC had "some thinking it's too feminist and others thinking it's not feminist enough". Kyle Killian found an inherent contradiction in the construction of Wonder Woman as "a warrior" who, she states, is also highly sexualized. Killian thus suggests that these elements "should not be the focus of a kickass heroine—her beauty, bone structure, and sexiness—if she is to be a feminist icon". Theresa Harold concurred, comparing Wonder Woman to Katniss Everdeen (of The Hunger Games), who "didn't have to wear a teenager's wet dream of a costume to fight in". Christina Cauterucci also felt that Wonder Woman's ability to be considered a "feminist antidote" was undermined by her "sex appeal". Other critics refer to the construction of Wonder Woman in the film as "an implausible post-feminist hero". Jenkins disagrees with this line of critique. She has stated that she was raised by a second-wave "feminist mother", who taught her to be "both super aware that there had been sexism but also: 'Congratulations—thank you, now I get to do whatever I want, Mom! Jenkins thus notes that it is this upbringing which has led her to question a feminist critique of Wonder Woman's costume. When she was working on her own version of Wonder Woman's "Gladiator" re-design of the outfit (in the 2016 film ) Jenkins decided that Wonder Woman (as well as the other Amazons) "shouldn't be dressed in armor like men ... It should be different ... I, as a woman, want Wonder Woman to be hot as hell, fight badass, and look great at the same time—the same way men want Superman to have huge pecs and an impractically big body." Jenkins also notes that she is "frustrated" by the critique of Wonder Woman's appearance, stating "when people get super critical about her outfit, who's the one getting crazy about what a woman wears? That's who she is; that's Wonder Woman." Gal Gadot concurred with Jenkins, arguing that the character "is a feminist" as "feminism is about equality and choice and freedom. And the writers, Patty and myself all figured that the best way to show that is to show Diana as having no awareness of social roles. She has no gender boundaries. To her, everyone is equal." Critics such as Valerie Estelle Frankel support Jenkins's vision. Frankel argues that the film subverts the male gaze, stating that the construction of Wonder Woman tends to shift every few decades as it reflects the state of feminism during different time periods, including third-wave feminism (which reflects Jenkins's approach). Zoe Williams offers a similar argument, stating that while Wonder Woman "is sort of naked a lot of the time," that is not, at the same time, "objectification so much as a cultural reset: having thighs, actual thighs you can kick things with, not thighs that look like arms, is a feminist act". Williams then juxtaposes Wonder Woman to past female action heroes such as Sarah Connor, Ellen Ripley, and Lara Croft, whom she suggests were all constructed for the male gaze, in which a "female warrior becomes a sex object", (a point which she argues that Jenkins directly references in the film). Gloria Steinem also liked the film, stating that she felt it made the "Amazon origin story clear; [Wonder Woman] was stopping war, not perpetuating it." Steinem also noted that she knew "some women were disappointed by all the makeup, but I may be desperate—I was just happy that the Amazons had wild hair!" Her only complaint lay in the choice to eliminate the World War II setting as the Wonder Woman comic book developed in response to existing comics that were "so sadistic and racist that there was a congressional hearing on the subject". Steinem also gave Hillary Clinton the first Wonder Woman Award in October 2017 during the Women's Media Center's "Speaking Truth to Power Awards" (an organization created by Steinem, Jane Fonda, and Robin Morgan). Upon receiving the award, Clinton noted that she had seen Jenkins's Wonder Woman film and that she "loved the outfit". She also said that as her granddaughter was "really keen" on Wonder Woman, Clinton "thought maybe I could borrow something from her for the night. It didn't quite work for me, but I will say that this award means a lot to me because as a little girl, and then as a young woman, and then as a slightly older woman, I always wondered when Wonder Woman would have her time, and now that has happened." Clinton had previously praised Jenkins's film, in a public August 2017 message, stating that "it was just as inspirational as I'd suspected a movie about a strong, powerful woman in a fight to save the world from international disaster would be." Director James Cameron continued this debate, through his critique of the representation of female power in Jenkins's film. In an August 2017 interview with The Guardian, Cameron qualifies Jenkins's vision of Wonder Woman as "an objectified icon" and called the film "a step backwards". In contrast, he states, his character Sarah Connor (from his Terminator films) "was not a beauty icon. She was strong, she was troubled, she was a terrible mother, and she earned the respect of the audience through pure grit." Jenkins stated in response that Cameron's "inability to understand what 'Wonder Woman' is, or stands for, to women all over the world is unsurprising as, though he is a great filmmaker, he is not a woman". She further argued "there is no right and wrong kind of powerful woman" because "if women have to always be hard, tough and troubled to be strong, and we aren't free to be multidimensional or celebrate an icon of women everywhere because she is attractive and loving, then we haven't come very far have we." Reaction to this debate was mixed. Julie Miller sided with Cameron, whom she states refers to himself as "a pretty hardcore feminist" and who told Vulture that "I have no problem writing a script in which the males become subservient to the females, which is what happens in Aliens ... It's up to Ripley to win the day." In contrast, Miller argues that Jenkins and Gadot envisioned Wonder Woman as "a woman who exuded both femininity and strength, along with genuine confusion as to why men would treat women differently than they do other men". Susannah Breslin also agreed with Cameron, describing Jenkins's Wonder Woman as "a Playmate with a lasso" and "female power with no balls". Others were more critical of Cameron's critique. An article in Newsweek suggests that in contrast to his criticism of Jenkins, Cameron's own films include "lot of objectification" and quotes a few Hollywood celebrities who echoed this view. One of the quotes came from Jesse McLaren who states that "James Cameron's just confused there's a female hero whose motivations aren't centered around motherhood." Noah Berlatsky found areas of agreement between both Cameron and Jenkins, stating that while Cameron's objection is "an old point that's been made over and over for decades", Jenkins's film is not "solely focused on objectifying Gal Gadot for a male audience". A few weeks later in September, Cameron reiterated his criticism in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. He compared Gal Gadot's representation of the character to Raquel Welch films of the 1960s, and reinforced a comparison with Linda Hamilton's portrayal of Sarah Connor. He argued that Connor was "if not ahead of its time, at least a breakthrough in its time" because though she "looked great", she "wasn't treated as a sex object". He also stated that he while he "applaud[s] Patty directing the film and Hollywood, uh, 'letting' a woman direct a major action franchise, I didn't think there was anything groundbreaking in Wonder Woman. I thought it was a good film. Period." Former Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter responded to Cameron's The Hollywood Reporter interview by asking him to "Stop dissing WW." Like Jenkins, she suggests that while Cameron does "not understand the character", she does. She also refers to Cameron's critiques as "thuggish jabs at a brilliant director" that are as "ill advised" as the "movie was spot on." Carter also states that she has the authority to make these observations because she has "embodied this character for more than 40 years". A month later, Jenkins responded to Cameron's comments once again in an interview with Variety, stating that she "was not upset at all", as "everybody is entitled to their own opinion. But if you're going to debate something in a public way, I have to reply that I think it's incorrect." Tricia Ennis was also critical of Cameron's statements, arguing that "while he may consider himself a feminist and an ally to women, [he] is not very good at it" as being an ally means using his position of privilege "without silencing the voices of those you're trying to help". She also states that it "is not enough to simply call yourself a feminist. It's not even enough to create a strong female character ... You have to bring women to the table. You have to let them speak. You cannot speak for them. But speaking for women is exactly what Cameron is doing through his comments ... Cameron is using his position of power as a respected producer and director to silence women." Originally signed for three feature films, with Wonder Woman and Justice League being her second and third films, Gadot signed an extension to her contract for additional films. Jenkins initially signed for only one film, but in an interview with Variety, Geoff Johns revealed that he and Jenkins were writing the treatment for a Wonder Woman sequel and that he has a "cool idea for the second one". At the 2017 San Diego Comic Con, Warner Bros. officially announced a sequel would be released on December 13, 2019, and would be titled Wonder Woman 2; the date was later moved up to November 1, 2019, to avoid competition with . Later, Jenkins was officially signed to return as director, with confirmation that Gadot will be returning as the titular role. Days later, the studio hired Dave Callaham to co-write the film's script with Jenkins and Johns. On March 9, 2018, Kristen Wiig was confirmed to play Cheetah, the villain of the film. Later that month, it was announced that Pedro Pascal would have a key role in the film. In May 2018, long-time DCEU producer Zack Snyder confirmed on social media platform Vero that he, along with wife Deborah Snyder, will serve as producers on the Wonder Woman sequel. In June 2018, the title of the film was announced to be Wonder Woman 1984. A third film was announced in January 2019 to be taking place in the present. It was announced that an Amazons spin-off film is in the works with Patty Jenkins executive producing the film. Ares (also known as Mars) is a fictional supervillain character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media. Based on the Greek mythological figure of the same name, he is the Greek god of war and a major adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman and enemy of the Justice League. The character has appeared in various forms of media. Alfred Molina voiced him in the 2009 direct-to-video animated movie Wonder Woman. Ares later made his live-action debut in the 2017 film Wonder Woman, where he was portrayed by English actor David Thewlis set in the DC Extended Universe. Thewlis made a small cameo as Ares in a flashback scene in the film Justice League. Ares first appeared in Wonder Woman #1, volume 1, published in the summer of 1942, written and created by Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston. In the next issue, he reappeared under his Roman name, Mars. He retained this name until February 1987, when comics writer/artist George Pérez restored the Greek name Ares as part of his reboot of the Wonder Woman mythos. As the narrative continuity of Wonder Woman comics has been adjusted by different writers throughout the years, various versions of Mars/Ares, with various personalities and physical appearances, have been presented, though most have been depicted wearing Greek hoplite or Roman gladiator armor. The character's longest-running look, designed by George Pérez, is that of a red- eyed Greek warrior clad in black and indigo battle armor, face hidden by an Attic helmet. After DC's continuity was again rebooted in 2011 (an event known as the New 52), the character cycled through several divergent visual interpretations before returning to his Pérez-inspired warrior design. In September 2011, the conclusion of the limited series Flashpoint (2011) established a new continuity within the DC Universe, with all characters regressing to a younger age and earlier stage in their careers, while remaining in a modern timeline. DC Senior VP of Sales, Bob Wayne, explained that with each of their titles reverting to issue #1, "our creative teams have the ability to take a more modern approach—not only with each character, but with how the characters interact with one another and the universe as a whole, and focus on the earlier part of the careers of each of our iconic characters." Following this company-wide relaunch, Ares appeared in a new Wonder Woman volume. In this new timeline, Ares closely resembles the then-ongoing series writer Brian Azzarello, as originally intended by the artist Cliff Chiang. As the team was preparing the series, Azzarello requested "a tired, old guy" for the initial design of Ares. Chiang responded with a sketch of Azzarello's own look as a joke, to which Azzarello reportedly responded, "Cool". Other than hollowed eyes and bloodied legs, Ares is characterized by Azzarello's own bald head, long beard, and slender look. During most of the Golden Age, Silver Age, and Bronze Age, Ares was called Mars and was one of the most recurrent enemies of Wonder Woman. He was depicted as a Greco-Roman warrior in orange armor. Ares, who eventually became known as Mars, sought to realize his vision of eternal war and conflict in the world of man. He was chiefly opposed by Aphrodite, goddess of love, who sought to realize a contrary vision of loving civilization. Meanwhile, the men who worshipped Ares killed each other and their weaker brothers, selling women cheaper than cattle. When Ares taunted Aphrodite with the success of his plans, Aphrodite created a new race of women, the Amazons, whom she modeled from clay, who built a city-state called Amazonia, where they created a women- centered civilization for spreading the gospel of Aphrodite's Way. They were stronger than Ares's men. Hippolyte was granted a golden girdle that made her invincible. Mars eventually created a home base on the planet of Mars, with its superpowerful population enslaved to serve him and his chief deputies, the Duke of Deception, Lord Conquest, and the Earl of Greed. Mars's aid-de-camp is General Destruction. He used Mars as an interplanetary headquarters, supplementing the enslaved Martian population with the spirits of the dead he collected from war zones on multiple planets, including Saturn and Earth. Slave spirits became embodied after being ferried to the planet Mars, where they were subjected to strength tests to determine how they would best be used, whether as gladiators in slave games, personal slaves in the retinue of Mars himself, or employees in the War Factories, one of which included the Lie Factory run by the Duke of Deception. The very strongest would be trained and given new bodies to be sent to wage future wars on earth. He also set up the Injustice Court for humiliating slaves and meting out punishments. Mars's Earth base was beneath Mount Olympus and run by Lord Conquest. From this base, he sought to defeat the Allied cause in World War II, sending thoughts of conquest, deception, and greed into the Axis leaders with the use of astral projection, but he found himself repeatedly thwarted by the Amazon champion Wonder Woman. When Wonder Woman rescued Steve Trevor from Mars, the War God ordered his three lieutenants to capture her. The Earl of Greed was sent and enlisted German aid, along with convincing the Dean of Holiday College to rob it, but failed and was imprisoned. The Duke of Deception gained Japanese help and captured Wonder Woman, but failed, as she escaped before she left Earth and he was imprisoned. The Count of Conquest gained Italian help and by trickery succeeded in shackling Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor and bringing them to Mars. Greed and Deception were released while Wonder Woman was imprisoned in the dungeons. However, with the help of Etta Candy's spirit form, Wonder Woman was able to escape and overpower Mars, whose Iron Palace was destroyed by his weapons, though he survived. The Duke of Deception tried many times to defeat Wonder Woman, but failed despite his cunning and incredible technology, and Mars finally stripped him of his mighty appearance, showing him to be a weak, toothless man. The Duke, after being set with the female slaves, caused them to rebel and briefly ruled Mars. Mars repeatedly tangled with Wonder Woman on Earth-One and Earth-Two. During a period when Diana abandoned her powers to live among the world of men, as the Amazons retreated temporarily to another dimension, Mars (calling himself Ares this time) and his children Phobos, Deimos, and Eris battled the Amazons to secure from Hippolyta the secret to domination of all dimensions of existence. Later, he enlisted his descendant Helen Alexandros to become the Silver Swan. His final scheme before the history-changing battle of the Crisis on Infinite Earths was to ally himself with Hades and the Anti-Monitor to subdue the Gods of Olympus. As Wonder Woman engaged him in final battle, Steve Trevor freed the gods and Hades's wife Kore appealed to her husband with a message of love, leaving Mars isolated. Despite being Zeus's son, Ares never fit in with the other gods of Olympus and created his own realm, the Areopagus. Aphrodite, the patron of the Amazons, swore that her women would save the world with love from the hatred and warfare of Ares, meaning he opposed their creation. Recently, through his deceit and manipulations, Ares deposed Hades and became ruler of the underworld. Ares did his best to destroy the Amazons, using Hercules against them, who sacked the island, but Diana was born and raised just in time to fight Ares as Steve Trevor's plane, driven by one of Ares's human puppets, crashed into Paradise Island. His plot was to fire the missiles between the United States and Russia at the same time, provoking World War III, but Diana managed to make him see, trapped in her magic lasso, how this chaos would lead to his own disappearing, with Ares having no one to worship him. He then gave her the task of "saving mankind from themselves", promising to return if she fails, essentially acting as a continuous test of her success. Although Ares abandoned his plans that time, he managed to possess an unimportant criminal, Ari Buchanan. Possessing his body, he changed his name to "Ares Buchanan". He began climbing the business ladder by providing high-tech weapons for gang wars. As Buchanan, he had a relationship with his lawyer Donna Milton (who was Circe in disguise, although not even she knew it then), conceiving a daughter named Lyta Milton. Lyta has been shown to possess a great amount of magic, which she is still practicing. However, Ares did not care much about Donna, shooting her while she was pregnant. Circe, as Donna, later tried to help Diana out of a trap he laid. She used the last of her forces to shoot a gun, which produced a sort of mini-black hole and absorbed Ares into it. Diana, the child, and she survived. As opposed to ancient times, the roles of various gods were shown to have altered somewhat according to modern practices and beliefs. Because of this, the actual faith-based power Ares's father Zeus received proved to be very much diminished. However, other gods such as Athena, Aphrodite, and Ares began to gain more power due to the appearance of the computer age, love never diminishing, and conflict remaining consistent. Thus, the three godly siblings eventually took over Olympus as the godly home's new masters. Realizing that conflict proved to maintain his strength over the output of war, Ares changed his title to the God of Conflict. To celebrate this change, he altered his appearance to a more approachable visage. His rule under this name proved to be short-lived, though, as the god Hades was also overthrown and Ares was all too eager to take up the mantle of God of the Dead. Realizing that a crossroads for the gods of Olympus was at hand, Ares confided in his half sister Cassie Sandsmark about a future war. In exchange for additional powers, the only wish he requested in return from his sister was her love. He then traveled to Themyscira and kidnapped his daughter Lyta, who was under the protection of the Amazons. Discovering this fact, Circe confronted Ares and was surprised to learn of his new godly title. She agreed to remain as his consort and to raise their daughter Lyta in the Underworld. During Ares's family bonding with Cassie, he blessed her with a powerful lasso able to expel Zeus's lightning in times of anger for her to use in her persona as Wonder Girl. Ares has since appeared to Cassie repeatedly to warn her about "the coming war." In one story, the Teen Titans were thrown 10 years into the future, where Cassie had inherited the mantle of Wonder Woman after Diana's death. She was also referred to as "Ares's champion". Ares later appeared to Cassie, informing her that the gods were leaving this plane and Zeus was taking the power he had granted Cassie, as well. In exchange for acknowledging their siblinghood and becoming his champion, he offered her some of his power, saying only that she would be "more powerful than [she has] ever been." The full extent of Cassie's powers has not been revealed, though some indication exists that she has retained all of her former powers at this point. During the events of Amazons Attack!, it is discovered that Ares left Circe and kidnapped their daughter to raise on his own. As Lyta and he were only spoken of during the storyline, their presence is yet unknown. Cassie is confronted by Ares's son, Lord Lycus, whom Ares has sent to interfere with Cassie's powers. Shifting himself into the future, Ares stole the dead body of Wonder Woman and brought it back into the present. He then manipulated several villains to use the body to create his bride and chief agent Genocide. He then imbued this new creature with his own magical dominance, causing the new being's persona to be not only more deadly, but also completely obedient to him. Ares's plans to destroy the present-day Wonder Woman went awry when Diana was able to destroy Genocide, leaving the monster's dead body to drown in the ocean. Angered, Ares commanded a son of Poseidon to cause a swarm of deadly sea creatures to attack Themyscira and the new island nation of Thalarion. During this battle, Diana deduced that Ares was the grand manipulator and confronted him. Not allowing Ares much time to gloat in his latest masterpiece of war, Diana took a battle axe and used it to strike Ares's head, splitting his helmet in two. Despite being gone from the mortal world, Ares is still manipulating events to destroy the Amazons. His next plot involves the birth of five male children by five random Amazons. Once they are born, he takes them under his wing before Ares is banished from Themyscira both in body and spirit by his father Zeus. In The New 52 continuity, Ares is commonly referred to as War. His first appearance in this new continuity was in Wonder Woman #4, where he is depicted as a bald, aged man with a white beard. Due to the revelation that Diana is the demigod daughter of Zeus, their new dynamic is that of brother and sister. War's calves and feet are permanently smeared with blood. He appears in a bar in Darfur, where his brother Apollo tries to convince him to side with him in his quest to take over the rein of Olympus. His attitude also seems to be more pessimistic and uncaring. He is revealed to be Diana's former mentor in Wonder Woman #0, a stand-alone issue published in September 2012 set in the past. He takes Diana under his tutelage because of her vast potential in combat, and teaches her the ways of the warrior. Their relationship is like a father- daughter relationship. However, they part ways when Diana is asked by Ares to slay the Minotaur, but is unable to bring herself to kill it. This show of mercy makes her a failure in Ares's eyes. Over time, Diana learns she can trust Ares to protect their youngest brother, the infant Zeke, and his mother Zola. Alongside their British brother Lennox, Hera, and the New God Orion, they form a dysfunctional family unit that seeks to protect the baby from First Born, their eldest brother, who had been imprisoned by Zeus aeons ago. In Wonder Woman #23, Wonder Woman's group clashes with First Born in London, where Ares raises an army of soldiers and fights First Born himself after Wonder Woman is temporarily incapacitated. First Born manages to overpower Ares and prepares to kill him to usurp his position of God of War. Seizing her opportunity, Wonder Woman regretfully drives a spear through both of them, as it is the only way to stop First Born. In his last breath, Ares forgives and commends his former pupil, stating that she did what he would have done. Hades manifests to take Ares to his afterlife, and announces that Wonder Woman has taken on his position as God of War. Appearing to Wonder Woman in an apparition, counselling her on the ongoing conflict with the First Born, he tells her not to call him War anymore, as that is her name—she refers to him instead as Ares. In the DC Rebirth reboot, Wonder Woman's origin is retold in the "Year One" storyline. A group of people called the "Sear" terrorizes a mall where Diana and her friends are exploring. They have been infected with the Maru virus, which causes them to lash out in homicidal rage, though Diana and Steve Trevor are able to defeat them, and Barbara Ann Minerva discovers Sear is an anagram of Ares. The god of war attacks shortly after this discovery. He reveals his desire to spread the virus across the world in major locations with the hope of turning most of the human population into warring killers to fuel his power. Diana offers him Themyscira's location in exchange for him sparing everyone, though Ares discovers she has no memory of its location; as a sacrifice of leaving the island, Diana was barred from returning by losing knowledge of how to return. Accepting her new role to save mankind, Diana, with the help of the patron gods in animal form, subdues Ares with the Lasso of Truth. Diana and her friends are given the locations where Ares has the virus sent and Diana is christened as Wonder Woman for her heroics. Soon after, Ares's sons Deimos and Phobos conspired to free Ares from his imprisonment on Themyscira. They coerced Veronica Cale into aiding them by kidnapping the soul of her daughter, Isadore. However, several years later, Cale and her associate Doctor Cyber still had no luck finding the island. Meanwhile, Cale was plotting against Deimos and Phobos, and recruited the sorceress Circe into trapping the twins into the bodies of two Doberman Pinschers. Years later, the mysterious tree that had been growing on Themyscira was teleported to the false island that Wonder Woman had originally thought was her home. During a battle with Cheetah, a drop of Wonder Woman's blood opened a portal to inside the tree. There, Wonder Woman and Veronica Cale encountered both Isadore Cale and an attractive, nude man who introduced himself as Ares. Diana had not faced Ares in Year One, but his sons in disguise. Themyscira serves as Ares's prison once he was calmed of his bloodlust with the love of his lover Aphrodite, and Deimos and Phobos plotted to gain access to kill their father and take his role, gaining his power. The gods altered Diana's memories to make her think she had returned to the island so that she could never try to find the real Themyscira, thereby granting access to darker forces. Isadore became his ward in the meantime. He gives her the clue to how to defeat his sons: with love, not hatred. Once his sons have been defeated and bound by the Lasso of Truth, Ares reveals Isadore cannot leave without being split from her physical and astral forms. She can live with the Amazons, however, and thus have a life where she will not age. Later, Darkseid's daughter Grail was imprisoned in the tree with Ares. Ares, inspired by the hope of justice, manipulated Grail into killing him with the Godkiller sword. This freed him of his imprisonment. Soon after, Wonder Woman encountered Ares, this time resembling the missing Steve Trevor, on a battlefield in Durkovia. As do all Olympian gods, Ares possesses tremendous strength, though he is now perhaps the strongest of them, rivaled only by his half-brother Hercules. Moreover, he is a master of conflict and strategy with centuries of experience in the field, and has complete telekinetic command and mastery over any weapon or armor. He also possesses speed equal to that of Hermes once he absorbs massive amounts of the violent energies that give him his powers. Pertaining to his being a war god, violent actions and emotions such as anger, hate, death and bloodshed make him stronger and heals any wounds he may receive as his soul is able to absorb the psychic energy created by such events. His armor is virtually indestructible and his weapons are greater than mortal ones. He can shapeshift into any form he wishes and can teleport himself and others. At one time, he was also recognized as the Death God of the Greek Pantheon, having control over the dead and able to resurrect and command a whole army of undead from the Underworld to do his will, and then, send them back whenever he wished. Being a god, he is also immortal and cannot be harmed by mortal weapons, only magical ones. In The New 52 continuity, the character's mere presence invokes battle and slaughter in his surroundings. This is seen in Wonder Woman #4, where Ares is sitting in a bar in Darfur; all the men inside are dead and a riot is breaking out outside the bar- even children are taking part in the gunfire. In Wonder Woman #9, Ares is present at a cafe in Damascus, where a fatal blast takes place as he is leaving. In the continuity, Armored Response Environment Suit called A. R. E. S. is featured in Volume Two as a US military contingency plan for General Phil Darnell and Maxwell Lord. Ares himself is hinted at the end of the book as well. Ares appears in two different stories in this anthology series featuring Wonder Woman. In the first, "Casualties of War," Wonder Woman is attacked by a dragon that is later revealed to have been a pawn of Ares. In the second story, "Vendetta," Ares ambushes Wonder Woman in a small, African city. He summons his Spartoi, reptilian soldiers, to aid in his battle, but he is inevitably defeated by Wonder Woman. While not appearing directly, Ares's subject, the Duke of Deception, is a servant of both Ares and Hades. The amazon Antiope is also depicted as Ares's high priestess. Ares is featured as a major antagonist in the series based on the . He is initially in the Chapter 9 of Year 1, on which he watches as Wonder Woman fought against an entire army and then questions her decision to join Superman's side. He also asks her if she is going to "replace" Lois Lane, who died after the Joker tricked Superman into killing her, as Superman's significant other. Just as he asks this, Wonder Woman acknowledges he fears her union with Superman because it would end all conflict in the world and end war permanently (and without war, Ares would be left mortal). She asks Ares what he would become if Superman's endeavors succeeded and mockingly suggests he become a god of something less violent (as she suggested him being the "God of Ponies"). Enraged, Ares attacks Diana, proclaiming that Zeus himself would not save her so long as they are on a battlefield where Ares is stronges0r. Before he can harm Wonder Woman, Superman appears and takes Ares down with a single blow, allowing Diana to cut off his hand off and, just as Ares threatens her further, she impales him with her sword and leaves him to bleed. Superman, while disturbed by this, is assured by Wonder Woman that Ares will not die and the two head off to begin peace negotiations. As they leave, Ares admits to himself he fears that Diana will strip away Superman's restraint, and nothing in the world would be able to stand against them if such an event occurred, and in a world without war, Ares is unsure what he would become. In Dark Knights: The Merciless, part of a series looking at dark alternate versions of Batman who have the powers of other members of the Justice League, one Batman comes from a reality where Ares acquired a new helmet that enhanced his powers to induce conflict. After Wonder Woman and other members of the League had been apparently killed in battle with Ares, Batman donned Ares' discarded helmet to use it against him, only to succumb to the helmet's power, to the point that he not only defeated Ares, but even killed Diana when it was revealed that she had survived the attack because he was already so far under the helmet's influence. Ares makes an appearance in the Justice League Unlimited episode "Hawk and Dove", voiced by Michael York. In the episode, Ares commissions Hephaestus to forge the Annihilator, a living suit of armor fueled by violence. Posing as Tom Sera and a Kasnian Monk, Ares uses it to incite conflict between North and South Kasnia, hoping to destabilize the entire region and create more conflict. Wonder Woman and Hawk and Dove intervene, forcing Ares to back down after discovering the Annihilator's weakness. The Annihilator armor is confiscated by the Justice League., Ares appears in the web series, DC Super Hero Girls, voiced by Fred Tatasciore. Ares is featured in the animated feature film Wonder Woman, voiced by Alfred Molina. He differs slightly in this incarnation in that he had long platinum hair, although he wears a variation of his classic armor early in the film., Ares first appears in the DC Extended Universe film Wonder Woman, the fourth instalment of the DCEU. As the God of War, he is depicted as the treacherous son of Zeus and the half-brother of Diana/Wonder Woman. After Ares corrupted mankind and slaughtered all of his fellow Gods, Zeus used the last of his strength to strike Ares down from Olympus and left the Amazons a "Godkiller" sword capable of slaying Ares should he ever return. Stranded on Earth, Ares spent centuries orchestrating wars and conflicts in order to maintain his power. During World War I, he masquerades as Imperial War Cabinet speaker "Sir Patrick Morgan" to manipulate both sides into entering conflicts. After revealing himself to Diana, Ares destroys the sword and informs her that she is the true "Godkiller" that Zeus left behind, before attempting to persuade her that humans are unworthy of her protection and should be destroyed in order to create paradise on Earth. Having concluded that love, not violence, is the only way to prevent conflict, Diana uses her powers as the last child of Zeus to fight and ultimately destroy Ares., Ares is featured in the 2017 film Justice League, the fifth instalment of the DCEU. He appears during a flashback of the battle between Steppenwolf's forces and a unified army of the Olympian Gods, Amazons, Atlanteans, Green Lanterns, and mankind. Stuntman Nick McKinless physically played the role, with Thewlis' face super-imposed over his. Ares appears as a playable character in , voiced by J.G. Hertzler. At the beginning of the game, Ares was seen fighting the Justice League alongside the featured villains assembled by Lex Luthor until he was defeated by Superman and corralled by Wonder Woman and Aquaman. In the alternate reality, Ares first appears to save Aquaman from the alternate Aquaman's army by freezing them in time. The alternate Ares tells Aquaman that Superman's Regime has ended all conflict leaving him virtually weak. The alternate Ares sends Aquaman to the Insurgency base where his comrades are. Later on in the game, the alternate Ares teleports Wonder Woman to Themyscira where he tells her that her alternate counterpart is planning to lead the Amazons to civilization as part of the alternate Superman's plan to destroy Metropolis and Gotham City. The alternate Ares then leaves when Wonder Woman is attacked by the alternate Raven. In Ares's ending, defeating Superman has the opposite effect of what he intended and he is further weakened by the ensuing peace. Near death, Ares imprisons Brainiac 5 and forces him to create a time loop of the game's events creating a never ending cycle of conflict from which he can feed off forever., He doesn't appear in the sequel, Injustice 2, however, as Wonder Woman claims she slew him and became the new goddess of war., Ares appears in DC Universe Online., In , the New 52 version of Ares is one of the thousands of characters that can be summoned by the player., Ares appears as a playable character in the mobile game DC Legends., Ares appears as a playable character in DC Unchained., Ares appears as a playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by Fred Tatasciore. DC Direct released an Ares action figure in 2001 as part of their Amazons and Adversaries line of Wonder Woman action figures. Mattel released an Ares action figure in 2008 as part of their DC Universe Classics line of toys. Ares is also part of the action figures lineup for the 2017 film Wonder Woman. Ares is represented as an inaccurate buildable figure in the Lego set "Wonder Woman Warrior Battle" based on Wonder Woman. Ares (Marvel Comics), Children of Ares (comics) Bio at World's Finest, Ares at Titans Tower.com, Ares at Wonder Woman Yesterday, Today, & Beyond, Marston, William Moulton. Emotions Of Normal People. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co, Ltd. 1928.

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Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in August 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it serves as the home stadium of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) and Atlanta United FC of Major League Soccer (MLS). The stadium is owned by the state government of Georgia through the Georgia World Congress Center Authority, and operated by AMB Group, the parent organization of the Falcons and Atlanta United. In June 2016, the total cost of its construction was estimated at US$1.6 billion. The stadium officially opened on August 26, 2017 with a Falcons preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals, despite the retractable roof system being incomplete at the time. Several events formerly held at the Georgia Dome moved to Mercedes-Benz Stadium following its completion, including the SEC football championship game and the Peach Bowl. In 2018, it hosted the College Football Playoff National Championship and the MLS Cup (as Atlanta United held home field advantage), and it hosted Super Bowl LIII in 2019. It will host the 2020 NCAA Final Four. The stadium's signature feature is its retractable roof, which features a "pinwheel" consisting of eight translucent, triangular panels. Each of the eight panels operates on two straight, parallel rails; one rail is responsible for moving the panel while the other rail stabilizes the panel. Closing the roof takes slightly less time than opening the roof, since the roof has to disengage the seals at the start of the opening procedure and slow down towards the end to prevent the panels from getting derailed. When opened, the panels are designed to create the illusion of a bird's wings extended. Architect Bill Johnson explained that the circular opening in the roof was inspired by the Roman Pantheon ("Pantheon" was also the working name for the building design). The roof was designed to be made of a clear, lightweight polymer material that can adjust its opacity to control light, and much of the exterior is clear polymer or glass to allow views to the outside. The middle concourse and upper bowl were eliminated in the east end zone to allow for an unobstructed view of the Atlanta skyline. Below the roof is the "Halo", an , ring-shaped video board around its rim. Covering a total area of , it was described by manufacturer Daktronics as being "three times as large as the current largest single display board in the NFL" installed at EverBank Field in Jacksonville (also built by Daktronics). Daktronics also installed more than of other LED boards, including field-level advertising boards for soccer games. The stadium's roof can be kept open under light precipitation, as the electrical systems for all video boards in the stadium are outdoor-rated, and the field has a drainage system, AMB Group senior executive Mike Egan went as far as describing Mercedes-Benz Stadium as "an outdoor stadium with a roof over it" due to these characteristics, but that other factors such as humidity and outside temperatures would be taken into consideration on whether or not the roof would be opened. The stadium also includes features specific for college football use. It opened with two oversized locker rooms, each capable of housing 100 players, reflecting the much larger size of college football rosters compared to those of the NFL. However, the stadium did not initially include another feature important in that context—staircases connecting the seats to the field, making it difficult for bands to enter the field for halftime shows (most NFL teams, including the Falcons, do not have bands). It also has a soccer-specific configuration, with retractable lower bowl seats to widen the field, and mechanized curtains that limit the capacity to about 42,500. The stadium incorporates contemporary art into its interior and exterior design, with over 180 commissioned works, including pieces by Nari Ward, Hank Willis Thomas, and Steven and William Ladd. The centerpiece of the art collection is Gábor Miklós Szőke's stainless steel sculpture The Atlanta Falcon, which the artist said is the largest freestanding bird sculpture in the world. The falcon, perched atop a tall bronze football, is high with a wingspan of . The over artwork stands in front of the stadium, and as tall as a four-story building. The upper concourse includes an area known as the "100 Yard Club", a concession and gathering area that stretches the length of the football field. Other noted areas include the "AT&T; Perch"—a gathering area with televisions and video walls airing other games (designed as being of interest to fantasy football players), and the "Budweiser Biergarten". Several "neighborhood bars" also operate within the stadium. The former Georgia Dome site between the stadium and the Georgia World Congress Center was redeveloped as "The Home Depot Backyard"—an green space used as a tailgating area. It also features a 3-tier, dual-level, shaded deck pavilion. For its concessions, Mercedes-Benz Stadium focused primarily on the quality and speed of service, variety, and pricing; the stadium includes at least 670 points-of-sale, and has a policy of "fan first pricing" for all concessions—with lower menu prices in comparison to other sports facilities during all events (even during major championship events), such as a $2 beverage cup with free refills, and a $5 beer. To increase the speed of service, all items were priced at whole dollars only, with the 9.3% sales tax already included in the posted menu prices (rather than added at the time of purchase ). The practice helped to increase the venue's revenue, as the lower prices have been offset by increased spending on concessions by attendees. In March 2019, following a trial in 2018, the stadium became one of the first major professional sports venues in the United States to only accept "cashless" payment methods for transactions at concessions inside the stadium, such as credit or debit cards, and mobile payments. This only applies to concessions; cash is still accepted for ticket sales and any third-party merchandising that may operate during events, and kiosks are provided for loading cash onto prepaid debit cards (with no transaction fees charged). At the same time, the stadium raised all menu prices, by adding tax at the time of purchase but maintaining the same posted price values as before (besides five items, such as hot dogs, whose list prices were discounted by 50 cents). To reflect local culture, the stadium also partnered with Atlanta-based restaurants, chains, and chefs to have presences as concessions under the "Best of Atlanta" banner, including Chick- fil-A, The Varsity, Kevin Gillespie, and others. In consistence with the fan first pricing policy, these partners agreed to not mark up their prices in comparison to their standalone locations. As with all other locations under a long-standing corporate policy, the Chick-fil-A does not operate on Sundays, with no exception, even though the stadium's main tenant primarily plays on Sundays. During Sunday events, the Chick-fil-A stand is replaced by an unbranded "Fries Up" stand operated by the stadium's concessionary. In May 2010, it was reported by multiple news outlets that the Atlanta Falcons were interested in replacing the Georgia Dome with a newly constructed open- air stadium, although at the time it was planned to retain the Georgia Dome to continue hosting non-NFL events. The team was pursuing a new stadium because of the team's desire to play outdoors, as well as Falcons team owner Arthur Blank's interest in hosting another Super Bowl. The stadium was also pursued as a possible bid for a venue of an upcoming FIFA World Cup.Kansas City-based architectural firm Populous released comprehensive plans for the proposed stadium in February 2011. Populous' early cost estimate for the project was US$700 million. According to the master plan, the stadium would have a maximum capacity of 71,000, but can expand to 75,000 for special events such as the Super Bowl. It will also feature multiple club levels, suites and exhibition area. In April 2012, Populous released a new price estimate of US$947.7 million, which was significantly higher than the previous proposal of US$700 million. In April 2012, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that if a deal was reached, the new stadium's construction would be expected to begin in 2014, with the Falcons to begin regular-season play in 2017. The proposed location of the new stadium is a large parking lot in Atlanta's Vine City neighborhood, which is less than a mile north of the Georgia Dome's current location. Once construction is complete, the Georgia Dome would subsequrently be demolished. On August 24, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that an official deal could be reached on the construction of a new stadium by the end of 2012. They also reported on September 10 that Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed said site improvements could likely bump the total cost to US$1.2 billion; however, that does not increase the actual building cost, which still remains at an estimated US$948 million. On December 10, the Georgia World Congress Center Authority, in a unanimous decision, approved the blueprint and most of the agreement terms for the new stadium plans. According to The Atlanta Journal- Constitution article, the term sheet is non-binding and changes could be made at any time as regards stadium construction. Stadium location, however, is yet to be worked out; proposed locations being reported are within walking distance of the Georgia Dome, with one site located one-half mile north, and the other one block directly south, at the one of the stadium's existing parking lots. The project made national headlines for the first time in 2012 on December 15, with team owner Arthur Blank stating in The New York Times that he would rather have a new stadium be constructed than a "remodeling job" of the Georgia Dome. During a January 10, 2013 press conference, mayor Reed expressed his optimism and confidence in the construction of the new stadium; he also mentioned the possibility of the new stadium helping the city compete for its first Major League Soccer team. On March 7, 2013, the Falcons and the city of Atlanta agreed to build the new downtown stadium. The maximum public contribution for the project was US$200 million, coming from the hotel-motel tax in Atlanta and unincorporated Fulton County. The Atlanta City Council officially approved the stadium on March 19, 2013. The council voted, 11–4, in favor of the use of city hotel-motel taxes to pay US$200 million toward construction costs and potentially several times that toward costs of financing, maintaining and operating the stadium through 2050. On May 21, 2013, the NFL approved a US$200 million loan to the Falcons organization for the purpose of building the stadium. The Falcons unveiled a conceptual design for the new stadium on June 18, 2013, with a proposed capacity of 70,000 spectators, 7,500 club seats, and 180 luxury suites. Arthur Blank indicated the groundbreaking of the stadium would be conducted the last week of March 2014. Just after Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive was closed permanently, the Mount Vernon Baptist Church held its last Sunday service on March 9 before the historic church was demolished. Friendship Baptist, the birthplace of both Spelman College and Morehouse College, was also demolished and relocated to make room for the stadium. Due to legal issues surrounding the issuing of bonds, the stadium did not break ground until May 19, 2014. The stadium's projected opening date was delayed three times due to the complexity of the eight-panel retractable roof. The stadium was originally intended to open on March 1, 2017; however, the opening date was later delayed to June 1, 2017, then to July 30, 2017, and then to August 26, 2017. Steve Cannon, CEO of the Atlanta Falcons' parent company AMB Group, stated that the Falcons' preseason schedule and the Chick-fil-a Kickoff Games would not be affected by the new opening date; however, three of Atlanta United's matches would be affected. The July 30 game against Orlando City SC was moved to Atlanta United's interim home of Bobby Dodd Stadium for July 29 while two home matches scheduled in August were moved to later dates. Additionally, the Georgia Dome's demolition was put on hold until the new stadium's certificate of occupancy could be issued. On June 9, 2017, stadium officials announced that they were confident that Mercedes-Benz Stadium would open as scheduled, and demolition of the Georgia Dome had resumed, and the Dome was imploded on the morning of November 20, 2017. On July 25, 2017, stadium officials reported that the roof would be in the closed position during the Falcons' preseason games and the Chick-fil-A Kickoff games while contractors continue to fine tune the roof to allow all eight panels to work in sync. Falcons' President Rich McKay also stated that the roof would remain closed whenever outside temperatures exceed . On August 16, 2017, WXIA reported that construction of the retractable roof system was intentionally delayed by stadium and construction officials to ensure the roof's long term operability and to ensure that other parts of the stadium would be completed on time. On September 10, 2017, the Falcons announced that, contrary to earlier plans, the stadium roof would in fact be open during the Falcons home opener on September 17 against the Green Bay Packers if weather permitted. On October 6, 2017, stadium officials announced that the roof would be opened, weather permitting, for Atlanta United's regular season finale against Toronto FC on October 22; stadium officials also stated that the roof would remain closed for the remainder of the Falcons' regular season as well as for any home matches hosted by Atlanta United during the 2017 MLS Cup Playoffs as contractors continue to worked on fully mechanizing the roof. Hoping to address concerns of overcrowding at the ingress and egress areas of the stadium, stadium officials announced that they plan to add several more doors to the stadium. Overcrowding and congestion was a frequent concern and complaint from fans attending major events during the stadium's first year of operation. Fans attending the College Football National Championship game reported significant delays in both entering and exiting the stadium, with some reporting wait times that exceeded 45 minutes to get out of the stadium at the completion of the game. A pedestrian bridge was planned but not originally opened when the stadium first opened. The bridge was completed in January 2019 at a cost of ~$33 million. It features a serpentine like structure on both ends, and a cover over the main span with customizable LEDs. The bridge connects gameday parking lots and the Vine City MARTA Station to the northwest side of the stadium and The Home Depot Backyard, allowing pedestrians to avoid crossing the busy, 6 lane Northside Drive. The bridge is criticized for its immense cost, originally only planned to cost $13 million, but swelling to $33 million in part to expedite construction so it would be completed for Super Bowl LIII. However, the bridge was not open for the Super Bowl as it was deemed a security risk. The bridge is also criticized for its inequity and siphoning funds from the 2016 Renew Atlanta TSPLOST; the bridge was not originally on the project lists, so other projects originally on the list had to be removed. Critics argue the original projects would have accomplished more and served more people. On February 7, 2019, stadium officials stated that the artificial turf would be replaced prior to the Falcons' 2019 season as part of nearly $2 million in capital improvements to the stadium; stadium officials also noted that the turf would be replaced approximately every two years given the number of events, both private and public, held annually at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Several reports of the roof leaking during the stadium's inaugural season caused some issues for the stadium's design team. During the College Football National Championship Game in January 2018, several media outlets reported a significant leak that appeared to be occurring just over the field of play near the 25-yard line. Bill Hancock, College Football Playoff Executive Director, said that he and his team had been made aware of the issue concerning water leaking from the roof and that he believed that the issue did not affect the field of play during the game. Neither team competing in the game reported any issues with the playing surface. Stadium officials clarified after the initial leaks that were reported back in October 2017 that the issue was not a "leak" but rather a "few drops of water" that were falling from the roof around isolated parts of the stadium. Officials stated that the issue was due to the fact that the roof was still not fully mechanized yet, and that the issues would be fixed before the Falcons' 2018 season. They also stated that the issues were common for newly constructed stadiums with retractable roofs. Since the retractable roof was one of the major features and design points of the stadium, some of the problems with the roof were magnified in the stadium's first year of operation. The roof, which is supposed to open in as little as 12 minutes with the push of a button, was not fully operational by the time the stadium's primary tenants, the Atlanta Falcons and the Atlanta United FC, seasons began. The roof was required to be mechanically opened, which was a very time consuming process. As such, the roof was only opened twice in its first year of use, once for an Atlanta Falcons game – a Sunday Night Football game against the Green Bay Packers on September 17, 2017 and a nationally televised MLS soccer game, when the Atlanta United FC hosted Toronto FC in a sold-out game of more than 70,000 fans on October 22, 2017. Falcons president Rich McKay told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he expected all issues with the roof to be completely resolved before the 2018 season. On May 29, 2018, the roof was opened for the first time since October 2017 for construction purposes. Stadium officials stated that the roof would be open for 10 days, regardless of weather, to complete work on automating the roof. After the 10-day construction period, an unspecified time frame would be required for final commissioning work, after of which, operation of the roof would be turned over to stadium officials. Work on the roof was completed on July 14, 2018. On July 25, 2018, in a demonstration to members of the media, the roof was opened and closed for the first time as intended, with both procedures taking approximately eight minutes each. In December 2014, the Georgia World Congress Center's board of governors approved a resolution to raise the cost of the stadium to US$1.2 billion. The stadium was initially slated to cost US$1 billion, then rose to US$1.2 billion in October 2013. The city has agreed to contribute US$200 million in stadium bonds, but with additional tax revenues and with the state of Georgia contributing US$40 million for parking expansion, public spending is expected to eclipse US$700 million. In January 2015, the Falcons announced the sale of personal seat licenses (PSL) costing up to US$45,000 per seat, depending on the section of the stadium. The most expensive tickets are priced at US$385 per game, in addition to one-time PSL fees, for the first three years. The total revenue generated from PSL sales was $273 million. On August 21, 2015, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Mercedes-Benz would acquire the naming rights for the stadium, and this was later confirmed by a press conference at the stadium site on August 24. Under the stadium deal with the city of Atlanta and the Georgia World Congress Center Authority, the Falcons organization controls the stadium's naming rights and receives all related revenue. Then-Mercedes-Benz USA CEO Steve Cannon, who would subsequently join the Falcons' organization in 2016 as CEO of AMB Group, stated that the sponsorship would last 27 years, calling it the largest marketing deal in Mercedes-Benz' history, but Cannon would not disclose the full value of the deal; however, Sports Business Daily reported in February 2016 that the naming rights contract was valued at US$324 million. Mercedes-Benz also holds a 10-year naming rights contract for the Louisiana Superdome signed in 2011. Total sponsorship sales for Mercedes-Benz Stadium have reached $900 million. While the stadium is owned by the state, it is operated by AMB Group, the parent organization of the Falcons and Atlanta United. All operating profits of Mercedes-Benz Stadium go to AMB Group and not to the state. In addition, AMB Group does not currently pay any property tax on the stadium. On May 19, 2015, Mercedes-Benz Stadium was awarded Super Bowl LIII in 2019, marking Atlanta's first time hosting the game since Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000. The Peach Bowl, Celebration Bowl, SEC Championship Game, and Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game moved from the Georgia Dome to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the 2017 season. The SEC Championship has a long-term deal with Mercedes-Benz Stadium through 2027. On February 26, 2019, it was announced that the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets had agreed to play one home game annually at Mercedes-Benz Stadium from 2020 through 2024. The 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship was hosted by Atlanta and Mercedes-Benz Stadium. In their first national championship game since 1982, the Georgia Bulldogs were defeated in overtime by the Alabama Crimson Tide. On December 8, 2017, the stadium hosted the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) football championship games for Class 1A Private School and Class 3A. The remaining two championship games scheduled for that day, Class 5A and Class 6A, as well as the four games originally scheduled for the next day were postponed and relocated to campus sites due to a major snowstorm to hit Atlanta that weekend. The 2018 GHSA football championships were held on December 11 and 12 due to conflicts with the 2018 MLS Cup on December 8 as well as the 2018 Celebration Bowl scheduled for December 15. In May 2019, the GHSA announced that the football finals would be moved from Mercedes-Benz Stadium to Georgia State Stadium (a redevelopment of Turner Field) starting in 2019, citing the higher costs of renting Mercedes-Benz Stadium compared to the former Georgia Dome. On October 22, 2017, Atlanta United played an MLS regular season match versus Toronto FC at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in front of 71,874 spectators, beating the record they set for the largest crowd in a stand-alone MLS match in September against Orlando City (which also marked the first time the roof was opened for a soccer game). Atlanta United also set the single-season record for attendance., On March 11, 2018, Atlanta United played an MLS regular season match versus D.C. United at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in front of 72,035 spectators, setting the record for the largest crowd in MLS history., On October 23, 2017, it was announced that the 2018 MLS All-Star Game would take place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium against Italian club Juventus. It was held on August 1, 2018, and set a new record for attendance at an MLS All-Star game, with 72,317 spectators., On December 8, 2018, Atlanta United hosted the Portland Timbers in the 2018 MLS Cup final (earning home field advantage by virtue of their regular season record over Portland). Atlanta defeated Portland 2–0, winning their first-ever MLS championship. The game initially reported a single-game attendance record for Major League Soccer, with 73,019 spectators., On August 14, 2019, Atlanta United hosted Club América in the 2019 Campeones Cup. Atlanta defeated América 3–2, winning their first-ever Campeones Cup in front of 40,128 supporters. This attendance set an attendance record for Campeones Cup. On October 12, 2017, the inaugural concert at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, featuring Garth Brooks, received widespread scorn, including demands for refunds, due to the reported abysmal acoustics that many attendees deemed unfit for concert sound. The stadium authority stated that plans are underway to help improve the acoustical quality of the stadium. Since the first concert, efforts were made to improve the acoustics in the stadium. New speakers were added to suites, the angle of the bowl speakers was adjusted and delays introduced in order to reduce echo. During a concert in May 2018 featuring Kenny Chesney, reports were that the sound quality had improved since the first concert. Chesney's concert attracted 51,312 people and grossed $5.068 million. Following concerts by Garth Brooks and Kenny Chesney, the venue hosted Taylor Swift for two nights in August 2018 as part of Taylor Swift's Reputation Stadium Tour. Over the two sold-out nights, Taylor performed to an audience of 116,746 people and grossed $18.089 million. She was the first music act to headline the stadium for two consecutive nights. Also in August 2018, Beyoncé and Jay-Z performed for two nights as part of the On the Run II Tour. The two shows grossed $14.074 million and were attended by 105,170 people. Ed Sheeran performed at the venue as part of his ÷ Tour in November 2018. The show was attended by 50,906 people and grossed $5.021 million. This show marked the end of the 2018 leg of the tour, which was billed as the Top Tour of 2018. In March 2019, George Strait performed a one-off concert at the venue, joined by musical guests Chris Stapleton, Chris Janson, and Ashley McBryde. The concert was attended by 55,255 people, and grossed $11.9 million. This became the highest grossing single night concert in the venue's history, and became George Strait's third show to earn over $10 million. Kenny Chesney will return to the venue on May 16, 2020 as part of his Chillaxification Tour. Chesney will be joined by Florida Georgia Line, Old Dominion, and Michael Franti & Spearhead. On March 3, 2018, the stadium hosted a round of the AMA Supercross Championship, replacing the Georgia Dome which had been part of the schedule since 1993., On November 15, 2014, the NCAA announced Mercedes-Benz Stadium will hold the men's college basketball Final Four in 2020., On July 28, 2018, the stadium hosted the Drum Corps International Southeastern Championship which was previously held in the Georgia Dome., On December 31, 2019 – January 2, 2020, Mercedes-Benz Stadium hosted its first ever Passion Conferences. The event made history by becoming the largest youth-centered Christian conference ever held in the United States with 65,000 people in attendance. It is higher than Passion's 2017 event in the Georgia Dome, which held an estimated 50,000 people. On January 4, 2018, the stadium was the subject of the premiere episode of Building Giants on Science Channel. Using footage of the construction along with CGI, the building process is explored in detail. It was noted during the episode that the heaviest truss sections were erected by the largest conventional crawler crane ever built in North America, a Manitowoc Model 31000 which is rated at a capacity of 2,535 US Tons., A train horn blares after every Falcons and United score and win – a nod to Atlanta's railroad history. SunTrust Park Mercedes-Benz Arena () is a stadium located in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany and home to German Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart. Before 1993 it was called Neckarstadion , named after the nearby river Neckar and between 1993 and July 2008 it was called Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion . From the 2008–09 season, the stadium was renamed the Mercedes-Benz Arena, starting with a pre- season friendly against Arsenal on 30 July 2008. The stadium was originally built in 1933 after designs by German architect Paul Bonatz. After It was built, it was named "Adolf-Hitler-Kampfbahn". From 1945 to 1949 it was called Century Stadium and later Kampfbahn and was used by US Troops to play baseball. The name Neckarstadion was used since 1949. It is home to VfB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga (and to the Stuttgarter Kickers when they played in the Bundesliga). After a major refurbishment in the late 1980s and early 1990s partly financed by Daimler-Benz, the Stuttgart town council dedicated the stadium to Gottlieb Daimler. The inventor had tested both the first internal combustion motorcycle and the first 4-wheel automobile there in the 1880s, on the road from Cannstatt to Untertürkheim (now called Mercedesstraße). The new museum, the headquarters and a factory of Mercedes- Benz are nearby. The stadium capacity was reduced to around 41,000, after one stand (Untertürkheimer Kurve) was demolished during summer 2009 in the process of converting it to a pure football arena. The rebuilt arena was completed in December 2011 with a new capacity of 60,000, including terracing. Due to UEFA regulations, which only allows seating, the capacity is reduced to 54,906 during international football matches. It is divided into four sections, the Haupttribüne (main stands), adjacent to Mercedesstraße, housing VIP-lounges and press seats, the Kärcher-Tribüne (formerly Gegentribüne, lit: opposite stands), currently named after one of VfB Stuttgart's major sponsors Kärcher, the Cannstatter Kurve (Cannstatt Curve), to the left of the Haupttribüne, before rebuilding it housed legendary Blocks A and B, which occupied by the most devoted home fans, and one of two video walls. Now die hard home fans stand in the new "heart of Cannstatter Kurve" in Bloks 34 and 35 in center of the curve directly behind the goal., the Untertürkheimer Kurve (Untertürkheim Curve), to the right of the Haupttribüne, housing the guest team's fans (C and D-Block) and the second video wall The Mercedes-Benz Arena features a unique fabric roof construction, making it easily recognizable. Made of precision-tailored membranes of PVC-coated polyester, the roof tissue is durable enough to withstand 1,000 kg of weight per square decimeter. It is suspended from an aesthetic steel frame that runs around the entire stadium weighing approximately 2,700 metric tons. The steel cables connecting the roof to the frame alone weigh about 420 tons. The roof was added during the refurbishment preceding the 1993 World Athletics Championships. The Mercedes-Benz Arena hosted four matches of the 1974 FIFA World Cup, two matches of the 1988 UEFA European Football Championship (a 1st Round match and a semi-final) and six games of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, including a Round of 16 game and the third-place playoff match (see below for details). The stadium also hosted the finals of the European Cup (now known as UEFA Champions League) in 1959 (Real Madrid vs. Stade de Reims) and 1988 (PSV Eindhoven vs. S.L. Benfica). As Stuttgart is located relatively close to Germany's southern neighbors Switzerland, it has hosted a total of seven international football matches versus the Swiss since 1911., Germany's first international football match after World War II in 1950 (against Switzerland) was played at the stadium. The match attendance of 103,000 is the stadium record. The first match after the German reunification in 1990 (also versus Switzerland) took place at Neckarstadion Stadium as well., Klaus Fischer scored Germany's "ARD Goal of the Century" here against the Swiss in 1977, with a bicycle kick ("Fallrückzieher"), his trademark move with which he also scored the important 3:3 equalizer in extra time (108th minute) at the 1982 FIFA World Cup vs France, but this was not among the Top 10 of the WC Goal of the Century., With 115 m² each, the stadium's two video walls before rebuilding were the largest in Europe, now it has the two video walls with the highest resolution in Europe., The Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion was one of the four stadiums hosting games during the 2006 FIFA World Cup whose name were not changed to FIFA World Cup Stadium XYZ, as the dedication to Gottlieb Daimler was not interpreted as advertisement (i.e. for DaimlerChrysler). All others, such as the Allianz-Arena in Munich or the AOL-Arena in Hamburg were obliged to remove all visual references to their stadiums' name sponsors. The 1986 European Athletics Championships in which the hammer throw world record by Yuriy Sedykh was set, and the 1993 World Athletics Championships were held there, and the Daimler-Stadium was the host the IAAF World Athletics final from 2006 to 2008. The arena has also been the venue of several Eurobowl finals of American Football in the 1990s. The last athletics event took place in September 2008, after which the stadium underwent redevelopment in order to build a football-only arena. The redevelopment was announced along with the stadium's name change in late March 2008. The first computer images of the new arena were released at the same time, also showing a large cube with four video scoreboards above the centre circle, similar to the one in the Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt. Starting in 2009, the Mercedes-Benz Arena has been redeveloped into a football-specific stadium. New stands were constructed during the summer of 2011, with pitch level being lowered by 1.30 metres in time for the beginning of the 2009–10 season. After the interior redevelopment finished, the roof was expanded to cover all the new rows of the seats. The entire construction was completed by the end of 2011. Within the first couple of weeks of the redevelopment, 18 undetonated bombs left over from the air raids on Stuttgart during the Second World War were found on the construction site. All times local (CET) Stuttgart hosted the following matches at the 1974 FIFA World Cup: These UEFA Euro 1988 matches were played in Stuttgart: The following games were played at the stadium during the 2006 FIFA World Cup: Pink Floyd performed at the stadium on 25 June 1989 as part of their 1989 Another Lapse European Tour (A Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour). Depeche Mode performed at the stadium on 3 June 2013 during their Delta Machine Tour, in front of a sold out crowd of 36,225 people. Stadium website The Mercedes-Benz Arena (; : Meisedesy-bentzy Venho Tsonshin), formerly known as the Shanghai World Expo Cultural Center, is an indoor arena located on the former grounds of Expo 2010 in Pudong, Shanghai. It is owned and operated by the AEG-OPG joint venture. The facility seats 18,000 people and includes a smaller venue, The Mixing Room & Muse, which is a more intimate live-music venue. The arena hosted the opening ceremony for the Expo 2010, during which it was known as the Expo Cultural Center. The arena is sponsored in a ten-year deal by Mercedes-Benz and was officially renamed the Mercedes-Benz Arena on January 15, 2011. The arena has become the most popular arena in mainland China since it opened in 2010. It is one of the most popular arenas for concert tours of the performers in Mandarin and Cantonese, also in Korean and Japanese. Additionally, it attracted many superstars such as Adam Lambert, Akon, Alicia Keys, André Rieu, Andrea Bocelli, Aretha Franklin, Ariana Grande, Avenged Sevenfold, Avril Lavigne, The Beach Boys, Bruno Mars, Charlie Puth, The Cardigans, Eagles, Ed Sheeran, Elton John, Fall Out Boy, Imagine Dragons, Iron Maiden, James Blunt, Jane Zhang, Jennifer Lopez, Jessie J, Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes, Katy Perry, The Killers, Lay Zhang, Lindsey Stirling, Lionel Richie, Mariah Carey, Maroon 5, Metallica, Michael Bublé, Muse, Nile Rodgers, Nine Percent, Owl City, OneRepublic, Pitbull, Richard Clayderman, Quincy Jones, Queen, Rebecca Ferguson, Rocket Girls 101, The Rolling Stones, Samantha Jade, Simple Plan, Slash, Taylor Swift, Tony Bennett, Troye Sivan, Usher, and Unine. On 21 September 2017, an NHL pre-season game was held in the stadium, with the Vancouver Canucks losing to the LA Kings 5-2. The game saw a crowd of 10,088 gather to watch the NHL's first ever game played in China. In March 2016, the arena held a professional Dota 2 video game tournament, known as the Shanghai Major 2016. The International 2019, Dota 2 premier annual tournament, also took place in the arena in August 2019. The Mercedes-Benz Arena held the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in November 2017. Mercedes-Benz Arena official homepage, Mercedes-Benz Arena AEG homepage

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The American Bulldog is a large breed of utility dog descended from the now- extinct Old English Bulldog. They are now used on animal farms, dog sports, and for showing. They are part of American culture and history, and may be used as a cultural icon for the United States. They are generally represented as being strong and tough. In November 2019, the American Bulldog was added to the American Kennel Club (AKC) Foundation Stock Service (FSS). The Old English Bulldog was preserved by working class immigrants who brought their working dogs with them to the American South. Small farmers and ranchers used this all-around working dog for many tasks including farm guardians, stock dogs and catch dogs. These dogs were not an actual breed as considered by today's standards but were a generic bulldog type. There were no recorded pedigrees or records and breeding decisions were dependent on the best working farm dogs despite breed or background. Several separate strains of the "bulldog" type dogs were kept by ranchers as utilitarian working dogs. Perhaps the most important role of the bulldog and the reason for its survival, and in fact why it thrived throughout the South, was because of the presence of feral pigs, introduced to the New World and without predators. The bulldogs were the settlers' only means of sufficiently dealing with the vermin. By World War II, the breed was near extinction until John D. Johnson scoured the back roads of the South looking for the best specimens to revive the breed. During this time a young Alan Scott grew an interest in Johnson's dogs and began to work with him on the revitalization process. At some point, Scott began infusing non- Johnson catch bulldogs from working Southern farms with Johnson's lines, creating what is now known as the Standard type American Bulldog, also called the Scott type. At another point, Johnson began crossing his original lines with an atavistic English bulldog from the North that had maintained its genetic athletic vigor, creating the Bully type American Bulldog, also known as the Johnson type of the Classic type. American bulldogs are now safe from extinction and are enjoying a healthy increase in popularity, either as a working/protector dog or as a family pet. All over the world, they are used variously as "hog dogs" (catching escaped pigs or hunting razorbacks), as cattle drovers, and as working or sport K-9s. American Bulldogs also successfully compete in several dog sports such as dog obedience, Schutzhund, French Ring, Mondioring, Iron Dog competition and weight pulling. They are also exhibited in conformation shows in the UKC, NKC, ABA, ABRA, EKC and the SACBR. The AKC added the American Bulldog to the FSS on November 11, 2019. The American Bulldog is a stocky, well built, strong-looking dog, with a large head and a muscular build. The shoulders and chest tend to be the most muscular parts of the American bulldog. Its coat is short and generally smooth. The breed is a light to moderate shedder. Colors, while historically predominantly white with patches of red, black, or brindle, have grown in recent years to include many color patterns including black, red, brown, fawn, and all shades of brindle. The color conformation is quite varied, but solid black or any degree of merle is considered a cosmetic fault, and a blue color is a disqualification by the National Kennel Club Breed Standard. Black pigmentation on the nose and eye rims is traditionally preferred, with only some pink allowed. Eye color is usually brown, but heterochromia also occurs, although this is also considered a cosmetic fault. American Bulldogs are known to drool more than other breeds of dog. The Bully type is generally a larger, heavier dog with a shorter muzzle. Standard types are generally more athletic with longer muzzles and a more square head. Many modern American Bulldogs are a combination of the two types, usually termed "hybrid." In general, American Bulldogs weigh between 27 and 54 kg (60 to 120 lb) and are 52 to 70 cm (20 to 28 in) at the withers, but have been known to greatly exceed these dimensions, especially in the "out of standard," nonworking stock. American Bulldogs are typically confident, social, and active dogs that are at ease with their families. They bond strongly with their owners, and are happiest with lots of time and attention. They are capable of jumping in excess of vertically due to the dense muscle build of the breed. American Bulldogs may be slightly aloof with strangers, but should be confident animals when mature. This breed tolerates children and can do very well with them, provided they are socialized early and understand their limits. They can do well with other dogs in the household or who visit regularly when properly introduced and supervised. They are not necessarily good with strange dogs especially in chaotic environments like the dog park. The more exposure to good training practices and clear behavior expectations with other dogs and people, the more likely the success at being controlled both inside and outside of their environment. Ongoing training both in the home and outside of the home is essential for this breed. While the goal of the breed was originally to produce a working farm utility dog that could catch and hold wild boar and cattle, kill vermin, and guard an owner's property, when properly trained, exercised and socialized, this breed can become a family pet. American Bulldogs generally live from 10 to 16 years, and tend to be strong, physically active, and often healthy. Some health problems in American bulldogs are often found within certain genetic lines, and are not common to the entire breed, while others, such as neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL), Ichthyosis, disorders of the kidney and thyroid, ACL tears, hip dysplasia, cherry eye, elbow dysplasia, entropion, ectropion, and bone cancer are more common to the general population of American Bulldogs. There are DNA tests available to help breeders screen breeding animals for NCL (neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis) and Ichthyosis. A Penn Hip (Pennsylvania Hip Improvement project) or OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) screening is recommended for all potential breeding animals. Some American Bulldogs are prone to allergies. Spike and Tyke from the Tom and Jerry franchise, The Deftones' video Bloody Cape featured a model walking an American Bulldog down the street. The American Bulldog was actually played by two separate dogs from the Norcal's American Bulldog Kennel. The names of the dogs were Big Trouble and Tory Hesta., In Return to Me (2000), David Duchovny's character's dog, Mel, is played by an American Bulldog named Peetey., In the 2001 film Kevin of the North, one of Kevin Manley's sled dogs is an American Bulldog named Snowflake., Nedd ("Nasty Evil Dead Dog") in The Number 23 (2007), In Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010), Jangers, Tyler Labine's character's dog, is played by an American Bulldog named Weezer., An American Bulldog features prominently as the titular character's companion in the 2013 film Joe., The company logo for Zynga also featured an American Bulldog and was named after Mark Pincus' dog "Zinga". Since the 1990s, American Bulldogs have become more frequently used in films as family pets, replacing the previously popular American Pit Bull Terriers and Bull Terriers. For example:, Chance from the feature film (1993) and its sequel, (1996). Suregrips Rattler (Chance) was only in the first Homeward Bound movie. The first film based on The Incredible Journey featured a Bull Terrier., Although the original Petey from Hal Roach's Our Gang was an American Pit Bull Terrier, in the 1994 film remake The Little Rascals, Petey was played by an American Bulldog., In Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), an American Bulldog named Gunner is the family pet. And Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005 film) American Bulldog Association, American Bully, Bulldog breeds, Catch dog, Molosser, Old English Bulldog American Bulldog Association, The Bulldog Information Lybrary: American Bulldog Types and Bloodlines The American Bully is a recently formed companion dog breed, originally recognized by the American Bully Kennel Club (ABKC). It has been recognized by the United Kennel Club (UKC) since July 15, 2013. It is a small to large breed which has been divided into four categories; Pocket, Standard, Classic and XL. Founded in the United States between 1980 and 1990, the American Bully was produced using a foundation of American Staffordshire Terriers and American Pit Bull Terriers bred to several bulldog-type breeds. It was created with the purpose of being a family companion dog. While some of the founding kennels, namely Razor's Edge owner Dave Wilson, affirmed that they used only the two first aforementioned breeds to produce the desired dogs, it is consensus that at least five other breeds were used to attain the more "bully" physical traits desired. These are assumed to be the American Bulldog, English Bulldog, Olde English Bulldogge, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and French Bulldog. According to ABKC the initial desire for this breed was to produce a dog with a lower drive and more of the "bully" traits than the American Staffordshire Terrier. Mass and heavy bone was prioritized to ensure such a look, and due to this many of the dogs shown today display the wide front for which they were originally bred. The breed was first recognized by its breed club, the American Bully Kennel Club, in 2004. This registry first acted as a means to document pedigrees and show the breed against its written standard. During the early years of the breed, a wide spectrum of dogs were shown, many displaying physical traits of the other introduced breeds; these were penalized heavily by the registry, forcing owners and breeders of such dogs to create new means to show their style of dog without being rejected. Within the ABKC, the four varieties are separated by height without specification of weight. All these varieties are expected to follow the same standard with minor alterations. All dogs are classified and shown as Standard until they reach a year of age, at which point they are separated into the varieties and shown against their own type. The standard American Bully type is a medium size dog with a compact bulky muscular body, heavy bone structure and blocky head. Male dogs must be while females must be . The "pocket" type is a smaller variant with full-grown males under 17 inches (43 cm), but no less than 14 inches (36 cm), at the withers and females under 16 inches (40 cm), but no less than 13 inches (33 cm), at the withers. An XL type is determined by its adult height, with males between 20 inches (51 cm) and 23 inches (57 cm) at the withers and females between 19 inches (48 cm) and 22 inches (54 cm) at the withers. The classic is a lighter frame dog than the standard but falls within the same height range. These dogs do not display the exaggerated features often found in the other varieties, and arguably display clearer American Pit Bull Terrier/American Staffordshire Terrier lineage. Outside of the breed standard, dogs shorter or taller than the named variations have been bred. Smaller dogs are sometimes called "Micro" and larger ones are called "XXL", but neither are recognized by the kennel clubs as legitimate varieties. The American Bully is a highly adaptable breed, often acting as a loving companion as well as a rough breed. Many dogs, despite acting as lap dogs in the home, do well in sports such as weight pull and flirt pole. Dog and human aggression is supposed to be bred out of the American Bully, and is discouraged in breed standards. Health problems vary within the breed, and span the entire spectrum; with some varieties being plagued by problems, and others being well documented for health and quality. Testing is not as common place in the breed as in older breeds; though hip and elbow scoring are the most frequently conducted. Cherry eye, ectropion and entropion are often seen affecting the eyes; while Brachycephalic Respiratory Syndrome can be seen in the shorter muzzled dogs. Bulldog breeds American Bully Kennel Club, United Kennel Club - American Bully Standard, American Bully Association The French Bulldog is a breed of domestic dog. In the 1800s, they were the result of a cross between Toy Bulldogs imported from England and local ratters in Paris, France. The breed is popular as a pet; in 2015, they were the fourth-most popular registered dog in the United Kingdom, and in the U.S., the sixth-most popular AKC-registered dog breed. They were rated the third-most popular dog in Australia in 2017. The origin of the modern French Bulldog breed descends directly from the dogs of the Molossians, an ancient Greek tribe. The dogs were spread throughout the ancient world by Phoenician traders. British Molossian dogs were developed into the English Mastiff, a sub-breed of the Mastiff was the Bullenbeisser, a type of dog used for bull-baiting. Blood sports such as bull-baiting were outlawed in England in 1835, leaving these "Bulldogs" unemployed; however, they had been bred for non-sporting reasons since at least 1800, so their use changed from a sporting breed to a companion breed. To reduce their size, some Bulldogs were crossed with terriers, ratter dogs from the "slums" of England. By 1850, the Toy Bulldog had become common in England and appeared in conformation shows when they began around 1860. These dogs weighed around , although classes were also available at dog shows for those who weighed under . At the same time, lace workers from Nottingham, displaced by the Industrial Revolution, began to settle in Normandy, France. They brought a variety of dogs with them, including Toy Bulldogs. The dogs became popular in France and a trade in imported small Bulldogs was created, with breeders in England sending over Bulldogs that they considered to be too small, or with faults such as ears that stood up. By 1860, there were few Toy Bulldogs left in England, such was their popularity in France and due to the exploits of specialist dog exporters. The small Bulldog type gradually became thought of as a breed, and received a name, the Bouledogue Francais. This Francization of the English name is also a contraction of the words boule (ball) and dogue (mastiff or molosser). The dogs were highly fashionable and were sought after by society ladies and Parisian prostitutes alike, as well as creatives such as artists, writers, and fashion designers. However, records were not kept of the breed's development as it diverged further away from its original Bulldog roots. As it changed, terrier stock had been brought in to develop traits such as the breed's long straight ears. Bulldogs were very popular in the past, especially in Western Europe. One of its ancestors was the English bulldog. Americans had been importing French Bulldogs for a while, but it was not until 1885 when they were brought over in order to set up an American-based breeding program. They were mostly owned by society ladies, who first displayed them at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in 1896. They arrived again in the following year with even more entries, where the judging of the breed would go on to have future ramifications. The judge in question at the dog show, a Mr. George Raper, only chose winners with "rose ears"—ears that folded at the tip, as with the standard for Bulldogs. The ladies formed the French Bull Dog Club of America and created the breed standard which stated for the first time that the "erect bat ear" was the correct type. In the early 20th century the breed remained in vogue for high society, with dogs changing hands for up to $3,000 and being owned by members of influential families such as the Rockefellers and the J. P. Morgans. The American Kennel Club recognized the breed quickly after the breed club was formed, and by 1906 the French Bulldog was the fifth most popular dog breed in America. In 2013, the American Kennel Club (AKC) ranked the French Bulldog as the 11th most popular breed in the United States, enjoying a sharp rise in popularity from 54th place a decade before, in 2003. By 2014, they had moved up to become the ninth most popular AKC registered dog breed in the USA. This new Bulldog breed arrived for the first time in England in 1893, with English Bulldog breeders in an uproar as the French imports did not meet the new breed standards in place by this time and they wanted to prevent the English stock from crossbreeding with the French. The Kennel Club initially recognized them as a subset of the existing Bulldog breed rather than an entirely new breed. Some English breeders in this period bred the French Bulldogs in order to resurrect the Toy Bulldog. On 10 July 1902, at the house of Frederick W. Cousens, a meeting was held to set up a breed club in order to seek individual recognition for the French breed. The adopted breed standard was the same one which was already in use in America, France, Germany and Austria. Despite opposition from Miniature Bulldog (the new breed name for the Toy Bulldog) and Bulldog breeders, in 1905, the Kennel Club changed its policy on the breed and recognized them separate from the English variety, initially as the Bouledogue Francais, then later in 1912 with the name changed to the French Bulldog. The New Complete Dog Book: Official Breed Standards and All-New Profiles for 200 Breeds, 21st Edition, is an official publication of the American Kennel Club and sets forth the Official Breed Standard for all breeds recognized by the AKC. Its specifications for the French Bulldog state that it should be muscular, with a soft and loose coat forming wrinkles. Acceptable colors under the breed standard are the various shades of brindle, fawn, tan or white with brindle patches (known as "pied"). The most common colors are brindle, then fawn, with pieds being less common than the other colors. The breed clubs do not recognize any other colors or patterns. This is because some colors come linked with genetic health problems not usually found in the breed. These include blue coloration, which is linked with a form of alopecia (hair loss or baldness), sometimes known as "Blue Dog Alopecia". Although this is heavily disputed by some organizations, it has been suggested that the health, hair and skin conditions are caused by the color pigment (melanin) clumping in the hair shaft itself. Even dogs that are not blue can develop "blue dog alopecia" or canine follicular dysplasia. The French Bulldog, like many other companion dog breeds, requires close contact with humans. If left alone for more than a few hours, they may experience separation anxiety. This is especially true when they are young, but persists into adulthood. Its anxiety may lead a French Bulldog to behave destructively and for its housebreaking to fail. They have fairly minimal exercise needs, but do require at least daily short walks. The French Bulldog is sometimes called a "Frog dog" or a "Clown dog." "Frog dog" is in reference to their wide round face and the way they sit with their hind legs spread out. "Clown dog" is because they are considered to be fun-loving, and indeed they have been described as the "clowns of the dog world." French Bulldogs are often kept as companions. They rarely bark. The breed is patient and affectionate with their owners and can live with other breeds. They are ranked 109th in Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs. There are certain exceptions to this average level of canine intelligence; a French Bulldog named Princess Jacqueline which died in 1934 was claimed to understand 20 words, reacting correctly. A UK breed survey report on 71 dog deaths put the average lifespan of French Bulldogs at 8 to 10 years, while the UK breed club suggests an average of 12 to 14 years. The AKC lists that the French Bulldog breed has a lifespan of 11 to 13 years. In 2013 a UK Medical Study reviewed the health of 2228 French Bulldogs under veterinary care in the UK. The study found that 1612 (72.4%) of these French Bulldog had at least one recorded health issue: "The most common disorders recorded were ear infections (14.0%), diarrhea (7.5%) and conjunctivitis (3.2%). Skin problems were the most commonly reported group of disorders (17.9%). This study of over two thousand French Bulldogs provides a framework to identify the most important health priorities in French Bulldogs in the UK and can assist with reforms to improve health and welfare within the breed." Patellar luxation is the dislocation of the patella. In dogs, the patella is a small bone that shields the front of the stifle joint in its hind legs. This bone is held in place by ligaments. As the knee joint is moved, the patella slides in a groove in the femur. The kneecap may dislocate toward the inside (medial) or outside (lateral) of the leg. This condition may be the result of injury or congenital deformities. Patellar luxation can affect either or both legs. The French bulldog has only a single short coat. which combined with their compromised breathing system, makes it impossible for them to regulate their temperature efficiently. This means the dog may easily become cold, and are prone to heat stroke in hot and humid weather. In terms of grooming, the French Bulldog requires regular nail trimming, brushing, occasional bathing, and ear cleaning. French Bulldogs are also prone to allergies, which can cause eczema on the body. Allergies can be caused by foods, insect bites, and French Bulldogs can also be frequently prone to hay fever and ophthalmic diseases. As they are a brachycephalic breed, French Bulldogs are banned by several commercial airlines due to the numbers that have died while in the air. This is because dogs with snub noses find it difficult to breathe when they are hot and stressed. The temperature in a cargo space in an aircraft can rise as high as when waiting on the runway. It is also recommended that French Bulldogs who live indoors have access to air conditioning to regulate their temperature. French Bulldogs frequently require artificial insemination and Caesarean section to give birth, with over 80% of litters delivered this way. Many French Bulldog stud dogs are incapable of naturally breeding. This is because French Bulldogs have very slim hips, making the male unable to mount the female to reproduce naturally. Therefore, breeders must undertake artificial insemination of female dogs. Female French bulldogs can also have erratic or 'silent' heats, which may be a side effect of thyroid disease or impaired thyroid function. French Bulldogs average around three puppies per litter. French Bulldogs can also be prone to an assortment of back, disk and spinal diseases and disorders, most of which are thought to be related to the fact that they were selectively chosen from the dwarf examples of the Bulldog. This condition is also referred to as chondrodysplasia. French bulldogs are prone to having congenital hemivertebrae (also called "butterfly vertebrae"), which will show on an X-ray. More advanced technologies such as myelograms, CT scans, or magnetic resonance imaging are used to detect spinal cord compression. In October 2010, the UK French Bulldog Health Scheme was launched. The scheme consists of three levels: the first level, Bronze, designates a basic veterinary check which covers all the Kennel Club Breed Watch points of concern for the breed. The next level, Silver, requires a DNA test for hereditary cataracts, a simple cardiology test, and patella grading. The final level, Gold, requires a hip score and a spine evaluation. The European and UK French Bulldog fanciers and Kennel Clubs are moving away from the screw, cork-screw or 'tight' tail (which is an inbreed spinal defect), and returning to the short drop tail which the breed originally had. The UK breed standard now states that the tail should be "undocked, [delete 'very'] short, set low, thick at root, tapering quickly towards tip, preferably [delete 'either'] straight, [delete 'or kinked'] and long enough to cover anus. Never curling over back nor carried gaily." French Bulldogs have a tendency towards eye issues. Cherry eye, or an everted third eyelid, has been known to occur, although it is more common in Bulldogs. Glaucoma, retinal fold dysplasia, corneal ulcers and juvenile cataracts are also conditions which have been known to afflict French Bulldogs. Screening of prospective breeding candidates through the Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF) can help eliminate instances of these diseases in offspring. The skin folds under the eyes of the French bulldog should be cleaned regularly and kept dry. Tear stains are common on lighter-colored dogs. While no French Bulldogs have been Best in Show at either Crufts or the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, during the 1950s a French Bulldog won Best of Breed for eight years in a row at Westminster; the run ended with the dog's retirement after the 1960 show. The dog's owner, Amanda West, went on to win Best of Breed with other French Bulldogs for a further 10 years. In 2010, a Canadian French Bulldog became the first of his breed to win the Non-Sporting Group and make it through for consideration at the Best in Show round, eventually losing to a Scottish Terrier, Roundtown Mercedes of Maryscot. Jason Schwartzman's French Bulldog, Arrow, made a cameo in his HBO detective comedy series Bored to Death in October 2010. The only French Bulldog aboard the RMS Titanic went down with the ship on 15 April 1912. First class passenger Robert Williams Daniel, a 27-year-old banker, had purchased the dog, named Gamin de Pycombe, for £150 (the equivalent of $17,000 in today's prices). A surviving passenger said that they had seen a French Bulldog swimming in the ocean after the ship sank. Aging in dogs, Pug Specific General

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Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs 2017 (stylised as Saregamapa Li'l Champs) is a singing competition television series, which premiered on 25 February 2017 on Zee TV. In a ‘Back to School’ format that lends itself to a spirited atmosphere of camaraderie and fun, the L’il Champs will represent their schools. For the first time in L'il Champs, they have incorporated the format created for Sa Re Ga Ma Pa 2016. There is a 30-member Grand Jury which grades the contestants and the average percentage of their scores is displayed. Himesh Reshammiya, Neha Kakkar and Javed Ali are the mentors in the show, whereas Aditya Narayan is the host. The show went off air on 29 October 2017 following the Great Grand Finale in Jaipur. Shreyan Bhattacharya and Anjali Gaikwad were announced as the winners. Children aged 5 – 14 years participate in a singing competition. In the auditions round, they have 100 seconds to impress the three judges and the 30-members of the grand jury. If two of the three judges say YES and they secure at least 50 per cent of the support of the Grand Jury, then the contestant progresses to the next round. In the Gala round, the judges select the 'Student of the Week' who is the best performer according to them. The contestant gets to sit on a 'flying sofa', which indicates that the contestant is safe from next week's elimination. The audience vote will come in later in the competition. The contestant with the highest votes in the final round will win the competition. The show has a panel of 30 jury members who are experts from the music industry. They closely assess the contestants from the audition stage wherein they help the mentors in the selection process and are present in the show during the studio rounds too. Some of them are: Jayas Kumar, a 5-year-old boy from Delhi is a special non-competitive participant of the show retained only for his entertainment quotient. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs 2011 was the fifth season of the popular Indian Zee TV show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs. Broadcast from 3 June 2011, the music reality show had 18 participants: 9 boys and 9 girls. The theme for season 5 was Music Ka Gurukul. The show was won by Azmat Hussain, who later became a contestant on season 11 of Indian Idol. The runner-up was Salman Ali who later on became the winner of season 10 of Indian Idol. Jay Soni The candidates were divided into three teams, each guided by one of the judges. Barnali Hota (11, Bhubaneswar, Orissa) - eliminated 2 September, Emil Roy (12, Nagpur, Maharashtra) - eliminated 25 June, Niladri Chatterjee (10, Kolkata, West Bengal) - eliminated 23 September, Sargamkant Vaish (11, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh) - eliminated 2 July, Simran Kaur (13, Haryana) - eliminated 25 June, Srashti Singh(11, Haryana) - eliminated on 16 July Anmol Khatri (11, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh) - eliminated 26 August, Pooja Tiwari (11, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh) - eliminated 18 June, Prajwal Shirke (10, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh) - eliminated 18 June, Rima Chakraborty (13, Berhampore, Murshidabad, West Bengal) - eliminated 9 July, Salman Ali (13, Punahana, Mewat, Haryana) - grand finale contestant: second place, Sanjana Bhola ... (12, Ludhiana, Punjab) - eliminated 19 August Azmat Hussain (10, Jaipur, Rajasthan) - eliminated 9 July, came back as wild card entry on 22 July and was crowned winner in the grand finale, Krishnendu Adhikary (12, Shantipur, Nadia, West Bengal) - eliminated 16 July, Nitin Kumar (14, Mubarikpur) - saved from elimination 9 September and 3rd place in grand finale, Priyanshi Srivastava (9, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh) - eliminated 2 July wildcard entry on 22 July and got eliminated again on 5 August, Rimsha Deb (10, Dharmanagar, Tripura) - eliminated 16 September, Veda Nerurkar (13, Mumbai, Maharashtra) - eliminated on 30 July After the children were put into the three groups, the three judges put two contestants in the challenge round from their groups (1 boy and 1 girl). After that the one boy and one girl from each group sang and Alka Yagnik choose the two eliminated contestants out of the six total, Week 1 Challenge round contestants: Top 18 Week 2 Challenge round contestants: Top 16 Week 3 Challenge round contestants: Top 14 Week 4 Challenge round contestants: Top 12 Week 5 Challenge round contestants: Top 10 The top eight and two wildcard contestants, Azmat and Priyanshi, formed the Dabanng dus. The voting system was used afterwards for selecting the finalist among Dabanng dus. Barnali Hota - eliminated 2 September, Niladri Chatterjee - eliminated 23 September, Anmol Khatri - eliminated 26 August, Salman Ali, Sanjana Bhola - eliminated 19 August, Priyanshi Srivastava - eliminated 5 August, Rimsha Deb - eliminated 16 September, Nitin Kumar, Veda Nerurkar - eliminated 29 July, Azmat Hussain Top 10 Bottom 3: Niladri, Veda, Priyanshi, Bottom 2: Niladri, Veda, Eliminated: Veda Top 9 Bottom 3: Anmol, Sanjana, Priyanshi, Bottom 2: Sanjana, Priyanshi, Eliminated: Priyanshi Top 8 Bottom 3: Nitin, Niladri, Sanjana, Bottom 2: Niladri, Sanjana, Eliminated: Sanjana Top 7 Bottom 2: Anmol, Niladri., Eliminated: Anmol Top 6 Bottom 2: Barnali, Nitin, Eliminated: Barnali Top 5 Bottom 2: Nitin, Niladri, Eliminated: Nitin (saved by Alka Yagnik's trump card) Top 5 Bottom 2: Niladri, Rimsha, Eliminated: Rimsha Top 4 Bottom 2: Nitin, Niladri, Eliminated: Niladri Top 3 Second runner up : Nitin Kumar, First runner up: Salman Ali, Winner: Azmat Hussain Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs 2009 (SRGMP) is the third season of the popular ZeeTV show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs. Going on air from 5 June 2009, the music reality show will feature 12 participants: 6 boys and 6 girls. The theme of the show this year is unique - Jeetenge World, Boys Ya Girls. The eliminations by public voting began on 5 August 2009. The season finale was held in Mumbai on Saturday 24 October 2009; the winner was Hemant Brijwasi. Abhijeet Bhattacharya - Boys' Mentor, Alka Yagnik - Girls' Mentor Kailash Kher - 26 and 27 June, Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, Pritam (to promote their movie Love Aaj Kal) - 3 July, Pritam Imtiaz Ali Zaynah Vastani - 4 July, Shaan - 10 and 11 July, Kavita Krishnamurthy - 17 and 18 July, Imran Khan, Ravi Kishan (to promote their movie Luck), and Udit Narayan - 24 July, Udit Narayan - 25 July, Sukhwinder Singh - 31 July and 1 August - Friendship Special, Jatin Pandit, Suresh Wadkar, (to serve as the selection board for the Wild Card Entry) - 7 and 8 August, Shahid Kapoor (to promote his movie Kaminey) - 14 August, Daler Mehndi, Shreyas Talpade (to promote Shreyas' movie Aage Se Right) - 22 August, David Dhawan, Govinda, Vashu Bhagnani, Sameer, Neeraj Shridhar, Anushka Manchanda, & Shravan (to promote Govinda's movie Do Knot Disturb) - 28 August, Wadali brothers - 29 August, Anandji Virji Shah, Mohammed Zahur Khayyam - 4 September, Priyanka Chopra, Harman Baweja (to promote their movie What's Your Raashee?) - 5 September, Asha Bhosle - 11 September, Salman(Mohammed Ghouse) - 18 September, Bappi Lahiri - 19 September, Ratan Rajput & Manoj Tiwari - 24 September, Emran Hashmi, Soha Ali Khan (to promote their film - Tum Mile) - 25 September, Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgan (to promote their movie ) - 2 October, Zayed Khan (to promote his movie Blue) - 3 October, Ritesh Deshmukh (to promote his movie Aladin) - 9 October, Lara Dutta (to promote her film Blue) - 10 October, Vishal-Shekhar (Vishal Dadlani & Shekhar Ravjiani) - 17 October The hosts are 2 little kids. Afsha at first was auditioning as a contestant, and ended up being the hostess. Dhairya was already famous from few movies like: Partner (2007 film) and Baabul. Also from shows: Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain? and Ek Se Badhkar Ek. Afsha Musani, Dhairya Sorecha 21 August: Abhijeet Srivastava - OUT, Shreyasi Bhattacharjee - Safe, Shristi Bhandari - Safe 28 August: Shristi Bhandari - OUT, Hemant Brijwasi - Safe, Rahul Dutta - Safe 4 September: Rahul Dutta - OUT, Prateeksha Shrivastav - Safe, Antara Nandy - Safe 11 September: NO ELIMINATION (on Asha Bhosle's request) Hemant Brijwasi, Antara Nandy, Swarit Shukl 18 September: Abhigyan Das - Safe, Shreyasi Bhattacharjee - Safe, Antara Nandy - OUT 25 September: NO ELIMINATION Yatarth Ratnam Rastogi, Prateeksha Shrivastava 2 October: Abhigyan Das - OUT, Swarit Shukl - Safe 9 October: Prateeksha Shrivastava - OUT, Hemant Brijwasi - Safe 16 October: Swarit Shukl - OUT Hemant Brijwasi (from Mathura) - WINNER, Yatharth Ratnum Rastogi (from Varanasi) - 1st runner-up, Shreyasi Bhattacharjee (from Kolkata) - 2nd runner-up Zee TV's Official Site for L'il Champs 2009

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Happy Valley is a British crime drama television series filmed and set in the Calder Valley, West Yorkshire, in Northern England. The series, starring Sarah Lancashire and Siobhan Finneran, is written and created by Sally Wainwright, and directed by Wainwright, Euros Lyn, and Tim Fywell. The first series debuted on BBC One on 29 April 2014, and the second series debuted on 9 February 2016. In May 2015, Happy Valley won the BAFTA Award for Best Drama Series. A third series is currently in development. Catherine Cawood (Sarah Lancashire) is a strong-willed police sergeant in West Yorkshire, still coming to terms with the suicide of her teenage daughter, Becky, eight years earlier. Cawood is now divorced from her husband and living with her sister, Clare (Siobhan Finneran), a recovering alcoholic and heroin addict, who is helping her bring up Becky's young son, Ryan (Rhys Connah), the product of rape. Neither Catherine's ex-husband nor their adult son, Daniel, want anything to do with Ryan. Catherine hears that Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton), the man responsible for the brutal rape that impregnated Becky and drove her to suicide shortly after Ryan was born, is out of prison after serving eight years for drug charges. Catherine soon becomes obsessed with finding Royce, unaware that he is involved in the kidnapping of Ann Gallagher (Charlie Murphy), a plot instigated by Kevin Weatherill (Steve Pemberton) and orchestrated by Ashley Cowgill (Joe Armstrong). Things quickly take a dark turn as the abductors scramble to keep the kidnapping secret, although Catherine is on to them. Eighteen months after the events of the first series, Catherine Cawood (Sarah Lancashire) is back at work and has won the Queen's Police Medal (QPM) for gallantry, for rescuing Ann Gallagher (Charlie Murphy) from Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton), who is serving a life sentence in prison. But when Royce's mother is killed, Catherine finds herself implicated in a string of murders. While trying to prove her innocence, Catherine is tasked with investigating a human trafficking operation linked to the serial killings. Meanwhile, senior HMIT officers Detective Superintendent Andy Shepard (Vincent Franklin) and Detective Inspector Jodie Shackleton (Katherine Kelly) begin to suspect that the supposed fourth victim of the serial killer, Victoria Fleming (Amelia Bullmore), was murdered by someone else. Gradually their investigation starts to lead them towards Victoria's actual killer—police detective John Wadsworth (Kevin Doyle), who Fleming had been blackmailing. Catherine's grandson, Ryan, develops a friendship with a new teaching assistant, Miss Wealand (Shirley Henderson), who is secretly a prison groupie infatuated with Royce. Royce, who the court has forbidden having any contact with Ryan, is using Wealand to try to build a relationship with Ryan and get revenge on Catherine. Ryan increasingly concerns his family by asking questions about his father and even suggests Royce should be forgiven. Sarah Lancashire as Sgt Catherine Cawood, Siobhan Finneran as Clare Cartwright, Charlie Murphy as Ann Gallagher, James Norton as Tommy Lee Royce, George Costigan as Nevison Gallagher On 22 November 2012, Ben Stephenson announced the commissioning of Happy Valley for BBC One. The programme was written by Sally Wainwright, produced by Karen Lewis, and directed by Euros Lyn, Sally Wainwright and Tim Fywell. Filming began in the Calder Valley in November 2013. Locations in the area included Todmorden, Luddenden, Mytholmroyd, Bradford, Keighley, Sowerby Bridge, Hebden Bridge, and Heptonstall. Huddersfield, Halifax, Bradford, Leeds and other West Yorkshire cities are mentioned, though not main filming locations. A former police station (Station Road, Sowerby Bridge) was used for some scenes, and additional filming took place at North Light Film Studios at Brookes Mill, Huddersfield. The name "Happy Valley" is what local police in the Calder Valley call the area because of its drug problem. In the series one premiere episode, Ryan points out to Catherine, who is visiting her daughter Becky's grave in the next row, that visitors have left pens at Sylvia Plath Hughes' grave. A second series was commissioned on 18 August 2014. Filming began in August 2015, and the first episode was broadcast on 9 February 2016. The second series was written by Wainwright, produced by Lewis, and directed by Lyn and Wainwright. Catherine's workplace is a former police station in Sowerby Bridge, and her home and local pub (two other main filming locations) are based in Hebden Bridge. The prison scenes were filmed at Oakham Enterprise Park in Rutland, which was Ashwell Prison until its closure. The first episode aired on 29 April 2014 at 21:00. It garnered 8.64 million viewers, and it was the second most watched show of the week (commencing 28 April 2014) for BBC One. The BBC reported that the show received an average consolidated audience of 8.21 million viewers, over six episodes, and an additional 8.1 million requests for the show on BBC iPlayer. Radio Times called Happy Valley a "word-of-mouth hit" which "steadily became a success outside the normal audience for the slot and channel." After "Episode 1" aired, Ofcom received four complaints under the category "violence and dangerous behaviour", but they did not pursue the matter. Reviews from the media have been overwhelmingly positive, and the show has received 100% rating critic review on Rotten Tomatoes. However, some reviewers have criticised the show for its graphic content, especially in "Episode 3" and "Episode 4". The Daily Mails TV correspondent Alasdair Glennie questioned whether or not the BBC went "too far" in "Episode 4" with the brutal attack on police sergeant Cawood and the murder of one of her officers. The Daily Mail claimed that the BBC had received "15 complaints about ["Episode 4"], which aired between 9pm and 10pm after the watershed, while 45 viewers contacted the [BBC] corporation to say how much they enjoyed the show." Vivienne Pattison, a campaigner for stronger television regulations and a part of Mediawatch-UK, declared that the violence "is part of a worrying trend in TV drama." In response to the criticism, Happy Valleys creator-writer, Wainwright, defended the show as "a quality, well-written drama" and stated, "Judging by the amount of email, texts, tweets I've had, I don't think anyone is asking me to apologise." In an interview with Radio Times, Wainwright said the level of violence had been carefully considered and it was done responsibly, by showing the psychological and physical damage suffered by Catherine. Other critics have praised the show. Vicky Frost of The Guardian wrote: "To get hung up on the violence of this BBC1 kidnap drama misses the point. It is beautifully written by Sally Wainwright, draws an astonishing performance from Sarah Lancashire—and between them, they have created something truly unmissable." Another Daily Mail TV correspondent, Christopher Stevens, rated "Episode 4" with 5/5 stars, saying that "every instalment has been unmissable" and "BAFTA bosses might as well get next year's trophy inscribed now" for star Sarah Lancashire. Gerard O'Donovan of The Telegraph called Happy Valley "complex, thrilling and brilliantly written and acted", and "one of the best watches of 2014." In September 2019, The Guardian ranked the show 11th on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century, calling it "a corrective to cliche-ridden and frequently blokey police procedurals", and one that "pulsated with poignant realness". In May 2015, Happy Valley won the BAFTA Award for Best Drama Series. In 2014, it had won a TV Choice Award for Best New Drama; Sarah Lancashire was named Best Actress at the same time. The series was also voted the best TV programme of 2014 by readers of Radio Times. BBC Shop released Happy Valley series one on DVD, in regions two and four, on 16 June 2014. The DVD includes two discs, featuring 351 minutes' worth of footage, and has an age certificate of 15. All six episodes of the series were released on iTunes, both in standard and high definition. On 20 August 2014, the series was further released on Netflix in Canada and the USA, marketed as a "Netflix Original". In the summer of 2016 series 1 of Happy Valley was released on Netflix in the UK and is currently repeated on the channel W. A year later series 2 was released on Netflix in the UK. Happy Valley, scripts at BBC TV Drama archive Happy Valley is a British crime drama television series created by Sally Wainwright and produced by Red Production Company. The first series of six episodes started airing on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 29 April 2014. It was released on Netflix in the United States and Canada on 20 August 2014. A second series of six episodes started airing on BBC One on 9 February 2016 and was made available on Netflix in the US later that year. Happy Valley episodes at the Internet Movie Database, Happy Valley episodes at BBC One Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus (Monty Python's Flying Circus) consisted of two 45-minute Monty Python German television comedy specials produced by WDR for West German television. The two episodes were first broadcast in January and December 1972 and were shot entirely on film and mostly on location in Bavaria, with the first episode recorded in German and the second recorded in English and then dubbed into German. While visiting the UK in the early 1970s, German entertainer and TV producer Alfred Biolek became aware of the Pythons and, excited by their innovative and absurd sketches, invited them to Germany in 1971 to write a special German episode of their Flying Circus show and to act in them. Despite mixed audience reception, a second episode was produced in 1972. According to producer Alfred Biolek, the Pythons were initially somewhat reluctant to the idea of going to Germany to produce comedy for a German audience. Biolek had only seen a few shows, but he was impressed with the concept of the Flying Circus. Specifically, it stood out to him that they were both good comedians and good actors—a combination that Biolek rarely saw in the German comedy scene at the time. Biolek arranged to meet with the Pythons in the BBC's bar in London to convince them "with many arguments and even more gin tonics" to come to Germany for a brief visit. Eric Idle has described the conception of the specials as "The Germans came to us and said 'Look, we haven't got a sense of humour, but we understand you do. Can we use yours? Terry Jones recalls Biolek's inquiry as an opportunity "to do silly things in Germany". The Pythons agreed to visit Biolek in Munich in order to explore options for possible material, but did not want to commit at this point. During their visit, the troupe wanted to get a better understanding of German culture and humour. In fact, the visit, and the resulting two shows “can be viewed as a considered attempt to broaden the stereotypical picture of Germans” by the Pythons. Michael Palin also noted that "All I know is that it reversed all one's prejudices. Python has done very, very well in Germany, and the movies do extremely well. ... Whenever anyone says, you know, the Germans have no sense of humour, say no, hang on, hang on, they got Monty Python before a lot of other countries." During their visit to Germany, the Pythons attended the Oktoberfest and Olympiastadion in Munich, and also visited nearby Dachau concentration camp. The Pythons' visit to Germany in 1971 coincided with the widely celebrated 500th birthday of painter Albrecht Dürer, and the group's second visit with the highly anticipated 1972 Summer Olympics. Both events had an obvious impact on the material created by the Pythons for their first episode, including the Silly Olympics skit, and the Anita Ekberg Sings Albrecht Dürer skit, thus situating their style of humour in a local cultural context. Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus was produced by Biolek and translator Thomas Woitkewitsch in co-production with Westdeutscher Rundfunk. The first episode was written in English, and then translated by Woitkewitsch. However, translating humour within this transnational production—especially when based on idioms—was a general challenge, as Michael Palin recalls. Since none of the Pythons spoke German sufficiently, Woitkewitsch needed to provide them with phonetic transcriptions of the skits, which they then needed to learn by heart. Terry Jones recalls that this posed a considerable challenge to the troupe; he also mentions that because of the rigorous repetition required in production, he is still able to recite the German version of "The Lumberjack Song". Despite the coaching and re-iterative translation efforts, the Pythons' accents remained rather strong, and according to Woitkewitsch the overall pacing was off. While these language issues may have contributed to the first show's weak critical reception, Woitkewitsch suggests that they also lent it a "secret charm". The second episode was recorded in English due to aforementioned issues with the German accents and timing of some of the members; only John Cleese and Michael Palin delivered their lines in German well enough to be easily understood by native speakers. The other Python performers all had very thick accents (particularly Terry Jones), making them difficult to understand. In some cases the episode was broadcast with German subtitles. The second episode was the final television show that Cleese recorded with the group, having already announced his decision to only commit to film and stage productions in future. The episode also featured Gilliam taking more acting roles than before. The "Colin "Bomber" Harris vs Colin "Bomber" Harris" and "Hearing Aid Shop" sketches in the second show had previously featured in At Last the 1948 Show. Footage of the "Silly Olympics" and "The Philosophers' Football Match" sketches from these German specials was regularly used to fill time between live stage performances, as seen in Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl. They were also used in the 2014 reunion shows at London's 02 arena. Several new sketches were written specifically for this show, including "William Tell", "Little Red Riding Hood" and "The Merchant of Venice" as performed by a herd of cows. Only "The Lumberjack Song" was translated from an existing BBC Monty Python episode, although "Ten Seconds of Sex" from episode two was shown in Series 3, Episode 9 of the Flying Circus TV show. Both Alfred Biolek and Thomas Woitkewitsch are featured in guest roles, while the German footballer Franz Beckenbauer makes an appearance in The Philosophers' Football Match skit. The first skit of the first episode also features Claudia Doren, then an announcer at the Westdeutscher Rundfunk. Episode 1 (produced in 1971 and originally broadcast on ARD TV on 3 January 1972 at 9 pm CET) An Introduction to Monty Python By Frau Newsreader Claudia Doren, The Journey of The Olympic Flame, Monty Python’s Guide to Albrecht Dürer, Anita Ekberg Sings Albrecht Dürer, The Merchant of Venice as performed by a herd of cows, Doctor Breeder, Little Red Riding Hood, Silly Olympics, Stake Your Claim, The Lumberjack Song with The Austrian Border Police, The Bavarian Restaurant Edited versions of the "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Silly Olympics" sketches were dubbed into English for use in the Python stage shows; The Stake Your Claim sketch was included on the English language record Another Monty Python Record. Episode 2 (produced in 1972 and originally broadcast on ARD on 18 December 1972 at 9 pm CET) William Tell, Euro Sex Maniacs, The Sycophancy Show, Mouse Reserve/Fish Park, Chicken Mining, Heinrich Bonner, Fleabuster, The Philosophers' Football Match – Greeks vs Germans, First Half, Colin "Bomber" Harris vs Colin "Bomber" Harris, The Philosophers' Football Match – Greeks vs Germans, Second Half, 10 Seconds of Sex, I Want A Hearing Aid, The Tale of Happy Valley (The Princess with The Wooden Teeth) An English-language version of the philosopher's football match was included in the Python stage shows. An abridged version of "The Tale of Happy Valley" was recorded for the English language record Monty Python's Previous Record. The first show received mixed reviews. Opinion surveys taken after the episode was broadcast revealed that 8% of the audience found the show to be very good, 15% found it to be very bad, and 43% found it to be good. Producer Biolek recalls that "This [the first show] was an absolute flop, it cannot be stated differently, as well as in terms of viewership and especially in terms of reviews." Biolek retrospectively believes that the German audience was not ready for Pythonesque humour, since it was more used to more traditional sketch comedy, by comedians such as Rudi Carrell and Heinz Erhardt. In fact, the producers did expect early on that especially the older parts of the German audience would not connect with the Pythons' style of humour. Biolek attributes the production of the second show to Westdeutscher Rundfunk's general progressive stance towards entertainment production at the time, and specifically to the support of the head of the entertainment sector, Hannes Hoff. The versions of the two episodes released on home video outside Germany differ from the versions aired on ARD. The ARD version of the first episode is missing the 6-minute "Bavarian Restaurant" sketch. The ARD version of the second episode trims some shots, mostly from the 'The Tale of Happy Valley' sketch. On the other hand, the ARD version also features two sequences missing from the DVD version: 'Schwimmkurs mit Arthur Lustgarten' (Swimming Course with Arthur Lustgarten) and 'Eine wichtige Information für Raucher' (An Important Information for Smokers). Also, in the ARD version, Eric Idle's 'I Want A Hearing Aid' sketch has been moved to the end of the episode. Guerilla Films released both episodes on a single VHS tape in 1998, available in either PAL or NTSC format. The American A&E; Network used this release as the basis of their DVD releases of the same material, with the first episode being included on Monty Python Live and the second episode included on The Life of Python. (This arrangement resulted in the second episode being omitted from A&E;'s otherwise-complete 16-DVD box set of Monty Python's Flying Circus.) The Australian DVD company Rainbow Entertainment also released both episodes on one DVD. The Swiss publisher Haffmans released a hardbound book containing the scripts of both episodes, with introductions and essays by the German producers, in 1998. This book has not been translated into English as of 2007. Both episodes have been shown on the Paramount Comedy Channel in the UK and on PBS in the USA in 2007. As of April 2018, both episodes are available for streaming on Netflix. The German DVD label Pidax has released the German DVD of the series in 2018. Episode 1 is featured in German language only; Episode 2 has German and English audio (with previously cut scenes being in English with German subtitles). The German TV-exclusive sketches of Episode 2, 'Schwimmkurs mit Arthur Lustgarten' and 'Eine wichtige Information für Raucher' are contained as separate bonus features; also, the German TV cut of 'The Tale of Happy Valley' sketch is available as a bonus feature. Several behind-the-scenes photos from the specials' production were published in the group's autobiography, some of which were from sketches cut from the specials: A version of the "Marriage Guidance Counsellor" sketch., A sketch involving a flute player (Graham Chapman) in front of a German sign., A version of the "Sir Edward Ross" sketch, An alternate ending to the first special, in which two stage hands are carrying a giant sign that says ENDE off a huge field. Behind the sign is Terry Jones' singer character from the Albrecht Dürer sketch. PythoNET transcripts and multimedia from orangecow.org, Guerilla Films site with history and interviews, Behind the scene info of the sketch "Happy Valley" or "The Princess With The Wooden Teeth" produced in Wasserburg, Germany in 1972.

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Saint Lucia (; ) is a sovereign island country in the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. The island was previously called Iyonola, the name given to the island by the native Amerindians and later, Hewanorra, the name given by the native Caribs. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of and reported a population of 165,595 in the 2010 census. Its capital is Castries. The French were the island's first European settlers. They signed a treaty with the native Island Caribs in 1660. England took control of the island from 1663 to 1667. In ensuing years, it was at war with France fourteen times, and the rule of the island changed frequently (it was ruled seven times each by the French and British). In 1814, the British took definitive control of the island. Because it switched so often between British and French control, Saint Lucia was also known as the "Helen of the West Indies" after the Greek mythological character, Helen of Troy. Representative government came about in 1840 (universal suffrage was established in 1953). From 1958 to 1962, the island was a member of the West Indies Federation. On 22 February 1979, Saint Lucia became an independent state and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Saint Lucia is a mixed jurisdiction, meaning that it has a legal system based in part on both the civil law and English common law. The Civil Code of St. Lucia of 1867 was based on the Quebec Civil Code of 1866, as supplemented by English common law-style legislation. It is also a member of Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. One of the Windward Islands, Saint Lucia was named after Saint Lucy of Syracuse (AD 283 – 304). It is one of two countries in the world named after a woman (Ireland is named after the Celtic goddess of fertility Eire) and the only named after a historical woman. Legend states French sailors were shipwrecked here on 13 December, the feast day of St. Lucy, thus naming the island in honor of Sainte Lucie. St. Helena is also named after a historical woman, the mother of Emperor Constantine. The first proven inhabitants were the Arawaks, though there may have been other native peoples prior to this. The Arawak are believed to have come from northern South America sometime around 200–400 AD, as there are numerous archaeological sites on the island where specimens of their well-developed pottery have been found. There is evidence to suggest that the Arawak called the island Iouanalao, meaning 'Land of the Iguanas', due to the island's high number of iguanas. The more aggressive Caribs arrived around 800 AD, and seized control from the Arawaks by killing their men and assimilating the women into their own society. They called the island Hewanarau, and later Hewanorra (Ioüanalao, or "there where iguanas are found"). Christopher Columbus may have sighted the island during his fourth voyage in 1502, since he made landfall on Martinique, yet he does not mention the island in his log. Juan de la Cosa noted the island on his map of 1500, calling it El Falcon, and another island to the south Las Agujas. A Spanish cédula from 1511 mentions the island within the Spanish domain, and a globe in the Vatican made in 1520, shows the island as Sancta Lucia. In the late 1550s, the French pirate François le Clerc (known as Jambe de Bois, due to his wooden leg) set up a camp on Pigeon Island, from where he attacked passing Spanish ships. In 1605, an English vessel called the Oliphe Blossome was blown off-course on its way to Guyana, and the 67 colonists started a settlement on Saint Lucia, after initially being welcomed by the Carib chief Anthonie. By 26 September 1605 only 19 survived following continued attacks by the Carib chief Augraumart, so the settlers fled the island. In 1664, Thomas Warner (son of Sir Thomas Warner, the governor of St Kitts) claimed Saint Lucia for England. He brought 1,000 men to defend it from the French, but after two years, only 89 survived with the rest dying mostly due to disease. In 1666, the French West India Company resumed control of the island, which in 1674 was made an official French crown colony as a dependency of Martinique. Both the British and the French found the island attractive after the slave- based sugar industry developed, and during the 18th century the island changed ownership or was declared neutral territory a dozen times, although the French settlements remained and the island was a de facto French colony well into the eighteenth century. In 1722, George I of Great Britain granted both Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent to The 2nd Duke of Montagu. He in turn appointed Nathaniel Uring, a merchant sea captain and adventurer, as deputy-governor. Uring went to the islands with a group of seven ships, and established settlement at Petit Carenage. Unable to get enough support from British warships, he and the new colonists were quickly run off by the French. During the Seven Years' War, Britain occupied Saint Lucia for a year. Britain handed the island back to the French at the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Like the English and Dutch on other islands, the French began to develop the land for the cultivation of sugar cane as a commodity crop on large plantations in 1765. In January 1791, during the French Revolution, the National Assembly sent four commissaires to St Lucia to spread their revolutionary philosophy. By August 1791, slaves began to abandon their estates and Governor de Gimat fled. In December 1792, Lt. Jean-Baptiste Raymond de Lacrosse arrived with revolutionary pamphlets, and the impoverished whites and free people of color began to arm themselves as patriots. On 1 February 1793, France declared war on England and Holland, and General Nicolas Xavier de Ricard took over as Governor. The National Convention abolished enslavement on 4 February 1794, but St. Lucia fell to a British invasion led by Vice Admiral John Jervis on 1 April 1794. Morne Fortune became Fort Charlotte. Soon, a patriot army of resistance, L'Armee Française dans les Bois, began to fight back. Thus started the First Brigand War. A short time later the British invaded the island as a part of the recently broken out war with France. On 21 February 1795 and a group of locals under the nominal control of Victor Hugues defeated a battalion of British troops at Vieux Fort and Rabot. In 1796, Castries was burned as part of the conflict. General John Moore retook Fort Charlotte in 1796 with the 27th Inniskilling Fusiliers after two days of bitter fighting. As an honour, the Fusiliers' regimental colour was displayed on the flagstaff of the captured fortress at Morne Fortune for an hour before being replaced by the Union Jack. Moore would then participate in British efforts to repress the slave rebels until falling ill of yellow fever, upon which he returned to Britain before 1798. In 1803, the British regained control of the island. Many of the rebels escaped into the thick rainforest where they evaded capture and established maroon communities. The slavery on the island was continued for a short time, but anti-slavery sentiment was rising in Britain. The British stopped the import of slaves by anyone, white or coloured, when they abolished the slave trade in 1807. France and Great Britain continued to contest Saint Lucia until the British secured it in 1814, as part of the Treaty of Paris ending the Napoleonic Wars. Thereafter, Saint Lucia was considered part of the British Windward Islands colony. The institution of slavery was abolished on the island in 1836, as it was throughout the British Empire. After abolition, all former slaves had to serve a four-year "apprenticeship," to accustom them to the idea of freedom. During this period, they worked for their former masters for at least three-quarters of the work week. Full freedom was duly granted by the British in 1838. By that time, people of African ethnicity greatly outnumbered those of ethnic European background. Some people of Carib descent also comprised a minority on the island. Castries' harbour was protected by a system of 60 surrounding forts. Along the top of Morne Fortune there are six military sites, building work by the French started in 1768, and the British completed the work by 1890. They include Fort Charlotte (Old Morne Fortress), the Apostle's Battery (1888–1890), The Powder Magazine built by the French in the 1750s, Provost's Redoubt (1792) built as a lookout point, and the Combermere barracks. The best preserved installation is a battery at La Toc Point, completed in 1888 it was not abandoned till 1905. This fort in particular was built by the British to repel any attack from the United States on the then valuable coaling harbour of Castries. The Second World War visited the island directly during the Battle of the Caribbean, when a German U-boat attacked and sank two British ships in Castries harbour on 9 March 1942. In the mid-twentieth century, Saint Lucia joined the West Indies Federation (1958–1962) when the colony was dissolved. In 1967, Saint Lucia became one of the six members of the West Indies Associated States, with internal self-government. In 1979, it gained full independence under Sir John Compton of the conservative United Workers party (UWP). The new country chose to remain within the British Commonwealth and to retain Queen Elizabeth as Monarch, represented locally by a Governor-General. Compton's initial term as Prime Minister lasted only a few months, as he was defeated by the left-leaning Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) under Allan Louisy in the 1979 Saint Lucian general election. The SLP sought to improve ties with socialist countries in the region such as Cuba, though the economy was severely affected by Hurricane Allen in 1980. Louisy was replaced as Prime Minister by Winston Cenac in 1981. The SLP government faced a series of strikes and Cenac agreed to stand down, with Michael Pilgrim of the Progressive Labour Party briefly serving as Acting Prime Minister until the 1982 Saint Lucian general election. This election was won by the UWP under John Compton, who proceeded to rule the country uninterrupted until 1996; he was succeeded by Vaughan Lewis, who ruled for just over a year before losing the 1997 Saint Lucian general election to the SLP under Kenny Anthony. During this era the UWP adopted a generally pro-Western, pro-business outlook, seeking to diversify the economy away from over-reliance on bananas and boosting the tourism sector. Compton was also a keen advocate of regional integration. Kenny remained in power until 2006 when the UWP, again led by Compton, won control of parliament. Compton pledged to boost the economy and tackle the rising crime rate. Police attempts to curb crime were criticised in 2015 when it emerged that several suspects had been unlawfully shot by police and the circumstances of their deaths covered up. In May 2007, after Compton suffered a series of small strokes, Finance and External Affairs Minister Stephenson King became acting prime minister and succeeded Compton as Prime Minister when the latter died in September 2007. In November 2011, Kenny Anthony was re-elected as prime minister for a third time. In the June 2016 election the United Worker's Party (UWP) assumed power again, with Allen Chastanet becoming prime minister. The volcanic island of Saint Lucia is more mountainous than most Caribbean islands, with the highest point being Mount Gimie, at above sea level. Two other mountains, the Pitons, form the island's most famous landmark. They are located between Soufrière and Choiseul on the western side of the island. Saint Lucia is the only island in the world that contains a drive-in volcano. Forests cover about 77% of the land area. There are a number of small islands off the coast, the largest of which are the Maria Islands in the south-east. The capital city of Saint Lucia is Castries (population 60,263) where 32.4% of the population lives. Other major towns include Gros Islet, Soufrière, and Vieux Fort. The population tends to be concentrated around the coast, with the interior more sparsely populated. The local climate is tropical, specifically a tropical rainforest climate under the Köppen climate classification, moderated by northeast trade winds, with a dry season from 1 December to 31 May, and a wet season from 1 June to 30 November. Average daytime temperatures are around , and average nighttime temperatures are around . Since it is fairly close to the equator, the temperature does not fluctuate much between winter and summer. Average annual rainfall ranges from on the coast to in the mountain rainforests. The geology of St. Lucia can be described as composing three main areas. The oldest, 16–18 Ma, volcanic rocks are exposed from Castries northward and consist of eroded basalt and andesite centres. The middle, central highlands, portion of the island consists of dissected andesite centres, 10.4 to 1 Mya, while the lower southwest portion of the island contains recent activity from the Soufriere Volcanic Centre (SVC). This SVC, centered about the Qualibou depression, contains pyroclastic flow deposits, lava flows, domes, block and ash flow deposits, and explosion craters. This depression's perimeter includes the town of Soufriere, Mount Tabac, Mt. Gimie, Morne Bonin, and Gros Piton. At in diameter, though the western portion is open towards the Grenada basin, the depression formed as recently as 100 kya. The depression is noted for its geothermal activity, especially at Sulphur Springs and Soufrière Estates, a phreatic eruption in 1776, and recent seismic activity (2000–2001). Eroded andesitic stratovolcanoes to the north east of the depression include Mt. Gimie, Piton St Esprit, and Mt. Grand Magazin, all greater than 1 Ma in age. Andesitic and dacite pyroclastic flows from these volcanoes are found at Morne Tabac dome (532 ka), Morne Bonin dome (273 kya), and Bellevue (264 kya). Avalanche deposits from the formation of the Qualibou depression are found offshore, and in the massive blocks of Rabot, Pleisance, and Coubaril. The dacitic domes of Petit Piton (109 kya) and Gros Piton (71 kya) were then extruded onto the depression floor accompanied by the Anse John (104 kya) and La Pointe (59.8 kya) pyroclastic flows. Later, pyroclastic flows include pumice-rich Belfond and Anse Noir (20 kya). Finally, the dacitic domes of Terre Blanche (15.3 kya) and Belfond (13.6 kya) formed within the depression. Saint Lucia is a Commonwealth realm. Elizabeth II is Queen of Saint Lucia, represented on the island by a governor-general. The prime minister is normally the head of the party commanding the support of the majority of the members of the House of Assembly, which has 17 seats. The other chamber of Parliament, the Senate, has eleven appointed members. Saint Lucia is a two- party parliamentary democracy. Three political parties participated in the 6 June 2016 General Election. Allen Chastanet of the United Workers Party won eleven of the seventeen seats. Saint Lucia maintains friendly relations with the major powers active in the Caribbean, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and France. Saint Lucia has no current international disputes. Saint Lucia is a full and participating member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), and La Francophonie. Saint Lucia is a Commonwealth Realm. Saint Lucia became the 152nd member of the United Nations on 9 December 1979. As of January 2018, Cosmos Richardson, who presented his credentials on 22 February 2017, was Saint Lucia's representative to the United Nations. The Charter of the OAS was signed in Bogota in 1948 and was amended by several protocols which were named after the city and the year in which the protocol was signed, such as Managua in 1993 forming part of the name of the protocol. Saint Lucia entered the OAS system on 22 February 1979. At a CARICOM Meeting, the representative of St. Lucia, John Compton signed The Double Taxation Relief (CARICOM) Treaty 1994 on 6 July 1994. The representatives of seven CARICOM countries signed similar agreements at Sherbourne Conference Centre, St. Michael, Barbados. The countries whose representatives signed the treaties in Barbados were Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Grenada, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. This treaty covered taxes, residence, tax jurisdictions, capital gains, business profits, interest, dividends, royalties and other areas. On 30 June 2014, Saint Lucia signed a Model 1 agreement with the United States of America in relation to Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). As of 1 September 2016, the status of the agreement is listed as "in force". Preceding the 2014 FATCA agreement is one which was entered into on 30 January 1987 between the United States of America and Saint Lucia according to Paragraph 2 of the Model 1 agreement, the purpose of which was to exchange tax Information. Saint Lucia has no regular military force. A Special Service Unit and the Coast Guard are both under the command of the Royal Saint Lucia Police. In 2018, Saint Lucia signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The districts of the island, established by the French colonial government and continued by the British, are: Anse la Raye, 31.0 km², Canaries, Castries, 79.5 km², Choiseul, 31.3 km², Dauphin, Dennery, 69.7 km², Gros Islet, Laborie, 37.8 km², Micoud, 77.7 km², Soufrière, 50.5 km², Vieux Fort, 43.8 km An additional area is the Forest Reserve Area Quarter (78.3 km²). The United Nations categorizes Saint Lucia as a Small Island Developing State, a designation similar to a developing country with a few substantial differences due to Saint Lucia's island nature. The services sector accounted for 82.8% of GDP, followed by industry and agriculture at 14.2% and 2.9%, respectively. An educated workforce and improvements in roads, communications, water supply, sewerage, and port facilities have attracted foreign investment in tourism and in petroleum storage and transshipment. However, with the US, Canada, and Europe in recession, tourism declined by double digits in early 2009. The recent change in the European Union import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. Saint Lucia has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries, which is Saint Lucia's main source of revenue. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalise the banana industry. Despite negative growth in 2011, economic fundamentals remain solid, and GDP growth should recover in the future. Inflation has been relatively low, averaging 5.5 percent between 2006 and 2008. Saint Lucia's currency is the East Caribbean Dollar (EC$), a regional currency shared among members of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECU). The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCL) issues the EC$, manages monetary policy, and regulates and supervises commercial banking activities in member countries. In 2003, the government began a comprehensive restructuring of the economy, including elimination of price controls and privatization of the state banana company. Tourism is vital to Saint Lucia's economy. Its economic importance is expected to continue to increase as the market for bananas have become more competitive. Tourism tends to be more substantial during the dry season (January to April), often referred to as the tourist season. Saint Lucia tends to be popular due to its tropical weather and scenery and its numerous beaches and resorts. Other tourist attractions include a drive-in volcano, Sulphur Springs (in Soufrière),zip lining in beautiful Sault Falls, Dennery, the Botanical Gardens, the Majestic twin Peaks "The Pitons", a world heritage site, the rain forests, several options of boat trips, Frigate Island Nature Reserve (Operated by the St. Lucia National Trust), Dennery, and Pigeon Island National Park, which is home to Fort Rodney, an old British military base. The majority of tourists visit Saint Lucia as part of a cruise. Most of their time tends to be spent in Castries, although Soufriere, Marigot Bay, Rodney Bay and Gros Islet are popular locations to visit. The current Minister of Tourism is Dominic Fedee, he has been in his role since 2016. Saint Lucia reported a population of 165,595 in the 2010 national census. In , the United Nations Population Division estimated Saint Lucia's population at . The country's population is evenly divided between urban and rural areas, with more than a third living in the capital, Castries. Despite a high emigration rate, the population is growing rapidly at about 1.2% per year. Migration from Saint Lucia is primarily to Anglophone countries, with the United Kingdom having almost 10,000 Saint Lucian-born citizens, and over 30,000 of Saint Lucian heritage. The second most popular destination for Saint Lucian émigrés is the United States, where a combined (foreign and national-born Saint Lucians) almost 14,000 reside. Canada is home to a few thousand Saint Lucians. Saint Lucia's population is predominantly of African and mixed African- European-Carib descent, with a small Indo-Caribbean minority (3%). Members of other or unspecified ethnic groups, account for about 2% of the population. The official language is English. Saint Lucian French Creole (Kwéyòl), which is colloquially referred to as Patois ("Patwa"), is spoken by 95% of the population. This Antillean Creole is used in literature and music, and is gaining official acknowledgement. As it developed during the early period of French colonisation, the creole is derived chiefly from French and West African languages, with some vocabulary from the Island Carib language and other sources. Antillean Creole is also spoken in Dominica, Martinique, Guadeloupe, and (to a lesser extent) St. Vincent and Grenada; it also resembles the creoles spoken in French Guiana, Haiti, Mauritius and the Seychelles. Saint Lucia is a member of La Francophonie. About 61.5% of the population is Roman Catholic. Another 25.5% belong to Protestant denominations, (includes Seventh Day Adventist 10.4%, Pentecostal 8.9%, Baptist 2.2%, Anglican 1.6%, Church of God 1.5%, other Protestant 0.9%). Evangelicals comprise 2.3% of the population and 1.1% are Jehovah's Witnesses. In addition, about 1.9% of the population adheres to the Rastafari movement. Other religions include Islam, Bahá'í Faith, Judaism, and Buddhism. See Health in Saint Lucia In 2017, Saint Lucia recorded 60 homicides, the highest in the country's history. The culture of Saint Lucia has been influenced by African, East Indian, French, and English heritage. One of the secondary languages is Saint Lucian French Creole or Kwéyòl, spoken by almost all of the population. Saint Lucia boasts the second highest ratio of Nobel laureates produced with respect to the total population of any sovereign country in the world. Two winners have come from Saint Lucia: Sir Arthur Lewis won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1979, and the poet Derek Walcott received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1992. Saint Lucian cultural festivals include La Rose and La Marguerite, the first representing a native Saint Lucian fraternal society known as the Order of the Rose that is fashioned in the mould of Rosicrucianism, and the second representing its traditional rival, the native Saint Lucian equivalent of Freemasonry known as the Order of the Marguerite. References to their origins as versions of pre-existing external secret societies can be seen in a mural painted by Dunstan St Omer, depicting the holy trinity of Osiris, Horus, and Isis. The biggest festival of the year is the Saint Lucia Jazz Festival. Held in early May at multiple venues throughout the island, it draws visitors and musicians from around the world. The grand finale or main stage is held at the Pigeon Island which is located to the North of the Island. Traditionally in common with other Caribbean countries, Saint Lucia held a carnival before Lent. In 1999, the government moved Carnival to mid-July to avoid competing with the much larger Trinidad and Tobago carnival and so as to attract more overseas visitors. In May 2009, Saint Lucians commemorated the 150th Anniversary of West Indian Heritage on the island. The Windward Islands cricket team includes players from Saint Lucia and plays in the West Indies regional tournament. Daren Sammy became the first Saint Lucian to represent the West Indies on his debut in 2007, and since 2010 has captained the side. In an international career spanning 2003 to 2008, and including 41 ODIs and one Test, Nadine George MBE became the first woman to score a Test century for the team. Sammy and George were recognised by the Saint Lucian government as Sportsman of the Year and Sportswoman of the Year respectively for 2004. For sailing enthusiasts, the annual Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) race begins in the Canary Islands and ends in Saint Lucia. The year 2015 marked the ARC's 30th year of existence. Every November, the race attracts over 200 boats and 1,200 people to sail across the Atlantic to the Caribbean. In 2019 a modern state of the art horse racing facility will open. One of the main contributors will be The China Horse Club, operators of race tracks in Asia. Together with Caribbean music genres such as Calypso, Soca, Dancehall, Reggae, Compas, Zouk, and Salsa, Saint Lucia has a strong indigenous folk music tradition. Each May since 1991, Saint Lucia has hosted an internationally renowned Jazz Festival. In 2013, the festival was re-branded The Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival which encompassed culture, visual art, alternative music, education, fashion, and food. Dancing in Saint Lucia is inspired by Caribbean culture and enjoys an active following. A popular folk dance is the Kwadril. Caribbean Cinemas operates in Saint Lucia. The cinema is located at Choc Estate in Castries.There is also an ATM, Dominoes outlet, & Cafe near the Cinema. Much of the scenery for the film Dr. Dolittle was shot in Saint Lucia in 1967. Water was shot on the island, as were parts of Firepower. The Education Act provides for free and compulsory education in Saint Lucia from the ages of 5 to 15. Public spending on education was at 5.8% among the 2002–2005 GDP. Saint Lucia has one university, the University of the West Indies Open Campus, and a few medical schools – American International Medical University, International American University − College of Medicine, Destiny University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, and the oldest of which is Spartan Health Sciences University. Saint Lucia's national dish is green figs and saltfish. The island's cuisine is a unique blend of West African , European (mainly British and French) and East Indian cuisine; this creates dynamic meal dishes such as macaroni pie, Stew chicken, rice and peas, fish broth or fish water, and soups packed full with fresh locally produced vegetables. Typical essential foodstuffs are potatoes, onions, celery, thyme, coconut milk, the very hot scotch bonnet peppers, flour, and cornmeal. All mainstream meat and poultry are eaten in St. Lucia; meat and seafood are normally stewed and browned to create a rich gravy sometimes served over ground provisions or rice. The island is also home to the famous fried dough, known by many as a bake or Johnny Cake. These bakes can be served with different sides, such as saltfish which is either sautéed or lightly fried along with red, green peppers, onions, and seasoned well. This is the most common way for bake to be prepared, though it can also be served with meats such as stewed chicken or beef. One popular Saint Lucian dessert is the pastry called a turnover. The pastry is made with sweetened coconut that is boiled with spices, some sugar, and whatever is satisfying. It is boiled until cooked to a light or dark brown colour; then the mixture is separated into various size portions placed on a rolled out piece of dough. The dough size may vary too depending on how much is desired, and lastly, it is baked in the oven until the colour of the turnover is nicely browned. Due to Saint Lucia's Indo-Caribbean population, curry is very popular; however due to the blend of cooking styles, curry dishes have a distinct Caribbean twist. Roti is typically served as a fast food meal: the bread itself is very flat (sometimes very thin) and is wrapped around curried vegetables such as chickpeas and potato, seafood such as shrimp and conch, or meats such as chicken, beef, goat, and liver. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people living in Saint Lucia face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT members of the population. Saint Lucia prohibits male-on-male sexual activity, punishing those found guilty with 10 years in jail. Saint Lucia was also the only UN member in the Americas to formally oppose the UN declaration on sexual orientation and gender identity. A species of lizard, Anolis luciae, is named for and is endemic to Saint Lucia. Outline of Saint Lucia, List of colonial governors and administrators of Saint Lucia, Governor-General of Saint Lucia, Index of Saint Lucia-related articles, British African-Caribbean people, Windward Islands, LGBT rights in Saint Lucia, Chief Justice of the Leeward Islands, List of Saint Lucians "The Saint Lucia Constitution" (1978-December-20 effective 1979-February-22), Government of St. Lucia, 2008, stlucia.gov.lc, webpage: The Saint Lucia Constitution Order 1978., "Members of the House of Assembly" (and Prime Minister), Government of St. Lucia, 2008, stlucia.gov.lc, webpage: stlucia.gov.lc/govfolks-members. Saint Lucia from UCB Libraries GovPubs, St. Lucia from the BBC News, Key Development Forecasts for Saint Lucia from International Futures, Guide to the island of St. Lucia The languages of the Caribbean reflect the region's diverse history and culture. There are six official languages spoken in the Caribbean. The six languages are: However, there are also a number of creoles and local patois. Dozens of the creole languages of the Caribbean are widely used informally among the general population. There are also a few additional smaller indigenous languages. Many of the indigenous languages have become extinct or are dying out. At odds with the ever-growing desire for a single Caribbean community, the linguistic diversity of a few Caribbean islands has made language policy an issue in the post-colonial era. In recent years, Caribbean islands have become aware of a linguistic inheritance of sorts. However, language policies being developed nowadays are mostly aimed at multilingualism. Most languages spoken in the Caribbean are either European languages (namely English, Spanish, French, and Dutch) or European language-based creoles. English is the first or second language in most Caribbean islands and is also the unofficial "language of tourism", the dominant industry in the Caribbean region. In the Caribbean, the official language is usually determined by whichever colonial power (England, Spain, France, or the Netherlands) held sway over the island first or longest. The first permanent English colonies were founded at Saint Kitts (1624) and Barbados (1627). The English language is the third most established throughout the Caribbean; however, due to the relatively small populations of the English-speaking territories, only 14% of West Indians are English speakers. English is the official language of about 18 Caribbean territories inhabited by about 6 million people, though most inhabitants of these islands may more properly be described as speaking English creoles rather than local varieties of standard English. The Caribbean English speakers are outnumbered by Spanish speakers by a ratio of about four to one due to the high densities of populations on the larger, Spanish-speaking, islands; some 64% of West Indians speak Spanish. The countries that are included in this group are Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Belize, and some islands off Central (Cozumel, Isla Mujeres, San Andrés and Providencia, Corn Islands, The Bay Islands) and South America (Federal Dependencies of Venezuela and Nueva Esparta). About one-quarter of West Indians speak French or a French-based creole. They live primarily in Guadeloupe and Martinique, both of which are overseas departments of France; Saint Barthélemy and the French portion of Saint Martin (where the local language is English, but not an official language), both of which are overseas collectivities of France; the independent nation of Haiti (where both French and Haitian Creole are official languages); and the independent nations of Dominica and Saint Lucia, which are both officially English-speaking but where the French-based Antillean Creole is widely used, and French to a lesser degree. Dutch is an official language of the Caribbean islands that remain under Dutch sovereignty. However, Dutch is not the dominant language on these islands. On the islands of Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire, a creole based on Portuguese and West African languages known as Papiamento is predominant, while in Sint Maarten, Saba and Sint Eustatius, English, as well as a local English creole, are spoken. A Dutch creole known as Negerhollands was spoken in the former Danish West Indian islands of Saint Thomas and Saint John, but is now extinct. Its last native speaker died in 1987. Caribbean Hindustani is a form of the Bhojpuri and Awadhi dialect of Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu) spoken by descendants of the indentured laborers from India in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, and other parts of the Caribbean. Several languages spoken in the Caribbean belong to language groups concentrated or originating in the mainland countries bordering on the Caribbean: Suriname, Guyana, French Guiana, Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia and Peru. Many indigenous languages (actually spoken with the mainland Caribbean rather than the islands) have been added to the list of endangered or extinct languages—for example, Arawak languages (Shebayo, Igñeri, Lokono, Garifuna of St. Vincent, and the one now labeled Taíno by scholars, once spoken in the Greater Antilles), Caribbean (Nepuyo and Yao), Taruma, Atorada, Warrau, Arecuna, Akawaio and Patamona. Some of these languages are still spoken there by a few people. Creoles are contact languages usually spoken in rather isolated colonies, the vocabulary of which is mainly taken from a European language (the lexifier). Creoles generally have no initial or final consonant clusters but have a simple syllable structure which consists of alternating consonants and vowels (e.g. "CVCV"). A substantial proportion of the world's creole languages are to be found in the Caribbean and Africa, due partly to their multilingualism and their colonial past. The lexifiers of most of the Caribbean creoles and patois are languages of Indo-European colonizers of era. Creole languages continue to evolve in the direction of European colonial languages to which they are related, so that decreolization occurs and a post-creole continuum arises. For example, the Jamaican sociolinguistic situation has often been described in terms of this continuum. Papiamento, spoken on the so-called 'ABC' islands (Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao), shows traces of both indigenous languages and Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch lexicons.). In Jamaica though generally English speaking island, a patois, often called "patwa" drawing on a multitude of influences including Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Arawak and African languages as well as Irish. In Barbados, a dialect often known as "bajan" have influences from West Africa languages can be heard on a regular day basis. Contact between French- and English-lexified creoles is fairly common in the Lesser Antilles (apart from Saint Lucia), and can also be observed on Dominica, Saint Vincent, Carriacou, Petite Martinique and Grenada. Asian languages such as Chinese and other Indian languages such as Tamil are spoken by Asian expatriates and their descendants exclusively. In earlier historical times, other Indo-European languages, such as German, could be found in northeastern parts of the Caribbean. Throughout the long multilingual history of the Caribbean continent, Caribbean languages have been subject to phenomena like language contact, language expansion, language shift, and language death. Two examples are the Spanish expansion, in which Spanish-speaking peoples expanded over most of central Caribbean, thereby displacing Arawak speaking peoples in much of the Caribbean, and the Creole expansion, in which Creole-speaking peoples expanded over several of islands. Another example is the English expansion in the 17th century, which led to the extension of English to much of the north and east Caribbean. Trade languages are another age-old phenomenon in the Caribbean linguistic landscape. Cultural and linguistic innovations that spread along trade routes, and languages of peoples dominant in trade, developed into languages of wider communication (linguae francae). Of particular importance in this respect are French (in the central and east Caribbean) and Dutch (in the south and east Caribbean). After gaining independence, many Caribbean countries, in the search for national unity, selected one language (generally the former colonial language) to be used in government and education. In recent years, Caribbean countries have become increasingly convinced of the importance of linguistic diversity. Language policies that are being developed nowadays are mostly aimed at multilingualism. Of the 38 million West Indians (as of 2001), about 62% speak Spanish (a west Caribbean lingua franca). About 25% speak French, about 15% speak English, and 5% speak Dutch. Spanish and English are important second languages: 24 million and 9 million speak them as second languages. The following is a list of major Caribbean languages (by total number of speakers): Some linguistic features are particularly common among languages spoken in the Caribbean, whereas others seem less common. Such shared traits probably are not due to a common origin of all Caribbean languages. Instead, some may be due to language contact (resulting in borrowing) and specific idioms and phrases may be due to a similar cultural background. Widespread syntactical structures include the common use of adjectival verbs for e.g.:" He dirty the floor. The use of juxtaposition to show possession as in English Creole, "John book" instead of Standard English, "John's book", the omission of the copula in structures such as "he sick" and "the boy reading". In Standard English, these examples would be rendered, 'he seems/appears/is sick' and "the boy is reading". Quite often, only one term is used for both animal and meat; the word nama or nyama for animal/meat is particularly widespread in otherwise widely divergent Caribbean languages. Anglophone Caribbean, Antillean Creole, Caribbean English, Caribbean Spanish, Caribbean Hindustani, Creole language, Use of the Dutch language in the Caribbean, English-based creole languages, French-based creole languages, List of sovereign states and dependent territories in the Caribbean, Pre-Arawakan languages of the Greater Antilles Adelaar, Willem F. H. (2004). Languages of the Andes: The Arawakan languages of the Caribbean, Cambridge University Press 052136275X, Appel, René., Muysken, Pieter. (2006). Language Contact and Bilingualism: Languages of the Caribbean, Ferreira, Jas. (). Caribbean Languages and Caribbean Linguistics, Gramley, Stephan., Pätzold, Kurt-Michael. (2003). A survey of modern English: The Languages of the Caribbean., Patterson, Thomas C., Early colonial encounters and identities in the Caribbean, Penny, Ralph John, (2002). A history of the Spanish language., Roberts, Peter. (1988). West Indians & their language Cambridge: Cambridge University Press., Sprauve, Gilbert A., (1990). Dutch Creole/English Creole distancing: historical and contemporary data considered, International Journal of the Sociology of Language. Vol 1990:85, pp.41–50, Taylor, Douglas M., (1977) Languages of the West Indies, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press Antillean Creole (Antillean French Creole, Kreyol, Kwéyòl, Patois) is a French-based creole, which is primarily spoken in the Lesser Antilles. Its grammar and vocabulary include elements of Carib, English, and African languages. Antillean Creole is related to Haitian Creole but has a number of distinctive features; however, they are highly mutually intelligible. The language was formerly more widely spoken in the Lesser Antilles, but its number of speakers is declining in Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada. While the islands of Dominica and Saint Lucia are officially English-speaking, there are efforts to preserve the use of Antillean Creole, as well as in Trinidad and Tobago and its neighbour, Venezuela. In recent decades, Creole has gone from being seen as a sign of lower socio-economic status, banned in school playgrounds, to a mark of national pride. Since the 1970s, there has been a literary revival of Creole in the French-speaking islands of the Lesser Antilles, with writers such as Raphaël Confiant and Monchoachi employing the language. Édouard Glissant has written theoretically and poetically about its significance and its history. Antillean Creole is spoken natively, to varying degrees, in Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Îles des Saintes, Martinique, Saint-Barthélemy (St. Barts), Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and The Grenadines, French Guiana, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela (mainly in Macuro, Güiria and El Callao Municipality). Dominican, Grenadian, St. Lucian, Trinidadian, Brazilian (Lanc-Patuá) and Venezuelan speakers of Antillean Creole call the language patois. It is also spoken in various Creole-speaking immigrant communities in the United States Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, and the island of Saint Martin. Antillean Creole has approximately 1 million speakers and is a means of communication for migrant populations traveling between neighbouring English- and French- speaking territories. Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc was a French trader and adventurer in the Caribbean who established the first permanent French colony, Saint-Pierre, on the island of Martinique in 1635. Belain sailed to the Caribbean in 1625, hoping to establish a French settlement on the island of St. Christopher (St. Kitts). In 1626, he returned to France, where he won the support of Cardinal Richelieu to establish French colonies in the region. Richelieu became a shareholder in the Compagnie de Saint-Christophe, created to accomplish that with d'Esnambuc at its head. The company was not particularly successful, and Richelieu had it reorganised as the Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique. In 1635, d'Esnambuc sailed to Martinique with 100 French settlers to clear land for sugarcane plantations. After six months on Martinique, d'Esnambuc returned to St. Christopher, where he soon died prematurely in 1636, leaving the company and Martinique in the hands of his nephew, Du Parquet. His nephew, Jacques Dyel du Parquet, inherited d'Esnambuc's authority over the French settlements in the Caribbean. Dyel du Parquet became governor of the island. He remained in Martinique and did not concern himself with the other islands. The French permanently settled on Martinique and Guadeloupe after being driven off Saint Kitts and Nevis (Saint-Christophe in French) by the British. Fort Royal (now Fort-de-France) on Martinique was a major port for French battle ships in the region from which the French were able to explore the region. In 1638, Dyel du Parquet decided to have Fort Saint Louis built to protect the city against enemy attacks. From Fort Royal, Martinique, Du Parquet proceeded south in search for new territories, established the first settlement in Saint Lucia in 1643 and headed an expedition that established a French settlement in Grenada in 1649. Despite the long history of British rule, Grenada's French heritage is still evident by the number of French loanwords in Grenadian Creole and the French-style buildings, cuisine and placenames (Petit Martinique, Martinique Channel, etc.) In 1642, the Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique received a 20-year extension of its charter. The king would name the governor general of the company, and the company would name the governors of the various islands. However, by the late 1640s, Cardinal Mazarin had little interest in colonial affairs, and the company languished. In 1651, it dissolved itself, selling its exploitation rights to various parties. The Du Paquet family bought Martinique, Grenada and Saint Lucia for 60,000 livres. The sieur d'Houël bought Guadeloupe, Marie-Galante, La Desirade and the Saintes. The Knights of Malta bought Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin and then sold them in 1665 to the Compagnie des Indes occidentales, formed one year earlier. Dominica is a former French and British colony in the Eastern Caribbean, about halfway between the French islands of Guadeloupe (to the north) and Martinique (to the south). Christopher Columbus named the island after the day of the week on which he spotted it, a Sunday (dies Dominica in Latin), on 3 November 1493. In the 100 years after Columbus's landing, Dominica remained isolated. At the time, it was inhabited by the Island Caribs, or Kalinago people. Over time, more settled there after they had been driven from surrounding islands, as European powers entered the region. In 1690, French woodcutters from Martinique and Guadeloupe begin to set up timber camps to supply the French islands with wood and gradually become permanent settlers. France had a colony for several years and imported slaves from West Africa, Martinique and Guadeloupe to work on its plantations. The Antillean Creole language developed. France formally ceded possession of Dominica to Great Britain in 1763. The latter established a small colony on the island in 1805. As a result, Dominica uses English as an official language, but Antillean Creole is still spoken as a secondary language because of Dominica's location between the French-speaking departments of Guadeloupe and Martinique. In Trinidad, the Spanish possessed the island but contributed little towards advancements, with El Dorado being their focus. Trinidad was perfect for its geographical location. Because Trinidad was considered underpopulated, Roume de St. Laurent, a Frenchman living in Grenada, was able to obtain a Cédula de Población from King Charles III of Spain on 4 November 1783. Trinidad's population jumped to over 15,000 by the end of 1789, from just under 1,400 in 1777. In 1797, Trinidad became a British crown colony, despite its French- speaking population. In the slavery era, Africans were assigned to the slavery plantations in the French Antilles. The French of their slave masters and their native tongues were somewhat useless as a method of communication since they spoke different languages. As a result, they were forced to develop a new form of communication by relying on what they heard from their colonial masters and other slaves. Sporadically, they would use words they thought they heard their colonial masters speak and combine them with their African expressions and sentence structure. Thus, new words were fashioned and given meaning. Gradually, the new method of communication among the slaves spread across the regions of the Caribbean. The creole languages (French for "indigenous") progressively grew into a distinct language. 1. This sound occurs on islands where the official language is English in certain loanwords e.g 'radio' /ɹadjo/ 2. The uvular r/ ʁ/ only occurs on islands wherein French is an official language. Otherwise, where the uvular r would occur other dialects use /w/.Furthermore, this sound is usually pronounced as a Velar Fricative and is much softer than the European French 'r'. There is some variation in orthography between the islands. In St.Lucia, Dominica and Martinique 'dj' and 'tj' are used whereas in Guadeloupe 'gy' and 'ky' are used.These represent differences in pronunciations. Several words may be pronounced in various ways depending on the region: The letter 'r' in St.Lucia and Dominica represents the English /ɹ/ whereas in Guadeloupe and Martinique it represents the more French-like sound /ɣ/. 1. Man is used in Dominica and Martinique. An is used in Guadeloupe and St.Lucia, but less so in the latter. 2. m, ng, and n are contracted forms of mwen which occur before certain verb particles: Mwen pa → m'a, mwen ka → ng'a or n'a mwen kay → ng'ay or n'ay 3. w and y occur after a vowel. Nonm-lan wè i→ Nonm-lan wè'y. Koumonon ou?→ Koumonon'w? 4. li occurs after consonants. Ou konnèt i?→ Ou konnèt li? Personal pronouns in Antillean Creole are invariable so they do not inflect for case as in European languages such as French or English. This means that mwen, for example, can mean I, me or my; yo can mean they, them, their etc. Possessive adjectives are placed after the noun; kay mwen 'my house' manman'w 'your mother' 'ou' and 'li' are used after nouns ending in a consonant and 'w' and 'y' after nouns ending in a voel. All other possessive adjectives are invariable. Kaz ou - Your house Kouto'w - Your knife Madanm li - His wife Sésé'y - Her sister The indefinite article is placed before the noun and can be pronounced as on, an, yon, yan. The word yonn means one. On chapo Yon wavèt An moun Yan tòti In Creole, there are five definite articles (la, lan, a, an, nan) and they are placed after the nouns they modify. The final syllable of the preceding word determines which is used with which nouns. If the last sound is an oral consonant and is preceded by an oral vowel, it becomes la: If the last sound is an oral consonant and is preceded by a nasal vowel, it becomes lan: If the last sound is an oral vowel and is preceded by an oral consonant, it becomes a: If a word ends in a nasal vowel, it becomes an: If the last sound is a nasal consonant, it becomes nan, but this form is rare and is usually replaced by lan: Note that in Guadeloupean Creole there is no agreement of sounds between the noun and definite article and la is used for all nouns Demonstrative article Like the definite article this is placed after the noun. It varies widely by region. Verbs in Creole are invariable and unlike French or English have no inflection to distinguish tenses. A series of particles placed before the verb indicate tense and aspect. There is no Subjunctive mood. The vocabulary of Antillean Creole is based mostly on French, with many contributions from West African languages, Spanish, English and Amerindian languages. The Dominican Creole French is a creole French, which is the generally-spoken language in Dominica. It is a subvariety of Antillean Creole, which is spoken in other islands of the Lesser Antilles and is very closely related to the varieties spoken in Martinique, Saint Lucia, Guadeloupe, Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago. The intelligibility rate with speakers of other varieties of Antillean Creole is almost 100%. Its syntactic, grammatical and lexical features are virtually identical to that of Martinican Creole, but like its Saint Lucian counterpart, it has more English loanwords than the Martinican variety. People who speak Haitian Creole can also understand Dominican Creole French. Even though there are a number of distinctive features, they are mutually intelligible. Like the other Caribbean Creoles, Dominican French Creole combines a syntax of African and Carib origin with a vocabulary primarily derived from French. The Saint Lucian Creole French is a French-based creole that is the generally- spoken language in Saint Lucia. It is a subvariety of Antillean Creole, which is spoken in other islands of the Lesser Antilles and is very closely related to the varieties spoken in Martinique, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago. Its syntactic, grammatical and lexical features are virtually identical to that of Martinican Creole. Like the other Caribbean creoles, Saint Lucian French Creole combines a syntax of African and Carib origin with a vocabulary primarily derived from French. In addition, many expressions reflect a Spanish influence in the language. The language can be considered to be mutually intelligible with French creoles of the Lesser Antilles and is related to Haitian Creole, which has nonetheless a number of distinctive features. It is still widely spoken in Saint Lucia. In the mid-19th century, migrants took the language with them to Panama, where it is now moribund. Historically, French, or French Creole, was the language of the large majority of the inhabitants, slaves and estate owners. Though the new British administrators spoke English, French was still predominant. The Grenadian Creole French is a variety of Antillean Creole French. In Grenada and among Grenadians, it is referred to as Patois or French Patois. It was once the lingua franca in Grenada and was commonly heard as recently as 1930 when children in some rural areas could speak it. In the 21st century, it can be heard only among elderly speakers in a few small pockets of the country. They are becoming fewer and fewer because unlike St. Lucia and Dominica, which lie close to the French islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe, Grenada does not have French-speaking neighbours to keep the language alive. Trinidadian French Creole is a French Creole (Patois) of Trinidad spoken by descendants of the French Creole migrants from the French Antilles. The Cedula of Population of 1783 laid the foundation and growth of the population of Trinidad. French planters with their slaves, free coloureds and mulattos, from the French Antilles of Martinique, Grenada, Guadeloupe and Dominica, migrated to Trinidad during the French Revolution. The immigrants establishing local communities of Blanchisseuse, Champs Fleurs, Paramin, Cascade, Carenage, Laventille, etc. Trinidad's population, which numbered less than 1,400 in 1777, soared to over 15,000 by the end of 1789. In 1797, Trinidad became a British crown colony, with a French-speaking and Patois-speaking population. Today, Trinidadian French Creole can be found in regional pockets among the elders, particularly in the villages of Paramin and Lopinot. Hello – bonjou (from "bonjour")., Please – souplé (from "s'il vous plaît")., Thank you – mèsi (from "merci")., Excuse me – eskizé mwen (from "excusez-moi")., Rain is falling – lapli ka tonbé / lapli ap tonbe (Haitian) / (from "la pluie tombe")., Today is a nice/beautiful day – jodi-a sé an bel jounin / yon bel jou jodi-a bel (from "aujourd'hui c'est une belle journée")., How are you/how are you keeping – ka ou fè? (Guadeloupe) / sa ou fè? (Martinique) sa k ap fèt? (Haitian)., Anne is my sister/mother/wife – Ann sé sè/manman/madanm (an) mwen, Andy is my brother/father/husband – Andy sé fwè/papa/mari (an) mwen, He is going to the beach – i ka alé bodlanmè-a/laplaj (from "il va aller au bord de la mer/à la plage") Below are samples of St. Lucian Creole French taken from a folktale. Pwenmyé ki pasé sé Konpè Kochon. I di, "Konpè Lapen, sa ou ka fè la?" Konpè Lapen di'y, "Dé ti twou yanm ng'a (=mwen ka) fouyé bay ich mwen pou mwen bay ich mwen manjé." Konpè Kochon di, "Mé, Konpè, ou kouyon, wi! Ou vlé di mwen sa kay fè yanm?" An English translation from the same source: First to pass was Konpè Kochon (Mister Pig). He said, "Konpè Lapen (Mister Rabbit), what are you doing there?" Konpè Lapen told him, "I am digging a few holes to plant yams to feed my children." Konpè Kochon said, "But, Konpè, you're too foolish! You mean to tell me you can grow yams there?" Antillean Creole Swadesh list of basic vocabulary words (from Wiktionary's Swadesh list appendix)

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The 2013–14 Houston Cougars women's basketball team represented the University of Houston during the 2013–14 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The season marked the first for the Cougars as members of the American Athletic Conference. The team was coached by Todd Buchanan until his resignation on December 21, 2013, having played 11 games of their schedule. The remainder of the season was coached by interim head coach Wade Scott. They played their home games at Hofheinz Pavilion. !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| Exhibition !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| Non-Conference Regular Season !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| American Athletic Conference Regular Season !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| 2014 American Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament 2013–14 Houston Cougars men's basketball team Official website The 2008–09 Houston Cougars women's basketball team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the college basketball 2008-09 season. It was their 65th year of season play. The head coach for the Cougars was Joe Curl, who served in his 11th year in that position. The team played its home games at Hofheinz Pavilion on-campus in Houston, Texas. The team finished the season with 19 wins. The Cougars were 12-2 at home, 6-6 on the road, and 1-2 in neutral site games. !colspan=8|Exhibition !colspan=8|Regular season !colspan=8|St. John's-Chartwells Holiday Classic !colspan=8|Regular season March 6:Despite Courtney Taylor's team-high 19 points and nine rebounds, the University of Houston women's basketball team could not overcome a sluggish first half Friday, falling to UCF 79-66 in the quarterfinals of the Conference USA Championship at Fogelman Arena. Zane Jakobsone (Senior): Cougars Academic MVP, Courtney Taylor (Sophomore): Cougars Athletic MVP. Official Site The 2015–16 Houston Cougars women's basketball team represented the University of Houston during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The season marked the third for the Cougars as members of the American Athletic Conference. The Cougars, led by second year head coach Ronald Hughey, played their home games at Hofheinz Pavilion. They finished the season 6–24, 2–16 in The American play to finish in last place. They lost in the first round of American Athletic Women's Tournament to Tulsa. All Cougars games aired on the Houston Cougars IMG Sports Network, streamed online via the Houston Portal, with Jeremy Branham and Derrick Fazendin on the call. Before conference season home games streamed on Houston All-Access. Conference home games rotated between ESPN3, AAC Digital, and the Houston Portal. Road games typically were streamed on the opponents' websites, though some conference road games also appeared on ESPN3 or AAC Digital. !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| Exhibition !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| Non-conference regular season !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| AAC regular season !colspan=12 style="background:#CC0000; color:white;"| American Athletic Conference Women's Tournament 2015–16 Houston Cougars men's basketball team Official website

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Hayes is an English language surname. In the United States Census, 1990, Hayes was the 100th most common surname recorded. The oldest record of the surname dates to 1197 in the Eynsham Cartulary of Oxfordshire, where it appears in the form Heise. There are nineteen coats of arms assumed by or granted to individuals with this or a similar surname. Though primarily a surname, "Hayes" sometimes appears as a given name in census records. In Ireland, Hayes originated as a Gaelic polygenetic surname "O hAodha", meaning descendant of Aodh ("fire"), or of Aed, an Irish mythological god. Septs in most counties anglicised "O hAodha" to "Hayes". In County Cork, it became "O'Hea". In the province of Ulster, it became "Hughes", the patronymic of Hugh, an anglicized variant of the given name Aodh. Hayes is noted on a public record in County Wexford as early as 1182. In County Cork, under the Munster providence, Hayes falls under the banner of the McNamara clan in the Dalcassian Sept. Other Irish Hayeses have also been associated with Clan Cian, the ruling O'Carroll clan of southern Ireland. In England, Hayes arose as a locational surname, associated with one of the several places named or suffixed -Hay, -Hays, -Hayes, etc., such as locations in Kent, Middlesex, Devon and Dorset. Such place names had two origins, one based on the Old English haes (brushwood, underwood) and the other based on horg (enclosure) or hege (hedge). The distribution of Hayes in Great Britain in 1881 and 1998 is similar and restricted to areas of England well separated from Scotland and showing some penetration into Wales. This surname has gained in popularity in the century between 1881 and 1998, but remains at a rank of <150 and a frequency lower than that in the United States and some other countries of the Commonwealth. In Scotland, Hayes is a Scoto-Norman surname, a direct translation of the Normans' locational surname "de la Haye", meaning "of La Haye", La Haye ("the hedge") being the name of several towns on the Cotentin peninsula of Normandy, France. The first Norman namebearer to arrive in Scotland was William II de la Haye in the time of the Norman invasion. Clan Hay descends from him. Hayes also can derive from the Yiddish name Khaye, meaning "life". Listed here are people who share the 'Hayes' surname, organized by birth year, to assist in assembling a view of the geographic distribution of this surname over time. Brian Hayes (scientist), Gregory J. Hayes (born 1960/61), American businessman, chairman and CEO of United Technologies, Jimmy Hayes (born 1946), former member of the United States House of Representatives, Kate Simpson Hayes (1856–1945), Canadian writer, teacher, legislative librarian, Richard Hayes (professor) (born 1945), academic in the areas of Buddhist philosophy and Sanskrit, Wade Hayes (born 1969), country singer, Helen Hayes (politician) (born 1974), British Labour Party politician, Member of Parliament for Dulwich and West Norwood since 2015, Darren Hayes (born 1972), Australian singer and songwriter who rose to fame in 1996 as the frontman of Savage Garden, Hunter Hayes (born 1991), country singer and songwriter Ainsley Hayes in the American television series, The West Wing, Angela Hayes in the Academy Award-winning film, American Beauty, Angela Hayes in the Academy Award-winning film, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, Ben Hayes in the 2005 American film remake of King Kong, Beth Hayes in the horror video game,, Blake Hayes in the American television soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful, Captain Hayes, a recurring villain of TV series, Totally Spies!, Damian Hayes, character in Degrassi: The Next Generation, Emily Hayes in the graphic novel series, Amulet, Harriet Hayes (or Hannah Harriet Hayes) in the American television series, Studio 60, Henry Hayes in Stargate SG-1, Major J. Hayes in the third season of Star Trek: Enterprise, Karen Hayes in the American television series, 24, Lisa Hayes in the anime, Robotech, Logan Hayes in the American television Award Winning soap opera, General Hospital, Maddie Hayes in the American television series, Moonlighting, Michael Hayes in American TV series of the same name, Molly Hayes, a main character from the Marvel Comics series, Runaways, Sally Hayes, character from The Catcher in the Rye, Farmer Michael Hayes in the Christy Moore song, The Pursuit of Farmer Michael Hayes, Taylor Hayes in the American television soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful, William Hayes, the main character in the 1978 film, Midnight Express, William Matthew Hayes, the main character in the film, Definitely, Maybe, Willie Mays Hayes in the films, Major League and Major League II As a surname, Hayes is the 191st most common surname in Great Britain, with 42,475 bearers. It is most common in Kent, where it is the 73rd most common surname, with 4,828 bearers. Other concentrations include, Buckinghamshire, (34th,3,304), Caerphilly, (43rd,1,700), Carmarthenshire, (48th,1,696), Merseyside, (79th,3,252), Swansea, (86th,1,704), City of Leeds (165th,1,722), Lancashire, (177th,3,370), Greater London, (288th,3,358), Greater Manchester, (335th,1,724), Cheshire, (386th,1,678), Essex, (618th,1,666), and Scotland. Other notable concentrations include, Tyne and Wear, West Yorkshire including, the City of Wakefield, Nottinghamshire, the City of Glasgow, Midlothian, Moray, Aberdeenshire, Banffshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire including, the City of Sheffield, Darton, Kirkleatham, and the Highlands. Billy Hayes (disambiguation)Brian Hayes (disambiguation), Chris Hayes (disambiguation), David Hayes (disambiguation), Frank Hayes (disambiguation), Jeremy Hayes (disambiguation)John Hayes (disambiguation), Mark Hayes (disambiguation)Michael Hayes (disambiguation), Richard Hayes (disambiguation), Sean Hayes (disambiguation)Stephen Hayes (disambiguation), Thomas Hayes (disambiguation), William Hayes (disambiguation), Hays (disambiguation), , includes people not listed above Note: Attempts to link directly to search results pages result in failure to find the site., United States Census Bureau (9 May 1995). . Retrieved on 4 April 2008. Rutherford Birchard Hayes (October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, having served in the United States House of Representatives and as governor of Ohio. Hayes, a lawyer and staunch abolitionist, defended refugee slaves in court proceedings in the antebellum years. The Republican Party nominated Hayes as its candidate for the presidency in 1876, where he won through the Compromise of 1877 that officially ended the Reconstruction Era by leaving the South to govern itself. In office he withdrew military troops from the South, ending Army support for Republican state governments in the South and for the efforts of African- American freedmen to establish their families as free citizens. He promoted civil-service reform, and attempted to reconcile the divisions left over from the Civil War of 1861–1864 and from the Reconstruction Era of 1865–1877. Hayes, an attorney in Ohio, served as city solicitor of Cincinnati from 1858 to 1861. When the Civil War began, he left a fledgling political career to join the Union Army as an officer. Hayes was wounded five times, most seriously at the Battle of South Mountain in 1862. He earned a reputation for bravery in combat and was promoted to the rank of brevet major general. After the war he served in the Congress from 1865 to 1867 as a Republican. Hayes left Congress to run for governor of Ohio and was elected to two consecutive terms, from 1868 to 1872. Later he served a third two-year term, from 1876 to 1877. In 1876 the Electoral College made Hayes president in the course of one of the most contentious elections in national history. He lost the popular vote to Democrat Samuel J. Tilden, but he won an intensely disputed electoral- college vote after a Congressional commission awarded him twenty contested electoral votes. There resulted the Compromise of 1877, in which the Democrats acquiesced to Hayes's election on the condition that he withdraw remaining U.S. troops protecting Republican office-holders in the South, thus officially ending the Reconstruction era. Hayes believed in meritocratic government and in equal treatment without regard to wealth, social standing or race. He ordered federal troops to guard federal buildings and in doing so restored order during the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. He implemented modest civil- service reforms that laid the groundwork for further reform in the 1880s and 1890s. He vetoed the Bland–Allison Act (1878), which put silver money into circulation and raised nominal prices, insisting that maintenance of the gold standard was essential to economic recovery. His policy toward Western Indians anticipated the assimilationist program of the Dawes Act of 1887. Hayes kept his pledge not to run for re-election, retired to his home in Ohio, and became an advocate of social and educational reform. Biographer Ari Hoogenboom said his greatest achievement was to restore popular faith in the presidency and to reverse the deterioration of executive power that had set in after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Although supporters have praised his commitment to civil-service reform and to the defense of civil rights, historians and scholars generally rank Hayes as average or slightly below- average. Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born in Delaware, Ohio, on October 4, 1822, to Rutherford Hayes, Jr. and Sophia Birchard. Hayes's father, a Vermont storekeeper, took the family to Ohio in 1817. He died ten weeks before Rutherford's birth. Sophia took charge of the family, raising Hayes and his sister, Fanny, the only two of the four children to survive to adulthood. She never remarried, and Sophia's younger brother, Sardis Birchard, lived with the family for a time. He was always close to Hayes and became a father figure to him, contributing to his early education. Through each of his parents, Hayes was descended from New England colonists. His earliest immigrant ancestor came to Connecticut from Scotland in 1625. Hayes's great-grandfather, Ezekiel Hayes, was a militia captain in Connecticut in the American Revolutionary War, but Ezekiel's son (Hayes's grandfather, also named Rutherford) left his Branford home during the war for the relative peace of Vermont. His mother's ancestors migrated to Vermont at a similar time. Most of his close relatives outside Ohio continued to live there. John Noyes, an uncle by marriage, had been his father's business partner in Vermont and was later elected to Congress. His first cousin, Mary Jane Mead, was the mother of sculptor Larkin Goldsmith Mead and architect William Rutherford Mead. John Humphrey Noyes, the founder of the Oneida Community, was also a first cousin. Hayes attended the common schools in Delaware, Ohio, and enrolled in 1836 at the Methodist Norwalk Seminary in Norwalk, Ohio. He did well at Norwalk, and the following year transferred to The Webb School, a preparatory school in Middletown, Connecticut, where he studied Latin and Ancient Greek. Returning to Ohio, he attended Kenyon College in Gambier in 1838. He enjoyed his time at Kenyon, and was successful scholastically; while there, he joined several student societies and became interested in Whig politics. He graduated with highest honors in 1842 and addressed the class as its valedictorian. After briefly reading law in Columbus, Ohio, Hayes moved east to attend Harvard Law School in 1843. Graduating with an LL.B, he was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1845 and opened his own law office in Lower Sandusky (now Fremont). Business was slow at first, but he gradually attracted a few clients and also represented his uncle Sardis in real estate litigation. In 1847, Hayes became ill with what his doctor thought to be tuberculosis. Thinking a change in climate would help, he considered enlisting in the Mexican–American War, but on his doctor's advice he instead visited family in New England. Returning from there, Hayes and his uncle Sardis made a long journey to Texas, where Hayes visited with Guy M. Bryan, a Kenyon classmate and distant relative. Business remained meager on his return to Lower Sandusky, and Hayes decided to move to Cincinnati. Hayes moved to Cincinnati in 1850, and opened a law office with John W. Herron, a lawyer from Chillicothe. Later, Herron joined a more established firm and Hayes formed a new partnership with William K. Rogers and Richard M. Corwine. He found business better in Cincinnati, and enjoyed the social attractions of the larger city, joining the Cincinnati Literary Society and the Odd Fellows Club. He also attended the Episcopal Church in Cincinnati but did not become a member. Hayes courted his future wife, Lucy Webb, during his time there. His mother had encouraged him to get to know Lucy years earlier, but Hayes had believed she was too young and focused his attention on other women. Four years later, Hayes began to spend more time with Lucy. They became engaged in 1851 and married on December 30, 1852, at the house of Lucy's mother. Over the next five years, Lucy gave birth to three sons: Birchard Austin (1853), Webb Cook (1856), and Rutherford Platt (1858). Lucy, a Methodist, was a teetotaler and abolitionist. She influenced her husband's views on those issues, although he never formally joined her church. Hayes had begun his law practice dealing primarily with commercial issues but won greater prominence in Cincinnati as a criminal defense attorney, defending several people accused of murder. In one case, he used a form of the insanity defense that saved the accused from the gallows; the woman was instead confined to a mental institution. Hayes also defended slaves who had escaped and were accused under the recently enacted Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. As Cincinnati was just across the Ohio River from Kentucky, a slave state, it was a destination for escaping slaves and many such cases were tried in its courts. A staunch abolitionist, Hayes found his work on behalf of fugitive slaves personally gratifying as well as politically useful, as it raised his profile in the newly formed Republican Party. His political reputation rose with his professional plaudits. Hayes declined the Republican nomination for a judgeship in 1856. Two years later, some Republicans proposed Hayes to fill a vacancy on the bench and he considered accepting the appointment until the office of city solicitor also became vacant. The city council elected Hayes as city solicitor to fill the vacancy, and he won a full two-year term from the voters in April 1859 with a larger majority than other Republicans on the ticket. As the Southern states quickly started to secede after Lincoln's election to the presidency in 1860, Hayes was lukewarm on the idea of a civil war to restore the Union. Considering that the two sides might be irreconcilable, he suggested that the Union "[l]et them go." Although Ohio had voted for Lincoln in 1860, the Cincinnati voters turned against the Republican party after secession. Its residents included many from the South, and they voted for the Democrats and Know-Nothings, who combined to sweep the city elections in April 1861, ejecting Hayes from the city solicitor's office. Returning to private practice, Hayes formed a very brief law partnership with Leopold Markbreit, lasting three days before the war began. After the Confederates had fired on Fort Sumter, Hayes resolved his doubts and joined a volunteer company composed of his Literary Society friends. That June, Governor William Dennison appointed several of the officers of the volunteer company to positions in the 23rd Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Hayes was promoted to major, and his friend and college classmate Stanley Matthews was appointed lieutenant colonel. Joining the regiment as a private was William McKinley, another future president. After a month of training, Hayes and the 23rd Ohio set out for western Virginia in July 1861 as a part of the Kanawha Division. They passed the next few months out of contact with the enemy until September, when the regiment encountered Confederates at Carnifex Ferry in present-day West Virginia and drove them back. In November, Hayes was promoted to lieutenant colonel (Matthews having been promoted to colonel of another regiment) and led his troops deeper into western Virginia, where they entered winter quarters. The division resumed its advance the following spring, and Hayes led several raids against the rebel forces, on one of which he sustained a minor injury to his knee. That September, Hayes's regiment was called east to reinforce General John Pope's Army of Virginia at the Second Battle of Bull Run. Although Hayes and his troops did not arrive in time for the battle, they joined the Army of the Potomac as it hurried north to cut off Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, which was advancing into Maryland. Marching north, the 23rd was the lead regiment encountering the Confederates at the Battle of South Mountain on September 14. Hayes led a charge against an entrenched position and was shot through his left arm, fracturing the bone. He had one of his men tie a handkerchief above the wound in an effort to stop the bleeding, and continued to lead his men in the battle. While resting, he ordered his men to meet a flanking attack, but instead his entire command moved backward, leaving Hayes lying in between the lines. Eventually, his men brought Hayes back behind their lines, and he was taken to hospital. The regiment continued on to Antietam, but Hayes was out of action for the rest of the campaign. In October, he was promoted to colonel and assigned to command of the first brigade of the Kanawha Division as a brevet brigadier general. The division spent the following winter and spring near Charleston, Virginia (present-day West Virginia), out of contact with the enemy. Hayes saw little action until July 1863, when the division skirmished with John Hunt Morgan's cavalry at the Battle of Buffington Island. Returning to Charleston for the rest of the summer, Hayes spent the fall encouraging the men of the 23rd Ohio to re-enlist, and many did so. In 1864, the Army command structure in West Virginia was reorganized, and Hayes's division was assigned to George Crook's Army of West Virginia. Advancing into southwestern Virginia, they destroyed Confederate salt and lead mines there. On May 9, they engaged Confederate troops at Cloyd's Mountain, where Hayes and his men charged the enemy entrenchments and drove the rebels from the field. Following the rout, the Union forces destroyed Confederate supplies and again successfully skirmished with the enemy. Hayes and his brigade moved to the Shenandoah Valley for the Valley Campaigns of 1864. Crook's corps was attached to Major General David Hunter's Army of the Shenandoah and soon back in contact with Confederate forces, capturing Lexington, Virginia on June 11. They continued south toward Lynchburg, tearing up railroad track as they advanced. Hunter believed the troops at Lynchburg were too powerful, however, and Hayes and his brigade returned to West Virginia. Hayes thought that Hunter lacked aggression, writing in a letter home that "General Crook would have taken Lynchburg." Before the army could make another attempt, Confederate General Jubal Early's raid into Maryland forced their recall to the north. Early's army surprised them at Kernstown on July 24, where Hayes was slightly wounded by a bullet to the shoulder. Hayes also had a horse shot out from under him, and the army was defeated. Retreating into Maryland, the army was reorganized again, with Major General Philip Sheridan replacing Hunter. By August, Early was retreating up the valley, with Sheridan in pursuit. Hayes's troops fended off a Confederate assault at Berryville and advanced to Opequon Creek, where they broke the enemy lines and pursued them farther south. They followed up the victory with another at Fisher's Hill on September 22, and one more at Cedar Creek on October 19. At Cedar Creek, Hayes sprained his ankle after being thrown from a horse and was struck in the head by a spent round, which did not cause serious damage. Hayes's leadership and bravery drew the attention of his superiors, with Ulysses S. Grant later writing of Hayes that "[h]is conduct on the field was marked by conspicuous gallantry as well as the display of qualities of a higher order than that of mere personal daring." Cedar Creek marked the end of the campaign. Hayes was promoted to brigadier general in October 1864 and brevetted major general. Around this time, Hayes learned of the birth of his son, George Crook Hayes. The army went into winter quarters once more, and in spring 1865 the war quickly came to a close with Lee's surrender to Grant at Appomattox. Hayes visited Washington, D.C. that May and observed the Grand Review of the Armies, after which he and the 23rd Ohio returned to their home state to be mustered out of the service. While serving in the Army of the Shenandoah in 1864, Hayes was nominated by Republicans to run for the House of Representatives from Ohio's 2nd congressional district. Asked by friends in Cincinnati to leave the army to campaign, Hayes refused, saying that an "officer fit for duty who at this crisis would abandon his post to electioneer for a seat in Congress ought to be scalped." Instead, Hayes wrote several letters to the voters explaining his political positions and was elected by a 2,400-vote majority over the incumbent Democrat Alexander Long. When the 39th Congress assembled in December 1865, Hayes was sworn in as a part of a large Republican majority. Hayes identified with the moderate wing of the party, but was willing to vote with the radicals for the sake of party unity. The major legislative effort of the Congress was the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, for which Hayes voted and which passed both houses of Congress in June 1866. Hayes's beliefs were in line with his fellow Republicans on Reconstruction issues: that the South should be restored to the Union, but not without adequate protections for freedmen and other black southerners. President Andrew Johnson, who succeeded to office following Lincoln's assassination, to the contrary wanted to re-admit the seceded states quickly without first ensuring that they adopted laws protecting the newly freed slaves' civil rights; he also granted pardons to many of the leading former Confederates. Hayes, along with congressional Republicans, disagreed. They worked to reject Johnson's vision of Reconstruction and to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1866. Re-elected in 1866, Hayes returned to the lame-duck session to vote for the Tenure of Office Act, which ensured that Johnson could not remove administration officials without the Senate's consent. He also unsuccessfully pressed for a civil service reform bill that attracted the votes of many reform-minded Republicans. Hayes continued to vote with the majority in the 40th Congress on the Reconstruction Acts, but resigned in July 1867 to campaign for governor of Ohio. A popular Congressman and former Army officer, Hayes was considered by Ohio Republicans to be an excellent standard-bearer for the 1867 election campaign. Hayes's political views were more moderate than the Republican party's platform, although he agreed with the proposed amendment to the Ohio state constitution that would guarantee suffrage to black male Ohioans. Hayes's opponent, Allen G. Thurman, made the proposed amendment the centerpiece of the campaign and opposed black suffrage. Both men campaigned vigorously, making speeches across the state, mostly focusing on the suffrage question. The election was mostly a disappointment to Republicans, as the amendment failed to pass and Democrats gained a majority in the state legislature. Hayes thought at first that he, too, had lost, but the final tally showed that he had won the election by 2,983 votes of 484,603 votes cast. As a Republican governor with a Democratic legislature, Hayes had a limited role in governing, especially since Ohio's governor had no veto power. Despite these constraints, Hayes oversaw the establishment of a school for deaf-mutes and a reform school for girls. He endorsed the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson and urged his conviction, which failed by one vote in the United States Senate. Nominated for a second term in 1869, Hayes campaigned again for equal rights for black Ohioans and sought to associate his Democratic opponent, George H. Pendleton with disunion and Confederate sympathies. Hayes was re-elected with an increased majority, and the Republicans took the legislature, ensuring Ohio's ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guaranteed black (male) suffrage. With a Republican legislature, Hayes's second term was more enjoyable. Suffrage was expanded and a state Agricultural and Mechanical College (later to become The Ohio State University) established. He also proposed a reduction in state taxes and reform of the state prison system. Choosing not to seek re-election, Hayes looked forward to retiring from politics in 1872. As Hayes prepared to leave office, several delegations of reform-minded Republicans urged him to run against the incumbent Republican, John Sherman, for United States Senate. Hayes declined the offers, preferring to preserve party unity and retire to private life. Hayes especially looked forward to spending time with his children, two of whom (daughter Fanny and son Scott) had been born in the past five years. Initially, Hayes tried to promote railway extensions to his hometown, Fremont. He also managed some real estate he had acquired in Duluth, Minnesota. Not entirely removed from politics, Hayes held out some hope of a cabinet appointment, but was disappointed to receive only an appointment as assistant U.S. treasurer at Cincinnati, which he turned down. He agreed to be nominated for his old House seat in 1872 but was not disappointed when he lost the election to Henry B. Banning, a fellow Kenyon College alumnus. In 1873, Lucy gave birth to another son, Manning Force Hayes. That same year, the Panic of 1873 hurt business prospects across the nation, including Hayes's. His uncle Sardis Birchard died that year, and the Hayes family moved into Spiegel Grove, the grand house Birchard had built with them in mind. That year Hayes announced his uncle's bequest of $50,000 in assets to endow a public library for Fremont, to be called the Birchard Library. It opened in 1874 on Front Street, and a new building was completed and opened in 1878 in Fort Stephenson State Park. (This site was per the terms of the bequest.) Hayes served as chairman of the library's Board of Trustees until his death. Hayes hoped to stay out of politics in order to pay off the debts he had incurred during the Panic, but when the Republican state convention nominated him for governor in 1875, he accepted. His campaign against Democratic nominee William Allen focused primarily on Protestant fears about the possibility of state aid to Catholic schools. Hayes was against such funding and, while he was not known to be personally anti-Catholic, he allowed anti-Catholic fervor to contribute to the enthusiasm for his candidacy. The campaign was a success, and on 12 October 1875 Hayes was returned to the governorship by a 5,544-vote majority. The first person to earn a third term as Governor of Ohio, Hayes reduced the state debt, re-established the Board of Charities, and repealed the Geghan Bill, which had allowed for the appointment of Catholic priests to schools and penitentiaries. Hayes's success in Ohio immediately elevated him to the top ranks of Republican politicians under consideration for the presidency in 1876. The Ohio delegation to the 1876 Republican National Convention was united behind him, and Senator John Sherman did all in his power to bring Hayes the nomination. In June 1876, the convention assembled with James G. Blaine of Maine as the favorite. Blaine started with a significant lead in the delegate count, but could not muster a majority. As he failed to gain votes, the delegates looked elsewhere for a nominee and settled on Hayes on the seventh ballot. The convention selected Representative William A. Wheeler from New York for vice president, a man about whom Hayes had recently asked, "I am ashamed to say: who is Wheeler?" The Democratic nominee was Samuel J. Tilden, the Governor of New York. Tilden was considered a formidable adversary who, like Hayes, had a reputation for honesty. Also like Hayes, Tilden was a hard- money man and supported civil service reform. In accordance with the custom of the time, the campaign was conducted by surrogates, with Hayes and Tilden remaining in their respective home towns. The poor economic conditions made the party in power unpopular and made Hayes suspect that he might lose the election. Both candidates concentrated on the swing states of New York and Indiana, as well as the three southern states—Louisiana, South Carolina, and Florida—where Reconstruction Republican governments still barely ruled, amid recurring political violence, including widespread efforts to suppress freedman voting. The Republicans emphasized the danger of letting Democrats run the nation so soon after southern Democrats had provoked the Civil War and, to a lesser extent, the danger a Democratic administration would pose to the recently won civil rights of southern blacks. Democrats, for their part, trumpeted Tilden's record of reform and contrasted it with the corruption of the incumbent Grant administration. As the returns were tallied on election day, it was clear that the race was close: Democrats had carried most of the South, as well as New York, Indiana, Connecticut, and New Jersey. In the Northeast, an increasing number of immigrants and their descendants voted Democratic. Although Tilden had won the popular vote and claimed 184 electoral votes, Republicans leaders challenged the results and charged Democrats with fraud and voter suppression of blacks (who would otherwise have voted Republican) in Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina. Republicans realized that if they held the three disputed unredeemed southern states together with some of the western states, they would emerge with an electoral college majority. On November 11, three days after election day, Tilden appeared to have won 184 electoral votes: one short of a majority. Hayes appeared to have 166 votes, with the 19 votes of Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina still in doubt. Republicans and Democrats each claimed victory in the three latter states, but the results in those states were rendered uncertain because of fraud by both parties. To further complicate matters, one of the three electors from Oregon (a state Hayes had won) was disqualified, reducing Hayes's total to 165, and raising the disputed votes to 20. Hayes had to be awarded all 20 disputed votes, otherwise Tilden would be elected president. There was considerable debate about which person or house of Congress was authorized to decide between the competing slates of electors, with the Republican Senate and the Democratic House each claiming priority. By January 1877, with the question still unresolved, Congress and President Grant agreed to submit the matter to a bipartisan Electoral Commission, which would be authorized to determine the fate of the disputed electoral votes. The Commission was to be made up of five representatives, five senators, and five Supreme Court justices. To ensure partisan balance, there would be seven Democrats and seven Republicans, with Justice David Davis, an independent respected by both parties, as the fifteenth member. The balance was upset when Democrats in the Illinois legislature elected Davis to the Senate, hoping to sway his vote. Davis disappointed Democrats by refusing to serve on the Commission because of his election to the Senate. As all of the remaining Justices were Republicans, Justice Joseph P. Bradley, believed to be the most independent-minded of them, was selected to take Davis's place on the Commission. The Commission met in February and the eight Republicans voted to award all 20 electoral votes to Hayes. Democrats were outraged by the result and attempted a filibuster to prevent Congress from accepting the Commission's findings. As the March 4 inauguration day neared, Republican and Democratic Congressional leaders met at Wormley's Hotel in Washington to negotiate a compromise. Republicans promised concessions in exchange for Democratic acquiescence in the Committee's decision. The primary concession Hayes promised would be the withdrawal of federal troops from the South and an acceptance of the election of Democratic governments in the remaining "unredeemed" states of the South. The Democrats agreed, and on March 2, the filibuster was ended. Hayes was elected, but Reconstruction was finished, and freedmen were left at the mercy of white Democrats who did not intend to preserve their rights. On April 3, Hayes ordered the Secretary of War George W. McCrary to withdraw federal troops stationed at the South Carolina State House to their barracks. Finally on April 20, Hayes ordered the Secretary of War to send the federal troops stationed at the St. Louis Hotel in New Orleans to Jackson Barracks. Because March 4, 1877 fell on a Sunday, Hayes took the oath of office privately on Saturday, March 3, in the Red Room of the White House, the first president to do so in the Executive Mansion. He took the oath publicly on the following Monday on the East Portico of the United States Capitol. In his inaugural address, Hayes attempted to soothe the passions of the past few months, saying that "he serves his party best who serves his country best". He pledged to support "wise, honest, and peaceful local self-government" in the South, as well as reform of the civil service and a full return to the gold standard. Despite his message of conciliation, many Democrats never considered Hayes's election legitimate and referred to him as "Rutherfraud" or "His Fraudulency" for the next four years. Hayes had been a firm supporter of Republican Reconstruction policies throughout his political career, but the first major act of his presidency was an end to Reconstruction and the return of the South to "home rule". Even without the conditions of the Wormley's Hotel agreement, Hayes would have been hard-pressed to continue the policies of his predecessors. The House of Representatives in the 45th Congress was controlled by a majority of Democrats, and they refused to appropriate enough funds for the army to continue to garrison the South. Even among Republicans, devotion to continued military Reconstruction was fading in the face of persistent Southern insurgency and violence. Only two states were still under Reconstruction's sway when Hayes assumed the presidency and, without troops to enforce the voting rights laws, these soon fell to Democratic control. Hayes's later attempts to protect the rights of southern blacks were ineffective, as were his attempts to rebuild Republican strength in the South. He did, however, defeat Congress's efforts to curtail federal power to monitor federal elections. Democrats in Congress passed an army appropriation bill in 1879 with a rider that repealed the Enforcement Acts, which had been used to suppress the Ku Klux Klan. Chapters had flourished across the South and it had been one of the insurgent groups that attacked and suppressed freedmen. Those Acts, passed during Reconstruction, made it a crime to prevent someone from voting because of his race. Other paramilitary groups, such as the Red Shirts in the Carolinas, however, had intimidated freedmen and suppressed the vote. Hayes was determined to preserve the law protecting black voters, and he vetoed the appropriation. The Democrats did not have enough votes to override the veto, but they passed a new bill with the same rider. Hayes vetoed this as well, and the process was repeated three times more. Finally, Hayes signed an appropriation without the offensive rider, but Congress refused to pass another bill to fund federal marshals, who were vital to the enforcement of the Enforcement Acts. The election laws remained in effect, but the funds to enforce them were curtailed for the time being. Hayes tried to reconcile the social mores of the South with the recently passed civil rights laws by distributing patronage among southern Democrats. "My task was to wipe out the color line, to abolish sectionalism, to end the war and bring peace," he wrote in his diary. "To do this, I was ready to resort to unusual measures and to risk my own standing and reputation within my party and the country." All of his efforts were in vain; Hayes failed to persuade the South to accept legal racial equality and failed to convince Congress to appropriate funds to enforce the civil rights laws. Hayes took office determined to reform the system of civil service appointments, which had been based on the spoils system since Andrew Jackson was president. Instead of giving federal jobs to political supporters, Hayes wished to award them by merit according to an examination that all applicants would take. Immediately, Hayes's call for reform brought him into conflict with the Stalwart, or pro-spoils, branch of the Republican party. Senators of both parties were accustomed to being consulted about political appointments and turned against Hayes. Foremost among his enemies was New York Senator Roscoe Conkling, who fought Hayes's reform efforts at every turn. To show his commitment to reform, Hayes appointed one of the best-known advocates of reform, Carl Schurz, to be Secretary of the Interior and asked Schurz and William M. Evarts, his Secretary of State, to lead a special cabinet committee charged with drawing up new rules for federal appointments. John Sherman, the Treasury Secretary, ordered John Jay to investigate the New York Custom House, which was stacked with Conkling's spoilsmen. Jay's report suggested that the New York Custom House was so overstaffed with political appointees that 20% of the employees were expendable. Although he could not convince Congress to prohibit the spoils system, Hayes issued an executive order that forbade federal office holders from being required to make campaign contributions or otherwise taking part in party politics. Chester A. Arthur, the Collector of the Port of New York, and his subordinates Alonzo B. Cornell and George H. Sharpe, all Conkling supporters, refused to obey the president's order. In September 1877, Hayes demanded the three men's resignations, which they refused to give. He submitted appointments of Theodore Roosevelt, Sr., L. Bradford Prince, and Edwin Merritt—all supporters of Evarts, Conkling's New York rival—to the Senate for confirmation as their replacements. The Senate's Commerce Committee, which Conkling chaired, voted unanimously to reject the nominees. The full Senate rejected Roosevelt and Prince by a vote of 31–25, and confirmed Merritt only because Sharpe's term had expired. Hayes was forced to wait until July 1878, when he sacked Arthur and Cornell during a Congressional recess and replaced them by recess appointments of Merritt and Silas W. Burt, respectively. Conkling opposed confirmation of the appointees when the Senate reconvened in February 1879, but Merritt was approved by a vote of 31–25, as was Burt by 31–19, giving Hayes his most significant civil service reform victory. For the remainder of his term, Hayes pressed Congress to enact permanent reform legislation and fund the United States Civil Service Commission, even using his last annual message to Congress in 1880 to appeal for reform. While reform legislation did not pass during Hayes's presidency, his advocacy provided "a significant precedent as well as the political impetus for the Pendleton Act of 1883," which was signed into law by President Chester Arthur. Hayes allowed some exceptions to the ban on assessments, permitting George Congdon Gorham, secretary of the Republican Congressional Committee, to solicit campaign contributions from federal office-holders during the Congressional elections of 1878. In 1880, Hayes quickly forced Secretary of Navy Richard W. Thompson to resign office after Thompson had accepted a $25,000 salary for a nominal job offered by French engineer Ferdinand de Lesseps to promote a French canal in Panama. Hayes also dealt with corruption in the postal service. In 1880, Schurz and Senator John A. Logan asked Hayes to shut down the "star route" rings, a system of corrupt contract profiteering in the Postal Service, and to fire Thomas J. Brady, the alleged ring leader and serving as Second Assistant Postmaster-General. Hayes stopped granting new star route contracts, but let existing contracts continue to be enforced. Democrats accused Hayes of delaying proper investigation so as not to injure Republican chances in the 1880 elections but did not press the issue in their campaign literature, as members of both parties were implicated in the corruption. As historian Hans L. Trefousse later wrote, Hayes "hardly knew the chief suspect [Brady] and certainly had no connection with the [star route] corruption." Although Hayes and the Congress both investigated the contracts and found no compelling evidence of wrongdoing, Brady and others were indicted for conspiracy in 1882. After two trials, the defendants were acquitted in 1883. In his first year in office, Hayes was faced with the United States' largest labor uprising to date, the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. In order to make up for financial losses suffered since the panic of 1873, the major railroads had cut their employees' wages several times in 1877. In July of that year, workers from the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad walked off the job in Martinsburg, West Virginia, to protest their reduction in pay. The strike quickly spread to workers of the New York Central, Erie, and Pennsylvania railroads, with the strikers soon numbering in the thousands. Fearing a riot, Governor Henry M. Mathews asked Hayes to send federal troops to Martinsburg, and Hayes did so, but when the troops arrived there was no riot, only a peaceful protest. In Baltimore, however, a riot did erupt on July 20, and Hayes ordered the troops at Fort McHenry to assist the governor in its suppression. Pittsburgh next exploded into riots, but Hayes was reluctant to send in troops without the governor first requesting them. Other discontented citizens joined the railroad workers in rioting. After a few days, Hayes resolved to send in troops to protect federal property wherever it appeared to be threatened and gave Major General Winfield Scott Hancock overall command of the situation, marking the first use of federal troops to break a strike against a private company. The riot spread further, to Chicago and St. Louis, where strikers shut down railroad facilities. By July 29, the riots had ended and federal troops returned to their barracks. Although no federal troops had killed any of the strikers, or been killed themselves, clashes between state militia troops and strikers resulted in deaths on both sides. The railroads were victorious in the short term, as the workers returned to their jobs and some wage cuts remained in effect. But, the public blamed the railroads for the strikes and violence, and they were compelled to improve working conditions and make no further cuts. Business leaders praised Hayes, but his own opinion was more equivocal; as he recorded in his diary: "The strikes have been put down by force; but now for the real remedy. Can't something [be] done by education of strikers, by judicious control of capitalists, by wise general policy to end or diminish the evil? The railroad strikers, as a rule, are good men, sober, intelligent, and industrious." Hayes confronted two issues regarding the currency, the first of which was the coinage of silver, and its relation to gold. In 1873, the Coinage Act of 1873 stopped the coinage of silver for all coins worth a dollar or more, effectively tying the dollar to the value of gold. As a result, the money supply contracted and the effects of the Panic of 1873 grew worse, making it more expensive for debtors to pay debts they had contracted when currency was less valuable. Farmers and laborers, especially, clamored for the return of coinage in both metals, believing the increased money supply would restore wages and property values. Democratic Representative Richard P. Bland of Missouri proposed a bill that would require the United States to coin as much silver as miners could sell the government, thus increasing the money supply and aiding debtors. William B. Allison, a Republican from Iowa offered an amendment in the Senate limiting the coinage to two to four million dollars per month, and the resulting Bland–Allison Act passed both houses of Congress in 1878. Hayes feared that the Act would cause inflation that would be ruinous to business, effectively impairing contracts that were based on the gold dollar, as the silver dollar proposed in the bill would have an intrinsic value of 90 to 92 percent of the existing gold dollar. Further, Hayes believed that inflating the currency was an act of dishonesty, saying "[e]xpediency and justice both demand an honest currency." He vetoed the bill, but Congress overrode his veto, the only time it did so during his presidency. The second issue concerned United States Notes (commonly called greenbacks), a form of fiat currency first issued during the Civil War. The government accepted these notes as valid for payment of taxes and tariffs, but unlike ordinary dollars, they were not redeemable in gold. The Specie Payment Resumption Act of 1875 required the treasury to redeem any outstanding greenbacks in gold, thus retiring them from circulation and restoring a single, gold-backed currency. Sherman agreed with Hayes's favorable opinion of the Act, and stockpiled gold in preparation for the exchange of greenbacks for gold. Once the public was confident that they could redeem greenbacks for specie (gold), however, few did so; when the Act took effect in 1879, only $130,000 out of the $346,000,000 outstanding dollars in greenbacks were actually redeemed. Together with the Bland–Allison Act, the successful specie resumption effected a workable compromise between inflationists and hard money men and, as the world economy began to improve, agitation for more greenbacks and silver coinage quieted down for the rest of Hayes's term in office. Most of Hayes's foreign-policy concerns involved Latin America. In 1878, following the Paraguayan War, he arbitrated a territorial dispute between Argentina and Paraguay. Hayes awarded the disputed land in the Gran Chaco region to Paraguay, and the Paraguayans honored him by renaming a city (Villa Hayes) and a department (Presidente Hayes) in his honor. Hayes became concerned over the plans of Ferdinand de Lesseps, the builder of the Suez Canal, to construct a canal across the Isthmus of Panama, then part of Colombia. Worried about a repetition of French adventurism in Mexico, Hayes interpreted the Monroe Doctrine firmly. In a message to Congress, Hayes explained his opinion on the canal: "The policy of this country is a canal under American control ... The United States cannot consent to the surrender of this control to any European power or any combination of European powers." The Mexican border also drew Hayes's attention. Throughout the 1870s, "lawless bands" often crossed the border on raids into Texas. Three months after taking office, Hayes granted the Army the power to pursue bandits, even if it required crossing into Mexican territory. Porfirio Díaz, the Mexican president, protested the order and sent troops to the border. The situation calmed as Díaz and Hayes agreed to jointly pursue bandits and Hayes agreed not to allow Mexican revolutionaries to raise armies in the United States. The violence along the border decreased, and in 1880 Hayes revoked the order allowing pursuit into Mexico. Outside of the Western hemisphere, Hayes's biggest foreign-policy concern dealt with China. In 1868 the Senate had ratified the Burlingame Treaty with China, allowing an unrestricted flow of Chinese immigrants into the United States. As the economy soured after the Panic of 1873, Chinese immigrants were blamed in the American West for depressing workmen's wages. During the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, anti- Chinese riots broke out in San Francisco, and a third party, the Workingman's Party, formed with an emphasis on stopping Chinese immigration. In response, Congress passed a Chinese Exclusion Act in 1879, abrogating the 1868 treaty. Hayes vetoed the bill, believing that the United States should not abrogate treaties without negotiation. The veto drew praise among eastern liberals, but Hayes was bitterly denounced in the West. In the subsequent furor, Democrats in the House of Representatives attempted to impeach him, but narrowly failed when Republicans prevented a quorum by refusing to vote. After the veto, Assistant Secretary of State Frederick W. Seward suggested that both countries work together to reduce immigration, and he and James Burrill Angell negotiated with the Chinese to do so. Congress passed a new law to that effect, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, after Hayes had left office. Interior Secretary Carl Schurz carried out Hayes's American Indian policy, beginning with preventing the War Department from taking over the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Hayes and Schurz carried out a policy that included assimilation into white culture, educational training, and dividing Indian land into individual household allotments. Hayes believed that his policies would lead to self-sufficiency and peace between Indians and whites. The allotment system under the Dawes Act was favored by liberal reformers at the time, including Schurz, but instead proved detrimental to American Indians. They lost much of their land through sales of what the government classified as "surplus lands", and more to unscrupulous white speculators who tried to get the Indians to sell their allotments. Hayes and Schurz reformed the Bureau of Indian Affairs to reduce fraud and gave Indians responsibility for policing their reservations, although they were generally understaffed. Hayes dealt with several conflicts with Indian tribes. The Nez Perce, led by Chief Joseph, began an uprising in June 1877 when Major General Oliver O. Howard ordered them to move on to a reservation. Howard's men defeated the Nez Perce in battle, and the tribe began a 1,700-mile retreat into Canada. In October, after a decisive battle at Bear Paw, Montana, Chief Joseph surrendered and General William T. Sherman ordered the tribe transported to Indian Territory in Kansas, where they were forced to remain until 1885. The Nez Perce war was not the last conflict in the West, as the Bannock rose up in Spring 1878 in Idaho and raided nearby settlements before being defeated by Howard's army in July of that year. War with the Ute tribe broke out in Colorado in 1879 when some Ute killed Indian agent Nathan Meeker, who had been attempting to convert them to Christianity. The subsequent White River War ended when Schurz negotiated peace with the Ute and prevented white settlers from taking revenge for Meeker's death. Hayes also became involved in resolving the removal of the Ponca tribe from Nebraska to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) because of a misunderstanding during the Grant Administration. The tribe's problems came to Hayes's attention after their chief, Standing Bear, filed a lawsuit to contest Schurz's demand that they stay in Indian Territory. Overruling Schurz, Hayes set up a commission in 1880 that ruled the Ponca were free to return to their home territory in Nebraska or stay on their reservation in Indian Territory. The Ponca were awarded compensation for their land rights, which had been previously granted to the Sioux. In a message to Congress in February 1881, Hayes insisted he would "give to these injured people that measure of redress which is required alike by justice and by humanity." In 1880, Hayes embarked on a 71-day tour of the American West, becoming the second sitting president to travel west of the Rocky Mountains. (Hayes's immediate predecessor, Ulysses S. Grant, visited Utah in 1875.) Hayes's traveling party included his wife and General William Tecumseh Sherman, who helped organize the trip. Hayes began his trip in September 1880, departing from Chicago on the transcontinental railroad. He journeyed across the continent, ultimately arriving in California, stopping first in Wyoming and then Utah and Nevada, reaching Sacramento and San Francisco. By railroad and stagecoach, the party traveled north to Oregon, arriving in Portland, and from there to Vancouver, Washington. Going by steamship, they visited Seattle, and then returned to San Francisco. Hayes then toured several southwestern states before returning to Ohio in November, in time to cast a vote in the 1880 Presidential Election. Hayes and his wife Lucy were known for their policy of keeping an alcohol-free White House, giving rise to her nickname "Lemonade Lucy." The first reception at the Hayes White House included wine. However, Hayes was dismayed at drunken behavior at receptions hosted by ambassadors around Washington, leading him to follow his wife's temperance leanings. Alcohol was not served again in the Hayes White House. Critics charged Hayes with parsimony, but Hayes spent more money (which came out of his personal budget) after the ban, ordering that any savings from eliminating alcohol be used on more lavish entertainment. His temperance policy also paid political dividends, strengthening his support among Protestant ministers. Although Secretary Evarts quipped that at the White House dinners, "water flowed like wine," the policy was a success in convincing prohibitionists to vote Republican. Hayes appointed two Associate Justices to the Supreme Court. The first vacancy occurred when David Davis resigned to enter the Senate during the election controversy of 1876. On taking office, Hayes appointed John Marshall Harlan to the seat. A former candidate for governor of Kentucky, Harlan had been Benjamin Bristow's campaign manager at the 1876 Republican convention, and Hayes had earlier considered him for Attorney General. Hayes submitted the nomination in October 1877, but it aroused some dissent in the Senate because of Harlan's limited experience in public office. Harlan was nonetheless confirmed and served on the court for thirty-four years, in which he voted (usually in the minority) for an aggressive enforcement of the civil rights laws. In 1880, a second seat became vacant upon the resignation of Justice William Strong. Hayes nominated William Burnham Woods, a carpetbagger Republican circuit court judge from Alabama. Woods served six years on the Court, ultimately proving a disappointment to Hayes as he interpreted the Constitution in a manner more similar to that of Southern Democrats than to Hayes's own preferences. Hayes attempted, unsuccessfully, to fill a third vacancy in 1881. Justice Noah Haynes Swayne resigned with the expectation that Hayes would fill his seat by appointing Stanley Matthews, who was a friend of both men. Many Senators objected to the appointment, believing that Matthews was too close to corporate and railroad interests, especially those of Jay Gould, and the Senate adjourned without voting on the nomination. The following year, when James A. Garfield entered the White House, he re- submitted Matthews's nomination to the Senate, which this time confirmed Matthews by one vote, 24 to 23. Matthews served for eight years until his death in 1889. His opinion in Yick Wo v. Hopkins in 1886 advanced his and Hayes's views on the protection of ethnic minorities' rights. Hayes declined to seek re-election in 1880, keeping his pledge that he would not run for a second term. He was gratified with the election of fellow Ohio Republican James A. Garfield to succeed him, and consulted with him on appointments for the next administration. After Garfield's inauguration, Hayes and his family returned to Spiegel Grove. In 1881, he was elected a companion of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. He served as commander-in-chief (national president) of the Loyal Legion from 1888 until his death in 1893. Although he remained a loyal Republican, Hayes was not too disappointed in Grover Cleveland's election to the presidency in 1884, approving of the New York Democrat's views on civil service reform. He was also pleased at the progress of the political career of William McKinley, his army comrade and political protégé. Hayes became an advocate for educational charities, advocating federal education subsidies for all children. He believed that education was the best way to heal the rifts in American society and allow individuals to improve themselves. Hayes was appointed to the Board of Trustees of The Ohio State University, the school he helped found during his time as governor of Ohio, in 1887. He emphasized the need for vocational, as well as academic, education: "I preach the gospel of work," he wrote, "I believe in skilled labor as a part of education." He urged Congress, unsuccessfully, to pass a bill written by Senator Henry W. Blair that would have allowed federal aid for education for the first time. Hayes gave a speech in 1889 encouraging black students to apply for scholarships from the Slater Fund, one of the charities with which he was affiliated. One such student, W. E. B. Du Bois, received a scholarship in 1892. Hayes also advocated better prison conditions. In retirement, Hayes was troubled by the disparity between the rich and the poor, saying in an 1886 speech that "free government cannot long endure if property is largely in a few hands and large masses of people are unable to earn homes, education, and a support in old age." The following year, Hayes recorded his thoughts on that subject in his diary: Hayes was greatly saddened by his wife's death in 1889. He wrote that "the soul had left [Spiegel Grove]" when she died. After Lucy's death, Hayes's daughter Fanny became his traveling companion, and he enjoyed visits from his grandchildren. In 1890, he chaired the Lake Mohonk Conference on the Negro Question, a gathering of reformers that met in upstate New York to discuss racial issues. Hayes died of complications of a heart attack at his home on January 17, 1893. His last words were "I know that I'm going where Lucy is." President-elect Grover Cleveland and Ohio Governor William McKinley led the funeral procession that followed Hayes's body until Hayes was interred in Oakwood Cemetery. Following the donation of his home to the state of Ohio for the Spiegel Grove State Park, he was re-interred there in 1915. The following year the Hayes Commemorative Library and Museum, the first presidential library in the United States, was opened on the site, funded by contributions from the state of Ohio and Hayes's family. An 1878 dispute between Argentina and Paraguay which Hayes had arbitrated and decided in favor of Paraguay, giving Paraguay 60 percent of its current territory, later motivated a province in the region to be named after him: Presidente Hayes Department (capital: Villa Hayes); an official holiday: Laudo Hayes Firm Day, the anniversary of the decision, celebrated in Presidente Hayes province; a local soccer team: Club Presidente Hayes (also known as "Los Yanquis"), based in the national capital, Asuncion; a postage stamp, the design of which was chosen in a contest run by the U.S. Embassy; and even a young girl's wish: a girl who came out of a coma got her fondest wish—a trip to the Hayes Presidential Center in Fremont, Ohio. Also named for Hayes is Hayes County, Nebraska. Hayes was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society in 1890. Rutherford B. Hayes High School in Hayes's hometown of Delaware, Ohio was named in his honor. Hayes Hall, built in 1893, at The Ohio State University is also named in his honor. It is the oldest remaining building on campus, and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 16, 1970 due to its front facade, which remains virtually untouched from its original appearance. Before Hayes died in 1893 he knew that the building would be named in his honor, but never lived to see it completed. Rhodes, James Ford. History of the United States from the Compromise of 1850: 1877–1896 (1919) online complete; old, factual and heavily political, by winner of Pulitzer Prize White House biography, The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center, Rutherford B. Hayes: A Resource Guide from the Library of Congress, Extensive essays on Rutherford B. Hayes and shorter essays on each member of his cabinet and First Lady from the Miller Center of Public Affairs, "Life Portrait of Rutherford B. Hayes", from C-SPAN's , July 19, 1999, Rutherford B. Hayes Personal Manuscripts & Letters Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, songwriter, actor, and producer. Hayes was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a session musician and record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the mid-1960s. Hayes and Porter were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005 in recognition of writing scores of songs for themselves, the duo Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, and others. In 2002, Hayes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. "Soul Man", written by Hayes and Porter and first performed by Sam & Dave, was recognized as one of the most influential songs of the past 50 years by the Grammy Hall of Fame. It was also honored by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, by Rolling Stone magazine, and by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) as one of the Songs of the Century. During the late 1960s, Hayes also began a career as a recording artist. He had several successful soul albums such as Hot Buttered Soul (1969) and Black Moses (1971). In addition to his work in popular music, he worked as a composer of musical scores for motion pictures. Hayes was well known for his musical score for the film Shaft (1971). For the "Theme from Shaft", he was awarded the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1972. He became the third African-American, after Sidney Poitier and Hattie McDaniel, to win an Oscar in any competitive field covered by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He also won two Grammy Awards for that same year. Later, he was given his third Grammy for his music album Black Moses. In 1992, Hayes was crowned honorary king of the Ada region of Ghana in recognition of his humanitarian work there. He acted in motion pictures and television, such as in the movies Truck Turner and I'm Gonna Git You Sucka, and as Gandolf "Gandy" Fitch in the TV series The Rockford Files (1974–1980). He voiced the character Chef from the animated Comedy Central series South Park from its debut in 1997 until 2006. His influences were Percy Mayfield, Big Joe Turner, James Brown, Jerry Butler, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, and psychedelic soul groups like The Chambers Brothers and Sly and the Family Stone. On August 5, 2003, Hayes was honored as a BMI Icon at the 2003 BMI Urban Awards for his enduring influence on generations of music makers. Throughout his songwriting career, Hayes received five BMI R&B; Awards, two BMI Pop Awards, two BMI Urban Awards and six Million-Air citations. As of 2008, his songs generated more than 12 million performances. Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. was born in Covington, Tennessee, the second child of Eula (née Wade) and Isaac Hayes Sr. After his mother died young and his father abandoned his family, he was raised by his maternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Willie Wade Sr. The child of a sharecropper family, he grew up working on farms in the Tennessee counties of Shelby and Tipton. At age five Hayes began singing at his local church; he taught himself to play the piano, Hammond organ, flute, and saxophone. Hayes dropped out of high school, but his former teachers at Manassas High School in Memphis encouraged him to complete his diploma, which he did at age 21. After graduating from high school, Hayes was offered several music scholarships from colleges and universities. He turned down all of them to provide for his immediate family, working at a meat- packing plant in Memphis by day and playing nightclubs and juke joints several evenings a week in Memphis and nearby northern Mississippi. His first professional gigs, in the late 1950s, were as a singer at Curry's Club in North Memphis, backed by Ben Branch's houseband. Hayes began his recording career in the early 1960s, as a session player for various acts of the Memphis-based Stax Records. He later wrote a string of hit songs with songwriting partner David Porter, including "You Don't Know Like I Know", "Soul Man", "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby" and "Hold On, I'm Comin'" for Sam & Dave. Hayes, Porter and Stax studio band Booker T. & the M.G.'s were also the producers for Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas and other Stax artists during the mid-1960s. Hayes-Porter contributed to the Stax sound made famous during this period, and Sam & Dave credited Hayes for helping develop both their sound and style. In 1968, Hayes released his debut album, Presenting Isaac Hayes, a jazzy, largely improvised effort that was commercially unsuccessful. His next album was Hot Buttered Soul, which was released in 1969 after Stax had gone through a major upheaval. Its biggest star, Otis Redding, had died in a plane crash in 1967. Stax lost its back catalog to Atlantic Records in May 1968. As a result, Stax executive vice president Al Bell called for 27 new albums to be completed in mid-1969; Hot Buttered Soul was the most successful of these releases. This album is noted for Hayes's image (shaved head, gold jewelry, sunglasses, etc.) and his distinct sound (extended orchestral songs relying heavily on organs, horns and guitars, deep bass vocals, etc.). Also on the album, Hayes reinterpreted "Walk On By" (which had been made famous by Dionne Warwick) into a 12-minute exploration. "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" starts with an eight-minute-long monologue before breaking into song, and the lone original number, the funky "Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic" runs nearly ten minutes, a significant break from the standard three-minute soul/pop songs. "Walk On By" would be the first of many times Hayes would take a Burt Bacharach standard, generally made famous as three-minute pop songs by Dionne Warwick or Dusty Springfield, and transform it into a soulful, lengthy and almost gospel number. In 1970, Hayes released two albums, The Isaac Hayes Movement and To Be Continued. The former stuck to the four-song template of his previous album. Jerry Butler's "I Stand Accused" begins with a trademark spoken word monologue, and Bacharach's "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself" is re-worked. The latter spawned the classic "The Look of Love", another Bacharach song transformed into an 11-minute epic of lush orchestral rhythm (mid-way it breaks into a rhythm guitar jam for a couple of minutes before suddenly resuming the slow love song). An edited three-minute version was issued as a single. The album featured the instrumental "Ike's Mood," which segued into his own version of "You've Lost That Loving Feeling". Hayes released a Christmas single, "The Mistletoe and Me" (with "Winter Snow" as a B-side). In early 1971, Hayes composed music for the soundtrack of the blaxploitation film Shaft (he appeared in a cameo role as a bartender). The title theme, with its wah-wah guitar and multi-layered symphonic arrangement, would become a worldwide hit single, and spent two weeks at number one in the Billboard Hot 100 in November. The remainder of the album was mostly instrumentals covering big beat jazz, bluesy funk, and hard Stax-styled soul. The other two vocal songs, the social commentary "Soulsville" and the 19-minute jam "Do Your Thing," would be edited down to hit singles. He won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the "Theme from Shaft", and was nominated for Best Original Dramatic Score for the film's score. Later in the year, Hayes released a double album, Black Moses, that expanded on his earlier sounds and featured The Jackson 5's song "Never Can Say Goodbye". Another single, "I Can't Help It", was not featured on the album. In 1972, Hayes would record the theme tune for the television series The Men and enjoy a hit single (with "Type Thang" as a B-side). He released a couple of other non-album singles during the year, such as "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Want to Be Right)" and "Rolling Down a Mountainside". Atlantic would re-release Hayes's debut album this year with the new title In The Beginning. Hayes was back in 1973 with an acclaimed live double album, Live at the Sahara Tahoe, and followed it up with the album Joy, with the eerie beat of the 15-minute title track. He moved away from cover songs with this album. An edited "Joy" would be a hit single. In 1974, Hayes was featured in the blaxploitation films Three Tough Guys and Truck Turner, and he recorded soundtracks for both. Tough Guys was almost devoid of vocals and Truck Turner yielded a single with the title theme. The soundtrack score of Truck Turner was eventually used by filmmaker Quentin Tarantino in the Kill Bill film series, and has been used for over 30 years as the opening score of Brazilian radio show Jornal de Esportes on the Jovem Pan station. Unlike most African-American musicians of the period, Hayes did not sport an Afro; his bald head became one of his defining characteristics. By 1974, Stax Records was having serious financial problems, stemming from problems with overextension and limited record sales and distribution. Hayes himself was deep in debt to Union Planters Bank, which administered loans for the Stax label and many of its other key employees. In September of that year, Hayes sued Stax for $5.3 million. As Stax was in deep debt and could not pay, the label made an arrangement with Hayes and Union Planters: Stax released Hayes from his recording and production contracts, and Union Planters would collect all of Hayes's income and apply it towards his debts. Hayes formed his own label, Hot Buttered Soul, which released its product through ABC Records. His new album, 1975's Chocolate Chip, saw Hayes embrace the disco sound with the title track and lead single. "I Can't Turn Around" would prove a popular song as time went on. This would be Hayes's last album to chart in the top 40 for many years. Later in the year, the all-instrumental Disco Connection album fully embraced disco. In 1976, the album cover of Juicy Fruit featured Hayes in a pool with naked women, and spawned the title track single and the classic "Storm Is Over". Later the same year the Groove-A-Thon album featured the singles "Rock Me Easy Baby" and the title track. However, while all these albums were regarded as solid efforts, Hayes was no longer selling large numbers. He and his wife were forced into bankruptcy in 1976, as they owed over $6 million. By the end of the bankruptcy proceedings in 1977, Hayes had lost his home, much of his personal property, and the rights to all future royalties earned from the music he had written, performed, and produced. On July 17, 1974, Hayes, along with Mike Storen, Avron Fogelman and Kemmons Wilson, took over ownership of the American Basketball Association team the Memphis Tams. The prior owner was Charles O. Finley, the owner of the Oakland A's baseball team. Hayes's group renamed the team the Memphis Sounds. Despite a 66% increase in home attendance, hiring well regarded coach Joe Mullaney and, unlike in the prior three seasons, making the 1975 ABA Playoffs (losing to the eventual champion Kentucky Colonels in the Eastern Division semifinals), the team's financial problems continued. The group was given a deadline of June 1, 1975, to sell 4,000 season tickets, obtain new investors and arrange a more favorable lease for the team at the Mid-South Coliseum. However, the group did not come through and the ABA took over the team, selling it to a group in Maryland that renamed the team the Baltimore Hustlers and then the Baltimore Claws before the club finally folded during preseason play for the 1975–1976 season. In 1977, Hayes was back with a new deal with Polydor Records, a live album of duets with Dionne Warwick did moderately well, and his comeback studio album New Horizon sold better and enjoyed a hit single "Out The Ghetto", and also featured the popular "It's Heaven To Me". 1978's For the Sake of Love saw Hayes record a sequel to "Theme from Shaft" ("Shaft II"), but was most famous for the single "Zeke The Freak", a song that would have a shelf life of decades and be a major part of the House movement in the UK. The same year, Fantasy Records, which had bought out Stax Records, released an album of Hayes's non-album singles and archived recordings as a "new" album, Hotbed, in 1978. In 1979, Hayes returned to the Top 40 with Don't Let Go and its disco- styled title track that became a hit single (U.S. #18), and also featured the classic "A Few More Kisses To Go". Later in the year he added vocals and worked on Millie Jackson's album Royal Rappin's, and a song he co-wrote, "Deja Vu", became a hit for Dionne Warwick and won her a Grammy for best female R&B; vocal. Neither 1980s And Once Again or 1981's Lifetime Thing produced notable songs or big sales, and Hayes chose to take a break from music to pursue acting. In the 1970s, Hayes was featured in the films Shaft (1971) and Truck Turner (1974); he also had a recurring role in the TV series The Rockford Files as an old cellmate of Rockford's, Gandolph Fitch (who always referred to Rockford as "Rockfish" much to his annoyance), including one episode alongside duet-partner Dionne Warwick. In the 1980s and 1990s, he appeared in numerous films, notably Escape from New York (1981), I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988), Prime Target (1991), and (1993), as well as in episodes of The A-Team and Miami Vice. He also attempted a musical comeback, embracing the style of drum machines and synth for 1986s U-Turn and 1988s Love Attack, though neither proved successful. In 1991, he was featured in a duet with fellow soul singer Barry White on White's ballad "Dark and Lovely (You Over There)". In 1995, Hayes appeared as a Las Vegas minister impersonating himself in the comedy series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He launched a comeback on the Virgin label in May 1995 with Branded, an album of new material that earned impressive sales figures as well as positive reviews from critics who proclaimed it a return to form. A companion album released around the same time, Raw and Refined, featured a collection of previously unreleased instrumentals, both old and new. For the 1996 film Beavis and Butt-Head Do America, he wrote a version of the Beavis and Butt-head theme in the style of the Shaft theme. Soon after, Hayes joined the founding cast of Comedy Central's animated TV series, South Park. Hayes provided the voice for the character of "Chef", the amorous elementary-school lunchroom cook, from the show's debut on August 13, 1997 (one week shy of his 55th birthday), through the end of its ninth season in 2006. The role of Chef drew on Hayes's talents both as an actor and as a singer, thanks to the character's penchant for making conversational points in the form of crudely suggestive soul songs. An album of songs from the series appeared in 1998 with the title reflecting Chef's popularity with the show's fans, and the Chef song "Chocolate Salty Balls" became a number-one U.K. hit. In 2000, he appeared on the soundtrack of the French movie The Magnet on the song "Is It Really Home" written and composed by rapper Akhenaton (IAM) and composer Bruno Coulais. In 2002, Hayes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. After he played a set at the Glastonbury Festival, the same year a documentary highlighting Isaac's career and his impact on many of the Memphis artists in the 1960s onwards was produced, "Only The Strong Survive". In 2004, Hayes appeared in a recurring minor role as the Jaffa Tolok on the television series Stargate SG-1. The following year, he appeared in the critically acclaimed independent film Hustle & Flow. He also had a brief recurring role in UPN/The CW's Girlfriends as Eugene Childs (father of Toni). During the late 1990s, Hayes gained new popularity as the voice of Chef on the Comedy Central animated television series South Park. Chef was a soul-singing cafeteria worker for South Park Elementary. A song from the series performed by Chef, "Chocolate Salty Balls (P.S. I Love You)", received international radio airplay in 1999. It reached number one on the UK singles chart and also on the Irish singles chart. The track also appeared on the album in 1998. In the South Park episode "Trapped in the Closet", a satire of Scientology which aired on November 16, 2005, Hayes did not appear in his role as Chef. While appearing on the Opie and Anthony radio show about a month after the episode aired, Hayes was asked, "What did you think about when Matt and Trey did that episode on Scientology?", he replied, "One thing about Matt and Trey, they lampoon everybody, and if you take that serious, I'll sell you the Brooklyn Bridge for two dollars. That's what they do." In an interview for The A.V. Club on January 4, 2006, Hayes was again asked about the episode. He said that he told the creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, "Guys, you have it all wrong. We're not like that. I know that's your thing, but get your information correct, because somebody might believe that shit, you know?" He then told them to take a couple of Scientology courses to understand what they do. In the interview, Hayes defended South Park's style of controversial humor, noting that he was not pleased with the show's treatment of Scientology, but saying that he "understands what Matt and Trey are doing." On March 13, 2006, a statement was issued in Hayes's name, indicating that he was asking to be released from his contract with Comedy Central, citing recent episodes which satirized religious beliefs were intolerant. "There is a place in this world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry towards religious beliefs of others begins," he was quoted in the press statement. However, the statement did not directly mention Scientology. A response from Stone said that Hayes' complaints stemmed from the show's criticism of Scientology and that he "has no problem – and he's cashed plenty of checks – with our show making fun of Christians, Muslims, Mormons or Jews." Stone added, "[We] never heard a peep out of Isaac in any way until we did Scientology. He wants a different standard for religions other than his own, and to me, that is where intolerance and bigotry begin." Stone and Parker agreed to release Hayes from his contract by his request. In 2007, Hayes said he had quit because "they [Parker and Stone] didn't pay me enough... They weren't that nice." The South Park season 10 premiere (aired March 22, 2006) featured "The Return of Chef", a thinly veiled telling of the affair from Parker and Stone's point of view. Using sound clips from past episodes, it depicts Chef as having been brainwashed and urges viewers (via Kyle talking to the town) to "remember Chef as the jolly old guy who always broke into song" and not to blame Chef for his defection, but rather, as Kyle states, "be mad at that fruity little club for scrambling his brains." In the episode, the cult that brainwashed Chef is named the "Super Adventure Club" and is depicted as a group of child molesters who travel the world to have sex with prepubescent children from exotic places. In the end, Chef is unable to break free from his brainwashing and dies an extremely gruesome death, falling off a cliff, being mutilated by wild animals and shot several times. At the end of the episode, he is shown as being resurrected as a cyborg in the style of the resurrection of Darth Vader at the end of . On March 20, 2006, two days before "The Return of Chef" aired, Roger Friedman of Fox News reported having been told that the March 13 statement was made in Hayes's name, but not by Hayes himself. He wrote: "Isaac Hayes did not quit South Park. My sources say that someone quit it for him. ... Friends in Memphis tell me that Hayes did not issue any statements on his own about South Park. They are mystified." In a 2016 oral history of South Park in The Hollywood Reporter, Hayes's son Isaac Hayes III said the decision to leave the show was made by Hayes' Scientoligst entourage, all of whom were ardent Scientologists, and that it was made after Hayes suffered a stroke, leaving him vulnerable to outside influence and unable to make such decisions on his own. "The China Probrem", the first South Park episode after Hayes' death, was dedicated to him. Hayes' income was sharply reduced as a result of leaving South Park. There followed announcements that he would be touring and performing. A reporter present at a January 2007 show in New York City, who had known Hayes fairly well, reported that "Isaac was plunked down at a keyboard, where he pretended to front his band. He spoke-sang, and his words were halting. He was not the Isaac Hayes of the past." In April 2008, while a guest on The Adam Carolla Show, Hayes stumbled in his responses to questions—possibly as a result of health issues. A caller questioned whether Hayes was under the influence of a substance, and Carolla and co-host Teresa Strasser asked Hayes if he had ever used marijuana. After some confusion on what was being asked, Hayes replied that he had only ever tried it once. During the interview the radio hosts made light of Hayes's awkward answers, and replayed snippets of earlier ones to simulate conversation with his co-hosts. Hayes stated during this interview that he was no longer on good terms with Trey Parker and Matt Stone. During the spring of 2008, Hayes shot scenes for Soul Men, a comedy inspired by the history of Stax Records, in which he appears as himself in a supporting role. The film was released in November 2008, after both Hayes and the film's costar Bernie Mac had died. Hayes had 14 children, 14 grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. His first marriage was to Dancy Hayes in 1960 and ended in divorce. His second marriage was to Emily Ruth Watson on November 24, 1965. This marriage ended in divorce in 1972. Children from this marriage included Vincent Eric Hayes, Melanie Mia Hayes, and Nicole A. Hayes (McGee). He married bank teller Mignon Harley on April 18, 1973, and they divorced in 1986; they had two children. Hayes and his wife were eventually forced into bankruptcy, owing over $6 million. Over the years, Isaac Hayes was able to recover financially. His fourth wife, Adjowa, gave birth to a son named Nana Kwadjo Hayes on April 10, 2006. He also had one son to whom he gave his name, Isaac Hayes III, known as rap producer Ike Dirty. Hayes's eldest daughter is named Jackie, also named co-executor of his estate and other children to follow Veronica, Felicia, Melanie, Nikki, Lili, Darius, and Vincent and he also had a daughter named Heather Hayes. Hayes took his first Scientology course in 1993, later contributing endorsement blurbs for many Scientology books over the ensuing years. In 1996, Hayes began hosting The Isaac Hayes and Friends Radio Show on WRKS in New York City. While there, Hayes became a client of young vegan raw food chef Elijah Joy and his company Organic Soul Inc. Hayes also appears in the Scientology film Orientation. In 1998, Hayes and fellow Scientologist entertainers Anne Archer, Chick Corea and Haywood Nelson attended the 30th anniversary of Freedom Magazine, the Church of Scientology's self-described investigative news journal, at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, to honor eleven activists. In 2001, Hayes and Doug E. Fresh, another Scientologist musician, recorded a Scientology-inspired album called The Joy Of Creating – The Golden Era Musicians And Friends Play L. Ron Hubbard. The Isaac Hayes Foundation was founded in 1999 by Hayes. In February 2006, Hayes appeared in a Youth for Human Rights International music video called "United". YHRI is a human rights group founded by the Church of Scientology. He was also involved in other human rights related groups such as the One Campaign. Isaac Hayes was crowned a chief in Ghana for his humanitarian work and economic efforts on the country's behalf. On March 20, 2006, Roger Friedman of Fox News reported that Hayes had suffered a minor stroke in January. Hayes's spokeswoman, Amy Harnell, denied this, but on October 26, 2006, Hayes confirmed that he had suffered a stroke. On August 10, 2008, 10 days before his 66th birthday, Hayes was found unresponsive in his home, just east of Memphis, as reported by the Shelby County, Tennessee Sheriff's Department. A Shelby County Sheriff's deputy and an ambulance from Rural Metro responded to his home after three family members found his body on the floor next to a still-operating treadmill. Hayes was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, where he was pronounced dead at 2:08 p.m. The cause of death was not immediately clear, although the area medical examiners later listed a recurrence of stroke as the cause of death. He was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery, in Memphis, Tennessee. The Tennessee General Assembly enacted legislation in 2010 to honor Hayes by naming a section of Interstate 40 the "Isaac Hayes Memorial Highway". The name was applied to the stretch of highway in Shelby County from Sam Cooper Boulevard in Memphis east to the Fayette County line. The naming was made official at a ceremony held on Hayes' birth anniversary in August 2010. Presenting Isaac Hayes (1968), Hot Buttered Soul (1969), The Isaac Hayes Movement (1970), ...To Be Continued (1970), Black Moses (1971), Live at the Sahara Tahoe (1973), Joy (1973), Chocolate Chip (1975), Disco Connection (1975), Groove-A-Thon (1976), Juicy Fruit (Disco Freak) (1976), New Horizon (1977), Hotbed – Isaac Hayes Demo Album – Stax Records (1978), For the Sake of Love (1978), Don't Let Go (1979), And Once Again (1980), Lifetime Thing (1981), U-Turn (1986), Love Attack (1988), Raw & Refined (1995), Branded (1995) With Otis Redding (Stax Records, 1965), The Soul Album (Stax Records, 1966), (Stax Records, 1966), King & Queen (Stax Records, 1967), The Dock of the Bay (Stax Records, 1968) With Wilson Pickett The Exciting Wilson Pickett (Atlantic Records, 1966) With Donald Byrd and 125th Street, N.Y.C. Love Byrd (Elektra Records, 1981), Words, Sounds, Colors and Shapes (Elektra Records, 1982) With Linda Clifford I'm Yours (RSO Records, 1980) With Albert King Born Under a Bad Sign (Stax Records, 1967) With William Bell The Soul of a Bell (Stax Records, 1967) With Dionne Warwick No Night So Long (Arista Records, 1980) With Rufus Thomas Do The Funky Chicken (Stax Records, 1970) With Eddie Floyd Knock on Wood (Stax Records, 1967) IsaacHayes.com

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Myanmar (also known as Burma) is a unitary parliamentary republic under its constitution of 2008. The military of Burma holds a large amount of power in the government, despite the end of the last Burmese military dictatorship. Myanmar, formerly called Burma, was a monarchy which was ruled by various dynasties prior to the 19th century. The British colonized Burma (Myanmar) in the late 19th century, and it was part of British India until 1937. Burma (Myanmar) was ruled as a British colony from 1824 until 1948. While the Bamar heartland was directly administered, first as a part of India and then, from 1937, as British Burma, ethnic regions outside the heartland were allowed some measure of self-rule along the lines of the Princely States of India. This led to split loyalties among the various ethnic groups to outside powers in Burma either to the British or Japanese. The dominant ethnic group in Burma are the Bamar, who make up approximately sixty-eight percent of the population. During World War II, many members of the Bamar ethnic group volunteered to fight alongside the Japanese in hopes of overthrowing the occupying British forces. Meanwhile, many other ethnic groups supported the Allied forces in combating the Japanese and Burman forces. This conflict would come to be very significant in the aftermath of World War Two when Burma was granted its independence from Great Britain in 1948. By granting independence to Burma, the British government gave the new ruler, Aung San, control over areas that were not traditionally controlled by the Bamar. This conglomeration of formerly British-owned land created a state that is home to over twenty distinct minority ethnic groups. From the time of the signing of the Burmese Constitution in 1948, ethnic minorities have been denied Constitutional rights, access to land that was traditionally controlled by their people and participation in the government. The various ethnic minority groups have been consistently oppressed by the dominant Burman majority and have also suffered at the hands of warlords and regional ethnic alliances. Religion also plays a role in the ethnic conflicts that have taken place. Muslims, Hindus, Christians and Buddhists all live in Burma. These religious differences have led to several incidents that have affected hundreds of thousands of citizens that live in Burma. The SPDC had been responsible for the displacement of several hundred thousand citizens, both inside and outside of Burma. The Karen, Karenni, and Mon ethnic groups have been forced to seek asylum in neighbouring Thailand, where they are also abused by an unfriendly and unsympathetic government. These groups are perhaps more fortunate than the Wa and Shan ethnic groups who have become Internally Displaced Peoples in their own state since being removed from lands by the military junta in 2000. There are reportedly 600,000 of these Internally Displaced Peoples living in Burma today. Many are trying to escape forced labour in the military or for one of the many state-sponsored drug cartels. This displacement of peoples has led to both human rights violations as well as the exploitation of minority ethnic groups at the hands of the dominant Burman group. The primary actors in these ethnic struggles include but are not limited to the Government of Burma (junta), the Karen National Union and the Mong Tai Army. On 4 January 1948, Burma achieved independence from Britain, and became a democracy based on the parliamentary system. In late 1946 Aung San became Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council of Burma, a transitional government. But on 19 July 1947, political rivals assassinated Aung San and several cabinet members. On 4 January 1948, the nation became an independent republic, named the Union of Burma, with Sao Shwe Thaik as its first president and U Nu as its first prime minister. Unlike most other former British colonies, it did not become a member of the Commonwealth. A bicameral parliament was formed, consisting of a Chamber of Deputies and a Chamber of Nationalities. The geographical area Burma encompasses today can be traced to the Panglong Agreement, which combined Burma proper, which consisted of Lower Burma and Upper Burma, and the Frontier Areas, which had been administered separately by the British. In 1961, U Thant, Burma's Permanent Representative to the United Nations and former secretary to the Prime Minister, was elected Secretary-General of the United Nations; he was the first non-Westerner to head any international organisation and would serve as UN Secretary-General for ten years. Among the Burmese to work at the UN when he was Secretary-General was a young Aung San Suu Kyi. In 1962, General Ne Win led a coup d'état and established a nominally socialist military government that sought to follow the "Burmese Way to Socialism". The military expropriated private businesses and followed an economic policy of autarky, or economic isolation. There were sporadic protests against military rule during the Ne Win years and these were almost always violently suppressed. On 7 July 1962, the government broke up demonstrations at Rangoon University, killing 15 students. In 1974, the military violently suppressed anti-government protests at the funeral of U Thant. Student protests in 1975, 1976 and 1977 were quickly suppressed by overwhelming force. The former Head of state was Senior General Than Shwe who held the title of "Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council". His appointed prime minister was Khin Nyunt until 19 October 2004, when he was forcibly deposed in favour of Gen. Soe Win. Almost all cabinet offices are held by military officers. US and European government sanctions against the military government, combined with consumer boycotts and shareholder pressure organised by Free Burma activists, have succeeded in forcing most western corporations to withdraw from Burma. However, some western oil companies remain due to loopholes in the sanctions. For example, the French oil company Total S.A. and the American oil company Chevron continue to operate the Yadana natural gas pipeline from Burma to Thailand. Total (formerly TotalFinaElf) is the subject of a lawsuit in French and Belgian courts for alleged complicity in human rights abuses along the gas pipeline. Before it was acquired by Chevron, Unocal settled a similar lawsuit for a reported multimillion-dollar amount. Asian businesses, such as Daewoo, continue to invest in Burma, particularly in natural resource extraction. The United States and European clothing and shoe industry became the target of Free Burma activists for buying from factories in Burma that were wholly or partly owned by the government or the military. Many stopped sourcing from Burma after protests, starting with Levi Strauss in 1992. From 1992 to 2003, Free Burma activists successfully forced dozens of clothing and shoe companies to stop sourcing from Burma. These companies included Eddie Bauer, Liz Claiborne, Macy's, J. Crew, JoS. A. Banks, Children's Place, Burlington Coat Factory, Wal-Mart, and Target. The US government banned all imports from Burma as part of the "Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act" of 2003. Sanctions have been criticised for their adverse effects on the civilian population. However, Burmese democracy movement leader Aung San Suu Kyi has repeatedly credited sanctions for putting pressure on the ruling military regime. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have documented egregious human rights abuses by the military government. Civil liberties are severely restricted. Human Rights Defenders and Promoters, formed in 2002 to raise awareness among the people of Burma about their human rights, claims that on 18 April 2007, several of its members were met by approximately a hundred people led by a local USDA Secretary U Nyunt Oo and beaten up. The HRDP believes that this attack was condoned by the authorities. There is no independent judiciary in Burma and the military government suppresses political activity. The government uses software-based filtering from US company Fortinet to limit the materials citizens can access on-line, including free email services, free web hosting and most political opposition and pro-democracy pages. In 2001, the government permitted NLD office branches to re-open throughout Burma. However, they were shut down or heavily restricted beginning 2004, as part of a government campaign to prohibit such activities. In 2006, many members resigned from NLD, citing harassment and pressure from the Tatmadaw (Armed Forces) and the Union Solidarity and Development Association. The military government placed Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest again on 31 May 2003, following an attack on her convoy in northern Burma by a mob reported to be in league with the military. The regime extended her house arrest for yet another year in late November 2005. Despite a direct appeal by Kofi Annan to Than Shwe and pressure from ASEAN, the Burmese government extended Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest another year on 27 May 2006. She was released in 2010. The United Nations urged the country to move towards inclusive national reconciliation, the restoration of democracy, and full respect for human rights. In December 2008, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution condemning the human rights situation in Burma and calling for Aug San Suu Kyi's release—80 countries voting for the resolution, 25 against and 45 abstentions. Other nations, such as China and Russia, have been less critical of the regime and prefer to co-operate on economic matters. Facing increasing international isolation, Burma's military government agreed to embark upon a programme of reform, including permitting multiple political parties to contest elections in 2010 and 2012 and the release of political prisoners. However, organisations such as Human Rights Watch allege continued human rights abuses in ongoing conflicts in border regions such as Kachin State. Myanmar's army-drafted constitution was overwhelmingly approved (by 92.4% of the 22 million voters with alleged voter turnout of 99%) on 10 May 2008 in the first phase of a two-stage referendum and Cyclone Nargis. It was the first national vote since the 1990 election. Multi-party elections in 2010 would end 5 decades of military rule, as the new charter gives the military an automatic 25% of seats in parliament. NLD spokesman Nyan Win, inter alia, criticised the referendum: "This referendum was full of cheating and fraud across the country. In some villages, authorities and polling station officials ticked the ballots themselves and did not let the voters do anything". An election was held in 2010, with 40 parties approved to contest the elections by the Electoral Commission. some of which are linked to ethnic minorities. The National League for Democracy, which overwhelmingly won the previous 1990 elections but were never allowed to take power, decided not to participate. The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party declared victory, winning 259 of the 330 contested seats. The United Nations and many Western countries have condemned the elections as fraudulent, although the decision to hold elections was praised by China and Russia. In by-elections held in 2012, the main opposition party National League for Democracy, which was only re-registered for the by-elections on 13 December 2011 won in 43 of the 44 seats they contested (out of 46). Significantly, international observers were invited to monitor the elections, although the government was criticised for placing too many restrictions on election monitors, some of whom were denied visas. The Union Solidarity and Development Party said it would lodge official complaints to the Union Election Commission on poll irregularities, voter intimidation, and purported campaign incidents that involved National League for Democracy members and supporters, while the National League for Democracy also sent an official complaint to the commission, regarding ballots that had been tampered with. However, President Thein Sein remarked that the by-elections were conducted "in a very successful manner", and many foreign countries have indicated willingness to lift or loosen sanctions on Burma and its military leaders. Myanmar general elections were held on 8 November 2015. These were the first openly contested elections held in Myanmar since 1990. The results gave the National League for Democracy an absolute majority of seats in both chambers of the national parliament, enough to ensure that its candidate would become president, while NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi is constitutionally barred from the presidency. The resounding victory of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy in 2015 general elections has raised hope for a successful political transition from a closely held military rule to a free democratic system. This transition is widely believed to be determining the future of Myanmar. The president is the head of state and de jure head of government, and oversees the Cabinet of Myanmar. Currently the State Counsellor of Myanmar is the de facto head of government. On the other hand, Commander-in-chief of Defense ServicesTatmadaw has right to appoint 25% of members in all legislative assembly which means that the legislation cannot be Super-majority without support from Tatmadaw thus preventing from democratically elected members to amend 2008 Constitution of Myanmar which is not created by Burmese citizens. He can also directly appoint ministers in Ministry of Defence (Myanmar) which in turn controls Myanmar Armed Forces and Myanmar Economic Corporation which is the largest economic corporation in Myanmar, Ministry of Border Affairs (Myanmar) which control border affairs of the country and Ministry of Home Affairs (Myanmar) which in turn control Myanmar police forces and administration of the whole country. Under the 2008 Constitution the legislative power of the Union is shared among the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, State and Region Hluttaws. The Pyidaungsu Hluttaw consists of the People's Assembly (Pyithu Hluttaw) elected on the basis of township as well as population, and the House of Nationalities (Amyotha Hluttaw) with on an equal number of representatives elected from Regions and States. The People's Assembly consists of 440 representatives, with 110 being military personnel nominated by the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Services. The House of Nationalities consists of 224 representatives with 56 being military personnel nominated by the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Services. Burma's judicial system is limited. British-era laws and legal systems remain much intact, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial. The judiciary is not independent of the executive branch. Burma does not accept compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction. The highest court in the land is the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is Tun Tun Oo, and Attorney General is Htun Htun Oo. Wareru dhammathat or the Manu dhammathat () was the earliest law-book in Burma. It consists of laws ascribed to the ancient Indian sage, Manu, and brought to Burma by Hindu colonists. The collection was made at Wareru’s command, by monks from the writings of earlier Mon scholars preserved in the monasteries of his kingdom. (Wareru seized Martaban in 1281 and obtained the recognition of China as the ruler of Lower Burma and founded a kingdom which lasted until 1539. Martaban was its first capital, and remained so until 1369. It stretched southwards as far as Tenasserim.) Mon King Dhammazedi (1472–92) was the greatest of the Mon rulers of Wareru’s line. He was famous for his wisdom and the collection of his rulings were recorded in the Kalyani stone inscriptions and known as the Dammazedi pyatton. Burma is divided into seven regions (previously called divisions-taing) and seven states (pyi-nè), classified by ethnic composition. The seven regions are Ayeyarwady Region, Bago Division, Magway Division, Mandalay Division, Sagaing Division, Tanintharyi Division and Yangon Division; the seven states are Chin State, Kachin State, Kayin State, Kayah State, Mon State, Rakhine State and Shan State. There are also five Self-administrated zones and a Self- administrated Division "for National races with suitable population" Within the Sagain Region Naga (Leshi, Lahe and Namyun townships) Within the Shan State Palaung (Namshan and Manton townships), Kokang (Konkyan and Laukkai townships), Pao (Hopong, Hshihseng and Pinlaung townships),, Danu (Ywangan and Pindaya townships),, Wa Selfadministrated division (Hopang, Mongmao, Panwai, Pangsang, Naphan and Metman townships) AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNDP, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, GJC. Kipgen, Nehginpao. "Democracy Movement in Myanmar: Problems and Challenges". New Delhi: Ruby Press & Co., 2014. Print., CIA World Factbook Myanmar (; , ) or Burma (see §Etymology), officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, is a country in Southeast Asia. Myanmar is bordered by Bangladesh and India to its northwest, China to its northeast, Laos and Thailand to its east and southeast, and the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal to its south and southwest. With a size of , Myanmar is the largest of the Mainland Southeast Asian states by area. As of 2017, the population is about 54 million. Its capital city is Naypyidaw, and its largest city is Yangon (Rangoon). Myanmar has been a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) since 1997. Early civilisations in Myanmar included the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu city-states in Upper Burma and the Mon kingdoms in Lower Burma. In the 9th century, the Bamar people entered the upper Irrawaddy valley and, following the establishment of the Pagan Kingdom in the 1050s, the Burmese language, culture and Theravada Buddhism slowly became dominant in the country. The Pagan Kingdom fell due to the Mongol invasions and several warring states emerged. In the 16th century, reunified by the Taungoo dynasty, the country was for a brief period the largest empire in the history of Mainland Southeast Asia. The early 19th century Konbaung dynasty ruled over an area that included modern Myanmar and briefly controlled Manipur and Assam as well. The British East India Company seized control of the administration of Myanmar after three Anglo-Burmese Wars in the 19th century and the country became a British colony. Myanmar was granted independence in 1948, as a democratic nation. Following a coup d'état in 1962, it became a military dictatorship under the Burma Socialist Programme Party. For most of its independent years, the country has been engrossed in rampant ethnic strife and its myriad ethnic groups have been involved in one of the world's longest-running ongoing civil wars. During this time, the United Nations and several other organisations have reported consistent and systematic human rights violations in the country. In 2011, the military junta was officially dissolved following a 2010 general election, and a nominally civilian government was installed. This, along with the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and political prisoners, has improved the country's human rights record and foreign relations, and has led to the easing of trade and other economic sanctions. There is, however, continuing criticism of the government's treatment of ethnic minorities, its response to the ethnic insurgency, and religious clashes. In the landmark 2015 election, Aung San Suu Kyi's party won a majority in both houses. However, the Burmese military remains a powerful force in politics. Myanmar is a member of the East Asia Summit, Non-Aligned Movement, ASEAN and BIMSTEC, but not a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It is a country rich in jade and gems, oil, natural gas and other mineral resources. Myanmar is also endowed with renewable energy; it has the highest solar power potential compared to other countries of the Great Mekong Subregion. In 2013, its GDP (nominal) stood at US$56.7 billion and its GDP (PPP) at US$221.5 billion. The income gap in Myanmar is among the widest in the world, as a large proportion of the economy is controlled by supporters of the former military government. , Myanmar ranks 145 out of 188 countries in human development, according to the Human Development Index. Both the names Myanmar and Burma derive from the earlier Burmese Myanma or Myamma, an ethnonym for the majority Bamar ethnic group, of uncertain etymology. The terms are also popularly thought to derive from Brahma Desha after Brahma. In 1989, the military government officially changed the English translations of many names dating back to Burma's colonial period or earlier, including that of the country itself: Burma became Myanmar. The renaming remains a contested issue. Many political and ethnic opposition groups and countries continue to use Burma because they do not recognise the legitimacy of the ruling military government or its authority to rename the country. In April 2016, soon after taking office, Aung San Suu Kyi said concerning the question of which name should be used that, "it is up to you, because there is nothing in the constitution of our country that says that you must use any term in particular". She continued, "I use Burma very often because I am used to using it. But it does not mean that I require other people to do that as well. And I’ll make an effort to say Myanmar from time to time so you all feel comfortable". The country's official full name is the "Republic of the Union of Myanmar" (, , ). Countries that do not officially recognise that name use the long form "Union of Burma" instead. In English, the country is popularly known as either Burma or Myanmar. Both these names are derived from the name of the majority Burmese Bamar ethnic group. Myanmar is considered to be the literary form of the name of the group, while Burma is derived from "Bamar", the colloquial form of the group's name. Depending on the register used, the pronunciation would be ' () or ' (). The name Burma has been in use in English since the 18th century. Burma continues to be used in English by the government of the United Kingdom. Official United States policy retains Burma as the country's name, although the State Department's website lists the country as Burma (Myanmar) and Barack Obama has referred to the country by both names. The CIA's World Factbook lists the country as Burma . The government of Canada has in the past used Burma, such as in its 2007 legislation imposing sanctions, but as of the mid-2010s generally uses Myanmar. The Czech Republic officially uses Myanmar, although its Ministry of Foreign Affairs uses both Myanmar and Burma on its website. The United Nations uses Myanmar, as do the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Australia, Russia, Germany, China, India, Bangladesh, Norway, Japan and Switzerland. Most English-speaking international news media refer to the country by the name Myanmar, including the BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera, Reuters, and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)/Radio Australia. Myanmar is known with a name deriving from Burma as opposed to Myanmar in Spanish, Italian, Romanian, and Greek – Birmania being the local version of Burma in the Spanish language, for example. Myanmar used to be known as Birmânia in Portuguese, and as Birmanie in French. As in the past, French-language media today consistently use Birmanie. Myanmar is pronounced in at least nine different ways in English: , , , , , , , , . Archaeological evidence shows that Homo erectus lived in the region now known as Myanmar as early as 750,000 years ago, with no more erectus finds after 75,000 years ago. The first evidence of Homo sapiens is dated to about 25,000 BP with discoveries of stone tools in central Myanmar. Evidence of Neolithic age domestication of plants and animals and the use of polished stone tools dating to sometime between 10,000 and 6,000 BC has been discovered in the form of cave paintings in Padah-Lin Caves. The Bronze Age arrived circa 1500 BC when people in the region were turning copper into bronze, growing rice and domesticating poultry and pigs; they were among the first people in the world to do so. Human remains and artefacts from this era were discovered in Monywa District in the Sagaing Division. The Iron Age began around 500 BC with the emergence of iron-working settlements in an area south of present-day Mandalay. Evidence also shows the presence of rice-growing settlements of large villages and small towns that traded with their surroundings as far as China between 500 BC and 200 AD. Iron Age Burmese cultures also had influences from outside sources such as India and Thailand, as seen in their funerary practices concerning child burials. This indicates some form of communication between groups in Myanmar and other places, possibly through trade. Around the second century BC the first-known city-states emerged in central Myanmar. The city-states were founded as part of the southward migration by the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu people, the earliest inhabitants of Myanmar of whom records are extant, from present-day Yunnan. The Pyu culture was heavily influenced by trade with India, importing Buddhism as well as other cultural, architectural and political concepts, which would have an enduring influence on later Burmese culture and political organisation. By the 9th century, several city-states had sprouted across the land: the Pyu in the central dry zone, Mon along the southern coastline and Arakanese along the western littoral. The balance was upset when the Pyu came under repeated attacks from Nanzhao between the 750s and the 830s. In the mid-to-late 9th century the Bamar people founded a small settlement at Bagan. It was one of several competing city-states until the late 10th century when it grew in authority and grandeur. Pagan gradually grew to absorb its surrounding states until the 1050s–1060s when Anawrahta founded the Pagan Kingdom, the first ever unification of the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the Pagan Empire and the Khmer Empire were two main powers in mainland Southeast Asia. The Burmese language and culture gradually became dominant in the upper Irrawaddy valley, eclipsing the Pyu, Mon and Pali norms by the late 12th century. Theravada Buddhism slowly began to spread to the village level, although Tantric, Mahayana, Hinduism, and folk religion remained heavily entrenched. Pagan's rulers and wealthy built over 10,000 Buddhist temples in the Pagan capital zone alone. Repeated Mongol invasions (1277–1301) toppled the four-century-old kingdom in 1287. Pagan's collapse was followed by 250 years of political fragmentation that lasted well into the 16th century. Like the Burmans four centuries earlier, Shan migrants who arrived with the Mongol invasions stayed behind. Several competing Shan States came to dominate the entire northwestern to eastern arc surrounding the Irrawaddy valley. The valley too was beset with petty states until the late 14th century when two sizeable powers, Ava Kingdom and Hanthawaddy Kingdom, emerged. In the west, a politically fragmented Arakan was under competing influences of its stronger neighbours until the Kingdom of Mrauk U unified the Arakan coastline for the first time in 1437. The kingdom was a protectorate of the Bengal Sultanate at different time periods. Early on, Ava fought wars of unification (1385–1424) but could never quite reassemble the lost empire. Having held off Ava, the Mon-speaking Hanthawaddy entered its golden age, and Arakan went on to become a power in its own right for the next 350 years. In contrast, constant warfare left Ava greatly weakened, and it slowly disintegrated from 1481 onward. In 1527, the Confederation of Shan States conquered Ava itself, and ruled Upper Myanmar until 1555. Like the Pagan Empire, Ava, Hanthawaddy and the Shan states were all multi-ethnic polities. Despite the wars, cultural synchronisation continued. This period is considered a golden age for Burmese culture. Burmese literature "grew more confident, popular, and stylistically diverse", and the second generation of Burmese law codes as well as the earliest pan-Burma chronicles emerged. Hanthawaddy monarchs introduced religious reforms that later spread to the rest of the country. Many splendid temples of Mrauk U were built during this period. Political unification returned in the mid-16th century, due to the efforts of Taungoo, a former vassal state of Ava. Taungoo's young, ambitious king Tabinshwehti defeated the more powerful Hanthawaddy in the Toungoo–Hanthawaddy War (1534–41). His successor Bayinnaung went on to conquer a vast swath of mainland Southeast Asia including the Shan states, Lan Na, Manipur, Mong Mao, the Ayutthaya Kingdom, Lan Xang and southern Arakan. However, the largest empire in the history of Southeast Asia unravelled soon after Bayinnaung's death in 1581, completely collapsing by 1599. Ayutthaya seized Tenasserim and Lan Na, and Portuguese mercenaries established Portuguese rule at Thanlyin (Syriam). The dynasty regrouped and defeated the Portuguese in 1613 and Siam in 1614. It restored a smaller, more manageable kingdom, encompassing Lower Myanmar, Upper Myanmar, Shan states, Lan Na and upper Tenasserim. The Restored Toungoo kings created a legal and political framework whose basic features would continue well into the 19th century. The crown completely replaced the hereditary chieftainships with appointed governorships in the entire Irrawaddy valley, and greatly reduced the hereditary rights of Shan chiefs. Its trade and secular administrative reforms built a prosperous economy for more than 80 years. From the 1720s onward, the kingdom was beset with repeated Meithei raids into Upper Myanmar and a nagging rebellion in Lan Na. In 1740, the Mon of Lower Myanmar founded the Restored Hanthawaddy Kingdom. Hanthawaddy forces sacked Ava in 1752, ending the 266-year-old Toungoo Dynasty. After the fall of Ava, the Konbaung–Hanthawaddy War involved one resistance group under Alaungpaya defeating the Restored Hanthawaddy, and by 1759, he had reunited all of Myanmar and Manipur, and driven out the French and the British, who had provided arms to Hanthawaddy. By 1770, Alaungpaya's heirs had subdued much of Laos (1765) and fought and won the Burmese–Siamese War (1765–67) against Ayutthaya and the Sino-Burmese War (1765–69) against Qing China (1765–1769). With Burma preoccupied by the Chinese threat, Ayutthaya recovered its territories by 1770, and went on to capture Lan Na by 1776. Burma and Siam went to war until 1855, but all resulted in a stalemate, exchanging Tenasserim (to Burma) and Lan Na (to Ayutthaya). Faced with a powerful China and a resurgent Ayutthaya in the east, King Bodawpaya turned west, acquiring Arakan (1785), Manipur (1814) and Assam (1817). It was the second-largest empire in Burmese history but also one with a long ill-defined border with British India. The breadth of this empire was short lived. Burma lost Arakan, Manipur, Assam and Tenasserim to the British in the First Anglo-Burmese War (1824–1826). In 1852, the British easily seized Lower Burma in the Second Anglo-Burmese War. King Mindon Min tried to modernise the kingdom, and in 1875 narrowly avoided annexation by ceding the Karenni States. The British, alarmed by the consolidation of French Indochina, annexed the remainder of the country in the Third Anglo-Burmese War in 1885. Konbaung kings extended Restored Toungoo's administrative reforms, and achieved unprecedented levels of internal control and external expansion. For the first time in history, the Burmese language and culture came to predominate the entire Irrawaddy valley. The evolution and growth of Burmese literature and theatre continued, aided by an extremely high adult male literacy rate for the era (half of all males and 5% of females). Nonetheless, the extent and pace of reforms were uneven and ultimately proved insufficient to stem the advance of British colonialism. The eighteenth century saw Burmese rulers, whose country had not previously been of particular interest to European traders, seek to maintain their traditional influence in the western areas of Assam, Manipur and Arakan. Pressing them, however, was the British East India Company, which was expanding its interests eastwards over the same territory. Over the next sixty years, diplomacy, raids, treaties and compromises continued until, after three Anglo-Burmese Wars (1824–1885), Britain proclaimed control over most of Burma. British rule brought social, economic, cultural and administrative changes. With the fall of Mandalay, all of Burma came under British rule, being annexed on 1 January 1886. Throughout the colonial era, many Indians arrived as soldiers, civil servants, construction workers and traders and, along with the Anglo-Burmese community, dominated commercial and civil life in Burma. Rangoon became the capital of British Burma and an important port between Calcutta and Singapore. Burmese resentment was strong and was vented in violent riots that paralysed Yangon (Rangoon) on occasion all the way until the 1930s. Some of the discontent was caused by a disrespect for Burmese culture and traditions such as the British refusal to remove shoes when they entered pagodas. Buddhist monks became the vanguards of the independence movement. U Wisara, an activist monk, died in prison after a 166-day hunger strike to protest against a rule that forbade him to wear his Buddhist robes while imprisoned. On 1 April 1937, Burma became a separately administered colony of Great Britain and Ba Maw became the first Prime Minister and Premier of Burma. Ba Maw was an outspoken advocate for Burmese self-rule and he opposed the participation of Great Britain, and by extension Burma, in World War II. He resigned from the Legislative Assembly and was arrested for sedition. In 1940, before Japan formally entered the Second World War, Aung San formed the Burma Independence Army in Japan. A major battleground, Burma was devastated during World War II by March 1942. Within months after they entered the war, Japanese troops had advanced on Rangoon and the British administration had collapsed. A Burmese Executive Administration headed by Ba Maw was established by the Japanese in August 1942. Wingate's British Chindits were formed into long- range penetration groups trained to operate deep behind Japanese lines. A similar American unit, Merrill's Marauders, followed the Chindits into the Burmese jungle in 1943. Beginning in late 1944, allied troops launched a series of offensives that led to the end of Japanese rule in July 1945. The battles were intense with much of Burma laid waste by the fighting. Overall, the Japanese lost some 150,000 men in Burma with only 1,700 prisoners taken. Although many Burmese fought initially for the Japanese as part of the Burma Independence Army, many Burmese, mostly from the ethnic minorities, served in the British Burma Army. The Burma National Army and the Arakan National Army fought with the Japanese from 1942 to 1944 but switched allegiance to the Allied side in 1945. Under Japanese occupation, 170,000 to 250,000 civilians died. Following World War II, Aung San negotiated the Panglong Agreement with ethnic leaders that guaranteed the independence of Myanmar as a unified state. Aung Zan Wai, Pe Khin, Bo Hmu Aung, Sir Maung Gyi, Dr. Sein Mya Maung, Myoma U Than Kywe were among the negotiators of the historical Panglong Conference negotiated with Bamar leader General Aung San and other ethnic leaders in 1947. In 1947, Aung San became Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council of Myanmar, a transitional government. But in July 1947, political rivals assassinated Aung San and several cabinet members. On 4 January 1948, the nation became an independent republic, under the terms of the Burma Independence Act 1947. The new country was named the Union of Burma, with Sao Shwe Thaik as its first President and U Nu as its first Prime Minister. Unlike most other former British colonies and overseas territories, Burma did not become a member of the Commonwealth. A bicameral parliament was formed, consisting of a Chamber of Deputies and a Chamber of Nationalities, and multi-party elections were held in 1951–1952, 1956 and 1960. The geographical area Burma encompasses today can be traced to the Panglong Agreement, which combined Burma Proper, which consisted of Lower Burma and Upper Burma, and the Frontier Areas, which had been administered separately by the British. In 1961, U Thant, then the Union of Burma's Permanent Representative to the United Nations and former Secretary to the Prime Minister, was elected Secretary-General of the United Nations, a position he held for ten years. Among the Burmese to work at the UN when he was Secretary- General was a young Aung San Suu Kyi (daughter of Aung San), who went on to become winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. When the non-Burman ethnic groups pushed for autonomy or federalism, alongside having a weak civilian government at the centre, the military leadership staged a coup d’état in 1962. Though incorporated in the 1947 Constitution, successive military governments construed the use of the term ‘federalism’ as being anti-national, anti-unity and pro-disintegration. On 2 March 1962, the military led by General Ne Win took control of Burma through a coup d'état, and the government has been under direct or indirect control by the military since then. Between 1962 and 1974, Myanmar was ruled by a revolutionary council headed by the general. Almost all aspects of society (business, media, production) were nationalised or brought under government control under the Burmese Way to Socialism, which combined Soviet- style nationalisation and central planning. A new constitution of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma was adopted in 1974. Until 1988, the country was ruled as a one-party system, with the General and other military officers resigning and ruling through the Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP). During this period, Myanmar became one of the world's most impoverished countries. There were sporadic protests against military rule during the Ne Win years and these were almost always violently suppressed. On 7 July 1962, the government broke up demonstrations at Rangoon University, killing 15 students. In 1974, the military violently suppressed anti- government protests at the funeral of U Thant. Student protests in 1975, 1976, and 1977 were quickly suppressed by overwhelming force. In 1988, unrest over economic mismanagement and political oppression by the government led to widespread pro-democracy demonstrations throughout the country known as the 8888 Uprising. Security forces killed thousands of demonstrators, and General Saw Maung staged a coup d'état and formed the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). In 1989, SLORC declared martial law after widespread protests. The military government finalised plans for People's Assembly elections on 31 May 1989. SLORC changed the country's official English name from the "Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma" to the "Union of Myanmar" in 18 June 1989 by enacting the adaptation of the expression law. In May 1990, the government held free elections for the first time in almost 30 years and the National League for Democracy (NLD), the party of Aung San Suu Kyi, won 392 out of a total 492 seats (i.e., 80% of the seats). However, the military junta refused to cede power and continued to rule the nation as SLORC until 1997, and then as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) until its dissolution in March 2011. On 23 June 1997, Myanmar was admitted into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). On 27 March 2006, the military junta, which had moved the national capital from Yangon to a site near Pyinmana in November 2005, officially named the new capital Naypyidaw, meaning "city of the kings". In August 2007, an increase in the price of fuel led to the Saffron Revolution led by Buddhist monks that were dealt with harshly by the government. The government cracked down on them on 26 September 2007. The crackdown was harsh, with reports of barricades at the Shwedagon Pagoda and monks killed. There were also rumours of disagreement within the Burmese armed forces, but none was confirmed. The military crackdown against unarmed protesters was widely condemned as part of the international reactions to the Saffron Revolution and led to an increase in economic sanctions against the Burmese Government. In May 2008, Cyclone Nargis caused extensive damage in the densely populated, rice-farming delta of the Irrawaddy Division. It was the worst natural disaster in Burmese history with reports of an estimated 200,000 people dead or missing, damage totalled to 10 billion US dollars, and as many as 1 million left homeless. In the critical days following this disaster, Myanmar's isolationist government was accused of hindering United Nations recovery efforts. Humanitarian aid was requested but concerns about foreign military or intelligence presence in the country delayed the entry of United States military planes delivering medicine, food, and other supplies. In early August 2009, a conflict known as the Kokang incident broke out in Shan State in northern Myanmar. For several weeks, junta troops fought against ethnic minorities including the Han Chinese, Wa, and Kachin. During 8–12 August, the first days of the conflict, as many as 10,000 Burmese civilians fled to Yunnan in neighbouring China. Civil wars have been a constant feature of Myanmar's socio-political landscape since the attainment of independence in 1948. These wars are predominantly struggles for ethnic and sub-national autonomy, with the areas surrounding the ethnically Bamar central districts of the country serving as the primary geographical setting of conflict. Foreign journalists and visitors require a special travel permit to visit the areas in which Myanmar's civil wars continue. In October 2012, the ongoing conflicts in Myanmar included the Kachin conflict, between the Pro-Christian Kachin Independence Army and the government; a civil war between the Rohingya Muslims, and the government and non-government groups in Rakhine State; and a conflict between the Shan, Lahu, and Karen minority groups, and the government in the eastern half of the country. In addition, al-Qaeda signalled an intention to become involved in Myanmar. In a video released on 3 September 2014, mainly addressed to India, the militant group's leader Ayman al-Zawahiri said al-Qaeda had not forgotten the Muslims of Myanmar and that the group was doing "what they can to rescue you". In response, the military raised its level of alertness, while the Burmese Muslim Association issued a statement saying Muslims would not tolerate any threat to their motherland. Armed conflict between ethnic Chinese rebels and the Myanmar Armed Forces have resulted in the Kokang offensive in February 2015. The conflict had forced 40,000 to 50,000 civilians to flee their homes and seek shelter on the Chinese side of the border. During the incident, the government of China was accused of giving military assistance to the ethnic Chinese rebels. Burmese officials have been historically "manipulated" and pressured by the Chinese government throughout Burmese modern history to create closer and binding ties with China, creating a Chinese satellite state in Southeast Asia. However, uncertainties exist as clashes between Burmese troops and local insurgent groups continue. The goal of the Burmese constitutional referendum of 2008, held on 10 May 2008, is the creation of a "discipline-flourishing democracy". As part of the referendum process, the name of the country was changed from the "Union of Myanmar" to the "Republic of the Union of Myanmar", and general elections were held under the new constitution in 2010. Observer accounts of the 2010 election describe the event as mostly peaceful; however, allegations of polling station irregularities were raised, and the United Nations (UN) and a number of Western countries condemned the elections as fraudulent. The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party declared victory in the 2010 elections, stating that it had been favoured by 80 percent of the votes; however, the claim was disputed by numerous pro-democracy opposition groups who asserted that the military regime had engaged in rampant fraud. One report documented 77 percent as the official turnout rate of the election. The military junta was dissolved on 30 March 2011. Opinions differ whether the transition to liberal democracy is underway. According to some reports, the military's presence continues as the label "disciplined democracy" suggests. This label asserts that the Burmese military is allowing certain civil liberties while clandestinely institutionalising itself further into Burmese politics. Such an assertion assumes that reforms only occurred when the military was able to safeguard its own interests through the transition—here, "transition" does not refer to a transition to a liberal democracy, but transition to a quasi-military rule. Since the 2010 election, the government has embarked on a series of reforms to direct the country towards liberal democracy, a mixed economy, and reconciliation, although doubts persist about the motives that underpin such reforms. The series of reforms includes the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission, the granting of general amnesties for more than 200 political prisoners, new labour laws that permit labour unions and strikes, a relaxation of press censorship, and the regulation of currency practices. The impact of the post-election reforms has been observed in numerous areas, including ASEAN's approval of Myanmar's bid for the position of ASEAN chair in 2014; the visit by United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in December 2011 for the encouragement of further progress, which was the first visit by a Secretary of State in more than fifty years, during which Clinton met with the Burmese president and former military commander Thein Sein, as well as opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi; and the participation of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party in the 2012 by-elections, facilitated by the government's abolition of the laws that previously barred the NLD. As of July 2013, about 100 political prisoners remain imprisoned, while conflict between the Burmese Army and local insurgent groups continues. In 1 April 2012 by-elections, the NLD won 43 of the 45 available seats; previously an illegal organisation, the NLD had not won a single seat under new constitution. The 2012 by-elections were also the first time that international representatives were allowed to monitor the voting process in Myanmar. General elections were held on 8 November 2015. These were the first openly contested elections held in Myanmar since 1990. The results gave the National League for Democracy an absolute majority of seats in both chambers of the national parliament, enough to ensure that its candidate would become president, while NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi is constitutionally barred from the presidency. The new parliament convened on 1 February 2016 and, on 15 March 2016, Htin Kyaw was elected as the first non-military president since the military coup of 1962. On 6 April 2016, Aung San Suu Kyi assumed the newly created role of State Counsellor, a role akin to a Prime Minister. Myanmar has a total area of . It lies between latitudes 9° and 29°N, and longitudes 92° and 102°E. As of February 2011, Myanmar consisted of 14 states and regions, 67 districts, 330 townships, 64 sub-townships, 377 towns, 2,914 Wards, 14,220 village tracts and 68,290 villages. Myanmar is bordered in the northwest by the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh and the Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh states of India. Its north and northeast border is with the Tibet Autonomous Region and Yunnan for a Sino-Myanmar border total of . It is bounded by Laos and Thailand to the southeast. Myanmar has of contiguous coastline along the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea to the southwest and the south, which forms one quarter of its total perimeter. In the north, the Hengduan Mountains form the border with China. Hkakabo Razi, located in Kachin State, at an elevation of , is the highest point in Myanmar. Many mountain ranges, such as the Rakhine Yoma, the Bago Yoma, the Shan Hills and the Tenasserim Hills exist within Myanmar, all of which run north-to-south from the Himalayas. The mountain chains divide Myanmar's three river systems, which are the Irrawaddy, Salween (Thanlwin), and the Sittaung rivers. The Irrawaddy River, Myanmar's longest river, nearly long, flows into the Gulf of Martaban. Fertile plains exist in the valleys between the mountain chains. The majority of Myanmar's population lives in the Irrawaddy valley, which is situated between the Rakhine Yoma and the Shan Plateau. Myanmar is divided into seven states () and seven regions (), formerly called divisions. Regions are predominantly Bamar (that is, mainly inhabited by the dominant ethnic group). States, in essence, are regions that are home to particular ethnic minorities. The administrative divisions are further subdivided into districts, which are further subdivided into townships, wards, and villages. Below are the number of districts, townships, cities/towns, wards, village groups and villages in each divisions and states of Myanmar as of 31 December 2001: Much of the country lies between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator. It lies in the monsoon region of Asia, with its coastal regions receiving over of rain annually. Annual rainfall in the delta region is approximately , while average annual rainfall in the Dry Zone in central Myanmar is less than . The Northern regions of Myanmar are the coolest, with average temperatures of . Coastal and delta regions have an average maximum temperature of . Myanmar continues to perform badly in the global Environmental Performance Index (EPI) with an overall ranking of 153 out of 180 countries in 2016; among the worst in the South Asian region, only ahead of Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The EPI was established in 2001 by the World Economic Forum as a global gauge to measure how well individual countries perform in implementing the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. The environmental areas where Myanmar performs worst (ie. highest ranking) are air quality (174), health impacts of environmental issues (143) and biodiversity and habitat (142). Myanmar performs best (ie. lowest ranking) in environmental impacts of fisheries (21), but with declining fish stocks. Despite several issues, Myanmar also ranks 64 and scores very good (ie. a high percentage of 93.73%) in environmental effects of the agricultural industry because of an excellent management of the nitrogen cycle. Myanmar is one of the most highly vulnerable countries to climate change; this poses a number of social, political, economic and foreign policy challenges to the country. Myanmar's slow economic growth has contributed to the preservation of much of its environment and ecosystems. Forests, including dense tropical growth and valuable teak in lower Myanmar, cover over 49% of the country, including areas of acacia, bamboo, ironwood and Magnolia champaca. Coconut and betel palm and rubber have been introduced. In the highlands of the north, oak, pine and various rhododendrons cover much of the land. Heavy logging since the new 1995 forestry law went into effect has seriously reduced forest acreage and wildlife habitat. The lands along the coast support all varieties of tropical fruits and once had large areas of mangroves although much of the protective mangroves have disappeared. In much of central Myanmar (the Dry Zone), vegetation is sparse and stunted. Typical jungle animals, particularly tigers, occur sparsely in Myanmar. In upper Myanmar, there are rhinoceros, wild water buffalo, clouded leopard, wild boars, deer, antelope, and elephants, which are also tamed or bred in captivity for use as work animals, particularly in the lumber industry. Smaller mammals are also numerous, ranging from gibbons and monkeys to flying foxes. The abundance of birds is notable with over 800 species, including parrots, myna, peafowl, red junglefowl, weaverbirds, crows, herons, and barn owl. Among reptile species there are crocodiles, geckos, cobras, Burmese pythons, and turtles. Hundreds of species of freshwater fish are wide-ranging, plentiful and are very important food sources. For a list of protected areas, see List of protected areas of Myanmar. The constitution of Myanmar, its third since independence, was drafted by its military rulers and published in September 2008. The country is governed as a parliamentary system with a bicameral legislature (with an executive President accountable to the legislature), with 25% of the legislators appointed by the military and the rest elected in general elections. The legislature, called the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, is bicameral and made up of two houses: the 224-seat upper house Amyotha Hluttaw (House of Nationalities) and the 440-seat lower house Pyithu Hluttaw (House of Representatives). The upper house consists of 224 members, of whom 168 are directly elected and 56 are appointed by the Burmese Armed Forces. The lower house consists of 440 members, of whom 330 are directly elected and 110 are appointed by the armed forces. The major political parties are the National League for Democracy and the Union Solidarity and Development Party. Myanmar's army-drafted constitution was approved in a referendum in May 2008. The results, 92.4% of the 22 million voters with an official turnout of 99%, are considered suspect by many international observers and by the National League of Democracy with reports of widespread fraud, ballot stuffing, and voter intimidation. The elections of 2010 resulted in a victory for the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party. Various foreign observers questioned the fairness of the elections. One criticism of the election was that only government-sanctioned political parties were allowed to contest in it and the popular National League for Democracy was declared illegal. However, immediately following the elections, the government ended the house arrest of the democracy advocate and leader of the National League for Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi, and her ability to move freely around the country is considered an important test of the military's movement toward more openness. After unexpected reforms in 2011, NLD senior leaders have decided to register as a political party and to field candidates in future by-elections. Myanmar's recent political history is underlined by its struggle to establish democratic structures amidst conflicting factions. This political transition from a closely held military rule to a free democratic system is widely believed to be determining the future of Myanmar. The resounding victory of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy in 2015 general elections has raised hope for a successful culmination of this transition. Myanmar rates as a corrupt nation on the Corruption Perceptions Index with a rank of 136th out of 176 countries worldwide, with 1st being least corrupt, . Though the country's foreign relations, particularly with Western nations, have historically been strained, the situation has markedly improved since the reforms following the 2010 elections. After years of diplomatic isolation and economic and military sanctions, the United States relaxed curbs on foreign aid to Myanmar in November 2011 and announced the resumption of diplomatic relations on 13 January 2012 The European Union has placed sanctions on Myanmar, including an arms embargo, cessation of trade preferences, and suspension of all aid with the exception of humanitarian aid. Sanctions imposed by the United States and European countries against the former military government, coupled with boycotts and other direct pressure on corporations by supporters of the democracy movement, have resulted in the withdrawal from the country of most US and many European companies. On 13 April 2012 British Prime Minister David Cameron called for the economic sanctions on Myanmar to be suspended in the wake of the pro-democracy party gaining 43 seats out of a possible 45 in the 2012 by-elections with the party leader, Aung San Suu Kyi becoming a member of the Burmese parliament. Despite Western isolation, Asian corporations have generally remained willing to continue investing in the country and to initiate new investments, particularly in natural resource extraction. The country has close relations with neighbouring India and China with several Indian and Chinese companies operating in the country. Under India's Look East policy, fields of co- operation between India and Myanmar include remote sensing, oil and gas exploration, information technology, hydro power and construction of ports and buildings. In 2008, India suspended military aid to Myanmar over the issue of human rights abuses by the ruling junta, although it has preserved extensive commercial ties, which provide the regime with much-needed revenue. The thaw in relations began on 28 November 2011, when Belarusian Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich and his wife Ludmila arrived in the capital, Naypyidaw, the same day as the country received a visit by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who also met with pro-democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. International relations progress indicators continued in September 2012 when Aung San Suu Kyi visited the United States followed by Myanmar's reformist president visit to the United Nations. In May 2013, Thein Sein became the first Myanmar president to visit the White House in 47 years; the last Burmese leader to visit the White House was Ne Win in September 1966. President Barack Obama praised the former general for political and economic reforms, and the cessation of tensions between Myanmar and the United States. Political activists objected to the visit due to concerns over human rights abuses in Myanmar but Obama assured Thein Sein that Myanmar will receive US support. The two leaders discussed to release more political prisoners, the institutionalisation of political reform and rule of law, and ending ethnic conflict in Myanmar—the two governments agreed to sign a bilateral trade and investment framework agreement on 21 May 2013. In June 2013, Myanmar held its first ever summit, the World Economic Forum on East Asia 2013. A regional spinoff of the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the summit was held on 5–7 June and attended by 1,200 participants, including 10 heads of state, 12 ministers and 40 senior directors from around the world. In July 2019, UN ambassadors of 37 countries, including Myanmar, have signed a joint letter to the UNHRC defending China's treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang region. Myanmar has received extensive military aid from China in the past. Myanmar has been a member of ASEAN since 1997. Though it gave up its turn to hold the ASEAN chair and host the ASEAN Summit in 2006, it chaired the forum and hosted the summit in 2014. In November 2008, Myanmar's political situation with neighbouring Bangladesh became tense as they began searching for natural gas in a disputed block of the Bay of Bengal. Controversy surrounding the Rohingya population also remains an issue between Bangladesh and Myanmar. Myanmar's armed forces are known as the Tatmadaw, which numbers 488,000. The Tatmadaw comprises the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The country ranked twelfth in the world for its number of active troops in service. The military is very influential in Myanmar, with all top cabinet and ministry posts usually held by military officials. Official figures for military spending are not available. Estimates vary widely because of uncertain exchange rates, but Myanmar's military forces' expenses are high. Myanmar imports most of its weapons from Russia, Ukraine, China and India. Myanmar is building a research nuclear reactor near Pyin Oo Lwin with help from Russia. It is one of the signatories of the nuclear non-proliferation pact since 1992 and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) since 1957. The military junta had informed the IAEA in September 2000 of its intention to construct the reactor. The research reactor outbuilding frame was built by ELE steel industries limited of Yangon/Rangoon and water from Anisakhan/BE water fall will be used for the reactor cavity cooling system. In 2010 as part of the Wikileaks leaked cables, Myanmar was suspected of using North Korean construction teams to build a fortified Surface-to-Air Missile facility. Until 2005, the United Nations General Assembly annually adopted a detailed resolution about the situation in Myanmar by consensus. But in 2006 a divided United Nations General Assembly voted through a resolution that strongly called upon the government of Myanmar to end its systematic violations of human rights. In January 2007, Russia and China vetoed a draft resolution before the United Nations Security Council calling on the government of Myanmar to respect human rights and begin a democratic transition. South Africa also voted against the resolution. There is consensus that the former military regime in Myanmar (1962–2010) was one of the world's most repressive and abusive regimes. In November 2012, Samantha Power, Barack Obama's Special Assistant to the President on Human Rights, wrote on the White House blog in advance of the president's visit that "Serious human rights abuses against civilians in several regions continue, including against women and children." Members of the United Nations and major international human rights organisations have issued repeated and consistent reports of widespread and systematic human rights violations in Myanmar. The United Nations General Assembly has repeatedly called on the Burmese Military Junta to respect human rights and in November 2009 the General Assembly adopted a resolution "strongly condemning the ongoing systematic violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms" and calling on the Burmese Military Regime "to take urgent measures to put an end to violations of international human rights and humanitarian law." International human rights organisations including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the American Association for the Advancement of Science have repeatedly documented and condemned widespread human rights violations in Myanmar. The Freedom in the World 2011 report by Freedom House notes, "The military junta has ... suppressed nearly all basic rights; and committed human rights abuses with impunity." In July 2013, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners indicated that there were approximately 100 political prisoners being held in Burmese prisons. Evidence gathered by a British researcher was published in 2005 regarding the extermination or 'Burmisation' of certain ethnic minorities, such as the Karen, Karenni and Shan. Child soldiers had played a major part in the Burmese Army until around 2012. The Independent reported in June 2012 that "Children are being sold as conscripts into the Burmese military for as little as $40 and a bag of rice or a can of petrol." The UN's Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Coomaraswamy, who stepped down from her position a week later, met representatives of the Government of Myanmar on 5 July 2012 and stated that she hoped the government's signing of an action plan would "signal a transformation." In September 2012, the Myanmar Armed Forces released 42 child soldiers and the International Labour Organization met with representatives of the government as well as the Kachin Independence Army to secure the release of more child soldiers. According to Samantha Power, a US delegation raised the issue of child soldiers with the government in October 2012. However, she did not comment on the government's progress towards reform in this area. A Bangkok Post article on 23 December 2012 reported that the Myanmar Armed Forces continued to use child soldiers including during the army's large offensive against the KIA in December 2012. Forced labour, human trafficking, and child labour are common in Myanmar. The military is also notorious for rampant use of sexual violence, a practice continuing . In 2007 the international movement to defend women's human rights issues in Myanmar was said to be gaining speed. Human trafficking happens to most women who are unemployed and have low incomes. They are mainly targeted or deceived by brokers into making them believe that better opportunities and wages exist for them abroad. In 2017, the government reported investigating 185 trafficking cases. The government of Burma makes little effort to eliminate human trafficking. Burmese armed forces (Tatmadaw) compel troops to acquire labour and supplies from local communities. The U.S. State Department reported that both the government and Tatmadaw were complicit in sex and labour trafficking. The Rohingya people have consistently faced human rights abuses by the Burmese regime that has refused to acknowledge them as Burmese citizens (despite some of them having lived in Burma for over three generations)—the Rohingya have been denied Burmese citizenship since the enactment of a 1982 citizenship law. The law created three categories of citizenship: citizenship, associate citizenship, and naturalised citizenship. Citizenship is given to those who belong to one of the national races such as Kachin, Kayah (Karenni), Karen, Chin, Burman, Mon, Rakhine, Shan, Kaman, or Zerbadee. Associate citizenship is given to those who cannot prove their ancestors settled in Myanmar before 1823, but can prove they have one grandparent, or pre-1823 ancestor, who was a citizen of another country, as well as people who applied for citizenship in 1948 and qualified then by those laws. Naturalised citizenship is only given to those who have at least one parent with one of these types of Burmese citizenship or can provide "conclusive evidence" that their parents entered and resided in Burma prior to independence in 1948. The Burmese regime has attempted to forcibly expel Rohingya and bring in non-Rohingyas to replace them—this policy has resulted in the expulsion of approximately half of the 800,000 Rohingya from Burma, while the Rohingya people have been described as "among the world's least wanted" and "one of the world's most persecuted minorities." But the origin of 'most persecuted minority' statement is unclear. Rohingya are also not allowed to travel without official permission, are banned from owning land and are required to sign a commitment to have no more than two children. As of July 2012, the Myanmar Government does not include the Rohingya minority group—classified as stateless Bengali Muslims from Bangladesh since 1982—on the government's list of more than 130 ethnic races and, therefore, the government states that they have no claim to Myanmar citizenship. In 2007 the German professor Bassam Tibi suggested that the Rohingya conflict may be driven by an Islamist political agenda to impose religious laws, while non-religious causes have also been raised, such as a lingering resentment over the violence that occurred during the Japanese occupation of Burma in World War II—during this time period the British allied themselves with the Rohingya and fought against the puppet government of Burma (composed mostly of Bamar Japanese) that helped to establish the Tatmadaw military organisation that remains in power as of March 2013. Since the democratic transition began in 2011, there has been continuous violence as 280 people have been killed and 140,000 forced to flee from their homes in the Rakhine state. A UN envoy reported in March 2013 that unrest had re-emerged between Myanmar's Buddhist and Muslim communities, with violence spreading to towns that are located closer to Yangon. The Rohingya have been leaving the Rakhine State by boat in search for jobs in Malaysia these recent years. Often, the boats are very small and dangerous on the open seas. An estimated 100,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar in the last two years in fear of persecution and violence. They have been fleeing to Thailand, Malaysia, or even Australia for refuge. Over 200 have died in recent years and over 7,000 have been held in detention centres even after surviving the boat trip. Starting in late 2016, Myanmar's military and police started large-scale persecutions of Rohingya peoples in Rakhine state. This has driven over 742,000 Rohingya to cross the border to overloaded refugee camps in Bangladesh. Widespread violence, including evidence of indiscriminate killings and ethnic cleansing has been reported. The International Criminal Court has authorized a criminal prosecution of Myanmar under the Rome Statute. A widely publicised Burmese conflict was the 2012 Rakhine State riots, a series of conflicts that primarily involved the ethnic Rakhine Buddhist people and the Rohingya Muslim people in the northern Rakhine State—an estimated 90,000 people were displaced as a result of the riots. The immediate cause of the riots is unclear, with many commentators citing the killing of ten Burmese Muslims by ethnic Rakhine after the rape and murder of a Rakhine woman as the main cause. Whole villages have been "decimated". Over 300 houses and a number of public buildings have been razed. According to Tun Khin, the president of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK), as of 28 June 2012, 650 Rohingyas have been killed, 1,200 are missing, and more than 80,000 have been displaced. According to the Myanmar authorities, the violence, between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims, left 78 people dead, 87 injured, and thousands of homes destroyed. It displaced more than 52,000 people. The government has responded by imposing curfews and by deploying troops in the regions. On 10 June 2012, a state of emergency was declared in Rakhine, allowing the military to participate in administration of the region. The Burmese army and police have been accused of targeting Rohingya Muslims through mass arrests and arbitrary violence. A number of monks' organisations that played a vital role in Myanmar's struggle for democracy have taken measures to block any humanitarian assistance to the Rohingya community. Media censorship was significantly eased in August 2012 following demonstrations by hundreds of protesters who wore shirts demanding that the government "Stop Killing the Press." The most significant change has come in the form that media organisations will no longer have to submit their content to a censorship board before publication. However, as explained by one editorial in the exiled press The Irrawaddy, this new "freedom" has caused some Burmese journalists to simply see the new law as an attempt to create an environment of self-censorship as journalists "are required to follow 16 guidelines towards protecting the three national causes: non-disintegration of the Union,, non-disintegration of national solidarity,, perpetuation of sovereignty, and "journalistic ethics" to ensure their stories are accurate and do not jeopardise national security." In July 2014 five journalists were sentenced to 10 years in jail after publishing a report saying the country was planning to build a new chemical weapons plant. Journalists described the jailings as a blow to the recently-won news media freedoms that had followed five decades of censorship and persecution. Two Reuters journalists were charged and imprisoned on 12 December 2017, for violating state secrets law when they were covering the mass exodus of the Rohingya Muslim minority. According to the Crisis Group, since Myanmar transitioned to a new government in August 2011, the country's human rights record has been improving. Previously giving Myanmar its lowest rating of 7, the 2012 Freedom in the World report also notes improvement, giving Myanmar a 6 for improvements in civil liberties and political rights, the release of political prisoners, and a loosening of restrictions. In 2013, Myanmar improved yet again, receiving a score of five in civil liberties and a six in political freedoms. The government has assembled a National Human Rights Commission that consists of 15 members from various backgrounds. Several activists in exile, including Thee Lay Thee Anyeint members, have returned to Myanmar after President Thein Sein's invitation to expatriates to return home to work for national development. In an address to the United Nations Security Council on 22 September 2011, Myanmar's Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin confirmed the government's intention to release prisoners in the near future. The government has also relaxed reporting laws, but these remain highly restrictive. In September 2011, several banned websites, including YouTube, Democratic Voice of Burma and Voice of America, were unblocked. A 2011 report by the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations found that, while contact with the Myanmar government was constrained by donor restrictions, international humanitarian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) see opportunities for effective advocacy with government officials, especially at the local level. At the same time, international NGOs are mindful of the ethical quandary of how to work with the government without bolstering or appeasing it. Following Thein Sein's first ever visit to the UK and a meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron, the Myanmar president declared that all of his nation's political prisoners will be released by the end of 2013, in addition to a statement of support for the well-being of the Rohingya Muslim community. In a speech at Chatham House, he revealed that "We [Myanmar government] are reviewing all cases. I guarantee to you that by the end of this year, there will be no prisoners of conscience in Myanmar.", in addition to expressing a desire to strengthen links between the UK and Myanmar's military forces. Homosexual acts are illegal in Myanmar and can be punishable by life imprisonment. In 2016, Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi was accused of failing to protect Myanmar's Muslim minority. Since August 2017 Doctors Without Borders have treated 113 Rohingya refugee females for sexual assault with all but one describing military assailants. The 2017 persecution against the Rohingya Muslims has been termed as ethnic cleansing and genocide by various UN agencies, International Criminal Court officials, and governments. More than 700,000 Rohingya refugees have fled to Bangladesh since August 2017. There has been speculation that Myanmar is interested in developing nuclear weapons, and that North Korea was planning to export nuclear technology to Myanmar. These reports are based on evidence gathered from anti-government Burmese. Myanmar is a signatory to a special ASEAN treaty that bans all types of nuclear weapons in signatory states in Southeast Asia. As of 2019, the United States Bureau of Arms Control assessed that Myanmar is not in violation of its obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty but that the Myanmar government had a history of non-transparency on its nuclear programs and aims. Previously and currently analyzed data, as well as future projections on changes caused by climate change predict serious consequences to development for all economic, productive, social, and environmental sectors in Myanmar. In order to combat the hardships ahead and do its part to help combat climate change Myanmar has displayed interest in expanding its use of renewable energy and lowering its level of carbon emissions. Groups involved in helping Myanmar with the transition and move forward include the UN Environment Programme, Myanmar Climate Change Alliance, and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation which directed in producing the final draft of the Myanmar national climate change policy that was presented to various sectors of the Myanmar government for review. In April 2015, it was announced that the World Bank and Myanmar would enter a full partnership framework aimed to better access to electricity and other basic services for about six million people and expected to benefit three million pregnant woman and children through improved health services. Acquired funding and proper planning has allowed Myanmar to better prepare for the impacts of climate change by enacting programs which teach its people new farming methods, rebuild its infrastructure with materials resilient to natural disasters, and transition various sectors towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Myanmar is one of the poorest nations in Southeast Asia, suffering from decades of stagnation, mismanagement and isolation. The lack of an educated workforce skilled in modern technology hinders Myanmar's economy, although recent reforms and developments carried out by the new government, in collaboration with foreign countries and organisations, aim to make this a thing of the past. The informal economy's share in Myanmar is one of the biggest in the world and is closely linked to corruption, smuggling and illegal trade activities. Myanmar lacks adequate infrastructure. Goods travel primarily across the Thai border (where most illegal drugs are exported) and along the Irrawaddy River. Railways are old and rudimentary, with few repairs since their construction in the late 19th century. Highways are normally unpaved, except in the major cities. In 2010–2011, Bangladesh exported products worth $9.65 million to Myanmar against its import of $179 million. The annual import of medicine and medical equipment to Myanmar during the 2000s was 160 million USD. In recent years, both China and India have attempted to strengthen ties with the government for economic benefit. Many nations, including the United States and Canada, and the European Union, have imposed investment and trade sanctions on Myanmar. The United States and European Union eased most of their sanctions in 2012. Foreign investment comes primarily from China, Singapore, the Philippines, South Korea, India, and Thailand. Under British administration, Myanmar was the second-wealthiest country in South-East Asia. It had been the world's largest exporter of rice. Myanmar also had a wealth of natural and labour resources. British Burma began exporting crude oil in 1853, making it one of the earliest petroleum producers in the world. It produced 75% of the world's teak and had a highly literate population. The wealth was however, mainly concentrated in the hands of Europeans. In the 1930s, agricultural production fell dramatically as international rice prices declined, and did not recover for several decades. Plans to broaden the new prosperity and extend the reach of modern civilisation were halted by the outbreak of the Second World War. During the Japanese invasion of the area in World War II, the British followed a scorched earth policy. They destroyed the major government buildings, oil wells and mines for tungsten, tin, lead and silver to keep them from the Japanese. Myanmar was bombed extensively by both sides. After independence, the country was in ruins with its major infrastructure completely destroyed. The British then granted independence to the colony, and handed over their plans to rebuild to the new government. After a parliamentary government was formed in 1948, Prime Minister U Nu embarked upon a policy of nationalisation and the state was declared the owner of all land. The government also tried to implement a poorly considered Eight-Year plan. By the 1950s, rice exports had fallen by two-thirds and mineral exports by over 96% (as compared to the pre- World War II period). Plans were partly financed by printing money, which led to inflation. The 1962 coup d'état was followed by an economic scheme called the Burmese Way to Socialism, a plan to nationalise all industries, with the exception of agriculture. The catastrophic programme turned Myanmar into one of the world's most impoverished countries. Myanmar's admittance to least developed country status by the UN in 1987 highlighted its economic bankruptcy. In Myanmar, political and economic ideological struggles have affected living standards. Decades of civil war and unrest have contributed to Myanmar's current levels of poverty and lack of economic progress. Improving basic human, social and economic infrastructure required to advance individual living standards have not received focused government efforts. The major agricultural product is rice, which covers about 60% of the country's total cultivated land area. Rice accounts for 97% of total food grain production by weight. Through collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute 52 modern rice varieties were released in the country between 1966 and 1997, helping increase national rice production to 14 million tons in 1987 and to 19 million tons in 1996. By 1988, modern varieties were planted on half of the country's ricelands, including 98 percent of the irrigated areas. In 2008 rice production was estimated at 50 million tons. Myanmar is also the world's second largest producer of opium, accounting for 25% of entire world production and is a major source of illegal drugs, including amphetamines. Opium bans implemented since 2002 after international pressure have left ex-poppy farmers without sustainable sources of income in the Kokang and Wa regions. They depend on casual labour for income. Myanmar produces precious stones such as rubies, sapphires, pearls, and jade. Rubies are the biggest earner; 90% of the world's rubies come from the country, whose red stones are prized for their purity and hue. Thailand buys the majority of the country's gems. Myanmar's "Valley of Rubies", the mountainous Mogok area, north of Mandalay, is noted for its rare pigeon's blood rubies and blue sapphires. Many US and European jewellery companies, including Bulgari, Tiffany and Cartier, refuse to import these stones based on reports of deplorable working conditions in the mines. Human Rights Watch has encouraged a complete ban on the purchase of Burmese gems based on these reports and because nearly all profits go to the ruling junta, as the majority of mining activity in the country is government-run. The government of Myanmar controls the gem trade by direct ownership or by joint ventures with private owners of mines. Other industries include agricultural goods, textiles, wood products, construction materials, gems, metals, oil and natural gas. Myanmar Engineering Society has identified at least 39 locations capable of geothermal power production and some of these hydrothermal reservoirs lie quite close to Yangon which is a significant underutilized resource for electrical production. Since 1992, the government has encouraged tourism in the country; however, fewer than 270,000 tourists entered the country in 2006 according to the Myanmar Tourism Promotion Board. Myanmar's Minister of Hotels and Tourism Saw Lwin has stated that the government receives a significant percentage of the income of private sector tourism services. The most popular available tourist destinations in Myanmar include big cities such as Yangon and Mandalay; religious sites in Mon State, Pindaya, Bago and Hpa-An; nature trails in Inle Lake, Kengtung, Putao, Pyin Oo Lwin; ancient cities such as Bagan and Mrauk-U; as well as beaches in Nabule, Ngapali, Ngwe-Saung, Mergui. Nevertheless, much of the country is off-limits to tourists, and interactions between foreigners and the people of Myanmar, particularly in the border regions, are subject to police scrutiny. They are not to discuss politics with foreigners, under penalty of imprisonment and, in 2001, the Myanmar Tourism Promotion Board issued an order for local officials to protect tourists and limit "unnecessary contact" between foreigners and ordinary Burmese people. The most common way for travellers to enter the country seems to be by air. According to the website Lonely Planet, getting into Myanmar is problematic: "No bus or train service connects Myanmar with another country, nor can you travel by car or motorcycle across the border – you must walk across." They further state that "It is not possible for foreigners to go to/from Myanmar by sea or river." There are a small number of border crossings that allow the passage of private vehicles, such as the border between Ruili (China) to Mu-se, the border between Htee Kee (Myanmar) and Phu Nam Ron (Thailand)—the most direct border between Dawei and Kanchanaburi, and the border between Myawaddy (Myanmar) and Mae Sot (Thailand). At least one tourist company has successfully run commercial overland routes through these borders since 2013. "From Mae Sai (Thailand) you can cross to Tachileik, but can only go as far as Kengtung. Those in Thailand on a visa run can cross to Kawthaung but cannot venture farther into Myanmar." Flights are available from most countries, though direct flights are limited to mainly Thai and other ASEAN airlines. According to Eleven magazine, "In the past, there were only 15 international airlines and increasing numbers of airlines have begun launching direct flights from Japan, Qatar, Taiwan, South Korea, Germany and Singapore." Expansions were expected in September 2013, but yet again are mainly Thai and other Asian- based airlines according to Eleven Media Group's Eleven, "Thailand-based Nok Air and Business Airlines and Singapore-based Tiger Airline". The Government of Myanmar was under economic sanctions by the US Treasury Department (31 CFR Part 537, 16 August 2005) and by Executive orders 13047 (1997), 13310 (2003), 13448 (2007), 13464 (2008), and the most recent, 13619 (2012). There exists debate as to the extent to which the American-led sanctions have had more adverse effects on the civilian population than on the military rulers. From May 2012 to February 2013, the United States began to lift its economic sanctions on Myanmar "in response to the historic reforms that have been taking place in that country." Sanctions remain in place for blocked banks and for any business entities that are more than 50% owned by persons on "OFAC's Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list (SDN list)". During her first official visit to Washington, D.C., in September 2016, Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi met with US President Barack Obama, who announced that long-standing trade sanctions against Myanmar are to be lifted, adding, "It is the right thing to do to ensure the people of Burma see rewards from a new way of doing business, and a new government." The military has the majority stakeholder position in all of the major industrial corporations of the country (from oil production and consumer goods to transportation and tourism). In March 2012, a draft foreign investment law emerged, the first in more than 2 decades. Foreigners will no longer need a local partner to start a business in the country, and will be able to legally lease but not own property. The draft law also stipulates that Burmese citizens must constitute at least 25% of the firm's skilled workforce, and with subsequent training, up to 50–75%. In 2012, the Asian Development Bank formally began re-engaging with the country, to finance infrastructure and development projects in the country. The United States, Japan, and the European Union countries have also begun to reduce or eliminate economic sanctions to allow foreign direct investment which will provide the Burmese government with additional tax revenue. In December 2014, Myanmar signed an agreement to set up its first stock exchange. The Yangon Stock Exchange Joint Venture Co. Ltd will be set up with Myanma Economic Bank sharing 51%, Japan's Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd 30.25% and Japan Exchange Group 18.75%. The Yangon Stock Exchange (YSX) officially opened for business on Friday, 25 March 2016. First Myanmar Investment Co., Ltd. (FMI) became the first stock to be traded after receiving approval for an opening price of 26,000 kyats ($22). According to The World Factbook, Myanmar is one of three countries along with Liberia and the United States that has not adopted the International System of Units (SI) metric system as their official system of weights and measures. The common units of measure are unique to Myanmar, but the government web pages generally use both imperial units and metric units. In June 2011, the Burmese government's Ministry of Commerce began discussing proposals to reform the measurement system and adopt the International System of Units used by most of its trading partners. In October 2013 it was reported that Dr. Pwint San, Deputy Minister for Commerce, had announced that the country was preparing to adopt the International System of Units. The provisional results of the 2014 Myanmar Census show that the total population is 51,419,420. This figure includes an estimated 1,206,353 persons in parts of northern Rakhine State, Kachin State and Kayin State who were not counted. People who were out of the country at the time of the census are not included in these figures. There are over 600,000 registered migrant workers from Myanmar in Thailand, and millions more work illegally. Burmese citizens account for 80% of all migrant workers in Thailand. The national population density is , among the lowest in Southeast Asia. Myanmar's fertility rate is 2.23, which is slightly above replacement level and is low compared to Southeast Asian countries of similar economic standing, such as Cambodia (3.18) and Laos (4.41). There has been a significant decline in fertility in recent years, from a rate of 4.7 children per woman in 1983, down to 2.4 in 2001, despite the absence of any national population policy. The fertility rate is much lower in urban areas. The relatively rapid decline in fertility is attributed to several factors, including extreme delays in marriage (almost unparalleled among developing countries in the region), the prevalence of illegal abortions, and the high proportion of single, unmarried women of reproductive age, with 25.9% of women aged 30–34 and 33.1% of men and women aged 25–34 being single. These patterns stem from economic dynamics, including high income inequality, which results in residents of reproductive age opting for delay of marriage and family-building in favor of attempting to find employment and establish some form of wealth; the average age of marriage in Myanmar is 27.5 for men, 26.4 for women. Myanmar is ethnically diverse. The government recognizes 135 distinct ethnic groups. There are at least 108 different ethnolinguistic groups in Myanmar, consisting mainly of distinct Tibeto-Burman peoples, but with sizable populations of Tai–Kadai, Hmong–Mien, and Austroasiatic (Mon–Khmer) peoples. The Bamar form an estimated 68% of the population. 10% of the population are Shan. The Kayin make up 7% of the population. The Rakhine people constitute 4% of the population. Overseas Chinese form approximately 3% of the population. Myanmar's ethnic minority groups prefer the term "ethnic nationality" over "ethnic minority" as the term "minority" furthers their sense of insecurity in the face of what is often described as "Burmanisation"—the proliferation and domination of the dominant Bamar culture over minority cultures. Mon, who form 2% of the population, are ethno-linguistically related to the Khmer. Overseas Indians are 2%. The remainder are Kachin, Chin, Rohingya, Anglo-Indians, Gurkha, Nepali and other ethnic minorities. Included in this group are the Anglo-Burmese. Once forming a large and influential community, the Anglo- Burmese left the country in steady streams from 1958 onwards, principally to Australia and the UK. It is estimated that 52,000 Anglo-Burmese remain in Myanmar. , 110,000 Burmese refugees were living in refugee camps in Thailand. Refugee camps exist along Indian, Bangladeshi and Thai borders while several thousand are in Malaysia. Conservative estimates state that there are over 295,800 minority refugees from Myanmar, with the majority being Rohingya, Karen, and Karenni are principally located along the Thai-Myanmar border. There are nine permanent refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border, most of which were established in the mid-1980s. The refugee camps are under the care of the Thai-Burma Border Consortium (TBBC). Since 2006, over 55,000 Burmese refugees have been resettled in the United States. The persecution of Burmese Indians, Burmese Chinese and other ethnic groups after the military coup headed by General Ne Win in 1962 led to the expulsion or emigration of 300,000 people. They migrated to escape racial discrimination and the wholesale nationalisation of private enterprise that took place in 1964. The Anglo- Burmese at this time either fled the country or changed their names and blended in with the broader Burmese society. Many Rohingya Muslims have fled Myanmar. Many refugees headed to neighbouring Bangladesh, including 200,000 in 1978 as a result of the King Dragon operation in Arakan. 250,000 more left in 1991. Myanmar is home to four major language families: Sino-Tibetan, Tai–Kadai, Austro-Asiatic, and Indo-European. Sino-Tibetan languages are most widely spoken. They include Burmese, Karen, Kachin, Chin, and Chinese (mainly Hokkien). The primary Tai–Kadai language is Shan. Mon, Palaung, and Wa are the major Austroasiatic languages spoken in Myanmar. The two major Indo-European languages are Pali, the liturgical language of Theravada Buddhism, and English. More than a hundred languages are spoken in total. Since many of them are known only within small tribes around the country, they may have been lost (many if not all) after a few generations. Burmese, the mother tongue of the Bamar and official language of Myanmar, is related to Tibetan and Chinese. It is written in a script consisting of circular and semi-circular letters, which were adapted from the Mon script, which in turn was developed from a southern Indian script in the 5th century. The earliest known inscriptions in the Burmese script date from the 11th century. It is also used to write Pali, the sacred language of Theravada Buddhism, as well as several ethnic minority languages, including Shan, several Karen dialects, and Kayah (Karenni), with the addition of specialised characters and diacritics for each language. The Burmese language incorporates widespread usage of honorifics and is age- oriented. Burmese society has traditionally stressed the importance of education. In villages, secular schooling often takes place in monasteries. Secondary and tertiary education take place at government schools. Many religions are practised in Myanmar. Religious edifices and orders have been in existence for many years. The Christian and Muslim populations do, however, face religious persecution and it is hard, if not impossible, for non-Buddhists to join the army or get government jobs, the main route to success in the country. Such persecution and targeting of civilians is particularly notable in Eastern Myanmar, where over 3000 villages have been destroyed in the past ten years. More than 200,000 Muslims have fled to Bangladesh over the last 20 years to escape persecution. A large majority of the population practices Buddhism; estimates range from 80% to 89%. According to 2014 Myanmar Census, 87.9% of the population identifies as Buddhists. Theravāda Buddhism is the most widespread. There are some 500,000 Buddhist monks and 75,000 nuns in this country of 54 million. Other religions are practised largely without obstruction, with the notable exception of some religious minorities such as the Rohingya people, who have continued to have their citizenship status denied and treated as illegal immigrants instead, and Christians in Chin State. According to 2014 census, 6.2% of the population identifies as Christian; 4.3% as Muslim; 0.8% as followers of tribal religions; 0.5% as Hindus; 0.2% as followers of other religions; and 0.1% follow no religion. According to the 2010 estimates of the Pew Research Center, 7% of the population is Christian; 4% is Muslim; 1% follows traditional animistic beliefs; and 2% follow other religions, including Mahayana Buddhism, Hinduism, and East Asian religions. Jehovah's Witnesses have been present since 1914 and have about 80 congregations around the country and a branch office in Yangon publishing in 16 languages. A tiny Jewish community in Yangon had a synagogue but no resident rabbi to conduct services. Although Hinduism is practised by 0.5% of the population, it was a major religion in Myanmar's past. Several strains of Hinduism existed alongside both Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism in the Mon and Pyu period in the first millennium, and down to the Pagan period (9th to 13th centuries) when "Saivite and Vaishana elements enjoyed greater elite influence than they would later do." Burmese folk religion is practiced by many Bamars alongside Buddhism. The general state of health care in Myanmar is poor. The government spends anywhere from 0.5% to 3% of the country's GDP on health care, consistently ranking among the lowest in the world. Although health care is nominally free, in reality, patients have to pay for medicine and treatment, even in public clinics and hospitals. Public hospitals lack many of the basic facilities and equipment. The 2010 maternal mortality rate per 100,000 births for Myanmar is 240. This is compared with 219.3 in 2008 and 662 in 1990. The under 5 mortality rate, per 1,000 births is 73 and the neonatal mortality as a percentage of under 5's mortality is 47. Myanmar's government spends the least percentage of its GDP on health care of any country in the world, and international donor organisations give less to Myanmar, per capita, than any other country except India. According to the report named "Preventable Fate", published by Doctors without Borders, 25,000 Burmese AIDS patients died in 2007, deaths that could largely have been prevented by antiretroviral therapy drugs and proper treatment. HIV/AIDS, recognised as a disease of concern by the Burmese Ministry of Health, is most prevalent among sex workers and intravenous drug users. In 2005, the estimated adult HIV prevalence rate in Myanmar was 1.3% (200,000–570,000 people), according to UNAIDS, and early indicators of any progress against the HIV epidemic are inconsistent. However, the National AIDS Programme Myanmar found that 32% of sex workers and 43% of intravenous drug users in Myanmar have HIV. According to the UNESCO Institute of Statistics, Myanmar's official literacy rate as of 2000 was 90%. Historically, Myanmar has had high literacy rates. To qualify for least developed country status by the UN to receive debt relief, Myanmar lowered its official literacy rate from 79% to 19% in 1987. The educational system of Myanmar is operated by the government agency, the Ministry of Education. The education system is based on the United Kingdom's system due to nearly a century of British and Christian presences in Myanmar. Nearly all schools are government-operated, but there has been a recent increase in privately funded English language schools. Schooling is compulsory until the end of elementary school, approximately about 9 years old, while the compulsory schooling age is 15 or 16 at international level. There are 101 universities, 12 institutes, 9-degree colleges and 24 colleges in Myanmar, a total of 146 higher education institutions. There are 10 Technical Training Schools, 23 nursing training schools, 1 sport academy and 20 midwifery schools. There are 2047 Basic Education High Schools, 2605 Basic Education Middle Schools, 29944 Basic Education Primary Schools and 5952 Post Primary Schools. 1692 multimedia classrooms exist within this system. There are four international schools acknowledged by WASC and College Board—The International School Yangon (ISY), Myanmar International School (MIS), Yangon International School (YIS) and International School of Myanmar (ISM) in Yangon. Myanmar had a murder rate of 15.2 per 100,000 population with a total of 8,044 murders in 2012. Factors influencing Myanmar's high murder rate include communal violence and armed conflict. Myanmar is one of the world's most corrupt nations. The 2012 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index ranked the country at number 171, out of 176 countries in total. Myanmar is the world's second largest producer of opium after Afghanistan, producing some 25% of the world's opium, and forms part of the Golden Triangle. The opium industry was a monopoly during colonial times and has since been illegally operated by corrupt officials in the Burmese military and rebel fighters, primarily as the basis for heroin manufacture. Myanmar is the largest producer of methamphetamines in the world, with the majority of Ya ba found in Thailand produced in Myanmar, particularly in the Golden Triangle and Northeastern Shan State, which borders Thailand, Laos and China. Burmese- produced ya ba is typically trafficked to Thailand via Laos, before being transported through the northeastern Thai region of Isan. A diverse range of indigenous cultures exist in Myanmar, with majority culture primarily Buddhist and Bamar. Bamar culture has been influenced by the cultures of neighbouring countries, manifested in its language, cuisine, music, dance and theatre. The arts, particularly literature, have historically been influenced by the local form of Theravada Buddhism. Considered the national epic of Myanmar, the Yama Zatdaw, an adaptation of India's Ramayana, has been influenced greatly by Thai, Mon, and Indian versions of the play. Buddhism is practised along with nat worship, which involves elaborate rituals to propitiate one from a pantheon of 37 nats. In a traditional village, the monastery is the centre of cultural life. Monks are venerated and supported by the lay people. A novitiation ceremony called shinbyu is the most important coming of age events for a boy, during which he enters the monastery for a short time. All male children in Buddhist families are encouraged to be a novice (beginner for Buddhism) before the age of twenty and to be a monk after the age of twenty. Girls have ear-piercing ceremonies () at the same time. Burmese culture is most evident in villages where local festivals are held throughout the year, the most important being the pagoda festival. Many villages have a guardian nat, and superstition and taboos are commonplace. British colonial rule introduced Western elements of culture to Myanmar. Myanmar's education system is modelled after that of the United Kingdom. Colonial architectural influences are most evident in major cities such as Yangon. Many ethnic minorities, particularly the Karen in the southeast and the Kachin and Chin who populate the north and northeast, practice Christianity. According to The World Factbook, the Burman population is 68% and the ethnic groups constitute 32%. However, the exiled leaders and organisations claims that ethnic population is 40%, which is implicitly contrasted with CIA report (official US report). Burmese cuisine is characterised by extensive use of fish products such as fish sauce, ngapi (fermented seafood) and dried prawn. Mohinga is the traditional breakfast dish and is Myanmar's national dish. Seafood is a common ingredient in coastal cities such as Sittwe, Kyaukpyu, Mawlamyaing (formerly Moulmein), Mergui (Myeik) and Dawei, while meat and poultry are more commonly used in landlocked cities like Mandalay. Freshwater fish and shrimp have been incorporated into inland cooking as a primary source of protein and are used in a variety of ways, fresh, salted whole or filleted, salted and dried, made into a salty paste, or fermented sour and pressed. Burmese cuisine also includes a variety of salads (a thoke), centred on one major ingredient, ranging from starches like rice, wheat and rice noodles, glass noodles and vermicelli, to potato, ginger, tomato, kaffir lime, long bean, lahpet (pickled tea leaves), and ngapi (fish paste). The Lethwei, Bando, Banshay, and Pongyi thaing martial arts and chinlone are traditional sports in Myanmar. Football is played all over the country, even in villages. The 2013 Southeast Asian Games took place in Naypyidaw, Yangon, Mandalay and Ngwesaung Beach in December representing the third occasion that the event has been staged in Myanmar. Myanmar previously hosted the Games in 1961 and 1969. Burmese traditional art concepts is popular and respected by the Burmese people and people from abroad. Burmese contemporary art has developed quite rapidly on its own terms. Artists born after the 1980s have had greater chances of art practice outside the country. One of the first to study western art was Ba Nyan. Together with Ngwe Gaing and a handful of other artists, they were the pioneers of western painting style. Later on most young children learned the concepts from them. Some well known contemporary artists are Lun Gywe, Aung Kyaw Htet, MPP Yei Myint, Myint Swe, Min Wai Aung, Aung Myint, Kin Maung Yin, Po Po and Zaw Zaw Aung. Due to Myanmar's political climate, there are not many media companies in relation to the country's population, although a certain number exists. Some are privately owned. All programming must meet with the approval of the censorship board. The Burmese government announced on 20 August 2012 that it would stop censoring media before publication. Following the announcement, newspapers and other outlets no longer required approved by state censors; however, journalists in the country can still face consequences for what they write and say. In April 2013, international media reports were published to relay the enactment of the media liberalisation reforms that we announced in August 2012. For the first time in numerous decades, the publication of privately owned newspapers commenced in the country. Internet use is estimated to be relatively low compared to other countries. Myanmar's internet used to be subject to censorship, and authorities viewed e-mails and posts on Internet blogs until 2012 when the government removed media censorship. During the strict censorship days, activity at internet cafes was regulated, and one blogger named Zarganar was sentenced to prison for publishing a video of destruction caused by Cyclone Nargis in 2008; Zarganar was released in October 2011. In regards to communications infrastructure, Myanmar is the last ranked Asian country in the World Economic Forum's Network Readiness Index (NRI) – an indicator for determining the development level of a country's information and communication technologies. With 139 countries reported on, Myanmar ranked number 133 overall in the 2016 NRI ranking. Myanmar's first film was a documentary of the funeral of Tun Shein—a leading politician of the 1910s, who campaigned for Burmese independence in London. The first Burmese silent film Myitta Ne Thuya (Love and Liquor) in 1920 which proved a major success, despite its poor quality due to a fixed camera position and inadequate film accessories. During the 1920s and 1930s, many Burmese-owned film companies made and produced several films. The first Burmese sound film was produced in 1932 in Bombay, India with the title Ngwe Pay Lo Ma Ya (Money Can't Buy It). After World War II, Burmese cinema continued to address political themes. Many of the films produced in the early Cold War era had a strong propaganda element to them. In the era that followed the political events of 1988, the film industry has been increasingly controlled by the government. Film stars who had been involved in the political activities were banned from appearing in films. The government issues strict rules on censorship and largely determines who produces films, as well as who gets academy awards. Over the years, the movie industry has also shifted to producing many lower budget direct-to-video films. Most of the movies produced nowadays are comedies. In 2008, only 12 films worthy of being considered for an Academy Award were made, although at least 800 VCDs were produced. Myanmar is the primary subject of a 2007 graphic novel titled Chroniques Birmanes by Québécois author and animator, Guy Delisle. The graphic novel was translated into English under the title Burma Chronicles in 2008. In 2009, a documentary about Burmese videojournalists called Burma VJ was released. This film was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 2010 Academy Awards. The Lady had its world premiere on 12 September 2011 at the 36th Toronto International Film Festival. Index of Myanmar-related articles, Outline of Myanmar "Burma's Western Border as Reported by the Diplomatic Correspondence(1947–1975)" by Aye Chan Government Republic of the Union of Myanmar – President's Office, Myanmar National Portal, Chief of State and Cabinet Members from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) General information General information about Myanmar, Burma Myanmar search Engine, Burma from UCB Libraries GovPubs, Burma profile from the BBC News, Myanmar at Encyclopædia Britannica, Interactive timeline of turning points in Burmese history, Key Development Forecasts for Myanmar from International Futures, Online Burma/Myanmar Library: Classified and annotated links to more than 17,000 full-text documents on Burma/Myanmar Economy Taipei American Chamber of Commerce; Topics Magazine, Analysis, November 2012. Myanmar: Southeast Asia's Last Frontier for Investment, By David DuByne Agriculture Myanmar Business Today; Print Edition, 27 February 2014. A Roadmap to Building Myanmar into the Food Basket of Asia, by David DuByne & Hishamuddin Koh, Myanmar Business Today; Print Edition, 19 June 2014. Myanmar's Institutional Infrastructure Constraints and How to Fill the Gaps, by David DuByne & Hishamuddin Koh Trade World Bank Summary Trade Statistics Myanmar Environment Myanmar Marine Biodiversity Atlas Online from the Wildlife Conservation Society and University of Exeter The internal conflict in Myanmar is a series of primarily ethnic conflicts within Myanmar that began shortly after the country, then known as Burma, became independent from the United Kingdom in 1948. The conflict is the world's longest ongoing civil war. Prior to independence from the United Kingdom, several anti-colonial groups in Myanmar (Burma) protested against British rule over the country. These groups became especially influential during World War II, when the Empire of Japan promised an "independent Burmese state" (though it would be de facto controlled by Japan as a puppet state) and appointed Ba Maw as its head of state. During this period, left-wing groups such as the Communist Party of Burma (also known as the Burma Communist Party) and armed ethnic groups began to emerge in opposition to both the British and Japanese. In 1947, the Panglong Agreement was reached between Aung San and ethnic leaders, in an attempt to quell hostilities; however, the agreement was not honoured by the post-independence government following Aung San's assassination, leading to further ethnic tensions. On 4 January 1948, Myanmar gained independence from the United Kingdom. The communists and the ethnic minorities in the country were dissatisfied with the newly formed government, believing that they were being unfairly excluded from governing the country. For example, it was noted that many Christian Karen military officials, who were originally appointed by the British, were replaced with Buddhist Bamars by the new parliament. Three months after independence, the communists began an armed insurgency against the government. Similarly, Karen insurgent groups began to fight for independence. In the early 1960s, the government refused to adopt a federal system, to the dismay of insurgent groups such as the CPB, who proposed adopting the system during peace talks. By the early 1980s, politically motivated armed insurgencies had largely disappeared, while ethnic-based insurgencies continued. Several insurgent groups have negotiated ceasefires and peace agreements with successive governments, which until political reforms between 2011 and 2015 had largely fallen apart. The Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) was a landmark agreement signed between the government of Myanmar and eight insurgent groups on 15 October 2015; two other insurgent groups later joined on 13 February 2018. The conflict is generally divided into three parts: Insurgencies during the post-independence period under parliamentary rule (1948–1962), insurgencies during the post-1962 coup socialist government under the rule of General Ne Win and his Burma Socialist Programme Party (1962–1988), and insurgencies during the modern post Cold War era; first under the military administration of the State Peace and Development Council (1988–2011) and now under the newly elected civilian government. Following independence from the United Kingdom, the two largest opposition groups in Burma (Myanmar) were the communists, led by the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) and the Karen nationalists, led by the Karen National Union's predecessor. The former had fought the British colonial government prior to independence; however, during the final days of the Japanese occupation of Burma in World War II, both groups helped the British against the Imperial Japanese Army. Initially there was calm during the transitional period after independence, but on 2 April 1948, the CPB fired the first shots of the conflict in Paukkongyi, Pegu Region (present-day Bago Region). During the post-independence period, the KNU favoured an independent state, administered by the Karen people. The proposed state would have encompassed the territories of Karen State and Karenni State (present-day Kayin State and Kayah State), in Lower Burma (Outer Myanmar). The KNU has since shifted their focus from full independence to regional autonomy, under a federal system with fair Karen representation in the government. After three successive parliamentary governments governed Myanmar (Burma), the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Armed Forces), led by General Ne Win, enacted a coup d'état in 1962, which ousted the parliamentary government and replaced it with a military junta. Accusations of severe human rights abuses and violations followed afterwards, and the cabinet of the parliamentary government and political leaders of ethnic minority groups were arrested and detained without trial. Around this period, other ethnic minority groups began forming larger rebel factions, such as the Kachin Independence Army, in response to the new government's refusal to adopt a federal government structure. In 1967, following China's initiation of the Cultural Revolution, violence broke out between local Bamars and overseas Chinese in Myanmar, leading to anti-Chinese riots in Rangoon (present-day Yangon) and other cities. The riots left many overseas Chinese dead, which allegedly prompted China to begin giving logistical aid to the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) in 1968. Both immediately after the coup and again in 1972, General Ne Win held peace talks with opposition forces, but both times they fell apart, partly due to General Ne Win's refusal to adopt a multi-party system. After negotiations failed, defectors from the Tatmadaw and ethnic insurgents walked back to their bases, with headlines across Myanmar famously reading "They Go Back" (သူတို့ပြန်ကြလေပြီ). Private property was confiscated by the government, and the Burmese Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) was founded in 1974 to govern the country under a one-party system. Under General Ne Win's 26 year dictatorship, Myanmar became an isolated hermit kingdom and one of the least developed countries in the world. In 1988, nationwide student protests resulted in the BSPP and General Ne Win being ousted and replaced with a new military regime, the State Peace and Development Council. On 8 August 1988, students began demonstrating in Rangoon (Yangon) against General Ne Win's rule and the disastrous Burmese Way to Socialism system. The protests spread across the country, The uprising ended on 18 September 1988, after a military coup was enacted by the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) and the BSPP government was overthrown. Authorities in Myanmar (Burma) claimed that around 350 people were killed, whilst anti-government groups claimed thousands died in the protests, with a high number of deaths attributed to the military. According to The Economist, over 3,000 people were killed in the public uprising. As a result of the uprising, the new government agreed to sign separate peace treaties with certain insurgent groups. Because the 1988 uprising was mostly politically motivated, ethnic insurgent groups did not receive much support from political movements in Myanmar. In the 1990s, the Tatmadaw severely weakened ethnic insurgent groups, destroying most of their bases and strongholds. In 2006, the Tatmadaw conducted a large military offensive against the Karen National Union (KNU) in Kayin State, which resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians. One estimate claimed that approximately half a million people were displaced due to fighting between government forces and the KNU, and the forcible relocation of villages by the government. In 2011, Tatmadaw launched a military offensive named Operation Perseverance () against insurgents in Shan State in 2011. During the offensive, the Tatmadaw captured territory from the National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA) and the Shan State Army - North (SSA-N), with the latter being involved in most of the fighting. The operation was officially a response to the groups' rejections of the junta's "One Nation, One Army" policy; however, researchers have linked it to the military's interests in the jade trade. Government forces attacked the Kachin Independence Army's headquarters near the city of Laiza on 19 November 2014, killing at least 22 KIA insurgents, according to the government. Between February and May 2015, government forces launched a series of military operations in Kokang, in northern Shan State, after the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) attempted to retake territory it had lost in 2009. Insurgents of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) attacked Burmese border posts along the Bangladesh–Myanmar border on 9 October 2016, killing nine border officers. Armed clashes continued and on 11 October 2016, four Tatmadaw soldiers were killed by insurgents with recently looted weapons. On 25 August 2017, the ARSA launched a second large-scale attack against 24 police posts and the 552nd Light Infantry Battalion army base in northern Rakhine State. A total of 71 people were reportedly killed in the armed clashes. The Kachin people are a major ethnic minority in Myanmar who mainly inhabit the mountainous northern regions of the Kachin Hills in Kachin State. Kachin regular soldiers previously formed a significant part of the Myanmar military; however, after General Ne Win's regime seized power in 1962, many Kachin soldiers defected from the military and reorganized with already active Kachin insurgents to form the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), under the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO). Religious tensions have also been a source of conflict, as Kachin people have historically been predominantly Christian, while the majority Bamar people have been predominantly Buddhist. In 2012 alone, fighting between the KIA and the government resulted in around 2,500 casualties (both civilian and military); 211 of whom were government soldiers. The violence resulted in the displacement of nearly 100,000 civilians and the complete or partial abandonment of 364 villages. Ceasefire agreements have been signed between the KIA and the government several times; most notably a ceasefire signed in 1994, that lasted for 17 years until June 2011, when government forces attacked KIA positions along the Taping River, east of Bhamo, Kachin State. As a result of the ceasefire breakdown, Kachin State has faced waves of internal displacement, with over 90,000 internally displaced people spread across over 150 camps or camp-like settings as of April 2017. Many IDP camps are located in non-government controlled areas with severely restricted access. The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) estimates that in April and May 2018, over 14,000 people were displaced from fighting between the KIO/KIA and the Tatmadaw. The largest insurgent group in Kayah State (formerly Karenni State) is the Karenni Army, whose goal for the past few decades has been to obtain independence and self-determination for the Karenni people. The group has claimed that their grievances towards the government include: the (government's) exploitation and rapid depletion of the natural resources in the region, the forced sale of farmer's agricultural products for low prices, extortion and corruption within local authorities, forced labour, forced relocation of whole villages and farms, destruction of houses, planting of mines in civilian areas, torture, rape, extrajudicial killings, burning of villages, expropriation of food supplies and livestock, arrests without charge and exploitation of the poor. The Karenni Army is currently led by General Bee Htoo, and consists of roughly between 500 and 1,500 soldiers. The Karen people of Kayin State (formerly Karen State) in eastern Myanmar are the third largest ethnic group in Myanmar, consisting of roughly 7% of the country's total population. Karen insurgent groups have fought for independence and self-determination since 1949. In 1949, the commander-in- chief of the Tatmadaw General Smith Dun, an ethnic Karen, was fired because of the rise of Karen opposition groups, which furthered ethnic tensions. He was replaced by Ne Win, a Bamar nationalist who would go on to become the dictator of Myanmar. The government of Myanmar has been accused of using "scorched earth" tactics against Karen civilians in the past, including (but not limited to) burning down entire villages, planting land mines, using civilians as slave labour, using civilians as minesweepers and the rape and murder of Karen women. According to a report by legal firm DLA Piper, whose report was presented to the United Nations Security Council, these tactics against the Karen can be identified as ethnic cleansing. The government had however, denied these claims. The initial aim of the largest Karen opposition group, the Karen National Union (KNU), and its armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), was to obtain independence for the Karen people. However, since 1976 they have instead called for a federal union with fair Karen representation and the self-determination of the Karen people. Nearly all of their demands and requests have been ignored or denied by successive governments, a contributing factor to failed peace talks until political reforms which begun in 2011 and ended in 2015. In 1995, the main headquarters and operating bases of the KNU had mostly been destroyed or captured by the government, forcing the KNLA (the armed wing of the KNU) to instead operate in the jungles of Kayin State. Up until that year, the Thai government had been supporting insurgents across its border, but soon stopped its support due to a new major economic deal with Myanmar. The KNU signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the government of Myanmar on 15 October 2015, along with seven other insurgent groups. However in March 2018, the government of Myanmar violated the agreement by sending 400 Tatmadaw soldiers into KNU-held territory to build a road connecting two military bases. Armed clashes erupted between the KNU and the Myanmar Army in the Ler Mu Plaw area of Hpapun District, resulting in the displacement of 2,000 people. On 17 May 2018, the Tatmadaw agreed to "temporarily postpone" their road project and to withdraw troops from the area. Insurgent groups of the Rakhine (formerly Arakanese), Chin, and Rohingya ethnic minorities have fought against the government for self-determination in Rakhine State since the early 1950s. Ethnic Rakhine insurgent groups, such as the Arakan Army and Arakan Liberation Army (ALA), continue to have hostilities towards the government, though major violence has been rare since political reforms and peace talks. The Arakan Army, founded in 2009, is currently the largest insurgent group in Rakhine State, with around 20,000 active fighters. Rohingya insurgents have been fighting local government forces and other insurgent groups in northern Rakhine State since 1948, with ongoing religious violence between the predominantly Muslim Rohingyas and Buddhist Rakhines fueling the conflict. The legal and political rights of the Rohingya people have been an underlying issue in the conflict, with spontaneous bouts of violence such as the 2012 Rakhine State riots and 2013 Myanmar anti-Muslim riots periodically occurring as a result. Despite making up a majority of the population in the three northern townships of Rakhine State, Rohingyas are often targets of religiously motivated attacks. Because the government does not recognise the Rohingya people as an official ethnic group in Myanmar, Rohingyas cannot apply for citizenship and few laws exist to protect their rights. On 9 October 2016, unidentified insurgents attacked three Burmese border posts along Myanmar's border with Bangladesh, starting a new armed conflict in northern Rakhine State. According to government officials in the border town of Maungdaw, the attackers looted several dozen firearms and ammunition from the border posts, and brandished knives and homemade slingshots that fired metal bolts. The attacks left nine border officers and "several insurgents" dead. On 11 October 2016, four Tatmadaw soldiers were killed on the third day of fighting. A newly emerged insurgent group, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), claimed responsibility a week later. During the early hours of 25 August 2017, ARSA insurgents launched coordinated attacks on 24 police posts and the 552nd Light Infantry Battalion army base, killing a dozen people. In response, the Tatmadaw launched "clearance operations" in northern Rakhine State, which critics argued targeted Rohingya civilians rather than insurgents. Following the violence, 200,000 civilians remained trapped in the region without adequate access to markets, livelihoods, services and medical care. On 4 January 2019, around 300 Arakan Army insurgents launched pre-dawn attacks on four border police outposts—Kyaung Taung, Nga Myin Taw, Ka Htee La and Kone Myint—in northern Buthidaung Township. Thirteen members of the Border Guard Police (BGP) were killed and nine others were injured, whilst 40 firearms and more than 10,000 rounds of ammunition were looted. The Arakan Army later stated that it had captured nine BGP personnel and five civilians, and that three of its fighters were also killed in the attacks. Following the attacks, the Office of the President of Myanmar held a high-level meeting on national security in the capital Naypyidaw on 7 January 2019, and instructed the Defense Ministry to increase troop deployments in the areas that were attacked and to use aircraft if necessary. Subsequent clashes between the Myanmar Army and the Arakan Army were reported in Maungdaw, Buthidaung, Kyauktaw, Rathedaung and Ponnagyun Townships, forcing out over 5,000 civilians from their homes, hundreds of whom (mostly Rakhine and Khami) have fled across the border into Bangladesh. Civilian casualties, arbitrary beatings and detentions of ethnic Rakhines, forced seizures of property, and blockage of food aid and medical relief by the Tatmadaw have also been reported. The Shan people are the largest ethnic group in Shan State and the second largest in Myanmar. In 1947, the Panglong Agreement was negotiated between Aung San, a prominent founding father of Myanmar, and Shan leaders, which would have given the Shan the option to split from Myanmar a decade after independence if they were unsatisfied with the central government. This was, however, not honoured by the post-independence government following Aung San's assassination. During the Tatmadaw's heavy militarisation of the state in the late 1940s and early 1950s, locals accused them of mistreating, torturing, robbing, raping, unlawfully arresting and massacring villagers. As a result, on 21 May 1958, an armed resistance movement, led by Sao Noi and Saw Yanna, was started in Shan State. One the largest Shan insurgent groups in Myanmar is the Shan State Army - South (SSA-S), which has around 6,000 to 8,000 soldiers, and was led by Yawd Serk until his resignation on 2 February 2014. The SSA-S maintains bases along the Myanmar–Thailand border, and signed a ceasefire agreement with the government on 2 December 2011. The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) is a Kokang insurgent group active in the Kokang Self-Administered Zone in northern Shan State. The group signed a ceasefire agreement with the government in 1989, the same year it was founded, which lasted for two decades until 2009, when violence erupted between the group and government forces. Violence again erupted between the MNDAA and government forces in 2015 and 2017. In late November 2016, the Northern Alliance—which consists of four insurgent groups, the Arakan Army (AA), the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA)—attacked towns and border posts along the China–Myanmar border in Muse Township, northern Shan State. The insurgents captured the town of Mong Ko on 25 November 2016 and maintained control of it until they withdrew from the town on 4 December 2016 to avoid civilian casualties from airstrikes by the Myanmar Air Force. On 15 August 2019, Northern Alliance insurgents attacked a military college in Nawnghkio Township, killing 15. Further clashes occurred in the following days, with Myanmar's military warning there could be a full-scale war if the Northern Alliance did not halt their attacks. Prior to independence, Aung San, considered a founding father of Myanmar, had convinced local Shan leaders to join him in his pursuit for independence, and with them, negotiated the Panglong Agreement in 1947. The agreement guaranteed the right to self-determination, political representation in the post- independence government and economic equality amongst the various ethnic groups. It also gave the Chin, Kachin and Shan people the option to separate from Myanmar after a decade if their states' leaders were unhappy with the central government. However, after Aung San's assassination, this was not honoured by the government, and has been one of the causes of insurgencies in those states. Whilst some groups continue to fight for full independence and for the right for self-determination of their people, groups such as the Chin National Front (CNF) and the Karen National Union (KNU) have since fought instead for regional autonomy and a federal system of government in Myanmar. During the 8888 Uprising, Aung San Suu Kyi emerged as a national symbol for democracy, after leading the largest opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD). The military junta arranged a general election in 1990 and Aung San Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy (NLD) won a majority of the vote. However, the military junta refused to recognise the results and instead placed Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest for 15 years. In 2007, hundreds of thousands of monks protested against the military junta's rule, and called for free elections, minority rights and the release of political prisoners in an event now known as the Saffron Revolution. The protest originally began in response to the government's removal of price subsidies for compressed natural gas. In 2011, the government introduced a new constitution following political reforms, and thousands of political prisoners were released, including Aung San Suu Kyi. In November 2014, the NLD attempted to make amendments to the constitution, in response to a clause that made Aung San Suu Kyi ineligible to become President of Myanmar if her party won an election. These amendments however, were rejected. The government of Myanmar has been accused of using "scorched earth" tactics against civilians, most notably in Kayin State. The accusations included burning down entire villages, planting landmines, using civilians as slave labour, using civilians as minesweepers and the rape and murder of Karen women. According to a report by legal firm DLA Piper, whose report was presented to the United Nations Security Council, these tactics against the Karen have been identified as ethnic cleansing. Both sides have been accused of using landmines, which have caused hundreds of accidental civilian injuries and deaths. The Karen National Union (KNU) has been accused of planting landmines in rural areas, most of which have not been disarmed. The KNU claim that landmines are vital to repelling government forces, because it "discourages them from attacking civilians". However, a majority of those who fall victim to KNU planted landmines are local villagers, rather than government soldiers. Victims of landmines must travel to the Myanmar–Thailand border to seek treatment, as local hospitals and facilities lack proper equipment and funding. Both sides have also been accused of using thousands of child soldiers, despite the fact that the government of Myanmar and seven insurgent groups signed an agreement with UNICEF in 2012, promising not to exploit children for military and political gains. The International Labour Organization (ILO) has accused both sides of continuing to use child soldiers despite the agreement. According to the ILO, the Tatmadaw has discharged hundreds of child soldiers since 2012; however, the ILO also estimated that at least 340 child soldiers had been recruited by the Tatmadaw between 2013 and 2014. Meanwhile some insurgent groups, most notably the MNDAA, the SSA-S, and the TNLA, have reportedly press-ganged minors into their armies. One of the most notable cases of the use child soldiers in Myanmar was that of Johnny and Luther Htoo, the leaders of God's Army, a former rebel faction. At the time of their formation of God's Army, they were both just ten-years-old. The conflict has resulted in a large number of both civilian deaths and refugees, with many refugees fleeing to neighbouring countries such as Thailand, China, India, and Bangladesh. The persecution of Burmese Indians and other ethnic minorities after the 1962 coup led to the expulsion of nearly 300,000 people. The UN estimated that between 1996 and 2006, around 1 million people were internally displaced inside Myanmar, over 230,000 of whom remain displaced in the southeast of the country, and 128,000 refugees lived in temporary shelters on the Myanmar–Thailand border. In August 2007, approximately 160,000 refugees fled to nine refugee camps along the Myanmar–Thailand border and the Thai border provinces of Chiang Mai and Ratchaburi. Approximately 62% of the refugee population consisted of displaced Karen people. Humanitarian organisations such as Doctors Without Borders have since sent workers and medical support to the refugees. Over the course of the conflict, government officials in Myanmar have been accused of forcefully removing civilians living in conflict areas and confiscating their property, in order to repurpose them for commercial, industrial, and military projects. In Rakhine State, there were around 75,000 internally displaced Rohingyas in 2012, according to Refugee International. UNICEF has reported that living conditions in Rohingya refugee camps in Rakhine State are "wholly inadequate" and lacks access to basic services. In October 2017, there were an estimated 947,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. The Rohingya people have been described by the United Nations as "among the world's least wanted" and "one of the world's most persecuted minorities." The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre reports a total of 401,000 people internally displaced in Myanmar as of 2018, owing both to man-made and natural disasters as well as conflict and violence. This figure includes IDPs across the country, with 131,000 in Rakhine State, 97,000 in Kachin State, 50,000 in Kayin State, 40,000 in Tanintharyi Region, 27,000 in Karenni State, 22,000 in Bago Region, 18,000 in Mon State, 15,000 in Shan State and 1,300 in Chin State. Of these total displacements, IDMC estimates that approximately 42,000 people were newly displaced in 2018 by conflict and violence. Compared to 2017, the rate of new displacements was lower in Rakhine State but higher in Kachin State and northern Shan State, which together saw approximately 36,000 people displaced. The Global Camp Coordination and Camp Management Cluster (CCCM) estimates at least 941,000 people in Myanmar remain in need of humanitarian assistance, with over 128,000 people living in IDP camps in Rakhine State and over 105,000 people displaced in Kachin State and northern Shan State. While many displacements last only for the duration of active fighting, protracted displacement is evidenced by camps in Kachin State, Rakhine State, and Shan State. Living situations in these camps are often overcrowded with inadequate shelter, sanitation, healthcare, food, and education. In total, approximately 35 percent of IDPs in Myanmar are estimated to live in non-government controlled areas that have limited if not wholly restricted access as of November 2019, complicating relief efforts both for international and local organizations. Under the new constitutional reforms in 2011, state level and union level ceasefire agreements were made with several insurgent groups. 14 out of 17 of the largest rebel factions signed a ceasefire agreement with the new reformed government. According to the Myanmar Peace Monitoring group, clashes between the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), its allies, and the government, have displaced hundreds of thousands of people, and created another severe humanitarian crisis in Kachin and northern Shan State. All of the 14 signatories wanted negotiations in accordance with the Panglong Agreement of 1947, which granted self-determination, a federal system of government (meaning regional autonomy), religious freedom and ethnic minority rights. However, the new constitution, only had a few clauses dedicated to minority rights, and therefore, the government discussed with rebel factions using the new constitution for reference, rather than the Panglong Agreement. There was no inclusive plan or body that represented all the factions, and as a result, in resent, the KNU backed out of the conference and complained the lack of independence for each party within the ethnic bloc. However, most of the negotiations between the State Peace Deal Commission and rebel factions were formal and peaceful. On 31 March 2015, a draft of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) was finalised between representatives from 15 different insurgent groups (all part of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team or NCCT) and the government of Myanmar. However, only eight of the 15 insurgent groups signed the final agreement on 15 October 2015. The signing was witnessed by observers and delegates from the United Nations, the United Kingdom, Norway, Japan and the United States. The Union Peace Conference - 21st Century Panglong was held from 31 August to 4 September 2016 with several different organisations as representatives, in an attempt to mediate between the government and different insurgent groups. The name was a reference to the original Panglong Conference held during British rule in 1947, which was negotiated between Aung San and ethnic leaders. Since 1991, the UN General Assembly has adopted twenty-five different resolutions regarding Myanmar's government, condemning previous military juntas for their systematic violations of human rights and lack of political freedom. In 2009 they urged the then ruling junta to take urgent measures to end violations of international human rights and humanitarian laws in the country. The request was mostly honoured during political reforms that begun in 2011 and ended in 2015. Reports of human rights abuses committed by the military and local paramilitaries prompted the UN Human Rights Council to launch an independent international fact-finding mission in March 2017, with which Myanmar's government failed to cooperate. The mission's report (A/HRC/39/64) released in September 2018 highlighted "clear patterns" of serious human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law in Kachin State, Rakhine State, and Shan State since 2011. The Tatmadaw are accused of deliberate and systematic targeting of civilians, sexual violence, discriminatory rhetoric against minorities, and impunity for its soldiers. Eyewitness testimony alleged that in Rakhine State, "clearance operations" by the Tatmadaw amounted to planned and deliberate mass killings in at least 54 locations. Hundreds and perhaps thousands of Rohingya women and girls were reported to have been raped, including in mass gang rapes, and at least 392 Rohingya villages were burned to the ground. The report also highlighted the conviction of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, two Reuters reporters who had exposed the military's extrajudicial killing of ten Rohingya men and were subsequently imprisoned; the journalists have since been released and awarded a 2019 Pulitzer Prize for their reporting. In addition to violence against Rohingya communities, the report noted Tatamadaw abuses against ethnic Rakhine, including forced labor, sexual violence, forced evictions, and killings. It also highlighted abuses committed by insurgent groups in Kachin State, Rakhine State, and Shan State, including forced taxation, destruction of property, rape, and killings. The mission further documented similar patterns of human rights violations in Kachin and Shan States, which witnessed a drastic increase in fighting between the military and ethnic insurgent groups in the years preceding the report. The alleged abuses perpetrated include the widespread looting and destruction of homes, unlawful killings, forced labor, sexual violence, and enforced disappearances. The mission called for an investigation and the prosecution of military leaders, in particular commander-in-chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, in the International Criminal Court (ICC) for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. On 11 November 2019 The Gambia filed a lawsuit in the International Court of Justice against Myanmar; State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi defended Myanmar's military generals against genocide accusations in public hearings in December 2019. – The People's Republic of China allegedly gave logistical aid to the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) during the communist insurgency in Myanmar, in support of the party's Marxist-Leninist-Maoist ideology. After the CPB's armed wing agreed to disarm in 1988, China was accused by Myanmar of continuing to support insurgent groups operating along its border, such as the United Wa State Army. In 2016, China pledged to support Myanmar's ongoing peace process by encouraging China-friendly insurgent groups to attend peace talks with the Burmese government and by sending more soldiers to secure its border with Myanmar. China also offered $3 million USD to fund the negotiations. However, the Burmese government has expressed suspicion over China's involvement in the peace process, due to China's alleged links to the Northern Alliance and the United Wa State Army. Others: Dave Everett was a member of the Australian Special Air Service Regiment before leaving in 1986 and joining the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) as a mercenary. Everett fought alongside the KNLA under the alias "Steve" and trained insurgents, helping them improve their marksmanship and teaching them how to use claymore anti-personnel mines. In order to fund his time with the KNLA, Everett perpetrated several robberies in Australia with the help of accomplices and took piloting lessons so he could smuggle weapons into Myanmar. Everett returned to Australia a year later in 1987. Former members of the British green berets, French Foreign Legion, and the Russian Spetsnaz were also reportedly fighting alongside insurgents as recently as 2012. Politics of Myanmar, Ceasefires in Myanmar, Opium production in Myanmar, Ethnic separatism International Center for Transitional Justice "Opening up Remedies in Myanmar 12/9/2015", International Center for Transitional Justice "Navigating Paths to Justice in Myanmar's Transition 7/18/2014", Kipgen, Nehginpao. "Democracy Movement in Myanmar: Problems and Challenges." New Delhi: Ruby Press & Co., 2014. Print. News: Democratic Voice of Burma – Norwegian-based radio station that provides news to the people of Burma, Mizzima News – Multimedia news organisation based in India, run by exiled journalists. See also: Mizzima News, MyanmaThadin – Myanmar (Burma) News & Community Hub, BBC News: The fighting spirit of Burma's Karen (2007) Organisations: Help without frontiers – German relief organisation working with Shan and Karen refugees living in refugee camps on and around the Myanmar–Thailand border, International Center for Transitional Justice (Myanmar) – Non-profit organisation specialising in transitional justice, Myanmar Peace Monitor – Non-governmental organisation based in Thailand that monitors Myanmar's ongoing peace process, Pyidaungsu Institute – Political institute based in Chaing Mai, Thailand focused on achieving political stability and peace in Myanmar

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A collimator is a device which narrows a beam of particles or waves. To narrow can mean either to cause the directions of motion to become more aligned in a specific direction (i.e., make collimated light or parallel rays), or to cause the spatial cross section of the beam to become smaller (beam limiting device). An English physicist Henry Kater was the inventor of the floating collimator, which rendered a great service to practical astronomy. He reported about his invention in January 1825. In his report, Kater mentioned previous work in this area by Carl Friedrich Gauss and Friedrich Bessel. In optics, a collimator may consist of a curved mirror or lens with some type of light source and/or an image at its focus. This can be used to replicate a target focused at infinity with little or no parallax. In lighting, collimators are typically designed using the principles of nonimaging optics. Optical collimators can be used to calibrate other optical devices, to check if all elements are aligned on the optical axis, to set elements at proper focus, or to align two or more devices such as binoculars or gun barrels and gunsights. A surveying camera may be collimated by setting its fiduciary markers so that they define the principal point, as in photogrammetry. Optical collimators are also used as gun sights in the collimator sight, which is a simple optical collimator with a cross hair or some other reticle at its focus. The viewer only sees an image of the reticle. They have to use it either with both eyes open and one eye looking into the collimator sight, with one eye open and moving the head to alternately see the sight and the target, or with one eye to partially see the sight and target at the same time. Adding a beam splitter allows the viewer to see the reticle and the field of view, making a reflector sight. Collimators may be used with laser diodes and CO cutting lasers. Proper collimation of a laser source with long enough coherence length can be verified with a shearing interferometer. In X-ray optics, gamma ray optics, and neutron optics, a collimator is a device that filters a stream of rays so that only those traveling parallel to a specified direction are allowed through. Collimators are used for X-ray, gamma-ray, and neutron imaging because it is not yet possible to focus these types of radiation into an image using lenses, as is routine with electromagnetic radiation at optical or near-optical wavelengths. Collimators are also used in radiation detectors in nuclear power stations to make directional sensitivity. The figure to the right illustrates how a Söller collimator is used in neutron and X-ray machines. The upper panel shows a situation where a collimator is not used, while the lower panel introduces a collimator. In both panels the source of radiation is to the right, and the image is recorded on the gray plate at the left of the panels. Without a collimator, rays from all directions will be recorded; for example, a ray that has passed through the top of the specimen (to the right of the diagram) but happens to be travelling in a downwards direction may be recorded at the bottom of the plate. The resultant image will be so blurred and indistinct as to be useless. In the lower panel of the figure, a collimator has been added (blue bars). This may be a sheet of lead or other material opaque to the incoming radiation with many tiny holes bored through it or in the case of neutrons it can be a sandwich arrangement (which can be up to several feet long - see ENGIN-X) with many layers alternating between neutron absorbing material (e.g. Gadolinium) with neutron transmitting material. This can be something simple e.g. air. or if mechanical strength is needed then aluminium may be used. If this forms part of a rotating assembly, the sandwich may be curved. This allows energy selection in addition to collimation - the curvature of the collimator and its rotation will present a straight path only to one energy of neutrons. Only rays that are travelling nearly parallel to the holes will pass through them—any others will be absorbed by hitting the plate surface or the side of a hole. This ensures that rays are recorded in their proper place on the plate, producing a clear image. For industrial radiography using gamma radiation sources such as iridium-192 or cobalt-60, a collimator (beam limiting device) allows the radiographer to control the exposure of radiation to expose a film and create a radiograph, to inspect materials for defects. A collimator in this instance is most commonly made of tungsten, and is rated according to how many half value layers it contains, i.e., how many times it reduces undesirable radiation by half. For instance, the thinnest walls on the sides of a 4 HVL tungsten collimator thick will reduce the intensity of radiation passing through them by 88.5%. The shape of these collimators allows emitted radiation to travel freely toward the specimen and the x-ray film, while blocking most of the radiation that is emitted in undesirable directions such as toward workers. Although collimators improve resolution, they also reduce intensity by blocking incoming radiation, which is undesirable for remote sensing instruments that require high sensitivity. For this reason, the gamma ray spectrometer on the Mars Odyssey is a non-collimated instrument. Most lead collimators let less than 1% of incident photons through. Attempts have been made to replace collimators with electronic analysis. Collimators (beam limiting devices) are used in linear accelerators used for radiotherapy treatments. They help to shape the beam of radiation emerging from the machine and can limit the maximum field size of a beam. The treatment head of a linear accelerator consists of both a primary and secondary collimator. The primary collimator is positioned after the electron beam has reached a vertical orientation. When using photons, it is placed after the beam has passed through the X-ray target. The secondary collimator is positioned after either a flattening filter (for photon therapy) or a scattering foil (for electron therapy). The secondary collimator consists of two jaws which can be moved to either enlarge or minimize the size of the treatment field. New systems involving multileaf collimators (MLCs) are used to further shape a beam to localise treatment fields in radiotherapy. MLCs consist of approximately 50–120 leaves of heavy, metal collimator plates which slide into place to form the desired field shape. Autocollimation, Autocollimator, Collimated light, Nonimaging optics, Snoot in lighting A gamma camera (γ-camera), also called a scintillation camera or Anger camera, is a device used to image gamma radiation emitting radioisotopes, a technique known as scintigraphy. The applications of scintigraphy include early drug development and nuclear medical imaging to view and analyse images of the human body or the distribution of medically injected, inhaled, or ingested radionuclides emitting gamma rays. Scintigraphy ("scint") is the use of gamma cameras to capture emitted radiation from internal radioisotopes to create two-dimensional images. SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) imaging, as used in nuclear cardiac stress testing, is performed using gamma cameras. Usually one, two or three detectors or heads, are slowly rotated around the patient's torso. Multi-headed gamma cameras can also be used for positron emission tomography (PET) scanning, provided that their hardware and software can be configured to detect "coincidences" (near simultaneous events on 2 different heads). Gamma camera PET is markedly inferior to PET imaging with a purpose designed PET scanner, as the scintillator crystal has poor sensitivity for the high-energy annihilation photons, and the detector area is significantly smaller. However, given the low cost of a gamma camera and its additional flexibility compared to a dedicated PET scanner, this technique is useful where the expense and resource implications of a PET scanner cannot be justified. A gamma camera consists of one or more flat crystal planes (or detectors) optically coupled to an array of photomultiplier tubes in an assembly known as a "head", mounted on a gantry. The gantry is connected to a computer system that both controls the operation of the camera and acquires and stores images. The construction of a gamma camera is sometimes known as a compartmental radiation construction. The system accumulates events, or counts, of gamma photons that are absorbed by the crystal in the camera. Usually a large flat crystal of sodium iodide with thallium doping in a light-sealed housing is used. The highly efficient capture method of this combination for detecting gamma rays was discovered in 1944 by Sir Samuel Curran whilst he was working on the Manhattan Project at the University of California at Berkeley. Nobel prize-winning physicist Robert Hofstadter also worked on the technique in 1948. The crystal scintillates in response to incident gamma radiation. When a gamma photon leaves the patient (who has been injected with a radioactive pharmaceutical), it knocks an electron loose from an iodine atom in the crystal, and a faint flash of light is produced when the dislocated electron again finds a minimal energy state. The initial phenomenon of the excited electron is similar to the photoelectric effect and (particularly with gamma rays) the Compton effect. After the flash of light is produced, it is detected. Photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) behind the crystal detect the fluorescent flashes (events) and a computer sums the counts. The computer reconstructs and displays a two dimensional image of the relative spatial count density on a monitor. This reconstructed image reflects the distribution and relative concentration of radioactive tracer elements present in the organs and tissues imaged. Hal Anger developed the first gamma camera in 1957. His original design, frequently called the Anger camera, is still widely used today. The Anger camera uses sets of vacuum tube photomultipliers (PMT). Generally each tube has an exposed face of about in diameter and the tubes are arranged in hexagon configurations, behind the absorbing crystal. The electronic circuit connecting the photodetectors is wired so as to reflect the relative coincidence of light fluorescence as sensed by the members of the hexagon detector array. All the PMTs simultaneously detect the (presumed) same flash of light to varying degrees, depending on their position from the actual individual event. Thus the spatial location of each single flash of fluorescence is reflected as a pattern of voltages within the interconnecting circuit array. The location of the interaction between the gamma ray and the crystal can be determined by processing the voltage signals from the photomultipliers; in simple terms, the location can be found by weighting the position of each photomultiplier tube by the strength of its signal, and then calculating a mean position from the weighted positions. The total sum of the voltages from each photomultiplier, measured by a pulse height analyzer is proportional to the energy of the gamma ray interaction, thus allowing discrimination between different isotopes or between scattered and direct photons. In order to obtain spatial information about the gamma-ray emissions from an imaging subject (e.g. a person's heart muscle cells which have absorbed an intravenous injected radioactive, usually thallium-201 or technetium-99m, medicinal imaging agent) a method of correlating the detected photons with their point of origin is required. The conventional method is to place a collimator over the detection crystal/PMT array. The collimator consists of a thick sheet of lead, typically thick, with thousands of adjacent holes through it. The individual holes limit photons which can be detected by the crystal to a cone; the point of the cone is at the midline center of any given hole and extends from the collimator surface outward. However, the collimator is also one of the sources of blurring within the image; lead does not totally attenuate incident gamma photons, there can be some crosstalk between holes. Unlike a lens, as used in visible light cameras, the collimator attenuates most (>99%) of incident photons and thus greatly limits the sensitivity of the camera system. Large amounts of radiation must be present so as to provide enough exposure for the camera system to detect sufficient scintillation dots to form a picture. Other methods of image localization (pinhole, rotating slat collimator with CZT) have been proposed and tested; however, none have entered widespread routine clinical use. The best current camera system designs can differentiate two separate point sources of gamma photons located at 6 to 12 mm depending on distance from the collimator, the type of collimator and radio-nucleide. Spatial resolution decreases rapidly at increasing distances from the camera face. This limits the spatial accuracy of the computer image: it is a fuzzy image made up of many dots of detected but not precisely located scintillation. This is a major limitation for heart muscle imaging systems; the thickest normal heart muscle in the left ventricle is about 1.2 cm and most of the left ventricle muscle is about 0.8 cm, always moving and much of it beyond 5 cm from the collimator face. To help compensate, better imaging systems limit scintillation counting to a portion of the heart contraction cycle, called gating, however this further limits system sensitivity. Nuclear medicine, Scintigraphy H. Anger. A new instrument for mapping gamma-ray emitters. Biology and Medicine Quarterly Report UCRL, 1957, 3653: 38. (University of California Radiation Laboratory, Berkeley) The history of X-ray astronomy begins in the 1920s, with interest in short wave communications for the U.S. Navy. This was soon followed by extensive study of the earth's ionosphere. By 1927, interest in the detection of X-ray and ultraviolet (UV) radiation at high altitudes inspired researchers to launch Goddard's rockets into the upper atmosphere to support theoretical studies and data gathering. The first successful rocket flight equipped with instrumentation able to detect solar ultraviolet radiation occurred in 1946. X-ray solar studies began in 1949. By 1973 a solar instrument package orbited on Skylab providing significant solar data. In 1965 the Goddard Space Flight Center program in X-ray astronomy was initiated with a series of balloon-borne experiments. In the 1970s this was followed by high altitude sounding rocket experiments, and that was followed by orbiting (satellite) observatories. The first rocket flight to successfully detect a cosmic source of X-ray emission was launched in 1962 by a group at American Science and Engineering (AS&E;). X-ray wavelengths reveal information about the bodies (sources) that emit them. The Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) opened in 1923. After E.O. Hulburt (1890-1982) arrived there in 1924 he studied physical optics. The NRL was conducting research on the properties of the ionosphere (Earth's reflecting layer) because of interest in short wave radio communications. Hubert (Hulburt ?) produced a series of mathematical descriptions of the ionosphere during the 1920s and 1930s. In 1927, at the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Hulburt, Gregory Breit and Merle Tuve explored the possibility of equipping Robert Goddard's rockets to explore the upper atmosphere. In 1929 Hulburt proposed an experimental program in which a rocket might be instrumented to explore the upper atmosphere. This proposal included detection of ultraviolet radiation and X rays at high altitudes. Herbert Friedman began X-ray solar studies in 1949 and soon reported that the energy of "the solar X-ray spectrum ... is adequate to account for all of E-layer ionization." Thus one of Hulburt's original questions, the source and behavior of the radio-reflecting layer, began to find its answer in space research. At the end of the 1930s other studies included the inference of an X-ray corona by optical methods and, in 1949, more direct evidence by detecting X-ray photons. Because the Earth's atmosphere blocks X-rays at ground level, Wilhelm Röntgen's discovery had no effect on observational astronomy for the first 50 years. X-ray astronomy became possible only with the capability to use rockets that far exceeded the altitudes of balloons. In 1948 U.S. researchers used a German-made V-2 rocket to gather the first records of solar x-rays. The NRL has placed instruments in rockets, satellites, Skylab, and Spacelab 2 Through the 1960s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, the sensitivity of detectors increased greatly during the 60 years of X-ray astronomy. In addition, the ability to focus X-rays has developed enormously—allowing the production of high-quality images. The study of astronomical objects at the highest energies of X-rays and gamma rays began in the early 1960s. Before then, scientists knew only that the Sun was an intense source in these wavebands. Earth's atmosphere absorbs most X-rays and gamma rays, so rocket flights that could lift scientific payloads above Earth's atmosphere were needed. The first rocket flight to successfully detect a cosmic source of X-ray emission was launched in 1962 by a group at American Science and Engineering (AS&E;). The team of scientists on this project included Riccardo Giacconi, Herbert Gursky, Frank Paolini, and Bruno Rossi. This rocket flight used a small X-ray detector, which found a very bright source they named Scorpius X-1, because it was the first X-ray source found in the constellation Scorpius. In the 1970s, dedicated X-ray astronomy satellites, such as Uhuru, Ariel 5, SAS-3, OSO-8 and HEAO-1, developed this field of science at an astounding pace. Scientists hypothesized that X-rays from stellar sources in our galaxy were primarily from a neutron star in a binary system with a normal star. In these "X-ray binaries," the X-rays originate from material traveling from the normal star to the neutron star in a process called accretion. The binary nature of the system allowed astronomers to measure the mass of the neutron star. For other systems, the inferred mass of the X-ray emitting object supported the idea of the existence of black holes, as they were too massive to be neutron stars. Other systems displayed a characteristic X-ray pulse, just as pulsars had been found to do in the radio regime, which allowed a determination of the spin rate of the neutron star. Finally, some of these galactic X-ray sources were found to be highly variable. In fact, some sources would appear in the sky, remain bright for a few weeks, and then fade again from view. Such sources are called X-ray transients. The inner regions of some galaxies were also found to emit X-rays. The X-ray emission from these active galactic nuclei is believed to originate from ultra-relativistic gas near a very massive black hole at the galaxy's center. Lastly, a diffuse X-ray emission was found to exist all over the sky. The study of X-ray astronomy continued to be carried out using data from a host of satellites that were active from the 1980s to the early 2000s: the HEAO Program, EXOSAT, Ginga, RXTE, ROSAT, ASCA, as well as BeppoSAX, which detected the first afterglow of a gamma-ray burst (GRB). Data from these satellites continues to aid our further understanding of the nature of these sources and the mechanisms by which the X-rays and gamma rays are emitted. Understanding these mechanisms can in turn shed light on the fundamental physics of our universe. By looking at the sky with X-ray and gamma-ray instruments, we collect important information in our attempt to address questions such as how the universe began and how it evolves, and gain some insight into its eventual fate. In 1965, at the suggestion of Frank McDonald, Elihu Boldt initiated Goddard's program in X-ray astronomy with a series of balloon-borne experiments. At an early stage he was joined by Peter Serlemitsos, who had just completed his PhD space physics thesis on magnetospheric electrons, and by Guenter Riegler, a University of Maryland physics graduate student interested in doing his dissertation research in astrophysics. From 1965 to 1972 there were over a dozen balloon-borne experiments (mostly from New Mexico), including the first such to take place from Australia (1966), one in which hard X-ray emission was discovered (albeit with crude angular resolution) from a region towards the Galactic Center whose centroid is located among subsequently identified sources GX1+4, GX3+1, and GX5-1. A balloon-borne experiment in 1968 was based on the multi-anode multi-layer xenon gas proportional chamber that had recently been developed in our lab and represented the first use of such a high performance instrument for X-ray astronomy. Due to the attenuation of soft X-rays by the residual atmosphere at balloon altitudes these early experiments were restricted to energies above ~20 keV. Observations down to lower energies were begun with a series of high altitude sounding rocket experiments; by this stage Steve Holt had already joined the program. A 1972 rocket-borne observation of Cas A, the youngest supernova remnant in our galaxy, yielded the first detection of an X-ray spectral line, iron K-line emission at ~7 keV. The figure to the right shows 15-second samples of the raw counts (per 20.48ms) observed in a 1973 sounding-rocket-borne exposure to three of the X-ray brightest binary sources in our galaxy: Her X-1 (1.7 days), Cyg X-3 (0.2 day), and Cyg X-1 (5.6 days). The 1.24 second pulsar period associated with Her X-1 is immediately evident from the data, while the rate profile for Cyg X-3 is completely consistent with the statistical fluctuations in counts expected for a source that is constant, at least for the 15s duration of the exposure shown; the Cyg X-1 data, on the other hand, clearly exhibit the chaotic "shot noise" behavior characteristic of this black-hole candidate and also provided preliminary evidence for the additional feature of millisecond "burst" sub-structure, noted for the first time in this observation. The sharp cut-off at ~24 keV in the flat spectrum observed for Her X-1 in this exposure provided the first reported evidence for radiative transfer effects to be associated with a highly magnetized plasma near the surface of a neutron star. The black-body spectral component observed for Cyg X-3 during this experiment gave strong evidence that this emission is from the immediate vicinity of a compact object the size of a neutron star. An observation of Cyg X-3 a year later with the same instrument yielded an optically thin thermal spectrum for this source and provided the first evidence for strong spectral iron K-line emission from an X-ray binary. Our large area PCA (Proportional Counter Array) on the current RXTE (Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer) mission genuinely reflects the heritage of our sounding rocket program. RXTE continues to provide very valuable data as it enters the second decade of successful operation. Goddard's ASM (All-Sky Monitor) pin- hole X-ray camera on Ariel-5 (1974-1980) was the first X-ray astronomy experiment to use imaging proportional counters (albeit one-dimensional); it provided information on transient sources and the long-term behavior of several bright objects. Jean Swank joined the program in time for the beginning of our OSO-8 experiment (1975-1978), the first broadband (2-40 keV) orbiting observatory based on multi-anode multi-layer proportional chambers, one that showed the power of X-ray spectroscopy; for example, it established that iron K-line emission is a ubiquitous feature of clusters of galaxies. The HEAO-1 A2 full-sky cosmic X-ray experiment (1977-1979) provided the most comprehensive data (still the most definitive) on the cosmic X-ray background broadband spectrum and large-scale structure, and a much used complete sample of the brightest extragalactic sources; it posed the challenging "spectral paradox" just now being unraveled with new results on evolution (from deep surveys) and on individual source spectra extending into the gamma-ray band. The SSS (Solid State Spectrometer) at the focus of the HEAO-2 Einstein Observatory (1978-1981) grazing incidence telescope was the first high spectral resolution non-dispersive spectrometer to be used for X-ray astronomy, here for energies up to ~3 keV, limited by the telescope optics. By the use of conical foil optics, developed in our lab, the response of a grazing incidence X-ray telescope was extended to 12 keV, amply covering the crucial iron K-band of emission. A cooled Si(Li) solid state detector was used at the focus of such a telescope for the BBXRT (Broad Band X-Ray Telescope) on the Astro-1 shuttle mission (STS-35) on Columbia in December 1990, the first broadband (0.3-12keV) X-ray observatory to use focusing optics. In collaboration with X-ray astronomers in Japan, Goddard supplied conical foil X-ray optics have been used for the joint Japanese and American ASCA mission (1993-2000). It was the first broadband imaging observatory using CCD non- dispersive spectrometers. Substantial improvement in the capability of solid- state non-dispersive spectrometers has been achieved in our lab (in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin) by the successful development of quantum calorimeters with resolution better than 10 eV (FWHM). Such spectrometers have been used in a sounding-rocket-borne experiment to study spectral lines from the hot interstellar medium of our galaxy and will soon play a major role in the joint Japanese/American Suzaku orbiting X-ray observatory launched in July 2005. The critical early stages of this program benefited from highly dedicated technical support by Dale Arbogast, Frank Birsa, Ciro Cancro, Upendra Desai, Henry Doong, Charles Glasser, Sid Jones, and Frank Shaffer. More than 20 graduate students (mostly from the University of Maryland at College Park) have successfully carried out their PhD dissertation research within our X-ray astronomy program. Almost all of these former students have remained actively involved with astrophysics. The beginning of the search for X-ray sources from above the Earth's atmosphere was on August 5, 1948 12:07 GMT. A US Army V-2 as part of Project Hermes was launched from White Sands Proving Grounds Launch Complex (LC) 33. In addition to carrying experiments of the US Naval Research Laboratory for cosmic and solar radiation, temperature, pressure, ionosphere, and photography, there was on board a solar X-ray test detector, which functioned properly. The missile reached an apogee of 166 km. As part of a collaboration between the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and the Signal Corps Engineering Laboratory (SCEL) of the University of Michigan, another V-2 (V-2 42 configuration) was launched from White Sands LC33 on December 9, 1948 at 16:08 GMT (09:08 local time). The missile reached an apogee of 108.7 km and carried aeronomy (winds, pressure, temperature), solar X-ray and radiation, and biology experiments. On January 28, 1949, an NRL X-ray detector (Blossom) was placed in the nose cone of a V-2 rocket and launched at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. X-rays from the Sun were detected. Apogee: 60 km. A second collaborative effort (NRL/SCEL) using a V-2 UM-3 configuration launched on April 11, 1949 at 22:05 GMT. Experiments included solar X-ray detection, apogee: 87.4 km. NRL Ionosphere 1 solar X-ray, ionosphere, meteorite mission launched a V-2 on September 29, 1949 from White Sands at 16:58 GMT and reached 151.1 km. Using V-2 53 configuration a solar X-ray experiment was launched on February 17, 1950 from White Sands LC 33 at 18:01 GMT reaching an apogee of 148 km. The last V-2 launch number TF2/TF3 came on August 22, 1952 07:33 GMT from White Sands reaching an apogee of 78.2 km and carried experiments solar X-ray for NRL,, cosmic radiation for the National Institute of Health (NIH), and, sky brightness for the Air Research and Development Command. The first successful launch of an Aerobee occurred on May 5, 1952 13:44 GMT from White Sands Proving Grounds launch complex LC35. It was an Aerobee RTV-N-10 configuration reaching an apogee of 127 km with NRL experiments for solar X-ray and ultraviolet detection. On April 19, 1960, an Office of Naval Research Aerobee Hi made a series of X-ray photographs of the Sun from an altitude of 208 km. The mainstay of the US IGY rocket stable was the Aerobee Hi, which was modified and improved to create the Aerobee 150. An Aerobee 150 rocket launched on June 12, 1962 detected the first X-rays from other celestial sources (Scorpius X-1). Starting on June 21, 1959 from Kapustin Yar, with a modified V-2 designated the R-5V, the USSR launched a series of four vehicles to detect solar X-rays: a R-2A on July 21, 1959 and two R-11A at 02:00 GMT and 14:00 GMT. The British Skylark was probably the most successful of the many sounding rocket programs. The first launched in 1957 from Woomera, Australia and its 441st and final launch took place from Esrange, Sweden on 2 May 2005. Launches were carried out from sites in Australia, Europe, and South America, with use by NASA, the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO), and German and Swedish space organizations. Skylark was used to obtain the first good-quality X-ray images of the solar corona. The first X-ray surveys of the sky in the Southern Hemisphere were provided by Skylark launches. It was also used with high precision in September and October 1972 in an effort to locate the optical counterpart of X-ray source GX3+1 by lunar occultation. The French Véronique was successfully launched on April 14, 1964 from Hammaguira, LC Blandine carrying experiments to measure UV and X-ray intensities and the FU110 to measure UV intensity from the atomic H (Lyman-α) line, and again on November 4, 1964. The SOLar RADiation satellite program (SOLRAD) was conceived in the late 1950s to study the Sun's effects on Earth, particularly during periods of heightened solar activity. Solrad 1 was launched on June 22, 1960 aboard a Thor Able from Cape Canaveral at 1:54 a.m. EDT. As the world's first orbiting astronomical observatory, SOLRAD I determined that radio fade-outs were caused by solar X-ray emissions. The first in a series of 8 successfully launched Orbiting Solar Observatories (OSO 1, launched on March 7, 1963) had as its primary mission to measure solar electromagnetic radiation in the UV, X-ray, and gamma-ray regions. The first USA satellite which detected cosmic X-rays was the Third Orbiting Solar Observatory, or OSO-3, launched on March 8, 1967. It was intended primarily to observe the Sun, which it did very well during its 2-year lifetime, but it also detected a flaring episode from the source Sco X-1 and measured the diffuse cosmic X-ray background. OSO 5 was launched on January 22, 1969, and lasted until July 1975. It was the 5th satellite put into orbit as part of the Orbiting Solar Observatory program. This program was intended to launch a series of nearly identical satellites to cover an entire 11-year solar cycle. The circular orbit had an altitude of 555 km and an inclination of 33°. The spin rate of the satellite was 1.8 s. The data produced a spectrum of the diffuse background over the energy range 14-200 keV. OSO 6 was launched on August 9, 1969. Its orbital period was ~95 min. The spacecraft had a spin rate of 0.5 rps. On board was a hard X-ray detector (27-189 keV) with a 5.1 cm NaI(Tl) scintillator, collimated to 17° × 23° FWHM. The system had 4 energy channels (separated 27-49-75-118-189 keV). The detector spun with the spacecraft on a plane containing the Sun direction within ± 3.5°. Data were read with alternate 70 ms and 30 ms integrations for 5 intervals every 320 ms. TD-1A was put in a nearly circular polar sun- synchronous orbit, with apogee 545 km, perigee 533 km, and inclination 97.6°. It was ESRO's first 3-axis stabilized satellite, with one axis pointing to the Sun to within ±5°. The optical axis was maintained perpendicular to the solar pointing axis and to the orbital plane. It scanned the entire celestial sphere every 6 months, with a great circle being scanned every satellite revolution. After about 2 months of operation, both of the satellite's tape recorders failed. A network of ground stations was put together so that real-time telemetry from the satellite was recorded for about 60% of the time. After 6 months in orbit, the satellite entered a period of regular eclipses as the satellite passed behind the Earth—cutting off sunlight to the solar panels. The satellite was put into hibernation for 4 months, until the eclipse period passed, after which systems were turned back on and another 6 months of observations were made. TD-1A was primarily a UV mission however it carried both a cosmic X-ray and a gamma-ray detector. TD-1A reentered on January 9, 1980. OSO 7 was primarily a solar observatory designed to point a battery of UV and X-ray telescopes at the Sun from a platform mounted on a cylindrical wheel. The detectors for observing cosmic X-ray sources were X-ray proportional counters. The hard X-ray telescope operated over the energy range 7 - 550 keV. OSO 7 performed an X-ray All-sky survey and discovered the 9-day periodicity in Vela X-1 which led to its optical identification as a HMXRB. OSO 7 was launched on September 29, 1971 and operated until May 18, 1973. Skylab, a science and engineering laboratory, was launched into Earth orbit by a Saturn V rocket on May 14, 1973. Detailed X-ray studies of the Sun were performed. The S150 experiment performed a faint X-ray source survey. The S150 was mounted atop the SIV-B upper stage of the Saturn 1B rocket which orbited briefly behind and below Skylab on July 28, 1973. The entire SIV-B stage underwent a series of preprogrammed maneuvers, scanning about 1° every 15 seconds, to allow the instrument to sweep across selected regions of the sky. The pointing direction was determined during data processing, using the inertial guidance system of the SIV-B stage combined with information from two visible star sensors which formed part of the experiment. Galactic X-ray sources were observed with the S150 experiment. The experiment was designed to detect 4.0-10.0 nm photons. It consisted of a single large (~1500 cm) proportional counter, electrically divided by fine wire ground planes into separate signal-collecting areas and looking through collimator vanes. The collimators defined 3 intersecting fields of view (~2 × 20°) on the sky, which allowed source positions to be determined to ~ 30'. The front window of the instrument consisted of a 2 µm thick plastic sheet. The counter gas was a mixture of argon and methane. Analysis of the data from the S150 experiment provided strong evidence that the soft X-ray background cannot be explained as the cumulative effect of many unresolved point sources. Skylab's solar studies: UV and X-ray solar photography for highly ionized atoms, X-ray spectrography of solar flares and active regions, and X-ray emissions of lower solar corona. Salyut 4 space station was launched on December 26, 1974. It was in an orbit of 355 × 343 km, with an orbital period of 91.3 minutes, inclined at 51.6°. The X-ray telescope began observations on January 15, 1975. Orbiting Solar Observatory (OSO 8) was launched on June 21, 1975. While OSO 8's primary objective was to observe the Sun, four instruments were dedicated to observations of other celestial X-ray sources brighter than a few milliCrab. A sensitivity of 0.001 of the Crab nebula source (= 1 "mCrab"). OSO 8 ceased operations on October 1, 1978. Although several earlier X-ray observatories initiated the endeavor to study X-ray source variability, once the catalogs of X-ray sources were firmly established, more extensive studies could commence. Prognoz 6 carried two NaI(Tl) scintillators (2-511 keV, 2.2-98 keV), and a proportional counter (2.2-7 keV) to study solar X-rays. The Space Test Program spacecraft P78-1 or Solwind was launched on February 24, 1979 and continued operating until September 13, 1985, when it was shot down in orbit during an Air Force ASM-135 ASAT test. The platform was of the Orbiting Solar Observatory (OSO) type, with a solar-oriented sail and a rotating wheel section. P78-1 was in a noon- midnight, Sun-synchronous orbit at 600 km altitude. The orbital inclination of 96° implied that a substantial fraction of the orbit was spent at high latitude, where the particle background prevented detector operation. In- flight experience showed that good data were obtained between 35° N and 35° S geomagnetic latitude outside the South Atlantic Anomaly. This yields an instrument duty cycle of 25-30%. Telemetry data were obtained for about 40-50% of the orbits, yielding a net data return of 10-15%. Though this data rate appears low, it means that about 10 seconds of good data reside in the XMON data base. Data from the P78-1 X-Ray Monitor experiment offered source monitoring with a sensitivity comparable to that of instruments flown on SAS-3, OSO-8, or Hakucho, and the advantages of longer observing times and unique temporal coverage. Five fields of inquiry were particularly well suited for investigation with P78-1 data: study of pulsational, eclipse, precession, and intrinsic source variability on time scales of tens of seconds to months in galactic X-ray sources., pulse timing studies of neutron stars., identification and study of new transient sources., observations of X-ray and gamma-ray bursts, and other fast transients., simultaneous X-ray coverage of objects observed by other satellites, such as HEAO-2 and 3, as well as bridging the gap in coverage of objects in the observational timeline. Launched on February 21, 1981, the Hinotori satellite observations of the 1980s pioneered hard X-ray imaging of solar flares. Tenma was the second Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite launched on February 20, 1983. Tenma carried GSFC detectors which had an improved energy resolution (by a factor of 2) compared to proportional counters and performed the first sensitive measurements of the iron spectral region for many astronomical objects. Energy range: 0.1-60 keV; gas scintillator proportional counter: 10 units of 80 cm each, FOV ~ 3° (FWHM), 2-60 keV; transient source monitor: 2-10 keV. The Soviet Astron orbital station was designed primarily for UV and X-ray astrophysical observations. It was injected into orbit on March 23, 1983. The satellite was put into a highly elliptical orbit, ~200,000 × 2,000 km. The orbit kept the craft far away from the Earth for 3.5 out of every 4 days. It was outside of the Earth's shadow and radiation belts for 90% of the time. The second major experiment, SKR-02M, aboard Astron was an X-ray spectrometer, which consisted of a proportional counter sensitive to 2-25 keV X-rays, with an effective area of 0.17 m. The FOV was 3° × 3° (FWHM). Data could be telemetered in 10 energy channels. The instrument began taking data on April 3, 1983. Spacelab 1 was the first Spacelab mission in orbit in the payload bay of the Space Shuttle (STS-9) between November 28 and December 8, 1983. An X-ray spectrometer, measuring 2-30 keV photons (although 2-80 keV was possible), was on the pallet. The primary science objective was to study detailed spectral features in cosmic sources and their temporal changes. The instrument was a gas scintillation proportional counter (GSPC) with ~ 180 cm area and energy resolution of 9% at 7 keV. The detector was collimated to a 4.5° (FWHM) FOV. There were 512 energy channels. Spartan 1 was deployed from the Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-51G) on June 20, 1985 and retrieved 45.5 hours later. The X-ray detectors aboard the Spartan platform were sensitive to the energy range 1-12 keV. The instrument scanned its target with narrowly collimated (5' × 3°) GSPCs. There were 2 identical sets of counters, each having ~ 660 cm effective area. Counts were accumulated for 0.812 s into 128 energy channels. The energy resolution was 16% at 6 keV. During its 2 days of flight, Spartan-1 observed the Perseus cluster of galaxies and the Galactic Center region. Ginga was launched on February 5, 1987. The primary instrument for observations was the Large Area Proportional Counter (LAC). The European Retrievable Carrier (EURECA) was launched July 31, 1992 by the Space Shuttle Atlantis, and put into an orbit at an altitude of 508 km. It began its scientific mission on August 7, 1992. EURECA was retrieved on July 1, 1993 by the Space Shuttle Endeavour and returned to Earth. On board was the WATCH or Wide Angle Telescope for Cosmic Hard X-rays instrument. The WATCH instrument was sensitive to 6-150 keV photons. The total field of view covered 1/4 of the celestial sphere. During its 11-month lifetime, EURECA tracked the Sun and WATCH gradually scanned across the entire sky. Some 2 dozen known X-ray sources were monitored—some for more than 100 days—and a number of new X-ray transients were discovered. The Diffuse X-ray Spectrometer (DXS) STS-54 package was flown as an attached payload in January, 1993 to obtain spectra of the diffuse soft X-ray background. DXS obtained the first-ever high resolution spectra of the diffuse soft X-ray background in the energy band from 0.15 to 0.28 keV (4.3-8.4 nm). As all-sky surveys are performed and analyzed or once the first extrasolar X-ray source in each constellation is confirmed, it is designated X-1, e.g., Scorpius X-1 or Sco X-1. There are 88 official constellations. Often the first X-ray source is a transient. As X-ray sources have been better located, many of them have been isolated to extragalactic regions such as the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). When there are often many individually discernible sources, the first one identified is usually designated as the extragalactic source X-1, e.g., Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) X-1, a HMXRB, at 011514 -734222. These early X-ray sources still are studied and often produce significant results. For example, Serpens X-1. As of August 27, 2007 discoveries concerning asymmetric iron line broadening and their implications for relativity have been a topic of much excitement. With respect to the asymmetric iron line broadening, Edward Cackett of the University of Michigan commented, "We're seeing the gas whipping around just outside the neutron star's surface,". "And since the inner part of the disk obviously can't orbit any closer than the neutron star's surface, these measurements give us a maximum size of the neutron star's diameter. The neutron stars can be no larger than 18 to 20.5 miles across, results that agree with other types of measurements." "We've seen these asymmetric lines from many black holes, but this is the first confirmation that neutron stars can produce them as well. It shows that the way neutron stars accrete matter is not very different from that of black holes, and it gives us a new tool to probe Einstein's theory", says Tod Strohmayer of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. "This is fundamental physics", says Sudip Bhattacharyya also of NASA's in Greenbelt, Maryland and the University of Maryland. "There could be exotic kinds of particles or states of matter, such as quark matter, in the centers of neutron stars, but it's impossible to create them in the lab. The only way to find out is to understand neutron stars." Using XMM-Newton, Bhattacharyya and Strohmayer observed Serpens X-1, which contains a neutron star and a stellar companion. Cackett and Jon Miller of the University of Michigan, along with Bhattacharyya and Strohmayer, used Suzaku's superb spectral capabilities to survey Serpens X-1. The Suzaku data confirmed the XMM-Newton result regarding the iron line in Serpens X-1. Catalogs of X-ray sources have been put together for a variety of purposes including chronology of discovery, confirmation by X-ray flux measurement, initial detection, and X-ray source type. One of the first catalogs of X-ray sources published came from workers at the US Naval Research Laboratory in 1966 and contained 35 X-ray sources. Of these only 22 had been confirmed by 1968. An additional astronomical catalog of discrete X-ray sources over the celestial sphere by constellation contains 59 sources as of December 1, 1969, that at the least had an X-ray flux published in the literature. Each of the major observatory satellites had its own catalog of detected and observed X-ray sources. These catalogs were often the result of large area sky surveys. Many of the X-ray sources have names that come from a combination of a catalog abbreviation and the Right Ascension (RA) and Declination (Dec) of the object. For example, 4U 0115+63, 4th Uhuru catalog, RA=01 hr 15 min, Dec=+63°; 3S 1820-30 is the SAS-3 catalog; EXO 0748-676 is an Exosat catalog entry; HEAO 1 uses H; Ariel 5 is 3A; Ginga sources are in GS; general X-ray sources are in the X catalog. Of the early satellites, the Vela series X-ray sources have been cataloged. The Uhuru X-ray satellite made extensive observations and produced at least 4 catalogs wherein previous catalog designations were improved and relisted: 1ASE or 2ASE 1615+38 would appear successively as 2U 1615+38, 3U 1615+38, and 4U 1615+3802, for example. After over a year of initial operation the first catalog (2U) was produced. The third Uhuru catalog was published in 1974. The fourth and final Uhuru catalog included 339 sources. Although apparently not containing extrasolar sources from the earlier OSO satellites, the MIT/OSO 7 catalog contains 185 sources from the OSO 7 detectors and sources from the 3U catalog. The 3rd Ariel 5 SSI Catalog (designated 3A) contains a list of X-ray sources detected by the University of Leicester's Sky Survey Instrument (SSI) on the Ariel 5 satellite. This catalog contains both low and high galactic latitude sources and includes some sources observed by HEAO 1, Einstein, OSO 7, SAS 3, Uhuru, and earlier, mainly rocket, observations. The second Ariel catalog (designated 2A) contains 105 X-ray sources observed before April 1, 1977. Prior to 2A some sources were observed that may not have been included. The 842 sources in the HEAO A-1 X-ray source catalog were detected with the NRL Large Area Sky Survey Experiment on the HEAO 1 satellite. When EXOSAT was slewing between different pointed observations from 1983 to 1986, it scanned a number of X-ray sources (1210). From this the EXOSAT Medium Energy Slew Survey catalog was created. From the use of the Gas Scintillation Proportional Counter (GSPC) on board EXOSAT, a catalog of iron lines from some 431 sources was made available. The Catalog of High-Mass X-ray Binaries in the Galaxy (4th Ed.) contains source name(s), coordinates, finding charts, X-ray luminosities, system parameters, and stellar parameters of the components and other characteristic properties for 114 HMXBs, together with a comprehensive selection of the relevant literature. About 60% of the high-mass X-ray binary candidates are known or suspected Be/X-ray binaries, while 32% are supergiant/X-ray binaries (SGXB). For all the main-sequence and subgiant stars of spectral types A, F, G, and K and luminosity classes IV and V listed in the Bright Star Catalogue (BSC, also known as the HR Catalogue) that have been detected as X-ray sources in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS), there is the RASSDWARF - RASS A-K Dwarfs/Subgiants Catalog. The total number of RASS sources amounts to ~150,000 and in the BSC 3054 late-type main-sequence and subgiant stars of which 980 are in the catalog, with a chance coincidence of 2.2% (21.8 of 980). Available online via NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS) database

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Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He received a record seven NL MVP awards, eight Gold Glove awards, a record 12 Silver Slugger awards, and 14 All-Star selections. He is considered to be one of the greatest baseball players of all time. Bonds was regarded as an exceptional hitter: he led MLB in on-base plus slugging six times, and placed within the top five hitters in 12 of his 17 qualifying seasons. He holds many MLB hitting records, including most career home runs (762), most home runs in a single season (73, set in 2001) and most career walks. Bonds was also known as a talented all- around baseball player. He won eight Gold Glove awards for his defensive play in the outfield. He stole 514 bases with his baserunning speed, becoming the first and only MLB player to date with at least 500 home runs and 500 stolen bases (no other player has even 400 of each). He is ranked second in career Wins Above Replacement among all major league position players by both Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference.com, behind only Babe Ruth. However, Bonds led a controversial career, notably as a central figure in baseball's steroids scandal. In 2007, he was indicted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice for allegedly lying to the grand jury during the federal government's investigation of BALCO. The perjury charges against Bonds were dropped and an initial obstruction of justice conviction was overturned in 2015. Bonds became eligible for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013; he has not been elected, with his highest share of the vote coming in 2019, his seventh of ten years of eligibility, when he received 59.1%. Bonds was born in Riverside, California to Patricia (née Howard) and former major leaguer Bobby Bonds, and grew up in San Carlos and attended Junípero Serra High School in San Mateo, where he excelled in baseball, basketball, and football. He played on the junior varsity team during his freshman year and the remainder of his high school career on the varsity team. He garnered a .467 batting average his senior year, and was named prep All-American. The Giants drafted Bonds in the second round of the 1982 MLB draft as a high school senior, but the Giants and Bonds were unable to agree on contract terms when Tom Haller's maximum offer was $70,000 ($ today) and Bonds’ minimum to go pro was $75,000, so Bonds instead decided to attend college. Bonds attended Arizona State University, hitting .347 with 45 home runs and 175 runs batted in (RBI). In 1984 he batted .360 and had 30 stolen bases. In 1985, he hit 23 home runs with 66 RBIs and a .368 batting average. He was a Sporting News All-American selection that year. He tied the NCAA record with seven consecutive hits in the College World Series as sophomore and was named to All-Time College World Series Team in 1996. Bonds was not well liked by his Sun Devil teammates, in part because in the words of longtime coach Jim Brock, he was "rude, inconsiderate and self-centered." For instance, when he was suspended for breaking curfew, the other players initially voted against his return even though he was easily the best player on the team. He graduated from Arizona State in 1986 with a degree in criminology. He was named ASU On Deck Circle Most Valuable Player; other winners include Dustin Pedroia, Willie Bloomquist, Paul Lo Duca, and Ike Davis. During college, he played part of one summer in the amateur Alaska Baseball League with the Alaska Goldpanners. The Pittsburgh Pirates drafted Bonds as the sixth overall pick of the 1985 Major League Baseball draft. He joined the Prince William Pirates of the Carolina League and was named July 1985 Player of the Month for the league. In 1986, he hit .311 in 44 games for the Hawaii Islanders of the Pacific Coast League. Before Bonds made it to the major leagues in Pittsburgh, Pirate fan attendance was low, with 1984 and 1985 attendance below 10,000 per game for the 81-game home schedule. Bonds made his major league debut on May 30, 1986. In 1986, Bonds led National League (NL) rookies with 16 home runs, 48 RBI, 36 stolen bases and 65 walks, but he finished 6th in Rookie of the Year voting. He played center field in 1986, but switched to left field with the arrival of centerfielder Andy Van Slyke in 1987. In his early years, Bonds batted as the leadoff hitter. With Van Slyke also in the outfield, the Pirates had a venerable defensive tandem that worked together to cover a lot of ground on the field although they were not close off the field. The Pirates experienced a surge in fan enthusiasm with Bonds on the team and set the club attendance record of 52,119 in the 1987 home opener. That year, he hit 25 home runs in his second season, along with 32 stolen bases and 59 RBIs. Bonds improved in 1988, hitting .283 with 24 home runs. The Pirates broke the record set the previous year with 54,089 attending the home opener. Bonds now fit into a highly respected lineup featuring Bobby Bonilla, Van Slyke and Jay Bell. He finished with 19 homers, 58 RBIs, and 14 outfield assists in 1989, which was second in the NL. Following the season, rumors that he would be traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Jeff Hamilton and John Wetteland, but the team denied the rumors and no such trade occurred. Bonds won his first MVP Award in 1990, hitting .301 with 33 home runs and 114 RBIs. He also stole 52 bases, which were third in the league, to become a first-time member of the 30–30 club. He won his first Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger Award. That year, the Pirates won the National League East title for their first postseason berth since winning the 1979 World Series. However, the Cincinnati Reds, whose last post-season berth had also been in 1979 when they lost to the Pirates in that year's NLCS defeated the Pirates in the NLCS en route to winning the World Championship. In 1991, Bonds also put up great numbers, hitting 25 homers and driving in 116 runs, and obtained another Gold Glove and Silver Slugger. He finished second to the Atlanta Braves’ Terry Pendleton (the NL batting champion) in the MVP voting. The Pirates slugging outfield of Bonds, Bonilla and Van Slyke performed miserably in the 1990 and 1991 playoffs hitting .190 in 1990 (12 for 63) and .200 in 1991 (15 for 75). In March 1992, Pirates general manager Ted Simmons agreed to a deal with Atlanta Braves counterpart John Schuerholz to trade Bonds, in exchange for Alejandro Peña, Keith Mitchell, and a player to be named later. Pirates manager Jim Leyland opposed the trade vehemently, and the proposal was rescinded. Bonds stayed with Pittsburgh and won his second MVP award that season. While hitting .311 with 34 homers and 103 RBIs, he propelled the Pirates to their third straight National League East division title. However, Pittsburgh was defeated by the Braves in a seven-game National League Championship Series. Bonds participated in the final play of Game 7 of the NLCS, whereby he fielded a base hit by Francisco Cabrera and attempted to throw out Sid Bream at home plate. But the throw to Pirates catcher Mike LaValliere was late and Bream scored the winning run. For the third consecutive season, the NL East Champion Pirates were denied a trip to the World Series. Following the loss, Bonds and star teammate Doug Drabek were expected to command salaries too high for Pittsburgh to again sign them. Bonds was never well-liked by reporters or fans while in Pittsburgh, despite winning two MVP awards. One paper even gave him an "award" as the "MDP" (Most Despised Pirate). In 1993, Bonds left the Pirates to sign a lucrative free agent contract worth a then-record $43.75 million (equivalent to $ million in ) over six years with the Giants, with whom his father had spent the first seven years of his career, and with whom his godfather Willie Mays played 22 of his 24 Major League seasons. The deal was at that time the largest in baseball history, in terms of both total value and average annual salary. Once he signed with the Giants, Bonds had intended to wear 24, his number during most of his stay with the Pirates, and after receiving Mays's blessing the Giants were willing to unretire it until the public commotion from fans and media became too much. To honor his father, Bonds switched his jersey number to 25, as it had been Bobby's number in San Francisco. Bonds hit .336 in 1993, leading the league with 46 home runs and 123 RBI en route to his second consecutive MVP award, and third overall. As good as the Giants were (winning 103 games), the Atlanta Braves won 104 in what some call the last great pennant race (because the wild card was instituted shortly thereafter). In the lockout-shortened season of 1994, Bonds hit .312 with 37 home runs and a league-leading 74 walks, and he finished 4th in MVP voting. In 1995, Bonds hit 33 homers and drove in 104 runs, hitting .294 but finished only 12th in MVP voting. In 1994, he appeared in a small role as himself in the television film Jane's House, starring James Woods and Anne Archer. In 1996, Bonds became the first National League player and second (of the current list of four) major league player(s) to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in the same season. The other members of the 40–40 club are José Canseco–1988, Alex Rodriguez–1998, and Alfonso Soriano–2006; his father Bobby Bonds was one home run short in 1973 when he hit 39 home runs and stole 43 bases. Bonds hit his 300th and 301st home runs off the Florida Marlins' John Burkett on April 27. He became the fourth player in history to join the 300–300 club with 300 stolen bases and 300 home runs for a career, joining Willie Mays, Andre Dawson, and his father. Bonds's totals for the season included 129 runs driven in, a .308 average and a then-National League record 151 walks. He finished fifth in the MVP balloting. In 1997, Bonds hit .291, his lowest average since 1989. He hit 40 home runs for the second straight year and drove in 101 runs, leading the league in walks again with 145. He tied his father in 1997 for having the most 30/30 seasons, and he again placed fifth in the MVP balloting. With two outs in the 9th inning of a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 28, 1998, Bonds became only the fifth player in baseball history to be given an intentional walk with the bases loaded. Nap Lajoie (1901), Del Bissonette (1928) and Bill Nicholson (1944) were three others in the 20th century who received that rare honor. The first to receive one was Abner Dalrymple in 1881. On August 23, Bonds hit his 400th career home run. By doing so, he became the first player ever to enter the 400–400 club by having career totals of 400 home runs and 400 stolen bases; he is still the only player to have achieved this feat. The milestone home run came off Kirt Ojala, who, like Burkett, was pitching for the Marlins. For the season, he hit .303 with 37 home runs and drove in 122 runs, winning his eighth Gold Glove, He finished 8th in the MVP voting. 1999 marked a career low, up to that point, for Bonds in terms of playing time. Bonds started off the 1999 season hitting well by batting .366 in the month of April with 4 home runs and 12 RBIs in the Giants first 12 games of the season. But on April 18 he was placed on the 15-day disabled list for only the 2nd time in his career up to that point. Bonds had suffered a torn tendon in his bicep as well as bone spurs in his elbow, both of which required surgery and cost him the rest of April and all of May. Upon returning to action on June 9, Bonds struggled somewhat at the plate for the remainder of the 1999 season. A series of nagging injuries including elbow pain, knee inflammation and groin issues hampered his play. Only hitting .248 after his return from the disabled list, he still managed to slug 34 home runs, drive in 83 runs as well as hit for a .617 slugging percentage, despite missing nearly two full months with injuries and only playing in 102 games. Bill James ranked Bonds as the best player of the 1990s. He added that the decade's second-best player, Craig Biggio, had been closer in production to the decade's 10th-best player than to Bonds. In 1999, with statistics through 1997 being considered, Bonds ranked Number 34 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, making him the highest-ranking active player. When the Sporting News list was redone in 2005, Bonds was ranked 6th behind Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, and Hank Aaron. Bonds was omitted from 1999's Major League Baseball All-Century Team, to which Ken Griffey, Jr. was elected. James wrote of Bonds, "Certainly the most unappreciated superstar of my lifetime. ... Griffey has always been more popular, but Bonds has been a far, far greater player." In 1999, he rated Bonds as the 16th-best player of all time. "When people begin to take in all of his accomplishments", he predicted, "Bonds may well be rated among the five greatest players in the history of the game." In 2000, the following year, Bonds hit .306 with career bests through that time in both slugging percentage (.688) and home runs (49) in just 143 games. He also drew a league-leading 117 walks. The next year, Bonds's offensive production reached even higher levels, breaking not only his own personal records but several major league records. In the Giants' first 50 games in 2001, he hit 28 home runs, including 17 in May—a career high. This early stretch included his 500th home run hit on April 17 against Terry Adams of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also hit 39 home runs by the All-star break (a major league record), drew a major league record 177 walks, and had a .515 on-base average, a feat not seen since Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams over forty years earlier. Bonds's slugging percentage was a major league record .863 (411 total bases in 476 at-bats), and, most impressively, he ended the season with a major league record 73 home runs. On October 4, by homering off Wilfredo Rodríguez in the 159th game of the season, Bonds tied the previous record of 70 set by Mark McGwire – which McGwire set in the 162nd game in 1998. He then hit numbers 71 and 72 the following night off Chan Ho Park. Bonds added his 73rd off Dennis Springer on October 7. The ball was later sold to toy manufacturer Todd McFarlane for $450,000. He previously bought Mark McGwire's 70th home run ball from 1998. Bonds received the Babe Ruth Home Run Award for leading MLB in homers that season. Bonds re-signed with the Giants for a five-year, $90 million contract in January 2002. He hit five home runs in the Giants' first four games of the season, tying Lou Brock's 35-year record for most home runs after four games. He won the NL batting title with a career-high .370 average and struck out only 47 times. He hit 46 home runs in 403 at-bats. Despite playing in nine fewer games than the previous season, he drew 198 walks, a major-league record; 68 of them were intentional walks, surpassing Willie McCovey's 45 in 1969 for another Major League record. He slugged .799, then the fourth-highest total all time. Bonds broke Ted Williams' major league record for on-base average with .582. Bonds also hit his 600th home run, less than a year and a half after hitting his 500th. The home run came on August 9 at home against Kip Wells of the Pirates. Bonds batted .322 with 8 home runs, 16 RBI, and 27 walks in the postseason en route to the 2002 World Series, which the Giants lost 4–3 to the Anaheim Angels. In 2003, Bonds played in just 130 games. He hit 45 home runs in just 390 at- bats, along with a .341 batting average. He slugged .749, walked 148 times, and had an on-base average well over .500 (.529) for the third straight year. He also became the only member of the career 500 home run/500 stolen base club by stealing second base on June 23 off of pitcher Éric Gagné in the 11th inning of a tied ball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers (against whom Bonds had tallied his 500th home run). Bonds scored the game-winning run later that inning. In 2004, Bonds had perhaps his best season. He hit .362 en route to his second National League batting title, and broke his own record by walking 232 times. He slugged .812, which was fourth-highest of all time, and broke his on-base percentage record with a .609 average. Bonds passed Mays on the career home run list by hitting his 661st off of Ben Ford on April 13. He then hit his 700th off of Jake Peavy on September 17. Bonds hit 45 home runs in 373 at- bats, and struck out just 41 times, putting himself in elite company, as few major leaguers have ever had more home runs than strikeouts in a season. Bonds would win his fourth consecutive MVP award and his seventh overall. His seven MVP awards are four more than any other player in history. In addition, no other player from either league has been awarded the MVP four times in a row. (The MVP award was first given in 1931). The 40-year-old Bonds also broke Willie Stargell's 25-year record as the oldest player to win a Most Valuable Player Award (Stargell, at 39 years, 8 months, was National League co-MVP with Keith Hernandez in 1979). On July 4, he tied and passed Rickey Henderson's career bases on balls record with his 2190th and 2191st career walks. As Bonds neared Aaron's record, Aaron was called on for his opinion of Bonds. He clarified that he was a fan and admirer of Bonds and avoided the controversy regarding whether the record should be denoted with an asterisk for Bonds's alleged steroid usage. He felt recognition and respect for the award was something to be determined by the fans. As the steroid controversy received greater media attention during the offseason before the 2005 season, Aaron expressed some reservations about the statements Bonds made on the issue. Aaron expressed that he felt drug and steroid use to boost athletic performance was inappropriate. Aaron was frustrated that the media could not focus on events that occurred in the field of play and wished drugs or gambling allegations such as those associated with Pete Rose could be emphasized less. In 2007, Aaron felt the whole steroid use issue was very controversial and decided that he would not attend any possible record- breaking games. Aaron congratulated Bonds through the media including a video played on the scoreboard when Bonds eventually broke Aaron's record in August 2007. Bonds's salary for the 2005 season was $22 million, the second-highest salary in Major League Baseball (the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez earned the highest, $25.2 million). Bonds endured a knee injury, multiple surgeries, and rehabilitation. He was activated on September 12 and started in left field. In his return against the San Diego Padres, he nearly hit a home run in his first at-bat. Bonds finished the night 1-for-4. Upon his return, Bonds resumed his high-caliber performance at the plate, hitting home runs in four consecutive games from September 18 to 21 and finishing with five homers in only 14 games. In 2006, Bonds earned $20 million (not including bonuses), the fourth highest salary in baseball. Through the 2006 season he had earned approximately $172 million during his then 21-year career, making him baseball's all-time highest paid player. Bonds hit under .200 for his first 10 games of the season and did not hit a home run until April 22. This 10-game stretch was his longest home run slump since the 1998 season. On May 7, Bonds drew within one home run of tying Babe Ruth for second place on the all-time list, hitting his 713th career home run into the second level of Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, off pitcher Jon Lieber in a game in which the Giants lost to the Philadelphia Phillies. The towering home run—one of the longest in Citizens Bank Park's two-season history, traveling an estimated 450 feet (140 m)—hit off the facade of the third deck in right field. On May 20, Bonds tied Ruth, hitting his 714th career home run to deep right field to lead off the top of the 2nd inning. The home run came off left-handed pitcher Brad Halsey of the Oakland A's, in an interleague game played in Oakland, California. Since this was an interleague game at an American League stadium, Bonds was batting as the designated hitter in the lineup for the Giants. Bonds was quoted after the game as being "glad it's over with" and stated that more attention could be focused on Albert Pujols, who was on a very rapid home run pace in early 2006. On May 28, Bonds passed Ruth, hitting his 715th career home run to center field off Colorado Rockies pitcher Byung-hyun Kim. The ball was hit an estimated 445 feet (140 m) into center field where it went through the hands of several fans but then fell onto an elevated platform in center field. Then it rolled off the platform where Andrew Morbitzer, a 38-year-old San Francisco resident, caught the ball while he was in line at a concession stand. Mysteriously, radio broadcaster Dave Flemming's radio play-by-play of the home run went silent just as the ball was hit, apparently from a microphone failure. But the televised version, called by Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper, was not affected. On September 22, Bonds tied Henry Aaron's National League career home run record of 733. The home run came in the top of the 6th inning of a high-scoring game against the Milwaukee Brewers, at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The achievement was notable for its occurrence in the very city where Aaron began (with the Milwaukee Braves) and concluded (with the Brewers, then in the American League) his career. With the Giants trailing 10–8, Bonds hit a blast to deep center field on a 2–0 pitch off the Brewers' Chris Spurling with runners on first and second and one out. Though the Giants were at the time clinging to only a slim chance of making the playoffs, Bonds's home run provided the additional drama of giving the Giants an 11–10 lead late in a critical game in the final days of a pennant race. The Brewers eventually won the game, 13–12, though Bonds went 3 for 5, with 2 doubles, the record-tying home run, and 6 runs batted in. On September 23, Bonds surpassed Aaron for the NL career home run record. Hit in Milwaukee like the previous one, this was a solo home run off Chris Capuano of the Brewers. This was the last home run Bonds hit in 2006. In 2006, Bonds recorded his lowest slugging percentage (a statistic that he has historically ranked among league leaders season after season) since 1991 with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In January 2007, the New York Daily News reported that Bonds had tested positive for amphetamines. Under baseball's amphetamine policy, which had been in effect for one season, players testing positive were to submit to six additional tests and undergo treatment and counseling. The policy also stated that players were not to be identified for a first positive test, but the New York Daily News leaked the test's results. When the Players Association informed Bonds of the test results, he initially attributed it to a substance he had taken from the locker of Giants teammate Mark Sweeney, but would later retract this claim and publicly apologize to Sweeney. On January 29, 2007, the Giants finalized a contract with Bonds for the 2007 season. After the commissioner's office rejected Bonds's one-year, $15.8 million deal because it contained a personal-appearance provision, the team sent revised documents to his agent, Jeff Borris, who stated that "At this time, Barry is not signing the new documents." Bonds signed a revised one- year, $15.8 million contract on February 15 and reported to the Giants' Spring training camp on time. Bonds resumed his march to the all-time record early in the 2007 season. In the season opener on April 3rd, all he had was a first- inning single past third base with the infield shifted right, immediately followed by a stolen base and then thrown out at home on a base-running mistake, followed by a deep fly-out to left field, late in the game. Bonds regrouped the next day with his first at-bat in the second game of the season at the Giants' AT&T; Park. Bonds hit a pitch from Chris Young of the San Diego Padres just over the wall to the left of straightaway center field for career home run 735. This home run put Bonds past the midway point between Ruth and Aaron. Bonds did not homer again until April 13, when he hit two (736 and 737) in a 3 for 3 night that included 4 RBI against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bonds splashed a pitch by St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Ryan Franklin into McCovey Cove on April 18 for home run 738. Home runs number 739 and 740 came in back to back games on April 21 and 22 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The hype surrounding Bonds's pursuit of the home run record escalated on May 14. On this day, Sports Auction for Heritage (a Dallas-based auction house) offered US$1 million to the fan who would catch Bonds's record-breaking 756th-career home run. The million dollar offer was rescinded on June 11 out of concern of fan safety. Home run 748 came on Father's Day, June 17, in the final game of a 3-game road series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, where Bonds had never previously played. With this homer, Fenway Park became the 36th major league ballpark in which Bonds had hit a home run. He hit a Tim Wakefield knuckleball just over the low fence into the Giant's bullpen in right field. It was his first home run off his former Pittsburgh Pirate teammate, who became the 441st different pitcher to surrender a four-bagger to Bonds. The 750th career home run, hit on June 29, also came off a former teammate: Liván Hernández. The blast came in the 8th inning and at that point tied the game at 3–3. On July 19, after a 21 at-bat hitless streak, Bonds hit 2 home runs, numbers 752 and 753, against the Chicago Cubs. He went 3–3 with 2 home runs, 6 RBIs, and a walk on that day. The struggling last place Giants still lost the game, 9–8. On July 27, Bonds hit home run 754 against Florida Marlins pitcher Rick VandenHurk. Bonds was then walked his next 4 at-bats in the game, but a 2-run shot helped the Giants win the game 12–10. It marked the first time since he had hit #747 that Bonds had homered in a game the Giants won. On August 4, Bonds hit a 382 foot (116 m) home run against Clay Hensley of the San Diego Padres for home run number 755, tying Hank Aaron's all-time record. Bonds greeted his son, Nikolai, with an extended bear hug after crossing home plate. Bonds greeted his teammates and then his wife, Liz Watson, and daughter Aisha Lynn behind the backstop. Hensley was the 445th different pitcher to give up a home run to Bonds. Ironically, given the cloud of suspicion that surrounded Bonds, the tying home run was hit off a pitcher who had been suspended by baseball in 2005 for steroid use. He was walked in his next at bat and eventually scored on a fielder's choice. On August 7 at 8:51 PM PDT, at Oracle Park (then known as AT&T; Park) in San Francisco, Bonds hit a 435 foot (133 m) home run, his 756th, off a pitch from Mike Bacsik of the Washington Nationals, breaking the all-time career home run record, formerly held by Hank Aaron. Coincidentally, Bacsik's father had faced Aaron (as a pitcher for the Texas Rangers) after Aaron had hit his 755th home run. On August 23, 1976, Michael J. Bacsik held Aaron to a single and a fly out to right field. The younger Bacsik commented later, "If my dad had been gracious enough to let Hank Aaron hit a home run, we both would have given up 756." After hitting the home run, Bonds gave Bacsik an autographed bat. The pitch, the seventh of the at-bat, was a 3–2 pitch which Bonds hit into the right- center field bleachers. The fan who ended up with the ball, 22-year-old Matt Murphy from Queens, New York (and a Mets fan), was promptly protected and escorted away from the mayhem by a group of San Francisco police officers. After Bonds finished his home run trot, a ten-minute delay followed, including a brief video by Aaron congratulating Bonds on breaking the record Aaron had held for 33 years, and expressing the hope that "the achievement of this record will inspire others to chase their own dreams." Bonds made an impromptu emotional statement on the field, with Willie Mays, his godfather, at his side and thanked his teammates, family and his late father. Bonds sat out the rest of the game. The commissioner, Bud Selig, was not in attendance in this game but was represented by the Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations, Jimmie Lee Solomon. Selig called Bonds later that night to congratulate him on breaking the record. President George W. Bush also called Bonds the next day to congratulate him. On August 24, San Francisco honored and celebrated Bonds's career accomplishments and breaking the home run record with a large rally in Justin Herman Plaza. The rally included video messages from Lou Brock, Ernie Banks, Ozzie Smith, Joe Montana, Wayne Gretzky and Michael Jordan. Speeches were made by Willie Mays, Giants teammates Omar Vizquel and Rich Aurilia, and Giants owner Peter Magowan. Mayor Gavin Newsom presented Bonds the key to the City and County of San Francisco and Giants vice president Larry Baer gave Bonds the home plate he touched after hitting his 756th career home run. The record-setting ball was consigned to an auction house on August 21. Bidding began on August 28 and closed with a winning bid of US$752,467 on September 15 after a three phase online auction. The high bidder, fashion designer Marc Ecko, created a website to let fans decide its fate. Subsequently, Ben Padnos, who submitted the (US) $186,750 winning bid on Bonds's record-tying 755th home run ball also set up a website to let fans decide its fate. Of Ecko's plans, Bonds said "He spent $750,000 on the ball and that's what he's doing with it? What he's doing is stupid." 10 million voters helped Ecko decide to brand the ball with an asterisk and send it to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Padnos sold 5-year ads on a website, www.endthedebate.com, where people voted by a two-to-one margin to smash the ball. Bonds concluded the 2007 season with a .276 batting average, 28 home runs, and 66 RBIs in 126 games and 340 at bats. At the age of 43, he led both leagues in walks with 132. On September 21, 2007, the San Francisco Giants confirmed that they would not re-sign Bonds for the 2008 season. The story was first announced on Bonds's own web site earlier that day. Bonds officially filed for free agency on October 29, 2007. His agent Jeff Borris said: "I'm anticipating widespread interest from every Major League team." There was much speculation before the 2008 season about where Bonds might play. However, no one signed him during the 2008 or 2009 seasons. If he had returned to Major League Baseball, Bonds would have been within close range of several significant hitting milestones: needing just 65 hits to reach 3,000, 4 runs batted in to reach 2,000, and 38 home runs to reach 800. He would have needed 69 more runs scored to move past Rickey Henderson as the all-time runs champion, and 37 extra base hits to move past Hank Aaron as the all-time extra base hits champion. As of November 13, 2009, Borris maintained that Bonds was still not retired. On December 9, however, Borris told the San Francisco Chronicle that Bonds had played his last major league game. Bonds announced on April 11, 2010, that he was proud of McGwire for admitting his use of steroids. Bonds said that it was not the time to retire, but he noted that he was not in shape to play immediately if an interested club called him. In May 2015, Bonds filed a grievance against Major League Baseball through the players' union arguing that the league colluded in not signing him after the 2007 season. In August 2015, an arbitrator ruled in favor of MLB and against Bonds in his collusion case. On December 15, 2011, Bonds was sentenced to 30 days of house arrest, two years of probation and 250 hours of community service, for an obstruction of justice conviction stemming from a grand jury appearance in 2003. However, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston then delayed the sentence pending an appeal. In 2013 his conviction was upheld on appeal by a three judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. However, the full court later granted Bonds an en banc rehearing, and on April 22, 2015, an 11-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit voted 10-1 to overturn his conviction. On March 10, 2014, Bonds began a seven-day stint as a roving spring training instructor for the Giants. On December 4, 2015, he was announced as the new hitting coach for the Miami Marlins, but was relieved of his duties on October 3, 2016, after just one season. He followed up with a public thank-you letter, acknowledging owner Jeffrey Loria, and the opportunity as "one of the most rewarding experiences of my baseball career." In 2017, Bonds officially rejoined the Giants organization as a special advisor to the CEO. On July 8, 2017, Bonds was added to the Giants Wall of Fame. In his first six years of eligibility for induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Bonds received 36.2%, 34.7%, 36.8%, 44.3%, 53.8%, and 56.4% of the vote, all short of the 75% needed for induction. On February 6, 2018, the San Francisco Giants announced their intentions to retire his number 25 jersey, which happened on August 11, 2018. His number 24 with the Pirates remains in circulation, most prominently worn by Brian Giles from 1999 to 2003 and by Pedro Alvarez from 2011 to 2015. During his playing career, Bonds was frequently described as a difficult person, surly, standoffish and ungrateful. However, in one interview with Terence Moore in 2016, he acknowledged regret over the persona which he had created. He attributed it to a response to the pressure he felt to perform as a young player with the Pirates. Remarked Bonds, Bonds reports that for a short time during his playing days with the Giants he changed his demeanor at the behest of a group of teammates, resulting in him smiling much more frequently and engaging more with others with a pleasant attitude. Shortly thereafter, Bonds says, in the midst of a slump, the same group of teammates pleaded that he revert, having seemingly lost his competitive edge, and causing the team to lose more. In spite of his protest that they would not appreciate the results, his teammates insisted. Bonds says he complied, maintaining that familiar standoffish edge the rest of his playing career. Since 2003, Bonds has been a key figure in the Bay Area Laboratory Co- operative (BALCO) scandal. BALCO marketed tetrahydrogestrinone ("the Clear"), a performance-enhancing anabolic steroid that was undetectable by doping tests. He was under investigation by a federal grand jury regarding his testimony in the BALCO case, and was indicted on perjury and obstruction of justice charges on November 15, 2007. The indictment alleges that Bonds lied while under oath about his alleged use of steroids. In 2003, Bonds first became embroiled in a scandal when Greg Anderson of the Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO), Bonds's trainer since 2000, was indicted by a federal grand jury in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California and charged with supplying anabolic steroids to athletes, including a number of baseball players. This led to speculation that Bonds had used performance-enhancing drugs during a time when there was no mandatory testing in Major League Baseball. Bonds declared his innocence, attributing his changed physique and increased power to a strict regimen of bodybuilding, diet, and legitimate supplements. During grand jury testimony on December 4, 2003, Bonds said that he used a clear substance and a cream that he received from his personal strength trainer, Greg Anderson, who told him they were the nutritional supplement flaxseed oil and a rubbing balm for arthritis. This testimony, as reported by Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada, has frequently been misrepresented. Later reports on Bonds's leaked grand-jury testimony contend that he admitted to unknowingly using "the cream" and "the clear". In July 2005, all four defendants in the BALCO steroid scandal trial, including Anderson, struck deals with federal prosecutors that did not require them to reveal names of athletes who may have used banned drugs. On November 15, 2007, Bonds was indicted on four counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice as it relates to the government investigation of BALCO. On February 14, 2008, a typo in court papers filed by Federal prosecutors erroneously alleged that Bonds tested positive for steroids in November 2001, a month after hitting his record 73rd home run. The reference was meant instead to refer to a November 2000 test that had already been disclosed and previously reported. The typo sparked a brief media frenzy. His trial for obstruction of justice was to have begun on March 2, 2009, but jury selection was postponed by 11th-hour appeals by the prosecution. The trial commenced on March 21, 2011, in U. S. District Court, Northern District of California, with Judge Susan Illston presiding. He was convicted on April 13, 2011, on the obstruction of justice charge, for giving an evasive answer to a question under oath. His sentence did not include prison. The conviction was initially upheld by a three judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in 2013, but a larger panel of the court voted 10-1 to overturn the conviction on April 22, 2015. Bonds withdrew from the MLB Players Association's (MLBPA) licensing agreement because he felt independent marketing deals would be more lucrative for him. Bonds is the first player in the thirty-year history of the licensing program not to sign. Because of this withdrawal, his name and likeness are not usable in any merchandise licensed by the MLBPA. In order to use his name or likeness, a company must deal directly with Bonds. For this reason he does not appear in some baseball video games, forcing game-makers to create generic athletes to replace him. For example, Bonds is replaced by "Jon Dowd" in MVP Baseball 2005. In March 2006 the book Game of Shadows, written by Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada, was released amid a storm of media publicity including the cover of Sports Illustrated. Initially small excerpts of the book were released by the authors in the issue of Sports Illustrated. The book alleges Bonds used stanozolol and a host of other steroids, and is perhaps most responsible for the change in public opinion regarding Bonds's steroid use. The book contained excerpts of grand jury testimony that is supposed to be sealed and confidential by law. The authors have been steadfast in their refusal to divulge their sources and at one point faced jail time. On February 14, 2007, Troy Ellerman, one of Victor Conte's lawyers, pleaded guilty to leaking grand jury testimony. Through the plea agreement, he will spend two and a half years in jail. In May 2006, former Sports Illustrated writer Jeff Pearlman released a revealing biography of Bonds entitled Love Me, Hate Me: Barry Bonds and the Making of an Anti-Hero. The book also contained many allegations against Bonds. The book, which describes Bonds as a polarizing insufferable braggart with a legendary ego and staggering ability, relied on over five hundred interviews, except with Bonds himself. In April 2006 and May 2006, ESPN aired a few episodes of a 10-part reality TV (unscripted, documentary-style) series starring Bonds. The show, titled Bonds on Bonds, focused on Bonds's chase of Babe Ruth's and Hank Aaron's home run records. Some felt the show should be put on hiatus until baseball investigated Bonds's steroid use allegations. The series was canceled in June 2006, ESPN and producer Tollin/Robbins Productions citing "creative control" issues with Bonds and his representatives. Bonds met Susann ("Sun") Margreth Branco, the mother of his first two children (Nikolai and Shikari), in Montreal, Quebec in August 1987. They eloped to Las Vegas February 5, 1988. The couple separated in June 1994, divorced in December 1994, and had their marriage annulled in 1997 by the Catholic Church. The divorce was a media affair because Bonds had his Swedish spouse sign a prenuptial agreement in which she "waived her right to a share of his present and future earnings" and which was upheld. Bonds had been providing his wife $20,000/month in child support and $10,000 in spousal support at the time of the ruling. During the hearings to set permanent support levels, allegations of abuse came from both parties. The trial dragged on for months, but Bonds was awarded both houses and reduced support. On August 21, 2000, the Supreme Court of California, in an opinion signed by Chief Justice Ronald M. George, unanimously held that "substantial evidence supports the determination of the trial court that the [prenuptial] agreement in the present case was entered into voluntarily." In reaction to the decision, significant changes in California law relating to the validity and enforceability of premarital agreements soon followed. In 2010, Bonds's son Nikolai, who served as a Giants batboy during his father's years playing in San Francisco and always sat next to his dad in the dugout during games, was charged with five misdemeanors resulting from a confrontation with his mother, Sun. Barry accompanied him to San Mateo County Superior Court. After the end of his first marriage, Bonds had an extensive intimate relationship with Kimberly Bell from 1994 through May 2003. Bonds purchased a home in Scottsdale, Arizona for Kimberly. On January 10, 1998, Bonds married his second wife, Liz Watson, at the San Francisco Ritz-Carlton Hotel in front of 240 guests. The couple lived in Los Altos Hills, California, with their daughter Aisha during their ten-and-a-half years of marriage before Watson filed for legal separation on June 9, 2009, citing irreconcilable differences. On July 21, 2009, just six weeks later, Watson announced that she was withdrawing her Legal Separation action. The couple were reconciled for seven months before Watson formally filed for divorce in Los Angeles on February 26, 2010. On June 6, 2011, Bonds and Watson filed a legal agreement not to take the divorce to trial and instead settle it in an "uncontested manner", effectively agreeing to take the proceedings out of the public eye and end the marriage privately at an unspecified later date without further court involvement. Several of Bonds's family and extended family members have been involved in athletics as either a career or a notable pastime. Bonds has a younger brother, Bobby, Jr., who was also a professional baseball player. His paternal aunt, Rosie Bonds, is a former American record holder in the 80 meter hurdles, and competed in the 1964 Olympics. In addition, he is a distant cousin of Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson. Among Bonds's many real estate properties is a home he owns in the exclusive gated community of Beverly Park in Beverly Hills, California. An avid cyclist, Bonds chose the activity to be a primary means of keeping in shape and great passion since his playing career. Because knee surgeries, back surgeries, and hip surgeries made it much more difficult to run, cycling has allowed him to engage in sufficient cardiovascular activity to help keep in shape. As a result of the cycling, he has lost 25 pounds from his final playing weight of 240 pounds. Besides holding Major League career records in home runs (762), walks (2,558), and intentional walks (688), at the time of his retirement, Bonds also led all active players in RBI (1,996), on-base percentage (.444), runs (2,227), games (2,986), extra-base hits (1,440), at-bats per home run (12.92), and total bases (5,976). He is 2nd in doubles (601), slugging percentage (.607), stolen bases (514), at-bats (9,847), and hits (2,935), 6th in triples (77), 8th in sacrifice flies (91), and 9th in strikeouts (1,539), through September 26, 2007. Bonds is the lone member of the 500–500 club, which means he has hit at least 500 home runs (762) and stolen at least 500 bases (514); no other player has even 400 of both. He is also one of only four baseball players all-time to be in the 40–40 club (1996), which means he hit 40 home runs (42) and stole 40 bases (40) in the same season; the other members are José Canseco, Alex Rodriguez, and Alfonso Soriano. Home runs in a single season (73), 2001, Home runs (career) (762), Home runs against different pitchers (449), Home runs since turning 40 years old (74), Home runs in the year he turned 43 years old (28), Consecutive seasons with 30 or more home runs (13), 1992–2004, Slugging percentage in a single season (.863), 2001, Slugging percentage in a World Series (1.294), 2002, Consecutive seasons with .600 slugging percentage or higher (8), 1998–2005, On-base percentage in a single season (.609), 2004, Walks in a single season (232), 2004, Intentional walks in a single season (120), 2004, Consecutive games with a walk (18), MVP awards (7—closest competitors trail with 3), 1990, 1992–93, 2001–04, Consecutive MVP awards (4), 2001–04, National League Player of the Month selections (13) (2nd place, either league, Frank Thomas, 8; 2nd place, N.L., George Foster, Pete Rose, and Dale Murphy, 6), Oldest player (age 38) to win the National League batting title (.370) for the first time, 2002 Consecutive plate appearances with a walk (7), Consecutive plate appearances reaching base (15), Tied with his father, Bobby, for most seasons with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases (5); they are the only father-son members of the 30–30 club, Home runs in a single post-season (8), 2002 Awards & distinctions 5-time SF Giants Player of the Year (1998, 2001–04), 3-Time NL Hank Aaron Award winner (2001–02, 2004), Listed at #6 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the highest-ranked active player, in 2005., Named a finalist to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999, but not elected to the team in the fan balloting., Rating of 352 on Baseball-Reference.com's Hall of Fame monitor (100 is a good HOF candidate); 9th among all hitters, highest among hitters not in HOF yet., Only the second player to twice have a single-season slugging percentage over .800, with his record .863 in 2001 and .812 in 2004. Babe Ruth was the other, with .847 in 1920 and .846 in 1921., Became the first player in history with more times on base (376) than official at-bats (373) in 2004. This was due to the record number of walks, which count as a time on base and as a plate appearance, but not an at-bat. He had 135 hits, 232 walks, and 9 hit-by-pitches for the 376 number., With his father Bobby (332, 461), leads all father-son combinations in combined home runs (1,094) and stolen bases (975), respectively through September 26, 2007., Played minor league baseball in both Alaska and Hawaii. In 1983, he played for the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks in the Alaska Baseball League, and in 1986, he played for the Hawaii Islanders in the Pacific Coast League., Featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. He has appeared as the main subject on the cover eight times in total; seven with the Giants and once with the Pirates. He has also appeared in an inset on the cover twice. He was the most recent Pirate player to appear on the cover, until Jason Grilli was featured in SIs edition of July 22, 2013. 30–30 club, 40–40 club, 50 home run club, 500 home run club, List of Major League Baseball annual runs batted in leaders, List of Major League Baseball annual home run leaders, List of Major League Baseball annual runs scored leaders, List of Major League Baseball batting champions, List of Major League Baseball career at-bat leaders, List of Major League Baseball career bases on balls leaders, List of Major League Baseball career doubles leaders, List of Major League Baseball career extra base hits leaders, List of Major League Baseball career games played leaders, List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders, List of Major League Baseball career hit by pitch leaders, List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders, List of Major League Baseball career on-base percentage leaders, List of Major League Baseball career OPS leaders, List of Major League Baseball career plate appearance leaders, List of Major League Baseball career records, List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders, List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders, List of Major League Baseball career slugging percentage leaders, List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders, List of Major League Baseball career strikeouts by batters leaders, List of Major League Baseball career total bases leaders, List of Major League Baseball doubles records, List of Major League Baseball home run records, List of Major League Baseball individual streaks, List of Major League Baseball progressive career home runs leaders, List of Major League Baseball progressive single-season home run leaders, List of Major League Baseball record breakers by season, List of Major League Baseball record holders, List of Major League Baseball runs batted in records, List of Major League Baseball runs records, List of Major League Baseball single-season records, List of milestone home runs by Barry Bonds, List of second-generation Major League Baseball players, List of Major League Baseball players named in the Mitchell Report, Major League Baseball titles leaders, Popov v. Hayashi Barry Bonds at SABR (Baseball BioProject), Barry Bonds at Baseball Almanac, Barry Bonds at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League), Barry Bonds, Bonds archive at Los Angeles Times This is a list of the top 300 Major League Baseball leaders in home runs hit. In the sport of baseball, a home run is a hit in which the batter scores by circling all the bases and reaching home plate in one play, without the benefit of a fielding error. This can be accomplished either by hitting the ball out of play while it is still in fair territory (a conventional home run), or by an inside-the-park home run. Barry Bonds holds the Major League Baseball home run record with 762. He passed Hank Aaron, who hit 755, on August 7, 2007. The only other player to have hit 700 or more is Babe Ruth with 714. Alex Rodriguez (696), Willie Mays (660), Albert Pujols (656), Ken Griffey, Jr. (630), Jim Thome (612), and Sammy Sosa (609) are the only other players to have hit 600 or more. Listed are all Major League Baseball players with 219 or more home runs hit during official regular season games (i.e., excluding playoffs or exhibition games). Players in bold face are active as of the 2019 Major League Baseball season (including free agents), with the number in parenthesis designating the number of home runs they have hit during the 2019 season. The last change in the cutoff for the top 300 occurred on August 15, 2019, when Freddie Freeman hit his 219th career home run, displacing Bob Horner and Mark Trumbo. Stats updated as of the 2019 season. 500 home run club, List of Major League Baseball progressive career home runs leaders, List of Major League Baseball single-game home run leaders MLB Official Career Home Run List, Active Leaders & Records for Home Runs John Franklin "Home Run" Baker (March 13, 1886 – June 28, 1963) was an American professional baseball player. A third baseman, Baker played in Major League Baseball from 1908 to 1922, for the Philadelphia Athletics and the New York Yankees. Although he never hit more than a dozen home runs in a season (Ned Williamson hit 27 in 1884) and only hit 93 homes in his career (Roger Connor hit 138), Baker has been called the "original home run king of the majors". Baker was a member of the Athletics' $100,000 infield. He helped the Athletics win the 1910, 1911 and 1913 World Series. After a contract dispute, the Athletics sold Baker to the Yankees, where he and Wally Pipp helped the Yankees' offense. Baker appeared with the Yankees in the 1921 and 1922 World Series, though the Yankees lost both series, before retiring. Baker led the American League in home runs from 1911 to 1914. He had a batting average over .300 in six seasons, had three seasons with more than 100 runs batted in, and two seasons with over 100 runs scored. Baker's legacy has grown over the years, and he is regarded by many as one of the best power hitters of the deadball era. During his 13 years as a major league player, Baker never played a single inning at any position other than third base. Baker was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1955. Baker was born on March 13, 1886, to Franklin Adams Baker and Mary Catherine (née Fitzhugh) on their farm in Trappe, Maryland. The Bakers, who were of English descent, had been farmers in Trappe for six generations. His mother, of Scottish descent, was reported to be a distant relative of Robert E. Lee. Baker enjoyed working on his father's farm, but he aspired to become a professional baseball player from the age of ten. In Trappe, most of the residents attended the local baseball team's games on Saturdays. Frank's older brother, Norman, was well known in the town for his playing ability. Norman once tried out for the Philadelphia Athletics, but he did not like that city and stopped pursuing a baseball career. Baker pitched for the local high school baseball team and worked as a clerk at a butcher shop and grocery store owned by relatives. He signed with a local semi-professional baseball team based in Ridgely, Maryland, in 1905, at the age of 19. The team, which was managed by Buck Herzog, paid him $5 per week ($ in current dollar terms) and covered his boarding costs. Herzog found that Baker could not pitch well, but that he could hit. Baker was unable to play the outfield well, but he was able to move into the infield as a third baseman for Ridgely. In 1906, Baker played for Sparrows Point Club in Baltimore, earning $15 per week ($ in current dollar terms). He received an offer to play for a team in the Class C Texas League in 1907, which he turned down. He instead signed with an independent team based in Cambridge, Maryland. A scout for the New York Giants of the National League noticed Baker while he was playing for Sparrows Point. They arranged for Baker to receive a tryout with the Baltimore Orioles of the Class A Eastern League late in the 1907 season. Playing in five games, Baker recorded two hits, both singles, in 15 at-bats. Orioles' manager Jack Dunn decided that Baker "could not hit", and Baker was released. In 1908, Baker began the season with the Reading Pretzels of the Class B Tri-State League. He had a .299 batting average in 119 games played, adding six home runs, 65 runs scored, and 23 stolen bases. Connie Mack, the manager of the Philadelphia Athletics, purchased Baker's contract in September 1908. In nine games, Baker batted .290 in 31 at-bats to close the 1908 season. Mack named Baker his starting third baseman for the 1909 season. That year, Mack established his "$100,000 infield", with Baker joined by first baseman Stuffy McInnis, second baseman Eddie Collins, and shortstop Jack Barry. He hit .305 with a .447 slugging percentage and four home runs for Philadelphia in 1909, including the first home run to go over the fence in right field of Shibe Park. His slugging percentage was fourth best in the American League, while his 85 runs batted in (RBIs) were third- best, and his 19 triples led the league. The Athletics improved by 27 wins over their 1908 record in 1909, but finished in second place behind the Detroit Tigers. In a late season series against the Tigers in 1909, Ty Cobb spiked Baker while sliding into third base, lacerating Baker's arm. Baker referred to the spiking as "deliberate" on the part of Cobb, while Mack called Cobb the dirtiest player he had seen, and asked American League president Ban Johnson to investigate. A photograph taken for The Detroit News vindicated Cobb, by showing that Baker had to reach across the base to reach Cobb. Though Baker remained in the game after wrapping his arm, he acquired a reputation for being weak and easily intimidated. Joe S. Jackson, a sportswriter for the Detroit Free Press, referred to Baker as a "soft-fleshed darling". In the 1910 season, Baker led the American League with 11 home runs in , and batted .344. Baker helped the Athletics win the 1910 World Series over the Chicago Cubs, four games to one, as he batted .409 in the five-game series. In the 1911 World Series, the Athletics faced off against the Giants. Based on Baker's past run-in with Cobb, Giants players believed they could intimidate him. Fred Snodgrass spiked Baker while sliding into third base in Game One, knocking the ball loose and requiring Baker to bandage his arm. In Game Two, Baker hit a go-ahead home run off Rube Marquard for an Athletics win. He hit a ninth- inning game-tying home run off Christy Mathewson in Game Three. Later in the game Snodgrass again attempted to spike Baker, but he was able to hold onto the ball and the Athletics won again. A six-day delay between games as a result of rain, which turned Shibe Park into a "virtual quagmire", allowed Baker's feats to be magnified by the Philadelphia press, during which time he began to be referred to by the nickname "Home Run". The Athletics defeated the Giants in six games, as Baker led the Athletics with a .375 batting average, nine hits and five RBIs in the series. Baker again led the American League in home runs in 1912, and led the league with 130 RBIs as well. But his Athletics finished in third place, and the Boston Red Sox defeated the Giants in an exciting eight-game World Series. In 1913, he again led the league with 12 home runs and 117 RBIs, but this time the Athletics defeated the Giants in the World Series, as Baker batted .450 with a home run and seven RBIs in the five games. He led the league in home runs for a fourth consecutive season in 1914, with nine, despite suffering from pleurisy during the season. He also batted .319 and added 89 RBIs, 10 triples and 19 stolen bases. Late in the season, Mack sent Baker, Collins and pitcher Chief Bender to scout the Boston Braves, their opponent in the 1914 World Series. Despite predictions that Philadelphia would win the series handily, the Braves defeated the Athletics four games to none, as Baker batted only .250. After the 1914 World Series, Mack began to sell off some of his best players not including Collins, to whom he had given a multiyear contract during the regular season to prevent him from jumping to the upstart Federal League. Baker, who had just completed the first year of a three-year contract, attempted to renegotiate his terms, but Mack refused. Baker sat out the entire 1915 season as a result of this contract dispute. He remained in baseball, playing for a team representing Upland, Pennsylvania, in the semi-professional Delaware County League. Pressured by American League president Ban Johnson, Mack sold Baker's contract in to the New York Yankees for $35,000 ($ in current dollar terms). Even though Baker reported to the Yankees with an injured finger, and he injured his knee during a game in May, he and Wally Pipp combined to form the center of the Yankees' batting order. Pipp led the American League in home runs with 12 in 1916; Baker finished second with 10, despite missing almost a third of the Yankees' games. Pipp hit nine home runs in 1917, again leading the league. Baker led the league with 141 games played in the season. The Yankees hit a league-leading 47 home runs that year, of which Baker hit ten. Sports cartoonist Robert Ripley, working for the New York Globe coined the term "Murderer's Row" to refer to the lineup of Baker, Pipp, Roger Peckinpaugh, and Ping Bodie. Baker sat out of baseball during the 1920 season, as his wife died of scarlet fever. His two daughters were also affected, but they were able to recover. Late in the 1920 season, Baker again played for Upland, and stated his desire to return to New York. He rejoined the Yankees in 1921, as the Yankees reached the World Series for the first time in franchise history. Missing the last six weeks of the 1921 season, Yankees' manager Miller Huggins started Mike McNally in his place. In the 1921 World Series, a best-of-nine series, Huggins opted to start McNally over Baker, though he wanted to be sure to take advantage of Baker's World Series experience. The Giants defeated the Yankees five games to three; Baker played in only four of the eight games, though McNally struggled to a .200 batting average. In the 1922 season, Baker played in 66 games. Overshadowed by Ruth as a home run hitter, Baker complained about the "rabbit ball", saying that the ball being used traveled much further than the ball used for the majority of his career. The Yankees again faced the Giants in the World Series, losing four games to none. Baker received only one at bat in the 1922 World Series. He finished his career as a Yankee with a .288 batting average, 48 home runs and 379 RBIs in 676 games. Following his retirement as a player, Baker managed the Easton Farmers of the Eastern Shore League during the 1924 and 1925 seasons. He was credited with discovering Jimmie Foxx and recommending him to Mack. After Baker sold Foxx to the Athletics, the Farmers fired Baker, because they believed Mack did not pay a high enough price for Foxx. Baker was a modest man who never drank, smoked, or swore. He returned to his Maryland farm every offseason, where he enjoyed duck hunting. While playing in Cambridge, Baker met Ottilie Tschantre, the daughter of a Swiss jeweler. They were married on November 12, 1909. Baker and his wife had twin babies in late January 1914. The babies were reported as doing well a couple of days later, but they died before they were two weeks old. The twins were initially reported as being a boy and a girl by The New York Times, but they were reported as twin girls by the same publication a few days later. After the 1919 season, his wife contracted scarlet fever and died. He remarried, to Margaret Mitchell, after leaving the Yankees. In addition to working on his farm, Baker served Trappe as a member of the Trappe Town Board, a tax collector, and a volunteer firefighter. He was also a director of the State Bank of Trappe. On June 28, 1963, Baker suffered a stroke and died. He was interred in Spring Hill Cemetery in Easton, Maryland. Though nicknamed "Home Run", Baker hit only 96 home runs in his career, and never more than 12 in a season as he played during the dead ball era . Walter Johnson referred to Baker as "the most dangerous batter I ever faced." Baseball historian Bill James rated the 1914 edition of the $100,000 infield as the greatest infield of all time, and also ranked the 1912 and 1913 editions in the top five of all time. In 1955, the Veterans Committee elected Baker into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the baseball hall of fame for Reading, Pennsylvania. Lawrence Ritter and Donald Honig included him in their 1981 book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time. In his 2001 book The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, Bill James ranked Baker the 70th greatest player of all time and the 5th greatest third baseman. Home Run Baker Park in his hometown of Trappe is named for him. List of Major League Baseball career triples leaders, List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle, List of Major League Baseball annual runs batted in leaders, List of Major League Baseball home run records, List of Major League Baseball annual home run leaders, List of Major League Baseball annual triples leaders, Major League Baseball titles leaders Sparks, Barry (2005). Frank "Home Run" Baker: Hall of Famer and World Series Hero. McFarland. ., Obituary via The Deadball Era , or Retrosheet

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Brent Pry (born April 1,1970), is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for the Penn State Nittany Lions. He played college football for the Buffalo Bulls. Brent was born in Altoona, Pennsylvania, the son of Altoona High graduates Jim and Kathy Pry. His father played college football at Marshall and is a long- time college coach. Brent a 1988 graduate of Lexington High in Lexington, Va., was an all-region quarterback and defensive back. Brent started his college career as a free safety at Division III, Maryville College in 1988, he later transferred to the Division III, University of Buffalo where he lettered in 1990. Suffering a career-ending injury in 1991, he returned as a student coach for the 1992 season. Brent began his coaching career in 1993 as the outside linebacker and defensive backs coach for the NCAA Division II, East Stroudsburg Warriors. Pry spent two seasons with the Warriors where his father Jim, served as the offensive coordinator and mentored future Penn State head coach and All-PSAC quarterback James Franklin. From 1995 to 1997 Pry served as a graduate assistant with Virginia Tech under defensive coordinator Bud Foster, where he helped the Hokies to three bowl games, including a win in the 1995 Sugar Bowl. Pry spent his next four seasons at FCS Western Carolina University. He coached the defensive line in 1998 and 1999, and defensive backs and special teams in 2000 and 2001. He also served as the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) liaison. Serving as the defensive coordinator at Louisiana-Lafayette from 2002 to 2006, helping the Ragin' Cajuns to their first Sun Belt Conference championship in 2005. As the defensive line coach for the Memphis Tigers from 2007 to 2009, Pry helped the Tigers to back-to-back bowl appearances and molded a defensive line in 2008 into one of the Conference USA's best. While serving as defensive coordinator at Georgia Southern in 2010, the Eagles finished ninth in total defense (286.93), 11th in scoring defense (18.47) and 11th in passing defense (159.93). His defensive unit helped the Eagles to a 10-5 overall record, that included a win over No. 1 Appalachian State and an appearance in the NCAA FCS semifinals. It also included a 31-15 victory over William & Mary in the second round of playoffs, that pitted Pry against future coaching mates Bob Shoop (DC) and David Corley Jr.(QBs). Pry tutored the Vanderbilt linebackers and was co-defensive coordinator from 2011-13. The linebackers led the team in tackles-for-loss during each of Pry's three seasons for the Commodores and he helped Chris Marve earn All-SEC accolades in 2011. As co-defensive coordinator for Penn State, Pry helped direct a unit that had back-to-back Top 15 finishes in total defense. For his efforts, Pry was a finalist for 2014 Football Scoop's Linebackers Coach of the Year. He helped Mike Hull earn the Big Ten Butkus-Fitzgerald Award, given to the conference's best linebacker and eight All-America honors in 2014. Hull led the Big Ten with 140 tackles, which also ranked 7th in the country and tied for fourth- most for a Nittany Lion in a single season. After the departure of defensive coordinator Bob Shoop, Pry was promoted to associate head coach and defensive coordinator on January 10, 2016. In his first season as defensive coordinator, Pry guiding a defense that finished 37th in FBS total defense (367.9), and helped the Nittany Lions to a Big Ten Championship despite a significant number of injuries to the linebacking corps. In 2017, the defense finished the regular season seventh in the nation and second in the Big Ten in scoring defense, averaging 15.5 points per game. Pry's defense also finished with a pair of shutout victories and only allowed more than 20 points in a game just three times. Seven times he saw his defense hold opponents scoreless in at least one half the game (Akron, Georgia State, Indiana, Northwestern, Michigan, Rutgers, Maryland). Penn State finished with an 11-2 record capped off by a Fiesta Bowl victory over the Washington Huskies. Three players were selected from the defense in the 2018 NFL Draft, safety Troy Apke in the fourth round (109th overall), safety Marcus Allen in the fifth round (148th overall) and cornerback Christian Campbell was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the sixth round (182nd overall).. In 2018, Pry's defense lead the country in sacks per game with 3.62 and finished fourth in tackles for loss with 8.2. The Penn State secondary had one of it's best seasons since 2014, finishing the season with 13 interceptions and allowing a 53.6 completion rate. The Nittany Lions also held three opponents to 60 or less yards through the air, this was the first time PSU had accomplished this feat since the 1976 season. Cornerback Amani Oruwariye and defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos made the All-Big Ten first team. Six additional players, from the defense, received all-conference recognition. Defensive end Shareef Miller, cornerback Amani Oruwariye and safety Nick Scott were selected in the 2019 NFL Draft. Date of Birth: April 1, 1970, Hometown: Altoona, Pa., Alma Mater: University of Buffalo 1993, Education: Bachelor's, History 1993, Family: wife, Amy; son, Colby, daughters, Madeline and Catherine Penn State profile Ricky Rahne (born July 19, 1980) is an American football player and coach who is currently the head coach for the Old Dominion Monarchs. He played college football for the Cornell Big Red. A native of Morrison, Colorado, Rahne attended Bear Creek High School in Lakewood, where he lettered in Football and track and field. During his senior season, Rahne led all Colorado quarterbacks with 3,114 passing yards for 33 touchdowns. He led his team to a 13-1 record, with their only defeat coming in the state championship game. Rahne remembers the successes: “My senior year in high school, we lost the state championship game, but we were ranked about 23rd in the nation.” Rahne was a three-year starting quarterback at Cornell University from 1999 to 2001. He left as Cornell's all-time leader in completions (678), passing yards (7,710), touchdown passes (54) and total offense (7,994). Rahne was named honorable mention All-America by Don Hansen's Football Gazette in 2000, was a two-time honorable-mention All-Ivy League pick and took home Cornell football's Most Valuable Player award three straight years. He was inducted into the Cornell Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014. Rahne spent the 2004 season as a defensive assistant at Holy Cross, primarily working with the defensive ends. Other important roles included coordinating the scout teams, breaking down opponents' game film and assisting the defensive coordinator in developing games plans. Cornell head coach Jim Knowles hired Rahne as the Big Red's running back coach in 2005. In 2006, Rahne served as an offensive graduate assistant at Kansas State under Head coach Ron Prince and Offensive coordinator James Franklin. Scott Frost served as a defensive graduate assistant for the Wildcats during the same period. In 2007, Rahne was promoted to running backs coach where he served for two seasons. In his new role, Rahne helped tutor All-Big 12 and NFL running back James Johnson, who became the fastest Wildcat to reach 1,000 yards in a season. After the firing of Ron Prince, Rahne was retained by Head coach Bill Snyder as the tight ends coach, a position he would hold for the 2009 and 2010 seasons. During this time, Rahne tutored first team All-Big 12 and NFL player Jeron Mastrud, who graduated as K-State’s all-time leader in receiving yards and receptions by a tight end. In December 2010, Rahne was hired away from Kansas State to lead the quarterbacks for James Franklin and the Vanderbilt Commodores. At the time of the hire Kansas State head coach Bill Snyder was quoted as saying, “I am proud of Ricky, He is a fine young coach and person. His desire was to become a quarterback coach and that opportunity presented itself at Vanderbilt. I am happy for him and his wonderful family.” It is a position he would hold for three successful seasons mentoring quarterbacks Jordan Rodgers and Austyn Carta-Samuels. Rodgers, under Rahne's guidance, finished 2012 season completing 60 percent of his passes for 2,539 yards, and 15 touchdowns to 5 interceptions. Following the season, Rodgers would sign a free agent deal with the NFL Jacksonville Jaguars. In 2013, Carta-Samuels would complete 68.7 percent of his passes and compile 2,383 yards of total offense, despite missing three games. Following coach James Franklin, Rahne spent the 2014 and 2015 seasons as the Penn State Nittany Lions quarterbacks coach. Working with quarterback Christian Hackenberg, Rahne helped him break all of the Nittany Lions major career passing records. Hackenberg finished his career with 693 completions, 8,457 passing yards, 48 touchdown passes, 9 career 300-yard passing games, and 21 200-yard passing games. After the final game of the 2015 regular season, John Donovan was fired as Penn States offensive coordinator, and replaced by Rahne as the interim to coach the TaxSlayer Bowl. During preparation for the bowl game, it was announced that ex-Fordham Head coach, Joe Moorhead would be taking over as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the 2016 season. Rahne took over as tight ends coach, a position that was previously held by Donovan. During his time as the tight ends coach Rahne mentored Mackey Award finalist Mike Gesicki as he broke the Penn State career record for receptions (123), receiving yards (1,419) and touchdowns (15) by a tight end. Gesicki was selected first-team All-Big Ten in 2017 and second team in 2016. Gesicki set single-season records at Penn State for receptions (51), receiving yards (679) and touchdown catches (9) by a tight end. On December 1, 2017, Rahne was named Penn States offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach after Joe Moorhead left the Nittany Lions to become the head coach at Mississippi State. In his first game as a full-time offensive coordinator, Rahne led Penn State's offense to a Fiesta Bowl record 545 yards of total offense in a 35-28 win over Washington. In 2018, Penn State saw its best rushing production in 10 years, averaging 204.9 yards per game. That was good enough to finish 29th nationally, and fifth in the Big Ten. That season the offensive line was led by center Connor McGovern, who was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2019 NFL Draft, and tackle Ryan Bates. Junior running back Miles Sanders, who was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2019 NFL Draft, rushed for over 1,200 yards and nine touchdowns. Senior quarterback Trace McSorley, who was drafted in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, passed for 2,284 yards and 16 toucdowns. He also ran for 723 yards and 11 scores. Both Sanders and McSorley earned second team All-Big Ten honors. Alma Mater: Cornell University 2002, Education: Bachelor's, Industrial and labor relations, Family: wife, Jennifer; sons, Ryder and Jake Old Dominion profile, Penn State profile, Cornell profile The 2010 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represented Rutgers University in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS college football season. The Scarlet Knights were led by head coach Greg Schiano in his 10th season. They played their home games at Rutgers Stadium and are members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 4–8, 1–6 in Big East play. During the October 16 game vs Army, defensive tackle Eric LeGrand suffered a spinal cord injury. He underwent emergency surgery to stabilize his spine at Hackensack University Medical Center. He is paralyzed from the neck down, but has regained sensation throughout his body, which might lead to a more complete recovery. This tragedy clearly affected the team's play: While they held on to defeat Army and raise their record to 4-2, when in the aftermath of that game the extent of LeGrand's injury became apparent, it contributed to sending RU into a funk that resulted in a six-game losing streak to end the season.

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The Battle of Marathon () took place in 490 BC during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens, aided by Plataea, and a Persian force commanded by Datis and Artaphernes. The battle was the culmination of the first attempt by Persia, under King Darius I, to subjugate Greece. The Greek army decisively defeated the more numerous Persians, marking a turning point in the Greco-Persian Wars. The first Persian invasion was a response to Athenian involvement in the Ionian Revolt, when Athens and Eretria had sent a force to support the cities of Ionia in their attempt to overthrow Persian rule. The Athenians and Eretrians had succeeded in capturing and burning Sardis, but they were then forced to retreat with heavy losses. In response to this raid, Darius swore to burn down Athens and Eretria. According to Herodotus, Darius had his bow brought to him and then shot an arrow "upwards towards heaven", saying as he did so: "Zeus, that it may be granted me to take vengeance upon the Athenians!" Herodotus further writes that Darius charged one of his servants to say "Master, remember the Athenians" three times before dinner each day. At the time of the battle, Sparta and Athens were the two largest city-states in Greece. Once the Ionian revolt was finally crushed by the Persian victory at the Battle of Lade in 494 BC, Darius began plans to subjugate Greece. In 490 BC, he sent a naval task force under Datis and Artaphernes across the Aegean, to subjugate the Cyclades, and then to make punitive attacks on Athens and Eretria. Reaching Euboea in mid-summer after a successful campaign in the Aegean, the Persians proceeded to besiege and capture Eretria. The Persian force then sailed for Attica, landing in the bay near the town of Marathon. The Athenians, joined by a small force from Plataea, marched to Marathon, and succeeded in blocking the two exits from the plain of Marathon. The Athenians also sent a message to the Spartans asking for support. When the messenger arrived in Sparta, the Spartans were involved in a religious festival and gave this as a reason for not coming to aid of the Athenians. The Athenians and their allies chose a location for the battle, with marshes and mountainous terrain, that prevented the Persian cavalry from joining the Persian infantry. Miltiades, the Athenian general, ordered a general attack against the Persian forces, composed primarily of missile troops. He reinforced his flanks, luring the Persians' best fighters into his centre. The inward wheeling flanks enveloped the Persians, routing them. The Persian army broke in panic towards their ships, and large numbers were slaughtered. The defeat at Marathon marked the end of the first Persian invasion of Greece, and the Persian force retreated to Asia. Darius then began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece; however, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, indefinitely postponing any Greek expedition. After Darius died, his son Xerxes I restarted the preparations for a second invasion of Greece, which finally began in 480 BC. The Battle of Marathon was a watershed in the Greco- Persian wars, showing the Greeks that the Persians could be beaten; the eventual Greek triumph in these wars can be seen to have begun at Marathon. The battle also showed the Greeks that they were able to win battles without the Spartans, as they had heavily relied on Sparta previously. This victory was largely due to the Athenians, and Marathon raised Greek esteem of them. The following two hundred years saw the rise of the Classical Greek civilization, which has been enduringly influential in western society and so the Battle of Marathon is often seen as a pivotal moment in Mediterranean and European history. The first Persian invasion of Greece had its immediate roots in the Ionian Revolt, the earliest phase of the Greco-Persian Wars. However, it was also the result of the longer-term interaction between the Greeks and Persians. In 500 BC the Persian Empire was still relatively young and highly expansionistic, but prone to revolts amongst its subject peoples. Moreover, the Persian King Darius was a usurper, and had spent considerable time extinguishing revolts against his rule. Even before the Ionian Revolt, Darius had begun to expand the empire into Europe, subjugating Thrace, and forcing Macedon to become a vassal of Persia. Attempts at further expansion into the politically fractious world of ancient Greece may have been inevitable. However, the Ionian Revolt had directly threatened the integrity of the Persian empire, and the states of mainland Greece remained a potential menace to its future stability. Darius thus resolved to subjugate and pacify Greece and the Aegean, and to punish those involved in the Ionian Revolt. The Ionian Revolt had begun with an unsuccessful expedition against Naxos, a joint venture between the Persian satrap Artaphernes and the Milesian tyrant Aristagoras. In the aftermath, Artaphernes decided to remove Aristagoras from power, but before he could do so, Aristagoras abdicated, and declared Miletus a democracy. The other Ionian cities followed suit, ejecting their Persian-appointed tyrants, and declaring themselves democracies. Aristagoras then appealed to the states of mainland Greece for support, but only Athens and Eretria offered to send troops. The involvement of Athens in the Ionian Revolt arose from a complex set of circumstances, beginning with the establishment of the Athenian Democracy in the late 6th century BC. In 510 BC, with the aid of Cleomenes I, King of Sparta, the Athenian people had expelled Hippias, the tyrant ruler of Athens. With Hippias's father Peisistratus, the family had ruled for 36 out of the previous 50 years and fully intended to continue Hippias's rule. Hippias fled to Sardis to the court of the Persian satrap, Artaphernes and promised control of Athens to the Persians if they were to help restore him. In the meantime, Cleomenes helped install a pro-Spartan tyranny under Isagoras in Athens, in opposition to Cleisthenes, the leader of the traditionally powerful Alcmaeonidae family, who considered themselves the natural heirs to the rule of Athens. Cleisthenes, however, found himself being politically defeated by a coalition led by Isagoras and decided to change the rules of the game by appealing to the demos (the people), in effect making them a new faction in the political arena. This tactic succeeded, but the Spartan King, Cleomenes I, returned at the request of Isagoras and so Cleisthenes, the Alcmaeonids and other prominent Athenian families were exiled from Athens. When Isagoras attempted to create a narrow oligarchic government, the Athenian people, in a spontaneous and unprecedented move, expelled Cleomenes and Isagoras. Cleisthenes was thus restored to Athens (507 BC), and at breakneck speed began to reform the state with the aim of securing his position. The result was not actually a democracy or a real civic state, but he enabled the development of a fully democratic government, which would emerge in the next generation as the demos realized its power. The new-found freedom and self-governance of the Athenians meant that they were thereafter exceptionally hostile to the return of the tyranny of Hippias, or any form of outside subjugation, by Sparta, Persia, or anyone else. Cleomenes was not pleased with events, and marched on Athens with the Spartan army. Cleomenes's attempts to restore Isagoras to Athens ended in a debacle, but fearing the worst, the Athenians had by this point already sent an embassy to Artaphernes in Sardis, to request aid from the Persian empire. Artaphernes requested that the Athenians give him an 'earth and water', a traditional token of submission, to which the Athenian ambassadors acquiesced. They were, however, severely censured for this when they returned to Athens. At some later point Cleomenes instigated a plot to restore Hippias to the rule of Athens. This failed and Hippias again fled to Sardis and tried to persuade the Persians to subjugate Athens. The Athenians dispatched ambassadors to Artaphernes to dissuade him from taking action, but Artaphernes merely instructed the Athenians to take Hippias back as tyrant. The Athenians indignantly declined, and instead resolved to open war with Persia. Having thus become the enemy of Persia, Athens was already in a position to support the Ionian cities when they began their revolt. The fact that the Ionian democracies were inspired by the example the Athenians had set no doubt further persuaded the Athenians to support the Ionian Revolt, especially since the cities of Ionia were originally Athenian colonies. The Athenians and Eretrians sent a task force of 25 triremes to Asia Minor to aid the revolt. Whilst there, the Greek army surprised and outmaneuvered Artaphernes, marching to Sardis and burning the lower city. This was, however, as much as the Greeks achieved, and they were then repelled and pursued back to the coast by Persian horsemen, losing many men in the process. Despite the fact that their actions were ultimately fruitless, the Eretrians and in particular the Athenians had earned Darius's lasting enmity, and he vowed to punish both cities. The Persian naval victory at the Battle of Lade (494 BC) all but ended the Ionian Revolt, and by 493 BC, the last hold-outs were vanquished by the Persian fleet. The revolt was used as an opportunity by Darius to extend the empire's border to the islands of the eastern Aegean and the Propontis, which had not been part of the Persian dominions before. The pacification of Ionia allowed the Persians to begin planning their next moves; to extinguish the threat to the empire from Greece and to punish Athens and Eretria. In 492 BC, after the Ionian Revolt had finally been crushed, Darius dispatched an to Greece under the command of his son-in-law, Mardonius. Mardonius re-subjugated Thrace and made Macedonia a fully subordinate part of the Persians; they had been vassals of the Persians since the late 6th century BC, but retained their general autonomy. Not long after however, his fleet became wrecked by a violent storm, which brought a premature end to the campaign. However, in 490 BC, following the successes of the previous campaign, Darius decided to send a maritime expedition led by Artaphernes, (son of the satrap to whom Hippias had fled) and Datis, a Median admiral. Mardonius had been injured in the prior campaign and had fallen out of favor. The was intended to bring the Cyclades into the Persian empire, to punish Naxos (which had resisted a Persian assault in 499 BC) and then to head to Greece to force Eretria and Athens to submit to Darius or be destroyed. After island-hopping across the Aegean, including successfully attacking Naxos, the Persian task force arrived off Euboea in mid summer. The Persians then proceeded to besiege, capture and burn Eretria. They then headed south down the coast of Attica, en route to complete the final objective of the campaign—punish Athens. The Persians sailed down the coast of Attica, and landed at the bay of Marathon, from Athens, on the advice of the exiled Athenian tyrant Hippias (who had accompanied the expedition). Under the guidance of Miltiades, the Athenian general with the greatest experience of fighting the Persians, the Athenian army marched quickly to block the two exits from the plain of Marathon, and prevent the Persians moving inland. At the same time, Athens's greatest runner, Pheidippides (or Philippides in some accounts) had been sent to Sparta to request that the Spartan army march to the aid of Athens. Pheidippides arrived during the festival of Carneia, a sacrosanct period of peace, and was informed that the Spartan army could not march to war until the full moon rose; Athens could not expect reinforcement for at least ten days. The Athenians would have to hold out at Marathon for the time being, although they were reinforced by the full muster of 1,000 hoplites from the small city of Plataea; a gesture which did much to steady the nerves of the Athenians, and won unending Athenian gratitude to Plataea. For approximately five days the armies therefore confronted each other across the plain of Marathon in stalemate. The flanks of the Athenian camp were protected either by a grove of trees, or an abbatis of stakes (depending on the exact reading). Since every day brought the arrival of the Spartans closer, the delay worked in favor of the Athenians. There were ten Athenian strategoi (generals) at Marathon, elected by each of the ten tribes that the Athenians were divided into; Miltiades was one of these. In addition, in overall charge, was the War-Archon (polemarch), Callimachus, who had been elected by the whole citizen body. Herodotus suggests that command rotated between the strategoi, each taking in turn a day to command the army. He further suggests that each strategos, on his day in command, instead deferred to Miltiades. In Herodotus's account, Miltiades is keen to attack the Persians (despite knowing that the Spartans are coming to aid the Athenians), but strangely, chooses to wait until his actual day of command to attack. This passage is undoubtedly problematic; the Athenians had little to gain by attacking before the Spartans arrived, and there is no real evidence of this rotating generalship. There does, however, seem to have been a delay between the Athenian arrival at Marathon, and the battle; Herodotus, who evidently believed that Miltiades was eager to attack, may have made a mistake whilst seeking to explain this delay. As is discussed below, the reason for the delay was probably simply that neither the Athenians nor the Persians were willing to risk battle initially. This then raises the question of why the battle occurred when it did. Herodotus explicitly tells us that the Greeks attacked the Persians (and the other sources confirm this), but it is not clear why they did this before the arrival of the Spartans. There are two main theories to explain this. The first theory is that the Persian cavalry left Marathon for an unspecified reason, and that the Greeks moved to take advantage of this by attacking. This theory is based on the absence of any mention of cavalry in Herodotus' account of the battle, and an entry in the Suda dictionary. The entry χωρίς ἱππέων ("without cavalry") is explained thus: The cavalry left. When Datis surrendered and was ready for retreat, the Ionians climbed the trees and gave the Athenians the signal that the cavalry had left. And when Miltiades realized that, he attacked and thus won. From there comes the above-mentioned quote, which is used when someone breaks ranks before battle. There are many variations of this theory, but perhaps the most prevalent is that the cavalry were completing the time- consuming process of re-embarking on the ships, and were to be sent by sea to attack (undefended) Athens in the rear, whilst the rest of the Persians pinned down the Athenian army at Marathon. This theory therefore utilises Herodotus' suggestion that after Marathon, the Persian army began to re-embark, intending to sail around Cape Sounion to attack Athens directly. Thus, this re- embarcation would have occurred before the battle (and indeed have triggered the battle). The second theory is simply that the battle occurred because the Persians finally moved to attack the Athenians. Although this theory has the Persians moving to the strategic offensive, this can be reconciled with the traditional account of the Athenians attacking the Persians by assuming that, seeing the Persians advancing, the Athenians took the tactical offensive, and attacked them. Obviously, it cannot be firmly established which theory (if either) is correct. However, both theories imply that there was some kind of Persian activity which occurred on or about the fifth day which ultimately triggered the battle. It is also possible that both theories are correct: when the Persians sent the cavalry by ship to attack Athens, they simultaneously sent their infantry to attack at Marathon, triggering the Greek counterattack. Herodotus mentions for several events a date in the lunisolar calendar, of which each Greek city-state used a variant. Astronomical computation allows us to derive an absolute date in the proleptic Julian calendar which is much used by historians as the chronological frame. Philipp August Böckh in 1855 concluded that the battle took place on September 12, 490 BC in the Julian calendar, and this is the conventionally accepted date. However, this depends on when exactly the Spartans held their festival and it is possible that the Spartan calendar was one month ahead of that of Athens. In that case the battle took place on August 12, 490 BC. Herodotus does not give a figure for the size of the Athenian army. However, Cornelius Nepos, Pausanias and Plutarch all give the figure of 9,000 Athenians and 1,000 Plataeans; while Justin suggests that there were 10,000 Athenians and 1,000 Plataeans. These numbers are highly comparable to the number of troops Herodotus says that the Athenians and Plataeans sent to the Battle of Plataea 11 years later. Pausanias noticed on the monument to the battle the names of former slaves who were freed in exchange for military services. Modern historians generally accept these numbers as reasonable. The areas ruled by Athens (Attica) had a population of 315,000 at this time including slaves, which implies the full Athenian army at the times of both Marathon and Plataea numbered about 3% of the population. According to Herodotus, the fleet sent by Darius consisted of 600 triremes. Herodotus does not estimate the size of the Persian army, only saying that they were a "large infantry that was well packed". Among ancient sources, the poet Simonides, another near-contemporary, says the campaign force numbered 200,000; while a later writer, the Roman Cornelius Nepos estimates 200,000 infantry and 10,000 cavalry, of which only 100,000 fought in the battle, while the rest were loaded into the fleet that was rounding Cape Sounion; Plutarch and Pausanias both independently give 300,000, as does the Suda dictionary. Plato and Lysias give 500,000; and Justinus 600,000. Modern historians have proposed wide-ranging numbers for the infantry, from 20,000–100,000 with a consensus of perhaps 25,000; estimates for the cavalry are in the range of 1,000. The fleet included various contingents from different parts of the Achaemenid Empire, particularly Ionians and Aeolians, although they are not mentioned as participating directly to the battle and may have remained on the ships: Regarding the ethnicities involved in the battle, Herodotus specifically mentions the presence of the Persians and the Sakae at the center of the Achaemenid line: From a strategic point of view, the Athenians had some disadvantages at Marathon. In order to face the Persians in battle, the Athenians had to summon all available hoplites; and even then they were still probably outnumbered at least 2 to 1. Furthermore, raising such a large army had denuded Athens of defenders, and thus any secondary attack in the Athenian rear would cut the army off from the city; and any direct attack on the city could not be defended against. Still further, defeat at Marathon would mean the complete defeat of Athens, since no other Athenian army existed. The Athenian strategy was therefore to keep the Persian army pinned down at Marathon, blocking both exits from the plain, and thus preventing themselves from being outmaneuvered. However, these disadvantages were balanced by some advantages. The Athenians initially had no need to seek battle, since they had managed to confine the Persians to the plain of Marathon. Furthermore, time worked in their favour, as every day brought the arrival of the Spartans closer. Having everything to lose by attacking, and much to gain by waiting, the Athenians remained on the defensive in the run up to the battle. Tactically, hoplites were vulnerable to attacks by cavalry, and since the Persians had substantial numbers of cavalry, this made any offensive maneuver by the Athenians even more of a risk, and thus reinforced the defensive strategy of the Athenians. The Persian strategy, on the other hand, was probably principally determined by tactical considerations. The Persian infantry was evidently lightly armoured, and no match for hoplites in a head-on confrontation (as would be demonstrated at the later battles of Thermopylae and Plataea.) Since the Athenians seem to have taken up a strong defensive position at Marathon, the Persian hesitance was probably a reluctance to attack the Athenians head-on. Whatever event eventually triggered the battle, it obviously altered the strategic or tactical balance sufficiently to induce the Athenians to attack the Persians. If the first theory is correct (see above), then the absence of cavalry removed the main Athenian tactical disadvantage, and the threat of being outflanked made it imperative to attack. Conversely, if the second theory is correct, then the Athenians were merely reacting to the Persians attacking them. Since the Persian force obviously contained a high proportion of missile troops, a static defensive position would have made little sense for the Athenians; the strength of the hoplite was in the melee, and the sooner that could be brought about, the better, from the Athenian point of view. If the second theory is correct, this raises the further question of why the Persians, having hesitated for several days, then attacked. There may have been several strategic reasons for this; perhaps they were aware (or suspected) that the Athenians were expecting reinforcements. Alternatively, they may have felt the need to force some kind of victory—they could hardly remain at Marathon indefinitely. The distance between the two armies at the point of battle had narrowed to "a distance not less than 8 stadia" or about 1,500 meters. Miltiades ordered the two tribes forming the center of the Greek formation, the Leontis tribe led by Themistocles and the Antiochis tribe led by Aristides, to be arranged in the depth of four ranks while the rest of the tribes at their flanks were in ranks of eight. Some modern commentators have suggested this was a deliberate ploy to encourage a double envelopment of the Persian centre. However, this suggests a level of training that the Greeks are thought not to have possessed. There is little evidence for any such tactical thinking in Greek battles until Leuctra in 371 BC. It is therefore possible that this arrangement was made, perhaps at the last moment, so that the Athenian line was as long as the Persian line, and would not therefore be outflanked. When the Athenian line was ready, according to one source, the simple signal to advance was given by Miltiades: "At them". Herodotus implies the Athenians ran the whole distance to the Persian lines, a feat under the weight of hoplite armory generally thought to be physically impossible. More likely, they marched until they reached the limit of the archers' effectiveness, the "beaten zone" (roughly 200 meters), and then broke into a run towards their enemy. Another possibility is that they ran up to the 200 meter-mark in broken ranks, and then reformed for the march into battle from there. Herodotus suggests that this was the first time a Greek army ran into battle in this way; this was probably because it was the first time that a Greek army had faced an enemy composed primarily of missile troops. All this was evidently much to the surprise of the Persians; "... in their minds they charged the Athenians with madness which must be fatal, seeing that they were few and yet were pressing forwards at a run, having neither cavalry nor archers". Indeed, based on their previous experience of the Greeks, the Persians might be excused for this; Herodotus tells us that the Athenians at Marathon were "first to endure looking at Median dress and men wearing it, for up until then just hearing the name of the Medes caused the Hellenes to panic". Passing through the hail of arrows launched by the Persian army, protected for the most part by their armour, the Greek line finally made contact with the enemy army. The Athenian wings quickly routed the inferior Persian levies on the flanks, before turning inwards to surround the Persian centre, which had been more successful against the thin Greek centre. The battle ended when the Persian centre then broke in panic towards their ships, pursued by the Greeks. Some, unaware of the local terrain, ran towards the swamps where unknown numbers drowned. The Athenians pursued the Persians back to their ships, and managed to capture seven ships, though the majority were able to launch successfully. Herodotus recounts the story that Cynaegirus, brother of the playwright Aeschylus, who was also among the fighters, charged into the sea, grabbed one Persian trireme, and started pulling it towards shore. A member of the crew saw him, cut off his hand, and Cynaegirus died. Herodotus records that 6,400 Persian bodies were counted on the battlefield, and it is unknown how many more perished in the swamps. He also reported that the Athenians lost 192 men and the Plataeans 11. Among the dead were the war archon Callimachus and the general Stesilaos. There are several explanations of the Greek success. Most scholars believe that the Greeks had better equipment and used superior tactics. According to Herodotus, the Greeks were better equipped. They did not use bronze upper body armour at this time, but that of leather or linen. The phalanx formation proved successful, because the hoplites had a long tradition in hand-to-hand combat, whereas the Persian soldiers were accustomed to a very different kind of conflict. At Marathon, the Athenians thinned their centre in order to make their army equal in length to the Persian army, not as a result of a tactical planning. It seems that the Persian centre tried to return, realizing that their wings had broken, and was caught in the flanks by the victorious Greek wings. Lazenby (1993) believes that the ultimate reason for the Greek success was the courage the Greeks displayed: According to Vic Hurley, the Persian defeat is explained by the "complete failure ... to field a representative army", calling the battle the "most convincing" example of the fact that infantry-bowmen cannot defend any position while stationed in close-quarters and unsupported (i.e. by fortifications, or failing to support them by cavalry and chariots, as was the common Persian tactic). In the immediate aftermath of the battle, Herodotus says that the Persian fleet sailed around Cape Sounion to attack Athens directly. As has been discussed above, some modern historians place this attempt just before the battle. Either way, the Athenians evidently realised that their city was still under threat, and marched as quickly as possible back to Athens. The two tribes which had been in the centre of the Athenian line stayed to guard the battlefield under the command of Aristides. The Athenians arrived in time to prevent the Persians from securing a landing, and seeing that the opportunity was lost, the Persians turned about and returned to Asia. Connected with this episode, Herodotus recounts a rumour that this manoeuver by the Persians had been planned in conjunction with the Alcmaeonids, the prominent Athenian aristocratic family, and that a "shield-signal" had been given after the battle. Although many interpretations of this have been offered, it is impossible to tell whether this was true, and if so, what exactly the signal meant. On the next day, the Spartan army arrived at Marathon, having covered the in only three days. The Spartans toured the battlefield at Marathon, and agreed that the Athenians had won a great victory. The Athenian and Plataean dead of Marathon were buried on the battlefield in two tumuli. On the tomb of the Athenians this epigram composed by Simonides was written: Meanwhile, Darius began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece; however, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, indefinitely postponing any Greek expedition. Darius then died whilst preparing to march on Egypt, and the throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes crushed the Egyptian revolt, and very quickly restarted the preparations for the invasion of Greece. The epic second Persian invasion of Greece finally began in 480 BC, and the Persians met with initial success at the battles of Thermopylae and Artemisium. However, defeat at the Battle of Salamis would be the turning point in the campaign, and the next year the expedition was ended by the decisive Greek victory at the Battle of Plataea. The defeat at Marathon barely touched the vast resources of the Persian empire, yet for the Greeks it was an enormously significant victory. It was the first time the Greeks had beaten the Persians, proving that the Persians were not invincible, and that resistance, rather than subjugation, was possible. The battle was a defining moment for the young Athenian democracy, showing what might be achieved through unity and self-belief; indeed, the battle effectively marks the start of a "golden age" for Athens. This was also applicable to Greece as a whole; "their victory endowed the Greeks with a faith in their destiny that was to endure for three centuries, during which western culture was born". John Stuart Mill's famous opinion was that "the Battle of Marathon, even as an event in British history, is more important than the Battle of Hastings". According to Isaac Asimov,"if the Athenians had lost in Marathon, . . . Greece might have never gone to develop the peak of its civilization, a peak whose fruits we moderns have inherited." It seems that the Athenian playwright Aeschylus considered his participation at Marathon to be his greatest achievement in life (rather than his plays) since on his gravestone there was the following epigram: Militarily, a major lesson for the Greeks was the potential of the hoplite phalanx. This style had developed during internecine warfare amongst the Greeks; since each city-state fought in the same way, the advantages and disadvantages of the hoplite phalanx had not been obvious. Marathon was the first time a phalanx faced more lightly armed troops, and revealed how effective the hoplites could be in battle. The phalanx formation was still vulnerable to cavalry (the cause of much caution by the Greek forces at the Battle of Plataea), but used in the right circumstances, it was now shown to be a potentially devastating weapon. The main source for the Greco-Persian Wars is the Greek historian Herodotus. Herodotus, who has been called the "Father of History", was born in 484 BC in Halicarnassus, Asia Minor (then under Persian overlordship). He wrote his Enquiries (Greek – Historiai; English – (The) Histories) around 440–430 BC, trying to trace the origins of the Greco-Persian Wars, which would still have been relatively recent history (the wars finally ended in 450 BC). Herodotus's approach was entirely novel, and at least in Western society, he does seem to have invented "history" as we know it. As Holland has it: "For the first time, a chronicler set himself to trace the origins of a conflict not to a past so remote so as to be utterly fabulous, nor to the whims and wishes of some god, nor to a people's claim to manifest destiny, but rather explanations he could verify personally." Some subsequent ancient historians, despite following in his footsteps, criticised Herodotus, starting with Thucydides. Nevertheless, Thucydides chose to begin his history where Herodotus left off (at the Siege of Sestos), and may therefore have felt that Herodotus's history was accurate enough not to need re-writing or correcting. Plutarch criticised Herodotus in his essay On the malice of Herodotus, describing Herodotus as "Philobarbaros" (barbarian-lover), for not being pro-Greek enough, which suggests that Herodotus might actually have done a reasonable job of being even-handed. A negative view of Herodotus was passed on to Renaissance Europe, though he remained well read. However, since the 19th century his reputation has been dramatically rehabilitated by archaeological finds which have repeatedly confirmed his version of events. The prevailing modern view is that Herodotus generally did a remarkable job in his Historiai, but that some of his specific details (particularly troop numbers and dates) should be viewed with skepticism. Nevertheless, there are still some historians who believe Herodotus made up much of his story. The Sicilian historian Diodorus Siculus, writing in the 1st century BC in his Bibliotheca Historica, also provides an account of the Greco-Persian wars, partially derived from the earlier Greek historian Ephorus. This account is fairly consistent with Herodotus's. The Greco-Persian wars are also described in less detail by a number of other ancient historians including Plutarch, Ctesias of Cnidus, and are alluded by other authors, such as the playwright Aeschylus. Archaeological evidence, such as the Serpent Column, also supports some of Herodotus's specific claims. The most famous legend associated with Marathon is that of the runner Pheidippides (or Philippides) bringing news to Athens of the battle, which is described below. Pheidippides' run to Sparta to bring aid has other legends associated with it. Herodotus mentions that Pheidippides was visited by the god Pan on his way to Sparta (or perhaps on his return journey). Pan asked why the Athenians did not honor him and the awed Pheidippides promised that they would do so from then on. The god apparently felt that the promise would be kept, so he appeared in battle and at the crucial moment he instilled the Persians with his own brand of fear, the mindless, frenzied fear that bore his name: "panic". After the battle, a sacred precinct was established for Pan in a grotto on the north slope of the Acropolis, and a sacrifice was annually offered. Similarly, after the victory the festival of the Agroteras Thysia ("sacrifice to the Agrotéra") was held at Agrae near Athens, in honor of Artemis Agrotera ("Artemis the Huntress"). This was in fulfillment of a vow made by the city before the battle, to offer in sacrifice a number of goats equal to that of the Persians slain in the conflict. The number was so great, it was decided to offer 500 goats yearly until the number was filled. Xenophon notes that at his time, 90 years after the battle, goats were still offered yearly. Plutarch mentions that the Athenians saw the phantom of King Theseus, the mythical hero of Athens, leading the army in full battle gear in the charge against the Persians, and indeed he was depicted in the mural of the Stoa Poikile fighting for the Athenians, along with the twelve Olympian gods and other heroes. Pausanias also tells us that: They say too that there chanced to be present in the battle a man of rustic appearance and dress. Having slaughtered many of the foreigners with a plough he was seen no more after the engagement. When the Athenians made enquiries at the oracle, the god merely ordered them to honor Echetlaeus ("he of the Plough-tail") as a hero. Another tale from the conflict is of the dog of Marathon. Aelian relates that one hoplite brought his dog to the Athenian encampment. The dog followed his master to battle and attacked the Persians at his master's side. He also informs us that this dog is depicted in the mural of the Stoa Poikile. According to Herodotus, an Athenian runner named Pheidippides was sent to run from Athens to Sparta to ask for assistance before the battle. He ran a distance of over 225 kilometers (140 miles), arriving in Sparta the day after he left. Then, following the battle, the Athenian army marched the 40 kilometers (25 miles) or so back to Athens at a very high pace (considering the quantity of armour, and the fatigue after the battle), in order to head off the Persian force sailing around Cape Sounion. They arrived back in the late afternoon, in time to see the Persian ships turn away from Athens, thus completing the Athenian victory. Later, in popular imagination, these two events were conflated, leading to a legendary but inaccurate version of events. This myth has Pheidippides running from Marathon to Athens after the battle, to announce the Greek victory with the word "nenikēkamen!" (Attic: ; we've won!), whereupon he promptly died of exhaustion. Most accounts incorrectly attribute this story to Herodotus; actually, the story first appears in Plutarch's On the Glory of Athens in the 1st century AD, who quotes from Heracleides of Pontus's lost work, giving the runner's name as either Thersipus of Erchius or Eucles. Lucian of Samosata (2nd century AD) gives the same story but names the runner Philippides (not Pheidippides). In some medieval codices of Herodotus, the name of the runner between Athens and Sparta before the battle is given as Philippides, and this name is also preferred in a few modern editions. When the idea of a modern Olympics became a reality at the end of the 19th century, the initiators and organizers were looking for a great popularizing event, recalling the ancient glory of Greece. The idea of organizing a "marathon race" came from Michel Bréal, who wanted the event to feature in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens. This idea was heavily supported by Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympics, as well as the Greeks. This would echo the legendary version of events, with the competitors running from Marathon to Athens. So popular was this event that it quickly caught on, becoming a fixture at the Olympic games, with major cities staging their own annual events. The distance eventually became fixed at 26 miles 385 yards, or 42.195 km, though for the first years it was variable, being around —the approximate distance from Marathon to Athens. Ancient Greek warfare, Timeline of ancient Greece Herodotus, The Histories, Thucydides, History of The Peloponnesian Wars, Diodorus Siculus, Library, Lysias, Funeral Oration, Plato, Menexenus, Xenophon Anabasis, Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution, Aristophanes, The Knights, Cornelius Nepos Lives of the Eminent Commanders (Miltiades), Plutarch Parallel Lives (Aristides, Themistocles, Theseus), On the Malice of Herodotus, Lucian, Mistakes in Greeting, Pausanias, Description of Greece, Claudius Aelianus Various history & On the Nature of Animals, Marcus Junianus Justinus Epitome of the Philippic History of Pompeius Trogus, Photius, Bibliotheca or Myriobiblon: Epitome of Persica by Ctesias, Suda Dictionary Hans W. Giessen, Mythos Marathon. Von Herodot über Bréal bis zur Gegenwart. Verlag Empirische Pädagogik, Landau (= Landauer Schriften zur Kommunikations- und Kulturwissenschaft. Band 17) 2010. ., Lacey, Jim. The First Clash: The Miraculous Greek Victory at Marathon and Its Impact on Western Civilization (2011), popular, Lazenby, J.F. The Defence of Greece 490–479 BC. Aris & Phillips Ltd., 1993 (), Lloyd, Alan. Marathon: The Crucial Battle That Created Western Democracy. Souvenir Press, 2004. (), Davis, Paul. 100 Decisive Battles. Oxford University Press, 1999., Powell J., Blakeley D.W., Powell, T. Biographical Dictionary of Literary Influences: The Nineteenth Century, 1800–1914. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001., Fuller, J.F.C. A Military History of the Western World. Funk & Wagnalls, 1954., Fehling, D. Herodotus and His "Sources": Citation, Invention, and Narrative Art. Translated by J.G. Howie. Leeds: Francis Cairns, 1989., D.W. Olson et al., "The Moon and the Marathon", Sky & Telescope Sep. 2004 Fink, Dennis L. The Battle of Marathon in Scholarship: Research, Theories and Controversies since 1850 (McFarland, 2014). 240 pp. online review The Importance of the Battle of Marathon on The History Notes website, Black-and-white photo-essay of Marathon, Hood, E. The Greek Victory at Marathon, Clio History Journal, 1995., Battle of Marathon by e-marathon.gr, The Battle of Marathon September 490 BC, The Battle of Marathon September 490 BC, by Major General Dimitris Gedeon, HEAR, Digital representation of the Battle of Marathon 490 BC, Marathon, the beginning of history A documentary from ET1, 2011, Doenges, N.A. "The Campaign and Battle of Marathon." Historia vol. 47 (1998): 1–17. The Battle of Salamis ( ; ) was a naval battle fought between an alliance of Greek city-states under Themistocles, and the Persian Empire under King Xerxes in 480 BC. It resulted in a decisive victory for the outnumbered Greeks. The battle was fought in the straits between the mainland and Salamis, an island in the Saronic Gulf near Athens, and marked the high point of the second Persian invasion of Greece. To block the Persian advance, a small force of Greeks blocked the pass of Thermopylae, while an Athenian-dominated Allied navy engaged the Persian fleet in the nearby straits of Artemisium. In the resulting Battle of Thermopylae, the rearguard of the Greek force was annihilated, whilst in the Battle of Artemisium the Greeks had heavy losses and retreated after the loss at Thermopylae. This allowed the Persians to conquer Phocis, Boeotia, Attica, and Euboea. The Allies prepared to defend the Isthmus of Corinth while the fleet was withdrawn to nearby Salamis Island. Although heavily outnumbered, the Greek Allies were persuaded by the Athenian general Themistocles to bring the Persian fleet to battle again, in the hope that a victory would prevent naval operations against the Peloponnese. The Persian king Xerxes was also eager for a decisive battle. As a result of subterfuge on the part of Themistocles, the Persian navy rowed into the Straits of Salamis and tried to block both entrances. In the cramped conditions of the Straits, the great Persian numbers were an active hindrance, as ships struggled to maneuver and became disorganized. Seizing the opportunity, the Greek fleet formed in line and scored a decisive victory. Xerxes retreated to Asia with much of his army, leaving Mardonius to complete the conquest of Greece. However, the following year, the remainder of the Persian army was decisively beaten at the Battle of Plataea and the Persian navy at the Battle of Mycale. The Persians made no further attempts to conquer the Greek mainland. These battles of Salamis and Plataea thus mark a turning point in the course of the Greco-Persian wars as a whole; from then onward, the Greek poleis would take the offensive. The Greek city-states of Athens and Eretria had supported the unsuccessful Ionian Revolt against the Persian Empire of Darius I in 499-494 BC, led by the satrap of Miletus, Aristagoras. The Persian Empire was still relatively young, and prone to revolts amongst its subject peoples. Moreover, Darius was a usurper, and had spent considerable time extinguishing revolts against his rule. The Ionian revolt threatened the integrity of his empire, and Darius thus vowed to punish those involved (especially those not already part of the empire). Darius also saw the opportunity to expand his empire into the fractious world of Ancient Greece. A preliminary expedition under Mardonius, in 492 BC, to secure the land approaches to Greece ended with the conquest of Thrace and forced Macedon to become a client kingdom of Persia. In 491 BC, Darius sent emissaries to all the Greek city-states, asking for a gift of 'earth and water' in token of their submission to him. Having had a demonstration of his power the previous year, the majority of the Greek cities duly obliged. In Athens, however, the ambassadors were put on trial and then executed; in Sparta, they were simply thrown down a well. This meant that Sparta was also now effectively at war with Persia. Darius thus put together an amphibious task force under Datis and Artaphernes in 490 BC, which attacked Naxos, before receiving the submission of the other Cycladic Islands. The task force then moved on Eretria, which it besieged and destroyed. Finally, it moved to attack Athens, landing at the bay of Marathon, where it was met by a heavily outnumbered Athenian army. At the ensuing Battle of Marathon, the Athenians won a remarkable victory, which resulted in the withdrawal of the Persian army to Asia. Darius therefore began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece; however, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, indefinitely postponing any Greek expedition. Darius then died whilst preparing to march on Egypt, and the throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes crushed the Egyptian revolt, and very quickly restarted the preparations for the invasion of Greece. Since this was to be a full-scale invasion, it required long-term planning, stock-piling and conscription. Xerxes decided that the Hellespont would be bridged to allow his army to cross to Europe, and that a canal should be dug across the isthmus of Mount Athos (rounding which headland, a Persian fleet had been destroyed in 492 BC). These were both feats of exceptional ambition, which would have been beyond any other contemporary state. By early 480 BC, the preparations were complete, and the army which Xerxes had mustered at Sardis marched towards Europe, crossing the Hellespont on two pontoon bridges. The Athenians had also been preparing for war with the Persians since the mid-480s BC, and in 482 BC the decision was taken, under the guidance of the Athenian politician Themistocles, to build a massive fleet of triremes that would be necessary for the Greeks to fight the Persians. However, the Athenians did not have the manpower to fight on land and sea; and therefore combatting the Persians would require an alliance of Greek city states. In 481 BC, Xerxes sent ambassadors around Greece asking for earth and water, but made the very deliberate omission of Athens and Sparta. Support thus began to coalesce around these two leading states. A congress of city states met at Corinth in late autumn of 481 BC, and a confederate alliance of Greek city-states was formed. It had the power to send envoys asking for assistance and to dispatch troops from the member states to defensive points after joint consultation. This was remarkable for the disjointed Greek world, especially since many of the city- states in attendance were still technically at war with each other. Initially the 'congress' agreed to defend the narrow Vale of Tempe, on the borders of Thessaly, and thereby block Xerxes's advance. However, once there, they were warned by Alexander I of Macedon that the vale could be bypassed through the pass by the modern village of Sarantaporo, and that the army of Xerxes was overwhelming. So the Greeks retreated. Shortly afterwards, they received the news that Xerxes had crossed the Hellespont. A second strategy was therefore adopted by the allies. The route to southern Greece (Boeotia, Attica and the Peloponnese) would require the army of Xerxes to travel through the very narrow pass of Thermopylae. This could easily be blocked by the Greek hoplites, despite the overwhelming numbers of Persians. Furthermore, to prevent the Persians bypassing Thermopylae by sea, the Athenian and allied navies could block the straits of Artemisium. This dual strategy was adopted by the congress. However, the Peloponnesian cities made fall-back plans to defend the Isthmus of Corinth should it come to it, whilst the women and children of Athens had been evacuated en masse to the Peloponnesian city of Troezen. Famously, the much smaller Greek army held the pass of Thermopylae against the Persians for three days before being outflanked by a mountain path. Much of the Greek army retreated, before the Spartans and Thespians who had continued to block the pass were surrounded and killed. The simultaneous Battle of Artemisium was up to that point a stalemate; however, when news of Thermopylae reached them, the Allied fleet also retreated, since holding the straits of Artemisium was now a moot point. The Allied fleet now rowed from Artemisium to Salamis to assist with the final evacuation of Athens. En route Themistocles left inscriptions addressed to the Ionian Greek crews of the Persian fleet on all springs of water that they might stop at, asking them to defect to the Allied cause. Following Thermopylae, the Persian army proceeded to burn and sack the Boeotian cities that had not surrendered, Plataea and Thespiae, before marching on the now evacuated city of Athens. The Allies (mostly Peloponnesian) prepared to defend the Isthmus of Corinth, demolishing the single road that led through it, and building a wall across it. This strategy was flawed, however, unless the Allied fleet was able to prevent the Persian fleet from transporting troops across the Saronic Gulf. In a council-of-war called once the evacuation of Athens was complete, the Corinthian naval commander Adeimantus argued that the fleet should assemble off the coast of the Isthmus in order to achieve such a blockade. However, Themistocles argued in favour of an offensive strategy, aimed at decisively destroying the Persians' naval superiority. He drew on the lessons of Artemisium, pointing out that "battle in close conditions works to our advantage". He eventually won through, and the Allied navy remained off the coast of Salamis. The time-line for Salamis is difficult to establish with any certainty. Herodotus presents the battle as though it occurred directly after the capture of Athens, but nowhere explicitly states as much. If Thermopylae/Artemisium occurred in September, then this may be the case, but it is probably more likely that the Persians spent two or three weeks capturing Athens, refitting the fleet, and resupplying. Clearly though, at some point after capturing Athens, Xerxes held a council of war with the Persian fleet; Herodotus says this occurred at Phalerum. Artemisia, queen of Halicarnassus and commander of its naval squadron in Xerxes's fleet, tried to convince him to wait for the Allies to surrender believing that battle in the straits of Salamis was an unnecessary risk. Nevertheless, Xerxes and his chief advisor Mardonius pressed for an attack. It is difficult to explain exactly what eventually brought about the battle, assuming that neither side simply attacked without forethought. Clearly though, at some point just before the battle, new information began to reach Xerxes of rifts in the allied command; the Peloponnesians wished to evacuate from Salamis while they still could. This alleged rift amongst the Allies may have simply been a ruse, in order to lure the Persians to battle. Alternatively, this change in attitude amongst the Allies (who had waited patiently off the coast of Salamis for at least a week while Athens was captured) may have been in response to Persian offensive maneuvers. Possibly, a Persian army had been sent to march against the Isthmus in order to test the nerve of the fleet. Either way, when Xerxes received this news, he ordered his fleet to go out on patrol off the coast of Salamis, blocking the southern exit. Then, at dusk, he ordered them to withdraw, possibly in order to tempt the Allies into a hasty evacuation. That evening Themistocles attempted what appears to have been a spectacularly successful use of disinformation. He sent a servant, Sicinnus, to Xerxes, with a message proclaiming that Themistocles was "on the king's side and prefers that your affairs prevail, not the Hellenes". Themistocles claimed that the Allied command was in-fighting, that the Peloponnesians were planning to evacuate that very night, and that to gain victory all the Persians needed to do was to block the straits. In performing this subterfuge, Themistocles seems to have been trying to bring about exactly the opposite; to lure the Persian fleet into the Straits. This was exactly the kind of news that Xerxes wanted to hear; that the Athenians might be willing to submit to him, and that he would be able to destroy the rest of the Allied fleet. Xerxes evidently took the bait, and the Persian fleet was sent out that evening to effect this block. Xerxes ordered a throne to be set up on the slopes of Mount Aigaleo (overlooking the straits), in order to watch the battle from a clear vantage point, and so as to record the names of commanders who performed particularly well. According to Herodotus, the Allies spent the evening heatedly debating their course of action. The Peloponnesians were in favour of evacuating, and at this point Themistocles attempted his ruse with Xerxes. It was only when Aristides, the exiled Athenian general arrived that night, followed by some deserters from the Persians, with news of the deployment of the Persian fleet, that the Peloponnesians accepted that they could not escape, and so would fight. However, the Peloponnesians may have been party to Themistocles's stratagem, so serenely did they accept that they would now have to fight at Salamis. The Allied navy was thus able to prepare properly for battle the forthcoming day, whilst the Persians spent the night fruitlessly at sea, searching for the alleged Greek evacuation. The next morning, the Persians rowed into the straits to attack the Greek fleet; it is not clear when, why or how this decision was made, but it is clear that they did take the battle to the Allies. Herodotus reports that there were 378 triremes in the Allied fleet, and then breaks the numbers down by city state (as indicated in the table). However, his numbers for the individual contingents only add up to 371. He does not explicitly say that all 378 fought at Salamis ("All of these came to the war providing triremes...The total number of ships...was three hundred and seventy-eight"), and he also says that the Aeginetans "had other manned ships, but they guarded their own land with these and fought at Salamis with the thirty most seaworthy". Thus it has been supposed that the difference between the numbers is accounted for by a garrison of 12 ships left at Aegina. According to Herodotus, two more ships defected from the Persians to the Greeks, one before Artemisium and one before Salamis, so the total complement at Salamis would have been 373 (or 380). According to the Athenian playwright Aeschylus, who actually fought at Salamis, the Greek fleet numbered 310 triremes (the difference being the number of Athenian ships). Ctesias claims that the Athenian fleet numbered only 110 triremes, which ties in with Aeschylus's numbers. According to Hyperides, the Greek fleet numbered only 220. The fleet was effectively under the command of Themistocles, but nominally led by the Spartan nobleman Eurybiades, as had been agreed at the congress in 481 BC. Although Themistocles had tried to claim leadership of the fleet, the other city states with navies objected, and so Sparta (which had no naval tradition) was given command of the fleet as a compromise. According to Herodotus, the Persian fleet initially numbered 1,207 triremes. However, by his reckoning they lost approximately a third of these ships in a storm off the coast of Magnesia, 200 more in a storm off the coast of Euboea, and at least 50 ships to Allied action at the Battle of Artemisium. Herodotus claims that these losses were replaced in full, but only mentions 120 ships from the Greeks of Thrace and nearby islands as reinforcements. Aeschylus, who fought at Salamis, also claims that he faced 1,207 warships there, of which 207 were "fast ships". Diodorus and Lysias independently claim there were 1,200 ships in the Persian fleet assembled at Doriskos in the spring of 480 BC. The number of 1,207 (for the outset only) is also given by Ephorus, while his teacher Isocrates claims there were 1,300 at Doriskos and 1,200 at Salamis. Ctesias gives another number, 1,000 ships, while Plato, speaking in general terms refers to 1,000 ships and more. Herodotus gives a precise list of the ships of the various nations that composed the Achaemenid fleet: The number 1,207 appears very early in the historical record (472 BC), and the Greeks appear to have genuinely believed they faced that many ships. Because of the consistency in the ancient sources, some modern historians are inclined to accept 1,207 as the size of the initial Persian fleet; others reject this number, with 1,207 being seen as more of a reference to the combined Greek fleet in the Iliad, and generally claim that the Persians could have launched no more than around 600 warships into the Aegean. However, very few appear to accept that there were this many ships at Salamis: most favour a number in the range 600-800. This is also the range given by adding the approximate number of Persian ships after Artemisium (~550) to the reinforcements (120) quantified by Herodotus. The overall Persian strategy for the invasion of 480 BC was to overwhelm the Greeks with a massive invasion force, and complete the conquest of Greece in a single campaigning season. Conversely, the Greeks sought to make the best use of their numbers by defending restricted locations and to keep the Persians in the field for as long as possible. Xerxes had obviously not anticipated such resistance, or he would have arrived earlier in the campaigning season (and not waited 4 days at Thermopylae for the Greeks to disperse). Time was now of the essence for the Persians – the huge invasion force could not be reasonably supported indefinitely, nor probably did Xerxes wish to be at the fringe of his empire for so long. Thermopylae had shown that a frontal assault against a well defended Greek position was useless; with the Allies now dug in across the narrow Isthmus, there was little chance of conquering the rest of Greece by land. However, as equally demonstrated by Thermopylae, if the Greeks could be outflanked, their smaller numbers of troops could be destroyed. Such an outflanking of the Isthmus required the use of the Persian navy, and thus the destruction of the Allied navy. Therefore, if Xerxes could destroy the Allied navy, he would be in a strong position to force a Greek surrender; this seemed the only hope of concluding the campaign in that season. Conversely by avoiding destruction, or as Themistocles hoped, by crippling the Persian fleet, the Greeks could effectively thwart the invasion. However, it was strategically not necessary for the Persians to actually fight this battle at Salamis. According to Herodotus, Queen Artemisia of Caria pointed this out to Xerxes in the run-up to Salamis. Artemisia suggested that fighting at sea was an unnecessary risk, recommending instead: The Persian fleet was still large enough to both bottle up the Allied navy in the straits of Salamis, and send ships to land troops in the Peloponnese. However, in the final reckoning, both sides were prepared to stake everything on a naval battle, in the hope of decisively altering the course of the war. The Persians were at a significant tactical advantage, outnumbering the Allies, and also having "better sailing" ships. The "better sailing" that Herodotus mentions was probably due to the superior seamanship of the crews; most of the Athenian ships (and therefore the majority of the fleet) were newly built as according to Themistocles' request to the Athenians to build a fleet of 200 triremes in 483 BC, and had inexperienced crews. It is important to note that despite the inexperienced crew on part of the Athenians, these newly constructed triremes would ultimately prove crucial in the forthcoming conflict with Persia. The most common naval tactics in the Mediterranean area at the time were ramming (triremes being equipped with a ram at the bows), or boarding by ship-borne marines (which essentially turned a sea battle into a land one). The Persians and Asiatic Greeks had by this time begun to use a manoeuver known as diekplous. It is not entirely clear what this was, but it probably involved rowing into gaps between enemy ships and then ramming them in the side. This maneuver would have required skilled crews, and therefore the Persians would have been more likely to employ it; the Allies however, developed tactics specifically to counter this. There has been much debate as to the nature of the Allied fleet compared to the Persian fleet. Much of this centres on the suggestion, from Herodotus, that the Allied ships were heavier, and by implication less maneuverable. The source of this heaviness is uncertain; possibly the Allied ships were bulkier in construction, or that the ships were waterlogged since they had not been dried out in the winter (though there is no real evidence for either suggestion). Another suggestion is that the heaviness was caused by the weight of fully armored hoplite marines (20 fully armored hoplites would have weighed 2 tons). This 'heaviness', whatever its cause, would further reduce the likelihood of them employing the diekplous. It is therefore probable that the Allies had extra marines on board if their ships were less maneuverable, since boarding would then be the main tactic available to them (at the cost of making the ships even heavier). Indeed, Herodotus refers to the Greeks capturing ships at Artemisium, rather than sinking them. It has been suggested that the weight of the Allied ships may also have made them more stable in the winds off the coast of Salamis, and made them less susceptible to ramming (or rather, less liable to sustain damage when rammed). The Persians preferred a battle in the open sea, where they could better utilize their superior seamanship and numbers. For the Greeks, the only realistic hope of a decisive victory was to draw the Persians into a constricted area, where their numbers would count for little. The battle at Artemisium had seen attempts to negate the Persian advantage in numbers, but ultimately the Allies may have realised that they needed an even more constricted channel in order to defeat the Persians. Therefore, by rowing into the Straits of Salamis to attack the Greeks, the Persians were playing into the Allies' hands. It seems probable that the Persians would not have attempted this unless they had been confident of the collapse of the Allied navy, and thus Themistocles's subterfuge appears to have played a key role in tipping the balance in the favor of the Greeks. Salamis was, for the Persians, an unnecessary battle and a strategic mistake. The actual battle of Salamis is not well described by the ancient sources, and it is unlikely that anyone (other than perhaps Xerxes) involved in the battle had a clear idea what was happening across the width of the straits. What follows is more of a discussion than a definitive account. In the Allied fleet, the Athenians were on the left, and on the right were probably the Spartans (although Diodorus says it was the Megareans and Aeginetians); the other contingents were in the center. The Allied fleet probably formed into two ranks, since the straits would have been too narrow for a single line of ships. Herodotus has the Allied fleet in a line running north–south, probably with the northern flank off the coast of modern-day Saint George's Islet (Ayios Georgis), and the southern flank off the coast of Cape Vavari (part of Salamis). Diodorus suggests the Allied fleet was aligned east–west, spanning the straits between Salamis and Mount Aigaleo; however, it is unlikely that the Allies would have rested one of their flanks against Persian occupied territory. It seems relatively certain that the Persian fleet was sent out to block the exit from the Straits the evening before the battle. Herodotus clearly believed that the Persian fleet actually entered the Straits at nightfall, planning to catch the Allies as they fled. However, modern historians have greatly debated this point, with some pointing out the difficulties of maneuvering in this confined space by night, and others accepting Herodotus's version. There are thus two possibilities; that during the night the Persians simply blocked the exit to the Straits, and then entered the straits in daylight; or that they entered the straits and positioned themselves for battle during the night. Regardless of when they attempted it, it seems likely that the Persians pivoted their fleet off the tip of Cape Vavari, so that from an initial east–west alignment (blocking the exit), they came round to a north–south alignment (see diagram). The Persian fleet seems to have been formed into three ranks of ships (according to Aeschylus); with the powerful Phoenician fleet on the right flank next to Mount Aigaleo, the Ionian contingent on the left flank and the other contingents in the centre. Diodorus says that the Egyptian fleet was sent to circumnavigate Salamis, and block the northern exit from the Straits. If Xerxes wanted to trap the Allies completely, this maneuver would have made sense (especially if he was not expecting the Allies to fight). However, Herodotus does not mention this (and possibly alludes to the Egyptian presence in the main battle), leading some modern historians to dismiss it; though again, others accept it as a possibility. Xerxes had also positioned around 400 troops on the island known as Psyttaleia, in the middle of the exit from the straits, in order to kill or capture any Greeks who ended up there (as a result of shipwreck or grounding). Regardless of what time they entered the straits, the Persians did not move to attack the Allies until daylight. Since they were not planning to flee after all, the Allies would have been able to spend the night preparing for battle, and after a speech by Themistocles, the marines boarded and the ships made ready to sail. According to Herodotus, this was dawn, and as the Allies "were putting out to sea the barbarians immediately attacked them". If the Persians only entered the straits at dawn, then the Allies would have had the time to take up their station in a more orderly fashion. Aeschylus claims that as the Persians approached (possibly implying that they were not already in the Straits at dawn), they heard the Greeks singing their battle hymn (paean) before they saw the Allied fleet: Herodotus recounts that, according to the Athenians, as the battle began the Corinthians hoisted their sails and began sailing away from the battle, northwards up the straits. However, he also says that other Greeks denied this story. If this did in fact occur, one possible interpretation is that these ships had been a decoy sent to reconnoitre the northern exit from the straits, in case the arrival of the encircling Egyptian detachment was imminent (if indeed this also occurred). Another possibility (not exclusive of the former) is that the departure of the Corinthians triggered the final approach of the Persians, suggesting as it did that the Allied fleet was disintegrating. At any rate, if they indeed ever left, the Corinthians soon returned to the battle. Approaching the Allied fleet in the crowded Straits, the Persians appear to have become disorganised and cramped in the narrow waters. Moreover, it would have become apparent that, far from disintegrating, the Greek fleet was lined up, ready to attack them. However, rather than attacking immediately, the Allies initially appeared to back their ships away as if in fear. According to Plutarch, this was to gain better position, and also in order to gain time until the early morning wind. Herodotus recounts the legend that as the fleet had backed away, they had seen an apparition of a woman, asking them "Madmen, how far will ye yet back your ships?" However, he more plausibly suggests that whilst the Allies were backing water, a single ship shot forward to ram the nearest Persian vessel. The Athenians would claim that this was the ship of the Athenian Ameinias of Pallene; the Aeginetans would claim it as one of their ships. The whole Greek line then followed suit and made straight for the disordered Persian battle line. The details of the rest of the battle are generally sketchy, and no one involved would have had a view of the entire battlefield. Triremes were generally armed with a large ram at the front, with which it was possible to sink an enemy ship, or at least disable it by shearing off the banks of oars on one side. If the initial ramming was not successful, marines boarded the enemy ship and something similar to a land battle ensued. Both sides had marines on their ships for this eventuality; the Greeks with fully armed hoplites; the Persians probably with more lightly armed infantry. Across the battlefield, as the first line of Persian ships was pushed back by the Greeks, they became fouled in the advancing second and third lines of their own ships. On the Greek left, the Persian admiral Ariabignes (a brother of Xerxes) was killed early in the battle; left disorganised and leaderless, the Phoenician squadrons appear to have been pushed back against the coast, many vessels running aground. In the centre, a wedge of Greek ships pushed through the Persians lines, splitting the fleet in two. According to Plutarch, Ariabignes was killed by Ameinias and Socles () of Pallene. When Ariabignes attempted to board on their ship, they hit him with their spears, and thrust him into the sea. Plutarch also mentions that it was Artemisia who recognized Ariabignes' body floating among the shipwrecks and brought it back to Xerxes. Herodotus recounts that Artemisia, the Queen of Halicarnassus, and commander of the Carian contingent, found herself pursued by the ship of Ameinias of Pallene. In her desire to escape, she attacked and rammed another Persian vessel, thereby convincing the Athenian captain that the ship was an ally; Ameinias accordingly abandoned the chase. However, Xerxes, looking on, thought that she had successfully attacked an Allied ship, and seeing the poor performance of his other captains commented that "My men have become women, and my women men". The friendly ship she sank was a Calyndian ship and the king of the Calyndians, Damasithymos () was on it. None of the crew of the Calyndian ship survived. The Persian fleet began to retreat towards Phalerum, but according to Herodotus, the Aeginetans ambushed them as they tried to leave the Straits. The remaining Persian ships limped back to the harbour of Phalerum and the shelter of the Persian army. The Athenian general Aristides then took a detachment of men across to Psyttaleia to slaughter the garrison that Xerxes had left there. The exact Persian casualties are not mentioned by Herodotus. However, he writes that the next year, the Persian fleet numbered 300 triremes. The number of losses then depends on the number of ships the Persian had to begin with; something in the range of 200–300 seems likely, based on the above estimates for the size of the Persian fleet. According to Herodotus, the Persians suffered many more casualties than the Greeks because most Persians did not know how to swim. Xerxes, sitting on Mount Aigaleo on his throne, witnessed the carnage. Some ship-wrecked Phoenician captains tried to blame the Ionians for cowardice before the end of the battle. Xerxes, in a foul mood, and having just witnessed an Ionian ship capture an Aeginetan ship, had the Phoenicians beheaded for slandering "more noble men". According to Diodorus, Xerxes "put to death those Phoenicians who were chiefly responsible for beginning the flight, and threatened to visit upon the rest the punishment they deserved", causing the Phoenicians to sail to Asia when night fell. In the immediate aftermath of Salamis, Xerxes attempted to build a pontoon bridge or causeway across the straits, in order to use his army to attack the Athenians; however, with the Greek fleet now confidently patrolling the straits, this proved futile. Herodotus tells us that Xerxes held a council of war, at which the Persian general Mardonius tried to make light of the defeat: Fearing that the Greeks might attack the bridges across the Hellespont and trap his army in Europe, Xerxes resolved to do this, taking the greater part of the army with him. Mardonius handpicked the troops who were to remain with him in Greece, taking the elite infantry units and cavalry, to complete the conquest of Greece. All of the Persian forces abandoned Attica, however, with Mardonius overwintering in Boeotia and Thessaly; the Athenians were thus able to return to their burnt city for the winter. The following year, 479 BC, Mardonius recaptured Athens and led the second Achaemenid destruction of Athens (the Allied army still preferring to guard the Isthmus). However, the Allies, under Spartan leadership, eventually agreed to try to force Mardonius to battle, and marched on Attica. Mardonius retreated to Boeotia to lure the Greeks into open terrain and the two sides eventually met near the city of Plataea (which had been razed the previous year). There, at the Battle of Plataea, the Greek army won a decisive victory, destroying much of the Persian army and ending the invasion of Greece; whilst at the near-simultaneous Battle of Mycale the Allied fleet destroyed much of the remaining Persian fleet. The Battle of Salamis marked the turning point in the Greco-Persian wars. After Salamis, the Peloponnese, and by extension Greece as an entity, was safe from conquest; and the Persians suffered a major blow to their prestige and morale (as well as severe material losses). At the following battles of Plataea and Mycale, the threat of conquest was removed, and the Allies were able to go on the counter-offensive. The Greek victory allowed Macedon to revolt against Persian rule; and over the next 30 years, Thrace, the Aegean Islands and finally Ionia would be removed from Persian control by the Allies, or by the Athenian-dominated successor, the Delian League. Salamis started a decisive swing in the balance of power toward the Greeks, which would culminate in an eventual Greek victory, severely reducing Persian power in the Aegean. Like the Battles of Marathon and Thermopylae, Salamis has gained something of a 'legendary' status (unlike, for instance, the more decisive Battle of Plataea), perhaps because of the desperate circumstances and the unlikely odds. A significant number of historians have stated that Salamis is one of the most significant battles in human history (though the same is often stated of Marathon). In a more extreme form of this argument, some historians argue that if the Greeks had lost at Salamis, the ensuing conquest of Greece by the Persians would have effectively stifled the growth of Western Civilization as we know it. This view is based on the premise that much of modern Western society, such as philosophy, science, personal freedom and democracy are rooted in the legacy of Ancient Greece. Thus, this school of thought argues that, given the domination of much of modern history by Western Civilization, Persian domination of Greece might have changed the whole trajectory of human history. It is also worth mentioning that the celebrated blossoming of hugely influential Athenian culture occurred only after the Persian wars were won. Militarily, it is difficult to draw many lessons from Salamis, because of the uncertainty about what actually happened. Once again the Allies chose their ground well in order to negate Persian numbers, but this time (unlike Thermopylae) had to rely on the Persians launching an unnecessary attack for their position to count. (Hale, John R.). Since it brought about that attack, perhaps the most important military lesson is to be found in the use of deception by Themistocles to bring about the desired response from the enemy. According to Plutarch, the previously undistinguished Cimon "obtained great repute among the Athenians" due to his courage in battle; this reputation later enabled him to launch his political career. On March 17, 2017, archaeologists announced that they had uncovered the partially submerged remains of the anchorage used by the Greek warships prior to the Battle of Salamis. The site of the ancient mooring site is on the island of Salamis, at the coastal Ambelaki-Kynosaurus site. Herodotus, The Histories Perseus online version, Aeschylus, extract from The Persians, Ctesias, Persica (excerpt in Photius's epitome), Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica, Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, Ephorus, Universal History, Plutarch, Themistocles, Cicero, On the Laws Blakesley, J. W. (1853) "On the Position and Tactics of the Contending Fleets in the Battle of Salamis (With a Map.)" in the Proceedings of the Philological Society., Burn, A. R. (1985). "Persia and the Greeks" in The Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 2: The Median and Achaemenid Periods, Ilya Gershevitch, ed. Cambridge University Press., Fehling, D. (1989). Herodotus and His "Sources": Citation, Invention, and Narrative Art. Translated by J.G. Howie. Leeds: Francis Cairns., Green, Peter (1970). The Year of Salamis, 480–479 BC. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson ()., Green, Peter (1998). The Greco-Persian Wars. Berkeley: University of California Press (hardcover, ) (paperback, )., Hale, John R. (2009) Lords of the Sea. Viking Press., Hanson, Victor Davis (2001). Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise of Western Power. New York: DoubleDay, 2001 (hardcover, ); New York: Anchor Books (paperback, )., Ιστορία του Ελληνικού Έθνους (History of the Greek nation) vol Β, Εκδοτική Αθηνών (Editorial Athens) 1971., Holland, Tom (2005). Persian Fire. London: Abacus ()., Köster, A. J. (1934). Studien zur Geschichte des Antikes Seewesens. Klio Belheft 32., Lazenby, J. F. (1993). The Defence of Greece 490–479 BC. Aris & Phillips Ltd. ()., Lee, Felicia R. (2006). A Layered Look Reveals Ancient Greek Texts The New York Times, 27 November 2006., Strauss, Barry (2004). The Battle of Salamis: The Naval Encounter That Saved Greece—and Western Civilization. New York: Simon and Schuster (hardcover, ; paperback, ). Salamis at the Ancient History Encyclopedia The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World: from Marathon to Waterloo is a book written by Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy and published in 1851. This book tells the story of the fifteen military engagements, which, according to the author, had a significant impact on world history. Each chapter of the book describes a different battle. The fifteen chapters are: 1. The Battle of Marathon, 490 BC * Excerpt: "Two thousand three hundred and forty years ago, a council of Athenian Officers was summoned on the slope of one of the mountains that look over the plain of Marathon, on the eastern coast of Attica. The immediate subject of their meeting was to consider whether they should give battle to an enemy that lay encamped on the shore beneath them; but on the result of their deliberations depended, not merely the fate of two armies, but the whole future progress of human civilization." 2. Defeat of the Athenians at Syracuse, 413 BC * Known as the Battle of Syracuse. * Excerpt: "Few cities have undergone more memorable sieges during ancient and medieval times than has the city of Syracuse." 3. The Battle of Gaugamela, 331 BC * Also called the Battle of Arbela. * Excerpt: "the ancient Persian empire, which once subjugated all the nations of the earth, was defeated when Alexander had won his victory at Arbela." 4. The Battle of the Metaurus, 207 BC * Excerpt: "That battle was the determining crisis of the contest, not merely between Rome and Carthage, but between the two great families of the world..." 5. Victory of Arminius over the Roman Legions under Varus, AD 9 * Known as the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. * Excerpt: "that victory secured at once and forever the independence of the Teutonic race." 6. The Battle of Châlons, AD 451 * Also called the Battle of the Catalaunian Fields or the Battle of the Catalun. * Excerpt: "The victory which the Roman general, Aëtius, with his Gothic allies, had then gained over the Huns, was the last victory of imperial Rome." 7. The Battle of Tours, AD 732 * Also called the Battle of Poitiers. * Excerpt: "the great victory won by Charles Martel ... gave a decisive check to the career of Arab conquest in Western Europe." 8. The Battle of Hastings, AD 1066 * Excerpt: "no one who appreciates the influence of England and her empire upon the destinies of the world will ever rank that victory as one of secondary importance." 9. Joan of Arc's Victory over the English at Orléans, AD 1429 * Known as the Siege of Orléans. * Excerpt: "the struggle by which the unconscious heroine of France, in the beginning of the fifteenth century, rescued her country from becoming a second Ireland under the yoke of the triumphant English." 10. Defeat of the Spanish Armada, AD 1588 * Excerpt: "The England of our own days is so strong, and the Spain of our own days is so feeble, that it is not easy, without some reflection and care, to comprehend the full extent of the peril which England then ran from the power and the ambition of Spain, or to appreciate the importance of that crisis in the history of the world." 11. The Battle of Blenheim, AD 1704 * Excerpt: "Had it not been for Blenheim, all Europe might at this day suffer under the effect of French conquests resembling those of Alexander in extent and those of the Romans in durability." 12. The Battle of Pultowa, AD 1709 * Also called the Battle of Poltava. * Excerpt: "The decisive triumph of Russia over Sweden at Pultowa was therefore all-important to the world, on account of what it overthrew as well as for what it established" 13. Victory of the Americans over Burgoyne at Saratoga, AD 1777 * Excerpt: "The ancient Roman boasted, with reason, of the growth of Rome from humble beginnings to the greatest magnitude which the world had then ever witnessed. But the citizen of the United States is still more justly entitled to claim this praise." 14. The Battle of Valmy, AD 1792 * Excerpt: "the kings of Europe, after the lapse of eighteen centuries, trembled once more before a conquering military republic." 15. The Battle of Waterloo, AD 1815 * Excerpt: "The exertions which the allied powers made at this crisis to grapple promptly with the French emperor have truly been termed gigantic, and never were Napoleon's genius and activity more signally displayed than in the celerity and skill by which he brought forward all the military resources of France ..." Since the publication of Creasy's book, other historians have attempted to modify or add to the list. In 1899 The Colonial Press published Decisive Battles of the World by Edward Shepherd Creasy with a Special Introduction and Supplementary Chapters On the Battles of Gettysburg 1863, Sedan 1870, Santiago and Manila 1898, by John Gilmer Speed (Revised Edition), In 1901 the firm J. B. Lippincott & Co. from Philadelphia published Great battles of the world by Stephen Crane, with illustrations by John Sloan., In 1908 Harper & Bros published an edition with eight battles added: Quebec, Yorktown, Vicksburg, Gettysburg, Sedan, Manila Bay, Santiago, and Tsushima., In 1920 Edgar Vincent, 1st Viscount D'Abernon published The Eighteenth Decisive Battle of the World: Warsaw, 1920, in which he claimed that the next battle on the list was the battle of Warsaw, fought in 1920 by the Polish and Bolshevik forces during the Polish–Soviet War., In 1930 Texas historian Clarence Wharton published San Jacinto: The Sixteenth Decisive Battle, in which he made the case for adding the final battle of the Texas Revolution to Creasy's list. In 1936 the San Jacinto Monument was given an inscription that echoed Wharton's view: "Measured by its results, San Jacinto was one of the decisive battles of the world. The freedom of Texas from Mexico won here led to annexation and to the Mexican–American War, resulting in the acquisition by the United States of the states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, Utah and parts of Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas and Oklahoma. Almost one-third of the present area of the American Nation, nearly a million square miles of territory, changed sovereignty.", In 1954–56, British historian J.F.C. Fuller published The Decisive Battles of the Western World and their Influence upon History., In 1956, historian and author Fletcher Pratt published The Battles that Changed History, stories of conflicts that forever changed the course of world events. He listed 16 battles from Arbela to Midway., In 1964, American historian Lt. Col. Joseph B. Mitchell published Twenty Decisive Battles of the World, an update of Creasy's list with five additions: 1. The Vicksburg Campaign, 1863. By capturing the Mississippi River during the American Civil War, the Union separated the Confederacy into halves. 2. Battle of Sadowa, 1866. This Prussian victory over the Austrians during the Seven Weeks War paved the way for a German empire. 3. First Battle of the Marne, 1914. The British and French prevented a German assault on Paris and an early German victory in World War I. 4. Battle of Midway, 1942. The beginning of the United States offensive in the Pacific Ocean during World War II and the devastating loss of four Japanese aircraft carriers. 5. Battle of Stalingrad, 1942–43. The defeat of the German attempt to conquer the Soviet Union and a significant loss of German resources in World War II., In 1976, Noble Frankland and Christopher Dowling published Decisive Battles of the Twentieth Century, which listed 23 battles, from the Battle of Tsushima to the Tet Offensive., In 100 Decisive Battles: From Ancient Times to the Present (2001), Paul K. Davis listed battles from Megiddo to Desert Storm. Referring to Creasy's work in the Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The Pirates of Penzance, Major-General Stanley boasts that he is able to "quote the fights historical; from Marathon to Waterloo, in order categorical." Creasy's text, while immensely popular at the time, and still frequently read today came into an increasing amount of criticism from the 20th century onwards in regards to several aspects. Creasy's selected battles are European-oriented, with the furthest battles from England being Marathon and Poltava. The absence of geographical balance is exacerbated by the English-heavy trend (6 out of 15), with a modern focus, indicating Britain's rise to power. Creasy's text is premised on the fact that his chosen battles were decisive - that an alternate result (or the absence of the battle) would lead to the world as we know it being radically different. This viewpoint has been frequently criticised in the last century, with most, though not all, viewpoints disagreeing that (these) singular battles were the primary movers of society. Beyond potential errors in choice or concept, Creasy is criticised for the vagueness of his descriptions, sources given and battle analysis. By World War I fully reconstructed battle movements and plans were considered the norm if true analysis was to be undertaken. The lack of context, both political and social around the battles chosen makes consideration of its various impacts either difficult or impossible. There is also a focus on dramatic description or rhetoric of the battles taking precedence over analysis. Set against this however is the fact that Creasy did not specifically set out to target his works for the military or military historians - he also wrote for public readership, and was without military experience or formal training in the field. Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World from Marathon to Waterloo according to Edward Shepherd Creasy, edited by P. Sandboge

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The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a 2011 psychological crime thriller film based on the 2005 novel of the same name by Stieg Larsson. It was directed by David Fincher and with a screenplay by Steven Zaillian. Starring Daniel Craig as journalist Mikael Blomkvist and Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander, it tells the story of Blomkvist's investigation to find out what happened to a woman from a wealthy family who disappeared 40 years prior. He recruits the help of Salander, a computer hacker. Sony Pictures Entertainment began development on the film in 2009. It took the company a few months to obtain the rights to the novel, while recruiting Zaillian and David Fincher. The casting process for the lead roles was exhaustive and intense; Craig faced scheduling conflicts, and a number of actresses were sought for the role of Lisbeth Salander. The script took over six months to write, which included three months of analyzing the novel. The film premiered at Odeon Leicester Square in London on December 12, 2011. Critics gave the film positive reviews, praising its bleak and dark tones and lauding Craig and Mara's performances. With a production budget of $90 million, the film grossed $232.6 million worldwide. The film was chosen by National Board of Review as one of the top ten films of 2011 and was a candidate for numerous awards, winning, among others, the Academy Award for Best Film Editing, while Mara's performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. In Stockholm, disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist is recovering from the legal and professional fallout of a libel suit brought against him by businessman Hans-Erik Wennerström, straining Blomkvist's relationship with his business partner and lover, Erika Berger. Lisbeth Salander, a brilliant but antisocial investigator and hacker, compiles an extensive background check on Blomkvist for the wealthy Henrik Vanger, who offers Blomkvist evidence against Wennerström in exchange for an unusual task: investigate the 40-year-old disappearance and presumed murder of Henrik's grandniece, Harriet. Blomkvist agrees, and moves into a cottage on the Vanger family estate on Hedestad Island. Salander's state-appointed guardian, Holger Palmgren, suffers a stroke, and is replaced by Nils Bjurman, a sadist who controls Salander's finances and extorts sexual favors by threatening to have her institutionalized. Unaware she is secretly recording one of their meetings, Bjurman brutally rapes her. At their next meeting, Salander tasers Bjurman, binds him to his bed, anally rapes him with a metallic dildo, and tattoos "I'm a rapist pig" across his torso. She then blackmails him into securing her independence and having no further contact with her. Blomkvist explores the island and interviews various Vanger family members. He uncovers a list of names and numbers that his visiting daughter, Pernilla, notices is Bible verse references. Blomkvist discovers that Salander had researched him illegally, but rather than report it, he hires her as his research assistant. She uncovers a connection between the list and numerous young women brutally murdered from 1947 to 1967, indicating a serial killer. One morning, Blomkvist finds the mutilated corpse of his adopted cat on the doorstep. Another night, while walking outdoors, a bullet grazes his forehead; after Salander tends his wounds, they have sex. Blomkvist begins to suspect Martin, Harriet's brother and operational head of the Vanger empire. Salander uncovers evidence that Martin and Harriet's late father, Gottfried, and later Martin, committed the murders. Blomkvist breaks into Martin's house to obtain more proof, but Martin arrives and catches him. He forces Blomkvist into his specially prepared basement, placing him in restraints. Martin brags about killing women for decades, but denies murdering Harriet. As Martin is about to kill Blomkvist, Salander arrives, attacking Martin and forcing him to flee in his SUV. Salander, on her motor bike, pursues Martin until he runs off the road and is killed. Salander nurses Blomkvist back to health and tells him that, as a child, she was institutionalized after attempting to burn her father alive. They deduce that Harriet is alive and in hiding; traveling to London, they confront Harriet's cousin, Anita, only to discover that she is Harriet. Harriet reveals that her father and brother sexually abused her for years, and that Martin witnessed her killing their father in self-defense. Her cousin, Anita, smuggled her off the island and let Harriet assume her identity in London, though Anita and her husband were later killed in a car accident. Finally free of her brother, Harriet returns to Sweden and tearfully reunites with Henrik. As promised, Henrik gives Blomkvist information against Wennerström, but it proves useless. Salander then hacks Wennerström's accounts, finds Blomkvist evidence of Wennerström's crimes, which Blomkvist uses to ruin him. Salander travels to Switzerland in disguise, removes two billion euros from Wennerström's secret accounts. Wennerström is later murdered in an apparent gangland shooting. On her way to give Blomkvist a Christmas present, Salander sees him with Erika. Heartbroken, she then discards the gift and rides away on her motorbike. Daniel Craig as Mikael Blomkvist:, Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander:, Christopher Plummer as Henrik Vanger:, Stellan Skarsgård as Martin Vanger:, Steven Berkoff as Dirch Frode, Head Legal Counsel for Vanger Industries, Robin Wright as Erika Berger: Blomkvist's business partner and editor-in-chief of Millennium magazine. She's also Blomkvist's occasional lover., Yorick van Wageningen as Nils Bjurman:, Joely Richardson as Harriet Vanger:, Goran Višnjić as Dragan Armansky, head of Milton Security, Salander's employer, Donald Sumpter as Detective Morell. David Dencik portrays a young Morell., Ulf Friberg as Hans-Erik Wennerström, CEO of the Wennerström Group, Geraldine James as Cecilia Vanger, Embeth Davidtz as Annika Giannini, Mikael's sister and a lawyer, Josefin Asplund as Pernilla Blomkvist, Mikael's daughter, Per Myrberg as Harald Vanger. Gustaf Hammarsten portrays a young Harald., Tony Way as Plague, Salander's hacker friend, Fredrik Dolk as Bertil Camnermarker, Counsel for the Wennerström Group, Alan Dale as Detective Isaksson, Leo Bill as Trinity, another of Salander's hacker friends, Élodie Yung as Miriam Wu, Salander's occasional lover, Joel Kinnaman as Christer Malm The success of Stieg Larsson's novel created Hollywood interest in adapting the book, as became apparent in 2009, when Lynton and Pascal pursued the idea of developing an "American" version unrelated to the Swedish film adaptation released that year. By December, two major developments occurred for the project: Steven Zaillian, who had recently completed the script for Moneyball (2011), became the screenwriter, while producer Scott Rudin finalized a partnership allocating full copyrights to Sony. Zaillian, who was unfamiliar with the novel, got a copy from Rudin. The screenwriter recalled, "They sent it to me and said, 'We want to do this. We will think of it as one thing for now. It's possible that it can be two and three, but let's concentrate on this one.'" After reading the book, the screenwriter did no research on the subject. Fincher, who was requested with partner Cean Chaffin by Sony executives to read the novel, was astounded by the series' size and success. As they began to read, the duo noticed that it had a tendency to take "readers on a lot of side trips"—"from detailed explanations of surveillance techniques to angry attacks on corrupt Swedish industrialists," professed The Hollywood Reporter Gregg Kilday. Fincher recalled of the encounter: "The ballistic, ripping-yarn thriller aspect of it is kind of a red herring in a weird way. It is the thing that throws Salander and Blomkvist together, but it is their relationship you keep coming back to. I was just wondering what 350 pages Zaillian would get rid of." Because Zaillian was already cultivating the screenplay, the director avoided interfering. After a conversation, Fincher was comfortable "they were headed in the same direction". The writing process consumed approximately six months, including three months creating notes and analyzing the novel. Zaillian noted that as time progressed, the writing accelerated. "As soon as you start making decisions," he explained, "you start cutting off all of the other possibilities of things that could happen. So with every decision that you make you are removing a whole bunch of other possibilities of where that story can go or what that character can do." Given the book's sizable length, Zaillian deleted elements to match Fincher's desired running time. Even so, Zaillan took significant departures from the book. To Zaillian, there was always a "low-grade" anxiety, "but I was never doing anything specifically to please or displease," he continued. "I was simply trying to tell the story the best way I could, and push that out of my mind. I didn't change anything just for the sake of changing it. There's a lot right about the book, but that part, I thought we could do it a different way, and it could be a nice surprise for the people that have read it." Zaillian discussed many of the themes in Larsson's Millennium series with Fincher, taking the pair deeper into the novel's darker subjects, such as the psychological dissimilarities between rapists and murderers. Fincher was familiar with the concept, from projects such as Seven (1995) and Zodiac (2007). Zaillian commented, "A rapist, or at least our rapist, is about exercising his power over somebody. A serial killer is about destruction; they get off on destroying something. It's not about having power over something, it's about eliminating it. What thrills them is slightly different." The duo wanted to expose the novels' pivotal themes, particularly misogyny. "We were committed to the tack that this is a movie about violence against women about specific kinds of degradation, and you can't shy away from that. But at the same time you have to walk a razor thin line so that the audience can viscerally feel the need for revenge but also see the power of the ideas being expressed." Instead of the typical three-act structure, they reluctantly chose a five-act structure, which Fincher pointed out is "very similar to a lot of TV cop dramas." Fincher and Zaillian's central objective was to maintain the novel's setting. To portray Larsson's vision of Sweden, and the interaction of light on its landscape, Fincher cooperated with an artistic team that included cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth and production designer Donald Graham Burt. The film was wholly shot using Red Digital Cinema Camera Company's RED MX digital camera, chosen to help evoke Larsson's tone. The idea, according to Cronenweth, was to employ unorthodox light sources and maintain a realistic perspective. "So there may be shadows, there may be flaws, but it's reality. You allow silhouettes and darkness, but at the same time we also wanted shots to counter that, so it would not all be one continuous dramatic image." Sweden's climate was a crucial element in enhancing the mood. Cronenweth commented, "It's always an element in the background and it was very important that you feel it as an audience member. The winter becomes like a silent character in the film giving everything a low, cool-colored light that is super soft and non-direct." To get acquainted with Swedish culture, Burt set out on a month-long expedition across the country. He said of the process, "It takes time to start really taking in the nuances of a culture, to start seeing the themes that recur in the architecture, the landscape, the layouts of the cities and the habits of the people. I felt I had to really integrate myself into this world to develop a true sense of place for the film. It was not just about understanding the physicality of the locations, but the metaphysics of them, and how the way people live comes out through design." Principal photography began in Stockholm, Sweden in September 2010. Production mostly took place at multiple locations in the city's central business district, including at the Stockholm Court House. One challenge was realizing the Vanger estate. They picked an eighteenth-century French architecture mansion Hofsta located approximately southwest of Stockholm. Filmmakers wanted to use a typical "manor from Småland" that was solemn, formal, and "very Old Money". "The Swedish are very good at the modern and the minimal but they also have these wonderful country homes that can be juxtaposed against the modern city—yet both speak to money." Principal photography relocated in October to Uppsala. On Queen Street, the facade of the area was renovated to mimic the Hotel Alder, after an old photograph of a building obtained by Fincher. From December onward, production moved to Zurich, Switzerland, where locations were established at Dolder Grand Hotel and the Zurich Airport. Because of the "beautiful" environment of the city, Fincher found it difficult to film in the area. Principal photography concluded in Oslo, Norway, where production took place at Oslo Airport, Gardermoen. Recorded for over fifteen hours, twelve extras were sought for background roles. Filming also took place in the United Kingdom and the United States. In one sequence the character Martin Vanger plays the song "Orinoco Flow" by Enya before beginning his torture of Mikael Blomkvist. David Fincher, the director, said that he believed that Martin "doesn’t like to kill, he doesn’t like to hear the screams, without hearing his favorite music" so therefore the character should play a song during the scene. Daniel Craig, the actor who played Blomkvist, selected "Orinoco Flow" on his iPod as a candidate song. Fincher said "And we all almost pissed ourselves, we were laughing so hard. No, actually, it’s worse than that. He said, ‘Orinoco Flow!’ Everybody looked at each other, like, what is he talking about? And he said, ‘You know, “Sail away, sail away...”’ And I thought, this guy is going to make Blomkvist as metro as we need." Tim Miller, creative director for the title sequence, wanted to develop an abstract narrative that reflected the pivotal moments in the novel, as well as the character development of Lisbeth Salander. It was arduous for Miller to conceptualize the sequence abstractly, given that Salander's occupation was a distinctive part of her personality. His initial ideas were modeled after a keyboard. "We were going to treat the keyboard like this giant city with massive fingers pressing down on the keys," Miller explained, "Then we transitioned to the liquid going through the giant obelisks of the keys." Among Miller's many vignettes was "The Hacker Inside", which revealed the character's inner disposition and melted them away. The futuristic qualities in the original designs provided for a much more cyberpunk appearance than the final product. In creating the "cyber" look for Salander, Miller said, "Every time I would show David a design he would say, 'More Tandy!' It's the shitty little computers from Radio Shack, the Tandy computers. They probably had vacuum tubes in them, really old technology. And David would go 'More Tandy', until we ended up with something that looked like we glued a bunch of computer parts found at a junkyard together." Fincher wanted the vignette to be a "personal nightmare" for Salander, replaying her darkest moments. "Early on, we knew it was supposed to feel like a nightmare," Miller professed, who commented that early on in the process, Fincher wanted to use an artwork as a template for the sequence. After browsing through various paintings to no avail, Fincher chose a painting that depicted the artist, covered in black paint, standing in the middle of a gallery. Many of Miller's sketches contained a liquid-like component, and were rewritten to produce the "gooey" element that was so desired. "David said let's just put liquid in all of them and it will be this primordial dream ooze that's a part of every vignette," Miller recalled. "It ties everything together other than the black on black." The title sequence includes abundant references to the novel, and exposes several political themes. Salander's tattoos, such as her phoenix and dragon tattoos, were incorporated. The multiple flower representations signified the biological life cycle, as well as Henrik, who received a pressed flower each year on his birthday. "One had flowers coming out of this black ooze," said Fincher, "it blossoms, and then it dies. And then a different flower, as that one is dying is rising from the middle of it. It was supposed to represent this cycle of the killer sending flowers." Ultimately, the vignette becomes very conceptual because Miller and his team took "a whole thought, and cut it up into multiple different shots that are mixed in with other shots". In one instance, Blomkvist is strangled by strips of newspaper, a metaphor for the establishment squelching his exposes. In the "Hot Hands" vignette, a pair of rough, distorted hands that embrace Salander's face and melt it represent all that's bad in men. The hands that embrace Blomkvist's face and shatter it, represent wealth and power. Themes of domestic violence become apparent as a woman's face shatters after a merciless beating; this also ties in the brutal beating of Salander's mother by her father, an event revealed in the sequel, The Girl Who Played with Fire (2006). A cover of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" (1970) plays throughout the title sequence. The rendition was produced by soundtrack composers Atticus Ross and Nine Inch Nails member Trent Reznor, and features vocals from Yeah Yeah Yeahs lead singer Karen O. Fincher suggested the song, but Reznor agreed only at his request. Led Zeppelin licensed the song only for use in the film's trailer and title sequence. Fincher stated that he sees title sequences as an opportunity to set the stage for the film, or to get an audience to let go of its preconceptions. Software packages that were primarily used are 3ds Max (for modeling, lighting, rendering), Softimage (for rigging and animation), Digital Fusion (for compositing), Real Flow (for fluid dynamics), Sony Vegas (for editorial), Zbrush and Mudbox (for organic modeling), and VRAY (for rendering). Fincher recruited Reznor and Ross to produce the score; aside from their successful collaboration on The Social Network, the duo had worked together on albums from Nine Inch Nails' later discography. They dedicated much of the year to work on the film, as they felt it would appeal to a broad audience. Akin to his efforts in The Social Network, Reznor experiments with acoustics and blends them with elements of electronic music, resulting in a forbidding atmosphere. "We wanted to create the sound of coldness—emotionally and also physically," he asserted, "We wanted to take lots of acoustic instruments [...] and transplant them into a very inorganic setting, and dress the set around them with electronics." Even before viewing the script, Reznor and Ross opted to use a redolent approach to creating the film's score. After discussing with Fincher the varying soundscapes and emotions, the duo spent six weeks composing. "We composed music we felt might belong," stated the Nine Inch Nails lead vocalist, "and then we'd run it by Fincher, to see where his head’s at and he responded positively. He was filming at this time last year and assembling rough edits of scenes to see what it feels like, and he was inserting our music at that point, rather than using temp music, which is how it usually takes place, apparently." Finding a structure for the soundtrack was arguably the most strenuous task. "We weren’t working on a finished thing, so everything keeps moving around, scenes are changing in length, and even the order of things are shuffled around, and that can get pretty frustrating when you get precious about your work. It was a lesson we learned pretty quickly of, 'Everything is in flux, and approach it as such. Hopefully it’ll work out in the end.'" A screening for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo took place on November 28, 2011, as part of a critics-only event hosted by the New York Film Critics Circle. Commentators at the event predicted that while the film would become a contender for several accolades, it would likely not become a forerunner in the pursuit for Academy Award nominations. A promotional campaign commenced thereafter, including a Lisbeth Salander-inspired collection, designed by Trish Summerville for H&M.; The worldwide premiere was at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on December 12, 2011, followed by the American opening at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City on December 14 and Stockholm the next day. Sony's target demographics were men and women over the age of 25 and 17–34. The film went into general release in North America on December 21, at 2,700 theaters, expanding to 2,974 theaters on its second day. The United Kingdom release was on December 26, Russia on January 1, 2012, and Japan on February 13. India and Vietnam releases were abandoned due to censorship concerns. A press statement from the Central Board of Film Certification stated: "Sony Pictures will not be releasing The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in India. The censor board has judged the film unsuitable for public viewing in its unaltered form and, while we are committed to maintaining and protecting the vision of the director, we will, as always, respect the guidelines set by the board." In contrast, the National Film Board of Vietnam insisted that the film's withdrawal had no relation to rigid censorship guidelines, as it had not been reviewed by the committee. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released the film in a DVD and Blu-ray disc combo pack in the United States on March 20, 2012. Bonus features include a commentary from Fincher, featurettes on Blomkvist, Salander, the sets and locations, etc. The disc artwork for the DVD version of the film resembles a Sony brand DVD-R, a reference to the hacker Lisbeth Salander. This caused a bit of confusion in the marketplace with consumers thinking they had obtained a bootleg copy. The release sold 644,000 copies in its first week, in third place behind The Muppets and Hop. The following week, the film sold an additional 144,000 copies generating $2.59 million in gross revenue. , 1,478,230 units had been sold, grossing $22,195,069. Fincher's film grossed $232.6 million during its theatrical run. The film's American release grossed $1.6 million from its Tuesday night screenings, a figure that increased to $3.5 million by the end of its first day of general release. It maintained momentum into its opening weekend, accumulating $13 million for a total of $21 million in domestic revenue. The film's debut figures fell below media expectations. Aided by positive word of mouth, its commercial performance remained steady into the second week, posting $19 million from 2,914 theaters. The third week saw box office drop 24% to $11.3 million, totaling $76.8 million. The number of theaters slightly increased to 2,950. By the fifth week, the number of theaters shrank to 1,907, and grosses to $3.7 million, though it remained within the national top ten. The film completed its North American theatrical run on March 22, 2012, earning over $102.5 million. The international debut was in six Scandinavian markets on December 19–25, 2011, securing $1.6 million from 480 venues. In Sweden the film opened in 194 theaters to strong results, accounting for more than half of international revenue at the time ($950,000). The first full week in the United Kingdom collected $6.7 million from 920 theaters. By the weekend of January 6–8, 2012, the film grossed $12.2 million for a total of $29 million; this included its expansion into Hong Kong, where it topped the box office, earning $470,000 from thirty-six establishments. The film similarly led the field in South Africa. It accumulated $6.6 million from an estimated 600 theaters over a seven-day period in Russia, placing fifth. The expansion continued into the following week, opening in nine markets. The week of January 13–15 saw the film yield $16.1 million from 3,910 locations in over forty-three territories, thus propelling the international gross to $49.3 million. It debuted at second place in Austria and Germany, where in the latter, it pulled $2.9 million from 525 locations. Similar results were achieved in Australia, where it reached 252 theaters. The film's momentum continued throughout the month, and by January 22, it had hit ten additional markets, including France and Mexico, from which it drew $3.25 million from 540 venues and $1.25 million from 540 theaters, respectively. In its second week in France it descended to number three, with a total gross of $5.8 million. The next major international release came in Japan on February 13, where it opened in first place with $3.68 million (¥288 million) in 431 theaters. By the weekend of February 17–19, the film had scooped up $119.5 million from international markets. The total international gross for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was $130.1 million. MGM, one of the studios involved in the production, posted a "modest loss" and declared that they had expected the film to gross at least 10% more. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo received positive reviews from critics, with particular note to the cast, tone, score and cinematography. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a rating of 86%, based on 236 reviews, with an average rating of 7.6/10. The site's consensus states, "Brutal yet captivating, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the result of David Fincher working at his lurid best with total role commitment from star Rooney Mara." At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score, the film received an average score of 71 out of 100, based on 41 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". David Denby of The New Yorker asserted that the austere, but captivating installment presented a "glancing, chilled view" of a world where succinct moments of loyalty coexisted with constant trials of betrayal. To USA Today columnist Claudia Puig, Fincher captures the "menace and grim despair in the frosty Scandinavian landscape" by carefully approaching its most gruesome features. Puig noted a surfeit of "stylistic flourishes" and "intriguing" changes in the narrative, compared to the original film. In his three-and-a-half star review, Chris Knight of the National Post argued that it epitomized a so-called "paradoxical position" that was both "immensely enjoyable and completely unnecessary". Rene Rodriguez of The Miami Herald said that the "fabulously sinister entertainment" surpassed the original film "in every way". The film took two and a half stars from Rolling Stone commentator Peter Travers, who concluded: "Fincher's Girl is gloriously rendered but too impersonal to leave a mark." A. O. Scott, writing for The New York Times, admired the moments of "brilliantly orchestrated" anxiety and confusion, but felt that The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was vulnerable to the "lumbering proceduralism" that he saw in its literary counterpart, as evident with the "long stretches of drab, hackneyed exposition that flatten the atmosphere". The Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern praised Cronenweth's cinematography, which he thought provided for glossy alterations in the film's darkness; "Stockholm glitters in nighttime exteriors, and its subway shines in a spectacular spasm of action involving a backpack." Rex Reed of The New York Observer professed that despite its occasional incomprehensibility, the movie was "technically superb" and "superbly acted". In contrast, Kyle Smith of New York Post censured the film, calling it "rubbish" and further commenting that it "demonstrates merely that masses will thrill to an unaffecting, badly written, psychologically shallow and deeply unlikely pulp story so long as you allow them to feel sanctified by the occasional meaningless reference to feminism or Nazis." The performances were a frequent topic in the critiques. Mara's performance, in particular, was admired by commentators. A revelation in the eyes of Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman, he proclaimed that her character was more important than "her ability to solve a crime". Her "hypnotic" portrayal was noted by Justin Chang of Variety, as well as Salon critic Andrew O'Hehir, who wrote, "Rooney Mara is a revelation as Lisbeth Salander, the damaged, aggressive computer geek and feminist revenge angel, playing the character as far more feral and vulnerable than Noomi Rapace’s borderline-stereotype sexpot Goth girl." Scott Tobias of The A.V. Club enjoyed the chemistry between Mara and Craig, as did David Germain of the Associated Press; "Mara and Craig make an indomitable screen pair, he nominally leading their intense search into decades-old serial killings, she surging ahead, plowing through obstacles with flashes of phenomenal intellect and eruptions of physical fury." Although Puig found Mara inferior to Rapace in playing Salander, with regard to Craig's performance, he said that the actor shone. This was supported by Morgenstern, who avouched that Craig "nonetheless finds welcome humor in Mikael's impassive affect". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times said the film was given a more assured quality than the original because of Fincher's direction and the lead performances, although he believed this did not always work to the film's advantage, preferring the original version's "less confident surface" where "emotions were closer to the surface." In addition to numerous awards, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was included on several year-end lists by film commentators and publications. It was named the best film of 2011 by MTV and James Berardinelli of ReelViews. The former wrote, "The director follows up the excellent Social Network with another tour de force, injecting the murder mystery that introduces us to outcast hacker Lisbeth Salander [...] and embattled journalist [...] with style, intensity and relentless suspense. Mara is a revelation, and the film's daunting 160-minute runtime breezes by thanks to one heart-racing scene after the next. Dark and tough to watch at times, but a triumph all around." The film came second in indieWire list of "Drew Taylor's Favorite Films Of 2011", while reaching the top ten of seven other publications, including the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, San Francisco Chronicle, and the New Orleans Times-Picayune. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was declared one of the best films of the year by the American Film Institute, as well as the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. In December 2011, Fincher stated that the creative team involved planned to film the sequels The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest, "back to back." There was an announced release date of 2013 for a film version of The Girl Who Played with Fire, although by August 2012 it was delayed due to changes being done to the script, being written by Steven Zaillian. By July 2013, Andrew Kevin Walker was hired to re-write the script. The following year, Fincher stated that a script for The Girl that Played with Fire had been written and that it was "extremely different from the book," and that despite the long delay, he was confident that the film would be made given that the studio "already has spent millions of dollars on the rights and the script". Mara was less optimistic about the production of the sequels, though she stated that she was still contractually signed on to reprise the lead role. By November 2015, it was announced that Sony was considering rebooting the franchise, before settling on continuing the film series with an adaptation of The Girl in the Spider's Web. The story is based on a 2015 novel by David Lagercrantz that was a continuation of the original Millennium trilogy after series creator Stieg Larsson died in 2004. Looking for a new lead in the series, Alicia Vikander was considered by the studio. The following year, Fede Álvarez was announced by Sony as director, as well as co- screenwriter with Steven Knight and Jay Basu. The Girl in the Spider's Web was notably the first adaptation of an installment in the book series to be produced into an English-language film upon its initial release. By March 2017, Álvarez announced that the film would have an entirely new cast, as he wanted the entire film to be his interpretation of the story. In September of the same year, Claire Foy was cast as Lisbeth Salander, replacing Mara. The film released in the U.S. on November 9, 2018. Millennium is a series of best-selling and award-winning Swedish crime novels, created by journalist Stieg Larsson. The two primary characters in the saga are Lisbeth Salander, a woman in her twenties with a photographic memory and poor social skills, and Mikael Blomkvist, an investigative journalist and publisher of a magazine called Millennium. Larsson planned the series as having ten installments, but due to his sudden death in 2004, only three were completed and published. All three were published posthumously: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in 2005, The Girl Who Played with Fire in 2006, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest in 2007. Larsson's novels were originally printed in Swedish by Norstedts Förlag, with English editions by Quercus in the United Kingdom and Alfred A. Knopf in the United States translated by Steven "Reg Keeland" T. Murray. The books have since been translated by many publishers in over fifty countries. By March 2015, 80 million copies of the first three books had been sold worldwide. In 2013, publisher Norstedts Förlag commissioned Swedish author and crime journalist David Lagercrantz to continue the Millennium series with Larsson's characters. Lagercrantz's first novel in the series, The Girl in the Spider's Web, was published in 2015. Another installment, The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye, followed in 2017. His third novel, The Girl Who Lived Twice, was published in August 2019. With Lagercrantz's first two installments, the Millennium series has sold over 100 million copies worldwide by May 2019, making it one of the best-selling book series in history. After his death, many of Larsson's friends said the character of Lisbeth Salander was created out of an incident in which Larsson, then a teenager, witnessed three of his friends gang-raping an acquaintance of his named Lisbeth, and did nothing to stop it. Days later, wracked with guilt, he begged her forgiveness — which she refused. The incident, he said, haunted him for years afterward, and in part moved him to create a character with her name who was also a rape survivor. The veracity of this story has since been questioned, after a colleague from Expo magazine reported to Rolling Stone that Larsson had told him that he had heard the story secondhand and retold it as his own. In the only interview he ever did about the series, Larsson stated that he based the character on what he imagined Pippi Longstocking might have been like as an adult. Another source of inspiration was Larsson's niece, Therese. A rebellious teenager, she often wore black clothing and makeup and told him several times that she wanted to get a tattoo of a dragon. The author often emailed Therese while writing the novels to ask her about her life and how she would react in certain situations. Larsson's friend and colleague Kurdo Baksi believes the author was also influenced by two murders in 2001 and 2002: Melissa Nordell, a model killed by her boyfriend, and Fadime Şahindal, a Swedish-Kurdish woman killed by her father. Both women were killed at the hands of men or as victims of honor crime. To Larsson, there was no difference, and the "systematic violence" against women highly affected and inspired him to take action against these crimes through his writing. Eva Gabrielsson, Larsson's longtime partner, wrote that "the trilogy allowed Stieg to denounce everyone he loathed for their cowardice, their irresponsibility, and their opportunism: couch-potato activists, sunny-day warriors, fair- weather skippers who pick and choose their causes; false friends who used him to advance their own careers; unscrupulous company heads and shareholders who wrangle themselves huge bonuses... Seen in this light, Stieg couldn't have had any better therapy for what ailed his soul than writing his novels." People who knew Larsson, such as Baksi and Anders Hellberg, a colleague of Larsson's in the 1970s and 1980s, were surprised that he wrote the novels. Hellberg went so far as to suspect that Larsson is not the sole author of the series, reasoning that Larsson was simply not a good enough writer. His partner, Gabrielsson has been named as the most likely candidate, due to her chosen wording during at least one interview that seemed to imply co-authorship. She later claimed she had been misquoted. In 2011 Gabrielsson expressed anger at such accusations and clarified: "The actual writing, the craftsmanship, was Stieg's. But the content is a different matter. There are a lot of my thoughts, ideas and work in there." As an example she said he used her unfinished book about architect Per Olof Hallman to research locations for the Millennium series, and that the two of them physically checked places together and discussed where the characters would live. Having begun writing the first book in summer 2002, Larsson waited until he had finished the first two and most of the third before submitting them to Swedish publishers. Baksi suggested he might have written the first chapter in 1997, which is when Larsson told him he was writing a novel. While other publishers had turned the manuscripts down, Expos publisher Robert Aschberg recommended them to Norstedts Förlag, whose editors accepted after reading the first two books in a single sitting. Norstedts commissioned Steven T. Murray to undertake the English translation. Larsson tried to get British publishers to accept his book, but was turned down until Christopher MacLehose bought the global English-language rights of the book for his MacLehose Press, an imprint of the London publisher Quercus. Both Gabrielsson and Murray have said that MacLehose "needlessly prettified" the English translation, this being the reason Murray requested he be credited under the pseudonym "Reg Keeland." MacLehose explained that the translations were commissioned by the Swedish company who adapted the books to film in order to aid an English-speaking screenwriter whom the producers were hoping to hire. For that reason they were done quickly and were not intended for publication. MacLehose said he polished and tightened them up a bit, as he would with any translation. The English releases changed the titles, even though Larsson specifically refused to allow the Swedish publisher to change the name of the first novel, and the size of Salander's dragon tattoo; from a large piece covering her entire back, to a small shoulder tattoo. Alfred A. Knopf bought the U.S. rights to the books after Larsson's death in 2004, and uses this same translation. In December 2013, the Swedish publisher Norstedts announced that a fourth Millennium book, to be published in August 2015, would be written by David Lagercrantz, a Swedish author known for being Zlatan Ibrahimović's biographer. Gabrielsson has voiced criticism against this project, which has not made use of the unpublished material which is still in her possession. The Swedish title of the book is Det som inte dödar oss, literally translated "That Which Does Not Kill Us". Like the previous novels, the English language translation was published by Quercus. The book was released with the English language title The Girl in the Spider's Web in the UK on 27 August and in the US on 1 September 2015. The fifth book in the Millennium series was released in September 2017, once again written by Lagercrantz. The Swedish title is Mannen som sökte sin skugga (literal English translation: The Man Who Hunted his Shadow) and the English title is The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye. In 2017, Lagercrantz stated that he would only write one more installment in the Millennium series. Lagercrantz's The Girl Who Lived Twice was released on August 22, 2019. Larsson wrote an incomplete manuscript of another novel in the series before his sudden death in November 2004. His partner, Eva Gabrielsson, is in possession of the notebook computer with the manuscript, but does not own the rights to Larsson's work. In an attempt to protect Gabrielsson from the people he was investigating in real life (Swedish Neo-Nazis and racists), Larsson never married. He wrote a will but it was not witnessed, making it invalid according to Swedish law. Thus, it is his family who have succession. Outlines or manuscripts for a fifth and sixth book also possibly exist. In 2010, Larsson's friend John-Henri Holmberg showed Associated Press emails he received from the author shortly before his death that supposedly described plans for another book in the series. In them Larsson wrote "The plot is set 120 kilometres north of Sachs Harbour, at Banks Island in the month of September ... According to the synopsis it should be 440 pages." Gabrielsson has described the manuscript in her possession as roughly 200 pages, having a working title of Guds hämnd (God's Revenge), being 30% complete and "Not worth publishing as is." In 2011 Gabrielsson said, "I once offered to finish it, but I have to have the legal rights to do so, and they didn't want to give me that, so I think we should all be happy that there are just three." Only months earlier, Larsson's former colleague Kurdo Baksi said he and the author's father were shown the manuscript by Gabrielsson shortly after Larsson's death and that "It is at 260 pages at the moment – about 70% complete." He described the manuscript as being the fifth in the series, set "between Ireland, Sweden and the US" and largely featuring Lisbeth Salander's twin sister Camilla. Baksi is also against having a ghost writer complete it, believing that they "would not respect Stieg Larsson's style." The first novel won Sweden's Glass Key award in 2006, that same year the second book won the Best Swedish Crime Novel Award, and in 2008 the third novel also won the Glass Key award. In the 2012 revised edition of Japan's Tozai Mystery Best 100, the Millennium series was ranked the twelfth best mystery from the West. By May 2010, 27 million copies of the trilogy had been sold worldwide, a number that would grow to more than 46 million over the next five months, and reach 65 million in December 2011. In July 2010 the series made Larsson the first author to sell a million electronic copies of his work on the Amazon Kindle. Sales reached 75 million copies throughout fifty countries by December 2013, and 80 million by March 2015. Lagercrantz's first two installments had sold 14 million copies in 47 countries by May 2019, increasing the Millennium series' total to over 100 million copies worldwide. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, released on February 25, 2009., The Girl Who Played with Fire, released on September 18, 2009., The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest, released on November 27, 2009. The Swedish film production company Yellow Bird has produced film versions of the Millennium Trilogy, co-produced with The Danish film production company Nordisk Film and television company, which were released in Scandinavia in 2009. In 2010, the extending of all three films to approximately 180 minutes led to their being shown on Swedish television as the six-part Millennium series. Each film was divided into two parts of 90 minutes. This version was released on July 14, 2010 on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in three separate sets and on November 24, 2010 as a Complete Millennium Trilogy box set with an extra disc. Originally, only the first film was meant for a theatrical release, with the following ones conceived as TV films, but this was changed in the wake of the tremendous success of the first film. The first film was directed by Niels Arden Oplev and the next two by Daniel Alfredson, while the screenplays of the first two were adapted by Nikolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg, and the last one by Ulf Rydberg and Jonas Frykberg. All three films feature Michael Nyqvist as Mikael Blomkvist and Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Released in North America on December 21, 2011, and in the United Kingdom on December 26, 2011., The Girl in the Spider's Web. Released in Sweden on October 26, 2018, and in the United States on November 9, 2018. Yellow Bird and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer partnered with Columbia Pictures to produce an English-language adaptation of the first novel. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was written by Steven Zaillian, directed by David Fincher and produced by Scott Rudin, with Daniel Craig as Mikael Blomkvist and Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander. Along with Dragon Tattoo, Fincher and Zaillian signed a two-picture deal to adapt The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest, which would possibly have been shot back to back. In January 2012, it was announced that Sony was "moving forward" with the adaptations of The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Zaillian wrote the original screenplays, but Sony brought in Andrew Kevin Walker to revise them. The studio had hoped to have the same people involved in the sequels as in the first film, with Fincher directing and Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara starring, but scheduling has been difficult. On 4 November 2015, it was announced that an adaptation of The Girl in the Spider's Web was in the works and that Craig and Mara would not be reprising their roles. The film is a quasi-reboot featuring a different cast, but still framed as a sequel to Fincher's film. It is directed by Fede Alvarez, and stars Claire Foy as Salander and Sverrir Gudnason as Blomkvist. In October 2011, DC Comics announced that its Vertigo imprint had acquired the rights to the series, and would be adapted each novel into two graphic novels. The graphic novels are adapted by Scottish crime novelist Denise Mina, with art by Leonardo Manco and Andrea Mutti. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Book 1, released on November 13, 2012., The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Book 2, released on May 7, 2013., The Girl Who Played with Fire, released on June 3, 2014., The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, released on July 28, 2015. For the Franco-Belgian market, a separate adaptation has been published, written by Sylvain Runberg with artwork by José Homs and Manolo Carot. Starting in 2016, Runberg followed up the series with newer stories based on the characters, independent of David Lagercrantz' reboot. The Stieg Larsson Trilogy from UK publisher Quercus, The official Millennium site from Swedish publisher Norstedts Förlag The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (original title in ; in English: Men Who Hate Women) is a psychological thriller novel by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson (1954–2004), which was published posthumously in 2005 to become an international bestseller. It is the first book of the Millennium series. Larsson spoke of an incident which he said occurred when he was 15: he stood by as three men gang raped an acquaintance of his named Lisbeth. Days later, racked with guilt for having done nothing to help her, he begged her forgiveness—which she refused to grant. The incident, he said, haunted him for years afterward and in part inspired him to create a character named Lisbeth who was also a rape survivor. The veracity of this story has been questioned since Larsson's death, after a colleague from Expo magazine reported to Rolling Stone that Larsson had told him he had heard the story secondhand and retold it as his own. The murder of Catrine da Costa was also an inspiration when he wrote the book. With the exception of the fictional Hedestad, the novel takes place in actual Swedish towns. The magazine Millennium in the books has characteristics similar to that of Larsson's magazine, Expo, such as its socio-political leanings and its financial difficulties. Both Larsson's longtime partner Eva Gabrielsson and English translator Steven T. Murray have said that Christopher MacLehose (who works for British publisher Quercus) "needlessly prettified" the English translation; as such, Murray requested he be credited under the pseudonym "Reg Keeland". The English release also changed the title, even though Larsson specifically refused to allow the Swedish publisher to do so, and the size of Salander's dragon tattoo; from a large piece covering her entire back, to a small shoulder tattoo. In December 2002, Mikael Blomkvist, publisher of the Swedish political magazine Millennium, loses a libel case involving allegations about billionaire industrialist Hans-Erik Wennerström. Blomkvist is sentenced to three months (deferred) in prison, and ordered to pay hefty damages and costs. Soon afterwards, he is invited to meet Henrik Vanger, the retired CEO of the Vanger Corporation, unaware that Vanger has checked into his personal and professional history; the investigation of Blomkvist's circumstances has been carried out by Lisbeth Salander, a brilliant but deeply troubled researcher and computer hacker. Vanger promises to provide Blomkvist with evidence against Wennerström in return for discovering what happened to Vanger's grandniece, Harriet, who disappeared in 1966 during a family gathering at the Vanger estate on Hedeby Island the same day that a traffic accident on a bridge temporarily cut off the island from the mainland. Blomkvist stays on the island while researching the Vanger family history and Harriet's disappearance. He meets several members of the Vanger clan, including Harriet's brother, Martin, current CEO of the company; Isabella, Martin and Harriet's mother; and Cecilia, a headmistress who was Harriet's younger aunt and friend, who seduces Blomkvist later in the novel. Meanwhile, Salander's state-appointed legal guardian Holger Palmgren suffers a stroke. He is replaced by Nils Bjurman, who extorts sexual acts from Salander and eventually rapes her. After secretly recording her assault, Salander takes her revenge, torturing Bjurman and threatening to ruin him unless he gives her full control over her life and finances. She then uses a tattoo machine to brand him as a rapist. On Hedeby Island, Blomkvist pursues new evidence in Harriet's disappearance, including photographs showing Harriet's discomfort at seeing an unidentified young man. He also discovers a set of names and numbers believed to be old telephone numbers in Harriet's journal; however, his daughter Pernilla identifies them as quotes from the Book of Leviticus, which describe rules about violent punishment of women. Blomkvist correlates one of them with the grotesque murder of a Vanger Corporation secretary in 1949, and realizes that he may be on the trail of an old serial killer. Vanger's lawyer suggests Salander as a research assistant. Blomkvist realises that Salander hacked into his computer for the initial report, and confronts her to ask her for help with the investigation, to which she agrees. The two eventually become casual lovers. Meanwhile, Salander uncovers the remaining four murders corresponding to the Bible quotes in Harriet's journal, as well as several more that fit the profile. However, they realize this is more than just an old cold case when a local cat is left dismembered on their porch, and Blomkvist is shot at from a distance during an afternoon jog. Convinced that there must be a connection between the murders and the Vanger family, Salander searches through the Vanger Corporation archives. She notices that most of the murders occurred in locations where the corporation did business. She begins to suspect that the murderer was Gottfried Vanger, Martin and Harriet's deceased father, but she finds out that he died prior to the last murder. While Salander continues to hunt through the archives, Blomkvist manages to identify the young man in the photograph: Harriet's brother Martin. However, before he can do anything, Martin takes Blomkvist prisoner, revealing that Gottfried "initiated" him into the ritual rape and murder of women before his own death, and implies that Gottfried sexually abused both him and Harriet. Martin admits to murdering dozens of women but denies killing his sister. He attempts to kill Blomkvist, but Salander — who had made the connection with Martin independently — arrives and attacks Martin. Martin flees by car, pursued by Salander, and commits suicide by purposely colliding with an oncoming truck. Believing that Cecilia's sister Anita, who now lives in London, is the only relative who might know something about Harriet's fate, Blomkvist and Salander tap her phone and learn that Harriet is still alive and living under Anita's name in Australia. When Blomkvist flies there to meet her, Harriet tells him the truth about her disappearance: her father Gottfried had repeatedly raped her, until she killed him in self-defense. That did not solve the problem however, as Martin took his father's role and continued to rape her. Harriet found some peace when Martin was sent away to preparatory school, but he returned the day of her disappearance. Harriet realized she would never be free of him unless she ran away, so she found a place to hide during the traffic accident, and Anita smuggled her to the mainland the next morning. Blomkvist persuades Harriet to return to Sweden, where she reunites with Henrik. Blomkvist then accompanies Salander to her mother's funeral. Back in Sweden, Blomkvist learns that the evidence against Wennerström that Vanger promised him is useless. However, Salander hacked Wennerström's computer and discovered that his crimes went far beyond what Blomkvist documented. Using her evidence, Blomkvist prints an exposé and a book which ruin Wennerström and catapult Millennium to national prominence. Salander, using her hacking skills, succeeds in stealing some 2.6 billion kr (about $260 million USD) from Wennerström's secret bank account. Blomkvist and Salander spend Christmas together in his holiday retreat. Shortly after, she goes to Blomkvist's home, intending to declare her love for him and give him a Christmas present, but when she sees him with his long-time lover and business partner Erika Berger, she throws the present in a dumpster and leaves. As a postscript, Salander continues to monitor Wennerström and after six months, anonymously informs a lawyer in Miami of his whereabouts. Four days later the body of Wennerström is found in Marbella, Spain, shot three times in the head. Mikael Blomkvistjournalist, publisher, and part-owner of the monthly political magazine Millennium, Lisbeth Salanderfreelance surveillance agent and researcher specialized in investigating people on behalf of Milton Security, Erika Bergereditor-in-chief/majority owner of Millennium and Blomkvist's long-standing lover, Henrik Vangerretired industrialist and former CEO of Vanger Corporation, Harriet VangerHenrik's grandniece, disappeared without a trace in 1966, Martin VangerHarriet's brother and CEO of Vanger Corporation, Gottfried VangerHenrik's nephew, and Martin and Harriet's deceased father, Isabella VangerGottfried Vanger's widow, and Martin and Harriet's mother, Cecilia Vangerdaughter of Harald Vanger and one of Henrik's nieces, Anita Vangerdaughter of Harald Vanger and one of Henrik's nieces, currently living in London, Birger Vangerson of Harald Vanger and one of Henrik's nephews, Harald VangerHenrik's elder brother, a member of the Swedish Nazi Party, Hans-Erik Wennerströmcorrupt billionaire financier, Robert Lindberga banker, Blomkvist's source for the libelous story on Wennerström, William Borga former journalist and Blomkvist's nemesis, Monica AbrahamssonBlomkvist's ex-wife whom he married in 1986 and divorced in 1991, Pernilla Abrahamssontheir daughter who was born in 1986, Greger BeckmanErika Berger's husband, Holger PalmgrenSalander's legal guardian and lawyer who becomes disabled by a stroke, Nils BjurmanSalander's legal guardian and lawyer after Palmgren, Dirch Frodeformer lawyer for Vanger Corporation, now lawyer with one client: Henrik Vanger, Dragan ArmanskijCEO and COO of Milton Security, Lisbeth's employer, Plaguecomputer hacker/genius, EvaMartin Vanger's girlfriend, Christer Malmdirector, art designer, and part-owner of Millennium, Janne Dahlmanmanaging editor of Millennium, Gustaf Morellretired Detective Superintendent who investigated Harriet's disappearance, Anna NygrenHenrik Vanger's housekeeper, Gunnar Nilssoncaretaker of Henrik Vanger's domain in Hedeby Larsson makes several literary references to the genre's classic forerunners and comments on contemporary Swedish society. Reviewer Robert Dessaix writes, "His favourite targets are violence against women, the incompetence and cowardice of investigative journalists, the moral bankruptcy of big capital and the virulent strain of Nazism still festering away ... in Swedish society." Cecilia Ovesdotter Alm and Anna Westerstahl Stenport write that the novel "reflects—implicitly and explicitly—gaps between rhetoric and practice in Swedish policy and public discourse about complex relations between welfare state retrenchment, neoliberal corporate and economic practices, and politicised gender construction. The novel, according to one article, endorses a pragmatic acceptance of a neoliberal world order that is delocalized, dehumanized and misogynistic." Alm and Stenport add, "What most international (and Swedish) reviewers overlook is that the financial and moral corruptibility at the heart of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is so profound as to indict most attributes associated with contemporary Sweden as democratic and gender-equal. The novel is in fact far from what American critic Maureen Corrigan calls an "unflinching ... commonsense feminist social commentary". (Corrigan's article was "Super-Smart Noir With a Feminist Jolt," National Public Radio, 23 September 2008.) Larsson further enters the debate as to how responsible criminals are for their crimes, and how much is blamed on upbringing or society. For instance, Salander has a strong will and assumes that everyone else does, too. She is portrayed as having suffered every kind of abuse in her young life, including an unnecessary ordered commitment to a psychiatric clinic and subsequent instances of sexual assault suffered at the hands of her court-appointed guardian. Maria de Lurdes Sampaio, in the journal Cross-Cultural Communication, asserts that, "Blomkvist, a modern Theseus, leads us to the labyrinth of the globalized world, while the series' protagonist, Lisbeth Salander, modeled on the Amazon, is an example of the empowerment of women in crime fiction by playing the role of the 'tough guy' detective, while also personifying the popular roles of the victim, the outcast and the avenger." In this context, she discusses "Dialogues with Greek tragedy... namely Salander's struggles with strong father figures." Sampaio also argues, Larsson writes within the novel, in Chapter 12, "It's actually a fascinating case. What I believe is known as a locked room mystery, on an island. And nothing in the investigation seems to follow normal logic. Every question remains unanswered, every clue leads to a dead end." He supplies a family tree delineating the relationships of five generations of the Vanger family. The novel was released to great acclaim in Sweden and later, on its publication in many other European countries. In the original language, it won Sweden's Glass Key Award in 2006 for best crime novel of the year. It also won the 2008 Boeke Prize, and in 2009 the Galaxy British Book Awards for Books Direct Crime Thriller of the Year, and the prestigious Anthony Award for Best First Novel. The Guardian ranked The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo #98 in its list of 100 Best Books of the 21st Century. Larsson was awarded the ITV3 Crime Thriller Award for International Author of the Year in 2008. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo received mixed reviews from American critics. It debuted at number four on The New York Times Best Seller list. Alex Berenson wrote in The New York Times, "The novel offers a thoroughly ugly view of human nature"; while it "opens with an intriguing mystery" and the "middle section of Girl is a treat, the rest of the novel doesn't quite measure up. The book's original Swedish title was Men Who Hate Women, a label that just about captures the subtlety of the novel's sexual politics." The Los Angeles Times said "the book takes off, in the fourth chapter: From there, it becomes classic parlor crime fiction with many modern twists...The writing is not beautiful, clipped at times (though that could be the translation by Reg Keeland) and with a few too many falsely dramatic endings to sections or chapters. But it is a compelling, well-woven tale that succeeds in transporting the reader to rural Sweden for a good crime story." Several months later, Matt Selman said the book "rings false with piles of easy super-victories and far-fetched one-in-a-million clue-findings." Richard Alleva, in Commonweal, wrote that the novel is marred by "its inept backstory, banal characterizations, flavorless prose, surfeit of themes (Swedish Nazism, uncaring bureaucracy, corporate malfeasance, abuse of women, etc.), and—worst of all—author Larsson's penchant for always telling us exactly what we should be feeling." On the other hand, Dr. Abdallah Daar, writing for Nature, said, "The events surrounding the great-niece's disappearance are meticulously and ingeniously pieced together, with plenty of scientific insight." The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote, "It's a big, intricately plotted, darkly humorous work, rich with ironies, quirky but believable characters and a literary playfulness that only a master of the genre and its history could bring off." The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sold over 30 million copies by 2010. In the United States, it sold over 3.4 million copies in hardcover or ebook formats, and 15 million total by June 2011. Wiley published a collection of essays, edited by Eric Bronson, titled The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Philosophy (2011). The Swedish film production company Yellow Bird created film versions of the first three Millennium books, all three films released in 2009, beginning with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, directed by Danish filmmaker Niels Arden Oplev. The protagonists were played by Michael Nyqvist and Noomi Rapace., A Hollywood film adaptation of the book, directed by David Fincher, was released in December 2011. The main characters were portrayed by Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara., Millennium, a Swedish six-part television miniseries based on the film adaptations of Stieg Larsson's series of the same name, was broadcast on SVT1 from 20 March 2010 to 24 April 2010. The series was produced by Yellow Bird in cooperation with several production companies, including SVT, Nordisk Film, Film i Västm, and ZDF Enterprises., Dragon Tattoo Trilogy: Extended Edition is the title of the TV miniseries release on DVD, Blu-ray, and video on demand in the US. This version of the miniseries comprises nine hours of story content, including over two hours of additional footage not seen in the theatrical versions of the original Swedish films. The four-disc set includes: The Girl with the Dragon TattooExtended Edition, The Girl Who Played with FireExtended Edition, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' NestExtended Edition, and a bonus disc including two hours of special features. The Dragon with the Girl Tattoo (2010) – Adam Roberts, The Girl with the Sturgeon Tattoo (2011) – Lars Arffssen, The Girl who Fixed the Umlaut (2010) – Nora Ephron, The Girl with the Sandwich Tattoo: A cruel parody (2013) – Dragon Stiegsson, The Coach with the Dragon Tattoo, an episode of Class by Patrick Ness August 2005, Swedish: Norstedts (), paperback (poss 1st edition), 10 January 2008, UK: MacLehose Press/Quercus Imprint (), hardback (translated as The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Reg Keeland), 16 September 2008, US: Alfred A. Knopf (), hardback

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Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and constituting the biological family Trochilidae. They are the smallest of birds, most species measuring in length. The smallest extant bird species is the bee hummingbird, which weighs less than . They are known as hummingbirds because of the humming sound created by their beating wings, which flap at high frequencies audible to humans. They hover in mid-air at rapid wing-flapping rates, which vary from around 12 beats per second in the largest species, to in excess of 80 in some of the smallest. Of those species that have been measured in wind tunnels, their top speeds exceed and some species can dive at speeds in excess of . Hummingbirds have the highest mass-specific metabolic rate of any homeothermic animal. To conserve energy when food is scarce, and nightly when not foraging, they can go into torpor, a state similar to hibernation, slowing their metabolic rate to 1/15th of its normal rate. A map of the hummingbird family treereconstructed from analysis of 284 of the world's 338 known speciesshows rapid diversification from 22 million years ago. Hummingbirds fall into nine main clades, the Topazes, Hermits, Mangoes, Brilliants, Coquettes, Patagona, Mountain Gems, Bees, and Emeralds, defining their relationship to nectar-bearing flowering plants and the birds' continued spread into new geographic areas. While all hummingbirds depend on flower nectar to fuel their high metabolisms and hovering flight, coordinated changes in flower and bill shape stimulated the formation of new species of hummingbirds and plants. Due to this exceptional evolutionary pattern, as many as 140 hummingbird species can coexist in a specific region, such as the Andes range. The hummingbird evolutionary tree shows ancestral hummingbirds splitting from insectivorous swifts (family Apodidae) and treeswifts (family Hemiprocnidae) about 42 million years ago, probably in Eurasia. One key evolutionary factor appears to be an altered taste receptor that enabled hummingbirds to seek nectar. By 22 million years ago the ancestral species of current hummingbirds became established in South America, where environmental conditions stimulated further diversification. The Andes Mountains appear to be a particularly rich environment for hummingbird evolution because diversification occurred simultaneously with mountain uplift over the past 10 million years. Hummingbirds remain in dynamic diversification inhabiting ecological regions across South America, North America, and the Caribbean, indicating an enlarging evolutionary radiation. Within the same geographic region, hummingbird clades co-evolved with nectar-bearing plant clades, affecting mechanisms of pollination. The same is true for the sword-billed hummingbird (Ensifera ensifera), one of the morphologically most extreme species, and one of its main food plant clades (Passiflora section Tacsonia). Hummingbirds exhibit sexual size dimorphism according to Rensch's rule, in which males are smaller than females in small species, and males are larger than females in large-bodied species. The extent of this sexual size difference varies among clades of hummingbirds. For example, the Mellisugini clade exhibits a large size dimorphism, with females being larger than males. Conversely, the Lophomithini clade displays very little size dimorphism; males and females are similar in size. Sexual dimorphisms in bill size and shape are also present between male and female hummingbirds, where in many clades, females have longer, more curved bills favored for accessing nectar from tall flowers. For males and females of the same size, females will tend to have larger bills. Sexual size and bill differences likely evolved due to constraints imposed by courtship because mating displays of male hummingbirds require complex aerial maneuvers. Males tend to be smaller than females, allowing conservation of energy to forage competitively and participate more frequently in courtship. Thus, sexual selection will favor smaller male hummingbirds. Female hummingbirds tend to be larger, requiring more energy, with longer beaks that allow for more effective reach into crevices of tall flowers for nectar. Thus females are better at foraging, acquiring flower nectar, and supporting the energy demands of their larger body size. Directional selection will thus favor the larger hummingbirds in terms of acquiring food. Another evolutionary cause of this sexual bill dimorphism is that the selective forces from competition for nectar between the sexes of each species are what drive the sexual dimorphism. Depending on which sex holds territory in the species, it is advantageous for the other sex to have a longer bill and be able to feed on a wide variety of flowers, decreasing intraspecific competition. For example, in species of hummingbirds where males have longer bills, males do not hold a specific territory and have a lek mating system. In species where males have shorter bills than females, males defend their resources and therefore females must have a longer bill in order to feed from a broader range of flowers. Hummingbirds are specialized nectarivores and are tied to the ornithophilous flowers upon which they feed. Some species, especially those with unusual bill shapes, such as the sword-billed hummingbird and the sicklebills, are co- evolved with a small number of flower species. However, even in the most specialized hummingbird-plant mutualisms the number of food plant lineages of the individual hummingbird species increases with time. The bee hummingbird (Mellisuga helenae) - the world's smallest bird - evolved to dwarfism likely because it had to compete with long-billed hummingbirds having an advantage for nectar foraging from specialized flowers, consequently leading the bee hummingbird to more successfully compete for flower foraging against insects. Many plants pollinated by hummingbirds produce flowers in shades of red, orange, and bright pink, though the birds will take nectar from flowers of other colors as well. Hummingbirds can see wavelengths into the near- ultraviolet, but hummingbird-pollinated flowers do not reflect these wavelengths as many insect-pollinated flowers do. This narrow color spectrum may render hummingbird-pollinated flowers relatively inconspicuous to most insects, thereby reducing nectar robbing. Hummingbird-pollinated flowers also produce relatively weak nectar (averaging 25% sugars w/w) containing a high proportion of sucrose, whereas insect-pollinated flowers typically produce more concentrated nectars dominated by fructose and glucose. Upon maturity, males of a particular species, Phaethornis longirostris, the long-billed hermit, appear to be evolving a daggerlike weapon on the beak tip as a secondary sexual trait to defend mating areas. In traditional taxonomy, hummingbirds are placed in the order Apodiformes, which also contains the swifts. However, some taxonomists have separated them into their own order, the Trochiliformes. Hummingbirds' wing bones are hollow and fragile, making fossilization difficult and leaving their evolutionary history poorly documented. Though scientists theorize that hummingbirds originated in South America, where species diversity is greatest, possible ancestors of extant hummingbirds may have lived in parts of Europe to what is southern Russia today. Between 325 and 340 species of hummingbirds are described, depending on taxonomic viewpoint, divided into two subfamilies, the hermits (subfamily Phaethornithinae, 34 species in six genera), and the typical hummingbirds (subfamily Trochilinae, all the others). However, recent phylogenetic analyses suggest that this division is slightly inaccurate, and that there are nine major clades of hummingbirds: the topazes and jacobins, the hermits, the mangoes, the coquettes, the brilliants, the giant hummingbird (Patagona gigas), the mountaingems, the bees, and the emeralds. The topazes and jacobins combined have the oldest split with the rest of the hummingbirds. The hummingbird family has the second-greatest number of species of any bird family (after the tyrant flycatchers). Fossil hummingbirds are known from the Pleistocene of Brazil and the Bahamas; however, neither has yet been scientifically described, and fossils and subfossils of a few extant species are known. Until recently, older fossils had not been securely identifiable as those of hummingbirds. In 2004, Dr. Gerald Mayr of the Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt am Main identified two 30-million-year-old hummingbird fossils. The fossils of this primitive hummingbird species, named Eurotrochilus inexpectatus ("unexpected European hummingbird"), had been sitting in a museum drawer in Stuttgart; they had been unearthed in a clay pit at Wiesloch–Frauenweiler, south of Heidelberg, Germany, and because it was assumed that hummingbirds never occurred outside the Americas, were not recognized to be hummingbirds until Mayr took a closer look at them. Fossils of birds not clearly assignable to either hummingbirds or a related, extinct family, the Jungornithidae, have been found at the Messel pit and in the Caucasus, dating from 40–35 mya; this indicates that the split between these two lineages indeed occurred at that date. The areas where these early fossils have been found had a climate quite similar to that of the northern Caribbean or southernmost China during that time. The biggest remaining mystery at the present time is what happened to hummingbirds in the roughly 25 million years between the primitive Eurotrochilus and the modern fossils. The astounding morphological adaptations, the decrease in size, and the dispersal to the Americas and extinction in Eurasia all occurred during this timespan. DNA-DNA hybridization results suggest that the main radiation of South American hummingbirds took place at least partly in the Miocene, some 12 to 13 million years ago, during the uplifting of the northern Andes. In 2013, a 50-million- year-old bird fossil unearthed in Wyoming was found to be a predecessor to both hummingbirds and swifts before the groups diverged. List of hummingbird species, sortable alphabetically by common name, binomial name, or taxonomic sequence. During evolution, hummingbirds have adapted to the navigational needs of visual processing while in rapid flight or hovering by development of an exceptionally dense array of retinal neurons allowing for increased spatial resolution in the lateral and frontal visual fields. Morphological studies showed that neuronal hypertrophy, relatively the largest in any bird, exists in a brain region called the pretectal nucleus lentiformis mesencephali (or nucleus of the optic tract in mammals) responsible for refining dynamic visual processing while hovering and during rapid flight. The enlargement of this brain region responsible for visual processing indicates an enhanced ability for perception and processing of fast-moving visual stimuli which hummingbirds encounter during rapid forward flight, insect foraging, competitive interactions, and high-speed courtship. Hummingbirds are highly sensitive to stimuli in their visual fields, responding to even minimal motion in any direction by reorienting themselves in midflight. Hummingbirds' visual sensitivity allows them to precisely hover in place while in complex and dynamic natural environments, functions enabled by the lentiform nucleus which is tuned to fast-pattern velocities, enabling highly tuned control and collision avoidance during forward flight. With the exception of insects, hummingbirds while in flight have the highest metabolism of all animals – a necessity to support the rapid beating of their wings during hovering and fast forward flight. Their heart rate can reach as high as 1,260 beats per minute, a rate once measured in a blue-throated hummingbird, with a breathing rate of 250 breaths per minute, even at rest. During flight, oxygen consumption per gram of muscle tissue in a hummingbird is about 10 times higher than that measured in elite human athletes. Hummingbirds are rare among vertebrates in their ability to rapidly make use of ingested sugars to fuel energetically expensive hovering flight, powering up to 100% of their metabolic needs with the sugars they drink (in comparison, human athletes max out at around 30%). Hummingbirds can use newly-ingested sugars to fuel hovering flight within 30–45 minutes of consumption. These data suggest that hummingbirds are able to oxidize sugar in flight muscles at rates high enough to satisfy their extreme metabolic demands. A 2017 review indicated that hummingbirds have in their flight muscles a mechanism for "direct oxidation" of sugars into maximal ATP yield to support their high metabolic rate for hovering, foraging at altitude, and migrating. By relying on newly-ingested sugars to fuel flight, hummingbirds can reserve their limited fat stores to sustain their overnight fasting or to power migratory flights. Studies of hummingbird metabolism address how a migrating ruby- throated hummingbird can cross of the Gulf of Mexico on a nonstop flight. This hummingbird, like other long-distance migrating birds, stores fat as a fuel reserve augmenting its weight by as much as 100%, then enabling metabolic fuel for flying over open water. The high metabolic rate of hummingbirds - especially during rapid forward flight and hovering - produces increased body heat that requires specialized mechanisms of thermoregulation for heat dissipation, which becomes an even greater challenge in hot, humid climates. Hummingbirds dissipate heat partially by evaporation through exhaled air, and from body structures with thin or no feather covering, such as around the eyes, shoulders, under the wings (patagia), and feet. While hovering, hummingbirds do not benefit from the heat loss by air convection during forward flight, except for air movement generated by their rapid wing-beat, possibly aiding convective heat loss from the extended feet. Smaller hummingbird species, such as the calliope, appear to adapt their relatively higher surface-to-volume ratio to improve convective cooling from air movement by the wings. When air temperatures rise above , thermal gradients driving heat passively by convective dissipation from around the eyes, shoulders, and feet are reduced or eliminated, requiring heat dissipation mainly by evaporation and exhalation. In cold climates, hummingbirds retract their feet into breast feathers to eliminate skin exposure and minimize heat dissipation. The dynamic range of metabolic rates in hummingbirds requires a parallel dynamic range in kidney function. During a day of nectar consumption with a corresponding high water intake that may total five times the body weight per day, hummingbird kidneys process water via glomerular filtration rates (GFR) in amounts proportional to water consumption, thereby avoiding overhydration. During brief periods of water deprivation, however, such as in nighttime torpor, GFR drops to zero, preserving body water. Hummingbird kidneys also have a unique ability to control the levels of electrolytes after consuming nectars with high amounts of sodium and chloride or none, indicating that kidney and glomerular structures must be highly specialized for variations in nectar mineral quality. Morphological studies on Anna's hummingbird kidneys showed adaptations of high capillary density in close proximity to nephrons, allowing for precise regulation of water and electrolytes. During turbulent airflow conditions created experimentally in a wind tunnel, hummingbirds exhibit stable head positions and orientation when they hover at a feeder. When wind gusts from the side, hummingbirds compensate by increasing wing-stroke amplitude and stroke plane angle, and by varying these parameters asymmetrically between the wings and from one stroke to the next. They also vary the orientation and enlarge the collective surface area of their tail feathers into the shape of a fan. While hovering, the visual system of a hummingbird is able to separate apparent motion caused by the movement of the hummingbird itself from motions caused by external sources, such as an approaching predator. In natural settings full of highly complex background motion, hummingbirds are able to precisely hover in place by rapid coordination of vision with body position. Consisting of chirps, squeaks, whistles and buzzes, hummingbird songs originate from at least seven specialized nuclei in the forebrain. In a genetic expression study, it was shown that these nuclei enable vocal learning (ability to acquire vocalizations through imitation), a rare trait known to occur in only two other groups of birds (parrots and songbirds) and a few groups of mammals (including humans, whales and dolphins and bats). Within the past 66 million years, only hummingbirds, parrots and songbirds out of 23 bird orders may have independently evolved seven similar forebrain structures for singing and vocal learning, indicating that evolution of these structures is under strong epigenetic constraints possibly derived from a common ancestor. The blue-throated hummingbird’s song differs from typical oscine songs in its wide frequency range, extending from 1.8 kHz to approximately 30 kHz. It also produces ultrasonic vocalizations which do not function in communication. As blue-throated hummingbirds often alternate singing with catching small flying insects, it is possible the ultrasonic clicks produced during singing disrupt insect flight patterns, making insects more vulnerable to predation. The metabolism of hummingbirds can slow at night or at any time when food is not readily available: the birds enter a hibernatory, deep-sleep state (known as torpor) to prevent energy reserves from falling to a critical level. During nighttime torpor, body temperature falls from 40 to 18 °C, with heart and breathing rates both slowed dramatically (heart rate to roughly 50 to 180 beats per minute from its daytime rate of higher than 1000). During torpor, to prevent dehydration, the GFR ceases, preserving needed compounds such as glucose, water, and nutrients. Further, body mass declines throughout nocturnal torpor at a rate of 0.04 g per hour, amounting to about 10% of weight loss each night. The circulating hormone, corticosterone, is one signal that arouses a hummingbird from torpor. Use and duration of torpor vary among hummingbird species and are affected by whether a dominant bird defends territory, with nonterritorial subordinate birds having longer periods of torpor. Hummingbirds have long lifespans for organisms with such rapid metabolisms. Though many die during their first year of life, especially in the vulnerable period between hatching and fledging, those that survive may occasionally live a decade or more. Among the better-known North American species, the average lifespan is probably 3 to 5 years. For comparison, the smaller shrews, among the smallest of all mammals, seldom live longer than 2 years. The longest recorded lifespan in the wild relates to a female broad-tailed hummingbird that was banded (ringed) as an adult at least one year old, then recaptured 11 years later, making her at least 12 years old. Other longevity records for banded hummingbirds include an estimated minimum age of 10 years 1 month for a female black-chinned hummingbird similar in size to the broad-tailed hummingbird, and at least 11 years 2 months for a much larger buff-bellied hummingbird. As far as is known, male hummingbirds do not take part in nesting. Most species build a cup-shaped nest on the branch of a tree or shrub, although a few tropical species normally attach their nests to leaves. The nest varies in size relative to the particular species – from smaller than half a walnut shell to several centimeters in diameter. Many hummingbird species use spider silk and lichen to bind the nest material together and secure the structure. The unique properties of the silk allow the nest to expand as the young hummingbirds grow. Two white eggs are laid, which despite being the smallest of all bird eggs, are in fact large relative to the adult hummingbird's size. Incubation lasts 14 to 23 days, depending on the species, ambient temperature, and female attentiveness to the nest. The mother feeds her nestlings on small arthropods and nectar by inserting her bill into the open mouth of a nestling, and then regurgitating the food into its crop. To serve courtship and territorial competition, many male hummingbirds have plumage with bright, varied coloration resulting both from pigmentation in the feathers and from prismal cells within the top layers of feathers of the head, gorget, breast, back and wings. When sunlight hits these cells, it is split into wavelengths that reflect to the observer in varying degrees of intensity, with the feather structure acting as a diffraction grating. Iridescent hummingbird colors result from a combination of refraction and pigmentation, since the diffraction structures themselves are made of melanin, a pigment, and may also be colored by carotenoid pigmentation and more subdued black, brown or gray colors dependent on melanin. By merely shifting position, feather regions of a muted-looking bird can instantly become fiery red or vivid green. In courtship displays for one example, males of the colorful Anna's hummingbird orient their bodies and feathers toward the sun to enhance the display value of iridescent plumage toward a female of interest. One study of Anna's hummingbirds found that dietary protein was an influential factor in feather color, as birds receiving more protein grew significantly more colorful crown feathers than those fed a low-protein diet. Additionally, birds on a high-protein diet grew yellower (higher hue) green tail feathers than birds on a low-protein diet. Hummingbird flight has been studied intensively from an aerodynamic perspective using wind tunnels and high-speed video cameras. Two studies of rufous or Anna's hummingbirds in a wind tunnel used particle image velocimetry techniques to investigate the lift generated on the bird's upstroke and downstroke. The birds produced 75% of their weight support during the downstroke and 25% during the upstroke, with the wings making a "figure 8" motion. Many earlier studies had assumed that lift was generated equally during the two phases of the wingbeat cycle, as is the case of insects of a similar size. This finding shows that hummingbird hovering is similar to, but distinct from, that of hovering insects such as the hawk moth. Further studies using electromyography in hovering rufous hummingbirds showed that muscle strain in the pectoralis major (principal downstroke muscle) was the lowest yet recorded in a flying bird, and the primary upstroke muscle (supracoracoideus) is proportionately larger than in other bird species. Because of their flying technique, these birds no longer have an alula, while the alula digit has evolved to become absent. The giant hummingbird's wings beat as few as 12 beats per second and the wings of typical hummingbirds beat up to 80 times per second. A slow-motion video has shown how the hummingbirds deal with rain when they are flying. To remove the water from their heads, they shake their heads and bodies, similar to a dog shaking, to shed water. Further, when raindrops collectively may weigh as much as 38% of the bird's body weight, hummingbirds shift their bodies and tails horizontally, beat their wings faster, and reduce their wings' angle of motion when flying in heavy rain. When courting, the male Anna's hummingbird ascends some 35 meters before diving over an interested female at a speed of 27 m/s, equal to 385 body lengths/second, producing a high-pitched sound. This downward acceleration during a dive is the highest reported for any vertebrate undergoing a voluntary aerial maneuver; in addition to acceleration, the speed, relative to body length, is the highest known for any vertebrate. For instance, it is about twice the diving speed of peregrine falcons in pursuit of prey. At maximum descent speed, about 10 g of gravitational force occurs in the courting hummingbird during a dive. By comparison to humans, this is a g-force acceleration causing near loss of consciousness in fighter pilots during flight of fixed-wing aircraft in a high-speed banked turn. The outer tail feathers of male Anna's (Calypte anna) and Selasphorus hummingbirds (e.g., Allen's, calliope) vibrate during courtship display dives and produce an audible chirp caused by aeroelastic flutter. Hummingbirds cannot make the courtship dive sound when missing their outer tail feathers, and those same feathers could produce the dive-sound in a wind tunnel. The bird can sing at the same frequency as the tail feather chirp, but its small syrinx is not capable of the same volume. The sound is caused by the aerodynamics of rapid air flow past tail feathers, causing them to flutter in a vibration which produces the high-pitched sound of a courtship dive. Many other species of hummingbirds also produce sounds with their wings or tails while flying, hovering or diving, including the wings of the calliope hummingbird, broad- tailed hummingbird, rufous hummingbird, Allen's hummingbird, and streamertail, as well as the tail of the Costa's hummingbird and the black-chinned hummingbird, and a number of related species. The harmonics of sounds during courtship dives vary across species of hummingbirds. Male rufous and broad-tailed hummingbirds (genus Selasphorus) have a distinctive wing feature during normal flight that sounds like jingling or a buzzing shrill whistle. The trill arises from air rushing through slots created by the tapered tips of the ninth and tenth primary wing feathers, creating a sound loud enough to be detected by female or competitive male hummingbirds and researchers up to 100 m away. Behaviorally, the trill serves several purposes: Announces the sex and presence of a male bird, Provides audible aggressive defense of a feeding territory and an intrusion tactic, Enhances communication of a threat, Favors mate attraction and courtship Hummingbirds are restricted to the Americas from south central Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, including the Caribbean. The majority of species occur in tropical and subtropical Central and South America, but several species also breed in temperate climates and some hillstars occur even in alpine Andean highlands at altitudes up to . The greatest species richness is in humid tropical and subtropical forests of the northern Andes and adjacent foothills, but the number of species found in the Atlantic Forest, Central America or southern Mexico also far exceeds the number found in southern South America, the Caribbean islands, the United States, and Canada. While fewer than 25 different species of hummingbirds have been recorded from the United States and fewer than 10 from Canada and Chile each, Colombia alone has more than 160 and the comparably small Ecuador has about 130 species. The migratory ruby- throated hummingbird breeds in a range from the southeastern United States to Ontario, while the black-chinned hummingbird, its close relative and another migrant, is the most widespread and common species in the southwestern United States. The rufous hummingbird is the most widespread species in western North America, and the only hummingbird to be recorded outside of the Americas, having occurred in the Chukchi Peninsula of Russia. Most North American hummingbirds migrate southward in fall to spend winter in Mexico, the Caribbean Islands, or Central America. A few southern South American species also move north to the tropics during the southern winter. A few species are year-round residents of Florida, California, and the far southwestern desert regions of the US. Among these are Anna's hummingbird, a common resident from southern Arizona and inland California, and the buff- bellied hummingbird, a winter resident from Florida across the Gulf Coast to southern Texas. Ruby-throated hummingbirds migrate in summer from as far north as Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada, returning to Mexico, South America, southern Texas, and Florida to winter. During winter months in southern Louisiana, black-chinned, buff-bellied, calliope, Allen's, Anna's, ruby- throated, rufous, broad-tailed, and broad-billed hummingbirds are present. The rufous hummingbird breeds farther north than any other species of hummingbird, often breeding in large numbers in temperate North America and wintering in increasing numbers along the coasts of the subtropical Gulf of Mexico and Florida, rather than in western or central Mexico. By migrating in spring as far north as the Yukon or southern Alaska, the rufous hummingbird migrates more extensively and nests farther north than any other hummingbird species, and must tolerate occasional temperatures below freezing in its breeding territory. This cold hardiness enables it to survive temperatures below freezing, provided that adequate shelter and food are available. As calculated by displacement of body size, the rufous hummingbird makes perhaps the longest migratory journey of any bird in the world. At just over 3 in long, rufous birds travel 3,900 miles one-way from Alaska to Mexico in late summer, a distance equal to 78,470,000 body lengths. By comparison, the 13-inch-long Arctic tern makes a one-way flight of about 11,185 miles, or 51,430,000 body lengths, just 65% of the body displacement during migration by rufous hummingbirds. The northward migration of rufous hummingbirds occurs along the Pacific flyway and may be time-coordinated with flower and tree leaf emergence in spring in early March, and also with availability of insects as food. Arrival at breeding grounds before nectar availability from mature flowers may jeopardize breeding opportunities. For nutrition, hummingbirds eat a variety of insects, including mosquitoes, fruit flies, gnats in flight or aphids on leaves and spiders in their webs. The lower beak of hummingbirds is flexible and can bend as much as 25 degrees when it widens at the base, making a larger surface for catching insects. Hummingbirds hover within insect swarms in a method called "hover-hawking" to facilitate feeding. To supply energy needs, hummingbirds drink nectar, a sweet liquid inside certain flowers. Like bees, they are able to assess the amount of sugar in the nectar they drink; they normally reject flower types that produce nectar that is less than 10% sugar and prefer those whose sugar content is higher. Nectar is a mixture of glucose, fructose, and sucrose, and is a poor source of nutrients, requiring hummingbirds to meet their nutritional needs by consuming insects. Hummingbirds do not spend all day flying, as the energy cost would be prohibitive; the majority of their activity consists simply of sitting or perching. Hummingbirds eat many small meals and consume around half their weight in nectar (twice their weight in nectar, if the nectar is 25% sugar) each day. Hummingbirds digest their food rapidly due to their small size and high metabolism; a mean retention time less than an hour has been reported. Hummingbirds spend an average of 10–15% of their time feeding and 75–80% sitting and digesting. Because their high metabolism makes them vulnerable to starvation, hummingbirds are highly attuned to food sources. Some species, including many found in North America, are territorial and will try to guard food sources (such as a feeder) against other hummingbirds, attempting to ensure a future food supply for itself. Additionally, hummingbirds have an enlarged hippocampus, a brain region facilitating spatial memory used to map flowers previously visited during nectar foraging. Hummingbird beaks are flexible and their shapes vary dramatically as an adaptation for specialized feeding. Some species, such as hermits (Phaethornis spp.) have long bills that allow them to probe deep into flowers with long corollae. Thornbills have short, sharp bills adapted for feeding from flowers with short corollae and piercing the bases of longer ones. The sicklebills' extremely decurved bills are adapted to extracting nectar from the curved corollae of flowers in the family Gesneriaceae. The bill of the fiery-tailed awlbill has an upturned tip, as in the avocets. The male tooth-billed hummingbird has barracudalike spikes at the tip of its long, straight bill. The two halves of a hummingbird's bill have a pronounced overlap, with the lower half (mandible) fitting tightly inside the upper half (maxilla). When a hummingbird feeds on nectar, the bill is usually opened only slightly, allowing the tongue to dart out and into the interior of flowers. Hummingbird bill sizes range from about 5 mm to as long as 100 mm (about 4 in). When catching insects in flight, a hummingbird's jaw flexes downward to widen the gape for successful capture. Perception of sweetness in nectar evolved in hummingbirds during their genetic divergence from insectivorous swifts, their closest bird relatives. Although the only known sweet sensory receptor, called T1R2, is absent in birds, receptor expression studies showed that hummingbirds adapted a carbohydrate receptor from the T1R1-T1R3 receptor, identical to the one perceived as umami in humans, essentially repurposing it to function as a nectar sweetness receptor. This adaptation for taste enabled hummingbirds to detect and exploit sweet nectar as an energy source, facilitating their distribution across geographical regions where nectar-bearing flowers are available. Hummingbirds drink with their long tongues by rapidly lapping nectar. Their tongues have tubes which run down their lengths and help the hummingbirds drink the nectar. While capillary action was believed to be what drew nectar into these tubes, high-speed photography has revealed that the tubes open down their sides as the tongue goes into the nectar, and then close around the nectar, trapping it so it can be pulled back into the beak. The tongue, which is forked, is compressed until it reaches nectar, then the tongue springs open, the rapid action traps the nectar and the nectar moves up the grooves, like a pump action, with capillary action not involved. Consequently, tongue flexibility enables accessing, transporting and unloading nectar. In the wild, hummingbirds visit flowers for food, extracting nectar, which is 55% sucrose, 24% glucose and 21% fructose on a dry-matter basis. Hummingbirds also take sugar-water from bird feeders. Such feeders allow people to observe and enjoy hummingbirds up close while providing the birds with a reliable source of energy, especially when flower blossoms are less abundant. A negative aspect of artificial feeders, however, is that the birds may seek less flower nectar for food, so they reduce the amount of pollination their feeding naturally provides. White granulated sugar is the best sweetener to use in hummingbird feeders. A ratio of 1 part sugar to 4 parts water, or 25% concentration, is a common recipe, although hummingbirds will defend feeders more aggressively when sugar content is at 35%, indicating preference for nectar with higher sweetness and sugar content. Organic and "raw" sugars contain iron, which can be harmful, and brown sugar agave syrup, molasses and artificial sweeteners also should not be used. Honey is made by bees from the nectar of flowers, but it is not good to use in feeders because when it is diluted with water, microorganisms easily grow in it, causing it to spoil rapidly. Red food dye was once thought to be a favorable ingredient for homemade solutions, but it is unnecessary, and there is no point in adding it to the nectar. Some people speculate red dye could be bad for the birds, although this claim has not received scientific attention. Commercial products sold as "instant nectar" or "hummingbird food" may also contain preservatives and/or artificial flavors as well as dyes, and are not necessary, although the long-term effects of these additives on hummingbirds have not been systematically studied. Although some commercial products contain small amounts of nutritional additives, hummingbirds obtain all necessary nutrients from the insects they eat, rendering added nutrients unnecessary. Other animals also visit hummingbird feeders. Bees, wasps, and ants are attracted to the sugar-water and may crawl into the feeder, where they may become trapped and drown. Orioles, woodpeckers, bananaquits, raccoons and other larger animals are known to drink from hummingbird feeders, sometimes tipping them and draining the liquid. In the southwestern United States, two species of nectar-drinking bats (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae and Choeronycteris mexicana) visit hummingbird feeders to supplement their natural diet of nectar and pollen from saguaro cacti and agaves. Hummingbirds have exceptional visual acuity providing them with discrimination of food sources while foraging. Although it is commonly believed that hummingbirds are attracted to color while seeking food, such as red flowers or artificial feeders, experiments indicate that location and flower nectar quality are the most important "beacons" for foraging. Hummingbirds depended little on visual cues of flower color to beacon to nectar-rich locations, but rather they used surrounding landmarks to find the nectar reward. In at least one hummingbird species - the green-backed firecrown (Sephanoides sephaniodes) - flower colors preferred are in the red-green wavelength for the bird's visual system, providing a higher contrast than for other flower colors. Further, the crown plumage of firecrown males is highly iridescent in the red wavelength range (peak at 650 nanometers), possibly providing a competitive advantage of dominance when foraging among other hummingbird species with less colorful plumage. The ability to discriminate colors of flowers and plumage is enabled by a visual system having four single cone cells and a double cone screened by photoreceptor oil droplets which enhance color discrimination. Some species of sunbirds of Africa, southern and southeastern Asia, and Australia resemble hummingbirds in appearance and behavior, as do perhaps also the honeyeaters of Australia and Pacific islands. These two groups, however, are not related to hummingbirds, as their resemblance is due to convergent evolution. The hummingbird moth is often mistaken for a hummingbird. Aztecs wore hummingbird talismans, both artistic representations of hummingbirds and fetishes made from actual hummingbird parts: emblematic for their vigor, energy, and propensity to do work along with their sharp beaks that symbolically mimic instruments of weaponry, bloodletting, penetration, and intimacy. Hummingbird talismans were prized as drawing sexual potency, energy, vigor, and skill at arms and warfare to the wearer., The Aztec god of war Huitzilopochtli is often depicted as a hummingbird. It was also believed that fallen warriors would return to earth as hummingbirds and butterflies. The Nahuatl word huitzil (hummingbird) is an onomatopoeic word derived from the sounds of the hummingbird's wing-beats and zooming flight., One of the Nazca Lines depicts a hummingbird (right)., Trinidad and Tobago, known as "The land of the hummingbird," displays a hummingbird on that nation's coat of arms, 1-cent coin and emblem of its national airline, Caribbean Airlines (right). AeroVironment Nano Hummingbird – artificial hummingbird, Macroglossum stellatarum – hummingbird hawk-moth, Hemaris – sphinx moths (hummingbird moths) confused with hummingbirds The Hummingbird Website Hummingbird photos, videos, articles, links, frequently asked questions, High-resolution photo gallery of almost 100 species, High-resolution photo gallery of many species of Hummingbirds, Hummingbird videos on the Internet Bird Collection, Photographs of SouthWest U.S. Hummingbirds and International Hummingbirds, Hummingbird Banding Research, Hummingbird Plants Database, Hummingbird gardens, Hummingbird garden species, suitable for the California High Desert, How to create a butterfly and hummingbird garden, Hummingbird nesting data for 7 years at one site, High-resolution photos/blog of Baby Hummingbirds, Aerial combat between two hummingbirds, Video of hummingbird tongue acting as a micropump during nectar feeding Kleiber's law, named after Max Kleiber for his biology work in the early 1930s, is the observation that, for the vast majority of animals, an animal's metabolic rate scales to the ¾ power of the animal's mass. Symbolically: if q is the animal's metabolic rate, and M the animal's mass, then Kleiber's law states that q ~ M. Thus, over the same timespan, a cat having a mass 100 times that of a mouse will consume only about 32 times the energy the mouse uses. The exact value of the exponent in Kleiber's law is unclear, in part because there is currently no completely satisfactory theoretical explanation for the law. Kleiber's law, as many other biological allometric laws, is a consequence of the physics and/or geometry of animal circulatory systems. Max Kleiber first discovered the law when analyzing a large number of independent studies on respiration within individual species. Kleiber expected to find an exponent of (for reasons explained below), and was confounded by the exponent of he discovered. One explanation for Kleiber's law lies in the difference between structural and growth mass. Structural mass involves maintenance costs, reserve mass does not. Hence, small adults of one species respire more per unit of weight than large adults of another species because a larger fraction of their body mass consists of structure rather than reserve. Within each species, young (i.e., small) organisms respire more per unit of weight than old (large) ones of the same species because of the overhead costs of growth. Explanations for -scaling tend to assume that metabolic rates scale to avoid heat exhaustion. Because bodies lose heat passively via their surface, but produce heat metabolically throughout their mass, the metabolic rate must scale in such a way as to counteract the square–cube law. The precise exponent to do so is . Such an argument does not address the fact that different organisms exhibit different shapes (and hence have different surface-to-volume ratios, even when scaled to the same size). Reasonable estimates for organisms' surface area do appear to scale linearly with the metabolic rate. A model due to West, Enquist, and Brown (hereafter WEB) suggests that -scaling arises because of efficiency in nutrient distribution and transport throughout an organism. In most organisms, metabolism is supported by a circulatory system featuring branching tubules (i.e., plant vascular systems, insect tracheae, or the human cardiovascular system). WEB claim that (1) metabolism should scale proportionally to nutrient flow (or, equivalently, total fluid flow) in this circulatory system and (2) in order to minimize the energy dissipated in transport, the volume of fluid used to transport nutrients (i.e., blood volume) is a fixed fraction of body mass. They then proceed by analyzing the consequences of these two claims at the level of the smallest circulatory tubules (capillaries, alveoli, etc.). Experimentally, the volume contained in those smallest tubules is constant across a wide range of masses. Because fluid flow through a tubule is determined by the volume thereof, the total fluid flow is proportional to the total number of smallest tubules. Thus, if denotes the basal metabolic rate, the total fluid flow, and the number of minimal tubules,formula_1.Circulatory systems do not grow by simply scaling proportionally larger; they become more deeply nested. The depth of nesting depends on the self-similarity exponents of the tubule dimensions, and the effects of that depth depend on how many "child" tubules each branching produces. Connecting these values to macroscopic quantities depends (very loosely) on a precise model of tubules. WEB show that, if the tubules are well-approximated by rigid cylinders, then, in order to prevent the fluid from "getting clogged" in small cylinders, the total fluid volume satisfiesformula_2.Because blood volume is a fixed fraction of body mass, formula_3. Closer analysis suggests that Kleiber's law does not hold over a wide variety of scales. Metabolic rates for smaller animals (birds under , or insects) typically fit to much better than ; for larger animals, the reverse holds. As a result, log-log plots of metabolic rate versus body mass appear to "curve" upward, and fit better to quadratic models. In all cases, local fits exhibit exponents in the range. Adjustments to the WBE model that retain assumptions of network shape predict larger scaling exponents, worsening the discrepancy with observed data. But one can retain a similar theory by relaxing WBE's assumption of a nutrient transport network that is both fractal and circulatory. (WBE argued that fractal circulatory networks would necessarily evolve to minimize energy used for transport, but other researchers argue that their derivation contains subtle errors.) Different networks are less efficient, in that they exhibit a lower scaling exponent, but a metabolic rate determined by nutrient transport will always exhibit scaling between and . If larger metabolic rates are evolutionarily favored, then low-mass organisms will prefer to arrange their networks to scale as , but large-mass organisms will prefer to arrange their networks as , which produces the observed curvature. An alternative model notes that metabolic rate does not solely serve to generate heat. Metabolic rate contributing solely to useful work should scale with power 1 (linearly), whereas metabolic rate contributing to heat generation should be limited by surface area and scale with power . Basal metabolic rate is then the convex combination of these two effects: if the proportion of useful work is , then the basal metabolic rate should scale asformula_4where and are constants of proportionality. in particular describes the surface area ratio of organisms and is approximately ; typical values for are 15-20%. The theoretical maximum value of is 21%, because the efficiency of Glucose oxidation is only 42%, and half of the ATP so produced is wasted. Analyses of variance for a variety of physical variables suggest that although most variation in basal metabolic rate is determined by mass, additional variables with significant effects include body temperature and taxonomic order. A 1932 work by Brody calculated that the scaling was approximately 0.73. A 2004 analysis of field metabolic rates for mammals conclude that they appear to scale with exponent 0.749. Kozlowski and Konarzewski (hereafter "K&K;") have argued that attempts to explain Kleiber's law via any sort of limiting factor is flawed, because metabolic rates vary by factors of 4-5 between rest and activity. Hence any limits that affect the scaling of basal metabolic rate would in fact make elevated metabolism — and hence all animal activity — impossible. WEB conversely argue that animals may well optimize for minimal transport energy dissipation during rest, without abandoning the ability for less efficient function at other times. Other researchers have also noted that K&K;'s criticism of the law tends to focus on precise structural details of the WEB circulatory networks, but that the latter are not essential to the model. Kleiber's law only appears when studying animals as a whole; scaling exponents within taxonomic subgroupings differ substantially. Kleiber's law only applies to interspecific comparisons; it (usually) does not apply to intraspecific ones. A 1999 analysis concluded that biomass production in a given plant scaled with the power of the plant's mass during the plant's growth, but a 2001 paper that included various types of unicellular photosynthetic organisms found scaling exponents intermediate between 0.75 and 1.00. A 2006 paper in Nature argued that the exponent of mass is close to 1 for plant seedlings, but that variation between species, phyla, and growth conditions overwhelm any "Kleiber's law"-like effects. Because cell protoplasm appears to have constant density across a range of organism masses, a consequence of Kleiber's law is that, in larger species, less energy is available to each cell volume. Cells appear to cope with this difficulty via choosing one of the following two strategies: a slower cellular metabolic rate, or smaller cells. The latter strategy is exhibited by neurons and adipocytes; the former by every other type of cell. As a result, different organs exhibit different allometric scalings (see table). Allometric law, Evolutionary physiology, Metabolic theory of ecology, Scaling law Heart rate is the speed of the heartbeat measured by the number of contractions (beats) of the heart per minute (bpm). The heart rate can vary according to the body's physical needs, including the need to absorb oxygen and excrete carbon dioxide. It is usually equal or close to the pulse measured at any peripheral point. Activities that can provoke change include physical exercise, sleep, anxiety, stress, illness, and ingestion of drugs. The American Heart Association states the normal resting adult human heart rate is 60–100 bpm. Tachycardia is a fast heart rate, defined as above 100 bpm at rest. Bradycardia is a slow heart rate, defined as below 60 bpm at rest. During sleep a slow heartbeat with rates around 40–50 bpm is common and is considered normal. When the heart is not beating in a regular pattern, this is referred to as an arrhythmia. Abnormalities of heart rate sometimes indicate disease. While heart rhythm is regulated entirely by the sinoatrial node under normal conditions, heart rate is regulated by sympathetic and parasympathetic input to the sinoatrial node. The accelerans nerve provides sympathetic input to the heart by releasing norepinephrine onto the cells of the sinoatrial node (SA node), and the vagus nerve provides parasympathetic input to the heart by releasing acetylcholine onto sinoatrial node cells. Therefore, stimulation of the accelerans nerve increases heart rate, while stimulation of the vagus nerve decreases it. Due to individuals having a constant blood volume, one of the physiological ways to deliver more oxygen to an organ is to increase heart rate to permit blood to pass by the organ more often. Normal resting heart rates range from 60-100 bpm. Bradycardia is defined as a resting heart rate below 60 bpm. However, heart rates from 50 to 60 bpm are common among healthy people and do not necessarily require special attention. Tachycardia is defined as a resting heart rate above 100 bpm, though persistent rest rates between 80–100 bpm, mainly if they are present during sleep, may be signs of hyperthyroidism or anemia (see below). Central nervous system stimulants such as substituted amphetamines increase heart rate., Central nervous system depressants or sedatives decrease the heart rate (apart from some particularly strange ones with equally strange effects, such as ketamine which can cause – amongst many other things – stimulant-like effects such as tachycardia). There are many ways in which the heart rate speeds up or slows down. Most involve stimulant-like endorphins and hormones being released in the brain, many of which are those that are 'forced'/'enticed' out by the ingestion and processing of drugs. This section discusses target heart rates for healthy persons and are inappropriately high for most persons with coronary artery disease. The heart rate is rhythmically generated by the sinoatrial node. It is also influenced by central factors through sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves. Nervous influence over the heart rate is centralized within the two paired cardiovascular centres of the medulla oblongata. The cardioaccelerator regions stimulate activity via sympathetic stimulation of the cardioaccelerator nerves, and the cardioinhibitory centers decrease heart activity via parasympathetic stimulation as one component of the vagus nerve. During rest, both centers provide slight stimulation to the heart, contributing to autonomic tone. This is a similar concept to tone in skeletal muscles. Normally, vagal stimulation predominates as, left unregulated, the SA node would initiate a sinus rhythm of approximately 100 bpm. Both sympathetic and parasympathetic stimuli flow through the paired cardiac plexus near the base of the heart. The cardioaccelerator center also sends additional fibers, forming the cardiac nerves via sympathetic ganglia (the cervical ganglia plus superior thoracic ganglia T1–T4) to both the SA and AV nodes, plus additional fibers to the atria and ventricles. The ventricles are more richly innervated by sympathetic fibers than parasympathetic fibers. Sympathetic stimulation causes the release of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine (also known as noradrenaline) at the neuromuscular junction of the cardiac nerves. This shortens the repolarization period, thus speeding the rate of depolarization and contraction, which results in an increased heartrate. It opens chemical or ligand-gated sodium and calcium ion channels, allowing an influx of positively charged ions. Norepinephrine binds to the beta–1 receptor. High blood pressure medications are used to block these receptors and so reduce the heart rate. Parasympathetic stimulation originates from the cardioinhibitory region with impulses traveling via the vagus nerve (cranial nerve X). The vagus nerve sends branches to both the SA and AV nodes, and to portions of both the atria and ventricles. Parasympathetic stimulation releases the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) at the neuromuscular junction. ACh slows HR by opening chemical- or ligand-gated potassium ion channels to slow the rate of spontaneous depolarization, which extends repolarization and increases the time before the next spontaneous depolarization occurs. Without any nervous stimulation, the SA node would establish a sinus rhythm of approximately 100 bpm. Since resting rates are considerably less than this, it becomes evident that parasympathetic stimulation normally slows HR. This is similar to an individual driving a car with one foot on the brake pedal. To speed up, one need merely remove one's foot from the brake and let the engine increase speed. In the case of the heart, decreasing parasympathetic stimulation decreases the release of ACh, which allows HR to increase up to approximately 100 bpm. Any increases beyond this rate would require sympathetic stimulation. The cardiovascular centres receive input from a series of visceral receptors with impulses traveling through visceral sensory fibers within the vagus and sympathetic nerves via the cardiac plexus. Among these receptors are various proprioreceptors, baroreceptors, and chemoreceptors, plus stimuli from the limbic system which normally enable the precise regulation of heart function, via cardiac reflexes. Increased physical activity results in increased rates of firing by various proprioreceptors located in muscles, joint capsules, and tendons. The cardiovascular centres monitor these increased rates of firing, suppressing parasympathetic stimulation or increasing sympathetic stimulation as needed in order to increase blood flow. Similarly, baroreceptors are stretch receptors located in the aortic sinus, carotid bodies, the venae cavae, and other locations, including pulmonary vessels and the right side of the heart itself. Rates of firing from the baroreceptors represent blood pressure, level of physical activity, and the relative distribution of blood. The cardiac centers monitor baroreceptor firing to maintain cardiac homeostasis, a mechanism called the baroreceptor reflex. With increased pressure and stretch, the rate of baroreceptor firing increases, and the cardiac centers decrease sympathetic stimulation and increase parasympathetic stimulation. As pressure and stretch decrease, the rate of baroreceptor firing decreases, and the cardiac centers increase sympathetic stimulation and decrease parasympathetic stimulation. There is a similar reflex, called the atrial reflex or Bainbridge reflex, associated with varying rates of blood flow to the atria. Increased venous return stretches the walls of the atria where specialized baroreceptors are located. However, as the atrial baroreceptors increase their rate of firing and as they stretch due to the increased blood pressure, the cardiac center responds by increasing sympathetic stimulation and inhibiting parasympathetic stimulation to increase HR. The opposite is also true. Increased metabolic byproducts associated with increased activity, such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen ions, and lactic acid, plus falling oxygen levels, are detected by a suite of chemoreceptors innervated by the glossopharyngeal and vagus nerves. These chemoreceptors provide feedback to the cardiovascular centers about the need for increased or decreased blood flow, based on the relative levels of these substances. The limbic system can also significantly impact HR related to emotional state. During periods of stress, it is not unusual to identify higher than normal HRs, often accompanied by a surge in the stress hormone cortisol. Individuals experiencing extreme anxiety may manifest panic attacks with symptoms that resemble those of heart attacks. These events are typically transient and treatable. Meditation techniques have been developed to ease anxiety and have been shown to lower HR effectively. Doing simple deep and slow breathing exercises with one's eyes closed can also significantly reduce this anxiety and HR. Using a combination of autorhythmicity and innervation, the cardiovascular center is able to provide relatively precise control over the heart rate, but other factors can impact on this. These include hormones, notably epinephrine, norepinephrine, and thyroid hormones; levels of various ions including calcium, potassium, and sodium; body temperature; hypoxia; and pH balance. The catecholamines, epinephrine and norepinephrine, secreted by the adrenal medulla form one component of the extended fight-or-flight mechanism. The other component is sympathetic stimulation. Epinephrine and norepinephrine have similar effects: binding to the beta-1 adrenergic receptors, and opening sodium and calcium ion chemical- or ligand-gated channels. The rate of depolarization is increased by this additional influx of positively charged ions, so the threshold is reached more quickly and the period of repolarization is shortened. However, massive releases of these hormones coupled with sympathetic stimulation may actually lead to arrhythmias. There is no parasympathetic stimulation to the adrenal medulla. In general, increased levels of the thyroid hormones (thyroxine(T4) and triiodothyronine (T3)), increase the heart rate; excessive levels can trigger tachycardia. The impact of thyroid hormones is typically of a much longer duration than that of the catecholamines. The physiologically active form of triiodothyronine, has been shown to directly enter cardiomyocytes and alter activity at the level of the genome. It also impacts the beta adrenergic response similar to epinephrine and norepinephrine. Calcium ion levels have a great impact on heart rate and contractility: increased calcium levels cause an increase in both. High levels of calcium ions result in hypercalcemia and excessive levels can induce cardiac arrest. Drugs known as calcium channel blockers slow HR by binding to these channels and blocking or slowing the inward movement of calcium ions. Caffeine and nicotine are both stimulants of the nervous system and of the cardiac centres causing an increased heart rate. Caffeine works by increasing the rates of depolarization at the SA node, whereas nicotine stimulates the activity of the sympathetic neurons that deliver impulses to the heart. Both stimulants are legal and unregulated, and nicotine is very addictive. Both surprise and stress induce physiological response: elevate heart rate substantially. In a study conducted on 8 female and male student actors ages 18 to 25, their reaction to an unforeseen occurrence (the cause of stress) during a performance was observed in terms of heart rate. In the data collected, there was a noticeable trend between the location of actors (onstage and offstage) and their elevation in heart rate in response to stress; the actors present offstage reacted to the stressor immediately, demonstrated by their immediate elevation in heart rate the minute the unexpected event occurred, but the actors present onstage at the time of the stressor reacted in the following 5 minute period (demonstrated by their increasingly elevated heart rate). This trend regarding stress and heart rate is supported by previous studies; negative emotion/stimulus has a prolonged effect on heart rate in individuals who are directly impacted. In regard to the characters present onstage, a reduced startle response has been associated with a passive defense, and the diminished initial heart rate response has been predicted to have a greater tendency to dissociation. Further, note that heart rate is an accurate measure of stress and the startle response which can be easily observed to determine the effects of certain stressors. The heart rate can be slowed by altered sodium and potassium levels, hypoxia, acidosis, alkalosis, and hypothermia. The relationship between electrolytes and HR is complex, but maintaining electrolyte balance is critical to the normal wave of depolarization. Of the two ions, potassium has the greater clinical significance. Initially, both hyponatremia (low sodium levels) and hypernatremia (high sodium levels) may lead to tachycardia. Severely high hypernatremia may lead to fibrillation, which may cause CO to cease. Severe hyponatremia leads to both bradycardia and other arrhythmias. Hypokalemia (low potassium levels) also leads to arrhythmias, whereas hyperkalemia (high potassium levels) causes the heart to become weak and flaccid, and ultimately to fail. Heart muscle relies exclusively on aerobic metabolism for energy. Severe hypoxia (an insufficient supply of oxygen) leads to decreasing HRs, since metabolic reactions fueling heart contraction are restricted. Acidosis is a condition in which excess hydrogen ions are present, and the patient's blood expresses a low pH value. Alkalosis is a condition in which there are too few hydrogen ions, and the patient's blood has an elevated pH. Normal blood pH falls in the range of 7.35–7.45, so a number lower than this range represents acidosis and a higher number represents alkalosis. Enzymes, being the regulators or catalysts of virtually all biochemical reactions - are sensitive to pH and will change shape slightly with values outside their normal range. These variations in pH and accompanying slight physical changes to the active site on the enzyme decrease the rate of formation of the enzyme- substrate complex, subsequently decreasing the rate of many enzymatic reactions, which can have complex effects on HR. Severe changes in pH will lead to denaturation of the enzyme. The last variable is body temperature. Elevated body temperature is called hyperthermia, and suppressed body temperature is called hypothermia. Slight hyperthermia results in increasing HR and strength of contraction. Hypothermia slows the rate and strength of heart contractions. This distinct slowing of the heart is one component of the larger diving reflex that diverts blood to essential organs while submerged. If sufficiently chilled, the heart will stop beating, a technique that may be employed during open heart surgery. In this case, the patient's blood is normally diverted to an artificial heart-lung machine to maintain the body's blood supply and gas exchange until the surgery is complete, and sinus rhythm can be restored. Excessive hyperthermia and hypothermia will both result in death, as enzymes drive the body systems to cease normal function, beginning with the central nervous system. Heart rate is not a stable value and it increases or decreases in response to the body's need in a way to maintain an equilibrium (basal metabolic rate) between requirement and delivery of oxygen and nutrients. The normal SA node firing rate is affected by autonomic nervous system activity: sympathetic stimulation increases and parasympathetic stimulation decreases the firing rate. A number of different metrics are used to describe heart rate. Normal pulse rates at rest, in beats per minute (BPM): The basal or resting heart rate (HR) is defined as the heart rate when a person is awake, in a neutrally temperate environment, and has not been subject to any recent exertion or stimulation, such as stress or surprise. A large body of evidence indicates that the normal range is 60-100 beats per minute. This resting heart rate is often correlated with mortality. For example, all-cause mortality is increased by 1.22 (hazard ratio) when heart rate exceeds 90 beats per minute. The mortality rate of patients with myocardial infarction increased from 15% to 41% if their admission heart rate was greater than 90 beats per minute. ECG of 46,129 individuals with low risk for cardiovascular disease revealed that 96% had resting heart rates ranging from 48-98 beats per minute. Finally, expert consensus reveals that 98% of cardiologists believe that the "60 to 100" range is too high, with a vast majority of them agreeing that 50 to 90 beats per minute is more appropriate. The normal resting heart rate is based on the at-rest firing rate of the heart's sinoatrial node, where the faster pacemaker cells driving the self-generated rhythmic firing and responsible for the heart's autorhythmicity are located. For endurance athletes at the elite level, it is not unusual to have a resting heart rate between 33 and 50 bpm. The maximum heart rate (HR) is the highest heart rate an individual can achieve without severe problems through exercise stress, and generally decreases with age. Since HR varies by individual, the most accurate way of measuring any single person's HR is via a cardiac stress test. In this test, a person is subjected to controlled physiologic stress (generally by treadmill) while being monitored by an ECG. The intensity of exercise is periodically increased until certain changes in heart function are detected on the ECG monitor, at which point the subject is directed to stop. Typical duration of the test ranges ten to twenty minutes. Adults who are beginning a new exercise regimen are often advised to perform this test only in the presence of medical staff due to risks associated with high heart rates. For general purposes, a formula is often employed to estimate a person's maximum heart rate. However, these predictive formulas have been criticized as inaccurate because they generalized population-averages and usually focus on a person's age and do not even take normal resting pulse rate into consideration. It is well-established that there is a "poor relationship between maximal heart rate and age" and large standard deviations relative to predicted heart rates. (see Limitations of Estimation Formulas). A number of formulas are used to estimate HR Based on measurements of 3320 healthy men and women aged between 19 and 89, and including the potential modifying effect of gender, body composition, and physical activity, Nes et al found HR = 211 − (0.64 × age) This relationship was found to hold substantially regardless of gender, physical activity status, maximal oxygen uptake, smoking, or body mass index. However, a standard error of the estimate of 10.8 beats/min must be accounted for when applying the formula to clinical settings, and the researchers concluded that actual measurement via a maximal test may be preferable whenever possible. From Tanaka, Monahan, & Seals (2001): HR = 208 − (0.7 × age) Their meta-analysis (of 351 prior studies involving 492 groups and 18,712 subjects) and laboratory study (of 514 healthy subjects) concluded that, using this equation, HRmax was very strongly correlated to age (r = −0.90). The regression equation that was obtained in the laboratory-based study (209 − 0.7 x age), was virtually identical to that of the meta-study. The results showed HRmax to be independent of gender and independent of wide variations in habitual physical activity levels. This study found a standard deviation of ~10 beats per minute for individuals of any age, meaning the HRmax formula given has an accuracy of ±20 beats per minute. In 2007, researchers at the Oakland University analyzed maximum heart rates of 132 individuals recorded yearly over 25 years, and produced a linear equation very similar to the Tanaka formula, HR = 207 − (0.7 × age), and a nonlinear equation, HR = 192 − (0.007 × age). The linear equation had a confidence interval of ±5–8 bpm and the nonlinear equation had a tighter range of ±2–5 bpm Notwithstanding the research of Tanaka, Monahan, & Seals, the most widely cited formula for HR (which contains no reference to any standard deviation) is still: Although attributed to various sources, it is widely thought to have been devised in 1970 by Dr. William Haskell and Dr. Samuel Fox. Inquiry into the history of this formula reveals that it was not developed from original research, but resulted from observation based on data from approximately 11 references consisting of published research or unpublished scientific compilations. It gained widespread use through being used by Polar Electro in its heart rate monitors, which Dr. Haskell has "laughed about", as the formula "was never supposed to be an absolute guide to rule people's training." While it is the most common (and easy to remember and calculate), this particular formula is not considered by reputable health and fitness professionals to be a good predictor of HR. Despite the widespread publication of this formula, research spanning two decades reveals its large inherent error, S = 7–11 bpm. Consequently, the estimation calculated by HR = 220 − age has neither the accuracy nor the scientific merit for use in exercise physiology and related fields. A 2002 study of 43 different formulas for HR (including that of Haskell and Fox - see above) published in the Journal of Exercise Psychology concluded that: 1. no "acceptable" formula currently existed (they used the term "acceptable" to mean acceptable for both prediction of VO, and prescription of exercise training HR ranges) 2. the least objectionable formula (Inbar, et al., 1994) was: Research conducted at Northwestern University by Martha Gulati, et al., in 2010 suggested a maximum heart rate formula for women: A 2003 study from Lund, Sweden gives reference values (obtained during bicycle ergometry) for men: and for women: HR = 206.3 − (0.711 × age) HR = 217 − (0.85 × age) Maximum heart rates vary significantly between individuals. Even within a single elite sports team, such as Olympic rowers in their 20s, maximum heart rates have been reported as varying from 160 to 220. Such a variation would equate to a 60 or 90 year age gap in the linear equations above, and would seem to indicate the extreme variation about these average figures. Figures are generally considered averages, and depend greatly on individual physiology and fitness. For example, an endurance runner's rates will typically be lower due to the increased size of the heart required to support the exercise, while a sprinter's rates will be higher due to the improved response time and short duration. While each may have predicted heart rates of 180 (= 220 − age), these two people could have actual HR 20 beats apart (e.g., 170–190). Further, note that individuals of the same age, the same training, in the same sport, on the same team, can have actual HR 60 bpm apart (160–220): the range is extremely broad, and some say "The heart rate is probably the least important variable in comparing athletes." Heart rate reserve (HR) is the difference between a person's measured or predicted maximum heart rate and resting heart rate. Some methods of measurement of exercise intensity measure percentage of heart rate reserve. Additionally, as a person increases their cardiovascular fitness, their HR will drop, and the heart rate reserve will increase. Percentage of HR is equivalent to percentage of VO reserve. This is often used to gauge exercise intensity (first used in 1957 by Karvonen). Karvonen's study findings have been questioned, due to the following: The study did not use VO data to develop the equation., Only six subjects were used, and the correlation between the percentages of HR and VO max was not statistically significant. For healthy people, the Target Heart Rate or Training Heart Rate (THR) is a desired range of heart rate reached during aerobic exercise which enables one's heart and lungs to receive the most benefit from a workout. This theoretical range varies based mostly on age; however, a person's physical condition, sex, and previous training also are used in the calculation. Below are two ways to calculate one's THR. In each of these methods, there is an element called "intensity" which is expressed as a percentage. The THR can be calculated as a range of 65–85% intensity. However, it is crucial to derive an accurate HR to ensure these calculations are meaningful. Example for someone with a HR of 180 (age 40, estimating HR As 220 − age): The Karvonen method factors in resting heart rate (HR) to calculate target heart rate (THR), using a range of 50–85% intensity: Equivalently, Example for someone with a HR of 180 and a HR of 70 (and therefore a HR of 110): An alternative to the Karvonen method is the Zoladz method, which derives exercise zones by subtracting values from HR: Example for someone with a HR of 180: Heart rate recovery (HR) is the reduction in heart rate at peak exercise and the rate as measured after a cool-down period of fixed duration. A greater reduction in heart rate after exercise during the reference period is associated with a higher level of cardiac fitness. Heart rates that do not drop by more than 12 bpm one minute after stopping exercise are associated with an increased risk of death. Investigators of the Lipid Research Clinics Prevalence Study, which included 5,000 subjects, found that patients with an abnormal HR (defined as a decrease of 42 beats per minutes or less at two minutes post-exercise) had a mortality rate 2.5 times greater than patients with a normal recovery. Another study by Nishime et al. and featuring 9,454 patients followed for a median period of 5.2 years found a four-fold increase in mortality in subjects with an abnormal HR (≤12 bpm reduction one minute after the cessation of exercise). Shetler et al. studied 2,193 patients for thirteen years and found that a HR of ≤22 bpm after two minutes "best identified high-risk patients". They also found that while HR had significant prognostic value it had no diagnostic value. The human heart beats more than 3.5 billion times in an average lifetime. The heartbeat of a human embryo begins at approximately 21 days after conception, or five weeks after the last normal menstrual period (LMP), which is the date normally used to date pregnancy in the medical community. The electrical depolarizations that trigger cardiac myocytes to contract arise spontaneously within the myocyte itself. The heartbeat is initiated in the pacemaker regions and spreads to the rest of the heart through a conduction pathway. Pacemaker cells develop in the primitive atrium and the sinus venosus to form the sinoatrial node and the atrioventricular node respectively. Conductive cells develop the bundle of His and carry the depolarization into the lower heart. The human heart begins beating at a rate near the mother's, about 75–80 beats per minute (bpm). The embryonic heart rate then accelerates linearly for the first month of beating, peaking at 165–185 bpm during the early 7th week, (early 9th week after the LMP). This acceleration is approximately 3.3 bpm per day, or about 10 bpm every three days, an increase of 100 bpm in the first month. After peaking at about 9.2 weeks after the LMP, it decelerates to about 150 bpm (+/-25 bpm) during the 15th week after the LMP. After the 15th week the deceleration slows reaching an average rate of about 145 (+/-25 bpm) bpm at term. The regression formula which describes this acceleration before the embryo reaches 25 mm in crown-rump length or 9.2 LMP weeks is: formula_1 There is no difference in male and female heart rates before birth. Heart rate is measured by finding the pulse of the heart. This pulse rate can be found at any point on the body where the artery's pulsation is transmitted to the surface by pressuring it with the index and middle fingers; often it is compressed against an underlying structure like bone. The thumb should not be used for measuring another person's heart rate, as its strong pulse may interfere with the correct perception of the target pulse. The radial artery is the easiest to use to check the heart rate. However, in emergency situations the most reliable arteries to measure heart rate are carotid arteries. This is important mainly in patients with atrial fibrillation, in whom heart beats are irregular and stroke volume is largely different from one beat to another. In those beats following a shorter diastolic interval left ventricle does not fill properly, stroke volume is lower and pulse wave is not strong enough to be detected by palpation on a distal artery like the radial artery. It can be detected, however, by doppler. Possible points for measuring the heart rate are: 1. The ventral aspect of the wrist on the side of the thumb (radial artery). 2. The ulnar artery. 3. The neck (carotid artery). 4. The inside of the elbow, or under the biceps muscle (brachial artery). 5. The groin (femoral artery). 6. Behind the medial malleolus on the feet (posterior tibial artery). 7. Middle of dorsum of the foot (dorsalis pedis). 8. Behind the knee (popliteal artery). 9. Over the abdomen (abdominal aorta). 10. The chest (apex of the heart), which can be felt with one's hand or fingers. It is also possible to auscultate the heart using a stethoscope. 11. In the neck, lateral of the larynx (carotid artery) 12. The temple (superficial temporal artery). 13. The lateral edge of the mandible (facial artery). 14. The side of the head near the ear (posterior auricular artery). A more precise method of determining heart rate involves the use of an electrocardiograph, or ECG (also abbreviated EKG). An ECG generates a pattern based on electrical activity of the heart, which closely follows heart function. Continuous ECG monitoring is routinely done in many clinical settings, especially in critical care medicine. On the ECG, instantaneous heart rate is calculated using the R wave-to-R wave (RR) interval and multiplying/dividing in order to derive heart rate in heartbeats/min. Multiple methods exist: HR = 1000*60/(RR interval in millimeters), HR = 60/(RR interval in seconds), HR = 300/number of "large" squares between successive R waves., HR= 1,500 number of large blocks Heart rate monitors allow measurements to be taken continuously and can be used during exercise when manual measurement would be difficult or impossible (such as when the hands are being used). Various commercial heart rate monitors are also available. Some monitors, used during sport, consist of a chest strap with electrodes. The signal is transmitted to a wrist receiver for display. Alternative methods of measurement include seismocardiography. Pulse oximetry of the finger and laser Doppler imaging of the eye fundus are often used in the clinics. Those techniques can assess the heart rate by measuring the delay between pulses. Tachycardia is a resting heart rate more than 100 beats per minute. This number can vary as smaller people and children have faster heart rates than average adults. Physiological conditions where tachycardia occurs: 1. Pregnancy 2. Emotional conditions such as anxiety or stress. Pathological conditions where tachycardia occurs: 1. Sepsis 2. Fever 3. Anemia 4. Hypoxia 5. Hyperthyroidism 6. Hypersecretion of catecholamines 7. Cardiomyopathy 8. Valvular heart diseases 9. Acute Radiation Syndrome Bradycardia was defined as a heart rate less than 60 beats per minute when textbooks asserted that the normal range for heart rates was 60–100 bpm. The normal range has since been revised in textbooks to 50–90 bpm for a human at total rest. Setting a lower threshold for bradycardia prevents misclassification of fit individuals as having a pathologic heart rate. The normal heart rate number can vary as children and adolescents tend to have faster heart rates than average adults. Bradycardia may be associated with medical conditions such as hypothyroidism. Trained athletes tend to have slow resting heart rates, and resting bradycardia in athletes should not be considered abnormal if the individual has no symptoms associated with it. For example, Miguel Indurain, a Spanish cyclist and five time Tour de France winner, had a resting heart rate of 28 beats per minute, one of the lowest ever recorded in a healthy human. Daniel Green achieved the world record for the slowest heartbeat in a healthy human with a heart rate of just 26 bpm in 2014. Arrhythmias are abnormalities of the heart rate and rhythm (sometimes felt as palpitations). They can be divided into two broad categories: fast and slow heart rates. Some cause few or minimal symptoms. Others produce more serious symptoms of lightheadedness, dizziness and fainting. A number of investigations indicate that faster resting heart rate has emerged as a new risk factor for mortality in homeothermic mammals, particularly cardiovascular mortality in human beings. Faster heart rate may accompany increased production of inflammation molecules and increased production of reactive oxygen species in cardiovascular system, in addition to increased mechanical stress to the heart. There is a correlation between increased resting rate and cardiovascular risk. This is not seen to be "using an allotment of heart beats" but rather an increased risk to the system from the increased rate. An Australian-led international study of patients with cardiovascular disease has shown that heart beat rate is a key indicator for the risk of heart attack. The study, published in The Lancet (September 2008) studied 11,000 people, across 33 countries, who were being treated for heart problems. Those patients whose heart rate was above 70 beats per minute had significantly higher incidence of heart attacks, hospital admissions and the need for surgery. Higher heart rate is thought to be correlated with an increase in heart attack and about a 46 percent increase in hospitalizations for non-fatal or fatal heart attack. Other studies have shown that a high resting heart rate is associated with an increase in cardiovascular and all- cause mortality in the general population and in patients with chronic disease. A faster resting heart rate is associated with shorter life expectancy and is considered a strong risk factor for heart disease and heart failure, independent of level of physical fitness. Specifically, a resting heart rate above 65 beats per minute has been shown to have a strong independent effect on premature mortality; every 10 beats per minute increase in resting heart rate has been shown to be associated with a 10–20% increase in risk of death. In one study, men with no evidence of heart disease and a resting heart rate of more than 90 beats per minute had a five times higher risk of sudden cardiac death. Similarly, another study found that men with resting heart rates of over 90 beats per minute had an almost two-fold increase in risk for cardiovascular disease mortality; in women it was associated with a three-fold increase. Given these data, heart rate should be considered in the assessment of cardiovascular risk, even in apparently healthy individuals. Heart rate has many advantages as a clinical parameter: It is inexpensive and quick to measure and is easily understandable. Although the accepted limits of heart rate are between 60 and 100 beats per minute, this was based for convenience on the scale of the squares on electrocardiogram paper; a better definition of normal sinus heart rate may be between 50 and 90 beats per minute. Standard textbooks of physiology and medicine mention that heart rate (HR) is readily calculated from the ECG as follows: Lifestyle and pharmacological regimens may be beneficial to those with high resting heart rates. Exercise is one possible measure to take when an individual's heart rate is higher than 80 beats per minute. Diet has also been found to be beneficial in lowering resting heart rate: In studies of resting heart rate and risk of death and cardiac complications on patients with type 2 diabetes, legumes were found to lower resting heart rate. This is thought to occur because in addition to the direct beneficial effects of legumes, they also displace animal proteins in the diet, which are higher in saturated fat and cholesterol. A very slow heart rate (bradycardia) may be associated with heart block. It may also arise from autonomous nervous system impairment. Heart rate monitor, Cardiac cycle, Electrocardiography Online Heart Beats Per Minute Calculator Tap along with your heart rate, An application (open-source) for contactless real time heart rate measurements by means of an ordinary web cam

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Yellowstone is an American drama television series created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson that premiered on June 20, 2018 on the Paramount Network. It stars Kevin Costner, Wes Bentley, Kelly Reilly, Luke Grimes, Cole Hauser, and Gil Birmingham. The series follows the conflicts along the shared borders of a large cattle ranch, an Indian reservation, and land developers. In June 2019, Paramount Network renewed the series for a third season. Yellowstone follows "the Dutton family, led by John Dutton, who controls the largest contiguous ranch in the United States. The ranch is under constant attack by those it borders—land developers, an Indian reservation, and United States of America's first National Park. It is an intense study of a violent world far from media scrutiny, where land grabs earn developers billions, and politicians are bought and sold by the world's largest oil and lumber corporations. Where unsolved murders are not news, they are a consequence of living in the new frontier. It is the best and worst of the United States as seen through the eyes of a family that represents both." Kevin Costner as John Dutton, is a 6th generation billionaire patriarch of the Dutton family, who controls the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, the largest contiguous ranch in the United States. He is confronted with the challenge of defending his land from those who would seek to take it from him while also overcoming the recent death of his son and a recent diagnosis of colon cancer. John has stated that he is not a wealthy man when offered to buy out Dan Jenkins’ club. Josh Lucas portrays a young John Dutton in a recurring role., Luke Grimes as Kayce Dutton, a former US Navy SEAL and one of John and Evelyn's sons. He lives on the local Native American reservation with his wife and son. Rhys Alterman portrays a young Kayce in a recurring role., Kelly Reilly as Beth Dutton, a financier and the daughter of John and Evelyn. She is educated, highly intelligent, and a master manipulator. She is also, however, very unstable and suffers from a substance abuse problem. Kylie Rogers portrays a young Beth in a recurring role., Wes Bentley as Jamie Dutton, an attorney, aspiring politician, and one of John and Evelyn's sons. Although completely loyal to his father and family, he is constantly frustrated at the current state of his family. He also has an intense love/hate relationship with his sister Beth. Dalton Baker portrays a young Jamie in a recurring role., Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler, the ranch foreman at Yellowstone and John's right-hand man and enforcer. Rip has worked on the ranch for many years since being taken in by a young John Dutton and is therefore fiercely loyal to John. He has an on-again, off-again relationship with Beth. Kyle Red Silverstein portrays a young Rip Wheeler in a guest appearance in the episodes "The Unraveling: Pt. 1" and "Touching Your Enemy"., Kelsey Asbille as Monica Long Dutton, Kayce's Native American wife with whom he lives on the local reservation, where she is a teacher at the school., Brecken Merrill as Tate Dutton, the son of Kayce and Monica and John's only grandchild., Jefferson White as Jimmy Hurdstrom, a ranch hand at Yellowstone., Danny Huston as Dan Jenkins, a billionaire land developer from California with aspirations of building on parts of Yellowstone. (seasons 1-2), Gil Birmingham as Chief Thomas Rainwater, the chief of the nearby Native American reservation. He seeks to take the land from the Dutton family to expand the reservation., Denim Richards as Colby, a ranch hand at Yellowstone. (recurring seasons 1–2, main season 3), Forrie J. Smith as Lloyd Pierce, a ranch hand at Yellowstone. He has worked with John and the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch for years. Forrest Smith portrays a young Lloyd in a guest appearance in the episode "Touching Your Enemy". (recurring seasons 1–2, main season 3) Moses Brings Plenty as Mo, Rainwater's driver and muscle., Ian Bohen as Ryan, a ranch hand at Yellowstone., Wendy Moniz as Governor Lynelle Perry, the Governor of Montana., Atticus Todd as Ben Waters, Timothy Carhart as A.G. Stewart, an Attorney General of the state of Montana., Rudy Ramos as Felix Long, Monica's grandfather and Tate's great grandfather., Tokala Black Elk as Sam Stands Alone, Michaela Conlin as Sarah Nguyen, a reporter who is drawn to John Dutton and his family and feels John lives a story worth telling and is determined to go after it., Ryan Bingham as Walker, a former prisoner who is recruited by Rip Wheeler to be a ranch hand at Yellowstone, which he later regrets when he and Rip collide later on., Luke Peckinpah as Fred Meyers, Walter C. Taylor III as Emmett Walsh, Fredric Lehne as Carl Reynolds, Savonna Spracklin as Alice Wahl, Robert Mirabal as Principle Littlefield, Heather Hemmens as Melody Prescott, Katherine Cunningham as Christina, an assistant to Jamie Dutton as he takes part in the race to be the new Montana Attorney General. She and Jamie grow closer and eventually begins a relationship., John Aylward as Father Bob, Morningstar Angeline as Samantha Long, Roberts' wife and Monica's sister-in-law., Bill Tangradi as Alan Keene, Michael Nouri as Bob Schwartz, Gretchen Mol as Evelyn Dutton, the late wife of John Dutton, mother to Lee, Jaime, Beth, and Kayce., Barret Swatek as Victoria Jenkins, the wife of Dan Jenkins., Hugh Dillon as Sheriff Donnie Haskell, David Cleveland Brown as Jason, Beth Dutton's assistant., Taylor Sheridan as Travis Wheatly, a horsetrader and an acquaintance of John Dutton. (guest season 1, recurring season 2), Tanaya Beatty as Avery, a former stripper who is recruited by Rip Wheeler into becoming a ranch hand at Yellowstone. (guest season 1, recurring season 2), Neal McDonough as Malcolm Beck, a businessman. (season 2), Terry Serpico as Teal Beck, a businessman and Malcolm's brother. (season 2), James Jordan as Steve Hendon, a Livestock agent. (season 2), Kelly Rohrbach as Cassidy Reid, she is approached by John Dutton to run for Montana Attorney General opposed to his son Jamie. (season 2), Martin Sensmeier as Martin, a physical therapist of Monica Dutton. (season 2), Josh Holloway as Roarke Carter (season 3), John Emmet Tracy as Ellis Steele (season 3), Q'orianka Kilcher as Angela Blue Thunder (season 3), Jennifer Landon as Teeter (season 3), Karen Pittman as Willa Hays (season 3), Eden Brolin as Mia (season 3) Dave Annable as Lee Dutton, John Dutton's oldest son and head of security on the ranch. ("Daybreak"), Jill Hennessy as Senator Huntington ("Daybreak"), an ally of Chief Rainwater., Jeremiah Bitsui as Robert Long ("Daybreak"), Monica's brother and Tate's uncle., Geno Segers as Danny Trudeau ("No Good Horses"), Tinsel Korey as Emily Sessions ("A Monster Is Among Us"), Mike Faiola as Dr. Fielding ("A Monster Is Among Us"), Brian Unger as Dr. Stafford ("A Monster Is Among Us"), James Pickens Jr. as Old Cowboy ("The Unravelling: Pt. 2"), Stanley Peternel as Dirk Hurdstrom ("Only Devils Left") and ("Enemies by Monday"), Jimmy's grandfather., Dabney Coleman as John Dutton Sr. ("Sins of our Father"), John's father. Episodes of the third season include: "You’re the Indian Now" written by Taylor Sheridan, "Going Back to Cali" written by Taylor Sheridan, "Freight Trains and Monsters" written by Taylor Sheridan, "Death Follows You" written by Taylor Sheridan, "An Acceptable Surrender" written by Taylor Sheridan In 2013, Taylor Sheridan began work on the series, having recently grown tired of acting and begun writing screenplays. Having lived in the rural parts of states such as Texas and Wyoming, Sheridan purposely set the series in Montana and went about writing the first scripts in Livingston. On May 3, 2017, it was announced that the Paramount Network had greenlit its first scripted series, Yellowstone. Paramount issued a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. The series was set to be written, directed, and executive- produced by Sheridan. Other executive producers were to include John Linson, Art Linson, Harvey Weinstein, and David Glasser. Production companies involved with the series were set to consist of Linson Entertainment and The Weinstein Company. On October 12, 2017, it was announced that following reports of sexual abuse allegations against producer Harvey Weinstein, his name would be removed from the series' credits as would The Weinstein Company as well. On January 15, 2018, Kevin Kay, president of Paramount Network, clarified during the annual Television Critics Association's winter press tour that Yellowstone will not have The Weinstein Company's credits or logo on them, even though that company was involved in production. Furthermore, he stated that their intent is to replace Weinstein Television with the company's new name in the show's credits when available. That same day, it was also announced that the series would premiere on June 20, 2018. On July 24, 2018, it was announced that Paramount Network had renewed the series for a second season that was expected to premiere in 2019. On March 21, 2019, it was announced that the second season will premiere on June 19, 2019. On June 19, 2019, the series was renewed by Paramount for a third season. On May 15, 2017, it was announced that Kevin Costner had been cast in the series lead role of John Dutton. In June 2017, it was reported that Luke Grimes, Cole Hauser, Wes Bentley, and Kelly Reilly had joined the cast as series regulars. On July 13, 2017, it was announced that Kelsey Asbille had been cast in a main role. In August 2017, it was reported that Dave Annable, Gil Birmingham, and Jefferson White had been added to the main cast while Wendy Moniz, Gretchen Mol, Jill Hennessy, Patrick St. Esprit, Ian Bohen, Denim Richards, and Golden Brooks were joining the cast in a recurring capacity. In November 2017, it was announced that Michaela Conlin and Josh Lucas had been added to the cast in recurring roles. On December 19, 2017, it was reported that Heather Hemmens was joining the cast in a recurring capacity. On June 13, 2018, it was announced that Barret Swatek had been cast in a recurring role. On September 14, 2018, it was announced that Neal McDonough was joining the cast of season two in a recurring capacity. Principal photography for the series began in August 2017 at the Chief Joseph Ranch in Darby, Montana, which stands in as the home of John Dutton. Filming also took place that month near Park City, Utah. The production used all three soundstages at the Utah Film Studios in Park City, which is a total of 45,000 square feet. The building also houses offices, editing, a huge wardrobe department and construction shops. By November 2017, the series had filmed in more than twenty locations in Utah, including the Salt Flats, Promontory Club, and Spanish Fork. Additionally, filming also took place at various locations in Montana. Production was reportedly set to last until December 2017. The series' score was composed by Brian Tyler who worked with musicians from the London Philharmonia Orchestra and viola, cello, and violin soloists. On August 17, 2018, the soundtrack for the first season was released by Sony Music. On February 28, 2018, a teaser trailer for the series was released. On April 26, 2018, the first full trailer was released. On June 25, 2018, the series held a screening at Seriesfest, an annual international television festival, at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver, Colorado. The first season was released on Blu-ray and DVD on December 4, 2018. The series was met with a mixed response from critics upon its premiere. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a 51% approval rating, with an average rating of 5.83 out of 10 based on 39 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Yellowstone proves too melodramatic to be taken seriously, diminishing the effects of the talented cast and beautiful backdrops." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the season a score of 53 out of 100 based on 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews." The two-hour series premiere of Yellowstone averaged 2.8 million viewers in live + same day and became the most-watched original scripted series telecast ever on Paramount Network (or its predecessor Spike). The premiere audience grows to nearly 4 million when the two encore airings of the premiere are factored in. The premiere audience more than doubled that of Paramount Network's first scripted drama series, Waco and more than tripled the debut viewership of Paramount Network's new comedy series, American Woman. It was later reported that the premiere's Live+3 Nielsen ratings revealed that 4.8 million viewers ultimately watched the premiere after delayed viewing was factored in. By the series' third episode, it was reported that the show had become the second most watched television series on ad-supported cable to air in 2018, only behind AMC's The Walking Dead. Cole Kenneth Hauser (born March 22, 1975) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films School Ties, Dazed and Confused, Good Will Hunting, Pitch Black, Tigerland, Hart's War, Tears of the Sun, 2 Fast 2 Furious, The Cave, The Break-Up, A Good Day to Die Hard, Olympus Has Fallen, and Transcendence. He starred as Officer Randy Willitz on the police crime drama series High Incident and Ethan Kelly on the police drama Rogue. He currently stars as Rip Wheeler on the Paramount Network western drama series Yellowstone. Cole Kenneth Hauser was born on March 22, 1975, in Santa Barbara, California, the son of Cass Warner, who founded the film production company Warner Brothers, and actor Wings Hauser. His paternal grandfather was Academy Award- winning screenwriter Dwight Hauser. One of Cole's maternal great-grandfathers was film mogul Harry Warner, a founding partner of Warner Bros., and his maternal grandfather was Milton Sperling, a Hollywood screenwriter and independent film producer. Hauser's maternal grandmother, Betty Mae Warner, a painter, sculptor, political activist and gallery owner, was married to Stanley Sheinbaum, a noted political activist, economist, philanthropist, and a former Los Angeles Police Department commissioner. Hauser is of Irish and German descent on his father's side and Jewish on his mother's. Hauser's parents divorced in 1977, when he was two years old. According to him, at roughly fifteen, he first met his father after the relocation-induced years of separation. His father took him in for a year and taught him about auditioning. Prior to that, his mother had moved Hauser and his half brother and sisters from Santa Barbara to Oregon to Florida and then back to Santa Barbara within a 12-year-span. At the time, he participated heavily in sports, but half-heartedly pursued school. He was admitted to the short-listed circle of talent at a talent summer camp in New England, then won the leading role of the stage play named Dark of the Moon, which earned him standing ovations for his performance. At 16 years old he decided to leave high school to try to break into acting. Hauser made his film debut in School Ties (1992), which starred many young and up-and-coming actors such as Brendan Fraser, Matt Damon, Chris O'Donnell and Ben Affleck. A role in Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused also starring Affleck came along subsequently. In 1995, Hauser played the role of the leader of the campus neo-Nazi skinheads in the John Singleton film Higher Learning. Hauser would later re-team with Affleck and Damon when they appeared together in Good Will Hunting (1997). In 2000 he played William J. Johns in Pitch Black and voiced the character in the prequel . In 2002, he played a racist American prisoner-of-war in Hart's War with Bruce Willis and Colin Farrell. Then in 2003, he played a Navy SEAL in Tears of the Sun alongside Bruce Willis. He also appeared as a mob boss in 2 Fast 2 Furious. He has since had several leading roles in Hollywood films, including the Mel Gibson-produced Paparazzi and The Cave. In 2007, he starred with Anthony Anderson in the FOX series K-Ville. The show was canceled after ten episodes. That same year, Hauser starred in The Stone Angel adapted from a novel by Margaret Laurence. The film played in various festival circles and had a limited release in Canadian theaters in May 2008. During that same year, Cole filmed other indie productions such as Like Dandelion Dust from a novel by Karen Kingsbury, Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys and the CBS television pilot The Tower. Hauser's wife is former actress and photographer Cynthia Daniel, who played Elizabeth Wakefield in the TV series adaptation of Francine Pascal's hit novel series Sweet Valley High alongside her twin sister Brittany Daniel. Hauser and Daniel have three children: son Ryland (2004); son Colt (2008); and daughter Steely Rose (2013). Article from People.com Taylor Sheridan (born May 21, 1970) is an American screenwriter, director and actor. Sheridan first reached prominence for portraying David Hale in the FX television series Sons of Anarchy. Sheridan has written several films, including the screenplay for Sicario (2015), for which he was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Hell or High Water (2016), which was nominated for four Oscars, including Best Picture. Credited with redefining the modern Western, Sheridan also wrote and directed the 2017 crime film Wind River and wrote . He co-created the Paramount Network television series Yellowstone. Sheridan began his career in acting, appearing in small films and in recurring roles in television series, such as Veronica Mars, Walker, Texas Ranger and most notably, as David Hale in Sons of Anarchy. He made the transition into screenwriting after he turned 40. His first film as a screenwriter was Sicario, directed by Denis Villeneuve. It revolves around Kate Macer (Emily Blunt), an FBI agent who is enlisted to a government task force to bring down the leader of a powerful and brutal Mexican drug cartel. It also starred Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro. The film received critical acclaim, with a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and received a number of nominations, including a Writers Guild of America Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay for Sheridan. Sheridan wrote Comancheria after Sicario. Comancheria sold first but was stuck in development for quite a few years, appearing on the Black List in 2012. It was later retitled Hell or High Water and was released in August 2016, starring Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine and Ben Foster, and again received critical acclaim. For his screenplay, Sheridan received a large amount of awards attention, earning BAFTA, Golden Globe Award, and Academy Award nominations. The low-budget horror film Vile is credited as Sheridan's first film, but he does not consider the film his directorial debut, stating in a 2017 Rotten Tomatoes interview: His second feature as director, but third as screenwriter, Wind River, starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen, premiered at Sundance Film Festival in January 2017. The film follows an FBI agent (Olsen) and a veteran game tracker (Renner), investigating a murder that occurred on a Native American reservation. The Weinstein Company had acquired the distribution rights during the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, but dropped the film prior to the Sundance premiere. However, the company later finalized its deal to distribute the film. Wind River was widely released in the United States on August 18, 2017, following a brief limited release. Following Sicario and Hell or High Water, Wind River is the third installment of Sheridan's trilogy of "the modern-day American frontier". On September 15, 2016, Deadline reported that Sheridan has been set by Sony Pictures and Escape Artists to script the American remake of the Matthias Schoenaerts drama- thriller film Disorder, a 2015 French film directed by Alice Winocour. Escape Artists' Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch and Tony Shaw will produce the remake and David Beaubaire is overseeing it for the studio. James Mangold will direct. In 2017, Sheridan created the television series Yellowstone starring Kevin Costner that aired on the Paramount Network on June 20, 2018. The show was renewed for a second season on July 24, 2018. Sheridan wrote the sequel to Sicario, titled , which was directed by Stefano Sollima and released in 2018. As an ex-actor, Sheridan has explained that the amount of expositional dialogue he read for television caused him to form an "allergy to Exposition" in his writing. He has also said that he looks for "absurdly simple" plots in order to focus solely on character. He is known for toying with the form and structure of a screenplay in his work. In Sicario, Sheridan incorporated a "five-act structure and a five-act structure within that." He believes in the intelligence of the audience, and uses the structure and context of his stories as a way to subvert expectations: "I look at each movie as, ‘How am I breaking the rules this time?’" Sheridan grew up on a ranch in Cranfills Gap, Texas. His family lived minimally, not having a stereo system in their house. His parents would sit in their station wagon, which had an 8-track player, listening to music to pass the time. Had they not lost the property in the early 1990s, said Sheridan, "I would still be living there." After Sheridan graduated out of Texas State University, a talent scout offered him the chance to go to Los Angeles and pursue an acting career. Sheridan is the brother of journalist John Gibler. Sheridan has been married to actress and model Nicole Muirbrook since 2013.

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The Norwegian Nobel Committee each year awards the Nobel Peace Prize (Norwegian and ) "to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses". As dictated by Nobel's will, the award is administered by the Norwegian Nobel Committee and awarded by a committee of five people elected by the Parliament of Norway. Each recipient receives a medal, a diploma, and a monetary award prize (that has varied throughout the years). It is one of the five prizes established by the 1895 will of Alfred Nobel (who died in 1896), awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature, peace, and physiology or medicine. The Peace Prize is presented annually in Oslo, in the presence of the King of Norway, on December 10, the anniversary of Nobel's death, and is the only Nobel Prize not presented in Stockholm. Unlike the other prizes, the Peace Prize is occasionally awarded to an organisation (such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, a three-time recipient) rather than an individual. The Nobel Peace Prize was first awarded in 1901 to Frédéric Passy and Henry Dunant — who shared a Prize of 150,782 Swedish kronor (equal to 7,731,004 kronor in 2008) — and, most recently, to Abiy Ahmed in 2019. Linus Pauling, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 1962, is the only person to have been awarded two unshared Nobel Prizes; he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1954., At 17 years of age, Malala Yousafzai, the 2014 recipient, is the youngest to be awarded the Peace Prize., The first woman to receive a Nobel Peace Prize was Bertha von Suttner in 1905. Of the 106 Nobel Peace Prize Laureates in history, 17 have been women., The International Committee of the Red Cross has received the most Nobel Peace Prizes, having been awarded the Prize three times for its humanitarian work., Three Nobel Peace Prize Laureates were under arrest at the time of their awards: Carl von Ossietzky, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Liu Xiaobo. The prize is considered the most controversial of the Nobel Prizes; with several of the selections having been criticised, and, on 19 occasions (as of 2018), no prize was awarded. Despite having been nominated five times, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi never won the Prize. Following his assassination in 1948, the committee considered awarding it to him posthumously but decided against it — and, instead, withheld the Prize that year with the explanation that "there was no suitable living candidate.", In 1961, Dag Hammarskjöld, who died after his nomination but several months before the announcement, became the only laureate to be recognised posthumously; following this, the statutes were changed to render a future posthumous prize nearly impossible., In 1973, Le Duc Tho declined the Prize, because "he was not in a position to accept the Prize, citing the situation in Vietnam as his reason." , the Peace Prize has been awarded to 106 individuals and 24 organizations. Seventeen women have won the Nobel Peace Prize, more than any other Nobel Prize. Only two recipients have won multiple Prizes: the International Committee of the Red Cross has won three times (1917, 1944 and 1963) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has won twice (1954 and 1981). There have been 19 years since its creation in which the Peace Prize was not awarded, more times than any other Nobel Prize. Lê Đức Thọ is the only person to refuse to accept a Nobel Peace Prize. He was jointly awarded the 1973 award with Henry Kissinger but declined the prize on grounds that such "bourgeois sentimentalities" were not for him and that the Paris Peace Accords were not being adhered to in full. List of Nobel laureates, List of peace activists Official website of the Norwegian Nobel Committee The Ig Nobel Prize ( ) is a satiric prize awarded annually since 1991 to celebrate ten unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research, its stated aim being to "honor achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think." The name of the award is a pun on the Nobel Prize, which it parodies, and the word ignoble. Organized by the scientific humor magazine Annals of Improbable Research (AIR), the Ig Nobel Prizes are presented by Nobel laureates in a ceremony at the Sanders Theater, Harvard University, and are followed by the winners’ public lectures at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The Ig Nobels were created in 1991 by Marc Abrahams, editor and co-founder of the Annals of Improbable Research, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Irreproducible Results and master of ceremonies at all subsequent awards ceremonies. Awards were presented at that time for discoveries "that cannot, or should not, be reproduced". Ten prizes are awarded each year in many categories, including the Nobel Prize categories of physics, chemistry, physiology/medicine, literature, and peace, but also other categories such as public health, engineering, biology, and interdisciplinary research. The Ig Nobel Prizes recognize genuine achievements, with the exception of three prizes awarded in the first year to fictitious scientists Josiah S. Carberry, Paul DeFanti, and Thomas Kyle. The awards are sometimes criticism via satire, as in the two awards given for homeopathy research, prizes in "science education" to the Kansas State Department of Education and Colorado State Board of Education for their stance regarding the teaching of evolution, and the prize awarded to Social Text after the Sokal affair. Most often, however, they draw attention to scientific articles that have some humorous or unexpected aspect. Examples range from the discovery that the presence of humans tends to sexually arouse ostriches, to the statement that black holes fulfill all the technical requirements for being the location of Hell, to research on the "five-second rule", a tongue-in-cheek belief that food dropped on the floor will not become contaminated if it is picked up within five seconds. Sir Andre Geim, who had been awarded an Ig Nobel Prize in 2000 for levitating a frog by magnetism, was awarded a Nobel Prize in physics in 2010 for his work with the electromagnetic properties of graphene. He is the only individual, as of 2019, to have received both a Nobel and an Ig Nobel. The prizes are mostly presented by Nobel laureates, originally at a ceremony in a lecture hall at MIT, but now in the Sanders Theater at Harvard University. The event contains a number of running jokes, including Miss Sweetie Poo, a little girl who repeatedly cries out, "Please stop: I'm bored", in a high-pitched voice if speakers go on too long. The awards ceremony is traditionally closed with the words: "If you didn't win a prize—and especially if you did—better luck next year!" The ceremony is co-sponsored by the Harvard Computer Society, the Harvard–Radcliffe Science Fiction Association and the Harvard–Radcliffe Society of Physics Students. Throwing paper planes onto the stage is a long-standing tradition. For many years Professor Roy J. Glauber swept the stage clean of the airplanes as the official "Keeper of the Broom." Glauber could not attend the 2005 awards because he was traveling to Stockholm to claim a genuine Nobel Prize in Physics. The "Parade of Ignitaries" into the hall includes supporting groups. At the 1997 ceremonies, a team of "cryogenic sex researchers" distributed a pamphlet titled "Safe Sex at Four Kelvin." Delegates from the Museum of Bad Art are often on hand to display some pieces from their collection. The ceremony is recorded and broadcast on National Public Radio in the US and is shown live over the Internet. The recording is broadcast every year, on the Friday after U.S. Thanksgiving, on the public radio program Science Friday. In recognition of this, the audience chants the name of the radio show's host, Ira Flatow. Two books have been published with write-ups on some winners: The Ig Nobel Prize, and The Ig Nobel Prize 2 which was later retitled The Man Who Tried to Clone Himself. An Ig Nobel Tour has been an annual part of National Science week in the United Kingdom since 2003. The tour has also traveled to Australia several times, Aarhus University in Denmark in April 2009, Italy and The Netherlands. A September 2009 article in The National titled "A noble side to Ig Nobels" says that, although the Ig Nobel Awards are veiled criticism of trivial research, history shows that trivial research sometimes leads to important breakthroughs. For instance, in 2006, a study showing that one of the malaria mosquitoes (Anopheles gambiae) is attracted equally to the smell of Limburger cheese and the smell of human feet earned the Ig Nobel Prize in the area of biology. As a direct result of these findings, traps baited with this cheese have been placed in strategic locations in some parts of Africa to combat the epidemic of malaria. List of Ig Nobel Prize winners, Darwin Awards – an award for enriching the human gene pool by idiotic self-destruction, Golden Raspberry Awards – awards for bad movies, Bookseller/Diagram Prize for Oddest Title of the Year – a book prize, Pigasus Award – exposing parapsychological, paranormal, or psychic frauds, Golden Fleece Award – award for waste of government funds; often awarded for government-paid research considered frivolous or wasteful, Journal of Irreproducible Results – publishes intentionally humorous "research" Ig Nobel home page, List of past winners, with reasons for prize, TED Talk: A science award that makes you laugh, then think The 2009 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to United States President Barack Obama for his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between people". The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the award on October 9, 2009, citing Obama's promotion of nuclear nonproliferation and a "new climate" in international relations fostered by Obama, especially in reaching out to the Muslim world. The Nobel Committee's decision drew mixed reactions from US commentators and editorial writers across the political spectrum, as well as from the rest of the world. Obama accepted the prize in Oslo on December 10, 2009. In a 36-minute speech, he discussed the tensions between war and peace and the idea of a "just war" saying, "perhaps the most profound issue surrounding my receipt of this prize is the fact that I am the Commander-in-Chief of the military of a nation in the midst of two wars." Obama is the fourth President of the United States to have won the Nobel Peace Prize (after Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter, with Carter's honor happening after leaving office). The winner is selected by the Nobel Committee from nominations submitted by committee members and others. Nominations for the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize closed just 11 days after Obama took office. There were 205 nominations for the 2009 award, which included Chinese and Afghan civil rights activists and African politicians. Colombian Senator Piedad Córdoba, Afghanistan's Sima Samar, Chinese dissident Hu Jia and Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Morgan Tsvangirai had been speculated to be favorites for the award. The five members of the Nobel Committee are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament to roughly reflect the party makeup of that body. The 2009 Committee comprised two members of the Norwegian Labor Party, one from the left-wing Socialist Left Party, one from the Conservative Party of Norway and one from the right-wing Progress Party. The chairman of the Committee was Thorbjørn Jagland, former Norwegian Labor Party prime minister and Secretary General of the Council of Europe since September 29, 2009. The panel met six or seven times in 2009, beginning several weeks after the February 1 nomination deadline. The winner was chosen unanimously on October 5, but was initially opposed by the Socialist Left, Conservative and Progress Party members until strongly persuaded by Jagland. Jagland said "We have not given the prize for what may happen in the future. We are awarding Obama for what he has done in the past year. And we are hoping this may contribute a little bit for what he is trying to do," noting that he hoped the award would assist Obama's foreign policy efforts. Jagland said the committee was influenced by a speech Obama gave about Islam in Cairo in June 2009, the president's efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation and climate change, and Obama's support for using established international bodies such as the United Nations to pursue foreign policy goals. The New York Times reported that Jagland shrugged off the question of whether "the committee feared being labeled naïve for accepting a young politician's promises at face value", stating that "no one could deny that 'the international climate' had suddenly improved, and that Mr. Obama was the main reason... We want to embrace the message that he stands for." Obama was the fourth U.S. President to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, after Theodore Roosevelt (1906) and Woodrow Wilson (1919)—both of whom received the award during their terms—and Jimmy Carter (2002), who received the award 21 years after leaving office. In addition, then-sitting Vice President Charles Dawes was a co-winner with Austen Chamberlain (1925), and former Vice President Al Gore was a co-winner with the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2007) Obama was the first U.S. president to receive the award during his first year in office (at eight and a half months, after being nominated less than two weeks in office), although several other world leaders were awarded in the year following their election to national office, including Óscar Arias (1987) and Aung San Suu Kyi (1991). Obama said he was "surprised" and "deeply humbled" by the award. In remarks given at the White House Rose Garden on the day of the announcement, Obama stated, "I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments but rather an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations." "Throughout history, the Nobel Peace Prize has not just been used to honor specific achievement; it's also been used as a means to give momentum to a set of causes," Obama said. "And that is why I will accept this award as a call to action — a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century." He said those common challenges included the goal of eliminating nuclear weapons (which he said might not occur in his lifetime), nuclear proliferation, climate change, tolerance "among people of different faiths and races and religions", peace between and security for Israelis and Palestinians, better social conditions for the world's poor, including "the ability to get an education and make a decent living; the security that you won't have to live in fear of disease or violence without hope for the future." The United States, he said, is "a country that's responsible for ending a war and working in another theater to confront a ruthless adversary that directly threatens the American people and our allies." The award, he said, "must be shared with everyone who strives for justice and dignity — for the young woman who marches silently in the streets on behalf of her right to be heard even in the face of beatings and bullets; for the leader imprisoned in her own home because she refuses to abandon her commitment to democracy [referring to Aung San Suu Kyi]; for the soldier who sacrificed through tour after tour of duty on behalf of someone half a world away; and for all those men and women across the world who sacrifice their safety and their freedom and sometime their lives for the cause of peace." He did not take questions from reporters after giving his statement. Like the thought of President Jimmy Carter and Lyndon Johnson who awarded him of the Medal of Freedom in 1964, Obama speeches were more times influenced by the Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr. The 2009 Nobel Prize speech recalled a mix of Niebuhr's political realism and moral thinking. Obama announced early that he would donate the full 10 million Swedish kronor (about US$1.4 million) monetary award to charity. The largest donations were given to the housing charity Fisher House Foundation who received $250,000, and the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund which received $200,000. Eight organizations which support education also received a donation. $125,000 was donated to the College Summit, the Posse Foundation, the United Negro College Fund, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, the Appalachian Leadership and Education Foundation, and the American Indian College Fund. $100,000 was donated to Africare, and the Central Asia Institute. Obama's winning of the peace prize was largely unanticipated and called a "stunning surprise" by The New York Times, though major oddsmaker Centrebet had in fact put him at 7–1 odds of winning, with Piedad Córdoba and Sima Samar at 6–1 and Morgan Tsvangirai at 7–1. In a USA Today / Gallup Poll conducted October 16–19, 61% of American adults polled responded that they thought Obama did not deserve to win the prize, while 34% responded that he did; when asked if they were personally glad that Obama won the award, 46% of respondents said they were and 47% said they were not glad (poll margin of error +/-3%). There was widespread criticism of the Nobel Committee's decision from commentators and editorial writers across the political spectrum. The New York Times published a mildly-supportive editorial which said the prize was "a (barely) implicit condemnation of Mr. Bush's presidency. But countering the ill will Mr. Bush created around the world is one of Mr. Obama's great achievements in less than nine months in office. Mr. Obama's willingness to respect and work with other nations is another." It said that much remains to be done. Among those agreeing that the award was a criticism of the Bush administration were the editorial pages of the Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post, as well as Thomas L. Friedman of the New York Times. Today host Matt Lauer and Jonah Goldberg of the National Review said that less than a year into the first term, there have been "no major foreign policy achievements to date." Goldberg added: "surely someone in Iran—or maybe the Iranian protestors generally—could have benefitted more from receiving the prize" while in CounterPunch, political journalist Alexander Cockburn said that, in historical context of other former U.S. Presidents winning the Nobel Peace Prize, the award to Obama "represents a radical break in tradition, since he's only had slightly less than nine months to discharge his imperial duties." Peter Beinart of the Daily Beast called the decision a "farce", while Noam Chomsky said : "In defense of the committee, we might say that the achievement of doing nothing to advance peace places Obama on a considerably higher moral plane than some of the earlier recipients". Many were critical of the Nobel Committee. A Wall Street Journal editorial, noting Obama's comment that the world's problems "can't be met by any one leader or any one nation", opined, "What this suggests to us—and to the Norwegians—is the end of what has been called 'American exceptionalism'. This is the view that U.S. values have universal application and should be promoted without apology, and defended with military force when necessary. Put in this context, we wonder if most Americans will count this peace-of-the-future prize as a compliment." Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson wrote that the committee members "have forfeited any claim to seriousness. Peace—the kind of peace that keeps people from being killed and oppressed—is an achievement, not a sentiment. [...] Intending to honor Obama, the committee has actually embarrassed him." Commentary magazine's Peter Wehner wrote that the award, with past awards that seemed aimed at criticizing the Bush administration, showed the Nobel Committee "long ago ceased to be a serious entity; this choice merely confirms that judgment." According to The Washington Post news analyst Dan Balz, "[E]ven among his supporters there was a sense of surprise and even shock on Friday [the day of the announcement], a belief that the award was premature, a disservice and a potential liability." An editorial in The Washington Post began, "It's an odd Nobel Peace Prize that almost makes you embarrassed for the honoree", and compared the Nobel Committee's statement that Obama had "created a new climate in international politics" to a recent satirical skit on television. A Los Angeles Times editorial said the committee "didn't just embarrass Obama, it diminished the credibility of the prize itself". Thomas L. Friedman of The New York Times wrote, "It dismays me that the most important prize in the world has been devalued in this way". Much of the commentary across the political spectrum involved describing the award as something risible, with the humor focusing on Obama's getting the award without having accomplished much. According to an analysis in The New York Times, "it [...] [is] striking how so many people seemed to greet the Nobel news with shock followed by laughter," On the morning of the announcement, several of The Washington Post opinion-page columnists, posting at the newspaper's "Post Partisan" blog, characterized the award as laughable or directly satirized it, including such supportive columnists as Ruth Marcus ("ridiculous—embarrassing, even"), Richard Cohen (who satirized the award), and foreign-affairs columnist David Ignatius ("goofy" and "weird"), and Michael Kinsley (whose satirical response came the next day). Other prominent commentators who often supported Obama but responded with ridicule included Peter Beinart and Ann Althouse. James Taranto wrote in The Wall Street Journal an article summarising various opinions on the Internet, concluding how the award was embarrassing for Obama. He said the award was a "staggeringly premature honor--the equivalent of a lifetime-achievement Oscar for a child star--makes yesterday's satire into today's news". Fred Greenstein, presidential historian and author and professor of politics emeritus at Princeton University, told FOX News that giving President Obama the Nobel Peace Prize is a "premature canonization" and an "embarrassment to the Nobel process." Slate magazine blogger Mickey Kaus, New York Times columnist David Brooks and former U.N. ambassador John Bolton amongst others, called for Obama to not accept the award; pundit Michael Crowley argued that it was a "mixed blessing". Subsequent to the award many Americans now consider that Obama did not deserve it in the light of following events. Opponents of the award cite the expansion of the War on Terror and the large increase in the number of drone strikes carried out under Obama, specifically in Pakistan. There have been a number of calls for Obama to either return the award or to have the Nobel Committee recall it, most recently in 2013. In April 2013 a petition was begun asking the Nobel Committee to rescind the Peace Prize. The petition garnered 10,000 signatures in its first day and nearly 20,000 by the end of its first week. Nobel laureate and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore called the award "extremely well deserved". Obama received congratulations and kind words from other elected officials, such as from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former rival, Senator John McCain, who said, "As Americans, we're proud when our president receives an award of that prestigious category". RNC chairman Michael Steele discussed his disapproval of the award in a fund-raising letter, writing, "the Democrats and their international leftist allies want America made subservient to the agenda of global redistribution and control." In 2015, Geir Lundestad, the non-voting Director of the Nobel Institute and secretary for the Nobel Committee at the time of the award, published a memoir, "Secretary of Peace". In it, he wrote "In hindsight, we could say that the argument of giving Obama a helping hand was only partially correct. Many of Obama's supporters believed it was a mistake." Lundestad said that Obama had been surprised by the award, and considered not going to Oslo to accept it. He also said in his memoir that Obama had since failed to live up to the Nobel Committee's expectations. A poll conducted by Synovate for the newspaper Dagbladet showed that 43% of the Norwegian population believed giving Obama the prize was right, while 38% believed it was wrong. 19% had no opinion. The poll showed a sharp divide between younger and older people; of those over 60 years of age 58% were for and only 31% against it. Of those between 18 and 29 years of age, only 25% approved of the decision, while 42% disapproved. The award divided opinion among politicians. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg congratulated Obama for a "well-deserved prize". Siv Jensen, leader of the opposition Progress Party, said that while Obama had taken several good initiatives the committee should have waited to see their results. Erna Solberg, leader of the Conservative Party, also said that the prize came early and increased pressure on Obama to live up to the expectation. Torstein Dahle, the leader of the far leftist party Red, called the award a scandal, citing the fact that Obama was the commander-in-chief of a country at war in Iraq and Afghanistan. The response from U.S. allies was generally positive; reactions around the world were mixed: Several Nobel Laureates have commented: Bangladeshi economist Muhammad Yunus, (co-winner 2006 prize), said the committee's award was "an endorsement of [Obama] and the direction he is taking." Archbishop Desmond Tutu said the award to Obama "anticipates an even greater contribution towards making our world a safer place for all." Mairead Corrigan, (co-winner 1976), expressed her disappointment, stating, "[g]iving this award to the leader of the most militarized country in the world, which has taken the human family against its will to war, will be rightly seen by many people around the world as a reward for his country's aggression and domination." Lech Wałęsa, (1983) cofounder of the Solidarity trade union, and former president of Poland said the award was premature. "He has not yet made a real input." The 14th Dalai Lama congratulated Obama. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon praised the Nobel Committee's choice. "We are entering an era of renewed multilateralism [...] President Obama embodies the new spirit of dialogue and engagement on the world's biggest problems: climate change, nuclear disarmament and a wide range of peace and security challenges." In Europe, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the award would reinforce Obama's determination to work for justice and peace. He added that the award "finally confirms the return of America in the hearts of all the peoples of the world". Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev said the award will encourage warmer U.S.–Russian relations, and he hoped it would "serve as an additional incentive" for both governments to foster a better "climate in world politics". British Prime Minister Gordon Brown sent a private message of congratulations to President Obama. Hope that the prize would assist Obama's efforts toward nuclear disarmament was also a part of congratulatory statements from Ireland's Taoiseach Brian Cowen and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi said the Vatican "appreciated" the nomination. Kosovar President Fatmir Sejdiu congratulated Obama by saying, "This award is testimony to your success as a leader of a free country aimed at creating a safer and more peaceful world." In Australia, former Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said that the selection was "a political decision of gross stupidity", laying the blame on the selection committee for a "hideous display of cynical politics". Stuart Rees, director of the Sydney Peace Foundation in Australia, questioned the award. "Perhaps the Nobel organisation wants to give him a magic wand. I think the guy is full of promise, but I don't think the promise has been realised yet particularly in regards the Middle East." In Asia and the Middle East: Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai said that Obama was the "appropriate" person to win the Nobel Peace Prize. "His hard work and his new vision on global relations, his will and efforts for creating friendly and good relations at global level and global peace make him the appropriate recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize," said Siamak Hirai, a spokesman for Karzai. Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said the decision was ridiculous, saying, "The Nobel prize for peace? Obama should have won the 'Nobel Prize for escalating violence and killing civilians." Indonesia's, Masdar Mas'udi, deputy head of the Islamic organisation Nahdlatul Ulama, praised Obama's policy towards his country as confirmation of his worthiness as a Nobel laureate. "I think it's appropriate because he is the only American president who has reached out to us in peace," he said. "On the issues of race, religion, skin colour, he has an open attitude." Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Indian President Pratibha Patil and Israeli President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shimon Peres sent congratulatory messages to Obama, but Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told reporters that "the decision was taken hastily and the award was [too] early." In Latin America, former Cuban President Fidel Castro called the award "positive" and said the prize should be seen as a criticism to the "genocidal policy" carried out by past U.S. presidents. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro said the award was a surprise and perhaps premature. "As President Hugo Chávez said at the United Nations, (the Obama administration) is a government that has raised expectations and hopes in many people in the world, amid great contradictions." In Africa, the news of the Obama Nobel Peace Prize was positively received. Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki issued a statement saying that the prize was a "recognition of the contribution [Obama is] making for the well being of humanity." In South Africa, President Jacob Zuma used Ubuntu—the Zulu term for "the importance of community"—in his congratulatory message, saying that the U.S. president's "leadership reflects the true spirit of Ubuntu because your approach celebrates our common humanity." Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who was touted as a possible Nobel laureate, said Obama deserved the honor. In 2011 Bolivian President Evo Morales and Russian Liberal Democratic Party leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky condemned the award calling it hypocritical in light of US policy during the Libyan Civil War. After the death of Anwar al-Awlaki and his son Abdulrahman al-Awlaki by CIA predator drones in Yemen, Nasser al-Awlaki, the father and grandfather of Anwar and Abdulrahman respectively, released an audio message condemning the killings: President Obama accepted the Nobel Peace prize in person at the Oslo City Hall in Norway on December 10, 2009. In a 36-minute speech, reportedly written by Obama and then edited by Jon Favreau and Ben Rhodes, he discussed the tensions between war and peace and the idea of a "just war". The address contained elements of the ideas of Reinhold Niebuhr, someone Obama once described as one of his favorite philosophers. The speech was generally well received by American pundits on both ends of the political spectrum. Several noted similarities between Obama's message and the rhetoric of President George W. Bush. This was also mentioned by former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson, who called it a "very American speech" and wrote that "Obama was recognizing that the great commitments and themes of American foreign policy are durably bipartisan". A number of prominent Republican politicians publicly praised the speech, including Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin. Conservative New York Times columnist Ross Douthat called it an oftentimes impressive speech that was "An extended defense of using realist means in the service of liberal internationalist ends". Columnist Andrew Sullivan distinguished between the Obama and Bush messages, stating that "Obama is far more conservative than his predecessor" in his views on human imperfection, reality, and war; he also linked the speech back to the tragic nature of Obama's line "the audacity of hope". Former Jimmy Carter speechwriter Hendrik Hertzberg said that the speech "will live on for a long time as a text for peacemakers in power". A few commentators were more critical, with former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton calling it "pedestrian, turgid, and uninspired" and US Congressman Dennis Kucinich "Once we are committed to war's instrumentality in pursuit of peace, we begin the Orwellian journey to the semantic netherworld where war is peace..." The New York Times praised the eloquence of the speech, noting that "President Obama gave the speech he needed to give, but we suspect not precisely the one the Nobel committee wanted to hear." The Wall Street Journal echoed this sentiment and congratulated Obama for defending the occasional necessity of war and for stating that evil exists in the world, though used the same editorial to criticize him for current disarmament talks with Russia and a lack of progress with Iran and North Korea. The Los Angeles Times lauded the speech as "a blockbuster even by Obama's lofty standards", and even though the ideas were not new, "Obama's special gift is to make them seem achievable by appealing to our higher nature." It was also received well by columnists in The Washington Post. Abroad, British historian Simon Schama said of the speech that "in its seriousness, bravery and clarity, [it] was on a par with FDR and Churchill" and "summoned the spirit of Cicero". List of Nobel Peace Prize laureates, List of black Nobel Laureates Official Nobel Page, Barack Obama's 36-minute Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Remarks by the President on Winning the Nobel Peace Prize from The White House, October 9, 2009, Kenyans Take Pride in Obama's Nobel Prize by Edmund Sanders, Los Angeles Times, October 9, 2009

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Dodger Stadium is a baseball park in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home stadium of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened on April 10, 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of US$23 million. It is the oldest ballpark in MLB west of the Mississippi River, and third-oldest overall, after Fenway Park in Boston (1912) and Wrigley Field in Chicago (1914), and is the world's largest baseball stadium by seat capacity. Often referred to as a "pitcher's ballpark", the stadium has seen 12 no-hitters, two of which were perfect games. The stadium hosted the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 1980—and will host in 2020—as well as games of 10 World Series (1963, 1965, 1966, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1988, 2017, and 2018). It also hosted the semifinals and finals of the 2009 and 2017 World Baseball Classics. It also hosted exhibition baseball during the 1984 Summer Olympics. It will also host baseball and softball during the 2028 Summer Olympics. The stadium hosted a soccer tournament on August 3, 2013 featuring four clubs, the hometown team Los Angeles Galaxy, and Europe's Real Madrid, Everton, and Juventus. The Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks played a regular season game in 2014 as part of the NHL Stadium Series. In the mid-1950s, Brooklyn Dodgers team president Walter O'Malley had tried to build a domed stadium in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, but was unable to reach an agreement with city officials for the land acquisition, and eventually reached a deal with the city of Los Angeles. The land for Dodger Stadium had been seized from local owners and inhabitants in the early 1950s by the city of Los Angeles, using eminent domain with funds from the federal Housing Act of 1949. The city had planned to develop the Elysian Park Heights public housing project, which included two dozen 13-story buildings and more than 160 two-story townhouses, in addition to newly rebuilt playgrounds and schools, and a college. Before construction could begin on the housing project, the local political climate changed greatly when Norris Poulson was elected mayor of Los Angeles in 1953. Proposed public housing projects such as Elysian Park Heights lost most of their support as they became associated with socialist ideals. Following protracted negotiations, the city purchased the Chavez Ravine property back from the Federal Housing Authority at a drastically reduced price, with the stipulation that the land be used for a public purpose. It was not until June 3, 1958, when Los Angeles voters approved a "Taxpayers Committee for Yes on Baseball" referendum, that the Dodgers were able to acquire of Chavez Ravine from the city. While Dodger Stadium was under construction, the Dodgers played in the league's largest capacity venue from 1958 through 1961 at their temporary home, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, which could seat in excess of 90,000 people. Los Angeles–based Mike Davis, in his seminal work on the city, City of Quartz, describes the process of gradually convincing Chavez Ravine homeowners to sell. With nearly all of the original Spanish-speaking homeowners initially unwilling to sell, developers resorted to offering immediate cash payments, distributed through their Spanish-speaking agents. Once the first sales had been completed, remaining homeowners were offered increasingly lesser amounts of money, to create a community panic of not receiving fair compensation, or of being left as one of the few holdouts. Many residents continued to hold out despite the pressure being placed upon them by developers, resulting in the Battle of Chavez Ravine, a ten-year struggle by the residents to maintain control of their property, which they ultimately lost. Dodger Stadium was the first Major League Baseball stadium since the initial construction of the original Yankee Stadium to be built using 100% private financing, and the last until Oracle Park in San Francisco opened in 2000. Ground was broken for Dodger Stadium on September 17, 1959. The top of local ridges were removed and the soil was used to fill in Sulfur and Cemetery Ravines to provide a level surface for a parking lot and the stadium. A local elementary school (Palo Verde) was simply buried and sits beneath the parking lot northwest of third base. A total of of earth were moved in the process of building the stadium. A total of 21,000 precast concrete units, some weighing as much as 32 tons, were fabricated onsite and lowered into place with a specially built crane to form the stadium's structural framework. The stadium was originally designed to be expandable to 85,000 seats by expanding the upper decks over the outfield pavilions; the Dodgers have never pursued such a project. Dodger Stadium was also the home of the Los Angeles Angels from 1962 through 1965. To avoid constantly referring to their landlords, the Angels called the park Chavez Ravine Stadium (or just "Chavez Ravine"), after the geographic feature in which the stadium sits. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, the Los Angeles Dodgers made major renovations during the subsequent off-season. The largest of these improvements was the replacement of nearly all the seats in the stadium. The seats that were removed had been in use since 1975 and helped give the stadium its unique "space age" feel with a color palette of bright yellow, orange, blue, and red. The new seats are in the original (more muted) 1962 color scheme consisting of yellow, light orange, turquoise, and sky blue. 2,000 pairs of seats were made available for purchase at $250, with the proceeds going to charity. The baseline seating sections have been converted into retro-style "box" seating, adding leg room and a table. Other repairs were made to the concrete structure of the stadium. These improvements mark the second phase of a multi-year improvement plan for Dodger Stadium. Between 2003 and 2005, Dodger Stadium upgraded with LED video displays. The large main video display measures high by wide. In 2008, the Dodgers announced a $412 million project to build a Dodger museum, shops, and restaurants around Dodger Stadium. In a press release, the team described the various features of the renovation as follows: Dodger Way – A tree-lined entrance will lead to a landscaped grand plaza where fans can gather beyond center field. The plaza will connect to a promenade that features restaurants, shops and the Dodger Experience museum showcasing the history of the Dodgers in an interactive setting., Green Necklace – The vibrant street setting of Dodger Way links to a beautiful perimeter around Dodger Stadium, enabling fans to walk around the park, outdoors yet inside the stadium gates. This Green Necklace will transform acres of parking lots into a landscaped outdoor walkway connecting the plaza and promenade to the rest of the ballpark., Top of the Park – The Green Necklace connects to a large scale outdoor plaza featuring breathtaking 360° views spanning the downtown skyline and Santa Monica Bay, the Santa Monica and San Gabriel Mountains, and the Dodger Stadium diamond. In the 2008–2009 offseason, the upper levels of the stadium were supposed to be renovated to match the repairs and improvements made to the field level. The improvements were to include the removal of the trough urinals in the men's restrooms, new concession stands and earthquake retrofitting to the concrete structure. It was also to include the replacement of the outfield scoreboards and monitors with new HD monitors. Due to the 2009 World Baseball Classic hosted at Dodger Stadium, these renovations were put on hold. The divorce of Frank and Jamie McCourt, as well as a weak economy, were the reasons for the postponement. To pay for an outstanding loan with the Dodgers former owner News Corporation, former owner Frank McCourt used Dodger Stadium as collateral to obtain a $250 million loan. In 2008, the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to give the Dodger Stadium area bounded by Academy Rd, Lookout Dr. and Stadium Way its own zip code, 90090 (as of July 2009). This also gives the area a new name, Dodgertown. The signs from the former Dodgertown spring training facility in Vero Beach, Florida will likely be integrated into the $500 million project. Following the sale of the Dodgers in 2012, the team brought in the architect, urban planner, and stadium specialist Janet Marie Smith to lead renovations efforts to the 50-year-old stadium. Renovations to Dodger Stadium began in the winter of 2012. Both video boards were replaced with High Definition screens, and new clubhouses and weight rooms were installed. The restrooms, concession stands, sound system and batting cages were also improved and renovated. Dodgers owner Guggenheim Partners internally discussed moving the Dodgers to a new stadium at a Downtown Los Angeles site proposed by the Anschutz Entertainment Group to allow an NFL team to build a stadium at the Dodger Stadium site. Guggenheim Partners also considered allowing an NFL team to build a stadium next to Dodger Stadium. The NFL eventually chose to build SoFi Stadium in the City of Inglewood. The extensive renovations to Dodger Stadium were ready for the 2013 season and included new HD hexagonal video and scoreboards, a new sound system, wider concourses, more standing room viewing areas, improved restrooms and a children's playground amongst others. Between the 2013 and 2014 seasons, more renovations were put in place. Dodger Stadium was the beneficiary of improvements such as wider concourses in the pavilions, new restaurants "Think Blue Bar-B-Que" and "Tommy Lasorda's Trattoria", dedicated team store buildings replacing the tents that previously served as team stores, bullpen overlooks with overlook bars, and tree relocation at the top of the stadium. On July 23, 2019, a press conference was held with the presentation of the $100 million renovation to the ballpark, which includes a center field plaza with a children's playground located between the left field and right field bleachers, the relocation of the Jackie Robinson statue from the left field entrance to the center field playground, as well as a display honoring the Legends of Dodger Baseball, along with a sports bar and a beer garden. Also included are elevators and escalators which connect the outfield bleachers with the field, loge and reserve levels. The renovation is expected to be completed before the 2020 regular season. Dodger Stadium was one of the last baseball-only facilities built before the dawn of the multi-purpose stadium. It was built near the convergence of several freeways near downtown Los Angeles, with an expansive parking lot surrounding the stadium. With the construction of many new MLB ballparks in recent years, it is now the third-oldest park still in use, and the oldest on the West Coast. Dodger Stadium offered several innovative design features. One of these was a covered and screened section of dugout-level seats behind home plate. Dodger owner Walter O'Malley was inspired to incorporate this feature into the Dodger Stadium design after having seen it at Tokyo's Korakuen Stadium during the Brooklyn Dodgers' postseason goodwill tour of Japan in 1956. The original dugout seating area was replaced by more conventional box seating in a 1999 renovation, but this feature has been replicated at Progressive Field in Cleveland and Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Two of Dodger Stadium's most distinctive features are the wavy roof atop each outfield pavilion and the top of a 10-story elevator shaft bearing the Dodger logo rising directly behind home plate at the top of the uppermost seating level. A unique terraced-earthworks parking lot was built behind the main stands, allowing ticketholders to park at roughly the level of their seats, minimizing use of ramps once inside. The stadium was also designed to be earthquake- resistant, an important consideration in California, and it has withstood several serious earthquakes. Dodger Stadium was originally equipped with two large Fair Play electronic scoreboard units above the left- and right-field pavilions. The right-field board displayed in-game information. The left-field board displayed scores of out-of-town games and other messages. Smaller auxiliary scoreboards were installed at field level on the box seat fences beyond the first- and third-base dugouts during the inaugural 1962 season. The left-field message board was replaced by a Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Vision video board in 1980. The field-level auxiliary scoreboards were replaced by larger units installed on the facade of the Loge (second) seating level in 1998; these, in turn, were replaced by a video ribbon board in 2006. Field- level out-of-town scoreboards were installed on the left- and right-field walls in 2003. Strobe lights were added in 2001; they flash when the Dodgers take the field, after a Dodger home run, and after a Dodger win. In addition to those of Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax, and Don Sutton, the retired numbers of Pee Wee Reese, Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, Tommy Lasorda, Walter Alston, Roy Campanella and Jim Gilliam are mounted on the club level facade near the left field foul pole. On April 15, 2017, to mark the 70th anniversary of Robinson's major league debut, the Dodgers unveiled a bronze statue of the player in the stadium's left-field plaza. The sculpture depicts Robinson sliding into home plate as a rookie. The Dodgers devote significant resources to the park's maintenance. For example, it is repainted every year, and a full-time crew of gardeners maintain the site. As a result, it has stood the test of time very well, and no plans are in the works to replace it. Renovations were made in 1999 and again in 2004 that initially added additional field level seats, particularly behind home plate where previously the only person seen there was legendary scout Mike Brito, in his trademark Panama hat and cuban cigar tracking pitch speeds with a radar gun. After some criticism of the sightlines with these new seats, they were replaced with box seats. Built on top of the historic Los Angeles neighborhood of Chavez Ravine in Solano Canyon, the stadium overlooks downtown Los Angeles and provides views of the city to the south, the green tree-lined hills of Elysian Park to the north and east, and the San Gabriel Mountains beyond the outfield pavilions. Due to dry summers in Southern California, rainouts at Dodger Stadium are rare. Prior to 1976, the Dodgers were rained out only once, against the St. Louis Cardinals, on April 21, 1967, ending a streak of 737 consecutive games without a postponement. On April 12, 1976, the second home rainout ended a streak of 724 straight games. April 19–21, 1988 saw three consecutive rainouts, the only time consecutive games have been rained out at Dodger Stadium. No rainouts occurred between April 21, 1988 and April 11, 1999 – a major league record of 856 straight home games without a rainout. That record has since been broken, with no rainouts since April 17, 2000, 1,471 consecutive games through October 3rd, 2019 Dodger Stadium has never increased its seating capacity, and was the only current MLB park (through 2005) that had never done so, due to a conditional- use permit that limits Dodger Stadium's seating capacity to 56,000. Whenever higher revenue lower seats were added some in the upper deck or pavilion were removed to keep the number the same. Through the sale of standing room only tickets, the Dodgers' 2009 home opener drew 57,099 fans, the largest crowd in stadium history. Following a number of incidents in the early 1970s in which fans showered Cincinnati Reds left fielder Pete Rose with beer, bottles, cups, and trash, the sale of beer was discontinued in both pavilions. Beer sales were reinstated in the right field pavilion in 2008, when that section was converted into the All You Can Eat Pavilion. Fans seated in that section can eat unlimited hot dogs and peanuts and also have access to free soft drinks. There is a charge for beer. With the retirement of the original Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium in 2008, the park reigned as the largest capacity ballpark in the Majors. As of 2010, there are a total of 2,098 club seats and 68 luxury suites. Both of these amounts will increase once the renovations are complete, with the necessary offset to comply with its conditional-use permit. Due to renovations made in the 2012–2013 offseason, the current maximum capacity of Dodger Stadium is less than 56,000, although the team's president, Stan Kasten, refuses to provide an exact number. A 53,393 attendance is considered a sellout. The high water mark since the renovations is 56,800 in Games 3,4 and 5 of the 2008 NLDS. The team's 2013 media guide and website still report the capacity as 56,000. The record attendance for the Dodgers was in the 2007 season, with 3.86 million in total attendance. For various reasons, Dodger Stadium has long enjoyed a reputation as a pitchers' park. At first, the relatively deep outfield dimensions were a factor, with the power alleys being about . Home plate was moved toward center field in 1969, but that move also expanded foul ground by , a tradeoff which helped to offset the increased likelihood of home runs caused by the decreased field dimensions. Also, during evening games, as the sun sets, the surrounding air cools quickly due to the ocean climate, becoming more dense. As a result, deep fly balls that might otherwise be home runs during the day instead often remain in play becoming outs. The park has been home to 12 no-hitters, while players have hit for the cycle just twice in Dodger Stadium. Recently, Dodger Stadium has been more neutral with respect to home runs. The stadium does depress doubles and triples quite a bit, due to its uniform outfield walls and relatively small "corners" near the foul poles. However, the extremely short outfield walls near the foul poles also make some balls that would bounce off the wall in other parks go for home runs. With some expansion of the box seat area and the removal of significant foul territory, the ballpark has become more neutral, favoring neither pitchers nor hitters. Baseball-Reference's Park Factor measurement of 102 for the 2006 and 2007 seasons is evidence of this. Although the distance to center field has been marked at 395 feet since 1973, it is still actually to center, as has been the case since 1969. The two signs erected in 1973 are to the left and right of dead center. However, curvature of the fence between the posted distance signs is not exactly radial from home plate, thus the distance from home plate directly to center field is most likely farther than the posted . As of 2012, distance to center field is indicated , and is located virtually exactly at the center field point. With the opening of Citi Field and the demolition of Shea Stadium in 2009, Dodger Stadium became the only stadium with symmetrical outfield dimensions remaining in the National League and only one of four total in Major League Baseball. The other three symmetrical fields are Kansas City's Kauffman Stadium, Toronto's Rogers Centre, and Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, all in the American League. Pitchers such as Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Don Sutton, Fernando Valenzuela, and Orel Hershiser became superstars after arriving in Los Angeles. The pitcher's edge is also evident in the fact that 12 no-hitters have been thrown in the stadium, including two perfect games (by the Dodgers' Sandy Koufax in 1965, and by Dennis Martínez of the former Montreal Expos in ). Bo Belinsky threw the first ever no-hitter in Dodger Stadium on May 5, 1962 while pitching for the Los Angeles Angels (that club referred to the park as "Chavez Ravine".) The park's significant advantage was eroded somewhat since 1969, in general because MLB rules were changed after the "Year of the Pitcher" to lower the maximum height of the pitcher's mound, and more specifically because the Dodgers moved the diamond about 10 feet (3 m) towards center field. This also gave the fielders more room to catch foul balls, so there was some tradeoff. Following the 2004 season, the stadium underwent a renovation which significantly reduced the amount of foul territory. Seats were added which were closer to home plate than the pitcher's mound, the dugouts were moved closer to the field, and previously open space down the foul lines was filled with new seats. The Dodgers won the 1963 World Series over the New York Yankees, sweeping the Yankees by winning game 4 by a score of 2-1. Through the 2018 season, this remains the only time the Dodgers ever clinched a World Series at home. Until 1988, Dodger Stadium had never hosted a seventh game of a postseason series. The Dodgers won Game 7 of the 1988 National League Championship Series over the New York Mets, 6-0. Five home runs have been hit completely out of Dodger Stadium. Outfielder Willie Stargell of the Pittsburgh Pirates hit two of those home runs. Stargell hit a home run off the Dodgers' Alan Foster on August 6, 1969 that completely cleared the right field pavilion and struck a bus parked outside the stadium. Stargell then hit a home run off Andy Messersmith on May 8, 1973 that landed on the right field pavilion roof and bounced into the parking lot. Dodger catcher Mike Piazza hit a home run off Frank Castillo of the Colorado Rockies on September 21, 1997 that landed on the left field pavilion roof and skipped under the left field video board and into the parking lot. On May 22, 1999, St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Mark McGwire cleared the left field pavilion with a home run off the Dodgers' Jamie Arnold and most recently, on May 12, 2015, Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins hit a home run over the left- field roof off Mike Bolsinger. Dodger Stadium has also staged other sporting events such as boxing, a basketball game featuring the Harlem Globetrotters and a ski-jumping exhibition, as well as the baseball competition of the 1984 Summer Olympic Games and is currently designated to host softball and baseball for the 2028 Olympic Games with Angel Stadium. In 1992, baseball games from April 30 to May 3 were postponed due to the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Three consecutive days of double headers were held later in the season. Dodger Stadium hosted a soccer doubleheader on August 3, 2013, part of the 2013 International Champions Cup, featuring Real Madrid of Spain, Everton of England, Juventus of Italy and Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer in a tournament semifinal. The field dimensions were from the third base side to right field; temporary grass was covered on the pitcher's mound and the infield. The tournament was a semifinal and Real Madrid defeated Everton 2-1 and Los Angeles Galaxy defeated Juventus 3-1. Dodger Stadium hosted its first ever National Hockey League game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks on January 25, 2014 as a part of the 2014 NHL Stadium Series. The Ducks won the game 3-0 in front of 54,099 fans. In addition rock band KISS played songs before and during intermission of the event. On March 21, 1963, Ultiminio "Sugar" Ramos won the WBC and WBA featherweight titles from Davey Moore in ten rounds. Moore died days after this fight. Also on the card, Roberto Cruz KO'd Raymundo "Battling" Torres in one round to win the WBA Junior Welterweight title. On November 15, 2015, Dodger Stadium hosted the third and final game of the Cricket All-Stars Series 2015, featuring many retired cricket players from around the world and led by great cricket legends Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne. Warne's Warriors defeated Sachin's Blasters by 4 wickets to win the series 3-0. The ends were named after Sandy Koufax and Don Sutton, two Hall of Fame pitchers for LA Dodgers. The stadium hosted the opening ceremony of the 1991 U.S. Olympic Festival., During the 2028 Summer Olympics, the stadium will host Baseball and Softball. Many of the world's top rock, pop and electronic bands have performed at Dodger Stadium, including acts such as The Cure, KISS, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Bee Gees, Elton John (2 Nights), Simon and Garfunkel, David Bowie, Madonna, Beyonce, Genesis, Eric Clapton, Depeche Mode (2 Nights), U2 (2 Nights), Dave Matthews Band, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Dead & Company, and Michael Jackson in 1984 with The Jacksons (6 concerts, 360,000 people). In July 2017, it hosted the Classic West concert, the first night had featured The Eagles (in their full first concert after the January 18th, 2016 death of founding member Glenn Frey) his place has been taken by his son Deacon Frey and American country artist Vince Gill, with supporting acts The Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan. The second night featured Earth, Wind & Fire, Journey, and Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood Mac's music video for the song "Tusk" was recorded and filmed at the empty stadium in 1979. The ending of the 1985 film Better Off Dead takes place at Dodger Stadium., The baseball scenes from were filmed at Dodger Stadium, although the team represented in the film was the California Angels. (The Angels played their first few seasons at "Chavez Ravine" while the ballpark now known as Angel Stadium was being built.), This was the starting point of a popular reality show, The Amazing Race in its fourth season., The parking lot of Dodger Stadium was used in the 2001 movie The Fast and the Furious, in which Brian O'Conner (played by actor Paul Walker) drifts his 1995 Mitsubishi Eclipse around the parking lot., Dodger Stadium was used as the model for Metropolis's baseball stadium in the 2006 film Superman Returns. The end of the airplane rescue scene was filmed at Dodger Stadium, and a CGI backdrop for the city was added behind the outfield., The stadium also appeared in the 2003 film The Core during the scene where the space shuttle takes an unexpected crash landing., In a scene from the 2007 film Transformers, an empty Dodger Stadium is depicted being hit by the Autobot Jazz's protoform, which crashes through the upper deck and lands in the outfield. Though empty, the stadium's lights are on., In the closing scene of the 2012 film Rock of Ages, Dodger Stadium is seen hosting a concert for the rock band Arsenal, fronted by Stacee Jaxx (played by Tom Cruise). Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at Dodger Stadium on September 16, 1987., Greg Laurie held his Harvest Crusades at Dodger Stadium in 2011 and 2012. Dodger Stadium can be reached by the Los Angeles Metro Transit Authority which operates two Dodger Stadium Express bus routes that transport fans to and from the Stadium during home games. The service is operated using funding from the Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee and Metro ExpressLanes. Buses on the Union Station route run non-stop between Union Station and Dodger Stadium. Service to the stadium begins operating 90 minutes before the start of the game, with departures every 10 minutes until the 3rd Inning. Buses stop at Center Field and Top Deck. Return service continues until 45 minutes after the final out or 20 minutes after post-game events, with buses departing as they fill. Buses on the South Bay route operate between the South Bay and Dodger Stadium along the Harbor Transitway, making stops at Slauson, Manchester, Harbor Freeway, Rosecrans, and Harbor Gateway Transit Center. Service to the stadium begins operating 2 hours before the start of the game, with departures every 20 minutes until the start of the game. Buses stop at Right Field. Return service begins at the end of the 7th inning and continues until 45 minutes after the final out or 20 minutes after post-game events, with buses departing as they fill. List of Major League Baseball stadiums Clem's Baseball: Source for dimensions, Ballpark Digest Visit to Dodger Stadium, Dodger Stadium history and facts, Official Website of former Dodger owner Walter O'Malley, Los Angeles Times: Stadium Makeover is Unveiled Stadium site on dodgers.com, Dodger Stadium Seating Chart, Los Angeles Sports Council, Dodger Stadium Review and Photos The Battle of Chavez Ravine refers to controversy surrounding government acquisition of land largely owned by Mexican-Americans in Los Angeles' Chavez Ravine. The efforts to repossess the land, which lasted approximately ten years (1951–1961), eventually resulted in the removal of the entire population of Chavez Ravine from land on which Dodger Stadium was constructed. The majority of the Chavez Ravine land was initially acquired by the City of Los Angeles to make way for proposed public housing. The public housing plan that had been advanced as politically "progressive" and had resulted in the removal of the Mexican-American landowners of Chavez Ravine was abandoned after the passage of a public referendum prohibiting the original housing proposal and the election of a conservative Los Angeles mayor opposed to public housing. By 1958, new plans were advanced to construct Dodger Stadium on the site, and in 1959, the Los Angeles County Sherriff's Department forcefully removed the last residents occupying Chavez Ravine. In the first half of the twentieth century, Chavez Ravine was a largely independent, semi-rural Mexican-American community in the suburbs of Los Angeles. The area was split up into three smaller neighborhoods: La Loma, Palo Verde, and Bishop. By 1951, right before the public housing proposal, Chavez Ravine was home to over 1,800 families. The residents of Chavez Ravine were generally poor and relied on farming for income. Many of the families living in Chavez Ravine by the 1950s moved there because of racial housing discrimination within the city of Los Angeles. Due to its reputation as a poor, rural area, the neighborhood of Chavez Ravine was viewed as an example of urban decay. Areas seen as suffering from urban blight were targeted by progressive legislation like the National Housing Act of 1949. Even though these areas were often depicted as poor, for Mexican-Americans during this time, the residents were doing well, with a good number of residents owning their own homes. By 1951, Chavez Ravine was slated for redevelopment under the National Housing Act of 1949, which provided federal money to build public housing. The Los Angeles Housing Authority began acquiring the land of Chavez Ravine in 1951 through both voluntary purchases and the exercise of eminent domain. In furtherance of the public housing proposal, the city acquired almost all of the land of Chavez Ravine and razed nearly the entire community over the period from 1952 to 1953. The planned public housing development was entitled "Elysian Park Heights" and was designed by Austrian architect Richard J. Neutra. Planned on 54 acres, the development included 24 thirteen-story towers and 163 low-rises providing nearly 3,600 new low-cost apartments. Social critics of the era have argued that the urban renewal efforts of the 1950s under the National Housing Act often included significant and even dominant elements of racial and ethnic oppression, sometimes reflected in the dispossession of minority landowners in "renewed" areas. Residents were encouraged to sell property through a tiered buy-out scheme that offered increasingly lower amounts to sellers who stalled, exploiting their fear of losing out on the maximum payment. In reality, the prices paid were well below market value. Those who held out were ultimately forcefully removed in 1959 by Los Angeles County Sheriffs. Walter O’Malley, who gained full control over the Dodgers organization in 1950, orchestrated the deal that eventually led to the construction of Dodger Stadium in Chavez Ravine between 1959 and 1962. O’Malley instantly had much success with multiple World Series appearances and one World Series championship during the 1950s, while also breaking the color barrier with Jackie Robinson in April 1947. However, Ebbets Field, the home of Brooklyn Dodgers, was quickly becoming outdated. At first, Walter O’Malley desired a new state-of-the-art stadium in Brooklyn, but due to political strife with local officials, O’Malley's plans were rejected. O’Malley ultimately turned his sights west after it was clear that he would not obtain what he wanted in New York. He decided to move the Dodgers to Los Angeles in 1958, almost a decade from the start of the displacement of the Chavez Ravine residents. Not only was O’Malley successful in moving the Dodgers to Los Angeles, but he was also instrumental in moving the New York Giants to San Francisco — decisions that proved to be beneficial for both franchises. In 1953 Norris Poulson, a political conservative, was elected mayor of Los Angeles on a platform that included opposition to construction of all new public housing projects. In addition, a public referendum was then passed barring all public housing in Los Angeles. Poulson's election and the referendum resulted in the termination of the "Elysian Park Heights" development. The City also agreed with the federal government to abandon the public housing project with the stipulation that the by then nearly-vacant land be used for a "public purpose." For years the nearly vacant Chavez Ravine land lay unused but for a tiny number of remaining original residents, and the land was offered by the city to various potential developers without success. Eventually, in the late 1950s, the city proposed to Brooklyn Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley that an entirely separate plot of land (a plot not part of or close to Chavez Ravine) be used as the site of a baseball stadium for the Dodgers team, which was exploring a move from Brooklyn's Ebbets Field to Los Angeles. O'Malley declined the original offer, but expressed an interest in Chavez Ravine, which he had seen from the air. As of September 1957, prior to O’Malley's decision to move west, the territory of Chavez Ravine was still reserved for “public purposes.” On these grounds, the proposal that Chavez Ravine be used for a baseball stadium received considerable backlash. Many did not believe that a professional baseball team fell under the domain of serving public interests. Some Los Angeles officials argued that the area should be used to establish a zoo, citing that a zoo would provide “public recreation” to the city. In 1957, the Los Angeles City Council approved the transfer of the land to the Dodgers. This process was halted by a successful petition that established the need for a public vote to decide whether or not the Dodgers could obtain the land. The referendum to stop the land transfer, in June 1958, failed by 25,000 out of 677,000 votes. The city ended up conveying the Chavez Ravine site to the Dodgers for small consideration. Dodger Stadium was then constructed with private funds and remains privately owned. There was significant resistance from residents to the evictions. After nearly 10 years, by 1959 Manuel and Abrana Arechiga (often cited as "Avrana"), with their daughter Aurora Vargas (a war widow, later surnamed Fernandez), were among the last of the tiny number of residents to hold out against the government land acquisition effort undertaken for the original public housing project. Forced removal by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) on May 9, 1959, resulted in Vargas' arrest. Vargas was fined and briefly sent to jail for her resistance. Manuel Arechiga was the final holdout, living in a tent on the site of the demolished home for months. Public sympathy for the Arechigas quickly waned, however, when subsequent news reports revealed that the Arechigas owned twelve rental houses elsewhere in Los Angeles. This was, however, a false representation of the family as it was cousins, relatives, and children who owned these houses. Arechiga eventually relented and accepted the city's offer of $10,500. "Dodgers Still Bank on Home in Los Angeles Despite Snags." New York Times, December 7, 1957., Harrison, Scott. "1951 Chavez Ravine Protest." Los Angeles Times, June 1, 2015, Photography Section., Hines, Thomas S. "Field of Dreams History: The Battle of Chavez Ravine." Los Angeles Times, April 20, 1997, Opinion section, p. 1., McGarry, T.W. "Postscript: 'My Grandchildren Go to the Games . . . The Dodgers are my Favorite Team. But I Just Can't Go in That Stadium.'" Los Angeles Times, July 12, 1988, Metro section, p. 3., McMillan, Penelope. "From the Archives: Walter O'Malley, Owner of Dodgers, Dies at 75." Los Angeles Times, August 10, 1979, Obituaries Section., Parlow, Matthew J. "SYMPOSIUM ARTICLE: UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES: EMINENT DOMAIN AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING," 46 Santa Clara Law Review 841, 2006., Schumach, Murray. "Deadline for Dodgers Decision Likely to Be Moved Past Today." New York Times, September 30, 1957., Becerra, Hector. “Decades Later, Bitter Memories of Chavez Ravine.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2012, articles.latimes.com/2012/apr/05/local/la-me-adv-chavez-ravine-20120405., Lopez, Steve. “After 31 Years in Echo Park, Victims of Displacement by Gentrification.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2015, www.latimes.com/local/California/la-me-0315-lopez-echo-20150313-column.html. University of California "calisphere" Photos and Documents (keyword: Arechiga), Chavez Ravine: A Los Angeles story PBS documentary, Animation "The Chavez Ravine Story, or What Price Baseball." Carlos Saldaña, December 2002 This is a list of most current U.S. baseball stadiums. They are ordered by seating capacity, the maximum number of spectators the stadium can accommodate. List of Major League Baseball stadiums, List of baseball parks by capacity, List of NCAA Division I baseball venues, List of American football stadiums by capacity, List of soccer stadiums in the United States, List of U.S. stadiums by capacity

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The American Revolution was a colonial revolt which occurred between 1765 and 1783. The American Patriots in the Thirteen Colonies defeated the British in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) with the assistance of France, winning independence from Great Britain and establishing the United States of America. The American colonials proclaimed "no taxation without representation" starting with the Stamp Act Congress in 1765. They rejected the authority of the British Parliament to tax them because they had no representatives in that governing body. Protests steadily escalated to the Boston Massacre in 1770 and the burning of the Gaspee in Rhode Island in 1772, followed by the Boston Tea Party in December 1773. The British responded by closing Boston Harbor and enacting a series of punitive laws which effectively rescinded Massachusetts Bay Colony's rights of self-government. The other colonies rallied behind Massachusetts, and a group of American Patriot leaders set up their own government in late 1774 at the Continental Congress to coordinate their resistance of Britain; other colonists retained their allegiance to the Crown and were known as Loyalists or Tories. Tensions erupted into battle between Patriot militia and British regulars when King George's forces attempted to destroy Colonial military supplies at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. The conflict then developed into war, during which the Patriots (and later their French allies) fought the British and Loyalists in the Revolutionary War. Each of the thirteen colonies formed a Provincial Congress which assumed power from the former colonial governments, suppressed Loyalism, and recruited a Continental Army led by General George Washington. The Continental Congress declared King George a tyrant who trampled the colonists' rights as Englishmen, and they declared the colonies free and independent states on July 2, 1776. The Patriot leadership professed the political philosophies of liberalism and republicanism to reject monarchy and aristocracy, and they proclaimed that all men are created equal. The Continental Army forced the British military out of Boston in March 1776, but the British captured New York City and its strategic harbor that summer, which they held for the duration of the war. The Royal Navy blockaded ports and captured other cities for brief periods, but they failed to destroy Washington's forces. The Patriots attempted to invade Canada during the winter of 1775–76 without success, but they captured a British army at the Battle of Saratoga in October 1777. France then entered the war as an ally of the United States with a large army and navy, and Britain refocused its war to make France the main enemy. Britain also attempted to hold the Southern states with the anticipated aid of Loyalists, and the war moved south. Charles Cornwallis captured an army at Charleston, South Carolina in early 1780, but he failed to enlist enough volunteers from Loyalist civilians to take effective control of the territory. Finally, a combined American and French force captured a second British army at Yorktown in the fall of 1781, effectively ending the war. The Treaty of Paris was signed September 3, 1783, formally ending the conflict and confirming the new nation's complete separation from the British Empire. The United States took possession of nearly all the territory east of the Mississippi River and south of the Great Lakes, with the British retaining control of Canada and Spain taking Florida. Among the significant results of the Revolution were American independence and friendly economic trade with Britain. After years of a weak central government, the Americans adopted the United States Constitution, establishing a strong national government which included an executive, a national judiciary, and a bicameral Congress representing states in the Senate and the population in the House of Representatives. The Revolution also resulted in the migration of around 60,000 Loyalists to other British territories, particularly to British North America (Canada), although the great majority remained in the United States. As early as 1651, the English government had sought to regulate trade in the American colonies, and Parliament passed the Navigation Acts on October 9 to provide the plantation colonies of the south with a profitable export market. The Acts prohibited British producers from growing tobacco and also encouraged shipbuilding, particularly in the New England colonies. Some argue that the economic impact was minimal on the colonists, but the political friction was more serious which the acts triggered, as the merchants most directly affected were most politically active. King Philip's War ended in 1678 which the New England colonies fought without any military assistance from England, and this contributed to the development of a unique identity separate from that of the British people. But King Charles II determined to bring the New England colonies under a more centralized administration in the 1680s in order to regulate trade more effectively. The New England colonists fiercely opposed his efforts, so the Crown nullified their colonial charters. Charles' successor James II finalized these efforts in 1686, establishing the Dominion of New England. Dominion rule triggered bitter resentment throughout New England; the enforcement of the unpopular Navigation Acts and the curtailing of local democracy angered the colonists. New Englanders were encouraged, however, by a change of government in England which saw James II effectively abdicate, and a populist uprising overthrew Dominion rule on April 18, 1689. Colonial governments reasserted their control in the wake of the revolt, and successive governments made no more attempts to restore the Dominion. Subsequent English governments continued in their efforts to tax certain goods, passing acts regulating the trade of wool, hats, and molasses. The Molasses Act of 1733 was particularly egregious to the colonists, as a significant part of colonial trade relied on molasses. The taxes severely damaged the New England economy and resulted in a surge of smuggling, bribery, and intimidation of customs officials. Colonial wars fought in America were also a source of considerable tension. The British captured the fortress of Louisbourg during King George's War but then ceded it back to France in 1748. New England colonists resented their losses of lives, as well as the effort and expenditure involved in subduing the fortress, only to have it returned to their erstwhile enemy. Some writers begin their histories of the American Revolution with the British coalition victory in the Seven Years' War in 1763, viewing the French and Indian War as though it were the American theater of the Seven Years' War. Lawrence Henry Gipson writes: The Royal Proclamation of 1763 redrew boundaries of the lands west of Quebec and west of a line running along the crest of the Allegheny Mountains, making them Indian territory and barred to colonial settlement for two years. The colonists protested, and the boundary line was adjusted in a series of treaties with Indian tribes. In 1768, the Iroquois agreed to the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, and the Cherokee agreed to the Treaty of Hard Labour followed in 1770 by the Treaty of Lochaber. The treaties opened most of Kentucky and West Virginia to colonial settlement. The new map was drawn up at the Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1768 which moved the line much farther to the west, from the green line to the red line on the map at right. Prime Minister George Grenville asserted in 1762 that the whole revenue of the custom houses in America amounted to one or two thousand pounds a year, and that the English exchequer was paying between seven and eight thousand pounds a year to collect . Adam Smith wrote in The Wealth of Nations that Parliament "has never hitherto demanded of [the American colonies] anything which even approached to a just proportion to what was paid by their fellow subjects at home." As early as 1651, the English government had sought to regulate trade in the American colonies. On October 9, 1651, they passed the Navigation Acts to pursue a mercantilist policy intended to ensure that trade enriched Great Britain but prohibited trade with any other nations. Parliament also passed the Sugar Act, decreasing the existing customs duties on sugar and molasses but providing stricter measures of enforcement and collection. That same year, Grenville proposed direct taxes on the colonies to raise revenue, but he delayed action to see whether the colonies would propose some way to raise the revenue themselves. Parliament finally passed the Stamp Act in March 1765, which imposed direct taxes on the colonies for the first time. All official documents, newspapers, almanacs, and pamphlets were required to have the stamps—even decks of playing cards. The colonists did not object that the taxes were high; they were actually low. They objected to the fact that they had no representation in the Parliament, and thus no voice concerning legislation that affected them. Benjamin Franklin testified in Parliament in 1766 that Americans already contributed heavily to the defense of the Empire. He said that local governments had raised, outfitted, and paid 25,000 soldiers to fight France—as many as Britain itself sent—and spent many millions from American treasuries doing so in the French and Indian War alone. London had to deal with 1,500 politically well-connected British Army soldiers. The decision was to keep them on active duty with full pay, but they had to be stationed somewhere. Stationing a standing army in Great Britain during peacetime was politically unacceptable, so the decision was made to station them in America and have the Americans pay them. The soldiers had no military mission; they were not there to defend the colonies because there was no threat to the colonies. The Sons of Liberty formed that same year in 1765, and they used public demonstrations, boycott, and threats of violence to ensure that the British tax laws were unenforceable. In Boston, the Sons of Liberty burned the records of the vice admiralty court and looted the home of chief justice Thomas Hutchinson. Several legislatures called for united action, and nine colonies sent delegates to the Stamp Act Congress in New York City in October. Moderates led by John Dickinson drew up a "Declaration of Rights and Grievances" stating that taxes passed without representation violated their rights as Englishmen, and colonists emphasized their determination by boycotting imports of British merchandise. The Parliament at Westminster saw itself as the supreme lawmaking authority throughout all British possessions and thus entitled to levy any tax without colonial approval. They argued that the colonies were legally British corporations that were completely subordinate to the British parliament, and they pointed to numerous instances where Parliament had made laws in the past that were binding on the colonies. Parliament insisted that the colonies effectively enjoyed a "virtual representation" as most British people did, as only a small minority of the British population elected representatives to Parliament, but Americans such as James Otis maintained that they were not in fact virtually represented at all. The Rockingham government came to power in July 1765, and Parliament debated whether to repeal the stamp tax or to send an army to enforce it. Benjamin Franklin made the case for repeal, explaining that the colonies had spent heavily in manpower, money, and blood in defense of the empire in a series of wars against the French and Indians, and that further taxes to pay for those wars were unjust and might bring about a rebellion. Parliament agreed and repealed the tax on February 21, 1766, but they insisted in the Declaratory Act of March 1766 that they retained full power to make laws for the colonies "in all cases whatsoever". The repeal nonetheless caused widespread celebrations in the colonies. In 1767, the Parliament passed the Townshend Acts which placed duties on a number of staple goods, including paper, glass, and tea, and established a Board of Customs in Boston to more rigorously execute trade regulations. The new taxes were enacted on the belief that Americans only objected to internal taxes and not to external taxes such as custom duties. The Americans, however, argued against the constitutionality of the act because its purpose was to raise revenue and not regulate trade. Colonists responded by organizing new boycotts of British goods. These boycotts were less effective, however, as the Townshend goods were widely used. In February 1768, the Assembly of Massachusetts Bay issued a circular letter to the other colonies urging them to coordinate resistance. The governor dissolved the assembly when it refused to rescind the letter. Meanwhile, a riot broke out in Boston in June 1768 over the seizure of the sloop Liberty, owned by John Hancock, for alleged smuggling. Customs officials were forced to flee, prompting the British to deploy troops to Boston. A Boston town meeting declared that no obedience was due to parliamentary laws and called for the convening of a convention. A convention assembled but only issued a mild protest before dissolving itself. In January 1769, Parliament responded to the unrest by reactivating the Treason Act 1543 which called for subjects outside the realm to face trials for treason in England. The governor of Massachusetts was instructed to collect evidence of said treason, and the threat caused widespread outrage, though it was not carried out. On March 5, 1770, a large crowd gathered around a group of British soldiers. The crowd grew threatening, throwing snowballs, rocks, and debris at them. One soldier was clubbed and fell. There was no order to fire, but the soldiers fired into the crowd anyway. They hit 11 people; three civilians died at the scene of the shooting, and two died after the incident. The event quickly came to be called the Boston Massacre. The soldiers were tried and acquitted (defended by John Adams), but the widespread descriptions soon began to turn colonial sentiment against the British. This, in turn, began a downward spiral in the relationship between Britain and the Province of Massachusetts. A new ministry under Lord North came to power in 1770, and Parliament withdrew all taxes except the tax on tea, giving up its efforts to raise revenue while maintaining the right to tax. This temporarily resolved the crisis, and the boycott of British goods largely ceased, with only the more radical patriots such as Samuel Adams continuing to agitate. In June 1772, American patriots, including John Brown, burned a British warship that had been vigorously enforcing unpopular trade regulations in what became known as the Gaspee Affair. The affair was investigated for possible treason, but no action was taken. In 1772, it became known that the Crown intended to pay fixed salaries to the governors and judges in Massachusetts, which had been paid by local authorities. This would reduce the influence of colonial representatives over their government. Samuel Adams in Boston set about creating new Committees of Correspondence, which linked Patriots in all 13 colonies and eventually provided the framework for a rebel government. Virginia, the largest colony, set up its Committee of Correspondence in early 1773, on which Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson served. A total of about 7,000 to 8,000 Patriots served on "Committees of Correspondence" at the colonial and local levels, comprising most of the leadership in their communities. Loyalists were excluded. The committees became the leaders of the American resistance to British actions, and largely determined the war effort at the state and local level. When the First Continental Congress decided to boycott British products, the colonial and local Committees took charge, examining merchant records and publishing the names of merchants who attempted to defy the boycott by importing British goods. In 1773, private letters were published in which Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson claimed that the colonists could not enjoy all English liberties, and Lieutenant Governor Andrew Oliver called for the direct payment of colonial officials. The letters' contents were used as evidence of a systematic plot against American rights, and discredited Hutchinson in the eyes of the people; the Assembly petitioned for his recall. Benjamin Franklin, postmaster general for the colonies, acknowledged that he leaked the letters, which led to him being berated by British officials and fired from his job. Meanwhile, Parliament passed the Tea Act to lower the price of taxed tea exported to the colonies in order to help the East India Company undersell smuggled Dutch tea. Special consignees were appointed to sell the tea in order to bypass colonial merchants. The act was opposed by those who resisted the taxes and also by smugglers who stood to lose business. In most instances, the consignees were forced to resign and the tea was turned back, but Massachusetts governor Hutchinson refused to allow Boston merchants to give in to pressure. A town meeting in Boston determined that the tea would not be landed, and ignored a demand from the governor to disperse. On December 16, 1773, a group of men, led by Samuel Adams and dressed to evoke the appearance of American Indians, boarded the ships of the British East India Company and dumped £10,000 worth of tea from their holds (approximately £636,000 in 2008) into Boston Harbor. Decades later, this event became known as the Boston Tea Party and remains a significant part of American patriotic lore. The British government responded by passing several Acts which came to be known as the Intolerable Acts, which further darkened colonial opinion towards the British. They consisted of four laws enacted by the British parliament. The first was the Massachusetts Government Act which altered the Massachusetts charter and restricted town meetings. The second act was the Administration of Justice Act which ordered that all British soldiers to be tried were to be arraigned in Britain, not in the colonies. The third Act was the Boston Port Act, which closed the port of Boston until the British had been compensated for the tea lost in the Boston Tea Party. The fourth Act was the Quartering Act of 1774, which allowed royal governors to house British troops in the homes of citizens without requiring permission of the owner. In response, Massachusetts patriots issued the Suffolk Resolves and formed an alternative shadow government known as the "Provincial Congress" which began training militia outside British-occupied Boston. In September 1774, the First Continental Congress convened, consisting of representatives from each of the colonies, to serve as a vehicle for deliberation and collective action. During secret debates, conservative Joseph Galloway proposed the creation of a colonial Parliament that would be able to approve or disapprove of acts of the British Parliament, but his idea was not accepted. The Congress instead endorsed the proposal of John Adams that Americans would obey Parliament voluntarily but would resist all taxes in disguise. Congress called for a boycott beginning on 1 December 1774 of all British goods; it was enforced by new committees authorized by the Congress. Massachusetts was declared in a state of rebellion in February 1775 and the British garrison received orders to disarm the rebels and arrest their leaders, leading to the Battles of Lexington and Concord on 19 April 1775. The Patriots laid siege to Boston, expelled royal officials from all the colonies, and took control through the establishment of Provincial Congresses. The Battle of Bunker Hill followed on June 17, 1775. It was a British victory—but at a great cost: about 1,000 British casualties from a garrison of about 6,000, as compared to 500 American casualties from a much larger force. The Second Continental Congress was divided on the best course of action, but eventually produced the Olive Branch Petition, in which they attempted to come to an accord with King George. The king, however, issued a Proclamation of Rebellion which stated that the states were "in rebellion" and the members of Congress were traitors. The war that arose was in some ways a classic insurgency. As Benjamin Franklin wrote to Joseph Priestley in October 1775: "Britain, at the expense of three millions, has killed 150 Yankees this campaign, which is £20,000 a head ... During the same time, 60,000 children have been born in America. From these data his mathematical head will easily calculate the time and expense necessary to kill us all.". In the winter of 1775, the Americans invaded Canada under generals Benedict Arnold and Richard Montgomery. The attack was a failure; many Americans who weren't killed were either captured or died of smallpox. In March 1776, the Continental Army forced the British to evacuate Boston, with George Washington as the commander of the new army. The revolutionaries were now in full control of all 13 colonies and were ready to declare independence. There still were many Loyalists, but they were no longer in control anywhere by July 1776, and all of the Royal officials had fled. Following the Battle of Bunker Hill in June 1775, the Patriots had control of Massachusetts outside the Boston city limits, and the Loyalists suddenly found themselves on the defensive with no protection from the British army. In all 13 colonies, Patriots had overthrown their existing governments, closing courts and driving away British officials. They had elected conventions and "legislatures" that existed outside any legal framework; new constitutions were drawn up in each state to supersede royal charters. They declared that they were states, not colonies. On January 5, 1776, New Hampshire ratified the first state constitution. In May 1776, Congress voted to suppress all forms of crown authority, to be replaced by locally created authority. Virginia, South Carolina, and New Jersey created their constitutions before July 4. Rhode Island and Connecticut simply took their existing royal charters and deleted all references to the crown. The new states were all committed to republicanism, with no inherited offices. They decided what form of government to create, and also how to select those who would craft the constitutions and how the resulting document would be ratified. On 26 May 1776, John Adams wrote James Sullivan from Philadelphia: The resulting constitutions in states such as Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, New York, and Massachusetts featured: Property qualifications for voting and even more substantial requirements for elected positions (though New York and Maryland lowered property qualifications), Bicameral legislatures, with the upper house as a check on the lower, Strong governors with veto power over the legislature and substantial appointment authority, Few or no restraints on individuals holding multiple positions in government, The continuation of state-established religion In Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New Hampshire, the resulting constitutions embodied: universal manhood suffrage, or minimal property requirements for voting or holding office (New Jersey enfranchised some property-owning widows, a step that it retracted 25 years later), strong, unicameral legislatures, relatively weak governors without veto powers, and with little appointing authority, prohibition against individuals holding multiple government posts The radical provisions of Pennsylvania's constitution lasted only 14 years. In 1790, conservatives gained power in the state legislature, called a new constitutional convention, and rewrote the constitution. The new constitution substantially reduced universal male suffrage, gave the governor veto power and patronage appointment authority, and added an upper house with substantial wealth qualifications to the unicameral legislature. Thomas Paine called it a constitution unworthy of America. In April 1776, the North Carolina Provincial Congress issued the Halifax Resolves explicitly authorizing its delegates to vote for independence. By June, nine Provincial Congresses were ready for independence; one by one, the last four fell into line: Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and New York. Richard Henry Lee was instructed by the Virginia legislature to propose independence, and he did so on June 7, 1776. On June 11, a committee was created to draft a document explaining the justifications for separation from Britain. After securing enough votes for passage, independence was voted for on July 2. The Declaration of Independence was drafted largely by Thomas Jefferson and presented by the committee; it was unanimously adopted by the entire Congress on July 4, and each of the colonies became independent and autonomous. The next step was to form a union to facilitate international relations and alliances. The Second Continental Congress approved the "Articles of Confederation" for ratification by the states on November 15, 1777; the Congress immediately began operating under the Articles' terms, providing a structure of shared sovereignty during prosecution of the war and facilitating international relations and alliances with France and Spain. The articles were ratified on March 1, 1781. At that point, the Continental Congress was dissolved and a new government of the United States in Congress Assembled took its place on the following day, with Samuel Huntington as presiding officer. According to British historian Jeremy Black, the British had significant advantages, including a highly trained army, the world's largest navy, and an efficient system of public finance that could easily fund the war. However, they seriously misunderstood the depth of support for the American Patriot position and ignored the advice of General Gage, misinterpreting the situation as merely a large-scale riot. The British government believed that they could overawe the Americans by sending a large military and naval force, forcing them to be loyal again: Washington forced the British out of Boston in the spring of 1776, and neither the British nor the Loyalists controlled any significant areas. The British, however, were massing forces at their naval base at Halifax, Nova Scotia. They returned in force in July 1776, landing in New York and defeating Washington's Continental Army in August at the Battle of Brooklyn. Following that victory, they requested a meeting with representatives from Congress to negotiate an end to hostilities. A delegation including John Adams and Benjamin Franklin met British admiral Richard Howe on Staten Island in New York Harbor on September 11 in what became known as the Staten Island Peace Conference. Howe demanded that the Americans retract the Declaration of Independence, which they refused to do, and negotiations ended. The British then seized New York City and nearly captured Washington's army. They made New York their main political and military base of operations, holding it until November 1783. The city became the destination for Loyalist refugees and a focal point of Washington's intelligence network. The British also took New Jersey, pushing the Continental Army into Pennsylvania. Washington crossed the Delaware River back into New Jersey in a surprise attack in late December 1776 and defeated the Hessian and British armies at Trenton and Princeton, thereby regaining control of most of New Jersey. The victories gave an important boost to Patriots at a time when morale was flagging, and they have become iconic events of the war. In 1777, the British sent Burgoyne's invasion force from Canada south to New York to seal off New England. Their aim was to isolate New England, which the British perceived as the primary source of agitation. Rather than move north to support Burgoyne, the British army in New York City went to Philadelphia in a major case of mis- coordination, capturing it from Washington. The invasion army under Burgoyne was much too slow and became trapped in northern New York state. It surrendered after the Battles of Saratoga in October 1777. From early October 1777 until November 15, a siege distracted British troops at Fort Mifflin, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and allowed Washington time to preserve the Continental Army by safely leading his troops to harsh winter quarters at Valley Forge. In August 1775, George III declared Americans to be traitors to the Crown if they took up arms against royal authority. There were thousands of British and Hessian soldiers in American hands following their surrender at the Battles of Saratoga in October 1777. Lord Germain took a hard line, but the British generals on American soil never held treason trials and treated captured American soldiers as prisoners of war. The dilemma was that tens of thousands of Loyalists were under American control and American retaliation would have been easy. The British built much of their strategy around using these Loyalists. The British maltreated the prisoners whom they held, resulting in more deaths to American prisoners of war than from combat operations. At the end of the war, both sides released their surviving prisoners. The capture of a British army at Saratoga encouraged the French to formally enter the war in support of Congress, and Benjamin Franklin negotiated a permanent military alliance in early 1778; France thus became the first foreign nation to officially recognize the Declaration of Independence. On February 6, 1778, the United States and France signed the Treaty of Amity and Commerce and the Treaty of Alliance. William Pitt spoke out in Parliament urging Britain to make peace in America and to unite with America against France, while British politicians who had sympathized with colonial grievances now turned against the Americans for allying with Britain's rival and enemy. The Spanish and the Dutch became allies of the French in 1779 and 1780 respectively, forcing the British to fight a global war without major allies and requiring it to slip through a combined blockade of the Atlantic. Britain began to view the American war for independence as merely one front in a wider war, and the British chose to withdraw troops from America to reinforce the sugar-producing Caribbean colonies, which were more lucrative to British investors. British commander Sir Henry Clinton evacuated Philadelphia and returned to New York City. General Washington intercepted him in the Battle of Monmouth Court House, the last major battle fought in the north. After an inconclusive engagement, the British retreated to New York City. The northern war subsequently became a stalemate, as the focus of attention shifted to the smaller southern theater. The British strategy in America now concentrated on a campaign in the southern states. With fewer regular troops at their disposal, the British commanders saw the "southern strategy" as a more viable plan, as they perceived the south as strongly Loyalist with a large population of recent immigrants and large numbers of slaves who might be captured or run away to join the British. Beginning in late December 1778, they captured Savannah and controlled the Georgia coastline. In 1780, they launched a fresh invasion and took Charleston, as well. A significant victory at the Battle of Camden meant that royal forces soon controlled most of Georgia and South Carolina. The British set up a network of forts inland, hoping that the Loyalists would rally to the flag. Not enough Loyalists turned out, however, and the British had to fight their way north into North Carolina and Virginia with a severely weakened army. Behind them, much of the territory that they had already captured dissolved into a chaotic guerrilla war, fought predominantly between bands of Loyalists and American militia, which negated many of the gains that the British had previously made. The British army under Cornwallis marched to Yorktown, Virginia, where they expected to be rescued by a British fleet. The fleet did arrive, but so did a larger French fleet. The French were victorious in the Battle of the Chesapeake, and the British fleet returned to New York for reinforcements, leaving Cornwallis trapped. In October 1781, the British surrendered their second invading army of the war, under a siege by the combined French and Continental armies commanded by Washington. Historians continue to debate whether the odds were long or short for American victory. John E. Ferling says that the odds were so long that the American victory was "almost a miracle". On the other hand, Joseph Ellis says that the odds favored the Americans, and asks whether there ever was any realistic chance for the British to win. He argues that this opportunity came only once, in the summer of 1776, and the British failed that test. Admiral Howe and his brother General Howe "missed several opportunities to destroy the Continental Army ... Chance, luck, and even the vagaries of the weather played crucial roles." Ellis's point is that the strategic and tactical decisions of the Howes were fatally flawed because they underestimated the challenges posed by the Patriots. Ellis concludes that, once the Howe brothers failed, the opportunity "would never come again" for a British victory. Support for the conflict had never been strong in Britain, where many sympathized with the Americans, but now it reached a new low. King George personally wanted to fight on, but his supporters lost control of Parliament and they launched no further offensives in America. War erupted between America and Britain three decades later with the War of 1812, which firmly established the permanence of the United States and its complete autonomy. Washington did not know whether the British might reopen hostilities after Yorktown. They still had 26,000 troops occupying New York City, Charleston, and Savannah, together with a powerful fleet. The French army and navy departed, so the Americans were on their own in 1782–83. The treasury was empty, and the unpaid soldiers were growing restive, almost to the point of mutiny or possible coup d'état. Washington personally dispelled the unrest among officers of the Newburgh Conspiracy in 1783, and Congress subsequently created the promise of a five years bonus for all officers. During negotiations in Paris, the American delegation discovered that France supported American independence but no territorial gains, hoping to confine the new nation to the area east of the Appalachian Mountains. The Americans opened direct secret negotiations with London, cutting out the French. British Prime Minister Lord Shelburne was in full charge of the British negotiations, and he saw a chance to make the United States a valuable economic partner. The US obtained all the land east of the Mississippi River, south of Canada, and north of Florida. It gained fishing rights off Canadian coasts, and agreed to allow British merchants and Loyalists to recover their property. Prime Minister Shelburne foresaw highly profitable two-way trade between Britain and the rapidly growing United States, which did come to pass. The blockade was lifted and all British interference had been driven out, and American merchants were free to trade with any nation anywhere in the world. The British largely abandoned their American Indian allies, who were not a party to this treaty and did not recognize it until they were defeated militarily by the United States. However, the British did sell them munitions and maintain forts in American territory until the Jay Treaty of 1795. Losing the war and the Thirteen Colonies was a shock to Britain. The war revealed the limitations of Britain's fiscal-military state when they discovered that they suddenly faced powerful enemies with no allies, and they were dependent on extended and vulnerable transatlantic lines of communication. The defeat heightened dissension and escalated political antagonism to the King's ministers. Inside Parliament, the primary concern changed from fears of an over-mighty monarch to the issues of representation, parliamentary reform, and government retrenchment. Reformers sought to destroy what they saw as widespread institutional corruption, and the result was a crisis from 1776 to 1783. The peace in 1783 left France financially prostrate, while the British economy boomed thanks to the return of American business. The crisis ended after 1784 thanks to the King's shrewdness in outwitting Charles James Fox (the leader of the Fox-North Coalition), and renewed confidence in the system engendered by the leadership of Prime Minister William Pitt. Some historians suggest that loss of the American colonies enabled Britain to deal with the French Revolution with more unity and better organization than would otherwise have been the case. Britain turned towards Asia, the Pacific, and later Africa with subsequent exploration leading to the rise of the Second British Empire. Britain's war against the Americans, the French, and the Spanish cost about £100 million, and the Treasury borrowed 40-percent of the money that it needed. Heavy spending brought France to the verge of bankruptcy and revolution, while the British had relatively little difficulty financing their war, keeping their suppliers and soldiers paid, and hiring tens of thousands of German soldiers. Britain had a sophisticated financial system based on the wealth of thousands of landowners who supported the government, together with banks and financiers in London. The British tax system collected about 12 percent of the GDP in taxes during the 1770s. In sharp contrast, Congress and the American states had no end of difficulty financing the war. In 1775, there was at most 12 million dollars in gold in the colonies, not nearly enough to cover current transactions, let alone finance a major war. The British made the situation much worse by imposing a tight blockade on every American port, which cut off almost all imports and exports. One partial solution was to rely on volunteer support from militiamen and donations from patriotic citizens. Another was to delay actual payments, pay soldiers and suppliers in depreciated currency, and promise that it would be made good after the war. Indeed, the soldiers and officers were given land grants in 1783 to cover the wages that they had earned but had not been paid during the war. The national government did not have a strong leader in financial matters until 1781, when Robert Morris was named Superintendent of Finance of the United States. Morris used a French loan in 1782 to set up the private Bank of North America to finance the war. He reduced the civil list, saved money by using competitive bidding for contracts, tightened accounting procedures, and demanded the national government's full share of money and supplies from the individual states. Congress used four main methods to cover the cost of the war, which cost about 66 million dollars in specie (gold and silver). Congress made issues of paper money in 1775–1780 and in 1780–81. The first issue amounted to 242 million dollars. This paper money would supposedly be redeemed for state taxes, but the holders were eventually paid off in 1791 at the rate of one cent on the dollar. By 1780, the paper money was "not worth a Continental", as people said. The skyrocketing inflation was a hardship on the few people who had fixed incomes, but 90 percent of the people were farmers and were not directly affected by it. Debtors benefited by paying off their debts with depreciated paper. The greatest burden was borne by the soldiers of the Continental Army whose wages were usually in arrears and declined in value every month, weakening their morale and adding to the hardships of their families. Beginning in 1777, Congress repeatedly asked the states to provide money, but the states had no system of taxation and were of little help. By 1780, Congress was making requisitions for specific supplies of corn, beef, pork, and other necessities, an inefficient system which barely kept the army alive. Starting in 1776, the Congress sought to raise money by loans from wealthy individuals, promising to redeem the bonds after the war. The bonds were in fact redeemed in 1791 at face value, but the scheme raised little money because Americans had little specie, and many of the rich merchants were supporters of the Crown. The French secretly supplied the Americans with money, gunpowder, and munitions in order to weaken Great Britain; the subsidies continued when France entered the war in 1778, and the French government and Paris bankers lent large sums to the American war effort. The Americans struggled to pay off the loans; they ceased making interest payments to France in 1785 and defaulted on installments that were due in 1787. In 1790, however, they were able to resume regular payments on their debts to the French, and settled their accounts with the French government in 1795 by selling the debt to James Swan, an American banker. The war ended in 1783 and was followed by a period of prosperity. The national government was still operating under the Articles of Confederation and was able to settle the issue of the western territories, which the states ceded to Congress. American settlers moved rapidly into those areas, with Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee becoming states in the 1790s. However, the national government had no money either to pay the war debts owed to European nations and the private banks, or to pay Americans who had been given millions of dollars of promissory notes for supplies during the war. Nationalists led by Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and other veterans feared that the new nation was too fragile to withstand an international war, or even internal revolts such as the Shays' Rebellion of 1786 in Massachusetts. They convinced Congress to call the Philadelphia Convention in 1787 and named their party the Federalist party. The Convention adopted a new Constitution which provided for a much stronger federal government, including an effective executive in a check-and-balance system with the judiciary and legislature. The Constitution was ratified in 1788, after a fierce debate in the states over the nature of the proposed new government. The new government under President George Washington took office in New York in March 1789. James Madison spearheaded Congressional amendments to the Constitution as assurances to those who were cautious about federal power, guaranteeing many of the inalienable rights that formed a foundation for the revolution, and Rhode Island was the final state to ratify the Constitution in 1791. The national debt fell into three categories after the American Revolution. The first was the $12 million owed to foreigners, mostly money borrowed from France. There was general agreement to pay the foreign debts at full value. The national government owed $40 million and state governments owed $25 million to Americans who had sold food, horses, and supplies to the Patriot forces. There were also other debts which consisted of promissory notes issued during the war to soldiers, merchants, and farmers who accepted these payments on the premise that the new Constitution would create a government that would pay these debts eventually. The war expenses of the individual states added up to $114 million, compared to $37 million by the central government. In 1790, Congress combined the remaining state debts with the foreign and domestic debts into one national debt totaling $80 million at the recommendation of first Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton. Everyone received face value for wartime certificates, so that the national honor would be sustained and the national credit established. The population of the Thirteen States was not homogeneous in political views and attitudes. Loyalties and allegiances varied widely within regions and communities and even within families, and sometimes shifted during the course of the Revolution. The American Enlightenment was a critical precursor of the American Revolution. Chief among the ideas of the American Enlightenment were the concepts of Natural Law, Natural Rights, Consent of the Governed, Individualism, Property Rights, Self-Ownership, Self-Determination, liberalism, republicanism, and defense against corruption. A growing number of American colonists embraced these views and fostered an intellectual environment which led to a new sense of political and social identity. John Locke's (1632–1704) ideas on liberty influenced the political thinking behind the revolution, especially through his indirect influence on English writers such as John Trenchard, Thomas Gordon, and Benjamin Hoadly, whose political ideas in turn had a strong influence on the American Patriots. Locke is often referred to as "the philosopher of the American Revolution" due to his work in the Social Contract and Natural Rights theories that underpinned the Revolution's political ideology. Locke's Two Treatises of Government published in 1689 was especially influential. He argued that all humans were created equally free, and governments therefore needed the "consent of the governed". In late eighteenth-century America, belief was still widespread in "equality by creation" and "rights by creation". The theory of the "social contract" influenced the belief among many of the Founders that the right of the people to overthrow their leaders was one of the "natural rights" of man, should those leaders betray the historic rights of Englishmen. The Americans heavily used Montesquieu's analysis of the wisdom of the "balanced" British Constitution (mixed government) in writing the state and national constitutions. The American ideology called "republicanism" was inspired by the Whig party in Great Britain which openly criticized the corruption within the British government. Americans were increasingly embracing republican values, seeing Britain as corrupt and hostile to American interests. The colonists associated political corruption with luxury and inherited aristocracy, which they condemned. The Founding Fathers were strong advocates of republican values, particularly Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton, which required men to put civic duty ahead of their personal desires. Men had a civic duty to be prepared and willing to fight for the rights and liberties of their countrymen. John Adams wrote to Mercy Otis Warren in 1776, agreeing with some classical Greek and Roman thinkers: "Public Virtue cannot exist without private, and public Virtue is the only Foundation of Republics." He continued: "Republican motherhood" became the ideal for American women, exemplified by Abigail Adams and Mercy Otis Warren; the first duty of the republican woman was to instill republican values in her children and to avoid luxury and ostentation. Thomas Paine published his pamphlet Common Sense in January 1776, after the Revolution had started. It was widely distributed and often read aloud in taverns, contributing significantly to spreading the ideas of republicanism and liberalism together, bolstering enthusiasm for separation from Great Britain and encouraging recruitment for the Continental Army. Paine offered a solution for Americans who were alarmed by the threat of tyranny. Protestant churches that had separated from the Church of England (called "dissenters") were the "school of democracy", in the words of historian Patricia Bonomi. Before the Revolution, the Southern Colonies and three of the New England Colonies had officially established churches: Congregational in Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, and Anglican in Maryland, Virginia, North-Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations had no officially established churches. Church membership statistics from the period are unreliable and scarce, but what little data exists indicates that Anglicans were not in the majority, not even in the colonies where the Church of England was the established church, and they probably did not comprise even 30 percent of the population (with the possible exception of Virginia). President John Witherspoon of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) wrote widely circulated sermons linking the American Revolution to the teachings of the Bible. Throughout the colonies, dissenting Protestant ministers (Congregational, Baptist, and Presbyterian) preached Revolutionary themes in their sermons, while most Church of England clergymen preached loyalty to the king, the titular head of the English state church. Religious motivation for fighting tyranny transcended socioeconomic lines to encompass rich and poor, men and women, frontiersmen and townsmen, farmers and merchants. The Declaration of Independence also referred to the "Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" as justification for the Americans' separation from the British monarchy. Most eighteenth-century Americans believed that the entire universe ("nature") was God's creation and he was "Nature's God". Everything was part of the "universal order of things" which began with God and was directed by his providence. Accordingly, the signers of the Declaration professed their "firm reliance on the Protection of divine Providence", and they appealed to "the Supreme Judge for the rectitude of our intentions". George Washington was firmly convinced that he was an instrument of providence, to the benefit of the American people and of all humanity. Historian Bernard Bailyn argues that the evangelicalism of the era challenged traditional notions of natural hierarchy by preaching that the Bible teaches that all men are equal, so that the true value of a man lies in his moral behavior, not in his class. Kidd argues that religious disestablishment, belief in God as the source of human rights, and shared convictions about sin, virtue, and divine providence worked together to unite rationalists and evangelicals and thus encouraged a large proportion of Americans to fight for independence from the Empire. Bailyn, on the other hand, denies that religion played such a critical role. Alan Heimert argues that New Light anti- authoritarianism was essential to furthering democracy in colonial American society, and set the stage for a confrontation with British monarchical and aristocratic rule. John Adams concluded in 1818: In the mid-20th century, historian Leonard Woods Labaree identified eight characteristics of the Loyalists that made them essentially conservative, opposite to the characteristics of the Patriots. Loyalists tended to feel that resistance to the Crown was morally wrong, while the Patriots thought that morality was on their side. Loyalists were alienated when the Patriots resorted to violence, such as burning houses and tarring and feathering. Loyalists wanted to take a centrist position and resisted the Patriots' demand to declare their opposition to the Crown. Many Loyalists had maintained strong and long-standing relations with Britain, especially merchants in port cities such as New York and Boston. Many Loyalists felt that independence was bound to come eventually, but they were fearful that revolution might lead to anarchy, tyranny, or mob rule. In contrast, the prevailing attitude among Patriots was a desire to seize the initiative. Labaree also wrote that Loyalists were pessimists who lacked the confidence in the future displayed by the Patriots. Historians in the early 20th century such as J. Franklin Jameson examined the class composition of the Patriot cause, looking for evidence of a class war inside the revolution. More recent historians have largely abandoned that interpretation, emphasizing instead the high level of ideological unity. Both Loyalists and Patriots were a "mixed lot", but ideological demands always came first. The Patriots viewed independence as a means to gain freedom from British oppression and taxation and to reassert their basic rights. Most yeomen farmers, craftsmen, and small merchants joined the Patriot cause to demand more political equality. They were especially successful in Pennsylvania but less so in New England, where John Adams attacked Thomas Paine's Common Sense for the "absurd democratical notions" that it proposed. The war became a personal issue for the king, fueled by his growing belief that British leniency would be taken as weakness by the Americans. He also sincerely believed that he was defending Britain's constitution against usurpers, rather than opposing patriots fighting for their natural rights. Those who fought for independence were called "Patriots", "Whigs", "Congress- men", or "Americans" during and after the war. They included a full range of social and economic classes but were unanimous regarding the need to defend the rights of Americans and uphold the principles of republicanism in terms of rejecting monarchy and aristocracy, while emphasizing civic virtue on the part of the citizens. Newspapers were strongholds of patriotism (although there were a few Loyalist papers) and printed many pamphlets, announcements, patriotic letters, and pronouncements. According to historian Robert Calhoon, 40– to 45-percent of the white population in the Thirteen Colonies supported the Patriots' cause, 15– to 20-percent supported the Loyalists, and the remainder were neutral or kept a low profile. Mark Lender analyzes why ordinary people became insurgents against the British, even if they were unfamiliar with the ideological reasons behind the war. He concludes that such people held a sense of rights which the British were violating, rights that stressed local autonomy, fair dealing, and government by consent. They were highly sensitive to the issue of tyranny, which they saw manifested in the British response to the Boston Tea Party. The arrival in Boston of the British Army heightened their sense of violated rights, leading to rage and demands for revenge. They had faith that God was on their side. The signers of the Declaration of Independence were mostly well-educated, of British stock, and of the Protestant faith. The consensus of scholars is that about 15– to 20-percent of the white population remained loyal to the British Crown. Those who actively supported the king were known at the time as "Loyalists", "Tories", or "King's men". The Loyalists never controlled territory unless the British Army occupied it. They were typically older, less willing to break with old loyalties, and often connected to the Church of England; they included many established merchants with strong business connections throughout the Empire, as well as royal officials such as Thomas Hutchinson of Boston. There were 500 to 1,000 black loyalists, slaves who escaped to British lines and joined the British army. Most died of disease, but Britain took the survivors to Canada as free men. The revolution could divide families, such as William Franklin, son of Benjamin Franklin and royal governor of the Province of New Jersey who remained loyal to the Crown throughout the war. He and his father never spoke again. Recent immigrants who had not been fully Americanized were also inclined to support the King, such as Flora MacDonald who was a Scottish settler in the back country. After the war, the great majority of the approximately 500,000 Loyalists remained in America and resumed normal lives. Some became prominent American leaders, such as Samuel Seabury. Approximately 46,000 Loyalists relocated to Canada; others moved to Britain (7,000), Florida, or the West Indies (9,000). The exiles represented approximately two percent of the total population of the colonies. Nearly all black loyalists left for Nova Scotia, Florida, or England, where they could remain free. Loyalists who left the South in 1783 took thousands of their slaves with them to be slaves in the British West Indies. A minority of uncertain size tried to stay neutral in the war. Most kept a low profile, but the Quakers were the most important group to speak out for neutrality, especially in Pennsylvania. The Quakers continued to do business with the British even after the war began, and they were accused of being supporters of British rule, "contrivers and authors of seditious publications" critical of the revolutionary cause. The majority of Quakers attempted to remain neutral, although a sizeable number nevertheless participated to some degree. Women contributed to the American Revolution in many ways and were involved on both sides. Formal politics did not include women, but ordinary domestic behaviors became charged with political significance as Patriot women confronted a war which permeated all aspects of political, civil, and domestic life. They participated by boycotting British goods, spying on the British, following armies as they marched, washing, cooking, and tending for soldiers, delivering secret messages, and even fighting disguised as men in a few cases, such as Deborah Samson. Mercy Otis Warren held meetings in her house and cleverly attacked Loyalists with her creative plays and histories. Above all, women continued the agricultural work at home to feed their families and the armies. They maintained their families during their husbands' absences and sometimes after their deaths. American women were integral to the success of the boycott of British goods, as the boycotted items were largely household items such as tea and cloth. Women had to return to knitting goods, and to spinning and weaving their own cloth—skills that had fallen into disuse. In 1769, the women of Boston produced 40,000 skeins of yarn, and 180 women in Middletown, Massachusetts, wove of cloth. A woman's loyalty to her husband could become an open political act, especially for women in America committed to men who remained loyal to the King. Legal divorce, usually rare, was granted to Patriot women whose husbands supported the King. In early 1776, France set up a major program of aid to the Americans, and the Spanish secretly added funds. Each country spent one million "livres tournaises" to buy munitions. A dummy corporation run by Pierre Beaumarchais concealed their activities. American Patriots obtained some munitions through the Dutch Republic, as well as French and Spanish ports in the West Indies. Heavy expenditures and a weak taxation system pushed France toward bankruptcy. Spain did not officially recognize the U.S. but it separately declared war on Britain on June 21, 1779. Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, general of the Spanish forces in New Spain, also served as governor of Louisiana. He led an expedition of colonial troops to force the British out of Florida and to keep open a vital conduit for supplies. Most American Indians rejected pleas that they remain neutral and instead supported the British Crown. The great majority of the 200,000 Indians east of the Mississippi distrusted the Colonists and supported the British cause, hoping to forestall continued colonial expansion into their territories. Those tribes that were more closely involved in trade tended to side with the Patriots, although political factors were important, as well. Most Indians did not participate directly in the war, except for warriors and bands associated with four of the Iroquois tribes in New York and Pennsylvania which allied with the British. The British did have other allies, especially in the upper Midwest. They provided Indians with funding and weapons to attack American outposts. Some Indians tried to remain neutral, seeing little value in joining what they perceived to be a European conflict, and fearing reprisals from whichever side they opposed. The Oneida and Tuscarora tribes among the Iroquois of central and western New York supported the American cause. The British provided arms to Indians who were led by Loyalists in war parties to raid frontier settlements from the Carolinas to New York. They killed many settlers on the frontier, especially in Pennsylvania and New York's Mohawk Valley. In 1776, Cherokee war parties attacked American Colonists all along the southern frontier of the uplands throughout the Washington District, North Carolina (now Tennessee) and the Kentucky wilderness area. They would launch raids with roughly 200 warriors, as seen in the Cherokee–American wars; they could not mobilize enough forces to invade Colonial areas without the help of allies, most often the Creek. The Chickamauga Cherokee under Dragging Canoe allied themselves closely with the British, and fought on for an additional decade after the Treaty of Paris was signed. Joseph Brant of the powerful Mohawk tribe in New York was the most prominent Indian leader against the Patriot forces. In 1778 and 1780, he led 300 Iroquois warriors and 100 white Loyalists in multiple attacks on small frontier settlements in New York and Pennsylvania, killing many settlers and destroying villages, crops, and stores. The Seneca, Onondaga, and Cayuga of the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the British against the Americans. In 1779, the Americans forced the hostile Indians out of upstate New York when Washington sent an army under John Sullivan which destroyed 40 empty Iroquois villages in central and western New York. The Battle of Newtown proved decisive, as the Patriots had an advantage of three-to-one, and it ended significant resistance; there was little combat otherwise. Sullivan systematically burned the empty villages and destroyed about 160,000 bushels of corn that composed the winter food supply. Facing starvation and homeless for the winter, the Iroquois fled to Canada. The British resettled them in Ontario, providing land grants as compensation for some of their losses. At the peace conference following the war, the British ceded lands which they did not really control, and they did not consult their Indian allies. They transferred control to the United States of all the land east of the Mississippi and north of Florida. Calloway concludes: The British did not give up their forts until 1796 in the eastern Midwest, stretching from Ohio to Wisconsin; they kept alive the dream of forming a satellite Indian nation there, which they called a Neutral Indian Zone. That goal was one of the causes of the War of 1812. Free blacks in the North and South fought on both sides of the Revolution, but most fought for the Patriots. Gary Nash reports that there were about 9,000 black Patriots, counting the Continental Army and Navy, state militia units, privateers, wagoneers in the Army, servants to officers, and spies. Ray Raphael notes that thousands did join the Loyalist cause, but "a far larger number, free as well as slave, tried to further their interests by siding with the patriots." Crispus Attucks was shot dead by British soldiers in the Boston Massacre in 1770 and is considered the first American casualty of the Revolutionary War. Many black slaves sided with the Loyalists. Tens of thousands in the South used the turmoil of war to escape, and the southern plantation economies of South Carolina and Georgia were disrupted in particular. During the Revolution, the British tried to turn slavery against the Americans. Historian David Brion Davis explains the difficulties with a policy of wholesale arming of the slaves: Davis underscores the British dilemma: "Britain, when confronted by the rebellious American colonists, hoped to exploit their fear of slave revolts while also reassuring the large number of slave-holding Loyalists and wealthy Caribbean planters and merchants that their slave property would be secure". The Colonists, however, accused the British of encouraging slave revolts. American advocates of independence were commonly lampooned in Great Britain for what was termed their hypocritical calls for freedom, at the same time that many of their leaders were planters who held hundreds of slaves. Samuel Johnson snapped, "how is it we hear the loudest yelps for liberty among the drivers of the Negroes?" Benjamin Franklin countered by criticizing the British self-congratulation about "the freeing of one Negro" named Somersett while they continued to permit the overall slave trade. Phyllis Wheatley was a black poet who popularized the image of Columbia to represent America. She came to public attention when her Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral appeared in 1773. The effects of the war were more dramatic in the South. In Virginia, royal governor Lord Dunmore recruited black men into the British forces with the promise of freedom, protection for their families, and land grants. Tens of thousands of slaves escaped to British lines throughout the South, causing dramatic losses to slaveholders and disrupting cultivation and harvesting of crops. For instance, South Carolina was estimated to have lost about 25,000 slaves to flight, migration, or death—amounting to one third of its slave population. From 1770 to 1790, the black proportion of the population (mostly slaves) in South Carolina dropped from 60.5 percent to 43.8 percent, and from 45.2 percent to 36.1 percent in Georgia. British forces gave transportation to 10,000 slaves when they evacuated Savannah and Charleston, carrying through on their promise. They evacuated and resettled more than 3,000 Black Loyalists from New York to Nova Scotia, Upper Canada, and Lower Canada. Others sailed with the British to England or were resettled as freedmen in the West Indies of the Caribbean. But slaves who were carried to the Caribbean under control of Loyalist masters generally remained slaves until British abolition in its colonies in 1834. More than 1,200 of the Black Loyalists of Nova Scotia later resettled in the British colony of Sierra Leone, where they became leaders of the Krio ethnic group of Freetown and the later national government. Many of their descendants still live in Sierra Leone, as well as other African countries. Tens of thousands of Loyalists left the United States following the war, and Maya Jasanoff estimates as many as 70,000. Some migrated to Britain, but the great majority received land and subsidies for resettlement in British colonies in North America, especially Quebec (concentrating in the Eastern Townships), Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia. Britain created the colonies of Upper Canada (Ontario) and New Brunswick expressly for their benefit, and the Crown awarded land to Loyalists as compensation for losses in the United States. Britain wanted to develop the frontier of Upper Canada on a British colonial model. Nevertheless, approximately 85-percent of the Loyalists stayed in the United States as American citizens, and some of the exiles later returned to the U.S. Interpretations vary concerning the effect of the Revolution. Historians such as Bernard Bailyn, Gordon Wood, and Edmund Morgan view it as a unique and radical event which produced deep changes and had a profound effect on world affairs, such as an increasing belief in the principles of the Enlightenment. These were demonstrated by a leadership and government that espoused protection of natural rights, and a system of laws chosen by the people. John Murrin, by contrast, argues that the definition of "the people" at that time was mostly restricted to free men who were able to pass a property- qualification. This view argues that any significant gain of the revolution was irrelevant in the short term to women, black Americans and slaves, poor white men, youth, and American Indians. Gordon Wood states: Edmund Morgan has argued that, in terms of long-term impact on American society and values: After the Revolution, genuinely democratic politics became possible in the former colonies. The rights of the people were incorporated into state constitutions. Concepts of liberty, individual rights, equality among men and hostility toward corruption became incorporated as core values of liberal republicanism. The greatest challenge to the old order in Europe was the challenge to inherited political power and the democratic idea that government rests on the consent of the governed. The example of the first successful revolution against a European empire, and the first successful establishment of a republican form of democratically elected government, provided a model for many other colonial peoples who realized that they too could break away and become self-governing nations with directly elected representative government. The Dutch Republic, also at war with Britain, was the next country to sign a treaty with the United States, on October 8, 1782. On April 3, 1783, Ambassador Extraordinary Gustaf Philip Creutz, representing King Gustav III of Sweden, and Benjamin Franklin, signed a Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the U.S. The American Revolution was the first wave of the Atlantic Revolutions: the French Revolution, the Haitian Revolution, and the Latin American wars of independence. Aftershocks reached Ireland in the Irish Rebellion of 1798, in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and in the Netherlands. The Revolution had a strong, immediate influence in Great Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, and France. Many British and Irish Whigs spoke in favor of the American cause. In Ireland, there was a profound impact; the Protestants who controlled Ireland were demanding more and more self-rule. Under the leadership of Henry Grattan, the so-called "Patriots" forced the reversal of mercantilist prohibitions against trade with other British colonies. The King and his cabinet in London could not risk another rebellion on the American model, and made a series of concessions to the Patriot faction in Dublin. Armed Protestant volunteer units were set up to protect against an invasion from France. As in America, so too in Ireland the King no longer had a monopoly of lethal force. The Revolution, along with the Dutch Revolt (end of the 16th century) and the 17th century English Civil War, was among the examples of overthrowing an old regime for many Europeans who later were active during the era of the French Revolution, such as the Marquis de Lafayette. The American Declaration of Independence influenced the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen of 1789. The spirit of the Declaration of Independence led to laws ending slavery in all the Northern states and the Northwest Territory, with New Jersey the last in 1804. States such as New Jersey and New York adopted gradual emancipation, which kept some people as slaves for more than two decades longer. The democratic ideals of the Revolution inspired changes in the roles of women. The concept of republican motherhood was inspired by this period and reflects the importance of Republicanism as the dominant American ideology. It assumed that a successful republic rested upon the virtue of its citizens. Women were considered to have the essential role of instilling their children with values conducive to a healthy republic. During this period, the wife's relationship with her husband also became more liberal, as love and affection instead of obedience and subservience began to characterize the ideal marital relationship. In addition, many women contributed to the war effort through fundraising and running family businesses in the absence of husbands. The traditional constraints gave way to more liberal conditions for women. Patriarchy faded as an ideal; young people had more freedom to choose their spouses and more often used birth control to regulate the size of their families. Society emphasized the role of mothers in child rearing, especially the patriotic goal of raising republican children rather than those locked into aristocratic value systems. There was more permissiveness in child- rearing. Patriot women married to Loyalists who left the state could get a divorce and obtain control of the ex-husband's property. Whatever gains they had made, however, women still found themselves subordinated, legally and socially, to their husbands, disfranchised and usually with only the role of mother open to them. But, some women earned livelihoods as midwives and in other roles in the community, which were not originally recognized as significant by men. Abigail Adams expressed to her husband, the president, the desire of women to have a place in the new republic: "I desire you would remember the Ladies, and be more generous and favourable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands." The Revolution sparked a discussion on the rights of woman and an environment favorable to women's participation in politics. Briefly the possibilities for women's rights were highly favorable, but a backlash led to a greater rigidity that excluded women from politics. For more than thirty years, however, the 1776 New Jersey State Constitution gave the vote to "all inhabitants" who had a certain level of wealth, including unmarried women and blacks (not married women because they could not own property separately from their husbands), until in 1807, when that state legislature passed a bill interpreting the constitution to mean universal white male suffrage, excluding paupers. In the first two decades after the American Revolution, state legislatures and individuals took actions to free numerous slaves, in part based on revolutionary ideals. Northern states passed new constitutions that contained language about equal rights or specifically abolished slavery; some states, such as New York and New Jersey, where slavery was more widespread, passed laws by the end of the 18th century to abolish slavery by a gradual method; in New York, the last slaves were freed in 1827. While no southern state abolished slavery, for a period individual owners could free their slaves by personal decision, often providing for manumission in wills but sometimes filing deeds or court papers to free individuals. Numerous slaveholders who freed their slaves cited revolutionary ideals in their documents; others freed slaves as a reward for service. Records also suggest that some slaveholders were freeing their own mixed-race children, born into slavery to slave mothers. The American Revolution has a central place in the American memory as the story of the nation's founding. It is covered in the schools, memorialized by a national holiday, and commemorated in innumerable monuments. George Washington's estate at Mount Vernon was one of the first national pilgrimages for tourists and attracted 10,000 visitors a year by the 1850s. The Revolution became a matter of contention in the 1850s in the debates leading to the American Civil War (1861–65), as spokesmen of both the Northern United States and the Southern United States claimed that their region was the true custodian of the legacy of 1776. The United States Bicentennial in 1976 came a year after the American withdrawal from the Vietnam War, and speakers stressed the themes of renewal and rebirth based on a restoration of traditional values. Today, more than 100 are protected and maintained by the government. The National Park Service alone owns and maintains more than 50 battlefield parks and sites related to the Revolution. The American Battlefield Trust preserves almost 700 acres of battlefield land in six states. Bibliography of the American Revolutionary War, Bibliography of George Washington, Bibliography of Thomas Jefferson, Timeline of the American Revolution, Diplomacy in the American Revolutionary War, Founding Fathers of the United States, List of George Washington articles, List of plays and films about the American Revolution, List of television series and miniseries about the American Revolution Barnes, Ian, and Charles Royster. The Historical Atlas of the American Revolution (2000), maps and commentary excerpt and text search, Cappon, Lester J. Atlas of Early American History: The Revolutionary Era, 1760–1790 (1976), Fremont-Barnes, Gregory, and Richard A. Ryerson, eds. The Encyclopedia of the American Revolutionary War: A Political, Social, and Military History (5 vol. 2006) 1000 entries by 150 experts, covering all topics, Gray, Edward G., and Jane Kamensky, eds. The Oxford Handbook of the American Revolution (2013) 672 pp; 33 essays by scholars, Greene, Jack P. and J. R. Pole, eds. A Companion to the American Revolution (2004), 777 pp – an expanded edition of Greene and Pole, eds. The Blackwell Encyclopedia of the American Revolution (1994); comprehensive coverage of political and social themes and international dimension; thin on military, Herrera, Ricardo A. "American War of Independence" Oxford Bibliographies (2017) annotated guide to major scholarly books and articles online, Kennedy, Frances H. The American Revolution: A Historical Guidebook (2014) A guide to 150 famous historical sites., Purcell, L. Edward. Who Was Who in the American Revolution (1993); 1500 short biographies, Resch, John P., ed. Americans at War: Society, Culture and the Homefront vol 1 (2005), articles by scholars, Symonds, Craig L. and William J. Clipson. A Battlefield Atlas of the American Revolution (1986) new diagrams of each battle Alden, John R. A history of the American Revolution (1966) 644pp online free to borrow, A scholarly general survey, Allison, Robert. The American Revolution: A Concise History (2011) 128 pp excerpt and text search, Atkinson, Rick. The British Are Coming: The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777 (2019) (vol 1 of his 'The Revolution Trilogy'); called, "one of the best books written on the American War for Independence," [Journal of Military History Jan 2020 p 268]; the maps are online here, Axelrod, Alan. The Real History of the American Revolution: A New Look at the Past (2009), well-illustrated popular history, Bancroft, George. History of the United States of America, from the discovery of the American continent. (1854–78), vol 4–10 online edition, classic 19th century narrative; highly detailed, Black, Jeremy. War for America: The Fight for Independence 1775–1783 (2001) 266pp; by leading British scholar, Brown, Richard D., and Thomas Paterson, eds. Major Problems in the Era of the American Revolution, 1760–1791: Documents and Essays (2nd ed. 1999), Christie, Ian R. and Benjamin W. Labaree. Empire or Independence: 1760-1776 (1976), Cogliano, Francis D. Revolutionary America, 1763–1815; A Political History (2nd ed. 2008), British textbook, Ellis, Joseph J. American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies in the Founding of the Republic (2008) excerpt and text search, Higginbotham, Don. The War of American Independence: Military Attitudes, Policies, and Practice, 1763–1789 (1983) Online in ACLS Humanities E-book Project; comprehensive coverage of military and domestic aspects of the war., Jensen, Merrill. The Founding of a Nation: A History of the American Revolution 1763–1776. (2004), Knollenberg, Bernhard. Growth of the American Revolution: 1766–1775 (2003), Lecky, William Edward Hartpole. The American Revolution, 1763–1783 (1898), older British perspective online edition, Mackesy, Piers. The War for America: 1775–1783 (1992), British military study online edition, Middlekauff, Robert. The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763–1789 (Oxford History of the United States, 2005). online edition, Miller, John C. Triumph of Freedom, 1775–1783 (1948) online edition, Miller, John C. Origins of the American Revolution (1943) online edition, to 1775, Rakove, Jack N. Revolutionaries: A New History of the Invention of America (2010) interpretation by leading scholar excerpt and text search, Taylor, Alan. American Revolutions: A Continental History, 1750-1804 (2016) 704 pp; recent survey by leading scholar, Weintraub, Stanley. Iron Tears: Rebellion in America 1775–83 (2005) excerpt and text search, popular, Wood, Gordon S. Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different (2007), Wrong, George M. Washington and His Comrades in Arms: A Chronicle of the War of Independence (1921) online short survey by Canadian scholar online Bailyn, Bernard. The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution. (Harvard University Press, 1967)., Bangs, Jeremy D. "The Travels of Elkanah Watson". (McFarland & Company, 2015)., Becker, Carl. The Declaration of Independence: A Study on the History of Political Ideas (1922), Becker, Frank: The American Revolution as a European Media Event, European History Online, Mainz: Institute of European History, 2011, retrieved: October 25, 2011., Bonomi, Patricia U., Under the Cope of Heaven: Religion, Society, and Politics in Colonial America (2003), Breen, T. H. The Marketplace of Revolution: How Consumer Politics Shaped American Independence (2005), Breen, T. H. American Insurgents, American Patriots: The Revolution of the People (2010) 337 pages; examines rebellions in 1774–76 including loosely organized militants took control before elected safety committees emerged., Brunsman, Denver, and David J Silverman, eds. The American Revolution Reader (Routledge Readers in History, 2013) 472 pp; essays by leading scholars, Chernow, Ron. (2010) detailed biography; Pulitzer Prize, Crow, Jeffrey J. and Larry E. Tise, eds. The Southern Experience in the American Revolution (1978), Fischer, David Hackett. Paul Revere's Ride (1995), Minutemen in 1775, Fischer, David Hackett. Washington's Crossing (2004). 1776 campaigns; Pulitzer prize., Freeman, Douglas Southall. Washington (1968) Pulitzer Prize; abridged version of 7 vol biography, Horne, Gerald. The Counter-Revolution of 1776: Slave Resistance and the Origins of the United States of America. (New York University Press, 2014)., Kerber, Linda K. Women of the Republic: Intellect and Ideology in Revolutionary America (1979), Kidd, Thomas S. God of Liberty: A Religious History of the American Revolution (2010), McCullough, David. 1776 (2005). ; popular narrative of the year 1776, Maier, Pauline. American Scripture: Making the Declaration of Independence (1998) excerpt and text search, Nash, Gary B. The Unknown American Revolution: The Unruly Birth of Democracy and the Struggle to Create America. (2005)., Nevins, Allan; The American States during and after the Revolution, 1775–1789 1927. online edition, Norton, Mary Beth. Liberty's Daughters: The Revolutionary Experience of American Women, 1750–1800 (1980), O'Shaughnessy Andrew Jackson. The Men Who Lost America: British Leadership, the American Revolution, and the Fate of the Empire (Yale University Press; 2013) 466 pages; on top British leaders, Palmer, Robert R. The Age of the Democratic Revolution: A Political History of Europe and America, 1760–1800. vol 1 (1959) online edition, Resch, John Phillips and Walter Sargent, eds. War and Society in the American Revolution: Mobilization and Home Fronts (2006), Rothbard, Murray, Conceived in Liberty (2000), Volume III: Advance to Revolution, 1760–1775 and Volume IV: The Revolutionary War, 1775–1784. , libertarian perspective, Van Tyne, Claude Halstead. American Loyalists: The Loyalists in the American Revolution (1902) online edition, Volo, James M. and Dorothy Denneen Volo. Daily Life during the American Revolution (2003), Wahlke, John C. ed. The Causes of the American Revolution (1967) readings, Wood, Gordon S. American Revolution (2005) [excerpt and text search] 208 pp excerpt and text search, Wood, Gordon S. The Radicalism of the American Revolution: How a Revolution Transformed a Monarchical Society into a Democratic One Unlike Any That Had Ever Existed. (1992), by a leading scholar Breen, Timothy H. "Ideology and nationalism on the eve of the American Revolution: Revisions once more in need of revising." Journal of American History (1997): 13–39. in JSTOR, Gibson, Alan. Interpreting the Founding: Guide to the Enduring Debates over the Origins and Foundations of the American Republic (2006)., Hattem, Michael D. "The Historiography of the American Revolution" Journal of the American Revolution (2013) online outlines ten different scholarly approaches, Morgan, Gwenda. The Debate on the American Revolution (2007)., Schocket, Andrew M. Fighting over the Founders: How We Remember the American Revolution (2014), how politicians, screenwriters, activists, biographers, museum professionals, and reenactors portray the American Revolution. excerpt, Sehat, David. The Jefferson Rule: How the Founding Fathers Became Infallible and Our Politics Inflexible (2015) excerpt, Shalhope, Robert E. "Toward a republican synthesis: the emergence of an understanding of republicanism in American historiography." William and Mary Quarterly (1972): 49–80. in JSTOR, Waldstreicher, David. "The Revolutions of Revolution Historiography: Cold War Contradance, Neo-Imperial Waltz, or Jazz Standard?." Reviews in American History 42.1 (2014): 23–35. online, Wood, Gordon S. "Rhetoric and Reality in the American Revolution." William and Mary Quarterly (1966): 4–32. in JSTOR, Young, Alfred F. and Gregory H. Nobles. Whose American Revolution Was It? Historians Interpret the Founding (2011). The American Revolution: Writings from the War of Independence (2001), Library of America, 880 pp, Commager, Henry Steele and Morris, Richard B., eds. The Spirit of 'Seventy-Six: The Story of the American Revolution As Told by Participants (1975) () short excerpts from hundreds of official and unofficial primary sources, Dann, John C., ed. The Revolution Remembered: Eyewitness Accounts of the War for Independence (1999) excerpt and text search, recollections by ordinary soldiers, Humphrey, Carol Sue ed. The Revolutionary Era: Primary Documents on Events from 1776 to 1800 (2003), 384 pp; newspaper accounts excerpt and text search, Jensen, Merill, ed. Tracts of the American Revolution, 1763–1776 (1967). American pamphlets, Jensen, Merill, ed. English Historical Documents: American Colonial Documents to 1776: Volume 9 (1955), 890pp; major collection of important documents, Morison, Samuel E. ed. Sources and Documents Illustrating the American Revolution, 1764–1788, and the Formation of the Federal Constitution (1923). 370 pp online version, Tansill, Charles C. ed.; Documents Illustrative of the Formation of the Union of the American States. Government Printing Office. (1927). 1124 pp online version, Martin Kallich and Andrew MacLeish, eds. The American Revolution through British eyes (1962) primary documents Murdoch, David H. ed. Rebellion in America: A Contemporary British Viewpoint, 1769–1783 (1979), 900+ pp of annotated excerpts from Annual Register, Annual Register 1773, British compendium of speeches and reports, Annual Register 1774, Annual Register 1775, Annual Register 1776, Annual Register 1777, Annual Register 1778, Annual Register 1779, Annual Register 1780, Annual Register 1781, Annual Register 1782, Annual Register 1783 Library of Congress Guide to the American Revolution, 132 historic photographs dealing with the personalities, monuments, weapons and locations of the American Revolution; these are pre-1923 and out of copyright., Pictures of the Revolutionary War: Select Audiovisual Records, National Archives and Records Administration selection of images, including a number of non-military events and portraits, Revolution! The Atlantic World Reborn, Revolution! explores the enormous transformations in the world's politics that took place from 1763–1815, with particular attention to three globally influential revolutions in America, France, and Haiti. Linking the attack on monarchism and aristocracy to the struggle against slavery, Revolution!shows how freedom, equality, and the sovereignty of the people became universal goals.New-York Historical Society, The Democratic Revolution of the Enlightenment. Legacy of the struggle for independence and democracy., PBS Television Series, Chickasaws Conflicted by the American Revolution – Chickasaw.TV, Smithsonian study unit on Revolutionary Money, The American Revolution: Lighting Freedom's Flame, US National Park Service website, Honored Places: The National Park Service Teacher's Guide to the American Revolution, Haldimand Collection Letters regarding the war to important generals. Fully indexed, "Military History of Revolution" with links to documents, maps, URLs, American Independence Museum, Black Loyalist Heritage Society, Spanish and Latin American contribution to the American Revolution, American Archives: Documents of the American Revolution at Northern Illinois University Libraries, American Revolution study guide and teacher resources, AmericanRevolution.Org Resource for pre collegiate historical educational institutions, The American Revolution, the History Channel (US cable television) website, Gayle Olson-Ramer, "Half a Revolution", 16-page teaching guide for high school students, Zinn Education Project/Rethinking Schools, "Counter-Revolution of 1776": Was U.S. Independence War a Conservative Revolt in Favor of Slavery? Democracy Now! June 27, 2014. Tracey Ullman (born 30 December 1959) is a British-American actress, comedian, singer, dancer, screenwriter, producer, director, author, and businesswoman. Her earliest appearances were on British television sketch comedy shows A Kick Up the Eighties (with Rik Mayall and Miriam Margolyes) and Three of a Kind (with Lenny Henry and David Copperfield). After a brief singing career, she appeared as Candice Valentine in Girls on Top with Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. She emigrated from the United Kingdom to the United States where she starred in her own network television comedy series, The Tracey Ullman Show, from 1987 until 1990, which also featured the first appearances of the long- running animated media franchise, The Simpsons. She later produced programmes for HBO, including Tracey Takes On... (1996–99), for which she garnered numerous awards. Her sketch comedy series, Tracey Ullman's State of the Union, ran from 2008 to 2010 on Showtime. She has also appeared in several feature films. Ullman was the first British woman to be offered her own television sketch show in both the United Kingdom and the United States. In 2016, she returned to British television with the BBC sketch comedy show Tracey Ullman's Show, her first project for the broadcaster in over thirty years; this led to the creation of the topical comedy series Tracey Breaks the News in 2017. Ullman is currently the richest British actress and female comedian and the third richest British comedian overall. Tracey Ullman was born Trace Ullman in Slough, Buckinghamshire, the younger of two daughters, to Dorin (born Cleaver) and Antony John Ullman. Her mother was British, with Roma ancestry, and her father was a Roman Catholic Pole. On the subject of the spelling of her name: "My real name is Trace Ullman, but I added the 'y.' My mother said it was spelled the American way, but I don't think she can spell! I always wanted a middle name. My mum used to tell me it was Mary but I never believed her. I looked on my birth certificate and I didn't have one, just Trace Ullman." Antony Ullman served in the Polish Army and was evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940. He subsequently worked as a solicitor, a furniture salesman, and a travel agent. He also brokered marriages and translated among the émigré Polish community. Dorin and Antony recognized their younger daughter's talents early on and encouraged her to perform. In an interview with Fresh Air host Terry Gross, Ullman revealed that when she was six, her father, who had been recovering from a heart operation, died of a heart attack in front of her while the two were alone and as he was reading to her. He was fifty years old. "When that happens to you as a child, you can face anything. You're always waiting for the other shoe to drop. If something great happens, you're like, 'Wow, that's great that happened, because it could have been crap'. The most disappointing thing happened when you were younger [...] You're just braver and if good things happen you're really grateful." Ullman, who had been living an upper-middle class life, was uprooted to Hackbridge, southwest London, along with her older sister Patti and her mother, who could now barely make ends meet without their father's income. "After [Dad] died, our fortunes came and went because Mum couldn't speak Polish and had to give up the business. When I meet other girls who lost their fathers when they were young, I really relate to them. You become independent quickly; I could cope with anything because of that terrible loss." Mother Dorin would go on to take a host of odd jobs. "My mother was always doing strange things like driving parts around for a garage, all covered in oil and paid 10 pounds a week. But she was very funny, and our defence against hardship was having a great sense of humour." On a separate occasion, on the subject of her mother's jobs, Ullman recalled: "[Mum] worked in a laboratory, testing food, and would bring home samples for our dinner. Sometimes she'd have to report that formula X had been found unfit for human consumption." One of her mother's jobs enabled her to indulge in her penchant for observing people. "My mum used to work in a mental institution in London when I was a kid, and I used to go there on Sundays, and I used to love studying the people there." Contrary to the truth, her mother maintained that their family was still middle-class in the absence of their father. "My mother always insisted on middle-class because we had money at one time. We're really lower-middle." Ullman credits her sense of humour to a feeling of both classlessness as well as her mother's working-class roots. "It comes from being classless, I think. My father was Polish and he died when I was six. And from being a little girl who went to gymkhana and had ponies, and went to a private school, and lived in a big house we suddenly didn't have any money any more and had to go to a state school. And my mother's family is all from South London, and we have a lot of uncles and friends over there. And when my father died they were very supportive, and they used to come down for the weekend - all these hordes of South London oiks. They used to invade our big Posh Bucks home and use the swimming pool, ride the ponies, and they were so funny these blokes; they really affected my sense of humour ... But I think the man who really affected my sense of humour was my uncle Butch, he was called Butch Castle. He was a decorator from South London - lazy old sod. An he's got the sharpest mind I've ever known; he's so hysterically funny. And I wanted to be like him." In the aftermath of their father's death, their mother slipped into a deep depression and spent a lot of time in bed. In an effort to cheer her up, Ullman, along with her sister, created and performed a nightly variety show on the windowsill in their mother's bedroom. “It was originally the Patti Ullman Show. So I'm a spin-off of my sister's show, as she likes to point out.” In the show, Ullman would mimic neighbours, teachers, family members, and celebrities such as Julie Andrews and Édith Piaf. "Some kids can play the piano or kick a football; I could just impersonate everyone." She would also perform alone for herself after everyone had gone to bed. "I'd stand in front of the mirror and talk to myself until I fell asleep. I'd interview myself as women with problems. Women in documentaries who had three kids and chain- smoked and husbands in prison that hit them." Her mother would eventually remarry to a man who Ullman has described as a maniac who drove a London taxi and had a son who stole. "We weren't the Brady Bunch, let me tell you!" The marriage brought an end to the children's late night antics. "There was a new person in her bed now and I couldn't do my nightly performance anymore. I was nine years old and my show had been cancelled." Alcoholism and domestic violence became a common occurrence in the household. The marriage also resulted in the family moving around the country, with Ullman attending numerous state schools. Her flair for mimicry helped with the transitions as her new classmates didn't take to her upper crust accent. "I had to talk like them to avoid being beaten up." Ullman wrote and performed in school plays and it was there that she caught the eye of a headmaster who recommended that she attend a "special school." "I thought he meant a school for juvenile delinquents." Eventually her mother agreed and at age twelve she won a full scholarship to the Italia Conti Academy. Despite the encouragement she received from family, friends, and teachers, her big boost of confidence came from a very unlikely source: a clairvoyant who predicted that she would become famous, especially in America. Some of her earliest work included an appearance on The Tommy Steele Show when she was thirteen, and acting as a model for British teenage magazines My Guy and Photo Love. She would end up loathing Italia Conti saying, "I hated the pressure that many of the children were under. Many of the kids were forced to grow up too fast, their careers were being decided for them before they were 13. If I went to an audition then they'd always choose the sweetest, prettiest kid. I wasn't obviously beautiful so I used to miss out." Ullman has also alleged that the owners taught their own children and that a certain level of favouritism seemed to exist. She also felt that the education she was receiving was of very little value. "These stupid teachers would come in and go, 'Good morning, darlings, lets all be dustbins!' I'd go, 'Oh, shut up! I wanna be a banana!'" The treatment she received at school led to her spending more time in pubs than in class. Despite her tardiness, she passed her O levels. Her interest in theatre began to wane and her family could no longer afford tuition; she then set her sights on becoming a travel agent like her late father. At sixteen, she was goaded into attending a dance audition by some school friends under the impression that she was applying for summer season in Scarborough. The audition resulted in a contract with a German ballet company for a revival of Gigi in Berlin. Upon returning to England, she joined the "Second Generation" dance troupe, performing in London, Blackpool and Liverpool. Her dancing career would come to an abrupt end when she forgot to wear underwear during a performance. She subsequently branched out into musical theatre and was cast in numerous West End musicals including Grease, Elvis The Musical, and The Rocky Horror Show. Disillusioned with the entertainment industry, she sought full-time employment working in a paper products distribution company. Her boredom with the job led to her competing in a contest at London's Royal Court Theatre; Four in a Million, an improvised play about club acts. She created the character Beverly, a born again Christian chanteuse. The performance was a big success and won her the London Critics Circle Theatre Award as Most Promising New Actress. At this point the BBC became interested, which led to a successful career in television. She would soon go on to become a household name in Britain, with the British media referring to her as 'Our Trace.' With fame came intense scrutiny of her personal life. The press became increasingly aggressive, printing untrue or exaggerated stories, and soliciting information from people who supposedly knew her. An ex-boyfriend sold his story about his life with her to the News of the World. "He appeared on television with my dog saying, 'I'm going to tell you about the real Tracey Ullman. Aren't we Lilly?'" When she hastily married Allan McKeown in 1983, it made front-page news all over the country, with the press placing bets on how long the marriage would last; it lasted nearly thirty years, until McKeown's death in 2013. Ullman, who had already made a name for herself as a comedian with her BBC comedy series Three of a Kind, had a chance encounter with the wife of the head of the punk music label Stiff Records, Dave Robinson. The meeting led to her recording her first album. “One day, I was at my hairdresser, and Dave Robinson's wife Rosemary leant over and said, 'Do you want to make a record?' I was having some of those Boy George kind of dreadlock things put in and I went, 'Yeah I want to make a record.' I would have tried anything.” Her future husband Allan McKeown had reservations about her launching a music career and tried talking her out of it. “When I first met Miss Ullman, I was a TV producer, and I called her into my office in London and I told her that she had a big career in comedy, and she said to me, 'Well actually, I'm doing a record next week,' and I said, 'Now listen here Miss Ullman, if I know anything about show business, is that you shouldn't get involved with singing. Imagine how stupid I felt about four months later, I'm in London driving around and I hear, 'And now, the Top of the Pops, Tracey Ullman with 'They Don't Know About Us.'” Her 1983 debut album, You Broke My Heart in 17 Places, featured her first hit single, "Breakaway" (famous for her performance with a hairbrush as a microphone), and the international hit cover version of label- mate Kirsty MacColl's "They Don't Know," which reached number two in the UK, and number eight in the United States. MacColl sang backing vocals on Ullman's version. In less than two years, Ullman had six songs in the UK Top 100. A cover of Doris Day's "Move Over Darling" reached number eight in the UK, and a cover of Madness' "My Girl", which she changed to "My Guy", had a video that featured the British Labour Party politician Neil Kinnock, at the time the Leader of the Opposition. Ullman's songs were over-the-top evocations of 1960s and 1970s pop music with a 1980s edge, "somewhere between Minnie Mouse and the Supremes" as the Melody Maker put it, or "retro before retro was cool," as a reviewer wrote in 2002. Her career received another boost when the video for "They Don't Know" featured a cameo from Paul McCartney; at the time Ullman was filming a minor role in McCartney's film Give My Regards to Broad Street. She released her second (and final) album, You Caught Me Out, in 1984. Her final hit, "Sunglasses" (1984), featured comedian Adrian Edmondson in its music video. During this time, she also appeared as a guest VJ on MTV in the United States. She gave up her music career after an incident that occurred on a German television show. "The host said to me, 'Tracey Ullman. Hello!' I said, 'Hello' and he went, 'Guffaw, guffaw. Crazy as ever!' Then I was standing in the background and he slung a rat over my shoulder. I thought, 'That's it, I don't want to do this anymore.'" While she has chosen to end her recording career, she has continued singing in film, television, and theatre. In 2013, she worked with McCartney again, appearing in his music video for the single, "Queenie Eye" from his album, New. Ullman got her first television acting job when she was seventeen, in a Heinz soup commercial where she had to wear a cow's head. She tried her hand at serious drama, playing Lynda Bellingham's daughter in the 1980 BBC TV series Mackenzie, but said that she found that she wasn't cut out to be a straight actress. "I really thought I was great when I did a quite serious soap opera for the BBC. I played a nice girl from St. John's Wood. 'Mummy, I think I'm pregnant. I don't know who's done it.' Then I would fall down a hill or something. 'EEEEE! Oh, no, lost another baby.' It seemed all I ever did was have miscarriages—or make yogurt." In 1981, the success of her performance in the Royal Court Theatre's production of Four in a Million led to many offers; one being the chance to move into television comedy. The BBC was quick to cast her in the BBC Scotland sketch comedy programme A Kick Up the Eighties. The network was so impressed with her that it offered her her own series. She initially turned down the offer. "My first reaction was you must be joking, as women are treated so shoddily in comedy. Big busty barmaids and all those sort of cliches just bore me rigid." She also had reservations due to a lack of female contemporaries. "At that time English women weren't really allowed to be funny on television. I didn't have any examples. I mean, I didn't have a Gilda Radner, Carol Burnett, Lily Tomlin. I mean, my only point of reference, quite honestly, was the Benny Hill girls." Ullman got into her performing arts school by doing an impersonation of Lily Tomlin. Eventually a deal was made with the proviso that she would get to choose the show's writers, have script approval, and choose the costumes. Three of a Kind, co-starring comedians Lenny Henry and David Copperfield, debuted in 1981. In an interview with Amanda Root for The Musical Express magazine, Ullman was asked about critics labeling the show 'non-sexist humour.' Did it exist? "Not unless it's cleverly done. When we did Three of a Kind we kept getting sketches sent in about me as a traffic warden, or me being a busty barmaid. Writers that have no idea about women - their typical way of starting a sketch is to say, Tracey is sitting there, filing her nails and chewing gum, as if all girls are stupid. Sketches beginning like that used to really get on my nerves. But as soon as we found the right team of writers, they weren't into that sort of thing, so it worked out OK." She went on to win her first BAFTA Award in the category of Best Light Entertainment Performance for Three of a Kind in 1984. In 1982, she met her future husband, Allan McKeown, a television producer with his own production company, Witzend Productions. McKeown discovered her when he happened to catch her in an episode of Three of a Kind. The two eventually worked together on a television pilot for Central Television, A Cut Above, about a 1960s hairdresser (McKeown's former profession) who meets a posh girl (Ullman). “Pilot didn't work, but I got a husband out of it," said Ullman in 1990. In 1983, she signed on to star in a comedy about four women sharing a flat together, Girls on Top (provisionally titled Four-Play, Bitches on Heat, and Four Fs to Share). She was cast as the promiscuous golddigger Candice Valentine. The show didn't go into production until early 1985 due to an electricians' strike at the studio where the series was set to film. The show, co-starring comedians Dawn French, Ruby Wax and Jennifer Saunders (who also wrote the scripts), continued after Ullman bowed out after the first series. In her book, Bonkers: My Life in Laughs, Saunders writes, “If Ruby taught us how to write funny, then Tracey was a lesson in how to act funny. She was by far the most famous of us, having starred with Lenny Henry in 'Three of a Kind.'” In April 1984, it was announced that Five Faces of Tracey, described as an 'all film series of five half hours' starring Ullman as one character per episode in one 'self-contained story,' was to be filmed in July of that year written by Ruby Wax and herself. The series never came to fruition. In 1985, Ullman was persuaded by her husband to join him in Los Angeles, where he was already partially stationed. She was no stranger to the United States, as she had promoted her music career there, appearing and performing on an array of American talk shows. She had also just completed a press junket for her film, the period drama, Plenty there. The US knew her as a singer and a now budding serious film actress; not the television comedian of her homeland. When she agreed to make the move to the America, she had set her sights on a film and stage career, believing that there was little in the way of television for her. "I didn't believe there was anything above Webster standard. I was wrong." Her British agent put together a videotape containing a compilation of her work and began circulating it around Hollywood. The tape landed in the lap of Craig Kellem, vice president for comedy at Universal Television. "I could not believe my eyes. It was just about the most extraordinary piece of material I'd seen in a long time." He wanted production on a series to begin immediately for her. A deal was struck right away with CBS television, who went from ordering a pilot to ordering a full series two weeks later. A script for I Love New York, a show about a "slightly wacky" British woman working in New York, was written by Saturday Night Live writer Anne Beatts. Ullman hated it and the deal deteriorated. Recalling the project, Ullman said, "We'd just hit on an idea, then some white-haired executive - very, very important - would come in from the race track and say, 'I don't like that idea. I think Tracey should be a caring person. I think there should be a kid in this. Now, I'm just pitching here. I don't know if this is funny. But I think Tracey should love this kid and maybe there's a moment where she tells the kid something about life.' And I'd say, "Look - I don't want to work with little kids being cute who I eventually adopt'." She was also turned off by the industry's materialistic attitude. "Literally, you start your first meeting and already they're thinking about three years' syndication. 'You're going to be worth $13 million. You're going to be a very rich young lady.' I'd say, 'I don't want to talk about the millions of dollars now. Can we put that on hold? I just want to talk about something good'." Ullman's agent then decided to send producer James L. Brooks some tapes of her work. Brooks, who had had a very successful career producing television sitcoms, had stepped away from the medium, opting instead for a career in film. Ullman's material was so good that it lured him back to television. "I started showing [her work] to people like you'd show home movies," revealed Brooks. "I was just startled by the size of the talent. I got chills." Brooks felt that a sketch show would best suit her assets (acting, singing, and dancing). "Why would you do something with Tracey playing a single character on TV when her talent requires variety? You can't categorize Tracey, so it's silly to come up with a show that attempted to." To ensure that she was well-versed in American comedy, Brooks sent her tapes of American sitcoms and variety shows to watch while at home, now pregnant. Ullman refers to it as "homework." She also visited the Museum of Television and Radio, which she would later be inducted into. She had in fact grown up watching American television in the 1970s in England. Two things stood out to her: the vast number of female comedians, as well as their not having to be conventionally attractive to be funny. "It was very true of my childhood that women needed to be sexy in order to be funny." Brooks assembled a team of writers, and a deal with Fox Television was made. The network was looking to create its own original programming. Ullman's show, along with Married... with Children, would be the first two scripted shows produced and launched. Scouting for a supporting cast to play opposite her began. Dan Castellaneta, a relative unknown, was asked to read for the show after he was spotted by Ullman at Chicago's Second City. Castellaneta's portrayal of a blind man who wants to be a comedian brought her to tears instead of making her laugh. Actress Julie Kavner had co-starred in Brooks' spin-off series to The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Rhoda, starring Valerie Harper. Kavner played Harper's younger, socially awkward sister Brenda, a role for which she won an Emmy Award. Kavner was at the top of the list of people Brooks wanted to be part of the show. Brooks on Kavner: "When somebody's intrinsically funny -- you know, in-their-bones funny -- they never have to work at (being funny), so they're free to work on other things. We were all nuts about her work. She was the person we most wanted to work with Tracey." Actor Sam McMurray read for a guest spot on the show playing William, lover of thirteen-year-old valley girl Francesca's (Ullman) father. McMurray recalling his casting: "The first Francesca sketch, they said, 'Play the guy not so gay.' And I said 'I disagree.' I had a big mouth then -— still do. I said, 'I think he's more the woman. I think he's more out there.' So I read and I read it big, and they cast me. It was just a one-off, and then we were on hiatus. I did the one week, and I had a friend coincidentally who used to write, a guy named Marc Flanagan, and he was on the show as a staff guy. He called me up and said, 'Did they call your agent?' I said, 'No, why?' He said, 'They wanna make you a regular.'" Another actor who was originally cast for a guest shot which led to becoming a series regular was choreographer Joseph Malone. The show now had its cast. Singer-songwriter George Clinton provided the theme song for the show, "You're Thinking Right." Dancer Paula Abdul, who had not yet found fame as a singer, was hired to choreograph the show's dance numbers. Because the Fox network was new to the world of television production, a bureaucracy had not yet been established. This enabled the show to take risks and the freedom to try things that the major networks would never permit. The series landed an initial twenty-six episode commitment deal, unheard of for a television comedy. The Tracey Ullman Show debuted on 5 April 1987. Describing the show proved difficult. Creator Ken Estin dubbed it a "skitcom". A variety of diverse original characters were created for her to perform. Extensive makeup, wigs, teeth, and body padding were utilised, sometimes rendering her unrecognisable. One original character created by Ullman back in Britain was uprooted for the series: long-suffering British spinster Kay Clark. A typical episode of The Tracey Ullman Show consisted of three sketches, one including a song and/or a heavily choreographed dance routine. Brooks was keen on showing off all of Ullman's abilities. "It's 'Can you juggle this and keep throwing on more plates?' I'm constantly amazed." Ullman opened and closed the show as herself, adding her trademark, "Go home!," which she would shout to the studio audience for the closing. The show was shot on film, a departure from previous variety shows which were routinely shot on tape. Looking to add "bumpers" (before and after commercial breaks) to the show, two cartoon shorts were created: "Dr. N!Godatu" and "The Simpsons." The Simpsons would go on to be spun off into its own television series. By the time The Tracey Ullman Show ended in 1990, the show was awarded ten Emmy Awards; Ullman winning three, one in the category of Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program in 1990. The show not only scored the Fox network its first Emmy nomination, but also earned it its first-ever Emmy win. After four seasons, Ullman decided to end the show in May 1990. In 1991, she filed a lawsuit against Twentieth Century Fox in Los Angeles Superior Court over profits from the later half-hour incarnation of The Simpsons. She wanted a share of The Simpsons merchandising and gross profits and believed she was entitled to $2.5 million of the estimated $50 million Fox made in 1992. The Fox network had paid her $58,000 in royalties for The Simpsons as well as $3 million for the 3½ seasons her show was on the air. According to an article, as Ullman had continued her professional relationship with former producer Brooks, only the studio and not Brooks was named in the suit. Brooks was allowed to videotape his testimony as he was in the middle of filming I'll Do Anything, in which Ullman appeared. The suit was ultimately dismissed. Ullman wasn't the only one to file a lawsuit; Tracey Ullman Show executive producer Ken Estin filed a similar suit against Fox claiming that his contract called for him to receive 7.5% of revenues from The Simpsons, including a portion of merchandise. Despite losing the 1992 suit, Ullman continues to get an annual share of the show's profits. Ullman provided the voices of Emily Winthrop, a British dog trainer, and Mrs. Winfield on The Simpsons episode "Bart's Dog Gets an F" (1991). After The Tracey Ullman Show, Ullman went on to make her big screen starring debut with I Love You To Death in 1990. That same year she hit the stage with actor Morgan Freeman for Shakespeare in the Park's production of The Taming of the Shrew; she then made her Broadway debut with her one-woman show, The Big Love. She had no aspirations to return to the television. In 1991, she had given birth to her second child, Johnny, and her husband was bidding on a television franchise in the South of England. Along with the bid he included a potential television programming lineup. Listed was a Tracey Ullman special. Ullman thought nothing would come of it, but to her horror, she learnt that the bid was successful. The frantic pace of The Tracey Ullman Show was one of the key factors in her decision to give up television. That show was shot in front of a live studio audience and featured her playing on average three characters a week. She frequently wore layers of costuming to disguise herself. The prosthetic makeup was at times excessive. In her book Tracey Takes On, she recalls an incident where she fainted on the makeup room floor, having to be revived before rushing out to give a performance. Unlike the Fox show though, this special would be shot entirely on location, allowing ample time to apply makeup, wigs, and other accoutrements for the characters; so Ullman felt less panicked. She decided to do a send up of the British class system. All new characters were created and she was joined by Monty Python's Michael Palin for each of the show's sketches. premiered on 9 January 1993 on ITV. The American cable network HBO became interested in Ullman doing a special for their network with the caveat that she take on a more American subject. She chose New York. The special, Tracey Ullman Takes on New York debuted on 9 October 1993 and both it and Ullman went on to win two Emmy Awards, a CableAce Award, an American Comedy Award, and a Writers Guild of America Award. The success of the special led the network to broach the subject of a "Takes On" series. Ullman and her husband liked the idea and set up production on Tracey Takes On... in Los Angeles in 1995. As with the special Takes On New York, each episode of Tracey Takes On... centered on a single subject. Characters created for A Class Act and Takes On New York were adapted for the HBO series, along with several new characters, as well as the character Kay Clark. Unlike The Tracey Ullman Show, Tracey Takes On... had a rotating roster of upwards of twenty characters repeated throughout the run of the show. Also, unlike The Tracey Ullman Show, Tracey Takes On... was a single-camera comedy, shot heavily on location, without a studio audience. Ullman and the show went on to receive a slew of awards including six Emmy Awards, two CableAce Awards, three American Comedy Awards, two GLAAD Media Awards, as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award in 1999 for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series. In 2001, Ullman took a break from her character-based work and created a fashion-based talk show for Oxygen Network, Tracey Ullman's Visible Panty Lines. The series was spun off from her e-commerce clothing store Purple Skirt, which had been launched a few years prior. Interviewees included Arianna Huffington and Charlize Theron. The show lasted for two seasons and ended in 2002. A pilot for a Tracey Takes On... spin-off, Tracey Ullman in the Trailer Tales, was produced in 2003 for HBO. The show spotlighted just one character, Ruby Romaine. Ullman made her directorial debut with the show. No series was commissioned and the episode aired as a one-off comedy special. She returned to the network again in 2005 with a filmed version of her live autobiographical one-woman stage show, . Upon her naturalisation in the United States, it was announced in April 2007 that she would be making the switch from her 14-year working relationship with cable network HBO to Showtime. Ullman created a brand new series for the network which was concerned with many aspects of American life: "The good, the bad, and the absolutely ridiculous." Ullman credits both senior programmer Robert Greenblatt and the network's list of hit shows as having influenced her decision to switch networks. Greenblatt was a young development director during her Tracey Ullman Show days and was enthusiastic to get her over to Showtime. Five episodes were ordered for the first season. Tracey Ullman's State of the Union debuted on 30 March 2008. The show not only featured original characters, but also celebrity impersonations, something she hadn't done since Three of a Kind. The critical response to State of the Union was overwhelmingly positive. One critic pointed out a change in Ullman's humour: Ullman commented that the United States is "now able to laugh at itself more," embracing more satiric humour rather than deeming it "unpatriotic." Now that she is a citizen, she joked that she "won't end up in Guantánamo Bay" for speaking her mind. The show ran for three seasons, concluding in 2010. In March 2014, Ullman was introduced as Genevieve Scherbatsky, the mother of character Robin Scherbatsky in How I Met Your Mother. On 20 March 2014, it was announced that she was tapped to co-star in the upcoming CBS sitcom pilot, Good Session. The single-camera comedy was written and executive produced by Matt Miller (Chuck), along with actor James Roday (Psych) and Bruce Campbell. Ullman's character, Ellen, was described as an 'astute, straightforward therapist who uses her own brand of insight and humor to inspire the couples she helps to tell the truth.' On 4 March 2015, it was announced that Ullman would return to the BBC with a new six-part comedy series for BBC One. It was her first project for the broadcaster in thirty years, and her first original project for British television in twenty-two. The press release stated that she would play 'a multitude of diverse and distinct characters living in, or visiting, the busy global hub that is the UK.' On 7 October 2015, it was confirmed that HBO had picked up the American rights to the show, and like the BBC, would broadcast it in 2016. On 25 August 2016, HBO formally announced that it would begin airing the series on 28 October 2016. Tracey Ullman's Show premiered 11 January 2016. Ullman became internationally famous for parodying German chancellor Angela Merkel in this show. A German media website, Meedia, described Ullman's impersonation as the best spoof of Merkel in the world. The BBC ordered a second series of the show in 2016. HBO in the United States aired the show's second series 20 October 2017. On 30 August 2018, HBO announced that Tracey Ullman's Show would return for a third season starting 28 September. In 2017, Tracey Ullman's Show earned its first Primetime Emmy Award nomination in the category of Outstanding Variety Sketch Series. In 2018, it garnered two additional Primetime Emmy Award nominations in the categories of Outstanding Variety Sketch Series and Outstanding Costumes for a Variety, Nonfiction, or Reality Programming. On 26 May 2017, the BBC announced that it had ordered a new topical half-hour Tracey Ullman special, Tracey Breaks the News for BBC One. The show is inspired by and aired on 23 June 2017, shortly after the 2017 United Kingdom general election. Impersonations expected are Angela Merkel, Nicola Sturgeon, as well as Ullman's first take on Prime Minister Theresa May and Melania Trump. Like Tracey Ullman's Show, it will feature a mix of famous and everyday people all reacting to the aftermath of the general election along with the anniversary of the Brexit vote. It will include the reaction of not only the UK, but Europeans and Russians. "I'm excited the BBC has asked me to make a show at this time. We've decided to shake it up with a more topical format because things move so fast these days it's like every 10 minutes I'm voting for something. There's never been a better time to be imitating world famous political women, and I admire and thank them all: Angela Merkel, Nicola Sturgeon, and my home girl newbie Theresa May. I can't wait to get stuck in - thanks to the BBC and my brilliant team. It really is a privilege." The special aired 23 June. On 13 September 2017, the BBC announced that it had ordered a full series of Tracey Breaks the News following the success of the one-off special that aired in June. Like the one-off special, the three new shows will "tackle topical stories and current issues in a sketch show written and filmed right up to the day of broadcast". Ullman is expected to impersonate French First Lady Brigitte Macron and Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn. The programme debuted on 27 October on BBC One. On 15 May 2018, it was formally announced that the show had been picked up for a second series to begin airing the following June on BBC One. In 1987, Ullman filmed a sketch for Saturday Night Live, "Hollywood Mom." In it, she plays an English actress who focuses more on her career than on her newborn daughter. In 1995, she became the first modern-day cartoon voice of Little Lulu. In 1999, she had a recurring role as an unconventional psychotherapist on Ally McBeal. Her performance garnered her an Emmy Award and an American Comedy Award. In 2005, she co-starred with Carol Burnett in the television adaptation of Once Upon a Mattress. She played Princess Winnifred, a role originally made famous by Burnett on Broadway. This time Burnett took on the role of the overbearing Queen Aggravain. On 15 April 2016, Ullman became the 100th guest host of Have I Got News for You. On 15 February 2017, it was announced that she would star in the Starz-BBC co-produced limited series adaptation of Howards End playing Aunt Juley Mund. The four-part series, directed by Hettie MacDonald, co-starring Hayley Atwell and Matthew Macfadyen, will be shot in and around London and is expected to air on BBC One in the United Kingdom and on the Starz network in the United States. On 14 September, it was announced that the series would begin broadcasting in November 2017 on BBC One. On 14 May 2019, it was announced that Ullman would be portraying Betty Friedan in the FX limited series Mrs. America. The nine- episode series will premiere in 2020 on Hulu. Along with her television work, Ullman has featured in many films throughout her career. Her first theatrical film was a small role in Paul McCartney's 1984 film Give My Regards to Broad Street. This was followed by a supporting role in the 1985 Meryl Streep drama Plenty. She re-teamed with Streep for 1992's Death Becomes Her, playing Toni, a bartender who runs away with Ernest (Bruce Willis) and lives happily ever after. Director Robert Zemeckis decided to re-shoot the ending, opting for a darker, "more risky ending." This meant that Ullman's scenes would have to be cut. "We were all heartbroken over losing the character. (She) was so great." Despite the cut, some of her scenes were released in an early trailer for the film. Death Becomes Her is one of two instances in which her scenes in a film have ended up on the cutting room floor. Due to time constraints, her song in 1996's Everyone Says I Love You was deleted. She made her big screen leading role debut in 1990's I Love You to Death acting alongside Kevin Kline, River Phoenix and Joan Plowright. She subsequently appeared in lead and supporting roles in films such as , Nancy Savoca's Household Saints, Bullets over Broadway, Small Time Crooks and A Dirty Shame. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award in the category of Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her work in Small Time Crooks in 2001. Her voice work in film includes Tim Burton's Corpse Bride and the computer-animated The Tale of Despereaux. She acted as creative consultant on the 2006 DreamWorks feature, Flushed Away. In 2014, she played Jack's Mother in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Into the Woods. Ullman was under serious consideration for a number of roles: Betty Rubble in 1994's The Flintstones; Effie Trinket in The Hunger Games. Director Adrian Lyne asked her to screen test for his film Fatal Attraction. She passed on the idea and the role went to Glenn Close. She was also sought for reuniting with her Plenty co-star Meryl Streep in She-Devil. The part ultimately went to comedian Roseanne Barr. Ullman has an extensive stage career spanning back to the 1970s. In 1980, she appeared in Victoria Wood's Talent at the Everyman Theatre in Liverpool. Her award-winning performance in Les Blair's avant-garde Four in a Million in 1981 led to a career in television. In 1982, she played Kate Hardcastle in She Stoops to Conquer. In 1983, she took part in the workshops for Andrew Lloyd Webber's upcoming musical, Starlight Express, playing the part of Pearl and Snoo Wilson's The Grass Widow at the Royal Court Theatre with actor Alan Rickman. In 1990, she starred opposite actor Morgan Freeman as Kate in Shakespeare in the Park's production of Taming of the Shrew set in the Wild West for Joe Papp. In 1991, she made her Broadway debut with Jay Presson Allen's one-woman show The Big Love, based on the book of the same name. The Big Love recounts an alleged love affair between actor Errol Flynn and a then fifteen-year-old actress Beverly Aadland, as told by her mother, Florence Aadland (Ullman). Both Taming of the Shrew and The Big Love garnered her Theatre World Awards. In February 2005, she performed her autobiographical one-woman show Tracey Ullman: Live and Exposed at The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, where it ran for ten performances. In 2011, she returned to the British stage in the Stephen Poliakoff drama My City. Her performance earned her an Evening Standard Theatre Awards nomination for Best Actress. In 2012, she joined the cast of Eric Idle's What About Dick?, described as a 1940s-style stand-up improv musical comedy radio play, taking on three roles. The show played for four nights in April in Los Angeles at the Orpheum Theater. She had performed the piece previously in a test run for Idle back in 2007. Cast members included Idle, Eddie Izzard, Billy Connolly, Russell Brand, Tim Curry, Jane Leeves, Jim Piddock, and Sophie Winkleman. On 6 October 2014, it was formally announced that she would star in a limited engagement of The Band Wagon, from 6 to 16 November 2014 at City Center. The production was directed and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall. Ullman married producer Allan McKeown in 1983. They had two children: Mabel, born in 1986, and Johnny, born in 1991. Mabel worked as assistant to former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman; she stood as a parliamentary candidate for the Labour Party in 2015, and subsequently became a charity director. Johnny is an actor and currently writes for The Late Late Show with James Corden. On 24 December 2013, Allan McKeown died at home from prostate cancer, three days before their 30th wedding anniversary. Ullman's mother died in a fire at her flat on 23 March 2015. An inquest ruled the death to be accidental. She was 85 years old. On 18 September 2018, Ullman revealed that her daughter was pregnant and that she was about to be a grandmother for the first time. Ullman became an American citizen in December 2006 and holds dual citizenship in the United States and the United Kingdom. The results of the 2004 United States presidential election, and a comment made by actor Tom Hanks, prompted her desire to naturalise. “Tom Hanks was standing in a corridor at a party and I said something, and he was just very nice and he went, 'Oh, yeah. I know that but you're British. You know, you don't have to put up with that stuff ... I went, 'No. Actually I've been here a long time.' I thought, that's it. I'm going to join in. So I took the [citizenship] test.” In 2006, she topped the list for the "Wealthiest British Comedians", with an estimated wealth of £75 million. In 2015, Ullman's wealth was estimated to be £77 million, making her the wealthiest British actress and female comedian. In 2017, The Sunday Times increased it to £80 million. She has described herself as a British republican. "Even as a kid, I never got why we pay people millions of pounds to be better than us." On a particular incident: "An MP once suggested I be put in the Tower of London for saying derogatory things about the royals." An avid knitter, she co-wrote a knitting book, Knit 2 Together: Patterns and Stories for Serious Knitting Fun in 2006. Puss in Boots (Told by Tracey Ullman with Music by Jean Luc Ponty, Rabbit Ears Entertainment), 1993., Wise Children (Performed by Tracey Ullman, Audible Studios), 2018. Ullman is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning actress. To date, she has been nominated twenty-four times. On 5 December 2006, she was honoured at the Museum of Television and Radio along with the likes of Carol Burnett, Lesley Visser, Lesley Stahl, Jane Pauley, and Betty White, in the "She Made It" category. In April 2009, it was announced that Ullman would be awarded a Lifetime Achievement BAFTA Award the following May. She became the first recipient of the Charlie Chaplin Lifetime Achievement Award for Comedy on 9 May 2009. American Comedy Awards 1988–Funniest Female Performer of the Year, 1988–Funniest Female Performer in a TV Series (Leading Role) Network, Cable or Syndication, The Tracey Ullman Show, 1989–Funniest Female Performer in a TV Special (Leading or Supporting) Network, Cable or Syndication, Tracey Ullman: Backstage, 1990–Funniest Female Performer in a TV Series (Leading Role) Network, Cable or Syndication, The Tracey Ullman Show, 1991–Funniest Female Performer in a TV Series (Leading Role) Network, Cable or Syndication, The Tracey Ullman Show, 1992–American Comedy Award Funniest Female Performer in a Television Special, Funny Women of Television, 1994–Funniest Female Performer in a TV Special (Leading or Supporting) Network, Cable or Syndication, Tracey Takes on New York, 1996–American Comedy Award Funniest Female Performer in a Television Special, Women of the Night IV, 1998–American Comedy Award Funniest Female Leading Performer in a Television Series, Tracey Takes On..., 1999–American Comedy Award Funniest Female Guest Appearance in a Television Series, Ally McBeal, 1999–American Comedy Award Funniest Female Leading Performer in a Television Series, Tracey Takes On..., 2000–American Comedy Award Funniest Female Leading Performer in a Television Series Tracey Takes On... BAFTA Awards 1984–Best Light Entertainment Performance, Three of a Kind, 2009–Lifetime Achievement Award CableACE Awards 1995–Best Performance in a Comedy Series, Tracey Ullman: Takes on New York, 1996–Best Actress in a Comedy Series, Tracey Takes On..., 1996–Best Variety Special or Series, Tracey Takes On... Primetime Emmy Awards 1989–Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program, The Tracey Ullman Show, 1990–Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program, The Tracey Ullman Show, 1990–Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program, The Best of the Tracey Ullman Show, 1993–Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series, Love & War, 1994–Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Programme, Tracey Ullman: Takes on New York, 1997–Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series, Tracey Takes On..., 1999–Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series, Ally McBeal Golden Globe Awards 1988–Best Actress in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical Critics' Circle Theatre Award 1981–Most Promising New Actress, Four in a Million Museum of Television and Radio 2006–She Made It Satellite Awards 1998–Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical, Tracey Takes On..., 2008–Best Actress in a Series, Comedy or Musical, State of the Union Screen Actors Guild Awards 1999–Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series, Tracey Takes On... Theatre World Award 1991–Taming of the Shrew, 1991–The Big Love Women in Film 1995–Lucy Award in recognition of her excellence and innovation in her creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television List of awards and nominations received by Tracey Ullman, Emmy Awards for The Tracey Ullman Show, Emmy Awards for Tracey Takes On..., British music charts history for Tracey Ullman, Guinness Book of British Hit Singles 7th Edition, Archive of an Entertainment Weekly story by Frank Spotnitz on 1992 lawsuit Tracey Ullman at the British Film Institute, Tracey Ullman Facebook page, All About Tracey – a fan site, The Tracey Ullman Archives In the context of the United States, secession primarily refers to the voluntary withdrawal of one or more states from the Union that constitutes the United States; but may loosely refer to leaving a state or territory to form a separate territory or new state, or to the severing of an area from a city or county within a state. Threats and aspirations to secede from the United States, or arguments justifying secession, have been a feature of the country's politics almost since its birth. Some have argued for secession as a constitutional right and others as from a natural right of revolution. In Texas v. White, the United States Supreme Court ruled unilateral secession unconstitutional, while commenting that revolution or consent of the states could lead to a successful secession. The most serious attempt at secession was advanced in the years 1860 and 1861 as eleven southern states each declared secession from the United States, and joined together to form the Confederate States of America. This movement collapsed in 1865 with the defeat of Confederate forces by Union armies in the American Civil War. The Declaration of Independence states: Historian Pauline Maier argues that this narrative asserted "... the right of revolution, which was, after all, the right Americans were exercising in 1776"; and notes that Thomas Jefferson's language incorporated ideas explained at length by a long list of seventeenth-century writers including John Milton, Algernon Sidney, and John Locke and other English and Scottish commentators, all of whom had contributed to the development of the Whig tradition in eighteenth-century Britain. The right of revolution expressed in the Declaration was immediately followed with the observation that long-practised injustice is tolerated until sustained assaults on the rights of the entire people have accumulated enough force to oppress them; then they may defend themselves. This reasoning was not original to the Declaration, but can be found in many prior political writings: Locke's Two Treatises of Government (1690); the Fairfax Resolves of 1774; Jefferson's own Summary View of the Rights of British America; the first Constitution of Virginia, which was enacted five days prior to the Declaration; and Thomas Paine's Common Sense (1776): Gordon S. Wood quotes John Adams: "Only repeated, multiplied oppressions placing it beyond all doubt that their rulers had formed settled plans to deprive them of their liberties, could warrant the concerted resistance of the people against their government". With origins in the question of states' rights the issue of secession was argued in many forums and advocated from time to time in both the North and South in the decades after adopting the Constitution and before the American Civil War. Historian Maury Klein described the contemporary debate: "Was the Republic a unified nation in which the individual states had merged their sovereign rights and identities forever, or was it a federation of sovereign states joined together for specific purposes from which they could withdraw at any time?" He observed that "the case can be made that no result of the [American Civil] war was more important than the destruction, once and for all . . . of the idea of secession". Historian Forrest McDonald argued that after adopting the Constitution "there were no guidelines, either in theory or in history, as to whether the compact could be dissolved and, if so, on what conditions". However, during "the founding era, many a public figure . . . declared that the states could interpose their powers between their citizens and the power of the federal government, and talk of secession was not unknown". But according to McDonald, to avoid resorting to the violence that had accompanied the Revolution, the Constitution established "legitimate means for constitutional change in the future". In effect, the Constitution "completed and perfected the Revolution". Whatever the intentions of the Founders, threats of secession and disunion were a constant in the political discourse of Americans preceding the Civil War. Historian Elizabeth R. Varon wrote: In late 1777 the Second Continental Congress approved the Articles of Confederation for ratification by the individual states. The confederation government was administered de facto by the Congress under the provisions of the approved (final) draft of the Articles until they achieved ratification—and de jure status—in early 1781. In 1786 delegates of five states (the Annapolis Convention) called for a convention of delegates in Philadelphia to amend the Articles—which would require unanimous consent of the thirteen states. The delegates to the Philadelphia Convention convened and deliberated from May to September 1787. Instead of pursuing their official charge they returned a draft (new) Constitution, proposed for constructing and administering a new federal—later also known as "national"—government. They further proposed that the draft Constitution not be submitted to the Congress (where it would require unanimous approval of the states); instead that it be presented directly to the states for ratification in special ratification conventions, and that approval by a minimum of nine state conventions would suffice to adopt the new Constitution and initiate the new federal government; and that only those states ratifying the Constitution would be included in the new government. (For a time, eleven of the original states operated under the Constitution without two non-ratifying states, Rhode Island and North Carolina.) In effect, the delegates proposed to abandon and replace the Articles of Confederation rather than amend them. Because the Articles had specified a "perpetual union", various arguments have been offered to explain the apparent contradiction (and presumed illegality) of abandoning one form of government and creating another that did not include the members of the original. One explanation was that the Articles of Confederation simply failed to protect the vital interests of the individual states. Necessity then, rather than legality, was the practical factor in abandoning the Articles. According to historian John Ferling, by 1786 the Union under the Articles was falling apart. James Madison of Virginia and Alexander Hamilton of New York—they who joined together to vigorously promote a new Constitution—urged that renewed stability of the Union government was critically needed to protect property and commerce. Both founders were strong advocates for a more powerful central government; they published The Federalist Papers to advocate their cause and became known as the federalists. (Because of his powerful advocacy Madison was later accorded the honorific "Father of the Constitution".) Ferling wrote: Other arguments that justified abandoning the Articles of Confederation pictured the Articles as an international compact between unconsolidated, sovereign states, any one of which was empowered to renounce the compact at will. (This as opposed to a consolidated union that "totally annihilated, without any power of revival" the sovereign states.) The Articles required that all states were obliged to comply with all requirements of the agreement; thus, permanence was linked to compliance. 'Compliance' was typically perceived as a matter of interpretation by each individual state. Emerich de Vattel, a recognized authority on international law, wrote at the time that "Treaties contain promises that are perfect and reciprocal. If one of the allies fails in his engagements, the other may ... disengage himself in his promises, and ... break the treaty." Thus, each state could unilaterally 'secede' from the Articles of Confederation at will; this argument for abandoning the Articles—for its weakness in the face of secession—was used by advocates for the new Constitution and was featured by James Madison in Federalist No. 43. Some argued that abandoning the Articles was the same as seceding from the Articles and thus was legal precedent for future secession(s) from the Constitution. St. George Tucker, a jurist in the early republic era, wrote in 1803: Others denied that such a precedent was set; constitutional historian Akhil Reed Amar wrote: Others argued the opposite of secession; that indeed the new Constitution inherited perpetuity from the language in the Articles and from other actions done prior to the Constitution. Historian Kenneth Stampp explains their view: Constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar argues that the permanence of the Union of the states changed significantly when the U.S. Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation. This action "signaled its decisive break with the Articles' regime of state sovereignty". By adopting a constitution—rather than a treaty, or a compact, or an instrument of confederacy, etc.—that created a new body of government designed to be senior to the several states, and by approving the particular language and provisions of that new Constitution, the framers and voters made it clear that the fates of the individual states were (severely) changed; and that the new United States was: Patrick Henry adamantly opposed adopting the Constitution because he interpreted its language to replace the sovereignty of the individual states, including that of his own Virginia. He gave his strong voice to the anti-federalist cause in opposition to the federalists led by Madison and Hamilton. Questioning the nature of the proposed new federal government, Henry asked: The federalists acknowledged that national sovereignty would be transferred by the new Constitution to the whole of the American people—indeed, regard the expression, "We the people ...". They argued, however, that Henry exaggerated the extent to which a consolidated government was being created and that the states would serve a vital role within the new republic even though their national sovereignty was ending. Tellingly, on the matter of whether states retained a right to unilaterally secede from the United States, the federalists made it clear that no such right would exist under the Constitution. Amar specifically cites the example of New York's ratification as suggestive that the Constitution did not countenance secession. Anti- federalists dominated the Poughkeepsie Convention that would ratify the Constitution. Concerned that the new compact might not sufficiently safeguard states' rights, the anti-federalists sought to insert into the New York ratification message language to the effect that "there should be reserved to the state of New York a right to withdraw herself from the union after a certain number of years." The Madison federalists opposed this, with Hamilton, a delegate at the Convention, reading aloud in response a letter from James Madison stating: "the Constitution requires an adoption in toto, and for ever" [emphasis added]. Hamilton and John Jay then told the Convention that in their view, reserving "a right to withdraw [was] inconsistent with the Constitution, and was no ratification". The New York convention ultimately ratified the Constitution without including the "right to withdraw" language proposed by the anti-federalists. Amar explains how the Constitution impacted on state sovereignty: Donald Livingston has written that the Founders themselves held that "the states were republics, but the central government was not", and as such maintained the right to reclaim their sovereignty from "a central government limited to foreign affairs, declaring war, and regulating commerce". Debates on the legality of secession often looked back to the example of the American Revolution and the Declaration of Independence. Law professor Daniel Farber defined what he considered the borders of this debate: In the public debate over the Nullification Crisis the separate issue of secession was also discussed. James Madison, often referred to as "The Father of the Constitution", strongly opposed the argument that secession was permitted by the Constitution. In a March 15, 1833, letter to Daniel Webster (congratulating him on a speech opposing nullification), Madison discussed "revolution" versus "secession": Thus Madison affirms an extraconstitutional right to revolt against conditions of "intolerable oppression"; but if the case cannot be made (that such conditions exist), then he rejects secession—as a violation of the Constitution. During the crisis, President Andrew Jackson, published his Proclamation to the People of South Carolina, which made a case for the perpetuity of the Union; plus, he provided his views re the questions of "revolution" and "secession": Some twenty-eight years after Jackson spoke, President James Buchanan gave a different voice—one much more accommodating to the views of the secessionists and the 'slave' states—in the midst of the pre- War secession crisis. In his final State of the Union address to Congress, on December 3, 1860, he acknowledged his view that the South, "after having first used all peaceful and constitutional means to obtain redress, would be justified in revolutionary resistance to the Government of the Union"; but he also drew his apocalyptic vision of the results to be expected from secession: In response to the 1798 Alien and Sedition Acts—advanced by the Federalist Party—John Taylor of the Virginia House of Delegates spoke out, urging Virginia to secede from the United States. He argued—as one of many vociferous responses by the Jeffersonian Republicans—the sense of the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, adopted in 1798 and 1799, which reserved to those States the rights of secession and interposition (nullification). Thomas Jefferson, while sitting as Vice President of the United States in 1799, wrote to James Madison of his conviction in "a reservation of th[ose] rights resulting to us from these palpable violations [the Alien and Sedition Acts]" and, if the federal government did not return to Here Jefferson is arguing in a radical voice (and in a private letter) that he would lead a movement for secession; but it is unclear whether he is arguing for "secession at will" or for "revolution" on account of "intolerable oppression" (see above), or neither. Jefferson secretly wrote (one of) the Kentucky Resolutions, which was done—again—while he was holding the office of Vice President. His biographer Dumas Malone argued that, had his actions become known at the time, Jefferson's participation might have gotten him impeached for (charged with) treason. In writing the first Kentucky Resolution, Jefferson warned that, "unless arrested at the threshold", the Alien and Sedition Acts would "necessarily drive these states into revolution and blood". Historian Ron Chernow says of this "he wasn't calling for peaceful protests or civil disobedience: he was calling for outright rebellion, if needed, against the federal government of which he was vice president." Jefferson "thus set forth a radical doctrine of states' rights that effectively undermined the constitution". Jeffersonian Republicans were not alone in claiming "reserved rights" against the federal government. Contributing to the rancorous debates during the War of 1812, Founding Father Gouverneur Morris of Pennsylvania and New York—a Federalist, a Hamilton ally and a primary author of the Constitution who advanced the concept that Americans were citizens of a single Union of the states—was persuaded to claim that "secession, under certain circumstances, was entirely constitutional." The election of 1800 showed Jefferson's Democratic-Republican Party to be on the rise and the Federalists to be declining, and the Federalists felt threatened by initiatives taken by their opponents. They viewed Jefferson's unilateral purchase of the Louisiana territory as violating foundational agreements between the original 13 states; Jefferson transacted the purchase in secret and refused to seek the approval of Congress. The new lands anticipated several future western states which the Federalists feared would be dominated by the Democratic-Republicans. Other things added to the Federalists' alarm, such as the impeachment of Federalist district judge John Pickering by the Jeffersonian-dominated Congress, and similar attacks on Pennsylvania state officials by the Democratic-Republican legislature. By 1804, their national leadership was decimated and their viable base was reduced to the states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Delaware. Timothy Pickering of Massachusetts and a few Federalists envisioned creating a separate New England confederation, possibly combining with lower Canada to form a new pro-British nation. The Embargo Act of 1807 was seen as a threat to the economy of Massachusetts, and the state legislature debated in May 1808 how the state should respond. These debates generated isolated references to secession, but no definite plot materialized. Historian Richard Buell, Jr. suggests that "the secessionist movement of 1804 was more of a confession of despair about the future than a realistic proposal for action." Federalist party members convened the Hartford Convention on December 15, 1814, and they addressed their opposition to the continuing war with Britain and the domination of the federal government by the "Virginia dynasty". Twenty six delegates attended; Massachusetts sent 12, Connecticut seven, and Rhode Island four. New Hampshire and Vermont declined, but two counties each from those states sent delegates. Historian Donald R. Hickey notes: The final report addressed issues related to the war and state defense, and it recommended several amendments to the Constitution. Massachusetts and Connecticut endorsed it, but the war ended as the delegates were returning to Washington, effectively quashing any impact that it might have had. The Jeffersonians described the convention as "a synonym for disloyalty and treason", and it became a major factor in the sharp decline of the Federalist Party. Tensions began to rise between north and south by the late 1830s over slavery and related issues. Many northerners saw themselves as political victims of conspiracies between slaveholders and western expansionists, especially New Englanders. They viewed the movements to annex Texas and to make war on Mexico as fomented by slaveholders bent on dominating western expansion and thereby the national destiny. New England abolitionist Benjamin Lundy argued that the annexation of Texas was "a long premeditated crusade—set on foot by slaveholders, land speculators, etc., with the view of reestablishing, extending, and perpetuating the system of slavery and the slave trade". Newspaper editors began demanding separation from the south. William Lloyd Garrison called for secession in The Liberator of May 1844 with his "Address to the Friends of Freedom and Emancipation in the United States". The Constitution was created, he wrote, "at the expense of the colored population of the country", and Southerners were dominating the nation because of the Three-Fifths Compromise; now it was time "to set the captive free by the potency of truth" and to "secede from the government". Coincidentally, the New England Anti-Slavery Convention endorsed the principles of disunion by a vote of 250–24. Support of secession began to shift to Southern states from 1846, after introduction of the Wilmot Proviso into the public debate. Southern leaders increasingly felt helpless against a powerful political group that was attacking their interests, reminiscent of Federalist alarms at the beginning of the century. During the presidential term of Andrew Jackson, South Carolina had its own semi-secession movement due to the 1828 "Tariff of Abominations" which threatened both South Carolina's economy and the Union. Andrew Jackson also threatened to send federal troops to put down the movement and to hang the leader of the secessionists from the highest tree in South Carolina. Also due to this, Jackson's vice president, John C. Calhoun, who supported the movement and wrote the essay "The South Carolina Exposition and Protest", became the first US vice-president to resign. On May 1, 1833, Jackson wrote of nullification, "the tariff was only a pretext, and disunion and southern confederacy the real object. The next pretext will be the negro, or slavery question." South Carolina also threatened to secede in 1850 over the issue of California's statehood. It became the first state to declare its secession from the Union on December 20, 1860, with the Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union and later joined with the other southern states in the Confederacy. The most famous secession movement was the case of the Southern states of the United States. Secession from the United States was accepted in eleven states (and failed in two others). The seceding states joined together to form the Confederate States of America (CSA). The eleven states of the CSA, in order of their secession dates (listed in parentheses), were: South Carolina (December 20, 1860), Mississippi (January 9, 1861), Florida (January 10, 1861), Alabama (January 11, 1861), Georgia (January 19, 1861), Louisiana (January 26, 1861), Texas (February 1, 1861), Virginia (April 17, 1861), Arkansas (May 6, 1861), North Carolina (May 20, 1861), and Tennessee (June 8, 1861). Secession was declared by pro-Confederate governments in Missouri and Kentucky (see Confederate government of Missouri and Confederate government of Kentucky), but did not become effective as it was opposed by their pro-Union state governments. This secession movement brought about the American Civil War. The position of the Union was that the Confederacy was not a sovereign nation—and never had been, but that "the Union" was always a single nation by intent of the states themselves, from 1776 onward—and thus that a rebellion had been initiated by individuals. Historian Bruce Catton described President Abraham Lincoln's April 15, 1861, proclamation after the attack on Fort Sumter, which defined the Union's position on the hostilities: The Constitution does not directly mention secession. The legality of secession was hotly debated in the 19th century. Although the Federalist Party briefly explored New England secession during the War of 1812, secession became associated with Southern states as the north's industrial power increased. The Supreme Court has consistently interpreted the Constitution to be an "indestructible" union. There is no legal basis a state can point to for unilaterally seceding. Many scholars hold that the Confederate secession was blatantly illegal. The Articles of Confederation explicitly state the Union is "perpetual"; the U.S. Constitution declares itself an even "more perfect union" than the Articles of Confederation. Other scholars, while not necessarily disagreeing that the secession was illegal, point out that sovereignty is often de facto an "extralegal" question. Had the Confederacy won, any illegality of its actions under U.S. law would have been rendered irrelevant, just as the undisputed illegality of American rebellion under the British law of 1775 was rendered irrelevant. Thus, these scholars argue, the illegality of unilateral secession was not firmly de facto established until the Union won the Civil War; in this view, the legal question was resolved at Appomattox. Texas v. White was argued before the United States Supreme Court during the December 1868 term. Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase read the Court's decision, on April 15, 1869. Australian Professors Peter Radan and Aleksandar Pavkovic write: However, the Court's decision recognized some possibility of the divisibility "through revolution, or through consent of the States". In 1877, the Williams v. Bruffy decision was rendered, pertaining to civil war debts. The Court wrote regarding acts establishing an independent government that "The validity of its acts, both against the parent state and the citizens or subjects thereof, depends entirely upon its ultimate success; if it fail to establish itself permanently, all such acts perish with it; if it succeed and become recognized, its acts from the commencement of its existence are upheld as those of an independent nation." Historian Kenneth Stampp notes that a historical case against secession had been made that argued that "the Union is older than the states" and that "the provision for a perpetual Union in the Articles of Confederation" was carried over into the Constitution by the "reminder that the preamble to the new Constitution gives us one of its purposes the formation of 'a more perfect Union'". Concerning the White decision Stampp wrote: The Republic of Texas successfully seceded from Mexico in 1836 (this, however took the form of outright rebellion against Mexico, and claimed no warrant under the Mexican Constitution to do so). Mexico refused to recognize its revolted province as an independent country, but the major nations of the world did recognize it. In 1845, Congress admitted Texas as a state. The documents governing Texas' accession to the United States of America do not mention any right of secession—although they did raise the possibility of dividing Texas into multiple states inside the Union. Mexico warned that annexation meant war and the Mexican–American War followed in 1846. of the United States Constitutions provides: New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new States shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress. The separation referred to is not secession but partition. Some of the movements to partition states have incorrectly identified themselves as "secessionist" movements. Of the new states admitted to the Union by Congress, three were set off from already existing states, while one was established upon land claimed by an existing state after existing for several years as a de facto independent republic. They are: Vermont was admitted as a new state in 1791 after the legislature of New York ceded its claim to the region in 1790. New York's claim that Vermont (also known as the New Hampshire Grants) was legally a part of New York was and remains a matter of disagreement. King George III, ruled in 1764 that the region belonged to the Province of New York., Kentucky was a part of Virginia until it was admitted as a new state in 1792 with the consent of the legislature of Virginia in 1789., Maine was a part of Massachusetts until it was admitted as a new state in 1820 after the legislature of Massachusetts consented in 1819., West Virginia was a part of Virginia until it was admitted as a new state in 1863 after the General Assembly of the Restored Government of Virginia consented in 1862. The question of whether the legislature of Virginia consented is controversial, as Virginia was one of the Confederate states. However, antisecessionist Virginians formed a government in exile, which was recognized by the United States and approved the state's partition. Later, by its ruling in Virginia v. West Virginia (1871), the Supreme Court implicitly affirmed that the breakaway Virginia counties did have the proper consents required to become a separate state. Many proposals to partition U.S. states have been unsuccessful. The late 20th and early 21st centuries have seen examples of local and state secession movements. All such movements to create new states have failed. The formation in 1971 of the Libertarian Party and its national platform affirmed the right of states to secede on three vital principles: "We shall support recognition of the right to secede. Political units or areas which do secede should be recognized by the United States as independent political entities where: (1) secession is supported by a majority within the political unit, (2) the majority does not attempt suppression of the dissenting minority, and (3) the government of the new entity is at least as compatible with human freedom as that from which it seceded." There was an attempt by Staten Island to break away from New York City in the late 1980s and early 1990s, leading to a 1993 referendum, in which 65% voted to secede. Implementation was blocked in the State Assembly by assertions that the state's constitution required a "home rule message" from New York City. The San Fernando Valley lost a vote to separate from Los Angeles in 2002. Despite the majority (55%) of the valley within the L.A. city limits voting for secession, the city council unanimously voted to block the partition of the valley north of Mulholland Drive. Other attempted city secession drives include Killington, Vermont, which has voted twice (2005 and 2006) to join New Hampshire; the community of Miller Beach, Indiana, originally a separate incorporated community, to split from the city of Gary in 2007 and Northeast Philadelphia to split from the city of Philadelphia in the 1980s. A portion of the town of Calabash, North Carolina voted to secede from the town in 1998 after receiving permission for a referendum on the issue from the state of North Carolina. Following secession, the area incorporated itself as the town of Carolina Shores. Despite the split, the towns continue to share fire and emergency services. Some state movements seek secession from the United States itself and the formation of a nation from one or more states. Alaska: In November 2006, the Alaska Supreme Court held in the case Kohlhaas v. State that secession was illegal and refused to permit an initiative to be presented to the people of Alaska for a vote. The Alaskan Independence Party remains a factor in state politics, and Walter Hickel, a member of the party, was Governor from 1990 to 1994., California: California secession, known as #CALEXIT, was discussed by grassroots movement parties and small activist groups calling for the state to secede from the union in a pro-secessionist meeting in Sacramento on April 15, 2010. In 2015, a political action committee called Yes California Independence Committee formed to advocate California's independence from the United States. On January 8, 2016, the California Secretary of State's office confirmed that a political body called the California National Party filed the appropriate paperwork to begin qualifying as a political party. The California National Party, whose primary objective is California independence, ran a candidate for State Assembly in the June 7, 2016 primary. On November 9, 2016, after Donald Trump won the presidential election, residents of the state caused #calexit to trend on Twitter, wanting out of the country due to his win; they argue that they have the 6th largest economy in the world, and more residents than any other state in the union. 32% of Californians, and 44% of California Democrats were in favor of California secession in a March 2017 poll. The Attorney General of California approved applications by the California Freedom Coalition and others to gather signatures to put #CALEXIT on the 2018 ballot. In July 2018, the objectives of the Calexit initiative were expanded upon by including a plan to carve out an "autonomous Native American nation" that would take up the eastern part of California, and "postponing its ballot referendum approach in favor of convincing Republican states to support their breakaway efforts.", Florida: The mock 1982 secessionist protest by the Conch Republic in the Florida Keys resulted in an ongoing source of local pride and tourist amusement. In 2015, right-wing activist Jason Patrick Sager called for Florida to secede., Georgia: On April 1, 2009, the Georgia State Senate passed a resolution, 43–1, that asserted the right of states to nullify federal laws under some circumstances. The resolution also asserted that if Congress, the president, or the federal judiciary took certain steps, such as establishing martial law without state consent, requiring some types of involuntary servitude, taking any action regarding religion or restricting freedom of political speech, or establishing further prohibitions of types or quantities of firearms or ammunition, the constitution establishing the United States government would be considered nullified and the union would be dissolved., Hawaii: The Hawaiian sovereignty movement has a number of active groups that have won some concessions from the state of Hawaii, including the offering of H.R. 258 in March 2011, which removes the words "Treaty of Annexation" from a statute. , it had passed a committee recommendation 6–0., Minnesota: The Northwest Angle is a small exclave of Minnesota jutting north into Canada due to a quirk in the definitions of the US-Canada border. Because of laws restricting fishing, some residents of the Northwest Angle suggested leaving the United States and joining Canada in 1997. The following year, U.S. Representative Collin Peterson of Minnesota proposed legislation to allow the residents of the Northwest Angle, which is part of his district, to vote on seceding from the United States and joining Canada. This action succeeded in getting fishing regulations better synchronized across these international (fresh) waters., Montana: With the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States to hear District of Columbia v. Heller in late 2007, an early 2008 movement began in Montana involving at least 60 elected officials addressing potential secession if the Second Amendment were interpreted not to grant an individual right, citing its compact with the United States of America., New Hampshire: On September 1, 2012, "The New Hampshire Liberty Party was formed to promote independence from the federal government and for the individual." The Free State Project is another NH based movement that has considered secession to increase liberty. On July 23, 2001, founder of the FSP, Jason Sorens, published "Announcement: The Free State Project", in The Libertarian Enterprise, stating, "Even if we don't actually secede, we can force the federal government to compromise with us and grant us substantial liberties. Scotland and Quebec have both used the threat of secession to get large subsidies and concessions from their respective national governments. We could use our leverage for liberty.", Oregon: Following the 2016 presidential election, Portland residents Christian Trejbal and Jennifer Rollins submitted a petition for a ballot measure relating to secession from the United States; the petitioners withdrew the measure shortly afterward, citing recent riots and death threats., South Carolina: In May 2010 a group formed that called itself the Third Palmetto Republic, a reference to the fact that the state claimed to be an independent republic twice before: once in 1776 and again in 1860. The group models itself after the Second Vermont Republic, and says its aims are for a free and independent South Carolina, and to abstain from any further federations., Texas Secession Movement: The group Republic of Texas generated national publicity for its controversial actions in the late 1990s. A small group still meets. In April 2009, Rick Perry, the Governor of Texas, raised the issue of secession in disputed comments during a speech at a Tea Party protest saying "Texas is a unique place. When we came into the union in 1845, one of the issues was that we would be able to leave if we decided to do that ... My hope is that America and Washington in particular pays attention. We've got a great union. There's absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, who knows what may come of that.", Vermont: The Second Vermont Republic, founded in 2003, is a loose network of several groups that describes itself as "a nonviolent citizens' network and think tank opposed to the tyranny of Corporate America and the U.S. government, and committed to the peaceful return of Vermont to its status as an independent republic and more broadly the dissolution of the Union". Its "primary objective is to extricate Vermont peacefully from the United States as soon as possible". They have worked closely with the Middlebury Institute created from a meeting sponsored in Vermont in 2004. On October 28, 2005, activists held the Vermont Independence Conference, "the first statewide convention on secession in the United States since North Carolina voted to secede from the Union on May 20, 1861". They also participated in the 2006 and 2007 Middlebury-organized national secessionist meetings that brought delegates from over a dozen groups., After Barack Obama won the 2012 presidential election, secession petitions pertaining to all fifty states were filed through the White House We the People petition website. Republic of Lakotah: Some members of the Lakota people of Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota created the Republic to assert the independence of a nation that was always sovereign and did not willingly join the United States; therefore they do not consider themselves technically to be secessionists., Pacific Northwest: Cascadia: There have been repeated attempts to form a Bioregional Democracy Cascadia in the northwest. The core of Cascadia would be made up through the secession of the states of Washington, Oregon and the Canadian province of British Columbia, while some supporters of the movement support portions of Northern California, Southern Alaska, Idaho and Montana joining, to define its boundaries along ecological, cultural, economic and political boundaries., League of the South: The group seeks "a free and independent Southern republic" made up of the former Confederate States of America. It operated a short-lived Southern Party supporting the right of states to secede from the Union or to legally nullify federal laws., Red-State secession / Blue-state secession: Various editorials have proposed that states of the USA secede and then form federations only with states that have voted for the same political party. These editorials note the increasingly polarized political strife in the USA between Republican voters and Democratic voters. They propose partition of the US as a way of allowing both groups to achieve their policy goals while reducing the chances of civil war. Red states and blue states are states that typically vote for the Republican and Democratic Parties, respectively. A September 2017 Zogby International poll found that 68% of Americans were open to states of the USA seceding. A 2014 Reuters/Ipsos poll showed 24% of Americans supported their state seceding from the union if necessary; 53% opposed the idea. Republicans were somewhat more supportive than Democrats. Respondents cited issues like gridlock, governmental overreach, the Affordable Care Act and a loss of faith in the federal government as reasons for secession. Dissolution of the United States, Partition and secession in California, 51st state, American Redoubt, Kirkpatrick Sale, List of active autonomist and secessionist movements in the United States, List of U.S. state partition proposals, List of U.S. county secession proposals, Northwest Territorial Imperative, Ordinance of Secession, Southern nationalism, Submissionist, Thomas Naylor McDonald, Forrest. States' Rights and the Union: Imperium in Imperio 1776–1876. (2000), Van Deusen, David (2007) Vermont Secession: The Extreme Right, And Democracy, Catamount Tavern News Service., Wilson, Views of the Constitution Declaration of Causes of Seceding States - Ordinances of Secession of Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas

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The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the monarchical head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was created from territory of the former Duchy of Luxembourg. It was in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands until 1890 under the House of Orange-Nassau. Luxembourg is the world's only sovereign grand duchy and since 1815, there have been nine monarchs, including the incumbent, Henri. The constitution of Luxembourg defines the grand duke's position: After a constitutional change (to article 34) in December 2008 resulting from Henri's refusal to assent to a law legalizing euthanasia, laws now no longer require the grand duke's formal assent (implying "approval") but his task of promulgating the law as chief executive remains. The Grand Duke does not receive a salary, but the royal family receives annually 300 000 gold francs (€281 000) for grand ducal functions. In 2017, the Luxembourg budget included €10.1 million for the Grand Duke's household costs. Succession to the throne was governed by Salic law, as dictated by the Nassau Family Pact, first adopted on 30 June 1783. The right to reign over Luxembourg was until June 2011 passed by agnatic-cognatic primogeniture within the House of Nassau, as stipulated under the 1815 Final Act of the Congress of Vienna and as confirmed by the 1867 Treaty of London. The Nassau Family Pact itself can be amended by the usual legislative process, having been so on 10 July 1907 to exclude the Count of Merenberg branch of the House, which was descended from a morganatic marriage. An heir apparent may be granted the style 'Hereditary Grand Duke'. The current heir apparent is Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume. In June 2011, agnatic primogeniture was dropped in favour of absolute primogeniture, allowing any legitimate female descendants within the House of Nassau to be included in the line of succession. The traditional titulatures of the grand duke are: By the Grace of God, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Duke of Nassau, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Count of Sayn, Königstein, Katzenelnbogen and Diez, Burgrave of Hammerstein, Lord of Mahlberg, Wiesbaden, Idstein, Merenberg, Limburg and Eppstein. It should, however, be noted that many of the titles are held without regard to the strict rules of Salic inheritance and that most, save for Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Duke of Nassau, are simply not used. Under the 1783 Nassau Family Pact, those territories of the Nassau family in the Holy Roman Empire at the time of the pact (Luxembourg and Nassau) were bound by semi-Salic law, which allowed inheritance by females or through the female line only upon extinction of male members of the dynasty. When William III died leaving only his daughter Wilhelmina as an heir, the crown of the Netherlands, not being bound by the family pact, passed to Wilhelmina. However, the crown of Luxembourg passed to a male of another branch of the House of Nassau: Adolphe, the dispossessed Duke of Nassau and head of the branch of Nassau-Weilburg. In 1905, Grand Duke Adolphe's younger half-brother, Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau, died, having left a son Georg Nikolaus, Count von Merenberg who was, however, the product of a morganatic marriage, and therefore not legally a member of the House of Nassau. In 1907, Adolphe's only son, William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, obtained passage of a law confirming the right of his eldest daughter, Marie-Adélaïde, to succeed to the throne in virtue of the absence of any remaining dynastic males of the House of Nassau, as originally stipulated in the Nassau Family Pact. She became the grand duchy's first reigning female monarch upon her father's death in 1912, and upon her own abdication in 1919, was succeeded by her younger sister Charlotte, who married Felix of Bourbon-Parma, a prince of the former Duchy of Parma. Charlotte's descendants have since reigned as the continued dynasty of Nassau, and also constitute a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon-Parma. Princess Wilhelmine of Prussia (first wife of Grand Duke William I), Grand Duchess Anna Pavlovna of Russia (wife of Grand Duke William II), Princess Sophie of Württemberg (first wife of Grand Duke William III), Princess Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont (second wife of Grand Duke William III), Princess Adelheid-Marie of Anhalt-Dessau (wife of Grand Duke Adolphe), Infanta Marie Anne of Portugal (wife of Grand Duke William IV), Prince Felix of Bourbon-Parma (husband of Grand Duchess Charlotte), Princess Joséphine Charlotte of Belgium (wife of Grand Duke Jean), María Teresa Mestre y Batista-Falla (wife of Grand Duke Henri) Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg The territory of Luxembourg has been ruled successively by counts, dukes and grand dukes. It was part of the medieval Kingdom of Germany, and later the Holy Roman Empire until it became a sovereign state in 1815. In 1354 the county was elevated to a duchy. As Elisabeth had no surviving children, she sold Luxembourg to Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1441 but only to succeed upon her death. Philip captured the city of Luxembourg in 1443, but did not assume the ducal title because of conflicting claims by Anne of Austria, the closest Luxembourg relative. In 1467, when Elisabeth II of Austria, last rival claimant to the title, renounced her rights, Philip III's son, Charles, Duke of Burgundy, assumed the title of duke of Luxembourg, making it a subsidiary title of the Duke of Burgundy. In 1482 Luxembourg passed to the House of Habsburg. After the abdication of Emperor Charles V, the duchy of Luxembourg fell to the Spanish line of the House of Habsburg. During the War of Spanish Succession, 1701–1714, the duchy was disputed between Philip of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV of France, of the House of Bourbon; and Charles of Austria, son of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, of the House of Habsburg. In 1712 Luxembourg and Namur were ceded to Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria by his French allies, but at the end of the war in 1713 with the Treaty of Utrecht Maximilian Emanuel was restored as Elector of Bavaria. In 1713 the duchy fell to the Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg. Luxembourg was occupied by French revolutionaries between 1794 and 1813. At the Vienna Congress, it was elevated to a grand duchy and given in personal union to William I of the Netherlands. The Grand Duke of Luxembourg (or Grand Duchess in the case of a female monarch) is the head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg is the world's only extant sovereign Grand Duchy, a status to which Luxembourg was promoted in 1815 upon its unification with the Netherlands under the House of Orange- Nassau. The Luxembourg constitution defines the Grand Duke's position: Under the 1783 Nassau Family Pact, those territories of the Nassau family in the Holy Roman Empire at the time of the Pact (Luxembourg and Nassau) were bound by semi-Salic law, which allowed inheritance by females or through the female line only upon extinction of male members of the dynasty. When William III died leaving only his daughter Wilhelmina as an heir, the crown of the Netherlands, not being bound by the family pact, passed to Wilhelmina. However, the crown of Luxembourg passed to a male of another branch of the House of Nassau: Adolphe, the dispossessed Duke of Nassau and head of the branch of Nassau-Weilburg. In 1905, Grand Duke Adolphe's younger half-brother, Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau, died, having left a son Georg Nikolaus, Count von Merenberg who was, however, the product of a morganatic marriage, and therefore not legally a member of the House of Nassau. In 1907, Adolphe's only son, William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, obtained passage of a law confirming the right of his eldest daughter, Marie-Adélaïde, to succeed to the throne in virtue of the absence of any remaining dynastic males of the House of Nassau, as originally stipulated in the Nassau Family Pact. She became the grand duchy's first reigning female monarch upon her father's death in 1912, and upon her own abdication in 1919, was succeeded by her younger sister Charlotte, who married Felix of Bourbon-Parma, a prince of the former Duchy of Parma. Charlotte's descendants have since reigned as the continued dynasty of Nassau. Coat of arms of Luxembourg, Duchy of Luxembourg, Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg, History of Luxembourg, Line of succession to the throne of Luxembourg, List of consorts of Luxembourg, List of Prime Ministers of Luxembourg History of titles of the counts and dukes of Luxembourg based on contemporary documents (before 1467), History of titles of the dukes of Luxembourg based on contemporary documents (1467-1795), History of titles of the grand dukes of Luxembourg based on contemporary documents (since 1814) Luxembourg ( ; ; ; ), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France to the south. Its capital, Luxembourg City, is one of the four official capitals of the European Union (together with Brussels, Frankfurt, and Strasbourg) and the seat of the European Court of Justice, the highest judicial authority in the EU. Its culture, people, and languages are highly intertwined with its neighbours, making it essentially a mixture of French and German cultures, as evident by the nation's three official languages: French, German, and the national language of Luxembourgish. The repeated invasions by Germany, especially in World War II, resulted in the country's strong will for mediation between France and Germany and, among other things, led to the foundation of the European Union. With an area of , it is one of the smallest sovereign states in Europe. In 2019, Luxembourg had a population of 613,894, which makes it one of the least-populous countries in Europe, but by far the one with the highest population growth rate. Foreigners account for nearly half of Luxembourg's population. As a representative democracy with a constitutional monarch, it is headed by Grand Duke Henri and is the world's only remaining sovereign grand duchy. Luxembourg is a developed country, with an advanced economy and one of the world's highest GDP (PPP) per capita. The City of Luxembourg with its old quarters and fortifications was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 due to the exceptional preservation of the vast fortifications and the old city. The history of Luxembourg is considered to begin in 963, when count Siegfried acquired a rocky promontory and its Roman-era fortifications known as Lucilinburhuc, "little castle", and the surrounding area from the Imperial Abbey of St. Maximin in nearby Trier. Siegfried's descendants increased their territory through marriage, war and vassal relations. At the end of the 13th century, the counts of Luxembourg reigned over a considerable territory. In 1308, Henry VII, Count of Luxembourg became King of the Germans and later Holy Roman Emperor. The House of Luxembourg produced four emperors during the High Middle Ages. In 1354, Charles IV elevated the county to the Duchy of Luxembourg. The duchy eventually became part of the Burgundian Circle and then one of the Seventeen Provinces of the Habsburg Netherlands. Over the centuries, the City and Fortress of Luxembourg, of great strategic importance situated between the Kingdom of France and the Habsburg territories, was gradually built up to be one of the most reputed fortifications in Europe. After belonging to both the France of Louis XIV and the Austria of Maria Theresa, Luxembourg became part of the First French Republic and Empire under Napoleon. The present-day state of Luxembourg first emerged at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. The Grand Duchy, with its powerful fortress, became an independent state under the personal possession of William I of the Netherlands with a Prussian garrison to guard the city against another invasion from France. In 1839, following the turmoil of the Belgian Revolution, the purely French-speaking part of Luxembourg was ceded to Belgium and the Luxembourgish-speaking part (except the Arelerland, the area around Arlon) became what is the present state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg is a founding member of the European Union, OECD, United Nations, NATO, and Benelux. The city of Luxembourg, which is the country's capital and largest city, is the seat of several institutions and agencies of the EU. Luxembourg served on the United Nations Security Council for the years 2013 and 2014, which was a first in the country's history. As of 2020, Luxembourg citizens had visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 172 countries and territories, ranking the Luxembourgish passport 2nd in the world, tied with Germany, Finland and Spain. The recorded history of Luxembourg begins with the acquisition of Lucilinburhuc (today Luxembourg Castle) situated on the Bock rock by Siegfried, Count of Ardennes, in 963 through an exchange act with St. Maximin's Abbey, Trier. Around this fort, a town gradually developed, which became the centre of a state of great strategic value. In the 14th and early 15th centuries, three members of the House of Luxembourg reigned as Holy Roman Emperors. In 1437, the House of Luxembourg suffered a succession crisis, precipitated by the lack of a male heir to assume the throne, which led to the territories being sold by Duchess Elisabeth to Philip the Good of Burgundy. In the following centuries, Luxembourg's fortress was steadily enlarged and strengthened by its successive occupants, the Bourbons, Habsburgs, Hohenzollerns and the French. After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, Luxembourg was disputed between Prussia and the Netherlands. The Congress of Vienna formed Luxembourg as a Grand Duchy within the German Confederation. The Dutch king became, in personal union, the grand duke. Although he was supposed to rule the grand duchy as an independent country with an administration of its own, in reality he treated it similarly to a Dutch province. The Fortress of Luxembourg was manned by Prussian troops for the German Confederation. This arrangement was revised by the 1839 First Treaty of London, from which date Luxembourg's full independence is reckoned. At the time of the Belgian Revolution of 1830–1839, and by the 1839 Treaty establishing full independence, Luxembourg's territory was reduced by more than half, as the predominantly francophone western part of the country was transferred to Belgium. In 1842 Luxembourg joined the German Customs Union (Zollverein). This resulted in the opening of the German market, the development of Luxembourg's steel industry, and expansion of Luxembourg's railway network from 1855 to 1875, particularly the construction of the Luxembourg-Thionville railway line, with connections from there to the European industrial regions. While Prussian troops still manned the fortress, in 1861, the Passerelle was opened, the first road bridge spanning the Pétrusse river valley, connecting the Ville Haute and the main fortification on the Bock with Luxembourg railway station, opened in 1859, on the then fortified Bourbon plateau to the south. After the Luxembourg Crisis of 1866 nearly led to war between Prussia and France, the Grand Duchy's independence and neutrality were again affirmed by the 1867 Second Treaty of London, Prussia's troops were withdrawn from the Fortress of Luxembourg, and its Bock and surrounding fortifications were dismantled. The King of the Netherlands remained Head of State as Grand Duke of Luxembourg, maintaining a personal union between the two countries until 1890. At the death of William III, the throne of the Netherlands passed to his daughter Wilhelmina, while Luxembourg (then restricted to male heirs by the Nassau Family Pact) passed to Adolph of Nassau-Weilburg. At the time of the Franco-Prussian war in 1870, despite allegations about French use of the Luxembourg railways for passing soldiers from Metz (then part of France) through the Duchy, and for forwarding provisions to Thionville, Luxembourg's neutrality was respected by Germany, and neither France nor Germany invaded the country. But in 1871, as a result of Germany's victory over France, Luxembourg's boundary with Lorraine, containing Metz and Thionville, changed from being a frontier with a part of France to a frontier with territory annexed to the German Empire as Alsace- Lorraine under the Treaty of Frankfurt. This allowed Germany the military advantage of controlling and expanding the railways there. In August 1914, Imperial Germany violated Luxembourg's neutrality in the war by invading it in the war against France. This allowed Germany to use the railway lines, while at the same time denying them to France. Nevertheless, despite the German occupation, Luxembourg was allowed to maintain much of its independence and political mechanisms. In 1940, after the outbreak of World War II, Luxembourg's neutrality was again violated when the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany entered the country, "entirely without justification". In contrast to the First World War, under the German occupation of Luxembourg during World War II, the country was treated as German territory and informally annexed to the adjacent province of the Third Reich. A government in exile based in London supported the Allies, sending a small group of volunteers who participated in the Normandy invasion. Luxembourg was liberated in September 1944, and became a founding member of the United Nations in 1945. Luxembourg's neutral status under the constitution formally ended in 1948, and in 1949 it became a founding member of NATO. In 1951, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Coal and Steel Community, which in 1957 would become the European Economic Community and in 1993 the European Union. In 1999 Luxembourg joined the Eurozone. In 2005, a referendum on the EU treaty establishing a constitution for Europe was held. The steel industry exploiting the Red Lands' rich iron-ore grounds in the beginning of the 20th century drove the country's industrialisation. After the decline of the steel industry in the 1970s, the country focused on establishing itself as a global financial centre and developed into the banking hub it is reputed for. Since the beginning of the 21st century, its governments have focused on developing the country into a knowledge economy, with the founding of the University of Luxembourg and a national space programme, projecting the first involvement in a robotic lunar expedition by 2020. Luxembourg is described as a "full democracy", with a parliamentary democracy headed by a constitutional monarch. Executive power is exercised by the Grand Duke and the cabinet, which consists of several other ministers. The Constitution of Luxembourg, the supreme law of Luxembourg, was adopted on 17 October 1868. The Grand Duke has the power to dissolve the legislature, in which case new elections must be held within three months. However, since 1919, sovereignty has resided with the Nation, exercised by the Grand Duke in accordance with the Constitution and the law. Legislative power is vested in the Chamber of Deputies, a unicameral legislature of sixty members, who are directly elected to five-year terms from four constituencies. A second body, the Council of State (Conseil d'État), composed of twenty-one ordinary citizens appointed by the Grand Duke, advises the Chamber of Deputies in the drafting of legislation. The Grand Duchy has three lower tribunals (justices de paix; in Esch-sur-Alzette, the city of Luxembourg, and Diekirch), two district tribunals (Luxembourg and Diekirch), and a Superior Court of Justice (Luxembourg), which includes the Court of Appeal and the Court of Cassation. There is also an Administrative Tribunal and an Administrative Court, as well as a Constitutional Court, all of which are located in the capital. Luxembourg is divided into 12 cantons, which are further divided into 102 communes. Twelve of the communes have city status; the city of Luxembourg is the largest. Luxembourg has long been a prominent supporter of European political and economic integration. In efforts foreshadowing European integration, Luxembourg and Belgium in 1921 formed the Belgium–Luxembourg Economic Union (BLEU) to create a regime of inter-exchangeable currency and a common customs. Luxembourg is a member of the Benelux Economic Union and was one of the founding members of the European Economic Community (now the European Union). It also participates in the Schengen Group (named after the Luxembourg village of Schengen where the agreements were signed), whose goal is the free movement of citizens among member states. At the same time, the majority of Luxembourgers have consistently believed that European unity makes sense only in the context of a dynamic transatlantic relationship, and thus have traditionally pursued a pro-NATO, pro-US foreign policy. Luxembourg is the site of the European Court of Justice, the European Court of Auditors, the Statistical Office of the European Communities ("Eurostat") and other vital EU organs. The Secretariat of the European Parliament is located in Luxembourg, but the Parliament usually meets in Brussels and sometimes in Strasbourg. The Army is situated on the "Härebierg" which is Luxemburgish and translates to "men's mountain". The army is under civilian control, with the Grand Duke as Commander-in-Chief. The Minister for Defence, currently François Bausch, oversees army operations. The professional head of the army is the Chief of Defence, who answers to the minister and holds the rank of general. Being a landlocked country, it has no navy. Luxembourg also lacks an air force, though the 17 NATO AWACS aeroplanes are, for convenience, registered as aircraft of Luxembourg. In accordance with a joint agreement with Belgium, both countries have put forth funding for one A400M military cargo plane. Luxembourg has participated in the Eurocorps, has contributed troops to the UNPROFOR and IFOR missions in former Yugoslavia, and has participated with a small contingent in the current NATO SFOR mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Luxembourg troops have also deployed to Afghanistan, to support ISAF. The army has also participated in humanitarian relief missions such as setting up refugee camps for Kurds and providing emergency supplies to Albania. Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in Europe, and ranked 167th in size of all the 194 independent countries of the world; the country is about in size, and measures long and wide. It lies between latitudes 49° and 51° N, and longitudes 5° and 7° E. To the east, Luxembourg borders the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, and to the south, it borders the French région of Grand Est (Lorraine). The Grand Duchy borders the Belgian Walloon Region, in particular the latter's provinces of Luxembourg and Liège, part of which comprises the German-speaking Community of Belgium, to the west and to the north, respectively. The northern third of the country is known as the 'Oesling', and forms part of the Ardennes. It is dominated by hills and low mountains, including the Kneiff near Wilwerdange, which is the highest point, at 560 metres (1,837 ft). Other mountains are the 'Buurgplaaz' at 559 metres near Huldange and the 'Napoléonsgaard' at 554 metres near Rambrouch. The region is sparsely populated, with only one town (Wiltz) with a population of more than four thousand people. The southern two-thirds of the country is called the "Gutland", and is more densely populated than the Oesling. It is also more diverse and can be divided into five geographic sub- regions. The Luxembourg plateau, in south-central Luxembourg, is a large, flat, sandstone formation, and the site of the city of Luxembourg. Little Switzerland, in the east of Luxembourg, has craggy terrain and thick forests. The Moselle valley is the lowest-lying region, running along the southeastern border. The Red Lands, in the far south and southwest, are Luxembourg's industrial heartland and home to many of Luxembourg's largest towns. The border between Luxembourg and Germany is formed by three rivers: the Moselle, the Sauer, and the Our. Other major rivers are the Alzette, the Attert, the Clerve, and the Wiltz. The valleys of the mid-Sauer and Attert form the border between the Gutland and the Oesling. According to the 2012 Environmental Performance Index, Luxembourg is one of the world's best performers in environmental protection, ranking 4th out of 132 assessed countries Luxembourg also ranks 6th among the top ten most livable cities in the world by Mercer's. Luxembourg has an oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb), marked by high precipitation, particularly in late summer. The summers are warm and winters cool. Luxembourg's stable and high-income market economy features moderate growth, low inflation, and a high level of innovation. Unemployment is traditionally low, although it had risen to 6.1% by May 2012, due largely to the effect of the 2008 global financial crisis. In 2011, according to the IMF, Luxembourg was the second richest country in the world, with a per capita GDP on a purchasing-power parity (PPP) basis of $80,119. Luxembourg is ranked 13th in The Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom, 26th in the United Nations Human Development Index, and 4th in the Economist Intelligence Unit's quality of life index. The industrial sector, which was dominated by steel until the 1960s, has since diversified to include chemicals, rubber, and other products. During the past decades, growth in the financial sector has more than compensated for the decline in steel production. Services, especially banking and finance, account for the majority of economic output. Luxembourg is the world's second largest investment fund centre (after the United States), the most important private banking centre in the Eurozone and Europe's leading centre for reinsurance companies. Moreover, the Luxembourg government has aimed to attract Internet start-ups, with Skype and Amazon being two of the many Internet companies that have shifted their regional headquarters to Luxembourg. Other high-tech companies have established themselves in Luxembourg, including 3D scanner developer/manufacturer Artec 3D. In April 2009, concern about Luxembourg's banking secrecy laws, as well as its reputation as a tax haven, led to its being added to a "grey list" of nations with questionable banking arrangements by the G20. In response, the country soon after adopted OECD standards on exchange of information and was subsequently added into the category of "jurisdictions that have substantially implemented the internationally agreed tax standard". In March 2010, the Sunday Telegraph reported that most of Kim Jong-Il's $4 billion in secret accounts is in Luxembourg banks. Amazon.co.uk also benefits from Luxembourg tax loopholes by channeling substantial UK revenues as reported by The Guardian in April 2012. Luxembourg ranked third on the Tax Justice Network's 2011 Financial Secrecy Index of the world's major tax havens, scoring only slightly behind the Cayman Islands. In 2013, Luxembourg is ranked as the 2nd safest tax haven in the world, behind Switzerland. In early November 2014, just days after becoming head of the European Commission, the Luxembourg's former Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker was hit by media disclosures—derived from a document leak known as Luxembourg Leaks—that Luxembourg under his premiership had turned into a major European centre of corporate tax avoidance. Agriculture employed about 2.1% percent of Luxembourg's active population in 2010, when there were 2200 agricultural holdings with an average area per holding of 60 hectares. Luxembourg has especially close trade and financial ties to Belgium and the Netherlands (see Benelux), and as a member of the EU it enjoys the advantages of the open European market. With $171 billion in May 2015, the country ranks eleventh in the world in holdings of U.S. Treasury securities. However, securities owned by non-Luxembourg residents, but held in custodial accounts in Luxembourg, are also included in this figure. , public debt of Luxembourg was at $14,865,000,000, or a per capita debt of $24,683. The debt to GDP was 21,40%. Luxembourg has efficient road, rail and air transport facilities and services. The road network has been significantly modernised in recent years with of motorways connecting the capital to adjacent countries. The advent of the high-speed TGV link to Paris has led to renovation of the city's railway station and a new passenger terminal at Luxembourg Airport was opened in 2008. Luxembourg city reintroduced trams in December 2017 and there are plans to open light-rail lines in adjacent areas within the next few years. The number of cars per 1000 persons amount to 680.1 in Luxembourg — higher than all but two states, namely the Principality of Monaco and the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. In 2019, it is set to become the first country to make public transportation free. The telecommunications industry in Luxembourg is liberalised and the electronic communications networks are significantly developed. Competition between the different operators is guaranteed by the legislative framework Paquet Telecom of the Government of 2011 which transposes the European Telecom Directives into Luxembourgish law. This encourages the investment in networks and services. The regulator ILR – Institut Luxembourgeois de Régulation ensures the compliance to these legal rules. Luxembourg has modern and widely deployed optical fiber and cable networks throughout the country. In 2010, the Luxembourg Government launched its National strategy for very high-speed networks with the aim to become a global leader in terms of very high-speed broadband by achieving full 1 Gbit/s coverage of the country by 2020. In 2011, Luxembourg had an NGA coverage of 75%. In April 2013 Luxembourg featured the 6th highest download speed worldwide and the 2nd highest in Europe: 32,46 Mbit/s. The country's location in Central Europe, stable economy and low taxes favour the telecommunication industry. It ranks 2nd in the world in the development of the Information and Communication Technologies in the ITU ICT Development Index and 8th in the Global Broadband Quality Study 2009 by the University of Oxford and the University of Oviedo. Luxembourg is connected to all major European Internet Exchanges (AMS-IX Amsterdam, DE-CIX Frankfurt, LINX London), datacenters and POPs through redundant optical networks. In addition, the country is connected to the virtual meetme room services (vmmr) of the international data hub operator Ancotel. This enables Luxembourg to interconnect with all major telecommunication operators and data carriers worldwide. The interconnection points are in Frankfurt, London, New York and Hong Kong. Luxembourg has established itself as one of the leading financial technology (FinTech) hubs in Europe, with the Luxembourg government supporting initiatives like the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology. Some 20 data centres are operating in Luxembourg. Six data centers are Tier IV Design certified: three of ebrc, two of LuxConnect and one of European Data Hub. In a survey on nine international data centers carried out in December 2012 and January 2013 and measuring availability (up-time) and performance (delay by which the data from the requested website was received), the top three positions were held by Luxembourg data centers. The people of Luxembourg are called Luxembourgers. The immigrant population increased in the 20th century due to the arrival of immigrants from Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, and Portugal, with the majority coming from the latter: in 2013 there were about 88,000 inhabitants with Portuguese nationality. In 2013, there were 537,039 permanent residents, 44.5% of which were of foreign background or foreign nationals; the largest foreign ethnic groups were the Portuguese, comprising 16.4% of the total population, followed by the French (6.6%), Italians (3.4%), Belgians (3.3%) and Germans (2.3%). Another 6.4% were of other EU background, while the remaining 6.1% were of other non-EU, but largely other European, background. Since the beginning of the Yugoslav wars, Luxembourg has seen many immigrants from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia. Annually, over 10,000 new immigrants arrive in Luxembourg, mostly from the EU states, as well as Eastern Europe. In 2000 there were 162,000 immigrants in Luxembourg, accounting for 37% of the total population. There were an estimated 5,000 illegal immigrants in Luxembourg in 1999. The linguistic situation of Luxembourg is complex. It is characterized by the existence of a language specific to the local population (Luxembourgish), mixed with the historical presence of the two major languages spoken in the surrounding countries (French and German). Three languages are recognised as official in Luxembourg: French, German, and Luxembourgish, a Franconian language of the Moselle region that is also spoken in neighbouring parts of Belgium, Germany and France. Though Luxembourgish is part of the West Central German group of High German languages, more than 5,000 words in the language are of French origin. The first printed sentences in Luxembourgish appeared in a weekly journal, the Luxemburger Wochenblatt, in the second edition on 14 April 1821. Apart from being one of the three official languages, Luxembourgish is also considered the national language of the Grand Duchy; it is the mother tongue or "language of the heart" for the local population. Every citizen or resident has the right to address the administration in the language of their choice among the three official languages and to be answered in that language. Due to the historical influence of the Napoleonic Code on the legal system of the Grand Duchy, French is the sole language of the legislation. French is generally the preferred language of the government, administration and justice. The parliamentary debates are however mostly conducted in Luxembourgish, whereas the written government communications and the official documents (e.g. administrative or judicial decisions, passports etc.) are drafted only in French. Each of the three languages is used as the primary language in certain spheres of everyday life, without being exclusive. Luxembourgish is the language that Luxembourgers generally use to speak to each other, but it is not often used as the written language and the numerous expatriate workers (approximately 60% of the population) generally do not use it to speak to each other. Since the 1980s, however, an increasing number of novels have been written in Luxembourgish. Most official business is carried out in French. German is very often used in much of the media alongside with French. French is mostly used for written communications from the authorities to the public. A 2009 survey pointed out that French was the language spoken by most inhabitants (99%), followed by Luxembourgish (82%), German (81%), and English (72%). Although professional life is largely multilingual, French is described by private sector business leaders as the main working language of their companies (56%), followed by Luxembourgish (20%), English (18%), and German (6%). Due to the large community of Portuguese origin, the Portuguese language is de facto fairly present in Luxembourg though it remains limited to the relationships inside this community; although Portuguese does not have any official status, the administration sometimes holds certain informative documents available in Portuguese. Luxembourg is a secular state, but the state recognises certain religions as officially mandated religions. This gives the state a hand in religious administration and appointment of clergy, in exchange for which the state pays certain running costs and wages. Currently, religions covered by such arrangements are Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Greek Orthodoxy, Anglicanism, Russian Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Calvinism, Mennonitism, and Islam. Since 1980 it has been illegal for the government to collect statistics on religious beliefs or practices. An estimation by the CIA Factbook for the year 2000 is that 87% of Luxembourgers are Catholic, including the grand ducal family, the remaining 13% being made up of Protestants, Orthodox Christians, Jews, Muslims, and those of other or no religion. According to a 2010 Pew Research Center study, 70.4% are Christian, 2.3% Muslim, 26.8% unaffiliated, and 0.5% other religions. According to a 2005 Eurobarometer poll, 44% of Luxembourg citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", whereas 28% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force", and 22% that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, god, or life force". Luxembourg's education system is trilingual: the first years of primary school are in Luxembourgish, before changing to German; while in secondary school, the language of instruction changes to French. Proficiency in all three languages is required for graduation from secondary school, but half the students leave school without a certified qualification, with the children of immigrants being particularly disadvantaged. In addition to the three national languages, English is taught in compulsory schooling and much of the population of Luxembourg can speak English. The past two decades have highlighted the growing importance of English in several sectors, in particular the financial sector. Portuguese, the language of the largest immigrant community, is also spoken by large segments of the population, but by relatively few from outside the Portuguese-speaking community. The University of Luxembourg is the only university based in Luxembourg. In 2014, Luxembourg School of Business, a graduate business school, has been created through private initiative and has received the accreditation from the Ministry of Higher Education and Research of Luxembourg in 2017. Two American universities maintain satellite campuses in the country, Miami University (Dolibois European Center) and Sacred Heart University (Luxembourg Campus). According to data from the World Health Organization, healthcare spending on behalf of the government of Luxembourg topped $4.1 Billion, amounting to about $8,182 for each citizen in the nation. The nation of Luxembourg collectively spent nearly 7% of its Gross Domestic Product on health, placing it among the highest spending countries on health services and related programs in 2010 among other well-off nations in Europe with high average income among its population. Luxembourg has been overshadowed by the culture of its neighbours. It retains a number of folk traditions, having been for much of its history a profoundly rural country. There are several notable museums, located mostly in the capital. These include the National Museum of History and Art (NMHA), the Luxembourg City History Museum, and the new Grand Duke Jean Museum of Modern Art (Mudam). The National Museum of Military History (MNHM) in Diekirch is especially known for its representations of the Battle of the Bulge. The city of Luxembourg itself is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, on account of the historical importance of its fortifications. The country has produced some internationally known artists, including the painters Théo Kerg, Joseph Kutter and Michel Majerus, and photographer Edward Steichen, whose The Family of Man exhibition has been placed on UNESCO's Memory of the World register, and is now permanently housed in Clervaux. Movie star Loretta Young was of Luxembourgish descent. Luxembourg was the first city to be named European Capital of Culture twice. The first time was in 1995. In 2007, the European Capital of Culture was to be a cross-border area consisting of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Rheinland-Pfalz and Saarland in Germany, the Walloon Region and the German-speaking part of Belgium, and the Lorraine area in France. The event was an attempt to promote mobility and the exchange of ideas, crossing borders physically, psychologically, artistically and emotionally. Luxembourg was represented at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, China, from 1 May to 31 October 2010 with its own pavilion. The pavilion was based on the transliteration of the word Luxembourg into Chinese, "Lu Sen Bao", which means "Forest and Fortress". It represented Luxembourg as the "Green Heart in Europe". Unlike most countries in Europe, sport in Luxembourg is not concentrated upon a particular national sport, but encompasses a number of sports, both team and individual. Despite the lack of a central sporting focus, over 100,000 people in Luxembourg, out of a total population of near 500,000–600,000, are licensed members of one sports federation or another. The largest sports venue in the country is d'Coque, an indoor arena and Olympic swimming pool in Kirchberg, north-eastern Luxembourg City, which has a capacity of 8,300. The arena is used for basketball, handball, gymnastics, and volleyball, including the final of the 2007 Women's European Volleyball Championship. The national stadium (also the country's largest) is the Stade Josy Barthel, in western Luxembourg City; named after the country's only official Olympic gold medallist, the stadium has a capacity of 8,054. Luxembourg cuisine reflects its position on the border between the Latin and Germanic worlds, being heavily influenced by the cuisines of neighboring France and Germany. More recently, it has been enriched by its many Italian and Portuguese immigrants. Most native Luxembourg dishes, consumed as the traditional daily fare, share roots in the country's folk dishes the same as in neighboring Germany. Luxembourg sells the most alcohol in Europe per capita. However, the large proportion of alcohol purchased by customers from neighboring countries contributes to the statistically high level of alcohol sales per capita; this level of alcohol sales is thus not representative of the actual alcohol consumption of the Luxembourg population. The main languages of media in Luxembourg are French and German. The newspaper with the largest circulation is the German-language daily Luxemburger Wort. Because of the strong multilingualism in Luxembourg, newspapers often alternate articles in French and articles in German, without translation. In addition there are both English and Portuguese radio and national print publications, but accurate audience figures are difficult to gauge since the national media survey by ILRES is conducted in French. Luxembourg is known in Europe for its radio and television stations (Radio Luxembourg and RTL Group). It is also the uplink home of SES, carrier of major European satellite services for Germany and Britain. Due to a 1988 law that established a special tax scheme for audiovisual investment, the film and co-production in Luxembourg has grown steadily. There are some 30 registered production companies in Luxembourg. Luxembourg won an Oscar in 2014 in the Animated Short Films category with Mr Hublot. List of Luxembourgers Outline of Luxembourg Plan d'action national luxembourgeois en matière de TIC et de haut-débit, CEE- Europe's Digital Competitiveness Report –Volume 2: i2010 –ICT Country Profiles- page 40-41, Inauguration of LU-CIX, Art and Culture in Luxembourg The Official Portal of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Luxembourg from UCB Libraries GovPubs, Luxembourg profile from the BBC News, Luxembourg's Constitution of 1868 with Amendments through 2009, English Translation 2012

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"The Mind and the Matter" is episode 63 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. It originally aired on May 12, 1961 on CBS. Archibald Beechcroft has an insufferably crowded time getting to work, and becomes annoyed when errand boy Henry spills coffee all over his suit. Taking some aspirin in the washroom, his boss Mr. Rogers lectures him about a proper lifestyle to maintain his health. Aggravated, Beechcroft says he's fed up with the crowded conditions at the office and wants to eliminate all the people of the world. In the cafeteria for lunch, Henry apologizes to Beechcroft further for spilling the coffee, saving him a seat and presenting him with a book titled The Mind and the Matter, which deals with the ultimate in concentration; Henry explains that his friend has learned how to make things happen with his mind. Beechcroft leafs through the book in the cafeteria, continues to read it on the subway ride home, and finishes it over supper in his apartment. Agreeing with the authors that concentration is the greatest power in the universe, it occurs to him that he can use it to realize his dream of eliminating people. When his landlady knocks to collect his rent, he tests the theory, and successfully makes her disappear. The next day, Beechcroft uses his concentration to make his crowded subway station empty of people. He rides an empty subway car to the office, which is totally empty, with doors opening for him. Though he takes satisfaction in his newfound peace and quiet, he soon grows bored. Reflections of himself appear, taunting him as bored and lonely. He tries diversions such as an earthquake and thunderstorm, but isn't entertained. He glumly rides the empty subway home, where he is again taunted by his reflection. Arguing with it, he gets the idea of repopulating the world with people like himself. He does so, and the next morning the crowds in the subway and elevator are back, but now everyone has his face and unpleasant, antisocial personality. Dismayed, he returns the world to the way it used to be. Henry again spills coffee on him, and asks about the book. Beechcroft pretends to have found the book "totally unbelievable". Shelley Berman as Archibald Beechcroft, Jack Grinnage as Henry, Chet Stratton as Mr. Rogers, Robert McCord as Elevator Operator, Jeane Wood as Landlady DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media., Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. "The Silence" is episode 61 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. The plot of this episode was based in part on the short story "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov. It originally aired on April 28, 1961 on CBS. Colonel Archie Taylor, a gruff aristocrat, has difficulty enjoying his men's club because of the constant chatter of fellow member Jamie Tennyson. In an effort to shut Tennyson up, Taylor proposes a wager: he bets $500,000 that Tennyson cannot remain silent for one year. If Tennyson accepts the wager, a small glass-walled apartment will be erected in the club's game room to house him. There, he will be monitored by microphones so that he cannot speak without detection. He may only write notes to communicate or make requests, and the other members may observe him through the glass at their leisure. Tennyson is offended but agrees, telling fellow club member George Alfred that he deeply loves his wife and needs the money to pay the debts incurred by her exorbitant spending. He requests that Taylor put a check on deposit in his name. This measure is refused by all in the club as the Colonel has a strong standing of honor and credit. "My courage against your credit" is then accepted by both, and the challenge begins at 10:00 the following night. Though he had assumed Tennyson would be successful for only a few weeks, after nine months Tennyson remains silent. Taylor gets nervous and offers Tennyson first $1,000, then $5,000, and finally $6,000 to call off the bet. He begins suggesting that Tennyson's wife is planning to leave him for another man rather than wait out his year of silence. Though Tennyson has sent several notes requesting that she visit, his wife has never responded, giving weight to Taylor's insinuations. Tennyson seems gripped by despair at the thought of losing his wife, but nonetheless refuses to call off the bet. On the last evening of the year, Alfred tells Taylor his behavior over the past few months, particularly using Tennyson's wife as a threat, has severely damaged the club members' esteem for him. Tennyson emerges to the congratulations of his fellow club members, before he approaches Taylor and silently puts his hand out for the money. The embarrassed Taylor admits that he had lost his fortune several years earlier. He praises Tennyson's resolve and character and then announces his decision to resign from the club. The distraught Tennyson scribbles furiously on a sheet of paper, perplexing the other men who wonder why he does not speak aloud. Taylor reads the note aloud: "I knew that I would not be able to keep my part of the bargain, so one year ago I had the nerves to my vocal cords severed!" Tennyson, with tears in his eyes, displays the scar on his throat from the operation, which he has concealed for the past twelve months under scarves and turtlenecks. Franchot Tone as Archie Taylor, Liam Sullivan as Jamie Tennyson, Jonathan Harris as George Alfred, Cyril Delevanti as Franklin, Everett Glass as Club Member, Felix Locher as Club Member, John Holland as Club Member List of The Twilight Zone episodes Zicree, Marc Scott. The Twilight Zone Companion. Sillman-James Press, 1982 (second edition)., DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media., Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. "Sounds and Silences" is episode 147 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. It originally aired on April 3, 1964 on CBS. Roswell G. Flemington, owner of a model ship company and formerly a serviceman of the United States Navy, grew up in a home where his mother required silence. Thus, as an adult, he makes as much noise as he possibly can, is obsessed with the Navy, and behaves thunderously in response to any slight. One day, after twenty years his wife has had enough of his obsession with noise and finally walks out on him. Now alone, he begins to hear every little noise – a drip of water, the margin bell on a typewriter – like an explosion or gunshot. He sees a psychiatrist who helps him understand that conflict with his wife has caused him to relive his resentment against his mother to the point that he internalizes his mother's affliction. He now realizes it is all in his head, all he needs to do is overcome the mental block with "mind over matter", and he does. The only problem is that when his wife returns to pick up her jewelry, he tells her about it and proceeds to "shut her out". Unfortunately, his solution proves too effective, and Flemington finds that he can hear nothing. Now desperate to hear anything, Flemington puts a record on, setting the volume at its highest setting. Although the scene is silent, the insides of his apartment vibrate from the sound of his stereo. As the episode ends, Flemington opens up the windows to the street below, and begs for noise. John McGiver as Roswell G. Flemington, Penny Singleton as Mrs. Lydia Flemington, Billy Benedict as Conklin, Francis De Sales as Doctor, Michael Fox as Psychiatrist, Renee Aubry as Ms. Abernathy (Secretary), Lurene Tuttle as Secretary In 1961, a script titled "The Sound of Silence" was submitted to the producers and rejected. Following the first screening of "Sounds and Silences", the original author successfully sued Rod Serling for plagiarism because of similarities in the plot, and was awarded $3,500 in damages. Since litigation was ongoing at the time of the initial syndication package creation the episode was withheld until 1984 when it first resurfaced on a special holiday presentation. DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media., Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing.

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Nondisjunction is the failure of homologous chromosomes or sister chromatids to separate properly during cell division. There are three forms of nondisjunction: failure of a pair of homologous chromosomes to separate in meiosis I, failure of sister chromatids to separate during meiosis II, and failure of sister chromatids to separate during mitosis. Nondisjunction results in daughter cells with abnormal chromosome numbers (aneuploidy). Calvin Bridges and Thomas Hunt Morgan are credited with discovering nondisjunction in Drosophila melanogaster sex chromosomes in the spring of 1910, while working in the Zoological Laboratory of Columbia University. In general, nondisjunction can occur in any form of cell division that involves ordered distribution of chromosomal material. Higher animals have three distinct forms of such cell divisions: Meiosis I and meiosis II are specialized forms of cell division occurring during generation of gametes (eggs and sperm) for sexual reproduction, mitosis is the form of cell division used by all other cells of the body. Ovulated eggs become arrested in metaphase II until fertilization triggers the second meiotic division. Similar to the segregation events of mitosis, the pairs of sister chromatids resulting from the separation of bivalents in meiosis I are further separated in anaphase of meiosis II. In oocytes, one sister chromatid is segregated into the second polar body, while the other stays inside the egg. During spermatogenesis, each meiotic division is symmetric such that each primary spermatocyte gives rise to 2 secondary spermatocytes after meiosis I, and eventually 4 spermatids after meiosis II. Meiosis II-nondisjunction may also result in aneuploidy syndromes, but only to a much smaller extent than do segregation failures in meiosis I. Division of somatic cells through mitosis is preceded by replication of the genetic material in S phase. As a result, each chromosome consists of two sister chromatids held together at the centromere. In the anaphase of mitosis, sister chromatids separate and migrate to opposite cell poles before the cell divides. Nondisjunction during mitosis leads to one daughter receiving both sister chromatids of the affected chromosome while the other gets none. This is known as a chromatin bridge or an anaphase bridge. Mitotic nondisjunction results in somatic mosaicism, since only daughter cells originating from the cell where the nondisjunction event has occurred will have an abnormal number of chromosomes. Nondisjunction during mitosis can contribute to the development of some forms of cancer, e.g. retinoblastoma (see below). Chromosome nondisjunction in mitosis can be attributed to the inactivation of topoisomerase II, condensin, or separase. Meiotic nondisjunction has been well studied in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This yeast undergoes mitosis similarly to other eukaryotes. Chromosome bridges occur when sister chromatids are held together post replication by DNA-DNA topological entanglement and the cohesion complex. During anaphase, cohesin is cleaved by separase. Topoisomerase II and condensin are responsible for removing catenations. The spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) is a molecular safe-guarding mechanism that governs proper chromosome segregation in eukaryotic cells. SAC inhibits progression into anaphase until all homologous chromosomes (bivalents, or tetrads) are properly aligned to the spindle apparatus. Only then, SAC releases its inhibition of the anaphase promoting complex (APC), which in turn irreversibly triggers progression through anaphase. Surveys of cases of human aneuploidy syndromes have shown that most of them are maternally derived. This raises the question: Why is female meiosis more error prone? The most obvious difference between female oogenesis and male spermatogenesis is the prolonged arrest of oocytes in late stages of prophase I for many years up to several decades. Male gametes on the other hand quickly go through all stages of meiosis I and II. Another important difference between male and female meiosis concerns the frequency of recombination between homologous chromosomes: In the male, almost all chromosome pairs are joined by at least one crossover, while more than 10% of human oocytes contain at least one bivalent without any crossover event. Failures of recombination or inappropriately located crossovers have been well documented as contributors to the occurrence of nondisjunction in humans. Due to the prolonged arrest of human oocytes, weakening of cohesive ties holding together chromosomes and reduced activity of the SAC may contribute to maternal age-related errors in segregation control. The cohesin complex is responsible for keeping together sister chromatids and provides binding sites for spindle attachment. Cohesin is loaded onto newly replicated chromosomes in oogonia during fetal development. Mature oocytes have only limited capacity for reloading cohesin after completion of S phase. The prolonged arrest of human oocytes prior to completion of meiosis I may therefore result in considerable loss of cohesin over time. Loss of cohesin is assumed to contribute to incorrect microtubule-kinetochore attachment and chromosome segregation errors during meiotic divisions. The result of this error is a cell with an imbalance of chromosomes. Such a cell is said to be aneuploid. Loss of a single chromosome (2n-1), in which the daughter cell(s) with the defect will have one chromosome missing from one of its pairs, is referred to as a monosomy. Gaining a single chromosome, in which the daughter cell(s) with the defect will have one chromosome in addition to its pairs is referred to as a trisomy. In the event that an aneuploidic gamete is fertilized, a number of syndromes might result. The only known survivable monosomy in humans is Turner syndrome, where the affected individual is monosomic for the X chromosome (see below). Other monosomies are usually lethal during early fetal development, and survival is only possible if not all the cells of the body are affected in case of a mosaicism (see below), or if the normal number of chromosomes is restored via duplication of the single monosomic chromosome ("chromosome rescue"). Complete loss of an entire X chromosome accounts for about half the cases of Turner syndrome. The importance of both X chromosomes during embryonic development is underscored by the observation that the overwhelming majority (>99%) of fetuses with only one X chromosome (karyotype 45, X0) are spontaneously aborted. The term autosomal trisomy means that a chromosome other than the sex chromosomes X and Y is present in 3 copies instead of the normal number of 2 in diploid cells. Down syndrome, a trisomy of chromosome 21, is the most common anomaly of chromosome number in humans. The majority of cases results from nondisjunction during maternal meiosis I. Trisomy occurs in at least 0.3% of newborns and in nearly 25% of spontaneous abortions. It is the leading cause of pregnancy wastage and is the most common known cause of mental retardation. It is well documented that advanced maternal age is associated with greater risk of meiotic nondisjunction leading to Down syndrome. This may be associated with the prolonged meiotic arrest of human oocytes potentially lasting for more than four decades. Human trisomies compatible with live birth, other than Down syndrome (trisomy 21), are Edwards syndrome (trisomy 18) and Patau syndrome (trisomy 13). Complete trisomies of other chromosomes are usually not viable and represent a relatively frequent cause of miscarriage. Only in rare cases of a mosaicism, the presence of a normal cell line, in addition to the trisomic cell line, may support the development of a viable trisomy of the other chromosomes. The term sex chromosome aneuploidy summarizes conditions with an abnormal number of sex chromosomes, i.e. other than XX (female) or XY (male). Formally, X chromosome monosomy (Turner syndrome, see above) can also be classified as a form of sex chromosome aneuploidy. Klinefelter syndrome is the most common sex chromosome aneuploidy in humans. It represents the most frequent cause of hypogonadism and infertility in men. Most cases are caused by nondisjunction errors in paternal meiosis I. About eighty percent of individuals with this syndrome have one extra X chromosome resulting in the karyotype XXY. The remaining cases have either multiple additional sex chromosomes (48,XXXY; 48,XXYY; 49,XXXXY), mosaicism (46,XY/47,XXY), or structural chromosome abnormalities. The incidence of XYY syndrome is approximately 1 in 800-1000 male births. Many cases remain undiagnosed because of their normal appearance and fertility, and the absence of severe symptoms. The extra Y chromosome is usually a result of nondisjunction during paternal meiosis II. Trisomy X is a form of sex chromosome aneuploidy where females have three instead of two X chromosomes. Most patients are only mildly affected by neuropsychological and physical symptoms. Studies examining the origin of the extra X chromosome observed that about 58-63% of cases were caused by nondisjunction in maternal meiosis I, 16-18% by nondisjunction in maternal meiosis II, and the remaining cases by post-zygotic, i.e. mitotic, nondisjunction. Uniparental disomy denotes the situation where both chromosomes of a chromosome pair are inherited from the same parent and are therefore identical. This phenomenon most likely is the result of a pregnancy that started as a trisomy due to nondisjunction. Since most trisomies are lethal, the fetus only survives because it loses one of the three chromosomes and becomes disomic. Uniparental disomy of chromosome 15 is, for example, seen in some cases of Prader-Willi syndrome and Angelman syndrome. Mosaicism syndromes can be caused by mitotic nondisjunction in early fetal development. As a consequence, the organism evolves as a mixture of cell lines with differing ploidy (number of chromosomes). Mosaicism may be present in some tissues, but not in others. Affected individuals may have a patchy or assymmetric appearance. Examples of mosaicism syndromes include Pallister- Killian syndrome and Hypomelanosis of Ito. Development of cancer often involves multiple alterations of the cellular genome (Knudson hypothesis). Human retinoblastoma is a well studied example of a cancer type where mitotic nondisjunction can contribute to malignant transformation: Mutations of the RB1 gene, which is located on chromosome 13 and encodes the tumor suppressor retinoblastoma protein, can be detected by cytogenetic analysis in many cases of retinoblastoma. Mutations of the RB1 locus in one copy of chromosome 13 are sometimes accompanied by loss of the other wild-type chromosome 13 through mitotic nondisjunction. By this combination of lesions, affected cells completely lose expression of functioning tumor suppressor protein. Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD or PIGD) is a technique used to identify genetically normal embryos and is useful for couples who have a family history of genetic disorders. This is an option for people choosing to procreate through IVF. PGD is considered difficult due to it being both time consuming and having success rates only comparable to routine IVF. Karyotyping involves performing an amniocentesis in order to study the cells of an unborn fetus during metaphase 1. Light microscopy can be used to visually determine if aneuploidy is an issue. Polar body diagnosis (PBD) can be use to detect maternally derived chromosomal aneuploidies as well as translocations in oocytes. The advantage of PBD over PGD is that it can be accomplished in a short amount of time. This is accomplished through zona drilling or laser drilling. Blastomere biopsy is a technique in which blastomeres are removed from the zona pellucida. It is commonly used to detect aneuploidy. Genetic analysis is conducted once the procedure is complete. Additional studies are needed to assess the risk associated with the procedure. Exposure of spermatozoa to lifestyle, environmental and/or occupational hazards may increase the risk of aneuploidy. Cigarette smoke is a known aneugen (aneuploidy inducing agent). It is associated with increases in aneuploidy ranging from 1.5 to 3.0-fold. Other studies indicate factors such as alcohol consumption, occupational exposure to benzene, and exposure to the insecticides fenvalerate and carbaryl also increase aneuploidy. A couple of homologous chromosomes, or homologs, are a set of one maternal and one paternal chromosome that pair up with each other inside a cell during fertilization. Homologs have the same genes in the same loci where they provide points along each chromosome which enable a pair of chromosomes to align correctly with each other before separating during meiosis. This is the basis for Mendelian inheritance which characterizes inheritance patterns of genetic material from an organism to its offspring parent developmental cell at the given time and area. Chromosomes are linear arrangements of condensed deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and histone proteins, which form a complex called chromatin. Homologous chromosomes are made up of chromosome pairs of approximately the same length, centromere position, and staining pattern, for genes with the same corresponding loci. One homologous chromosome is inherited from the organism's mother; the other is inherited from the organism's father. After mitosis occurs within the daughter cells, they have the correct number of genes which are a mix of the two parents' genes. In diploid (2n) organisms, the genome is composed of one set of each homologous chromosome pair, as compared to tetraploid organisms which may have two sets of each homologous chromosome pair. The alleles on the homologous chromosomes may be different, resulting in different phenotypes of the same genes. This mixing of maternal and paternal traits is enhanced by crossing over during meiosis, wherein lengths of chromosomal arms and the DNA they contain within a homologous chromosome pair are exchanged with one another. Early in the 1900s William Bateson and Reginald Punnett were studying genetic inheritance and they noted that some combinations of alleles appeared more frequently than others. That data and information was further explored by Thomas Morgan. Using test cross experiments, he revealed that, for a single parent, the alleles of genes near to one another along the length of the chromosome move together. Using this logic he concluded that the two genes he was studying were located on homologous chromosomes. Later on during the 1930s Harriet Creighton and Barbara McClintock were studying meiosis in corn cells and examining gene loci on corn chromosomes. Creighton and McClintock discovered that the new allele combinations present in the offspring and the event of crossing over were directly related. This proved interchromosomal genetic recombination. Homologous chromosomes are chromosomes which contain the same genes in the same order along their chromosomal arms. There are two main properties of homologous chromosomes: the length of chromosomal arms and the placement of the centromere. The actual length of the arm, in accordance with the gene locations, is critically important for proper alignment. Centromere placement can be characterized by four main arrangements, consisting of being either metacentric, submetacentric, acrocentric, or telocentric. Both of these properties are the main factors for creating structural homology between chromosomes. Therefore, when two chromosomes of the exact structure exist, they are able to pair together to form homologous chromosomes. Since homologous chromosomes are not identical and do not originate from the same organism, they are different from sister chromatids. Sister chromatids result after DNA replication has occurred, and thus are identical, side-by-side duplicates of each other. Humans have a total of 46 chromosomes, but there are only 22 pairs of homologous autosomal chromosomes. The additional 23rd pair is the sex chromosomes, X and Y. If this pair is made up of an X and Y chromosome, then the pair of chromosomes is not homologous because their size and gene content differ greatly. The 22 pairs of homologous chromosomes contain the same genes but code for different traits in their allelic forms since one was inherited from the mother and one from the father. So humans have two homologous chromosome sets in each cell, meaning humans are diploid organisms. Homologous chromosomes are important in the processes of meiosis and mitosis. They allow for the recombination and random segregation of genetic material from the mother and father into new cells. Meiosis is a round of two cell divisions that results in four haploid daughter cells that each contain half the number of chromosomes as the parent cell. It reduces the chromosome number in a germ cell by half by first separating the homologous chromosomes in meiosis I and then the sister chromatids in meiosis II. The process of meiosis I is generally longer than meiosis II because it takes more time for the chromatin to replicate and for the homologous chromosomes to be properly oriented and segregated by the processes of pairing and synapsis in meiosis I. During meiosis, genetic recombination (by random segregation) and crossing over produces daughter cells that each contain different combinations of maternally and paternally coded genes. This recombination of genes allows for the introduction of new allele pairings and genetic variation. Genetic variation among organisms helps make a population more stable by providing a wider range of genetic traits for natural selection to act on. In prophase I of meiosis I, each chromosome is aligned with its homologous partner and pairs completely. In prophase I, the DNA has already undergone replication so each chromosome consists of two identical chromatids connected by a common centromere. During the zygotene stage of prophase I, the homologous chromosomes pair up with each other. This pairing occurs by a synapsis process where the synaptonemal complex - a protein scaffold - is assembled and joins the homologous chromosomes along their lengths. Cohesin crosslinking occurs between the homologous chromosomes and helps them resist being pulled apart until anaphase. Genetic crossing-over, a type of recombination, occurs during the pachytene stage of prophase I. In addition, another type of recombination referred to as synthesis-dependent strand annealing (SDSA) frequently occurs. SDSA recombination involves information exchange between paired homologous chromatids, but not physical exchange. SDSA recombination does not cause crossing-over. In the process of crossing-over, genes are exchanged by the breaking and union of homologous portions of the chromosomes’ lengths. Structures called chiasmata are the site of the exchange. Chiasmata physically link the homologous chromosomes once crossing over occurs and throughout the process of chromosomal segregation during meiosis. Both the non-crossover and crossover types of recombination function as processes for repairing DNA damage, particularly double-strand breaks. At the diplotene stage of prophase I the synaptonemal complex disassembles before which will allow the homologous chromosomes to separate, while the sister chromatids stay associated by their centromeres. In metaphase I of meiosis I, the pairs of homologous chromosomes, also known as bivalents or tetrads, line up in a random order along the metaphase plate. The random orientation is another way for cells to introduce genetic variation. Meiotic spindles emanating from opposite spindle poles attach to each of the homologs (each pair of sister chromatids) at the kinetochore. In anaphase I of meiosis I the homologous chromosomes are pulled apart from each other. The homologs are cleaved by the enzyme separase to release the cohesin that held the homologous chromosome arms together. This allows the chiasmata to release and the homologs to move to opposite poles of the cell. The homologous chromosomes are now randomly segregated into two daughter cells that will undergo meiosis II to produce four haploid daughter germ cells. After the tetrads of homologous chromosomes are separated in meiosis I, the sister chromatids from each pair are separated. The two haploid(because the chromosome no. has reduced to half. Earlier two sets of chromosomes were present, but now each set exists in two different daughter cells that have arisen from the single diploid parent cell by meiosis I) daughter cells resulting from meiosis I undergo another cell division in meiosis II but without another round of chromosomal replication. The sister chromatids in the two daughter cells are pulled apart during anaphase II by nuclear spindle fibers, resulting in four haploid daughter cells. Homologous chromosomes do not function the same in mitosis as they do in meiosis. Prior to every single mitotic division a cell undergoes, the chromosomes in the parent cell replicate themselves. The homologous chromosomes within the cell will ordinarily not pair up and undergo genetic recombination with each other. Instead, the replicants, or sister chromatids, will line up along the metaphase plate and then separate in the same way as meiosis II - by being pulled apart at their centromeres by nuclear mitotic spindles. If any crossing over does occur between sister chromatids during mitosis, it does not produce any new recombinant genotypes. Homologous pairing in most contexts will refer to germline cells, however also takes place in somatic cells. For example, in humans, somatic cells have very tightly regulated homologous pairing (separated into chromosomal territories, and pairing at specific loci under control of developmental signalling). Other species however (notably Drosophila) exhibit homologous pairing much more frequently. Various functions of homologous pairing in somatic cells have been elucidated through high-throughput screens in the early 21st century. There are severe repercussions when chromosomes do not segregate properly. Faulty segregation can lead to fertility problems, embryo death, birth defects, and cancer. Though the mechanisms for pairing and adhering homologous chromosomes vary among organisms, proper functioning of those mechanisms is imperative in order for the final genetic material to be sorted correctly. Proper homologous chromosome separation in meiosis I is crucial for sister chromatid separation in meiosis II. A failure to separate properly is known as nondisjunction. There are two main types of nondisjunction that occur: trisomy and monosomy. Trisomy is caused by the presence of one additional chromosome in the zygote as compared to the normal number, and monosomy is characterized by the presence of one fewer chromosome in the zygote as compared to the normal number. If this uneven division occurs in meiosis I, then none of the daughter cells will have proper chromosomal distribution and severe effects can ensue, including Down’s syndrome. Unequal division can also occur during the second meiotic division. Nondisjunction which occurs at this stage can result in normal daughter cells and deformed cells. While the main function of homologous chromosomes is their use in nuclear division, they are also used in repairing double-strand breaks of DNA. These double-stranded breaks may occur in replicating DNA and are most often the result of interaction of DNA with naturally occurring damaging molecules such as reactive oxygen species. Homologous chromosomes can repair this damage by aligning themselves with chromosomes of the same genetic sequence. Once the base pairs have been matched and oriented correctly between the two strands, the homologous chromosomes perform a process that is very similar to recombination, or crossing over as seen in meiosis. Part of the intact DNA sequence overlaps with that of the damaged chromosome's sequence. Replication proteins and complexes are then recruited to the site of damage, allowing for repair and proper replication to occur. Through this functioning, double- strand breaks can be repaired and DNA can function normally. Current and future research on the subject of homologous chromosome is heavily focused on the roles of various proteins during recombination or during DNA repair. In a recently published article by Pezza et al. the protein known as HOP2 is responsible for both homologous chromosome synapsis as well as double- strand break repair via homologous recombination. The deletion of HOP2 in mice has large repercussions in meiosis. Other current studies focus on specific proteins involved in homologous recombination as well. There is ongoing research concerning the ability of homologous chromosomes to repair double- strand DNA breaks. Researchers are investigating the possibility of exploiting this capability for regenerative medicine. This medicine could be very prevalent in relation to cancer, as DNA damage is thought to be contributor to carcinogenesis. Manipulating the repair function of homologous chromosomes might allow for bettering a cell’s damage response system. While research has not yet confirmed the effectiveness of such treatment, it may become a useful therapy for cancer. Homologous recombination, Mendelian inheritance, Developmental biology, Synapsis, Non-disjunction, Heredity The meiotic recombination checkpoint monitors meiotic recombination during meiosis, and blocks the entry into metaphase I if recombination is not efficiently processed. Generally speaking, the cell cycle regulation of meiosis is similar to that of mitosis. As in the mitotic cycle, these transitions are regulated by combinations of different gene regulatory factors, the cyclin-Cdk complex and the anaphase-promoting complex (APC). The first major regulatory transition occurs in late G1, when the start of meiotic cycle is activated by Ime1 instead of Cln3/Cdk1 in mitosis. The second major transition occurs at the entry into metaphase I. The main purpose of this step is to make sure that DNA replication has completed without error so that spindle pole bodies can separate. This event is triggered by the activation of M-Cdk in late prophase I. Then the spindle assembly checkpoint examines the attachment of microtubules at kinetochores, followed by initiation of metaphase I by APC. The special chromosome separation in meiosis, homologous chromosomes separation in meiosis I and chromatids separation in meiosis II, requires special tension between homologous chromatids and non-homologous chromatids for distinguishing microtubule attachment and it relies on the programmed DNA double strand break (DSB) and repair in prophase I. Therefore meiotic recombination checkpoint can be a kind of DNA damage response at specific time spot. On the other hand, the meiotic recombination checkpoint also makes sure that meiotic recombination does happen in every pair of homologs. The abrupt onset of M-Cdk in late prophase I depends on the positive transcription regulation feedback loop consisting of Ime2, Ndt80 and Cdk/cyclin complex. However the activation of M-Cdk is controlled by the general phosphorylation switch Wee1/Cdc25. Wee1 activity is high in early prophase I and the accumulation of Cdc25 activates M-Cdk by direct phosphorylation and marking Wee1 to be degraded. Meiotic recombination may begin with a double-strand break, either induced by Spo11 or by other endogenous or exogenous causes of DNA damage. These DNA breaks must be repaired before metaphase I. and these DSBs must be repaired before metaphase I. The cell monitor these DSBs via ATM pathway, in which Cdc25 is suppressed when DSB lesion is detected. This pathway is the same as classical DNA damage response and is the part we know the best in meiotic recombination checkpoint. The DSB-independent pathway was proposed when people studied spo11 mutant cells in some species and found that these Spo11 cells could not process to metaphase I even in the absence of DSB. The direct purpose of these DSBs is to help with the condensation of chromosomes. Even though the initial homolog paring in early leptotene is just random interactions, the further progression into presynaptic alignment depends on the formation of double strand breaks and single strand transfer complexes. Therefore the unsynapsed chromosomes in Spo11 cells can be a target of checkpoint. An AAA–adenosine triphosphatase (AAA-ATPase) was found to be essential in this pathway. but the mechanism is not yet clear. Some other studies also drew sex body formation into attention, and the signaling could be either structure based or transcription regulation such as meiotic sex chromosome inactivation. Under this cascade, failure to synapse will maintain the gene expression from sex chromosomes and some products may inhibit cell cycle progression. Meiotic sex chromosome inactivation only happens in male, which may partially be the reason why only Spo11 mutant spermatocytes but not oocytes fail to transition from prophase I to metaphase I. However the asynapsis does not happen only within sex chromosomes, and such transcription regulation was suspended until it was further expanded to all the chromosomes as meiotic silencing of unsynapsed chromatin, but the effector gene is not found yet. The central role in meiosis of human and mouse CHEK1 and CHEK2 and their orthologs in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Caenorhabditis elegans, Schizosaccharomyces pombe and Drosophila has been reviewed by MacQueen and Hochwagen and Subramanian and Hochwagen. During meiotic recombination in human and mouse, CHEK1 protein kinase is important for integrating DNA damage repair with cell cycle arrest. CHEK1 is expressed in the testes and associates with meiotic synaptonemal complexes during the zygonema and pachynema stages. CHEK1 likely acts as an integrator for ATM and ATR signals and in monitoring meiotic recombination. In mouse oocytes CHEK1 appears to be indispensable for prophase I arrest and to function at the G2/M checkpoint. CHEK2 regulates cell cycle progression and spindle assembly during mouse oocyte maturation and early embryo development. Although CHEK2 is a down stream effector of the ATM kinase that responds primarily to double-strand breaks it can also be activated by ATR (ataxia-telangiectasia and Rad3 related) kinase that responds primarily to single-strand breaks. In mouse, CHEK2 is essential for DNA damage surveillance in female meiosis. The response of oocytes to DNA double-strand break damage involves a pathway hierarchy in which ATR kinase signals to CHEK2 which then activates p53 and p63 proteins. In the fruitfly Drosophila, irradiation of germ line cells generates double-strand breaks that result in cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. The Drosophila CHEK2 ortholog mnk and the p53 ortholog dp53 are required for much of the cell death observed in early oogenesis when oocyte selection and meiotic recombination occur. Ndt80 is a meiosis-specific transcription factor required for successful completion of meiosis and spore formation. The protein recognizes and binds to the middle sporulation element (MSE) 5'-C[AG]CAAA[AT]-3' in the promoter region of stage-specific genes that are required for progression through meiosis and sporulation. The DNA-binding domain of Ndt80 has been isolated, and the structure reveals that this protein is a member of the Ig-fold family of transcription factors. Ndt80 also competes with the repressor SUM1 for binding to promoters containing MSEs. When a mutation inactivates Ndt80 in budding yeast, meiotic cells display a prolonged delay in late pachytene, the third stage of prophase. The cells display intact synaptonemal complexes but eventually arrest in the diffuse chromatin stage that follows pachytene. This checkpoint-mediated arrest prevents later events from occurring until earlier events have been executed successfully and prevents chromosome missegregation. NDt80 is crucial for the completion of prophase and entry into meiosis 1, as it stimulates the expression of a large number of middle meiotic genes. Ndt80 is regulated through transcriptional and post-translational mechanisms (i.e. phosphorylation). Ndt80 stimulates the expression of the B-type cyclin Clb-1, which greatly interacts with Cdk1 during meiotic divisions. Active complexes of Clb-1 with Cdk1 play a large role in triggering the events of the first meiotic division, and their activity is restricted to meiosis 1. Ndt80 stimulates expression of itself and expression of protein kinase Ime2, both of which feedback to further stimulate Ndt80. This increased amount of Ndt80 protein further enhances the transcription of target genes. Early in meiosis 1, Ime2 activity rises and is required for the normal accumulation and activity of Ndt80. However, if Ndt80 is expressed prematurely, it will initially accumulate in an unmodified form. Ime2 can then also act as a meiosis-specific kinase that phosphorylates Ndt80, resulting in fully activated Ndt80. Ndt80 stimulates the expression of the gene that encodes polo-like kinase, Plk. This protein is activated in late pachytene and is needed for crossover formation and partial loss of cohesion from chromosome arms. Plk is also both necessary and sufficient to trigger exit from pachytene points. The meiotic recombination checkpoint operates in response to defects in meiotic recombination and chromosome synapsis, potentially arresting cells before entry into meiotic divisions. Because recombination is initiated by double stranded breaks (DSBs) at certain regions of the genome, entry into Meiosis 1 must be delayed until the DSBs are repaired. The meiosis-specific kinase Mek1 plays an important role in this and recently, it has been discovered that Mek1 is able to phosphorylate Ndt80 independently of IME2. This phosphorylation, however, is inhibitory and prevents Ndt80 from binding to MSEs in the presence of DSBs. Heterokaryon Incompatibility (HI) has been likened to a fungal immune system; it is a non-self recognition mechanism that is ubiquitous among filamentous members of the Asomycota phylum of the Fungi kingdom. Vib-1 is an Ndt80 homologue in Neurospora crassa and is required for HI in this species. It has been found that mutations at the vib1 locus suppress non-self recognition, and VIB-1 is required for the production of downstream effectors associated with HI, such as extracellular proteases. Studies have indicated that Ndt80 homologues also play a role in female sexual development in fungi species other than the more commonly studied Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mutations in vib-1 have been found to affect the timing and development of female reproductive structures prior to fertilization. Although usually characterized in yeast and other fungi, the DNA-binding domain of Ndt80 is homologous to a number of proteins in higher eukaryotes and the residues used for binding are highly conserved. In humans, the Ndt80 homologue C11orf9 is highly expressed in invasive or metastatic tumor cells, suggesting potential usage as a target molecule in cancer treatment. However, not much progress has been made on this front in recent years. Cell cycle checkpoint

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The Battle of Stoney Creek was fought on 6 June 1813, during the War of 1812 near present-day Stoney Creek, Ontario. British units made a night attack on an American encampment. Due in large part to the capture of the two senior officers of the American force, and an overestimation of British strength by the Americans, the battle was a victory for the British, and a turning point in the defence of Upper Canada. On 27 May, the Americans had won the Battle of Fort George, forcing the British defenders of Fort George into a hasty retreat, with heavy casualties. The British commander, Brigadier General John Vincent, gathered in all his outposts along the Niagara River, disbanded the militia contingents in his force and retreated to Burlington Heights (at the west end of Burlington Bay), with about 1,600 men in total. The Americans under the overall leadership of General Henry Dearborn, who was elderly and ill, were slow to pursue. A brigade under Brigadier General William H. Winder first followed up Vincent, but Winder decided that Vincent's forces were too strong to engage, and halted at the Forty Mile Creek. Another brigade joined him, commanded by Brigadier General John Chandler, who was the senior, and took overall command. Their combined force, numbering 3,400, advanced to Stoney Creek, where they encamped on 5 June. The two generals set up their headquarters at the Gage Farm. Vincent sent his Deputy Assistant Adjutant General, Lieutenant Colonel John Harvey, to reconnoitre the American position. Harvey recommended a night attack, reporting that "the enemy's guards were few and negligent; his line of encampment was long and broken; his artillery was feebly supported; several of his corps were placed too far to the rear to aid in repelling a blow which might be rapidly struck in front". The American dispositions described by Harvey account for the statement in the post-battle report of the U.S. Assistant Adjutant-General that only 1,328 American troops were engaged against the British, out of Chandler's total force of 3,400. A British column of five companies from the 1/8th (King's) Regiment of Foot and the main body of the 49th Regiment of Foot, about 700 men in all, was formed. Out of the 700 soldiers fighting on the British side, 14 were Canadian locals and the remainder were British regulars. Although Vincent accompanied the column, he placed Harvey in command. At this point, the story of Billy Green comes to light. Billy Green was a 19-year-old local resident who had witnessed the advance of the Americans from the top of the Niagara Escarpment earlier in the day. Billy's brother-in-law, Isaac Corman, had been briefly captured by the Americans, but was released after he convinced them (truthfully) that he was the cousin of American General William Henry Harrison. In order to be able to pass through the American lines, he was given the challenge response password for the day – "WIL-HEN-HAR" (an abbreviation of Harrison's name). He gave his word of honour that he would not divulge this to the British army. He kept his word, but did reveal the word to Billy Green, who rode his brother-in-law's horse part way, and ran on foot the rest of the way to Burlington Heights. Here, he revealed the password to Lieutenant James FitzGibbon. He was provided with a sword and uniform and used his knowledge of the terrain to guide the British to the American position. Billy Green was present at the battle. However, it has been suggested that the password was actually obtained by Lieutenant Colonel Harvey. According to an account given after the war by Frederick Snider, a neighbour of the Gages, Harvey had executed a ruse on the first sentry to be accosted. Pretending to be the American officer of the day making Grand Rounds, he approached the sentry and when challenged, came close to the sentry's ear as if to whisper the countersign. But with bayonet secreted in hand, he grabbed the surprised sentry by the throat and threw him to the ground. With the bayonet at his throat, the sentry gave up the password. This suggestion illustrates the incomplete research into several aspects of the Battle of Stoney Creek. Snider gave this account not long before his death in 1877 and his source for it was the April 1871 issue of The Canadian Literary Journal. Snider was confusing Harvey with Colonel Murray, June 1813 with December 1813 and Stoney Creek with Youngstown near Fort Niagara. Snider makes several obvious errors, such as "the British General St. Vincent was found some days after wandering about in the woods nearly dead of hunger." His name was Vincent and he did not wander about the woods for days. Snider's source for the provenance of the countersign should thus be considered to be unreliable. The British left their camp at Burlington Heights at 11:30 p.m. on June 5. While Vincent was the senior officer present, the troops were placed under the conduct and direction of Lieutenant Colonel Harvey, who led them silently toward Stoney Creek. They had removed the flints from their muskets to ensure that there were no accidental discharges and dared not utter even a whisper. A sentry post of American soldiers was surprised and either captured or killed by bayonet. Billy Green is said to have bayoneted one of the American sentries personally, although this is not mentioned in any official British record. The British continued advancing toward the American campfires in silence. However at the repeated urging of Second Lieutenant Ephraim Shaler, the U.S. 25th Regiment which had earlier been camped there had been moved from their previous exposed position, leaving behind only the cooks who were preparing the troops' meal for the next day. Shaler had returned to the original position when he heard a sentry cry out as he was being tomahawked after being shot with an arrow from one of John Norton's small band of First Nations warriors. Around the same time, a group of Vincent's staff officers who had come forward to watch the action let out a cheer. Their men took up the cheer, relieving their tension but depriving them of the element of surprise that was their primary advantage given the lopsided number of troops they faced. Instead of striking fear in their adversaries, the yells served to direct their attention to where the British were, helping the rousing troops to focus their attention and musket fire and making it nearly impossible for officers' orders to be heard above the din. Any hope of catching the Americans unaware and bayoneting them in their sleep was now lost and the British fixed their flints to their muskets and attacked. Lieutenant James Fitzgibbon and three sergeants of the Light Company of the 49th were able to keep their men from taking up the shout "until a late stage of the affair, when firing on our side became general". Gradually, the American troops began to recover from the initial surprise, recover their poise and start firing at the attacking British, at times from as far away as . The American artillery also entered the fray after having previously been rendered useless due to the dampness settling into the powder. Holding the high ground, the Americans were able to pour both musket and artillery fire into the exposed British line and the line began to lose cohesion. For ammunition, the U.S. Twenty-Fifth Infantry was firing a variant of 'buck and ball', in this instance firing 12 buckshot balls instead of the usual .65 calibre ball and 3 buckshot. This effectively turned their muskets into shotguns. Despite repeated charges by the British, the centre of the American line was holding and with the withering fire that the British line was sustaining, it was only a matter of time before they would have to retire. A series of events coincided to change the course of the battle. General Winder ordered the U.S. 5th Infantry to protect the left flank. In doing so, he created a gap in the American line while at the same time leaving the artillery unsupported by infantry. Simultaneously, the other American commander, John Chandler, hearing musket shots from the far right of the American line and having already sent his staff officers off with other orders, rode out to investigate personally. But his horse fell (or was shot – Chandler used both excuses at different times) and he was knocked out in the fall. Major Charles Plenderleath, commanding the British 49th Regiment, was able to ascertain the position of the American artillery when two field guns fired in quick succession (). Realising the importance of possession of the guns, he gathered troops of Fitzgibbon's and other nearby companies to charge the guns before they could reload. First to volunteer for what could be a suicidal attack were 23-year-old Sergeant Alexander Fraser and his 21-year-old brother Peter, a corporal in Fitzgibbon's company, with 20 to 30 others. With bayonets fixed, Plenderleath led the charge up Gage's Lane, volunteers following at a run, all fearing that the next discharge from the cannons might annihilate them. However, the U.S. 2nd Artillery under the command of Captain Nathaniel Towson at that moment responded to an order to cease firing, unaware of the British troops advancing on their position. The gunners were without arms of their own. The British charged the field guns, and when they were within a few yards of the gun emplacement, the men began yelling "Come on, Brant". They set upon the helpless gunners, bayoneting man and horse, quickly overrunning and capturing the position before continuing on to engage the U.S. 23rd Infantry which got off one round before the momentum of the 49th scattered them. The remaining British forces followed soon after. At this point General Chandler, conscious again and aware of the commotion near his artillery but not of the reason, stumbled to the position to investigate. Thinking himself to be among the U.S. 23rd Infantry and intending to bring order back to the "new and undisciplined" troops, he realised to his horror that the soldiers were British and Alexander Fraser immediately took him prisoner at bayonet point. Winder very shortly thereafter fell prey to the same mistake. Realising his error, he pulled his pistol, aiming it at Fraser who was poised to take him prisoner as he had Chandler. With his musket pointed at Winder's breast, Fraser told him menacingly "If you stir, sir; you die" and Winder was made prisoner also, proffering his sword to Fraser. Major Joseph Lee Smith of the 25th U.S. Infantry was very nearly captured himself but having made good his escape, alerted his men to make a quick withdrawal, thereby avoiding capture. Command of the American forces fell to cavalry officer Colonel James Burn. The cavalry charged forward firing, but once again in the darkness, the Americans suffered from a case of mistaken identity – they were firing on their own U.S. 16th Infantry, who were themselves wandering around without their commander and firing at each other in confusion. Shortly afterwards, the Americans fell back, convinced that they had been defeated, when in fact they still retained a superior force. The battle lasted less than 45 minutes, but its intensity led to heavy casualties on both sides. As dawn broke, Harvey ordered the outnumbered British to fall back into the woods in order to hide their small numbers. They succeeded in carrying away two of the captured guns, and spiked two more, leaving them on the ground owing to their inability to move them. They later watched from a distance as the Americans returned to their camp after daybreak, burned their provisions and tents and retreated toward Forty Mile Creek (present day Grimsby, Ontario). By afternoon on 6 June, the British occupied the former site of the American camp. For much of the morning of 6 June, General Vincent was missing. He had been injured after a fall from his horse during the battle and was found wandering in a state of confusion, convinced that the entire British force had been destroyed. He was finally located about seven miles from the battle scene; his horse, hat and sword all missing. The British casualty return gave 23 killed, 136 wounded and 55 missing. Of the men reported as "missing", 52 were captured by the Americans. The American casualty return for 6 June gave 17 killed, 38 wounded and 7 officers (2 brigadier-generals, 1 major, 3 captains and 1 lieutenant) and 93 enlisted men missing. The British report of prisoners taken on the morning of 6 June corresponds exactly to the American list of "missing" as concerns the number and ranks of the captured officers but gives 94 enlisted men captured, indicating that one of the Americans who was presumed to have been killed in the casualty return was in fact captured. Of the seven officers who were captured on the morning of 6 June, three (Gen. Chandler, Captain Peter Mills and Captain George Steele) were wounded, which suggests that a substantial number of the enlisted prisoners may also have been wounded. British killed in action at the Battle of Stoney Creek, 6 June 1813 (as listed on the Stoney Creek Battlefield Monument): Samuel Hooker, Joseph Hunt, James Daig, Thomas Fearnsides, Richard Hugill, George Longley, Laurence Mead, John Regler, John Wale, Charles Page, James Adams, Alexander Brown, Michael Burke, Henry Carroll, Nathaniel Catlin, Martin Curley, Martin Donnolly, Peter Henley, John Hostler, Edward Killoran, Edward Little, Patrick Martin, John Maxwell. The names of the American dead are not recorded. Casualties in the fight had been uneven, with the British taking roughly three times more killed and wounded than the Americans, but the Americans had been shaken. It is most probable that if their generals had not been captured, the battle might have turned out quite differently. However, the British had a reasonable claim to victory in this battle. Under the de facto leadership of Colonel Harvey, and with some good fortune, they had successfully forced the Americans back toward the Niagara River. American forces would never again advance so far from the Niagara. At Forty Mile Creek, the retreating American troops were met by reinforcements under Dearborn's second-in-command, Major General Morgan Lewis. Dearborn had ordered Lewis to proceed to Stoney Creek to attack the British, but almost as the two groups met, the British fleet under Captain Sir James Lucas Yeo appeared in Lake Ontario. The American armed vessels under Commodore Isaac Chauncey had abruptly vanished when they heard that Yeo and troops under Lieutenant General Sir George Prevost had attacked their own base at Sackett's Harbor, New York. (The Battle of Sackett's Harbor was a defeat for the British, but large quantities of stores and equipment had mistakenly been set on fire by the Americans, hampering the Americans' efforts to build large fighting vessels.) With Yeo threatening his communications, which ran for along the edge of the lake, Lewis decided to retreat at once to Fort George, leaving a large quantity of tents, arms and supplies for the British to acquire. The British vigorously followed up the American withdrawal. A skirmish on 7 June brought in 12 more prisoners; a captain and 11 enlisted men. During 8–10 June 80 more prisoners were taken, making a total American loss, during 6–10 June, of 16 killed, 38 wounded and 192 captured: total 230 men. The Americans retired into a small defensive perimeter around Fort George, where they remained until abandoning the fort and retreating across the Niagara River into U.S. territory in December. Brigadier General Winder was later exchanged and subsequently commanded the Tenth Military District around Washington, where he attracted censure following the burning of Washington. Battlefield House remains from the time of the battle, and is a museum located within Battlefield Park. They are located very near the site of the battle and, with a knoll across the street where a separate monument stands, comprises Battle of Stoney Creek National Historic Site. The park's stone tower, was dedicated exactly 100 years after the battle. It was unveiled following a signal given by Queen Mary in England, via the transatlantic telegraph cable, and commemorates British soldiers who died in the fight. The Gage farm house is also preserved and serves as a museum. The battle is re- enacted annually on the weekend closest to 6 June. The 2016 event was the 35th such re-enactment. The battle is commemorated in the song "Billy Green" from the 1999 album From Coffee House to Concert Hall by the late Canadian folk singer Stan Rogers. George Fox also sang "Billy Green" which is on his album, Canadian. John R. Elting, Amateurs to Arms, Da Capo Press, New York, 1995, ., Jon Latimer, 1812: War with America, Harvard University Press, 2007, . City of Hamilton museum site for Battlefield House Museum and Park, Monument to Engagement at Forty Mile Creek The Battle of Beaver Dams took place on 24 June 1813, during the War of 1812. An American column marched from Fort George and attempted to surprise a British outpost at Beaver Dams, billeting themselves overnight in the village of Queenston, Ontario. Laura Secord, a resident of Queenston, had earlier learned of the American plans, and had struck out on a long and difficult trek to warn the British at Decou's stone house near present-day Brock University. When the Americans resumed their march, they were ambushed by Native warriors and eventually surrendered to a small British detachment led by Lieutenant James FitzGibbon. About 500 Americans, including their wounded commander, were taken prisoner. On 25 May 1813, the Americans had won the Battle of Fort George, capturing the fort. The British fell back to a position at Burlington Heights near the western end of Lake Ontario, briefly abandoning the entire Niagara Peninsula to the Americans. The Americans attempted to pursue the British, but their advance was checked at the Battle of Stoney Creek by a British counter-attack. At the same time, the American flotilla of warships which had been supporting their army on the Niagara Peninsula was hastily withdrawn to face a threat to their own base, and a British flotilla threatened the Americans' line of communications. The Americans fell back to Fort George. The British followed up and established an outpost at DeCou's house in the present-day city of Thorold, Ontario, from which Natives and militia harassed American outposts. The American commander at Fort George, Brigadier General John Parker Boyd, decided to clear the threat posed by enemy raiders and to restore his men's morale by making a surprise attack on the outpost at DeCou's. The American force assigned to the attack was led by the recently promoted Colonel Charles Boerstler of the 14th U.S. Infantry and consisted of Boerstler's own 14th U.S. Regiment of Infantry, with detachments of the 6th, 13th and 23rd U.S. Regiments of Infantry, a company of artillery with one 12-pounder and one 6-pounder field guns, and twenty U.S. Dragoons. An irregular corps of forty mounted volunteers from the New York Militia under Cyrenius Chapin led the way. The force was accompanied by two large supply wagons. At dusk on 23 June, Boerstler's force moved in secret from Fort George to the village of Queenston, where they quartered themselves in the houses and other buildings. Several American officers had earlier billeted themselves in the house of Militia Captain James Secord, who had been severely wounded the previous year at the Battle of Queenston Heights. His wife, Laura Secord, overheard the American officers discussing their scheme. Very early on 22 June, she set out to warn the British at DeCou's house, walking about through the woods until she came upon a Native encampment on the Twelve Mile Creek. The warriors took her to Lieutenant James FitzGibbon, who commanded the British outpost. The information she conveyed to FitzGibbon confirmed what Natives had reported since they first observed the American column near St. David's. The main contingent of Natives were 300 Kahnawake, also referred to as Caughnawaga in contemporary accounts. (The Kahnawake were Mohawks who had earlier been converted to Christianity by Jesuit missionaries.) They were nominally commanded by Captain Dominique Ducharme of the Indian Department, with Lieutenants Isaac LeClair and J.B. de Lorimier. There were also 100 Mohawks under Captain William Johnson Kerr. They set up ambushes in a thickly wooded area east of Beaver Dams. FitzGibbon with 46 men of the 49th Regiment of Foot was in reserve. Early on 24 June, the Americans set out for DeCou's stone house. At St. David's they proceeded along a trail at the base of the escarpment until they reached another trail leading up the "mountain". Reaching the top, they became aware of Natives closing in on their flanks and rear. Boerstler did not change his plans. When the Natives opened fire, Boerstler was wounded and placed in one of the wagons. According to American accounts, they caused the Mohawks to flee and fought their way out of the woods into open fields where they could use their artillery, and the Natives were not at such an advantage. This account is not supported by other witnesses. At this point, FitzGibbon intervened. Addressing Boerstler under a flag of truce, he claimed that the Americans were outnumbered and surrounded, and that if they did not surrender he would be unable to restrain the natives from slaughtering the entire American force. The wounded Boerstler capitulated to Major de Haren of the Canadian Regiment of Fencible Infantry, who had just arrived on the field with another detachment of British regulars (mainly from the 104th Regiment) from Twelve Mile Creek. The American force surrendered in a field just south of the Thorold Tunnel, east of the present day Welland Canal. The prisoners were escorted first to DeCou's, then to the British base at Ball's Falls.. The natives admitted to a total of five chiefs and warriors killed, and 20 wounded, although Ducharme stated that 15 were killed and 25 wounded. The American casualty report stated 25 killed and 50 wounded; all of the wounded being among the prisoners, who numbered 23 officers and 489 enlisted men. It was later claimed that many of the wounded Americans were killed by Mohawks. The loss of Boerstler's detachment demoralized the Americans at Fort George. From then until they abandoned the fort on 10 December, they rarely dared send any patrols more than a mile from the fort. To reinforce their fear of the Indians, there was another minor disaster on 8 July when a party from the 8th (King's) Regiment and Merritt's Troop of Provincial Dragoons, accompanied by Ottawas under Captain Matthew Elliott and other Indians under Mohawk chief John Norton, went to retrieve a chest of medicines which had been hastily buried at Ball's Farm near Two Mile Creek when the British had evacuated Fort George in May. An American party from the 13th U.S. Infantry under Lieutenant Joseph Eldridge attempted to pursue the British detachment but was ambushed, losing 28 men, several of whom were scalped despite the efforts of officers of the Indian Department to prevent it. Most of the American regular soldiers and Boyd himself were transferred from Fort George to Sackett's Harbor in September, leaving the fort in the hands of New York Militia. Referring to the respective parts played by the various Native Americans and the British, local legend (perhaps started by Mohawk leader John Norton, who was present) had it that, "The Caughnawaga got the victory, the Mohawks got the plunder and FitzGibbon got the credit". In 1818, FitzGibbon made a report to Captain Kerr which read in part: With respect to the affair with Captain (sic) Boerstler, not a shot was fired on our side by any but the Indians. They beat the American detachment into a state of terror, and the only share I claim is taking advantage of a favorable moment to offer them protection from the tomahawk and scalping knife. The Indian Department did the rest. Captain Ducharme claimed that he himself did not demand the Americans' surrender because as a French Canadian by birth who had spent most of his life among the Indians, he spoke no English. Much later, in 1827, FitzGibbon wrote: I do hereby Certify that on the 22d. day of June 1813, Mrs. Secord, Wife of James Secord, Esqr. then of St. David's, came to me at the Beaver Dam after Sun Set, having come from her house at St. David's by a circuitous route a distance of twelve miles, and informed me that her Husband had learnt from an American officer the preceding night that a Detachment from the American Army then in Fort George would be sent out on the following morning (the 23d.) for the purpose of Surprising and capturing a Detachment of the 49th Regt. then at Beaver Dam under my Command. In Consequence of this information, I placed the Indians under Norton together with my own Detachment in a Situation to intercept the American Detachment and we occupied it during the night of the 22d. – but the Enemy did not come until the morning of the 24th when his Detachment was captured. Colonel Boerstler, their commander, in a conversation with me confirmed fully the information communicated to me by Mrs. Secord and accounted for the attempt not having been made on the 23rd. as at first intended. By this account, Laura Secord learned of the American plans and made her exit from St. David's (near Queenston) on 22 June, before the American main body had set out from Fort George. Beaver Dams represents one of the earliest attempts to create a national historical park. In 1914, a convention of Ontario historical and patriotic groups resolved to ask the Department of the Interior "to develop a 40-acre site near Thorold as a national battlefield park commemorating the Battle of Beaver Dams." Although Beaver Dams was not made a national park, the Historic Sites and Monuments Board was created in 1919 to develop a heritage policy at the federal level for historic sites. In 1921, soon after the Board's formation, the Board recommended the designation of the Battle of Beaver Dams site as a National Historic Site of Canada, one of its earliest selections. A monument commemorating the battle was dedicated in 1923 and situated on the original site of the event (near the southeast corner of the intersection of Davis Road and Old Thorold Stone Road, approximately southeast of present-day Thorold), where it was located for several decades. In 1976, this monument (as well as one marking the site where in 1876 during construction of the 3rd Welland Canal the remains of 16 U.S. soldiers from the battle were uncovered) was subsequently relocated several kilometres to the west when the Battle of Beaverdams [sic] Park was opened and there was talk of constructing a 5th Welland Canal near the battlefield. The original site of the battlefield was unmarked from 1976 until 2013, the Battle of Beaverdams Committee discussed marking the site with a "historic boulder" for the bicentennial and this was in fact carried out on June 23, 2013 Stanley, G.F.G. "The Significance of the Six Nations Participation in the War of 1812." Ontario History LV(4), 1963. "Battle of Beaver Dams". The Canadian Encyclopedia., Poems of the Battle of Beaverdams from the Niagara Falls Poetry Project Stoney Creek is a tributary of the Delaware River in southeast Delaware County in Pennsylvania, United States. The stream rises in Chester Township, and flows through City of Chester and Trainer, at times creating their border. It discharges at the Port of Chester on the northern perimeter of the Trainer Refinery and south of Stoney Creek Yard. Historically it has been known a Middle Run and Stoney Run. The creek lends its name to the Stoney Creek Secondary, a rail line operated by Conrail Shared Assets Operations as part of the South Jersey/Philadelphia Shared Assets Area, and serves as contract local carrier and switching company for both CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway. The Philadelphia Subdivision of CSX Transportation also bridges the creek. The Wilmington/Newark Line, one of the 13 commuter rail line lines in SEPTA's SEPTA Regional Rail network, traverses the creek. Originally built by the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad, it is now part of the Northeast Corridor. Delaware Expressway (I-95) and U.S. Route 13 also traverse the creek. Stony Creek Technologies was a company that discharged into the creek. The company later sold he site adjacent to the creek. Federal courts found that the new property owners must pay for environmental cleanup costs that occurred before they acquired it. The so-called Metro Container site along the creek is a Superfund Site. The Trainer Refinery makes use of the creek for wastewater and pollutant discharges, which have sometimes exceeded permissible amounts. List of Delaware River tributaries, List of rivers of Pennsylvania, Stony Creek (Susquehanna River tributary), Stonycreek River in Pennyslvania Watersheds of Chester County

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The 2014 ICC Women's World Twenty20 was the fourth ICC Women's World Twenty20 competition, taking place in Bangladesh from 23 March to 6 April 2014. The tournament was played in the cities of Sylhet and Dhaka – Cox's Bazar was originally intended to also host matches, but the venue was not available due to ongoing development. The tournament featured 10 teams, rather than the eight at previous tournaments, with all matches in the tournament accorded women's Twenty20 International (T20I) status. Bangladesh and Ireland made their first appearances at the event, which is being run concurrently with the men's tournament. Australia won the tournament, beating England in the final by six wickets. On 6 April 2013 ICC unveiled the logo of the tournament at a gala event in Dhaka. The logo uses the colours of the Bangladesh flag with splashes of blue representing the country's iconic waterways (also as being the ICC's own colour). The logo is also inspired by the unique painted rickshaws which pack the streets of the Bangladesh cities. The T is made up of cricket stumps and the "0" in the T20 represents the cricket ball complete with Bangladeshi green seam while the white in the design lends an energetic, friendly and youthful feel to the logo. For the first time the tournament had 10 teams. The top six teams from the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 and hosts Bangladesh automatically qualified for the tournament. Three additional teams qualified for the tournament through the 2013 ICC Women's World Twenty20 Qualifier. Top 6 from 2012 ICC Women's World Twenty20 Top 3 from 2013 ICC Women's World Twenty20 Qualifier Hosts The 2014 ICC Women's World Twenty20 hosted a total of 25 matches. The BKSP Grounds in Savar hosted practice matches. The group stage matches were held at the Sylhet Divisional Stadium, Sylhet, while the semifinals and the final were held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka. A total of 10 warm-up matches were played between 18 and 21 in March featuring all 10 teams at the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protisthan Grounds in Savar. Teams from Pakistan and India also played a number of Twenty20 International matches against Bangladesh prior to the official warm-up matches. Each team played every other team in its group with all group stage matches being played at the Sylhet Divisional Stadium in Sylhet. The top four teams from each group qualified for the knockout phase and the 2016 ICC Women's World Twenty20. The third and fourth placed teams from each group participated in a play-off for automatic qualification for the 2016 ICC Women's World Twenty20. Advanced to Knockout stage. Advanced to Knockout stage. The final was the 15th time that Australia and England had played each other across all three cricket formats (Twenty20, One day internationals and Tests) in 8 months. England had won both of the recent Ashes series, and Australia defeated England in the 2012 Twenty20 world cup final (by four runs) and again in 2013 at the One day international world cup (by two runs). During this tournament both teams had finished top of their respective pools due to their higher net run rate after they both recorded three wins and one loss. Australia won the final after England batting first scored 105 runs for the loss of eight wickets in their twenty overs. Australia reached England's score during their innings in just 15.1 overs. During the match Australia managed to hit four sixes (the maximum score for a single shot) while England had not managed to hit a single six the whole tournament. Australia's captain Meg Lanning, top scored in the match with 44 runs from 30 balls while the best bowler was Sarah Coyte who took 3 wickets for 16 runs from her four overs and earning the Player of the Match award in the process. England's Anya Shrubsole was named Player of the Tournament for her bowling over the whole tournament. It was Australia's third World Twenty20 victory in a row. 2014 ICC World Twenty20 Nicola Rizzoli (; born 5 October 1971) is a former Italian football referee who refereed in the Italian Serie A from 2002 to 2017 and was a FIFA-listed referee from 2007 to 2017. He refereed the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final between Germany and Argentina on 13 July at the Estádio do Maracanã and the 2013 Champions League Final between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich at Wembley Stadium. Rizzoli won seven consecutive AIC Serie A Referee of the Year Awards from 2011 to 2017. On 18 February 2017, Soccer 360 included Rizzoli on its list of the top 5 referees in the 21st century. Rizzoli refereed his first UEFA Champions League qualifying match in August 2007 and took charge of his first Champions League group stage match, a 2–0 Sporting CP victory over Basel, on 1 October 2008. On 7 April 2010, Rizzoli took charge of the Champions League quarter-final second leg between Manchester United and Bayern Munich. With the score at 3–1 to Manchester United (4–3 on aggregate), Rizzoli sent off their right-back, Rafael, for a second bookable offence. Bayern then scored again and won the tie on away goals. On 5 May 2010, Rizzoli refereed the Coppa Italia Final between Inter and Roma. On 12 May, Rizzoli refereed the 2010 UEFA Europa League Final, as Atlético Madrid defeated Fulham 2–1. On 6 August 2011, Rizzoli refereed the Supercoppa Italiana Final between Milan and Inter. In May 2013, Rizzoli was selected by UEFA to referee the 2013 Champions League Final at Wembley. At the international level, Rizzoli served as a referee at UEFA Euro 2012 and officiated in qualifiers for the 2010 and 2014 World Cups. FIFA named Rizzoli to its list of 52 candidate referees for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Rizzoli was selected and was the head referee for a group stage match between Spain and the Netherlands. He refereed the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final between Germany and Argentina on 13 July at the Estádio do Maracanã. Rizzoli was named the 2014 and 2015 World's Best Referee by IFFHS. On 15 September 2015, Rizzoli was in charge of the UEFA Champions League Group Stage match between PSV Eindhoven and Manchester United where PSV's Héctor Moreno broke the leg of Manchester United Defender Luke Shaw. Former World Cup Final Referee Graham Poll said Rizzoli was one of top officials but "missed a poor tackle" which should have led to a red card. UEFA chief refereeing officer Pierluigi Collina reminded officials of their responsibility to player safety after the incident. In December 2015, Rizzoli was named one of the eighteen referees appointed for UEFA Euro 2016. On 4 July 2017, Rizzoli retired as referee, although eligible for one more year, and was appointed as the head Serie A designator. When he was not refereeing, Rizzoli worked as an architect. Serie A Referee of the Year (7): 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, IFFHS World's Best Referee (2): 2014, 2015, Globe Soccer Award for the Best Referee of the Year (1): 2014, Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2018 Profile at WorldReferee.com Nicola Rizzoli The 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup was the 17th edition of the FIBA Basketball World Cup, the tournament previously known as the FIBA World Championship. Hosted by Spain, it was the last tournament to be held on the then-current four-year cycle. The next FIBA World Cup was held five years later, in 2019, to reset the four-year-cycle on a different year than the FIFA World Cup. The United States won their fifth world championship, after beating silver medal winning Serbia in the Final. France claimed the third place, while Lithuania finished fourth in the tournament. FIBA opened the bidding process on 10 January 2008 and all the letters of intent were submitted on 30 April 2008. Nine countries showed interest in hosting the event, as in order, they were Spain, France, Denmark, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Italy, Greece, and China. Among the nine, only three were shortlisted by FIBA: China which would have hosted the 2009 FIBA Asia Championship later that year, Italy which last hosted a FIBA tournament in EuroBasket Women 2007, and FIBA EuroBasket 2007 host Spain. On 23 May 2009, after voting by the FIBA Central Board in Geneva in which the Chinese and Spanish representatives abstained, China was the first to be eliminated in the first round of voting. In the final round, Arvydas Sabonis and Saša Djordjević announced that Spain won the hosting rights with eleven votes as opposed to Italy's eight. The Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid was the main venue, hosting the final and half of the matches in the final round. While no arenas from the 1986 FIBA World Championship were reused, the current Madrid arena was built on the site of the original venue that was destroyed by fire in 2001, which was a venue used in 1986. Amongst venues used in FIBA EuroBasket 2007, the arenas in Granada, Seville and Madrid were reused. One arena, the Gran Canaria Arena, was the only new venue, being built after the tournament was awarded to Spain. The other cities hosted a group. On 17 April 2010, Barcelona was added to the list of cities to hold games, bringing the total venues to six. This was Barcelona's first time being part of a major international event in basketball since the 1997 EuroBasket, in which the Palau Sant Jordi hosted the final stages. Barcelona will host half of the games in the knockout stage, including a semifinal. Below is a list of the confirmed venues which were used to host games during the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup. Connor Floor was the official supplier of the basketball courts for each of the six sites. There were 24 teams taking part in the 2014 World Cup of Basketball. After the 2012 Olympics, the continental allocation for FIBA Americas was reduced by one when the United States won the Olympic tournament, automatically qualifying them for the 2014 World Cup. Host nation: 1 berth, 2012 Summer Olympics: 12 teams competing for 1 berth, removed from that country's FIBA zone, FIBA Asia: 15 teams competing for 3 berths, FIBA Oceania: 2 teams competing for 2 berths, FIBA Africa: 16 teams competing for 3 berths, FIBA Americas: 10 teams competing for 4 berths, FIBA Europe: 24 teams competing for 6 berths, Wild card: 4 berths As of 21 September 2013, twenty teams had already qualified for the final tournament in 2014. To complete the 24-team tournament, FIBA would announce the four wild cards after a meeting in Barcelona on 1–2 February 2014; they could have announced an initial list of teams that would be considered after a Buenos Aires meeting on 23–24 November 2013. But later the FIBA Central Board decided not to trim the list of wild card applicants on their Buenos Aires meeting, making all 15 teams eligible to be selected on the February meeting at Barcelona. On 1 February 2014, FIBA announced that it had allocated the wild cards to , , and . On the FIBA Central Board meeting in Buenos Aires, FIBA suspended the basketball federations of Guatemala, Morocco and Senegal indefinitely "due to their inability to properly function as the governing body for basketball in their respective countries." The Senegalese federation was suspended reportedly due to age fabrication in the 2013 FIBA Under-19 World Championship for Men and for Women; the Senegalese federation was dissolved as a result. On 2 February, FIBA lifted the suspension on the Senegalese federation after they complied with all of the requirements imposed by the FIBA, clearing the way for the participation of its national team in the tournament. This was the first time the NBA-style 4.90m rectangular free throw lane, the 1.25m restricted arc, and extended three point line (6.6 m [21' 8"] from the basket at the corners; 6.75 m [22' 1.75"] elsewhere) took effect in the tournament. The final round was held in two arenas: in the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid and Palau Sant Jordi, as opposed to a singular arena in 2010. Also, the arrangement of the round of 16 match-ups in the bracket were changed. In 2010, a team from Group A or B can meet a team from Group C or D as early in the quarterfinals, and cannot meet their groupmates until the semifinals. In 2014, teams from Groups A and B were in one half of the bracket played in Madrid, while teams from Groups C and D were in the other half and played in Barcelona; teams from Groups A and B could not meet teams from Group C or D until the final or third-place playoff, and could meet their groupmates as early as the quarterfinals. In 2010, the round of 16 games were held in a span of four days, or two matches per day; in 2014, there would be four games per day, and the round of 16 will be done in two days. From the semifinals onward, unlike in 2010 where the semifinals were held in one day, and the third-place playoff and the final on the next day, the semifinals in 2014 were held on two days, followed by the third-place playoff the next day, and the final on the day after, or one game per day. Finally, the classification round for 5th place was also eliminated. The draw was held on 3 February 2014 at 19:00 CET at the Palau de la Música Catalana, Barcelona. On 2 February, FIBA released the pots on how the teams would be drawn. "Pot 1" included the top 4 teams in the FIBA World Rankings, while the other pots were grouped on geographical and sporting criteria. There were no restrictions in drawing teams from pots except for the following: and the United States, as the top 2 teams, were to be placed on opposite sides of the bracket for knockout play. As a result, Spain went to Group A and the US to Group C. The other teams in the pot would thus be drawn to either Group B or D., could not be placed in a group that already had a European team; therefore they could only be placed in the group containing the USA or ., could not be placed in a group that already contained . They were also required to be put into a group that already had two European teams. After a team's group was drawn, another draw followed to determine their position in the group, and consequently, the order of games to be played. In this draw, there were four pots, "Pot A" to "Pot D", each corresponding to each preliminary round group, containing six numbers; here, the pot corresponding to the drawn group of a team was drawn to determine its position in the order of games, such as "A1" to "A6", for Group A teams. Finally, after the groupings and order of games were determined, FIBA assigned one group to each preliminary round host city. Former Spanish international Juan Antonio San Epifanio, Croatia's Dino Rađa, José Ortiz of Puerto Rico and Angolan Jean- Jacques Conceição assisted in the draw. Group A, which included European champions France, hosts Spain, and traditional powerhouse Serbia has been labeled as the "group of death". The Americans, meanwhile, avoided the "bracket of death" of Groups A and B by landing in Group C, setting up a rematch of the 2010 final against Turkey, which were selected as wild cards, and a possible late knockout match-up against European runners-up Lithuania. Each team had a roster of 12 players; a team could opt to have one naturalized player from its roster. The final rosters had to be finalized at the team managers' meeting at the night prior to the first game. The final roster of 12 players per team must have been taken from a list of at most 24 players submitted to FIBA two months before the beginning of the championship. The 2014 South American Basketball Championship in Isla Margarita, Venezuela was a qualifying tournament for the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship and for the 2015 Pan-American Games. defeated World Cup participants (who played with its "B" team) to win the title; the other team in the World Cup, (who also played with its "B" team), finished in third place defeating . All four teams qualified to the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship while only the top three teams qualified to the 2015 Pan-American Games. The 2014 FIBA Asia Cup in Wuhan, China was a qualifying tournament for the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship in China. defeated to win the title and qualify outright; the other team in the World Cup, the , defeated in the third place playoff. The 2014 Centrobasket in Tepic, Mexico is a qualifying tournament for the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship and for the 2015 Pan-American Games. The three teams in the World Cup occupied the top three places. defeated in the final, while finished third place defeating . All four teams qualified to the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship while only the top three teams qualified to the 2015 Pan-American Games. The 2014 William Jones Cup was a friendly tournament in New Taipei, Taiwan. is the only World Cup team participated; they finished third. Iran sent their "B-team", while South Korea sent in a Korean Basketball League team. won this friendly tournament in Antibes, France organized by Fédération Française de Basket-Ball. The , , and were the other teams that participated. How teams are ranked: 1. Highest number of points earned, with each game result having a corresponding point: * Win: 2 points * Loss: 1 point * Loss by default: 1 point, with a final score of 2–0 for the opponents of the defaulting team if the latter team is not trailing or if the score is tied, or the score at the time of stoppage if they are trailing. * Loss by forfeit: 0 points, with a final score of 20–0 for the opponents of the forfeiting team. 2. Head-to-head record via points system above 3. Goal average on games among tied teams 4. Goal average on all group games 5. Drawing of lots Venue: Palacio Municipal de Deportes de Granada, Granada Venue: Palacio Municipal de Deportes San Pablo, Seville Venue: Bizkaia Arena, Barakaldo Venue: Gran Canaria Arena, Las Palmas Method of breaking ties: Ranked 17th–24th: 1. Place in preliminary round group (5th placed teams ranked 17th–20th; 6th placed teams ranked 21st–24th) 2. Win–loss record in preliminary round group 3. Goal average in preliminary round group, Ranked 5th–16th: 1. Furthest round eliminated 2. Win–loss record in preliminary round group 3. Place in preliminary round group 4. Goal average in preliminary round group, Ranked 1st–4th: 1. Result of final and third-place playoff Kyrie Irving – MVP, Miloš Teodosić, Nicolas Batum, Kenneth Faried, Pau Gasol Philippines – MVF Best Country (on Fan support throughout the tournament) At their final group matches between Australia and Angola, Australia rested their key players towards the end of the game, allowing for Angola to win 91–83, after the Boomers led at the half by double digits. Australia fell to third place, thereby allowing them to face the United States at the semifinals instead of the quarterfinals if they finished second. This so-called "tanking" was blasted by Goran Dragić, whose Slovenian team were defeated by Lithuania in the final group match, dropping them to second place, causing them to face the Americans instead in the quarterfinals if they reach that far. Dragic implored on FIBA "to do something about" it. Right after Australia's elimination by Turkey in the first round, FIBA announced that the Boomers were under investigation for tanking. Australia coach Andrej Lemanis rejected the accusation that they tanked, saying he rested his players for the next stage due to the heavy tournament schedule, adding that: "We always, as Australians, compete the right way". On 26 November 2014, Australia was cleared of tanking by FIBA. A tour of the Naismith Trophy was held to promote the event. The trophy was on display at the 2014 NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans in February 2014, then the tour visited several countries in Latin America, Europe and the Philippines from April to mid-July. It also visited South Africa during the finals of the South African Premier Basketball League in August. Prior to this, FIBA and the Spanish Basketball Federation held a road show that ran from 2012 to 2014 visiting key Spanish cities, with some of the final stops being the host cities, and at Ljubljana, Slovenia during FIBA EuroBasket 2013. On 30 January, FIBA revealed the official ball that would be used in the World Cup. Designed by Molten, it "will be the first time ever a custom designed basketball has been developed exclusively for an individual event". On 31 January, FIBA revealed the mascots of the World Cup: Olé and Hop. Olé and Hop's name came from the word "alley-oop"; they are directly inspired from the 2014 World Cup logo, and will have a tour of host cities leading up to the championship. "Sube la Copa" by Huecco was named the official theme song of the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup. The song, starting from 27 August, can be downloaded on iTunes, Spotify and Deezer, with all of the proceeds going to the FEB's Casa Espana, Huecco's Fundacion Dame Vida, and FIBA's International Basketball Foundation. The following referees were selected for the tournament. Carlos Julio, Alejandro Chiti, Michael Aylen, Vaughan Mayberry, Marcos Benito, Cristiano Maranho, Arnaud Kom Njilo, Stephen Seibel, Michael Weiland, Sreten Radović, Reynaldo Mercedes, Joseph Bissang, Eddie Viator, Robert Lottermoser Christos Christodoulou, Elias Koromilas, Guerrino Cerebuch, Luigi Lamonica, Yuji Hirahara, Yevgeniy Mikheyev, Mohammad Al-Amiri, Oļegs Latiševs, José Reyes, Kingsley Ojeaburu, Ferdinand Pascual, Fernando Rocha, Jorge Vázquez Luis Vázquez, Ilija Belošević, Milivoje Jovčić, Matej Boltauzer, Juan Arteaga, Juan González, Benjamin Jiménez, Miguel Pérez, Rüştü Nuran, Borys Ryzhyk, Steven Anderson, Anthony Jordan, Alejandro Sánchez 2014 FIBA World Championship for Women

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Little Rock Central High School (LRCHS) is an accredited comprehensive public high school in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. The school was the site of forced desegregation in 1957 after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregation of public schools was unconstitutional three years earlier. This was during the period of heightened activism in the civil rights movement. Central is located at the intersection of Park Street and Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive (formerly 14th Street). Bates was an African-American journalist and state NAACP president who played a key role in bringing about, through the 1957 crisis, the integration of the school. Central can trace its origins to 1869 when the Sherman School operated in a wooden structure at 8th and Sherman streets; it graduated its first class on June 13, 1873. In 1885 the Sherman School was moved to 14th and Scott streets and was named Scott Street School, but was more commonly called City High School. Five years later in 1890, the Peabody School was constructed at West Capitol and Gaines streets. It was named in honor of philanthropist George Peabody from US$200,000 received via the Peabody Education Fund. In 1905, the city founded Little Rock High School at the intersection of 14th and Cumberland streets, and shuttered the Peabody and Scott Street schools to serve as the city's sole public high school. At the time only white students were enrolled. In 1927 at a cost of US$1.5 million, the city completed construction on the nation's largest and most expensive high school facility, which remains in use today. In 1953 with the construction of Hall High School, the school was renamed as Little Rock Central High School. It has since been listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places and named as a U.S. National Historic Landmark and National Historic Site. Central High School, which covers grades 9 through 12, has an enrollment of 2,456 (2010–11). It is in the Little Rock School District. The current principal is Nancy Rousseau, who became principal in 2002. Built in 1927 at a cost of $1.5 million, Little Rock Senior High School was designed in the Gothic Revival style; it was hailed as the most expensive, most beautiful, and largest high school in the nation. Statues of four figures over the front entrance represent ambition, personality, opportunity, and preparation. Its opening earned national publicity, with nearly 20,000 people attending the dedication ceremony. In 1953 it was renamed as Little Rock Central High School. At the time in Arkansas and other states across the South, public school educational facilities were legally racially segregated. In 1954 the US Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that such segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, and encouraged the states to integrate their schools. Related historic events in the 1950s changed education at Central High School and throughout the United States. LRCHS was the focal point of the Little Rock Integration Crisis of 1957. Nine Black students, known as the Little Rock Nine, were denied entrance to the school in defiance of the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court ruling ordering integration of public schools. This provoked a showdown between the Governor Orval Faubus and President Dwight D. Eisenhower that gained international attention. On the morning of September 23, 1957, the nine Black high school students faced an angry mob of over 1,000 Whites in front of Central High School who were protesting the integration project. As the students were escorted inside by the Little Rock police, violence escalated, and they were removed from the school. The next day, Eisenhower ordered the 1,200-man 327th Airborne Battle Group of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, to escort the nine students into the school. By the same order, he federalized the entire 10,000-man Arkansas National Guard, in order to remove them from the control of Governor Faubus. At nearby Camp Robinson, a hastily organized Task Force 153rd Infantry drew guardsmen from units all over the state. Most of the Arkansas Guard was quickly demobilized, but the ad hoc Task Force 153rd Infantry assumed control at Thanksgiving when the 327th withdrew, and patrolled inside and outside the school for the remainder of the school year. As Melba Pattillo Beals, one of the nine students, wrote in her diary, "After three full days inside Central [High School], I know that integration is a much bigger word than I thought." This event, watched by the nation and world, was the site of the first important test for the implementation of the U.S. Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954. Many areas of the South pledged to resist this ruling. Arkansas' governor Orval Faubus questioned the authority of the federal court system and the validity of desegregation. The crisis at Little Rock's Central High School was the first fundamental test of the national resolve to enforce black civil rights in the face of massive resistance during the years following the Brown decision. As to whether Eisenhower's specific actions to enforce integration violated the Posse Comitatus Act, the Supreme Court, in Cooper v. Aaron (1958), indirectly affirmed the legality of his conduct. It was never expressly reviewed. In 1958, federal Judge Jesse Smith Henley of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, stating that integration had "broken down under the pressure of public opinion," suspended operation of the federal integration order until the 1960-61 school term. The school board said that it had faced large fees and could not afford to hire security guards to keep the peace in school. LRCHS was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 19, 1977, and was designated as a National Historic Landmark on May 20, 1982. The school continues to be used as an educational facility. In 2007, Central High School held an event for the 50th Anniversary of the Little Rock Nine entering Central. On September 24, 2007, a new museum was opened honoring the Little Rock Nine. That same year, HBO produced a documentary film directed by the Renaud Brothers, Little Rock Central: 50 Years Later, which explored the significant changes and continuities within the school since its desegregation. Little Rock Central High School made legal history again in 1968, in a case based on the teaching of evolution in the public schools. LRCHS biology teacher Susan Epperson agreed to be the plaintiff in a case challenging an Arkansas law forbidding the teaching of the theory of evolution by natural selection in the public schools. The United States Supreme Court's decision in Epperson v. Arkansas held that states could not require that "teaching and learning must be tailored to the principles or prohibitions of any religious sect or dogma," i.e., the teaching of evolution in schools could not be forbidden on religious grounds. Today, the high school is minority-majority. The racial breakdown of the school in 2019 was 59% Black, 29% White, 7% Asian, 4% Hispanic, and 1% two or more races. The assumed course of study follows the Smart Core curriculum developed by the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE). For 2011–12, Central is in Whole School Improvement Year 4 in its work to reach Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) toward the No Child Left Behind Act. Central has an International Studies Magnet Program, an EAST Initiative Lab Program, more than 30 service, academic, and honors clubs, award-winning instrumental and concert band and choral programs, and more than 141 courses offered, including 33 AP and Pre-AP courses and 5 foreign languages. Its student publications include The Tiger (the student newspaper), The Pix (the school yearbook), which was originally named The Cage, and The Labyrinth (the school poetry and arts magazine). The Pix was inducted into the Arkansas Scholastic Press Association's Arkansas Yearbook Hall of Fame on April 16, 2010. The 2010–11 edition of the PIX received a Silver Medal from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. The Tiger is the official news publication of Little Rock Central High School and one of the oldest high school newspapers in the country. It is issued in the form of a quarterly mini-magazine that keeps students updated on issues around the school. The newspaper has won many Arkansas Scholastic Press Association awards. The periodical is known for covering difficult aspects of student life, including eating disorders, drug use, and academic dishonesty. Central is a charter member and has been fully accredited by AdvancED since 1924. It has the oldest charter west of the Mississippi River in the Cum Laude Society. The Drama and Competitive Speech program is competitive and became one of the charter chapters of the Arkansas district of the National Forensic League (speech and debate honor society). The school's choir programs has garnered several Best in Class awards at the annual Arkansas State Choral Festival administered by the Arkansas Choral Directors Association (ArkCDA). In addition, educated Andrew Goldberg. In 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2013, the Little Rock Central Madrigals won Class 7A Best in Class for Mixed Ensemble and Overall Ensemble. Since 2007, Central has been ranked nationally within the top 275 high schools based on the Challenge Index developed by the Washington Post. In Newsweek's June 13, 2010 issue, ranking the country's top high schools, Little Rock Central High School was ranked 94th in the nation, after having been ranked 20th in the magazine's 2006 rankings. Little Rock Central High School won the National Fed Challenge competition in 2007 and again in 2008. In 2008, Central was the Quiz Bowl division 7A state champion. The Little Rock Central Band and Flag Line were selected to participate in the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Parade for Barack Obama. The Little Rock Central High School mascot for academic and athletic teams is the Tiger, with black and old gold serving as the school colors. The school's fight song, "On, Tigers!" is based on "On, Wisconsin!." The Little Rock Tigers compete in numerous interscholastic activities in the state's largest classification (7A) in the 7A/6A East Conference for 2012–14, as administered by the Arkansas Activities Association. The Tigers participate in baseball, basketball (boys/girls), bowling, competitive cheer, cross country, football, golf (boys/girls), soccer (boys/girls), softball, swimming & diving (boys/girls), tennis (boys/girls), track & field (boys/girls), volleyball, and wrestling. Little Rock Central holds numerous team and individual national and state titles and records including: Football: 32 football state championship banners from 1907 through 2004 including the state's all-time win record. Since 1937, home football games are played at Quigley-Cox Stadium at Verizon Wireless Field, originally named for Earl Quigley, a coach for the Tigers from 1914 to 1935. The Tigers won the 1946 and 1957 High School Football National Championship., Cross country: 22 boys' cross country state championships from 1955 through 1982;, Track and field: a national-record 50 track & field state championships (1908–1979) with an 18-year consecutive run of titles from 1926 through 1945, followed by a 10-year title winning streak between 1949 and 1958. Both streaks are listed in the national record books., Basketball: the boys basketball teams have won 17 state titles between 1912–99, including four consecutive banners (1944–47) and three overall state titles (1972, 1973, 1975);, Golf: The boys' golf team has won eight state titles between 1948 and 1982., Soccer: The girls' soccer team won consecutive state titles in 2002 and 2003., Swimming: The girls' swimming and diving team has won eight state titles since 1952., Tennis: The tennis teams have won thirteen titles for the boys' team and seven titles for the girls' team. Little Rock Central offers a variety of clubs and organizations to support student social and community activities, competitions and events including; Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), Future Educators Association (FEA), Junior Civitan, and Student Council. In addition to National Honor Society and National Beta Club, exceptional students at Central may be eligible to participate in honor societies including: math (Mu Alpha Theta); science (Science National Honor Society (SNHS)); vocal and instrumental music (Tri-M Music Honor Society); journalism (Quill and Scroll Society); theatre and drama (International Thespian Society); speech and debate as charter members of the Arkansas district of the National Forensic League. Students who are members of the following groups wear special academic dress medallions / cords at graduation: Elementary schools that feed into Little Rock Central include: Booker, Brady, Carver, Forest Park, Fulbright Gibbs, Jefferson, King, McDermott, Pulaski Heights Rockefeller, Romine, Stephens, Terry Washington, Woodruff Middle schools include: Cloverdale Magnet Middle School, Dunbar Magnet Middle School, Forest Heights Middle School, Henderson Health Sciences Magnet Middle School, Pulaski Heights Middle School Magnet-only schools that matriculate many students to Central include Mann Arts and Science Magnet Middle School. The following are notable people associated with Little Rock High School / Little Rock Central High School. If the person was a Central High School student, the number in parentheses indicates the year of graduation; if the person was a faculty or staff member, that person's title and years of association are included Little Rock Nine (1958–60)—Eight of the nine original students of the 1957 Little Rock integration crisis., Charles J. Blake (c. 2001)—Democratic member of the Arkansas House of Representatives for Pulaski County since 2015., Vivion Brewer (1917)—Political activist and chairwoman of the Women's Emergency Committee to Open Our Schools., Brownie Ledbetter (1950)—Political activist and member of the Women's Emergency Committee to Open Our Schools that lobbied for the re-opening of Little Rock Central High School during the Little Rock Integration Crisis., Calvin Ledbetter, Jr. (1946)—Educator and politician; member of the Arkansas House of Representatives (1967–1977)., Sarah Huckabee Sanders (ca. 2000), former White House Press Secretary, Clarke Tucker (1999)—Democratic member of the Arkansas House of Representatives for Pulaski County since 2015., Darrin Williams—Member of the Arkansas House of Representatives (2009–15)., Woodrow Wilson Mann (ca. 1935)—Mayor of Little Rock (1955–57)., Mark Pryor—U.S. Senator, Arkansas (2003–15). Julie Adams (1944)--Actress., Matt Besser (1985)—Actor and comedian., Dee Brown (ca. 1926)—Novelist and historian., Rodger Bumpass (1970)—Notable voice actor., Gail Davis (ca. 1943)—TV and film actress, known for her starring role as Annie Oakley in the 1950s television Western series Annie Oakley., Dani Evans—Fashion model; winner of 2006 Next Top Model., Brent Jennings (1969)—TV and film actor., Charlotte Moorman (1951)—Cellist and performance artist., George Newbern (1982)—TV and film actor., Walter Norris (1950)—Pianist and composer., Ben Piazza (1951)—TV and film actor., Jason White (1991)—Musician; Green Day Guitarist., Clifton Williams (1941)—Composer of symphonic band music, Jeff Nichols (1996)- Director, writer, and producer of Loving, Mud, and others. James Smith McDonnell (1917)—Aviation pioneer and founder of McDonnell Aircraft Corporation., Sanford N. McDonnell (1940)—Engineer, businessman and philanthropist; former Chairman and CEO of McDonnell Douglas. John H. Yancey (ca.1937), highly decorated United States Marine Mike Beard (1968)—Former professional baseball player., Alvin Bell (1919)—Umpire; all-around high school and collegiate athlete; 1978 inductee, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, Charles Clay (2006)- NFL player Buffalo Bills, Walt Coleman (1970)—Football player (NFL); inductee, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame., John Hoffman (1945)—NFL player (1949–1956); 1976 inductee, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, Joe Johnson (1999)—NBA All Star and USA basketball player., Ken Kavanaugh (1936) - Player and coach in College Football Hall of Fame; 3-time National Football League champion for Chicago Bears., Danny Nutt (1980)—Former assistant coach of collegiate football., Dennis Nutt (1981)—Men's basketball head coach of collegiate basketball: former professional player., Dickey Nutt (1977)—Men's basketball head coach of collegiate basketball., Houston Nutt (1976)—Former head coach of the University of Arkansas Razorbacks and the University of Mississippi Rebels football teams, Jack Robbins (1933)—Football and basketball standout player, NFL player; 1974 inductee, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame., Brooks Robinson (1955)—Hall of Fame third baseman for the Baltimore Orioles, Drew Smyly (2007)—Baseball player, Reggie Swinton (1993)—Former football player., Harry Vines (1957)—Wheelchair basketball coach., Fred Williams (1978)—Four-time NFL Pro Bowl defense lineman., Kahlil Carter (1994)—Former professional football player. On November 6, 1998, Congress established Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site. The National Historic Site is administered in partnership with the National Park Service, Little Rock Public Schools, the City of Little Rock, and others. The visitor center for the site is located diagonally across the street from the school and across from the memorial dedicated by Michael Warrick, and opened in fall 2006. It contains a captioned interpretive film on the Little Rock integration crisis, as well as multimedia exhibits on both that and the larger context of desegregation during the 20th century and the Civil Rights Movement. Opposite the visitor center to the west is the Central High Commemorative Garden, which features nine trees and benches that honor the students. Arches that represent the school's facade contain embedded photographs of the school in years since the crisis, and showcase students of various backgrounds in activities together. Opposite the visitor center to the south is a historic Mobil gas station, which has been preserved in its appearance at the time of the crisis. At the time, it served as the area for the press and radio and television reporters. It later served as a temporary visitor center before the new one was built. LR Central High School at Little Rock School District web page, See article on legacy of Little Rock on Time.com., Guardians of Freedom - 50th Anniversary of Operation Arkansas, by ARMY.MIL, National Park Service: Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, National Historic Landmarks Program, Desegregation of Central High School, Little Rock Central High School Class of 57, ”From Canterbury to Little Rock: The Struggle for Educational Equality for African Americans”, a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plans, Documents relating to the Little Rock School Integration Crisis, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, LRCH Memory Project website, Little Rock Central High School Integration, Civil Rights Digital Library. Little Rock is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. As the county seat of Pulaski County, the city was incorporated on November 7, 1831, on the south bank of the Arkansas River close to the state's geographic center. The city derives its name from a rock formation along the river, named the "Little Rock" (French: La Petite Roche) by the French explorer Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe in the 1720s. The capital of the Arkansas Territory was moved to Little Rock from Arkansas Post in 1821. The city's population was 197,881 in 2018 according to the United States Census Bureau. The six-county Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) is ranked 78th in terms of population in the United States with 738,344 residents according to the 2017 estimate by the United States Census Bureau. Little Rock is a cultural, economic, government, and transportation center within Arkansas and the South. Several cultural institutions are in Little Rock, such as the Arkansas Arts Center, the Arkansas Repertory Theatre, and the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, in addition to hiking, boating, and other outdoor recreational opportunities. Little Rock's history is available through history museums, historic districts or neighborhoods like the Quapaw Quarter, and historic sites such as Little Rock Central High School. The city is the headquarters of Dillard's, Windstream Communications, Acxiom, Stephens Inc., University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Heifer International, Winrock International, the Clinton Foundation, the Rose Law Firm, and Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Other corporations, such as Dassault Falcon Jet, LM Wind Power, Simmons Bank, Euronet Worldwide, AT&T;, and Entergy have large operations in the city. State government is a large employer, with many offices downtown. Two major Interstate highways, Interstate 30 and Interstate 40, meet in Little Rock, with the Port of Little Rock serving as a shipping hub. Little Rock derives its name from a small rock formation on the south bank of the Arkansas River called the "Little Rock" (French: La Petite Roche). The Little Rock was used by early river traffic as a landmark and became a well- known river crossing. The Little Rock is across the river from The Big Rock, a large bluff at the edge of the river, which was once used as a rock quarry. Archeological artifacts provide evidence of Native Americans inhabiting Central Arkansas for thousands of years before Europeans arrived. The early inhabitants may have been the Folsom people, Bluff Dwellers, and Mississippian culture peoples who built earthwork mounds recorded in 1541 by Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. Historical tribes of the area were the Caddo, Quapaw, Osage, Choctaw, and Cherokee. Little Rock was named for a stone outcropping on the bank of the Arkansas River used by early travelers as a landmark. It was named in 1722 by French explorer and trader Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe, marked the transition from the flat Mississippi Delta region to the Ouachita Mountain foothills. Travelers referred to the area as the "Little Rock." Though there was an effort to officially name the city "Arkopolis" upon its founding in the 1820s, and that name did appear on a few maps made by the US Geological Survey, the name Little Rock is eventually what stuck. Little Rock is located at (34.736009, −92.331122). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.52%) is water. Little Rock is located on the south bank of the Arkansas River in Central Arkansas. Fourche Creek and Rock Creek run through the city, and flow into the river. The western part of the city is located in the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Northwest of the city limits are Pinnacle Mountain and Lake Maumelle, which provides Little Rock's drinking water. The city of North Little Rock is located just across the river from Little Rock, but it is a separate city. North Little Rock was once the 8th ward of Little Rock. An Arkansas Supreme Court decision on February 6, 1904, allowed the ward to merge with the neighboring town of North Little Rock. The merged town quickly renamed itself Argenta (the local name for the former 8th Ward), but returned to its original name in October 1917. Applegate, Breckenridge, Briarwood, Broadmoor, Bryce's Creek, Capitol-Main Historic District, Capitol View/Stifft's Station, Central High School Historic District, Chenal Valley, Cloverdale, Colony West, Downtown, East End, Fair Park, Geyer Springs, Governor's Mansion, Granite Mountain, Gum Springs, Hanger Hill, Hall High, The Heights, Highland Park, Hillcrest, John Barrow, Leawood, Mabelvale, MacArthur Park, Marshall Square, Otter Creek, Pankey, Paul Laurence Dunbar School, Pinnacle Valley, Pleasant Valley, Pulaski Heights, Quapaw Quarter, Riverdale, Robinwood, Rosedale, Scott Street, St. Charles, South End, South Main Street (apartments), South Main Street (residential), South Little Rock, Southwest Little Rock, Stagecoach, Sturbridge, University Park, Walton Heights, Wakefield, West End, Woodlands Edge The 2017 U.S. Census population estimate for the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metropolitan Statistical Area was 738,344. The MSA covers the following counties: Pulaski, Faulkner, Grant, Lonoke, Perry, and Saline. The largest cities are Little Rock, North Little Rock, Conway, Jacksonville, Benton, Sherwood, Cabot, Maumelle, and Bryant. Little Rock lies in the humid subtropical climate zone, with very hot, humid summers and cool winters with usually little snow. It has experienced temperatures as low as , which was recorded on February 12, 1899, and as high as , which was recorded on August 3, 2011. As of the 2005–2007 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, White Americans made up 52.7% of Little Rock's population; of which 49.4% were non-Hispanic Whites, down from 74.1% in 1970. Blacks or African Americans made up 42.1% of Little Rock's population, with 42.0% being non- Hispanic blacks. American Indians made up 0.4% of Little Rock's population while Asian Americans made up 2.1% of the city's population. Pacific Islander Americans made up less than 0.1% of the city's population. Individuals from some other race made up 1.2% of the city's population; of which 0.2% were non- Hispanic. Individuals from two or more races made up 1.4% of the city's population; of which 1.1% were non-Hispanic. In addition, Hispanics and Latinos made up 4.7% of Little Rock's population. As of the 2010 census, there were 193,524 people, 82,018 households, and 47,799 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,576.0 people per square mile (608.5/km²). There were 91,288 housing units at an average density of 769.1 per square mile (296.95/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 48.9% White, 42.3% Black, 0.4% Native American, 2.7% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 3.9% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. 6.8% of the population is Hispanic or Latino. There were 82,018 households, out of which 30.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.6% were married couples living together, 17.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 3.00. In the city, the population was spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85 males. The median income for a household in the city was $37,572, and the median income for a family was $47,446. Males had a median income of $35,689 versus $26,802 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,209. 14.3% of the population is below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.9% of those under the age of 18 and 9.0% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. In the late 1980s, Little Rock experienced a 51% increase in murder arrests of children under 17, and a 40% increase in among 18- to 24-year-olds. From 1988 to 1992, murder arrests of youths under 18 increased by 256%. By the end of 1992, Little Rock reached a record of 61 homicides, but in 1993 surpassed it with 76. It was one of the highest per-capita homicide rates in the country, placing Little Rock fifth in Money Magazine's 1994 list of most dangerous cities. In July 2017, a shootout occurred at the Power Ultra Lounge nightclub in downtown Little Rock. Although there were no deaths, twenty-eight people were injured and one hospitalized. Dillard's Department Stores, Windstream Communications and Acxiom, Simmons Bank, Bank of the Ozarks, Rose Law Firm, Central Flying Service and large brokerage Stephens Inc. are headquartered in Little Rock. Large companies headquartered in other cities but with a large presence in Little Rock are Dassault Falcon Jet near Little Rock National Airport in the eastern part of the city, Fidelity National Information Services in northwestern Little Rock, and Welspun Corp in Southeast Little Rock. Little Rock and its surroundings are the headquarters for some of the largest non-profit organizations in the world, such as Winrock International, Heifer International, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, Clinton Foundation, Lions World Services for the Blind, Clinton Presidential Center, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, FamilyLife, Audubon Arkansas, and The Nature Conservancy. Associations, such as the American Taekwondo Association, Arkansas Hospital Association, and the Quapaw Quarter Association. Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Baptist Health Medical Center, Entergy, Dassault Falcon Jet, Siemens, AT&T; Mobility, Kroger, Euronet Worldwide, L'Oréal Paris, Timex, and UAMS are employers throughout Little Rock. One of the largest public employers in the state with over 10,552 employees, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and its healthcare partners—Arkansas Children's Hospital and the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System—have a total economic impact in Arkansas of about $5 billion per year. UAMS receives less than 11% of its funding from the state. Its operation is funded by payments for clinical services (64%), grants and contracts (18%), philanthropy and other (5%), and tuition and fees (2%). The Little Rock port is an intermodal river port with a large industrial business complex. It is designated as Foreign Trade Zone 14. International corporations such as Danish manufacturer LM Glasfiber have established new facilities adjacent to the port. Along with Louisville and Memphis, Little Rock has a branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Many cultural sites are in Little Rock, including: Arkansas Arboretum – at Pinnacle Mountain, it has a trail with flora and tree plantings., Arkansas Arts Center – The state's largest art museum, containing drawings, collections, children's theater productions, works by Van Gogh, Rembrandt, and others in eight art galleries, a museum school, gift shop and restaurant., Community Theatre of Little Rock – Founded in 1956, it is the area's oldest performance art company., Arkansas Repertory Theatre – The state's largest professional, not-for-profit theatre company, in its 34th season. "The Rep" produces works such as contemporary comedies, dramas, world premiers, and dramatic literature., Arkansas Symphony Orchestra – In its 41st season, the orchestra performs over 30 concerts a year and many events., Ballet Arkansas – The state's only professional ballet company., Heifer International – Headquarters of the global hunger and poverty relief organization, adjacent to the Clinton Presidential Center, Quapaw Quarter – Start of the 20th century Little Rock consists of three National Register historic districts with at least a hundred buildings on the National Register of Historic Places., Robinson Center Music Hall – The main performance center of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra., Villa Marre – Built in 1881, it comprises Italianate and Second Empire styles refurbished in the 1960s and shown in the opening scenes of the television show "Designing Women.", Wildwood Park for the Arts – The largest park dedicated to the performing arts in the South. It features seasonal festivals and cultural events. The Arkansas Arts Center, the state's largest cultural institution, is a museum of art and an active center for the visual and performing arts., The Museum of Discovery features hands-on exhibits in the fields of science, history and technology., The William J. Clinton Presidential Center includes the Clinton presidential library and the offices of the Clinton Foundation and the Clinton School of Public Service. The Library facility, designed by architect James Polshek, cantilevers over the Arkansas River, echoing Clinton's campaign promise of "building a bridge to the 21st century". The archives and library contains 2 million photographs, 80 million pages of documents, 21 million e-mail messages, and nearly 80,000 artifacts from the Clinton presidency. The museum within the library showcases artifacts from Clinton's term and has a full-scale replica of the Clinton-era Oval Office. Opened on November 18, 2004, the Clinton Presidential Center cost $165 million to construct and covers 150,000 square feet (14,000 m²) within a 28-acre (113,000 m²) park., The Historic Arkansas Museum is a regional history museum focusing primarily on the frontier time period., The MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History opened in 2001, the last remaining structure of the original Little Rock Arsenal and one of the oldest buildings in central Arkansas, it was the birthplace of General Douglas MacArthur who went on to be the supreme commander of US forces in the South Pacific during World War II., The Old State House Museum is a former state capitol building now home to a history museum focusing on Arkansas' recent history., The Mosaic Templars Cultural Center is a state operated history museum focusing on African American history and culture in Arkansas., The ESSE Purse Museum illustrates the stories of American women's lives during the 1900s through their handbags and the day-to-day items carried in them Founded in 1976, the Arkansas Repertory Theatre is the state's largest nonprofit professional theatre company. A member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT D), The Rep has produced more than 300 productions, such as 40 world premieres, in its building located in downtown Little Rock. Producing Artistic Director John Miller-Stephany leads a resident staff of designers, technicians and administrators in eight to ten productions for an annual audience in excess of 70,000 for MainStage productions, educational programming and touring. The Rep produces works from contemporary comedies and dramas to world premiers and the classics of dramatic literature. Outside magazine named Little Rock one of its 2019 Best Places to Live. Dozens of parks such as Pinnacle Mountain State Park are in Little Rock. The city has operated under the city manager form of government since November 1957. In 1993, voters approved changes from seven at-large city directors (who rated the position of mayor among themselves) to a popularly elected mayor, seven ward directors and three at-large directors. The position of mayor remained a part-time position until August 2007. At that point, voters approved making the mayor's position a full-time position with veto power, while a vice mayor is selected by and among members of the city board. The current mayor, elected in November 2018, is Frank Scott Jr., a former assistant bank executive, pastor and state highway commissioner. The current city manager is Bruce T. Moore, who is the longest-serving city manager in Little Rock history. The city employs over 2,500 individuals in 14 different departments, including the Police Department, the Fire Department, Parks and Recreation, and the Zoo. Most Pulaski County government offices are located in the city of Little Rock, including the Quorum, Circuit, District, and Juvenile Courts; and the Assessor, County Judge, County Attorney, and Public Defenders offices. Both the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit have judicial facilities in Little Rock. The city is served by the Little Rock Police Department. Little Rock is home to two universities that are part of the University of Arkansas System: the campuses of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences are located in the city. A pair of smaller, historically black colleges, Philander Smith College, affiliated with the United Methodist Church, and Arkansas Baptist College, are also located in Little Rock. The University of Arkansas at Little Rock was founded in 1927 as Little Rock Junior College, under the supervision of the city Board of Education. In its first semester, there were eight instructors and about 100 students. The college is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, a status it has kept since 1929. Housed originally in public school buildings, the college moved in 1949 to another location between University Ave and Fair Park Blvd, North of Asher Ave., on land donated by Raymond Rebsamen, a Little Rock businessman. The college was the sole beneficiary of a continuing trust established by former Governor George W. Donaghey at the time. In 1957, the institution began a four-year degree program, became independent and privately supported under a separate board of trustees, and took the name Little Rock University. In September 1969, The Little Rock University merged into the University of Arkansas System, to create the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The University of Arkansas System merger began a period of steady growth, which saw UALR go from about 3,500 students and 75 full-time faculty members in 1969 to about 10,000 students and over 400 full-time faculty members in the 1998 academic year. The university consists of 54 undergraduate major programs, an extensive schedule of night, weekend, and off-campus classes, and various community educational services. UALR began offering graduate and professional work in 1975. Besides the juris doctor offered at the William H. Bowen School of Law, UALR has three doctoral programs and 29 graduate and professional programs, and joint programs with other campuses of the University of Arkansas System. The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is part of the University of Arkansas System. UAMS has about 2,200 students in six academic units: the Colleges of Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing, Health Related Professions, and Public Health and the Graduate School. UAMS also has more than 660 resident physicians completing their training at UAMS or at one of the seven Area Health Education Centers around the state. UAMS provides hospital and outpatient care, and houses the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, and Jackson T. Stephens Spine and Neurosciences Institute. Arkansas Children's Hospital and the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System are affiliates of UAMS. The outreach efforts of UAMS has seven Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) in Fayetteville, Pine Bluff, El Dorado, Texarkana, Fort Smith, Jonesboro, and Helena, Arkansas; networks of senior health centers and centers for young children with special health care needs; and interactive video education and medical consultation services to community hospitals around the state. UAMS is the state's largest basic and applied research institution with programs in multiple myeloma, aging, and other areas. Located in downtown is the Clinton School of Public Service, a branch of the University of Arkansas System, which offers master's degrees in public service. Pulaski Technical College has two locations in Little Rock. The Pulaski Technical College Little Rock-South site houses programs in automotive technology, collision repair technology, commercial driver training, diesel technology, small engine repair technology and motorcycle/all-terrain vehicle repair technology. The Pulaski Technical College Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute and The Finish Line Cafe are also located in Little Rock-South. There is a Missionary Baptist Seminary in Little Rock associated with the American Baptist Association. The school began as Missionary Baptist College in Sheridan in Grant County. Little Rock is home to both the Arkansas School for the Blind (ASB) and the Arkansas School for the Deaf (ASD), which are state-run schools operated by the Board of Trustees of the ASB–ASD. In addition, eStem Public Charter High School and LISA Academy provide tuition-free public education as charter schools. The city's comprehensive public school system is operated by the Little Rock School District (LRSD). , the district consists of 64 schools with more schools being built. As of the 2009–2010 school year, the district has enrollment of 25,685. It has 5 high schools, 8 middle schools, 31 elementary schools, 1 early childhood (pre-kindergarten) center, 2 alternative schools, 1 adult education center, 1 accelerated learning center, 1 career-technical center, and about 3,800 employees. LRSD public high schools include: Hall High School, J. A. Fair Science and Technology Systems Magnet High School, Little Rock Central High School, McClellan Magnet High School, Parkview Arts and Science Magnet High School The Pulaski County Special School District (PCSSD) serves parts of Little Rock. PCSSD high schools are located in the city such as: Mills University Studies High School, Joe T. Robinson High School Various private schools are located in Little Rock, such as: Arkansas Baptist School System, Central Arkansas Christian Schools, Episcopal Collegiate School, Little Rock Catholic High School, Little Rock Christian Academy, Mount Saint Mary Academy, Pulaski Academy Little Rock previously had a Catholic high school for African-Americans, St. Bartholomew High School; it closed in 1964. The Catholic grade school St. Bartholomew School, also established for African-Americans, closed in 1974. The Our Lady of Good Counsel School closed in 2006. The Central Arkansas Library System comprises the main building downtown and numerous branches throughout the city, Jacksonville, Maumelle, Perryville, Sherwood and Wrightsville. The Pulaski County Law Library is at the William H. Bowen School of Law. American Taekwondo Association World Headquarters. The American Taekwondo Association [ATA] is based in Little Rock where it hosts the World Taekwondo Championships each summer. The ATA World Headquarters is also headquarters for all of the Songahm Taekwondo organizations such as the American Taekwondo Association, the Songahm Taekwondo Federation and the World Traditional Taekwondo Union. These combined organizations have millions of members in the US and worldwide., Arkansas River Trail, Arkansas State Capitol – a neo-classical structure with many restored interior spaces, constructed from 1899 to 1915., Big Dam Bridge – The longest pedestrian/bicycle bridge in North America that has never been used by cars or trucks., Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Andrew (1878-1881), Clinton Presidential Library, Heifer International, Little Rock Marathon, Little Rock Zoo – Consists of at least 725 animals and over 200 species., Pinnacle Mountain State Park, Willow Springs Water Park – one of the first water theme parks in the U.S. built in 1928., A poster traced back to the Cicada 3301 mystery was discovered in downtown Little Rock. Little Rock is home to the Arkansas Travelers. They are the AA professional Minor League Baseball affiliate of the Seattle Mariners in the Texas League. The Travelers played their last game in Little Rock at Ray Winder Field on September 3, 2006, and moved into Dickey-Stephens Park in nearby North Little Rock in April 2007. The Little Rock Rangers soccer club of the National Premier Soccer League played their inaugural seasons in 2016 & 2017 for the men's and women's teams respectively. Home games are played at War Memorial Stadium. Little Rock was also home to the Arkansas Twisters (later Arkansas Diamonds) of Arena Football 2 and Indoor Football League and the Arkansas RimRockers of the American Basketball Association and NBA Development League. Both of these teams played at Verizon Arena in North Little Rock. The city is also home to the Little Rock Trojans, the athletic program of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The majority of the school's athletic teams are housed in the Jack Stephens Center, which opened in 2005. The Trojans play in the Sun Belt Conference, where the Arkansas State Red Wolves are their chief rival. Little Rock's War Memorial Stadium plays host to at least one University of Arkansas Razorback football game each year. The stadium is known for being in the middle of a golf course. Each fall, the city closes the golf course on Razorback football weekends for fans to tailgate. It is estimated that over 80,000 people are present for the tailgating activities on these weekends. War Memorial also hosts the Arkansas High School football state championships, and starting in the fall of 2006 hosts one game apiece for the University of Central Arkansas and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Arkansas State University also plays at the stadium from time to time. Little Rock was a host of the First and Second Rounds of the 2008 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. It has also been a host of the SEC Women's Basketball Tournament. The now defunct Arkansas RiverBlades and Arkansas GlacierCats, both minor-league hockey teams, were located in the Little Rock area. The GlacierCats of the now defunct Western Professional Hockey League (WPHL) played in Little Rock at Barton Coliseum while the RiverBlades of the ECHL played at the Verizon Arena. Hubert "Geese" Ausbie played basketball at Philander Smith College in Little Rock, where he earned All-Conference and All-American honors. He later gained fame as a member of the Harlem Globetrotters. John Kocinski, 250 cc and World Superbike motorcycle racing champion, is from Little Rock. World Champion Middleweight Boxer Jermain Taylor and NBA players Derek Fisher and Joe Johnson were born and/or have roots in Little Rock. Little Rock is home to the Grande Maumelle Sailing Club. Established in 1959, the club hosts multiple regattas during the year on both Lake Maumelle and the Arkansas River. Little Rock is also home to the Little Rock Marathon, held on the first Saturday of March every year since 2003. The marathon features the world's largest medal given to marathon participants. The Arkansas Democrat Gazette is the largest newspaper in the city, as well as the state. As of March 31, 2006, Sunday circulation is 275,991 copies, while daily (Monday-Saturday) circulation is 180,662, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. The monthly magazine Arkansas Life is part of the newspaper's niche publications division, and began publication in September 2008. From 2007 to 2015, the newspaper also published the free tabloid Sync Weekly. Daily legal and real estate news is also provided Monday through Friday in the Daily Record. Healthcare news covered by Healthcare Journal of Little Rock. Entertainment and political coverage is provided weekly in Arkansas Times and monthly in the Little Rock Free Press. Business and economics news is published weekly in Arkansas Business. Entertainment, Political, Business, and Economics news is published Monthly in "Arkansas Talks" www.Arkansastalks.org In addition to area newspapers, the Little Rock market is served by a variety of magazines covering diverse interests. The publications are: At Home in Arkansas, AY Magazine, Inviting Arkansas, Little Rock Family, Little Rock Soiree, RealLIVING Many television networks have local affiliates in Little Rock, in addition to numerous independent stations. As for cable TV services, Comcast has a monopoly over Little Rock and much of Pulaski County. Some suburbs have the option of having Comcast, Charter or other cable companies. Television stations in the Little Rock area are: AM radio Stations in the Little Rock area are: FM radio stations in the Little Rock area are: Hospitals in Little Rock include: Arkansas State Hospital – Psychiatric Division, Arkansas Children's Hospital, Arkansas Heart Hospital, Baptist Health Medical Center, Central Arkansas Veteran's Health care System (CAVHS), Pinnacle Pointe Hospital, St. Vincent Health System, UAMS Medical Center Little Rock is served by two primary Interstate Highways and four auxiliary Interstates. I-40 passes through North Little Rock to the north, and I-30 enters the city from the south, terminating at I-40 in the north of the Arkansas River. Shorter routes designed to accommodate the flow of urban traffic across town include I-430, which bypasses the city to the west, I-440, which serves the eastern part of Little Rock including Clinton National Airport, and I-630 which runs east–west through the city, connecting west Little Rock with the central business district. I-530 runs southeast to Pine Bluff as a spur route. US 70 parallels I-40 into North Little Rock before multiplexing with I-30 at the Broadway exit (Exit 141B). US 67 and US 167 share the same route from the northeast before splitting. US 67 and US 70 multiplex with Interstate 30 to the southwest. US 167 multiplexes with US 65 and I-530 to the southeast. Amtrak serves the city twice daily via the Texas Eagle, with northbound service to Chicago and southbound service to San Antonio, as well as numerous intermediate points. Through service to Los Angeles and intermediate points operates three times a week. The train carries coaches, a sleeping car, a dining car, and a Sightseer Lounge car. Reservations are required. Seven airlines serve 14 national/international gateway cities, e.g. Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, Charlotte, Orlando etc. from Clinton National Airport. In 2006 they carried approximately 2.1 million passengers on approximately 116 daily flights to and from Little Rock. In July 2017, a seventh airline, Frontier Airlines, announced that they would be resuming scheduled operations to Denver in 2018. Greyhound Lines serves Dallas and Memphis, as well as intermediate points, with numerous connections to other cities and towns. Jefferson Lines serves Fort Smith, Kansas City, and Oklahoma City, as well as intermediate points, with numerous connections to other cities and towns. These carriers operate out of the North Little Rock bus station. Within the city, public bus service is provided by the Rock Region Metro, which until 2015 was named the Central Arkansas Transit Authority (CATA). As of January 2010, CATA operated 23 regular fixed routes, 3 express routes, as well as special events shuttle buses and paratransit service for disabled persons. Of the 23 fixed-route services, 16 offer daily service, 6 offer weekday service with limited service on Saturday, and one route runs exclusively on weekdays. The three express routes run on weekday mornings and afternoons. Since November 2004, downtown areas of Little Rock and North Little Rock have been additionally served by the Metro Streetcar system (formerly the River Rail Electric Streetcar), also operated by Rock Region Metro. The Streetcar is a -long heritage streetcar system that runs from the North Little Rock City Hall and throughout downtown Little Rock before crossing over to the William J. Clinton Presidential Library. The streetcar line has fourteen stops and a fleet of five cars with a daily ridership of around 350. According to the 2016 American Community Survey, 82.9 percent of working Little Rock residents commuted by driving alone, 8.9 percent carpooled, 1.1 percent used public transportation, and 1.8 percent walked. About 1.3 percent commuted by all other means of transportation, including taxi, bicycle, and motorcycle. About 4 percent worked out of the home. In 2015, 8.2 percent of city of Little Rock households were without a car, which increased slightly to 8.9 percent in 2016. The national average was 8.7 percent in 2016. Little Rock averaged 1.58 cars per household in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8 per household. Matt Besser (born 1967), improvisational comedian and Upright Citizens Brigade co-founder., Kevin Brockmeier (born 1972), author of fantasy and literary fiction, Florence Price (born 1887) classical composer, Bill Clinton (born 1946), former President of the United States and former governor of the state, lived in the city., Hillary Clinton (born 1947), American Politician, Chelsea Clinton (born 1980), daughter of Bill and Hillary Clinton, was born in Little Rock., John Gould Fletcher (1886–1950), Pulitzer Prize-winning Imagist poet and author, was born in Little Rock. The Fletcher Branch Library of the Central Arkansas Library System is named after him., Bill Hicks (1961–1994), American comedian and social critic, died at his parents' home in Little Rock., Amy Lee (born 1981) lead vocalist of rock/metal band Evanescence born in Little Rock., The Little Rock Nine, group of nine African American students who were enrolled in 1957 in Little Rock Central High School and were initially prevented by the state government from entering the racially segregated school. The group was ultimately allowed to attend after the federal government intervened. Among other accomplishments and accolades, they all received the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP in 1958 and the Congressional Gold Medal from President Bill Clinton in 1999., Douglas MacArthur (1880–1964), U.S. general, was born in Little Rock., James Smith McDonnell —Aviation pioneer and founder of McDonnell Aircraft Corporation., Sanford N. McDonnell —Engineer, businessman and philanthropist; former Chairman and CEO of McDonnell Douglas., Charlotte Moorman (1933–1991), cellist and advocate for avant-garde music born in Little Rock., Brooks Robinson (born 1937), Hall of Fame 3rd baseman for the Baltimore Orioles. Born in Little Rock and graduated from Little Rock High School in 1955., Winthrop Rockefeller (1912–1973), businessman, philanthropist, and the first Republican governor of Arkansas since Reconstruction and the grandson of John D. Rockefeller, lived in the city and in Conway County., Pharoah Sanders (born October 13, 1940) is an American jazz saxophonist. Born in Little Rock., Sheryl Underwood (born 1963), Emmy-winning co-host of The Talk, stand-up comedian, and actress, was born in Little Rock., Sam Walton (born 1918), American Businessman and Entrepreneur, died in Little Rock, AR in 1992 (Aged 74), Bobo Brazil (July 10, 1924 – January 20, 1998) the first successful African-American professional wrestlers From Little Rock Kaohsiung, Taiwan 1983, Hanam, Gyeonggi, South Korea1992, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China1994, Ragusa, Sicily, Italy (Emeritus), Mons, Belgium (Emeritus), Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico (Emeritus), Caxias do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil 2017 Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom1999, La Petite-Pierre, Bas-Rhin, France (Emeritus) Arkansas Metropolitan Areas, Baptist Missionary Association of America, Jack Stephens Center, List of capitals in the United States, Little Rock Air Force Base, National Register of Historic Places listings in Little Rock, Arkansas The Atlas of Arkansas, Richard M. Smith 1989, Cities in the U.S.; The South, Fourth Edition, Volume 1, Linda Schmittroth, 2001, Greater Little Rock: a contemporary portrait, Letha Mills, 1990, How We Lived: Little Rock as an American City, Frederick Hampton Roy, 1985, Morgan, James. "Little Rock: The 2005 American Heritage Great American Place" American Heritage, October 2005., Redefining the Color Line: Black Activism in Little Rock, Arkansas, 1940-1970, John A. Kirk, 2002. Government Services at Rock Region METRO General information Little Rock, Arkansas at City-Data.com, Little Rock, Arkansas at TripSavvy (tripsavvy.com), Little Rock, Arkansas at Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture Elizabeth Ann Eckford (born October 4, 1941) is one of the Little Rock Nine, a group of African-American students who, in 1957, were the first black students ever to attend classes at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. The integration came as a result of Brown v. Board of Education. Eckford's public ordeal was captured by press photographers on the morning of September 4, 1957, after she was prevented from entering the school by the Arkansas National Guard. A dramatic snapshot by Johnny Jenkins of the United Press (UP) showed the young girl being followed and threatened by an angry white mob; this and other photos of the day's startling events were circulated around the US and the world by the press. The best-known photograph of the event was taken by Will Counts of the Arkansas Democrat. His image was the unanimous selection for a 1958 Pulitzer Prize, but since the story had earned then-rival Arkansas Gazette two other Pulitzer Prizes already, the Prize was awarded to another photographer for a pleasant photograph of a two-year-old boy in Washington, D.C. A different photo taken by Counts of Alex Wilson, a black reporter for the Memphis Tri-State Defender being beaten by the angry mob in Little Rock the same day, was chosen as the "News Picture of the Year" for 1957 by the National Press Photographers Association. This image by Counts prompted President Dwight D. Eisenhower to send federal troops to Little Rock. On September 4, 1957, Eckford and eight other African American students (known as the Little Rock Nine) made an unsuccessful attempt to enter Little Rock Central High School, which had been segregated. An angry mob of about 400 surrounded the school that day, with the complicity of the National Guard. Fifteen-year-old Eckford tried to enter the school, while soldiers of the National Guard, under orders from Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, stepped in her way to prevent her from entering. Eventually, she gave up and tried to flee to a bus stop through the mob of segregationists who surrounded and threatened to lynch her. Once Eckford got to the bus stop, she couldn't stop crying. A reporter, Benjamin Fine, having in mind his own 15-year-old daughter, sat down next to Eckford. He tried to comfort her and told her, "don't let them see you cry." Soon, she was also protected by a white woman named Grace Lorch who escorted her onto a city bus. The original plan was to have the nine children arrive together, but when the meeting place was changed the night before, the Eckford family's lack of a telephone left Elizabeth uninformed of the change. Instructions were given by Daisy Bates, a strong activist for desegregation, for the nine students to wait for her so that they could all walk together to the rear entrance of the school. This last-minute change caused Elizabeth to be the first to take a different route to school, walking up to the front entrance completely alone. Elizabeth Eckford's family were not informed of the meeting and didn't know that the school board asked the parents to accompany her. Also, Eckford rode a public bus alone to the segregated school. That day, Elizabeth wore a starched black-and-white dress, and she covered her face under black sunglasses. Elizabeth also held her school book in her hand. As she walked toward the school, Elizabeth was surrounded by a crowd of armed guards and a mob of people, and she did not see any black faces. The mob included men, women, and teenagers (white students) who opposed integration. The white teenagers chanted "Two, four, six, eight, we ain't gonna integrate." Elizabeth attempted to go into the school through the mob but was denied entrance. Eckford ran to a bus bench at the end of the block. Eckford described her experience: For the next two weeks, the Little Rock Nine stayed home to study instead of going to the Little Rock Central High School. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was reluctant to do anything about the mob or the rioting. Eisenhower summoned Orval Faubus, the Governor of Arkansas to intervene and asked for the withdrawal of all troops from the High School after Elizabeth Eckford's experience attempting to enter the school the first time. On September 23, 1957, the Little Rock Nine approached Central High again, and Elizabeth Eckford along with the other eight students, accompanied by city policemen, were let into the high school through a side door. The reaction from the mob was described as follows: Even though Elizabeth Eckford would one day be known as a member of the Little Rock Nine, at this point in the school day, she was all alone, making her the first African-American student to integrate a white southern high school. The Arkansas National Guard, under orders from the governor, and an angry mob of about 400 surrounded the school and prevented them from going in. On September 23, 1957, a mob of about 1000 people surrounded the school again as the students attempted to enter. The following day, President Dwight D. Eisenhower took control of the Arkansas National Guard from the governor and sent soldiers to accompany the students to school for protection. Soldiers were deployed at the school for the entirety of the school year, although they were unable to prevent incidents of violence against the group inside, such as Eckford being thrown down a flight of stairs. All of the city's high schools were closed the following year, so Eckford did not graduate from Central High School. However, she had taken correspondence and night courses garnering enough credits for her high school diploma. In 1958, Eckford and the rest of the Little Rock Nine were awarded the Spingarn Medal by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), as was Ms. Bates. Eckford was accepted by Knox College in Illinois, but chose to return to Little Rock to be near her family. She later attended Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio, where she earned a BA in history. In 2018, Eckford was awarded an honorary doctorate from Knox College. Eckford served in the United States Army for five years, first as a pay clerk, and then as an information specialist. She also wrote for the Fort McClellan (Alabama) and the Fort Benjamin Harrison (Indiana) newspapers. After that, she has worked as a waitress, history teacher, welfare worker, unemployment and employment interviewer, and a military reporter. She is a probation officer in Little Rock. In 1997, she shared the Father Joseph Biltz Award—presented by the National Conference for Community and Justice—with Hazel Bryan Massery, a then-segregationist student at Central High School who appeared in several of the 1957 photographs screaming at the young Elizabeth. During the reconciliation rally of 1997, the two women made speeches together. But later their friendship broke up, with Eckford reflecting, "[Hazel] wanted me to be cured and be over it and for this not to go on anymore. She wanted me to be less uncomfortable so that she wouldn't feel responsible." In 1999, President Bill Clinton presented the nation's highest civilian award, the Congressional Gold Medal, to the members of the Little Rock Nine. On the morning of January 1, 2003, one of Eckford's two sons, Erin Eckford, age 26, was shot and killed by police in Little Rock. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported that the police officers had unsuccessfully tried to disarm him with a beanbag round after he had fired several shots from his rifle. When Eckford pointed his rifle towards them, the police officers shot him. His mother feared that his death was "suicide by police". Erin, she said, had suffered from mental illness but had been off his prescribed medication for several years. The newspaper later reported that prosecutors investigating the fatal shooting had decided that the police officers concerned were justified in shooting Eckford. Actress Lisa Marie Russell portrayed Eckford in the Disney Channel movie The Ernest Green Story (1993). Amandla Stenberg portrayed Eckford during a segment on the show Drunk History (2019). Notes References

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The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting the emperor in his afterlife. The figures, dating from approximately the late third century BCE, were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong County, outside Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. The figures vary in height according to their roles, with the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors, chariots and horses. Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army held more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remained buried in the pits near Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum. Other terracotta non-military figures were found in other pits, including officials, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians. The construction of the tomb was described by historian Sima Qian (14590 BCE) in Records of the Grand Historian, the first of China's 24 dynastic histories, which was written a century after the mausoleum's completion. Work on the mausoleum began in 246 BCE soon after Emperor Qin (then aged 13) ascended the throne, and the project eventually involved 700,000 workers. Geographer Li Daoyuan, writing six centuries after the first emperor's death, recorded in Shui Jing Zhu that Mount Li was a favoured location due to its auspicious geology, "famed for its jade mines, its northern side was rich in gold, and its southern side rich in beautiful jade; the first emperor, covetous of its fine reputation, therefore chose to be buried there". Sima Qian wrote that the first emperor was buried with palaces, towers, officials, valuable artifacts and wondrous objects. According to this account, 100 flowing rivers were simulated using mercury, and above them the ceiling was decorated with heavenly bodies below which were the features of the land. Some translations of this passage refer to "models" or "imitations"; however, those words were not used in the original text, which makes no mention of the terracotta army. High levels of mercury were found in the soil of the tomb mound, giving credence to Sima Qian's account. Later historical accounts suggested that the complex and tomb itself had been looted by Xiang Yu, a contender for the throne after the death of the first emperor. However, there are indications that the tomb itself may not have been plundered. was discovered on 29 March 1974 by farmers digging a water well approximately east of the Qin Emperor's tomb mound at Mount Li (Lishan), a region riddled with underground springs and watercourses. For centuries, occasional reports mentioned pieces of terracotta figures and fragments of the Qin necropolis – roofing tiles, bricks and chunks of masonry. This discovery prompted Chinese archaeologists, including Zhao Kangmin, to investigate, revealing the largest pottery figurine group ever found. A museum complex has since been constructed over the area, the largest pit being enclosed by a roofed structure. The Terracotta Army is part of a much larger necropolis. Ground-penetrating radar and core sampling have measured the area to be approximately 98 square kilometers (38 square miles). The necropolis was constructed as a microcosm of the emperor's imperial palace or compound, and covers a large area around the tomb mound of the first emperor. The earthen tomb mound is located at the foot of Mount Li and built in a pyramidal shape, and is surrounded by two solidly built rammed earth walls with gateway entrances. The necropolis consists of several offices, halls, stables, other structures as well as an imperial park placed around the tomb mound. The warriors stand guard to the east of the tomb. Up to of reddish, sandy soil had accumulated over the site in the two millennia following its construction, but archaeologists found evidence of earlier disturbances at the site. During the excavations near the Mount Li burial mound, archaeologists found several graves dating from the 18th and 19th centuries, where diggers had apparently struck terracotta fragments. These were discarded as worthless and used along with soil to backfill the excavations. The tomb appears to be a hermetically sealed space roughly the size of a football pitch (c. 100 × 75 m). The tomb remains unopened, possibly due to concerns over preservation of its artifacts. For example, after the excavation of the Terracotta Army, the painted surface present on some terracotta figures began to flake and fade. The lacquer covering the paint can curl in fifteen seconds once exposed to Xi'an's dry air and can flake off in just four minutes. Four main pits approximately deep have been excavated. These are located approximately east of the burial mound. The soldiers within were laid out as if to protect the tomb from the east, where the Qin Emperor's conquered states lay. Pit 1, which is long and wide, contains the main army of more than 6,000 figures. Pit 1 has eleven corridors, most more than wide and paved with small bricks with a wooden ceiling supported by large beams and posts. This design was also used for the tombs of nobles and would have resembled palace hallways when built. The wooden ceilings were covered with reed mats and layers of clay for waterproofing, and then mounded with more soil raising them about above the surrounding ground level when completed. Pit 2 has cavalry and infantry units as well as war chariots and is thought to represent a military guard. Pit 3 is the command post, with high-ranking officers and a war chariot. Pit 4 is empty, perhaps left unfinished by its builders. Some of the figures in Pits 1 and 2 show fire damage, while remains of burnt ceiling rafters have also been found. These, together with the missing weapons, have been taken as evidence of the reported looting by Xiang Yu and the subsequent burning of the site, which is thought to have caused the roof to collapse and crush the army figures below. The terracotta figures currently on display have been restored from the fragments. Other pits that formed the necropolis have also been excavated. These pits lie within and outside the walls surrounding the tomb mound. They variously contain bronze carriages, terracotta figures of entertainers such as acrobats and strongmen, officials, stone armour suits, burial sites of horses, rare animals and labourers, as well as bronze cranes and ducks set in an underground park. The terracotta figures are life-sized. They vary in height, uniform, and hairstyle in accordance with rank. Their faces appear to be different for each individual figure; scholars, however, have identified 10 basic face shapes. The figures are of these general types: armored infantry; unarmored infantry; cavalrymen who wear a pillbox hat; helmeted drivers of chariots with more armor protection; spear-carrying charioteers; kneeling crossbowmen or archers who are armored; standing archers who are not; as well as generals and other lower-ranking officers. There are, however, many variations in the uniforms within the ranks: for example, some may wear shin pads while others not; they may wear either long or short trousers, some of which may be padded; and their body armors vary depending on rank, function, and position in formation. There are also terracotta horses placed among the warrior figures. Originally, the figures were painted with: ground precious stones, intensely fired bones (white), pigments of iron oxide (dark red), cinnabar (red), malachite (green), azurite (blue), charcoal (black), cinnabar barium copper silicate mix (Chinese purple or Han purple), tree sap from a nearby source, (more than likely from the Chinese lacquer tree) (brown). Other colors including pink, lilac and one unknown color. The colored lacquer finish and individual facial features would have given the figures a realistic feel, with eyebrows and facial hair in black and the faces done in pink. However, in Xi'an's dry climate, much of the color coating would flake off in less than four minutes after removing the mud surrounding the army. Some scholars have speculated a possible Hellenistic link to these sculptures, because of the lack of life-sized and realistic sculptures before the Qin dynasty. They argued that potential Greek influence is particularly evident in some terracotta figures such as those of acrobats, combined with findings of European DNA in Xinjiang and rare bronze artifacts made with a lost wax technique known in Greece and Egypt. However, this idea is disputed by scholars who claim that there is "no substantial evidence at all" for contact between ancient Greeks and Chinese builders of the tomb. They argue that such speculations rest on flawed and old "Eurocentric" ideas that assumed other civilizations were incapable of sophisticated artistry and thus foreign artistry must be seen through western traditions. However this scholar disputes of mere "Eurocentric" argument contradicts the evidence; Ancient Chinese people contact with Bactrian Greeks. Dayuan (meaning "Great Ionians"), described in the Chinese historical works of Records of the Grand Historian and the Book of Han. It is mentioned in the accounts of the famous Chinese explorer Zhang Qian in 130 BCE and the numerous embassies that followed him into Central Asia. The country of Dayuan is generally accepted as relating to the Ferghana Valley, and its Greek city Alexandria Eschate. These Chinese accounts describe the Dayuan as urbanized dwellers with Caucasian features, living in walled cities and having "customs identical to those of the Greco- Bactrians". Strabo writes that Bactrian Greeks "extended their empire even as far as the Seres (Chinese) and the Phryni". The War of the Heavenly Horses (104–101 BC) was a war between Dayuan and the Han dynasty. The terracotta army figures were manufactured in workshops by government laborers and local craftsmen using local materials. Heads, arms, legs, and torsos were created separately and then assembled by luting the pieces together. When completed, the terracotta figures were placed in the pits in precise military formation according to rank and duty. The faces were created using molds, and at least ten face molds may have been used. Clay was then added after assembly to provide individual facial features to make each figure appear different. It is believed that the warriors' legs were made in much the same way that terracotta drainage pipes were manufactured at the time. This would classify the process as assembly line production, with specific parts manufactured and assembled after being fired, as opposed to crafting one solid piece and subsequently firing it. In those times of tight imperial control, each workshop was required to inscribe its name on items produced to ensure quality control. This has aided modern historians in verifying which workshops were commandeered to make tiles and other mundane items for the terracotta army. Most of the figures originally held real weapons, which would have increased their realism. The majority of these weapons were looted shortly after the creation of the army or have rotted away. Despite this, over 40,000 bronze items of weaponry have been recovered, including swords, daggers, spears, lances, battle-axes, scimitars, shields, crossbows, and crossbow triggers. Most of the recovered items are arrowheads, which are usually found in bundles of 100 units. Studies of these arrowheads suggests that they were produced by self-sufficient, autonomous workshops using a process referred to as cellular production or Toyotism. Some weapons were coated with a 10–15 micrometer layer of chromium dioxide before burial that was believed to have protected them from any form of decay for the last 2200 years. However, research in 2019 indicated that the chromium was merely contamination from nearby lacquer, not a means of protecting the weapons. The slightly alkaline pH and small particle size of the burial soil most likely preserved the weapons. The swords contain an alloy of copper, tin, and other elements including nickel, magnesium, and cobalt. Some carry inscriptions that date their manufacture to between 245 and 228 BCE, indicating that they were used before burial. In 2007, scientists at Stanford University and the Advanced Light Source facility in Berkeley, California, reported that powder diffraction experiments combined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and micro-X-ray fluorescence analysis showed that the process of producing terracotta figures colored with Chinese purple dye consisting of barium copper silicate was derived from the knowledge gained by Taoist alchemists in their attempts to synthesize jade ornaments. Since 2006, an international team of researchers at the UCL Institute of Archaeology have been using analytical chemistry techniques to uncover more details about the production techniques employed in the creation of the Terracotta Army. Using X-ray fluorescence spectrometry of 40,000 bronze arrowheads bundled in groups of 100, the researchers reported that the arrowheads within a single bundle formed a relatively tight cluster that was different from other bundles. In addition, the presence or absence of metal impurities was consistent within bundles. Based on the arrows’ chemical compositions, the researchers concluded that a cellular manufacturing system similar to the one used in a modern Toyota factory, as opposed to a continuous assembly line in the early days of the automobile industry, was employed. Grinding and polishing marks visible under a scanning electron microscope provide evidence for the earliest industrial use of lathes for polishing. The first exhibition of the figures outside of China was held at National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne in 1982. A collection of 120 objects from the mausoleum and 12 terracotta warriors were displayed at the British Museum in London as its special exhibition "The First Emperor: China's Terracotta Army" from 13 September 2007 to April 2008. This exhibition made 2008 the British Museum's most successful year and made the British Museum the United Kingdom's top cultural attraction between 2007 and 2008. The exhibition brought the most visitors to the museum since the King Tutankhamun exhibition in 1972. It was reported that the 400,000 advance tickets sold out so fast that the museum extended its opening hours until midnight. According to The Times, many people had to be turned away, despite the extended hours. During the day of events to mark the Chinese New Year, the crush was so intense that the gates to the museum had to be shut. The Terracotta Army has been described as the only other set of historic artifacts (along with the remnants of wreck of the RMS Titanic) that can draw a crowd by the name alone. Warriors and other artifacts were exhibited to the public at the Forum de Barcelona in Barcelona between 9 May and 26 September 2004. It was their most successful exhibition ever. The same exhibition was presented at the Fundación Canal de Isabel II in Madrid between October 2004 and January 2005, their most successful ever. From December 2009 to May 2010, the exhibition was shown in the Centro Cultural La Moneda in Santiago de Chile. The exhibition traveled to North America and visited museums such as the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, California, Houston Museum of Natural Science, High Museum of Art in Atlanta, National Geographic Society Museum in Washington, D.C. and the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. Subsequently, the exhibition traveled to Sweden and was hosted in the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities between 28 August 2010 and 20 January 2011. An exhibition entitled 'The First Emperor – China's Entombed Warriors', presenting 120 artifacts was hosted at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, between 2 December 2010 and 13 March 2011. An exhibition entitled "L'Empereur guerrier de Chine et son armée de terre cuite" ("The Warrior-Emperor of China and his terracotta army"), featuring artifacts including statues from the mausoleum, was hosted by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from 11 February 2011 to 26 June 2011. In Italy, from July 2008 to 16 November 2008, five of the warriors of the terracotta army were displayed in Turin at the Museum of Antiquities, and from 16 April 2010 to 5 September 2010 were exposed nine warriors in Milan, at the Royal Palace, at the exhibition entitled "The Two Empires". The group consisted of a horse, a counselor, an archer and six lancers. The "Treasures of Ancient China" exhibition, showcasing two terracotta soldiers and other artifacts, including the Longmen Grottoes Buddhist statues, was held between 19 February 2011 and 7 November 2011 in four locations in India: National Museum of New Delhi, Prince of Wales Museum in Mumbai, Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad and National Library of India in Kolkata. Soldiers and related items were on display from 15 March 2013 to 17 November 2013, at the Historical Museum of Bern. Several Terracotta Army figures were on display, along with many other objects, in an exhibit entitled "Age of Empires: Chinese Art of the Qin and Han Dynasties" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City from 3 April 2017, to 16 July 2017. An exhibition featuring ten Terracotta Army figures and other artifacts, "Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor," was on display at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, Washington, from 8 April 2017 to 4 September 2017 before traveling to The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to be exhibited from 30 September 2017 to 4 March 2018 with the addition of augmented reality. An exhibition entitled "China's First Emperor and the Terracotta Warriors" is at the World Museum in Liverpool from 9 February 2018 to 28 October 2018. This is the first time in more than 10 years that the warriors have travelled to the UK. An exhibition tour of 120 real- size replicas of Terracotta statues was displayed in the German cities of Frankfurt am Main, Munich, Oberhof, Berlin (at the Palace of the Republic) and Nuremberg between 2003 and 2004. List of World Heritage Sites in China, Qin bronze chariot UNESCO description of the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum (official website), People's Daily article on the Terracotta Army, OSGFilms Video Article : Terracotta Warriors at Discovery Times Square, The Necropolis of the First Emperor of Qin Excerpt from lecture, China's Terracotta Warriors Documentary produced by the PBS Series Secrets of the Dead Xi'an ( , , ), also known as Sian, is the capital of Shaanxi Province. A sub- provincial city on the Guanzhong Plain in northwest China, it is one of the oldest cities in China, and the oldest prefecture capital and one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals, having held the position under several of the most important dynasties in Chinese history, including Western Zhou, Qin, Western Han, Sui, and Tang. Xi'an is the starting point of the Silk Road and home to the Terracotta Army of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. Since the 1980s, as part of the economic revival of inland China especially for the central and northwest regions, the city of Xi'an has re-emerged as an important cultural, industrial and educational centre of the central-northwest region, with facilities for research and development, national security and space exploration. Xi'an currently holds sub-provincial status, administering 9 districts and 4 counties. Xi'an has a population of 12,005,600, and the Xi'an–Xianyang metropolitan area a population of 12.9 million. It is the most populous city in Northwest China, as well as one of the three most populous cities in Western China, the other two being Chongqing and Chengdu. In 2012, it was named as one of the 13 emerging megacities, or megalopolises, in China. "Xi'an" is the atonal pinyin romanization of the Mandarin pronunciation of its name , which means "Western Peace". (The apostrophe – known in Chinese as a , ' – should be included to distinguish its pronunciation from the single syllable xian.) The name was adopted in 1369 under the early Ming dynasty. Jesuit missionaries recorded its name as or "Si-ngan-fou" from its status as the seat of a prefecture (,fǔ). This form still appears in the Latin name of the Catholic diocese of Xi'an, . The name was later romanized as by Wade & Giles and as "Sianfu" or "Sian" by the Qing imperial post office, both of which were common until the general adoption of pinyin. The area of present- day Xi'an has been the site of several important former Chinese cities. The capital of the Western Zhou were the twin cities of Feng and Hao, known collectively as Fenghao, located on opposite banks of the Feng River at its confluence with the southern bank of the Wei in the western suburbs of present-day Xi'an. The Qin capital Xianyang was erected north of the Wei during the Warring States period and was succeeded by the Western Han capital of Chang'an (), meaning "Perpetual Peace", which was located south of the Wei and covered the central area of present-day Xi'an. During the Eastern Han, Chang'an was also known as Xijing () or the "Western Capital", relative to its position to the main capital at Luoyang. Under the Sui, its name became Daxing (, "Greatly Prosperous") in AD 581. Under the Tang, the name reverted to Chang'an in 618. Under the Mongolian Yuan dynasty (13th & 14th centuries), it held a succession of names: Fengyuan Anxi "Peaceful West"), and Jingzhao The Ming name "Xi'an" was changed back to Xijing ("Western Capital", as above) between 1930 and 1943. Xi'an currently does not have a widely accepted one- character abbreviation as many other Chinese cities do. Its license plates are simply marked with , based on the name of its province. Xi'an has a rich and culturally significant history. The Lantian Man was discovered in 1963 in Lantian County, southeast of Xi'an, and dates back to at least 500,000 years before the present time. A 6,500-year-old Neolithic village, Banpo, was discovered in 1953 on the eastern outskirts of the city proper, which contains the remains of several well organized Neolithic settlements carbon dated to 5600–6700 years ago. The site is now home to the Xi'an Banpo Museum, built in 1957 to preserve the archaeological collection. Xi'an became a cultural and political centre of China in the 11th century BC with the founding of the Zhou dynasty. The capital of Zhou was established in the twin settlements of Fengjing () and Haojing, together known as Fenghao, located southwest of contemporary Xi'an. The settlement was also known as Zhōngzhōu to indicate its role as the capital of the vassal states. In 770 BC, the capital was moved to Luoyang due to political unrest. Following the Warring States period, China was unified under the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) for the first time, with the capital located at Xianyang, just northwest of modern Xi'an. The first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang ordered the construction of the Terracotta Army and his mausoleum just to the east of Xi'an almost immediately after his ascension to the throne. In 202 BC, the founding emperor Liu Bang of the Han dynasty established his capital in Chang'an County; his first palace, Changle Palace (, "Perpetual Happiness") was built across the river from the ruin of the Qin capital. This is traditionally regarded as the founding date of Chang'an. Two years later, Liu Bang built Weiyang Palace (, "Never Ending Palace") north of modern Xi'an. Weiyang Palace was the largest palace ever built on Earth, covering , which is 6.7 times the size of the current Forbidden City and 11 times the size of the Vatican City. The original Xi'an city wall was started in 194 BC and took 4 years to finish. Upon completion, the wall measured in length and in thickness at the base, enclosing an area of . In the year 190, amidst uprisings and rebellions just prior to the Three Kingdoms Period, a powerful warlord named Dong Zhuo moved the court from Luoyang to Chang'an in a bid to avoid a coalition of other powerful warlords against him. Following several hundred years of unrest, the Sui dynasty united China again in 582. The emperor of Sui ordered a new capital to be built southeast of the Han capital, called Daxing. It consisted of three sections: the Imperial City, the palace section, and the civilian section, with a total area of within the city walls. At the time, it was the largest city in the world. The city was renamed Chang'an by the Tang dynasty. In the mid-7th century, after returning from his pilgrimage to India, the Buddhist monk Xuanzang established a translation centre for Sanskrit scriptures. Construction of the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda began in 652. This pagoda was in height, and was built to store the translations of Buddhist sutras obtained from India by Xuanzang. In 707, construction of the Small Wild Goose Pagoda began. This pagoda measured tall at the time of completion, and was built to store the translations of Buddhist sutras by Yijing. The massive 1556 Shaanxi earthquake eventually damaged the tower and reduced its height to . The Nestorian Stele is a Tang Chinese stele erected in 781 that documents 150 years of early Christianity in China. It is a 279 cm tall limestone block with text in both Chinese and Syriac describing the existence of Christian communities in several cities in northern China. It reveals that the initial Nestorian Christian church had met recognition by the Tang Emperor Taizong, due to efforts of the Christian missionary Alopen in 635. Chang'an was devastated at the end of the Tang dynasty in 904. Residents were forced to move to the new capital city in Luoyang. Only a small area in the city continued to be occupied thereafter. During the Ming dynasty, a new wall was constructed in 1370 and remains intact to this day. The wall measures in circumference, in height, and in thickness at the base; a moat was also built outside the walls. The new wall and moat would protect a much smaller city of . In October 1911, during the Xinhai revolution, revolutionaries attacked the Manchu fort in Xi'an city. Xinhai forces stormed the fort, killing some 20,000 Manchus, therefore successfully liquidated the entire population of Manchus in Xi'an city. The Hui Muslim community of northwestern China was divided in its support for the 1911 Xinhai Revolution. The Hui Muslims of Shaanxi supported the revolutionaries and the Hui Muslims of Gansu supported the Qing. The native Hui Muslims (Mohammedans) of Xi'an joined the Han Chinese revolutionaries in slaughtering the Manchus. Only some wealthy Manchus who were ransomed and Manchu females survived. Wealthy Han Chinese seized Manchu girls to become their slaves and poor Han Chinese troops seized young Manchu women to be their wives. Young pretty Manchu girls were also seized by Hui Muslims of Xi'an during the massacre and brought up as Muslims. A British missionary who witnessed the massacre commented that "Old and young, men and women, children alike, were all butchered... Houses were plundered and then burnt; those who would fain have laid hidden till the storm was past, were forced to come out into the open. The revolutionaries, protected by a parapet of the wall, poured a heavy, unceasing, relentless fire into the doomed Tartar (Manchu) city, those who tried to escape thence into the Chinese city were cut down as they emerged from the gates." In 1936, the Xi'an Incident took place inside the city during the Chinese Civil War. The incident brought the Kuomintang (KMT) and Communist Party of China to a truce in order to concentrate on fighting against the Japanese Invasion. On May 20, 1949, the Communist-controlled People's Liberation Army captured the city of Xi'an from the Kuomintang force. Xi'an made headlines for being one of the many cities where the 2012 China anti-Japanese demonstrations occurred. Xi'an lies on the Guanzhong Plain in the south-central part of Shaanxi province, on a flood plain created by the eight surrounding rivers and streams. The city has an average elevation of above sea level and an annual precipitation of . The urban area of Xi'an is located at . The Wei River provides potable water to the city. The city borders the northern foot of the Qin Mountains (Qinling) to the south, and the banks of the Wei River to the north. Hua Shan, one of the five sacred Taoist mountains, is located away to the east of the city. Not far to the north is the Loess Plateau. At the beginning of Han dynasty, Prime Minister Zhang Liang advised the emperor Liu Bang to choose Guanzhong as the capital of the Han dynasty: "Guanzhong Plain, which is located behind Xiao Pass and Hangu Pass, connects Long (Gansu) and Shu (Sichuan). Lands of thousand miles rich in harvest be found here, as if this place belongs to the nation of heaven." () Since then, Guanzhong is also known as the 'Nation of the Heaven'. Xi'an has a temperate climate that is influenced by the East Asian monsoon, classified under the Köppen climate classification as situated on the borderline between a semi-arid climate (BSk) and humid subtropical climate (Cwa). The Wei River valley is characterised by hot, humid summers, cold, dry winters, and dry springs and autumns. Most of the annual precipitation is delivered from July to late October. Snow occasionally falls in winter but rarely settles for long. Dust storms often occur during March and April as the city rapidly warms up. Summer months also experience frequent but short thunderstorms. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from around the freezing mark in January to in July, with an annual mean of . With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 31 percent in December to 47 percent in August, the city receives 1,536 hours of bright sunshine annually. Extremes since 1951 have ranged from on January 11, 1955 to on June 21, 1998. A highest record of was registered in another station on June 17, 2006. The Shaanxi Astronomical Observatory was established in 1966. In 1975, according to the Geodetic Origin Report of the People's Republic of China, 'in order to avoid bias in the mensuration as much as possible, the Geodetic Origin would be in central mainland China.' Lintong (), a town near Xi'an was chosen. Since 1986, Chinese Standard Time (CST) was set from NTSC. The NTSC in Lintong is away from Xi'an. National Time Service Centre (NTSC), the Chinese Academy of Sciences is an institute which is mainly engaged in the service and research on time and frequency. NTSC takes charge of generating and maintaining the national standard time scale, disseminating the time and frequency signals. The autonomous standard time scales of universal time and atomic time and the dissemination techniques with LF radio and HF radio were established successively during the 1970s and 1980s, which meet all the requirements for different applications on the whole, such as the scientific researches, national economy, etc. Xi'an has a population of 8.7 million. Compared to the census data from 2000, the population has increased by 656,700 persons from 7.41 million. The population is 51.66 percent male and 48.34 percent female. Among its districts, Yanta has the largest population, with 1.08 million inhabitants. The encompassing Xi'an-Xianyang metropolitan area was estimated by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) to have, , a population of 12.9 million, of which 5,740,000 is urban. The majority of Xi'an residents are Han Chinese, who make up 99.1 percent of the city's total population. There are around 81,500 people belonging to ethnic minorities living in Xi'an, including 50,000 Hui people. During World War II, Xi'an became a destination for many refugees from other provinces of China, especially neighboring Henan Province. Because Xi'an was far inland, the invading Japanese army only managed a few aerial assaults on the city. As a result, Xi'an suffered minimal destruction. After 1949, the national government tried to balance the development in different regions of China, and relocated a number of factories and universities from other cities to Xi'an. Modern Xi'an Jiaotong University was relocated from its original campus in Shanghai. The sub-provincial city of Xi'an has direct jurisdiction over 11 districts and 2 counties: Xi'an has many areas that are easily accessible on foot. In many commercial, residential, educational zones in the city, especially in the shopping and entertainment districts around the Bell Tower, underpasses and overpasses have been built for the safety and convenience of pedestrians. Electric bikes are popular among students and offer easy transportation in and around the city for many residents. A bicycle-sharing network started operating in 2013 and today has 52,000 bikes, used by over 200,000 people per day. Taxi services are numerous, but many citizens of Xi'an still commute to work using the city's 270 official municipal bus routes serviced by a fleet of over 7,800 buses, with an average system-wide ridership of over 4 million people per day. The bus network is complemented by a rapidly expanding subway system that carries over 1.5 million commuters per day. There are more than 2 million registered automobiles in Xi'an; the growing number of personal automobiles also means traffic jams are a common urban issue. Line 2, running through the city from north (North Railway Station) to south (Weiqu Nan), was the first line opened to the public on September 16, 2011. Operations began on September 28, 2011. This line is long with 17 stations. Line 1 opened on September 15, 2013. As a west-east railway, its 19 stations connect Houweizhai and Fangzhicheng. Line 3 runs from northeast (Baoshuiqu) to southwest (Yuhuazhai) and opened on November 8, 2016. Line 4, which is basically parallel to Line 2 on its east, runs from the North Square of the North Railway Station [Beikezhan (Beiguangchang)] to south (Hangtianxincheng) and was available publicly on December 26, 2018. Eight lines are planned to be finished around 2021. It will mainly service the urban and suburban districts of Xi'an municipality and part of nearby Xianyang City. The subway system covers some of the most famous attractions, such as Banpo Museum (Banpo Station, Line 1), Bell and Drum Tower (Line 2), Fortifications of Xi'an (Line 2), the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (Line 3 and Line 4), the Daminggong National Heritage Park (Line 4) and Shaanxi History Museum (Line 2, 3 and 4), etc. The first metro departure time for Line 1, 2, 3 and 4 is 6:00, the last metro departure time for Line 3 and 4 is 23:00, for Line 1 is 23:30, and for Line 2 is 23:50. On December 30, 2008, a fire accident occurred that was extinguished within an hour and all workers evacuated safely. Sixty-six hours later, on January 2, another fire occurred at another station on Line 2. Taxis in Xi'an are predominantly BYD Auto made in Xi'an. Most, if not all, taxis in Xi'an run on compressed natural gas. For the taxis' fare, during the period of 06:00 through 23:00, ¥9/ for the fare fall and ¥2.3/km later, at night ¥10 for the fare fall and ¥2.7/km later. There are 6 passenger transport railway stations in Xi'an. Xi'an railway station, located just north of Xi'an walled city, is one of the eight major national railway stations, and the main railway transportation hub of Shaanxi Province. The new Xi'an North railway station, situated a few miles to the north, is the station for the high-speed trains of the Zhengzhou–Xi'an High- Speed Railway. With 34 platforms, it is the largest railway station in Northwest China. Construction of the station began on September 19, 2008. The station was opened on January 11, 2011. As of May 2012, Xi'an North Station is served only by the fast (G-series and D-series) trains running on the Zhengzhou–Xi'an high-speed railway; one of them continues south to Hankou. The city's other stations include Xi'an West, Xi'an East, Xi'an South, Sanmincun, and Fangzhicheng railway stations. Xi'an Railway Station covers , has 5 passenger platforms, and 24 tracks. It provides 112 services to 80 000 people daily. Among the destinations served by direct trains from Xi'an are Beijing, Zhengzhou, Lanzhou, Baoji, and Mount Hua. China Railway High-speed 2 now run an express services from Xi'an to Baoji and Xi'an to Zhengzhou; with a total running time to Baoji of under 90 minutes, and 2 hours to Zhengzhou. The Zhengzhou–Xi'an high-speed railway also serves Xi'an. Construction work began on September 25, 2005, the railway opened for service on February 6, 2010. The railway has made air service between Zhengzhou and Xi'an uncompetitive. All passenger flights between the two cities were suspended within 48 days of start of regular high-speed rail service. Xi'an currently has three ring road systems, the Second Ring road and the Third Ring road which encircle the city. These ring roads are similar to freeways, except where there are traffic signals on the Second Ring road. As a tourist city, Xi'an has built expressways to Lintong, Tongchuan and Baoji, with well-maintained roads to famous scenic spots in suburban counties and to the north slope of the Qin Mountains. Since its construction in September 2007, the G5 Beijing–Kunming Expressway connects Hanzhong and Xi'an through the Qinling. China National Highway 108, China National Highway 210, China National Highway 211, China National Highway 312 Xi'an Xianyang International Airport (airport code: XIY) is the major airport serving the city and it is the largest airport in the northwestern part of China. It is northwest of Xi'an city centre, and northeast of the centre of Xianyang. China Eastern Airlines, Hainan Airlines and China Southern Airlines are the main airlines using the airport. Terminal 3 and the second runway were opened on May 3, 2012. International Routes: There are direct flights from Xi'an to many major cities in Asia, including Bangkok, Busan, Fukuoka, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Osaka, Sapporo, Singapore Seoul, and Taipei. First direct route between Xi'an and Europe was launched by Finnair on June 14, 2013. There are 3 three frequencies per week via Helsinki hub to many major cities in Europe during the summer season. United Airlines begun non-stop service to San Francisco since May 2016. Germany's Fraport, the operator of Frankfurt Airport, has paid 490 million yuan to obtain a 24.5 percent stake in the Xianyang International Airport, offering opportunities to upgrade and expand the facility. On June 6, 1994, China Northwest Airlines Flight 2303 broke up in mid-air and crashed near Xi'an, en route to Guangzhou from Xian. A maintenance error was responsible. All 160 people on board died. , it remains the deadliest airplane crash ever to occur in mainland China. The culture of Xi'an descends from one of the world's earliest civilizations. The Guanzhong Ren () culture is considered the cultural antecedent of Xi'anese; their features are satirized as the "Ten Strangenesses of Guanzhong Ren" (). Xi'an is also known for the "Eight Great Sights of Chang'an" (), a collection of scenic areas in the region. Xi'an guyue is named for Xi'an. Much like Beijing 1798 and Shanghai 1933, Xi'an has an art district called Textile Town (). The district derives its name from the many textile factories built there since the 1950s. Today it is no longer a centre for the textile industry but a new art factory with 4 workshops in total. Xi'an is home to contemporary Chinese stars such as Xu Wei, Zhang Chu and Zheng Jun. Yangrou paomo (flat bread soaked in lamb soup; ) is a well known Xi'anese dish. Qinqiang (Voice of Qin) is the oldest and most extensive of the four major types of Chinese opera. Also called "random pluck" (), Qinqiang is the main type of drama in Shaanxi province. As the earliest ancestor of Peking opera, Yu Opera, Sichuan opera and Hebei Opera, Qinqiang has developed its own system of unique vocal music, spoken parts, facial makeup, posture, role, category and acting. It can be traced to Xi Qinqiang () in Qin dynasty, and blossomed until Qing dynasty, with direct influences on many branches of Chinese Opera. Zhang Yimou and Gu Changwei are directors from Xi'an. Zhang Yimou is also the only director in China to win the Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival) twice. The first film is Red Sorghum and the second one is Tuya's Marriage. They are produced by Xi'an Filmmaking Factory (now called Xi'an Qujiang Filmmaking Group) and Xi'an Filmmaking Company, respectively. The most influential religions in Xi'an are the Chinese traditional religion and Taoist schools, represented by many major and minor temples. Among these there are a City God Temple, completely reconstructed in the 2010s, and a Temple of Confucius. Buddhism has a large presence in the city, with temples of the Chinese and Tibetan schools. The first recorded Christian missionary in China was Alopen, a Syriac-speaker, who arrived in Xi'an (then known as Chang'an) in 635 along the Silk Road. The Nestorian Stele, now located in Xi'an's Beilin Museum, is a Tang Chinese stele erected in 781 that documents the 150 years of early Christianity in China following Alopen. It is a limestone block with text in both Chinese and Syriac describing the existence of Christian communities in several cities in northern China. The Daqin Pagoda, a Buddhist pagoda in Zhouzhi County of Xi'an, has been suggested to have originally been a Nestorian Christian church from the Tang Dynasty. In Xi'an there was formerly a Baptist mission from England. The Baptist missionaries ran a hospital. In 1892, Arthur Gostick Shorrock and Moir Duncan founded the Sianfu Mission, in present-day Xi'an. Xi'an was the first city in China to be introduced to Islam. Emperor Gaozong of the Tang dynasty officially allowed the practice of Islam in AD651. Xi'an has a large Muslim community, the significant majority are from the Hui group, there are an estimated 50,000 Hui Muslims in Xi'an. There are seven mosques in Xi'an, the best known being the Great Mosque. As part of the China Western Development policy, Xi’an became a major target for accelerated attention. From 1997 to 2006, the industrial output value of Xi’an's service industry increased at an annual average rate of 13.74 percent, compared to traditional service industries of 0.74 percent, representing a growth from US$8.113 billion to US$25.85 billion. Xi'an is the largest economy of the Shaanxi province, with a GDP of 324.1 billion Yuan in 2010. On average this value increases by 14.5 percent annually, and accounts for approximately 41.8 percent of Shaanxi's total GDP. At least fifty-eight countries have established over 2,560 enterprises in Xian, including nineteen of the Fortune 500 enterprises. These include ABB Group, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Toshiba, Fujitsu, Coca-Cola, and Boeing. Important industries include equipment manufacturing, tourism, and service outsourcing. The manufacturing industry had an annual output of RMB 36.5 billion, accounting for 44.5 percent of the city's total. Furthermore, as one of China's four ancient capitals, Xi'an's many cultural sites, including the Terracotta Army, the City Wall of Xi'an, and the Famen Temple, make tourism an important industry as well. In 2010, 52 million domestic tourists visited Xi'an, earning a total income of RMB 40.52 billion. On average, revenue increases by 36.4 percent per year, and foreign- exchange earnings (530 million in 2009) increase by around 35.8 percent. Xi'an is also one of the first service outsourcing cities in China, with over 800 corporations in the industry. The city's output value from this sector exceeded RMB 23 billion in 2008. Employment in the sector doubled from 1997–2006, from a base of 60,000, and computer consulting also doubled from 16,000 to 32,000. As a result of the importance of the software-outsourcing industry, the city planned construction of a Software New Town, which is scheduled to be completed in 2015 with 30 billion RMB investment. Other major export goods include lighting equipment and automobile parts, while its major import goods are mechanical and electrical products. Internationally, Xi'an's largest trade partner is the United States. Xi'an is part of the West Triangle Economic Zone, along with Chengdu and Chongqing. Major industrial zones in Xi'an include: Xi'an Economic and Technological Development Zone, Xi'an Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone a daily average of 3.7 technology enterprises established in Xi'an Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone in the year of 2005, from XINHUANET.com July 28, 2005 Xi'an Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone has more than 16,000 enterprises which ranked second place in all the 88 hi-tech ZONES in China, achieved a total revenue of 522.223 billion yuan. It is worth mentioning that 13 enterprise's annual income is over a hundred billion yuan, 19 enterprise's annual income more than 50 billion, more than 265 enterprise earns over billion yuan each year, Listed companies at home and abroad have accumulated 50, of which the domestic A-share market issued 21 of them, accounting for more than 60% of the province; 4 GEM listed companies, ranking first in the Midwest high-tech zones. The Jiangcungou landfill in Xi'an was China's largest landfill site before its closure in 2019. The growing economy of Xi'an supports the development of a software industry, and the city is a pioneer in software industry in China. The Xi'an Software Park within the Xi'an Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone (XDZ) has attracted over 1,085 corporations and 106,000 employees as of 2012. A Silicon.com article describes Xi'an: "But Xi'an is selling on its own merits—with a large pool of cheap human resources from the 100 universities in the area, it hoovers up around 3,000 computer graduates every year, each earning approximately $120 a month—half the wages for the equivalent job in Beijing." In November 2006, Xi'an and the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation jointly set up Xi'an Aerospace Science and Technology Industrial Base. From its establishment, the base has focused on the development of the civil space industry, including equipment manufacturing, software and service outsourcing, new materials and solar photovoltaics. Apart from the core area, the base will cover Xi'an and the Guanzhong area and the expansion zone will reach other parts of Northwest China and Southwest China. It is expected that by 2012 the total industry output can reach 2.8 billion us dollars with about 10 to 20 brand products with intellectual property rights and 5 to 8 products with global competitiveness. In 2008, after the launch of the initial aerospace centre in Shanghai, the PRC is constructing another civil aerospace centre in the Shaanxi province. The State Development and Reform Commission approved the planning of Xi'an National Civil Aerospace Industrial Base on December 26, 2007. The National Civil Aerospace Industrial Base of Xi'an, set to cover , will focus on developing satellites, new materials, energies, IT and other technologies for civil applications. Zhang Chaoyang (), the CEO of SOHU (Nasdaq), born and raised in Xi'an, is a prominent leader in the Chinese Internet industry. Liu Chuanzhi, the founder and president of Lenovo Group Limited, completed his tertiary degree from Xidian University in the 1960s. Xi'an Jiaotong University (), Northwestern Polytechnical University (), Xidian University (), Chang'an University (), Northwest University（西北大学）, Northwest University of Political Science and Law (), Shaanxi Pre-school Normal University (), Shaanxi Normal University (陕西师范大学), Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts (), Xi'an Conservatory of Music (西安音乐学院), Xi'an Institute of Post & Telecommunications (), Xi'an International Studies University (西安外国语大学), Xi'an Physical Education Institute (), Xi'an Polytechnic University(西安工程大学), Xi'an Petroleum University(西安石油大学), Xi'an Technological University (), Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology(西安建筑科技大学), Xi'an University of Arts and Science（Xi‘an University） (), Xi'an University of Finance and Economics (), Shaanxi University of Science and Technology(陕西科技大学), Xi'an University of Science and Technology(西安科技大学), Xi'an University of Technology () Air Force Engineering University (), The Fourth Military Medical University(), PLA Rocket Force University of Engineering (), (PLA) Xi'an Telecommunication College () Xi'an Innovation College of Yan'an University (), Shaanxi Institute of International Commerce (), Xi'an Eurasia University (), Xi'an Fanyi University (), Xi'an International University (), Xi'an Peihua University (), Xi'an Siyuan University () Note: Institutions without full-time bachelor programs are not listed. Xi’an was chosen to host the 2011 World Horticultural Exposition by the Association of International Producers of Horticulture (AIPH) at its 59th congress, held in Brighton, United Kingdom on September 4, 2007. The 2011 World Horti-Expo was held from April 28 to October 28, 2011. The exhibition was located in a new district of the city, Chanba district, and was expected to bring some 10 million visitors to Xi’an. The number of travelers is often greater during Summer (May–August), although the most pleasant season for visiting Xi'an is Autumn. Because of the city's many historical monuments and a plethora of ancient ruins and tombs in the vicinity, tourism has been an important component of the local economy, and the Xi'an region is one of the most popular tourist destinations in China. The city has many important historical sites, and some are ongoing archaeological projects, such as the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang and his Terracotta Army. There are several burial mounds, tombs of the Zhou dynasty kings located in the city. Xi'an also contains some 800 royal mausoleums and tombs from the Han dynasty, with some of them yielding hundreds of sculpted clay soldiers, and remains of sacrificial temples from the Han era. The city has numerous Tang dynasty pagodas and is noted for its history museum and its stele forest, which is housed in an 11th-century Confucian temple containing large stone tablets from various dynasties. Some of the most well-known sites in Xi'an are: The city is surrounded by a well-preserved city wall which was re-constructed in the 14th century during the early Ming dynasty and was based on the inner imperial palace of Tang dynasty., The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang and his Terracotta Army are located to the east of the city centre, in the city's suburbs., The Bell Tower and Drum Tower, both are located at the city's central axis., The city's Muslim Quarter, which is home to the Great Mosque of Xi'an., The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and Small Wild Goose Pagoda are both spectacular towers and both are well over 1,000 years old and have survived great earthquakes. The former is next to a large square with the largest fountain in Asia which projects water high into the air, rising and falling in time to music during one of the daily performances (usually at noon and soon after sunset). They protected Buddhist writings in the past., The Stele Forest is famous for its numerous historic inscriptions and stoneworks, The Famen Temple and its towering pagoda located west of Xi'an, Xi Ming Temple, Wolong Temple at Kaitong lane, Xingjiao Temple at Shaolin Yuan (where Xuanzang's Tomb lies), Jianfu Temple, Blue Dragon Temple, Wangji Temple, The Banpo Neolithic village is located on the outskirt of the city proper, The Shaanxi History Museum has a large collection of artifacts both modern and ancient., Mount Zhongnan (), Mount Li, Huaqing Hot Springs, at the foot of Mt. Li, have a history of 6,000 years, the adjacent Huaqing Palace has a history of 3,000 years. Ranked among the Hundred Famous Gardens in China, it also has the status as a National Cultural Relic Protection Unit and a National Key Scenic Area., Daming Palace National Heritage Park, site of the former royal residence of the Tang dynasty emperors Terracotta Army Museum, Shaanxi History Museum, Stele Forest, Xi'an Museum (located next to the Small Wild Goose Pagoda). On October 20, 2006, international council of monuments sites (ICOMOS) international protection centre (IICC) was formally established here., Tang Bo Art Museum Mount Cuihua National Geological Park (), Chanba National Wetland Park (), Daming Palace National Heritage Park, Mount Li National Forest Park, Mount Wangshun National Forest Park (), Mount Zhongnan National Forest Park, Hei He National Forest Park (), Louguantai National Forest Park (), Taiping National Forest Park (), Zhuque National Forest Park () Roujiamo Chinese Hamburger (肉夹馍）, Liangpi (凉皮）, Paomo Mutton, beef, and Bread Pieces in Soup (羊肉泡馍）, Biang Biang Noodles, Jinggao Steamed rice cake stuffed with honey dates and black beans (甑糕） Cuju is a very old football game: It was improved during the Tang dynasty (618–907). First of all, the feather-stuffed ball was replaced by an air- filled ball with a two-layered hull. Also, two different types of goalposts emerged: One was made by setting up posts with a net between them and the other consisted of just one goal post in the middle of the field. Chang'an was filled with cuju football fields, in the backyards of large mansions, and some were even established in the grounds of the palaces. The level of female cuju teams also improved. Records indicate that once a 17-year-old girl beat a team of army soldiers. Cuju football became popular among the scholars and intellectuals, and if a courtier lacked skill in the game, he could pardon himself by acting as a scorekeeper. Professional sports teams in Xi'an include: Chinese Pingpong Association Super League, Shaanxi Galaxy () Former Professional sports teams in Xi'an: Chinese Jia-A League, Shaanxi Guoli F.C. (), Team dissolved in 2005, Chinese Football Association Super League, Shaanxi Renhe Commercial Chanba F.C. (), Team moved to Guizhou for the 2012 Chinese Super League season., Chinese Basketball Association, Shaanxi Dongsheng (), Team moved to Foshan and renamed themselves Foshan Dralions in 2010. Xi'an is also the Chinese Boxing training base for the national team. China Central Television's channel 1 through 12 is broadcast nationwide., Shaanxi Television (SXTV) provincial station, broadcasts on eight channels as well as a satellite channel for other provinces., Xi'an Television (XATV) municipal station, has six channels for specialized programming., Shaanxi Radio broadcasts music, news., Xi'an Music Radio: FM 93.1, broadcasts music, news and talkshows., Shaanxi Music Radio: Fm 98.8, broadcasts music, news and talkshows. Chinese Business View () is a popular daily newspaper., Xi'an Evening News (Xi'an Wanbao) (), with a history of more than 50 years, is one of the oldest newspapers., Sanqin Daily () covers the news of Shaanxi Province., Shaanxi Daily () covers the news of Shaanxi Province and Xi'an. Xianease is a popular online and print magazine in Xi'an. Xi'an's twin towns and sister cities are: Historical capitals of China, Chang'an ., . Xi'an Government official website, Xi'an National Hi-tech Development Zone, Xian in history Qin Shi Huang (, ; 18 February 25910 September 210) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and was the first emperor of a unified China. He was born Ying Zheng () or Zhao Zheng (), a prince of the state of Qin. He became Zheng, the King of Qin () when he was thirteen, then China's first emperor when he was 38 after the Qin had conquered all of the other Warring States and unified all of China in 221 BC. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( wáng) borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor () of the Qin dynasty from 221 BC to 210 BC. His self-invented title "emperor" ( ), as indicated by his use of the word "First", would continue to be borne by Chinese rulers for the next two millennia. During his reign, his generals greatly expanded the size of the Chinese state: campaigns south of Chu permanently added the Yue lands of Hunan and Guangdong to the Chinese cultural orbit; campaigns in Central Asia conquered the Ordos Loop from the nomad Xiongnu, although eventually it would also lead to their confederation under Modu Chanyu. Qin Shi Huang also worked with his minister Li Si to enact major economic and political reforms aimed at the standardization of the diverse practices of the earlier Chinese states. He is traditionally said to have banned and burned many books and executed scholars, though a closer examination renders the account doubtful. His public works projects included the unification of diverse state walls into a single Great Wall of China and a massive new national road system, as well as the city-sized mausoleum guarded by the life-sized Terracotta Army. He ruled until his death in 210 BC during his fourth tour of Eastern China. Modern Chinese sources often give the personal name of Qin Shi Huang as Ying Zheng, with Ying () taken as the surname and Zheng () the given name. In ancient China however the naming convention differed, and Zhao () may be used as the surname. Unlike modern Chinese names, the nobles of ancient China had two distinct surnames: the ancestral name () comprised a larger group descended from a prominent ancestor, usually said to have lived during the time of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors of Chinese legend, and the clan name () comprised a smaller group that showed a branch's current fief or recent title. The ancient practice was to list men's names separatelySima Qian's "Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin" introduces him as "given the name Zheng and the surname Zhao"or to combine the clan surname with the personal name: Sima's account of Chu describes the sixteenth year of the reign of King Kaolie as "the time when Zhao Zheng was enthroned as King of Qin". However, since modern Chinese surnames (despite usually descending from clan names) use the same character as the old ancestral names, it is much more common in modern Chinese sources to see the emperor's personal name written as Ying Zheng, using the ancestral name of the Ying family. The rulers of Qin had styled themselves kings from the time of King Huiwen in 325 BC. Upon his ascension, Zheng became known as the King of Qin or King Zheng of Qin. This title made him the nominal equal of the rulers of Shang and of Zhou, the last of whose kings had been deposed by King Zhaoxiang of Qin in 256 BC. Following the surrender of Qi in 221 BC, King Zheng had reunited all of the lands of the former Kingdom of Zhou. Rather than maintain his rank as king, however, he created a new title of huángdì (emperor) for himself. This new title combined two titleshuáng of the mythical Three Sovereigns (, Sān Huáng) and the dì of the legendary Five Emperors (, Wŭ Dì) of Chinese prehistory. The title was intended to appropriate some of the prestige of the Yellow Emperor, whose cult was popular in the later Warring States period and who was considered to be a founder of the Chinese people. King Zheng chose the new regnal name of First Emperor (Shǐ Huángdì, formerly transcribed as Shih Huang-ti) on the understanding that his successors would be successively titled the "Second Emperor", "Third Emperor", and so on through the generations. (In fact, the scheme lasted only as long as his immediate heir, the Second Emperor.) The new title carried religious overtones. For that reason, Sinologistsstarting with Peter Boodberg or Edward Schafersometimes translate it as "thearch" and the First Emperor as the First Thearch. The First Emperor intended that his realm would remain intact through the ages but, following its overthrow and replacement by Han after his death, it became customary to prefix his title with Qin. Thus: , Qín or Ch‘in, "of Qin", , Shǐ or Shih, "first", , Huángdì or Huang-ti, "emperor", a new term coined from, , Huáng or Huang, literally "shining" or "splendid" and formerly most usually applied "as an epithet of Heaven", the high god of the Zhou, , Dì or Ti, the high god of the Shang, possibly composed of their divine ancestors, and used by the Zhou as a title of the legendary Five Emperors, particularly the Yellow Emperor As early as Sima Qian, it was common to shorten the resulting four-character Qin Shi Huangdi to , variously transcribed as Qin Shihuang or Qin Shi Huang. Following his elevation as emperor, both Zheng's personal name and possibly its homophone became taboo. The First Emperor also arrogated the first-person Chinese pronoun ( *lrəm’, zhèn) for his exclusive use and in 212 BC began calling himself The Immortal *Tin-niŋ, Zhēnrén, "True Man"). Others were to address him as "Your Majesty" Bìxià, "Beneath the Palace Steps") in person and "Your Highness" () in writing. According to the Records of the Grand Historian, written by Sima Qian during the Han dynasty, the first emperor was the eldest son of the Qin prince Yiren, who later became King Zhuangxiang of Qin. Prince Yiren at that time was residing at the court of Zhao, serving as a hostage to guarantee the armistice between the Qin and Zhao states. Prince Yiren had fallen in love at first sight with a concubine of Lü Buwei, a rich merchant from the State of Wey. Lü consented for her to be Yiren's wife, who then became known as Lady Zhao (Zhao Ji) after the state of Zhao. Lady Zhao gave birth to the child on 18 February; and he was given the name Zhao Zheng—the name Zheng () came from his month of birth Zhengyue, the first month of the Chinese lunar calendar; the clan name of Zhao came from his father's lineage and was unrelated to either his mother's name or the location of his birth. Lü Buwei's machinations later helped Yiren become King Zhuangxiang of Qin in 250 BC. However, the Records of the Grand Historian also claimed that the first emperor was not the actual son of Prince Yiren but that of Lü Buwei. According to this account, when Lü Buwei introduced the dancing girl to the prince, she was Lü Buwei's concubine and had already become pregnant by him, and the baby was born after an unusually long period of pregnancy. According to translations of the Annals of Lü Buwei, Zhao Ji gave birth to the future emperor in the city of Handan in 259 BC, the first month of the 48th year of King Zhaoxiang of Qin. The idea that the emperor was an illegitimate child, widely believed throughout Chinese history, contributed to the generally negative view of the First Emperor. However, a number of modern scholars have doubted this account of his birth. Sinologist Derk Bodde wrote: "There is good reason for believing that the sentence describing this unusual pregnancy is an interpolation added to the Shih-chi by an unknown person in order to slander the First Emperor and indicate his political as well as natal illegitimacy". John Knoblock and Jeffrey Riegel, in their translation of Lü Buwei's Spring and Autumn Annals, call the story "patently false, meant both to libel Lü and to cast aspersions on the First Emperor". Claiming Lü Buwei—a merchant—as the First Emperor's biological father was meant to be especially disparaging, since later Confucian society regarded merchants as the lowest of all social classes. In 246 BC, when King Zhuangxiang died after a short reign of just three years, he was succeeded on the throne by his 13-year-old son. At the time, Zhao Zheng was still young, so Lü Buwei acted as the regent prime minister of the State of Qin, which was still waging war against the other six states. Nine years later, in 235 BC, Zhao Zheng assumed full power after Lü Buwei was banished for his involvement in a scandal with Queen Dowager Zhao. Zhao Chengjiao, the Lord Chang'an (长安君), was Zhao Zheng's legitimate half-brother, by the same father but from a different mother. After Zhao Zheng inherited the throne, Chengjiao rebelled at Tunliu and surrendered to the state of Zhao. Chengjiao's remaining retainers and families were executed by Zhao Zheng. As King Zheng grew older, Lü Buwei became fearful that the boy king would discover his liaison with his mother Lady Zhao. He decided to distance himself and look for a replacement for the queen dowager. He found a man named Lao Ai. According to The Record of Grand Historian, Lao Ai was disguised as a eunuch by plucking his beard. Later Lao Ai and queen Zhao Ji got along so well they secretly had two sons together. Lao Ai then became ennobled as Marquis Lào Ǎi, and was showered with riches. Lao Ai's plot was supposed to replace King Zheng with one of the hidden sons. But during a dinner party drunken Lào Ǎi was heard bragging about being the young king's step father. In 238 BC the king was travelling to the ancient capital of Yōng (雍). Lao Ai seized the queen mother's seal and mobilized an army in an attempt to start a coup and rebel. When King Zheng found out this fact, he ordered Lü Buwei to let Lord Changping and Lord Changwen attack Lao Ai and their army killed hundreds of the rebels at the capital, although Lao Ai succeeded in fleeing from this battle. A price of 1 million copper coins was placed on Lao Ai's head if he was taken alive or half a million if dead. Lao Ai's supporters were captured and beheaded; then Lao Ai was tied up and torn to five pieces by horse carriages, while his entire family was executed to the third degree. The two hidden sons were also killed, while mother Zhao Ji was placed under house arrest until her death many years later. Lü Buwei drank a cup of poison wine and committed suicide in 235 BC. Ying Zheng then assumed full power as the King of the Qin state. Replacing Lü Buwei, Li Si became the new chancellor. King Zheng and his troops continued to take over different states. The state of Yan was small, weak and frequently harassed by soldiers. It was no match for the Qin state. So Crown Prince Dan of Yan plotted an assassination attempt to get rid of King Zheng, begging Jing Ke to go on the mission in 227 BC. Jing Ke was accompanied by Qin Wuyang in the plot. Each was supposed to present a gift to King Zheng: a map of Dukang and the severed head of Fan Wuji. Qin Wuyang first tried to present the map case gift, but trembled in fear and moved no further towards the king. Jing Ke continued to advance toward the king, while explaining that his partner "has never set eyes on the Son of Heaven", which is why he is trembling. Jing Ke had to present both gifts by himself. While unrolling the map, a dagger was revealed. The king drew back, stood on his feet, but struggled to draw the sword to defend himself. At the time, other palace officials were not allowed to carry weapons. Jing Ke pursued the king, attempting to stab him, but missed. King Zheng drew out his sword and cut Jing Ke's thigh. Jing Ke then threw the dagger, but missed again. Suffering eight wounds from the king's sword, Jing Ke realized his attempt had failed and knew that both of them would be killed afterwards. The Yan state was conquered by the Qin state five years later. Gao Jianli was a close friend of Jing Ke, who wanted to avenge his death. As a famous lute player, one day he was summoned by King Zheng to play the instrument. Someone in the palace who had known him in the past exclaimed, "This is Gao Jianli". Unable to bring himself to kill such a skilled musician, the emperor ordered his eyes put out. But the king allowed Gao Jianli to play in his presence. He praised the playing and even allowed Gao Jianli to get closer. As part of the plot, the lute was fastened with a heavy piece of lead. He raised the lute and struck at the king. He missed, and his assassination attempt failed. Gao Jianli was later executed. In 230 BC, King Zheng unleashed the final campaigns of the Warring States period, setting out to conquer the remaining independent kingdoms, one by one. The first state to fall was Hán (韓; sometimes called Hann to distinguish it from the Hàn 漢 of Han dynasty), in 230 BC. Then Qin took advantage of natural disasters in 229 BC to invade and conquer Zhào, where Qin Shi Huang had been born. He now avenged his poor treatment as a child hostage there, seeking out and killing his enemies. Qin armies conquered the state of Zhao in 228 BC, the northern country of Yan in 226 BC, the small state of Wei in 225 BC, and the largest state and greatest challenge, Chu, in 223 BC. In 222 BC, the last remnants of Yan and the royal family were captured in Liaodong in the northeast. The only independent country left was now state of Qi, in the far east, what is now the Shandong peninsula. Terrified, the young king of Qi sent 200,000 people to defend his western borders. In 221 BC, the Qin armies invaded from the north, captured the king, and annexed Qi. Some of the strategies Qin used to unify China were to standardize the trade and communication, currency and language. For the first time, all Chinese lands were unified under one powerful ruler. In that same year, King Zheng proclaimed himself the "First Emperor" (始皇帝, Shǐ Huángdì), no longer a king in the old sense and now far surpassing the achievements of the old Zhou Dynasty rulers. The emperor ordered the Heshibi to be made into the Imperial Seal, known as the "Heirloom Seal of the Realm". The words, "Having received the Mandate from Heaven, may (the emperor) lead a long and prosperous life." (受命於天，既壽永昌) were written by Prime Minister Li Si, and carved onto the seal by Sun Shou. The Seal was later passed from emperor to emperor for generations to come. In the South, military expansion in the form of campaigns against the Yue tribes continued during his reign, with various regions being annexed to what is now Guangdong province and part of today's Vietnam. In an attempt to avoid a recurrence of the political chaos of the Warring States period, Qin Shi Huang and his prime minister Li Si completely abolished feudalism. The empire was then divided into 36 commanderies (郡, Jùn), later more than 40 commanderies. The whole of China was thus divided into administrative units: first commanderies, then counties (縣, Xiàn), townships (鄉, Xiāng) and hundred-family units (里, Li, which roughly corresponds to the modern-day subdistricts and communities). This system was different from the previous dynasties, which had loose alliances and federations. People could no longer be identified by their native region or former feudal state, as when a person from Chu was called "Chu person" (楚人, Chu rén). Appointments were subsequently based on merit instead of hereditary rights. Qin Shi Huang and Li Si unified China economically by standardizing the Chinese units of measurements such as weights and measures, the currency, and the length of the axles of carts to facilitate transport on the road system. The emperor also developed an extensive network of roads and canals connecting the provinces to improve trade between them. The currencies of the different states were also standardized to the Ban liang coin (半兩, Bàn Liǎng). Perhaps most importantly, the Chinese script was unified. Under Li Si, the seal script of the state of Qin was standardized through removal of variant forms within the Qin script itself. This newly standardized script was then made official throughout all the conquered regions, thus doing away with all the regional scripts to form one language, one communication system for all of China. Qin Shi Huang also followed the school of the five elements, earth, wood, metal, fire and water. () Zhao Zheng's birth element is water, which is connected with the colour black. It was also believed that the royal house of the previous dynasty Zhou had ruled by the power of fire, which was the colour red. The new Qin dynasty must be ruled by the next element on the list, which is water, represented by the colour black. Black became the colour for garments, flags, pennants. Other associations include north as the cardinal direction, winter season and the number six. Tallies and official hats were long, carriages wide, one pace () was . While the previous Warring States era was one of constant warfare, it was also considered the golden age of free thought. Qin Shi Huang eliminated the Hundred Schools of Thought which incorporated Confucianism and other philosophies. After the unification of China, with all other schools of thought banned, legalism became the endorsed ideology of the Qin dynasty, which was basically a system that required the people to follow the laws or be punished accordingly. Beginning in 213 BC, at the instigation of Li Si and to avoid scholars' comparisons of his reign with the past, Qin Shi Huang ordered most existing books to be burned with the exception of those on astrology, agriculture, medicine, divination, and the history of the State of Qin. This would also serve the purpose of furthering the ongoing reformation of the writing system by removing examples of obsolete scripts. Owning the Book of Songs or the Classic of History was to be punished especially severely. According to the later Records of the Grand Historian, the following year Qin Shi Huang had some 460 scholars buried alive for owning the forbidden books. The emperor's oldest son Fusu criticised him for this act. Recent research suggests that the "burying of the Confucian scholars alive" is a Confucian martyrs' legend; rather, the emperor ordered the killing (坑 kēng) of a group of alchemists after having found that they had fooled him. In Han times, the Confucian scholars, who had served the Qin loyally, used that incident to distance themselves from the failed dynasty. Kong Anguo (孔安國 c. 165 – c. 74 BC), a descendant of Confucius, turned the alchemists (方士 fāngshì) into Confucianists (儒 rú) and entwined the martyrs' legend with the strange story of the rediscovery of the lost Confucian books behind a demolished wall in the house of his ancestors. The emperor's own library still had copies of the forbidden books but most of these were destroyed later when Xiang Yu burned the palaces of Xianyang in 206 BC. In 230 BC, the state of Qin had defeated the state of Han. A Han aristocrat named Zhang Liang swore revenge on the Qin emperor. He sold all his valuables and in 218 BC, he hired a strongman assassin and built him a heavy metal cone weighing 120 jin (roughly 160 lb or 97 kg). The two men hid among the bushes along the emperor's route over a mountain. At a signal, the muscular assassin hurled the cone at the first carriage and shattered it. However, the emperor was actually in the second carriage, as he was travelling with two identical carriages for this very reason. Thus the attempt failed. Both men were able to escape in spite of a huge manhunt. The Qin fought nomadic tribes to the north and north-west. The Xiongnu tribes were not defeated and subdued, thus the campaign was tiring and unsuccessful, and to prevent the Xiongnu from encroaching on the northern frontier any longer, the emperor ordered the construction of an immense defensive wall. This wall, for whose construction hundreds of thousands of men were mobilized, and an unknown number died, is a precursor to the current Great Wall of China. It connected numerous state walls which had been built during the previous four centuries, a network of small walls linking river defences to impassable cliffs. Intending to impose centralized rule and prevent the resurgence of feudal lords, Ying Zheng ordered the destruction of the sections of the walls that divided his empire among the former states. To position the empire against the Xiongnu people from the north, however, he ordered the building of new walls to connect the remaining fortifications along the empire's northern frontier. "Build and move on" was a central guiding principle in constructing the wall, implying that the Chinese were not erecting a permanently fixed border. Transporting the large quantity of materials required for construction was difficult, so builders always tried to use local resources. Stones from the mountains were used over mountain ranges, while rammed earth was used for construction in the plains. There are no surviving historical records indicating the exact length and course of the Qin walls. Most of the ancient walls have eroded away over the centuries, and very few sections remain today. The human cost of the construction is unknown, but it has been estimated by some authors that hundreds of thousands, if not up to a million, workers died building the Qin wall. A famous South China quotation was "In the North there is the Great wall, in the South there is the Lingqu canal" (北有長城、南有靈渠, Běiyǒu chángchéng, nányǒu língqú). In 214 BC the Emperor began the project of a major canal to transport supplies to the army. The canal allows water transport between north and south China. The canal, 34 kilometres in length, links the Xiang River which flows into the Yangtze and the Li Jiang, which flows into the Pearl River. The canal connected two of China's major waterways and aided Qin's expansion into the south-west. The construction is considered one of the three great feats of Ancient Chinese engineering, the others being the Great Wall and the Sichuan Dujiangyan Irrigation System. Later in his life, Qin Shi Huang feared death and desperately sought the fabled elixir of life, which would supposedly allow him to live forever. He was obsessed with acquiring immortality and fell prey to many who offered him supposed elixirs. He visited Zhifu Island three times in order to achieve immortality. In one case he sent Xu Fu, a Zhifu islander, with ships carrying hundreds of young men and women in search of the mystical Penglai mountain. They were sent to find Anqi Sheng, a 1,000-year-old magician whom Qin Shi Huang had supposedly met in his travels and who had invited him to seek him there. These people never returned, perhaps because they knew that if they returned without the promised elixir, they would surely be executed. Legends claim that they reached Japan and colonized it. It is also possible that the book burning, a purge on what could be seen as wasteful and useless literature, was, in part, an attempt to focus the minds of the Emperor's best scholars on the alchemical quest. Some of the executed scholars were those who had been unable to offer any evidence of their supernatural schemes. This may have been the ultimate means of testing their abilities: if any of them had magic powers, then they would surely come back to life when they were let out again. Since the great emperor was afraid of death and "evil spirits", he had workers build a series of tunnels and passageways to each of his palaces (he owned over 200), because traveling unseen would supposedly keep him safe from the evil spirits. In 211 BC a large meteor is said to have fallen in Dōngjùn (東郡) in the lower reaches of the Yellow River. On it, an unknown person inscribed the words "The First Emperor will die and his land will be divided" (始皇死而地分). When the emperor heard of this, he sent an imperial secretary to investigate this prophecy. No one would confess to the deed, so all the people living nearby were put to death. The stone was then pulverized. During his fourth tour of Eastern China, the Emperor became seriously ill after he arrived in Pingyuanjin (Pingyuan County, Shandong), and died on 10 September 210 BC (Julian Calendar) at the palace in Shaqiu prefecture (沙丘平台, Shāqiū Píngtái), about two months away by road from the capital Xianyang. The cause of Qin Shi Huang's death is still largely unknown, reportedly, he died from Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning due to ingesting mercury pills, made by his alchemists and court physicians, believing it to be an elixir of immortality. After the Emperor's death, Prime Minister Li Si, who accompanied him, became extremely worried that the news of his death could trigger a general uprising in the Empire. It would take two months for the entourage to reach the capital, and it would not be possible to stop the uprising. Li Si decided to hide the death of the Emperor, and return to Xianyang. Most of the Imperial entourage accompanying the Emperor were left ignorant of the Emperor's death; only a younger son, Ying Huhai, who was travelling with his father, the eunuch Zhao Gao, Li Si, and five or six favourite eunuchs knew of the death. Li Si also ordered that two carts containing rotten fish be carried immediately before and after the wagon of the Emperor. The idea behind this was to prevent people from noticing the foul smell emanating from the wagon of the Emperor, where his body was starting to decompose severely as it was summertime. They also pulled down the shade so no one could see his face, changed his clothes daily, brought food and when he had to have important conversations, they would act as if he wanted to send them a message. Eventually, after about two months, Li Si and the imperial court reached Xianyang, where the news of the death of the emperor was announced. Qin Shi Huang did not like to talk about his own death and he had never written a will. After his death, the eldest son Fusu would normally become the next emperor. Li Si and the chief eunuch Zhao Gao conspired to kill Fusu because Fusu's favorite general was Meng Tian, whom they disliked and feared; Meng Tian's brother, a senior minister, had once punished Zhao Gao. They believed that if Fusu was enthroned, they would lose their power. Li Si and Zhao Gao forged a letter from Qin Shi Huang saying that both Fusu and General Meng must commit suicide. The plan worked, and the younger son Hu Hai became the Second Emperor, later known as Qin Er Shi or "Second Generation Qin". Qin Er Shi, however, was not as capable as his father. Revolts quickly erupted. His reign was a time of extreme civil unrest, and everything built by the First Emperor crumbled away within a short period. One of the immediate revolt attempts was the 209 BC Daze Village Uprising led by Chen Sheng and Wu Guang. The following are some family members of Qin Shi Huang: Parents, King Zhuangxiang of Qin, Empress Mother, Half siblings:, Zhao Chengjiao, legitimate half brother from same father different mother Lord of Chang'an, Two illegitimate half-brothers born to Queen Dowager Zhao and Lao Ai., Children:, Fusu, Crown Prince (1st son), Gao, Jianglü, Huhai, later Qin Er Shi (18th son) Qin Shi Huang had about 50 children (about 30 sons and 15 daughters), but most of their names are unknown. He had numerous concubines but appeared to have never named an empress. The Chinese historian Sima Qian, writing a century after the First Emperor's death, wrote that it took 700,000 men to construct the emperor's mausoleum. British historian John Man points out that this figure is larger than the population of any city in the world at that time and he calculates that the foundations could have been built by 16,000 men in two years. While Sima Qian never mentioned the terracotta army, the statues were discovered by a group of farmers digging wells on 29 March 1974. The soldiers were created with a series of mix-and-match clay molds and then further individualized by the artists' hand. Han Purple was also used on some of the warriors. There are around 6,000 Terracotta Warriors and their purpose was to protect the Emperor in the afterlife from evil spirits. Also among the army are chariots and 40,000 real bronze weapons. One of the first projects which the young king accomplished while he was alive was the construction of his own tomb. In 215 BC Qin Shi Huang ordered General Meng Tian to begin its construction with the assistance of 300,000 men. Other sources suggest that he ordered 720,000 unpaid laborers to build his tomb according to his specifications. Again, given John Man's observation regarding populations at the time (see paragraph above), these historical estimates are debatable. The main tomb (located at ) containing the emperor has yet to be opened and there is evidence suggesting that it remains relatively intact. Sima Qian's description of the tomb includes replicas of palaces and scenic towers, "rare utensils and wonderful objects", 100 rivers made with mercury, representations of "the heavenly bodies", and crossbows rigged to shoot anyone who tried to break in. The tomb was built at the foot of Mount Li, 30 kilometers away from Xi'an. Modern archaeologists have located the tomb, and have inserted probes deep into it. The probes revealed abnormally high quantities of mercury, some 100 times the naturally occurring rate, suggesting that some parts of the legend are credible. Secrets were maintained, as most of the workmen who built the tomb were killed. Traditional Chinese historiography almost always portrayed the First Emperor of the Chinese unified states as a brutal tyrant who had an obsessive fear of assassination. Ideological antipathy towards the Legalist State of Qin was established as early as 266 BC, when Confucian philosopher Xunzi disparaged it. Later Confucian historians condemned the emperor who had burned the classics and had buried Confucian scholars alive. They eventually compiled a list of the Ten Crimes of Qin to highlight his tyrannical actions. The famous Han poet and statesman Jia Yi concluded his essay The Faults of Qin (過秦論, Guò Qín Lùn) with what was to become the standard Confucian judgment of the reasons for Qin's collapse. Jia Yi's essay, admired as a masterpiece of rhetoric and reasoning, was copied into two great Han histories and has had a far-reaching influence on Chinese political thought as a classic illustration of Confucian theory. He attributed Qin's disintegration to its internal failures. Jia Yi wrote that: In more modern times, historical assessment of the First Emperor different from traditional Chinese historiography began to emerge. The reassessment was spurred on by the weakness of China in the latter half of the 19th century and early 20th century. At that time some began to regard Confucian traditions as an impediment to China's entry into the modern world, opening the way for changing perspectives. At a time when foreign nations encroached upon Chinese territory, leading Kuomintang historian Xiao Yishan emphasized the role of Qin Shi Huang in repulsing the northern barbarians, particularly in the construction of the Great Wall. Another historian, Ma Feibai (馬非百), published in 1941 a full-length revisionist biography of the First Emperor entitled Qín Shǐ Huángdì Zhuàn (秦始皇帝傳), calling him "one of the great heroes of Chinese history". Ma compared him with the contemporary leader Chiang Kai-shek and saw many parallels in the careers and policies of the two men, both of whom he admired. Chiang's Northern Expedition of the late 1920s, which directly preceded the new Nationalist government at Nanjing was compared to the unification brought about by Qin Shi Huang. With the coming of the Communist Revolution and the establishment of a new, revolutionary regime in 1949, another re-evaluation of the First Emperor emerged as a Marxist critique. This new interpretation of Qin Shi Huang was generally a combination of traditional and modern views, but essentially critical. This is exemplified in the Complete History of China, which was compiled in September 1955 as an official survey of Chinese history. The work described the First Emperor's major steps toward unification and standardisation as corresponding to the interests of the ruling group and the merchant class, not of the nation or the people, and the subsequent fall of his dynasty as a manifestation of the class struggle. The perennial debate about the fall of the Qin Dynasty was also explained in Marxist terms, the peasant rebellions being a revolt against oppression—a revolt which undermined the dynasty, but which was bound to fail because of a compromise with "landlord class elements". Since 1972, however, a radically different official view of Qin Shi Huang in accordance with Maoist thought has been given prominence throughout China. Hong Shidi's biography Qin Shi Huang initiated the re-evaluation. The work was published by the state press as a mass popular history, and it sold 1.85 million copies within two years. In the new era, Qin Shi Huang was seen as a far-sighted ruler who destroyed the forces of division and established the first unified, centralized state in Chinese history by rejecting the past. Personal attributes, such as his quest for immortality, so emphasized in traditional historiography, were scarcely mentioned. The new evaluations described approvingly how, in his time (an era of great political and social change), he had no compunctions against using violent methods to crush counter-revolutionaries, such as the "industrial and commercial slave owner" chancellor Lü Buwei. However, he was criticized for not being as thorough as he should have been, and as a result, after his death, hidden subversives under the leadership of the chief eunuch Zhao Gao were able to seize power and use it to restore the old feudal order. To round out this re- evaluation, Luo Siding put forward a new interpretation of the precipitous collapse of the Qin Dynasty in an article entitled "On the Class Struggle During the Period Between Qin and Han" in a 1974 issue of Red Flag, to replace the old explanation. The new theory claimed that the cause of the fall of Qin lay in the lack of thoroughness of Qin Shi Huang's "dictatorship over the reactionaries, even to the extent of permitting them to worm their way into organs of political authority and usurp important posts." Mao Zedong, chairman of the People's Republic of China, was reviled for his persecution of intellectuals. On being compared to the First Emperor, Mao responded: "He buried 460 scholars alive; we have buried forty-six thousand scholars alive... You [intellectuals] revile us for being Qin Shi Huangs. You are wrong. We have surpassed Qin Shi Huang a hundredfold. When you berate us for imitating his despotism, we are happy to agree! Your mistake was that you did not say so enough." Tom Ambrose characterises Qin Shi Huang as the founder of "the first police state in history". Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986), the Argentine writer, published an acclaimed essay on Qin Shi Huang, "The Wall and the Books" (""), in the 1952 collection Other Inquisitions ()., (1962) – The film portrays Qin Shi Huang as a battle-hardened emperor with his roots in the military., Big Trouble in Little China (1986) – Qin Shi Huang is mentioned as having defeated the film's main villain, Lo Pan, in battle, and subsequently cursing him to live as a ghost. The events of the film revolve around Lo Pan's attempts to break the curse., The Emperor's Shadow (1996) – The film focuses on Qin Shi Huang's relationship with the musician Gao Jianli, a friend of the assassin Jing Ke., The Emperor and the Assassin (1999) – The film covers much of Ying Zheng's career, recalling his early experiences as a hostage and foreshadowing his dominance over China., Hero (2002) – The film stars Jet Li, a nameless assassin who plans an assassination attempt on the King of Qin (Chen Daoming). The film is a fictional re-imagining of the assassination attempt by Jing Ke on Qin Shi Huang., Rise of the Great Wall (1986) – a 63 episode TV series chronicling the events from the emperor's birth until his death. Bainborough played Qin Shi Huang., A Step into the Past (2001) – a Hong Kong TVB production based on a science fiction novel by Huang Yi., Qin Shi Huang (2002) – a mainland Chinese TV series production. It features a semi-fictionalized story of the emperor's life, from his childhood until his death. Zhang Fengyi starred as Qin Shi Huang., Kingdom (2006) – a Japanese manga that provides a fictionalized account of the unification of China by Ying Zheng with Li Xin and all the people that contributed to the conquest of the six Warring States., Fate/Grand Order (2015), an online, free-to-play role-playing mobile game of the Fate franchise developed by Delightworks and published by Aniplex features Qin Shi Huang as a Ruler class servant., First Emperor: The Man Who Made China (2006) – a drama-documentary special about Qin Shi Huang. James Pax played the emperor. It was shown on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom in 2006., China's First Emperor (2008) – a special three-hour documentary by The History Channel. Xu Pengkai played Qin Shi Huang., In the 2005 4X video game Civilization IV developed by Firaxis Games, Qin Shi Huang is one of the two playable leaders of China, with the other being Mao Zedong., Qin Shi Huang would later reappear in the 2016 4X video game Civilization VI developed by Firaxis Games to lead the Chinese civilization once again. Burning of books and burying of scholars, Feng and Shan sacrifices, Yíng (Chinese surname), Qin (surname), Jin (Korean name), Hata clan, Lady Meng Jiang

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The 2017–18 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Spartans, led by 23rd-year head coach Tom Izzo, played their home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan as members of the Big Ten Conference. With a win over Illinois on February 20, 2018, the Spartans secured a share of the Big Ten title, their first regular season title since 2012. On February 25, the Spartans defeated Wisconsin to win the Big Ten title outright, their first outright regular season title since 2009. It marked the Spartans eighth regular season title under Izzo. The Spartans finished the season 30–5, 16–2 in Big Ten play to win the regular season championship. As the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, they beat Wisconsin in the quarterfinals before losing to Michigan in the semifinals. The Spartans received a bid to the NCAA Tournament, their 21st consecutive trip under Izzo, as the No. 3 seed in the Midwest region. They defeated No. 14 Bucknell in the First Round before losing to No. 11-seeded Syracuse in the Second Round. As a result, the Spartans failed to make the Sweet Sixteen for the third consecutive year, a first for the Spartans with Izzo as head coach. The 16 Big Ten wins for the Spartans marked a school record and the 30 overall wins was only the fourth time in school history that the Spartans had won at least 30 games (all under Izzo). Following the season, Miles Bridges announced he would sign with an agent and declared for the NBA draft. A few days later, Jaren Jackson Jr. also announced he would enter the draft and sign with an agent. The Spartans finished the 2016–17 season 20–15, 10–8 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for fifth place. In the Big Ten Tournament, they defeated Penn State in the second round before losing to Minnesota in the quarterfinals. They received a bid to the NCAA Tournament as a No. 9 seed in the Midwest region, their 20th consecutive appearance in the Tournament. They defeated No. 8-seeded Miami in the First Round before losing to No. 1-seeded Kansas in the Second Round. The 15 losses by MSU were the second most ever under Tom Izzo, behind only his 16 losses in his first season as head coach at MSU. The Spartans were led by freshmen Miles Bridges, 16.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, and Nick Ward, 13.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. On September 15, 2016, five-star forward Jaren Jackson Jr. announced that he would attend Michigan State. He is the son of former NBA player Jaren Jackson Sr. Jackson was listed as the eighth best player in the 2017 final rankings by ESPN. On September 30, 2016, four-star power forward Xavier Tillman committed to MSU. He was considered the best player in the state of Michigan in the 2017 class. Tillman was ranked No. 71 in the 2017 final rankings by ESPN. Tillman and Jackson signed National Letters of Intent on November 9, 2016. With just these two signings, MSU's class was listed as the 14th best in the country by ESPN and 17th by rivals.com. Two-star point guard Jack Hoiberg, son of Chicago Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg, announced he would attend Michigan State as a preferred walk-on. On May 30, the school announced that two-star shooting guard Brock Washington would join the Spartans as a preferred walk-on in 2017. On April 5, 2016, four-star power forward Thomas Kithier announced he will attend Michigan State. On November 22, 2016, four-star point guard Foster Loyer committed to MSU. He is the son of NBA assistant coach John Loyer. After receiving an offer three days prior, four-star small forward Gabe Brown announced on June 20, 2017, that he will play for the Spartans in 2018. On June 30, 2017, three-star power forward Marcus Bingham Jr. announced he would play for MSU in 2018. On September 11, 2017, four-star small forward Aaron Henry committed to play basketball at MSU in 2018. According to scout.com, after the commit of Aaron Henry, the Spartans had the third best recruiting class in 2018. In April, 2017, most early pollsters included Michigan State in the preseason top 25 for the 2017–18 season. These included ESPN (No. 12), Sports Illustrated (No. 8), Yahoo! Sports (No. 11), USA Today (No. 16), NBC Sports (No. 3), CBS Sports (No. 3), Sporting News (No. 5) and Bleacher Report (No. 12). Most of the projections assumed Miles Bridges would not return to East Lansing for his sophomore season. USA Today noted that "leading scorer Miles Bridges is NBA-bound." The Sporting News summarized: "Bridges hasn’t announced his decision yet, but Spartans fans aren’t holding their breath (he’s expected to be a lottery pick)." Following the deadline to withdraw from the NBA Draft, many media outlets released updated early top 25 rankings for the 2017–18 season. MSU was a consensus top three team by every major outlet: NBC Sports (No. 1), Fox Sports (No. 2), Sporting News (No. 2), ESPN (No. 3), CBS Sports (No. 3), and Yahoo! Sports (No. 3). On April 13, 2017, Miles Bridges, considered an NBA lottery pick, announced he would not enter the NBA Draft and would return to MSU as a sophomore. His return led many to project MSU as a Final Four contender for the 2017–18 season. Losing only seniors Eron Harris and Alvin Ellis III, the Spartans will return eight of their top 10 players from the prior season. Bridges was also considered a potential candidate for National Player of the Year upon the announcement of his return to Michigan State. The Spartans will return 78% of their scoring and 81% of their rebounding from the previous year. On May 8, redshirt graduate student Ben Carter was granted a sixth year of eligibility after the NCAA granted his medical hardship waiver. The Spartans have one remaining open scholarship for the 2017–18 season. On May 11, 6-foot-11, 220-pound center Braden Burke announced he would transfer to Michigan State from Robert Morris and be a preferred walk-on. Burke will have to sit out the 2017–18 season due to NCAA transfer rules. After missing out on late recruiting targets (Brian Bowen, Mark Smith, and Brandon McCoy), the Spartans had one remaining open scholarship. It was confirmed on August 24, 2017, that the last remaining scholarship would be given to former walk-on Connor George, son of Cathy George, MSU's volleyball coach. On the first day of practice, September 29, 2017, Tom Izzo announced that Lourawls "Tum Tum" Nairn and Miles Bridges had been selected as captains for the team. On October 20, MSU held its annual Midnight Madness event at Breslin Center. Tom Izzo did not dress up for the event as he had in the past, but there was a man in a black suit, green tie and extra-large head on his shoulders that was supposed to resemble Izzo. Earlier in the day, the school unveiled the $20 million Tom Izzo Hall of History inside the Breslin Center. On August 28, former MSU head coach Jud Heathcote, who led the Spartans to their first National Championship in 1979, died at the age of 90. "Michigan State has lost one of its icons today," Tom Izzo said in a statement. "And yet, nothing can erase his impact on the program, the players he coached and the coaches he mentored. Spartan basketball is what it is today because of Jud Heathcote." On September 6, 2017, Michigan State announced that it would wear a memorial patch on their uniforms during the season for former head coach Jud Heathcote who died in late August. The team also announced that the February 10, 2018 game against Purdue would be a tribute game to Heathcote. In its preseason college preview, Lindy's Sports ranked the Spartans No. 1 in the country. The publication picked Miles Bridges as Big Ten Player of the Year and the top small forward in the country. Nick Ward was named preseason second team All-Big Ten center while Jaren Jackson Jr. was named newcomer of the year. The Blue Ribbon Yearbook ranked MSU No. 2 in its preseason rankings. The publication listed Miles Bridges as a second team All-American. Athlon Sports ranked the Spartans No. 2 in the country while ranking Bridges as the No. 1 player in the country. Ward and Jackson were selected as second team All-Big Ten and Jackson was named Big Ten newcomer of the year. Street & Smith ranked MSU No. 3 in the country while naming Bridges first-team All-American. On September 26, NBC Sports named Miles Bridges the national preseason player of the year. On October 23, ESPN.com also named Bridges the national preseason player of the year. On November 6, Bridges was named an AP preseason All- American, receiving 61 of the possible 65 votes. Prior to the conference's annual media day, awards and a poll were chosen by a panel of 28 writers, two for each team in the conference. Michigan State was a unanimous selection to win the conference. The Spartans' Miles Bridges was also a unanimous selection for Preseason Player of the Year. At the Big Ten media day, the Spartans were unanimous selections to win the conference. Miles Bridges was named the Preseason Player of the Year. Nick Ward joined Bridges on the preseason All-Big Ten team. On October 23, 2017, it was announced that MSU would play Georgia in Grand Rapids, Michigan on October 29 in a charity exhibition game to help raise funds for hurricane relief. In the first exhibition game for the Spartans, MSU defeated Ferris State 80–72 on October 26. Miles Bridges left the game in the first half after falling and cutting his head, but returned in the second half. Cassius Winston led the Spartans in scoring with 24 points as MSU avoided the upset from the Division II Bulldogs. Freshman Jaren Jackson Jr. had 14 points, eight rebounds, and eight blocks in his MSU debut. On October 29, MSU took on Georgia in a hastily-planned charity exhibition game in Grand Rapids to benefit hurricane victims. With four stitches over his right eye from the cut suffered in the first exhibition game, Bridges led the Spartans with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Nick Ward had 13 points while Joshua Langford scored 11 as the Spartans won 80–68. On November 1, it was announced that junior forward Kyle Ahrens would be out indefinitely after aggravating an injury to his right foot. The newly-ranked No. 2 Spartans (in AP and Coaches poll) took on Division II Hillsdale on November 3 in their final exhibition game. The Spartans held Hillsdale to approximately 20% shooting as Nick Ward led the Spartans with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Jaren Jackson added 13 rebounds and 12 points as MSU won easily 75–44. On November 10, the Spartans opened the regular season at home against North Florida. Miles Bridges scored 20 points and Jaren Jackson Jr. had 13 rebounds as the Spartans routed the Ospreys 98–66. Each Spartan starter scored in double figures: Nick Ward (16), Cassius Winston (12), and Joshua Langford (13). Ward made all six of his shots as the team shot 78% from the free throw line in the easy win. In a matchup of No. 1 versus No. 2 at the Champions Classic in Chicago on November 14, the Spartans struggled with Duke's 2–3 zone. Bridges, Jackson Jr., and Ward each scored 19 points for the Spartans who shot 50% from the field in the game. However, Duke's Grayson Allen scored 37 points and MSU lost the rebound battle and allowed 25 offensive rebounds as they fell 88–81. Head coach Tom Izzo blamed himself for the loss as he fell to 1–11 all time against Duke. The loss moved MSU to 1–1 on the season. On November 16, the school announced that forward Kenny Goins had suffered a knee strain in the Duke game and would miss several weeks due to the injury. Also on November 16, Nike announced uniforms for those teams participating in the Phil Knight Invitational. MSU's uniforms were green with bronze highlights. The Spartans returned home to face Stony Brook in a campus site game for the Phil Knight Invitational on November 19. MSU struggled early, trailing by as many as eight before leading by six at the half. The Spartans pulled away in the second half, but suffered a scare as Miles Bridges went down with an ankle injury with over eight minutes remaining in the game. Bridges, who scored 20 points, did not return. Nick Ward led all scorers with 22 and Joshua Langford scored a career-high 19 in the 93–71 win. The MSU sophomores scored 74 of the team's 93 points. After the game, it was announced that Bridges was day-to-day with an ankle sprain. On November 20, Tom Izzo announced that Bridges' x-rays were negative on his ankle and the swelling had gone down. He said that they would not know for a day or two if Bridges would miss any time. The Spartans traveled to Portland, Oregon to participate in the Phil Knight Invitational in honor of Nike co-founder Phil Knight's 80th birthday. The tournament, which began on Thanksgiving Day, November 23, ran through November 26. Bridges did not play in the opening round game of the tournament on November 23 as MSU took on DePaul. The Spartans struggled in the first half and went to halftime tied at 31 with the Blue Demons. Matt McQuaid, who started for Bridges, stepped up and scored a career-high 20 points on six of eight shooting from behind the three-point line. The Spartans held DePaul to 25.5% shooting from the field as they pulled away in the second half for a 73–51 win. The next day in the second round of the Phil Knight Invitational, Bridges did play, but did not start as MSU struggled in the first half again, leading by only one at the half. Bridges scored only six points in 17 minutes of play, but Cassius Winston had his best game offensively as a Spartan, scoring a career-high 28 points on 12 of 15 shooting. MSU's defense again dominated the game, holding UConn to only 35% from the floor as the Spartans again pulled away in the second half for the 77–57 win. In the championship game of the Victory Bracket of the Phil Knight Invitational on November 26, the Spartans took on No. 9-ranked North Carolina looking to avoid a poor first half for the third straight game. Bridges returned to the starting lineup after coming off the bench against UConn in the previous game. MSU's defense was again the star of the show, holding UNC to a school-record low for shooting percentage as they shot 24.6% from the field, including 5.6% from three-point land. Joshua Langford had the big offensive game for the Spartans, scoring a career-high 23 points as the Spartans dominated from the outset and led by 14 at the half. MSU did struggle with turnovers, giving the ball up 24 times in the game. Despite that, the Spartans stretched the lead to as many as 21 in the second half, beating UNC 63–45 and marking Tom Izzo's first win over North Carolina since 2000 and first win against UNC when coached by Roy Williams. The win gave the Spartans the Phil Knight Invitational Victory Bracket championship and Cassius Winston was named the bracket's MVP. The win moved MSU to 5–1 on the season. On the final day of November, the Spartans returned home to welcome No. 5-ranked Notre Dame to East Lansing, marking only the second time the teams had faced each other since 1979. The No. 3-ranked Spartans jumped out to an early lead and led by as many as 22 in the first half while enjoying a 20-point halftime lead, 46–26. Notre Dame was able to move within eight points in the second half, but the Spartans, led by Winston and Langford's 17 points each, were able to pull away for an easy win. Bridges added 14 points as MSU buried nine three-pointers in the 81–63 win. The win moved the Spartans to 6–1 on the season and a 2–1 record against top ten-ranked teams (only losing to Duke). Due to the Big Ten Tournament being held one week earlier to be held at Madison Square Garden, the Spartans began conference play on December 3 against Nebraska. MSU won its sixth straight game, all by at least 18 points, in an 86–57 thrashing of Nebraska. The Spartans held Nebraska to 27% shooting from the field as the MSU defense again dominated the game. Nick Ward, who was in foul trouble, scored 22 points in only 16 minutes to lead the Spartans. Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 15 with 10 rebounds and three blocks. The win moved the Spartans to 7–1 on the season and 1–0 in Big Ten play. Two days later on December 5, the Spartans traveled to face Rutgers in New Jersey for the Spartans first true road game of the season. MSU fell behind early 8–0 to the Scarlet Knights, but managed to retake the lead midway through the first half. Rutgers rallied to tie the game at 26 at the half. In the second half, the Spartans were unable to pull away though they had the lead for most of the half as both teams struggled offensively. Miles Bridges scored 21 points while Jackson Jr. tied a single-game Spartan record with eight blocks, but MSU still needed two big three-pointers later in the game by Cassius Winston to pull out the 10-point victory, 62–52. MSU limited Rutgers to 25% shooting on the night, but only made 38% of their own shots while failing to win the rebound battle as both teams had 45 rebounds. Nick Ward, who struggled in the first half, only played a minute and a half in the second half and sat on the bench dejectedly for most of the half. Izzo said he just had a bad game. The win was the Spartans seventh in a row and left the Spartans at 8–1 on the season and 2–0 in Big Ten play. The Spartans returned home to play Southern Utah on December 9. Nick Ward scored 17 points a week after only playing 11 minutes while Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. each added 17 as well. Despite this, the Thunderbirds were within five points of the Spartans in the second half before MSU pulled away. Jackson added 13 rebounds and five blocks while Cassius Winston scored 15 points with five assists as the Spartans won 88–63. The win, MSU's eighth in a row, moved the Spartans to 9–1 on the season. Following losses by No. 1 Duke and No. 2 Kansas, it was likely MSU would become the No. 1 team in the country on December 11. However, Villanova was named the No. 1 team in the country in both polls, leapfrogging MSU. On December 16, the Spartans participated in the Hitachi College Basketball Showcase held at the new Little Caesars Arena in Detroit and took on Oakland. MSU took the early lead in the game, led by Nick Ward who scored 15 points and brought down 15 rebounds in the game. The Spartans continued their strong defensive effort, holding the Grizzlies to 31.3% shooting in the first half. Despite this, MSU only led by five at the half. In the second half, Oakland's hot shooting (40% overall and 46.7% from three) kept the game close every time the Spartans tried to pull away. However, Cassius Winston took over the Spartans, scoring the final 14 points for MSU as the Spartans pulled away for an 86–73 win. Winston scored 19 in the game to lead MSU, but committed six turnovers. Miles Bridges added 11 points while Josh Langford tallied 17. Jaren Jackson Jr. blocked four shots and scored 10 in the win. The win moved MSU to 16–0 all-time against Oakland. MSU won its ninth game in the row and moved to 10–1 on the season. Returning home, the Spartans welcomed Houston Baptist the Breslin Center on December 18. Miles Bridges tied a career high with 33 points while Nick Ward was perfect from the field in scoring 20 points. The Spartans set a school record with 16 blocks in the game, Jaren Jackson Jr. had six while Ward had five. The Spartans had 30 assists on 36 made baskets while Cassius Winston also set a career high with 12 assists. MSU again played well defensively, holding HBU to 31.6% shooting while Tom Izzo's team shot 70% in the first half. Houston would finish the game at 28.4% in the game as the Spartans kept up their nation-leading field goal defense. MSU blew out the Huskies 107–62, the most points the Spartans had scored since 2011, moving to 11–1 on the season. Despite the easy win, Izzo was disappointed with the Spartans' performance, especially with the fact that HBU out-rebounded MSU on the offensive glass 24–10. On December 21, Long Beach State had no better luck against the Spartans in East Lansing. Miles Bridges scored 17 points and had nine rebounds while Josh Langford also scored 17. Cassius Winston dished out eight assists to go along with 13 points and Jaren Jackson Jr. added 13 points and four blocks. Nick Ward continued his torrid shooting, making seven of his eight shots (making 17 of his last 18 shots) to score 16 in a 102–60 romp over the 49ers. Tom Izzo felt better about his team's performance, but still was upset with the team's 12 turnover, nine coming in the first half. The Spartans scored over 100 points in back-to-back games for the first time since 2004. The win marked MSU's 11th straight, moving their record to 12–1 on the season. On December 28, the Spartans welcomed Cleveland State to the Breslin Center. The Spartans left little doubt in this game as they jumped to an early 32–6 lead on the Vikings. MSU made its first seven shots of the game and shot 72.4% from the field in the first half, leading 63–25 at the half. The 63 points scored in the first half is believed to be the most scored in any half under Tom Izzo. Josh Langford scored 23 to lead the Spartans as they topped 100 points for the third consecutive game, winning easily 111–61. The Spartans continued their strong defensive play, holding Cleveland State to just 32% shooting in the game. Nick Ward made seven of his eight shots, scoring 22 points while Miles Bridges added 18. The win moved the Spartans to 13–1 on the season with one non-conference game remaining. On New Year's Eve, Savannah State traveled to East Lansing for the Spartans final non-conference game of the season. MSU jumped to an early lead as Savannah State, number one in the country in three-point attempts, struggled early. However, the Tigers got hot near the midpoint of the first half and kept the score close. The Spartans turned the ball over 10 times in the first ten minutes of the game, but were still able to lead by 13 at half time, 51–38. MSU turned it on in the second half, outscoring the Tigers 57–14, including a 32–0 stretch to close the game and win 108–52. The Spartans scored over 100 points for the fourth game in a row, the longest streak in school history. Miles Bridges had a career-high 21 rebounds, the most by a Spartan since 1976; his 19 defensive rebounds tied the mark set by Antonio Smith in 1997. Nick Ward scored 21 points to lead the Spartans and added 10 rebounds. Ward went nine for nine from the floor on the night and has made 32 of his last 34 shots in the last four games. Cassius Winston dished out a career-high 13 assists to go with his 16 points in the blowout. The win moved the Spartans 14–1 on the season and on the verge of being named the number one team in the country following a loss by Villanova. On January 1, 2018, the Spartans were named the number one team in the country in the weekly AP poll. On January 2, MSU was also named number one in the weekly coaches' poll. On January 4, the Spartans welcomed Maryland to East Lansing as conference play resumed. Maryland started well, shooting over 60% from the field in the first 10 minutes of the game. MSU, however, used a 15–0 run near the end of the first half to take a 13-point lead at the half. MSU continued its strong play in the second half, routing the Terrapins 91–61. The Spartans made 16 of 28 three-point attempts while also hitting on 16 of 28 two-point shots. Jaren Jackson Jr. hit five threes, while Kenny Goins made his first career three- point basket, hitting a second three-pointer a few minutes later. Nick Ward continued his strong play, missing only two shots while scoring a team-leading 16 points. Miles Bridges contributed 15 points, six rebounds, and seven assists. Cassius Winston had eight assists as the Spartans had assists on 30 of their 32 field goals. Maryland ended up shooting only 37.7% from the field while the Spartans shot 57.1%. The Spartans did turn the ball over seven times in the game, though six of those occurred in the first half. The win marked MSU's 14th straight win and their seventh straight game scoring over 80 points. MSU remained in first place in the Big Ten with a 3–0 record, moving to 15–1 overall. MSU took to the road for only the second time on the season, traveling to face Ohio State on January 7. MSU started well, taking an 11–4 lead before Ohio State battled back. A close game for most of the first half, the Buckeyes took a 12-point lead to the half behind some good shooting and a buzzer-beating three as the half ended. MSU failed to respond in the second half as the Buckeyes continued their run, pushing the lead to as many as 23. MSU, shooting over 50% on the season, shot only 39% from the field in the game while OSU shot over 52% in the 80–64 blowout. Nick Ward only attempted one shot for the Spartans and settled for three points in the game. Miles Bridges had 17, but did not shoot well, making only seven of 19 shots. Josh Langford added 17 as well, but it was not enough for the Spartans who turned the ball over 12 times. After assisting on 30 of 32 baskets against Maryland, the Spartans only had 13 assists on 23 made baskets in the loss. The loss dropped the Spartans out of first place in the Big Ten and dropped them from the number 1 ranking in the country as they fell to 15–2, 3–1 overall. On January 10, MSU looked to return to their winning ways with Rutgers traveling to the Breslin Center. The Spartans started well, taking an early lead, but Rutgers fought back, staying within seven at the half. Miles Bridges struggled on the night, especially in the first half as he failed to score. In the second half, MSU had several long scoreless streaks which allowed the Knights to tie the game and even take the lead near the end of the half. With just over eight second remaining in the game and the Spartans trailing by one point, Bridges was fouled, but only made one of the two free throws to tie the game. On the ensuing play, Rutgers missed a game-winning shot to force overtime. In the first overtime game of the season for the Spartans, Josh Langford hit a big three-pointer to give the Spartans the lead and Cassius Winston hit six free throws down the stretch to seal the 76–72 win for the Spartans. The disappointing performance by the Spartans after getting blown out in the previous game was also the closest game of the season for the Spartans. Nick Ward led the Spartans with 17 and Bridges rebounded to score 11. The win moved the Spartans to 4–1 in conference play and 16–2 overall. The Spartans next welcomed rival Michigan to the Breslin Center on January 13. MSU played well in the first half, but Michigan kept the score close. In the second half, Michigan's defense continued to dominate MSU and Michigan answered every run by the Spartans. Though MSU shot a better percentage than the Wolverines, Michigan took 11 more shots, thanks in large part to MSU's 18 turnovers in the game. Nick Ward had a disappointing game, only scoring four points in 14 minutes while Cassius Winston only had two assists to go along with four turnovers. Michigan pulled away for the 82–72 win, marking MSU's second loss in the previous three games. Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. each had 19 to lead the Spartans, but it was not enough as Michigan big man Moritz Wagner scored 27. The loss dropped MSU to 4–2 in conference and two games behind conference leaders, Purdue and Ohio State. After a week off, the Spartans returned to play on January 19 against Indiana in East Lansing. The Spartans appeared to return to form as they dominated the Hoosiers for much of the game, leading by 19 at the half and by as many as 30 in the second half. Miles Bridges led all scorers with 22 while Nick Ward added 18 points and 13 rebounds in the win. Jaren Jackson Jr. added three blocks which tied the MSU single-season record for blocks by freshman. Cassius Winston returned to form as well, dishing out eight assists while only committing one turnover. MSU moved to 17–3, 5–2 on the season with the 85–57 win. The Spartans wore special uniforms for the game, black with bright green numbers. MSU returned to the road to face Illinois on January 22 at the State Farm Center. The Spartans struggled with turnovers throughout the game, turning the ball over 15 times in the first half. However, MSU shot 15 of 19 from the field in the first half, led by Miles Bridges 17 points in the half to take a 39–32 halftime lead. MSU took control of the game in the second half as Jaren Jackson Jr. scored a career-high 21 with 11 rebounds and six blocks to lead the Spartans to an 18-point lead. Turnovers again became a problem late in the second half as the Illini narrowed the lead to eight, but Jackson and Bridges hit 10 straight free throws down the stretch to allow the Spartans to escape with an 87–74 win. The Spartans shot 68.2% from the field in the game, the best shooting percentage of any opponent at the State Farm Center. MSU dominated the boards, out-rebounding Illinois 37–15 in the win and Bridges finished with 31 points. Jackson's six blocks moved him within one for the MSU single-season record. The Spartans turned the ball over 25 times, led by Cassius Winston's eight, the most for a Spartan team since 2005. The win moved the Spartans to 18–3, 6–2 in Big Ten play on the season. The Spartans returned home to face the Wisconsin on January 26. Prior to the game, reports surfaced that Tom Izzo's program had covered up sexual assault allegations ten years prior. MSU Athletic Director Mark Hollis also resigned early in the day. Due to this and the Larry Nassar sexual assault scandal, the Izzone wore teal shirts to show support for survivors of sexual assault. The Spartans started well, leading by as many as 18 in the first half with a 37–21 half time lead. Wisconsin brought the game to within six in the second half, but MSU was able to control the game. Miles Bridges led all scorers with 24 and Wisconsin's Ian Happ scored 22 of this 23 points in the second half to prevent the game from turning into a rout. The Spartans cruised to a 76–61 win, moving to 19–3, 7–2 in Big Ten play on the season. After the game, Izzo did not comment much on the sexual assault allegations, but stated that he was not planning on retiring and that he wanted be part of the healing process. Returning to the road less than 48 hours later, the Spartans traveled to face Maryland. MSU did not lead in the first half as Maryland was able to keep a lead throughout and pushed the lead to 13 at halftime. The Spartans answered to start the second half, taking the lead and leading by as many as eight. Josh Langford scored 19 for the Spartans as Nick Ward (seven points) and Miles Bridges (11 points) each struggled. Cassius Winston overcame a rough start to score 13 as the Spartans cut down their turnovers, committing only 10. MSU held on for the 74–68 win, sweeping Maryland on the season to move to 20–3 and 8–2 on the season. Izzo was again questioned after the game regarding sexual assault reports, but again refused to say much. The Spartans returned home to face Penn State on January 31. MSU again struggled in the first half, scoring only 24 points for the second consecutive game and shooting only 37% from the field. As a result, they trailed by six at the half. The Nittany Lions pushed the lead to 12 early in the second half as it appeared the distractions surrounding the program were causing issues. However, MSU outscored Penn State 41–14 from there to win 76–68. Miles Bridges scored 23 while Cassius Winston scored 15 and had 10 assists. The Spartans continued their nation-leading defensive play holding PSU to 37% from the field in the game while MSU finished at 50%. The Spartans did turn the ball over 16 times with most coming in the first half as they trailed throughout the half. The win moved MSU to 21–3, 9–2 on the season. The win also moved Tom Izzo into a second-place tie with Gene Keady for most Big Ten wins. MSU finished the season with five of their last seven games on the road, starting with a trip to Indiana on February 3. The Spartans avoided another slow start and took an early lead against the Hoosiers in Bloomington. MSU held Indiana to only 28% shooting from the field and led by as many as 11 in the first half and led by eight at halftime. In the second half, the Spartans held their lead at about 10 for most of the game. Matt McQuaid scored 12 to lead MSU on four of five shooting from behind the arc to help secure the 63–60 win. Tom Izzo was disappointed in the team's performance as the Spartans were outrebounded by 24 including a 25–3 deficit on the offensive boards. MSU shot only 41% from the free throw line which allowed Indiana to pull the game within three and, after Cassius Winston missed two free throws with seconds remaining, allowed the Hoosiers to get a last-second heave to attempt to tie the game. The win moved the Spartans to 22–3, 10–2 on the season. The 22–3 start for the Spartans marked the best start for MSU since 2001. The win also marked Izzo's 266th Big Ten win, moving him in to sole possession of second place in Big Ten wins, trailing only Bob Knight. MSU traveled to face Iowa on February 6, marking their fifth game in 12 days. MSU started well, taking an early lead, but foul trouble for Nick Ward and Jaren Jackson Jr. limited their effectiveness in the first half as they sat out for more than 10 minutes. MSU, despite not playing great defense, took the halftime lead 48–42. Iowa closed the lead early in the second half and led by as many as eight before MSU narrowed the lead. Ward, who scored 17 points in only 12 minutes, missed much of the half with four fouls and Cassius Winston also sat for eight minutes due to poor play. Kenny Goins hit a three-pointer with just over two minutes remaining to give MSU a 90–89 lead. However, Iowa retook the lead before Miles Bridges hit two free throws with over a minute remaining to give MSU the lead. Josh Langford made two free throws to extend the lead to 96–93 with six seconds remaining and Bridges stole the ensuing Iowa pass before being fouled. Needing only one free throw to seal the game, Bridges missed both and Iowa's Nicholas Baer missed a half-court heave to tie it as the Spartans pulled out the 96–93 win. Bridges led the Spartans with 25 points and Langford added 15 while Winston scored nine points and had eight assists. Tom Izzo was disappointed in his team's defense but happy with the win in the rough stretch of the schedule. The win moved the Spartans to 23–3 and 11–2 in Big Ten play. MSU welcomed Big Ten co-leader Purdue to the Breslin Center on February 10 for a Jud Heathcote tribute game. The Boilermakers, having lost to Ohio State earlier in the week and dropping into a tie with the Buckeyes in the Big Ten, started out well, leading by as many as 10 in the first half as big man Isaac Haas seemingly scored at will against the Spartans. MSU chose not to double Haas throughout the game, choosing to try to limit Purdue's three-point shooting. At halftime, however, the Spartans trailed 36–31. In the second half, MSU settled on Gavin Schilling to guard Haas who still scored a game- high 25 points. However, Purdue, who had shot 42% in the first half, shot only 37% in the second and made zero three-pointers. MSU was able to tighten the score and take the lead, but still trailed by two when Kenny Goins hit a jumper to tie the game at 65 with 49 seconds remaining. Haas, with Schilling guarding him, missed a shot on the ensuing possession and MSU called timeout with 20 seconds remaining. Miles Bridges, who scored 20 in the game, took the ball and hit a three-pointer over Dakota Mathias to give MSU the 68–65 lead with seven seconds remaining. A foul on the in bounds play and a missed free throw by Vince Edwards sealed the win for the Spartans. The 68–65 win moved MSU to 24–3, 12–2 in Big Ten play and into a tie for second with Purdue, still one game behind conference-leading Ohio State. At halftime of the game, Steve Smith and other former MSU players paid tribute to former head coach Jud Heathcote and former Purdue coach Gene Keady paid his respects as well. On February 11, the Spartans, somewhat surprisingly, were give only a number three seed in an early NCAA Tournament preview of the top 16 seeds. Purdue, having just lost two games, was still named a number one seed. On February 12, Michigan State was ranked number one in the Coaches Poll, receiving 17 of 32 first place votes. They were ranked number two in the AP poll, receiving 21 of 65 first place votes. The Spartans traveled to Minneapolis to face Minnesota with four games remaining in the regular season looking to avoid a letdown after beating Purdue in the prior game. The Spartans started the game off hot, shooting lights out from three as they made their first six three-pointers (three by Winston, two by Jackson Jr. and one by Bridges) to jump out to an 18–6 lead. MSU continued to shoot well from three, making 10 of 12 three- pointers in the first half to lead 43–25 in the first half. Jackson led the Spartans with a career-high 27 points while Ward, who struggled in the first half, scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half. MSU dominated the glass against the overmatched Gophers, outrebounding them 49–22. Minnesota shot only 32% from the field as MSU shot over 53%, including 63%, from three in the 87–57 rout of the Gophers. The win moved MSU to 25–3 overall, the school's best-ever start, as they moved to 13–2 in conference play. With three games remaining in the season, MSU traveled to play Northwestern at Allstate Arena on February 17. Following losses by Purdue and Ohio State earlier in the week, MSU entered the game with a chance to move into a first place tie with Ohio State with a win. However, the Spartans fell behind early as Northwestern shot 60% from the field in the first half and led by as many as 27 in the half. Michigan State trailed by 22 at the half as it looked like they would fail to take first place. However, MSU held Northwestern to 11 points in the second half as they surged back to tie the game behind Winston's 17 points, including five three-pointers. Jackson's three-point play with 5:36 remaining in the game gave the Spartans their first lead of the game at 56–53. Four made free throws by Miles Bridges with less than a minute remaining sealed the 65–60 win in front of a largely pro-Michigan State crowd. Northwestern made only three of their 26 field goals in the second half, shooting less than 12% in the half. The 27-point comeback win was the largest comeback win in Big Ten history and, at the time, the fifth largest all-time in Division I history. The win moved MSU to 26–3 on the season and 14–2 in conference play. The win and an Ohio State loss the following day put the Spartans in first place by themselves with only two games remaining in the regular season. The Spartans returned home for Senior Night against Illinois on February 20 with a chance to clinch at least a share of the Big Ten title for the first time since 2012. Because it was senior night, seniors Ben Carter, Lourawls "Tum Tum" Nairn Jr., and Gavin Schilling started the game for the Spartans, only the third different starting lineup on the season. MSU started slow, but took a three- point lead at the half against the Illini who made six three-pointers in the first half. However, in the second half, the Spartans took control, pushing the lead to more than 20 in the easy win. Bridges led the Spartans with 19 points on what was his last game at the Breslin Center. Jackson, also in his last game in East Lansing, scored eight and had five blocks in only 18 minutes. Langford added 16 points while Winston added 12 in the 81–61 win. The win moved the Spartans to 27–3, 15–2 on the season and gave them at least a share of the Big Ten title with one game remaining against Wisconsin. After the game, the Spartans were happy with the title as they raised a championship banner, but stated they wanted to do more on the season. Looking to win the Big Ten title outright, the Spartans traveled to Wisconsin on February 25 for the final regular season game. Prior to the game, reports surfaced that Miles Bridges had been paid to attend Michigan State, among other allegations. MSU conducted an investigation and presented their findings to the NCAA, who cleared Bridges, ruling him eligible to play against the Badgers. The Spartans started off well, taking an early lead, but Wisconsin shot the ball well in the first half. Despite this, the Spartans did not trail until midway through the second half. Cassius Winston went six for six from three, scoring 20 points to lead the Spartans to the 68–63 win. Nick Ward added 14 points while Bridges added 10 as MSU held Wisconsin to 37% shooting. The win moved the Spartans to 16–2 in the Big Ten, marking the most conference wins in school history as the Spartans clinched the Big Ten title outright for the first time since 2009. The Spartans also moved to 28–3 on the season, the most regular season wins in school history. As the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament held at Madison Square Garden, MSU faced Wisconsin in the quarterfinals on March 2 following the Badgers' win over Maryland the day before. In the second meeting between the two teams in five days, the Spartans took the early lead and led the majority of the first half, but, as in their last meeting, the Badgers kept the game close. A 32–28 halftime lead for the Spartans preceded a second half where the lead shifted back and forth. Miles Bridges scored 20 for the Spartans while Cassius Winston added 17. With 20 seconds remaining in the game and the Spartans leading by three, the Badgers could not get off a good shot as the Spartan defense limited them to a long three-point attempt which fell short. The 63–60 win, the Spartans eighth straight year with at least a win in the Big Ten Tournament, moved the Spartans to the semifinals to face Michigan. On March 3, the Spartans faced their rivals, Michigan, looking to avenge an early season loss at the Breslin Center. The Wolverines started well, taking an early eight point lead in the first half. However, MSU fought back and took a three-point lead at the half. In the second half, however, the Wolverines showed they were the better team, answering every run MSU tried to make. Miles Bridges scored 17 for the Spartans, including showing a strong post presence, but it was not enough as MSU could not overcome Michigan's defense. Michigan limited MSU to 38% shooting including only 28% from three. The Wolverines beat the Spartans for the second time on the season and ended any real chance for the Spartans to receive a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The loss ended MSU's 13-game winning streak. Due to the Big Ten Tournament being held a week early, the Spartans had to wait for more than a week before NCAA Tournament pairings were announced and at least 13 days before their next game. For the 21st consecutive year, Michigan State received an invitation to the NCAA Tournament. As the No. 3 seed in the Midwest region, the Spartans learned they would face Bucknell at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on March 16. The Spartans previously played at Little Caesars Arena in December when they defeated Oakland. On March 16, the Spartans took on Bucknell in Detroit. MSU took an early lead in the first half, but were unable to put Bucknell away. MSU did lead 44–40 at the half and extended the lead in the second half, leading by as many as 16 as Miles Bridges took control of the game. Bridges scored 29 to lead all scorers while Josh Langford added 22. Bucknell scored 15 points on five three-pointers with less than 90 seconds remaining, including one at the buzzer, to narrow the margin to a four-point victory at 82–78. Only Xavier Tillman scored outside of the MSU starters in the game. In the Second Round, MSU took on No. 11-seeded Syracuse and their zone two days later. After scoring 44 points in the first half of the previous game, the Spartans managed only 25 points in the first half as they struggled to deal with the Syracuse zone. Despite their struggles, the Orange were unable to take the lead until just over four minutes remained in the game. MSU attempted a season-high 37 three-pointers, making only eight of them as they struggled to find shots. Bridges went 4–18 from the field, while Cassius Winston went 4–12 and Langford went 1–12. As a result, MSU fell to the Orange to end their season 55–53. Following the game, Bridges, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Nick Ward declined to address the possibility of them going to the NBA. On March 28, 2018, Miles Bridges announced he would hire an agent and declared for the NBA draft, ending his college career. A day later, Nick Ward announced he too would enter the NBA draft, but he would not sign with an agent. On April 2, Jaren Jackson Jr. announced he would also enter the draft and sign with an agent. The 2018 Big Ten Tournament will be held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Due to the Big East's use of that venue for their conference tournament, the Big Ten Tournament will take place one week earlier than usual, ending the week before Selection Sunday. This could result in teams having nearly two weeks off before the NCAA Tournament. As a result, it the Big Ten regular season will begin in early Dec. A previously-scheduled road game against Florida was moved to the 2018–19 season due to scheduling conflicts. !colspan=9 style=|Exhibition !colspan=9 style=| Regular season !colspan=9 style=|Big Ten Tournament !colspan=12 style=| NCAA Tournament Source Source ^Coaches Poll did not release a Week 2 poll at the same time AP did. *AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings. All-Big Ten First Team (unanimous media and coaches), Sporting News Second Team All-American, USBWA Second Team All-American, USBWA All-District V Team, AP Second Team All-American Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, All-Big Ten Third Team (media and coaches), All-Big Ten Freshmen Team, All-Big Ten Defensive Team All-Big Ten Third Team (media), All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (coaches) All-Big Ten Third Team (media and coaches), USBWA All-District V Team The Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represents Michigan State University (MSU) and compete in the Big Ten Conference of NCAA Division I College basketball. Their home games are played at the Breslin Student Events Center. Tom Izzo has been the head coach since 1995. The Spartans have won two NCAA championships and 15 Big Ten Conference Championships. Their two National Championships came in the 1979 NCAA Tournament and the 2000 NCAA Tournament. The 1979 National Championship Game was the most watched college basketball game in history, with 35.11 million television viewers. The 1979 National Championship team was coached by Jud Heathcote and included tournament MVP Magic Johnson, Greg Kelser and Jay Vincent. The Spartans defeated the previously unbeaten Indiana State Sycamores, led by future Hall of Famer Larry Bird. The 2000 National Championship team defeated the Florida Gators men's basketball team in the final. The team was coached by Tom Izzo and led by players Morris Peterson, Charlie Bell, Jason Richardson and tournament MVP Mateen Cleaves. The Spartans have participated in 33 NCAA tournaments and in 22 consecutive NCAA tournaments (1998–2019), the fourth-longest streak ever and third-longest active streak in college basketball, behind Kansas (29) and Duke (23). Michigan State has the sixth most all-time Final Four appearances with ten (1957, 1979, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015, and 2019). The program is also ninth all-time in NCAA tournament winning percentage (.677, through 2018). The first established coach for Michigan Agricultural College (MSU's name at the time), Charles Bemies was also the first athletic director in school history, while also coaching the football, baseball, and track teams. His two- year stint as basketball head coach ended in 1901. MAC's second basketball coach was George Denman. Denman is the only basketball coach to go undefeated during his tenure, posting an 11–0 mark during his two seasons. His team still holds the record for largest margin of victory with a 102–3 defeat of Alma College in 1902. MAC's first full-time athletic director and one of the Spartans’ most successful coaches, Chester Brewer led the football, basketball, and baseball squads to winning records. He holds the highest winning percentage of any Spartan basketball coach with at least four seasons at .736 (70–25). His team also defeated Michigan in the schools’ first meeting in 1909. George Gauthier was the first alumnus to lead a Michigan State basketball squad. He compiled a career record of 41–38 over four seasons. Gauthier left after 29 games in 1919– 20, posting a 15–14 record. Lyman Frimodig coached the final seven games of the season, going 6–1. He would also serve as head coach for the next two seasons. He remained active in the athletic department after his stint as basketball coach, serving Michigan State for 41 years as assistant athletic director and business manager Benjamin Van Alstyne coached MSU for 22 years from 1926–1949. He is third in career victories with 231. Van Alstyne coached MSU's first All-American, Roger Grove, in 1930. Some of his greatest victories included a 27–26 victory over Michigan in 1930 at the dedication of Demonstration Hall, and a 66–50 upset over Kentucky in 1945 that was named “CocaCola Upset of the Week.” His 47–45 loss to Kentucky in 1948 set the record for the largest crowd in Jenison Field House history. In one season under Alton Kircher, the Spartans finished 4–18. Following the conclusion of the 1950 season, the Spartans would join the Big Ten Conference. Pete Newell was hired from San Francisco following a successful four years with the Dons where he went 70–37 and won the 1949 NIT. His 1951–52 squad was the first ranked Spartan team and also registered a win over No. 14 Notre Dame, the first win over a ranked opponent in school history. One of his biggest wins was a 1952 defeat of No. 2-ranked Kansas State. After four seasons, California hired Newell as its head coach and MSU had to search for another coach. Newell is often considered to be one of the most influential figures in the history of basketball. Forrest "Forddy" Anderson was hired away from Bradley following a trip to the 1954 Final Four with the Braves. His Bradley team had also made it to the 1950 championship game. Two years after taking over the Spartans, in 1957, he led MSU to its first Big Ten Championship. After opening the season with a 4–7 record, the Spartans won 10 in a row and 12-of-13 to capture their first league title and advance to the school's first NCAA Tournament. A bye in the first round of the Tournament preceded wins over Notre Dame and Kentucky to earn a trip to the Final Four. A loss to North Carolina in the Final Four left MSU in the National Third Place Game where they lost to San Francisco. Two years later, led by All-American Johnny Green, the Spartans cruised to a Big Ten Championship, winning the league by four games. A win over Marquette in the 1959 NCAA Tournament put MSU in the Mideast regional finals against Kentucky. The Spartans lost and fell one game short of another trip to the Final Four. Following his initial successes in East Lansing, his Spartan teams only finished with a winning record one time after 1959. He was fired following the 1964–65 season. John Benington, who had been an assistant to Anderson at Bradley before joining his staff at MSU, took over as head coach, and led MSU to a second- place Big Ten finish in his first season at the helm. The next season, he led the Spartans to a shared Big Ten title, but Indiana received the NCAA Tournament bid (at that time, only one Big Ten team received an NCAA bid). After four seasons leading the Spartans, he died of a heart attack after jogging at Jenison Fieldhouse in the summer of 1969 at the age of 47. Gus Ganakas, who served as an MSU basketball radio announcer until 2017, was an assistant under Benington and hired to take over following coach Benington's death. In 1966–67, MSU won its last four games to claim a share of the Big Ten Championship. Indiana, however, earned the NCAA Tournament bid ending MSU's year in the regular season. His most successful seasons were in 1973–74 with a fourth-place Big Ten finish and 1974–75 with a 17–9 overall record, the second-highest victory total at the time. His coaching career came to an end in 1976, but he continued to be a part of the Michigan State Athletics Department, serving as an assistant A.D. and then as an aide to coach Tom Izzo. Jud Heathcote was hired to take over as coach in 1976 from Montana by athletic director Joseph Kearney in May 1976, after coaching the Grizzlies for five years. Heathcote had led the Grizzlies to two Big Sky championships and the 1975 NCAA Tournament, the Grizzlies first ever trip to the Tournament. He finished his tenure at Montana with an 80–53 record. As a virtual unknown, Heathcote came to East Lansing looking to return MSU to greatness. In his second year, he landed one of the game's all-time greats, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, from nearby Lansing Everett High School, as a recruit. The 1977–78 Spartans won the Big Ten title, their first since 1967, qualified for the NCAA tournament for only the third time in school history, and advanced to the Elite Eight. They were led by Johnson and Greg Kelser. In 1979, the duo led the Spartans to a second consecutive Big Ten title and the NCAA National Championship. The NCAA championship marked the school's first in basketball. Following the championship, Johnson left school to join the NBA and Kelser graduated. The result was a ninth place finish in the Big Ten the next year and struggles thereafter. MSU returned to postseason play in 1983, finishing with a 17–13 record and receiving an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament. Following the expansion of the NCAA Tournament to 64 teams in 1985, Heathcote returned the Spartans, led by the future MSU all-time scoring leader, Scott Skiles, to the Tournament with a fifth-place finish in the Big Ten. MSU again reached the NCAA Tournament the following year after finishing third in the Big Ten with a 23–8 record. Led by Skiles and Darryl Johnson, they advanced to the Sweet Sixteen before losing. Heathcote returned MSU to postseason play in 1989, led by Steve Smith, losing the third place game of the NIT. Smith returned the Spartans to the NCAA Tournament in 1990 as a No. 1 seed. The Spartans narrowly avoided losing to No. 16-seeded Murray State, needing overtime to advance to the Second Round. They again narrowly advanced to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to Georgia Tech in overtime. The Spartans again made an appearance in the 1991 NCAA Tournament. The Spartans finished in third place in Big Ten play and received an at-large bid as a No. 5 seed to the Tournament where they beat Green Bay on a buzzer beater by Steve Smith. In the Second Round, they lost to No. 10 Utah in double overtime. The Spartans returned to the NCAA Tournament in 1992, marking three straight years in the NCAA Tournament, an MSU record at that time. Another third-place finish in Big Ten play resulted in an at-large bid as a No. 5 seed to the NCAA Tournament. There they beat Missouri State before losing to Cincinnati in the Second Round in a rematch of an earlier Spartan win. A trip to the NIT in 1993 broke the streak, but Heathcote again led MSU to the NCAA Tournament in 1994. A fourth- place finish the Big Ten led to an at-large bid to the Tournament as a No. 7 seed. Led by Shawn Respert, they beat Seton Hall in the First Round before losing to second-seeded Duke in the Second Round. In his final year at MSU in 1995, Heathcote returned the Spartans to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in six years. A second-place finish in Big Ten play resulted in an at- large bid to the Tournament as a No. 3 seed where they were surprised by No. 14th-seeded Weber State in the First Round. The game marked the final game of All-American Shawn Respert's career at MSU. Heathcote stepped down in 1995 after 19 seasons at Michigan State. He finished with nine NCAA appearances, three Big Ten championships and three NIT appearances. He hand-picked his successor, Tom Izzo. “I had to orchestrate the hiring of Tom through (trustees) Bob Weiss and Joel Ferguson and the president (Peter McPherson) because most people wanted to open it up and see who would apply. And then some wanted a black coach,” Heathcote said in 2014. "But I felt Tom deserved the job because he'd been there 12 years, and he'd gotten better in the job every single year. Tom was a tireless worker and had a passion for the game. So that combination, in my mind, I knew he was going to be a good coach." In 2001, the National Association of Basketball Coaches awarded him with the Golden Anniversary Award for 50 years of service to college basketball. Also, in 2001, he was inducted into the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame. In 2009, Heathcote was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. In his first year as head coach after 11 years as an assistant coach, Michigan State struggled after losing All-American Shawn Respert. The Spartans finished the season at .500 (16–16, 9–9) and in a tie for seventh place in the Big Ten. MSU received an invitation to the NIT where they defeated Washington before losing to Fresno State in the second round. The season marked the last time MSU would not finish with a winning record. In 1997, the Spartans welcomed new recruits Mateen Cleaves and Morris Peterson to East Lansing. Along with sophomore Antonio Smith, the three made up three-fourths of Izzo's "Flintstones" who would win the National Championship in 2000 (without Smith). In what would be a rarity for MSU in Izzo's tenure, the Spartans played no ranked teams in the non-conference season. The Spartans finished in a tie for sixth place in the conference with a record of 16–11 overall and 9–9 in conference. They received an invitation to the NIT for the second consecutive year. MSU beat George Washington in the first round and lost in the second round to Florida State. As of 2019, this is the last year MSU failed to make the NCAA Tournament. In 1998, MSU welcomed freshman recruit Charlie Bell, the fourth of Izzo's "Flintstones" and started slow. They lost to No. 7 Temple, and suffered surprising losses to UIC and Detroit in non-conference. However, MSU would win nine of their first 10 conference games before losing to eventual conference co-champion Illinois. In January, MSU entered the AP and Coaches rankings for the first time since the end of the 1994–95 season. The Spartans finished in a tie for the conference championship, their first since 1990, with a record of 13–3 in conference play. The Spartans earned the No. 1 seed in the inaugural Big Ten Tournament, but lost their first game in the quarterfinals to Minnesota. Izzo's team received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament as a No. 4 seed in the East Region, their first trip to the Tournament since 1995. MSU advanced to their first Sweet Sixteen since 1990 by beating Eastern Michigan and No. 8 Princeton. The Spartans were eliminated from the Tournament by No. 1 North Carolina in the Sweet Sixteen. As the 1998–99 season began, Izzo began his willingness to play anyone anywhere mantra as the Spartans played three top seven teams in their first seven games. However, MSU lost all three. MSU would recover and, after losing their first Big Ten game to No. 24 Wisconsin, the Spartans won the remaining 15 games in conference and won the Big Ten conference regular season by six games with a record of 15–1, their second consecutive Big Ten title. The Spartans won the Big Ten Tournament and earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. As the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region and ranked No. 2 in the country, MSU defeated Mount St. Mary's, and Mississippi to advance to their second straight Sweet Sixteen. A win over Oklahoma and Kentucky led MSU to the Final Four for the first time since 1979. However, MSU fell short in their bid for an NCAA championship, losing to Duke in the Final Four. In 1999–2000. Seniors Mateen Cleaves and Morris Peterson led the way for the Spartans as they began the season ranked No. 3 in the country. However, Cleaves sustained a stress fracture in his right foot prior to the season which forced him to miss the non-conference schedule and MSU fell to 9–4 and ranked No. 11 in the country. After Cleaves' return, MSU finished the Big Ten regular season with a 13–3 conference record and 23–7 overall while being ranked No. 2 in the country and earned a share of the Big Ten title, their third consecutive Big Ten championship. The Spartans went on to win the third annual Big Ten Tournament as the No. 2 seed, defeating No. 25 Illinois for the championship for the second consecutive year. The Spartans were awarded the No. 1 seed, their second consecutive No. 1 seed, in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. From there, the Spartans cruised to their third consecutive Sweet Sixteen with wins over Valparaiso, and Utah. MSU continued their National Championship push by reaching their second consecutive Final Four with wins over Syracuse and Iowa State. MSU won every game by double digits despite playing the best possible seed in each round. In their Final Four matchup, Michigan State faced off against fellow Big Ten foe, Wisconsin, beating them in a hard-fought game, 53–41. In the National Championship game, the Spartans triumphed over the Florida Gators 89–76, despite losing Cleaves to an ankle injury 3:42 into the second half. The win marked MSU's second National Championship in basketball and Izzo's first and only championship to date. Losing both Cleaves and Peterson to graduation following the season, MSU still began the 2000–01 season ranked No. 3 in the country. Led by sophomore Jason Richardson, freshmen Zach Randolph, and seniors Charlie Bell and Andre Hutson, the Spartans finished the non-conference schedule undefeated and ranked No.1 in the country. MSU again earned a share the Big Ten title, their fourth consecutive, with a 13–3 conference record. They suffered a surprise defeat by Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament in their attempt to win the tournament for the third consecutive year. They received their third consecutive No. 1 seed, in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. Seeking a repeat National Championship, MSU easily dispatched Alabama State and Fresno State to reach the Sweet Sixteen for the fourth consecutive year. A win over Gonzaga and Temple led to the school's third straight trip to the Final Four. However, they were unable to repeat as National Champions, losing to Arizona in the National Semifinal. Following the season, Randolph and Richardson each left school early and declared for the NBA Draft. As a result of Randolph and Richardson's early departure, MSU struggled with Izzo's tough non-conference schedule. The Spartans lost four games, all to teams ranked in the top 25 and started the Big ten season with three straight losses. The loss to Wisconsin snapped MSU's 53-game home winning streak. Michigan State finished the conference schedule at 10–6 and in fourth place with an overall record of 19–10. MSU lost in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament to No. 23 Indiana marking the first time since 1997 that Michigan State did not win either the Big Ten regular season or tournament title. The Spartans received an at-large bid as a No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament and were eliminated in the First Round by NC State. Following the disappointment of an early NCAA Tournament exit, the first time Izzo's squads had not won at least one game in the NCAA Tournament, the 2002–03 team played another tough non-conference schedule. This time the Spartans faced three ranked teams, only losing one. However, they suffered four losses and finished the non-conference schedule at 8–4 and ranked No. 25 in the country. MSU began the Big Ten regular season losing four of their first six games and fell out of the rankings. The Spartans finished in a tie for third place in the Big Ten at 10–6 in conference and 18–11 overall. Michigan State beat Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, but fell to Ohio State in the semifinals. The Spartans received a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth consecutive year. MSU received a No. 7 seed in the South Region. A win over Colorado in the First Round was followed by a rout of No. 10 Florida to reach the Sweet Sixteen for the fifth time in six years. The Spartans defeated No. 17 Maryland to advance to the Elite Eight for the fourth time in five years. However, MSU fell to No. 5 Texas in the Regional Final. In 2004, Izzo looked to continue his dominant NCAA run. However, Izzo's penchant for touch scheduling hurt his team as they faced a murderer's row of a schedule which included three straight losses to No. 6 Duke, in overtime, to No. 14 Oklahoma at the Palace of Auburn Hills, and to No. 8 Kentucky at Ford Field in the Basketbowl. The Spartans followed this losing streak by losing two of their final four non- conference games including at No. 17 Syracuse and dropped out of the rankings. They finished the non-conference slate at 5–6. After a loss to open Big Ten play to No. 21 Wisconsin, the Spartans recovered to win seven of their next eight and six of their last seven Big Ten games. They finished in a tie for second place in the Big Ten at 12–4 and 17–10 overall. A win over Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals was followed by a third loss of the season to No. 17 Wisconsin. The Spartans received a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament, reaching the tournament for the seventh consecutive year. But, for the second time in three years, the Spartans were knocked out in the First Round, this time by Nevada. In 2005, the Spartans again looked to rebound from a disappointing early NCAA Tournament exit. They started the season 3–2, but cruised through the Big Ten, only losing three games, including a loss to No. 1 Illinois and finished second in conference to Illinois. MSU finished the regular season with a 13–3 conference record and 22–5 overall while being ranked No. 13 in the country. The Spartans lost in the quarterfinals in the Big Ten Tournament to Iowa. Michigan State received an at-large bid as a No. 5 seed in the Austin Regional of the NCAA Tournament, their eighth straight appearance in the Tournament under Tom Izzo. Wins over Old Dominion and Vermont led the Spartans to the Sweet Sixteen for the sixth time in eight years. In the Sweet Sixteen, the Spartans beat No. 3-ranked and No. 1-seeded Duke, which MSU had not defeated since 1958. The win marked Izzo's first win over Duke's Mike Krzyzewski (as of 2017). A double overtime victory over Kentucky sent the Spartans to their fourth Final Four in seven seasons. MSU would again fall in the Final Four, this time to No. 2-ranked and No. 1-seeded North Carolina. The 2005–06 Spartans opened the season with a loss to Hawaii before losing to No. 8 Gonzaga led by Adam Morrison in triple overtime in the Maui Classic. Despite this, MSU ended the non-conference schedule at 12–2 and ranked No. 7 in the country. Early Big Ten losses followed by late season losses in conference left the Spartans 8–8 in the Big Ten. In the Big Ten Tournament, MSU defeated Purdue and No. 9 Illinois before being defeated by No. 20 Iowa in the semifinals. The Spartans received an at-large bid as a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their ninth consecutive trip to the Tournament. In the Tournament, they lost to eventual Final Four Cinderella, George Mason, in the First Round. Following the season, Shannon Brown declared for the NBA Draft, leaving the Spartans one year prior to graduation, just the fourth player under Izzo to declare early. The 2006–07 Spartans began the season 13–2, but were not ranked in the polls. A roller coaster Big Ten season resulted in MSU finishing 8–8 with a win against No. 1 Wisconsin which likely assured the Spartans a trip to the NCAA Tournament. MSU lost to Wisconsin after beating Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament. The Spartans received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the 10th consecutive year and beat Marquette, coached by former Izzo assistant Tom Crean, in the First Round of the Tournament. A loss to No. 3 North Carolina in the Second Round ended the season. In 2008, MSU finished the non-conference schedule 12–1 and ranked No. 6 in the country with wins over No. 24 NC State, No. 20 BYU, and No. 4 Texas. A hot start to the Big Ten schedule, winning six of seven, was followed by four losses in their next seven which left them in fourth place in the Big Ten with a record of 12–6. As the No. 4 seed tn the Big Ten Tournament, they beat Ohio State before losing to No. 8 Wisconsin. The Spartans received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament to mark their 11th consecutive trip to the Tournament under Tom Izzo. As a No. 5 seed, the Spartans beat Temple, and Pittsburgh to move on to the Sweet Sixteen for the seventh time in 11 years. A rout by a Derrick Rose-led Memphis ended the season. By the beginning of the 2008–09 season, Izzo's teams, though having great success in the NCAA Tournament, had not won the Big Ten regular season title since 2001. A solid non-conference start left them at 9–2 and were ranked No. 10 in the country. MSU routed the Big Ten, winning their first five conference games, their best start in conference since 1978. MSU finished the conference season well, winning the Big Ten championship by four games with a 15–3 record, 25–5 overall, and ranked No. 7 in the country. Following the conclusion of the regular season, Kalin Lucas was named Big Ten Player of the Year and Tom Izzo was voted Big Ten Coach of the Year. As the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, the Spartans defeated Minnesota. However, Michigan State's hopes for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament likely vanished as they were defeated by Ohio State, 82–70. Michigan State received an at-large bid as the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament, their 12th straight appearance in the Tournament. With wins over Robert Morris and USC, the Spartans were able to advance to the Sweet Sixteen, the school's eighth trip to the Sweet Sixteen in the previous 12 years. MSU advanced to the Elite Eight with a win over No. 14-ranked and No. 3-seeded Kansas. In the Elite Eight, the Spartans defeated Louisville to advance to Final Four in nearby Detroit, only 90 miles from MSU's campus. The Spartans defeated UConn in the national semifinals to earn their third-ever trip to the National Championship game. With Izzo 1–0 in championship games and the Spartans 2–0 all-time, North Carolina scored more points than any team had ever scored in the first half of an NCAA championship game, scoring 55 and blowing out the Spartans 89–72, marking the Spartans first ever loss in the National Championship game. In 2010, the Spartans finished the non-conference schedule at 10–3. The Spartans began the Big Ten season on fire, winning their first nine games and went on to earn a share of the Big Ten championship with a 14–4 and ranked 11th in the country. As the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, they were defeated in overtime by No. 6 seed Minnesota in the quarterfinals. The Spartans received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, their 13th straight appearance, earning a No. 5 seed in the Midwest Region. A win over New Mexico State and Maryland led MSU to the Sweet Sixteen for the ninth time in 13 years. However, Kalin Lucas suffered a serious knee injury and would miss the remainder of the Tournament. MSU did not seem to miss him and would go on to beat Northern Iowa and Tennessee to advance to their second consecutive Final Four and sixth in the prior 12 years. In the National semifinal, they were defeated by Butler by two points. The 2010–11 Spartans finished the non-conference portion of their season 8–4 and ranked No. 20 in the country. However, the Spartans were inconsistent in conference play, suffering nine losses and finishing 9–9 in conference and in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament. After beating Iowa and blowing out No. 9 Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament, the Spartans fell to Penn State in the semifinals. The blowout win over Purdue likely ensured the Spartans inclusion in the NCAA Tournament. Michigan State received a No. 10 seed in the Southeast Region of the NCAA Tournament, their 14th straight appearance, but the lowest seeding the Spartans had received in the NCAA Tournament since 2002. MSU fell behind early to UCLA in the Second Round (formerly known as the First Round) and made a furious rally, but fell short, losing by two points. The loss marked only the fourth time MSU failed to win a game in their 14 trips to the NCAA Tournament under Tom Izzo. The 2011–12 Spartans, led by senior Draymond Green, started the season 0–2. However, MSU won the next 15 games in a row to jump into the top ten in the polls. A loss in the regular season finale at home to No. 10 Ohio State meant the Spartans would share the Big Ten regular season championship with Ohio State and Michigan, all of which finished the Big Ten season with a 13–5 conference record. In that loss to Ohio State, key freshman reserve, Branden Dawson, tore his ACL, ending his season. As the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, The Spartans beat Iowa, No. 14 Wisconsin, and No. 7 Ohio State to win the Tournament championship, their first Tournament championship since 2000. Draymond Green earned Big Ten Player of the Year honors, the fifth time a player had done so under Tom Izzo. Izzo was also named Big Ten Coach of the Year. MSU received a No. 1 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament, where they beat LIU–Brooklyn in the First Round behind Green's triple-double. The Spartans overcame Saint Louis in the Second Round to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. This marked the 10th time in 15 seasons that the Spartans advanced to at least the Sweet Sixteen. The Spartans, missing Dawson and struggling offensively, became the first No. 1 seed to lose in the Tournament, falling to No. 17 and No. 4-seeded Louisville. MSU began the 2012–13 season 11–2 and ranked No. 18 in the country. The Spartans remained ranked the entire year while finishing tied for second in the Big Ten with Ohio State, with a 13–5 conference record and ranked No. 10 in the country. As the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, they beat Iowa in the quarterfinals, but fell to eventual tournament champion, Ohio State, in the semifinals. The Spartans received a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their 16th straight appearance in the tournament. MSU defeated Valparaiso and Memphis to advance to their fifth Sweet Sixteen in six years and their 11th trip in 16 years. However, the Spartans were defeated by Duke, who was led by Seth Curry, in the Sweet Sixteen. Michigan State began the 2013–14 season looking to continue Tom Izzo's Final Four streak: every player who had played four years for Izzo had made at least one Final Four. After beating No. 1 Kentucky in the Champions Classic, the Spartans moved to the No. 1 spot in the country. The Spartans held the No. 1 spot for three weeks before losing to North Carolina in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. The Spartans cruised through the remaining non- conference schedule, finishing 11–1, to begin the Big Ten season ranked No. 5 in the country. The Spartans won their first seven conference games, but due to injuries to Keith Appling, Adriean Payne, and Brendan Dawson, MSU lost five of their last eight conference games to finish in a second-place tie with Wisconsin at 12–6. The Spartans, finally healthy and at full strength, beat Northwestern, No. 12 Wisconsin, and No. 8 Michigan to capture the Big Ten Tournament championship. This marked Michigan State's fourth tournament championship. Michigan State earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament's East Region. With wins against Delaware and Harvard, they advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the third straight year and the 12th time in 17 years. They defeated No. 1-seeded Virginia in the Sweet Sixteen to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2010. There they fell to No. 7 seed and eventual National Champion, Connecticut. With the loss, the Tom Izzo's Final Four streak ended. Shortly after the season, Gary Harris declared for the NBA Draft. In 2015, MSU started the season well, but with a shocking loss to Texas Southern at home in overtime, finished the non-conference season at 9–4 MSU rallied late in the Big Ten season, winning six of their last eight conference games. MSU finished the season in a tie for third place in conference and got hot in the Big Ten Tournament beating Ohio State and No. 8 Maryland, before losing to No. 6 Wisconsin for the tournament title. The Spartans received an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed in the East Region. The bid was MSU's 18th straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. MSU beat Georgia in the Second Round and surprised No. 2-seeded and No. 6-ranked Virginia in the Third Round. With the win, the Spartans advanced to their fourth straight Sweet Sixteen and seventh Sweet Sixteen in eight years. Wins over Oklahoma and Louisville in overtime gave MSU a trip to their seventh Final Four under Tom Izzo. In the Final Four, the Spartans fell to the eventual National Champions for the second straight season, losing a rematch of their Champions Classic game to Duke in the National semifinal. With senior Denzel Valentine leading the 2015–16 Spartans, MSU went undefeated in the non-conference with the school's best start in history and moved to No. 1 in the polls. However, Valentine suffered a knee injury in late December and would miss four games as MSU lost its first game of the season in Big Ten play and fell from the top spot in the polls. Upon Valentine's return, MSU continued to struggle, losing four of their first seven conference games and marking their worst conference start since 2003. The Spartans recovered well, losing only one more conference game and finished 13–5 in conference, good enough for second place in the Big Ten. MSU's 26 regular season wins tied the most for a Michigan State team in the regular season. Following the regular season, USA Today named Valentine National Player of the Year. The Big Ten also announced that Valentine was the Big Ten's Player of the Year. As the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, MSU defeated Ohio State for a third time on the season before dispatching Maryland and Purdue to win the Tournament championship. With the win, MSU set the record for most Big Ten Tournament championships with five (Ohio State has also won five, but one has been vacated due to NCAA violations). MSU, ranked No. 2 in the country, learned that it would not receive a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, instead receiving a No. 2 seed in the Midwest bracket. This marked the 19th consecutive year the Spartans made the NCAA Tournament. Despite receiving the No. 2 seed, MSU was considered by some the favorite to with the NCAA Championship. However, MSU was shocked by No. 15-seeded Middle Tennessee in the first round in what some argued was the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history at the time. The 2016–17 Spartans were decimated by departures from the prior year as seniors Denzel Valentine, Bryn Forbes, and Matt Costello all graduated and moved to the NBA. Freshman Deyonta Davis also declared his eligibility for the NBA after the year and sophomores Javon Bess and Marvin Clark transferred out of the program. In all, five of the Spartans' top six scorers from 2015–16 did not return. In response, MSU welcomed their most-heralded recruiting class ever as four top-50 ranked players entered the program: Miles Bridges, Joshua Langford, Cassius Winston, and Nick Ward. A young team would look to graduate transfer Ben Carter and seniors Gavin Schilling and Eron Harris to fill the holes left by departing players. However, Carter and Schilling suffered season-ending knee injuries before the season began and Harris would suffer one late in the season. As a result, MSU struggled up front as Ward at 6' 8" was the tallest on the team. Former walk- on Kenny Goins became the backup big man at 6' 6". Following losses in their first two games to top-10 teams, MSU suffered two other losses to top-20 teams. Bridges missed seven games with a knee injury near the end of the non- conference slate and the Spartans, who started the season ranked as high as 10 in some polls, entered Big Ten play with an 8–5 record. Izzo would lament his early-season schedule which involved trips to Hawaii, New York, and the Bahamas when his young team wouldn't get needed practice time. Wins to start conference play over Minnesota (twice) and Northwestern, which would prove to be two of their better wins on the season, and Bridges's return had MSU at 4–1 in conference play. However, inconsistency haunted the Spartans as their failure to win road games left the Spartans at 8–5 in conference play with a visit to conference leaders, Purdue. MSU was handled easily by the Boilermakers and Harris suffered his knee injury which appeared to spell the end of MSU's 19-year NCAA Tournament streak. However, Bridges, who averaged over 16 points and eight rebounds on the season, and Ward who averaged over 13 points and six rebounds, led the Spartans, they knocked off ranked Wisconsin to seal a trip to the NCAA Tournament. A 10–8 conference record left the Spartans in a tie for fifth place. A win over Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament preceded a loss to Minnesota, but was enough for the Spartans to get an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the 20th consecutive year. As a No. 9 seed, a win over Miami in the first round led to a loss to No. 1-seeded Kansas and an end to the season. Bridges finished the season with perhaps the second-best freshman season in MSU history (behind Magic Johnson): 16.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game. Surprisingly, Bridges opted to not enter the NBA Draft and returned to Michigan State for his sophomore year in 2017–18. With newcomer Jaren Jackson Jr., a consensus top-25 player, joining the team, the Spartans were picked by several publications as the No. 1 team in the country. They began the season ranked No. 2 behind Duke. After a loss to Duke in the second game of the season, the Spartans won the Victory Bracket of the PK–80 Tournament holding No. 9-ranked North Carolina to a school-record low for shooting percentage as they shot 24.6% from the field, including 5.6% from three-point land. The Spartans won 14 straight games, and ascended to No. 1 in the country. A road loss to surprise Big Ten contender Ohio State followed by a home loss to rival Michigan dropped MSU in the rankings and shook the team's confidence. However, the team rebounded well, finishing the season by winning their last 12 regular season games, including a win over Big Ten co-leader Purdue as Bridges took the ball and hit a three-pointer to win the game. On February 17, 2018 while playing at Northwestern, the Spartans overcame a 27-point deficit to beat the Wildcats, at that time, the fifth largest comeback all-time in Division I history. The Spartans finished with a school-record 16 Big Ten wins and their first outright regular season Big Ten title since 2009. The team also finished 28–3, a record for regular season wins. The Spartans fell again to their rival Michigan in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament and received only a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament due to their low strength of schedule. The NCAA trip marked the school's 21st consecutive trip to the Tournament, but following a win in the First Round over Bucknell, the Spartans fell to 11th- seeded Syracuse marking the third consecutive year and first time under Izzo that the Spartans had failed to reach the Sweet Sixteen in a three-year period. The Spartans led the nation in field goal defense, rebounding margin, and blocks. Freshman Jaren Jackson Jr. set the single-season MSU record for blocks and was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Bridges was named first-team All-Big Ten and second team All-American. For much of the season, the on-court play was shrouded by reports that surfaced that Tom Izzo's program had covered up sexual assault allegations ten years prior. Izzo refused to comment on the reports due to an ongoing investigation by several agencies including Michigan Attorney General's office and the United States Education Department., but repeatedly said he had no intention of leaving Michigan State and they he cooperated with all investigations including the previous allegation of sexual assault in 2010. In August 2018 the NCAA cleared Izzo in his handling of the sexual assault allegations. The school was implicated tangentially to the FBI-college basketball scandal as reports surfaced that Bridges had been paid to attend Michigan State, among other allegations. MSU conducted an investigation and presented their findings that the allegations were false to the NCAA, who cleared Bridges, ruling him eligible to play. Following Bridges and Jackson's departures to the NBA, the 2018–19 team began the season ranked No. 10 in the country. The season was dominated by injuries to the Spartans. Starting guard Joshua Langford only played 13 games before missing the rest of the season with a foot injury. Key starter Matt McQuaid missed three games with injury and key reserve Kyle Ahrens missed nine games with back and ankle injuries. With five games remaining in the Big Ten regular season, big man Nick Ward suffered a hairline fracture in his shooting hand and missed the rest of the regular season. He returned in time for the postseason, but was not the same as he struggled to return to the lineup. Despite this, the Spartans earned a share of the Big Ten regular season championship with Purdue and defeated arch-rival Michigan twice in the regular season. Led by Big Ten Player of the Year Cassius Winston, the Spartans also won the Big Ten Tournament for the sixth time, again defeating Michigan in the championship game to go 3–0 against their rival. As the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the teams 22nd straight appearance in the Tournament, the Spartans defeated Bradley and Minnesota to advance to their first Sweet Sixteen in four years. In the Sweet Sixteen, the Spartans blew out No. 3 seed LSU to face top-seeded Duke in the Elite Eight. Despite having multiple first round NBA Draft picks, the Spartans knocked off the Blue Devils to earn a trip to the school's 10th Final Four and eighth under Izzo. The win over Duke improved Izzo's record to 2–11 against Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. In the Final Four, the Spartans were upset by Texas Tech, ending the school's bid for a third national championship. Winston led the Spartans, averaging 18.8 points and 7.5 assists per game. Three Michigan State coaches have been inducted into the Hall of Fame. They are Pete Newell (National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2006), Jud Heathcote (National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2009), and Tom Izzo (Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2016). Since 1976, the Spartans have had only two head basketball coaches, Heathcote and Izzo. Heathcote (1976–1995) coached the Spartans for 19 seasons before retiring following the 1994–95 season. His hand-picked successor, Izzo, an assistant with MSU since 1983, completed his 24th year as head coach of the Spartans in 2019. On November 28, 2009, Izzo passed Heathcote's mark of 340 career wins by beating UMass 106–68. Izzo now leads all MSU basketball coaches in wins with 606 through 2019. Izzo is second all time in Big Ten wins (288 through 2019), trailing only Bob Knight. Of all MSU coaches who have headed the Spartans basketball squad in at least a dozen games, Izzo is second in winning percentage and no MSU coach tops him since 1910. Former coach George E. Denman won all 11 games he coached between 1901 and 1903 and Chester L. Brewer won 70 of 95 games from 1903 to 1910. Jud Heathcote won three Big Ten titles in his 19 years at MSU. His teams appeared in nine NCAA Tournaments, four Sweet Sixteens, one Elite Eight, one Final Four and won one National Championship. After his early success with Magic Johnson and company, Heathcote finished his career strong, appearing in five NCAA Tournaments in his final six years. However, he never advanced past the Sweet Sixteen after winning the championship in 1979. His teams also appeared in three NITs reaching the NIT Final Four in 1989. Heathcote was named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1978 and 1986. Heathcote was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2009. Tom Izzo worked as an assistant under Heathcote for 12 years prior to being named his successor. Other assistants who worked under Heathcote went on to head coaching positions: Don Monson (Idaho and Oregon), Bill Berry (San Jose State), Mike Deane (Siena, Marquette, Lamar, and Wagner), Jim Boylan (Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks), Jim Boylen (Utah), Stan Joplin (Toledo), and Brian Gregory (Dayton, Georgia Tech, and South Florida). Record by season under Heathcote: See Michigan State Spartans men's basketball seasons Since 1995, the team has been coached by Tom Izzo, who has an overall record of 606–232 as the head coach at Michigan State. Izzo coached the Spartans to their second national championship in 2000 with an 89–76 victory over Florida. Izzo has turned Michigan State into a perennial basketball powerhouse. Izzo is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Izzo has guided the Spartans to eight NCAA Final Fours since 1999, an accomplishment unmatched by any other college basketball program during that span. Izzo has never had a losing season at MSU and has also appeared in a postseason tournament every year he has headed the MSU basketball program: two years in the NIT and 22 straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. His teams have won nine Big Ten regular-season championships, six Big Ten tournament championships and have reached the Sweet Sixteen 20 times, the Elite Eight 14 times, the Final Four eight times, and played in two NCAA Championship games, in which they won the 2000 NCAA National Championship Tournament. Izzo has received numerous awards including the 1998 Associated Press National Coach of the Year, the 1998 Basketball News National Coach of the Year, the 1998 United States Basketball Writers Association Henry Iba Coach of the Year Award (1998), three-time Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year (1998, 2009, 2012), the 1998 Basketball Times Mideast Coach of the Year, the 1999 Basketball News Coach of the Year Award, two-time National Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year Award (2001, 2012) and the 2005 Clair Bee Award. Izzo also helped his assistants secure head coaching jobs across the basketball world. Three current Division I head coaches served as assistants under Izzo: Brian Gregory coached for Dayton and Georgia Tech and is the current head coach at South Florida, Mark Montgomery is the current head coach at Northern Illinois, and Tom Crean was head coach at Indiana for nine years and Marquette for nine years and is the current head coach at Georgia. Current Izzo assistant coach Mike Garland spent three seasons as head coach at Cleveland State following an initial seven-year stint at MSU. Former assistant Stan Heath was head coach at Kent State, Arkansas, and South Florida. Doug Wojcik was the head coach at Tulsa and College of Charleston. On March 15, 2019 Tom Izzo won his 600th game. Under Tom Izzo: The Spartans have appeared in 33 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournaments, with a current streak of 22 straight years, with two NCAA basketball national championships. They have appeared in ten Final Fours and sport a 69–32 all- time NCAA tournament record. The Spartans have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 33 times. Their combined record is 69–32. The NCAA began seeding the tournament with the 1979 edition. The Spartans have received a No. 1 seed in five Tournaments. Their average seed in the NCAA Tournament is a 4.8. They have been a No. 5 seed the most times (six). The lowest seed the Spartans have received in the Tournament is a 10 (three times). Prior to seeding in NCAA Tournaments, MSU appeared in the 1957, 1959, and 1978 NCAA Tournaments. Since 1979, the Spartans have failed to qualify for the tournament 11 times. They have a current streak of 22 straight appearances in the tournament (as of 2019). * The Spartans have appeared in 33 NCAA Tournaments, reaching the Sweet Sixteen 20 times, the Elite Eight 14 times, the Final Four ten times, and the National Championship game three times. They have reached the Final Four three times as a No. 1 seed, three times as a No. 2 seed, twice as a No. 5 seed, and once as a No. 7 seed. They won the National Championship as a No. 2 seed in 1979 and as a No. 1 seed in 2000. The Spartans have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) five times. Their combined record is 6–6. Michigan State has won 15 Big Ten regular-season championships, the sixth-most in Big Ten history. Michigan State has won six Big Ten Tournament championships since its inception in 1998, the most championships in the Big Ten. The Spartans have appeared in seven championship games, only losing the 2015 championship to Wisconsin. Michigan State has appeared in the quarterfinals of every Big Ten Tournament. Michigan State only has losing records against two Big Ten teams. Denzel Valentine – AP, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times, NABC, NBC Sports (2016), Draymond Green – NABC (2012), Shawn Respert – Sporting News, NABC (1995), Scott Skiles – Basketball Times (1986) Earvin Johnson (1979), Mateen Cleaves (2000) Jay Vincent (1981), Scott Skiles (1986), Shawn Respert (1995), Mateen Cleaves (1998, 1999), Morris Peterson (2000), Kalin Lucas (2009), Draymond Green (2012), Denzel Valentine (2016), Cassius Winston (2019) Jud Heathcote (1978, 1986), Tom Izzo (1998, 2009, 2012) Gary Harris (2013), Miles Bridges (2017), Jaren Jackson Jr. (2018) Ken Redfield (1990), Eric Snow (1995), Travis Walton (2009), Jaren Jackson Jr. (2018) Spartans formerly or currently in the NBA include: Maurice Ager, Mathew Aitch, Robert Anderegg, Alan Anderson, Keith Appling, Chet Aubuchon, Charlie Bell, Robert Brannum, Miles Bridges, Shannon Brown, Edward Burton, Mateen Cleaves, Matt Costello Deyonta Davis, Paul Davis, Branden Dawson, Jamie Feick, Al Ferrari, Bryn Forbes, Terry Furlow, Draymond Green, Johnny Green, Gary Harris, Jaren Jackson Jr., Darryl Johnson Earvin Johnson, Ken Johnson, Greg Kelser, Kalin Lucas, Matthew Mazza, Anthony Miller, Adreian Payne, Mike Peplowski, Morris Peterson, Zach Randolph, Shawn Respert Jason Richardson, Ralph Simpson, Scott Skiles, Steve Smith, Eric Snow, Matt Steigenga, Denzel Valentine, Jay Vincent, Sam Vincent, Horace Walker, Kevin Willis 60 total NBA draft picks., 21 first round picks., 1 overall No. 1 pick – Magic Johnson., 8 top ten picks. Tom Izzo's teams have worn many different styles of uniform during his 21 years at Michigan State. Nike, Inc. started making jerseys for the team at the start of the 2000–01 season. The current home jersey, introduced as part of a rebranding effort by the athletic department in April 2010, is white with green uniform numbers and a green custom font "SPARTANS" across the chest. The road jersey is green with white uniform numbers and a white custom font "SPARTANS" across the chest. The Spartans do not currently wear an official alternate uniform but the team has worn a silver alternate, a 1979 throwback, and a MAC (Michigan Agricultural College) uniform in the past. The team also wore specially-made camouflage jerseys for the 2011 Carrier Classic, played on a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier against North Carolina. Beginning in the 2014–15 season, the Spartans frequently wore their 1979 throwback jerseys as their home uniform. On January 23, 2016, MSU wore specially designed "Mean Green" uniforms. During the 2016–17 season, the Spartans frequently wore the MAC throwback uniforms at home. The Spartans used the College Gymnasium prior to moving to Demonstration Hall for 10 years. The Spartans used this building, still in use on campus today, as their home from 1930 to the opening of Jenison Fieldhouse in 1940. The arena opened in 1940 and was named for alumnus Frederick Cowles Jenison, whose estate, along with PWAP funds, funded the building. The building was the home of the Spartans from 1940 to 1989 when the Breslin Center opened. The venue is most famous for its 1979 NCAA champion basketball team, which included Earvin "Magic" Johnson, and was coached by Jud Heathcote. Jenison also hosted the 1963 NCAA Tournament's Mideast Regionals. A plaque outside the arena commemorates one of the 1963 regional semifinals; the "Game of Change," in which a segregated Mississippi State team played and lost to the eventual national champion, an integrated Loyola team. The losing Maroons (now known as the Bulldogs) had defied a court order prohibiting them from leaving the state to play an integrated team. The game is now seen as a watershed moment in the intersection of civil rights and sports during the Civil Rights Movement. The building is still in use on campus today. The Spartans play home games at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center on campus. The arena is commonly referred to as "Breslin" and "the Bres", and was opened in 1989. It is named for Jacweir "Jack" Breslin, an MSU alumnus, former athlete and administrator, who first began pushing for the arena in 1969. Its capacity is 14,797 seats, and the stadium superseded Jenison Fieldhouse. The arena is currently undergoing a $50 million renovation to improve the visitor experience and to create a Michigan State University Basketball Hall of History. The arena's current basketball court is the same floor where the Spartans won the 2000 NCAA Tournament, which was at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. The school purchased the floor from the NCAA and Final Four floor installer Horner Flooring after the title game. A plaque was installed on the baseline near the Michigan State tunnel to commemorate the floor's role in the school's history. The Breslin Center is home to the Izzone, a large student section named after Coach Izzo, the basketball team's head coach since 1995. The student section had been named Spartan Spirits and Jud's Jungle prior to Izzo's prominence at the school. The Izzone routinely gets mentioned in discussions of the nation's top student fan sections, and in 2006 was ranked as the 4th-best in the country. The section helped cheer the Spartans to a 53-game home win streak between 1998 and 2002 and also a 28-game winning streak from 2007 and 2009. The arena is undergoing a $50 million renovation to improve the visitor experience and to create a Michigan State University Basketball Hall of History which is scheduled to be completed by June 2018. Visual history of MSU Basketball by MSUAA, http://www.finalfouru.com/ The 2017 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan during the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wolverines played in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference and played their home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan was coached by Jim Harbaugh, who was in his third season. Coming off back-to-back 10-win seasons in Harbaugh's first two years as coach, the Wolverines began the year ranked 11th in the preseason AP Poll. In the first game of the season, Michigan defeated then-No. 17 Florida in a neutral site game in Arlington, Texas. Michigan won its remaining non-conference games as well as its conference opener against Purdue, rising to No. 7 in the polls before suffering their first loss in a home game against in-state rival Michigan State. Michigan lost three more games in conference play, all to teams ranked in the top ten at the time of play: first to then-No. 2 Penn State, then to No. 5 Wisconsin, and finally to arch-rival No. 8 Ohio State to end the regular season. Michigan ended Big Ten Conference play with a 5–4 record to finish in fourth in the Eastern Division. The Wolverines were invited to the 2018 Outback Bowl, played on New Year's Day, where they lost to South Carolina to finish the year at 8–5. Michigan struggled to find consistent play at quarterback throughout the year, with Wilton Speight, John O'Korn, and Brandon Peters all receiving significant playing time. The team recorded only nine passing touchdowns on the year. Karan Higdon led the team on the ground with 994 rushing yards, and Grant Perry led the team in receiving with 307 yards. The defense, despite losing 10 starters from 2016, was considered one of the best in the country. Lineman Maurice Hurst Jr. was named a consensus first-team All-American. Linebacker Devin Bush Jr. and linemen Rashan Gary and Chase Winovich also received first-team all-conference honors. Michigan played a public spring exhibition game in Michigan Stadium on Saturday, April 15, 2017. The announced attendance was 57,418. The Maize team's Kyle Seychel kicked a 31-yard field goal as time expired for the 31-29 win. The Michigan football team traveled to Italy for a week in late April for training, sight-seeing, and brand exposure. The team held three public practices and hosted other publicity events. Coach Jim Harbaugh was offered the opportunity to meet Pope Francis, during which he gifted the Pope an authentic Michigan helmet and a pair of Michigan-themed Jordan Brand shoes. Michigan's recruiting class consisted of 30 recruits, including 11 that enrolled early. Michigan's recruiting class was ranked No. 3 by Scout, No. 4 by Rivals, No. 6 by ESPN, and No. 5 by 247Sports.com's composite rankings. The class was considered one of Michigan's strongest recruiting classes from the modern era, and was highlighted by composite 5-star prospects WR Donovan Peoples-Jones and DL Aubrey Solomon. Radio coverage for all games is broadcast statewide on The Michigan IMG Sports Network and on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. The radio announcers were Jim Brandstatter (in his final season with the team) with play-by-play, Dan Dierdorf with color commentary, and Doug Karsch with sideline reports. Sources: To begin the season, Michigan faced the Florida Gators in a neutral site game in Arlington, Texas in the Advocare Classic. This was the first meeting between the teams since the 2016 Citrus Bowl. It was the fourth meeting between Michigan and Florida, and the first ever regular season meeting between the teams. Michigan defeated Florida, 33–17. Florida opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 46-yard field goal from Eddy Pineiro. Michigan responded with a 25-yard field goal from Quinn Nordin to tie the game, and a 46-yard touchdown pass from Wilton Speight to Tarik Black, for their first lead of the game. Florida added 14 points in the second quarter via back-to-back interception returns, a 48-yard interception return from Duke Dawson, and a 41-yard interception return from CJ Henderson. Wilton Speight was briefly benched in the second quarter, replaced by John O'Korn. He re- entered the game to start the second half. Michigan reduced Florida's lead to four points via a 55-yard field goal from Nordin, which made the score 17–13 in favor of Florida at half-time. Michigan then scored 20 unanswered points in the second half, via a three-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon and 30-yard field goal from Nordin in the third quarter. Michigan extended its lead in the fourth quarter via a 50-yard field goal from Nordin and a fumble recovery in the end-zone by Noah Furbush. Michigan wore all-maize alternate jerseys for the first time since 1928. With the win, Michigan ended Florida's 27-year season-opener winning streak, which was the longest active streak in the nation. Kicker Quinn Nordin became the first kicker in Michigan history with two successful conversions of field goals of 50 yards or longer in the same game. Just one game into his career, Nordin is tied for third in program history for most attempts made at 50 yards or more. Sources: Following its opening game against Florida, Michigan hosted the Cincinnati Bearcats. This was the first ever meeting between the two teams. Michigan defeated Cincinnati 36–14. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 43-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Kekoa Crawford. Michigan extended its lead via a 28-yard interception return from Tyree Kinnel. Cincinnati reduced Michigan's lead to seven points via a one-yard touchdown run from Mike Boone. Michigan added a 28-yard field goal from Nordin in the second quarter, which made the score 17–7 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Cincinnati opened the scoring in the third quarter via a 10-yard touchdown pass from Hayden Moore to Kahlil Lewis. Michigan responded with a 33-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Grant Perry later in the third quarter, and extended its lead in the fourth quarter via a 24-yard field goal from Nordin, a safety when Cincinnati fumbled a punt, and a 24-yard interception return from Levert Hill. Michigan's honorary captain for the game was ESPN NFL Insider and 1989 alumni Adam Schefter. Wilton Speight surpassed the 3,000-yard passing mark for his career, becoming the 13th quarterback in Michigan history to reach the milestone. Sources: After playing Cincinnati, Michigan hosted the Air Force Falcons. This was the first meeting between the schools since 2012. Michigan defeated Air Force 29–13. The teams exchanged field goals in the first and second quarter, before a 49-yard field goal from Nordin at the end of the second quarter, which made the score 9–6 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Michigan opened the scoring in the third quarter via a 79-yard punt return from Donovan Peoples-Jones. Air Force responded with a 64-yard touchdown pass from Arion Worthman to Ronald Cleveland. Michigan extended its lead via a 29-yard field goal from Nordin later in the third quarter. Michigan added 10 points in the fourth quarter via a 36-yard field from Nordin and a 36-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon. Michigan's honorary captain for the game was Michigan's director of player personnel Sean Magee. Kicker Quinn Nordin went 5-for-5 on field goal attempts to tie Michigan's single game record. Donovan Peoples-Jones' 79-yard punt return for a touchdown was the longest since Derrick Alexander returned one 79-yards against North Carolina State in 1993. Sources: Following its game against Air Force, Michigan began its conference schedule when it traveled to West Lafayette, Indiana to face the Purdue Boilermakers. Michigan defeated Purdue 28–10. After neither team scored in the first quarter, Michigan opened the scoring in the second quarter via a 12-yard touchdown pass from John O'Korn to Zach Gentry. Purdue responded with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Elijah Sindelar to Brycen Hopkins. Purdue then took their first lead of the game via a 29-yard field goal from J. D. Dellinger, which made the score 10–7 in favor of Purdue at half-time. Michigan then scored 21 unanswered points in the second half, via a 10-yard touchdown run from Chris Evans, a one-yard touchdown run from Ty Isaac, and a 49-yard touchdown run from Evans. Michigan's defense held Purdue to 0-for-12 on third- down conversions, as Purdue did not convert a first down in the second half. Purdue was held to only 10 total yards in the second half. Sources: After a bye week, the Wolverines hosted their in-state rival, the Michigan State Spartans, in the battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. Michigan State upset Michigan 14–10. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 30-yard field goal from Nordin. Michigan State responded with a 14-yard touchdown run from Brian Lewerke. Michigan State extended its lead in the second quarter via a 16-yard touchdown pass from Lewerke to Madre London, which made the score 14–3 in favor of Michigan State at half-time. Michigan reduced the Spartans lead to four points in the third quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Khalid Hill. Michigan's attempted comeback failed when O'Korn's Hail Mary pass was incomplete to end the game. Michigan's honorary captains for the game were Sue Burton, the widow of former assistant coach Tirrel Burton; Jerry Hanlon, former assistant coach under Bo Schembechler; Gordon Bell, former Michigan tailback; and Ed Muransky, former All-American tackle for Michigan. The loss snapped Michigan's 10-game home winning streak at Michigan Stadium. Michigan's five turnovers were the most since recording six in 2012. Michigan's 10 points were the program's fewest since 2014. Michigan's defense held Michigan State to 2-for-14 on third-down conversions, and only 66 total yards in the second half. The game marked the first prime time game in the history of the rivalry. Sources: Michigan returned to the road to face the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington, Indiana in their sixth game of the season. Michigan defeated Indiana 27–20 in overtime. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 40-yard field goal from Nordin. Michigan added ten points in the second quarter via a 38-yard field goal from Nordin and a 12-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon. Indiana reduced Michigan's lead to ten points via a 32-yard field goal from Griffin Oakes, which made the score 13–3 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Indiana opened the scoring in the second half via an eight-yard touchdown run from Morgan Ellison. Michigan extended its lead in the fourth quarter via a 59-yard touchdown run from Higdon. Indiana responded with ten points in the fourth quarter via an eight-yard touchdown pass from Peyton Ramsey to Whop Philyor, and a field goal from Oakes as time expired to tie the game and force overtime. In overtime, Michigan scored via a 25-yard touchdown run from Higdon to win the game. The win marked Michigan's 500th in Big Ten conference play, becoming the first Big Ten team to reach the milestone. Sources: Following its clash with Indiana, Michigan traveled to University Park, Pennsylvania to face the Penn State Nittany Lions. A group of Penn State students caused controversy when they displayed a sign saying Michigan's quarterbacks are worse than the Flint water crisis. Penn State's administration has since denounced the students' actions. Michigan lost to Penn State 42–13. Penn State scored 14 points in the first quarter via two touchdown runs from Saquon Barkley, from 69 yards and 15 yards, respectively. Michigan responded with 13 points in the second quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon, and a six-yard touchdown run from Ty Isaac, to reduce the Nittany Lions' lead to one point. Penn State extended its lead in the second quarter via a three-yard touchdown run from Trace McSorley, which made the score 21–13 in favor of Penn State at half-time. Penn State then scored 21 unanswered points in the second half via a 13-yard touchdown run from McSorley in the third quarter, and a 42-yard touchdown pass from McSorley to Barkley and a nine-yard touchdown run from McSorley in the fourth quarter. Sources: After its game against Penn State, Michigan faced the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in Michigan's homecoming game. Michigan had demolished Rutgers in the previous meeting 78–0. Michigan defeated the Scarlet Knights 35–14. After neither team scored in the first quarter, Michigan opened the scoring in the second quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Khalid Hill. Rutgers responded with a 65-yard touchdown run from Janarion Grant to tie the game. Michigan responded with a 10-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon, and a 20-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Peters to Chris Evans, which made the score 21–7 in favor of Michigan at half-time. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the third quarter via a five-yard touchdown run from Kareem Walker for Michigan, and a two-yard touchdown run from Gus Edwards for Rutgers. Michigan extended its lead in the fourth quarter via a 49-yard touchdown run from Higdon. Michigan's 334 rushing yards were its most since recording 481 rushing yards at Rutgers last season, while its 471 total yards was a season-high, and the most since recording 660 total yards the previous season against Maryland. Karan Higdon and Ty Isaac both surpassed 100-yards rushing, marking the 40th time in program history that Michigan had a pair of 100-yard rushers. The last time Michigan accomplished the feat was last year against Rutgers. Michigan tied a season- high with 11 tackles-for-loss. Sources: After facing Rutgers, Michigan will host the Minnesota Golden Gophers for the Little Brown Jug. In the previous meeting (in 2015), Michigan defeated Minnesota, 29–26. Michigan defeated Minnesota 33–10. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 20-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Peters to Sean McKeon. Minnesota responded with a 10-yard touchdown run from Rodney Smith to tie the game. Michigan regained the lead via a 77-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon. Michigan extended its lead in the second quarter via a 60-yard touchdown run from Chris Evans, which made the score 20–7 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Michigan added 13 points in the third quarter via a five-yard touchdown run from Higdon, and a 67-touchdown run from Evans. Minnesota responded with a 23-yard field goal from Emmit Carpenter in the fourth quarter. With Karan Higdon rushing for 200 yards, and Chris Evans rushing for 191 yards, Michigan had a pair of 100-yard rushers in consecutive games for the first time since 1975. Karan Higdon recorded his second 200-yard game of the season, becoming the first Michigan running back to record multiple 200-yard games in the same season since Mike Hart in 2004. Khaleke Hudson's eight tackles-for-loss broke the single game franchise record, surpassing the previous record of seven set by Larry Foote at Iowa in 2001. Sources: After hosting Minnesota, Michigan traveled to College Park, Maryland to face the Maryland Terrapins. Michigan defeated Maryland 35–10. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a two-yard touchdown run from Henry Poggi. Michigan added 21 points in the second quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Chris Evans, a 33-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Peters to Zach Gentry, and a three-yard touchdown pass from Peters to Sean McKeon, which made the score 28–0 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Maryland opened the scoring in the second half via a 20-yard field goal from Henry Darmstadter. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the fourth quarter via a 10-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Brand to Tavion Jacobs for Maryland, and a 17-yard touchdown run from Evans for Michigan. With Chris Evans surpassing the 500-yard rushing mark for the season, he joined Ty Isaac and Karan Higdon to give Michigan three running backs with at least 500 rushing yards on the season for the first time since 1991. Sources: Following its game against Maryland, Michigan played its final road game against the Wisconsin Badgers. Michigan defeated the Badgers in a top 10 showdown during the prior meeting, winning 14–7. Michigan lost to Wisconsin 24–10. Wisconsin opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 50-yard punt return from Nick Nelson. Michigan responded with a one-yard touchdown run from Ben Mason in the second quarter to tie the game at half-time. Michigan opened the scoring in the second half via a 39-yard field goal from Quinn Nordin, to take their first lead of the game. Wisconsin responded with 14 points in the third quarter via a 24-yard touchdown pass from Alex Hornibrook to A. J. Taylor, and a 32-yard touchdown run from Kendric Pryor. Wisconsin extended its lead in the fourth quarter via a 30-yard field goal from Rafael Gaglianone. Michigan's defense held Wisconsin to just 5-of-15 on third down conversions. Michigan's offense averaged 207.8 rushing yards per game coming into the game. Sources: Following its road finale against Wisconsin, Michigan hosted its arch-rivals, the Ohio State Buckeyes, in the 114th meeting of "The Game". Michigan lost to Ohio State 31–20. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a two- yard touchdown run from Khalid Hill. Michigan extended its lead in the second quarter via a three-yard touchdown pass from John O'Korn to Sean McKeon. Ohio State responded with 14 points in the second quarter via a 21-yard touchdown run from J. T. Barrett, and a 25-yard touchdown pass from Barrett to Marcus Baugh to tie the game at half-time. Michigan regained the lead in the third quarter via a two-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon. Ohio State responded with a one-yard touchdown run from J. K. Dobbins, giving them their first lead of the game. Ohio State scored 10 points in the fourth quarter via a 44-yard field goal from Sean Nuernberger, and a 25-yard touchdown run from Mike Weber. Michigan's honorary captains for the game was former Wolverine and 1997 Heisman winner Charles Woodson, and alumnus Dao-Yi Chao, creative director and co-founder of Public School New York (PSNY). Senior left tackle and offensive captain Mason Cole made his 50th consecutive start on the offensive line for the Wolverines, tying him with Jon Jansen (1995–98) for most in program history among offensive linemen. Michigan's defense held Ohio State to minus- six yards of offense in the first quarter, marking the first full quarter in negative yardage for the Buckeyes since 2010. The first play during each of Ohio State's first three possessions resulted in a Michigan tackle for loss. Sources: On December 3, Michigan was selected to play in the Outback Bowl against the South Carolina Gamecocks. Michigan lost the previous meeting in the 2013 Outback Bowl, by a score of 33–28. This was Michigan's 46th bowl game appearance, and sixth appearance in the Outback Bowl. Michigan lost to South Carolina 26–19. Michigan scored six points in the first quarter via two field goals from Quinn Nordin, from 35-yards, and 26-yards, respectively. The teams exchanged field goals in the second quarter, one from Parker White from 44-yards for South Carolina, and one from Nordin from 45-yards for Michigan, which made the score 9–3 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Michigan scored 10 points in the third quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Ben Mason, and a 48-yard field goal from Nordin. South Carolina responded with 23 straight points in the second half via a 17-yard touchdown run from Rico Dowdle and a 21-yard touchdown pass from Jake Bentley to Bryan Edwards in the third quarter. South Carolina took their first lead of the game in the fourth quarter via a 53-yard touchdown pass from Bentley to Shi Smith, and extended their lead via a 22-yard field goal from White. Michigan's defense held South Carolina to 2-of-14 on third-down conversions, as the Gamecocks did not convert their first third-down opportunity until fewer than five minutes remained in the third quarter.

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The transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong, commonly known as the handover of Hong Kong (or simply the Handover, also the Return in mainland China and Hong Kong), occurred at midnight at the start of 1 July 1997, when the United Kingdom ended administration for the colony of Hong Kong and returned control of the territory to China. Hong Kong became a special administrative region and continues to maintain governing and economic systems separate from those of mainland China. This event ended 156 years of British colonial rule in Hong Kong. The territory was Britain's last substantial overseas possession. With a population of about 6.5 million in 1997, Hong Kong constituted 97% of the total population of all British Dependent Territories at the time. The retrocession is considered by some to definitively mark the end of the British Empire. By the 1820s and 1830s, the British had conquered parts of India and had intentions of growing cotton in these lands to offset the amount of cotton they were buying from America. When this endeavour failed, the British realised they could grow poppies at an incredible rate. These poppies could then be turned into opium, which the Chinese highly desired, but their laws prohibited. So the British plan was grow poppies in India, convert it into opium, smuggle the opium in China and trade it for tea, and sell the tea back in Britain. The illegal opium trade was highly successful, and the drug was very profitably smuggled into China in extremely large volumes. The United Kingdom obtained control over portions of Hong Kong's territory through three treaties concluded with Qing China after the Opium Wars: 1842 Treaty of Nanking: Hong Kong Island ceded in perpetuity, 1860 Convention of Peking: Kowloon Peninsula and Stonecutter's Island additionally ceded, 1898 Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory: the New Territories and outlying islands leased for 99 years until 1997 Despite the finite nature of the New Territories lease, this portion of the colony was developed just as rapidly as, and became highly integrated with, the rest of Hong Kong. As the end of the lease approached, and by the time of serious negotiations over the future status of Hong Kong in the 1980s, it was thought impractical to separate the ceded territories and return only the New Territories to China. In addition, with the scarcity of land and natural resources in Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, large-scale infrastructure investments had been made in the New Territories, with break-evens lying well past 30 June 1997. When the People's Republic of China obtained its seat in the United Nations as a result of the UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 in 1971, it began to act diplomatically on its previously lost sovereignty over both Hong Kong and Macau. In March 1972, the Chinese UN representative, Huang Hua, wrote to the United Nations Decolonization Committee to state the position of the Chinese government: The same year, on 8 November, the United Nations General Assembly passed the resolution on removing Hong Kong and Macau from the official list of colonies. In March 1979 the Governor of Hong Kong, Murray MacLehose, paid his first official visit to the People's Republic of China (PRC), taking the initiative to raise the question of Hong Kong's sovereignty with Deng Xiaoping. Without clarifying and establishing the official position of the PRC government, the arranging of real estate leases and loans agreements in Hong Kong within the next 18 years would become difficult. In response to concerns over land leases in the New Territories, MacLehose proposed that British administration of the whole of Hong Kong, as opposed to sovereignty, be allowed to continue after 1997. He also proposed that contracts include the phrase "for so long as the Crown administers the territory". In fact, as early as the mid-1970s, Hong Kong had faced additional risks raising loans for large-scale infrastructure projects such as its Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system and a new airport. Caught unprepared, Deng asserted the necessity of Hong Kong's return to China, upon which Hong Kong would be given special status by the PRC government. MacLehose's visit to the PRC raised the curtain on the issue of Hong Kong's sovereignty: Britain was made aware of the PRC's intent to resume sovereignty over Hong Kong, and began to make arrangements accordingly to ensure the sustenance of her interests within the territory, as well as initiating the creation of a withdrawal plan in case of emergency. Three years later, Deng received the former British Prime Minister Edward Heath, who had been dispatched as the special envoy of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to establish an understanding of the PRC's plans with regards to the retrocession of Hong Kong; during their meeting, Deng outlined his plans to make the territory a special economic zone, which would retain its capitalist system under Chinese sovereignty. In the same year, Edward Youde, who succeeded MacLehose as the 26th Governor of Hong Kong, led a delegation of five Executive Councillors to London, including Chung Sze- yuen, Lydia Dunn, and Roger Lobo. Chung presented their position on the sovereignty of Hong Kong to Thatcher, encouraging her to take into consideration the interests of the native Hong Kong population in her upcoming visit to China. In light of the increasing openness of the PRC government and economic reforms on the mainland, the then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher sought the PRC's agreement to a continued British presence in the territory. However, the PRC took a contrary position: not only did the PRC wish for the New Territories, on lease until 1997, to be placed under the PRC's jurisdiction, it also refused to recognise the onerous "unfair and unequal treaties" under which Hong Kong Island and Kowloon had been ceded to Britain in perpetuity after the Opium Wars. Consequently, the PRC recognised only the British administration in Hong Kong, but not British sovereignty. In the wake of Governor MacLehose's visit, Britain and the PRC established initial diplomatic contact for further discussions of the Hong Kong question, paving the way for Thatcher's first visit to the PRC in September 1982. Margaret Thatcher, in discussion with Deng Xiaoping, reiterated the validity of an extension of the lease of Hong Kong territory, particularly in light of binding treaties, including the Treaty of Nanking in 1842, the Convention of Peking in 1856, and the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory signed in 1890. In response, Deng Xiaoping cited clearly the lack of room for compromise on the question of sovereignty over Hong Kong; the PRC, as the successor of Qing dynasty and the Republic of China on the mainland, would recover the entirety of the New Territories, Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. China considered treaties about Hong Kong as unequal and ultimately refused to accept any outcome that would indicate permanent loss of sovereignty over Hong Kong's area, whatever wording the former treaties had. During talks with Thatcher, China planned to invade and seize Hong Kong if the negotiations set off unrest in the colony. Thatcher later said that Deng told her bluntly that China could easily take Hong Kong by force, stating that "I could walk in and take the whole lot this afternoon", to which she replied that "there is nothing I could do to stop you, but the eyes of the world would now know what China is like". After her visit with Deng in Beijing, Thatcher was received in Hong Kong as the first British Prime Minister to set foot on the territory whilst in office. At a press conference, Thatcher re-emphasised the validity of the three treaties, asserting the need for countries to respect treaties on universal terms: "There are three treaties in existence; we stick by our treaties unless we decide on something else. At the moment, we stick by our treaties." At the same time, at the 5th session of the 5th National People's Congress, the constitution was amended to include a new Article 31 which stated that the country might establish Special Administrative Regions (SARs) when necessary. The additional Article would hold tremendous significance in settling the question of Hong Kong and later Macau, putting into social consciousness the concept of "One country, two systems". The concept would prove useful to deploy until the territories were secured and conditions were ripe for its gradual revision. A few months after Thatcher's visit to Beijing, the PRC government had yet to open negotiations with the British government regarding the sovereignty of Hong Kong. Shortly before the initiation of sovereignty talks, Governor Youde declared his intention to represent the population of Hong Kong at the negotiations. This statement sparked a strong response from the PRC, prompting Deng Xiaoping to denounce talk of "the so-called 'three-legged stool'", which implied that Hong Kong was a party to talks on its future, alongside Beijing and London. At the preliminary stage of the talks, the British government proposed an exchange of sovereignty for administration and the implementation of a British administration post-handover. The PRC government refused, contending that the notions of sovereignty and administration were inseparable, and although it recognised Macau as a "Chinese territory under Portuguese administration", this was only temporary. In fact, during informal exchanges between 1979 and 1981, the PRC had proposed a "Macau solution" in Hong Kong, under which it would remain under British administration at China's discretion. However, this had previously been rejected following the 1967 Leftist riots, with the then Governor, David Trench, claiming the leftists' aim was to leave the UK without effective control, or "to Macau us". The conflict that arose at that point of the negotiations ended the possibility of further negotiation. During the reception of former British Prime Minister Edward Heath during his sixth visit to the PRC, Deng Xiaoping commented quite clearly on the impossibility of exchanging sovereignty for administration, declaring an ultimatum: the British government must modify or give up its position or the PRC will announce its resolution of the issue of Hong Kong sovereignty unilaterally. In 1983, Typhoon Ellen ravaged Hong Kong, causing great amounts of damage to both life and property. The Hong Kong dollar plummeted on Black Saturday, and the Financial Secretary John Bremridge publicly associated the economic uncertainty with the instability of the political climate. In response, the PRC government condemned Britain through the press for "playing the economic card" in order to achieve their ends: to intimidate the PRC into conceding to British demands. Governor Youde with nine members of the Hong Kong Executive Council travelled to London to discuss with Prime Minister Thatcher the crisis of confidence—the problem with morale among the people of Hong Kong arising from the ruination of the Sino-British talks. The session concluded with Thatcher's writing of a letter addressed to the PRC Premier Zhao Ziyang. In the letter, she expressed Britain's willingness to explore arrangements optimising the future prospects of Hong Kong while utilising the PRC's proposals as a foundation. Furthermore, and perhaps most significantly, she expressed Britain's concession on its position of a continued British presence in the form of an administration post-handover. Two rounds of negotiations were held in October and November. On the sixth round of talks in November, Britain formally conceded its intentions of either maintaining a British administration in Hong Kong or seeking some form of co-administration with the PRC, and showed its sincerity in discussing PRC's proposal on the 1997 issue. Obstacles were cleared. Simon Keswick, chairman of Jardine Matheson & Co., said they were not pulling out of Hong Kong, but a new holding company would be established in Bermuda instead. The PRC took this as yet another plot by the British. The Hong Kong government explained that it had been informed about the move only a few days before the announcement. The government would not and could not stop the company from making a business decision. Just as the atmosphere of the talks was becoming cordial, members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong felt impatient at the long-running secrecy over the progress of Sino-British talks on the Hong Kong issue. A motion, tabled by legislator Roger Lobo, declared "This Council deems it essential that any proposals for the future of Hong Kong should be debated in this Council before agreement is reached", was passed unanimously. The PRC attacked the motion furiously, referring to it as "somebody's attempt to play the three-legged stool trick again". At length, the PRC and Britain initiated the Joint Declaration on the question of Hong Kong's future in Beijing. Zhou Nan, the then PRC Deputy Foreign Minister and leader of the negotiation team, and Sir Richard Evans, British Ambassador to Beijing and leader of the team, signed respectively on behalf of the two governments. The Sino-British Joint Declaration was signed by the Prime Ministers of the People's Republic of China and the United Kingdom governments on 19 December 1984 in Beijing. The Declaration entered into force with the exchange of instruments of ratification on 27 May 1985 and was registered by the People's Republic of China and United Kingdom governments at the United Nations on 12 June 1985. In the Joint Declaration, the People's Republic of China Government stated that it had decided to resume the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong (including Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories) with effect from 1 July 1997 and the United Kingdom Government declared that it would restore Hong Kong to the PRC with effect from 1 July 1997. In the document, the People's Republic of China Government also declared its basic policies regarding Hong Kong. In accordance with the "One country, two systems" principle agreed between the United Kingdom and the People's Republic of China, the socialist system of the People's Republic of China would not be practised in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and Hong Kong's previous capitalist system and its way of life would remain unchanged for a period of 50 years. This would have left Hong Kong unchanged until 2047. The Joint Declaration provided that these basic policies should be stipulated in the Hong Kong Basic Law. The ceremony of the signing of the Sino-British Joint Declaration took place at 18:00, 19 December 1984 at the Western Main Chamber of the Great Hall of the People. The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office at first proposed a list of 60–80 Hong Kong people to attend the ceremony. The number was finally extended to 101. The list included Hong Kong government officials, members of the Legislative and Executive Councils, chairmen of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and Standard Chartered Bank, prominent businessmen such as Li Ka-shing, Pao Yue-kong and Fok Ying-tung, and also Martin Lee Chu-ming and Szeto Wah. The Hong Kong Basic Law ensured, among other things, that Hong Kong will retain its legislative system, and people's rights and freedom for fifty years, as a special administrative region (SAR) of China. The central government in Beijing maintains control over Hong Kong's foreign affairs as well as the legal interpretation of the Basic Law. The latter has led democracy advocates and some Hong Kong residents to argue, after the fact, that the territory has yet to achieve universal suffrage as promised by the Basic Law, leading to mass demonstrations in 2014. In 2019, demonstrations that started as a protest against an extradition law also led to massive demonstrations (1.7 million on 11 August and 18 August 2019), again demanding universal suffrage, but also the resignation of Carrie Lam (the current Chief Executive). The Basic Law was drafted by a Drafting Committee composed of members from both Hong Kong and Mainland China. A Basic Law Consultative Committee formed purely by Hong Kong people was established in 1985 to canvas views in Hong Kong on the drafts. The first draft was published in April 1988, followed by a five-month public consultation exercise. The second draft was published in February 1989, and the subsequent consultation period ended in October 1989. The Basic Law was formally promulgated on 4 April 1990 by the NPC, together with the designs for the flag and emblem of the HKSAR. Some members of the Basic Law drafting committee were ousted by Beijing following 4 June 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, after voicing views supporting the student protesters. The Basic Law was said to be a mini-constitution drafted with the participation of Hong Kong people. The political system had been the most controversial issue in the drafting of the Basic Law. The special issue sub- group adopted the political model put forward by Louis Cha. This "mainstream" proposal was criticised for being too conservative. According to Clauses 158 and 159 of the Basic Law, powers of interpretation and amendment of the Basic Law are vested in the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and the National People's Congress, respectively. Hong Kong's people have limited influence. After the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, the Executive Councillors and the Legislative Councillors of Hong Kong unexpectedly held an urgent meeting, in which they agreed unanimously that the British Government should give the people of Hong Kong the right of abode in the United Kingdom. More than 10,000 Hong Kong residents rushed to Central in order to get an application form for residency in the United Kingdom. On the eve of the deadline, over 100,000 lined up overnight for a British National (Overseas) application form. While mass migration began well before 1989, the event led to the peak migration year in 1992 with 66,000 leaving. Many citizens were pessimistic towards the future of Hong Kong and the transfer of the region's sovereignty. A tide of emigration, which was to last for no less than five years, broke out. At its peak, citizenship of small countries, such as Tonga, was also in great demand. Singapore, which also had a predominantly Chinese population, was another popular destination, with the country's Commission (now Consulate-General) being besieged by anxious Hong Kong residents. By September 1989, 6000 applications for residency in Singapore had been approved by the Commission. Some consul staff were suspended or arrested for their corrupt behaviour in granting immigration visas. In April 1997, the acting immigration officer at the US Consulate-General, James DeBates, was suspended after his wife was arrested for smuggling of Chinese migrants into the United States. The previous year, his predecessor, Jerry Stuchiner, had been arrested for smuggling forged Honduran passports into the territory before being sentenced to 40 months in prison. Canada (Vancouver and Toronto), the United Kingdom (London, Glasgow, and Manchester), Australia (Perth, Sydney and Melbourne), and the United States (San Francisco and New York) were, by and large, the most popular destinations. The United Kingdom devised the British Nationality Selection Scheme, granting 50,000 families British citizenship under the British Nationality Act (Hong Kong) 1990. Vancouver was among the most popular destinations, earning the nickname of "Hongcouver". Richmond, a suburb of Vancouver, was nicknamed "Little Hong Kong". All in all, from the start of the settlement of the negotiation in 1984 to 1997, nearly 1 million people emigrated; consequently, Hong Kong suffered serious loss of human and financial capital. Chris Patten became the last governor of Hong Kong. This was regarded as a turning point in Hong Kong's history. Unlike his predecessors, Patten was not a diplomat, but a career politician and former Member of Parliament. He introduced democratic reforms which pushed PRC–British relations to a standstill and affected the negotiations for a smooth handover. Patten introduced a package of electoral reforms in the Legislative Council. These reforms proposed to enlarge the electorate, thus making voting in the Legislative Council more democratic. This move posed significant changes because Hong Kong citizens would have the power to make decisions regarding their future. The handover ceremony was held at the new wing of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai on the night of 30 June 1997. The principal British guest was Prince Charles, who read a farewell speech on behalf of the Queen. The newly elected Labour Prime Minister, Tony Blair, the Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, the departing Governor Chris Patten and General Sir Charles Guthrie, Chief of the Defence Staff, also attended. Representing the People's Republic of China were the President, Jiang Zemin, the Premier, Li Peng, and the first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa. The event was broadcast around the world. After the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, the Hong Kong government proposed a grand "Rose Garden Project" to restore faith and solidarity among the residents. As the construction of the new Hong Kong International Airport would extend well after the handover, Governor Wilson met PRC Premier Li Peng in Beijing to ease the mind of the PRC government. The communist press published stories that the project was an evil plan to bleed Hong Kong dry before the handover, leaving the territory in serious debt. After three years of negotiations, Britain and the PRC finally reached an agreement over the construction of the new airport, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding. Removing hills and reclaiming land, it took only a few years to construct the new airport. The Walled City was originally a single fort built in the mid-19th century on the site of an earlier 17th century watch post on the Kowloon Peninsula of Hong Kong. After the ceding of Hong Kong Island to Britain in 1842 (Treaty of Nanjing), Manchu Qing Dynasty authorities of China felt it necessary for them to establish a military and administrative post to rule the area and to check further British influence in the area. The 1898 Convention which handed additional parts of Hong Kong (the New Territories) to Britain for 99 years excluded the Walled City, with a population of roughly 700. It stated that China could continue to keep troops there, so long as they did not interfere with Britain's temporary rule. Britain quickly went back on this unofficial part of the agreement, attacking Kowloon Walled City in 1899, only to find it deserted. They did nothing with it, or the outpost, and thus posed the question of Kowloon Walled City's ownership squarely up in the air. The outpost consisted of a yamen, as well as buildings which grew into low-lying, densely packed neighbourhoods from the 1890s to 1940s. The enclave remained part of Chinese territory despite the turbulent events of the early 20th century that saw the fall of the Qing government, the establishment of the Republic of China and later, a Communist Chinese government (PRC). Squatters began to occupy the Walled City, resisting several attempts by Britain in 1948 to drive them out. The Walled City became a haven for criminals and drug addicts, as the Hong Kong Police had no right to enter the City and China refused maintainability. The 1949 foundation of the People's Republic of China added thousands of refugees to the population, many from Guangdong; by this time, Britain had had enough, and simply adopted a "hands-off" policy. A murder that occurred in Kowloon Walled City in 1959 set off a small diplomatic crisis, as the two nations each tried to get the other to accept responsibility for a vast tract of land now virtually ruled by anti-Manchurian Triads. After the Joint Declaration in 1984, the PRC allowed British authorities to demolish the City and resettle its inhabitants. The mutual decision to tear down the walled city was made in 1987. The government spent up to HK$ 3 billion to resettle the residents and shops. Some residents were not satisfied with the compensation, and some even obstructed the demolition in every possible way. Ultimately, everything was settled, and the Walled City became a park. The Republic of China on Taiwan promulgated the Laws and Regulations Regarding Hong Kong & Macao Affairs on 2 April 1997 by Presidential Order, and the Executive Yuan on 19 June 1997 ordered the provisions pertaining to Hong Kong to take effect on 1 July 1997. The United States–Hong Kong Policy Act or more commonly known as the Hong Kong Policy Act (PL no. 102-383m 106 Stat. 1448) is a 1992 act enacted by the United States Congress. It allows the United States to continue to treat Hong Kong separately from China for matters concerning trade export and economics control after the handover. The United States was represented by then Secretary of State Madeleine Albright at the Hong Kong handover ceremony. However, she partially boycotted it in protest of China's dissolution of the democratically elected Hong Kong legislature. The handover marked the end of British rule in Hong Kong, which was Britain's last substantial overseas territory. Although in statute law set down by Parliament, British Hong Kong had no status of pre-eminence vis-a-vis the other British Dependent Territories (as they were then classified before the term British Overseas Territory was introduced in 2002), Hong Kong was by far the most populous and economically potent. In 1997 the colony had a population of approximately 6.5 million, which represented roughly 97% of the population of the British Dependent Territories as a whole at that time (the next largest, Bermuda, having a 1997 population of approximately only 62,000). With a gross domestic product of approximately US$180 billion in the last year of British rule, Hong Kong's economy was roughly 11% the size of Britain's. Therefore, although the economies of the United Kingdom and Hong Kong were measured separately, the Handover did mean the British economy in its very broadest sense became substantially smaller (by comparison, the acquisition of Hong Kong boosted the size of the Chinese economy, which was then smaller than the United Kingdom's, by 18.4%). As a comparator to Hong Kong, in 2017 Bermuda (as with population, the economically largest of Britain's remaining territories) had a GDP of only US$4.7 billion. The cession of Hong Kong meant that Britain's remaining territories (excepting the United Kingdom itself) henceforth consisted either of uninhabited lands (for instance the British Antarctic Territory), small islands or micro land masses (such as Montserrat), territories used as military bases (for example Akrotiri and Dhekelia on the island of Cyprus, itself a former crown colony granted independence in 1960), or a combination of the latter two (like Gibraltar). And while many of Britain's remaining territories are significant to the global economy by virtue of being offshore financial centres (Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, and the Cayman Islands being the most prominent of these), their economies are insubstantial. Demographically, they are also tiny compared to Britain, with a collective population of less than 0.4% of Britain's 2017 population of 66 millions. As of 2018 the combined population of Britain's remaining fourteen Overseas Territories is only approximately 250,000, which is less than all but three districts of Hong Kong, and roughly equal to that of the City of Westminster Consequently, because ceding Hong Kong came at the end of half a century of decolonisation, and because the handover meant that the United Kingdom became without significant overseas territories, dominions, or colonies for the first time in its history (Great Britain, having been bequeathed the incipient domains of its later empire by inheriting the colonial possessions of the Kingdom of England upon the passing of the Acts of Union 1707, always having been an imperial power, ab initio) the handover of Hong Kong to China is regarded by some as marking the conclusion of the British Empire, with 1 July 1997 being its end date and the handover ceremony being its last diplomatic act. Scholars have begun to study the complexities of the transfer as shown in the popular media, such as films, television and video and online games. For example, Hong Kong director Fruit Chan made a sci-fi thriller The Midnight After (2014) that stressed the sense of loss and alienation represented by survivors in an apocalyptic Hong Kong. Chan infuses a political agenda in the film by playing on Hong Kongers' collective anxiety towards communist China. Yiman Wang has argued that America has viewed China through the prisms of films from Shanghai and Hong Kong, with a recent emphasis on futuristic disaster films set in Hong Kong after the transfer goes awry. The handover is central to the plot of the 1998 action film Rush Hour., It is also mentioned in another 1998 film—Knock Off., The handover is the backdrop for "A Death in Hong Kong", the first episode the tenth series of Murder, She Wrote., Hong Kong Cantopop artist Sam Hui has made numerous references to 1997 including the song "Could Not Care Less About 1997" (話知你97)., Chinese American rapper Jin Auyeung has a song called "1997" in his Cantonese album ABC, which he makes references to the handover, ten years since Hong Kong's return to China., Zero Minus Ten, a James Bond novel by Raymond Benson, is set largely in Hong Kong during the days leading up to the Handover., The 2012 James Bond film Skyfall features a villain who had been an MI6 agent in Hong Kong until the Handover, when he was handed over to the Chinese for his unauthorised hacking of their security networks., The Doctor Who Unbound audio drama Sympathy for the Devil by Jonathan Clements is set on the eve of the Handover and involves an attempted defection by a war criminal, only hours before China takes control., Hong Kong 97, a 1994 American movie starring Robert Patrick, is set in Hong Kong during the 24 hours before the end of British rule., Hong Kong 97, a 1995 Japanese homebrew SNES game, is set in Hong Kong around the time of the transition. The player controls Chin (Jackie Chan), who was called by the Hong Kong government to kill the invading Chinese, including Tong Shau Ping. The game gained a cult following due to its very poor quality and absurd plot., The handover of Hong Kong is referenced multiple times and witnessed in the 1997 film Chinese Box, starring Jeremy Irons and Gong Li. The film itself was filmed leading up to and during the handover. History of Chinese immigration to Canada, Hong Kong people in the United Kingdom, Monument in Commemoration of the Return of Hong Kong to China, Transfer of sovereignty over Macau, Hong Kong 1 July marches, Hong Kong–Mainland conflict Flowerdew, John. The final years of British Hong Kong: The discourse of colonial withdrawal (Springer, 1998)., Lane, Kevin. Sovereignty and the status quo: the historical roots of China's Hong Kong policy (Westview Press, 1990)., Mark, Chi-kwan. "To ‘educate’ Deng Xiaoping in capitalism: Thatcher's visit to China and the future of Hong Kong in 1982." Cold War History (2015): 1–20., Tang, James TH. "From empire defence to imperial retreat: Britain's postwar China policy and the decolonization of Hong Kong." Modern Asian Studies 28.02 (1994): 317–337. – BBC World Service, Hong Kong SAR's 20th Anniversary The Convention between the United Kingdom and China, Respecting an Extension of Hong Kong Territory, commonly known as the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory or the Second Convention of Peking, was a lease signed between Qing China and the United Kingdom on 9 June 1898. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China now keeps the original copy of the Convention in the National Palace Museum in Taiwan. In the wake of China's defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War (18941895), the British took advantage of the other European powers' scramble to carve up the country and forced the treaty on the weakened Chinese government. Between 6 March and 8 April 1898, the German government forced the Qing Empire into a 99-year lease of the Kiautschou Bay concession for a coaling station around Jiaozhou Bay on the southern coast of the Shandong Peninsula, to support a German global naval presence in direct opposition to the British network of global naval bases. This initiated a series of similar lease treaties with other European powers. On 27 March 1898, the Convention for the Lease of the Liaotung Peninsula was signed between the Russian Empire and the Qing Empire, granting Russia a 25-year lease of Port Arthur and Dalian, to support Russia's Chinese Eastern Railway interests in Manchuria. Consequently on 28 March 1898, Britain, anxious of the Russian presence in China, pressured the Qing Empire into leasing of Weihaiwei, which had been captured by the Empire of Japan in the Battle of Weihaiwei, the last major battle of the First SinoJapanese War, for as long as the Russians occupying Port Arthur, to make checks and balances of Russia. During the negotiation, the British stated that they would further request for leasing of land if any foreign concession took place in Southern China. On 10 April 1898, the French, who also desired Chinese territory, forced the Qing Empire into a 99-year lease of Kwang-Chou-Wan to France to support France in southern China and Indochina. In order to maintain the balance of powers, Britain ordered Claude Maxwell MacDonald to pressure Qing Empire into allowing the expansion of Hong Kong for 200 miles. As a result, the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory was signed on 9 June 1898 in Beijing (Peking). The contract was signed to give the British full jurisdiction of the newly acquired land that was necessary to ensure proper military defence of the colony around the island. Some of the earliest proposals for the land's usage in 1894 included cemetery space, an exercise ground for British troops as well as land for development. From the British perspective concerns over security and territorial defence provided the major impetus for the agreement. Under the convention the territories north of what is now Boundary Street and south of the Sham Chun River, and the surrounding islands, later known as the "New Territories" were leased to the United Kingdom for 99 years rent-free, expiring on 30 June 1997, and became part of the crown colony of Hong Kong. The Kowloon Walled City was excepted and remained under the control of Qing China. The territories which were leased to the United Kingdom were originally governed by Xin'an County, Guangdong province. Claude MacDonald, the British representative during the convention, picked a 99-year lease because he thought it was "as good as forever". Britain did not think they would ever have to give the territories back. The 99-year lease was a convenient agreement. Some of the land under the convention remains rural and it is home to virtually all of Hong Kong's remaining farmland. However, as the city districts have become increasingly crowded the government has developed urban areas since the 1950s. Particularly, the areas closest to Kowloon have become integrated into Kowloon districts and are no longer administratively included in the New Territories. Due to continuing population growth and crowding in the inner city, the New Territories satellite cities grew increasingly important to the point where a slight majority of the population now lives there. This made it unfeasible to return the leased land alone as it would have split Hong Kong into two parts. The Chinese also started to pressure the British to return all of Hong Kong, taking the position that they would not accept so-called "unequal treaties" that were imposed on them by colonial powers. The governments of the United Kingdom and the People's Republic of China (PRC) concluded the Sino-British Joint Declaration in 1984, under which the sovereignty of the leased territories, together with Hong Kong Island and Kowloon (south of Boundary Street) ceded under the Treaty of Nanking (1842) and Convention of Peking (1860), was scheduled to be transferred to the PRC on 1 July 1997. The territory was then transferred as scheduled. In the Treaty of Nanking, in 1842, the Qing government agreed to make Hong Kong a Crown colony, ceding it 'in perpetuity', following British victory in the First Opium War. During the second half of the 19th century, Britain had become concerned over the security of the isolated island, Hong Kong. Consequently, in Convention of Peking, following British victory in the Second Opium War, Britain gained a perpetual lease over the Kowloon Peninsula. The New Territories, with a 99-year lease, were the only territories forming the Crown colony of Hong Kong, that were obliged by agreement, to be returned. However, by the time of serious negotiations in the 1980s, it was seen as impractical to separate the ceded territories and return only the New Territories to China, due to the scarcity of resources in Hong Kong and Kowloon, and the large developments in the New Territories. Consequently, at midnight following the evening of 30 June 1997, the entire crown colony of Hong Kong officially reverted to Chinese sovereignty, ending 156 years of British rule. Indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories (Hong Kong), Imperialism in Asia, Punti people in Hong Kong (also known as Weitou people), Hakka indigenous people in Hong Kong, Tanka indigenous people in Hong Kong, Hoklo indigenous people in Hong Kong, Treaty of Nanking, Convention of Peking British Hong Kong was a colony and British Dependent Territory of the United Kingdom from 1841 to 1997, apart from a brief period under Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945. The colonial period began with the occupation of Hong Kong Island in 1841 during the First Opium War. The island was ceded by Qing dynasty in the aftermath of the war in 1842 and established as a Crown colony in 1843. The colony expanded to the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 after the Second Opium War and was further extended when Britain obtained a 99-year lease of the New Territories in 1898. Although Hong Kong Island and Kowloon were ceded in perpetuity, the leased area comprised 92 per cent of the territory and Britain considered that there was no viable way to divide the now single colony, while the Chinese Communist Party would not consider extending the lease or allowing British administration thereafter. Britain eventually agreed to transfer the entire colony to China upon the expiration of that lease in 1997 after obtaining guarantees to preserve its systems, freedoms, and way of life for at least 50 years. In 1836, the Manchu Qing government undertook a major policy review of the opium trade. Lin Zexu volunteered to take on the task of suppressing opium. In March 1839, he became Special Imperial Commissioner in Canton, where he ordered the foreign traders to surrender their opium stock. He confined the British to the Canton Factories and cut off their supplies. Chief Superintendent of Trade, Charles Elliot, complied with Lin's demands to secure a safe exit for the British, with the costs involved to be resolved between the two governments. When Elliot promised that the British government would pay for their opium stock, the merchants surrendered their 20,283 chests of opium, which were destroyed in public. In September 1839, the British Cabinet decided that the Chinese should be made to pay for the destruction of British property, either by the threat or use of force. An expeditionary force was placed under Elliot and his cousin, Rear-Admiral George Elliot, as joint plenipotentiaries in 1840. Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston stressed to the Chinese government that the British government did not question China's right to prohibit opium, but it objected to the way this was handled. He viewed the sudden strict enforcement as laying a trap for the foreign traders, and the confinement of the British with supplies cut off was tantamount to starving them into submission or death. He instructed the Elliot cousins to occupy one of the Chusan islands, to present a letter from himself to a Chinese official for the Emperor, then to proceed to the Gulf of Bohai for a treaty, and if the Chinese resisted, blockade the key ports of the Yangtze and Yellow rivers. Palmerston demanded a territorial base in Chusan for trade so that British merchants "may not be subject to the arbitrary caprice either of the Government of Peking, or its local Authorities at the Sea-Ports of the Empire". In 1841, Elliot negotiated with Lin's successor, Qishan, in the Convention of Chuenpi during the First Opium War. On 20 January, Elliot announced "the conclusion of preliminary arrangements", which included the cession of Hong Kong Island and its harbour to the British Crown. Elliot chose Hong Kong instead of Chusan because he believed a settlement further east would cause an "indefinite protraction of hostilities", whereas Hong Kong's harbour was a valuable base for the British trading community in Canton. British rule began with the occupation of the island on 26 January. Commodore Gordon Bremer, commander-in-chief of British forces in China, took formal possession of the island at Possession Point, where the Union Jack was raised under a fire of joy from the marines and a royal salute from the warships. Hong Kong was ceded in the Treaty of Nanking on 29 August 1842 and established as a Crown colony after ratification was exchanged on 26 June 1843. The treaty failed to satisfy British expectations of a major expansion of trade and profit, which led to increasing pressure for a revision of the terms. In October 1856, Chinese authorities in Canton detained the Arrow, a Chinese-owned ship registered in Hong Kong to enjoy protection of the British flag. The Consul in Canton, Harry Parkes, claimed the hauling down of the flag and arrest of the crew were "an insult of very grave character". Parkes and Sir John Bowring, the 4th Governor of Hong Kong, seized the incident to pursue a forward policy. In March 1857, Palmerston appointed Lord Elgin as Plenipotentiary with the aim of securing a new and satisfactory treaty. A French expeditionary force joined the British to avenge the execution of a French missionary in 1856. In 1860, the capture of the Taku Forts and occupation of Beijing led to the Treaty of Tientsin and Convention of Peking. In the Treaty of Tientsin, the Chinese accepted British demands to open more ports, navigate the Yangtze River, legalise the opium trade and have diplomatic representation in Beijing. During the conflict, the British occupied the Kowloon Peninsula, where the flat land was valuable training and resting ground. The area in what is now south of Boundary Street and Stonecutters Island was ceded in the Convention of Peking. In 1898, the British sought to extend Hong Kong for defence. After negotiations began in April 1898, with the British Minister in Beijing, Sir Claude MacDonald, representing Britain, and diplomat Li Hongzhang leading the Chinese, the Second Convention of Peking was signed on 9 June. Since the foreign powers had agreed by the late 19th century that it was no longer permissible to acquire outright sovereignty over any parcel of Chinese territory, and in keeping with the other territorial cessions China made to Russia, Germany and France that same year, the extension of Hong Kong took the form of a 99-year lease. The lease consisted of the rest of Kowloon south of the Sham Chun River and 230 islands, which became known as the New Territories. The British formally took possession on 16 April 1899. In 1941, during the Second World War, the British reached an agreement with the Chinese government under Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek that if Japan attacked Hong Kong, the Chinese National Army would attack the Japanese from the rear to relieve pressure on the British garrison. On 8 December, the Battle of Hong Kong began when Japanese air bombers effectively destroyed British air power in one attack. Two days later, the Japanese breached the Gin Drinkers Line in the New Territories. The British commander, Major-General Christopher Maltby, concluded that the island could not be defended for long unless he withdrew his brigade from the mainland. On 18 December, the Japanese crossed Victoria Harbour. By 25 December, organised defence was reduced into pockets of resistance. Maltby recommended a surrender to Governor Sir Mark Young, who accepted his advice to reduce further losses. A day after the invasion, Chiang ordered three corps under General Yu Hanmou to march towards Hong Kong. The plan was to launch a New Year's Day attack on the Japanese in the Canton region, but before the Chinese infantry could attack, the Japanese had broken Hong Kong's defences. The British casualties were 2,232 killed or missing and 2,300 wounded. The Japanese reported 1,996 killed and 6,000 wounded. The Japanese soldiers committed atrocities, including rape, on many locals. The population fell in half, from 1.6 million in 1941 to 750,000 at war's end because of fleeing refugees; they returned in 1945. The Japanese imprisoned the ruling British colonial elite and sought to win over the local merchant gentry by appointments to advisory councils and neighbourhood watch groups. The policy worked well for Japan and produced extensive collaboration from both the elite and the middle class, with far less terror than in other Chinese cities. Hong Kong was transformed into a Japanese colony, with Japanese businesses replacing the British. However, the Japanese Empire had severe logistical difficulties and by 1943 the food supply for Hong Kong was problematic. The overlords became more brutal and corrupt, and the Chinese gentry became disenchanted. With the surrender of Japan, the transition back to British rule was smooth, for on the mainland the Nationalist and Communist forces were preparing for a civil war and ignored Hong Kong. In the long run the occupation strengthened the pre-war social and economic order among the Chinese business community by eliminating some conflicts of interests and reducing the prestige and power of the British. On 14 August 1945, when Japan announced its unconditional surrender, the British formed a naval task group to sail towards Hong Kong. On 1 September, Rear-Admiral Cecil Harcourt proclaimed a military administration with himself as its head. He formally accepted the Japanese surrender on 16 September in Government House. Young, upon his return as governor in May 1946, pursued political reform known as the "Young Plan", believing that, to counter the Chinese government's determination to recover Hong Kong, it was necessary to give local inhabitants a greater stake in the territory by widening the political franchise to include them. The Sino-British Joint Declaration was signed by both the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Premier of the People's Republic of China on 19 December 1984 in Beijing. The Declaration entered into force with the exchange of instruments of ratification on 27 May 1985 and was registered by the People's Republic of China and United Kingdom governments at the United Nations on 12 June 1985. In the Joint Declaration, the People's Republic of China Government stated that it had decided to resume the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong (including Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories) with effect from 1 July 1997 and the United Kingdom Government declared that it would relinquish Hong Kong to the PRC with effect from 1 July 1997. In the document, the People's Republic of China Government also declared its basic policies regarding Hong Kong. In accordance with the One Country, Two Systems principle agreed between the United Kingdom and the People's Republic of China, the socialist system of People's Republic of China would not be practised in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and Hong Kong's previous capitalist system and its way of life would remain unchanged for a period of 50 years. The Joint Declaration provides that these basic policies shall be stipulated in the Hong Kong Basic Law. The ceremony of the signing of the Sino-British Joint Declaration took place at 18:00, 19 December 1984 at the Western Main Chamber of the Great Hall of the People. The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office at first proposed a list of 60–80 Hong Kong people to attend the ceremony. The number was finally extended to 101. The list included Hong Kong government officials, members of the Legislative and Executive Councils, chairmen of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and Standard Chartered Bank, Hong Kong celebrities such as Li Ka-shing, Pao Yue-kong and Fok Ying-tung, and also Martin Lee Chu-ming and Szeto Wah. The handover ceremony was held at the new wing of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai on the night of 30 June 1997. The principal British guest was Charles, Prince of Wales who read a farewell speech on behalf of the Queen. The newly appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair, the British Foreign Minister, Robin Cook, the departing Hong Kong governor, Chris Patten, Chief of the Defence Staff of the United Kingdom, Field Marshal Sir Charles Guthrie, also attended. Representing China were the President of the People's Republic of China, Jiang Zemin, Premier of the People's Republic of China, Li Peng, and Tung Chee-hwa, the first Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. This event was broadcast on television and radio stations across the world. Hong Kong was a Crown colony of the United Kingdom and maintained an administration roughly modelled after the Westminster system. The Letters Patent formed the constitutional basis of the colonial government and the Royal Instructions detailed how the territory should be governed and organised. The Governor was the head of government and appointed by the British monarch to serve as the representative of the Crown in the colony. Executive power was highly concentrated with the Governor, who himself appointed almost all members of the Legislative Council and Executive Council and also served as President of both chambers. The British government provided oversight for the colonial government; the Foreign Secretary formally approved any additions to the Legislative and Executive Councils and the Sovereign held sole authority to amend the Letters Patent and Royal Instructions. The Executive Council determined administrative policy changes and considered primary legislation before passing it to the Legislative Council for approval. This advisory body also itself issued secondary legislation under a limited set of colonial ordinances. The Legislative Council debated proposed legislation and was responsible for the appropriation of public funds. This chamber was reformed in the last years of colonial rule to introduce more democratic representation. Indirectly elected functional constituency seats were introduced in 1985 and popularly elected geographical constituency seats in 1991. Further electoral reform in 1994 effectively made the legislature broadly representative. The administrative Civil Service was led by the Colonial Secretary (later Chief Secretary), who was deputy to the Governor. The judicial system was based on English law, with Chinese customary law taking a secondary role in civil cases involving Chinese residents. The Supreme Court of Hong Kong was the highest court and ruled on all civil and criminal cases in the colony. During the early colonial period, extraterritorial appellate cases from other regions of China involving British subjects were also tried in this court. Further appeals from the Supreme Court were heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which exercised final adjudication over the entire British Empire. In 1861, Governor Sir Hercules Robinson introduced the Hong Kong Cadetship, which recruited young graduates from Britain to learn Cantonese and written Chinese for two years, before deploying them on a fast track to the Civil Service. Cadet officers gradually formed the backbone of the civil administration. After the Second World War, ethnic Chinese were allowed into the service, followed by women. Cadets were renamed Administrative Officers in the 1950s, and they remained the elite of the Civil Service during British rule. The stability, security, and predictability of British law and government enabled Hong Kong to flourish as a centre for international trade. In the colony's first decade, the revenue from the opium trade was a key source of government funds. The importance of opium reduced over time, but the colonial government was dependent on its revenues until the Japanese occupation in 1941. Although the largest businesses in the early colony were operated by British, American, and other expatriates, Chinese workers provided the bulk of the manpower to build a new port city. By the late 1980s, many ethnic Chinese people had become major business figures in Hong Kong. Amongst these billionaires was Sir Ka-shing Li, who had become one of the colony's wealthiest people by this time. During China's turbulent 20th century, Hong Kong served as a safe haven for dissidents, political refugees, and officials who lost power. British policy allowed dissidents to live in Hong Kong as long as they did not break local laws or harm British interests. The implementation of this policy varied according to what the senior officials thought constituted British interests and the state of relations with China. The Canton–Hong Kong strike (1925–1926) was anti-imperialist in nature. The 1966 riots and Maoist-led 1967 riots, essentially spillovers from the Cultural Revolution, were large scale demonstrations fuelled by tensions surrounding labour disputes and dissatisfaction towards the government. Although the 1967 riots started as a labour dispute, the incident escalated quickly after the leftist camp and mainland officials stationed in Hong Kong seized the opportunity to mobilise their followers to protest against the colonial government. Chinese Communist members organised the Anti-British Struggle Committee during the riots. Historian Steve Tsang wrote that it was "ironic" that despite Hong Kong being a symbol of China's humiliation by Britain, there was not one major movement started by the Chinese residents of the colony for its retrocession to China, even though there had been several upsurges of Chinese nationalism. He explained: In the 1920s, the working class Chinese of Hong Kong did not have a good reason to rally around the Hong Kong government, and they were more susceptible to appeals based on Chinese nationalism. Consequently, the call of the Communists was basically heeded by the working men, and their actions practically paralysed the colony for a year. By the [end of the] 1960s, however, the attempts by the Hong Kong government to maintain stability and good order which helped improve everyone's living conditions, and ... the beginning of the emergence of a Hong Kong identity, changed the attitude of the local Chinese. They overwhelmingly rallied around the colonial British regime. China–United Kingdom relations, British Empire, Portuguese Macau, British Weihaiwei, Imperialism ., . Carroll, John M (2007). A Concise History of Hong Kong. Plymouth: Rowman & Littlefield. ., Clayton, Adam (2003). Hong Kong Since 1945: An Economic and Social History., Endacott, G. B. (1964). An Eastern Entrepot: A Collection of Documents Illustrating the History of Hong Kong. Her Majesty's Stationery Office. p. 293\. . ., Lui, Adam Yuen-chung (1990). Forts and Pirates – A History of Hong Kong. Hong Kong History Society. p. 114\. ., Liu, Shuyong; Wang, Wenjiong; Chang, Mingyu (1997). An Outline History of Hong Kong. Foreign Languages Press. p. 291\. ., Ngo, Tak-Wing (1999). Hong Kong's History: State and Society Under Colonial Rule. Routledge. p. 205\. ., Welsh, Frank (1993). A Borrowed Place: The History of Hong Kong. Kodansha International. p. 624\. . "Official website of the British Hong Kong Government". Archived from the original on 24 December 1996. Retrieved 2013-03-26.

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The Emerald Buddha ( , or ) is considered the palladium of the Kingdom of Thailand. It is a figurine of the meditating Buddha seated in yogic posture, made of a semi-precious green stone (jade or jasper rather than emerald), clothed in gold, and about tall. It is housed in the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) on the grounds of the Grand Palace in Bangkok. Historical sources indicate that the statue surfaced in northern Thailand in the Lanna kingdom in 1434. One account of its discovery tells that lightning struck a chedi in Wat Pa Yia (Bamboo Forest Monastery, later renamed Wat Phra Kaew) in Chiang Rai, revealing a Buddha covered with stucco inside. The Buddha was then placed in the abbot's residence, who later noticed that stucco on the nose had flaked off, revealing a green interior. The abbot removed the stucco and found a Buddha figure carved from a green semi-precious stone, which became known as Phra Kaew Morakot or in English the Emerald Buddha. ("Emerald" refers to its "green colour" in Thai, not its composition.) Some art historians describe the Emerald Buddha as belonging to the Chiang Saen Style of the 15th century CE, which would mean it is of Thai Lanna origin. King Sam Fang Kaen of Lanna wanted it in his capital, Chiang Mai, but the elephant carrying it insisted, on three separate occasions, on going instead to Lampang. This was taken as a divine sign, and the Emerald Buddha stayed in Lampang in a specially-built temple (now Wat Phra Kaeo Don Tao) for the next 32 years. In 1468, it was moved to Chiang Mai by King Tiloka, where it was kept in a niche in a large stupa called Chedi Luang. The Emerald Buddha remained in Chiang Mai until 1552, when it was taken to Luang Prabang, then the capital of the Lao kingdom of Lan Xang. Some years earlier, the crown prince of Lan Xang, Setthathirath, had been invited to occupy the vacant throne of Lanna as his mother was the daughter of the king of Chiang Mai who had died without a son. However, Prince Setthathirath also became king of Lan Xang when his father, Photisarath, died. He returned home, taking the revered Buddha figure with him. In 1564, King Setthathirath moved it to Vientiane, which he had made his new capital due to Burmese attacks and where the Buddha image was housed in Haw Phra Kaew. The Buddha image would stay in Vientiane for the next 214 years. In 1779, the Thai General Chao Phraya Chakri put down an insurrection, captured Vientiane and took the Emerald Buddha to Siam. It was installed in a shrine close to Wat Arun in Thonburi, its new capital. Chao Phra Chakri then took over the reins and founded the Chakri Dynasty of Rattanakosin Kingdom, where he would later be titled Rama I. He shifted his capital across Chao Phraya river to its present location in Bangkok, and constructed the new Grand Palace including Wat Phra Kaew within its compound. Wat Phra Kaew was consecrated in 1784, and the Emerald Buddha was moved with great pomp and pageantry to its current home in the ubosot of the Wat Phra Kaew temple complex on 22 March 1784. The legend of the Emerald Buddha is related in number of sources such as Jinakalamali, Amarakatabuddharupanidana, and in particular Ratanabimbavamsa or The Chronicle of the Emerald Buddha written in Pali by Brahmarājapañña in the 15th century. The story is a mix of fact and fables with some variations to the story. According to the legend, the Emerald Buddha was created in 43 BCE by a saint named Nagasena in the city of Pataliputra (today's Patna), India. Nagasena allegedly had the help of Hindu god Vishnu and the demigod Indra, 500 years after Buddha attained Nirvana. He was said to have predicted: This figure of the Buddha is assuredly going to give to religion the most brilliant importance in five lands, that is in Lankadvipa (Sri Lanka), Ramalakka, Dvaravati, Chieng Mai and Lan Chang (Laos). The Buddha image is made of a semi-precious green stone, described variously as jade or jasper rather than emerald, as "emerald" here refers to its colour rather than the stone. The image has not been analyzed to determine its exact composition or origin. The figure is wide at the lap, and high. The Buddha is in a seated position, with the right leg resting on the left one, a style that suggest it might have been carved in the late Chiangsaen or Chiangmai school, not much earlier than the fifteenth century CE. However, the meditation pose of the statue was not popular in Thailand but looks very much like some of the Buddha images of southern India and Sri Lanka, which led some to suggest an origin in India or Sri Lanka. The Emerald Buddha is adorned with three different sets of gold seasonal costumes: two were made by Rama I, one for the summer and one for the rainy season, and a third made by Rama III for the winter or cool season. The clothes are changed by the King of Thailand, or another member of the royal family in his stead, in a ceremony at the changing of the seasons – in the 1st Waning of lunar months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, August and November). For the three seasons, the three set of costumes for the Emerald Buddha: Hot/summer season – a stepped, pointed headpiece; a breast pendant; a sash; a number of armlets, bracelets and other items of royal attire. All items are made of enameled gold and embedded with precious and semi-precious stones., Rainy season – a pointed headpiece of enameled gold studded with sapphires; a gold-embossed monk's robe draped over one shoulder., Cool/winter season – a gold headpiece studded with diamonds; a jewel-fringed gold-mesh shawl draped over the rainy season attire. The sets of gold clothing not in use at any given time are kept on display in the nearby Pavilion of Regalia, Royal Decorations, and Thai Coins on the grounds of the Grand Palace, where the public may view them. Early in the Bangkok period, the Emerald Buddha used to be taken out of his temple and paraded in the streets to relieve the city and countryside of various calamities (such as plague and cholera). This practice was discontinued during Rama IV's reign as it was feared that the image could be damaged during the procession and Rama IV's belief that, "Diseases are caused by germs, not by evil spirits or the displeasure of the Buddha". The Emerald Buddha also marks the changing of the seasons in Thailand, with the king presiding over seasonal ceremonies. In a ritual held at the temple three times a year, the dress of the deity is changed at the start of each of the three seasons. The astrological dates for the ritual ceremonies, at the changing of the seasons, followed are in the first waning moon of the lunar calendar, months 4, 8 and 12 (around March, July, and November). Rama I initiated this ritual for the hot season and the rainy season; Rama III introduced the ritual for the winter season. The robes which adorn the image, represent those of monks and the king, depending on the season, an indication of its symbolic role "as Buddha and the King", which role is also enjoined on the Thai king who formally dresses the Emerald Buddha image. The costume change ritual is performed by the Thai king who is the most elevated master of ceremonies for all Buddhist rites. During the ceremony, the king first climbs up to the pedestal, cleans the image by wiping away any dust, and changes the gold headdress of the Emerald Buddha. The king then worships nearby while an attendant performs the elaborate ritual of changing garments. The king also sprays holy water upon his subjects waiting outside the ordination hall, a privilege previously afforded only to the princes and officials who were attending the ceremony (uposatha) inside the ubosot . Ceremonies are also performed at the Emerald Buddha temple at other occasions such as the Chakri Day (begun on 6 April 1782), a national holiday to honour the founding of the Chakri dynasty. The king and queen, an entourage of the royal family, as well as the prime minister, officials of the Ministry of Defence and other government departments, offer prayers at the temple. Wat Phra Kaew, Grand Palace Wat Chedi Luang (, lit. temple of the big stupa or temple of the royal stupa) is a Buddhist temple in the historic centre of Chiang Mai, Thailand. The current temple grounds were originally made up of three temples -- Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Ho Tham and Wat Sukmin. The construction of the temple started in the 14th century, when King Saen Muang Ma planned to bury the ashes of his father there. After 10 years of building time it was left unfinished, later to be continued after the death of the king by his widow. Probably due to stability problems it took until the mid-15th century to be finished during the reign of king Tilokaraj. It was then 82 m high and had a base diameter of 54 m, at that time the largest building of all Lanna. In 1468, the Emerald Buddha was installed in the eastern niche. In 1545, the upper 30 m of the structure collapsed after an earthquake, and shortly thereafter, in 1551, the Emerald Buddha was moved to Luang Prabang. In the early 1990s the chedi was reconstructed, financed by UNESCO and the Japanese government. However the result is somewhat controversial, as some claim the new elements are in Central Thai style, not Lanna style. For the 600th anniversary of the chedi in 1995, a copy of the Emerald Buddha made from black jade was placed in the reconstructed eastern niche. The icon is named official Phra Phut Chaloem Sirirat, but is commonly known as Phra Yok. Also on the temple grounds is the city pillar (Lak Mueang) of Chiang Mai, named Sao Inthakin. It was moved to this location in 1800 by King Chao Kawila; it was originally located in Wat Sadeu Muang. He also planted three dipterocarp tree there, which are supposed to assist the city pillar to protect the town. A festival in honor of the city pillar is held every year in May and lasts 6–8 days. In a wihan near the entrance to the temple is the Buddha statue named Phra Chao Attarot (Eighteen-cubit Buddha), which was cast in the late 14th century. On the other side of the chedi is another pavilion housing a reclining Buddha statue. Wat Chedi Luang hosts monk chats every day - tourists are invited to speak with monks (usually novices) and ask them anything about Buddhism or Thailand. Wat Chedi Luang Guide, Night vdo clip The Royal Palace (, Preah Barum Reachea Veang Nei Preah Reacheanachak Kampuchea; ), in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, is a complex of buildings which serves as the royal residence of the king of Cambodia. Its full name in the Khmer language is Preah Barum Reachea Veang Chaktomuk Serei Mongkol (). The Kings of Cambodia have occupied it since it was built in the 1860s, with a period of absence when the country came into turmoil during and after the reign of the Khmer Rouge. The palace was constructed between 1866 and 1870, after King Norodom relocated the royal capital from Oudong to Phnom Penh. It was built atop an old citadel called Banteay Kev. It faces approximately East and is situated at the Western bank of the cross division of the Tonle Sap River and the Mekong River called Chaktomuk (an allusion to Brahma). The establishment of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh in 1866 is a comparatively recent event in the history of the Khmer and Cambodia. The seat of Khmer power in the region rested in or near Angkor north of the Great Tonle Sap Lake from 802 AD until the early 15th century. After the Khmer court moved from Angkor in the 15th century after destroyed by Siam, it first settled in Phnom Penh which back then named as Krong Chatomok Serei Mongkol () in 1434 (or 1446) and stayed for some decades, but by 1494 had moved on to Basan, and later Longvek and then Oudong. The capital did not return to Phnom Penh until the 19th century and there is no record or remnants of any Royal Palace in Phnom Penh prior to the 19th century. In 1813, King Ang Chan (1796–1834) constructed Banteay Kev (the 'Crystal Citadel') on the site of the current Royal Palace and stayed there very briefly before moving to Oudong. Banteay Kev was burned in 1834 when the retreating Siamese army razed Phnom Penh. It was not until after the implementation of the French Protectorate in Cambodia in 1863 that the capital was moved from Oudong to Phnom Penh, and the current Royal Palace was founded and constructed. At the time that King Norodom (1860–1904) the eldest son of King Ang Duong, who ruled on behalf of Siam, signed the Treaty of Protection with France in 1863, the capital of Cambodia resided at Oudong, about 45 kilometres northeast of Phnom Penh. Earlier in 1863 a temporary wooden Palace was constructed a bit north of the current Palace site in Phnom Penh. The first Royal Palace to be built at the present location was designed by architect Neak Okhna Tepnimith Mak and constructed by the French Protectorate in 1866. On the year of 1865, year of the cow, at nine o'clock in the morning, King Norodom moved the Royal court from Oudong to the new Royal Palace in Phnom Penh and the city became the official capital of Cambodia the following year. Over the next decade several buildings and houses were added, many of which have since been demolished and replaced, including an early Chanchhaya Pavilion and Throne Hall (1870). The Royal court was installed permanently at the new Royal Palace in 1871 and the walls surrounding the grounds were raised in 1873. Many of the buildings of the Royal Palace, particularly of this period, were constructed using a combination of traditional Khmer architectural but also incorporating significant European features and design as well. One of the most unusual surviving structures from this period is the iron-sided Napoleon Pavilion which was a gift from France in 1876. It is currently closed to the public for renovations because of its poor state of conservation. King Sisowath (1904–1927) made several major contributions to the current Royal Palace, adding the Phochani Hall in 1907 (inaugurated in 1912), and from 1913-1919 demolishing several old buildings, and replacing and expanding the old Chanchhaya Pavilion and the Throne Hall with the current structures. These buildings employ traditional Khmer artistic style and Angkorian inspired design, particularly in the Throne Hall, though some European elements remain. The next major construction came in the 1930s under King Monivong with the addition of the Royal Chapel, Vihear Suor (1930), and the demolition and replacement of the old Royal residence with the Khemarin Palace (1931), which serves as the official Royal residence to this day. From the reign of King Sihanouk, other significant additions are the 1956 addition of the Villa Kantha Bopha to accommodate foreign guests, and the 1953 construction of the Damnak Chan originally installed to house the High Council of the Throne. The complex is divided by walls into four main compounds. On the south side is the Silver Pagoda, to the north side is the Khemarin Palace and the central compound contains the Throne Hall and to the west is the private sector or the Inner Court. The buildings of the palace were built gradually over time, and some were dismantled and rebuilt as late as the 1960s. Some older buildings date back to the 19th century. The Royal Palace of Cambodia is a fine example of Khmer architecture with a slight French touch featuring its layout of the defensive wall (kampaeng), throne hall (preah tineang), Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Preah Keo Morakot), stupas (chedei), towering spires (prang prasat) and mural paintings. The Royal Palace of Phnom Penh covers an area of (402m x 435m). The Preah Tineang Tevea Vinnichay Mohai Moha Prasat or "Throne Hall" () means the "Sacred Seat of Judgement." The Throne Hall is where the king's confidants, generals and royal officials once carried out their duties. It is still in use today as a place for religious and royal ceremonies (such as coronations and royal weddings) as well as a meeting place for guests of the King. The cross-shaped building is crowned with three spires. The central, 59-metre spire is topped with the white, four-faced head of Brahma. Inside the Throne Hall contains three royal thrones (one is more of western style and the other two are traditional) and golden busts of Cambodians kings and queens starting from the reign of King Ang Doung onwards. This Throne Hall is the second to be built on this site. The first was constructed in 1869-1870 under King Norodom. That Throne Hall was demolished in 1915. The present building was constructed in 1917 and inaugurated by King Sisowath in 1919. The building is 30x60 metres. As with all buildings and structure at the Palace, the Throne Hall faces east and is best photographed in the morning. When visiting note the thrones (Reach Balaing in front and Preah Thineang Bossabok higher at the back) and the beautiful ceiling frescoes of the Reamker. To the north of the thrones stands the statue of His Majesty Sisowath Monivong standing holding the Royal Sword. The statue is made with gold and shows him dressed in casual clothes. While to the south of the thrones stands the gold statue of His Majesty King Sisowath sitting on the Preah Thineang Bossabok dressed and covered with the Royal Regalia of Cambodia (as you can see he is wearing the Crown, the Sopourna Bat or the royal footwear and in his right hand holds the Royal Sword. He sits on the Preah Thineang Bossabok which is made to look like the real one to the right. The traditional throne or The Preah Tineang Bossabok () is an ancient nine-level classical Khmer-style throne. Each Khmer King has to be seated on it on the coronation day while wearing the Royal Regalia. It is covered with intricate floral carvings and has two levels of small statues of Garudas lifting the upper part of the bossabok. Three of the nine levels of the throne represent the levels of hell, middle earth and the heavens. Surrounding the bossabok are the four gold nine-tiered umbrellas, these are called the Aphirom (Khmer: អភិរម្យ). Finally, the bossabok is topped by the white Royal Nine-tiered umbrella () that signifies the universal power the king has. In front of the bossabok is the throne. The table that stands next to the Royal Throne holds on it a golden tea set and the golden set of betel and areca nuts container set, which are part of the regalia and are always on the table, or otherwise called the Pean Preah Srei (Khmer: ពានព្រះស្រី). Behind the preah thineang bossabok is another bossabok called the Preah Tineang Nearyrath Sophea (), the Preah Thineang Bossabok is for the king and the Preah Thineang Nearyrath Sophea at the back is for the queen. Like every king has to sit on the front bossabok, every queen also needs to sit on the taller bossabok behind. After sitting on the bossaboks while wearing the regalia, the kings and queens will be escorted to their palanquins to be paraded around the city. The Preah Thineang Chan Chhaya () or "Moonlight Pavilion", is an open-air pavilion that serves as stage for Khmer classical dance in the past and present. It is one of the most notable buildings of the palace as it easily seen from the outside as it was built alongside a section of the palace walls. The Chan Chhaya Pavilion has a balcony that was used as a platform for viewing parades marching along Sothearos Boulevard of Phnom Penh. The current Pavilion is the second incarnation of the Chanchhaya Pavilion, this one constructed in 1913–14 under King Sisowath to replace the earlier wooden pavilion built under King Norodom. The current pavilion is of a similar design as the earlier version. The Chanchhaya Pavilion dominates the facade of the Palace on Sothearos Blvd. The Pavilion serves as a venue for the Royal Dancers, as a tribune for the King to address the crowds and as a place to hold state and Royal banquets. Most recently, the Pavilion was used for a banquet and a tribune for the new King at the 2004 coronation of King Norodom Sihamoni. The Silver Pagoda is a compound located on the South side of the palace complex. It features a royal temple officially called Preah Vihear Preah Keo Morakot () but is commonly referred to as Wat Preah Keo (). Its main building houses many national treasures such as gold and jeweled Buddha statues. Most notable is a small crystal Buddha (the "Emerald Buddha" of Cambodia) — undetermined whether made of Baccarat Crystal in 19th century or of other kind of crystal in 17th century — and a near-life-size, Maitreya Buddha encrusted with 9,584 diamonds dressed in royal regalia commissioned by King Sisowath. During King Sihanouk's pre-Khmer Rouge reign, the Silver Pagoda was inlaid with more than 5,000 silver tiles and some of its outer facade was remodelled with Italian marble. There are also other structures surrounding the main building or the vihear. To the east is the statue of King Norodom sits on a white horse. To the north of the vihear is the library. At the northwestern corner is the bell tower and south of that is the model of Angkor Wat. South of the vihear stand four structures: from west to east the Chedi (stupa) of H.M. King Suramarit and Queen Kossamak, the Dharmasala, the Chedi of Princess Kantha Bupha and The Phnom Mondop (mount mondop) where the statue of Preah Ko is situated. The wall that surrounds the structures is covered with the painting of the epic story of Reamker but because neglected care, the bottom half of the painting faded throughout the years. The Khemarin Palace is the common English name for a building called Khemarin Moha Prasat () [Prasat (temple or palace) Khmer + Indra] or in Khmer meaning the "Palace of the Khmer King." It is used as an official residence of the King of Cambodia. This compound is separated from other buildings by a small wall and is located to the right of the Throne Hall. The main building is topped with a single spired prang. Other structures include, Hor Samran Phirun, Hor Samrith Phimean, Damnak Chan, Phochani Pavilion (dance hall), Serey Monkol Pavilion (royal conference hall), King Jayavarman VII Pavilion, Vihear Suor (royal chapel), Villa Kantha Bopha, Villa Chumpou, Villa Sahametrei, and some less significant buildings in an area closed to the public. The palace has various gardens with tropical flowers and plants, such as Allamanda cathartica, Couroupita guianensis and Jatropha integerrima. The Royal Palace has had some major modifications to its buildings over time; nearly all of the King Norodom era buildings have been demolished completely. The King's living area (closed to public) has also undergone big changes. In the 1960s at Queen Kossamak's command the Silver Pagoda was rebuilt due to the original aging structure being too weak to stand. The palace has always been a popular tourist attraction in Phnom Penh. Visitors are able to wander around the Silver Pagoda compound and the central compound containing the Throne Hall and Chan Chhaya Pavilion. The King's living area, which actually takes up half of the total palace ground area, including Khemarin Palace, Villa Kantha Bopha, Serey Mongkol Pavilion, royal gardens, and a number of other buildings and pavilions, is closed to the public. National Radio | The Royal Palace, Cambodian Ministry of Tourism | Royal Palace of Phnom Penh, Leisure Cambodia | Article about the riverfront shrine, 6 Photos with descriptions - The Royal Palace, Phnom Penh, 84 High quality digital photos of the palace taken by an amateur photographer

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Full House is an American television sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for ABC. The show chronicles the events of widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and best friend Joey Gladstone to help raise his three daughters, oldest D.J., middle child Stephanie and youngest Michelle in his San Francisco home. It aired from September 22, 1987 to May 23, 1995, broadcasting eight seasons and 192 episodes. While never a critical favorite, the series was consistently in the Nielsen Top 30 (from 1988 onward) but continues to gain even more popularity in syndicated reruns and is also aired internationally. Its producer Rinsler called the show "The Brady Bunch of the 1990s". For actor Dave Coulier, the show represented a "G-rated dysfunctional family". It has also had tie-in merchandise marketed, such as a series of paperback books. A sequel series, Fuller House, premiered on Netflix on February 26, 2016. After the death of his wife Pam, sports anchor Danny Tanner recruits his brother-in-law Jesse, a rock musician; and his best friend since childhood, Joey, who works as a stand-up comedian, to help raise his three young daughters. Over time, the three men, as well as the children, bond and become closer to one another. In season two, Danny is reassigned from his duties as sports anchor by his television station to become co-host of a new local breakfast TV show, Wake Up, San Francisco, and is teamed up with Nebraska native Rebecca Donaldson. Jesse and Rebecca ("Becky") eventually fall in love and get married in season four. In season five, Becky gives birth to twin sons, Nicholas ("Nicky") and Alexander ("Alex"). John Stamos as Jesse Katsopolis, Bob Saget as Danny Tanner, Dave Coulier as Joey Gladstone, Candace Cameron as D.J. Tanner, Jodie Sweetin as Stephanie Tanner, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen as Michelle Tanner, Lori Loughlin as Rebecca Donaldson Katsopolis, Andrea Barber as Kimmy Gibbler, Scott Weinger as Steve Hale, Blake and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit as Nicky and Alex Katsopolis The producers' first choice to play the character of Danny Tanner was Bob Saget. Saget was not available to appear in the pilot due to his commitment as an on-air contributor to CBS's The Morning Program. The producers instead cast actor John Posey to play Danny. Posey only appeared in the unaired pilot (which is included on the DVD release of Season 1). John Stamos's character was originally named Jesse Cochran; Stamos reportedly wanted his character to better reflect his Greek heritage, so producers decided to change the character's surname to Katsopolis (beginning with season two). To comply with child labor laws, twins Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen were cast to alternate in the role of Michelle during tapings. The girls were jointly credited as "Mary Kate Ashley Olsen" in seasons two through seven because the producers did not want audiences to know that the Michelle character was played by twins. (The sisters occasionally appeared together in fantasy sequences.) That made Full house one of the only shows on TV where a baby grew up in front of the cameras, with viewers witnessing all the development stages of the twin actresses. Bob Saget recalled he would often get complaints from the child actors' moms because he wouldn't watch his language while on stage. Jodie Sweetin was spotted in a guest spot on the show Valerie. Lori Loughlin was hired in 1988 for a six-episode romance plot with "Uncle Jesse" but ended up staying until the end of the show. All six of the original cast members remained with the show through its entire eight-year run, with five characters added to the main cast along the way. D.J.'s best friend Kimmy was a recurring character in seasons one through four, who was upgraded to a regular in season five. Rebecca originally appeared for six episodes in season two; producers decided to expand her role and made her a regular the following season. After marrying Jesse, they have twins Nicky and Alex, who make their debut in season five. As babies, the children were played by Daniel and Kevin Renteria, and in season six, the roles of the twins were succeeded by Blake and Dylan Tuomy- Wilhoit. The last main character added was Steve Hale, who was D.J.'s boyfriend in seasons six and seven. He was played by Scott Weinger. The series was created by Jeff Franklin and executive produced by Franklin, along with Thomas L. Miller and Robert L. Boyett. The series was produced by Jeff Franklin Productions and Miller-Boyett Productions, in association with Lorimar-Telepictures (1987–1988), Lorimar Television (1988–1993), and then by Warner Bros. Television (1993–1995) after Lorimar was folded into Warner Bros.'s existing television production division. Although the series was set in San Francisco, the sitcom itself was taped at the Warner Bros. Studios in Los Angeles. Outside of certain excerpts in the opening title sequences, including Alamo Square Park's Painted Ladies, the only episode to have actually been taped in San Francisco was the first episode of season eight, "Comet's Excellent Adventure". There were also a few episodes which were filmed on-location elsewhere, most notably Hawaii in the season three premiere "Tanner's Island", and at Walt Disney World for the two-part sixth-season finale "The House Meets the Mouse". The series experienced heavy turnover with its writing staff throughout its run, the first season in particular had at least three writing staff changes with Lenny Ripps (who remained with the show until the early part of the fourth season, by then serving as a creative consultant) and Russell Marcus being the only writers surviving the changes through the entire season. Show creator and executive producer Jeff Franklin was the only writer to remain with the series throughout its entire eight- season run (Franklin also wrote and directed several episodes during the first five seasons). Marc Warren and Dennis Rinsler joined the series' writing staff in the second season as producers and remained with the show until its 1995 cancellation; Warren and Rinsler took over as head writers by season five and assumed showrunning duties as executive producers for the sixth season to allow Franklin to focus on Hangin' With Mr. Cooper (Full House served as Coopers lead-in when the former aired on Tuesday nights during the 1992–93 season). The show's theme song, "Everywhere You Look", was performed by Jesse Frederick, who co-wrote the song with writing partner Bennett Salvay and series creator Jeff Franklin. Various instrumental versions of the theme song were used in the closing credits; the version used during seasons three through eight was also used in the opening credits in some early syndication runs, although the song was almost always truncated to the chorus for broadcast. Seasons one through five used a longer version of the theme song. In syndicated airings, the line "you miss your old familiar friends, but waiting just around the bend" replaced the lines starting with "how did I get delivered here, somebody tell me please..." (after ABC Family acquired the series in 2003, it became the first television outlet to air the long versions of the theme since the series' ABC run, which were included only in select episodes from the first five seasons, whereas the full version was used in most episodes during those seasons). Hallmark Channel reruns have used four different cuts of the theme song, including the full version. ABC used the show to launch other sitcom hits such as Home Improvement, Family Matters and Hangin' with Mr. Cooper. The actor Dave Coulier sold the Mr. Woodchuck puppet he made on the show to the toy store Toys "R" Us. Full House originally aired on Fridays from September 1987 to August 1991, which spanned the show's first four seasons, and later became the flagship program of ABC's newly launched TGIF block in September 1989. The show was briefly moved to Tuesdays during the 1987–88 season and then aired twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays for a few months in order to help the series build an audience. It remained on Fridays permanently for the next three seasons, as the show's ratings increased. Full House was moved to Tuesdays full-time for season five and remained there until the series ended in 1995. While the show's first season was not very successful, finishing 71st that year, mostly because it was a new series placed in an 8 p.m. Eastern timeslot (most freshman series start out in protected time slots preceded by successful lead-ins), the show quickly became popular during its second season as it was placed immediately following the established hit show Perfect Strangers (which was also produced by Tom Miller and Bob Boyett). From season three onwards, it was ranked among Nielsen's Top 30 shows (a ratings increase which allowed the series to move back to Fridays at 8 p.m.). By the fourth season, the series jumped to the Top 20 and remained there until the seventh season (the series peaked at the top ten during seasons five and six). In 1995, despite the fact the show was still rated in the top 25, ABC announced that it was canceling the show after eight seasons due to the increasing costs of producing the series. By the end of the show, the average cost of one episode was $1.3 million. Plans to move Full House to The WB network fell through. The one-hour series finale was watched by 24.3 million viewers, ranking No. 7 for the week and attracting a 14.6 household rating and a 25 percent audience share. Warner Bros. Television Distribution handles the domestic and international syndication rights to the series. During the summer of 1991, reruns of the early seasons began airing in a daily daytime strip on NBC. Starting in September 1991, Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution began distributing Full House for broadcast in off-network syndication and was syndicated on various local stations nationwide until 2003. The series formerly aired on TBS, ABC Family, The N/TeenNick, CMT, and Hallmark Channel. In 2014, episodes have averaged 1.5 million viewers on Nick at Nite, which is up 7 percent from 2013 and a 0.4 rating in the key 18–49 demographic, up 8 percent from 2013. On September 29, 2017, Hulu acquired the streaming rights to Full House along with fellow Warner Bros. TV productions Family Matters, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, Perfect Strangers and Step by Step in addition to Disney-ABC TV productions Boy Meets World, Dinosaurs and Home Improvement. Despite the show's popularity, critical acclaim by viewers, and cult following, critics' reviews for Full House were mostly negative in the show's early years but became more positive in later years. The first season holds an aggregate score of 31/100 ("Generally unfavorable reviews") on Metacritic. In Slate, Willa Paskin referred to the series as "a hackneyed and saccharine family sitcom". Isaac Feldberg opined that it was "archetypally average, hiding behind a ubiquitous laugh track and obnoxiously on-the-nose life lessons." During Bob Saget's final season as host of America's Funniest Home Videos, six other Full House cast alumni (John Stamos, Dave Coulier, Candace Cameron, Jodie Sweetin, Andrea Barber, and Lori Loughlin) reunited on the May 9, 1997, episode (the episode which preceded Saget's final episode as host of that series). In a December 2008 news story, it was reported that John Stamos was planning a reunion movie. This idea was quickly withdrawn, because reportedly most of the cast was not interested. In 2009, Stamos announced that a feature film based on the show was still planned. Stamos told The New York Daily News, "I'm working on a movie idea, but it wouldn't be us playing us. I'm not 100% sure, but it would probably take place in the first few years." Stamos posited Steve Carell and Tracy Morgan for the roles of Danny and Joey respectively. In 2012, eight of the Full House cast members reunited in Los Angeles for their 25th anniversary. Publicists for Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen said that they "weren't able to attend, given their work schedules." On July 19, 2013, the original Jesse and the Rippers (the band which Jesse Katsopolis served as frontman until he was voted out in season 8) reunited on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The group performed a medley of covers including the Beach Boys' "Forever," Elvis Presley's "Little Sister," "Hippy Hippy Shake", and ending with the Full House theme "Everywhere You Look". Bob Saget and Lori Loughlin made cameo appearances. In January 2014, Saget, Stamos, and Coulier appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. They each reprised their characters, while Fallon dressed in child's pajamas in a bed framed by four gigantic pencils, similar to Michelle Tanner's bed from the show. Saget, Stamos, and Coulier said some of their famous catchphrases from the show, as well as singing "The Teddy Bear" song. Stamos, Saget and Coulier also appeared together in a 2014 commercial for Dannon Oikos Greek Yogurt (for which Stamos serves as spokesperson) that debuted during Super Bowl XLVIII, days after their appearance on Late Night. In August 2014, reports circulated that Warner Bros. Television was considering a series spin-off. John Stamos, who has an ownership stake in the show, headed up the attempt to get the series back into production. Netflix closed a deal to produce a 13-episode sequel series tentatively titled Fuller House, with many of the original series cast members reprising their roles. Notably, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen both declined to reprise the role of Michelle in the first season, although the creators and producers said they could still possibly appear in future seasons. Stamos would guest star as well and serve as producer. Filming began on July 25, 2015. Like the original series, the show is set in San Francisco. The original series idea was focused on D.J., a veterinarian struggling to raise three boys after her firefighter husband Tommy Fuller is killed in the line of duty; Stephanie, who is aspiring to become a musician; and Kimmy, who is a party planner and a single mother to a teenage daughter, Ramona. The show's premise follows one similar to the original series when Stephanie makes plans to put her career on hold for a while and move in with D.J. to help take care of her children. Almost immediately afterward, Kimmy makes the same offer for her and Ramona to move in and help out. Netflix premiered the series on February 26, 2016, with the premiere episode featuring a Tanner family reunion. As of December 6, 2019, there have been five seasons of the series. Warner Home Video released all eight seasons of the series on DVD in Region 1 between 2005 and 2007. A complete series box-set containing all 192 episodes was released on November 6, 2007. As of 2016, the complete series is available for purchase via online retailers such as Amazon. Additionally, the first four seasons were also released on DVD in Region 2 and Region 4. Books based on Full House are geared toward children primarily between the ages of 8 and 14. Warner Bros., which holds the rights to Full House and its associated characters, would not permit others to use their characters and selected who could write books based on the television series. The books are based on the Silhouette romance novels by Mills & Boon. Full House Michelle #7: Summer Rhapsody is a Silhouette Special Edition #75 by Nancy John and Laura O'Neil in February 1983. The series includes the following: Full House Stephanie: These 33 books were written from the point of view of the Tanners' middle daughter, Stephanie Tanner. They take place with Stephanie in a different middle school, likely because of a slightly different redistricting plan compared to the one mentioned in season seven's "Fast Friends". She has different best friends as well, Allie Taylor and Darcy Powell. Though these are book creations, she has known Allie since kindergarten, and there are several places in the first five seasons of Full House where fans think an unnamed extra could be Allie. This series begins with Stephanie being pressured to join a clique called the Flamingos, by completing a series of dares. She almost does the last one, though she is not sure if she wants to before D.J. catches her trying to steal Danny's phone card. Stephanie explains tearfully what was happening, and D.J. helps her to understand what the Flamingos were really up to: they wanted to use the phone card to call their boyfriends. Stephanie and the Flamingos become fierce rivals. Hip Hop Til You Drop, Two for One Christmas Fun, and Ten Ways to Wreck a Date are the most popular., Full House Michelle: These 40 stories are told from Michelle's point of view. The first 27 feature more of her, and the other Tanners', home life than others, though some focus on events at school, whereas the last 14, the "Michelle and Friends" series, focuses mostly on Michelle and her classmates. Unlike Stephanie, Michelle goes to the same elementary school but is in a different class. Two stories were translated and published in Japan in February 2007. Super special My Best Friend is a Movie Star came out in September 1996, and along with The Substitute Teacher and How to be Cool are the most popular., Full House Sisters: These 14 books focus on Michelle and Stephanie's friendship and comical situations that occur between them. The sisters often alternate points of view in the story., Full House: Dear Michelle: These four books were published several years after the others stopped being produced. They take place with Michelle in the third grade, where she writes an advice column for her class paper., Club Stephanie: 1997–2001 revival series with the Sisters series. Sweetin is younger than Nickelodeon's Larisa Oleynik in Alex, You're Glowing and Irene Ng in Hot Rock. In 2006, Full House was one of a group of Warner Brothers properties licensed to Moscow-based network STS for adaptation to Russian. The show, followed the plots of the American version with changes to accommodate cultural differences. It ran for two seasons, beginning in 2009. On August 22, 2015, a television movie called The Unauthorized Full House Story was first released by Lifetime. It tells the behind-the-scenes story of the series. Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen (born June 13, 1986), also known as the Olsen twins as a duo, are American fashion designers and former child actresses. The twins made their acting debut as infants playing Michelle Tanner on the television series Full House. At the age of six, Mary-Kate and Ashley began starring together in TV, film, and video projects, which continued to their teenage years. Through their company Dualstar, the Olsens joined the ranks of the wealthiest women in the entertainment industry at a young age. The fraternal twins were born in Sherman Oaks, California, to David "Dave" Olsen and Jarnette "Jarnie" (née Jones). They have an elder brother, Trent, and a younger sister, actress Elizabeth, as well as a half-sister, Courtney Taylor, and a half-brother, Jake. The twins' parents divorced in 1995; Taylor and Jake are from their father's second marriage. The Olsen twins have English and Norwegian ancestry. In 1987, at the age of six months, the twins were cast in the role of Michelle Tanner on the ABC sitcom Full House. They began filming at nine months old. In order to comply with child labor laws that set strict limits on how long a child actor may work, the sisters took turns playing the role. The Olsens continued to portray Michelle throughout the show's run, which concluded in 1995. In 1992, Mary-Kate and Ashley shared the role of Michelle Tanner when they guest-starred on the Full House crossover episode of Hangin' with Mr. Cooper. While starring on Full House, the Olsens also began appearing (as separate characters) in films for video and television. The first such film, To Grandmother's House We Go, debuted in 1992 and featured cameos from several other Full House actors. In 1993, the Olsens established the company Dualstar, which would produce the twins' subsequent films and videos, including 1993's Double, Double, Toil and Trouble and 1994's How the West Was Fun. A series of musical mystery videos called The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley premiered in 1994 and continued through 1997. In 1995, following the end of Full House, the Olsens made their feature film debut in It Takes Two, co-starring Steve Guttenberg and Kirstie Alley. In the same year, they introduced a second video series, You're Invited to Mary-Kate & Ashley's..., which continued to release new entries until 2000. The following year, the Olsens appeared in an episode of All My Children. In 1997, they appeared once again as guest stars in an episode of Sister Sister. Also, in 1998, the twins returned to series television with another ABC sitcom, Two of a Kind, co-starring Christopher Sieber as their characters' widowed father. The series lasted only one season but aired in reruns on cable for several years afterward. 1998 also saw the release of Billboard Dad, the first of a new string of direct-to-video films starring the Olsens. The final such film, The Challenge, debuted in 2003. In 2000, the Olsens appeared in an episode of 7th Heaven as bad girls Sue and Carol Murphy. The following year, the sisters starred in two new series: So Little Time, a live-action sitcom on Fox Family (later ABC Family); and Mary-Kate and Ashley in Action!, an animated series airing Saturday mornings on ABC. Both shows were canceled after one season, although Mary-Kate received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for her performance on So Little Time. In early 2004, Mary-Kate and Ashley had a cameo voice role in an episode of The Simpsons as the readers of Marge's book-on- tape, The Harpooned Heart. Also in 2004, the twins starred in a second feature film, New York Minute. It would be their last film together, as well as Ashley's last acting role. Mary-Kate has continued to appear in film and television. Mary-Kate and Ashley had a fan club until 2000, "Mary-Kate & Ashley's Fun Club", where fans would pay to receive Mary-Kate and Ashley collectibles and photos. Each subscription included an issue of Our Funzine, Mary-Kate and Ashley's fan club magazine, exclusively available through the club, and a collectibles catalog, where one could purchase T-shirts, posters, baseball caps, key rings, school folders, postcards, and various other items. Subscribers would also receive "surprise gifts" (usually key rings, book excerpts, or back issues of the Funzine), lyric sheets to Mary-Kate and Ashley's songs, a school folder, a membership card, a full-sized poster, two black and white photos (one of each girl), and a color photo with reprint autographs. The club was advertised at the beginning of Mary-Kate and Ashley movies until 1998. Mary-Kate and Ashley were popular figures in the preteen market during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Their names and likenesses extended, not only to movies and videos, but to clothes, shoes, purses, hats, books, CDs and cassette tapes, fragrances and makeup, magazines, video and board games, dolls, posters, calendars, and even telephones and CD players—with a market share made up mostly of the tween demographic. Mattel produced various sets of Mary-Kate and Ashley fashion dolls from 2000 to 2005, along with separate outfits and accessory packs. The sisters became co- presidents of Dualstar on their 18th birthday in 2004. Upon taking control of the company, Mary-Kate and Ashley made moves to secure the future of the company by releasing products that appealed to the teen market, including home decoration and fragrances. The Dualstar brand has been sold in more than 3,000 stores in the United States and over 5,300 stores worldwide. The Olsens have appeared on the Forbes "Celebrity 100" list since 2002; in 2007, Forbes ranked them (collectively) as the eleventh-richest women in entertainment, with an estimated net worth of US$100 million. As the sisters have matured, they expressed greater interest in their fashion choices, with The New York Times declaring Mary-Kate a fashion icon for pioneering her signature (and now popular among celebrities and fans alike) "homeless" look. The style sometimes referred to by fashion journalists as "ashcan" or "bohemian-bourgeois", is similar to the boho-chic style popularized in Britain by Kate Moss and Sienna Miller. The look consists of oversized sunglasses, boots, loose sweaters, and flowing skirts, with an aesthetic of mixing high-end and low-end pieces. The twins were tapped as the faces of upscale fashion line Badgley Mischka in 2006. The Olsens had a clothing line for girls ages 4–14 in Wal-Mart stores across North America, as well as a beauty line called "Mary-Kate and Ashley: Real fashion for real girls". In 2004, they made news by signing a pledge to allow full maternity leave to all the workers that sew their line of clothing in Bangladesh. The National Labor Committee, which organized the pledge, praised the twins for their commitment to worker rights. List of twins Olsen, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, with Damon Romine. Mary-Kate and Ashley: Our Story: Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen's Official Biography. HarperEntertainment 2000. ., Tracy, Kathleen. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Mitchell Lane Publishers, 2003. . Dualstar Entertainment Group Corporate Website Fuller House is an American sitcom created by Jeff Franklin that airs as a Netflix original series, and is a sequel to the 1987–1995 television series Full House. It centers around D.J. Tanner-Fuller, a veterinarian and widowed mother of three sons, whose sister Stephanie and best friend Kimmy—along with her teenage daughter—live together at the Tanners' childhood home in San Francisco, California. Most of the original series ensemble cast have reprised their roles on Fuller House, either as regular cast members or in guest appearances, with the exception of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who alternated the role of Michelle Tanner in Full House. Netflix ordered an initial thirteen episodes, which were released on February 26, 2016, worldwide. The second season was released on December 9, 2016. The third season is split into two parts, with the first half of nine episodes being released on September 22, 2017, and the second half on December 22, 2017. On January 29, 2018, Netflix renewed Fuller House for a fourth season, which was released on December 14, 2018. While the first season reception was generally negative, reviews for the following seasons were generally positive. On January 31, 2019, the show was renewed for its fifth and final season of eighteen episodes. The first half premiered on December 6, 2019, with the second half set to premiere in 2020. Like the original series, the show is set in the same house in San Francisco, California, still owned by Danny Tanner. Recently widowed D.J. Tanner-Fuller is a veterinarian and the mother of three young boys. After the unexpected death of her husband, Tommy, who was following his hazardous duties as a firefighter, D.J. moves back into her childhood home with her father Danny. However, when Danny has to move away for work he allows her to continue living there, and D.J. accepts the help of her sister, Stephanie, and best friend, Kimmy, who move in and take part in raising D.J.'s three sons: 13-year-old Jackson, 7-year-old Max, and baby Tommy Jr. Kimmy's teenage daughter, Ramona, also moves in. Candace Cameron Bure as D.J. Tanner-Fuller, a widowed mother who has a full-time job as a veterinarian, Jodie Sweetin as Stephanie Tanner, D.J.'s younger sister, who leaves her life in London to help D.J. raise her kids, Andrea Barber as Kimmy Gibbler, D.J.'s best friend and owner of a party planning business, who moves in with D.J. and Stephanie to help them raise D.J.'s kids, Michael Campion as Jackson Fuller, D.J.'s mischievous teenage son, Elias Harger as Max Fuller, D.J.'s second son, who is bit of neat freak like his grandfather, Soni Nicole Bringas as Ramona Gibbler, Kimmy's teenage daughter, Dashiell & Fox Messitt as Tommy Fuller, Jr., D.J.'s infant son who is named after his late father, Juan Pablo Di Pace as Fernando Hernandez-Guerrero-Fernandez-Guerrero, Kimmy's ex-husband/fiancee and Ramona's father (recurring: season 1; main: season 2–present), Scott Weinger as Steve Hale, a podiatrist and D.J.'s high school sweetheart (recurring: season 1; main: season 2–present), John Brotherton as Matt Harmon, co-worker and former boyfriend of D.J.'s (recurring: season 1; main: season 2–present), Ashley Liao as Lola Wong, Ramona's best friend (recurring: seasons 1 and 3; main: season 2), Adam Hagenbuch as Jimmy Gibbler, Kimmy's younger brother and a freelance photographer, who is engaged to Stephanie and has a daughter with her (recurring: season 2; main: season 3–present) John Stamos as Jesse Katsopolis, D.J. and Stephanie's uncle, Bob Saget as Danny Tanner, D.J. and Stephanie's father, and the grandfather of Jackson, Max & Tommy Jr., Dave Coulier as Joey Gladstone, a Vegas comedian who helped Danny raise D.J. and Stephanie, Lori Loughlin as Rebecca Donaldson-Katsopolis, Jesse's wife and aunt to D.J. and Stephanie, Blake and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit as Nicky and Alex Katsopolis, Jesse and Rebecca's twin sons, and the cousins of DJ and Stephanie, who both spent six years in college and operate a fish taco truck together, Gianna DiDonato as Crystal, Matt's girlfriend for a brief time in season two, Virginia Williams as C.J. Harbenberger, Steve's (former in season 4) fiancée who is strikingly similar to D.J., Isaak Presley as Bobby Popko, Jackson's best friend, Lucas Jaye as Taylor, Max's intelligent and challenging best friend and neighbor, Mckenna Grace as Rose Harbenberger, Rose is C.J.'s daughter and Max's best friend/love interest, Marla Sokoloff as Gia Mahan, Stephanie's best friend, and Rocki's mother., Landry Bender as Rocki, Gia's daughter and Jackson's love interest Eva LaRue as Teri Tanner, Danny's second wife, Lanny Cordola and Gary Griffin, original members of Jesse and the Rippers, Robin Thomas as Dr. Fred Harmon, Matt's father and the owner of Harmon Pet Care, D.J.'s employer, Maksim Chmerkovskiy as himself, Valentin Chmerkovskiy as himself, Macy Gray as herself, Stephen Tobolowsky as Mr. Gerald, Ryan McPartlin as Tyler, a brief potential love interest of D.J., Hunter Pence as himself, Michael Sun Lee as Harry Takayama, Stephanie's childhood friend, who is a CPA, Steve Talley as Darren, a brief love interest of Stephanie, Alan Thicke as Mike, Crystal's grandfather., Bruno Tonioli as Giuseppe Pignoli, Ramona's famous Italian dance coach, Laura Bell Bundy as Ginger Gladstone, Joey's wife and a Vegas magician, Finn Carr as Lewis Gladstone, Joey's younger son, Kingston Foster as Joan Gladstone, Joey's younger daughter, Noah Salsbury Lipson as Jerry Gladstone, Joey's older son, Ruby Rose Turner as Phyllis Gladstone, Joey's older daughter, Jonathan Knight, Jordan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood, members of New Kids on the Block, David Lipper as Viper, D.J.'s ex-boyfriend, Anne Marie McEvoy as Kathy Santoni, D.J. and Kimmy's high school classmate, Scott Menville as Duane Moffat, Kimmy's high school ex-boyfriend who is now a motivational speaker, Hal Sparks as Nelson Burkhard, D.J.'s rich high school ex-boyfriend, originally played by Jason Marsden, John Aprea as Nick Katsopolis, Jesse's father, D.J. Stephanie and Michelle's grandfather, and Jackson, Max and Tommy's great-grandfather, Lonzo Ball as himself, Gail Edwards as Vicky Larson, Danny's ex-fiancée, Lee Majors as James, Lindsay Wagner as Millie, Lainie Kazan as Irma, Josh Peck as a dad in a hipster 'Daddy & Me' class that Jesse attends with Pamela, Maria Canals-Barrera as Nadia, Fernando's mother, Ben J. Pierce as Casey, Kimmy's high school intern and Ramona's prom date, Leslie Grossman as a doctor who works at the hospital where Kimmy gives birth, Lisa Loeb as herself In August 2014, reports circulated that Warner Bros. Television was considering a series reboot. John Stamos, who had an ownership stake in the show, headed up the attempt to get the series back into production. Creator Jeff Franklin returned as showrunner—or leading executive producer—with the collaboration of original executive producers Thomas L. Miller and Robert L. Boyett under their Miller-Boyett Productions label. In April 2015, it was reported that Netflix was close to closing a deal to produce a 13-episode sequel series tentatively titled Fuller House. A representative for Netflix said that the report was "just a rumor". In response to the report, Bure tweeted, "While you all ponder over whether the Fuller House show is true or is an April Fools joke, check out [link to her upcoming TV movie]", and Stamos tweeted, "Believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see." On April 20, he appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, confirming the spin-off series had been green-lit by Netflix. On April 21, Netflix confirmed the series was in development. In a parallel to the original series, Fuller House focuses on D.J., who is a recently widowed mother of three boys, with her sister Stephanie and best friend Kimmy moving in to help raise the boys. The series starts off with a special episode featuring a Tanner family reunion. Filming of the series began in July 2015 and lasted until November 2015. In December 2015, the series' release date was revealed as February 26, 2016. Later in the month, Canadian pop singer Carly Rae Jepsen revealed she and Butch Walker recreated the Full House theme song, "Everywhere You Look" (which was originally performed by Jesse Frederick, who co-wrote the song with Bennett Salvay), for the series as its opening theme. On March 2, 2016, the series was renewed for a second season, and production for the second season began on May 5, 2016. Thirteen new episodes were ordered and were released on December 9, 2016. On December 24, 2016, the series was renewed for a third season, to be released in 2017. and On December 31, it was confirmed that the season would be 18 episodes. Production for the third season began on March 18, 2017, and ended on September 2, 2017. It was announced on June 26, 2017 that the third season would be split into two parts, with the release of the first part on September 22, 2017 to consist of nine episodes. It was announced on November 13, 2017 that the second half, also consisting of nine episodes, would be released on December 22, 2017. On January 29, 2018, the series was renewed for a fourth season of thirteen episodes. The fourth season was released on December 14, 2018. On January 31, 2019, the show was renewed for its fifth and final season of eighteen episodes, as announced with a farewell video on the show's Twitter account. The first half of the fifth premiered on December 6, 2019, with the second half set to be released in 2020. In addition to Cameron Bure, Sweetin, and Barber reprising their roles, the other main roles went to Michael Campion, Elias Harger, and Soni Bringas, as their children: Jackson and Max Fuller, and Ramona Gibbler, respectively. It was disclosed that John Stamos would have a recurring role as Jesse Katsopolis and would also be producing. Other original main cast members who would be reprising their roles periodically are Lori Loughlin as Becky Katsopolis, Bob Saget as Danny Tanner, and Dave Coulier as Joey Gladstone. Dylan and Blake Tuomy-Wilhoit also make an appearance reprising their roles as Nicky and Alex Katsopolis, respectively. On April 19, 2016, it was announced Ashley Liao, who plays Ramona's best friend, had been upgraded to a series regular. Additional cast members recurring regularly throughout the series include Juan Pablo Di Pace, playing Kimmy's ex-husband, Fernando, and Scott Weinger, reprising the role of Steve Hale, D.J.'s high school boyfriend. Eva LaRue portrays Danny's wife Teri, and Michael Sun Lee makes an appearance as the adult version of Nathan Nishiguchi's character, Harry Takayama, who was Stephanie's childhood friend. Shortly after announcing the spin-off series, it was uncertain whether Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who shared the role of Michelle Tanner, would choose to participate. The Olsen twins ultimately rejected the offer because Ashley has not acted in years with no intentions to restart, and Mary-Kate initially considered the part but later declined as it was not feasible with her fashion career at the time. Subsequently, the producers decided to have Michelle reside in New York City, where she is highly focused on her fashion enterprise. By January 2016, they asked the Olsen twins' younger sister, Elizabeth, if she had any ambitions to take the part of Michelle, but she ultimately declined as well. Nonetheless, the producers still prodded the Olsen twins to return and were confident that one of the twins would ultimately decide to reappear during the second season, although this did not end up happening. In September 2016, it was announced that the character Nelson will re-appear on Fuller House, with the character recast to be portrayed by Hal Sparks, who replaces Nelson's original portrayer, Jason Marsden. In September 2017, Jeff Franklin revealed at Paley Fest that Danny's ex, Vicky Larson (Gail Edwards) would return in season three, doing so in the season's finale. On February 28, 2018, Variety reported that Jeff Franklin was fired from the series after complaints about his behavior in the writers’ room and on the set of the series, which ranged from being verbally abusive to staffers and making sexually charged comments about his personal relationships and sex life in the writers' room to a complaint of Franklin’s habit of bringing women he dated to the set and sometimes giving them bit parts in the series. Franklin has not been accused of directly sexually harassing or engaging in physical misconduct with any staffers. On March 12, 2018, Steve Baldikoski and Bryan Behar were announced as the new executive producers and showrunners for the fourth season, replacing Franklin. The first season of Fuller House received generally negative reviews, with most taking issue to the crude humor and noting that the series was very derivative of its source material and was oriented toward fans of the original show. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has a rating of 35%, based on 49 reviews, with an average rating of 4.39/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "After the initial dose of nostalgia, Fuller House has little to offer to anyone except the original series' most diehard fans." On Metacritic the series has an average score of 35 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Dan Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter panned the show, calling it "a mawkish, grating, broadly played chip off the Full House block." He also added that "It's doubtful that there will be a more painful 2016 TV episode than the Fuller House pilot, which takes an inexcusable 35 minutes to establish a plot that is just an inversion of the original Full House premise." David Weigand of the San Francisco Chronicle reacted similarly, writing: "The episodes are predictable because they’re unoriginal and the writing is painful. The canned laughter is perhaps the greatest reminder of the 'good old days'. If only all those recorded voices had something legitimate to laugh at." Maureen Ryan of Variety wrote that the show "continually goes to the well of having cute kids mug for the camera as they practically yell their lines, and just a little of its self- congratulatory, blaring obviousness goes a long way." In a more positive review, Verne Gay from Newsday wrote that the show is like "Full House 2.0 " and that while it has the "same premise, same vibe, mostly same cast", it is "a winner, strictly for fans." The second season saw more positive reviews. Jenny Varner of IGN gave the season a mixed 6.5/10 score. She noted that "Fuller House Season 2 brings a fuller cast, a fuller plot, and a lot more cringe-worthy pop culture jokes. Love it or hate it, the staying power of this heartwarming Netflix staple is stronger than ever." On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season currently has a 50% approval rating based on 6 reviews, with an average rating of 6.25/10. Warner Home Video released the first season of the series on DVD in Region 1 on February 28, 2017. The second season was released on DVD in Region 1 on December 12, 2017. The third season was released in Region 1 on January 22, 2019. The fourth season was released on December 17, 2019.

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Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. On 1 May 1876, she adopted the additional title of Empress of India. Known as the Victorian era, her reign of 63 years and seven months was longer than that of any of her predecessors. It was a period of industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (the fourth son of King George III), and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. After both the Duke and his father died in 1820, she was raised under close supervision by her mother and her comptroller, John Conroy. She inherited the throne aged 18 after her father's three elder brothers died without surviving legitimate issue. The United Kingdom was an established constitutional monarchy in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, she attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments; publicly, she became a national icon who was identified with strict standards of personal morality. Victoria married her cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1840. Their children married into royal and noble families across the continent, earning Victoria the sobriquet "the grandmother of Europe" and spreading haemophilia in European royalty. After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, republicanism in the United Kingdom temporarily gained strength, but in the latter half of her reign, her popularity recovered. Her Golden and Diamond Jubilees were times of public celebration. She died on the Isle of Wight in 1901. The last British monarch of the House of Hanover, she was succeeded by her son Edward VII of the House of Saxe- Coburg and Gotha. Victoria's father was Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, the fourth son of the reigning King of the United Kingdom, George III. Until 1817, Edward's niece, Princess Charlotte of Wales, was the only legitimate grandchild of George III. Her death in 1817 precipitated a succession crisis that brought pressure on the Duke of Kent and his unmarried brothers to marry and have children. In 1818 he married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg- Saalfeld, a widowed German princess with two children—Carl (1804–1856) and Feodora (1807–1872)—by her first marriage to the Prince of Leiningen. Her brother Leopold was Princess Charlotte's widower. The Duke and Duchess of Kent's only child, Victoria, was born at 4.15 a.m. on 24 May 1819 at Kensington Palace in London. Victoria was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on 24 June 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace. She was baptised Alexandrina after one of her godparents, Emperor Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. Additional names proposed by her parents—Georgina (or Georgiana), Charlotte, and Augusta—were dropped on the instructions of Kent's eldest brother George, Prince Regent. At birth, Victoria was fifth in the line of succession after the four eldest sons of GeorgeIII: the Prince Regent (later GeorgeIV); Frederick, Duke of York; William, Duke of Clarence (later WilliamIV); and Victoria's father, Edward, Duke of Kent. The Prince Regent had no surviving children, and the Duke of York had no children; further, both were estranged from their wives, who were both past child-bearing age, so the two eldest brothers were unlikely to have any further legitimate children. William and Edward married on the same day in 1818, but both of William's legitimate daughters died as infants. The first of these was Princess Charlotte, who was born and died on 27 March 1819, two months before Victoria was born. Victoria's father died in January 1820, when Victoria was less than a year old. A week later her grandfather died and was succeeded by his eldest son as GeorgeIV. Victoria was then third in line to the throne after Frederick and William. William's second daughter, Princess Elizabeth of Clarence, lived for twelve weeks from 10 December 1820 to 4 March 1821 and for that period Victoria was fourth in line. The Duke of York died in 1827, followed by GeorgeIV in 1830; the throne passed to their next surviving brother, William, and Victoria became heir presumptive. The Regency Act 1830 made special provision for Victoria's mother to act as regent in case William died while Victoria was still a minor. King William distrusted the Duchess's capacity to be regent, and in 1836 he declared in her presence that he wanted to live until Victoria's 18th birthday, so that a regency could be avoided. Victoria later described her childhood as "rather melancholy". Her mother was extremely protective, and Victoria was raised largely isolated from other children under the so-called "Kensington System", an elaborate set of rules and protocols devised by the Duchess and her ambitious and domineering comptroller, Sir John Conroy, who was rumoured to be the Duchess's lover. The system prevented the princess from meeting people whom her mother and Conroy deemed undesirable (including most of her father's family), and was designed to render her weak and dependent upon them. The Duchess avoided the court because she was scandalised by the presence of King William's illegitimate children. Victoria shared a bedroom with her mother every night, studied with private tutors to a regular timetable, and spent her play-hours with her dolls and her King Charles Spaniel, Dash. Her lessons included French, German, Italian, and Latin, but she spoke only English at home. In 1830, the Duchess of Kent and Conroy took Victoria across the centre of England to visit the Malvern Hills, stopping at towns and great country houses along the way. Similar journeys to other parts of England and Wales were taken in 1832, 1833, 1834 and 1835. To the King's annoyance, Victoria was enthusiastically welcomed in each of the stops. William compared the journeys to royal progresses and was concerned that they portrayed Victoria as his rival rather than his heir presumptive. Victoria disliked the trips; the constant round of public appearances made her tired and ill, and there was little time for her to rest. She objected on the grounds of the King's disapproval, but her mother dismissed his complaints as motivated by jealousy and forced Victoria to continue the tours. At Ramsgate in October 1835, Victoria contracted a severe fever, which Conroy initially dismissed as a childish pretence. While Victoria was ill, Conroy and the Duchess unsuccessfully badgered her to make Conroy her private secretary. As a teenager, Victoria resisted persistent attempts by her mother and Conroy to appoint him to her staff. Once queen, she banned him from her presence, but he remained in her mother's household. By 1836, Victoria's maternal uncle Leopold, who had been King of the Belgians since 1831, hoped to marry her to Prince Albert, the son of his brother Ernest I, Duke of Saxe- Coburg and Gotha. Leopold arranged for Victoria's mother to invite her Coburg relatives to visit her in May 1836, with the purpose of introducing Victoria to Albert. William IV, however, disapproved of any match with the Coburgs, and instead favoured the suit of Prince Alexander of the Netherlands, second son of the Prince of Orange. Victoria was aware of the various matrimonial plans and critically appraised a parade of eligible princes. According to her diary, she enjoyed Albert's company from the beginning. After the visit she wrote, "[Albert] is extremely handsome; his hair is about the same colour as mine; his eyes are large and blue, and he has a beautiful nose and a very sweet mouth with fine teeth; but the charm of his countenance is his expression, which is most delightful." Alexander, on the other hand, she described as "very plain". Victoria wrote to King Leopold, whom she considered her "best and kindest adviser", to thank him "for the prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me, in the person of dear Albert ... He possesses every quality that could be desired to render me perfectly happy. He is so sensible, so kind, and so good, and so amiable too. He has besides the most pleasing and delightful exterior and appearance you can possibly see." However at 17, Victoria, though interested in Albert, was not yet ready to marry. The parties did not undertake a formal engagement, but assumed that the match would take place in due time. Victoria turned 18 on 24 May 1837, and a regency was avoided. Less than a month later, on 20 June 1837, William IV died at the age of 71, and Victoria became Queen of the United Kingdom. In her diary she wrote, "I was awoke at 6 o'clock by Mamma, who told me the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham were here and wished to see me. I got out of bed and went into my sitting-room (only in my dressing gown) and alone, and saw them. Lord Conyngham then acquainted me that my poor Uncle, the King, was no more, and had expired at 12 minutes past 2 this morning, and consequently that I am Queen." Official documents prepared on the first day of her reign described her as Alexandrina Victoria, but the first name was withdrawn at her own wish and not used again. Since 1714, Britain had shared a monarch with Hanover in Germany, but under Salic law women were excluded from the Hanoverian succession. While Victoria inherited all the British Dominions, her father's unpopular younger brother, the Duke of Cumberland, became King of Hanover. He was her heir presumptive while she was childless. At the time of Victoria's accession, the government was led by the Whig prime minister Lord Melbourne. The Prime Minister at once became a powerful influence on the politically inexperienced Queen, who relied on him for advice. Charles Greville supposed that the widowed and childless Melbourne was "passionately fond of her as he might be of his daughter if he had one", and Victoria probably saw him as a father figure. Her coronation took place on 28 June 1838 at Westminster Abbey. Over 400,000 visitors came to London for the celebrations. She became the first sovereign to take up residence at Buckingham Palace and inherited the revenues of the duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall as well as being granted a civil list allowance of £385,000 per year. Financially prudent, she paid off her father's debts. At the start of her reign Victoria was popular, but her reputation suffered in an 1839 court intrigue when one of her mother's ladies-in-waiting, Lady Flora Hastings, developed an abdominal growth that was widely rumoured to be an out- of-wedlock pregnancy by Sir John Conroy. Victoria believed the rumours. She hated Conroy, and despised "that odious Lady Flora", because she had conspired with Conroy and the Duchess of Kent in the Kensington System. At first, Lady Flora refused to submit to an intimate medical examination, until in mid- February she eventually agreed, and was found to be a virgin. Conroy, the Hastings family, and the opposition Tories organised a press campaign implicating the Queen in the spreading of false rumours about Lady Flora. When Lady Flora died in July, the post-mortem revealed a large tumour on her liver that had distended her abdomen. At public appearances, Victoria was hissed and jeered as "Mrs. Melbourne". In 1839, Melbourne resigned after Radicals and Tories (both of whom Victoria detested) voted against a bill to suspend the constitution of Jamaica. The bill removed political power from plantation owners who were resisting measures associated with the abolition of slavery. The Queen commissioned a Tory, Sir Robert Peel, to form a new ministry. At the time, it was customary for the prime minister to appoint members of the Royal Household, who were usually his political allies and their spouses. Many of the Queen's ladies of the bedchamber were wives of Whigs, and Peel expected to replace them with wives of Tories. In what became known as the bedchamber crisis, Victoria, advised by Melbourne, objected to their removal. Peel refused to govern under the restrictions imposed by the Queen, and consequently resigned his commission, allowing Melbourne to return to office. Though Victoria was now queen, as an unmarried young woman she was required by social convention to live with her mother, despite their differences over the Kensington System and her mother's continued reliance on Conroy. Her mother was consigned to a remote apartment in Buckingham Palace, and Victoria often refused to see her. When Victoria complained to Melbourne that her mother's close proximity promised "torment for many years", Melbourne sympathised but said it could be avoided by marriage, which Victoria called a "schocking alternative". Victoria showed interest in Albert's education for the future role he would have to play as her husband, but she resisted attempts to rush her into wedlock. Victoria continued to praise Albert following his second visit in October 1839. Albert and Victoria felt mutual affection and the Queen proposed to him on 15 October 1839, just five days after he had arrived at Windsor. They were married on 10 February 1840, in the Chapel Royal of St James's Palace, London. Victoria was love-struck. She spent the evening after their wedding lying down with a headache, but wrote ecstatically in her diary: Albert became an important political adviser as well as the Queen's companion, replacing Melbourne as the dominant influential figure in the first half of her life. Victoria's mother was evicted from the palace, to Ingestre House in Belgrave Square. After the death of Victoria's aunt, Princess Augusta, in 1840, Victoria's mother was given both Clarence and Frogmore Houses. Through Albert's mediation, relations between mother and daughter slowly improved. During Victoria's first pregnancy in 1840, in the first few months of the marriage, 18-year-old Edward Oxford attempted to assassinate her while she was riding in a carriage with Prince Albert on her way to visit her mother. Oxford fired twice, but either both bullets missed or, as he later claimed, the guns had no shot. He was tried for high treason, found not guilty by reason of insanity, committed to an insane asylum indefinitely, and later sent to live in Australia. In the immediate aftermath of the attack, Victoria's popularity soared, mitigating residual discontent over the Hastings affair and the bedchamber crisis. Her daughter, also named Victoria, was born on 21 November 1840. The Queen hated being pregnant, viewed breast-feeding with disgust, and thought newborn babies were ugly. Nevertheless, over the following seventeen years, she and Albert had a further eight children: Albert Edward (b. 1841), Alice (b. 1843), Alfred (b. 1844), Helena (b. 1846), Louise (b. 1848), Arthur (b. 1850), Leopold (b. 1853) and Beatrice (b. 1857). Victoria's household was largely run by her childhood governess, Baroness Louise Lehzen from Hanover. Lehzen had been a formative influence on Victoria and had supported her against the Kensington System. Albert, however, thought that Lehzen was incompetent and that her mismanagement threatened his daughter's health. After a furious row between Victoria and Albert over the issue, Lehzen was pensioned off in 1842, and Victoria's close relationship with her ended. On 29 May 1842, Victoria was riding in a carriage along The Mall, London, when John Francis aimed a pistol at her, but the gun did not fire. The assailant escaped; however the following day, Victoria drove the same route, though faster and with a greater escort, in a deliberate attempt to provoke Francis to take a second aim and catch him in the act. As expected, Francis shot at her, but he was seized by plainclothes policemen, and convicted of high treason. On 3 July, two days after Francis's death sentence was commuted to transportation for life, John William Bean also tried to fire a pistol at the Queen, but it was loaded only with paper and tobacco and had too little charge. Edward Oxford felt that the attempts were encouraged by his acquittal in 1840. Bean was sentenced to 18 months in jail. In a similar attack in 1849, unemployed Irishman William Hamilton fired a powder-filled pistol at Victoria's carriage as it passed along Constitution Hill, London. In 1850, the Queen did sustain injury when she was assaulted by a possibly insane ex-army officer, Robert Pate. As Victoria was riding in a carriage, Pate struck her with his cane, crushing her bonnet and bruising her forehead. Both Hamilton and Pate were sentenced to seven years' transportation. Melbourne's support in the House of Commons weakened through the early years of Victoria's reign, and in the 1841 general election the Whigs were defeated. Peel became prime minister, and the ladies of the bedchamber most associated with the Whigs were replaced. In 1845, Ireland was hit by a potato blight. In the next four years, over a million Irish people died and another million emigrated in what became known as the Great Famine. In Ireland, Victoria was labelled "The Famine Queen". In January 1847 she personally donated £2,000 (equivalent to between £178,000 and £6.5 million in 2016) to the British Relief Association, more than any other individual famine relief donor, and also supported the Maynooth Grant to a Roman Catholic seminary in Ireland, despite Protestant opposition. The story that she donated only £5 in aid to the Irish, and on the same day gave the same amount to Battersea Dogs Home, was a myth generated towards the end of the 19th century. By 1846, Peel's ministry faced a crisis involving the repeal of the Corn Laws. Many Tories—by then known also as Conservatives—were opposed to the repeal, but Peel, some Tories (the "Peelites"), most Whigs and Victoria supported it. Peel resigned in 1846, after the repeal narrowly passed, and was replaced by Lord John Russell. Internationally, Victoria took a keen interest in the improvement of relations between France and Britain. She made and hosted several visits between the British royal family and the House of Orleans, who were related by marriage through the Coburgs. In 1843 and 1845, she and Albert stayed with King Louis Philippe I at château d'Eu in Normandy; she was the first British or English monarch to visit a French monarch since the meeting of Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France on the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520. When Louis Philippe made a reciprocal trip in 1844, he became the first French king to visit a British sovereign. Louis Philippe was deposed in the revolutions of 1848, and fled to exile in England. At the height of a revolutionary scare in the United Kingdom in April 1848, Victoria and her family left London for the greater safety of Osborne House, a private estate on the Isle of Wight that they had purchased in 1845 and redeveloped. Demonstrations by Chartists and Irish nationalists failed to attract widespread support, and the scare died down without any major disturbances. Victoria's first visit to Ireland in 1849 was a public relations success, but it had no lasting impact or effect on the growth of Irish nationalism. Russell's ministry, though Whig, was not favoured by the Queen. She found particularly offensive the Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston, who often acted without consulting the Cabinet, the Prime Minister, or the Queen. Victoria complained to Russell that Palmerston sent official dispatches to foreign leaders without her knowledge, but Palmerston was retained in office and continued to act on his own initiative, despite her repeated remonstrances. It was only in 1851 that Palmerston was removed after he announced the British government's approval of President Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte's coup in France without consulting the Prime Minister. The following year, President Bonaparte was declared Emperor Napoleon III, by which time Russell's administration had been replaced by a short-lived minority government led by Lord Derby. In 1853, Victoria gave birth to her eighth child, Leopold, with the aid of the new anaesthetic, chloroform. She was so impressed by the relief it gave from the pain of childbirth that she used it again in 1857 at the birth of her ninth and final child, Beatrice, despite opposition from members of the clergy, who considered it against biblical teaching, and members of the medical profession, who thought it dangerous. Victoria may have suffered from postnatal depression after many of her pregnancies. Letters from Albert to Victoria intermittently complain of her loss of self-control. For example, about a month after Leopold's birth Albert complained in a letter to Victoria about her "continuance of hysterics" over a "miserable trifle". In early 1855, the government of Lord Aberdeen, who had replaced Derby, fell amidst recriminations over the poor management of British troops in the Crimean War. Victoria approached both Derby and Russell to form a ministry, but neither had sufficient support, and Victoria was forced to appoint Palmerston as prime minister. Napoleon III, who had been Britain's closest ally since the Crimean War, visited London in April 1855, and from 17 to 28 August the same year Victoria and Albert returned the visit. Napoleon III met the couple at Boulogne and accompanied them to Paris. They visited the Exposition Universelle (a successor to Albert's 1851 brainchild the Great Exhibition) and Napoleon I's tomb at Les Invalides (to which his remains had only been returned in 1840), and were guests of honour at a 1,200-guest ball at the Palace of Versailles. On 14 January 1858, an Italian refugee from Britain called Felice Orsini attempted to assassinate Napoleon III with a bomb made in England. The ensuing diplomatic crisis destabilised the government, and Palmerston resigned. Derby was reinstated as prime minister. Victoria and Albert attended the opening of a new basin at the French military port of Cherbourg on 5 August 1858, in an attempt by Napoleon III to reassure Britain that his military preparations were directed elsewhere. On her return Victoria wrote to Derby reprimanding him for the poor state of the Royal Navy in comparison to the French one. Derby's ministry did not last long, and in June 1859 Victoria recalled Palmerston to office. Eleven days after Orsini's assassination attempt in France, Victoria's eldest daughter married Prince Frederick William of Prussia in London. They had been betrothed since September 1855, when Princess Victoria was 14 years old; the marriage was delayed by the Queen and her husband Albert until the bride was 17. The Queen and Albert hoped that their daughter and son-in-law would be a liberalising influence in the enlarging Prussian state. The Queen felt "sick at heart" to see her daughter leave England for Germany; "It really makes me shudder", she wrote to Princess Victoria in one of her frequent letters, "when I look round to all your sweet, happy, unconscious sisters, and think I must give them up too – one by one." Almost exactly a year later, the Princess gave birth to the Queen's first grandchild, Wilhelm, who would become the last German Emperor. In March 1861, Victoria's mother died, with Victoria at her side. Through reading her mother's papers, Victoria discovered that her mother had loved her deeply; she was heart-broken, and blamed Conroy and Lehzen for "wickedly" estranging her from her mother. To relieve his wife during her intense and deep grief, Albert took on most of her duties, despite being ill himself with chronic stomach trouble. In August, Victoria and Albert visited their son, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, who was attending army manoeuvres near Dublin, and spent a few days holidaying in Killarney. In November, Albert was made aware of gossip that his son had slept with an actress in Ireland. Appalled, he travelled to Cambridge, where his son was studying, to confront him. By the beginning of December, Albert was very unwell. He was diagnosed with typhoid fever by William Jenner, and died on 14 December 1861. Victoria was devastated. She blamed her husband's death on worry over the Prince of Wales's philandering. He had been "killed by that dreadful business", she said. She entered a state of mourning and wore black for the remainder of her life. She avoided public appearances, and rarely set foot in London in the following years. Her seclusion earned her the nickname "widow of Windsor". Her weight increased through comfort eating, which further reinforced her aversion to public appearances. Victoria's self-imposed isolation from the public diminished the popularity of the monarchy, and encouraged the growth of the republican movement. She did undertake her official government duties, yet chose to remain secluded in her royal residences—Windsor Castle, Osborne House, and the private estate in Scotland that she and Albert had acquired in 1847, Balmoral Castle. In March 1864 a protester stuck a notice on the railings of Buckingham Palace that announced "these commanding premises to be let or sold in consequence of the late occupant's declining business". Her uncle Leopold wrote to her advising her to appear in public. She agreed to visit the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society at Kensington and take a drive through London in an open carriage. Through the 1860s, Victoria relied increasingly on a manservant from Scotland, John Brown. Slanderous rumours of a romantic connection and even a secret marriage appeared in print, and the Queen was referred to as "Mrs. Brown". The story of their relationship was the subject of the 1997 movie Mrs. Brown. A painting by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer depicting the Queen with Brown was exhibited at the Royal Academy, and Victoria published a book, Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands, which featured Brown prominently and in which the Queen praised him highly. Palmerston died in 1865, and after a brief ministry led by Russell, Derby returned to power. In 1866, Victoria attended the State Opening of Parliament for the first time since Albert's death. The following year she supported the passing of the Reform Act 1867 which doubled the electorate by extending the franchise to many urban working men, though she was not in favour of votes for women. Derby resigned in 1868, to be replaced by Benjamin Disraeli, who charmed Victoria. "Everyone likes flattery," he said, "and when you come to royalty you should lay it on with a trowel." With the phrase "we authors, Ma'am", he complimented her. Disraeli's ministry only lasted a matter of months, and at the end of the year his Liberal rival, William Ewart Gladstone, was appointed prime minister. Victoria found Gladstone's demeanour far less appealing; he spoke to her, she is thought to have complained, as though she were "a public meeting rather than a woman". In 1870 republican sentiment in Britain, fed by the Queen's seclusion, was boosted after the establishment of the Third French Republic. A republican rally in Trafalgar Square demanded Victoria's removal, and Radical MPs spoke against her. In August and September 1871, she was seriously ill with an abscess in her arm, which Joseph Lister successfully lanced and treated with his new antiseptic carbolic acid spray. In late November 1871, at the height of the republican movement, the Prince of Wales contracted typhoid fever, the disease that was believed to have killed his father, and Victoria was fearful her son would die. As the tenth anniversary of her husband's death approached, her son's condition grew no better, and Victoria's distress continued. To general rejoicing, he recovered. Mother and son attended a public parade through London and a grand service of thanksgiving in St Paul's Cathedral on 27 February 1872, and republican feeling subsided. On the last day of February 1872, two days after the thanksgiving service, 17-year-old Arthur O'Connor, a great-nephew of Irish MP Feargus O'Connor, waved an unloaded pistol at Victoria's open carriage just after she had arrived at Buckingham Palace. Brown, who was attending the Queen, grabbed him and O'Connor was later sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment, and a birching. As a result of the incident, Victoria's popularity recovered further. After the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the British East India Company, which had ruled much of India, was dissolved, and Britain's possessions and protectorates on the Indian subcontinent were formally incorporated into the British Empire. The Queen had a relatively balanced view of the conflict, and condemned atrocities on both sides. She wrote of "her feelings of horror and regret at the result of this bloody civil war", and insisted, urged on by Albert, that an official proclamation announcing the transfer of power from the company to the state "should breathe feelings of generosity, benevolence and religious toleration". At her behest, a reference threatening the "undermining of native religions and customs" was replaced by a passage guaranteeing religious freedom. In the 1874 general election, Disraeli was returned to power. He passed the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874, which removed Catholic rituals from the Anglican liturgy and which Victoria strongly supported. She preferred short, simple services, and personally considered herself more aligned with the presbyterian Church of Scotland than the episcopal Church of England. Disraeli also pushed the Royal Titles Act 1876 through Parliament, so that Victoria took the title "Empress of India" from 1 May 1876. The new title was proclaimed at the Delhi Durbar of 1 January 1877. On 14 December 1878, the anniversary of Albert's death, Victoria's second daughter Alice, who had married Louis of Hesse, died of diphtheria in Darmstadt. Victoria noted the coincidence of the dates as "almost incredible and most mysterious". In May 1879, she became a great-grandmother (on the birth of Princess Feodora of Saxe-Meiningen) and passed her "poor old 60th birthday". She felt "aged" by "the loss of my beloved child". Between April 1877 and February 1878, she threatened five times to abdicate while pressuring Disraeli to act against Russia during the Russo-Turkish War, but her threats had no impact on the events or their conclusion with the Congress of Berlin. Disraeli's expansionist foreign policy, which Victoria endorsed, led to conflicts such as the Anglo-Zulu War and the Second Anglo-Afghan War. "If we are to maintain our position as a first-rate Power", she wrote, "we must ... be Prepared for attacks and wars, somewhere or other, CONTINUALLY." Victoria saw the expansion of the British Empire as civilising and benign, protecting native peoples from more aggressive powers or cruel rulers: "It is not in our custom to annexe countries", she said, "unless we are obliged & forced to do so." To Victoria's dismay, Disraeli lost the 1880 general election, and Gladstone returned as prime minister. When Disraeli died the following year, she was blinded by "fast falling tears", and erected a memorial tablet "placed by his grateful Sovereign and Friend, Victoria R.I." On 2 March 1882, Roderick Maclean, a disgruntled poet apparently offended by Victoria's refusal to accept one of his poems, shot at the Queen as her carriage left Windsor railway station. Two schoolboys from Eton College struck him with their umbrellas, until he was hustled away by a policeman. Victoria was outraged when he was found not guilty by reason of insanity, but was so pleased by the many expressions of loyalty after the attack that she said it was "worth being shot at—to see how much one is loved". On 17 March 1883, Victoria fell down some stairs at Windsor, which left her lame until July; she never fully recovered and was plagued with rheumatism thereafter. Brown died 10 days after her accident, and to the consternation of her private secretary, Sir Henry Ponsonby, Victoria began work on a eulogistic biography of Brown. Ponsonby and Randall Davidson, Dean of Windsor, who had both seen early drafts, advised Victoria against publication, on the grounds that it would stoke the rumours of a love affair. The manuscript was destroyed. In early 1884, Victoria did publish More Leaves from a Journal of a Life in the Highlands, a sequel to her earlier book, which she dedicated to her "devoted personal attendant and faithful friend John Brown". On the day after the first anniversary of Brown's death, Victoria was informed by telegram that her youngest son, Leopold, had died in Cannes. He was "the dearest of my dear sons", she lamented. The following month, Victoria's youngest child, Beatrice, met and fell in love with Prince Henry of Battenberg at the wedding of Victoria's granddaughter Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine to Henry's brother Prince Louis of Battenberg. Beatrice and Henry planned to marry, but Victoria opposed the match at first, wishing to keep Beatrice at home to act as her companion. After a year, she was won around to the marriage by their promise to remain living with and attending her. Victoria was pleased when Gladstone resigned in 1885 after his budget was defeated. She thought his government was "the worst I have ever had", and blamed him for the death of General Gordon at Khartoum. Gladstone was replaced by Lord Salisbury. Salisbury's government only lasted a few months, however, and Victoria was forced to recall Gladstone, whom she referred to as a "half crazy & really in many ways ridiculous old man". Gladstone attempted to pass a bill granting Ireland home rule, but to Victoria's glee it was defeated. In the ensuing election, Gladstone's party lost to Salisbury's and the government switched hands again. In 1887, the British Empire celebrated the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria. She marked the fiftieth anniversary of her accession on 20 June with a banquet to which 50 kings and princes were invited. The following day, she participated in a procession and attended a thanksgiving service in Westminster Abbey. By this time, Victoria was once again extremely popular. Two days later on 23 June, she engaged two Indian Muslims as waiters, one of whom was Abdul Karim. He was soon promoted to "Munshi": teaching her Urdu (known as Hindustani) and acting as a clerk. Her family and retainers were appalled, and accused Abdul Karim of spying for the Muslim Patriotic League, and biasing the Queen against the Hindus. Equerry Frederick Ponsonby (the son of Sir Henry) discovered that the Munshi had lied about his parentage, and reported to Lord Elgin, Viceroy of India, "the Munshi occupies very much the same position as John Brown used to do." Victoria dismissed their complaints as racial prejudice. Abdul Karim remained in her service until he returned to India with a pension, on her death. Victoria's eldest daughter became Empress consort of Germany in 1888, but she was widowed within the year, and Victoria's eldest grandchild became German Emperor as Wilhelm II. Victoria and Albert's hopes of a liberal Germany would go unfulfilled, as Wilhelm was a firm believer in autocracy. Victoria thought he had "little heart or Zartgefühl [tact] – and ... his conscience & intelligence have been completely wharped ". Gladstone returned to power after the 1892 general election; he was 82 years old. Victoria objected when Gladstone proposed appointing the Radical MP Henry Labouchère to the Cabinet, so Gladstone agreed not to appoint him. In 1894, Gladstone retired and, without consulting the outgoing prime minister, Victoria appointed Lord Rosebery as prime minister. His government was weak, and the following year Lord Salisbury replaced him. Salisbury remained prime minister for the remainder of Victoria's reign. On 23 September 1896, Victoria surpassed her grandfather George III as the longest-reigning monarch in British history. The Queen requested that any special celebrations be delayed until 1897, to coincide with her Diamond Jubilee, which was made a festival of the British Empire at the suggestion of the Colonial Secretary, Joseph Chamberlain. The prime ministers of all the self-governing Dominions were invited to London for the festivities. One reason for including the prime ministers of the Dominions and excluding foreign heads of state was to avoid having to invite Victoria's grandson, Wilhelm II of Germany, who, it was feared, might cause trouble at the event. The Queen's Diamond Jubilee procession on 22 June 1897 followed a route six miles long through London and included troops from all over the empire. The procession paused for an open-air service of thanksgiving held outside St Paul's Cathedral, throughout which Victoria sat in her open carriage, to avoid her having to climb the steps to enter the building. The celebration was marked by vast crowds of spectators and great outpourings of affection for the 78-year-old Queen. Victoria visited mainland Europe regularly for holidays. In 1889, during a stay in Biarritz, she became the first reigning monarch from Britain to set foot in Spain when she crossed the border for a brief visit. By April 1900, the Boer War was so unpopular in mainland Europe that her annual trip to France seemed inadvisable. Instead, the Queen went to Ireland for the first time since 1861, in part to acknowledge the contribution of Irish regiments to the South African war. In July 1900, Victoria's second son Alfred ("Affie") died. "Oh, God! My poor darling Affie gone too", she wrote in her journal. "It is a horrible year, nothing but sadness & horrors of one kind & another." Following a custom she maintained throughout her widowhood, Victoria spent the Christmas of 1900 at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. Rheumatism in her legs had rendered her lame, and her eyesight was clouded by cataracts. Through early January, she felt "weak and unwell", and by mid-January she was "drowsy ... dazed, [and] confused". She died on Tuesday 22 January 1901, at half past six in the evening, at the age of 81. Her son and successor, King Edward VII, and her eldest grandson, Emperor Wilhelm II, were at her deathbed. Her favourite pet Pomeranian, Turi, was laid upon her deathbed as a last request. In 1897, Victoria had written instructions for her funeral, which was to be military as befitting a soldier's daughter and the head of the army, and white instead of black. On 25 January, Edward, Wilhelm and her third son, the Duke of Connaught, helped lift her body into the coffin. She was dressed in a white dress and her wedding veil. An array of mementos commemorating her extended family, friends and servants were laid in the coffin with her, at her request, by her doctor and dressers. One of Albert's dressing gowns was placed by her side, with a plaster cast of his hand, while a lock of John Brown's hair, along with a picture of him, was placed in her left hand concealed from the view of the family by a carefully positioned bunch of flowers. Items of jewellery placed on Victoria included the wedding ring of John Brown's mother, given to her by Brown in 1883. Her funeral was held on Saturday 2 February, in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, and after two days of lying-in-state, she was interred beside Prince Albert in Frogmore Mausoleum at Windsor Great Park. With a reign of 63 years, seven months and two days, Victoria was the longest- reigning British monarch and the longest-reigning queen regnant in world history until her great-great-granddaughter Elizabeth II surpassed her on 9 September 2015. She was the last monarch of Britain from the House of Hanover. Her son and successor Edward VII belonged to her husband's House of Saxe- Coburg and Gotha. According to one of her biographers, Giles St Aubyn, Victoria wrote an average of 2,500 words a day during her adult life. From July 1832 until just before her death, she kept a detailed journal, which eventually encompassed 122 volumes. After Victoria's death, her youngest daughter, Princess Beatrice, was appointed her literary executor. Beatrice transcribed and edited the diaries covering Victoria's accession onwards, and burned the originals in the process. Despite this destruction, much of the diaries still exist. In addition to Beatrice's edited copy, Lord Esher transcribed the volumes from 1832 to 1861 before Beatrice destroyed them. Part of Victoria's extensive correspondence has been published in volumes edited by A. C. Benson, Hector Bolitho, George Earle Buckle, Lord Esher, Roger Fulford, and Richard Hough among others. Victoria was physically unprepossessing—she was stout, dowdy and only about five feet tall—but she succeeded in projecting a grand image. She experienced unpopularity during the first years of her widowhood, but was well liked during the 1880s and 1890s, when she embodied the empire as a benevolent matriarchal figure. Only after the release of her diary and letters did the extent of her political influence become known to the wider public. Biographies of Victoria written before much of the primary material became available, such as Lytton Strachey's Queen Victoria of 1921, are now considered out of date. The biographies written by Elizabeth Longford and Cecil Woodham-Smith, in 1964 and 1972 respectively, are still widely admired. They, and others, conclude that as a person Victoria was emotional, obstinate, honest, and straight-talking. Contrary to popular belief, her staff and family recorded that Victoria "was immensely amused and roared with laughter" on many occasions. Through Victoria's reign, the gradual establishment of a modern constitutional monarchy in Britain continued. Reforms of the voting system increased the power of the House of Commons at the expense of the House of Lords and the monarch. In 1867, Walter Bagehot wrote that the monarch only retained "the right to be consulted, the right to encourage, and the right to warn". As Victoria's monarchy became more symbolic than political, it placed a strong emphasis on morality and family values, in contrast to the sexual, financial and personal scandals that had been associated with previous members of the House of Hanover and which had discredited the monarchy. The concept of the "family monarchy", with which the burgeoning middle classes could identify, was solidified. Victoria's links with Europe's royal families earned her the nickname "the grandmother of Europe". Of the 42 grandchildren of Victoria and Albert, 34 survived to adulthood. Their living descendants include Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh; Harald V of Norway; Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden; Margrethe II of Denmark; and Felipe VI of Spain. Victoria's youngest son, Leopold, was affected by the blood-clotting disease haemophilia B and at least two of her five daughters, Alice and Beatrice, were carriers. Royal haemophiliacs descended from Victoria included her great-grandsons, Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia; Alfonso, Prince of Asturias; and Infante Gonzalo of Spain. The presence of the disease in Victoria's descendants, but not in her ancestors, led to modern speculation that her true father was not the Duke of Kent, but a haemophiliac. There is no documentary evidence of a haemophiliac in connection with Victoria's mother, and as male carriers always suffer the disease, even if such a man had existed he would have been seriously ill. It is more likely that the mutation arose spontaneously because Victoria's father was over 50 at the time of her conception and haemophilia arises more frequently in the children of older fathers. Spontaneous mutations account for about a third of cases. Around the world, places and memorials are dedicated to her, especially in the Commonwealth nations. Places named after her include Africa's largest lake, Victoria Falls, the capitals of British Columbia (Victoria) and Saskatchewan (Regina), two Australian states (Victoria and Queensland), and the capital of the island nation of Seychelles. The Victoria Cross was introduced in 1856 to reward acts of valour during the Crimean War, and it remains the highest British, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand award for bravery. Victoria Day is a Canadian statutory holiday and a local public holiday in parts of Scotland celebrated on the last Monday before or on 24 May (Queen Victoria's birthday). 24 May 1819 – 20 June 1837: Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandrina Victoria of Kent, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901: Her Majesty The Queen At the end of her reign, the Queen's full style was: "Her Majesty Victoria, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Queen, Defender of the Faith, Empress of India." Royal Family Order of King George IV, 1826, Founder and Sovereign of the Order of the Star of India, 25 June 1861, Founder and Sovereign of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert, 10 February 1862, Founder and Sovereign of the Order of the Crown of India, 1 January 1878, Founder and Sovereign of the Royal Red Cross, 27 April 1883, Founder and Sovereign of the Distinguished Service Order, 6 November 1886, Albert Medal of the Royal Society of Arts, 1887, Founder and Sovereign of the Royal Victorian Order, 23 April 1896 As Sovereign, Victoria used the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom. Before her accession, she received no grant of arms. As she could not succeed to the throne of Hanover, her arms did not carry the Hanoverian symbols that were used by her immediate predecessors. Her arms have been borne by all of her successors on the throne. Outside Scotland, the blazon for the shield—also used on the Royal Standard—is: Quarterly: I and IV, Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale Or (for England); II, Or, a lion rampant within a double tressure flory-counter-flory Gules (for Scotland); III, Azure, a harp Or stringed Argent (for Ireland). In Scotland, the first and fourth quarters are occupied by the Scottish lion, and the second by the English lions. The crests, mottoes, and supporters also differ in and outside Scotland. Charles, Barrie (2012) Kill the Queen! The Eight Assassination Attempts on Queen Victoria, Stroud: Amberley Publishing,, Hibbert, Christopher (2000) Queen Victoria: A Personal History, London: HarperCollins,, Longford, Elizabeth (1964) Victoria R.I., London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson,, Marshall, Dorothy (1972) The Life and Times of Queen Victoria, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, [1992 reprint], Packard, Jerrold M. (1998) Victoria's Daughters, New York: St. Martin's Press,, Potts, D. M.; Potts, W. T. W. (1995) Queen Victoria's Gene: Haemophilia and the Royal Family, Stroud: Alan Sutton,, St Aubyn, Giles (1991) Queen Victoria: A Portrait, London: Sinclair-Stevenson,, Strachey, Lytton (1921) Queen Victoria, London: Chatto and Windus online edition, Waller, Maureen (2006) Sovereign Ladies: The Six Reigning Queens of England, London: John Murray,, Weintraub, Stanley (1997) Albert: Uncrowned King, London: John Murray,, Woodham-Smith, Cecil (1972) Queen Victoria: Her Life and Times 1819–1861, London: Hamish Hamilton,, Worsley, Lucy (2018) Queen Victoria – Daughter, Wife, Mother, Widow, London: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, Benson, A. C.; Esher, Viscount (editors, 1907) The Letters of Queen Victoria: A Selection of Her Majesty's Correspondence Between the Years 1837 and 1861, London: John Murray, Bolitho, Hector (editor, 1938) Letters of Queen Victoria from the Archives of the House of Brandenburg-Prussia, London: Thornton Butterworth, Buckle, George Earle (editor, 1926) The Letters of Queen Victoria, 2nd Series 1862–1885, London: John Murray, Buckle, George Earle (editor, 1930) The Letters of Queen Victoria, 3rd Series 1886–1901, London: John Murray, Connell, Brian (1962) Regina v. Palmerston: The Correspondence between Queen Victoria and her Foreign and Prime Minister, 1837–1865, London: Evans Brothers, Duff, David (editor, 1968) Victoria in the Highlands: The Personal Journal of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, London: Muller, Dyson, Hope; Tennyson, Charles (editors, 1969) Dear and Honoured Lady: The Correspondence between Queen Victoria and Alfred Tennyson, London: Macmillan, Esher, Viscount (editor, 1912) The Girlhood of Queen Victoria: A Selection from Her Majesty's Diaries, 1832–40, London: John Murray, Fulford, Roger (editor, 1964) Dearest Child: Letters Between Queen Victoria and the Princess Royal, 1858–61, London: Evans Brothers, Fulford, Roger (editor, 1968) Dearest Mama: Letters Between Queen Victoria and the Crown Princess of Prussia, 1861–64, London: Evans Brothers, Fulford, Roger (editor, 1971) Beloved Mama: Private Correspondence of Queen Victoria and the German Crown Princess, 1878–85, London: Evans Brothers, Fulford, Roger (editor, 1971) Your Dear Letter: Private Correspondence of Queen Victoria and the Crown Princess of Prussia, 1863–71, London: Evans Brothers, Fulford, Roger (editor, 1976) Darling Child: Private Correspondence of Queen Victoria and the German Crown Princess of Prussia, 1871–78, London: Evans Brothers, Hibbert, Christopher (editor, 1984) Queen Victoria in Her Letters and Journals, London: John Murray,, Hough, Richard (editor, 1975) Advice to a Grand-daughter: Letters from Queen Victoria to Princess Victoria of Hesse, London: Heinemann,, Jagow, Kurt (editor, 1938) Letters of the Prince Consort 1831–61, London: John Murray, Mortimer, Raymond (editor, 1961) Queen Victoria: Leaves from a Journal, New York: Farrar, Straus & Cudahy, Ponsonby, Sir Frederick (editor, 1930) Letters of the Empress Frederick, London: Macmillan, Ramm, Agatha (editor, 1990) Beloved and Darling Child: Last Letters between Queen Victoria and Her Eldest Daughter, 1886–1901, Stroud: Sutton Publishing,, Victoria, Queen (1868) Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands from 1848 to 1861, London: Smith, Elder, Victoria, Queen (1884) More Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands from 1862 to 1882, London: Smith, Elder Arnstein, Walter L. (2003) Queen Victoria, New York: Palgrave Macmillan,, Baird, Julia (2016) Victoria The Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled an Empire, New York: Random House,, Gardiner, Juliet (1997) Queen Victoria, London: Collins and Brown,, Hough, Richard (1996) Victoria and Albert, St. Martin's Press,, Lyden, Anne M. (2014) A Royal Passion: Queen Victoria and Photography, Los Angeles: Getty Publications,, Weintraub, Stanley (1987) Victoria: Biography of a Queen, London: HarperCollins,, Wilson, A. N. (2014) Victoria: A Life, London: Atlantic Books, Queen Victoria's Journals, online from the Royal Archive and Bodleian Library This is a list of Queens who have ruled as Queen in many countries (Separate queens for separate countries). Included also are Pharaohs and Empresses, as well as other titles in case of smaller states (Grand Duchess, Archduchess, Duchess, Princess, etc.) If the Queen ruled as a regent this is indicated by "(regent)" following the name. Where a queen had no powers but only the title "(titular)" is added. Queens consort (who are styled Queen by virtue of marrying a monarch) are not included. The following original lead is retained temporarily during reconstruction: Jarawa Kahina (ruled c. 690-703) Touggourt Aisha (ruled c. 1833) Indigenous dynasties Sobekneferu of the Twelfth Dynasty - Sobekneferu was the first confirmed female ruler of Egypt, although Nitocris may have ruled in the Sixth Dynasty, and there are five other women who are believed to have ruled as early as the First Dynasty, Hatshepsut of the Eighteenth Dynasty, Neferneferuaten of the Eighteenth Dynasty (possibly Nefertiti or Meritaten or Neferneferuaten Tasherit), Twosret of the Nineteenth Dynasty, Merneith of the First Dynasty - Merneith may have ruled Egypt as Pharaoh, although her reign as sole ruler is unconfirmed. If she did rule, she would have been the first female Pharaoh in Egyptian history., Nitocris of the Sixth Dynasty - Nitocris is mentioned within Herodotus' book Histories as being the last Pharaoh of the Sixth Dynasty of Egypt; some contest her historicity., Khentkawes I of the Fourth Dynasty - Khentkawes' rule as Pharaoh is highly contested by modern historians, who debate on the exact meaning behind her given title. Ptolemaic dynasties Ptolemy II instituted a new practice of brother-sister marriage when he married his full sister, Arsinoe II. They became, in effect, co-rulers, and both took the epithet Philadelphus ("Brother-Loving" and "Sister-Loving"). Because of this custom many of the kings ruled jointly with their spouses, who were also of the royal house. The only Ptolemaic Queens to officially rule on their own were Berenice III and Berenice IV. Cleopatra VI did co-rule, but it was with another female, Berenice IV. Cleopatra VII officially co-ruled with Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator, Ptolemy XIV, and Ptolemy XV, but effectively, she ruled Egypt alone Arsinoe II, Arsinoe III, Cleopatra I, Cleopatra II, Cleopatra III, Cleopatra IV, Berenice III, Cleopatra V, Cleopatra VI, Berenice IV, Cleopatra VII, Arsinoe IV Shajar al-Durr (ruled 1250) Cyrene Cleopatra Selene II (ruled 34–30 BC) - also known as Cleopatra VIII. In 75 BC, Cyrene became part of a Roman province, but it was restored to the Ptolemies by Mark Antony in 37 BC. In 34 BC Cleopatra VII and Antony's daughter, Cleopatra Selene II, was made Queen of Cyrene, but the city returned to Rome following Augustus' conquest of Egypt in 30 BC Kandake was a title for queens, queen mothers, and queens consort in Nubia, but ruling Kandakes may have included: Alakhebasken (ruled c. 295 BCE), Shanakdakhete (ruled 177–155 BCE), Amanirenas (ruled 40–10 BCE), Amanishakheto (ruled c. 10 BCE–1 CE), Nawidemak, Amanitore (ruled 1–20 CE), Amantitere (ruled 22–41 CE), Amanikhatashan (ruled 62–85), Maleqorobar (ruled 266–283), Lakhideamani (ruled 306–314) Hogbonu Hude (ruled 1746–1752) Elizabeth II (ruled 1965-1970) Elizabeth II (ruled 1957-1960) Akan state of Denkyira Amoako Atta Yiadom (ruled 1770–1793), Denkyirahene Akan state of Dwaben Ama Serwah (ruled 1838–1846), Dwabenhene, Unknown Dwabenhene (ruled 1846-18??), Nana Juaben Serwah II (ruled 1959–19??), Dwabenhene Baoule Pokou (ruled c. 1730-1750) - Queen and founder of the Baoule tribe, Akwa Boni, Pokou's niece who succeeded her to the throne Azna Sarraounia (ruled late 19th) Elizabeth II (1960-1963) Igodomigodo Emose, Orrorro Ondo Kingdom Pupupu, founder and ruler of the Ondo Kingdom c. 1510. Zazzau Amina - There is controversy among scholars as to the date of her reign, one school placing her in the mid-15th century, and a second placing her reign in the mid to late 16th century Sine Lingeer Fatim Beye (ruled c. 1335) Waalo Lingeer Ndoye Demba (ruled c. 1367) - she was the founder of the Serer Joos Maternal Dynasty Elizabeth II (1961-1971) Koya Fatima Brima Kama, Alikali (ruled 1826–1840), Bai Jaga Mussasa, Tembandumba Matamba Mwongo Matamba (ruled ?–1631), Ana I de Sousa Nzinga Mbande (ruled 1631–1663), Barbara (ruled 1663–1666), Verónica I Guterres Kandala Kingwanga (ruled 1681–1721), Ana II (ruled 1741–1756), Verónica II (ruled 1756–1758), Ana III (ruled 1758–?) Mbunda Kingdom Vamwene Naama, Vamwene Yamvu, Vamwene Mbaao ya Chinguli (ruled 1500s-early 1600s), Vamwene Kaamba ka Mbaao, Vamwene Mukenge wa Lweembe, Livindamo Ndongo Ana de Sousa Nzinga Mbande (ruled 1624–1626 and 1657–1663), Mukambu Mbandi (ruled 1663–1671) Bamum Ngoungoure (ruled 1865), her rule lasted 30 minutes Ndzuwani (Anjouan) Alimah III (ruled 1676–1711) - first known ruler and female ruler of Anjouan; at least two more women had ruled Anjouan before her: Alimah I and Alimah II, Alimah IV (ruled 1788–1792) - she was the de facto ruler of Anjouan with sultan Abdallah I during his reigns in 1782-1788 and 1792-1796 Bamboa Nyau wa Faume Itsandra Fey Beja waWabeja, Mfalme Bajini Ja Mhaba, Mfalme, Hadija bint Ahmed, Mfalme Mwali Raketaka Jombe Sudy (ruled 1842–1865 and 1874–1878) - she ruled as regent twice, 1865-1868 and 1871-1874. After 1851 she took the name of Jumbe Fatima bint Abderremane, Salima Machamba bint Saidi Hamadi Makadara (ruled 1888–1909) Zewditu (ruled 1916–1930) Gibe state of Gera Genne Fa (ruled c. 1880) Elizabeth II (1963-1964) Rangita (ruled 1520–1530), Rafohy (ruled 1530–1540), Ranavalona I (ruled 1828–1861), Rasoherina (ruled 1863–1868), Ranavalona II (ruled 1868–1883), Ranavalona III (ruled 1883–1897) Boina Kingdom Andrianaginarivo (ruled 1777-1778), Tombola (ruled 1778), Ravahiny (ruled 1778-1808), Oantitsy (ruled 1832-1836), Tsiomeko (ruled 1836-1840) Elizabeth II (1968-1992) Elizabeth II (1961-1962) Elizabeth II (1962-1963) Bunyoro Masamba of Bunyoro Elizabeth II (1964-1966) Elizabeth II (1952-1961) Balobedu The Modjadji or Rain Queen is the hereditary queen of Balobedu, the people of the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The succession to the position of Rain Queen is matrilineal, meaning that the Queen's eldest daughter is the heir, and that males are not entitled to inherit the throne at all. The Rain Queen is believed to have special powers, including the ability to control the clouds and rainfall. Lovedu Majaji (ruled c. 350 AD), Maselekwane Modjadji (1800–1854), Masalanabo Modjadji (1854–1894), Khetoane Modjadji (1895–1959), Makoma Modjadji (1959-1980), Mokope Modjadji (1981-2001), Makobo Modjadji (2003-2005) Batlokwa Mantatisi (ruled 1820s) Makololo Mamochisane (c. 1851) Victoria (ruled 1837–1901), Elizabeth II (ruled 1952–) Ecatepec Tlapalizquixochtzin (ruled late 15th-early 16th century) Palenque Ix Yohl Ik'nal (ruled 583–604), Sak K'uk', also known as Muwaan Mat (ruled 612–615) Tepetlaoztoc Azcasuch (ruled late 15th-early 16th century) Yaxchilan Ik' Skull, also known as Lady Eveningstar (possibly ruled 742–752) Elizabeth II (ruled 1981–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1973–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1966–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1981–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1974–) Naranjo Wac Chanil Ahau, also known as Lady Six Sky (ruled 682–693) Tikal Unen Bahlam (ruled c. 317), Lady of Tikal (ruled 511–527?) Elizabeth II (ruled 1962–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1983–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1979–) Elizabeth II (ruled 1979–) Maria I (ruled 1815–1816) Elizabeth II (ruled 1966-1970) Elizabeth II (ruled 1962-1976) There have been many powerful empress consorts or empress dowagers, some of whom effectively ruled. Powerful empress consorts or empress dowagers were de facto rulers, but not de jure empress regnants. A concubine who gave birth to a crown prince also could become empress consort (皇后), although her status still was a little lower than an empress dowager who had been the former empress consort which will be known as 太后. Wu Zetian (; ruled 684–705, reigned 690–705) - the sole official Chinese Empress Regnant, the empress consort of Tang Gaozong, the mother of Tang Zhongzong and Tang Ruizong, she established the Zhou Dynasty (also known as Wu Zhou 武周) after dismissing her sons and becoming the Empress Regnant Although Wu Zetian is the only undisputed empress regnant in Chinese history, there is one documented case of a woman holding the title of "Emperor": Daughter of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei (; ruled 1–2 April 528) - during Northern Wei Dynasty, Empress Dowager Hu, after her son Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei's death, falsely declared Emperor Xiaoming's daughter to be a son and declared the daughter to be the new emperor, but almost immediately revealed that the child was in fact female, and thereafter declared Yuan Zhao, the young son of Emperor Xiaoming's cousin Yuan Baohui (元寶暉) emperor. Emperor Xiaoming's daughter is also therefore not usually considered a true emperor. Queen Himiko, of Yamatai (ruled 189–248), Empress Suiko (554–628), (ruled 593–628) — first ruling empress, Empress Kōgyoku (594–661), (ruled 642–645) — formerly Princess Takara (Empress Consort of Jomei), Empress Saimei (594–661), (ruled 655–661) — same person as Empress Kōgyoku, second reign under a second name, Empress Jitō (645–702), (ruled 690–697), Empress Genmei (661–721), (ruled 707–715), Empress Genshō (680–748), (ruled 715–724) — formerly Princess Hidaka, Empress Kōken (718–770), (ruled 749–758), Empress Shōtoku (718–770), (ruled 764–770) — same person as Empress Kōken, second reign under a second name, Empress Meishō (1624–1696), (ruled 1629–1643), Empress Go-Sakuramachi (1740–1813), (ruled 1762–1771) — last ruling empress Silla Seondeok (ruled 632–647), Jindeok (ruled 647–652), Jinseong (ruled 887–897) Razia Sultana (ruled 10 October 1236 − 14 October 1240) 5th Sultana of the Delhi Sultanate Alupa dynasty Ballamahadevi (ruled 1275–1285 with Nagadevarasa) Arakkal dynasty Ali Raja Bibi Harrabichi Kadavube (ruled 1728–1732), Ali Raja Bibi Junumabe I (ruled 1732–1745), Ali Raja Bibi Junumabe II (ruled 1777–1819) British Raj Victoria (ruled 1876–1901) - Empress of India Holkar dynasty Ahilyabai Holkar (ruled 1767–1795), also known as the Philosopher Queen Jhansi Lakshmi Bai (ruled 1857–1858) Kakatiya dynasty Rani Rudrama Devi (ruled 1261/62–1295/96) Kashmir Sugandha (ruled in the 10th century), Didda (ruled 980–1003), she ruled first as a Regent for her son Abhimanyu and thereafter as sole ruler in her own right, Kota Rani (ruled 1338–1339) Keladi Nayaka dynasty Keladi Chennamma (ruled 1672–1697), Virammaji (ruled 1757–1763) Kittur Kittur Chennamma (ruled ?-1829) Mamluk dynasty Raziyyat-ud-din Sultana of Slave Dynasty (ruled 1236–1240) Princely States Gowri Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore (ruled 1811–1814) Bhopal State Qudsia Begum (ruled 1819–1837) - in 1819, 18-year-old Qudsia Begum (also known as Gohar Begum) took over the reins after the assassination of her husband, Nawab Muiz Muhammad Khan Bahadur. She was the first female ruler of Bhopal. She declared that her 2-year-old daughter Sikander would follow her as the ruler; none of the male family members dared to challenge her decision. She ruled till 1837, when she died having adequately prepared her daughter for ruling the state., Begum Sultan Shah Jehan (ruled 1844–1860 and 1868–1901) - Shahjahan was the only surviving child of Sikandar Begum, sometime Nawab of Bhopal by correct title, and her husband Jahangir Mohammed Khan. She was recognised as ruler of Bhopal in 1844 at the age of six; her mother wielded power as regent during her minority. However, in 1860, her mother Sikandar Begum was recognised by the British as ruler of Bhopal in her own right, and Shahjahan was set aside., Begum Nawab Sikandar (ruled 1860–1868), Begum Kaikhusrau Jahan (ruled 1901–1926) Ullal Abbakka Chowta (ruled 1525–1570s) Damahaar (ruled before 990) - Damahaar, a Ranin (Queen) of the Aadeetta (Sun) Dynasty, is mentioned by al-Idrisi as having reigned over the Maldives at some time before the semi-legendary King Koimala; there are several other mentions by foreign travelers, mainly Arabs, of queens ruling over the Maldives at various times; these are not always named and their reigns cannot be precisely dated, Khadijah (ruled 1347–1363, 1364–1374 and 1376–1380) - She is one of the earliest female rulers in a Muslim nation., Raadhafathi (ruled 1380), Dhaain (ruled 1385–1388), Kuda Kala Kamanafa’anu (ruled 1607–1609), Amina (ruled 1757 – 1759) Elizabeth II (ruled 1952-1956) Sindh Zainab Tari (ruled 1092–1102) Kuweni of Thambapanni (ruled before 543BC), Anula of Anuradhapura (ruled 47–42 BC), Sivali of Anuradhapura (ruled 35), Chattagahaka Jantu of Anuradhapura (ruled 434–435), Lilavati of Polonnaruwa (ruled 1197–1200, 1209–1210 and 1211–1212), Kalyanavati of Polonnaruwa (ruled 1202–1208), Elizabeth II of Ceylon (ruled 1952-1972) Jayavedi (ruled 681–713) - during her rule, She was faulted in leadership which led The Chenla kingdom to break into two individual states, but then it record the period to be female-dominated dynasty with the wide range of female successors, totally driving the entire kingdom, Ang Mey (1835–1841 and 1844–1845) - also known as Ngọc Vân Quận chúa (Lady Ngọc Vân - Vietnamese) or Ksat Trey, she was proclaimed on the death of her father by the Vietnamese faction at court with the title of Mỹ Lâm Quận chúa (Lady Mỹ Lâm - Vietnamese) in January 1835. She was famous as a Vietnamese puppet queen Aceh Seri Ratu Ta'jul Alam Shah (ruled 1641–1675) - the Sultana of Atjeh (Aceh) Darussalam, formerly known as Puteri Seri Alam the Daughter of The Great Sultan Iskandar Muda, and wife of Sultan Iskandar Thani, Seri Ratu Naqiatuddin Nurul Alam (ruled 1675-1678), Seri Ratu Inayat Shah (ruled 1678–1688), Seri Ratu Kamalat Syah (ruled 1688–1699) - she was deposed and replaced by her husband under pressure from the Mufti of Mecca Bali Śri Wijaya Mahadewi (ruled c. 983), Mahendradatta (ruled before 989–1007), Śri Ajñadewi (ruled c. 1016), Śri Sakalendukirana Laksmidhara Wijayottunggadewi (ruled c. 1088–1101), Arjayadengjayaketana (ruled c. 1200), Unnamed Queen (ruled ?–1284), Dewa Agung Istri Kanya (ruled 1814–1850) Bugis Siti Aisyah We Tenriolle (ruled 1855-1910) Kalingga Maharani Shima (ruled 674–695) Majapahit Tribhuwana Wijayatunggadewi (ruled 1328–1350), Suhita (ruled 1429–1447) Medang Pramodhawardhani (ruled 833–856 with her husband Rakai Pikatan), Śri Isyana Tunggawijaya (ruled 947–985) Mengwi Gusti Ayu Istri Biang Agung (ruled 1836–1857) Sonbai Kecil Bi Sonbai (ruled 1672–1717), in western Timor Lan Xang Nang Keo Phimpha (ruled 1438) - after her nephew Lan Kham Deng died, she seized control of Lan Xang and the next four kings were under her control. She only reigned for a few months in 1438 at age of 95; she was deposed and killed Kelantan Siti Wan Kembang (ruled 1610-63), Puteri Saadong (ruled 1667-1671) Hanthawaddy Shin Sawbu (ruled 1453–1472) Namayan and Tondo Kalangitan (ruled 1450–1515) Sulu Nur ul-Azam (ruled c. 1680-1685) Hariphunchai Jamadevi, first ruler of the Mon kingdom of Hariphunchai Pattani Ratu Hijau, 'the Green Queen' (ruled 1584–1616), Ratu Biru, 'the Blue Queen' (ruled 1616–1624), Ratu Ungu, 'the Purple Queen' (ruled 1624–1635), Ratu Kuning, 'the Yellow Queen' (ruled 1635–1649/88), controversy surrounds the exact date of the end of her reign, Ratu Emas Kelantan (ruled 1670–1698 or 1690–1704) - thought by A. Teeuw & Wyatt to be a king, but claimed by al-Fatani to be a queen, the widow of Raja Bakal and mother of the succeeding queen, Ratu Emas Chayam (ruled 1698–1702 or 1704–1707 and 1716–1718) Lanna Chiraprapha (ruled 1545–1546), Wisutthi Thewi (ruled 1564-1578) Queen Trưng Trắc (ruled 40–43) - the Trưng sisters (Vietnamese: Hai Bà Trưng; literally: two ladies Trưng) were leaders who rebelled against Chinese rule for three years, and are regarded as national heroines of Vietnam. Their names are Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị., Empress Lý Chiêu Hoàng (ruled 1224–1225) Champa Isanavarman (ruled 653) Musa of Parthia (Parthian queen regnant of Iran, ruled 2 BC–4 AD), Pourandukht (In Persian: Pourandokht, Sassanid queen regnant and Daughter of Khosrow Parviz, ruled 629-630 and 631-632), Azarmidokht (Sassanid queen regnant, sister of Pourandukht and daughter of Khosrow Parviz, ruled 630–631) Elymais Anzaze (ruled about 82/81 to 75 BC, following dates on the coins), she appears on coins together with king Kamnaskires III; they perhaps ruled together as on the coins she is called βασιλίσσης (the Genitive case of queen, βασίλισσα - basílissa) Il Khanate Sati Beg (ruled 1338–1339) Salghurids Abish Khatun b. Sa'd II (ruled 1263), Abish Khatun w (ruled 1264–1282) Adiabene Heleni (ruled 30–58) Judah Athaliah (ruled 843–835 BC) Hasmonean dynasty Salome Alexandra (ruled 76–67 BC) Herodian dynasty Salome I (ruled 6 BC-10 AD) - she ruled as Toparch of Jabneh, Ashdod and Phasaelis, Livia (ruled 10-29) - she ruled as Toparch of Jabneh Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem Melisende (ruled 1131–1153) - she ruled with her husband Fulk of Anjou and her son Baldwin III as co-rulers, Sibylla (ruled 1186–1190) - she ruled with her husband Guy de Lusignan as co-ruler, Isabella I (ruled 1190/92–1205) - she ruled with her husbands Conrad of Montferrat, Henry of Champagne and Aimery of Cyprus as co-rulers, Maria (ruled 1205–1212) - she ruled with her husband John of Brienne as co-ruler from 1210, Isabella II (ruled 1212–1228), also known as Yolande of Jerusalem - she ruled with her husband Frederick II of Hohenstaufen as co-ruler from 1225 Nabatea Chuldu (ruled 9 BC–40 AD), she ruled jointly with her husband Aretas IV Philopatris, Shaqilath (ruled 40–70/71), she ruled jointly with her husband-brother Malichus II; after his death she was regent for her son Rabbel II Soter, Gamilath (ruled 70/71–106), she ruled jointly with her brother Rabbel II Soter Massagetae Tomyris, Queen of the Massagetae (ruled 570-520 BC) Qedarite Zabibe (ruled c. 750–735 BC), Samsi (ruled c. 735–710 BC), Yatie (ruled c. 710–695 BC), Te'elkhunu (ruled c. 695–690 BC), Tabua (ruled c. 678–675 BC) Tanukhids Mavia (ruled 375–425) - "The Queen of the Arabs" Seleucid Empire Cleopatra Thea (ruled 126–121 BCE) - she ruled in association with her son Antiochus VIII Grypus Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia Isabella (ruled 1219–1252) - she co-ruled with her husband Hethum I from 1226 Caria Artemisia I (ruled c. 480 BC), Artemisia II (ruled 353–351 BC), Ada (ruled 344–340 and 334–326 BC) Dardania Mania (ruled after 399 BC) - queen of ancient Dardania according to Polyaenus and Xenophon Heraclea Pontica Amastris (ruled c. 300-284 BC) Pontus Pythodorida (ruled 8 BC–38 AD) Prusias ad Mare Orodaltis (ruled c. after 30 BC) Saltukid dynasty Melike Mama Hatun (ruled 1191–1200) Trebizond Theodora Megale Komnene (ruled 1284–1285), Eirene Palaiologina (ruled 1340–1341), Anna Megale Komnene (ruled 1341–1342) Khanate of Kokand Irdana (ruled 1751–1770) Sulayhid dynasty Asma bint Shihab (ruled 1047-1087) - she was the co-ruler of Yemen in co-regency with her cousin and spouse, Ali al-Sulayhi, and later her son, Ahmad al-Mukkaram, and daughter-in-law, Arwa al-Sulayhi. Though there were many female monarch in the Muslim world, Asma bint Shihab and Arwa al-Sulayhi were the only female monarchs in the Arab world to have had the khutba proclaimed in their name in the mosques as sovereigns, Arwa al-Sulayhi (ruled 1067–1138) - she ruled Yemen firstly with her first two husbands and her mother-in-law and then as sole ruler. She was the greatest of the rulers of the Sulayhid Dynasty and was also the first woman to be accorded the prestigious title of hujja in Isma'ili branch of Shi'a Islam, signifying her as the closest living image of God's will in her lifetime Isabella (ruled 1398–1413), Catherine (ruled 1483–1512, 1513–1517), Jeanne d'Albret (ruled 1555–1572) Erato (ruled 10–2 BC and 6–12 AD), Zarmandukht (ruled 378–384) Maria Theresa (Archduchess) (ruled 1740-1780) - she was the only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions and the last of the House of Habsburg. She was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands and Parma. In some of the Habsburg dominions (such as Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia and Lodomeria and Galicia), she held the title of queen. By marriage, she was also Duchess of Lorraine, Grand Duchess of Tuscany and Holy Roman Empress (all as consort). Fritigil (ruled mid 4th century) Antonia Tryphaena (ruled 18–38), co-ruling with Rhoemetalces II, son of Raskouporis II, Pythodoris II (ruled 38–46), co-ruling with Rhoemetalces III, son of Cotys Jelena Gruba (ruled 1395–1398) Mary (ruled 1382–1385 and 1386–1395), Maria Theresa (Queen) (ruled 1740–1780) Charlotte (ruled 1458–1464), Catherine Cornaro (ruled 1474–1489), Elizabeth II (ruled 1952–1960) Maria Theresa (Queen) (ruled 1740–1780) Margaret I (ruled 1387–1412) - she was founder of the Kalmar Union, which united the Scandinavian countries for over a century. Margaret is known in Denmark as "Margrethe I" to distinguish her from the current queen. Denmark did not have a tradition of allowing women to rule, so when her son died, she was titled "All-powerful Lady and Mistress (Regent) of the Kingdom of Denmark". She only styled herself Queen of Denmark in 1375, usually referring to herself as "Margaret, by the grace of God, daughter of Valdemar King of Denmark" and "Denmark's rightful heir" when referring to her position in Denmark. Others simply referred to her as the "Lady Queen", without specifying what she was queen of, but not so Pope Boniface IX, who in his letters styled her "our beloved daughter in Christ, Margaret, most excellent queen of Denmark, Sweden and Norway", Margaret II (rule 1972–present) Margaret Sambiria (ruled 1266-1282), Christina (ruled 6 November 1632 – 6 June 1654), Ulrica Eleanor (ruled 5 December 1718 – 29 February 1720), Catherine I (ruled 8 February 1725 – 17 May 1727), Anna (ruled 13 February 1730 – 28 October 1740), Elizabeth (ruled 6 December 1741 – 5 January 1762), Catherine II (ruled 9 July 1762 – 6 November 1796) Margaret I of Denmark (ruled 1389–1412), Christina of Sweden (ruled 1632–1654), Ulrika Eleonora of Sweden (ruled 1719–1720) Tamar the Great (ruled 1184–1213), Rusudan (ruled 1223–1245) Deidamia II (ruled c. 233 BCE) Irene (ruled 797-802) Zoe (ruled 1028–1041 and 1042–1050) - she ruled with her consorts Romanos III and Michael IV between 1028 and 1041; she ruled with her sister Theodora and her third husband Constantine IX from 1042 to 1050, Theodora (ruled 1042–1056) - she ruled from 1042 jointly with her sister Zoe and Zoe's third husband Constantine IX; she ruled from 1055 until her own death as sole monarch. Maria Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina (ruled 1384–1385) Mary (ruled 1382–1385 and 1386-1395) - she was crowned as King of Hungary to emphasize that she was a monarch in her own right; she co-ruled with her husband Sigismund of Luxembourg from 1387, Maria Theresa (Queen, "King") (ruled 1740–1780) Margaret I (ruled 1388 – 28 October 1412) Jane Grey (ruled 1553), Mary I (ruled 1553–1558), Elizabeth I (ruled 1558–1603), Mary II (ruled 1689-1694) - she co-ruled with her husband William of Orange, Anne (ruled 1702–1714) Joan I (ruled 1343–1382), Joan II (ruled 1414–1435), Joan III the Mad (ruled 1516–1555) Maria Theresa (Duchess) (ruled 1740–1748), Marie Louise (Duchess) (ruled 1814-1847) Elena of Gallura (ruled 1202 or 1203–1218), Benedetta of Cagliari (ruled 1214–1232 or 1233), Adelasia of Torres (ruled 1236–1259), Joanna of Gallura (ruled 1298–1308), Eleanor of Arborea (ruled 1383–1404) Constance I (ruled 1194–1198) - she co-ruled with her husband Henry of Hohenstaufen until 1197, Constance II (ruled 1282–1285) - she co-ruled with her husband Peter III of Aragon, Maria (ruled 1377–1401) - she co-ruled with her husband Martin I the Younger from 1392, Joan the Mad (ruled 1516–1555) Marie-Adélaïde (Grand Duchess) (ruled 1912-1919), Charlotte (Grand Duchess) (ruled 1919-1964) Elizabeth II (ruled 1964-1974) Claudine (Lady) (ruled 1457-1458), Louise Hippolyte (Princess) (ruled 1731) Wilhelmina (ruled 23 November 1890 – 4 September 1948), Juliana (ruled 4 September 1948 – 30 April 1980), Beatrix (ruled 30 April 1980 – 30 April 2013) Margaret (ruled 1388–1412) Åsa (ruled 815–834/38) Hedwig (ruled 1384–1399) - she was crowned as King of Poland to emphasize that she was a monarch in her own right; she co-ruled with her husband Władysław II Jagiełło from 1386, Anna (ruled 1575–1586) - she was crowned as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania to emphasize that she was a monarch in her own right; she co-ruled with her husband Stephen Báthory Beatrice (ruled 1383, disputed), Maria I (ruled 1777–1816), Maria II (ruled 1826–1828 and 1834–1853) Catherine of Brandenburg (Princess) (ruled 1629 - 1630) Maria Theresa (Grand Princess) (ruled 1740 - 1780) Catherine I (ruled 1725–1727), Anna (ruled 1730–1740), Elizabeth (ruled 1741–1762), Catherine II ("the Great") (ruled 1762–1796) Dynamis (ruled in 47 BC, 44-17 BC and 16-14 BC) - she co-ruled with her first husband Asander in 47 BC and from 44 BC until 17 BC; then she co-ruled with her second husband Polemon I from 16 BC until her death, Gepaepyris (ruled 38–45) - she ruled in association with her son Mithridates III Fatima Soltan (ruled 1679–1681) Urraca of León and Castile (ruled 1109–1126) - also styled as Empress of all the Spains (totius Hispaniae imperatrix). Her use of the imperial styling was limited, much more so than that of her predecessor and successor (it is possible that the imperial style had connotations too strongly masculine). Urraca did employ instead the title Queen of Spain on several occasions from the very beginning of her reign until the end, Petronila of Aragon (ruled 1137–1164), Berenguela of Castile the Great (ruled 1217), Sancha of León (ruled de jure 1230) - she ruled jointly with her sister Dulce. After the death of Sancha's brother, Alfonso IX named his second son, Ferdinand, his heir, bestowing on him the title infante. In 1217, Ferdinand's mother, Berengaria, inherited the Kingdom of Castile, but ceded it to her son. With his heir out of the kingdom and ruling in another place, Alfonso attempted to make his eldest daughters his joint heirs. In the Treaty of Boronal concluded with Portugal in 1219, Alfonso expressly states that if he should die, Portugal should respect the agreement with his daughters. Alfonso also attempted to secure his eldest daughter's rights by marrying Sancha to John of Brienne, the former King of Jerusalem, but his wife Berengaria blocked this action in order to advance her son. After this fiasco, Alfonso declared Sancha and Dulce his heirs, but upon his death on 24 September 1230, the people of León, who had pledged for Ferdinand in 1206, refused to recognise his daughters, and they in turn ceded their rights to his kingdom to their half-brother, Dulce of León (ruled de jure 1230) - she ruled jointly with her sister Sancha, Isabella I of Castile the Catholic (ruled 1474–1504) - After a struggle to claim her right to the throne, she reorganised the governmental system, brought the crime rate to the lowest it had been in years, and unburdened the kingdom of the enormous debt her brother had left behind. Her marriage with Ferdinand II of Aragon brought stability to the kingdoms that became the basis for the political unification of Spain. Her reforms and those she made with her husband had an influence that extended well beyond the borders of their united kingdoms. Isabella and Ferdinand are known for completing the Reconquista, ordering conversion or exile of their Muslim and Jewish subjects in the Spanish Inquisition, and for supporting and financing Christopher Columbus's 1492 voyage that led to the opening of the New World., Joanna of Castile and Aragon the Mad (ruled 1504–1555) - successor of the previous. After her husband's death she was deemed mentally ill and was confined to a nunnery for the rest of her life. Her father, Ferdinand II of Aragon, was regent until his death, when she inherited his kingdom as well., Isabella II of Spain (ruled 1833–1868) Toda Aznárez (ruled 950s-970s) - was the queen consort of Pamplona through her marriage to Sancho I, who reigned from 905 to 925, and was regent of Pamplona for her son García Sánchez I from 931 to 934. Later in life, she ruled a subkingdom created for her, Joan I (ruled 1274–1305), Joan II (ruled 1328–1349), Blanche I (ruled 1425–1441), Blanche II (ruled de jure 1461–1464), Eleanor (ruled in 1479), Catherine (ruled 1483–1517), Joan III (ruled 1555–1572) Margaret (ruled 1389–1412), Christina (ruled 1632–5 June 1654) - she was crowned as King of Swedes, Goths and Vandals to emphasize that she was a monarch in her own right, Ulrika Eleonora the Younger (ruled 30 November 1718 – 29 February 1720) Mary (ruled 1382–1387), Jadwiga (ruled 1387–1399) Maria Theresa (Queen) (ruled 1772–1780) Cartimandua (ruled c. 43–69), queen of the Brigantes, a Celtic people in what is now Northern England - she came to power around the time of the Roman conquest of Britain, and formed a large tribal agglomeration that became loyal to Rome; she is known exclusively from the work of a single Roman historian, Tacitus, though she appears to have been widely influential in early Roman Britain, Boudica (ruled c. 60–61), queen of the Brythonic Celtic Iceni, people of Norfolk, in Eastern Britain - in 61 AD, led a major uprising of the tribes against the occupying forces of the Roman Empire Seaxburh of Wessex (ruled c. 672–674) - she reigned jointly with her husband Cenwalh and, according to tradition, ruled Wessex as Queen for a year following Cenwalh's death in c. 672, Æthelflæd of Mercia (ruled 911–918) - eldest daughter of king Alfred the Great of Wessex, wife of Æthelred II, ealdorman of Mercia, and after his death, sole ruler of Mercia. While her husband was alive, she signed agreements, leading some to think that she was the real leader. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle styles her Lady of the Mercians (Myrcna hlæfdige), Ælfwynn of Mercia (ruled 918) - daughter of Æthelflæd and Æthelred II, styled Lady of the Mercians. Deposed by her uncle, Edward the Elder (4 December 918), who annexed Mercia to Wessex, creating the Kingdom of England Matilda (ruled 7 April – 1 November 1141) - she was England's first de facto female ruler, holding the title of Lady of the English (she planned to assume the title of queen upon her coronation). She was declared heir presumptive by her father, Henry I, and acknowledged as such by the barons; however, upon the death of her father in 1135, Matilda's rival and cousin Stephen of Blois usurped the throne. The Anarchy followed, with Matilda's being a de facto ruler for a few months in 1141, but she was never crowned and failed to consolidate her rule (legally and politically), Jane (ruled 1553, disputed) - her cousin Edward VI of England nominated Jane as successor to the Crown in his will and excluded his half sisters, Mary and Elizabeth. However, this was disputed following Edward's death, since parliament had not ratified his action and Jane was ‘queen’ for only nine days (10–19 July) before Edward's half-sister, Mary, was proclaimed Queen. Jane is nicknamed The Nine Days' Queen, Mary I (ruled 1553–1558), Elizabeth I (ruled 1558–1603) Margaret, Maid of Norway (ruled 25 November 1286 – 26 September 1290) - also known as Margaret, Maid of Norway. She was daughter of Eric II of Norway and Margaret of Scotland and was named "domina and right heir" of the Kingdom of Scotland by her grandfather, Alexander III. Her death, at the age of seven, while en route to Scotland sparked off the disputed succession which led to the Wars of Scottish Independence. As Margaret was never crowned or otherwise inaugurated, and never set foot on what was then Scottish soil during her lifetime, there is some doubt about whether she should be regarded as a Queen of Scots; this could ultimately be a matter of interpretation. Most lists of the monarchs of Scotland do include her, but a few do not., Mary, Queen of Scots (ruled 1542–1567) - she was executed in England in 1587 Mary II (ruled 1689–1694) - she ruled jointly with her cousin and husband William III of Orange, Anne (ruled 1702–1714) Victoria (ruled 1837–1901) - the first monarch to hold the title of Empress of India., Elizabeth II (ruling 1952–present) - head of state of 16 sovereign states, longest-reigning British monarch, longest-reigning queen regnant and female head of state in world history and, since October 2016, the longest currently reigning monarch and head of state. Tuimanufili, (ruled as 20th Tui Manu'a), Siliave, (ruled as 23rd Tui Manu'a), Seuea, (ruled as 27th Tui Manu'a), Matelita, (ruled 1891–1895, as 39th Tui Manu'a) Victoria (ruled 1901), Elizabeth II (ruling 1952–present) Teriimaevarua II (ruled 1860–1873), Teriimaevarua III (ruled 1873–1888) Teha'apapa I (ruled 1760–1790), Teri'itaria II (ruled 1815–1852), Teha'apapa II (ruled 1868–1893), Teuhe (ruled 1888–1890) - she reigned under a rebellion government against her mother Queen Tehaapapa II, Teha'apapa III (ruled 1893–1895) Tehauroarii (ruled 1881–1884), Tuarii (ruled till 1897) – she reigned under a rebellion government against the French with the support of Teraupo'o after Tamatoa VI abdicated. Daughter of Parima (ruled 1886–1887). Tamaeva IV (ruled 1876–1892), Tamaeva V (ruled 1892–1901) Purea (ruled 18th century), queen of the Teva clan on the southern part of the island before unification, Pōmare IV (ruled 1827-1877) Elizabeth II (ruled 1970–1987) Ancient, Kalanikauleleiaiwi, co-ruler of Hawaii Island along with her brother Keaweʻīkekahialiʻiokamoku (ruled 1695–1725), Ululani, 7th Chiefess of Hilo, Kapauanuakea, 3rd Chiefess of Molokai, Kamauliwahine, 4th Chiefess of Molokai, Hualani, 5th Chiefess of Molokai, Kanealai, Chiefess of Molokai, Kūkaniloko, 11th Moi of Oahu (ruled sixteenth century), Kalaimanuia, 12th Moi of Oahu (ruled 1600–1665), Kaikilani, 17th Moi of Hawaii Island (ruled 1575–1605), Keakamahana, 19th Moi of Hawaii Island (ruled 1635–1665), Keakealaniwahine, 20th Moi of Hawaii Island (ruled 1665–1695), Kamakahelei, 22nd Moi of Kauai (ruled 1770–1794), Kingdom, Liliuokalani (ruled 1891–1893 and claimed status as queen until her death in 1917) - was one of many queens of Hawaii; however, she was the only queen regnant of the modern Kingdom of Hawaii established by Kamehameha I in the late eighteenth century Elizabeth II (ruling 1952–present) Makea Takau Ariki, Queen/Supreme High Chiefess of the Cook Islands (ruled 1871–1911) - was the last monarch and only queen regnant of the Kingdom of Rarotonga established in 1858, she ceased to be sovereign after 1888 Elizabeth II (ruling 1975–present) Elizabeth II (ruling 1978–present) Tupoumahe'ofo (ruled 1777–1781, as Tu'i Kanokupolu), Salote Tupou III (ruled 1918–1965) Elizabeth II (ruling 1978–present) Toifale (ruled 1825), Falakika Seilala (ruled 1858–1869), Amelia Tokagahahau Aliki (ruled 1869–1895), Aloisia Brial (ruled 1953–1958) Sitt al-Mulk (regent) 1021–1023 Isabel Maria da Gama (regent) 1962-1975 Yaa Asantewaa (regent), queen mother of Ejisu in the Ashanti Empire Hangbe (regent) ruler of Dahomey 1716-1718 between the death of Akaba and the rule of Agaja Merneith of the First Dynasty - was a consort and a regent of Ancient Egypt during the First Dynasty. She may have been a ruler of Egypt in her own right (hence being included in the list of queens regnant as well). The possibility is based on several official records. Her rule occurred the 30th century B.C., for an undetermined period, Khentkawes I of the Fourth Dynasty - Khentkawes may have served as a regent for Thampthis (considered by some historians her son), or she may have ruled Egypt as Pharaoh., Ahhotep I of the Seventeenth Dynasty, Ankhesenpepi II of the Sixth Dynasty, Ahmose-Nefertari of the Eighteenth Dynasty, Khentkaus II of the Fifth Dynasty - While it is not confirmed that Khentkaus ruled as regent, several aspects of her tomb indicate she may have done so., Tetisheri of the Seventeenth Dynasty Sri Bajarindra (regent) 1862–1955, Sirikit (regent) 1950-2016 Töregene Khatun (regent) 1243–1246, Oghul Qaimish (regent) 1248–1251, Mandukhai Khatun (regent) 15th century Orqina Khatun (regent) 1252-1260 Tulun Beg Khanum (regent) 1370-1373 Tabuyan (regent) 1144-1150, Yelü Pusuwan (regent) 1164–1178 Rani Durgavati (regent) ?–1564 Tarabai (regent) 1700–1708 Shammuramat (regent) 810-806 BC Zenobia (regent) 267–271 Queen Cù thị (regent) 113–112 BC, Empress Dương Vân Nga (regent) 979–981, Empress Thượng Dương (regent) 1072–1073, Lady Ỷ Lan (first regent 1069–1070) (second regent 1072–1085(6,?)), Empress Linh Chiếu (regent) 1138–1158 Ælfthryth (regent) 978-984, Matilda of Flanders - ruled as regent during the absences of her husband, William the Conqueror., Eleanor of Aquitaine (regent) 1190-1191, Eleanor of Provence (regent) 1253, Isabella of France (regent) 1326-1330, Philippa of Hainault (regent) 1346, Joan of Navarre (regent) 1399-1403 and 1415, Catherine of Aragon (regent) six months in 1513, Catherine Parr (regent) July-September 1544 Anne of Kiev (regent) 1060-1066, Adela of Champagne (regent) 1190, Blanche of Castile (regent) 1226-1235 and 1248-1252, Isabella of Bavaria (regent) 1417-1420, Joan the Lame - ruled as regent while her husband, Philip VI of France, fought in the Hundred Years' War., Catherine de' Medici (regent) in 1552, 1560-1563 and in 1574, Marie de' Medici (regent) 1610-1614, Anne of Austria (regent) 1643-1651, Marie Louise (regent) 1812 and 1814, Eugénie de Montijo (regent) 1859, 1865 and 1870 Richilde of Provence (regent) 877, Fredegund (regent) 584-597, Ermentrude of Orleans 823-869 Teuta (regent) 231–227 BC, Etuta (regent) 169-168 BC, Charel (regent) 522-533 BC Parsbit (regent) 730 Olga (regent) 945-962 Theodelinda (regent) 590-591 Amalasuntha (regent) 526-534 Leonor Teles (regent) 1383-1384, Eleanor of Aragon (regent) 1438-1439, Eleanor of Viseu (regent) 1497-1499, Catherine of Austria (regent) 1557-1562, Luisa de Guzmán (regent) 1656-1662, Catherine of Braganza (regent) 1701; 1704-1705, Maria Anna of Austria (regent) 1742-1750, Mariana Victoria of Spain (regent) 1776-1777 Olga (regent) 945-962 (during historical period of Kievan Rus'), Sophia of Lithuania (regent) 1425-1432, Elena Glinskaya (regent) 1533-1538, Natalya Naryshkina (regent) 1682, Sophia Alekseyevna (regent) 1682–1689, Anna Leopoldovna (regent) 1740-1741 Ingeborg (de facto regent) 1318-1319, Hedwig Eleanor (regent) 1660-1672 & 1697 Ulpia Severina (regent) 275 - there is considerable numismatic evidence for Ulpia Severina ruling in her own right between the death of Aurelian and the election of Marcus Claudius Tacitus. Sources mention an interregnum between Aurelian and Tacitus, and some of Ulpia's coins appear to have been minted after Aurelian's death. As such she may have been the only woman to rule over the whole Roman Empire in her own power. Etazeta (regent) 255–254 BC Pulcheria (regent) 414–453, Irene (ruled 797–802) - she normally referred to herself as basilissa (empress), although there are three instances of the title basileus (emperor) being used by her, Theodora the Armenian (regent) 842-855, Martina (empress) 613-641 Yolanda of Flanders (regent) 1217-1219 Amage (regent) 4th century BC Mahpeyker Kösem Sultan (regent) 1623-1632 and 1648-1651, Turhan Hatice Sultan (regent) 1651-1656 Tin Hinan (ruled c. 4th-century) Otrera, the daughter of Eurus (the east wind), Hippolyta, the Amazonian queen who possessed a magical girdle, Penthesilea, the daughter of Ares and Otrera and the sister of Hippolyta, Antiope and Melanippe, Antianara, the daughter of Ares and Otrera and the sister of Hippolyta, Antiope and Melanippe, Eurypyle, Lampedo, Marpesia Semiramis, the legendary queen of king Ninus, succeeding him to the throne of Assyria Libuše Aissa Kili N'guirmamaramama (ruled 1573-1580) Lady Po Nagar, According to Cham legend, was the founder of the Cham nation Dido (ruled 814 – c. 760 BC) - also known as Alyssa. Founder of Carthage, according to tradition Nüwa Queen Somâ (ruled 180–90 BCE) - the earliest Queen and Leader in Cambodian history Gudit, (ruled c. 960 – c. 1000) Queen Gwendolen (ruled 11th century BCE), Queen Cordelia (ruled 8th century BCE), Queen Marcia (ruled 4th century BCE) Zugalum, (ruled 2400 BC) Macha, (ruled 661–654 BC) Medb, Queen of Connacht India Raziya sultan Lavinia Empress Jingū (ruled 201-269) Che Siti Wan Kembang Omphale, Wife of Heracles Alan Gua, a mythical figure from the Secret History of the Mongols Kadimalo (depicted in Semna), Pelekh Candace of Meroë (c. 345–332 BCE) Vakai Wanda Ati, a queen of the fabled Land of Punt in Africa Bilkis in Yemen, Makeda in Ethiopia and Sudan, claimed to be Queen of Sheba Kubaba (ruled 25th century BC) Mosadi Seboko (ruled 2002-), the kgosikgolo[a] of the Balete people in Botswana Te Atairangikaahu (ruled 1966-2006) Laura Teresa I (ruled 1903–1916) Rufina Santana (ruled 1982-1988) Pine Leaf, (ruled 1830s) Victoria Young Anacaona, Cacica of Quisqueya, Iguanamá, also known as Isabel de Iguanamá Deborah Cockacoeske (ruled 1656–1686), Queen Betty (ruled 1686–1708), Queen Ann (ruled 1708–1723) Doña Ines, mother of Caciques Agueybaná and Agüeybaná II, Doña María, daughter of Cacique Bagnamanay, Yuisa, Cacica in the region near Loíza, Puerto Rico Makea Te Vaerua Ariki, High Chiefess of Te Au O Tonga (ruled 1845–1857), Pa Upoko Takau Ariki, High Chiefess of Takitumu (ruled 1855–1890), Tinomana Mereana Ariki, High Chiefess of Puaikura (ruled 1881–1908) Ro Lady Lala Tuisawau-Mara, (ruled 1957 - 2004), Ro Teimumu Tuisawau-Kepa, (ruled 2004 -) Awashonks Queen Alliquippa (ruled 1754) Nosizwe Tyali, Chief of Imingcangathelo, Nosiseko Gaika, Chief of Amambombo (Ngqika), Nomasilakhe Komani, Chief of Imingqalasi L. Pierotti Cei, Madonna Costanza, Regina di Sicilia e d'Aragona, Mondadori, Milan 1995., S. Runciman, I Vespri siciliani, Rizzoli, Milan 1975. Contemporary reigning queens (Zárate's Political Collections) The Monarchy of Denmark, colloquially known as the Danish Monarchy, is a constitutional institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark, as well as the autonomous regions of Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The Kingdom of Denmark was already consolidated in the 8th century, whose rulers are consistently referred to in Frankish sources (and in some late Frisian sources) as "kings" (). Under the rule of King Gudfred in 804 the Kingdom may have included all the major provinces of medieval Denmark. The current unified Kingdom of Denmark was founded or re- united by the Viking kings Gorm the Old and Harald Bluetooth in the 10th century. Originally an elective monarchy, it became hereditary only in the 17th century during the reign of Frederick III. A decisive transition to a constitutional monarchy occurred in 1849 with the writing of the first Constitution. The current Royal House is a branch of the princely family of Glücksburg, originally from Schleswig-Holstein in modern-day Germany, the same royal house as the Norwegian and former Greek royal families. The Danish Monarchy is constitutional and as such, the role of the monarch is defined and limited by the Constitution of Denmark. According to the constitution, the ultimate executive authority over the government of Denmark is still by and through the monarch's royal reserve powers; in practice these powers are only used according to laws enacted in Parliament or within the constraints of convention. The monarch is, in practice, limited to non-partisan functions such as bestowing honours and appointing the prime minister. The monarch and his or her immediate family undertake various official, ceremonial, diplomatic and representational duties. Queen Margrethe II ascended the throne on the death of her father, King Frederick IX, on 14 January 1972. On her accession, Queen Margrethe II became the first female monarch of Denmark since Margrethe I, ruler of the Scandinavian countries in 1375‒1412, during the Kalmar Union. Danish regnal names have traditionally (since 1513) alternated between "Frederick" (Frederik) and "Christian"; Margrethe has taken the place of a Christian, and accordingly her heir apparent is Crown Prince Frederik. The Danish monarchy is over 1200 years old, founded in the 8th century (or earlier). The line of kings of the modern kingdom of Denmark can be traced back to Harthacnut father of Gorm the Old (), who reigned in the early 10th century. The kingdom itself though is probably a couple of hundred years older than that. The Danes were united (or more likely reunited) and officially Christianized in 965 CE by Harald Bluetooth, the story of which is recorded on the Jelling stones. The exact extent of Harald's kingdom is unknown, although it is reasonable to believe that it stretched from the defensive line of Dannevirke, including the Viking city of Hedeby, across Jutland, the Danish isles and into southern present day Sweden; Scania and perhaps Halland. Furthermore, the Jelling stones attests that Harald had also "won" Norway. The son of Harald, Sweyn Forkbeard, mounted a series of wars of conquest against England, which was completed by Sweyn's son Cnut the Great by the middle of the eleventh century. The reign of Cnut represented the peak of the Danish Viking age; his North Sea Empire included England (1016), Denmark (1018), Norway (1028) and held strong influence over the north-eastern coast of Germany. The last monarch descended from Valdemar IV, Christopher III of Denmark, died in 1448. Count Christian of Oldenburg, descendant of Sophia, the daughter of Valdemar IV's aunt Richeza of Denmark, Lady of Werle, who was the daughter of Eric V of Denmark, was chosen as his successor and became the next monarch of Denmark, ruling under the name Christian I. Richeza thus was the female founder of the House of Oldenburg. Originally the Danish monarchy was elective, but in practice the eldest son of the reigning monarch was elected. Later a Coronation Charter was signed by the king to restrict the powers of the Danish monarch. In 1657, during the Second Northern War, King Frederick III launched a war of revenge against Sweden which turned into a complete disaster. The war became a disaster for two reasons: Primarily, because Denmark's new powerful ally, the Netherlands, remained neutral as Denmark was the aggressor and Sweden the defender. Secondly, the Belts froze over in a rare occurrence during the winter of 1657-1658, allowing King Charles X Gustav of Sweden to lead his armies across the ice to invade Zealand. In the following Treaty of Roskilde, Denmark–Norway capitulated and gave up all of Eastern Denmark (i.e. Skåne, Halland, Blekinge and Bornholm), in addition to the counties of Bohuslän and Trøndelag in Norway. But the Second Northern War was not yet over. Three months after the peace treaty was signed, Charles X Gustav held a council of war where he decided to simply wipe Denmark from the map and unite all of Scandinavia under his rule. Once again the Swedish army arrived outside Copenhagen. However, this time the Danes did not panic or surrender. Instead, they decided to fight and prepared to defend Copenhagen. Frederick III had stayed in his capital and now encouraged the citizens of Copenhagen to resist the Swedes, by saying he would "die in his nest", rather than to evacuate to safety in Norway. Furthermore, this unprovoked declaration of war by Sweden finally triggered the alliance that Denmark–Norway had with the Netherlands, and a powerful Dutch fleet was sent to Copenhagen with vital supplies and reinforcements, which saved the city from being captured during the Swedish attack. Charles X Gustav suddenly died of an illness in early 1660, while planning an invasion of Norway. Following his death, Sweden made peace in the Treaty of Copenhagen. The Swedes returned Trøndelag to Norway and Bornholm to Denmark, but kept the other territories gained two years earlier. The Netherlands and other European powers accepted the settlement, not wanting both coasts of the Øresund strait controlled by Denmark. This treaty established the boundaries between Norway, Denmark, and Sweden that still exist today. Absolutism was introduced in 1660-1661 and the elective monarchy was de jure transformed into an hereditary monarchy. Male primogeniture succession was laid down in law in the Royal Decree of 1665. When he succeeded to the throne in January 1848, King Frederick VII was almost at once met by the demands for a constitution and an end to absolutism. The Schleswig-Holsteiners wanted an independent state while the Danes wished to maintain South Jutland as a Danish area. Frederick VII soon yielded to the Danish demands, and in March he accepted the end of absolutism, which resulted in the June Constitution of 1849. During the First War of Schleswig against the German powers in 1848–51, Frederick appeared as ”the national leader” and was regarded almost as a war hero, despite having never taken any active part in the struggles. On 5 June 1849 the constitution, known as the June Constitution, was altered to create the framework of a constitutional monarchy for Denmark. As King Frederick VII was without legitimate issue, Prince Christian of Glücksborg was chosen in 1853 as heir presumptive to the Danish throne, with the approval of the great powers of Europe, in light of the expected extinction of the senior line of the House of Oldenburg. A justification for this choice was his marriage to Louise of Hesse-Kassel, who as a niece of Christian VIII, was a more close relative to the incumbent king than her husband. Upon the death of King Frederick VII of Denmark in 1863, Christian IX acceded to the throne as the first Danish monarch of the House of Glücksburg. Christian IX eventually became known as Father-in-law of Europe due to his family ties with most other ruling dynasties of Europe: His daughter Princess Alexandra married Edward VII of the United Kingdom, another daughter Princess Dagmar married Alexander III of Russia and Princess Thyra married Crown Prince Ernst August of Hanover. His son Vilhelm went on to become George I of Greece. Further, his grandson Carl became Haakon VII of Norway. To this day the Danish Royal Family are related to most other reigning European dynasties. The Easter Crisis of 1920 was a constitutional crisis which began with the dismissal of the elected government by King Christian X, a reserve power which was granted to him by the Danish constitution. The immediate cause was a conflict between the king and the cabinet over the reunification with Denmark of Schleswig, a former Danish fiefdom which had been lost to Prussia during the Second War of Schleswig. According to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, the disposition of Schleswig was to be determined by two Schleswig Plebiscites: one in Northern Schleswig (today Denmark's South Jutland County), the other in Central Schleswig (today part of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein). Many Danish nationalists felt that Central Schleswig should be returned to Denmark regardless of the plebiscite's results, generally motivated by a desire to see Germany permanently weakened in the future. Christian X agreed with these sentiments, and ordered Prime Minister Carl Theodor Zahle to include Central Schleswig in the re-unification process. As Denmark had been operating as a parliamentary democracy since the Cabinet of Deuntzer in 1901, Zahle felt he was under no obligation to comply. He refused the order and resigned several days later after a heated exchange with the king. Subsequently, Christian X dismissed the rest of the government and replaced it with a de facto conservative care-taker cabinet under Otto Liebe. The dismissal caused demonstrations and an almost revolutionary atmosphere in Denmark, and for several days the future of the monarchy seemed very much in doubt. In light of this, negotiations were opened between the king and members of the Social Democrats. Faced with the potential overthrow of the Danish monarchy, Christian X backed down and dismissed his own government. This was the most recent time that a sitting Danish monarch made an executive decision without the support of a cabinet accountable to the legislature; following the crisis, Christian X accepted his drastically reduced role as symbolic head of state. The Act of Succession of 27 March 1953 was promulgated after a 1953 referendum introduced the possibility of female succession and, in effect, made the current queen regnant, Margrethe II, the heir presumptive and eventual successor to her father, Frederick IX upon his death in 1972, rather than her uncle Prince Knud. Following a referendum in 2009, the Act of Succession was amended so that primogeniture no longer puts males over females. In other words, the first-born child would become heir to the throne regardless of gender. According to the Danish Constitution, the Danish Monarch, as the de facto head of state, is the holder of executive and, jointly with the Folketing, legislative power. The Monarch has the ability to deny giving a bill royal assent as well as to choose and dismiss the Prime Minister or any Minister of Government with or without cause; however, no Monarch has exercised the latter powers since King Christian X dismissed the government on 28 March 1920, sparking the 1920 Easter Crisis. However, when reading the Danish Constitution of 1953, it is important to bear in mind that the usage of the word king, in the context of exercising acts of state, is understood by Danish jurists to be read as the Government (consisting of the Prime Minister and other ministers). This is a logical consequence of articles 12, 13 and 14, all of which in essence stipulate that the powers vested in the monarch can only be exercised through ministers, who are responsible for all acts, thus removing any political or legal liability from the Monarch. Today the Queen delegates much royal authority to Ministers in government, allowing the Queen to engage in the ceremonial role outlined by the Danish constitution. The Prime Minister and Cabinet attend the regular meetings of the Council of State, at which the Monarch presides and gives royal assent to laws. The Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs report regularly to the Queen to advise her of the latest political developments. The Queen hosts official visits by foreign Heads of State, pays state visits abroad, receives letters of credence from foreign ambassadors and signs those of Danish ambassadors. The convention for appointment of a new prime minister after a general election is that after consultation with representatives of the political parties, the Queen invites the party leader who has the support of the largest number of seats in the Folketing to form a government. Once it has been formed, the Queen formally appoints it. Greenland and the Faroe Islands are two Danish dependencies which enjoy Home- rule and their head of state is also the monarch of Denmark, in accordance with the Danish Constitution. After a referendum in Greenland in 2009, the Danish Parliament implemented a new Danish Law called Act on Greenlandic Self- rule, which, unlike any other case with the Indigenous Peoples around the world, acknowledges Greenlanders as a people in accordance to the International Law, and hereby giving the Greenlanders ability to obtain sovereignty. Denmark has had absolute primogeniture since 2009. The Danish Act of Succession adopted on 27 March 1953 restricts the throne to those descended from King Christian X and his wife, Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, through approved marriages. Dynasts lose their right to the throne if they marry without the permission of the monarch given in the Council of State. Individuals born to unmarried dynasts or to former dynasts that married without royal permission, and their descendants, are excluded from the throne. Further, when approving a marriage, the monarch can impose conditions that must be met in order for any resulting offspring to have succession rights. Part II, Section 9 of the Danish Constitution of 5 June 1953 provides that the parliament will elect a king and determine a new line of succession should a situation arise where there are no eligible descendants of King Christian X and Queen Alexandrine. The monarch of Denmark must be a member of the Danish National Church, or Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark (Danish Constitution, II,6). The National Church is by law the State Church, though the monarch is not its head. The first law governing the succession to the Danish throne as a hereditary monarchy was the Kongeloven (), enacted 14 November 1665, and published in 1709. It declared that the crown of Denmark shall descend by heredity to the legitimate descendants of King Frederick III, and that the order of succession shall follow semi-Salic primogeniture, according to which the crown is inherited by an heir, with preference among the Monarch's children to males over females; among siblings to the elder over the younger; and among Frederick III's remoter descendants by substitution, senior branches over junior branches. Female descendants were eligible to inherit the throne in the event there were no eligible surviving male dynasts born in the male line. As for the duchies, Holstein and Lauenburg where the King ruled as duke, these lands adhered to Salic law (meaning that only males could inherit the ducal throne), and by mutual agreement were permanently conjoined. The duchies of Schleswig (a Danish fief), Holstein and Lauenburg (German fiefs) were joined in personal union with the Crown of Denmark. This difference caused problems when Frederick VII of Denmark proved childless, making a change in dynasty imminent, and causing the lines of succession for the duchies on one hand and for Denmark on the other to diverge. That meant that the new King of Denmark would not also be the new Duke of Schleswig or Duke of Holstein. To ensure the continued adhesion of the Elbe duchies to the Danish Crown, the line of succession to the duchies was modified in the London Protocol of 1852, which designated Prince Christian IX of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, as the new heir apparent, although he was, strictly, the heir neither to the Crown of Denmark nor to the Duchies of Schleswig, Holstein or Lauenburg by primogeniture. Originally, the Danish prime minister Christian Albrecht Bluhme wanted to keep the separate hereditary principles, but in the end the government decided on a uniform agnatic primogeniture, which was accepted by the Parliament. This order of succession remained in effect for a hundred years, then the Salic law was changed to male-preference primogeniture in 1953, meaning that females could inherit, but only if they had no brothers. In 2009, the mode of inheritance of the throne was once more changed, this time into an absolute primogeniture. Following the transformation of Denmark's monarchy from elective (at least theoretically, although it had generally descended to the eldest son of the House of Oldenburg since 1448) to hereditary in 1660, the so-called Kongelov () established the right to rule "by the grace of God" for King Frederick III and his posterity. Out of the articles in this law, all except for Article 21 and Article 25 have since been repealed. Article 21 states "No Prince of the Blood, who resides here in the Realm and in Our territory, shall marry, or leave the Country, or take service under foreign Masters, unless he receives Permission from the King". Under this provision, princes of Denmark who permanently reside in other realms by express permission of the Danish Crown (i.e. members of the dynasties of Greece, Norway and the United Kingdom) do not thereby forfeit their royalty in Denmark, nor are they bound to obtain prior permission to travel abroad or to marry from its sovereign, although since 1950 those not descended in male-line from King Christian IX are no longer in the line of succession to the Danish throne. However, those who do reside in Denmark or its territories continue to require the monarch's prior permission to travel abroad and to marry. Article 25 of the Kongelov stipulates, with respect to members of the Royal dynasty: "They should answer to no Magistrate Judges, but their first and last Judge shall be the King, or to whomsoever He decrees." Although all other articles of the Kongelov have been repealed by amendments to the Constitution in 1849, 1853 and 1953, these two articles have thus far been left intact. The royal palaces of Denmark became property of the state with the introduction of the constitutional monarchy in 1849. Since then, a varying number of these has been put at the disposal of the monarchy. The agreement on which is renewed at the accession of every new monarch. The monarch has the use of the four palaces at Amalienborg in Copenhagen as a residence and work palace. Currently, the Queen herself resides in Christian IX's Palace and the Crown Prince in Frederik VIII's Palace. Christian VIII's Palace has apartments for other members of the royal family, whereas Christian VII's Palace is used for official events and to accommodate guests. Amalienborg was originally built in the 1750s by architect Nicolai Eigtved for four noble families; however, when Christiansborg Palace burned in 1794, the royal family bought the palaces and moved in. The state rooms of Christian VIII's Palace and Christian VII's Palace may be visited by the public on guided tours. In addition, parts of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen is also at the disposal of the monarch. It is the site of official functions such as banquets, state dinners, diplomatic accreditations, public audiences, meetings of the Council of State, receptions, royal christenings, lyings-in-state and other ceremonies. Also, the Royal Stables which provide the ceremonial transport by horse-drawn carriage for the royal family, is located here. The present building, the third with this name, is the last in a series of successive castles and palaces constructed on the same site since the erection of the first castle in 1167. The palace today bears witness to three eras of architecture, as the result of two serious fires in 1794 and in 1884. The main part of the current palace, finished in 1928, is in the historicist Neo- Baroque style. The chapel dates to 1826 and is in a Neoclassical style. The showgrounds were built 1738-46, in a Baroque style. The royal parts of the palace are open to the public when not in use. Another residence is Fredensborg Palace north of Copenhagen which is used principally in Spring and Autumn. It is often the site of state visits and ceremonial events in the royal family. The palace may be visited by the public on guided tours when not in use. In Jutland, Graasten Palace is at the disposal of the monarch. It was used as the summer residence of King Frederick IX and Queen Ingrid. Since the death of Queen Ingrid in 2000, the Queen has stayed at Graasten for a yearly vacation in summer. The hunting lodge the Eremitage Palace in the Dyrehaven deer park north of Copenhagen is used during royal hunts in Dyrehaven. Finally, Sorgenfri Palace is at the disposal of the monarch. It was the residence of Hereditary Prince Knud and Hereditary Princess Caroline Mathilde and is not in official use at all at this time. Apart from these state-owned palaces, Marselisborg Palace in Aarhus is privately owned by the Queen. It functions as the summer residence of the Queen, as well as during the Easter and Christmas holidays. In the Kingdom of Denmark all members of the ruling dynasty that hold the title Prince or Princess of Denmark are said to be members of the Danish Royal Family. As with other European monarchies, distinguishing who is a member of the national Royal Family is difficult due to lack of strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member. The Queen and her siblings belong to the House of Glücksburg, a branch of the House of Oldenburg. The Queen's children and male-line descendants belong agnatically to the family de Laborde de Monpezat. The Danish Royal Family includes: The Queen, The Crown Prince (Prince Frederik, The Queen's elder son), The Crown Princess (Princess Mary, The Crown Prince's wife), Prince Christian (The Crown Prince's elder son), Princess Isabella (The Crown Prince's elder daughter), Prince Vincent (The Crown Prince's younger son), Princess Josephine (The Crown Prince's younger daughter), Prince Joachim (The Queen's younger son), Princess Marie (Prince Joachim's second wife), Prince Nikolai (Prince Joachim's eldest son), Prince Felix (Prince Joachim's second son), Prince Henrik (Prince Joachim's youngest son), Princess Athena (Prince Joachim's daughter), The Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Princess Benedikte, The Queen's sister), The Queen of the Hellenes (Queen Anne-Marie, The Queen's sister) The extended Danish Royal Family which includes people who do not hold the title of Prince or Princess of Denmark but have close connections to the Queen could be said to include: The Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Prince Gustav, Princess Benedikte's son), Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Princess Benedikte's eldest daughter), Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (Princess Alexandra's husband), Count Richard von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (Princess Alexandra's son), Countess Ingrid von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (Princess Alexandra's daughter), Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Princess Benedikte's youngest daughter), Alexander Johannsmann (Princess Nathalie's husband), Konstantin Johannsmann (Princess Nathalie's son), Louisa Johannsmann (Princess Nathalie's daughter), Count Ingolf of Rosenborg (cousin of the Queen), Countess Sussie of Rosenborg (Count Ingolf's wife), Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg (former daughter-in-law to the Queen, mother of Prince Nikolai & Prince Felix) Most members of the Greek Royal Family are members of the Danish Royal Family and bear the title of Prince or Princess of Greece and Denmark, as descendants of Christian IX of Denmark. Due to the morganatic status of her marriage, Marina, Consort of Prince Michael, and their children, Princesses Alexandra and Olga, are exceptions. The monarchs of Denmark have a long history of royal and noble titles. Historically Danish monarchs also used the titles 'King of the Wends' and 'King of the Goths'. Upon her accession to the throne in 1972 Queen Margrethe II abandoned all titles except the title 'Queen of Denmark'. The kings and queens of Denmark are addressed as 'Your Majesty', whereas princes and princesses are referred to as His or Her Royal Highness (Hans or Hendes Kongelige Højhed), or His or Her Highness (Hans or Hendes Højhed). Eric of Pomerania: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Pomerania., Christopher of Bavaria: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria., The full title of the Danish sovereigns from Christian I to Christian II was: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn and Dithmarschen, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst., Frederick I of Denmark: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn and Dithmarschen, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst, elected King of Norway., The full title of the Danish sovereigns from Christian III to Christian VII was: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark and Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn and Dithmarschen, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst., Oldenburg was elevated to a duchy during the reign of Christian VII, and the style was changed accordingly: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark and Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn, Dithmarschen and Oldenburg. This style was used until his son, Frederick VI, lost control of the Kingdom of Norway by the 1814 Treaty of Kiel., Frederick VI gained control over Rügen 1814-1815 leading to the style: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, the Wends and the Goths, Prince of Rügen, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn, Dithmarschen and Oldenburg., In 1815, Frederick VI relinquished Rügen in favour of the Prussian king, and instead gained the Duchy of Lauenburg from the British-Hanoveran king leading to the style: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn, Dithmarschen, Lauenburg and Oldenburg. This style was used until 1918 when Iceland was elevated to an independent state in union with Denmark., The full title of Christian X from 1918 to 1944: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, Iceland, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn, Dithmarschen, Lauenburg and Oldenburg., The full title of Christian X following the 1944 dissolution of the Dano-Icelandic union: By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, the Wends and the Goths, Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn, Dithmarschen, Lauenburg and Oldenburg. The same style was used by his son, Frederick IX, until his death in 1972, When ascending the throne in 1972, Margrethe II abandoned all the monarch's traditional titles except the title to Denmark, hence her style By the Grace of God, Queen of Denmark. Danish Realm, Throne Chair of Denmark, List of Danish monarchs, Line of succession to the Danish throne, List of orders, decorations, and medals of the Kingdom of Denmark, Royal Life Guards (Denmark), Royal Stables (Denmark), Roskilde Cathedral, Danish colonial empire, Danish monarchs' family tree, Royal mottos of Danish monarchs, Kong Christian stod ved højen mast, Royal Danish Ceremonial Car "Store Krone", Primogenitor The Official Website of the Danish Monarchy

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Badflower is an American rock band founded in Los Angeles, California. The band is composed of singer/guitarist Josh Katz, lead guitarist Joey Morrow, bass guitarist Alex Espiritu and drummer Anthony Sonetti. The band is signed to Big Machine John Varvatos Records and was named Artist of the Week by Apple Music after the release of their EP Temper in 2016. Their debut studio album, titled OK, I'm Sick, was released on February 22, 2019. Badflower's earliest incarnation, The Cartunes, formed in 2008, when music school students, Northridge CA born Josh Katz, and Gilroy CA transplant, Joey Morrow, met at their Hollywood CA apartment building. The pair moved into together, and began writing songs for their 5 piece band. They released a self produced EP in 2011 but after losing their bass player and rhythm guitarist, reformed as rock band Badflower, recruiting Espiritu and Sonetti to round out their ranks. . They played several shows in Los Angeles including a weekly residency at The Key Club and gained attention from satellite radio personality and former NSYNC member Lance Bass. After a performance at The Troubadour, opening for Kongos, the band signed with former independent record label Hundred Handed and began recording their first music release. Badflower released their debut single "Soap" via Hundred Handed records on March 4, 2015, and debuted its music video on Loudwire the same day. Shortly after the release the band flew to the United Kingdom to support Australian pop duo The Veronicas and played to sold out venues including London's Heaven. Then, upon returning home to the US, the band headed straight back on tour to play several showcases in Austin, TX for SXSW and South by So What?! in Grand Prairie, Texas supporting Circa Survive. A demo version of the band's song "Animal" was also used in record label executive John Varvatos's show during New York Fashion Week. The band was then flown out to New York City to showcase for Varvatos and head executives at Republic Records with the prospect of making a deal. After the performance, the label immediately began negotiations which included a buy-out from their previous deal with Hundred Handed. Impatient with the negotiations, the band took it upon themselves to begin recording an album in their garage. On March 10 the band signed with John Varvatos / Republic Records. When the conversation about making an album began, the band confessed they had already begun making it in their garage and submitted a nearly complete version of "Temper" to the label. To the band's surprise, the label loved the self-produced collection and began preparing to release the unanimous favorite, "Animal," as the first single. "Animal" was premiered on Guitar World website and released on September 1, 2016. Following the release of the single, the band performed across the US in support of Billy Talent on the "Afraid of Heights" tour in September, 16. While on tour, the band gained attention from active rock radio stations and top programmers for iTunes and Apple Music. The band's debut EP, Temper dropped on November 4, 2016 and Badflower was named Apple Music's Artist of the week. "Good, Old- Fashioned Rock n' Roll May Have Just Made a Modern Comeback," declares Nylon Magazine Active and Alternative rock radio began spinning "Animal" regularly and was added by stations such as SiriusXM Octane and was voted #1 on KROQ locals only for multiple weeks in a row. iTunes named "Animal" among the best rock songs and Temper among best rock albums of 2016. A few songs from Temper were also featured on Spotify's most streamed music playlists including New Music Friday Following the buzz, Badflower was asked to headline KCRW's School night in West Hollywood, CA on December 19, 2016. The band recruited friend and Big Bang Theory actor Johnny Galecki to join them on stage to close the show. On December 31 "Animal" entered into the Billboard Mainstream Rock Chart and peaked at number 28. In addition, by March 2017 their single "Animal" from Temper had cracked at 1 million Spotify streams and as of 2018 has garnered them over 2,000,000 streams. Soon after the release of Temper EP on December 12, 2016, Badflower began touring to promote the release. Badflower as well as American rock band Red Sun Rising would be opening acts for Pop Evil on their "Rock 'N' Roll Now" Tour from January to February 2017. After the tour, they would be the supporting bands with Bleeker and Beware of Darkness, as well as two additional shows with Red Sun Rising, playing at various music festivals like Buzzfest, Rock on Range and River City Rock Fest. They would also put on a summer tour with the rock group Goodbye June from Nashville, Tennessee, and In addition, it was announced they were to do several more headlines at major festivals like Louder Than Life Festival in Kentucky They have opened for Of Mice & Men, Greta Van Fleet, IDK, From Ashes to New, The Struts, Pop Evil, Bleeker, Beware of Darkness, The Wrecks, and Red Sun Rising During the tour, a previously unreleased track, "Move Me", was released on the band's Facebook page. Katz explained he wrote the song while heartbroken at his Thousand Oaks, CA home in 2015. However, four days after the release of "Move Me", their tour van was broken into outside a venue in Los Angeles. Their backpacks, wallets, laptops, cameras, gear etc. were stolen and they were forced to cancel two shows in Santa Cruz and Berkeley, California. The tour reconvened soon after, and their track "White Noise", from their Temper EP, reached 1 million plays on Spotify. On September 9, 2017 it was revealed on Facebook they were to start recording for their first full length album with their record label John Varvatos /Big Machine Label Group, being the first rock group to sign a deal with the label. Badflower began preproduction for the new album in Fall 2017 and began recording at Ocean Studios in Burbank, CA alongside producer Noah Shain. More than a year later, on December 6th 2018, the band re-released their official music video for the song "Heroin", featuring the current version of the song, which had been added to the album. At the end of 2017, Badflower had over 1,000,000 fans from 61 countries playing over 312,000 hours of their music from their Spotify alone, On November 1, Badflower announced their debut album OK, I'm Sick, would be released on February 22, 2019. Josh Katz said the following about the single 'Ghost': "I was depressed and thinking about self-harm. So I just wrote it. I played out the whole scenario and put it into a song because that's what writers do, I suppose. I didn't even know if it was gonna go on the album. I was sorta hesitant to even show it to the rest of my band, But everyone heard it and loved it". EP as The Cartunes (2010), Kick Me as The Cartunes (2011), About a Girl (2013), Temper (2016) Bounce is a 2000 American romantic drama film starring Ben Affleck and Gwyneth Paltrow and directed by Don Roos. In Chicago's O'Hare airport, advertising executive Buddy Amaral (Ben Affleck) is delayed by a snow storm for a return flight to Los Angeles, on the same airline he has just signed as a big client. He meets writer Greg Janello (Tony Goldwyn), and when his flight resumes boarding, Buddy gives his ticket to Greg so he can get home to his sons, 8-year old Scott (Alex D. Linz) and 4-year old Joey (David Dorfman). Buddy convinces his friend and airline employee Janice Guerrero (Jennifer Grey) to allow Greg to take his place on the flight. While spending the night with fellow stranded passenger Mimi (Natasha Henstridge), Buddy sees on television that the flight crashed. He has Janice check into the computer system to remove his name from the passenger manifest and add Greg's name. Greg's wife Abby (Gwyneth Paltrow) is woken up by news of the crash, and for many hours is torn between hope and despair, clinging to the belief that Greg would still arrive on the later flight on which he was originally booked, until his death is confirmed. Once back in L.A., the airline dictates that Buddy run a series of innocuous ads to ameliorate the tragic consequences of the crash, which win a Clio award. Plagued with guilt, Buddy makes a drunken scene at the awards show, and begins a stint in Alcoholics Anonymous. One of the steps in recovery is to make up for past misdeeds, so Buddy seeks out Abby, a budding realtor, giving her a tip on a commercial office building that Jim (Joe Morton), Buddy's partner and boss, has put a bid on. In return, Abby treats Buddy to a night at Dodger Stadium. Their relationship blossoms, even as Buddy does not tell her about being indirectly responsible for Greg's death. When the airline settles with Greg's estate, Abby next wants to put her boys on an aircraft to Palm Springs to get over their fear of flying. Buddy asks to go along with them, and soon develops a strong bond with the two boys. On the return trip, Buddy says he has a secret he will reveal the next day. It all comes apart when Mimi shows up, with a video of Greg and Buddy having a drink in the airport bar. Abby is devastated by Buddy lying to her and demands that he leave her home and her life - though also demands that he say goodbye to the boys. Buddy comes back the next day and talks to Scott, who is afraid that his father died trying to get home for a Boy Scouts Christmas tree outing. Abby harbors the same guilt for pressuring Greg to come home on the fateful flight. The victims' families sue the airline for damages, and Janice's role is revealed when Buddy is called to testify. As Abby watches on television, Buddy explains that he gave his ticket to Greg and did not take Greg's in exchange. In coercing Janice to change the roster, the airline's security procedures were compromised, which gets her fired. Buddy is excused by the judge, but still feels guilty. Buddy resigns from his firm, having compromised his client, the airline. Abby comes by to tell him that his talk with Scott had helped them both. Buddy, sensing that Abby is about to leave, asks her to help him rent his beachfront home or put it up for sale. As Buddy starts to talk about his plans, Abby realizes she can forgive him. Ben Affleck as Buddy Amaral, Gwyneth Paltrow as Abby Janello, Natasha Henstridge as Mimi Prager, Edward Edwards as Ron Wachter, Jennifer Grey as Janice Guerrero, Tony Goldwyn as Greg Janello, Lisa Joyner as T.V. Announcer, Caroline Aaron as Donna, Alex D. Linz as Scott Janello, David Dorfman as Joey Janello, Juan Garcia as Kevin Walters, Joe Morton as Jim Willer, Johnny Galecki as Seth, David St. James as Judge Bounce was a project previously in development with Polygram Filmed Entertainment. Principal photography began on August 30, 1999, with shooting completed on November 7, 1999. The film marks the first major motion picture to be delivered via satellite, with AMC Empire playing Bounce exclusively in its digital format/digital production. The film was later released in United States on video on April 10, 2001. 1. Weather [3:27] 2. Bed Time [1:08] 3. Boarding Pass [2:33] 4. Moving Day [1:06] 5. Hangover [0:57] 6. Crash [1:37] 7. Nice To Meet You [1:35] 8. Now I Am [1:09] 9. So Brave [1:45] 10. Seven Steps [2:18] 11. Christmas Trees [1:47] 12. Award [1:21] 13. Kiss [1:40] 14. Deception [1:12] 15. Say Goodbye [1:21] 16. Testimony [1:36] 17. You're Excused [1:46] 18. Can We Try? [2:05] Bounce received generally mixed reviews from film critics. As of January 2012, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes has given it a 52% rating, with an average rating of 5.5 out of 10, based on 106 reviews. The film opened at #4 at the North American box office making $11.4 million its opening weekend. Roger Ebert noted that the plot was a familiar one. "Lovers with untold secrets are a familiar movie situation ..." yet, he liked the film because the characters, from lead actors to secondary roles, were honest and endearing. Milano, Valerie. Gwyneth Paltrow. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: ECW Press, 2000. . Movie stills Rings (known in Japan as The Ring: Rebirth) is a 2017 American supernatural horror film directed by F. Javier Gutiérrez, written by David Loucka, Jacob Aaron Estes and Akiva Goldsman and starring Matilda Lutz, Alex Roe, Johnny Galecki, Aimee Teegarden, Bonnie Morgan and Vincent D'Onofrio. It is the third installment in The Ring series, following the previous installments The Ring (2002) and The Ring Two (2005), and is based on elements of Spiral by Kôji Suzuki. Paramount Pictures had initially planned a third film, originally titled The Ring 3D, in early 2014, with Gutiérrez signed to direct the film from a screenplay written by Goldsman, Loucka, and Aaron Estes. Principal photography began on March 23, 2015, in Atlanta, and wrapped on May 31, 2015. Reshoots took place in July 2016. Rings was released in the United States on February 3, 2017, and opened #2 in the box office. The film received generally negative reviews from critics, with many criticizing its story, plot points and jump scares, but praised Lutz's performance. It has a 8% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, becoming the worst rated film of the trilogy and grossed $83million worldwide against its $25million budget. In 2013, on an airplane bound for Seattle, a man reveals that he has watched Samara Morgan's cursed videotape. Another passenger reveals she has seen the tape too and asks the man if he made a copy; he replies that he did not. Moments later, Samara causes the airplane to crash. Two years later in 2015, college professor Gabriel Brown buys a VCR, discovering the videotape inside. Elsewhere, student Julia sees her boyfriend Holt off to college but grows concerned when he falls out of contact. She is inspired to find him when a panicked girl contacts her, asking for Holt's whereabouts. Julia meets Gabriel and finds a group of people known as the Sevens, who are involved in an experiment involving the cursed video. The group films themselves watching the video before passing the footage to another person called a "tail". Julia recognizes the panicked girl, Skye, who takes her to her apartment to have her watch the video, but Holt warns her not to. Julia locks herself in the bathroom as Samara kills Skye. Holt reveals that he has watched the tape as well and has 12 hours left. Julia watches his copy and when she picks up the phone, she experiences a vision of a door. The phone burns a mark on her hand. Julia's version of the video cannot be copied and contains additional images of a mysterious woman: she realizes they must cremate Samara's physical remains. Gabriel sends them to Sacrament Valley, where Samara was given a proper burial after the residents of Moesko Island refused to accept the remains. He realizes the mark on Julia's hand is Braille, translates it, and goes to warn them. Julia and Holt find an unmarked tomb, but when they break in, they find it empty. They are caught and taken to a blind man named Galen Burke, who claims Samara's body was entombed by the local priest but a flood came, leading the priest to bury her in a potter's field outside town. Heading for the field, Julia and Holt are stopped due to a car crash and learn Gabriel was involved. He tries to warn Julia of his discovery but is killed by a falling utility pole. After experiencing a vision of Samara's mother Evelyn, Julia and Holt return to town. Julia goes to the church and discovers a hidden chamber beneath the bell tower, finding evidence that Evelyn was imprisoned there while pregnant, held in captivity by the priest after being raped before she escaped eight months into the pregnancy. Julia visits Burke and explains her findings. He attacks her, revealing he is the priest as well as Samara's biological father, having blinded himself to escape the reach of her powers. Julia pushes him down the stairs, temporarily incapacitating him. Holt rushes to Burke's house, where he is knocked unconscious. Julia discovers Samara's skeleton behind a wall, and Burke tries to strangle her to prevent her from cremating Samara's remains. He claims the cremation would unleash an unspeakable evil upon the world, and that he has killed several people who previously attempted to do the same. Suddenly, a swarm of cicadas fly in, summoning Samara through Julia's phone. Samara cures Burke's blindness and kills him. Holt recovers and rushes to Julia's aid. That night, he and Julia cremate Samara's corpse, in an attempt to appease her spirit once and for all, and return home. While Julia is in the shower, Holt notices a voicemail from Gabriel, who warns him of the Braille, which Holt begins to translate. In the bathroom, Julia peels away the skin where the mark was, revealing grey skin underneath. She begins to cough up black hair, from which a cicada is born. Meanwhile, Julia's copy of the cursed video is sent to everyone on her contact list, which becomes viral, despite Holt's futile attempts to disconnect the computer. As his computer glitches, the Braille translation is revealed to be "rebirth", as Samara is reborn in Julia, seeing Samara's face in her mirror instead of her own. Matilda Lutz as Julia, Alex Roe as Holt Anthony, Johnny Galecki as Gabriel Brown, Vincent D'Onofrio as Galen Burke, Aimee Teegarden as Skye Johnston, Bonnie Morgan as Samara Morgan, Chuck David Willis as Blue, Patrick R. Walker as Jamal, Zach Roerig as Carter, Laura Slade Wiggins as Faith, Lizzie Brocheré as Kelly, Karen Ceesay as Flight Attendant, Dave Blamy as First Officer, Michael E. Sanders as Pilot, Randall Taylor as Holt's Father, Drew Grey as Sam, Kayli Carter as Evelyn Borden, Jill Jane Clements as Karen Styx, Adam Fristoe as Chris, Rick Baker as Vendor In 2014, Paramount Pictures announced the initially titled The Ring 3D, with F. Javier Gutiérrez directing. In August 2014, Paramount was in talks with Akiva Goldsman to write a third draft of the screenplay, which had previously been worked on by David Loucka and Jacob Aaron Estes. In November, Gutiérrez posted an Instagram photo that showed that the title of the sequel had been changed to Rings. On January 16, 2015, Matilda Lutz was cast in the lead role. Alex Roe was cast as the male lead on March 20, 2015. Aimee Teegarden joined the cast on March 27, 2015, and Johnny Galecki signed on to star in the film on April 1, 2015, playing Gabriel, a professor who mentors and helps both Holt and Julia. Principal photography on the film began on March 23, 2015, in Atlanta, and wrapped on May 31, 2015. Reshoots took place in July 2016. Post-production began in June 2015 at Paramount Studios and was concluded in November 2016. Paramount Pictures originally set the film for a November 13, 2015, release, but in September 2015, the film was pulled from the schedule, and in October 2015, Paramount rescheduled the release date to April 1, 2016. On February 17, 2016, the film was rescheduled for release on October 28, 2016, to take the place of Paramount's previous October horror release staple, the Paranormal Activity series, which ended in 2015 with . On September 22, 2016, the film was delayed to February 3, 2017, most likely to avoid competition with , leaving the latter as the only horror film that debuted around Halloween 2016. The film's first trailer was released on August 24, 2016. The second trailer was released on January 5, 2017, alongside a new international trailer, containing new footage. In January 2017, Paramount released a prank video where an actress dressed as Samara jumped out of a television to scare unwitting patrons at an electronics store. The video garnered 200million views in 24 hours on Facebook. Rings was released on digital HD on April 21 and on Blu-ray and DVD on May 2, 2017. The digital HD and Blu-ray releases include behind-the-scenes interviews with the cast & crew, deleted/extended scenes, and an alternate ending. Rings grossed $27.8million in the United States and Canada and $55.3million in other territories for a worldwide total of $83.1million, against a production budget of $25million. In North America, the film was released alongside The Space Between Us and The Comedian, and is projected to gross $12–14million from about 3,000 theaters in its opening weekend. It made $800,000 from its Thursday night previews. It went on to open to $13million, finishing second at the box office behind fellow horror film Split. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 8% based on 111 reviews and an average rating of 3.19/10, becoming the worst rated film of the trilogy. The site's critical consensus reads, "Rings may offer ardent fans of the franchise a few threadbare thrills, but for everyone else, it may feel like an endless loop of muddled mythology and rehashed plot points." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 25 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C–" on an A+ to F scale, lower than the B– and C+ earned by its respective predecessors. Alex Gilyadov of IGN gave the film a score 4.5/10, stating that it "opts for lazy jump scares and a convoluted origins story no one asked for or needed", though not dismissing that it has "some chilling scenes and creepy visuals". Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the movie zero stars and called it a "botch job" that suffers from "demo-worthy awfulness in directing, writing and acting". Peter Sobczynski of RogerEbert.com gave a single star, calling it "More wearying than frightening". A.A. Dowd of The A.V. Club commented that the film was a pale imitation of the 2002 American remake in terms of visuals and plot structure. He also dismissed the film's characters as "bland nothings", citing their lack of development in the story. Some critics applauded the film out of the US. Mike McCahill of The Guardian commented that the film "smoothly reinvents the wheel" and "the director has fun with the franchise's organising visual conceit and handles the setpieces with quiet aplomb", pointing that "the admirably loopy finale, involving blind Vincent d'Onofrio's swarming army of cicadas, is worthy of one of the better Exorcist sequels". Javier Jimenez Montoya of Vavel also praised the film, stating that "it's a step forward in the horror genre" and applauding "its strong, surprising ending". The generally negative critical reception in the US, along with its lower-than- expected US box office intake, was partially blamed by some critics and fans for the cancellation of Paramount's newest installment of the Friday the 13th franchise. Speaking at CinemaCon, Paramount Vice Chairman Rob Moore said that should the film prove successful, more sequels could recur annually, taking the place of Paramount's Paranormal Activity series. These plans were left in doubt following Moore's departure from the company. In a post-release interview, Moore's successor, Megan Colligan, said that "time will tell" if another sequel is in the cards. Following Colligan's departure, there has been no update on a sequel.

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The Sixties Scoop refers to a practice that occurred in Canada of taking, or "scooping up", Indigenous children from their families and communities for placement in foster homes or adoption. Despite the reference to one decade, the Sixties Scoop began in the late 1950s and persisted into the 1980s. It is estimated that a total of 20,000 aboriginal children were taken from their families and fostered or adopted out to primarily white middle-class families as part of the Sixties Scoop. Each province had different foster programs and adoption policies. Saskatchewan had the only targeted Indigenous transracial adoption program, called Adopt Indian Métis (AIM) Program. While most "scooped" children were placed in foster care or for adoption in Canada, some were placed in the United States or Western Europe. The term "Sixties Scoop" was coined in the early 1980s by social workers in the British Columbia Department of Social Welfare in order to describe their own Department's practice of child apprehension. The phrase first appears in print in the 1983 report Native Children and the Child Welfare System where Patrick Johnston notes the source for the term and adopts its usage. It is similar to the term "Baby Scoop Era," which refers to the period from the late 1950s to the 1980s when large numbers of children were taken from unmarried mothers for adoption. The continued practice of taking Indigenous, Inuit and Métis children from their families and communities and placing them in foster homes or for adoption is termed Millennium Scoop. The government policies that led to the Sixties Scoop were discontinued in the mid-1980s, after Ontario chiefs passed resolutions against them and a Manitoba judicial inquiry harshly condemned them. Associate Chief Judge Edwin C. Kimelman headed the judicial inquiry, which resulted in the publication of the No quiet place / Review Committee on Indian and Metis Adoptions and Placements, also known as the Kimelman Report. Multiple lawsuits were filed in Canada by former wards of the Sixties Scoop, including one in Ontario in 2010, and one in British Columbia in 2011. Ontario Superior Court Justice Edward Belobaba ruled on February 14, 2017, that the government was liable for the harm caused by the Sixties Scoop. Beaverhouse First Nation Chief Marcia Brown Martel was the lead plaintiff in this class action lawsuit, which was filed in Ontario nearly a decade ago. It was one of a series of class action lawsuits launched in five provinces. On October 6, 2017, an $800 million Canadian settlement was announced. National Indigenous Survivors of Child Welfare Network, a group led by Sixties Scoop survivors based in Ottawa, is advocating for the settlement to be rejected unless it includes all Indigenous people who were taken from their homes and forcibly adopted. Métis and non-status First Nations people are currently excluded from the agreement. Canada's residential school system was implemented by the federal government and administered by various churches. Its purpose was to educate Aboriginal children in Euro-Canadian and Christian values so they could become part of mainstream society. The school system was in effect from the 1880s until 1996, when the last school closed. Children were forcibly removed from their families and homes for an extended period of time. The school's policies forbade the children from speaking their own languages or acknowledging their culture in any way. Survivors of the residential schools have come forward and spoken out about physical, spiritual, sexual and psychological abuse they experienced at the hand of the residential school staff. The lasting cultural impact on First Nations, Métis, and Inuit families and communities has been widespread and extensive. Residential schools systematically undermined Aboriginal culture across Canada and disrupted families for generations, severing the ties through which Aboriginal culture is taught and sustained, and contributing to a general loss of language and culture. Because they were removed from their families, many students grew up without experiencing a nurturing family life and without the knowledge and skills to raise their own families. The devastating effects of the residential schools are far-reaching and continue to have a significant impact on Aboriginal communities. Because the government's and the churches’ intent was to eradicate all aspects of Aboriginal culture in these young people and interrupt its transmission from one generation to the next, the residential school system is commonly considered a form of cultural genocide. The Canadian government started to close the compulsory residential school system in the 1950s and 1960s, but it was the opinion of the government authorities at that time that Aboriginal children would benefit from a better education from the public school system. This transition to provincial services led to a 1951 [Indian Act] amendment that enabled the Province to provide services to Aboriginal people where none existed federally. Child protection was one of these areas. In 1951, twenty- nine Aboriginal children were in provincial care in British Columbia; by 1964, that number was 1,466. Aboriginal children, who had comprised only 1 percent of all children in care, came to make up just over 34 percent. Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), a component of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, was mandated to document the experiences of Indigenous children in residential schools and to share the truth of survivors, families, communities and others affected with all Canadians. According to the TRC Commission's final report, published in 2015:By the end of the 1970s, the transfer of children from residential schools was nearly complete in Southern Canada, and the impact of the Sixties Scoop was in evidence across the country.First Nations communities responded to the loss of their children and the resulting “cultural genocide” both by repatriating children whose adoptions failed and working to regain control over child welfare practices related to their children, starting in 1973 with the Blackfoot (Siksika) child welfare agreement in Alberta. While there are about 125 First Nations Child and Family Service Agencies across Canada, they operate through a patchwork of agreements that give them authority from the provincial government to provide services and funding from the federal government. Funded by the Canadian government and the province of Saskatchewan, the Adopt Indian Métis (AIM) project started promoting the adoption of First Nations children by middle-class, white families in 1967. It was started by Otto Driedger, who later become Director of Child Welfare for Saskatchewan, and Frank Dornstauder. AIM was the only targeted Indigenous transracial adoption program in Canada. The CBC News produced a television segment about AIM after the project's first year, in May 1968. It shows several Indian and Métis children playing as the reporter, Craig Oliver, tells viewers that they respresent only a few of the hundreds of First Nations children ages six weeks to six years who are in need of homes. He states that there has been an increase in the number of children from these communities who are up for adoption due to the rise in illegitimate births and marriage breakdowns among Indian and Métis people. The government had been taking in nearly 200 children each year as wards of the state and was having difficulty finding permanent homes for them. The news report portrays the AIM program as a solution to this problem and focuses on its quantifiable results: placing 100 children, including several family groups of children, in its first year. At the time CBC News ran the segment, all of the children remained with their adoptive families. The program advertised the availability of the Indian and Métis children for adoption through a marketing campaign with radio, TV and newspaper advertising. The large photographs of these children that ran in provincial newspapers with the AIM advertisements were said to be the most effective aspect of its outreach to prospective families. The program also promised fast adoptions, with completion of the process within as few as 10 weeks. The original AIM program ran through 1969 and resulted in an increased interest in transracial adoptions. The focus of the program was broadened in 1970 to include all children, but it continued to overrepresent First Nations children given the high number that were taken into custody by social workers in Saskatchewan. For example, in 1969, Indian and Métis people represented only 7.5 percent of the population of Saskatchewan but their children accounted for 41.9 percent of all children in foster homes in the province. In 1971, the Métis Society in Saskatoon formed a Métis Foster Home Committee, led by Howard Adams, Phyllis Trochie, Nora Thibodeau and Vicki Raceme. Its purpose was to challenge the AIM program and research the creation of a Métis- controlled foster home program. Those leading the committee saw the AIM program as detrimental to children, parents and the Métis community. They said that AIM's advertising campaign was racist, specifically because it implied Métis parents were unable to look after their children, portrayed First Nations children as inferior and unwanted, and suggested that any white family could be accepted for adoptions. A CBC News segment in 1971 by reporter John Warren stated that 500 children had found permanent homes through the AIM program. An unidentified man representing AIM that Warren interviews said that the increased adoptions of Indian and Métis children was not due to prior prejudice but increased awareness of their availability for adoption, adding that 170 children up to age 10 currently were in need of homes. Further, the AIM representative stated that four years earlier "children of native origin" represented only one in ten of the children adopted in Saskatchewan and for the past two years they represented one in four of the children adopted in the province. The AIM representative said that though it was not the primary goal of the program, he hoped that AIM would help people of different races understand each other. In his report, Warren also mentioned that First Nations leaders were criticizing AIM as an attempt at integration and were drafting complaints about the program to bring to federal and provincial leaders. A CBC Radio podcast series, titled Missing and Murdered: Finding Cleo, takes an in- depth look at the experience of a Cree girl named Cleopatra (Cleo) Nicotine Semaganis. In 1974, at the age of nine, Cleo was removed from her family in Saskatchewan as part of the AIM program. The family never saw her again and wanted to know what happened to her. The series website includes images of AIM newspaper advertisements featuring photographs and personal and health information about the Indian and Métis children available for adoption. It also includes an internal memo, dated Sept. 25, 1973, from AIM director G.E. Jacob that recommends as an "Award of Merit" naming a supervisor in North Battleford, Sask., Mrs. D. Wilson, "Salesperson of the Year". This award was to recognize the number of children she made wards of the province and eligible for adoption. In 1977, about 15,500 Indigenous children were in the care of child welfare authorities, an estimate based on data from Indian and Northern Affairs, Health and Welfare Canada, Statistics Canada and provincial departments of social services. They represented 20 percent of all Canadian children living in care, even though Indigenous children made up less than 5 percent of the total child population. In 1983, Patrick Johnston, at the time a program director at the Canadian Council on Social Development, coined the term “Sixties Scoop” in a report on Aboriginal child welfare. His research found that Aboriginal children were being disproportionately taken into the child welfare system. Johnston, while researching his report, collected statistical data from various stakeholders within the community, including different levels of government, Aboriginal organizations and band councils. He got the idea for the term "Sixties Scoop" from a social worker who disclosed "with tears in her eyes – that it was common practice in BC in the mid-sixties to 'scoop' from their mothers on reserves almost all newly born children. She was crying because she realized – 20 years later – what a mistake that had been." In Alberta, 40 to 50 percent of children in care were Aboriginal; 60 to 70 percent in Saskatchewan; and 50 to 60 percent in Manitoba. According to the Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission, "Johnston estimated that, across Canada, Aboriginal children were 4.5 times more likely than non-Aboriginal children to be in the care of child welfare authorities." Similar findings have been reported by other experts. Most of the children who were removed by social workers did not return to their communities. A 1980 study by the Canadian Council on Social Development found 78 percent of status First Nations children who were adopted were placed with non-Indigenous families. Raven Sinclair, an associate professor at the University of Regina and a member of Gordon First Nation, wrote an article, titled Identity lost and found: Lessons from The Sixties Scoop, in which she discusses the broader context of the term Sixties Scoop: Titled No Quiet Place, the Kimelman Report was a strong critique of both the existing child welfare system in Manitoba and the practices of the social workers and agencies that were working within it. The Kimelman Report included 109 recommendations to address issues that ranged from cultural sensitivity to maintenance of family ties, formal training for professionals, structure of the system and having records accessible by computer. Judge Kimelman went on to refer to the loss of the children as a "cultural genocide". A 1989 follow- up report published in the Canadian Journal of Native Studies by the Manitoba Metis Federation indicated that the situation had not improved but in some ways was becoming more problematic for Metis Children. Deanna Reder, Cree- Métis, an associate professor in the Departments of First Nations Studies and English at Simon Fraser University, wrote in 2007 that adult adoptees who were affected by these policies have begun to speak out about their losses: loss of their cultural identity, lost contact with their natural families, barred access from medical histories, and for status Indian children, the loss of their status. Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) documented the experiences of Indigenous children who were removed from their families and placed in residential schools by the government. TRC Commissioners, who were tasked with sharing this knowledge with all Canadians, focused on child welfare in the first five of 94 calls to action in their final report. Published in 2015, the TRC report addresses the effects of the Sixties Scoop as well that of residential schools on Indigenous communities:Today, the effects of the residential school experience and the Sixties Scoop have adversely affected parenting skills and the success of many Aboriginal families. These factors, combined with prejudicial attitudes toward Aboriginal parenting skills and a tendency to see Aboriginal poverty as a symptom of neglect, rather than as a consequence of failed government policies, have resulted in grossly disproportionate rates of child apprehension among Aboriginal people.The aftereffects of the Sixties Scoop remain an issue in child welfare provision for Aboriginal communities in Canada. Scholar Chris Walmsley notes in Protecting Aboriginal Children (2011) that some social workers find themselves in a similar alienated relationship to communities. Walmsley referred to one heavily publicised incident in which 71 children were removed from a community in 1998 (though not all were Aboriginal). One Aboriginal childcare worker said "to me it was very shocking ... it reminded me of the Sixties Scoop when kids on-reserve were taken without even their parents being aware of them [being] taken." Walmsley comments that, Walmsley notes, though, that there is a reverse problem, which is that Aboriginal children in care are now often "off- loaded" onto Aboriginal communities that do not have the resources to deal with them, a process that can exacerbate problems in fragile communities by introducing troubled children with no meaningful ties beyond ethnicity. A 2011 Statistics Canada study found 14,225 or 3.6 per cent of all First Nations children aged 14 and under are in foster care, compared with 15,345 or 0.3 per cent of non-Indigenous children. Canada's 1.4 million First Nations, Inuit and Métis people disproportionately experience poor living conditions and substandard schooling, among other issues. A 2016 study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives found that 51 percent of First Nations children live in poverty. This number increases to 60 percent for First Nations children who live on reserves, with poverty rates reaching 76 percent in Manitoba and 69 percent in Saskatchewan for First Nations children living on reserves. The study found poverty rates were 30 percent for non-status First Nations children, 25 percent for Inuit children, and 23 percent for Métis children. (Canada has an overall child poverty rate of 18 percent, ranking it 27 among 34 countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.) Cindy Blackstock, Ph.D., executive director of the First Nations Child & Family Caring Society of Canada and a professor in the School of Social Work at McGill University, has claimed that funding for child and family services on reserves is insufficient. She believes that the Canadian government's funding amounts to discrimination against First Nations children. Canadian government documents support Blackstock's statements; they show Indigenous agencies receive about 22 to 34 percent less in funding than provincial agencies. Blackstock's organization and the Assembly of First Nations, a political organization representing all First Nations in Canada, took this concern to the Canadian Human Rights Commission in 2007. Their complaint, which alleged that the Government of Canada had a longstanding pattern of providing less government funding for child welfare services to First Nations children on reserves than is provided to non-Indigenous children, was referred to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal. The Tribunal ruled in January 2016 that the Canadian government's failure to provide equitable and culturally based child welfare services to 165,000 First Nations children amounted to discrimination. The government has spent at least $5 million Canadian fighting the complaint and has not acted on this and three subsequent noncompliance orders. On August 25, 2017, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that Canada to end its underfunding of First Nations, Inuit and Métis child and family services; ensure that all children, on and off reserve, have access to all services available to other children in Canada, without discrimination; fully implement Jordan's Principle to ensure access to services is not delayed or denied because of funding disputes between the federal, provincial and territorial governments; and address the root causes of displacement, such as poverty and poor housing, that disproportionately drive Indigenous children into foster care. Richard Cardinal, a Métis child, was born in Fort Chipewyan, Alberta. He entered the foster care system when he was four years old. While in the care of Alberta Child Welfare, he had a total of 28 group care and foster placements, secured facilities and shelters. At age 17, Richard hanged himself on June 26, 1984. There is a film that was made about his short life. was based on his personal diary and interviews with his brother Charlie and his foster parents. Sydney Dion is an aboriginal man from Manitoba who was adopted by a family in the United States in 1971. The CBC 8th Fire features his story about coming back to Canada. Dion saved his money so he could find his family in Canada. When he arrived at the border, he was turned down: "they are aware that I was born here, but I am not a citizen here". He did not have a Canadian birth certificate and his name had been changed. Therefore, he had no proof that he is a Canadian citizen. On his second try to get into Canada, he was successful. The border guard acknowledged that he was a minor when he was adopted and did not implicitly consent to becoming a United States resident, so he was allowed to enter Canada without a passport. In 2011, Taber Gregory, baptized Henry Desjarlais, an aboriginal man from Cold Lake Nation, Alberta, became the first child placed in the U.S. as part of the Sixties Scoop to be recognized by Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In January 2015, via a civil class action suit served on Federal Government of Canada, Wayne Snellgrove became the first child placed in the U.S. as part of the Sixties Scoop to be recognized by Canada Courts. The StarPhoenix journalist Betty Ann Adam collaborated with filmmaker Tasha Hubbard on Birth of a Family, a National Film Board of Canada documentary about her own separation and reunification with three of her siblings. The film premiered at the 2017 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival. Adam approached Hubbard to document her story at the urging of a commissioner who served on Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Nakuset, who is Cree from La Ronge, Sask., was adopted by a Jewish family in Montreal when she was three. She is currently the executive director of the Native Women's Shelter of Montréal and draws on her adoptee experience in her work to improve the lives of urban Aboriginals. She sits on the Steering Committee of the Montréal Urban Aboriginal Community Strategy Network. Nakuset produced and hosted the television series "Indigenous Power", and was voted "Woman of the Year 2014" by the Montreal Council of Women. In 2009, Beaverhouse First Nation Chief Marcia Brown Martel filed a class action lawsuit in Ontario on behalf of Indigenous children affected by the Sixties Scoop. Her lawsuit, which claimed she suffered emotional, physical and sexual abuse after being placed in the foster system as a child, was one of a series of class action lawsuits that had been launched in five provinces. On February 14, 2017, Superior Court Justice Edward Belobaba ruled in favour of the plaintiffs in the case known as Brown v. Canada (Attorney General). Justice Belobaba found that Canada had breached its common law duty of care to: take reasonable steps to prevent on-reserve Indian children in Ontario, who had been placed in the care of non-aboriginal foster or adoptive parents, from losing their aboriginal identity.Justice Belobaba, in his decision, also acknowledged the impact of the Sixties Scoop on survivors:The Sixties Scoop happened and great harm was done…The uncontroverted evidence of the plaintiff's experts is that the loss of their Aboriginal identity left the children fundamentally disoriented, with a reduced ability to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. The loss of Aboriginal identity resulted in psychiatric disorders, substance abuse, unemployment, violence and numerous suicides.Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett, in interviews after the outcome was announced, stated that Canada would not appeal the decision. On October 6, 2017, an $800 million Canadian settlement was announced. It will provide status First Nations and Inuit, who were adopted out of their families and communities as part of the Sixties Scoop, with $25,000 to $50,000 Canadian in compensation—depending on the number of claimants who come forward. It will also establish a $50 million Canadian endowment for an Indigenous Healing Foundation. Non-status First Nations and Métis will not receive compensation under the settlement. Jeffery Wilson, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs, made this comment about the settlement: Never before in history has a nation recognized, in this way, children’s right to their cultural identities, and a government’s responsibility to do everything in its power to protect the cultural identity of children in its care. In Australia, a similar policy, which is sometimes referred to as the Stolen Generation, removed Aboriginal children from their families and placed them in orphanages, children's homes, or with non-Aboriginal foster parents. In the United States, according to the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA), 25 to 35 percent of Native children nationwide were being removed from their families in 1978. Overarching federal legislation setting standards for child custody proceedings, the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), was adopted that year. ICWA mandates that when a Native American child's parent dies, exhaustive efforts must be made to reunite the child with the surviving parent or other relatives. Children are placed with non-Native families only when an Indigenous foster home, preferably one within the child's tribe, cannot be found. Also in the United States, a similar term, Baby Scoop Era, refers to a period starting after the end of World War II and ending in 1972 that was characterized by an increased rate of premarital pregnancies along with a higher rate of forced adoptions. In the 1950s, there was another targeted removal of children from their families and communities in Canada. The children of a fringe group of Russian Doukhobors in British Columbia, called the Freedomites or Sons of Freedom, were taken by Canadian authorities. Cultural genocide Sixties Scoop Class Action Lawsuit, The Stolen Generation, the 60’s Scoop, The “Sixties Scoop", Chapter 14 Child Welfare, Report of the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry of Manitoba. Justice and the Aboriginal People. The Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission, CBC article: Birth of a Family Tasha Hubbard is a First Nations/Cree filmmaker and educator living in Saskatoon, whose credits include three National Film Board of Canada documentaries exploring Indigenous rights in Canada: Two Worlds Colliding, a 2004 Canada Award-winning short film about the Saskatoon freezing deaths, Birth of a Family, a 2017 feature-length documentary about four siblings separated during Canada's Sixties Scoop, and , a 2019 Hot Docs and DOXA Documentary award-winning documentary which examines the death of Colten Boushie, a young Cree man, and the subsequent trial and acquittal of the man who shot him. Born in 1973, Hubbard's birth name was Carrie Alaine Pinay. Her biological mother was a young single Saulteaux/Métis/Cree woman whose parents and grandparents, as well as Hubbard's Cree/Nakota father, were all placed into the Canadian Indian residential school system. With limited support from family and social services, Hubbard mother's gave her to a social worker she had trusted and Hubbard was placed for adoption through the Saskatchewan Adopt Indian Metis (AIM) pilot project, part of the Sixties Scoop. Raised on a farm near Avonlea, Hubbard's adoptive parents were supportive of her search—it was her adoptive mother who first asked Hubbard, at the age of 14, if she wanted to find her biological family. Their search would take almost two years, until they hired a Cree lawyer who located Hubbard's birth mother in just two weeks—and turned out to be a friend of her biological father. She met her birth mother three days after her sixteenth birthday, followed by her father, three weeks later. She would go on to reunite with all of her ten siblings—the last, a sister, at the age of twenty-two. Two Worlds Colliding is a 2004 documentary following the experience of Darrell Night, an Indigenous man dumped by police in a field on the outskirts of Saskatchewan in January 2000 in -20 C temperature. The documentary investigate the "freezing deaths" of Indigenous peoples in the early 2000's and the cementing of distrust and fear of the Saskatchewan police. The documentary opened premiered at ImagineNATIVE in 2004. This documentary won the Gemini Canada Award and Golden Sheaf Award in 2005. This short documentary won the Golden Sheaf Award 2016 - Short Docs. Hubbard's own experiences helped influence her decision to make Birth of a Family, about the reunion of four First Nations siblings separated as part of the Sixties Scoop. One of four reunited siblings is Betty Ann Adam, a journalist with the Saskatoon Star Phoenix, who also co-wrote film. Adam, a Dene, had been encouraged to document her reunion with siblings Esther, Rosalie and Ben by Marie Wilson, a commissioner with Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Adam had known Hubbard for more than a decade and approached her with the idea of making the film. The documentary was nominated for the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival 2017 and won the 2017 EIFF Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature and 2017 Special Jury Prize - Moon Jury at the 18th Annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival. is a 2019 documentary that serves as Hubbard's personal reflection on the death of Colten Boushie, a young Cree man, the subsequent trial and acquittal of the man who shot him, and the aftermath of the case, which caused shock and outrage across Canada. While following the trajectory of the case and the efforts of Boushie's family to seek justice, Hubbard draws attention to prejudices in the Canadian legal system, the history of colonialism on the Prairies, and anti-Indigenous racism in Canada. The film received the Best Canadian Feature Documentary Award at Toronto's Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, and the Colin Low Award for Canadian Documentary at Vancouver’s DOXA Documentary Film Festival. Films by Tasha Hubbard at NFB.ca The Baby Scoop Era was a period in anglosphere history starting after the end of World War II and ending in the early 1970s, characterized by an increased rate of pre-marital pregnancies over the preceding period, along with a higher rate of newborn adoption. From 1945 to 1973, it is estimated that up to 4 million parents in the United States had children placed for adoption, with 2 million during the 1960s alone. Annual numbers for non-relative adoptions increased from an estimated 33,800 in 1951 to a peak of 89,200 in 1970, then quickly declined to an estimated 47,700 in 1975. (This does not include the number of infants adopted and raised by relatives.) In contrast, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates that only 14,000 infants were placed for adoption in 2003. This period of history has been documented in scholarly books such as Wake Up Little Susie and Beggars and Choosers, both by historian Rickie Solinger, and social histories such as the book The Girls Who Went Away and the documentary, A Girl Like Her, based on the book by Ann Fessler. Fessler is a professor of photography at the Rhode Island School of Design who exhibited an art installation titled The Girls Who Went Away. It is also the theme of the documentary "Gone To A Good Home" by Film Australia. Beginning in the 1940s and 1950s, illegitimacy began to be defined in terms of psychological deficits on the part of the mother. At the same time, a liberalization of sexual mores combined with restrictions on access to birth control led to an increase in premarital pregnancies. The dominant psychological and social work view was that the large majority of unmarried mothers were better off being separated by adoption from their newborn babies. According to Mandell (2007), "In most cases, adoption was presented to the mothers as the only option and little or no effort was made to help the mothers keep and raise the children". Solinger describes the social pressures that led to this unusual trend, explaining that women who had no control over their reproductive lives were defined by psychological theory as "not-mothers", and that because they had no control over their reproductive lives, they were subject to the ideology of those who watched over them. As such, for unmarried pregnant girls and women in the pre- Roe era, the main chance for attaining home and marriage rested on their acknowledging their alleged shame and guilt, and this required relinquishing their children, with more than 80% of unwed mothers in maternity homes acting in essence as "breeders" for adoptive parents. According to Ellison, from 1960 to 1970, 27 percent of all births to married women between the ages of 15 and 29 were conceived premaritally. This problem was thought to be caused by female neurosis, and those who could not procure an abortion, legally or otherwise, were encouraged to put up their children for adoption. In popular usage, singer Celeste Billhartz uses the term "baby scoop era" on her website to refer to the era covered by her work "The Mothers Project." A letter on Senator Bill Finch's website uses the term as well. Writer Betty Mandell references the term in her article "Adoption". The term was also used in a 2004 edition of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Infant adoptions began declining in the early 1970s, a decline often attributed to the decreasing birth rate, but which also partially resulted from social and legal changes that enabled middle-class mothers to have an alternative single motherhood. The decline in the fertility rate is associated with the introduction of the pill in 1960, the completion of legalization of artificial birth control methods, the introduction of federal funding to make family planning services more available to the young and low income, and the legalization of abortion. Brozinsky (1994) speaks of the decline in newborn adoptions as reflecting a freedom of choice embraced by youth and the women's movement of the 1960s and 1970s, resulting in an increase in the number of unmarried mothers who parented their babies as opposed to having them taken for adoption purposes. "In 1970, approximately 80% of the infants born to single mothers were [...] [taken for adoption purposes], whereas by 1983 that figure had dropped to only 4%." In contrast to numbers in the 1960s and 1970s, from 1989 to 1995 fewer than 1% of children born to never-married women were surrendered for adoption. A similar social development took place in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, and Canada. Canada's "Baby Scoop Era" refers to the postwar period from 1945 to 1988, when over 400,000 unmarried pregnant girls, mostly aged 15–19, were targeted for their yet-to-be-born infants, because they were unmarried with a child. A large number of these young women were housed in maternity group homes, which were managed by religious orders, such as the Salvation Army, the Catholic Church, the United Church and the Anglican Church etc. These maternity "homes" were heavily funded by the Canadian government. There were over 70 maternity homes in Canada which housed between 20 and 200 pregnant women at a time. In Canadian maternity "homes" and hospitals, up to 100% of newborns were removed from their legal mothers after birth and given up for adoption purposes. These newborns were taken under a Health and Welfare protocol. Some professionals of the era considered that the punishment of the mother for her transgression was an important part of the process. Dr. Marion Hilliard of Women's College Hospital was quoted in 1956 saying: The father plays absolutely no part in this. That is part of her rehabilitation. When she renounces her child for its own good, the unwed mother has learned a lot. She has learned an important human value. She has learned to pay the price of her misdemeanor, and this alone, if punishment is needed, is punishment enough...We must go back to a primary set of values and the discipline that starts with the very small child.The term Baby Scoop Era is similar to the term Sixties Scoop, which was coined by Patrick Johnston, author of Native Children and the Child Welfare System. "Sixties Scoop" refers to the Canadian practice, beginning in the 1960s and continuing until the late 1980s, of apprehending unusually high numbers of Native children over the age of 5 years old from their families and fostering or adopting them out. A similar event happened in Australia where Aboriginal children, sometimes referred to as the Stolen Generation, were removed from their families and placed into internment camps, orphanages and other institutions. A similar period of forced adoption, also known as the "White Stolen Generations", also occurred in Australia. It is generally understood that a decline of adoption during the 1970s was linked to a 1973 law providing for financial assistance to single parents. A girl like her documentary film (2011), Gone To A Good Home (Film Australia 2006). A Film Australia National Interest Program in association with Big Island Pictures. Produced in association with the Pacific Film and Television Commission and SBS Independent., Everlasting: The Girls Who Went Away by Ann Fessler. Described as "a multi-channel, surround-sound audio installation based on oral history interviews Ann Fessler conducted with women who surrendered a baby for adoption in the 1950s and 1960s (as described in the "Calendar," Duke University, retrieved October 22, 2007), The Other Mother: A Moment of Truth Movie (1995) (TV) Director: Bethany Rooney. Writers (WGA): Carol Schaefer (book), Steven Loring., The Magdalene Sisters (2002) Director: Peter Mullan, Writer: Peter Mullan, Love, War, Adoption (2007) Directed by Suzie Kidnap. Michael A. Hess, Vincent Nichols § Acknowledgement of adoption controversy Aston, Jonny. "Yours Hopefully," written and published by Jonny Aston. A personal account of teenage pregnancy, adoption and reunion, portraying 1960s social attitudes and prejudices., Buterbaugh, K. "Not by Choice," Eclectica, August 2001., Buterbaugh, K. "Setting the Record Straight", Moxie Magazine, April 2001., Fessler, A. (2006). The Girls Who Went Away; The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade. New York: Penguin Press., Kunzel, R. (1995). Fallen Women, Problem Girls: Unmarried Mothers and the Professionalization of Social Work, 1890–1945 (Yale Historical Publications Series) (Paperback). Ann Arbor, MA: Yale University Press (August 30, 1995), Mandell, B. (2007). "Adoption." New Politics, 11(2), Winter 2007, Whole No. 42., Petrie, A. (1998). Gone to an Aunt's: Remembering Canada's Homes for Unwed Mothers. Toronto:, McLelland and Stewart., Moor, M. (2007). Silent Violence: Australia's White Stolen Children. A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the Doctorate of Philosophy in Arts, Media and Culture at Griffith University, Nathan, Qld., O'Shaughnassy, T. (1994). Adoption, Social Work, and Social Theory. Brookfield: Ashgate Publishing., Shawyer, J. (1979). Death by Adoption. Cicada Press., Solinger, R. (2000). Wake Up Little Susie: Single Pregnancy and Race Before Roe v. Wade. New York: Routledge., Solinger, R. (2001). Beggars And Choosers: How The Politics Of Choice Shapes Adoption, Abortion And Welfare In The U.S. (Hill and Wang), Terranova, D. (2014). Baby Farm. Brisbane: Terranova Publications. . A novel about forced adoptions in Australia in the 1970s.

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The 1995 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1994–95 National Basketball Association (NBA) season. The series pitted the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic against the defending NBA champion and Western Conference champion Houston Rockets. The pre-series hype and build-up of the Finals was centered on the meeting of the two centers opposing each other: Shaquille O'Neal of the Magic and Hakeem Olajuwon of the Rockets. Going into the series the matchup was compared to the Bill Russell-Wilt Chamberlain matchup of the 1960s. The Rockets became the first team in NBA history to beat four 50-win teams in a single postseason en route to the championship. The Rockets would win a playoff-record nine road games in the 1995 playoffs. It was the second NBA Finals sweep in the 2–3–2 Finals format (after the Detroit Pistons did so against the Los Angeles Lakers in 1989). The Rockets also became the first repeat NBA Champion in history to keep the title with a sweep. In addition, the Rockets became the first team in NBA history to win the title without having home-court advantage in any of the four playoff rounds since the playoffs was expanded to a 16 team format in 1984. Coincidentally, this feat would also be achieved by the New Jersey Devils that same year, when they won the Stanley Cup over the Detroit Red Wings. The Orlando Magic (making their first ever NBA Finals appearance) began the 1995 NBA Finals at home, hosting the defending champion Houston Rockets. With the Magic up 110–107 late in Game 1, Nick Anderson missed four consecutive free throws in the closing seconds of the game, and Kenny Smith hit a three- pointer, tying the game and sending it to overtime as well as setting a new record with the most three-pointers in an NBA Finals game with seven. The more experienced Rockets went on to win in overtime and eventually swept the Magic, winning their second consecutive NBA Championship. In achieving this, they earned the distinction of being the only team to win both championships during Michael Jordan's first retirement (although Jordan did return in the closing months of the 1994–95 season), as well as the only one outside Chicago to win multiple championships in the 1990s. The season-ending documentary Double Clutch by Hal Douglas, was released by NBA Entertainment to coincide with the Rockets' championship season. The Rockets entered the 1994–95 season as defending champions. They have won the first eight games of the season , the first defending champions to have won their first eight games of their season since the 1987-88 Lakers. However, they struggled to maintain last season's form due to injuries and off-court- distractions. On February 14, the Rockets acquired Clyde Drexler from the Portland Trail Blazers, but the trade of a hometown hero (Drexler was a teammate of Olajuwon at the University of Houston) did not improve matters, and the Rockets settled for the sixth seed with a 47–35 record. However, Houston once again lived up to its Clutch City reputation come playoff time. En route to the Finals, the Rockets defeated three teams with 55 or more victories. They began by ousting the Utah Jazz in five games (the Rockets trailed 2–1 after three games), then repeating last season's comeback effort over the Phoenix Suns (wherein the Rockets trailed 3–1 after four games). In Game 7 of that series, Phoenix led Houston 51-42 after the first half before Houston mounted a comeback to get the series win, 115-114. After dispatching the Suns, the Rockets outclassed the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs in six games of the conference finals. They also became the first team in NBA History to have lost all their home games of the series but won all road games of that certain series thus advancing to the next round. The Magic were only in their sixth season of existence, but they were a team on the rise. Led by All-Stars Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway, new acquisition Horace Grant, and franchise cornerstones Nick Anderson and Dennis Scott, the Magic rolled through the Eastern Conference, winding up with a then-franchise best 57–25 mark. Orlando's road to the Finals began with a convincing 3–1 series win over the Boston Celtics. They followed it up with a six-game ouster of Michael Jordan (returning from an 18-month retirement) and the Chicago Bulls in the second round, and in the conference finals, they vanquished the Indiana Pacers in a tough seven-game series. The Orlando Magic won both games in the regular season series: This was one of only two NBA Finals in which the team who did not have home court advantage swept the series, (the other being the 1975 Finals, in which the Golden State Warriors swept the Washington Bullets). Kenny Smith hit a then-Finals record seven 3-pointers, the last tying the game up at 110 with 1.6 seconds left following Nick Anderson's four straight missed foul shots. In overtime, Hakeem Olajuwon tips in a missed finger roll by Clyde Drexler with three-tenths of a second left to win the game. Hakeem Olajuwon finished the game with 31 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 blocks while Kenny Smith recorded 23 points and 9 assists. Hakeem Olajuwon records a double-double with 34 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Rockets to a 117-106 victory to take a 2-0 series lead. The Magic, on the other hand, becomes the 2nd team in NBA Finals history to lose the first two of their four home games. Robert Horry hits a 3-pointer to give Houston a 104-100 lead with 14.1 seconds left. At the end of the first half, the Magic had a 4-point advantage of the home team, Rockets. However, the Rockets have another notable comeback as they outscored the Magic 66-50 in the second half, thus winning their second consecutive NBA championship. Olajuwon outscores O'Neal by 10 points and caps off the sweep by hitting a memorable yet uncharacteristic 3-pointer in front of O'Neal. Although both centers played well, Olajuwon is generally considered to have outplayed O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game of the series and became one of the few players in NBA history to score at least 30 points in every game of an NBA Finals series: By winning his second straight NBA Finals MVP award, Hakeem Olajuwon became the sixth player to win the award on multiple occasions, joining Willis Reed, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Michael Jordan. Jordan and Olajuwon at the time were the only players to win the award consecutively. Houston Rockets | align="left" | || 4 || 0 || 9.5 || .455 || .000 || 1.000 || 2.8 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.5 || 3.0 Orlando Magic | align="left" | || 4 || 4 || 40.3 || .360 || .323 || .300 || 8.5 || 4.3 || 2.0 || 0.5 || 12.3 The Rockets' championship reign would end in 1996, where they were swept by the Seattle SuperSonics in four games of the second round. The Sonics were also the last team to beat the Rockets in the playoffs prior to their two-year championship reign, when they defeated them in seven games of the second round in 1993. That year, the Rockets won 48 games and achieved the fourth seed. The following offseason, the Rockets attempted to make it back to the finals by adding former NBA MVP Charles Barkley. However, age and injuries would take its toll, and the closest the Rockets would achieve after their two-year championship reign was a six-game loss to the Utah Jazz in the 1997 Western Conference Finals. The Magic would have another strong season in 1996 winning a franchise record 60 games. However, they were swept by the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals, who would go on to win the NBA championship after registering a league-record 72 wins (and the next two championships after that, for their second three-peat). The following offseason, Shaquille O'Neal joined the Los Angeles Lakers, and went on to win NBA titles with the team in 2000, 2001 and 2002 (he would also win one with the Miami Heat in 2006). The Magic would not make it back to the finals until 2009, which they lost in five games against the Lakers. The 2007 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 2006–07 season, and was the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The best-of-seven series was played between the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs and the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers. This was Cleveland's first trip to the NBA Finals in their franchise history and San Antonio's fourth. The Spurs swept the Cavaliers 4 games to 0. Tony Parker was named the series' MVP. The series was televised on ABC under the ESPN on ABC branding, and produced low television ratings comparing to the 2002 NBA Finals, when the Los Angeles Lakers swept the New Jersey Nets. This series was the last sweep in the NBA Finals until 2018. This also was the last finals until 2019 in which a team was making its first trip to the NBA Finals in its franchise history. The Finals were played using the 2-3-2 format, where the first two and last two games are held at the team with home court advantage. The NBA, after experimenting in the early years, restored this original format for the Finals in 1985. The other playoff series were played in the 2-2-1-1-1 format. The best-of-seven series began on June 7, 2007, with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs playing the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers. Because the San Antonio Spurs had a better regular season win-loss record, they had home court advantage. The Cleveland Cavaliers won both games in the regular season series: The previous season saw the San Antonio Spurs drop a heartbreaking seventh game at home to the rival Dallas Mavericks in the second round. As the new season began, the Spurs saw the Mavericks rolling through their regular season, on their way to a franchise best 67 win campaign. Meanwhile, the Spurs struggled through their season through January. With the main focus lying on Dallas and the Phoenix Suns, the Spurs found themselves flying under the radar. A late-season surge resulted in a 58–24 regular season record, good enough for third seed in the Western Conference. In the playoffs, the Spurs met the Denver Nuggets and their duo of Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony. The Nuggets took game 1, but the Spurs reeled off 4 straight wins to take the series in five games. As San Antonio prepared to face off against the second seed Suns, the top-ranked Mavericks suffered a stunning first-round exit at the hands of the Golden State Warriors. With the Mavericks gone, the stakes of the Suns-Spurs series shot up dramatically, and it was a closely competitive and controversial series. The Suns had homecourt advantage, but that did not last past game 1. In a hotly contested battle of Western Conference heavyweights, each team tried to deliver a knockout blow. The Spurs finally landed it, but by accident. With the game in the balance Tony Parker and Steve Nash collided head-to-head. A large gash opened along Nash's nose and the medical staff could not stop the bleeding. He was forced to sit out the final 45 seconds and watch the Spurs win, 111–106. Game 2 saw the Suns rebound and blow out the Spurs, 101–81. After this game, Suns center Amar'e Stoudemire called the Spurs a dirty team. Game 3 switched back to San Antonio and saw a return of physical play, with Manu Ginóbili receiving a bruised and bloodied eye and Bruce Bowen kneeing Nash in the groin. Tim Duncan led the Spurs to a 108–101 victory. Games 4 and 5 were the most controversial of the series. The Spurs, after being comfortably in control of game 4, saw their 11-point fourth-quarter lead dwindle away to a 2-point Suns lead. With 18 seconds left, Robert Horry bodychecked Nash into the scorers' table. Nash's teammates jumped to his defense; during the ensuing altercation, Stoudemire and Boris Diaw left the bench. Their action violated NBA rules, and league commissioner David Stern suspended both players for game 5. Horry was also suspended two games for his flagrant foul on Nash. In game 5, in Phoenix, the short-handed Suns jumped out early to a 16-point lead, but in a reversal of game 4, the Spurs came back in the final seconds and won the game 88–85, giving San Antonio a 3–2 series lead. The Spurs won game 6 of the series 114–106 in San Antonio, sending them to their fifth Western Conference finals since 1999. San Antonio went on to beat the Utah Jazz in five games to advance to the franchise's fourth NBA Finals. In the replay of the previous year's playoffs with the Cavaliers holding home court advantage against Washington Wizards, the Cavaliers swept the Wizards after the season-ending injuries of both Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler. In the second round of the playoffs, the Cavaliers faced the New Jersey Nets. Again, the Cavaliers had home court advantage, and battled the Nets through 6 games before winning the series. The Cavaliers advanced to the conference finals for only the third time in franchise history, and faced a familiar foe: the Detroit Pistons, the number one seed in the Eastern Conference, with their home court advantage. This was the same Detroit team that knocked the Cavaliers out of the second round the previous year. Expectations were high after a 7-game series the previous year and the two teams did not disappoint. The first two games were close and saw Cleveland fall by identical 79–76 scores. Down 0–2 in the series, the spotlight shifted back to Cleveland and LeBron James. Another hard-fought set ensued, with the Cavaliers taking the two games at home 88-82 and 91-87 respectively. Game 5 switched back to Detroit and produced one of the greatest moments in NBA history. With 6:14 to go in regulation and his team clinging to a one-point 79–78 lead, James took over the game. He scored 11 of the final 12 points to end regulation tied 91-91. In the first overtime, James scored all nine of the Cavaliers' points, ending the period tied 100-100. In the second overtime, James again scored all nine of the team's points to win, 109-107. Thus, in the last 16:14 of play, James scored 29 of the Cavaliers' last 30 points, as well as all of their last 25 points. The Cavaliers beat the Pistons at home in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals to earn the franchise's first trip to the NBA Finals. Cleveland became the third team in NBA history to win a best-of-seven conference finals series after trailing by 2 games. San Antonio Spurs | align="left" | || 4 || 0 || 10.6 || .364 || .400 || .000 || 1.5 || 0.5 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 3.0 Cleveland Cavaliers | align="left" | || 1 || 0 || 0.0 || .000 || .000 || .000 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 The Cleveland Cavaliers entered the 2007 Finals as newcomers. Game 1 was their first NBA Finals game in franchise history, and the first for each of its players (other than reserve point guard Eric Snow). However, the San Antonio Spurs had been to the Finals in three of the past eight seasons, winning a championship each time. With solid performances by Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginóbili, the Spurs won the series opener in convincing fashion, limiting LeBron James to 14 points on 4–16 shooting. The Spurs took a stranglehold on momentum in Game 2. The Spurs' big three overwhelmed the Cavs and the Spurs led by as many as 29 points in the third quarter. They dominated the game during the first 3 quarters and played show- time basketball. A furious 25–6 rally by Cleveland in the final quarter wasn't enough as the Spurs took a 2–0 lead in the series. Rookie Daniel Gibson started Game 3 in place of the injured Larry Hughes but scored a series-low 2 points on 1-10 shooting. As a team the Cavs shot only .367, but out-rebounded the Spurs 48–41. Zydrunas Ilgauskas had a 2006–07 season high 18 rebounds. On the game's final play, LeBron James missed a potential game-tying 29 foot 3-pointer. Game 3 was the lowest scoring Finals game since 1955, with Tim Duncan of the Spurs having his lowest scoring game in his NBA Finals career, with 14 points. San Antonio started out strong through the first three quarters, leading by as many as 11. Cleveland would stage a rally near the end of the third quarter and the first five minutes of the fourth, scoring 14 consecutive points to take its first second-half lead of the series. However, the Spurs would stage a 12–3 rally of their own to retake the lead and win the series in a 4–0 sweep. Twelve-year veteran Michael Finley was awarded the NBA championship game ball. Coverage was produced by ESPN and televised on ABC in the United States, TSN in Canada, Sky Sports in the United Kingdom, Canal+ in France, Premiere in Germany, and more than 100 other broadcasters in over 200 countries. Play-by- play announcer Mike Breen, analysts Mark Jackson & former Rockets head-coach Jeff Van Gundy, and courtside reporters Michele Tafoya & Stuart Scott provided commentary and analysis for the North American market. The radio coverage on ESPN Radio features play-by-play man Mike Tirico and color analysts Dr. Jack Ramsay and Hubie Brown. The featured song, aired throughout the playoffs, was The Pussycat Dolls "Right Now." Another song featured in the 2007 NBA Finals series, "It Ends Tonight" by The All-American Rejects, was aired at the end of the pre-game promo for Game 4. According to ESPN, the NBA Finals series was a television bust in the United States. San Antonio's four-game sweep of Cleveland finished with a record-low 6.2 television rating and 11 share on ABC, Nielsen Media Research said on June 15, 2007. That was down 27 percent from the 8.5/15 for Miami's six-game victory over Dallas from the previous year and 5 percent under the previous low, a 6.5/12 for San Antonio's six-game win over New Jersey in . San Antonio's series-winning 83-82 victory on Thursday night got a 6.5/12, down 17 percent from the 7.8/14 for Game 4 in 2006. Despite having the lowest ratings of any NBA championship series, game two of the 2003 series between San Antonio and New Jersey remains the lowest-rated game of all time in the history of the NBA Finals. The Spurs won 56 games in the succeeding 2007–08 season, but relinquished the Southwest Division title to the New Orleans Hornets due to a tie-breaker. The Spurs had the last laugh, though, defeating the Hornets in seven games. But their chance of defending their title was denied by the Los Angeles Lakers in five games of the conference finals. After that, age and injury took its toll on the Spurs, as they proceeded to win only a single playoff series in three years (2010, vs. Dallas 4–2 of the first round), before getting upset by the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs despite finishing with 61 wins. The Spurs then retooled their roster, after which they appeared in three consecutive conference finals, beginning in 2012, before making the NBA Finals in and against James and the Miami Heat. The Spurs split the two Finals meetings against the Heat. The Cavaliers won 45 games in the 2007–08 season, despite early-season contract issues involving center Anderson Varejão and guard Sasha Pavlović, and a mid-season trade for Ben Wallace. They fell in the second round to the eventual NBA champions Boston Celtics in seven games, after a hard-fought duel involving LeBron James and Paul Pierce. The Cavaliers would earn the league's best record for the next two years (66 and 61 wins, respectively) and boast the NBA's MVP in James. However, they were unable to win it all, losing to the Orlando Magic in six games of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals and the Celtics in six games of the 2010 Eastern Conference Semifinals (allowing the Lakers to win the Finals twice against the Magic and Celtics). The latter playoff defeat would cost head coach Mike Brown his job, though he was later re-hired (and fired again) in the 2013–14 NBA season. After that season, as a free agent, James left for the Miami Heat and helped them to four successive NBA Finals appearances, winning in and 2013, while the Cavaliers sunk to an Eastern Conference-low 19 wins in the 2010–11 NBA season, which included a 26-game losing streak. The Cavaliers then appeared in the NBA draft lottery four consecutive times, earning the top pick in three of them. Those three top picks became Kyrie Irving (2011), Anthony Bennett (2013) and Andrew Wiggins (2014) (Bennett and Wiggins were later traded to Minnesota for Kevin Love). In July 2014, James announced his return to the Cavaliers after the hiring of coach David Blatt, and they reached the against the Atlanta Hawks with a 4-0 sweep before falling to the Golden State Warriors in the Finals 4-2. The following season, the Cavaliers returned to the Finals in a rematch against the Golden State Warriors and won the Finals over the Warriors 4-3 with LeBron James winning the Finals MVP. The 2018 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 2017–18 season and conclusion of the season's playoffs. In this best-of-seven playoff, the defending NBA champions and Western Conference champions Golden State Warriors swept the defending Eastern Conference champions Cleveland Cavaliers four games to zero. This year's Finals was the first time in any of North America's four major professional sports leagues that the same two teams met for the championship four years in a row. This was also the first time that a team was swept in the NBA Finals since 2007, in which the Cavaliers were also the losing team. LeBron James, in his eighth consecutive NBA Finals appearance and ninth appearance overall, suffered the second Finals sweep of his career, having also played in the 2007 Finals. Warriors small forward Kevin Durant was named NBA Finals MVP for the second straight year. The Warriors entered the series having home-court advantage with a regular season record of , compared to the Cavaliers' regular season record of . Entering the matchup, the Warriors were also noted by various sports media outlets as one of the biggest NBA Finals favorites in recent history, drawing some comparisons to the 2001 Finals, where the Los Angeles Lakers, led by Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal, were heavily favored over the Philadelphia 76ers, led by Allen Iverson. The Lakers would go on to win the Finals four games to one. This was the first time since 2012 that the Finals did not feature either of the top seeds in each conference. The 2018 Finals began on May 31 and ended on June 8. The series broke the record set by the 2014 NBA Finals for highest average scoring differential per game (15.0) for an NBA Finals series. For this series, a new Finals logo was unveiled, with the NBA logo sans the acronym on the left, and the red year and blue "NBA FINALS" wordmark in a generic font on the right. This was the Cleveland Cavaliers' fourth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals, and fifth appearance overall. This was also the eighth consecutive NBA Finals appearance for Cavaliers small forward LeBron James. Prior to the 2017–18 season, All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving requested to be traded away from the Cavaliers. Although James was against the idea of trading him away, the Cavaliers agreed to Irving's request, trading him to the Boston Celtics in exchange for point guard Isaiah Thomas, small forward Jae Crowder, center Ante Žižić, the first round pick from the Brooklyn Nets in the 2018 NBA Draft and the Miami Heat's 2020 second round pick. Miami's second round pick was added as compensation after Isaiah Thomas failed his physical. Other major changes included shooting guard Dwyane Wade signing with the Cavaliers, thus reuniting with James from their time together on the Big Three-era Miami Heat, and the signing of point guard Derrick Rose to a one-year contract. On February 8, 2018 – just before the NBA trade deadline – the Cavaliers radically changed their roster in a little more than an hour, acquiring George Hill, Rodney Hood, Jordan Clarkson, and Larry Nance Jr. in exchange for Thomas, Rose, Crowder, Wade, Channing Frye, Iman Shumpert, and their own 2018 first-round pick. Multiple writers argued at the time that the trades made the Cavaliers significantly better. The Cavaliers finished the regular season with a 50–32 record, securing the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, the Cavaliers defeated the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the first round, swept the top-seeded Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference semifinals, and defeated the Boston Celtics in seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals. This was the Golden State Warriors' fourth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals. During the 2017–18 offseason, the Warriors resigned their core players, including point guard Stephen Curry to a five-year contract worth $201 million, and Kevin Durant to a two-year, $53 million contract. Golden State also resigned Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, Zaza Pachulia, and David West. A major free agent acquired during the offseason was guard Nick Young. The Warriors finished the 2017–18 regular season with a 58–24 record, winning the Pacific Division and securing the 2nd seed in the Western Conference. In the playoffs, Golden State defeated the San Antonio Spurs in five games in the first round, eliminated the New Orleans Pelicans in five games in the Western Conference semifinals, and defeated the 65-win Houston Rockets in seven games in the Western Conference Finals. The Warriors entered the series as heavy favorites. The Warriors won the regular season series 2–0. Klay Thompson of the Warriors suffered a leg injury in the first quarter, but returned to the game in the second quarter. With the score tied at 107 in the last five seconds of regulation, J. R. Smith of the Cavaliers collected an offensive rebound following a missed free throw, but dribbled the ball towards half court rather than taking a final shot. Tyronn Lue, Cleveland's coach, later said that Smith thought the Cavaliers were ahead, though Smith denied not knowing the correct score, and claimed he assumed his team would take a time-out. Cleveland was not able to score in the final seconds and the game went to overtime. In overtime, the Warriors outscored the Cavaliers 17–7 to win the game. Tristan Thompson was ejected following a flagrant foul with 2.6 seconds remaining in overtime. Cleveland's LeBron James scored 51 points in Game 1, the sixth-highest point total for an NBA Finals game and the most in a loss. After Game 1, James punched a whiteboard in the Cavaliers' locker room due to frustration of his team's level of play, suffering a bone contusion in his hand that he kept private for the remainder of the series. The Warriors employed more double teams against James in Game 2, limiting him to 29 points. Cleveland had a 41% field goal percentage, including 9-for-27 (33.3%) on three-point field goals. Meanwhile, Golden State's Stephen Curry set an NBA Finals record in Game 2 with nine three-point field goals. He scored 33 points, while the Warriors got 26 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists from Kevin Durant, and 20 points from Klay Thompson. Smith struggled for Cleveland, shooting 2-for-9 (22.2%) with both baskets coming in the first quarter. The Warriors won 122–103 over the Cavaliers. Andre Iguodala of the Warriors, who missed the previous six games, including the first two games of the NBA Finals, due to a left leg injury, returned in Game 3. He injured his right leg early in the game, not returning until after halftime. The Cavaliers started the game with a 14–4 advantage and led for the entire first half, at one point leading by 13. The Warriors trimmed Cleveland's lead to six by halftime. The Cavaliers enjoyed strong contributions from Rodney Hood, who scored 15 points, Smith, who scored 13 points, and Kevin Love, who had 20 points and 13 rebounds. Durant scored a playoff career-high 43 points, while also contributing 13 rebounds and seven assists, in a 110–102 win over the Cavaliers, helping the Warriors take a 3–0 lead. Golden State withstood poor offensive performances from Curry and Klay Thompson, the Splash Brothers. Curry missed 13 out of his first 14 shot attempts in the game. The Cavaliers were 3-for-17 (17.6%) on three point shots in the second half, and Durant scored a three-pointer late in the game that ended Cleveland's chances of a comeback. With the 110–102 victory, the Warriors took a 3–0 series lead. The Warriors led the game nearly from start to finish. Golden State led 13–3 at the start of the game. Though the Cavaliers took the lead, 39–38, in the second quarter, the Warriors led 61–52 at halftime. The Warriors expanded their lead in the third quarter and entered the last period of play with an 86–65 advantage. With Golden State leading 102–77 with 4:03 remaining, James came out of the game, receiving a standing ovation. Curry scored 37 points and made seven three-pointers, while Durant recorded a triple-double with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. The Warriors won 108–85 to sweep the series. Durant was named Finals MVP for the second straight year. Game 4 was also James' last game as a Cavalier as he joined the Los Angeles Lakers during the offseason. The Warriors' victory parade took place on June 12 in Downtown Oakland. Golden State Warriors ! scope="row" style="text-align:left; background:#FDE910"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text- align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text- align:left;"| Cleveland Cavaliers ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text- align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text- align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| ! scope="row" style="text-align:left;"| For the first time, the NBA sold a presenting sponsorship to the Finals; the internet television service YouTube TV became the first-ever presenting sponsor of the Finals. YouTube TV had previously been the presenting sponsor for the 2017 World Series, the first time that Major League Baseball's championship series had a title sponsor as well. As part of a multi-year partnership deal, YouTube TV also broadcast the NBA Finals. In the United States, the NBA Finals aired on ABC with Mike Breen as play-by- play commentator, and Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson serving as color commentators. The series was sponsored by YouTube TV. ESPN Radio aired it as well and had Marc Kestecher and Hubie Brown as commentators. ESPN Deportes provided exclusive Spanish-language coverage of The Finals, with a commentary team of Álvaro Martín and Carlos Morales. Death Lineup, Cavaliers–Warriors rivalry Official website, 2018 NBA Finals at Basketball-Reference.com

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The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), also commonly called Caretta Caretta, is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around in carapace length when fully grown. The adult loggerhead sea turtle weighs approximately , with the largest specimens weighing in at more than . The skin ranges from yellow to brown in color, and the shell is typically reddish brown. No external differences in sex are seen until the turtle becomes an adult, the most obvious difference being the adult males have thicker tails and shorter plastrons (lower shells) than the females. The loggerhead sea turtle is found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean Sea. It spends most of its life in saltwater and estuarine habitats, with females briefly coming ashore to lay eggs. The loggerhead sea turtle has a low reproductive rate; females lay an average of four egg clutches and then become quiescent, producing no eggs for two to three years. The loggerhead reaches sexual maturity within 17–33 years and has a lifespan of 47–67 years. The loggerhead sea turtle is omnivorous, feeding mainly on bottom-dwelling invertebrates. Its large and powerful jaws serve as an effective tool for dismantling its prey. Young loggerheads are exploited by numerous predators; the eggs are especially vulnerable to terrestrial organisms. Once the turtles reach adulthood, their formidable size limits predation to large marine animals, such as sharks. The loggerhead sea turtle is considered a vulnerable species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. In total, 9 distinct population segments are under the protection of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, with 4 population segments classified as "threatened" and 5 classified as "endangered" Commercial trade of loggerheads or derived products is prohibited by CITES Appendix I. Untended fishing gear is responsible for many loggerhead deaths. The greatest threat is loss of nesting habitat due to coastal development, predation of nests, and human disturbances (such as coastal lighting and housing developments) that cause disorientations during the emergence of hatchlings. Turtles may also suffocate if they are trapped in fishing trawls. Turtle excluder devices have been implemented in efforts to reduce mortality by providing an escape route for the turtles. Loss of suitable nesting beaches and the introduction of exotic predators have also taken a toll on loggerhead populations. Efforts to restore their numbers will require international cooperation, since the turtles roam vast areas of ocean and critical nesting beaches are scattered across several countries. The loggerhead sea turtle is the world's largest hard-shelled turtle, slightly larger at average and maximum mature weights than the green sea turtle and the Galapagos tortoise. It is also the world's second largest extant turtle after the leatherback sea turtle. Adults have an average weight range of , averaging about , and a straight-line carapace length range of . The maximum reported weight is and the maximum (presumed total) length is . The head and carapace (upper shell) range from a yellow-orange to a reddish brown, while the plastron (underside) is typically pale yellow. The turtle's neck and sides are brown on the tops and yellow on the sides and bottom. The turtle's shell is divided into two sections: carapace and plastron. The carapace is further divided into large plates, or scutes. Typically, 11 or 12 pairs of marginal scutes rim the carapace. Five vertebral scutes run down the carapace's midline, while five pairs of costal scutes border them. The nuchal scute is located at the base of the head. The carapace connects to the plastron by three pairs of inframarginal scutes forming the bridge of the shell. The plastron features paired gular, humeral, pectoral, abdominal, femoral, and anal scutes. The shell serves as external armor, although loggerhead sea turtles cannot retract their heads or flippers into their shells. Sexual dimorphism of the loggerhead sea turtle is only apparent in adults. Adult males have longer tails and claws than females. The males' plastrons are shorter than the females', presumably to accommodate the males' larger tails. The carapaces of males are wider and less domed than the females', and males typically have wider heads than females. The sex of juveniles and subadults cannot be determined through external anatomy, but can be observed through dissection, laparoscopy (an operation performed on the abdomen), histological examination (cell anatomy), and radioimmunological assays (immune study dealing with radiolabeling). Lachrymal glands located behind each eye allow the loggerhead to maintain osmotic balance by eliminating the excess salt obtained from ingesting ocean water. On land, the excretion of excess salt gives the false impression that the turtle is crying. The loggerhead sea turtle has a cosmopolitan distribution, nesting over the broadest geographical range of any sea turtle. It inhabits the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans and the Mediterranean Sea. In the Atlantic Ocean, the greatest concentration of loggerheads is along the southeastern coast of North America and in the Gulf of Mexico. Very few loggerheads are found along the European and African coastlines. Florida is the most popular nesting site, with more than 67,000 nests built per year. Nesting extends as far north as Virginia, as far south as Brazil, and as far east as the Cape Verde Islands. The Cape Verde Islands are the only significant nesting site on the eastern side of the Atlantic. Loggerheads found in the Atlantic Ocean feed from Canada to Brazil. In the Indian Ocean, loggerheads feed along the coastlines of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and in the Arabian Sea. Along the African coastline, loggerheads nest from Mozambique's Bazaruto Archipelago to South Africa's St Lucia estuary. The largest Indian Ocean nesting site is Oman, on the Arabian Peninsula, which hosts around 15,000 nests, giving it the second largest nesting population of loggerheads in the world. Western Australia is another notable nesting area, with 1,000–2,000 nests per year. Pacific loggerheads live in temperate to tropical regions. They forage in the East China Sea, the southwestern Pacific, and along the Baja California Peninsula. Eastern Australia and Japan are the major nesting areas, with the Great Barrier Reef deemed an important nesting area. Pacific loggerheads occasionally nest in Vanuatu and Tokelau. Yakushima Island is the most important site, with three nesting grounds visited by 40% of all nearby loggerheads. After nesting, females often find homes in the East China Sea, while the Kuroshio Current Extension's Bifurcation region provides important juvenile foraging areas. Eastern Pacific populations are concentrated off the coast of Baja California, where upwelling provides rich feeding grounds for juvenile turtles and subadults. Nesting sites along the eastern Pacific Basin are rare. mtDNA sequence polymorphism analysis and tracking studies suggest 95% of the population along the coast of the Americas hatch on the Japanese Islands in the western Pacific. The turtles are transported by the prevailing currents across the full length of the northern Pacific, one of the longest migration routes of any marine animal. The return journey to the natal beaches in Japan has been long suspected, although the trip would cross unproductive clear water with few feeding opportunities. Evidence of a return journey came from an adult female loggerhead named Adelita, which in 1996, equipped with a satellite tracking device, made the 14,500 km (9,000 mi) trip from Mexico across the Pacific. Adelita was the first animal of any kind ever tracked across an ocean basin. The Mediterranean Sea is a nursery for juveniles, as well as a common place for adults in the spring and summer months. Almost 45% of the Mediterranean juvenile population has migrated from the Atlantic. Loggerheads feed in the Alboran Sea and the Adriatic Sea. Greece is the most popular nesting site along the Mediterranean, with more than 3,000 nests per year. Zakynthos hosts the largest Mediterranean nesting with the second one being in Kyparissia Bay. Because of this, Greek authorities do not allow planes to take off or land at night in Zakynthos due to the nesting turtles. In addition to the Greek coast, the coastlines of Cyprus and Turkey are also common nesting sites. One record of this turtle was made in Ireland when a specimen washed ashore on Ballyhealy Beach in Co. Wexford. Loggerhead sea turtles spend most of their lives in the open ocean and in shallow coastal waters. They rarely come ashore besides the females' brief visits to construct nests and deposit eggs. Hatchling loggerhead turtles live in floating mats of Sargassum algae. Adults and juveniles live along the continental shelf as well as in shallow coastal estuaries. In the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, age plays a factor in habitat preference. Juveniles are more frequently found in shallow estuarine habitats with limited ocean access compared to non-nesting adults. Loggerheads occupy waters with surface temperatures ranging from during non-nesting season. Temperatures from are most suitable for nesting females. Juvenile loggerheads share the Sargassum habitat with a variety of other organisms. The mats of Sargassum contain as many as 100 different species of animals on which the juveniles feed. Prey found in Sargassum mats may include barnacles, crab larvae, fish eggs, and hydrozoan colonies. Some prey, such as ants, flies, aphids, leafhoppers, and beetles, are carried by the wind to the mats. Marine mammals and commercial fishes, including tuna and mahi-mahi, also inhabit the Sargassum mats. Loggerhead sea turtles observed in captivity and in the wild are most active during the day. In captivity, the loggerheads' daily activities are divided between swimming and resting on the bottom. While resting, they spread their forelimbs to about midstroke swimming position. They remain motionless with eyes open or half-shut and are easily alerted during this state. At night, captives sleep in the same position with their eyes tightly shut, and are slow to react. Loggerheads spend up to 85% of their day submerged, with males being the more active divers than females. The average duration of dives is 15–30 min, but they can stay submerged for up to four hours. Juvenile loggerheads and adults differ in their swimming methods. A juvenile keeps its forelimbs pressed to the side of its carapace, and propels itself by kicking with its hind limbs. As the juvenile matures, its swimming method is progressively replaced with the adult's alternating-limb method. They depend entirely on this method of swimming by one year old. Water temperature affects the sea turtle's metabolic rate. Lethargy is induced at temperatures between 13 and 15 °C (55 and 59 °F). The loggerhead takes on a floating, cold-stunned posture when temperatures drop to around 10 °C. However, younger loggerheads are more resistant to cold and do not become stunned until temperatures drop below 9 °C. The loggerheads' migration helps to prevent instances of cold-stunning. Higher water temperatures cause an increase in metabolism and heart rate. A loggerhead's body temperature increases in warmer waters more quickly than it decreases in colder water; their critical thermal maximum is currently unknown. In February 2015, a live loggerhead turtle was found floating in British Columbian waters of 10.5 °C with extensive algal growth on its carapace. Female-female aggression, which is fairly rare in other marine vertebrates, is common among loggerheads. Ritualized aggression escalates from passive threat displays to combat. This conflict primarily occurs over access to feeding grounds. Escalation typically follows four steps. First, initial contact is stimulated by visual or tactile cues. Second, confrontation occurs, beginning with passive confrontations characterized by wide head-tail circling. They begin aggressive confrontation when one turtle ceases to circle and directly faces the other. Third, sparring occurs with turtles snapping at each other’s jaws. The final stage, separation, is either mutual, with both turtles swimming away in opposite directions, or involves chasing one out of the immediate vicinity. Escalation is determined by several factors, including hormone levels, energy expenditure, expected outcome, and importance of location. At all stages, an upright tail shows willingness to escalate, while a curled tail shows willingness to submit. Because higher aggression is metabolically costly and potentially debilitating, contact is much more likely to escalate when the conflict is over access to good foraging grounds. Further aggression has also been reported in captive loggerheads. The turtles are seemingly territorial, and will fight with other loggerheads and sea turtles of different species. The loggerhead sea turtle is omnivorous, feeding mainly on bottom-dwelling invertebrates, such as gastropods, bivalves, and decapods. It has a greater list of known prey than any other sea turtle. Other food items include sponges, corals, sea pens, polychaete worms, sea anemones, cephalopods, barnacles, brachiopods, isopods, Portuguese men o' war, insects, bryozoans, sea urchins, sand dollars, sea cucumbers, starfish, fish (eggs, juveniles, and adults), hatchling turtles (including members of its own species), algae, and vascular plants. During migration through the open sea, loggerheads eat jellyfish, floating molluscs, floating egg clusters, squid, and flying fish. Loggerheads crush prey with their large and powerful jaws. Projecting scale points on the anterior margin of the forelimbs allow manipulation of the food. These points can be used as "pseudo-claws" to tear large pieces of food in the loggerhead's mouth. The loggerhead will turn its neck sideways to consume the torn food on the scale points. Inward-pointing, mucus-covered papillae found in the fore region of the loggerhead's esophagus filter out foreign bodies, such as fish hooks. The next region of the esophagus is not papillated, with numerous mucosal folds. The digestion rate in loggerheads is temperature- dependent; it increases as temperature increases. Loggerheads have numerous predators, especially early in their lives. Egg and nestling predators include ghost crabs, oligochaete worms, beetles, fly larvae, ants, flesh flies, snakes, gulls, corvids, opossums, bears, rats, armadillos, mustelids, skunks, canids, procyonids, cats, pigs, and humans. During their migration from their nests to the sea, hatchlings are preyed on by dipteran larvae, crabs, toads, lizards, snakes, seabirds such as frigatebirds, and other assorted birds and mammals. In the ocean, predators of the loggerhead juveniles include portunid crabs and various fishes, such as parrotfishes and moray eels. Adults are more rarely attacked due to their large size, but may be preyed on by large sharks, seals, and killer whales. Nesting females are attacked by flesh flies, feral dogs, and humans. Salt marsh mosquitos can also pester nesting females. In Australia, the introduction of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) by British settlers in the 19th century led to significant reductions in loggerhead sea turtle populations. In one coastal section in eastern Australia during the 1970s, predation of turtle eggs destroyed up to 95% of all clutches laid. Aggressive efforts to destroy foxes in the 1980s and 1990s has reduced this impact; however, it is estimated that it will be the year 2020 before populations will experience complete recovery from such dramatic losses. Along the southeastern coast of the United States, the raccoon (Procyon lotor) is the most destructive predator of nesting sites. Mortality rates of nearly 100% of all clutches laid in a season have been recorded on some Florida beaches. This is attributed to an increase in raccoon populations, which have flourished in urban environments. Aggressive efforts to protect nesting sites by covering them with wire mesh has significantly reduced the impact of raccoon predation on loggerhead sea turtle eggs. On Bald Head Island in North Carolina, wire mesh screens are used on every confirmed nest to prevent excavation by resident red foxes. A new concern with the steel cage technique is interference with the normal development of the nestlings' magnetic sense due to the use of ferrous wire, which may disrupt the turtles' ability to navigate properly. Efforts are underway to find a nonmagnetic material that will prevent predators gnawing through the barrier. Up to 40% of nesting females around the world have wounds believed to come from shark attacks. Infectious bacteria such as Pseudomonas and Salmonella attack loggerhead hatchlings and eggs. Fungi such as Penicillium infect loggerhead sea turtle nests and cloacae. Fibropapillomatosis disease caused by a form of the herpes- type virus threatens loggerheads with internal and external tumors. These tumors disrupt essential behaviors and, if on the eyes, cause permanent blindness. Trematodes of the family Spirorchiidae inhabit tissues throughout the body of the loggerhead, including vital organs, such as the heart and the brain. Trematode infection can be highly debilitating. For example, inflammatory trematode lesions can cause endocarditis and neurological disease. A nematode, Angiostoma carettae, also infects loggerheads, causing histologic lesions in the respiratory tract. More than 100 species of animals from 13 phyla, as well as 37 kinds of algae, live on loggerheads' backs. These parasitic organisms, which increase drag, offer no known benefit to the turtle, although the dulling effect of organisms on shell color may improve camouflage. Hatchlings range in color from light brown to almost black, lacking the adult's distinct yellows and reds. Upon hatching, they measure about and weigh about . The eggs are typically laid on the beach in an area above the high- tide line. The eggs are laid near the water so the hatchlings can return to the sea. The loggerhead's sex is dictated by the temperature of the underground nest. Incubation temperatures generally range from 26–32 °C (79–90 °F). Sea turtle eggs kept at a constant incubating temperature of 32 °C become females. Eggs incubating at 28 °C become males. An incubation temperature of 30 °C results in an equal ratio of male to female hatchlings. Hatchlings from eggs in the middle of the clutch tend to be the largest, grow the fastest, and be the most active during the first few days of sea life. After incubating for around 80 days, hatchlings dig through the sand to the surface, usually at night, when darkness increases the chance of escaping predation and damage from extreme sand surface temperatures is reduced. Hatchlings enter the ocean by navigating toward the brighter horizon created by the reflection of the moon and starlight off the water's surface. Hatchlings can lose up to 20% of their body mass due to evaporation of water as they journey from nest to ocean. They initially use the undertow to push them five to 10 m away from the shore. Once in the ocean, they swim for about 20 hours, taking them far offshore. An iron compound, magnetite, in their brains allows the turtles to perceive the Earth's magnetic field, for navigation. Many hatchlings use Sargassum in the open ocean as protection until they reach . Hatchling loggerheads live in this pelagic environment until they reach juvenile age, and then they migrate to nearshore waters. When ocean waters cool, loggerheads must migrate to warmer areas or hibernate to some degree. In the coldest months, they submerge for up to seven hours at a time, emerging for only seven minutes to breathe. Although outdone by freshwater turtles, these are among the longest recorded dives for any air- breathing marine vertebrate. During their seasonal migration, juvenile loggerheads have the ability to use both magnetic and visual cues. When both aids are available, they are used in conjunction; if one aid is not available, the other suffices. The turtles swim at about during migration. Like all marine turtles, the loggerhead prepares for reproduction in its foraging area. This takes place several years before the loggerhead migrates to a mating area. Female loggerheads first reproduce at ages 28–33 in Southeastern United States and Australia, and at ages 17–30 in South Africa. Age at first reproduction in the Mediterranean, Oman, Japan, and Brazil are unknown. Nesting loggerheads have a straight carapace length of . Because of the large range, carapace length is not a reliable indicator of sexual maturity. Their estimated maximum lifespan is 47–67 years in the wild. Female loggerheads first reproduce between the ages of 17 and 33, and their mating period may last more than six weeks. They court their mates, but these behaviors have not been thoroughly examined. Male forms of courtship behavior include nuzzling, biting, and head and flipper movements. Studies suggest females produce cloacal pheromones to indicate reproductive ability. Before mating, the male approaches a female and attempts to mount her, while she resists. Next, the male and female begin to circle each other. If the male has competitors, the female may let the males struggle with each other. The winner then mounts the female; the male's curved claws usually damage the shoulders of the female's shell during this process. Other courting males bite the male while he is attempting to copulate, damaging his flippers and tail, possibly exposing bones. Such damage can cause the male to dismount and may require weeks to heal. While nesting, females produce an average of 3.9 egg clutches, and then become quiescent, producing no eggs for two to three years. Unlike other sea turtles, courtship and mating usually do not take place near the nesting beach, but rather along migration routes between feeding and breeding grounds. Recent evidence indicates ovulation in loggerheads is mating-induced. Through the act of mating, the female ovulates eggs which are fertilized by the male. This is unique, as mating-induced ovulation is rare outside of mammals. In the Northern Hemisphere, loggerheads mate from late March to early June. The nesting season is short, between May and August in the Northern Hemisphere and between October and March in the Southern Hemisphere. Loggerheads may display multiple paternity. Multiple paternity is possible due to sperm storage. The female can store sperm from multiple males in her oviducts until ovulation. A single clutch may have as many as seven fathers, each contributing sperm to a portion of the clutch. Multiple paternity and female size are positively correlated. Two hypotheses explain this correlation. One posits that males favor large females because of their perceived higher fecundity (ability to reproduce). The other states, because larger females are able to swim more quickly to mating grounds, they have longer mating periods. All sea turtles have similar basic nesting behaviors. Females return to lay eggs at intervals of 12–17 days during the nesting season, on or near the beach where they hatched. They exit the water, climb the beach, and scrape away the surface sand to form a body pit. With their hind limbs, they excavate an egg chamber in which the eggs are deposited. The females then cover the egg chamber and body pit with sand, and finally return to the sea. This process takes one to two hours, and occurs in open sand areas or on top of sand dunes, preferably near dune grasses that the females can use to camouflage the nest. The nesting area must be selected carefully because it affects characteristics such as fitness, emergence ratio, and vulnerability to nest predators. Loggerheads have an average clutch size of 112.4 eggs. Carl Linnaeus gave the loggerhead its first binomial name, Testudo caretta, in 1758. Thirty-five other names emerged over the following two centuries, with the combination Caretta caretta first introduced in 1873 by Leonhard Stejneger. The English common name "loggerhead" refers to the animal's large head. The loggerhead sea turtle belongs to the family Cheloniidae, which includes all extant sea turtles except the leatherback sea turtle. The subspecific classification of the loggerhead sea turtle is debated, but most authors consider it a single polymorphic species. Molecular genetics has confirmed hybridization of the loggerhead sea turtle with the Kemp's ridley sea turtle, hawksbill sea turtle, and green sea turtles. The extent of natural hybridization is not yet determined; however, second-generation hybrids have been reported, suggesting some hybrids are fertile. Although evidence is lacking, modern sea turtles probably descended from a single common ancestor during the Cretaceous period. Like all other sea turtles except the leatherback, loggerheads are members of the ancient family Cheloniidae, and appeared about 40 million years ago. Of the six species of living Cheloniidae, loggerheads are more closely related to the Kemp's ridley sea turtle, olive ridley sea turtle, and the hawksbill turtle than they are to the flatback turtle and the green turtle. Around three million years ago, during the Pliocene epoch, Central America emerged from the sea, effectively cutting off currents between the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific Oceans. The rerouting of ocean currents led to climatic changes as the Earth entered a glacial cycle. Cold water upwelling around the Cape of Good Hope and reduction in water temperature at Cape Horn formed coldwater barriers to migrating turtles. The result was a complete isolation of the Atlantic and Pacific populations of loggerheads. During the most recent ice age, the beaches of southeastern North America were too cold for sea turtle eggs. As the Earth began to warm, loggerheads moved farther north, colonizing the northern beaches. Because of this, turtles nesting between North Carolina and northern Florida represent a different genetic population from those in southern Florida. The distinct populations of loggerheads have unique characteristics and genetic differences. For example, Mediterranean loggerheads are smaller, on average, than Atlantic Ocean loggerheads. North Atlantic and Mediterranean loggerhead sea turtles are descendants of colonizing loggerheads from Tongaland, South Africa. South African loggerhead genes are still present in these populations today. Many human activities have negative effects on loggerhead sea turtle populations. The prolonged time required for loggerheads to reach sexual maturity and the high mortality rates of eggs and young turtles from natural phenomena compound the problems of population reduction as a consequence of human activities. Loggerhead sea turtles were once intensively hunted for their meat and eggs; consumption has decreased, however, due to worldwide legislation. Despite this, turtle meat and eggs are still consumed in countries where regulations are not strictly enforced. In Mexico, turtle eggs are a common meal; locals claim the egg is an aphrodisiac. Eating turtle eggs or meat can cause serious illness due to harmful bacteria, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens, and high levels of toxic metals that build up through bioaccumulation. The US West Coast is a critical migratory corridor for the Pacific loggerheads, in which these turtles swim across the Pacific to California’s coast from breeding grounds in Japan. Important foraging habitats for juveniles in the central North Pacific have been revealed through telemetry studies. Along with these foraging habitats, high levels of bycatch from industrial-scale fisheries have been found to overlap; with drift gillnets in the past and longline fisheries presently. Many juvenile loggerheads aggregate off the coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico, where small coastal fisheries increase these turtles' mortality risk; fishers have reported catching dozens of loggerheads with bottom-set gear per day per boat. The most common commercial fishery that accidentally takes loggerheads are bottom trawls used for shrimp vessels in the Gulf of California. In 2000, between 2,600 and 6,000 loggerheads were estimated to have been killed by pelagic longlining in the Pacific. Fishing gear is the biggest threat to loggerheads in the open ocean. They often become entangled in longlines or gillnets. According to the 2009 status review of loggerheads by the Fisheries Service, drowning from entanglement in longline and gillnet fishing gear is the turtles’ primary threat in the North Pacific. They also become stuck in traps, pots, trawls, and dredges. Caught in this unattended equipment, loggerheads risk serious injury or drowning. Turtle excluder devices for nets and other traps reduce the number being accidentally caught. Nearly 24,000 metric tons of plastic are dumped into the ocean each year. Turtles ingest a wide array of this floating debris, including bags, sheets, pellets, balloons and abandoned fishing line. Loggerheads may mistake the floating plastic for jellyfish, a common food item. The ingested plastic causes numerous health concerns, including intestinal blockage, reduced nutrient absorption and malnutrition, suffocation, ulcerations, or starvation. Ingested plastics release toxic compounds, including polychlorinated biphenyls, which may accumulate in internal tissues. Such toxins may lead to a thinning of eggshells, tissue damage, or deviation from natural behaviors. Artificial lighting discourages nesting and interferes with the hatchlings' ability to navigate to the water's edge. Females prefer nesting on beaches free of artificial lighting. On developed beaches, nests are often clustered around tall buildings, perhaps because they block out the man-made light sources. Loggerhead hatchlings are drawn toward the brighter area over the water which is the consequence of the reflection of moon and star light. Confused by the brighter artificial light, they navigate inland, away from the protective waters, which exposes them to dehydration and predation as the sun rises. Artificial lighting causes tens of thousands of hatchling deaths per year. Destruction and encroachment of habitat by humans is another threat to loggerhead sea turtles. Optimum nesting beaches are open-sand beaches above the high-tide line. However, beach development deprives them of suitable nesting areas, forcing them to nest closer to the surf. Urbanization often leads to the siltation of sandy beaches, decreasing their viability. Construction of docks and marinas can destroy near-shore habitats. Boat traffic and dredging degrades habitat and can also injure or kill turtles when boats collide with turtles at or near the surface. Annual variations in climatic temperatures can affect sex ratios, since loggerheads have temperature-dependent sex determination. High sand temperatures may skew gender ratios in favor of females. Nesting sites exposed to unseasonably warm temperatures over a three-year period produced 87–99% females. This raises concern over the connection between rapid global temperature changes and the possibility of population extinction. A more localized effect on gender skewing comes from the construction of tall buildings, which reduce sun exposure, lowering the average sand temperature, which results in a shift in gender ratios to favor the emergence of male turtles. Since the loggerhead occupies such a broad range, successful conservation requires efforts from multiple countries. Loggerhead sea turtles are classified as vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and are listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, making international trade illegal. In the United States, the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service classify them as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. Loggerheads are listed as endangered under both Australia's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and Queensland's Nature Conservation Act 1992. The Convention on Migratory Species works for the conservation of loggerhead sea turtles on the Atlantic coast of Africa, as well as in the Indian Ocean and southeast Asia. Throughout Japan, the Sea Turtle Association of Japan aids in the conservation of loggerhead sea turtles. Greece's ARCHELON works for their conservation. The Marine Research Foundation works for loggerhead conservation in Oman. Annex 2 of the Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife Protocol of the Cartagena Convention, which deals with pollution that could harm marine ecosystems, also protects them. Conservation organizations worldwide have worked with the shrimp trawling industry to develop turtle exclusion devices (TEDs) to exclude even the largest turtles. TEDs are mandatory for all shrimp trawlers. In many places during the nesting season, workers and volunteers search the coastline for nests, and researchers may also go out during the evening to look for nesting females for tagging studies and gather barnacles and tissues samples. Volunteers may, if necessary, relocate the nests for protection from threats, such as high spring tides and predators, and monitor the nests daily for disturbances. After the eggs hatch, volunteers uncover and tally hatched eggs, undeveloped eggs, and dead hatchlings. Any remaining live hatchlings are released or taken to research facilities. Typically, those that lack the vitality to hatch and climb to the surface die. The loggerhead sea turtle appears on the $1000 Colombian peso coin. In the United States, the loggerhead sea turtle is the official state reptile of South Carolina and also the state saltwater reptile of Florida. Adelita, the first sea turtle tracked across an ocean basin., Loggerhead sea turtle policies of the Barack Obama Administration (2009-2017), İztuzu Beach, one of the prime nesting habitats of the loggerhead turtle in the Mediterranean, Sea turtle threats , Burton JA (1978). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Britain and Europe. London: Collins. 272 pp. . (Caretta caretta, p. 95 + Figure 2 on p. 99)., Behler JL, King FW (1979). The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 743 pp., 657 color plates. . (Caretta caretta, pp. 475-476 + Plate 265)., Boulenger GA (1889). Catalogue of the Chelonians, Rhynchocephalians, and Crocodiles in the British Museum (Natural History). New Edition. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, Printers). x + 311 pp. + Plates I-III. (Thalassochelys caretta, pp. 184-186)., , Goin OB, (1978). Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition. San Francisco, California: W.H. Freeman and Company. xi + 378 pp. . (Caretta caretta, pp. 122, 124, 267)., Gulko D, Eckert KL (2004). Sea Turtles: An Ecological Guide. Honolulu, Hawai'i: Mutual Publishing. ., Linnaeus C (1758). Systema naturæ per regna tria naturæ, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, diferentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio Decima, Reformata. Stockholm: L. Salvius. 824 pp. (Testudo caretta, new species, pp. 197-198). (in Latin)., Powell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp., 47 plates, 207 figures. . (Caretta caretta, p. 192 + Plate 14 + Figure 81 on p. 174)., Smith HM, Brodie ED Jr (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. . (Caretta caretta, pp. 36-37)., Stejneger L, Barbour T (1917). A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. 125 pp. (Caretta caretta, p. 123). A 3D animation of a sea turtle. Spawn is the eggs and sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, to spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, and the act of both sexes is called spawning. Most aquatic animals, except for aquatic mammals and reptiles, reproduce through the process of spawning. Spawn consists of the reproductive cells (gametes) of many aquatic animals, some of which will become fertilized and produce offspring. The process of spawning typically involves females releasing ova (unfertilized eggs) into the water, often in large quantities, while males simultaneously or sequentially release spermatozoa (milt) to fertilize the eggs. Most fish reproduce by spawning, as do most other aquatic animals, including crustaceans such as crabs and shrimps, molluscs such as oysters and squid, echinoderms such as sea urchins and sea cucumbers, amphibians such as frogs and newts, aquatic insects such as mayflies and mosquitoes and corals, which are actually small aquatic animals—not plants. Fungi, such as mushrooms, are also said to "spawn" a white, fibrous matter that forms the matrix from which they grow. There are many variations in the way spawning occurs, depending on sexual differences in anatomy, how the sexes relate to each other, where and how the spawn is released and whether or how the spawn is subsequently guarded. Marine animals, and particularly bony fish, commonly reproduce by broadcast spawning. This is an external method of reproduction where the female releases many unfertilised eggs into the water. At the same time, a male or many males release a lot of sperm into the water which fertilises some of these eggs. The eggs contain a drop of nutrient oil to sustain the embryo as it develops inside the egg case. The oil also provides buoyancy, so the eggs float and drift with the current. The strategy for survival of broadcast spawning is to disperse the fertilised eggs, preferably away from the coast into the relative safety of the open ocean. There the larvae develop as they consume their fat stores, and eventually hatch from the egg capsule into miniature versions of their parents. To survive, they must then become miniature predators themselves, feeding on plankton. Fish eventually encounter others of their own kind (conspecifics), where they form aggregations and learn to school. Internally, the sexes of most marine animals can be determined by looking at the gonads. For example, male testes of spawning fish are smooth and white and account for up to 12% of the mass of the fish, while female ovaries are granular and orange or yellow, accounting for up to 70% of the fish's mass. Male lampreys, hagfish and salmon discharge their sperm into the body cavity where it is expelled through pores in the abdomen. Male sharks and rays can pass sperm along a duct into a seminal vesicle, where they store it for a while before it is expelled, while teleosts usually employ separate sperm ducts. Externally, many marine animals, even when spawning, show little sexual dimorphism (difference in body shape or size) or little difference in colouration. Where species are dimorphic, such as sharks or guppies, the males often have penis-like intromittent organs in the form of a modified fin. A species is semelparous if its individuals spawn only once in their lifetime, and iteroparous if its individuals spawn more than once. The term semelparity comes from the Latin semel, once, and pario, to beget, while iteroparity comes from itero, to repeat, and pario, to beget. Semelparity is sometimes called "big bang" reproduction, since the single reproductive event of semelparous organisms is usually large and fatal to the spawners. The classic example of a semelparous animal is the Pacific salmon,which lives for many years in the ocean before swimming to the freshwater stream of its birth, spawning, and then dying. Other spawning animals which are semelparous include mayflies, squid, octopus, smelt, capelin and some amphibians. Semelparity is often associated with r-strategists. However, most fish and other spawning animals are iteroparous. When the internal ovaries or egg masses of fish and certain marine animals are ripe for spawning they are called roe. Roe from certain species, such as shrimp, scallop, crab and sea urchins, are sought as human delicacies in many parts of the world. Caviar is a name for the processed, salted roe of non-fertilized sturgeon. The term soft roe or white roe denotes fish milt. Lobster roe is called coral because it turns bright red when cooked. Roe (reproductive organs) are usually eaten either raw or briefly cooked. "The reproductive behaviour of fishes is remarkably diversified: they may be oviparous (lay eggs), ovoviparous (retain the eggs in the body until they hatch), or viviparous (have a direct tissue connection with the developing embryos and give birth to live young). All cartilaginous fishes—the elasmobranches (e.g., sharks, rays, and skates)—employ internal fertilization and usually lay large, heavy-shelled eggs or give birth to live young. The most characteristic features of the more primitive bony fishes is the assemblage of polyandrous (many males) breeding aggregations in open water and the absence of parental care..." There are two main reproduction methods in fish. The first method is by laying eggs and the second by live-bearing (producing their young alive). In the first method, the female fish lays eggs either on the sea floor or on the leaves of an aquatic plant. A male fish fertilizes the eggs, and both then work together to protect the eggs/babies from danger until they can defend themselves., In the second method, the male fish uses its anal fin to transmit sperm into the female fish and fertilize the fish eggs. Later, the female gives live birth to her fry. Monogamy occurs when one male mates with one female exclusively. This is also called pair spawning. Most fish are not monogamous, and when they are, they often alternate with non-monogamous behaviours. Monogamy can occur when feeding and breeding grounds are small, when it is difficult for fish to find partners, or when both sexes look after the young. Many tropical cichlids, which rear their young together in locations where they must fiercely defend against competitors and predators are monogamous. "In some pipefishes and seahorses, development of eggs takes a long time before the female can place them in the brood pouch of a male, where they are fertilized. While the male is pregnant, the female starts a new batch of eggs, which are ready at about the same time that the male gives birth to the young from the previous mating. This close timing of development promotes monogamy, especially if the likelihood of encountering another potential mate is low." Polygyny occurs when one male gets exclusive mating rights with multiple females. In polygyny a large conspicuous male usually defends females from other males or defends a breeding site. The females choose large males that are successfully defending prime breeding sites which the females find attractive. For example, sculpin males defend "caves" underneath rocks which are suitable for the incubation of embryos. Another way males get to mate with several females is through the use of leks. Leks are places where many fish come together, and the males display to each other. Based on these displays, each female then selects the male they want to be their mate. For example, among the cichlid Cyrtocara eucinostomus in Lake Malawi, up to 50,000 large and colourful males display together on a lek four kilometres long. The females, which are mouth brooders, choose which male they want to fertilize their eggs. Polyandry occurs when one female gets exclusive mating rights with multiple males. This happens among fish like clownfish that change their sex. It can also happen when males do the brooding but can cannot handle all the eggs the female produce, such as with some pipefish. The males in some deep sea anglerfishes are much smaller than the females. When they find a female they bite into her skin, releasing an enzyme that digests the skin of their mouth and her body and fusing the pair down to the blood-vessel level. The male then slowly atrophies, losing first his digestive organs, then his brain, heart, and eyes, ending as nothing more than a pair of gonads, which release sperm in response to hormones in the female's bloodstream indicating egg release. This ensures that, when the female is ready to spawn, she has a mate immediately available. A single anglerfish female can "mate" with many males in this manner. Polygynandry occurs when multiple males mate indiscriminately with multiple females. This mutual promiscuity is the approach most commonly used by spawning animals, and is perhaps the "original fish mating system." Common examples are forage fish, such as herrings, which form huge mating shoals in shallow water. The water becomes milky with sperm and the bottom is draped with millions of fertilized eggs. Alternate male strategies which allow small males to engage in cuckoldry can develop in species where spawning is dominated by large and aggressive males. Cuckoldry is a variant of polyandry, and can occur with sneak spawners (sometimes called streak spawners). A sneak spawner is a male that rushes in to join the spawning rush of a spawning pair. A spawning rush occurs when a fish makes a burst of speed, usually on a near vertical incline, releasing gametes at the apex, followed by a rapid return to the lake or sea floor or fish aggregation. Sneaking males do not take part in courtship. In salmon and trout, for example, jack males are common. These are small silvery males that migrate upstream along with the standard, large, hook-nosed males and that spawn by sneaking into a redd (spawning nest) to release sperm simultaneously with a mated pair. This behaviour is an evolutionarily stable strategy for reproduction, because it is favoured by natural selection just like the "standard" strategy of large males. Cuckoldry occurs in many fish species, including dragonets, parrotfishes and wrasses on tropical reefs and the bluegill sunfish in fresh water. Sneaker males that become too large to hide effectively become satellite males. With bluegill sunfish, satellite males mimic the behaviour and colouration of the females. They hover over a nest containing a pair of courting sunfish, and gradually descend to reach the pair just as they spawn. Males may need to be 6 or 7 years old to function capably as parental males, but may be able to function as sneaker or satellite males when they are as young as 2 or 3 years old. The smaller satellite and sneaker males may get mauled by the more powerful parental males, but they spawn when they are younger and they do not put energy into parental care. Hermaphroditism occurs when a given individual in a species possesses both male and female reproductive organs, or can alternate between possessing first one, and then the other. Hermaphroditism is common in invertebrates but rare in vertebrates. It can be contrasted with gonochorism, where each individual in a species is either male or female, and remains that way throughout their lives. Most fish are gonochorists, but hermaphroditism is known to occur in 14 families of teleost fishes. Usually hermaphrodites are sequential, meaning they can switch sex, usually from female to male (protogyny). This can happen if a dominant male is removed from a group of females. The largest female in the harem can switch sex over a few days and replace the dominant male. This is found amongst coral reef fishes such as groupers, parrotfishes and wrasses. It is less common for a male to switch to a female (protandry). As an example, most wrasses are protogynous hermaphrodites within a haremic mating system. Hermaphroditism allows for complex mating systems. Wrasses exhibit three different mating systems: polygynous, lek-like, and promiscuous mating systems. Group spawning and pair spawning occur within mating systems. The type of spawning that occurs depends on male body size. Labroids typically exhibit broadcast spawning, releasing high amounts of planktonic eggs, which are broadcast by tidal currents; adult wrasses have no interaction with offspring. Wrasse of a particular subgroup of the family Labridae, Labrini, do not exhibit broadcast spawning. Less commonly hermaphrodites can be synchronous, meaning they simultaneously possess both ovaries and testicles and can function as either sex at any one time. Black hamlets "take turns releasing sperm and eggs during spawning. Because such egg trading is advantageous to both individuals, hamlets are typically monogamous for short periods of time–an unusual situation in fishes." The sex of many fishes is not fixed, but can change with physical and social changes to the environment where the fish lives. Particularly among fishes, hermaphroditism can pay off in situations where one sex is more likely to survive and reproduce, perhaps because it is larger. Anemone fishes are sequential hermaphrodites which are born as males, and become females only when they are mature. Anemone fishes live together monogamously in an anemone, protected by the anemone stings. The males do not have to compete with other males, and female anemone fish are typically larger. When a female dies a juvenile (male) anemone fish moves in, and "the resident male then turns into a female and reproductive advantages of the large female–small male combination continue". In other fishes sex changes are reversible. For example, if some gobies are grouped by sex (male or female), some will switch sex. Unisexuality occurs when a species is all-male or all-female. Unisexuality occurs in some fish species, and can take complex forms. Squalius alburnoides, a minnow found in several river basins in Portugal and Spain, appears to be an all-male species. The existence of this species illustrates the potential complexity of mating systems in fish. The species originated as a hybrid between two species, and is diploid, but not hermaphroditic. It can have triploid and tetraploid forms, including all-female forms that reproduce mainly through hybridogenesis. It is rare to find true parthenogenesis in fishes, where females produce female offspring with no input from males. All- female species include the Texas silverside, Menidia clarkhubbsi as well as a complex of Mexican mollies. Parthenogenesis has been recently observed in hammerhead sharks and blacktip sharks. It is also known to occur in crayfish and amphibians. This section is patterned after a classification of the spawning behaviours of fish by Balon (1975, 1984) into reproductive guilds. This classification is based on how the eggs are fertilized (internal or external spawners), where the eggs are deposited (pelagic or benthic spawners), and whether and how the parents look after the eggs after spawning (bearers, guarders and nonguarders). Nonguarders do not protect their eggs and offspring after spawning Open substrate spawners scatter their eggs in the environment. They usually spawn in shoals without complex courtship rituals, and males outnumber females. Broadcast spawners: release their gametes (sperm and eggs) into open water for external fertilisation. There is no subsequent parental care. About 75% of coral species are broadcasters, the majority of which are hermatypic, or reef-building corals. Pelagic spawners: a type of broadcast spawners, spawn in the open sea, mostly near the surface. They are usually pelagic fish such as tuna and sardines. Some demersal fish leave the bottom to spawn pelagically, particularly coral reef fish such as parrotfish and wrasses. Pelagic spawning means water currents widely disperse the young. The eggs, embryos and larvae of pelagic spawners contain oil globules or have a high water content. As a result, they are buoyant and are widely dispersed by currents. The downside is that mortality is high, because they can be eaten so easily by pelagic predators or they can drift into unsuitable areas. Females compensate by spawning large numbers of eggs and extending their spawning periods. Pelagic spawners that live in or around coral reefs can spawn a small number of eggs almost daily over a period of months. These fishes have complex breeding behaviours including sex changes, harems, leks and territoriality. See also: Coral reef fish., Benthic spawners: deposit their spawn on or near the bottom of the sea (or lake). They are usually demersal fish such as cod and flatfish. These species typically spawn without ceremony; they do not engage in elaborate courtship rituals. Each female is usually followed by several males who fertilize the eggs as they are released. Various strategies ensure the eggs and embryos remain in place, and do not drift with the current. The eggs can adhere to other eggs or to whatever they are deposited on, or the eggs can be laid in long strings which are wrapped around plants or rocks. Some eggs take on water after they are released, so they can be dropped into cracks where they swell and wedge themselves in place., Egg scatterers: scatter adhesive or non-adhesive eggs to fall to the substrate, into plants, or float to the surface. These species do not look after their brood and even eat their own eggs. These are often schooling fish which spawn in groups or pairs, often laying a large number of small eggs. The fry hatch quickly., Egg depositers: deposit eggs on a substrate (tank glass, wood, rocks, plants). Egg depositors usually lay fewer eggs than egg-scatterers, although the eggs are larger. Egg depositors fall into two groups: those that care for their eggs, and those that do not. Among egg depositors that care for their eggs are cichlids and some catfish. Egg depositors that care for their young can be divided into two groups: cavity spawners and open spawners., Cavity spawners: lay eggs in a cave or cavity. These fish form pairs and have advanced brood care where the eggs are defended and cleaned. The eggs take a few days to hatch, and the fry are often guarded by the parents. Various catfish, Cyprinidae, and killifish make up the majority. Cavity spawners can be contrasted with open (shelter) spawners, which lay their eggs on an open surface. Brood hiders hide their eggs but do not give parental care after they have hidden them. Brood hiders are mostly benthic spawners that bury the fertilized eggs. For example, among salmon and trout the female digs a nest with her tail in gravel. These nests are called redds. The female then lays her eggs while the male fertilizes them, while both fish defend the redd if necessary from other members of the same species. Then the female buries the nest, and the nest site is abandoned. In North America, some minnows build nests out of piles of stones rather than dig holes. The minnow males have tubercles on their head and body which they use to help them defend the nest site. Egg buriers - can inhabit waters that dry up at some time of the year. An example are annual killifish which lay their eggs in mud. The parents mature quickly and lay their eggs before dying when the water dries up. The eggs remain in a dormant stage until rains stimulate hatching. Bitterlings have a remarkable reproduction strategy where parents transfer responsibility for the care of their young to mussels. The female extends her ovipositor into the mantle cavity of the mussel and deposits her eggs between the gill filaments. The male then ejects his sperm into the mussel's inhalant water current and fertilization takes place within the gills of the host. The same female may use a number of mussels, and she deposits only one or two yellow, oval eggs into each. Early developmental stages are protected from predation within the body of the mussel. After 3 to 4 weeks larvae swim away from the host to continue life on their own. Guarders protect their eggs and offspring after spawning by practicing parental care (also called brood care). Parental care is an "investment by parents in offspring that increases the offspring's chances of surviving (and hence reproducing). In fish, parental care can take a variety of forms including guarding, nest building, fanning, splashing, removal of dead eggs, retrieval of straying fry, external egg carrying, egg burying, moving eggs or young, ectodermal feeding, oral brooding, internal gestation, brood-pouch egg carrying, etc." Territorial behaviour is generally necessary for guarders, and the embryos are almost always guarded by males (apart from cichlids). There is a need to be territorial because looking after embryos usually includes defending the site where they are being looked after. It also often means there is competition for the best egg-laying sites. Elaborate courtship behaviour is usual among guarders. Guarding males keep the embryos safe from predators, keep oxygen levels high by fanning water currents, and keep the area free from dead embryos and debris. They protect the embryos until they hatch, and often look after the larval stages as well. The time spent guarding can range from a few days to several months. Some guarders build nests (nest spawners) and some do not (substrate spawners), though the difference between the two groups can be small. Substrate spawners clean off a suitable area of surface suitable for egg laying, and look after the area, but they do not actively build a nest. Bearers are fish that carry their embryos (and sometimes their young) around with them, either externally or internally. Mouth brooders - carry eggs or larvae in their mouth. Mouth brooders can be ovophiles or larvophiles. Ovophile or egg-loving mouth-brooders lay their eggs in a pit, which are sucked up into the mouth of the female. The small number of large eggs hatch in the mother's mouth, and the fry remain there for a period of time. Fertilization often occurs with the help of egg-spots, which are colorful spots on the anal fin of the male. When the female sees these spots, she tries to pick up the egg-spots, but instead gets sperm that fertilizes the eggs in her mouth. Many cichlids and some labyrinth fish are ovophile mouthbrooders. Larvophile or larvae-loving mouth-brooders lay their eggs on a substrate and guard them until the eggs hatch. After hatching, the female picks up the fry and keeps them in her mouth. When the fry can fend for themselves, they are released. Some eartheaters are larvophile mouthbrooders. The beginning of the evolutionary process of livebearing starts with facultative (optional) internal bearing. The process occurs in several species of oviparous (egg-laying) killifishes which spawn in the normal way on the substrate, but in the process accidentally fertilize eggs which the female retains and does not spawn. These eggs are spawned later, usually without allowing much time for embryonic development. The next step in the evolution of livebearing is obligate (by necessity) internal bearing, where the female retains all the embryos. "The only source of nutrition for these embryos, however, is the egg yolk, as in externally spawned eggs. This situation, also referred to as ovoviviparity, is characteristic of marine rock fishes and the Lake Baikal sculpins. This strategy allows these fish to have fecundities approaching those of pelagic fish with external fertilization, but it also enables them to protect the young during their most vulnerable stage of development. By contrast, sharks and rays using this strategy produce a relatively small number of embryos and retain them for a few weeks to 16 months or longer. The shorter times spans are characteristic of species that eventually deposit their embryos in the environment, surrounded by a horny capsule; whereas the longer periods are characteristic of sharks that retain the embryos until they are ready to emerge as actively swimming young." However, some fish do not fit these categories. The livebearing largespring gambusia (Gambusia geiseri) was thought to be ovoviviparous until it was shown in 2001 that the embryos received nutrients from the mother. Spawning grounds are the areas of water where aquatic animals spawn, or produce their eggs. After spawning, the spawn may or may not drift to new grounds which become their nursery grounds. Many species undertake migrations each year, and sometimes great migrations, to reach their spawning grounds. For example, lakes and river watersheds can be major spawning grounds for anadromous fish such as salmon. These days, it is often necessary to construct fish ladders and other bypass systems so salmon can navigate their way past hydroelectric dams or other obstructions such as weirs on their way to spawning grounds. Coastal fish often use mangroves and estuaries as spawning grounds, while reef fish can find adjacent seagrass meadows that make good spawning grounds. Short-finned eels can travel anything up to three or four thousand kilometres to their spawning ground in deep water somewhere in the Coral Sea. Forage fish often make great migrations between their spawning, feeding and nursery grounds. Schools of a particular stock usually travel in a triangle between these grounds. For example, one stock of herrings have their spawning ground in southern Norway, their feeding ground in Iceland, and their nursery ground in northern Norway. Wide triangular journeys such as these may be important because forage fish, when feeding, cannot distinguish their own offspring. Capelin are a forage fish of the smelt family found in the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. In summer, they graze on dense swarms of plankton at the edge of the ice shelf. Larger capelin also eat krill and other crustaceans. The capelin move inshore in large schools to spawn and migrate in spring and summer to feed in plankton rich areas between Iceland, Greenland, and Jan Mayen. The migration is affected by ocean currents. Around Iceland maturing capelin make large northward feeding migrations in spring and summer. The return migration takes place in September to November. The spawning migration starts north of Iceland in December or January. The diagram on the right shows the main spawning grounds and larval drift routes. Capelin on the way to feeding grounds is coloured green, capelin on the way back is blue, and the breeding grounds are red. In a paper published in 2009, researchers from Iceland recount their application of an interacting particle model to the capelin stock around Iceland, successfully predicting the spawning migration route for 2008. Referred to as "the greatest shoal on earth", the sardine run occurs when millions of sardines migrate from their spawning grounds south of the southern tip of Africa northward along the Eastern Cape coastline. Chinook salmon make the longest freshwater migration of any salmon, over up the Yukon River to spawning grounds upstream of Whitehorse, Yukon. Some green sea turtles swim more than to reach their spawning grounds. Goldfish, like all cyprinids, are egg-layers. They usually start breeding after a significant temperature change, often in spring. Males chase females, prompting them to release their eggs by bumping and nudging them. As the female goldfish spawns her eggs, the male goldfish stays close behind fertilizing them. Their eggs are adhesive and attach to aquatic vegetation. The eggs hatch within 48 to 72 hours. Within a week or so, the fry begins to assume its final shape, although a year may pass before they develop a mature goldfish colour; until then they are a metallic brown like their wild ancestors. In their first weeks of life, the fry grow quickly—an adaptation born of the high risk of getting devoured by the adult goldfish. A member of the Cyprinidae, carp spawn in times between April and August, largely dependent upon the climate and conditions they live in. Oxygen levels of the water, availability of food, size of each fish, age, number of times the fish has spawned before and water temperature are all factors known to effect when and how many eggs each carp will spawn at any one time. Prior to spawning, male Siamese fighting fish build bubble nests of varying sizes at the surface of the water. When a male becomes interested in a female, he will flare his gills, twist his body, and spread his fins. The female darkens in colour and curves her body back and forth. The act of spawning takes place in a "nuptial embrace" where the male wraps his body around the female, each embrace resulting in the release of 10-40 eggs until the female is out of eggs. The male, from his side, releases milt into the water and fertilization takes place externally. During and after spawning, the male uses his mouth to retrieve sinking eggs and deposit them in the bubble nest (during mating the female sometimes assists her partner, but more often she will simply devour all the eggs that she manages to catch). Once the female has released all of her eggs, she is chased away from the male's territory, as it is likely that she'll eat the eggs due to hunger. The eggs then remain in the male's care. He keeps them in the bubble nest, making sure none fall to the bottom and repairing the nest as needed. Incubation lasts for 24–36 hours, and the newly hatched larvae remain in the nest for the next 2–3 days, until their yolk sacs are fully absorbed. Afterwards the fry leave the nest and the free- swimming stage begins. Copepods are tiny crustaceans which usually reproduce either by broadcast spawning or by sac spawning. Broadcasting copepods scatter their eggs into the water, but sac spawners lay their eggs into an ovigerous sac. Sac spawners spawn few but relatively large eggs that develop slowly. By contrast, broadcast spawners spawn numerous small eggs that develop rapidly. However, the shorter hatch times that result from broadcasting are not short enough to compensate for the higher mortality compared to sac spawners. To produce a given number of hatched eggs, broadcasters must spawn more eggs than sac spawners. After mating, the fertilized eggs of the California spiny lobster are carried on the female's pleopods until they hatch, with between 120,000 and 680,000 carried by a single female. The eggs begin coral red, but darken as they develop to a deep maroon. When she is carrying the eggs, the female is said to be "berried". The eggs are ready to hatch after 10 weeks, and spawning takes place from May to August. The larvae that hatch (called phyllosoma larvae) do not resemble the adults. Instead, they are flat, transparent animals around long, but as thin as a sheet of paper. The larvae feed on plankton, and grow through ten molts into ten further larval stages, the last of which is around long. The full series of larval molts takes around 7 months, and when the last stage molts, it metamorphoses into the puerulus state, which is a juvenile form of the adult, though still transparent. The puerulus larvae settle to the sea floor when the water is near its maximum temperature, which in Baja California is in the fall. Egg-bearing female lobsters migrate inshore from deeper waters to hatch their eggs, though they do not have specific spawning grounds. These lobster migrations can occur in close single-file formation "lobster trains". Oysters are broadcast spawners, that is, eggs and sperm are released into open water where fertilisation occurs. They are protandric; during their first year they spawn as males by releasing sperm into the water. As they grow over the next two or three years and develop greater energy reserves, they spawn as females by releasing eggs. Bay oysters usually spawn by the end of June. An increase in water temperature prompts a few oysters to spawn. This triggers spawning in the rest, clouding the water with millions of eggs and sperm. A single female oyster can produce up to 100 million eggs annually. The eggs become fertilized in the water and develop rapidly into planktonic larvae. which eventually find suitable sites, such as another oyster's shell, on which to settle. Attached oyster larvae are called spat. Spat are oysters less than long. The Pacific oyster usually has separate sexes. Their sex can be determined by examining the gonads, and it can change from year to year, normally during the winter months. In certain environmental conditions, one sex is favoured over the other. Protandry is favoured in areas of high food abundance and protogyny occurs in areas of low food abundance. In habitats with a high food supply, the sex ratio in the adult population tends to favour females, and areas with low food abundances tend to have a larger proportion of male adults. Spawning in the Pacific oyster occurs at . This species is very fecund, with females releasing about 50–200 million eggs in regular intervals (at a rate of 5–10 times a minute) in a single spawning. Once released from the gonads, the eggs move through the suprabranchial chambers (gills), are then pushed through the gill ostia into the mantle chamber, and are finally released in the water, forming a small cloud. In males, the sperm is released at the opposite end of the oyster, along with the normal exhalent stream of water. A rise in water temperature is thought to be the main cue in the initiation of spawning, as the onset of higher water temperatures in the summer results in earlier spawning in the Pacific oyster. The[larvae of the Pacific oyster are planktotrophic, and are about 70 µm at the prodissoconch 1 stage. The larvae move through the water column via the use of a larval foot to find suitable settlement locations. They can spend several weeks at this phase, which is dependent on water temperature, salinity and food supply. Over these weeks, larvae can disperse great distances by water currents before they metamorphose and settle as small spat. Similar to other oyster species, once the Pacific oyster larvae find a suitable habitat, they attach to it permanently using cement secreted from a gland in their foot. After settlement, the larvae metamorphose into juvenile spat. The growth rate is very rapid in optimum environmental conditions, and market size can be achieved in 18 to 30 months. Cephalopods, such as squid and octopuses, have prominent heads and a set of arms (tentacles) modified from the primitive foot of molluscs. All cephalopods are sexually dimorphic. However, they lack external sexual characteristics, so they use colour communication. A courting male approaches a likely looking mate flashing his brightest colours, often in rippling displays. If the other cephalopod is female and receptive, her skin will change colour to become pale, and mating will occur. If the other cephalopod remains brightly coloured, it is taken as a warning. All cephalopods reproduce by spawning eggs. Most cephalopods use semi-internal fertilization where the male places his gametes inside the female's mantle cavity to fertilize the ova in the female's single ovary. The "penis" in most male cephalopods is a long and muscular end of the gonoduct used to transfer spermatophores to a modified sperm-carrying arm called a hectocotylus. That in turn is used to transfer the spermatophores to the female. In species where the hectocotylus is missing, the "penis" is long and able to extend beyond the mantle cavity and transfers the spermatophores directly to the female. In many cephalopods, mating occurs head to head and the male may simply transfer sperm to the female. Others may detach the sperm-carrying arm and leave it attached to the female. Deep water squid have the greatest known penis length relative to body size of all mobile animals, second in the entire animal kingdom only to certain sessile barnacles. Penis elongation in the greater hooked squid may result in a penis that is as long as the mantle, head and arms combined. Some species brood their fertilized eggs: female paper nautilus construct shelters for the young, while Gonatiid squid carry a larva-laden membrane from the hooks on their arms. Other cephalopods deposit their young under rocks and aerate them with their tentacles hatching. Mostly the eggs are left to their own devices; many squid lay sausage-like bunches of eggs in crevices or occasionally on the sea floor. Cuttlefish lay eggs separately in cases and attach them to coral or algal fronds. Like Pacific salmon, cephalopods are mostly semelparous, spawning many small eggs in one batch and then dying. Cephalopods usually live fast and die young. Most of the energy extracted from their food is used for growing, and they mature rapidly to their adult size. Some gain as much as 12% of their body mass each day. Most live for one to two years, reproducing and then dying shortly thereafter. Echinoderms are marine animals, widespread in all oceans, but not found in fresh water. Just below their skin is an endoskeleton composed of calcareous plates or ossicles. Sea urchins are spiky echinoderms with spherical bodies which usually contain five gonads. They move slowly, feed mostly on seaweed, and are important for the diet of sea otters. Sea urchins are dioecious, having separate male and female sexes, although there is generally no easy way to distinguish the two. The gonads are lined with muscles underneath the peritoneum, and these allow the animal to squeeze its gametes through the duct and into the surrounding sea water, where fertilization takes place. Their roe (male and female gonads) is soft and melting, with a colour ranging from orange to pale yellow, and is sought after as a human delicacy in many parts of the world. Sea cucumbers are leathery echinoderms with elongated bodies which contain a single, branched gonad. They are found on the sea floor worldwide, and occur in great numbers on the deep sea floor where they often make up the majority of the animal biomass. They feed on plankton and decaying organic debris found at the sea bottom, catching food that flows by with their open tentacles or sifting through bottom sediments. Like sea urchins, most sea cucumbers reproduce by releasing sperm and ova into the ocean water. Depending on conditions, one organism can produce thousands of gametes. Sea cucumbers are typically dioecious, with separate male and female individuals. The reproductive system consists of a single gonad, consisting of a cluster of tubules emptying into a single duct that opens on the upper surface of the animal, close to the tentacles. Many species fertilise their eggs internally. The fertilised egg develops in a pouch on the adult's body and eventually hatches as a juvenile sea cucumber. A few species brood their young inside the body cavity, giving birth through a small rupture in the body wall close to the anus. The remaining species develop their eggs into a free-swimming larva, usually after about three days of development. This larva swims by means of a long band of cilia wrapped around its body. As the larva grows it transforms into a barrel-shaped body with three to five separate rings of cilia. The tentacles are usually the first adult features to appear, before the regular tube feet. Amphibians are found in and around fresh water lakes and ponds, but not in marine environments. Examples are frogs and toads, salamanders, newts and caecilians (which resemble snakes). They are cold-blooded animals that metamorphose from a juvenile water-breathing form, usually to an adult air- breathing form, though mudpuppies retain juvenile gills in adulthood. Female frogs and toads usually spawn gelatinous egg masses containing thousands of eggs in water. Different species lay eggs in distinctive and identifiable ways. For example, the American toad lays long strings of eggs. The eggs are highly vulnerable to predation, so frogs have evolved many techniques to ensure the survival of the next generation. In colder areas the embryo is black to absorb more heat from the sun, which speeds up development. Most commonly, this involves synchronous reproduction. Many individuals will breed at the same time, overwhelming the actions of predators; the majority of the offspring will still die due to predation, but there is a greater chance some will survive. Another way in which some species avoid predators and the pathogens eggs are exposed to in ponds is to lay eggs on leaves above the pond, with a gelatinous coating designed to retain moisture. In these species the tadpoles drop into the water upon hatching. The eggs of some species laid out of water can detect vibrations of nearby predatory wasps or snakes, and will hatch early to avoid being eaten. While the length of the egg stage depends on the species and environmental conditions, aquatic eggs generally hatch within one week. Unlike salamanders and newts, frogs and toads never become sexually mature while still in their larval stage. The hatched eggs continue life as tadpoles, which typically have oval bodies and long, vertically flattened tails. As a general rule, free living larvae are fully aquatic. They lack eyelids and have a cartilaginous skeleton, a lateral line system, gills for respiration (external gills at first, internal gills later) and tails with dorsal and ventral folds of skin for swimming. They quickly develop a gill pouch that covers the gills and the front legs; the lungs are also developed at an early stage as an accessory breathing organ. Some species which go through the metamorphosis inside the egg and hatch to small frogs never develop gills; instead there are specialised areas of skin that take care of respiration. Tadpoles also lack true teeth, but the jaws in most species usually have two elongate, parallel rows of small keratinized structures called keradonts in the upper jaw while the lower jaw has three rows of keradonts, surrounded by a horny beak, but the number of rows can be lower (sometimes zero), or much higher. Tadpoles feed on algae, including diatoms filtered from the water through the gills. Some species are carnivorous at the tadpole stage, eating insects, smaller tadpoles, and fish. Cannibalism has been observed among tadpoles. Early developers who gain legs may be eaten by the others, so the late bloomers survive longer. Sea turtles are amphibious reptiles, but they are not amphibians. Reptiles belong to the class Reptilia while amphibians belong to the class Amphibia. These are two distinct taxonomic groups. Reptiles have scales and leathery skins, while the skins of amphibians are smooth and porous. Unlike frogs, sea turtle eggs have tough, leathery shells which allow them to survive on land without drying out. Some sea turtles migrate long distances between feeding and spawning grounds. Green turtles have feeding grounds along the Brazilian coast. Each year, thousands of these turtles migrate about to their spawning ground, Ascension Island in the Atlantic, an island only across. Each year the returning turtles dig between 6,000 and 15,000 nests, often returning to the same beach from where they hatched. Females usually mate every two to four years. Males on the other hand visit the breeding areas every year, attempting to mate. Green sea turtles' mating is similar to other marine turtles. Female turtles control the process. A few populations practice polyandry, although this does not seem to benefit hatchlings. After mating in the water, the female moves above the beach's high tide line where she digs a hole with her hind flippers and deposits her eggs. Litter size depends on the age of the female and species, but green turtle clutches range between 100 and 200. She then covers the nest with sand and returns to the sea. At around 45 to 75 days, the eggs hatch during the night and the hatchlings instinctively head directly into the water. This is the most dangerous time in a turtle's life. As they walk, predators such as gulls and crabs grab them. A significant percentage never make it to the ocean. Little is known of the initial life history of newly hatched sea turtles. Juveniles spend three to five years in the open ocean before they settle as still-immature juveniles into their permanent shallow-water lifestyle. It is speculated that they take twenty to fifty years to reach sexual maturity. Individuals live up to eighty years in the wild. They are among the larger sea turtles, many more than a meter long and weighing up to . Aquatic insects also spawn. Mayflies "are famed for their short adult life. Some species have under an hour to mate and lay their eggs before they die. Their pre-adult stage, known as the subimago, may be even shorter - perhaps lasting just a few minutes before they moult into their adult form. Therefore a mayfly spends most of its life as a nymph, hidden from view under the water." Corals can be both gonochoristic (unisexual) and hermaphroditic, each of which can reproduce sexually and asexually. Reproduction also allows corals to settle new areas. Corals predominantly reproduce sexually. 25% of hermatypic corals (stony corals) form single sex (gonochoristic) colonies, while the rest are hermaphroditic. About 75% of all hermatypic corals "broadcast spawn" by releasing gametes--eggs and sperm--into the water to spread offspring. The gametes fuse during fertilization to form a microscopic larva called a planula, typically pink and elliptical in shape. A typical coral colony form several thousand larvae per year to overcome the odds against formation of a new colony. Planulae exhibit positive phototaxis, swimming towards light to reach surface waters where they drift and grow before descending to seek a hard surface to which they can attach and establish a new colony. They also exhibit positive sonotaxis, moving towards sounds that emanate from the reef and away from open water. High failure rates afflict many stages of this process, and even though millions of gametes are released by each colony very few new colonies form. The time from spawning to settling is usually 2–3 days, but can be up to 2 months. The larva grows into a polyp and eventually becomes a coral head by asexual budding and growth. Synchronous spawning is very typical on the coral reef and often, even when multiple species are present, all corals spawn on the same night. This synchrony is essential so that male and female gametes can meet. Corals must rely on environmental cues, varying from species to species, to determine the proper time to release gametes into the water. The cues involve lunar changes, sunset time, and possibly chemical signalling. Synchronous spawning may form hybrids and is perhaps involved in coral speciation. In some places the spawn can be visually dramatic, clouding the usually clear water with gametes, typically at night. Corals use two methods for sexual reproduction, which differ in whether the female gametes are released: Broadcasters, the majority of which mass spawn, rely heavily on environmental cues, because they release both sperm and eggs into the water. The corals use long-term cues such as day length, water temperature, and/or rate of temperature change. The short-term cue is most often the lunar cycle, with sunset cuing the release. About 75% of coral species are broadcasters, the majority of which are hermatypic, or reef-building corals. The positively buoyant gametes float towards the surface where fertilization produces planula larvae. The larvae swim towards the surface light to enter into currents, where they usually remain for two days, but sometimes up to three weeks, and in one known case two months, after which they settle and metamorphose into polyps and form colonies., Brooders are most often ahermatypic (non-reef building) in areas of high current or wave action. Brooders release only sperm, which is negatively buoyant, and can harbor unfertilized eggs for weeks, lowering the need for mass synchronous spawning events, which do sometimes occur. After fertilization the corals release planula larvae which are ready to settle. Fungi are not plants, and require different conditions for optimal growth. Plants develop through photosynthesis, a process that converts atmospheric carbon dioxide into carbohydrates, especially cellulose. While sunlight provides an energy source for plants, mushrooms derive all of their energy and growth materials from their growth medium, through biochemical decomposition processes. This does not mean that light is an unnecessary requirement, since some fungi use light as a signal to induce fruiting. However, all the materials for growth must already be present in the growth medium. Instead of seeds, mushrooms reproduce sexually during underground growth, and asexually through spores. Either of these can be contaminated with airborne microorganisms, which will interfere with mushroom growth and prevent a healthy crop. Mycelium, or actively growing mushroom culture, is placed on growth substrate to seed or introduce mushrooms to grow on a substrate. This is also known as inoculation, spawning or adding spawn. Its main advantages are to reduce chances of contamination while giving mushrooms a firm beginning. Anadromous, Egg case, Federal Inventory of Amphibian Spawning Areas, Ichthyoplankton, Juvenile fish, Milt, Mouthbrooder, Reproduction, Salmon run, Spawning bed, Spawning triggers, Stream pool Cole, Kathleen S (2010) Reproduction and Sexuality in Marine Fishes: Patterns and Processes University of California Press. . Reproduction FAO, Rome. Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the green sea turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, Kemp's ridley sea turtle, olive ridley sea turtle, hawksbill sea turtle, flatback sea turtle, and leatherback sea turtle. Importantly, for each of the seven types of sea turtles, females and males are the same size, i.e. there is no sexual dimorphism. In general, sea turtles have a more fusiform body plan than their terrestrial or freshwater counterparts. This tapering at both ends reduces volume and means that sea turtles can't, as can other turtles and tortoises, retract their head and limbs into their shells for protection. But the streamlined body plan reduces friction and drag in the water and allows sea turtles to swim more easily and swiftly. The leatherback sea turtle is the largest sea turtle, measuring 2–3 meters (6–9 ft) in length, and 1-1.5 m (3–5 ft) in width, weighing up to 700 kilograms (1500 lb). Other sea turtle species are smaller, being mostly 60–120 cm (2–4 ft) long and proportionally narrower. Sea turtles, along with other turtles and tortoises, are part of the order Testudines. All species except the leatherback sea turtle are in the family Cheloniidae. The leatherback sea turtle is the only extant member of the family Dermochelyidae. The origin of sea turtles goes back to the Late Jurassic (150 million years ago) with genera such as Plesiochelys, from Europe. In Africa, the first sea turtle is Angolachelys, from the Turonian of Angola. However, neither of these are related to extant sea turtles; the oldest representative of the lineage leading to these was Desmatochelys padillai , from the Early Cretaceous. A lineage of unrelated marine testudines, the pleurodire (side-necked) bothremydids, also survived well into the Cenozoic. Other pleurodires are also thought to have lived at sea, such as Araripemys and extinct pelomedusids. Modern sea turtles constitute a single radiation that became distinct from all other turtles at least 110 million years ago. Sea turtles' limbs and brains have evolved to adapt to their diets. One of the main things sea turtles consume is jellyfish and the use of their limbs to hold, swipe, and forage their food has helped them eat more efficiently. Originally sea turtles' limbs have evolved for locomotion but now they have evolved to aid them in the ability to get food. Below is a cladogram showing the phylogenetic relationships of living and extinct sea turtles in the Chelonioidea based on Evers et al. (2019): Sea turtles can be found in all oceans except for the polar regions. The flatback sea turtle is found solely on the northern coast of Australia. The Kemp's ridley sea turtle is found solely in the Gulf of Mexico and along the East Coast of the United States. Sea turtles are generally found in the waters over continental shelves. During the first three to five years of life, sea turtles spend most of their time in the pelagic zone floating in seaweed mats. Green sea turtles in particular are often found in Sargassum mats, in which they find shelter food,and water. Once the sea turtle has reached adulthood it moves closer to the shore. Females will come ashore to lay their eggs on sandy beaches during the nesting season. Sea turtles migrate to reach their spawning beaches, which are limited in numbers. Living in the ocean therefore means they usually migrate over large distances. All sea turtles have large body sizes, which is helpful for moving large distances. Large body sizes also offer good protection against the large predators (notably sharks) found in the ocean. It takes decades for sea turtles to reach sexual maturity. Mature sea turtles may migrate thousands of miles to reach breeding sites. After mating at sea, adult female sea turtles return to land to lay their eggs. Different species of sea turtles exhibit various levels of philopatry. In the extreme case, females return to the same beach where they hatched. This can take place every two to four years in maturity. The mature nesting female hauls herself onto the beach, nearly always at night, and finds suitable sand in which to create a nest. Using her hind flippers, she digs a circular hole deep. After the hole is dug, the female then starts filling the nest with her clutch of soft- shelled eggs. Depending on the species, a typical clutch may contain 50–350 eggs. After laying, she re-fills the nest with sand, re-sculpting and smoothing the surface, and then camouflaging the nest with vegetation until it is relatively undetectable visually. The whole process takes 30 to 60 minutes. She then returns to the ocean, leaving the eggs untended. Females may lay 1–8 clutches in a single season. Female sea turtles alternate between mating in the water and laying their eggs on land. Most sea turtle species nest individually. But ridley sea turtles come ashore en masse, known as an arribada (arrival). With the Kemp's ridley sea turtle this occurs during the day. Sea turtles have temperature-dependent sex determination, meaning the developing baby sea turtle's sex depends on the temperature it is exposed to. Warmer temperatures produce female hatchlings, while cooler temperatures produce male hatchlings. The eggs will incubate for 50–60 days. The eggs in one nest hatch together over a short period of time. The baby sea turtles break free of the egg shell, dig through the sand, and crawl into the sea. Most species of sea turtles hatch at night. However, the Kemp's ridley sea turtle commonly hatches during the day. Sea turtle nests that hatch during the day are more vulnerable to predators, and may encounter more human activity on the beach. Larger hatchlings have a higher probability of survival than smaller individuals, which can be explained by the fact that larger offspring are faster and thus less exposed to predation. Predators can only functionally intake so much; larger individuals are not targeted as often. A study conducted on this topic shows that body size is positively correlated with speed, so larger baby sea turtles are exposed to predators for a shorter amount of time. The fact that there is size dependent predation on chelonians has led to the evolutionary development of large body sizes. In 1987, Carr discovered that the young of green and loggerhead sea turtles spent a great deal of their pelagic lives in floating sargassum mats. Within these mats, they found ample shelter and food. In the absence of sargassum, young sea turtles feed in the vicinity of upwelling "fronts". In 2007, Reich determined that green sea turtle hatchlings spend the first three to five years of their lives in pelagic waters. In the open ocean, pre-juveniles of this particular species were found to feed on zooplankton and smaller nekton before they are recruited into inshore seagrass meadows as obligate herbivores. Sea turtles maintain an internal environment that is hypotonic to the ocean. To maintain hypotonicity they must excrete excess salt ions. Like other marine reptiles, sea turtles rely on a specialized gland to rid the body of excess salt, because reptilian kidneys cannot produce urine with a higher ion concentration than sea water. All species of sea turtles have a lachrymal gland in the orbital cavity, capable of producing tears with a higher salt concentration than sea water. Leatherback sea turtles face an increased osmotic challenge compared to other species of sea turtle, since their primary prey are jellyfish and other gelatinous plankton, whose fluids have the same concentration of salts as sea water. The much larger lachrymal gland found in leatherback sea turtles may have evolved to cope with the higher intake of salts from their prey. A constant output of concentrated salty tears may be required to balance the input of salts from regular feeding, even considering leatherback sea turtle tears can have a salt ion concentration almost twice that of other species of sea turtle. Hatchlings depend on drinking sea water immediately upon entering the ocean to replenish water lost during the hatching process. Salt gland functioning begins quickly after hatching, so that the young sea turtles can establish ion and water balance soon after entering the ocean. Survival and physiological performance hinge on immediate and efficient hydration following emergence from the nest. Most sea turtles (those in family Cheloniidae) are poikilotherms. However leatherback sea turtles (family Dermochelyidae) are endotherms because they can maintain a body temperature warmer than the ambient water. Green sea turtles in the relatively cooler Pacific are known to haul themselves out of the water on remote islands to bask in the sun. This behavior has only been observed in a few locations, including the Galapagos, Hawaii, Europa Island, and parts of Australia. Sea turtles are air-breathing reptiles that have lungs, so they regularly surface to breathe. Sea turtles spend a majority of their time underwater, so they must be able to hold their breath for long periods. Dive duration largely depends on activity. A foraging sea turtle may typically spend 5–40 minutes under water while a sleeping sea turtle can remain under water for 4–7 hours. Remarkably, sea turtle respiration remains aerobic for the vast majority of voluntary dive time. When a sea turtle is forcibly submerged (e.g. entangled in a trawl net) its diving endurance is substantially reduced, so it is more susceptible to drowning. When surfacing to breathe, a sea turtle can quickly refill its lungs with a single explosive exhalation and rapid inhalation. Their large lungs permit rapid exchange of oxygen and avoid trapping gases during deep dives. Cold stunning is a phenomenon that occurs when sea turtles enter cold ocean water (45-50 degrees F) which causes the turtles to float to the surface and therefore makes it impossible for them to swim. Gruber and Sparks (2015) have observed the first fluorescence in a marine tetrapod (four-limbed vertebrates). Sea turtles are the first biofluorescent reptile found in the wild. According to Gruber and Sparks (2015), fluorescence is observed in an increasing number of marine creatures (cnidarians, ctenophores, annelids, arthropods, and chordates) and is now also considered to be widespread in cartilaginous and ray-finned fishes. The two marine biologists accidentally made the observation in the Solomon Islands on a hawksbill sea turtle, one of the rarest and most endangered sea turtle species in the ocean, during a night dive aimed to film the biofluorescence emitted by small sharks and coral reefs. The role of biofluorescence in marine organisms is often attributed to a strategy for attracting prey or perhaps a way to communicate. It could also serve as a way of defense or camouflage for the sea turtle hiding during night amongst other fluorescent organisms like corals. Fluorescent corals and sea creatures are best observed during night dives with a blue LED light and with a camera equipped with an orange optical filter to capture only the fluorescence light. The loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, olive ridley, and hawksbill sea turtles are omnivorous their entire life. Omnivorous turtles may eat a wide variety of plant and animal life including decapods, seagrasses, seaweed, sponges, mollusks, cnidarians, echinoderms, worms and fish. However, some species specialize on certain prey. The diet of green sea turtles changes with age. Juveniles are omnivorous, but as they mature they become exclusively herbivorous. This diet shift has an effect on the green sea turtle's morphology. Green sea turtles have a serrated jaw that is used to eat sea grass and algae. Leatherback sea turtles feed almost exclusively on jellyfish and help control jellyfish populations. Hawksbill sea turtles principally eat sponges, which constitute 70–95% of their diets in the Caribbean. There was little information regarding the sea turtle's larynx. Sea turtles, like other turtle species, lack an epiglottis to cover the larynx entrance. Key findings from an experiment reveal the following in regards to the larynx morphology: a close apposition between the linguolaryngeal cleft's smooth mucosal walls and the laryngeal folds, a dorsal part of the glottis, the glottal mucosa attached to the arytenoid cartilage, and the way the hyoid sling is arranged and the relationship between the compressor laryngis muscle and cricoid cartilage. The glottal opening and closing mechanisms have been examined. During the opening stage, two abductor artytenoideae muscles swing arytenoid cartilages and the glottis walls. As a result, the glottis profile is transformed from a slit to a triangle. In the closing stage, the tongue is drawn posteriorly due to the close apposition of the glottis walls and linguolaryngeal cleft walls and hyoglossal sling contractions. Sea turtles are caught worldwide, although it is illegal to hunt most species in many countries. A great deal of intentional sea turtle harvests worldwide are for food. Many parts of the world have long considered sea turtles to be fine dining. Ancient Chinese texts dating to the 5th century B.C.E. describe sea turtles as exotic delicacies. Many coastal communities around the world depend on sea turtles as a source of protein, often harvesting several sea turtles at once and keeping them alive on their backs until needed. Coastal peoples gather sea turtle eggs for consumption. To a much lesser extent, specific species of sea turtles are targeted not for their flesh, but for their shells. Tortoiseshell, a traditional decorative ornamental material used in Japan and China, comes from the carapace scutes of the hawksbill sea turtle. Ancient Greeks and ancient Romans processed sea turtle scutes (primarily from the hawksbill sea turtle) for various articles and ornaments used by their elites, such as combs and brushes. The skin of the flippers is prized for use as shoes and assorted leather goods. In various West African countries, sea turtles are harvested for traditional medicinal use. People also eat sea turtle meat and eggs. The Moche people of ancient Peru worshipped the sea and its animals. They often depicted sea turtles in their art. Leatherback sea turtles enjoy immunity from the sting of the deadly box jellyfish and regularly eat them, helping to keep tropical beaches safe for humans. Beach towns, such as Tortuguero, Costa Rica, have transitioned from a tourism industry that made profits from selling sea turtle meat and shells to an ecotourism-based economy. Tortuguero is considered to be the founding location of sea turtle conservation. In the 1960s the cultural demand for sea turtle meat, shells, and eggs was quickly killing the once-abundant sea turtle populations that nested on the beach. The Caribbean Conservation Corporation began working with villagers to promote ecotourism as a permanent substitute to sea turtle hunting. Sea turtle nesting grounds became sustainable. Tourists love to come and visit the nesting grounds, although it causes a lot of stress to the sea turtles because all of the eggs can get damaged or harmed. Since the creation of a sea turtle ecotourism-based economy, Tortugero annually houses thousands of tourists who visit the protected beach that hosts sea turtle walks and nesting grounds. Walks to observe the nesting sea turtles require a certified guide and this controls and minimises disturbance of the beaches. It also gives the locals a financial interest in conservation and the guides now defend the sea turtles from threats such as poaching. Efforts in Costa Rica's Pacific Coast are facilitated by a nonprofit organization, Sea Turtles Forever. Thousands of people are involved in sea turtle walks, and substantial revenues accrue from the fees paid for the privilege. In other parts of the world where sea turtle breeding sites are threatened by human activity, volunteers often patrol beaches as a part of conservation activities, which may include relocating sea turtle eggs to hatcheries, or assisting hatching sea turtles in reaching the ocean. Locations in which such efforts exist include the east coast of India, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sham Wan in Hong Kong, and the coast of Florida. Sea turtles play key roles in two habitat types: oceans and beaches/dunes. In the oceans, sea turtles, especially green sea turtles, are among the very few creatures (manatees are another) that eat sea grass. Sea grass needs to be constantly cut short to help it grow across the sea floor. Sea turtle grazing helps maintain the health of the sea grass beds. Sea grass beds provide breeding and developmental grounds for numerous marine animals. Without them, many marine species humans harvest would be lost, as would the lower levels of the food chain. The reactions could result in many more marine species eventually becoming endangered or extinct. Sea turtles use beaches and the lower dunes to nest and lay their eggs. Beaches and dunes are a fragile habitat that depend on vegetation to protect against erosion. Eggs, hatched or unhatched, and hatchlings that fail to make it into the ocean are nutrient sources for dune vegetation. Along a stretch of beach on the east coast of Florida sea turtles lay over of eggs in the sand. Dune vegetation is able to grow and become stronger with the nutrients from sea turtle nests. Stronger vegetation and root systems help to hold the sand in the dunes and help protect the beach from erosion. Sea turtles also maintain a symbiotic relationship with yellow tang, in which the fish will eat algae growing on the shell of a sea turtle. The IUCN Red List classifies three species of sea turtle as either "Endangered" or "Critically Endangered". An additional three species are classified as "Vulnerable". The flatback sea turtle is considered as "Data Deficient", meaning that its conservation status is unclear due to lack of data. All species of sea turtle are listed in CITES Appendix I, restricting international trade of sea turtles and sea turtle products. However, the usefulness of global assessments for sea turtles has been questioned, particularly due to the presence of distinct genetic stocks and spatially separated regional management units (RMUs). Each RMU is subject to a unique set of threats that generally cross jurisdictional boundaries, resulting in some sub-populations of the same species' showing recovery while others continue to decline. This has triggered the IUCN to conduct threat assessments at the sub-population level for some species recently. These new assessments have highlighted an unexpected mismatch between where conservation relevant science has been conducted on sea turtles, and where there is the greatest need for conservation. For example, as at August 2017, about 69% of studies using stable isotope analysis to understand the foraging distribution of sea turtles have been conducted in RMUs listed as 'Least Concern' by the IUCN. Additionally, all populations of sea turtles that occur in United States waters are listed as threatened or endangered by the US Endangered Species Act (ESA). The US listing status of the loggerhead sea turtle is under review as of 2012. *The ESA manages sea turtles by population and not by species. In the Caribbean, researchers are having some success in assisting a comeback. In September 2007, Corpus Christi, Texas, wildlife officials found 128 Kemp's ridley sea turtle nests on Texas beaches, a record number, including 81 on North Padre Island (Padre Island National Seashore) and four on Mustang Island. Wildlife officials released 10,594 Kemp's ridley sea turtle hatchlings along the Texas coast in recent years. The Philippines has had several initiatives dealing with the issue of sea turtle conservation. In 2007, the province of Batangas declared the catching and eating of sea turtles (locally referred to as Pawikans) illegal. However, the law seems to have had little effect as sea turtle eggs are still in demand in Batangan markets. In September 2007, several Chinese poachers were apprehended off the Turtle Islands in the country's southernmost province of Tawi-Tawi. The poachers had collected more than a hundred sea turtles, along with 10,000 sea turtle eggs. Evaluating the progress of conservation programs is difficult, because many sea turtle populations have not been assessed adequately. Most information on sea turtle populations comes from counting nests on beaches, but this does not provide an accurate picture of the whole sea turtle population. A 2010 United States National Research Council report concluded that more detailed information on sea turtles’ life cycles, such as birth rates and mortality, is needed. Nest relocation may not be a useful conservation technique for sea turtles. In one study on the freshwater Arrau turtle (Podocnemis expansa) researchers examined the effects of nest relocation. They discovered that clutches of this freshwater turtle that were transplanted to a new location had higher mortality rates and more morphological abnormalities compared to non-transplanted clutches. However, in a study of loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), Dellert et al. found that relocating nests at risk of inundation increased the success of eggs and hatchlings and decreased the risk of inundation. Most sea turtle mortality happens early in life. Sea turtles usually lay around 100 eggs at a time, but on average only one of the eggs from the nest will survive to adulthood. Raccoons, foxes, and seabirds may raid nests or hatchlings may be eaten within minutes of hatching as they make their initial run for the ocean. Once in the water, they are susceptible to seabirds, large fish and even other sea turtles. Adult sea turtles have few predators. Large aquatic carnivores such as sharks and crocodiles are their biggest threats; however, reports of terrestrial predators attacking nesting females are not uncommon. Jaguars have been reported to smash into sea turtle shells with their paws, and scoop out the flesh. Fibropapillomatosis disease causes tumors in sea turtles. While many of the things that endanger sea turtles are natural predators, increasingly many threats to the sea turtle species have arrived with the ever-growing presence of humans. One of the most significant and contemporary threats to sea turtles comes from bycatch due to imprecise fishing methods. Long-lining has been identified as a major cause of accidental sea turtle deaths. There is also a black-market demand for tortoiseshell for both decoration and supposed health benefits. Sea turtles must surface to breathe. Caught in a fisherman's net, they are unable to surface and thus drown. In early 2007, almost a thousand sea turtles were killed inadvertently in the Bay of Bengal over the course of a few months after netting. However, some relatively inexpensive changes to fishing techniques, such as slightly larger hooks and traps from which sea turtles can escape, can dramatically cut the mortality rate. Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) have reduced sea turtle bycatch in shrimp nets by 97 percent. Light pollution from beach development is a threat to baby sea turtles; the glow from city sources can cause them to head into traffic instead of the ocean. There has been some movement to protect these areas. On the east coast of Florida, parts of the beach known to harbor sea turtle nests are protected by fences. Conservationists have monitored hatchings, relocating lost baby sea turtles to the beach. Since hatchlings find their way to the ocean by crawling towards the brightest horizon, they can become disoriented on developed stretches of coastline. Lighting restrictions can prevent lights from shining on the beach and confusing hatchlings. Sea turtle-safe lighting uses red or amber LED light, invisible to sea turtles, in place of white light. Another major threat to sea turtles is the black-market trade in eggs and meat. This is a problem throughout the world, but especially a concern in China, the Philippines, India, Indonesia and the coastal nations of Latin America. Estimates reach as high as 35,000 sea turtles killed a year in Mexico and the same number in Nicaragua. Conservationists in Mexico and the United States have launched "Don't Eat Sea Turtle" campaigns in order to reduce this trade in sea turtle products. These campaigns have involved figures such as Dorismar, Los Tigres del Norte and Maná. Sea turtles are often consumed during the Catholic season of Lent, even though they are reptiles, not fish. Consequently, conservation organizations have written letters to the Pope asking that he declare sea turtles meat. Another danger to sea turtles comes from marine debris, especially plastics which may be mistaken for jellyfish, and abandoned fishing nets in which they can become entangled. Sea turtles in all types are being endangered by the way humans use plastic. Recycling is known of and people recycle but not everyone does. The amount of plastic in the oceans and beaches is growing everyday. The littering of plastic is 80% of the amount. When turtles hatch from their eggs on the beach, they are already endangered with plastic. Turtles have to find the ocean by themselves and on their journey from land to sea, they encounter a lot of plastic. Some even get trapped in the plastic and die from lack of resources and from the sun being too hot. Sea turtles eat plastic bags because they confuse them with their actual diet, jellyfish, algae and other components. The consumption of plastic is different for every breed of sea turtle but that doesn’t change the fact that all of the breeds eat plastic. The different breeds of turtles eat different things but all can be confused by plastic. When they ingest the plastic, it can clog their intestines and cause internal bleeding which will eventually kill them. The research into turtle consumption of plastic is growing. A laboratory of Exeter and Plymouth Marine tested 102 turtles and found plastic in everyone of their stomachs. The researchers found more than 800 pieces of plastic in those 102 turtles. That was 20 times more than what was found in the last research. Those researchers stated that the most common things found were cigarette buds, tire, plastic in many forms and fishing material. “Globally it is estimated that approximately 52% of all sea turtles have eaten plastic.” -WWF The chemicals in the plastic that sea life eats damages their internal organs and can also clog their airway. The chemicals in the plastic that they eat is also a leading cause of the death of the turtles. If the turtles are close to laying eggs, the chemicals that they ingested from the plastic can seep into their eggs and affect their offspring. It is unlikely for the baby sea turtles to survive with those chemicals in their system. There is so much plastic in the ocean and 80% of that comes from landfills. The ratio of plankton to plastic in the ocean is 2.2 pounds of plankton to 13.2 pounds of plastic. The “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” is a swirl of garbage in the pacific ocean that is 20 feet down and contains 3.5 million tons of garbage. This is also known as the “plastic island”. Climate change may also cause a threat to sea turtles. Since sand temperature at nesting beaches defines the sex of a sea turtle while developing in the egg, there is concern that rising temperatures may produce too many females. However, more research is needed to understand how climate change might affect sea turtle gender distribution and what other possible threats it may pose. Studies have shown that climate change in the world is making sea turtles gender change. The study that was conducted in January called Current Biology: Environmental Warning and Feminization of One of the Largest Sea Turtle Populations in the World, showed how baby sea turtles were being born female a lot more than being born male. Scientists took blood samples from lots of baby sea turtles near the Great Barrier Reef. Prior to this study, the ratio of male to female was pretty normal. There was a little more female than there was male but it was enough to keep reproduction and life cycle normal. The study showed that there was 99% more female sea turtles then male. The temperature of the sand has a big impact on the sex of the sea turtle. This is not common with other animals but it is with sea turtles. Warmer or hot sand usually makes the sea turtle female and the cooler the sand usually makes male. Climate change has made the temperatures much hotter than they should be. The temperature of the sand gets hotter every time it is time for sea turtles to lay their eggs. With that, adaption to the sand should occur but it would take generations for them to adapt to that one temperature. It would be hard because the temperature of the sand is always changing. The sand temperature is not the only thing that impacts sea turtles. The rise of the sea levels messes with their memory. They have an imprinted map in their memory that shows where they usually give birth and go after they do. With the rise in water levels, that map is getting messed up and is hard for them to get back to where they started. It is also taking away their beaches that they lay their eggs on. Climate change also has an impact on the number of storms and the severity of them. Storms can wipe out the sea turtles nesting ground and take out the eggs that already laid. The rising level of water is also a way for the nesting grounds to disappear. Sea turtles maps and their nesting grounds getting destroyed is harmful to them. That is because with their maps being messed up and not being able to lay eggs where they usually do makes it hard for them to find a new place to nest. They usually stick to a schedule and the messing up of a schedule messes them up. The temperature of the ocean is also rising. This impacts their diet and what they can eat. Coral reefs are majorly impacted by the rising temperatures and a lot of sea turtles diet is coral reefs or in the coral reef. Most animals that live in coral reefs need the reefs to survive. With the reefs dying, the sea life around it also does to which has an impact on lots of animals. Sea turtles are very vulnerable to oil pollution, both because of the oil's tendency to linger on the water's surface, and because oil can affect them at every stage of their life cycle. Oil can poison the sea turtles upon entering their digestive system. Sea turtles have a cycle that they follow from birth. The cycle depends on the sex of the turtle but they follow it all the way through life. They start by hatching on the beach, they reach the water then move out to find food. They then start their breeding migration and then mate with another turtle. For females, they make their way to the beach to start it all over again. With males, they go back to feeding after mating and doing that over again. Oil spills can affect this cycle majorly. If the female was to go and lay eggs and ingest oil, the chemicals from the oil can get passed on to the offspring and will be hard for them to survive. The diet of the sea turtles can also be impacted by oil. If the things that they eat has oil on it or has ingested oil, it can get into their system and start attacking the insides of the turtle. Injured sea turtles are rescued and rehabilitated (and, if possible, released back to the ocean) by professional organizations, such as the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton, Florida, the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Surf City, North Carolina, and Sea Turtles 911 in Hainan, China. One rescued sea turtle, named Nickel for the coin that was found lodged in her throat, lives at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Sea turtles are believed to have a commensal relationship with some barnacles, in which the barnacles benefit from growing on sea turtles without harming them. Barnacles are small, hard-shelled crustaceans found attached to multiple different substrates below or just above the ocean. The adult barnacle is a sessile organism, however in its larval stage it is planktonic and can move about the water column. The larval stage chooses where to settle and ultimately the habitat for its full adult life, which is typically between 5 and 10 years. However, estimates of age for a common sea turtle barnacle species, Chelonibia testudinaria, suggest that this species lives for at least 21 months, with individuals older than this uncommon. Chelonibia barnacles have also been used to distinguish between the foraging areas of sea turtle hosts. By analyzing stable isotope ratios in barnacle shell material, scientist can identify differences in the water (temperature and salinity) that different hosts have been swimming through, and thus differentiate between the home areas of host sea turtles. A favorite settlement for barnacle larvae is the shell or skin around the neck of sea turtles. The larvae glue themselves to the chosen spot, a thin layer of flesh is wrapped around them and a shell is secreted. Many species of barnacles can settle on any substrate, however some species of barnacles have an obligatory commensal relationship with specific animals, which makes finding a suitable location harder. Around 29 species of "turtle barnacles" have been recorded. However it is not solely on sea turtles that barnacles can be found; other organisms also serve as a barnacle’s settlements. These organisms include mollusks, whales, decapod crustaceans, manatees and several other groups related to these species. Sea turtle shells are an ideal habitat for adult barnacles for three reasons. Sea turtles tend to live long lives, greater than 70 years, so barnacles do not have to worry about host death. However, mortality in sea turtle barnacles is often driven by their host shedding the scutes on which the barnacle is attached, rather than the death of the sea turtle itself. Secondly, barnacles are suspension feeders. Sea turtles spend most of their lives swimming and following ocean currents and as water runs along the back of the sea turtle’s shell it passes over the barnacles, providing an almost constant water flow and influx of food particles. Lastly, the long distances and inter-ocean travel these sea turtles swim throughout their lifetime offers the perfect mechanism for dispersal of barnacle larvae. Allowing the barnacle species to distribute themselves throughout global waters is a high fitness advantage of this commensalism. This relationship, however, is not truly commensal. While the barnacles are not directly parasitic to their hosts, they have negative effects to the sea turtles on which they choose to reside. The barnacles add extra weight and drag to the sea turtle, increasing the energy it needs for swimming and affecting its ability to capture prey, with the effect increasing with the quantity of barnacles affixed to its back. Cultural depictions of turtles, Kélonia -sea turtle observatory in Réunion, Memorandum of Understanding concerning Conservation Measures for Marine Turtles of the Atlantic Coast of Africa, Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Marine Turtles and their Habitats of the Indian Ocean and South-East Asia, Sandwatch, Sea Turtle Association of Japan, Kuroshima Research Station, Sea Turtle Conservancy, Sea turtle migration, Sea Turtles 911, Shrimp-Turtle Case, Threats to sea turtles, Use of sea turtles in West African traditional medicine Sea Turtle Research and Conservation – Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, American Museum of Natural History

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Just Add Magic is an American live-action family television series, loosely based on the book of the same name by Cindy Callaghan. It was produced by Amazon Studios. A pilot was produced in 2015 and the series commissioned for a full season the following year. Amazon renewed the series for a second season in June 2016 after it "set a record as the most successful Amazon Original Kids premiere weekend in terms of U.S. Prime Video streams and hours." A spinoff series Just Add Magic: Mystery City was released on January 17, 2020. In the lively town of Saffron Falls, teenage girls Kelly, Darbie, and Hannah are best friends who love cooking. While making a cake for Kelly's grandma's (who has a mysterious illness and cannot talk) birthday, the girls made the recipe using an ancient yet mysterious cookbook they found in the attic. The recipes they find inside have strange names like "Shut'em Up Shortcake" and "Hazelnut Healing Tart" and require unusual ingredients, such as "Cedronian vanilla" and "Taurian thyme". The girls visit Mama P.’s shop to get the ingredients for recipes. Mama P. reveals that she knows what the ingredients are and the girls conclude that Mama P. knows about the magic because she appears to have extensive knowledge of magical ingredients. Kelly, Darbie, and Hannah investigate the magical recipes and face the temptations of using magic to help overcome the everyday challenges of being middle school girls. Furthermore, they discover that Kelly's odd neighbor Ms. Silvers also has a connection to magic. The girls realize that they are the protectors of the magical cookbook and that there were many others before them, three of whom were Mama P., Ms. Silvers and Grandma Becky. Among all this, Kelly has one overriding goal: to find the magical recipe that will fix her grandmother's mysterious illness. As the girls work together, they find out that Kelly's grandma Becky is under a curse, and so are Mama P. (whose curse does not let her leave Saffron Falls) and Ms. Silvers (whose curse does not let her play the piano in public). After Kelly, Hannah, and Darbie free the town of Mama P's curse and also break Grandma Quinn, and Ms. Silvers's curse, enabling grandma to talk again and Ms. Silvers to play piano in public. Along with this, they realize that they broke every curse, which means they brought back Chuck Hankins, a teenage boy from the ’60s who had suddenly disappeared because of The OC’s (Original Cooks): Gina Silvers, Ida Perez (Mama P.), and Rebecca Quinn (Grandma Quinn). When searching through old city records at the library, the girls find a picture of a high school class from 1865. They recognize Chuck in it, with his name as Charles Peizer. The girls realize that Chuck is much older than the OC’s and has disappeared once before but has stayed the same age. It is revealed that Charles Peizer and his sister Rose Peizer were once the protectors of the cookbook. The OC’s research more into Chuck’s picture and find out that the Peizers were the richest family during that time and the West Peizer Park in Saffron Falls was a part of their estate. Chuck casts a spell to render an invisible trailer. Through an invisibility spell and a super strength spell, the girls are able to see and enter the trailer. There they discover that Chuck has another cookbook that is stealing recipes from their cookbook. They are able to steal it and discover that Mama P's Morbium Seed was stolen by Chuck. Later the original cooks put a spell on him by making him stay in Lavender Heights forever, thus stopping him from taking the cookbook and stealing the magical ingredients. However, Chuck casts another spell on Jake using Mama P's Morbium Seed and takes over Jake's body. As Jake, Chuck learns the plans to further stop him, and has access to the magic spices. Chuck puts a spell on Hannah and tries to swap her for Rose, but Kelly and Darbie save her, and in the process, break Chuck's Immortality Spell, also breaking Rose's and frees her from the book. Chuck and Rose go back in time and live out their lives, with Rose living to be 82. West Peizer Park becomes Rose Peizer Park. The book and spices are stolen from Kelly's backpack. Kelly, Hannah, and Darbie meet a previous protector from the '90s. With Jake's help, they are able to get the book back. A mysterious, but beautifully carved box, sits in Grandma Becky's antique shop, with the same fork, knife, and spoon symbol on it as the cookbook. One by one, everyone's memories of magic are being erased. The trio must race to identify the other two past protectors before the magic is lost forever. Mama P's has been bought by a coffee chain. Kelly, Hannah, and Darbie become suspicious of the manager Erin. They soon notice clues of someone who knows that magic is real, even after all memories of magic have been erased. This someone stole their newly harvested Night Blooming spices, and is therefore dubbed the "Night Bandit." The girls meet Darbie's friend, Piper, and they introduce her to magic. The four of them work together to find the Night Bandit and put a stop to their crimes. It turns out that Kelly is actually the Night Bandit and she was poisoned by the spell that brought back the garden in the previous season. In the final episode, the spell on her is broken, but the girls needed to save Grandma Becky after she disappears. They go back in time and save her, thus also creating a new spice named Parquinnien (hannah PARker kent, kelly QUINN, darbie o’ brIEN; see caps letters). The cookbook moves on to Zoe, Erin's daughter and one of the new protectors. The cookbook has moved on to the new protectors: Zoe (Erin's daughter), Ish (Zoe's neighbor downstairs) and Leo (Zoe's stepbrother). With the help of Kelly, Darbie, and Hannah, the new trio are convinced that magic exists and able to go through troubling times together. Olivia Sanabia as Kelly Quinn, Abby Donnelly as Darbie O'Brien, Aubrey Miller as Hannah Parker-Kent, Judah Bellamy as Jake Williams, Catia Ojeda as Terri Quinn, Kelly's mom, Andrew Burlinson as Scott Quinn, Kelly's dad, Dee Wallace as Rebecca “Becky” Quinn, Kelly's grandma, Amy Hill as Ida "Mama P" Perez, Ellen Karsten as Ms. Gina Silvers, Aiden Lovekamp as Buddy Quinn, Kelly’s younger brother Mira Furlan as The Traveler, Zach Callison as Chuck, Jeremy Guskin as RJ, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Zoe, Felisha Terrell as Nöelle Jasper, Sprague Grayden as Jill/Caroline, Tess Paras as Erin Chua, Usman Ally as Mr. Morris, Jen Drohan as Amy On January 4, 2018, a trailer was released announcing more episodes, which premiered on Amazon on January 19, 2018, as an extension of the second season. On January 11, 2019, a trailer was released announcing the third season, which premiered on February 1. The series started airing on Universal Kids on June 9, 2019. On September 20, 2019, an announcement was made that a Just Add Magic special would come out on October 25. Just Add Magic on Amazon Video The collectible card game published nine core sets from 1993–2007, also referred to as basic sets and base sets. These sets consisted entirely of reprints, usually focusing on staple cards Wizards of the Coast felt should always be available. These cards were generally simpler than cards in expansion sets, omitting multicolored cards, and used only the original abilities and keywords of Magic such as , and . As Magic grew, the base sets were considered descendants of the original Limited Edition, and shaped the default setting and feel of Magic. In contrast, Magic "expansion sets" usually chose a particular theme, such as artifacts for . All cards were given a white border to mark them as reprints, with a few exceptions (Tenth Edition, foil cards in Seventh-Ninth Editions). From Fourth Edition in 1995 onward, a new base set would come out once per two years in the spring or early summer; for tournament play, that set would be legal for two years in the Standard format until the next core set replaced it. Early in the history of Magic, the sets sold out nearly instantaneously, and supplying the game's growing fan base proved tricky. Sales were also concentrated on the West Coast of the United States, where Wizards of the Coast was based. The earliest base sets—Unlimited, Revised, and Fourth Edition—helped provide the first experience with Magic for many players in areas where Magic had never been sold before, enabling them to catch up on the base game with cards that, while technically reprints, had never been available to them before. As the market became saturated, the base sets took on a changed role; they began to be marketed as the entry point for new Magic players, with less interest expected from dedicated Magic players who likely owned many of the cards already. Seventh Edition, released in 2001, was sold both as a "Basic" and an "Advanced" product, with the expansion sets of the time marked as "Expert." Eighth and Ninth editions were marketed similarly. However, sales were disappointing, an alarming problem for Wizards, as some entry point for newer players was required to keep Magic alive. In 2009, Wizards of the Coast changed their policy for core sets, and began making smaller core sets that included new cards, starting with the Magic 2010 set. According to Wizards of the Coast, the previous core sets had "been completely marginalized by the enfranchised player base", and change was required to make the Core Sets of interest to players of all skill levels once more. Unlimited Edition, occasionally referred to as Second Edition, was the second Magic: The Gathering set. It was released on December 1, 1993, after Beta had sold out as quickly as Alpha had; this time the run was 40 million cards, the largest yet. Unlimited Edition contains exactly the same cards as Limited Edition Beta, including the Power Nine cards, and the three sets are usually considered as a single set. Unlimited cards have white borders rather than black, however. This precedent that white borders implied a reprint was honored until the 2007 release of Tenth Edition, which returned to black borders. Unlimited was sold in starter packs of 60 cards and booster packs of 15 cards. It was the first set to be officially titled as something other than just Magic: The Gathering. The "Unlimited Edition" label appears on the booster boxes, decks, and booster packs. While it is possible to distinguish Unlimited cards from Revised cards by just looking at the text (wording and type set) the cards from both sets are more easily distinguished by comparing the borders of the cards. The picture frame of Unlimited cards has a beveled edge which Revised cards have not. Revised Edition (also simply known as Revised) was the sixth set and third core set released for Magic: The Gathering. Like previous core sets, it had no expansion symbol. Revised Edition cards are white-bordered and generally known for their washed-out look. The set was released in April 1994 and contained 306 cards. It was the first base set to contain cards from black-bordered sets other than Alpha and Beta. Printing of Revised began in early April 1994 and continued until April 1995, when Fourth Edition was announced. It is estimated that about 500 million cards of the set were produced, which fully eliminated the distribution problems of earlier sets. The cards of Revised were still widely available even well into 1996. The cards of Revised like the cards of the preceding Unlimited Edition all had white borders, no expansion symbol, and the artist credit at the bottom left. However, the cards were far paler than their Unlimited counterparts, and the three-dimensional beveling of the cards was cropped out. This gave the cards an appearance that was widely criticized as "washed out" and even unprofessional. The beveling was returned in 4th Edition, and the colors were much more vibrant in that set. The large print run meant that Revised basic lands were so numerous and common that it was uncommon to find any other lands in decks until several years later. The collation of the cards made it possible for a basic land card to appear in the common and uncommon slots of a pack. This was intentional; the land cards were printed on the common and uncommon print sheets. Basic lands would get their own full print sheets in 4th Edition, making Revised the last tournament-legal set until Seventh Edition in which basic lands could be found in booster packs. Basic lands returned as a card slot in the Shards of Alara block of 2008. One card-printing error of note appeared on the card . This blue creature card was misprinted with a green border and a picture of another card, . The name, mana cost and rules text were all correct, though. The Revised version is now the most common due to the limited print run of the original, intended versions. Revised was the first base edition of the game to be sold in multiple languages. Black bordered, limited editions were produced in French, German, and Italian. Unlimited, white bordered editions in the same languages were produced after the limited editions had sold out. The printing of Revised cleared up a number of rules problems that the and rules had. Two changes had a large effect on game play. First, the rule that "multiple effects resolve simultaneously unless a conflict arises" was changed to "effects always resolve ". The concept was later refined and then referred to as the "stack," an idea taken from computer programing's stack. Second, the rule for Protection from was changed from "the creature ignores all effects" to the more precise "the creature cannot be blocked or targeted by sources, reduces damage to zero, and cannot be enchanted by enchantments." The most visually obvious of Revised's changes was the elimination of the Mono/Poly/Continuous qualifiers to artifacts. With the advent of the game's first tap symbol (a "T" turned forty-five degrees clockwise in a light gray circle), the qualifiers used to differentiate when and how often an artifact could be used were no longer needed. Artifacts that were previously classified as Mono artifacts were given the new tap symbol, while Poly and Continuous artifacts were simply re-templated without the tap symbol. The Summer Magic print run of Revised Edition were printed in the summer of 1994. This print run intended to fix some of the errors with Revised, including the washed-out color. As it turned out, the Summer Magic run had problems of its own. The colors were considered too dark and the artist credited for stayed uncorrected as well as the artist credited for Serendib Efreet, although the Efreet had received its original color and art again. Also a famous new misprint occurred with the card ; the so-called "blue Hurricane" is one of the rarest and most sought-after cards in the entirety of Magic because of its misprint with a blue border. On the secondary market it sells for thousands of dollars. The print run was recalled and destroyed; however, about 40 booster boxes that were shipped to England and Tennessee survived. No more than 11 or 12 of each rare exists. This print run is known primarily for its extremely scarce and valuable cards and packs. Cards are distinguished by dark coloring and a 1994 copyright date displayed at the bottom, along with the artist credit. Booster packs look identical to normal Revised Edition packs, and as such, telling them apart is impossible without opening them. No starter decks were made. Twenty Revised cards were originally in the expansion, and another nineteen were originally in the expansion. Thirty-five cards that were in Unlimited were not in Revised, including the Power Nine. A few of the cards that were removed from the base set reappeared in later sets, such as , which would be reprinted in . A few others would be reprinted in Eighth Edition to celebrate the game's 10th anniversary. Cards removed were generally thought to either be confusing, or to have power level issues. Notable cards include: The Dual Lands: ', ', ', ', ', ', ', ', ' and '. These lands provide two colors of mana with the benefit of possessing two basic land types, an uncommon trait on non-basic lands. All future dual lands would be printed with restrictions. They are now a defining part of the Legacy and Vintage formats, due in particular to their ability to be searched for by the various Fetchlands released many years later. While many cards were removed from Revised for power reasons, the original dual lands were retained., – The original and most powerful "tutor" card ever printed. This card is restricted in Vintage and banned in Legacy. All future tutors were printed with restrictions or made more expensive like 's ., \- This blue card was printed with the wrong art and a green card frame, making it the most commonly seen misprint., – While all of the zero-casting cost mana artifacts were removed from Revised, Sol Ring remained with its single casting cost. Its mana acceleration has caused it to be restricted in Vintage and banned in Legacy. The Fourth Edition of Magic: The Gathering was the tenth set released for the game, and the fourth base set. The set was released in April 1995 and contained 378 cards. It was the first set to reprint cards from the expansions and . Fourth Edition cards have white borders. The set has no expansion symbol. Fourth Edition was the first Magic set to be printed in Asian languages. It was published in English, French, German, Italian, and as a first for a Magic set in Japanese, traditional Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Portuguese, which was printed primarily for the Brazilian market. Korean and Chinese Fourth Edition cards have been made with black borders, Japanese, Portuguese, and Spanish cards exist with white and black borders. Fourth Edition included the beveled border missing from the previous core set, Revised. The colors were also much brighter and crisper than Revised's wash- out appearance. This set was also the first core set to include a Wizards of the Coast copyright notice at the bottom of the card, in addition to the standard illustration credit. Booster packs, for the first time in a core set, came in packs with cropped card art on the packaging. Up to this point, , , Unlimited, and Revised all had a common-looking booster pack packaging. The cards Brass Man, Hurloon Minotaur, Mana Vault, Mesa Pegasus, and Spirit Link were shown on the booster packs. Starter packs were also improved, with mana symbols replacing the simple pentagram pattern present on the card back. Finally, an overall red theme was given to the packaging, which would persist for before changing to green in . Starter decks in this set included an additional rare, bringing the total to three. However, the starter decks contained fewer uncommons, going down to nine from the previous thirteen. Booster Packs included one rare, three uncommons, and eleven commons. Fourth Edition was the first set to offload its land printings to a dedicated land sheet. This freed up room on the other card sheets to include more spells. As a result, booster packs could now be produced without any lands, which Wizards decided to do. Fourth Edition lands were only available in starter decks. The change was mostly seen as a positive, since by this time lands were ubiquitous and players were unhappy to find a land in place of a "real" card. Fourth Edition introduced the modern turned arrow tapped symbol, replacing the rotated "T" that had been introduced in Revised. This symbol was first used in an expansion with , which was released in the summer. Current cards still use the turned arrow, albeit with a slightly different illustration. Like the previous core set and all core sets since, several cards were removed and new ones were added from Fourth Edition. Among those cards removed were those that had attracted controversy from those outside the game. Most of the cards whose art depicted nude or near-nude humanoid forms (including and ) were excised, as were many that had overtly religious themes (including and ), though one demon, , remained. One card, Unholy Strength had its artwork altered to remove a flaming inverted pentagram in the background (as compared to this). Also removed were the original ten "dual lands" (one for each pair of ). With the ability to tap for one mana of either of two colors, they were deemed too powerful. A number of other cards would also be pruned from the set for being too powerful, but some (such as ) would appear in future sets. Wizards has used Cartamundi as their card printer since . For some undocumented reason, during the production of 4th Edition, the company experimented with using other vendors. Some cards were printed by the United States Playing Card Corporation, and had a thicker stock along with a glossy overcoat on the back. While these cards were not intended to be released, some starter packs were leaked out into public circulation. The cards do not glow under blacklight, unlike normal cards, and did not have the normal dot design on the back. – This card can act as a Wrath of God, Armageddon, and Mind Twist all at once if played at the right time. It was one of the few extremely powerful cards left in the 4th Edition. Even after its restriction, it was still able to warp tournament formats., – While most of the cards deemed too powerful were removed from 4th Edition, this one was actually added in. Strip Mine was originally from but had not been included in . Tournament play quickly showed that Strip Mine was too powerful and it was eventually restricted to one per deck in Standard and Vintage. Today it is banned in Legacy. Over time, Wizards of the Coast has come to downplay land destruction as an element of the game and Strip Mine has not been reprinted since in a regular set in part due to this policy. Fifth Edition was the seventeenth Magic: The Gathering set, released in March 1997. It contained 449 cards, counting multiple illustrations of the basic lands, making it the largest card set in the game's history. It was the first edition of the core set to reprint cards from , , and . Like its predecessors, and Editions, Fifth Edition made numerous changes to the game's rules and card mix. The set's designers stated in The Duelist that they wanted to prune from the base set cards that were too powerful or too weak. Many overpowered cards from Limited and Unlimited Editions that had survived the past two rotations were removed from Fifth, but a handful, including , still survived. Unlike its predecessors, though, Fifth Edition also removed many cards that Magic's Design and Development team saw as just a little bit too good, but not quite so powerful as to heavily disrupt tournaments, including , , and . Many of these cards were brought back in later sets after the designers had re- evaluated their impact on play. A few cards that were in but had been cut from were brought back as well. Fifth Edition also set a new precedent by changing the artwork and/or flavor text on many cards, especially the five basic lands, each of which was given four new illustrations to replace its original three. This was done so that WotC would not have to continue to pay for the use of many arts done for earlier sets, as originally artists were paid royalties for their artwork being used, instead of a flat fee as is done today for new Magic art. Fifth Edition was the first version of the base set to reprint cards from the and expansion sets; it also reprinted more cards from those sets than any other version of the base set has. Because those expansion sets were perceived by some players as weak, there was some dissatisfaction with the Fifth Edition card mix. However, many of the reprinted cards were good enough to be used in tournaments, and at least one Ice Age card, , was later considered so overpowered as to merit banning from a number of sanctioned tournament formats. Fifth Edition was the first version of the base set to use the cosmetic changes that were introduced in the expansion (including a slightly expanded text box and bolder, more visible power/toughness numbers) It was also the last version of the base set to use what are sometimes referred to as the "old rules". The rules were drastically changed in . Sixth Edition, also known as Classic, was released on April 27, 1999. It contains 350 cards including both reprints of cards from previous core sets as well as new reprints from expansion sets through the Weatherlight expansion. The name "Classic" was prominently featured on cases of packs of the set, and the set was referred to by both titles by both Wizards of the Coast and players. Sixth Edition was the first base set to have its artist information centered on the card (a printing practice started in ). It was also the first base set to have collectors' numbers (which also originated in Exodus). The rules text on basic lands was also replaced with just a mana symbol, as featured in the starter sets of 1997 and 1998. Perhaps the biggest cosmetic change to the base set, however, was the expansion symbol. Sixth Edition was the first core set to have an expansion symbol, which was necessary to show the cards' rarities (another practice that originated in Exodus). The set's expansion symbol was the Roman numeral VI, or 6. (This change had occurred slightly earlier in the Traditional Chinese version of Fifth Edition, which used a Roman Numeral 'V' as the expansion set. The Traditional Chinese version came out notably later than the English version, by which time Wizards of the Coast had decided the feature was necessary.) The release of Sixth Edition brought a new version of the rules. Notable changes included: The "batch" system of spell resolution was replaced with the "stack" system in Sixth Edition. Previously, spells resolved in complicated batches, in which a player could only respond to the spells in the batch. Also, once a batch began to resolve, no more spells could be played until the entire batch of spells resolved. This was replaced with the stack system (much like a computer stack), in which spells could be added regardless of what was on it. Also, spells resolve one at a time in the stack, utilizing the "last in first out" system., The new stack system removed the "timing" aspect of spells. Therefore, the interrupt spell type was removed as being redundant. All spells that were interrupts (generally counterspells) became instants., Before Sixth Edition, spells and abilities that produced mana were known as mana sources and couldn't be countered. In Sixth Edition, mana source spells (such as ) became instants, which could be countered just like other instants. (Mana source abilities, on the other hand, became "mana abilities"; these didn't use the stack and still could not be countered.), Triggered abilities were clarified. Under the old system, these confused many players who didn't know how (or when) to respond to them. With the "timing" aspect removed in Sixth Edition, it became clearer just when a player could play a spell to combat a triggered ability., The "damage-prevention step" was removed. Now, when a spell deals damage, it deals it immediately on resolution, rather than waiting for damage prevention. The difference lies in when a player can play damage prevention: Previously, a player would play it after the damage spell resolves. After the rule change, the player had to play it before the damage spell resolves., Artifacts also received a rule change. Before the change, an artifact "shut off" or stopped working while it was tapped, unless it was an artifact creature. After, an artifact remains active while tapped. This was to bring artifacts more in line with other cards. Some artifacts (like and ) retained the "shut off" aspect, which necessitated explicitly printing that they only worked while untapped., Combat was restructured. Each step of combat was clearly demarcated, and each step had opportunities for players to play spells., Combat damage from creatures was also put on the stack where spells and abilities would normally go. In this way, combat damage could be responded to before the damage is actually dealt. This allowed (among other things) creatures in combat to be sacrificed for effects and still deal damage as though they were still in play. This change would later be reversed in the rule changes introduced with the Magic 2010 core set., One of the loss conditions was changed. Before the change, a player that lost all of their life didn't lose the game immediately; if they were able to raise their life to at least 1 before the end of the current phase, they lived. Under 6th Edition rules, a player loses the game as soon as a player has priority once their life total is zero or less. This brought that loss condition in line with the other loss condition specified by the rules; a player being forced to draw a card when he or she has an empty library has always been an immediate loss. Seventh Edition was a Magic: The Gathering set released on April 2, 2001. It is the only core set since the original to have introduced all-new art for every card. The set contained 350 cards. The expansion symbol was a stylized 7. Despite being an "Advanced" level set, Seventh Edition contained a separate basic subset for new players similar to the products that were previously offered as Starter 2000. Cards that appeared in the Seventh Edition Starter special pre-constructed theme decks did not appear in boosters. This would be the last starter level product released by Wizards of the Coast. Seventh Edition was the last base set printed in the 'old' frame; Eighth Edition introduced the modern card frame. Seventh was the first base set to contain foil cards, which were printed with black borders. It was the last base set to be released prior to the final expansion of the then-current block (Seventh Edition was released before Apocalypse). Starting with Eighth Edition, the base set editions (which, with 8th, would become known as Core Set editions) were released after the last expansion of the then-current block and before the first expansion of the subsequent block. Unusually for a core set, Seventh featured a loose storyline that tied together most of the cards in a core set, a practice usually reserved for expansion sets. The story involved a conflict between the North, South, East, and West Paladins. Magic Origins, 14 years later, would also feature a loose story. Eighth Edition, also known as Core Set, was a Magic: The Gathering set released on July 28, 2003. Its expansion symbol is the number 8 with 3 cards behind it. Eighth Edition was released to coincide with the 10th Anniversary of the original release of Magic. Every previous expansion had at least one card reprinted in Eighth that had not been reprinted in the base set before, with a series of votes on the Wizards website deciding what got reprinted. Eighth was also the first base set with a promotional card given to players who played in a prerelease tournament. Eighth features many cards from older base sets and expansions. While many of these cards were powerful during their original print run, on the whole they were not perceived as measuring up to the power in Standard at the time, known for "Affinity" decks powered by cards from the Mirrodin block. Thus, few cards in Eighth Edition saw tournament play. A new card face was introduced in Eighth Edition. The colored frames around the edges of the card were redesigned and narrowed, boxes were placed around card names and creatures' power and toughness, card names were printed in a new font (Matrix Bold, rather than Goudy Medieval), artifacts switched from a brown background to a silvery-white background, and mana symbols appearing in the text box were no longer colored. The later two changes themselves were changed shortly thereafter; in Fifth Dawn, the artifact face was darkened to be more distinguishable from white cards. In Champions of Kamigawa, Wizards restored colored mana symbols in card text boxes. Several tournament staples which had appeared in 7th Edition, including , , , and , were not present in Eighth Edition. The Circle of Protection series, a perennial core set entity, remained in the set but changed from common to uncommon. A number of simple cards, such as , were reprinted only for products directed at new players and were not present in booster packs. Ninth Edition was a Magic set released on July 29, 2005. It continued Eighth Edition's terminology change of referring to itself as a core set. Ninth Edition contained 350 cards available in booster packs, all reprints from earlier Magic sets. Similar to Eight Edition, the Ninth Edition Core Game contained 9 "starter cards", labeled with the collector numbers S1 through S10 (there is no card labeled S6, however), which were not available in booster packs. These were simple "vanilla" creatures, such as , which were designed to introduce new players to the game. Ninth Edition features only mechanics present in previous expansions. However, Ninth Edition does modify the list of mechanics considered suitable for base sets. The trample and protection mechanics were included after being removed from Classic Sixth Edition and later base sets. Equipment, first introduced in the Mirrodin set, is also in Ninth Edition, although it was moved up in rarity. Furthermore, all mechanics now have reminder text; mechanics such as flying and trample did not in earlier sets. Ninth Edition is also the first set to be printed using the new template for enchantments. Previously, enchantments that were played on other permanents were called "local enchantments" and were printed with the type "Enchant creature," "Enchant land," etc. With the Champions of Kamigawa set, Wizards of the Coast made an effort to simplify the type line, which had contained rules interactions that were not written on the card. "Enchant [entity]" was changed to "Enchantment - Aura" and the targeting restriction moved to the text box. Mark Gottlieb explained the changes in the article "Aura Hygiene". Errata was issued to make all such cards conform to this template, and Ninth Edition became the first set where the cards were actually printed with this changed wording. With Ninth Edition came a redesign of Fat Packs, special products that came with an array of both booster packs and side Magic items such as life counters. The Fat Pack consisted of two boxes wrapped around by a card box wrapper featuring new art. The player's guide was also reduced in size but was now sturdier. Also added were 6 divider pieces with artwork for inside the boxes. As of 2013, Ninth Edition is the last Magic set to be printed with white borders. The set's premium foil cards were printed with black borders. Cards made available in Cyrillic when Ninth Edition was marketed in Russia also were black-bordered; this marked the first time a new language had been printed for the game since Simplified Chinese was added to Fifth Edition. Tenth Edition was a Magic set released on July 13, 2007, replacing Ninth Edition as the core set of cards for standard tournament play. The symbol for Tenth Edition is the Roman numeral "X." As part of their "Selecting Tenth Edition" promotion, Wizards of the Coast gave fans the chance to manage a part of the set's brand. The results gave the Roman numeral "X" over the number "10," along with many other card, art, and flavor text choices. Tenth Edition was the first core set since Beta to be printed with black-bordered cards, rather than white-bordered ones. Tenth Edition is also the first core set to include legendary creatures (two of each color), bringing back flavorful relics of Magic's past such as , and . As with Eighth and Ninth Edition, part of the development process for Tenth Edition included allowing fans to select certain cards for inclusion in the set. This process began in mid-June 2006 and continued for 10 weeks. Tenth Edition starter packs include land cards from Magic's next set, Lorwyn. Foil cards in Tenth Edition do not have reminder text. Many use the extra space to add flavor text that does not appear on the nonfoil versions. Others, such as , simply center their existing text in the text box for added impact. The keywords defender, double strike, equip, fear, first strike, flash, flying, haste, landwalk, lifelink, protection, reach, regeneration, shroud, trample, and vigilance are in Tenth Edition. Of these, defender, double strike, flash, lifelink, reach and shroud appeared in core sets for the first time. Tenth Edition also reprinted several cards from previous sets with changed rarity, such as and . Wizards' official page The collectible card game has released compilation sets, reprint sets, and box sets over its history. These are distinct from core sets and expansion sets, the most heavily marketed sources of new cards. With the exception of Chronicles, reprint sets generally do not affect tournament legality in supported formats; for example, cards reprinted in the Modern Masters reprint set, while legal for tournament play, did not necessarily cause the card to be included in the "Standard" environment. (If a card happened to be in Standard due to a separate reprinting, though, all "versions" of the card automatically become legal, including ones from a reprint set.) These sets tend to be of two types: sets with a fixed deck buyers receive, and sets sold in randomized booster packs, similar to "normal" expansion sets, but only consisting of reprint cards. Chronicles, Premium Foil Booster, and sets of the Masters brand are printed in randomized boosters; others have a fixed card set. Chronicles was the first compilation set of Magic: The Gathering, released in July 1995. Unlike many later compilation sets, Chronicles was treated like a normal expansion set, including renewing tournament legality for cards reprinted in it. For tournament play, Chronicles was designated as an extension of the base set. Chronicles reprinted cards from Arabian Nights, Antiquities, Legends, and The Dark. Wizards of the Coast released a similar set called Renaissance into the German, French and Italian markets. Masters is a series of Magic: The Gathering compilation sets. The "original" Masters Editions were (MTGO) exclusive sets designed to put old cards created before the release of MTGO into circulation. Masters became an official printed series in 2013 with the release of Modern Masters. The series was put on hiatus in 2018 with the release of Ultimate Masters. The paper Masters series consists of: Modern Masters, released in 2013, Modern Masters 2015 Edition, Eternal Masters, released in 2016, Modern Masters 2017 Edition, Iconic Masters, released in 2017, Masters 25, released in 2018, Ultimate Masters, released in 2018 Booster boxes of the Masters series generally contain only 24 booster packs, compared to a regular expansion containing 36 packs, with the intent that they be used for an 8-player Limited draft. Basic Lands, which are present in most expansion set booster packs, are absent in the Masters sets. Instead, a premium card (foil), which traditionally existed in a common card slot on random basis, is included in every pack. Modern Masters is a set that consists of reprints of cards which are legal in the format. Modern includes all cards from onwards, barring a small number of banned cards. The first Modern Masters ("MMA") was released on June 7, 2013. It has 229 cards (101 commons, 60 uncommons, 53 rares, and 15 mythic rares) ranging from Eighth Edition through Alara Reborn. The set was released in the English language only. The original Modern Masters distribution was highly limited and Wizards of the Coast stated they would not like to release as much as they did with Chronicles. Wizards of the Coast eventually loosened this, and printed considerably more of the 2015 and 2017 editions of Modern Masters. Notable reprints in the original Modern Masters included Dark Confidant, Tarmogoyf, and Vendilion Clique. The second set, Modern Masters 2015 Edition ("MM2"), was released May 22, 2015. It has 249 cards (101 commons, 80 uncommons, 53 rares, and 15 mythic rares). In addition to the blocks in the original Modern Masters, the 2015 edition features cards from Zendikar block, Scars of Mirrodin block, , , and . The set was released in Japanese and Simplified Chinese in addition to English. Twenty to thirty cards feature new artwork, and a number of new tokens are included. The English booster pack in Modern Masters 2015 Edition used recyclable paper cardboard as packaging material instead of foil packs, the first set doing so in Magic history. It also raised some complaints of easier theft of the cards, however. Notable reprints in Modern Masters 2015 Edition included Bitterblossom, Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, and Karn Liberated. Eternal Masters is a Magic compilation set released in June 2016. Similar to the Modern Masters sets, it reprints cards, but from all of Magic's history rather than restricting itself to the Modern format, thus aiming itself at casual formats such as Cube as well as the Vintage and Legacy formats. Modern Masters 2017 Edition ("MM3") was released on March 17, 2017. It was also released in English, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese. The 2017 edition added Innistrad block, Return to Ravnica block, , and to the sets eligible for a Modern Masters reprint. Notable reprints in Modern Masters 2017 Edition included Tarmogoyf, Damnation, Liliana of the Veil, Snapcaster Mage, Voice of Resurgence, and the enemy color "fetchlands" such as Scalding Tarn. Iconic Masters is a Magic compilation set; it was released at Hasbro's HasCon's 25th anniversary celebration of Magic in September 2017, and released to the wider public in November 2017. It is a compilation set with reprinted cards originating throughout the history of Magic, similar to Eternal Masters. The set is generally perceived to have had poor sales due to the two month delayed nature of its wide release, which happened only a few weeks before the release of . Wizards of the Coast would later apologize for setting wrong expectations for the set as well as the strange scheduling after receiving negative feedback about the set. Masters 25 (A25) was released on March 16, 2018. It was themed as a celebration of 25 years of the history of Magic, with cards from every printed set. Ultimate Masters (UMA) is scheduled to be released on December 7, 2018 in both English and Japanese. In the official announcement, it was noted that the set will have an unusually high price point, but also unusually high value reprints. Wizards of the Coast has declared this will be the last Masters set for some time. Anthologies was a box set and the second compilation set. It was printed in November 1998 to celebrate the 5th anniversary of Magic. It featured cards from Alpha through Urza's Saga. The print run was unknown. Unlike Chronicles, but like other box sets such as Battle Royale, the reprinted cards did not count as current product, and thus were only legal in formats which allowed the original cards being reprinted to be used, and were not automatically legal in Standard at the time the product was available. Anthologies had two decks, Green/White and Black/Red, and was printed with and without expansion symbols. The cards had white borders and standard backs. The Anthologies cards with identical copies in 5th Edition (e.g. Armageddon, Nevinyrral's Disk, etc.) bear a striking resemblance to those from 5th Edition and can be difficult to differentiate. They can be told apart by looking at the copyright line: 5th Edition cards have "© 1997", whereas the Anthologies reprints have "© 1993-1998", which became the new standard for the copyright line with the release of Exodus. Battle Royale was a Magic: The Gathering boxed set, the third compilation set, released in November 1999 as a collection of cards emphasizing the multiplayer aspect of the game. Most of the cards included are ones that can affect multiple opponents. This promotion included cards from all different sets that existed previous to it. The cards still retained their original expansion symbols although they were printed with white borders, which was the standard for reprinted Magic: The Gathering cards of "core sets" until the 2007 release of . These are the only sets that are printed with white borders (which started with Unlimited.) Another interesting aspect is that colored expansions symbols were added to the cards that didn’t have them previously (namely cards from Tempest, Portal: Second Age, Stronghold and Ice Age.) The set included 160 cards built into four different two-color theme decks which are 40 cards each: Spirit Gale (blue / white), Chargoyf (green / red), The Deluge (green / white), and Cinder Heart (black / red). Beatdown is a box set for Magic: The Gathering, and the fourth compilation set. It was not legal in Standard at the time of its release. Beatdown was released as a pair of preconstructed decks combined with accessories, unlike the normal distribution of Magic cards in randomized packs. Alternate art was done for four cards: Sengir Vampire, Erhnam Djinn, Ball Lightning, and Clockwork Beast. The set is white-bordered, and the expansion symbol is a mace. There are no White cards in the set. The set includes 122 special edition Magic cards divided into two theme decks, Aerodoom and Ground Pounder. The focus of the two decks in the Beatdown box set is to overwhelm your opponent with decks that included some of the more powerful creatures in the game, to that date, such as the aforementioned Erhnam Djinn, Sengir Vampire, Ball Lightning and Clockwork Beast. The Beatdown set was released in October 2000. Clockwork Avian was misprinted without flying in Beatdown. From the Vault is a series of limited-edition Magic: The Gathering boxed sets. Each set consists mostly of cards released in previous Magic: The Gathering expansions, but in foil and sometimes with new artwork. Some From the Vault decks contain a pre-release of a card due to be released in the next Magic: The Gathering expansion. Typically, the boxed set also contains a 20-sided spin-down life counter die in addition to the cards. Because From the Vault releases are not normal expansion sets, the tournament-legality of the cards depends on the most recent normal expansion they were printed in. In February 2018, it was announced that the From the Vault series would be cancelled and spiritually succeeded by the Signature Spellbook series. The following is a list of all the From the Vault sets: From the Vault: Dragons was released August 29, 2008. It contained 15 cards, all of which were Dragons or Dragon-related, and one of which was a pre-release of a card in the Shards of Alara set. 7 of the cards had new artwork (counting the pre-release)., From the Vault: Exiled was released August 28, 2009. It contained 15 cards, all of which are or were banned or restricted in at least one format. 8 of the cards had new artwork., From the Vault: Relics was released August 27, 2010. It contained 15 cards, all of which were artifacts, and one of which was a pre-release of a card in the Scars of Mirrodin set. 11 of the cards had new artwork (counting the pre-release)., From the Vault: Legends was released August 26, 2011. It contained 15 cards, all of which were legendary creatures, and one of which was a pre-release of a card in the Innistrad set. 8 of the cards had new artwork (counting the pre-release)., From the Vault: Realms: was released on August 31, 2012. It contained 15 cards, all of which were lands. 7 of the cards had new artwork., From the Vault: Twenty was released on August 23, 2013. It contained 20 cards, each of which represented a year in Magic's history, in commemoration of Magic's 20th anniversary. 9 of the cards had new artwork., From the Vault: Annihilation was released on August 22, 2014. It contains 15 cards, with a "sweep the battlefield" theme. 6 of the cards have new artwork., From the Vault: Angels was released on August 21, 2015. It contains 15 cards, all of which were angel themed (14 creatures, 1 sorcery), with five of them having new artwork., From the Vault: Lore was released on August 19, 2016. It contains 15 cards, all of which showcased important moments in Magic's story., From the Vault: Transform was released on November 24, 2017. It contains 15 cards, all of which are double faced. Premium Deck Series was a set of preconstructed 60-card Magic: The Gathering decks. All cards were foil and were reprints of cards first printed in other Magic sets. All of the cards are black bordered and tournament legal in their original formats. There have been three Premium Deck Series printed: Premium Deck Series: Slivers was released November 20, 2009. All creatures in this deck were of the Sliver subtype (including the mythic-rare Sliver Overlord)., Premium Deck Series: Fire & Lightning was released November 19, 2010. The set was mono-red and revolved around Elemental creatures and various red spells that dealt direct damage to creatures or opponents., Premium Deck Series: Graveborn was released November 18, 2011. The set revolved around cards that deal with the graveyard. In July 2012 at San Diego Comic-Con, Wizards of the Coast announced that the Premium Deck Series would be discontinued after Graveborn. Duel Decks are a series of boxed sets for Magic: The Gathering, each consisting of a pair of 60-card decks built around a rivalry between two forces, often planeswalkers or creature type "tribes". Typically, each deck contains a mythic rare, several rares, and a number of cards with alternate art. Most cards are reprints of cards from ; however, some duel decks contain pre-release cards from unreleased future sets. Deckmasters: Garfield vs. Finkel, usually known as simply Deckmasters, was a set released in 2001 featuring copies of the decks used in a promotional match between Richard Garfield, the creator of the card game, and Jon Finkel, a Magic World Champion. Two decks were included in the set, a red/green deck used by Richard Garfield, and a red/black deck that was played by Finkel. It is the fifth compilation set. The match from which the decks are taken was held in January 2002. About a year before, Wizards of the Coast challenged Garfield and Finkel to build a deck out of and cards to compete against each other with. They were given very strict criteria to build these decks, such as that each deck could only use four rare cards and no more than two copies of any one card. Some cards were banned for the purpose of this event such as Kjeldoran Outpost. Finkel won match one because Garfield misplayed the current timing rules at least twice during the course of the game. Garfield joked, "Shouldn't we be playing by the rules as I made them?" In the second match, Garfield was defeated by lack of mana. "This is the first time I am sitting up here and am honestly unhappy that my opponent is manascrewed," Finkel confessed., Premium Foil Booster was released by Wizards of the Coast in 2010. It was sold as booster packs which contained a randomized collection of 15 cards from Alara block, except all guaranteed to be foiled. All 539 cards printed in Shards of Alara, Conflux, and Alara Reborn were potentially included. Wizards of the Coast Anthologies page, Wizards of the Coast Battle Royale page, Wizards of the Coast Eternal Masters page

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This list contains the top 50 accounts with the most followers on the photo and video-sharing social platform Instagram. As of January 2020, the most- followed person is footballer Cristiano Ronaldo with over 197 million followers, and the most-followed woman is singer Ariana Grande with over 171 million followers. Instagram has its own brand account on the platform, and with over 327 million followers; it is the most-followed account. National Geographic is the second most-followed brand account, with over 129 million followers. A total of 18 accounts have exceeded 100 million followers on the site. The following table lists the top 50 most followed accounts on Instagram. The following table lists the top 20 most followed accounts on Instagram by country of origin. List of most-liked Instagram posts, List of most-liked Facebook pages, List of most-followed Twitter accounts, List of most-followed TikTok accounts, List of most-subscribed YouTube channels, List of most-viewed YouTube videos, List of most-streamed artists on Spotify, List of most-streamed songs on Spotify, List of most-followed Twitch channels A click farm is a form of click fraud, where a large group of low-paid workers are hired to click on paid advertising links for the click fraudster (click farm master or click farmer). The workers click the links, surf the target website for a period of time, and possibly sign up for newsletters prior to clicking another link. For many of these workers, clicking on enough ads per day may increase their revenue substantially and may also be an alternative to other types of work. It is extremely difficult for an automated filter to detect this simulated traffic as fake because the visitor behavior appears exactly the same as that of an actual legitimate visitor. Fake likes generating from click farms are essentially different from those arising from bots where computer programs are written by software experts. To deal with such issues, companies such as Facebook are trying to create algorithms that seek to wipe out accounts with unusual activity (e.g. liking too many pages in a short period of time). Click farms are usually located in developing countries, such as China, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Bangladesh. The business of click farms extends to generating likes and followers on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and more. Workers are paid, on average, one US dollar for a thousand likes or for following a thousand people on Twitter. Then click farms turn around and sell their likes and followers at a much higher price. According to the Daily Mail, "BuyPlusFollowers sells 250 Google+ shares for $12.95; InstagramEngine sells 1,000 Instagram followers for $12.00; and AuthenticHits sells 1,000 SoundCloud plays for $9.00." In Thailand in June 2017, a click farm was discovered with hundreds of mobile phones and several hundred thousand SIM cards used to build up likes and views on WeChat. There are two methods to click farming. The first is by hiring competitor fraudsters to deplete the advertising budget of the competitor so that they will be able to have their ads shown in higher pay-per-click rankings at a lower cost. In this case, the competitor is weakened instead of being outbid in the pay-per-click bidding system. The investment on the click farm made by the fraudster is only a very small fraction of the amount lost by the competitor. The second is by hiring the click farm workers to click on ads on the click farmer's own site. This way, the money lost by the advertisers is gained by the click farmer, rather than by the search engines and content networks as in the first method. The need for click farming arises because, as The Guardian states, "31% will check ratings and reviews, including likes and Twitter followers, before they choose to buy something." This shows the increasing importance that businesses, celebrities and other organisations put on the number of likes and followers they have. This creates monetary values for likes and followers which means that businesses and celebrities feel compelled to increase their likes to create a positive online profile. Pay-per-click providers, including Google, Yahoo!, and MSN, have made substantial efforts to combat click fraud. Automated filters remove most click fraud attempts at the source. Deanna Yick, a spokeswoman for Mountain View, California-based Google, said that “we design our systems to catch bot-related attacks.” “Because a significant amount of malicious traffic is automated, advertisers are protected from these kinds of attacks.” she added. In an effort to circumvent these filtering systems, click fraudsters have begun to use these click farms to mimic actual visitors. Engagement rate, a performance metric that measures the quality of social media activity such as Facebook likes or Twitter retweets, can be interpreted in terms of "engagement per follower," measured by dividing the raw counts of social media activity by the number of followers. Users who engage in short term click farms services will see their engagement rate plummet in time as the initial increase in the volume of social media activity drops when the click farms services end, coupled with the increase in fake followers if not the same. Italian security researchers and bloggers Andrea Stroppa and Carla De Micheli found out in 2013 that $40 million to $360 million to date were earned from the sale of and the potential benefits of buying fake Twitter followers. $200 million a year is also earned from fake Facebook activities. About 40 to 80 percent of Facebook advertisements are bought on a pay-per- click basis. Advertisers have claimed that about 20 percent of Facebook clicks are invalid and they had tried to seek refunds. This could cost Facebook $2.5 billion of their 2014 revenue. Some companies have tried to mitigate the effects of click farming. Coca-Cola made its 2010 Super Bowl advert "Hard Times" private after learning it was shared on Shareyt and issued a statement that it "did not approve of fake fans." Hasbro was alerted to an online casino, a sub-licensee of its Monopoly brand had added fake Facebook likes and hence contacted Facebook to remove the site. Hasbro issued a statement that it was “appalled to hear of what had occurred” and claimed no previous knowledge of the page. Although click farm services violate many social media user policies, there are no government regulations that render them illegal. However, Sam DeSilva, a lawyer specializing in IT and outsourcing law at Manches LLP in Oxford had mentioned that: "Potentially, a number of laws are being breached – the consumer protection and unfair trading regulations. Effectively it's misleading the individual consumers." Facebook issued a statement stating: "A like that doesn't come from someone truly interested in connecting with the brand benefits no one. If you run a Facebook page and someone offers you a boost in your fan count in return for money, our advice is to walk away – not least because it is against our rules and there is a good chance those likes will be deleted by our automatic systems. We investigate and monitor "like-vendors" and if we find that they are selling fake likes, or generating conversations from fake profiles, we will quickly block them from our platform." Andrea Faville reported that Alphabet Inc. companies, Google and YouTube, "take action against bad actors that seek to game our systems." LinkedIn spokesman Doug Madey said buying connections "dilutes the member experience violates their user agreement and can also prompt account closures." Chief executive and founder of Instagram, Kevin Systrom reports "We've been deactivating spammy accounts from Instagram on an ongoing basis to improve your experience." Facebook's purging of fake likes and accounts occurred from August to September 2012. According to Facebook's 2014 financial report to the Securities and Exchange Commission, an estimated 83 million false accounts were deleted, accounting for approximately 6.4% of the 1.3 billion total accounts on Facebook. Likester reported pages affected include Lady Gaga, who lost 65,505 fans and Facebook, who lost 124,919 fake likes. Technology giant Dell lost 107,889 likes (2.87% of its total likes) in 24 hours. Billions of YouTube video fake views were deleted after being exposed by auditors. In December 2014, Instagram carried out a purge deemed the "Instagram Rapture" wherein many accounts were affected—including Instagram's own account, which lost 18,880,211 followers. Link farm, Content farm Rickey Thompson (born February 6, 1996) is an American actor, comedian, and Internet personality. He rose to prominence for comedic videos he posts to Instagram, and previously Vine. He has over 5 million Instagram followers and a lead role in the YouTube Red series Foursome. Thompson grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. He attended Millbrook High School, where he regularly performed in theater productions and was also bullied for being gay. During this time, Thompson posted YouTube videos about his experience with bullying as well as about fashion. He also used Vine to post comedic videos of himself, usually speaking directly to the camera. When he was 17, Kylie Jenner shared one of his videos, which led to an increase in his profile on the platform. He amassed 2.5 million followers by the time Vine shut down in 2016. Thompson then began posting short videos to Instagram and as of 2019 has over 3 million followers. He has monetized his videos with promotional posts and guest appearances at events and in other videos. In 2018, Thompson narrated several interludes for Aminé's album OnePointFive and also appeared in the "Reel It In" music video. Aminé sent Thompson a direct message on Instagram to invite him to be on the album. That December, he walked in his first runway show for designer Alexander Wang. Thompson currently stars in the YouTube web series Foursome. Thompson moved to Los Angeles after high school to pursue a career in the entertainment industry and decided to forego college. He also has great interest in fashion. He is openly gay. He came out on Twitter in 2016. Rickey Thompson on IMDb, Rickey Thompson on Instagram, Rickey Thompson on Snapchat

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The Battle of Stamford Bridge took place at the village of Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, in England on 25 September 1066, between an English army under King Harold Godwinson and an invading Norwegian force led by King Harald Hardrada and the English king's brother Tostig Godwinson. After a bloody battle, both Hardrada and Tostig along with most of the Norwegians were killed. Although Harold Godwinson repelled the Norwegian invaders, his army was defeated by the Normans at Hastings less than three weeks later. The battle has traditionally been presented as symbolising the end of the Viking Age, although major Scandinavian campaigns in Britain and Ireland occurred in the following decades, such as those of King Sweyn Estrithson of Denmark in 1069–1070 and King Magnus Barefoot of Norway in 1098 and 1102–1103. The death of King Edward the Confessor of England in January 1066 had triggered a succession struggle in which a variety of contenders from across north-western Europe fought for the English throne. These claimants included the King of Norway, Harald Hardrada. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle Manuscript D (p. 197), the Norwegians assembled a fleet of 300 ships to invade England. The authors, however, did not seem to differentiate between warships and supply ships. In King Harald's Saga, Snorri Sturluson states, "... it is said that King Harald had over two hundred ships, apart from supply ships and smaller craft." Combined with reinforcements picked up in Orkney, the Norwegian army most likely numbered between 7,000 and 9,000 men. Arriving off the English coast in September Hardrada was joined by further forces recruited in Flanders and Scotland by Tostig Godwinson. Tostig was at odds with his elder brother Harold (who had been elected king by the Witenagemot on the death of Edward). Having been ousted from his position as Earl of Northumbria and exiled in 1065, Tostig had mounted a series of abortive attacks on England in the spring of 1066. In the late summer of 1066, the invaders sailed up the Ouse before advancing on York. On 20 September they defeated a northern English army led by Edwin, Earl of Mercia, and his brother Morcar, Earl of Northumbria, at the Battle of Fulford, outside York. Following this victory they received the surrender of York. Having briefly occupied the city and taken hostages and supplies from the city they returned towards their ships at Riccall. They offered peace to the Northumbrians in exchange for their support for Hardrada's bid for the throne, and demanded further hostages from the whole of Yorkshire. At this time King Harold was in Southern England, anticipating an invasion from France by William, Duke of Normandy, another contender for the English throne. Learning of the Norwegian invasion he headed north at great speed with his huscarls and as many thegns as he could gather, travelling day and night. He made the journey from London to Yorkshire, a distance of about , in only four days, enabling him to take the Norwegians completely by surprise. Having learned that the Northumbrians had been ordered to send the additional hostages and supplies to the Norwegians at Stamford Bridge, Harold hurried on through York to attack them at this rendezvous on 25 September. Until the English army came into view the invaders remained unaware of the presence of a hostile army anywhere in the vicinity. There is some controversy as to whether or not a village and bridge existed at the time of the battle. One theory holds that there was no village at Stamford Bridge in 1066 and not even in 1086 when the Domesday Book was compiled. According to this theory, the name is locative and descriptive of crossing points over the River Derwent being derived from a combination of the words stone, ford and bridge i.e. stoneford and bridge. At the location of the present village, within the river bed, there is an outcrop of stone over which the river once flowed as a mini-waterfall. At low water levels one could easily cross over the river at this point, either on foot or horseback. An alternative explanation is given by Darby and Maxwell who state, "Stamford Bridge does, in fact, exemplify that small number of places which, though not mentioned in the Domesday Book, must have existed, or at any rate been named, in Domesday times because they appear in both pre-Domesday and post-Domesday documents." Most likely the Stamford Bridge lands were included with Low Catton and therefore were not mentioned in the Domesday Book. As for the presence of a bridge, manuscripts C, D and E of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle all mention Stamford Bridge by name. Manuscript C contains a passage which states "... came upon them beyond the bridge ...". Henry of Huntington mentions Stamford Bridge and describes part of the battle being fought across the bridge. Therefore, a bridge over the Derwent most likely did exist at this time. One mile to the south along the River Derwent at Scoreby lies the site of a 1st to 4th century Roman settlement known as Derventio. The town runs for two and a half miles east/west alongside a Roman road. Occupying both east and west banks of the river, the town was connected by the construction of a bridge which carried the road. There is no archaeological evidence for a Roman bridge construction at or near the present site of Stamford Bridge. It is possible that there may have been a two-pronged attack by Godwinson on Hardrada's army, making use of both the ford and perhaps the remnants of the earlier Roman bridge one mile to the south, information of which, and of the two road routes to the location from York, could have been gathered from Godwinson's earlier occupation of the city of York. However, no documentation exists to support this possibility. Topographically, on the east bank of the river from the bridge crossing point, the land rises sharply up to 100 feet at High Catton. This is the only high ground around and a good defensive position for Hardrada's army caught out by Godwinson's sudden appearance on the skyline, as he rounded the ridge at Gate Helmsley to drop downhill swiftly onto Hardrada's unsuspecting army. According to Snorri Sturluson, before the battle a single man rode up alone to Harald Hardrada and Tostig. He gave no name, but spoke to Tostig, offering the return of his earldom if he would turn against Hardrada. Tostig asked what his brother Harold would be willing to give Hardrada for his trouble. The rider replied "Seven feet of English ground, as he is taller than other men." Then he rode back to the Saxon host. Hardrada was impressed by the rider's boldness, and asked Tostig who he was. Tostig replied that the rider was Harold Godwinson himself. According to Henry of Huntingdon, Harold said "Six feet of ground or as much more as he needs, as he is taller than most men." The exact location of the Stamford Bridge battlefield is not known. Local tradition places the battlefield east of the River Derwent and just southeast of the town in an area known as Battle Flats. The location of the Norwegian army at the start of the battle is not known for certain. Accounts of their location differ, depending on sources and interpretations. A common view is that the Norwegian army was divided in two; with some of their troops on the west side of the River Derwent and the bulk of their army on the east side. Another interpretation is that they were just leaving Stamford Bridge and moving along the old Roman road toward York (west side of the River Derwent). The sudden appearance of the English army caught the Norwegians by surprise. Their response was to deploy rapidly in a defensive circle. If the Norwegians were located at Battle Flats, there is no good explanation as to why they deployed into this formation. However, if they were located on the east side of the Derwent, the deployment made perfect sense. By the time the bulk of the English army had arrived, the Vikings on the west side were either slain or fleeing across the bridge. The English advance was then delayed by the need to pass through the choke-point presented by the bridge itself. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle has it that a giant Norse axeman (possibly armed with a Dane Axe) blocked the narrow crossing and single-handedly held up the entire English army. The story is that this axeman cut down up to 40 Englishmen and was defeated only when an English soldier floated under the bridge in a half- barrel and thrust his spear through the planks in the bridge, mortally wounding the axeman. This delay had allowed the bulk of the Norse army to form a shieldwall to face the English attack. Harold's army poured across the bridge, forming a line just short of the Norse army, locked shields and charged. The battle went far beyond the bridge itself, and although it raged for hours, the Norse army's decision to leave their armour behind left them at a distinct disadvantage. Eventually, the Norse army began to fragment and fracture, allowing the English troops to force their way in and break up the Scandinavians' shield wall. Completely outflanked, and with Hardrada killed with an arrow to his windpipe and Tostig slain, the Norwegian army disintegrated and was virtually annihilated. In the later stages of the battle, the Norwegians were reinforced by troops who had been guarding the ships at Riccall, led by Eystein Orre, Hardrada's prospective son-in-law. Some of his men were said to have collapsed and died of exhaustion upon reaching the battlefield. The remainder were fully armed for battle. Their counter- attack, described in the Norwegian tradition as "Orre's Storm", briefly checked the English advance, but was soon overwhelmed and Orre was slain. The Norwegian army were routed. As given in the Chronicles, pursued by the English army, some of the fleeing Norsemen drowned whilst crossing rivers. So many died in an area so small that the field was said to have been still whitened with bleached bones 50 years after the battle. King Harold accepted a truce with the surviving Norwegians, including Harald's son Olaf and Paul Thorfinnsson, Earl of Orkney. They were allowed to leave after giving pledges not to attack England again. The losses the Norwegians had suffered were so severe that only 24 ships from the fleet of over 300 were needed to carry the survivors away. They withdrew to Orkney, where they spent the winter, and in the spring Olaf returned to Norway. The kingdom was then divided and shared between him and his brother Magnus, whom Harald had left behind to govern in his absence. Harold's victory was short-lived. Three days after the battle, on 28 September, a second invasion army led by William, Duke of Normandy, landed in Pevensey Bay, Sussex, on the south coast of England. Harold had to immediately turn his troops around and force-march them southwards to intercept the Norman army. Less than three weeks after Stamford Bridge, on 14 October 1066, the English army was decisively defeated and King Harold II fell in action at the Battle of Hastings, beginning the Norman conquest of England, a process facilitated by the heavy losses amongst the English military commanders. Two monuments to the battle have been erected in and around the village of Stamford Bridge. The first memorial is located in the village on Main Street (A116). The monument's inscription reads (in both English and Norwegian): THE BATTLE OF STAMFORD BRIDGE WAS FOUGHT IN THIS NEIGHBOURHOOD ON SEPTEMBER 25TH, 1066 The inscription on the accompanying marble tablet reads: THE BATTLE OF STAMFORD BRIDGE KING HAROLD OF ENGLAND DEFEATED HIS BROTHER TOSTIG AND KING 25 SEPTEMBER 1066 A second monument is located at the battlefield site at the end of Whiterose Drive. This monument consists of a memorial stone and plaque detailing the events and outcome of the battle. The plaque points out that: This viewpoint overlooks the site of the Battle of Stamford Bridge, fought by King Harold of England against the invading Norse army of Hardrada. The Battle of Stamford Bridge by Michael C. Blundell, Description of battle by Geoff Boxell, The Battle of Stamford Bridge, Saga of Harald Hardrade, The Battle of Stamford Bridge, BBC "In Our Time" 2 June 2011, Old Norse description of the battle, with translation Stamford Bridge () is a football stadium in Fulham, adjacent to the borough of Chelsea in South West London, commonly referred to as The Bridge. It is the home of Chelsea Football Club, which competes in the Premier League. The capacity of the stadium is 40,834, making it the ninth largest venue of the 2019–20 Premier League season. The club has plans to expand capacity to 63,000 by the 2023–24 season. When expansion starts, Chelsea intend to play at Wembley Stadium until they return in 2024. Opened in 1877, the stadium was used by the London Athletic Club until 1905, when new owner Gus Mears founded Chelsea Football Club to occupy the ground; Chelsea have played their home games there ever since. It has undergone major changes over the years, most recently in the 1990s when it was renovated into a modern, all-seater stadium. Stamford Bridge has been a venue for England international matches, FA Cup Finals, FA Cup semi-finals and Charity Shield games. It has also hosted numerous other sports, such as cricket, rugby union, speedway, greyhound racing, baseball and American football. The stadium's highest official attendance is 82,905, for a league match between Chelsea and Arsenal on 12 October 1935. "Stamford Bridge" is considered to be a derivative of "Samfordesbrigge" meaning "the bridge at the sandy ford". Eighteenth century maps show a "Stanford Creek" running along the route of what is now a railway line at the back of the East Stand as a tributary of the Thames. The upper reaches of this tributary have been known as Billingswell Ditch, Pools Creek and Counters Creek. In medieval times the creek was known as Billingwell Dyche, derived from "Billing's spring or stream". It formed the boundary between the parishes of Kensington and Fulham. By the 18th century the creek had become known as Counter's Creek, which is the name it has retained since. The stream had two local bridges: Stamford Bridge on the Fulham Road (also recorded as Little Chelsea Bridge) and Stanbridge on the King's Road, now known as Stanley Bridge. The existing Stamford Bridge was built of brick in 1860–1862 and has since been partly reconstructed. Stamford Bridge opened in 1877 as a home for the London Athletic Club and was used almost exclusively for that purpose until 1904, when the lease was acquired by brothers Gus and Joseph Mears, who wanted to stage high-profile professional football matches there. However, previous to this, in 1898, Stamford Bridge played host to the World Championship of shinty between Beauly Shinty Club and London Camanachd. Stamford Bridge was built close to Lillie Bridge, an older sports ground which had hosted the 1873 FA Cup Final and the first ever amateur boxing matches (among other things). It was initially offered to Fulham Football Club, but they turned it down for financial reasons. After considering the sale of the land to the Great Western Railway Company, the Mears decided to found their own football club, Chelsea, to occupy the ground as a rival to Fulham. Noted football ground architect Archibald Leitch, who had also designed Ibrox, Celtic Park, Craven Cottage and Hampden Park, was hired to construct the stadium. In its early days, Stamford Bridge stadium was served by a small railway station, Chelsea and Fulham railway station, which was later closed after World War II bombing. Stamford Bridge had an official capacity of around 100,000, making it the second largest ground in England after Crystal Palace. It was used as the FA Cup final venue. As originally constructed, Stamford Bridge was an athletics track and the pitch was initially located in the middle of the running track. This meant that spectators were separated from the field of play on all sides by the width of running track and, on the north and south sides, the separation was particularly large because the long sides of the running track considerably exceeded the length of the football pitch. The stadium had a single stand for 5,000 spectators on the east side. Designed by Archibald Leitch, it was an exact replica of the Stevenage Road Stand he had previously built at the re-developed Craven Cottage (and the main reason why Fulham had chosen not to move into the new ground). The other sides were all open in a vast bowl and thousands of tons of material excavated from the building of the Piccadilly line provided high terracing for standing spectators exposed to the elements on the west side. In 1945, Stamford Bridge staged one of the most notable matches in its history. Soviet side FC Dynamo Moscow were invited to tour the United Kingdom at the end of the Second World War and Chelsea were the first side they faced. An estimated crowd of over 100,000 crammed into Stamford Bridge to watch an exciting 3–3 draw, with many spectators on the dog track and on top of the stands. In the early 1970s the club's owners embarked on an ambitious project to renovate Stamford Bridge. However, the cost of building the East Stand escalated out of control after shortages of materials and a builders' strike and the remainder of the ground remained untouched. The new East Stand was finished, but most of the (unusable) running tracks remained, and the new stand was also displaced by approx. 20 meters, compared to the pitch. The idea was to move the entire stadium towards the north. But due to the financial situation in the mid 1970s the other stands weren't rebuilt until the 1990s. The increase in the costs, combined with other factors, sent the club into decline. As a part of financial restructuring in the late 1970s, the freehold was separated from the club and when new Chelsea chairman Ken Bates bought the club for £1 in 1982, he did not buy the ground. A large chunk of the Stamford Bridge freehold was subsequently sold to property developers Marler Estates. The sale resulted in a long and acrimonious legal fight between Bates and Marler Estates. Marler Estates was ultimately forced into bankruptcy after a market crash in the early 1990s, allowing Bates to do a deal with its banks and re-unite the freehold with the club. During the 1984–85 season, following a series of pitch invasions and fights by football hooligans during matches at the stadium, chairman Ken Bates erected an electric perimeter fence between the stands and the pitch – identical to the one which effectively controlled cattle on his dairy farm. However, the electric fence was never turned on and before long it was dismantled, due to the GLC blocking it from being switched on for health and safety reasons. With the Taylor Report arising from the Hillsborough disaster being published in January 1990 and ordering all top division clubs to have all-seater stadiums in time for the 1994–95 season, Chelsea's plan for a 34,000-seat stadium at Stamford Bridge was given approval by Hammersmith and Fulham council on 19 July 1990. The re-building of the stadium commenced and successive building phases during the 1990s eliminated the original running track. The construction of the 1973 East Stand had begun the process of eliminating the track. All stands, now roofed and all-seater, are immediately adjacent to the pitch. This structure captures and concentrates the noise of supporters. Paradoxically, the noise was louder prior to the 1990s redevelopment, when supporters were dispersed at a distance from the pitch on open terraces, even though average attendances were around half of today. The pitch, the turnstiles, and the naming rights of the club are now owned by Chelsea Pitch Owners, an organisation set up to prevent the stadium from being purchased by property developers. KSS Design Group (architects) designed the complete redevelopment of Stamford Bridge Stadium and its hotels, megastore, offices and residential buildings. Stamford Bridge was the venue of the FA Cup Final from 1920 to 1922, before being replaced by Wembley Stadium in 1923. It has staged ten FA Cup semi- finals, ten Charity Shield matches, and three England matches, the last in 1932. It was one of the home venues for the representative London XI team that played in the original Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. The team played the home leg of the two-legged final at Stamford Bridge, drawing 2–2 with FC Barcelona; they lost the away leg 6–0, however. Results of FA Cup Finals at Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge has also hosted a variety of other sporting events since Chelsea have occupied the ground. In October 1905 it hosted a rugby union match between the All Blacks and Middlesex, and in 1914 hosted a baseball match between the touring New York Giants and the Chicago White Sox. In 1908, Stamford Bridge was the venue for a Rugby League international between Great Britain and the touring New Zealand All Golds, who won 18-6. In 1924 the stadium hosted the 1924 Women's Olympiad, the first international event for women in track and field in the UK. A speedway team operated from the stadium from 1929 until 1932, winning the Southern League in their opening season. Initially open meetings were held there in 1928. A nineteen-year-old junior rider, Charlie Biddle, was killed in a racing accident. In 1931, black cinders were laid onto the circuit suitable for use by speedway and athletics. A midget car meeting reportedly attracted a crowd of 50,000 people in 1948. The ground was used in 1980 for the first major day-night floodlit cricket match between Essex and West Indies (although organised by Surrey) which was a commercial success; the following year it hosted the final of the inaugural Lambert & Butler county cricket competition. It, however, failed and the experiment of playing cricket on football grounds was ended. Stamford Bridge briefly hosted American football – despite not being long enough for a regulation-size gridiron field – when the London Monarchs were based there in 1997. The Greyhound Racing Association (GRA) brought greyhound racing to Stamford Bridge on 31 July 1933 and this forced the London Athletic Club to leave the venue. Totalisator turnover in 1946 was nearly £6 million (£5,749,592); to put this in perspective to football, the British transfer record at the same time in 1946 was £14,500. On 1 August 1968 the GRA closed Stamford Bridge to greyhound racing quoting the fact that Stamford Bridge had to race on the same days as White City. An attempt by Chelsea to bring back greyhound racing to Stamford Bridge in 1976, to alleviate debts, failed when the GRA refused them permission to do so. The Bridge pitch is surrounded on each side by four covered all-seater stands, officially known as the Matthew Harding Stand (North), East stand, The Shed End (South) and West Stand. Each stand has at least two tiers & was constructed for entirely different reasons as part of separate expansion plans. The Matthew Harding Stand, previously known as the North Stand, is along the north edge of the pitch. In 1939, a small two storied North Stand including seating was erected. It was originally intended to span the entire northern end, but the outbreak of World War II and its aftermath compelled the club to keep the stand small. It was demolished and replaced by open terracing for standing supporters in 1976. The North Terrace was closed in 1993 and the present North Stand of two tiers (the Matthew Harding Stand) was then constructed at that end. It is named after former Chelsea director Matthew Harding, whose investment helped transform the club in the early 1990s before his death in a helicopter accident on 22 October 1996. His investment in the club enabled construction of the stand which was completed in time for the 1996–97 season. It has two tiers and accommodates most season-ticket holders, giving it an excellent atmosphere, especially in the lower tier. Any proposal to enlarge the facility would necessitate demolition of the adjacent Chelsea F.C. Museum and Chelsea Health Club and Spa. For some Champions League matches, this stand operates at reduced capacity, some entrances being obstructed by the presence of TV outside-broadcast vehicles. The only covered stand when Stamford Bridge was renovated into a football ground in 1905, the East Stand had a gabled corrugated iron roof, with around 6,000 seats and a terraced enclosure. The stand remained until 1973, when it was demolished in what was meant to be the opening phase of a comprehensive redevelopment of the stadium. The new stand was opened at the start of the 1974–75 season, but due to the ensuing financial difficulties at the club, it was the only part of the development to be completed. The East Stand essentially survives in its 1973 three-tiered cantilevered form, although it has been much refurbished and modernised since. It is the heart of the stadium, housing the tunnel, dugout, dressing rooms, conference room, press centre, Audio-Visual and commentary box. The middle tier is occupied by facilities, clubs, and executive suites. The upper tier provides spectators with one of the best views of the pitch and it is the only section to have survived the extensive redevelopment of the 90s. Previously, it was the home to away supporters on the bottom tier. However, at the start of the 2005-06 season, then-manager José Mourinho requested that the family section move to this part of the stand, to boost team morale. Away fans were moved to the shed end. The Shed End is along the south side of the pitch. In 1930, a new terrace was built on the south side, for more standing spectators. It was originally known as the Fulham Road End, but supporters nicknamed it 'The Shed' and this led the club to officially change its name. It became the most favoured spot for the loudest and most die-hard support, until the terrace was demolished in 1994, when all-seater stadia became compulsory by law as a safety measure in light of the Taylor Report following the Hillsborough disaster. The seated stand which replaced it is still known as the Shed End (see below). The new stand opened in time for the 1997/98 season. Along with the Matthew Harding Stand, it is an area of the ground where many vocal fans congregate. The view from the upper tier is widely regarded as one of the best in the stadium. The Shed also contains the centenary museum and a memorial wall, where families of deceased fans are able to leave a permanent memorial of their loved ones, indicating their eternal support. A large chunk of the original wall from the back of the Shed End terrace still stands and runs along the south side of the stadium. It has recently been decorated with lights and large images of Chelsea legends. Since 2005, it has been where away supporters are housed; they are allocated 3,000 tickets towards the east side, roughly half of the capacity of the stand. Peter Osgood's ashes were laid to rest under the shed end penalty spot in 2006. In 1964–65, a seated West Stand was built to replace the existing terracing on the west side. Most of the West Stand consisted of rising ranks of wooden tip up seats on iron frames, but seating at the very front was on concrete forms known as "the Benches". The old West Stand was demolished in 1997 and replaced by the current West Stand. It has three tiers, in addition to a row of executive boxes that stretches the length of the stand. The lower tier was built on schedule and opened in 1998. However, difficulties with planning permission meant that the stand was not fully completed until 2001. Construction of the stand almost caused another financial crisis, which would have seen the club fall into administration, but for the intervention of Roman Abramovich. In borrowing £70m from Eurobonds to finance the project, Ken Bates put Chelsea into a perilous financial position, primarily because of the repayment terms. Now complete, the stand is the main external 'face' of the stadium, being the first thing fans see when entering the primary gate on Fulham Road. The Main Entrance is flanked by the Spackman and Speedie hospitality entrances, named after former Chelsea players Nigel Spackman and David Speedie. The stand also features the largest concourse area in the stadium, it is also known as the 'Great Hall' and is used for many functions at Stamford Bridge, including the Chelsea Player of the Year ceremony. The aforementioned executive boxes, also known as the Millennium Suites, are the home of the majority of matchday hospitality guests. Each box is also named after a former Chelsea player (names in brackets): Tambling Suite (Bobby Tambling), Clarke Suite (Steve Clarke), Harris Suite (Ron Harris), 'Drakes' (Ted Drake), Bonetti (Peter Bonetti), Hollins (John Hollins) In October 2010 a nine-foot statue of Chelsea forward Peter Osgood, created by Philip Jackson, was unveiled by Peter's widow, Lynn. It is positioned in a recess of the West Stand near the Millennium Reception. A plaque on the side, written by official club historian Rick Glanvill, reads: The Bridge opened in 1877 as a home for the London Athletic Club and was used almost exclusively for that purpose until 1904. Subsequently, with the opening of the football club, the need for a pitch resulted in the construction of the pitch. In June 2015 significant upgrades were made to the undersoil-heating, drainage, and irrigation systems. Along with the installation a new hybrid grass pitch, this brought the pitch up to modern standards. The current pitch at the ground measures approximately 103 metres (112.6 yd) long by 67 metres (73.2 yd) wide, with a couple metres of run-off space on all sides. The south stand has by far the most run-off space being unto 3.5 metres deep. When Stamford Bridge was redeveloped in the Ken Bates era, many additional features were added to the complex, including two hotels, apartments, bars, restaurants, the Chelsea Megastore, and an interactive visitor attraction called Chelsea World of Sport. The intention was that these facilities would provide extra revenue to support the football side of the business, but they were less successful than hoped, and before the Abramovich takeover in 2003, the debt taken on to finance them was a major burden on the club. Soon after the takeover, a decision was taken to drop the "Chelsea Village" brand and refocus on Chelsea as a football club. However, the stadium is sometimes still referred to as part of Chelsea Village or "The Village". 2005 saw the opening of a new club museum, known as the Chelsea Museum or the Centenary Museum, to mark the one hundredth anniversary of the club. The museum is located in the former Shed Galleria. Visitors are able to visit the WAGs lounge and then watch an introductory video message from the former vice- president Richard Attenborough. They are then guided decade by decade through the club's history seeing old programmes, past shirts, José Mourinho's coat and other memorabilia. A motto on the wall of the museum reads "I am not from the bottle. I am a special one.", a reference to Mourinho's famous quote upon signing as manager for Chelsea. On 6 June 2011 a new museum with improved and interactive exhibits opened behind the Matthew Harding stand. It is the largest football museum in London. The current Megastore is on the south-west corner of the stadium. The store is two floors. The ground floor mainly consists of souvenirs and children's gear. The first floor is filled with training jerseys, coats, and replica jerseys. There are also two smaller shops, one located at the Stamford Gate entrance and the other inside the new museum building behind the Matthew Harding stand. Under Roman Abramovich's control, the club has announced that it wants to develop Stamford Bridge to around 55,000 to 60,000 seats. However, its location in a heavily built-up part of Inner London, in between a main road and two railway lines, makes this difficult. The dispersal of an additional 13,000 to 15,000 fans into the residential roads of the Moore Park Estate & areas surrounding Stamford Bridge would undoubtedly create congestion. Alternative possibilities include moving from Stamford Bridge to a location such as the Earls Court Exhibition Centre, White City, Battersea Power Station, the Imperial Road Gasworks (off the Kings Road on the Fulham and Chelsea border) and the Chelsea Barracks. But, under the Chelsea Pitch Owners articles of association, the club would relinquish the name 'Chelsea Football Club' should it ever move from Stamford Bridge. On 3 October 2011, the club issued a statement, in which it proposed to buy back the freehold from Chelsea Pitch Owners Plc. This has been widely speculated as the first move by the football club to begin their movement away from the current stadium. On 27 October 2011, Chelsea F.C. failed in its bid to buy back the freehold, with shareholders of the CPO voting against selling the land. On 4 May 2012, Chelsea F.C. announced a bid to purchase Battersea Power Station, as part of plans to build a new 60,000-seater stadium on the site. Though they were not the preferred bidders, they released artistic impressions of the proposed stadium at the BPS on 22 June 2012. On 17 June 2014, club owner Roman Abramovich released a statement, saying that he had commissioned a study of the area from Fulham Broadway to Stamford Bridge and beyond by West London- based architects Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands. The study was commissioned to see if there are any ways Chelsea could expand Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have plans to expand the stadium to 60,000. It was announced on 5 January 2017 that the planners at Hammersmith and Fulham council had approved the redevelopment of the stadium. The whole of Chelsea village would be demolished and the new stadium would include a new club shop, museum, a bar and restaurant. The two existing hotels, restaurants, bars and spa would be relocated. On 6 March 2017 full permission was given to redevelop Stamford Bridge by the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, who said the "high quality and spectacular design" would add to the capital's "fantastic array of sporting arenas". As part of the Redevelopment of the stadium it was determined that the club would have to find an alternative site to play home games for the duration of the construction of the stadium. It was reported that the length of time could vary between 3–4 years. The club has said they will keep their supporters informed as the study progresses. On 28 September 2014 it was revealed that Chelsea had enquired about a temporary move to Twickenham Stadium to help facilitate an expansion of Stamford Bridge. Media reported in February 2016 that Chelsea had agreed a deal to use Wembley Stadium for three seasons beginning in 2017-18 for £20 million. Although Chelsea wanted exclusive rights to Wembley, the FA suggested that fellow Londoners Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and Chelsea rivals share the stadium for the 2017–18 season only, as Spurs build their new stadium. The FA wanted to show no favourites in using the national stadium. In May 2017, the Crosthwaites family launched legal proceedings in the form of an injunction, in order to prevent Chelsea from expanding Stamford Bridge. The family's argument was that there will be almost 17,000 hospitality seats, 28% of the total. They would prefer to throttle the growth of Chelsea F.C. by legally forcing them to limit hospitality seating. This, despite the fact that they were offered legal advice worth £50,000, and further compensation understood to be in the region of a six-figure sum, in exchange for waiving their 'right to light' in their home. The club then sought the help of Hammersmith & Fulham Council in order to continue with the Stamford Bridge Redevelopment Project. In January 2018 the council sided with the club, by planning to use its powers under planning law to buy the air rights over part of Stamford Bridge and the railway line which sits between the stadium and the two affected homes. It would then lease the land back to Chelsea and railway operators Network Rail, meaning the Crosthwaites would be entitled to compensation but would not be able to prevent the redevelopment. The Stamford Redevelopment Project encompasses an area of around 12.1 acres (48967 m). The northern boundaries are formed by Railway lines to the north & the east, while Fulham Road forms the southern boundary. Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions form the western frontier. The club carried out a public consultation in June 2017 to gain feedback about the stadium design. The project is expected to be constructed in a phased manner. Phase I: The first phase involves the tearing down of the club museum, the health club, the health spa, Millennium & Copthrone Hotels & the entirety of Chelsea village. This phase intends to be completed while the club continue to play at Stamford Bridge & is expected to last a year. The main contractor of this phase of the project has yet to be determined., Phase II: This phase is expected to cover the demolition of the stadium and the facilities contained within it., Phase III: This involves the building of a decked surface from Fulham Broadway Station in the north west & north to Fulham road in the south barring the land not owned as part of the freehold of stamford bridge. From Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions in the west to the Railway lines in the east. This phase will also involve a reduced level dig., Phase IV: Consists of building the new stadium. On 31 May 2018 the club released a statement via their website stating that the "Chelsea Football Club announces today that it has put its new stadium project on hold. No further pre-construction design and planning work will occur." The statement went on to elaborate that "The club does not have a time frame set for reconsideration of its decision. The decision was made due to the current unfavourable investment climate." Record attendance: 82,905 v Arsenal on 12 October 1935, Lowest attendance: 3,000 at a Chelsea v Lincoln match in 1906 Premier League, 1992–93: 18,755, 1993–94: 19,211, 1994–95: 21,062, 1995–96: 25,598, 1996–97: 27,617, 1997–98: 33,387, 1998–99: 34,571, 1999–00: 34,532, 2000–01: 34,700, 2001–02: 38,834, 2002–03: 39,784, 2003–04: 41,234, 2004–05: 41,870, 2005–06: 41,902, 2006–07: 41,909, 2007–08: 41,397, 2008–09: 41,590, 2009–10: 41,425, 2010–11: 41,435, 2011–12: 41,478, 2012–13: 41,462, 2013–14: 41,490, 2014–15: 41,546, 2015–16: 41,500, 2016–17: 41,508, 2017–18: 41,282, 2018–19: 40,437 11 December 1909: England Amateurs 9–1 Netherlands, 5 April 1913: England 1–0 Scotland, 20 November 1929: England 6–0 Wales, 7 December 1932: England 4–3 Austria, 11 May 1946: England 4–1 Switzerland (Victory International), 25 March 2013: Brazil 1–1 Russia Stamford Bridge is easily accessible by public transport. Stadium Guide Article The Battle of Stiklestad (, ) in 1030 is one of the most famous battles in the history of Norway. In this battle, King Olaf II of Norway () was killed. During the pontificate of Pope Alexander III, the Roman Catholic Church declared Olaf a saint in 1164. His younger half-brother, Harald Hardrada, was also present at the battle. Harald was only fifteen when the battle of Stiklestad took place. He became King of Norway in 1047, until his death in a failed invasion of England at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066. The authenticity of the battle as a historical event is subject to question. Contemporary sources say the king was murdered. According to the Anglo Saxon Chronicle of 1030, Olaf was killed by his own people. Adam of Bremen wrote in 1070 that Olaf was killed in an ambush, and so did Florence of Worcester in 1100. Those are the only contemporary sources that mention the death of the king. After the king's canonization it was felt that the saint could not have died in such circumstances. The story of the Battle of Stiklestad as most know it gradually developed during the two centuries following the death of King Olaf. Being a Saint, Olaf must have fallen in a major battle for Christianity. During the 9th century, Norway was divided between several local kings controlling their own fiefdoms. By the end of the century, King Harald Fairhair (Old Norse: Haraldr Hárfagri, Harald Hårfagre in modern Norwegian) managed, mainly due to the military superiority gained by his alliance with Sigurd Ladejarl of Nidaros, to subjugate these mini–kingdoms, and he created a unified Norwegian state. This alliance came apart after Harald's death. The jarls of Lade and various descendants of Harald Fairhair would spend the next century interlocked in feuds over power. As well as power politics, religion also played a part in these conflicts, as two of the descendants of Harald Fairhair, Hakon the Good and Olaf Tryggvason attempted to convert the then heathen Norwegians to Christianity. In the year 1000, Svein (Old Norse: Sveinn) and Erik (Old Norse: Eiríkr) of Lade took control over Norway, being supported by the Danish King Svein. In 1015, Olaf Haraldsson, representing the descendants of Harald Fairhair, returned from one of his Viking trips and was immediately elected as King of Norway. In June 1016, he won the Battle at Nesjar against the Jarls of Lade. Olav Haraldsson's success in becoming King of Norway was helped by the Danes being kept occupied with the ongoing fighting in England. In the year 1028, the Danish King Cnut the Great made an alliance with the Lades, and Olaf had to go into exile in Kievan Rus (Old Norse: Garðaríki). In the year of 1029 the last Lade, Hakon Jarl, drowned and Olaf returned to Norway with his army to regain his throne and the Kingdom of Norway. According to saga sources, Olaf traveled with his 3,600 man army through Sweden and crossed the mountains into the valley of Verdal (Old Norse: Veradalr), about north of the city of Trondheim. Olaf and his men arrived at Stiklestad, a farm in the lower part of the valley. This was where the Battle of Stiklestad took place, as described by Snorri Sturluson in his famous work Heimskringla, written about 200 years later. At Stiklestad, Olaf met an army led by Hárek of Tjøtta (Old Norse: Hárekr ór Þjóttu), Thorir Hund from Bjarkøy and Kálfr Árnason, a man who previously served Olaf. The peasant army consisted of one hundred hundred according to Snorri, which in long hundreds means 14,400, and not 10,000. He states that the battle cry of Olaf's men was Fram! Fram! Kristmenn, krossmenn, kongsmenn! (Forward! Forward! Men of Christ, men of the cross, men of the king!), while that of the opposing army was Fram! Fram! Bonder! (Forward! Forward! farmers!). According to Snorri, Olaf received three severe wounds--in the knee, in the neck, and while leaning against a large stone the final mortal spear thrust up under his mail shirt and into his belly. According to saga sources, Thorir was among those who gave Olaf his lethal wounds, together with Kalv Arnesson and Torstein Knarresmed from Rovde in Sunnmøre. While earlier sources do not specify who dealt the king his blows, Snorri makes Thorir Hund responsible for the latter, using the spear that had killed his nephew and set the fallout between the king and Thorir in motion. During the Battle of Stiklestad, King Olaf almost killed Thorir Hund with a war hammer. However, Torstein Knarresmed managed to get between them and gave Olaf a wound right above his left knee. Shortly later Thorir Hund thrust his spear into the king's stomach before Kalv Arnesson struck the king in the throat with his sword. Torstein Knarresmed was subsequently killed by a blow in the back but was revenged later that same day by one of Thorir's men. The king's body was carried away and buried secretly in the sandy banks of the Nidelva River south of the city of Trondheim. The year after the battle, his grave and coffin were opened and according to Snorri the body was incorrupt and the hair and nails had grown since he was buried. The coffin was then moved to St. Clement's Church in Trondheim. Among the bishops that Olaf had brought with him from England, was Grimketel and it was he that initiated the beatification of Olaf on 3 August 1031. Stiklestad Church (Stiklestad kyrkje) was erected on top of the stone against which St Olaf died. The stone is supposedly still inside the altar of the church. One hundred years later, Nidaros Cathedral was built in Trondheim on the site of his original burial place. Olaf's body was moved to this church and enshrined in a silver reliquary behind the high altar. This reliquary took the form of a miniature church, common to medieval reliquaries containing the entire body of a saint, but was unique in that it is said to have had dragon heads at the apex of the gables similar to those still seen on Norwegian stave churches. In the 16th century, during the Protestant Reformation period, Olaf's body was removed from this reliquary, which was melted down for coinage by order of the Dano-Norwegian king. His remains were reburied somewhere in Nidaros Cathedral --exactly where is still today an unsolved mystery. Queen Josephine of Leuchtenberg of Norway and Sweden, the consort of Oscar I, asked for the one known remaining relic of St. Olaf, an ulna or radius in a medieval reliquary in the Danish National Museum, from King Frederick VII of Denmark, which he gave to her and which she in turn gave to St. Olaf's Cathedral in Oslo in August 1862. While Snorri's description of the battles in the Heimskringla makes for epic reading although its grandeur most likely must be put down to the writer's taste for the grand. In Gardarike, Olaf was only surrounded by his most loyal followers. Neither can one expect that recruitment was especially ample in Sweden or through the sparsely populated valleys through which Olaf travelled. Thus, Olaf's army probably was of a rather rag-tag character, an impression accentuated by tales of how local robber groups would join it as Olaf made his way down Verdal. The recruitment of robber gangs and other scofflaws was likely no surprise to the polytheistic heathens that opposed Olaf's attempts to forcibly convert them by murdering and torturing regional Jarls and Kings to terrorize them into accepting Christianity. In fact, why Olaf chose to travel through the politically hostile Trøndelag, rather than to try to rally his relatives and political allies of Eastern Norway, is to this day an unsolved mystery. Perhaps he was making a last-ditch attempt for Nidaros, hoping to win acceptance for his claim to the throne amongst the peasants of Trøndelag. On the other hand, the opposition, basically lower nobles and grand farmers under the influence of King Cnut, could not have had much time to assemble a large force. When alerted to Olaf's presence, they must have responded swiftly, considering that they met Olaf relatively far up in the valley. Therefore, their action points more towards a small, hastily arranged rally of men rather than the elaborate logistics that would have been needed to assemble a 10,000 man strong army. Those who could have mobilized a large scale army, the local nobles of Trøndelag (of which Einar Thambarskelfir was a prime example) were notable largely by their absence on either side. Also, a battlefield of a raging battle between nearly 20,000 men should have produced rich archeological findings to that effect; at Stiklestad, however, these are sparse. This however, is common in Norway - the rocky soil is not as well suited to battlefield archaeology like continental and English soil, it makes georadar readings all but unusable and the location of the battle site highly uncertain. On Stiklestad, however, the soil is deep soil with some clay, and georadar has been used in 2008, showing traces of large buildings, but not much to indicate a battlefield. As is the case with most battles mentioned in the sagas, the sizes of the battling armies are probably impossible to determine. Olaf's role in Norwegian history had only just begun at his death. While nobles and rich farmers had expected their position to improve with the removal of the aggressive Olaf, the opposite happened. The rule of Cnut's mistress and their infant son Svein was exceedingly harsh on the people. Especially the church, a traditional ally of Olaf, came under the squeeze. Thus, it accentuated the late king's martyr status, as it joined and egged on common folk in revolting against the hardships enforced by the succeeding Danish rule. Propaganda proclaiming how heroic Olaf's last stand had been made for great nation-building material in the immature Norwegian state where the warrior ethic of the Vikings and their Gods and Goddesses were still highly revered. According to Snorri, even nature lent a hand, as the day of the battle coincided with a nearly full solar eclipse, as reflected in the description of an ill-fated 'blooded red sun', which was interpreted as a certain omen of bad things to come. However, the solar eclipse took place at about 2:00 p.m. on August 31 that year contrary to the traditional date of the battle on July 29. Olaf was a rather stubborn and rash ruler. Modern historians generally agree that Olaf was inclined to violence and brutality. Ironically he became Norway's patron saint. His canonization was performed only a year after his death by the bishop of Nidaros. The cult of Olaf not only unified the country, it also fulfilled the conversion of the nation, something for which the king had fought so hard. While divisive in life, in death Olaf became — Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae — the eternal king of Norway wielded a unifying power no foreign monarch could hope to undo. Cnut, most distracted by the task of administering England, managed to rule Norway for five years after the battle through his viceroy son Svein. However, when Olaf's illegitimate son Magnus (dubbed 'the Good') laid claim to the Norwegian throne, Cnut had to yield. Thus, a century of prosperity and expansion followed, lasting until the kingdom again descended into the Civil war era in Norway over the issue of succession.' Stiklestad National Cultural Center (Stiklestad Nasjonale Kultursenter) at Verdal was established by a parliamentary resolution in 1995. Olavsstøtta is a monument in the Stiklestad National Cultural Center. It was erected in 1807 in memory of the Battle of Stiklestad. The memorial is one of the oldest preserved public monuments in Norway. In 1901, poet Per Sivle wrote a poem Tord Foleson, about King Olaf's standard-bearer at the battle. Foleson was able to plant the banner before he died, and it remained standing throughout the battle, even after the king fell. It was kept erect and replaced by the local populace for centuries, and a memorial stands at the site today. The most famous line of the poem, Merket det stend, um mannen han stupa ('The symbol stands, even when the man falls'), is inscribed on the memorial in Stalheim, Norway. It is also on the inscription wall in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp memorial site. The Saint Olav Drama () is an outdoor theatre performance played every end of July in Stiklestad. In July 1954, the owner of the farm at Stiklestad gave permission for the performance of a play based on the battle on his property. The play was written by Olav Gullvåg and has been staged every year since 1954. Annually, people travel to Stiklestad to watch The Saint Olaf Drama at what is now the largest outdoor theatre in Scandinavia. Olavsfestival, Olavinlinna, Ólavsøka, Olsok, Legendary Saga of St. Olaf, Separate Saga of St. Olaf Bagge, Sverre Cross and Scepter (Princeton University Press. 2014), Bagge, Sverre From Viking Stronghold to Christian Kingdom (Museum Tusculanum Press. 2010), Henriksen, Vera St Olav of Norway: King, saint and enigma ( TANO. 1985), Myklebus, Morten Olaf Viking & Saint (Norwegian Council for Cultural Affairs, 1997), Winroth, Anders The Conversion of Scandinavia (Yale University Press. 2012) In Norwegian Ekrem, Inger; et al. Olavslegenden og den Latinske Historieskrivning i 1100-tallets Norge (Museum Tusculanum Press, 2000), Moseng, Ole Georg, et al. Norsk historie: 750-1537 (Aschehoug. 1999), Hjardar, Kim and Vike, Vegard Vikinger i krig (Spartacus. 2011), Langslet, Lars Roar (1995) Olav den hellige (Oslo: Gyldendal), Morten, Øystein (2013) Jakten på Olav den hellige (Spartacus forlag, Oslo), Hoftun, Oddgeir (2008) Kristningsprosessens og herskermaktens ikonografi i nordisk middelalder (Oslo: Solum Forlag) Stiklestad National Cultural Center Official Website, Stiklestad, the history, the play and the museum, The Saint Olav Festival

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"I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" is a song written by Jim Steinman, and recorded by Meat Loaf with Lorraine Crosby. The song was released in 1993 as the first single from the album . The last six verses feature a female singer who was credited only as "Mrs. Loud" in the album notes. She was later identified as Lorraine Crosby. However, she does not appear in the video, in which her vocals are lip-synched by Dana Patrick. Meat Loaf promoted the single with US vocalist Patti Russo. The power ballad was a commercial success, reaching number one in 28 countries. The single was certified platinum in the United States and became Meat Loaf's first and only number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the UK Singles Chart, and was the best-selling single of 1993 in the United Kingdom. The song earned Meat Loaf a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo. The timings in this article refer to the original album version. There are many shorter single and radio edits. The song opens with a guitar played to sound like a revving motorcycle. Roy Bittan's piano begins to play along with the guitars and drums. The vocals begin at the 1:50 point. The opening vocals are accompanied by piano and backing vocals. The song then becomes much louder as the band, predominantly piano, plays the main melody for twenty seconds. An instrumental section follows the first verse and chorus, lasting over 45 seconds, with piano playing the title melody, accompanied by guitar and wordless background vocals by Todd Rundgren, Rory Dodd and Kasim Sulton. The lead vocals recommence with another verse. The phrase "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" was changed to "Some days I just pray to the god of sex and drums and rock and roll" on the recording, although Meat Loaf occasionally sings the more familiar phrase in concert. At the 9:28 point, the song transforms into a duet coda. The structure of the verses remains, but the woman now asks what the man would do. He answers in the affirmative for the first four sections. The song's tone changes for the final two sections, in which the woman, Lorraine Crosby on the original recorded version, predicts that the man would eventually do things to upset her and their relationship. Both times, he denies it. The duet part was and still is performed regularly on stage by Meat Loaf with his current featured female vocalist Patti Russo. However, with the passing years their interplay during the coda has gradually taken on ironic overtones, if not overtly comedic ones, which were totally absent from the original album version. For example, in the 2007 show 3 Bats Live, after Russo sings "After a while you'll forget everything, it was a brief interlude and a midsummer night's fling", Meat Loaf stops the band and asks her (half-sung, half-spoken): "Why do you say this to me? Why do you keep saying these things to me every single night?", and she replies innocently (again half-sung): "It's in the lyrics". More funny exchanges of the same kind occur during their other live duets, such as the famous Bat Out of Hell track "Paradise by the Dashboard Light". Meat Loaf says that the question, "What is 'that'?" is one of the most popular questions he is asked. Each verse mentions two things that the man would do for love, followed by one thing that he will not do. The title phrase repetition reasserts that he "won't do that." Each mention of "that" is a reference to the particular promise that he made earlier in the same verse. The four things he says he will never do are: "forget the way you feel right now", "forgive myself if we don't go all the way tonight", "do it better than I do it with you", "stop dreaming of you every night of my life" At the song's conclusion, the woman predicts two things that he will do: "You'll see that it's time to move on", and "You'll be screwing around." To both of these, the male emphatically responds, "I won't do that!" In his 1998 VH1 Storytellers special, Meat Loaf even explained it on stage using a blackboard and a pointing stick. In a 1993 promotional interview, Steinman states that the definition of "that" is fully revealed in the song in each of the several verses in which it is mentioned. This sense would have been more clear if the lyric had been "and I won't do that" instead of "but I won't do that." It is the use of "but" instead of "and" that leads to the ambiguity. It sort of is a little puzzle and I guess it goes by - but they're all great things. 'I won't stop doing beautiful things and I won't do bad things.' It's very noble. I'm very proud of that song because it's very much like out of the world of Excalibur. To me, it's like Sir Lancelot or something - very noble and chivalrous. That's my favorite song on the record - it's very ambitious. Meat Loaf believed that the lyrics were unambiguous, but Steinman predicted that they would cause confusion. An early episode of the VH1 program Pop-up Video made this claim at the end of the song's video: "Exactly what Meat Loaf won't do for love remains a mystery to this day." A reviewer writing for AllMusic commented that "The lyrics build suspense by portraying a romance- consumed lover who pledges to do anything in the name of love except 'that,' a mysterious thing that he will not specify." Frank O'day says the lyrics provide "an enlightening example of how listeners project their own thoughts, values, and concerns onto the meaning of the song with misconstrued lyrics." The phrase "I would do anything for love but I won't do that" had previously appeared as a spoken interlude in the song "Getting So Excited," released in 1983 by Bonnie Tyler in her album Faster Than the Speed of Night. In this song, the phrase's meaning is more clear: a woman is refusing an offensive proposal. Steinman produced this record and wrote many of the songs but this song is credited to Alan Gruner. Steinman's songs are usually long, and "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" is no exception. The song is a full 12 minutes, and Steinman was deeply upset when executives advised him that he had to cut it down to get radio play. Manager Allen Kovac warned that any song over five minutes would not be played on radio, saying that if Steinman and the group did not make the cuts then the stations would. Even after they made the cuts, Steinman sent his own version to the stations. The single version was edited down to five minutes and 13 seconds, with the motorcycle introduction omitted. The video version (which also appears on many international releases of the single) was whittled down to seven minutes and 38 seconds, with part of the motorcycle intro remaining. In the video version and single version, the lengthy instrumental break is completely omitted. In the video and single versions, the refrain is abridged as well; Lorraine Crosby sings six verses in the complete song. In the video version, the second and third verses are omitted. In the single version, the second, third, and fifth verses are omitted. Lorraine Crosby, a singer from England, was the guest singer, though AllMusic incorrectly attributes the female vocals to Ellen Foley. Crosby and her partner Stuart Emerson had moved to Los Angeles to work with Steinman, who became their manager. He secured them a contract with Meat Loaf's label MCA. While visiting the company's studios on Sunset Boulevard, Crosby was asked to provide guide vocals for Meat Loaf, who was recording "I'd Do Anything for Love". Crosby recalls, "In I went and sang it twice and I never thought anything more of it until six months later when I got a phone call saying, 'Would you mind if we used your vocals?'" As Crosby had recorded her part as guide vocals, she received no royalties from the song. Cher, Melissa Etheridge and Bonnie Tyler had been considered for the role. Tyler, who described Crosby as "a great friend of mine from Newcastle", said: "Meat Loaf was naughty, really: he gave her no acknowledgement on the album but I think her part really made that song." Michael Bay directed the music video. He also directed the videos for "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer than They Are" and "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through", also from Bat Out of Hell II. Filming took place in Los Angeles County, California in July 1993; the opening chase was filmed at Chávez Ravine, with the interior mansion scenes filmed at Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills. The cinematographer was Daniel Pearl, particularly known for filming The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in 1973. Pearl says that this video "is one of my personal all-time favorite projects... I think the cinematography is pure, and it tells a story about the song." The video is based on Beauty and the Beast and The Phantom of the Opera. Bob Keane did Meat Loaf's make-up, which took up to two hours to apply. The make-up was designed to be simple and scary, yet "with the ability to make him sympathetic." It went over budget, and was filmed in heat, across four days. According to one executive, it "probably had the budget of Four Weddings and a Funeral." It is the abridged seven-minute version, rather than the twelve-minute (11:58) album version. The actress in the video, Dana Patrick, is miming to Crosby's vocals; she did the same for Patti Russo's vocals in the 1995 song "I'd Lie for You (And That's the Truth)". According to the captions aired on Pop-Up Video, Patrick received several offers for record deals after the video aired, from executives who assumed she was actually singing in the video. The story begins with the opening credits saying: "I have travelled across the universe through the years to find her. Sometimes going all the way is just a start." We then see "The Beast" character - a deformed man portrayed by Meat Loaf, on a motorbike being chased by police officers and a helicopter. As the chase continues into night, the Beast passes through into a graveyard and into what appears to be a very ornate mausoleum hiding from his pursuers. He mournfully examines his deformed hands and features; as the officers enter and examine the mausoleum he crashes through the wall with his motorbike and he accidentally knocks down a police officer (whose shotgun goes off) and causes one of the chandeliers on the ceiling to fall and kill the officer. In desperation the Beast flees into the nearby woods where he comes across a beautiful woman bathing/cooling herself by a fountain. The woman appears to be in sunny daylight, while the rest of the woods and castle clearly show that it is night-time. The woman looks into a mirror and glimpses the Beast watching her. She turns and he flees leaving only an amulet hanging on a branch. The woman picks it up and pursues him. As she approaches the castle, the Beast is watching her movements through the reflection of his drink. As she comes into the castle the Beast hurriedly removes himself. The woman sits in his chair and rests by the fire. The beast watches her from his hall of mirrors and contemplates approaching her but is ashamed of his appearance. She later is seen having a bath interspersed with the police officers finding the dead officer's body and preparing to raid the castle. She is later seen trying to sleep while being seduced by 3 vampy women while the Beast sits in a chair (a reference to Dracula and the Brides). The Beast leaves the room and, seeing his reflection, begins to smash up the mirrors. The woman, hearing the noise, comes out and follows him into a presumable living room. The Beast observes her from above and levitates the chair she is sitting on. The Beast, then hearing the officers are near moves away, pulls the chair back down breaking a lamp. The two run away and the woman removes the Beast's hood so she can look at him clearly. She accepts him and caresses his face while they embrace. As they pull away, the Beast is returned to his human form, and the two disappear just before the police catch them. The woman and the transformed Beast finally ride off into the sunrise on his motorbike. In 2013, the song was covered in an M&M;'s commercial which aired during Super Bowl XLVII. The song is featured in the animated comedy Sausage Party and on its soundtrack. In the film the song is performed by an anthropomorphic meatloaf caricature of the singer. It was used in a 2017 commercial for Carvana and in the trailer for the 2018 comedy Blockers. The song also appeared on the EP Fire & Ashes by German symphonic metal band Xandria. On this version, Meat Loaf's vocal parts are done by Dianne van Giersbergen, while Lorraine Crosby's vocal parts are done by Valerio Recenti, singer of the Dutch rock band My Propane. The single cover is a cropped version of the painting Leavetaking by fantasy illustrator Michael Whelan, who also painted the Bat Out of Hell II cover. The song reached number one in the charts in 28 countries. In most countries, it was Meat Loaf's first and only number one solo single. It was number one in the US for five weeks and sold over 1.4 million copies there. In the UK, it topped the singles chart, and at seven minutes and 52 seconds, "I'd Do Anything for Love" becoming the longest song on top there since The Beatles' hit "Hey Jude". This was then broken when Oasis released their 1997 single "All Around the World", clocking in at 9 minutes and 20 seconds. In the UK, this was the biggest hit of 1993, selling 761,200 copies and staying at number one for seven weeks. As a result of its success, "Bat Out of Hell" was reissued in the UK, this time reaching the top ten (which it did not achieve on its first release in 1979), meaning Meat Loaf achieved the rare feat of having two singles in the UK top ten at the same time. In Germany, the song is the 7th best-selling pop hymn ever. Critical reaction was mixed. AllMusic said that "Meat Loaf sells the borderline-campy lyrics with a full-throated vocal whose stirring sense of conviction brings out the heart hidden behind the clever phrases." Meat Loaf won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo for the song. British adventurer Bear Grylls cites this song as his inspiration to apply for selection into the SAS: "Enthusiasm and determination count for so much more than skills, brains or qualifications... and all this expressed itself to me through Meatloaf's song!". James Richard Steinman (born November 1, 1947) is an American composer, lyricist, record producer, and playwright. He has also worked as an arranger, pianist and singer. His work has included songs in the adult contemporary, rock and roll, dance, pop, musical theater and film score genres. Beginning his career in musical theater, Steinman's most notable work in the area includes lyrics for Whistle Down the Wind and music for Tanz der Vampire. His work includes such albums as Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell (which is one of the best selling albums of all time) and , and producing albums for Bonnie Tyler. His most successful chart singles include Tyler's "Total Eclipse of the Heart", Air Supply's "Making Love Out of Nothing at All", Meat Loaf's "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", the Sisters of Mercy's "This Corrosion" and "More", Barry Manilow's "Read 'Em and Weep", Celine Dion's cover of "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (originally released by Steinman's project Pandora's Box) and Boyzone's "No Matter What" (as the group's first and only single to be popular and chart in the US). The album Bad for Good was released in his own name in 1981. Steinman was born in New York City. His parents were named Louis and Eleanor. He has Jewish ancestry. He graduated from George W. Hewlett High School in 1965 and received his bachelor's degree from Amherst College in 1969. In February of 1963, his sophomore year at Hewlett High School, Steinman won Newsday's American History essay contest. His essay was about the three greatest American inventions. According to longtime manager David Sonenberg, Steinman had serious cardiac health problems around 2004, but has been in good health since. Responding to an interviewer's asserting that his songs are tragic, Steinman says that he has "never been stomped on literally. Figuratively, I am stomped on every day ... anyway, that is the way I feel sometimes. I've never had my heart broken the way you are talking about. I've never been dumped... but probably because I don't allow myself to be dumped." In March 1968, Steinman contributed music for an Amherst College adaptation of Bertolt Brecht's A Man's a Man. In May 1968, he directed an Amherst production of Michael McClure's The Beard. Over the summer of 1968, he contributed music for an adaptation of Brecht's Baal by the Island Theater Workshop on Martha's Vineyard. As a senior at Amherst College in Massachusetts, Jim wrote the book, music and lyrics for The Dream Engine (April 1969), a musical that was used to fulfill the requirements for an independent study course in his senior year. Jim himself played Baal while an audition call went out to fellow students for the remaining roles of the production. Barry Keating (serving as the co- creator and director,) also played the role of the Historian/Narrator and worked extensively with Jim to compile the book for the production, often shouting lines from the audience and sourcing heavily from their earlier work with Brechtian form and tropes. The play was presented at the Amherst campus' "Kirby Theater" in April of 1969 and transferred to nearby Holyoke for a small handful of performances, infamously drawing the attention of local authorities for its ensemble-wide display of nudity in the finale, (an element that was begrudgingly muted for the off-campus performances.) The story of The Dream Engine, set in a satirical-dystopian 1969, centers around a young boy named Baal who, along with his rebel fellows, doesn't accept the restraints and limits of their society. Baal is the leader of a self-assembled group of wild boys called The Tribe, whose mortal enemies are Max and Emily, the parents of the Girl, a young woman with whom Baal has fallen in love. Several motifs, lyrics, and monologues from this show appear in songs Steinman later released. For example, the lyrics "turn around bright eyes" "Total Eclipse of the Heart" can be heard in the song called "The Formation of the Tribe." This was originally a reference to the blast flash of nuclear explosions, and the full riff of the original Dream Engine composition can be heard in the musical break of the Bonnie Tyler recording, (including symbolic musical "blasts" to punctuate each phrase.) Multiple esoteric references to "silver" and "gold" also occur first, throughout the book, and appear in numerous later Steinman works, and the full monologue that was later recorded to open "You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night)" is delivered in a love scene between Baal and The Girl. Steinman said in an interview that Joseph Papp, founder of the New York Shakespeare Festival, saw the play and was so impressed he signed it up during intermission. He wanted to bring it to New York (either Broadway or Central Park), but balked when his Amherst faculty advisor explained to Papp that, contrary to Papp's published claim, Steinman was never threatened with "near-expulsion" from the college. Nonetheless, Steinman worked under Papp after his years at Amherst College. In 1971, Steinman provided music for a puppet show called Ubu. The show, put on by puppeteer and filmmaker Demian, was an adaptation of Ubu on the Hill, an 1888 play by Alfred Jarry. In 1972, Steinman worked with college friend Barry Keating on a musical called Rhinegold at the Mercer Arts Center, based on Richard Wagner's opera Das Rheingold. Steinman wrote the music and Keating wrote the lyrics. In 1972, Bette Midler sang a demo of the Steinman song "Heaven Can Wait". Midler's career was in an early stage at the time. Midler would go on to far more fame than she had in 1972, making that demo a collector's item. That demo has been in circulation among fans on the internet. In 1973, Steinman's song "Happy Ending" appeared on the album Food of Love, sung by Yvonne Elliman. This was the first commercially released recording of a song written by Steinman. That same year, Steinman wrote music and lyrics for a musical called More Than You Deserve (1973). One of the actors cast in this show was Michael Lee Aday, who went by the name Meat Loaf, with whom Steinman later collaborated. In 1973, a single of the song "More Than You Deserve", from the musical sharing that name, was released. Reid Whitelaw was producer. Norman Bergen was arranger. Meat Loaf was the lead singer. A cover of this single also appears on the 1981 album Dead Ringer. In 1975, while working for Joseph Papp at the New York Shakespeare Festival, Steinman contributed music and lyrics to Thomas Babe's Kid Champion, which starred Christopher Walken. In 1976, there was a minor one-month run of a musical called The Confidence Man. It was based loosely on the novel by the same title by Herman Melville. The book and lyrics were written by Ray Errol Fox, the music by Steinman. Ray Fox described the 1976 production as "a capsule version of the show." In 1986, a more elaborate production of the show with added songs was held at Queens College in New York City. It was directed by Susan Einhorn and performed by Queen's College students. Orchestrations were by Steven Margoshes, a frequent Steinman collaborator. One song from The Confidence Man, "Milady", was recorded by Barry Manilow, but never released. The melody of that song later appeared in Tanz der Vampire as the melody of "Für Sarah" (for Sarah). Some music from this show later appeared in the hit song "Making Love Out of Nothing at All", and in the score of the film A Small Circle of Friends. A cast album of the songs from The Confidence Man, produced by Jeff Olmstead, was released in 2003. A cabaret show featuring songs from The Confidence Man was presented in 1977 at the Manhattan Theatre Club, where Steinman had previously written music for another cabaret show called Bloodshot Wine. In 1977, a brief workshop was held for a work-in-progress musical called Neverland. Adapted largely from the Steinman/Keating source material developed for the Dream Engine, it also loosely sourced material from Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie. While preparing the show, Steinman and Meat Loaf, who were touring with the National Lampoon show, felt that three songs were "exceptional" and Steinman began to develop them as part of a seven-song set they wanted to record as an album. The three songs were "Bat Out of Hell", "Heaven Can Wait" and "The Formation of the Pack", which was retitled "All Revved Up With No Place to Go." The show also contained Steinman's "Bolero" (a.k.a. "Great Bolero's of Fire") which was later used at many live shows featuring Steinman work. Jim Steinman originally wanted Kim Milford to sing the album Bat Out of Hell, but later changed his mind. Steinman and Meat Loaf had immense difficulty finding a record company willing to sign them. According to Meat Loaf's autobiography, the band spent most of 1975, and two and a half years, auditioning Bat Out of Hell and being rejected. CBS executive Clive Davis even claimed that Steinman knew nothing about writing, or rock music in general. Recording started in 1976 in Bearsville, near Woodstock. After numerous further rejections, the album was released by Cleveland International Records in October 1977. The album was an immediate success in Australia and the United Kingdom, and later in the United States. Reports vary as to how many copies of the album have been sold, but in 2007, Cleveland International Records founder Steve Popovich said that it was around 40 million copies. The highest-charting song from the album was "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad", which reached No. 11 on the Billboard Charts. In 1979, the Freeway Records label made a 2-L.P. compilation album called L.A. Radio. It was not commercially released, but promo copies were distributed. It included a spoken word segment called "Shadows on the Freeway", written and recited by Steinman. It later appeared on the 1981 album Dead Ringer with a new title, "Nocturnal Pleasure". Parts of it can also be heard at the beginning of the 1989 music video, directed by Ken Russell, for the first release of the song "It's All Coming Back to Me Now". Steinman wrote the theme music for the 1979 National Lampoon sitcom Delta House. Sean Kelly and Tony Hendra wrote the lyrics. Michael Simmons sang the lead vocal. The music from this later appeared on the song "Dead Ringer for Love". In 1980, the film A Small Circle of Friends was released. It had an orchestral score composed by Steinman, and orchestrated by his frequent collaborator Steve Margoshes. The motifs of this orchestral score match the melodies of numerous songs Steinman later released, including "Total Eclipse of the Heart", "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" and "Für Sarah" from Tanz der Vampire. Early in the production of a follow-up album to Bat Out of Hell, Meat Loaf developed vocal problems and was unable to continue on the project. Steinman proceeded with the album, released as Bad for Good in 1981. Most songs are sung by Steinman himself. Three of the songs are sung by Rory Dodd, who did not receive a clear indication for his work in the album's credits, and Karla DeVito sings a duet part on one song. Steinman was this time credited as co-producer with Todd Rundgren for all but one track. Steinman was credited as co-producer with Jimmy Iovine for the song "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through". Meat Loaf again recorded songs by Steinman on the album Dead Ringer (1981). All of the songs on the album were written by Steinman. One of the songs, "More Than You Deserve", was previously released. Stephan Galfas was the primary producer for this album. Steinman's role in this album was less than his role in Bad for Good. The highest-charting song on this album was "Dead Ringer for Love", a duet with Cher, and the album reached No. 1 on the album charts in the United Kingdom. Steinman is credited as music producer of every selection on Bonnie Tyler's album Faster Than the Speed of Night (1983). Steinman also wrote and composed two of the songs on the album: "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and "Faster Than the Speed of Night", the album's title selection. For a period in 1983, two songs written and produced by Steinman held the top two positions on the Billboard singles chart, with "Total Eclipse of the Heart" at number one, and "Making Love Out of Nothing at All", performed by Air Supply, at number two. The second of those appeared on Air Supply's 1983 compilation albums Greatest Hits and Making Love... The Very Best of Air Supply. On the inner cover of the album, Steinman is also credited with being the "seductive female voice" speaking the words "I'd do anything for love, but I won't do that" on the song "Getting so Excited", the same words that would later become the title of a hit single Steinman wrote for Meat Loaf which was released ten years later. Barry Manilow's compilation album Greatest Hits Vol. II (1983) included the song "Read 'Em and Weep", written, composed, and produced by Steinman. It had appeared on Meat Loaf's Dead Ringer album in 1981, but with a slightly different lyric. The song stayed at No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary Chart for eight consecutive weeks. In 1983, Ian Hunter released his album All of the Good Ones Are Taken. On the title selection, "All of the Good Ones Are Taken", Steinman is credited with "assistance". Rory Dodd and Eric Troyer, two singers who often sang on Steinman's studio work, were credited with "additional background vocals." In 1984, the film Streets of Fire was released. The soundtrack included two songs written, composed, and produced by Steinman. They are "Tonight Is What It Means to Be Young" and "Nowhere Fast." The performance of these two songs is credited to "Fire Incorporated", which was a reference to an assembly of studio musicians and singers hired for these two songs. The voices heard on these songs include those of Rory Dodd, Holly Sherwood, and Laurie Sargent. Steinman is credited for producing all the selections on Billy Squier's album Signs of Life (1984), and Barbra Streisand's album of the same year, Emotion, featured "Left in the Dark", which Steinman wrote, composed and produced. The song had previously appeared on Bad for Good. The soundtrack for the 1984 film Footloose included the song "Holding Out for a Hero", performed by Bonnie Tyler. Steinman produced the selection and is credited with composing the music, and Dean Pitchford, who had written the film itself directly for the screen, for writing the lyrics. The song was a hit single, the soundtrack album was successful, and the film was successful. Some of the music from this song was adapted from the music used for the song "Stark Raving Love" from the album Bad for Good. In 1984, Steinman was hired by and worked briefly with the rock band Def Leppard on some tracks that were intended for a Def Leppard album. However, Steinman was fired, and the recording work he made with the band was not released. The next album Def Leppard released after this, Hysteria, was produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Jim Steinman wrote a song called "Vaults of Heaven" which has the same melody as "Milady" from The Confidence Man and "Für Sarah" from Tanz der Vampire. Rory Dodd sang a demo of this "Vaults of Heaven" in 1984. That demo has been in circulation among fans on the internet. In 1985, Steinman wrote, composed, and produced a theme song for WWF performer Hulk Hogan. It was released in 1985 on an album called The Wrestling Album. The selection was recorded during the recording sessions for Secret Dreams And Forbidden Fire, an album that Bonnie Tyler was then recording, and which Steinman also produced. The selection has no lead vocals, and it matches much of the non-vocal parts of the track of "Ravishing" that appeared on Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire. The track was also heard as the theme music on the animated television show Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling. Steinman produced the track "Love Can Make You Cry", written by Michael Kehr, Don Kehr and Ian Hunter, for the soundtrack album for the 1986 film Iron Eagle. This was a modified version of the original recording of the same song, which had appeared on Urgent's 1985 album Cast The First Stone. The original recording had been produced by Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson. According to Steinman in an interview, Andrew Lloyd Webber approached him to write lyrics for The Phantom of the Opera because Lloyd Webber felt that his "dark obsessive side" fit in with the project. However, Steinman declined in order to fulfill his commitments to a Bonnie Tyler album. In 1986, the album Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire was released. Bonnie Tyler sang lead vocals, and Steinman produced all the selections on the album. Four of the songs on the album were written and/or composed by Steinman. One, "Holding Out for a Hero", was the same track from the Footloose soundtrack. The other three were "Ravishing", "Rebel Without a Clue" and "Loving You's a Dirty Job but Somebody's Gotta Do It", a duet with Todd Rundgren. This album was the first time Steinman worked with Steven Rinkoff, who was a recording engineer on this album. Since this album, the two have been co-producers and regular professional partners on Steinman's work. In 1987, the Sisters of Mercy released their second album Floodland. The track "This Corrosion" was produced by Steinman, and the track "Dominion/Mother Russia" was co-produced by Steinman, along with Larry Alexander and Andrew Eldritch. The soundtrack album for the 1989 film Rude Awakening included two tracks produced by Steinman. One was the song "Rude Awakening", with lead vocals by Bill Medley and was written by Rick Rose and Paul Rothchild. The other, "Darling Be Home Soon," which featured lead vocals by Phoebe Snow, had been written, composed and originated by John Sebastian. In 1989, the album Original Sin was released. The album artist name is Pandora's Box. Pandora's Box referred to a group assembled by Steinman, including, officially, four female singers and Steinman himself. The official four female singers were Ellen Foley, Elaine Caswell, Gina Taylor and Deliria Wilde (with Holly Sherwood doing lead vocals on "Good Girls Go to Heaven"). Gina Taylor, who also uses the names Gina Taylor-Pickens and Gina Taylor Pickens, was in the group Musique, including the 1978 hit single "In The Bush". There have been conflicting reports about whether or not Deliria Wilde existed. Elaine Caswell has said in an interview that Deliria Wilde did not exist. Deliria Wilde might have been a pseudonym for Holly Sherwood. Sales in Europe were low. The album was successful and reached No. 1 on the album charts in South Africa. It was not released at all in North America. Years later, it was reissued and became available all over the world on compact disc. Original Sin included the original recording of "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", sung by Elaine Caswell. Two songs from this album "It Just Won't Quit" and "Good Girls Go to Heaven (Bad Girls Go Everywhere)" were re-recorded and released on . Jim Steinman's lyric for "The Future Ain't What It Used To Be" plagiarized Ray Errol Fox's lyric for "New Orleans is Comin' For Me", from the musical The Confidence Man. The copyright registration and credits for "New Orleans Is Comin' For Me" say that Steinman wrote the music and Ray Errol Fox wrote the lyric. The copyright registration and credits list Jim Steinman as the sole writer of "The Future Ain't What It Used To Be". The lyric of "The Future Ain't What It Used To Be" copies seventeen words from the lyric of "New Orleans Is Comin' For Me". The seventeen words are "sons and daughters", "got a hold of me", "are pulling me forward", and "tears are washing over me". In the late 1980s, Jim Steinman was working on an adaptation of the 1974 movie Phantom of the Paradise by writer and director Brian De Palma. Steinman made demos for this project. His demos include Rory Dodd singing Making Love Out of Nothing at All, with an extra verse not heard in the Air Supply recording, and include a 1980s recording of "Who Needs The Young?". In the late 1980s, Jim Steinman was preparing to produce an album for ELO Part II, a spin-off of the group Electric Light Orchestra. Steinman made a demo of Rory Dodd singing the song "Kiss Me Red" by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. ELO Part II released their album Electric Light Orchestra Part Two in 1990, without Steinman producing. Eric Troyer, a frequent background vocalist on Steinman productions, sang the lead vocal on ELO Part II's released recording of "Kiss Me Red". With Andrew Eldritch, Steinman co-wrote and co-produced the track "More" for the album Vision Thing (1990) by the group the Sisters of Mercy. Around 1992, Steinman worked with the punk band Iron Prostate, which featured guitarist and writer George Tabb. The group reportedly dissolved while working with Steinman on what was to be their second album. Tabb's website has shared a recording of the song "Bring Me The Head of Jerry Garcia", with Steinman credited as executive producer. The song's lyric says of Jerry Garcia, "he plays guitar like diarrhea". After a series of financial and legal disputes during the 1980s, Steinman and Meat Loaf met at the singer's house in Connecticut at Christmas 1989 or 1990 and sang Bat out of Hell on piano. Steinman says that "working together again seemed like the cool thing to do." In 1993, the album was released. Steinman wrote all the songs, and was credited as producer and arranger. Steven Rinkoff was, as usual, credited as co-producer, and others received co-producer credits. The album was successful, reaching the peak position on album charts in many countries. The album had three top 40 singles, with "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" reaching the peak position on pop singles charts in 28 countries. The other top 40 singles from this album were "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through" and "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer than They Are". "Original Sin", the eponymous song on the 1989 Pandora's Box album, featured on the soundtrack album for the film The Shadow (1994). The lyric on this release was slightly different from that heard on the original release of this song. Steinman also produced this version, with lead vocals by Taylor Dayne. In 1995, the band Watershed released the album Twister. Steinman was executive producer for the album, and Steinman's partner Steven Rinkoff was producer for all but one track of it. The album consisted of songs written by the band members. In 1995, Bonnie Tyler released the album Free Spirit, featuring two tracks produced and written by Steinman. They were dance versions of the past hits "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad" and "Making Love Out of Nothing at All". Steinman, along with Brothers in Rhythm and David James, with Steven Rinkoff as associate producer and engineer, co-produced the song "Never Forget". It was written by Gary Barlow, for the British group Take That. It was released on the album Nobody Else (1995) and reached the No. 1 position on the UK singles chart. Like many Steinman/Rinkoff productions, it featured programming and keyboard work by Jeff Bova. Celine Dion's album Falling Into You (1996) included the song "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", written and produced by Steinman. He also produced, but not authored, two other songs on the album: "River Deep, Mountain High" and "Call the Man". "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" reached No. 2 on the Billboard charts and won Steinman the award for BMI song of the year. That award is given for the song, out of all those represented in the BMI catalog, that receives the most radio airplay in a particular year. This album as a whole won two 1997 Grammy Awards, for Best Pop Album and for Album of the Year. Steinman also produced the track "Us", written by Billy Pace, for Dion's album Let's Talk About Love (1997). Steinman's production team prepared a recording of the Steinman/Black song "Is Nothing Sacred" for that album, but it was removed shortly before the album's release. A recording of Dion singing the song was leaked and has been shared on fan websites. Steinman produced two tracks for films in the late 1990s. He produced "In the Dark of the Night", written by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, for the soundtrack album of the film Anastasia (1997). He also produced "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You" (music by James Horner, lyric by Will Jennings) for the film The Mask of Zorro (1998). Lead vocals were a duet between Tina Arena and Marc Anthony, and the track also appeared on Tina Arena's album In Deep (1997). No later than 1996, Steinman worked on a movie musical called Bat Out of Hell 2100. This was a predecessor to Bat Out of Hell The Musical, and it built upon the storyline of Steinman's Neverland musical from the 1970s. This movie was not made, although a movie based on Bat Out of Hell The Musical might someday be made. A script for Bat Out of Hell 2100 was leaked, and has been available among fans on the internet. Steinman also made demos for Bat Out of Hell 2100. Those include Kyle Gordon a.k.a. Scarpia singing "All Revved Up With No Place To Go" with an alternate lyric, Ellen Foley singing a song called "City Night", and Marcus Lovett singing "Total Eclipse of the Heart". "City Night" incorporates material from "Come With Me" from Tanz der Vampire and Dance of the Vampires, which uses the melody from "New Orleans is Comin' To Me" from The Confidence Man and "The Future Ain't What It Used To Be". Recordings of all three of those demos have been leaked and circulated among fans on the internet. Steinman provided lyrics for Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Whistle Down the Wind, which opened in Washington, D.C. in December 1996. However, it received poor reviews and the Broadway run, scheduled for the following April, was cancelled. A reworked and more successful West End production opened at the Aldwych Theatre on July 1, 1998. In addition to a full-length cast album for the London production, an album was released of well-known performers singing pop versions of the songs from the show. This album was produced by Steinman, as usual with Steven Rinkoff. Those performers include Tom Jones, Tina Arena, Boyzone, Elaine Paige, Donny Osmond, The Everly Brothers, Meat Loaf, Boy George, Sounds of Blackness, Bonnie Tyler, Michael Ball, and Lottie Mayor. One track, "No Matter What" performed by Boyzone, reached the peak position on the pop charts in many countries. The same track appeared on a Boyzone album and their greatest hits album. As of 2019, Boyzone's 1998 recording of "No Matter What" is the most recent new song or project written at least in part by Steinman, or to contain any new work of his at all, to achieve major, chart-topping success. The track "Whistle Down the Wind", performed by Tina Arena, from the same album, also had some chart success. There was also a single released in the U.K., for charity, of children from Red Hill Primary School and Sylvia Young Theatre School performing "When Children Rule The World". The singers were called the "Red Hill Children", and the single peaked at #40 on the U.K. singles charts. Tanz der Vampire (Dance of the Vampires), opened in Vienna, Austria on October 4, 1997. The show was adapted from Roman Polanski's movie The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967), and initially directed by Polanski himself. It won six International musical awards, at the International Musical Award Germany (IMAGE 1998), in Düsseldorf. There have also been translated productions of Tanz der Vampire in Estonia, Poland, Finland, Hungary and Japan. Many of the various productions of Tanz der Vampire have had cast recordings released, some of them produced by Steinman, along with other co- producers. Like much of Steinman's work, the show includes adaptation (or, recycling) of material Steinman had released before. This includes the song "Total Eclipse of the Heart", the melody of "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer than They Are", and many other parts of earlier works. Ten previously released Steinman songs were included on the 2-disc compilation album The Very Best of Meat Loaf (1998). The included recording of the song "Life Is a Lemon and I Want My Money Back" was a new remix made by Steinman's production team. The compilation also included three new recordings of songs co-written by Steinman, all three of which he produced. They include the hybrid track "Home By Now/No Matter What" and "A Kiss Is a Terrible Thing to Waste" from Whistle Down the Wind. Also included is the song "Is Nothing Sacred", on which Steinman wrote music for Don Black's lyrics. In 2000, South African black singer Jennifer Jones sang at the World Aids Day concert. Jones performed "The Future Ain't What It Used To Be". The World Aids Day concert was broadcast worldwide. For many people around the world, this was the first or only time they ever heard that song. In 2001, the box set Andrew Lloyd Webber: Now & Forever was released. It included a recording, produced by Steinman and Andrew Lloyd Webber, and also co-produced by Steven Rinkoff and Nigel Wright, of the Steinman/Webber song "A Kiss Is a Terrible Thing to Waste", from Whistle Down the Wind. It was credited to The Metal Philharmonic Orchestra, which was an unrealized performance project idea. Kyle Gordon, a.k.a. "Scarpia", a singer on many demo recordings for Steinman, sang the lead vocal. Around 2001, Steinman was working with singer Karine Hannah. Plans to make an album with her were eventually abandoned. Demo recordings of Hannah singing four songs by Steinman were leaked to fans and have since been available on numerous fan sites. The songs on these demos are "Safe Sex", "Making Love Out of Nothing at All", "Is Nothing Sacred" and "Braver Than We Are". Steinman also recorded her voice on a demo of "Catwoman's Song", which recycled parts of the Steinman/Eldritch song "More". This demo was part of Steinman's preparations for the unrealized Batman: The Musical. He shared it with fans through a website. In 2002, Russell Watson released the album Encore. It included the Steinman/Black song "Is Nothing Sacred". Steinman had originally worked on his production of this song with Watson on lead vocals. Composed by Michael Reed and Steinman, with a script by Warner Brown, Garbo – the Musical, about the life of the late screen idol Greta Garbo, opened in Sweden to poor reviews in 2002. Preparation for a stage musical based on the Batman comic book series began early in the decade, with Steinman working on the music and lyrics. In August 2002, the New York Post reported that Warner Bros. signed Tim Burton to direct. According to an unnamed source Burton was attracted to the project because it was as dark as his 1989 film Batman rather than "the goofy, campy turn the franchise took with Batman Forever and Batman and Robin, both of which were directed by Joel Schumacher.". Steinman said about Burton and the project, "It's more like his first two movies than any of the other movies. It's very dark and gothic, but really wildly funny. It was my dream that he do this." However, Warner Bros. cancelled its plans to cast and stage the show. Steinman has since shared some of the song demos from the show via the Dream Pollution website. The Dream Engine has, according to its website and MySpace page, also worked on recordings of some of the songs that were in the show. That includes the songs "We're Still The Children We Were Then" and "Not Allowed To Love". Steinman was executive producer for the 2003 MTV television film Wuthering Heights. He has cited Brontë's novel, which had inspired "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", as one of his favorites. A limited- release six-track soundtrack CD was sold through MTV, on Steinman and Rinkoff's Ravenous Records label. Jim Steinman is credited as producer for the album and most of its tracks, and Steven Rinkoff is credited with recording, mixing and co-production. That album includes a simple recording of the Steinman/Eldritch song "More" with actors Mike Vogel and Erika Christensen performing lead vocals. It also includes the first-ever release of the song "If It Ain't Broke (Break It)", written by Steinman, with lead vocals by Mike Vogel. The album also has a version of "The Future Ain't What It Used to Be" by Jim Steinman with lead vocals from Erika Christensen. In 2002, the Opera Babes released the album Beyond Imagination. Steinman produced the track "Vittoria!", adapted from the Giuseppe Verdi opera Aida. Steven Rinkoff was credited with co-production, recording and mixing. Like many Steinman productions, it includes work by electronic-music arranger and programmer Jeff Bova. Steinman was also credited as arranger, along with Jeff Bova and Jon Cohen. In 2004, the film Shrek 2 was released, along with a soundtrack album. The album has two dance covers of the Steinman/Pitchford song "Holding Out for a Hero", one with vocals by Jennifer Saunders and the other credited to Frou Frou. In 2005, The Everly Brothers released a limited edition album called . This album included the song "A Kiss Is a Terrible Thing to Waste", written and produced by Steinman. The recording on that album was made in 1987, during the recording sessions that ended up being the 1989 album Some Hearts. However, the Steinman song was not released until 2005. This song is different from the song with the same title in Whistle Down the Wind. The two songs with this title share only a few words and no music in common, with the Everly Brothers version containing musical motifs recycled from the Steinman song "Out of the Frying Pan (And Into the Fire)". A demo recording of this song, with Rory Dodd singing lead vocals, has for many years been in circulation among fan websites. Steinman also wrote a later incarnation of "A Kiss Is A Terrible Thing To Waste", with partly different music and a partly different lyric. Steinman made a recording of this later incarnation with Gina Taylor, a.k.a. Gina Taylor-Pickens or Gina Taylor Pickens, singing the lead vocal. That recording was most likely made when the Pandora's Box album Original Sin was made, in the late 1980s, and has been in circulation among fans on the internet. A separate and very different show from Tanz der Vampire, Dance of the Vampires opened on Broadway on October 16, 2002. After the original director left the show, it was directed by John Rando, who joined very shortly before the opening. The book was written by David Ives and was notable for the large number of jokes, many of which had a silly or vulgar quality to them. Whereas Tanz had been a "sung-through" musical with no breaks in the music (like an opera), Dance of the Vampires was a humorous spoken play with songs inserted at some parts. The reviews tended to be very negative. It closed on January 25, 2003 after 61 preview and 56 regular performances. Financially, it was very unsuccessful and lost roughly $17 million. Steinman did not attend the opening night to show his disgust with the show. In his blog, Steinman also described the show as "DOTV, which you guys know I hated & was disgusted by, & was FIRED by my manager, acting as producer!" The manager he was referring to was David Sonenberg, who was one of the producers of the show and Steinman's longtime manager. During the concerts in his Hair of the Dog tour, Meat Loaf told the audience that he and Steinman would be releasing a new album. Later, Meat Loaf said that "lawyers worked for over a year putting together a contract for Steinman to do Bat Out of Hell III. It was one of the best producer's contracts in the history of the record business." According to Meat Loaf, the composer had suffered some health setbacks, including a heart attack. Ultimately, according to the singer, Steinman was not well enough to work on such an intense project. However, Steinman's manager refuted this version, saying that Steinman's "health is excellent" and although he had some "meaningful health problems about four years ago... he's been totally healthy the last couple of years... that's not the reason he didn't participate in [Bat III]". Produced by Desmond Child, was released in October 2006. It has fourteen songs, seven of which were written by Steinman; five of these were covers of songs already released on other albums. The other two were adapted from Steinman's demos of songs that were intended for musical theater projects. Steinman's demo of "In the Land of the Pig, the Butcher is King", with Rob Evan singing lead vocal, was part of the preparations for the unrealized Batman: The Musical project. Steinman's demo of "Cry to Heaven", with Kyle Gordon singing lead vocal, was intended for the possibility that Steinman would provide songs for a musical based on the film Cry-Baby. Cry- Baby has since been staged, but without any work from Steinman. In 2006, the album's title became the subject of a legal battle between Steinman and Meat Loaf. Steinman had registered a trademark on the title "Bat Out of Hell" in 1995, and sought to prevent Meat Loaf from using the title. Meat Loaf sought to cancel Steinman's trademark and use the title. Aside from the trademark case, he sued Steinman and longtime manager David Sonenberg for $50 million each, for a total of $100 million. An out-of-court settlement was reached, ending the legal cases, allowing Meat Loaf to use the title for this album, and allowing Meat Loaf to release his recordings of the songs "In the Land of the Pig the Butcher Is King" and "Cry to Heaven". The agreement allowed Steinman to use the title "Jim Steinman's Bat Out of Hell" for a musical theatre project based on the songs from Bat Out of Hell. This project was announced for opening on February 17, 2017 in Manchester. In 2006, Westlife released The Love Album. It contained a cover of "Total Eclipse of the Heart", produced by Steve Mac. A remix with an added intro, presumably done by Steinman, Rinkoff, and Bova, has leaked and been in circulation among fan sites. First publicly presented in early 2006, Steinman and Steven Rinkoff created a music performance group called The Dream Engine. The group has worked on studio recordings and held live shows in New York City. It also performed at an award show in Atlanta, Georgia. The people in this project were the first ever to publicly perform the songs "What Part of My Body Hurts the Most", "We're Still the Children We Once Were", "Speaking in Tongues", "Not Allowed to Love" and "(It Hurts) Only When I Feel". The last of those songs is partly adapted from "If It Ain't Broke (Break It)". This project was also the first to perform a revised and politicized lyric to "Braver Than We Are". With the new lyric, the song has alternatively been called "An American Elegy" and "God's Gone A.W.O.L.". According to Steinman's blog, this project was "guided" by Steven Rinkoff. This project has not performed or been active in public since 2006. In January 2012, it was announced that Steinman was working with Terry Jones of Monty Python fame on a heavy metal version of The Nutcracker. In February of the same year, it was announced that he would be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 14. On April 10, 2012, Amherst College announced that Steinman would receive an honorary degree at the college's 191st commencement on May 20. However, honorary degrees are awarded only in person, and Steinman "had to cancel due to unforeseen circumstances". On April 17, 2013, the college announced that Steinman would speak at a "conversation" on campus that will be open to the public on May 25, and would receive an honorary degree, a doctorate of humane letters, at the college's 192nd commencement on May 26. In April 2013, Meat Loaf said that he and Steinman will collaborate on three new songs to be included on Meat Loaf's album Braver Than We Are, which was (at the time) to be released in 2015. In 2016, Jim Steinman was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame. Meat Loaf's album Braver Than We Are was released on September 9, 2016 in Europe and on September 16, 2016 in North America. It contains ten songs composed by Steinman. Jim Steinman wrote either nothing or almost nothing specifically for this album. Paul Crook produced this album. Like Desmond Child's , this album was made separately from the production team of Jim Steinman and Steven Rinkoff. Rob Evan was the first singer to perform the songs "Only When I Feel" and "Speaking in Tongues", in 2005 and 2006. The track "Going All The Way" is a mixture of some previously released material, some previously leaked material, and a little bit of material neither previously released nor previously leaked. Part of "Going All The Way" is in the song "Braver Than We Are/Say A Prayer" from Dance of the Vampires. Part of it is in a leaked demo of Karine Hannah singing, called "Braver Than We Are". A small minority of it is not in the leaked demo of Karine Hannah singing or in Dance of the Vampires. "Loving You's A Dirty Job (But Somebody's Got To Do It)" is a cover of the released recording of Bonnie Tyler and Todd Rundgren. "More" is a cover of the released recording of The Sisters of Mercy. The tracks "Who Needs The Young", "Souvenirs", "Godz", "Skull of Your Country", and "Train of Love" are all covers of unreleased recordings that Steinman made in the 1970s. Recordings from the 1970s of all of those songs have been in circulation among fans on the internet. In February 2017, Steinman's Bat Out of Hell The Musical opened for previews at the Manchester Opera House in Manchester, England, before officially premiering at the same venue, then continuing on to the London Coliseum in June. This musical was based on multiple projects, including Steinman's Neverland musical from the 1970s, the hit albums Bat Out of Hell, , and on assorted other recordings from Steinman's career. This musical did not contain any songs that were not released or performed in public by the Summer of the year 2006. The musical has since gone on to Toronto, before finishing in January 2018 to make a return to London in 2018, this time the Dominion Theatre and as well as gearing up for a German version of the show, which is also to be launched in Autumn 2018 in Oberhausen's Metronom Theatre. Steinman had also set an American tour of the musical to take place starting in late 2018 through 2019 but it was cancelled after its 3-week run in the first city Toronto was complete. The musical began a limited 6 week run in New York City's City Center Theatre from August 1 - September 8, 2019. In 2017, Velvet Valve Records was preparing to release music with Karine Hannah singing. In March of 2017, Velvet Valve Records digitally released a recording of Hannah singing "Braver Than We Are". This recording is different from the recording of Hannah singing "Braver Than We Are" from the early 2000s. Plans to release an album with Hannah after the single, possibly to be called Renegade Angel, were abandoned. Dream Pollution web site, Jim Steinman's blog, The Dream Engine official site Steinmania – Features the 1969 Recording of the Dream Engine Couldn't Have Said It Better is a 2003 album by Meat Loaf. Only for the third time in his career, he released an album without any songs written by Jim Steinman (not counting the bonus tracks). Although Meat Loaf claimed that Couldn't Have Said It Better was "the most perfect album [he] did since Bat Out of Hell", it was not as successful. Three singles were released: "Did I Say That", "Couldn't Have Said It Better" and "Man of Steel", all with little chart impact. The album was recorded for Universal Music Germany's Polydor division and was licensed to Mercury Records for its UK release and Sanctuary Records for US release, while global distribution was handled by parent company Universal Music Group. Most of this was caused by lack of promotion on behalf of Sanctuary, the company that released the album in the US, and few actual singles being distributed, especially in the UK—his biggest market. The single "Couldn't Have Said It Better" featuring Patti Russo reached the AC Top 40 in the US, while the videos also had low budgets, in stark contrast to his 1990s videos. However, the album was a minor success worldwide and reached number 4 on the UK Albums Chart. There were many writers for the album including Diane Warren and James Michael. Warren has written for Meat Loaf in the past and had some very big hits. Michael had never written for Meat Loaf before and it was only his songs that were released as singles from the album. Several versions of the album have been released, some with bonus-material. Also, the color of the album cover is different in the UK (blue) from the other territories (red). The album was accompanied by a sold-out world tour which was used to promote the album and some of Meat Loaf's biggest hits. On November 17, 2003, during a performance at London's Wembley Arena, he collapsed with what was later diagnosed as Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. The following week, he underwent a surgical procedure intended to correct the problem. As a result, Meat Loaf's insurance agency did not allow him to perform for any longer than one hour and 45 minutes. Meat Loaf finished his tour and came back two years later for his Hair of the Dog That Bit You world tour, which was a sellout for over 160 concerts. As well as singing all the classics, he sang a cover version of the hit single "Black Betty". During this tour, Meat Loaf also sang one of the songs from his upcoming album called "Only When I Feel". He mentioned that it was not one of the most critical songs on the album, and it has since been removed from that album's track listing. Meat Loaf said that this could be his last 'world' tour, and when he came to promote Bat Out of Hell III, he would be doing less than a fifth of the concerts he did on this tour. "Only When I Feel" has instead been added to the 2016 album "Braver Than We Are". An early version of the album, titled Testify (eventually dropped because of Phil Collins' Testify release), was released in France by Universal in 2002 as a promo disc not intended for sale. At the time, it was stated that "Did I Say That?" would be the first single (eventually true), and the album would come out March 31, 2003 (eventually not true). The track listing for this version is as follows: The Australian release of Couldn't Have Said It Better included a live bonus disc, compiled by Meat Loaf, including 6 live tracks from the American leg of the 2003 world tour. 1. "Life Is a Lemon and I Want My Money Back" (Jim Steinman) – 6:47 2. "Tear Me Down" (Trask) – 4:00 3. "Love You Out Loud" (Michael/Sixx) – 4:34 4. "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" (Steinman) – 10:32 5. "Couldn't Have Said It Better" (Michael/Sixx) – 8:18 6. "Bat Out of Hell" (Steinman) – 11:47 The special editions of the UK and international releases included a bonus disc containing two video clips and an MP3 file from Meat Loaf's 1999 VH1 Storytellers DVD and CD, and the promotional video for "Did I Say That?". 1. "I'd Do Anything for Love" (Steinman) – 8:04 2. "A Kiss Is a Terrible Thing to Waste" (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Steinman) – 5:24 3. "Did I Say That?" (Michael) – 4:46 4. "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad" (Steinman) – 4:47 Todd Rundgren – vocal arranger (1), Aaron Zigman – orchestral arranger (1, 2, 5, 8, 11) Meat Loaf – vocals Kasim Sulton – bass guitar, backing vocals, Tom Brislin – piano (2-8), Hammond B3 (2, 6, 7), John Miceli – drums (9, 11, 12), Patti Russo – female lead vocals (1), backing vocals (11, 12), Pearl Aday – female lead vocals (5), backing vocals (7) Tim Pierce – guitar (1), Mark Alexander – piano (9, 12), Hammond B3 (1), Kenny Aronoff – drums, Todd Rundgren – backing vocals (1), Eric Troyer – backing vocals Michael Thompson – guitar, Peter Mokran – guitar (12), synthesizer, programming, Aaron Zigman – piano (1, 11), Dan Higgins – penny whistle ("Intermezzo"), Stephen Erdody – cello (12), Luis Conte – percussion (3), Tanja Reichert – spoken intro (5), Giselda Vatcky – spoken breakdown (7), James Michael – backing vocals (1, 2, 5), Maxi Anderson, Alexandra Brown, Lynn Davis, Rose Stone – backing vocals (3, 5, 6) Musical director/producer: Kasim Sulton Meat Loaf – vocals, guitar, Patti Russo – female lead and backing vocals, Paul Crook – lead guitars, Randy Flowers – guitars, keyboards, backing vocals, Kasim Sulton – bass guitar, backing vocals, Mark Alexander – keyboards, backing vocals, John Miceli – drums, Renee Cologne – backing vocals

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"Say You Love Me" is a song written by singer Christine McVie for Fleetwood Mac's 1975 self-titled album. The song peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, and remains one of the band's best-known songs. Its success helped the group's eponymous 1975 album sell over eight million copies worldwide. In the UK, "Say You Love Me" was the fourth single from the Fleetwood Mac album, but the first to chart, peaking at #40 on the UK Singles Chart in September 1976. In Canada, Shirley Eikhard covered "Say You Love Me" and released it as a single several weeks in advance of Fleetwood Mac in early June 1976. Eikhard took the song into the Canadian top 40, peaking at #34; Fleetwood Mac's version, released only a few weeks later, peaked at #29 in September. In addition to its appearance on Fleetwood Mac's self-titled 1975 album, "Say You Love Me" appears on three of the group's compilation albums: Greatest Hits, The Very Best of Fleetwood Mac and 25 Years - The Chain. Following Christine McVie's departure, the song was performed on Fleetwood Mac's Unleashed Tour with Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham sharing lead vocals. McVie wrote "Say You Love Me" after her fifth year in the band while she was married to the group's bassist, John McVie. The version used on the single release has overdubbed additional guitar work and a faster fade-out. The single mix is the one used on the compilation 25 Years - The Chain. "Say You Love Me" has been performed on seven of Fleetwood Mac's tours since its release. On The Dance tour, John McVie sang background vocals. Previously, his only other vocal contribution was on a cover of "Cool Water", the B-side to "Gypsy". In a Q&A; session, he claimed that ex-wife Christine convinced him to perform the vocal line. During the band's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame performance of the song, Mick Fleetwood played a cocktail drum kit and Buckingham played banjo. Christine McVie – lead vocals, piano, Lindsey Buckingham – vocal harmonies, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, 12-string electric guitar, banjo, Stevie Nicks – harmony vocals, John McVie – bass guitar, Mick Fleetwood – drums, tambourine Fleetwood Mac original Shirley Eikhard cover Shirley Eikhard covered the song in 1976. It became a hit in Canada, spending two weeks at number 34 on the pop singles chart and number four on the Adult Contemporary chart. In the late half of the 1970s, the song proved to be a popular song to cover in country music. Singer Lynda K. Lance spent five weeks in the fall of 1976 on the American country singles chart with her version, peaking at #93. In the fall of 1979, singer Stephanie Winslow scored the only Top 10 country hit of her career, with her cover reaching number 10 on the country charts. The Great Rock Discography, 6th Edition. Martin C.Strong. Page 378. Christine Anne Perfect (born 12 July 1943), known professionally as Christine McVie following her marriage to John McVie, is an English singer, songwriter and keyboardist, best known as one of the three lead vocalists and the keyboardist of Fleetwood Mac. She joined the band in 1970. She has also released three solo albums. McVie is known for her smoky, contralto vocals and her direct but poignant lyrics, which concentrated on love and relationships. AllMusic describes her as an "Unabashedly easy-on-the-ears singer/songwriter, and the prime mover behind some of Fleetwood Mac's biggest hits." Eight of her songs appeared on Fleetwood Mac's 1988 Greatest Hits album. In 1998 McVie was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Fleetwood Mac and received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. The same year, after almost 30 years with the band, she opted to leave and lived in semi- retirement for nearly 15 years. McVie released one solo album in 2004. In September 2013, McVie appeared on stage with Fleetwood Mac at London's O2 Arena. She rejoined the band in October 2014, ready for Fleetwood Mac's On with the Show tour. In 2014 she received the Ivor Novello Award for Lifetime Achievement from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. McVie was born in the Lake District village of Bouth, Lancashire, and grew up in the Bearwood area of Smethwick near Birmingham. Her father, Cyril Percy Absell Perfect, was a concert violinist and music lecturer at St Peter's College of Education, Saltley, Birmingham and taught violin at St Philip's Grammar School, Birmingham. McVie's mother Beatrice Edith Maud (Reece) Perfect, was a medium, psychic and faith healer. McVie's grandfather was an organist at Westminster Abbey. Although McVie was introduced to the piano when she was four, she did not study music seriously until age 11, when she was re- introduced to it by Philip Fisher, a local musician and school friend of McVie's older brother, John. Continuing her classical training until age 15, McVie shifted her musical focus to rock and roll when her brother, John, came home with a Fats Domino songbook. Other early influences included The Everly Brothers. McVie studied sculpture at an art college in Birmingham for five years, with the goal of becoming an art teacher. During that time she met a number of budding musicians in Britain's blues scene. Her first foray into the music field did not come until she met two friends, Stan Webb and Andy Silvester in a pub one night. At the time, they were playing in a band called Sounds Of Blue. Knowing that McVie had musical talent, they asked her to join. She often sang with Spencer Davis. After five years, McVie graduated from art college, but by that time Sounds of Blue had split up. McVie found she did not have enough money to launch herself into the art world, so she moved to London and worked briefly as a department store window dresser. In 1967 McVie learned that her ex-bandmates, Andy Silvester and Stan Webb, were forming a blues band, Chicken Shack, and were looking for a pianist. She wrote to them asking to join, and they invited her to play keyboards/piano and to sing background vocals. Chicken Shack's debut release was "It's Okay With Me Baby", written by and featuring McVie. She stayed with Chicken Shack for two albums, during which her genuine feel for the blues became evident, not only in her Sonny Thompson-style piano playing, but through her authentic "bluesy" voice. Chicken Shack had a hit with "I'd Rather Go Blind", which featured McVie on lead vocals. McVie received a Melody Maker award for female vocalist in both 1969 and 1970. McVie left Chicken Shack in 1969 after marrying Fleetwood Mac bassist John McVie a year earlier. McVie was a fan of Fleetwood Mac, and while touring with Chicken Shack, the two bands would often meet. They also were "label mates" at Blue Horizon, and Fleetwood Mac had asked her to play piano as a session musician for Peter Green's songs on the band's second album, Mr. Wonderful. Encouraged to continue her career, McVie recorded a solo album, Christine Perfect; following her success as a member of Fleetwood Mac, the album was reissued under the name The Legendary Christine Perfect Album. After marrying Fleetwood Mac bassist, John McVie, she joined Fleetwood Mac in 1970. She had already contributed backup vocals and painted the cover for Kiln House. The band had just lost founding member Peter Green, and its members were nervous about touring without him. McVie had been a huge fan of the Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac; and since she knew all the lyrics to their songs, she went along. McVie went on to become an integral member, another lead vocalist, and keyboardist of the group and the first album with her as a full-fledged band member was Future Games. It was recorded at London's Advision Studios and included the first with American-born member Bob Welch in place of founding member Jeremy Spencer. Danny Kirwan was still in the band at this point, but he was fired in 1972 after an incident on tour where he refused to perform at a gig after a row with Welch. The early 1970s was a rocky time for the band, with a revolving door of musicians; and only the albums Bare Trees and Mystery to Me were successful. Furthermore, a group impersonating Fleetwood Mac (which later became Stretch) was touring the United States with encouragement from the band's manager, Clifford Davis. The tour collapsed, but it led to a protracted lawsuit between Davis and Fleetwood Mac. In 1974, McVie reluctantly agreed to move with the rest of Fleetwood Mac to the United States. Within a year Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham of Buckingham Nicks joined the band, giving it an added dimension. Their first album together, 1975's Fleetwood Mac, had several hit songs, with McVie's "Over My Head" and "Say You Love Me", both reaching Billboard's top-20 singles chart. It was "Over My Head" which first put Fleetwood Mac on American radio and into the national Top 20. In 1976, McVie began an on-the-road affair with the band's lighting director, which inspired her to write "You Make Loving Fun", a top-10 hit on the landmark smash Rumours, one of the best-selling albums of all-time. Her biggest hit was "Don't Stop", which reached number three. The Rumours tour also included McVie's "Songbird", a ballad played as the encore of many Fleetwood Mac concerts. By the end of the Rumours tour the McVies were divorced. The 1979 double album Tusk produced three more US top-20 hits ("Tusk", "Sara", and Christine's "Think About Me"), but it came nowhere near to matching the success of the Rumours album. The Tusk tour continued into 1980 after which the band took time apart. They reunited in 1981 to record the album Mirage at the Château d'Hérouville's studio in France. The album, released in 1982, returned the band to the top of the US charts and contained the top-5 hit "Hold Me", co-written by McVie. McVie's inspiration for the song was her tortured relationship with Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson. Her song, "Love in Store", became the third single from the album peaking at #22 in early 1983. In 1984, McVie recorded another solo album which included the hits "Got a Hold on Me" (#10 US pop and #1 adult contemporary) and "Love Will Show Us How" (#30). A third single, "I'm The One", was released but did not chart. McVie is quoted in The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits as saying of her solo album, "Maybe it isn't the most adventurous album in the world, but I wanted to be honest and please my own ears with it." McVie also met keyboardist Eddy Quintela, whom she married on 18 October 1986. Quintela went on to co-write many songs with her that were featured on subsequent Fleetwood Mac albums. She rejoined Fleetwood Mac to record the Tango in the Night album, which went on to become the band's biggest success since Rumours ten years earlier. The biggest hit from the album, which was top 5 in both the UK and U.S., was McVie's "Little Lies", co-written with her husband Quintela. Another McVie single from the album, "Everywhere", reached #4 in the UK, which would be the band's third highest ever chart peak there, and their final top 40 UK hit to date (the single peaked at #14 in the U.S.). In 1990, the band (now without Lindsey Buckingham) recorded Behind the Mask, but the album only reached Gold status in the U.S., and only McVie's song "Save Me" made the U.S. Top 40. The album did enter the UK album chart at #1 and reached Platinum status there. The second US single release from the album, McVie's "Skies the Limit" did not make the top 100, but did reach #10 on the adult contemporary chart. McVie has often been reluctant to go on concert tours, preferring to stay close to home with friends and family. Upon the death of her father, Cyril Perfect, while she was touring for Behind the Mask, McVie made the decision to retire from touring altogether. Despite the departure of Stevie Nicks, McVie remained with the band, writing and recording a new track ("Love Shines") for the 1992 boxed set 25 Years - The Chain, and five songs for the band's 1995 album Time. After Fleetwood, John McVie, and Buckingham got together for one of Buckingham's solo projects in the mid-1990s, she was asked to sing and play on some of the tracks. Then, the four decided a full reunion was possible and Nicks joined them. The live album, The Dance, reached #1 on the US album charts. Despite her reservations, McVie complied with the band's touring schedule, and then performed for the group's 1998 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as well as the Grammy Awards show, and the BRIT Awards in the UK. McVie later revealed in a 2014 Rolling Stone interview that she had developed a phobia about flying, which was later treated with psychotherapy. This phobia was the reason she decided not to continue with Fleetwood Mac after 1998. In 2006 Paste magazine named McVie, together with bandmates Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, as the 83rd greatest living songwriter or songwriting team. After The Dance, McVie returned to England to be near her family and stayed out of public view until 2000 when she appeared to accept an Honorary Doctorate in music from the University of Greenwich. Five years after leaving Fleetwood Mac, she and Quintela divorced. In a 2004 interview, McVie admitted to not listening much to pop music anymore and stated instead a preference for Classic FM. In December 2003, McVie went to see Fleetwood Mac's last UK performance on the Say You Will tour in London, but did not join her former bandmates on stage. Mid-2004 saw the release of McVie's new solo album, In the Meantime, her third in a career spanning five decades. Recording in her converted barn in Kent, she worked on the project with her nephew, Dan Perfect, who contributed guitar-playing, backing vocals, and songwriting. No tour was organized to promote this album; instead McVie conducted several press interviews in both Britain and the United States. In 2006, McVie was awarded the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors' Gold Badge of Merit at a ceremony held at London's Savoy Hotel. In November 2009, McVie did not join her former bandmates on the band's last performance in the UK of the tour Unleashed. During the announcement of Fleetwood Mac's 2012 world tour, Stevie Nicks downplayed the likelihood of McVie ever rejoining the group: "She went to England and she has never been back since 1998 [...] as much as we would all like to think that she'll just change her mind one day, I don't think it'll happen [...] We love her, so we had to let her go." It was announced in October 2013 that McVie was recording a solo album for the first time in nine years. The album is yet to be released. In 2013, McVie appeared on stage in Maui, Hawaii performing with the Mick Fleetwood Blues Band which included Mick Fleetwood and ex-Fleetwood Mac guitarist Rick Vito. This was her first appearance on stage in 15 years. Later in September, Christine McVie joined Fleetwood Mac on stage for the first time in 15 years to play "Don't Stop" at The O2 Arena, London. She played on two dates and her appearance on stage was received with rapturous applause. On 11 January 2014, Mick Fleetwood announced during a concert in Maui that McVie would be rejoining the band, and it was officially announced two days later that she had rejoined. The band's most popular lineup (Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie, John McVie and Stevie Nicks) performed together for the first time since 1998 in its On with the Show tour beginning in Minneapolis at the Target Center on 30 September 2014. In August 2016, Mick Fleetwood said that while the band has "a huge amount of recorded music", virtually none of it features Stevie Nicks. Lindsey Buckingham and McVie, however, have contributed multiple songs to the new project. Fleetwood told Ultimate Classic Rock, "She [McVie] ... wrote up a storm ... She and Lindsey could probably have a mighty strong duet album if they want. In truth, I hope it will come to more than that. There really are dozens of songs. And they're really good. So we'll see." Buckingham and Christine McVie announced a new album titled Lindsey Buckingham Christine McVie, which also features Mick Fleetwood and John McVie. The album was originally planned as a Fleetwood Mac album. Stevie Nicks did not participate due to her preference for a solo tour with The Pretenders. Lindsey Buckingham/Christine McVie was released on 9 June 2017, and was preceded by the single, "In My World". A 38-date tour began on 21 June 2017 and ended on 16 November. On 11 April 2017, the duo announced a 14-date North American tour was announced. Eight of the album's ten tracks were played live, with the rest of the set list consisting of Fleetwood Mac songs and Buckingham solo cuts. The Wallflowers opened for the band on select nights. In June, the band appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to perform the album's first single, "In My World". Some extra North American shows were later added in August, including one in Los Angeles and another in New York City. Another North American leg began in October, which saw the addition of 22 more shows. Fleetwood Mac headlined the second night of the Classic West concert (on 16 July 2017 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles) and the second night of the Classic East concert (at New York's Citi Field on 30 July 2017). On 9 April 2018, Fleetwood Mac announced that Mike Campbell would be joining the band along with Neil Finn to replace lead guitarist Lindsey Buckingham who was fired. When McVie married John McVie in 1968, Peter Green was best man. They honeymooned in Birmingham before going off with their own separate bands. The couple divorced in 1976. From 1979 to 1982 she was engaged to Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys. She married keyboardist Eddy Quintela on 18 October 1986. They divorced in 2003. McVie sang with Dennis Wilson on his song "Love Surrounds Me" for The Beach Boys' 1979 album L.A. (Light Album). She also sang with Christopher Cross on the song "Never Stop Believing" on his 1988 album Back of My Mind, as well as with Bob Welch on his solo version of "Sentimental Lady". McVie released an album with fellow Fleetwood Mac member Lindsey Buckingham titled Lindsey Buckingham/Christine McVie on 9 June 2017. Extensive bio, links to charts, discography "I Can't Make You Love Me" is a song written by Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin and recorded by American singer Bonnie Raitt for her eleventh studio album Luck of the Draw (1991). Released as the album's third single in 1991, "I Can't Make You Love Me" became one of Raitt's most successful singles, reaching the top-20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top-10 on the Adult Contemporary. In August 2000, Mojo magazine voted "I Can't Make You Love Me" the eighth best track on its The 100 Greatest Songs of All Time list. The song is ranked at number 339 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. On 27 November 2016, the Grammy Hall of Fame announced its induction, along with that of another 24 songs. "I Can't Make You Love Me" was written by Nashville writers Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin, who were well-noted for their successes in the country music arena. The song was rewritten many times before being finalized, months later. "We wrote, most every week, in Mike's basement," Shamblin told Peter Cooper in an interview with the Nashville Tennessean. "And we'd worked on this song for more than six months. One day, he said, 'Come up to the living room,' where his piano was. He sat down and started playing this melody, and it was one of the most moving pieces of music I'd heard. I mean, it hit me in a hard way ... Instantly, I knew it was the best thing I'd ever been a part of." Reid and Shamblin were both country music songwriters, who according to some accounts originally wrote the song as a fast, bluegrass number. Upon slowing down the tempo considerably, they realized the song gained considerable power and thought about giving the song to one of three artists: Bonnie Raitt, Bette Midler or Linda Ronstadt. Eventually, the song made its way to Bonnie Raitt, who recorded the track for her eleventh studio album, Luck of the Draw (1991). Raitt co-produced the song with Don Was, while Bruce Hornsby provided a piano accompaniment. "I Can't Make You Love Me" was composed in the key of Bb major, with a moderate slow tempo of 72 beats per minute. Raitt's vocal range on the song spans from the low-note of F3 to the high-note of Bb4. The idea for the song came to Reid while reading an article about a man arrested for getting drunk and shooting at his girlfriend's car. The judge asked him if he had learned anything, to which he replied, "I learned, Your Honor, that you can't make a woman love you if she don't." Raitt recorded the vocal in just one take in the studio, later saying that it was so sad a song that she could not recapture the emotion: "We'd try to do it again and I just said, 'You know, this ain't going to happen.'" A pensive ballad, "I Can't Make You Love Me" was recorded against a quiet electric piano-based arrangement, with prominent piano fills and interpolations supplied by Bruce Hornsby. It was performed in the key of Bb major. The singer depicts a now one-sided romantic relationship about to end in soft but brutally honest terms: "Turn down the lights, turn down the bed/Turn down these voices inside my head/Lay down with me, tell me no lies/Just hold me close, don't patronize ... don't patronize me/'Cause I can't make you love me if you don't/You can't make your heart feel something that it won't," she sings. "I Can't Make You Love Me" received acclaim from music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic praised the track, calling it a "strong song" and picking it as one of the album's best tracks. Steve Hochman of Los Angeles Times hailed the song as one of Raitt's most elegant tracks. Elysa Gardner wrote for Rolling Stone that "Raitt's gorgeously understated rendering of 'I Can't Make You Love Me,' in which sentiments such as 'I will lay down my heart and I'll feel the power/But you won't' are delivered with a quiet resignation that's worth a hundred glissandi in emotional weight." "I Can't Make You Love Me" entered many lists of the greatest songs of all time. In 2000, Mojo magazine placed it at number 8 on its "100 Greatest Songs of All Time" list. The song is also ranked #339 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The website "Ultimate Classic Rock" placed the song at number 24 on their "25 Saddest Songs Ever", praising Bonnie Raitt vocals, writing that "she sings in one of her most impassioned vocals ever. There's real ache in every word that drips from her pained lips." The song's popularity helped solidify her remarkable late-in-career commercial success that had begun two years before. In the time since, "I Can't Make You Love Me" has gone on to become a pop standard and a mainstay of adult contemporary radio formats. For Raitt, the song was notoriously difficult to sing, due to its required vocal range, difficult phrasing and breathing, and the emotional content involved. At the televised Grammy Awards of 1992 Raitt performed it in an even more austere setting than on record, with just her and Hornsby highlighted. As she negotiated the final vocal line, she let out a big audible and visible sigh of relief that she had successfully gotten through it. Her live performance of the song was released on the 1994 album Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume III. Raitt has continued to sing the song in all her concert tours: The video for this song uses the shorter single version of the song. Filmed in black-and-white with vibrant lighting effects, it features Raitt performing the song in front of a curtain with a silhouette of a pianist in the background (played by Bruce Hornsby, who actually plays piano on the record), while in other scenes, a scorching fire is taking place outdoors and many shadows of trees, branches, and even people at times are seen swaying to the song's rhythm. The song was a big hit for Raitt, reaching number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. The song placed at number 100 on the Billboard Year-End chart of 1992. In New Zealand, the song was Raitt's highest charting-single, reaching number 22, while in Netherlands, the song charted moderately at number 43. Although Bruce Hornsby had no hand in writing the song, his piano part on it became associated with him. Phil Collins described it as instantly recognizable as Hornsby's work. Hornsby's own publicity material mentions his role on the "classic". On his own subsequent tours, Hornsby included the song in a number of his set lists. He sometimes let a female backing singer in his band take on the vocal. Other times, he sang the song himself. Emancipation marked the first album in Prince's career to include cover versions of songs written by other songwriters; Prince claimed that he had wanted to cover songs in the past, but was advised against it by Warner Bros. Four such covers appeared on the album: "Betcha by Golly Wow!" (previously a hit for The Stylistics), "I Can't Make You Love Me" (previously a hit for Bonnie Raitt) English singer George Michael covered "I Can't Make You Love Me" and released as a B-side of his single, "Older", which was released on 20 January 1997 as the fourth single from the album of the same name. Michael's version was also included on his compilation, (1998). "Older" and "I Can't Make You Love Me" both reached number 3 on the UK Singles Chart. After the release of his second studio album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990), George Michael started a legal battle with his label, Sony Music, declaring his contract was financially inequitable and creatively stifling. Michael sued Sony to end his contract, leading to a long and costly legal battle that ended in 1995, with Michael signing to the newly launched Dreamworks Records label in the United States and Virgin in the rest of the world. In 1995, the singer released the song "Jesus to a Child", which became a huge hit worldwide, followed by "Fastlove" and "Spinning the Wheel", which also became successful songs from his third studio album, Older (1996). While choosing the fourth single from the album, the title track "Older" was announced as the chosen one, with an EP also titled "Older" being released to promote the song. The EP features four tracks, including "Older", "The Strangest Thing" (also from the album "Older") and two covers: the famous Brazilian song "Desafinado" and Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me", which became the official B-side of the single. Since it was released as a B-side to "Older", "I Can't Make You Love Me" also entered the UK Singles Chart at number 3. American R&B; vocal group Boyz II Men recorded "I Can't Make You Love Me" for their third cover album, Love (2009). Their version was released as the album's first single on October 27, 2009. Having a more R&B; approach, "I Can't Make You Love Me" received generally favorable reviews from music critics, while it has achieved minor success on the Billboard's Hot R&B;/Hip- Hop Songs chart. After releasing their second cover album in 2007, , which was well received by critics, but failed to produce a successful single, the band announced plans for a new cover album, that features cover versions of songs by "artists I don't think people would expect us to cover," according to member Shawn Stockman. On October 23, 2009, "I Can't Make You Love Me" was announced as Love's lead-single. The song was later released on October 27, 2009 through iTunes store. For the band members, "We wanted to stay true to our roots, and it's a very beautiful song. And with our sound, we gave it an R&B; twist. It's always been a favorite of ours, and we hope people will fall in love with it again." A writer for Soul Bounce wrote that "The biggest surprise on this album is the bluesy interpretation of Bonnie Rait's country hit, 'I Can't Make You Love Me.' Starting with strong lyrics and a deep fried instrumental, the Boyz make this song their own with their unique flow providing good contrast to a familiar melodic line." Los Angeles Theatre called it an "impassioned" performance. On the charts, the song performed very modestly, reaching number 75 on the Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In 2011, English singer Adele covered "I Can't Make You Love Me" for her first live album, Live at the Royal Albert Hall (2011). The song was acclaimed by music critics, who praised Adele's delivery and vocals. The song has charted on the UK Singles Chart, reaching the top-forty, although it was never released as a single. In addition to receiving positive reviews from music critics, Adele's second album 21 became one of the most successful albums of the 2010s, being the biggest selling musical release for both 2011 and 2012 and entering the Guinness World Records. While promoting the album and its third single, "Set Fire to the Rain", Adele performed on the iTunes Festival London 2011. On the setlist, Adele performed tracks from 21 and a cover of "I Can't Make You Love Me". Before performing the track, Adele stated that it was one of her favorite songs and described it as "perfect in every way". She added that Bonnie Raitt has a "stunning voice" and went on to compliment the lyrics, calling them "mind-blowing". After the positive response of the iTunes Festival performance, Adele covered once again the track, during her first live album, Live at the Royal Albert Hall, recorded on 22 September 2011. She made further comment over the song, saying, "It blows me away" and further adding that she thought the song was "incredibly moving". Adele also commented on the emotions the song gives her, saying, "It makes me really, really happy and really, really devastated and depressed at the same time. It makes me think of my fondest and best times in my life, and it makes me think of the worst as well, and combined, probably is a recipe for disaster, but I do love this song. It's just fucking stunning." While reviewing her iTunes Festival performance, David Smyth of London Evening Standard wrote that Adele sang the song "with raw expressiveness." Andrew Leahey of Allmusic wrote that the cover "made all the more tender by the rarely heard frailties in Adele's voice." Donald Gibson of Seattle Pi wrote that "she breathes new life into Bonnie Raitt's 'I Can't Make You Love Me,' with similar intimacy and conviction." While reviewing her Live at the Royal Albert Hall DVD, critics lauded Adele's rendition. Andy Gill of The Independent called it an "impassioned version," while Alex Young of Consequence of Sound named it "heartfelt and stunning." Kit O'Toole of Blogcritics praised her rendition, writing that it "retains its heart- wrenching, devastating mood thanks to Adele's multi-layered voice. Hearing her perform this song, one would imagine her as an older woman who has survived lifelong heartaches instead of a 23-year-old." Maria Schurr of PopMatters lauded the covers (Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me" and Bob Dylan's "Make You Feel My Love") on the live album, naming "the most successful," writing that "both seem deeply heartfelt, like Adele understands, and is the only one who can make these words that are not hers ring true." Chris Willman of The Wrap called it "a classic of unrequited love that you'd have to swear she wrote if Bonnie Raitt hadn't turned it into the ultimate female weepie back when Adele was 2." Despite not being released as a single, "I Can't Make You Love Me" debuted at number 53 on the UK Singles Chart week of 30 September 2012. It later peaked at number 37, on the following week, 6 October 2012, becoming her eighth top- forty song and first non-single top-forty hit. In 2014, Indian actress and singer Priyanka Chopra recorded a version of "I Can't Make You Love Me" for her ebut studio album. Speaking about the song, Chopra said "This is one of my favorite tracks on the album. It's my ode to a classic, a song that I love, and one that says so much – this is for the actor in me." Chopra's version of the song incorporates electronic dance music (EDM) and electropop in its production. which comes courtesy of German producer Manuel "DJ Manian" Reuter. Andy Gensler from Billboard commented on how different Chopra's version was from the original by Raitt, saying that "Chopra's more uptempo take on the song is more likely to connect with a generation of ravers with no idea of the song's origin" The up-tempo version was demoed by American singer Ester Dean at the request of Interscope Records chairman Jimmy Iovine. It was released on 22 April 2014, by DesiHits, in association with 2101 Records and Interscope Records. It is the third internationally released single following "In My City" (featuring will.i.am), which failed to achieve airplay in the United States, and "Exotic". In the United Kingdom, "I Can't Make You Love Me" was originally planned to be Chopra's debut single. Chopra's version of "I Can't Make You Love Me" was used to promote Beats by Dre. In a press release, it was revealed that the song would be used in the launch of a new campaign for the popular Beats Pill XL portable Bluetooth speaker. Chopra and her new track would be featured in the national ad campaign, that ran nationwide from May 1 through May 25. An accompanying music video was filmed in Los Angeles in February 2014. It was conceptualised and directed by duo Jeff Nicholas and Jonathan Craven of The Uprising Creative. Actor Milo Ventimiglia plays Chopra's love interest and scenes include Chopra throwing coloured paint at Ventimiglia as part of celebrations for the Indian festival of Holi, as well as embraces between the couple and solo scenes with Chopra. According to NDTV, the video charts a fictional relationship that "goes from loving to hellish". Behind the scenes footage was released to Access Hollywood. It premiered in New York City on 30 April 2014. Gensler noted that the video also contained product placement for Nokia and Beats by Dre speakers. CNN-News18 said, "The singer certainly sounds great, so much that it's almost unbelievable it is Priyanka Chopra. The number is definitely foot-tapping and you're going to be hearing this one at every restaurant and club in the days to come" and added that Chopra had "definitely done a great job recreating the Bonnie Ratt song".

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"Man of Constant Sorrow" (also known as "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow") is a traditional American folk song first published by Dick Burnett, a partially blind fiddler from Kentucky. The song was originally titled "Farewell Song" in a songbook by Burnett dated to around 1913. An early version was recorded by Emry Arthur in 1928, which gave the song its current titles. There exist a number of versions of the song that differ in their lyrics and melodies. The song was popularized by The Stanley Brothers, who recorded the song in the 1950s, and many other singers recorded versions in the 1960s, most notably by Bob Dylan. Variations of the song have also been recorded under the titles of "Girl of Constant Sorrow" by Joan Baez, "Maid of Constant Sorrow" by Judy Collins, and "Sorrow" by Peter, Paul and Mary. In 1970 the song was recorded by Ginger Baker's Air Force, with vocals by Denny Laine, and reached No. 85 on the Billboard Chart. Public interest in the song was renewed after the release of the 2000 film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, where it plays a central role in the plot, earning the three runaway protagonists public recognition as the Soggy Bottom Boys. The song, with lead vocal by Dan Tyminski, was also included in the film's highly successful, multiple-platinum-selling soundtrack. This recording won a Grammy for Best Country Collaboration at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards in 2002. The song was first published in 1913 with the title "Farewell Song" in a six- song songbook by Dick Burnett, titled Songs Sung by R. D. Burnett—The Blind Man—Monticello, Kentucky. There exists some uncertainty as to whether Dick Burnett is the original writer. In an interview he gave toward the end of his life, he said this: Whether or not Burnett is the original writer, his work on the song can be dated to about 1913. The lyrics from the second verse—'Oh, six long year I've been blind, friends'—would hold true with the year he was blinded, 1907. Burnett may have tailored an already existing song to fit his blindness, and some claimed that he derived it from "The White Rose" and "Down in the Tennessee Valley" circa 1907. Burnett also said he thought he based the melody on an old Baptist hymn he remembered as "Wandering Boy". However, according to hymnologist John Garst, no song with this or a similar title had a tune that can be identified with "Constant Sorrow". Garst nevertheless noted that parts of the lyrics suggest a possible antecedent hymn, and that the term 'man of sorrows' is religious in nature and appears in Isaiah 53:3. The song has some similarities to the hymn "Poor Pilgrim," also known as "I Am a Poor Pilgrim of Sorrow," which George Pullen Jackson speculated to have been derived from a folk song of English origin titled "The Green Mossy Banks of the Lea." Emry Arthur, a friend of Burnett, released a recording of the song in 1928, also claimed to have written it. Arthur titled his recording "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow", the name which came to be more popularly known. The lyrics of Burnett and Arthur are very similar with minor variations. Although Burnett's version was recorded earlier in 1927, Columbia Records failed to release Burnett's recording; Arthur's single was thus the earliest recording of the song to be released, and the tune and lyrics of Arthur's version became the source from which most later versions were ultimately derived. A number of similar songs were found in Kentucky and Virginia in the early 20th century. English folk song collector Cecil Sharp collected four versions of the song in 1917–1918 as "In Old Virginny", which were published in 1932 in English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians. The lyrics were different in details from Burnett's but similar in tone. In a version from 1918 by Mrs Frances Richards, who probably learnt it from her father, the first verse is nearly identical to Burnett's & Arthur's lyrics, with minor changes like Virginia substituting for Kentucky. The song is thought to be related to several songs such as "East Virginia Blues". Norman Lee Vass of Virginia claimed his brother Mat wrote the song in the 1890s, and the Virginia versions of the song show some relationship to Vass's version, even though his melody and most of his verses are unique. It is thought that this variant was influenced by "Come All You Fair and Tender Ladies"/"The Little Sparrow". An older version was dated to around 1850, but with texts that differ substantially. John Garst traced elements of the song back to the hymns of the early 1800s, suggesting similarity in its tune to "Tender-Hearted Christians" and "Judgment Hymn", and similarity in its lyrics to "Christ Suffering", which included the lines "He was a man of constant sorrow / He went a mourner all his days." On October 13, 2009, on the Diane Rehm Show, Ralph Stanley of the Stanley Brothers, whose autobiography is titled Man of Constant Sorrow, discussed the song, its origin, and his effort to revive it: Many later singers have put new and varied lyrics to the song. Most versions have the singer riding a train fleeing trouble, regretting not seeing his old love, and contemplating his future death, with the promise that he will meet his friends or lover again on the beautiful or golden shore. Most variants start with similar lines in the first verse as the 1913 Burnett's version, some with variations such as gender and home state, along with some other minor changes: The 1928 recording by Emry Arthur is largely consistent with Burnett's lyrics, with only minor differences. However, the reference to blindness in the second verse of Burnett's lyrics, "six long year I've been blind", had been changed to "six long years I've been in trouble", a change also found in other later versions that contain the verse. In around 1936, Sarah Ogan Gunning rewrote the traditional "Man" into a more personal "Girl". Gunning remembered the melody from a 78-rpm hillbilly record (Emry Arthur, 1928) she had heard some years before in the mountains, but the lyrics she wrote were considerably different from the original after the first verse. The change of gender is also found in Joan Baez's "Girl of Constant Sorrow" and another variant of the song similar to Baez's, Judy Collins's title song from her album A Maid of Constant Sorrow. In 1950, The Stanley Brothers recorded a version of the song they had learnt from their father. The Stanley Brothers' version contains some modifications to the lyrics, with an entire verse of Burnett's version removed, the last line is also different and 'parents' of the second verse have turned into 'friends.' The performances of the song by the Stanley Brothers and Mike Seeger contributed to the song's popularity in the urban folksong circles during the American folk music revival of the 50s and 60s. Bob Dylan recorded his version in 1961, which is a rewrite based on versions performed by other folk singers such as Joan Baez and Mike Seeger. A verse from the Stanleys' version was removed, and other verses were significantly rearranged and rewritten. Dylan also added personal elements, changing 'friends' to 'mother' in the line 'Your mother says that I'm a stranger' in reference to his then girlfriend Suze Rotolo's mother. In Dylan's version, Kentucky was changed to Colorado; this change of the state of origin is common, for example, Kentucky is changed to California in "Girl of Constant Sorrow" by Joan Baez and "Maid of Constant Sorrow" by Judy Collins. Aside from the lyrics, there are also significant variations in the melody of the song in many of these versions. Burnett recorded the song in 1927 with Columbia; this version was unreleased and the master recording destroyed. The first commercially released record was by Emry Arthur, on January 18, 1928. He sang it while playing his guitar and accompanied by banjoist Dock Boggs. The record was released by Vocalion Records (Vo 5208) and sold well, and he recorded it again in 1931. As the first released recording of the song, its melody and lyrics formed the basis for subsequent versions and variations. Although a few singers had also recorded the song, it faded to relative obscurity until The Stanley Brothers recorded their version in 1950 and helped popularized the song in the 1960s. The use of the song in the 2000 film O Brother, Where Art Thou? led to its renewed popularity in the 21st century. The song has since been covered by many singers, from the Norwegian girl-group Katzenjammer to the winner of the eighth season of The Voice Sawyer Fredericks. On November 3, 1950, The Stanley Brothers recorded their version of the song with Columbia Records at the Castle Studios in Nashville. The Stanleys learned the song from their father Lee Stanley who had turned the song into a hymn sung a cappella in the Primitive Baptist tradition. The arrangement of the song in the recording however was their own and they performed the song in a faster tempo. This recording, titled "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow", was released in May 1951 together with "The Lonesome River" as a single (Columbia 20816). Neither Burnett nor Arthur copyrighted the song, which allowed Carter Stanley to copyright the song as his own work. On September 15, 1959, the Stanley Brothers re-recorded the song on King Records for their album Everybody's Country Favorite. Ralph Stanley sang the solo all the way through in the 1950 version, but in the 1959 version he was joined by other members of the band in added refrains. The fiddle and mandolin of the early version were also replaced by guitar, and a verse was omitted. This version (King 45-5269) was released together with "How Mountain Girls Can Love" as a single that October 1959. In July 1959, the Stanley Brothers performed the song at the Newport Folk Festival, which brought the song to the attention of other folk singers. It led to a number of recordings of the song in the 1960s, most notably by Joan Baez (1960), Bob Dylan (1961), Judy Collins (1961), and Peter, Paul and Mary (1962). In November 1961 Bob Dylan recorded the song, which was included as a track on his 1962 eponymous debut album as "Man of Constant Sorrow". Dylan's version is a rewrite of the versions sung by Joan Baez, New Lost City Ramblers (Mike Seeger's band), and others in the early 1960s. Dylan also performed the song during his first national US television appearance, in the spring of 1963. Dylan's version of the song was used by other singers and bands of 1960s and 70s, such as Rod Stewart and Ginger Baker's Air Force. Dylan performed a different version of the song that is a new adaptation of Stanleys' lyrics in his 1988 Never Ending Tour. He performed the song intermittently in the 1990s, and also performed it in his European tour in 2002. A performance was released in 2005 on the Martin Scorsese PBS television documentary on Dylan, No Direction Home, and on the accompanying soundtrack album, . The song was recorded in 1970 by Ginger Baker's Air Force and sung by Air Force guitarist and vocalist (and former Moody Blues, future Wings member) Denny Laine. The single was studio recorded, but a live version, recorded at the Royal Albert Hall, was included in their eponymous 1970 debut album. The band used a melody similar to Dylan's, and for the most part also Dylan's lyrics (but substituting 'Birmingham' for 'Colorado'). The arrangement differed significantly, with violin, electric guitar, and saxophones, although it stayed mainly in the major scales of A, D and E. It was the band's only chart single. A notable cover, titled "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow", was produced by the fictional folk/bluegrass group The Soggy Bottom Boys from the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?. The producer T Bone Burnett had previously suggested the Stanley Brothers' recording as a song for The Dude in the Coen brothers' film The Big Lebowski, but it did not make the cut. For their next collaboration, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, he realized that the song would suit the main character well. The initial plan was for the song to be sung by the film's lead actor, George Clooney; however, it was found that his recording was not up to the required standard. Burnett later said that he had only two or three weeks to work with Clooney, which was not enough time to prepare Clooney for the recording of a credible hit country record. The song was recorded by Dan Tyminski (lead vocal), with Harley Allen and Pat Enright, based on the Stanleys' version. Tyminski also wrote, played, and changed the guitar part of the arrangement. Two versions by Tyminski were found in the soundtrack album, with different backup instruments. In the film, it was a hit for the Soggy Bottom Boys, and would later become a real hit off-screen. Tyminski has performed the song at the Crossroads Guitar Festival with Ron Block and live with Alison Krauss. The song received a CMA Award for "Single of the Year" in 2001 and a Grammy for "Best Country Collaboration with Vocals" in 2002. The song was also named Song of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association in 2001. It peaked at No. 35 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. It has sold over a million copies in the United States by November 2016. 1920s – American Delta blues artist Delta Blind Billy in his song "Hidden Man Blues" had the line 'Man of sorrow all my days / Left the home where I been raised.', 1937 – Alan Lomax recorded Sarah Ogan Gunning's performance of her version, "I Am a Girl of Constant Sorrow", for the Library of Congress's Archive of American Folk Song. Her version was also covered by other singers such as Peggy Seeger (her melody however is more similar to Arthur's version), Tossi Aaron, and Barbara Dane. She recorded the song again at the 1964 Newport Folk Festival, and also released a recording in her album, Girl of Constant Sorrow, in 1965., 1947 – Lee and Juanita Moore's performance at a radio station WPAQ was recorded and later released in 1999. They were granted a new copyright registration in 1939 for their treatment of the song., 1960 – A version of the song, "Girl of Constant Sorrow", was recorded by Joan Baez in the summer of 1960. This version however was left off the original release of her debut album Joan Baez in 1960 on the Vanguard label, but was included as a bonus track on the 2001 CD-reissue version of the album. Baez has also recorded "Man of Constant Sorrow" with no change in gender., 1961 – Judy Collins's 1961 debut album, A Maid of Constant Sorrow, took its name from a variant of the song which was included on the album., 1961 – Roscoe Holcomb recorded a version., 1962 – It appears on Mike Seeger's album Old Time Country Music, Folkways FA 2325. Mike Seeger recorded three versions of the song., 1962 – in their 1962 self-titled debut album, Peter, Paul and Mary recorded another version as "Sorrow"., 1966 – It was recorded by Waylon Jennings on his 1966 major-label debut Folk-Country., 1969 – Rod Stewart covered the song in his debut solo album. It was based on Dylan's version but with his own arrangement., 1972 – An a cappella version appears on The Dillards' 1972 LP Roots and Branches. This version had only two verses and replaced Kentucky with Missouri., 1993 – "Man of Constant Sorrow" was one of many songs recorded by Jerry Garcia, David Grisman, and Tony Rice one weekend in February 1993. Jerry's taped copy of the session was later stolen by his pizza delivery man, eventually became an underground classic, and finally edited and released in 2000 as The Pizza Tapes., 2003 \- Skeewiff "Man of Constant Sorrow" was ranked 96 in the Triple J Hottest 100, 2003, released on Volume 11 disk 1 track 20., 2012 \- Charm City Devils released "Man Of Constant Sorrow" which charted on various Billboard rock charts - No. 25 on Mainstream Rock Songs No. 22 on Active Rock, and No. 48 on Hot Rock Songs., 2015 – Dwight Yoakam covered the song in his album Second Hand Heart. Yoakam's rendition has been described as having a 'rockabilly' sound., 2015 – Blitzen Trapper covered the song exclusively for the black comedy–crime drama television series Fargo, which played over the credits of the "Rhinoceros" episode of the second season., 2018 – Home Free, covered the song in a country / a capella style. It was released also on their album Timeless. Contains lyrics for Burnett's and the 1950 Stanley Brothers' versions, Lyrics for Bob Dylan's 1961 recording and Stanley Brothers' 1959 version from Newport Folk Festival, \- Maid of Constant Sorrow by Judy Collins, \- Man of Constant Sorrow by The Soggy Bottom Boys Richard Daniel (Dick) Burnett (October 8, 1883 – January 23, 1977) was an American folk musician and songwriter from Kentucky. Burnett was born near Monticello, Kentucky. Blind for most of his life, he was a full-time travelling entertainer. With fiddler Leonard Rutherford he formed a long touring partnership, and a brief recording career in which they cut a number of popular and influential sides with Burnett on banjo or guitar. Both men also sang. Burnett has been described as "one of the great natural songsters, a man who collected, codified, and transmitted some of our best traditional songs. Dick was also a skilful composer and folk poet of considerable skill; his "Man of Constant Sorrow" remains one of the most evocative country songs." Burnett was born in the area around the head of Elk Springs, about seven miles north of Monticello. He remembered little of his farming parents. His father died when he was only four and his mother died when he was twelve. Burnett did say that his mother told him how his father would carry him in his arms when he was only four years old and he would help his dad sing. It is notable that Burnett's grandparents were of German and English descent and that particular ancestral influence would be instrumental in forming Burnett's musical career. At the age of seven, Burnett was playing the dulcimer; at nine he was playing the banjo, and at thirteen he had learned to play the fiddle. Unusually for the time, he also learned the guitar, which was still a novelty in that area. As a teenager, then as a married man with a child, Dick Burnett worked extensively as a wheat thresher, logger, oil driller and oilfield tool fitter. Then in 1907 he sustained a gunshot explosion in his face while fighting off a mugger. Surgeons were unable to save his eyesight, so he resorted to support himself and his family by his music. Almost prophetically, his boss made the following statement to Burnett: "Well, you can still make it; you can make it with your music. Musicians in Wayne County could elicit small change from audiences drawn from people frequenting or passing through the Monticello Courthouse Square. To earn a proper income, Dick was forced to travel to as many different places as he could reach by train or on foot. At other courthouses, at rail stations and on street corners, he would perform to attract a crowd. While other street musicians might place a hat on the ground, he accepted contributions in a tin cup tied to his leg. Even before he lost his sight, he had sought to enlarge his repertoire by composing his own songs. He felt that he had "learned the rudiments of music" by virtue of attending five singing schools and studying one book "up to where I could compose my own songs, set the music to it, and time it out". With this confidence, he composed more and more songs, which increased his earning power in two ways: they added novelty to his performance; and he could earn extra by selling the lyrics. For the most part he had individual song lyrics printed on cards he called "ballets", but occasionally he compiled songbooks such as his 1913 compilation of six songs. Some of these were from other singers, dealing with disasters such as the sinking of the Titanic and the wreck of the FFV but two were notably personal: the autobiographical Song of the Orphan Boy, which was later recorded but not released, and the semi-autobiographical Farewell Song, with its opening line "I am a man of constant sorrow". Burnett himself never recorded the song, but his friend Emry Arthur learned it and recorded it accompanied his brother Henry using the opening line as title. The Arthur family lived in Wayne County not far from Monticello, and shared many songs with Burnett. He recalled leaning one song from a ballet card from a third brother Sam. He acquired more ballets by exchanges with other blind musicians he met on his travels. Having learned the tune by listening, he would have the lyrics read to him until he had learned the whole song. To add further variety to his increasingly rich repertoire, Dick Burnett purchased novelty gadgets that made non-musical noises. These sounds, together with shouts and dance calls, added an element of extrovert showmanship to his performances, which he described as "monkey business". see also Leonard Rutherford In around 1914, Burnett proposed to solve the problem of travelling as a blind man by employing teenaged Leonard Rutherford as sighted companion. Their first trip together was to the nearby Lauren County Fair, then young Leonard spent more and more time with the older man, becoming a permanent companion when his parents died. Burnett was not his only music teacher; he learned from other South Kentucky fiddlers, including the African American Cuje Bertram. But playing with Dick made him a professional musician, and from him he learned the old style of playing in unison with the banjo. As his fiddling improved, it became profitable to range further afield by horse bus and railroad. Eventually Burnett bought a car, which Rutherford learned to drive, thus allowing them to travel in Burnett's words "from Cincinnati to Chattanooga" playing "every town this side of Nashville". They traveled by bus, Model A, and on foot to any place they could and sing. From about 1914 until 1950, the pair became so popular that they found themselves in the company of most all the popular mountain musicians of the time. They were "at home" in the presence of the Carter Family, Charlie Oaks, Arthur Smith and many others. They appeared at the Renfro Valley Barn Dance, on radio stations in Cincinnati, and finally, they would be some of the first old-time musicians to enter the recording studios. One particularly profitable area for them was the coal fields of Virginia. It was in In Bonny Blue Coal Camp, Virginia in 1926 that they encountered a general store owner specialising in phonograph records, who recommended them to Columbia records. In 1926 the country music sector of the recording industry was on the point of expansion. Columbia Records had started its dedicated 3500-D series 1924 for the "Old Familiar Tunes" country market, without many authentic southern performers. But Columbia had some success with groups such as the north Georgia Skillet Lickers, the Virginia Blue Ridge Highballers and the band of North Carolina Charlie Poole. Columbia's A&R; manager Frank Walker was prepared to record more southern musicians, and invited Burnett and Rutherford to a November "field recording" session in November at a temporary studio in Atlanta. At this first session Burnett and Rutherford recorded six sides, which were issued in 1927 as three 78 rpm records and sold very well. Country Music historian Charles Wolfe considers that the success of these records encouraged Frank Walker to shift Columbia's emphasis from stuudio singers such as Vernon Dalhart to authentic southern artists. The best seller of the three with Lost John A-side sold 37,600 copies in three years, an astonishing figure for that market at the time. Profitable as the records were for Columbia, Dick and Leonard received only sixty dollars per side and their expenses. Dick Burnett did find a way to profit from their records. He bought many copies wholesale from Columbia and sold them at his performances, just as he had previously sold his ballets and songbooks. Burnett and Rutherford were invited to the Columbia's next Atlanta sessions in April and November 1927. The ten numbers included Dicks' autobiographical Song Of The Orphan Boy, which was not issued, a record with two sides of dance tunes without a vocal (enlivened by Dick's "monkey business" in the form of kazoo and jew's harp imitations), and a version of Hesitation Blues backed by Dick's adaptation of the well-known Danville Girl. Another blues, All Night Long was backed by the ballad Wilie Moore, which was reissued on the influential 1952 Harry Smith Anthology of American Folk Music, thus introducing Burnett and Rutherford to the new market of the American folk music revival. The next year, dissatisfied with their payment they broke from Columbia and recorded with Gennett Records. This involved travel to the Northern recording studio, but Gennett's base in Richmond, Indiana was more accessible from Kentucky than those of other Northern record companies. Newly partnered with guitarist Byrd Moore, they recorded five sides in October 1928. One of these was rejected, so Cumberland Gap was issued with a reverse recorded by Burnett and Moore with another fiddler, Charles Taylor. Click on a label to change the sorting. 1001tunes.com O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 crime comedy-drama film written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson, with John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning in supporting roles. The film is set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression. Its story is a modern satire loosely based on Homer's epic poem The Odyssey that incorporates mythology from the American South. The title of the film is a reference to the Preston Sturges 1941 film Sullivan's Travels, in which the protagonist is a director who wants to film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, a fictional book about the Great Depression. Much of the music used in the film is period folk music, including that of Virginia bluegrass singer Ralph Stanley. The movie was one of the first to extensively use digital color correction to give the film an autumnal, sepia-tinted look. The film received positive reviews, and the soundtrack won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 2001 using American folk music. The country and folk musicians who were dubbed into the film included John Hartford, Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, Chris Sharp, Patty Loveless, and others. They joined together to perform the music from the film in a Down from the Mountain concert tour which was filmed for TV and DVD. In 1937 Mississippi during the Great Depression, three convicts, Ulysses Everett McGill, Pete Hogwallop, and Delmar O'Donnell, escape from a chain gang and set out to retrieve a treasure Everett claims to have buried from an armored truck robbery, before its locale is flooded to make a lake and provide electricity for the state. The three get a lift from a blind man driving a handcar on a railway. He tells them, among other prophecies, that they will find a fortune but not the one they seek. The trio make their way to the house of Wash, Pete's cousin. They sleep in the barn, but because he needs the money, Wash reports them to Sheriff Cooley, who, along with his men, torches the barn. After Pete angrily blows up Cooley's police van, Wash's son helps them escape. Pete and Delmar are baptized by a group of Christians at a river. The trio then picks up Tommy Johnson, a young black man, who claims he has sold his soul to the devil in exchange for the ability to play the guitar. In need of money, the four stop at a radio broadcast station where they record a song as the Soggy Bottom Boys. That night, the trio part ways with Tommy after their car is discovered by the police. Unbeknownst to them, the recording becomes a major hit. The trio inadvertently fall in with bank robber George "Baby Face" Nelson, and help him with a heist, before he leaves them with his share of the loot. The next day, the group hears singing. They see three ladies washing clothes in a river and singing. The ladies drug them with corn liquor and they lose consciousness. Upon waking, Delmar finds Pete's clothes lying next to him, empty except for a toad. Delmar is convinced the ladies were Sirens and transformed Pete into the toad. Later, one-eyed Bible salesman Big Dan Teague invites them for a picnic lunch, then mugs them and kills the toad. Everett and Delmar arrive in Everett's home town. Everett confronts his wife Penny, who has resumed her maiden name and told his daughters he was dead. He picks a fight with Vernon T. Waldrip, her new "bona fide" fiancé and ultimately loses. They next see Pete working on a chain gang and later that night sneak into Pete's holding cell and free him. As it turns out, the ladies at the river had dragged Pete away and turned him over to the authorities, at which, and under torture, Pete gave away the location of the treasure to the police. Everett then confesses that there is no treasure. He made it up to convince the others he was chained with to escape with him to stop his wife from getting married, and the real reason he was imprisoned was for practicing law unlicensed. Pete is enraged at Everett, because he had two weeks left on his original sentence, and must now serve 50 more years for the escape. The trio stumble upon a night rally of the Ku Klux Klan, who are planning to hang Tommy. They disguise themselves as the Color Guard and attempt to rescue Tommy. Big Dan, who is revealed to be a Klansman, unmasks them. Chaos ensues, and the Grand Wizard reveals himself as Homer Stokes, a candidate in the upcoming gubernatorial election. The trio rush Tommy away and cut the supports of a large, flaming cross, leaving it to fall onto Big Dan. Everett convinces Pete, Delmar and Tommy to help him win his wife back. They sneak into a Homer Stokes gala campaign dinner that she is attending, disguised as bearded musicians. The group begins a performance of "Man of Constant Sorrow", and the crowd goes wild. Stokes recognizes them as the group who interfered with his mob. Furious, he interrupts the group's performance and demands them to be arrested, but when he reveals his white supremacist views, the crowd runs him out of town on a rail. Pappy O'Daniel, the incumbent candidate, seizes the opportunity, endorses the Soggy Bottom Boys and grants them full pardons. Penny agrees to marry Everett with the condition that he find her original ring. The next morning, the group sets out to retrieve the ring, which she says is in a rolltop desk, at a cabin in the Tennessee Valley, which Everett had earlier said was the location of his treasure. Having forced the location out of Pete, Sheriff Cooley is waiting with ropes ready to hang them, callously dismissing their claims of having pardons from the governor. Just as Everett prays to God, the valley is flooded, and they are saved. Tommy finds the ring in the rolltop desk and the four return to town and go their separate ways. When Everett presents the ring to Penny, it turns out not to be the right ring. She continues to insist they need the real ring, despite Everett's protests that it was lost in the flood. The blind man is seen pushing his handcar once again. George Clooney as Ulysses Everett McGill, a man who is imprisoned for practicing law without a license. He claims to have escaped from prison so he can find a stash of money he had hidden, though in reality it is so he can get back to his family before his wife remarries. He corresponds to Odysseus (Ulysses) in the Odyssey., John Turturro as Pete Hogwallop, a fellow criminal who reveals little about his past. He believes in being true to one's kin, even when his cousin Washington B. Hogwallop betrays him. He dreams of moving out west and opening a fine restaurant, where he will be the maître d'. He agreed to go along with the breakout, though he only had two weeks left on his sentence. Along with Delmar, Pete represents Odysseus' soldiers who wander with him from Troy to Ithaca, seeking to return home., Tim Blake Nelson as Delmar O'Donnell, a small-time crook imprisoned for robbing a Piggly Wiggly in Yazoo City; he initially claims innocence but later admits he is guilty. Delmar says he will spend his share of Everett's nonexistent money buying back his family farm, believing, "You ain't no kind of man if you ain't got land." Along with Pete, Delmar represents Odysseus' soldiers who wander with him from Troy to Ithaca, seeking to return home., Chris Thomas King as Tommy Johnson, a skilled blues musician. He is the accompanying guitarist in the Soggy Bottom Boys. He claims he sold his soul to the devil in exchange for his skill on the guitar. He shares his name and story with Tommy Johnson, a blues musician with a mysterious past, who is said to have sold his soul to the devil at the Crossroads (a story more often attributed to Robert Johnson)., Frank Collison as Washington Bartholomew "Wash" Hogwallop, Pete's paternal cousin. He removes the escapees' chains but later betrays the men to the police., John Goodman as Daniel "Big Dan" Teague, a one-eyed man who masquerades as a Bible salesman and mugs Everett and Delmar. He later reveals the identity of the trio when they are disguised at a Ku Klux Klan rally, but they escape by cutting loose a burning cross, which falls on him and the Klansmen. He corresponds to the cyclops Polyphemus in the Odyssey., Holly Hunter as Penny Wharvey-McGill, Everett's ex-wife, who is fed up with Everett's wheeling and dealing. She divorces him while he is in prison, telling their daughters he was hit by a Louisville & Nashville train. She is engaged to Vernon T. Waldrip until Everett wins her back. She corresponds to Penelope in the Odyssey. (Penelope is an icon of the faithful wife, as she rejected her many suitors, stalling for time while awaiting Odysseus' return.), Charles Durning as Menelaus "Pappy" O'Daniel, the incumbent Governor of Mississippi. He is frequently seen berating his son and his campaign managers, who are depicted as simpletons. The character is based on Texas governor W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel. (Flensted-Jensen elaborates on the connection between the fictional and the real Pappy O'Daniel.) He shares a name with Menelaus, an Odyssey character, but corresponds with Zeus from the narrative., Daniel von Bargen as Sheriff Cooley, a ruthless rural sheriff who, with his bloodhound, pursues the trio for the duration of the film. It is implied several times that he is the devil incarnate, and Cooley fits Tommy Johnson's description of Satan: Cooley's sunglasses evoke Satan's "big empty eyes." He eventually ambushes the escapees after they have been pardoned by the governor. He intends to hang them nonetheless, but when the valley is flooded, he, his men, and his dog all drown. He corresponds to Poseidon in the Odyssey. He has been compared to Boss Godfrey in Cool Hand Luke., Wayne Duvall as Homer Stokes, the reform candidate in the upcoming election for Governor. He travels the countryside with a dwarf, who depicts the "little man", and a broom, with which he promises to "sweep this state clean." He is secretly an Imperial Wizard in the Ku Klux Klan. He falsely identifies Everett, Pete, and Delmar as black people because they darkened their faces to remain unseen when freeing Tommy., Ray McKinnon as Vernon T. Waldrip, Penny's bona fide suitor and the manager of Homer Stokes's election campaign. It has been suggested that his name is a nod to novelist Howard Waldrop, whose novella A Dozen Tough Jobs is one of the inspirations for the film. He corresponds to the Suitors of Penelope in the Odyssey., Michael Badalucco as George Nelson, a bipolar bank robber who dislikes being called "Baby Face." The real George Nelson died in 1934, three years before the story is set. Nelson died in a shootout known as the Battle of Barrington rather than by electric chair, as suggested in the film., Stephen Root as Mr. Lund, the blind radio station manager who records Everett's story in the song "Man of Constant Sorrow" and makes him known throughout the state. He corresponds to Homer., Lee Weaver as the Blind Seer, a mysterious railroad man who accurately predicts the outcome of the trio's adventure as well as several other incidents. He corresponds to Tiresias in the Odyssey., Mia Tate, Musetta Vander and Christy Taylor as the three "Sirens". The idea of O Brother, Where Art Thou? arose spontaneously. Work on the script began in December 1997, long before the start of production, and was at least half-written by May 1998. Despite the fact that Ethan Coen described the Odyssey as "one of my favorite storyline schemes", neither of the brothers had read the epic, and they were only familiar with its content through adaptations and numerous references to the Odyssey in popular culture. According to the brothers, Nelson (who has a degree in classics from Brown University) was the only person on the set who had read the Odyssey. The title of the film is a reference to the 1941 Preston Sturges film Sullivan's Travels, in which the protagonist (a director) wants to direct a film about the Great Depression called O Brother, Where Art Thou? that will be a "commentary on modern conditions, stark realism, and the problems that confront the average man". Lacking any experience in this area, the director sets out on a journey to experience the human suffering of the average man but is sabotaged by his anxious studio. The film has some similarity in tone to Sturges's film, including scenes with prison gangs and a black church choir. The prisoners at the picture show scene is also a direct homage to a nearly identical scene in Sturges's film. Joel Coen revealed in a 2000 interview that he traveled to Phoenix to offer the lead role to Clooney. Clooney agreed to do the role immediately, without reading the script. He stated that he liked even the Coens' least successful films. Clooney did not immediately understand his character and sent the script to his uncle Jack, who lived in Kentucky, asking him to read the entire script into a tape recorder. Unknown to Clooney, in his recording, Jack, a devout Baptist, omitted all instances of the words "damn" and "hell" from the Coens' script, which only became known to Clooney after the directors pointed this out to him during shooting. This was the fourth film of the brothers in which John Turturro has starred. Other actors in O Brother, Where Art Thou? who had worked previously with the Coens include John Goodman (three films), Holly Hunter (two), Charles Durning (two) and Michael Badalucco (one). The Coens used digital color correction to give the film a sepia-tinted look. Joel stated this was because the actual set was "greener than Ireland". Cinematographer Roger Deakins stated, "Ethan and Joel favored a dry, dusty Delta look with golden sunsets. They wanted it to look like an old hand-tinted picture, with the intensity of colors dictated by the scene and natural skin tones that were all shades of the rainbow." Initially the crew tried to perform the color correction using a physical process, however after several tries with various chemical processes proved unsatisfactory, it became necessary to perform the process digitally. This was the fifth film collaboration between the Coen Brothers and Deakins, and it was slated to be shot in Mississippi at a time of year when the foliage, grass, trees, and bushes would be a lush green. It was filmed near locations in Canton, Mississippi, and Florence, South Carolina, in the summer of 1999. After shooting tests, including film bipack and bleach bypass techniques, Deakins suggested digital mastering be used. Deakins spent 11 weeks fine-tuning the look, mainly targeting the greens, making them a burnt yellow and desaturating the overall image in the digital files. This made it the first feature film to be entirely color corrected by digital means, narrowly beating Nick Park's Chicken Run. O Brother, Where Art Thou? was the first time a digital intermediate was used on the entirety of a first-run Hollywood film that otherwise had very few visual effects. The work was done in Los Angeles by Cinesite using a Spirit DataCine for scanning at 2K resolution, a Pandora MegaDef to adjust the color, and a Kodak Lightning II recorder to put out to film. A major theme of the film is the connection between old-time music and political campaigning in the Southern U.S. It makes reference to the traditions, institutions, and campaign practices of bossism and political reform that defined Southern politics in the first half of the 20th century. The Ku Klux Klan, at the time a political force of white populism, is depicted burning crosses and engaging in ceremonial dance. The character Menelaus "Pappy" O'Daniel, the governor of Mississippi and host of the radio show The Flour Hour, is similar in name and demeanor to W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel, one- time Governor of Texas and later U.S. Senator from that state. W. Lee O'Daniel was in the flour business, and used a backing band called the Light Crust Doughboys on his radio show. In one campaign, W. Lee O'Daniel carried a broom, an oft-used campaign device in the reform era, promising to sweep away patronage and corruption. His theme song had the hook, "Please pass the biscuits, Pappy", emphasizing his connection with flour. While the film borrows from historic politics, differences are obvious between the characters in the film and historical political figures. The O'Daniel of the movie used "You Are My Sunshine" as his theme song (which was originally recorded by singer and Governor of Louisiana James Houston "Jimmie" Davis), and Homer Stokes, as the challenger to the incumbent O'Daniel, portrays himself as the "reform candidate", using a broom as a prop. Music was originally conceived as a major component of the film, not merely as a background or a support. Producer and musician T Bone Burnett worked with the Coens while the script was still in its working phases and the soundtrack was recorded before filming commenced. Much of the music used in the film is period-specific folk music, including that of Virginia bluegrass singer Ralph Stanley. The musical selection also includes religious music, including Primitive Baptist and traditional African American gospel, most notably the Fairfield Four, an a cappella quartet with a career extending back to 1921 who appear in the soundtrack and as gravediggers towards the film's end. Selected songs in the film reflect the possible spectrum of musical styles typical of the old culture of the American South: gospel, delta blues, country, swing and bluegrass. The use of dirges and other macabre songs is a theme that often recurs in Appalachian music ("O Death", "Lonesome Valley", "Angel Band", "I Am Weary") in contrast to bright, cheerful songs ("Keep On the Sunny Side", "In the Highways") in other parts of the film. The voices of the Soggy Bottom Boys were provided by Dan Tyminski (lead vocal on "Man of Constant Sorrow"), Nashville songwriter Harley Allen, and the Nashville Bluegrass Band's Pat Enright. The three won a CMA Award for Single of the Year and a Grammy Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals, both for the song "Man of Constant Sorrow". Tim Blake Nelson sang the lead vocal on "In the Jailhouse Now". "Man of Constant Sorrow" has five variations: two are used in the film, one in the music video, and two in the soundtrack album. Two of the variations feature the verses being sung back-to-back, and the other three variations feature additional music between each verse. Though the song received little significant radio airplay, it reached #35 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in 2002. The version of "I'll Fly Away" heard in the film is performed not by Krauss and Welch (as it is on the CD and concert tour), but by the Kossoy Sisters with Erik Darling accompanying on long-neck five-string banjo, recorded in 1956 for the album Bowling Green on Tradition Records. The film premiered at the AFI Film Festival on October 19, 2000. It grossed $71,868,327 worldwide off its $26 million budget. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives it a score of 77% based on 150 reviews and an average score of 7.12/10. The consensus reads: "Though not as good as Coen brothers' classics such as Blood Simple, the delightfully loopy O Brother, Where Art Thou? is still a lot of fun." The film holds an average score of 69/100 on Metacritic based on 30 reviews. Roger Ebert gave two and a half out of four stars to the film, saying all the scenes in the film were "wonderful in their different ways, and yet I left the movie uncertain and unsatisfied". The film was selected into the main competition of the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. The film also received two Academy Award nominations at the 73rd Academy Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Cinematography. Cinematographer Roger Deakins was recognized with both Academy Award and ASC Outstanding Achievement Award nominations for his work on the film. For his portrayal of Ulysses Everett McGill, George Clooney received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. The film was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. The Soggy Bottom Boys is the musical group that the main characters form to serve as accompaniment for the film. The name is in homage to the Foggy Mountain Boys, a bluegrass band led by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. In the film, the songs credited to the band are lip-synched by the actors, except that Tim Blake Nelson does sing his own vocals on "In the Jailhouse Now". The band's hit single is Dick Burnett's "Man of Constant Sorrow", a song that had enjoyed much success prior to the movie's release. After the film's release, the fictitious band became so popular that the country and folk musicians who were dubbed into the film got together and performed the music from the film in a Down from the Mountain concert tour, which was filmed for TV and DVD. This included Ralph Stanley, John Hartford, Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, Chris Sharp, and others. American Studies at the University of Virginia

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Taxation in the Republic of Ireland in 2017 came from Personal Income taxes (40% of Exchequer Tax Revenues, or ETR), and Consumption taxes, being VAT (27% of ETR) and Excise and Customs duties (12% of ETR). Corporation taxes (16% of ETR) represents most of the balance (to 95% of ETR), but Ireland's Corporate Tax System (CT) is a central part of Ireland's economic model. Ireland summarises its taxation policy using the OECD's Hierarchy of Taxes pyramid (see graphic), which emphasises high corporate tax rates as the most harmful types of taxes where economic growth is the objective. The balance of Ireland's taxes are Property taxes (<3% of ETR, being Stamp duty and LPT) and Capital taxes (<3% of ETR, being CGT and CAT). An issue in comparing the Irish tax system to other economies is adjusting for the artificial inflation of Irish GDP by the base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) tools of U.S. multinationals in Ireland. In 2017, the Central Bank of Ireland replaced Irish GDP with Irish GNI* to remove the distortion; 2017 GDP was 162% of 2017 GNI* (EU–28 2017 GDP was 100% of GNI). Properly adjusted, Ireland's Total Gross Tax-to-GNI* ratio of 36% is in-line with the EU–28 average (36%), and above the OECD average (33%); Ireland's Exchequer Tax-to-GNI* ratio of 28%, is in line with the EU–28 average (28%), and the OECD average (27%). Within these aggregate taxation metrics, the most distinctive differences between Ireland's taxation system and those of the average EU–28 and OECD taxation systems, are lower net Irish Social Security Contributions (i.e. PRSI less child benefits), offset by higher Irish Corporation tax receipts. Within Ireland's taxation system, the most distinctive element is the ratio of net Personal Income taxes on higher earners versus lower earners, which is called progressivity. In 2016, the OECD ranked Irish personal taxation as the 2nd most progressive tax system in the OECD, with the top 10% of earners paying 60% of taxes. The 2018 OCED Taxing Wages study showed Irish average single and average married wage- earners paid some of the lowest effective employment tax rates in the OECD, with Irish average married wage-earners paying an employee tax rate of 1.2%. In 2018, the Irish Revenue disclosed that 80% of 2017 Irish corporate tax was paid by foreign multinationals, and the top 10 multinationals paid 40% of Irish Corporation tax in 2017. Ireland's Corporate tax system is controversial and has drawn labels of Ireland as a tax haven. In June 2017, Ireland's CT system was ranked as one of the world's largest Conduit OFCs (i.e. places that act as links to tax havens), in March 2018 the Financial Stability Forum ranked Ireland as the 3rd largest Shadow Banking OFC, and in June 2018 tax academics calculated that Ireland was the world's largest corporate tax haven. Ireland's Property taxes (Stamp duty and LPT) are in line with the EU and OECD averages, but unlike Irish Income taxes, are not overtly progressive. Each year, the Department of Finance is required to produce a report on Estimates for Receipts and Expenditure for the coming year. The table below, is extracted from the "Tax Revenues" section of the report for the prior-year (e.g. the 2017 column is from the 2018 report), by which time the "Tax Revenues" for that year are largely known (although still subject to further revision in later years). The "Tax Revenues" quoted are Exchequer Tax Revenues, and do not include Appropriations-in-Aid ("A–in–A") items, the largest being Social Security (or PRSI) which for 2015 was €10.2 billion, and other smaller items. Irish Personal Income tax, and the two main Irish consumption taxes of VAT and Excise, have consistently been circa 80% of the total Irish Exchequer Tax Revenue, with the balance being Corporate tax. Comparisons of Ireland's tax system and international tax systems are complicated by two issues: Distortion of Ireland's GDP. Ireland's GDP is artificially inflated by the BEPS flows of Ireland's Multinational tax schemes. In 2018, Eurostat found 25% of Ireland's 2010-14 GDP was BEPS flows (no taxable impact). In Q1 2015, Apple restructured its Irish BEPS tools, which required Irish 2015 GDP to be restated by 34.4%. In February 2017, the Central Bank of Ireland replaced Irish GDP with a new metric, GNI*, to remove the distortion; 2017 GDP was 162% of 2017 GNI, (EU–28 2017 GDP was 100% of GNI)., Effect of deductions and provisions. While Ireland's headline rates of taxation can be compared internationally, the effect of various tax deductions and provisions can materially change the net effective rate of taxation in a given area. The most dramatic, and controversial example of this is the difference between Ireland's headline corporate tax rate of 12.5%, and it's effective corporate tax rate of under 4% (see below). However, this issue also appears in VAT and in the effect of child benefit transfers on tax wedge estimates of the net tax on take-home pay. Key sources for comparison are the OECD Tax Database and the OECD Ireland Tax Bulletins. The Department of Finance has a Tax Policy Group which up until 2014, published documents that compared Ireland's taxation system internationally, including the main tax policy differences with other OECD countries. From 2000–2014, Ireland's Total Gross Tax-to-GDP ratio was 27–30%, versus the OECD average of 33%, and EU–27 average of 36%. In October 2013, the Department of Finance Tax Policy Group, highlighted the distortion of Irish GDP impacted this metric, and Ireland's Tax-to-GNP ratio at 36% was above the OECD average, and in line with the EU–27 average. However, since Apple's 2015 leprechaun economics restructuring, Ireland's headline Tax-to-GDP ratio had fallen to the bottom of the OECD range at under 23%. Using 2017 GNI* (Irish 2017 GDP is 162% of Irish 2017 GNI*), Ireland Tax-to-GNI* ratio is back to 33%, in line with the OECD average. In 2017, Eurostat noted that Irish GNI* still contained BEPS tool distortions, and thus the Irish Tax-to-GNI* ratio is understated. The OECD's 2018 Taxing Wages shows Ireland's tax wedge for labour income, which is the total tax (PAYE and EE and ER–PRSI less SS Benefits) paid on Irish wages by both the employee and employer, as a % of the total cost of labour to the employer (PAYE and ER–PRSI), is one of the lowest in the OECD. Of the 35 OCED members in 2017, the average Irish single-worker cost 27.2% in taxes versus the OECD average of 35.9% (ranked 29th–lowest), and the average Irish married worker cost 10.8% in taxes versus the OECD average of 26.1% (ranked 31st–lowest). The OECD's 2018 Taxing Wages shows Ireland's employee tax on wages, which is the total tax (PAYE and EE–PRSI less SS Benefits) paid by Irish employees, as a % of their gross wages, is also one of the lowest in the OECD. Of the 35 OCED members in 2017, the average Irish single-worker paid 19.4% versus the OECD average of 25.5% (ranked 28th–lowest), and the average Irish married worker paid 1.2% versus the OECD average of 14.0% (ranked 33rd–lowest). In relation to the single-worker, the OECD noted that a driver of the lower Irish rate is that EE–PRSI (or employee social security contributions) are lower in Ireland versus the OECD average. PAYE and ER–PRSI accounted for 87% of the Irish tax wedge for labour income, whereas for the OECD average it was 77%. In relation to the married-worker, the OECD noted the additional effect of Irish child benefit and provisions which reduced the married-worker employee tax by 16.4%, whereas for the OECD average it was 9.8%. Ireland's lower EE–PRSI, and higher child benefits, have been noted in other studies. Aside from lower employee social security levies (e.g. EE–PRSI), the most distinctive aspect of Ireland's personal tax system is the level of Progressivity, as defined by the ratio of the employee tax (or tax wedge for income) at 167% of the average wage, to employee tax at 67% of the average wage. In October 2013, the Department of Finance Tax Policy Group, highlighted that Ireland has the most progressive personal tax system in the OECD. By September 2016, the Irish Tax Institute showed that Ireland was the 2nd most progressive personal tax system in the OECD. The progressive nature of Ireland's personal tax system is also apparent in the distribution of Irish personal tax. In October 2013, the Department of Finance Tax Policy Group, highlighted the following personal tax (PAYE and EE–PRSI), statistics from the Irish Revenue Commissioners for the 2012 tax year: Top 1% of earners, earned over €200,000 in income and paid 20% of personal tax., Top 5% of earners, earned over €100,000 in income and paid 40% of personal tax., Top 23% of earners, earned earn over €50,000 in income and paid 77% of personal tax., Bottom 77% of earners, earned less than €50,000 in income and paid 23% of personal tax. The above format of the Tax Policy Group has never been reproduced, in April 2018, the OECD and the Irish Revenue Commissioners disclosed that in 2015: Top 1% of earners, earned over €203,389 in income and paid 19% of personal tax., Top 10% of earners, earned over €77,530 in income and paid 61% of personal tax. Irish headline VAT is in line with EU VAT rates (see graphic). The OCED Revenue Statistics 2017 – Ireland, ranks Ireland as being below the OECD average for effective VAT (22nd–lowest out of 35 OECD countries), but in line with the OECD average for overall Consumption taxes (e.g. VAT and Excise combined), ranking 16th of out 35 OECD countries. In October 2013, the Department of Finance Tax Policy Group, highlighted that the distortion of Irish GDP impacted this metric and that Ireland's Consumption Tax as % of GNP ratio at 12%, and VAT as % of GNP ration at 8%, was at the EU–27 average for both metrics. Ireland's taxation system is distinctive for its low headline rate of corporation tax at 12.5% (for trading income), which is half the OECD average of 24.9%. While Ireland's corporate tax is only 16% of Total Net Revenues (see above), Ireland's corporate tax system is a central part of Ireland's economic model. Not only do foreign multinationals pay 80% of Ireland's corporation tax, but they also directly employ 25% of the Irish labour force, and pay 50% of all Irish salary taxes; in 2016, they were 57% of all Irish non-farm OECD value-add (see multinational economy). A source of controversy is the effective tax rate of Ireland corporation tax system, of which the independent evidence is that it is less than 4%, and as low as 0.005% for major U.S. multinationals (see Irish effective corporate tax rate). Ireland's Corporate Tax System has seen Ireland labelled a tax haven, and in June 2018, academics estimated that Ireland was the largest global tax haven. Ireland's reputation as a tax haven for foreign multinationals to avoid global taxes contrasts with that fact that Ireland's overall tax receipts are in line with the EU and OECD averages (when properly adjusted using Irish GNI*, and not the distorted Irish GDP). Income tax is charged in respect of all property, profits, or gains. Since 2002, Ireland has operated a tax year coinciding with the calendar year (1 January to 31 December). The change coincided with the introduction of the euro in Ireland. For administrative purposes, taxable income is expressed under four schedules: Schedule C: public revenue dividends (i.e. coupon payments on government debt), Schedule D, Case I: Profit arising from any trade, or from quarries, mines, works, tolls, fairs, bridges, and railways, Case II: Profit arising from any profession not contained in any other schedule, Case III: Interest on money or debts, annuities, discounts, profits on government debt not covered in schedule C, interest on certain government debt, income on securities outside the state not covered in schedule C, and income from possessions outside the state, Case IV: Tax in respect of any annual profits or gains not covered by any other case or schedule. There are also specific types of income specified by law to be taxed under case IV., Case V: Tax in respect of rent or receipts from any easement, Schedule E: Income from public offices, employment, annuities, and pensions., Schedule F: Dividends from Irish companies. Since 1 January 2015, the tax rates apply as follows: There are 2 tax brackets, 20% (the standard rate) and the balance of income at 40% (the higher rate). The brackets depend upon the individual's category. The €43,550 amount may, for married couples, be increased by the lesser of: €25,550 or the income of the second spouse. This brings the total maximum standard rate band for a married couple to €69,100, twice the single person's band. The increase is not transferable between spouses. Irish income tax brackets (2019) The €44,300 amount may, for married couples, be increased by the lesser of: €26,300 or the income of the second spouse. This brings the total maximum standard rate band for a married couple to €70,600, little less than twice the single person's band. The increase is not transferable between spouses. A taxpayer's tax liability is reduced by the amount of his tax credits, which replaced tax-free allowances in 2001. Tax credits are not refundable in the event that they exceed the amount of tax due, but may be carried forward within a year. A wide range of tax credits are available. A few are awarded automatically, while others must be claimed by taxpayers. The principal tax credit is the personal tax credit, which is currently €1,650 per year for a single person and €3,300 per year for a married couple. A widowed person in the year of bereavement, or for as long as she has dependent children, may claim the €3,300 credit as well; a higher credit is available to widowed parents during the five tax years following the bereavement. The PAYE tax credit, which is also €1,650, is awarded to employees and others who pay tax under the Pay as you earn system (further details below), to compensate them for the time value of money effect; their tax is deducted from their incomes during the year, whereas the self-employed pay near the end of the year. The credit may not exceed 20% of the recipient's income during the year and it is not transferable between spouses. A person resident and domiciled in Ireland is liable to Irish income tax on their total income from all sources worldwide. In this sense, a person who spends: 183 days or more in Ireland during a tax year, or, an aggregate of 280 days in the current and preceding tax year is considered to be resident. Presence in Ireland of not more than 30 days in a tax year is ignored for the purposes of the two year test. Since 1 January 2009, a person is treated as present in Ireland for a day if present at any time during the day; before this, a person was only treated as present if he or she was present at midnight, a rule which was nicknamed the "Cinderella clause". A person may also elect to be resident in Ireland in a year in which he arrives in Ireland, once he can satisfy Revenue that he intends to remain there for the next tax year. A person who is resident in Ireland for three consecutive years becomes ordinarily resident, and ceases to be ordinarily resident after he has been non-resident in Ireland for three consecutive years. A person is domiciled in Ireland if born in Ireland; a person who has "demonstrated a positive intention of permanent residence in [a] new country" ceases to be domiciled in Ireland. A person who is not an Irish resident but is ordinarily resident in Ireland is liable to tax on all Irish and foreign- sourced income in full, except for income from a trade, profession, office, or employment, the duties of which are entirely exercised outside Ireland, and on foreign income under €3,810 per year. A person who is resident in Ireland, and is either ordinarily resident or domiciled in Ireland, but not both, is liable to tax on all Irish income in full, and on such foreign income as is remitted to Ireland. A person who is neither resident, ordinarily resident, nor domiciled in Ireland is taxable on all Irish sourced income in full, and on foreign sourced income in respect of a trade, profession, or employment exercised in Ireland. A person aged 65 or over during the tax year is exempt from income tax if his or her income is under €18,000 per year. A married couple with income under €36,000 per year is also exempt if either spouse is aged 65 or over or reaches 65 during the year; the exemption amount is increased by €575 for each of the couple's first two dependent children and by €830 for each subsequent child. A person or couple earning slightly over the limit may claim what is known as marginal relief. In this case, income over the exemption limit is charged to tax at a flat rate of 40%. A person or couple may choose to be taxed under marginal relief or the regular tax system, and will be granted whichever system is more beneficial, including retroactively. Some items of expenditure can be deducted from a person's income for tax purposes, generally referred to as getting tax relief. In some cases the tax must be claimed retrospectively; in others it is processed as an increase to tax credits. The vast majority are only allowed at the standard tax rate of 20%. A person purchasing private medical insurance is entitled to tax relief at 20%, which is usually given at source – the person pays 80% of the cost, and the government pays the rest directly to the insurance company. Persons aged over 50 are entitled to a further tax credit, which is normally paid in full to the insurance company to offset the considerably higher cost incurred by insurers in respect of members over 50. Tax relief is available on medical expenses. With the exception of fees paid to approved nursing homes, the relief is only available retrospectively (i.e. by completing a tax return at the end of the year), and the relief is awarded at 20% since 2009. It can be claimed for a person's own expenses, or expenses which they pay on behalf of a relative, dependant, or, since 2007, anyone at all. Medical expenses are construed widely, and include: Fees of doctors and consultants, Prescription medicines (to a maximum of €144 per month, above which the Health Service Executive will repay the entire balance), Hospital costs, Ambulance fees, Non-routine dental treatments, Nursing home expenses, Special food for diabetics and coeliacs, Overnight accommodation for a parent near a hospital where his or her child is being treated, Travel expenses for dialysis patients or for the transport of children to and from hospital for children with life-threatening illnesses or permanent disabilities The relief can be claimed in the year when the cost was incurred or in the year when the payment was made. A person may deduct from his income for the purposes of tax calculation up to 10% of that income which is spent on permanent health insurance. Relief is therefore given at 40% if the person is paying the higher rate of tax. If the payment is made by salary deduction the payment is treated as a benefit in kind (BIK) and as such is subject to the Universal Social Charge (USC) and PRSI. Tax relief is allowed on service charges paid to a local council for domestic sewage disposal, as well as all payments for domestic water supply or domestic refuse collection or disposal. The relief is allowed in arrears – credit for payments made in 2007 is given in 2008 – and is given at 20%, to a maximum of €80 (where €400 or more was paid for service charges). It will cease from 2011. Tax relief at 20% is allowed in respect of tuition fees paid for third-level courses, excluding the first €2,500 for a full-time course and €1,250 for a part-time course, of the course fees). The maximum relief available is €1,400 per year (20% of €7,000). Courses must be of at least two years duration, except for postgraduate courses which must be of at least one-year duration. The course must also be approved by Revenue and delivered in a college approved by Revenue. As with medical expenses, since 2007 the relief could be claimed in respect of payments made by any person, irrespective of the relationship between payer and payee. It cannot be claimed in respect of administration, registration, or examination fees. Relief is also allowed in respect of fees of over €315 for foreign-language or information technology courses approved by FÁS, of less than two years duration, which results in the award of a certificate of competence. The relief is for 20% of the amount paid, to a maximum of €254 (20% of €1,270) per course. It is not available for courses in the Irish or English languages. Contributions to a pension scheme can be deducted from gross income before calculation of tax; tax relief is therefore allowed on them at 40% if the contributor is paying tax at that rate. Contributions (including AVCs) are subject to the Universal Service Charge currently at 7%. Taxpayers pay either on a "pay as you earn" system or a "pay and file" system. Employees, pensioners, and directors generally have tax deducted from their income by their employers as it is paid. Under this system, tax is calculated by the employer on each pay day, withheld, and paid over to Revenue Employers receive notification of the tax credit and standard rate band applicable to the employee from Revenue. A PAYE employee need only file a tax return on form 12 if requested to do so by an inspector of taxes, if she has other undeclared income, or if she wishes to claim reliefs which are not available on another form. The self-assessment system applies to persons who are self-employed or who receive non-PAYE income. Under the self-assessment system, a taxpayer must: pay preliminary tax for the current tax year,, pay any balance of tax due for the last tax year, and, file a return of income on form 11 for the last tax year by the deadline each year. The deadline is 31 October for paper filings. It has historically been extended to mid-November for returns filed online, but it is not clear whether this will continue. Preliminary tax must be at least equal to the least of: 90% of tax for the current tax year, 100% of tax for the previous tax year, 105% of tax for the pre-preceding tax year (for payments by monthly direct debit) Revenue will calculate the tax payable for a person who files a return of income more than two months prior to the filing deadline. Underpaid tax attracts an interest penalty charge of 0.0219% per day, and underpayments may result in a surcharge, prosecution, or publication of their name in a defaulters' list. The Universal Social Charge (USC) is a tax on income that replaced both the income levy and the health levy (also known as the health contribution) since 1 January 2011. It is charged on your gross income before any pension contributions or PRSI. If your income is less than €13,000 you pay no Universal Social Charge (USC). (This limit was €4,004 in 2011, €10,036 from 2012 to 2014 and €12,012 in 2015.) Once your income is over this limit, you pay the relevant rate of USC on all of your income. For example, if you have income of €13,000 you will pay no USC. If you have income of €13,001 you will pay 0.5% on income up to €12,012 and 2.5% on income between €12,012 and €13,001. Aggregate income for USC purposes does not include payments from the Department of Social Protection. Reduced rates of USC apply to: People aged 70 or over whose aggregate income for the year is €60,000 or less, Medical card holders aged under 70 whose aggregate income for the year is €60,000 or less PRSI is paid by employees, employers, and the self-employed as a percentage of wages after pension contributions. It includes social insurance and a health contribution. Social insurance payments are used to help pay for social welfare payments and pensions. Each week's payment earns the employee a "credit" or "contribution", which credits are used to establish entitlements to non-means-tested welfare payments such as Jobseeker's Benefit and the State Pension (contributory). The health contribution is used to help fund the health services, although paying it does not confer any entitlement to treatment or anything else. For the most part, the two amounts are combined together and stated as one deduction on payslips. There was a ceiling of €75,036 per year on the employee social insurance element of the payment but this ceiling was abolished from 2011 onwards. Class A workers are employees aged under 66 in industrial, commercial, and service-type employment who are paid more than €38 a week from all employments, as well as to public servants recruited from 6 April 1995. Class A employees earning under €352 per week are placed in subclass AO, and pay no PRSI/ Class A employees earning between €352 and €356 are in subclass AX; those earning over €356 but less than or equal to €500 are in subclass AL. Both subclasses pay 4% PRSI, and the first €127 of earnings are no longer disregarded for this calculation, so therefore PRSI is 4% on all earnings/ Class A employees earning over €500 per week are in subclass A1 and pay 4% on all their weekly earnings. Employers of employees in the above classes pay 8.5% PRSI for employees earning under €356 per week and 10.75% PRSI for employees earning over that amount. The applicable rate applies on the entire wage, with no ceiling. Classes A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, and A9 relate to community employment schemes and employer's PRSI exemption schemes. Class A8 is for income under €352 per week and has no employee PRSI liability; class A9 is for income over that amount and is liable at a flat rate of 4%. Both classes have an employer's PRSI rate of 0.5%. Class B workers are permanent and pensionable civil servants recruited before 6 April 1995, doctors and dentists employed in the civil service, and gardaí recruited before 6 April 1995. Class B workers earning under €352 per week are placed in subclass BO, and pay no PRSI. Class B workers earning between €352 and €500 per week are placed in subclass BX, and class B workers earning over €500 per week but exempt from the health contribution are placed in subclass B2. Both these subclasses pay 0.9% PRSI on all earnings except the first €26 per week. Class B workers earning over €500 per week and not exempt from the health contribution are placed in subclass B1. They pay 4% PRSI on the first €26 of their weekly earnings, 4.9% on the next €1,417, and 5.9% on the balance. Class C workers are commissioned officers of the defence forces, and members of the army nursing service, recruited before 6 April 1995. Class D workers are all permanent and pensionable employees in the public service not caught in classes B or C, recruited before 6 April 1995. Workers in classes C and D pay PRSI at the same rates as class B. Employers of class B employees pay a flat rate of 2.01% PRSI on all their employees' earnings; for class C, the rate is 1.85%, and for class D it is 2.35%, although this is effectively a transfer of money from one government account to another. Class H workers are non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel of the Defence Forces. Class H workers earning under €352 per week are placed in subclass HO, and pay no PRSI. Class H workers earning from €352 to €500 per week are placed in subclass HX. Class H workers earning over €500 and exempt from the health contribution are placed in subclass H2. Workers in each of these classes pay 3.9% PRSI on their earnings except for the first €127 per week. Other class H workers are placed in subclass H1. They pay 4% PRSI on the first €127 of their weekly earnings, 7.9% on the next €1,316, and 8.9% on the balance. Employers of class H workers pay 10.05% PRSI on all their employees' earnings. Class J workers are employees aged 66 or over, those earning under €38 per week, or those in subsidiary employment. They pay only the health contribution of 4% if their earnings exceed €500 per week, or 5% on the amount that exceeds €1,443 per week. The employer's contribution is 0.5%. Subsidiary employment includes the employment of a person subject to class B, C, D, or H in his main employment. Classes K and M apply to income which is subject to the health contribution but not to social insurance, including occupational pensions. It also applies to judges, state solicitors, and income of self-employed persons aged 66 or over. Class K income is subject to the health contribution of 4% if earnings exceed €500 per week, or 5% on the amount that exceeds €1,443 per week. There is no employer contribution. Class M relates to persons under 16, who are exempt from PRSI entirely, and to income which would fall under class K paid to persons exempt from the health contribution. It has a zero rate. Self-employed people, including certain company directors, pay class S PRSI; the class also applies to certain investment and rental income. Where income is less than €500 per week, subclass S0 applies. Where income is above €500 per week, subclass S1 applies, except to persons exempt from the health contribution, to whom subclass S2 applies. The rate for subclasses S0 and S2 is 3%, and the rate for subclass S1 is 7% up to €1,443 per week and 8% on that portion of income above that amount. The health contribution was replaced by the USC from 2011 onwards Taxpayers paying class S PRSI pay it, and the health contribution, along with their tax. For other taxpayers, it is withheld from their net income. Value-Added Tax (VAT) is a transaction tax on Irish consumer spending, and almost all goods and services supplied in Ireland are subject to VAT. Goods imported into Ireland from outside the EU are also subject to VAT, which is charged by Customs at the border. Irish VAT is part of the European Union Value Added Tax system and each Member State is required to impose the EU VAT legislation by way of its own domestic legislation, however, there are key differences between the rules for each state. All non-exempt traders are required to register for VAT and collect VAT on the goods and services they supply. Each trader in the chain of supply, from manufacturer to retailer, charges VAT on their sales and incurs VAT on their raw materials; they pay the Irish Revenue their net VAT. A trader whose turnover exceeds the registration thresholds, or is likely to exceed them in the next 12 months, must register for VAT. The registration thresholds are as follows: The basic threshold is €75,000 (provided no more than 10% of turnover comes from services and none of the other conditions below are met)., The threshold for a person supplying services, making mail-order or distance sales into Ireland, or supplying goods liable at the VAT rates of 13.5% or 21% which he manufactures from zero-rated materials is €37,500., The threshold for a person making intra-EU acquisitions is €41,000., There is no threshold for a non-established person supplying taxable goods or services in Ireland, or for a person receiving so-called Fourth Schedule services (intangible, remotely provided services, like advertising, broadcasting, and telecommunications services) from abroad — any such person must register for VAT. A person below these limits may register voluntarily. It is often beneficial for persons who mainly trade with other businesses to register for VAT even when their turnover is below the relevant limits. VAT rates range from 0% on books, children's clothing and educational services and items, to 23% on the majority of goods. The 13.5% rate applies to many labour-intensive services as well as to restaurant meals, hot takeaway food, and bakery products. A 4.8% rate applies to supply of livestock and greyhounds. A 5.4% "flat rate addition" applies to the agricultural sector, although this is not strictly VAT – it is charged by farmers not registered for VAT to compensate them for VAT which they must pay to their suppliers. The flat rate addition is not paid away to the Revenue. Traders collecting VAT can deduct the VAT incurred on their purchases from their VAT liability, and where the VAT paid exceeds VAT received, can claim a refund. The VAT period is normally two calendar months (other filing periodicity, such as four-monthly, and semi-annual also apply in certain circumstances). A VAT return is made on the 19th day of the following the end of the period. However, if you submit the return on the website, i.e. ROS ("Revenue Online Service"), and also perform payment via ROS, then the due date is extended to the 23rd day following the end of the period. Once a year a detailed breakdown of VAT returns must be prepared by traders and submitted to the government – traders may choose their own date for this. Traders with low VAT liabilities may opt for six-monthly or four-monthly payments instead of the standard bi-monthly one, and traders who are generally in the position of claiming repayments of VAT rather than making payments may make monthly returns. Excise tax is charged on mineral oil, tobacco, and alcohol. Mineral oil includes hydrocarbon oil, liquefied petroleum gas, substitute fuel, and additives. Hydrocarbon oil includes petroleum oil, oil produced from coal, bituminous substances, and liquid hydrocarbons, but not substances that are solid or semi-solid at 15 °C In addition to the tax, a carbon charge is applicable to petrol, aviation gasoline, and heavy oil used as a propellant, for air navigation, or for private pleasure navigation, and this was scheduled to be extended in May 2010 to apply to other uses of heavy oil and liquefied petroleum gas, and to natural gas., Tobacco excise applies to tobacco products, including cigars, cigarettes, cavendish, hard-pressed tobacco, pipe tobacco, and other smoking or chewing tobacco. The increased rate of tax will bring prices for cigerettes up by 50c per packet as outlined in the Irish Budget 2018., Alcohol and alcoholic beverages duty applies to alcohol products produced in Ireland or imported into Ireland. As of 2016 tax over a bottle of wine is over 50%. Irish corporation tax returns have historically been between 10% to 16% of total Irish net Tax Revenues, however, since 2015, corporation tax has risen sharply, doubling in scale from 4.6 billion in 2014 to 8.2 billion in 2017; the Revenue Commissioners state that foreign multinationals pay circa 80% of Irish corporation tax. , there are two rates of corporation tax ("CT") in the Republic of Ireland: a 12.5% headline rate for trading income (or active businesses income in the Irish tax code); trading relates to a business enterprise;, a 25.0% headline rate for non-trading income (or passive income in the Irish tax code); covering investment income (e.g. income from buying and selling assets), rental income from real estate, net profits from foreign trades, and income from certain land dealings and income from oil, gas and mineral exploitations. The special 10% tax rate for manufacturing in Ireland (introduced from 1980/81), and for financial services in the special economic zone of the International Financial Services Centre in Dubin (introduced from 1987), have now been phased out since 2010 and 2003 respectively, and are no longer in operation. , Ireland's corporate tax system is a "worldwide tax" system, with no thin capitalisation rules, and a holding company regime for tax inversions to Ireland. Ireland has the most U.S. corporate tax inversions, and Medtronic (2015) was the largest U.S. tax inversion in history. Ireland's corporate tax system has base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) tools, such as the Double Irish (used by Google and Facebook), the Single Malt (used by Microsoft and Allergan), and the Capital Allowances for Intangible Assets (CAIA) (used by Accenture, and by Apple post Q1 2015); in June 2018, academics showed they are the largest global BEPS tools. Apple's 2015 restructure of its BEPS tools inflated Irish GDP by 34.4%, leprechaun economics. Ireland's tax system also offers SPVs that can be used by foreign investors to avoid the 25% corporate tax on passive income from Irish assets, which are covered in more detail in Irish Section 110 Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), and in Qualifying investor alternative investment fund (QIAIF). The Irish QIAIF is a Central Bank of Ireland regulatory classification that includes the Irish Collective Asset- management Vehicle or ICAV, and the L-QIAIF. Capital gains tax is payable where a person makes a gain on the sale of assets, called chargeable assets. The standard CGT rate is 33% in respect of disposals made from midnight on 7 December 2013. The rate of tax for disposals made in previous years is less: details can be obtained from the Revenue Commissioners. Any person (including a company) resident or ordinarily resident in Ireland is liable to CGT on all chargeable gains accruing on all disposals of chargeable assets. A person resident or ordinarily resident, but not domiciled, in Ireland is only liable to CGT on disposals of assets outside of Ireland where the gains are remitted to Ireland. A person neither resident nor ordinarily resident in Ireland is only liable to CGT on gains from: 1. Land and buildings in Ireland 2. Minerals or mining rights in Ireland 3. Exploration or exploitation rights in a designated area of the Irish Continental Shelf 4. Shares (not quoted on a stock exchange) deriving their value from any or all of items 1, 2, or 3 5. Assets in Ireland used for the purpose of a business carried on in Ireland The gain or loss is calculated as the sale price less the purchase price. From the sale price can be deducted the cost of acquisition of the asset, including incidental costs such as conveyancing costs, the cost of the disposal, and costs of improving the asset. Where the asset was acquired prior to 6 April 1974, its value on that date is used instead of the purchase price. The purchase price, cost of acquisition, and costs of improvement can be adjusted for inflation from 6 April 1974 up to 31 December 2002, and a table is published by Revenue for the purpose of calculating this adjustment. The inflation adjustment can only operate to reduce a gain; it cannot increase a loss or turn a gain into a loss. Capital losses can be offset against capital gains arising in the same or later tax year. Non-chargeable losses (see below) cannot be offset against chargeable gains. In each tax year losses carried forward must be used before exemptions are applied. The first €1,270 of net gains by an individual each year are not chargeable. The exemption is not transferable between spouses and cannot be carried forward from year to year., Certain assets are designated non-chargeable assets, including:, Government securities, Savings certificates and savings bonds, Land bonds, Securities issued by certain semi-state bodies, Certain gains/losses are not chargeable, including:, National Instalment Savings bonuses and Prize Bond prizes, Gains from life assurance policies or deferred annuity contracts, except those purchased from another person or taken out after May 1993 with certain foreign insurers, Gains on the disposal of wasting chattels, for example animals and motor cars, Gains on the disposal of tangible non-wasting movable property worth €2,540 or less on disposal (the disposal of a set of articles to one person or to connected persons is considered a single disposal), Gains accruing to local authorities, and some gains accruing to pension funds, trade unions, and charities, Gains from betting, lotteries, and sweepstakes, Gains from the sale by an individual of his/her principal private residence (including up to 0.4 hectares of land) are not chargeable. If only part of the premises is a principal private residence, the relief is allowed on a proportionate basis. This relief does not apply where land is sold as development land., The transfer by a parent to his/her child of a site where the child will construct a principal private residence is exempt from CGT as long as the child lives there for at least three years., The sale by a person aged over 55 of a business or farm for under €0.5m, or to a family member, is exempt. Transfers between spouses do not give rise to a charge for capital gains tax; the acquiring spouse is considered to have acquired the property on the same date and at the same price as the disposing spouse. CGT is a self-assessment tax for all taxpayers. Tax on gains realised in the first eleven months of the year is payable by 15 December that year, and tax on gains realised in December payable by 31 January the next year. A return must be made by 31 October in the following year with full details of the gain. A person purchasing a chargeable asset for over €500,000 must withhold 15% of the price and pay it to Revenue unless the Revenue has issued a CG50A certificate to the vendor prior to the purchase. The certificate CG50A is issued by the Revenue on application, provided that either the vendor is resident in Ireland, no CGT is payable on the disposal, or the CGT has already been paid. Deposit Interest Retention Tax (abbreviated as DIRT), is a retention tax charged on interest earned on bank accounts, as well as some other investments. It was first introduced in Ireland in the 1980s to reduce tax evasion on unearned income. DIRT is deducted at source by financial institutions From 1 January 2014, DIRT is charged at 41% (was 33% in 2013) for payments made annually or more frequently. The tax is deducted by the bank or other deposit-taker before the interest is paid to you. DIRT will be charged at 36% (in 2013, lower rates in previous years) for payments made less frequently.This higher D.I.R.T. rate has been abolished, as and from the 1st January 2014, and the D.I.R.T. rate of 41% applies to any interest paid or credited on these deposits on or after the 1st January 2014. Persons aged over 65 or incapacitated, whose income is less than the exemption limit (currently €20,000), may claim a refund of DIRT, or may submit an appropriate form to their banks or financial institutions to have interest paid free of DIRT. DIRT does not apply to: Interest on deposits where the beneficial owner is a non-resident, Deposits of companies which are chargeable to corporation tax, Deposits of Revenue-approved pension schemes, Deposits belonging to charities Stamp duty is charged on the conveyance of residential property, non- residential property, and long leases, and also on company share transfers, bank cheques and cards (i.e. ATM cards and credit cards), and insurance policies. Stamp duty is charged as a percentage of the consideration paid for immovable property, including goodwill attached to a business. A stamp duty return must be completed online for all such conveyances; physical stamps are no longer attached to documents. First time buyers (i.e. those who have not purchased a house before in Ireland or in any other jurisdiction) are exempt. One may also qualify as a first-time buyer if newly divorced or separated. New owner-occupied houses or apartments with a floor area of less than 125 m may also be exempt, and new owner- occupied houses with a floor area larger than this are assessed based on the greater of the cost of the site or quarter of the total cost of the house and site. In all cases, the rates exclude VAT. For deeds executed on or after 8 December 2010 the rates of stamp duty are:. the first €1,000,000: 1%,, excess over €1,000,000: 2%, Since 14 October 2008, conveyances of non-residential property are charged at an increasing rate starting at 0% for a property under the value of €10,000 rising to 6% for transactions over €80,000. Transfers between spouses are exempt from stamp duty, as are property transfers as a result of a court order in relation to a divorce. The stamp duty rate is halved for transfers between other blood relatives. Intragroup transactions, company reconstructions and amalgamations, and demutualisations, as well as certain transactions involving charities, approved sports bodies, young farmers, woodlands, or intellectual property also attract relief. There is a 1% stamp duty on transfers of stock or marketable securities of any company incorporated in Ireland, except paper-based transfers where the consideration is €1,000 or less. Credit card and charge card accounts are subject to a €30 annual duty. Automated teller machine and debit cards are subject to €2.50 each annually. Cards which perform both functions are subject to the tax twice, i.e. €5 total. Cards that are unused in the entire year are not chargeable. The credit card tax is applied per account, but the ATM and debit card charge is per card. In each case, where an account is closed during the year, there is an exemption from double taxation. Cheques (technically, all bills of exchange) incur a €0.50 tax, generally collected by the bank on issue of each chequebook. Non-life Insurance policies are subject to a 3% levy and Life assurance policies are subject to a 1% levy on premiums from 1 June 2009. Capital acquisitions tax is charged to the recipient of gifts or inheritances, at the rate of 33% above a tax-free threshold. Gifts and inheritances are gratuitous benefits; the difference is that an inheritance is taken on death and a gift is taken other than on death. The person providing the property is called the donor or disponer, or testator or deceased in the case of inheritance; the person receiving the property is called the beneficiary, donee or disponee, or the successor in the case of inheritance. A gift is taken when a donee becomes beneficially entitled in possession to some property without paying full consideration for it. Tax is payable within four months of the date of the gift; an interest charge applies to late payments. Tax is generally charged on the property's taxable value, which is computed as: Market value less liabilities costs and expenses payable out of the gift or inheritance = incumbrance free value less consideration paid by acquirer in money or money's worth = taxable value A disposition is taxable in Ireland if it is of property in Ireland, or if either the disponer or the beneficiary was resident or ordinarily resident in Ireland at the date of the disposition. Special rules apply for discretionary trusts. CAT can be reduced or eliminated altogether under a number of headings. Historically group thresholds were indexed by reference to the Consumer Price Index. The indexation of the tax-free group thresholds is abolished for gifts and inheritances taken on or after 7 December 2011. The thresholds on or after 14 October 2015 are: €280,000 (Group A) (was €225,000 on or after 06/12/2012) where the beneficiary's relationship to the disponer is: son or daughter, minor child of a predeceased son or daughter. Child includes a foster child (since 6 December 2000) and an adopted child (since 30 March 2001)., €30,150 (Group B), where the beneficiary's relationship to the disponer is: lineal ancestor (e.g. parent), lineal descendant (not within A; e.g. granddaughter), brother or sister, nephew or niece., €15,075 (Group C) where the beneficiary's relationship to the disponer is: cousin or stranger. For gifts and inheritances taken on or after 5 December 2001, only prior benefits received since 5 December 1991 from the same beneficiary within the same group threshold are aggregated with the current benefit in computing tax payable on the current benefit. An inheritance, but not a gift, taken by a parent from his or her child is treated as group A, where it is an immediate interest (but not a life interest) in property. In certain circumstances, the beneficiary may take the place of his/her deceased spouse for the purpose of determining the applicable group where that spouse died before the disponer and was a nearer relative to the disponer. The other main exemptions from capital acquisitions tax are: Property passing between spouses is exempt from CAT. The exemption also applies to property passing by Court order between separated or divorced couples., Principal private residence. To qualify, the recipient must have lived: for three years ending on the transfer date in the residence, or for three of the four years ending on the transfer date in the residence and the residence which it has replaced. In addition, the recipient must not have any other private residence and they must not dispose of the residence for six years after the transfer to them., The first €3,000 of gifts taken in each calendar year by a beneficiary from a disponer is exempt., A gift or inheritance taken for public or charitable purposes is exempt., Objects of national, scientific, historic, or artistic interest, which the public are allowed to view, are exempt. This relief also extends to heritage property owned through a private company., Pension lump sums are exempt., Certain government securities acquired by a beneficiary who is not domiciled or resident in the State from a disponer who held them for at least three years., Personal injury compensation or damages, and lottery winnings are exempt. This exemption also covers reasonable support, maintenance, or education payments received by a minor child at a time when the disponer and the child's other parent are dead., Property acquired under a self-made disposition is exempt., An inheritance by a parent from a child, where the child took a non-exempt gift or inheritance from either parent within the past five years, is exempt. The other main reliefs from capital acquisitions tax are: A surviving spouse may take the place and relationship status in respect of property acquired by the deceased spouse., Agricultural relief. This applies to a farmer – an individual who on the valuation date is domiciled in the State, and at least 80% of the gross market value of his assets consists of agricultural property (i.e., farm land and buildings, crops, trees and underwood, livestock, bloodstock, and farm machinery)., The relief is a 90% reduction of the full market value. The relief may be withdrawn if the property is later disposed of within six years of the date of the gift or inheritance and the proceeds are not reinvested within one year of the disposal (six years in the case of a compulsory acquisition)., Business relief. This applies to relevant business property, i.e., a sole trade business, an interest in a partnership, and unquoted shares in an Irish incorporated company., The relief is a 90% reduction of the taxable value. The relief may be withdrawn if the property is later disposed of within six years of the date of the gift or inheritance and the proceeds are not reinvested within one year of the disposal., Favorite nephew (or niece) relief., Double taxation in respect of US and UK equivalent taxes., The proceeds of a life assurance policy taken out to pay inheritance tax or gift tax., If the same event gives rise to a liability to both CAT and CGT, the CGT charge may be credited against the CAT up to the amount of the CAT charg.e When a person receives a gift or inheritance that, either by itself, or aggregated with prior benefits taken by the donee, would place him in a position of having used up more than 80% of any group threshold, he must complete form IT38 and return it to Revenue within four months, along with any tax due. Assets placed in discretionary trusts are subject to: a once-off charge of 6%, and, an annual charge of 1%. The charges must be paid within three months of the "valuation date", which may be the date the trust was set up, the date of death of the settlor, the earliest date on which the trustees could retain the trust property, the date on which the trustees retained the trust property, or the date of delivery of the trust property to the trustees. Several charges described as taxes are not, in the literal sense, actual taxes, but withholdings from certain payments made. In each case, the payer withholds the relevant percentage and pays it to Revenue. The recipient is still liable for tax on the full amount, but can set the withholding against his overall tax liability. If the amount withheld is less than the tax payable, the recipient is still liable for the difference, and if the amount withheld exceeds the tax payable, the recipient can set it off against other tax due, or obtain a refund. This contrasts with DIRT, which, while a withholding tax, discharges the entire tax liability of the recipient. Relevant Contracts Tax (RCT) is a withholding regime applied to contractors in the forestry, construction, and meat processing sectors where tax non- compliance levels have historically been high. On 13 December 2011, the Minister for Finance signed the Commencement Order for the new electronic RCT system which was introduced on 1 January 2012. All principal contractors in the construction, forestry and meat processing sectors are obliged to engage electronically with Revenue. Under the new RCT system, a principal contractor must provide Revenue with details of the contract and the subcontractor. It must also notify Revenue of all relevant payments online before payment is made. Revenue will respond to the payment notification with a deduction authorisation setting out how much tax, if any, must be withheld. The rates are currently set at 0%, 20% or 35%. This deduction authorisation is sent electronically to the principal contractor. The principal must provide a copy or details of the deduction authorisation to the subcontractor if tax has been deducted. The subcontractor can set off the amount deducted against any tax he is liable to pay, or reclaim the difference where the deduction exceeds the amount of tax. Since September 2008, the subcontractor no longer charges or accounts for VAT on supplies of construction services to which RCT applies. Instead, the principal contractor must account for the VAT to Revenue (although he will generally be entitled to an input credit for the same amount). This system is referred to as the VAT reverse charge. Dividend Withholding Tax is deducted at the rate of 20% from dividends paid by Irish companies. It can be set off against income tax due, or reclaimed where the recipient of the dividend is not liable to tax. Professional Services Withholding Tax (PSWT) is deducted at the rate of 20% from payments made by government bodies, health boards, state bodies, local authorities, and the like, from payments made for professional services. Professional services include medical, dental, pharmaceutical, optical, aural, veterinary, architectural, engineering, quantity surveying, accounting, auditing, finance, marketing, advertising, legal, and geological services, as well as training services supplied to FÁS It can be deducted from the tax ultimately payable by the service provider, or where the provider is non- resident or exempt from tax, reclaimed. An assortment of other taxes are charged in Ireland, which do not fit under any other heading. This was introduced in the Finance Act of 2013, this Tax is levied for most properties at 0.18% of the self-assessed market value. The value assessed is the value in May 2013 initially. This initial valuation will be used until the next assessment date in November 2016. A higher rate of 0.25% of market value – the so-called Mansion Tax applies to properties valued at greater than €1,000,000. Since March 2002, a levy, called the Environmental Levy, has applied to the supply of plastic shopping bags by retailers. The levy is currently 22 cents per plastic bag. s The levy does not apply to: Small bags used solely to contain any of the following, whether packaged or not:, Fresh fish and fresh fish products, Fresh meat and fresh meat products, Fresh poultry and fresh poultry products, Small bags used solely to contain unpackaged:, Fruit, nuts, or vegetables, Confectionery, Dairy products, Cooked food, whether cold or hot, Ice, Bags supplied on board an aircraft or ship, Bags supplied airside in an airport or in the passenger-only area of a port, for the purpose of carrying the goods on board an aeroplane or ship, Bags sold for 70-cent or more A small bag is one smaller than 225mm wide, 345mm deep, and 450mm long (including handles). The law requires that the levy be passed on to customers. Vehicle Registration Tax or VRT is chargeable on registration of a motor vehicle in Ireland, and every motor vehicle brought into the country, other than temporarily by a visitor, must be registered with Revenue and must have VRT paid for it by the end of the working day after it arrives in the country. Vehicles are assessed under five categories for VRT, depending on the type of vehicle. Category A includes cars, jeeps, and minibuses having fewer than 12 seats, not including the driver. The tax chargeable is based on carbon dioxide emissions per kilometre, ranging from 14% of open market selling price (for vehicles emitting under 120g CO/km) to 36% of open market selling price (for vehicles emitting over 226g CO/km)., Category B includes car- and jeep-derived vans. The rate of VRT is 13.3% of the open market selling price, with a minimum of €125., Category C includes commercial vehicles, tractors, and buses having at least 13 seats (including the driver). The VRT chargeable is €50., Category D includes ambulances, fire engines, and vehicles used for the transportation of road construction machinery. Vehicles in category D are exempt from VRT. Motorcycles and motor scooters are chargeable for VRT by reference to the engine displacement, at a rate of €2 per cc for the first 350cc and €1 per cc thereafter. There is a reduction depending on the age of the vehicle, from 10% after three months to 100% (completely remitted) for vehicles over 30 years old. Electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles can have a remission or repayment of VRT of up to €2,500 until the end of 2010. VAT is chargeable (on the VRT-inclusive price) on new vehicles (but not tractors) imported unregistered or within six months of registration outside Ireland, or on vehicles with an odometer reading under 6,000 kilometres at import. A vehicle on which VRT should have been paid but was not is liable to be seized. The owner of a house other than a principal private residence must pay a charge, €200, per year. The charge for 2009 was payable in September, but in subsequent years, it is payable in March. The charge applies to "residential properties", which includes a house, maisonette, flat, or apartment, but excludes: Buildings which are of scientific, historical, architectural or aesthetic interest and are open to the public, subject to approval of the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and Revenue, A building which is part of the trading stock of a business and has never been used as a dwelling, nor has any income been derived from it, A building let by a minister of the government, a housing authority, or the HSE, A building let by a body approved by a housing authority, A building let to a housing authority, or to the HSE, A building subject to commercial rates Additionally, the following persons are exempt from paying the charge in respect of the building or buildings in question: A person occupying a building as his sole or main residence (which includes a person who so occupies part of a building and claims rent-a-room relief on the remainder), A charity or a discretionary trust, A divorced or separated person whose former spouse lives in the building, An incapacitated person living in a place which he does not own (e.g. a nursing home), A person who allows a relative to reside, free of rent, in a building within 2 kilometres of his own residence (vernacularly called a "granny flat") If the charge is unpaid, it has the effect of a charge in favour of the local council against the property. A person who moves house is not liable to the charge in respect of either of the houses that year. Motor tax, payable to the local council where the owner lives, arises when a car or other motor vehicle is used on a public road. A circular receipt, known colloquially as a tax disc, is issued on payment and must be displayed in the front of the vehicle. Certain vehicles, including state-owned vehicles, fire engines, and vehicles for disabled drivers are exempt from motor tax. Motor tax may be paid for three, six, or 12 months, although paying annually is cheaper. It can be paid online; verification of insurance details is required to get a tax disc. The tax for private cars first registered from July 2008 is calculated on the basis of carbon dioxide emissions; for cars registered before that, the rate depends on engine displacement. Goods vehicle tax rates are determined based on gross vehicle weight, the tax for buses is based on the number of seats, and flat rates apply to other types of vehicles. Tax evasion in Ireland, while a common problem historically, is now not as widespread. The reasons are twofold – most people pay at source (PAYE) and the penalties for evasion are high. The Irish Revenue target specific industries every year. Industries have included fast food take away restaurants, banks and farmers. Tax avoidance is a legal process where one's financial affairs are arranged so as to legitimately pay less tax. In some cases the Revenue will pursue individuals or companies who avail of tax avoidance; however their success here is limited because tax avoidance is entirely legal. The areas where tax evasion can still be found are businesses that deal in a lot of cash. The trades, small businesses, etc., will sell goods and perform services while accepting cash for the good/service. The buyer will avoid paying VAT at 21% and the seller does not declare the monies for Income Tax. Revenue perform random audits on businesses to discourage and punish this. Businesses are regularly taken to court for tax evasion. Revenue claim a business will be audited roughly every seven years. Other methods have also been employed by government to combat tax evasion. For example, the introduction of a Taxi Regulator and subsequent regulations for the taxi industry has meant that the opportunities for taxi drivers to avoid declaring cash income have dwindled. By law, taxi drivers must now issue an electronic receipt for each fare, effectively recording their income. Prior to 1977, all property owners in Ireland had to pay "rates" – based on the "rateable valuation" of the property – to the local council. Rates were used by local authorities to provide services such as mains water and refuse collection. Rates for private residences were abolished in 1977, with local authorities instead receiving funding from central government. They continue in operation for commercial property. In recent years, the government has introduced new local taxes. A charge for water will be introduced by 2014. A bin tax, for domestic refuse collection, was introduced in the last 15 years. Opponents claim that this is double-taxation – that in the aftermath of the abolition of domestic rates in 1977, their taxes were increased to fund local authorities. However, with the ever-rising cost of providing these services, council funding is no longer sufficient to cover costs and user charges would free up council budgets for more worthwhile projects. Motor tax is paid into the Local Government Fund and is distributed among local authorities. Economy of the Republic of Ireland, Corporation tax in the Republic of Ireland, International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), Irish Revenue Commissioners, Personal Public Service Number (PPSN), Double Irish arrangement BEPS tool, Single malt arrangement BEPS tool, CAIA arrangement BEPS tool, Irish Section 110 Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) tax-free SPV, Qualifying investor alternative investment fund (QIAIF) tax-free SPV, Ireland as a tax haven, Leprechaun economics Apple Q1 2015 restructuring, Modified gross national income GNI, replacement for GDP PricewaterhouseCoopers Ireland (2018), Tax Facts 2018 Revenue.ie, the Irish Revenue Commissioners, Tax System in Ireland, overview from the Irish Revenue Commissioners, PwC Ireland Tax Facts 2018, PricewaterhouseCoopers (Ireland) on Ireland's tax system, KPMG (Ireland) Tax Portal, KPMG (Ireland) on Ireland's tax system, Ernst & Young Tax Portal, E&Y; (Ireland) on Ireland's tax system, Irish Tax Institute (ITI), main tax body for Irish tax professionals, Irish Statute Book, Irish State portal for Tax Acts, Citizens Information: Tax Section, free tax advice from Irish State body (Citizens Information) A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases. The term "progressive" refers to the way the tax rate progresses from low to high, with the result that a taxpayer's average tax rate is less than the person's marginal tax rate. The term can be applied to individual taxes or to a tax system as a whole; a year, multi-year, or lifetime. Progressive taxes are imposed in an attempt to reduce the tax incidence of people with a lower ability to pay, as such taxes shift the incidence increasingly to those with a higher ability-to-pay. The opposite of a progressive tax is a regressive tax, where the average tax rate or burden decreases as an individual's ability to pay increases. The term is frequently applied in reference to personal income taxes, in which people with lower income pay a lower percentage of that income in tax than do those with higher income. It can also apply to adjustments of the tax base by using tax exemptions, tax credits, or selective taxation that creates progressive distribution effects. For example, a wealth or property tax, a sales tax on luxury goods, or the exemption of sales taxes on basic necessities, may be described as having progressive effects as it increases the tax burden of higher income families and reduces it on lower income families. Progressive taxation is often suggested as a way to mitigate the societal ills associated with higher income inequality, as the tax structure reduces inequality, but economists disagree on the tax policy's economic and long-term effects. One study suggests progressive taxation can be positively associated with happiness, the subjective well-being of nations and citizen satisfaction with public goods, such as education and transportation. In the early days of the Roman Republic, public taxes consisted of assessments on owned wealth and property. The tax rate under normal circumstances was 1% of property value, and could sometimes climb as high as 3% in situations such as war. These taxes were levied against land, homes and other real estate, slaves, animals, personal items and monetary wealth. By 167 BC, Rome no longer needed to levy a tax against its citizens in the Italian peninsula, due to the riches acquired from conquered provinces. After considerable Roman expansion in the 1st century, Augustus Caesar introduced a wealth tax of about 1% and a flat poll tax on each adult, this made the tax system less progressive (as it no longer only taxed wealth). The first modern income tax was introduced in Britain by Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger in his budget of December 1798, to pay for weapons and equipment for the French Revolutionary War. Pitt's new graduated (progressive) income tax began at a levy of 2 old pence in the pound (1/120) on incomes over £60 and increased up to a maximum of 2 shillings (10%) on incomes of over £200. Pitt hoped that the new income tax would raise £10 million, but actual receipts for 1799 totalled just over £6 million. Pitt's progressive income tax was levied from 1799 to 1802, when it was abolished by Henry Addington during the Peace of Amiens. Addington had taken over as prime minister in 1801, after Pitt's resignation over Catholic Emancipation. The income tax was reintroduced by Addington in 1803 when hostilities recommenced, but it was again abolished in 1816, one year after the Battle of Waterloo. The United Kingdom income tax was reintroduced by Sir Robert Peel in the Income Tax Act 1842. Peel, as a Conservative, had opposed income tax in the 1841 general election, but a growing budget deficit required a new source of funds. The new income tax, based on Addington's model, was imposed on incomes above £150. Although this measure was initially intended to be temporary, it soon became a fixture of the British taxation system. A committee was formed in 1851 under Joseph Hume to investigate the matter, but failed to reach a clear recommendation. Despite the vociferous objection, William Gladstone, Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1852, kept the progressive income tax, and extended it to cover the costs of the Crimean War. By the 1860s, the progressive tax had become a grudgingly accepted element of the English fiscal system. In the United States, the first progressive income tax was established by the Revenue Act of 1862. The act was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln, and replaced the Revenue Act of 1861, which had imposed a flat income tax of 3% on incomes above $800. The Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, adopted in 1913, permitted Congress to levy all income taxes without any apportionment requirement. By the mid-20th century, most countries had implemented some form of progressive income tax. Indices such as the Suits index, Gini coefficient, Kakwani index, Theil index, Atkinson index, and Hoover index have been created to measure the progressivity of taxation, using measures derived from income distribution and wealth distribution. The rate of tax can be expressed in two different ways; the marginal rate expressed as the rate on each additional unit of income or expenditure (or last dollar spent) and the effective (average) rate expressed as the total tax paid divided by total income or expenditure. In most progressive tax systems, both rates will rise as the amount subject to taxation rises, though there may be ranges where the marginal rate will be constant. Usually, the average tax rate of a tax payer will be lower than the marginal tax rate. In a system with refundable tax credits, or income-tested welfare benefits, it is possible for marginal rates to fall as income rises, at lower levels of income. Tax laws might not be accurately indexed to inflation. For example, some tax laws may ignore inflation completely. In a progressive tax system, failure to index the brackets to inflation will eventually result in effective tax increases (if inflation is sustained), as inflation in wages will increase individual income and move individuals into higher tax brackets with higher percentage rates. This phenomenon is known as bracket creep and can cause fiscal drag. There is debate between politicians and economists over the role of tax policy in mitigating or exacerbating wealth inequality and the effects on economic growth . Progressive taxation has a direct effect on reducing income inequality. This is especially true if taxation is used to fund progressive government spending such as transfer payments and social safety nets. However, the effect may be muted if the higher rates cause increased tax evasion. When income inequality is low, aggregate demand will be relatively high, because more people who want ordinary consumer goods and services will be able to afford them, while the labor force will not be as relatively monopolized by the wealthy. High levels of income inequality can have negative effects on long-term economic growth, employment, and class conflict. Progressive taxation is often suggested as a way to mitigate the societal ills associated with higher income inequality. The difference between the Gini index for an income distribution before taxation and the Gini index after taxation is an indicator for the effects of such taxation. The economists Thomas Piketty and Emmanuel Saez wrote that decreased progressiveness in US tax policy in the post World War II era has increased income inequality by enabling the wealthy greater access to capital. According to economist Robert H. Frank, tax cuts for the wealthy are largely spent on positional goods such as larger houses and more expensive cars. Frank argues that these funds could instead pay for things like improving public education and conducting medical research, and suggests progressive taxation as an instrument for attacking positional externalities. A report published by the OECD in 2008 presented empirical research showing a weak negative relationship between the progressivity of personal income taxes and economic growth. Describing the research, William McBride, a staff writer with the conservative Tax Foundation, stated that progressivity of income taxes can undermine investment, risk-taking, entrepreneurship, and productivity because high-income earners tend to do much of the saving, investing, risk-taking, and high-productivity labor. According to IMF, some advanced economies could increase progressivity in taxation for tackling inequality, without hampering growth, as long as progressivity is not excessive. Fund also states that the average top income tax rate for OECD member countries fell from 62 percent in 1981 to 35 percent in 2015, and that in addition, tax systems are less progressive than indicated by the statutory rates, because wealthy individuals have more access to tax relief. Economist Gary Becker has described educational attainment as the root of economic mobility. Progressive tax rates, while raising taxes on high income, have the goal and corresponding effect of reducing the burden on low income, improving income equality. Educational attainment is often conditional on cost and family income, which for the poor, reduces their opportunity for educational attainment. Increases in income for the poor and economic equality reduces the inequality of educational attainment. Tax policy can also include progressive features that provide tax incentives for education, such as tax credits and tax exemptions for scholarships and grants. A potentially adverse effect of progressive tax schedules is that they may reduce the incentives for educational attainment. By reducing the after-tax income of highly educated workers, progressive taxes can reduce the incentives for citizens to attain education, thereby lowering the overall level of human capital in an economy. However, this effect can be mitigated by an education subsidy funded by the progressive tax. Theoretically, public support for government spending on higher education increases when taxation is progressive, especially when income distribution is unequal. A 2011 study psychologists Shigehiro Oishi, Ulrich Schimmack, and Ed Diener, using data from 54 countries, found that progressive taxation was positively associated with the subjective well-being, while overall tax rates and government spending were not. The authors added, "We found that the association between more-progressive taxation and higher levels of subjective well-being was mediated by citizens’ satisfaction with public goods, such as education and public transportation." Tax law professor Thomas D. Griffith, summarizing research on human happiness, has argued that because inequality in a society significantly reduces happiness, a progressive tax structure which redistributes income would increase welfare and happiness in a society. Since progressive taxation reduces the income of high earners and is often used as a method to fund government social programs for low income earners, calls for increasing tax progressivity have sometimes been labeled as envy or class warfare, while others may describe such actions as fair or a form of social justice. There are two common ways of computing a progressive tax, corresponding to point–slope form and slope–intercept form of the equation for the applicable bracket. These compute the tax either as the tax on the bottom amount of the bracket plus the tax on the marginal amount within the bracket; or the tax on the entire amount (at the marginal rate), minus the amount that this overstates tax on the bottom end of the bracket. For example, suppose there are tax brackets of 10%, 20%, and 30%, where the 10% rate applies to income from $1 to $10,000; the 20% rate applies to income from $10,001 to $20,000; and the 30% rate applies to all income above $20,000. In that case the tax on $20,000 of income (computed by adding up tax in each bracket) is 10% × $10,000 + 20% × $10,000 = $1,000 + $2,000 = $3,000. The tax on $25,000 of income could then be computed two ways. Using point–slope form (tax on bottom amount plus tax on marginal amount) yields: Geometrically, the line for tax on the top bracket passes through the point ($20,000, $3,000) and has a slope of 0.3 (30%). Alternatively, 30% tax on $20,000 yields 30% × $20,000 = $6,000, which overstates tax on the bottom end of the top bracket by $6,000 − $3,000 = $3,000, so using slope–intercept form yields: Geometrically, the line for tax on the top bracket intercepts the y-axis at −$3,000 – it passes through the point (0, −$3,000) – and has a slope of 0.3 (30%). In the United States, the first form was used through 2003, for example (for the 2003 15% Single bracket): If the amount on Form 1040, line 40 [Taxable Income], is: Over— 7,000, But not over— 28,400, Enter on Form 1040, line 41 [Tax] $700.00 + 15%, of the amount over— 7,000 From 2004, this changed to the second form, for example (for the 2004 28% Single bracket): Taxable income. If line 42 is— At least $100,000 but not over $146,750, (a) Enter the amount from line 42, (b) Multiplication amount × 28% (.28), (c) Multiply (a) by (b), (d) Subtraction amount $5,373.00, Tax. Subtract (d) from (c). Enter the result here and on Form 1040, line 43 Most systems around the world contain progressive aspects. When taxable income falls within a particular tax bracket, the individual pays the listed percentage of tax on each dollar that falls within that monetary range. For example, a person in the U.S. who earned $10,000 US of taxable income (income after adjustments, deductions, and exemptions) would be liable for 10% of each dollar earned from the 1st dollar to the 7,550th dollar, and then for 15% of each dollar earned from the 7,551st dollar to the 10,000th dollar, for a total of $1,122.50. In the United States, there are seven income tax brackets ranging from 10% to 39.6% above an untaxed level of income based on the personal exemption and usually various other tax exemptions, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit and home mortgage payments. The US federal tax system also includes deductions for state and local taxes for lower income households which mitigates what are sometimes regressive taxes, particularly property taxes. Higher income households are subject to the alternative minimum tax that limits deductions and sets a flat tax rate of 26% to 28% with the higher rate commencing at $175,000 in income. There are also deduction phaseouts starting at $112,500 for single filers. The net effect is increased progressivity that completely limits deductions for state and local taxes and certain other credits for individuals earning more than $306,300. New Zealand has the following income tax brackets (for the 2012–2013 financial year): 10.5% up to NZ$14,000; 17.5% from $14,001 to $48,000; 30% from $48,001 to $70,000; 33% over $70,001; and 45% when the employee does not complete a declaration form. All values are in New Zealand dollars and exclude the earner levy. Australia has the following progressive income tax rates (for the 2012–2013 financial year): 0% effective up to A$18,200; 19% from $18,201 to $37,000; 32.5% from $37,001 to $80,000; 37% from $80,001 to $180,000; and 45% for any amount over $180,000. The Progressive Income Tax: Theoretical Foundations A flat tax (short for flat-rate tax) is a tax system with a constant marginal rate, usually applied to individual or corporate income. A true flat tax would be a proportional tax, but implementations are often progressive and sometimes regressive depending on deductions and exemptions in the tax base. There are various tax systems that are labeled "flat tax" even though they are significantly different. Flat tax proposals differ in how the subject of the tax is defined. A true flat-rate tax is a system of taxation where one tax rate is applied to all personal income with no deductions. Where deductions are allowed, a 'flat tax' is a progressive tax with the special characteristic that, above the maximum deduction, the marginal rate on all further income is constant. Such a tax is said to be marginally flat above that point. The difference between a true flat tax and a marginally flat tax can be reconciled by recognizing that the latter simply excludes certain types of income from being defined as taxable income; hence, both kinds of tax are flat on taxable income. Modified flat taxes have been proposed which would allow deductions for a very few items, while still eliminating the vast majority of existing deductions. Charitable deductions and home mortgage interest are the most discussed examples of deductions that would be retained, as these deductions are popular with voters and are often used. Another common theme is a single, large, fixed deduction. This large fixed deduction would compensate for the elimination of various existing deductions and would simplify taxes, having the side-effect that many (mostly low income) households will not have to file tax returns. Designed by economists at the Hoover Institution, Hall–Rabushka is a flat tax on consumption. Principally, Hall–Rabushka accomplishes a consumption tax effect by taxing income and then excluding investment. Robert Hall and Alvin Rabushka have consulted extensively in designing the flat tax systems in Eastern Europe. The negative income tax (NIT), which Milton Friedman proposed in his 1962 book Capitalism and Freedom, is a type of flat tax. The basic idea is the same as a flat tax with personal deductions, except that when deductions exceed income, the taxable income is allowed to become negative rather than being set to zero. The flat tax rate is then applied to the resulting "negative income," resulting in a "negative income tax" that the government would owe to the household—unlike the usual "positive" income tax, which the household owes the government. For example, let the flat rate be 20%, and let the deductions be $20,000 per adult and $7,000 per dependent. Under such a system, a family of four making $54,000 a year would owe no tax. A family of four making $74,000 a year would owe tax amounting to 0.20 × (74,000 − 54,000) = $4,000, as would be the case under a flat tax system with deductions. Families of four earning less than $54,000 per year, however, would experience a "negative" amount of tax (that is, the family would receive money from the government instead of paying to the government). For example, if the family earned $34,000 a year, it would receive a check for $4,000. The NIT is intended to replace not just the USA's income tax, but also many benefits low income American households receive, such as food stamps and Medicaid. The NIT is designed to avoid the welfare trap—effective high marginal tax rates arising from the rules reducing benefits as market income rises. An objection to the NIT is that it is welfare without a work requirement. Those who would owe negative tax would be receiving a form of welfare without having to make an effort to obtain employment. Another objection is that the NIT subsidizes industries employing low-cost labor, but this objection can also be made against current systems of benefits for the working poor. A capped flat tax is one in which income is taxed at a flat rate until a specified cap amount is reached. For example, the United States Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax is 6.2% of gross compensation up to a limit (in 2019, up to $132,900 of earnings, for a maximum tax of $8239.80). This cap has the effect of turning a nominally flat tax into a regressive tax. In devising a flat tax system, several recurring issues must be enumerated, principally with deductions and the identification of when money is earned. Since a central tenet of the flat tax is to minimize the compartmentalization of incomes into myriad special or sheltered cases, a vexing problem is deciding when income occurs. This is demonstrated by the taxation of interest income and stock dividends. The shareholders own the company and so the company's profits belong to them. If a company is taxed on its profits, then the funds paid out as dividends have already been taxed. It's a debatable question if they should subsequently be treated as income to the shareholders and thus subject to further tax. A similar issue arises in deciding if interest paid on loans should be deductible from the taxable income since that interest is in-turn taxed as income to the loan provider. There is no universally agreed answer to what is fair. For example, in the United States, dividends are not deductible but mortgage interest is deductible. Thus a Flat Tax proposal is not fully defined until it differentiates new untaxed income from a pass-through of already taxed income. Taxes, in addition to providing revenue, can be potent instruments of policy. For example, it is common for governments to encourage social policy such as home insulation or low income housing with tax credits rather than constituting a ministry to implement these policies. In a flat tax system with limited deductions such policy administration, mechanisms are curtailed. In addition to social policy, flat taxes can remove tools for adjusting economic policy as well. For example, in the United States, short-term capital gains are taxed at a higher rate than long-term gains as means to promote long-term investment horizons and damp speculative fluctuation. Thus, if one assumes that government should be active in policy decisions such as this, then claims that flat taxes are cheaper/simpler to administer than others are incomplete until they factor in costs for alternative policy administration. In general, the question of how to eliminate deductions is fundamental to the flat tax design; deductions dramatically affect the effective "flatness" in the tax rate. Perhaps the single biggest necessary deduction is for business expenses. If businesses were not allowed to deduct expenses, businesses with a profit margin below the flat tax rate could never earn any money since the tax on revenues would always exceed the earnings. For example, grocery stores typically earn pennies on every dollar of revenue; they could not pay a tax rate of 25% on revenues unless their markup exceeded 25%. Thus, corporations must be able to deduct operating expenses even if individual citizens cannot. A practical dilemma now arises as to identifying what is an expense for a business. For example, if a peanut butter producer purchases a jar manufacturer, is that an expense (since they have to purchase jars somehow) or a sheltering of their income through investment? Flat tax systems can differ greatly in how they accommodate such gray areas. For example, the "9-9-9" flat tax proposal would allow businesses to deduct purchases but not labor costs. (This effectively taxes labor-intensive industrial revenue at a higher rate.) How deductions are implemented will dramatically change the effective total tax, and thus the flatness of the tax. Thus, a flat tax proposal is not fully defined unless the proposal includes a differentiation between deductible and non-deductible expenses. Flat tax benefits higher income brackets progressively due to decline in marginal value. For example, if a flat tax system has a large per-citizen deductible (such as the "Armey" scheme below), then it is a progressive tax. As a result, the term Flat Tax is actually a shorthand for the more proper marginally flat tax. One type of flat tax would be imposed on all income once; at the source of the income. Hall and Rabushka (1995) includes a proposed amendment to the U.S. Internal Revenue Code that would implement the variant of the flat tax they advocate. This amendment, only a few pages long, would replace hundreds of pages of statutory language (although most statutory language in taxation statutes is not directed at specifying graduated tax rates). As it now stands, the U.S. Internal Revenue Code is over several million words long, and contains many loopholes, deductions, and exemptions which, advocates of flat taxes claim, render the collection of taxes and the enforcement of tax law complicated and inefficient. It is further argued that current tax law slows economic growth by distorting economic incentives, and by allowing, even encouraging, tax avoidance. With a flat tax, there are fewer incentives than in the current system to create tax shelters, and to engage in other forms of tax avoidance. Flat tax critics contend that a flat tax system could be created with many loopholes, or a progressive tax system without loopholes, and that a progressive tax system could be as simple, or simpler, than a flat tax system. A simple progressive tax would also discourage tax avoidance. Under a pure flat tax without deductions, every tax period a company would make a single payment to the government covering the taxes on the employees and the taxes on the company profit. For example, suppose that in a given year, a company called ACME earns a profit of 3 million, spends 2 million in wages, and spends 1 million on other expenses that under the tax law is taxable income to recipients, such as the receipt of stock options, bonuses, and certain executive privileges. Given a flat rate of 15%, ACME would then owe the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (3M + 2M + 1M) × 0.15 = 900,000. This payment would, in one fell swoop, settle the tax liabilities of ACME's employees as well as the corporate taxes owed by ACME. Most employees throughout the economy would never need to interact with the IRS, as all tax owed on wages, interest, dividends, royalties, etc. would be withheld at the source. The main exceptions would be employees with incomes from personal ventures. The Economist claims that such a system would reduce the number of entities required to file returns from about 130 million individuals, households, and businesses, as at present, to a mere 8 million businesses and self-employed. However, this simplicity depends on the absence of deductions of any kind being allowed (or at least no variability in the deductions of different people). Furthermore, if income of differing types are segregated (e.g., pass-through, long term cap gains, regular income, etc.) then complications ensue. For example, if realized capital gains were subject to the flat tax, the law would require brokers and mutual funds to calculate the realized capital gain on all sales and redemption. If there were a gain, a tax equal to 15% of the amount of the gain would be withheld and sent to the IRS. If there were a loss, the amount would be reported to the IRS. The loss would offset gains, and then the IRS would settle up with taxpayers at the end of the period. Lacking deductions, this scheme cannot be used to implement economic and social policy indirectly by tax credits and thus, as noted above, the simplifications to the government's revenue collection apparatus might be offset by new government ministries required to administer those policies. The Russian Federation is considered a prime case of the success of a flat tax; the real revenues from its Personal Income Tax rose by 25.2% in the first year after the Federation introduced a flat tax, followed by a 24.6% increase in the second year, and a 15.2% increase in the third year. The Russian example is often used as proof of the validity of this analysis, despite an International Monetary Fund study in 2006 which found that there was no sign "of Laffer-type behavioral responses generating revenue increases from the tax cut elements of these reforms" in Russia or in other countries. Taxes other than the income tax (for example, taxes on sales and payrolls) tend to be regressive. Hence, making the income tax flat could result in a regressive overall tax structure. Under such a structure, those with lower incomes tend to pay a higher proportion of their income in total taxes than the affluent do. The fraction of household income that is a return to capital (dividends, interest, royalties, profits of unincorporated businesses) is positively correlated with total household income. Hence a flat tax limited to wages would seem to leave the wealthy better off. Modifying the tax base can change the effects. A flat tax could be targeted at income (rather than wages), which could place the tax burden equally on all earners, including those who earn income primarily from returns on investment. Tax systems could utilize a flat sales tax to target all consumption, which can be modified with rebates or exemptions to remove regressive effects (such as the proposed Fair Tax in the U.S.). A flat tax system and income taxes overall are not inherently border- adjustable; meaning the tax component embedded into products via taxes imposed on companies (including corporate taxes and payroll taxes) are not removed when exported to a foreign country (see Effect of taxes and subsidies on price). Taxation systems such as a sales tax or value added tax can remove the tax component when goods are exported and apply the tax component on imports. The domestic products could be at a disadvantage to foreign products (at home and abroad) that are border-adjustable, which would impact the global competitiveness of a country. However, it's possible that a flat tax system could be combined with tariffs and credits to act as border adjustments (the proposed Border Tax Equity Act in the U.S. attempts this). Implementing an income tax with a border adjustment tax credit is a violation of the World Trade Organization agreement. Tax exemptions (allowances) on low income wages, a component of most income tax systems could mitigate this issue for high labour content industries like textiles that compete Globally. In a subsequent section, various proposals for flat tax-like schemes are discussed, these differ mainly on how they approach with the following issues of deductions, defining income, and policy implementation. These are countries, as well as minor jurisdictions with the autonomous power to tax, that have adopted tax systems that are commonly described in the media and the professional economics literature as a flat tax. In some countries different rates apply to different kinds of income, the main rate for personal income is shown below. At the federal level, the United States taxes personal income at progressive rates. Most states also tax income, most of them also at progressive rates, but some use a flat tax rate. does not have a general income tax, but since 2011 it imposes an "interim stabilisation levy" on salaries, composed of a portion paid by the employer and another paid by the employee through withholding. Each portion has a flat rate of 3%. This tax is in addition to a mandatory contribution to social security. do not have a general income tax, but impose a payroll tax on salaries, composed of a portion paid by the employer and another paid by the employee through withholding. The employee portion has a flat rate of 8%. This tax is in addition to mandatory contributions to social security and national health insurance. Some sources claim that Hong Kong has a flat tax, though its salary tax structure has several different rates ranging from 2% to 17% after deductions. Taxes are capped at 15% of gross income, so this rate is applied to upper income returns if taxes would exceed 15% of gross otherwise. Accordingly, Duncan B. Black of Media Matters for America, says "Hong Kong's 'flat tax' is better described as an 'alternative maximum tax.'" Alan Reynolds of the Cato Institute similarly notes that Hong Kong's "tax on salaries is not flat but steeply progressive." Hong Kong has, nevertheless, a flat profit tax regime. does not have a general income tax, but it imposes zakat (wealth tax) on the business assets of residents who are nationals of GCC countries, and income tax on the business income of residents who are not nationals of GCC countries and of nonresidents. Zakat has a flat rate of 2.5%, and income tax has a flat rate of 20%. introduced a flat tax of 10% on personal income in 2008, and replaced it with two rates of 13% and 23% in 2014., introduced a flat tax of 15% on personal income in 2008, and a second higher rate of 22% in 2013., had a flat tax of 30% on personal income until 2014, when it introduced a second lower rate of 15%., had a flat tax of 30% on personal income until 2017, when it replaced it with progressive rates of 28% and 40%., introduced a flat tax on personal income in 2007, at a national rate of 22.75%. With the additional municipal rate, the total tax rate was up to 36%. In 2010, Iceland replaced its flat tax system with progressive national rates of 24.1% to 33%, for a combined (national and municipal) top rate of 46.28%., had a flat tax of 25% on personal income until 2010, when it introduced additional higher rates of 27.5% and 33%. It restored the flat tax of 25% in 2011, and introduced a second higher rate of 30% in 2016., introduced a flat tax of 25% on personal income in 1997. The rate was changed to 23% in 2009, 26% in 2010, 25% in 2011, 24% in 2013, and 23% in 2015. In 2018, Latvia replaced its flat tax with progressive rates of 20%, 23% and 31.4%., introduced a flat tax rate of 15% on personal income in 2009. In 2017, it introduced an additional "solidarity levy" of 5% on high income, for a combined top rate of 20%. In 2018, it introduced an additional lower rate of 10%., introduced a flat tax of 15% on personal income in 2007, reduced to 12% in 2009 and 9% in 2010. It introduced a second higher rate of 15% on salaries in 2013, reduced to 13% in 2015 and 11% in 2016., introduced a flat tax of 12% on personal income in 2007, reduced to 10% in 2008. In 2019, it introduced a second higher rate of 18% on salaries, and increased the flat tax rate on investment income to 15%., introduced a flat tax of 25% on personal income in 2012, and replaced it with two rates of 26% and 31% in 2015., introduced a flat tax of 19% on personal income in 2004, and a second higher rate of 25% in 2013., had a flat tax of 25% on personal income until 2017, when it introduced a second higher rate of 30%., had a flat tax of 30% on personal income until 2009, when it introduced a second lower rate of 15%., introduced a flat tax of 13% on personal income in 2004, increased to 15% in 2007, and introduced a second higher rate of 17% in 2011. The second rate was increased to 20% in 2015, and the first rate was increased to 18% in 2016. These are countries where concrete flat tax proposals are being considered by influential politicians or political parties. During the 2018 electoral campaigns, the right-wing coalition strongly proposed the introduction of a new flat tax, ranging from 15% to 23%. Economic Concepts Excess burden of taxation (or more broadly deadweight loss), Fiscal drag (also known as Bracket creep), Taxable income elasticity (also known as Laffer Curve) Tax Systems Consumption tax, FairTax, Income tax, Kemp Commission, Land value tax, Negative income tax, Optimal tax, Progressive tax, Regressive tax, Sales tax, Single tax, Value added tax, 9–9–9 Plan Steve Forbes, 2005. Flat Tax Revolution. Washington: Regnery Publishing., Robert Hall and Alvin Rabushka, 1995 (1985). The Flat Tax. Hoover Institution Press., Richard Parncutt, 2006–2010. Free enterprise without poverty: Effectively progressive income tax.., Anthony J. Evans, "Ideas and Interests: The Flat Tax" Open Republic 1(1), 2005 The Laffer Curve: Past, Present and Future: A detailed examination of the theory behind the Laffer curve, and many case studies of tax cuts on government revenue in the United States, Podcast of Rabushka discussing the flat tax Alvin Rabushka discusses the flat tax with Russ Roberts on EconTalk., Podcast of Rabushka discussing the flat tax Alvin Rabushka discusses the flat tax on PoliTalk., The Flat Tax: How it Works and Why it is Good for America

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The eighth season of The Walking Dead, an American post-apocalyptic horror television series on AMC, premiered on October 22, 2017, and concluded on April 15, 2018, consisting of 16 episodes. Developed for television by Frank Darabont, the series is based on the eponymous series of comic books by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. The executive producers are Kirkman, David Alpert, Scott M. Gimple, Greg Nicotero, Tom Luse, and Gale Anne Hurd, with Gimple as showrunner for his fifth and final season. The eighth season received mixed reviews from critics. It was nominated for multiple awards and won two, including Best Horror Television Series for the third consecutive year, at the 44th Saturn Awards. This season adapts material from issues #115–126 of the comic book series "All Out War Part I & II" and introduces notable comic book character Siddiq (Avi Nash). The season continues the story of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his group of survivors in their fight against Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and the Saviors. Rick, along with Maggie (Lauren Cohan), leading The Hilltop, and King Ezekiel (Khary Payton), leader of The Kingdom, unite forces to start a rebellion against the tyrant leader of the Saviors, initiating a war for the freedom of the communities. The eighth season features twenty series regulars overall. For this season, Katelyn Nacon, Khary Payton, Steven Ogg, and Pollyanna McIntosh were promoted to series regular status, after previously having recurring roles, while Seth Gilliam and Ross Marquand were added to the opening credits. Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, the series' protagonist, a former sheriff's deputy and the leader of Alexandria, who is leading a new alliance to fight Negan and the Saviors., Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon, Rick's right-hand man, the group's primary hunter and a recruiter for Alexandria., Lauren Cohan as Maggie Greene, the pregnant widow of Glenn and a leading figure of the Hilltop., Chandler Riggs as Carl Grimes, Rick's bold and courageous teenage son., Danai Gurira as Michonne, Rick's katana-wielding girlfriend, who acts as a mother figure to Carl and Judith., Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier, a fierce survivor who is spurred into fighting the Saviors as revenge for the deaths of her friends., Lennie James as Morgan Jones, the first survivor Rick had ever encountered, who now resides in the Kingdom and fights for his sanity., Alanna Masterson as Tara Chambler, a caring, witty member of the group and supply runner for Alexandria who serves as a liaison with Oceanside., Josh McDermitt as Eugene Porter, a timorous former member of the group whose resourcefulness leads Negan to take him under his wing., Christian Serratos as Rosita Espinosa, an impulsive member of the group, who is motivated to avenge her ex-boyfriend Spencer and Abraham's death., Seth Gilliam as Gabriel Stokes, a priest who has become hardened from his experiences with Rick's group., Ross Marquand as Aaron, an Alexandrian recruiter who brought Rick's group to Alexandria and is currently in the fight against the Saviors., Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan, the leader of the Saviors who serves as the season's primary antagonist. Austin Amelio as Dwight, a former subordinate of Negan who now works for Rick as a double agent against the Saviors., Tom Payne as Paul "Jesus" Rovia, a scout for the Hilltop, that fights for the moral balance of the group., Xander Berkeley as Gregory, the selfish and hypocritical leader of the Hilltop whose influence diminished with Maggie's prominence., Khary Payton as Ezekiel, the charismatic leader of the Kingdom who allies with Rick against the Saviors., Steven Ogg as Simon, a former mortgage broker and Negan's second-in-command, he does not hide his intentions to overthrow Negan., Katelyn Nacon as Enid, a former member of Alexandria who moved to Hilltop to be with Maggie, and has formed a relationship with Carl., Pollyanna McIntosh as Jadis / Anne, the deceptive leader of the Scavengers who betrayed Rick's group, and maintains a neutral stance in the war. Jason Douglas as Tobin, the foreman of Alexandria's construction crew and member of Rick's militia., Jordan Woods-Robinson as Eric Raleigh, Aaron's boyfriend and his former recruiting partner, who is now a member of Rick's militia., Kenric Green as Scott, a supply runner in Alexandria and member of Rick's militia., Dahlia Legault as Francine, a member of Alexandria's construction crew and member of Rick's militia., Mandi Christine Kerr as Barbara, resident of Alexandria., Ted Huckabee as Bruce, resident and member of Alexandria's construction and member of Rick's militia. James Chen as Kal, a guard of the Hilltop and soldier of the Hilltop's militia., Peter Zimmerman as Eduardo, a guard of the Hilltop and soldier of the Hilltop's militia., Karen Ceesay as Bertie, a resident of the Hilltop and soldier of the Hilltop's militia., Jeremy Palko as Andy, a resident of the Hilltop and soldier of the Hilltop's militia., Brett Gentile as Freddie, a resident of the Hilltop and soldier of the Hilltop's militia., R. Keith Harris as Dr. Harlan Carson, the doctor at the Hilltop, who was captured by Simon in the previous season. Jayson Warner Smith as Gavin, one of Negan's top lieutenants, who leads the weapons base., Traci Dinwiddie as Regina, one of Negan's top lieutenants., Elizabeth Ludlow as Arat, one of Negan's top lieutenants., Mike Seal as Gary, one of Negan's top lieutenants and accomplice of Simon in his plans to overthrow Negan., Lindsley Register as Laura, one of Negan's top lieutenants., Juan Pareja as Morales, a survivor from Rick's original Atlanta camp who joined the Saviors., Joshua Mikel as Jared, Benjamin's killer, and a hostile member of the Saviors who antagonizes Morgan., Callan McAuliffe as Alden, a member of the Saviors who surrenders to Jesus at the satellite station outpost., Lindsey Garrett as Mara, a Savior who guards one of many outposts., Lee Norris as Todd, a timid member of the Saviors who works at the same outpost as Mara., Whitmer Thomas as Gunther, a member of the Saviors who tortures Ezekiel., Charles Halford as Yago, a Savior who manages Gavin's weapons base., Ciera L. Payton as Zia, a Savior whom Rosita and Michonne encounter at a supply warehouse., Adam Cronan as Leo, a Savior whom Rosita and Michonne encounter at a supply warehouse., Chloe Aktas as Tanya, one of Negan's wives., Elyse Dufour as Frankie, one of Negan's wives., Adam Fristoe as Dean, a Savior who tried to kill Jesus., Matt Mangum as D.J., one of Negan's top lieutenants and guardian of the Sanctuary. Cooper Andrews as Jerry, Ezekiel's loyal and good-natured bodyguard., Kerry Cahill as Dianne, one of Ezekiel's top soldiers and a skilled archer., Daniel Newman as Daniel, one of Ezekiel's top soldiers., Carlos Navarro as Alvaro, one of Ezekiel's top soldiers., Macsen Lintz as Henry, a resident of the Kingdom and younger brother of the deceased Benjamin, who wants revenge on the Saviors for the death of his brother., Jason Burkey as Kevin, a resident of the Kingdom., Nadine Marissa as Nabila, a resident and gardener of the Kingdom. Deborah May as Natania, the vigilant leader of Oceanside., Sydney Park as Cyndie, Natania's granddaughter., Briana Venskus as Beatrice, one of Oceanside's top soldiers., Nicole Barré as Kathy, one of Oceanside's top soldiers., Mimi Kirkland as Rachel, an aggressive young member of Oceanside. Sabrina Gennarino as Tamiel, a leading member of the Scavengers., Thomas Francis Murphy as Brion, a leading member of the Scavengers. Avi Nash as Siddiq, a mysterious vagabond survivor who befriends Carl., Jayne Atkinson as Georgie, the leader of a mysterious humanitarian group. The Walking Dead was renewed by AMC for a 16-episode eighth season on October 16, 2016. Production began on April 25, 2017, in Atlanta, Georgia. On July 12, 2017, production was shut down after stuntman John Bernecker was killed, after falling more than 20 feet onto a concrete floor. Production resumed on July 17. The season premiere, which also serves as the series' milestone 100th episode, was directed by executive producer Greg Nicotero. In November 2017, it was announced that Lennie James who portrays Morgan Jones, would be leaving The Walking Dead after the conclusion of this season, and would join the cast of the spin-off series Fear the Walking Dead for its fourth season. The eighth season also features the departures of series regulars Chandler Riggs (Carl Grimes), Steven Ogg (Simon), and Austin Amelio (Dwight). Riggs' final episode is the mid-season premiere where his character is killed off, which is a deviation from the comic book, where his character is still alive. His death received negative reactions from critics and fans. Ogg's final episode is the penultimate episode of the season, where his character is killed by Negan. Amelio departed the series after the season finale, and in January 2019, it was confirmed he would join the cast of Fear the Walking Dead. The first trailer for the season was released on July 21, 2017 at the San Diego Comic-Con. The second trailer was released on February 1, 2018 for the second part of the season. On March 15, 2018, it was announced that the season finale and the fourth season premiere of Fear the Walking Dead would be screened at AMC, Regal, and Cinemark theaters across the United States on April 15, the same day as the TV airing, for "Survival Sunday: The Walking Dead & Fear the Walking Dead". The episodes marked the first crossover between the two series. The cinema screening also included an extra half-hour of exclusive bonus content. The eighth season of The Walking Dead received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season holds a score of 64% with an average rating of 6.68 out of 10 based on 16 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "The Walking Deads eighth season energizes its characters with some much-needed angst and action, though it's still occasionally choppy and lacking forward- moving plot progression." For the 44th Saturn Awards, the eight season of The Walking Dead received seven nominations, winning two. It won Best Horror Television Series and Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Television Series (Chandler Riggs). The nominations were for Best Actor on Television (Andrew Lincoln), Best Supporting Actor on Television (Khary Payton), Best Supporting Actress on Television (Danai Gurira and Melissa McBride), and Best Guest Starring Role on Television (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). The first half of the season was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series at the 24th Screen Actors Guild Awards. Live +7 ratings were not available, so Live +3 ratings have been used instead. The eighth season was released on Blu-ray and DVD on August 21, 2018. The set includes three audio commentaries and three featurettes. "Wrath" is the sixteenth and final episode of the eighth season of the post- apocalyptic horror television series The Walking Dead, which aired on AMC on April 15, 2018. It was written by Scott M. Gimple, Angela Kang and Matthew Negrete, and directed by Greg Nicotero. This episode marks the last regular appearance of main cast member Lennie James as Morgan Jones, who first appeared in the first season premiere episode "Days Gone Bye". The character was moved to the companion series Fear the Walking Dead beginning with its fourth season. It also marks the final appearance of Austin Amelio, who played Dwight from the sixth season in the episode "Always Accountable" as a recurring member of the series and the following season was promoted to the regular cast. The fate of Dwight also marked the same path of Morgan for the crossover of Fear The Walking Dead as he made his debut for the fifth season as part of the main cast. At the Hilltop, Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and company prepare to launch their offensive against the Saviors. In the midst of events, Rick has flashbacks to a day before the apocalypse that Carl alluded to in his last letter to him, in which a young Carl was leading him down a country road. Rick goes to tend to Gracie and encounters Siddiq (Avi Nash). Rick asks how Carl was bitten; Siddiq tells him it happened while honoring Siddiq's mother, someone he never knew. Later, Rick, Michonne (Danai Gurira), Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) review and prepare to depart to investigate the Savior plans that had been previously delivered by Gregory on behalf of Dwight (Austin Amelio). However, they are unaware that Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) planted these as a ruse to entrap them. Meanwhile, Morgan (Lennie James), starts hallucinating again and nearly kills Henry (Macsen Lintz) before Carol (Melissa McBride) stops him. Morgan later kills a living Savior in cold blood; however, Jesus (Tom Payne) suggests that he shouldn't kill the living so willingly. Back at the Sanctuary, Eugene (Josh McDermitt) delivers and demonstrates his homemade ammo supply to Negan, and recommends that they use a firing line approach to fight Rick's army. Negan sends a decoy group of Saviors to set up a roadblock as part of the ruse to entrap Rick, while he, Gabriel (Seth Gilliam), Eugene, and the rest of them set out on their real course. As they drive, Negan confesses to Gabriel that he intentionally sacrificed the roadblock group, expecting Rick will kill all of them, but that this was a necessary sacrifice as they were also armed with more false intel that would lead Rick's group into his ambush while thinking the plans from Dwight were legitimate. Gabriel, on hearing this, tries to escape the moving vehicle to warn Rick, but is caught by Eugene. Following the map, Rick's group witnesses a massive walker horde in the distance and continue on. They end up in a large field where Negan taunts them over a public address system. Negan reveals that he has Gabriel at gunpoint, that their traitor Dwight is a prisoner, and that his people are ready to fire. He counts down from three, as a firing line of Saviors appears on the ridge line of the hill, ready to shoot down Rick's group. However, as they fire, their weapons all backfire due to Eugene's purposely faulty ammo, killing or injuring many – including Negan – and rendering the guns ineffective. As Rick's group engage in gun battle, Gabriel and Dwight overpower their captors and force Negan to flee with his baseball bat—"Lucille". In the ensuing shootout, many of the Saviors are killed while the rest willingly put down their weapons and surrender. Concurrently, a smaller Savior convoy reaches the Hilltop. The residents all evacuate through a secret passage to the woods behind the community. Tara (Alanna Masterson) and Alden (Callan McAuliffe) stay behind to slow down the Saviors, when suddenly the Saviors are hit by molotov cocktails thrown by the Oceanside community, led by Cyndie (Sydney Park) and Aaron (Ross Marquand). Back at the field, Rick pursues Negan to a tree where two stained glass windows hang; one of Rick's shots fractures one. Negan attacks Rick with Lucille; the two grapple until Negan gains the upper hand. He tells Rick that he wanted to kill him back when they first met, but couldn't do it in front of Carl. Rick says there can be another way and convinces Negan to hear him out for Carl's sake, that there could be a peaceful future for both of them. Negan seems to be listening and becomes tearful. With Negan's guard down, Rick uses a shard of broken glass to slice Negan's throat while the combined groups watch from a distance. Rick tells Siddiq to save him, much to Maggie's anguish; she wanted to see Negan suffer for killing her husband, Glenn. Michonne restrains Maggie as Rick tells the gathered people that they will start a new world, living in peace, and that the walkers are the real enemies; stating that all the communities, including the Saviors, must work together in order to survive. As everyone departs, Rick falls against the tree and tearfully says to himself "My mercy prevails over my wrath" – a scene first shown in "Mercy". Eventually, the survivors regroup back at their various communities. At the Hilltop, Alden tells Maggie he will stay and help build the inventions from the book given to Maggie by Georgie. The Oceanside group reintegrate and revitalize the Sanctuary. In exchange, a large amount of food and other supplies are given to Tara for the Hilltop. Dwight, whom Daryl has driven deep into the woods, profusely apologizes for his former actions but acknowledges to Daryl he deserves to die. Instead, Daryl gives him the keys to the truck and tells him to leave, go make it right and find his wife Sherry, but warns him to never return. Later, Dwight arrives at their old home and finds a recent note from Sherry. At the junkyard, Morgan stops to see Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh) and tells her that Rick has invited her to join their community and be part of a group again. Morgan says he will stay behind in the junkyard to be alone as he has decided he cannot be around people now. Back in her office at the Hilltop, Maggie has a private meeting with Jesus and Daryl. They believe Rick and Michonne made a mistake by keeping Negan alive and the three allude to rectifying this once Hilltop has had time to regroup and fortify. In the infirmary, Rick and Michonne explain to a recovering Negan that he will spend the rest of his life in a cell while he watches their community thrive. At Alexandria, Gabriel returns to the burnt-out remains of the church and thanks God for helping him by showing him the light. In the final scene, Rick reads his own letter back to Carl – saying he remembers that earlier day too and thanks him for leading him to this point. This episode features the departure of Morgan Jones, portrayed by Lennie James, while bringing him into the narrative of the show's companion series, Fear the Walking Dead, where he became a regular character starting with its fourth season, which premiered immediately after the episode’s broadcast. According to showrunner Scott M. Gimple, the idea of having Eugene be critical to the end of the war by sabotaging the ammunition, which was not a narrative element of the comic series, had been devised before Eugene was taken by the Saviors and had not informed Josh McDermitt about it until necessary as to reflect the character's own motivations as a last-minute change of heart due to his humanity finally overcoming his instinct for self-preservation. It also marks the departure of Dwight, played by Austin Amelio, who first appeared in season 6 "Always Accountable", became a recurring character and in season 7 was promoted to the regular cast. There has been speculation that Dwight was going to appear in the middle of season 9, with the death of Dwight in the arc of the comics, it is speculated that this character would continue his stage in Fear The Walking Dead already part of the main cast, according to Dustin Rowles of Uproxx reveals this: "Should characters from The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead come upon The Commonwealth around the same time, it’s quite possible that Dwight could step right back into his The Walking Dead role, only now as a representative of Fear the Walking Dead. In this scenario, Daryl (filling the role of Rick) could be the one to pull the trigger and kill Dwight in that meeting with Governor Milton (or Georgie). However, Daryl — the guy who exiled Dwight from Alexandria — would feel much less remorse about killing Dwight than Rick does in the comics." "Wrath" received mostly positive reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 75% with an average rating of 6.95 out of 10, based on 28 reviews. The site's consensus reads: "Wrath" begins predictably and ends twistedly as it tidily closes out the "all-out-war" arc that's been creeping throughout TWD season 8, presenting a cliffhanger that goes against the grain of several lead characters and the series itself. Nick Romano of Entertainment Weekly gave the episode a "B-" and said: "In the end, the hour comes down to only a few things: remembrance of Carl, the walk-up to the finale, the twist, and the aftermath — with the latter being saved for next season." Noel Murray of Rolling Stone commented on the episode: "The twist gets the story where it needs to go." Alex McLevy of The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B" and said: "The ending of this story means the series has a chance to do some firm rebooting next season." Matt Fowler of IGN rated the episode 7.6 out of 10 and commented: "There were a couple twists in the third act - one from the comics, that the show's been not shy about telegraphing, and the other one taking three character and having them act extremely contrary to how we know them to be." Bill Keveney of USA Today commented on the episode: "The war, which dragged on longer than many viewers liked, turned on a surprising, satisfying plot twist." Steven Johnson of the Chicago Tribune commented on the episode: "All of Sunday's wrap-up material — Rick under the tree with the art glass windows hanging from it; Rick, red- and teary-eyed, intoning, "My mercy prevailed over my wrath" — packed a surprising emotional wallop." Dustin Rowles of Uproxx commented on the episode: "The season eight finale of The Walking Dead threw us all for a loop when Maggie teased her role in the future of the series." James White of Empire gave the episode 4 out of 5 stars and commented: "A different type of finale for the show, and in a way a welcome one. It certainly feels like the closing of one chapter and the start of another and could almost have served as a series finale." Erik Kain of Forbes commented on the episode: "Probably the best thing about the episode was the setup for Season 9." The season finale received a total viewership of 7.92 million with a 3.4 rating in adults aged 18–49, which was an increase from the previous week which had 6.67 million viewers, and was the highest-rated episode since the mid-season premiere, "Honor", which had 8.28 million viewers. However, it was also the show's lowest rated season finale since season one. "Wrath" at AMC The fourth season of Fear the Walking Dead, an American horror-drama television series on AMC, premiered on April 15, 2018, and comprises 16 episodes split into two eight-episode parts. The second half of the season premiered on August 12, 2018, and concluded on September 30, 2018. It is a companion series to The Walking Dead, and the season premiere contained the first crossover between the two series. The season features new showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian B. Goldberg, and the series also moved to a new filming location, Austin, Texas. The season follows a dysfunctional family composed of Madison Clark (Kim Dickens), her daughter Alicia (Alycia Debnam- Carey), her drug-addicted son Nick (Frank Dillane) and his lover Luciana Galvez (Danay García), along with Victor Strand (Colman Domingo) during the zombie apocalypse. The group finds safe haven inside a baseball stadium, but are threatened by a group of antagonistic survivors known as the Vultures. It also features several new characters including The Walking Deads Morgan Jones (Lennie James), as well as characters Althea Szewczyk-Przygocki (Maggie Grace), John Dorie (Garret Dillahunt), and June (Jenna Elfman). The fourth season features nine actors receiving main cast billing status, with five returning from the third season, while four new cast members are introduced. Lennie James (who was a main cast member in The Walking Dead), moved to the main cast after his departure from The Walking Dead. Maggie Grace, Garret Dillahunt and Jenna Elfman were added to the main cast. This is the first season not to include Cliff Curtis, Mercedes Mason, Daniel Sharman, Sam Underwood, Dayton Callie, Rubén Blades and Lisandra Tena (since their first appearances), who were all credited as main cast members in previous seasons. Kim Dickens as Madison Clark: An intelligent and domineering high school guidance counselor and the mother of Nick and Alicia., Frank Dillane as Nicholas "Nick" Clark: A brave and selfless recovering heroin addict, Madison's son, and Alicia's brother., Alycia Debnam-Carey as Alicia Clark: The fiery yet compassionate daughter of Madison, and the sister of Nick., Maggie Grace as Althea "Al": A curious and tactical journalist who encounters Morgan and John., Colman Domingo as Victor Strand: A smart and sophisticated conman-turned-businessman, who forms friendships with Nick and Madison., Danay García as Luciana Galvez: A strong and cautious former member of the La Colonia community in Tijuana, Mexico, and Nick's girlfriend., Garret Dillahunt as John Dorie: A lonesome and friendly police officer whom Morgan encounters., Lennie James as Morgan Jones: A mentally unstable and ruthlessly pragmatic man, formerly a part of Rick Grimes' group on The Walking Dead, who encounters the core group of survivors., Jenna Elfman as June "Naomi/Laura": A kind and mysterious nurse whom Madison encounters. Kevin Zegers as Melvin: The antagonistic leader of the Vultures and the brother of Ennis., Evan Gamble as Ennis: A member of the Vultures and the brother of Melvin., Sebastian Sozzi as Cole: A resident of the community within the baseball stadium., Rhoda Griffis as Vivian: A resident of the community within the baseball stadium and the wife of Douglas., Alexa Nisenson as Charlie: A young girl who is a spy for the Vultures., Kenneth Wayne Bradley as Douglas: A resident of the community within the baseball stadium and the husband of Vivian., Aaron Stanford as Jim Brauer: A survivor who brews for a living., Daryl Mitchell as Wendell: A wheelchair-bound man and the adoptive brother of Sarah., Mo Collins as Sarah: The adoptive sister of Wendell and a former Marine., Tonya Pinkins as Martha: A mysterious antagonistic woman who kills every survivor that tries to help someone else. Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes: The main protagonist of The Walking Dead, Morgan's friend, and the leader of Alexandria, a Safe-Zone in Virginia., Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier: Morgan's friend from Virginia who resides in the Kingdom., Tom Payne as Paul "Jesus" Rovia: Morgan's friend from Virginia who resides in the Hilltop., Stephen Henderson as Clayton "Polar Bear": A truck driver who left supplies for other survivors. On April 14, 2017, AMC renewed the series for a 16-episode fourth season and announced that Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg would replace the departing Dave Erickson as showrunners. Production began in November 2017 in Austin, Texas. Michael E. Satrazemis, a director of photography for The Walking Dead and director of 12 episodes, joined Fear the Walking Dead as a directing- producer. In November 2017, it was reported that Lennie James who portrays Morgan Jones on The Walking Dead would crossover and join the main cast in the fourth season. The fourth season also sees the additions of several new series regulars, played by Garret Dillahunt, Jenna Elfman, and Maggie Grace. On April 21, 2018, Colman Domingo revealed that he would be directing the twelfth episode of this season. The fourth season features a redesigned title sequence with new theme music. Each episode of the season has a different title card, and tells a story which will become apparent once the season is completed. The Hollywood Reporter reflected on the new intro, calling the new season, "a Western with zombies, very much by design." Goldberg spoke of the season's narrative structure, which features multiple timelines: The new showrunners also were inspired by Westerns; Chambliss stated, "It all started with the themes we set out at the beginning: isolation and community. Those themes run through a lot of classic Western stories." Visually, the season is inspired by John Ford and Sergio Leone's Westerns, using Once Upon a Time in the West as a template for directors. Chambliss said, "it's all about having wide shots, not moving the characters, but moving the characters within the frame. When we get to the editing room, it's really about slowing down the cutting pattern, and harkening back to that style of filmmaking. It does infuse the show with a different feel than what we've seen before. It's something that we're very excited for people to see." The third episode of the season features the death of Nick Clark, played by Frank Dillane. In an interview after the episode had aired, Dillane revealed he asked to leave the show prior to the fourth season. The actor explained: On March 15, 2018, it was announced that the season premiere and the season eight finale of The Walking Dead would be screened at AMC, Regal, and Cinemark theaters across the United States on April 15, the same day as the televised airing, for "Survival Sunday: The Walking Dead & Fear the Walking Dead". The episodes marked the first crossover between the two series. The cinema screening also included an extra half-hour of exclusive bonus content. On Rotten Tomatoes, the fourth season has an approval rating of 81% based on 6 reviews, with an average rating of 6.86/10. The site's critical consensus is, "Fear the Walking Dead shuffles onward confidently in its fourth season with a bevy of horrifying set-pieces and heartbreaking twists, but some viewers may be dispirited by the series' constant reshuffling of its characters." TVLine reevaluated the series for its fourth season, giving it a "B+" grade. Reviewer Charlie Mason wrote, "it's gone from being an adequate stopgap between seasons of The Walking Dead to a show that's as good or arguably even better than the one from which it was spun off." He also praised the addition of Jenna Elfman and Garret Dillahunt and that season 4 has had several genuine surprises in its storytelling. However, the decision to kill off lead character Madison Clark, portrayed by Kim Dickens, was met with intense criticism. Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, television critic Maureen Ryan highlighted the character as "one of TV's — and cable's — rare mature female leads" and cited her "baffling" demise as an example of Hollywood's ageist practices, adding, "the fact that this decision comes from The Walking Dead franchise, which has come under fire for its treatment of women and people of color in the past, is even more depressing."

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The Aztec Empire, or the Triple Alliance (, ]), was an alliance of three Nahua city/states: , , and . These three city-states ruled the area in and around the Valley of Mexico from 1428 until the combined forces of the Spanish and their native allies under defeated them in 1521. The Triple Alliance was formed from the victorious factions of a civil war fought between the city of and its former tributary provinces. Despite the initial conception of the empire as an alliance of three self-governed city-states, quickly became dominant militarily. By the time the Spanish arrived in 1519, the lands of the Alliance were effectively ruled from , while the other partners in the alliance had taken subsidiary roles. The alliance waged wars of conquest and expanded rapidly after its formation. At its height, the alliance controlled most of central Mexico as well as some more distant territories within Mesoamerica, such as the Xoconochco province, an Aztec exclave near the present-day Guatemalan border. Aztec rule has been described by scholars as "hegemonic" or "indirect". The Aztecs left rulers of conquered cities in power so long as they agreed to pay semi-annual tribute to the Alliance, as well as supply military forces when needed for the Aztec war efforts. In return, the imperial authority offered protection and political stability, and facilitated an integrated economic network of diverse lands and peoples who had significant local autonomy. The state religion of the empire was polytheistic, worshiping a diverse pantheon that included dozens of deities. Many had officially recognized cults large enough so that the deity was represented in the central temple precinct of the capital . The imperial cult, specifically, was that of , the distinctive warlike patron god of the Mexica. Peoples in conquered provinces were allowed to retain and freely continue their own religious traditions, so long as they added the imperial god to their local pantheons. The word "Aztec" in modern usage would not have been used by the people themselves. It has variously been used to refer to the Triple Alliance empire, the Nahuatl-speaking people of central Mexico prior to the Spanish conquest, or specifically the Mexica ethnicity of the Nahuatl-speaking peoples. The name comes from a Nahuatl word meaning "people from Aztlan," reflecting the mythical place of origin for Nahua peoples. For the purpose of this article, "Aztec" refers only to those cities that constituted or were subject to the Triple Alliance. For the broader use of the term, see the article on Aztec civilization. Nahua peoples descended from Chichimec peoples who migrated to central Mexico from the north in the early 13th century. The migration story of the Mexica is similar to those of other polities in central Mexico, with supernatural sites, individuals, and events, joining earthly and divine history as they sought political legitimacy. According to the pictographic codices in which the Aztecs recorded their history, the place of origin was called Aztlán. Early migrants settled the Basin of Mexico and surrounding lands by establishing a series of independent city-states. These early Nahua city-states or altepetl, were ruled by dynastic heads called tlahtohqueh (singular, tlatoāni). Most of the existing settlements had been established by other indigenous peoples before the Mexica migration. These early city-states fought various small- scale wars with each other, but due to shifting alliances, no individual city gained dominance. The Mexica were the last of the Nahua migrants to arrive in Central Mexico. They entered the Basin of Mexico around the year 1250 AD, and by then most of the good agricultural land had already been claimed. The Mexica persuaded the king of Culhuacan, a small city-state but important historically as a refuge of the Toltecs, to allow them to settle in a relatively infertile patch of land called Chapultepec (Chapoltepēc, "in the hill of grasshoppers"). The Mexica served as mercenaries for Culhuacan. After the Mexica served Culhuacan in battle, the ruler appointed one of his daughters to rule over the Mexica. According to mythological native accounts, the Mexica instead sacrificed her by flaying her skin, on the command of their god Xipe Totec. When the ruler of Culhuacan learned of this, he attacked and used his army to drive the Mexica from Tizaapan by force. The Mexica moved to an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, where an eagle nested on a nopal cactus. The Mexica interpreted this as a sign from their gods and founded their new city, Tenochtitlan, on this island in the year ōme calli, or "Two House" (1325 AD). The Mexica rose to prominence as fierce warriors and were able to establish themselves as a military power. The importance of warriors and the integral nature of warfare in Mexica political and religious life helped propel them to emerge as the dominant military power prior to the arrival of the Spanish in 1519. The new Mexica city-state allied with the city of Azcapotzalco and paid tribute to its ruler, Tezozomoc. With Mexica assistance, Azcopotzalco began to expand into a small tributary empire. Until this point, the Mexica ruler was not recognized as a legitimate king. Mexica leaders successfully petitioned one of the kings of Culhuacan to provide a daughter to marry into the Mexica line. Their son, Acamapichtli, was enthroned as the first tlatoani of Tenochtitlan in the year 1372. While the Tepanecs of Azcapotzalco expanded their rule with help from the Mexica, the Acolhua city of Texcoco grew in power in the eastern portion of the lake basin. Eventually, war erupted between the two states, and the Mexica played a vital role in the conquest of Texcoco. By then, Tenochtitlan had grown into a major city and was rewarded for its loyalty to the Tepanecs by receiving Texcoco as a tributary province. In 1426, the Tepanec king Tezozomoc died, and the resulting succession crisis precipitated a civil war between potential successors. The Mexica supported Tezozomoc's preferred heir, Tayahauh, who was initially enthroned as king. But his son, Maxtla, soon usurped the throne and turned against factions that opposed him, including the Mexica ruler Chimalpopoca. The latter died shortly thereafter, possibly assassinated by Maxtla. The new Mexica ruler Itzcoatl continued to defy Maxtla; he blockaded Tenochtitlan and demanded increased tribute payments. Maxtla similarly turned against the Acolhua, and the king of Texcoco, Nezahualcoyotl, fled into exile. Nezahualcoyotl recruited military help from the king of Huexotzinco, and the Mexica gained the support of a dissident Tepanec city, Tlacopan. In 1427, Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, Tlacopan, and Huexotzinco went to war against Azcapotzalco, emerging victorious in 1428. After the war, Huexotzinco withdrew, and in 1430 , the three remaining cities formed a treaty known today as the Triple Alliance. The Tepanec lands were carved up among the three cities, whose leaders agreed to cooperate in future wars of conquest. Land acquired from these conquests was to be held by the three cities together. Tribute was to be divided so that two-fifths each went to Tenochtitlan and Texcoco, and one-fifth went to Tlacopan. Each of the three kings of the alliance in turn assumed the title "huetlatoani" ("Elder Speaker", often translated as "Emperor"). In this role, each temporarily held a de jure position above the rulers of other city-states ("tlatoani"). In the next 100 years, the Triple Alliance of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan came to dominate the Valley of Mexico and extend its power to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific. Tenochtitlan gradually became the dominant power in the alliance. Two of the primary architects of this alliance were the half-brothers Tlacaelel and Moctezuma, nephews of Itzcoatl. Moctezuma eventually succeeded Itzcoatl as the Mexica huetlatoani in 1440. Tlacaelel occupied the newly created title of "Cihuacoatl", equivalent to something between "Prime Minister" and "Viceroy". Shortly after the formation of the Triple Alliance, Itzcoatl and Tlacopan instigated sweeping reforms on the Aztec state and religion. It has been alleged that Tlacaelel ordered the burning of some or most of the extant Aztec books, claiming that they contained lies and that it was "not wise that all the people should know the paintings". Even if he did order such book- burnings, it was probably limited primarily to documents containing political propaganda from previous regimes; he thereafter rewrote the history of the Aztecs, naturally placing the Mexica in a more central role. After Moctezuma I succeeded Itzcoatl as the Mexica emperor, more reforms were instigated to maintain control over conquered cities. Uncooperative kings were replaced with puppet rulers loyal to the Mexica. A new imperial tribute system established Mexica tribute collectors that taxed the population directly, bypassing the authority of local dynasties. Nezahualcoyotl also instituted a policy in the Acolhua lands of granting subject kings tributary holdings in lands far from their capitals. This was done to create an incentive for cooperation with the empire; if a city's king rebelled, he lost the tribute he received from foreign land. Some rebellious kings were replaced by calpixqueh, or appointed governors rather than dynastic rulers. Moctezuma issued new laws that further separated nobles from commoners and instituted the death penalty for adultery and other offenses. By royal decree, a religiously supervised school was built in every neighborhood. Commoner neighborhoods had a school called a "telpochcalli" where they received basic religious instruction and military training. A second, more prestigious type of school called a "calmecac" served to teach the nobility, as well as commoners of high standing seeking to become priests or artisans. Moctezuma also created a new title called "quauhpilli" that could be conferred on commoners. This title was a form of non-hereditary lesser nobility awarded for outstanding military or civil service (similar to the English knight). In some rare cases, commoners that received this title married into royal families and became kings. One component of this reform was the creation of an institution of regulated warfare called the Flower Wars. Mesoamerican warfare overall is characterized by a strong preference for capturing live prisoners as opposed to slaughtering the enemy on the battlefield, which was considered sloppy and gratuitous. The Flower Wars are a potent manifestation of this approach to warfare. These highly ritualized wars ensured a steady, healthy supply of experienced Aztec warriors as well as a steady, healthy supply of captured enemy warriors for sacrifice to the gods. Flower wars were pre-arranged by officials on both sides and conducted specifically for the purpose of each polity collecting prisoners for sacrifice. According to native historical accounts, these wars were instigated by Tlacaelel as a means of appeasing the gods in response to a massive drought that gripped the Basin of Mexico from 1450 to 1454. The flower wars were mostly waged between the Aztec Empire and the neighboring cities of their arch-enemy Tlaxcala. After the defeat of the Tepanecs, Itzcoatl and Nezahualcoyotl rapidly consolidated power in the Basin of Mexico and began to expand beyond its borders. The first targets for imperial expansion were Coyoacan in the Basin of Mexico and Cuauhnahuac and Huaxtepec in the modern Mexican state of Morelos. These conquests provided the new empire with a large influx of tribute, especially agricultural goods. On the death of Itzcoatl, Moctezuma I was enthroned as the new Mexica emperor. The expansion of the empire was briefly halted by a major four-year drought that hit the Basin of Mexico in 1450, and several cities in Morelos had to be re-conquered after the drought subsided. Moctezuma and Nezahualcoyotl continued to expand the empire east towards the Gulf of Mexico and south into Oaxaca. In 1468, Moctezuma I died and was succeeded by his son, Axayacatl. Most of Axayacatl's thirteen-year- reign was spent consolidating the territory acquired under his predecessor. Motecuzoma and Nezahualcoyotl had expanded rapidly and many provinces rebelled. At the same time as the Aztec Empire was expanding and consolidating power, the Purépecha Empire in West Mexico was similarly expanding. In 1455, the Purépecha under their king Tzitzipandaquare had invaded the Toluca Valley, claiming lands previously conquered by Motecuzoma and Itzcoatl. In 1472, Axayacatl re-conquered the region and successfully defended it from Purépecha attempts to take it back. In 1479, Axayacatl launched a major invasion of the Purépecha Empire with 32,000 Aztec soldiers. The Purépecha met them just across the border with 50,000 soldiers and scored a resounding victory, killing or capturing over 90% of the Aztec army. Axayacatl himself was wounded in the battle, retreated to Tenochtitlan, and never engaged the Purépecha in battle again. In 1472, Nezahualcoyotl died and his son Nezahualpilli was enthroned as the new huetlatoani of Texcoco. This was followed by the death of Axayacatl in 1481. Axayacatl was replaced by his brother Tizoc. Tizoc's reign was notoriously brief. He proved to be ineffectual and did not significantly expand the empire. Apparently due to his incompetence, Tizoc was likely assassinated by his own nobles five years into his rule. Tizoc was succeeded by his brother Ahuitzotl in 1486. Like his predecessors, the first part of Ahuitzotl's reign was spent suppressing rebellions that were commonplace due to the indirect nature of Aztec rule. Ahuitzotl then began a new wave of conquests including the Oaxaca Valley and the Soconusco Coast. Due to increased border skirmishes with the Purépechas, Ahuitzotl conquered the border city of Otzoma and turned the city into a military outpost. The population of Otzoma was either killed or dispersed in the process. The Purépecha subsequently established fortresses nearby to protect against Aztec expansion. Ahuitzotl responded by expanding further west to the Pacific Coast of Guerrero. By the reign of Ahuitzotl, the Mexica were the largest and most powerful faction in the Aztec Triple Alliance. Building on the prestige the Mexica had acquired over the course of the conquests, Ahuitzotl began to use the title "huehuetlatoani" ("Eldest Speaker") to distinguish himself from the rulers of Texcoco and Tlacopan. Even though the alliance still technically ran the empire, the Mexica Emperor now assumed nominal if not actual seniority. Ahuitzotl was succeeded by his nephew Moctezuzoma II in 1502. Moctezuma II spent most of his reign consolidating power in lands conquered by his predecessors. In 1515, Aztec armies commanded by the Tlaxcalan general Tlahuicole invaded the Purépecha Empire once again. The Aztec army failed to take any territory and was mostly restricted to raiding. The Purépechas defeated them and the army withdrew. Moctezuma II instituted more imperial reforms. After the death of Nezahualcoyotl, the Mexica Emperors had become the de facto rulers of the alliance. Moctezuma II used his reign to attempt to consolidate power more closely with the Mexica Emperor. He removed many of Ahuitzotl's advisors and had several of them executed. He also abolished the "quauhpilli" class, destroying the chance for commoners to advance to the nobility. His reform efforts were cut short by the Spanish Conquest in 1519. Spanish expedition leader Hernán Cortés landed in Yucatán in 1519 with approximately 630 men (most armed with only a sword and shield). Cortés had actually been removed as the expedition's commander by the governor of Cuba, Diego Velásquez, but had stolen the boats and left without permission. At the island of Cozumel, Cortés encountered a shipwrecked Spaniard named Gerónimo de Aguilar who joined the expedition and translated between Spanish and Mayan. The expedition then sailed west to Campeche, where after a brief battle with the local army, Cortés was able to negotiate peace through his interpreter, Aguilar. The King of Campeche gave Cortés a second translator, a bilingual Nahua-Maya slave woman named La Malinche (she was known also as Malinalli [maliˈnalːi], Malintzin [maˈlintsin] or Doña Marina [ˈdoɲa maˈɾina] ). Aguilar translated from Spanish to Mayan and La Malinche translated from Mayan to Nahuatl. Once Malinche learned Spanish, she became Cortés's translator for both language and culture, and was a key figure in interactions with Nahua rulers. An important article, "Rethinking Malinche" by Frances Karttunen examines her role in the conquest and beyond. Cortés then sailed from Campeche to Cempoala, a tributary province of the Aztec Triple Alliance. Nearby, he founded the town of Veracruz where he met with ambassadors from the reigning Mexica emperor, Motecuzoma II. When the ambassadors returned to Tenochtitlan, Cortés went to Cempoala to meet with the local Totonac leaders. After the Totonac ruler told Cortés of his various grievances against the Mexica, Cortés convinced the Totonacs to imprison an imperial tribute collector. Cortés subsequently released the tribute collector after persuading him that the move was entirely the Totonac's idea and that he had no knowledge of it. Having effectively declared war on the Aztecs, the Totonacs provided Cortés with 20 companies of soldiers for his march to Tlaxcala. At this time several of Cortés's soldiers attempted to mutiny. When Cortés discovered the plot, he had his ships scuttled and sank them in the harbor to remove any possibility of escaping to Cuba. The Spanish-led Totonac army crossed into Tlaxcala to seek the latter's alliance against the Aztecs. However, the Tlaxcalan general Xicotencatl the Younger believed them to be hostile, and attacked. After fighting several close battles, Cortés eventually convinced the leaders of Tlaxcala to order their general to stand down. Cortés then secured an alliance with the people of Tlaxcala, and traveled from there to the Basin of Mexico with a smaller company of 5,000-6,000 Tlaxcalans and 400 Totonacs, in addition to the Spanish soldiers. During his stay in the city of Cholula, Cortés claims he received word of a planned ambush against the Spanish. In a pre-emptive response, Cortés directed his troops attack and kill a large number of unarmed Cholulans gathered in the main square of the city. Following the massacre at Cholula, Hernan Cortés and the other Spaniards entered Tenochtitlan, where they were greeted as guests and given quarters in the palace of former emperor Axayacatl. After staying in the city for six weeks, two Spaniards from the group left behind in Veracruz were killed in an altercation with an Aztec lord named Quetzalpopoca. Cortés claims that he used this incident as an excuse to take Motecuzoma prisoner under threat of force. For several months, Motecuzoma continued to run the kingdom as a prisoner of Hernan Cortés. Then, in 1520, a second, larger Spanish expedition arrived under the command of Pánfilo de Narváez sent by Diego Velásquez with the goal of arresting Cortés for treason. Before confronting Narváez, Cortés secretly persuaded Narváez's lieutenants to betray him and join Cortés. While Cortés was away from Tenochtitlan dealing with Narváez, his second in command Pedro de Alvarado massacred a group of Aztec nobility in response to a ritual of human sacrifice honoring Huitzilopochtli. The Aztecs retaliated by attacking the palace where the Spanish were quartered. Cortés returned to Tenochtitlan and fought his way to the palace. He then took Motecuzoma up to the roof of the palace to ask his subjects to stand down. However, by this point the ruling council of Tenochtitlan had voted to depose Motecuzoma and had elected his brother Cuitlahuac as the new emperor. One of the Aztec soldiers struck Motecuzoma in the head with a sling stone, and he died several days later – although the exact details of his death, particularly who was responsible, are unclear. The Spaniards and their allies, realizing they were vulnerable to the hostile Mexica in Tenochtitlan following Moctezuma's death, attempted to retreat without detection in what is known as the "Sad Night" or La Noche Triste. Spaniards and their Indian allies were discovered clandestinely retreating, and then were forced to fight their way out of the city, with heavy loss of life. Some Spaniards lost their lives by drowning, loaded down with gold. They retreated to Tlacopan (now Tacuba) and made their way to Tlaxcala, where they recovered and prepared for the second, successful assault on Tenochtitlan. After this incident, a smallpox outbreak hit Tenochtitlan. As the indigenous of the New World had no previous exposure to smallpox, this outbreak alone killed more than 50% of the region's population, including the emperor, Cuitlahuac. While the new emperor Cuauhtémoc dealt with the smallpox outbreak, Cortés raised an army of Tlaxcalans, Texcocans, Totonacs, and others discontent with Aztec rule. With a combined army of up to 100,000 warriors, the overwhelming majority of which were indigenous rather than Spanish, Cortés marched back into the Basin of Mexico. Through numerous subsequent battles and skirmishes, he captured the various indigenous city-states or altepetl around the lake shore and surrounding mountains, including the other capitals of the Triple Alliance, Tlacopan and Texcoco. Texcoco in fact had already become firm allies of the Spaniards and the city-state, and subsequently petitioned the Spanish crown for recognition of their services in the conquest, just as Tlaxcala had done. Using boats constructed in Texcoco from parts salvaged from the scuttled ships, Cortés blockaded and laid siege to Tenochtitlan for a period of several months. Eventually, the Spanish-led army assaulted the city both by boat and using the elevated causeways connecting it to the mainland. Although the attackers took heavy casualties, the Aztecs were ultimately defeated. The city of Tenochtitlan was thoroughly destroyed in the process. Cuauhtémoc was captured as he attempted to flee the city. Cortés kept him prisoner and tortured him for a period of several years before finally executing him in 1525. The Aztec Empire was an example of an empire that ruled by indirect means. Like most European empires, it was ethnically very diverse, but unlike most European empires, it was more a system of tributes than a single unitary form of government. In the theoretical framework of imperial systems posited by American historian Alexander J. Motyl the Aztec empire was an informal type of empire in that the Alliance did not claim supreme authority over its tributary provinces; it merely expected tributes to be paid. The empire was also territorially discontinuous, i.e. not all of its dominated territories were connected by land. For example, the southern peripheral zones of Xoconochco were not in immediate contact with the central part of the empire. The hegemonic nature of the Aztec empire can be seen in the fact that generally local rulers were restored to their positions once their city-state was conquered and the Aztecs did not interfere in local affairs as long as the tribute payments were made. Although the form of government is often referred to as an empire, in fact most areas within the empire were organized as city- states (individually known as altepetl in Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs). These were small polities ruled by a king or tlatoani (literally "speaker", plural tlatoque) from an aristocratic dynasty. The Early Aztec period was a time of growth and competition among altepeme. Even after the empire was formed in 1428 and began its program of expansion through conquest, the altepetl remained the dominant form of organization at the local level. The efficient role of the altepetl as a regional political unit was largely responsible for the success of the empire's hegemonic form of control. It should be remembered that the term "Aztec empire" is a modern one, not one used by the Aztec themselves. The Aztec realm was at its core composed of three Nahuatl-speaking city states in the densely populated Valley of Mexico. Over time, asymmetries of power elevated one of those city states, Tenochtitlan, above the other two. The "Triple Alliance" came to establish hegemony over much of central Mesoamerica, including areas of great linguistic and cultural diversity. Administration of the empire was performed through largely traditional, indirect means. However, over time something of a nascent bureaucracy may have been beginning to form insofar as the state organization became increasingly centralized. Before the reign of Nezahualcoyotl (1429–1472), the Aztec empire operated as a confederation along traditional Mesoamerican lines. Independent altepetl were led by tlatoani (lit., "speakers"), who supervised village headmen, who in turn supervised groups of households. A typical Mesoamerican confederation placed a Huey Tlatoani (lit., "great speaker") at the head of several tlatoani. Following Nezahualcoyotl, the Aztec empire followed a somewhat divergent path, with some tlatoani of recently conquered or otherwise subordinated altepetl becoming replaced with calpixque stewards charged with collecting tribute on behalf of the Huetlatoani rather than simply replacing an old tlatoque with new ones from the same set of local nobility. Yet the Huey tlatoani was not the sole executive. It was the responsibility of the Huey tlatoani to deal with the external issues of empire; the management of tribute, war, diplomacy, and expansion were all under the purview of the Huey tlatoani. It was the role of the Cihuacoatl to govern the city of Tenochtitlan itself. The Cihuacoatl was always a close relative of the Huey tlatoani; Tlacaelel, for example, was the brother of Moctezuma I. Both the title "Cihuacoatl", which means "female snake" (it is the name of a Nahua deity), and the role of the position, somewhat analogous to a European Viceroy or Prime Minister, reflect the dualistic nature of Nahua cosmology. Neither the position of Cihuacoatl nor the position of Huetlatoani were priestly, yet both did have important ritual tasks. Those of the former were associated with the "female" wet season, those of the latter with the "male" dry season. While the position of Cihuacoatl is best attested in Tenochtitlan, it is known that the position also existed the nearby altepetl of Atzcapotzalco, Culhuacan, and Tenochtitlan's ally Texcoco. Despite the apparent lesser status of the position, a Cihuacoatl could prove both influential and powerful, as in the case of Tlacaelel. Early in the history of the empire, Tenochtitlan developed a four-member military and advisory Council which assisted the Huey tlatoani in his decision-making: the tlacochcalcatl; the tlaccatecatl; the ezhuahuacatl; and the tlillancalqui. This design not only provided advise for the ruler, it also served to contain ambition on the part of the nobility, as henceforth Huey Tlatoani could only be selected from the Council. Moreover, the actions of any one member of the Council could easily be blocked by the other three, providing a simple system of checks on the ambition higher officials. These four Council members were also generals, members of various military societies. The ranks of the members were not equal, with the tlacochcalcatl and tlaccatecatl having a higher status than the others. These two Councillors were members of the two most prestigious military societies, the cuauhchique ("shorn ones") and the otontin ("Otomies"). Traditionally, provinces and altepetl were governed by hereditary tlatoani. As the empire grew, the system evolved further and some tlatoani were replaced by other officials. The other officials had similar authority to tlatoani. As has already been mentioned, directly appointed stewards (singular calpixqui, plural calpixque) were sometimes imposed on altepetl instead of the selection of provincial nobility to the same position of tlatoani. At the height of empire, the organization of the state into tributary and strategic provinces saw an elaboration of this system. The 38 tributary provinces fell under the supervision of high stewards, or huecalpixque, whose authority extended over the lower-ranking calpixque. These calpixque and huecalpixque were essentially managers of the provincial tribute system which was overseen and coordinated in the paramount capital of Tenochtitlan not by the huetlatoani, but rather by a separate position altogether: the petlacalcatl. On the occasion that a recently conquered altepetl was seen as particularly restive, a military governor, or cuauhtlatoani, was placed at the head of provincial supervision. During the reign of Moctezuma I, the calpixque system was elaborated, with two calpixque assigned per tributary province. One was stationed in the province itself, perhaps for supervising the collection of tribute, and the other in Tenochtitlan, perhaps for supervising storage of tribute. Tribute was drawn from commoners, the macehualtin, and distributed to the nobility, be they 'kings' (tlatoque), lesser rulers (teteuctin), or provincial nobility (pipiltin). Tribute collection was supervised by the above officials and relied upon the coercive power of the Aztec military, but also upon the cooperation of the pipiltin (the local nobility who were themselves exempt from and recipient to tribute) and the hereditary class of merchants known as pochteca. These pochteca had various gradations of ranks which granted them certain trading rights and so were not necessarily pipiltin themselves, yet they played an important role in both the growth and administration of the Aztec tributary system nonetheless. The power, political and economic, of the pochteca was strongly tied to the political and military power of the Aztec nobility and state. In addition to serving as diplomats (teucnenenque, or "travelers of the lord") and spies in the prelude to conquest, higher-ranking pochteca also served as judges in market plazas and were to certain degree autonomous corporate groups, having administrative duties within their own estate. Originally, the Aztec empire was a loose alliance between three cities: Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and the most junior partner, Tlacopan. As such, they were known as the 'Triple Alliance.' This political form was very common in Mesoamerica, where alliances of city-states were ever fluctuating. However, over time, it was Tenochtitlan which assumed paramount authority in the alliance, and although each partner city shared spoils of war and rights to regular tribute from the provinces and were governed by their own Huetlatoani, it was Tenochtitlan which became the largest, most powerful, and most influential of the three cities. It was the de facto and acknowledged center of empire. Though they were not described by the Aztec this way, there were essentially two types of provinces: Tributary and Strategic. Strategic provinces were essentially subordinate client states which provided tribute or aid to the Aztec state under "mutual consent". Tributary provinces, on the other hand, provided regular tribute to the empire; obligations on the part of Tributary provinces were mandatory rather than consensual. Rulers, be they local teteuctin or tlatoani, or central Huetlatoani, were seen as representatives of the gods and therefore ruled by divine right. Tlatocayotl, or the principle of rulership, established that this divine right was inherited by descent. Political order was therefore also a cosmic order, and to kill a tlatoani was to transgress that order. For that reason, whenever a tlatoani was killed or otherwise removed from their station, a relative and member of the same bloodline was typically placed in their stead. The establishment of the office of Huetlatoani understood through the creation of another level of rulership, hueitlatocayotl, standing in superior contrast to the lesser tlatocayotl principle. Expansion of the empire was guided by a militaristic interpretation of Nahua religion, specifically a devout veneration of the sun god, Huitzilopochtli. Militaristic state rituals were performed throughout the year according to a ceremonial calendar of events, rites, and mock battles. The time period they lived in was understood as the Ollintonatiuh, or Sun of Movement, which was believed to be the final age after which humanity would be destroyed. It was under Tlacaelel that Huitzilopochtli assumed his elevated role in the state pantheon and who argued that it was through blood sacrifice that the Sun would be maintained and thereby stave off the end of the world. It was under this new, militaristic interpretation of Huitzilopochtli that Aztec soldiers were encouraged to fight wars and capture enemy soldiers for sacrifice. Though blood sacrifice was common in Mesoamerica, the scale of human sacrifice under the Aztecs was likely unprecedented in the region. The most developed code of law was developed in the city-state of Texcoco under its ruler Nezahualcoyotl. It was a formal written code, not merely a collection of customary practices. The sources for knowing about the legal code are colonial-era writings by Franciscan Toribio de Benavente Motolinia, Franciscan Fray Juan de Torquemada, and Texcocan historians Juan Bautista Pomar, and Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxochitl. The law code in Texcoco under Nezahualcoyotl was legalistic, that is cases were tried by particular types of evidence and the social status of the litigants was disregarded, and consisted of 80 written laws. These laws called for severe, publicly administered punishments, creating a legal framework of social control. Much less is known about the legal system in Tenochtitlan, which might be less legalistic or sophisticated as those of Texcoco for this period. It was established under the reign of Moctezuma I. These laws served to establish and govern relations between the state, classes, and individuals. Punishment was to be meted out solely by state authorities. Nahua mores were enshrined in these laws, criminalizing public acts of homosexuality, drunkenness, and nudity, not to mention more universal proscriptions against theft, murder, and property damage. As stated before, pochteca could serve as judges, often exercising judicial oversight of their own members. Likewise, military courts dealt with both cases within the military and without during wartime. There was an appeal process, with appellate courts standing between local, typically market-place courts, on the provincial level and a supreme court and two special higher appellate courts at Tenochtitlan. One of those two special courts dealt with cases arising within Tenochtitlan, the other with cases originating from outside the capital. The ultimate judicial authority laid in hands of the Huey tlatoani, who had the right to appoint lesser judges. Aztec, Aztec philosophy, Flower war, List of Tenochtitlan rulers, List of rulers of Texcoco, List of Tlatelolco rulers, Mesoamerica, Nahuas Diaz del Castillo, Bernal, The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico (1576), Cambridge, MA, Da Capo Press, 2003. ., Durán, Diego, History of the Indies of New Spain (c. 1581), University of Oklahoma Press, 1992., Alvarado Tezozomoc, Hernando, Crónica Mexicana (c. 1598), Mexico City: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, 1978. Davies, Nigel (1973). The Aztecs: A History. University of Oklahoma Press., Soustelle, Jacques, The Daily Life of the Aztecs. Paris, 1955; English edition, 1964. The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec peoples included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica from the 14th to the 16th centuries. Aztec culture was organized into city-states (altepetl), some of which joined to form alliances, political confederations, or empires. The Aztec Empire was a confederation of three city-states established in 1427: Tenochtitlan, city-state of the Mexica or Tenochca; Texcoco; and Tlacopan, previously part of the Tepanec empire, whose dominant power was Azcapotzalco. Although the term Aztecs is often narrowly restricted to the Mexica of Tenochtitlan, it is also broadly used to refer to Nahua polities or peoples of central Mexico in the prehispanic era, as well as the Spanish colonial era (1521–1821). The definitions of Aztec and Aztecs have long been the topic of scholarly discussion ever since German scientist Alexander von Humboldt established its common usage in the early nineteenth century. Most ethnic groups of central Mexico in the post-classic period shared basic cultural traits of Mesoamerica, and so many of the traits that characterize Aztec culture cannot be said to be exclusive to the Aztecs. For the same reason, the notion of "Aztec civilization" is best understood as a particular horizon of a general Mesoamerican civilization. The culture of central Mexico includes maize cultivation, the social division between nobility (pipiltin) and commoners (macehualtin), a pantheon (featuring Tezcatlipoca, Tlaloc and Quetzalcoatl), and the calendric system of a xiuhpohualli of 365 days intercalated with a tonalpohualli of 260 days. Particular to the Mexica of Tenochtitlan was the patron God Huitzilopochtli, twin pyramids, and the ceramic ware known as Aztec I to IV. From the 13th century, the Valley of Mexico was the heart of dense population and the rise of city-states. The Mexica were late-comers to the Valley of Mexico, and founded the city-state of Tenochtitlan on unpromising islets in Lake Texcoco, later becoming the dominant power of the Aztec Triple Alliance or Aztec Empire. It was a tributary empire that expanded its political hegemony far beyond the Valley of Mexico, conquering other city states throughout Mesoamerica in the late post-classic period. It originated in 1427 as an alliance between the city-states Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan; these allied to defeat the Tepanec state of Azcapotzalco, which had previously dominated the Basin of Mexico. Soon Texcoco and Tlacopan were relegated to junior partnership in the alliance, with Tenochtitlan the dominant power. The empire extended its reach by a combination of trade and military conquest. It was never a true territorial empire controlling a territory by large military garrisons in conquered provinces, but rather dominated its client city-states primarily by installing friendly rulers in conquered territories, by constructing marriage alliances between the ruling dynasties, and by extending an imperial ideology to its client city-states. Client city-states paid tribute to the Aztec emperor, the Huey Tlatoani, in an economic strategy limiting communication and trade between outlying polities, making them dependent on the imperial center for the acquisition of luxury goods. The political clout of the empire reached far south into Mesoamerica conquering polities as far south as Chiapas and Guatemala and spanning Mesoamerica from the Pacific to the Atlantic oceans. The empire reached its maximal extent in 1519, just prior to the arrival of a small group of Spanish conquistadors led by Hernán Cortés. Cortés allied with city-states opposed to the Mexica, particularly the Nahuatl-speaking Tlaxcalteca as well as other central Mexican polities, including Texcoco, its former ally in the Triple Alliance. After the fall of Tenochtitlan on 13 August 1521 and the capture of the emperor Cuauhtemoc, the Spanish founded Mexico City on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. From there they proceeded with the process of conquest and incorporation of Mesoamerican peoples into the Spanish Empire. With the destruction of the superstructure of the Aztec Empire in 1521, the Spanish utilized the city- states on which the Aztec Empire had been built, to rule the indigenous populations via their local nobles. Those nobles pledged loyalty to the Spanish crown and converted, at least nominally, to Christianity, and in return were recognized as nobles by the Spanish crown. Nobles acted as intermediaries to convey tribute and mobilize labor for their new overlords, facilitating the establishment of Spanish colonial rule. Aztec culture and history is primarily known through archaeological evidence found in excavations such as that of the renowned Templo Mayor in Mexico City; from indigenous writings; from eyewitness accounts by Spanish conquistadors such as Cortés and Bernal Díaz del Castillo; and especially from 16th- and 17th- century descriptions of Aztec culture and history written by Spanish clergymen and literate Aztecs in the Spanish or Nahuatl language, such as the famous illustrated, bilingual (Spanish and Nahuatl), twelve-volume Florentine Codex created by the Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún, in collaboration with indigenous Aztec informants. Important for knowledge of post-conquest Nahuas was the training of indigenous scribes to write alphabetic texts in Nahuatl, mainly for local purposes under Spanish colonial rule. At its height, Aztec culture had rich and complex mythological and religious traditions, as well as achieving remarkable architectural and artistic accomplishments. The Nahuatl words (aztecatl , singular) and (aztecah , plural) mean "people from Aztlan," a mythical place of origin for several ethnic groups in central Mexico. The term was not used as an endonym by Aztecs themselves, but it is found in the different migration accounts of the Mexica, where it describes the different tribes who left Aztlan together. In one account of the journey from Aztlan, Huitzilopochtli, the tutelary deity of the Mexica tribe, tells his followers on the journey that "now, no longer is your name Azteca, you are now Mexitin [Mexica]". In today's usage, the term "Aztec" often refers exclusively to the Mexica people of Tenochtitlan (now the location of Mexico City), situated on an island in Lake Texcoco, who referred to themselves as Mēxihcah (, a tribal designation that included the Tlatelolca), Tenochcah (, referring only to the Mexica of Tenochtitlan, excluding Tlatelolco) or Cōlhuah (, referring to their royal genealogy tying them to Culhuacan). Sometimes the term also includes the inhabitants of Tenochtitlan's two principal allied city-states, the Acolhuas of Texcoco and the Tepanecs of Tlacopan, who together with the Mexica formed the Aztec Triple Alliance that controlled what is often known as the "Aztec Empire." The usage of the term "Aztec" in describing the empire centered in Tenochtitlan, has been criticized by Robert H. Barlow who preferred the term "Culhua-Mexica", and by Pedro Carrasco who prefers the term "Tenochca empire." Carrasco writes about the term "Aztec" that "it is of no use for understanding the ethnic complexity of ancient Mexico and for identifying the dominant element in the political entity we are studying." In other contexts, Aztec may refer to all the various city states and their peoples, who shared large parts of their ethnic history and cultural traits with the Mexica, Acolhua and Tepanecs, and who often also used the Nahuatl language as a lingua franca. An example is Jerome A. Offner's Law and Politics in Aztec Texcoco. In this meaning, it is possible to talk about an "Aztec civilization" including all the particular cultural patterns common for most of the peoples inhabiting central Mexico in the late postclassic period. Such a usage may also extend the term "Aztec" to all the groups in Central Mexico that were incorporated culturally or politically into the sphere of dominance of the Aztec empire. When used to describe ethnic groups, the term "Aztec" refers to several Nahuatl-speaking peoples of central Mexico in the postclassic period of Mesoamerican chronology, especially the Mexica, the ethnic group that had a leading role in establishing the hegemonic empire based at Tenochtitlan. The term extends to further ethnic groups associated with the Aztec empire, such as the Acolhua, the Tepanec and others that were incorporated into the empire. Charles Gibson enumerates a number of groups in central Mexico that he includes in his study The Aztecs Under Spanish Rule (1964). These include the Culhuaque, Cuitlahuaque, Mixquica, Xochimilca, Chalca, Tepaneca, Acolhuaque, and Mexica. In older usage the term was commonly used about modern Nahuatl-speaking ethnic groups, as Nahuatl was previously referred to as the "Aztec language". In recent usage, these ethnic groups are referred to as the Nahua peoples. Linguistically, the term "Aztecan" is still used about the branch of the Uto-Aztecan languages (also sometimes called the yuto-nahuan languages) that includes the Nahuatl language and its closest relatives Pochutec and Pipil. To the Aztecs themselves the word "aztec" was not an endonym for any particular ethnic group. Rather, it was an umbrella term used to refer to several ethnic groups, not all of them Nahuatl-speaking, that claimed heritage from the mythic place of origin, Aztlan. Alexander von Humboldt originated the modern usage of "Aztec" in 1810, as a collective term applied to all the people linked by trade, custom, religion, and language to the Mexica state and the Triple Alliance. In 1843, with the publication of the work of William H. Prescott on the history of the conquest of Mexico, the term was adopted by most of the world, including 19th-century Mexican scholars who saw it as a way to distinguish present-day Mexicans from pre-conquest Mexicans. This usage has been the subject of debate in more recent years, but the term "Aztec" is still more common. Knowledge of Aztec society rests on several different sources: The many archeological remains of everything from temple pyramids to thatched huts, can be used to understand many of the aspects of what the Aztec world was like. However, archeologists often must rely on knowledge from other sources to interpret the historical context of artifacts. There are many written texts by the indigenous people and Spaniards of the early colonial period that contain invaluable information about precolonial Aztec history. These texts provide insight into the political histories of various Aztec city-states, and their ruling lineages. Such histories were produced as well in pictorial codices. Some of these manuscripts were entirely pictorial, often with glyphs. In the postconquest era many other texts were written in Latin script by either literate Aztecs or by Spanish friars who interviewed the native people about their customs and stories. An important pictorial and alphabetic text produced in the early sixteenth century was Codex Mendoza, named after the first viceroy of Mexico and perhaps commissioned by him, to inform the Spanish crown about the political and economic structure of the Aztec empire. It has information naming the polities that the Triple Alliance conquered, the types of tribute rendered to the Aztec Empire, and the class/gender structure of their society. Many written annals exist, written by local Nahua historians recording the histories of their polity. These annals used pictorial histories and were subsequently transformed into alphabetic annals in Latin script. Well-known native chroniclers and annalists are Chimalpahin of Amecameca- Chalco; Fernando Alvarado Tezozomoc of Tenochtitlan; Alva Ixtlilxochitl of Texcoco, Juan Bautista Pomar of Texcoco, and Diego Muñoz Camargo of Tlaxcala. There are also many accounts by Spanish conquerors who participated in Spanish invasion, such as Bernal Díaz del Castillo who wrote a full history of the conquest. Spanish friars also produced documentation in chronicles and other types of accounts. Of key importance is Toribio de Benavente Motolinia, one of the first twelve Franciscans arriving in Mexico in 1524. Another Franciscan of great importance was Fray Juan de Torquemada, author of Monarquia Indiana. Dominican Diego Durán also wrote extensively about prehispanic religion as well as a history of the Mexica. An invaluable source of information about many aspects of Aztec religious thought, political and social structure, as well as history of the Spanish conquest from the Mexica viewpoint is the Florentine Codex. Produced between 1545–1576 in the form of an ethnographic encyclopedia written bilingually in Spanish and Nahuatl, by Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún and indigenous informants and scribes, it contains knowledge about many aspects of precolonial society from religion, calendrics, botany, zoology, trades and crafts and history. Another source of knowledge is the cultures and customs of the contemporary Nahuatl speakers who can often provide insights into what prehispanic ways of life may have been like. Scholarly study of Aztec civilization is most often based on scientific and multidisciplinary methodologies, combining archeological knowledge with ethnohistorical and ethnographic information. It is a matter of debate whether the enormous city of Teotihuacan was inhabited by speakers of Nahuatl, or whether Nahuas had not yet arrived in central Mexico in the classic period. It is generally agreed that the Nahua peoples were not indigenous to the highlands of central Mexico, but that they gradually migrated into the region from somewhere in northwestern Mexico. At the fall of Teotihuacan in the 6th century CE, a number of city states rose to power in central Mexico, some of them, including Cholula and Xochicalco, probably inhabited by Nahuatl speakers. One study has suggested that Nahuas originally inhabited the Bajío area around Guanajuato which reached a population peak in the 6th century, after which the population quickly diminished during a subsequent dry period. This depopulation of the Bajío coincided with an incursion of new populations into the Valley of Mexico, which suggests that this marks the influx of Nahuatl speakers into the region. These people populated central Mexico, dislocating speakers of Oto-Manguean languages as they spread their political influence south. As the former nomadic hunter-gatherer peoples mixed with the complex civilizations of Mesoamerica, adopting religious and cultural practices, the foundation for later Aztec culture was laid. After 900 CE, during the postclassic period, a number of sites almost certainly inhabited by Nahuatl speakers became powerful. Among them the site of Tula, Hidalgo, and also city states such as Tenayuca, and Colhuacan in the valley of Mexico and Cuauhnahuac in Morelos. In the ethnohistorical sources from the colonial period, the Mexica themselves describe their arrival in the Valley of Mexico. The ethnonym Aztec (Nahuatl Aztecah) means "people from Aztlan", Aztlan being a mythical place of origin toward the north. Hence the term applied to all those peoples who claimed to carry the heritage from this mythical place. The migration stories of the Mexica tribe tell how they traveled with other tribes, including the Tlaxcalteca, Tepaneca and Acolhua, but that eventually their tribal deity Huitzilopochtli told them to split from the other Aztec tribes and take on the name "Mexica". At the time of their arrival, there were many Aztec city-states in the region. The most powerful were Colhuacan to the south and Azcapotzalco to the west. The Tepanecs of Azcapotzalco soon expelled the Mexica from Chapultepec. In 1299, Colhuacan ruler Cocoxtli gave them permission to settle in the empty barrens of Tizapan, where they were eventually assimilated into Culhuacan culture. The noble lineage of Colhuacan traced its roots back to the legendary city-state of Tula, and by marrying into Colhua families, the Mexica now appropriated this heritage. After living in Colhuacan, the Mexica were again expelled and were forced to move. According to Aztec legend, in 1323, the Mexica were shown a vision of an eagle perched on a prickly pear cactus, eating a snake. The vision indicated the location where they were to build their settlement. The Mexica founded Tenochtitlan on a small swampy island in Lake Texcoco, the inland lake of the Basin of Mexico. The year of foundation is usually given as 1325. In 1376 the Mexica royal dynasty was founded when Acamapichtli, son of a Mexica father and a Colhua mother, was elected as the first Huey Tlatoani of Tenochtitlan. In the first 50 years after the founding of the Mexica dynasty, the Mexica were a tributary of Azcapotzalco, which had become a major regional power under the ruler Tezozomoc. The Mexica supplied the Tepaneca with warriors for their successful conquest campaigns in the region and received part of the tribute from the conquered city states. In this way, the political standing and economy of Tenochtitlan gradually grew. In 1396, at Acamapichtli's death, his son Huitzilihhuitl ( "Hummingbird feather") became ruler; married to Tezozomoc's daughter, the relation with Azcapotzalco remained close. Chimalpopoca ( "She smokes like a shield"), son of Huitzilihhuitl, became ruler of Tenochtitlan in 1417. In 1418, Azcapotzalco initiated a war against the Acolhua of Texcoco and killed their ruler Ixtlilxochitl. Even though Ixtlilxochitl was married to Chimalpopoca's daughter, the Mexica ruler continued to support Tezozomoc. Tezozomoc died in 1426, and his sons began a struggle for rulership of Azcapotzalco. During this struggle for power, Chimalpopoca died, probably killed by Tezozomoc's son Maxtla who saw him as a competitor. Itzcoatl, brother of Huitzilihhuitl and uncle of Chimalpopoca, was elected the next Mexica tlatoani. The Mexica were now in open war with Azcapotzalco and Itzcoatl petitioned for an alliance with Nezahualcoyotl, son of the slain Texcocan ruler Ixtlilxochitl against Maxtla. Itzcoatl also allied with Maxtla's brother Totoquihuaztli ruler of the Tepanec city of Tlacopan. The Triple Alliance of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco and Tlacopan besieged Azcapotzalco, and in 1428 they destroyed the city and sacrificed Maxtla. Through this victory Tenochtitlan became the dominant city state in the Valley of Mexico, and the alliance between the three city-states provided the basis on which the Aztec Empire was built. Itzcoatl proceeded by securing a power basis for Tenochtitlan, by conquering the city-states on the southern lake – including Culhuacan, Xochimilco, Cuitlahuac and Mizquic. These states had an economy based on highly productive chinampa agriculture, cultivating human- made extensions of rich soil in the shallow lake Xochimilco. Itzcoatl then undertook further conquests in the valley of Morelos, subjecting the city state of Cuauhnahuac (today Cuernavaca). In 1440, Motecuzoma I Ilhuicamina ( "he frowns like a lord, he shoots the sky") was elected tlatoani; he was son of Huitzilihhuitl, brother of Chimalpopoca and had served as the war leader of his uncle Itzcoatl in the war against the Tepanecs. The accession of a new ruler in the dominant city state was often an occasion for subjected cities to rebel by refusing to pay tribute. This meant that new rulers began their rule with a coronation campaign, often against rebellious tributaries, but also sometimes demonstrating their military might by making new conquests. Motecuzoma tested the attitudes of the cities around the valley by requesting laborers for the enlargement of the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan. Only the city of Chalco refused to provide laborers, and hostilities between Chalco and Tenochtitlan would persist until the 1450s. Motecuzoma then reconquered the cities in the valley of Morelos and Guerrero, and then later undertook new conquests in the Huaxtec region of northern Veracruz, and the Mixtec region of Coixtlahuaca and large parts of Oaxaca, and later again in central and southern Veracruz with conquests at Cosamalopan, Ahuilizapan and Cuetlaxtlan. During this period the city states of Tlaxcalan, Cholula and Huexotzinco emerged as major competitors to the imperial expansion, and they supplied warriors to several of the cities conquered. Motecuzoma therefore initiated a state of low-intensity warfare against these three cities, staging minor skirmishes called "Flower Wars" (Nahuatl xochiyaoyotl) against them, perhaps as a strategy of exhaustion. Motecuzoma also consolidated the political structure of the Triple Alliance, and the internal political organization of Tenochtitlan. His brother Tlacaelel served as his main advisor () and he is considered the architect of major political reforms in this period, consolidating the power of the noble class () and instituting a set of legal codes, and the practice of reinstating conquered rulers in their cities bound by fealty to the Mexica tlatoani. In 1469, the next ruler was Axayacatl ( "Water mask"), son of Itzcoatl's son Tezozomoc and Motecuzoma I's daughter Atotoztli. He undertook a successful coronation campaign far south of Tenochtitlan against the Zapotecs in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Axayacatl also conquered the independent Mexica city of Tlatelolco, located on the northern part of the island where Tenochtitlan was also located. The Tlatelolca ruler Moquihuix was married to Axayacatl's sister, and his alleged mistreatment of her was used as an excuse to incorporate Tlatelolco and its important market directly under the control of the tlatoani of Tenochtitlan. Axayacatl then conquered areas in Central Guerrero, the Puebla Valley, on the gulf coast and against the Otomi and Matlatzinca in the Toluca valley. The Toluca valley was a buffer zone against the powerful Tarascan state in Michoacan, against which Axayacatl turned next. In the major campaign against the Tarascans () in 1478–79 the Aztec forces were repelled by a well organized defense. Axayacatl was soundly defeated in a battle at Tlaximaloyan (today Tajimaroa), losing most of his 32,000 men and only barely escaping back to Tenochtitlan with the remnants of his army. In 1481 at Axayacatls death, his older brother Tizoc was elected ruler. Tizoc's coronation campaign against the Otomi of Metztitlan failed as he lost the major battle and only managed to secure 40 prisoners to be sacrificed for his coronation ceremony. Having shown weakness, many of the tributary towns rebelled and consequently most of Tizoc's short reign was spent attempting to quell rebellions and maintain control of areas conquered by his predecessors. Tizoc died suddenly in 1485, and it has been suggested that he was poisoned by his brother and war leader Ahuitzotl who became the next tlatoani. Tizoc is mostly known as the namesake of the Stone of Tizoc a monumental sculpture (Nahuatl temalacatl), decorated with representation of Tizoc's conquests. The next ruler was Ahuitzotl ( "Water monster"), brother of Axayacatl and Tizoc and war leader under Tizoc. His successful coronation campaign suppressed rebellions in the Toluca valley and conquered Jilotepec and several communities in the northern Valley of Mexico. A second 1521 campaign to the gulf coast was also highly successful. He began an enlargement of the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan, inaugurating the new temple in 1487. For the inauguration ceremony the Mexica invited the rulers of all their subject cities, who participated as spectators in the ceremony in which an unprecedented number of war captives were sacrificed – some sources giving a figure of 80,400 prisoners sacrificed over four days. Probably the actual figure of sacrifices was much smaller, but still numbering several thousands. Ahuitzotl also constructed monumental architecture in sites such as Calixtlahuaca, Malinalco and Tepoztlan. After a rebellion in the towns of Alahuiztlan and Oztoticpac in Northern Guerrero he ordered the entire population executed, and repopulated with people from the valley of Mexico. He also constructed a fortified garrison at Oztuma defending the border against the Tarascan state. Moctezuma II Xocoyotzin is known to world history as the Aztec ruler when the Spanish invaders and their indigenous allies began their conquest of the empire in a two-year-long campaign (1519–1521). His early rule did not hint at his future fame. He succeeded to the rulership after the death of Ahuitzotl. Moctezuma Xocoyotzin ( "He frowns like a lord, the youngest child"), was a son of Axayacatl, and a war leader. He began his rule in standard fashion, conducting a coronation campaign to demonstrate his skills as a leader. He attacked the fortified city of Nopallan in Oaxaca and subjected the adjacent region to the empire. An effective warrior, Moctezuma maintained the pace of conquest set by his predecessor and subjected large areas in Guerrero, Oaxaca, Puebla and even far south along the Pacific and Gulf coasts, conquering the province of Xoconochco in Chiapas. he also intensified the flower wars waged against Tlaxcala and Huexotzinco, and secured an alliance with Cholula. He also consolidated the class structure of Aztec society, by making it harder for commoners () to accede to the privileged class of the pipiltin through merit in combat. He also instituted a strict sumptuary code limiting the types of luxury goods that could be consumed by commoners. In 1517, Moctezuma received the first news of ships with strange warriors having landed on the Gulf Coast near Cempoallan and he dispatched messengers to greet them and find out what was happening, and he ordered his subjects in the area to keep him informed of any new arrivals. In 1519, he was informed of the arrival of the Spanish fleet of Hernán Cortés, who soon marched towards Tlaxcala where he formed an alliance with the traditional enemies of the Aztecs. On 8 November 1519, Moctezuma II received Cortés and his troops and Tlaxcalan allies on the causeway south of Tenochtitlan, and he invited the Spaniards to stay as his guests in Tenochtitlan. When Aztec troops destroyed a Spanish camp on the gulf coast, Cortés ordered Moctezuma to execute the commanders responsible for the attack, and Moctezuma complied. At this point, the power balance had shifted towards the Spaniards who now held Motecuzoma as a prisoner in his own palace. As this shift in power became clear to Moctezuma's subjects, the Spaniards became increasingly unwelcome in the capital city, and in June 1520, hostilities broke out, culminating in the massacre in the Great Temple, and a major uprising of the Mexica against the Spanish. During the fighting, Moctezuma was killed, either by the Spaniards who killed him as they fled the city or by the Mexica themselves who considered him a traitor. Cuitláhuac, a kinsman and adviser to Moctezuma, succeeded him as tlatoani, mounting the defense of Tenochtitlan against the Spanish invaders and their indigenous allies. He ruled only 80 days, perhaps dying in a smallpox epidemic, although early sources do not give the cause. He was succeeded by Cuauhtémoc, the last independent Mexica tlatoani, who continued the fierce defense of Tenochtitlan. The Aztecs were weakened by disease, and the Spanish enlisted tens of thousands of Indian allies, especially Tlaxcalans, for the assault on Tenochtitlan. After the siege and complete destruction of the Aztec capital, Cuahtémoc was captured on 13 August 1521, marking the beginning of Spanish hegemony in central Mexico. Spaniards held Cuauhtémoc captive until he was tortured and executed on the orders of Cortés, supposedly for treason, during an ill-fated expedition to Honduras in 1525. His death marked the end of a tumultuous era in Aztec political history. The highest class were the pīpiltin or nobility. The pilli status was hereditary and ascribed certain privileges to its holder, such as the right to wear particularly fine garments and consume luxury goods, as well as to own land and direct corvée labor by commoners. The most powerful nobles were called lords () and they owned and controlled noble estates or houses, and could serve in the highest government positions or as military leaders. Nobles made up about 5% of the population. The second class were the mācehualtin, originally peasants, but later extended to the lower working classes in general. Eduardo Noguera estimates that in later stages only 20% of the population was dedicated to agriculture and food production. The other 80% of society were warriors, artisans and traders. Eventually, most of the mācehuallis were dedicated to arts and crafts. Their works were an important source of income for the city. Macehualtin could become enslaved, () for example if they had to sell themselves into the service of a noble due to debt or poverty, but enslavement was not an inherited status among the Aztecs. Some macehualtin were landless and worked directly for a lord (), whereas the majority of commoners were organized into calpollis which gave them access to land and property. Commoners were able to obtain privileges similar to those of the nobles by demonstrating prowess in warfare. When a warrior took a captive he accrued the right to use certain emblems, weapons or garments, and as he took more captives his rank and prestige increased. The Aztec family pattern was bilateral, counting relatives on the father's and mother's side of the family equally, and inheritance was also passed both to sons and daughters. This meant that women could own property just as men, and that women therefore had a good deal of economic freedom from their spouses. Nevertheless, Aztec society was highly gendered with separate gender roles for men and women. Men were expected to work outside of the house, as farmers, traders, craftsmen and warriors, whereas women were expected to take the responsibility of the domestic sphere. Women could however also work outside of the home as small-scale merchants, doctors, priests and midwives. Warfare was highly valued and a source of high prestige, but women's work was metaphorically conceived of as equivalent to warfare, and as equally important in maintaining the equilibrium of the world and pleasing the gods. This situation has led some scholars to describe Aztec gender ideology as an ideology not of a gender hierarchy, but of gender complementarity, with gender roles being separate but equal. Among the nobles, marriage alliances were often used as a political strategy with lesser nobles marrying daughters from more prestigious lineages whose status was then inherited by their children. Nobles were also often polygamous, with lords having many wives. Polygamy was not very common among the commoners and some sources describe it as being prohibited. The main unit of Aztec political organization was the city state, in Nahuatl called the altepetl, meaning "water-mountain". Each altepetl was led by a ruler, a tlatoani, with authority over a group of nobles and a population of commoners. The altepetl included a capital which served as a religious center, the hub of distribution and organization of a local population which often lived spread out in minor settlements surrounding the capital. Altepetl were also the main source of ethnic identity for the inhabitants, even though Altepetl were frequently composed of groups speaking different languages. Each altepetl would see itself as standing in a political contrast to other altepetl polities, and war was waged between altepetl states. In this way Nahuatl speaking Aztecs of one Altepetl would be solidary with speakers of other languages belonging to the same altepetl, but enemies of Nahuatl speakers belonging to other competing altepetl states. In the basin of Mexico, altepetl was composed of subdivisions called calpolli, which served as the main organizational unit for commoners. In Tlaxcala and the Puebla valley, the altepetl was organized into teccalli units headed by a lord (), who would hold sway over a territory and distribute rights to land among the commoners. A calpolli was at once a territorial unit where commoners organized labor and land use, since land was not in private property, and also often a kinship unit as a network of families that were related through intermarriage. Calpolli leaders might be or become members of the nobility, in which case they could represent their calpollis interests in the altepetl government. In the valley of Morelos, archeologist Michael E. Smith estimates that a typical altepetl had from 10,000 to 15,000 inhabitants, and covered an area between 70 and 100 square kilometers. In the Morelos valley, altepetl sizes were somewhat smaller. Smith argues that the altepetl was primarily a political unit, made up of the population with allegiance to a lord, rather than as a territorial unit. He makes this distinction because in some areas minor settlements with different altepetl allegiances were interspersed. The Aztec Empire was ruled by indirect means. Like most European empires, it was ethnically very diverse, but unlike most European empires, it was more of a system of tribute than a single system of government. Ethnohistorian Ross Hassig has argued that Aztec empire is best understood as an informal or hegemonic empire because it did not exert supreme authority over the conquered lands; it merely expected tributes to be paid and exerted force only to the degree it was necessary to ensure the payment of tribute. It was also a discontinuous empire because not all dominated territories were connected; for example, the southern peripheral zones of Xoconochco were not in direct contact with the center. The hegemonic nature of the Aztec empire can be seen in the fact that generally local rulers were restored to their positions once their city-state was conquered, and the Aztecs did not generally interfere in local affairs as long as the tribute payments were made and the local elites participated willingly. Such compliance was secured by establishing and maintaining a network of elites, related through intermarriage and different forms of exchange. Nevertheless, the expansion of the empire was accomplished through military control of frontier zones, in strategic provinces where a much more direct approach to conquest and control was taken. Such strategic provinces were often exempt from tributary demands. The Aztecs even invested in those areas, by maintaining a permanent military presence, installing puppet-rulers, or even moving entire populations from the center to maintain a loyal base of support. In this way, the Aztec system of government distinguished between different strategies of control in the outer regions of the empire, far from the core in the Valley of Mexico. Some provinces were treated as tributary provinces, which provided the basis for economic stability for the empire, and strategic provinces, which were the basis for further expansion. Although the form of government is often referred to as an empire, in fact most areas within the empire were organized as city-states, known as altepetl in Nahuatl. These were small polities ruled by a hereditary leader (tlatoani) from a legitimate noble dynasty. The Early Aztec period was a time of growth and competition among altepetl. Even after the confederation of the Triple Alliance was formed in 1427 and began its expansion through conquest, the altepetl remained the dominant form of organization at the local level. The efficient role of the altepetl as a regional political unit was largely responsible for the success of the empire's hegemonic form of control. As all Mesoamerican peoples, Aztec society was organized around maize agriculture. The humid environment in the Valley of Mexico with its many lakes and swamps permitted intensive agriculture. The main crops in addition to maize were beans, squashes, chilies and amaranth. Particularly important for agricultural production in the valley was the construction of chinampas on the lake, artificial islands that allowed the conversion of the shallow waters into highly fertile gardens that could be cultivated year round. Chinampas are human-made extensions of agricultural land, created from alternating layers of mud from the bottom of the lake, and plant matter and other vegetation. These raised beds were separated by narrow canals, which allowed farmers to move between them by canoe. Chinampas were extremely fertile pieces of land, and yielded, on average, seven crops annually. On the basis of current chinampa yields, it has been estimated that of chinampa would feed 20 individuals and of chinampas could feed 180,000. The Aztecs further intensified agricultural production by constructing systems of artificial irrigation. While most of the farming occurred outside the densely populated areas, within the cities there was another method of (small-scale) farming. Each family had their own garden plot where they grew maize, fruits, herbs, medicines and other important plants. When the city of Tenochtitlan became a major urban center, water was supplied to the city through aqueducts from springs on the banks of the lake, and they organized a system that collected human waste for use as fertilizer. Through intensive agriculture the Aztecs were able to sustain a large urbanized population. The lake was also a rich source of proteins in the form of aquatic animals such as fish, amphibians, shrimp, insects and insect eggs, and water fowl. The presence of such varied sources of protein meant that there was little use for domestic animals for meat (only turkeys and dogs were kept), and scholars have calculated that there was no shortage of protein among the inhabitants of the Valley of Mexico. The excess supply of food products allowed a significant portion of the Aztec population to dedicate themselves to trades other than food production. Apart from taking care of domestic food production, women weaved textiles from agave fibers and cotton. Men also engaged in craft specializations such as the production of ceramics and of obsidian and flint tools, and of luxury goods such as beadwork, featherwork and the elaboration of tools and musical instruments. Sometimes entire calpollis specialized in a single craft, and in some archeological sites large neighborhoods have been found where apparently only a single craft speciality was practiced. The Aztecs did not produce much metal work, but did have knowledge of basic smelting technology for gold, and they combined gold with precious stones such as jade and turquoise. Copper products were generally imported from the Tarascans of Michoacan. Products were distributed through a network of markets; some markets specialized in a single commodity (for example the dog market of Acolman) and other general markets with presence of many different goods. Markets were highly organized with a system of supervisors taking care that only authorized merchants were permitted to sell their goods, and punishing those who cheated their customers or sold substandard or counterfeit goods. A typical town would have a weekly market (every five days), while larger cities held markets every day. Cortés reported that the central market of Tlatelolco, Tenochtitlan's sister city, was visited by 60,000 people daily. Some sellers in the markets were petty vendors; farmers might sell some of their produce, potters sold their vessels, and so on. Other vendors were professional merchants who traveled from market to market seeking profits. The pochteca were specialized long distance merchants organized into exclusive guilds. They made long expeditions to all parts of Mesoamerica bringing back exotic luxury goods, and they served as the judges and supervisors of the Tlatelolco market. Although the economy of Aztec Mexico was commercialized (in its use of money, markets, and merchants), land and labor were not generally commodities for sale, though some types of land could be sold between nobles. In the commercial sector of the economy, several types of money were in regular use. Small purchases were made with cacao beans, which had to be imported from lowland areas. In Aztec marketplaces, a small rabbit was worth 30 beans, a turkey egg cost 3 beans, and a tamal cost a single bean. For larger purchases, standardized lengths of cotton cloth, called quachtli, were used. There were different grades of quachtli, ranging in value from 65 to 300 cacao beans. About 20 quachtli could support a commoner for one year in Tenochtitlan. Another form of distribution of goods was through the payment of tribute. When an altepetl was conquered, the victor imposed a yearly tribute, usually paid in the form of whichever local product was most valuable or treasured. Several pages from the Codex Mendoza list tributary towns along with the goods they supplied, which included not only luxuries such as feathers, adorned suits, and greenstone beads, but more practical goods such as cloth, firewood, and food. Tribute was usually paid twice or four times a year at differing times. Archaeological excavations in the Aztec-ruled provinces show that incorporation into the empire had both costs and benefits for provincial peoples. On the positive side, the empire promoted commerce and trade, and exotic goods from obsidian to bronze managed to reach the houses of both commoners and nobles. Trade partners also included the enemy Purépecha (also known as Tarascans), a source of bronze tools and jewelry. On the negative side, imperial tribute imposed a burden on commoner households, who had to increase their work to pay their share of tribute. Nobles, on the other hand, often made out well under imperial rule because of the indirect nature of imperial organization. The empire had to rely on local kings and nobles and offered them privileges for their help in maintaining order and keeping the tribute flowing. Aztec society combined a relatively simple agrarian rural tradition with the development of a truly urbanized society with a complex system of institutions, specializations and hierarchies. The urban tradition in Mesoamerica was developed during the classic period with major urban centers such as Teotihuacan with a population well above 100,000, and at the time of the rise of the Aztec, the urban tradition was ingrained in Mesoamerican society, with urban centers serving major religious, political and economic functions for the entire population. The capital city of the Aztec empire was Tenochtitlan, now the site of modern- day Mexico City. Built on a series of islets in Lake Texcoco, the city plan was based on a symmetrical layout that was divided into four city sections called campan (directions). Tenochtitlan was built according to a fixed plan and centered on the ritual precinct, where the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan rose above the city. Houses were made of wood and loam, roofs were made of reed, although pyramids, temples and palaces were generally made of stone. The city was interlaced with canals, which were useful for transportation. Anthropologist Eduardo Noguera estimated the population at 200,000 based on the house count and merging the population of Tlatelolco (once an independent city, but later became a suburb of Tenochtitlan). If one includes the surrounding islets and shores surrounding Lake Texcoco, estimates range from 300,000 to 700,000 inhabitants. Michael E. Smith gives a somewhat smaller figure of 212,500 inhabitants of Tenochtitlan based on an area of and a population density of 157 inhabitants per hectare. The second largest city in the valley of Mexico in the Aztec period was Texcoco with some 25,000 inhabitants dispersed over . The center of Tenochtitlan was the sacred precinct, a walled-off square area which housed the Great Temple, temples for other deities, the ballcourt, the calmecac (a school for nobles), a skull rack tzompantli, displaying the skulls of sacrificial victims, houses of the warrior orders and a merchants palace. Around the sacred precinct were the royal palaces built by the tlatoanis. The centerpiece of Tenochtitlan was the Templo Mayor, the Great Temple, a large stepped pyramid with a double staircase leading up to two twin shrines – one dedicated to Tlaloc, the other to Huitzilopochtli. This was where most of the human sacrifices were carried out during the ritual festivals and the bodies of sacrificial victims were thrown down the stairs. The temple was enlarged in several stages, and most of the Aztec rulers made a point of adding a further stage, each with a new dedication and inauguration. The temple has been excavated in the center of Mexico City and the rich dedicatory offerings are displayed in the Museum of the Templo Mayor. Archaeologist Eduardo Matos Moctezuma, in his essay Symbolism of the Templo Mayor, posits that the orientation of the temple is indicative of the totality of the vision the Mexica had of the universe (cosmovision). He states that the "principal center, or navel, where the horizontal and vertical planes intersect, that is, the point from which the heavenly or upper plane and the plane of the Underworld begin and the four directions of the universe originate, is the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan." Matos Moctezuma supports his supposition by claiming that the temple acts as an embodiment of a living myth where "all sacred power is concentrated and where all the levels intersect." Other major Aztec cities were some of the previous city state centers around the lake including Tenayuca, Azcapotzalco, Texcoco, Colhuacan, Tlacopan, Chapultepec, Coyoacan, Xochimilco, and Chalco. In the Puebla valley, Cholula was the largest city with the largest pyramid temple in Mesoamerica, while the confederacy of Tlaxcala consisted of four smaller cities. In Morelos, Cuahnahuac was a major city of the Nahuatl speaking Tlahuica tribe, and Tollocan in the Toluca valley was the capital of the Matlatzinca tribe which included Nahuatl speakers as well as speakers of Otomi and the language today called Matlatzinca. Most Aztec cities had a similar layout with a central plaza with a major pyramid with two staircases and a double temple oriented towards the west. Aztec religion was organized around the practice of calendar rituals dedicated to a pantheon of different deities. Similar to other Mesoamerican religious systems, it has generally been understood as a polytheist agriculturalist religion with elements of animism. Central in the religious practice was the offering of sacrifices to the deities, as a way of thanking or paying for the continuation of the cycle of life. The main deities worshipped by the Aztecs were Tlaloc, a rain and storm deity, Huitzilopochtli a solar and martial deity and the tutelary deity of the Mexica tribe, Quetzalcoatl, a wind, sky and star deity and cultural hero, Tezcatlipoca, a deity of the night, magic, prophecy and fate. The Great Temple in Tenochtitlan had two shrines on its top, one dedicated to Tlaloc, the other to Huitzilopochtli. Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca each had separate temples within the religious precinct close to the Great Temple, and the high priests of the Great Temple were named "Quetzalcoatl Tlamacazqueh". Other major deities were Tlaltecutli or Coatlicue a female earth deity, the deity couple Tonacatecuhtli and Tonacacihuatl were associated with life and sustenance, Mictlantecutli and Mictlancihuatl, a male/female couple of deities of the underworld and death, Chalchiutlicue, a female deity of lakes and springs, Xipe Totec, a deity of fertility and the natural cycle, Huehueteotl or Xiuhtecuhtli a fire god, Tlazolteotl a female deity tied to childbirth and sexuality, and a Xochipilli and Xochiquetzal gods of song, dance and games. In some regions, particularly Tlaxcala, Mixcoatl or Camaxtli was the main tribal deity. A few sources mention a deity Ometeotl who may have been a god of the duality between life and death, male and female and who may have incorporated Tonacatecuhtli and Tonacacihuatl. Apart from the major deities there were dozens of minor deities each associated with an element or concept, and as the Aztec empire grew so did their pantheon because they adopted and incorporated the local deities of conquered people into their own. Additionally the major gods had many alternative manifestations or aspects, creating small families of gods with related aspects. Aztec mythology is known from a number of sources written down in the colonial period. One set of myths, called Legend of the Suns, describe the creation of four successive suns, or periods, each ruled by a different deity and inhabited by a different group of beings. Each period ends in a cataclysmic destruction that sets the stage for the next period to begin. In this process, the deities Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl appear as adversaries, each destroying the creations of the other. The current Sun, the fifth, was created when a minor deity sacrificed himself on a bonfire and turned into the sun, but the sun only begins to move once the other deities sacrifice themselves and offers it their life force. In another myth of how the earth was created, Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl appear as allies, defeating a giant crocodile Cipactli and requiring her to become the earth, allowing humans to carve into her flesh and plant their seeds, on the condition that in return they will offer blood to her. And in the story of the creation of humanity, Quetzalcoatl travels with his twin Xolotl to the underworld and brings back bones which are then ground like corn on a metate by the goddess Cihuacoatl, the resulting dough is given human form and comes to life when Quetzalcoatl imbues it with his own blood. Huitzilopochtli is the deity tied to the Mexica tribe and he figures in the story of the origin and migrations of the tribe. On their journey, Huitzilopochtli, in the form of a deity bundle carried by the Mexica priest, continuously spurs the tribe on by pushing them into conflict with their neighbors whenever they are settled in a place. In another myth, Huitzilopochtli defeats and dismembers his sister the lunar deity Coyolxauhqui and her four hundred brothers at the hill of Coatepetl. The southern side of the Great Temple, also called Coatepetl, was a representation of this myth and at the foot of the stairs lay a large stone monolith carved with a representation of the dismembered goddess. Aztec religious life was organized around the calendars. As most Mesoamerican people, the Aztecs used two calendars simultaneously: a ritual calendar of 260 days called the tonalpohualli and a solar calendar of 365 days called the xiuhpohualli. Each day had a name and number in both calendars, and the combination of two dates were unique within a period of 52 years. The tonalpohualli was mostly used for divinatory purposes and it consisted of 20 day signs and number coefficients of 1–13 that cycled in a fixed order. The xiuhpohualli was made up of 18 "months" of 20 days, and with a remainder of 5 "void" days at the end of a cycle before the new xiuhpohualli cycle began. Each 20-day month was named after the specific ritual festival that began the month, many of which contained a relation to the agricultural cycle. Whether, and how, the Aztec calendar corrected for leap year is a matter of discussion among specialists. The monthly rituals involved the entire population as rituals were performed in each household, in the calpolli temples and in the main sacred precinct. Many festivals involved different forms of dancing, as well as the reenactment of mythical narratives by deity impersonators and the offering of sacrifice, in the form of food, animals and human victims. Every 52 years, the two calendars reached their shared starting point and a new calendar cycle began. This calendar event was celebrated with a ritual known as Xiuhmolpilli or the New Fire Ceremony. In this ceremony, old pottery was broken in all homes and all fires in the Aztec realm were put out. Then a new fire was drilled over the breast of a sacrificial victim and runners brought the new fire to the different calpolli communities where fire was redistributed to each home. The night without fire was associated with the fear that star demons, tzitzimime, might descend and devour the earth – ending the fifth period of the sun. To the Aztecs, death was instrumental in the perpetuation of creation, and gods and humans alike had the responsibility of sacrificing themselves in order to allow life to continue. As described in the myth of creation above, humans were understood as responsible for the sun's continued revival, as well as for the paying the earth for its continued fertility. Blood sacrifice in various forms were conducted. Both humans and animals were sacrificed, depending on the god to be placated and the ceremony being conducted, and priests of some gods were sometimes required to provide their own blood through self-mutilation. It is known that some rituals included acts of cannibalism, with the captor and his family consuming part of the flesh of their sacrificed captives, but it is not known how widespread this practice was. While human sacrifice was practiced throughout Mesoamerica, the Aztecs, according to their own accounts, brought this practice to an unprecedented level. For example, for the reconsecration of the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan in 1487, the Aztecs reported that they sacrificed 80,400 prisoners over the course of four days, reportedly by Ahuitzotl, the Great Speaker himself. This number, however, is not universally accepted and may have been exaggerated. The scale of Aztec human sacrifice has provoked many scholars to consider what may have been the driving factor behind this aspect of Aztec religion. In the 1970s, Michael Harner and Marvin Harris argued that the motivation behind human sacrifice among the Aztecs was actually the cannibalization of the sacrificial victims, depicted for example in Codex Magliabechiano. Harner claimed that very high population pressure and an emphasis on maize agriculture, without domesticated herbivores, led to a deficiency of essential amino acids among the Aztecs. While there is universal agreement that the Aztecs practiced sacrifice, there is a lack of scholarly consensus as to whether cannibalism was widespread. Harris, author of Cannibals and Kings (1977), has propagated the claim, originally proposed by Harner, that the flesh of the victims was a part of an aristocratic diet as a reward, since the Aztec diet was lacking in proteins. These claims have been refuted by Bernard Ortíz Montellano who, in his studies of Aztec health, diet, and medicine, demonstrates that while the Aztec diet was low in animal proteins, it was rich in vegetable proteins. Ortiz also points to the preponderance of human sacrifice during periods of food abundance following harvests compared to periods of food scarcity, the insignificant quantity of human protein available from sacrifices and the fact that aristocrats already had easy access to animal protein. Today many scholars point to ideological explanations of the practice, noting how the public spectacle of sacrificing warriors from conquered states was a major display of political power, supporting the claim of the ruling classes to divine authority. It also served as an important deterrent against rebellion by subjugated polities against the Aztec state, and such deterrents were crucial in order for the loosely organized empire to cohere. The Aztec greatly appreciated the toltecayotl (arts and fine craftsmanship) of the Toltec, who predated the Aztec in central Mexico. The Aztec considered Toltec productions to represent the finest state of culture. The fine arts included writing and painting, singing and composing poetry, carving sculptures and producing mosaic, making fine ceramics, producing complex featherwork, and working metals, including copper and gold. Artisans of the fine arts were referred to collectively as tolteca (Toltec). The Aztecs did not have a fully developed writing system like the Maya, however like the Maya and Zapotec, they did use a writing system that combined logographic signs with phonetic syllable signs. Logograms would, for example, be the use of an image of a mountain to signify the word tepetl, "mountain", whereas a phonetic syllable sign would be the use of an image of a tooth tlantli to signify the syllable tla in words unrelated to teeth. The combination of these principles allowed the Aztecs to represent the sounds of names of persons and places. Narratives tended to be represented through sequences of images, using various iconographic conventions such as footprints to show paths, temples on fire to show conquest events, etc. Epigrapher Alfonso Lacadena has demonstrated that the different syllable signs used by the Aztecs almost enabled the representation of all the most frequent syllables of the Nahuatl language (with some notable exceptions), but some scholars have argued that such a high degree of phoneticity was only achieved after the conquest when the Aztecs had been introduced to the principles of phonetic writing by the Spanish. Other scholars, notably Gordon Whittaker, have argued that the syllabic and phonetic aspects of Aztec writing were considerably less systematic and more creative than Lacadena's proposal suggests, arguing that Aztec writing never coalesced into a strictly syllabic system such as the Maya writing, but rather used a wide range of different types of phonetic signs. The image to right demonstrates the use of phonetic signs for writing place names in the colonial Aztec Codex Mendoza. The uppermost place is "Mapachtepec", meaning literally "On the Hill of the Raccoon ", but the glyph includes the phonetic signs "MA" (hand) and "PACH" (moss) over a mountain "TEPETL" spelling the word "mapach" ("raccoon") phonetically instead of logographically. The other two place names, Mazatlan ("Place of Many Deer") and Huitztlan ("Place of many thorns"), use the phonetic element "TLAN" represented by a tooth (tlantli) combined with a deer head to spell "MAZA" (mazatl = deer) and a thorn (huitztli) to spell "HUITZ". Song and poetry were highly regarded; there were presentations and poetry contests at most of the Aztec festivals. There were also dramatic presentations that included players, musicians and acrobats. There were several different genres of cuicatl (song): Yaocuicatl was devoted to war and the god(s) of war, Teocuicatl to the gods and creation myths and to adoration of said figures, xochicuicatl to flowers (a symbol of poetry itself and indicative of the highly metaphorical nature of a poetry that often utilized duality to convey multiple layers of meaning). "Prose" was tlahtolli, also with its different categories and divisions. A key aspect of Aztec poetics was the use of parallelism, using a structure of embedded couplets to express different perspectives on the same element. Some such couplets were diphrasisms, conventional metaphors whereby an abstract concept was expressed metaphorically by using two more concrete concepts. For example, the Nahuatl expression for "poetry" was in xochitl in cuicatl a dual term meaning "the flower, the song". A remarkable amount of this poetry survives, having been collected during the era of the conquest. In some cases poetry is attributed to individual authors, such as Nezahualcoyotl, tlatoani of Texcoco, and Cuacuauhtzin, Lord of Tepechpan, but whether these attributions reflect actual authorship is a matter of opinion. Important collection of such poems are Romances de los señores de la Nueva España, collected (Tezcoco 1582), probably by Juan Bautista de Pomar, and the Cantares Mexicanos. The Aztecs produced ceramics of different types. Common are orange wares, which are orange or buff burnished ceramics with no slip. Red wares are ceramics with a reddish slip. And polychrome ware are ceramics with a white or orange slip, with painted designs in orange, red, brown, and/or black. Very common is "black on orange" ware which is orange ware decorated with painted designs in black. Aztec black on orange ceramics are chronologically classified into four phases: Aztec I and II corresponding to ca, 1100–1350 (early Aztec period), Aztec III ca. (1350–1520), and the last phase Aztec IV was the early colonial period. Aztec I is characterized by floral designs and day- name glyphs; Aztec II is characterized by a stylized grass design above calligraphic designs such as s-curves or loops; Aztec III is characterized by very simple line designs; Aztec four continues some pre-Columbian designs but adds European influenced floral designs. There were local variations on each of these styles, and archeologists continue to refine the ceramic sequence. Typical vessels for everyday use were clay griddles for cooking (comalli), bowls and plates for eating (caxitl), pots for cooking (comitl), molcajetes or mortar-type vessels with slashed bases for grinding chilli (molcaxitl), and different kinds of braziers, tripod dishes and biconical goblets. Vessels were fired in simple updraft kilns or even in open firing in pit kilns at low temperatures. Polychrome ceramics were imported from the Cholula region (also known as Mixteca-Puebla style), and these weres were highly prized as a luxury ware, whereas the local black on orange styles were also for everyday use. Aztec painted art was produced on animal skin (mostly deer), on cotton lienzos and on amate paper made from bark (e.g. from Trema micrantha or Ficus aurea), it was also produced on ceramics and carved in wood and stone. The surface of the material was often first treated with gesso to make the images stand out more clearly. The art of painting and writing was known in Nahuatl by the metaphor in tlilli, in tlapalli - meaning "the black ink, the red pigment". There are few extant Aztec painted books. Of these none are conclusively confirmed to have been created before the conquest, but several codices must have been painted either right before the conquest or very soon after - before traditions for producing them were much disturbed. Even if some codices may have been produced after the conquest, there is good reason to think that they may have been copied from pre-Columbian originals by scribes. The Codex Borbonicus is considered by some to be the only extant Aztec codex produced before the conquest - it is a calendric codex describing the day and month counts indicating the patron deities of the different time periods. Others consider it to have stylistic traits suggesting a post-conquest production. Some codices were produces post-conquest, sometimes commissioned by the colonial government, for example Codex Mendoza, were painted by Aztec tlacuilos (codex creators), but under the control of Spanish authorities, who also sometimes commissioned codices describing pre-colonial religious practices, for example Codex Ríos. After the conquest, codices with calendric or religious information were sought out and systematically destroyed by the church - whereas other types of painted books, particularly historical narratives and tribute lists continued to be produced. Although depicting Aztec deities and describing religious practices also shared by the Aztecs of the Valley of Mexico, the codices produced in Southern Puebla near Cholula, are sometimes not considered to be Aztec codices, because they were produced outside of the Aztec "heartland". Karl Anton Nowotny, nevertheless considered that the Codex Borgia, painted in the area around Cholula and using a Mixtec style, was the "most significant work of art among the extant manuscripts". Sculptures were carved in stone and wood, but few wood carvings have survived. Aztec stone sculptures exist in many sizes from small figurines and masks to large monuments, and are characterized by a high quality of craftsmanship. Many sculptures were carved in highly realistic styles, for example realistic sculpture of animals such as rattlesnakes, dogs, jaguars, frogs, turtle and monkeys. In Aztec artwork a number of monumental stone sculptures have been preserved, such sculptures usually functioned as adornments for religious architecture. Particularly famous monumental rock sculpture includes the so- called Aztec "Sunstone" or Calendarstone discovered in 1790; also discovered in 1790 excavations of the Zócalo was the 2.7 meter tall Coatlicue statue made of andesite, representing a serpentine chthonic goddess with a skirt made of rattlesnakes. The Coyolxauhqui Stone representing the dismembered goddess Coyolxauhqui, found in 1978, was at the foot of the staircase leading up to the Great Temple in Tenochtitlan. Two important types of sculpture are unique to the Aztecs, and related to the context of ritual sacrifice: the cuauhxicalli or "eagle vessel", large stone bowls often shaped like eagles or jaguars used as a receptacle for extracted human hearts; the temalacatl, a monumental carved stone disk to which war captives were tied and sacrificed in a form of gladiatorial combat. The most well known examples of this type of sculpture are the Stone of Tizoc and the Stone of Motecuzoma I, both carved with images of warfare and conquest by specific Aztec rulers. Many smaller stone sculptures depicting deities also exist. The style used in religious sculpture was rigid stances likely meant to create a powerful experience in the onlooker. Although Aztec stone sculptures are now displayed in museums as unadorned rock, they were originally painted in vivid polychrome color, sometimes covered first with a base coat of plaster. Early Spanish conquistador accounts also describe stone sculptures as having been decorated with precious stones and metal, inserted into the plaster. An especially prized art form among the Aztecs was featherwork - the creation of intricate and colorful mosaics of feathers, and their use in garments as well as decoration on weaponry, war banners, and warrior suits. The class of highly skilled and honored craftsmen who created feather objects was called the amanteca, named after the Amantla neighborhood in Tenochtitlan where they lived and worked. They did not pay tribute nor were required to perform public service. The Florentine Codex gives information about how feather works were created. The amanteca had two ways of creating their works. One was to secure the feathers in place using agave cord for three-dimensional objects such as fly whisks, fans, bracelets, headgear and other objects. The second and more difficult was a mosaic type technique, which the Spanish also called "feather painting." These were done principally on feather shields and cloaks for idols.Feather mosaics were arrangements of minute fragments of feathers from a wide variety of birds, generally worked on a paper base, made from cotton and paste, then itself backed with amate paper, but bases of other types of paper and directly on amate were done as well. These works were done in layers with "common" feathers, dyed feathers and precious feathers. First a model was made with lower quality feathers and the precious feathers found only on the top layer. The adhesive for the feathers in the Mesoamerican period was made from orchid bulbs. Feathers from local and faraway sources were used, especially in the Aztec Empire. The feathers were obtained from wild birds as well as from domesticated turkeys and ducks, with the finest quetzal feathers coming from Chiapas, Guatemala and Honduras. These feathers were obtained through trade and tribute. Due to the difficulty of conserving feathers, fewer than ten pieces of original Aztec featherwork exist today. Mexico City was built on the ruins of Tenochtitlan, gradually replacing and covering the lake, the island and the architecture of Aztec Tenochtitlan. After the fall of Tenochtitlan, Aztec warriors were enlisted as auxiliary troops alongside the Spanish Tlaxcalteca allies, and Aztec forces participated in all of the subsequent campaigns of conquest in northern and southern Mesoamerica. This meant that aspects of Aztec culture and the Nahuatl language continued to expand during the early colonial period as Aztec auxiliary forces made permanent settlements in many of the areas that were put under the Spanish crown. The Aztec ruling dynasty continued to govern the indigenous polity of San Juan Tenochtitlan, a division of the Spanish capital of Mexico City, but the subsequent indigenous rulers were mostly puppets installed by the Spanish. One was Andrés de Tapia Motelchiuh, who was appointed by the Spanish. Other former Aztec city states likewise were established as colonial indigenous towns, governed by a local indigenous gobernador. This office was often initially held by the hereditary indigenous ruling line, with the gobernador being the tlatoani, but the two positions in many Nahua towns became separated over time. Indigenous governors were in charge of the colonial political organization of the Indians. In particular they enabled the continued functioning of the tribute and obligatory labor of commoner Indians to benefit the Spanish holders of encomiendas. Encomiendas were private grants of labor and tribute from particular indigenous communities to particular Spaniards, replacing the Aztec overlords with Spanish. In the early colonial period some indigenous governors became quite rich and influential and were able to maintain positions of power comparable to that of Spanish encomenderos. After the arrival of the Europeans in Mexico and the conquest, indigenous populations declined significantly. This was largely the result of the epidemics of viruses brought to the continent against which the natives had no immunity. In 1520–1521, an outbreak of smallpox swept through the population of Tenochtitlan and was decisive in the fall of the city; further significant epidemics struck in 1545 and 1576. There has been no general consensus about the population size of Mexico at the time of European arrival. Early estimates gave very small population figures for the Valley of Mexico, in 1942 Kubler estimated a figure 200,000. In 1963 Borah and Cook used pre-Conquest tribute lists to calculate the number of tributaries in central Mexico, estimating over . Their very high figure has been highly criticized for relying on unwarranted assumptions. Archeologist William Sanders based an estimate on archeological evidence of dwellings, arriving at an estimate of inhabitants in the Valley of Mexico. Whitmore used a computer simulation model based on colonial censuses to arrive at an estimate of for the Basin in 1519, and an estimate of for all of Mexico. Depending on the estimations of the population in 1519 the scale of the decline in the 16th century, range from around 50% to around 90% – with Sanders's and Whitmore's estimates being around 90%. Although the Aztec empire fell, some of its highest elites continued to hold elite status in the colonial era. The principal heirs of Moctezuma II and their descendants retained high status. His son Pedro Moctezuma produced a son, who married into Spanish aristocracy and a further generation saw the creation of the title, Count of Moctezuma. From 1696 to 1701, the Viceroy of Mexico was held the title of count of Moctezuma. In 1766, the holder of the title became a Grandee of Spain. In 1865, (during the Second Mexican Empire) the title, which was held by Antonio María Moctezuma-Marcilla de Teruel y Navarro, 14th Count of Moctezuma de Tultengo, was elevated to that of a Duke, thus becoming Duke of Moctezuma, with de Tultengo again added in 1992 by Juan Carlos I. Two of Moctezuma's daughters, Doña Isabel Moctezuma and her younger sister, Doña Leonor Moctezuma, were granted extensive encomiendas in perpetuity by Hernán Cortes. Doña Leonor Moctezuma married in succession two Spaniards, and left her encomiendas to her daughter by her second husband. The different Nahua peoples, just as other Mesoamerican indigenous peoples in colonial New Spain, were able to maintain many aspects of their social and political structure under the colonial rule. The basic division the Spanish made was between the indigenous populations, organized under the Republica de indios, which was separate from the Hispanic sphere, the República de españoles. The República de españoles included not just Europeans, but also Africans and mixed-race castas. The Spanish recognized the indigenous elites as nobles in the Spanish colonial system, maintaining the status distinction of the pre-conquest era, and used these noblemen as intermediaries between the Spanish colonial government and their communities. This was contingent on their conversion to Christianity and continuing loyalty to the Spanish crown. Colonial Nahua polities had considerable autonomy to regulate their local affairs. The Spanish rulers did not entirely understand the indigenous political organization, but they recognized the importance of the existing system and their elite rulers. They reshaped the political system utilizing altepetl or city-states as the basic unit of governance. In the colonial era, altepetl were renamed cabeceras or "head towns" (although they often retained the term altepetl in local-level, Nahuatl-language documentation), with outlying settlements governed by the cabeceras named sujetos, subject communities. In cabeceras, the Spanish created Iberian-style town councils, or cabildos, which usually continued to function as the elite ruling group had in the pre-conquest era. Population decline due to epidemic disease resulted in many population shifts in settlement patterns, and the formation of new population centers. These were often forced resettlements under the Spanish policy of congregación. Indigenous populations living in sparsely populated areas were resettled to form new communities, making it easier for them to brought within range of evangelization efforts, and easier for the colonial state to exploit their labor. Today the legacy of the Aztecs lives on in Mexico in many forms. Archeological sites are excavated and opened to the public and their artifacts are prominently displayed in museums. Place names and loanwords from the Aztec language Nahuatl permeate the Mexican landscape and vocabulary, and Aztec symbols and mythology have been promoted by the Mexican government and integrated into contemporary Mexican nationalism as emblems of the country. During the 19th century, the image of the Aztecs as uncivilized barbarians was replaced with romanticized visions of the Aztecs as original sons of the soil, with a highly developed culture rivaling the ancient European civilizations. When Mexico became independent from Spain, a romanticized version of the Aztecs became a source of images that could be used to ground the new nation as a unique blend of European and American. Aztec culture and history has been central to the formation of a Mexican national identity after Mexican independence in 1821. In 17th and 18th century Europe, the Aztecs were generally described as barbaric, gruesome and culturally inferior. Even before Mexico achieved its independence, American- born Spaniards (criollos) drew on Aztec history to ground their own search for symbols of local pride, separate from that of Spain. Intellectuals utilized Aztec writings, such as those collected by Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl, and writings of Hernando Alvarado Tezozomoc, and Chimalpahin to understand Mexico's indigenous past in texts by indigenous writers. This search became the basis for what historian D.A. Brading calls "creole patriotism." Seventeenth-century cleric and scientist, Carlos de Sigüenza y Góngora acquired the manuscript collection of Texcocan nobleman Alva Ixtlilxochitl. Creole Jesuit Francisco Javier Clavijero published La Historia Antigua de México (1780–81) in his Italian exile following the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767, in which he traces the history of the Aztecs from their migration to the last Aztec ruler, Cuauhtemoc. He wrote it expressly to defend Mexico's indigenous past against the slanders of contemporary writers, such as Pauw, Buffon, Raynal, and William Robertson. Archeological excavations in 1790 in the capital's main square uncovered two massive stone sculptures, buried immediately after the fall of Tenochtitlan in the conquest. Unearthed were the famous calendar stone, as well as a statue of Coatlicue. Antonio de León y Gama’s 1792 Descripción histórico y cronológico de las dos piedras examines the two stone monoliths. A decade later, German scientist Alexander von Humboldt spent a year in Mexico, during his four-year expedition to Spanish America. One of his early publications from that period was Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. Humboldt was important in disseminating images of the Aztecs to scientists and general readers in the Western world. In the realm of religion, late colonial paintings of the Virgin of Guadalupe have examples of her depicted floating above the iconic nopal cactus of the Aztecs. Juan Diego, the Nahua to whom the apparition was said to appear, links the dark Virgin to Mexico's Aztec past. When New Spain achieved independence in 1821 and became a monarchy, the First Mexican Empire, its flag had the traditional Aztec eagle on a nopal cactus. The eagle had a crown, symbolizing the new Mexican monarchy. When Mexico became a republic after the overthrow of the first monarchy in 1822, the flag was revised showing the eagle with no crown. In the 1860s, when the French established the Second Mexican Empire under Maximilian of Habsburg, the Mexican flag retained the emblematic eagle and cactus, with elaborate symbols of monarchy. After the defeat of the French and their Mexican collaborators, the Mexican Republic was re-established, and the flag returned to its republican simplicity. This emblem has also been adopted as Mexico's national Coat of Arms, and is emblazoned on official buildings, seals, and signs. Tensions within post-independence Mexico pitted those rejecting the ancient civilizations of Mexico as source of national pride, the Hispanistas, mostly politically conservative Mexican elites, and those who saw them as a source of pride, the Indigenistas, who were mostly liberal Mexican elites. Although the flag of the Mexican Republic had the symbol of the Aztecs as its central element, conservative elites were generally hostile to the current indigenous populations of Mexico or crediting them with a glorious prehispanic history. Under Mexican president Antonio López de Santa Anna, pro-indigenist Mexican intellectuals did not find a wide audience. With Santa Anna's overthrow in 1854, Mexican liberals and scholars interested in the indigenous past became more active. Liberals were more favorably inclined to the indigenous populations and their history, but considered a pressing matter being the "Indian Problem." Liberals’ commitment to equality before the law meant that for upwardly mobile indigenous, such as Zapotec Benito Juárez, who rose in the ranks of the liberals to become Mexico's first president of indigenous origins, and Nahua intellectual and politician Ignacio Altamirano, a disciple of Ignacio Ramírez, a defender of the rights of the indigenous, liberalism presented a way forward in that era. For investigations of Mexico's indigenous past, however, the role of moderate liberal José Fernando Ramírez is important, serving as director of the National Museum and doing research utilizing codices, while staying out of the fierce conflicts between liberals and conservatives that led to a decade of civil war. Mexican scholars who pursued research on the Aztecs in the late nineteenth century were , , Manuel Orozco y Berra, Joaquín García Icazbalceta, and Francisco del Paso y Troncoso contributing significantly to the nineteenth-century development of Mexican scholarship on the Aztecs. The late nineteenth century in Mexico was a period in which Aztec civilization became a point of national pride. The era was dominated by liberal military hero, Porfirio Díaz, a mestizo from Oaxaca who was president of Mexico from 1876 to 1911. His policies opening Mexico to foreign investors and modernizing the country under a firm hand controlling unrest, "Order and Progress," undermined Mexico's indigenous populations and their communities. However, for investigations of Mexico's ancient civilizations, his was a benevolent regime, with funds supporting archeological research and for protecting monuments. "Scholars found it more profitable to confine their attention to Indians who had been dead for a number of centuries." His benevolence saw the placement of a monument to Cuauhtemoc in a major traffic roundabout (glorieta) of the wide Paseo de la Reforma, which he inaugurated in 1887. In world's fairs of the late nineteenth century, Mexico's pavilions included a major focus on its indigenous past, especially the Aztecs. Mexican scholars such as Alfredo Chavero helped shape the cultural image of Mexico at these exhibitions. The Mexican Revolution (1910–1920) and significant participation of indigenous people in the struggle in many regions, ignited a broad government-sponsored political and cultural movement of indigenismo, with symbols of Mexico's Aztec past becoming ubiquitous, most especially in Mexican muralism of Diego Rivera. In their works, Mexican authors such as Octavio Paz and Agustin Fuentes have analyzed the use Aztec symbols by the modern Mexican state, critiquing the way it adopts and adapts indigenous culture to political ends, yet they have also in their works made use of the symbolic idiom themselves. Paz for example critiqued the architectural layout of the National Museum of Anthropology, which constructs a view of Mexican history as culminating with the Aztecs, as an expression of a nationalist appropriation of Aztec culture. Scholars in Europe and the United States increasingly pursued investigations into Mexico's ancient civilizations, starting in the nineteenth century. Humboldt had been extremely important bringing ancient Mexico into broader scholarly discussions of ancient civilizations. French Americanist Charles Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg (1814–1874) asserted that "science in our own time has at last effectively studied and rehabilitated America and the Americans from the [previous] viewpoint of history and archeology. It was Humboldt…who woke us from our sleep." Frenchman Jean-Frédéric Waldeck published Voyage pittoresque et archéologique dans la province d'Yucatan pendant les années 1834 et 1836 in 1838. Although not directly connected with the Aztecs, it contributed to the increased interest in ancient Mexican studies in Europe. English aristocrat Lord Kingsborough spent considerable energy in their pursuit of understanding of ancient Mexico. Kingsborough answered Humboldt's call for the publication of all known Mexican codices, publishing nine volumes of Antiquities of Mexico (1831–1846) that were richly illustrated, bankrupting him. He was not directly interested in the Aztecs, but rather in proving that Mexico had been colonized by Jews. However, his publication of these valuable primary sources gave others access to them. In the United States in the early nineteenth century, interest in ancient Mexico propelled John Lloyd Stephens to travel to Mexico and then publish well- illustrated accounts in the early 1840s. But the research of a half-blind Bostonian, William Hickling Prescott, into the Spanish conquest of Mexico resulted in his highly popular and deeply researched The Conquest of Mexico (1843). Although not formally trained as a historian, Prescott drew on the obvious Spanish sources, but also Ixtlilxochitl and Sahagún's history of the conquest. His resulting work was a mixture of pro- and anti-Aztec attitudes. It was not only a bestseller in English, it also influenced Mexican intellectuals, including the leading conservative politician, Lucas Alamán. Alamán pushed back against his characterization of the Aztecs. In the assessment of Benjamin Keen, Prescott's history "has survived attacks from every quarter, and still dominates the conceptions of the laymen, if not the specialist, concerning Aztec civilization." In the later nineteenth century, businessman and historian Hubert Howe Bancroft oversaw a huge project, employing writers and researchers, to write the history the "Native Races" of North America, including Mexico, California, and Central America. One entire work was devoted to ancient Mexico, half of which concerned the Aztecs. It was a work of synthesis drawing on Ixtlilxochitl and Brasseur de Bourbourg, among others. When the International Congress of Americanists was formed in Nancy, France in 1875, Mexican scholars became active participants, and Mexico City has hosted the biennial multidisciplinary meeting six times, starting in 1895. Mexico's ancient civilizations have continued to be the focus of major scholarly investigations by Mexican and international scholars. The Nahuatl language is today spoken by people, mostly in mountainous areas in the states of central Mexico. Mexican Spanish today incorporates hundreds of loans from Nahuatl, and many of these words have passed into general Spanish use, and further into other world languages. In Mexico, Aztec place names are ubiquitous, particularly in central Mexico where the Aztec empire was centered, but also in other regions where many towns, cities and regions were established under their Nahuatl names, as Aztec auxiliary troops accompanied the Spanish colonizers on the early expeditions that mapped New Spain. In this way even towns, that were not originally Nahuatl speaking came to be known by their Nahuatl names. In Mexico City there are commemorations of Aztec rulers, including on the Mexico City Metro, line 1, with stations named for Moctezuma II and Cuauhtemoc. Mexican cuisine continues to be based on staple elements of Mesoamerican cooking and, particularly, of Aztec cuisine: corn, chili, beans, squash, tomato, avocado. Many of these staple products continue to be known by their Nahuatl names, carrying in this way ties to the Aztec people who introduced these foods to the Spaniards and to the world. Through spread of ancient Mesoamerican food elements, particularly plants, Nahuatl loan words (chocolate, tomato, chili, avocado, tamale, taco, pupusa, chipotle, pozole, atole) have been borrowed through Spanish into other languages around the world. Through the spread and popularity of Mexican cuisine, the culinary legacy of the Aztecs can be said to have a global reach. Today Aztec images and Nahuatl words are often used to lend an air of authenticity or exoticism in the marketing of Mexican cuisine. The idea of the Aztecs has captivated the imaginations of Europeans since the first encounters, and has provided many iconic symbols to Western popular culture. In his book The Aztec Image in Western Thought, Benjamin Keen argued that Western thinkers have usually viewed Aztec culture through a filter of their own cultural interests. The Aztecs and figures from Aztec mythology feature in Western culture. The name of Quetzalcoatl, a feathered serpent god, has been used for a genus of pterosaurs, Quetzalcoatlus, a large flying reptile with a wingspan of as much as . Quetzalcoatl has appeared as a character in many books, films and video games. D.H. Lawrence gave the name Quetzalcoatl to an early draft of his novel The Plumed Serpent, but his publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, insisted on a change of title. American author Gary Jennings wrote two acclaimed historical novels set in Aztec-period Mexico, Aztec (1980) and Aztec Autumn (1997). The novels were so popular that four more novels in the Aztec series were written after his death. Aztec society has also been depicted in cinema. The Mexican feature film The Other Conquest (Spanish: La Otra Conquista) from 2000 was directed by Salvador Carrasco, and illustrated the colonial aftermath of the 1520s Spanish Conquest of Mexico. It adopted the perspective of an Aztec scribe, Topiltzin, who survived the attack on the temple of Tenochtitlan. The 1989 film Retorno a Aztlán by Juan Mora Catlett is a work of historical fiction set during the rule of Motecuzoma I, filmed in Nahuatl and with the alternative Nahuatl title Necuepaliztli in Aztlan. In Mexican exploitation B movies of the 1970s, a recurring figure was the "Aztec mummy" as well as Aztec ghosts and sorcerers. History of Mexico, Indigenismo in Mexico, Indigenous peoples of Mexico, List of Mexico-Tenochtitlan rulers, Maya civilization, Mesoamerica, Mesoamerican chronology, Mixtec people, Nahuas, Nahuatl Nichols, Deborah L. and Enrique Rodríguez-Alegría, eds. The Oxford Handbook of The Aztecs. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2017. Berdan, Frances F. and Patricia Reiff Anawalt (1997) The Essential Codex Mendoza. University of California Press, Berkeley. ., Cortés, Hernan (1987) Letters from Mexico. New Edition. Translated by Anthony Pagden. Yale University Press, New Haven. ., Durán, Fray Diego (1994) The History of the Indies of New Spain. Translated by Doris Heyden. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman. ., Zorita, Alonso de (1963) Life and Labor in Ancient Mexico: The Brief and Summary Relation of the Lords of New Spain. Translated by Benjamin Keen. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick. (1994 paperback). Aztecs at Mexicolore: constantly updated educational site specifically on the Aztecs, for serious students of all ages., Aztec Architecture, Aztecs / Nahuatl / Tenochtitlan: Ancient Mesoamerica resources at University of Minnesota Duluth, Aztec history, culture and religion B. Diaz del Castillo, The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico (tr. by A.P. Maudsley, 1928, repr. 1965), Demographic Disaster in Mexico 1519-1595 at the Department of History at the University of Minnesota, Michael E. Smith's student bibliography on the Aztecs., , Tlahuica Culture Home Page (an Aztec group from Morelos, Mexico), "The Aztecs-looking behind the myths" on BBC Radio 4's In Our Time featuring Alan Knight, Adrian Locke and Elizabeth Graham, Pre-columbian Aztec Collection: photographs of Aztec tools and weapons The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Spanish–Mexican War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the events by Spanish conquerors, their indigenous allies, and the defeated Aztecs. It was not solely a contest between a small contingent of Spaniards defeating the Aztec Empire but rather the creation of a coalition of Spanish invaders with tributaries to the Aztecs, and most especially the Aztecs' indigenous enemies and rivals. They combined forces to defeat the Mexica of Tenochtitlan over a two-year period. For the Spanish, the expedition to Mexico was part of a project of Spanish colonization of the New World after twenty-five years of permanent Spanish settlement and further exploration in the Caribbean. Following an earlier expedition led by Juan de Grijalva to Yucatán in 1518, Spanish settler, Hernán Cortés, led an expedition (entrada) to Mexico. Two years later, in 1519, Cortés and his retinue set sail for Mexico. The Spanish campaign against the Aztec Empire had its final victory on 13 August 1521, when a coalition army of Spanish forces and native Tlaxcalan warriors led by Cortés and Xicotencatl the Younger captured the emperor Cuauhtemoc and Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire. The fall of Tenochtitlan marks the beginning of Spanish rule in central Mexico, and they established their capital of Mexico City on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. Cortés made alliances with tributary city-states (altepetl) of the Aztec Empire as well as their political rivals, particularly the Tlaxcalteca and Texcocans, a former partner in the Aztec Triple Alliance. Other city-states also joined, including Cempoala and and polities bordering Lake Texcoco, the inland lake system of the Valley of Mexico. Particularly important to the Spanish success was a multilingual (Nahuatl, a Maya dialect, and Spanish) indigenous slave woman, known to the Spanish conquistadors as Doña Marina, and generally as La Malinche. After eight months of battles and negotiations, which overcame the diplomatic resistance of the Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II to his visit, Cortés arrived in Tenochtitlan on 8 November 1519, where he took up residence with fellow Spaniards and their indigenous allies. When news reached Cortés of the death of several of his men during the Aztec attack on the Totonacs in Veracruz, Cortes claims that he took Motecuhzoma captive. Capturing the cacique or indigenous ruler was standard operating procedure for Spaniards in their expansion in the Caribbean, so capturing Motecuhzoma had considerable precedent but modern scholars are skeptical that Cortes and his countrymen took Motecuhzoma captive at this time. They had great incentive to claim they did, owing to the laws of Spain at this time, but critical analysis of their personal writings suggest Motecuhzoma was not taken captive until a much later date. When Cortés left Tenochtitlan to return to the coast and deal with the expedition of Pánfilo de Narváez, sent to rein in Cortés's expedition that had exceeded its specified limits, Cortés's right-hand man Pedro de Alvarado was left in charge. Alvarado allowed a significant Aztec feast to be celebrated in Tenochtitlan and on the pattern of the earlier massacre in Cholula, closed off the square and massacred the celebrating Aztec noblemen. The official biography of Cortés by Francisco López de Gómara contains a description of the massacre. The Alvarado massacre at the Main Temple of Tenochtitlan precipitated rebellion by the population of the city. Moctezuma was killed, although the sources do not agree on who killed him. According to one account, when Moctezuma, now seen by the population as a mere puppet of the invading Spaniards, attempted to calm the outraged populace, he was killed by a projectile. According to an indigenous account, the Spanish killed Moctezuma. Cortés had returned to Tenochtitlan and his men fled the capital city during the Noche Triste in June 1520. The Spanish, Tlaxcalans and reinforcements returned a year later on 13 August 1521 to a civilization that had been weakened by famine and smallpox. This made it easier to conquer the remaining Aztecs. Many of those on the Cortés expedition of 1519 had never seen combat before, including Cortés. A whole generation of Spaniards later participated in expeditions in the Caribbean and Tierra Firme (Central America), learning strategy and tactics of successful enterprises. The Spanish conquest of Mexico had antecedents with established practices. The fall of the Aztec Empire was the key event in the formation of the Spanish Empire overseas, with New Spain, which later became Mexico. Historical sources for the conquest of Mexico recount some of the same events in both Spanish and indigenous sources. Others, however, are unique to a particular primary source or group narrating the event. Individuals and groups laud their own accomplishments, while often denigrating or ignoring those of their opponents or their allies or both. 1428 – Creation of the Triple Alliance of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan, 1492–93 – Columbus reaches the Caribbean; start of permanent Spanish settlements, 1493–1515 – Spanish exploration, conquest, and settlement in the Caribbean and the Spanish Main, 1502 – Moctezuma II elected Huey tlatoani, "emperor" of the Triple Alliance, 1503–09 – Moctezuma's coronation conquests, 1504 – Hernando Cortés arrives in the Caribbean, 1511– Spanish viceroy in the Caribbean appoints Diego Velázquez to conquer and govern Cuba, 1515 – Texcocan monarch Nezahualpilli dies; Cacamatzin succeeds to the throne; the rebellion of Ixtlilxochitl, 1517 – Expedition of Francisco Hernández de Córdoba to the Yucatán coast, 1518 – Expedition of Juan de Grijalva to the Yucatán and Gulf coasts; appointment of Cortés to lead a third exploratory expedition 1519 10 February – Cortés expedition leaves Cuba taking Hernández de Córdoba's route, Early 1519 – Gerónimo de Aguilar, shipwrecked Spaniard, bilingual in Yoko Ochoko, joins Cortés;, 24 March – Leaders of Potoncan sue Spaniards for peace and gift the Spaniards, 20 slave women. One of the enslaved Nahua woman (known as La Malinche, Doña Marina, Malintze, and Malintzin), is multilingual and will serve as one of the main translators for the expedition., 21 April – Expedition lands in the Gulf coast near San Juan de Ullúa, Early June – Cortes establishes the colony of Villa Rica de la Veracruz and relocates the company to a beach near the settlement of Quiahuiztlan. Afterward, the Spaniards travel to Cempoala and formalize an alliance with Xicomecoatl (also known as the Fat Chief and Cacique Gordo), the leader of Cempoala. At this time, Cempoala is the capital of the Totonac confederacy., July/August – Cortes' soldiers desecrate Cempoala, 16 August – Spaniards and Totonac allies embark on march toward the Valley of Tenochtitlan, passing Citlatapetl and many other notable geographic landmarks like Cofre de Perote, 31 August – Tlaxcalteca attack Spaniards after they enter Tlaxcalteca territory and succeed in killing two horsemen, September – Tlaxcalteca make multiple massed assaults against Spanish camp. Attacks are repulsed and Spanish respond by attacking nearby villages with cavalry during night raids. Tlaxcalteca sue for peace after many days of battling., October – March to Cholula, Spanish massacre of Cholulans; final march to Tenochtitlan, 8 November 1519 – Meeting of Cortés and Moctezuma 1520 April or May – Pánfilo de Narváez arrives on the Gulf coast, sent by Governor Velázquez to rein in Cortés, Mid-May – Pedro de Alvarado massacres Aztec elites celebrating the Festival of Toxcatl, Late May – Cortés forces attack Narvárez's forces at Cempoala; incorporation of those Spaniards into Cortés's forces, 24 June – Spanish forces return to Tenochtitlan, Late June – Uprising in Tenochtitlan; death of Moctezuma in unclear circumstances, perhaps killed by the Spaniards, perhaps by his own people; deaths of other leaders of the Triple Alliance, 30 June – "La Noche Triste" – Evacuation of Spanish-Tlaxcalan allied forces from Tenochtitlan; deaths of perhaps 1,000 Spaniards and 1,000 Tlaxcalans, 9 or 10 July – Battle of Otumba, Aztec forces attack the Spanish-Tlaxcalan forces at Otumba, 11 or 12 July – Retreat to Tlaxcala, 1 August – Spanish massacre men and enslave women and children at Tepeaca, Mid-September – Coronation of Cuitlahuac as Moctezuma's successor, Mid-October to mid-December – Smallpox epidemic; death of Cuitlahuac on 4 December, perhaps of smallpox, Late December – Spanish-Tlaxcalan forces return to the Valley of Mexico; join with Texcocan forces of Ixtlilxochitl 1521 Late January – Cuauhtemoc elected huey tlatoani of Tenochtitlan, February – combined Spanish-Tlaxcalan- Texcocan forces attack Xaltocan and Tlacopan; Texcoco become the base of operations for the campaign against Tenochtitlan, Early April – attacks against Yautepec and Cuernavaca, following by sacking, Mid-April – Combined forces defeated by the Xochimilcans, Tenochtitlan's ally, Late April – Construction of 13 shallow-bottomed brigantines by Tlaxcalan laborers under Spanish supervision; mounted with cannon; launched into Lake Texcoco, allowing Spanish control of the inland sea, 10 May – Start of the siege of Tenochtitlan; potable water from Chapultepec cut off, 30 June – Defeat of Spanish-Tlaxcalan forces on a causeway; capture and ritual sacrifice of the Spaniards and their horses in Tenochtitlan, July – Spanish ships land at Veracruz with large numbers of Spaniards, munitions, and horses, 20–25 July – Battle for Tenochtitlan, 1 August – Spanish-Tlaxcalan-Texcocan forces enter the Plaza Mayor; last stand of the Aztec defenders, 13 August – Surrender of Aztec defenders; capture of Cuauhtemoc, 13–17 August – Wholesale sacking and violence against the survivors in Tenochtitlan 1522 October – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor names Cortés captain-general of New Spain, the Spanish name for central Mexico., November – Death of Cortés's wife, Catalina Suárez, in Coyoacan, where Cortés was resident while the new capital Mexico City was constructed on the ruins of Tenochtitlan, Cortés's Second Letter to the crown is published in Seville, Spain 1524 Arrival of the first twelve Franciscan missionaries to Mexico, beginning of the "spiritual conquest" to convert the indigenous populations to Christianity, Conqueror Cristóbal de Olid's expedition to Honduras; renounces Cortés' authority; Cortés expedition to Honduras with the captive Cuauhtemoc 1525 February – execution of the three rulers of the former Triple Alliance, including Cuauhtemoc, Don Juan Velázquez Tlacotzin, former "viceroy" (cihuacoatl) appointed governor of the indigenous sector of Mexico City 1525–30 Spanish conquest of Guatemala 1527–1547 Spanish conquest of Chiapas The conquest of Mexico, the initial destruction of the great pre-Columbian civilizations, is a significant event in world history. The conquest was well documented by a variety of sources with differing points of view, including indigenous accounts, by both allies and opponents. Accounts by the Spanish conquerors exist from the first landfall at Veracruz, Mexico (on Good Friday, 22 April 1519) to the final victory over the Mexica in Tenochtitlan on 13 August 1521. Notably, the accounts of the conquest, Spanish and indigenous alike, have biases and exaggerations. Some, though not all, Spanish accounts downplay the support of their indigenous allies. Conquerors' accounts exaggerate individual contributions to the Conquest at the expense of their comrades, while indigenous allies' accounts stress their loyalty and importance to victory for the Spanish. These accounts are similar to Spanish conquerors' accounts contained in petitions for rewards, known as benemérito petitions. Two lengthy accounts from the defeated indigenous viewpoint were created under the direction of Spanish friars, Franciscan Bernardino de Sahagún and Dominican Diego Durán, using indigenous informants. The first Spanish account of the conquest was written by lead conqueror Hernán Cortés, who sent a series of letters to the Spanish monarch Charles V, giving a contemporary account of the conquest from his point of view, in which he justified his actions. These were almost immediately published in Spain and later in other parts of Europe. Much later, Spanish conqueror Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a well-seasoned participant in the conquest of Central Mexico, wrote what he called The True History of the Conquest of New Spain, countering the account by Cortés's official biographer, Francisco López de Gómara. Bernal Díaz's account had begun as a benemérito petition for rewards but he expanded it to encompass a full history of his earlier expeditions in the Caribbean and Tierra Firme and the conquest of the Aztec. A number of lower rank Spanish conquerors wrote benemérito petitions to the Spanish Crown, requesting rewards for their services in the conquest, including Juan Díaz, Andrés de Tapia, García del Pilar, and Fray Francisco de Aguilar. Cortés's right-hand man, Pedro de Alvarado did not write at any length about his actions in the New World, and died as a man of action in the Mixtón War in 1542. Two letters to Cortés about Alvarado's campaigns in Guatemala are published in The Conquistadors. The chronicle of the so-called "Anonymous Conqueror" was written sometime in the sixteenth century, entitled in an early twentieth- century translation to English as Narrative of Some Things of New Spain and of the Great City of Temestitan (i.e. Tenochtitlan). Rather than it being a petition for rewards for services, as many Spanish accounts were, the Anonymous Conqueror made observations about the indigenous situation at the time of the conquest. The account was used by eighteenth-century Jesuit Francisco Javier Clavijero in his descriptions of the history of Mexico. On the indigenous side, the allies of Cortés, particularly the Tlaxcalans, wrote extensively about their services to the Spanish Crown in the conquest, arguing for special privileges for themselves. The most important of these are the pictorial Lienzo de Tlaxcala and the Historia de Tlaxcala by Diego Muñoz Camargo. Less successfully, the Nahua allies from Huexotzinco (or Huejotzinco) near Tlaxcala argued that their contributions had been overlooked by the Spanish. In a letter in Nahuatl to the Spanish Crown, the indigenous lords of Huexotzinco lay out their case in for their valorous service. The letter has been published in Nahuatl and English translation by James Lockhart in We People Here: Nahuatl Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico in 1991. Texcoco patriot and member of a noble family there, Fernando Alva Ixtlilxochitl, likewise petitioned the Spanish Crown, in Spanish, saying that Texcoco had not received sufficient rewards for their support of the conquistadors, particularly after the Spanish were forced out of Tenochtitlan. The best-known indigenous account of the conquest is Book 12 of Bernardino de Sahagún's General History of the Things of New Spain and published as the Florentine Codex, in parallel columns of Nahuatl and Spanish, with pictorials. Less well- known is Sahagún's 1585 revision of the conquest account, which shifts from the indigenous viewpoint entirely and inserts at crucial junctures passages lauding the Spanish and in particular Hernán Cortés. Another indigenous account compiled by a Spanish friar is Dominican Diego Durán's The History of the Indies of New Spain, from 1581, with many color illustrations. A text from the Nahua point of view, the Anales de Tlatelolco, an early indigenous account in Nahuatl, perhaps from 1540, remained in indigenous hands until it was published. An extract of this important manuscript was published in 1991 by James Lockhart in Nahuatl transcription and English translation. A popular anthology in English for classroom use is Miguel León-Portilla's, The Broken Spears: The Aztec Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico from 1992. Not surprisingly, many publications and republications of sixteenth-century accounts of the conquest of Mexico appeared around 1992, the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's first voyage, when scholarly and popular interest in first encounters surged. A popular and enduring narrative of the Spanish campaign in central Mexico is by New England-born nineteenth-century historian William Hickling Prescott. His History of the Conquest of Mexico, first published in 1843, remains an important unified narrative synthesis of the conquest. Prescott read and used all the formal writings from the sixteenth century, although few had been published by the mid-nineteenth century when he was writing. It is likely that a 1585 revision of Bernardino de Sahagún's account of the conquest survives today only in the form of a copy because it was made in Spain for Prescott's project from a now-lost original. Although scholars of the modern era point out its biases and shortcomings, "there is nowhere they can get as good a unified narrative of the main events, crises, and course of the Mexican conquest as Prescott's version." In the sources recorded by Franciscan Bernardino de Sahagún and Dominican Diego Durán in the mid to late sixteenth century, there are accounts of events that were interpreted as supernatural omens of the conquest. These two accounts are full-blown narratives from the viewpoint of the Spanish opponents. Most first-hand accounts about the conquest of the Aztec Empire were written by Spaniards: Hernán Cortés' letters to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and the first-person narrative of Bernal Díaz del Castillo, The True History of the Conquest of New Spain. The primary sources from the native people affected as a result of the conquest are seldom used, because they tend to reflect the views of a particular native group, such as the Tlaxcalans. Indigenous accounts were written in pictographs as early as 1525. Later accounts were written in the native tongue of the Aztec and other native peoples of central Mexico, Nahuatl. The native texts of the defeated Mexica narrating their version of the conquest describe eight omens that were believed to have occurred nine years prior to the arrival of the Spanish from the Gulf of Mexico. In 1510, Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II was visited by Nezahualpilli, who had a reputation as a great seer, as well as being the tlatoani of Texcoco. Nezahualpilli warned Moctezuma that he must be on guard, for in a few years Aztec cities would be destroyed. Before leaving, he said that there would be omens for Moctezuma to know that what he has been told is true. Over the years, and especially after Nezhualpilli's death in 1515, several supernatural omens appeared. The eight bad omens or wonders: 1. A column of fire that appeared from midnight until dawn, and seemed to rain fire in the year 1517 (12-House) 2. Fire consuming the temple of Huitzilopochtli 3. A lightning bolt destroying the straw temple of Xiuhtecuhtli 4. The appearance of fire, or comets, streaming across the sky in threes during the day 5. The "boiling deep ," and water flooding, of a lake nearby Tenochtitlan 6. A woman, Cihuatcoatl, weeping in the middle of the night for them (the Aztecs) to "flee far away from this city" 7. A two headed man, tlacantzolli, running through the streets 8. Montezuma II saw the stars of "mamalhuatztli, and images of fighting men riding "on the backs of animals resembling deer", in a mirror on the crown of a bird caught by fishermen Additionally, the Tlaxcala saw a "radiance that shone in the east every morning three hours before sunrise", and a "whirlwind of dust" from the volcano Matlalcueye. According to Diaz, "These Caciques also told us of a tradition they had heard from their ancestors, that one of the idols which they particularly worshipped had prophesied the coming of men from distant lands in the direction of the sunrise, who would conquer them and rule them." Some accounts would claim that this idol, or deity was Quetzalcoatl, and that the Aztecs were defeated because they believed the Spanish were supernatural and didn't know how to react, although whether or not the Aztecs really believed that is debatable. Omens were extremely important to the Aztecs, who believed that history repeated itself. A number of modern scholars cast doubt on whether such omens occurred or whether they were ex post facto (retrospective) creations to help the Mexica explain their defeat. Some scholars contend that "the most likely interpretation of the story of these portents is that some, if not all, had occurred" but concede that it is very likely that "clever Mexicans and friars, writing later of the Mexican empire, were happy to link those memories with what they know occurred in Europe. Many sources depicting omens and the return of old Aztec gods, including those supervised by Spanish priests, were written after the fall of Tenochtitlan in 1521. Some ethnohistorians say that when the Spanish arrived native peoples and their leaders did not view them as supernatural in any sense but rather as simply another group of powerful outsiders. According to some historians, Moctezuma responded rationally to the Spanish invasion. These historians believe this means that Moctezuma did not think the Spanish were supernatural. Many Spanish accounts incorporated omens to emphasize what they saw as the preordained nature of the conquest and their success as Spanish destiny. This means that native emphasis on omens and bewilderment in the face of invasion "may be a postconquest interpretation by informants who wished to please the Spaniards or who resented the failure of Montezuma and of the warriors of Tenochtitlan to provide leadership." Hugh Thomas concludes that Moctezuma was confused and ambivalent about whether Cortés was a god or the ambassador of a great king in another land. Because the Spaniards arrived in 1519, Moctezuma knew this was the year of Ce Acatl, which is the year Quetzalcoatl was promised to return. Previously, during Juan de Grijalva's expedition, Moctezuma believed that those men were heralds of Quetzalcoatl, as Moctezuma, as well as everyone else in the Aztec Empire, were to believe that eventually Quetzalcoatl will return. Moctezuma even had glass beads that were left behind by Grijalva brought to Tenochtitlan and they were regarded as sacred religious relics. The Spanish had established a permanent settlement on the island of Hispaniola in 1493 on the second voyage of Christopher Columbus. There were further Spanish explorations and settlements in the Caribbean and the Spanish Main, seeking wealth in the form of gold and access to indigenous labor to mine gold and other manual labor. Twenty-five years after the first Spanish settlement in the New World, expeditions of exploration were sent to the coast of Mexico. In 1517, Cuban governor Diego Velázquez commissioned a fleet of three ships under the command of Hernández de Córdoba to sail west and explore the Yucatán peninsula. Córdoba reached the coast of Yucatán. The Mayans at Cape Catoche invited the Spanish to land, and the conquistadors read the Requirement of 1513 to them, which offered the natives the protection of the King of Spain, if they would submit to him. Córdoba took two prisoners, who adopted the baptized names of Melchor and Julián and became interpreters. Later, the two prisoners, being misled or misinterpreting the language with information given to the Spanish conquistadors that there was plenty of gold up for grabs. On the western side of the Yucatán Peninsula, the Spanish were attacked at night by Maya chief Mochcouoh, a battle in which fifty men were killed. Córdoba was mortally wounded and only a remnant of his crew returned to Cuba. At that time, Yucatán was briefly explored by the conquistadors, but the Spanish conquest of Yucatán with its many independent city-state polities of the Late Postclassic Maya civilization came many years after the Spaniards' and their indigenous allies' rapid conquest of Central Mexico (1519–21). With the help of tens of thousands of Xiu Mayan warriors, it would take more than 170 years for the Spanish to establish full control of the Maya homelands, which extended from northern Yucatán to the central lowlands region of El Petén and the southern Guatemalan highlands. The end of this latter campaign is generally marked by the downfall of the Maya state based at Tayasal in the Petén region, in 1697. Even before Juan de Grijalva returned to Spain, Velázquez decided to send a third and even larger expedition to explore the Mexican coast. Hernán Cortés, then one of Velázquez's favorites and brother-in-law, was named as the commander, which created envy and resentment among the Spanish contingent in the Spanish colony. Licenses for expeditions allowed the Crown to retain sovereignty over newly conquered lands while not risking its own assets in the enterprise. Anyone willing to make a financial contribution could potentially gain even more wealth and power. Men who brought horses, caballeros, received two shares of the spoils, one for military service, another because of the horse. Cortés invested a considerable part of his personal fortune and probably went into debt to borrow additional funds. Velázquez may have personally contributed nearly half the cost of the expedition. In an agreement signed on 23 October 1518, Governor Velázquez restricted the expedition led by Cortés to exploration and trade, so that conquest and settlement of the mainland might occur under his own command, once he had received the permission necessary to do so which he had already requested from the Crown. In this way, Velázquez sought to ensure title to the riches and laborers discovered. However, armed with the knowledge of Castilian law that he had likely gained as a notary in Valladolid, Cortés managed to free himself of Velázquez's authority by presenting Velázquez as a tyrant acting in his own self-interest, and not in the interest of the Crown. Cortés also contrived to have his men name him military leader and chief magistrate (judge) of the expedition. Velázquez himself must have been keenly aware that whoever conquered the mainland for Spain would gain fame, glory and fortune to eclipse anything that could be achieved in Cuba. Thus, as the preparations for departure drew to a close, the governor became suspicious that Cortés would be disloyal to him and try to commandeer the expedition for his own purposes, namely to establish himself as governor of the colony, independent of Velázquez's control. Therefore, Velázquez sent Luis de Medina with orders to replace Cortés. However, Cortés's brother-in-law allegedly had Medina intercepted and killed. The papers that Medina had been carrying were sent to Cortés. Thus warned, Cortés accelerated the organization and preparation of his expedition. Velázquez arrived at the dock in Santiago de Cuba in person, "he and Cortés again embraced, with a great exchange of compliments", before Cortes set sail for Trinidad, Cuba. Velázquez then sent orders for the fleet to be held and Cortés taken prisoner. Nevertheless, Cortés set sail, beginning his expedition with the legal status of a mutineer. Cortés's contingent consisted of 11 ships carrying about 630 men (including 30 crossbowmen and 12 arquebusiers, an early form of firearm), a doctor, several carpenters, at least eight women, a few hundred Arawaks from Cuba and some Africans, both freedmen and slaves. Although modern usage often calls the European participants "soldiers", the term was never used by these men themselves in any context, something that James Lockhart realized when analyzing sixteenth-century legal records from conquest-era Peru. Cortés spent some time at the island of Cozumel, on the east coast of Yucatán, trying to convert the locals to Christianity, something that provided mixed results. While at Cozumel, Cortés heard reports of other white men living in the Yucatán. Cortés sent messengers to these reported Spaniards, who turned out to be the survivors of a Spanish shipwreck that had occurred in 1511, Gerónimo de Aguilar and Gonzalo Guerrero. Aguilar petitioned his Maya chieftain to be allowed to join his former countrymen, and he was released and made his way to Cortés's ships. Now quite fluent in Maya, as well as some other indigenous languages, proved to be a valuable asset for Cortés as a translator – a skill of particular significance to the later conquest of the Aztec Empire that was to be the end result of Cortés's expedition. According to Bernal Díaz, Aguilar relayed that before coming, he had attempted to convince Guerrero to leave as well. Guerrero declined on the basis that he was by now well-assimilated with the Maya culture, had a Maya wife and three children, and he was looked upon as a figure of rank within the Maya settlement of Chetumal, where he lived. Although Guerrero's later fate is somewhat uncertain, it appears that for some years he continued to fight alongside the Maya forces against Spanish incursions, providing military counsel and encouraging resistance; it is speculated that he may have been killed in a later battle. After leaving Cozumel, Cortés continued round the tip of the Yucatán Peninsula and landed at Potonchán, where there was little gold. After defeating the local natives in two battles, discovered a far more valuable asset in the form of a woman whom Cortés would have christened Marina. She is often known as La Malinche and also sometimes called "Malintzin" or Malinalli, her native birth names. Later, the Aztecs would come to call Cortés "Malintzin" or La Malinche by dint of his close association with her. Bernal Díaz del Castillo wrote in his account The True History of the Conquest of New Spain that Marina was "truly a great princess." Later, the honorific Spanish title of Doña would be added to her baptized name. Cortés had stumbled upon one of the keys to realizing his ambitions. He would speak to Gerónimo de Aguilar in Spanish who would then translate into Mayan for Marina. She would then translate from Mayan to Nahuatl. With this pair of translators, Cortés could now communicate to the Aztecs. How effectively is still a matter of speculation, since Marina did not speak the dialect of the Aztecs, nor was she familiar with the protocols of the Aztec nobility, who were renowned for their flowery, flattering talk. Doña Marina quickly learned Spanish, and became Cortés's primary interpreter, confidant, consort, cultural translator, and the mother of his first son, Martin. Until Cortes's marriage to his second wife, a union which produced a legitimate son whom he also named Martin, Cortés's natural son with Marina was the heir of his envisaged fortunes. Native speakers of Nahuatl would call her "Malintzin". This name is the closest approximation possible in Nahuatl to the sound of Spanish Marina. Over time, "La Malinche" (the modern Spanish cognate of Malintzin) became a term for a traitor to one's people. To this day, the word malinchista is used by Mexicans to denote one who apes the language and customs of another country. It would not be until the late 20th century that a few feminist writers and academics would attempt to rehabilitate La Malinche as a woman who made the best of her situation and became, in many respects a powerful woman. Cortés landed his expedition force on the coast of the modern day state of Veracruz in April 1519. During this same period, soon after he arrived, Cortés was welcomed by representatives of the Aztec Emperor, Moctezuma II. Gifts were exchanged, and Cortés attempted to frighten the Aztec delegation with a display of his firepower. Faced with imprisonment or death for defying the governor, Cortés' only alternative was to continue his enterprise in the hope of redeeming himself with the Spanish Crown. To do this, he directed his men to establish a settlement called La Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz, or "True Cross", since they arrived on Maundy Thursday and landed on Good Friday. The legally constituted "town council of Villa Rica" then promptly offered him the position of adelantado, or Chief Justice and Captain-General. This strategy was not unique. Velásquez had used this same legal mechanism to free himself from Diego Columbus' authority in Cuba. In being named adelantado by a duly constituted cabildo, Cortés was able to free himself from Velásquez's authority and continue his expedition. To ensure the legality of this action, several members of his expedition, including Francisco Montejo and Alonso Hernandez Puertocarrero, returned to Spain to seek acceptance of the cabildo's declaration with King Charles. Cortés learned of an indigenous settlement called Cempoala and marched his forces there. On their arrival in Cempoala, they were greeted by 20 dignitaries and cheering townsfolk. Cortés quickly persuaded the Totonac chiefs to rebel against the Aztecs, taking prisoner five of Moctezuma's tax collectors. The Totonacs also helped Cortés build the town of Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz, which was the starting point for his attempt to conquer the Aztec Empire. Hearing of the rebellion, more ambassadors from the Aztec Emperor returned to see Cortés, bearing gifts of "gold and cloth", in thankfulness for Cortés freeing his tax collectors. Montezuma also told Cortés, he was certain the Spanish were of "his own race", and had arrived as "his ancestors had foretold". As Cortés told his men, the natives "think of us as gods, or godlike beings." Although they attempted to dissuade Cortés from visiting Tenochtitlan, the lavish gifts and the polite, welcoming remarks only encouraged El Caudillo to continue his march towards the capital of the empire. Men still loyal to the governor of Cuba planned to seize a ship and escape to Cuba, but Cortés moved swiftly to squash their plans. Two leaders were condemned to be hanged; two were lashed, and one had his foot mutilated. To make sure such a mutiny did not happen again, he decided to scuttle his ships. There is a popular misconception that the ships were burned rather than sunk. This misconception has been attributed to the reference made by Cervantes de Salazár in 1546, as to Cortés burning his ships. This may have also come from a mis-translation of the version of the story written in Latin. With all of his ships scuttled, Cortés effectively stranded the expedition in central Mexico. However, it did not completely end the aspirations of those members of his company who remained loyal to the governor of Cuba. Cortés then led his band inland towards Tenochtitlan. In addition to the Spaniards, Cortés force now included 40 Cempoalan warrior chiefs and at least 200 other natives whose task was to drag the cannon and carry supplies. The Cempoalans were accustomed to the hot climate of the coast, but they suffered immensely from the cold of the mountains, the rain, and the hail as they marched towards Tenochtitlan. Cortés soon arrived at Tlaxcala, a confederacy of about 200 towns and different tribes, but without central government. The Otomi initially, and then the Tlaxcalans fought the Spanish in a series of three battles from 2 to 5 September 1519, and at one point Diaz remarked, "they surrounded us on every side". After Cortés continued to release prisoners with messages of peace, and realizing the Spanish were enemies of Montezuma, Xicotencatl the Elder, and Maxixcatzin, persuaded the Tlaxcalan warleader, Xicotencatl the Younger, that it would be better to ally with the newcomers than to kill them. The Tlaxcalans' main city was Tlaxcala. After almost a century of fighting the Flower Wars, a great deal of hatred and bitterness had developed between the Tlaxcalans and the Aztecs. The Aztecs had already conquered most of the territory around Tlaxcala, and waged war on them every year. It has been suggested that the Aztecs left Tlaxcala independent so that they would have a constant supply of war captives to sacrifice to their gods. On 23 September 1519, Cortés arrived in Tlaxcala and was greeted with joy by the rulers, who saw the Spanish as an ally against the Aztecs. Due to a commercial blockade by the Aztecs, Tlaxcala was poor, lacking, among other things, salt and cotton cloths, so they could only offer Cortés and his men food and slaves. Cortés stayed twenty days in Tlaxcala, giving his men time to recover from their wounds from the battles. Cortés seems to have won the true friendship and loyalty of the senior leaders of Tlaxcala, among them Maxixcatzin and Xicotencatl the Elder, although he could not win the heart of Xicotencatl the Younger. The Spaniards agreed to respect parts of the city, like the temples, and reportedly took only the things that were offered to them freely. As before with other native groups, Cortés preached to the Tlaxcalan leaders about the benefits of Christianity. The Caciques gave Cortes "the most beautiful of their daughters and nieces". Xicotencatl the Elder's daughter was baptized as Doña Luisa, and Maxixcatzin's daughter as Doña Elvira. They were given by Cortés to Pedro de Alvarado and Juan Velázquez de León respectively. Legends say that he convinced the four leaders of Tlaxcala to become baptized. Maxixcatzin, Xicotencatl the Elder, Citalpopocatzin and Temiloltecutl received the names of Don Lorenzo, Don Vicente, Don Bartolomé and Don Gonzalo. It is impossible to know if these leaders understood the Catholic faith. In any case, they apparently had no problems in adding the Christian "Dios" (God in Spanish), the lord of the heavens, to their already complex pantheon of gods. An exchange of gifts was made and thus began the highly significant and effective alliance between Cortés and Tlaxcala. Meanwhile, Moctezuma's ambassadors, who had been in the Spanish camp after the battles with the Tlaxcalans, continued to press Cortés to take the road to Mexico via Cholula, which was under Aztec control, rather than over , which was an ally of Tlaxcala. They were surprised Cortés had stayed in Tlaxcala so long "among a poor and ill-bred people". Cholula was one of the most important cities of Mesoamerica, the second largest, and probably the most sacred. Its huge pyramid (larger in volume than the great pyramids of Egypt) made it one of the most prestigious places of the Aztec religion. However, it appears that Cortés perceived Cholula more as a military threat to his rear guard than a religious center, as he marched to Tenochtitlan. He sent emissaries ahead to try a diplomatic solution to enter the city. Cortés, who had not yet decided to start a war with the Aztec Empire, decided to offer a compromise. He accepted the gifts of the Aztec ambassadors, and at the same time accepted the offer of the Tlaxcalan allies to provide porters and 1000 warriors on his march to Cholula. He also sent two men, Pedro de Alvarado, and , directly to Tenochtitlan, as ambassadors and to scout for an appropriate route. There are contradictory reports about what happened at Cholula. Moctezuma had apparently decided to resist with force the advance of Cortés and his troops, and it seems that Moctezuma ordered the leaders of Cholula to try to stop the Spanish. Cholula had a very small army, because as a sacred city they put their confidence in their prestige and their gods. According to the chronicles of the Tlaxcalteca, the priests of Cholula expected to use the power of Quetzalcoatl, their primary god, against the invaders. Cortés and his men entered Cholula without active resistance. However, they were not met by the city leaders and were not given food and drink on the third day. Cempoalans reported that fortifications were being constructed around the city and the Tlaxcalans were warning the Spaniards. Finally, La Malinche informed Cortés, after talking to the wife of one of the lords of Cholula, that the locals planned to murder the Spanish in their sleep. Although he did not know if the rumor was true or not, Cortés ordered a pre-emptive strike, urged by the Tlaxcalans, the enemies of the Cholulans. Cortés confronted the city leaders in the main temple alleging that they were planning to attack his men. They admitted that they had been ordered to resist by Moctezuma, but they claimed they had not followed his orders. Regardless, on command, the Spaniards seized and killed many of the local nobles to serve as a lesson. They captured the Cholulan leaders Tlaquiach and Tlalchiac and then ordered the city to be set on fire. The troops started in the palace of Xacayatzin, and then on to Chialinco and Yetzcoloc. In letters to his King, Cortés claimed that in three hours time his troops (helped by the Tlaxcalans) killed 3,000 people and had burned the city. Another witness, Vázquez de Tapia, claimed the death toll was as high as 30,000. However, since the women and children, and many men, had already fled the city, it is unlikely that so many were killed. Regardless, the massacre of the nobility of Cholula was a notorious chapter in the conquest of Mexico. The Azteca and Tlaxcalteca histories of the events leading up to the massacre vary; the Tlaxcalteca claimed that their ambassador Patlahuatzin was sent to Cholula and had been tortured by the Cholula. Thus, Cortés was avenging him by attacking Cholula.(Historia de Tlaxcala, por Diego Muñoz Camargo, lib. II cap. V. 1550). The Azteca version put the blame on the Tlaxcalteca, claiming that they resented Cortés going to Cholula instead of Huexotzingo. The massacre had a chilling effect on the other city states and groups affiliated with the Aztecs, as well as the Aztecs themselves. Tales of the massacre convinced the other cities in the Aztec Empire to entertain seriously Cortés' proposals rather than risk the same fate. Cortés then sent emissaries to Moctezuma with the message that the people of Cholula had treated him with trickery and had therefore been punished. In one of his responses to Cortés, Moctezuma blamed the commanders of the local Aztec garrison for the resistance in Cholula, and recognizing that his long-standing attempts to dissuade Cortés from coming to Tenochtitlan with gifts of gold and silver had failed, Moctezuma finally invited the conquistadors to visit his capital city, according to Spanish sources, after feeling as though nothing else could be done. On 8 November 1519, after the fall of Cholula, Cortés and his forces entered Tenochtitlan, the island capital of the Mexica-Aztecs. It is believed that the city was one of the largest in the world at that time, and the largest in the Americas up to that point. The most common estimates put the population at around 60,000 to over 300,000 people. If the population of Tenochtitlan was 250,000 in 1519, then Tenochtitlan would have been larger than every city in Europe except perhaps Naples and Constantinople, and four times the size of Seville. To the Aztecs, Tenochtitlan was the "altar" for the Empire, as well as being the city that Quetzalcoatl would eventually return to. Upon meeting, Hernan Cortés claimed to be the representative of the queen, Doña Juana of Castile, and her son, King Carlos I of Castile and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, all Spanish royalty, had then made an appearance. Sahagún reports that Moctezuma welcomed Cortés to Tenochtitlan on the Great Causeway, Xolac. "The chiefs who accompanied Moctcuhzoma were: Cacama, king of Texcoco (altepetl); Tetlepanquetzaltin, king of Tlacopan, Itzcuauhtzin the Tlacochcalcatl, lord of Tlatelolco (altepetl); and Topantemoc, Motechzoma's treasurer in Tlatelolco." Moctezuma and his chiefs were adorned with blazing gold on their shoulders with feathers and jewels. On the causeway where the two groups met, enormous numbers of people from Tenochtitlan watched the exchange. Moctezuma went to greet Cortés with his brother, Cuitlahuac, and his nephew, Cacamatzin. Cortés strode ahead of his commanders and attempted to embrace Moctezuma, but was restrained by Cuitlahuac and Cacamatzin. Cortés was not permitted to touch the emperor; no one was allowed. After greetings, Moctezuma personally dressed only Cortés in a priceless feather-work flower, a golden jewelry studded necklace and a garland of flowers. Moctezuma then brought Cortés to the shrine of the goddess Toci, where he gave him a more private greeting, in which he practically gave the Aztec Empire to Cortés, as he reportedly said that it was his "desire to serve." A fragment of the greetings of Moctezuma says: "My lord, you have become fatigued, you have become tired: to the land you have arrived. You have come to your city: Mexico, here you have come to sit on your place, on your throne. Oh, it has been reserved to you for a small time, it was conserved by those who have gone, your substitutes... This is what has been told by our rulers, those of whom governed this city, ruled this city. That you would come to ask for your throne, your place, that you would come here. Come to the land, come and rest: take possession of your royal houses, give food to your body." Moctezuma had the royal palace of Axayácatl, Moctezuma's father, prepared for Cortés. On the same day that the Spanish expedition and their allies entered Tenochtitlan, Moctezuma came to visit Cortés and his men. What happened in this second meeting remains controversial. According to several Spanish versions, some written years or decades later, Moctezuma first repeated his earlier, flowery welcome to Cortés on the Great Causeway, but then went on to explain his view of what the Spanish expedition represented in terms of Aztec tradition and lore, including the idea that Cortés and his men (pale, bearded men from the east) were the return of characters from Aztec legend. At the end of this explanation, the Emperor pledged his loyalty to the King of Spain and accepted Cortés as the King's representative. According to Diaz, Moctezuma said to Cortés, "As for your great King, I am in his debt and will give him of what I possess." While in the Axayacatl palace, the conquistadors discovered the secret room where Moctezuma kept the treasure he had inherited from his father. The treasure consisted of a "quantity of golden objects – jewels and plates and ingots". Diaz noted, "The sight of all that wealth dumbfounded me." Cortés later asked Moctezuma to allow him to erect a cross and an image of Virgin Mary next to the two large idols of Huichilobos and Tezcatlipoca, after climbing the one hundred and fourteen steps to the top of the main temple pyramid, a central place for religious authority. Moctezuma and his papas were furious at the suggestion, with Moctezuma claiming his idols, "give us health and rain and crops and weather, and all the victories we desire." After Cortés' request surrounding the questioning of raising the cross and the image of the Virgin Mary, the Mexica then killed seven Spanish soldiers Cortés had left on the coast, including Cortes' Villa Rica Constable Juan de Escalante, and many Totonacs. Cortés along with five of his captains and Doña Marina and Aguilar, convinced Moctezuma to "come quietly with us to our quarters, and make no protest...if you cry out, or raise any commotion, you will immediately be killed." Moctezuma was later implicated by Qualpopoca and his captains, who had killed the Spanish soldiers. Though these captains of Moctezuma were sentenced to be "burned to death", Moctezuma continued to remain a prisoner, fearing a "rebellion in his city" or that the Spanish may "try to set up another prince in his place." This, despite Moctezuma's chieftains, nephews and relations suggesting they should attack the Spanish. As of 14 November 1519, Moctezuma was Cortés' prisoner as insurance against any further resistance, until the end of May 1520, Moctezuma lived with Cortés in the palace of Axayácatl. However, Moctezuma continued to act as Emperor, subject to Cortés' overall control. During the period of his imprisonment, Moctezuma stated "he was glad to be a prisoner, since either our gods gave us power to confine him or Huichilobos permitted it." He would even play the game of totoloque with Cortés. After the treason of Cacamatzin, Moctezuma and his caciques, were forced to take a more formal oath of allegiance to the King of Spain, though Moctezuma "could not restrain his tears". Moctezuma told his caciques that "their ancestral tradition, set down in their books of records, that men would come from the direction of the sunrise to rule these lands" and that "He believed...we were these men." Cortés sent expeditions to investigate the Aztec sources of gold in the provinces of Zacatula, Tuxtepec, and the land of the Chinantec. Moctezuma was then made to pay a tribute to the Spanish King, which included his father's treasure. These treasures, the Spaniards melted down to form gold bars stamped with an iron die. Finally, Moctezuma let the Catholic conquistadors build an altar on their temple, next to the Aztec idols. Finally, the Aztec gods allegedly told the Mexican papas, or priests, they would not stay unless the Spaniards were killed and driven back across the sea. Moctezuma warned Cortés to leave at once, as their lives were at risk. Many of the nobility rallied around Cuitláhuac, the brother of Moctezuma and his heir-apparent; however, most of them could take no overt action against the Spanish unless the order was given by the Emperor. In April 1520, Cortés was told by Moctezuma, that a much larger party of Spanish troops, consisting of nineteen ships and fourteen hundred soldiers under the command of Pánfilo de Narváez, had arrived. Pánfilo de Narváez had been sent by Governor Velázquez from Cuba to kill or capture Cortés, who had defied Velazquez's orders. Leaving his "least reliable soldiers" under the command of the headstrong Pedro de Alvarado to guard Moctezuma, Cortés set out against De Narváez, who had advanced onto Cempoala. Cortés surprised his antagonist with a night attack, during which his men wounded Narváez in the eye and took him prisoner. After Cortés permitted the defeated soldiers to settle in the country, they "passed with more or less willingness to Cortés' side." Hernán Cortés gained their support when he "promised to make them rich and give them commands [rewards]." Cortes then made a rapid return to Tenochtitlan, to relieve the besieged Alvarado and the other invaders. Cortés led his combined forces on an arduous trek back over the Sierra Madre Oriental, returning to Mexico on St. John's Day June 1520, with 1300 soldiers and 96 horses, plus 2000 Tlaxcalan warriors. When Cortés returned to Tenochtitlan in late May, he found that Alvarado and his men had attacked and killed many of the Aztec nobility in the Massacre in the Great Temple, that happened during a religious festival organized by the Aztec. The Great Temple was central to the Aztec's cosmological views; the temple served as a burial ground for the offerings made to different gods, such as the gods of fertility, mountains, rain, and earth. Considering the centrality and the importance of the Great Temple as a religious and cultural monument could potentially have influenced the decision to attack a location such as this. Alvarado's explanation to Cortés was that the Spaniards had learned that the Aztecs planned to attack the Spanish garrison in the city once the festival was complete, so he had launched a pre-emptive attack. Considerable doubt has been cast by different commentators on this explanation, which may have been self-serving rationalization on the part of Alvarado, who may have attacked out of fear (or greed) where no immediate threat existed. In any event, the population of the city rose en masse after the Spanish attack, which the Spanish did not expect. Fierce fighting ensued, and the Aztec troops besieged the palace housing the Spaniards and Moctezuma. Alvarado and the rest of the Spanish were held hostage by the Aztecs for a month. The nobility of Tenochtitlan chose Cuitláhuac as Huey Tlatoani (Emperor). Cortés ordered Moctezuma to speak to his people from a palace balcony and persuade them to let the Spanish return to the coast in peace. Moctezuma was jeered and stones were thrown at him, mortally wounding Moctezuma. Aztec sources state the Spaniards killed him. Cortés had formed an alliance with Tlaxcala. This alliance had many victories, including the overtaking of the Aztec Capital Tenochtitlan. Their capital was used as a cosmic center, where they fed sacrifices to the gods through both human bodies and bloodletting. The capital was also used for central and imperialistic governmental control. Preparations for war began in their capital. The Spanish and their allies, including the Tlaxcala, had to flee the central city, as the people of Tenochtitlan had risen against them. The Spanish's situation could only deteriorate. Because the Aztecs had removed the bridges over the gaps in the causeways that linked the city to the surrounding lands, Cortés' men constructed a portable bridge to cross the water of the lake. On the rainy night of 10 July 1520, the Spaniards and their allies set out for the mainland via the causeway to Tlacopan. They placed the portable bridge in the first gap, but at that moment their movement was detected and Aztec forces attacked, both along the causeway and by means of canoes on the lake. The Spanish were thus caught on a narrow road with water or buildings on both sides. The retreat quickly turned into a rout. The Spanish discovered that they could not remove their portable bridge unit from the first gap, and so had no choice but to leave it behind. The bulk of the Spanish infantry, left behind by Cortés and the other horsemen, had to cut their way through the masses of Aztec warriors opposing them. Many of the Spaniards, weighed down by their armor and booty, drowned in the causeway gaps or were killed by the Aztecs. Much of the wealth the Spaniards had acquired in Tenochtitlan was lost. The bridge was later called "Alvarado's Leap". The channel is now a street in Mexico City, called "Puente de Alvarado" (Alvarado's Bridge), because it seemed Alvarado escaped across an invisible bridge. (He may have been walking on the bodies of those soldiers and attackers who had preceded him, given the shallowness of the lake.) It is said that Cortés, upon reaching the mainland at Tlacopan, wept over their losses. This episode is called "La Noche Triste" (The Night of Sorrows), and the old tree ("El árbol de la noche triste") where Cortés allegedly cried, is still a monument in Mexico City. The Aztecs pursued and harassed the Spanish, who, guided by their Tlaxcalan allies, moved around Lake Zumpango towards a sanctuary in Tlaxcala. On 14 July 1520, the Aztecs attempted to destroy the Spanish for good at the Battle of Otumba. Although hard-pressed, the Spanish infantry was able to hold off the overwhelming numbers of enemy warriors, while the Spanish cavalry under the leadership of Cortés charged through the enemy ranks again and again. When Cortés and his men killed one of the Aztec leaders, the Aztecs broke off the battle and left the field. In this retreat, the Spaniards suffered heavy casualties, losing 860 soldiers, 72 other Spanish members of Cortes' group, including five women, and a thousand Tlaxcalan warriors. Several Aztec noblemen loyal to Cortés, including Cacamatzin, and their families also perished, including Moctezuma's son and two daughters. The Spanish were able to complete their escape to Tlaxcala. There, they were given assistance, since all 440 of them were wounded, with only 20 horses left. Maxixcatzin, Xicotencatl the Elder and Chichimecatecle told Cortés's men: "Consider yourselves at home. Rest...do not think it a small thing that you have escaped with your lives from that strong city...if we thought of you as brave men before, we consider you much braver now." Cortés got reinforcements when the Panuco River settlement was abandoned, and supply ships arrived from Cuba and Spain. Cortés also had built 13 brigantines then had them mounted with cannons, turning Lake Texcoco into a strategic body of water to assault Tenochtitlan. Xicotencatl the Younger, however, sought an alliance with the Mexicans, but was opposed. Cortés sent Diego de Ordaz, and the remnants of Navarez's men, on a ship to Spain, and Francisco Montejo on a ship to Santo Domingo to represent his case in the Royal Courts. Cortés was able to pacify the country, after the indigenous realized the Spaniards put "an end to the rape and robbery that the Mexicans practised." Finally, Xicotencatl the Elder, baptized as Don Lorenzo de Vargas, agreed to support Cortés's expedition against Texcoco. According to Bernal Diaz, he sent more than ten thousand warriors under the command of Chichimecatecle as Cortés marched on the day after Christmas 1520. The Aztecs were struck by a smallpox plague starting in September 1520, which lasted seventy days. Many were killed, including their new leader, the Emperor Cuitlahuac. The joint forces of Tlaxcala and Cortés proved to be formidable. One by one they took over most of the cities under Aztec control, some in battle, others by diplomacy. In the end, only Tenochtitlan and the neighboring city of Tlatelolco remained unconquered or not allied with the Spaniards. Cortés then approached Tenochtitlan and mounted a siege of the city that involved cutting the causeways from the mainland and controlling the lake with armed brigantines constructed by the Spanish and transported overland to the lake. The Siege of Tenochtitlan lasted eight months. The besiegers cut off the supply of food and destroyed the aqueduct carrying water to the city. Despite the stubborn Aztec resistance organized by their new emperor, Cuauhtémoc, the cousin of Moctezuma II, Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco fell on 13 August 1521, during which the Emperor was captured trying to escape the city in a canoe. The siege of the city and its defense had both been brutal. Largely because he wanted to present the city to his king and emperor, Cortés had made several attempts to end the siege through diplomacy, but all offers were rejected. During the battle, the defenders cut the beating hearts from seventy Spanish prisoners-of-war at the altar to Huitzilopochtli, an act that infuriated the Spaniards. Cortés then ordered the idols of the Aztec gods in the temples to be taken down and replaced with icons of Christianity. He also announced that the temple would never again be used for human sacrifice. Human sacrifice and reports of cannibalism, common among the natives of the Aztec Empire, had been a major reason motivating Cortés and encouraging his soldiers to avoid surrender while fighting to the death. Tenochtitlan had been almost totally destroyed using the manpower of the Tlaxcalans plus fire and cannon fire during the siege, and once it finally fell, the Spanish continued its destruction, as they soon began to establish the foundations of what would become Mexico City on the site. The surviving Aztec people were forbidden to live in Tenochtitlan and the surrounding isles, and were banished to live in Tlatelolco. After hearing about the fall of the Aztec Empire, Tarascan ruler (Cazonci) Tangaxuan II sent emissaries to the Spanish victors (the Tarascan state was contemporary with and an enemy of the Aztec Empire). A few Spaniards went with them to Tzintzuntzan where they were presented to the ruler and gifts were exchanged. They returned with samples of gold and Cortés' interest in the Tarascan state was awakened. In 1522 a Spanish force under the leadership of Cristobal de Olid was sent into Tarascan territory and arrived at Tzintzuntzan within days. The Tarascan army numbered many thousands, perhaps as many as 100,000, but at the crucial moment they chose not to fight. Tangáxuan submitted to the Spanish administration, but for his cooperation was allowed a large degree of autonomy. This resulted in a strange arrangement where both Cortés and Tangáxuan considered themselves rulers of Michoacán for the following years: the population of the area paid tribute to them both. Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán, then president of the first Audiencia decided, to march on northwestern Mexico with a force of 5,000–8,000 men in search for new populations to subdue, and when he arrived in Michoacán and found out that Tangaxuan was still de facto ruler of his empire he allied himself with a Tarascan noble Don Pedro Panza Cuinierángari against the Cazonci. The Cazonci was tried with plotting a rebellion, withholding tribute, sodomy and heresy, and he was tortured and executed. His ashes were thrown into the Lerma river. A period of violence and turbulence began. During the next decades, Tarascan puppet rulers were installed by the Spanish government. The Spanish conquest of Yucatán took almost 170 years. The whole process could have taken longer were it not for three separate epidemics that took a heavy toll on the Native Americans, causing the population to fall by half and weakening the traditional social structure. After the Spanish conquest of central Mexico, expeditions were sent further northward in Mesoamerica, to the region known as La Gran Chichimeca. The expeditions under Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán were particularly harsh on the Chichimeca population, causing them to rebel under the leadership of Tenamaxtli and thus launch the Mixton War. In 1540, the Chichimecas fortified Mixtón, Nochistlán, and other mountain towns then besieged the Spanish settlement in Guadalajara. The famous conquistador Pedro de Alvarado, coming to the aid of acting governor Cristóbal de Oñate, led an attack on Nochistlán. However, the Chichimecas counter-attacked and Alvarado's forces were routed. Under the leadership of Viceroy Don Antonio de Mendoza, the Spanish forces and their Indian allies ultimately succeeded in recapturing the towns and suppressing resistance. However, fighting did not completely come to a halt in the ensuing years. In 1546, Spanish authorities discovered silver in the Zacatecas region and established mining settlements in Chichimeca territory which altered the terrain and the Chichimeca traditional way of life. The Chichimeca resisted the intrusions on their ancestral lands by attacking travelers and merchants along the "silver roads." The ensuing Chichimeca War (1550–1590) would become the longest and costliest conflict between Spanish forces and indigenous peoples in the Americas. The attacks intensified with each passing year. In 1554, the Chichimecas inflicted a great loss upon the Spanish when they attacked a train of sixty wagons and captured more than 30,000 pesos worth of valuables. By the 1580s, thousands had died and Spanish mining settlements in Chichimeca territory were continually under threat. In 1585, Don Alvaro Manrique de Zúñiga, Marquis of Villamanrique, was appointed viceroy. The viceroy was infuriated when he learned that some Spanish soldiers had begun supplementing their incomes by raiding the villages of peaceful Indians in order to sell them into slavery. With no military end to the conflict in sight, he was determined to restore peace to that region and launched a full-scale peace offensive by negotiating with Chichimeca leaders and providing them with lands, agricultural supplies, and other goods. This policy of "peace by purchase" finally brought an end to the Chichimeca War.l The Council of the Indies was constituted in 1524 and the first Audiencia in 1527. In 1535, Charles V the Holy Roman Emperor (who was as the King of Spain known as Charles I), named the Spanish nobleman Don Antonio de Mendoza the first Viceroy of New Spain. Mendoza was entirely loyal to the Spanish crown, unlike the conqueror of Mexico Hernán Cortés, who had demonstrated that he was independent-minded and defied official orders when he threw off the authority of Governor Velázquez in Cuba. The name "New Spain" had been suggested by Cortés and was later confirmed officially by Mendoza. The Aztec Empire ceased to exist with the Spanish final conquest of Tenochtitlan in August 1521. The empire had been composed of separate city-states that had either allied with or been conquered by the Mexica of Tenochtitlan, and rendered tribute to the Mexica while maintaining their internal ruling structures. Those polities now came under Spanish rule, also retaining their internal structures of ruling elites, tribute paying commoners, and land holding and other economic structures largely intact. Two key works by historian Charles Gibson, Tlaxcala in the Sixteenth Century (1952) and his monograph The Aztecs Under Spanish Rule: A History of the Indians of the Valley of Mexico, 1519–1810 (1964) were central in reshaping the historiography of the indigenous and their communities from the Spanish Conquest to the 1810 Mexican independence era. Scholars who were part of a branch of Mesoamerican ethnohistory, more recently called the New Philology have, using indigenous texts in the indigenous languages, been able to examine in considerable detail how the indigenous lived during the era of Spanish colonial rule. A major work that utilizes colonial-era indigenous texts as its main source is James Lockhart's The Nahuas After the Conquest: Postconquest Central Mexican History and Philology. The key to understanding how considerable continuity of pre-Conquest indigenous structures was possible was the Spanish colonial utilization of the indigenous nobility. In the colonial era, the indigenous nobility were largely recognized as nobles by the Spanish colonial regime, with privileges including the noble Spanish title don for noblemen and doña for noblewomen. To this day, the title of Duke of Moctezuma is held by a Spanish noble family. A few of the indigenous nobility learned Spanish. Spanish friars taught indigenous tribes to write their own languages in Latin letters, which soon became a self- perpetuating tradition at the local level. Their surviving writings are crucial in our knowledge of colonial era Nahuas. The first mendicants in central Mexico, particularly the Franciscans and Dominicans learned the indigenous language of Nahuatl, in order to evangelize to the indigenous people in their native tongue. Early mendicants created texts in order to forward the project of Christianization. Particularly important were the 1571 Spanish-Nahuatl dictionary compiled by the Franciscan Fray Alonso de Molina, and his 1569 bilingual Nahuatl-Spanish confessional manual for priests. A major project by the Franciscans in Mexico was the compilation of knowledge on Nahua religious beliefs and culture that friar Bernardino de Sahagún oversaw using indigenous informants, resulting in a number of important texts and culminating in a 12 volume text, The General History of the Things of New Spain published in English as the Florentine Codex. The Spanish crown via the Council of the Indies and the Franciscan order in the late sixteenth century became increasingly hostile to works in the indigenous languages written by priests and clerics, concerned that they were heretical and an impediment to the Indians' true conversion. To reward Spaniards who participated in the conquest of what is now contemporary Mexico, the Spanish crown authorized grants of native labor, in particular the assignment of entire indigenous communities to labor via the Encomienda system. The indigenous were not slaves under this system, chattel bought and sold or removed from their home community, but the system was still one of forced labor. The indigenous people of Central Mexico had practices rendering labor and tribute products to their polity's elites and those elites to the Mexica overlords in Tenochtitlan, so the Spanish system of encomienda was built on pre-existing patterns of labor service. The Spanish conquerors in Mexico during the early colonial era lived off the labor of the indigenous peoples. Due to some horrifying instances of abuse against the native peoples, Bishop Bartolomé de las Casas suggested importing black slaves to replace them. Las Casas later repented when he saw the even worse treatment given to the black slaves. The other discovery that perpetuated this system of indigenous forced labor were the extensive silver mines discovered at Potosi, in Higher Peru (now Bolivia) and other places in the Spanish empire in the New World that were worked for hundreds of years by forced native labor and contributed most of the wealth that flowed to Spain. According to West, "slavery was a well-established institution among the Aztecs and their neighbors." "During the Conquest, Spaniards legally enslaved large numbers of natives – men, women and children – as booty of warfare, branding each individual on the cheek." In fact, "Cortes owned several hundred, used mainly in gold placering." Indian slavery was abolished in 1542 but persisted until the 1550s. Spain spent enormous amounts of this wealth hiring mercenaries to fight the Protestant Reformation and to halt the Turkish invasions of Europe. The silver was used to purchase commercial goods abroad, as European manufactured goods were not in demand in Asia and the Middle East. The Manila Galleon brought in far more silver direct from South American mines to China than the overland Silk Road, or even European trade routes in the Indian Ocean could. The Aztec education system was abolished and replaced by a very limited church education. Even some foods associated with Mesoamerican religious practice, such as amaranth, were forbidden. Catholic missionaries campaigned against cultural traditions of the Aztecs, and the use of psilocybin mushrooms, like other pre-Christian traditions, was quickly suppressed. In converting people to Catholicism, the Spanish pushed for a switch from teonanácatl to the Catholic sacrament of the Eucharist. Despite this history, in some remote areas, the use of teonanácatl has persisted. In the 16th century, perhaps 240,000 Spaniards entered American ports. They were joined by 450,000 in the next century. Unlike the English-speaking colonists of North America, the majority of the Spanish colonists were single men who married or made concubines of the natives, and were even encouraged to do so by Queen Isabella during the earliest days of colonization. As a result of these unions, as well as concubinage and secret mistresses, mixed race individuals known as mestizos became the majority of the Mexican population in the centuries following the Spanish conquest. The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire is the subject of an opera, La Conquista (2005) and of a set of six symphonic poems, La Nueva España (1992–99) by Italian composer Lorenzo Ferrero. Cortés's conquest has been depicted in numerous television documentaries. These include in an episode of Engineering an Empire as well as in the BBC series Heroes and Villains, with Cortés being portrayed by Brian McCardie. Captain from Castile (1947) is about early Cortés and the Aztec. The expedition was also partially included in the animated film The Road to El Dorado as the main characters Tulio and Miguel end up as stowaways on Hernán Cortés' fleet to Mexico. Here, Cortés is represented as a merciless and ambitious villain, leading a quest to find El Dorado, the legendary city of gold in the New World. Hernán Cortés is voiced by Jim Cummings. The aftermath of the Spanish conquest, including the Aztecs' struggle to preserve their cultural identity, is the subject of the Mexican feature film, The Other Conquest, directed by Salvador Carrasco. Historian Daniele Bolelli did an in-depth coverage of the Spanish conquest over four episodes of his "History on Fire" podcast. Mexican muralist Diego Rivera (1886–1957) painted History of Morelos, Conquest and Revolution on the walls of the Cortes Palace in Cuernavaca in 1929–1930. Aztec warfare, Aztecs, Aztec influence in Spain, Historiography of Colonial Spanish America, History of Mexico City, History of smallpox in Mexico, New Spain, Spanish conquest of Chiapas, Spanish conquest of Guatemala, Spanish conquest of Honduras, Spanish conquest of Yucatán, Spanish Empire Alva Ixtlilxochitil, Fernando. Ally of Cortés: Account 13 of the Coming of the Spaniards and the Beginning of the Evangelical Law. Douglass K. Ballentine, translator. El Paso: Texas Western Press 1969., Codex Azcatitlan, Introduction de Michel Graulich, commentaire de Robert H. Barlow mis à jour par Michel Graulich [comment by Robert h. Barlow put updated by Michel Graulich] Bibliothèque nationale de France-Société des Américanistes, Paris, 1995., Cortés, Hernán. Letters – available as Letters from Mexico translated by Anthony Pagden (1986), de Fuentes, Patricia, ed. The Conquistadors: First-Person Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press 1993. Previously published by Orion Press 1963., Bernal Díaz del Castillo, The Conquest of New Spain – available as The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico: 1517–1521, Durán, Diego. The History of the Indies of New Spain (1581). Translated and edited by Doris Heyden. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press 1994., (textbook, anthology), Lockhart, James. We People Here: Nahuatl Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press 1991. (anthology), López de Gómara, Francisco. Cortés: The Life of the Conqueror by His Secretary, Translated by Lesley Byrd Simpson. Berkeley: University of California Press 1964., López de Gómara, Francisco, Hispania Victrix; First and Second Parts of the General History of the Indies, with the whole discovery and notable things that have happened since they were acquired until the year 1551, with the conquest of Mexico and New Spain, Sahagún, Fray Bernardino de. General History of the Things of New Spain (The Florentine Codex). Book 12. Arthur J.O. Anderson and Charles Dibble, translators. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press., Sahagún, Fray Bernardino de. The Conquest of New Spain, 1585 Revision. Trans. by Howard F. Cline, introduction and notes by S.L. Cline. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press 1989., Schwartz, Stuart B., ed. Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico. Boston: Bedford, 2000. (textbook, anthology), Siepel, Kevin H. Conquistador Voices: The Spanish Conquest of the Americas as recounted largely by the Participants. vol. 1. Spruce Tree Press 2015. (textbook, anthology), Solis, Antonio de. The History of the Conquest of Mexico by the Spaniards (1753). Trans. Thomas Townsend. 2 vols. New York: AMS Press 1973., Solis, Antonio de. Historia de la conquista de Méjico. Reprint, Forgotten Books 2018., Vázquez de Tapia, Bernardino. "Relación de méritos y servicios del conquistador. (c. 1545). Mexico: UNAM 1972. Berdan, Frances F.. The Aztecs of Central Mexico: An Imperial Society. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, (1982), Hassig, Ross. Time, History, and Belief in Aztec and Colonial Mexico. Texas University Press (2001), Hassig, Ross. Mexico and the Spanish Conquest. Longman: London and New York, (1994), Gruzinski, Serge. The Conquest of Mexico: Incorporation of Indian Societies into the Western World, 16th – 18th centuries. Polity Press 1993., Prescott, William H.. History of the Conquest of Mexico, with a Preliminary View of Ancient Mexican Civilization, and the Life of the Conqueror, Hernando Cortes, Restall, Matthew. Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. Oxford University Press (2003), Restall, Matthew. When Montezuma Met Cortés: The True Story of the Meeting that Changed History. Ecco 2018., Todorov, Tzvetan. The Conquest of America by (1996), Thomas, Hugh .Conquest: Cortés, Montezuma, and the Fall of Old Mexico by (1993), White, Jon Manchip Cortés and the Downfall of the Aztec Empire by (1971) Brandt, Anthony. "Perfect storm at Tenochtitlan 1521: How Cortes's band of hidalgos destroyed the Mexica Empire." MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History (2014): 58., Daniel, Douglas A. "Tactical Factors in the Spanish Conquest of the Aztecs." Anthropological Quarterly (1992): 187–94., Raudzens, George. "So Why Were the Aztecs Conquered, and What Were the Wider Implications? Testing Military Superiority as a Cause of Europe's Pre-Industrial Colonial Conquests." War in History (1995): 87–104., Townsend, Camilla. Malintzin's Choices: An Indian Woman in the Conquest of Mexico. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2006., White, John Manchip. "Cortes and the Downfall of the Aztec Empire: A Study in a Conflict of Cultures." The Hispanic American Historical Review (1972): 467–68. Hernán Cortés on the Web – web directory with thumbnail galleries, Catholic Encyclopedia (1911), Conquistadors, with Michael Wood – website for 2001 PBS documentary, Ibero-American Electronic Text Series presented online by the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections Center, La Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España

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Hohenberg is an Austrian noble family that descends from Countess Sophie Chotek (1868-1914), who in 1900 married Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria- Este (1863-1914), the heir presumptive to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. As their marriage was a morganatic one, none of their children were in the line of succession to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Still, they represent the senior agnatic line of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. The head of house bears the title of duke with the style of Highness, with all other members titled as princes and princesses with the style of Serene Highness. The House of Hohenberg was established by imperial decree of Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria when, upon the couple's marriage in 1900, he created Francis Ferdinand's wife Fürstin von Hohenberg (Princess of Hohenberg) in her own right with the style of Durchlaucht (Serene Highness) and the specification that this name and title should also be borne by her descendants. In 1909, the Emperor raised Sophie to the more senior title of Herzogin von Hohenberg (Duchess of Hohenberg) with the superior style of Hoheit (Highness). Since that title had been granted ad personam, it expired upon Sophie's assassination in 1914. In 1917, Emperor Charles of Austria granted the eldest son of Francis Ferdinand and Sophie the title of duke with the style of Highness. The other members of the family retained the titles of prince and princesses with the lesser style of Serene Highness. Thus, Maximilian became the first Duke of Hohenberg, with the dukedom being hereditary according to primogeniture in the male line. Following the collapse of the monarchy, the Austrian nobility, along with hereditary titles and such nobiliary particles as von, were abolished by law in 1919. In 1938, several members of the family who were opposed to Adolf Hitler were arrested by the Nazis and sent to Dachau concentration camp, most notably Maximilian and his brother Ernst. The current head of the family, Georg, was ambassador of the Republic of Austria to the Holy See during part of the pontificate of Pope John Paul II. He is also a Knight of the Golden Fleece. Members of the Hohenberg family are not only descended from, and married into, the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, but are also related through marriage to several other European dynasties, including the Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg and the Princely Family of Liechtenstein. They also descend from King George II of Great Britain through his daughter Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange and are therefore distantly related to the British Royal Family. The Hohenberg family still owns Artstetten Castle in Lower Austria, and parts of this castle are open to the public for visits. Former residences of the family include Konopiště château in Bohemia. Artstetten Castle was selected to provide the main theme for an Austrian 10 euro commemorative coin, minted on 13 October 2004. The reverse shows the entrance to the crypt of the Hohenberg family. There are two portraits on the left, showing Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg. Sophie (1868–1914), previously Princess of Hohenberg from the time of her marriage in 1900. Maximilian (1902–1962), 1st Duke, eldest son of Sophie; with issue., Franz (1927–1977), 2nd Duke, eldest son of Maximilian; with issue., Georg (1929–2019), 3rd Duke, second son of Maximilian; with issue., Nikolaus (born 1961), 4th Duke, eldest son of Georg; with issue. The line of succession to the title of Duke of Hohenberg is as follows: Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg (1868–1914), Maximilian, Duke of Hohenberg (1902–1962), Franz, Duke of Hohenberg (1927–1977), Georg, Duke of Hohenberg (1929–2019), Nikolaus, Duke of Hohenberg (b. 1961), (1) Prince Karl of Hohenberg (b. 1991), heir apparent, (2) Prince Maximilian of Hohenberg (b. 1970), (3) Prince Nikolaus of Hohenberg (b. 2001), (4) Prince Leopold of Hohenberg (b. 2006), (5) Prince Albrecht of Hohenberg (b. 1931), (6) Prince Leo Johannes of Hohenberg (b. 1964), (7) Prince Adrien of Hohenberg (b. 2003), Prince Johannes of Hohenberg (1933–2003), (8) Prince Stephan of Hohenberg (b. 1972), (9) Prince Nepomuk of Hohenberg (b. 2005), (10) Prince Georg of Hohenberg (b. 1975), (11) Prince Peter of Hohenberg (b. 1936), Prince Ernst of Hohenberg (1904–1954), Prince Franz Ferdinand of Hohenberg (1937–1978), (12) Prince Franz Ferdinand of Hohenberg (b. 1969), (13) Prince Maximilian of Hohenberg (b. 2001), (14) Prince Ernst of Hohenberg (b. 1944) Artstetten Castle, Dukes of Hohenberg This is a list of people who were heir apparent or heir presumptive to the Archduchy of Austria from when Charles III succeeded to the throne in 1711 to the end of the monarchy in Austria-Hungary in 1918. Those heirs who succeeded are shown in bold. The position of heir to the Empire was often of great importance. More than once a younger brother of the emperor was persuaded to renounce his succession rights in his son's favour to provide a young male heir to the throne. The apparent suicide of the Crown Prince in 1889 and the assassination of the subsequent heir in 1914 (considered one of the great causes of World War I) led to instability in the monarchy, perhaps contributing to its abolition at the end of the War in 1918. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and Franz Ferdinand's wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, occurred on 28 June 1914 in Sarajevo when they were mortally wounded by Gavrilo Princip. Princip was one of a group of six assassins (five Serbs and one Bosniak) coordinated by Danilo Ilić, a Bosnian Serb and a member of the Black Hand secret society. The political objective of the assassination was to break off Austria-Hungary's South Slav provinces so they could be combined into a Yugoslavia. The conspirators' motives were consistent with the movement that later became known as Young Bosnia. The assassination led directly to World War I when Austria-Hungary subsequently issued an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia, which was partially rejected. Austria-Hungary then declared war on Serbia, triggering actions leading to war between most European states. The Serbian military conspiracy was organized by Chief of Serbian Military Intelligence Dragutin Dimitrijević with the assistance of Major Vojislav Tankosić and spy Rade Malobabić. Tankosić armed the assassins with bombs and pistols and trained them. The assassins were given access to the same clandestine network of safe-houses and agents that Malobabić used for the infiltration of weapons and operatives into Austria-Hungary. The assassins, the key members of the clandestine network, and the key Serbian military conspirators who were still alive were arrested, tried, convicted and punished. Those who were arrested in Bosnia were tried in Sarajevo in October 1914. The other conspirators were arrested and tried before a Serbian court on the French-controlled Salonika Front in 1916–1917 on unrelated false charges; Serbia executed three of the top military conspirators. Much of what is known about the assassinations comes from these two trials and related records. Under the 1878 Treaty of Berlin, Austria-Hungary received the mandate to occupy and administer the Ottoman Vilayet of Bosnia, while the Ottoman Empire retained official sovereignty. Under this same treaty, the Great Powers (Austria-Hungary, the United Kingdom, France, the German Empire, Italy, and the Russian Empire) gave official recognition to the Principality of Serbia as a fully sovereign state, which four years later transformed into a kingdom under Prince Milan IV Obrenović who thus became King Milan I of Serbia. Serbia's monarchs, at the time from the royal House of Obrenović that maintained close relations with Austria-Hungary, were content to reign within the borders set by the treaty. This changed in May 1903, when Serbian military officers led by Dragutin Dimitrijević stormed the Serbian Royal Palace. After a fierce battle in the dark, the attackers captured General Laza Petrović, head of the Palace Guard, and forced him to reveal the hiding place of King Alexander I Obrenović and his wife Queen Draga. The King and Queen opened the door from their hiding place. The King was shot thirty times; the Queen eighteen. MacKenzie writes that "the royal corpses were then stripped and brutally sabred." The attackers threw the corpses of King Alexander and Queen Draga out of a palace window, ending any threat that loyalists would mount a counterattack." General Petrović was then killed too (Vojislav Tankosić organized the murders of Queen Draga's brothers; The conspirators installed Peter I of the House of Karađorđević as the new king. The new dynasty was more nationalist, friendlier to Russia and less friendly to Austria-Hungary. Over the next decade, disputes between Serbia and its neighbors erupted, as Serbia moved to build its power and gradually reclaim its 14th century empire. These conflicts included a customs dispute with Austria-Hungary beginning in 1906 (commonly referred to as the "Pig War"); the Bosnian crisis of 1908–1909, in which Serbia assumed an attitude of protest over Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina (ending in Serbian acquiescence without compensation in March 1909); and finally the two Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, in which Serbia acquired Macedonia and Kosovo from the Ottoman Empire and drove out Bulgaria. Serbia's military successes and Serbian outrage over the Austro-Hungarian annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina emboldened Serbian nationalists in Serbia and Serbs in Austria-Hungary who chafed under Austro-Hungarian rule and whose nationalist sentiments were stirred by Serb "cultural" organizations. One notable example was a Serbian nationalist society Narodna Odbrana, which was formed in Belgrade on 8 October 1908 under the initiative of Milovan Milovanović. Under the guise of cultural activities, it operated to undermine the loyalty of Serbs in Austria-Hungary to the Habsburg regime. In the five years leading up to 1914, lone assassins – mostly Serb citizens of Austria- Hungary – made a series of unsuccessful assassination attempts in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina against Austro-Hungarian officials. In Bosnia-Herzegovina, there existed a local revolutionary movement known as Young Bosnia, whose goal was the dissolution of Austria-Hungary. On 3 June 1910, Bogdan Žerajić, a member of the Young Bosnia movement, attempted to kill the Austrian governor of Bosnia-Herzegovina, General Marijan Varešanin. Žerajić was a 22-year-old Orthodox Serb from Nevesinje, Herzegovina, who was a student at the Faculty of Law at the University of Zagreb and made frequent trips to Belgrade. (General Verešanin went on to crush the last Bosnian peasant uprising in the second half of 1910). The five bullets Žerajić fired at Varešanin and the fatal bullet he put in his own brain made Žerajić an inspiration to future assassins, including Princip and Princip's accomplice Čabrinović. Princip said that Žerajić "was my first model. When I was seventeen I passed whole nights at his grave, reflecting on our wretched condition and thinking of him. It is there that I made up my mind sooner or later to perpetrate an outrage." In May 1911, the Black Hand, a secret society dedicated to create a Greater Serbia through "terrorist action", was established by key members of the Narodna Odbrana including Dimitrijević and Tankosić. Within Bosnia-Herzegovina, the networks of both the Black Hand and Narodna Odbrana penetrated local revolutionary movements such as Young Bosnia. In 1913, Emperor Franz Joseph commanded Archduke Franz Ferdinand to observe the military maneuvers in Bosnia scheduled for June 1914. Following the maneuvers, Ferdinand and his wife planned to visit Sarajevo to open the state museum in its new premises there. Duchess Sophie, according to their eldest son, Duke Maximilian, accompanied her husband out of fear for his safety. As Sophie, although of high aristocratic birth, was not from a dynastic family, her union with the Habsburg heir presumptive could only be a morganatic marriage. Emperor Franz Joseph had only consented to their marriage on the condition that their descendants would never ascend the throne. The 14th anniversary of their marriage fell on 28 June. As historian A. J. P. Taylor observes: Franz Ferdinand was an advocate of increased federalism and widely believed to favor trialism, under which Austria-Hungary would be reorganized by combining the Slavic lands within the Austro-Hungarian empire into a third crown. A Slavic kingdom could have been a bulwark against Serb irredentism, and Franz Ferdinand was therefore perceived as a threat by those same irredentists. Princip later stated to the court that preventing Franz Ferdinand's planned reforms was one of his motivations. The day of the assassination, June 28 (June 15 in the Julian calendar), is the feast of St. Vitus. In Serbia, it is called Vidovdan and commemorates the 1389 Battle of Kosovo against the Ottomans, at which the Sultan was assassinated in his tent by a Serb. Danilo Ilić was a Bosnian Orthodox Serb. He had worked as a school teacher and as a bank worker but in 1913 and 1914 he lived with, and outwardly off, his mother, who operated a small boarding house in Sarajevo. Secretly, Ilić was leader of the Serbian-irredentist Black Hand cell in Sarajevo. In late 1913, Danilo Ilić came to the Serbian listening post at Užice to speak to the officer in charge, Serbian Colonel C. A. Popović, who was a captain at the time and a member of the Black Hand. Ilić recommended an end to the period of revolutionary organization building and a move to direct action against Austria-Hungary. Popović passed Danilo Ilić on to Belgrade to discuss this matter with Chief of Serbian Military Intelligence Colonel Dragutin Dimitrijević, known more commonly as Apis. By 1913, Apis and his fellow military conspirators (drawn heavily from the ranks of the May 1903 coup) had come to dominate what was left of the Black Hand. There are no reports as to what took place between Ilić and Apis, but soon after their meeting, Apis's righthand man and fellow Black Hander, Serbian Major Vojislav Tankosić, who by this time was in charge of guerrilla training, called a Serbian irredentist planning meeting in Toulouse, France. Amongst those summoned to the Toulouse meeting was Muhamed Mehmedbašić, a carpenter by trade and son of an impoverished Muslim noble from Herzegovina. He too was a member of the Black Hand, having been sworn into the organization by Black Hand Provincial Director for Bosnia-Herzegovina Vladimir Gacinović and Danilo Ilić. Mehmedbašić was (here quoting Albertini paraphrasing Mehmedbašić) "eager to carry out an act of terrorism to revive the revolutionary spirit of Bosnia." During this January 1914 meeting, various possible Austro-Hungarian targets for assassination were discussed, including Franz Ferdinand. However, the participants decided only to dispatch Mehmed Mehmedbašić to Sarajevo, to kill the Governor of Bosnia, Oskar Potiorek. While Mehmedbašić was travelling to Bosnia-Herzegovina from France, police searched his train for a thief. Thinking the police might be after him, he threw his weapons (a dagger and a bottle of poison) out the train window. Once he arrived in Bosnia-Herzegovina he had to set about looking for replacement weapons. The search for new weapons delayed Mehmedbašić's attempt on Potiorek. Before Mehmedbašić was ready to act, Ilić summoned him to Mostar. On 26 March 1914, Ilić informed Mehmedbašić that Belgrade had scrapped the mission to kill the governor. The plan now was to murder Franz Ferdinand, and Mehmedbašić should stand by for the new operation. (Apis confessed to the Serbian Court that he ordered the assassination of Franz Ferdinand in his position as head of the Intelligence Department.) Ilić recruited the Serbian youths Vaso Čubrilović and Cvjetko Popović shortly after Easter (Orthodox Easter as given by Dedijer: 19 April 1914), for the assassination, as evidenced by the testimony of Ilić, Čubrilović, and Popović at the Sarajevo trial. Three youths – Gavrilo Princip, Trifko Grabež, and Nedeljko Čabrinović – Bosnian Serb subjects of Austria- Hungary, living in Belgrade, testified at the Sarajevo trial that at about the same time (a little after Easter), they were eager to carry out an assassination and approached a fellow Bosnian Serb and former guerrilla fighter known to be well connected and with access to arms, Milan Ciganović, and through him Major Tankosić and reached an agreement to transport arms to Sarajevo and participate in the assassination. Agreement in principle was quickly reached, but delivery of the weapons was delayed for more than a month. The assassins would meet with Ciganović and he would put them off. At one point, Ciganović told Grabež: "Nothing doing, the old Emperor is ill and the Heir Apparent will not go to Bosnia." When Emperor Franz Joseph's health recovered the operation was a "go" again. Tankosić gave the assassins one FN Model 1910 pistol. They practiced shooting a few rounds of scarce and expensive .380 ACP pistol ammunition in a park near Belgrade. The rest of the weapons were finally delivered on 26 May. The three assassins from Belgrade testified that Major Tankosić, directly and through Ciganović, not only provided six hand grenades and four new Browning FN Model 1910 automatic pistols with .380 ACP ammunition, but also money, suicide pills, training, a special map with the location of gendarmes marked, knowledge of contacts on a clandestine tunnel used to infiltrate agents and arms into Austria-Hungary, and a small card authorizing the use of that tunnel. Major Tankosić confirmed to the journalist and historian Luciano Magrini that he provided the bombs and pistols and was responsible for training Princip, Grabež, and Čabrinović and that he (Tankosić) initiated the idea of the suicide pills. Princip, Grabež, and Čabrinović left Belgrade by boat on 28 May and traveled along the Sava River to Šabac where they handed the small card to Captain Popović of the Serbian Border Guard. Popović, in turn, provided them with a letter to Serbian Captain Prvanović, and filled out a form with the names of three customs officials whose identities they could assume and thereby receive discounted train tickets for the ride to Loznica, a small border town. When Princip, Grabež, and Čabrinović reached Loznica on 29 May, Captain Prvanović summoned three of his revenue sergeants to discuss the best way to cross the border undetected. While waiting for the sergeants to arrive, Princip and Grabež had a falling out with Čabrinović over Čabrinović's repeated violations of operational security. Čabrinović handed over the weapons he was carrying to Princip and Grabež. Princip told Čabrinović to go alone to Zvornik, make an official crossing there using Grabež's ID card and then go on to Tuzla and link back up. On the morning of 30 May Prvanović's revenue sergeants assembled and Sergeant Budivoj Grbić accepted the task and led Princip and Grabež by foot to Isaković's Island, a small island in the middle of the Drina River that separated Serbia from Bosnia. They and their weapons reached the island on 31 May. Grbić passed the terrorists and their weapons to the agents of the Serbian Narodna Odbrana for transport into Austro-Hungarian territory and from safe-house to safe-house. Princip and Grabež crossed into Austria-Hungary on the evening of 1 June. Princip and Grabež and the weapons were passed from agent to agent until on 3 June they arrived in Tuzla. They left the weapons in the hands of the Narodna Odbrana agent Miško Jovanović and rejoined Čabrinović. The Narodna Odbrana agents reported their activities to the Narodna Odbrana President, Boža Janković, who in turn reported to the then Serbian Caretaker Prime Minister Nikola Pašić. The report to Pašić added the name of a new military conspirator, Serbian Major Kosta Todorović, Boundary Commissioner and Director of Serbian Military Intelligence Services for the frontier line from Rada to Ljubovija. Pašić's handwritten notes from the briefing (estimated by Dedijer to have taken place on 5 June) included the nickname of one of the assassins ("Trifko" Grabež) and also the name of Major Tankosić. The Austrians later captured the report, Pašić's handwritten notes, and additional corroborating documents. Čabrinović's father was a Sarajevo police official. In Tuzla, Čabrinović bumped into one of his father's friends, Sarajevo Police Detective Ivan Vila, and struck up a conversation. By coincidence, Princip, Grabež and Čabrinović boarded the same train for Sarajevo as Detective Vila. Čabrinović inquired of the detective the date of Franz Ferdinand's visit to Sarajevo. The next morning, Čabrinović passed on the news to his fellow assassins that the assassination would be on 28 June. On arriving in Sarajevo on 4 June, Princip, Grabež, and Čabrinović went their separate ways. Princip checked in with Ilić, visited his family in Hadžici and returned to Sarajevo on 6 June taking up residence at Ilić's mother's house with Ilić. Grabež joined his family in Pale. Čabrinović moved back into his father's house in Sarajevo. On 14 June, Ilić went to Tuzla to bring the weapons to Sarajevo. Miško Jovanović hid the weapons in a large box of sugar. On 15 June, the two went separately by train to Doboj where Jovanović handed off the box to Ilić. Later that day, Ilić returned to Sarajevo by train, being careful to transfer to a local train outside Sarajevo and then quickly transfer to a tram to avoid police detection. Once at his mother's house, Ilić hid the weapons in a suitcase under a sofa. Then, on approximately 17 June, Ilić traveled to Brod (Dedijer puts it on 16 June, but trial records put it on 18 June). Questioned at trial, Ilić gave a confused explanation of the reason for his trip, first saying he had gone to Brod to prevent the assassination and then saying he had returned to Sarajevo from Brod to prevent the assassination. Dedijer puts forward the thesis (citing Bogijević) that Ilić went to Brod to meet an emissary of Apis, Djuro Ŝarac, who had instructions to cancel the assassination and then later Rade Malobabić was dispatched from Serbia to Sarajevo to reauthorize the assassination. Ilić began handing out the weapons on 27 June. Until 27 June Ilić had kept the identities of the assassins from Belgrade secret from those he had recruited locally and vice versa. Then, that night, as Mehmedbašić told Albertini: "On the eve of the outrage Ilić introduced me to Princip in a Sarajevo café with the words 'Mehmedbašić who to-morrow is to be with us.'" The three sent a postcard to Black Hand Provincial Director for Bosnia-Herzegovina Vladimir Gaćinović in France. The following morning, on 28 June 1914, Ilić positioned the six assassins along the motorcade route. Ilić walked the street, exhorting the assassins to bravery. On the morning of 28 June 1914, Franz Ferdinand and his party proceeded by train from Ilidža Spa to Sarajevo. Governor Oskar Potiorek met the party at Sarajevo station. Six automobiles were waiting. By mistake, three local police officers got into the first car with the chief officer of special security; the special security officers who were supposed to accompany their chief got left behind. The second car carried the Mayor and the Chief of Police of Sarajevo. The third car in the motorcade was a Gräf & Stift 28/32 PS open sports car with its top folded down. Franz Ferdinand, Sophie, Governor Potiorek, and Lieutenant Colonel Count Franz von Harrach rode in this third car. The motorcade's first stop on the preannounced program was for a brief inspection of a military barracks. According to the program, at 10:00 a.m., the motorcade was to leave the barracks for the town hall by way of the Appel Quay. Security arrangements within Sarajevo were limited. The local military commander, General Michael von Appel, proposed that troops line the intended route but was told that this would offend the loyal citizenry. Protection for the visiting party was accordingly left to the Sarajevo police, of whom only about 60 were on duty on the Sunday of the visit. The motorcade passed the first assassin, Mehmedbašić. Danilo Ilić had placed him in front of the garden of the Mostar Cafe and armed him with a bomb. Mehmedbašić failed to act. Ilić had placed Vaso Čubrilović next to Mehmedbašić, arming him with a pistol and a bomb. He too failed to act. Further along the route, Ilić had placed Nedeljko Čabrinović on the opposite side of the street near the Miljacka River, arming him with a bomb. At 10:10 am, Franz Ferdinand's car approached and Čabrinović threw his bomb. The bomb bounced off the folded back convertible cover into the street. The bomb's timed detonator caused it to explode under the next car, putting that car out of action, leaving a , crater, and wounding 16–20 people. Čabrinović swallowed his cyanide pill and jumped into the Miljacka river. Čabrinović's suicide attempt failed, as the old cyanide only induced vomiting, and the Miljacka was only 13 cm deep due to the hot, dry summer. Police dragged Čabrinović out of the river, and he was severely beaten by the crowd before being taken into custody. The procession sped away towards the Town Hall leaving the disabled car behind. Cvjetko Popović, Gavrilo Princip, and Trifun Grabež failed to act as the motorcade passed them at high speed. Arriving at the Town Hall for a scheduled reception, Franz Ferdinand showed understandable signs of stress, interrupting a prepared speech of welcome by Mayor Fehim Curčić to protest: "Mr. Mayor, I came here on a visit and I am greeted with bombs. It is outrageous." Duchess Sophie then whispered into Franz Ferdinand's ear, and after a pause, Franz Ferdinand said to the mayor: "Now you may speak." He then became calm and the mayor gave his speech. Franz Ferdinand had to wait as his own speech, still wet with blood from being in the damaged car, was brought to him. To the prepared text he added a few remarks about the day's events thanking the people of Sarajevo for their ovations "as I see in them an expression of their joy at the failure of the attempt at assassination." Officials and members of the Archduke's party discussed what to do next. The archduke's chamberlain, Baron Rumerskirch, proposed that the couple remain at the Town Hall until troops could be brought into the city to line the streets. Governor-General Oskar Potiorek vetoed this suggestion on the grounds that soldiers coming straight from maneuvers would not have the dress uniforms appropriate for such duties. "Do you think that Sarajevo is full of assassins?" he concluded. Franz Ferdinand and Sophie gave up their planned program in favor of visiting the wounded from the bombing, at the hospital. Count Harrach took up a position on the left-hand running board of Franz Ferdinand's car to protect the Archduke from any assault from the riverside of the street. This is confirmed by photographs of the scene outside the Town Hall. At 10:45 a.m, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie got back into the motorcade, once again in the third car. In order to ensure the safety of the couple, General Oskar Potiorek decided that the imperial motorcade should travel straight along the Appel Quay to the Sarajevo Hospital so that they could avoid the crowded city center. However, Potiorek failed to communicate his decision to the drivers. As a result, the Archduke's driver, Leopold Lojka, took a right turn at the Latin Bridge just as the two drivers ahead of him. According to the historian Joachim Remak, the reason for this is that Potiorek's aide Eric(h) von Merrizzi was in the hospital, and was therefore unable to give Lojka the information about the change in plans and the driving route. The Sarajevo Chief of Police Edmund Gerde, who had earlier repeatedly warned Potiorek of insufficient security precautions for the imperial visit, was asked by one of the Archduke’s aides to tell the drivers of the new route, but in the confusion and tensions of the moment, he neglected to do so. After learning that the first assassination attempt had been unsuccessful, Princip thought about a position to assassinate the Archduke on his return journey, and decided to move to a position in front of a nearby food shop (Schiller's delicatessen), near the Latin Bridge. At this point, the first and second cars of the Archduke's motorcade suddenly turned right into a side street, leaving the Appel Quay. When the Archduke’s driver followed their route, Governor Potiorek, who was sharing the third vehicle with the Imperial couple, called out to the driver to stop as he was going the wrong way. As the driver applied the brakes to stop the car close to where Princip was standing, the assassin stepped up to the footboard of the car, and shot Franz Ferdinand and Sophie at point‐blank range using a Belgian-made Fabrique Nationale model 1910 .380 caliber pistol. Pistol serial numbers 19074, 19075, 19120 and 19126 were supplied to the assassins; Princip used #19074. According to Albertini, "the first bullet wounded the Archduke in the jugular vein, the second inflicted an abdominal wound on the Duchess." Princip tried to shoot himself, but was immediately seized and arrested. At his sentencing, Princip stated that his intention had been to kill Governor Potiorek, rather than Sophie. After being shot, Sophie immediately fell unconscious and collapsed onto Franz Ferdinand’s legs. The Archduke, too, lost consciousness while being driven to the Governor's residence for medical treatment. As reported by Count Harrach, Franz Ferdinand's last words were "Sophie, Sophie! Don't die! Live for our children!" followed by six or seven utterances of "It is nothing," in response to Harrach's inquiry as to Franz Ferdinand's injury. These utterances were followed by a violent choking sound caused by hemorrhage. The imperial couple were dead by 11:30 a.m on 28 June 1914; Sophie was dead on arrival at the Governor's residence, and Franz Ferdinand died 10 minutes later. The bodies were transported to Trieste by the battleship and then to Vienna by special train. Even though most foreign royalty had planned to attend, they were pointedly disinvited and the funeral was just the immediate imperial family, with the dead couple's three children excluded from the few public ceremonies. The officer corps was forbidden to salute the funeral train, and this led to a minor revolt led by Archduke Karl, the new heir presumptive. The public viewing of the coffins was curtailed severely and even more scandalously, Montenuovo tried unsuccessfully to make the children foot the bill. The Archduke and Duchess were interred at Artstetten Castle because the Duchess could not be buried in the Imperial Crypt. All of the assassins were eventually caught. Those in Austro-Hungarian custody were tried together with members of the infiltration route who had helped deliver them and their weapons to Sarajevo. Mehmedbašić was arrested in Montenegro, but was allowed to "escape" to Serbia where he joined Major Tankosić's auxiliaries, but in 1916 Serbia imprisoned him on other false charges (see criminal penalty section below). Anti-Serb rioting broke out in Sarajevo and various other places within Austria-Hungary in the hours following the assassination until order was restored by the military. On the night of the assassination, country-wide anti-Serb pogroms and demonstrations were also organized in other parts of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, particularly on the territory of modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. They were organized and stimulated by Oskar Potiorek, the Austro- Hungarian governor of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The first anti-Serb demonstrations, led by the followers of Josip Frank, were organized in early evening of 28 June in Zagreb. The following day, anti-Serb demonstrations in Sarajevo became more violent and could be characterized as a pogrom. The police and local authorities in the city did nothing to prevent anti-Serb violence. Writer Ivo Andrić referred to the violence in Sarajevo as the "Sarajevo frenzy of hate." Two Serbs were killed on the first day of pogrom in Sarajevo, many were attacked, while around 1,000 houses, shops, schools and institutions (such as banks, hotels, printing houses) owned by Serbs were razed or pillaged. Austro-Hungarian authorities arrested and prosecuted the Sarajevo assassins (except for Mehmedbašić who had escaped to Montenegro and was released from police custody there to Serbia) together with the agents and peasants who had assisted them on their way. The majority of the defendants were charged with conspiracy to commit high treason involving official circles in the Kingdom of Serbia. Conspiracy to commit high treason carried a maximum sentence of death which conspiracy to commit simple murder did not. The trial was held from 12 October to 23 October with the verdict and sentences announced on 28 October 1914. The adult defendants, facing the death penalty, portrayed themselves at trial as unwilling participants in the conspiracy. The examination of defendant Veljko Cubrilović (who helped coordinate the transport of the weapons and was a Narodna Odbrana agent) is illustrative of this effort. Cubrilović stated to the court: "Princip glared at me and very forcefully said 'If you want to know, it is for that reason and we are going to carry out an assassination of the Heir and if you know about it, you have to be quiet. If you betray it, you and your family will be destroyed.'" Under questioning by defense counsel Cubrilović described in more detail the basis of the fears that he said had compelled him to cooperate with Princip and Grabež." Cubrilović explained that he was afraid a revolutionary organization capable of committing great atrocities stood behind Princip and that he therefore feared his house would be destroyed and his family killed if he did not comply and explained that he knew such an organization existed in Serbia, at least at one time. When pressed for why he risked the punishment of the law, and did not take the protection of the law against these threats he responded: "I was more afraid of terror than the law." Another Narodna Odbrana agent, Mihajlo Jovanović, also claimed to have been against the assassination. In order to refute the charge, the conspirators from Belgrade, who because of their youth did not face the death penalty, focused during the trial on putting blame on themselves and deflecting it from official Serbia and modified their court testimony from their prior depositions accordingly. Princip stated under cross examination: "I am a Yugoslav nationalist and I believe in unification of all South Slavs in whatever form of state and that it be free of Austria." Princip was then asked how he intended to realize his goal and responded: "By means of terror." Cabrinović, though, testified that the political views that motivated him to kill Franz Ferdinand were views held in the circles he traveled in within Serbia. The court did not believe the defendants' stories claiming to hold official Serbia blameless. The verdict ran: "The court regards it as proved by the evidence that both the Narodna Odbrana and military circles in the Kingdom of Serbia in charge of the espionage service, collaborated in the outrage." Prison terms, death sentences and acquittals were as follows: At trial Čabrinović had expressed his regrets for the murders. Following sentencing, Čabrinović received a letter of complete forgiveness from the three young children the assassins had orphaned. Čabrinović and Princip died of tuberculosis in prison. Those under the age of 20 years at the time of the crime could receive a maximum sentence of 20 years under Austrian-Hungarian law. The court heard arguments regarding Princip's age, as there was some doubt as to his true date of birth but concluded that Princip was under 20 at the time of the assassination. Because Bosnia and Herzegovina had not yet been assigned to Austria or to Hungary, the Austro-Hungarian Finance Minister administered Bosnia and Herzegovina and had responsibility for recommending clemency to the Kaiser. In late 1916 and early 1917, secret peace talks took place between Austria- Hungary and France. There is circumstantial evidence that parallel discussions were held between Austria-Hungary and Serbia with Prime Minister Pašić dispatching his righthand man Stojan Protić and Regent Alexander dispatching his confidant Colonel Petar Živković to Geneva on secret business. Charles I of Austria laid out Austria-Hungary's key demand for returning Serbia to the control of the Serbian Government in exile: that Serbia should provide guarantees that there be no further political agitation emanating from Serbia against Austria-Hungary. For some time, Regent Alexander and officers loyal to him had planned to get rid of the military clique headed by Apis as Apis represented a political threat to Alexander's power. The Austro-Hungarian peace demand gave added impetus to this plan. On 15 March 1917 Apis and the officers loyal to him were indicted, on various false charges unrelated to Sarajevo (the case was retried before the Supreme Court of Serbia in 1953 and all defendants were exonerated), by Serbian Court Martial on the French- controlled Salonika front. On 23 May Apis and eight of his associates were sentenced to death; two others were sentenced to 15 years in prison. One defendant died during the trial and the charges against him were dropped. The Serbian High Court reduced the number of death sentences to seven. Regent Alexander commuted four of the remaining death sentences, leaving just three death sentences in place. Amongst those tried, four of the defendants had confessed their roles in Sarajevo and their final sentences were as follows: In justifying the executions, Prime Minister Pašić wrote to his envoy in London:"...Dimitrijević (Apis) besides everything else admitted he had ordered Franz Ferdinand to be killed. And now who could reprieve them?" As the three condemned men were driven to their execution, Apis remarked to the driver "Now it is clear to me and clear to you too, that I am to be killed today by Serbian rifles solely because I organized the Sarajevo outrage. Vojislav Tankosić died in battle in late 1915 and so was not put on trial. Following the assassinations, Serbian Ambassador to France Milenko Vesnić and Serbian Ambassador to Russia Miroslav Spalajković put out statements claiming that Serbia had warned Austria-Hungary of the impending assassination. Serbia soon thereafter denied making warnings and denied knowledge of the plot. Prime Minister Pašić himself made these denials to Az Est on 7 July and to the Paris Edition of the New York Herald on 20 July. Other voices eventually spoke out on the "warning". As Serbian Education Minister Ljuba Jovanović wrote in Krv Sloventsva, in late May or early June, Prime Minister Pašić reviewed the plot of the impending assassination with members of his cabinet. On 18 June, a telegram, lacking in specifics, ordered Serbia's Ambassador to Vienna, Jovan Jovanović, to warn Austria-Hungary that Serbia had reason to believe there was a conspiracy to assassinate Franz Ferdinand in Bosnia. On 21 June, Ambassador Jovanović met with Austro-Hungarian Finance Minister Bilinski. According to Serbian Military Attaché to Vienna, Colonel Lesanin, Ambassador Jovanović, spoke to Bilinski and "...stressed in general terms the risks the Archduke heir apparent might run from the inflamed public opinion in Bosnia and Serbia. Some serious personal misadventure might befall him. His journey might give rise to incidents and demonstrations that Serbia would deprecate but that would have fatal repercussions on Austro-Serbian relations." Jovanović came back from the meeting with Bilinski and told Lesanin that "...Bilinski showed no sign of attaching great importance to the total message and dismissed it limiting himself to remarking when saying goodbye and thanking him: 'Let us hope nothing does happen.'" The Austro-Hungarian Finance Minister took no action based on Jovanović's remarks. In 1924 J. Jovanović went public stating that his warning had been made on his own initiative, and what he said was that "Among the Serb youths (in the army) there may be one who will put a ball-cartridge in his rifle or revolver in place of a blank cartridge and he may fire it, the bullet might strike the man giving provocation (Franz Ferdinand)." J. Jovanović's account changed back and forth over the years and never adequately addressed Colonel Lesanin's statement. Bilinski did not speak openly on the subject, but his press department chief confirmed that a meeting had taken place including a vague warning, but there was no mention of an ethnic Serb Austro-Hungarian soldier shooting Franz Ferdinand. In the days leading up to the assassination, Pašić was caretaker prime minister because during this period the Serbian Government briefly fell to a political alliance led by the Serbian Military. The military favored promoting Jovan Jovanović to Foreign Minister, and Jovanović's loyalties one might expect to have been divided and his orders therefore carried out poorly. By choosing a military loyalist to convey the message, and by not including any of the specifics such as the conspirators' names and weapons, Pašić, a survivor, hedged his bets against the various possible outcomes and consequences of the impending assassination. In 1914, Rade Malobabić was Serbian Military Intelligence's chief undercover operative against Austria-Hungary. His name appeared in Serbian documents captured by Austria-Hungary during the war. These documents describe the running of arms, munitions, and agents from Serbia into Austria-Hungary under Malobabić's direction. Owing to the suppression by Serbia of Apis's confession and of the Salonika trial transcripts historians did not initially link Malobabić closely to the Sarajevo attack. Apis's confession, however, states that "I engaged Malobabić to organize the assassination on the occasion of the announced arrival of Franz Ferdinand to Sarajevo." At the Salonika trial, Colonel Ljubomir Vulović (head of the Serbian Frontiers Service) testified: 'In 1914 on occasion of my official trip from Loznica to Belgrade, I received a letter at the General Staff [signed by Marshal Putnik, Serbia's top military officer] noting that agents of Malobabić would come and a teacher whose name I don't recall (Danilo Ilić was a teacher but it is unclear if the teacher in question was Ilić as Ilić can be placed in Brod but not Loznica) so I could sent them into Bosnia.' Because of that 'I went to Loznica and either that day or very soon afterwards sent Rade and that teacher into Bosnia.' Soon thereafter occurred the Sarajevo assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand." On the eve of his execution, Malobabić told a priest: "They ordered me to go to Sarajevo when that assassination was to take place, and when everything was over, they ordered me to come back and fulfill other missions, and then there was the outbreak of the war." Vladimir Dedijer in The Road to Sarajevo presented additional testimonial evidence that Malobabić arrived in Sarajevo on the eve of the Sarajevo attack and gave the final go ahead for the operation to Danilo Ilić. This meshes with Dedijer's theory that Djuro Ŝarac had given instructions to Ilić on 16 June cancelling the assassination. Soon after their confessions, Serbia executed Malobabić, Vulović, and Apis on false charges. Serbia published no clarifications of their confessions with regards to the Sarajevo attack. An alternative theory to the Sarajevo attack being a Serbian Military Intelligence Operation was that it was a "Black Hand" operation. The "Black Hand" was a Serbian military society formed on 9 May 1911 by officers in the Army of the Kingdom of Serbia, originating in the conspiracy group that assassinated the Serbian royal couple in May 1903, led by captain Dragutin Dimitrijević (Commonly referred to as "Apis"). After Serbia's victory over Bulgaria in Macedonia in the Balkan Wars, the "Black Hand" became moribund because of the death of its president and the failure to replace him, an inactive secretary, casualties, broken links between its three-man cells, and a drying up of funding. By 1914 the "Black Hand" was no longer operating under its constitution but rather as a creature of the Chief of Serbian Military Intelligence, Apis, and its active ranks were composed mostly of Serbian officers loyal to Apis. Apis's confession to ordering the operation that begins with the phrase "As the Chief of the Intelligence Department of the General Staff", the fact that the military chain of command was invoked, the moribund nature of the "Black Hand" and the fact that under the "Black Hand" constitution Article 16, such an assassination could only be ordered by a vote of the Supreme Council Directorate, the President or the Secretary and no such order was made, are factors in favor of assigning responsibility to Serbian Military Intelligence. The fact that Milan Ciganović was involved, that the key officers involved were "Black Hand" members, that "Black Hand" Provincial Director for Bosnia and Herzegovina Vladimir Gaćinović was consulted and that there was no official budget for the operation favors assigning responsibility to the "Black Hand". At trial, it was noted that the three assassins from Belgrade tried to take all blame on themselves. Čabrinović claimed the idea of killing Franz Ferdinand came from a newspaper clipping he received in the mail at the end of March announcing Franz Ferdinand's planned visit to Sarajevo. He then showed the newspaper clipping to Princip and the next day they agreed they would kill Franz Ferdinand. Princip explained to the court he had already read about Franz Ferdinand's upcoming visit in German papers. Princip went on to testify that, at about the time of Easter (19 April), he wrote an allegorical letter to Ilić informing him of the plan to kill Franz Ferdinand. Grabež testified that he and Princip, also at about the time of Easter, agreed between them to make an assassination of either Governor Potiorek or Franz Ferdinand and a little later settled on Franz Ferdinand. The defendants refused or were unable to provide details under examination. On 26 March Ilić and Mehmedbašić had already agreed to kill Franz Ferdinand based on instructions from Belgrade predating the newspaper clipping and the discussions amongst the three assassins in Belgrade. Serbian Military Intelligence – through remnants of the "Black Hand" – penetrated the Narodna Odbrana, using its clandestine tunnel to smuggle the assassins and their weapons from Belgrade to Sarajevo. In the 5 June 1914 report by the President of the Narodna Odbrana Boža Milanović to Prime Minister Pašić one can sense the frustration of the President over the hijacking of his organization in the final sentence dealing with Sarajevo: "Boža has informed all the agents that they should not receive anyone unless he produces the password given by Boža." Prime Minister Pašić received early information of the assassination plan. The information was received by Pašić early enough, according to Education Minister Ljuba Jovanović, for the government to order the border guards to prevent the assassins from crossing. This places the cabinet minister discussions in late May and the information release to some time before that. Albertini concluded that the source of the information was most likely Milan Ciganović. Bogičević made a more forceful case. The circumstantial evidence against Ciganović includes his sinecure government job, his protection by the Chief of Police and Serbia's failure to arrest him (Austria-Hungary demanded Serbia arrest Major Vojislav Tankosić and Ciganović, but Serbia arrested only Tankosić and lied saying that Ciganović could not be found), Serbia's protection of Ciganović during the war, and the government's provision for Ciganović after it. In 1917, all of the Sarajevo conspirators within Serbia's control were tried at Salonika on false charges, except Ciganović, who even gave evidence against his comrades at the trial. Apis's confession to ordering the assassination of Franz Ferdinand states that Russian Military Attaché Artamonov promised Russia's protection from Austria- Hungary if Serbia would ever come under attack. While admitting funding of intelligence network in Austro-Hungary, Artamonov denied the involvement of his office into assassination in an interview with Albertini. Artamonov stated that he went on vacation to Italy leaving Assistant Military Attaché Alexander Werchovsky in charge and though he was in daily contact with Apis he did not learn of Apis's role until after the war had ended. Albertini writes that he "remained unconvinced by the behavior of this officer." Werchovsky admitted the involvement of his office and then fell silent on the subject. There is evidence that Russia was at least aware of the plot before 14 June. De Schelking writes: The murder of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and his wife produced widespread shock across European royal houses, and there was initially much sympathy for the Austrian position. Ordinary people did not really care about what happened, and on the evening of the assassination the crowds in Vienna listened to music and drank wine, as if nothing had happened. Within two days of the assassination, Austria-Hungary and Germany advised Serbia that it should open an investigation, but Secretary General to the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Slavko Gruic, replied "Nothing had been done so far and the matter did not concern the Serbian Government." An angry exchange followed between the Austrian Chargé d'Affaires at Belgrade and Gruic. After conducting a criminal investigation, verifying that Germany would honor its military alliance, and persuading the skeptical Hungarian Count Tisza, Austria-Hungary issued a formal letter to the government of Serbia on 23 July 1914. The letter reminded Serbia of its commitment to respect the Great Powers' decision regarding Bosnia-Herzegovina, and to maintain good neighborly relations with Austria-Hungary. The letter contained specific demands that Serbia should accept, including the suppression of the publication of propaganda advocating the violent destruction of Austria-Hungary, the removal of the people behind this propaganda from the Serbian Military, the dissolution of the Serbian nationalist organization Narodna Odbrana, the arrest of the people on Serbian soil who were involved in the assassination plot and the prevention of the clandestine shipment of arms and explosives from Serbia to Austria-Hungary. It also demanded that Austro-Hungarian officials should take part in the Serbian inquiry into the assassination plot. This letter became known as the July Ultimatum, and Austria-Hungary stated that if Serbia did not accept all of the demands in total within 48 hours, it would recall its ambassador from Serbia. After receiving a telegram of support from Russia, Serbia mobilized its army and responded to the letter by completely accepting point #8 demanding an end to the smuggling of weapons and punishment of the frontier officers who had assisted the assassins and completely accepting point #10 which demanded Serbia report the execution of the required measures as they were completed. Serbia partially accepted, finessed, disingenuously answered or politely rejected elements of the preamble and enumerated demands #1–7 and #9. The shortcomings of Serbia's response were published by Austria-Hungary. Austria- Hungary responded by breaking diplomatic relations. The next day, Serbian reservists being transported on tramp steamers on the Danube crossed onto the Austro-Hungarian side of the river at Temes-Kubin and Austro-Hungarian soldiers fired into the air to warn them off. The report of this incident was initially sketchy and reported to Emperor Franz-Joseph erroneously as "a considerable skirmish". Austria-Hungary then declared war and mobilized the portion of its army that would face the (already mobilized) Serbian Army on 28 July 1914. Under the Secret Treaty of 1892 Russia and France were obliged to mobilize their armies if any of the Triple Alliance mobilized. Russia partially mobilized along its Austrian border on July 29, and on July 30 Russia ordered general mobilization. Russia's general mobilization set off full Austro-Hungarian and German mobilizations. Soon all the Great Powers except Italy had chosen sides and gone to war. Later, referring to Franz Ferdinand's assassination, Vaso Čubrilović said: "We destroyed a beautiful world that was lost forever due to the war that followed." Various countries of the former Yugoslavia, Bosniaks and Croats largely view Gavrilo Princip as a terrorist and an ethnic Serb nationalist. The 100th anniversary of the assassination was commemorated with a concert by the Vienna Philharmonic in the Sarajevo City Hall, in an event that was organized by the European Union. Austrian president Heinz Fischer was the guest of honour. The World War I commemorations were boycotted by Serb nationalists and dignitaries, who, along with Bosnian Serbs, view "Princip as a hero." On the 100th anniversary of the assassination, a statue of Gavrilo Princip was erected in East Sarajevo. This was followed by another statue in Belgrade, which was erected in June 2015. Serbian history textbooks deny that Serbia or Princip were responsible for starting World War I, laying blame on the Central Powers instead. Milorad Dodik acknowledged that Bosnia is "still divided", but maintained that Princip was a "freedom fighter" and that Austria-Hungary had been an "occupier". Princip's weapon, along with the car in which the Archduke was riding, his bloodstained uniform and the chaise longue on which he died, are on permanent display in the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum in Vienna, Austria. The bullet fired by Gavrilo Princip, sometimes referred to as "the bullet that started World War I", is a museum exhibit in the Konopiště Castle near the town of Benešov in the Czech Republic. The bronze medallion of Ferdinand and Sophie, which was part of a monument that was erected on the site of the assassination and demolished in 1918 during Yugoslav rule, is currently preserved in the Art Gallery of B&H; in Sarajevo. The Man Who Defended Gavrilo Princip is a 2014 Serbian film follows the story of Sarajevo trial after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Fay, Sidney Bradshaw: Origins of the Great War. New York 1928, Ponting, Clive. Thirteen Days, Chatto & Windus, London, 2002., Stoessinger, John. Why Nations Go to War, Wadsworth Publishing, 2007., Treusch, Wolf Sören. Erzherzog Franz Ferdinand und seine Gemahlin werden in Sarajevo ermordet, DLF, Berlin, 2004 Map of Europe at the time of the assassination of Franz Ferdinand at omniatlas.com, Newsreels about Franz Ferdinand's assassination at www.europeanfilmgateway.eu, Prison Interview with Gavrilo Princip after the Assassination

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"Footprints in the Sand" is a 1980 song by Edgel Groves based on the anonymous poem Footprints in the Sand. The song, which became a one hit wonder for Groves, was written by Jerry Buckner and Gary Garcia of Buckner & Garcia. The song begins with female chorus "Footprints in the sand, he held me in his hand, and gave me strength to face the coming day...", then enters into Groves' reading of the poem "Last night I had a dream..." The B-side is an instrumental version of the song with narration of the poem by disc jockey Johnny Dark. The song has no relation to a 1961 song "Footprints In The Sand" written by Gwynn Elias & Irving Reid which was recorded by Garry Mills, which begins "I was to meet my baby", and then by The Marcels with the refrain "I saw those footprints in the sand, of a woman and a man.". "Footprints in the Sand" is a song recorded by British singer Leona Lewis for her debut studio album Spirit (2007). It was written by Simon Cowell, David Kreuger, Per Magnusson, Richard Page, and produced by Steve Mac. The song was digitally released as Lewis's third single on 9 March 2008 in the United Kingdom. Sony BMG and Syco Music launched it as a double A-side with "Better in Time", and "You Bring Me Down" as the B-side. It is a R&B; and pop song composed with a tempo of sixty beats per minute. It was written in a period of one day at Page's home in Malibu, California, with Cowell giving the idea to base it on the Christian poem "Footprints". The single's music video was filmed by British director Sophie Muller in Johannesburg, South Africa. The video describes social problems within the city, but ends with a message of hope. "Footprints in the Sand" became the official theme of the 2008 version of biennial charity programme Sport Relief, by BBC. The song received positive reviews from music critics, some of them noting its gospel sounds and Lewis's vocals being compared to American R&B; singer Mariah Carey. "Footprints in the Sand" charted as a separate single in Ireland, the United Kingdom and the European Hot 100 Singles, whilst the double A-side appeared in Germany and Switzerland, and was certified gold in the UK by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), in 2008. In the same year, Lewis performed the song for the first time in the UK live on the television programme Dancing on Ice. In 2009, the song was covered by Lucie Jones, a contestant of The X Factor, and by Julia Star from Swiss programme Die grössten Schweizer Talente. "Footprints in the Sand" was written by Simon Cowell, David Kreuger, Per Magnusson and Richard Page, whilst the production was helmed by Steve Mac. It was recorded in 2007 at Rokstone Studios in London, England. Cowell originally came up with the idea to base a song around the Christian poem "Footprints", and suggested it to Kreuger and Magnusson. They had a scheduled session in Page's home in Malibu, California and finished the song the next day. Cowell secured a songwriting credit for coming up with the idea. In an interview with HitQuarters, Magnusson said they had thought the song would be a good idea for Irish boy band Westlife, but it was offered to British singer Leona Lewis instead. When Cowell mentioned the song concept to Lewis, she agreed that it could be "really quite interesting". Regarding the song, Lewis commented: "Originally it was a poem; it's very inspirational so we put it into a song. I think it is very moving, with a very emotional lyric and I really love to sing this song"; and added that the poem "[is] about standing by someone and being there for people who need your help." "Footprints in the Sand" was included on Lewis's debut studio album Spirit, which was released in 2007 by Syco and J Records. The song has a duration of 4:09 and was composed using common time in the key of A major with a larghetto tempo of sixty beats per minute; Lewis's vocals spanned from the low note of E to the high note of G. The song follows the sequence of A–A/B–Fm–E in the verses and A–B–Bm–Fm–G–D in the chorus as its chord progression. It incorporates four instruments: keyboard instruments (a piano, an organ and synthesizers), guitar, bass and drums, and includes a choir performance made by The Tuff Session Singers. It incorporates elements of R&B; and pop musical genres, and, according to music critics, contains a gospel production performed by a choir and features "crashing drums". On 29 January 2008, Lewis announced on her website that "Footprints in the Sand", along with "Better in Time", would be released as a double A-side. The single was launched with the song "You Bring Me Down" as the B-side, and was released in the United Kingdom as a digital download on 9 March 2008, and a physical release on the following day, with proceeds going to the charity. The song was remixed for the single release ("Single Mix"), which, unlike the original version, begins with Lewis's voice only, and music starts after she performs the first verse—the album version of "Footprints in the Sand" starts with a piano tune before she starts to sing the lyrics—, and lasts at 3:58. "Footprints in the Sand" became the official song of the charity Sport Relief, a biennial charity organised by Comic Relief and BBC Sport, for their 2008 broadcast. In her performance, Lewis sang the song to the Sports Relief event. Also, there were musicians that played violas, violins, and a piano, and The Tuff Session Singers performed the chorus. Whilst she sang, images of "sadness and desperation" were shown to the public. But, as the Tuff Session Singers began, the third chorus, those images became pictures of "happiness". As part of promotion, Lewis performed the song live on the British television programme Dancing on Ice on 9 March 2008; her song accompanied Torvill and Dean's ice dance routine. In 2013, Lewis added the song to the setlist of her Glassheart Tour. The accompanying music video was filmed in Johannesburg, South Africa, and was directed by British director Sophie Muller back-to-back with the video for "Better in Time". It premiered on Lewis official website and BBC Radio 1's website on 27 February 2008\. The video begins with the message "Working to change lives across the world, in support of Sport Relief". Then, it intercuts a performance of Lewis in front of a wall and greyscale scenes: an image of a child walking on a landfill site, a funeral, a child lying in the street, and a kid sat in a traffic island. As the first chorus begins, the video continues showing scenes of poverty and AIDS issues in the country. Whilst the second verse goes, pictures of malnourished people appears. As the second chorus and the bridge elapse people crying still coming on the scene. But whereas The Tuff Session Singers start to sing the third chorus, the video begins to show images of kids playing association football and cricket. The video ends with children and people smiling as Lewis sings the outro of the song. It was released on the US iTunes Store on 3 February 2009\. Upon the release of Spirit, "Footprints in the Sand" received generally positive reviews by music critics, with some of them comparing Lewis's performance to other singers such as Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera. In his review of the album, Chris Elwell-Sutton of the Evening Standard commented that the song would be perfect as a "theme to a Disney movie". Whilst reviewing Spirit, Chad Grischow of IGN Music described "Footprints in the Sand", along with "Here I Am", as a "sleeper ballad". Lyndsey Winship, a reviewer from BBC Music, noted that the song "is a piano warbler that brings Leona's voice to the forefront". Sarah-Louise James of Daily Star commented that it contains some Westlife elements, and it would be perfect for a chick flick soundtrack. A reviewer for South African news site iafrica.com described the song as a "show-stopping [...] lush Mariah-style ballad [...] that utilises Lewis'[s] full vocal range and sounds uncannily like Carey at her best. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine called it "drippy", and added that with "Footprints" Lewis would receive comparisons to Carey. Digital Spy's reviewers gave similar opinions about "Footprints in the Sand". Nick Levine in his review of the album called the song an "histrionic finale" of Spirit, and added that it "seems hellbent on revisiting Mariah Carey's schlock-pop masterwork 'Anytime You Need a Friend'". After it was released as a single Alex Fletcher claimed it has "the sort of ludicrous outro even Mariah Carey might consider over-the-top" and that its lyrics "will have your granny in tears". "Footprints in the Sand" charted in Europe, reaching position seventy-three on the European Hot 100 Singles. In November 2007, the song debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number sixty-five, staying on the chart for another week. On 15 March 2008, the single re-entered it at number sixty-three. "Footprints in the Sand" claimed its peak position next week at number twenty-five, staying on the chart for eleven weeks. On the Irish Singles Chart the song debuted and peaked at number fifty; whilst on the Swiss Singles Chart, it debuted on 15 November 2009 at thirty-five, and it stayed there three weeks. The double A-side "Better in Time" and "Footprints in the Sand" debuted at number seventy-four on the UK Singles Chart on 1 March 2008. After selling 40,476 copies it peaked at number two on 22 March 2008, the same week "Footprints in the Sand" debuted in the top forty. It was Lewis's third single to reach the top five in the UK. It was certified as gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on 16 January 2009\. The single debuted on the German Singles Chart on 16 June 2008 at number five, and reached its peak position, at number two, on 28 July 2008\. It also peaked on the European Hot 100 at number eight. Welsh singer Lucie Jones sang "Footprints in the Sand" on the British singing competition programme The X Factor. She performed it on the first show of its sixth edition (2009) Jones received generally positive reviews by her performance, but Cowell criticised her voice for not reach her highest pitch at the end of the song. Swiss singer Julia Star, a programme participant, which is part of the global British Got Talent franchise, covered the song in 2009. In 2011, British easy listening group FourNurses included the song on their album Guiding You. On 1 June 2013, Hungarian shadow theatre group Attraction used "Footprints in the Sand" during their live semi-final performance on Britain's Got Talent. In 2015 wildlife expert Bindi Irwin danced a contemporary freestyle to the song in the finals of season 21 of Dancing with the Stars. CD single , CD single and Swiss CD single "Better in Time" (Single Mix) – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" (Single Mix) – 3:58 German premium single "Better in Time" (Single Mix) – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" (Single Mix) – 3:58, "Bleeding Love" (Moto Blanco Remix Radio Edit) – 3:40, "Better in Time" (Video) – 3:58 Sony single; Swiss maxi single "Better in Time" (Single Mix) – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" (Single Mix) – 3:58, "Bleeding Love" (Moto Blanco Remix Radio Edit) – 3:40 UK Sport Relief CD single "Better in Time" – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" – 4:09, "You Bring Me Down" – 3:54 Footprints in the Sand Leona Lewis – vocals, Carmen Reese – background vocals, The Tuff Session Singers – choirs, Steve Mac – arranger, producer, keyboards and synthesizers, Steve Pearce – bass, Dave Arch – piano, organ, strings arranger, John Paricelli – guitars, Chris Laws – recorder, drums, pro–tools editor, Daniel Pursey – recorder, Hayden Bendall – strings recorder, Richard Page – writer, Per Magnusson – writer, David Kreuger – writer, Simon Cowell – writer You Bring Me Down Leona Lewis – vocals, writer, Salaam Remi – bass, piano, drums, writer, Vincent Henry – saxophone, flute, clarinet, Bruce Purse – trumpet, bass trumpet, flugelhorn, Vlado Meller – master, Manny Marroquin – mixer, Taj Jackson – vocal producer, writer, Gleyder "Gee" Disla – recorder, Franklin "Esoses" Socorro – recorder Music video at YouTube, Lyrics at Leona Lewis Official Website "Better in Time" is a pop and R&B; song performed by British singer Leona Lewis. It was written by J. R. Rotem and Andrea Martin, and was produced by Rotem. It is featured on Lewis's debut album Spirit (2007). "Better in Time" was released on 10 March 2008 as Lewis's third single in the United Kingdom, as a double A-side with "Footprints in the Sand", and "You Bring Me Down" as B-side. It was Lewis's second international single following her hit "Bleeding Love" (2007). Lyrically, "Better in Time" tells the story of a girl who cannot forget her ex-partner, and who knows that "it will all get better in time". Lewis promoted the song on several live television programmes, such as Good Morning America, Live with Regis and Kelly, and on the 2008 American Music Awards, and it was included on the set list of her debut concert tour The Labyrinth (2010). The music video was filmed by Sophie Muller at Hampton Court House School, London in February 2008. On it, Lewis is shown performing in front of several photographic set-ups, and shows what goes on behind the scenes of them. Receiving generally positive reviews by music critics, it was nominated at the Brit Awards in the category "Best British Single". "Better in Time" reached number two in the national music charts of the United Kingdom and Germany, as well as the top ten in several countries, including Australia, Canada, Ireland, Italy and New Zealand. The single was certified gold in Australia, Denmark, Germany, and the UK. "Better in Time" is a pop and R&B; song set in common time composed in a moderate tempo of eighty beats per minute, in the key of G flat major with a vocal range from the tone of C to the note of B. The song has a sequence of G–Bm–Em–G/D–C as its chord progression. Lyrically the song talks about someone who cannot forget her ex-partner, and at the end the protagonist knows that "it will all get better in time". Andrea Martin and J. R. Rotem wrote the song, and Rotem composed and produced it. On 29 January 2008, Lewis announced on her website that "Better in Time", along with "Footprints in the Sand", would be released as a double A-side single on 10 March 2008, as her third single in the United Kingdom, with 2008 Sport Relief, a biennial charity organised by Comic Relief and BBC Sport, selecting "Footprints in the Sand" as their official single. It was also her second international single. A new remix of the song was created for the single release. The double A-side was released with another song, "You Bring Me Down", as a B-side. "Better in Time" received generally positive reviews from music critics. In his review of the album, Chung Ah-young of The Korea Times described the single as "one of the best tracks [on the album] with impressive piano sounds harmonized with [Lewis] powerful vocals". Alex Fletcher from Digital Spy gave a mixed review to the double A-side. He called the single a "placid affair" with "its plinky-plonky piano and R&B; groove resting uncomfortably next to Lewis's creamy vocal style". The BBC's reviewer Fraser McAlpine gave "Better in Time" three stars out of five commenting that "The tune's quite nice, fairly hummable without ever actually going anywhere and despite the floaty, Mariah-esque qualities of Leona's vocals, it never goes completely mental in the throat-breakdancing department". Chuck Taylor of Billboard gave a positive review, stating that the song is of "equal caliber to its predecessor ["Bleeding Love"], with a one-listen hook, elegant chug-along melody, a lyric about healing and Lewis' unquestionably emotive vocal versatility". Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe called it a "love takes time' rumination", and along with another song of the album ("I Will Be"), described it as "predictable". Sean Fennessey for Vibe noted that the track "is the best thing [on the album], is mannered and takes nearly three minutes to get off the ground". It ranked at number four on the "10 Best Singles of 2008" list by American magazine Entertainment Weekly. "Better in Time" was nominated at the 2009 BRIT Awards in the category of Best British Single, and later the song was included on the awards' compilation album. The double A-side "Better in Time" and "Footprints in the Sand" debuted at number 74 on the UK Singles Chart on 1 March 2008; rising 36 places, it debuted in the top 40 the following week, at number 38. On its fourth week, the song reached its peak position at number two, selling 40,476 copies and being beaten to the number one spot by Duffy's "Mercy". With this it became the third single by Lewis to reach the top five in the country. "Better in Time" and "Footprints in the Sand" was certified as silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). In the Australian charts, "Better in Time" debuted at number 32 on 27 April 2008, reaching the top ten two weeks later, her second single to achieve this feat. On 25 May 2008 the single reached its peak position, at number six, and remained within the top fifty for eighteen weeks. The song was later certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). It debuted at number 34 on New Zealand's RIANZ Chart on 17 March 2008, eventually reaching number nine after five weeks, and by its seventh week had climbed to number six, thereby becoming her second consecutive top ten hit in the country. "Better in Time" and "Footprints in the Sand" debuted in the German charts on 16 June 2008 at number five. Although it fell out the top ten the following week, it managed to reach the top five in the issue ending 27 July 2010, and rose to its peak position, at number two, in subsequent days. "Better in Time" entered the German chart on 22 February 2009 at number seventy-nine, where it stayed for three weeks. It achieved a gold certification by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI). In Denmark "Better in Time" entered the charts at number twenty-nine on 9 May 2008, and managed to rise twenty-three places in the next two weeks. On 6 June 2008 the single reached its peak position, number three. Next week, it fell out two places, but it retook its peak the following issue, and the song continued in this position for three weeks. "Better in Time" and "Footprints in the Sand" debuted and peaked at number eight on the European Hot 100 Singles in the issue ending 29 March 2008, becoming the highest debut of the week. Moreover, "Better in Time" was also a success in the chart, the single eventually reached number seven on the chart in the week ending 2 August 2008. In Switzerland, the single entered at number thirteen, becoming the highest release of the week. On 27 July 2008, its ninth week, it reached its peak position at number five, becoming Lewis's second top five in the country. It managed to stay within the top ten for eleven weeks and it was last seen in the chart on 22 March 2009, forty-two weeks after its debut. In the week ending 26 April 2008, "Better in Time" debuted at number sixty-two on the Billboard Hot 100, in the same week that her previous single, "Bleeding Love", topped the chart. Next week it dropped out of the chart but later re-entered the Hot 100 at number seventy-five, becoming the best comeback of the week. The song reached its peak position at number eleven on its fourteenth week, where it stayed for another week. In other charts of the United States, "Better in Time" peaked at number four on the Adult Top 40, ninety-nine on the Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs, three at the Mainstream Top 40, and at number four on the Adult Contemporary chart, where it spent fifty-two weeks on the chart. The single became the seventeenth best-selling single of 2008 in Austria, as well as the twenty-second in Germany and Switzerland, the thirty-sixth in New Zealand, the thirty-seventh in the UK, the fifty-fifth of Australia, the sixty-fourth in the Netherlands, and the seventy-second in Flanders, a region in Belgium. The music video was filmed at Hampton Court House School in London by the British director Sophie Muller in February 2008, and was released at the end of the same month. The video is inspired by fashion design, with Lewis performing in front of "unrelated photographic set-ups", and shows what goes on behind the scenes. In some parts of the video Lewis is shown with a horse. Lewis first performed the song live on the television programme Dancing on Ice on 9 March 2008. Lewis also performed both sides of the single on BBC One's Sport Relief on 14 March 2008, Good Morning America on 4 April 2008, and on the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show along with "Bleeding Love". On 3 September 2008 Lewis performed the song on Live with Regis and Kelly, and on 1 October 2008 on the season finale of America's Got Talent. The song was featured in the 90210 episode "Lucky Strike", originally aired on 9 September 2008. On 24 November 2008, Lewis performed the song at the 2008 American Music Awards. In May 2010, the song was added to the setlist of her The Labyrinth tour, performed as the fourth song of the show. "Better in Time" was included on the tour's live album and Blu-ray The Labyrinth Tour Live from The O2, released on 29 November 2010. In 2011, Lewis performed a reggae version of the song at BBC Radio 1 segment Live Lounge, where she mashed up the single with "Man Down", a song by Rihanna. It is also one of thirty-eight songs included on the benefit album Songs for Japan, a compilation album released in response to the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Tōhoku, Japan), released on 25 March 2011. "Better in Time" was used in the American television series Pretty Little Liars, for the second season finale "unmAsked", in the masquerade ball scene. In 2013, Lewis performed the song along with "Man Down" during her Glassheart Tour. Australian Maxi single and UK Sport Relief CD single "Better in Time" – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" – 4:09, "You Bring Me Down" – 3:54 CD single , CD single , Maxi single, and Swiss CD single "Better in Time" (Single Mix) – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" (Single Mix) – 3:58 German Premium single "Better in Time" (Single Mix) – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" (Single Mix) – 3:58, "Bleeding Love" (Moto Blanco Remix Radio Edit) – 3:40, "Better in Time" (Video) – 3:58 Sony single; Swiss Maxi single, "Better in Time" (Single Mix) – 3:55, "Footprints in the Sand" (Single Mix) – 3:58, "Bleeding Love" (Moto Blanco Remix Radio Edit) – 3:40 Better in Time Leona Lewis – Vocals, J. R. Rotem – Instruments, musical arranger, writer and producer, Greg Ogan – Recorder, Andrea Martin – Writer, Vlado Meller – Master, Serban Ghenea – Mixer, Lyndell Fraser – Pro–tools engineer, Tim Roberts – Pro–tools engineer assistant You Bring Me Down Leona Lewis – Vocals, writer, Salaam Remi – Bass, piano, drums, writer, Vincent Henry – Saxophone, flute, clarinet, Bruce Purse – Trumpet, bass trumpet, flugelhorn, Vlado Meller – Master, Manny Marroquin – Mixer, Taj Jackson – Vocal producer, writer, Gleyder "Gee" Disla – Recorder, Franklin "Esoses" Socorro – Recorder

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Bridget Jones's Baby is a 2016 romantic comedy film directed by Sharon Maguire and written by Helen Fielding, Dan Mazer and Emma Thompson, based on the fictional columns by Fielding. It is the third film in the franchise and a sequel to 2004 film . The film stars Renée Zellweger as Bridget Jones, who after becoming pregnant is unsure if Mark Darcy (Colin Firth, also reprising his role) or Jack Qwant (Patrick Dempsey) is the father. Filming began on 2 October 2015 in London. The film was released theatrically on 16 September 2016 in the United Kingdom and United States and on 5 October in France. It received generally positive reviews and grossed over $211 million worldwide. On her forty-third birthday, Bridget Jones attends the funeral of Daniel Cleaver, presumed dead after a plane crash. She sees her ex Mark Darcy with his new wife Camilla. Bridget now works as a television producer and is close friends with anchor Miranda. After spending the night of her birthday alone, Bridget embraces her single life, accepting Miranda's offer to go to a music festival where she meets a man called Jack. Later that evening a drunk Bridget crawls into a yurt she thinks belongs to her and Miranda, but actually belongs to Jack. Despite the surprise, Jack invites her to stay and the two have a one-night stand. In the morning, finding the bed empty, Bridget leaves, unaware Jack is out getting breakfast for both of them. Returning home, Bridget goes to the christening of Jude's youngest child, where she is the godmother and Mark has been asked to be the godfather at the last minute. Mark tells her that he and his wife are divorcing and Camilla was only at the funeral for moral support. Realising they are still in love, Bridget and Mark spend the night together. Mark says he is travelling for work early the next day, so Bridget exits before he wakes up, leaving behind a note telling him that reconnecting with him is too painful. A few weeks later, Bridget realises she is pregnant. She decides that she wants to keep the baby despite being single, as it might be her last chance to have a child. After a visit to the clinic of Dr. Rawling, she realises that the father could be Mark or Jack. She is unable to contact Jack until Miranda spots him on an TV ad and they realise he is Jack Qwant, a billionaire inventor of a dating website. Miranda conspires with Bridget to have Jack as a guest on their news show so that they can take DNA samples to work out if Jack is the father. Although Bridget tries to stay incognito, Jack recognises her and asks her why she left after their night together. She apologises and decides to tell him that she is pregnant and that he is the father, without mentioning Mark. Initially taken aback at the responsibility of having a child with a stranger, Jack throws himself into the role of being a father. Bridget also tells Mark the news who is so thrilled at the prospect that she cannot find the courage to tell him about Jack. Dr Rawlings tries to administer a DNA test, but Bridget decides not to go ahead with it while her child is still in the womb as she is terrified by the risk of miscarriage. Bridget invites Jack to a work event, and is startled when Mark shows up as well. The two men meet, and the three go out to dinner, where Bridget finally admits that she is unsure who the father is. Although disappointed, Jack takes the news well, but Mark is upset and walks out though he eventually becomes supportive as well. Mark and Jack eventually become jealous of each other and when Jack implies that he and Bridget had sex without condoms Mark leaves and ignores Bridget's calls. Jack asks her to move in with him, but he eventually confesses to Bridget what he told Mark. Upset, Bridget rushes to talk to Mark, but sees his wife arriving at his house, so she walks away. Nine months into her pregnancy Bridget finds herself locked out in the rain. Mark arrives and breaks into the flat for her. After Bridget asks him about his wife at his flat, he informs her that she was there to pick up the last of her things. Just as they are about to kiss, Bridget's water breaks. When his phone rings for work, Mark throws it out the window, which, although romantic, leaves them without a means to call help. They eventually make it to the hospital with some help from Jack. Later Jack apologises to Mark for his behaviour. Bridget gives birth to a boy, and her friends and parents come to visit them. Rawlings takes Mark and Jack away to perform the DNA test, and they genuinely wish each other luck. A year later, Bridget is at church for her wedding to Mark. Jack Qwant attends as a guest and holds onto Bridget and Mark's son William. Later a newspaper lying on a bench reveals that Daniel Cleaver has been found alive. In July 2009, Variety announced that a third installment of the Bridget Jones films was in the early stages of development. Working Title Films confirmed that it would not be based on Helen Fielding's third Bridget Jones novel, but instead would be based on the columns she wrote for The Independent in 2005. On 1 March 2011, it was reported that both Renée Zellweger and Colin Firth were interested in reprising their roles. In July 2011, Paul Feig was in final talks to direct the film based on the script by author Fielding. On 11 August 2011, Universal Studios and Working Title greenlit the third film. On 4 October 2011, Deadline reported that Feig had exited the project due to creative differences with Working Title, and Feig had also worked on the recent draft of the script. Production was slated to begin in January 2012 with the returning cast including Zellweger, Firth, and Hugh Grant. On 30 November 2011, Peter Cattaneo came on board to direct the sequel, newly titled "Bridget Jones's Baby" from a script by Fielding, Feig, and David Nicholls. Producers on board were Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner of Working Title, along with Jonathan Cavendish of Little Bird. The production was delayed due to creative differences between the script of the film and actors, especially Grant as he disliked the script and reportedly Grant had left the project, though this was denied by producer Bevan. However, the producer confirmed that they were working on the script and the film would be made as planned. In April 2013, Firth spoke to the Chicago Sun-Times, stating "unfortunately, it might be a bit of a long wait", and he said he "wouldn't say that it's completely dead in the water, but the way it's going, you might be seeing Bridget Jones's granddaughter's story being told by the time we get there." In an interview on 10 October 2014, Grant mentioned an existing script for a sequel, though he also expressed his dislike for it, and stated that he would not star in the third film. Later in the next week, producers hired Emma Thompson to rewrite the original script written by Fielding and Nicholls. On 25 June 2015, it was reported that final negotiations for the film were going on and Sharon Maguire, director of the first film would return to direct the third film. Gemma Jones and Jim Broadbent were also in talks to return for the third film to join the cast. On 9 September 2015, Patrick Dempsey joined the cast of the film. Filming for a short period began in July 2015 in Dublin, where the first scenes for the film were shot at Ed Sheeran's concert at Croke Park. Official principal photography with the actual cast began on 2 October 2015 in London. The Television Studio interior scenes, the Hospital Ward interiors and various other scenes were shot on Stages 5 and 6 at West London Film Studios. On 13 October 2015, shooting was taking place at Borough Market, and later in October in Windsor Great Park, at Rosy Bottom. According to the Daily Mail, filming took place at a church in Oxfordshire in October; other sources mention filming at St Lawrence's Church, West Wycombe in Buckinghamshire. Filming wrapped up on 27 November 2015. Reshoots took place for one week starting 8 January 2016. In October 2015, Bridget Jones's Baby was set for a 16 September 2016 release. On 23 March the first trailer was released. Like the previous two films, the movie received an R rating in the United States. Zellweger's physical appearance in the trailer for the film has rekindled a debate about the possibility that Zellweger had plastic surgery, which began in 2014 when she re-emerged from a long hiatus. An editorial focused on the trailer for the film by Variety critic Owen Gleiberman titled "Renee Zellweger: If She No Longer Looks Like Herself, Has She Become a Different Actress?" prompted a response from Zellweger, who called the scrutiny over her appearance "sexist" and attributing her difference in appearance solely to "ageing," and wrote an open essay explaining her response in the weeks before the film's release. Bridget Jones's Baby grossed $212 million worldwide, including $24.1 million in the United States and Canada and $60 million in the United Kingdom, against a budget of $35 million. The film was released in North America on 16 September 2016 and was projected to gross $12–16 million in its opening weekend from 2,927 theaters. It made $364,000 from its Thursday night previews and $3 million on its first day. In total, the film made $8.2 million in its opening weekend, falling below projections and scoring the lowest opening of the series. Internationally, where Universal Pictures handled most of the releases, the film fared better and especially in the UK where the previous two installments registered the biggest grossers. It debuted day-and-date in conjuncture with its North American release in 41 countries, including big markets like the UK and Ireland, Russia, Australia, Mexico and Spain in its opening weekend. The film will be released in a total of 62 countries. It scored the biggest opening day in the franchise in the UK, the Netherlands and Latin America including Mexico, Panama and Peru, and had number-one opening days in the UK, Australia, Spain, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Croatia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa and Ukraine. Through Sunday, 18 September, it had an opening weekend of $29.9 million from 39 markets and debuted at number one in 24 of them. It was in second place at the box office, behind A Chinese Odyssey Part Three. It topped the international box office in its second weekend, earning $21.9 million from 47 markets. It recorded the biggest debut in the franchise and had number-one openings in certain markets like Australia ($4.2 million), the Netherlands ($1.9 million), Spain ($1.7 million), Iceland and New Zealand and bowed at second place in France ($3.7 million) and Russia ($1.4 million). In the United Kingdom and Ireland – the biggest market for the first two films – the film opened on Friday, 16 September, and recorded the biggest comedy/romantic comedy opening day ever, as well as the biggest Working Title and September opening of all time with $4 million at 641 theaters. It went on to score a record breaking £8.11 million ($10.5 million) opening and dominated 57% of the total market share which is the biggest romantic comedy opening weekend ever in the UK; the biggest opening weekend ever for Working Title; and the biggest September launch weekend of all time. Excluding previews, the film has the seventh biggest debut of the year. The film fell just 20% in its second weekend to £6.4 million ($8.3 million) and continued to lead the box office for the third consecutive weekend, despite the influx of a row of competitions. After three straight wins, it was surpassed by The Girl on the Train in its fourth weekend. It broke a number of records including the fastest romantic comedy to earn £30 million, doing so on its seventeenth day (the first film took 31 days and the second film took 24 days). It has so far grossed a total of $54 million there becoming the biggest market outside of North America like its predecessors. Adjusted for inflation it is the lowest- grossing film behind both the films (£73.1 million and £57.8 million respectively). After 31 days of playing in theaters, the film became the biggest film in the franchise in the United Kingdom with £42.24 million, surpassing the first film's final gross of £42 million. It currently sits as the third biggest film of 2016 behind Finding Dory (£42.25 million) and The Jungle Book (£46.1 million). In Netherlands, it is the highest-grossing Working Title picture of all time with $8.1 million — passing Notting Hill (1999), which held the record for 17 years. Bridget Jones's Baby received generally positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 78%, based on 207 reviews, with an average rating of 6.33/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Bridget Jones's Baby might be late on arrival, but fans of the series should still find its third installment a bouncing bundle of joy." On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews, the film has a score 59 out of 100, based on 42 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason is a 2004 romantic comedy film directed by Beeban Kidron and written by Adam Brooks, Richard Curtis, Andrew Davies, and Helen Fielding, based on Fielding's . It stars Renée Zellweger as Bridget Jones, Colin Firth as Mark Darcy, and Hugh Grant as Daniel Cleaver. The sequel to Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), the film was released in the United Kingdom on 12 November 2004 and in the United States a week later on 19 November 2004 to generally negative reviews from film critics. Despite this, the film was a box office success, grossing over $260 million worldwide. Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger) is ecstatic about her new relationship with Mark Darcy (Colin Firth). However, Bridget's confidence is shattered when she meets Mark's assistant, the beautiful, slim, quick-witted Rebecca Gillies (Jacinda Barrett). At her job on TV morning show Sit-Up Britain, Bridget crosses paths with her ex, Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant), and is offered a position alongside Cleaver in a new travel series. Bridget initially refuses, declaring Daniel a "deceitful, sexist, disgusting specimen of humanity," but eventually signs on, despite her friends' misgivings. Bridget is delighted when Mark invites her to his "Law Council Dinner," believing he will propose afterward. However, a series of fashion/cosmetic mishaps make the evening a debacle, culminating in the team trivia quiz: Bridget makes a critical error on a question about Madonna, which Rebecca Gillies wins, leaving Bridget thoroughly deflated. After the dinner, Mark and Bridget argue and she leaves in a huff. Mark goes to Bridget's apartment, apologizes, and tells her he loves her for the first time. Later that night, Mark invites Bridget on a ski holiday to Lech, Austria. On the slopes, she learns Rebecca recommended the vacation spot and that she is there as well with a few other colleagues. Bridget suspects that she is pregnant since her period is late, but after an argument over the upbringing and education of their future children, the pregnancy test proves negative. Returning home, Bridget and Mark attend a lunch with their parents, where Bridget is hurt by Mark’s dismissal of their prospective marriage. Bridget overhears a suspicious message from Rebecca on Mark's answering machine and dissects it with her friends, who advise her to confront him; Bridget does, Mark refuses "to dignify the question with an answer,” and Bridget breaks up with him. She travels to Thailand with her friend, Shazzer (Sally Phillips) and Daniel Cleaver to film "The Smooth Guide." Bridget and Daniel visit several exotic locations and flirtily reconnect, but Bridget’s trust in Daniel is again demolished by the arrival of a prostitute he ordered, and she realizes he has not changed his boorish ways. Shazzer has a fling with the much younger Jed (Paul Nicholls), who gives her an ivory tusk as a gift to take back to Britain, which winds up in Bridget's bag. When security dogs at the airport detect a large stash of cocaine inside the tusk, Bridget is arrested and sent to a Thai prison and locked in a cell with almost 50 other Thai female inmates. Feeling low and scared but glad at the friendliness of the inmates, Bridget shares relationship advice with the other inmates and teaches them to sing and dance to Madonna's "Like a Virgin." Mark arrives to tell Bridget that her release has been put in motion. After confirming Jed as the true perpetrator and that Bridget "spent the night” with Daniel Cleaver, he declares that her sex life does not interest him; Bridget does not correct his presumption, and he departs, leaving Bridget certain he no longer loves her. Back in Britain, Mark confronts Daniel for abandoning Bridget in Thailand, and they fight outside an art gallery in Kensington Gardens. Daniel swears off Bridget for good and sarcastically suggests to Mark, "Why don't you just marry her?" Bridget arrives at Heathrow Airport as an international human rights celebrity. She is greeted by her parents, who have been busy planning their vow renewal ceremony. At home, Bridget is surprised by her friends, who reveal that Mark personally tracked down the drug trafficker Jed, secured his custody and extradition, and forced him to admit Bridget's innocence. Hopeful that Mark still loves her, Bridget immediately runs to his house. She finds Rebecca there and assumes she is romantically involved with Mark, but Rebecca reveals that she is actually infatuated with Bridget and kisses her; though flattered, Bridget politely turns her down. Bridget confronts Mark at his legal chambers and asks him to give her another chance. Mark proposes to Bridget and she accepts. The film ends with Bridget's parents renewing their vows and Bridget catching the bouquet. Renée Zellweger as Bridget Jones, Colin Firth as Mark Darcy, Hugh Grant as Daniel Cleaver, Gemma Jones as Mrs Pamela Jones, Jim Broadbent as Mr. Colin Jones, Celia Imrie as Una Alconbury, James Faulkner as Uncle Geoffrey, Jacinda Barrett as Rebecca Gillies, Sally Phillips as Sharon "Shazza", Shirley Henderson as Jude, James Callis as Tom, Neil Pearson as Richard Finch, Donald Douglas as Admiral Darcy, Shirley Dixon as Mrs. Darcy, David Verrey as Giles, Jeremy Paxman as Himself, Ian McNeice as Quizmaster, Jessica Stevenson as Magda, Paul Nicholls (special participation) as Jed, Wolf Kahler as Commentator, Catherine Russell as Camilla, Ting-Ting Hu as Thai prostitute, Jason Watkins as Charlie Parker-Knowles, Vee Vimolmal as phrao, Neil Dudgeon as taxi driver, Pui Fan Lee and Melissa Ashworth as Thai jail girls Principal photography began in 6 October 2003 and concluded in 15 February 2004. Filming took place in Southwark and Primrose Hill. The skiing scenes took place in Lech (Vorarlberg), western Austria. During the fight scene between Daniel and Mark at the "Serpentine Gallery in Kensington Gardens" (actually filmed in the Italian Gardens near Lancaster Gate), it was for the most part not choreographed, instead, the actors were simply asked to fight each other any way they could. At one point in the film (where Bridget and Shazzer are at the Thai airport), Bridget indulges in a fantasy of Mark coming out of water in a wet white shirt, just like Colin Firth did in the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice. The poem that Daniel quotes from while passing Ko Panyi is the story of "Phra Aphai Mani" by Sunthorn Phu. One of the more significant differences between the novel and the film is that the film makes no mention of Bridget's fascination with the BBC television version of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (Colin Firth starred in that production.) Sandra Gregory stated that the scenes involving the Thai prison probably received inspiration from her incident since Helen Fielding knew the next door neighbors of her parents and presumably would have talked to them. Although the film received mostly negative reviews from film critics, it was voted Evening Standard Readers' Film of 2004, was in the shortlist for the Orange Film of the Year award at 2005 BAFTAs and the second interpretation of Bridget gained Zellweger another Golden Globe nomination and the People's Choice Award as Favorite Leading Lady of 2005. The film holds a 27% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus stating: "Edge of Reason is a predictable continuation to the Bridget Jones story, with too much slapstick and silliness." Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason opened in the United States on a limited release on 12 November 2004 and grossed $8,684,055, at #5 at the box office; a week later, the film was given a wide release, again hitting #5 at the box office, this time with $10,044,890. By the end of its theatrical run, it had grossed $40,226,215 domestically and $222,294,509 internationally, totaling $262,520,724 worldwide. In July 2009, the BBC reported that a third film was in the early stages of production. On 1 March 2011 it was reported that both Renée Zellweger and Colin Firth had shown interest in reprising their roles. An announcement was made on August 11, 2011 that a third film was greenlit by Universal Pictures, Miramax and Working Title. Colin Firth talked to The Chicago Sun Times in April 2013. "Unfortunately, it might be a bit of a long wait," he said. "I wouldn't say that it's completely dead in the water, but the way it's going, you might be seeing Bridget Jones's granddaughter's story being told by the time we get there." In an interview in October 2014, Hugh Grant mentioned an existing script for a sequel, however also expressed his dislike for it and that he would not star in a third film. Filming officially began on 2 October 2015. The movie opened on 16 September 2016. The film was released on DVD in 2004 with a variety of bonus features. Bridget Jones Online Archive Renée Kathleen Zellweger (; born April 25, 1969) is an American actress and producer. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and four Golden Globe Awards. Zellweger was one of the highest-paid actresses in the world by 2007 and was named Hasty Pudding Theatricals' Woman of the Year in 2009. Born in Texas, Zellweger studied Literature at UT Austin and had her first starring role in (1994). She subsequently earned early acclaim with her appearance in Empire Records (1995) and gained wider recognition for her roles in Jerry Maguire (1996), One True Thing (1998), and Me, Myself and Irene (2000). The romantic comedy Nurse Betty (2000), for which she won her first Golden Globe, marked the beginning of the most successful period of her career. For her portrayals of Bridget Jones in the romantic comedy Bridget Jones's Diary (2001) and Roxie Hart in the musical crime drama Chicago (2002), she garnered consecutive nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She reprised her role as Bridget Jones in two equally successful sequels (2004, 2016). Zellweger won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a loquacious farmer in the American Civil War drama Cold Mountain (2003). She played the wife of boxer James J. Braddock in Cinderella Man (2005) and author Beatrix Potter in Miss Potter (2006). After starring roles in smaller scale films, such as Appaloosa (2008), My One and Only (2009), and Case 39 (2009), she had a six-year hiatus from the screen. In 2019, Zellweger starred in the Netflix thriller anthology series What/If and garnered critical acclaim for portraying Judy Garland in the biopic Judy, with the latter earning her the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama and a fourth Academy Award nomination. Renée Kathleen Zellweger was born on April 25, 1969, in Katy, Texas. Her father, Emil Erich Zellweger, is from the Swiss town of Au, St. Gallen and descends from an Appenzell noble family. He was a mechanical and electrical engineer who worked in the oil refining business. Her mother, Kjellfrid Irene (née Andreassen), is Norwegian of Kven and Sámi descent. Kjellfrid grew up in Ekkerøy near Vadsø, as well as Kirkenes, and was a nurse and midwife who moved to the United States to work as a governess for a Norwegian family in Texas. Referring to her religious background, Zellweger has described herself as being raised in a family of "lazy Catholics and Episcopalians." Zellweger attended Katy High School, where she was a cheerleader, gymnast, speech team member, and drama club member. She also participated in soccer, basketball, baseball, and football. In 1986, her academic paper, "The Karankawas and Their Roots", won third place in the first ever Houston Post High School Natural Science Essay Contest. After high school, she enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1991. While at the university, Zellweger took a drama course as an elective, which sparked her interest in acting. In Zellweger's junior year, her father lost his job and was unable to support her at college, so she took a job as a cocktail waitress in Austin, Texas. Zellweger said of the job, "I learned a lot. As much as I did in my classes that that club paid for... I learned not to judge people, [and] that things are not black and white." Zellweger began getting small parts acting, and earned her Screen Actors Guild card for doing a Coors Light commercial. Also while in college, she did "a bit part ... as a local hire" in the Austin-filmed horror-comedy film My Boyfriend's Back, playing "the girl in the beauty shop, maybe two lines. But the beauty shop [scene] got cut." Her first job after graduation was working in a beef commercial, while simultaneously auditioning for roles around Houston, Texas. While still in Texas, Zellweger appeared in several independent and low-budget films. One was A Taste for Killing (1992), followed by a role in the ABC miniseries Murder in the Heartland (1993). In 1994, she appeared in Reality Bites, the directorial debut of Ben Stiller, and in the biographical film 8 Seconds, directed by John G. Avildsen. Her first main role in a movie came with the 1994 horror film , alongside Matthew McConaughey, playing a teenager who leaves a prom early with three friends who get into a car accident, which leads to their meeting a murderous family, led by the iconic Leatherface. While the film went unnoticed, Joe Leydon for Variety magazine lauded Zellweger, calling her "the most formidable scream queen since Jamie Lee Curtis went legit." In her next film, the crime comedy Love and a .45 (1994), Zellweger played a woman who plans a robbery with her boyfriend. Although the film received a limited release in theaters, Marc Savlov of Austin Chronicle applauded the main cast saying they were "all excellent in their roles" and noted that "Zellweger's character – all squeals and caged sexuality – seems a bit too close to Juliette Lewis' Mallory Knox (of Natural Born Killers) to be as fresh as it should be". The part earned her an Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance. Zellweger subsequently relocated to Los Angeles, a move she had postponed several times because she believed she lacked the talent and experience to be a competitive actor in that city. She would next appear in the coming-of-age drama Empire Records (1995). Rotten Tomatoes' consensus was: "Despite a terrific soundtrack and a strong early performance from Renee Zellweger, Empire Records is mostly a silly and predictable teen dramedy." Zellweger became widely known to audiences with Jerry Maguire (1996), in which she played a single mother and the romantic interest of a glossy sports agent (Tom Cruise). The film received unanimous critical acclaim and grossed over US$273 million worldwide. It was Cruise who chose her to play his love interest and later credited her with "revealing the core humanity of the movie". Roger Ebert, showing approval of Zellweger and Cruise's chemistry in it, wrote: "The film is often a delight, especially when Cruise and Zellweger are together on the screen. He plays Maguire with the earnestness of a man who wants to find greatness and happiness in an occupation where only success really counts. She plays a woman who believes in this guy she loves, and reminds us that true love is about idealism." She was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role. In the religious drama A Price Above Rubies (1998), Zellweger starred as a young woman who finds it difficult to conform to the restrictions imposed on her by the community. The film flopped at the box office, but Zellweger was applauded by some critics such as Ebert, who, once again impressed by her, stated that she gave a "ferociously strong performance". Zellweger also starred in the 1998 drama One True Thing, opposite William Hurt and Meryl Streep, as a woman forced to put her life on hold in order to care for her mother who is dying of cancer. One True Thing took in a modest US$23 million in the US, but had a positive critical response; Variety magazine's Todd McCarthy stated about Zellweger: "Projecting gravity and impatience that she hasn't shown before, Zellweger is outstanding as the smart young woman who resents the interruption to her life's momentum but ends up growing in ways she never would have expected." After playing the female lead opposite Chris O'Donnell in the little-seen romantic comedy The Bachelor (1999), Zellweger starred in the Farrelly brothers comedy Me, Myself & Irene (2000), with Jim Carrey, as a woman on the run for what she believes is a false accusation set up by her mob-connected ex-boyfriend. The film was a commercial success, grossing US$149 million worldwide. In Nurse Betty (also 2000), a black comedy directed by Neil LaBute and alongside Morgan Freeman, Zellweger played a Kansas waitress who suffers a nervous breakdown after witnessing her husband's murder. San Francisco Chronicle found the actress to be "a performer who emanates kindness and a pure heart", and Variety remarked: "Few actresses can convey the kind of honesty and humanity that Zellweger does here — it's hard to imagine the film without her dominant, thoroughly credible performance". She won her first Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, but she was in the bathroom when future co-star Hugh Grant announced her name. Zellweger later protested: "I had lipstick on my teeth!" In 2001, Zellweger gained the prized lead role of Bridget Jones, opposite Hugh Grant and Colin Firth, in the British romantic comedy Bridget Jones's Diary, based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Helen Fielding. The choice came amid much controversy since she was neither British nor overweight and did not smoke. During casting, Zellweger was told she was too thin to play the chubby, chain-smoking Bridget, so she quickly embarked on gaining the required weight (20 pounds) and learning an English accent while she smoked herbal cigarettes. Besides receiving voice coaching to fine-tune her accent, part of Zellweger's preparations involved spending three weeks working undercover in a "work experience placement" for British publishing firm Picador in Victoria, London. Her performance as Bridget received praise from critics with Stephen Holden of The New York Times commenting, "Ms. Zellweger accomplishes the small miracle of making Bridget both entirely endearing and utterly real." This role won her a second Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, and her first Academy Award and BAFTA Award nominations for Best Leading Actress. Bridget Jones's Diary was a major commercial success, earning US$281 million worldwide. Zellweger took on the role of a former actress serving as a foster mother, alongside Michelle Pfeiffer, in the drama White Oleander, for which she received a Satellite Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress – Drama. She also portrayed Roxie Hart in the 2002 musical film Chicago, directed by Rob Marshall and co-starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, and John C. Reilly. The movie garnered wide critical acclaim and won the Best Picture award at the 75th Academy Awards. Writing for The Daily Telegraph, Tim Robey labeled Chicago as the "best screen musical [since 1972's Cabaret]", and the San Francisco Chronicle commented, "Zellweger is a joy to watch, with marvelous comic timing and, in her stage numbers, a commanding presence". She earned her second Academy Award and BAFTA Award nominations for Best Leading Actress, winning her second Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role. In 2003, following the success of Chicago, Zellweger starred with Ewan McGregor in the little-seen romantic comedy Down with Love, as a woman advocating female independence in the 1950s and early 1960s, and appeared in Anthony Minghella's war drama Cold Mountain, opposite Nicole Kidman and Jude Law, playing a woman who helps a farmer following her father's presumed death. The film garnered several award nominations and wins for its actors; Zellweger won the award for Best Supporting Actress at the 76th Academy Awards, the 61st Golden Globe Awards, the 10th Screen Actors Guild Awards, and the 57th British Academy Film Awards. In 2004, Zellweger provided her voice for the DreamWorks animated feature Shark Tale, and reprised her title role in , which made US$262 million around the globe and earned her a fourth Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy nomination. In 2005, she played the wife of world heavyweight boxing champion James J. Braddock in Ron Howard's drama Cinderella Man, opposite Russell Crowe and Paul Giamatti. In his review for the film, David Ansen of Newsweek, wrote that the actress "has an uncanny ability to make us swallow even the most movie-ish moments". On May 24, 2005, Zellweger received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Zellweger portrayed acclaimed author Beatrix Potter in the biographical comedy Miss Potter, with Emily Watson and Ewan McGregor. She also served as an executive producer as she wanted to get more involved in the production. William Arnold, of Seattle Post-Intelligencer concluded that Renée "strikes just the right chord of inspiration, eccentricity and uncompromising artistic drive," For her portrayal, she earned her sixth nomination for the Golden Globe Award (and her fifth one in the category of Best Actress – Musical or Comedy). In 2007, she landed her voice in the animated family comedy Bee Movie and was awarded the Women in Film Crystal award. With George Clooney in his directorial venture, the period comedy Leatherheads (2008), about the early years of professional American football, Zellweger portrayed a Chicago Tribune newspaper reporter. The film received largely mixed reviews and made US$13.5 million in its opening weekend, described as "disappointing" by website Box Office Mojo. MTV.com praised the actress for "displaying an unexpected gift for drawling sarcasm", but Kevin Williamson for website Jam! criticized her role, remarking that she, "as the kind of lippy heroine epitomized by Rosalind Russell, is miscast in a role that demands snark, not sleepy-eyed sweetness". In the western Appaloosa (2008), Zellweger played a beguiling widow opposite Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen. The film earned critical acclaim but grossed a modest US$20 million at the North American box office. Zellweger produced the made-for-television feature Living Proof, starring Harry Connick Jr., about the true story of Dr. Denny Slamon. It was co-produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, and premiered in October 2008 on Lifetime Television. Her next film was the 2009 comedy New in Town, in which she played a Miami high-powered consultant adjusting to her new life in a small Minnesota town. The movie rated poorly with reviewers and made a lackluster US$16 million in its domestic theatrical run. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian stated that her "rabbity, dimply pout – surely the strangest facial expression in Hollywood – simpers and twitches out of the screen in this moderate girly flick that adheres with almost religious fanaticism to the feelgood romcom handbook". In 2009, she also provided her voice for a supporting character in DreamWorks' computer-animated 3D feature film Monsters vs. Aliens, and starred as the mother of actor George Hamilton in the comedy My One and Only, which despite being distributed for a limited release to certain parts of the United States only, was acclaimed by critics. Bill Gray, of Entertainment Weekly felt that she played her part "to her strengths", and reviewer Mick LaSalle found her performance to be a "standout". Zellweger took on the role of a social worker assigned to a mysterious girl in Case 39, a supernatural thriller she had filmed in 2006. The title had a lengthy post- production and was not released in theaters in the United States until 2010. It was universally panned by critics and only earned US$5.3 million in its opening weekend, leading Indiewire to write that Zellweger "faces an [u]ncertain [f]uture" as she was in "an unforgiving industry that doles out few juicy roles for women over 40." The road drama My Own Love Song, in which she played a former singer suffering from paralysis, was screened at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival, and released for DVD. After My Own Love Song was released, Zellweger took a six-year hiatus from screen acting, as she found the time to "go away and grow up a bit". Reflecting on this period of time in a July 2016 interview with British Vogue, she explained: "I was fatigued and wasn't taking the time I needed to recover between projects, and it caught up with me [...] I got sick of the sound of my own voice". In 2013, Zellweger co- created and executive produced Cinnamon Girl, an original drama series set in the Hollywood movie and music scenes of the late 1960s and early 1970s, but the Lifetime network passed on the pilot. Following her six-year hiatus from acting, Zellweger made her career comeback opposite Colin Firth and Patrick Dempsey in the romantic comedy Bridget Jones's Baby (2016), the third part in the Bridget Jones franchise, portraying Jones in her forties and single as she discovers that she is pregnant and must work out who the father is. It was met with a positive response by critics and grossed US$211.9 million worldwide. Village Voice found the movie to be "the warmest and most satisfying of the series" and concluded that Zellweger's "wise, light-hearted performance anchors this happy reunion, a surprising and refreshing gift from a creative well that seemed to have run dry". In the crime drama The Whole Truth, directed by Courtney Hunt and opposite Keanu Reeves, Zellweger took the role of Loretta Lassiter, the mother of a teenager suspected of murdering his wealthy father. Filmed in New Orleans in July 2014, The Whole Truth was released on October 21, 2016, for selected theaters and video-on-demand, receiving average reviews. Variety remarked: "Truth be told, [Reeves and Zellweger] deserve better than this predictable courtroom drama". In Same Kind of Different as Me (2017), a film adaptation of the autobiographical book by the same name, Zellweger starred with Djimon Hounsou, Olivia Holt and Jon Voight, as the wife of an art dealer whose struggling relationship is changed for the better by a homeless man. The film received mixed reviews from critics and was a moderate commercial success. The Wrap, nevertheless, remarked: "Zellweger, in fact, delivers a gentle, thoughtful, yet headstrong performance as the wife who digs in her heels to get human decency out of the people she cares for the most". She played the friend of a New York City singer who gets a life-changing medical diagnosis in the independent drama Here and Now (2018), opposite Sarah Jessica Parker. Despite her brief appearance in the film, Entertainment Weekly saw it highlighted by "the magnetic [actress], barely concealing her suburban rage behind a cheerfully swirled glass of wine." In 2019, Zellweger first starred as Anne Montgomery in the Netflix thriller miniseries What/If. Although the show received mixed reviews from critics, Zellweger's performance was praised with Haider Rifaat of The Express Tribune writing, "Not to forgo the incredible acting prowess of Zellweger, who impeccably embraces the character of Anne. Subtle gestures, symbolic interaction and character development are some commendable aspects that intensify the actors' performances." In the same year, she starred as Judy Garland in the biopic Judy. Based on the West End and Broadway play End of the Rainbow, the film chronicles the last years of Garland's life, shortly before her death in 1969. Zellweger performed her own vocals in the film and her songs had to be performed in front of a live audience. The film premiered at the Telluride Film Festival, where it generated positive reviews with Zellweger's performance garnering widespread critical acclaim. Zoe Gahan of Vanity Fair found her to be "witty, sharp and devastating in the title role" and added that "it is hard to tell where Garland stops and Zellweger starts". Peter Travers of Rolling Stone opined, "Zellweger performs miracles playing Judy Garland: singing her heart out, baring her bruised soul and acting with a ferocity that ultimately rises to a state of grace." For her performance in Judy, Zellweger has won multiple awards, including the Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress, in addition to receiving her fourth Academy Award nomination. Zellweger has appeared on the covers and photo sessions of several magazines throughout her career; she appeared on the September 1997 cover of Vanity Fair, and in subsequent years, the list has grown to include Vogue, Detour, Allure and Harper's Bazaar. Zellweger often attracts attention for her style on awards shows and red carpet events, specifically for her frequent use of dresses designed by Carolina Herrera, a close friend who has worked with the actress for over 15 years after they met at a Costume Institute gala. She also is a frequent guest star at New York Fashion Week, among other fashion events. In April 1997, Vanity Fair named her part of "Hollywood's Next Wave of Stars". She was placed on E!'s "Top 20 Entertainers of 2001" list and was chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world in 2003. She also ranked number 72 in the "Top 100 Celebrities" list made by Forbes in 2006, and the following year, she was placed at 20 among "the 20 richest women in entertainment", by the magazine. After Zellweger's appearance at the 21st- annual Elle magazine Women in Hollywood Awards in October 2014, there was media and social commentary that she was hardly recognizable, which resulted in speculation that she had undertaken substantial cosmetic surgery. Zellweger responded, "Perhaps I look different. Who doesn't as they get older?! Ha. But I am different. I'm happy." From 1999 to 2000, Zellweger was engaged to Jim Carrey. In 2003, she had a brief relationship with musician Jack White. In May 2005, Zellweger married singer Kenny Chesney. Four months later the couple obtained an annulment. In 2009, she started dating Bradley Cooper, after having met on the set of Case 39 in 2009. They separated in 2011. From 2012 to 2019, she was in a relationship with Doyle Bramhall II, who is a musician, songwriter, and producer. Zellweger took part in the 2005 HIV prevention campaign of the Swiss federal health department. Zellweger is one of the patrons for gender equality foundation The GREAT Initiative; in 2011 she visited Liberia with the charity. In April 2011, she collaborated with Tommy Hilfiger to design a handbag to raise money and awareness for the Breast Health Institute. "Because of the experiences of close friends and family members who have had to endure and battle the challenges of breast cancer, I am a passionate supporter of breast health education and charitable causes," Zellweger stated about joining the campaign. In 2004, Zellweger won the Academy Award, the Golden Globe, the BAFTA Award and the SAG Award for Best Supporting Actress for Cold Mountain. She received seven Golden Globe Award nominations, winning four for her performances in Nurse Betty (2000), Chicago (2002), Cold Mountain (2003), and Judy (2019). She was awarded Germany's Golden Camera Award for Best International Actress in 2010. Renee Zellweger at Box Office Mojo

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The Muslim conquest of the Levant (, Al-Faṫṫḥul-Islāmiyyuash-Shām), also known as the Arab conquest of the Levant (, Al-Faṫṫḥul-ʿArabiyyu Lish-Shām) occurred in the first half of the 7th century. This was the conquest of the region known as the Levant or Shaam (, 'Syria'), later to become the Islamic Province of Bilad al-Sham, as part of the Islamic conquests. Arab Muslim forces had appeared on the southern borders even before the death of prophet Muhammad in 632, resulting in the Battle of Mu'tah in 629, but the real conquest began in 634 under his successors, the Rashidun Caliphs Abu Bakr and Umar ibn Khattab, with Khalid ibn al-Walid as their most important military leader. Syria had been under Roman rule for seven centuries prior to the Arab Muslim conquest and had been invaded by the Sassanid Persians on a number of occasions during the 3rd, 6th and 7th centuries; it had also been subject to raids by the Sassanids' Arab allies, the Lakhmids. During the Roman period, beginning after the fall of Jerusalem in the year 70, the entire region (Judea, Samaria, and the Galilee) was renamed Palaestina, subdivided into Diocese I and II. The Romans also renamed an area of land including the Negev, Sinai, and the west coast of the Arabian Peninsula as Palaestina Salutaris, sometimes called Palaestina III or Palaestina Tertia. Part of the area was ruled by the Arab vassal state of the Ghassanids' symmachos. During the last of the Roman-Persian Wars, beginning in 603, the Persians under Khosrau II had succeeded in occupying Syria, Palestine and Egypt for over a decade before being forced by the victories of Heraclius to conclude the peace of 628. Thus, on the eve of the Muslim conquests the Romans (or Byzantines as modern Western historians conventionally refer to Romans of this period) were still in the process of rebuilding their authority in these territories, which in some areas had been lost to them for almost twenty years. Politically, the Syrian region consisted of two provinces: Syria proper stretched from Antioch and Aleppo in the north to the top of the Dead Sea. To the west and south of the Dead Sea lay the province of Palestine. Syria was mostly a Syriac and Hellenized land with some Jewish presence and with a partly Arab population, especially in its eastern and southern parts. The Syriacs, Greeks, Jews and Arabs had been there since pre-Roman times, and some had embraced Christianity since Constantine I legalized it in the fourth century and moved the capital from Italy to Byzantium (renamed Constantinople), from which the name Byzantine is derived. Eventually, after the religious tension and conflict led to a forced migration by most of the Jews towards places outside the control sphere of the Byzantine Empire (mostly under Heraclius), the majority of the indigenous and foreign populations presented in the land was Christianised, with a small Jewish and Samaritan (who were also heavily persecuted by the Christians with a struggle in the shape of the Samaritan revolts) minorities remaining and an increasing number of Christian immigrants settling in the land. The Arabs of Syria were people of no consequence until the migration of the powerful Ghassanid tribe from Yemen to Syria, who converted to Christianity and thereafter ruled a semi-autonomous state with their own king under Roman vassalage. The Ghassanid Dynasty became one of the honoured princely dynasties of the Empire, with the Ghassanid king ruling over the Arabs in Jordan and Southern Syria from his capital at Bosra. The last of the Ghassanid kings, who ruled at the time of the Muslim invasion, was Jabla bin Al Aiham. The Byzantine (Roman) Emperor Heraclius, after re-capturing Syria from the Sassanians, set up new defense lines from Gaza to the south end of the Dead Sea. These lines were only designed to protect communications from bandits, and the bulk of the Byzantine defenses were concentrated in Northern Syria facing the traditional foes, the Sassanid Persians. The drawback of this defense line was that it enabled the Muslims, advancing from the desert in the south, to reach as far north as Gaza before meeting regular Byzantine troops. The 7th century was a time of rapid military change in the Byzantine Empire. The empire was certainly not in a state of collapse when it faced the new challenge from Arabia after being exhausted by recent Roman–Persian Wars, but utterly failed to tackle the challenge effectively. Military confrontations with the Byzantine Empire began during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad. The Battle of Mu'tah was fought in September 629 near the village of Mu'tah, east of the Jordan River and Karak in Karak Governorate, between the forces of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and of the Byzantine Empire and their Arab Christian Ghassanid vassals. In Islamic historical sources, the battle is usually described as the Muslims' attempt to take retribution against the Ghassanids after a Ghassanid official executed Muhammad's emissary who was en route to Bosra. During the battle the Muslim army was routed. After three Muslim leaders were killed, the command was given to Khalid ibn al-Walid and he succeeded in saving the rest of the forces. The surviving Muslim forces retreated to Medina. After the Farewell Pilgrimage in 632, the Prophet Muhammad appointed Usama ibn Zayd as the commander of an expeditionary force which was to invade the region of Balqa in the Byzantine Empire. This expedition was known as the Expedition of Usama bin Zayd and its stated aim was to avenge the Muslim losses at the Battle of Mu'tah, in which Usama's father and Muhammad's adopted son, Zayd ibn Harithah, had been killed. Usama's expedition in May/June 632 was successful and his army was the first Muslim force to successfully invade and raid Byzantine territory. Muhammad died in June 632, and Abu Bakr was appointed Caliph and political successor at Medina. Soon after Abu Bakr's succession, several Arab tribes revolted against him in the Ridda wars (Arabic for the Wars of Apostasy). The Campaign of the Apostasy was fought and completed during the eleventh year of the Hijri. The year 12 Hijri dawned, on 18 March 633, with Arabia united under the central authority of the Caliph at Medina. Whether Abu Bakr intended a full-out imperial conquest or not is hard to say; he did, however, set in motion a historical trajectory that in just a few short decades would lead to one of the largest empires in history, starting with a confrontation with the Persian Empire under the general Khalid ibn al-Walid. After successful campaigns against the Sassanids and the ensuing conquest of Iraq, Khalid established his stronghold in Iraq. While engaged with Sassanid forces, he also confronted the Ghassanids, Arab clients of the Byzantines. Medina soon recruited tribal contingents from all over the Arabian peninsula. Only those who had rebelled during the Ridda wars were excluded from the summons and remained excluded from Rashidun armies until 636, when Caliph Umar fell short of manpower for the Battle of Yarmouk and the Battle of al- Qādisiyyah. The tradition of raising armies from tribal contingents remained in use until 636, when Caliph Umar organised the army as a state department. Abu Bakr organised the army into four corps, each with its own commander and objective. Amr ibn al-A'as: Objective Palestine. Move on Elat route, then across Valley of Arabah., Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan: Objective Damascus. Move on Tabuk route., Shurahbil ibn Hasana: Objective Jordan. Move on Tabuk route after Yazid., Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah: Objective Emesa. Move on Tabuk route after Shurahbil. Not knowing the precise position of the Byzantine army, Abu Bakr ordered that all corps should remain in touch with each other so that they could render assistance if the Byzantines were able to concentrate their army in any operational sector. In case the corps had to concentrate for one major battle, Abu Ubaidah was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the entire army. In the first week of April 634, the Muslim forces began to move from their camps outside Medina. The first to leave was Yazid's corps, followed by Shurahbil, Abu Ubaidah and Amr, each a day's march from the other. Abu Bakr walked for a short distance by the side of each corps commander. His parting words which he repeated to each of the corps commanders, were as follows: Moving to their assigned target beyond Tabouk, Yazid's corps made contact with a small Christian Arab force that was retreating after a skirmish with the Muslim advance guard, after which Yazid made for the Valley of Arabah where it meets the southern end of the Dead Sea. As the main Byzantine defence line started from the coastal regions near Ghazahh, Yazid arrived at the Valley of Araba at about the same time as Amr bin Al Aas reached Elat. The two forward detachments sent by the Byzantine army to prevent the entry of Yazid's and Amr's corps, respectively, into Palestine, were easily defeated by them, though they did prevent the Rashidun forces from reaching their assigned objective. Abu Ubaidah and Shurhabil, on the other hand, continued their march, and by early May 634 they reached the region between Bosra and Jabiya. The Emperor Heraclius, having received intelligence of the movements of the Muslim armies from his Arab clients, began to plan countermeasures. Upon Heraclius' orders, Byzantine forces from different garrisons in the north started moving to gather at Ayjnadyn. From here they could engage Amr's corps and maneuver against the flank or rear of the rest of the Muslim corps that were in Jordan and Southern Syria. The strength of the Byzantine forces, according to rough estimates, was about 100,000. Abu Ubaidah informed the Caliph about the preparations made by the Byzantines in the third week of May 634. Because Abu Ubaida didn't have experience as a commander of military forces in such major operations, especially against the powerful Roman Army, Abu Bakr decided to send Khalid ibn Walid to assume command. According to early Muslim chronicles, Abu Bakr said, "By Allah, I shall destroy the Romans and the friends of Satan with Khalid Ibn Al Walid." Khalid immediately set out for Syria from Al-Hirah, in Iraq, in early June 634, taking with him half his army, about 8000 strong. There were two routes towards Syria from Iraq: one was via Daumat-ul-Jandal, and the other was through Mesopotamia, passing through Raqqa. The Muslim armies in Syria were in need of urgent reinforcement, so Khalid avoided the conventional route to Syria via Daumat ul Jandal, as it was the longer route, and would take weeks to reach Syria. Khalid avoided the Mesopotamian route because of the presence of Roman garrisons there and in Northern Syria. To engage them at a time when Muslim armies were being outflanked in Syria was not a wise idea. Khalid selected a shorter route to Syria, an unconventional route passing through the Syrian Desert. It is recorded that his soldiers marched for two days without a single drop of water, before reaching a predetermined water source at an oasis. Khalid thus entered Northern Syria and caught the Byzantines on their right flank. According to modern historians, this ingenious strategic maneuver unhinged the Byzantine defences in Syria. Ain Tamer, Quraqir, Suwa, Arak, and the historical city of Tadmur were first to fall to Khalid. Sukhnah, al-Qaryatayn and Hawarin were captured after the Battle of al-Qaryatayn and the Battle of Hawarin. After dealing with all these cities, Khalid moved towards Damascus through a mountain pass which is now known as Sanita-al-Uqab (Uqab Pass) after the name of Khalid's army standard. From here he moved away from Damascus, towards Bosra, the capital of the Ghassanids. He ordered other Muslim commanders to concentrate their armies, still near the Syrian-Arabian border, at Bosra. At Maraj-al-Rahab, Khalid defeated a Ghassanid army in a quick battle, called the Battle of Marj-al- Rahit. Meanwhile, Abu Ubaida ibn al-Jarrah, the supreme commander of the Muslim armies in Syria, had ordered Shurhabil ibn Hasana to attack Bosra. The latter laid siege to Bosra with his small army of 4000. The Roman and Ghassanid Arab garrison, realizing that this might be the advance guard of the larger Muslim army to come, sallied out of the fortified city and attacked Shurhabil, surrounding him from all sides; however, Khalid reached the arena with his cavalry and saved Shurhabil. The combined forces of Khalid, Shurhabil, and Abu Ubaidah then resumed the siege of Bosra, which surrendered some time in mid-July 634, effectively ending the Ghassanid Dynasty. Here Khalid took over the command of the Muslim armies in Syria from Abu Ubaidah, according to the instructions of the Caliph. Massive Byzantine armies were concentrating at Ajnadayn to push the invading armies back to the desert. Early Muslim sources claim the Byzantine strength to have been 90,000, although most modern historians doubt the figures, yet consider this battle to be the key to breaking Byzantine power in Syria. On Khalid's instructions, all Muslim corps concentrated at Ajnadayn, where they won a decisive battle against the Byzantines on 30 July 634. This defeat left Syria vulnerable to the Muslim invaders. Khalid decided to capture Damascus, the Byzantine stronghold. At Damascus, Thomas, son-in-law of Emperor Heraclius, was in charge. Having received intelligence of Khalid's march towards Damascus, he prepared for its defence, writing to Emperor Heraclius in Emesa for reinforcements. Moreover, Thomas, in order to get more time for preparation of a siege, sent armies to delay or, if possible, halt Khalid's march to Damascus. One of these armies was defeated at the Battle of Yaqusa in mid- August 634 near Lake Tiberias, 145 kilometres (90 mi) from Damascus. Another was defeated in the Battle of Maraj as Saffer on 19 August 634. These engagements had the desired effect, delaying Khalid long enough to prepare for a siege. However, by the time Heraclius' reinforcements had reached the city Khalid had begun his siege, having reached Damascus on 20 August. To isolate the city from the rest of the region Khalid placed detachments south on the road to Palestine and in the north at the Damascus-Emesa route, and several other smaller detachments on routes towards Damascus. Heraclius' reinforcements were intercepted and routed at the Battle of Sanita-al-Uqab, 30 kilometres (20 mi) from Damascus. Khalid's forces withstood three Roman sallies that tried to break the siege. Khalid finally attacked and conquered Damascus on 18 September 634 after 30 days, although, according to some sources, the siege had in fact lasted for four or six months. Heraclius, having received the news of the fall of Damascus, left for Antioch from Emesa. The citizens were granted peace on the promise of annual tribute and the Byzantine army was given three days to go as far as they could. After three days, Khalid took a cavalry force, caught up to the Romans using an unknown shortcut, and attacked them at the Battle of Maraj-al-Debaj, north of Damascus. On 22 August 634, Abu Bakr, the first caliph, died, having made Umar his successor. Umar's first move was to relieve Khalid from command and appoint Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah as the new commander-in-chief of the Islamic army. Abu Ubaidah got the letter memorializing this during the siege, but he delayed the announcement until the city had been conquered. Later on, Khalid pledged his loyalty to the new Caliph and continued to serve as an ordinary commander under Abu Ubaidah. He is reported to have said, "If Abu Bakr is dead and Umar is Caliph, then we listen and obey." Abu Ubaidah moved more slowly and steadily, which had a concomitant effect on military operations in Syria. Abu Ubaidah, being an admirer of Khalid, made him commander of the cavalry and relied heavily on his advice during the whole campaign. Soon after the appointment of Abu-Ubaidah as commander in chief, he sent a small detachment to the annual fair of Abu-al-Qudas (Mass (liturgy)), held at Ablah, near Zahlé east of Beirut. There was a Byzantine and Christian Arab garrison nearby, but the size of the garrison was miscalculated by the Muslim informants. The garrison quickly encircled the small Muslim detachment, but before it was completely destroyed, Khalid came to the rescue of the Muslim army. Abu Ubaidah, having received new intelligence, had sent Khalid. Khalid reached the battlefield and defeated the garrison on 15 October 634 and returned with tons of looted booty from the fair and hundreds of Roman prisoners. By capturing central Syria, the Muslims had given a decisive blow to the Byzantines. The communication between Northern Syria and Palestine was now cut off. Abu Ubaidah decided to march to Fahl, which is about 150 metres (500 ft) below sea level, where a strong Byzantine garrison and survivors of the Battle of Ajnadayn were present. The region was crucial because from here the Byzantine army could strike eastwards and cut Muslim communications with Arabia. Moreover, with this large garrison at their rear Palestine could not be invaded. Khalid, commanding the advance guard, reached Fahl first and found that the Byzantines had flooded the plains by blocking the River Jordan. The Byzantine army was eventually defeated at the Battle of Fahl on 23 January 635. Next, the Muslim armies consolidated their conquest of the Levant as Shurhabil and Amr went deeper into Palestine. Bet She'an surrendered after a little resistance followed by the surrender of Tiberias in February 635. Umar, after having learned of the position and strength of the Byzantine army in Palestine, wrote detailed instructions to his corps commanders there and ordered Yazid to capture the Mediterranean coast. Amr and Shurhabil accordingly marched against the strongest Byzantine garrison and defeated them in the Second Battle of Ajnadyn. The two corps then separated, with Amr moving to capture Nablus, Amawas, Jaffa, Haifa, Gaza and Yubna in order to complete the conquest of all Palestine, while Shurahbil moved against the coastal towns of Acre and Tyre. Yazid advanced from Damascus to capture the ports of Sidon, Arqa, Byblos and Beirut. By 635 CE, Palestine, Jordan and Southern Syria, with the exception of Jerusalem and Caesarea, were in Muslim hands. On the orders of Umar, Yazid next besieged Caesarea, which, barring a suspension around the time of the Battle of Yarmouk, lasted until the port fell in 640. According to lexicographer David ben Abraham al-Fasi (died before 1026 CE), the Muslim conquest of Palestine brought relief to the country's Jewish citizens, who had previously been barred by the Byzantines from praying on the Temple Mount. After the battle, which proved to be the key to Palestine and Jordan, the Muslim armies split up. Shurhabil and Amr's corps moved south to capture Palestine, while Abu Ubaidah and Khalid, with a relatively larger corps, moved north to conquer Northern Syria. While the Muslims were occupied at Fahl, Heraclius, sensing an opportunity, quickly sent an army under General Theodras to recapture Damascus, where a small Muslim garrison was left. Shortly thereafter, the Muslims, having just won the Battle of Fahl, were on their way to Emesa. In the meantime, the Byzantine army split in two, one deployed at Maraj al Rome (Beqaa Valley) led by Schinos; the other, commanded by Theodras, stationed to the west of Damascus (Al-Sabboura region). During the night, Theodras advanced to Damascus to launch a surprise attack. Khalid's spy informed him about the move and Khalid, having received permission from Abu Ubaidah, galloped towards Damascus with his mobile guard. While Abu Ubaidah fought and defeated the Roman army in the Battle of Maraj-al-Rome, Khalid moved to Damascus with his cavalry and attacked and defeated Theodras there. A week later, Abu Ubaida himself moved towards Heliopolis, where the great Temple of Jupiter stood. In May 636, Heliopolis surrendered to the Muslims after little resistance and agreed to pay tribute. Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid straight towards Emesa. Emesa and Chalcis offered a peace treaty for a year. Abu Ubaidah accepted the offer and, rather than invading districts of Emesa and Chalcis, he consolidated his rule in conquered land and captured Hamah, and Maarrat al-Nu'man. Having mustered sizeable armies at Antioch, Heraclius sent them to reinforce strategically important areas of Northern Syria, like Emesa and Chalcis. The Byzantine reinforcement of Emesa violated the treaty, and Abu Ubadiah and Khalid accordingly marched there. A Byzantine army that halted Khalid's advance guard was defeated. The Muslims besieged Emesa which was finally conquered in March 636 CE after two months. After capturing Emesa, Khalid moved north to capture Northern Syria, using his cavalry as an advance guard and raiding force. At Shaizer, Khalid intercepted a convoy taking provisions for Chalcis. The prisoners were interrogated and informed him about Emperor Heraclius' ambitious plan to take back Syria with an army possibly two hundred thousand (200,000) strong. Khalid immediately ended the raid. After his past experiences, Heraclius now avoided pitched battle with the Muslim army. His plans were to send massive reinforcements to all the major cities, isolate the Muslim corps from each other, and then separately encircle and destroy the Muslim armies. Part of his plan was to coordinate his attacks with those of Yazdgerd III, the Sassanid emperor. In 635 Yazdgerd III had sought an alliance with Heraclius, marrying the latter's daughter (or granddaughter, according to tradition) Manyanh. While Heraclius prepared for a major offense in the Levant, Yazdegerd was supposed to mount a well-coordinated counterattack on his front in Iraq, while Heraclius attacked in the Levant. However, it was not meant to be. Umar probably had intelligence of this alliance, and started peace negotiations with Yazdegerd III, apparently inviting him to join Islam. When Heraclius launched his offensive in May 636, Yazdegerd, probably owing to the exhaustion of his government, could not coordinate with the Heraclian offensive, frustrating the plan. Five massive armies were launched in June 636 CE to recapture Syria. Khalid, having grasped Heraclius' plan, feared that the Muslim armies would become isolated and then destroyed piecemeal. He thus suggested to Abu Ubaidah in a council of war that he consolidate all the Muslim armies at one place to force a decisive battle with the Byzantines. Abu Ubaidah agreed, and concentrated them at Jabiya. This maneuver delivered a decisive blow to Heraclius' plan, since the latter did not wish to engage his troops in open battle with the Muslim light cavalry. From Jabiya, again on Khalid's suggestion, Abu Ubaidah ordered the Muslim troops to withdraw to the Plain of the Yarmouk River, where the cavalry could be used effectively. While the Muslim armies were gathering at Yarmouk, Khalid intercepted and routed the Byzantine advance guard, ensuring a safe path of retreat. The Muslim armies reached the plain in July 636 CE. A week or two later, around mid-July, the Byzantine army arrived. The Byzantine commander-in-chief, Vahan, sent Ghassanid forces, under their king, Jabala, to gauge the Muslim strength. Khalid's mobile guard defeated and routed them, the last action before the battle started. For one month negotiations continued between the two armies and Khalid went to meet Vahan in person at the Byzantine camp. Meanwhile, Muslim reinforcements arrived from Umar. Abu Ubaidah, in another council of war, transferred field command of the Muslim army to Khalid. Finally, on 15 August, the Battle of Yarmouk was fought, lasting six days and ending in a major defeat for the Byzantines. This battle and subsequent clean-up engagements forever ended Byzantine domination of the Levant. Meanwhile, Umar occupied Yazdegerd III in a grand deception. Yazdegerd III lost his army at the Battle of Qadisiyyah in November 636, three months after Yarmouk, ending Sassanid control west of Persia. With the Byzantine army routed, the Muslims quickly recaptured the territory they had conquered prior to Yarmouk. Abu Ubaida held a meeting with his high commanders, including Khalid, and decided to conquer Jerusalem. The Siege of Jerusalem lasted four months, after which the city agreed to surrender, but only to Umar personally. Amr-bin al-Aas suggested that Khalid should be sent to impersonate the caliph, due to his very strong resemblance. However, Khalid was recognized and Umar had to come himself to accept the surrender of Jerusalem in April 637. After Jerusalem, the Muslim armies broke up once again. Yazid's corps went to Damascus and then captured Beirut. Amr and Shurhabil's corps left to conquer the rest of Palestine, while Abu Ubaidah and Khalid, at the head of a 17,000-strong army, moved north to conquer Northern Syria. With Emesa already in hand, Abu Ubaidah and Khalid moved towards Chalcis, which was strategically the most significant Byzantine fort. Through Chalcis the Byzantines would be able to guard Anatolia, Heraclius' homeland of Armenia, and the regional capital, Antioch. Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid with his mobile guard towards Chalcis. The virtually impregnable fort was guarded by Greek troops under Menas, reportedly second in prestige only to the Emperor himself. Menas, diverting from conventional Byzantine tactics, decided to face Khalid and destroy the leading elements of Muslim army before the main body could join them at Hazir 5 kilometres (3 mi) east of Chalcis. The resulting Battle of Hazir even reportedly forced Umar to praise Khalid's military genius, saying, "Khalid is truly the commander. May Allah have mercy upon Abu Bakr. He was a better judge of men than I have been." Abu Ubaidah soon joined Khalid at Chalcis, which surrendered some time in June 637. With this strategic victory, the territory north of Chalcis lay open to the Muslims. Khalid and Abu Ubaidah continued their march northward and laid siege to Aleppo, which was captured after fierce resistance from desperate Byzantine troops in October 637 CE. Before marching towards Antioch, Khalid and Abu Ubaidah decided to isolate the city from Anatolia. They accordingly sent detachments north to eliminate all possible Byzantine forces and captured the garrison town of Azaz, 50 kilometres (30 mi) from Aleppo; from there Muslims attacked Antioch from the eastern side, resulting in the Battle of Iron bridge. The Byzantine army, composed of the survivors of Yarmouk and other Syrian campaigns, was defeated, retreating to Antioch, whereupon the Muslims besieged the city. Having little hope of help from the Emperor, Antioch surrendered on 30 October 637 CE, on the condition that all Byzantine troops would be given safe passage to Constantinople. Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid towards the north and he himself marched to the south and captured Latakia, Jablah, Tartus, and the coastal areas west of the Anti-Lebanon Mountains. Khalid moved north and raided territory up to as far as Kızılırmak River in Anatolia. Emperor Heraclius had already left Antioch for Edessa before the Muslims arrived. He then arranged for the necessary defenses in Jazirah and Armenia and left for Constantinople. On the way, he had a narrow escape when Khalid, who had just captured Marash, was heading south towards Manbij. Heraclius hastily took the mountainous path and, on passing through the Cilician gates, is reported to have said, "Farewell, a long farewell to Syria, my fair province. Thou art an infidel's (enemy's) now. Peace be with you, O, Syria – what a beautiful land you will be for the enemy hands." After the devastating defeat at Yarmouk, the remainder of the Byzantine empire was left vulnerable. With few military resources left, it was no longer in a position to attempt a military comeback in Syria. To gain time to prepare a defense of the rest of his empire, Heraclius needed the Muslims occupied in Syria. He thus sought help from the Christians (some of whom were Arabs) of Jazirah, mainly from Circesium and Hīt, who mustered a large army and marched against Emesa, Abu Ubaidah's headquarters. Abu Ubaidah withdrew all his forces from northern Syria to Emesa, and the Christians laid in a siege. Khalid was in favor of an open battle outside the fort, but Abu Ubaidah referred the matter to Umar, who sent a detachment from Iraq to invade Jazirah from three different routes. Another detachment was sent to Emesa from Iraq under Qa’qa ibn Amr, a veteran of Yarmouk, who had originally been sent to Iraq for the Battle of al- Qādisiyyah. Umar himself marched from Medina with 1,000 men. In 638, Muslims attacked Hīt, which they found to be well fortified; thus, they left a fraction of the army to impose a siege on the city, while the rest went after Circesium. When the Christians received the news of the Muslim invasion of their homeland, they abandoned the siege and hastily withdrew there. At this point Khalid and his mobile guard came out of the fort and devastated their army by attacking them from the rear. On the orders of Umar, Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, commander of the Muslim army in Iraq, sent an army under Iyad ibn Ghanm to conquer the region between the Tigris and the Euphrates up to Urfa. In 639–640, Raqqa fell into Muslim hands, followed by most of Jazirah, the last base of the Eastern Roman Empire in the region, which surrendered peacefully and agreed to pay Jizya. The conquest of Jazirah was completed by 640 CE, after which Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid and Iyad ibn Ghanm (conqueror of Jazirah) to invade Byzantine territory north of there. They marched independently and captured Edessa, Amida, Malatya and the whole of Armenia up to Ararat and raided northern and central Anatolia. Heraclius had already abandoned all the forts between Antioch and Tartus to create a buffer zone between the Muslim controlled areas and Anatolia. Umar then called a halt to the expedition and ordered Abu Ubaidah, now governor of Syria, to consolidate his rule there. This decision can be explained by the dismissal of Khalid from the army, which ended his military career, and a drought followed by a plague the year after. During the reign of Caliph Uthman, Constantine III decided to recapture the Levant, which had been lost to the Muslims during Umar's reign. A full-scale invasion was planned and a large force was sent to reconquer Syria. Muawiyah I, the governor of Syria, called for reinforcements and Uthman ordered the governor of Kufa to send a contingent, which, together with the local garrison, defeated the Byzantine army in Northern Syria. In 645–646, Sufyan bin Mujib Al-Azdi, appointed by Muawiyah, managed to seize Tripoli to eventually capture the last Byzantine stronghold on the Levantine coast. Uthman gave permission to Muawiyah to build a navy. From their base in Syria, the Muslims used this fleet to capture Cyprus in 649, Crete, and Rhodes. Annual raids into western Anatolia dissuaded the Byzantines from further attempts to recapture Syria. In 654–655, Uthman ordered the preparation of an expedition to capture Constantinople, but, due to unrest in the caliphate that resulted in his assassination in 655, the expedition was delayed for decades, only to be attempted unsuccessfully under the Ummayads. The new rulers divided Syria into four districts (junds): Jund Dimashq (Damascus), Jund Hims, Jund al-Urdunn (Jordan), and Jund Filastin (Palestine) (to which a fifth, Jund Qinnasrin, was later added) and the Arab garrisons were kept apart in camps, and life went on much as before for the local population. The Muslims tolerated the Jews and Christians; indeed, Nestorian and Jacobite Christians were treated better under the Muslims than under the Byzantines. The taxes instituted were the kharaj, which landowners and peasants paid according to the productivity of their fields, and the jizya, paid by non-Muslims in return for state protection and exemption from military service. The Byzantine civil service was retained until a new system could be instituted; therefore, Greek remained the administrative language in the new Muslim territories for over 50 years after the conquests. When the first civil war broke out in the Muslim empire as a result of the murder of Uthman and the nomination of Ali as caliph, the Rashidun Caliphate was succeeded by the Umayyad dynasty, with Syria as its core and Damascus its capital for the next century to come. Spread of Islam, Muslim conquests, Byzantine-Arab Wars, Ghassanids, Iudaea Province, Umayyad conquest of North Africa, History of Syria, History of Jordan, History of Palestine, History of the Levant Multimedia History Tutorials by the Applied History Group, The Islamic World to 1600, University of Calgary. The Islamic World to 1600: Tutorial Outline, Edward Gibbon, History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Chapter 51, Bishop John Nikiou The Chronicle of John, Bishop of Nikiu Chapters CXVI-CXXI Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, fully Abū ‘Ubaydah ‘Āmir ibn ‘Abdillāh ibn al-Jarāḥ (; 583–639 CE), was one of Companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Mostly known for being one of the "Ten Promised Paradise". He remained commander of a large section of the Rashidun Army during the time of the Rashid Caliph Umar and was on the list of Umar's appointed successors to the Caliphate. Abu Ubaidah was born in the year 583 CE in the house of 'Abdullah ibn al- Jarrah, a merchant by profession. Abu Ubaidah belonged to the Qurayshi clan of Banu al-Harith ibn Fihr. Before embracing Islam, he was considered to be one of the nobles of the Quraysh and was famous among the Quraysh of Mecca for his modesty and bravery. By 611, Muhammad was preaching the oneness of God to the people of Mecca. He began by inviting his closest companions and relatives in private to the way of Islam. He embraced Islam a day after Abu Bakr in the year 611 at the age of 28. Abu Ubaidah lived through the harsh experience that the Muslims went through in Mecca from beginning to end. With other early Muslims, he endured the insults and oppressions of the Quraysh. As the first migration to Abyssinia (Ethiopia) succeeded, this violence against the Muslims was very successful. In 623 CE, when Muhammad migrated from Mecca to Medina, Abu Ubaidah also migrated. When Muhammad arrived in Medina, he paired off each immigrant (Muhajir) with one of the residents of Medina (Ansari), joining Muhammad ibn Maslamah with Abu Ubaidah making them brothers in faith. The Muslims remained in peace in Medina for about a year before the Quraysh raised an army to attack Medina. In the year 624, Abu Ubaidah participated in the first major battle between the Muslims and the Quraysh of Mecca, at the Battle of Badr. In this battle, he fought his own father Abdullah ibn al-Jarrah, who was fighting alongside the army of Quraysh. Abu Ubaidah then later on attacked him and killed him. The following verse of the Quran was written about this display of character by Abu 'Ubaidah: In the year 625, he participated in the Battle of Uhud. In the second phase of the battle, when Khalid ibn al-Walid's cavalry attacked the Muslims from the rear, changing an Islamic victory into defeat, the bulk of the Muslim soldiers were routed from the battlefield, and few remained steadfast. Abu Ubaidah was one of them and he guarded Muhammad from the attacks of the Qurayshi soldiers. On that day, Abu Ubaidah lost two of his front teeth while trying to extract two links of Muhammad's armour that had penetrated into his cheeks. Later in the year 627 he took part in the Battle of the Trench and also in the Invasion of Banu Qurayza. He was also made commander of a small expedition that set out to attack and destroy the tribes of Tha'libah and Anmar, who were plundering nearby villages. In the year 628 he participated in Treaty of Hudaybiyyah and was made one of the witnesses over the pact. Later in the same year, he was a part of the Muslim campaign to Khaybar. In the year 630, when the Muslim army conquered Mecca, Abu Ubaidah was commanding one of the four divisions that entered the city from four different routes. Later that year, he participated in the Battle of Hunayn and the Siege of Ta'if. He was also part of the Tabuk campaign under the command of Muhammad himself. On their return from the Battle of Tabouk, a Christian delegation from Najran arrived in Medina and showed interest in Islam and asked Muhammad to send them a person to guide them in the matters of religion and in other tribal affairs according to Islamic laws, Abu Ubaidah was appointed by Muhammad to go with them. He was also sent as the tax collector () to Bahrain by Muhammad. He was present in Mecca when Muhammad died in 632. In the year 629 Muhammad sent 'Amr ibn al-'As to Daat al-Salaasil from where he called for reinforcements, this was known as the Expedition of Abu Ubaidah ibn al Jarrah. Muhammad sent Abu Ubaidah in command of an army that included Abu Bakr and Umar. They attacked and defeated the enemy. Later in the same year, another expedition was sent under his command to locate the routes of Qurayshi caravans. When Muhammad died in 632 the matter of his succession took place at the Saqifah of Banu Sa'ida, Abu Ubaidah was there along with Abu Bakr and Umar. Umar said to Abu Ubaidah to stretch forth his hand for the caliphate, but he refused and said to Abu Bakr to stretch forth his hand to take the pledge of alliance. After the Ridda wars when Abu Bakr sent Khalid ibn al-Walid to Iraq to conquer it, he sent four Muslim armies into the Levant, making Abu Ubaidah commander of one of them. His target was selected to be Emessa and he was ordered to move through the Tabuk region after the army of Sharjeel ibn Hassana. He remained commander in chief of the Muslim army until Khalid ibn al-Walid arrived from Iraq to Syria in 634. Abu Ubaidah was ordered by Khalid ibn al-Walid to remain where he was until Khalid ibn al-Walid reached the Ghassanid city of Bosra, where they met. The castle surrendered the city after the Battle of Bosra in mid July 634 and 130 Muslims died in the battle. Soon the Muslims heard of a gathering of 90,000 Byzantine army (Eastern Roman army) at Ajnadayn, about southwest of Jerusalem. All the divisions of the Muslim army, about 32,000 in number, joined Khalid at Ajnadayn on 24 July 634. Under the command of Khalid ibn al-Walid the Muslims defeated the Byzantine army there on 30 July 634 at the Battle of Ajnadayn. After one week, Abu Ubaidah, along with Khalid, moved towards Damascus. On their way to Damascus, they defeated another Byzantine army at the Battle of Yakusa in mid-August 634. Caloiis and Azrail, the governor of Damascus, led another army to stop Khalid's corps but they were also defeated in the battle of Maraj-al-Safar on 19 August 634. The next day the Muslims reached Damascus and besieged the city, which continued for 30 days. After defeating the Byzantine reinforcements sent by Emperor Heraclius at the Battle of Sanita-al-Uqab, from Damascus, Khalid's forces attacked and entered the city. With Khalid's divisions investing the city from the northeast, Thomas, the purported son-in- law of the Emperor Heraclius, surrendered the city to Ubaidah, who was besieging the Bab al-Jabiya (Jabiya Gate), on 19 September 634. Abu Ubaidah was appointed by Khalid ibn al-Walid to siege the Jabiya Gate of Damascus. It was Abu Ubaidah who gave peace to Damascus after Khalid ibn al-Walid attacked the city and conquered it by force. Abu Ubaidah, Sharjeel ibn Hassana and 'Amr ibn al-'As, unaware of Khalid's attack from the Eastern Gate, gave peace to them, which was reluctantly endorsed by Khalid. The Byzantine army was given a cease fire of three days and allowed to go as far as they could with their families and treasure. Others simply agreed to stay at Damascus and pay tribute. The Muslims controlled the road to Emessa, so the Byzantines went west and then north up the Beqaa Valley. After the three-day truce was over, the Muslim cavalry, under Khalid's command, pursued the Byzantine column via the shorter Emessa road and caught them in the northwest Beqaa Valley, just before they entered the mountains en route to Antioch at the Battle of Maraj- al-Debaj. On 22 August 634, Caliph Abu Bakr died and Umar became caliph. Umar relieved Khalid ibn al-Walid from the command of the Islamic army and appointed Abu Ubaidah as the new commander. This was done to dispel the impression that the victories were due to Khalid. Moreover, Khalid was an overtly generous person, who according to some would often waste his money in giving gifts to his soldiers as a reward for their bravery in the battles. After Abu Ubaidah's appointment, Khalid said, "O people, the custodian of the Ummah has been appointed over you." This remark was in the light of the Prophet's saying, "There is a custodian for every Ummah and Abu Ubaidah is the custodian for this Ummah." Due to different style of commands, there was a slowdown in the pace of operations, as Abu Ubaida moved slowly and steadily, in contrast to Khalid who is said to rush 'like a tornado from battle to battle'; using surprise, audacity and brute force to win his battles. The conquest of Syria continued under the new commander. Abu Ubaida used to rely heavily on the advice of Khalid, whom he kept with him as much as possible. Soon after the appointment of Abu-Ubaidah as commander in chief, he sent a small detachment to the annual fair held at Abu-al-Quds, modern day Abla, near Zahlé; east of Beirut. There was a Byzantine and Christian Arab garrison guarding that fair, the size of the garrison was miscalculated by the Muslim informants and it quickly encircled the small Muslim detachment. Before it would have been completely destroyed, Abu Ubaidah, having received new intelligence, sent Khalid to rescue the Muslim army. Khalid reached there and defeated them in the Battle of Abu-al-Quds on 15 October 634 and returned with tons of looted booty from the fair and hundreds of Byzantine prisoners. With central Syria captured, the Muslims has given a decisive blow to the Byzantines. The communication between northern Syria and Palestine was now cut off. Abu Ubaidah decided to march to Fahl (Pella), which is about below sea level, and where a strong Byzantine garrison and survivors of Battle of Ajnadayn were present. The region was crucial because from here the Byzantine army could strike eastwards and cut the communications line with Arabia. Moreover, with this large garrison at the rear, Palestine could not be invaded. Thus the Muslim army moved to Fahl. The Byzantine army was eventually defeated at the Battle of Fahl on 23 January 635 A.D. After the battle, which would prove to be a key to Palestine and Jordan, the Muslim armies split up. Sharjeel and Amr's corps moved south to capture Palestine. Meanwhile, Abu Ubaidah and Khalid with a relatively larger corps moved north through Lebanon to conquer Lebanon and northern Syria. While the Muslims were occupied at Fahl, Heraclius, sensing the opportunity, quickly sent an army under General Theodore Trithyrius to recapture Damascus, where a small Muslim garrison had been left. Shortly after Heraclius dispatched this new army, the Muslims having finished the business at Fahl, were on their way to Emesa. The Byzantine army met the Muslims half way to Emesa, at Maraj-al- Rome. During the night Theodras sent half of his army towards Damascus to launch a surprise attack on the Muslim garrison Khalid's spy informed him about the move, Khalid having received permission from Abu Ubaidah, galloped towards Damascus with his mobile guard. While Abu Ubaidah fought and defeated the Byzantine army in the Battle of Maraj-al-Rome, Khalid moved to Damascus with his cavalry and attacked and defeated Theodras in the second battle of Damascus. A week later, Abu Ubaida himself moved towards Baalbek (Heliopolis), where the great Temple of Jupiter stood. Baalbek surrendered to Muslim rule after little resistance and agreed to pay tribute. Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid straight towards Emesa. Emesa and Chalcis sued for peace for a year. Abu Ubaidah, accepted the offer and rather than invading the districts of Emesa and Chalcis, he consolidated his rule in conquered land and captured Hama, Maarrat al-Nu'man. The peace treaties were, however, on Heraclius's instructions, to lure the Muslims and to secure time for preparation of defenses of northern Syria (present day Lebanon, Syria and southern Turkey). Having mustered sizeable armies at Antioch, Heraclius sent them to reinforce strategically important areas of northern Syria, like Emesa and Chalcis. With the arrival of Byzantine army in the city, the peace treaty was violated, Abu Ubadiah and Khalid thus marched to Emesa, and a Byzantine army that halted Khalid's advance guard was defeated. The Muslims besieged Emesa which was finally conquered in March 636 after six months of siege. After capturing Emesa, the Muslims moved north to capture whole of the northern Syria. Khalid, acting as an advance guard took his mobile guard to raid northern Syria. At Shaizer, Khalid intercepted a convoy taking provisions for Chalcis. The prisoners were interrogated and informed him about Emperor Heraclius' ambitious plan to take back Syria. They told him that an army, possibly 200,000 strong, would soon emerge to recapture their territory. Khalid stopped there. After his past experiences, Heraclius, now had been avoiding pitch battles with the Muslims. He planned to send massive reinforcements to all the major cities and isolate the Muslim corps from each other, and thus separately encircle and destroy the Muslim armies. Five massive armies were launched in June 636 to roll back Syria. Khalid, sensing Heraclius's plan, feared that the Muslim armies would be isolated and destroyed. In a council of war he suggested that Abu Ubaidah draw all the Muslim armies to one place so as to fight a decisive battle with the Byzantines. As per Khalid's suggestion, Abu Ubaidah ordered all the Muslim armies in Syria to evacuate the conquered land and concentrate at Jabiya. This maneuver gave a decisive blow to the Heraclius's plan, as he did not wish engage his troops in an open battle with the Muslims, where the light cavalry could be effectively used. From Jabiya, on Khalid's suggestion, Abu Ubaidah ordered the Muslim army to withdraw on the plain of the Yarmouk River, where cavalry could be used. While the Muslim armies were gathering at Yarmouk, Khalid intercepted and routed the Byzantine advance guard. This was to ensure the safe retreat of the Muslims from conquered land. The Muslim armies reached there in July 636. A week or two later, around mid July, the Byzantine army arrived. The Byzantine commander in chief, Vahan, sent Christian Arab troops of the Ghassanid king, Jabalah ibn al-Aiham, to check the strength of the Muslims. Khalid's mobile guard defeated and routed the Christian Arabs; this was the last action before the battle started. For the next month negotiations continued between the two armies, and Khalid went to meet Vahan in person at Byzantine camp. Meanwhile, the Muslims received reinforcements sent by Caliph Umar. Finally on 15 August, the Battle of Yarmouk was fought, it lasted for 6 days and ended in a devastating defeat for the Byzantines. The Battle of Yarmouk is considered to be one of the most decisive battles of history. It was the historic defeat that sealed the fate of Byzantines, the magnitude of defeat was so intense that Byzantine could never recover from it. It left whole of the Byzantine Empire vulnerable to the Muslims. The battle was the greatest battle ever fought on Syrian soil till then and was a tactical marvel of Abu Ubaidah. With the Byzantine army shattered and routed, the Muslims quickly recaptured the territory that they conquered prior to Yarmouk. Abu Ubaida held a meeting with his high command, including Khalid, to decide on future conquests. They decided to conquer Jerusalem. The Siege of Jerusalem lasted four months after which the city agreed to surrender, but only to caliph Umar in person. 'Amr ibn al-'As suggested that Khalid should be sent as caliph, because of his very strong resemblance to Umar. Khalid was recognized and eventually, Umar came and the Jerusalem surrendered on April 637. After Jerusalem, the Muslim armies broke up once again. Yazid's corps went to Damascus and captured Beirut. Amr and Shurahbil's corps went on to conquer the rest of Palestine, while Abu Ubaidah and Khalid, at the head of a 17,000 strong army moved north to conquer whole of the northern Syria. Abu Ubaida sent the commanders 'Amr ibn al-'As, Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan, and Shurahbil ibn Hassana back to their areas to reconquer them. Most of the areas submitted without a fight. Abu Ubaida himself, along with Khalid, moved to northern Syria once again to conquer them with a 17,000 strong army. Khalid along with his cavalry was sent to Hazir and Abu Ubaidah moved to Chalcis. With Emesa already in hand, Abu Ubaidah and Khalid moved towards Chalcis, which was strategically the most significant Byzantine fort. Though Chalcis, the Byzantines would guard Anatolia, Heraclius's homeland Armenia and there the Asian zone's capital Antioch. Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid, with his elite cavalry, the mobile guard, towards Chalcis. The fort was guarded by the Greek troops under their commander, Menas, who was reported to be of high prestige, second only to the emperor himself. Menas, diverting from conventional Byzantine tactics, decided to face Khalid and destroy the leading elements of the Muslim army before the main body could join them at Hazir, east of Chalcis. This is known as the Battle of Hazir, which even forced Umar to praise Khalid's military genius. Umar is reported to have said: Abu Ubaidah soon joined Khalid at the virtually impregnable fort of Chalcis, which surrendered in June 637. With this strategic victory, the territory north of Chalcis lay open to the Muslims. Khalid and Abu Ubaidah continued their march northward and laid siege to Aleppo, which was captured after fierce resistance from desperate Byzantine troops in October 637. The next objective was the splendid city of Antioch, the capital of the Asian zone of the Byzantine Empire. Before marching towards Antioch, Khalid and Abu Ubaidah decided to isolate the city from Anatolia. Accordingly, they sent detachments north to eliminate all possible Byzantine forces and captured a garrison town, Azaz from Aleppo; from there the Muslims attacked Antioch on the eastern side. In order to save the empire from annihilation, a desperate battle was fought between the Muslim army and that of the defenders of Antioch, popularly known as Battle of Iron Bridge. The Byzantine army was composed of the survivors of Yarmouk and other Syrian campaigns. After being defeated, the Byzantines retreated to Antioch and the Muslims besieged the city. Having little hope of help from Emperor Herakleios, Antioch surrendered on 30 October 637, with the terms that all Byzantine troops would be given safe passage to Constantinople. Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid northwards, while he marched south and captured Lazkia, Jabla, Tartus and the coastal areas west of Anti-Lebanon mountains. Khalid moved north and raided territory up to the Kızıl River (Kızılırmak) in Anatolia. Emperor Heraclius had already left Antioch for Edessa before the arrival of the Muslims. He arranged for the necessary defenses in Al-Jazira and Armenia and left for his capital Constantinople. On his way to Constantinople he had a narrow escape when Khalid, after the capturing Marash, was heading south towards Munbij. Heraclius hastily took the mountainous path and, passing through the Cilician Gates, is reported to have said: With the devastating defeat at Yarmouk his empire was extremely vulnerable to Muslim invasion. With few military resources left he was no longer in a position to attempt a military come back in Syria. To gain time for the preparations of the defense of the rest of his empire, Heraclius needed the Muslims occupied in Syria. He sought help of the Christian Arabs of Al-Jazira who mustered up a large army and marched against Emesa, Abu Ubaidah's headquarters. Abu Ubaidah withdrew all his forces from northern Syria to Emesa, and the Christian Arabs laid siege to the city. Khalid was in favour of an open battle outside the fort, but Abu Ubaidah rather sent the matter to Umar, who handled it brilliantly. Umar sent detachments of the Muslim army from Iraq to invade Al- Jazira, homeland of the invading Christian Arabs, from three different routes. Moreover, another detachment was sent to Emesa from Iraq under Qa’qa ibn Amr, a veteran of Yarmouk who was sent to Iraq for the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah. Umar himself marched from Medina at the head of 1,000 men. The Christian Arabs, when they received the news of the Muslim invasion of their homeland, abandoned the siege and hastily withdrew to Al-Jazira. At this point Khalid and his mobile guard came out of the fort and devastated the army, attacking them from the rear. After the battle Umar ordered the conquest of Al-Jazira, which was completed by late summer 638 A.D. Following the victory, Abu Ubaidah sent Khalid and Iyad ibn Ghanm (conqueror of Al-Jazira) to invade the Byzantine territory north of Al-Jazira. They marched independently and captured Edessa, Amida (Diyarbakır), Malatya and whole of Armenia up to Ararat and raided northern and central Anatolia. Heraclius has already abandoned all the forts between Antioch and Tartus to create a buffer zone or no man's land between Muslim controlled areas and mainland Anatolia. Umar for the time being stopped his armies from further invasion deeper into Anatolia but rather ordered Abu Ubaidah, now the governor of Syria, to consolidate his rule in Syria. At this point, Umar is reported to have said: Due to the dismissal of Khalid from the army and a famine and plague the next year, the Muslim armies were kept from invading Anatolia. The expedition to Anatolia and Armenia marked the end of the military career of Khalid. Later that year Arabia fell into a severe drought, and large sums of people began to perish from hunger and epidemic diseases alike, both resulting from the drought and its complications. Therefore, countless numbers of people (in the hundreds of thousands), from throughout Arabia, gathered at Medina as food was being rationed. Soon, Medina's food reserves declined to alarming levels; by this time, Caliph Umar had already written to the governors of his provinces requesting any relevant aid they might assist with. One such letter was rushed to Abu Ubaidah, who responded promptly: True to his assurance, Abu Ubaidah's caravans of food supplies were the first to reach Medina, with 4,000 camels arriving full of food. To handle the overwhelming amount, Umar appointed Abu Ubaidah to distribute this among the thousands of people living in the outskirts of Medina. Following Abu Ubaidah's generous aid and efforts, Umar provided 4,000 dinars as a modest stipend or token of appreciation which, he refused on the grounds that the deed was done for the sake of God. Nine months had passed since the drought and a new problem had started brewing. The plague epidemic broke in Syria and western Iraq; it was most severe in Syria. When the news of plague broke Umar had been on his way for a tour of Syria but, he returned from the Syrian border as advised by his companions. Abu Ubaidah met him there and said: Umar was shocked by this and said in sorrow: if only someone else would have said this other than you Abu Ubaidah and then said: Umar returned from Syria because Muhammad once instructed that one should not enter the place where an epidemic is unless it is absolutely safe. So Abu Ubaidah returned to his army at Emesa. It was then that a plague hit the land of Syria, the like of which people had never experienced before. It devastated the population. As Caliph Umar wanted to make Abu Ubaidah his successor he didn't want him to remain there in the epidemic region. Umar dispatched a messenger to Abu Ubaidah with a letter saying: When Abu Ubaydah received Umar's letter, he said, '"I know why Umar needs me. He wants to secure the survival of someone who, however, is not eternal." So he wrote to Umar: When Caliph Umar read this letter tears filled his eyes and those who were with him asked, "Has Abu Ubaidah died?" he replied "No, but death is near to him.". Caliph Umar sent another messenger to him saying that if you are not coming back at least move to any highland with a less humid environment and Abu Ubaidah moved to Jabyia. Another reason why Abu Ubaydah did not leave Syria is because Muhammad once ordered that if a state is being hit by a plague, none from the state should escape and none from outside the state shall enter it (quarantine). As soon as Abu Ubaidah moved to Jabyia he became afflicted with the plague. As death hung over him, he spoke to his army: He then appointed Muadh ibn Jabal as his successor and ordered him to lead people in prayers; after the prayers Muadh went to him and, at that moment, his soul departed. Muadh got up and said to the people: He died in 639 C.E. and was buried at Jabiya. It has been narrated that his janaza was led by Muadh bin Jabal. His appearance was striking, slim and tall and his face was bright and he had a sparse beard. It was pleasing to look at him and refreshing to meet him. He was extremely courteous and humble and quite shy. Yet in a tough situation he would become strikingly serious and alert. He was given the title Amin or Custodian of Muhammad's community (Ummah). `Abd Allah ibn `Umar once said about him: He chose to live a simple way of life, opting for the most modest of garments when compared to some of the other sahaba (companions of Muhammad). When, during the conquest of Jerusalem, Caliph Umar had come to Syria, he was met by Khalid ibn al-Walid and Yazid bin abu Sufyan; Caliph Umar dismounted from his camel and threw sand at them while admonishing them that "it has not been even a year since you have come out of the hunger and hard life of Arabia and you have forgotten all the simplicity when you saw the glamour of Syria's Emperors?" Both men were incidentally wearing better garments then they were previously accustomed; Khalid ibn al-Walid noted that beneath their clothes they were still sufficiently armed, indicating they were still accustomed to the practical ways of hard desert life, bringing some relief to the Caliph. Comparatively, Abu Ubaidah was also present, but had always maintained his humble dressing and way of life; Umar was pleased to see him, and that very evening, when Umar arrived at his home, he saw that Abu Ubaidah, a man made successful in the art of battle (earning him rights to much booty), had no possessions at home except one bed, a sword and a shield. Umar said to him: Christians of the Levant accepted Islam and were greatly inspired by Abu Ubaidah; all members of the two Christian tribes, Banu Tanookh and Banu Saleej, had accepted Islam after the conquest of the city of Qasreen. Moreover, there was much relief given by Abu Ubaidah to the non-Muslims living as his subjects in Syria. He is regarded by Muslims to be one of the ten companions of Muhammad who were promised paradise by God during their lifetime. The Ubaydah Bin Al Jarrah Air Base near Kut, Iraq is named after him. Little is known about Abu Ubaidah's family. He had two wives. From his wife Hind bint Jabar he had his son Yazid and Ubaidah. From his wife Warja he had his son Umair, but all of them died in childhood. It is unknown if he had any daughters, but his male line of descendants is reported to be ended. In spite of this, the Al-Jarrah family in present-day Aligarh (in Uttar Pradesh of India), Jordan and Lebanon claim their descent from Abu Ubaidah and the family of Alqayem who are known to be Palestinian Ali, Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas, Sunni view of the Sahaba, List of expeditions of Muhammad The Battle of Ajnadein Ameen ul Ummah Hazrat Abu Ubaidah Bin Jarrah, www.youngmuslims.ca, Abu Ubaidah The Muslim conquest of Persia, also known as the Arab conquest of Iran, led to the fall of the Sasanian Empire of Iran (Persia) in 651 and the eventual decline of the Zoroastrian religion. The rise of Muslims coincided with an unprecedented political, social, economic, and military weakness in Persia. Once a major world power, the Sasanian Empire had exhausted its human and material resources after decades of warfare against the Byzantine Empire. The internal political situation quickly deteriorated after the execution of King Khosrow II in 628 AD. Subsequently, ten new claimants were enthroned within the next four years. With civil war erupting between different factions, the empire was no longer centralized. Arab Muslims first attacked the Sassanid territory in 633, when general Khalid ibn Walid invaded Mesopotamia (Sassanid province of Asōristān; what is now Iraq), which was the political and economic center of the Sassanid state. Following the transfer of Khalid to the Byzantine front in the Levant, the Muslims eventually lost their holdings to Sasanian counterattacks. The second invasion began in 636 under Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas, when a key victory at the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah led to the permanent end of Sasanian control west of Iran. The Zagros mountains, a natural barrier, marked the border between the Rashidun Caliphate and the Sassanid Empire. Caliph Umar ordered a full invasion of the Sasanian empire in 642, which led to the complete conquest of the Sasanians around 651. Directing from Medina, a few thousand kilometres away, Caliph Umar's quick conquest of Iran in a series of well-coordinated, multi-pronged attacks became his greatest triumph, contributing to his reputation as a great military and political strategist. Some Iranian historians have defended their forebears vis-a-vis Arab sources to illustrate that "contrary to the claims of some historians, Iranians, in fact, fought long and hard against the invading Arabs." By 651, most of the urban centers in Iranian lands, with the notable exception of the Caspian provinces (Tabaristan) and Transoxiana, had come under the domination of the Arab armies. Many localities fought against the invaders; ultimately, none were successful. In fact, although Arabs had established hegemony over most of the country, many cities rose in rebellion by killing the Arab governor or attacking their garrisons. Eventually, military reinforcements quashed the insurgency and imposed Islamic control. Conversion to Islam was gradual and incentivized over several centuries, with some never converting still to this day; however, there were cases of Zoroastrian scriptures being burnt and some priests being executed, particularly in areas that experienced violent resistance. However, the Persians began to reassert themselves by maintaining Persian language and culture. Islam would become the dominant religion late in the Middle Ages. When Western academics first investigated the Muslim conquest of Persia, they relied solely on the accounts of the Armenian Christian bishop Sebeos, and accounts in Arabic written some time after the events they describe. The most significant work was probably that of Arthur Christensen, and his L’Iran sous les Sassanides, published in Copenhagen and Paris in 1944. Recent scholarship has begun to question the traditional narrative: Parvaneh Pourshariati, in her Decline and Fall of the Sasanian Empire: The Sasanian-Parthian Confederacy and the Arab Conquest of Iran, published in 2008, provides both a detailed overview of the problematic nature of trying to establish exactly what happened, and a great deal of original research that questions fundamental facts of the traditional narrative, including the timeline and specific dates. Pourshariati's central thesis is that contrary to what was commonly assumed, the Sassanian Empire was highly decentralized, and was in fact a "confederation" with the Parthians, who themselves retained a high level of independence. Despite their recent victories over the Byzantine Empire, the Parthians unexpectedly withdrew from the confederation, and the Sassanians were thus ill-prepared and ill-equipped to mount an effective and cohesive defense against the Muslim armies. Moreover, the powerful northern and eastern Parthian families, the kust-i khwarasan and kust-i adurbadagan, withdrew to their respective strongholds and made peace with the Arabs, refusing to fight alongside the Sassanians. Another important theme of Pourshariati's study is a re-evaluation of the traditional timeline. Pourshariati argues that the Arab conquest of Mesopotamia "took place, not, as has been conventionally believed, in the years 632–634, after the accession of the last Sasanian king Yazdgerd III (632–651) to power, but in the period from 628 to 632." An important consequence of this change in timeline means that the Arab conquest started precisely when the Sassanians and Parthians were engaged in internecine warfare over succession to the Sassanian throne. Since the 1st century BC, the border between the Roman (later Byzantine) and Parthian (later Sassanid) empires had been the Euphrates River. The border was constantly contested. Most battles, and thus most fortifications, were concentrated in the hilly regions of the north, as the vast Arabian or Syrian Desert (Roman Arabia) separated the rival empires in the south. The only dangers expected from the south were occasional raids by nomadic Arab tribesmen. Both empires therefore allied themselves with small, semi- independent Arab principalities, which served as buffer states and protected Byzantium and Persia from Bedouin attacks. The Byzantine clients were the Ghassanids; the Persian clients were the Lakhmids. The Ghassanids and Lakhmids feuded constantly, which kept them occupied, but that did not greatly affect the Byzantines or the Persians. In the 6th and 7th centuries, various factors destroyed the balance of power that had held for so many centuries. The Byzantine clients, the Arab Ghassanids, converted to the Monophysite form of Christianity, which was regarded as heretical by the established Byzantine Orthodox Church. The Byzantines attempted to suppress the heresy, alienating the Ghassanids and sparking rebellions on their desert frontiers. The Lakhmids also revolted against the Persian king Khusrau II. Nu'man III (son of Al- Monder IV), the first Christian Lakhmid king, was deposed and killed by Khusrau II in 602, because of his attempt to throw off Persian suzerainty. After Khusrau's assassination, the Persian Empire fractured and the Lakhmids were effectively semi-independent. It is now widely believed that the annexation of the Lakhmid kingdom was one of the main factors behind the Fall of the Sasanian Empire and the subsequent Islamic conquest of Persia, as the Lakhmids agreed to act as spies for the Muslims after being defeated in the Battle of Hira by Khalid ibn al-Walid. The Persian ruler Khosrau II (Parviz) defeated a dangerous rebellion within his own empire, the Bahram Chobin's rebellion. He afterward turned his energies towards his traditional Byzantine enemies, leading to the Byzantine- Sassanid War of 602–628. For a few years, he succeeded gloriously. From 612 to 622, he extended the Persian borders almost to the same extent that they were under the Achaemenid dynasty (550–330 BC), capturing Western states as far as Egypt, Palestine (the conquest of the latter being assisted by a Jewish army), and more. The Byzantines regrouped and pushed back in 622 under Heraclius. Khosrau was defeated at the Battle of Nineveh in 627, and the Byzantines recaptured all of Syria and penetrated far into the Persian provinces of Mesopotamia. In 629, Khosrau's general Shahrbaraz agreed to peace, and the border between the two empires was once again the same as it had been in 602. Khosrau II was executed in 628 and as a result, there were numerous claimants to the throne; from 628 to 632 there were ten kings and queens of Persia. The last, Yazdegerd III, was a grandson of Khosrau II and was said to be a mere child aged 8 years. After the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah in 628, Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad sent many letters to the princes, kings, and chiefs of the various tribes and kingdoms of the time, exhorting them to convert to Islam and bow to the order of Allah. These letters were carried by ambassadors to Persia, Byzantium, Ethiopia, Egypt, Yemen, and Hira (Iraq) on the same day. This assertion has been brought under scrutiny by some modern historians of Islam—notably Grimme and Caetani. Particularly in dispute is the assertion that Khosrau II received a letter from Muhammad, as the Sassanid court ceremony was notoriously intricate, and it is unlikely that a letter from what at the time was a minor regional power would have reached the hands of the Shahanshah. With regards to Persia, Muslim histories further recount that at the beginning of the seventh year of migration, Muhammad appointed one of his officers, Abdullah Huzafah Sahmi Qarashi, to carry his letter to Khosrau II inviting him to convert: There are differing accounts of the reaction of Khosrau II. Nearly all assert that he destroyed the letter in anger; the variations concentrate on the extent and detail of his response.. Muhammad, who was, according to Islam, the Prophet Muhammad, died in June 632, and Abu Bakr took the title of Caliph and political successor at Medina. Soon after Abu Bakr's succession, several Arab tribes revolted, in the Ridda Wars (Arabic for the Wars of Apostasy). The Ridda Wars preoccupied the Caliphate until March 633, and ended with the entirety of the Arab Peninsula under the authority of the Caliph at Medina. Whether Abu Bakr actually intended an all- out imperial conquest or not is hard to say. He did, however, set in motion a historical trajectory (continued later by Umar and Uthman) that in just a few short decades would lead to one of the largest empires in history, beginning with a confrontation with the Sassanid Empire under the general Khalid ibn al- Walid. After the Ridda wars, a tribal chief of northeastern Arabia, Al-Muthanna ibn Haritha, raided the Persian towns in Mesopotamia (what is now Iraq). Abu Bakr was strong enough to attack the Persian Empire in the north-east and the Byzantine Empire in the north-west. There were three purposes for this conquest. First, along the border between Arabia and these two great empires were numerous nomadic Arab tribes and serving as a buffer between the Persians and Romans. Abu Bakr hoped that these tribes might accept Islam and help their brethren in spreading it. Second, the Persian and Roman populations were very highly taxed; Abu Bakr believed that they might be persuaded to help the Muslims, who agreed to release them from the excessive tributes. Finally, Abu Bakr hoped that by attacking Iraq and Syria he might remove the danger from the borders of the Islamic State. With the success of the raids, a considerable amount of booty was collected. Al-Muthanna ibn Haritha went to Medina to inform Abu Bakr about his success and was appointed commander of his people, after which he began to raid deeper into Mesopotamia. Using the mobility of his light cavalry, he could easily raid any town near the desert and disappear again into the desert, beyond the reach of the Sasanian army. Al-Muthanna's acts made Abu Bakr think about the expansion of the Rashidun Empire. To ensure victory, Abu Bakr made two decisions concerning the attack on Persia: first, the invading army would consist entirely of volunteers; and second, to put his best general, Khalid ibn al-Walid, in command. After defeating the self-proclaimed prophet Musaylimah in the Battle of Yamama, Khalid was still at Al-Yamama when Abu Bakr ordered him to invade the Sassanid Empire. Making Al-Hirah the objective of Khalid, Abu Bakr sent reinforcements and ordered the tribal chiefs of northeastern Arabia, Al-Muthanna ibn Haritha, Mazhur bin Adi, Harmala and Sulma to operate under Khalid's command. Around the third week of March 633 (first week of Muharram 12th Hijrah) Khalid set out from Al-Yamama with an army of 10,000. The tribal chiefs, with 2,000 warriors each, joined him, swelling his ranks to 18,000. After entering Mesopotamia, Khalid won decisive victories in four consecutive battles: the Battle of Chains, fought in April; the Battle of River, fought in the third week of April; the Battle of Walaja the following month (where he successfully used a double envelopment manoeuvre), and the Battle of Ullais, fought in mid- May. The Persian court, already disturbed by internal problems, was thrown into chaos. In the last week of May, the important city of Hira fell to the Muslims. After resting his armies, in June, Khalid laid siege to the city of Al Anbar, which surrendered in July. Khalid then moved towards the south, and conquered the city of Ayn al-Tamr in the last week of July. At this point, most of what is now Iraq was under Islamic control. Khalid received a call for aid from northern Arabia at Dawmat al-Jandal, where another Muslim Arab general, Iyad ibn Ghanm, was trapped among the rebel tribes. Khalid went there and defeated the rebels in the Battle of Dawmat al-Jandal in the last week of August. Upon his return, he received news of the assembling of a large Persian army. He decided to defeat them all separately to avoid the risk of being defeated by a large unified Persian army. Four divisions of Persian and Christian Arab auxiliaries were present at Hanafiz, Zumiel, Sanni and Muzieh. Khalid divided his army into three units, and employed them in well- coordinated attacks against the Persians from three different sides at night, in the Battle of Muzayyah, then the Battle of Saniyy, and finally the Battle of Zumail, all during the month of November. These devastating defeats ended Persian control over Mesopotamia, and left the Persian capital Ctesiphon vulnerable. Before attacking Ctesiphon, Khalid decided to eliminate all Persian forces in the south and west. He accordingly marched against the border city of Firaz, where he defeated the combined forces of the Sasanian Persians, the Byzantines and Christian Arabs in December. This was the last battle in his conquest of Mesopotamia. While Khalid was on his way to attack Qadissiyah (a key fort en route to Ctesiphon), Abu Bakr ordered him to the Roman front in Syria to assume command there. According to the will of Abu Bakr, Umar was to continue the conquest of Syria and Mesopotamia. On the northeastern borders of the Empire, in Mesopotamia, the situation was rapidly deteriorating. During Abu Bakr's era, Khalid ibn al- Walid had left Mesopotamia with half his army of 9000 soldiers to assume command in Syria, whereupon the Persians decided to take back their lost territory. The Muslim army was forced to leave the conquered areas and concentrate on the border. Umar immediately sent reinforcements to aid Muthanna ibn Haritha in Mesopotamia under the command of Abu Ubaid al-Thaqafi. At that time, a series of battles between the Persians and Arabs occurred in the region of Sawad, such as Namaraq, Kaskar and Baqusiatha, in which the Arabs managed to maintain their presence in the area. Later on, the Persians defeated Abu Ubaid in the Battle of the Bridge. However, Muthanna bin Haritha was later victorious in the Battle of Buwayb. In 635 Yazdgerd III sought an alliance with Emperor Heraclius of the Eastern Roman Empire, marrying the latter's daughter (or, by some traditions, his granddaughter) in order to seal the arrangement. While Heraclius prepared for a major offence in the Levant, Yazdegerd ordered the concentration of massive armies to push the Muslims out of Mesopotamia for good through a series of well-coordinated attacks on two fronts. Umar ordered his army to retreat to the Arabian border and began raising armies at Medina for another campaign into Mesopotamia. Owing to the critical situation, Umar wished to command the army personally, but the members of Majlis ash-Shura demurred, claiming that the two-front war required Umar's presence in Medina. Accordingly, Umar appointed Saad ibn Abi Waqqas, a respected senior officer, even though Saad was suffering from sciatica. Saad left Medina with his army in May 636 and arrived at Qadisiyyah in June. While Heraclius launched his offensive in May 636, Yazdegerd was unable to muster his armies in time to provide the Byzantines with Persian support. Umar, allegedly aware of this alliance, capitalized on this failure: not wanting to risk a battle with two great powers simultaneously, he quickly moved to reinforce the Muslim army at Yarmouk to engage and defeat the Byzantines. Meanwhile, Umar ordered Saad to enter into peace negotiations with Yazdegerd III and invite him to convert to Islam to prevent Persian forces from taking the field. Heraclius instructed his general Vahan not to engage in battle with the Muslims before receiving explicit orders; however, fearing more Arab reinforcements, Vahan attacked the Muslim army in the Battle of Yarmouk in August 636, and was routed. With the Byzantine threat ended, the Sassanid Empire was still a formidable power with vast manpower reserves, and the Arabs soon found themselves confronting a huge Persian army with troops drawn from every corner of the empire, including war elephants, and commanded by its foremost generals. Within three months, Saad defeated the Persian army in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah, effectively ending Sassanid rule west of Persia proper. This victory is largely regarded as a decisive turning point in Islam's growth: with the bulk of Persian forces defeated, Saad with his companions later conquered Babylon (Battle of Babylon (636)), Kūthā, Sābāṭ (Valashabad) and Bahurasīr (Veh-Ardashir). Ctesiphon, the capital of the Sassanid Empire, fell in March 637 after a siege of three months. In December 636, Umar ordered Utbah ibn Ghazwan to head south to capture al- Ubulla (known as "port of Apologos" in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea) and Basra, in order to cut ties between the Persian garrison there and Ctesiphon. Utbah ibn Ghazwan arrived in April 637, and captured the region. The Persians withdrew to the Maysan region, which the Muslims seized later as well. After the conquest of Ctesiphon, several detachments were immediately sent west to capture Circesium and Heet, both forts at the Byzantine border. Several fortified Persian armies were still active north-east of Ctesiphon at Jalawla and north of the Tigris at Tikrit and Mosul. After withdrawal from Ctesiphon, the Persian armies gathered at Jalawla, a place of strategic importance due to routes leading from here to Mesopotamia, Khurasan and Azerbaijan. The Persian forces at Jalawla were commanded by Mihran. His deputy was Farrukhzad, a brother of Rustam, who had commanded the Persian forces at the Battle of al- Qadisiyyah. Umar decided to deal with Jalawla first, thereby clearing the way to the north, before taking any decisive action against Tikrit and Mosul. Umar appointed Hashim ibn Utbah to take Jalawla and Abdullah ibn Muta'am to conquer Tikrit and Mosul. In April 637, Hashim led 12,000 troops from Ctesiphon to win a victory over the Persians at the Battle of Jalawla. He then laid siege to Jalawla for seven months, ending in the city's capture. Then, Abdullah ibn Muta'am marched against Tikrit and captured the city with the help of Christians, after fierce resistance. He next sent an army to Mosul which surrendered on the condition of paying Jizya. With victory at Jalawla and occupation of the Tikrit-Mosul region, the whole of Mesopotamia was under Muslim control. Thereafter, a Muslim force under Qa'qa marched in pursuit of the escaping Persians at Khaniqeen, 25 kilometres (15 mi) from Jalawla on the road to Iran, still under the command of Mihran. Qa'qa defeated the Persian forces in the Battle of Khaniqeen and captured the city. The Persians then withdrew to Hulwan. Qa'qa followed and laid siege to the city, which was captured in January 638. Qa'qa sought permission to operate deeper in Persia, but Umar rejected the proposal, writing in response: By February 638 there was a lull in the fighting on the Persian front. The Suwad, the Tigris valley, and the Euphrates valley were now under complete Muslim control. The Persians had withdrawn to Persia proper, east of the Zagros mountains. The Persians continued raiding Mesopotamia, which remained politically unstable. Nevertheless, it appeared as if the Zagros range was going to be the dividing line between the Rashidun Caliphate and the Sassanids. In the latter part of 638, Hormuzan, who was one of the seven great chiefs of Persia, and had commanded a corps at the Battle of Qadisiyyah, intensified his raids in Mesopotamia. Saad, on Umar's instructions, attacked Hormuzan, while Utbah ibn Ghazwan, aided by Nouman ibn Muqarin, attacked Ahvaz and forced Hormuzan into a peace treaty, under which Ahvaz would remain in Hormuzan's possession as a Muslim vassal state and would pay tribute. However, Hormuzan later broke the treaty, leading Umar to send Abu Musa Ashaari, governor of Busra, to deal with him. After another defeat, Hormuzan signed another treaty on similar terms to the last. This peace also proved short- lived once Hormuzan was reinforced by fresh Persian troops sent by Emperor Yazdgerd III in late 640. The troops concentrated at Tuster, north of Ahvaz. Umar sent the Governor of Kufa, Ammar ibn Yasir, the governor of Busra, Abu Musa, and Nouman ibn Muqarin there, where Hormuzan was defeated, captured and sent to Umar in Medina. Hormuzan apparently converted to Islam and remained a useful adviser to Umar throughout the remainder of the Persian campaign. He is also believed to be the mastermind behind Umar's assassination in 644. After the victory at Tustar, Abu Musa marched against the strategically-important Susa in January 641, capturing it after a siege of a couple of months. Next, Abu Musa marched against Junde Sabur, the only place left of military importance in the Persian province of Khuzistan, which surrendered to the Muslims after a siege of a few weeks. After the conquest of Khuzistan, Umar wanted peace. Though considerably weakened, the image of the Persian Empire as a fearsome superpower still resonated in the minds of the newly-ascendant Arabs, and Umar was wary of unnecessary military engagement with it, preferring to leave the rump of the Persian Empire alone, commenting, "I wish there was a mountain of fire between us and the Iranians, so that neither they could get to us, nor we to them." However, Persian pride had been hurt by the Arab conquest, making the status quo intolerable. After the defeat of the Persian forces at the Battle of Jalula in 637, Yazdgerd III went to Rey and from there moved to Merv, where he set up his capital and directed his chiefs to conduct continuous raids in Mesopotamia. Within four years, Yazdgerd III felt powerful enough to challenge the Muslims again for control of Mesopotamia. Accordingly, he recruited 100,000 hardened veterans and young volunteers from all parts of Persia, under the command of Mardan Shah, which marched to Nahavand for the last titanic struggle with the Caliphate. The Governor of Kufa, Ammar ibn Yasir, received intelligence of the Persian movements and concentration at Nahavand and reported them to Umar. Although Umar had expressed a desire for Mesopotamia to be his easternmost frontier, the concentration of the Persian army at Nahavand forced him to act. He now believed that as long as Persia proper remained under Sassanid rule, the raids into Mesopotamia would continue. Hudheifa ibn Al Yaman was appointed commander of the forces of Kufa, and was ordered to march to Nahavand. Abu Musa was to march to Nahavand from Busra, while Nouman ibn Muqarrin marched from Ctesiphon. Umar decided to personally take the army concentrated at Medina to Nahavand to assume overall command. The members of the Majlis al Shura, however, suggested that Umar should command the campaign from Medina, appointing an astute field commander for Nahavand. Umar acquiesced, appointing Mugheera ibn Shuba as commander of the forces concentrated at Medina, and Nouman ibn Muqarrin as commander-in-chief at Nahavand. The Muslim army first concentrated at Tazar, and then defeated the Persians at the Battle of Nahavand in December 642. Nouman died in the action, and, as per Umar's instructions, Hudheifa ibn Al Yaman became the new commander-in-chief. Thereafter, the Muslims captured the whole district of Hamadan, encountering only feeble resistance. After several years, Caliph Umar adopted a new offensive policy, preparing to launch a full-scale invasion of what remained of the Sassanid Empire. The Battle of Nahavand was one of the most decisive battles in Islamic history and proved to be the key to Persia. After the devastating defeat at Nahavand, the last Sassanid emperor, Yazdegerd III, fled to different parts of Persia to raise a new army, with limited success, while Umar attempted to capture him. Umar decided to strike the Persians immediately after their defeat at Nahavand, while he still possessed a psychological advantage. Umar had to decide which of three provinces to conquer first: Fars in the south, Azerbaijan in the north or Isfahan in the center. Umar chose Isfahan, as it was the heart of the Persian Empire and a conduit for supply and communications among the Sassanid garrisons, and its capture would isolate Fars and Azerbaijan from Khorasan, Yazdegerd's stronghold. After he had taken Fars and Isfahan, the next attacks would be simultaneously launched against Azerbaijan, the northwestern province, and Sistan, the easternmost province of the Persian Empire. The conquest of those provinces would leave Khorasan isolated and vulnerable, the last stage of the conquest of Sassanid Persia. Preparations were complete by January 642. The success of the plan depended upon how effectively Umar could coordinate these attacks from Medina, about 1500 kilometers from Persia, and upon the skill of his field commanders. Umar adopted a different approach to the command structure. Instead of appointing a single field commander to press the campaign, Umar appointed several commanders, each assigned a different mission. Once a commander's mission ended, he would become an ordinary soldier under the new field commander for the latter's mission. The purpose of this strategy was to allow commanders to mix with their soldiers and to remind them that they are like everyone else: command is only given to the most competent, and, once the battle is over, the commander returns to his previous position. On the eve of the campaign, Umar, in order to boost morale, decided to reinstall Khalid as field commander, four years after his dismissal. Khalid's reputation as the conqueror of the Eastern Roman provinces demoralized the Persian commanders, most of whom had already been defeated by him during his conquest of Mesopotamia in 633. However, before Umar could issue the reappointment order, Khalid died in Emesa. Throughout the Persian campaign, Umar even appointed the commanders of the wings, the center and the cavalry of the army. Umar strictly instructed his commanders to consult him before making any decisive move in Persia. All the commanders, before starting their assigned campaigns, were instructed to send a detailed report of the geography and terrain of the region and the positions of the Persian garrisons, forts, cities and troops. Umar then would send them a detailed plan of how he wanted the region to be captured. Only the tactical issues were left to the field commanders to tackle in accordance with the situation they faced at their fronts. Umar appointed the best available and well-reputed commanders for the campaign. In the wake of Khalid's demise, Umar appointed Abdullah ibn Uthman as commander of the Muslim forces for the invasion of Isfahan. From Nahavand, Nu'man ibn Muqaarin marched to Hamadan, and then proceeded 370 kilometres (230 mi) southeast to the city of Isfahan, defeating a Sasanian army there. The enemy commander, Shahrvaraz Jadhuyih, along with another Sasanian general, was killed during the battle. Nu'man, reinforced by fresh troops from Busra and Kufa under the command of Abu Musa Ashaari and Ahnaf ibn Qais, then besieged the city. The siege continued for a few months before the city surrendered. In 651, Nu'aym ibn Muqaarin, Nu'man's brother, marched northeast to Rey, Iran, about 320 kilometres (200 mi) from Hamadan, and laid siege to the city, which surrendered after fierce resistance. Nu'aym then marched 240 kilometres (150 mi) northeast towards Qom, which was captured without much resistance. This represented the boundary of the Isfahan region. Further northeast was Khurasan, and southeast lay Sistan. Meanwhile, Hamadan and Rey had rebelled. Umar sent Nu'aym, whose brother Nu'man had recently died, to Hamadan to crush the rebellion and clear Isfahan's western frontier. Nu'aym recaptured Hamadan after a bloody battle, and then proceeded to Rey. There too the Persians resisted but were defeated outside the fort, and the Muslims recaptured the city. The Persian citizens sued for peace, agreeing to pay the Jizya. From Rey, Nu'aym moved north towards Tabaristan, south of the Caspian Sea. The ruler of Tabaristan then signed a peace treaty with the Caliphate. The Muslim invasion of Fars began in 638/9, when the Rashidun governor of Bahrain, al-'Ala' ibn al-Hadrami, having defeated some rebellious Arab tribes, seized an island in the Persian Gulf. Although al-'Ala' and the rest of the Arabs had been ordered to not invade Fars or its surrounding islands, he and his men continued their raids into the province. Al-'Ala quickly prepared an army which he divided into three groups, one under al-Jarud ibn Mu'alla, the second under al-Sawwar ibn Hammam, and the third under Khulayd ibn al-Mundhir ibn Sawa. When the first group entered Fars, it was quickly defeated and al- Jarud was killed. The same thing soon happened to the second group. However, the third group was more fortunate: Khulayd managed to keep the defenders at bay, but was unable to withdraw to Bahrain, as the Sassanians were blocking his way to the sea. Umar, having found out about al-'Ala's invasion of Fars, had him replaced with Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas as governor. Umar then ordered Utbah ibn Ghazwan to send reinforcements to Khulayd. Once the reinforcements arrived, Khulayd and some of his men managed to withdraw to Bahrain, while the rest withdrew to Basra. In ca. 643, Uthman ibn Abi al-As seized Bishapur, which signed a peace treaty. In 644, al-'Ala' once again attacked Fars from Bahrain, reaching as far as Estakhr, until he was repulsed by the Persian governor (marzban) of Fars, Shahrag. Some time later, Uthman ibn Abi al-As managed to establish a military base at Tawwaj, and soon defeated and killed Shahrag near Rew-shahr (however, other sources state that al-'As's brother did this). A Persian convert to Islam, Hormoz ibn Hayyan al-'Abdi, was then sent by Uthman ibn Abi al-As to attack a fortress known as Senez on the coast of Fars. After the accession of Uthman ibn Affan as the new Rashidun Caliph on 11 November, the inhabitants of Bishapur, under the leadership of Shahrag's brother, declared independence, but were defeated. However, the Persian historian al-Baladhuri states that this occurred in 646. In 648, 'Abd-Allah ibn al-'Ash'ari forced the governor of Estakhr, Mahak, to surrender the city. However, the inhabitants of the city would later rebel in 649/650 while its newly appointed governor, 'Abd-Allah ibn 'Amir, was trying to capture Gor. The military governor of Estakhr, 'Ubayd Allah ibn Ma'mar, was defeated and killed. In 650/651, Yazdegerd went there to plan an organized resistance against the Arabs, and, after some time, went to Gor. However, Estakhr failed to put up a strong resistance, and was soon sacked by the Arabs, who killed over 40,000 defenders. The Arabs then quickly seized Gor, Kazerun and Siraf, while Yazdegerd fled to Kerman. Muslim control of Fars remained shaky for a time, with several local rebellions following the conquest. The expedition to Kerman, under Suhail ibn Adi, was sent at roughly the same time as the expeditions to Sistan and Azerbaijan. Suhail marched from Busra in 643; passing through Shiraz and Persepolis, he joined with other armies and then marched against Kerman, which was subdued after a pitched battle with the local garrisons. The Arabs were raiding Sakastan as early as Umar's caliphate. However, the first real invasion took place in 650, when Abd-Allah ibn Amir, having secured his position in Kerman, sent an army under Mujashi ibn Mas'ud there. After crossing the Dasht-i Lut desert, Mujashi ibn Mas'ud reached Sakastan, but suffered a heavy defeat and was forced to retreat. One year later, Abd-Allah ibn Amir sent an army under Rabi ibn Ziyad Harithi to Sakastan. After some time, Rabi reached Zaliq, a Sakastani border town, where he forced the dehqan of the town to acknowledge Rashidun authority. He then did the same at the fortress of Karkuya, which had a famous fire temple mentioned in the Tarikh-i Sistan. He then seized more land in the province. Next, he besieged the provincial capital, Zrang, and, after a heavy battle outside the city, its governor, Aparviz, surrendered. When Aparviz went to Rabi ibn Ziyad to negotiate a treaty, he saw that Rabi was using the bodies of two dead soldiers as a chair. This horrified Aparviz, who, in order to spare the inhabitants of Sakastan from the Arabs, made peace with them in return for a heavy tribute of 1 million dirhams, including 1,000 slave boys (or girls) bearing 1,000 golden vessels. Rabi ibn Ziyad was then appointed governor of the province. Eighteen months later, Rabi was summoned to Basra, and was replaced by 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samura. The inhabitants of Sakastan used this opportunity to rebel, defeating the Muslim garrison at Zrang. When 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samura reached Sakastan, he suppressed the rebellion and defeated the Zunbils of Zabulistan, seizing Bust and a few cities in Zabulistan. The conquest of Iranian Azerbaijan started in 651, part of a simultaneous attack launched against Kerman and Makran in the southeast (described above), against Sistan in the northeast and against Azerbaijan in the northwest. Hudheifa ibn Al Yaman was assigned Azerbaijan. Hudheifa marched from Rey in central Persia to Zanjan, a well-fortified Persian stronghold in the north. The Persians came out of the city and gave battle, but Hudheifa defeated them, captured the city, and those who sought peace were granted it on the usual jizya conditions. From Zanjan, Hudheifa marched to Ardabil which surrendered peacefully. Hudheifa then continued his march north along the western coast of the Caspian Sea and captured Bab al-Abwab by force. At this point Hudheifa was recalled by Uthman, to be replaced by Bukair ibn Abdullah and Utba ibn Farqad. They were sent to carry out a two-pronged attack against Azerbaijan: Bukair along the western coast of the Caspian Sea, and Uthba into the heart of Azerbaijan. On his way north Bukair was halted by a large Persian force under Isfandiyar, the son of Farrukhzad. A pitched battle was fought, after which Isfandiyar was defeated and captured. In return for his life, he agreed to surrender his estates in Azerbaijan and persuade others to submit to Muslim rule. Uthba ibn Farqad then defeated Bahram, brother of Isfandiyar. He too sued for peace. Azerbaijan then surrendered to Caliph Umar, agreeing to pay the annual jizya. The Muslims had conquered Byzantine Armenia in 638–639. Persian Armenia, north of Azerbaijan, remained in Persian hands, along with Khurasan. Umar refused to take any chances; he never perceived the Persians as being weak, which facilitated the speedy conquest of the Persian Empire. Again Umar sent simultaneous expeditions to the far north-east and north-west of the Persian Empire, one to Khurasan in late 643 and the other to Armenia. Bukair ibn Abdullah, who had recently subdued Azerbaijan, was ordered to capture Tiflis. From Bab, on the western coast of the Caspian Sea, Bukair continued his march north. Umar employed his traditional successful strategy of multi-pronged attacks. While Bukair was still kilometres away from Tiflis, Umar instructed him to divide his army into three corps. Umar appointed Habib ibn Muslaima to capture Tiflis, Abdulrehman to march north against the mountains and Hudheifa to march against the southern mountains. With the success of all three missions, the advance into Armenia came to an end with the death of Umar in November 644. By then almost the whole of the South Caucasus was captured. Khorasan was the second-largest province of the Sassanid Empire. It stretched from what is now northeastern Iran, northwestern Afghanistan and southern Turkmenistan. Its capital was Balkh, in northern Afghanistan. In 651 the conquest of Khurasan was assigned to Ahnaf ibn Qais. Ahnaf marched from Kufa and took a short and less frequented route via Rey and Nishapur. Rey was already in Muslim hands and Nishapur surrendered without resistance. From Nishapur, Ahnaf marched to Herat in western Afghanistan. Herat was a fortified town, and the resulting siege lasted for a few months before it surrendered, bringing the whole of southern Khorasan under Muslim control. Ahnaf then marched north directly to Merv, in present-day Turkmenistan. Merv was the capital of Khurasan and here Yazdegred III held his court. On hearing of the Muslim advance, Yazdegerd III left for Balkh. No resistance was offered at Merv, and the Muslims occupied the capital of Khurasan without firing a shot. Ahnaf stayed at Merv and waited for reinforcement from Kufa. Meanwhile, Yazdegerd had also gathered considerable power at Balkh and allied with the Turkic Khan of Farghana, who personally led the relief contingent. Umar ordered Ahnaf to break up the alliance. The Khan of Farghana, realizing that fighting against the Muslims might endanger his own kingdom, withdrew from the alliance and pulled back to Farghana. The remainder of Yazdegerd's army was defeated at the Battle of Oxus River and retreated across the Oxus to Transoxiana. Yazdegerd himself narrowly escaped to China. Balkh was occupied by the Muslims, and with this, the once-mighty Sassanid empire had ceased to exist. The Muslims had now reached the outermost frontiers of Persia. Beyond that lay the lands of the Turks and still further lay China. Ahnaf returned to Merv and sent a detailed report of his success to the anxiously-waiting Umar, and sought permission to cross the Oxus river and invade Transoxiana. Umar ordered Ahnaf to stand down and instead consolidate his power south of the Oxus. Umar was assassinated in November 644 by a Persian slave named Piruz Nahavandi. The assassination is often seen by historians as a Persian conspiracy, masterminded by Hormuzan. Uthman ibn Affan (644–656) succeeded Umar as caliph. During his reign, almost the whole of the former Sassanid empire's territory rebelled from time to time, requiring him to send several military expeditions to crush the rebellions and recapture Persia and its vassal states. The main rebellions were in the Persian provinces of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Fars, Sistan (in 649), Khorasan (651), and Makran (650). Finally, in 651, Yazdegerd III, the last Sassanid emperor, was killed near Merv by a local miller for his purse, thus putting an end to both his dynasty and to organized Persian resistance. Meanwhile, Uthman's empire expanded beyond the borders of the Sassanid Empire, to Transoxiana, Baluchistan, and the Caucasus. For many decades to come, this was the easternmost limit of Muslim rule. According to Bernard Lewis: Arab Muslims conquests have been variously seen in Iran: by some as a blessing, the advent of the true faith, the end of the age of ignorance and heathenism; by others as a humiliating national defeat, the conquest and subjugation of the country by foreign invaders. Both perceptions are of course valid, depending on one's angle of vision... Iran was indeed Islamized, but it was not Arabized. Persians remained Persians. And after an interval of silence, Iran reemerged as a separate, different and distinctive element within Islam, eventually adding a new element even to Islam itself. Culturally, politically, and most remarkable of all even religiously, the Iranian contribution to this new Islamic civilization is of immense importance. The work of Iranians can be seen in every field of cultural endeavor, including Arabic poetry, to which poets of Iranian origin composing their poems in Arabic made a very significant contribution. In a sense, Iranian Islam is a second advent of Islam itself, a new Islam sometimes referred to as Islam-i Ajam. It was this Persian Islam, rather than the original Arab Islam, that was brought to new areas and new peoples: to the Turks, first in Central Asia and then in the Middle East in the country which came to be called Turkey, and of course to India. The Ottoman Turks brought a form of Iranian civilization to the walls of Vienna. Under Umar and his immediate successors, the Arab conquerors attempted to maintain their political and cultural cohesion despite the attractions of the civilizations they had conquered. The Arabs initially settled in the garrison towns rather than on scattered estates. The new non-Muslim subjects were protected by the state and known as dhimmi (protected), and were to pay a special tax, the jizya (tribute), which was calculated at varying individual rates, usually two dirhams for able-bodied men of military age, in return for exemption from military service. Women and children were exempted from the jizya. Mass conversions were neither desired nor allowed, at least in the first few centuries of Arab rule. Umar had liberal policies towards dhimmis, adopted to make the conquered less rebellious and more receptive to Arab colonization. Umar is reported to have issued the following instructions about the protected people: "Make it easy for him, who can not pay tribute; help him who is weak, let them keep their titles, but do not give them our kuniyat [Arabic traditional nicknames or titles]." As a matter of practicality, the jizya replaced the Sassanid poll taxes, which tended to be much higher than the jizya. In addition to the jizya, the old Sassanid land tax (known in Arabic as Kharaj) was also adopted. Umar is said to have occasionally set up commissions to survey tax burdens in order to ensure that they wouldn't be more than the land could bear. It is reported that Zoroastrians were subjected to humiliation and ridicule when paying the jizya in order to make them feel inferior. At least under the Rashiduns and early Ummayads, the administrative system of the late Sassanid period was largely retained, a pyramidal system where each quarter of the state was divided into provinces, the provinces into districts, and the districts into sub-districts. Provinces were called ustan (Middle Persian ostan), and the districts shahrs, centered upon a district capital known as a shahristan. The subdistricts were called tasok in Middle Persian, which was adopted into Arabic as tassuj (plural tasasij). After the Muslim conquest of Persia, Zoroastrians were given dhimmi status and subjected to persecutions; discrimination and harassment began in the form of sparse violence. Zoroastrians were made to pay an extra tax called jizya, failing which they were either killed, enslaved or imprisoned. Those paying jizya were subjected to insults and humiliation by the tax collectors. Zoroastrians who were captured as slaves in wars were given their freedom if they converted to Islam. While giving freedom of choice, the Arab conquerors designated privileges for those who converted to Islam. Muslim leaders in their effort to win converts encouraged attendance at Muslim prayer with promises of money and allowed the Quran to be recited in Persian instead of Arabic so that it would be intelligible to all. Islam was readily accepted by Zoroastrians who were employed in industrial and artisan positions because, according to Zoroastrian dogma, such occupations that involved defiling fire made them impure. Moreover, Muslim missionaries did not encounter difficulty in explaining Islamic tenets to Zoroastrians, as there were many similarities between the faiths. According to Thomas Walker Arnold, for the Persian, he would meet Ahura Mazda and Ahriman under the names of Allah and Iblis. In Afghanistan, Islam was spread due to Umayyad missionary efforts particularly under the reign of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. There were also large and thriving Christian and Jewish communities, along with smaller numbers of Buddhists and other groups. However, there was a slow but steady movement of the population towards Islam. The nobility and city- dwellers were the first to convert. Islam spread more slowly among the peasantry and the dihqans, or landed gentry. By the late 10th century, the majority of the Persians had become Muslim. Until the 15th century, most Persian Muslims were Sunni Muslims, though today Iran is known as a stronghold of the Shi'a Muslim faith, recognizing Islam as their religion and the prophet's son in law, Ali as an enduring symbol of justice. During the Rashidun Caliphate, the official language of Persia (including Mesopotamia) remained Middle Persian (Pahlavi), just as the official languages of Syria and Egypt remained Greek and Coptic. However, during the Ummayad Caliphate, the Ummayads imposed Arabic as the primary language of their subjected people throughout their empire, displacing their indigenous languages. Particularly, Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf (661–714) officially changed the administrative language of Iraq from Middle Persian (Pahlavi) to Arabic. Although an area from Iraq to Morocco speaks Arabic-based dialects to this day, Middle Persian proved to be much more enduring. Most of its structure and vocabulary survived, evolving into the New Persian. However, Persian did incorporate a certain amount of Arabic vocabulary, especially words pertaining to religion, and it switched from the Pahlavi scripts to a modified version of the Arabic alphabet. Today Persian is spoken officially in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan. The Arab conquest of Persia led to a period of extreme urbanisation in Iran, starting with the ascension of the Abbasid dynasty and ending in the 11th century CE. This was particularly true for the eastern parts of the country, for regions like Khorasan and Transoxiana. During this period, Iran saw the development of massive metropolises, some reaching population numbers of up to 200,000 people. Before this period, the important Persian cities had been situated outside of Persia proper, especially in Mesopotamia. This period of extreme urbanisation was followed in the 11th century by a collapse of the Iranian economy, which led to large scale emigrations of Iranians into Central Asia, India, the rest of the Middle East, and Anatolia. This catastrophe has been cited by some as reason for the Persian language becoming widespread throughout Central Asia and large parts of the Middle East. }} History of Iran: Islamic Conquest from the Iran Chamber Society., The Arab conquests at History World., Muslim Conquest of Persia at Mecca Books.

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Jonathan "Jack" Stanley Hodgins IV, Ph.D. is a character in the American television series, Bones. He is portrayed by T. J. Thyne. Hodgins is introduced to the series primarily as an entomologist/forensic entomologist, as well as a botanist/forensic botanist, mineralogist/forensic mineralogist, a palynology/forensic palynologist, and a forensic chemist; conspiracy theories are his hobby. During an investigation, he is primarily responsible for estimating time of death and examining trace evidence and particulates. Jack Hodgins comes from an extremely wealthy family (Angela in season two says she thinks he is Swedish), and is the sole heir to the fictional private corporation known as the Cantilever Group, although he hid his wealth from his coworkers for a long time. Son of the late Jonathan and Anne Hodgins ("The Heiress in the Hill", season 9), Jack Hodgins is thought to have been an only child until he discovers in Season 9 that he has an older brother named Jeffrey, institutionalized with schizoaffective disorder. In "The Blonde in the Game", we find he has an uncle named Preston; Hodgins' grandfather served as a "code breaker" under Admiral Chester W. Nimitz during World War II. His family is the single largest donor to the Jeffersonian, although he would rather toil in academia than spend time in the high social society to which his wealth entitles him. In Season 8, after serial killer Christopher Pelant hacks into Hodgins' savings and drains his bank accounts and the accounts of the entire Cantilever Group, he and Angela are forced to scrimp. However, in Season 9, he tells Dr Sweets that he is content as he still has his work at the Jeffersonian and family – the two things which he values the most. Hodgins, like Zack, was bullied in school: in elementary and middle school for being a "rich boy" and in high school for his small physical stature and diminished social skills. It is later noted that he "managed to stand up for himself" on the last day of senior year, which Sweets believes to have given him closure. According to Angela, in "The Truth in the Myth", in season 6, Hodgins is a Virgo, and of course because of this, he would "belittle astrology". His starsign puts his birthday somewhere between 23 August and 22 September. Hodgins owns an original Mini, which Booth jokingly calls a "toy car", although in later seasons he is seen driving a Toyota Prius as well. He is an experienced cave diver. Although a noted conspiracy theorist, Hodgins temporarily abandons his paranoid thoughts and beliefs after it is revealed that his best friend, Zack Addy, has become the most recent apprentice to a cannibalistic serial killer known as "Gormogon", perhaps due in part to Hodgins' complaints about secret societies potentially making Zack more susceptible to Gormogon's influence. Devastated by his best friend's poor judgment, as well as his recent break-up with Angela, Hodgins finds his beliefs and feelings of paranoia turning into misanthropy. After being repeatedly confronted by Sweets about his behavior in the lab, Hodgins explains during a therapy session that he "hates everybody". Sweets determines that this misanthropy is a way to cope with the overwhelming stresses in his life, and assures him that it will turn into something more pleasant in time. In "Aliens in the Spaceship", in season 2, Hodgins brings up "King of the Lab" for the first time, he and Zack (& later, other interns) sporadically - & informally - 'competing' for the title by trying to come up with particularly crucial items of evidence in the investigation. This tradition diminishes somewhat after Zack leaves, as Cam does not encourage it and Hodgins has varying connections with the Jeffersonian's numerous interns. Later in season 8, Hodgins loses his money due to the machinations of killer and hacker Christopher Pelant, who hacks Hodgins' accounts while using the same computer system to target a military drone at a school in Afghanistan, forcing Hodgins to sacrifice his money by allowing the computer to keep running so that the team can focus their efforts on hacking the drone and stopping the destruction of the school. In "The Maiden in the Mushrooms", after using the last of Finn's late grandma's hot sauce, Hodgins figures out the ingredients, and opens a side business called "Opie and Thurston's" Hot sauce. In season 10 in "The Eye in the Sky" Hodgins invents a packaging material and receives an advance of $20 million, restoring him to the ranks of the wealthy. Hodgins has three doctorates, in entomology, botany, and geology/mineralogy. He is known around the Jeffersonian as the "bug and slime guy" and Booth often calls him "bug boy", a reference to Hodgins' expertise in and affection for all insects in general. During an investigation, he primarily deals with particulates and trace evidence and determines the time of death by examining insect activity. In later seasons, (4th(?) and beyond), Hodgins gets his own lab suite, known as the "Ookey Room", (which used to be Zack's workspace), where he does most of his lab work, keeps his collection of Arthropods, and performs most of his experiments. There is a running gag in the show where he often pleads Cam, his boss, for "permission" to conduct a seemingly pointless and absurd experiment, sometimes to bizarre and amusing effect but still aids the investigation nonetheless. In episode 10 of season 4, "The Bones That Blew", Hodgins stated that his passion to "figure stuff out in amusing ways" was why he chose a career in science. In several episodes he has cooked using the lab apparatus, much to his co-workers' bemusement. He also has been known to distill quite palatable spirits using lab apparatus repurposed for the job. Hodgins is one of the more sarcastic members of the group, and initially deals with some anger management issues. He also had some initial difficulty in working with Dr Goodman, the Jeffersonian's administrator, as Dr Goodman frequently used conjecture or imagination to make inferences about the victims of crimes. He is sometimes "the funny man" with a notable impression of the character Seeley Booth. In his earlier characterization, he was shown as having anger management issues; in the first season and in a flashback in season 5, Hodgins used to twang an elastic band on his wrist. Hodgins is one of the more socially adept "squints" and uses pop culture references and jokes, which Dr. Brennan and Zack Addy often fail to grasp. As such, he has little difficulty "translating" scientific terms into layman terms to Booth and is sometimes exasperated when Zack fails to understand a joke or quip. He and Zack had a friendly competition for distinction of "King of the Lab", awarded to whoever found the best lead in the case. Throughout the series, Hodgins has been known for his "insane conspiracy ravings", as Booth calls it, and in many of the show's early episodes his knowledge of conspiracy theories was demonstrated. In several cases, Booth, despite his disdain for most of Hodgins' conspiracy theories, uses it to his advantage for a case; in the episode "The Girl in Suite 2103" he asks Hodgins to call the FAA with his "craziest" conspiracy theory in order to stall a plane so the FBI can get to it in time to do a search. At the end of the episode when government agents come to take Hodgins away for questioning in relation to the hoax call, Booth declines to intervene telling Dr Brennan that being taken away by "Men in Black" would be his dream come true. Whenever different aspects of the government, such as the Department of Defense or the State Department, become involved in cases, Hodgins will often be the first to suggest that a cover-up is involved. In Seasons 9 and 10, his conspiracy theorist side comes to the fore and his theories often aid Booth and the team in finding clues in the major story arc in which the discovery of "The Ghost Killer" and her connections lead the team to uncover a widespread and deeply rooted conspiracy going on in the FBI. Angela Montenegro After a few episodes of sexual tension, Hodgins takes Angela out on their first date to a park to play on swings. When he was buried alive with Dr. Brennan, Hodgins admitted to being in love with Angela, saying "I'm nuts about Angela. Over the moon, stupid in love with her." Hodgins proposed to Angela twice before she turned the tables and proposed to him after he told her that love was enough. Their wedding is cut short in the season two finale when a State Department official interrupts the ceremony, having conducted a background on him and Angela as both are federal employees and discovered that Angela is technically married to a Fijian man named Grayson Barasa. Hodgins and Angela hire a private investigator to locate Angela's husband, and the investigator finds Angela's husband, Grayson Barasa, living on No Name Key in Florida. Hodgins and Angela ask Amber to force Grayson to sign the divorce papers. Grayson refuses to sign, claiming he still loves Angela and has even built a house for himself and her. Grayson is initially resistant to signing the divorce papers, which puts a strain on the relationship between Angela and Hodgins. They realize that they may not fully trust each other, and end their relationship. After their break-up when he learns that Angela's father (ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons) is in town, Hodgins awakes in the middle of a desert with a bandage on his shoulder, which he removes to reveal a tattoo of Angela's face along with the words "Angie Forever". After time apart, it is made clear that Hodgins still has feelings for Angela. After Booth is hospitalized for a brain tumor near the end of Season 4, Hodgins proposes giving his and Angela's relationship a second shot. While, in Season 5, they seem to be just friends, there are still signs of romantic tension between the two. In the episode "The Tough Man in the Tender Chicken", Angela mentions to Hodgins that her required celibacy period will soon be over and seems to hint that she would like to break it with Hodgins; Hodgins turns her down, despite her insistence that she was implying no such thing. In "The X in the File", when Wendell tells Hodgins of his relationship with Angela, Hodgins is shown to be very upset and hurt. During the next episode, "The Proof in the Pudding", Angela has a pregnancy scare; during this time, Hodgins tells her that he loves her and that he will be there to support her and the baby. While the pregnancy test was revealed to be a false positive at the end of the episode, Angela still tells Hodgins that she is grateful for his support and will never forget it. They were later imprisoned in "The Witch in the Wardrobe" for a variety of minor infractions by a local sheriff, which led to remembrance of their happiness together. They both realized that they regretted breaking up and shared a passionate kiss. When a judge arrived to post their bail, they were finally married in a private ceremony in the jail cell. They announced their marriage to their colleagues soon after. Upon their return from their honeymoon in Paris, it is revealed that they are expecting their first child, who will be named Temperance, if it's a girl, after Dr. Brennan. Angela's father wants to name their child "Staccato Mamba". It came to him in a song. Hodgins disagrees so he stands up to him and tells him "No". Finally he agrees with Angela and Hodgins on the names Katherine Temperance for a girl and Michael Joseph for a boy. Also in the end of the episode it was revealed that Hodgins got a tattoo of Angela's dad on his other arm which said "Dad". In the episode "The Blackout in the Blizzard" Angela and Hodgins find out they are both carriers of Leber's Congenital Amaurosis, giving their baby a 25 percent chance of blindness. This was a huge devastation for the couple, but in the end they reminded each other that they can handle anything together. Once the child was born, their son was confirmed to not be blind, and the two named him Michael Staccato Vincent Hodgins (named in honor of Vincent Nigel-Murray who was previously killed). Hodgins' argumentative nature sometimes annoys his co-workers but he is on friendly terms with most of the team, including the interns. He was close to Zack Addy (who lived with Hodgins, renting the apartment above his garage) and would advise him on how to behave in a social setting, sometimes with humorously awkward results. Zack's social awkwardness and inability to understand Hodgins' sarcasm or pop culture references was sometimes a source of frustration, with Hodgins once calling the former a "dull Vulcan". Of the interns, Hodgins is particularly close to Wendell Bray, Finn Abernathy and Arastoo Vaziri. He initially had an awkward relationship with Wendell as the latter once dated Angela for a period of time and Angela had painted Wendell nude once. They later resolve the issue over time. Hodgins adopts a more brotherly approach with Finn given their age difference and calls him "Opie" while Finn calls him "Thurston", a reference to Opie, a young boy in The Andy Griffith Show and crusty old millionaire Thurston Howell III from Gilligan's Island. In Season 8 he unknowingly finishes Finn's favorite hot sauce, later revealed to be the last bottle made by his late grandmother. Feeling guilty, Hodgins attempts to molecularly recreate the sauce. He succeeds and starts a side business with Finn after getting a chef to endorse and market the hot sauce and they named the sauce "Opie & Thurston's Hot Sauce". Hodgins and Arastoo frequently chat about sports, especially basketball and baseball, while examining remains in the lab. When Arastoo admitted to faking his accent as a cover for his religiousness, Hodgins was one of the first to accept him without reservations after Arastoo explained how he reconciles his religion (Islam) with science. When Booth was appointed the FBI liaison to the Jeffersonian, Hodgins, who is anti-bureaucracy, was particularly hostile to him, especially for the early part of Season 1. Booth's military background, position as an FBI agent and patriotism further added to the tension. In "Two Bodies in the Lab" Booth went against protocol and allowed Hodgins to go with him to rescue Dr. Brennan - albeit because Hodgins was the only person available to drive him to help Brennan - and their animosity subsides from then on. Despite their opposing views, they are on friendly terms, with Hodgins expressing genuine regret when a current investigation exposed a military cover-up as he recognized what their discoveries meant for Booth. Hodgins also asked for Booth's advice when he was planning to propose to Angela. Most notably, when Agent Perotta — who was officially working with the squints on a case where Booth was a prime suspect and thus unable to serve as the lead investigator — commented that 'her' people had found some recent evidence in the case, Hodgins, along with intern Wendell automatically corrected her statement by saying that the squints were Booth's people. After Brennan, Hodgins is the 'squint' who has spent the most time out in the field with Booth – discounting Dr. Camille Saroyan, who had prior experience working in law enforcement before joining the Jeffersonian – occasionally accompanying Booth when investigations require on-site particulate analysis. The second season of the American television series Bones premiered on August 30, 2006, and concluded on May 16, 2007, on Fox. The show aired on Wednesdays at 8:00 pm ET for the entire season and consisted of 21 episodes. The season averaged 9.4 million viewers. Tamara Taylor joined the cast this season after the departure of Jonathan Adams. Taylor first appeared in the first six episodes of the season as a guest star and was promoted to a series regular and appeared in the opening credits beginning with episode 7. Emily Deschanel as Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan, a forensic anthropologist, David Boreanaz as FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth, the official FBI liaison with the Jeffersonian, Michaela Conlin as Angela Montenegro, a forensic artist, Eric Millegan as Dr. Zack Addy, Dr. Brennan's lab assistant and now a professional forensic anthropologist, Tamara Taylor as Dr. Camille Saroyan, a forensic pathologist and the new head of the forensic division, T. J. Thyne as Dr. Jack Hodgins, an entomologist Eddie McClintock as Tim "Sully" Sullivan, Patricia Belcher as Caroline Julian, a prosecutor, Stephen Fry as Dr. Gordon Wyatt, Booth's psychiatrist who evaluates his behavior, Nathan Dean as FBI Special Agent Charlie Burns, Ryan O'Neal as Max Keenan, Brennan's fugitive father, Jessica Capshaw as Rebecca Stinson, Booth's ex-girlfriend and Parker's mother, Heath Freeman as Howard Epps, a serial killer, Ty Panitz as Parker Booth, Booth's son, Chris Conner as Oliver Laurier, Loren Dean as Russ Brennan, Brennan's brother, Billy Gibbons as Angela's father, David Greenman as Marcus Geier, a forensic technician, Danny Woodburn as Alex Radziwill, a Diplomatic immunity and State Department official The episode "Player Under Pressure" was originally supposed to air in April 2007 as episode 19, but was delayed in the wake of the Virginia Tech massacre, as the episode's plot featured finding human remains on a college campus. The episode later aired in April 2008 as part of the third season, with new footage. The episode "Aliens in a Spaceship" introduces the storyline of the Grave Digger, an unresolved case. The Grave Digger would later return in the fourth season, when the team discovers its identity. Serial killer Howard Epps returns for two episodes, in which the team must discover more of his victims. The second season of Bones was released on DVD in region 1 on September 11, 2007, in region 2 on October 15, 2007 and in region 4 on December 3, 2008. The set includes all 21 episodes of season two on a 6-disc set presented in anamorphic widescreen. Special features include two audio commentaries—"The Glowing Bones in the Old Stone House" by writer Stephen Nathan, actress Emily Deschanel and director Caleb Deschanel and "Stargazer in a Puddle" by executive producers Stephen Nathan, Barry Josephson and Hart Hanson. Featurettes include "The Memories in the Season" and "Visceral Effects: The Digital Illusions of Bones". Also included are deleted scenes and a gag reel. General references The fourth season of the American television series Bones premiered on September 3, 2008, with a two-hour episode and concluded on May 14, 2009, on Fox. The show changed time slots again, airing on Wednesdays at 8:00 pm ET before moving to Thursdays at 8:00 pm ET in 2009. The season consisted of 26 episodes and averaged 10.8 million viewers. Emily Deschanel as Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan, a forensic anthropologist, David Boreanaz as FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth, who is the official FBI liaison with the Jeffersonian, Michaela Conlin as Angela Montenegro, a forensic artist, Tamara Taylor as Dr. Camille Saroyan, a forensic pathologist and the head of the forensic division, T. J. Thyne as Dr. Jack Hodgins, an entomologist, John Francis Daley as Dr. Lance Sweets, an FBI psychologist who studies the relationship between Dr. Brennan and Agent Booth David Greenman as Marcus Geier, a forensic technician, Patricia Belcher as Caroline Julian, a prosecutor, Brendan Fehr as Jared Booth, Booth's brother, Marisa Coughlan as FBI Agent Payton Perotta, Nichole Hiltz as Roxie Lyon, Angela’s girlfriend, Tuppence Middleton as Vera Waterhouse, Eric Millegan as Dr. Zack Addy, Ryan O'Neal as Max Keenan, Brennan's father, Ty Panitz as Parker Booth, Booth's son, Stephen Fry as Dr. Gordon Wyatt, Booth's former psychiatrist, Billy Gibbons as Angela's father, Deirdre Lovejoy as Heather Taffet Interns Eugene Byrd as Dr. Clark Edison, Ryan Cartwright as Vincent Nigel-Murray, Michael Grant Terry as Wendell Bray, Carla Gallo as Daisy Wick, Joel David Moore as Colin Fisher, Pej Vahdat as Arastoo Vaziri, Michael Badalucco as Scott Starret The season premieres with its first two-part episode, "Yanks in the U.K." which was filmed on-location in the United Kingdom. Due to the season's extended episode count of 26 and multiple pre-emptions, Fox aired seven episodes throughout the month of April 2009, with new episodes airing on Monday and Wednesday, along with its regular timeslot of Thursday. This season sees the return of The Grave Digger, who was last seen in the second season. This time, The Grave Digger captures Booth. After Booth is rescued, the team discovers the true identity of The Grave Digger. The fourth season of Bones was released on DVD (subtitled "Body Bag Edition") in region 1 on October 6, 2009, in region 2 on October 26, 2009 and in region 4 on October 27, 2009. This was the first season to be released on Blu-ray, and was only released in region A alongside the region 1 DVD release. The region 1 DVD set only includes 22 episodes of season four, as the first four episodes of the season were made available as bonus episodes on the season three DVD set. While the Blu-ray release, and the region 2 and 4 versions include all 26 episodes of the season. Special features include two featurettes—"Androgyny: Playing Haru Tanaka" and "Squints in Training"; three extended episodes—"The Perfect Pieces in the Purple Pond", "The Doctor in the Den" and "The Girl in the Mask". Also included are deleted scenes and a gag reel. General references

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Curling was included in the program of the inaugural Winter Olympic Games in 1924 in Chamonix although the results of that competition were not considered official by the International Olympic Committee until 2006. Curling was a demonstration sport at the 1932 Games, and then again after a lengthy absence in 1988 and 1992. The sport was finally added to the official program for the 1998 Nagano Games. Until 2018, men's and women's events were contested. An additional event, mixed doubles, was rejected for 2010 because the Olympic Programme Commission felt it had not developed enough, but was approved for the 2018 Winter Olympics at an IOC Executive Board meeting in June 2015. Since the 1998 Olympics, Canada has generally dominated the sport with their men's teams winning gold in 2006, 2010, and 2014, and silver in 1998 and 2002. The women's team won gold in 1998 and 2014, a silver in 2010, and a bronze in 2002 and 2006. Their mixed doubles team won gold in 2018. The related ice stock sport (Eisstockschießen in German) was a demonstration event in 1936 and 1964. These events are not considered additional demonstrations of curling. • = official event, (d) = demonstration event The final placement for each team in each tournament is shown in the following tables. Men's tournament Note: The three medal winners in 1924 were the only teams entered that year. Women's tournament Mixed doubles tournament Standings in curling medals won as of the 2018 Winter Olympics. List of Olympic venues in curling, Wheelchair curling at the Winter Paralympics, Ice stock sport at the Winter Olympics, a similar sport, Curling at the Youth Olympic Games Olympic information at the World Curling Federation's site The curling competition at the 2018 Winter Olympics was held between 8 and 25 February 2018 at the Gangneung Curling Centre. This was the seventh time that curling is on the Olympic program. In each of the men's and women's competitions, ten nations competed. As decided in 2015, a third competition, mixed doubles curling, has graduated from a spectator sport to a full medal competition. Teams consisted of one woman and one man. There were eight participating countries in the mixed competition. Qualification to the curling tournaments at the Winter Olympics was determined through two methods. Nations could qualify teams by earning qualification points from performances at the 2016 and 2017 World Curling Championships. Teams could also qualify through an Olympic qualification event which was held in December 2017. Seven nations qualified teams via World Championship qualification points, while two nations qualified through the qualification event. As host nation, South Korea qualified teams automatically, thus making a total of ten teams per gender in the curling tournaments. For the mixed doubles competition the top seven ranked teams earning qualification points from performances at the 2016 and 2017 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship qualified along with hosts South Korea. Curling competitions started the day before the Opening Ceremony and finish on the last day of the games, meaning the sport was the only one to have a competition every day of the games. The following was the competition schedule for the curling competitions: Lesley Kaitlyn Lawes (born December 16, 1988) is a Canadian curler. Lawes plays third for the Jennifer Jones team that represented Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics where they won the gold medal. They were the first women's team to go through the Olympics undefeated and the first Manitoba based curling team to win at the Olympics. Lawes curled with John Morris in the mixed doubles event at the 2018 Winter Olympics where they won gold. This win made her and Morris the first Canadian curlers to win two Olympic gold medals, and Lawes was the first to win gold in two consecutive Olympics. Lawes was a member of the world champion team as a third at the 2018 Ford World Women's Curling Championship, where the team went through the event undefeated. She also won a silver medal at the 2015 World Championships. Lawes was a winner of the 2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts and has had two runner-up results at the Scotties in 2011 and 2013. Lawes is a two-time Canadian junior champion (2008, 2009) and went on to win a silver and bronze medal each at the World Junior Curling Championships. In 2019, Lawes was named the seventh greatest Canadian curler in history in a TSN poll of broadcasters, reporters and top curlers. Lawes began curling at the age of four. Lawes first came into the spotlight in 2008 when she won the Manitoba Junior women's championship with teammates Jenna Loder, Liz Peters and Sarah Wazney. With Lawes skipping the team, the rink represented Manitoba at the 2008 Canadian Junior Curling Championships, where she led her team to a 10–2 round robin record, in first place. In the finals, her team beat Saskatchewan's Stephanie McVicar rink, claiming the national championship. This qualified her team to represent Canada at the 2008 World Junior Curling Championships. There, she led Canada to a 5–4 round robin record, tied with Denmark's Madeleine Dupont team. She would go on to beat Denmark, but lose in the 3 vs. 4 playoff game against Russia's Liudmila Privivkova. This put her team into the bronze medal game, where she would face-off against Russia again. This time her rink got the best of the Russians, beating them 9–8, and taking home the bronze medal in the process. 2009 was another great season for the Lawes team. They once again won the Manitoba junior championship, with a new front-end of Laryssa Grenkow and Breanne Meakin replacing Peters and Wazney. At the 2009 Canadian Junior Curling Championships, Lawes led Manitoba to an 8–4 round robin record, in third place. In the playoffs, however, they downed Alberta's Casey Scheidegger rink and Ontario's Rachel Homan to defend their title and once again represented Canada at the World Juniors. At the 2009 World Junior Curling Championships, Lawes would lead Team Canada to a 6–3 round robin record, in third place. In the playoffs, she beat the Russians (skipped by Margarita Fomina) and Switzerland (skipped by Martina Baumann) before losing to Scotland's Eve Muirhead in the gold medal final, settling for silver. In addition to their great showing in junior competitions, the Lawes team also played well on the World Curling Tour, making the semi-finals in a Grand Slam event, the Casinos of Winnipeg Women's Curling Classic. After Juniors, Lawes teamed up to play third for Cathy King who was needing a third after Lori Olson left the team to play for Crystal Webster. In her one season with the King rink, Lawes would win the September Shoot-Out, and played in three Grand Slams, making it to the semifinals of the 2009 Trail Appliances Curling Classic. The team played in the 2010 Alberta Scotties Tournament of Hearts, where they would finish in third place. Following the 2009–10 curling season, Team King decided to step back from the game for a while, leaving Lawes without a team to play for. Shortly after, it was announced that Team Jennifer Jones had dropped third Cathy Overton-Clapham, and had replaced her with Lawes, in time for the 2010–11 curling season. The team found immediate success in their first season together, winning two slams (the 2010 Sobeys Slam and the 2011 Players' Championship), as well as the Sun Life Classic, the Karuizawa International Curling Championship and the Victoria Curling Classic Invitational events on the World Curling Tour. As Jones had won the 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the team represented Team Canada at the 2011 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Lawes' first women's national championship. There they would make it to the finals, where they lost to Saskatchewan's Amber Holland rink. The Jones rink continued their success into the 2011–12 season, winning the Radisson Blu Oslo Cup and the 2011 Canada Cup of Curling. The team won the 2012 Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts and represented Manitoba at the 2012 Scotties Tournament of Hearts. There, they would win the bronze medal. For the first half of the 2012–13 season, Lawes skipped the team, with Kirsten Wall throwing third, as Jones was expecting her first child and sat out until January. Lawes won The Shoot-Out event on the World Curling Tour as skip. As skip, she would play in four slams, failing to qualify at the 2012 Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic and the 2012 Masters, making it to the quarterfinals of the 2012 Manitoba Lotteries Women's Curling Classic and the round of 16 at the 2012 Colonial Square Ladies Classic. Lawes skipped the team at the 2012 Canada Cup of Curling, where she would lose in the final to Team Stefanie Lawton. Jones was back to skipping the team in time for the 2013 Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts, which they again would win. At the 2013 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Jones led Manitoba to another silver medal, this time losing to Ontario's Rachel Homan rink in the final. The Jones team won the right to compete at the 2014 Winter Olympics when they won the 2013 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials. At the Olympics the team became the first women's team to not only go through the round robin undefeated but also the first team to go throughout the whole tournament undefeated when they won the Olympic gold. They were the first Manitoba based curling team to win gold at the Olympics. After the win Lawes noted her recently deceased father stating "I know he would be so proud. This is something he knew we had it in us. I don't know how to describe it. I thought about him a lot during the game ... I wish that I could share this experience with him, but he was my inspiration." In addition to their Olympic win, the team won three Grand Slams on the World Curling Tour, winning the 2013 Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Women's Classic, the 2013 Colonial Square Ladies Classic and the 2014 Players' Championship. Following the Olympics in Russia, Lawes as part of the Jones' team won the 2015 Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts, and then won the 2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Moose Jaw, Lawes' first national women's title. The team would represent Canada at the 2015 World Women's Curling Championship, where they made the final but lost to Alina Pätz of Switzerland 5–3, finishing in the silver medal position. On the tour, the team would win the 2014 Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic, the Canad Inns Women's Classic and the Karuizawa International Curling Championship. By virtue of winning the 2015 Scotties, the Jones rink would represent Team Canada at the 2016 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, where they would win a bronze medal. On the Tour that season, the team would only win the DeKalb Superspiel, and the season-ending Grand Slam event, the 2016 Humpty's Champions Cup. The Jones rink would not qualify for the 2017 Scotties, having lost in the semifinals of the 2017 Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts. However, they had some success in other events, winning the DeKalb Superspiel again, winning the 2016 Canada Cup of Curling and the 2017 Players' Championship. Lawes next tried to qualify for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Korea but the team did not succeed, watching the Rachel Homan rink win the honour. She would still have an opportunity to qualify for the Olympics as part of the debut mixed doubles curling event. John Morris was scheduled to curl with Homan in the trials, but she was unavailable having already qualified as Canada's women's representative. Morris then teamed up with Lawes; the pair only practiced once at the Granite Curling Club for 30 minutes prior to the 2018 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Olympic Trials. They would finish the round robin 5–3 but won through the playoff round to the final where they defeated Brad Gushue and Valerie Sweeting, winning the right to wear the maple leaf in Korea. The team entered the mixed doubles competition against Norway, but lost their opening game. Lawes and Morris would go on to win their next six games, finishing with a 6–1 record. In the semifinals they faced Norway in a rematch, this time prevailing. In the gold medal final they routed the Swiss team 10–3, with the Swiss team conceding after six ends. Lawes thanked supporters from home for her gold medal win, telling CBC News: "Everyone in Winnipeg, thank you so much for your support, and St. Vital Curling Club for helping our families come to cheer us on. We felt that support so much over here." After her win a landmark 'Winnipeg' sign at The Forks was lit up in gold and red to celebrate her medal win. Lawes and Morris were Canada's first two-time Olympic champions in curling, and Lawes the first Canadian to win gold in curling in two consecutive Olympics. Following her return from South Korea, Lawes joined the Jones team and took her spot at third back from Shannon Birchard who had played at this position in her absence. The team, victorious with Birchard at the 2018 Scotties Tournament of Hearts won the right to wear the maple leaf at the 2018 Ford World Women's Curling Championship taking place in North Bay, Ontario. The team played very well and went through the round-robin undefeated. They would eventually beat Jamie Sinclair and her American team in the semi-final earning the right to face the Olympic champion, Anna Hasselborg in the final. Lawes and the Jones team would have to take Hasselborg to an extra end, but ultimately won the game without having to throw their last rock. The victory was Lawes's first World Championship victory and would be the last for long-time second Jill Officer, as she announced she was stepping back from the game. In the 2018-19 curling season, Jocelyn Peterman joined the Jones team at second, replacing Officer. Lawes and the team won the 2018 Canada Cup with an 8-5 victory over Kerri Einarson. The team also won the 2019 TSN All-Star Curling Skins Game, defeating Tracy Fleury to win $51,000. The team represented Team Canada at the 2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, missing playoffs with a 6-5 record. The team of Jones, Lawes, Shannon Birchard, and Officer was chosen to represent Team Canada at the Grand Final of the inaugural Curling World Cup, which they won, defeating Silvana Tirinzoni in the final. Lawes played in two mixed doubles events that season with Morris, the Canad Inns Mixed Doubles Championship, which they won, and the Qualico Mixed Doubles Classic, where they lost in the quarterfinal to Peterman and Brett Gallant. However, she was unable to compete in the 2019 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship after sustaining an injury at the Scotties. In their first event of the 2019-20 season, Team Jones won the 2019 AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic, defeating Tracy Fleury in the final. Next they played in the 2019 Colonial Square Ladies Classic where Fleury would take them out in the semi-finals. They had two quarterfinal finishes at the first two Slams of the season, the Masters and the Tour Challenge. At the Canada Cup, the team struggled, finishing with a 2-4 record. Lawes attended the University of Manitoba where she studied nutrition. She works as an ambassador for Goldline Curling Supplies and is a motivational speaker. She is in a relationship with Stephan Vigier, a professional ice hockey player. Her father Keith was also a competitive curler, having played for Newfoundland at the 1969 Macdonald Brier. Her half sister is Andrea Lawes, who was a member of the 1990 Scott Tournament of Hearts champion team, representing Ontario. Her mother is Cheryl Lawes and her brother is Kevin Lawes.

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Keep Calm and Carry On is a motivational poster produced by the British government in 1939 in preparation for World War II. The poster was intended to raise the morale of the British public, threatened with widely predicted mass air attacks on major cities. Although 2.45 million copies were printed, and although the Blitz did in fact take place, the poster was only rarely publicly displayed and was little known until a copy was rediscovered in 2000 at Barter Books, a bookshop in Alnwick. It has since been re-issued by a number of private companies, and has been used as the decorative theme for a range of products. Evocative of the Victorian belief in British stoicism – the "stiff upper lip", self-discipline, fortitude, and remaining calm in adversity – the poster has become recognised around the world. It was thought that only two original copies survived until a collection of approximately 15 was brought in to the Antiques Roadshow in 2012 by the daughter of an ex-Royal Observer Corps member. A few further examples have come to light since. The Keep Calm and Carry On poster was designed by the Ministry of Information during the period of 27 June to 6 July 1939. It was produced as part of a series of three "Home Publicity" posters (the others read "Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution Will Bring Us Victory" and "Freedom Is in Peril / Defend It With All Your Might"). Each poster showed the slogan under a representation of a "Tudor Crown" (a symbol of the state). They were intended to be distributed to strengthen morale in the event of a wartime disaster, such as mass bombing of major cities using high explosives and poison gas, which was widely expected within hours of an outbreak of war. A career civil servant named A. P. Waterfield came up with "Your Courage" as "a rallying war- cry that will bring out the best in everyone of us and put us in an offensive mood at once". Others involved in the planning of the early posters included: John Hilton, Professor of Industrial Relations at Cambridge University, responsible overall as Director of Home Publicity; William Surrey Dane, managing director at Odhams Press; Gervas Huxley, former head of publicity for the Empire Marketing Board; William Codling, controller of HMSO; Harold Nicolson, MP; W. G. V. Vaughan, who became Director of the General Production Division (GPD); H. V. Rhodes, who later wrote an occasional paper on setting up a new government department; Ivison Macadam; "Mr Cruthley"; and "Mr Francis". Ernest Wallcousins was the artist tasked with creating the poster designs. Detailed planning for the posters had started in April 1939 and the eventual designs were prepared after meetings between officials from the Ministry of Information and HM Treasury on 26 June 1939 and between officials from the Ministry of Information and HMSO on 27 June 1939. Roughs of the poster were completed on 6 July 1939, and the final designs were agreed by the Home Secretary Samuel Hoare, 1st Viscount Templewood on 4 August 1939. Printing began on 23 August 1939, the day that Nazi Germany and the USSR signed the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, and the posters were ready to be placed up within 24 hours of the outbreak of war. The posters were produced in 11 different sizes, ranging from up to large 48-sheet versions. The background colour was either red or blue. The lettering was probably hand-drawn by Wallcousins: it is similar, but not identical, to humanist sans-serif typefaces such as Gill Sans and Johnston. Almost 2,500,000 copies of Keep Calm and Carry On were printed between 23 August and 3 September 1939 but the poster was not sanctioned for immediate public display. It was instead decided that copies should remain in "cold storage" for use after serious air raids (with resources transferred to Your Courage and Freedom is in Peril). Copies of Keep Calm and Carry On were retained until April 1940, but stocks were then pulped as part of the wider Paper Salvage campaign. A very few copies do appear to have been displayed, but such instances were rare and unauthorised: an October 1940 edition of the Yorkshire Post reports the poster hung in a shop in Leeds; while a photograph discovered in 2016 shows it on the wall of a government laboratory in Bedfordshire. The remainder of the Ministry of Information publicity campaign was cancelled in October 1939 following criticism of its cost and impact. Many people claimed not to have seen the posters; while those who did see them regarded them as patronising and divisive. Design historian Susannah Walker regards the campaign as "a resounding failure" and reflective of a misjudgement by upper-class civil servants of the mood of the people. In late May and early June 1941, 14,000,000 copies of a leaflet entitled "Beating the Invader" were distributed with a message from Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The leaflet begins "If invasion comes..." and exhorts the populace to "Stand Firm" and "Carry On". The two phrases do not appear in one sentence, as they applied to different segments of the population depending on their circumstances, with those civilians finding themselves in areas of fighting ordered to stand firm (i.e., stay put) and those not in areas of fighting ordered to carry on (i.e., continue vital war work). Each mandate is identified as a "great order and duty" should invasion come. The leaflet then lists 14 questions and answers on practical measures to be taken. In 2000, Stuart Manley, co-owner with his wife Mary of Barter Books Ltd. in Alnwick, Northumberland, was sorting through a box of second-hand books bought at auction when he uncovered one of the original "Keep Calm and Carry On" posters. The couple framed it and hung it up by the cash register; it attracted so much interest that Manley began to produce and sell copies. In late 2005, Guardian journalist Susie Steiner featured the replica posters as a Christmas gift suggestion, raising their profile still further. Other companies followed the Manleys' example, and the design rapidly began to be used as the theme for a wide range of products. Mary Manley later commented, "I didn't want it trivialised; but of course now it's been trivialised beyond belief." In early 2012, Barter Books debuted an informational short film, The Story of Keep Calm and Carry On, providing visual insight into the modernisation and commercialisation of the design and the phrase. The poster has become an evocation of British stoicism: the "stiff upper lip", self- discipline, fortitude and remaining calm in adversity. Susannah Walker comments that it is now seen "not only as a distillation of a crucial moment in Britishness, but also as an inspiring message from the past to the present in a time of crisis". She goes on to point out, however, that such an interpretation overlooks the circumstances of its production, and the relative failure of the campaign of which it formed a part. In August 2011, it was reported that a UK-based company called Keep Calm and Carry On Ltd (managed by entrepreneur Mark Coop) had registered the slogan as a community trade mark in the EU, CTM No: 009455619, and in the United States, No. 4066622, after failing to obtain its registration as a trademark in the United Kingdom. The company issued a take-down request against a seller of Keep Calm and Carry On products. The company's right to claim the trademark was questioned by, among others, the Manleys of Barter Books, as the slogan had been widely used before registration and was not recognisable as indicating trade origin. An application was submitted by British intellectual property advisor and UK trademarking service Trade Mark Direct to cancel the registration on the grounds that the words were too widely used for one person to own the exclusive rights, but the request for cancellation was rejected and the trade mark is still protected in all EU countries. The company subsequently tried to register the slogan as its trademark in both the United States and Canada. As the popularity of the poster in various media has grown, innumerable parodies, imitations and co-optations have also appeared, making it a notable meme. Messages range from the cute to the overtly political. Examples have included "Now Panic and Freak Out" (with an upside-down crown), "Get Excited and Make Things" (with a crown incorporating spanners), "Keep Calm and Have a Cupcake" (with a cupcake icon), "Don't Panic and Fake a British Accent", "Keep Spending and Carry On Shopping", "Keep Calm and Don't Sneeze" during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, "Keep Calm and Call Batman" (with the Batman logo), and "Keep Calm and Switch to Linux" (with Tux). In March–April 2012, the British pop-rock band McFly undertook a theatre tour entitled "The Keep Calm and Play Louder Tour", promoted with a poster closely based on that of 1939. In late 2012 and early 2013, the "Save Lewisham Hospital" campaign (a protest against proposed cuts in services at University Hospital Lewisham) made widespread use of a poster with the slogan "Don't Keep Calm Get Angry and Save Lewisham A&E;". The efforts of Naheed Nenshi, mayor of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to encourage and motivate his citizens in the wake of the 2013 Alberta floods made him the subject of parody "Keep Calm and Nenshi On" fundraising T-shirts. British propaganda during World War II, We Can Do It!, an American World War II poster which also became popular decades later The Truth Behind Keep Calm and Carry On, Imperial War Museum (January 2019) "Keep Calm and Carry On" is the first episode and season premiere of the paranormal drama television series Supernaturals season 12, and the 242nd overall. The episode was written by new showrunner Andrew Dabb and directed by executive producer Phil Sgriccia. It was first broadcast on October 13, 2016, on The CW. In the episode, Dean finds that his mom was resurrected by Amara and along with Castiel, discover that Sam has been kidnapped and set off to find him. Meanwhile, Crowley goes with him to find Lucifer, who was exiled from Castiel's vessel and is looking to find a new one. The episode received positive reviews, with critics praising the new character development and writing of the episode although the slow pace received criticism. Dean (Jensen Ackles) finds Mary Winchester (Samantha Smith) in a field, wondering if she is real. He tries to touch her and she attacks him. He explains to her that he is her son, but she still thinks she is in 1983. Dean finally manages to tell her that she has been resurrected and tells her story so she can believe him. She finally accepts her resurrection and the fact that her sons are now older than her. On a road, a trucker stops to see a crash near a billboard. The crash is revealed to be Castiel (Misha Collins), after he has been expelled. He causes the trucker to faint and takes his truck to go back to the bunker. Dean later explains to Mary about John's death and that he and Sam (Jared Padalecki) were raised as hunters, something which Mary had tried to avoid. Meanwhile, Toni (Elizabeth Blackmore) takes the kidnapped Sam to a veterinarian, Dr. Gregory Marion (Colin Lawrence) to stitch Sam's wound, revealing that she shot him in the leg. Marion refuses until he begins to be threatened. Crowley (Mark A. Sheppard) is desperately trying to find Lucifer's new vessel, realizing that his demon consultants are covering Lucifer's dead bodies. Crowley follows a trail of dead bodies that are revealed to be burned out vessels Lucifer tried on. Sam is locked in a basement by Toni, who informs him that the British Men of Letters have been watching over them and want information to "help" American hunters make the States as safe as England. He refuses and they torture him with cold water, although that doesn't work. Dean and Mary arrive at the bunker to find blood and Sam gone. Castiel appears, causing Mary to hold him at gunpoint. Dean manages to talk her down and learns from Castiel that Sam was kidnapped. Using a hack on a traffic light, Dean manages to see the plates on the car that took Sam. Turning off the water, Toni tells Sam that he's not a hero and that the British were better in their position as Men of Letters as they carefully lured and protected the country from monsters in 50 years. They hope that Sam can give them the name of hunters in order to teach their knowledge, hoping to expand them to America. Sam again refuses and continues to be tortured by Toni's assistant, Ms. Watt (Bronagh Waugh). Crowley finds his consultants and learns that they follow Lucifer as he will reward them. They tell Crowley that Hell will not follow him while Lucifer is out there; as a result, Crowley kills them both. Seeing that the physical torture can't break Sam, Toni decides to inject a toxin on him to break his mind. Dean, Mary, and Castiel intercept Dr. Marion and force him to call Toni in order to track her location. Dean threatens her but she refuses and sends Ms. Watt to kill them. Sam begins to see images of his loved ones dying, causing him to become paranoid and break a glass in an appeared suicide attempt. Toni runs to help him but is subdued by Sam, who faked his suicide. Sam tries to escape but fails. Ms. Watt crashes into the Impala, causing Mary to fall unconscious. She fights Dean and Castiel, severely beating them. However, she is stabbed in the back and killed by Mary. They learn that the call came from Aldrich, Missouri. Mary states that she didn't want the hunter's life for Sam and Dean, but Dean explains that they have managed to save the world with their experience and set off to find Sam. Crowley finds another corpse of Lucifer and continues his quest to find him. The episode ends with Sam in his confinement room. The episode was watched by 2.15 million viewers with a 0.8/3 share among adults aged 18 to 49, bringing the show's highest ratings since season 10. This was a 16% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 1.84 million viewers with a 0.7/3 in the 18-49 demographics and it's also a 10% increase in viewership from the previous season premiere. This means that 0.8 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 3 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. Supernatural ranked as the most watched program on The CW in the day, beating Legends of Tomorrow. "Keep Calm and Carry On" received positive reviews. Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a "great" 7.5 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, Supernaturals Season 12 kickoff wasn't everything it could have been, and both major stories-of-the-moment are still lingering, but the return of Mary was well done. I hope that, as she comes to terms with her new life, Mary will be able to add a bit more drama to the mix than was present here in the premiere." Sean McKenna from TV Fanatic, gave a 3.7 star rating out of 5, stating: "Ultimately, the season premiere didn't blow me away, but it does have me interested in the new journey for the Winchester brothers. It's definitely a fresh start with a new direction, and hopefully, when things really kick into gear, we'll get an excellent Supernatural Season 12." Bridget LaMonica from Den of Geek, gave a perfect 5 star rating out of 5, stating: "Season 12 is off to a good start. I'm optimistic and intrigued. I'm digging the girl power and the traditional quips between our favorite characters and their adversaries. Let's see where we go from here." Samantha Highfill of EW gave the episode a "B+" and wrote, "Altogether, it was a strong premiere. Anytime Dean is trying to save Sam, the drama's there, and this time around, we had mom to add another element to it. Plus, you just have to love having Cas back." MaryAnn Sleasman of TV.com wrote, "'Keep Calm and Carry On,' was a slow starter, as far as Supernatural premieres go -- but that's okay. So often, the show has given us a premiere that ties up the strings from the previous finale far too quickly. Supernatural is very much at ease with being a serialized story, but too often, each season can feel isolated from its brethren." Barter Books is a second-hand bookshop in the historic English market town of Alnwick, Northumberland, owned and run by Stuart and Mary Manley. It has over 350,000 visitors a year, 40% of whom are from outside the area, and is one of the largest second-hand bookstores in Europe. It is considered a local tourist attraction and has been described as "the British Library of second-hand bookshops." The bookshop is in the Victorian Alnwick railway station, designed by William Bell and opened in 1887. The station was in use until the closure of the Alnwick branch line in 1968; Barter Books was opened in 1991. The shop is notable for its use of a barter system, whereby customers can exchange their books for credit against future purchases; standard cash purchases are also available. Barter Books has also been subject to crime on occasions. On 3 May 2007 a local newspaper, the Northumberland Gazette, reported that a book worth over £2,000 was returned to the book shop 5 years after it was stolen. Barter Books hit the headlines in 2000 when the owner discovered, in a box of old books bought at an auction, a World War II poster from 1939. The slogan, "Keep Calm and Carry On", and the simple design have turned it into an international phenomenon; and it has been on the walls of places as diverse as Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street and the US Embassy in Belgium. Book trade in the United Kingdom

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A gender symbol is a pictogram or glyph used to represent either biological sex or sociological gender (a terminological distinction originating in 1950s sociology) in either biology, medicine, genealogy or selective breeding, or in sociology, gender politics, LGBT subculture and identity politics. Pictograms used to indicate male and female public toilets became widely used beginning in the 1960s. The two standard sex symbols are the Mars symbol ♂ (often considered to represent a shield and spear) for male and Venus symbol ♀ (often considered to represent a bronze mirror with a handle) for female, derived from astrological symbols, denoting the classical planets Mars and Venus, respectively, and the elements iron and copper by alchemists. They were first used to denote the effective sex of plants (i.e. sex of individual in a given crossbreed, since most plants are hermaphroditic) by Carl Linnaeus in 1751. They are still used in scientific publications to indicate the sex of an individual, for example of a patient. However, pedigree charts published in scientific papers now more commonly use a square for male and a circle for female. The use of shapes as gender symbols may have originated from kinship diagrams in anthropology, where a circle represents a female, a triangle represents a male, and a square represents a person who is neither or both. The earliest form of kinship diagram that displays this is from 1871: Morgan’s System of Consanguinity and Affinity of Human Family. W. H. R River's system migrated to big letters for male, small letters for female, while in algebreic-type equations, the numerator denotes male and the denominator female. Later, in C. G. Seligman's 1910 Dance Diagram, outlined circles illustrated females and shaded circles indicated males. Gender pictograms are frequently used to mark public toilets. Since the 1970s, variations of gender symbols have also been used to express sexual orientation and political ideology. The first instance of this was the use of two interlocking male symbols to represent male homosexuality. Since the 2000s, numerous such variants have been introduced in the context of LGBT culture and politics. Some of these symbols have been adopted into Unicode (in the Miscellaneous Symbols block) beginning with version 4.1 (2005): The binary ways of indicating gender are ♂️(male) and ♀️(female). These symbols signify the stereotypical roles of what females and males are expected to fulfill. The male sign (♂️) is linked to Mars, the Roman god of warwhose Greek equivalent is Ares. The sign signifies the spear and shield that the god of war would wield. The spear and shield are artifacts that signify a mighty warrior and protector, commonly related to men. Men are depended on because of their strength and warrior skills. Men are expected to be strong, masculine, and the protector of the household. In its origin, the Mars symbol is an iron shield with a spear or arrow coming from it. Iron is associated with the weapons of war by the Ancient Romans. This strong, red metal is depicted with connection to Mars the god of war, the most masculine of the seven classical planets. The female sign (♀️) is connected to Venus, the Roman goddess of love, whose Greek equivalent is Aphrodite. The female symbol depicts a hand mirror. The hand mirror depicts a tool used for view pride and looks, a common stereotype attributed to women. Historically, women were expected to be soft and play the role of caregiver. Present day women have moved beyond that archetype and have contributed in all manners to society. These signs correlate with societal expectations of their assigned gender. In its origin, the Venus symbol is depicted as a bronze mirror with a handle. Venus is considered to be the most feminine of the classic planets (other than the moon). Copper was very popular in the making of mirrors in antiquity. The pagan symbols for male and female were popularized by Dan Brown in his novel, The Da Vinci Code. In the novel, the pagan symbol for male, resembling a rudimentary phallus, is depicted as the original icon for male, known as the blade, it represents aggression and manhood and is used on modern military uniforms to denote rank. The pagan symbol for female, resembling a cup, vessel, or the shape of a woman's womb, is also depicted as the original icon for female, known as the chalice, it represents femininity, womanhood, and fertility. Alchemical symbol, Astrological symbols, Miscellaneous Symbols Unicode block In electrical and mechanical trades and manufacturing, each half of a pair of mating connectors or fasteners is conventionally assigned the designation male or female. The "female" connector is generally a receptacle that receives and holds the "male" connector. On occasion, the terms "male" and "female" are respectively referred to as the A and B ends, though the names of some standards conflict with this as they contain the letters A or B within the name. Sometimes the less ambiguous terms plug and socket or jack are used, particularly in reference to electrical connectors. The assignment is a direct analogy with genitalia and sexual intercourse; the part bearing one or more protrusions or which fits inside the other being designated male, in contrast to the part containing the corresponding indentations, or fitting outside the other, being designated female. Extension of the analogy results in the verb to mate being used to describe the process of connecting two corresponding parts together. In some cases (notably electrical power connectors), the gender of connectors is selected according to rigid rules, to enforce a sense of one-way directionality (e.g. a flow of power from one device to another). This gender distinction is implemented to enhance safety or ensure proper functionality by preventing unsafe or non-functional configurations from being set up. In terms of mathematical graph theory, an electrical power distribution network made up of plugs and sockets is a directed tree, with the directionality arrows corresponding to the female-to-male transfer of electrical power through each mated connection. This is an example where male and female connectors have been deliberately designed and assigned to physically enforce a safe network topology. In other contexts, such as plumbing, one-way flow is not enforced through connector gender assignment. Flows through piping networks can be bidirectional, as in underground water distribution networks which have designed-in redundancy. In plumbing situations where one-way flow is desired, it is implemented through other means (e.g. gravity feed or one-way check valves), and not through male-female gender schemes. In mechanical design, the prototypical "male" component is a threaded bolt, but an alignment post, a mounting boss, or a sheet metal tab connector can also be considered as male. Correspondingly, a threaded nut, an alignment hole, a mounting recess, or sheet metal slot connector is considered to be female. While some mechanical designs are "one-off" custom setups not intended to be repeated, there is an entire fastener industry devoted to manufacturing mass-produced or semi-custom components. To avoid unnecessary confusion, conventional definitions of fastener gender have been defined and agreed upon. Although this aspect is not highlighted in their promotional literature, several common construction toys embody gendered (and in some cases, genderless) mechanical interconnections. This should not be surprising, since these toys feature the nearly infinite flexibility and versatility of shape that a modular interconnect architecture can enable. Mathematicians have begun to classify well-known construction sets using group theory to study the combinatoric possibilities of structures that can be built. For example, the canonical LEGO plastic blocks have "female" indentations on the lower surface, and "male" bosses or protrusions on the upper surfaces. Meccano and Erector have many gendered connections, starting with the nut-and-bolt fasteners they use frequently. Stickle bricks, using interlocking plastic protrusions, are effectively genderless. Lincoln logs use a very simple form of genderless connections. Kapla or KEVA planks are extremely simple genderless systems interconnected only by gravity. In plumbing fittings, the "M" or "F" usually comes at the beginning rather than the end of the abbreviated designation. For example: MIPT denotes Male Iron Pipe Thread;, FIPT denotes Female Iron Pipe Thread. A short length of pipe having an MIP thread at both ends is sometimes called a nipple. A short pipe fitting having an FIP thread at both ends is sometimes called a coupling. Hermaphroditic connections, which include both male and female elements in a single unit, are used for some specialized tubing fittings, such as Storz fire hose connectors. A picture of such fittings appears in , below. Downspouts (downpipes, rain conductors or leaders) are used to convey rainwater from roof gutters to the ground through hollow pipes or tubes. These tubes usually come in sections, joined by inserting the male end (often crimped with a special tool to slightly reduce its size) into the female end of the next section. These connections are usually not sealed or caulked, instead relying on gravity to move the rainwater from the male end and into the receiving female connection located directly below. Sheet metal ductwork for conveying air in HVAC systems typically uses gendered connections. Typically, the airflow through a ductwork connection is from male to female. However, since one-way flow is implemented by forced-air fans or blowers, "backwards" gendered connections can be seen frequently in some systems, since all connections are typically sealed with duct sealing mastic or tape to prevent leakage anyway. The flow convention is usually loosely adhered to for simplicity of design, and to reduce the number of gender changer fittings required, but exceptions are made whenever expedient. Although the gender of tubing and plumbing fittings is usually obvious, this may not be true of electrical connectors because of their more complex and varying constructions. Instead, connector gender is conventionalized and thus can be somewhat obscure to the uninitiated. For example, the female D-subminiature connector body projects outward from the mounting plane of the chassis, and this protrusion could be erroneously construed as male. Instead, the "maleness" of the D-subminiature connectors is defined by specific presence of male pins, rather than by the protrusion of the connector, which is also true for many other pin-based connectors like XLR. The male/female distinction is more obvious with ring crimp lug connectors which are placed around a screw post, but again with spade or split ring crimp lug connectors the end alone is not obviously female. Further confusion can be caused by the term "jack", which is used for both female and male connectors and typically refers to the fixed (panel) side of a connector pair. IEEE STD 100, IEEE-315-1975 and IEEE 200-1975 (replaced by ASME Y14.44-2008) define "Plug" and "Jack" by location or mobility, rather than gender. A connector in a fixed location is a jack and a moveable connector is a plug. The distinction is relative, so a portable radio is considered stationary compared to the cable from the headphones; the radio has a jack, and the headphone cable has a plug. Where the relationship is equal, such as when two flexible cables are connected, each is considered a plug. Jacks use the reference designator prefix of J and plugs use the reference designator prefix of P. It is possible in the case of box mounted connectors for the connector to be a receptacle with male pin contacts. In this case the connector is designated a jack (J ref des) regardless of the contact gender because the housing for the contacts is in fact configured as the receptacle even though its mate (the plug) goes around the receptacle. See MIL-STD-38999 and similar cases. It is common practice to use female connectors for jacks, so the informal gender-based usage often happens to agree with the functional description of the technical standards. However, this is not always the case; often-seen exceptions include a computer's AC Power Inlet and EIA232 DE9 Serial Port, or the male coaxial power jacks for connecting external power adapters to portable equipment. To summarize, it is considered best practice to use "male" and "female" for connector gender, and "plug" and "jack" for connector function or mobility. In the UK, many Commonwealth countries and some non-English-speaking countries, the word "jack" may refer to the plug on the end of a removable cable. These connectors were originally referred to as "jack plugs", or plugs intended to be mated with fixed receptacles, or sockets (which North Americans would call "jacks"), but the second word was dropped. This variant usage is in direct contradiction to common usage and official standards in North America. In the United Kingdom, for example, the connector on the end of a headphone lead is known as a "jack", that plugs into a socket on the main unit. The same generally occurs also in Italy, where the English word "jack" is commonly used to indicate the connector on the end of a headphone lead. In Romania female connectors are known as "mamă" (mother) and male connectors are "tată" (father). The standard letters "M" and "F" are commonly used in part numbers to designate connector gender. For example, in Switchcraft XLR microphone or hydrophone connectors, the part numbers are denoted as follows: A3F = Audio 3-pin Female connector;, A3M = Audio 3-pin Male connector. The terms plug, pin, and prong are also often used for "male" connectors, and receptacle, socket, and slot are used for "female" connectors. In many cases these terms are more common than male and female, especially in documentation intended for the non-specialist. These nearly synonymous terms can cause a fair amount of confusion when the designations are shortened in labels. For example, a female high-density D-subminiature connector with a size 1 shell can be named DE15F or DE15S (see accompanying pictures). Both terms mean the same thing but could be construed to be completely different items. Similarly, a male standard-density D-sub with a size 1 shell can be named DE9M or DE9P; a female standard-density D-sub with a size 2 shell can be named DA15F or DA15S; a male high-density D-sub with a size 3 shell can be named DB44M or DB44P; and so forth. Electronic designers often select female jack connectors for fixed mounting on electronic equipment they design. This is usually done because female connectors are more resistant to damage or contamination, by virtue of their concealed or recessed electrical contacts. A damaged motherboard connector can result in the scrapping of an expensive piece of electronic equipment. The risk of expensive damage is reduced by relegating the more exposed male contacts to connecting cables, which can be repaired or replaced at lower cost. However, since motherboards have all slot connector positions loaded regardless of how many slots will actually be filled, this would seem to favor the cheaper male connector. With an RS232 serial port, the male connector is more fragile than the female connector. Some people say the male coaxial connector is more prone to damage. Other people say the female coaxial connector is more prone to damage. Such cost and reliability considerations probably drove the design decision to use female jack connectors on many computer terminals (and some personal computers) for the serial port, in direct violation of the connector gender convention specified in the RS-232 standard for "DTE" computer equipment. This confusing reversal of the RS-232 connector gender convention would cause many hours of frustration for ill- informed end users, as they tried to troubleshoot non-functional serial port equipment connections. In the case of electrical power connections, designers do not reverse connector gender in such a casual fashion, because exposing live AC line power on male connectors is unsafe and generally illegal. Devices that need to be robust against mechanical damage use a special male IEC 60320 C14 connector (see Gallery above), which is recessed below the surface of a mounting panel, providing the desired physical protection while conforming to safety regulations. In electrical connections where voltage or current is sufficient to cause injury, the part permanently connected to the power source is invariably female, with concealed contacts, to prevent inadvertent touching of live conductors. A male plug, with fully exposed protruding contacts, is installed on the cord of (or directly onto) the device receiving the power. In the case of consumer-level AC power, connector gender is used to implicitly enforce safe use of power connectors. Because of this consideration, it is illegal under electrical code to make or use any gender changers to connect AC line power to consumer-level equipment. In low-voltage use such as for data communications, electrical shock hazard is not an issue, and male or female connectors are used based on other engineering factors such as convenience of use, cost, or ease of manufacturing. For example, the common "patch cables" used for Ethernet (and the similar cords used for telephones) typically have male modular plugs on both ends, to connect to jacks on equipment or mounted in walls. As an illustrative example of some design tradeoffs in power connector selection, consider the adjacent picture. A commonly seen coaxial power connector is usually set up so that power is fed from the female plug on the right into the male jack on the left (which is typically a part of the electronic device accepting the power). Although the plug is female, with a partially recessed center contact, it is still possible for casual accidental contact with a metallic object to short-circuit the power source. Depending on the design of the power adapter, it may react to a short circuit by shutting down temporarily, or instead by blowing out an internal safety fuse. In this example, the marginal reliability of the connector choice was deemed to be acceptable by the equipment designer, since the power adapter supplies low voltage that does not pose an electric shock hazard. The potential fire hazard from accidental short-circuiting is addressed by the internal safety fuse, although this requires that a failed power adapter must be completely replaced. In a different design, if the power adapter were intended to supply a voltage sufficient to cause electrical shock, the semi-exposed center contact of the female plug would be considered unacceptably hazardous, requiring a different choice of power connector. Some electrical connectors are hermaphroditic because they include both male and female elements in a single unit intended to interconnect freely, without regard for gender. See the discussion of Genderless connectors elsewhere in this article for more detailed information. As an additional complication, certain electronic connector designs may incorporate combinations of male and female pins in a single connector body, for mating with a complementary connector with opposite gender pins in corresponding positions. In these unusual cases, gender is often defined by the shape of the connector body, rather than the mixed-gender connector pins and sockets. These types of connectors are not strictly speaking hermaphroditic, since mating connectors are not freely interchangeable. An informal term that has been used for these connectors is "bisexual", in addition to the more official terminology, mixed- gender. Thus, for example, one can have a mixed-gender female plug that connects to a mixed-gender male jack (though a reversed gender assignment of connectors would be a more typical design choice in this example). Male connector pins are often protected by a shell (also called a shroud, surround, or shield), which may envelop the entire female connector when mated. RF connectors often have multiple layers of interlocking shells to properly connect the shields of coaxial and triaxial cable. In such cases, the gender is assigned based on the innermost connecting point. With the exception of reverse polarity BNC or TNC, where the outer shell determines the gender and the innermost connecting points are opposite to a standard connector, for example a female RP-TNC connector has a solid innermost pin. Another ambiguous situation arises with the connectors used for USB, FireWire (IEEE-1394), HDMI, and Thunderbolt serial data bus connections. Close examination of these connectors reveals that the contact "pins" are not actually pins, but instead are conductive surfaces that slide past each other when they mate. Therefore, the traditional pin and socket nomenclature is not applicable. Instead, most computer hardware people fall back to referring to the wrap-around metal shield on the plug connector as if it were a connector pin. By this convention, the connectors on serial bus cables are "male plugs", and the corresponding connectors on equipment are "female jacks". A unique connector configuration where the contacts are hermaphroditic is the ELCO Varicon where the contacts are bifurcated and nest with one another axial at a 90 degree rotation in cross-shaped wells. In this case the plugs had the contacts oriented transversely and the sockets longitudinally. A casual glance at a USB "Type A" plug connector may give the false impression that it is hermaphroditic. However, a physical attempt to mate two USB "Type A" cables with each other reveals the fact that the connectors will not interconnect. Classifying according to mathematical graph theory, USB buses are directed trees, whereas FireWire buses have a true bus network topology. This difference is reflected in the bus connectors used, in that USB cables are asymmetrical (one end Type A, other end Type B) while FireWire cables may have identical connectors at both ends. By definition, a hermaphroditic connector includes mating surfaces having simultaneous male and female aspects, involving complementary paired identical parts each containing both protrusions and indentations. These mating surfaces are mounted into identical fittings which can freely mate with any other, without regard for gender (provided that the size and type are already matched). Alternative names include hermaphrodite, androgynous, genderless, sexless, combination (or combo), two-in-one, two-way, and other descriptive terms. Several of these latter alternate names are ambiguous in meaning, and should not be used unless carefully defined in context. True hermaphroditic connectors should not be confused with mixed gender connectors, which are described elsewhere in this article. Another closely related type is the stackable connector for electronics, which typically has male pins on one surface, and complementary female sockets on the opposite surface, allowing multiple units to be stacked up like plastic milk crates. Examples of this include stackable banana plugs, and interconnect cables specified for the IEEE-488 instrumentation bus. Stackable mezzanine bus connectors are used on some modular microcomputer accessory boards for systems such as the Arduino add-on daughterboards called "shields". The older PC/104 embedded PC modules use a similar stackable format for interconnection. Stackable connectors are not classified as hermaphroditic in the strictest sense, but are often described as such in looser usage. The hermaphroditic design is useful when multiple complex or lengthy components must be arbitrarily connected in various combinations. For example, if hoses have hermaphroditic fittings, they can be connected without having to pull a lengthy hose and reverse it because it has the wrong gender to connect to another hose. Some military fiber optical cables also have hermaphroditic connectors to prevent "wrong gender" connector problems in field deployments. In a similar fashion, railcars are usually equipped with hermaphroditic railway coupling mechanisms that allow either end of the vehicle to be connected to a train without having to turn the railcar around first. For the same reason, several spacecraft docking mechanisms are designed to be "androgynous", including the Androgynous Peripheral Attach System, the NASA Docking System, and Chinese Docking Mechanism. In the absence of genderless connectors, gender changer fittings might be used to enable certain connections. The designer of a connection system may use one or both schemes to allow arbitrary connectivity, or even combine both schemes into a single system. When an enforced sense of unidirectionality or "one-way flow" is required for safety or other reasons (for example, AC electrical power connections), a strict assignment of connector genders is implemented to prevent undesired configurations, and gender changers are banned. Some commonly seen examples of hermaphroditic connectors include the SAE connector for 12 V DC power, jackhammer air hose connectors, and the Anderson Powerpole series of modular high-current power connectors. The IBM token ring connector was another widespread example, but it has become obsolete and is being phased out. The General Radio Corporation developed a hermaphroditic coaxial radio frequency connector often called the "GR connector". Some audio multicore cables are fitted with hermaphroditic multipin quick-disconnect connectors for ease of use in the field. One style of this audio signal cable is fitted on both ends with connectors that are each populated half with pins and half with sockets. The advantage to the user is that it does not matter which end connects to the stage and which to the audio mixer, facilitating faster set up. Another style of connector uses hybrid male/female pins with a receiving slot fitted in the center of each two-tine pin, and relies on 90-degree rotation of the pin axes to mate. The connector housings themselves are sexed male and female. Devices used for mating two connectors of the same gender have a wide variety of terms, including for example: "gender changer", "gender mender", "gender bender", "gender blender", "sex changer", and "homosexual adapter". A specific gender changer can be referred to by either the gender of its connectors, or the gender which it is designed to connect to, resulting in a thoroughly ambiguous terminology. Thus a "male gender changer" might have female connectors to mate two male ends, or male connectors to mate two female ends. Adding to this potential for confusion, some gender changers also combine additional functions such as cross-over pin-outs or even embedding micro- controllers for performance, or for logic level or protocol adaptations, which would properly make them an adapter, but this nomenclature is sometimes neglected in marketing materials or common parlance. Coaxial power connector, for low voltage DC connections, A power cord on an appliance terminates in a (male) plug; it connects to a (female) socket in a wall or on an extension cord., Coaxial cables used for video or other high-frequency signals are normally terminated, at both ends, in a connector comprising an inner pin and an outer fixed or rotating shell; these are conventionally reckoned as male., A threaded nut is female and a bolt is male., Connectors for air brake hoses on heavy trucks and railroad equipment use genderless "gladhand connectors". In railroad air brake use, this makes the orientation of rolling stock irrelevant, and is used with the standard North American railroad coupler that connects cars together, also genderless., The Talmud describes arrow heads and mating shafts as potentially being either male or female, depending on their construction, i.e. a prong on a male arrow head fits into a hollowed out shaft and vice versa. This is owing to a prohibition on a female shaft, from its susceptibility as a receptacle for impurity, for use as s'chach Mating connection, Piping and plumbing fittings, Screw thread, Sex bolt, Twistlock – standardized fasteners for shipping containers The LGBT community has adopted certain symbols for self-identification to demonstrate unity, pride, shared values, and allegiance to one another. LGBT symbols communicate ideas, concepts, and identity both within their communities and to mainstream culture. The two most-recognized international LGBT symbols are the pink triangle and the rainbow flag. The rainbow flag, previously used as a symbol of unity among all people, was adopted to be a more organic and natural replacement without any negativity attached to it. Gilbert Baker designed the rainbow Pride flag for the 1978 San Francisco Gay Freedom Day celebration. The flag does not depict an actual rainbow. Rather, the colors of the rainbow are displayed as horizontal stripes, with red at the top and violet at the bottom. It represents the diversity of gays and lesbians around the world. In the original eight-color version, pink stood for sexuality, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for the sun, green for nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, and violet for spirit. A copy of the original 20-by-30 foot, eight-color flag was remade by Baker in 2000, and was installed in the Castro district in San Francisco. Many variations on the rainbow flag exist, including incorporating other LGBT symbols like the triangle or lambda. The asexual pride flag consists of four horizontal stripes: black, gray, white, and purple from top to bottom. The flag was created by AVEN user standup in August 2010, as part of a community effort to create and choose a flag. The black stripe represents asexuality; the gray stripe represents gray- aces and demisexuals; the white stripe represents allies; and the purple stripe represents community. Bear is an affectionate gay slang term for those in the bear communities, a subculture in the gay community and an emerging subset of the LGBT community with its own events, codes, and culture-specific identity. Bears tend to have hairy bodies and facial hair; some are heavy-set; some project an image of working-class masculinity in their grooming and appearance, though none of these are requirements or unique indicators. The bear concept can function as an identity, an affiliation, and an ideal to live up to. There is ongoing debate in bear communities about what constitutes a bear. Some state that self-identifying as a bear is the only requirement, while others argue that bears must have certain physical characteristics, such as a hairy chest and face, a large body, or a certain mode of dress and behavior. Bears are almost always gay or bisexual men; transgender men (regardless of their sexuality) and those who shun labels for gender and sexuality are increasingly included within bear communities. The bear community has spread all over the world, with bear clubs in many countries. Bear clubs often serve as social and sexual networks for older, hairier, sometimes heavier gay and bisexual men, and members often contribute to their local gay communities through fundraising and other functions. Bear events are common in heavily gay communities. The International Bear Brotherhood Flag was designed in 1995 by Craig Byrnes. First unveiled on 5 December 1998, the bisexual pride flag was designed by Michael Page to represent and increase visibility of bisexuals in the LGBT community and society as a whole. This rectangular flag consists of a broad magenta stripe at the top, a broad stripe in blue at the bottom, and a narrower deep lavender band occupying the central fifth. Page describes the meaning of the pink, lavender, and blue (ratio 2:1:2) flag as this: "The pink color represents sexual attraction to the same sex only (gay and lesbian). The blue represents sexual attraction to the opposite sex only (straight) and the resultant overlap color purple represents sexual attraction to both sexes (bi)." He also describes the flag's meaning in deeper terms, stating "The key to understanding the symbolism of the Bisexual pride flag is to know that the purple pixels of color blend unnoticeably into both the pink and blue, just as in the 'real world,' where bi people blend unnoticeably into both the gay/lesbian and straight communities. The blue and pink overlapping triangle symbol represents bisexuality and bi pride. The origin of the symbol, sometimes facetiously referred to as the "biangles", is largely unknown, however the colors of bisexuality originate from this symbol: pink for attraction to women, blue for attraction to men, and lavender for attraction to both, as well as a reference to queerness. Intersex people are those who do not exhibit all the biological characteristics of male or female, or exhibit a combination of characteristics, at birth. Between 0.05% and 1.7% of the population is estimated to have intersex traits. The intersex flag was created by Morgan Carpenter of Intersex Human Rights Australia in July 2013 to create a flag "that is not derivative, but is yet firmly grounded in meaning". The organization describes the circle as "unbroken and unornamented, symbolising wholeness and completeness, and our potentialities. We are still fighting for bodily autonomy and genital integrity, and this symbolises the right to be who and how we want to be". No flag design for a lesbian pride flag has been widely adopted. The labrys lesbian flag was created in 1999 by graphic designer Sean Campbell, and published in June 2000 in the Palm Springs edition of the Gay and Lesbian Times Pride issue. The design involves a labrys superimposed on the inverted black triangle, set against a violet hue background. The labrys was used as an ancient religious symbol, and for other various purposes. In the 1970s it was adopted as a symbol of empowerment by the lesbian feminist community. Women considered asocial by the Third Reich because they did not conform to the Nazi ideal of a woman, which included homosexual females, were condemned to concentration camps and wore an inverted black triangle badge to identify them. Some lesbians reclaimed this symbol as gay men reclaimed the pink triangle (many lesbians also reclaimed the pink triangle although lesbians were not included in Paragraph 175 of the German criminal code). The "pink" lesbian flag consists of six shades of red and pink colors and a white bar in the center. The original design, known as the lipstick lesbian flag, includes a and was introduced in the weblog This Lesbian Life in 2010. Both the "pink" and lipstick lesbian flags represent "homosexual women who have a more feminine gender expression". The original flag has not been widely adopted; however, its non-kiss variant attracted more use. The lesbian community pride flag with a dark orange bar indicating 'gender nonconforming' was created and introduced on social media in 2018. The non-binary flag was created in 2014 by activist Kye Rowan. Each stripe color represents different types of non-binary identities: Yellow for people who identify outside of the gender binary, white for nonbinary people with multiple genders, purple for those with a mixture of both male and female genders, and black for agender individuals. Under the non-binary umbrella are all those who identify off the gender binary. There are many different identities within this category including androgyny, genderqueerness (which includes agender, ceterosexual, gender fluid, intergender), third gender, and transgender. The pansexual pride flag has been found on various Internet sites since mid-2010. It has three horizontal bars that are pink, yellow and blue. The pink band symbolizes women; the blue, men; and the yellow, those of a non- binary gender, such as agender, bigender or genderfluid. A "P" with the tail converted to an arrow with a cross is also sometimes used. It predates the flag and is still in use today. The cross on the "P"'s tail refers to the cross on the Venus or female symbol (♀), and the arrow refers to the arrow on the Mars or male symbol (♂). While it does not technically have a name, it is sometimes colloquially referred to as "the pansexual symbol". A transgender symbol is the Transgender Pride Flag designed by transgender woman Monica Helms in 1999, which was first shown at a pride parade in Phoenix, Arizona, US in 2000. It was flown from a large public flagpole in San Francisco's Castro District beginning November 19, 2012 in commemoration of the Transgender Day of Remembrance. The flag represents the transgender community and consists of five horizontal stripes: two light blue, two pink, with a white stripe in the center. Helms described the meaning of the flag as follows: Philadelphia became the first county government in the U.S. to raise the transgender pride flag in 2015. It was raised at City Hall in honor of Philadelphia's 14th Annual Trans Health Conference, and remained next to the US and City of Philadelphia flags for the entirety of the conference. Then- Mayor Michael Nutter gave a speech in honor of the trans community's acceptance in Philadelphia. In addition to major symbols of the LGBT community, other symbols have been used to represent members' unity, pride, shared values, and allegiance to one another. [[File:Asexual ring.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Ace ring]] A black ring (also known as an ace ring) worn on the middle finger of one's right hand is a way [[Asexuality|asexual]] people signify their asexuality. The ring is deliberately worn in a similar manner as one would a [[wedding ring]] to symbolize marriage. Use of the symbol began in 2005. In the [[Society for Creative Anachronism]], LGBT members often wear a blue feather to indicate an affiliation with Clan Blue Feather, a group of SCA members promoting the study of LGBT culture and people in the Middle Ages. Because of this affiliation, blue feathers have also been used at some [[Renaissance fair|Renaissance Faires]] and [[Pagan]] events. In some means, it is also to represent the gay/lesbian/bisexual people of the lgbt+ community. [[File:AcorusCalamus2.jpg|thumb|right|100px|Acorus calamus]] According to some interpretations, American poet [[Walt Whitman]] used the [[Sweet flag|calamus]] plant to represent homoerotic love. [[File:Westerkerk - Gay symbols 2.jpg|thumb|left|130px|Lesbian and gay interlocked gender sex symbols]] Interlocked [[gender symbol]]s. Each gender symbol derives from the [[Astronomical symbols|astronomical symbol]] for the planet [[Venus]] and [[Mars]]. In modern science, the singular symbol for Venus is used to represent the [[Female|female sex]], and singular symbol for Mars is used to represent the [[Male|male sex]]. Two interlocking female symbols (⚢) represent a lesbian or the lesbian community, and two interlocking male symbols (⚣) a gay male or the gay male community. The symbols first appeared in the 1970s. Freedom rings, designed by [[David Spada]], are six aluminum rings, each in one of the colors of the rainbow flag. They were released in 1991. Symbolizing happiness and diversity, these rings are worn by themselves or as part of necklaces, bracelets, and key chains. They are sometimes referred to as "Fruit Loops". [[File:Green Carnation.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Green carnation]] In [[:Category:19th century in England|19th-century England]], [[green]] indicated homosexual affiliations. [[Victorian era|Victorian]] gay men would often pin a green [[Dianthus caryophyllus|carnation]] on their lapel as popularized by openly gay author [[Oscar Wilde]], who often wore one on his lapel. In the early 20th century gay men in New York City's Caucasian professional world would often wear red neckties to signal their identity. This practice was later expanded into a system called flagging, or the handkerchief code. There are many origin stories of the [[high five]], but the two most documented candidates are [[Dusty Baker]] and [[Glenn Burke]] of the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] professional baseball team on October 2, 1977, and [[Wiley Brown]] and [[Derek Smith (basketball)|Derek Smith]] of the [[Louisville Cardinals men's basketball|Louisville Cardinals]] men's college basketball team during the 1978–1979 season. In any case, after retiring from baseball, Burke, who was one of the first openly gay professional athletes, used the high five with other gay residents of the [[Castro district]] of [[San Francisco]], where for many it became a symbol of [[gay pride]] and identification. [[File:Lambda-letter-lowercase-symbol-Garamond.svg|thumb|left|75px|[[Lambda]] – Greek alphabet letter]] In 1970, graphic designer [[Tom Doerr]] selected the lower-case Greek letter [[Lambda#Lower-case letter λ|lambda]] to be the symbol of the New York chapter of the [[Gay Activists Alliance]]. The alliance's literature states that Doerr chose the symbol specifically for its denotative meaning in the context of chemistry and [[Lambda transition|physics]]: "a complete exchange of energy–that moment or span of time witness to absolute activity". The lambda became associated with [[Gay Liberation]], and in December 1974, it was officially declared the international symbol for gay and lesbian rights by the [[International Gay Rights Congress]] in Edinburgh, Scotland. The gay rights organization [[Lambda Legal]] and the American [[Lambda Literary Foundation]] derive their names from this symbol. [[File:Purple Rhino.gif|thumb|A lavender rhinoceros symbol.]] Daniel Thaxton and Bernie Toale created a lavender [[rhinoceros]] symbol for a public ad campaign to increase visibility for gay people in Boston helmed by Gay Media Action-Advertising; Toale said they chose a rhinoceros because “it is a much maligned and misunderstood animal” and that it was lavender because that is a mix of pink and blue, making it a symbolic merger of the feminine and masculine. However, in May 1974, Metro Transit Advertising said its lawyers could not "determine eligibility of the public service rate" for the lavender rhinoceros ads, which tripled the cost of the ad campaign. Gay Media Action challenged this, but were unsuccessful. The lavender rhinoceros symbol was seen on signs, pins, and t-shirts at the Boston Pride Parade later in 1974, and a life-sized papier-mâché lavender rhinoceros was part of the parade. Money was raised for the ads, and they began running on the [[Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority]]'s Green Line by December 3rd, 1974, and ran there until February of 1975. The lavender rhinoceros continued as a symbol of the gay community, appearing at the 1976 Boston Pride Parade and on a flag that was raised at [[Boston City Hall]] in 1987. On October 31, 1969, sixty members of the [[Gay Liberation Front]], the Committee for Homosexual Freedom (CHF), and the Gay Guerilla Theatre group staged a protest outside the offices of the [[San Francisco Examiner]] in response to a series of news articles disparaging people in San Francisco's [[gay bar]]s and clubs. The peaceful protest against the Examiner turned tumultuous and was later called "Friday of the Purple Hand" and "Bloody Friday of the Purple Hand". Examiner employees "dumped a barrel of printers' ink on the crowd from the roof of the newspaper building", according to [[glbtq.com]]. Some reports state that it was a barrel of ink poured from the roof of the building. The protestors "used the ink to scrawl slogans on the building walls" and slap purple hand prints "throughout downtown [San Francisco]" resulting in "one of the most visible demonstrations of gay power" according to the [[Bay Area Reporter]]. According to Larry LittleJohn, then president of [[Society for Individual Rights]], "At that point, the tactical squad arrived – not to get the employees who dumped the ink, but to arrest the demonstrators. Somebody could have been hurt if that ink had gotten into their eyes, but the police were knocking people to the ground." The accounts of [[police brutality]] include women being thrown to the ground and protesters' teeth being knocked out. Inspired by [[Black Hand (extortion)|Black Hand]] extortion methods of [[Camorra]] [[gangster]]s and [[the Mafia]], some gay and lesbian activists attempted to institute "purple hand" as a warning to stop anti-gay attacks, but with little success. In Turkey, the LGBT rights organization MorEl Eskişehir LGBTT Oluşumu (Purple Hand Eskişehir LGBT Formation), also bears the name of this symbol. [[File:02019 0471 Equality March 2019 in Częstochowa cropped.jpg|thumb|left|120px|Rainbow Madonna, held by marchers in Częstochowa, Poland]] The Rainbow Madonna is an adaptation of the [[Black Madonna of Częstochowa]], with the halos colored in [[Rainbow flag|rainbow colors]] of the [[LGBT]] movement. This adaptation is controversial in Poland. [[Elżbieta Podleśna]], a civil rights activist, was arrested by Polish police for [[Desecration|profanation]] of the image. The arrest was condemned by [[Amnesty International]] and the Polish [[Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights]]. Following the events, the [[Episcopal Church (United States)|US Episcopal Church]] asked for permission to sell T-shirts bearing the Rainbow Madonna with proceeds allocated to the Polish [[transgender]] community. A symbol of the female (♀), male (♂) and [[Genderqueer]] (⚨) symbols combined around a circle (⚧) is sometimes used to represent transgender people. [[File:Portland Pride, 2017 - 20.jpg|thumb|right|175px|Unicorn in [[Pride Northwest|Portland Pride]], 2017]] Unicorns have been part of pride flags and symbols of LGBT culture in the last century, becoming prominent during the gay rights protests of the 1970s and 1980s. [[File:Viola uliginosa Sturm53.jpg|thumb|left|100px|Viola uliginosa flower]] [[Viola (plant)#Cultural associations|Violets]] and their [[Violet (color)#Social movement|color]] became a special code used by lesbians and bisexual women. The symbolism of the flower derives from several fragments of poems by [[Sappho]] in which she describes a lover wearing garlands or a crown with violets. In 1926, the play [[The Captive (play)|La Prisonnière]] by [[Édouard Bourdet]] used a bouquet of violets to signify lesbian love. When the play became subject to censorship, many Parisian lesbians wore violets to demonstrate solidarity with its lesbian subject matter. One of the oldest of these symbols is the inverted [[pink triangle]] that male homosexuals in [[Nazi concentration camps]] were required to wear on their clothing. The badge is one of several [[Nazi concentration camp badges|badges]] that internees wore to identify what kind of prisoners they were. Many of the estimated 5,000–15,000 gay men and lesbians imprisoned in [[concentration camp]]s died during [[the Holocaust]]. The pink triangle was later reclaimed by gay men, as well as some lesbians, in various political movements as a symbol of personal pride and remembrance. AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power ([[ACT-UP]]) adopted the inverted pink triangle to symbolize the "active fight back" against [[HIV]]/[[AIDS]] "rather than a passive resignation to fate." The pink triangle was used exclusively with male prisoners, as lesbians were not included under [[Paragraph 175]], a statute which made homosexual acts between males a crime. The [[United States Holocaust Memorial Museum|United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM)]] stipulates that this was because women were seen as subordinate to men, and the [[Third Reich|Nazi state]] did not feel that homosexual women presented the same threat to masculinity as homosexual men. According to USHMM, many women were arrested and imprisoned for "asocial" behavior, a classification applied to those who did not conform to the [[Nazism|Nazi]] ideal of a woman's role: cooking, cleaning, kitchen work, child raising, and passivity. Asocial women were tagged with an inverted [[Black triangle (badge)|black triangle]]. Many lesbians reclaimed this symbol for themselves as gay men reclaimed the pink triangle. These LGBT flags represent the [[LGBT social movements|LGBT movement]] as a whole with sexual orientations, gender identities, subcultures, and regional purposes. [[LGBT slogans]], [[White Knot]] Origin & History of Gay & Lesbian Symbols shows images of some of these symbols and offers a brief historical account of each. [[Category:Human gender and sexuality symbols]] [[Category:LGBT symbols]] [[Category:Lists of symbols|LGBT]]

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White blood cells (WBCs), also called leukocytes or leucocytes, are the cells of the immune system that are involved in protecting the body against both infectious disease and foreign invaders. All white blood cells are produced and derived from multipotent cells in the bone marrow known as hematopoietic stem cells. Leukocytes are found throughout the body, including the blood and lymphatic system. All white blood cells have nuclei, which distinguishes them from the other blood cells, the anucleated red blood cells (RBCs) and platelets. Types of white blood cells can be classified in standard ways. Two pairs of broadest categories classify them either by structure (granulocytes or agranulocytes) or by cell lineage (myeloid cells or lymphoid cells). These broadest categories can be further divided into the five main types: neutrophils, eosinophils (acidophiles), basophils, lymphocytes, and monocytes. These types are distinguished by their physical and functional characteristics. Monocytes and neutrophils are phagocytic. Further subtypes can be classified; for example, among lymphocytes, there are B cells, T cells, and NK cells. The number of leukocytes in the blood is often an indicator of disease, and thus the white blood cell count is an important subset of the complete blood count. The normal white cell count is usually between 4 × 10/L and 1.1 × 10/L. In the US, this is usually expressed as 4,000 to 11,000 white blood cells per microliter of blood. White blood cells make up approximately 1% of the total blood volume in a healthy adult, making them substantially less numerous than the red blood cells at 40% to 45%. However, this 1% of the blood makes a large difference to health, because immunity depends on it. An increase in the number of leukocytes over the upper limits is called leukocytosis. It is normal when it is part of healthy immune responses, which happen frequently. It is occasionally abnormal, when it is neoplastic or autoimmune in origin. A decrease below the lower limit is called leukopenia. This indicates a weakened immune system. The name "white blood cell" derives from the physical appearance of a blood sample after centrifugation. White cells are found in the buffy coat, a thin, typically white layer of nucleated cells between the sedimented red blood cells and the blood plasma. The scientific term leukocyte directly reflects its description. It is derived from the Greek roots leuk- meaning "white" and cyt- meaning "cell". The buffy coat may sometimes be green if there are large amounts of neutrophils in the sample, due to the heme-containing enzyme myeloperoxidase that they produce. All white blood cells are nucleated, which distinguishes them from the anucleated red blood cells and platelets. Types of leukocytes can be classified in standard ways. Two pairs of broadest categories classify them either by structure (granulocytes or agranulocytes) or by cell lineage (myeloid cells or lymphoid cells). These broadest categories can be further divided into the five main types: neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, lymphocytes, and monocytes. These types are distinguished by their physical and functional characteristics. Monocytes and neutrophils are phagocytic. Further subtypes can be classified. Granulocytes are distinguished from agranulocytes by their nucleus shape (lobed versus round, that is, polymorphonuclear versus mononuclear) and by their cytoplasm granules (present or absent, or more precisely, visible on light microscopy or not thus visible). The other dichotomy is by lineage: Myeloid cells (neutrophils, monocytes, eosinophils and basophils) are distinguished from lymphoid cells (lymphocytes) by hematopoietic lineage (cellular differentiation lineage). Lymphocytes can be further classified as T cells, B cells, and natural killer cells. Neutrophils are the most abundant white blood cell, constituting 60-70% of the circulating leukocytes, and including two functionally unequal subpopulations: neutrophil-killers and neutrophil-cagers. They defend against bacterial or fungal infection. They are usually first responders to microbial infection; their activity and death in large numbers form pus. They are commonly referred to as polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocytes, although, in the technical sense, PMN refers to all granulocytes. They have a multi-lobed nucleus, which consists of three to five lobes connected by slender strands. This gives the neutrophils the appearance of having multiple nuclei, hence the name polymorphonuclear leukocyte. The cytoplasm may look transparent because of fine granules that are pale lilac when stained. Neutrophils are active in phagocytosing bacteria and are present in large amount in the pus of wounds. These cells are not able to renew their lysosomes (used in digesting microbes) and die after having phagocytosed a few pathogens. Neutrophils are the most common cell type seen in the early stages of acute inflammation. The average lifespan of inactivated human neutrophils in the circulation has been reported by different approaches to be between 5 and 135 hours. Eosinophils compose about 2-4% of the WBC total. This count fluctuates throughout the day, seasonally, and during menstruation. It rises in response to allergies, parasitic infections, collagen diseases, and disease of the spleen and central nervous system. They are rare in the blood, but numerous in the mucous membranes of the respiratory, digestive, and lower urinary tracts. They primarily deal with parasitic infections. Eosinophils are also the predominant inflammatory cells in allergic reactions. The most important causes of eosinophilia include allergies such as asthma, hay fever, and hives; and also parasitic infections. They secrete chemicals that destroy these large parasites, such as hook worms and tapeworms, that are too big for any one WBC to phagocytize. In general, their nucleus is bi-lobed. The lobes are connected by a thin strand. The cytoplasm is full of granules that assume a characteristic pink-orange color with eosin staining. Basophils are chiefly responsible for allergic and antigen response by releasing the chemical histamine causing the dilation of blood vessels. Because they are the rarest of the white blood cells (less than 0.5% of the total count) and share physicochemical properties with other blood cells, they are difficult to study. They can be recognized by several coarse, dark violet granules, giving them a blue hue. The nucleus is bi- or tri-lobed, but it is hard to see because of the number of coarse granules that hide it. They excrete two chemicals that aid in the body's defenses: histamine and heparin. Histamine is responsible for widening blood vessels and increasing the flow of blood to injured tissue. It also makes blood vessels more permeable so neutrophils and clotting proteins can get into connective tissue more easily. Heparin is an anticoagulant that inhibits blood clotting and promotes the movement of white blood cells into an area. Basophils can also release chemical signals that attract eosinophils and neutrophils to an infection site. Lymphocytes are much more common in the lymphatic system than in blood. Lymphocytes are distinguished by having a deeply staining nucleus that may be eccentric in location, and a relatively small amount of cytoplasm. Lymphocytes include: B cells make antibodies that can bind to pathogens, block pathogen invasion, activate the complement system, and enhance pathogen destruction., T cells:, CD4+ helper T cells: T cells displaying co-receptor CD4 are known as CD4+ T cells. These cells have T-cell receptors and CD4 molecules that, in combination, bind antigenic peptides presented on major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules on antigen-presenting cells. Helper T cells make cytokines and perform other functions that help coordinate the immune response. In HIV infection, these T cells are the main index to identify the individual's immune system integrity., CD8+ cytotoxic T cells: T cells displaying co-receptor CD8 are known as CD8+ T cells. These cells bind antigens presented on MHC I complex of virus-infected or tumour cells and kill them. Nearly all nucleated cells display MHC I., γδ T cells possess an alternative T cell receptor (different from the αβ TCR found on conventional CD4+ and CD8+ T cells). Found in tissue more commonly than in blood, γδ T cells share characteristics of helper T cells, cytotoxic T cells, and natural killer cells., Natural killer cells are able to kill cells of the body that do not display MHC class I molecules, or display stress markers such as MHC class I polypeptide-related sequence A (MIC-A). Decreased expression of MHC class I and up-regulation of MIC-A can happen when cells are infected by a virus or become cancerous. Monocytes, the largest type of WBCs, share the "vacuum cleaner" (phagocytosis) function of neutrophils, but are much longer lived as they have an extra role: they present pieces of pathogens to T cells so that the pathogens may be recognized again and killed. This causes an antibody response to be mounted. Monocytes eventually leave the bloodstream and become tissue macrophages, which remove dead cell debris as well as attack microorganisms. Neither dead cell debris nor attacking microorganisms can be dealt with effectively by the neutrophils. Unlike neutrophils, monocytes are able to replace their lysosomal contents and are thought to have a much longer active life. They have the kidney shaped nucleus and are typically agranulated. They also possess abundant cytoplasm. Some leucocytes migrate into the tissues of the body to take up a permanent residence at that location rather than remaining in the blood. Often these cells have specific names depending upon which tissue they settle in, such as fixed macrophages in the liver, which become known as Kupffer cells. These cells still serve a role in the immune system. Histiocytes, Dendritic cells (Although these will often migrate to local lymph nodes upon ingesting antigens), Mast cells, Microglia The two commonly used categories of white blood cell disorders divide them quantitatively into those causing excessive numbers (proliferative disorders) and those causing insufficient numbers (leukopenias). Leukocytosis is usually healthy (e.g., fighting an infection), but it also may be dysfunctionally proliferative. WBC proliferative disorders can be classed as myeloproliferative and lymphoproliferative. Some are autoimmune, but many are neoplastic. Another way to categorize disorders of white blood cells is qualitatively. There are various disorders in which the number of white blood cells is normal but the cells do not function normally. Neoplasia of WBCs can be benign but is often malignant. Of the various tumors of the blood and lymph, cancers of WBCs can be broadly classified as leukemias and lymphomas, although those categories overlap and are often grouped as a pair. A range of disorders can cause decreases in white blood cells. This type of white blood cell decreased is usually the neutrophil. In this case the decrease may be called neutropenia or granulocytopenia. Less commonly, a decrease in lymphocytes (called lymphocytopenia or lymphopenia) may be seen. Neutropenia can be acquired or intrinsic. A decrease in levels of neutrophils on lab tests is due to either decreased production of neutrophils or increased removal from the blood. The following list of causes is not complete. Medications - chemotherapy, sulfas or other antibiotics, phenothiazenes, benzodiazepines, antithyroids, anticonvulsants, quinine, quinidine, indomethacin, procainamide, thiazides, Radiation, Toxins - alcohol, benzenes, Intrinsic disorders - Fanconi's, Kostmann's, cyclic neutropenia, Chédiak–Higashi, Immune dysfunction - disorders of collagen, AIDS, rheumatoid arthritis, Blood cell dysfunction - megaloblastic anemia, myelodysplasia, marrow failure, marrow replacement, acute leukemia, Any major infection, Miscellaneous - starvation, hypersplenism Symptoms of neutropenia are associated with the underlying cause of the decrease in neutrophils. For example, the most common cause of acquired neutropenia is drug-induced, so an individual may have symptoms of medication overdose or toxicity. Treatment is also aimed at the underlying cause of the neutropenia. One severe consequence of neutropenia is that it can increase the risk of infection. Defined as total lymphocyte count below 1.0x10/L, the cells most commonly affected are CD4+ T cells. Like neutropenia, lymphocytopenia may be acquired or intrinsic and there are many causes. This is not a complete list. Inherited immune deficiency - severe combined immunodeficiency, common variable immune deficiency, ataxia-telangiectasia, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, immunodeficiency with short-limbed dwarfism, immunodeficiency with thymoma, purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency, genetic polymorphism, Blood cell dysfunction - aplastic anemia, Infectious diseases - viral (AIDS, SARS, West Nile encephalitis, hepatitis, herpes, measles, others), bacterial (TB, typhoid, pneumonia, rickettsiosis, ehrlichiosis, sepsis), parasitic (acute phase of malaria), Medications - chemotherapy (antilymphocyte globulin therapy, alemtuzumab, glucocorticoids), Radiation, Major surgery, Miscellaneous - ECMO, kidney or bone marrow transplant, hemodialysis, kidney failure, severe burn, celiac disease, severe acute pancreatitis, sarcoidosis, protein-losing enteropathy, strenuous exercise, carcinoma, Immune dysfunction - arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjögren syndrome, myasthenia gravis, systemic vasculitis, Behcet-like syndrome, dermatomyositis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, Nutritional/Dietary - alcohol abuse, zinc deficiency Like neutropenia, symptoms and treatment of lymphocytopenia are directed at the underlying cause of the change in cell counts. An increase in the number of white blood cells in circulation is called leukocytosis. This increase is most commonly caused by inflammation. There are four major causes: increase of production in bone marrow, increased release from storage in bone marrow, decreased attachment to veins and arteries, decreased uptake by tissues. Leukocytosis may affect one or more cell lines and can be neutrophilic, eosinophilic, basophilic, monocytosis, or lymphocytosis. Neutrophilia is an increase in the absolute neutrophil count in the peripheral circulation. Normal blood values vary by age. Neutrophilia can be caused by a direct problem with blood cells (primary disease). It can also occur as a consequence of an underlying disease (secondary). Most cases of neutrophilia are secondary to inflammation. Primary causes Conditions with normally functioning neutrophils – hereditary neutrophilia, chronic idiopathic neutrophilia, Pelger–Huet anomaly, Down syndrome, Leukocyte adhesion deficiency, Familial cold urticaria, Leukemia (chronic myelogenous (CML)) and other myeloproliferative disorders, Surgical removal of spleen Secondary causes Infection, Chronic inflammation – especially juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, Still's disease, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, granulomatous infections (for example, tuberculosis), and chronic hepatitis, Cigarette smoking – occurs in 25–50% of chronic smokers and can last up to 5 years after quitting, Stress – exercise, surgery, general stress, Medication induced – corticosteroids (for example, prednisone, β-agonists, lithium), Cancer – either by growth factors secreted by the tumor or invasion of bone marrow by the cancer, Increased destruction of cells in peripheral circulation can stimulate bone marrow. This can occur in hemolytic anemia and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura A normal eosinophil count is considered to be less than 0.65/L. Eosinophil counts are higher in newborns and vary with age, time (lower in the morning and higher at night), exercise, environment, and exposure to allergens. Eosinophilia is never a normal lab finding. Efforts should always be made to discover the underlying cause, though the cause may not always be found. The complete blood cell count is a blood panel that includes the overall WBC count and the white blood cell differential, a count of each type of white blood cell. Reference ranges for blood tests specify the typical counts in healthy people. TLC- (Total leucocyte count): Normal TLC in an adult person is 6000-8000 WBC/mm^3 of blood. DLC- (Differential leucocyte count): Number/ (%) of different types of leucocytes per cubic mm. of blood. Leukocyte-promoting factor Atlas of Hematology The spleen is an organ found in virtually all vertebrates. Similar in structure to a large lymph node, it acts primarily as a blood filter. The word spleen comes . The spleen plays important roles in regard to red blood cells (erythrocytes) and the immune system. It removes old red blood cells and holds a reserve of blood, which can be valuable in case of hemorrhagic shock, and also recycles iron. As a part of the mononuclear phagocyte system, it metabolizes hemoglobin removed from senescent red blood cells (erythrocytes). The globin portion of hemoglobin is degraded to its constitutive amino acids, and the heme portion is metabolized to bilirubin, which is removed in the liver. The spleen synthesizes antibodies in its white pulp and removes antibody-coated bacteria and antibody-coated blood cells by way of blood and lymph node circulation. A study published in 2009 using mice found that the red pulp of the spleen forms a reservoir that contains over half of the body's monocytes. These monocytes, upon moving to injured tissue (such as the heart after myocardial infarction), turn into dendritic cells and macrophages while promoting tissue healing. The spleen is a center of activity of the mononuclear phagocyte system and is analogous to a large lymph node, as its absence causes a predisposition to certain infections. In humans the spleen is purple in color and is in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. The spleen is underneath the left part of the diaphragm, and has a smooth, convex surface that faces the diaphragm. It is underneath the ninth, tenth, and eleventh ribs. The other side of the spleen is divided by a ridge into two regions: an anterior gastric portion, and a posterior renal portion. The gastric surface is directed forward, upward, and toward the middle, is broad and concave, and is in contact with the posterior wall of the stomach. Below this it is in contact with the tail of the pancreas. The renal surface is directed medialward and downward. It is somewhat flattened, considerably narrower than the gastric surface, and is in relation with the upper part of the anterior surface of the left kidney and occasionally with the left adrenal gland. The spleen, in healthy adult humans, is approximately to in length. It usually weighs between and . An easy way to remember the anatomy of the spleen is the 1×3×5×7×9×10×11 rule. The spleen is , weighs approximately , and lies between the 9th and 11th ribs on the left-hand side and along the axis of 10th rib. Near the middle of the spleen is a long fissure, the hilum, which is the point of attachment for the gastrosplenic ligament and the point of insertion for the splenic artery and splenic vein. There are other openings present for lymphatic vessels and nerves. Like the thymus, the spleen possesses only efferent lymphatic vessels. The spleen is part of the lymphatic system. Both the short gastric arteries and the splenic artery supply it with blood. The germinal centers are supplied by arterioles called penicilliary radicles. The spleen is innervated by the splenic plexus, which connects a branch of the celiac ganglia to the vagus nerve. The underlying central nervous processes coordinating the spleen's function seem to be embedded into the Hypothalamic- pituitary-adrenal-axis, and the brainstem, especially the subfornical organ. The spleen is unique in respect to its development within the gut. While most of the gut organs are endodermally derived (with the exception of the neural- crest derived adrenal gland), the spleen is derived from mesenchymal tissue. Specifically, the spleen forms within, and from, the dorsal mesentery. However, it still shares the same blood supply—the celiac trunk—as the foregut organs. Other functions of the spleen are less prominent, especially in the healthy adult: Spleen produces all types of blood cells during fetal life, Production of opsonins, properdin, and tuftsin., Creation of red blood cells. While the bone marrow is the primary site of hematopoiesis in the adult, the spleen has important hematopoietic functions up until the fifth month of gestation. After birth, erythropoietic functions cease, except in some hematologic disorders. As a major lymphoid organ and a central player in the reticuloendothelial system, the spleen retains the ability to produce lymphocytes and, as such, remains a hematopoietic organ., Storage of red blood cells, lymphocytes and other formed elements. The spleen of horses stores roughly 30% of the red blood cells and can release them when needed. In humans, up to a cup (240 ml) of red blood cells is held in the spleen and released in cases of hypovolemia and hypoxia. It can store platelets in case of an emergency and also clears old platelets from the circulation. Up to a quarter of lymphocytes are stored in the spleen at any one time. Enlargement of the spleen is known as splenomegaly. It may be caused by sickle cell anemia, sarcoidosis, malaria, bacterial endocarditis, leukemia, pernicious anemia, Gaucher's disease, leishmaniasis, Hodgkin's disease, Banti's disease, hereditary spherocytosis, cysts, glandular fever (mononucleosis or 'Mono' caused by the Epstein-Barr Virus), and tumours. Primary tumors of the spleen include hemangiomas and hemangiosarcomas. Marked splenomegaly may result in the spleen occupying a large portion of the left side of the abdomen. The spleen is the largest collection of lymphoid tissue in the body. It is normally palpable in preterm infants, in 30% of normal, full-term neonates, and in 5% to 10% of infants and toddlers. A spleen easily palpable below the costal margin in any child over the age of 3–4 years should be considered abnormal until proven otherwise. Splenomegaly can result from antigenic stimulation (e.g., infection), obstruction of blood flow (e.g., portal vein obstruction), underlying functional abnormality (e.g., hemolytic anemia), or infiltration (e.g., leukemia or storage disease, such as Gaucher's disease). The most common cause of acute splenomegaly in children is viral infection, which is transient and usually moderate. Basic work-up for acute splenomegaly includes a complete blood count with differential, platelet count, and reticulocyte and atypical lymphocyte counts to exclude hemolytic anemia and leukemia. Assessment of IgM antibodies to viral capsid antigen (a rising titer) is indicated to confirm Epstein-Barr virus or cytomegalovirus. Other infections should be excluded if these tests are negative. Traumas, such as a road traffic collision, can cause rupture of the spleen, which is a situation requiring immediate medical attention. Asplenia refers to a non-functioning spleen, which may be congenital, or caused by traumatic injury, surgical resection (splenectomy) or a disease such as sickle cell anaemia. Hyposplenia refers to a partially functioning spleen. These conditions may cause a modest increase in circulating white blood cells and platelets, a diminished response to some vaccines, and an increased susceptibility to infection. In particular, there is an increased risk of sepsis from polysaccharide encapsulated bacteria. Encapsulated bacteria inhibit binding of complement or prevent complement assembled on the capsule from interacting with macrophage receptors. Phagocytosis needs natural antibodies, which are immunoglobulins that facilitate phagocytosis either directly or by complement deposition on the capsule. They are produced by IgM memory B cells (a subtype of B cells) in the marginal zone of the spleen. A splenectomy (removal of the spleen) results in a greatly diminished frequency of memory B cells. A 28-year follow-up of 740 World War II veterans whose spleens were removed on the battlefield showed a significant increase in the usual death rate from pneumonia (6 rather than the expected 1.3) and an increase in the death rate from ischemic heart disease (41 rather than the expected 30), but not from other conditions. An accessory spleen is a small splenic nodule extra to the spleen usually formed in early embryogenesis. Accessory spleens are found in approximately 10 percent of the population and are typically around 1 centimeter in diameter. Splenosis is a condition where displaced pieces of splenic tissue (often following trauma or splenectomy) autotransplant in the abdominal cavity as accessory spleens. Polysplenia is a congenital disease manifested by multiple small accessory spleens, rather than a single, full-sized, normal spleen. Polysplenia sometimes occurs alone, but it is often accompanied by other developmental abnormalities such as intestinal malrotation or biliary atresia, or cardiac abnormalities, such as dextrocardia. These accessory spleens are non-functional. Splenic infarction is a condition in which blood flow supply to the spleen is compromised, leading to partial or complete infarction (tissue death due to oxygen shortage) in the organ. Splenic infarction occurs when the splenic artery or one of its branches are occluded, for example by a blood clot. Although it can occur asymptomatically, the typical symptom is severe pain in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen, sometimes radiating to the left shoulder. Fever and chills develop in some cases. It has to be differentiated from other causes of acute abdomen. The spleen may be affected by hyaloserositis, in which it is coated with fibrous hyaline. The word spleen comes from the Ancient Greek (splḗn), and is the idiomatic equivalent of the heart in English, i.e., to be good-spleened (, eúsplankhnos) means to be good-hearted or compassionate. In English the word spleen was customary during the period of the 18th century. Authors like Richard Blackmore or George Cheyne employed it to characterise the hypochondriacal and hysterical affections. William Shakespeare, in Julius Caesar uses the spleen to describe Cassius's irritable nature. Must I observe you? must I stand and crouch Under your testy humour? By the gods You shall digest the venom of your spleen, Though it do split you; for, from this day forth, I'll use you for my mirth, yea, for my laughter, When you are waspish. In French, "splénétique" refers to a state of pensive sadness or melancholy. It has been popularized by the poet Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867) but was already used before in particular to the Romantic literature (19th century). The French word for the organ is "rate". The connection between spleen (the organ) and melancholy (the temperament) comes from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks. One of the humours (body fluid) was the black bile, secreted by the spleen organ and associated with melancholy. In eighteenth- and nineteenth-century England, women in bad humor were said to be afflicted by the spleen, or the vapours of the spleen. In modern English, "to vent one's spleen" means to vent one's anger, e.g., by shouting, and can apply to both males and females. Similarly, the English term "splenetic" describes a person in a foul mood. In contrast, the Talmud (tractate Berachoth 61b) refers to the spleen as the organ of laughter while possibly suggesting a link with the humoral view of the organ. Sanhedrin 21b and Avodah Zarah 44a (and Rashi ibid.) additionally describe how in the ancient world, some runners destroyed their spleens with drugs to increase their speed, and hollowed out the soles of their feet of flesh so as not to feel thorns and thistles as they ran. The spleen also plays an important role in traditional Chinese medicine and is the Yin part of the Earth element paired with its Yang counterpart the Stomach. In cartilaginous and ray-finned fish, it consists primarily of red pulp and is normally somewhat elongated, as it lies inside the serosal lining of the intestine. In many amphibians, especially frogs, it has the more rounded form and there is often a greater quantity of white pulp. In reptiles, birds, and mammals, white pulp is always relatively plentiful, and in birds and mammals the spleen is typically rounded, but it adjusts its shape somewhat to the arrangement of the surrounding organs. In most vertebrates, the spleen continues to produce red blood cells throughout life; only in mammals this function is lost in middle-aged adults. Many mammals have tiny spleen-like structures known as haemal nodes throughout the body that are presumed to have the same function as the spleen. The spleens of aquatic mammals differ in some ways from those of fully land-dwelling mammals; in general they are bluish in colour. In cetaceans and manatees they tend to be quite small, but in deep diving pinnipeds, they can be massive, due to their function of storing red blood cells. The only vertebrates lacking a spleen are the lampreys and hagfishes (the Cyclostomata). Even in these animals, there is a diffuse layer of haematopoeitic tissue within the gut wall, which has a similar structure to red pulp and is presumed homologous with the spleen of higher vertebrates. In mice the spleen stores half the body's monocytes so that upon injury, they can migrate to the injured tissue and transform into dendritic cells and macrophages and so assist wound healing. Asplenia with cardiovascular anomalies, Marginal zone, Spleen transplantation —"The visceral surface of the spleen.", "spleen" from Encyclopædia Britannica Online, "Spleen and Lymphatic System", Kidshealth.org (American Academy of Family Physicians), "Spleen Diseases" from MedlinePlus, "Finally, the Spleen Gets Some Respect"—The New York Times, Normal range of spleen size for a given age in children Bone marrow is a semi-solid tissue which may be found within the spongy or cancellous portions of bones. In birds and mammals, bone marrow is the primary site of new blood cell production or hematopoiesis. It is composed of hematopoietic cells, marrow adipose tissue, and supportive stromal cells. In adult humans, bone marrow is primarily located in the ribs, vertebrae, sternum, and bones of the pelvis. Bone marrow comprises approximately 5% of total body mass in healthy adult humans, such that a man weighing 73 kg (161 lbs) will have around 3.65 kg (8 lbs) of bone marrow. Human marrow produces approximately 500 billion blood cells per day, which join the systemic circulation via permeable vasculature sinusoids within the medullary cavity. All types of hematopoietic cells, including both myeloid and lymphoid lineages, are created in bone marrow; however, lymphoid cells must migrate to other lymphoid organs (e.g. thymus) in order to complete maturation. Bone marrow transplants can be conducted to treat severe diseases of the bone marrow, including certain forms of cancer such as leukemia. Additionally, bone marrow stem cells have been successfully transformed into functional neural cells, and can also potentially be used to treat illnesses such as inflammatory bowel disease. The composition of marrow is dynamic, as the mixture of cellular and non- cellular components (connective tissue) shifts with age and in response to systemic factors. In humans, marrow is colloquially characterized as "red" or "yellow" marrow (, , respectively) depending on the prevalence of hematopoetic cells vs fat cells. While the precise mechanisms underlying marrow regulation are not understood, compositional changes occur according to stereotypical patterns. For example, a newborn baby's bones exclusively contain hematopoietically active "red" marrow, and there is a progressive conversion towards "yellow" marrow with age. In adults, red marrow is found mainly in the central skeleton, such as the pelvis, sternum, cranium, ribs, vertebrae and scapulae, and variably found in the proximal epiphyseal ends of long bones such as the femur and humerus. In circumstances of chronic hypoxia, the body can convert yellow marrow back to red marrow to increase blood cell production. At the cellular level, the main functional component of bone marrow includes the progenitor cells which are destined to mature into blood and lymphoid cells. Marrow contains hematopoietic stem cells which give rise to the three classes of blood cells that are found in circulation: white blood cells (leukocytes), red blood cells (erythrocytes), and platelets (thrombocytes). The stroma of the bone marrow includes all tissue not directly involved in the marrow's primary function of hematopoiesis. Stromal cells may be indirectly involved in hematopoiesis, providing a microenvironment that influences the function and differentiation of hematopoeietic cells. For instance, they generate colony stimulating factors, which have a significant effect on hematopoiesis. Cell types that constitute the bone marrow stroma include: fibroblasts (reticular connective tissue), macrophages, which contribute especially to red blood cell production, as they deliver iron for hemoglobin production., adipocytes (fat cells), osteoblasts (synthesize bone), osteoclasts (resorb bone), endothelial cells, which form the sinusoids. These derive from endothelial stem cells, which are also present in the bone marrow. The bone marrow stroma contains mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), also known as marrow stromal cells. These are multipotent stem cells that can differentiate into a variety of cell types. MSCs have been shown to differentiate, in vitro or in vivo, into osteoblasts, chondrocytes, myocytes, marrow adipocytes and beta-pancreatic islets cells. The blood vessels of the bone marrow constitute a barrier, inhibiting immature blood cells from leaving the marrow. Only mature blood cells contain the membrane proteins, such as aquaporin and glycophorin, that are required to attach to and pass the blood vessel endothelium. Hematopoietic stem cells may also cross the bone marrow barrier, and may thus be harvested from blood. The red bone marrow is a key element of the lymphatic system, being one of the primary lymphoid organs that generate lymphocytes from immature hematopoietic progenitor cells. The bone marrow and thymus constitute the primary lymphoid tissues involved in the production and early selection of lymphocytes. Furthermore, bone marrow performs a valve-like function to prevent the backflow of lymphatic fluid in the lymphatic system. Biological compartmentalization is evident within the bone marrow, in that certain cell types tend to aggregate in specific areas. For instance, erythrocytes, macrophages, and their precursors tend to gather around blood vessels, while granulocytes gather at the borders of the bone marrow. Animal bone marrow has been used in cuisine worldwide for millennia, such as the famed Milanese Ossobuco. The normal bone marrow architecture can be damaged or displaced by aplastic anemia, malignancies such as multiple myeloma, or infections such as tuberculosis, leading to a decrease in the production of blood cells and blood platelets. The bone marrow can also be affected by various forms of leukemia, which attacks its hematologic progenitor cells. Furthermore, exposure to radiation or chemotherapy will kill many of the rapidly dividing cells of the bone marrow, and will therefore result in a depressed immune system. Many of the symptoms of radiation poisoning are due to damage sustained by the bone marrow cells. To diagnose diseases involving the bone marrow, a bone marrow aspiration is sometimes performed. This typically involves using a hollow needle to acquire a sample of red bone marrow from the crest of the ilium under general or local anesthesia. Bone marrow derived stem cells have a wide array of application in regenerative medicine. Medical imaging may provide a limited amount of information regarding bone marrow. Plain film x-rays pass through soft tissues such as marrow and do not provide visualization, although any changes in the structure of the associated bone may be detected. CT imaging has somewhat better capacity for assessing the marrow cavity of bones, although with low sensitivity and specificity. For example, normal fatty "yellow" marrow in adult long bones is of low density (-30 to -100 Hounsfield units), between subcutaneous fat and soft tissue. Tissue with increased cellular composition, such as normal "red" marrow or cancer cells within the medullary cavity will measure variably higher in density. MRI is more sensitive and specific for assessing bone composition. MRI enables assessment of the average molecular composition of soft tissues, and thus provides information regarding the relative fat content of marrow. In adult humans, "yellow" fatty marrow is the dominant tissue in bones, particularly in the (peripheral) appendicular skeleton. Because fat molecules have a high T1-relaxivity, T1-weighted imaging sequences show "yellow" fatty marrow as bright (hyperintense). Furthermore, normal fatty marrow loses signal on fat-saturation sequences, in a similar pattern to subcutaneous fat. When "yellow" fatty marrow becomes replaced by tissue with more cellular composition, this change is apparent as decreased brightness on T1-weighted sequences. Both normal "red" marrow and pathologic marrow lesions (such as cancer) are darker than "yellow" marrow on T1-weight sequences, although can often be distinguished by comparison with the MR signal intensity of adjacent soft tissues. Normal "red" marrow is typically equivalent or brighter than skeletal muscle or intervertebral disc on T1-weighted sequences. Fatty marrow change, the inverse of red marrow hyperplasia, can occur with normal aging, though it can also be seen with certain treatments such as radiation therapy. Diffuse marrow T1 hypointensity without contrast enhancement or cortical discontinuity suggests red marrow conversion or myelofibrosis. Falsely normal marrow on T1 can be seen with diffuse multiple myeloma or leukemic infiltration when the water to fat ratio is not sufficiently altered, as may be seen with lower grade tumors or earlier in the disease process. Bone marrow examination is the pathologic analysis of samples of bone marrow obtained via biopsy and bone marrow aspiration. Bone marrow examination is used in the diagnosis of a number of conditions, including leukemia, multiple myeloma, anemia, and pancytopenia. The bone marrow produces the cellular elements of the blood, including platelets, red blood cells and white blood cells. While much information can be gleaned by testing the blood itself (drawn from a vein by phlebotomy), it is sometimes necessary to examine the source of the blood cells in the bone marrow to obtain more information on hematopoiesis; this is the role of bone marrow aspiration and biopsy. The ratio between myeloid series and erythroid cells is relevant to bone marrow function, and also to diseases of the bone marrow and peripheral blood, such as leukemia and anemia. The normal myeloid-to-erythroid ratio is around 3:1; this ratio may increase in myelogenous leukemias, decrease in polycythemias, and reverse in cases of thalassemia. In a bone marrow transplant, hematopoietic stem cells are removed from a person and infused into another person (allogenic) or into the same person at a later time (autologous). If the donor and recipient are compatible, these infused cells will then travel to the bone marrow and initiate blood cell production. Transplantation from one person to another is conducted for the treatment of severe bone marrow diseases, such as congenital defects, autoimmune diseases or malignancies. The patient's own marrow is first killed off with drugs or radiation, and then the new stem cells are introduced. Before radiation therapy or chemotherapy in cases of cancer, some of the patient's hematopoietic stem cells are sometimes harvested and later infused back when the therapy is finished to restore the immune system. Bone marrow stem cells can be induced to become neural cells to treat neurological illnesses, and can also potentially be used for the treatment of other illnesses, such as inflammatory bowel disease. In 2013, following a clinical trial, scientists proposed that bone marrow transplantation could be used to treat HIV in conjunction with antiretroviral drugs; however, it was later found that HIV remained in the bodies of the test subjects. The stem cells are typically harvested directly from the red marrow in the iliac crest, often under general anesthesia. The procedure is minimally invasive and does not require stitches afterwards. Depending on the donor's health and reaction to the procedure, the actual harvesting can be an outpatient procedure, or can require 1–2 days of recovery in the hospital. Another option is to administer certain drugs that stimulate the release of stem cells from the bone marrow into circulating blood. An intravenous catheter is inserted into the donor's arm, and the stem cells are then filtered out of the blood. This procedure is similar to that used in blood or platelet donation. In adults, bone marrow may also be taken from the sternum, while the tibia is often used when taking samples from infants. In newborns, stem cells may be retrieved from the umbilical cord. The earliest fossilised evidence of bone marrow was discovered in 2014 in Eusthenopteron, a lobe-finned fish which lived during the Devonian period approximately 370 million years ago. Scientists from Uppsala University and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility used X-ray synchrotron microtomography to study the fossilised interior of the skeleton's humerus, finding organised tubular structures akin to modern vertebrate bone marrow. Eusthenopteron is closely related to the early tetrapods, which ultimately evolved into the land-dwelling mammals and lizards of the present day. National Marrow Donor Program, a nonprofit organization that operates a registry of volunteer hematopoietic cell donors and umbilical cord blood units in the United States, Gift of Life Marrow Registry, an American bone marrow transplantation registry Nature Bone Marrow Transplantation (Nature Publishing Group) – specialist scientific journal with articles on bone marrow biology and clinical uses. Bone marrow histology photomicrographs

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Florida (, ) is the southernmost contiguous state in the United States. The state is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, and to the south by the Straits of Florida. Florida is the 22nd-most extensive (), the 3rd-most populous (21,477,737 inhabitants), and the 8th-most densely populated () of the U.S. states. Jacksonville is the most populous municipality in the state and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. The Miami metropolitan area is Florida's most populous urban area, with its capital being Tallahassee. Florida's $1.0 trillion economy is the fourth largest in the United States. If it were a country, Florida would be the 16th largest economy in the world, and the 58th most populous . In 2017, Florida's per capita personal income was $47,684, ranking 26th in the nation. The unemployment rate in September 2018 was 3.5% and ranked as the 18th in the United States. Florida exports nearly $55 billion in goods made in the state, the 8th highest among all states. The Miami Metropolitan Area is by far the largest urban economy in Florida and the 12th largest in the United States with a GDP of $345 billion . This is more than twice the number of the next metro area, the Tampa Bay Area, which has a GDP of $145 billion. Florida is home to 51 of the world's billionaires with most of them residing in South Florida. The first European contact was made in 1513 by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, who called it la Florida ( "the land of flowers") upon landing there in the Easter season, known in Spanish as Pascua Florida. Florida was a challenge for the European colonial powers before it gained statehood in the United States in 1845. It was a principal location of the Seminole Wars against the Native Americans, and racial segregation after the American Civil War. Today, Florida is distinctive for its large Cuban expatriate community and high population growth, as well as for its increasing environmental issues. The state's economy relies mainly on tourism, agriculture, and transportation, which developed in the late 19th century. Florida is also renowned for amusement parks, orange crops, winter vegetables, the Kennedy Space Center, and as a popular destination for retirees. Florida is the flattest state in the United States. Lake Okeechobee is the largest freshwater lake in Florida. Florida's close proximity to the ocean influences many aspects of Florida culture and daily life. Florida is a reflection of influences and multiple inheritance; African, European, indigenous, and Latino heritages can be found in the architecture and cuisine. Florida has attracted many writers such as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Ernest Hemingway and Tennessee Williams, and continues to attract celebrities and athletes. It is internationally known for golf, tennis, auto racing, and water sports. Several beaches in Florida have turquoise and emerald-colored coastal waters. About two-thirds of Florida occupies a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. Florida has the longest coastline in the contiguous United States, approximately , not including the contribution of the many barrier islands. Florida has a total of 4,510 islands that are ten acres or larger in area. This is the second-highest number of islands of any state in the United States; only Alaska has more. It is the only state that borders both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. Much of the state is at or near sea level and is characterized by sedimentary soil. Florida has the lowest high point of any U.S. state. The American alligator, American crocodile, American flamingo, Roseate spoonbill, Florida panther, bottlenose dolphin, and manatee can be found in Everglades National Park in the southern part of the state. The climate varies from subtropical in the north to tropical in the south. Along with Hawaii, Florida is one of only two states that has a tropical climate, and is the only continental state that has both a tropical climate and a coral reef. The Florida Reef is the only living coral barrier reef in the continental United States, and the third-largest coral barrier reef system in the world (after the Great Barrier Reef and Belize Barrier Reef). By the 16th century, the earliest time for which there is a historical record, major Native American groups included the Apalachee of the Florida Panhandle, the Timucua of northern and central Florida, the Ais of the central Atlantic coast, the Tocobaga of the Tampa Bay area, the Calusa of southwest Florida and the Tequesta of the southeastern coast. Florida was the first region of the continental United States to be visited and settled by Europeans. The earliest known European explorers came with the Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León. Ponce de León spotted and landed on the peninsula on April 2, 1513. He named it La Florida in recognition of the verdant landscape and because it was the Easter season, which the Spaniards called Pascua Florida (Festival of Flowers). The following day they came ashore to seek information and take possession of this new land. The story that he was searching for the Fountain of Youth is mythical and only appeared long after his death. In May 1539, Conquistador Hernando de Soto skirted the coast of Florida, searching for a deep harbor to land. He described seeing a thick wall of red mangroves spread mile after mile, some reaching as high as , with intertwined and elevated roots making landing difficult. The Spanish introduced Christianity, cattle, horses, sheep, the Castilian language, and more to Florida. Spain established several settlements in Florida, with varying degrees of success. In 1559, Don Tristán de Luna y Arellano established a settlement at present-day Pensacola, making it the first attempted settlement in Florida, but it was mostly abandoned by 1561. In 1565, the settlement of St. Augustine (San Agustín) was established under the leadership of admiral and governor Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, creating what would become one of the oldest, continuously-occupied European settlements in the continental U.S. and establishing the first generation of Floridanos and the Government of Florida. Spain maintained strategic control over the region by converting the local tribes to Christianity. The marriage between Luisa de Abrego, a free black domestic servant from Seville, and Miguel Rodríguez, a white Segovian, occurred in 1565 in St. Augustine. It is the first recorded Christian marriage in the continental United States. Some Spanish married or had unions with Pensacola, Creek or African women, both slave and free, and their descendants created a mixed-race population of mestizos and mulattos. The Spanish encouraged slaves from the southern British colonies to come to Florida as a refuge, promising freedom in exchange for conversion to Catholicism. King Charles II of Spain issued a royal proclamation freeing all slaves who fled to Spanish Florida and accepted conversion and baptism. Most went to the area around St. Augustine, but escaped slaves also reached Pensacola. St. Augustine had mustered an all-black militia unit defending Spain as early as 1683. The geographical area of Florida diminished with the establishment of English settlements to the north and French claims to the west. The English attacked St. Augustine, burning the city and its cathedral to the ground several times. Spain built the Castillo de San Marcos in 1672 and Fort Matanzas in 1742 to defend Florida's capital city from attacks, and to maintain its strategic position in the defense of the Captaincy General of Cuba and the Spanish West Indies. Florida attracted numerous Africans and African Americans from adjacent British colonies who sought freedom from slavery. In 1738, Governor Manuel de Montiano established Fort Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose near St. Augustine, a fortified town for escaped slaves to whom Montiano granted citizenship and freedom in return for their service in the Florida militia, and which became the first free black settlement legally sanctioned in North America. In 1763, Spain traded Florida to the Kingdom of Great Britain for control of Havana, Cuba, which had been captured by the British during the Seven Years' War. It was part of a large expansion of British territory following their victory in the Seven Years' War. A large portion of the Floridano population left, taking along most of the remaining indigenous population to Cuba. The British soon constructed the King's Road connecting St. Augustine to Georgia. The road crossed the St. Johns River at a narrow point called Wacca Pilatka, or the British name "Cow Ford", ostensibly reflecting the fact that cattle were brought across the river there. The British divided and consolidated the Florida provinces (Las Floridas) into East Florida and West Florida, a division the Spanish government kept after the brief British period. The British government gave land grants to officers and soldiers who had fought in the French and Indian War in order to encourage settlement. In order to induce settlers to move to Florida, reports of its natural wealth were published in England. A large number of British settlers who were described as being "energetic and of good character" moved to Florida, mostly coming from South Carolina, Georgia and England. There was also a group of settlers who came from the colony of Bermuda. This would be the first permanent English-speaking population in what is now Duval County, Baker County, St. Johns County and Nassau County. The British built good public roads and introduced the cultivation of sugar cane, indigo and fruits as well as the export of lumber. The British governors were directed to call general assemblies as soon as possible in order to make laws for the Floridas, and in the meantime they were, with the advice of councils, to establish courts. This was the first introduction of the English-derived legal system which Florida still has today, including trial by jury, habeas corpus and county-based government. Neither East Florida nor West Florida sent any representatives to Philadelphia to draft the Declaration of Independence. Florida remained a Loyalist stronghold for the duration of the American Revolution. Spain regained both East and West Florida after Britain's defeat in the American Revolution and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles in 1783, and continued the provincial divisions until 1821. Defense of Florida's northern border with the United States was minor during the second Spanish period. The region became a haven for escaped slaves and a base for Indian attacks against U.S. territories, and the U.S. pressed Spain for reform. Americans of English descent and Americans of Scots-Irish descent began moving into northern Florida from the backwoods of Georgia and South Carolina. Though technically not allowed by the Spanish authorities and the Floridan government, they were never able to effectively police the border region and the backwoods settlers from the United States would continue to immigrate into Florida unchecked. These migrants, mixing with the already present British settlers who had remained in Florida since the British period, would be the progenitors of the population known as Florida Crackers. These American settlers established a permanent foothold in the area and ignored Spanish authorities. The British settlers who had remained also resented Spanish rule, leading to a rebellion in 1810 and the establishment for ninety days of the so-called Free and Independent Republic of West Florida on September 23. After meetings beginning in June, rebels overcame the garrison at Baton Rouge (now in Louisiana), and unfurled the flag of the new republic: a single white star on a blue field. This flag would later become known as the "Bonnie Blue Flag". In 1810, parts of West Florida were annexed by proclamation of President James Madison, who claimed the region as part of the Louisiana Purchase. These parts were incorporated into the newly formed Territory of Orleans. The U.S. annexed the Mobile District of West Florida to the Mississippi Territory in 1812. Spain continued to dispute the area, though the United States gradually increased the area it occupied. In 1812, a group of settlers from Georgia, with de facto support from the U.S. federal government, attempted to overthrow the Floridan government in the province of East Florida. The settlers hoped to convince Floridans to join their cause and proclaim independence from Spain, but the settlers lost their tenuous support from the federal government and abandoned their cause by 1813. Seminoles based in East Florida began raiding Georgia settlements, and offering havens for runaway slaves. The United States Army led increasingly frequent incursions into Spanish territory, including the 1817–1818 campaign against the Seminole Indians by Andrew Jackson that became known as the First Seminole War. The United States now effectively controlled East Florida. Control was necessary according to Secretary of State John Quincy Adams because Florida had become "a derelict open to the occupancy of every enemy, civilized or savage, of the United States, and serving no other earthly purpose than as a post of annoyance to them." Florida had become a burden to Spain, which could not afford to send settlers or garrisons. Madrid therefore decided to cede the territory to the United States through the Adams–Onís Treaty, which took effect in 1821. President James Monroe was authorized on March 3, 1821 to take possession of East Florida and West Florida for the United States and provide for initial governance. Andrew Jackson, on behalf of the U.S. federal government, served as a military commissioner with the powers of governor of the newly acquired territory for a brief period. On March 30, 1822, the U.S. Congress merged East Florida and part of West Florida into the Florida Territory. By the early 1800s, Indian removal was a significant issue throughout the southeastern U.S. and also in Florida. In 1830, the U.S. Congress passed the Indian Removal Act and as settlement increased, pressure grew on the U.S. government to remove the Indians from Florida. Seminoles offered sanctuary to blacks, and these became known as the Black Seminoles, and clashes between whites and Indians grew with the influx of new settlers. In 1832, the Treaty of Payne's Landing promised to the Seminoles lands west of the Mississippi River if they agreed to leave Florida. Many Seminole left at this time. Some Seminoles remained, and the U.S. Army arrived in Florida, leading to the Second Seminole War (1835–1842). Following the war, approximately 3,000 Seminole and 800 Black Seminole were removed to Indian Territory. A few hundred Seminole remained in Florida in the Everglades. On March 3, 1845, only one day before the end of President John Tyler's term in office, Florida became the 27th state to join the United States of America. The state was admitted as a slave state and ceased to be a sanctuary for runaway slaves. Initially its population grew slowly. As European settlers continued to encroach on Seminole lands, the United States intervened to move the remaining Seminoles to the West. The Third Seminole War (1855–58) resulted in the forced removal of most of the remaining Seminoles, although hundreds of Seminole Indians remained in the Everglades. American settlers began to establish cotton plantations in north Florida, which required numerous laborers, which they supplied by buying slaves in the domestic market. By 1860, Florida had only 140,424 people, of whom 44% were enslaved. There were fewer than 1,000 free African Americans before the American Civil War. On January 10, 1861, nearly all delegates in the Florida Legislature approved an ordinance of secession, declaring Florida to be "a sovereign and independent nation"—an apparent reassertion to the preamble in Florida's Constitution of 1838, in which Florida agreed with Congress to be a "Free and Independent State." Although not mentioning the issue of slavery, the ordinance declared Florida's secession from the Union, allowing it to become one of the founding members of the Confederate States, a looser union of states. The Confederacy received little help from Florida; the 15,000 men it offered were generally sent elsewhere. Instead of men and manufactured goods, Florida did provide salt and, more importantly, beef to feed the Confederate armies. This was particularly important after 1864, when the Confederacy lost control of the Mississippi River, thereby losing access to Texas beef. The largest engagements in the state were the Battle of Olustee, on February 20, 1864, and the Battle of Natural Bridge, on March 6, 1865. Both were Confederate victories. The war ended in 1865. Following the American Civil War, Florida's congressional representation was restored on June 25, 1868, albeit forcefully after Radical Reconstruction and the installation of unelected government officials under the final authority of federal military commanders. After the Reconstruction period ended in 1876, white Democrats regained power in the state legislature. In 1885, they created a new constitution, followed by statutes through 1889 that disfranchised most blacks and many poor whites. In the pre-automobile era, railroads played a key role in the state's development, particularly in coastal areas. In 1883, the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad connected Pensacola and the rest of the Panhandle to the rest of the state. In 1884 the South Florida Railroad (later absorbed by Atlantic Coast Line Railroad) opened full service to Tampa. In 1894 the Florida East Coast Railway reached West Palm Beach; in 1896 it reached Biscayne Bay near Miami. Numerous other railroads were built all over the interior of the state. Until the mid-20th century, Florida was the least populous state in the southern United States. In 1900, its population was only 528,542, of whom nearly 44% were African American, the same proportion as before the Civil War. The boll weevil devastated cotton crops. Forty thousand blacks, roughly one-fifth of their 1900 population levels in Florida, left the state in the Great Migration. They left due to lynchings and racial violence, and for better opportunities in the North and the West. Disfranchisement for most African Americans in the state persisted until the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s gained federal legislation in 1965 to enforce protection of their constitutional suffrage. Historically, Florida's economy has been based primarily upon agricultural products such as cattle, sugar cane, citrus fruits, tomatoes, and strawberries. In 1925, the Seaboard Air Line broke the FEC's southeast Florida monopoly and extended its freight and passenger service to West Palm Beach; two years later it extended passenger service to Miami. Economic prosperity in the 1920s stimulated tourism to Florida and related development of hotels and resort communities. Combined with its sudden elevation in profile was the Florida land boom of the 1920s, which brought a brief period of intense land development. Devastating hurricanes in 1926 and 1928, followed by the Great Depression, brought that period to a halt. Florida's economy did not fully recover until the military buildup for World War II. In 1939, Florida was described as "still very largely an empty State." Subsequently, the growing availability of air conditioning, the climate, and a low cost of living made the state a haven. Migration from the Rust Belt and the Northeast sharply increased Florida's population after 1945. In the 1960s, many refugees from Cuba fleeing Fidel Castro's communist regime arrived in Miami at the Freedom Tower, where the federal government used the facility to process, document and provide medical and dental services for the newcomers. As a result, the Freedom Tower was also called the "Ellis Island of the South." In recent decades, more migrants have come for the jobs in a developing economy. With a population of more than 18 million, according to the 2010 census, Florida is the most populous state in the southeastern United States and the third-most populous in the United States. The population of Florida has boomed in recent years with the state being the recipient of the largest number of out-of-state movers in the country as of 2019. Florida's growth has been widespread, as cities throughout the state have grown since 2010. After Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in September 2017, a large population of Puerto Ricans began moving to Florida to escape the widespread destruction. Hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans arrived in Florida after Maria dissipated, with nearly half of them arriving in Orlando and large populations also moving to Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach. Much of Florida is on a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean and the Straits of Florida. Spanning two time zones, it extends to the northwest into a panhandle, extending along the northern Gulf of Mexico. It is bordered on the north by Georgia and Alabama, and on the west, at the end of the panhandle, by Alabama. It is the only state that borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Florida also is the southernmost state in the 48 contiguous states, with Hawaii being the only state reaching farther south. Florida is west of The Bahamas and north of Cuba. Florida is one of the largest states east of the Mississippi River, and only Alaska and Michigan are larger in water area. The water boundary is offshore in the Atlantic Ocean and offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. At above mean sea level, Britton Hill is the highest point in Florida and the lowest highpoint of any U.S. state. Much of the state south of Orlando lies at a lower elevation than northern Florida, and is fairly level. Much of the state is at or near sea level. However, some places such as Clearwater have promontories that rise above the water. Much of Central and North Florida, typically or more away from the coastline, have rolling hills with elevations ranging from . The highest point in peninsular Florida (east and south of the Suwannee River), Sugarloaf Mountain, is a peak in Lake County. On average, Florida is the flattest state in the United States. The climate of Florida is tempered somewhat by the fact that no part of the state is distant from the ocean. North of Lake Okeechobee, the prevalent climate is humid subtropical (Köppen: Cfa), while areas south of the lake (including the Florida Keys) have a true tropical climate (Köppen: Aw). Mean high temperatures for late July are primarily in the low 90s Fahrenheit (32–34 °C). Mean low temperatures for early to mid January range from the low 40s Fahrenheit (4–7 °C) in north Florida to above from Miami on southward. With an average daily temperature of , it is the warmest state in the U.S. In the summer, high temperatures in the state seldom exceed 100 °F (38 °C). Several record cold maxima have been in the 30s °F (−1 to 4 °C) and record lows have been in the 10s (−12 to −7 °C). These temperatures normally extend at most a few days at a time in the northern and central parts of Florida. South Florida, however, rarely encounters below freezing temperatures. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Florida was , which was set on June 29, 1931 in Monticello. The coldest temperature was , on February 13, 1899, just away, in Tallahassee. Due to its subtropical and tropical climate, Florida rarely receives measurable snowfall. However, on rare occasions, a combination of cold moisture and freezing temperatures can result in snowfall in the farthest northern regions like Jacksonville, Gainesville or Pensacola. Frost, which is more common than snow, sometimes occurs in the panhandle. The USDA Plant hardiness zones for the state range from zone 8a (no colder than ) in the inland western panhandle to zone 11b (no colder than ) in the lower Florida Keys. Fog also occurs all over the state or climate of Florida. Florida's nickname is the "Sunshine State", but severe weather is a common occurrence in the state. Central Florida is known as the lightning capital of the United States, as it experiences more lightning strikes than anywhere else in the country. Florida has one of the highest average precipitation levels of any state, in large part because afternoon thunderstorms are common in much of the state from late spring until early autumn. A narrow eastern part of the state including Orlando and Jacksonville receives between 2,400 and 2,800 hours of sunshine annually. The rest of the state, including Miami, receives between 2,800 and 3,200 hours annually. Florida leads the United States in tornadoes per area (when including waterspouts), but they do not typically reach the intensity of those in the Midwest and Great Plains. Hail often accompanies the most severe thunderstorms. Hurricanes pose a severe threat each year during June 1 to November 30 hurricane season, particularly from August to October. Florida is the most hurricane-prone state, with subtropical or tropical water on a lengthy coastline. Of the category 4 or higher storms that have struck the United States, 83% have either hit Florida or Texas. From 1851 to 2006, Florida was struck by 114 hurricanes, 37 of them major—category 3 and above. It is rare for a hurricane season to pass without any impact in the state by at least a tropical storm. In 1992, Florida was the site of what was then the costliest weather disaster in U.S. history, Hurricane Andrew, which caused more than $25 billion in damages when it struck during August; it held that distinction until 2005, when Hurricane Katrina surpassed it, and it has since been surpassed by six other hurricanes. Andrew is currently the second costliest hurricane in Florida's history. Florida is host to many types of wildlife including: Marine mammals: bottlenose dolphin, short-finned pilot whale, North Atlantic right whale, West Indian manatee Mammals: Florida panther, northern river otter, mink, eastern cottontail rabbit, marsh rabbit, raccoon, striped skunk, squirrel, white- tailed deer, Key deer, bobcats, red fox, gray fox, coyote, wild boar, Florida black bear, nine-banded armadillos, Virginia opossum Reptiles: eastern diamondback and pygmy rattlesnakes, gopher tortoise, green and leatherback sea turtles, and eastern indigo snake. In 2012, there were about one million American alligators and 1,500 crocodiles. Birds: peregrine falcon, bald eagle, American flamingo, northern caracara, snail kite, osprey, white and brown pelicans, sea gulls, whooping and sandhill cranes, roseate spoonbill, American white ibis, Florida scrub jay (state endemic), and others. One subspecies of wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavo, namely subspecies osceola, is found only in Florida. The state is a wintering location for many species of eastern North American birds. As a result of climate change, there have been small numbers of several new species normally native to cooler areas to the north: snowy owls, snow buntings, harlequin ducks, and razorbills. These have been seen in the northern part of the state. Invertebrates: carpenter ants, termites, American cockroach, Africanized bees, the Miami blue butterfly, and the grizzled mantis. Florida also has more than 500 nonnative animal species and 1,000 nonnative insects found throughout the state. Some exotic species living in Florida include the Burmese python, green iguana, veiled chameleon, Argentine black and white tegu, peacock bass, mayan cichlid, lionfish, White- nosed coati, rhesus macaque, vervet monkey, Cuban tree frog, cane toad, Indian peafowl, monk parakeet, tui parakeet, and many more. Some of these nonnative species do not pose a threat to any native species, but some do threaten the native species of Florida by living in the state and eating them. There are about 3,000 different types of wildflowers in Florida. This is the third-most diverse state in the union, behind California and Texas, both larger states. In Florida, wild populations of coconut palms extend up the East Coast from Key West to Jupiter Inlet, and up the West Coast from Marco Island to Sarasota. Many of the smallest coral islands in the Florida Keys are known to have abundant coconut palms sprouting from coconuts that have drifted or been deposited by ocean currents. Coconut palms are cultivated north of south Florida to roughly Cocoa Beach on the East Coast and the Tampa Bay Area on the West Coast. On the east coast of the state, mangroves have normally dominated the coast from Cocoa Beach southward; salt marshes from St. Augustine northward. From St. Augustine south to Cocoa Beach, the coast fluctuates between the two, depending on the annual weather conditions. All three mangrove species flower in the spring and early summer. Propagules fall from late summer through early autumn. Florida mangrove plant communities covered an estimated 430,000 to 540,000 acres (1,700 to 2,200 km) in Florida in 1981. Ninety percent of the Florida mangroves are in southern Florida, in Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties. The Florida Reef is the only living coral barrier reef in the continental United States. It is also the third largest coral barrier reef system in the world, after the Great Barrier Reef and the Belize Barrier Reef. The reef lies a little bit off of the coast of the Florida Keys. A lot of the reef lies within John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, which was the first underwater park in the United States. The park contains a lot of tropical vegetation, marine life, and seabirds. The Florida Reef extends into other parks and sanctuaries as well including Dry Tortugas National Park, Biscayne National Park, and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Almost 1,400 species of marine plants and animals, including more than 40 species of stony corals and 500 species of fish, live on the Florida Reef. The Florida Reef, being a delicate ecosystem like other coral reefs, faces many threats including overfishing, plastics in the ocean, coral bleaching, rising sea levels, and changes in sea surface temperature. Florida is a low per capita energy user. It is estimated that approximately 4% of energy in the state is generated through renewable resources. Florida's energy production is 6% of the nation's total energy output, while total production of pollutants is lower, with figures of 6% for nitrogen oxide, 5% for carbon dioxide, and 4% for sulfur dioxide. Wildfires in Florida occur at all times of the year. All potable water resources have been controlled by the state government through five regional water authorities since 1972. Red tide has been an issue on the southwest coast of Florida, as well as other areas. While there has been a great deal of conjecture over the cause of the toxic algae bloom, there is no evidence that it is being caused by pollution or that there has been an increase in the duration or frequency of red tides. Red tide is now killing off wildlife or Tropical fish and coral reefs putting all in danger. The Florida panther is close to extinction. A record 23 were killed in 2009, mainly by automobile collisions, leaving about 100 individuals in the wild. The Center for Biological Diversity and others have therefore called for a special protected area for the panther to be established. Manatees are also dying at a rate higher than their reproduction. American flamingos are rare to see in Florida due to being hunted in the 1900s, where it was to a point considered completely extirpated. Now the flamingos are reproducing toward making a comeback to South Florida since it is adamantly considered native to the state and also are now being protected. Much of Florida has an elevation of less than , including many populated areas. Therefore, it is susceptible to rising sea levels associated with global warming. The Atlantic beaches that are vital to the state's economy are being washed out to sea due to rising sea levels caused by climate change. The Miami beach area, close to the continental shelf, is running out of accessible offshore sand reserves. Elevated temperatures can damage coral reefs, causing coral bleaching. The first recorded bleaching incident on the Florida Reef was in 1973. Incidents of bleaching have become more frequent in recent decades, in correlation with a rise in sea surface temperatures. White band disease has also adversely affected corals on the Florida Reef. The Florida peninsula is a porous plateau of karst limestone sitting atop bedrock known as the Florida Platform. The largest deposits of potash in the United States are found in Florida. The largest deposits of rock phosphate in the country are found in Florida. Most of this is in Bone Valley. Extended systems of underwater caves, sinkholes and springs are found throughout the state and supply most of the water used by residents. The limestone is topped with sandy soils deposited as ancient beaches over millions of years as global sea levels rose and fell. During the last glacial period, lower sea levels and a drier climate revealed a much wider peninsula, largely savanna. While there are sinkholes in much of the state, modern sinkholes have tended to be in West-Central Florida. Everglades National Park covers , throughout Dade, Monroe, and Collier counties in Florida. The Everglades, an enormously wide, slow-flowing river encompasses the southern tip of the peninsula. Sinkhole damage claims on property in the state exceeded a total of $2 billion from 2006 through 2010. Winter Park Sinkhole, in central Florida, appeared May 8, 1981. It was approximately 350 feet (107 m) wide and 75 feet (23 m) deep. It was notable as one of the largest recent sinkholes to form in the United States. It is now known as Lake Rose. The Econlockhatchee River (Econ River for short) is an north-flowing blackwater tributary of the St. Johns River, the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida. The Econ River flows through Osceola, Orange, and Seminole counties in Central Florida, just east of the Orlando Metropolitan Area (east of State Road 417). It is a designated Outstanding Florida Waters. Earthquakes are rare because Florida is not located near any tectonic plate boundaries. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the population of Florida was 21,477,737 on July 1, 2019, a 14.24% increase since the 2010 United States Census. The population of Florida in the 2010 census was 18,801,310. Florida was the seventh fastest-growing state in the U.S. in the 12-month period ending July 1, 2012. In 2010, the center of population of Florida was located between Fort Meade and Frostproof. The center of population has moved less than to the east and approximately to the north between 1980 and 2010 and has been located in Polk County since the 1960 census. The population exceeded 19.7 million by December 2014, surpassing the population of the state of New York for the first time. The Florida population was 21,299,325 residents or people according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2018 Population Estimates Program. Florida contains the highest percentage of people over 65 (17%). There were 186,102 military retirees living in the state in 2008. About two- thirds of the population was born in another state, the second highest in the U.S. In 2010, undocumented immigrants constituted an estimated 5.7% of the population. This was the sixth highest percentage of any U.S. state. There were an estimated 675,000 illegal immigrants in the state in 2010. Florida has banned sanctuary cities. A 2013 Gallup poll indicated that 47% of the residents agreed that Florida was the best state to live in. Results in other states ranged from a low of 18% to a high of 77%. Hispanic and Latinos of any race made up 22.5% of the population in 2010. , 57% of Florida's population younger than age 1 were minorities (meaning that they had at least one parent who was not non-Hispanic white). The largest metropolitan area in the state as well as the entire southeastern United States is the Miami metropolitan area, with about 6.06 million people. The Tampa Bay Area, with over 3.02 million people, is the second largest; the Orlando metropolitan area, with over 2.44 million people, is the third; and the Jacksonville metropolitan area, with over 1.47 million people, is fourth. Florida has 22 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Forty-three of Florida's 67 counties are in a MSA. The legal name in Florida for a city, town or village is "municipality". In Florida there is no legal difference between towns, villages and cities. Florida is a highly urbanized state, with 89 percent of its population living in urban areas in 2000, compared to 79 percent nationally. In 2012, 75% of the population lived within of the coastline. In 2010, 6.9% of the population (1,269,765) considered themselves to be of only American ancestry (regardless of race or ethnicity). Many of these were of English or Scotch-Irish descent; however, their families have lived in the state for so long, that they choose to identify as having "American" ancestry or do not know their ancestry. In the 1980 United States census, the largest ancestry group reported in Florida was English with 2,232,514 Floridians claiming that they were of English or mostly English American ancestry. Some of their ancestry went back to the original thirteen colonies. , those of (non-Hispanic white) European ancestry accounted for 57.9% of Florida's population. Out of the 57.9%, the largest groups were 12.0% German (2,212,391), 10.7% Irish (1,979,058), 8.8% English (1,629,832), 6.6% Italian (1,215,242), 2.8% Polish (511,229), and 2.7% French (504,641). White Americans of all European backgrounds are present in all areas of the state. In 1970, non-Hispanic whites were nearly 80% of Florida's population. Those of English and Irish ancestry are present in large numbers in all the urban/suburban areas across the state. Some native white Floridians, especially those who have descended from long-time Florida families, may refer to themselves as "Florida crackers"; others see the term as a derogatory one. Like whites in most other states of the southern U.S., they descend mainly from English and Scots-Irish settlers, as well as some other British American settlers. As of 2010, those of Hispanic or Latino ancestry accounted for 22.5% (4,223,806) of Florida's population. Out of the 22.5%, the largest groups were 6.5% (1,213,438) Cuban, 4.5% (847,550) Puerto Rican, 3.3% (629,718) Mexican, and 1.6% (300,414) Colombian. Florida's Hispanic population includes large communities of Cuban Americans in Miami and Tampa, Puerto Ricans in Orlando and Tampa, and Mexican/Central American migrant workers. The Hispanic community continues to grow more affluent and mobile. Florida has a large and diverse Hispanic population, with Cubans and Puerto Ricans being the largest groups in the state. Nearly 80% of Cuban Americans live in Florida, especially South Florida where there is a long-standing and affluent Cuban community. Florida has the second largest Puerto Rican population after New York, as well as the fastest-growing in the nation. Puerto Ricans are more widespread throughout the state, though the heaviest concentrations are in the Orlando area of Central Florida. , those of African ancestry accounted for 16.0% of Florida's population, which includes African Americans. Out of the 16.0%, 4.0% (741,879) were West Indian or Afro-Caribbean American. During the early 1900s, black people made up nearly half of the state's population. In response to segregation, disfranchisement and agricultural depression, many African Americans migrated from Florida to northern cities in the Great Migration, in waves from 1910 to 1940, and again starting in the later 1940s. They moved for jobs, better education for their children and the chance to vote and participate in society. By 1960, the proportion of African Americans in the state had declined to 18%. Conversely, large numbers of northern whites moved to the state. Today, large concentrations of black residents can be found in northern and central Florida. Aside from blacks descended from African slaves brought to the southern U.S., there are also large numbers of blacks of West Indian, recent African, and Afro-Latino immigrant origins, especially in the Miami/South Florida area. In 2016, Florida had the highest percentage of West Indians in the United States at 4.5%, with 2.3% (483,874) from Haitian ancestry, 1.5% (303,527) Jamaican, and 0.2% (31,966) Bahamian, with the other West Indian groups making up the rest. , those of Asian ancestry accounted for 2.4% of Florida's population. In 1988, English was affirmed as the state's official language in the Florida Constitution. Spanish is also widely spoken, especially as immigration has continued from Latin America. Twenty percent of the population speak Spanish as their first language. Twenty-seven percent of Florida's population reports speaking a mother language other than English, and more than 200 first languages other than English are spoken at home in the state. The most common languages spoken in Florida as a first language in 2010 are: 73% — English, 20% — Spanish, 2% — Haitian Creole, Other languages comprise less than 1% spoken by the state's population Florida is mostly Christian, although there is a large irreligious and relatively significant Jewish community. Protestants account for almost half of the population, but the Catholic Church is the largest single denomination in the state mainly due to its large Hispanic population and other groups like Haitians. Protestants are very diverse, although Baptists, Methodists, Pentecostals and nondenominational Protestants are the largest groups. There is also a sizable Jewish community in South Florida. This is the largest Jewish population in the southern U.S. and the third-largest in the U.S. behind those of New York and California. In 2010, the three largest denominations in Florida were the Catholic Church, the Southern Baptist Convention, and the United Methodist Church. The Pew Research Center survey in 2014 gave the following religious makeup of Florida: The basic structure, duties, function, and operations of the government of the State of Florida are defined and established by the Florida Constitution, which establishes the basic law of the state and guarantees various rights and freedoms of the people. The state government consists of three separate branches: judicial, executive, and legislative. The legislature enacts bills, which, if signed by the governor, become law. The Florida Legislature comprises the Florida Senate, which has 40 members, and the Florida House of Representatives, which has 120 members. The current governor of Florida is Ron DeSantis. The Florida Supreme Court consists of a chief justice and six justices. Florida has 67 counties. Some reference materials may show only 66 because Duval County is consolidated with the City of Jacksonville. There are 379 cities in Florida (out of 411) that report regularly to the Florida Department of Revenue, but there are other incorporated municipalities that do not. The state government's primary revenue source is sales tax. Florida does not impose a personal income tax. The primary revenue source for cities and counties is property tax; unpaid taxes are subject to tax sales, which are held (at the county level) in May and (due to the extensive use of online bidding sites) are highly popular. There were 800 federal corruption convictions from 1988 to 2007, more than any other state. From 1952 to 1964, most voters were registered Democrats, but the state voted for the Republican presidential candidate in every election except for 1964. The following year, Congress passed and President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, providing for oversight of state practices and enforcement of constitutional voting rights for African Americans and other minorities in order to prevent the discrimination and disenfranchisement that had excluded most of them for decades from the political process. From the 1930s through much of the 1960s, Florida was essentially a one-party state dominated by white conservative Democrats, who together with other Democrats of the "Solid South", exercised considerable control in Congress. They have gained slightly less federal money from national programs than they have paid in taxes. Since the 1970s, conservative white voters in the state have largely shifted from the Democratic to the Republican Party. Though the majority of registered voters in Florida are Democrats. It continued to support Republican presidential candidates through 2004, except in 1976 and 1996, when the Democratic nominee was from "the South". In the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, Barack Obama carried the state as a northern Democrat, attracting high voter turnout, especially among the young, Independents, and minority voters, of whom Hispanics comprise an increasingly large proportion. 2008 marked the first time since 1944, when Franklin D. Roosevelt carried the state for the fourth time, that Florida was carried by a Northern Democrat for president. The first post-Reconstruction era Republican elected to Congress from Florida was William C. Cramer in 1954 from Pinellas County on the Gulf Coast, where demographic changes were underway. In this period, African Americans were still disenfranchised by the state's constitution and discriminatory practices; in the 19th century, they had made up most of the Republican Party. Cramer built a different Republican Party in Florida, attracting local white conservatives and transplants from northern and midwestern states. In 1966, Claude R. Kirk, Jr. was elected as the first post- Reconstruction Republican governor, in an upset election. In 1968, Edward J. Gurney, also a white conservative, was elected as the state's first post- reconstruction Republican US senator. In 1970, Democrats took the governorship and the open US Senate seat, and maintained dominance for years. Since the mid-20th century, Florida has been considered a bellwether, voting for 15 successful presidential candidates since 1952. During such period, it has voted for a losing candidate only twice. In 1998, Democratic voters dominated areas of the state with a high percentage of racial minorities and transplanted white liberals from the northeastern United States, known colloquially as "snowbirds". South Florida and the Miami metropolitan area are dominated by both racial minorities and white liberals. Because of this, the area has consistently voted as one of the most Democratic areas of the state. The Daytona Beach area is similar demographically and the city of Orlando has a large Hispanic population, which has often favored Democrats. Republicans, made up mostly of white conservatives, have dominated throughout much of the rest of Florida, particularly in the more rural and suburban areas. This is characteristic of its voter base throughout the Deep South. The fast-growing I-4 corridor area, which runs through Central Florida and connects the cities of Daytona Beach, Orlando, and Tampa/St. Petersburg, has had a fairly even breakdown of Republican and Democratic voters. The area is often seen as a merging point of the conservative northern portion of the state and the liberal southern portion, making it the biggest swing area in the state. Since the late 20th century, the voting results in this area, containing 40% of Florida voters, has often determined who will win the state in federal presidential elections. The Democratic Party has maintained an edge in voter registration, both statewide and in 40 of the 67 counties, including Miami- Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, the state's three most populous. In 2000, George W. Bush won the U.S. Presidential election by a margin of 271–266 in the Electoral College. Of the 271 electoral votes for Bush, 25 were cast by electors from Florida. The Florida results were contested and a recount was ordered by the court, with the results settled in a Supreme Court decision, Bush v. Gore. Reapportionment following the 2010 United States Census gave the state two more seats in the House of Representatives. The legislature's redistricting, announced in 2012, was quickly challenged in court, on the grounds that it had unfairly benefited Republican interests. In 2015, the Florida Supreme Court ruled on appeal that the congressional districts had to be redrawn because of the legislature's violation of the Fair District Amendments to the state constitution passed in 2010; it accepted a new map in early December 2015. The political make-up of congressional and legislative districts has enabled Republicans to control the governorship and most statewide elective offices, and 17 of the state's 27 seats in the 2012 House of Representatives. Florida has been listed as a swing state in Presidential elections since 1952, voting for the losing candidate only twice in that period of time. In the closely contested 2000 election, the state played a pivotal role. Out of more than 5.8 million votes for the two main contenders Bush and Al Gore, around 500 votes separated the two candidates for the all-decisive Florida electoral votes that landed Bush the election win. Florida's felony disenfranchisement law is more severe than most European nations or other American states. A 2002 study in the American Sociological Review concluded that "if the state's 827,000 disenfranchised felons had voted at the same rate as other Floridians, Democratic candidate Al Gore would have won Florida—and the presidency—by more than 80,000 votes." In 2008, delegates of both the Republican Florida primary election and Democratic Florida primary election were stripped of half of their votes when the conventions met in August due to violation of both parties' national rules. In the 2010 elections, Republicans solidified their dominance statewide, by winning the governor's mansion, and maintaining firm majorities in both houses of the state legislature. They won four previously Democratic-held seats to create a 19–6 Republican-majority delegation representing Florida in the federal House of Representatives. In 2010, more than 63% of state voters approved the initiated Amendments 5 and 6 to the state constitution, to ensure more fairness in districting. These have become known as the Fair District Amendments. As a result of the 2010 United States Census, Florida gained two House of Representative seats in 2012. The legislature issued revised congressional districts in 2012, which were immediately challenged in court by supporters of the above amendments. The court ruled in 2014, after lengthy testimony, that at least two districts had to be redrawn because of gerrymandering. After this was appealed, in July 2015 the Florida Supreme Court ruled that lawmakers had followed an illegal and unconstitutional process overly influenced by party operatives, and ruled that at least eight districts had to be redrawn. On December 2, 2015, a 5–2 majority of the Court accepted a new map of congressional districts, some of which was drawn by challengers. Their ruling affirmed the map previously approved by Leon County Judge Terry Lewis, who had overseen the original trial. It particularly makes changes in South Florida. There are likely to be additional challenges to the map and districts. According to The Sentencing Project, the effect of Florida's felony disenfranchisement law is such that in 2014, "[m]ore than one in ten Floridians – and nearly one in four African-American Floridians – are [were] shut out of the polls because of felony convictions", although they had completed sentences and parole/probation requirements. In the 2016 United States Presidential and general elections, the state leaned Republican. The state's Democratic representation at the national level increased by one seat, but the overall state-wide composition was 16 Republicans to 11 Democrats. Floridians also voted 49.0% to 47.8% to elect Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton in the presidential election. With a 1.2% difference, this was the 5th closest president race that year, with only Wisconsin, Michigan, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania being closer. In the 2018 Midterm Elections, the ratio of Republican to Democratic representation fell from 16:11 to 14:13. The Senate race between Democratic incumbent Senator Bill Nelson and former Governor Rick Scott was very close, with a 49.93% voting for the incumbent and 50.06% voting for the former governor. Republicans also held onto the governorship in a close race between Republican candidate Ron DeSantis and Democractic candidate Andrew Gillum, with 49.6% voting for the DeSantis and 49.3% voting for Gillum. In 1972, the state made personal injury protection auto insurance mandatory for drivers, becoming the second in the nation to enact a no-fault insurance law. The ease of receiving payments under this law is seen as precipitating a major increase in insurance fraud. Auto insurance fraud was the highest in the nation in 2011, estimated at close to $1 billion. Fraud is particularly centered in the Miami-Dade metropolitan and Tampa areas. Capital punishment is applied in Florida. In 1995, the legislature modified Chapter 921 to provide that felons should serve at least 85% of their sentence. Florida approved its lottery by amending the constitution in 1984. It approved slot machines in Broward and Miami-Dade County in 2004. It has disapproved casinos (outside of sovereign Seminole and Miccosukee tribal areas) three times: 1978, 1986, and 1994. If a person committing a predicate felony directly contributed to the death of the victim then the person will be charged with murder in the first degree – felony murder which is a capital felony. The only two sentences available for that statute are life in prison and the death penalty. If a person commits a predicate felony, but was not the direct contributor to the death of the victim then the person will be charged with murder in the second degree – felony murder which is a felony of the first degree. The maximum prison term is life. Tax is collected by the Florida Department of Revenue. -Total employment 2016 8,169,642 Total employer establishments 2016 546,218 Florida's economy ranks among the largest in the world. As of 2018, the gross state product (GSP) is about $1.0 trillion, the fourth largest economy in the United States. Florida is responsible for 5 percent of the United States' approximate $21 trillion gross domestic product (GDP). , Florida's nominal GDP is larger than all but 15 countries. In terms of Purchasing Power Parity, it is larger than all but 24 countries. In the 20th century, tourism, industry, construction, international banking, biomedical and life sciences, healthcare research, simulation training, aerospace and defense, and commercial space travel have contributed to the state's economic development. The five largest sectors of employment in Florida are: trade, transportation, and utilities; government; professional and business services; education and health services; and leisure and hospitality. In output, the five largest sectors are: finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing, followed by professional and business services; government and government enterprises; educational services, health care, and social assistance; and retail trade. In 2017, Florida became the United States' eighth largest exporter of trade goods. Florida's top countries for export are Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Germany, and Colombia. In 2017, Florida became the United States' tenth largest importer of trade goods. Florida imported US$75.4 billion worth of goods globally in 2017. The value of Florida's imports equals 3.2% of United States' overall imported products for 2017. Florida's top countries for imports are China, Mexico, Canada, Germany, and France. The Miami Metropolitan Area has the highest GDP of all the metro areas in Florida with $344.9 billion in 2017. This is more than twice the number of the next metro area, the Tampa Bay Area, which has a GDP of $145.3 billion. The economy of Florida is driven almost entirely by its nineteen metropolitan areas. In 2004, they had a combined total of 95.7% of the state's domestic product. Per capita GDP in 2017 was $39,842, ranking fortieth in the nation. Per capita income varies widely by geographic region and profession. North Florida and the rural counties of the Florida Panhandle are the most impoverished in the state. Florida has a poverty rate of 14.0%, the seventeenth lowest of any state in the country. Many coastal cities include some of the wealthiest per-capita areas in the United States. In 2018, there were more than 427,824 millionaires in the state, the fourth highest number in the nation. For 2018–19, the approved state budget is $88.7 billion, a 4.4% increase over the previous 2017–18 budget of $84.9 billion. Chief Executive Magazine named Florida the third "Best State for Business" in 2011. In 2017, Florida's per capita personal income was $47,684, ranking 26th in the nation. The state's unemployment rate in September 2018 was 3.5% and ranked as the 18th lowest in the United States. Florida is one of seven states that do not impose a personal income tax. In 2017, Florida had a personal income of $1,000,624,065(in thousands of dollars). This personal income ranked 4th in the United States. Florida's constitution establishes a state minimum wage that is adjusted for inflation annually. , Florida's minimum wage was $5.08 for tipped positions, and $8.10 for non-tipped positions, which was higher than the federal rate of $7.25. Florida has 2 cities in the top 25 cities in the U.S. with the highest average credit card debt, Miami and Tampa. The poverty rate in Florida is 14% in 2018. This is down from a peak of 17.1% in 2012. In the early 20th century, land speculators discovered Florida, and businessmen such as Henry Plant and Henry Flagler developed railroad systems, which led people to move in, drawn by the weather and local economies. From then on, tourism boomed, fueling a cycle of development that overwhelmed a great deal of farmland. At the end of the third quarter of 2008, Florida had the highest mortgage delinquency rate in the U.S., with 7.8% of mortgages delinquent at least 60 days. A 2009 list of national housing markets that were hard hit in the real estate crash included a disproportionate number in Florida. The early 21st-century building boom left Florida with 300,000 vacant homes in 2009, according to state figures. In 2009, the US Census Bureau estimated that Floridians spent an average 49.1% of personal income on housing-related costs, the third highest percentage in the U.S. In the third quarter of 2009, there were 278,189 delinquent loans, 80,327 foreclosures. Sales of existing homes in February 2010 was 11,890, up 21% from the same month in 2009. Only two metropolitan areas showed a decrease in homes sold: Panama City and Brevard County. The average sales price for an existing house was $131,000, 7% decrease from the prior year. Tourism makes up one of the largest sectors of the state economy, with nearly 1.4 million people employed in the tourism industry in 2016 (a record for the state, surpassing the 1.2 million employment from 2015). In 2015, Florida broke the 100-million visitor mark for the first time in state history by hosting a record 105 million visitors. The state has set tourism records for eight consecutive years, most recently breaking the 120-million visitor mark for the first time in 2018 with 126.1 million visitors reported. Many beach towns are popular tourist destinations, particularly during winter and spring break. Twenty-three million tourists visited Florida beaches in 2000, spending $22 billion. The public has a right to beach access under the public trust doctrine, but some areas have access effectively blocked by private owners for a long distance. Amusement parks, especially in the Greater Orlando area, make up a significant portion of tourism. The Walt Disney World Resort is the most visited vacation resort in the world with over 50 million annual visitors, consisting of four theme parks, 27 themed resort hotels, 9 non–Disney hotels, two water parks, four golf courses and other recreational venues. Other major theme parks in the area include Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa. Today, Walt Disney World is the most visited vacation resort in the world, with an average annual attendance of over 52 million. Florida's many state parks and protected areas receive a lot of visitors as well with 25.2 million visitors visiting Florida State Parks in 2013. Agriculture is the second largest industry in the state. Citrus fruit, especially oranges, are a major part of the economy, and Florida produces the majority of citrus fruit grown in the United States. In 2006, 67% of all citrus, 74% of oranges, 58% of tangerines, and 54% of grapefruit were grown in Florida. About 95% of commercial orange production in the state is destined for processing (mostly as orange juice, the official state beverage). Citrus canker continues to be an issue of concern. From 1997 to 2013, the growing of citrus trees has declined 25%, from to . Citrus greening disease is incurable. A study states that it has caused the loss of $4.5 billion between 2006 and 2012. , it was the major agricultural concern. Other products include sugarcane, strawberries, tomatoes and celery. The state is the largest producer of sweet corn and green beans for the U.S. The Everglades Agricultural Area is a major center for agriculture. The environmental impact of agriculture, especially water pollution, is a major issue in Florida today. In 2009, fishing was a $6 billion industry, employing 60,000 jobs for sports and commercial purposes. The state has a near monopoly on saw palmetto berries, an alternative medicine used to treat prostate and urinary disorders. Florida is the leading state for sales of powerboats. Boats sales totaled $1.96 billion in 2013. Phosphate mining, concentrated in the Bone Valley, is the state's third- largest industry. The state produces about 75% of the phosphate required by farmers in the United States and 25% of the world supply, with about 95% used for agriculture (90% for fertilizer and 5% for livestock feed supplements) and 5% used for other products. After the watershed events of Hurricane Andrew in 1992, Florida began investing in economic development through the Office of Trade, Tourism, and Economic Development. Governor Jeb Bush realized that watershed events such as Andrew negatively impacted Florida's backbone industry of tourism severely. The office was directed to target Medical/Bio- Sciences among others. Three years later, The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) announced it had chosen Florida for its newest expansion. In 2003, TSRI announced plans to establish a major science center in Palm Beach, a facility on , which TSRI planned to occupy in 2006. Since the development of the federal NASA Merritt Island launch sites on Cape Canaveral (most notably Kennedy Space Center) in 1962, Florida has developed a sizable aerospace industry. Another major economic engine in Florida is the United States military. There are 24 military bases in the state, housing three Unified Combatant Commands; United States Central Command in Tampa, United States Southern Command in Doral, and United States Special Operations Command in Tampa. Some 109,390 U.S. military personnel stationed in Florida, contributing, directly and indirectly, $52 billion a year to the state's economy. In 2009, there were 89,706 federal workers employed within the state. Tens of thousands more employees work for contractors who have federal contracts, including those with the military. In 2012, government of all levels was a top employer in all counties in the state, because this classification includes public school teachers and other school staff. School boards employ nearly 1 of every 30 workers in the state. The federal military was the top employer in three counties. Florida has many seaports that serve container ships, tank ships, and cruise lines. Major ports in Florida include Port Tampa Bay in Tampa, Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Port of Jacksonville in Jacksonville, PortMiami in Miami, Port Canaveral in Brevard County, Port Manatee in Manatee County, and Port of Palm Beach in Riviera Beach. The world's top three busiest cruise ports are found in Florida with PortMiami as the busiest and Port Canaveral and Port Everglades as the second and third busiest. Port Tampa Bay meanwhile is the largest in the state, having the most tonnage. , Port Tampa Bay ranks 16th in the United States by tonnage in domestic trade, 32nd in foreign trade, and 22nd in total trade. It is the largest, most diversified port in Florida, has an economic impact of more than $15.1 billion, and supports over 80,000 jobs. There were 2.7 million Medicaid patients in Florida in 2009. The governor has proposed adding $2.6 billion to care for the expected 300,000 additional patients in 2011. The cost of caring for 2.3 million clients in 2010 was $18.8 billion. This is nearly 30% of Florida's budget. Medicaid paid for 60% of all births in Florida in 2009. The state has a program for those not covered by Medicaid. In 2013, Florida refused to participate in providing coverage for the uninsured under the Affordable Care Act, popularly called Obamacare. The Florida legislature also refused to accept additional Federal funding for Medicaid, although this would have helped its constituents at no cost to the state. As a result, Florida is second only to Texas in the percentage of its citizens without health insurance. Florida has the largest collection of Art Deco and Streamline Moderne buildings in both the United States and the entire world, most of which are located in the Miami metropolitan area, especially Miami Beachs Art Deco District, constructed as the city was becoming a resort destination. A unique architectural design found only in Florida is the post-World War II Miami Modern, which can be seen in areas such as Miami's MiMo Historic District. Being of early importance as a regional center of banking and finance, the architecture of Jacksonville displays a wide variety of styles and design principles. Many of the state's earliest skyscrapers were constructed in Jacksonville, dating as far back as 1902, and last holding a state height record from 1974 to 1981. The city is endowed with one of the largest collections of Prairie School buildings outside of the Midwest. Jacksonville is also noteworthy for its collection of Mid-Century modern architecture. Some sections of the state feature architectural styles including Spanish revival, Florida vernacular, and Mediterranean Revival. A notable collection of these styles can be found in St. Augustine, the oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement within the borders of the United States. Florida overall was ranked the 7th best state in America for educating students at all levels by U.S. News & World Report in 2018. With an educational system made up of public school districts and independent private institutions, Florida had 2,833,115 students enrolled in 4,269 public primary, secondary, and vocational schools in Florida's 67 regular or 7 special school districts . Miami-Dade County is the largest of Florida's 67 regular districts with over 350 thousand students and Jefferson is the smallest with less than one thousand students. Florida spent $8,920 for each student in 2016, and was 43rd in the nation in expenditures per student. Florida's primary and secondary school systems are administered by the Florida Department of Education. School districts are organized within county boundaries. Each school district has an elected Board of Education that sets policy, budget, goals, and approves expenditures. Management is the responsibility of a Superintendent of schools. The Florida Department of Education is required by law to train educators in teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). The State University System of Florida was founded in 1905, and is governed by the Florida Board of Governors. During the 2010 academic year, 312,216 students attended one of these twelve universities. The Florida College System comprises 28 public community and state colleges. In 2011–12, enrollment consisted of more than 875,000 students. , the University of Central Florida, with over 64,000 students, is the largest university by enrollment in the United States. Florida's first private university, Stetson University, was founded in 1883. The Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida is an association of 28 private, educational institutions in the state. This Association reported that their member institutions served over 121,000 students in the fall of 2006. In 2016, Florida charged the second lowest tuition in the nation for four years, $26,000 for in-state students, to $86,000 for out-of-state students. This compares with an average of $34,800 nationally for in-state students. Florida's highway system contains of interstate highway, and of non-interstate highway, such as state highways and U.S. Highways. Florida's interstates, state highways, and U.S. Highways are maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation. In 2011, there were about 9,000 retail gas stations in the state. Floridians consumed 21 million gallons of gasoline daily in 2011, ranking it third in national use behind California and Texas. Motorists have the 45th lowest rate of car insurance in the U.S. 24% are uninsured. Drivers between 15 and 19 years of age averaged 364 car crashes a year per ten thousand licensed Florida drivers in 2010. Drivers 70 and older averaged 95 per 10,000 during the same time frame. A spokesperson for the non-profit Insurance Institute said that "Older drivers are more of a threat to themselves." Intercity bus travel, which utilizes Florida's highway system, is provided by Greyhound, Megabus, and Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach. Before the construction of routes under the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, Florida began construction of a long cross-state toll road, Florida's Turnpike. The first section, from Fort Pierce south to the Golden Glades Interchange was completed in 1957. After a second section north through Orlando to Wildwood (near present-day The Villages), and a southward extension around Miami to Homestead, it was finished in 1974. Florida's primary interstate routes include: , which spans 133 miles, bisects the state, connecting Tampa, Lakeland, Orlando, and Daytona Beach, connecting with I-75 in Tampa and I-95 in Daytona Beach., , which spans 362 miles in Florida, traverses the panhandle, connecting Pensacola, Tallahassee, Lake City, and Jacksonville, with interchanges with I-75 in Lake City and I-95 in Jacksonville. It is the southernmost interstate in the United States terminating in Santa Monica with a total length of 2460 miles., , which spans 470 miles in Florida, enters the state near Lake City ( west of Jacksonville) and continues southward through Gainesville, Ocala, Tampa's eastern suburbs, Bradenton, Sarasota, Fort Myers and Naples, where it crosses the "Alligator Alley" as a toll road to Fort Lauderdale before turning southward and terminating in Hialeah/Miami Lakes having interchanges with I-10 in Lake City and I-4 in Tampa. It is the second longest north south interstate with a total length of 1786 miles and terminates at the Canadian border at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan., , which spans 382 miles in Florida, enters the state near Jacksonville and continues along the Atlantic Coast through Daytona Beach, the Melbourne/Titusville, Palm Bay, Vero Beach, Fort Pierce, Port Saint Lucie, Stuart, West Palm Beach, and Fort Lauderdale, before terminating in Downtown Miami. It has interchanges with I-10 in Jacksonville and I-4 in Daytona Beach, and there are four auxiliary routes associated with the interstate. It is the longest north-south interstate with a total length of 1924 miles and terminates at the Canadian border northeast of Houlton, Maine. Florida has 131 public airports. Florida's seven large hub and medium hub airports, as classified by the FAA, are the following: Virgin Trains USA is a diesel–electric higher-speed rail system. Currently service is only from West Palm Beach to Miami through express intercity service, with a stop at Fort Lauderdale. The complete project is intended to connect Miami and South Florida to Orlando, which requires a new line westward from the coast. It partially opened for passenger service between Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach on January 13, 2018, as the only privately owned and operated passenger railroad in the United States. With a top speed of , Brightline will eventually be tied with Amtrak's Northeast Regional and the MARC's Penn Line commuter rail as the second fastest passenger train in North America, after Amtrak's Acela Express., Florida is also served by Amtrak, operating numerous lines throughout, connecting the state's largest cities to points north in the United States and Canada. The busiest Amtrak train stations in Florida in 2011 were: Sanford (259,944), Orlando (179,142), Tampa Union Station (140,785), Miami (94,556), and Jacksonville (74,733). Sanford, in Greater Orlando, is the southern terminus of the Auto Train, which originates at Lorton, Virginia, south of Washington, D.C. Until 2005, Orlando was also the eastern terminus of the Sunset Limited, which travels across the southern United States via New Orleans, Houston, and San Antonio to its western terminus of Los Angeles. Florida is served by two additional Amtrak trains (the Silver Star and the Silver Meteor), which operate between New York City and Miami. Virgin MiamiCentral in Greater Downtown Miami and the Miami Intermodal Center near Miami International Airport are major hubs for rapid transit, commuter rail, intercity rail, and buses. Miami: Miami's public transportation is served by Miami-Dade Transit that runs Metrorail, a heavy rail rapid transit system, Metromover, a people mover train system in Downtown Miami, and Metrobus, Miami's bus system. Metrorail runs throughout Miami-Dade County and has two lines and 23 stations connecting to Downtown Miami's Metromover and Tri-Rail. Metromover has three lines and 21 stations throughout Downtown Miami. Outside of Miami-Dade County, public transit in the Miami metropolitan area is served by Broward County Transit and Palm Tran; intercounty commuter rail service is provided by Tri-Rail, with 18 stations including the region's three international airports., Orlando: Orlando is served by the SunRail commuter train, which runs on a ( when complete) line including four stops in downtown. Lynx bus serves the greater Orlando area in Orange, Seminole, and Osceola counties., Tampa: Tampa and its surrounding area use the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority system ("HART"). In addition, downtown Tampa has continuous trolley services in the form of a heritage trolley powered by Tampa Electric Company. Pinellas County and St. Petersburg provide similar services through the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority or "PSTA". The beaches of Pinellas County also have a continuous trolley bus. Downtown St. Petersburg has a trolley system., Jacksonville: Jacksonville is served by the Jacksonville Skyway, an automated people mover monorail connecting the Florida State College downtown campus, the Northbank central business district, Convention Center, and Southbank locations. The system includes 8 stops connected by two lines. JTA bus has 180 vehicles with 56 lines. Florida has three NFL teams, two MLB teams, two NBA teams, two NHL teams, and one MLS team. Florida gained its first permanent major-league professional sports team in 1966 when the American Football League added the Miami Dolphins. Florida has given professional sports franchises some subsidies in the form of tax breaks since 1991. About half of all Major League Baseball teams conduct spring training in the state, with teams informally organized into the "Grapefruit League". Throughout MLB history, other teams have held spring training in Florida. NASCAR (headquartered in Daytona Beach) begins all three of its major auto racing series in Florida at Daytona International Speedway in February, featuring the Daytona 500, and ends all three Series in November at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Daytona also has the Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR race weekend around Independence Day in July. The 24 Hours of Daytona is one of the world's most prestigious endurance auto races. The Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and Grand Prix of Miami have held IndyCar races as well. Florida is a major golf hub. The PGA of America is headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, the PGA Tour is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, and the LPGA is headquartered in Daytona Beach. The Players Championship, WGC-Cadillac Championship, Arnold Palmer Invitational, Honda Classic and Valspar Championship are PGA Tour rounds. Florida has teams in all of the major league sports – National Football League, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, and Major League Soccer Florida's most recent major-league team, Orlando City, began play in MLS in 2015. The Miami Masters is an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 and WTA Premier tennis event, whereas the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships is an ATP World Tour 250 event. Minor league baseball, football, basketball, ice hockey, soccer and indoor football teams are based in Florida. Three of the Arena Football League's teams are in Florida. Ben Hill Griffin Stadium is the largest football stadium in Florida, the 12th largest stadium in American college football, and the 18th largest stadium in the world, as measured by its official seating capacity of 88,548 – though, it has often held over 90,000 for Florida's home football games. Florida's universities have a number of collegiate sport programs. Major college football programs include the Florida State Seminoles and Miami Hurricanes of the Atlantic Coast Conference, and the Florida Gators of the Southeastern Conference. Since 1996, Florida has added four additional programs to the ranks of Division I FCS: UCF Knights, South Florida Bulls, Florida Atlantic Owls and FIU Panthers. The majority of the symbols were chosen after 1950; only the two oldest symbols—the state flower (chosen in 1909), and the state bird (chosen in 1927), and the state nickname (chosen in 1970)—are not listed in the 2010 Florida Statutes. Amphibian: Barking tree frog, Animal: Florida panther, Anthem: "Florida (Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky)", Beverage: Orange juice, Bird: Northern mockingbird, Bird: American flamingo, Festival: "Calle Ocho-Open House 8", Fish(fresh water): Florida largemouth bass, Fish(salt water): Atlantic sailfish, Flower: Orange blossom, Fruit: Orange, Gem: Moonstone, Horse: Florida Cracker Horse, Insect: Zebra longwing, Mammal(salt water): Common bottlenose dolphin, Mammal(marine): Florida manatee, Motto: "In God We Trust", Nickname: The Sunshine State, Palm Tree: Coconut palm, Pie: Key lime pie, Play: Cross and Sword, Reptile: American alligator, Reptile(salt water): Loggerhead sea turtle, Rodeo: Silver Spurs Rodeo, Shell: Horse conch, Soil: Myakka soil, Song: "Old Folks at Home", State day/week: Pascua Florida, Stone: Agatized coral, Tortoise: Gopher tortoise, Tree: Sabal palmetto, Wildflower: Tickseed Index of Florida-related articles, Outline of Florida – organized list of topics about Florida Viviana Díaz Balsera and Rachel A. May (eds.), La Florida: Five Hundred Years of Hispanic Presence. Gainesville, Florida: University Press of Florida, 2014., Michael Gannon (ed.), The History of Florida. Gainesville, Florida: University Press of Florida, 2013. State website, Florida State Guide, from the Library of Congress, Florida Memory Project Over 300,000 photographs and documents from the State Library & Archives of Florida, Online collection of the Spanish Land Grants, USGS real-time, geographic, and other scientific resources of Florida, Florida Rivers and Watersheds – Florida DEP, U.S. Census Bureau, Economic and farm demographics fact sheet from the USDA, Energy & Environmental Data For Florida, Heliconius charitonia, zebra longwing Florida state butterfly, on the UF / IFAS Featured Creatures Web site, TerraFly Property Value and Aerial Imagery Spatio-temporal animation Real Estate Trends in Florida, List of searchable databases produced by Florida state agencies hosted by the American Library Association Government Documents Roundtable The Florida Panhandle (also West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida, is a strip of land roughly long and wide, lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia on the north, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Its eastern boundary is arbitrarily defined. As is the case with the other eight U.S. states that have panhandles, the geographic meaning of the term is inexact and elastic. References to the Florida Panhandle always include the ten counties west of the Apalachicola River, a natural geographic boundary, which was the historic dividing line between the British colonies of West Florida and East Florida. These western counties also lie in the Central Time Zone (with the exception of Gulf County, which is divided between the Eastern and Central Time zones), while the rest of the state is in the Eastern Time Zone. References to the Panhandle may also include some or all of eight counties immediately east of the Apalachicola known as the Big Bend region, along the curve of Apalachee Bay. Like North Central Florida, the Panhandle is more similar in culture and climate to the Deep South than to South Florida in the lower peninsula, being known for its conservative politics and "piney woods." The largest city in the Panhandle is Tallahassee, the state capital, population 188,107 (2014). However, the largest population grouping is the Pensacola Metropolitan Area with a population of 494,883 (2018). The total population of the Panhandle, as of the 2010 Census, was 1,407,925, just under 7.5% of Florida's total population as recorded in the same census. Emerald Coast, a term coined in 1983, refers in general to the beaches and coastal resorts from Pensacola to Port St. Joe, but is sometimes used to refer, by extension, to the Panhandle as a whole, especially west of the Apalachicola. Earlier designations include "Playground of the Gulfcoast" and the "Miracle Strip", especially for the area between Fort Walton Beach and Panama City. Coastal regions of the following counties (if not the entirety of the counties themselves) are usually included when referring to the Emerald Coast: Okaloosa County, Santa Rosa County, Walton County Coastal portions of Escambia County (namely Pensacola Beach) that lie on the western edge, and coastal portions of Bay County that lie on the eastern edge, are also regularly included when referring to the Emerald Coast, but with somewhat less regularity than the three aforementioned counties listed above. However, the agency providing water, sewer, and garbage collection services to unincorporated Escambia County, which is headquartered in Pensacola, is called the Emerald Coast Utility Authority. The Forgotten Coast is a trademarked term coined in the early 1990s used to refer to the coastal portion of the Florida Panhandle extending from Mexico Beach or southeastern Bay County on the Gulf of Mexico to St. Marks on Apalachee Bay. It is usually not considered a part of the Emerald Coast, which lies directly adjacent to the west. Coastal regions of the following counties (if not the entirety of the counties themselves) are usually included when referring to the Forgotten Coast: Gulf County, Franklin County, Wakulla County, Small portions of Bay County The Apalachicola River is the largest river of the Panhandle. It is formed by the junction of several rivers, including the Chattahoochee and the Flint, where the boundaries of Alabama, Georgia, and Florida meet. From there, it flows southward to the town of Apalachicola. Major estuaries include, from west to east: Perdido Bay, fed by the Perdido River, which forms the western boundary of Florida; Escambia Bay and East Bay, fed by the Escambia River and Blackwater River, respectively; Choctawhatchee Bay, fed by the Choctawhatchee River; and St. Andrews Bay, fed by Econfina Creek. Pensacola Bay, a deepwater port, is formed by the joining of Escambia and East bays. The Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, completed in 1949, traverses the lower Panhandle by means of bays, lagoons, sounds, and man-made canals. The barrier islands of Perdido Key and Santa Rosa Island extend from the Pandhandle's western extremity to Fort Walton Beach. Throughout the 19th century, the Panhandle was sparsely populated, dotted in places with small farming communities, none of which had as many as a thousand residents. Many Panhandle residents had, in fact, migrated to the area from Alabama and had relatives there; it was also easier to trade with and travel to southern Alabama than to reach East Florida by slow, arduous journey across the thick cypress swamps and dense pine forests of the Panhandle. It was natural for West Floridians to feel that they had more in common with their nearby neighbors in Alabama than with the residents of the peninsula, hundreds of miles away. In 1821, Pensacola was the only city (in 19th-century terms) in West Florida, with a population estimated to be about 3,000. In the 1850 census, the enumerated population of Pensacola was 2,164 (including 741 slaves and 350 "free Negroes"). During the course of the century, proposals for ceding the Florida counties west of the Apalachicola River to Alabama were often raised: In 1811, while Florida was still a Spanish possession, American residents sent a petition to Congress asking to be incorporated into the Mississippi Territory, which at that time included present-day Alabama. (See West Florida article.), In 1819, the constitutional convention of Alabama asked Congress to include West Florida in their new state., In 1822, only a year after the U.S. acquired the entire Florida territory from Spain, residents of West Florida sent a petition to the U.S. House of Representatives asking that their section be annexed to Alabama, and Alabama Senator John Williams Walker also promoted the idea., In 1826, the Pensacola Gazette published a number of letters advocating annexation to Alabama, though the editor remarked that some Pensacolians opposed the idea., In 1840, a public meeting in Pensacola produced a demand that West Florida be united with Alabama. In the same year, the territorial Legislature notified Congress that it opposed allowing Alabama to annex West Florida, but in 1844, the year before statehood, the Legislature reversed its stance and asked that West Florida be separated., In 1856, advocates of annexation were able to get a bill passed by the Legislature authorizing a referendum on the issue, but Governor James E. Broome vetoed the measure. The Pensacola Gazette reported that "annexation is desired by a large majority of the people" of the area., In 1858, the Alabama Legislature unsuccessfully tried to open negotiations with Florida on the subject., The annexation issue was eclipsed by the Civil War and the war's effects on the region, but in 1868, with Pensacola now connected by the Panhandle's sole railroad line to the Alabama cities of Mobile and Montgomery, the issue came to a head again and was finally put to a vote of the people. In that year, the Alabama Legislature approved a joint resolution authorizing their Governor to negotiate with the Governor of Florida about the annexation of West Florida. An offer of one million dollars in Alabama state bonds, paying 8 percent interest for thirty years, was included. Both states appointed commissioners to make detailed recommendations on the matter., On November 2, 1869, a referendum was held in the West Florida counties (except Jackson, which was in the throes of bloody racial violence), with a result of 1162 to 661 in favor of annexation. However, political objection developed in Alabama to the high price, and the Legislature took no action on the results of the referendum., In 1873, a similar proposal was made in the Alabama Legislature, which the state senate approved, though it did not pass a separate proposal to finance the measure by selling all of Alabama's territory west of the Tombigbee River, including the city of Mobile, to Mississippi. However, nothing came of this action., In 1901, Alabama made yet another offer when the Legislature appointed a commission to negotiate with Florida about annexation, but this attempt, too, was unsuccessful. The building of the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad, completed in 1883, finally linked Pensacola and the Panhandle solidly with the rest of the state and ended the region's isolation, although from time to time during the twentieth century there were still occasional calls for annexation that generated some public discussion but no legislative action. In the last quarter of the century, hurricanes that directly struck the area and caused significant damage included Hurricane Eloise in 1975, Hurricane Kate in 1985, and Hurricane Erin and Hurricane Opal, both in 1995. The area was a prime target of the March 1993 Storm of the Century. The Panhandle suffered direct hits from Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and Hurricane Dennis in 2005. Ivan was the most disastrous, making landfall near Gulf Shores, Alabama, with 120 mile-per-hour (193 km/h) winds and a 14-foot (4.3 m) storm surge that devastated Perdido Key and Santa Rosa Island, wrecked the Interstate 10 bridge across Escambia Bay, and destroyed thousands of homes in the region, some as far away as 20 miles (32 km) inland. On June 23, 2010, oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill landed on Pensacola Beach and Navarre Beach, damaging the fishing and tourism industries, and prompting a massive clean-up effort. On October 10, 2018, the Panhandle suffered a direct hit from Hurricane Michael, with winds as high as 160 MPH. Michael was one of only four category 5 hurricanes to ever hit the US mainland. Thousands of homes were destroyed, and apartment rents in Panama City increased, with a $500 apartment renting for $1000 in 2019. Recovery from Hurricane Michael was not complete in June 2019, and disaster relief for the Panhandle remained stalled in Congress. Historically, the economy of the Panhandle depended mainly on farming, forestry and lumbering, paper mills, import/export shipping at Pensacola and to a lesser extent at Panama City, shipbuilding, and commercial fishing. After World War II, the economy was boosted by the numerous military bases established in the region, as well as the growth of tourism and the hospitality industry. In addition to military bases, state and local governments, hospitals, schools, and colleges, major private employers in the second half of the twentieth century included Monsanto and Westinghouse plants at Pensacola, the St. Joe Paper Company in Port St. Joe, and Gulf Power, a major electric utility company. Unlike central and southern Florida, the Panhandle has never been a producer of citrus crops because the area is subject to regular frosts and freezes in wintertime, which destroy citrus fruits. Interstate 10 is the only interstate highway in the Panhandle, connecting the extreme west with North Florida and Jacksonville. Other older east–west routes include U.S. Highway 90 and U.S. Highway 98. Important north–south routes west of the Apalachicola River include U.S. Highway 29, U.S. Highway 331, and U.S. Highway 231, all linking to Alabama and Interstate 65. State Road 20 stretches from Niceville to Tallahassee. Freight service is provided by the Class III Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad, which acquired most of the CSX main line from Pensacola to Jacksonville on June 1, 2019. (For the history of this line, see Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad.) Passenger service ended with the creation of Amtrak in 1971, but was revived with the extension of the Sunset Limited to Orlando beginning in 1993; however, passenger service was discontinued after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. Other regional short-line railroads serving the Panhandle are the Alabama and Gulf Coast Railway (formerly BNSF Railway, ex- Frisco Railway), the Bay Line Railroad, and the AN Railway. Major airports include: Pensacola International Airport, Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport, Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, Tallahassee International Airport, Bob Sikes Airport, Destin Executive Airport, DeFuniak Springs Airport, Apalachicola Regional Airport, Perry-Foley Airport The following institutions of higher learning are located in the Florida Panhandle. State University System: Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (Tallahassee), Florida State University (Tallahassee), University of West Florida (Pensacola) Florida College System: Chipola College (Marianna), Gulf Coast State College (Panama City), Northwest Florida State College (Niceville), Pensacola State College (Pensacola), Tallahassee Community College (Tallahassee) Religiously affiliated: Baptist College of Florida (Graceville), Pensacola Christian College (Pensacola) The politics of the Florida Panhandle vary considerably depending on location. The western Panhandle, particularly the Emerald Coast, was one of the earliest areas to shake off its Yellow Dog Democrat roots, and since the 1990s has become the Republican area of Florida. Pensacola, Fort Walton Beach, Destin and Panama City regularly give Republicans close to or over 70% margins in state and national elections. However, Tallahassee and Gadsden County tend to be strongly Democratic. In the 2008 Presidential election, John McCain received 421,287 votes (60.1%) in the Panhandle, while Barack Obama received 279,206 votes (39.9%). Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival, Florida A&M; Rattlers, Florida State Seminoles, Pensacola Blue Wahoos, Pensacola Ice Flyers, Red Hills Horse Trials, Springtime Tallahassee, Tallahassee Wine and Food Festival The following counties west of the Apalachicola River are always included in references to the Panhandle: Bay County, Calhoun County, Escambia County, Gulf County, Holmes County, Jackson County, Okaloosa County, Santa Rosa County, Walton County, Washington County Some or all of the following counties east of the Apalachicola, in the Big Bend subregion, are sometimes considered part of the Panhandle: Dixie County, Franklin County, Gadsden County, Hamilton County, Jefferson County, Leon County, Liberty County, Madison County, Suwannee County, Taylor County, Wakulla County Places marked with an asterisk (*) lie east of the Apalachicola River, and may not be considered part of the Panhandle by some residents or writers. Apalachicola, Blountstown, Bonifay, Brent, Callaway, Carrabelle, , Cedar Grove, Chipley, Crestview, Cross City, , DeFuniak Springs, Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Gulf Breeze, Lynn Haven, Madison, , Marianna, Mexico Beach, Milton, Navarre, Niceville, Panama City, Panama City Beach, Paxton, Pensacola, Port St Joe, Quincy, , Springfield, Tallahassee, , Valparaiso Population of the major metropolitan areas in the Panhandle: Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent Metropolitan Statistical Area - 455,102 (2009), Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area - 180,822 (2010), Panama City-Lynn Haven-Panama City Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area - 168,852 (2010), Tallahassee Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area - 367,413 (2010) The Panhandle is renowned for the white sand beaches and blue-green waters of its barrier islands fronting the Gulf of Mexico. According to the National Park Service: The stunning sugar-white beaches of Gulf Islands National Seashore are composed of fine quartz eroded from granite in the Appalachian Mountains. The sand is carried seaward by rivers and creeks and deposited by currents along the shore. The beach towns in the Panhandle, many of which play host to college students during spring break, are sometimes derisively called the Redneck Riviera. The term was used as the title of a song by country music artist Tom T. Hall on his 1996 album Songs from Sopchoppy. The album takes its name from a town in rural Wakulla County, near Tallahassee. Tourists have been drawn to the Panhandle since the building of the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad in the 1880s. Pensacola Beach has been a major tourist attraction since the building of bridges between the mainland and Santa Rosa Island in 1931. After World War II, an increase in both tourism and population of the area led to a proliferation of motels, restaurants, bars, tourist attractions, and amusement parks along the coast, concentrated in Pensacola Beach, Fort Walton Beach, and Panama City Beach. Examples include the Gulfarium marine park and aquarium in Fort Walton Beach, and the former Miracle Strip Amusement Park (1963–2004) in Panama City Beach. In 1971, the federal government acquired many acres of the coastal islands in Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa counties, preserving them from commercial development by establishing the Gulf Islands National Seashore, which also covers some islands off the Mississippi coast. Other beach areas protected by the state of Florida include Perdido Key State Park, Big Lagoon State Park, Henderson Beach State Park, Grayton Beach State Park, St. Andrews State Park, St. Joseph Peninsula State Park, St. George Island State Park Both state and federal parks offer facilities for camping, picnicking, and other recreational pursuits. In addition, some parts of the coastline are federal property belonging to Pensacola Naval Air Station, Eglin Air Force Base, and Tyndall Air Force Base, and so are likewise protected from commercial development. In addition, seven state aquatic preserves, covering thousands of acres of submerged lands in coastal areas, are located in the Panhandle. A number of other state parks, preserves, and forests are located inland. The 1970s also saw the beginnings of a number of upscale beach resorts, condominium towers, vacation homes, and planned communities, such as Seaside and Sandestin, so that most of the privately owned areas of the coastline are now heavily developed. Major military bases include the Pensacola Naval Air Station (the home of Naval Aviation in the United States), Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field near Ft. Walton Beach, Naval Support Activity Panama City in Panama City Beach, and Tyndall Air Force Base near Panama City. The 1983-84 television show Emerald Point N.A.S. was set in a naval air station somewhere in the American South, similar to Pensacola NAS. The 1997-2000 action/adventure series was explicitly set there. Battle of Santa Rosa Island, Bellamy Road, Emerald Coast, Florida Caverns State Park, Florida in the American Civil War, Floridan aquifer, Forgotten Coast, Fort Barrancas, Fort McRee, Fort Pickens, Gulf Wind, National Naval Aviation Museum, Sunset Limited, West Florida Outdoor Gulf Coast – Online recreation for Northwest Florida, Panama City Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau – Official online travel planning resource for Panama City Beach, Historic Pensacola Village and T. T. Wentworth, Jr., State Museum DeBolt, Dean. "The Florida Panhandle," pp. 404–445 in The Book Lover's Guide to Florida, ed. Kevin M. McCarthy. Sarasota, Florida: Pineapple Press, 1992. (Contains an extensive bibliography of fiction and nonfiction works about people and places in the Panhandle.), Hollis, Tim. Florida’s Miracle Strip: From Redneck Riviera to Emerald Coast. University Press of Mississippi, 2004., Jahoda, Gloria. The Other Florida. Scribner, 1967., King, Heidi Tyline. The Pelican Guide to the Florida Panhandle. Pelican Publishing, 1999., O'Donovan, Michael, and Robin Rowan. Florida's Northwest: First Places, Wild Places, Favorite Places. Terra Nova Publishing, 2005., Ziewitz, Kathryn, and June Wiaz. Green Empire: The St. Joe Company and the Remaking of Florida's Panhandle. University Press of Florida, 2006. Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus) are native to Southeast Asia. However, since the end of the 20th century, they have become an established breeding population in South Florida. Although Burmese pythons were first sighted in Everglades National Park in the 1980s, they were not officially recognized as a reproducing population until 2000. Since then, the number of python sightings has exponentially increased with over 300 sightings from 2008 to 2010. Burmese pythons prey on a wide variety of birds, mammals, and crocodilian species occupying the Everglades. Pronounced declines in several mammalian species have coincided spatially and temporally with the proliferation of pythons in southern Florida, indicating the already devastating impacts upon native animals. Although the low detectability of pythons makes population estimates difficult, most researchers propose that at least 30,000 and upwards of 300,000 pythons likely occupy southern Florida and that this population will only continue to grow. The importation of Burmese pythons was banned in the United States in January 2012 by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Burmese pythons in the state of Florida are classified as an invasive species. They disrupt the ecosystem by preying on native species, outcompeting native species for food or other resources, and/or disrupting the physical nature of the environment. They are comparable in size or even larger than adult native snake species and quickly reach sizes that reduce their vulnerability to predation. The high reproductive potential, low age at sexual maturity, and longevity of Burmese pythons clarify why controlling the population through removal of individuals would be difficult. A typical female breeds every other year, produces a clutch of between twenty and fifty eggs, and can live for twenty years or more. Additionally, as apex predators and dietary generalists, Burmese pythons target a wide array of taxonomic groups. Thus, they are not dependent upon a specific prey species. The flexible dietary requirements of Burmese pythons enable them to survive for long periods of time without food, but when prey is readily available, they will eat regularly. Consequently, Burmese pythons pose a great threat to wildlife, especially mid-sized mammals. Severe declines in mammalian populations across the Everglades may be tied to the proliferation of pythons. Comparisons of road surveys conducted in 1996-1997 (prior to proliferation) and 2003-2011 (after proliferation) indicated declines from 88% to 100% in the frequency of raccoon, opossum, bobcat, rabbit, fox, and other mammalian species sightings. These declines were concordant with the spatial geography of python spread. Most of these species are well known to have increased in numbers following human disturbance, however. Smaller declines were observed where pythons were only recently documented and the greatest mammalian abundances were observed outside of the python's current range. Burmese pythons were the dominant predator of reintroduced marsh rabbits (Sylvilagus palustris) in Everglades National Park, and predation by pythons extirpated the rabbit population in less than 11 months. The overall extent to which the greatly reduced mammalian populations will disrupt the complex food web of the Everglades by indirectly affecting other native species, however, is unclear. The Everglades is a region of subtropical wetlands comprising the lower third of the Florida peninsula. Only 25% of the original Everglades remains, protected within Everglades National Park (ENP). The climate of South Florida and the location of the Everglades, surrounded by a metropolitan area to the east, Naples to the west, and Florida Bay to the south, make it particularly vulnerable to infestations of exotic species. Miami, in particular, is the hub for trade in exotic pets within the United States. Although the exact origin of Burmese pythons in the Everglades is unknown, it is likely that many were once pets released by owners who found them too difficult to care for. An evaluation of the genetic structure of Burmese pythons sampled from Everglades National Park determined that the population is genetically distinct from pythons sampled in the native range, but within the Everglades population, there is little genetic diversity. This finding either indicates that the python population is freely interbreeding or corroborates the hypothesis that the individuals originate from a specific source population such as the pet trade. Estimating the population of Burmese pythons in the Everglades is challenging because of the secretive nature of this species and the limited ability to conduct traditional mark-recapture assessments. Namely, it is counterintuitive to the primary goal of python removal to return captured pythons to the wild. Furthermore, the low detectability of pythons means that even if mark-recapture studies could be conducted, they would require a greater research effort than is currently possible. Pythons spend a majority of their day in hiding, whether in burrows or aquatic habitats, and one study indicated that even seasoned herpetologists showed only a 1% efficacy in detecting pythons housed in a seminatural environment. Consequently, estimates of python populations range from at least 30,000 to more than 300,000. Several attempts have been made at better understanding the spatial ecology of Burmese pythons in the Everglades, including capture analysis and radiotelemetry studies. Since the recognition of the breeding population of pythons, researchers have made an effort to note the capture history (date, location, and time) as well as characteristics (mass, length, sex, reproduction condition, and gut contents) of each animal to better characterize the python's activity patterns, spread, and ecology. More than 2,000 pythons have been captured since 2005, including hatchling pythons, gravid females, and adults in excess of 17.5 ft (5.33 m) in total length. Gut analyses indicate that captured pythons consume nearly any bird, mammal, or alligator found in the Everglades, including nationally endangered Key Largo woodrats (Neotoma floridana smalli) and wood storks (Mycteria americana). Radiotelemetry includes the use of small, surgically implanted radiotransmitters to track the movement patterns of captured and released animals over extended periods of time. A 2014 study suggests that Burmese pythons have navigational map and compass senses. In contrast to previous research that documented the poor navigational abilities of terrestrial snakes, the movement behavior of the Burmese python seems to be nonrandom. The movements of twelve adult Burmese pythons in Everglades National Park were tracked after they were translocated from their initial locations. Five of the six snakes that were displaced 21–36 km from their capture sites displayed oriented movement by returning to within 5 km of their original location. This homing ability of the Burmese python is therefore an additional factor that must be considered in predictions of the future range of the python within the southern US and the management of the current population within South Florida. One of the most contentious issues related to the Burmese python population in Florida is the potential spread to other areas of the southern United States. A potential limitation to a species's habitat range is climate. In February 2008, USGS scientists published a projected range map for the US, based on average climate data of the snake's home range and global warming projections, which predicted that by the end of the 21st century, these snakes could migrate to and flourish in as much as a third of the continental United States, including all three coasts. Numerous climate matching models have indicated that most of Florida and vast portions of the coast of the rest of Southeastern United States provide hospitable habitats for Burmese pythons. The original model takes into account only the fundamental climate space of the python and thus disregards other factors that could limit python spread. Furthermore, most of the data set was obtained from localities outside of the Burmese python's native range. However, a subsequent study produced a map incorporating both climatic extremes and averages which projected that the Burmese python's range as limited to southern Florida and extreme south Texas, though this projection was criticized in an unsigned Axcess News article as not having been peer-reviewed. Burmese pythons kept throughout winter in an experimental enclosure in South Carolina all died during the study, apparently because they could not properly acclimate to the cold, but most survived extended periods at temperatures below those typical of southern Florida. The report concluded, "Regarding areas of putative suitability and potential expansion within the United States, we find, remarkably, that the area in which the snakes are known to have colonized (south Florida) is essentially the only region where the climatic conditions are suitable for the pythons. Almost no potential for further continental expansion is predicted based on the results from the ecological niche models". In contrast to the 2009 proposal, the more conservative niche model identifies regions of suitable climate in South Florida, extreme southern Texas, and spotty areas across the Central and Southern Americas. However, the use of this model has been criticized for the overfitting of data from excess variables and the misidentification of four Blood pythons as Burmese pythons. A model corrected for these miscalculations showed a greater projected range of Burmese python climate match including nearly all of Florida, much of the lower Coastal Plain of the southeast United States, and southern Texas. A severe freeze in the southeastern United States during January 2010 provided additional insight into the threat of Burmese python range extension. In the wake of this extended cold spell, several investigators reported dead snakes coiled along canal banks and in outdoor enclosures. However, numerous snakes survived this cold spell, potentially by using behavioral mechanisms (such as seeking refuge underground). If these behavioral traits are heritable, it is possible that the winter of 2009-2010 served as a selection event for more cold-tolerant pythons. This selected population of pythons would have an enhanced ability to spread northwards and extend the python's invasive range. Data published in 2012 contradict the initial USGS study which claimed that non-native Burmese pythons could expand as far north as the southern third of the United States. The Burmese python will remain in the Everglades. Furthermore, other reputable herpetologists have commented on the controversial theory positing future migration past the Florida Everglades. The National Geographic Society's resident herpetologist, Dr. Brady Barr, said, "Climate data reveal that temperatures found in southern Florida simply are not conducive to the long- term survival of large tropical snakes. When it gets cold, these snakes die." Dr. Barr also said "Feral hogs are a bigger problem for the Everglades than pythons. The press has sensationalized this story to the point that people think the sky is falling. Hopefully, comprehensive research such as Jacobson et al. will put an end to the hysteria." Several methods have been proposed to control the thriving Burmese python population in Florida because much of the python's introduced range includes areas inaccessible to humans. Unfortunately, all strategies proposed thus far have resulted in only limited success. For example, numerous people have suggested using dogs to detect pythons. A 2011 assessment of detection dogs as a mode of python removal determined that the success of a dog search team (73%) was not significantly greater when compared to human search teams (64%) in controlled plot searches. Thick vegetation, which can both reduce visibility and hold odors, limited the efficacy of both human and dog searchers within the plots. However, the dog search team was significantly more successful in canal searches (92%) and was capable of covering three times the distance of human searchers. Despite the potential of dog search teams to detect free-ranging pythons, several impracticalities prevent the widespread use of dog search teams, including the danger posed to released dogs in the Everglades, limited efficacy of chemoreceptive cues in the shallow waters of the Everglades, and extensive limestone substrate that would hinder movement. The greater cost of a dog search team as compared to human searchers is an additional consideration. The Burmese python system also poses challenges to trapping efforts. Trapping, a traditional method of snake capture, can include both the use of a device with an inescapable funnel and a drift fence that directs snake movement towards the trap. It is crucial that drift fences are inserted several inches into the ground in order to ensure that snakes cannot bypass them, but the hard limestone foundation of the area would make construction of adequate drift fences difficult. Additionally, a python moves infrequently because of its predation habits and thus is less likely to crawl into a trap. Finally, the immense area occupied by the Burmese python undermines the utility of extensive trapping. Trapping could be practical on a smaller scale if critical areas were targeted. Biocontrol, or biological control, of pythons has also been proposed by several scientists, likely because of the low detectability of pythons. Traditionally, biocontrols use a virus, parasite, or a bacterium that is selective to the target species to reduce the population's size. If the pathogen is not species-specific, it could harm other species. Given that biocontrol methods present a nontrivial and somewhat unpredictable risk to the area's delicate ecosystem, additional research and careful deliberation is necessary before such techniques are used. One of possible ways of biocontrol is reintroduction of native predators. For example, jaguars had lived in Florida during the Pleistocene, but became extinct. These big cats can kill and eat large snakes (their diet in South America includes anacondas). Beyond the scientific community, the use of bounty hunters has received a great deal of support from officials and the media, but results have been disappointing. The 2013 Python Challenge, a month-long event with cash incentives for python captures sponsored by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, resulted in only 68 total python captures by 1,600 registered participants. Another hunt was nonetheless held in 2016, resulting in 106 pythons captured by over 1,000 participants. Some participants in the state-sponsored hunts have had snakeskin products made from the carcasses, but hunting the animals for food is not recommended, as many top level predators of the Everglades have dangerously high levels of mercury through bioaccumulation, the pythons being no exception. Environmental chemist Dr. David Krabbenhoft of the U.S. Geological Survey tested tissue samples from a collection of frozen python tails maintained by scientists at Everglades National Park. Analysis of more than 50 samples yielded up to 3.5 ppm of mercury. The state of Florida considers fish containing more than 1.5 ppm of mercury unsafe to eat. While an effective and practical control method for South Florida's Burmese python population has yet to be proposed, regulatory measures are in place to prevent its further spread. Recently, Florida legislators have also put into place provisions targeted at the release of exotic snakes into the wild. Specifically, in 2008 the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission instituted regulations requiring permits for boas and pythons greater than 2 in. in diameter as well as PIT tags implanted in the snake's skin for identification purposes. This measure aims to prevent the introduction of snake species such as the Burmese python to other regions beyond South Florida. Further, the United States Department of the Interior placed four additional species of snakes, including the Burmese python, under the Lacey Act provisions. According to these provisions, importation of Burmese pythons to the United States is illegal as of January 2012. Invasive species in the United States, List of invasive species in the Everglades, List of invasive species in Florida, List of invasive plant species in Florida, List of invasive marine fish in Florida Removing Pythons in Florida, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, PBS Nature Video: Invasion of the Giant Pythons, Tracking the Big Snakes Devouring the Everglades: Interview with Michael Dorcas, Invasive Snakes

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The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. It is an endorheic basin (a basin without outflows) located between Europe and Asia, to the east of the Caucasus Mountains and to the west of the broad steppe of Central Asia. The sea has a surface area of 371,000 km (143,200 sq mi) (excluding the detached lagoon of Garabogazköl) and a volume of 78,200 km (18,800 cu mi). It has a salinity of approximately 1.2% (12 g/l), about a third of the salinity of most seawater. It is bounded by Kazakhstan to the northeast, Russia to the northwest, Azerbaijan to the west, Iran to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southeast. The Caspian Sea is home to a wide range of species and may be best known for its caviar and oil industries. Pollution from the oil industry and dams on rivers draining into the Caspian Sea have had negative effects on the organisms living in the sea. The wide and endorheic Caspian Sea has a north–south orientation and its main freshwater inflow, the Volga River, enters at the shallow north end. Two deep basins occupy its central and southern areas. These lead to horizontal differences in temperature, salinity, and ecology. The Caspian Sea spreads out over nearly from north to south, with an average width of . It covers a region of around and its surface is about below sea level. The sea bed in the southern part reaches as low as below sea level, which is the second lowest natural depression on Earth after Lake Baikal (). The ancient inhabitants of its coast perceived the Caspian Sea as an ocean, probably because of its saltiness and large size. The word Caspian is derived from the name of the Caspi, an ancient people who lived to the southwest of the sea in Transcaucasia. Strabo wrote that "to the country of the Albanians belongs also the territory called Caspiane, which was named after the Caspian tribe, as was also the sea; but the tribe has now disappeared". Moreover, the Caspian Gates, which is the name of a region in Iran's Tehran province, possibly indicates that they migrated to the south of the sea. The Iranian city of Qazvin shares the root of its name with that of the sea. In fact, the traditional Arabic name for the sea itself is Baḥr Qazwin (Sea of Qazvin). In classical antiquity among Greeks and Persians it was called the Hyrcanian Ocean. In Persian middle age, as well as in modern Iran, it is known as , Daryā-e Khazar, which was named after Khazars an ancient nomadic tribe in the region. it is also sometimes referred to as Mazandaran Sea () in Iran. Some Turkic peoples refer to the lake as Khazar Sea. In Turkmen, the name is , in Azeri, it is , and in modern Turkish, it is . In all these cases, the second word simply means "sea", and the first word refers to the historical Khazars who had a large empire based to the north of the Caspian Sea between the 7th and 10th centuries. Some other Turkic ethnic groups refer to the lake as Caspian Sea. In Kazakh, where it is called , Kaspiy teñizi, in (Kaspiy deñizi), in . Renaissance European maps labelled it as Abbacuch Sea (Oronce Fine's 1531 world map), Mar de Bachu (Ortellius' 1570 map), or Mar de Sala (Mercator's 1569 map). Old Russian sources call it the Khvalyn or Khvalis Sea () after the name of Khwarezmia. In modern Russian, it is called , Kaspiyskoye more. The Caspian Sea, like the Black Sea, is a remnant of the ancient Paratethys Sea. Its seafloor is, therefore, a standard oceanic basalt and not a continental granite body. It became landlocked about 5.5 million years ago due to tectonic uplift and a fall in sea level. During warm and dry climatic periods, the landlocked sea almost dried up, depositing evaporitic sediments like halite that were covered by wind-blown deposits and were sealed off as an evaporite sink when cool, wet climates refilled the basin. (Comparable evaporite beds underlie the Mediterranean.) Due to the current inflow of fresh water in the north, the Caspian Sea water is almost fresh in its northern portions, getting more brackish toward the south. It is most saline on the Iranian shore, where the catchment basin contributes little flow. Currently, the mean salinity of the Caspian is one third that of Earth's oceans. The Garabogazköl embayment, which dried up when water flow from the main body of the Caspian was blocked in the 1980s but has since been restored, routinely exceeds oceanic salinity by a factor of 10. The Caspian Sea is the largest inland body of water in the world and accounts for 40 to 44% of the total lacustrine waters of the world. The coastlines of the Caspian are shared by Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan. The Caspian is divided into three distinct physical regions: the Northern, Middle, and Southern Caspian. The Northern–Middle boundary is the Mangyshlak Threshold, which runs through Chechen Island and Cape Tiub-Karagan. The Middle–Southern boundary is the Apsheron Threshold, a sill of tectonic origin between the Eurasian continent and an oceanic remnant, that runs through Zhiloi Island and Cape Kuuli. The Garabogazköl Bay is the saline eastern inlet of the Caspian, which is part of Turkmenistan and at times has been a lake in its own right due to the isthmus that cuts it off from the Caspian. Differences between the three regions are dramatic. The Northern Caspian only includes the Caspian shelf, and is very shallow; it accounts for less than 1% of the total water volume with an average depth of only . The sea noticeably drops off towards the Middle Caspian, where the average depth is . The Southern Caspian is the deepest, with oceanic depths of over , greatly exceeding the depth of other regional seas, such as the Persian Gulf. The Middle and Southern Caspian account for 33% and 66% of the total water volume, respectively. The northern portion of the Caspian Sea typically freezes in the winter, and in the coldest winters ice forms in the south as well. Over 130 rivers provide inflow to the Caspian, with the Volga River being the largest. A second affluent, the Ural River, flows in from the north, and the Kura River flows into the sea from the west. In the past, the Amu Darya (Oxus) of Central Asia in the east often changed course to empty into the Caspian through a now- desiccated riverbed called the Uzboy River, as did the Syr Darya farther north. The Caspian also has several small islands; they are primarily located in the north and have a collective land area of roughly . Adjacent to the North Caspian is the Caspian Depression, a low-lying region below sea level. The Central Asian steppes stretch across the northeast coast, while the Caucasus mountains hug the western shore. The biomes to both the north and east are characterized by cold, continental deserts. Conversely, the climate to the southwest and south are generally warm with uneven elevation due to a mix of highlands and mountain ranges; the drastic changes in climate alongside the Caspian have led to a great deal of biodiversity in the region. The Caspian Sea has numerous islands throughout, all of them near the coasts; none in the deeper parts of the sea. Ogurja Ada is the largest island. The island is long, with gazelles roaming freely on it. In the North Caspian, the majority of the islands are small and uninhabited, like the Tyuleniy Archipelago, an Important Bird Area (IBA), although some of them have human settlements. The Caspian has characteristics common to both seas and lakes. It is often listed as the world's largest lake, although it is not a freshwater lake. It contains about 3.5 times more water, by volume, than all five of North America's Great Lakes combined. The Caspian was once part of the Tethys Ocean, but became landlocked about 5.5 million years ago due to plate tectonics. The Volga River (about 80% of the inflow) and the Ural River discharge into the Caspian Sea, but it has no natural outflow other than by evaporation. Thus the Caspian ecosystem is a closed basin, with its own sea level history that is independent of the eustatic level of the world's oceans. The level of the Caspian has fallen and risen, often rapidly, many times over the centuries. Some Russian historians claim that a medieval rising of the Caspian, perhaps caused by the Amu Darya changing its inflow to the Caspian from the 13th century to the 16th century, caused the coastal towns of Khazaria, such as Atil, to flood. In 2004, the water level was below sea level. Over the centuries, Caspian Sea levels have changed in synchrony with the estimated discharge of the Volga, which in turn depends on rainfall levels in its vast catchment basin. Precipitation is related to variations in the amount of North Atlantic depressions that reach the interior, and they in turn are affected by cycles of the North Atlantic oscillation. Thus levels in the Caspian Sea relate to atmospheric conditions in the North Atlantic, thousands of kilometres to the northwest. The last short-term sea-level cycle started with a sea-level fall of from 1929 to 1977, followed by a rise of from 1977 until 1995. Since then smaller oscillations have taken place. A study by the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences estimated that the level of the sea was dropping by more than six centimetres per year due to increased evaporation due to rising temperatures caused by climate change. The Volga River, the largest in Europe, drains 20% of the European land area and is the source of 80% of the Caspian's inflow. Its lower reaches are heavily developed with numerous unregulated releases of chemical and biological pollutants. The UN Environment Programme warns that the Caspian "suffers from an enormous burden of pollution from oil extraction and refining, offshore oil fields, radioactive wastes from nuclear power plants and huge volumes of untreated sewage and industrial waste introduced mainly by the Volga River". The magnitude of fossil fuel extraction and transport activity in the Caspian also poses a risk to the environment. The island of Vulf off Baku, for example, has suffered ecological damage as a result of the petrochemical industry; this has significantly decreased the number of species of marine birds in the area. Existing and planned oil and gas pipelines under the sea further increase the potential threat to the environment. The rising level of the Caspian Sea between 1994 and 1996 reduced the number of habitats for rare species of aquatic vegetation. This has been attributed to a general lack of seeding material in newly formed coastal lagoons and water bodies. The Caspian turtle (Mauremys caspica), although found in neighboring areas, is a wholly freshwater species. The zebra mussel is native to the Caspian and Black Sea basins, but has become an invasive species elsewhere, when introduced. The area has given its name to several species, including the Caspian gull and the Caspian tern. The Caspian seal (Pusa caspica) is the only aquatic mammal and is endemic to the Caspian Sea, being one of very few seal species that live in inland waters, but it is different from the those inhabiting freshwaters due to the hydrological environment of the sea. A century ago the Caspian was home to more than one million seals. Today, fewer than 10% remain. Archeological studies of Gobustan Rock Art have identified what may be dolphins and porpoises, or a certain species of beaked whales and what may be a whaling scene indicates large baleen whales likely being present in Caspian Sea at least until when the Caspian Sea ceased being a part of the ocean system or until the Quaternary or much more recent periods such as until the last glacial period or antiquity. Although the rock art on Kichikdash Mountain is assumed to be of a dolphin or of a beaked whale, it might instead represent the famous beluga sturgeon due to its size (430 cm in length), but fossil records suggest certain ancestors of modern dolphins and whales, such as Macrokentriodon morani (bottlenose dolphins) and Balaenoptera sibbaldina (blue whales) were presumably larger than their present descendants. From the same artworks, auks, like Brunnich's Guillemot could also have been in the sea as well, and these petroglyphs suggest marine inflow between the current Caspian Sea and the Arctic Ocean or North Sea, or the Black Sea. This is supported by the existences of current endemic, oceanic species such as lagoon cockles which was genetically identified to originate in Caspian/Black Seas regions. The sea's basin (including associated waters such as rivers) has 160 native species and subspecies of fish in more than 60 genera. About 62% of the species and subspecies are endemic, as are 4–6 genera (depending on taxonomic treatment). The lake proper has 115 natives, including 73 endemics (63.5%). Among the more than 50 genera in the lake proper, 3–4 are endemic: Anatirostrum, Caspiomyzon, Chasar (often included in Ponticola) and Hyrcanogobius. By far the most numerous families in the lake proper are gobies (35 species and subspecies), cyprinids (32) and clupeids (22). Two particularly rich genera are Alosa with 18 endemic species/subspecies and Benthophilus with 16 endemic species. Other examples of endemics are four species of Clupeonella, Gobio volgensis, two Rutilus, three Sabanejewia, Stenodus leucichthys, two Salmo, two Mesogobius and three Neogobius. Most non- endemic natives are either shared with the Black Sea basin or widespread Palearctic species such as crucian carp, Prussian carp, common carp, common bream, common bleak, asp, white bream, sunbleak, common dace, common roach, common rudd, European chub, sichel, tench, European weatherfish, wels catfish, northern pike, burbot, European perch and zander. Almost 30 non-indigenous, introduced fish species have been reported from the Caspian Sea, but only a few have become established. Six sturgeon species, the Russian, bastard, Persian, sterlet, starry and beluga, are native to the Caspian Sea. The last of these is arguably the largest freshwater fish in the world. The sturgeon yield roe (eggs) that are processed into caviar. Overfishing has depleted a number of the historic fisheries. In recent years, overfishing has threatened the sturgeon population to the point that environmentalists advocate banning sturgeon fishing completely until the population recovers. The high price of sturgeon caviar—more than 1,500 Azerbaijani manats (US$880 ) per kilo—allows fishermen to afford bribes to ensure the authorities look the other way, making regulations in many locations ineffective. Caviar harvesting further endangers the fish stocks, since it targets reproductive females. Many rare and endemic plant species of Russia are associated with the tidal areas of the Volga delta and riparian forests of the Samur River delta. The shoreline is also a unique refuge for plants adapted to the loose sands of the Central Asian Deserts. The principal limiting factors to successful establishment of plant species are hydrological imbalances within the surrounding deltas, water pollution, and various land reclamation activities. The water level change within the Caspian Sea is an indirect reason for which plants may not get established. These affect aquatic plants of the Volga Delta, such as Aldrovanda vesiculosa and the native Nelumbo caspica. About 11 plant species are found in the Samur River Delta, including the unique liana forests that date back to the Tertiary period. Reptiles native to the region include spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca buxtoni) and Horsfield's tortoise. The Asiatic cheetah used to occur in the Trans-Caucasus and Central Asia, but is today restricted to Iran., The Asiatic lion used to occur in the Trans-Caucasus, Iran, and possibly the southern part of Turkestan., The Caspian tiger used to occur in northern Iran, the Caucasus and Central Asia., The Persian leopard is found in Iran, the Caucasus and Central Asia. The history of the Caspian sea is divided into two parts: a Miocene stage, determined by tectonic events that correlate with the closing of the Tethys Sea, and a Pleistocene stage, that includes glaciation cycles and the creation of the present Volga River. During the first stage, the Tethys Sea had evolved into the Sarmatian Lake, that was created from the modern Black Sea and south Caspian, when the collision of the Arabian peninsula with Western Asia pushed up the Kopet Dag and Caucasus Mountains, setting definitive south and west boundaries to the Caspian basin. This orogeneic movement was continuous throughout the years, while Caspian was regularly disconnecting from the Black Sea. In the late Pontian, a mountain arch rose across the south basin and divided it in the Khachmaz and Lankaran Lakes (or early Balaxani). The period of restriction to the south basin was reversed during the Akchagylian, when the lake expanded to more than three times its present area and established the first of a series of contacts with the Black Sea and with Lake Aral. A recession of the completed stage one. The earliest hominid remains found around the Caspian Sea are from Dmanisi dating back to around 1.8 Ma and yielded a number of skeletal remains of Homo erectus or Homo ergaster. More later evidence for human occupation of the region came from a number of caves in Georgia and Azerbaijan such as Kudaro and Azykh Caves. There is evidence for Lower Palaeolithic human occupation south of the Caspian from western Alburz. These are Ganj Par and Darband Cave sites. Neanderthal remains also have been discovered at a cave site in Georgia. Discoveries in the Huto cave and the adjacent Kamarband cave, near the town of Behshahr, Mazandaran south of the Caspian in Iran, suggest human habitation of the area as early as 11,000 years ago. The Caspian area is rich in energy resources. Oil wells were being dug in the region as early as the 10th century to reach oil "for use in everyday life, both for medicinal purposes and for heating and lighting in homes". By the 16th century, Europeans were aware of the rich oil and gas deposits around the area. English traders Thomas Bannister and Jeffrey Duckett described the area around Baku as "a strange thing to behold, for there issueth out of the ground a marvelous quantity of oil, which serveth all the country to burn in their houses. This oil is black and is called nefte. There is also by the town of Baku, another kind of oil which is white and very precious [i.e., petroleum]." Greeks also called it Hyrcanian/Hyrkanian Sea (). In the 18th century, during the rule of Peter I the Great, Fedor I. Soimonov, hydrographer and pioneering explorer of the Caspian Sea charted the until then little known body of water. Soimonov drew a set of four maps and wrote Pilot of the Caspian Sea, the first report and modern maps of the Caspian, that were published in 1720 by the Russian Academy of Sciences. Today, oil and gas platforms abound along the edges of the sea. Hyrcania, ancient state in the north of Iran, Sari, Mazandaran Province of Iran, Anzali, Gilan Province of Iran, Astara, Gilan Province of Iran, Astarabad, Golestan Province of Iran, Tamisheh, Golestan Province of Iran, Atil, Khazaria, Khazaran, Baku, Azerbaijan, Derbent, Dagestan, Russia, Xacitarxan, modern-day Astrakhan Iran:, Ali Abad, Astaneh-ye Ashrafiyeh, Astara, Babolsar, Bandar-e Anzali, Bandar-e-Gaz, Bandar Torkaman, Behshahr, Chalus, Fenderesk, Gomishan, Gonbad-e Kavus, Gorgan, Juybar, Kordkuy, Lahijan, Langarud, Mahmudabad, Neka, Nowshahr, Nur, Ramsar, Rasht, Rudbar, Rudsar, Sari, Sorkhroud, Tonekabon, Azerbaijan:, Astara, Baku, Gobustan, Khudat, Khachmaz, Lankaran, Masallı, Nabran, Neftchala, Shabran, Siyazan, Oil Rocks, Sumqayit, Kazakhstan:, Atyrau, Aktau, Russia:, Astrakhan, Dagestanskiye Ogni, Derbent, Izberbash, Kaspiysk, Makhachkala, Turkmenistan:, Türkmenbaşy (formerly Krasnovodsk), Hazar (formerly Çeleken), Senguly, Garabogaz (formerly Bekdaş) Countries on the Caspian region, such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, illustrate the examples of natural-resource-based economies. A resource-based economy is defined as one where the natural resources, oil and gas, compose more than 10 percent of the particular country's GDP and 40 percent of exports. All the Caspian region economies are highly dependent on the mineral wealth. The world energy markets were influenced by Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, as they became strategically crucial in this sphere, thus attracting the largest share of FDI (foreign direct investment). Iran has an enormous energy potential based on several specific factors. It has reserves containing 137.5 billion bbl of crude oil, the second largest in the world, producing around four million bbl/day. Additionally, Iran has an estimated 988.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, around 16 percent of total world reserves, which makes it to play a key role in the global energy security equation. Russia's economy ranks as the twelfth largest by nominal GDP and sixth largest by purchasing power parity in 2015. Russia's extensive mineral and energy resources are the largest such reserves in the world, making it the second leading producer of oil and natural gas globally. Caspian littoral states join efforts to develop infrastructure, tourism and trade in the region. The first Caspian Economic Forum was convened on August 12, 2019 in Turkmenistan and brought together representatives of Kazakhstan, Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan. The forum included several meetings of Caspian littoral countries’ ministers of economy and transport ministers. The Caspian Sea region presently is a significant, but not major, supplier of crude oil to world markets, based upon estimates by BP Amoco and the U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy. The Caspian region produced an estimated 1.4–1.5 million barrels per day (bbls/day) including natural gas liquids in 2001, or 1.9% of total world output (table 1).3 More than a dozen non-Caspian countries each produce more than 1.5 million bbls/day. Caspian region production has been higher, but suffered during the collapse of the Soviet Union and the years following. Kazakhstan accounts for 55% and Azerbaijan for about 20% of current regional oil output. The world's first offshore wells and machine-drilled wells were made in Bibi- Heybat Bay, near Baku, Azerbaijan. In 1873, exploration and development of oil began in some of the largest fields known to exist in the world at that time on the Absheron Peninsula near the villages of Balakhanli, Sabunchi, Ramana, and Bibi Heybat. Total recoverable reserves were more than 500 million tons. By 1900, Baku had more than 3,000 oil wells, 2,000 of which were producing at industrial levels. By the end of the 19th century, Baku became known as the "black gold capital", and many skilled workers and specialists flocked to the city. By the beginning of the 20th century, Baku was the centre of international oil industry. In 1920, when the Bolsheviks captured Azerbaijan, all private property – including oil wells and factories – was confiscated. Afterwards, the republic's entire oil industry came under the control of the Soviet Union. By 1941, Azerbaijan was producing a record 23.5 million tons of oil per year, and the Baku region supplied nearly 72 percent of all oil extracted in the entire Soviet Union. In 1994, the "Contract of the Century" was signed, signalling the start of major international development of the Baku oil fields. The Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline, a major pipeline allowing Azerbaijan oil to flow straight to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, opened in 2006. The Vladimir Filanovsky field in the Russian section of the body of water was discovered for its wealth of oil in 2005. It is reportedly the largest discovery of oil in 25 years. It was announced in October 2016 that Lukoil would start production in this region. Baku, which is the starting point of all sea routes of Azerbaijan, is the largest port of the Caspian Sea. Azerbaijan has access to the oceans along the Caspian Sea-Volga-Volga-Don Canal, and the Don-Sea of Azov. Along with the Volga-Don Canal, the Azerbaijani vessels have the opportunity to enter the world ocean through the Volga-Baltic and White Sea-Baltic canals. Moreover, oil tankers are being transported through the Caspian Sea. Baku Sea Trade Port and Caspian Shipping Company CJSC, have a big role in the sea transportation of Azerbaijan. The Caspian Sea Shipping Company CJSC, along with the transport fleet, also includes a specialized fleet and shipyards. The transport fleet consists of 51 vessels, including 20 tankers, 13 ferries, 15 universal dry cargo vessels, 2 Ro-Ro vessels, as well as 1 technical vessel and 1 floating workshop. The specialized fleet includes 210 vessels, including 20 cranes, 25 towing and supplying vehicles, 26 passenger, two pipe-laying, six fire- fighting, seven engineering-geological, two diving and 88 auxiliary vessels. The Caspian Sea Shipping Company of Azerbaijan, which acts as a liaison in the Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRACECA), simultaneously with the transportation of cargo and passengers in the Trans-Caspian direction, also performs work to fully ensure the processes of oil and gas production at sea. This activity has a rich history. The development of the shipping industry in Azerbaijan is closely connected with the formation and progress of the oil industry. In the 19th century, the sharp increase in oil production in Baku gave a huge impetus to the development of shipping in the Caspian Sea, and as a result, there was a need to create fundamentally new floating facilities for the transportation of oil and oil products. Many of the islands along the Azerbaijani coast continue to hold significant geopolitical and economic importance because of the potential oil reserves found nearby. Bulla Island, Pirallahı Island, and Nargin, which is still used as a former Soviet base and is the largest island in the Baku bay, all hold oil reserves. The collapse of the Soviet Union and subsequent opening of the region has led to an intense investment and development scramble by international oil companies. In 1998, Dick Cheney commented that "I can't think of a time when we've had a region emerge as suddenly to become as strategically significant as the Caspian." A key problem to further development in the region is the status of the Caspian Sea and the establishment of the water boundaries among the five littoral states. The current disputes along Azerbaijan's maritime borders with Turkmenistan and Iran could potentially affect future development plans. Much controversy currently exists over the proposed Trans-Caspian oil and gas pipelines. These projects would allow Western markets easier access to Kazakh oil and, potentially, Uzbek and Turkmen gas as well. Russia officially opposes the project on environmental grounds. However, analysts note that the pipelines would bypass Russia completely, thereby denying the country valuable transit fees, as well as destroying its current monopoly on westward-bound hydrocarbon exports from the region. Recently, both Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan have expressed their support for the Trans-Caspian Pipeline. U.S. diplomatic cables disclosed by WikiLeaks revealed that BP covered up a gas leak and blowout incident in September 2008 at an operating gas field in the Azeri-Chirag- Guneshi area of the Azerbaijan Caspian Sea. , negotiations related to the demarcation of the Caspian Sea had been going on for nearly a decade among the states bordering the Caspian – Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Iran. The status of the Caspian Sea is the key problem. Access to mineral resources (oil and natural gas), access for fishing, and access to international waters (through Russia's Volga river and the canals connecting it to the Black Sea and Baltic Sea) all depend upon the outcomes of negotiations. Access to the Volga River is particularly important for the landlocked states of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. This concerns Russia, because the potential traffic would use its inland waterways. If a body of water is labelled as a sea, then there would be some precedents and international treaties obliging the granting of access permits to foreign vessels. If a body of water is labelled merely as a lake, then there are no such obligations. Environmental issues are also somewhat connected to the status and borders issue. All five Caspian littoral states maintain naval forces on the sea. According to a treaty signed between Iran and the Soviet Union, the Caspian Sea is technically a lake and was divided into two sectors (Iranian and Soviet), but the resources (then mainly fish) were commonly shared. The line between the two sectors was considered an international border in a common lake, like Lake Albert. The Soviet sector was sub-divided into the four littoral republics' administrative sectors. Russia, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan have bilateral agreements with each other based on median lines. Because of their use by the three nations, median lines seem to be the most likely method of delineating territory in future agreements. However, Iran insists on a single, multilateral agreement between the five nations (as this is the only way for it to achieve a one-fifth share of the sea). Azerbaijan is at odds with Iran over some oil fields that both states claim. Occasionally, Iranian patrol boats have fired at vessels sent by Azerbaijan for exploration into the disputed region. There are similar tensions between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan (the latter claims that the former has pumped more oil than agreed from a field, recognized by both parties as shared). The Caspian littoral states' meeting in 2007 signed an agreement that bars any ship not flying the national flag of a littoral state from entering the sea. Negotiations among the five littoral states have been ongoing, amidst ebbs and flows, for the past 20 years, with some degree of progress being made at the fourth Caspian Summit held in Astrakhan in 2014. The Caspian Summit is a head of state-level meeting of the five littoral states. The fifth Caspian Summit took place on August 12, 2018 in the Kazakh port city of Aktau. The five leaders signed the ‘Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea’. Representatives of the Caspian littoral states held a meeting in the capital of Kazakhstan on September 28, 2018 as a follow- up to the Aktau Summit. The conference was hosted by the Kazakh Ministry of Investment and Development. The participants in the meeting agreed to host an investment forum for the Caspian region every two years. The five littoral states build consensus on legally binding governance of the Caspian Sea through Special Working Groups of a Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea. In advance of a Caspian Summit, 51st Special Working Group took place in Astana in May 2018 and found consensus on multiple agreements: Agreements on cooperation in the field of transport; trade and economic cooperation; prevention of incidents on the sea; combating terrorism; fighting against organized crime; and border security cooperation. The convention grants jurisdiction over of territorial waters to each neighboring country, plus an additional of exclusive fishing rights on the surface, while the rest is international waters. The seabed, on the other hand, remains undefined, subject to bilateral agreements between countries. Thus, the Caspian Sea is legally neither fully a sea nor a lake. While the convention addresses caviar production, oil and gas extraction, and military uses, it does not touch on environmental issues. UNECE recognizes several rivers that cross international borders which flow into the Caspian Sea. These are: Although the Caspian Sea is endorheic, its main tributary, the Volga, is connected by important shipping canals with the Don River (and thus the Black Sea) and with the Baltic Sea, with branch canals to Northern Dvina and to the White Sea. Another Caspian tributary, the Kuma River, is connected by an irrigation canal with the Don basin as well. Several scheduled ferry services (including train ferries) operate on the Caspian Sea, including: a line between Türkmenbaşy, Turkmenistan, (formerly Krasnovodsk) and Baku., a ferry line between Baku and Aktau., several ferry lines between cities in Iran and Russia. The ferries are mostly used for cargo; only the Baku–Aktau and Baku–Türkmenbaşy routes accept passengers. As an endorheic basin, the Caspian Sea basin has no natural connection with the ocean. Since the medieval period, traders reached the Caspian via a number of portages that connected the Volga and its tributaries with the Don River (which flows into the Sea of Azov) and various rivers that flow into the Baltic Sea. Primitive canals connecting the Volga Basin with the Baltic have been constructed as early as the early 18th century. Since then, a number of canal projects have been completed. The two modern canal systems that connect the Volga Basin, and hence the Caspian Sea, with the ocean are the Volga–Baltic Waterway and the Volga–Don Canal. The proposed Pechora–Kama Canal was a project that was widely discussed between the 1930s and 1980s. Shipping was a secondary consideration. Its main goal was to redirect some of the water of the Pechora River (which flows into the Arctic Ocean) via the Kama River into the Volga. The goals were both irrigation and the stabilization of the water level in the Caspian, which was thought to be falling dangerously fast at the time. During 1971, some peaceful nuclear construction experiments were carried out in the region by the U.S.S.R. In June 2007, in order to boost his oil-rich country's access to markets, Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev proposed a link between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea. It is hoped that the "Eurasia Canal" (Manych Ship Canal) would transform landlocked Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries into maritime states, enabling them to significantly increase trade volume. Although the canal would traverse Russian territory, it would benefit Kazakhstan through its Caspian Sea ports. The most likely route for the canal, the officials at the Committee on Water Resources at Kazakhstan's Agriculture Ministry say, would follow the Kuma–Manych Depression, where currently a chain of rivers and lakes is already connected by an irrigation canal (Kuma–Manych Canal). Upgrading the Volga–Don Canal would be another option. Eurasia Canal, Iranrud, Baku oil fields, Caspians, Volga–Don Canal, Ekranoplan, a ground effect plane which was developed on the Caspian Sea., Epoch of Extreme Inundations, Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea, Shah Deniz gas field, South Caucasus Pipeline, Southern Gas Corridor, Tengiz Field, Trans-Caspian Gas Pipeline, Trans-Caspian Oil Transport System, Wildlife of Azerbaijan, Wildlife of Iran, Wildlife of Kazakhstan, Wildlife of Russia Names of the Caspian Sea, Caspian Sea Region, Target: Caspian Sea Oil John Robb, 2004, Dating Caspian sea level changes, Caspian Sea Is Dying, IIKSS – international institute of khazar (caspian) sea studies Europe is traditionally defined as one of seven continents. Physiographically, it is the northwestern peninsula of the larger landmass known as Eurasia (or the larger Afro-Eurasia); Asia occupies the eastern bulk of this continuous landmass and all share a common continental shelf. Europe's eastern frontier is delineated by the Ural Mountains in Russia. The southeast boundary with Asia is not universally defined, but the modern definition is generally the Ural River or, less commonly, the Emba River. The boundary continues to the Caspian Sea, the crest of the Caucasus Mountains (or, less commonly, the river Kura in the Caucasus), and on to the Black Sea. The Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles conclude the Asian boundary. The Mediterranean Sea to the south separates Europe from Africa. The western boundary is the Atlantic Ocean. Iceland, though on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and nearer to Greenland (North America) than mainland Europe, is generally included in Europe for cultural reasons and because it is over twice as close to mainland Europe as mainland North America. There is ongoing debate on where the geographical centre of Europe falls. Some geographical texts refer to a Eurasian continent given that Europe is not surrounded by sea and its southeastern border has always been variously defined for centuries. In terms of shape, Europe is a collection of connected peninsulas and nearby islands. The two largest peninsulas are mainland Europe and Scandinavia to the north, divided from each other by the Baltic Sea. Three smaller peninsulas—Iberia, Italy and the Balkans—emerge from the southern margin of the mainland. The Balkan peninsula is separated from Asia by the Black and Aegean Seas. Italy is separated from the Balkans by the Adriatic Sea, and from Iberia by the Mediterranean Sea, which also separates Europe from Africa. Eastward, mainland Europe widens much like the mouth of a funnel, until the boundary with Asia is reached at the Ural Mountains and Ural River, the Caspian Sea and Caucasus Mountains. Land relief in Europe shows great variation within relatively small areas. The southern regions are mountainous, while moving north the terrain descends from the high Alps, Pyrenees and Carpathians, through hilly uplands, into broad, low northern plains, which are vast in the east. An arc of uplands also exists along the northwestern seaboard, beginning in southwestern Ireland, continuing across through western and northern Great Britain, and up along the mountainous, fjord-cut spine of Norway. This description is simplified. Sub-regions such as Iberia and Italy contain their own complex features, as does mainland Europe itself, where the relief contains many plateaus, river valleys and basins that complicate the general trend. Iceland and the British Isles are special cases. The former is of North Atlantic volcanic formation, while the latter consist of upland areas once joined to the mainland until cut off by rising sea levels. Europe is sometimes called a "peninsula of peninsulas", to draw attention to the fact that Europe is a relatively small, elongated appendage to Asia, and that a large part of Europe is made up of peninsulas. Partial list of European peninsulas Absheron peninsula, Balkan peninsula, Peloponnese, Chalkidiki, Istria, Gallipoli, Cotentin Peninsula, Crimea, Fennoscandian Peninsula, Kola Peninsula, Scandinavian Peninsula, Iberian Peninsula, Italian Peninsula, Jutland, Kanin Peninsula Europe's most significant geological feature is the dichotomy between the highlands and mountains of Southern Europe and a vast, partially underwater, northern plain ranging from Great Britain in the west to the Ural Mountains in the east. These two halves are separated by the mountain chains of the Pyrenees and the Alps/Carpathians. The northern plains are delimited in the west by the Scandinavian mountains and the mountainous parts of the British Isles. The major shallow water bodies submerging parts of the northern plains are the Celtic Sea, the North Sea, the Baltic Sea complex, and the Barents Sea. The northern plain contains the old geological continent of Baltica, and so may be regarded as the "main continent", while peripheral highlands and mountainous regions in south and west constitute fragments from various other geological continents. The geology of Europe is hugely varied and complex, and gives rise to the wide variety of landscapes found across the continent, from the Scottish Highlands to the rolling plains of Hungary. Figures for the population of Europe vary according to which definition of European boundaries is used. The population within the standard physical geographical boundaries was 701 million in 2005 according to the United Nations. In 2000 the population was 857 million, using a definition which includes the whole of the transcontinental countries of Russia and Turkey. Population growth is comparatively slow, and median age comparatively high in relation to the world's other continents. The most important rivers in Europe are Danube, Volga, Rhine, Elbe, Oder and Dnieper, among others. The longest rivers in Europe, directly flowing into the World Ocean or Endorheic basins, with their approximate lengths: 1. Volga - 2. Danube - 3. Ural \- 4. Dnieper - 5. Don \- 6. Pechora - 7. Kama - 8. Oka \- 9. Dniester - 10. Rhine \- 11. Elbe \- 12. Vistula - 13. Tagus - 14. Daugava - 15. Loire - 16. Ebro - 17. Prut - 18. Neman - 19. Meuse - 20. Douro - 21. Kuban River - 22. Mezen - 23. Oder - 24. Guadiana - 25. Rhône - 26. Kuma - 27. Seine - 28. Mureș - 29. Northern Dvina - 30. Po - 31. Guadalquivir - 32. Bolshoy Uzen - 33. Siret - 34. Terek - 35. Glomma - (Norway's longest and most voluminous river) 36. Garonne - 37. Kemijoki - 38. *Main (longest (right) tributary of Rhine) 39. Torne - 40. Dalälven - 41. Maritsa - 42. Marne - (major tributary of the Seine) 43. Neris - 44. Júcar - 45. Dordogne - 46. Ume - 47. Ångerman - (Sweden's longest rivers) 48. Lule - 49. Gauja - 50. Weser - 51. Kalix - The 15 rivers of Europe by average discharge, including only rivers directly flowing into the World Ocean or Endorheic basins: 1. Volga - 8,087 m³/s (largest river in Eastern Europe) 2. Danube - 6,450 m³/s (largest river in Central Europe) 3. Pechora - 4,380m³/s 4. Northern Dvina - 3,330m³/s 5. Neva - 2,490 m³/s 6. Rhine - 2,315 m³/s) (largest river in Western Europe) 7. Rhône - 1,900 m³/s (largest river in France) 8. Dnieper - 1,700 m³/s 9. Po - 1,460 m³/s (largest river in Italy) 10. Vistula - 1,080 m³/s 11. Don - 890 m³/s 12. Mezen - 890 m³/s 13. Loire - 889 m³/s (longest river in France) 14. Elbe - 860 m³/s 15. Glomma - 709 m³/s (Norway's longest and most voluminous river) Iceland, Faroe Islands, Great Britain, Ireland, Balearic Islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Malta, Cyprus (adjecent to Asia), Ionian Islands, Crete, Aegean Islands, Åland Islands, Gotland, Saaremaa, Svalbard, Hinnøya, Senja, Zealand, Fyn and North Jutlandic Island. See also List of European islands by area and List of European islands by population Great European Plain, the largest landscape feature of Europe, East European Plain, Lower Danubian Plain, between Balkan Mountains and Southern Carpathians, Danubian Plain (Bulgaria), Wallachian Plain, North European Plain, North German Plain (German section), Beauce, France, Baetic Depression (Andalusian Plain), between Sierra Morena and Baetic System, British Lowlands, Central Swedish lowland, Ebro Basin (Ebro Depression), between Pyrenees and Sistema Ibérico, Meseta Central is a high plain plateau in central Spain (occupies roughly 40% of the country), between Cantabrian Mountains and Sistema Central, Pannonian Plain, between Alps, Dinaric Mountains and Carpathian Mountains, Po Valley, also known as Padan Plain, between Alps and Apennines, Swiss Central Plateau, between the Jura Mountains and Swiss Alps, Upper Rhine Plain, between Vosges Mountains and Black Forest Mountains, Upper Thracian Plain, between Balkan Mountains (Sredna Gora) and Rila-Rhodope massif, Other European coastal plains Some of Europe's major mountain ranges are: Alps, in Central Western Europe, Western Alps, Eastern Alps, Southern Alps, Northern Alps, Apennines, which run through Italy, Baetic System, Spain, Iberian Peninsula, Balkan Mountains, mainly Bulgaria, central Balkan Peninsula, Sredna Gora Mountain range in central Bulgaria, situated south of and parallel to the Balkan Mountains, Bohemian and other Variscan massifs (pre-Alpine mountain ranges) - Jura Mountains, Vosges, Palatinate Forest, Black Forest, Ore Mountains, Sudetes, Cantabrian Mountains, which run across northern Spain, Carpathian Mountains, a major mountain range in Central and Southern Europe, Southern Carpathians, Romania, Tatra Mountains, Slovakia and Poland, Caucasus Mountains, which also separate Europe and Asia, Crimean Mountains, Dinaric Alps, a mountain range in the Balkans, Pindus Mountains, Albania and Greece, Pyrenees, the natural border between France and Spain, Rila-Rhodope mountain system composed by massifs, including Pirin Mountain and Osogovo-Belasitsa mountain chain, mainly Bulgaria, Šar-Korab-Jakupica-Baba-Kajmakčalan-Olympus, Albania, Northern Macedonia and Greece, Scandinavian Mountains, a mountain range which runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula, includes the Kjølen mountains, Scottish Highlands (including the Cairngorms) in the United Kingdom., Sierra Morena, Spain, Sistema Ibérico, Spain, Sistema Central, Spain, Ural Mountains, which form the boundary between Europe and Asia Land area in different classes of European mountainous terrain (classification from UNEP-WCMC): The high mountainous areas of Europe are colder and have higher precipitation than lower areas, as is true of mountainous areas in general. Europe has less precipitation in the east than in central and western Europe. The temperature difference between summer and winter gradually increases from coastal northwest Europe to southeast inland Europe, ranging from Ireland, with a temperature difference of only 10 °C from the warmest to the coldest month, to the area north of the Caspian Sea, with a temperature difference of 40 °C. January average range from 13 °C in southern Spain and southern Greek islands to -20 °C in the northeastern part of European Russia. Desert climates are found in the European portion of Kazakhstan and South Eastern Spain. Western Europe and parts of Central Europe generally fall into the temperate maritime climate (Cfb), the southern part is mostly a Mediterranean climate (mostly Csa, smaller area with Csb), the north-central part and east into central Russia is mostly a humid continental climate (Dfb) and the northern part of the continent is a subarctic climate (Dfc). In the extreme northern part (northernmost Russia; Svalbard), bordering the Arctic Ocean, is tundra climate (Et). Mountain ranges, such as the Alps and the Carpathian mountains, have a highland climate with large variations according to altitude and latitude. The landlocked countries in Europe are: Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kosovo, Liechtenstein (which is doubly landlocked), Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Moldova, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Switzerland, Vatican City Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, and North Macedonia constitute a contiguous landlocked agglomeration of eight countries in Central Europe and the Balkans, stretching from Geneva all the way to Skopje. The other landlocked countries are "standalone" landlocked, not bordering any other such European one (the emphasis is necessary, since Kazakhstan borders Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan, thus forming a vast landlocked expanse in Central Asia) Cyprus, Iceland, Ireland, Malta, United Kingdom Luxembourg, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City, Andorra Note: Italy's capital, Rome, is the country's largest city if only the municipality (comune) is considered. Greater Milan is the largest Metropolitan Area in Italy. Brussels is considered to be the largest city of Belgium, according to the population of the Brussels-Capital Region. The population of the City of Brussels is ~175,000. Antwerp is the biggest city of the country. European grid, European Union, Western Europe, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, Southeast Europe, European Russia, Extreme points of Europe, Intermediate Region, Extreme points of the European Union, List of European ultra-prominent peaks, List of the highest European ultra-prominent peaks, List of mountain ranges, Southernmost glacial mass in Europe, Countries bordering the European Union, Extreme points of Eurasia, Extreme points of Afro-Eurasia, Geography of the European Union, Special member state territories and the European Union, Age of Discovery, Explorers of Russia Geographically, Iran is located in West Asia and borders the Caspian Sea, Persian Gulf, and Gulf of Oman. Its mountains have helped to shape both the political and the economic history of the country for several centuries. The mountains enclose several broad basins, on which major agricultural and urban settlements are located. Until the 20th century, when major highways and railroads were constructed through the mountains to connect the population centers, these basins tended to be relatively isolated from one another. Typically, one major town dominated each basin, and there were complex economic relationships between the town and the hundreds of villages that surrounded it. In the higher elevations of the mountains rimming the basins, tribally organized groups practiced transhumance, moving with their herds of sheep and goats between traditionally established summer and winter pastures. There are no major river systems in the country, and historically transportation was by means of caravans that followed routes traversing gaps and passes in the mountains. The mountains also impeded easy access to the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea. With an area of , Iran ranks seventeenth in size among the countries of the world. Iran shares its northern borders with several post-Soviet states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan. These borders extend for more than , including nearly of water along the southern shore of the Caspian Sea. Iran's western borders are with Turkey in the north and Iraq in the south, terminating at the Arvand Rud. The Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman littorals form the entire southern border. To the east lie Afghanistan on the north and Pakistan on the far south. Iran's diagonal distance from Azerbaijan in the northwest to Sistan and Baluchestan Province in the southeast is approximately . The topography of Iran consists of rugged, mountainous rims surrounding high interior basins. The main mountain chain is the Zagros Mountains, a series of parallel ridges interspersed with plains that bisect the country from northwest to southeast. Many peaks in the Zagros exceed above sea level, and in the south-central region of the country there are at least five peaks that are over . As the Zagros continue into southeastern Iran, the average elevation of the peaks declines dramatically to under . Rimming the Caspian Sea littoral is another chain of mountains, the narrow but high Alborz Mountains. Volcanic Mount Damavand, , located in the center of the Alborz, is not only the country's highest peak but also the highest mountain on the Eurasian landmass west of the Hindu Kush. The center of Iran consists of several closed basins that collectively are referred to as the Central Plateau. The average elevation of this plateau is about , but several of the mountains that tower over the plateau exceed . The eastern part of the plateau is covered by two salt deserts, the Dasht-e Kavir (Great Salt Desert) and the Dasht-e Lut. Except for some scattered oases, these deserts are uninhabited. Parts of northwestern Iran are part of the Armenian highlands, which adjoins it topographically with other parts of neighbouring Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. Iran has only two expanses of lowlands: the Khuzestan Plain in the southwest and the Caspian Sea coastal plain in the north. The former is a roughly triangular-shaped extension of the Mesopotamia plain and averages about in width. It extends for about inland, barely rising a few meters above sea level, then meets abruptly with the first foothills of the Zagros. Much of the Khuzestan plain is covered with marshes. The Caspian plain is both longer and narrower. It extends for some along the Caspian shore, but its widest point is less than , while at some places less than separate the shore from the Alborz foothills. The Persian Gulf coast south of Khuzestan and the Gulf of Oman coast have no real plains because the Zagros in these areas come right down to the shore. There are no major rivers in the country. Of the small rivers and streams, the only one that is navigable is the -long Karun, which shallow-draft boats can negotiate from Khorramshahr to Ahvaz, a distance of about . Other major rivers include the Karkheh, spanning and joining the Tigris; and the Zayandeh River, which is long. Several other permanent rivers and streams also drain into the Persian Gulf, while a number of small rivers that originate in the northwestern Zagros or Alborz drain into the Caspian Sea. On the Central Plateau, numerous rivers—most of which have dry beds for the greater part of the year—form from snow melting in the mountains during the spring and flow through permanent channels, draining eventually into salt lakes that also tend to dry up during the summer months. There is a permanent salt lake, Lake Urmia (the traditional name, also cited as Lake Urmiyeh, to which it has reverted after being called Lake Rezaiyeh under Mohammad Reza Shah), in the northwest, whose brine content is too high to support fish or most other forms of aquatic life. There are also several connected salt lakes along the Iran-Afghanistan border in the province of Baluchestan va Sistan. Iran has a variable climate. In the northwest, winters are cold with heavy snowfall and subfreezing temperatures. Spring and fall are relatively mild, while summers are dry and hot. In the south, winters are mild and the summers are very hot, having average daily temperatures in July exceeding . On the Khuzestan Plain, summer heat is accompanied by high humidity. In general, Iran has a continental climate in which most of the relatively scant annual precipitation falls from October through April. In most of the country, yearly precipitation averages . The major exceptions are the higher mountain valleys of the Zagros and the Caspian coastal plain, where precipitation averages at least and usually in the form of snow. In the western part of the Caspian, rainfall exceeds annually and is distributed relatively evenly throughout the year. This contrasts with some basins of the Central Plateau that receive ten centimeters or less of precipitation. Iran is considered colder than neighboring countries such as Turkey and Armenia, due to its higher elevation. 7% of the country is forested. The most extensive growths are found on the mountain slopes rising from the Caspian Sea, with stands of oak, ash, elm, cypress, and other valuable trees. On the plateau proper, areas of scrub oak appear on the best-watered mountain slopes, and villagers cultivate orchards and grow the plane tree, poplar, willow, walnut, beech, maple, and mulberry. Wild plants and shrubs spring from the barren land in the spring and afford pasturage, but the summer sun burns them away. According to FAO reports, the major types of forests that exist in Iran and their respective areas are: 1. Caspian forests of the northern districts – 2. Limestone mountainous forests in the northeastern districts (Juniperus forests) – 3. Pistachio forests in the eastern, southern and southeastern districts – 4. Oak forests in the central and western districts – 5. Shrubs of the Kavir (desert) districts in the central and northeastern part of the country – 6. Sub-tropical forests of the southern coast, like the Hara forests – Wildlife of Iran is diverse and composed of several animal species including bears, gazelles, wild pigs, wolves, jackals, panthers, Eurasian lynx, and foxes. Domestic animals include, sheep, goats, cattle, horses, water buffalo, donkeys, and camels. The pheasant, partridge, stork, eagles and falcon are also native to Iran. As of 2001, 20 of Iran's mammal species and 14 bird species are endangered. Among them are the Baluchistan bear (Ursus thibetanus gedrosianus), a subspecies of Asian black bear, Persian fallow deer, Siberian crane, hawksbill turtle, green turtle, Oxus cobra, Latifi's viper, dugong and dolphins. The Asiatic cheetah is a critically endangered species which is extinct elsewhere and now can only be found in central to northeastern parts of Iran. Iran lost all its Asiatic lions and Caspian tigers by the earlier part of the 20th century. The Syrian wild ass has become extinct. Syrian brown bears in the mountains, wild sheep and goats, gazelles, Persian onagers, wild pigs, Persian leopards, and foxes abound. Domestic animals include sheep, goats, cattle, horses, water buffalo, donkeys, and camels. The pheasant, partridge, stork, and falcon are native to Iran. The Persian leopard is said to be the largest of all the subspecies of leopards in the world. The main range of this species in Iran closely overlaps with that of bezoar ibex. Hence, it is found throughout Alborz and Zagros mountain ranges, as well as smaller ranges within the Iranian plateau. The leopard population is very sparse, due to loss of habitat, loss of natural prey, and population fragmentation. Apart from bezoar ibex, wild sheep, boar, deer, (either Caspian red deer or roe deer), and domestic animals constitute leopards' diet in Iran. Iran's bio-diversity ranks 13th in the world. There are 272 conservation areas around Iran for a total of 17 million hectares under the supervision of the Department of Environment (Iran), variously named national parks, protected areas, and natural wildlife refuges, all meant to protect the genetic resources of the country. There are only 2,617 rangers and 430 environmental monitoring units engaged in protecting these vast areas, which amounts to 6,500 hectares to cover for each ranger. Natural hazards: periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes along western border and in the northeast Environment – current issues: air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water in some areas; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur arable land: 10.87% permanent crops: 1.19% other: 87.93% (2012 est.) Irrigated land: Total renewable water resources: 137 km (2011) Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): total: 93.3 km/yr (7%/1%/92%) per capita: 1,306 m/yr (2004) Area: total: land: water: Land boundaries: total: border countries: Afghanistan , Armenia , Azerbaijan-proper , Azerbaijan-Nakhchivan exclave , Iraq , Pakistan , Turkey , Turkmenistan . Maritime boundaries: Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman Coastline: note: Iran also borders the Caspian Sea, for Maritime claims: territorial sea: contiguous zone: exclusive economic zone: continental shelf: natural prolongation Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caspian Sea highest point: Mount Damavand Iran is currently engaged in international territorial disputes with several neighbouring countries. The country protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed tributaries to the Helmand River in periods of drought. The lack of a maritime boundary in the Persian Gulf with Iraq also prompts jurisdictional disputes beyond the mouth of the Arvand Rud. Iran and the United Arab Emirates have a territorial dispute over the Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Abu Musa islands, which are administered by Iran. Iran currently insists on dividing the Caspian Sea resources equally among the five littoral states, after the Russian-backed former soviet breakaway republics refused to respect the 50-50 agreements between Iran and the Soviet Union (despite their international obligation). Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan continue to claim territorial waters thus regarding the Caspian Sea as open international body of water, dismissing its geographically lake nature. Armenian Highlands, Caspian Hyrcanian mixed forests, Caspian Sea, Elburz Range forest steppe, International rankings of Iran, List of castles in Iran, List of caves in Iran, List of earthquakes in Iran, List of Iranian four-thousanders, Provinces of Iran, Counties of Iran, List of cities in Iran by province, List of largest cities of Iran, Ramsar, Mazandaran: Highest natural radioactivity in the world, Strait of Hormuz Geography of Persia, Encyclopædia Iranica:, i. Evolution of geographical knowledge., ii. Human geography., iii. Political geography., iv. Cartography of Persia., Iran in Maps – BBC (population, land, infrastructure), Iran Geography, Flora of Iran by Pr Ahmad GHAHREMAN, Persia (Iran), Afghanistan and Baluchistan is a map from 1897

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Fifty Shades of Grey is a 2015 American erotic romantic drama film directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, with a screenplay by Kelly Marcel. The film is based on E. L. James’ 2011 novel of the same name and stars Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele, a college graduate who begins a sadomasochistic relationship with young business magnate Christian Grey, played by Jamie Dornan. The film premiered at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival on February 11, 2015 and was released on February 13, 2015, by Universal Pictures and Focus Features. Despite receiving generally negative reviews, it was an immediate box office success, breaking numerous box office records and earning over US$570 million worldwide. The film was the most awarded at the 36th Golden Raspberry Awards, winning five of six nominations, including Worst Picture (tied with Fantastic Four) and both leading roles. In contrast, Ellie Goulding's single "Love Me like You Do" was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. It is the first film in the Fifty Shades film trilogy and was followed by two sequels, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, released in 2017 and 2018 respectively. 21-year-old Anastasia "Ana" Steele is an English literature major at Washington State University’s satellite campus near Vancouver, Washington. When her roommate, Kate Kavanagh, becomes ill and is unable to interview Christian Grey, a 27-year-old billionaire entrepreneur, for the college newspaper, Ana agrees to go in her place. At Christian's Seattle headquarters called Grey House, Ana stumbles her way through the meeting. Christian, who is that year's WSU commencement speaker, takes an interest in her; soon after, he visits the hardware store where Ana works, and offers to do a photo shoot to accompany the article for which Ana had interviewed him. Christian invites Ana for coffee, but leaves abruptly after Ana confesses to being a romantic, saying he is not the man for her. Christian later sends Ana first edition copies of two Thomas Hardy novels, including Tess of the d'Urbervilles, as a gift, with a quote from the latter book, about the dangers of relationships, on an accompanying card. Ana and her friends celebrate graduation at a local bar. After drinking too much, Ana spontaneously calls Christian, saying she is returning the books, and berating his behavior towards her. Christian goes to the bar to find Ana, who then passes out. She wakes up the next morning in Christian's hotel room, but is relieved to find that they were not intimate. Ana and Christian begin seeing each other, though he insists that she sign a non-disclosure agreement preventing her from revealing details about their dalliance. Christian explains that he only has interrelations involving bondage that is clearly defined in a signed contract. Ana reveals that she is a virgin. While considering the agreement and negotiating her own terms, and after visiting his "playroom", a room stocked with a variety of BDSM toys, furniture, and gear, she and Christian have sex. Ana also meets Christian’s mom. After she leaves, Ana asks Christian how many girls had lived in his house and she requests him to drop her home. Christian bestows Ana with gifts and favors, such as a new car and a laptop. After Ana and Kate move to Seattle, Ana continues seeing Christian. During dinner at Christian's parents, Ana suddenly mentions she is leaving the next day to visit her mother in Georgia. Later, Christian becomes frustrated when Ana says that she wants more than the one-sided relationship he proposes. She is shocked when Christian unexpectedly arrives in Georgia; he takes her flying but leaves soon afterward, to tend to an emergency in Seattle. After returning home, Ana continues seeing Christian, who wants further sexual experimentation. Ana initially consents, but Christian keeps emotionally distant, upsetting her. While still considering the contract, and in an effort to understand Christian psychologically, Ana asks him to demonstrate how he would "punish" her for rule breaking. Christian whips Ana's buttocks with a belt. Upset and disgusted, Ana breaks up with Christian after concluding that he is wrong for her and his practices border on being deviant and excessive. Dakota Johnson as Anastasia "Ana" Steele, a 21-year-old English Literature student attending Washington State University., Jamie Dornan as Christian Grey, a 27-year-old billionaire, entrepreneur, and CEO of Grey Enterprises Holdings Inc., Eloise Mumford as Katherine "Kate" Kavanagh, Anastasia's best friend/roommate who begins a relationship with Christian's older brother, Elliot Grey., Jennifer Ehle as Carla Wilks, Anastasia's mother., Marcia Gay Harden as Dr. Grace Trevelyan-Grey, Christian Grey's adoptive mother., Victor Rasuk as Jose Rodriguez, one of Anastasia's close friends., Luke Grimes as Elliot Grey, Christian's adopted older brother., Rita Ora as Mia Grey, Christian's adopted younger sister., Max Martini as Jason Taylor, Christian's bodyguard and head of his security., Callum Keith Rennie as Ray Steele, Anastasia's father., Andrew Airlie as Carrick Grey, Christian's adoptive father., Dylan Neal as Bob Adams, Anastasia's stepfather., Anthony Konechny as Paul Clayton, the brother of the owner of Clayton's Hardware Store., Emily Fonda as Martina, Rachel Skarsten as Andrea, Christian's assistant By early 2013, several Hollywood studios were keen to obtain film rights to The New York Times bestselling Fifty Shades trilogy of novels. Warner Bros., Sony, Paramount, Universal, and Mark Wahlberg's production company submitted bids for the film rights. Universal Pictures and Focus Features secured the rights to the trilogy in March 2013. Author James sought to retain some control during the movie's creative process. James chose The Social Network producers Michael De Luca and Dana Brunetti to produce the film. Although American Psycho writer Bret Easton Ellis publicly expressed his desire to write the screenplay for Fifty Shades of Grey, Kelly Marcel, screenwriter of Saving Mr. Banks, was hired for the job. Patrick Marber was brought in by Taylor-Wood to polish the screenplay, specifically to do some "character work". Universal hired Mark Bomback for script doctoring. Mark Bridges served as the costume designer. Entertainment Weekly estimated the film's budget as "$40 million-or-so". By May 9, 2013, the studio was considering Joe Wright to direct, but this proved unworkable due to Wright's schedule. Other directors who had been under consideration included Patty Jenkins, Bill Condon, Bennett Miller, and Steven Soderbergh. In June 2013, E. L. James announced Sam Taylor-Johnson would direct the film adaptation. Johnson was paid over US$2 million for directing the film. 9½ Weeks, Last Tango in Paris, and Blue Is the Warmest Colour were all cited by Taylor-Johnson as inspirations for the film. In an interview in June 2017, Taylor-Johnson cited difficulties working with author E. L. James, causing her to leave the series. She said: "I can never say I regret it because that would just finish me off. With the benefit of hindsight would I go through it again? Of course I wouldn't. I'd be mad." Bret Easton Ellis stated that Robert Pattinson had been James' first choice for the role of Christian Grey, but James felt that casting Pattinson and his Twilight co-star Kristen Stewart in the film would be "weird". Ian Somerhalder and Chace Crawford both expressed interest in the role of Christian. Somerhalder later admitted if he had been considered, the filming process would ultimately have conflicted with his shooting schedule for The CW's series The Vampire Diaries. On September 2, 2013, James revealed that Charlie Hunnam and Dakota Johnson had been cast as Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele, respectively. The short list of other actresses considered for the role of Anastasia included Alicia Vikander, Imogen Poots, Elizabeth Olsen, Shailene Woodley, and Felicity Jones. Keeley Hazell auditioned for an unspecified role. Lucy Hale also auditioned for the film. Emilia Clarke was also offered the role of Anastasia but turned down the part because of the nudity required. Taylor-Johnson would give every actress who auditioned for the role of Anastasia four pages to read of a monologue from Ingmar Bergman's Persona. The studio originally wanted Ryan Gosling for Christian, but he was not interested in the role. Garrett Hedlund was also considered, but he could not connect with the character. Stephen Amell said he would not have wanted to play the role of Grey because "I actually didn't find him to be that interesting ... nothing about Christian Grey really spoke to me." Hunnam initially turned down the role of Christian but later reconsidered it, following a meeting with studio heads. Hunnam said of the audition process: "I felt really intrigued and excited about it so I went and read the first book to get a clearer idea of who this character was, and I felt even more excited at the prospect of bringing him to life. We [Taylor-Johnson and I] kind of both suggested I do a reading with Dakota, who was her favorite, and as soon as we got in the room and I started reading with Dakota I knew that I definitely wanted to do it. There's just like a tangible chemistry between us. It felt exciting and fun and weird and compelling." In response to the negative reaction that the casting drew from fans, producer Dana Brunetti said: "There is a lot that goes into casting that isn't just looks. Talent, availability, their desire to do it, chemistry with other actor, etc. So if your favorite wasn't cast, then it is most likely due to something on that list. Keep that in mind while hating and keep perspective." During October 2013, actress Jennifer Ehle was in talks for the role of Anastasia's mother Carla. On October 12, 2013, Universal Pictures announced that Hunnam had exited the film due to conflicts with the schedule of his FX series Sons of Anarchy. Alexander Skarsgård, Jamie Dornan, Theo James, François Arnaud, Scott Eastwood, Luke Bracey, and Billy Magnussen were at the top of the list to replace Hunnam as Christian Grey. Finally, on October 23, 2013, Dornan was cast as Christian Grey. On October 31, 2013, Victor Rasuk was cast as José Rodriguez, Jr. On November 22, 2013, Eloise Mumford was cast as Kate Kavanagh. On December 2, 2013, singer Rita Ora was cast as Christian's younger sister Mia. Ora originally wanted to work on the soundtrack. On December 3, 2013, Marcia Gay Harden was cast as Christian's mother, Grace. In September, filming was scheduled to start on November 5, 2013, in Vancouver, British Columbia. The following month, producer Michael De Luca announced filming would begin on November 13, 2013. Principal photography was again delayed and eventually started on December 1, 2013. Scenes were filmed in the Gastown district of Vancouver. Bentall 5 was used as the Grey Enterprises building. The University of British Columbia serves as Washington State University Vancouver, from which Ana graduates. The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver was used as the Heathman Hotel. The film was also shot at the North Shore Studios. The production officially ended on February 21, 2014. Reshoots involving scenes between Dornan and Johnson took place in Vancouver during the week of October 13, 2014. The film was shot under the working title "The Adventures of Max and Banks." Uncredited screenwriter Mark Bomback said he "had never been on a project with that much secrecy around it...The set was on lockdown". The film was the last project worked on by prolific Academy Award- winning editor Anne V. Coates In an alternative ending, both Ana and Christian experience flashbacks. Christian jogs in the rain, while Ana sobs in her apartment. Christian encounters a gift Ana gave him with the note: "This reminded me of a happy time. —Ana". James said that the film's soundtrack would be released on February 10, 2015. The first single, "Earned It", by The Weeknd, was released on December 24, 2014. On January 7, 2015, the second single, "Love Me like You Do" by Ellie Goulding was released, later reaching the top three on the Billboard Hot 100, and becoming a hit for the soundtrack. A promotional single, "Salted Wound" by Australian recording artist Sia, was released on January 27, 2015. To date, the soundtrack has sold 516,000 copies in the United States. In February 2013, Universal chairman Adam Fogelson said the film "could be ready to release ... as early as next summer." The studio initially announced an August 1, 2014, release. However, in November 2013, it was pushed back to February 13, 2015, in time for Valentine's Day. Fifty Shades of Grey was first screened at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival on February 11, 2015. The film was released in 75 IMAX screens across the US on February 13, 2015. On January 25, 2014, more than a year prior to release, Universal displayed posters with the phrase, "Mr. Grey will see you now", in five locations across the United States. On July 9, 2014, the book's author, E. L. James, said on Twitter that the film's trailer would be released on July 24, 2014. Beyoncé debuted a teaser for the trailer on her Instagram account five days before the trailer's release. On July 24, Dornan and Johnson were on The Today Show to present part of the trailer appropriate for morning television; the full trailer, which contained more racy scenes, was released later the same day on the internet (200 days before its initial theatrical release). The trailer featured a new version of "Crazy in Love" by Beyoncé, which was scored and arranged by her frequent collaborator Boots. The trailer was viewed 36.4 million times in the week after its July 24 release. This made it the most viewed trailer on YouTube in 2014, until it was surpassed in October by the trailer for . However, in mid-December the trailer reached 93 million views and was again the most viewed of 2014. The trailer accumulated over 100 million views in its first week of release through different channels and websites, becoming the biggest trailer ever released in history. By February 2015, the trailer had been viewed more than 193 million times on YouTube alone. And by late February, Fifty Shades of Grey related material garnered over 329 million views including 113 million views for its official trailer. A second trailer was released on November 13, 2014. A third trailer aired during Super Bowl XLIX, on February 1, 2015. The film was promoted through an ad campaign that asked people whether they were "curious". Nick Carpou, Universal's president of domestic distribution, said: "Our campaign gave people permission to see the film." "Valentines is a big deal for couples and a great relationship event, and the date with the long Presidents Day weekend created a perfect storm for us. This date positioned us to take full advantage of the romance angle, which is how we sold the film in our marketing campaign," he said. There was initial speculation that the film could receive an NC-17 rating in the United States. Studios typically steer away from the adults-only rating due to the impact the classification has on a film's commercial viability, with some theater chains refusing to exhibit NC-17-rated films. While screenwriter Marcel said she expected the film to be NC-17-rated, producer De Luca anticipated the less restrictive R rating. On January 5, 2015, the MPAA did give the film an R rating, basing its decision on "strong sexual content including dialogue, some unusual behavior and graphic nudity, and language." On January 30, in Australia, the film was rated MA15+ by the ACB for "strong sex scenes, sexual themes and nudity". On February 2, 2015, the British BBFC classified the film an 18 certificate, mentioning "strong sex". In Canada, Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia, the film was rated at 18A by the OFRB, MFCB, AFR, and BCFCO, respectively, due to its "occasional upsetting or disturbing scenes, and partial or full nudity in a brief sexual situation." In Quebec, the Régie du cinéma rated the movie under the 16+ category for its eroticism. In France, the film earned a 12 rating. In Lebanon, the film earned an NC-21 rating. In Argentina, the Advisory Commission of Cinematographic Exhibition (the rating arm of the INCAA) rated the film SAM16/R. Anti- pornography watchdog group Morality in Media argued that the film's R rating "severely undermines the violent themes in the film and does not adequately inform parents and patrons of the film's content", and that the MPAA was encouraging sexual violence by letting the film by without an NC-17 rating. The film was scheduled for a February 12, 2015, release in Malaysia, but it was denied a certificate by the Malaysian Film Censorship Board (LPF) for its "unnatural" and "sadistic" content. The LPF chairman, Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid, said Fifty Shades was "more pornography than a movie." The film was also banned in Indonesia, Kenya, Russia's North Caucasus, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, and India. The film was released in Nigeria for a week, before being removed from cinemas by the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB). Studios will not pursue a theatrical release in China. The sex scenes were censored after protests from various religious groups in the Philippines, and as a result it is in limited release in that country with an R-18 rating from the MTRCB. A similarly cut version was released in Zimbabwe. Roughly 20 minutes were cut from the film for screening in Vietnam, leaving no sex scenes. The scene in which Ana is beaten with a belt is skipped entirely. On February 2, in Michigan, a man petitioned to halt the film's release at a local Celebration! Cinema. Despite the man's efforts, the president of the cinemas declined to cancel the release of the film. He said, "We've been in business for 70 years and people often times object to content, and it's not our job to censor the content of a widespread movie. It's not in our best interest. It's not in the community's best interest." The film sold 3,000 tickets before the release and was expected to sell a total of 10,000 tickets. Thomas Williams of the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture commented on the release of the film in the United States on Valentine's Day, stating "The irony of Universal Pictures' decision to release its bondage-erotica film Fifty Shades of Grey on the day dedicated to honoring a Christian martyr has not gone unnoticed to many observers, who seem to find the choice unclassy at best." Fifty Shades of Grey was released via DVD and Blu-ray on May 8, 2015. The Blu- ray edition features an unrated cut of the film; the version includes an additional three minutes of footage, the bulk of which are in the form of an alternative ending. Upon its release on home media in the U.S., the film topped both the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert chart, which tracks combined Blu-ray Disc and DVD sales, as well as the Blu-ray Disc sales chart for two consecutive weeks up to the week ending May 17, 2015. Fifty Shades of Grey grossed US$166.2 million in the US and Canada and US$404.8 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of US$571 million against a budget of US$40 million. It is currently the fourth-highest-grossing film directed by a woman (behind Mamma Mia!, Kung Fu Panda 2, and Wonder Woman), and at the time of the end of its theatrical run, it was the fourth- highest-grossing R-rated film of all time (behind The Hangover Part II, The Passion of the Christ, and The Matrix Reloaded). Deadline Hollywood calculated the net profit of the film to be US$256.55 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues for the film. Tickets went on sale in the United States from January 11, 2015. According to ticket-selling site Fandango, Fifty Shades of Grey is the fastest-selling R-rated title in the site's 15-year history, surpassing Sex and the City 2. It also had the biggest first week of ticket sales on Fandango for a non-sequel film, surpassing 2012's The Hunger Games. It is fourth overall on Fandango's list of top advance ticket sales behind , Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, and The Hunger Games. The demand prompted US theater owners to add new showtimes. Weeks before the film's release, several box office analysts suggested as much as a US$60 million domestic four-day opening while Box Office Mojo reported that a US$100 million opening could be possible. Outside the United States, Fifty Shades of Grey pre-sold 4.5 million tickets in 39 markets. In the UK, it sold £1.3 million (US$1.9 million) worth of tickets a week before release. On release, it set several records at the box office, including: In the US and Canada, it is the highest-grossing sex film, the seventeenth highest-grossing film of 2015, and the fourth-highest-grossing romantic film of all time. It opened in the US and Canada simultaneously with on Thursday, February 12, 2015, across 2,830 theaters and was widened to 3,646 theaters the next day making it the widest R-rated opening (surpassed by ), and the fourth- widest R-rated release of all time. It earned US$8.6 million from Thursday night previews which is the second-highest late-night gross for a film released in February (behind Deadpool) and the third-highest for an R-rated film (behind Deadpool and The Hangover Part II). The film topped the box office on its opening day grossing US$30.2 million (including Thursday previews) from 3,646 theaters setting a record for highest February opening day (previously held by The Passion of the Christ) and fourth-highest overall among R-rated films. During its traditional three-day opening the film opened at No. 1 at the box office earning US$85.1 million, setting records for the biggest opening weekend for a film released in February (a record previously held by The Passion of the Christ). Women comprised 82% of the total audiences during its opening day, and 68% on Valentine's Day. Revenue from the second weekend dropped massively by 73.9% to US$22.25 million, which is the second- biggest drop for a 3,000-plus-screen release (only behind Friday the 13ths 80.4% drop) and the biggest for a 3,500-plus-screen release. It is just the eighth film to open on more than 3,000 screens to drop by 70% or more. The film topped the box office for two consecutive weekends before falling to No. 4 in its third weekend while Focus took the top spot. Outside the US and Canada, box office analysts were predicting as much as US$158 million opening. It opened Wednesday, February 11, 2015, in 4 countries, earning US$3.7 million. It opened in 34 more countries on February 12, earning US$28.6 million in two days. The film set opening-day records for Universal Pictures in 25 markets and opening day records for an R-rated film in 34 territories. Through Sunday, February 15, it earned an opening-weekend total of US$156 million from 58 countries from 10,979 screens (US$173.6 million through Monday) where it opened at No. 1 in 54 of the 58 countries, marking the biggest overseas opening for an R-rated film, the fourth-biggest of 2015, and Universal's third-biggest overseas opening weekend ever. The film set an all-time opening record in 13 markets, Universal's biggest opening weekend ever in 30 markets and biggest opening for any R-rated film in 31 markets. The biggest opener outside of the United States was witnessed in the UK, Ireland and Malta, where it earned £13.55 million (US$20.8 million) in its opening weekend, which is the biggest debut ever for an 18-rated film and the second-biggest for a non-sequel film (behind I Am Legend). In just 10 days of release it became the highest-grossing 18-rated film of all time. It topped the UK box office for two consecutive weekends. Other high openings include Germany (US$14.1 million), France (US$12.3 million), Russia (US$11 million), Italy (US$10.1 million), Spain (US$8.7 million), Brazil (US$8.3 million), Mexico (US$8.1 million), Australia (US$8 million). In Japan, the film was unsuccessful opening at No. 5 with $682,000 but falling out of the top 10 the following week. The Hollywood Reporter cited out possible reasons for the film's failure, attributing it to the "delayed release of the new Japanese- language editions of the books, poor timing for the film release and an R-15, re-edit blurring out parts of the sex scenes." It topped the box office outside of the US for three consecutive weekends until it was overtaken by Warner Bros.' Jupiter Ascending in its fourth weekend. It became Universal Pictures' highest-grossing R-rated film of all time overseas (breaking Teds record), Universal Pictures' highest-grossing film in 14 countries, and Universal Pictures' eighth-highest-grossing film overseas. In total earnings, its largest markets overseas are the UK, Ireland and Malta (US$52.5 million), Germany (US$43.7 million), Brazil (US$31.3 million), France (US$29.5 million), and Spain (US$22.6 million). Fifty Shades of Grey received generally negative reviews, with criticism of its screenplay, pacing and Dornan's acting; however, some critics noted it as an improvement over the book, and others praised the cinematography and set design. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 25% based on 277 reviews, with an average rating of 4.16/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "While creatively better endowed than its print counterpart, Fifty Shades of Grey is a less than satisfying experience on the screen." Metacritic gave the film a score of 46 out of 100, based on reviews from 46 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". In CinemaScore polls conducted during the opening weekend, cinema audiences gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale. Claudia Puig of USA Today wrote that "the dialogue is laughable, the pacing is sluggish and the performances are one-note." Moira Macdonald of The Seattle Times wrote: "Fifty Shades of Grey the movie, for the record, is not quite as bad as Fifty Shades of Grey the book. But that's not saying much". We Got This Covered critic Isaac Feldberg gave the film one and a half stars out of five and wrote that it "feels like two, distinct films grappling for dominance over the screen: one a sensual and stylish romance, and the other a numbingly explicit Harlequin bodice-ripper brought to life. Regrettably, the latter and lesser of the two ends up on top". The Guardian lead film critic Peter Bradshaw gave the film one star out of five, calling it "the most purely tasteful and softcore depiction of sadomasochism in cinema history" with "strictly daytime soap" performances. A. O. Scott of The New York Times called the movie "terrible", but wrote that "it might nonetheless be a movie that feels good to see, whether you squirm or giggle or roll your eyes or just sit still and take your punishment." In a positive review for The Daily Telegraph, Robbie Collin called the film "sexy, funny and self-aware in every way the original book isn't." Elizabeth Weitzman of New York's Daily News praised the directing, screenplay, and Johnson's performance, but called Dornan's performance, the leads' chemistry, and the supporting cast "underused". She praised the film for honoring the essence of its source and the director's way of balancing "atmosphere with action". In The Guardian, Jordan Hoffmann awarded the film three out of five stars, writing, "this big screen adaptation still manages to be about people, and even a little bit sweet", and that the sex scenes "are there to advance the plot, and only the most buttoned-up prude will be scandalised." Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B−, writing: "This perfectly normal way of consuming erotica suggests that the movie Fifty Shades of Grey will work better as home entertainment, when each viewer can race past the blah-blah about how well Christian plays the piano and pause on the fleeting image of the man minus his pants." In The Sydney Morning Herald, Timothy Laurie and Jessica Kean argue that "the film provides a language for decision-making around violence more developed than most Hollywood fodder", and that "film fleshes out an otherwise legalistic concept like 'consent' into a living, breathing, and at times, uncomfortable interpersonal experience. It dramatises the dangers of unequal negotiation and the practical complexity of identifying one's limits and having them respected." Various critics noted similarities between Fifty Shades of Grey and Adrian Lyne's 9½ Weeks (1986). Both films are literary adaptations, centering on a sadomasochistic affair. In June 2012, the film company Smash Pictures announced its intent to film a pornographic version of the Fifty Shades trilogy, entitled Fifty Shades of Grey: An XXX Adaptation. A release date of January 10, 2013 was announced. In November 2012, Universal, which had secured the Fifty Shades film rights, filed a lawsuit against Smash Pictures, stating that the film violated its copyright in that it was not filmed as a parody adaptation but "copies without reservation from the unique expressive elements of the Fifty Shades trilogy, progressing through the events of Fifty Shades of Grey and into the second book, Fifty Shades Darker". The lawsuit asked for an injunction, for the profits from all sales of the film, as well as damages, saying that "a quickly and cheaply produced pornographic work [...] is likely to cause Plaintiffs irreparable harm by poisoning public perception of the Fifty Shades Trilogy and the forthcoming Universal films." Smash Pictures responded to the lawsuit by issuing a counterclaim and requesting a continuance, stating that "much or all" of the Fifty Shades material was part of the public domain because it was originally published in various venues as a fan fiction based on the Twilight series. A lawyer for Smash Pictures further commented that the federal copyright registrations for the books were "invalid and unenforceable" and that the film "did not violate copyright or trademark laws". The lawsuit was eventually settled out of court for an undisclosed sum and Smash Pictures agreed to stop any further production or promotion of the film. In April 2015, The Hollywood Reporter reported that E. L. James' husband, Niall Leonard, was enlisted to write the script for the film's sequel. In the same month, at the 2015 Universal CinemaCon in Las Vegas, Universal announced the release dates of the sequels, with Fifty Shades Darker being released on February 10, 2017, and Fifty Shades Freed was released on February 9, 2018. However, the sequels did not see Sam Taylor-Johnson returning as director. On August 20, 2015, the U.S. House of Cards director James Foley was a frontrunner to direct the sequel. In November 2015, Universal Studios announced that both films will be shot back-to-back. A spoof version of the film, Fifty Shades of Black, was released on January 29, 2016, in North America. Marlon Wayans and Rick Alvarez wrote the script, in which Wayans stars as Christian Black. The film was distributed by SquareOne Entertainment in Germany and Open Road Films in the United States; IM Global produce and finance it, as well as handling international releases. Kali Hawk parodied the role of Anastasia Steele, with supporting cast including Affion Crockett, Mike Epps, Jane Seymour, and Fred Willard. It was released theatrically on January 29, 2016 and described as less funny "than the unintentionally-funny film it's trying to lampoon." Sex in film, Wild Orchid (film), 1989 Fifty Shades Freed is the third and final installment of the erotic romance Fifty Shades Trilogy by British author E. L. James. After accepting entrepreneur CEO Christian Grey's proposal in Fifty Shades Darker, Anastasia Steele must adjust not only to married life but to her new husband's wealthy lifestyle and controlling nature. The paperback edition was first published in April 2012. Anastasia 'Ana' Steele and Christian Grey return to Seattle after a long honeymoon. Christian is upset to find that Ana has kept her maiden name, Steele, at work. After some resistance, Ana relents and changes her name at work to Grey after realizing how important it is to Christian. As a belated wedding gift, Christian gives Seattle Independent Publishing to Ana, who plans to rename it Grey Publishing. While Christian is on a business trip in New York, Anastasia goes out for a drink with longtime friend, Kate Kavanagh, doing so against Christian's wishes. Returning home, she finds that her former boss, Jack Hyde, who was fired for attempting to sexually assault Ana, has been apprehended by the security staff. Duct tape is found in his pocket and in his van there are tranquilizers and a ransom note—all indications that he intended to kidnap her. Jack is arrested. Angry with Ana for defying him, Christian cuts short his New York business trip and returns to Seattle. Furious that Ana reneged on her promise to have Kate over rather than go out, an upset Christian sulks while Ana sleeps. Eventually, the two argue and Ana berates him for being overly controlling and possessive. She demands more freedom and access to her friends. Christian finally relents after realizing how much Ana's friends mean to her and that Ana did the right thing by staying with Kate rather than at home. Soon after, Christian surprises her with a trip to Aspen, with Kate, Elliot, Mia, and Kate's brother, Ethan. While there, Elliot proposes to Kate, and she accepts. Ana's step-father, Ray, is in a medically-induced coma after a car accident. When he awakens a few days later, Ana and Christian arrange to move him to Seattle to recover. It is also Ana's birthday weekend, and Christian surprises her with all her family and friends at a dinner. He gives her a charm bracelet with the charms representing all their "firsts" including an ice cream cone to represent their "vanilla" relationship. Christian also gifts her with an Audi R8. Soon after, Ana learns she is pregnant. Christian angrily accuses her of getting pregnant on purpose and leaves. He returns early the next morning drunk, claiming Ana will choose the baby - whom he believes to be a boy - over him. Ana says it could be a girl, though Christian refuses to accept that due to his sexist and chauvinistic nature. Ana becomes furious when she discovers a text message on Christian's phone from Elena Lincoln, the woman who seduced him when he was fifteen and introduced him to the BDSM lifestyle. The message indicates they met for a drink. The next two mornings, Anastasia and Christian barely speak to each other: Christian is angry over the unplanned pregnancy; Anastasia is upset about his late-night encounter with Elena, though Christian insists their relationship is long-since over. When Christian is away on a business for a few days, Ana receives a call from Jack Hyde. He has kidnapped Mia Grey and demands $5 million in two hours. He warns Ana not to tell anyone or he will kill Mia. Anastasia feigns illness and returns home to escape her bodyguard, Sawyer. She takes a gun and goes to the bank. While collecting the money, the suspicious bank manager calls Christian, who believes Ana is leaving him. To protect Mia's life, Ana lies to Christian, saying she is leaving him to raise the baby alone. Hyde instructs Ana to leave her phone but she tricks him by taking the bank manager's phone instead and dropping it in the trash. She leaves via the back entrance to a waiting car, shocked that Hyde's accomplice is Elizabeth Morgan, her co-worker. When handing over the money, Hyde tries to kill Ana out of vengeance for losing his job, causing Elizabeth to feel guilty for being involved. Angered by his behavior and his hurting Ana, she and Hyde argue. On the ground and bruised, Ana shoots Hyde in the leg. When Ana starts to black out she hears Christian calling her name. Ana wakes three days later in the hospital with Christian at her side. Though he is angry at Ana's recklessness and still anxious about fatherhood, he realizes how important their baby is to her, and they reconcile. Ana returns home the next day. Christian learns from his private investigator, Welch, that he and Hyde had the same foster family. He tells Ana about how he met and was seduced by Elena. By introducing him to the world of BDSM, Elena helped Christian learn to take control of his life. If she had not intervened, he would still be plagued with horrible memories of his mother and would never have been able to control his life. Ana feels guilty for her behavior when he explains that he had been looking for his psychiatrist, Dr. Flynn, because he needed help. When he could not contact Flynn, Christian wound up at Elena's salon needing someone to talk to about his problems. Elena happened to be at the salon while she was closing. She knew Christian and Ana had a fight about the pregnancy. Elena took him to her favorite bar for a drink and help him relax. Although she made a pass at him, Elena realized that Christian loved Ana and finally agrees to leave on good terms. He reassures her that she did the right thing to call him out for his behavior because Dr. Flynn had been right about him and that he still needs a lot of growing up to do. The next day, a furious Christian discovers from Welsh that Elena's ex-husband, Eric Lincoln, has bailed Jack from jail out of spite for her affair with Christian. Christian tells Ana that after learning about the affair, Eric severely beat Elena and divorced her. Despite Christian's urging, Elena refused to press charges against Eric out of guilt for the affair. Christian retaliated by buying out Eric Lincoln's logging company to sell it off. It is also learned Elizabeth confessed to police that she was blackmailed by Hyde to be his accomplice. (However, her ultimate fate remains a mystery.) Two years later, Ana and Christian have a son named Theodore Raymond Grey, nicknamed Teddy, and Ana is six months pregnant with their second child, a daughter whom they decide to name Phoebe. Elliot and Kate have married and have a two-month-old daughter named Ava. At the end, after having BDSM sex, Ana and Christian are getting ready to celebrate Teddy's second birthday with their family and friends. Fifty Shades Freed entered The New York Times Best Seller list at number three. In the UK the novel sold over two million copies. Sam Taylor-Johnson, the director of the film adaptation of the first installment of the book series, Fifty Shades of Grey, confirmed on 6 February 2015 that both Fifty Shades Freed and the second book in the trilogy, Fifty Shades Darker, would also be adapted for film. In November 2015, Universal Studios announced that both films would be shot back-to-back with principal photography scheduled to commence in early 2016. The film was scheduled to be released on 9 February 2018. Official author page Fifty Shades of Black is a 2016 American comedy film directed by Michael Tiddes and starring Marlon Wayans, who also serves as co-writer and co- producer. A parody of the 2015 erotic romantic drama film Fifty Shades of Grey, the film co-stars Kali Hawk, Affion Crockett, Jane Seymour, Andrew Bachelor, Florence Henderson, Jenny Zigrino, Fred Willard and Mike Epps. The film was released theatrically on January 29, 2016 to near universally negative reviews. Despite this, it was a box office success, grossing $22 million worldwide from a $5 million budget. It was also Florence Henderson's last film before her death on November 24, 2016, which was 10 months after the film was released. Christian Black introduces shy college student Hannah Steale to the world of "romance" after she interviews him for her school newspaper. Their kinky relationship stumbles forward despite Christian's shortcomings as a lover and the antics of his racist adoptive mother Claire, his well-endowed brother Eli and Hannah's hyper-sexual roommate Kateesha. Marlon Wayans as Christian Black, Kali Hawk as Hannah Steale, Jenny Zigrino as Kateesha Kavahellnah, Jane Seymour as Claire Black, Christian's mother, Fred Willard as Gary Black, Christian's father, Mike Epps as Ron Steale, Hannah's father, Irene Choi as Mai Black, King Bach as Jesse, Mircea Monroe as Becky, Affion Crockett as Eli Black, Kate Miner as Ashley, Florence Henderson as Mrs. Robinson, Dave Sheridan as The Great Mysterio, Russell Peters as Dean Jordan On June 3, 2015, it was announced that Open Road Films had acquired the US distribution rights to the yet-to-be made film for $5 million. Principal photography on the film began August 11, 2015, in Los Angeles. The film was released in North America on January 29, 2016, alongside Kung Fu Panda 3, The Finest Hours, and Jane Got a Gun. The film was projected to gross $10–11 million from 2,075 theaters in its opening weekend. The film grossed $275,000 from its Thursday night previews, $2.3 million on its first day, and $5.9 million in its opening weekend, finishing 10th at the box office. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on April 19, 2016. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 7% based on 46 reviews; the average rating is 2.79/10. The site's consensus reads, "Wildly erratic even for a spoof movie, Fifty Shades of Black bears the unfortunate distinction of offering fewer laughs than the unintentionally funny film it's trying to lampoon." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 28 out of 100 based on 11 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C" on an A+ to F scale. British film critic Mark Kermode gave the film a negative and short review, saying simply, "It's just not funny." Austin film critic Korey Coleman famously ended his review by starting an online petition to stop Marlon Wayans from making any more parody films. He gave it the #1 spot for the worst movie of 2016, tying it with Yoga Hosers. List of black films of the 2010s

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The New York Knickerbockers, more commonly referred to as the Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at Madison Square Garden, an arena they share with the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). They are one of two NBA teams located in New York City; the other team is the Brooklyn Nets. Alongside the Boston Celtics, the Knicks are one of two original NBA teams still located in its original city. The team, established by Ned Irish in 1946, was one of the founding members of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which became the NBA after merging with the rival National Basketball League (NBL) in 1949. The Knicks were successful during their early years and were constant playoff contenders under the franchise's first head coach Joe Lapchick. Beginning in 1950, the Knicks made three consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals, all of which were losing efforts. Lapchick resigned in 1956 and the team subsequently began to falter. It was not until the late 1960s when Red Holzman became the head coach that the Knicks began to regain their former dominance. Holzman successfully guided the Knicks to two NBA championships, in 1970 and 1973. The Knicks of the 1980s had mixed success that included six playoff appearances; however, they failed to participate in the NBA Finals. The playoff-level Knicks of the 1990s were led by future Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing; this era was marked by passionate rivalries with the Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers, and Miami Heat. During this time, they were known for playing tough defense under head coaches Pat Riley and Jeff Van Gundy, making two appearances in the NBA Finals, in 1994 and 1999. However, they were unable to win an NBA championship during this era. Since 2000, the Knicks have struggled to regain their former glory, but won its first division title in 19 years in 2012–13, led by a core of forwards Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire. They were eventually eliminated in the Eastern Conference semifinals by the Indiana Pacers, and have failed to make the playoffs since. In 1946, basketball, particularly college basketball, was a growing and increasingly profitable sport in New York City. Hockey was another popular sport at the time and generated considerable profits; however, the arenas were not used often. Max Kase, a New York sportswriter, became the sports editor at the Boston American in the 1930s, when he met Boston Garden owner Walter A. Brown. Kase developed the idea of an organized professional league to showcase college players upon their graduation and felt it could become profitable if properly assembled. Brown, intrigued by the opportunity to attain additional income when the hockey teams were not playing or on the road, contacted several arena owners. On June 6, 1946, Kase and Brown and a group of seventeen others assembled at the Commodore Hotel in New York City, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA), where charter franchises were granted to major cities throughout the country. Ned Irish, a college basketball promoter, retired sportswriter and then president of Madison Square Garden, was in attendance. Kase originally planned to own and operate the New York franchise himself and approached Irish with a proposal to lease the Garden. Irish explained that the rules of the Arena Managers Association of America stated that Madison Square Garden was required to own any professional teams that played in the arena. On the day of the meeting, Kase made his proposal to the panel of owners; however, they were much more impressed by Irish and his vast resources; Kase relented and the franchise was awarded to Irish. Irish wanted a distinct name for his franchise that was representative of the city of New York. He called together members of his staff for a meeting to cast their votes in a hat. After tallying the votes, the franchise was named the Knickerbockers. The "Knickerbocker" name comes from the pseudonym used by Washington Irving in his book A History of New York, a name that became applied to the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of what later became New York, and later, by extension, to New Yorkers in general. In search of a head coach, Irish approached successful St. John's University coach Joe Lapchick in May 1946. Lapchick readily accepted after Irish promised to make him the highest-paid coach in the league; however, he requested he remain at St. John's one more season in hopes of winning one last championship. Irish obliged, hiring former Manhattan College coach Neil Cohalan as interim coach for the first year. With no college draft in the league's initial year, there was no guarantee that the Knicks or the league itself would thrive. Consequently, teams focused on signing college players from their respective cities as a way to promote the professional league. The Knicks held their first training camp in the Catskill Mountains at the Nevele Country Club. Twenty-five players were invited to attend the three-week session. Players worked out twice a day and the chemistry between the New York natives was instant. With a roster assembled, the Knicks faced the Toronto Huskies at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens on November 1, 1946, in what would be the franchise's first game—as well as the first in league history. In a low- scoring affair presented in front of 7,090 spectators, the Knicks defeated the Huskies 68–66 with Leo Gottlieb leading the Knicks in scoring with 14 points. With Madison Square Garden's crowded schedule, the Knicks were forced to play many of their home games at the 69th Regiment Armory during the team's early years. The Knicks went on to finish their inaugural campaign with a 33–27 record and achieved a playoff berth under Cohalan despite a dismal shooting percentage of 28 percent. The Knicks faced the Cleveland Rebels in the quarterfinals, winning the series 2–1. However, the Knicks were swept by the Philadelphia Warriors in two games in the semifinals. As promised, Lapchick took over in 1947, bringing with him his up-tempo coaching style, which emphasized fast ball movement. Six new players were signed, including guard Carl Braun and Japanese-American guard Wataru Misaka, the first non-Caucasian basketball player in the BAA. Under Lapchick, the Knicks made nine straight playoff appearances beginning in 1947. Braun, who averaged 14.3 points, emerged as the team's star and paired with Dick Holub and Bud Palmer to account for half of the team's offense. Despite this, the Knicks struggled throughout the year, compiling a 26–22 record. Their finish was good enough to place them second in the Eastern Division and secure a playoff match-up against the Baltimore Bullets where they lost the series two games to one. In the 1948 NBA draft, the Knicks selected two future Hall of Fame players in center Dolph Schayes and Harry Gallatin. The Knicks were leery of Schayes' talent, prompting the center to leave to play for the Syracuse Nationals of the struggling National Basketball League. Despite losing Schayes, the team started the year well going 17–8 before they fell into a slump. They ended the year with a seven-game win streak to finish with a 32–28 record and a third- straight playoff appearance. The Knicks defeated the Bullets in a rematch of their previous encounter in 1947, winning the series 2–1. The team however struggled against the Washington Capitols and lost the series 1–2. Prior to the beginning of the 1949–50 season, the BAA merged with the National Basketball League to form the National Basketball Association with the BAA absorbing six teams from its former competitor. Despite division realignments, the Knicks remained in the Eastern Division. The team continued its dominance under Lapchick, winning 40 games; however they lost the Eastern Division finals to the Syracuse Nationals. The following season, the Knicks made history signing Sweetwater Clifton to a contract, thus becoming the first professional basketball team to sign an African American player. During this same season, the Knicks finished with a 36–30 record. Though they placed third in their division, they secured a playoff spot and began the first of three consecutive trips to the NBA Finals. In spite of their success, the Knicks could not overcome the Rochester Royals despite a valiant comeback after losing the first three games of the Finals. The next two years, in 1952 and 1953, New York fell to the Minneapolis Lakers in the Finals. It was during this early period, the Knicks developed their first standout players in Carl Braun who retired as the Knicks leading scorer with 10,449 points before later being surpassed by the likes of Patrick Ewing, Walt Frazier and Willis Reed. Harry Gallatin and Dick McGuire were also well-known standouts on the team and were later enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Following these back-to-back losses, the Knicks made the playoffs in the subsequent two years with no success. Lapchick resigned as the team's head coach in January 1956 citing health-related issues. Vince Boryla made his debut in February 1956 as the Knicks' new coach in a win over the St. Louis Hawks. However, after two seasons of poor performances and no playoff appearances, Boryla tendered his resignation from the team in April 1958. Looking to regain their former dominance, Andrew Levane was named the head coach and in his first year, the results were significantly better as the team finished with a 40–32 record, securing their playoff spot. However, the Knicks could not manage to get past the Eastern Division semi-finals. The Levane-led squad fared poorly to begin the 1959–60 season and under mounting pressure Levane resigned and was immediately replaced by Carl Braun, who became the team's first player-coach. The team did not fare much better under Braun and the Knicks hired Eddie Donovan, who helped build up St. Bonaventure's basketball team, in 1961. During Donovan's tenure, New York failed to achieve a playoff berth. As a testament to their struggles, on March 2, 1962, the Knicks faced the Philadelphia Warriors in Hershey, Pennsylvania, where they infamously allowed Wilt Chamberlain to score an NBA-record 100 points in a 169–147 Warriors victory. In 1964, the franchise's fortunes began to take a steady turn. The Knicks drafted center Willis Reed, who made an immediate impact on the court and was named NBA Rookie of the Year for his efforts. However, the leaders of the team still remained in flux. In an attempt to reorganize, the Knicks named former standout Harry Gallatin as head coach while reassigning Donovan to general manager position. After a slow start in 1965, Dick McGuire, another former Knick, replaced his former teammate Gallatin midway through the season. Though he failed to guide the Knicks to the playoffs in 1965, he managed to do so the following season, however, the Knicks lost in the Eastern Division semi-finals. The Knicks started their 1967-68 season with a 124–122 win over the visiting Warriors. In that game, seven players on the Knicks' roster scored in double figures. However, the Knicks lost their next six games, falling to a 1–6 record. They managed to stop their losing streak on November 1, 1967, when the Knicks won the road game against the Lakers, 129–113. During the game, Willis Reed scored a career-high 53 points on 21-of-29 shooting from the field. On November 3, the Knicks defeated the Seattle Supersonics 134-100 in Seattle. In that game, nine Knicks' player scored at least 10 points. Head coach Dick McGuire was replaced midway through the 1967–68 season after the team began the season with a 15–22 record. With the Knicks under .500, the team decided to hire coach Red Holzman, whose impact was immediate. Under his direction, the Knicks went 28–17 and finished with a 43–39 record thus salvaging a playoff berth, however, the Knicks were again vanquished in the Eastern Division semi-finals by the Philadelphia 76ers. However their roster was slowly coming together piece by piece. Rookies Phil Jackson and Walt Frazier were named to the NBA All-Rookie Team while Dick Barnett and Willis Reed performed in the 1968 NBA All-Star Game. The following season, the team acquired Dave DeBusschere from the Detroit Pistons, and the team went 54–28. In the playoffs, New York made it past the first round of contention for the first time since 1953, sweeping the Baltimore Bullets in four games, before falling to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Division finals. In the 1969–70 season, the Knicks had a then-single-season NBA record 18 straight victories en route to a 60–22 record, which was the best regular season record in the franchise's history to that point. After defeating the Bullets in the Eastern Division semifinals and the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Division finals, the Knicks faced the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. With the series tied at 2–2, the Knicks would be tested in Game 5. Willis Reed tore a muscle in his right leg in the second quarter, and was lost for the rest of the game. Despite his absence, New York went on to win the game, rallying from a 16-point deficit. Without their injured captain the Knicks lost Game 6, setting up one of the most famous moments in NBA history. Reed limped onto the court before the seventh game, determined to play through the pain of his injury. He scored New York's first two baskets before going scoreless for the remainder of the contest. Although he was not at full strength, Reed's heroics inspired the Knicks, and they won the game by a score of 113–99, allowing New York to capture the title that had eluded them for so long. Reed, who had been named the All-Star MVP and the league's MVP that season, was named MVP of the Finals, becoming the first player to attain all three awards in a single season. The Knicks' success continued for the next few years. After losing to the Bullets in the 1971 Eastern Conference finals, the team, aided by the acquisitions of Jerry Lucas and Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, returned to the Finals in 1972. This time the Knicks fell to the Lakers in five games. The next year, the results were reversed, as the Knicks defeated the Lakers in five games to win their second NBA title in four years. The team had one more impressive season in 1973–74, as they reached the Eastern Conference finals, where they fell in five games to the Celtics. It was after this season that Willis Reed announced his retirement, and the team's fortunes began to shift once more. In the 1974–75 season, the Knicks posted a 40–42 record, their first losing record in eight seasons. The team still qualified for a playoff spot, however, but the opportunity was squandered as they lost to the Houston Rockets in the first round. After two more seasons with losing records, Holzman was replaced by Willis Reed, who signed a three-year contract. In Reed's first year, New York finished the year with a 43–39 record and returned to the Eastern Conference semi-finals, where they were swept by the Philadelphia 76ers. The next season, after the team began with a 6–8 record, Holzman was rehired as the team's coach after Reed had angered Madison Square Garden president Sonny Werblin. The team did not fare any better under Holzman's direction, finishing with a 31–51 record, their worst in thirteen years. After improving to a 39–43 record in the 1979–80 season, the Knicks posted a 50–32 record in the 1980–81 season. In the playoffs, the Chicago Bulls swept New York in two games. Holzman retired the following season as one of the winningest coaches in NBA history. The team's record that year was a dismal 33–49. However, Holzman's legacy would continue through the players he influenced. One of the Knicks' bench players and defensive specialists during the 1970s was Phil Jackson. Jackson went on to coach the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers to eleven NBA championships, surpassing Red Auerbach for the most in NBA history. Jackson cited Holzman as a significant influence on his career in the NBA. Hubie Brown replaced Holzman as head coach and in his first season, the team went 44–38 and made it to the second round of the playoffs, where they were swept by the eventual champion Philadelphia 76ers. The next season, the team, aided by new acquisition Bernard King, improved to 47–35 and returned to the playoffs. The team defeated the Detroit Pistons in the first round with an overtime win in the fifth and deciding game, before losing in the second round in seven games to the Celtics. The team's struggles continued into the 1984–85 season, as they lost their last twelve games to finish with a 24–58 record. The first of these losses occurred on March 23, 1985, where King injured his knee and spent the next 24 months in rehabilitation. In the summer of 1985, the Knicks were entered into the first-ever NBA Draft Lottery. The Knicks ended up winning the number one pick in that year's NBA draft. They used the pick to select star center Patrick Ewing of Georgetown University. In Ewing's first season with the Knicks, he led all rookies in scoring (20 points per game) and rebounds (9 rebounds per game), and he won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. The team would not fare as well, though, as they struggled to a 23–59 record in his first season. During Ewing's second season, the team started with a 4–12 record and head coach Hubie Brown was dismissed in favor of assistant Bob Hill. Under Hill, the Knicks had brief successes but went on to lose seventeen of their twenty-one final games of the season to finish 20–46 under Hill and 24–58 on the season. Hill was dismissed at season's end. The team immediately turned around in the 1987–88 season with the hiring of Rick Pitino as head coach, who, only months prior to his hiring, led Providence College to the Final Four, turning around a program that had struggled prior to his arrival. Combined with the selection of point guard Mark Jackson, who won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and garnered MVP consideration, in the draft and with Ewing's consistently stellar play, the Knicks made the playoffs with a record of 38–44, where they were defeated by the Celtics in the first round. The resurgence continued the following season as the team traded backup center Bill Cartwright to the Bulls for power forward Charles Oakley before the season started and then posted a 52–30 record, which was good enough for their first division title in eighteen years and their fifth division title in franchise history. In the playoffs, they defeated the 76ers in the first round before losing to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Prior to the start of the 1989–90 season, Pitino departed from New York to coach for the University of Kentucky leaving many stunned by his departure. Assistant Stu Jackson was named as Pitino's replacement becoming the team's fourteenth head coach and the youngest head coach in the NBA, at the time, at the age of thirty-two. Under Jackson's direction, the Knicks went 45–37 and defeated the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs, winning the final three games after losing the first two. They went on to lose to the eventual NBA champion Detroit Pistons in the next round. Jackson and the Knicks struggled to a 7–8 record to begin the 1990–91 season and Jackson was replaced by John MacLeod who led the Knicks to a 32–35 record, ending the season with a 39–43 record overall that was good enough to earn the team another playoff appearance. The Knicks were swept in the first round by the eventual NBA champion, Chicago Bulls. After the conclusion of the season, MacLeod left the team to become the head coach at the University of Notre Dame. President David Checketts reached out to Pat Riley, who was working as a commentator for the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), to see if he was interested in returning to coaching. Riley accepted the Knicks proposition on May 31, 1991. Riley, who coached the Lakers to four NBA titles during the 1980s, implemented a rough and physical style emphasizing defense. Under Riley, the team, led by Ewing and guard John Starks, who scored 24 points per game and 13.9 points per game respectively, improved to a 51–31 record, tying them for first place in the Atlantic Division. After defeating the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs, the team faced the Bulls, losing the series 4–3 in seven games. The 1992–93 season proved to be even more successful, as the Knicks won the Atlantic Division with a 60–22 record. Before the season, the Knicks traded Mark Jackson to the Los Angeles Clippers for Charles Smith, Doc Rivers, and Bo Kimble while also acquiring Rolando Blackman from the Dallas Mavericks. After defeating the Indiana Pacers and Charlotte Hornets in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Knicks made it to the Eastern Conference finals, where once again they met the Bulls. After taking a two games-to-none lead, the Knicks lost the next four games. After the Bulls' Michael Jordan made what would be his first retirement from basketball prior to the 1993–94 season, many saw this as an opportunity for the Knicks to finally make it to the NBA Finals. The team, who acquired Derek Harper in a midseason trade with the Dallas Mavericks, once again won the Atlantic Division with a 57–25 record. In the playoffs, the team played a then NBA-record 25 games (the Boston Celtics played 26 games in the 2008 playoffs); they started by defeating the New Jersey Nets in the first round before finally getting past the Bulls, defeating them in the second round in seven games. In the Eastern Conference Finals, they faced the Indiana Pacers, who at one point held a three games-to-two lead. They had this advantage thanks to the exploits of Reggie Miller, who scored 25 fourth quarter points in Game 5 to lead the Pacers to victory. However, the Knicks won the next two games to reach their first NBA Finals since 1973. In the finals, the Knicks would play seven low-scoring, defensive games against the Houston Rockets. After splitting the first two games in Houston, the Knicks would win two out of three games at Madison Square Garden, which also hosted the New York Rangers first Stanley Cup celebration in 54 years following their win over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7 of their finals during the series. (A Knicks win would have made the Garden the first building to host a Cup winner and an NBA champ in the same season.) In Game 6, however, a last-second attempt at a game-winning shot by Starks was tipped by Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon, giving the Rockets an 86–84 victory and forcing a Game 7. The Knicks lost Game 7 90–84, credited in large part to Starks's dismal 2-for-18 shooting performance and Riley's stubborn refusal to bench Starks, despite having bench players who were renowned for their shooting prowess, such as Rolando Blackman and Hubert Davis available. The loss denied New York the distinction of having both NBA and NHL championships in the same year. Nevertheless, the Knicks had gotten some inspiration from Mark Messier and the Rangers during the finals. The next year, the Knicks were second place in the Atlantic Division with a 55–27 record. The team defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers before facing the Pacers again in the second round. The tone for the Knicks–Pacers series was set in Game 1, as Miller once again became a clutch nuisance to the Knicks by scoring eight points in the final 8 seconds of the game to give the Pacers a 107–105 victory. The series went to a Game 7, and when Patrick Ewing's last- second finger roll attempt to tie the game missed, the Pacers clinched the 97–95 win. Riley resigned the next day, and the Knicks hired Don Nelson as their new head coach. However Nelson's uptempo approach clashed with the Knicks' defensive identity, and during the 1995–96 season, Nelson was fired after 59 games, and, instead of going after another well-known coach, the Knicks hired longtime assistant Jeff Van Gundy, who had no prior experience as a head coach. The Knicks ended up with a 47–35 record that year, and swept the Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs before losing to the eventual champion Bulls (who had an NBA record 72 wins in the regular season) in five games. In the 1996–97 season, the Knicks, with the additions of such players as Larry Johnson and Allan Houston, registered a 57–25 record. In the playoffs, the Knicks swept the Charlotte Hornets in the first round before facing the Miami Heat (coached by Riley) in the second round. The Knicks took a 3–1 lead in the series before a brawl near the end of Game 5 resulted in suspensions of key players. Many of the suspended Knicks players, Ewing in particular, were disciplined not for participating in the altercation itself, but for violating an NBA rule stipulating that a benched player may not leave the bench during a fight (the rule was subsequently amended, making it illegal to leave the "bench area"). With Ewing and Houston suspended for Game 6, Johnson and Starks suspended for Game 7, and Charlie Ward suspended for both, the Knicks lost the series. The 1997–98 season was marred by a wrist injury to Ewing on December 22, which forced him to miss the rest of the season and much of the playoffs. The team, which had a 43–39 record that season, still managed to defeat the Heat in the first round (a series, which saw another violent bench clearing brawl at the end of Game 4, this time between Johnson and former Hornets teammate Alonzo Mourning) of the playoffs before having another meeting with the Pacers in the second round. Ewing returned in time for game two of the series. This time, the Pacers easily won the series in five games, as Reggie Miller once again broke the hearts of Knicks fans by hitting a tying three- pointer with 5.1 seconds remaining in Game 4, en route to a Pacers overtime victory. For the fourth straight year, the Knicks were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs. Prior to the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, the Knicks traded Charles Oakley to the Toronto Raptors for Marcus Camby while also trading John Starks in a package to the Golden State Warriors for 1994's 1st team all league shooting guard Latrell Sprewell (whose contract was voided by the Warriors after choking Warriors' head coach P. J. Carlesimo during the previous season). After barely getting into the playoffs with a 27–23 record, the Knicks started a Cinderella run. It started with the Knicks eliminating the #1 seeded Heat in the first round after Allan Houston bounced in a running one-hander off the front of the rim, high off the backboard, and in with 0.8 seconds left in the deciding 5th game. This remarkable upset marked only the second time in NBA history that an 8-seed had defeated the 1-seed in the NBA playoffs, and also the first time it happened in the Eastern Conference. After defeating the Atlanta Hawks in the second round four games to none, they faced the Pacers yet again in the Eastern Conference Finals. Despite losing Ewing to injury for the rest of the playoffs prior to Game 3, the Knicks won the series (aided in part to a four-point play by Larry Johnson in the final seconds of Game 3) to become the first eighth-seeded playoff team to make it to the NBA Finals. However, in the Finals, the San Antonio Spurs, with superstars David Robinson and Tim Duncan, proved too much for the injury-laden Knicks, who lost in five games. The remarkable fifth game of this Finals is remembered for its 2nd half scoring duel between the Spurs' Tim Duncan and the Knicks' Latrell Sprewell, and was decided by a long jumper by Avery Johnson with 47 seconds left to clinch the title for the Spurs. The 1999–2000 season, would prove to be the last one in New York for Ewing, as the Knicks, who had a 50–32 record that season swept the Toronto Raptors a team led by Vince Carter, Antonio Davis and a young Tracy McGrady in three games in the first round, defeated the Miami Heat in another dramatic 7-game series in which Ewing's dunk with over a minute remaining in game 7, provided the winning margin in a 1-point road victory. They would, however, lose in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Reggie Miller-led Indiana Pacers in six games. After the season, Ewing was traded on September 20, 2000, to the Seattle SuperSonics, and the Ewing era, which produced many successful playoff appearances but no NBA championship titles, came to an end. Despite the loss of Ewing, the Knicks remained successful in the regular season, as they posted a 48–34 record under the direction of Houston and Sprewell. In the first round of playoff contention, however, New York fell to the Toronto Raptors in five games, failing to get past the first round of the playoffs for the first time in a decade. After a poor start to the season, the Knicks managed to get above .500 with a 10–9 record. In spite of their recent success, Van Gundy unexpectedly resigned as head coach on December 8, 2001 explaining he had "lost focus" and would no longer be able to properly coach the team. The team, which named longtime assistant Don Chaney as their new head coach, ended the season with a 30–52 record, and for the first time since the 1986–87 season they did not qualify for the playoffs. In October 2002, the team elected to extend Chaney's contract for another year. Rather than rebuilding, the Knicks opted to add veterans to the roster including Antonio McDyess who had been dealing with knee problems in the preceding years. Furthermore, the Knicks were criticized by many analysts as multiple players on the roster were overpaid in light of their poor performances, causing salary cap problems that would persist until Donnie Walsh took over as team president. McDyess injured his knee during the team's third preseason game and was subjected to further operations in April 2003 after a CT scan revealed the injured knee necessitated he undergo bone-graft surgery. The Knicks managed only seven wins in their first twenty games, setting the tone for the rest of the season, which they completed with a 37–45 record; it was their second consecutive season without a playoff appearance. After a 10–18 start to the 2003–04 season, the Knicks underwent a massive overhaul. Isiah Thomas was named the Knicks' president on December 22, 2003 upon the firing of Scott Layden. Thomas continued to restructure the team, firing Chaney after an unproductive tenure and hiring Hall of Famer Lenny Wilkens to coach the team. Additionally, Thomas orchestrated multiple trades, including one that brought point guard Stephon Marbury to the team. The team qualified for the playoffs that year with a 39–43 record, but were swept by the New Jersey Nets in the first round. The series included a highly publicized spat between the Knicks' Tim Thomas and Nets' Kenyon Martin, in which Thomas all but challenged Martin to a fight and called him "Fugazy". The following season, the Knicks struggled to a 17–22 record before Wilkens resigned as head coach. Herb Williams, who had previously coached the team in a game against the Orlando Magic prior to the team hiring Wilkens, took over as interim head coach for the remainder of the season and did not fare much better as the Knicks ended their season with a 33–49 record and out of playoff contention. Hoping to find a leader that could put the team back on track, New York hired Larry Brown to coach the team. Brown, who idolized the team during his childhood, was well regarded for his coaching abilities and his arrival brought a sense of hope to the franchise. Hoping to find the next Patrick Ewing, the Knicks drafted center Channing Frye and signed centers Jerome James and Eddy Curry, the former prior to the season and the latter during the season. Curry, who reportedly had a worrying heart condition, refused to take a controversial DNA test, and fell out of favor with John Paxson, Chicago's general manager. The Bulls signed-and-traded him to the Knicks along with Antonio Davis for Tim Thomas, Michael Sweetney, the Knicks' 2006 first-round pick, and the right to swap first-round picks with the Knicks in 2007, as well as 2007 and 2009 second-round picks. Isiah Thomas did not lottery-protect the picks, and the Knicks forfeited the second pick in the 2006 draft, and the ninth in the 2007 draft. With a bloated payroll, the Knicks stumbled to the second worst record in the NBA that season, at 23–59. The season concluded with the firing and $18.5 million buy-out of head coach Larry Brown after one season. With the departure of Brown, team president Isiah Thomas took over the head coaching responsibilities. Thomas continued his practice of signing players to high priced contracts while the franchise struggled to capitalize on their talent on the court. As a testament to their struggles, on December 16, 2006, the Knicks and the Denver Nuggets broke into a brawl during their game in Madison Square Garden. With multiple players still serving a suspension as a result of the brawl, on December 20, 2006, David Lee created one of the most memorable plays in recent Knicks history, and served as a bright spot as the team's struggles persisted, during a game against the Charlotte Bobcats. With a tie game and 0.1 seconds left on the game clock in double overtime, Jamal Crawford inbounded from the sideline, near half-court. The ball sailed towards the basket, and with that 0.1 seconds still remaining on the game clock, Lee tipped the ball off of the backboard and into the hoop. Because of the Trent Tucker Rule, a player is allowed solely to tip the ball to score when the ball is put back into play with three-tenths of a second or less remaining. Because of this rule, the rarity of Lee's play increases. The Knicks won, 111–109 in double overtime. The Knicks improved by ten games in the 2006–2007 campaign in spite of injuries that ravaged the team at the end of the year; they ended with a 33–49 record, avoiding a 50-loss season by defeating the Charlotte Bobcats 94–93 on the last day of the season. During the 2007 off-season, the organization became embroiled in further controversy away from the basketball court. Anucha Browne Sanders, a former Knicks executive, had filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Isiah Thomas and Madison Square Garden. Faced with a trial, the jury returned a verdict finding Thomas and Madison Square Garden liable for sexual harassment. The jury also levied $11.6 million in punitive damages against Madison Square Garden, though this was later reduced to $11.5 million in a settlement between both parties. The ordeal proved embarrassing for the franchise, revealing sordid details about Knicks management and the environment at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks struggled as they opened their 2007 campaign with a 2–9 record leaving many Knicks fans, frustrated with the franchise's lack of progress under Thomas, called for the coach's firing—the chant "Fire Isiah" became a common occurrence during the Knicks' home games. On November 29, 2007, the Knicks were handed one of their worst defeats in their history by the Boston Celtics, with a final score of 104–59. This matched their third-largest margin of defeat. New York went on to post an eighth consecutive losing season and tied the franchise mark for their worst record ever, at 23–59. MSG chairman James Dolan hired former Indiana Pacers President Donnie Walsh on April 2, 2008 to take over Isiah Thomas's role as team president. At the introductory press conference, Walsh, while not proclaiming to be a savior, did set goals, which included getting the team under the salary cap and bringing back a competitive environment. Upon the conclusion of the 2007–2008 regular season, Walsh fired Thomas, and on May 13, 2008, officially named former Phoenix Suns head coach Mike D'Antoni as head coach. D'Antoni signed a four-year, $24 million deal to coach the team. The Knicks, holding the sixth pick in the 2008 NBA draft, selected Danilo Gallinari on May 20, 2008. On November 21, 2008, the Knicks dealt one of their top scorers, Jamal Crawford, to the Golden State Warriors for Al Harrington. Hours later, New York traded Zach Randolph, along with Mardy Collins, to the Los Angeles Clippers for Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas, with the intention of freeing cap space for the 2010 off-season, when top-flight players such as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Amar'e Stoudemire would be available. In February 2009, the Knicks traded Tim Thomas, Jerome James, and Anthony Roberson to the Chicago Bulls for Larry Hughes, in addition to sending Malik Rose to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Chris Wilcox. Additionally, the long-standing controversy with Stephon Marbury ended when the two sides agreed to a buy-out of Marbury's contract, which allowed him to sign with the Celtics when he cleared waivers on February 27, 2009. In spite of a volatile roster, the Knicks improved by nine wins from the previous season in D'Antoni's first season, to finish 32–50, coinciding with the emergence of forward-center David Lee, who led the league with 65 double-doubles, and the continued development of guard Nate Robinson and swingman Wilson Chandler. In the 2009 NBA draft, the Knicks selected forward Jordan Hill eighth after targets such as Stephen Curry, Jonny Flynn, and Ricky Rubio were off the board. Guard Toney Douglas was then selected with a 29th overall pick, which was acquired from the Los Angeles Lakers. Shortly afterwards, New York executed a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies in which the Knicks acquired Darko Miličić in exchange for Quentin Richardson. The Knicks got off to their worst ten-game start in franchise history, producing nine losses, with just one win. The Knicks responded by winning nine games and losing six in December. On January 24, 2010, the Knicks suffered their worst home loss in Madison Square Garden history against the Dallas Mavericks in front of a sellout crowd. The 50-point loss was also the second-worst in Knicks franchise history. On February 17, the Knicks shook up the roster, trading Miličić to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Brian Cardinal and cash considerations. A day later, the Knicks and Celtics swapped guard Nate Robinson for shooting guard Eddie House. The deal also included forward Marcus Landry going to the Celtics and the Knicks acquiring bench players J. R. Giddens and Bill Walker. The Knicks also acquired All-Star forward Tracy McGrady from the Houston Rockets and point guard Sergio Rodríguez from the Sacramento Kings in a three-way trade. The deal sent Knicks shooting guard Larry Hughes to Sacramento and forward Jordan Hill and power forward Jared Jeffries to Houston. The trades, orchestrated to give the Knicks more cap space for the summer of 2010, netted the Knicks $30 million of cap space. About three weeks after these team-changing trades, the Knicks played the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center and blew them out by a score of 128–94 for their largest win of the season. However, the Knicks were eliminated from playoff contention in late March 2010 and completed their season with a 29–53 record, a regression from their first season under D'Antoni. The Knicks and former Phoenix Suns forward-center Amar'e Stoudemire came to an agreement on July 5, 2010. The sign and trade deal was made official on July 8 as Stoudemire agreed to an approximately $100 million contract over the span of five years. Team president Donnie Walsh stated the signing of Stoudemire as a turning point for the future of a Knicks team that had struggled in recent years. The Knicks continued to redesign their roster, trading David Lee to the Golden State Warriors for Anthony Randolph, Kelenna Azubuike and Ronny Turiaf. The Knicks also struck deals with former Bobcats point guard Raymond Felton and Russian center Timofey Mozgov. The Knicks regained their title as the most valuable franchise in the NBA following these acquisitions, though this was mainly due to the arrival of Stoudemire, whose star power allowed the team to resurge; the Knicks sold out their full-season ticket inventory for the first time since 2002. D'Antoni along with Stoudemire and the core of young players, including Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Mozgov, Wilson Chandler and rookie Landry Fields, piloted the Knicks to a 28–26 record prior to the All-Star break, marking the first time the team had been above the .500 mark at that point of the season since 2000. In spite of the team's mounting success, New York made a push to acquire Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony. After months of speculation, on February 22, 2011, Anthony was traded to New York, with teammates Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter, and former Knick Renaldo Balkman. Denver acquired Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Mozgov, Kosta Koufos, a 2014 first-round draft pick, the Warriors' second- round draft picks for 2013 and 2014 and $3 million in cash. In addition, the Knicks sent Anthony Randolph and Eddy Curry to the Minnesota Timberwolves and in return the Timberwolves' Corey Brewer was sent to the Knicks. The Knicks clinched their first playoff berth since the 2004 NBA Playoffs in a rout of the Cleveland Cavaliers on April 3, 2011. Carmelo Anthony ensured the franchise's first winning season since 2001 on April 10, 2011, against the Indiana Pacers, as Anthony scored the game-winning basket for the Knicks and subsequently blocked Danny Granger's shot in the final seconds of the game. The Knicks were ultimately eliminated from contention in the first round on April 24, 2011 by the Boston Celtics, losing the series 0–4. In spite of Donnie Walsh's successful efforts to help rebuild the franchise, he decided not to return as the team's president, electing to step down at the end of June 2011, citing the uncertainty surrounding his ability to continue to manage the daily operations of the team. Glen Grunwald was elected as interim president and general manager. Following the conclusion of the 2011 NBA lockout, the Knicks engaged in a sign-and-trade deal with the Mavericks for center Tyson Chandler on December 10, 2011, with Chandler signing a four-year contract worth approximately $58 million. In return, the Knicks sent Andy Rautins to the Mavericks, generating a trade exception for Dallas. Ronny Turiaf and $3 million in cash considerations were sent to the Wizards to complete the three-way trade. The Knicks also obtained the draft rights to Ahmad Nivins and Georgios Printezis from Dallas. In order to fit Chandler under the salary cap, Chauncey Billups was earlier waived under the amnesty clause of the new collective bargaining agreement. To replace Billups at point guard, the Knicks signed Mike Bibby to a one-year, veteran minimum contract. The Knicks also signed veteran point guard Baron Davis on December 19 to a one-year contract. At the time, Davis had suffered a herniated disk and was not expected to compete for about 6–8 weeks, leaving Toney Douglas as the team's starting point guard. The Knicks struggled early in the season because Douglas and Bibby struggled to facilitate the offense and subsequently, it became stagnated. Subsequently, rookie Iman Shumpert was thrust into the role as the starting point guard after Douglas was relegated to the bench due to his struggles. In addition, head coach D'Antoni also decided to use Carmelo Anthony as a point forward to help generate a more up-tempo offense; however, there were concerns Anthony was holding the ball for too long, thus contributing to the stagnation of the Knicks' offense. With the Knicks struggling to an 8–15 record, D'Antoni inserted third-string point guard Jeremy Lin into the rotation against the New Jersey Nets on February 4, 2012. Lin, who had been claimed off waivers on December 27 following an injury to Iman Shumpert, scored 25 points and had 7 assists en route to a Knicks win. Lin was praised for his ability to facilitate the offense, something the Knicks had struggled to do for the first 23 games of the season. Lin, exceeding expectations, was named the starter for the Knicks following a game against the Utah Jazz. Lin guided the Knicks to a seven-game winning streak, despite being without Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire for five games due to a groin injury and a death in the family respectively, that brought the team back to a .500 winning percentage. The surge of positive play by the Knicks accompanied by the performance of Lin caused extensive national and worldwide media coverage that was referred to as 'Linsanity'. To bolster their depth and perimeter shooting percentage, the Knicks signed J. R. Smith on February 18, 2012. The team struggled to congeal when Anthony returned from injury and went on to lose seven of eight games before head coach Mike D'Antoni resigned on March 14, 2012. Assistant Mike Woodson was named the interim head coach. Under Woodson, the Knicks finished 18–6 during the regular season and clinched a playoff spot for the second straight year this time as the seventh seed, making it the first time they have clinched consecutive playoff berths since making 13 straight playoff appearances from 1988 to 2001. Not only did they also clinch consecutive winning seasons for the first time in a decade, but their 36–30 record was the highest winning percentage for the team since the 2000–01 season. The Knicks faced the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs and lost the first three games, breaking the NBA record for longest playoff losing streak at 13 games. The team's struggles were partially attributed to injuries as Jeremy Lin, Baron Davis and Iman Shumpert were all sidelined by knee ailments. The Knicks proceeded to win a close Game 4, which snapped their streak and ensured that they would not be swept out of the first round however, they failed to keep up with the Heat's up-tempo offense in Game 5 and lost the series 4–1. Despite the team's disappointing postseason exit, the Knicks removed Woodson's interim status and he was officially named the full-time head coach on May 25, 2012. The Knicks began their off-season by selecting Greek forward Kostas Papanikolaou in the 2012 NBA draft. One week later, the team came to terms with veteran point guard Jason Kidd, who was originally supposed to serve as a backup to Lin. The Knicks also re-acquired Marcus Camby from the Houston Rockets in a sign and trade sending Houston Josh Harrellson, Jerome Jordan, Toney Douglas and 2014 and 2015 two second-round picks and completed a sign-and-trade with the Portland Trail Blazers that brought back Raymond Felton and Kurt Thomas in exchange for Jared Jeffries, Dan Gadzuric, and the draft rights to Papanikolaou and Greek forward Georgios Printezis, whose draft rights had been acquired by the Knicks in December 2011. The Knicks also re-signed free agents J. R. Smith and Steve Novak and added more players to the roster, such as James White, Chris Copeland, and Argentinian point guard Pablo Prigioni. However the Knicks lost restricted free agents shooting guard, Landry Fields to the Toronto Raptors and point guard, Jeremy Lin to the Houston Rockets, who were both key players during the 2011–12 season. The Knicks decided not to match those teams' offers. Despite these losses, the Knicks continued to add players to the roster, signing former Chicago Bulls guard Ronnie Brewer on July 25, 2012, and signing Chris Smith, the younger brother of J. R. Smith, on August 1, 2012. It was also announced that Rasheed Wallace would come out of retirement to play for the Knicks on October 2, 2012. Despite playing without an injured Iman Shumpert and Amar'e Stoudemire, the Knicks compiled an 18–5 record to start the season, their best start since 1993. In their first four games, they scored at least 100 points and won by double digits in all of those games. The streak ended after a 10-point loss to Memphis Grizzlies. The following Sunday, in a game against the Indiana Pacers, the Knicks at home went on to win 88–76, assuring them a 7–1 record. After two tough losses to the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets, the Knicks returned home in a game against the Detroit Pistons on November 25, with a 121–100 blowout win, making them one of only three teams undefeated at home along with the Miami Heat and Utah Jazz. The Knicks finished November with an 11–4 record, their best month record since going 11–6 in March 2000. By the All-Star break in mid-February 2013, the Knicks compiled a 32–18 record, good for second in the Eastern Conference. On February 21, on the trade deadline, the team traded Ronnie Brewer for a 2014 second-round draft pick. The Knicks then signed veteran power forward Kenyon Martin to a 10-day contract. In late March, the Knicks went on to compile a four-game losing streak, tying their worst skid of the season. They would go on and face the Jazz on the road, eventually winning the game and starting what would turn out to be a 13-game winning streak, including wins against the Miami Heat and the Oklahoma City Thunder. This was the third-longest winning streak in franchise history. On April 9, the Knicks beat the Washington Wizards to secure the Atlantic Division title for the first time since the 1993–94 NBA season. The Knicks' 13-game winning streak came to an end on April 11 as they lost to the Chicago Bulls. Despite that, they set the NBA single season record for three-pointers. On May 3, the Knicks defeated the Boston Celtics in the first round of the NBA playoffs, 4–2, their first playoff victory since 2000. On May 18, the Knicks were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs, losing the series to the Indiana Pacers 4–2. Point guard Jason Kidd retired following the end of the season—he was named head coach of the Brooklyn Nets a few days later. In the 2013 NBA draft, the Knicks selected Tim Hardaway Jr. as the 24th pick in the first round. During the 2013 off- season, The Knicks claimed Los Angeles Lakers F Metta World Peace off of waivers. They re-signed J. R. Smith to a 3-year, $18 million deal and traded Quentin Richardson, Steve Novak, Marcus Camby, and three draft picks to acquire Andrea Bargnani from the Toronto Raptors. The Knicks also saw changes to business operations in late 2013, replacing general manager Glen Grunwald with former MSG president Steve Mills. The Knicks also purchased an NBA D-League team located White Plains, which began operations at the start of the 2014–15 NBDL season. The Knicks then appointed former coach Phil Jackson as president of basketball operations, with Mills remaining as general manager, with the duo working directly under MSG chairman James Dolan. Following the 2013–14 season, coach Mike Woodson and his entire staff were fired, and was replaced by Derek Fisher. Fisher played under Jackson with the Los Angeles Lakers, winning five NBA championships with the franchise. The Knicks finished the season with a disappointing 37–45 record and finished ninth in the Eastern Conference, but was the season Carmelo Anthony established his career high, the Knicks' franchise record, and the Madison Square Garden record for single-game scoring. Anthony recorded 62 points and 13 rebounds in a victory against the Charlotte Bobcats. Forbes magazine released its franchise value rankings for NBA teams, and listed the Knicks as the world's most valuable basketball organization at $1.4 billion in 2014, edging out the Los Angeles Lakers by $50 million. The Knicks were valued at 40% more than the third-place Chicago Bulls valuation of $1 billion, and were valued nearly twice as highly as their crosstown rivals, the Brooklyn Nets, who came in at $780 million. In the off-season, the Knicks traded controversial guard Raymond Felton, along with former NBA defensive player of the year, Tyson Chandler, to the Dallas Mavericks. In return, the Knicks received Shane Larkin, José Calderón, Samuel Dalembert, and Wayne Ellington along with two picks for the 2014 NBA draft. The trade was the first one that Jackson ever executed as a front office executive. On June 26, as part of the draft, the Knicks selected Cleanthony Early as the 34th overall pick, and Thanasis Antetokounmpo as the 51st overall pick, using the draft picks received in the trade from the Mavericks. The Knicks also acquired Louis Labeyrie, an additional second-round draft pick, in a trade with the Indiana Pacers for cash considerations. The Knicks would then go onto set a franchise record with its 13th consecutive loss, losing 101–91 to the Washington Wizards, giving New York its longest losing streak in the franchise's 69-season history. This record was extended to 16th consecutive losses, after the NBA Global Games loss against the Milwaukee Bucks in London. The Knicks would finish the 2014–15 season with a win-loss record of 17–65, the worst record in franchise history, and allowed them to gain the 4th overall selection in the upcoming draft. The Knicks also bought out Amar'e Stoudemire's $100 million contract a season early. On June 24, 2015, the Knicks selected Kristaps Porziņģis with the fourth overall pick in the draft, and traded Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Jerian Grant, the 19th overall pick. Midway through another losing season, Fisher was relieved of his coaching duties, with Kurt Rambis being named as interim head coach as the Knicks finished the season with a record of 32–50. Jeff Hornacek was then hired as their next head coach, which also oversaw Jackson's most notable acts as an executive. On June 22, former NBA MVP Derrick Rose was traded, along with Justin Holiday and a second-round pick from Chicago, to New York in exchange for Robin Lopez, José Calderón and Grant. The Knicks also signed Joakim Noah, Brandon Jennings, and Courtney Lee to contracts worth a combined $127 million, and regressed the following season, causing the franchise to part ways with Jackson after three years as the Knicks' president of basketball operations. Under Jackson's presidency, the Knicks had gone 80–166, suffered three consecutive losing seasons, and missed three consecutive playoffs. In his last act prior to leaving the Knicks, Jackson selected Frank Ntilikina with the eighth overall pick, Damyean Dotson with the 44th overall pick, and Ognjen Jaramaz with the 58th overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft. Following Jackson's departure, the Knicks appointed Scott Perry as general manager and named Steve Mills president of basketball operations. The Knicks also saw Carmelo Anthony demanding a trade from the team, which posed difficulty for both player and franchise due to a no-trade clause inserted in Anthony's contract given by Jackson in 2013. Originally, the only teams for which he would waive his no trade clause were for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Houston Rockets, with the former eventually removed from trade discussions due to internal conflicts. Anthony intended to join the Rockets, with a three- way trade with the Portland Trail Blazers set up involving Ryan Anderson. Anderson's three-year, $60 million contract was not feasibly able to be absorbed by either franchise, however, causing Perry to cease talks with the Rockets, before agreeing to a deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder, after Anthony agreed to expand his no-trade clause to include the Thunder. The Knicks received Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott and a 2018 second-round pick in exchange for Anthony on September 25, 2017, while also positioning Kristaps Porziņģis as the new centerpiece of the franchise. The Knicks also re-signed Tim Hardaway Jr. to a four-year, $71 million contract, while also agreeing to a one-year, minimum contract with Michael Beasley. The franchise also traded for former lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay from the Denver Nuggets at the trade deadline, who was a point guard the Knicks were rumored to have targeted prior to selecting Porziņģis in 2015. The trade also included the Dallas Mavericks, with Dallas acquiring McDermott from the Knicks, and the Nuggets obtaining Devin Harris from Dallas. However, the season again ended poorly, with 29–53 record to leave the Knicks as the 11th seed in the Eastern Conference. This caused the Knicks to part ways with head coach Jeff Hornacek. Hornacek's two full seasons retained criticism for the team's continued struggle on defense, as well as the inability to implement an efficient, modern offense. He was replaced with former Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale. Fizdale signed a four-year deal, and was tasked to deliver on player development and improving the team's basketball philosophy. On May 15, 2018, the Knicks were awarded the ninth overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft, and selected Kevin Knox from the Kentucky. The team also acquired Mitchell Robinson with the 36th overall pick, and signed former lottery pick Mario Hezonja. They further invested in untapped potential by signing another former lottery pick, with Noah Vonleh agreeing to a one year deal. However, following a dismal start to the season, and after a meeting with Porziņģis gave team officials the impression that he wanted to be traded, Porziņģis was traded on January 30, 2019, alongside Trey Burke, Courtney Lee and Tim Hardaway Jr., to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews, Dennis Smith Jr., an unprotected 2021 first-round draft pick, and an additional top-ten protected 2023 first round draft pick. The Knicks finished the 2018–19 season with a league worst 17–65 regular season record, but the season was notable for the emergence of undrafted rookie Allonzo Trier, as well as for the progression of Dotson and Robinson. The Knicks won the third overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and selected RJ Barrett from Duke. The team also traded for forward Iggy Brazdeikis, who was drafted in the second round from Michigan. In preparation for the 2019–20 season, and as a result of having a record $74 million in cap space following the Porziņģis trade, the team divided it among five new signings. The Knicks agreed terms with veteran role players Wayne Ellington and Taj Gibson, with forward Bobby Portis also signing. The team then signed former lottery picks Elfrid Payton and Julius Randle. The first logo of the New York Knicks is of a character named "Father Knickerbocker" dribbling a basketball, in the iconic blue and orange colors. It was designed by New York World-Telegram cartoonist Willard Mullin. From the beginning, the Knicks home uniforms are in white with blue and orange trim, while the away uniforms are in blue with orange and white trim. The first iterations contain monotone lettering in blue (home) and orange (away) lettering, with the addition of a checkerboard pattern during the mid-1950s. The Knicks would introduce an iconic logo that would endure for the next three decades. Designed by Bud Freeman, the word 'Knicks' superimposed over a brown basketball is known as the 'Classic Roundball Logo', with minor changes throughout its lifespan such as maroon wordmark and orange basketball. An alternate logo featuring the full team name inside an orange basketball was used during the late 1960s and into the 1970s. As the 1960s began, the Knicks updated their uniforms again. This time the lettering is in serifed fonts, and the blue lettering and numbers on the home uniforms are now trimmed in orange, while on the away uniforms it is in monotone white. Side stripes were also added to the uniform. The 'NY' monogram is on the left leg of the shorts. The Knicks unveiled a uniform that would stay for three decades. This uniform, with an arched 'NEW YORK' in serif lettering and in orange, would be the uniform worn during their 1970 and 1973 championship seasons; however, they were not introduced simultaneously. The home uniforms would debut in 1968, while the away uniforms debuted the following year. One noticeable feature was that the player's name was in a straight block arched lettering (which is also called the "vertical arch" style), which was meticulously designed by Gerry Cosby and his sporting goods company. The unusual arrangement on the player's name was later adopted by several Major League Baseball teams in the 1970s, and are currently used by the National Hockey League's Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings and New York Rangers. On the shorts, there was no logo placed during much of the 1970s, but during the 1978–79 season, the side stripes were eliminated and the interlocking 'NY' logo inside an apple was placed instead. When the uniform was reinstated for the 1983–84 season, it now featured the player's number and the interlocking 'NY' logo, in addition to the return of the side stripes. The shorts number was eliminated in 1987, while variations of the 'Roundball Logo' replaced the 'NY' logo from 1991 to 1997. Since the 1991–92 season various outfitters such as Champion, Puma, Reebok, Adidas and Nike have taken over uniform production from Cosby, with player names on the back reverted to a radial arch and added serifs. At the beginning of the 1980s, the Knicks radically changed their uniforms. Royal blue and orange were replaced by navy and maroon. During this period, the home uniforms featured the team name below the number, both in maroon with navy trim and in a stylized, free-flowing font. Navy away uniforms continue to feature the city name but below the white and maroon number. The interlocking 'NY' logo debuted on the shorts, with the addition of player numbers and side stripes during the 1981–82 season. The 'Knicks' script from the 'Maroon Era' uniforms was later reused in the uniforms of the Knicks' NBA Development League affiliate Westchester Knicks, with the same team name below the number format. Before the 1992–93 season, the Knicks updated their 'Roundball Logo' to its present form, with the word 'Knicks' in a futuristic font, again superimposed over a basketball, with a silver triangle accentuating the look. The "New Look" logo was designed by Tom O'Grady. For the 1995–96 season, the city name in a futuristic script was added atop the logo, while an alternate 'Subway Token' logo featuring the acronym 'NYK' was introduced. Black was also introduced as an accent color. The logo was added while the 'Championship Era' uniforms were still in use, but during the 1995–96 season, the Knicks unveiled a blue alternate uniform, this time featuring black side stripes and the aforementioned 'Subway Token' logo on the shorts' beltline. A home white version of this uniform was introduced for the 1997–98 season, effectively retiring the championship era uniforms. In the 2001–02 season, the side stripes were narrowed, while the 'Subway Token' logo was moved to the back of the uniform, and the Knicks primary logo moved from the side to the front of the shorts. The Knicks updated their "New Look Logo", this time eliminating the color black from the scheme. They still used the previous uniform during the 2011–12 season, but for the 2012–13 season, the Knicks unveiled new uniforms inspired from their 'Championship Era' uniforms. A more subtle and bolder 'New York' script was introduced, while the uniform piping stopped until the lettering. The phrase Once A Knick, Always A Knick is added on the uniform collar. Gray became the accent color. In addition, an updated version of their 1970s secondary logo, this time featuring only the team name, was introduced. On October 25, 2013, the Knicks unveiled an alternate orange uniform, which is essentially a mirror image of the blue away uniforms, but with orange as the primary color and blue and white as trim colors. The uniforms debuted on October 31 in a road game against the Chicago Bulls, and were used in the first five weekend home games, but after going 0–6 in the orange uniforms, they were discontinued permanently. Beginning with the 2017–18 season, Nike will be the NBA's new uniform provider. Under Nike, "home" and "away" uniform designations were eliminated, and in their place were the white "Association" set, primary color "Icon" set, alternate color "Statement" set, and annual "City" set that will be used either at home or away. The Knicks kept their white "Association" and blue "Icon" uniforms almost intact with only a few alterations such as truncated shoulder and shorts striping and the modern roundball logo on the waistband. From 2017–19, the Knicks' "Statement" uniform featured a white base with lettering in orange with white and blue trim. The striping was inspired from the team's 1970s-era uniforms. In the 2019–20 season, the Knicks changed their Statement uniform to a blue base and white lettering with blue and orange trim. The white letters were a nod to the team's 1960s blue uniforms. As with the previous "Statement" uniform, the striping was based on the team's 1970s uniforms. The Knicks have also worn special edition uniforms every March as part of the NBA's Noche Latina events and during St. Patrick's Day. The uniforms during Noche Latina were originally white with blue and orange trim, first using the 2001–12 uniform from 2008 to 2012, and then the current uniforms from 2012 to 2015, the only exception being Nueva York in front. In the 2015–16 season, the Knicks used a variation of their away blue uniform for Noche Latina. The Saint Patrick's Day uniforms used the road uniform template except for green substituting for the blue base. These uniforms have also been used on Christmas Day from the 2009–10 season, and was worn in particular by Nate Robinson for a "Kryptonate vs. Superman" theme against Dwight Howard in the 2009 Slam Dunk Contest. The St. Patrick's uniforms were shelved after the 2011–12 season. On Christmas Day 2012, the Knicks wore monochrome uniforms known as 'Big Color'. The uniforms are mostly orange, with blue trimming. The following year, the Knicks wore sleeved orange uniforms known as 'Big Logo', featuring a chrome-treated Knicks logo in front. For the 2014 edition, the Knicks wore a variation of their home uniforms, featuring the team logo in front and the player's first name in a blue nameplate below the number. The 2016 Christmas Day game against the Celtics saw the Knicks wear an all-blue uniform without additional striping, complete with fancy scripted orange lettering and numbers. As part of its deal with Nike, a special "City" uniform would be used to pay tribute to either local culture or team traditions. The Knicks' 2017–18 "City" uniform, which is navy with orange and grey trim and features an emblem containing the team name, uniform number, a ladder with a silhouette of a firefighter, a fire hydrant, and the abbreviation "N.Y.C." for New York City, pays homage to the city's firefighters and their families. It was designed in collaboration with the Knicks, the NBA, Nike and the Uniformed Firefighters Association. The Knicks' second "City" uniform is also in navy and features white lettering, a straight aligned "New York" wordmark in front and alternating stripes of blue, navy and orange designed to mimic the New York City skyline. The blue and orange arm striping was inspired from the team's 1950s uniforms. The Knicks initially debuted the uniform in the 2018–19 season, and was retained the following season. The Knicks hold the draft rights to the following unsigned draft picks who have been playing outside the NBA. A drafted player, either an international draftee or a college draftee who is not signed by the team that drafted him, is allowed to sign with any non-NBA teams. In this case, the team retains the player's draft rights in the NBA until one year after the player's contract with the non-NBA team ends. This list includes draft rights that were acquired from trades with other teams. Notes: Also served as a broadcaster., Also served as head coach (1965–1968) and scouting director., Also served as head coach (1977–1978)., As head coach; the number represents his 613 victories coaching the Knicks., Number retired twice, first for Monroe and 6 years later for McGuire. Notes: In total, Ewing was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as player and as a member of the 1992 Olympic team., In total, Wilkens was inducted into the Hall of Fame three times – as player, as coach and as a member of the 1992 Olympic team., In total, Lucas was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as player and as a member of the 1960 Olympic team., In total, Bellamy was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as player and as a member of the 1960 Olympic team., Also served as assistant coach (1983–1985)., Also served as head coach (1965–1966)., Also served as head coach (1959–1961). The following Knicks players were selected to the NBA All-Star Game. Vince Boryla – 1951, Harry Gallatin – 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, Dick McGuire – 1951, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, Max Zaslofsky – 1952, Carl Braun – 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, Nathaniel Clifton – 1957, Richie Guerin – 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, Willie Naulls – 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, Ken Sears – 1958, 1959, Johnny Green – 1962, 1963, 1965, Tom Gola – 1963, 1964, Len Chappell – 1964, Willis Reed – 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, Dick Barnett – 1968, Dave DeBusschere – 1966, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, Walt Frazier – 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, Bill Bradley – 1973 Earl Monroe: 1975, 1977, Bob McAdoo: 1977, 1978, Bill Cartwright: 1980, Micheal Ray Richardson: 1980, 1981, 1982, Bernard King – 1984, 1985, Patrick Ewing – 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, Mark Jackson – 1989, Charles Oakley – 1994, John Starks – 1994, Allan Houston – 2000, 2001, Latrell Sprewell – 2001, David Lee – 2010, Amar'e Stoudemire – 2011, Carmelo Anthony – 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, Tyson Chandler – 2013, Kristaps Porziņģis – 2018 Steve Mills served as general manager and president during the 2013–14 season. At the end of the 2013–14 season Phil Jackson replaced Mills as team's president. He was reinstated as president in 2017, with Scott Perry replacing him as general manager. Team presidents Owners Bold denotes still active with team. Italic denotes still active, but not with team. Points scored (regular season) as of the end of the 2018–19 season 1. Patrick Ewing (23,665) 2. Walt Frazier (14,617) 3. Willis Reed (12,183) 4. Allan Houston (11,165) 5. Carl Braun (10,449) 6. Richie Guerin (10,392) 7. Carmelo Anthony (10,186) 8. Earl Monroe (9,679) 9. Dick Barnett (9,442) 10. Bill Bradley (9,217) 11. Bill Cartwright (9,006) 12. John Starks (8,489) 13. Willie Naulls (8,318) 14. Gerald Wilkins (8,258) 15. Harry Gallatin (7,771) 16. Charles Oakley (7,528) 17. Dave DeBusschere (6,957) 18. Kenny Sears (6,854) 19. Ray Williams (6,555) 20. Latrell Sprewell (6,284) Other statistics (regular season) as of the end of the 2018–19 season NBA MVP Willis Reed – 1970 NBA Finals MVP Willis Reed – 1970, 1973 NBA Rookie of the Year Willis Reed – 1965, Patrick Ewing – 1986, Mark Jackson – 1988 NBA Sixth Man of the Year Anthony Mason – 1995, John Starks – 1997, J. R. Smith − 2013 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Tyson Chandler – 2012 NBA Coach of the Year Red Holzman – 1970, Pat Riley – 1993 NBA Sportsmanship Award Jason Kidd – 2013 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award Mike Glenn – 1981, Rory Sparrow – 1986 NBA scoring champion Bernard King – 1985, Carmelo Anthony – 2013 NBA All-Star Game head coaches Joe Lapchick – 1951, 1953, 1954, Red Holzman – 1970, 1971, Pat Riley – 1993, Jeff Van Gundy – 2000 All-NBA First Team Harry Gallatin – 1954, Walt Frazier – 1970, 1972, 1974, 1975, Willis Reed – 1970, Bernard King – 1984, 1985, Patrick Ewing – 1990 All-NBA Second Team Carl Braun – 1948, 1954, Dick McGuire – 1951, Harry Gallatin – 1955, Richie Guerin – 1959, 1960, 1962, Willis Reed – 1967–1969, 1971, Dave DeBusschere – 1969, Walt Frazier – 1971, 1973, Patrick Ewing – 1988, 1989, 1991–1993, 1997, Amar'e Stoudemire – 2011, Carmelo Anthony – 2013 All-NBA Third Team Carmelo Anthony – 2012, Tyson Chandler – 2012 NBA All-Defensive First Team Dave DeBusschere – 1969–1974, Walt Frazier – 1969–1975, Willis Reed – 1970, Micheal Ray Richardson – 1981, Charles Oakley – 1994, Tyson Chandler – 2013 NBA All-Defensive Second Team Patrick Ewing – 1988, 1989, 1992, John Starks – 1993, Charles Oakley – 1998, Tyson Chandler – 2012 NBA All-Rookie First Team Art Heyman – 1964, Jim Barnes – 1965, Howard Komives – 1965, Willis Reed – 1965, Dick Van Arsdale – 1966, Cazzie Russell – 1967, Walt Frazier – 1968, Phil Jackson – 1968, Bill Cartwright – 1980, Darrell Walker – 1984, Patrick Ewing – 1986, Mark Jackson – 1988, Channing Frye – 2006, Landry Fields – 2011, Iman Shumpert – 2012, Tim Hardaway Jr. – 2014, Kristaps Porziņģis – 2016, Willy Hernangómez – 2017 NBA All-Rookie Second Team Rod Strickland – 1989, Langston Galloway – 2015, Mitchell Robinson – 2019 The New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics are two of the three remaining teams from the original 1946 NBA (the other is the Golden State Warriors). The rivalry stems from the old rivalry between the cities of New York City and Boston, as well as the Yankees–Red Sox rivalry. The fact that Boston and New York City are only 190 miles apart contributes to it, which is also seen in the Jets–Patriots rivalry. The teams have met nine times in the postseason. The last time was in the 2012–13 season, when Carmelo Anthony won the 2013 scoring title and helped them win the Atlantic Division for the first time since 1994. The Knicks faced the Celtics, who were without Rajon Rondo because of a mid-season injury, in the 1st round of the 2013 playoffs. In both games 1 and 2, Celtics had a lead going into halftime but were held to 25 and 23 points respectively in the second half, which was an all-time low for the franchise in the playoffs. Knicks gained a 3–0 lead in the series, but Boston avoided elimination in games 4 and 5. In game six, Knicks once led by 26 points in the fourth quarter, then the Celtics went onto a 20–0 run in less than 5 minutes to make it a close game, but Knicks still won and moved on to round 2. The Brooklyn Nets, formerly the New Jersey Nets, are the Knicks' closest rival geographically. Both teams play in New York City, with the Knicks in Manhattan and the Nets in Brooklyn. Media outlets have noted the Knicks-Nets rivalry's similarity to those of other New York City teams, such as Major League Baseball's Subway Series rivalry between the American League's New York Yankees and the National League's New York Mets, due to both boroughs' proximity through the New York City Subway. Historically, the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn competed via the Dodgers–Giants rivalry, when the two teams were known as the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants. Like the Knicks and Nets, the Giants and Dodgers played in Manhattan and Brooklyn, respectively, and were fierce divisional rivals. The rivalry between the New York Islanders and New York Rangers of the National Hockey League also have this distinction when the Islanders moved to Brooklyn in 2015. Due to the Knicks and Nets being located in the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, some media outlets have dubbed this rivalry "Clash of the Boroughs". The Knicks and Nets have met in the playoffs three times, with the Knicks winning two of the three meetings. The Knicks defeated the Nets in the playoffs in 1983 and 1994, while the Nets won their most recent meeting in 2004. The Knicks have a strong rivalry with the Chicago Bulls. The rivalry's most intense period was during the late 1980s and early 90s, when both teams were huge playoff contenders. This intensity was due to a variety of factors: the great frequency in which the teams competed against each other in high-stakes contests and playoff series; well-known players such as Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Patrick Ewing, and John Starks; the reputations of the team's respective cities; and personnel changes and conflicts between the teams. The rivalry was dormant through much of the 2000s, with both teams rebuilding after the retirements of Patrick Ewing and Michael Jordan. However, with the arrival of future NBA MVP Derrick Rose in 2008, the Chicago Bulls began experiencing success once again. In the summer of 2010, the Bulls signed Carlos Boozer and the Knicks signed Amar'e Stoudemire, making both teams playoff contenders once again. Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler joined the Knicks soon after, and the rivalry between the two teams appears to have been reborn. The rivalry between the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers started in 1993 and quickly became one of the most bitter in NBA history. They met in the playoffs 6 times from 1993 to 2000, fueling a rivalry epitomized by the enmity between Reggie Miller and prominent Knick fan Spike Lee. Miller likened it to the Hatfield–McCoy feud, and The New York Times said in 1998 that it was "as combustible as any in the league". The rivalry gave Miller the nickname "The Knick-Killer". His clutch performances were frequently followed by jabs at Lee like the choke sign, adding fuel to the rivalry. The rivalry renewed during the 2013 NBA Playoffs in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, with Indiana taking the series 4 games to 2. The Miami Heat were one of the New York Knicks' strongest inter-divisional foes. The two teams met in the playoffs each year from 1997 to 2000, with all four of those series being played to the maximum number of games. Pat Riley, the head coach of the Miami Heat at the time, served as the head coach of the Knicks from 1991 to 1995 and led the Knicks to the 1994 NBA Finals. During this four-year span, the Heat and the Knicks each won two playoff series against each other. The two teams met again in the first round of the 2012 NBA Playoffs, for the first time since the 1990s rivalry days. The Heat won the series, 4–1, and later went on to win the 2012 NBA Finals. The Atlantic Division is one of the three divisions in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The division consists of five teams, the Boston Celtics, the Brooklyn Nets, the New York Knicks, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Toronto Raptors. All teams, except the Raptors, are located on the East Coast of the United States. However, Toronto sports teams have over the years enjoyed rivalries with teams in the Northeastern United States (particularly, Toronto teams also share divisions with Boston and New York teams in Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League. The division was created at the start of the 1970–71 season, when the league expanded from 14 to 17 teams with the addition of the Buffalo Braves, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Portland Trail Blazers. The league realigned itself into two conferences, the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference, with two divisions in each conference. The Atlantic Division began with four inaugural members, the Celtics, the Braves, the Knicks and the 76ers. The Celtics, the Knicks and the 76ers all joined from the Eastern Division. The Celtics have won the most Atlantic Division titles with 22. Nine NBA champions have come from the Atlantic Division. The Celtics have won six championships, while the Knicks, the 76ers and the Raptors have won one championship each. All of them, except the 1972–73 Knicks, were division champions. In the 1983–84 season, all five teams from the division qualified for the playoffs. In the 1982–83 season, all teams in the division had winning percentages above 0.500 (50%). The current division champion is the Toronto Raptors, their sixth division title. y – Clinched division title, x – Clinched playoff spot Notes denotes a team that merged from the American Basketball Association (ABA). Notes denotes an expansion team. Because of a lockout, the season did not start until February 5, 1999, and all 29 teams played a shortened 50-game regular season schedule., Because of a lockout, the season did not start until December 25, 2011, and all 30 teams played a shortened 66-game regular season schedule., In the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings, the NBA canceled the April 16 game scheduled in Boston between the Celtics and the Pacers; the game was not rescheduled because it would have had no impact on either team's playoff seedings. General Specific NBA.com Team Index The 1999 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association’s 1998-99 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion New York Knicks 4 games to 1. Tim Duncan was named NBA Finals MVP. The 1999 Playoffs are memorable in that a #8 seed (the Knicks) made it to the Finals for the only time in history, and that it came after a lockout- shortened 50-game season. It also featured the Philadelphia 76ers’ and Milwaukee Bucks’ first trip to the playoffs since 1991 (coincidentally they faced each other in the opening round that year), and it was also the 76ers’ first appearance since drafting Allen Iverson with the #1 overall pick in 1996. Iverson later led the Sixers to the 2001 NBA Finals. The Bulls, despite being defending champions, missed the playoffs for the first time since 1984 (mostly due to the second retirement of Michael Jordan and the departures of Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman). They also became the first defending champion since the 1969–70 Boston Celtics to miss the playoffs. Although the Spurs had home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, they played more road games (9) than home games (8), as all their series were won on the road, which included back-to-back sweeps of the Lakers and Blazers (who would meet in next year's West Finals). They won twelve straight games, and finished 15–2 for a postseason record previously equalled by the 1991 Chicago Bulls and beaten only by a 15–1 playoff record with the only loss in overtime from the Los Angeles Lakers in 2001, and by a 16–1 playoff record from the Golden State Warriors in 2017. After losing their Eastern Conference Semifinal series to the Knicks, the Atlanta Hawks did not return to the playoffs until 2008. Game 4 of the Spurs–Lakers series was the last NBA game ever played in the Great Western Forum. Game 5 of the Knicks–Pacers series was the last NBA game ever played at Market Square Arena. For the first time since 1991, no series went to seven games. After spending their first thirteen seasons in Sacramento in mediocrity, with no winning record and two playoff appearances in 1986 and 1996, the Kings franchise made the first of eight consecutive playoff appearances, which included a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2002. Game 4 of the Lakers–Rockets series turned out to be the final postseason appearance in Charles Barkley’s Hall of Fame career. Champion: San Antonio Spurs 1st Round (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (8) Minnesota Timberwolves: Spurs win series 3-1 Game 1 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 9): San Antonio 99, Minnesota 86 NBC, Game 2 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 11): Minnesota 80, San Antonio 71 TNT, Game 3 @ Target Center, Minneapolis (May 13): San Antonio 85, Minnesota 71 TNT, Game 4 @ Target Center, Minneapolis (May 15): San Antonio 92, Minnesota 85 NBC This was the first playoff meeting between the Timberwolves and the Spurs. (2) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (7) Phoenix Suns: Blazers win series 3-0 Game 1 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (May 8): Portland 95, Phoenix 85 NBC, Game 2 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (May 10): Portland 110, Phoenix 99 TNT, Game 3 @ America West Arena, Phoenix (May 12): Portland 103, Phoenix 93 TBS This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Suns winning three of the first five meetings. (3) Utah Jazz vs. (6) Sacramento Kings: Jazz win series 3-2 Game 1 @ Delta Center, Salt Lake City (May 8): Utah 117, Sacramento 87 NBC, Game 2 @ Delta Center, Salt Lake City (May 10): Sacramento 101, Utah 90 TBS, Game 3 @ ARCO Arena, Sacramento (May 12): Sacramento 84, Utah 81 (OT) TNT, Game 4 @ ARCO Arena, Sacramento (May 14): Utah 90, Sacramento 89 (John Stockton hits the game winner with 7 tenths left.)TNT, Game 5 @ Delta Center, Salt Lake City (May 16): Utah 99, Sacramento 92 (OT)NBC This was the first playoff meeting between the Kings and the Jazz. (4) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (5) Houston Rockets: Lakers win series 3-1 Game 1 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 9): Los Angeles 101, Houston 100 (Kobe Bryant makes the game-winning free-throws with 5 seconds left; Shaquille O'Neal blocks Cuttino Mobley at the buzzer)NBC, Game 2 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 11): Los Angeles 110, Houston 98 TNT, Game 3 @ Compaq Center, Houston (May 13): Houston 102, Los Angeles 88 TNT, Game 4 @ Compaq Center, Houston (May 15): Los Angeles 98, Houston 88 NBC (Rockets final playoff game played in the Compaq Center) This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Rockets winning three of the first five meetings. Conference Semifinals (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (4) Los Angeles Lakers: Spurs win series 4-0 Game 1 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 17): San Antonio 87, Los Angeles 81 TBS, Game 2 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 19): San Antonio 79, Los Angeles 76 TNT, Game 3 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 22): San Antonio 103, Los Angeles 91 NBC, Game 4 @ Great Western Forum, Los Angeles (May 23): San Antonio 118, Los Angeles 107 NBC (Lakers final NBA game played in the Great Western Forum) This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning four of the first five meetings. (2) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (3) Utah Jazz: Blazers win series 4-2 Game 1 @ Delta Center, Salt Lake City (May 18): Utah 93, Portland 83 TNT, Game 2 @ Delta Center, Salt Lake City (May 20): Portland 84, Utah 81 TNT, Game 3 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (May 22): Portland 97, Utah 87 NBC, Game 4 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (May 23): Portland 81, Utah 75 TNT, Game 5 @ Delta Center, Salt Lake City (May 25): Utah 88, Portland 71 TNT, Game 6 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (May 27): Portland 92, Utah 80 TNT This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning two series apiece. Conference Finals (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (2) Portland Trail Blazers: Spurs win series 4-0 Game 1 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 29): San Antonio 80, Portland 76 NBC, Game 2 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (May 31): San Antonio 86, Portland 85 (The Memorial Day Miracle: Sean Elliott makes the game-winning 3 with 9 seconds left.)NBC, Game 3 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (June 4): San Antonio 85, Portland 63 NBC, Game 4 @ Rose Garden Arena, Portland (June 6): San Antonio 94, Portland 80 NBC This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning one series apiece Champion: New York Knicks 1st Round (1) Miami Heat vs. (8) New York Knicks: Knicks win series 3-2 Game 1 @ Miami Arena, Miami (May 8): New York 95, Miami 75 NBC, Game 2 @ Miami Arena, Miami (May 10): Miami 83, New York 73 TBS, Game 3 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (May 12): New York 97, Miami 73 TNT, Game 4 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (May 14): Miami 87, New York 72 TNT, Game 5 @ Miami Arena, Miami (May 16): New York 78, Miami 77 (Allan Houston hits the series-winning jumper with 0.8 left) NBC This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning one series apiece. (2) Indiana Pacers vs. (7) Milwaukee Bucks: Pacers win series 3-0 Game 1 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (May 9): Indiana 110, Milwaukee 88 TBS, Game 2 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (May 11): Indiana 108, Milwaukee 107 (OT) (Dale Davis tips in the game winner with 5 tenths left in OT) TBS, Game 3 @ Bradley Center, Milwaukee (May 13): Indiana 99, Milwaukee 91 TBS This was the first playoff meeting between the Pacers and the Bucks. (3) Orlando Magic vs. (6) Philadelphia 76ers: 76ers win series 3-1 Game 1 @ Orlando Arena, Orlando (May 9): Philadelphia 104, Orlando 90 NBC, Game 2 @ Orlando Arena, Orlando (May 11): Orlando 79, Philadelphia 68 TBS, Game 3 @ First Union Center, Philadelphia (May 13): Philadelphia 97, Orlando 85 (Dominique Wilkins's final NBA game; Allen Iverson gets a playoff record 10 steals)TBS, Game 4 @ First Union Center, Philadelphia (May 15): Philadelphia 101, Orlando 91 NBC This was the first playoff meeting between the Magic and the 76ers. (4) Atlanta Hawks vs. (5) Detroit Pistons: Hawks win series 3-2 Game 1 @ Georgia Dome, Atlanta (May 8): Atlanta 90, Detroit 70 TNT, Game 2 @ Georgia Dome, Atlanta (May 10): Atlanta 89, Detroit 69 TNT, Game 3 @ The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills (May 12): Detroit 79, Atlanta 63 TBS, Game 4 @ The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills (May 14): Detroit 103, Atlanta 82 TBS, Game 5 @ Alexander Memorial Coliseum, Atlanta (May 16): Atlanta 87, Detroit 75 (Joe Dumars' final NBA game)TNT This was the eighth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Hawks winning four of the first seven meetings. Conference Semifinals (2) Indiana Pacers vs. (6) Philadelphia 76ers: Pacers win series 4-0 Game 1 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (May 17): Indiana 94, Philadelphia 90 TBS, Game 2 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (May 19): Indiana 85, Philadelphia 82 TNT, Game 3 @ First Union Center, Philadelphia (May 21): Indiana 97, Philadelphia 86 TNT, Game 4 @ First Union Center, Philadelphia (May 23): Indiana 89, Philadelphia 86 NBC This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the 76ers winning the first meeting. (4) Atlanta Hawks vs. (8) New York Knicks: Knicks win series 4-0 Game 1 @ Georgia Dome, Atlanta (May 18): New York 100, Atlanta 92 TNT, Game 2 @ Georgia Dome, Atlanta (May 20): New York 77, Atlanta 70 TNT, Game 3 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (May 23): New York 90, Atlanta 78 NBC, Game 4 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (May 24): New York 79, Atlanta 66 TBS This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Knicks winning the first meeting. Conference Finals (2) Indiana Pacers vs. (8) New York Knicks: Knicks win series 4-2 Game 1 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (May 30): New York 93, Indiana 90 NBC, Game 2 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (June 1): Indiana 88, New York 86 (Reggie Miller hits the game winning free throws with 4 seconds left).TNT, Game 3 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (June 5): New York 92, Indiana 91 (Larry Johnson's game-winning 4-point play with 5.7 seconds left.)NBC, Game 4 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (June 7): Indiana 90, New York 78 NBC, Game 5 @ Market Square Arena, Indianapolis (June 9): New York 101, Indiana 94 (Pacers final NBA game played in Market Square Arena) NBC, Game 6 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (June 11): New York 90, Indiana 82 NBC This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning two series apiece. (1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (8) New York Knicks: Spurs win series 4-1 Game 1 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (June 16): San Antonio 89, New York 77 NBC, Game 2 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (June 18): San Antonio 80, New York 67 NBC, Game 3 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (June 21): New York 89, San Antonio 81 NBC, Game 4 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (June 23): San Antonio 96, New York 89NBC, Game 5 @ Madison Square Garden, New York City (June 25): San Antonio 78, New York 77 (Avery Johnson hits the title-winning shot with 47 seconds left.)NBC Neither team met in the regular season. This was the first playoff meeting between the Knicks and the Spurs.

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Produce 48 () was a 2018 reality competition show on Mnet. It was a large- scale project in which the public "produces" a girl group by voting for members out of a pool of 96 contestants from South Korea and Japan, as well as voting for the group's concept, name and debut single. The show was a collaboration between the Mnet series Produce 101 and the J-pop idol group AKB48. The winning 12 contestants, with no nationality caps, as voted only by Korean viewers, would promote as a group for two and a half years. The program itself is primarily in Korean, however staff and trainer instructions are translated onsite by interpreters. The show announced the final 12 members who made it into, as well as the official name of the group Iz*One during the finale on August 31, 2018. Produced by AKATV (the company that also produced the second season of Produce 101) for Mnet, the show premiered on June 15, 2018, and concluded on August 31, 2018, with 12 episodes. It was directed by Ahn Joon-young, who also directed the first two seasons of Produce 101. Produce 48 brought together 96 girls from idol groups and entertainment companies in Japan and South Korea to form a 12-person Korean-Japanese group that would promote for two and a half years. Formed as a collaboration between Mnet and Yasushi Akimoto, the project planned to adopt the AKB48's concept of "idols you can meet and greet" and be able to perform in a designated theatre. Members of the group are able to promote under their own agencies concurrently, as the show, and the groups' promotions thereafter, are recorded in batches. The show started with 96 contestants, who were initially grouped into several classes. Episodic competitions were featured in which girls performed in teams on various songs, and were voted by the studio audience, with the winning teams receiving a number of bonus votes to apply to their overall vote count. The viewer-submitted votes were then applied and the girls were ranked, with certain episodes being elimination rounds to reduce the remaining number of contestants. Of the 96 contestants, 57 of them were from South Korean idol groups and companies, and the other 39 were from Japanese idol groups, consisting of current members of AKB48 and their sister groups. The final 12 were selected regardless of nationality. The concept for Produce 48 was revealed at the 2017 Mnet Asian Music Awards in Japan on November 29, 2017, following a joint performance by AKB48 and South Korean artists Weki Meki, Chungha, Pristin, Idol School, and Fromis 9. In February 2018, Mnet stated that it would not use the speculated format of having 48 girls from South Korea and 48 girls from Japan competing separately, or that six members of each country would be selected. The first teaser for the show was released on April 11, 2018. On April 22, the series' theme song "Nekkoya (Pick Me)" (내꺼야 (Pick Me)) was recorded by the contestants of the show with HKT48's Sakura Miyawaki as center. The winners of the previous series, I.O.I and Wanna One, made appearances at the recording. Produce 48's contestants performed the theme song on Episode 570 of M Countdown in May 2018. The show premiered on June 15, 2018, on Mnet in South Korea and Mnet Japan. It is also being broadcast in Japan on BS Sky PerfecTV. CJ E&M; is also live streaming the series on their TVing Global service. The series was broadcast on tvN Asia in Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Cambodia and Myanmar where it premiered on June 21, 2018. The series was presented by Lee Seung-gi. Other artists featured as cast members: Vocal trainers:, Lee Hong-gi, Soyou, Dance trainers:, Bae Yoon-jeong, Choi Young-jun, May J Lee, Rap trainer:, Cheetah, Special MC's:, Jeon So-mi (Episodes 1 and 5), Kang Daniel (Episode 1), Kim Chung-ha (Episode 5), Bora (Position Evaluation - Episodes 6 and 7) One-day Dance Judge: Kahi (Episode 1-2) One-day Healing Mentor: Bora (Episode 11) Color key The top 12 contestants chosen through popularity online voting at Produce 48's homepage and audience's live voting, shown at the end of each episode. This ranking determined the 12 trainees who will form the unit girl group. The top 12 contestants as posted on the Mnet official website after each of the major voting periods. Color key The finale was held on August 31, 2018, and was broadcast live. Lee Seung-gi announced the unit girl group name, Iz*One (Hangul: 아이즈원). In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. Note that the show airs on a cable channel (pay TV), which plays part in its slower uptake and relatively small audience share when compared to programs broadcast (FTA) on public networks such as KBS, SBS, MBC or EBS., NR rating means "not reported". The rating is low. Iz*One released their debut EP Color*Iz on October 29, 2018. Since then, they have released a second mini album and three Japanese singles. Other 48 Group members returned to their respective groups and continued with releasing singles and music videos, including "No Way Man" and "Wakariyasukute Gomen"., Some trainees returned to their original groups or set to debut in rookie groups by their respective agencies:, Stone Music's Jang Gyu-ri returned as a member of Fromis 9 for their first single album From.9 on October 10, 2018., FNC's Park Hae-yoon debuted in girl group Cherry Bullet on January 21, 2019., Music Works's Yoon Hae-sol debuted in girl group Aqua on November 16, 2018., FENT's Kim Do-ah debuted in Flavor, the first sub-unit of girl group FANATICS, on November 26, 2018, and the full group on August 6, 2019., Yuehua's Kim Si-hyeon and Wang Yi-ren debuted in girl group Everglow on March 18, 2019., Woollim's Kim So-hee & Kim Su-yun, and (former) AKB48's Juri Takahashi debuted in girl group Rocket Punch on August 7, 2019., Some trainees debuted as a soloist:, ZB Label's Alex Christine released a solo single as AleXa, Bomb on October 21, 2019., (Former) AKB48's Miyu Takeuchi released a solo single, My Type (내 타입) on October 22, 2019 under Mystic Entertainment., Some trainees left their agencies/joined new agencies:, NMB48's Azusa Uemura graduated on December 3, 2018 and began her career as a YouTuber., AKB48's Miyu Takeuchi announced on September 5, 2018 that she would be graduating from the group, and left in December. She then signed a contract with Mystic Entertainment., AKB48's Mako Kojima announced her graduation on January 12, 2019., AKB48's Juri Takahashi graduated from the group on May 2, 2019. She then signed a contract with Woollim Entertainment and debuted in Rocket Punch., NGT48's Rena Hasegawa announced her graduation on May 18, 2019. She then signed a contract with Crocodile and began her career as a voice actress., AKB48's Moe Goto announced her graduation on May 21, 2019., Hwang So-yeon and Kang Da-min left Wellmade Yedang, then Hwang signed a contract with M&H; Entertainment while Kang is now under Starship Entertainment., Ko Yu-jin left Blockberry Creative, then she signed a contract with 8D Creative., Son Eun-chae left Million Market, then she signed a contract with A Team Entertainment and rumoured to prepare debut in the agency's upcoming girlgroup alongside fellow contestant Kim Cho-yeon., Lee Yu-jeong, Yoon Eun-bin, Kim Da-yeon, Hong Ye-ji and Kim Yu-bin left CNC Entertainment, then signed with Stardium Entertainment., Shin Su-hyun left FAVE Entertainment. She then signed with Sublime Artist Agency., Cho Ah-yeong left FNC Entertainment. She then signed a contract with UPVOTE Entertainment., Kim Da-hye left Banana Culture., Yu Min-young left HOW Entertainment., Lee Ka-eun left Pledis Entertainment. and then released her final single under Pledis, Remember You on July 12, 2019. Lee then signed a contract with High Entertainment., Individual trainee Park Jinny joined Vine Entertainment., AKB48's Minami Sato was promoted from Kenkyusei to team A on September 12, 2019. Following allegations of electoral fraud on the final episode of Produce X 101, 272 viewers filed a lawsuit against Mnet. On August 20, 2019, a search warrant was issued on CJ E&M; offices and a text voting company by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. During their first search, the police uncovered voice recordings of the staff members discussing vote manipulation on the previous seasons of the show, resulting in them extending their investigation to all four seasons of the Produce 101 series and Idol School. On November 6, 2019, producers Ahn Joon-young and Kim Yong-bum were arrested. During questioning, Ahn admitted to having manipulated the rankings for Produce 48 and Produce X 101. Police also found that Ahn had been using services from adult entertainment establishments in Gangnam paid for by various talent agencies approximately 40 times beginning from the second half of 2018, estimating to . On November 7, 2019, the police revealed that the final rankings of the top 20 trainees during Produce 48 and Produce X 101 had already been predetermined by the producers before the final performances were recorded and broadcast. Produce 101 Season 2 () was a 2017 boy group survival reality show on Mnet. The public (called 'national producers') "produces" a boy group by choosing 11 members among 101 trainees from 54 entertainment companies through online voting and live voting with multiple elimination rounds. The public also chose the group's concept, debut song and group name. In the season finale on June 16, 2017, which was broadcast live, the show announced the final 11 members who would debut as Wanna One. More than 16 million people cast their votes during the finale, equivalent to around 30% of South Korea's population. Produce 101 Season 2 consisted of 101 male contestants, who were trainees under company labels, debuted idols, or individual trainees in South Korea. Though most contestants were Korean, there were some Chinese, Japanese, and Taiwanese participants In addition to those from other nations. In the final episode, 11 out of the top 20 contestants were chosen to form the show's "project group" through a national fan voting system. The group will promote for two years (ending December 31, 2018) under YMC Entertainment (also the label of I.O.I from Produce 101 season 1). The top 35 performed with the winning team at a finale concert. The group will disband after their contracts end, allowing the members of the final lineup to return to their respective agencies. Bigger agencies, including S.M., YG, and JYP chose not to send trainees to participate in the second season. YG Entertainment was, however, represented by four models under their subsidiary YGKPlus. The first season's main director Han Dong-chul also withdrew from the show due to other commitments. For the boys' training, several artists were recruited for the show. Singers Lee Seok-hoon and Shin Yoo-mi were in charge of vocal training. Rappers Cheetah and Don Mills oversaw rap training. Kahi and Kwon Jae-seung oversaw dance training. On February 23, Mnet announced that BoA would be taking the MC role for this season, replacing Jang Keun-suk. She would be "acting as a messenger and a representative of the viewers". Later on the same day, the trainers were also announced. Mnet announced the official broadcast of the show, which would replace High School Rapper's time slot, on March 8. Soon after they had moved to their dorms on February 26, the participants started filming. A teaser video of who would be taking "center" (or lead role) for the first song was later revealed. The contestants of Produce 101 Season 2 appeared for the first time on Episode 514 of M! Countdown on March 9, 2017. The group was presented by BoA, and the members performed the EDM theme song "나야나 (Pick Me)". The "center" role was given to Brand New Music's 이대휘 (Lee Dae-hwi). Some participants had previously debuted through NU'EST, JJCC, HOTSHOT and Topp Dogg. Other participants also gained attention from National Producers such as ONO Entertainment's Jang Moon-bok, Maroo Entertainment's Park Ji-hoon, Fantagio's Ong Seongwoo and the youngest participant from Media Line Entertainment's Lee Woojin. On March 31, the participants performed their single "나야나 (Pick Me)" at the Gocheok Sky Dome ahead of a baseball game between the LG Twins and the Nexen Heroes. In addition, Lee Dae-hwi threw the ceremonial first pitch to Brave Entertainment's Kim Samuel, at bat. Color key (In order of contestant's rank on the show) The trainees from each company enter the studio, where seats are arranged in a pyramid with chairs numbered from 1 to 101. Each contestant chooses his preferred seat. Then contestants perform in a group or individually according to their company for evaluation. Some participants are asked to showcase any dancing, singing, or rapping skills for individual evaluation. Each trainee is judged on his potential and judges grade and assigned them into temporary groups for training: A, B, C, D, and F (with A being the highest and F the lowest). At the end of the episode, the popularity vote revealed Maroo Entertainment's Park Ji-hoon at 1st place who became popular after a gif of his wink at the end of the "나야나 (Pick Me)" performance went viral. After a few more evaluations, the trainees are assigned to dorms by their evaluation grades, and BoA announces that they will be performing on M! Countdown with their single "나야나 (Pick Me)"; they introduce the lyrics and choreography, and are told that they have three days to memorize the choreography and lyrics for a video evaluation. Line distribution and stage placement are determined by their final letter grade; A will have the most number of lines while F will be backup dancers who stand on the floor by the stage. The trainees film themselves individually performing the song while their fellow grade members watch. Each video is evaluated by the mentors. After the re-evaluation, they are given their new grades and are asked to move to their new rooms by rank. Four F ranked trainees moved up from their grade: Jellyfish Entertainment's Yoon Hee-seok, HF Music Company's Jung Won-chol and Pan Entertainment's Lee Ji-han are moved to B rank while The Vibe Label's Kim Tae-dong moves to the A rank. After the announcement of the new batch of A ranked trainees, A rankers are given an hour to prepare a stage to appeal to the other trainees. The trainees, including those in the A group, have to vote for who they believe would be the best for the center position. Brand New Music's Lee Dae-hwi of group A is voted to be the center with Lee Woojin received the second most votes. After their live performance, BoA announced the departure of 3 trainees from the show and that the 37 contestants who would receive the lowest ranks would be eliminated in the first elimination. The trainees started their second mission: group performances in front of a live audience. 16 teams are formed to compete for 8 songs given: Super Junior's "Sorry Sorry", Shinee's "Replay", 2PM's "10 out of 10", B2ST's "Shock", Infinite's "Be Mine", EXO's "Call Me Baby", BTS's "Boy in Luv", and SEVENTEEN's "Mansae". Being the center, Lee Dae-hwi chooses his team first. Following the finalized picks for his team, by random draw, Lee Dae-hwi picks Hwang Min-hyun to choose his team. The remaining 14 team founders are also chosen by random draw. Each group consists of 5-7 members. The team founders then compete for songs individually through a race: only 8 can secure their desired songs and choose their opponent from the remaining 8 teams who lose in the race. The episode later showed the groups rehearsing and assigning roles of the 'leader', 'center', 'main vocalist', 'sub vocalists', and 'rappers'. Each song is then performed live by the two groups and each member is voted on separately by the live audience. The winning team among the two is determined by combining the individual scores. Members of the winning group would gain an extra 3000 points each, to be included into the ranking announcement of the week after. The group with the highest overall points would later perform on M! Countdown. Only four teams covering "10 Out of 10" and "Call Me Baby" were covered this week. The remaining 12 teams performed their respective songs and rehearsals for the groups are shown. After the last performance, the contestants are shown their ranking based purely on individual live votes and the additional 3000 points for the contestants of the winning teams: Park Woo-dam takes the 1st place. His "Mansae" group (composed of Park Woo-dam, Ju Won-tak, Kim Yeon-kuk, Woo Jin-young, and Kim Tae-dong), also score the highest, and are able to perform a special stage on M! Countdown. For this episode, contestants from Produce 101 Kim So-hye, Choi Yoo-jung and Kim So-hee appear as special panelists. The episode opens with the remaining 98 contestants entering the main studio by company. In between announcements of each trainee's ranking, events leading up to the elimination are shown, such as their dorm life, exercise and a hidden camera prank. I.O.I's Kim Do- yeon and Choi Yoo-jung met with the trainees and hosted a dance battle among the trainees, in which Hong Eun-ki was crowned "Dancing King". A poll for 'Top Visual' was also conducted, in which Park Ji-hoon was ranked 1st. Park Ji-hoon also retained his first place in the rankings announcement. First center Lee Dae-hwi was ranked 7th, the shocking fall in his rank surprising everyone. After announcing the top 59 trainees, BoA announces that the last trainee to be saved from elimination is Kim Sang-bin, ranking 60th. At the end of the episode, BoA announces that the team formation for the 4th mission, which is position evaluation, will be decided by online voting. This is a major difference to that of Season 1, where trainees got to choose the song they want. BoA once again meets with the trainees to announce the next challenge. The trainees are tasked to perform live in groups based on positions they want to debut in: vocal, dance or rap. There are five songs for vocals (I.O.I's "Downpour", BTS's "Spring Day", BoA's "Amazing Kiss", BLACKPINK's "Playing With Fire", and Jung Seung Hwan's "If It Is You") four songs for dance (Jason Derulo's "Get Ugly", NSYNC's "Pop", Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You", and Flo Rida's "Right Round") and four songs for rap (Mino ft. Taeyang's "Fear", iKON's "Rhythm Ta", Zico's "Boys and Girls", and Simon Dominic, G2, BewhY, and One's "Who You"). Each song has a member limit and would be picked by each trainee based on their ranks: Park Ji-hoon who ranked 1st (center) from the first elimination round would have the privilege of choosing the song he wants to perform first. BoA also announces that only 35 trainees will remain in the next round and that the winner from each position category will receive 100,000 votes while the winner from each group will receive 10,000 votes. After each performance, they are ranked in their groups first and then overall in the category. On the day of the stage performances, Super Junior's Leeteuk substituted BoA to host the show due to the latter's prior commitment. Only six groups are covered this week, with "Shape of You" group (composed of Noh Tae-hyun, Park Sung-woo, Kim Tae-dong, Justin, Kim Dong-han, and Lee Jun-woo) receiving the show's first-ever encore call. The remaining seven teams perform their respective stages and rehearsals for the groups are shown. After the last performance, the contestants are shown their overall ranking based on their positions. The additional 10,000 points are given to 12 contestants for receiving the highest points on their respective group and the extra 100,000 points to Lee Gun-hee, Noh Tae-hyun, and Kim Jong-hyun for receiving the highest points in vocal, dance, and rap position respectively. The episode opens with BoA treating the contestants to pizza before she temporarily goes overseas during the Position Evaluation filming. Sometime after the performances and before the ranking announcement on May 12, BoA gathers the boys informing them about the coming elimination round (where contestants ranking 36 onwards would get eliminated). She then introduces the next challenge: Concept Evaluation. She introduces the five songs: Hyuk Shin's "I Know You Know" (Synth-pop/Funk), Veethoven, Oh Sunghwan, Kiggen and ASSBRASS's "Oh Little Girl" (Hip Hop), ASHTRAY & KINGMAKER's "Show Time" (Nu- disco), Devine-Channel's "Open Up (열어줘)" (Future EDM), and Triple H's "Never" (Deep house). Group formations are based on the viewers' poll which was first introduced at the end of Episode 5. The top 12 trainees voted for each song are assigned to the songs first. Due to voting manipulation controversies, however, Kang Daniel, Lee Ki-won, and Kim Dong-bin are banned from their alleged preferred songs. After they are given their designated songs, the formed groups started to rehearse. The second elimination round takes place during the second half of the episode with the remaining 58 contestants from each company are seen entering the main studio by company. Names of the top 35 trainees are called by BoA one by one starting from rank 34. In between the second elimination round, a mini contest of who punches the strongest is conducted. Kang Dong-ho is given the title "Punching King". Kim Jong-hyun receives the 1st place in the ranking announcement while Kim Dong-han ranks 35th, just escaping elimination. BoA announces that since there is an uneven distribution of members after the last elimination, groups with more than 7 people need to vote on who stays. The remaining groups, which have less than 7 people after the elimination, pick from the members who were voted out. All the composers for the concept evaluation songs visit the trainees and they perform in front of the composers. This episode shows the live performances for all five concept evaluations. "Open Up (열어줘)" group (composed of Kang Daniel, Kang Dong-ho, Kim Yong-guk, Joo Hak-nyeon, Yoo Seon-ho, Takada Kenta, and Lim Young-min) received an encore call and afterwards was also declared the winner of the concept evaluation, resulting in at least 20,000 benefit votes for each member, with the person from that group with the most votes, winning 100,000 benefit votes, to be revealed in the next elimination (Kang Dong-ho and Kang Daniel are the two candidates for 1st place). In addition, the group will also perform on M! Countdown. The episode opens with the remaining 35 contestants from each company entering the main studio. Amidst the eliminations, the trainees participate in a question relay and a team game event where "Open Up (열어줘)" group emerges as the winner. They are also asked to vote for the top 6 pick for the debut team in the trainees among them, with MMO Entertainment's Yoon Ji-sung taking 1st place and Kang Daniel, Jung Se-woon, Park Ji-hoon, Ong Seong-woo, and Park Woo-jin taking 2nd to 6th place respectively. At the elimination, BoA reveals that only 20 trainees will advance to the final stage. Kang Daniel is announced as the overall winner of the concept evaluation, winning 100,000 benefit votes. With ranks 19 to 3 revealed, Kang Daniel and Park Ji-hoon are called up as the contenders for 1st place, with Kang Daniel revealed to be 1st in the overall rank as well. The contenders for 20th place are then called up, Choon Entertainment's Kim Yong-guk and Cube Entertainment's Lai Guan-lin, with Lai Guan-lin, whose massive rank drop surprised everyone, surviving the elimination. With the top 20 confirmed, BoA announces the next and final mission – the debut song evaluation. She introduces "Hands on Me" (produced by The Underdogs and Deez) and "Super Hot" (produced by Ryan Jhun) as the final line-up's debut songs. She explains that they will be split into two teams of 10, each team composed of one main vocal, six to seven sub vocals, and two to three rappers. The trainees choose their positions beginning with rank 20 up to 1, with the higher ranked trainees being given the advantage of replacing the lower ranked trainees and bumping them into another position. Due to voting manipulation controversies, 17th place Lim Young-min had to choose his position first as a penalty. After positions are confirmed, the trainees begin practicing the choreography and memorizing the lyrics in preparation for the final stage. The episode begins showing the boy's audition tapes, as well as their final confessional interviews. An announcement is then made that viewers will now be able to send SMS votes for one trainee only, which will be added to the online votes in order to determine the final line-up. The debut evaluation starts off with the eliminated trainees joining the top 20 trainees for a performance of "It's Me (Pick Me)". BoA then reveals that the debut group will be named Wanna One (Hangul: 워너원). The episode cuts to the boys performing in two groups. "Super Hot" group (composed of Ha Sung-woon, Kim Samuel, Kang Dong-ho, Yoo Seon-ho, Ahn Hyung-seob, Lee Dae-hwi, Choi Min-ki, Lim Young-min, Kim Jong- hyun, and Lai Guan-lin) performs first with Ha Sung-woon as the center of the group, followed by "Hands on Me" group (composed of Kim Jae-hwan, Kang Daniel, Ong Seong-woo, Bae Jin-young, Hwang Min-hyun, Jung Se-woon, Joo Hak-nyeon, Yoon Ji-sung, Park Woo-jin, and Park Ji-hoon) with Bae Jin-young as the center of the group. After the performances, a segment is shown during which trainees watch videos left by their families, some of which surprise the trainees by visiting them in person. The top 20 trainees also perform together a special song titled "Always (이 자리에)" as a commemoration of their time throughout the competition. Voting comes to a close, and ranking announcements begin. Bae Jin-young, Hwang Min-hyun, Yoon Ji-sung, Lai Guan-lin, Park Woo-jin, Ong Seong-woo, Kim Jae-hwan, and Lee Dae-hwi are announced as 10th to 3rd place, respectively, confirming them for debut. The top 2 trainees are revealed to be Kang Daniel and Park Ji-hoon once again. Kang Daniel once again receives the most votes, confirming his position as the center for Wanna One, with Park Ji- hoon in 2nd place. Finally, 11th place Ha Sung-woon is announced as the final member. According to Ilgan Sports, the staff of Produce 101 Season 2 have tried to find a trainee who talked to the media about discrimination of the trainees by grade ranking. Ilgan Sports reported that trainees encountered discrimination, such as level-determined permission to go to the bathroom and eat different meals. Also, there are issues about boys who bullied other students and plagiarism of choreography. Maroo Entertainment's Han Jong-youn left the show due to a serious bullying and sexual assault scandal. An alleged former classmate accused Han Jong-youn of making him masturbate in front of his friends, forcing him to fight with his friends, and locking him in the cleaning equipment room. YGKPLUS's Kwon Hyun-bin deleted all of his Instagram posts after they were flooded with negative comments. This was in response to the show's fourth episode, in which Kwon was seen as unmotivated and received harsh criticism from the trainers for a lack of practice, but despite this his team won the live performance battle and he received the highest score out of both teams. During the performance, the trainers commented that the group was "ready to debut". After the performance, Kwon Hyun-bin stated that "I'm here because I really want to debut as a singer" and "I've put everything on the line for this". Despite having received the most votes, netizens criticized Kwon Hyun-bin for his "lack of sincerity". The Vibe Label's Ha Min-ho allegedly tried to engage in sexual relationships with minors. Screenshots of Instagram and Facebook conversations between him and minor fans were posted online, and he was also accused of sexually harassing and bullying an ex- girlfriend in middle school. After discussion with Mnet, he left the show and canceled his contract with his label. In the concept song round of the show, four contestants were accused of cheating by trying to manipulate a vote to determine which song they would perform. MMO Entertainment's Kang Daniel reportedly indicated which song he preferred by altering the number of cat emojis in his Instagram biography at the request of a fanpost on a community site. Mnet decided to penalize the trainees that failed to follow the rules by banning them from choosing the songs in question. 2Y Entertainment's Lee Ki-won was accused of hinting at his song preference by posting "Oh Ki Won> Sa Ki Won Sam Ki Won Lee Ki Won" on Instagram. His agency released a statement saying that Lee would be banned from using social media until the show was over. A subsequent statement said that the posts in question were made by the agency in an attempt to increase Lee's popularity while he was allegedly sleeping and unaware. Kiwi Media Group's Kim Dong-bin was also involved, through screenshots of KakaoTalk messages in which Kim's father asked his fanclub's president to promote "Never" or "Open Up" as the concept song for Kim Dong-bin. Brand New Music's Lim Young-min was later implicated through screenshots of a KakaoTalk chatroom of fans, which revealed that Lim's brother had asked his friend to inform the fans in the chatroom that Lim wanted the songs "Never" and "Oh Little Girl" for his concept song. As this incident was not caught until after the recording of concept evaluation, Lim was penalized with a different penalty during the following evaluation. The top 11 contestants were determined by online and onsite voting, the results of which were announced at the end of each episode. The top 11 contestants at the final vote determined the final group. For the first and second voting periods, viewers were allowed to select 11 trainees per vote. During the third round, the system changed to 2 trainees per vote. For the final round, the system changed to one trainee per vote. Unlike the previous season, only those with South Korean mobile phone numbers were allowed to vote under a CJ One or TMON account to prevent voting fraud. Color key During the last episode aired on June 16, 2017, BoA announced the unit boy band's name: Wanna One (Hangul: ). In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. In Japan, the first episode of Produce 101 Season 2 aired on Mnet Japan starting on May 25, 2017, followed by 11 episodes every Thursday night at 1:00 AM (Friday dawn)., In the Asia and Australia region, the first episode of Produce 101 Season 2 aired via tvN Asia on April 25, 2017, followed by 11 episodes every Tuesday at 23:00. A finale concert was held by the top 35 contestants on July 1 and 2, 2017 at the Olympic Hall in Seoul., Wanna One released three EPs and two albums from 2017 to 2018. They disbanded on January 27, 2019 after a 4-day final concert at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul., JBJ was formed by fans of the show, the group consisted of 7 eliminated trainees, but The Vibe Label's Kim Tae-dong (30th) was not confirmed participation in the group because of an ongoing conflict with his agency. JBJ later debuted with six-members and released their EP Fantasy on October 18, 2017. They actively promoted for seven months under Fave Entertainment and CJ E&M.; The group's held their final concert on April 22, 2018, and disbanded on April 30, 2018., Kim Yong-guk (21st) debuted solo with Friday N Night on August 29, 2018., Kwon Hyun-bin (22nd) debuted solo with Dimension under stage name VINNI on August 19, 2019., Takada Kenta (24th) formed a duo with Kim Sang-gyun, JBJ95., Noh Tae-hyun (25th) debuted solo with Birthday on January 24, 2019., Kim Sang-gyun (26th) formed a duo with Kenta, JBJ95., Kim Dong-han (29th) debuted solo with D-Night on October 2018., Star Road Entertainment's Takada Kenta (24th) had participated to released OST for MBC drama Lookout, KBS daily drama Lovers in Bloom, MBC daily drama Return of Bok Dan Ji ., Rainz was formed by 7 eliminated trainees and released their EP Sunshine on October 12, 2017. They actively promoted under KISS Entertainment for over a year. The group disbanded on October 28, 2018., WH Creative's Seo Sung-hyuk (31st) debuted solo with Good Night, My Dear on September 24, 2019 under Think About Entertainment., GON Entertainment's Hong Eun-ki (38th) debuted solo with Blow on July 19, 2019., K-Tigers' Byun Hyun-min (45th) debuted in co-ed group K-TIGERS ZERO with Huiroaerak on September 19, 2019., C2K Entertainment's Kim Sung-ri (47th) debuted solo with First Love on April 15, 2019., 2Y Entertainment's Lee Ki-won (53rd), 2Able Entertainment's Joo Won-tak (62nd) debuted solo with In The Light on November 25, 2018., Oui Entertainment's Jang Dae-hyun (83rd) debuted solo with Feel Good on August 24, 2019., Brand New Music's Im Young-min (15th) and Kim Dong-hyun (28th) known as MXM teamed up with Starship Entertainment's Jung Se-woon (12th) and Lee Gwang-hyun (44th) formed special unit, YDPP released digital single "Love It Live It" on April 5, 2018., Some trainees debuted/joined with groups:, Kang Dong-ho (13th), Kim Jong-hyun (14th), and Choi Min-Ki (20th) returned to NU'EST, Noh Tae-hyun (25th) returned to HOTSHOT., Media Line Entertainment's Lee Woo-jin (34th) returned to The East Light., Kim Tae-woo (49th) returned to his band Rion Five. He helped band Chic Angel in the promotion of the song "Good Day"., Son Dong-myung (68th) returned to his group MAS, later participating in KBS survival program with his bandmates. They redebuted as ONEWE on May 13, 2019., Choi Ha-don (85th) and Kim Chan-yul (78th) returned to JJCC., FNC Entertainment's Yoo Hoe-seung (39th) joined N.Flying., Happy Face Entertainment (ex HF Music Company)'s Jeong Won-cheol (95th) joined MY.st., Individual Trainee Kim Chan (82nd), Narda Entertainment's Kim Tae-woo (49th), K-Tigers's Byun Hyun-min (45th), RBW's Choi Jae-woo (97th) made a fan-meeting and released their single "Present", on July 14, 2017., Choon Entertainment's Kim Yong-guk (21st) and Kim Shi-hyun debuted as a unit group called Longguo & Shihyun on July 31, 2017 with release of their EP the.the.the., S.How Entertainment's Jung Dong-soo (36th) and Kim Nam-hyung (52nd) debuted as a duo called AA on August 3, 2017 with release of their single "Flex"., Brand New Music's Im Young-min (15th) and Kim Dong-hyun (28th) debuted as a unit group called MXM on September 6, 2017 with release of their EP "Unmix"., Gini Star's Park Hee-Seok (86th), Wang Min-Hyuk (89th) and Kim Do-Hyun (92nd) debuted in a seven-membered group, BAIKAL on September 21, 2017 with the song "Hiccup", Yuehua Entertainment formed special unit for Ahn Hyung-seob (16th) and Lee Eui-woong (23rd) known as Hyeongseop X Euiwoong who released their single album on November 2, Cre.ker Entertainment's Ju Hak-nyeon (19th) debuted in a twelve-membered group, The Boyz on December 6, 2017 with release EP "The First"., ONO Entertainment's Jang Moon-vok (27th) and The Vibe Label's Seong Hyun-woo (61st) released single "Don't Be Afraid" on December 8, 2017. They Then Debut As A Member Of LIMITLESS Along With Yoon Heeseok ( 46th ) With The Single "DreamPlay", I.One Entertainment (later known as Luk Factory) is Kim Yeon-kook (76th), Ryu Ho-yeon (87th), Choi Hee-soo (96th) and Nam Yun-sung debuted in a nine-membered group, NOIR on April 9, 2018., Blessing Entertainment's Im Woo-hyuk (66th) and Yoo Jin-won (75th) debuted as a duo called UNLOCK on November 24, 2017 with a release of their digital single "Slide to UNLOCK"., MMO Entertainment's Kim Jae-han (81st) signed with WYNN Entertainment and debuted as a member of SPECTRUM on May 5, 2018 with a release of their EP "Be Born"., RBW's Choi Jae-woo (97th) signed with JFLO Entertainment and debuted as a member of NewKidd02 on July 25, 2018 with single "Shooting Star"., Individual Trainees Choi Dong-ha (63rd) and Kim Chan (82nd) joined DS&A; Entertainment. Now they are preparing for the debut in the band A-TEEN., Maroo Entertainment's Han Jong-yeon debuted as a member of LUCENTE on September 18, 2018 with a release of their EP "The Big Dipper "., HF Music Company's Woo Jin-young (40th), Park Woo-dam (35th) and Jung Yoojun released their song "You Are Pretty" as trio HNB on December 2, 2018. The three officially debuted in 5-member boy group D1CE on August 1, 2019 with Wake Up: Roll The World., RBW's Lee Keon-hee (33rd), Yeo Hwan-ung (41st) and Lee Gun-min (94th) (now his name is Lee Seo Ho) debuted as a members of ONEUS on January 9, 2019 with a release of their EP "LIGHT US"., Wings Entertainment's Kim Yong-jin (56th) debuted as a members of AWEEK on January 31, 2019 with single "The More I See"., Some trainees debuted as soloists:, STL Entertainment's Choi Jun-young (90th) released a solo single as Jooen, "101" on June 29, 2017., ONO Entertainment's Jang Moon-bok (27th) released a solo single as JMVOK, "Let's Walk Together" (featuring Hwang A-young), on July 20, 2017., Brave Entertainment's Kim Samuel (18th) released his solo EP Sixteen on August 2, 2017., Starship Entertainment's Jung Se-woon (12th) released his solo EP Part 1. Ever on August 31, 2017. Lee Gwang-hyun (44th) featured in one of the mini-album's songs, "오! 나의 여신 (Oh! My Angel)"., Wings Entertainment's Kim Yong-jin (56th) released a solo single, "Alt+F4" on December 21, 2017. Jeong Dong-su (36th) featured this song., Individual Trainee Kim Sang-been (48th) joined 12%MUSIC and released a solo single as BIL, "Juicy" on December, 2017., Cube Entertainment's Yoo Seon-ho (17th) released his EP Spring, Seonho on April 11, 2018., Choon Entertainment's Kim Yong-guk (21st) released a solo single, "Clover" on June 13, 2018., S How Entertainment's Jeong Dong-su (36th) released a solo single as ARKAY, "너 때문에ㅠㅠ" on June 18, 2018., OUI Entertainment's Kim Dong-han (29th) release his EP "D-DAY" on June 19, 2018., Finecut Entertainment's Joo Jin-woo (41st) (ex MMO Entertainment) released a solo single, "EVER" on July 19, 2018., 2Able Entertainment's Joo Won-tak (62nd) released a solo single, "IN THE LIGHT" on November 26, 2018., Some eliminated trainees left their agencies:, Kim Ye-hyun (32nd) left WIDMAY Entertainment to focus on his studies., Joo Jin-woo (41st) left MMO Entertainment. He later signed with Finecut Entertainment to pursue his career as an actor., Yoon Hee-seok (46th) left Jellyfish Entertainment. He later signed with ONO Entertainment., Kim Dong-bin (58th) left Kiwi Media Group to focus on his studies but returned to the label on September 4, 2017. He later joined MLD Entertainment and participated in Produce X101., Seong Hyun-woo (61st) left The Vibe Label and later signed to ONO Entertainment on November 1, 2017., Jung Joong-ji (64th) left WAYZ Company and later signed with Think Technique Laboratory., Kwon Hyeop (65th) left Maroo Entertainment., Lee Hoo-lim (80th) left YGKPlus and later signed to Daydream Entertainment., Kim Jae-han (81st) left MMO Entertainment. He later signed with WYNN Entertainment and debuted as a member of SPECTRUM., Cho Gyu-min (88th) left IMX., Jeong Won-cheol (95th) left HF Music Company (now Happy Face Entertainment) and later signed with MY Entertainment., Choi Hee-soo (96th) left I.One Entertainment (later known as Luk Factory)., Choi Jae-woo (97th) left RBW Entertainment., Some trainees debuted as actors:, HIM Entertainment's Park Sung-woo (37th) pursue his acting career with starred in a web drama series, The Omniscient Viewpoint on Crushes, as part of the main cast in early July 2017., Hanahreum Company's Kim Tae-min (59th) announced that he would pursue an acting career., Namoo Actors' Lee Yoo-Jin (54th) starred in the JTBC drama Age of Youth 2 after SHINee member Onew left due to his controversy., Cube Entertainment's Yu Seon-ho (17th) and Yuehua Entertainment's Ahn Hyung-seob (16th) started in a web drama, Mischievous Detective, alongside Apink's Namjoo. It will be broadcast on Naver TV in September 2017., Some trainees participated in other survival show:, HF Music Company's Woo Jin-young (40th), Banana Entertainment's Yoon Yong-bin (73rd), HF Music Company's Jo Yong-geun (93rd), RBW's Lee Gun-min (94th) and Maroo Entertainment's Han Jong-yeon joined Mix Nine, where only Woo Jin-young make it into debut group. The group's debut was cancelled in May 2018., Woo Jinyoung also joined Show Me The Money 8. He was eliminated in the rapper selection round, but passed the second judging. He was later eliminated in the One Minute Rap Round. He debuted in the boy group D1CE., Yuehua Entertainment's Justin (43rd) and Zhu Zheng-Ting (51st) joined Chinese survival show Idol Producer in 2018 and became a part of the final line-up for the Chinese boy group, Nine Percent. They Also Debuted In Chinese Boy Group NEX7., Kiwi Media Group's Kim Dong-Bin (59th) joined Produce X101. with a new company called MLD Entertainment. He finished #42 in the show. "Never" is a song by contestants of Produce 101 Season 2. It was re-released by Wanna One, the winning group of Produce 101 Season 2 on their album 1X1=1 (To Be One). Produce 101 Season 2 was a South Korean survival show that aired on Mnet from April to June in 2017 where 101 male trainees from various entertainment companies competed to debut in an 11-member boy group which would promote until December 2018. On the 8th and 9th episode, the 35 remaining trainees were split into five teams and given five new songs from different producers, with different genres. They were tasked to perform these songs live in front of total audience of 2000. "Never" eventually came second during the show's on-site voting, and received praise for its exceptional stage performance. It was sung by the following 7 contestants: Hwang Min-hyun, Kim Jong-hyun, Kim Jae-hwan, Ong Seong-wu, Park Woo-jin, Lee Dae-hwi and Lai Kuan-lin (collectively known as Nation's Son); all of them except Kim Jong-hyun eventually went on to debut in the winning group Wanna One. "Never" is a deep house song produced by Pentagon members and Flow Blow. On June 3, 2017, "Never" by Nation's Sons achieved an all-kill on Instiz, charting at #1 on real-time charts of Melon, Mnet, Bugs, Soribada, and Naver. "Never" was chosen as one of the 20 Best K-pop Songs of 2017 by Billboard, with Tamar Herman commenting that the song was "one of the best sonic moments of K-pop in 2017" with its "layered vocals, powerful raps, and propulsive drops flowing into a blend of subtle, melodious instrumental elements and frenzied synths."

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Blade Runner Black Out 2022 is a tech-noir cyberpunk anime short film directed by Shinichiro Watanabe. The short is one of three short films, alongside and , that serve as prequels to the live-action film Blade Runner 2049. It debuted on 27 September 2017 on Crunchyroll. Set three years after the events of Blade Runner, the Tyrell Corporation has developed the new Nexus-8 line of replicants, who now possess natural, open- ended lifespans equivalent to that of a regular human. This causes a massive backlash among the human populace, who begin hunting down and killing replicants, seeing them as a now very credible threat to humanity. One of these replicants, Trixie, is attacked by a group of thugs but is rescued by Iggy, who effortlessly disarms and kills them. Iggy reveals to her that he used to be a soldier on a planet called Calantha but deserted when he realized the enemy soldiers he had been fighting and killing were also replicants. Iggy recruits Trixie for an operation carried out by an underground replicant freedom movement to destroy the Tyrell Corporation's database of registered replicants, so that replicants can no longer be hunted. Trixie befriends Ren, who is a technician in charge of launching nuclear missiles and a replicant sympathizer. Ren agrees to redirect a test missile to detonate over Los Angeles, blacking out the city and wiping out all electronic data. At the same time, Trixie and Iggy hijack a fuel truck to physically destroy the Tyrell Corporation's servers. However, Trixie is killed while battling security forces with Iggy. The operation is a success, with the servers destroyed and power to Los Angeles disabled. Iggy manages to escape and removes his right eye, the only thing that can identify him as a replicant. The ending narration states that in the aftermath of the Black Out, all replicant production was banned and the Tyrell Corporation went bankrupt, only for the Wallace Corporation to acquire the company and restart production of a new model a decade later. Jovan Jackson as Iggy Cygnus, Luci Christian as Trixie, Bryson Baugus as Ren, Edward James Olmos as Gaff Blade Runner Black Out 2022 on YouTube Blade Runner 2049 is a 2017 American neo-noir science fiction film directed by Denis Villeneuve and written by Hampton Fancher and Michael Green. A sequel to the 1982 film Blade Runner, the film stars Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, with Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Carla Juri, Lennie James, Dave Bautista, and Jared Leto in supporting roles. Ford and Edward James Olmos reprise their roles from the original. Set thirty years after the first film, Gosling plays K, a Nexus-9 replicant "blade runner" who uncovers a secret that threatens to destabilize society and the course of civilization. Original director Ridley Scott served as an executive producer on the film. Principal photography took place between July and November 2016, mainly in Budapest, Hungary. Blade Runner 2049 premiered in Los Angeles on October 3, 2017, and was released in the United States in 2D, 3D, and IMAX on October 6, 2017. The film was praised by critics for its performances, direction, cinematography, musical score, production design, visual effects, and faithfulness to the original film, and was considered by many critics to be among the best films of 2017. Despite positive reviews, the film was a box office disappointment, grossing $260 million worldwide against a production budget between $150–185 million. Blade Runner 2049 received five nominations at the 90th Academy Awards, winning Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects. It also received eight nominations at the 71st British Academy Film Awards, including Best Director, and won Best Cinematography and Best Special Visual Effects. In 2049, bioengineered humans known as replicants are slaves. K, a replicant, works for the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) as a "blade runner," an officer who hunts and "retires" (kills) rogue replicants. At a protein farm, he retires Sapper Morton and finds a box buried under a tree. The box contains the remains of a female replicant who died during a caesarean section, demonstrating that replicants can reproduce biologically, previously thought impossible. K's superior, Lt. Joshi, fears that this could lead to a war between humans and replicants. She orders K to find and retire the replicant child to hide the truth. K visits the headquarters of the Wallace Corporation, the successor-in-interest in the manufacturing of replicants to the defunct Tyrell Corporation. Wallace staff members identify the deceased female from DNA archives as Rachael, an experimental replicant designed by Dr. Eldon Tyrell. K learns of Rachael's romantic ties with former blade runner Rick Deckard. Wallace Corporation CEO Niander Wallace wants to discover the secret to replicant reproduction to expand interstellar colonization. He sends his replicant enforcer Luv to steal Rachael's remains and follow K to Rachael's child. At Morton's farm, K sees the date 6-10-21 carved into the tree trunk and recognizes it from a childhood memory of a wooden toy horse. Because replicants' memories are artificial, K's holographic AI girlfriend Joi believes this is evidence that K was born, not created. He searches LAPD records and discovers twins born on that date with identical DNA aside from the sex chromosome, but only the boy is listed as alive. K tracks the child to an orphanage in ruined San Diego but discovers the records from that year to be missing. K recognizes the orphanage from his memories and finds the toy horse where he remembers hiding it. Dr. Ana Stelline, a replicant memory designer, confirms that the memory of the orphanage is real, leading K to conclude that he is Rachael's son. At LAPD headquarters, K fails a post- traumatic baseline test, marking him as a rogue replicant; he lies to Joshi by implying he killed the replicant child. Joshi gives K 48 hours to disappear. At Joi's request, K reluctantly transfers her to a mobile emitter, an emanator, so he cannot be tracked through her console memory-files. He has the toy horse analyzed, revealing traces of radiation that lead him to the ruins of Las Vegas. He finds Deckard, who reveals that he is the father of Rachael's child and that he scrambled the birth records to protect the child's identity; Deckard left the child in the custody of the replicant freedom movement. Luv kills Joshi and tracks K to Las Vegas. She kidnaps Deckard, destroys Joi, and leaves K to die. The replicant freedom movement rescues K. When their leader, Freysa, tells him that she helped deliver Rachael's child and that her child was actually a girl, K understands that he is not Rachael's child and deduces that Stelline is her daughter and that the memory of the toy horse is hers, which she implanted amongst those of other replicants whose memories she designed. To prevent Deckard from leading Wallace to Stelline or the freedom movement, Freysa asks K to kill Deckard for the greater good of all replicants. Luv takes Deckard to Wallace Corporation headquarters to meet Wallace. Wallace offers Deckard a clone of Rachael in exchange for revealing what he knows. Deckard refuses, and the clone is killed. As Luv transports Deckard to be tortured and interrogated off-world, K intercepts Luv's shuttle and tries to rescue Deckard. He fights Luv and manages to drown her, but he is mortally wounded. He stages Deckard's death to protect him from Wallace and the replicant freedom movement before taking Deckard to Stelline's office and handing him her toy horse. As K lies motionless on the steps, looking up at the snowing sky, Deckard enters the building and meets his daughter for the first time. Archival footage, audio and stills of Sean Young from the original film are used to represent both her original character of Rachael and a clone of the character created by Niander Wallace. Young's likeness was digitally superimposed onto Loren Peta, who was coached by Young on how to recreate her performance from the first film. The voice of the replicant was created with the use of a sound-alike actress to Young. Young was credited for her work. On March 3, 2011, it was reported that Alcon Entertainment, a production company financed by Warner Bros., was "in final discussions to secure film, television and ancillary franchise rights to produce prequels and sequels to the iconic 1982 science-fiction thriller Blade Runner." The rights were being acquired from Bud Yorkin, who served as executive producer on the original film. It was also reported that month that Christopher Nolan was desired as director. On August 18, 2011, it was announced that Ridley Scott, director of the original film, would direct and produce a new Blade Runner film, although work would not begin until at least 2013. Producer Andrew Kosove suggested that Harrison Ford, who had starred in the original film, was unlikely to be involved. Scott said the film was "liable to be a sequel" but without the previous cast and that he was close to finding a writer. On February 6, 2012, Kosove stated: "It is absolutely, patently false that there has been any discussion about Harrison Ford being in Blade Runner. To be clear, what we are trying to do with Ridley now is go through the painstaking process of trying to break the back of the story ... The casting of the movie could not be further from our minds at this moment." When Scott was asked about the possibility of a sequel in October 2012, he said, "It's not a rumor—it's happening. With Harrison Ford? I don't know yet. Is he too old? Well, he was a Nexus-6 so we don't know how long he can live. And that's all I'm going to say at this stage." Scott said in November 2014 that he would not direct the film and would instead produce; that filming would begin in late 2014 or 2015, and that Ford's character would appear only in "the third act" of the sequel. On February 26, 2015, the sequel was confirmed, with Denis Villeneuve as director. Ford was confirmed to return as Deckard; and Hampton Fancher, one of the two writers of the original film. The film was expected to enter production in mid-2016. According to Scott, he co-wrote much of the script but went uncredited. On April 16, 2015, Ryan Gosling entered negotiations for a role. Gosling confirmed in November 2015 that he had been cast, citing the involvement of Villeneuve and the cinematographer Roger Deakins as factors for his decision; Deakins was hired as director of photography on May 20, 2015. Principal photography was set to begin in July, with Warner Bros. distributing the film domestically, and Sony Pictures Releasing distributing internationally. On February 18, 2016, an official release date of January 12, 2018 was announced. On March 31, 2016, Robin Wright entered final negotiations for a role in the film, and on April 2, Dave Bautista posted a picture of himself with an origami unicorn, hinting at a role in the film. Bautista and Wright were confirmed to be joining the cast on April 4, and a filming start date of July was established. In late April 2016, the film's release date was moved up to October 6, 2017, as well as Ana de Armas and Sylvia Hoeks being added to the cast. Carla Juri was cast in May 2016. In June, Mackenzie Davis and Barkhad Abdi were cast, with David Dastmalchian, Hiam Abbass and Lennie James joining in July. Jared Leto was cast in the film in August; Villeneuve had hoped to cast David Bowie, but Bowie died before production began. In March 2017, Edward James Olmos confirmed he was in the film in a sequence playing his original character, Gaff. Interviewed at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, Villeneuve said the plot would be ambiguous about whether Deckard was a replicant. In an interview, Villeneuve mentioned that the film is set a few decades after the original set in 2019. It would again take place in Los Angeles, and the Earth's atmosphere would be different: "The climate has gone berserk – the ocean, the rain, the snow is all toxic." It was announced that Scott would be executive producer. In a 2017 interview, Deakins said that the red dusty scenes of Las Vegas were directly inspired by images of the 2009 Australian dust storm: Costume designer Renée April produced costumes featuring inauthentic fur, painted cotton disguised as shearling, and breathing masks. Principal photography took place between July and November 2016, mainly at Korda Studios and Origo Studios in Budapest, Hungary. For the casino scenes, the old Stock Exchange Palace in Budapest's Liberty Square served as a filming location. On August 25, 2016, a construction worker was killed while dismantling one of the film's sets at Origo Studios. Warner Bros. announced in early October 2016 that the film would be titled Blade Runner 2049. Editing commenced in December in Los Angeles, with the intention of having the film being rated R. At the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con, Villeneuve said that the film would run for two hours and 32 minutes. There originally existed a four-hour early cut of the film that Villeneuve described "quite strong" but also at times "too self-indulgent". He prefers the shorter final version that he describes "more elegant" and which Ridley Scott still described as too long. Villeneuve says he won't show the four-hour cut to anyone. As with Skyfall, cinematographer Roger Deakins created his own IMAX master of the film rather than using the proprietary "DMR" process that IMAX usually uses with films not shot with IMAX cameras. Rapper-producer El-P said he was asked to compose music for the first Blade Runner 2049 trailer, but his score was "rejected or ignored". Jóhann Jóhannsson, who had worked with Villeneuve on Prisoners, Sicario and Arrival, was initially announced as composer for the film. However, Villeneuve and Jóhannsson decided to end the collaboration because Villeneuve thought the film "needed something different", and also that he "needed to go back to something closer to Vangelis's soundtrack". Composers Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch joined the project in July 2017. In September, Jóhannsson's agent confirmed that he was no longer involved and was contractually forbidden from commenting. The musical cue during the final scene is a call back to the Tears in rain scene from Blade Runner, a reference to the death of Roy Batty. Blade Runner 2049 premiered on October 3, 2017 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, although following the 2017 Las Vegas Strip shooting, the red carpet events were canceled prior to the screening. It was the opening feature at the Festival du nouveau cinéma in Montreal the following day. It also was premiered in Switzerland at the Zurich Film Festival on October 4, 2017. Sony Pictures Releasing, who had obtained rights to release the film in overseas territories, was the first to release Blade Runner 2049 in theaters, first in France and Belgium on October 4, 2017, then in other countries on the two following days. The film was released by Warner Bros. in North America on October 6, 2017. In addition to standard 2D and 3D formats, Blade Runner 2049 was released in IMAX theaters. Also, Alcon Entertainment partnered with Oculus VR to create and distribute content for the film exclusively for its virtual reality format and launched it alongside the theatrical release of October 6, 2017. That content would later be referred to as Blade Runner: Revelations. Due to the popularity and preference of IMAX in 2D (as opposed to 3D) among filmgoers in North America, the film was shown in IMAX theaters in only 2D domestically, but was screened in 3D formats internationally. Just like Skyfall, the movie was specially formatted for IMAX at the expanded aspect ratio of 1.90:1. The film is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for "violence, some sexuality, nudity, and language". Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures jointly released an announcement teaser on December 19, 2016. A selection of excerpts (lasting 15 seconds) were released as a trailer tease on May 5, 2017 in the lead up to the full trailer, which was released on May 8, 2017. A second trailer was released on July 17, 2017. Three short films were made to explore events that occur in the 30-year period between Blade Runner 2049 and Blade Runner, set in 2019: is directed by Luke Scott, and follows Niander Wallace as he presents a new Nexus-9 replicant to lawmakers in an attempt to have a prohibition on replicants lifted. The short film also stars Benedict Wong as one of the lawmakers., , also directed by Scott, follows Sapper Morton as he protects a mother and daughter from thugs., Blade Runner Black Out 2022, is an anime directed by Shinichirō Watanabe wherein a rogue replicant named Iggy carries out an operation to detonate a nuclear warhead over Los Angeles, triggering an electromagnetic pulse that erases the Tyrell Corporation's database of registered replicants. Edward James Olmos reprises his role as Gaff in this film. Flying Lotus composed the soundtrack; Watanabe had used his music as a temp score in making a rough cut of the short. Spirit distiller Johnnie Walker made a limited edition Scotch Whisky called Black Label The Director's Cut, created by Master Blender Jim Beveridge in collaboration with Denis Villeneuve. The experimental blend comes in a futuristic bottle. It was released on DVD, Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D and 4K Blu-ray on January 16, 2018 and distributed by Netflix and Redbox on January 23, 2018. It made approximately $26 million in US physical home media sales. Blade Runner 2049 grossed $92.1 million in the United States and Canada, and $168.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $260.5 million, against a production budget between $150–185 million. The projected worldwide total the film needed to gross in order to break even was estimated to be around $400 million, and in November 2017 The Hollywood Reporter wrote that the film was expected to lose the studio as much as $80 million. Ridley Scott attributed the film's underperformance to the runtime, saying: "It's slow. Long. Too long. I would have taken out half an hour." In the United States and Canada, the film was initially projected to gross $43–47 million in its opening weekend. In September 2017, a survey from Fandango indicated that the film was one of the most anticipated releases of the season. It made $4 million from Thursday night previews, including $800,000 from IMAX theaters, but just $12.6 million on its first day, lowering weekend estimates to $32 million. It made $11.4 million on Saturday and went on to debut to $31.5 million, well below initial projections but still finishing first at the box office and marking the biggest openings of Villeneuve and Gosling's careers. Regarding the opening weekend, director Villeneuve said, "It's a mystery. All the indexes and marketing tools they were using predicted that it would be a success. The film was acclaimed by critics. So everyone expected the first weekend's results to be impressive, and they were shocked. They still don't understand." Deadline Hollywood attributed the film's performance to the 163-minute runtime limiting the number of showtimes theaters could have, lack of appeal to mainstream audiences, and the marketing being vague and relying on nostalgia and established fanbase to carry it. In its second weekend, the film dropped 52.7% to $15.5 million, finishing second behind newcomer Happy Death Day ($26 million) and dropped another 54% in its third weekend to $7.2 million, finishing in 4th behind Boo 2! A Madea Halloween, Geostorm and Happy Death Day. Overseas, it was expected to debut to an additional $60 million, for a worldwide opening of around $100 million. The debut ended up making $50.2 million internationally, finishing number one in 45 markets, for a global opening of $81.7 million. It made $8 million in the United Kingdom, $4.9 million in Russia, $1.8 million in Brazil and $3.6 million in Australia. It debuted in China on October 27, and made $7.7 million in its opening weekend, which was considered a disappointment. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 87% based on 425 reviews, with an average rating of 8.24/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Visually stunning and narratively satisfying, Blade Runner 2049 deepens and expands its predecessor's story while standing as an impressive filmmaking achievement in its own right." Metacritic, another review aggregator, assigned the film a weighted average score of 81 out of 100, based on 54 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Critics who saw the film before its release were asked by Villeneuve not to reveal certain characters and plot points. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it a 78% overall positive score and a 60% "definite recommend". Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it an instant classic and writing: "For Blade Runner junkies like myself, who've mainlined five different versions of Ridley Scott's now iconic sci-fi film noir, [...] every minute of this mesmerizing mindbender is a visual feast to gorge on." Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film five out of five stars, praising the production design, cinematography and score, and calling the CGI some of the best he had ever seen, writing: "It just has to be experienced on the biggest screen possible. Blade Runner 2049 is a narcotic spectacle of eerie and pitiless vastness, by turns satirical, tragic and romantic." A. O. Scott of The New York Times described the film as "a carefully engineered narrative puzzle" that "tries both to honor the original and to slip free of its considerable shadow", and mostly succeeds. He found it, though, ultimately unequal to the original, describing Blade Runner 2049 as "a more docile, less rebellious 'improvement'". He also lauded Villeneuve's direction to which he attributed an "unnerving calm, as if he were exploring and trying to synthesize the human and mechanical sides of his own sensibility", as well as the cinematography and visual effects, which he describes as "zones of strangeness that occasionally rise to the level of sublimity". Eric Kohn of IndieWire gave the film an A− rating, saying: "Blade Runner 2049 may not reinvent the rules for blockbuster storytelling, but it manages to inject the form with the ambitions of high art, maintaining a thrilling intensity along the way." Scott Collura of IGN awarded the film a score of 9.7 out of 10 and called it one of the best sequels ever, saying: "2049 plays off of the themes, plot, and characters of the 1982 movie without cannibalizing it or negating or retroactively ruining any of those elements. Rather, it organically expands and grows what came before. It's a deep, rich, smart film that's visually awesome and full of great sci-fi concepts, and one that was well worth the 35-year wait." Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle rated the film 3.5 out of 4 stars, labeling the film as a "quiet, thoughtful science fiction" while drawing a similarity on its tone to Villeneuve's recent film Arrival and praising the performances, particularly Gosling and Ford. Christopher Orr writing for The Atlantic found the sequel to be a faithful and worthwhile continuation of the original film stating: "This is in part because, like its predecessor, Blade Runner 2049 is a decidedly cool artifact, and not primarily an actors' film. Villeneuve's most important collaborators are the cinematographer Roger Deakins and the production designer Dennis Gassner, who between them conjure a future world breathtaking in its decrepitude, a gorgeous ruin. From the grayed-out countrysides over which the sky has closed like a lid; to the drizzly neon decadence of Los Angeles; to a San Diego refashioned as a waste dump worthy of WALL-E; to the Ozymandian wreckage of Las Vegas—the film is a splendor of the first order." Graeme Virtue, in The Guardian stated that the film's "impact is never at the expense of visual comprehension. Characters may crash through walls but it is never unclear where those walls are in relation to the mayhem. These occasional jolts of intensity do not snap us out of the film's hypnotic spell, which remains persuasive enough to make the 163-minute duration feel like something to luxuriate in rather than an endurance test." John Serba in his review for Mlive also saw the film as a worthy successor and continuation of the original film and capable of standing next to other strong films in this genre such as the 1927 Metropolis, stating: "Blade Runner 2049 is a feast for the eyes and intellect, and for more patient audiences. It broods so intently and for so long, its occasional bursts of violent action break the film's exquisitely meditative constitution. A key atmospheric component is the thrumming synthesizer score, by Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch, emulating Vangelis' masterful original." Michael O'Sullivan of The Washington Post put emphasis on the depiction of the villain-aspects of the industrialist played by Jared Leto stating: "In the world of 2049, there are now two kinds of replicants, in addition to people: the old, rogue versions, and a newer, more subservient variety designed by a godlike industrialist (Jared Leto portraying Wallace), who refers to his products, tellingly, as good and bad 'angels.'" The Economist was more critical of the film, calling it a "bombastic sequel" and noting its "thin and threadbare" storyline, which was "riddled with holes", and the "little more than a cameo" appearance of Ford, despite his being used heavily in the film's promotion. Kevin Maher of The Times gave it three of five stars, claiming "a more devastatingly beautiful blockbuster has yet to be made", but concluding that the plot was lackluster. In December 2017, Variety magazine announced that AMPAS considered Blade Runner 2049 to be one of the top ten VFX films of 2017 and eligible for nomination at the Academy Awards. Many publications, including Independent, Wired, Time Out, The Atlantic, io9, Collider, Mir Fantastiki, Digital Trends, Kinopoisk, among others, included Blade Runner 2049 in their lists of the best films of 2017. The fate of K in the closing scenes of the film has been a matter of debate; some critics have suggested that his demise is open to interpretation, as it is not explicitly stated in the film that K has died. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, screenwriter Michael Green expressed surprise that K's death had been called into question, referring to the use of the "Tears in rain" musical motif in the final scene. Reviewing the film for Vice, Charlotte Gush was critical of its portrayal of women, who she said were "either prostitutes, holographic housewives" or victims dying brutal deaths. While acknowledging that "misogyny was part of the dystopia" in Scott's 1982 original, she stated that the sequel was "eye- gougingly sexist". Writing for The Guardian, Anna Smith expressed similar concerns, stating that "sexualised images of women dominate the stunning futuristic cityscapes" and questioned whether the film catered heavily to heterosexual men. Rachael Kaines of Moviepilot countered that "the gender politics in Blade Runner 2049 are intentional": "The movie is about secondary citizens. Replicants. Orphans. Women. Slaves. Just by depicting these secondary citizens in subjugation doesn't mean that it is supportive of these depictions – they are a condemnation." Helen Lewis of the New Statesman suggested that the film is "an uneasy feminist parable about controlling the means of reproduction" and that "its villain, Niander Wallace, is consumed by rage that women can do something he cannot" Fertility is the perfect theme for the dystopia of Blade Runner 2049, because of the western elite anxiety that over-educated, over-liberated women are having fewer children, or choosing to opt out of childbearing altogether. (One in five women is now childless by the age of 45; the rates are higher among women who have been to university.) Feminism is one potential solution to this problem: removing the barriers which make women feel that motherhood is a closing of doors. Another is to take flight and find another exploitable class to replace human females ... Maybe androids don't dream of electric sheep, but some human men certainly dream of electric wombs. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Denis Villeneuve responded that he is very sensitive about his portrayal of women: "Blade Runner is not about tomorrow; it's about today. And I'm sorry, but the world is not kind on women." Quoting from the Variety magazine breakdown of viewer demographics for the film, Donald Clarke for The Irish Times indicated that female audiences seemed alienated from it; just eight percent of its audiences were females under 25. Esquire magazine commented on the controversial aspects of the sex scene, calling it a "robo-ménage à trois", and compared it to the sex scene between Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson in Her (2013). The question of whether Deckard is a human or a replicant has been an ongoing controversy since the original release of Blade Runner. Ridley Scott has stated that Deckard was a replicant, however, others, including Harrison Ford, disagree, and feel preserving the ambiguity of Deckard's status important to the film. Blade Runner 2049 draws no conclusion to this debate. During various physical struggles, Deckard showed no sign of artificial replicant strength, however, Gaff described Deckard to K as "retired"; and replicant maker Niander Wallace tells Deckard that "You are a wonder to me, Mr. Deckard", and that he might have been "designed" to fall in love with Rachael. Blade Runner 2049 has received numerous awards and nominations. At the 90th Academy Awards, it was nominated for five awards, winning Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects. At the 71st British Academy Film Awards, it received eight nominations, including Best Director, and won for Best Cinematography and Best Special Visual Effects. At the 23rd Critics' Choice Awards, it was nominated for seven awards, winning for Best Cinematography. During the promotional tour for the 2015 film The Martian, Scott expressed interest in making additional Blade Runner films. In October 2017, Villeneuve said that he expected a third film would be made if 2049 was successful. Fancher, who wrote both films, said he was considering reviving an old story idea involving Deckard traveling to another country. Ford said that he would be open to returning if he liked the script. In January 2018, Scott stated that he had "another [story] ready to evolve and be developed, [that] there is certainly one to be done for sure", referring to a third Blade Runner film. Total Recall 2070, Artificial intelligence, Cyberpunk, List of films featuring drones Blade Runner is a 1982 American neo-noir science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, which stars Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos. Written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, the film is an adaptation of the 1968 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick. Its 2017 sequel, Blade Runner 2049, stars Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, with Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Carla Juri, Lennie James, Dave Bautista and Jared Leto. Rick Deckard is a "blade runner", a special agent in the Los Angeles police department employed to hunt down and "retire" replicants. His ID number is B-263-54, which is stated twice in both the 1992 Director's Cut and the 25th- anniversary Final Cut of the film. He is the protagonist of the film and the narrator in the original theatrical release. Agent Deckard was played by Harrison Ford. Gaff is a Los Angeles police officer who escorts Deckard throughout his mission. He primarily uses "Cityspeak", a creole of Spanish, French, German, Hungarian, Chinese, and Japanese, which Deckard pretends not to understand. Gaff is never shown participating in Deckard's investigation, preferring to linger in the background crafting origami figures. Gaff was played by American actor/director Edward James Olmos. The to Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by K. W. Jeter mentions that Gaff is killed in the line of duty. At the beginning of the novel, Bryant has just returned from the funeral and expresses his distaste for the Cityspeak written on Gaff's headstone. In the sequel film, Blade Runner 2049, Gaff is questioned by Officer K (Ryan Gosling) in a retirement home asking about Deckard's whereabouts. Rachael, sometimes referred to as Rachael Tyrell, was the latest experiment of Eldon Tyrell, the sole Nexus-7 replicant. He believed that since the replicants had such a limited lifespan, they have little time to develop control of their emotions, causing difficulty in managing these emotions. He believes implanting the replicants with memories would create a cushion that would allow for emotional development, and make them more controllable. Rachael has the implanted memories of Lilith Tyrell, Tyrell's niece, and Rachael is then led to believe that she is human. It is not revealed in the film how long she has been living, but Tyrell admits that he thinks she is beginning to suspect the truth of her nature. Tyrell refuses to discuss the issue with Rachael. In desperation, she turns to Deckard, who has been told by Captain Bryant to retire her. However, he falls in love with her instead. At the end of the film, the four replicants Deckard had been assigned to kill are dead. Rachael and Deckard then flee and presumably go into hiding to have a future together. In Blade Runner 2049 it is revealed Rachael, as the sole Nexus-7, was given the ability to reproduce by Tyrell. During an apparently routine investigation, Blade Runner Officer K uncovers a box containing bones and hair buried under a tree. The remains are shown to be that of a being who died after a caesarean section, and upon the discovery that the being was a replicant K is ordered by Lt. Joshi to track down and kill the replicant's child. K later learns the pregnant replicant was Rachael. After capturing Deckard, Niander Wallace designs a physically near-identical copy of Rachael and offers her to Deckard in an attempt to persuade Deckard to reveal the location of the replicants who helped hide his and Rachael's daughter. After Deckard declines, Wallace has the copy killed. Rachael was played by Sean Young in Blade Runner. In Blade Runner 2049, Rachael was portrayed by actress Loren Peta with Sean Young's facial features de-aged and overlaid via CGI. Roy Batty is the leader of the renegade Nexus-6 replicants and the main antagonist of the film. He was activated on January 8, 2016, which makes him 3 years and 10 months old by the time of the events of the film. He is highly intelligent, fast, and skilled at combat, and yet still learning how to deal with developing emotions. With an A Physical Level (superhuman strength & endurance) and an A Mental Level (genius-level intellect), he is probably the most dangerous of all the fugitive replicants. He is a combat model, used off- world for military service. He and five other replicants come to Earth hoping to find a way to lengthen their lifespan. He is able to use J. F. Sebastian to get a meeting with Tyrell, the head founder of the company and his creator. Tyrell refers to him as his "prodigal son", and tells him his life cannot be extended, but that he should revel in the life that he has, as he has done and seen things others could only dream of. Following this, Batty kills Tyrell and likely is the killer of Sebastian. Deckard retires the remaining replicants and is hunted by a dying Roy. Trying to escape, Deckard ends up dangling from a building and is saved from the fall by Roy. As he dies, Roy tells Deckard about the things he saw in his life and how all those memories will be "lost in time, like tears in rain". He then smiles, saying, "Time... to die," and dies. In the original novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, his name was spelled "Roy Baty", and was the leader of the eight replicants who killed their human owners so that they could escape their life of slavery on Mars. Roy was married to Irmgard Baty, another replicant. In the novel, Roy's relationship with Pris (who was his lover in the film) is only one of friendship. In the novel (written by K. W. Jeter after Dick's death and incorporating elements from both Do Androids Dream and Blade Runner script), Batty is one of a series of replicants based on a mercenary of the same name. The template for these replicants suffered from "neural malformation", which made them unable to experience fear. This, it is suggested, might be one of the reasons replicants of that particular series were so difficult to kill. Roy Batty was played by Rutger Hauer. Harry Bryant is the captain of the Rep-Detect department of the Los Angeles Police Department. His job in the film is to deal with a group of escaped Nexus-6 replicants (whom he refers to as "skinjobs") that have landed on Earth. His top Blade Runner, Holden, was in hospital on a medical ventilator after an encounter with the Leon replicant, earlier in the film. Bryant uses thinly-veiled threats against Rick Deckard, a retired Blade Runner, to enlist his aid. In the original theatrical version, Deckard, during his narration, compares Bryant to the racist cops of the past. "Skinjob, that was Bryant's term for Replicants. In history books, he's the kind of cop that used to call black men niggers." Capt. Bryant was played by M. Emmet Walsh. Hannibal Chew works for the Tyrell Corporation as a genetic engineer. His job is to create the eyes for the replicants, Roy's and Leon's, in this case. In the film, the replicants visit him while he is working in a freezer. The replicants pressure him into telling them that J. F. Sebastian can get them into Tyrell's inner sanctum. He was played by American actor James Hong. Dave Holden is the Blade Runner testing new employees at the Tyrell Corporation on the premise that the escaped Replicants might try to infiltrate the company. During a Voight-Kampff test, Leon shoots Holden and leaves him for dead. Later, Bryant mentions that Holden is alive, but his breathing is assisted by machines. There were two hospital scenes with Holden and Deckard that were filmed, but not used in the movie. One scene is shown in the documentary On the Edge of Blade Runner. Both scenes appear in the deleted scenes section on the Blade Runner Special Edition DVD. He was played by Morgan Paull. Leon Kowalski is a replicant who came to Earth with five others looking to extend their lives. He has an A physical level, which means he has superhuman strength and endurance (according to the Final Cut he was used as a 180 kg/400 lb nuclear-head loader in the outer space colonies as well as a front-line soldier). Leon is classified mental level C. He does not have the speed of thought that Roy does when it comes to solving problems. He was activated on April 10, 2017, making him 2 years and 7 months old by the time of the film. Leon shoots Blade Runner Holden as he administers the Voight-Kampff test on him while he works at the Tyrell Corporation, which he has infiltrated. Leon attacks Deckard after he witnesses Deckard kill Zhora, but is himself killed by Rachael who shoots him with Deckard's gun, which Leon had knocked out of Deckard's hand as he drew it. Leon cherishes photographs of his friends. Unlike Rachael's false photos of her childhood, these include current photos of people who mean something to him. Leon Kowalski was played by Brion James. Taffey Lewis is the owner of Taffey's Snake Pit Bar. The bar features music, exotic dancing, and something being smoked in pipes. He dismisses Deckard's threats with a free drink. He was played by Hy Pyke. Pris Stratton is a "basic pleasure model" incepted on Valentine's Day, 2016, making her the second-oldest of the four fugitive replicants at three years, nine months. She is the girlfriend of Roy Batty and is responsible for gaining J. F. Sebastian's trust. At an A-Physical Level, she is shown to have superhuman endurance (as in the scene where she grabs a boiling egg with her bare hand without harm) and an affinity for gymnastics. Her B-Mental Level puts her at a lower intellectual level than Roy, but higher than Leon. She sets a trap for Deckard in the Bradbury Building, disguising herself as one of Sebastian's toys and then attacking Deckard with her gymnastic skills. As she rushes Deckard for another attack, he kills her. Her surname, Stratton, appears in the novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, but is never used in the film. Her punk outfits were inspired by a new wave calendar. It is suggested in that Pris was actually an insane human woman who believed that she was a female replicant. Although, this has nothing to do with the original Blade Runner since it was from a different author. She was played by Daryl Hannah. J.F. Sebastian is a genetic designer working for Tyrell. He is not allowed to emigrate off-world because he has Methuselah Syndrome. Because of this, he ages faster and has a shorter lifespan, something he has in common with the replicants. He is only 25 years old, but his physical appearance is of a middle-aged man. With the Bradbury Building all to himself, he makes the most of his considerable talents creating automata companions. He is loosely based on the character J. R. Isidore from the novel. He is approached by Pris, whom Sebastian takes in because he thinks she is homeless, and Roy comes to stay with him soon after. Roy and Pris point out that because of his condition, Sebastian has much in common with them, and argue that if they don't get Tyrell's help to extend their lives, Pris will soon die. Sebastian is playing correspondence chess with Tyrell, and Roy suggests a bold move which gives rise to an opportunity to visit Tyrell and smuggle Roy in. When Tyrell claims that he cannot extend Roy's life, Roy kills him. Sebastian is seen running away from Roy, who then descends the elevator alone. A police radio message heard by Deckard after Tyrell is killed states that Sebastian's body was also discovered by the police with Tyrell's at the Tyrell Corporation. The makeup for Sebastian was a "stretch and stipple" technique with no prosthetics. He was played by William Sanderson. Dr. Eldon Tyrell is the CEO and founder of Tyrell Corporation. His creations are Replicants, some of whom have been given away as an incentive for people to emigrate to the Off-World colonies. Others are used in combat to protect those settlers. Roy Batty, along with J. F. Sebastian, finds Tyrell, and asks him to extend his life beyond the four-year limit built into Nexus-6 replicants. However, Tyrell claims this request is impossible to satisfy due to the inherent instabilities of replicant genetics. Upon hearing this, Batty kisses Tyrell before gouging out his eyes and crushing his skull with his bare hands, killing him. He was played by Joe Turkel. Zhora Salome is a replicant with an A Physical Level (super-human endurance) and a B Mental Level (intelligence equal to that of Pris), and has been used in murder squads. She was activated on June 12, 2016, making her 3 years and 5 months old. She gets a job as an exotic dancer at Taffey's Bar, creating an act using her own pet snake. Deckard tracks her down at Taffey's after finding her snake's scale, and she soon realizes that he is dangerous. She attacks him, but Deckard narrowly escapes death when people walk in just before she delivers a killing blow. Zhora tries to escape by running into a busy street, but Deckard chases her and finally shoots her in the back, "retiring" her. She was played by Joanna Cassidy. According to dialogue spoken by Bryant in the Final Cut of the film, two other unnamed replicants (only one in earlier versions) were killed while attempting to enter the Tyrell Corporation. The term used by him when describing their deaths ("Two of them got fried running through an electrical field") suggests they were stopped by an electrical barrier or security device of some sort. (In the theatrical cut of the film, the spoken line is "One of them got fried running through an electrical field" leaving one replicant unaccounted for.) Earlier drafts of the script name these replicants as Hodge and Mary. In Hampton Fancher's early drafts of the script, Mary lives and Hodge is the only replicant fried in the electrical field. Mary was intended to reflect the novel's character of Irmgard Baty, and was meant to be a "mother figure" model of replicant, performing housework and childcare duties, and she was supposed to be reminiscent of the stereotypical housewife of the 1950s. Her incept date is given as November 1, 2017. Mary was to be played by Stacey Nelkin, who had originally tried out for the role of Pris, but Mary's scenes were cut before filming. KD6-3.7 ("K" for short) is a Nexus-9 replicant model created to obey and works as a "blade runner" for the LAPD, hunting down and "retiring" rogue older model replicants. K is aware he is a replicant, and like the rest of his line, was programmed with implanted memories to aid his mental stability—though the new model replicants are fully aware that these fake memories never really happened, to them or other people, but are fictional fabrications. In contrast to Deckard in the first film, a human blade runner who suspects that what he thinks are his real memories might actually be implanted, K is a replicant blade runner, who begins to suspect that his implanted memories are actually real. When he begins to suspect that he may be Rachael's child, and thus a "real" person, Joi suggests that he needs a real name and picks "Joe" for him. Officer K was played by Ryan Gosling. Joi is an artificial intelligence projected as a hologram, designed and commercially sold by Wallace Corporation to be a fully customizable live-in romantic companion. K, an artificial intelligence himself, has a Joi copy but treats her as a person, and tries to have a real romantic relationship with her, while wondering about how "real" it can truly be given that she is programmed to like him. K obtains a mobile "emanator" unit for her at the beginning of the film, a control unit or hologram projector which he can transport in his coat, allowing Joi to accompany him anywhere in the world. Joi is nonetheless intangible and cannot physically interact with her surroundings. Played by Ana de Armas. Niander Wallace (Jared Leto) is the sinister CEO and founder of Wallace Corporation, which dominates replicant production in 2049. A genius genetic engineer, his genetically modified crops and livestock solved a global food crisis – which then gave him enough wealth and political clout to lift the ban on replicant production. Wallace bought out the bankrupt Tyrell Corporation (which had collapsed after several revolts by Nexus-8 replicants). Wallace improved the genetic programming of his new "Nexus-9" replicants to the point that they cannot disobey the orders of humans, even if the order is to commit suicide. By 2049, Wallace Corporation has revitalized the replicant industry and is a major megacorporation with numerous other subsidiaries in other fields, such as Joi unit digital AI holograms. Wallace is blind, but uses cybernetic implants in his neck to interact with various computers and "see" through flying miniature camera units. The secret of making replicants that can reproduce died with Tyrell, and Wallace is obsessed with learning it. By 2049, Earth is suffering from resource depletion and heavy pollution, and it was Wallace's genetically modified foods and new replicants that not only staved off extinction, but allowed humanity to spread to the off-world colonies. Nonetheless, Wallace is frustrated that humanity has only spread to nine other planets, when he wants to see it explode across thousands of planets in the galaxy. Lacking the capacity to build enough replicants for such an endeavor, Wallace is convinced that replicants capable of reproduction on their own are the answer. Dr. Ana Stelline (Carla Juri) is a scientist who designs the implanted memories that Wallace Corporation installs into its new replicants: the replicants are aware that these memories are implants they did not personally experience, but their presence drastically improves their mental stability. Empathetic to how replicants are used as slave-labor, Ana tries to give them pleasant memories to carry with them, even if they know they're artificial. Due to the complications that can arise, it is forbidden to base memory implants on the real memories of another person: they must be fabrications with no basis in real events. Nonetheless, Dr. Stelline secretly sneaks in a few of her best memories into some of the memory implants, as a gift. Ana actually doesn't directly work for Wallace Corporation: her "Stelline Corporation" is an independent sub-contractor (Wallace offered to buy her out, but she says she "enjoys her creative freedom"). Ostensibly, Dr. Stelline developed an immune system deficiency as a child, and has spent the past two decades living in a sterile clean-room in her company's compound, keeping her in seclusion from the outside world. Secretly, Ana is actually the daughter of Deckard and Rachael: living proof that replicants can be capable of reproducing on their own (and making Ana at least part-replicant through her mother). The replicant underground hid her as an infant and scrambled the records, seeing her birth as a miracle and Ana as their savior. K comes to Ana's lab to investigate the wooden horse he found, which was in his allegedly fake memory implant. She confirms that it is a real memory, but not who it is from – either K or someone else. The wooden horse was a gift from Deckard to his child, later etched with the child's birth date (the same day that Rachael died, from her grave marker). K suspects the memory of the horse is his own, and he is Rachael's son, but when he meets the replicant underground they reveal that Rachael's child was female. K then realizes that Ana was Rachael's child and it was her memory of the horse – because the best memories she gives to replicants like K are actually based on her own. Luv (Sylvia Hoeks) is a Nexus-9 replicant and personal assistant to Niander Wallace. He entrusts her as his right-hand agent running day-to-day affairs over Wallace Corporation. As KD6-3.7 notes, Wallace was fond enough of her to give her a name (and not just a serial number like he has). She also acts as his personal enforcer, ruthlessly killing police officers in the search for Rachael's child. Luv has an outer air of poise, but with a powerful fury simmering barely underneath. Freysa Sadeghpour (Hiam Abbass) is the leader of the replicant underground. Apparently an older Nexus-8 model, she took care of Rachael's baby after she died in childbirth (K recognizes her in a photo of the baby from around 2022). Freysa helped to hide Rachael's child and erase the records of its past, but is organizing the underground to one day lead another replicant revolt. At some undisclosed point, Freysa lost her right eye: as seen with Sapper Morton, blade runners by this time remove the right eye of replicants as proof of a successful retirement (death), due to having a serial number embedded below the iris. Whether someone cut out Freysa's eye and left her for dead, or perhaps she cut out her own eye so she cannot be identified, is left unexplained. Freysa sends Mariette to keep tabs on K, and later saves K after Luv's team from Wallace Corp. captures Deckard. She explains the stakes of the situation to K and her past with Rachael's child, causing him to realize that it is actually Ana. Freysa warns K that if Wallace is able to interrogate Deckard and capture Rachael's child all will be lost, and urges K to kill Deckard before that can happen. K, however, saves Deckard while managing to fake Deckard's death by drowning in the ocean. Sapper Morton (Dave Bautista) is an older Nexus-8 replicant, living in seclusion on a protein farm in the industrial outliers of Los Angeles. Despite his large size and strength, he is polite and well-read, collecting antique books. Morton used to be an army medic on the off-world colonies in several campaigns. K's encounter to "retire" him starts off the events of the film, as it leads K to discover Rachael's skeletal remains buried on Morton's farm. Morton was a member of the replicant underground and, along with Freysa, helped hide Deckard and Rachael's baby – whose birth Morton describes as "a miracle". Using his army medic training, Morton personally conducted an emergency C-section on Rachael to save her baby after Rachael died in childbirth. Morton is contemptuous that K, a replicant himself, is a blade runner hunting his own kind (though K points out that he's a Nexus-9, not the same model as him). Mariette (Mackenzie Davis) is a replicant prostitute, and secretly a member of the replicant underground. Joi wants to experience sex with K, but the holographic projection of her AI lacks physical substance, so she hires Mariette to have sex with him – while overlaying her projection on Mariette's body. Secretly, Freysa instructs Mariette to keep tabs on K by slipping a tracking device into his coat, which enables the replicant underground to save him after Wallace's agents assault him and capture Deckard in the ruins of Las Vegas. Mariette then brings K to meet Freysa personally. Doc Badger (Barkhad Abdi) is a street-wise fixer on the black market, who talks in City-speak creole. After obtaining a wooden horse that was in his allegedly fake implanted memory, K goes to Doc Badger's shop to have it analyzed. Badger is surprised that it is made of real wood (which is worth a fortune), and on chemical analysis, discerns that it was exposed to high radiation levels – allowing K to narrow down his search to the ruins of Las Vegas. Mister Cotton (Lennie James) runs a combination orphanage and salvaging operation in the vast junkyards on the outskirts of Los Angeles, putting the children to work picking apart piles of e-waste for useful scrap-metal. K's investigation leads him to discover that Rachael's child was passed off as a human child at Cotton's orphanage, though he doesn't remember it. K strong- arms him into revealing his records books, only to discover that someone stole the pages from that year to destroy the evidence. Lt. Joshi (Robin Wright) is K's superior on the police force. She doesn't think replicants like K are as "real" as humans like her, though she does respect K. She is brutally killed by Luv after refusing to reveal K's location. Coco (David Dastmalchian) is a police forensics investigator. He analyzes the ossuary that K found, revealing to him and Joshi that they belonged to a replicant female who died in childbirth (Rachael). Wallace's agent Luv later ambushes and kills him in his lab, to steal Rachael's skeletal remains and return them to Wallace for analysis. Nandez (Wood Harris) is another police investigator. He is disdainful of Coco's conclusion that Sapper Morton must have cared for Rachael's baby, though Coco points out that Morton clearly cared enough to give her a proper burial.

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Mr. Edwards is a fictional character that appeared in the Little House series of autobiographical children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. His character was later adapted for the NBC television show, Little House on the Prairie and given the name "Isaiah Edwards." As stated by Wilder in her books, Mr. Edwards was "the wildcat from Tennessee" whom the Ingalls met during their stay near Independence, Kansas in the Little House on the Prairie novel. They met for a short while also in By the Shores of Silver Lake, when Mr. Edwards helps Pa file his claim during a sudden settlement rush, and in The Long Winter, when he generously gives the now-blind Mary a $20 bill. It remains unknown whether Mr. Edwards was a completely fictional person or if his story was based on some authentic events and people from Laura's life. Many researchers of the "Little House" books believe that Edwards was actually a person or persons whom Laura gave the traits and actions of people she knew who did kind deeds for the Ingalls throughout the years. In her earliest memoir , Wilder recalled the name of the neighbor who swam a creek near their house to bring her and sister Mary Christmas presents as "Mr. Brown," a deed that she ascribed to Mr. Edwards in Little House on the Prairie. An Alabama native and 35 year-old bachelor named Fred Brown is listed as a resident of Rutland Twp Montgomery Co. KS in the 1870 US Census, the same township where the Ingalls family lived in 1870. Possibly this Fred Brown was the model for Mr. Edwards. However, Pamela Smith Hill, the editor of Pioneer Girl suggested that Mr. Edwards may have been the 25-year old English native named Edmund Mason who is also enumerated as a bachelor neighbor of the Ingalls in Rutland Co. Montgomery Co KS (). Mason's grave may be found in the local Harrison Cemetery, near where the Ingalls were living in the book Little House on the Prairie, though certain key aspects of Mason's known life are at odds with the information about "Mr. Edwards" supplied by Laura in her novels. The character of Isaiah Edwards was introduced in the pilot movie, which established the Ingalls family settling on a prairie tract in Kansas. Victor French, a close friend of series creator Michael Landon and a character actor who had acted in several television westerns beforehand, portrayed the role throughout most of the series run. A poorly educated, gruff-looking dirt farmer, Mr. Edwards helps the Ingalls family build their new home on the prairie and deal with the hardships that arise. It is during this time that the series' main protagonist, Laura Ingalls, develops a close relationship with Edwards. Laura's mother, Caroline, distrusts Mr. Edwards at first, finding his mannerisms and rough demeanor uncouth, but in time grows to respect and accept him as one of the family. Edwards and the Ingalls family are separated when they are forced to leave their property by the government. When Little House on the Prairie was picked up as a weekly television series, Victor French was returned to the role. In the time between the pilot movie and his first episode, "Mr. Edwards' Homecoming," Mr. Edwards had become a drunken drifter, and eventually arrives in Mankato, Minnesota; there, he gets into a barroom brawl when by chance Charles Ingalls – who was making a delivery run from Walnut Grove, where the Ingalls family had settled – arrives and (upon hearing the commotion and recognizing Mr. Edwards) comes to his defense. Mr. Edwards is brought to the Ingalls' new home near Walnut Grove, and eventually gets a place of his own. It is about this time he reveals his past: He became an alcoholic after his first wife and young daughter died of smallpox, and renounced his Christian faith as a result. For the most part, Mr. Edwards is able to keep his drinking under control in episodes that aired during the first three seasons. Mr. Edwards frequently sang the song, "Old Dan Tucker," and a musical cue sometimes introduced his character. Mr. Edwards eventually meets Grace Snider; the two fall in love and are married. They adopt three children orphaned when their mother dies of an illness: John Jr., Carl and Alicia Sanders. The family remains a part of the cast until the end of the third season, when Mr. Edwards uses a gold claim to begin a logging empire (the storyline was created after Victor French took the lead role in another series, Carter Country). French reprised his role in a Season 6 episode, "The Return of Mr. Edwards", where he is seriously injured by a falling tree and becomes suicidal; Charles and Laura arrive to help Mr. Edwards out of his depression. With French's return to the show during Season 8, a story arc was developed around the death of Mr. Edwards' eldest son, John Jr., and the consequences that result. John Jr., who had become an investigative reporter for a Chicago newspaper, was murdered by a corrupt businessman who didn't want his activities becoming public. Mr. Edwards is initially told that it was a street accident that killed John Jr., but as Charles helps him grieve, the two – along with the editor and a street urchin – uncover the truth. It is John Jr.'s death that causes Mr. Edwards to relapse into deep alcoholism, causing him to lose his logging business and eventually, his family. Distraught, Mr. Edwards returns to Walnut Grove, keeping his dark secrets under wraps until he causes a street accident that seriously injures Albert Ingalls (Charles' adopted son). Charles breaks off his friendship with Mr. Edwards and tells him to leave and never return, leaving Laura as his only hope. Laura and her husband, Almanzo (who are by now married) agree to help reform Mr. Edwards, and it works ... until he gets a letter from Grace telling him she has filed divorce papers. Mr. Edwards tries to break into the Mercantile to obtain alcohol, but when it is locked up, he sees the church and goes in to pray and seek God's forgiveness and guidance; he subsequently reconciles with Charles and eventually becomes Rose Wilder's godfather. During the final season, Mr. Edwards was featured in several episodes, primarily as a comic foil to Harriet Oleson, the snobbish wife of mercantile owner Nels Oleson. However, there were a few serious episodes featuring the character, most notably the two-part episode "The Wild Boy," where he agrees to adopt a mute boy who had been abused by a traveling showman. He also plays key roles in the TV films that aired in 1983 and 1984, most notably "Bless All the Dear Children." The character was played by Gregory Sporleder. Laura's Prairie House (laurasprairiehouse.com), 1870 US Census Rutland Twp Montgomery Co. KS p. 4, Pioneer Girl: Annotated Autobiography, Laura Ingalls Wilder, ed. Pamela Smith Hill" (2014), Little House on the Prairie: About Victor French The "Little House" Books is a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder, based on her childhood and adolescence in the American Midwest (Wisconsin, Kansas, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Missouri) between 1870 and 1894. Eight of the novels were completed by Wilder, and published by Harper & Brothers. The appellation "Little House" books comes from the first and third novels in the series of eight published in her lifetime. The second novel was about her husband's childhood. The first draft of a ninth novel was published posthumously in 1971 and is commonly included in the series. The Little House books have been adapted for stage or screen more than once, most successfully as the American television series Little House on the Prairie, which ran from 1974 to 1983. As well as an anime and many spin-off books, there are cookbooks and various other licensed products representative of the books. A tenth book, the non-fiction On the Way Home, is Laura Ingalls Wilder's diary of the years after 1894, when she, her husband and their infant daughter moved from De Smet, South Dakota to Mansfield, Missouri, where they settled permanently. It was published in 1962 and includes commentary by Rose Wilder Lane. The first book of the Little House series, Little House in the Big Woods, was published in 1932. This first book did well when it was first published. The Little House books were reissued by Ursula Nordstrom to be illustrated by Garth Williams. Before writing the Little House series Laura Ingalls Wilder was a columnist in a farm journal. Her daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, was the motivator behind Wilder's writing and publishing of the first book. Since the first book, there have been around 60 million Little House books sold. There are 9 books that fall under the Little House books umbrella. Rose Wilder Lane had a heavy hand in the editing of the books, though Laura Ingalls Wilder's voice is still strong. It is contested the amount of influence that Lane had on the books, especially regarding any political themes, but views that align with hers are very visible within the books. Regardless, Rose Wilder Lane was a large part in the publishing and form of the books. Lane also had a hand in giving the rights to Roger Lea MacBride, who then led to the creation of the television show entitled Little House on the Prairie. Time ranks the Little House series as 22 out of 100 of the "100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time." They are considered classics of American children's literature and remain widely read. In a 2012 survey published by School Library Journal, a monthly with primarily U.S. audience, Little House in the Big Woods was ranked number 19 among all-time best children's novels, and two of its sequels were ranked among the top 100. Five of the Little House book have been Honor Books for the Newbery Medal. In 1938, On the Banks of Plum Creek, was an Honor Book; in 1940 By the Shores of Silver Lake was as well. Later in 1941, The Long Winter, became an Honor Book, and the two later Honor Books were The Little Town on the Prairie, in 1942, and Those Happy Golden Years in 1944. In addition to this, the American Library Association stated that The Long Winter, the seventh book in the series, was a "resource for teaching about pioneer history." The Little House books include people from ethnic minorities, mainly Native Americans. There have been criticisms of the Little House books because of portrayals of Native Americans. Much of the criticism relates to the negative stereotyping as well as a view of them as less than human. However, these portrayals do not necessarily represent the views of the author and that there are very positive portrayals of native American and black people. There has also been criticism of the ignorance present in the books of the illegality of the Ingalls' occupation of land they did not have the right to occupy. Wilder presents the land as "uninhabited," which it was not. An important moment concerning Wilder's depiction of Native Americans occurred in 1998, when an eight-year-old girl read Little House on the Prairie in her elementary school class. The book contains the line, "The only good Indian is a dead Indian," which apparently caused the girl distress. This comment is made by a minor character whose views do not reflect those of the author. However, the girl's mother, Waziyatawin Angela Cavender Wilson, a member of the Wahpetunwan Dakota nation, challenged the school on its use of the book in the classroom. This action prompted the American Library Association to investigate and ultimately change the name of the Wilder Award to the Children's Literature Legacy Award. This award is given to books that have made a large impact on children's literature in America. Laura Ingalls Wilder's work is autobiographical fiction. Wilder embellished or bent the truth on more than one occasion, along with creating composite characters based on multiple real individuals, to keep her story interesting. She also presented a view of the world that supported her family's experiences and has been criticized regarding the history of the government's involvement in homesteading, and the related tragedies faced by Native American people. including illegal occupation of the land by her family, when that land was still recognized by the United States government as the Osage Nation's territory. While Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote the Little House books, it was Rose Wilder Lane who edited them and it was Lane who had the rights after Wilder's death. Rose was an "outspoken antigovernment polemicist and is called one of the grandmothers of the libertarian movement." Lane's views were supported by her mother. Though despite her mother's support of her political views, Lane went against her mother, and what was written in her will, by leaving the rights of the Little House books to Roger Lea MacBride after her own death. Roger Lea MacBride has strong connections to politics, being a once libertarian presidential candidate, and a member of the Republican Liberty Caucus. His gaining of the rights to the books, was not only from Lane's will but also through a legal battle with the library that Wilder wrote in her will would gain the rights after Lane's death. MacBride was the one to allow the television show to be made, to talk about Laura's books, and through the rights he has made a great deal of money. Another layer of politics the Little House books brings to the surface is John Locke's Labor Theory of Property, which is the idea that if someone improves the land with their own labor that they then have rights to that land. The Labor Theory of Property is essential in the rhetoric surrounding the Little House books, evident in the books' treatment of the relationship between homesteading and the labor theory of property. Anti-governmental political views, such as those held by Rose Wilder Lane, have been attributed to the Little House books. In her article, "Little House on the Prairie and the Truth About the American West", historian Patricia Nelson Limerick connects Wilder's apparent and Lane's outright distaste for the government as a way to blame the government for their father's failure at homesteading. The books show the Wilder family to be entrepreneurs and show a form of hero worship of Laura Ingalls Wilder's parents. In "Little House on the Prairie and the Myth of Self Reliance", Julie Tharp and Jeff Kleiman say that the idea of the settlers' self-reliance, which they consider to be a myth, has contributed to conservative rhetoric, and that the Little House books are full of this myth. Little House in the Big Woods (1932), Farmer Boy (1933), Little House on the Prairie (1935), On the Banks of Plum Creek (1937), By the Shores of Silver Lake (1939), The Long Winter (1940), Little Town on the Prairie (1941), These Happy Golden Years (1943), The First Four Years (1971) Four series of books expand the Little House series to include five generations of Laura Ingalls Wilder's family. The "Martha Years" and "Charlotte Years" series, by Melissa Wiley, are fictionalized tales of Laura's great-grandmother in Scotland in the late 18th century and grandmother in early 19th century Massachusetts. The "Caroline Years" series narrates Wilder's mother, Caroline Quiner's, childhood in Wisconsin. The Rose Years (originally known as the "Rocky Ridge Years") series follows Rose Wilder Lane from childhood in Missouri to early adulthood in San Francisco. It was written by her surrogate grandson Roger MacBride. Two volumes of Wilder's letters and diaries have also been issued under the Little House imprint: On The Way Home and West From Home, published by Harper Collins in 1962 and 1974 respectively. The story of the first book in the series, Little House in the Big Woods, revolves around the life of the Ingalls family in their small home near Pepin, Wisconsin. The family includes mother Caroline Ingalls, father Charles Ingalls, elder daughter Mary Amelia Ingalls, and younger daughter (and protagonist), Laura Ingalls Wilder. Also in the story, though not yet born historically, is Laura's baby sister Carrie. In the book, Laura herself turns five years old, when the real-life author had only been three during the events of the book. According to a letter from her daughter, Rose, to biographer William Anderson, the publisher had Laura change her age in the book because it seemed unrealistic for a three-year-old to have specific memories such as she wrote about. Little House in the Big Woods describes the homesteading skills Laura observed and began to practice during her fifth year. The cousins come for Christmas that year, and Laura receives a doll, which she names Charlotte. Later that winter, the family goes to Grandma Ingalls’s and has a “sugaring off,” when they harvest sap and make maple syrup. They return home with buckets of syrup, enough to last the year. Laura remembered that sugaring off, and the dance that followed, for the rest of her life. The book also describes other farm work duties and events, such as the birth of a calf, and the availability of milk, butter and cheese, gardening, field work, hunting, gathering, and more. Everyday housework is also described in detail. When Pa went into the woods to hunt, he usually came home with a deer then smoked the meat for the coming winter. One day he noticed a bee tree and returned from hunting early to get the wash tub and milk pail to collect the honey. When Pa returned in the winter evenings, Laura and Mary always begged him to play his fiddle, as he was too tired from farm work to play during the summertime. Farmer Boy, published in 1933, is the second-published of the Little House books and it is commonly numbered two in the series, but its story is unrelated to that of the inaugural novel, Little House in the Big Woods. It features the boyhood of Laura's future husband Almanzo Wilder from before his ninth birthday until after his tenth. The book describes his schooling, holidays, farm work, and most of all, food. Little House on the Prairie, published in 1935, is the third book in the Little House series but only the second that features the Ingalls family; it continues directly the story of the inaugural novel, Little House in the Big Woods. The book tells about the months the Ingalls family spent on the prairie of Kansas, around the town of Independence, Kansas. At the beginning of this story, Pa Ingalls decides to sell the house in the Big Woods of Wisconsin, and move the family, via covered wagon to the Indian Territory near Independence, Kansas, as there were widely circulating stories that the land (under Osage ownership) would be opened to settlement by homesteaders imminently. So Laura, along with Pa and Ma, Mary, and baby Carrie, move to Kansas. Along the way, Pa trades his two horses for two Western mustangs, which Laura and Mary name Pet and Patty. When the family reaches Indian Territory, they meet Mr. Edwards, who is extremely polite to Ma, but tells Laura and Mary that he is "a wildcat from Tennessee." Mr. Edwards is an excellent neighbor, and helps the Ingalls in every way he can, beginning with helping Pa erect their house. Pa builds a roof and a floor for their house and digs a well, and the family is finally settled. At their new home, unlike their time in the Big Woods, the family meets difficulty and danger. The Ingalls family becomes terribly ill from a disease called at that time "fever 'n' ague" (fever with severe chills and shaking) which was later identified as malaria. Laura comments on the varied ways they believe to have acquired it, with "Ma" believing it came from eating bad watermelon. Mrs. Scott, another neighbor, takes care of the family while they are sick. Around this time, Mr. Edwards brings Laura and Mary their Christmas presents from Independence, and in the spring, the Ingalls plant the beginnings of a small farm. Ma's fears about American Indians and Laura's observations at the time of them are contrasted with Pa's liberal view of them, and all these views are shown side by side with the older Laura's objective portrayal of the Osage tribe that lived on that land. At the end of this book, the family is told that the land must be vacated by settlers as it is not legally open to settlement yet, and in 1870 Pa elects to leave the land and move before the Army forcibly requires him to abandon the land. On the Banks of Plum Creek, published in 1937 and fourth in the series, follows the Ingalls family as they move from Pepin, Wisconsin to Kansas to an area near Walnut Grove, Minnesota, and settle in a dugout "on the banks of Plum Creek (Redwood County, Minnesota)". Pa trades his horses Pet and Patty to the property owner (a man named Hanson) for the land and crops, but later gets two new horses as Christmas presents for the family, which Laura and her sister Mary name "Sam" and "David". Pa soon builds a new, above-ground, wooden house for the family. During this story, Laura and Mary go to school for the first time in town where they meet their teacher, Miss Eva Beadle. They also meet Nellie Oleson, who makes fun of Laura and Mary for being "country girls". Laura plays with her bulldog Jack when she is home, and she and Mary are invited to a party at the Olesons' home. Laura and Mary invite all the girls (including Nellie) to a party at their house to reciprocate. The family soon goes through hard times when a plague of Rocky Mountain locusts decimates their crops. The book ends with Pa returning safely to the house after being unaccounted for during a severe four-day blizzard. By the Shores of Silver Lake, published in 1939 and fifth in the series. The story begins when the family is about to leave Plum Creek, shortly after the family has recovered from the scarlet fever which caused Mary to become blind. The family welcomes a visit from Aunt Docia, whom they had not seen for several years. She suggests that Pa and Ma move west to the rapidly developing Dakota Territory, where Pa could work in Uncle Henry’s railroad camp at very good wages for that era. Ma and Pa agree, since it will allow Pa to look for a homestead while he works. The family has endured many hardships on Plum Creek and Pa especially is anxious for a new start. After selling his land and farm to neighbors, Pa goes ahead with the wagon and team. Mary is still too weak to travel so the rest of the family follows later by train. The day Pa leaves, however, their beloved bulldog Jack is found dead, which saddens Laura greatly. In actuality, the dog upon whom Jack was based was no longer with the family at this point, but the author inserted his death here to serve as a transition between her childhood and her adolescence. Laura also begins to play a more mature role in the family due to Mary's blindness – Pa instructs Laura to "be Mary's eyes" and to assist her in daily life as she learns to cope with her disability. Mary is strong and willing to learn. The family travels to Dakota Territory by train – this is the children's first train trip and they are excited by the novelty of this new mode of transportation that allows them to travel in one hour the distance it would take a horse and wagon an entire day to cover. With the family reunited and situated at the railroad camp, Laura meets her cousin Lena, and the two become good friends. As winter approaches, and the railroad workers take down the cabins and head back East, the family wonders where they might stay for the winter. As luck would have it, the county surveyor needs a house-sitter while he is East for the winter, and Pa signs up. It is a winter of luxury for the Ingalls family as they are given all the provisions they need in the large, comfortable house. They spend a cozy winter with their new friends, Mr. and Mrs. Boast, and both families look forward to starting their new claims in the spring. But the "Spring Rush" comes early. The large mobilization of pioneers to the Dakotas in early March prompts Pa to leave immediately on the few days' trip to the claims office. The girls are left alone and spend their days and nights boarding and feeding all the pioneers passing through. They charge 25 cents for dinner and boarding, starting a savings account toward sending Mary to the School for the Blind in Vinton, Iowa. Pa successfully files his claim, with the aid of old friend Mr. Edwards. As the spring flowers bloom and the prairie comes alive with new settlers, the Ingalls family moves to their new piece of land and begins building what will become their permanent home. The Long Winter, published in 1940 and sixth in the series, covers the shortest timespan of the novels, only an eight-month period. The winter of 1880–1881 was a notably severe winter in history, sometimes known as "The Snow Winter". The story begins in Dakota Territory at the Ingalls homestead in South Dakota on a hot September day in 1880 as Laura and her father ("Pa") are haying. Pa tells Laura that he knows the winter is going to be hard because muskrats always build a house with thick walls before a hard winter, and this year, they have built the thickest walls he has ever seen. In mid-October, the Ingalls wake with an unusually early blizzard howling around their poorly insulated claim shanty. Soon afterward, Pa receives another warning from an unexpected source: a dignified old Native American man comes to the general store in town to warn the white settlers that there will be seven months of blizzards. Impressed, Pa decides to move the family into town for the winter. Laura attends school with her younger sister, Carrie until the weather becomes too severe to permit them to walk to and from the school building. Blizzard after blizzard sweeps through the town over the next few months. Food and fuel become scarce and expensive, as the town depends on the trains to bring supplies but the frequent blizzards prevent the trains from getting through. Eventually, the railroad company suspends all efforts to dig out the train, stranding the town. For weeks, the Ingalls subsist on potatoes and coarse brown bread, using twisted hay for fuel. As even this meager food runs out, Laura's future husband Almanzo Wilder and his friend Cap Garland risk their lives to bring wheat to the starving townspeople – enough to last the rest of the winter. Laura's age in this book is also accurate. (In 1880, she would have been 13, as she states in the first chapter.) However, Almanzo Wilder's age is misrepresented in this book. Much is made of the fact that he is 19 pretending to be 21 in order to illegally obtain a homestead claim from the US government. But in 1880, his true age would have been 23. Scholar Ann Romines has suggested that Laura made Almanzo younger because it was felt that more modern audiences would be scandalized by the great difference in their ages in light of their young marriage. As predicted, the blizzards continue for seven months. Finally, the trains begin running again, bringing the Ingalls a Christmas barrel full of good things – including a turkey. In the last chapter, they sit down to enjoy their Christmas dinner in May. Little Town on the Prairie, published in 1941 and seventh in the series. The story begins as Laura accepts her first job performing sewing work in order to earn money for Mary to go to a college for the blind in Iowa. Laura's hard work comes to an end by summer when she is let go, and the family begins planning to raise cash crops to pay for Mary's college. After the crops are destroyed by blackbirds, Pa sells a calf to earn the balance of the money needed. When Ma and Pa escort Mary to the college, Laura, Carrie, and Grace are left alone for a week. In order to stave off the loneliness stemming from Mary's departure, Laura, Carrie, and Grace do the fall cleaning. They have several problems, but the house is sparkling when they are done. Ma and Pa come home, and are truly surprised. In the fall, the Ingalls quickly prepare for a move to town for the winter. Laura and Carrie attend school in town and Laura is reunited with her friends Minnie Johnson and Mary Power and meets a new girl, Ida Brown. There is a new schoolteacher for the winter term: Eliza Jane Wilder, Almanzo’s sister. Nellie Oleson, Laura's nemesis from Plum Creek, has moved to De Smet and is attending the school. Nellie turns the teacher against Laura and Miss Wilder loses control of the school for a time. A visit by the school board restores order; however, Miss Wilder leaves at the end of the fall term, and is eventually replaced by Mr. Clewett and then Mr. Owen, the latter of whom befriends Laura. Through the course of the winter, Laura sets herself to studying, as she only has one year left before she can apply for a teaching certificate. At the same time, Almanzo Wilder begins escorting Laura home from church. By Christmastime, Almanzo once again sees Laura home, and offers to take her on a sleigh ride after he completes the cutter he is building. At home, Laura is met by Mr. Boast and Mr. Brewster, who ask Laura if she would be interested in a teaching position at a settlement led by Brewster twelve miles (19 km) from town. The school superintendent, George Williams, comes and tests Laura (though she is two months too young, he never asks her age), and she is awarded a third-grade teaching certificate. These Happy Golden Years, published in 1943 and eighth in the series, originally ended with a note alone on the last page: "The end of the Little house books." It takes place between 1882 and 1885. As the story begins, Pa is taking Laura 12 miles (19 km) from home to her first teaching assignment at Brewster settlement. Laura, only 15 and a schoolgirl herself, is apprehensive as this is both the first time she has left home and the first school she has taught. She is determined to complete her assignment and earn $40 to help her sister Mary, who is attending Vinton College for the Blind in Iowa. This first school proves difficult for her. Laura must board with the Brewsters in their two-room claim shanty, sleeping on their sofa. The Brewsters are an unhappy family and Laura is deeply uncomfortable observing the way husband and wife quarrel. In one particularly unsettling incident, she wakes in the night to see Mrs Brewster standing over her husband with a knife. It is a bitterly cold winter, and neither the claim shanty or the school house can be heated adequately. The children she is teaching, some of whom are older than she is herself, test her skills as a teacher. Laura grows more self-assured through the term, and successfully completes the two-month term. To Laura's surprise and delight, homesteader Almanzo Wilder (with whom she became acquainted in Little Town on the Prairie) appears at the end of her first week of school in his new two-horse cutter to bring her home for the weekend. Already fond of Laura and wanting to ease her homesickness, Almanzo takes it upon himself to bring her home and back to school each weekend. The relationship continues after the school term ends. Sleigh rides give way to buggy rides in the spring, and Laura impresses Almanzo with her willingness to help break his new and often temperamental horses. Laura's old nemesis, Nellie Oleson, makes a brief appearance during two Sunday buggy rides with Almanzo. Nellie's chatter and flirtatious behavior towards Almanzo annoys Laura. Shortly thereafter, Nellie moves back to New York after her family loses their homestead. Laura's Uncle Tom (Ma's brother) visits the family and tells of his failed venture with a covered wagon brigade seeking gold in the Black Hills. Laura helps out seamstress Mrs. McKee by staying with her and her daughter on their prairie claim for two months to "hold it down" as required by law. The family enjoys summer visits from Mary. The family finances have improved to the point that Pa can sell a cow to purchase a sewing machine for Ma. Laura continues to teach and work as a seamstress. Almanzo invites Laura to attend summer "singing school" with him and her classmates. On the last evening of singing school while driving Laura home, Almanzo – who has by now been courting Laura for three years – proposes to Laura. During their next ride, Almanzo presents Laura with a garnet-and-pearl ring and they share their first kiss. Several months later, after Almanzo has finished building a house on his tree claim, he asks Laura if she would mind getting married within a few days as his sister and mother have their hearts set on a large church wedding, which Pa cannot afford. Laura agrees, and she and Almanzo are married in a simple ceremony by the Reverend Brown. After a wedding dinner with her family, Laura drives away with Almanzo and the newlyweds settle contentedly into their new home. The First Four Years, published in 1971, is commonly considered the ninth and last book in the original Little House series. It covers the earliest years of Laura and Almanzo's marriage. The First Four Years derives its title from a promise Laura made to Almanzo when they became engaged. Laura did not want to be a farm wife, but she consented to try farming for three years. At the end of that time, Laura and Almanzo mutually agreed to continue for one more year, a "year of grace", in Laura's words. The book ends at the close of that fourth year, on a rather optimistic note. In reality, the continually hot, dry Dakota summers, and several other tragic events described in the book eventually drove them from their land, but they later founded a very successful fruit and dairy farm in Missouri, where they lived comfortably until their respective deaths. On the Way Home (1962), West from Home (1974), Little House on Rocky Ridge (1993), Little Farm in the Ozarks (1994), In the Land of the Big Red Apple (1995), On the Other Side of the Hill (1995), Little Town in the Ozarks (1996), New Dawn on Rocky Ridge (1997), On the Banks of the Bayou (1998), Bachelor Girl (1999), The Road Back (2006) Jackanory is a British television series intended to encourage children to read; it ran from 1965 to 1996, and was revived in 2006. From October 24 through October 28, 1966, five short episodes aired that were based on Little House in the Big Woods, with Red Shively as the storyteller. From October 21 through October 25, 1968, five more were released, this time based on Farmer Boy, with Richard Monette as the storyteller. The television series Little House on the Prairie aired on the NBC network from 1974 to 1983. The show was a loose adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie semi-autobiographical novel series, although the namesake book was represented in the premiere only; the ensuing television episodes primarily followed characters and locations from the follow-up book, On the Banks of Plum Creek (1937), although the continuity of the television series greatly departed from this book as well. Some storylines were borrowed from Wilder's later books but were portrayed as having taken place in the Plum Creek setting. Michael Landon starred as Charles Ingalls, Karen Grassle played Caroline Ingalls, Melissa Gilbert played Laura Ingalls, Melissa Sue Anderson played Mary Ingalls, and the twins Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush (credited as Lindsay Sidney Greenbush) played Carrie Ingalls. Victor French portrayed long- time friend Mr. Edwards. Dean Butler portrayed Laura's husband, Almanzo Wilder. Some characters were added in the show, such as Albert, played by Matthew Laborteaux, an orphan whom the family adopted. Although it deviated from the original books in many respects, the television series, which was set in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, was one of a few long-running successful dramatic family shows. It remained a top-rated series, and garnered 17 Emmy® and three Golden Globe® nominations, along with two People’s Choice® Awards. A Japanese anime television series of 26 episodes (about 24 minutes each), originally entitled Sōgen no Shōjo Laura. Two made for television movies by Marcus Cole, with Meredith Monroe as Laura. Part 1 tells the story of teenage Laura in DeSmet, while the second part is about Laura and Almanzo's (Walton Goggins) marriage and their life in Mansfield, Missouri. It also focuses a lot on the character of Wilder's young daughter; Rose (Skye McCole Bartusiak). The 2005 ABC five-hour (six-episode) miniseries Little House on the Prairie attempted to follow closely the books Little House in the Big Woods and Little House on the Prairie. It starred Cameron Bancroft as Charles Ingalls; Erin Cottrell as Caroline Ingalls; Kyle Chavarria as Laura Ingalls; Danielle Chuchran as Mary Ingalls; and Gregory Sporleder as Mr Edwards. It was directed by David L. Cunningham. In 2006 the mini-series was released on DVD and the 2-disc set runs approximately 255 minutes long. A musical version of the Little House books premiered at the Guthrie Theater, Minnesota on July 26, 2008. The musical has music by Rachel Portman and lyrics by Donna DiNovelli and is directed by Francesca Zambello with choreography by Michele Lynch. The cast includes Melissa Gilbert as "Ma". The musical began a US national tour in October 2009. Little House on the Prairie: The Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder is a one-hour documentary film that looks at the life of Wilder. Wilder's story as a writer, wife, and mother is explored through interviews with scholars and historians, archival photography, paintings by frontier artists, and dramatic reenactments. , including the complete text of the first eight Little House books Little House On The Prairie, Little House Books, Little House on the Prairie historic site, near Independence, Kansas The following is a list of episodes for the television show Little House on the Prairie, an American Western drama about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota from the 1870s to the 1890s. The show is an full- colour version of Laura Ingalls Wilder's series of Little House books. The regular series was preceded by the two-hour pilot movie, which first aired on March 30, 1974. The series began on the NBC network on September 11, 1974, and ended on May 10, 1982. Then it was renewed for a ninth season better known as Little House: A New Beginning from September 27, 1982 to March 21, 1983 The majority of the episodes run approximately 50 minutes (not counting commercials, they have since been edited for syndication to accommodate more commercial time). Expanded episodes (90 minutes to 2 hours) have been indicated as such; many of these may not currently be shown in determined areas due to their length. This season is also known as Little House: A New Beginning. When Michael Landon decided to leave the show, it got this new name, the focus was put on the characters of Laura and Almanzo, and more recurring characters were added. Landon did, however, stay on as executive producer, and wrote and directed occasional episodes as well.

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"It's a Trap!" is a direct-to-video special of the animated series Family Guy which later served as the double-episode season finale of the ninth season and is the final part of the series' Star Wars parody trilogy . It is named after the phrase uttered by Admiral Ackbar in the Star Wars film Return of the Jedi. The home video was first released on December 21, 2010 and later aired on Fox in the United States on May 22, 2011. The episode was written by Cherry Chevapravatdumrong and David A. Goodman and directed by Peter Shin. It retells the story of Return of the Jedi as "Blue Harvest" did with Star Wars and "Something, Something, Something, Dark Side" did with The Empire Strikes Back by recasting characters from Family Guy into roles from the film. The Griffin family experience another power outage, forcing them to reluctantly go through Return of the Jedi. Rather than setting up the plot, the opening crawl states that Fox required Seth MacFarlane to complete the trilogy to be allowed to direct Ted. On Tatooine, R2-D2 and C-3PO find Jabba the Hutt's palace in order to initiate a plan to save Han Solo, still frozen in carbonite for posterity. Leia unfreezes Han but Jabba captures her and she is shackled by Jabba's side. Han, meanwhile, is thrown into a prison cell with Chewbacca. Luke arrives at the palace and attempts to bargain for the release of his friends. Jabba opens a trap door and Luke falls into a pit where he battles and kills the Rancor. Afterwards, Jabba orders Luke and his friends to be eaten by the Sarlacc. Luke initiates an assault on Jabba's crew with the help of Lando Calrissian, disguised as one of Jabba's henchmen. Distracted by the carnage, Leia chokes Jabba using her slave chains while her fellow rebels commandeer a transport ship and fly to safety. Luke and R2-D2 fly to Dagobah so Luke can finish his training with Yoda while the others rejoin the rebel fleet. On Dagobah, Yoda explains the final part of training is to face Vader. In his dying words, Yoda reveals that Luke has a sibling. The spirit of Obi- Wan Kenobi appears to Luke and further explains that his sibling is Princess Leia; he chastises Luke for not figuring it out sooner, as Leia is "the only goddamn woman in the galaxy". The rebels begin planning an assault on the new Death Star and Admiral Ackbar explains that they must first destroy a shield generator located on the forest moon of Endor. In order to land on the forest moon of Endor, Han uses a stolen Imperial ship and old access code to sneak past the Empire's blockade. Vader allows them passage on to the moon, knowing Luke is aboard the ship. When they reach the moon's surface, the rebels are spotted by Imperial soldiers which they stop from reporting after a high-speed chase. Separated from the others, Leia is befriended by Wicket the Ewok. Luke, Han, Chewie and the droids fall into an Ewok trap while searching for Leia. They are captured and brought to the village where Leia is being housed. The Ewoks believe C-3PO is a god and begin to worship him. Luke tells Princess Leia they are siblings, but Leia claims to have already known that, even when they kissed: "I'm from Alderaan. It's basically the Mississippi of the galaxy." Following Yoda's advice, Luke surrenders to Vader in order to confront him. Vader tries to convince Luke to turn to the dark side. Luke refuses and the two meet with the Emperor, who reveals that Luke's friends are walking into a trap on the forest moon. When this revelation fails to anger Luke, the Emperor begins to mock actor Seth Green (who voices Chris). Luke defends Green saying that he's been in successful projects, only to have The Emperor saying the negative side of Green's roles. Luke becomes enraged and begins dueling Vader. Back on the forest moon, Han leads the rebels to the shield generator, however, the company is ambushed. The Ewoks help the rebels escape from the Imperial troops and destroy the shield generator, while Lando and Nien Nunb lead the attack on the Death Star. Luke finally subdues Vader, but he refuses to execute him and join the dark side at the Emperor's request. The Emperor then incapacitates Luke with his powerful Force lightning. Because Luke asks Vader politely for help, Vader gathers his remaining strength and kills the distracted Emperor by throwing him into the reactor core. Vader and Luke manage to flee the Death Star before Lando and his crew blow it up. Unfortunately, when Vader asks Luke to help him remove his mask (to "look on you with my own eyes"), Luke accidentally twists and breaks Vader's neck. Everyone rendezvous back at the Ewok village to celebrate the rebels victory over the Empire. While the Ewoks kill the wounded Imperials, the spirits of Obi-Wan and Yoda appear to Luke, alongside the spirit of the redeemed Anakin Skywalker, who angrily accuses Luke of murdering him. The Griffins' power returns just as Peter concludes the story, Meg then asks Peter "What about the prequel trilogy?" with Peter suggesting that The Cleveland Show might do the prequels. After that, the family starts arguing about whether Seth Green or Seth MacFarlane is a better artist. Chris Griffin as Luke Skywalker, Peter Griffin as Han Solo, Lois Griffin as Princess Leia, Mort Goldman as Lando Calrissian, Glenn Quagmire as C-3PO, Cleveland Brown as R2-D2, Brian Griffin as Chewbacca, Klaus Heissler as Admiral Ackbar (crossover from American Dad!), Carter Pewterschmidt as Emperor Palpatine, Herbert as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Carl as Yoda, Stewie Griffin as Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker, Joe Swanson as Jabba the Hutt, Ernie the Giant Chicken as Boba Fett, Rallo Tubbs as Nien Nunb (crossover from The Cleveland Show), Meg Griffin as the Sarlacc, Roger as Moff Jerjerrod (crossover from American Dad!), Tim the Bear as Wicket (crossover from The Cleveland Show), Angela as Mon Mothma, Consuela as the sentry droid, Opie as the frog like creature that eats the sentry droid, Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard, Michael Dorn as Worf, Rush Limbaugh as Rancor, Conway Twitty (archive footage) as Darth Twitty, Ted Knight (archive footage from Caddyshack) as Judge Smails, Anne Hathaway as Hot Blonde It was announced in March 2009 the show had read through an early draft of the script under the working title, Episode VI: The Great Muppet Caper. The second working title, We Have a Bad Feeling About This, was a reference to the recurring catchphrase that is used in the Star Wars films. The settled-upon title is a reference to the line by Admiral Ackbar in the film, which became an Internet meme through YTMND. Due to the declining number of unused Family Guy characters, the episode also features characters from American Dad! and The Cleveland Show: Roger appears as Moff Jerjerrod, (with Vader/Stewie commenting "What, have we run out of our characters already?") Klaus appears as Admiral Ackbar, Tim appears as Wicket the Ewok and Rallo appears as Nien Nunb. Stan was originally going to appear as Wedge Antilles, but his part got cut (he is still mentioned when Lando orders him to destroy the Power Station in the main reactor of the Death Star). The role of Meg Griffin continues to be minor, this time taking the role of the Sarlacc. The episode featured voice cameos from Patrick Stewart and Michael Dorn reprising their roles of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Lieutenant Worf from , Adam West, Carrie Fisher and Rush Limbaugh as the Rancor (Limbaugh had previously made a cameo as himself in "Blue Harvest"). At the Sarlacc Pit, when the Rebels keep nodding at each other to fight back against Jabba's minions, an image of an impatient Ted Knight appears from a clip of Caddyshack ("Well, we're waiting!"). The episode was written by Cherry Chevapravatdumrong and David A. Goodman and directed by Peter Shin, in his first episode since the fourth season. A preview of the reading of the episode can be seen on the "Something, Something, Something, Dark Side" DVD extras. Both the Blu-ray and DVD versions, titled Family Guy Presents: It's a Trap!, were released on region A and region 1, respectively, on December 21, 2010, Region 4, on December 22, 2010, and in Region 2 on December 27, 2010. It was broadcast on the Fox network May 22, 2011 as the 9th-season finale. It was also released in the trilogy collection, Laugh it up, Fuzzball. Fleet Admiral Gial Ackbar is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. A member of the amphibious Mon Calamari species, Ackbar was the foremost military commander of the Rebel Alliance, and led the attack against the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi (1983), the final entry in the original Star Wars trilogy. Although his role in the film was brief, Ackbar became a prominent character in other Star Wars media, including novels, comic books, video games, and television shows, and later made appearances in the sequel trilogy films (2015) and (2017), and the television series . With his distinctive salmon-colored skin, webbed hands, high-domed head, and large fish-like eyes, Ackbar was realized in Return of the Jedi through the use of either a half-body puppet or full-body costume, depending on the camera angle required. In all three films he was portrayed by puppeteer Timothy D. Rose, who originally played other characters, but requested to also play Ackbar after seeing his sculpt on a display stand. Ackbar was voiced by Erik Bauersfeld, who made up the voice on the spot after looking at a photograph of Ackbar. Bauersfeld voiced the character in Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, but died before the filming of The Last Jedi, in which he was replaced by Tom Kane, who had voiced Ackbar in other works of Star Wars media. Ackbar was originally planned to be more conventionally humanoid, but after Star Wars creator George Lucas decided to make him an alien, he allowed Return of the Jedi director Richard Marquand to pick from various designs. Marquand picked a sketch by concept artist Nilo Rodis-Jamero, over the objections of other members of the film crew who thought the character looked too silly or ugly. Ackbar made his first appearance not in the film, but in a Star Wars newspaper comic strip that ran a few months before Return of the Jedi was released. Lucas was not entirely pleased with the final result of the character in the film and felt it was a compromise. Ackbar's first name, Gial, was not established until April 2012. Ackbar had just 14 lines of dialogue in Return of the Jedi, and his total screen time across all three film appearances totaled only three minutes and 30 seconds. Nevertheless, he is considered a fan favorite among Star Wars characters, and was ranked No. 16 in a 1998 list of the "Top 20 Star Wars Characters" in the magazine Star Wars Insider. His line "It's a trap!" from Return of the Jedi became one of the most famous, quoted and beloved lines from the original Star Wars trilogy, as well as a popular Internet meme. Several fans expressed disappointment and frustration with Ackbar's sudden death in The Last Jedi, calling it abrupt and unceremonious, a sentiment echoed by Ackbar actors Rose and Kane, as well as the film's editor Bob Ducsay. Admiral Ackbar was best known for his appearance in the film Return of the Jedi, the final entry in the original Star Wars trilogy. However, before the May 1983 debut of that film, the character made his first chronological appearance in a series of Star Wars newspaper comic strips by Archie Goodwin and Al Williamson. Published by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate, the strip was called Revenge of the Jedi after the original working title of Return of the Jedi, and ran in newspapers across the United States from November 1982 to January 1983. In the comic, Ackbar was portrayed as the leader of the Mon Calamari, an alien species of fish-like, amphibious humanoids with salmon- colored skin, webbed hands, high-domed heads, and large fish-like eyes, and who can breathe both on land and underwater. They are allies of the Rebel Alliance in their conflict with the Galactic Empire. In the comic, which is set just before the events of the film The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Ackbar and his crew became stranded on the planet Daluuj after an Imperial attack, and they were rescued by Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia Organa in the Millennium Falcon starship. Ackbar demonstrated his tactical abilities by agitating water monsters in a ploy to get the sunken Falcon raised from a mud swamp. Ackbar's back story was not explained in Return of the Jedi, but has been established in Star Wars books and other media since the film was released. He was from the planet Mon Cala, a world almost entirely covered by water, where his species built giant floating cities. Ackbar was the leader of his home town, Coral Depths City, when forces from the Galactic Empire invaded and nearly destroyed the planet. Despite the Mon Calamari's attempts to make peace, the Imperial forces destroyed several of their cities, stole their technology, and enslaved its population. Ackbar was one of the first to be enslaved, and became an interpreter and personal servant to Grand Moff Tarkin, a secondary antagonist from the first Star Wars film. During this time, Ackbar learned much about both the Empire and military tactics in general, as well as about the Rebel Alliance and the Death Star, a moon-sized superweapon Tarkin was developing at the time. Ackbar took detailed notes about what he observed with the hopes of eventually escaping back to his people and using the information against the Empire. Ackbar was freed from captivity during a failed attempt by Rebel forces to capture Tarkin. He joined the Rebel Alliance, where the knowledge he obtained during his captivity made him indispensable. Ackbar returned to the Mon Calamari people and, after leading them through numerous conflicts, convinced them to formally support the Rebel cause, bringing with them the massive Mon Calamari cruisers that drastically improved the strength of the Rebel fleet. Starting with the rank of Commander, Ackbar helped design the B-wing, a powerful line of starfighters. This success prompted Rebel leader Mon Mothma to promote him to Admiral, news he reacts to heavily due to the weight of the responsibility. Following events in the film Star Wars, including the destruction of the Death Star, Ackbar helped the other Rebel leaders establish new bases of operation and manage a Rebel mobile task force in starships spread across the galaxy. He rose up the ranks until Mothma promoted him to commander of the entire Rebel fleet and head of military operations, as well as one of her top advisers. Admiral Ackbar was the first non-human character shown in a leadership position in the Star Wars films. In Return of the Jedi, when Rebel spies discovered plans for a partially constructed second Death Star, Ackbar and Rebel Alliance leader Mon Mothma planned a surprise assault on the battle station as it orbited the forest moon of Endor. The attack, known as the Battle of Endor, involved General Han Solo leading a strike team on the moon's surface to destroy the Death Star's energy shield generator, while Ackbar and General Lando Calrissian led a space battle against the station itself. Ackbar personally led the assault from his flagship, the Mon Calamari cruiser Home One. The attack did not go as planned, however, because Emperor Palpatine was expecting the assault and had in fact allowed the Death Star plans to fall into Rebel hands. On Palpatine's order, Imperial forces launched a massive counterattack against the Rebel fleet with TIE starfighters and Star Destroyer capital ships, which led Ackbar to realize it was a trap. He initially called for a tactical retreat, but Calrissian convinced him to move forward with the attack and give Solo's team more time to destroy the energy shield. The Rebel forces suffered heavy casualties, but ultimately succeeded in destroying the second Death Star and defeating the Empire. Ackbar appeared in the first three episodes of the fourth season of the animated series , which is set roughly 20 years before the events of the first Star Wars film. In the show, Ackbar was a chief adviser of the Mon Cala king, Yos Kolina, and captain of the Mon Calamari royal guard, where he honed the abilities that later served him as an Admiral. The fragile peace between Mon Cala's two primary species, the Calamari and the Quarren, was disrupted after King Kolina was assassinated by Riff Tamson, an agent for the Confederacy of Independent Systems, also known as the Separatists, one of the primary antagonists of the series. Attempting to spark a civil war on the planet, the Separatists used Quarren insurgents to obstruct Mon Cala Prince Lee-Char's succession to the throne, and Ackbar attempted to protect Lee-Char and rally the Mon Calamari people as a battle for the planet began. The battle was lost, despite the assistance of the Jedi Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker, and Kit Fisto. Ackbar was captured, leaving Ahsoka and Lee-Char to fend for themselves. However, after learning that Tamson planned to install himself as the new king, the Quarren betrayed the Separatists at Lee-Char's public execution ceremony. Afterwards, Ackbar was freed and helped lead a counterassault to retake the planet. Tamson was killed by Lee-Char, who was crowned as the new king. Dave Filoni, supervising director on The Clone Wars, said he had planned on featuring Ackbar in the series since the second season due to the character's relevance to the original trilogy, and because he was old enough in those films to have been alive when The Clone Wars was set. Keith Kellogg, animation supervisor for the series, said of the character: "To see him as his younger self commanding an army in the field was really fun, and to be able to see him mentor Lee-Char was great." Admiral Ackbar appeared in the first two films of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, which were distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures after The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm in 2012. His character was retired from military service before the events of the films, but was convinced by Leia Organa to come out of retirement to fight against the First Order, an autocratic military dictatorship that was formed from the remnants the original Empire. He regained his prior rank of Admiral and served as one of the leaders of the Resistance, a paramilitary organization led by Leia, who was now a General. Ackbar was in command of the Resistance fleet, with the Mon Calamari cruiser Raddus as his flagship. Ackbar was widely respected by the Resistance personnel as one of the few living commanders to have faced the Empire during the height of its power. In the first film, (2015), Ackbar appeared at the headquarters of the Resistance, and helped develop the plan to destroy the First Order's new superweapon, Starkiller Base. He later monitored the successful attack against the weapon alongside Leia from the Resistance base on the planet D'Qar. Members of the cast and crew were particularly excited to film a scene with Ackbar. Ben Rosenblatt, a co-producer with The Force Awakens, said having Ackbar on the set was "the moment that meant the most to me, personally", adding: "Security has been so tight, we’re not allowed to take pictures or anything, but I had to take a picture of Ackbar on set and show it to my brothers because we loved Ackbar." Actor John Boyega, who portrayed Finn, said of performing with Ackbar: "as a Star Wars fan, it doesn't get any cooler than that. Gary Whitta, a writer who has worked on several Star Wars projects, said: "When I went to the set of The Force Awakens, the first thing I had to do was put on the Admiral Ackbar mask, and I did. It was a big deal, and I’ve always loved that character." In the trilogy's second film, (2017), Ackbar aided the Resistance as they evacuated their base on D'Qar, and ordered the ships to jump to hyperspace to escape the First Order. The First Order fleet pursued the Resistance, sending Kylo Ren and other TIE fighters after the Raddus, on which Ackbar and other senior Resistance leaders were aboard. The First Order ships opened fire on the main bridge of the Raddus, causing a massive explosion and blowing all occupants into the vacuum of space. Ackbar was killed, along with everyone else on the bridge except for Leia Organa, who was saved by her use of the Force. Although Ackbar had no lines of dialogue during his death scene in the film, the comic book adaptation of The Last Jedi revealed that his last words were: "Torpedoes inbound. It's been an honor serving with you all." Whitta, who wrote the comic book adaptation, said he was saddened Ackbar died so quickly in the film, so he wanted to give him "a little bit of a moment before he dies".. In the last movie (2019) after Ackbar's death, his son Aftab with the rank of colonel helps the Resistance in the war against the Sith Fleet. Ackbar's total screen time across all three Star Wars film appearances totaled only three minutes and 30 seconds. He was originally planned to appear in Rogue One (2016), a standalone anthology film separate from the sequel trilogy. During the initial screenwriting process, he appeared leading a space fleet during the climactic space battle at the end of the film. However, he was removed in later script revisions and his part replaced by Admiral Raddus, who, in an homage to Ackbar, was also a member of the Mon Calamari species. Whitta, who co-wrote the story of the film, said he wanted Ackbar included, but since he was already featured in The Force Awakens, the team behind Rogue One decided the character should not appear in two films released so closely together. Although his role in the Star Wars films was relatively brief, Admiral Ackbar became a prominent character in the Star Wars Expanded Universe, which encompasses all licensed stories in the Star Wars universe outside of the nine main feature films, such as novels, comic books, video games, and television shows. With the 2012 acquisition of Lucasfilm by The Walt Disney Company, most of the licensed Star Wars novels and comics produced since the originating 1977 film Star Wars were rebranded as Star Wars Legends and declared non-canon to the franchise in April 2014. As a result, Ackbar has two separate storylines and character histories outside of the feature films: one in the Legends canon encompassing all Star Wars media before April 2014, and one in the official Disney canon for all media after April 2014. Ackbar was a central character in Strike Force: Shantipole, an adventure book for use with the released in June 1988 by West End Games. Set before the chronological events of Return of the Jedi, the book portrayed Ackbar's secret development of the B-wing starfighters and his efforts to recruit the Verpine, the alien species building the ships, into the Rebel Alliance. In the storyline, the B-wings were designed in a research facility on an asteroid named Shantipole, and the project was nearly compromised by an Imperial spy, forcing Ackbar and other characters to repel an Imperial attack and escape. Ackbar made an appearance in Dark Empire, a six-issue comic book series that detailed the resurrection of Emperor Palpatine, as well as Luke Skywalker's brief conversion to the Dark Side of the Force. In the comics, Ackbar and Mon Mothma attempted to lead the Rebel Alliance through the crisis, and Ackbar later organized a response when his home world was attacked by the Empire's new superweapons, the World Devastators. In the Star Wars novels written between 1991 and 1998, following the events of the Return of the Jedi, Ackbar maintains a key position in the command hierarchy of the Rebel Alliance, as well as that of the New Republic, the government established to replace the Empire. He was a signatory on the formal declaration of the New Republic and one of nine individuals to join the New Republic Provisional Council, the initial governing body of this new form of government. Ackbar was part of the many mop-up operations that targeted the Empire's dwindling territories, including the defeat of Grand Admiral Peccati Syn during the liberation of the Wookiee planet Kashyyyk, and the defeat of Imperial warlord Zsinj. Before his death, Zsinj brainwashed several aliens and forced them to make assassination attempts against several high-profile Rebel leaders, including Ackbar. Ackbar appeared in the Heir to the Empire trilogy of books written by Timothy Zahn and published from 1991 to 1993, which were widely credited with rejuvenating interest in Star Wars at the time. In those books, which were set five years after Return of the Jedi, Ackbar was instrumental in working with Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa, and Mon Mothma in reestablishing the New Republic and defeating Grand Admiral Thrawn, the new leader of the remaining forces of the Empire. In the second novel of the series, Dark Force Rising, Thrawn attempted to frame Ackbar for treason by placing stolen money into his personal accounts. Borsk Fey'lya, a political rival of Ackbar, exploited this and had the Admiral arrested and placed on trial, but Han Solo and Lando Calrissian obtained evidence that proved his innocence and he was restored to his military position. Ackbar planned a raid against Thrawn at the planet Bilbringi, seeking to severely damage the Grand Admiral's shipbuilding capability and steal Imperial technology. Thrawn learned of the raid and set a trap for Ackbar and his forces, but the New Republic ultimately won the battle after Thrawn was assassinated by his own bodyguard. Ackbar played a prominent supporting role in the series of novels, which detailed Ackbar leading the successful campaign to recapture the capital planet of Coruscant, among other events. This series also included the death of Ackbar's niece, Jesmin Ackbar, a Rogue Squadron starfighter pilot who was killed in action. Ackbar played a supporting role in the Jedi Academy Trilogy, a set of novels by Kevin J. Anderson released in 1994 and set two years after the Heir to the Empire trilogy. In those novels, Ackbar's personal starfighter crashed on the planet of Vortex in an incident that killed numerous innocent aliens and nearly killed Ackbar himself. In disgrace, he resigned from his post and retired to his home planet. It was later revealed the crash was the result of Imperial sabotage, and Leia visited Mon Cala in an attempt to persuade Ackbar into returning to military service. During that time, the planet was attacked by Imperial Admiral Natasi Daala, one of the primary antagonists of the Jedi Academy trilogy. Ackbar led the successful defense of his planet and defeated Daala, and later returned to his military post. Ackbar was retired from military service before the beginning of The New Jedi Order series of Star Wars novels, which were first published in 1999 and were set about 25 years after the Battle of Yavin, the climactic battle portrayed in the first Star Wars film. However, even as his body began to fail him due to his advanced age, he came out of retirement during the height of the Yuuzhan Vong conflict, during which an extragalactic alien species called the Yuuzhan Vong invaded and attempted to conquer the galaxy in a bloody war that cost trillions of lives and practically destroyed the New Republic. He appeared in the book Destiny's Way (2002), and upon his return to military service, the message "Ackbar is back!" was transmitted to the entire Defense Force, inspired by a similar real-life transmission "Winston is back!" reportedly issued to the British fleet about Winston Churchill during World War II. In the book, Ackbar served in a command post in the newly-formed Galactic Alliance government, where he formulated strategies that resulted in a major victory against the Yuuzhan Vong, ultimately helping turn the tide of the war. It is revealed in The Unifying Force (2003), the final novel of the New Jedi Order series, that Ackbar died of old age shortly before the end of the war, after which he received a grand memorial service. His death, which occurred 29 years after the events of the first Star Wars film, did not occur within the prose of the novel; rather, the characters were notified that his death occurred. A Galactic Alliance Star Destroyer is named in his honor, the Admiral Ackbar, which first appeared in the novel The Unseen Queen (2005), set several years after the character's death. Ackbar has appeared in several Star Wars video games, starting with the 1993 LucasArts space simulation computer game , in which he provided military briefings for the pilot character controlled by the player. Ackbar made an appearance in Star Wars Galaxies, an MMORPG developed by Sony Online Entertainment and first released in 2003. The game is set shortly after the events of the first Star Wars film, and Ackbar has a rank of Captain. Ackbar also appeared in the 2007 video game , in which he was kidnapped by the bounty hunter Boba Fett and handed over to the Empire, who imprisoned him aboard an Imperial cruiser. In the game, the player was a member of Renegade Squadron, a military unit formed by Han Solo composed of pirates and smugglers, and the rescue of Ackbar was one of the game's playable missions. Ackbar can be played as a hidden character in the Nintendo Wii version of the 2008 video game if the player entered the cheat code "ITSATWAP". Admiral Ackbar appeared in , a 2015 canon novel by Chuck Wendig set immediately after the events of Return of the Jedi. During one passage, Ackbar made an impassioned speech, warning his fellow officials in the newly-formed New Republic that while the Empire suffered a heavy loss with the death of Emperor Palpatine and the destruction of the Death Star II, the Empire was still a threat and the war was not yet over. In the novel, Ackbar participated in the New Republic's efforts to seek out the remnants of the Empire hiding in the Outer Rim region of the galaxy, and he communicated with his colleague Wedge Antilles before Antilles' disappearance on the planet Akiva, where much of the book's story was set. Ackbar appeared in Aftermath's two sequel books, (2016) and (2017), also written by Wendig. In Life Debt, Ackbar led the successful assault against Kuat Drive Yards, a major starship manufacturer that had previously been supplying the Empire. In Empire's End, Ackbar commanded the New Republic fleet during the Battle of Jakku, a decisive victory that resulted in the destruction of the Empire and the end of the Galactic Civil War. In an interview with USA Today, Wendig said Ackbar was his favorite established Star Wars character to write for in the novel: "One of the great things about the universe is that we have all of these characters who get a small amount of screen time but who impact us in huge ways. .. Ackbar for me was always this amazing, grizzled war veteran, and getting to inhabit him and his voice for the new book made me pretty giddy." Ackbar has a minor part in the novel (2016) by Claudia Gray, which focused largely on Leia Organa prior to the events of The Force Awakens. The novel included the public disclosure that Organa is the daughter of Darth Vader, which nearly destroyed her reputation and led many to condemn her. Ackbar, however, sent her messages of support after the public revelation, an indication of his respect for her. In a storyline that crossed over between the comic book and the Disney XD television series (both released in 2016), it was established that Ackbar was captured by the First Order some time after his recruitment into the Resistance. In the story, the droid C-3PO obtained information that Ackbar had been imprisoned aboard an Imperial battlecruiser, and the droid worked with fellow Resistance operatives BB-8 and Poe Dameron to infiltrate the ship and rescue him from Captain Phasma. Ackbar played a supporting role in the "Burning Seas" story arc from the comic book series , which was released in 2018 but was set about one year after the events of , the final movie in the Star Wars prequel trilogy. In the story arc, entitled "Burning Seas", Ackbar was a commander and Chief of Security for Mon Cala King Lee-Char, and Darth Vader and his forces visited the planet to strengthen the Empire's influence there. Ackbar set a trap for the Empire by luring their aerial landing platforms closer to the planet, then firing special undetectable missiles at them once they were in range. The victory proved temporary, however, as Grand Moff Tarkin escalated hostilities as a result and ultimate overtook the planet, resulting in King Lee-Char's capture and eventual death. Ackbar appeared briefly in the 2017 Star Wars Battlefront II video game developed by EA DICE. During the prologue of the story mode, in which Imperial agent and the game's protagonist Iden Versio has infiltrated a Mon Calamari cruiser, a hologram of Ackbar discussing the Rebel Alliance's plans to attack the second Death Star is briefly visible. Ackbar is portrayed as a military genius, with a masterful grasp of warfare tactics and strategy, a forward-thinking vision, and a prowess for organizational, administrative, and technical details that make him a highly effective commander. Across all his appearances in the Star Wars franchise, he possesses tactical intelligence and strong leadership skills, and is widely admired and respected by his troops. Ackbar has a methodical style, and tends to be cautious and conservative, as demonstrated by his initial call for a tactical retreat during the Battle of Endor upon learning that it was a trap. He prefers to personally lead major assaults, fearlessly flying into the battlefield along with his soldiers. Ackbar is resourceful and uses outside- the-box methods to improve himself as an officer. For example, in the novel Aftermath, Ackbar practices with melee weapons against holograms of Imperial stormtroopers. Though he acknowledges that he is unlikely to face melee combat as a high-ranking officer, he engages in the practice because he feels staying proficient in fighting techniques helps him stay sharp, flexible, and ahead of his enemies. Ackbar also studies various forms of weaponry and fighting, and has strong design skills, made evident by his role in designing the B-wing starfighter. Ackbar is also regularly portrayed as wise, with a noble personality and a quiet but firm temperament. Rising from humble beginnings, he is a peaceful being who is forced to learn war due to tyranny of the Empire, and never stops working for peace despite understanding the necessity of war. Despite his success as a warrior, his actions are usually shown to be tempered by justice, honor, and concern. In the Star Wars sequel trilogy and other media set around that time period, Ackbar is portrayed as more gruff in his older age, during which he commands officers many years or even decades younger than him, sometimes referring to them as "fry". His dedication to his career and duty left little time for a personal life or romances, and as a result he does not have a family of his own, with the exception of two nieces. In the original script for Return of the Jedi, Ackbar's appearance was more conventionally humanoid, with blue skin and more physically attractive; the second draft of the screenplay described him as a "pale blue nonhuman". Star Wars creator George Lucas later decided he should be an alien creature instead, and gave the film's director, Richard Marquand, the option to pick a look for Ackbar from a collection of about 50 alien designs, despite Marquand's initial insistence that Lucas himself make the choice. Marquand picked a painting by concept artist Nilo Rodis-Jamero of an anonymous alien with no established back story or personality. Rodis-Jamero's first Ackbar sketch was created in the fall of 1981, two years before Return of the Jedi was released, and was known at the time simply as a "Calamari man". The original image mostly resembled how Ackbar ended up in the final film, except with a larger chin, slightly more misshapen head, and a hunchback. The hunch was inspired by Industrial Light & Magic technician Stuart Ziff, who regularly joked about his own slightly hunched posture. Marquand said he "picked the most delicious, wonderful creature out of the whole lot, this big wonderful Calamari man with a red face and eyes on the side". Others working on the film opposed the choice, believing the character looked too silly or ugly and would be mocked, but Marquand insisted upon the choice and their objections were rejected. Marquand said of those concerns: "I think it's good to tell kids that good people aren't necessarily good-looking people and that bad people aren't necessarily ugly people." Ackbar's first name, Gial, was not established until the April 2012 release of the Star Wars reference book The Essential Guide to Warfare. Co-author Paul R. Urquhart told the website TheForce.net said the name was taken from Gial Gahan, a Mon Calamari Senator character who played a minor role in the comic book series. While the name Gial was established in material that has since been rebranded as part of the Legends canon, the first name is still considered part of the official canon, and has been re-confirmed as Ackbar's name in canon reference books like Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need To Know, as well as other canon Star Wars novels. Ackbar's appearance in the film was created using a combination of either a half-body puppet or a full-body costume, depending on the camera angle required for the shot. The puppet and mask were created by the "Monster Shop" of Industrial Light & Magic, the motion picture visual effects company founded by Lucas. In close-up scenes of Ackbar that required dialogue, puppeteer Timothy M. Rose sat inside the chest of the character and operated the head like a traditional hand puppet from below. Rose moved the mouth using his hand, while Mike Quinn operated the eyes via cables. The jumpsuit of that version of the costume was cut off at the waist, and each sleeves included additional access points where a puppeteer could insert his or her arm to control Ackbar's hands. For wider shots that showed Ackbar's full body, Rose wore the mask and costume while Quinn operated the mouth via remote. Though most other Rebel officers in the Return of the Jedi briefing room scene wore earth tones, Rodis-Jamero felt Ackbar's costume should be more crisp and distinctive: "He was an admiral. He was more military. His costume looks hard." Costume designer Aggie Guerard Rodgers helped create the Ackbar costume, for which Rose wore a beanbag-like piece around his belly to create Ackbar's distinctive silhouette. Rose wore a white nylon jumpsuit over it, which had a pattern loosely based on ski jumpsuits used in costuming other background characters, as well as yellow striping down the side of the legs. The artificial fabric used on the jumpsuit made a distinct scratching sound whenever the actor walked, which Rodgers said was a nuisance for the film's sound crew. Over the jumpsuit, Rose wore a vest made of white felt, along with a white plastic utility belt, a rank badge on the left side of his chest, and a large collar to accommodate the unique profile of Ackbar's head. The white boots Ackbar wears in the film are the same design as those worn by Imperial stormtroopers. A white helmet with an elongated back to accommodate Ackbar's large oval-shaped head was featured in original character sketches and was created for Ackbar. However, it created too many complications with the operation of the puppet head, so it was worn by another Mon Calamari character instead. Edwina Pellikka, a textile artist who handled the breakdown and aging of costumes in the film, said she was unhappy with the final result of Ackbar's costume. She later reflected that the all-white costume could have used more aging, saying: "I had to airbrush it, which was done very fast and it does look kind of like it's outlined. Not enough was done with that. Ackbar has 14 lines of dialogue in Return of the Jedi, and the character's scenes took six weeks to shoot. Due to uncertainty whether the mouth about movement Ackbar puppet would look realistic while delivering dialogue, alternative scenes were shot with General Crix Madine, a human character, delivering Ackbar's most important lines, in case they had to be used instead. None of these shots ultimately had to be used in the final film. Occasionally, members of the film crew jokingly referred to the Ackbar character as "Ernie Ackbar", and his name appeared that way on some of the film's progress reports. When the inside of the costume became hot, visual effects artist Phil Tippett, who designed most of the film's creatures, would use a hair dryer to blow cool air through the mouth of the Ackbar mask to keep Rose comfortable. Although the character was created with the best available puppetry technology at the time, Lucas was not entirely pleased with the final result and felt it was a compromise. According to the book Star Wars Costumes: The Original Trilogy, published in 2014, the original masks used for the Ackbar costumes are "in a fragile state today." During filming of the 2005 Star Wars film , Lucas was so impressed with the animatron mask used on the Mon Calamari character Meena Tills that he briefly considered reediting Return of the Jedi and replacing footage of Admiral Ackbar with an improved mask. This ultimately never occurred. Timothy Rose had been a puppeteer working on several Muppets projects for The Jim Henson Company, when Jim Henson directed him and others from the company to work on Return of the Jedi. He was not originally hired to portray Admiral Ackbar, but instead to help build and operate the Sy Snootles puppet for the Max Rebo Band, which performs at the palace of the alien crime lord Jabba the Hutt. While backstage at the workshop where several alien puppets were stored, Rose saw Ackbar's sculpt on a display stand and asked Phil Tippett if he could play the part. Tippett told him it was a background character, and Rose did not know Ackbar would play a major supporting role in the film. He only asked to portray him because he liked the look of the character, and said he was "thinking he was going to be in the third row in a new cantina sequence or something". Rose was not required to audition for the part of Ackbar before being given the role. Rose returned to portray Ackbar in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. Each day he was provided with pages from the script only for the specific scenes that were being shot, so he knew little about the final role Ackbar would play in the films until shooting took place. Rose was frustrated by the amount of secrecy on the set, which he felt prevented him and the other actors from having everything they needed to do their jobs as well as possible. Many of Ackbar's scenes were cut from the first film, which Rose said was a disappointment to him "after waiting 30 years to reprise Ackbar". After the character's scenes in The Last Jedi were complete, the crew took footage of Rose in the Ackbar's costume saying "It's a wrap", a reference to the character's death and his famous "It's a trap" line. That shot was featured in behind-the-scenes footage shown at the 2017 D23 Expo. Although intended as a joke, Rose found the gesture offensive and said he was "in tears in the suit". The voice of Admiral Ackbar in Return of the Jedi was performed by Erik Bauersfeld, a radio dramatist who also voiced the alien character Bib Fortuna in the film, and had unsuccessfully auditioned to voice Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back. He was cast after Star Wars sound designer Ben Burtt approached him in 1983, while Bauersfeld was producing a radio drama with Lucasfilm sound designer Randy Thom and suggested he audition for the part of Ackbar. The recording session took one hour, and Bauersfeld made up the voice on the spot after looking at a photograph of Ackbar, without having any other information about the character. According to Bauersfeld: "I saw the face, and I knew what he must sound like." Bauersfeld did not receive an on-screen credit for his roles as Ackbar and Bib Fortuna, and his association with the characters was unknown for years after the film was released. In a 1999 interview, Timothy Rose said he did not know who provided the voice, and thought it was possible that it was his own voice modified with a synthesizer. Eventually fans learned Bauersfeld played the parts and he began to receive multiple fan letters every week, which continued for the rest of his life. Bauersfeld said he appreciated the passion of fans and responded to every autograph request, but that he was not particularly knowledgeable about Star Wars himself; in 2011 interview, he said he had not seen Return of the Jedi since it first came out, still had not seen the first Star Wars film, and had trouble imitating Ackbar's voice because he could not remember what it sounded like. Bauersfeld reprised the role in the 1993 computer game . Film director J.J. Abrams requested that Bauersfeld once again play Ackbar in the 2015 film Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It was Bauersfeld's final role before his death in April 2016. Bauersfield was replaced by Tom Kane in The Last Jedi. Kane has portrayed Ackbar in several other works of Star Wars media, including the and 2015 versions of , the video game (2016), and the Disney attraction Star Tours – The Adventures Continue. Voice actor Artt Butler, who was a fan of Ackbar ever since watching the Star Wars films as a child, portrayed the character in the television series The Clone Wars. Dave Filoni, supervising director for the series, said the staff debated whether the younger version of Ackbar would still have the same "iconic voice" as in Return of the Jedi or whether he would sound different on the show, but they ultimately went with a similar- sounding voice. Breckin Meyer portrayed Ackbar in the series, a Star Wars- themed version of the stop motion sketch comedy television series Robot Chicken on Adult Swim dedicated entirely to Star Wars parodies. Meyer, who also wrote for the series, called voicing Ackbar "my favorite (experience) in the history of the world". Meyer said he tries to mimic Ackbar's voice from Return of the Jedi as best he can, but that the humor comes through because "the actual voice is just funny". Robot Chicken co-creator Seth Green said of Meyer's performance: "When Breckin does Ackbar, it splits me every time. No matter what he says, it's always funny." Despite his small role in Return of the Jedi, Admiral Ackbar is considered a fan favorite among Star Wars characters. Dave Filoni, a Lucasfilm animation producer who has worked on several Star Wars television shows, said of the character: "Ackbar has a crazy level of fame for the amount of time he's spent onscreen. It's the Boba Fett phenomenon, where you've got a character who doesn't really do a lot, but is so beloved that it eventually spreads outside the realm of fandom." He was ranked No. 16 in a 1998 list of the "Top 20 Star Wars Characters" featured in the magazine Star Wars Insider. That same issue included a separate list ranking the characters based on an index that accounted for their popularity ranking in proportion to the number of lines they speak in the films, to "take into consideration the amount of dialogue a character had to make an impression on fans". With only 14 lines in Return of the Jedi, Ackbar ranked third on that list, behind only Boba Fett and Wedge Antilles. Ackbar was also ranked No. 12 in The Daily Telegraph's ranking of 66 characters from the franchise, No. 14 in The Huffington Post's ranking of 93 characters, and No. 21 on IGN's list of the Top 25 Star Wars Heroes. Scott Chernoff, a writer for Star Wars Insider, called Ackbar's character "one of the most visually striking and memorable characters introduced in the final installment of the saga". Chernoff added that Ackbar performer Timothy Rose was one of the most-requested subjects by readers for his magazine column interviewing Star Wars actors. The Independent writer Christopher Hooton called Ackbar "easily the best character from the original Star Wars films". Jonathan Wilkins, editor at large for Star Wars Insider, called Ackbar "an iconic figure in the Star Wars universe, despite the fact that he had just a handful of lines in Return of the Jedi. Steve Tilley of The Edmonton Sun wrote, "He was so funny-looking yet somehow authoritative and almost regal, though, that he was impossible not to love." Rebecca Hawkes of The Daily Telegraph credited Erik Bauersfeld in particular with "bringing the much-loved Ackbar to life, imbuing the fish-eyed orange monster with a voice, a forceful personality, and a lasting cult appeal". During the 2000 United States presidential election, several websites were established jokingly proposing Admiral Ackbar as a write-in candidate for President. Admiral Ackbar's line, "It's a trap!", which he says during the Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi, became one of the most famous and beloved lines from the original Star Wars trilogy. The line has become a popular Internet meme, with The Independent calling him "perhaps the franchise's most memed character". More than 1,000 fan videos have been created on the video-sharing website YouTube featuring or parodying Ackbar and that line of dialogue, including trap music and techno remixes built around it. The line did not appear in the original script for Return of the Jedi, and instead was first written as "It's a trick!", but it was changed in post-production after the filmmakers decided it was not as effective a line as they had originally hoped. Erik Bauersfeld said of the line: "The fans who write say they'll never forget 'It's a trap!' I don't even remember how I said it." International Business Times writer Amy West said the line has "become somewhat cult-like in the eyes of the Star Wars fanbase". Ben Sherlock of Screen Rant called the line "one of the most memorable quotes in the saga's history, for reasons that are unknown yet somehow obvious, and it immortalized what could’ve been a forgettable character". Renaldo Matadeen of Comic Book Resources called the line "a pop culture touchstone". Footage of Ackbar reciting the line was featured on both Comedy Central comedy shows The Daily Show and The Colbert Report on February 11, 2010, alongside clips of various Republican Party politicians insisting a White House invitation by President Barack Obama was a trap. "It's a Trap!", the 2011 episode of the animated comedy series Family Guy spoofing Return of the Jedi, took its name from Ackbar's famous line; Ackbar himself makes an appearance in the episode, portrayed by the character Klaus Heissler – a talking goldfish – from the animated series American Dad!. Additionally, a smartphone app was developed with the sole purpose of playing Ackbar's "It's a trap!" line whenever the user pushes a button. Several fans expressed disappointment with Ackbar's sudden death in The Last Jedi, calling it abrupt and unceremonious. Fans particularly criticized that Ackbar was only featured in the background of the shot where he dies, with the camera focused primarily on Leia Organa, and that his death is mentioned only in passing by other characters later. Scott Chitwood of TheForce.net said: "He deserved a little more attention. I would have liked to see him killed in action in the final battle, but I guess that's asking a lot of a sickly old Admiral." Screen Rant writer Ben Sherlock wrote of Ackbar's death: "It was such a fleeting moment that many fans didn’t even realize it had happened. They looked down for one second to get a handful of popcorn, and when they looked back up, Ackbar was gone." Nate Jones of New York magazine's website Vulture, called the death scene "disrespectful" and "unfathomably rude", and that Ackbar "deserved better than to go out in a throwaway moment". Ackbar actors Tim Rose and Tom Kane also said they were disappointed with how the character's death was handled. Rose hoped Ackbar would have a more substantial role in The Last Jedi than he had in the latter film, and was unhappy the character again received little screen time and was abruptly killed. Rose said: "Each day I would come to work going, 'Is today the day when Ackbar gets something a bit more involving?’ And I looked at my script and I went, 'Oh, Ackbar's going out of the window. Well, that's that then!'". Kane likewise thought the death scene was poorly handled, and believed Ackbar should have been given the larger role in The Last Jedi that went to Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo, a new character played by Laura Dern. The Last Jedi editor Bob Ducsay said he was also disappointed with how the scene was handled, saying it was "slightly incidental", though he said the scene was intentionally designed that way and he did not come to have second thoughts about it until after watching the completed film. Gary Whitta, who co-wrote the story for the film Rogue One and wrote several other Star Wars projects, said he was saddened by how quickly Ackbar died. Others defended the way Ackbar's character was killed. Alex Leadbeater, features editor of the website Screen Rant, felt the scene was widely misunderstood by fans and served to advanced the storyline, particularly to establish the ensuing conflict between Holdo and Resistance pilot Poe Dameron. Leadbeater wrote: "Ackbar had no place in The Last Jedi's narrative. ... You can argue he should have had a greater send off (but) it must be said that to do so would undercut the entire set piece." In the Last Jedi episode of the comedic animated webseries How It Should Have Ended, which parodies and reimagines aspects of popular films, Ackbar's character survives the bridge attack after claiming he has to go to the bathroom at the time the bridge is shot, and he assumes control of the Resistance afterward. The first Admiral Ackbar action figure was released in 1983, the same year as Return of the Jedi. In 1996, Ackbar was one of the Star Wars characters to receive its own Micro Machines mini-transforming playsets by Galoob. The toy line included miniature versions of the head of each character, which opened to reveal a small set from the film and a figurine of the character itself. The Ackbar playset was sold as part of a collection that also included an Boba Fett and a Gamorrean guard. A Lego figurine of Ackbar was created and released as part of multiple Lego Star Wars toy sets, including with the Lego Home One Calamari cruiser in 2009, the Lego A-Wing Starfighter in 2013, and the Lego Resistance Troop Transporter in 2015. Ackbar's full-sized costume from Return of the Jedi was featured in a 200-piece exhibition of Star Wars costumes, props, and other memorabilia at the Smithsonian Institution called "Star Wars: The Magic of Myth". The exhibit opened at the Washington, D.C. museum complex in 1997 and later went on a national tour that lasted until 2002 and visited various museums, including the San Diego Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Toledo Museum of Art, and the Brooklyn Museum. Ackbar has repeatedly appeared in the series, most prominently featured in a sketch portraying a commercial for "Admiral Ackbar Cereal", with Ackbar presenting the breakfast cereal to two children and declaring, "Your tongues can't repel flavor of that magnitude!", a spoof of his line from Return of the Jedi. Several additional Ackbar skits were conceived but never completed, including one in which he is a Costco greeter, and another in which he contracts gonorrhea from a stripper and is told by a doctor "It's the clap!", in reference to Ackbar's famous line "It's a trap!" The "It's a trap!" line was also referenced on the television comedy show The Big Bang Theory. Ackbar was featured in a 2009 CollegeHumor video called "Ackbar! The Star Wars Talk Show", where he played the host of a talk show similar to The Jerry Springer Show. Morgan Phillips, an independent hip hop musician and disc jockey, included a song about the character called "Admiral Ackbar Please" on his album Star Wars Breakbeats. In 2010, when the University of Mississippi began a process to find a new mascot to replace Colonel Reb, students Matthew Henry, Tyler Craft, Joseph Katool, and Ben McMurtray started a campaign to have Admiral Ackbar selected. Although their efforts started out as a joke, some students began to seriously push for the idea, while others strongly opposed it and felt it was an embarrassment for the university. Some students went so far as threatening to transfer out of the school if he was chosen, and some prospective parents said they would not let their children attend there. The campaign quickly went viral and received national news media attention. Lucasfilm ultimately declined to give the school the rights to use the character, and issued a tongue-in-cheek statement about the matter which read: "The last time we checked in with Admiral Ackbar he was leading the Rebel Alliance Fleet on a critical mission so it will be difficult for him to show up for the games." A black bear was instead chosen as the new mascot. Laugh It Up, Fuzzball: The Family Guy Trilogy consists of three episode specials of the American animated sitcom Family Guy. The episodes are a crossover and parody retelling of the original Star Wars trilogy Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Return of the Jedi (1983). The first episode, "Blue Harvest" (2007) was created in honor of the original film's 30th anniversary. Due to its popular success, it was followed by two direct-to-video sequels: "Something, Something, Something, Dark Side" (Season 8, Episode 20) and "It's a Trap!" (Season 9, Episode 18), which were subsequently aired on television, in edited versions, omitting most profanity and sexual references. The trilogy was released on Blu-ray and DVD in the United States on December 21, 2010. Its title comes from an insult Han Solo said to Chewbacca in The Empire Strikes Back. During power outages, Peter Griffin tells his family the stories of the original Star Wars trilogy films, with characters from Family Guy, The Cleveland Show, and American Dad! playing the Star Wars roles. A running joke at the end of the first two episodes deals with Chris Griffin (voiced by Seth Green) criticizing Peter's take on Star Wars as a ripoff of . In the third episode, Peter and Chris initially argue about Seth Green then move on to arguing about Seth MacFarlane which is when the rest of the family joins in and the characters voiced by Seth MacFarlane (Brian, Peter, and Stewie) quarrel with those who are not. Seth MacFarlane Peter Griffin as Han Solo, Brian Griffin as Chewbacca, Stewie Griffin as Darth Vader / Anakin Skywalker, Glenn Quagmire as C-3PO, Carter Pewterschmidt as Owen Lars / Emperor Palpatine, Roger as Moff Jerjerrod, Tim the Bear as Wicket, Tom Tucker as Death Star News Anchorman Alex Borstein Lois Griffin as Princess Leia, Barbara Pewterschmidt as Beru Lars Seth Green Chris Griffin as Luke Skywalker Mila Kunis Meg Griffin as the Dianoga / the Exogorth / the Sarlacc Mike Henry Cleveland Brown as R2-D2, Herbert as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Bruce as Greedo / Captain Piett, Rallo Tubbs as Nien Nunb, Consuela as Darth Vader's maid (herself) / Jabba's doorguard Adam West Adam West as Grand Moff Tarkin Patrick Warburton Joe Swanson as Biggs Darklighter / the probe droid / Jabba the Hutt Johnny Brennan Mort Goldman as a Jawa / Lando Calrissian H. Jon Benjamin Carl as Yoda Danny Smith Ernie the Giant Chicken as Boba Fett Dee Bradley Baker Klaus Heissler as Admiral Ackbar Carrie Fisher Angela as Mon Mothma Blue Harvest Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, Beverly D'Angelo as Ellen Griswold, Rush Limbaugh as Himself / Red 6, Helen Reddy as Herself, Mick Hucknall as Himself, Alex Thomas as Himself, Judd Nelson as John Bender Something, Something, Something, Dark Side James Woods as Himself / General Veers, John Bunnell as Himself, Elizabeth Banks as Herself, Dolph Lundgren as Captain Ivan Drago (live-action footage from Rocky IV), Brigitte Nielsen as Ludmilla Vobet Drago (live-action footage from Rocky IV), Michael Pataki as Nicoli Koloff (live-action footage from Rocky IV), Tom Selleck as Himself (live-action footage from Her Alibi), James Caan as Himself, Joe Flaherty as Western Union worker from Back to the Future Part II It's a Trap! Rush Limbaugh as the Rancor, Ted Knight as Judge Smails (live-action footage from Caddyshack), Anne Hathaway as Hot Blonde, Bruce McGill as John Williams, Mary Hart as Herself, Conway Twitty as Himself (archive footage), Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Michael Dorn as Lieutenant Worf At the 2007 Comic Con, a series of clips was shown at a panel for Family Guy from the season premiere episode, showing the Family Guy characters as Star Wars characters. The episode aired on September 23, 2007, with some slight changes from the clips shown at Comic Con. Parts of this episode were shown at Star Wars Celebration IV, at which Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, a Star Wars fan since childhood, was a special guest, and again at Comic-Con International 2007. The episode was officially endorsed by Lucasfilm, especially George Lucas, who revealed in his conversation with MacFarlane that he has TiVoed every single episode of Family Guy without having to buy the DVDs and, in addition to Jackass, it's the only show he watches. MacFarlane said they were extremely helpful when the Family Guy crew wanted to parody their works. The episode was written by series regular Kirker Butler, before the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, and before his leave from the series in order to become co-executive producer of the Family Guy spinoff series The Cleveland Show. Butler wrote the first draft of the episode in four weeks, under the guidance of series creator Seth MacFarlane. The episode was directed by Dominic Polcino, who had previously directed "Blue Harvest". This was the last episode in the series to use hand-drawn animatics, before transitioning to computer-designed animatics. It was announced in March 2009 that the cast of the show had read through an early draft of the script under the working title, "Episode VI: The Great Muppet Caper". The second working title, "We Have a Bad Feeling About This," was a reference to the recurring catchphrase used in the Star Wars films. The settled-upon title is a reference to the line by Admiral Ackbar in the film. While the first and third episodes are "Region All", and therefore able to play on any Blu-ray player worldwide, "Something, Something, Something Dark Side" is region-locked, forcing viewers to buy the set marketed towards their own region if they don't own a multi-region Blu-ray player. When asked about the possibility of a Family Guy retelling of the other Star Wars trilogies, Alec Sulkin stated that a spoof of the Star Wars prequel and sequel trilogies were unlikely to happen due to the difficulty and struggle of spoofing The Empire Strikes Back and the 2012 Disney acquisition of Lucasfilm being the primary reasons. Sulkin stated, "We like the first three but by the time we were done with the third one I think we were about ready to kill ourselves, The new regime at Star Wars slash Disney is a little more difficult to deal with. Before we were just dealing with Lucasfilm and Seth had a good relationship with them... I just think that [Disney's] a little more rigid". Series creator Seth MacFarlane also commented on the situation via Twitter stating "Disney keeps a tighter hold on it, so it's unlikely", though this could change following the buyout of 21st Century Fox's entertainment assets by Disney. A spoof of the Indiana Jones series was also considered for development, but has not received any updates concerning its production.

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Knock Knock is a 1940 animated short subject, part of the Andy Panda series, produced by Walter Lantz. The cartoon is noted for being the first appearance of Woody Woodpecker, and was released by Universal Pictures on November 25, 1940. The cartoon ostensibly stars Andy Panda (voice of Sara Berner) and his father, Papa Panda (voice of Mel Blanc), but it is Woody Woodpecker (voice of Blanc) who steals the show. Woody constantly pesters Papa Panda by pecking at his house roof, tempting him to try to kill the woodpecker with his shotgun. Andy, meanwhile, tries to sprinkle salt on Woody's tail in the belief that this will somehow capture the bird. To Woody's surprise, Andy's attempts prevail (comically, the mound of salt placed on Woody's tail is so heavy that he cannot run away), and in an ending very similar to 1938's Daffy Duck & Egghead, two other woodpeckers arrive to take Woody to the insane asylum but then prove to be crazier than he is. Like most of the early 1940s Lantz cartoons, Knock Knock carried no director's credit. Lantz himself has claimed to have directed this cartoon, although more recent information has indicated that Alex Lovy was the actual director. The cartoon features animation by Lovy and Frank Tipper, a story by Ben Hardaway and Lowell Elliott, and music by Frank Marsales. Knock Knock was Marsales' final score for Lantz. As the first appearance of Woody Woodpecker, Knock Knock is also the first cartoon to feature Woody's trademark laugh, a gurgling cackle voice artist Mel Blanc had been perfecting since high school. This is also the laugh Blanc used for Happy Rabbit, a predecessor to Bugs Bunny in the 1939 cartoon Hare-um Scare-um. This cartoon is also notable for featuring a very crude Woody design, something that was softened by 1942 and later changed into a much more realistic and easier to animate woodpecker by 1944. This first design featured Woody with red "vest feathers" (instead of white), buck teeth in some shots, thick ringed legs, two green tail feathers and a big chin which made him look more like a pelican than a woodpecker. The short almost never saw the light of the day because then distributor Bernie Krieser (representing Universal) thought Woody was the ugliest thing he had ever seen. Lantz told him, "You're not paying for these pictures, All you're doing is distributing them, so release him, because I'm taking a chance". So then Krieser took it back and asked for a series as the short was a hit. Woody's first words are his trademark "Guess who?" as he pops through the roof of Andy Panda's house, except the voice is normal-sounding instead of sped-up as Woody's voice normally would be. Cooke, Jon, Komorowski, Thad, Shakarian, Pietro, and Tatay, Jack. "1940". The Walter Lantz Cartoon Encyclopedia. Retrieved March 4, 2007. Don't Knock Twice is a 2016 British supernatural horror film directed by Caradog W. James. Jess, an American sculptor, meets with her estranged daughter Chloe and invites her to come live with her and her husband, a wealthy banker named Ben. Chloe refuses the offer. That night, she goes out with her friend Danny to a neighborhood empty of homes except for one, where legend says a demonic witch lives. The two knock twice on the door and leave. Upon returning home, Danny starts experiencing strange paranormal occurrences. The disturbances stop when Chloe video calls Danny. Before they can converse, Chloe hears knocks on her door and when she leaves to answer them, Danny is seen in the video being dragged by an unseen force. When the demonic spirit frightens Chloe in her foster home, she accepts Jess' offer and moves in with her and Ben. Chloe is initially hostile to her family and only plans to stay for a few nights. Strange events start to unfold, beginning when Chloe finds a human molar in her Coriander soup. Jess is suffering from a nightmare about an old woman crying in her house. In her nightmare, the woman looks at Jess and says "Przepraszam" (I’m Sorry), before slitting her own throat, which scares Jess awake. Jess tells Chloe about her dream and finding this description familiar, Chloe tells Jess about a woman they nicknamed "Ginger", a supposed witch that used to live next door. After her death by suicide, they began the urban legend that she would come and get you if you knocked twice on her door. Jess dismisses this as a bad dream. While sculpting, Jess's model Tira is disturbed by Chloe's presence and leaves, claiming that there is darkness around her. Chloe believes that it is the Baba Yaga haunting her, but she is ignored by Jess. While sculpting with Jess, Chloe slowly warms up to her mother. Jess returns to her workshop to see that her sculptures had moved and she believes that Chloe did it in the mere seconds that she had been out of the room to get two soft drinks. The next day, Jess returns to her workshop and discovers it in shambles with "She's mine" scrawled on the floor in what appears to be red paint. That night, the two are terrorized by the witch and they resort to burning down all the doors. The next day, a portal opens and Chloe is almost dragged inside but is saved by Jess. They meet with Tira, who says that Mary was never a witch and that she committed suicide. Because Chloe helped spread the false rumor of witchcraft, Mary's spirit wants revenge. Chloe panics and runs off, convinced by Tira's words that the disappearances were her fault and she spends the night on the street where she is found and returned to the foster home. Jess goes there to get her back and while there, she has a sudden epiphany that the true culprit of the disappearances was not Mary but Detective Boardman. As she and Chloe escape, they are surprised by the sound of two knocks coming from sidewalk basement-access double doors which then suddenly open, and Chloe is taken by the witch. After Chloe's disappearance, Jess breaks into Mary's abandoned house, injuring her foot on an old nail. Unfortunately, she is caught and sent to the police station, but not before getting to knock twice at the door herself. Jess accuses detective Boardman of the crimes that Mary had been accused of, but gets no answers. When she is finally alone in her prison cell, she uses blood from her wounded foot to leave a message on the wall before being taken through the same portal that previously appeared. She wanders through the vast woods into a cave where she finds a cage hanging from the ceiling with Chloe in it. Jess gets her out and rushes to escape with her as the witch pursues them; meanwhile, Detective Boardman has arrived at the witch's house and proceeds to knock twice, causing the door to open on its own. He enters the home, having heard the sounds of Jess and Chloe's voices. Chloe and Jess are able to escape through the front door, but Detective Boardman is dragged inside by the witch. Jess's husband Ben returns home, worried by the disarray he finds inside and immediately begins looking for Jess but is confronted by a mysterious figure in their bedroom. Jess and Chloe arrive back at home, noticing Ben's things in the entrance, but cannot find him anywhere. As Jess calls Ben's phone and leaves him a voicemail, Tira is shown leaving the property covered in blood with Ben's dead body in the trunk of her car. She changes her bloody clothes and the "Slave of Baba Yaga" symbol is shown on her chest for a brief moment before disappearing. Jess informs Chloe that Detective Boardman was the culprit of the crimes, but Chloe corrects her by telling Jess that while in the other world, she saw Michael and that he was indeed taken by Mary and fed to the Baba Yaga and that Detective Boardman was innocent. It's then that Jess recalls what Chloe told her about the Baba Yaga and its human slave and she realizes that Tira lied to her and tricked her into offering Detective Boardman's life to the Baba Yaga in order to transfer the demon to Jess. Jess is surprised by a sudden burning sensation from her necklace and realizes that she now has the mark of the Baba Yaga. The room suddenly goes dark and there are two knocks at the door. As it opens, the figure of the Baba Yaga reaching toward them is the last thing seen before the film ends. Katee Sackhoff as Jess, Lucy Boynton as Chloe, Javier Botet as Ginger Special, Nick Moran as Detective Boardman, Jordan Bolger as Danny, Pooneh Hajimohammadi as Tira, Richard Mylan as Ben, Ania Marson as young Mary Aminov Don't Knock Twice received mixed to negative reviews. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave a 28% approval rating with a weighted average of 5.2/10. Noel Murray of the LA Times called the film " a warmed-over hash of Candyman, Oculus, Insidious and a half-dozen other spook-shows." Simon Abrams of rogerebert.com noted how "the makers of Don't Knock Twice never successfully flesh out their characters as people, leaving viewers to roll their eyes whenever characters open the wrong door." Knock Out is an Indian Hindi-language action-thriller film directed by Mani Shankar. Released on 15 October 2010, the film stars Sanjay Dutt, Irfan Khan and Kangana Ranaut. Knock Out is an unauthorized remake of Phone Booth. In October 2010, the Bombay High Court ordered the film's producers to pay a portion of their revenues to 20th Century Fox who own the rights to Phone Booth. The film was a flop at the Indian boxoffice. Sanjay Dutt as Veer Vijay Singh, Chief of Ops, IB/Colonel Gill, Kangana Ranaut as Nidhi Srivastava, India TV reporter, Irfan Khan as Bachchoo/ Tony Khosla, Gulshan Grover as Bapuji, Rukhsar Rehman as Lakshmi, Tony's wife, Apoorva Lakhia as Ranvir Singh, Sushant Singh as Inspector Vikram, Asif Basra as Raghav, Silvio Simac as fighter on terrace, Bikramjeet Kanwarpal as Nidhi's boss, Kurush Deboo as Sandwichwala, Abhay Shukla as Prithvi, Shankar Sachdeva as Mishra, Shriya Sharma as Sweety, Tony's daughter, Naseer Abdullah as Bhalla, Namrata Thapa as Roshni, Ashraful Haque as Junkie, Shreya Narayan as Jesse, Aparna as Bharti, Rajendra Jadhav as Gundurao, Vinay Verma as Commissioner, M D Pasha as Suvarna, Hussain Shaikh as Party President, Gary Warren D'souza as Swiss Bank Manager, Randheer Nahar as Pandey, Shivraj as RBI Officer Bachubhai (Irfan Khan) has come to the phone booth to make a call. He is interrupted by a man who interrupts him again. Bachubhai tells him to stop interrupting. While moving out of the phone booth after the call, the phone rang. Bachubhai picks up the call only to get surprised by an unknown caller who ensures that bachubhai do not leave the phone booth until his motive of calling is achieved. Another man interrupts who is shot dead by that unknown person from a far away building. As seeing the incident, police, public and news reporter Nidhi Srivastav as Kangana Ranaut is here. Everyone is seeing everything as Bachubhai has been told to do what the person on phone call says or he will shoot him. Later Police officer Sushant Singh is transferred and another encounter specialist has been called. Meanwhile, bachubhai who is working for a corrupt politician who has 320 billion black money has been told to transfer the money on a government account to give back the money to the public. Bachubhai does everything as the phone caller says. At the end of the movie the money has been transferred to the public account and it is revealed that Veer Vijay Singh as Sanjay Dutt is a Chief of Investigation Bureau. Bachubhai after transferring the money is now safe. Knock Out was poorly received by critics. Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India rated the film 2 out of 5 stars. The film's music is given by Gourov Dasgupta with background score by Atul Raninga and Sanjay Wandrekar. The soundtrack has five original tunes, one remix and an alternate version of one song.

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Once Upon a Time is an American fairy tale drama television series on ABC, which debuted on October 23, 2011, and concluded on May 18, 2018. The first six seasons are largely set in the fictitious seaside town of Storybrooke, Maine, with the characters of Emma Swan and Regina Mills as the leads, while the seventh and final season takes place in Seattle, Washington, in the fictitious neighborhood of Hyperion Heights, with a new main narrative led by Mills and Henry Mills, Regina Mills and Emma Swan's son. The show borrows elements and characters from Disney and popular Western literature, folklore, and fairy tales. Once Upon a Time was created by Lost and writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. A spin-off series, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, consisting of 13 episodes which followed the titular character from Alice in Wonderland, premiered on October 10, 2013 and concluded on April 3, 2014. For the first six seasons, the series is set in the fictional seaside town of Storybrooke, Maine, in which the residents are actually fairy tale characters that were transported to the real world town and robbed of their memories by the Evil Queen Regina (Lana Parrilla) who used a powerful curse obtained from Rumplestiltskin (Robert Carlyle). The residents of Storybrooke, where Regina is mayor, have lived an unchanging existence for 28 years, unaware of their own agelessness. The town's only hope lies with a bail-bonds person from the Land Without Magic, named Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison), only daughter of Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Prince Charming (Josh Dallas). Emma was transported from the Enchanted Forest to the real world via a magic wardrobe as an infant before the curse was cast. As such, she is the Savior, the only person who can break the curse and restore everyone's lost memories. She is aided by her ten-year-old son, Henry Mills (Jared S. Gilmore), with whom she was recently reunited after giving him up for adoption upon his birth, and his Once Upon a Time book of fairy tales that holds the key to breaking the curse. Henry is also the adopted son of Regina, providing a source of both conflict and common interest between the two women. In the seventh season reboot, an adult Henry Mills (Andrew J. West), along with Regina, Wish Realm Captain Hook (Colin O'Donoghue), and Rumplestiltskin, are found years later in the Seattle neighborhood of Hyperion Heights, where characters from a different realm were brought under a new curse. Hoping to restore her family's memories, Lucy (Alison Fernandez) must convince her parents, Henry and Cinderella (Dania Ramirez), of the true nature of Hyperion Heights, in the midst of emerging dangers involving Lady Tremaine (Gabrielle Anwar), Mother Gothel (Emma Booth), and Dr. Facilier (Daniel Francis). Episodes usually have one segment that details the characters' past lives that, when serialized, adds a piece to the puzzle about the characters and their connection to the events that preceded the curse and its consequences. The other, set in the present day, follows a similar pattern with a different outcome, but also offers similar insights. The first season premiered on October 23, 2011. The Evil Queen interrupts the wedding of Snow White and Prince Charming to announce that she will cast a curse on everyone that will leave her with the only happy ending. As a result, the majority of the characters are transported to the town of Storybrooke, Maine, where most of them have been stripped of their original memories and identities as fairy tale characters. On her 28th birthday, Emma Swan, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, is brought to Storybrooke by her biological son Henry Mills in the hopes of breaking the curse cast by his adoptive mother, the Evil Queen Regina. The second season premiered on September 30, 2012. Despite Emma having broken the curse, the characters are not returned to the fairy tale world, and must deal with their own dual identities. With the introduction of magic into Storybrooke by Mr. Gold, the fates of the two worlds become intertwined, and new threats emerge in the form of Captain Hook (Colin O'Donoghue), Regina's mother Cora (Barbara Hershey), also known as the Queen of Hearts, and sinister operatives from the real world with an agenda to destroy magic. The third season premiered on September 29, 2013. It was split into two volumes, with the first eleven episodes running from September to December 2013, and the later half from March to May 2014. In the first volume, the main characters travel to Neverland to rescue Henry, who has been kidnapped by Peter Pan (Robbie Kay) as part of a plan to obtain the "Heart of the Truest Believer" from him. Their increasing power struggle with Pan continues in Storybrooke, which ultimately results in the complete reversal of the original curse. All the characters are returned to their original worlds, leaving Emma and Henry to escape to New York City. In the second volume, the characters are mysteriously brought back to a recreated Storybrooke with their memories of the previous year removed, and the envious Wicked Witch of the West (Rebecca Mader) from the Land of Oz appears with a plan to change the past. Once again, Emma is needed to save her family. The fourth season premiered on September 28, 2014. It was also split into two volumes, with the first eleven episodes running from September to December 2014, and the later half from March to May 2015. A new storyline incorporating elements from Frozen was revealed when the time travel events of the previous season lead to the accidental arrival of Queen Elsa (Georgina Haig) of Arendelle, from the Enchanted Forest of the past, to present-day Storybrooke. As she searches for her younger sister Princess Anna (Elizabeth Lail) with the aid of the main characters, they encounter the Snow Queen (Elizabeth Mitchell). Meanwhile, Regina seeks the Author of Henry's Once Upon a Time book so that she can finally have her happy ending. However, later on, a banished Mr. Gold returns, with the help of Cruella De Vil (Victoria Smurfit), Maleficent (Kristin Bauer van Straten), and Ursula (Merrin Dungey), with his own plan to rewrite the rules governing the fates of all heroes and villains. Henry and Emma race to restore reality and the truth before the twisted inversion becomes permanent. However, the price leads to the ultimate sacrifice. The fifth season was announced on May 7, 2015, and premiered on September 27, 2015. It was once again split into two volumes with the first volume running from September to December 2015, and the second volume from March to May 2016. The characters embark on a quest to Camelot to find the Sorcerer Merlin (Elliot Knight) in order to free Emma from the powers of an ancient darkness that threatens to destroy everything. To complicate matters, King Arthur (Liam Garrigan) is determined to forever alter the balance between light and darkness using the legendary Excalibur and the help of a vengeful Zelena. As history and destiny collide, Hook's death makes Emma lead a rescue party to the Underworld in order to bring him back. During their mission, they encounter souls of those with unfinished business and must face Hades (Greg Germann). In an attempt to restore order to the chaos that has culminated, the characters' dangerous manipulations of magic lead to an exacerbation of the war between light and darkness, with the separation of Regina and her Evil Queen persona, as well as the arrival of Dr. Jekyll (Hank Harris) and Mr. Hyde (Sam Witwer). The sixth season was announced on March 3, 2016, and premiered on September 25, 2016. The characters must defend Storybrooke from the combined threat of Mr. Hyde and an unleashed Evil Queen. They also must deal with the new people from the Land of Untold Stories as well as dealing with their own forgotten tales and the mysterious fate of saviors leads to Emma learning about the savior before her, Aladdin (Deniz Akdeniz). The ongoing war between light and darkness ultimately leads to the arrival of the creator of the Dark Curse, the Black Fairy (Jaime Murray) as well as the final battle that was prophesied before the casting of the original curse. In May 2017, the series was renewed for a seventh and final season consisting of 22 episodes, which marked a soft reboot. Years later, Lucy (Alison Fernandez) arrives in the fictional neighborhood of Hyperion Heights in Seattle, Washington with her Once Upon a Time book to find her father Henry Mills (Andrew J. West) who is needed by his family. Characters from the New Enchanted Forest were brought to Hyperion Heights under a new curse and are caught in a rising conflict involving Cinderella (Dania Ramirez) and Lady Tremaine (Gabrielle Anwar) whose dangerous history with Mother Gothel (Emma Booth) is revealed as well as the agendas of Dr. Facilier (Daniel Francis). Two worlds collide when the arrival of Wish Realm Rumplestiltskin and Wish Henry Mills as they plot and culminates on every characters' happy endings by separating them into separate realms, into their own separate storybooks, leading to someone making the ultimate sacrifice. Once Upon a Times first season received "generally favorable" reviews from critics. Metacritic gave it a score of 66 out of 100 based on 26 reviews. The pilot episode was watched by 12.93 million viewers and achieved an adult 18–49 rating/share of 4.0. The second season premiered on September 30, 2012, to an audience of 11.36 million viewers, while the third season began on September 29, 2013, opening to 8.52 million viewers. In May 2014, ABC renewed the show for its fourth season, premiering in September 2014 to an audience of 9.47 million viewers. The series was renewed for a fifth season in May 2015 and for a sixth season in March 2016. On May 11, 2017, ABC renewed the series for a 22-episode seventh season. In February 2018, it was announced the seventh season would serve as the final season of the series. Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan / The Savior, Lana Parrilla as Evil Queen / Regina Mills / Roni / The Good Queen, Josh Dallas as Pauper / Prince Charming / David Nolan, Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills, Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket / Dr. Archibald Hopper, Jamie Dornan as Huntsman / Sheriff Graham Humbert, Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin / Crocodile / Beast / Mr. Gold / Weaver, Eion Bailey as Pinocchio / August Wayne Booth, Emilie de Ravin as Belle / Lacey, Meghan Ory as Red Riding Hood / Wolf / Ruby, Colin O'Donoghue as Killian Jones / Captain Hook / Rogers, Michael Raymond-James as Baelfire / Neal Cassidy, Michael Socha as Will Scarlet / Knave of Hearts / White King, Rebecca Mader as Zelena / Wicked Witch of the West / Kelly West, Sean Maguire as Robin Hood, Andrew J. West as adult Henry Mills, Dania Ramirez as Cinderella / Jacinda Vidrio, Gabrielle Anwar as Rapunzel / Lady Tremaine / Victoria Belfrey, Alison Fernandez as Lucy, Mekia Cox as Tiana / Sabine Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis conceived the show in 2004 before joining the writing staff of Lost, but wanted to wait until that series was over to focus on this project. Eight years before the Once Upon a Time pilot (the two had just completed their work on Felicity, in 2002), Kitsis and Horowitz became inspired to write fairy tales out of a love of "mystery and excitement of exploring lots of different worlds." They presented the premise to networks, but were refused because of its fantastic nature. From their time on Lost, the writers learned to look at the story in a different way, namely that "character has to trump mythology." They explained, "As people, you've got to see what the void in their heart or in their lives is to care about them ... For us, this was as much about the character journeys and seeing what was ripped from them in coming to Storybrooke – going at it that way as opposed to making it the 'break-the-curse show. Despite the comparisons and similarities to Lost, the writers intend them to be very different shows. To them, Lost concerned itself with redemption, while Once Upon a Time is about "hope". Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof aids in the development of the series as a consultant, but has no official credit on the show. Kitsis and Horowitz have called him a "godfather" to the series. To differentiate the storytelling from what the audience already knew, the writing staff decided to begin the pilot with the end of the typical Snow White fairytale. Themes concerning family and motherhood were emphasized, in contrast to the focus on fatherhood in Lost. Kitsis and Horowitz sought to write strong female characters, rather than the classic damsel in distress. Horowitz stated their desire to approach each character the same way, asking themselves, "How do we make these icons real, make them relatable?" The pilot is meant to be the "template of the series". Kitsis confirmed that every week will contain flashbacks between both worlds, as they "love the idea of going back and forth and informing what the character is missing in their life." The writers' desire to present a "mash up" of many small characters can be seen in a scene of the pilot, in which there is a war council featuring Geppetto, Pinocchio, and Grumpy. Horowitz elaborated, "One of the fun things for us coming up with these stories is thinking of ways these different characters can interact in ways they never have before." Since then, the creators have added more elements, and given its ties to Disney, have managed to expand the universe to include more recent material, by throwing out hints that they might look ahead at incorporating characters from Brave and Frozen in future episodes, if they get the green light from Disney. The Season 3 finale introduced Elsa in the final minutes of the episode. The general premise, importing the Snow White core characters into the "real world", was previously seen on ABC television in the short- lived 1980s comedy The Charmings. The show also has a similar premise to Bill Willingham's ten-year-old comic series Fables, to which ABC bought the rights in 2008 but never made it past planning stages. After Fables fans raised controversy over possible appropriation, the show writers initially denied a link, but later said they may have "read a couple issues" of the comic book and while the two concepts are "in the same playground", they are "telling a different story." Bill Willingham responded to the controversy in an interview, where he stated he did not feel the show was plagiarism and said: "Maybe they did remember reading Fables back then, but didn't want to mention it because we've become a very litigious people." Secondary character casting director Samuel Forsyth started the casting process in 2010. Horowitz stated that everyone they initially wanted for roles in the series accepted their roles after being sent a script. Ginnifer Goodwin was cast as Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard, who appreciated that she would be playing a strong character that was fleshed out for the audience. Goodwin had stated in interviews that she would love to play Snow White, and called her acceptance of the role "a no-brainer." Both Kitsis and Horowitz are self-described big fans of Goodwin's previous series, Big Love, and wrote the part of Snow White with her in mind. Josh Dallas, who portrays Prince Charming / David Nolan, was pleased the writers took "some dramatic license" with his character, believing the prince had become more real. He explained, "Prince Charming just happens to be a name. He's still a man with the same emotions as any other man. He's a Prince, but he's a Prince of the people. He gets his hands dirty. He's got a kingdom to run. He has a family to protect. He has an epic, epic love for Snow White. He's like everybody else. He's human." Jennifer Morrison was hired for the part of Emma Swan. The actress explained her character as someone who "help[s] her son Henry whom she abandoned when he was a baby and who seems like he's a little bit emotionally dysfunctional", but noted that Emma does not start out believing in the fairytale universe. Ten-year-old Jared Gilmore, known for his work on Mad Men, took the role of her son, Henry. The role of The Evil Queen/ Regina was given to Lana Parrilla. For the second season, Meghan Ory and Emilie de Ravin were promoted to series regulars as Red Riding Hood / Ruby and Belle / Lacey respectively, while Bailey made guest appearances in two episodes after departing the series and Sbarge joined the recurring cast. Colin O'Donoghue was cast as Captain Killian "Hook" Jones, and was upped to series regular for the fourteenth episode of the season. For the third season, Michael Raymond-James was promoted to a series regular as Neal Cassidy, while Ory did not return as a series regular due to commitments to the TV series, Intelligence. For the fourth season, Michael Socha was brought onto the show as Will Scarlet / Knave of Hearts from the show's spin-off, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, while Raymond-James was dropped from the regular cast when the writers decided to kill off his character. Bailey returned in a recurring arc towards the end of the season after being absent from the show since the second season. For the fifth season, Rebecca Mader and Sean Maguire were announced to have been promoted to series regulars as Zelena / Wicked Witch of the West and Robin Hood respectively, while Socha was confirmed to not be returning as a series regular. Ory also returned to the series in a recurring capacity after being absent since the third-season finale. Before the series was renewed for a seventh season, Jennifer Morrison announced that, if the series were to be renewed, she would not be returning as a series regular for that season but agreed to return for one episode to wrap up Emma Swan's storyline. Later that week, actress Rebecca Mader announced that she would also be leaving the series after the sixth season wrapped. It was later announced that Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Dallas, Jared S. Gilmore and Emilie de Ravin would also be leaving the show after the sixth season's finale aired. Along with departures, Andrew J. West and Alison Fernandez were announced to be joining the seventh season of the show as series regulars after guest starring in the previous season's finale. They will portray an older Henry Mills and his daughter Lucy respectively. In July 2017, actresses Dania Ramirez and Gabrielle Anwar were announced to be joining the cast of the seventh season as series regulars, playing new iterations of Cinderella and Lady Tremaine, respectively. In September 2017, Mekia Cox, who portrays Tiana, was promoted to a series regular. Principal photography for the series takes place in Vancouver, British Columbia. Steveston Village in the adjacent city of Richmond doubles as Storybrooke for the series, with props and exterior sets disguising the existing businesses and buildings. During filming, all brightly colored objects (flowers, etc.) are hidden to reinforce the story village's spell- subdued character. Certain sets are additionally filmed in separate studios, including the interior of Mr. Gold's pawn shop and the clock tower, which are not found in Steveston. During the first six seasons, the Enchanted Forest and Storybrooke, Maine are the main settings of the series. The Enchanted Forest is a realm within Fairy Tale Land, but the actual spread and scope of the realm is not known. However, they are later united during the Ogre Wars, which played a part in the formation of the War Council that is formed by Prince Charming and served as the catalysts in the backstories involving Rumpelstiltskin and the Evil Queen. Several independent kingdoms are implied by an array of different rulers. Most of the stories detailed their earlier lives before ascension to power and being influenced by their mentors through their upbringings. Meanwhile, Storybrooke serves as an isolated town separated from the rest of the Land Without Magic, where the cursed inhabitants are trapped by various forces. During the seventh season, the New Enchanted Forest is shown as the main setting, along with Hyperion Heights, Seattle. As a realm in New Fairy Tale Land, the New Enchanted Forest is divided into several independent kingdoms with different rulers. The inhabitants are in conflict with each other, most notably between Lady Tremaine, Cinderella, Drizella, a resistance led by Tiana, and the Coven of the Eight led by Mother Gothel. Most flashbacks shown involve events that happened before the original curse and before the latest curse that brought everyone to Hyperion Heights, where unlike Storybrooke, its cursed inhabitants are living among ordinary people. The show, including its spin-off, have explored beyond the main settings to numerous realms, each based on fairy tales, literature, and folklore. Known realms are Fairy Tale Land, the Land Without Magic, Wonderland, the Dreamscape, Land Without Color, the Netherworld, Neverland, Victorian England, the Land of Oz, Kansas, Asgard, 1920s England, the World Within the Book, the Underworld, the Worst Place, Mount Olympus, the Land of Untold Stories, 19th Century France, the World Behind the Mirror, the Dark Realm, the Wish Realm, New Fairy Tale Land, the World Beyond the Bridge, the Mansion Realm, the Edge of Realms, New Wonderland, and the Prison Realm. All the realms are then merged via a variation of the Dark Curse, known as the United Realms. As a nod to the ties between the production teams of Once Upon a Time and Lost, the former show contains allusions to Lost. For example, many items found in the Lost series, such as Apollo candy bars, Oceanic Airlines, Ajira Airways, the TV series Exposé, and MacCutcheon Whiskey, can be seen in Once Upon a Time. Mark Isham composed the series' theme and music. On February 14, 2012, an extended play album featuring four cues from the score was released by ABC Studios. On May 1, 2012, a full-length 25-track official soundtrack album was released by Intrada Records to accompany season one. On August 13, 2013, another full-length 25-track official soundtrack album was released by Intrada to accompany season two. Since December 2015, Mark Isham had begun to release music that was previously not released from the third, fourth, and fifth seasons on his Soundcloud account. The series has been licensed to over 190 countries. In Australia, Once Upon a Time first aired on Seven Network, starting on May 15, 2012. In Canada it airs on CTV from October 23, 2011. It premiered on Channel 5 in the United Kingdom on April 1, 2012. On December 17, 2013, it was confirmed that Channel 5 would not be picking the series up for the third season airing in the UK. On March 14, 2015, Netflix picked up the show in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, subsequently showing all seasons and premiering each new episode on Wednesdays after their initial showing on Sundays on ABC. Critical response to the first season was generally positive. On Metacritic, it was given a score of 66 out of 100 with "generally favorable reviews". E!'s Kristin dos Santos cited the show as one of the five new shows of the 2011–2012 season to watch. Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe gave the show a "C+" grade commenting "From a pair of Lost producers, this is a love-or-hate proposition. The ambition is impressive, as it asks us to imagine Goodwin's Snow White and Parrilla's Evil Queen as moderns. But Morrison is a wooden lead, and the back stories – a random collection of fairy tales -- don't promise to surprise." In a review from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, TV critic Gail Pennington hailed it as one of the "Most Promising Shows of The Fall" and, unlike Gilbert, had high marks for Morrison. USA Todays Robert Blanco placed the series on its top ten list, declaring that "There's nothing else on the air quite like it." Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times preferred the series to another fairy-tale themed drama, Grimm, citing that the premise takes its time building up the charm and that the producer "has that part nailed". She also gave excellent reviews for Morrison's character: "Her Emma is predictably cynical and prickly – fairy-tale princess, my Aunt Fanny – but she's sharp and lively enough to keep audiences begging for 'just a few more pages' before they go to bed." Several feminist outlets were pleased with the show for its feminist twist on fairy tales. Avital Norman Nathman of Bitch stated that she liked the show for "infusing a feminist sensibility" into the stories. Genie Leslie at Feministing commented that Emma was a "badass", that she liked how Emma was "very adamant that women be able to make their own decisions about their lives and their children", and how Emma was a "well- rounded" character who was "feminine, but not 'girly. Natalie Wilson from Ms. praised the show for a strong, "kick-butt" female lead, for including multiple strong women who take turns doing the saving with the men, for subverting the fetishization of true love, and for dealing with the idea of what makes a mother in a more nuanced fashion. Wilson went on to state of the lead: "Her pursuit of a 'happy ending' is not about finding a man or going to a ball all gussied up, but about detective work, about building a relationship with her son Henry, and about seeking the 'truth' as to why time stands still in the corrupt Storybrooke world." The first season premiered as the top-rated drama series. The pilot episode was watched by 13 million viewers and received a 4.0 rating/share among 18- to 49-year-olds. It was the season's highest-rated drama debut among the age range and ABC's biggest debut in five years. With DVR viewers, the premiere climbed to 15.5 million viewers and a 5.2 rating/share in adults 18–49. The show's next three episodes had consistent ratings every week with over 11 million viewers. The series became the number one non-sports program in the U.S. with viewers and young adults on Sunday nights. Once Upon a Time was nominated for a 2012 People's Choice Award for "Favorite New TV Drama", but lost to Person of Interest. The show was nominated at the 39th People's Choice Awards in four categories: Favorite Network TV Drama, Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy Show, Favorite TV Fan Following, and Favorite TV Drama Actress (Ginnifer Goodwin); it lost to another ABC show Grey's Anatomy in the first category, Supernatural in the second two, and Ellen Pompeo (from Grey's Anatomy) in the last category. The show was nominated at 40th People's Choice Awards, but lost to Beauty and the Beast and The Vampire Diaries, respectively. The show was also nominated for "Best Genre Series" at the 2011 Satellite Awards, but lost to American Horror Story. The show was nominated in this category again at the 2012 Satellite Awards, but lost to The Walking Dead. The program also received three nominations at the 2012 Visual Effects Society Awards, but all lost to Boardwalk Empire, Gears of War 3, and Terra Nova. At the 38th Saturn Awards, the series received a nomination for Best Network Television Series and Parrilla was nominated for Best Supporting Actress on Television, but lost to Fringe and Michelle Forbes, respectively. The program was nominated for the former award again at the 39th Saturn Awards, but lost to new series Revolution. Jared S. Gilmore was nominated for Best Performance by an Younger Actor on Television at 40th Saturn Awards, but lost to Chandler Riggs for The Walking Dead The show received trophies for "Favorite New TV Drama" and "Favorite Villain" for Lana Parrilla by the TV Guide. The show was nominated at the 2012 Teen Choice Awards, but lost to The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars and Awkward and the show was also nominated at 2013 Teen Choice Awards, but lost to The Vampire Diaries and Pretty Little Liars. The show was nominated again 2014 Teen Choice Awards, but lost to The Vampire Diaries and Dylan O'Brien, respectively. It was also nominated at the 64th Creative Arts Primetime Emmy Awards, but lost to Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead and the show was nominated again at 65th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, but lost to The Borgias and Game of Thrones. The Show won 3 Choice Awards at the Teen Choice Awards 2016. In 2013, Disney-owned Hyperion Books published Reawakened by Odette Beane, a novelization of storylines from the first season, expanded to include new perspectives. The narrative is from the points-of-view of Emma Swan in Storybrooke and Snow White in the Enchanted Forest. The novel was published on April 28, 2013, as an ebook and May 7, 2013, in paperback form. In 2015, production company Kingswell Teen published Red's Untold Tale, by Wendy Toliver, a novel telling a story of Red's past that was not seen in the show. The novel was published on September 22, 2015 and consisted of 416 pages. In 2017, Kingswell Teen published a second novel, Regina Rising, also written by Wendy Toliver, which depicts the life of a sixteen year old Regina. The novel was published on April 25, 2017. In 2018, Kingswell Teen published a third novel, Henry and Violet, written by Michelle Zink, which follows Henry and Violet on an adventure to New York City. The novel was published on May 8, 2018. A comic book, titled Once Upon a Time: Shadow of the Queen, was released on September 4, 2013, in both digital and hardcover forms. The story was written by Dan Thomsen and Corinna Bechko, with art by Nimit Malavia, Vasilis Lolos, Mike del Mundo, Stephanie Hans and Mike Henderson. Shadow of the Queen details what happens after the Evil Queen takes the Huntsman's heart. She forces the Huntsman to commit evil, and try to capture Snow White yet again. The Huntsman faces his past, and also meets Red Riding Hood, who is trying to cope with her beastly alter ego. Together, they team up and try to save Snow White before all is too late. On April 14, 2014, a sequel to the first comic book called Once Upon a Time: Out of the Past was released. In February 2013, Kitsis & Horowitz, along with producers Zack Estrin and Jane Espenson, developed a spin-off focusing on Lewis Carroll's Wonderland. The series was called Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. A "teaser presentation" began shooting in April 2013, and the pilot was shot in late July or August. On May 10, 2013, ABC announced that it had approved the spin-off and on May 14, 2013, announced that the spin-off would air in the Thursday night 8:00pm time slot instead of making it a fill-in for the parent series. The series premiered on October 10, 2013, but was cancelled after a single-season thirteen-episode run, and ended on April 3, 2014. Creators' podcast The first season of the ABC television series Once Upon a Time premiered on October 23, 2011 and concluded on May 13, 2012. The series was created by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. The series centers around the Enchanted Forest and Storybrooke, and the Evil Queen's (Lana Parrilla) plot to destroy everyone's happiness so she can be the only one with a happy ending. Once Upon a Times first season received generally favorable reviews from critics who praised its cast, visuals, and twists on fairy tales, though some criticized its uneven tone. The pilot episode was watched by 12.93 million viewers and achieved an adult 18-49 rating/share of 4.0/10. Those numbers dipped late in the season to a series low of 8.36 million viewers and a 2.8/8 adult 18-49 rating/share in April 2012, but rebounded slightly for the season finale with 9.66 million viewers and a 3.3/10 adult 18-49 rating/share. The show is based on the theory that there is an alternate universe where every classic fairy tale character (new and old) exists—a world that has a loose connection to our world. On the night of her 28th birthday, bail bonds collector Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison) is reunited with Henry Mills (Jared S. Gilmore)—the son she gave up for adoption ten years previous—and takes her back to his hometown of Storybrooke, Maine. Henry has in his possession a large book of fairy tales and correctly suspects that Emma is the daughter of Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Prince Charming (Josh Dallas), who sent her away so she would be protected from a powerful curse enacted by the Evil Queen (Lana Parrilla), a curse in which the queen is the only one with a happy ending. It's because of the curse that everyone in Storybrooke is frozen in time with no memories of their former selves—except for the Queen, who is Storybrooke's mayor and Henry's adoptive mother, Regina Mills. Emma refuses to believe a word of Henry's "theory" and returns Henry home, but then decides to remain in the New England town after getting attached to Henry, which causes the hands of the clock tower to move for the first time in 28 years. Henry tells Emma that she is the only person who can leave Storybrooke, as others who try will suffer accidents. It's soon revealed that Snow and Charming, concerned for the safety of their unborn child, went to seek advice from the imprisoned trickster Rumplestiltskin (Robert Carlyle). In return for the child's name, he told them their only hope was the child, who would return on her 28th birthday and begin "The Final Battle." The child, an infant girl, is born on the day the Queen enacts her curse and is placed in a wardrobe carved out of an enchanted tree which takes the child to our world. In our world she was named Emma Swan and grew up in the foster system, never finding adoptive parents. She had a difficult childhood and rebelled in her teen years, which ultimately led to her meeting Henry's father, Neal, equally rebellious and feeling abandoned by his own father. In Storybrooke, Emma is soon elected as Sheriff following the sudden death of the previous Sheriff, Graham Humbert (Jamie Dornan), who was really the Huntsman. Regina's antagonistic attitude raises her suspicions and prompts her to move in with Henry's teacher Mary Margaret Blanchard, who is really her mother Snow White. Regina's bitter rivalry with Storybrooke's wealthiest resident, Mr. Gold, becomes heated when she learns he is aware of his true identity as Rumplestiltskin. Mary Margaret falls in love with David Nolan, a coma patient who is actually her husband, and Emma's father, Prince Charming. David wakes up after she reads Henry's fairytale book to him as a favor to Henry. David, however, is married to Kathryn Nolan, the woman who is (in the fairy tale world) his ex-fiancée Princess Abigail, daughter of King Midas. Unable to deny their love, David and Mary Margaret soon begin a secret relationship that becomes public and upsets Kathryn. Kathryn eventually decides to go to Boston and let David be with Mary Margaret only to disappear before leaving Storybrooke. Sometime later an antique jewelry box which belonged to Mary Margaret when she was a child is found buried near the old toll bridge and is revealed to contain a human heart, which is proven to be Kathryn's via DNA testing. Mary Margaret is arrested for Kathryn's supposed murder and hires Mr. Gold as her attorney. As Mary Margaret is about to be prosecuted by corrupt District Attorney Albert Spencer (Alan Dale), who's really Prince Charming's adoptive father King George, Kathryn is found alive in an alley. It is revealed that Regina and Mr. Gold plotted to frame Mary Margaret and force her out of Storybrooke, but Mr. Gold double-crossed Regina and let Kathryn go to exonerate Mary Margaret. When Daily Mirror chief editor Sidney Glass (Giancarlo Esposito) (who's actually the Magic Mirror) confesses to having abducted Kathryn in order to jump-start his career, Emma is not convinced and comes to the conclusion that Regina orchestrated the conspiracy and forced Sidney to "confess." Emma soon discovers that writer August W. Booth (Eion Bailey), who is the first stranger ever to arrive in town after she did, is from the Enchanted Forest as well: he is Pinocchio, who was sent to our world through the same wardrobe that brought Emma to watch over her. He abandoned her out of fear and is slowly turning back into a wooden puppet as a result. Emma then attempts to take Henry out of Storybrooke forever but is then forced to reconsider when he refuses to go. She finally makes a deal with Regina in which she agrees to leave but will still get to visit Henry on occasion. Since Regina knows Emma's true identity, however, she retrieves her poisoned apple (the same one she used on Snow White) to use on Emma in the form of an apple turnover. Henry, desperate to prove to Emma that the curse is real, takes a bite of the turnover and collapses to the floor unconscious. Emma, who now starts to believe after seeing flashbacks of her true past, is forced to ally with Regina in order to save Henry, and retrieves Rumplestiltskin's true love potion from underneath the Clock Tower. Unfortunately, Mr. Gold intervenes and steals it, leaving Emma halfway up the elevator shaft and Regina tied to a chair and gagged. When Henry is pronounced dead, Emma and Regina return to the hospital to say goodbye to his body. Emma kisses him on the forehead, causing a pulse of energy to engulf the entire town and restore everyone's true memories while freeing Henry from the effects of the poisoned apple. Snow and Charming reunite with each other and Regina returns to her mansion alone as Emma begins to wonder why no one is returning to the Other World since the curse is broken. Rumplestiltskin reunites with his true love Belle (Emilie de Ravin) and takes her to a Wishing Well deep in the heart of the forest, a well with the power to restore that which one had lost. He takes the potion and drops it into the well, causing a purple cloud to emerge and consume Storybrooke as the Clock Tower strikes 8:15. Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Lana Parrilla as Evil Queen / Regina Mills, Josh Dallas as Prince Charming / David Nolan, Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket / Dr. Archie Hopper, Eion Bailey as Pinocchio / August Wayne Booth, Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills, Jamie Dornan as Huntsman / Sheriff Graham Humbert, Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin / Mr. Gold Meghan Ory as Red Riding Hood / Ruby, Beverley Elliott as Widow Lucas / Granny, Lee Arenberg as Dreamy / Grumpy / Leroy, Gabe Khouth as Sneezy / Tom Clark, David Paul Grove as Doc, Faustino Di Bauda as Sleepy / Walter, Mig Macario as Bashful, Michael Coleman as Happy, Giancarlo Esposito as Genie / Magic Mirror / Sidney Glass, Jeffrey Kasier as Dopey, Anastasia Griffith as Princess Abigail / Kathryn Nolan, Keegan Connor Tracy as Blue Fairy / Mother Superior, David Anders as Dr. Whale, Alan Dale as King George / Albert Spencer, Tony Perez as Henry, Tony Amendola as Geppetto / Marco, Emilie de Ravin as Belle, Sebastian Stan as Mad Hatter / Jefferson Jakob Davies as Young Pinocchio / August Booth, Kristin Bauer van Straten as Maleficent, Jessy Schram as Cinderella / Ashley Boyd, Tim Phillipps as Prince Thomas / Sean Hermann, Dylan Schmidt as Baelfire, Richard Schiff as King Leopold, Barbara Hershey as Cora Mills / Queen of Hearts, Ingrid Torrance as Nurse Ratched, Harry Groener as Martin, Carolyn Hennesy as Myrna, Gabrielle Rose as Ruth, Alex Zahara as King Midas, Brad Dourif as Zoso, Karley Scott Collins as Gretel / Ava Zimmer, Quinn Lord as Hansel / Nicholas Zimmer, Emma Caulfield as the Blind Witch, Geoff Gustafson as Stealthy, Eric Keenleyside as Sir Maurice / Moe French, Amy Acker as Nova / Sister Astrid, Jesse Hutch as Peter, Noah Bean as Daniel Colter, Bailee Madison as Young Snow White Once Upon a Time is created and produced by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. In addition, Jane Espenson, Steve Pearlman, Kathy Gilroy, Damon Lindelof, and Brian Wankum are also producers. Liz Tigelaar also serve as series executive producers. Paul Kurta, Chad Oakes, Michael Frislev are producers, while Jordan Feiner and Keri Young are associate producers. Writers for season one episodes include: Kitsis, Horowitz, Espenson, Liz Tigelaar, David H. Goodman, Andrew Chambliss, and Ian Goldberg, with Daniel T. Thomsen writing an episode teleplay. Rotten Tomatoes gave the season an approval rating of 80% based on 35 reviews, with an average rating of 6.06/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Charming and fantastical, Once Upon a Time is tonally uneven but derives strength from an outstanding cast and handsome visuals." Metacritic gave it a score of 66 out of 100 based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Washington Posts Hank Stuever called the series "a smartly-crafted reward for fans of light fantasy, with the right mix of cleverness, action and romance." Verne Gay of Newsday said the series "glows with a near-theatrical shine, challenging viewers to think about TV drama as something other than boilerplate." Several feminist outlets were pleased with the show for its feminist twist on fairy tales. Avital Norman Nathman of Bitch stated that she liked the show for "infusing a feminist sensibility" into the stories. Feministings Genie Leslie commented that Emma was a "badass", that she liked how Emma was "very adamant that women be able to make their own decisions about their lives and their children", and how Emma was a "well-rounded" character who was "feminine, but not 'girly'". Natalie Wilson from Ms. praised the show for a strong, "kick-butt" female lead, for including multiple strong women who take turns doing the saving with the men, for subverting the fetishization of true love, and for dealing with the idea of what makes a mother in a more nuanced fashion. Wilson went on to state about the lead: "Her pursuit of a 'happy ending' is not about finding a man or going to a ball all gussied up, but about detective work, about building a relationship with her son Henry, and about seeking the 'truth' as to why time stands still in the corrupt Storybrooke world. The album was released featuring five different collectible covers. Once Upon a Time debuted a fantasy novel from Disney-owned Hyperion books. The novel, titled Reawakened, covers the first season and promises to give "fans of the show a whole new look at their favorite characters and stories." The narrative is told from the points-of-view of Emma Swan in Storybrooke and Snow White in the Enchanted Forest. Written by Odette Beane, the novel was published on April 27, 2013 as an exclusive ebook and May 7, 2013 in paperback form. The fourth season of the ABC fantasy-drama Once Upon a Time was announced on May 8, 2014. On May 13, 2014, it was revealed that the season would be split into two parts, the first half airing during autumn 2014, and the second half during spring 2015 of the 2014–15 television season. It premiered on September 28, 2014, and concluded on May 10, 2015. On April 20, 2014, it was confirmed that former Once Upon a Time in Wonderland star Michael Socha would be a series regular as his character Will Scarlet / the Knave of Hearts. New characters introduced to the series include the main antagonists for the two volumes, the Snow Queen, and the Queens of Darkness (a triad of villains including returning character Maleficent, and new characters Cruella de Vil and Ursula). In addition, Elsa, Princess Anna, Kristoff, the Apprentice, Little Bo Peep, and Poseidon are introduced to the series. Elsa is brought by accident from the Enchanted Forest of the past to present day Storybrooke in-search of her sister Anna. With help from Emma, Elsa discovers her past with the mysterious Snow Queen. Emma learns that the Snow Queen was her former foster parent who has plans to replace her long deceased sisters with Emma and Elsa with the Spell of Shattered Sight. This leads to the Snow Queen’s undoing and Mr. Gold’s banishment from Storybrooke. The Queens of Darkness, which consists of Maleficent, Ursula, and Cruella De Vil, are then reformed by Mr. Gold with plans to rewrite the Once Upon a Time book with the help of the Author. This creates an alternate reality. As Henry restores balance in the world, the Darkness is unleashed which leads to Emma making an ultimate sacrifice to secure Regina’s happiness. Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Lana Parrilla as Evil Queen / Regina Mills, Josh Dallas as Prince Charming / David Nolan, Emilie de Ravin as Belle / Lacey, Colin O'Donoghue as Captain Hook / Killian Jones, Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills, Michael Socha as Will Scarlet / Knave of Hearts, Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin / Mr. Gold Sean Maguire as Robin Hood, Georgina Haig as Elsa, Kristin Bauer van Straten as Maleficent, Elizabeth Lail as Anna, Elizabeth Mitchell as Ingrid / Snow Queen / Sarah Fisher, Scott Michael Foster as Kristoff, Lee Arenberg as Dreamy / Grumpy / Leroy, Beverley Elliott as Widow Lucas / Granny, Patrick Fischler as Isaac Heller / Author, Timothy Webber as the Apprentice, Victoria Smurfit as Cruella De Vil / Cruella Feinberg, Merrin Dungey as Ursula, Faustino Di Bauda as Sleepy / Walter, Christie Laing as Marian, Rebecca Mader as Zelena / Wicked Witch of the West, Raphael Alejandro as Roland, Eion Bailey as Pinocchio / August Booth, Michael Coleman as Happy Gabe Khouth as Sneezy / Tom Clark, Abby Ross as Young Emma Swan, Keegan Connor Tracy as Blue Fairy / Mother Superior, John Rhys-Davies as Grand Pabbie, Agnes Bruckner as Lilith "Lily" Page, Jason Burkart as Little John, David Paul Grove as Doc, Jeffrey Kaiser as Dopey, Mig Macario as Bashful, Tony Amendola as Geppetto / Marco, Sarah Bolger as Aurora, Jakob Davies as young Pinocchio, Giancarlo Esposito as Magic Mirror / Sidney Glass, JoAnna Garcia Swisher as Ariel, Chris Gauthier as William Smee, Barbara Hershey as Cora Mills / Queen of Hearts, Tony Perez as Prince Henry Mills, Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket / Dr. Archie Hopper Pascale Hutton as Gerda, Queen of Arendelle, Tyler Jacob Moore as Prince Hans, Nils Hognestad as Franz, Marcus Rosner as Jurgen, Sally Pressman as Helga, Nicole Muñoz as Young Lily, Charles Mesure as Blackbeard, Wil Traval as Sheriff of Nottingham / Keith, Oliver Rice as King of Arendelle, Robin Weigert as Bo Peep, Gabrielle Rose as Ruth, Brad Dourif as Zoso, Eric Keenleyside as Maurice / Moe French, Frances O'Connor as Colette, Jessy Schram as Cinderella / Ashley Boyd, Darcey Johnson as Oaken, Brighton Sharbino as Young Ingrid, Ava Marie Telek as Young Gerda, Bailey Herbert as Young Helga, Jonathan Runyon as a younger Duke of Weselton, Rebecca Wisocky as Madam Faustina, Sebastian Roché as King Stefan, Ernie Hudson as Poseidon, Tiffany Boone as Young Ursula, Jonathan Adams voices The Sorcerer / Merlin The fourth season of Once Upon a Time was confirmed on May 8, 2014, this announcement was followed by the announcement that the first half of the season will air during the autumn of 2014, while the second half will air during the spring of 2015. In August 2014, Maleficent was reported to be the main villain for the second half of the season. Prior to the season premiere, a special aired recapping the previous three seasons, and finished up with the introduction of the Frozen storyline. The theme for the season is "Never give up on the people you love". Adam Horowitz initially announced that the 2-part episode, "Smash the Mirror", would air at the earlier time of 7/6c and will be two hours long, however this was later contradicted by the official Prime Time schedule which stated that it would premiere in its usual spot of 8/7c, the official ABC press release for the episode and the Futon Critic also supported this start time. Horowitz later clarified via Twitter that the extra hour was in addition to the already announced 22 episodes. He also confirmed that the winter finale would air on December 14, 2014, and later confirmed that the show will return from winter hiatus on March 1, 2015. On March 15, 2015, Horowitz confirmed that the last 2 episodes of the season will form a 2-hour episode. It has been confirmed that, unlike the Frozen arc, the villains of the second half of season 4 will come from "[Once Upon a Time] mythology" instead of from their respective movies, so their origins will not be how people remember them, in particular, creator Adam Horowitz stated that "[Once] Cruella may have a different backstory than the one that people may remember from the movie" and explained that Maleficent has already been slotted into the mythology in previous seasons. Another special, similar to the special that aired between the season 3 mid-season finale and premiere, aired an hour before the mid-season premiere on March 1, 2015 and was titled "Secrets of Storybrooke" and narrated by starring cast member, Jennifer Morrison. The special focused on the topic of what it takes to have familiar fairy-tale characters who have been flipped on their heads from their respective origins. After Once Upon a Time in Wonderland was canceled, it was reported that Michael Socha, who portrayed Will Scarlet / the Knave of Hearts on the spin- off, was in talks to join the main cast of Once Upon a Time as a series regular should the series receive renewal for a fourth season, this was later confirmed on April 20, 2014 and on May 8, 2014, Socha was hired following the season 4 renewal. Michael Raymond-James was confirmed to not be returning as a main cast member, since his character, Neal Cassidy, was killed off. During Comic Con 2014, it was officially announced that Ginnifer Goodwin was returning as Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard along with fellow cast members Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Josh Dallas as Prince Charming / David Nolan, Colin O'Donoghue as Captain Killian "Hook" Jones and Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills, Lana Parrilla as the Evil Queen / Regina Mills and Emilie de Ravin as Belle. De Ravin also confirmed Robert Carlyle's return as Rumpelstiltskin / Mr. Gold, through a photo on her Instagram. On July 1, 2014, it was announced that Scott Michael Foster had been cast as Frozen character Kristoff and Elizabeth Lail as Anna. The following day, it was announced Georgina Haig had been cast as Elsa. On July 8, 2014, Elizabeth Mitchell was revealed to have been cast in an undisclosed role. It was later revealed that she would be playing an evil Snow Queen, much like the one from the original Hans Christian Andersan fairy tale. The character would be Anna's and Elsa's aunt, Ingrid. Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz had also cast a real reindeer as Sven. On July 28, 2014, Tyler Jacob Moore and John Rhys-Davies were both announced to be playing Prince Hans and Grand Pabbie, respectively. The third episode, "Rocky Road", revealed that the roles of two of Hans' brothers, Franz and Jurgen, had been given to Nils Hognestad and Marcus Rosner respectively. Returning recurring cast members include Sean Maguire as Robin Hood, Christie Laing as Maid Marian, Giancarlo Esposito as the Magic Mirror / Sidney Glass, Beverley Elliott as Granny, Lee Arenberg as Dreamy / Grumpy / Leroy, Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket / Dr. Archie Hopper and Keegan Connor Tracy as the Blue Fairy / Mother Superior. Faustino Di Bauda also returned as Sleepy / Walter and so did Kristin Bauer van Straten as Maleficent. On September 4, it was revealed that Frances O’Connor was cast as Belle's mother, Colette for the sixth episode, although appearances later on in the season were also hinted. A new character, Lily, has been cast to Nicole Muñoz, while Sally Pressman was given the role of Helga. It was announced on November 5, 2014 that Victoria Smurfit would be portraying Cruella de Vil in a recurring capacity later on in the season and that hints will be placed in the next few episodes. Another Disney villain was also cast in the form of Ursula from The Little Mermaid who was portrayed by Merrin Dungey, the character portrayed is named after the original sea-goddess who was portrayed by Yvette Nicole Brown in the season 3 episode, "Ariel". Straten, Smurfit, and Dungey all first appeared in the winter finale, "Heroes and Villains", and are collectively called the "Queens of Darkness". On October 17, 2014, Rebecca Wisocky was revealed to have been cast as the con-artist Madam Faustina for the ninth episode, "Fall", while a few days later on October 22, David Paul Grove, Gabe Khouth, Michael Coleman, Mig Macario and Jeffrey Kaiser were confirmed to be returning as the remaining seven dwarves. On October 25, 2014, Ginnifer Goodwin revealed that Mary Margaret's and David's son, Neal Nolan, is portrayed by eight different babies, adding: "I used to be like, 'babies look like babies.' And now that I have a baby, I'm like, how does the audience not notice that in every shot, this is a different kid?" The season's first episode, "A Tale of Two Sisters" saw the return of Jason Burkart as Little John, who reprised his role in the sixth episode, and Raphael Alejandro as Roland who reprised the role in the third and sixth episodes, and introduced Pascale Hutton as the Queen of Arendelle, Anna and Elsa's mother, who reappeared in the seventh episode while the second episode, "White Out", introduced Robin Weigert as Bo Peep, and saw the return of Gabrielle Rose as Ruth, Prince Charming's mother. The fourth episode, "The Apprentice", introduced Timothy Webber as the Apprentice who reprised his role in the two-hour episode "Smash the Mirror", and the sixteenth episode, "Best Laid Plans". The fourth episode also saw the return of Brad Dourif as the previous Dark One, Zoso. The fifth episode, "Breaking Glass" saw the return of Abby Ross reprised her role as a teenage Emma in "Breaking Glass", "Shattered Sight", and "Best Laid Plans". The sixth episode, "Family Business" saw the return of Eric Keenleyside as Maurice, Belle's father, and introduced Darcey Johnson as Oaken. The following episode, "The Snow Queen", saw the return of Jessy Schram as Ashley / Cinderella and Sarah Bolger as Aurora, and it also introduced Brighton Sharbino as a younger version of Elizabeth Mitchell's character, Ingrid, Ava Marie Telek as a younger version of Gerda, the Queen of Arendelle, Sally Pressman as Helga, Bailey Herbert as a young Helga, and Jonathan Runyon as a younger Duke of Weselton. The ninth episode, "Fall", saw the return of Charles Mesure as Black Beard. Patrick Fischler has been cast in a "Key Recurring Role" as a Peddler named Gorin who first appeared in episode 17, "Best Laid Plans" where he was revealed to also be the "Author". Fischler is also set to reprise his role in the eighteen episode, "Heart of Gold". During a second Q&A; on the December 15, Horowitz confirmed the return of Joanna Garcia Swisher as Ariel. On December 18, 2014, Eion Bailey was confirmed to be returning August Booth / Pinocchio for "multiple Season 4 episodes", starting with the fourteenth episode, "Enter the Dragon". It was also revealed that Ernie Hudson had been cast as Poseidon, who is also Ursula's Father, and Sebastian Roche as King Stefan. In February 2015, Rebecca Mader was confirmed to be returning as Wicked Witch of the West / Zelena and Wil Traval was revealed to be returning as the Sheriff of Nottingham / Keith. Both Mader and Traval have been confirmed to be reprising their roles in the seventeenth episode, "Heart of Gold". Agnes Bruckner has been confirmed to appear in a three episode arc in the role of an adult Lily, a friend of Emma from her childhood who was portrayed by Nicole Muñoz in the fifth episode, "Breaking Glass". On February 28, Adam Horowitz confirmed the return of Barbara Hershey in a later part of the season. The thirteenth episode, "Unforgiven", which aired on March 8, 2015, saw the return of Tony Amendola as Geppetto / Marco and Jakob Davies as young Pinocchio, his older counterpart August Booth, portrayed by Eion Bailey, was reintroduced in the following episode. The episode that aired on March 22, 2015, "Poor Unfortunate Soul", saw the return of Christopher Gauthier as William Smee and introduced Tiffany Boone as a younger version of Ursula. The following episode, "Best Laid Plans", saw the return of Barclay Hope as Lily's adoptive father. The season airs simultaneously on CTV in Canada. In New Zealand, it is currently airing on TVNZ. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 58% approval rating with an average rating of 7.5/10 based on 11 reviews among critics and a score of 85% from 315 audience scores with an average rating of 4.2/5. The website's consensus reads, "The addition of a Frozen subplot feels like a marketing angle, but Once Upon a Time Season Four shines, adding more layers to an already complex story." The premiere episode of the season, "A Tale of Two Sisters", achieved a weekly viewership ranking of #21.

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China's one-child policy was part of a birth planning program designed to control the size of its rapidly growing population. Distinct from the family planning policies of most other countries (which focus on providing contraceptive options to help women have the number of children they want), it set a limit on the number of births parents could have, the world's most extreme example of population planning. It was introduced in 1979 (after a decade-long two-child policy), modified beginning in the mid 1980s to allow rural parents a second child if the first was a daughter, and then lasted three more decades before being eliminated at the end of 2015. The policy also allowed exceptions for some other groups, including ethnic minorities. Thus, the term "one-child policy" has been called a "misnomer", because for nearly 30 of the 36 years that it existed (1979–2015), about half of all parents in China were allowed to have a second child. To enforce existing birth limits (of one or two children), provincial governments could, and did, require the use of contraception, sterilizations and abortions to ensure compliance, and imposed enormous fines for violations. Local and national governments created commissions to promote the program and monitor compliance. China also rewarded families with only one child. From 1982 onwards, in accordance with the instructions on further family planning issued by the CPC central committee and the state council in that year, regulations awarded 5 yuan per month for families with one child. Parents who had only one child would also get a "one- child glory certificate". According to China's government, 400million births were prevented. Originally, this estimate referred to the full birth program starting from 1970, although more recently the numbers have been attributed to one-child restrictions since 1980. Several scholars have disputed the official claim, contending that the one-child program had little effect on birth rates or the size of the total population when one considers the large drop in fertility in the two-child decade preceding it. China has been compared to countries such as Thailand, along with the Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which experienced similar declines of fertility without a one-child policy. Another study takes such arguments even further based on a model which implies that the one-child program, contrary to popular belief and its government's intentions, had a pronatal effect that raised birth rates above what they otherwise would have been. Yet this latter study has itself been disputed as an implausible "erasure of the impact of this program from history. Moreover, the comparative models proposed by those dismissing official estimates as exaggerations imply that China's birth planning since 1970 has already averted between 600 and 700 million births, a number projected to grow to one billion or more by 2060 given the averted descendants of the births originally averted by policy. The real dispute concerns what portion of these total averted births (and population) are due to China's tightened one-child program as opposed to the two-child program that preceded it. Although 76% of Chinese people said that they supported the policy in a 2008 survey, it was controversial outside of China.. Effective from January 2016, the national birth planning policy became a universal two-child policy that allowed each couple to have two children. During the period of Mao Zedong's leadership in China, the birth rate fell from 37 per thousand to 20 per thousand. Infant mortality declined from 227 per thousand births in 1949 to 53 per thousand in 1981, and life expectancy dramatically increased from around 35 years in 1948 to 66 years in 1976. Until the 1960s, the government encouraged families to have as many children as possible because of Mao's belief that population growth empowered the country, preventing the emergence of family planning programs earlier in China's development. The population grew from around 540million in 1949 to 940million in 1976. Beginning in 1970, citizens were required to marry at later ages and many were limited to have only two children. Although China's fertility rate plummeted faster than anywhere else in the world during the 1970s under these restrictions, the Chinese government thought that fertility was still too high, influenced by the global debate over a possible overpopulation catastrophe suggested by organizations such as Club of Rome and Sierra Club. It thus began to encourage one-child families in 1978, and then announced in 1979 its intention to advocate for one-child families. In 1980, the central government organized a meeting in Chengdu to discuss the speed and scope of one-child restrictions. One participant at the Chengdu meeting had read two influential books about population concerns, The Limits to Growth and A Blueprint for Survival while visiting Europe in 1979. That official, Song Jian, along with several associates, determined that the ideal population of China was 700million, and that a universal one-child policy for all would be required to meet that goal. Moreover, Song and his group showed that if fertility rates remained constant at 3 births per woman, China's population would surpass 3 billion by 2060 and 4 billion by 2080. In spite of some criticism inside the party, the plan (also referred to as the Family Planning Policy) was formally implemented as a temporary measure on 18 September 1980. The plan called for families to have one child each in order to curb a then- surging population and alleviate social, economic, and environmental problems in China. Although a recent and often-repeated interpretation by Greenhalgh claims that Song Jian was the central architect of the one-child policy and that he "hijacked" the population policymaking process, that claim has been refuted by several leading scholars, including Liang Zhongtang, a leading internal critic of one-child restrictions and an eye-witness at the discussions in Chengdu. In the words of Wang et al., "the idea of the one- child policy came from leaders within the Party, not from scientists who offered evidence to support it” Central officials had already decided in 1979 to advocate for one-child restrictions before knowing of Song's work and, upon learning of his work in 1980, already seemed sympathetic to his position. Moreover, even if Song's work convinced them to proceed with universal one- child restrictions in 1980, the policy was loosened to a "1.5"-child policy just five years later, and it is that policy which has been misrepresented since as the "one-child policy." Thus, it is misleading to suggest that Song Jian was either the inventor or architect of the policy. The one-child policy was originally designed to be a "One-Generation Policy". It was enforced at the provincial level and enforcement varied; some provinces had more relaxed restrictions. The one-child limit was most strictly enforced in densely populated urban areas.. When this policy was first introduced, 6.1 million families that had already given birth to a child were given the "One Child Honorary Certificates." This was a pledge they had to make to ensure they would not have more children. Beginning in 1980, the official policy granted local officials the flexibility to make exceptions and allow second children in the case of "practical difficulties" (such as cases in which the father was a disabled serviceman) or when both parents were single children, and some provinces had other exemptions worked into their policies as well. In most areas, families were allowed to apply to have a second child if their first-born was a daughter. Furthermore, families with children with disabilities have different policies and families whose first child suffers from physical disability, mental illness, or intellectual disability were allowed to have more children. However, second children were sometimes subject to birth spacing (usually 3 or 4 years). Children born in overseas countries were not counted under the policy if they did not obtain Chinese citizenship. Chinese citizens returning from abroad were allowed to have a second child. Sichuan province allowed exemptions for couples of certain backgrounds. By one estimate there were at least 22 ways in which parents could qualify for exceptions to the law towards the end of the one-child policy's existence. As of 2007, only 36% of the population were subjected to a strict one-child limit. 53% were permitted to have a second child if their first was a daughter; 9.6% of Chinese couples were permitted two children regardless of their gender; and 1.6% – mainly Tibetans – had no limit at all. Following the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, a new exception to the regulations was announced in Sichuan for parents who had lost children in the earthquake. Similar exceptions had previously been made for parents of severely disabled or deceased children. People have also tried to evade the policy by giving birth to a second child in Hong Kong, but at least for Guangdong residents, the one- child policy was also enforced if the birth was given in Hong Kong or abroad. In accordance with China's affirmative action policies towards ethnic minorities, all non-Han ethnic groups are subjected to different laws and were usually allowed to have two children in urban areas, and three or four in rural areas. Han Chinese living in rural towns were also permitted to have two children. Because of couples such as these, as well as those who simply paid a fine (or "social maintenance fee") to have more children, the overall fertility rate of mainland China was close to 1.4 children per woman . On 6 January 2010, the former national population and family planning commission issued the "national population development" 12th five-year plan. The Family Planning Policy was enforced through a financial penalty in the form of the "social child-raising fee", sometimes called a "family planning fine" in the West, which was collected as a fraction of either the annual disposable income of city dwellers or of the annual cash income of peasants, in the year of the child's birth. For instance, in Guangdong, the fee was between 3 and 6 annual incomes for incomes below the per capita income of the district, plus 1 to 2 times the annual income exceeding the average. The family was required to pay the fine. As part of the policy, women were required to have a contraceptive intrauterine device (IUD) surgically installed after having a first child, and to be sterilized by tubal ligation after having a second child. From 1980 to 2014, 324 million Chinese women were fitted with IUDs in this way and 108 million were sterilized. Women who refused these procedures – which many resented – could lose their government employment and their children could lose access to education or health services. The IUDs installed in this way were modified such that they could not be removed manually, but only through surgery. In 2016, following the abolition of the one-child policy, the Chinese government announced that IUD removals would now be paid for by the government. In 2013, Deputy Director Wang Peian of the National Health and Family Planning Commission said that "China's population will not grow substantially in the short term". A survey by the commission found that only about half of eligible couples wish to have two children, mostly because of the cost of living impact of a second child. In November 2013, following the Third Plenum of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, China announced the decision to relax the one-child policy. Under the new policy, families could have two children if one parent, rather than both parents, was an only child. This mainly applied to urban couples, since there were very few rural only children due to long-standing exceptions to the policy for rural couples. Zhejiang, one of the most affluent provinces, became the first area to implement this "relaxed policy" in January 2014, and 29 out of the 31 provinces had implemented it by July 2014, with the exceptions of Xinjiang and Tibet. Under this policy, approximately 11million couples in China are allowed to have a second child; however, only "nearly one million" couples applied to have a second child in 2014, less than half the expected number of 2 million per year. By May 2014, 241,000 out of 271,000 applications had been approved. Officials of China's National Health and Family Planning Commission claimed that this outcome was expected, and that "second-child policy" would continue progressing with a good start. In October 2015, the Chinese news agency Xinhua announced plans of the government to abolish the one-child policy, now allowing all families to have two children, citing from a communiqué issued by the Communist Party "to improve the balanced development of population"an apparent reference to the country's female-to-male sex ratioand to deal with an aging population according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The new law took effect on 1 January 2016 after it was passed in the standing committee of the National People's Congress on 27 December 2015. The rationale for the abolition was summarized by former Wall Street Journal reporter Mei Fong: "The reason China is doing this right now is because they have too many men, too many old people, and too few young people. They have this huge crushing demographic crisis as a result of the one-child policy. And if people don't start having more children, they're going to have a vastly diminished workforce to support a huge aging population." China's ratio is about five working adults to one retiree; the huge retiree community must be supported, and that will dampen future growth, according to Fong. Since the citizens of China are living longer and having fewer children, the growth of the population imbalance is expected to continue, as reported by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation which referred to a United Nations projections forecast that "China will lose 67million working-age people by 2030, while simultaneously doubling the number of elderly. That could put immense pressure on the economy and government resources." The longer term outlook is also pessimistic, based on an estimate by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, revealed by Cai Fang, deputy director. "By 2050, one-third of the country will be aged 60 years or older, and there will be fewer workers supporting each retired person." Although many critics of China's reproductive restrictions approve of the policy's abolition, Amnesty International said that the move to the two-child policy would not end forced sterilizations, forced abortions, or government control over birth permits. Others also stated that the abolition is not a sign of the relaxation of authoritarian control in China. A reporter for CNN said, "It was not a sign that the party will suddenly start respecting personal freedoms more than it has in the past. No, this is a case of the party adjusting policy to conditions. ... The new policy, raising the limit to two children per couple, preserves the state's role." The abolition may not achieve a significant benefit, as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation analysis indicated: "Repealing the one-child policy may not spur a huge baby boom, however, in part because fertility rates are believed to be declining even without the policy's enforcement. Previous easings of the one-child policy have spurred fewer births than expected, and many people among China's younger generations see smaller family sizes as ideal." The CNN reporter adds that China's new prosperity is also a factor in the declining birth rate, saying, "Couples naturally decide to have fewer children as they move from the fields into the cities, become more educated, and when women establish careers outside the home." The Chinese government had expected the abolishing of the one-child rule would lead to an increase in births to about 21.9 million births in 2018. The actual number of births was 15.2 million - the lowest birth rate since 1961. The one-child policy was managed by the National Population and Family Planning Commission under the central government since 1981. The Ministry of Health of the People's Republic of China and the National Health and Family Planning Commission were made defunct and a new single agency National Health and Family Planning Commission took over national health and family planning policies in 2013. The agency reports to the State Council. The policy was enforced at the provincial level through fines that were imposed based on the income of the family and other factors. "Population and Family Planning Commissions" existed at every level of government to raise awareness and carry out registration and inspection work. The fertility rate in China continued its fall from 2.8 births per woman in 1979 (already a sharp reduction from more than five births per woman in the early 1970s) to 1.5 by the mid 1990s. Some scholars claim that this decline is similar to that observed in other places that had no one-child restrictions, such as Thailand as well as Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, a claim designed to support the argument that China's fertility might have fallen to such levels anyway without draconian fertility restrictions. According to a 2017 study in the Journal of Economic Perspectives, "the one-child policy accelerated the already-occurring drop in fertility for a few years, but in the longer term, economic development played a more fundamental role in leading to and maintaining China's low fertility level.". However, a more recent study found that China's fertility decline to very low levels by the mid 1990s was far more impressive given its lower level of socio-economic development at that time; even after taking rapid economic development into account, China's fertility restrictions likely averted over 500 million births between 1970 and 2015, with the portion caused by one-child restrictions possibly totaling 400 million. Fertility restrictions also had other unintended consequences, such as a deficit of 40 million female babies. Most of this deficit was due to sex-selective abortion as well as the 1.5 child stopping rule, which required rural parents to stop childbearing if their first born was a son. Another consequence was the acceleration of the aging of China's population. The sex ratio of a newborn infant (between male and female births) in mainland China reached 117:100, and stabilized between 2000 and 2013, about 10% higher than the baseline, which ranges between 103:100 and 107:100. It had risen from 108:100 in 1981—at the boundary of the natural baseline—to 111:100 in 1990. According to a report by the National Population and Family Planning Commission, there will be 30million more men than women in 2020, potentially leading to social instability, and courtship-motivated emigration. The number of 30 million cited for the sex disparity is, however, likely very exaggerated, as birth statistics is skewed by late registrations and unreported births: for instance, researchers found that census statistics of women in later stages of their life do not match with the birth statistics. The disparity in the gender ratio at birth increases dramatically after the first birth, for which the ratios remained steadily within the natural baseline over the 20 year interval between 1980 and 1999. Thus, a large majority of couples appear to accept the outcome of the first pregnancy, whether it is a boy or a girl. If the first child is a girl, and they are able to have a second child, then a couple may take extraordinary steps to assure that the second child is a boy. If a couple already has two or more boys, the sex ratio of higher parity births swings decidedly in a feminine direction. This demographic evidence indicates that while families highly value having male offspring, a secondary norm of having a girl or having some balance in the sexes of children often comes into play. reported a study based on the 1990 census in which they found sex ratios of just 65 or 70 boys per 100 girls for births in families that already had two or more boys. A study by found a similar pattern among both Han and non-Han nationalities in Xinjiang Province: a strong preference for girls in high parity births in families that had already borne two or more boys. This tendency to favour girls in high parity births to couples who had already borne sons was later also noted by Coale and Banister, who suggested as well that once a couple had achieved its goal for the number of males, it was also much more likely to engage in "stopping behavior", i.e., to stop having more children. The long-term disparity has led to a significant gender imbalance or skewing of the sex ratio. As reported by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, China has between 32million and 36million more males than would be expected naturally, and this has led to social problems. "Because of a traditional preference for baby boys over girls, the one-child policy is often cited as the cause of China's skewed sex ratio ... Even the government acknowledges the problem and has expressed concern about the tens of millions of young men who won't be able to find brides and may turn to kidnapping women, sex trafficking, other forms of crime or social unrest." The situation will not improve in the near future. According to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, there will be 24 million more men than women of marriageable age by 2020. According to a 2017 study in the Journal of Economic Perspectives, "existing studies indicate either a modest or minimal effect of the fertility change induced by the one-child policy on children education". For parents who had "unauthorized" births or who wanted a son but had a daughter, giving up the child for adoption was a kind of strategy to avoid penalties under one-child restrictions. Many families also kept their illegal children hidden so they would not be punished by the government. In fact, "out adoption" was not uncommon in China even before birth planning. In the 1980s, adoptions of daughters accounted for slightly above half of the so-called "missing girls", as out-adopted daughters often went unreported in censuses and survey and adoptive parents were not penalized for violating birth quota. However, in 1991, a central decree attempted to close off this loophole by raising penalties and levying those penalties on any household that had an "unauthorized" child, including those that had adopted children. This closing of the adoption loophole resulted in the abandonment of some two million Chinese children (mostly daughters), many of whom ended up in orphanages, some 120,000 of whom would be adopted by international parents. The peak wave of abandonment occurred in the 1990s, with a smaller wave after 2000. Around the same time, poor care and high mortality rates in some state orphanages generated intense international pressure for reform. After 2005, the number of international adoptions declined, due both to falling birth rates and the related increase in demand for adoptions by Chinese parents themselves. In an interview with National Public Radio on 30 October 2015, Adam Pertman, president and CEO of the National Center on Adoption and Permanency, indicated that "the infant girls of yesteryear have not been available, if you will, for five, seven years. China has been ... trying to keep the girls within the country ... And the consequence is that, today, rather than those young girls who used to be available – primarily girls – today, it's older children, children with special needs, children in sibling groups. It's very, very different." Since there are no penalties for multiple births, it is believed that an increasing number of couples are turning to fertility medicines to induce the conception of twins. According to a 2006 China Daily report, the number of twins born per year was estimated to have doubled. The one-child policy's limit on the number of children resulted in new mothers having more resources to start investing money in their own well-being. As a result of being an only child, women have increased opportunity to receive an education, and support to get better jobs. One of the side effects of the one- child policy is to have liberated women from heavy duties in terms of taking care of many children and the family in the past; instead women had a lot of spare time for themselves to pursue their career or hobbies. The other major "side effect" of the one child policy is that the traditional concepts of gender roles between men and women have weakened. Being one and the only "chance" the parents have, women are expected to compete with peer men for better educational resources or career opportunities. Especially in cities where one-child policy was much more regulated and enforced, expectations on women to succeed in life are no less than on men. Recent data has shown that the proportion of women attending college is higher than that of men. The policy also has a positive effect at 10 to 19 years of age on the likelihood of completing senior high school in women of Han ethnicity. At the same time, the one-child policy reduces the economic burden for each family. The condition for each family has become better. As a result, women also have much more freedom within the family. They are supported by their family to pursue their life achievements. It is reported that the focus of China on population planning helps provide a better health service for women and a reduction in the risks of death and injury associated with pregnancy. At family planning offices, women receive free contraception and pre-natal classes that contributed to the policy's success in two respects. First, the average Chinese household expends fewer resources, both in terms of time and money, on children, which gives many Chinese people more money with which to invest. Second, since Chinese adults can no longer rely on children to care for them in their old age, there is an impetus to save money for the future. As the first generation of law-enforced only-children came of age for becoming parents themselves, one adult child was left with having to provide support for his or her two parents and four grandparents. Called the "4-2-1 Problem", this leaves the older generations with increased chances of dependency on retirement funds or charity in order to receive support. If not for personal savings, pensions, or state welfare, most senior citizens would be left entirely dependent upon their very small family or neighbours for assistance. If for any reason, the single child is unable to care for their older adult relatives, the oldest generations would face a lack of resources and necessities. In response to such an issue, by 2007, all provinces in the nation except Henan had adopted a new policy allowing couples to have two children if both parents were only children themselves; Henan followed in 2011. Heihaizi () or "black child" is a term denoting children born outside the one- child policy, or generally children who are not registered in the Chinese national household registration system. Being excluded from the family register means they do not possess a Hukou, which is "an identifying document, similar in some ways to the American social security card." In this respect they do not legally exist and as a result cannot access most public services, such as education and health care, and do not receive protection under the law. Some parents may over-indulge their only child. The media referred to the indulged children in one-child families as "little emperors". Since the 1990s, some people have worried that this will result in a higher tendency toward poor social communication and cooperation skills amongst the new generation, as they have no siblings at home. No social studies have investigated the ratio of these so-called "over-indulged" children and to what extent they are indulged. With the first generation of children born under the policy (which initially became a requirement for most couples with first children born starting in 1979 and extending into the 1980s) reaching adulthood, such worries were reduced. However, the "little emperor syndrome" and additional expressions, describing the generation of Chinese singletons are very abundant in the Chinese media, Chinese academia and popular discussions. Being over- indulged, lacking self-discipline and having no adaptive capabilities are traits that are highly associated with Chinese singletons. Some 30 delegates called on the government in the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in March 2007 to abolish the one-child rule, citing "social problems and personality disorders in young people". One statement read, "It is not healthy for children to play only with their parents and be spoiled by them: it is not right to limit the number to two children per family, either." The proposal was prepared by Ye Tingfang, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, who suggested that the government at least restore the previous rule that allowed couples to have up to two children. According to a scholar, "The one-child limit is too extreme. It violates nature's law. And in the long run, this will lead to mother nature's revenge." Reports surfaced of Chinese women giving birth to their second child overseas, a practice known as birth tourism. Many went to Hong Kong, which is exempt from the one-child policy. Likewise, a Hong Kong passport differs from China's mainland passport by providing additional advantages. Recently though, the Hong Kong government has drastically reduced the quota of births set for non- local women in public hospitals. As a result, fees for delivering babies there have surged. As further admission cuts or a total ban on non-local births in Hong Kong are being considered, mainland agencies that arrange for expectant mothers to give birth overseas are predicting a surge in those going to North America. As the United States practises birthright citizenship, all children born in the US will automatically have US citizenship. The closest US location from China is Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US dependency in the western Pacific Ocean that allows Chinese visitors without visa restrictions. As of 2012, the island was experiencing an upswing in Chinese births, since birth tourism there had become cheaper than to Hong Kong. This option is used by relatively affluent Chinese who often have secondary motives as well, wishing their children to be able to leave mainland China when they grow older or bring their parents to the US. Canada, compared to the US, is less achievable as their government denies many visa requests. Due to the preference in Rural Chinese society to give birth to a son, pre- natal sex determination and sex-selective abortions are illegal in China. Often argued as one of the key factors in the imbalanced sex-ratio in China, as excess female infant mortality and underreporting of female births cannot solely explain this gender disparity. Researchers have found that the gender of the firstborn child in rural parts of China impact whether or not the mother will seek an ultrasound for the second child. 40% of women with a firstborn son seek an ultrasound for their second pregnancy, versus 70% of women with firstborn daughters. This clearly depicts a desire for women to birth a son if one has not yet been birthed. In response to this, the Chinese government made sex-selective abortions illegal in 2005. The policy is controversial outside China for many reasons, including accusations of human rights abuses in the implementation of the policy, as well as concerns about negative social consequences. The Chinese government, quoting Zhai Zhenwu, director of Renmin University's School of Sociology and Population in Beijing, estimates that 400million births were prevented by the one-child policy as of 2011, while some demographers challenge that number, putting the figure at perhaps half that level, according to CNN. Zhai clarified that the 400million estimate referred not just to the one-child policy, but includes births prevented by predecessor policies implemented one decade before, stating that "there are many different numbers out there but it doesn't change the basic fact that the policy prevented a really large number of births". This claim is disputed by Wang Feng, director of the Brookings-Tsinghua Center for Public Policy, and Cai Yong from the Carolina Population Center at University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Wang claims that "Thailand and China have had almost identical fertility trajectories since the mid 1980s", and "Thailand does not have a one-child policy." China's Health Ministry has also disclosed that at least 336million abortions were performed on account of the policy. According to a report by the US Embassy, scholarship published by Chinese scholars and their presentations at the October 1997 Beijing conference of the International Union for the Scientific Study of Population seemed to suggest that market- based incentives or increasing voluntariness is not morally better but that it is, in the end, more effective. In 1988, Zeng Yi and Professor T. Paul Schultz of Yale University discussed the effect of the transformation to the market on Chinese fertility, arguing that the introduction of the contract responsibility system in agriculture during the early 1980s weakened family planning controls during that period. Zeng contended that the "big cooking pot" system of the People's Communes had insulated people from the costs of having many children. By the late 1980s, economic costs and incentives created by the contract system were already reducing the number of children farmers wanted. A long-term experiment in a county in Shanxi, in which the family planning law was suspended, suggested that families would not have many more children even if the law were abolished. A 2003 review of the policy-making process behind the adoption of the one-child policy shows that less intrusive options, including those that emphasized delay and spacing of births, were known but not fully considered by China's political leaders. Corrupted government officials and especially wealthy individuals have often been able to violate the policy in spite of fines. Filmmaker Zhang Yimou had three children and was subsequently fined 7.48million yuan ($1.2million). For example, between 2000 and 2005, as many as 1,968 officials in Hunan province were found to be violating the policy, according to the provincial family planning commission; also exposed by the commission were 21 national and local lawmakers, 24 political advisors, 112 entrepreneurs and 6 senior intellectuals. Some of the offending officials did not face penalties, although the government did respond by raising fines and calling on local officials to "expose the celebrities and high-income people who violate the family planning policy and have more than one child". Also, people who lived in the rural areas of China were allowed to have two children without punishment, although the family is required to wait a couple of years before having another child. The one-child policy has been challenged for violating a human right to determine the size of one's own proper family. According to a 1968 proclamation of the International Conference on Human Rights, "Parents have a basic human right to determine freely and responsibly the number and the spacing of their children." According to the UK newspaper The Daily Telegraph, a quota of 20,000 abortions and sterilizations was set for Huaiji County, Guangdong in one year due to reported disregard of the one-child policy. According to the article local officials were being pressured into purchasing portable ultrasound devices to identify abortion candidates in remote villages. The article also reported that women as far along as 8.5 months pregnant were forced to abort, usually by an injection of saline solution. A 1993 book by social scientist and conservative political activist Steven W. Mosher reported that women in their ninth month of pregnancy, or already in labour, were having their children killed whilst in the birth canal or immediately after birth. According to a 2005 news report by Australian Broadcasting Corporation correspondent John Taylor, China outlawed the use of physical force to make a woman submit to an abortion or sterilization in 2002 but ineffectively enforces the measure. In 2012, Feng Jianmei, a villager from Shaanxi province was forced into an abortion by local officials after her family refused to pay the fine for having a second child. Chinese authorities have since apologized and two officials were fired, while five others were sanctioned. In the past, China promoted eugenics as part of its population planning policies, but the government has backed away from such policies, as evidenced by China's ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which compels the nation to significantly reform its genetic testing laws. Recent research has also emphasized the necessity of understanding a myriad of complex social relations that affect the meaning of informed consent in China. Furthermore, in 2003, China revised its marriage registration regulations and couples no longer have to submit to a pre-marital physical or genetic examination before being granted a marriage license. The United Nations Population Fund's (UNFPA) support for family planning in China, which has been associated with the One-Child policy in the United States, led the United States Congress to pull out of the UNFPA during the Reagan administration, and again under George W. Bush's presidency, citing human rights abuses and stating that the right to "found a family" was protected under the Preamble in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. President Obama resumed U.S. government financial support for the UNFPA shortly after taking office in 2009, intending to "work collaboratively to reduce poverty, improve the health of women and children, prevent HIV/AIDS and provide family planning assistance to women in 154 countries". Sex-selected abortion, abandonment, and infanticide are illegal in China. Nevertheless, the United States Department of State, the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and the human rights organization Amnesty International have all declared that infanticide still exists. A writer for the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs wrote, "The 'one-child' policy has also led to what Amartya Sen first called 'Missing Women', or the 100million girls 'missing' from the populations of China (and other developing countries) as a result of female infanticide, abandonment, and neglect". The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation offered the following summary as to the long term effects of sex-selective abortion and abandonment of female infants: Anthropologist G. William Skinner at the University of California, Davis and Chinese researcher Yuan Jianhua have claimed that infanticide was fairly common in China before the 1990s. A novel about an American woman who travels to China to adopt an orphan of the one-child policy, only to find herself a fugitive when the Chinese government informs her that she has been given "the wrong baby"., The prevention of a state-imposed abortion during labor to conform with the one child policy is a key plot point in Tom Clancy's novel The Bear and the Dragon., The difficulties of implementing the one-child policy are dramatized in Mo Yan's novel Frog (2009; English translation by Howard Goldblatt, 2015)., Avoiding the family-planning enforcers is at the heart of Ma Jian's novel The Dark Road (translated by Flora Drew, 2013)., Novelist Lu Min writes about her own family's experience with the One Child Policy in her essay "A Second Pregnancy, 1980" (translated by Helen Wang, 2015)., Tells the stories of the children brought up under China's one-child policy and the effect that has had on their lives, families and ability to deal with life's challenges, the fact was that China's population was spiralling out of control., Fong, Mei (2016). One Child: The Story of China's Most Radical Experiment. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. . Shidu (bereavement), denoting the loss of an only child, Two-child policy, The Dying Rooms General: Abortion in China, Demographics of China, Human population planning, List of countries and dependencies by population, Human overpopulation Interview with Mei on her challenges writing the book., Scharping, Thomas. "Abolishing the One-Child Policy: Stages, Issues and the Political Process." Journal of Contemporary China 28.117 (2019): 327-347., Zhang, Junsen. "The evolution of China's one-child policy and its effects on family outcomes." Journal of Economic Perspectives 31.1 (2017): 141-60. online Family Planning in China On June 2, 2012, Feng Jianmei () was forced to have an abortion in Zhenping County, Shaanxi, China, when she was seven months pregnant with her second child. Local officials had demanded that Feng and her husband pay a 40,000 yuan fine for violating the nation's one-child policy. When they were unable to do so, authorities arrested Feng, made her sign an agreement to have an abortion, and held her down while injecting her with an abortifacient. Feng was reportedly traumatized by the incident and in poor health afterwards. On June 11, Feng's family posted graphic pictures of her stillborn child. The images soon became a viral phenomenon, sparking controversy within China and drawing international attention to the issue of forced abortions. In response to national and international attention, the Chinese government launched an investigation. On June 26, the investigation determined that Feng was not legally entitled to a second child, but that her rights had nonetheless been violated by the local family planning bureau, and as a result, two officials were fired and five others punished. On June 27, the National Population and Family Planning Commission announced it would send inspection teams across China to review the practices of local family planning divisions. Feng's husband, Deng Jiyuan (), hired a lawyer to pursue criminal charges, but ultimately the family decided to settle out of court. The incident led to increased scrutiny of China's one-child policy, both nationally and internationally. Feng's case has been cited in editorials critical of the one- child policy, and has also been used as an example of how the Internet is empowering ordinary people in an environment of government censorship. On July 5, European Parliament passed a resolution condemning both Feng's case and forced abortion in general. On January 1, 2016, after months of discussion, China's one-child policy was replaced with a two-child policy. Since 1979, Chinese couples have been limited to one child by law in order to control the country's population. Families living in rural areas, as well as those with an ethnic minority background, can often receive an exemption from the law and have a second child without penalty. Otherwise, couples who have two or more children are required to pay a fine to the government. According to He Yafu, an independent demographer, such fines are common and "have become a major source of profit for family planning authorities" in recent years. The demographer He adds that the fines allow wealthy families to have extra children while forcing poorer families into involuntary abortions. The fines generate an estimated 20 billion yuan per year in revenue for the government. He Yafu estimates that over 2 trillion yuan (~$314 billion USD) has been collected since 1980. China's Population and Family Planning Law prohibits infringement on people's personal rights and property for family planning purposes. Moreover, a 2001 law prohibited abortions after the sixth month of pregnancy. Nevertheless, human rights groups and critics of the one-child policy say that these laws are inconsistently enforced, and the local officials in many areas still carry out forced sterilizations and/or coerced abortions, sometimes in the third trimester after the fetus has reached viability. In ten Chinese provinces, including Shaanxi, authorities are permitted to take "remedial measures" to ensure that birth quotas are not exceeded. In eight other provinces, authorities are required to terminate unauthorized pregnancies. Activists such as Chen Guangcheng have been jailed by the Chinese government for bringing to light evidence of forced abortions. In 2005, Chen filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of women forced into sterilization or abortions and subsequently spent seven years in jail or under house arrest before emigrating to the United States in 2012. In October 2011, Feng Jianmei, who was a 22-year-old woman from the small village of Yuping in Zeng Jia Township, Shaanxi province, became pregnant with her second child. She had married in 2006 and given birth to a girl in 2007. After listening to the advice of relatives, Feng and her husband, Deng Jiyuan, had believed they would be allowed to have a second child since they had waited five years between children and lived in a rural area. According to Zhenping County officials, authorities had contacted Feng in March 2012 and told her that she needed to obtain documentation, including a new household registration (referred to as hukou), in order to file an application to have the child. Her family denies this, saying that officials did not notify them until several days before the abortion was induced. Around May 28, local family planning officials phoned Feng to try to persuade her to have an abortion. The attempt was unsuccessful, so on May 30 they visited the family house while Feng's husband was away at work. At first, authorities tried to persuade her to voluntarily have an abortion. After several hours, she told the officials she was going out to buy food, and left them in her living room. Instead, she went to an aunt's house, but around 15 officials followed her. They did not immediately arrest Feng, instead setting up shifts to keep watch over her at the aunt's house. Early the next morning, Feng escaped, causing the guards to panic. She flagged down a van and persuaded the driver to help her. The driver let her out down the road, and Feng hid in hillside brush for the next 14 hours, waiting for the cover of darkness in the cold and rainy weather. When night came, she went to a relative's house in the countryside, where she hid under the bed. Authorities from the family planning office found her regardless, and allegedly assaulted her. They let her get a night's sleep before taking her to the hospital on June 2. Several witnesses reported that four men carried Feng out of the house with a pillowcase over her head. Simultaneously, family planning officials were in communication with Feng's husband, Deng Jiyuan. On June 1, they demanded that Deng either transfer his wife's residency status on the next day or pay 100,000 yuan (US$15,700) to the birth-planning social security fund. Transferring the residency status in one day was impossible, but Deng negotiated the payment down to 30,000 yuan before returning to Zhenping County (he actually only had 18,000 yuan that he had borrowed from work, but hoped an IOU would cover the balance). On his way back, Deng received a text message that demanded that he immediately pay the fee, which was now 40,000 yuan, and "not a penny less". Other family members received similar text messages. At the hospital, two men forced Feng to apply her thumbprint to a consent form and sign a document authorizing the abortion. She was taken into an operating room and restrained by two men as she was injected with a poison to kill the fetus. Feng later told All Girls Allowed, an American group campaigning against the one-child policy, "I could feel the baby jumping around inside me all the time, but then she went still." She had been seven months pregnant at the time, so the abortion, voluntary or not, was illegal under Chinese law. No family members were allowed to be present for the procedure. After the child died of hypoxia, Feng underwent induced labor and delivered a stillborn girl on June 4. Feng later told All Girls Allowed: "It was much more painful than my first childbirth. The baby was lifeless, and she was all purple and blue." The corpse was then placed next to Feng on her bed for her family to dispose of when they arrived. Feng was traumatized by the procedure and smashed the door and cabinetry of a nurse's office in a fit of rage. A week later, Deng told The South China Morning Post, "My wife is not well. She is sad and distressed. Sometimes she becomes emotional and confused." Feng reportedly had a severe headache for several weeks after the abortion and attempted suicide multiple times. On June 15, an uncle told reporters Feng was in poor health and unable to eat. On June 26, Feng was still in the hospital and suffering from headaches. She told reporters that she wanted to go home, but that hospital staff would not allow her to leave. On June 29, her family reported that Feng would be released the next day. However, her condition worsened, and she did not return home until July 10. Deng filed an official complaint with Ankang's petition office. A deputy mayor allegedly told Deng that they would investigate, but when nothing appeared to be happening, Deng posted his family's story online. later telling CNN that "I'm angry and want justice." Meanwhile, the township officials had prepared a statement that said Feng was of sound mind and body when she signed the consent form authorizing the abortion. Feng's sister-in-law and Deng Jiyuan's sister, Deng Jicai (), came back from Hubei the day after the abortion and brought a video camera with her to film Feng. A family planning official, who discovered the tape, then demanded that it be erased. However, Jicai was able to capture several pictures with her cell phone. On June 11, a picture of Feng lying in a hospital bed "staring at the ceiling with dull eyes" next to the bloody corpse was posted on Chinese social media website Sina Weibo, along with an image of a threatening text message sent by authorities. The images prompted outrage, and news of the event spread quickly. Angry comments from around China poured in, with people calling the authorities' actions "an atrocity", "the same as murder." Many comments called for an end to the one-child policy, or tied the case to other controversial topics such as the corruption of local officials or the country's rural-urban divide. Many posts were quickly deleted by government censors. Nonetheless, by June 13, more than 40,000 comments about the photos were present on Sina Weibo, and by June 15, images of Feng were among the most forwarded. "Seven-months pregnant forced abortion" was the website's top search term, and more than one million user comments were logged on the topic. Discussion also spread to other social media outlets, including NetEase, where threads critical of the government were quickly locked to prevent further discussion. Zhang Kai (), a lawyer known for his representation of the disadvantaged, posted the story on his blog. Li Chengpeng, a Chinese blogger with at the time more than five million followers, learned of the story and wrote "the purpose of family planning was to control population, but now it has become murder population ... If this evil policy is not stopped, this country will have no humanity." Zhao Chu, a writer decried the one-child policy as a "profit-oriented activity that everyone hates", writing "this is not about enforcing the policy, it is about depriving someone’s right to live". Liang Jianzhang, chief executive of Ctrip, called Feng's case "outrageous and violent" and "not unique to Shaanxi", saying that "abolition of the absurd family-planning policy is the only way to root out this kind of evil". Local newspaper Hua Shang Bao ran a story on Feng.On June 12, human rights activist Huang Qi also posted the story and images. The story was then picked up by major media outlets throughout China. On June 14, state-backed newspaper Global Times reported that "online posts about Feng's forced abortion had triggered a torrent of criticism directed at the Zhenping government and sparked debate about the national family planning policy". On his personal Weibo account, chief editor Hu Xijin wrote, "I strongly oppose the barbarous forced abortion", saying the country's family planning enforcement needed to change. However, he stated that overall the one-child policy was a good thing, writing that "the world resources cannot afford to feed a China with billions of people". On June 13, French news agency Agence France-Presse reported that the graphic images of Feng and her stillborn child "have caused an uproar in China". Al Jazeera also ran a story about Feng that day. The next day, BBC, CNN, The Age, and other major media outlets around the world ran articles on the topic. After the story of Feng Jianmei's abortion gained widespread domestic and international exposure, Zhenping County officials denied the allegations, saying that the abortion was legal and that Feng had requested it. "Feng agreed to go through an operation to end the pregnancy on June 2 following repeated mediation by the township officials", read the county's website. They further stated that she did not have a local hukou registration and that the couple was not entitled to a second child. The statement was later removed, with a search for Feng's name causing an "error" message. A few days later, local family planning official Yuan Fang stated the request for 40,000 yuan was "a deposit" that would have been returned after Feng filed the necessary paperwork. A hospital employee acknowledged that Feng was staying there and that the hospital "implements" family planning policy and "provides services" to that effect, but denied that forced abortion was a part of what they do. He said he didn't know the details of Feng's case but stated that "she is probably just exaggerating things on the Internet". It was soon revealed that the Zeng Jia Township had failed to reach its enforcement quotas under the one-child policy for the past two years, so it had received a "yellow card" warning. Desiring to remove the warning, town officials decided to crack down on enforcement in June 2012. Approximately ten days after the forced abortion occurred, the Shaanxi Provincial Population and Family Planning Commission launched an investigation. On June 13, Yu Yanmei, the deputy head of Ankang, visited the Deng household. Two days later, the commission concluded that Feng had indeed been forced into an illegal abortion, writing, "Such practice has seriously violated the relevant policies ... harmed the image of our family planning work, and caused extremely poor effects in society." Three officials, including the head of the local family-planning department, were suspended from their jobs on June 14. An employee of the Ankang Family Planning Bureau said that "grass-roots comrades aren't stupid, but this is what they're forced to do ... This is a problem with the entire system." The Ankang city government promised to "pursue strict legal and disciplinary action" once the investigation was finished. On June 14, the city issued a formal apology. "Since the illegal actions by some officials have seriously hurt Feng Jianmei and her family, we want to offer our deep apologies to them and to the generic public", read the statement. The same day, deputy mayor Du Shouping visited Feng in the hospital to express the city's "sincere apologies." "I hope we can earn your forgiveness," he said in a statement published on the city's webpage. The Chinese government also said it had released a pamphlet emphasizing that late term abortion is prohibited and that the legal rights of pregnant women should be maintained. On June 26, the results of the investigation were announced. The investigation concluded that Feng was not entitled to have a second child due to her non-agricultural hukou, and that she had been told to fix her registration in March. However, Feng's rights were violated by county officials and there was no legal basis for the demanded 40,000 yuan fee. "The incident showed that some officials at the grassroots level have a weak sense of the law and show little concern for the well-being of the people", the report said. The head of the family planning bureau of Zhenping, Jiang Nenghai, and one other official were fired. Five other government and hospital employees received some form of punishment. Additionally, the county government was ordered to provide Feng with a living stipend. Of the government's actions, Deng Jicai said, "Of course we're not satisfied with the result." She added, "all they've done is punish a few leaders, but they haven't done anything to the people directly responsible for dragging my sister-in-law [Feng] in to have an abortion. They haven't pursued a single person for criminal liability." Jicai also noted that no mention was made of the people who later harassed the family, nor was there any mention of an incident where her brother was attacked and beaten. Zhang Kai, a lawyer from Beijing, told Deng Jiyuan he would look into filing a lawsuit against the township government. "To force a woman who is seven months pregnant to have an abortion is a serious violation of the law," he said. "At the very least it should be considered willful and malicious injury." Zhang said he hoped the case would cause people to rethink China's population control policies. On June 29, he announced that he was officially representing the family and would seek the help of other lawyers to get the case heard in criminal court. However, he acknowledged that doing so would be difficult. "China's family planning departments are above the law," he explained. "Even when they do something illegal it is rare for them to be held responsible." In response to the lawsuit threats, local officials cancelled a planned meeting to discuss the living stipend, saying they would wait for Jiyuan's return to Zeng Jia Township. Judge Xie Xue told reporters that forced abortion would not be classified as homicide or kidnapping, but could qualify as an intentional injury crime. In cases where complications arose after the abortion, such as Feng's, the injury could be considered a serious offense bearing a possible penalty of three to ten years in prison. However, The Wall Street Journal said a legal remedy was unlikely, noting that a 2008 decision by the Supreme People's Court indicated that litigation could not be based on specific provisions of the constitution. Furthermore, family planning law does not have any provision for damages awarded to victims of abuse by government officials. On July 2, Zhang submitted an official request for the Ankang police to file a case and investigate the officials involved. Subsequently, Deng returned home and decided to negotiate with local authorities. On July 10, the family agreed to settle out of court for 70,600 yuan (~$11,200 USD). Additionally, the township agreed to pay Feng's medical bills if she contracted a disease from the abortion. "I've given up legal appeals and agreed to take the compensation offered by the township government," Deng remarked. "We just want our normal life back." He added, "It has never been about the money. As ordinary people, we can no longer take the pressure from all sides of the society". Zhang said the family gave up on pursuing criminal charges because local law enforcement was uncooperative, explaining that "if the prosecutors don't fulfill their responsibilities [to press charges], it's impossible to do." An official told Xinhua, China's official state news agency, that the government was committed to providing for the family's financial needs if they should encounter future financial difficulties and that the government would also provide medical care for the Dengs' ailing mother. Zhang said the compensation could not make up for a lifetime of "spiritual pain" and remarked that 70,000 yuan could not compensate for a lost life. "In terms of compensation, the word satisfaction doesn’t even enter the equation," Jiyuan remarked. "But this is the result, so we just have to accept it." Reactions on Chinese social media were mixed, and some commented that the government had gotten too lenient a consequence. International activists said the settlement of Feng's case was just the beginning of the fight to end the one-child policy, with Bob Fu of ChinaAid remarking, "The bottom line is there are hundreds and thousands of [cases like] Feng Jianmei." As of July 13, the family had not received the promised compensation and Jiyuan told reporters he was not sure if it would ever come. In the weeks after Feng Jianmei's story went public, the family suffered from what Zhang called "state-backed harassment." The harassment started when Deng Jiyuan attempted to go to Beijing to talk with a lawyer and do a television interview. Jiyuan's travel attempt was stopped by "more than 100 people and a dozen cars," according to Deng Jicai. Then, "a man suddenly appeared and kicked my brother in the stomach." After Jiyuan was interviewed by Stern magazine on June 22, the harassment from the government became worse, with Jiyuan stating that he was subsequently followed by "local officials and thugs" everywhere he went, even the bathroom. He then disappeared from public sight on June 24, only phoning home on June 26 to say he was safe, but his whereabouts remained unknown. On June 29, Jiyuan reappeared in Beijing, telling reporters, "I came to Beijing in search of help." He said that he had made two unsuccessful attempts to flee from custody before succeeding on his third try. While his official monitors were on the phone, Jiyuan fled to a friend's home, where he remained for two days. He removed the sim card and battery from his cell phone to prevent being tracked. "I did not sleep or get any new clothes, I could not risk being arrested," he recalled. They rented a car and drove to Beijing, and Jiyuan recalled that "I assumed there would be government people at the train station." Whenever they neared police officers, he would get out of the car and walk to prevent being spotted. Other family members were also reportedly followed and harassed by government officials. Protestors converged outside the hospital where Feng was staying, carrying a banner that read "severely beat the traitors and expel them." Local media reported that the local government had organized the protest. About a dozen guards patrolled outside Feng's hospital room for two weeks, following family members wherever they went. "We feel like prisoners," remarked Deng Jicai. Supporters of the family allege that local officials were also engaged in an online smear campaign against the family. "The whole family feels very depressed and pressured," said Jicai. On June 26, a visiting family member had their tires slashed. A spokesperson for the Shaanxi provincial government called the allegations of harassment unfounded rumors. However, Liang Zhongtang, an independent researcher, said it was common for people who seek outside help to be harassed by local governments. He speculated that the township government was trying to prevent further media coverage of the case. On July 13, Jiyuan said that he remained concerned over his family's future safety, noting: "There are rumors on the street that after this thing calms down, when people are not paying attention to us anymore, they [the officials who were punished for approving the abortion] will kill my family." Later, when asked if she still wanted to have another child, Feng told The New York Times, "That depends on how my body recovers. Yes, if I can get my health back." On June 27, the National Population and Family Planning Commission announced it would conduct a review of family planning enforcement country-wide. As part of the review, ten inspection teams would be sent to nineteen different provinces to review the practices of local offices, and that the teams would be charged with settling disputes and would distribute contraceptives. Commission director Wang Xia said the inspection was of great importance, remarking that "even slight carelessness in law enforcement [damages] the image of the Party and the country." Xia said the review would aim to "strengthen the day-to-day management of services, avoid the use of violence and prevent abuses of administrative enforcement"; he placed a special emphasis on the "social maintenance fees" collected from policy violators. Simultaneously, the commission declared that fines collected for future violations could no longer be spent at the local level, but instead would go into a general fund. He Yafu described the campaign as an attempt by the commission to restore public trust that had been badly damaged by Feng's forced abortion. On July 3, 2012, an open letter by three members of the Development Research Center of the State Council, a think tank that advises the Chinese ruling cabinet, was published in the group's newspaper, China Economic Times. In the letter they called for "adjustments" to be made to the one-child policy "as soon as possible". The group advised that "an opening up of the two-child option to all should be considered." Demographer Liang Zhongtang said the letter was likely the start of a gradual shift in policy, but that a sudden shift was very unlikely. Although there was no explicit mention of Feng Jianmei in the letter, multiple news sources drew a connection between the timing of the two events. Writing for The New Yorker, Evan Osnos said that "pressure for change of China’s one-child policy seems to be mounting" in the wake of Feng's case. On July 5, a group of fifteen scholars released an own open letter to the National People's Congress arguing that change to family planning law was "imperative". The letter mentioned research indicating economic consequences of continuing the one-child policy, but focused on human rights issues, mentioning Feng by name. "Behind these incidents are clear limitations and defects in the nation's family planning laws," read the letter. Liang Jianzhang, one of the letter's signers, told a reporter "From an economic perspective, the one-child policy is irrational. From a human-rights perspective, it's even less rational." Feng Jianmei's ordeal brought increased scrutiny to China's abortion and population-control policies. International commentators were highly critical of the government's role in Feng's abortion. "Feng Jianmei's story demonstrates how the One-Child Policy continues to sanction violence against women every day", said Chai Ling of the NGO All Girls Allowed. Women's Rights Without Frontiers' president Reggie Littlejohn stated "no legitimate government would commit or tolerate such an act. Those who are responsible should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity." In a press release, the Christian Alliance Defense Fund called Feng's case "nothing less than a crime against humanity" and asked American political leaders to formally condemn the act. The World Evangelical Alliance said it was "outraged" by the incident and asked the Chinese government to "ensure that these tragic incidents are prevented from happening in the future". On July 5, European Parliament passed a resolution condemning both the treatment of Feng and forced abortions in general, "especially in the context of the one-child policy". The resolution also requested that forced abortion be added the agenda for the next bilateral human rights dialogue with China. Additionally, some Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) requested an independent investigation into forced abortion and infanticide in China. A few days later, MEP Lojze Peterle opined that Chinese family planning law violates provisions outlined by the United Nations in the International Conference on Population and Development. He said the resolution passed by parliament gives the European Commission a "clear mandate" to withdraw funds from any organization potentially involved in aiding coercive practices in China, citing the International Planned Parenthood Federation and Marie Stopes International as two potential targets. On July 9, the Human Rights Subcommittee of the United States House of Representatives convened a hearing on the one-child policy prompted by Feng's story. In his opening remarks, chairman Chris Smith called the one-child policy "a nightmarish 'brave new world' ... where women are psychologically wounded, girls fall victim to sex-selective abortion ... and most children grow up without brothers or sisters, aunts or uncles or cousins". He said that because of Feng, people were "finally seeing the gruesome reality of China's one-child policy". Congressman Joseph R. Pitts agreed, saying, "It now seems that consensus in China is building towards reforming the policy." Committee witnesses called for a number of responses such as restricting United Nations Population Fund outlays and encouraging U.S. corporations doing business in China to reject the country's family-planning practices at their facilities. Feng's case became a focal point for newspaper editorials against China's one- child policy and abortion in general. Opponents of the one-child policy said the case is a potential turning point in the efforts to end the rule. On June 26, Reuters said the story had sparked "a firestorm domestically and around the world", explaining, "Feng Jianmei's abortion was portrayed in the Chinese and international press as an example of the extreme measures some officials would take to control China's population, even if it meant breaking Chinese law." A story in The Wall Street Journal remarked that the case "dramatize[s] the harshness of the one-child policy." The incident prompted Evan Osnos, the New Yorker writer, to create a feature piece titled "Abortion and Politics in China." Osnos said that "the Feng case is emblematic of some of the most inflammatory issues on Chinese public life", including money, government corruption, the household registration system, and of course family planning, and that "the case is a dramatic demonstration of exactly why the Communist Party had reason to be afraid of the Internet." On June 23, The Economist featured a story on China’s one-child policy, focusing on Feng's forced abortion and how the internet was changing power dynamics in China. "Three years ago, Ms. Feng's suffering might have gone unnoticed ... But her relatives uploaded the graphic pictures onto the internet, and soon microblogs had flashed them to millions of people across the country," writes the article's author. Wang Songlian, a researcher for Chinese Human Rights Defenders, said it was certain that the internet had made discussion of Feng's case possible, but she called the officials' punishments "isolated" and said "government officials are virtually immune in using violence and carrying out the policy by force. We've not seen any significant [change] in holding officials accountable." A June 22 editorial in The Australian argued against the one-child policy, stating that Feng's case "one small example of the terrible costs of China's longstanding population control regime". A June 25 editorial in the Herald Sun, which examined family planning in general, said that Feng "personifies the end game of forced population limits". Several commentators have compared Feng Jianmei to Liu Yang, who was in the news at roughly the same time for becoming the first Chinese female in space. On June 17, the Tea Leaf Nation blog published a story entitled "Netizens Reflect As One Chinese Woman Touches Heaven, Another Hell". The story, focused on a widely distributed Sina Weibo post, features pictures of Feng and Liu side by side, and the blogger wrote in the caption "The stark contrast between the fates of [the] two women ... is the clearest illustration of the torn state of this nation." The post was quickly re-tweeted by famous blogger Han Han. By the time the government deleted both posts, the information had already been shared 70,000 times in the first 24 hours. The International Herald Tribune immediately picked up the story, stating, "The gruesome abortion incident was cast this weekend against China’s successful launching of its first female astronaut. The sad irony of the two women’s situations was not lost on Chinese netizens." Two days later, the Global Post published the story and commented, "leave it to Sina Weibo to point out what's important", explaining that the juxtaposition of the two new stories "[highlights] China's current troubled and contradictory state ... Some Chinese women get launched into space, others receive injections that kill their unborn child." Journalist Andrew Bolt used Feng's case to editorialize against abortion in Australia, writing, "Deng Jiyuan has shamed the tyrants of Beijing. But ... he shames us here as well." He compared Feng's abortion to famous cases in Australia and concluded that the main difference was the graphic pictures of Feng's baby. Asia Times Online featured Feng's story in an editorial titled "China's addiction to birth planning". Author Peter Lee remarked that it was "disturbing" how many resources the township devoted to persuading Feng, quoting an official as saying, "On that day, pretty much all of the township leadership and relevant staff all went [to get Feng to the hospital]." He concluded that the way the case was handled provides strong evidence that at least some of China's leaders are anxious to end the one-child policy. In contrast, an editorial published in The Peninsula argued that the case showed China's leaders were losing their ability to control local authorities. He Yafu says the controversy has damaged the public image of one-child policy in China. Journalist Fareed Zakaria suggested there were signs that the Chinese government was softening its rules, noting the large number of prominent citizens who spoke out against Feng's abortion. Zakaria wrote, "Even a few years ago, it would have taken a very brave Chinese thinker to pose that question in public." However, he said that formal change would be impossible before a change in leadership occurred, and even then would "take much courage". A July 17 piece in The Huffington Post said that the case "captured the public imagination in China because it exemplifies broader systemic issues". Feng's case had been cited by both pro-life and pro-choice advocates in the United States in support of their causes; for pro-life advocates, the case represented "the kind of 'federally endorsed' abortions that they fear may lie in store for the United States", while for pro-choice advocates, "[Feng] should have been granted a choice in the first place." Original Sina Weibo post that started the controversy (text in Chinese), Text of resolution passed by the European Parliament, Witness statements from US House hearing, Opening statement by congressman Chris Smith, Story about Pan Chunyan, a woman who came forward with her story of being forced into abortion while eight months pregnant after seeing the outrage caused by Feng's abortion, Editorials about and/or inspired by Feng Jianmei's forced abortion, Editorial in Global Times (China) condemning forced abortion, Editorial in Asian Times (Hong Kong/Thailand) arguing against the one-child policy, Editorial in The Calgary Herald (Canada) arguing against the one-child policy and abortion in general, Editorial in The New York Times (USA) by abortion-rights activist Nancy Northup condemning forced abortion, Editorial in The Peninsula (Qatar) arguing that China's leaders are losing control over the country Shadow Children is a series of seven books by Margaret Peterson Haddix about a dystopian country which suffers food shortages due to a drought and the effects of the government's totalitarian attempts to control resources as a way to solidify its power. The Population Police enforce the government's Population Law, killing or imprisoning "shadow children," any child born after his or her first two siblings. In some cases, a parent may choose to forge a child's identification card so a shadow child can live a normal life. Margaret Peterson Haddix began writing Among the Hidden after discussions with her husband regarding if they wanted to have more than two children, which developed into conversations concerning overpopulation, the earth's limited resources, and China's One Child Policy. The conversations gradually led Haddix into creating Luke Garner, a twelve-year-old boy forced to live with strict controls and limited choices that result in him spending his life in hiding due to a government that said that he would not have the right to exist. Though Haddix had not intended to continue Among the Hidden, she began to explore other characters and other tangents in the subsequent six books in the series. The Shadow Children sequence is set in a country where the government has enforced strict population control laws in order to control overpopulation after environmental conditions have severely limited resources, particularly food. As a result, it is against the law for families to have more than two children; the law is strictly enforced by the Population Police, who are said to conduct raids specifically to find and punish families who have more than two children. The Population Police, due to its power, is usually corrupt and holds control over government policies. Unknown to the common public, the elite of society, known as Barons, have used their wealth and influence to live lavishly and circumvent the strict population and food laws. Due to these circumstances, the third (and subsequent) children of ordinary people are hidden and denied opportunities, often at great expense, and are denied the right to exist. In creating the setting, Haddix did not specify the exact time and place for the story in order for readers to consider that the events could happen in the United States if droughts, famine, and extreme environmental changes occurred. Similarly, she elected not to give a precise time period for the story in order to encourage readers not to dismiss the plausibility of the events in the story. Among the Hidden, Among the Impostors, Among the Betrayed, Among the Barons, Among the Brave, Among the Enemy, Among the Free Luke Garner the main character Nina Idi Trey Matthias Jason Barstow Aldous Krakenour Oscar Wydell Jen Talbot George Talbot Mr. Hendricks Percy and Alia Smithfield "Smits" Grant The Grants Theodora Talbot Mark Garner Matthew Garner Edna and Harlan Garner Joel Westing and John Abbott Jonas Sabine Nedley/Mike Tidwell Philip Twinnings

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Super Bowl XXXIII was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos (who were also defending their Super Bowl XXXII championship) and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Atlanta Falcons to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1998 season. The Broncos defeated the Falcons by the score of 34–19, winning their second consecutive Super Bowl. The game was played on January 31, 1999, at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Florida (now part of the suburb of Miami Gardens, which became a separate city in 2003). The defending Super Bowl champion Broncos entered the game with an AFC-best 14–2 regular season record. The Falcons, under former Denver head coach Dan Reeves, were making their first Super Bowl appearance after also posting a 14–2 regular season record. Aided by quarterback John Elway's 80-yard touchdown pass to receiver Rod Smith, Denver scored 17 consecutive points to build a 17–3 lead in the second quarter from which Atlanta could not recover. In the final game of his career before his announced retirement on May 2, 1999, he completed 18 of 29 passes for 336 yards with one touchdown and one interception, and also scored a 3-yard rushing touchdown. At 38 years old, Elway became the oldest player, at the time, to be named Super Bowl MVP, a record that stood until Tom Brady surpassed it in 2017 at the age of 39, coincidentally also against Atlanta. The NFL originally awarded Super Bowl XXXIII to Candlestick Park in San Francisco on November 2, 1994, at the owners meetings in Rosemont, Illinois but pulled the game away after it became unclear whether planned renovations to the stadium were going to happen. NFL owners then awarded Super Bowl XXXIII to the Miami area during their October 31, 1996 meeting in New Orleans. Other cities under consideration were Atlanta, Tampa, and Los Angeles. Owners initially planned on selecting only two hosts (XXXIII and XXXIV), but decided to name three after strong showings by the respective delegations. Miami, Atlanta, and Tampa were selected to host XXXIII, XXXIV, and XXXV, respectively. This was the eighth time that the South Florida area hosted the game, and the third at Pro Player Stadium (formerly Joe Robbie Stadium). Following Super Bowl XXXII, which was played at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Super Bowl XXXIII would mark the last time back-to-back Super Bowls were played outdoors until Super Bowls XLIII, which was held at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, and XLIV, which was played at Pro Player Stadium, now known as Hard Rock Stadium. This started a streak of 11 straight Super Bowls in which every game with the NFC as the home team was played outdoors and every one with the AFC as the home team was played indoors (incidentally, these games were followed by three Super Bowls played indoors, as AT&T; Stadium, Lucas Oil Stadium, and the Superdome were chosen as the sites of Super Bowls XLV-XLVII; Super Bowls XLV and XLVI were played in stadiums with retractable roofs that were closed prior to the start of the game). Following the Broncos' victory during Super Bowl XXXII the previous season, many wondered if 15-year veteran quarterback John Elway would retire after finally winning a Super Bowl. But Elway decided to stay with Denver and see if he could lead them to a second consecutive championship. Under the leadership of head coach Mike Shanahan, the Broncos stormed to the top of the AFC with a 14–2 regular record in 1998, winning their first 13 games before suffering their first loss to the New York Giants. The Broncos' offense, under the leadership of Elway and running back Terrell Davis, had another outstanding regular season, ranking second in the NFL with 501 points and third in total offense with 6,276 yards. Davis had one of the greatest seasons of any running back in NFL history, rushing for 2,008 yards, catching 25 passes for 217 yards, and scoring 23 touchdowns to earn him both the NFL Most Valuable Player Award and the NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award. But Davis' rushing numbers did not reduce Elway's passing production. The 38-year-old quarterback made the Pro Bowl for the 3rd year in a row and the 9th time in his career, throwing for 2,806 yards and 22 touchdowns, with only 10 interceptions. A big reason for Elway's passing success was that he had two Pro Bowl wide receivers and a Pro Bowl tight end to throw to. Wide receivers Ed McCaffrey (64 receptions, 1,053 yards and 10 touchdowns) and Rod Smith (86 receptions, 1,222 yards, 6 touchdowns, and 66 rushing yards) provided the team with outstanding deep threats, while tight end Shannon Sharpe (64 receptions, 786 yards and 10 touchdowns) provided a sure-handed target over the middle. The Broncos also had three Pro Bowlers anchoring their offensive line: center Tom Nalen, guard Mark Schlereth, and tackle Tony Jones. On special teams, running back Vaughn Hebron returned 46 kickoffs for 1,216 yards and a touchdown, giving him a 26.4 yards per return average. The Broncos' defense typically did not get as much attention as their offense, but it was still effective, giving up 308 points (8th fewest in the NFL). Up front, the line was anchored by defensive tackles Maa Tanuvasa and Trevor Pryce, who each recorded 8.5 sacks. Behind them, Pro Bowl linebacker Bill Romanowski recorded 55 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 3 fumble recoveries, and 2 interceptions. The secondary was led by Pro Bowler Steve Atwater and Darrien Gordon, who led the team with 4 interceptions, which he returned for 125 yards and a touchdown. Gordon was also a great punt returner, returning 34 punts for 379 yards. The Falcons advanced to their first Super Bowl in franchise history. Like the Broncos, they finished the 1998 regular season with a 14–2 record, including wins in each of their last nine games. But unlike the Broncos, Atlanta's success in 1998 was very surprising to many because they had a 7–9 record in the previous season and a 3–13 record the year before that. In fact, the team recorded just four winning seasons in the last 20 years prior to 1998, and only two in the 1990s. (See List of Atlanta Falcons seasons.) However, the Falcons' fortunes began to improve after Dan Reeves became their head coach in 1997. During Reeves' first season with Atlanta, they finished the season 6–2, after starting out 1–7, to compile a 7–9 record overall. Reeves was Denver's head coach from 1981 to 1992, leading the Elway-led Broncos to Super Bowls XXI, XXII, and XXIV. But they lost each one, including a 55–10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XXIV. After that, Reeves was in constant conflict with his coaching staff and some of his players for the next three years. He left Denver in 1993 and spent four seasons as the head coach of the New York Giants before joining the Falcons. Pro Bowl quarterback Chris Chandler led Atlanta's offense extremely well, throwing for 3,154 yards and 25 touchdowns with just 12 interceptions, while also rushing for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns. Wide receivers Tony Martin and Terance Mathis provided the team with a superb deep threat, each recording over 60 receptions and 1,100 receiving yards, while also combining for 17 touchdowns. Tight end O.J. Santiago added 27 receptions for 428 yards and 5 scores. But the biggest threat on offense was Pro Bowl running back Jamal Anderson, who rushed for 1,846 yards, caught 27 passes for 319 yards, and scored 16 total touchdowns. Rookie wide receiver Tim Dwight gave the team a great special teams attack, gaining a total of 1,236 yards and scoring a touchdown on kickoff and punt returns. The Falcons' defense ranked 2nd in the league in fewest rushing yards allowed (1,203), 8th in fewest total yards allowed (5,009), and 4th in fewest points allowed. Defensive linemen Lester Archambeau (10 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries) and Chuck Smith (8.5 sacks, 4 fumble recoveries) excelled at pressuring quarterbacks and stopping the run. Behind them, Atlanta had two outstanding linebackers, Pro Bowler Jessie Tuggle (65 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 fumble recovery) and Cornelius Bennett (69 tackles, 1 sack, 2 fumble recoveries). Bennett played with the Buffalo Bills when they suffered their four consecutive Super Bowl losses in Super Bowls XXV, XXVI, XXVII, and XXVIII; and thus was determined to finally get a championship ring that had eluded him in the past. Atlanta's secondary was led by Pro Bowl cornerback Ray Buchanan, who recorded 7 interceptions and 102 return yards, and Pro Bowl safety Eugene Robinson (4 interceptions), who was with the Green Bay Packers when they appeared in Super Bowls XXXI and XXXII. The season was punctuated by Reeves receiving emergency coronary bypass surgery after Week 14. Doctors said he could have been "within hours of a catastrophic heart attack." Although asked to rest for at least six weeks, Reeves returned to the sidelines for Week 17. Then-defensive coordinator Rich Brooks substituted for Reeves as head coach in Weeks 15 and 16, and won both games. The Falcons did not return to play in another Super Bowl until 2016, when they lost 28–34 to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI. The Broncos demolished the Miami Dolphins 38–3 and beat the New York Jets 23–10 in the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Falcons were victorious against the San Francisco 49ers, 20–18 and then upset the heavily favored 15-1 Minnesota Vikings on the road, 30–27 in overtime. This was the third Super Bowl in history that featured two teams with two losses or less. Both teams came into the game with 16–2 records after the playoffs. The first was Super Bowl XII, featuring two 12-2 teams: the Dallas Cowboys and the Denver Broncos. The only Super Bowl featuring a better matchup record-wise was Super Bowl XIX, when the San Francisco 49ers had a 17–1 record and the Miami Dolphins had a 16–2 record. Much of the pregame hype was centered around John Elway confronting his former coach Reeves. Denver head coach Mike Shanahan was hurt and angered by Reeves' pregame assertion that Shanahan and Elway had conspired to have him fired during his stint at Denver. Media coverage also focused on whether or not Elway would retire after the season (which he eventually did). Elway became the first quarterback to start five Super Bowls; he previously started Super Bowls XXI, XXII, XXIV, and XXXII. Broncos defensive lineman Mike Lodish was making his record 6th appearance in a Super Bowl. He played with Buffalo in all four of their Super Bowl losses (Super Bowl XXV through XXVIII) and with Denver's first Super Bowl win the year before. On the night before the Super Bowl, Falcons safety Eugene Robinson was arrested for solicitation of prostitution. While driving alone in a rented car along a downtown Miami street, he approached a female undercover police officer posing as a prostitute and offered $40 for oral sex. Although he was released from jail and allowed to play the game, he was widely denounced by the press and fans for the incident. Ironically, on the morning of the day Robinson was arrested for the incident, he had received the Bart Starr Award for his "high moral character." The game was broadcast in the United States by Fox and featured the broadcast team of play-by-play announcer Pat Summerall and color commentator John Madden. James Brown hosted all the events with help from his then-fellow Fox NFL Sunday cast members Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Cris Collinsworth. Miami became the first Super Bowl host city to have games televised by all four major American broadcast networks. CBS televised Super Bowls II and X (and later XLI and XLIV), NBC televised Super Bowls III, V, XIII, and XXIII, and ABC televised Super Bowl XXIX. After the game, Fox aired the pilot episode of Family Guy, "Death Has a Shadow". Family Guy would become, at the time, only the fourth series to premiere after the Super Bowl and then have a very successful, lengthy run afterwards. The three other successful series that premiered after the Super Bowl were The A-Team after Super Bowl XVII, The Wonder Years after Super Bowl XXII, and after Super Bowl XXVII This was followed by The Simpsons episode "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday". With this appearance, the Broncos became the first team to play in Super Bowls televised on all four major broadcast networks in the United States. CBS televised the Broncos' losses in Super Bowls XII, XXI, and XXIV (and later their Super Bowl 50 victory), ABC their loss in Super Bowl XXII, and NBC their win in Super Bowl XXXII. The Pittsburgh Steelers became the second with their appearance in Super Bowl XLV, and the New York Giants the third with their appearance in Super Bowl XLVI. The starting lineups were shown using a virtual TV. To TV viewers, it appeared as if the end zone opened up and a giant TV came up out of the ground. The virtual TV displayed video announcing the starting lineups. The virtual TV effect was provided by PVI Virtual Media Services using their L-VIS virtual graphics system. During halftime, USA Network aired a special edition of WWF Sunday Night Heat called Halftime Heat featuring a match between The Rock and Mankind for the WWF Championship in an Empty Arena Match that took place in Arizona and had been taped five days before. Mankind won the title, just seven days after losing it to The Rock at the Royal Rumble. FoxSports.com also ran an online- only Internet halftime show, Webcast live from South Beach Miami, and hosted by then-Fox Sports Net anchorman Keith Olbermann. This halftime show was sponsored by Victoria's Secret and available exclusively in Windows Media Player. Viewer questions were solicited via the FoxSports.com website. The pregame show, narrated by actress Tori Spelling, depicted the adventure of a Caribbean cruise from its festive departure to its journey to exotic destinations. The show included a performance by KISS, along with their trademark elaborate costumes and theatrical pyrotechnics. Cher later sang the U.S. national anthem. To honor the 40th anniversary of the 1958 NFL Championship, also known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", the following participants of that game appeared during the coin toss ceremony: Raymond Berry, Lenny Moore, Jim Parker, Art Donovan, Gino Marchetti, Frank Gifford, Roosevelt Brown, Don Maynard, Sam Huff, and Tom Landry, the defensive coordinator of the New York Giants. Weeb Ewbank, head coach of the Baltimore Colts in that game, was also scheduled to appear, but died November 17, 1998. The halftime show was titled "A Celebration of Soul, Salsa and Swing" and featured Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Stevie Wonder, and Gloria Estefan. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy performed their song "Go Daddy-O". Wonder sang "Sir Duke", "You Are the Sunshine of My Life", and "I Wish". And Miami-native Estefan performed "Oye!" and "Turn the Beat Around", then a special performance by Stevie Wonder and Estefan was given performing Estefan's hit "You'll Be Mine (Party Time)". Tap dancer Savion Glover appeared during Wonder's performance of "I Wish". Falcons wide receiver Tim Dwight returned the opening kickoff 31 yards to the Atlanta 37-yard line. Then aided by a 25-yard pass interference penalty against Broncos defensive back Steve Atwater and 31 rushing yards from Jamal Anderson, the Falcons drove to the Broncos 8-yard line. But Denver linebacker Bill Romanowski sacked quarterback Chris Chandler for a 7-yard loss on third down, forcing Atlanta to settle for Morten Andersen's 32-yard field goal to give them a 3–0 lead. The Broncos then responded with an 80-yard scoring drive. Quarterback John Elway's 41-yard completion to wide receiver Rod Smith and two receptions by tight end Shannon Sharpe for a total of 26 net yards set up fullback Howard Griffith's 1-yard touchdown run. Unfortunately for Denver, Sharpe was injured on that drive. He did play the next drive, but was taken out of the game after that. Later in the first quarter, Falcons defensive back Ronnie Bradford intercepted a pass from Elway (that had bounced off Sharpe) and returned it to the Broncos 35-yard line. But Denver's defense made a great stand in the opening minutes of the 2nd quarter, tackling Anderson for no gain on 3rd down and 1, and then stopping him for a 2-yard loss on 4th down. Broncos running back Terrell Davis then rushed 4 times for 28 yards and Rod Smith caught an 18-yard pass as the Broncos drove 63 yards in 11 plays to score on Jason Elam's 26-yard field goal to increase their lead to 10–3. The Falcons then advanced to the Denver 8-yard line on their next drive, but failed to score when Andersen's 26-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right. Immediately after the Broncos got the ball back, Smith broke ahead of Falcons safety Eugene Robinson, caught a pass from Elway, and took off for an 80-yard touchdown reception, giving Denver a 17–3 lead (the fourth 80+ yard touchdown pass play in Super Bowl history). TV viewers did not see most of the play, as Fox was still airing a commercial for The Matrix at the time. Aided by Dwight's 42-yard kickoff return to the 49-yard line, the Falcons responded by driving to Denver's 11-yard line and scored with Andersen's 28-yard field goal to cut Atlanta's deficit to 17–6 going into halftime. The Broncos opened the second half by driving 74 yards to the Atlanta 20-yard line, but ended up scoring no points after Elam's 38-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right. Chandler responded on the next 2 plays with a 29-yard completion to receiver Tony Martin and a 12-yard scramble to advance the ball to the Denver 41-yard line. But then linebacker John Mobley sacked Chandler for a 6-yard loss, and cornerback Darrius Johnson intercepted Chandler's pass and returned it 28 yards to the Falcons 42-yard line on the next play. Denver then drove to the 29-yard line, but Elam missed another field goal attempt, this one from 47 yards. After the missed field goal, the Falcons drove to the Denver 21-yard line with Anderson's 13-yard run, wide receiver Terance Mathis' 13-yard catch, and a 15-yard run from Anderson, giving them a chance to cut their deficit to within one touchdown. However, Broncos defensive back Darrien Gordon intercepted a pass from Chandler and returned it 58 yards to the Atlanta 24-yard line. Two plays later on 3rd and 6, Elway's 15-yard completion to Ed McCaffrey gave Denver a 1st and goal from the 5-yard line. Griffith took the ball to the end zone from there with two consecutive running plays, the second a 1-yard run to increase Denver's lead to 24–6. The Falcons reached the Broncos 26-yard line on their ensuing drive, but Gordon intercepted another pass and returned this one 50 yards to the Atlanta 48-yard line. On the next play, Elway completed a short pass to running back Terrell Davis, who turned it into a 39-yard gain. Two plays later, Elway finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run, giving the Broncos a 31–6 lead (Elway became the second player in Super Bowl history to score a touchdown in four different Super Bowls; he ran for scores before in Super Bowls XXI, XXIV, and XXXII, joining Thurman Thomas on this list). Dwight returned the ensuing kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown to cut Atlanta's deficit to 31–13, but the Broncos recovered the ensuing onside kick attempt. Two plays later, a 25-yard completion from Elway to McCaffrey set up Elam's 37-yard field goal with just over 7 minutes left in the 4th quarter. The Falcons' offense advanced inside the Denver 30-yard line for the third consecutive time, with Chandler completing 8 of 14 passes for 67 yards and rushing for 6 yards, and finally scored this time on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Chandler to Mathis. Mathis' touchdown made the score 34–19 (Chandler's pass on the two-point conversion attempt was incomplete), but by then there was only 2:04 left in the game. Atlanta failed to recover the onside kick, but got the ball back on their own 30-yard line with 1:34 left after Denver failed to go for it on 4th down. However, Anderson fumbled at the Broncos 33-yard line, and Broncos defensive back Tyrone Braxton recovered the ball, allowing Denver to run out the clock and win the game. The two teams combined for a Super Bowl record 30 4th- quarter points, with the Broncos' 17 and Falcons' 13. The Falcons' offense gained a total of 337 yards, were not penalized once, and had driven inside Denver's 30-yard line seven times. But Atlanta's offense scored only 13 points and committed four turnovers. Meanwhile, the Broncos gained a total of 457 yards and scored 34 points. For the Broncos, Davis rushed for 102 yards and caught 2 passes for 50 yards. Davis' 102 rushing yards in the Super Bowl gave him over 100 rushing yards for the 7th consecutive postseason game (and he was the third player to run for 100 yards in back-to-back Super Bowls, the others being Larry Csonka in Super Bowls VII and VIII, and Emmitt Smith in Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII). Davis became just the second player to be on a Super Bowl-winning team after being named the NFL Most Valuable Player and leading the league in rushing. Emmitt Smith was the first one, but also was named Super Bowl MVP for Super Bowl XXVIII during that year. Marcus Allen is the only other player to win all three of these honors during his career. Allen won the 1985 NFL MVP Award and rushing title while being named Super Bowl XVIII MVP at the conclusion of the 1983 season. Smith caught 5 passes for 152 yards and a touchdown, an average of 30.4 yards per catch. Gordon recorded 2 interceptions and returned them for a Super Bowl record 108 yards. For the Falcons, Jamal Anderson rushed for 96 yards and caught 3 passes for 16 yards. Dwight returned 5 kickoffs for 210 yards, the second most in Super Bowl history, and the highest Super Bowl career yards per return average (42.0). Mathis led Atlanta with 7 receptions for 85 yards. Chandler finished the game with 19 out of 35 completions for 219 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted 3 times. Dan Reeves became the fourth head coach to lose four Super Bowls, joining Bud Grant, Don Shula, and Marv Levy. Reeves lost Super Bowls XXI, XXII, and XXIV while coaching the Broncos. Sources: NFL.com Super Bowl XXXIII, Super Bowl XXXIII Play Finder Den, Super Bowl XXXIII Play Finder Atl, USA Today Super Bowl XXXIII Play by Play Completions/attempts Carries Long gain Receptions Times targeted The following records were set in Super Bowl XXXIII, according to the official NFL.com boxscore, the 2017 NFL Record & Fact Book and the Pro-Football- Reference.com game summary.Some records have to meet NFL minimum number of attempts to be recognized. The minimums are shown (in parenthesis). Source: Referee: Bernie Kukar #86 first Super Bowl, Umpire: Jim Daopoulos #75 first Super Bowl, Head Linesman: Sanford Rivers #121 first Super Bowl, Line Judge: Ron Baynes #56 second Super Bowl (XXIX), Field Judge: Tim Millis #80 second Super Bowl (XXIX), Side Judge: Gary Lane #120 second Super Bowl (XXIII), Back Judge: Don Hakes #96 third Super Bowl (XVI, XXX), Alternate Referee: Gerald Austin #34 (side judge for XXIV, referee for XXXI and later XXXV), Alternate Umpire: Chad Brown #31 (umpire for XXXV and XLV) Prior to the start of the 1998 NFL season, the league swapped position titles with the field judge and back judge. Super Bowl official website, The Sporting News: History of the Super Bowl (Last accessed December 4, 2005), https://www.pro-football-reference.com – Large online database of NFL data and statistics, Super Bowl play-by-plays from USA Today (Last accessed September 28, 2005) The Tennessee Titans are the professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the then-Houston, Texas, team began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League. The Oilers won two AFL championships before joining the NFL as part of the AFL–NFL merger. In 1999, the Titans played their most memorable season since joining the NFL, when they made it all the way to Super Bowl XXXIV, but they fell to the Kurt Warner-led St. Louis Rams. The Titans were originally formed as the Houston Oilers, one of the eight charter members of the American Football League (AFL). They became a part of the National Football League in 1970 as part of the AFL–NFL merger and have remained a member of the NFL ever since. They played in Houston through the end of the 1996 season. They were part of the AFL's Eastern Division for their first ten years and became part of the American Football Conference upon their joining the NFL. They were placed in the AFC's Central Division, which they were part of until 2002. After the 1995 season, Bud Adams announced the move to Tennessee, causing fan support in Houston to collapse for the 1996 season. They intended to play at a new stadium in Nashville, but it would not be ready until 1999. The largest stadium in Nashville at the time, Vanderbilt Stadium on the campus of Vanderbilt University, seated only 41,000 — a capacity deemed too small for even temporary use. Vanderbilt was also unwilling to permit alcohol sales. However, Adams ruled out using the state's largest stadium, the University of Tennessee's Neyland Stadium, in Knoxville; at 102,000 seats, it would have been all but impossible to sell out in time to avoid local blackouts on television. Ultimately, Adams announced that the renamed Tennessee Oilers would play the next two seasons at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis. The team would be based in Nashville, commuting to Memphis only for games—essentially sentencing the Oilers to 32 road games for the next two years. Even though this arrangement was acceptable to the NFL and the Oilers at the time, few people in either Memphis or Nashville were happy about it. After numerous attempts to get an NFL team over the last three decades, Memphians wanted nothing to do with a team that would be lost in only two years—especially to longtime rival Nashville. Conversely, Nashvillians showed little inclination to drive over to see "their" team. At the time, Interstate 40 was in the midst of major reconstruction in the Memphis area, lengthening the normal three-hour drive between Nashville and Memphis to five hours. In Memphis, attendance was even worse than it had been in the team's final season in Houston. The Oilers played before some of the smallest NFL crowds since the 1950s, with none of the first seven games of the season attracting crowds larger than 27,000 (in a 62,000-seat stadium), and with at least two crowds of less than 18,000. The few fans there were usually indifferent, and often those that attended were fans of the opposing team. Attendance was smaller than what the USFL's Memphis Showboats had drawn and what the XFL's Memphis Maniax would draw to the same stadium. It appeared that only large contingents of fans supporting the Oilers' opponents kept average attendance from dropping below what it had been for the CFL's Memphis Mad Dogs. Despite this, Adams had every intention of playing in Memphis the next season. That changed after the final game of the 1997 season. The Oilers faced the Pittsburgh Steelers in front of 50,677 fans—the only crowd that could not have been reasonably accommodated at Vanderbilt. However, Steeler fans made up the great majority of the crowd (at least three-fourths, by one estimate). Adams was so embarrassed that he abandoned plans to play the 1998 season in Memphis and ended up playing at Vanderbilt after all. The team rebounded that season, and was in playoff contention until losing their last two games for another 8–8 record. The Oilers had gone 6–2 in Memphis while going 2–6 on the road. The Titans have maintained both radio and preseason TV affiliates in the Memphis area. On July 29, 1998, Adams announced that in response to fan requests, he was changing the Oilers' name to coincide with the opening of their new stadium and to better connect with Nashville. He also declared that the renamed team would retain the Oilers' heritage (including team records), as had all other relocated teams except the Browns/Ravens, and that there would be a Hall of Fame honoring the greatest players from both eras. Adams appointed an advisory committee to decide on a new name. He let it be known that the new name should reflect power, strength, leadership and other heroic qualities. On November 14, 1998, Adams announced that the Oilers would be known as the Tennessee Titans starting in 1999. The new name met all of Adams' requirements, and also served as a nod to Nashville's nickname of "The Athens of the South" (for its large number of higher-learning institutions, Classical architecture, and its full-scale replica of the Parthenon). The team's new logo and colors were unveiled on December 22, 1998. In 1999, Adelphia Coliseum, now known as Nissan Stadium, was completed and the newly christened Titans had a grand season, finishing with a 13–3 record — the best season in franchise history. They won their first game as the "Titans", defeating the Bengals before a sold out stadium (Every game since the Titans moved to Nashville has been sold out). They did not lose a game at home and finished one game behind the Jacksonville Jaguars for the AFC Central title. Tennessee then won their first round playoff game over the Buffalo Bills on a designed play, known as "Home Run Throwback" in the Titans playbook, that is commonly referred to as the "Music City Miracle": Tight-end Frank Wycheck made a lateral pass to Kevin Dyson on a kickoff return with 16 seconds left in the game and the Titans trailing by one point; Dyson returned the pass 75 yards for a touchdown to win the game. After replay review, the call on the field was upheld as a touchdown. The original play did not call for Dyson to be on the field and he was only involved due to an injury of another player. The Titans went on to defeat the Indianapolis Colts in Indianapolis, and then defeated the Jaguars in Jacksonville in the AFC Championship Game. The Titans' magnificent season led to a trip to Super Bowl XXXIV, where they lost to the St. Louis Rams when Kevin Dyson was tackled one yard short of the end zone (preserving a 23–16 Rams' lead) as regulation time expired, in a play known as "The Tackle". In 2000, the Titans finished with an NFL-best 13–3 record and won their third AFC Central title—their first division title as the Tennessee Titans. They won Central division titles in '91 and '93 while still in Houston as the Oilers. The Titans went on to lose their home Divisional playoff game to the eventual Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens. In 2001, the Titans collapsed to a 7–9 record and missed the playoffs. In 2002, the Titans were moved to the newly created AFC South division as a part of the league's divisional realignment caused by the addition of the Houston Texans. Despite starting the season 1–4 the Titans finished the season 11–5 and made it to the AFC Championship Game but lost to Oakland 41–24. The Titans went 12–4 and made the 2003 playoffs, winning their wild card game over the Baltimore Ravens and losing in the AFC divisionals to the New England Patriots who went on to win the Super Bowl. In 2003, quarterback Steve McNair won the MVP award, sharing it with Peyton Manning. The 2004 season created an unusual number of injuries to key players for the Titans and a 5–11 record. Their 5–11 record turned out to be their third-worst record ever since the Houston/Tennessee Oilers became the Tennessee Titans. Numerous key players were cut or traded by the Titans front office during the off season, including Derrick Mason, Samari Rolle, Kevin Carter, and others. This was done due to the Titans being well over the salary cap. In 2005, the Titans took the field with the youngest team in the NFL. Several rookies made the 2005 team including first round pick, cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones, offensive tackle Michael Roos, and three wide receivers, Brandon Jones, Courtney Roby, and Roydell Williams. After losing their first game of the season on the road to the Pittsburgh Steelers 34–7 and then winning their Week 2 home-opener against the Baltimore Ravens 25–10, the Titans began the season 1–1, but quickly fell out of contention. They lost on the road to the St. Louis Rams 31–27 and lost to their division rival, the Colts 31–10. After getting some redemption on the road against their new division rival, the Houston Texans 34–20, they lost five-straight games to the Cincinnati Bengals (31–23), the Arizona Cardinals (20–10), the Oakland Raiders (34–25), the Cleveland Browns (20–14), and then (coming off of their Week 10 bye), their division rival, the Jacksonville Jaguars 31–28. The Titans won at home against the San Francisco 49ers 33–22, but then went on the road and were swept by the Colts 35–3. The Titans defeated the luckless Texans 13–10 at home, but that was their last win of the year, as they lost their remaining three games to the Seattle Seahawks (28–24), the Miami Dolphins (24–10), and the Jacksonville Jaguars (40–13). Their record for the season was 4–12. In 2006, The team finished at 8–8, a definite improvement over the previous year's mark of 4–12. The year saw Vince Young lead the team to an 8–5 record as the starting quarterback. That span also included six straight victories. The team's chances of making the postseason at 9–7 ended at the hands of New England in a 40–23 defeat. Floyd Reese resigned as the franchise's Executive Vice President/General Manager on January 5, 2007 after thirteen seasons at the helm. He was replaced by Mike Reinfeldt on February 12 of the same year. In 2007, after starting a promising 6–2, the Titans lost four of their next five games to fall to 7–6. They then won their next three games including a must-win game against the Indianapolis Colts. They were tied for the final playoff spot with the Cleveland Browns, but they won the tiebreaker and made the playoffs at 10–6. In the wild card round they lost to the San Diego Chargers, 17–6. The 2008 season began with the Titans selecting Chris Johnson out of East Carolina University in the first round of the NFL draft, and subsequently acquired former Titan (most recently Eagle) DE Jevon Kearse and former Falcons TE Alge Crumpler. After a Week 1 injury to Vince Young, Kerry Collins took over the starting quarterback position and led the Titans to a 10–0 record before their first defeat at the hands of the New York Jets on November 23. The Titans followed up the 34–13 loss by defeating the winless Lions on Thanksgiving by a score of 47–10. In week 14, Tennessee clinched its second AFC South title with a 28–9 victory over the Cleveland Browns. In the week 14 game against the Browns, rookie Chris Johnson rushed 19 times for 136 yards and one touchdown and LenDale White rushed for 99 yards and one touchdown. They later clinched a first round playoff bye with a loss of the New York Jets. On December 21, 2008, the Titans played the Pittsburgh Steelers in a contest to decide the number one seed in the AFC. The Titans won 31–14 and clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Their final record was 13–3, which ties their franchise record for most wins. On Saturday, January 10, they lost their home playoff game 13–10 to the Baltimore Ravens, who had previously won their Wildcard game at Miami on January 4. The playoff game against Baltimore included three red zone turnovers and 12 penalties by the Titans. After their successful 2008 season, the Titans looked to be very promising in 2009. However, the opening game against Pittsburgh resulted in a 13–10 overtime loss and things disintegrated from there as they dropped the next five matches. This losing streak culminated in a catastrophic 59–0 defeat at the hands of New England. After the bye week, it was decided that Vince Young would succeed Kerry Collins as the starting quarterback. The team began recovering and won five in a row including a game against the defending NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals, on a 99-yard game-winning drive by Vince Young, culminating in a touchdown pass on fourth down with 6 seconds left from the 10-yard line to Kenny Britt. During the Week 10 home game against Buffalo, Bud Adams was seen making an obscene gesture towards the Bills bench, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell (who was also attending the game) fined him $250,000. Afterwards, the Titans sustained a defeat against Indianapolis, wins over St. Louis and Miami, a loss to San Diego, and finally a victory in Seattle to end the season at 8–8. Not only did the Tennessee Titans have a great 8–2 finish, but along the way, running back Chris Johnson became only the sixth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards (2,006), surpassing Marshall Faulk's record for the most yards from scrimmage during a season with over 2,500 total yards. The Titans started 2010 with alternating wins and losses. They crushed Oakland at home in Week 1 and then were beaten 19–11 by the Steelers in Week 2. In Week 3, Tennessee beat the Giants 29–10 in the New Meadowlands. In week 4, Tennessee lost 26–20 to Denver, and finally won 34–27 in Dallas to reach a 3–2 record by Week 5. The following game was a MNF rout of Jacksonville (30–3). In Week 7, they beat Philadelphia 37–19 in a come-from- behind win that included scoring 27 points in the fourth quarter. Wide receiver Kenny Britt had a break out performance with 225 reception yards, 3 touchdowns, and 7 receptions. However, after a loss to the Chargers in Week 8, they were the only team to submit in a claim for the recently waived Randy Moss. Even after this widely publicized claim, the team was still unable to beat the Dolphins after their bye week, 29–17. In Week 11, at home against the Washington Redskins, the Titans lost Young to a thumb injury in-game and they snapped their NFL-leading interconference win streak at 14 games, losing to Washington 19–16 in overtime. After the game, Young had a highly publicized meltdown in the locker room and walked out on Fisher, causing him to not only be promptly put on injured reserve, but also essentially guaranteeing his release from the team in the offseason. Losses continued to mount for the Titans, until a week 15 win against the Houston Texans kept their season alive at 6–8. Needing a miracle to get into the playoffs, this nonetheless happened with consequent losses against the Chiefs and Colts. The Titans' season ended at 6–10. In the week following the Titans' final loss to the Colts, the generally pro-Young Bud Adams agreed that it would be best for the team to release or trade Young. On January 7, 2011 Adams released a statement announcing he was retaining head coach Jeff Fisher, as Fisher was under contract for the next season. Adams also stated that he hoped to extend Fisher's contract following the 2011 season, but that an extension would be contingent upon the team's performance. Despite these initial proclamations, it was announced on January 27, 2011 that Fisher and the Titans had mutually agreed to part ways. This ended Fisher's tenure as Head Coach, a tenure which lasted more than 17 seasons, spanned three cities (Houston, Memphis, and Nashville), and saw three different incarnations of the team (Houston Oilers, Tennessee Oilers, Tennessee Titans). Following the departure of former head coach Jeff Fisher, Mike Munchak was named head coach of the Titans on February 7, 2011. During the 2011 NFL Draft the Titans took Washington QB Jake Locker with the 8th pick overall. Meanwhile, 15-year veteran Kerry Collins retired from the NFL in July (unretiring a month later to join the Indianapolis Colts). On July 29, 2011 veteran Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck signed a 3-year, $21 million deal to play for the Tennessee Titans. During the summer training camp prior to the 2011 season, Chris Johnson did not show up to camp, pending contract negotiations. Johnson felt he was due a considerably larger sum of money. As the leading rusher since 2008 (4,598 yards) he was set to make $1.065 million in 2011, under current contract terms. On September 1, Johnson became the highest paid running back, agreeing to a four-year, $53.5 million contract extension, including $30 million guaranteed, with the Titans, ending his holdout. With Hasselbeck starting, the Titans won three of their first four games, but afterwards saw a bumpy series of wins and losses. They finally finished the season 9–7, failing again to reach the playoffs, but remaining in contention to Week 17. In 2012, the Titans finished 6–10, failing to reach the playoffs. In 2013, Mike Munchak third season as head coach, was fired finishing the season 7–9. Bud Adams, who was the owner of the Tennessee Titans, died on October 21. The 2014 season was the first for head coach Ken Whisenhunt, the Titans finished the season 2–14, their worst record in Tennessee Titans history, tying the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the league's worst record, and their worse since 1994 when they was the Houston Oilers. In 2015, the Titans had the second pick of the NFL draft. They selected QB Marcus Mariota, one of the best prospects of the 2015 class. It was Ken Whisenhunt's second season as head coach. Whisenhunt was fired on November 3 due to a 1–6 start, and Mike Mularkey was tabbed as the interim head coach. The Titans finished the season 3–13, tied with the Cleveland Browns for the league's worst record. After the season, the Titans fired GM Ruston Webster. Controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk announced that the Titans had hired former Buccaneers Director of Player Personnel Jon Robinson for the open GM job, and were going to take the interim tag off of Mularkey, making him the head coach. The Titans had the first pick in the 2016 draft, which Robinson traded to the Los Angeles Rams. The 2016 season was Mike Mularkey's first full season as head coach. Leading up to week 16, the Titans were tied with the Texans atop the AFC South at 8–6, with the Colts one game behind at 7–7. The Titans had lost to the Texans in week 4, and were scheduled to play them again in week 17. With the Titans thus unable to win a potential head-to-head tiebreaker with the Texans, mathematically unable to even tie the Texans in divisional record, and having already lost twice to the Colts, the Titans were not going to win the South on tiebreakers. The only chance for the Titans to win the division was to finish with a better record than the Texans and Colts. However, with the hapless 2–12 Jaguars on tap for the Titans in week 16, it seemed as though a dramatic week 17 "win-and-in" bout against the Texans was a real possibility for the Titans. However, the Titans lost to the Jaguars 38–17, as Mariota suffered a broken fibula in the third quarter, ending his season. The Texans hung on to beat the Bengals 12–10 later that day on "SNF", as Bengals kicker Randy Bullock missed a potential go-ahead 43-yard field goal with 5 seconds left in the game. The Texans thus clinched the AFC South title (the Colts had also lost earlier that day to the Raiders), rendering the Titans' week 17 game (which they nonetheless won) meaningless for their playoff hopes. The Titans finished the season 9–7, the same record as the Texans, losing the tiebreaker due to record against divisional opponents, by three games (the Titans were 2–4, the Texans were 5–1). The 2017 season was Mike Mularkey's second full season as the Titans' head coach. In Week 17, the team defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 15–10 to clinch one of the AFC wild card slots for the playoffs. It marked the franchise's first playoff berth since 2008. In the Wild Card Round, the Titans traveled to Arrowhead Stadium to face the Chiefs. The Titans looked outmatched in the first half, after which they trailed 21-3. However, the Titans ended up staging a second-half-comeback, storming back to win 22-21. The playoff run ended in the Divisional Round, with a 35-14 loss to the AFC #1 seed and eventual super bowl participant Patriots. Despite another 9–7 record & a playoff appearance, this was Mike Mularkey's final season as head coach, with Mularkey and team brass mutually agreeing to part ways after losing 35–14 in the Divisional Round against the New England Patriots. The 2018 season was the first season under new head coach Mike Vrabel, also a welcoming of new uniforms and helmets. After making the playoffs in 2017 for the first time in nine years, the team had high hopes for 2018, expecting to make the playoffs for the second year in a row; the season was not as expected, losing the "important games" to the Buffalo Bills 12–13 in Week 5 and the Los Angeles Chargers 19–20 in Week 7, though they notably routed the New England Patriots, Vrabel's former team while playing, 34–10 in Week 10. During a Thursday Night Football game against the Jaguars in Week 14, running back Derrick Henry ran for a 99 yard touchdown, tying an NFL record with Tony Dorsett, and rushed for 238 yards and three more touchdowns in the 30-9 victory. They played the Indianapolis Colts in Week 17, needing a win to clinch the final Wild Card spot in the playoffs, but lost 33–17. Starting quarterback Marcus Mariota had been injured with a 'stinger' the week before vs the Washington Redskins, sitting out the last game of the season due to a 'risk of permanent damage', as backup Blaine Gabbert played in his place. The Titans finished the season 9–7 for the third year in a row. The 2019 season was the 100th season of the NFL, while the 60th for the Titans. Mike Vrabel returned for his second season and Mariota for his fifth. The Titans opened up the season with a 43-13 blowout against the Cleveland Browns, with Mariota passing for three touchdowns and the defense logging three interceptions. During halftime of the 19-17 Week 2 loss against the Indianapolis Colts, the Titans retired the jersey numbers of running back Eddie George and quarterback Steve McNair. After starting the year 2-4, Mariota was benched during Week 6 in favor of backup Ryan Tannehill, who they traded for in the offseason. Tannehill would go on to win the next 7 out of 10 games and make the playoffs following a 35-14 Week 17 victory over the Texans. Derrick Henry had a career year, leading the NFL in rushing yards with 1,540 and tying for the most rushing touchdowns with 16. In the playoffs, the Titans upset the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium winning 20-13 in the Wildcard Round, with Henry rushing for 182 yards and a touchdown on 34 carries. The Titans then beat the heavily favored top-seeded Baltimore Ravens at M&T; Bank Stadium 28-12 in the Divisional Round, with Henry running for 195 yards on 30 carries and throwing a touchdown. The Titans reached their first AFC Championship since 2002, losing however to the Kansas City Chiefs 35-24 at Arrowhead Stadium. (*)Began his tenure in Houston Bud Adams established the Titans/Oilers Hall of Fame after the 40th season of the franchise to honor past players and management (*) Indicates This Player or Coach Began Their Tenure in Houston Tennessee Titans official web site, Take On The Titans podcast "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsons tenth season. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 31, 1999, just after Super Bowl XXXIII and the premiere of Family Guy. In the episode, while buying new tires for his car, Homer meets a travel agent called Wally Kogen. After becoming friends, Kogen offers Homer a free bus ride to the Super Bowl, as long as he can find enough people to fill Kogen's bus. Several people, including Bart, tag along what soon becomes a problematic trip. Meanwhile, Marge and Lisa set out to find the missing parts of "Vincent Price's Egg Magic", a celebrity-endorsed craft kit. "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" was directed by Steven Dean Moore and written by George Meyer, Brian Scully, Mike Scully and Tom Martin, the first credit Martin received for the series. Mike Scully jokingly said that the episode was "thrown together[...] without thought or structure" by the writers. For the subplot, the writers tried to come up with the "most boring thing" Lisa and Marge could do to pass time. The episode features several guest-stars, including comedian Fred Willard, country singer Dolly Parton, Fox CEO Rupert Murdoch, sports commentators Pat Summerall and John Madden, and former American football players Troy Aikman, Rosey Grier and Dan Marino. All guest-stars played themselves, except for Willard who portrayed Kogen. The episode pokes fun at folk singer Burl Ives, former United States president Bill Clinton as well as the series' fans, among other things. In its original broadcast, the episode was seen by approximately 11.5 million viewers, making it the tenth most watched program of the week as well as the second most watched scripted program on the network the night it aired. The episode was released on home video for the first time in 2004, and in 2007, the episode was again released as part of the DVD set The Simpsons – The Complete Tenth Season. Following its broadcast, the episode received mostly positive reviews from critics. After its original broadcast, however, a scene in the episode involving a fictitious, sexually suggestive Super Bowl commercial for the Catholic Church became a subject of controversy. The scene garnered scrutiny from the American Catholic anti-defamation and civil rights organization The Catholic League, whose members sent hundreds of angry letters to the Fox network, demanding any mention of Catholicism in the episode be excised. In September the same year, when the episode was supposed to repeat, the Catholic League asked Fox if they could censor the scene, which the network agreed to. The network's decision was criticized by journalists and staff members. The censored version of the episode is still in syndication. When Bart, Lisa and the students of Springfield Elementary go on a field trip to the post office, Bart gets a coupon book as a souvenir, which he gives to Homer as a birthday present. Homer uses one of his coupons for a free wheel balancing at a tire shop, but is conned into buying four new tires for his car. While waiting for the installation, Homer meets Wally Kogen, a travel agent. The two watch a special on the Super Bowl while drinking at Moe's, and Wally explains that his agency is sending a charter bus to the game. To get free seats for himself and Bart, Homer helps Wally fill the bus by persuading many prominent male citizens of Springfield to sign up. Homer, Bart, and the men arrive at Miami's Pro Player Stadium for pre-game festivities, only to discover that Wally has bought counterfeit tickets. They try to sneak in, but are caught and detained in a cell, where they vent their frustration on Homer. After Dolly Parton - a friend of Wally's and one of the halftime entertainers - breaks them out, they make their way into a skybox suite and spend more time gorging themselves on free food and drinks than they do watching the game. Confronted by the box's owner, Rupert Murdoch, the group flees toward the field but is promptly swept into the locker room by the victorious Atlanta Falcons. They share in the celebration, with Homer taking a congratulatory phone call from Bill Clinton, and several of the men wind up with Super Bowl rings as they board the bus to return to Springfield. Meanwhile, Marge and Lisa find a 1960s-era egg decorating kit endorsed by Vincent Price and decide to use it. When the kit proves to have no feet for the egg, Marge calls the company's help line and finds herself listening to Price on a voice mail greeting. As Homer's group leaves Miami, Pat Summerall and John Madden analyze the events of the episode, their initially favorable opinion quickly souring. They board a bus driven by Price, who has trouble shifting gears properly. "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" was directed by Steven Dean Moore and co-written by former staff writers Tom Martin, George Meyer, Brian Scully, and executive producer and former showrunner Mike Scully. It was first broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on January 31, 1999, right after Super Bowl XXXIII and the premiere of Family Guy. "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" was the first episode that Martin received a writing credit for, and in the DVD audio commentary for the episode, he stated that he "loved" writing the episode. The writing process for the episode was "kind of unusual", since the writers "threw it [the episode] together" without, Scully quipped, thinking of "things such as thought and structure". A scene in the episode shows Homer buying new tires for his car. The scene was written by Brian Scully, who had been scammed by a Firestone Tire and Rubber Company dealer. The episode's subplot was the result of the Simpsons writers trying to find activities for Marge and Lisa to participate in while Bart and Homer were at the Super Bowl. According to Martin, the writers were trying to come up with "the most boring thing" Marge and Lisa could do to pass time. After hearing cast member Dan Castellaneta's impression of Vincent Price, the writers found the impression to be so funny that they based the subplot on the fictional crafts set "Vincent Price's Egg Magic". In a scene in the episode, Homer and Kogen are in Moe's tavern, discussing their favorite football teams with Moe. When Moe mentions that his favorite team is the Atlanta Falcons, he holds a glass in front of his mouth, obscuring his lip movements. He then passes the same glass to Homer, who does the same. Originally, the characters would be saying something else, however, because the staff wanted the episode to be "current", new dialogue was recorded for the scene. Because there was no time to animate the scene from scratch, the staff simply made the characters hold a glass in front of their mouths while saying their lines. This technique was also used in reference to the ongoing impeachment scandal, as when the characters mention that the President and First Lady will be there, they cover their mouths when calling them by name. The song that plays during the bus trip to the Super Bowl was performed by NRBQ. The episode also features British rock band Blur's "Song 2", which plays during the "race" to the stadium. The episode features American comedian Fred Willard as Wally Kogen. Scully stated that, for many years, the Simpsons staff had wanted Willard to guest-star in an episode, and that they had been looking for a character for Willard to portray. Scully also stated that Willard was "great fun" to have on the show. Wally Kogen's name is taken from two former writers on The Simpsons; the character's first name, Wally, is taken from Wallace Wolodarsky, and the character's last name, Kogen, is taken from Jay Kogen. The episode also features former football players Rosey Grier, Troy Aikman and Dan Marino as themselves. Scully stated that, when athletes guest-star in television shows, their performances are "not always the greatest", however, he asserted, Aikman, Grier, and Marino were all "really funny" and "did a great job". Country singer Dolly Parton guest- starred as herself as well. Scully stated that he was "shocked" by how short Parton was; however, he added that she was "very nice" and "thrilled" to be in the episode. Also featured in the episode is Rupert Murdoch, creator of the Fox Broadcasting Company. Originally, the writers wanted Murdoch to be portrayed by Castellaneta, the voice of Homer among other characters in the series. However, after a while, the writers decided to ask if Murdoch would guest-star as himself. Scully comments that the writers were "impressed" that Murdoch would introduce himself as a "billionaire tyrant" in the episode. The episode pokes fun at the dwindling popularity of Bill Clinton's presidency at the time. In their list 15 Simpsons Moments That Perfectly Captured Their Eras, Genevieve Koski, Josh Modell, Noel Murray, Sean O'Neal, Kyle Ryan, and Scott Tobias of The A.V. Club wrote "By the time this episode aired [...], the nation had endured more than a year of the Lewinsky scandal. The episode debuted a month after the House impeached Clinton, but less than two weeks before the Senate's impeach/acquit vote, so an air of uncertainty lingered over an otherwise lightweight episode about Homer organizing a Super Bowl trip." In a scene in the episode, Clinton calls to congratulate the Super Bowl victors from the Oval Office, but is distracted by Al Gore measuring a window. As Scully recalls, at the time, the Simpsons writers were confident Gore would win the 2000 presidential election, which eventually was marginally, and controversially, won by George W. Bush. The episode also comments on the series' fanbase. Near the end of the episode, Madden and Summerall provide the following analysis: In his book Leaving Springfield, John Alberti writes about the exchange: "This conversation begins with conventional football game patter used to comment on the episode, but then takes an abrupt turn when Madden realizes, in spite of the humor, that the episode did not live up to expectations (which he has not originally noticed)." The episode title is a reference to the film Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971), and perhaps the U2 song of the same name. The couch gag is a reference to James Cameron's 1997 film Titanic. The beginning of the episode shows Bart's grade visiting a post office. Their tour guide is modeled after American actor and folk singer Burl Ives, whom director Moore is a fan of. "Vincent Price's Egg Magic" is a parody on celebrity-endorsed craft kits which were popular during the 1960s and which, according to Meyer, do not exist anymore. The decision to have Price endorse an egg crafts product is based on Price's role as Egghead in the 1960s series Batman. The sequence featuring a man called Rudy being refused entry to the group's bus because he is "too small to go to the Super Bowl" is a reference to the 1993 film Rudy about football player Rudy Ruettiger. Dolly Parton says she will be joined by actor Rob Lowe and dance group Stomp for her performance during the Super Bowl halftime show, while the Super Bowl features a booth called "Take a Leak with NFL Greats"; the players shown participating are Ricky Watters and Jim Plunkett. One scene features several characters covering their mouths with beer mugs while referencing the Atlanta Falcons and Denver Broncos, nominally to conceal the fact that the teams were dubbed in later, although the dubbing was deliberately made obvious. References in the same scene to Bill and Hillary Clinton also follow the same pattern in reference to the ongoing scandal, as it was unclear if Bill would still be President when the episode aired, or if Hillary would still be his wife. In its original American broadcast on January 31, 1999, "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" received an 11.6 rating, meaning it was seen by approximately 11.5 million viewers. It finished in 10th place in the ratings for the week of January 25–31, 1999, making it the second most watched scripted program on Fox, after the premiere of Family Guy. On September 14, 2004, "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday", along with the season 1 episode "Homer's Night Out", the season 11 episode "The Mansion Family" and the season 13 episode "Homer the Moe", were released on a DVD set called The Simpsons – Gone Wild. On August 7, 2007, "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" was again released as part of The Simpsons – The Complete Tenth Season DVD box set. Matt Groening, Mike Scully, George Meyer, Tom Martin, Matt Selman and Steven Dean Moore participated in the DVD's audio commentary of the episode. The beginning of the episode's third act shows Marge and Lisa watching a Super Bowl commercial. In his book The Gospel According to The Simpsons, Mark I. Pinsky described the commercial: The scene was inspired by real-life Super Bowl commercials in which, according to Scully, "you don't know what the product is" because there is "so much going on" in Super Bowl commercials. It was also based on the music video for the American rock band ZZ Top's 1983 song "Legs". Although they had come up with the commercial's premise, they were not sure of what its tagline would be. Eventually, Martin, one of the episode writers, suggested "The Catholic Church... we've made a few changes." It got the biggest laugh from the other writers and was subsequently included in the episode. The scene garnered scrutiny from members of The Catholic League, a self-appointed organization that is not, despite its name, affiliated with the Catholic Church. The league had criticized The Simpsons' depiction of Catholicism before, namely in the episode "Lisa Gets an "A"", which aired the year before. The scene included an exchange between Bart and Marge that the League felt was hurtful to Catholics. William A. Donohue, the president of the league, wrote Fox a letter asking them to explain why the dialogue was in the show. After failing to receive an answer several times, Donohue was at last given a reply written by Thomas Chavez, manager for broadcast standards and practices. The league were not satisfied with Chavez' answer. After "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" aired, the Catholic League issued an article in their news magazine Catalyst. In it, they mentioned the scene in "Lisa Gets an "A"", and wrote that The Simpsons had "struck again, big time" with the Super Bowl commercial in "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday". They wrote that they had sent a complaint to Chavez regarding the scene, and encouraged others to do the same; "We wrote to Mr. Chavez again, but we also told him that he’d be hearing from you, too. So don’t disappoint us." Following the episode's broadcast, the Fox network received several angry letters and emails from concerned Catholics, who were uneasy with the commercial scene. According to Scully, the letters were worded the same, and all started with "My family and I have always enjoyed The Simpsons, until last night..." Nevertheless, the letters provoked a reaction from The Simpsons staff, and in an interview, Scully said, "We got a couple of hundred letters, and it was very obvious from reading a majority of them that [the Catholic letter writers] had not seen the show. Some of them were from third-graders, all saying the same thing: 'Please don't make fun of my religion.' Which we all know third-graders are very adamant about." Several months later, the Catholic League contacted Fox again, asking that the word "Catholic" be excised from the voice-over when the episode repeated in September 1999 on the network, as well as in its subsequent syndicated airings. The network agreed, and Roland MacFarland, Fox's vice president of broadcast standards, ordered Scully to cut the word from the episode or eliminate all reference to religion. Scully refused, and after a long argument, MacFarland offered to replace the protesting denomination with a Protestant substitute – Methodist, Presbyterians or Baptists. Scully then asked MacFarland "What would be the difference changing it to another religion, and wouldn't that just be offending a different group of people?", to which MacFarland replied that Fox had already had trouble with the Catholics earlier that season. Following the complaints, Fox removed any mention of Catholicism from the scene, resulting in the line "The church..." Scully was reportedly furious with Fox's actions. In an interview in Los Angeles Times, Scully said, "people can say hurtful things to each other about their weight, their race, their intelligence, their sexual preference, and that all seems up for grabs, but when you get into religion, some people get very nervous." Marisa Guthrie of Boston Herald also criticized the network, describing it as "caving in" to the Catholic League's protests. She wrote, "Hollywood has always been gun shy of controversy, but recent displays of self-censorship on the part of entertainment industry executives make us cringe [...] Granted Catholics, as a group have endured an ample amount of bashing, but The Simpsons is an equal opportunity offender." Howard Rosenberg, a writer for Los Angeles Times, criticized Fox's actions as well. He argued that the network had a biased opinion towards Catholicism and that, had the scene mentioned a different religion, it would have been accepted. He also wrote, "Given its famous flaunting of sleaze and death- defying motorcycle leaps, the big news here is that Fox has standards. Its latest production is Censors Who Kill Jokes." In an issue of Catalyst, the Catholic League responded to Rosenberg's article. They argued that Rosenberg was biased against Catholics, in that he was content with the series lampooning Catholicism, but not other religions. They wrote, "all along we have been told by Fox that none of our complaints were valid because none of the material was truly offensive. But now we have a Fox executive producer disingenuously giving away his hand by protesting why it should be okay to offend another group of people with the same material he initially said wasn't offensive to Catholics! And isn't it striking that Rosenberg is upset with the fact that the double standard—which now, for the first time works positively for Catholics—is a real problem. Never do we remember Rosenberg protesting the double standard that allows 'artists' to dump on Catholics while protecting most other segments of society from their assaults." The League also complimented the members' participation, writing, "It only goes to prove what can be done when Catholics get actively involved." The controversy surrounding the scene has since been referenced in later episodes of the series. While the censored version of "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" is still in syndication in the USA, it was left uncensored on its release on The Simpsons – The Complete Tenth Season DVD box set. Following its broadcast, "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" received mostly positive reviews from critics. In his review of The Simpsons – Gone Wild DVD set, David Packard of DVD Verdict wrote: "This episode has always been one of my favorites, and while the following episode ["The Mansion Family"] is a nice inclusion as well, this episode is the best on the disc. The hilarious gags come at a slam-bang pace, and they're occasionally edgy." He especially liked the set-piece in the post office, as well as the Super Bowl commercial. Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood of I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide called the episode "A thoroughly enjoyable romp through what happens when a bunch of lads go for a Sunday out at the ball game." They enjoyed the guest-stars, writing "both Dolly Parton and, bizarrely, Rupert Murdoch – spice things up nicely", however they were most fond of Fred Willard as Wally Kogen. "A shame he doesn't join our regulars", they wrote. James Plath of DVD Town wrote that the episode is "funny," and Ian Jane of DVD Talk found the episode "amusing". The Orlando Sentinels Gregory Hardy named it the third best episode of the show with a sports theme. Phillip Stephenson of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called the episode "classic", and Susan Dunne of The Hartford Courant described it as "debauched but hilarious". The Cincinnati Post's Greg Paeth noted that the episode is a critical favorite. On the other hand, Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie Guide gave the episode a more mixed review. He wrote: "Like most guest star-ridden episodes, this one gets a bit gimmicky to fit in all the cameos." He found the self-referential ending "fails to become clever and instead just seems silly." However, he wrote that the episode "includes a few goods bits, especially the phone call in which Homer convinces Lenny to go to the game." Jake McNeill of Digital Entertainment News wrote that the episode is "so jam-packed with guest celebrity voices that they ran out of room for a plot. Or humor." Chris Barsanti of Filmcritic.com gave a negative review as well, and wrote that the episode is "lost amid a flurry of celebrity walk-ons and lazy jokes." Footnotes Bibliography "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" at The Simpsons.com

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Chlorine is a chemical element with the symbol Cl and atomic number 17. The second-lightest of the halogens, it appears between fluorine and bromine in the periodic table and its properties are mostly intermediate between them. Chlorine is a yellow-green gas at room temperature. It is an extremely reactive element and a strong oxidising agent: among the elements, it has the highest electron affinity and the third-highest electronegativity on the Pauling scale, behind only oxygen and fluorine. The most common compound of chlorine, sodium chloride (common salt), has been known since ancient times. Around 1630, chlorine gas was first synthesised in a chemical reaction, but not recognised as a fundamentally important substance. Carl Wilhelm Scheele wrote a description of chlorine gas in 1774, supposing it to be an oxide of a new element. In 1809, chemists suggested that the gas might be a pure element, and this was confirmed by Sir Humphry Davy in 1810, who named it from based on its colour. Because of its great reactivity, all chlorine in the Earth's crust is in the form of ionic chloride compounds, which includes table salt. It is the second-most abundant halogen (after fluorine) and twenty-first most abundant chemical element in Earth's crust. These crustal deposits are nevertheless dwarfed by the huge reserves of chloride in seawater. Elemental chlorine is commercially produced from brine by electrolysis. The high oxidising potential of elemental chlorine led to the development of commercial bleaches and disinfectants, and a reagent for many processes in the chemical industry. Chlorine is used in the manufacture of a wide range of consumer products, about two-thirds of them organic chemicals such as polyvinyl chloride, and many intermediates for the production of plastics and other end products which do not contain the element. As a common disinfectant, elemental chlorine and chlorine-generating compounds are used more directly in swimming pools to keep them clean and sanitary. Elemental chlorine at high concentrations is extremely dangerous and poisonous for all living organisms, and was used in World War I as the first gaseous chemical warfare agent. In the form of chloride ions, chlorine is necessary to all known species of life. Other types of chlorine compounds are rare in living organisms, and artificially produced chlorinated organics range from inert to toxic. In the upper atmosphere, chlorine-containing organic molecules such as chlorofluorocarbons have been implicated in ozone depletion. Small quantities of elemental chlorine are generated by oxidation of chloride to hypochlorite in neutrophils as part of the immune response against bacteria. The most common compound of chlorine, sodium chloride, has been known since ancient times; archaeologists have found evidence that rock salt was used as early as 3000 BC and brine as early as 6000 BC. Its importance in food was very well known in classical antiquity and was sometimes used as payment for services for Roman generals and military tribunes. Elemental chlorine was probably first isolated around 1200 with the discovery of aqua regia and its ability to dissolve gold, since chlorine gas is one of the products of this reaction: it was however not recognised as a new substance. Around 1630, chlorine was recognized as a gas by the Flemish chemist and physician Jan Baptist van Helmont. The element was first studied in detail in 1774 by Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele, and he is credited with the discovery. Scheele produced chlorine by reacting MnO (as the mineral pyrolusite) with HCl: Scheele observed several of the properties of chlorine: the bleaching effect on litmus, the deadly effect on insects, the yellow-green color, and the smell similar to aqua regia. He called it "dephlogisticated muriatic acid air" since it is a gas (then called "airs") and it came from hydrochloric acid (then known as "muriatic acid"). He failed to establish chlorine as an element. Common chemical theory at that time held that an acid is a compound that contains oxygen (remnants of this survive in the German and Dutch names of oxygen: sauerstoff or zuurstof, both translating into English as acid substance), so a number of chemists, including Claude Berthollet, suggested that Scheele's dephlogisticated muriatic acid air must be a combination of oxygen and the yet undiscovered element, muriaticum. In 1809, Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac and Louis-Jacques Thénard tried to decompose dephlogisticated muriatic acid air by reacting it with charcoal to release the free element muriaticum (and carbon dioxide). They did not succeed and published a report in which they considered the possibility that dephlogisticated muriatic acid air is an element, but were not convinced. In 1810, Sir Humphry Davy tried the same experiment again, and concluded that the substance was an element, and not a compound. He announced his results to the Royal Society on 15 November that year. At that time, he named this new element "chlorine", from the Greek word χλωρος (chlōros), meaning green-yellow. The name "halogen", meaning "salt producer", was originally used for chlorine in 1811 by Johann Salomo Christoph Schweigger. This term was later used as a generic term to describe all the elements in the chlorine family (fluorine, bromine, iodine), after a suggestion by Jöns Jakob Berzelius in 1826. In 1823, Michael Faraday liquefied chlorine for the first time, and demonstrated that what was then known as "solid chlorine" had a structure of chlorine hydrate (Cl·HO). Chlorine gas was first used by French chemist Claude Berthollet to bleach textiles in 1785. Modern bleaches resulted from further work by Berthollet, who first produced sodium hypochlorite in 1789 in his laboratory in the town of Javel (now part of Paris, France), by passing chlorine gas through a solution of sodium carbonate. The resulting liquid, known as "Eau de Javel" ("Javel water"), was a weak solution of sodium hypochlorite. This process was not very efficient, and alternative production methods were sought. Scottish chemist and industrialist Charles Tennant first produced a solution of calcium hypochlorite ("chlorinated lime"), then solid calcium hypochlorite (bleaching powder). These compounds produced low levels of elemental chlorine and could be more efficiently transported than sodium hypochlorite, which remained as dilute solutions because when purified to eliminate water, it became a dangerously powerful and unstable oxidizer. Near the end of the nineteenth century, E. S. Smith patented a method of sodium hypochlorite production involving electrolysis of brine to produce sodium hydroxide and chlorine gas, which then mixed to form sodium hypochlorite. This is known as the chloralkali process, first introduced on an industrial scale in 1892, and now the source of most elemental chlorine and sodium hydroxide. In 1884 Chemischen Fabrik Griesheim of Germany developed another chloralkali process which entered commercial production in 1888. Elemental chlorine solutions dissolved in chemically basic water (sodium and calcium hypochlorite) were first used as anti-putrefaction agents and disinfectants in the 1820s, in France, long before the establishment of the germ theory of disease. This practice was pioneered by Antoine-Germain Labarraque, who adapted Berthollet's "Javel water" bleach and other chlorine preparations (for a more complete history, see below). Elemental chlorine has since served a continuous function in topical antisepsis (wound irrigation solutions and the like) and public sanitation, particularly in swimming and drinking water. Chlorine gas was first used as a weapon on April 22, 1915, at Ypres by the German Army. The effect on the allies was devastating because the existing gas masks were difficult to deploy and had not been broadly distributed. Chlorine is the second halogen, being a nonmetal in group 17 of the periodic table. Its properties are thus similar to fluorine, bromine, and iodine, and are largely intermediate between those of the first two. Chlorine has the electron configuration [Ne]3s3p, with the seven electrons in the third and outermost shell acting as its valence electrons. Like all halogens, it is thus one electron short of a full octet, and is hence a strong oxidising agent, reacting with many elements in order to complete its outer shell. Corresponding to periodic trends, it is intermediate in electronegativity between fluorine and bromine (F: 3.98, Cl: 3.16, Br: 2.96, I: 2.66), and is less reactive than fluorine and more reactive than bromine. It is also a weaker oxidising agent than fluorine, but a stronger one than bromine. Conversely, the chloride ion is a weaker reducing agent than bromide, but a stronger one than fluoride. It is intermediate in atomic radius between fluorine and bromine, and this leads to many of its atomic properties similarly continuing the trend from iodine to bromine upward, such as first ionisation energy, electron affinity, enthalpy of dissociation of the X molecule (X = Cl, Br, I), ionic radius, and X–X bond length. (Fluorine is anomalous due to its small size.) All four stable halogens experience intermolecular van der Waals forces of attraction, and their strength increases together with the number of electrons among all homonuclear diatomic halogen molecules. Thus, the melting and boiling points of chlorine are intermediate between those of fluorine and bromine: chlorine melts at −101.0 °C and boils at −34.0 °C. As a result of the increasing molecular weight of the halogens down the group, the density and heats of fusion and vaporisation of chlorine are again intermediate between those of bromine and fluorine, although all their heats of vaporisation are fairly low (leading to high volatility) thanks to their diatomic molecular structure. The halogens darken in colour as the group is descended: thus, while fluorine is a pale yellow gas, chlorine is distinctly yellow-green. This trend occurs because the wavelengths of visible light absorbed by the halogens increase down the group. Specifically, the colour of a halogen, such as chlorine, results from the electron transition between the highest occupied antibonding π molecular orbital and the lowest vacant antibonding σ molecular orbital. The colour fades at low temperatures, so that solid chlorine at −195 °C is almost colourless. Like solid bromine and iodine, solid chlorine crystallises in the orthorhombic crystal system, in a layered lattice of Cl molecules. The Cl–Cl distance is 198 pm (close to the gaseous Cl–Cl distance of 199 pm) and the Cl···Cl distance between molecules is 332 pm within a layer and 382 pm between layers (compare the van der Waals radius of chlorine, 180 pm). This structure means that chlorine is a very poor conductor of electricity, and indeed its conductivity is so low as to be practically unmeasurable. Chlorine has two stable isotopes, Cl and Cl. These are its only two natural isotopes occurring in quantity, with Cl making up 76% of natural chlorine and Cl making up the remaining 24%. Both are synthesised in stars in the oxygen- burning and silicon-burning processes. Both have nuclear spin 3/2+ and thus may be used for nuclear magnetic resonance, although the spin magnitude being greater than 1/2 results in non-spherical nuclear charge distribution and thus resonance broadening as a result of a nonzero nuclear quadrupole moment and resultant quadrupolar relaxation. The other chlorine isotopes are all radioactive, with half-lives too short to occur in nature primordially. Of these, the most commonly used in the laboratory are Cl (t = 3.0×10 y) and Cl (t = 37.2 min), which may be produced from the neutron activation of natural chlorine. The most stable chlorine radioisotope is Cl. The primary decay mode of isotopes lighter than Cl is electron capture to isotopes of sulfur; that of isotopes heavier than Cl is beta decay to isotopes of argon; and Cl may decay by either mode to stable S or Ar. Cl occurs in trace quantities in nature as a cosmogenic nuclide in a ratio of about (7–10) × 10 to 1 with stable chlorine isotopes: it is produced in the atmosphere by spallation of Ar by interactions with cosmic ray protons. In the top meter of the lithosphere, Cl is generated primarily by thermal neutron activation of Cl and spallation of K and Ca. In the subsurface environment, muon capture by Ca becomes more important as a way to generate Cl. Chlorine is intermediate in reactivity between fluorine and bromine, and is one of the most reactive elements. Chlorine is a weaker oxidising agent than fluorine but a stronger one than bromine or iodine. This can be seen from the standard electrode potentials of the X/X couples (F, +2.866 V; Cl, +1.395 V; Br, +1.087 V; I, +0.615 V; At, approximately +0.3 V). However, this trend is not shown in the bond energies because fluorine is singular due to its small size, low polarisability, and lack of low-lying d-orbitals available for bonding (which chlorine has). As another difference, chlorine has a significant chemistry in positive oxidation states while fluorine does not. Chlorination often leads to higher oxidation states than bromination or iodination but lower oxidation states than fluorination. Chlorine tends to react with compounds including M–M, M–H, or M–C bonds to form M–Cl bonds. Given that E°(O/HO) = +1.229 V, which is less than +1.395 V, it would be expected that chlorine should be able to oxidise water to oxygen and hydrochloric acid. However, the kinetics of this reaction are unfavorable, and there is also a bubble overpotential effect to consider, so that electrolysis of aqueous chloride solutions evolves chlorine gas and not oxygen gas, a fact that is very useful for the industrial production of chlorine. The simplest chlorine compound is hydrogen chloride, HCl, a major chemical in industry as well as in the laboratory, both as a gas and dissolved in water as hydrochloric acid. It is often produced by burning hydrogen gas in chlorine gas, or as a byproduct of chlorinating hydrocarbons. Another approach is to treat sodium chloride with concentrated sulfuric acid to produce hydrochloric acid, also known as the "salt-cake" process: In the laboratory, hydrogen chloride gas may be made by drying the acid with concentrated sulfuric acid. Deuterium chloride, DCl, may be produced by reacting benzoyl chloride with heavy water (DO). At room temperature, hydrogen chloride is a colourless gas, like all the hydrogen halides apart from hydrogen fluoride, since hydrogen cannot form strong hydrogen bonds to the larger electronegative chlorine atom; however, weak hydrogen bonding is present in solid crystalline hydrogen chloride at low temperatures, similar to the hydrogen fluoride structure, before disorder begins to prevail as the temperature is raised. Hydrochloric acid is a strong acid (pK = −7) because the hydrogen bonds to chlorine are too weak to inhibit dissociation. The HCl/HO system has many hydrates HCl·nHO for n = 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6. Beyond a 1:1 mixture of HCl and HO, the system separates completely into two separate liquid phases. Hydrochloric acid forms an azeotrope with boiling point 108.58 °C at 20.22 g HCl per 100 g solution; thus hydrochloric acid cannot be concentrated beyond this point by distillation. Unlike hydrogen fluoride, anhydrous liquid hydrogen chloride is difficult to work with as a solvent, because its boiling point is low, it has a small liquid range, its dielectric constant is low and it does not dissociate appreciably into HCl and ions – the latter, in any case, are much less stable than the bifluoride ions () due to the very weak hydrogen bonding between hydrogen and chlorine, though its salts with very large and weakly polarising cations such as Cs and (R = Me, Et, Bu) may still be isolated. Anhydrous hydrogen chloride is a poor solvent, only able to dissolve small molecular compounds such as nitrosyl chloride and phenol, or salts with very low lattice energies such as tetraalkylammonium halides. It readily protonates electrophiles containing lone-pairs or π bonds. Solvolysis, ligand replacement reactions, and oxidations are well-characterised in hydrogen chloride solution: Nearly all elements in the periodic table form binary chlorides. The exceptions are decidedly in the minority and stem in each case from one of three causes: extreme inertness and reluctance to participate in chemical reactions (the noble gases, with the exception of xenon in the highly unstable XeCl and XeCl); extreme nuclear instability hampering chemical investigation before decay and transmutation (many of the heaviest elements beyond bismuth); and having an electronegativity higher than chlorine's (oxygen and fluorine) so that the resultant binary compounds are formally not chlorides but rather oxides or fluorides of chlorine. Chlorination of metals with Cl usually leads to a higher oxidation state than bromination with Br when multiple oxidation states are available, such as in MoCl and MoBr. Chlorides can be made by reaction of an element or its oxide, hydroxide, or carbonate with hydrochloric acid, and then dehydrated by mildly high temperatures combined with either low pressure or anhydrous hydrogen chloride gas. These methods work best when the chloride product is stable to hydrolysis; otherwise, the possibilities include high-temperature oxidative chlorination of the element with chlorine or hydrogen chloride, high-temperature chlorination of a metal oxide or other halide by chlorine, a volatile metal chloride, carbon tetrachloride, or an organic chloride. For instance, zirconium dioxide reacts with chlorine at standard conditions to produce zirconium tetrachloride, and uranium trioxide reacts with hexachloropropene when heated under reflux to give uranium tetrachloride. The second example also involves a reduction in oxidation state, which can also be achieved by reducing a higher chloride using hydrogen or a metal as a reducing agent. This may also be achieved by thermal decomposition or disproportionation as follows: Most of the chlorides of the pre-transition metals (groups 1, 2, and 3, along with the lanthanides and actinides in the +2 and +3 oxidation states) are mostly ionic, while nonmetals tend to form covalent molecular chlorides, as do metals in high oxidation states from +3 and above. Silver chloride is very insoluble in water and is thus often used as a qualitative test for chlorine. Although dichlorine is a strong oxidising agent with a high first ionisation energy, it may be oxidised under extreme conditions to form the cation. This is very unstable and has only been characterised by its electronic band spectrum when produced in a low-pressure discharge tube. The yellow cation is more stable and may be produced as follows: This reaction is conducted in the oxidising solvent arsenic pentafluoride. The trichloride anion, , has also been characterised; it is analogous to triiodide. The three fluorides of chlorine form a subset of the interhalogen compounds, all of which are diamagnetic. Some cationic and anionic derivatives are known, such as , , , and ClF. Some pseudohalides of chlorine are also known, such as cyanogen chloride (ClCN, linear), chlorine cyanate (ClNCO), chlorine thiocyanate (ClSCN, unlike its oxygen counterpart), and chlorine azide (ClN). Chlorine monofluoride (ClF) is extremely thermally stable, and is sold commercially in 500-gram steel lecture bottles. It is a colourless gas that melts at −155.6 °C and boils at −100.1 °C. It may be produced by the direction of its elements at 225 °C, though it must then be separated and purified from chlorine trifluoride and its reactants. Its properties are mostly intermediate between those of chlorine and fluorine. It will react with many metals and nonmetals from room temperature and above, fluorinating them and liberating chlorine. It will also act as a chlorofluorinating agent, adding chlorine and fluorine across a multiple bond or by oxidation: for example, it will attack carbon monoxide to form carbonyl chlorofluoride, COFCl. It will react analogously with hexafluoroacetone, (CF)CO, with a potassium fluoride catalyst to produce heptafluoroisopropyl hypochlorite, (CF)CFOCl; with nitriles RCN to produce RCFNCl; and with the sulfur oxides SO and SO to produce ClOSOF and ClSOF respectively. It will also react exothermically and violently with compounds containing –OH and –NH groups, such as water: Chlorine trifluoride (ClF) is a volatile colourless molecular liquid which melts at −76.3 °C and boils at 11.8 °C. It may be formed by directly fluorinating gaseous chlorine or chlorine monofluoride at 200–300 °C. It is one of the most reactive known chemical compounds, reacting with many substances which in ordinary circumstances would be considered chemically inert, such as asbestos, concrete, and sand. It explodes on contact with water and most organic substances. The list of elements it sets on fire is diverse, containing hydrogen, potassium, phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, sulfur, selenium, tellurium, bromine, iodine, and powdered molybdenum, tungsten, rhodium, iridium, and iron. An impermeable fluoride layer is formed by sodium, magnesium, aluminium, zinc, tin, and silver, which may be removed by heating. When heated, even such noble metals as palladium, platinum, and gold are attacked and even the noble gases xenon and radon do not escape fluorination. Nickel containers are usually used due to that metal's great resistance to attack by chlorine trifluoride, stemming from the formation of an unreactive nickel fluoride layer. Its reaction with hydrazine to form hydrogen fluoride, nitrogen, and chlorine gases was used in experimental rocket motors, but has problems largely stemming from its extreme hypergolicity resulting in ignition without any measurable delay. Today, it is mostly used in nuclear fuel processing, to oxidise uranium to uranium hexafluoride for its enriching and to separate it from plutonium. It can act as a fluoride ion donor or acceptor (Lewis base or acid), although it does not dissociate appreciably into and ions. Chlorine pentafluoride (ClF) is made on a large scale by direct fluorination of chlorine with excess fluorine gas at 350 °C and 250 atm, and on a small scale by reacting metal chlorides with fluorine gas at 100–300 °C. It melts at −103 °C and boils at −13.1 °C. It is a very strong fluorinating agent, although it is still not as effective as chlorine trifluoride. Only a few specific stoichiometric reactions have been characterised. Arsenic pentafluoride and antimony pentafluoride form ionic adducts of the form [ClF][MF] (M = As, Sb) and water reacts vigorously as follows: The product, chloryl fluoride, is one of the five known chlorine oxide fluorides. These range from the thermally unstable FClO to the chemically unreactive perchloryl fluoride (FClO), the other three being FClO, FClO, and FClO. All five behave similarly to the chlorine fluorides, both structurally and chemically, and may act as Lewis acids or bases by gaining or losing fluoride ions respectively or as very strong oxidising and fluorinating agents. The chlorine oxides are well-studied in spite of their instability (all of them are endothermic compounds). They are important because they are produced when chlorofluorocarbons undergo photolysis in the upper atmosphere and cause the destruction of the ozone layer. None of them can be made from directly reacting the elements. Dichlorine monoxide (ClO) is a brownish-yellow gas (red-brown when solid or liquid) which may be obtained by reacting chlorine gas with yellow mercury(II) oxide. It is very soluble in water, in which it is in equilibrium with hypochlorous acid (HOCl), of which it is the anhydride. It is thus an effective bleach and is mostly used to make hypochlorites. It explodes on heating or sparking or in the presence of ammonia gas. Chlorine dioxide (ClO) was the first chlorine oxide to be discovered in 1811 by Humphry Davy. It is a yellow paramagnetic gas (deep-red as a solid or liquid), as expected from its having an odd number of electrons: it is stable towards dimerisation due to the delocalisation of the unpaired electron. It explodes above −40 °C as a liquid and under pressure as a gas and therefore must be made at low concentrations for wood-pulp bleaching and water treatment. It is usually prepared by reducing a chlorate as follows: Its production is thus intimately linked to the redox reactions of the chlorine oxoacids. It is a strong oxidising agent, reacting with sulfur, phosphorus, phosphorus halides, and potassium borohydride. It dissolves exothermically in water to form dark- green solutions that very slowly decompose in the dark. Crystalline clathrate hydrates ClO·nHO (n ≈ 6–10) separate out at low temperatures. However, in the presence of light, these solutions rapidly photodecompose to form a mixture of chloric and hydrochloric acids. Photolysis of individual ClO molecules result in the radicals ClO and ClOO, while at room temperature mostly chlorine, oxygen, and some ClO and ClO are produced. ClO is also produced when photolysing the solid at −78 °C: it is a dark brown solid that explodes below 0 °C. The ClO radical leads to the depletion of atmospheric ozone and is thus environmentally important as follows: Chlorine perchlorate (ClOClO) is a pale yellow liquid that is less stable than ClO and decomposes at room temperature to form chlorine, oxygen, and dichlorine hexoxide (ClO). Chlorine perchlorate may also be considered a chlorine derivative of perchloric acid (HOClO), similar to the thermally unstable chlorine derivatives of other oxoacids: examples include chlorine nitrate (ClONO, vigorously reactive and explosive), and chlorine fluorosulfate (ClOSOF, more stable but still moisture-sensitive and highly reactive). Dichlorine hexoxide is a dark-red liquid that freezes to form a solid which turns yellow at −180 °C: it is usually made by reaction of chlorine dioxide with oxygen. Despite attempts to rationalise it as the dimer of ClO, it reacts more as though it were chloryl perchlorate, [ClO][ClO], which has been confirmed to be the correct structure of the solid. It hydrolyses in water to give a mixture of chloric and perchloric acids: the analogous reaction with anhydrous hydrogen fluoride does not proceed to completion. Dichlorine heptoxide (ClO) is the anhydride of perchloric acid (HClO) and can readily be obtained from it by dehydrating it with phosphoric acid at −10 °C and then distilling the product at −35 °C and 1 mmHg. It is a shock-sensitive, colourless oily liquid. It is the least reactive of the chlorine oxides, being the only one to not set organic materials on fire at room temperature. It may be dissolved in water to regenerate perchloric acid or in aqueous alkalis to regenerate perchlorates. However, it thermally decomposes explosively by breaking one of the central Cl–O bonds, producing the radicals ClO and ClO which immediately decompose to the elements through intermediate oxides. Chlorine forms four oxoacids: hypochlorous acid (HOCl), chlorous acid (HOClO), chloric acid (HOClO), and perchloric acid (HOClO). As can be seen from the redox potentials given in the adjacent table, chlorine is much more stable towards disproportionation in acidic solutions than in alkaline solutions: The hypochlorite ions also disproportionate further to produce chloride and chlorate (3 ClO 2 Cl + ) but this reaction is quite slow at temperatures below 70 °C in spite of the very favourable equilibrium constant of 10. The chlorate ions may themselves disproportionate to form chloride and perchlorate (4 Cl + 3 ) but this is still very slow even at 100 °C despite the very favourable equilibrium constant of 10. The rates of reaction for the chlorine oxyanions increases as the oxidation state of chlorine decreases. The strengths of the chlorine oxyacids increase very quickly as the oxidation state of chlorine increases due to the increasing delocalisation of charge over more and more oxygen atoms in their conjugate bases. Most of the chlorine oxoacids may be produced by exploiting these disproportionation reactions. Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) is highly reactive and quite unstable; its salts are mostly used for their bleaching and sterilising abilities. They are very strong oxidising agents, transferring an oxygen atom to most inorganic species. Chlorous acid (HOClO) is even more unstable and cannot be isolated or concentrated without decomposition: it is known from the decomposition of aqueous chlorine dioxide. However, sodium chlorite is a stable salt and is useful for bleaching and stripping textiles, as an oxidising agent, and as a source of chlorine dioxide. Chloric acid (HOClO) is a strong acid that is quite stable in cold water up to 30% concentration, but on warming gives chlorine and chlorine dioxide. Evaporation under reduced pressure allows it to be concentrated further to about 40%, but then it decomposes to perchloric acid, chlorine, oxygen, water, and chlorine dioxide. Its most important salt is sodium chlorate, mostly used to make chlorine dioxide to bleach paper pulp. The decomposition of chlorate to chloride and oxygen is a common way to produce oxygen in the laboratory on a small scale. Chloride and chlorate may comproportionate to form chlorine as follows: Perchlorates and perchloric acid (HOClO) are the most stable oxo-compounds of chlorine, in keeping with the fact that chlorine compounds are most stable when the chlorine atom is in its lowest (−1) or highest (+7) possible oxidation states. Perchloric acid and aqueous perchlorates are vigorous and sometimes violent oxidising agents when heated, in stark contrast to their mostly inactive nature at room temperature due to the high activation energies for these reactions for kinetic reasons. Perchlorates are made by electrolytically oxidising sodium chlorate, and perchloric acid is made by reacting anhydrous sodium perchlorate or barium perchlorate with concentrated hydrochloric acid, filtering away the chloride precipitated and distilling the filtrate to concentrate it. Anhydrous perchloric acid is a colourless mobile liquid that is sensitive to shock that explodes on contact with most organic compounds, sets hydrogen iodide and thionyl chloride on fire and even oxidises silver and gold. Although it is a weak ligand, weaker than water, a few compounds involving coordinated are known. Like the other carbon–halogen bonds, the C–Cl bond is a common functional group that forms part of core organic chemistry. Formally, compounds with this functional group may be considered organic derivatives of the chloride anion. Due to the difference of electronegativity between chlorine (3.16) and carbon (2.55), the carbon in a C–Cl bond is electron-deficient and thus electrophilic. Chlorination modifies the physical properties of hydrocarbons in several ways: chlorocarbons are typically denser than water due to the higher atomic weight of chlorine versus hydrogen, and aliphatic organochlorides are alkylating agents because chloride is a leaving group. Alkanes and aryl alkanes may be chlorinated under free-radical conditions, with UV light. However, the extent of chlorination is difficult to control: the reaction is not regioselective and often results in a mixture of various isomers with different degrees of chlorination, though this may be permissible if the products are easily separated. Aryl chlorides may be prepared by the Friedel-Crafts halogenation, using chlorine and a Lewis acid catalyst. The haloform reaction, using chlorine and sodium hydroxide, is also able to generate alkyl halides from methyl ketones, and related compounds. Chlorine adds to the multiple bonds on alkenes and alkynes as well, giving di- or tetra-chloro compounds. However, due to the expense and reactivity of chlorine, organochlorine compounds are more commonly produced by using hydrogen chloride, or with chlorinating agents such as phosphorus pentachloride (PCl) or thionyl chloride (SOCl). The last is very convenient in the laboratory because all side products are gaseous and do not have to be distilled out. Many organochlorine compounds have been isolated from natural sources ranging from bacteria to humans. Chlorinated organic compounds are found in nearly every class of biomolecules including alkaloids, terpenes, amino acids, flavonoids, steroids, and fatty acids. Organochlorides, including dioxins, are produced in the high temperature environment of forest fires, and dioxins have been found in the preserved ashes of lightning-ignited fires that predate synthetic dioxins. In addition, a variety of simple chlorinated hydrocarbons including dichloromethane, chloroform, and carbon tetrachloride have been isolated from marine algae. A majority of the chloromethane in the environment is produced naturally by biological decomposition, forest fires, and volcanoes. Some types of organochlorides, though not all, have significant toxicity to plants or animals, including humans. Dioxins, produced when organic matter is burned in the presence of chlorine, and some insecticides, such as DDT, are persistent organic pollutants which pose dangers when they are released into the environment. For example, DDT, which was widely used to control insects in the mid 20th century, also accumulates in food chains, and causes reproductive problems (e.g., eggshell thinning) in certain bird species. Due to the ready homolytic fission of the C–Cl bond to create chlorine radicals in the upper atmosphere, chlorofluorocarbons have been phased out due to the harm they do to the ozone layer. Chlorine is too reactive to occur as the free element in nature but is very abundant in the form of its chloride salts. It is the twenty-first most abundant element in Earth's crust and makes up 126 parts per million of it, through the large deposits of chloride minerals, especially sodium chloride, that have been evaporated from water bodies. All of these pale in comparison to the reserves of chloride ions in seawater: smaller amounts at higher concentrations occur in some inland seas and underground brine wells, such as the Great Salt Lake in Utah and the Dead Sea in Israel. Small batches of chlorine gas are prepared in the laboratory by combining hydrochloric acid and manganese dioxide, but the need rarely arises due to its ready availability. In industry, elemental chlorine is usually produced by the electrolysis of sodium chloride dissolved in water. This method, the chloralkali process industrialized in 1892, now provides most industrial chlorine gas. Along with chlorine, the method yields hydrogen gas and sodium hydroxide, which is the most valuable product. The process proceeds according to the following chemical equation: The electrolysis of chloride solutions all proceed according to the following equations: In diaphragm cell electrolysis, an asbestos (or polymer-fiber) diaphragm separates a cathode and an anode, preventing the chlorine forming at the anode from re-mixing with the sodium hydroxide and the hydrogen formed at the cathode. The salt solution (brine) is continuously fed to the anode compartment and flows through the diaphragm to the cathode compartment, where the caustic alkali is produced and the brine is partially depleted. Diaphragm methods produce dilute and slightly impure alkali, but they are not burdened with the problem of mercury disposal and they are more energy efficient. Membrane cell electrolysis employs permeable membrane as an ion exchanger. Saturated sodium (or potassium) chloride solution is passed through the anode compartment, leaving at a lower concentration. This method also produces very pure sodium (or potassium) hydroxide but has the disadvantage of requiring very pure brine at high concentrations. In the Deacon process, hydrogen chloride recovered from the production of organochlorine compounds is recovered as chlorine. The process relies on oxidation using oxygen: The reaction requires a catalyst. As introduced by Deacon, early catalysts were based on copper. Commercial processes, such as the Mitsui MT-Chlorine Process, have switched to chromium and ruthenium-based catalysts. The chlorine produced is available in cylinders from sizes ranging from 450 g to 70 kg, as well as drums (865 kg), tank wagons (15 tonnes on roads; 27–90 tonnes by rail), and barges (600–1200 tonnes). Sodium chloride is by a huge margin the most common chlorine compound, and it is the main source of chlorine and hydrochloric acid for the enormous chlorine-chemicals industry today. About 15000 chlorine-containing compounds are commercially traded, including such diverse compounds as chlorinated methanes and ethanes, vinyl chloride and its polymer polyvinyl chloride (PVC), aluminium trichloride for catalysis, the chlorides of magnesium, titanium, zirconium, and hafnium which are the precursors for producing the pure elements, and so on. Quantitatively, of all elemental chlorine produced, about 63% is used in the manufacture of organic compounds, and 18% in the manufacture of inorganic chlorine compounds. About 15,000 chlorine compounds are used commercially. The remaining 19% of chlorine produced is used for bleaches and disinfection products. The most significant of organic compounds in terms of production volume are 1,2-dichloroethane and vinyl chloride, intermediates in the production of PVC. Other particularly important organochlorines are methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, vinylidene chloride, trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, allyl chloride, epichlorohydrin, chlorobenzene, dichlorobenzenes, and trichlorobenzenes. The major inorganic compounds include HCl, ClO, HOCl, NaClO, chlorinated isocyanurates, AlCl, SiCl, SnCl, PCl, PCl, POCl, AsCl, SbCl, SbCl, BiCl, SCl, SCl, SOCI, ClF, ICl, ICl, TiCl, TiCl, MoCl, FeCl, ZnCl, and so on. In France (as elsewhere), animal intestines were processed to make musical instrument strings, Goldbeater's skin and other products. This was done in "gut factories" (boyauderies), and it was an odiferous and unhealthy process. In or about 1820, the Société d'encouragement pour l'industrie nationale offered a prize for the discovery of a method, chemical or mechanical, for separating the peritoneal membrane of animal intestines without putrefaction. The prize was won by Antoine-Germain Labarraque, a 44-year-old French chemist and pharmacist who had discovered that Berthollet's chlorinated bleaching solutions ("Eau de Javel") not only destroyed the smell of putrefaction of animal tissue decomposition, but also actually retarded the decomposition. Labarraque's research resulted in the use of chlorides and hypochlorites of lime (calcium hypochlorite) and of sodium (sodium hypochlorite) in the boyauderies. The same chemicals were found to be useful in the routine disinfection and deodorization of latrines, sewers, markets, abattoirs, anatomical theatres, and morgues. They were successful in hospitals, lazarets, prisons, infirmaries (both on land and at sea), magnaneries, stables, cattle- sheds, etc.; and they were beneficial during exhumations, embalming, outbreaks of epidemic disease, fever, and blackleg in cattle. Labarraque's chlorinated lime and soda solutions have been advocated since 1828 to prevent infection (called "contagious infection", presumed to be transmitted by "miasmas"), and to treat putrefaction of existing wounds, including septic wounds. In his 1828 work, Labarraque recommended that doctors breathe chlorine, wash their hands in chlorinated lime, and even sprinkle chlorinated lime about the patients' beds in cases of "contagious infection". In 1828, the contagion of infections was well known, even though the agency of the microbe was not discovered until more than half a century later. During the Paris cholera outbreak of 1832, large quantities of so-called chloride of lime were used to disinfect the capital. This was not simply modern calcium chloride, but chlorine gas dissolved in lime-water (dilute calcium hydroxide) to form calcium hypochlorite (chlorinated lime). Labarraque's discovery helped to remove the terrible stench of decay from hospitals and dissecting rooms, and by doing so, effectively deodorised the Latin Quarter of Paris. These "putrid miasmas" were thought by many to cause the spread of "contagion" and "infection" – both words used before the germ theory of infection. Chloride of lime was used for destroying odors and "putrid matter". One source claims chloride of lime was used by Dr. John Snow to disinfect water from the cholera-contaminated well that was feeding the Broad Street pump in 1854 London, though three other reputable sources that describe that famous cholera epidemic do not mention the incident. One reference makes it clear that chloride of lime was used to disinfect the offal and filth in the streets surrounding the Broad Street pump—a common practice in mid-nineteenth century England. Perhaps the most famous application of Labarraque's chlorine and chemical base solutions was in 1847, when Ignaz Semmelweis used chlorine-water (chlorine dissolved in pure water, which was cheaper than chlorinated lime solutions) to disinfect the hands of Austrian doctors, which Semmelweis noticed still carried the stench of decomposition from the dissection rooms to the patient examination rooms. Long before the germ theory of disease, Semmelweis theorized that "cadaveric particles" were transmitting decay from fresh medical cadavers to living patients, and he used the well-known "Labarraque's solutions" as the only known method to remove the smell of decay and tissue decomposition (which he found that soap did not). The solutions proved to be far more effective antiseptics than soap (Semmelweis was also aware of their greater efficacy, but not the reason), and this resulted in Semmelweis's celebrated success in stopping the transmission of childbed fever ("puerperal fever") in the maternity wards of Vienna General Hospital in Austria in 1847. Much later, during World War I in 1916, a standardized and diluted modification of Labarraque's solution containing hypochlorite (0.5%) and boric acid as an acidic stabilizer, was developed by Henry Drysdale Dakin (who gave full credit to Labarraque's prior work in this area). Called Dakin's solution, the method of wound irrigation with chlorinated solutions allowed antiseptic treatment of a wide variety of open wounds, long before the modern antibiotic era. A modified version of this solution continues to be employed in wound irrigation in modern times, where it remains effective against bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics (see Century Pharmaceuticals). The first continuous application of chlorination to drinking U.S. water was installed in Jersey City, New Jersey in 1908. By 1918, the US Department of Treasury called for all drinking water to be disinfected with chlorine. Chlorine is presently an important chemical for water purification (such as in water treatment plants), in disinfectants, and in bleach. Even small water supplies are now routinely chlorinated. Chlorine is usually used (in the form of hypochlorous acid) to kill bacteria and other microbes in drinking water supplies and public swimming pools. In most private swimming pools, chlorine itself is not used, but rather sodium hypochlorite, formed from chlorine and sodium hydroxide, or solid tablets of chlorinated isocyanurates. The drawback of using chlorine in swimming pools is that the chlorine reacts with the proteins in human hair and skin. The distinctive 'chlorine aroma' associated with swimming pools is not the result of chlorine itself, but of chloramine, a chemical compound produced by the reaction of free dissolved chlorine with amines in organic substances. As a disinfectant in water, chlorine is more than three times as effective against Escherichia coli as bromine, and more than six times as effective as iodine. Increasingly, monochloramine itself is being directly added to drinking water for purposes of disinfection, a process known as chloramination. It is often impractical to store and use poisonous chlorine gas for water treatment, so alternative methods of adding chlorine are used. These include hypochlorite solutions, which gradually release chlorine into the water, and compounds like sodium dichloro-s-triazinetrione (dihydrate or anhydrous), sometimes referred to as "dichlor", and trichloro-s- triazinetrione, sometimes referred to as "trichlor". These compounds are stable while solid and may be used in powdered, granular, or tablet form. When added in small amounts to pool water or industrial water systems, the chlorine atoms hydrolyze from the rest of the molecule forming hypochlorous acid (HOCl), which acts as a general biocide, killing germs, micro-organisms, algae, and so on. Chlorine gas, also known as bertholite, was first used as a weapon in World War I by Germany on April 22, 1915 in the Second Battle of Ypres. As described by the soldiers, it had the distinctive smell of a mixture of pepper and pineapple. It also tasted metallic and stung the back of the throat and chest. Chlorine reacts with water in the mucosa of the lungs to form hydrochloric acid, destructive to living tissue and potentially lethal. Human respiratory systems can be protected from chlorine gas by gas masks with activated charcoal or other filters, which makes chlorine gas much less lethal than other chemical weapons. It was pioneered by a German scientist later to be a Nobel laureate, Fritz Haber of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute in Berlin, in collaboration with the German chemical conglomerate IG Farben, which developed methods for discharging chlorine gas against an entrenched enemy. After its first use, both sides in the conflict used chlorine as a chemical weapon, but it was soon replaced by the more deadly phosgene and mustard gas. Chlorine gas was also used during the Iraq War in Anbar Province in 2007, with insurgents packing truck bombs with mortar shells and chlorine tanks. The attacks killed two people from the explosives and sickened more than 350. Most of the deaths were caused by the force of the explosions rather than the effects of chlorine since the toxic gas is readily dispersed and diluted in the atmosphere by the blast. In some bombings, over a hundred civilians were hospitalized due to breathing difficulties. The Iraqi authorities tightened security for elemental chlorine, which is essential for providing safe drinking water to the population. On 24 October 2014, it was reported that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant had used chlorine gas in the town of Duluiyah, Iraq. Laboratory analysis of clothing and soil samples confirmed the use of chlorine gas against Kurdish Peshmerga Forces in a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attack on 23 January 2015 at the Highway 47 Kiske Junction near Mosul. The Syrian government has allegedly used chlorine as a chemical weapon delivered from barrel bombs and rockets. The chloride anion is an essential nutrient for metabolism. Chlorine is needed for the production of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and in cellular pump functions. The main dietary source is table salt, or sodium chloride. Overly low or high concentrations of chloride in the blood are examples of electrolyte disturbances. Hypochloremia (having too little chloride) rarely occurs in the absence of other abnormalities. It is sometimes associated with hypoventilation. It can be associated with chronic respiratory acidosis. Hyperchloremia (having too much chloride) usually does not produce symptoms. When symptoms do occur, they tend to resemble those of hypernatremia (having too much sodium). Reduction in blood chloride leads to cerebral dehydration; symptoms are most often caused by rapid rehydration which results in cerebral edema. Hyperchloremia can affect oxygen transport. Chlorine is a toxic gas that attacks the respiratory system, eyes, and skin. Because it is denser than air, it tends to accumulate at the bottom of poorly ventilated spaces. Chlorine gas is a strong oxidizer, which may react with flammable materials. Chlorine is detectable with measuring devices in concentrations as low as 0.2 parts per million (ppm), and by smell at 3 ppm. Coughing and vomiting may occur at 30 ppm and lung damage at 60 ppm. About 1000 ppm can be fatal after a few deep breaths of the gas. The IDLH (immediately dangerous to life and health) concentration is 10 ppm. Breathing lower concentrations can aggravate the respiratory system and exposure to the gas can irritate the eyes. The toxicity of chlorine comes from its oxidizing power. When chlorine is inhaled at concentrations greater than 30 ppm, it reacts with water and cellular fluid, producing hydrochloric acid (HCl) and hypochlorous acid (HClO). When used at specified levels for water disinfection, the reaction of chlorine with water is not a major concern for human health. Other materials present in the water may generate disinfection by-products that are associated with negative effects on human health. In the United States, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set the permissible exposure limit for elemental chlorine at 1 ppm, or 3 mg/m. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has designated a recommended exposure limit of 0.5 ppm over 15 minutes. In the home, accidents occur when hypochlorite bleach solutions come into contact with certain acidic drain-cleaners to produce chlorine gas. Hypochlorite bleach (a popular laundry additive) combined with ammonia (another popular laundry additive) produces chloramines, another toxic group of chemicals. Chlorine is widely used for purifying water, especially potable water supplies and water used in swimming pools. Several catastrophic collapses of swimming pool ceilings have occurred from chlorine-induced stress corrosion cracking of stainless steel suspension rods. Some polymers are also sensitive to attack, including acetal resin and polybutene. Both materials were used in hot and cold water domestic plumbing, and stress corrosion cracking caused widespread failures in the US in the 1980s and 1990s. The element iron can combine with chlorine at high temperatures in a strong exothermic reaction, creating a chlorine-iron fire. Chlorine-iron fires are a risk in chemical process plants, where much of the pipework that carries chlorine gas is made of steel. Industrial gas, Polymer degradation, Reductive dechlorination Chlorine at The Periodic Table of Videos (University of Nottingham), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry: Chlorine, Electrolytic production, Production and liquefaction of chlorine, Chlorine Production Using Mercury, Environmental Considerations and Alternatives, National Pollutant Inventory – Chlorine, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health – Chlorine Page, Chlorine Institute – Trade association representing the chlorine industry, Chlorine Online – the web portal of Eurochlor – the business association of the European chlor-alkali industry Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) is a weak acid that forms when chlorine dissolves in water, and itself partially dissociates, forming hypochlorite, ClO. HClO and ClO are oxidizers, and the primary disinfection agents of chlorine solutions. HClO cannot be isolated from these solutions due to rapid equilibration with its precursor. Sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) and calcium hypochlorite (Ca(ClO)), are bleaches, deodorants, and disinfectants. Hypochlorous acid was discovered in 1834 by the French chemist Antoine Jérôme Balard (1802–1876) by adding, to a flask of chlorine gas, a dilute suspension of mercury(II) oxide in water. He also named the acid and its compounds. In organic synthesis, HClO converts alkenes to chlorohydrins. In biology, hypochlorous acid is generated in activated neutrophils by myeloperoxidase-mediated peroxidation of chloride ions, and contributes to the destruction of bacteria. In the cosmetics industry it is used on the skin. It is also used in baby products. In food service and water distribution, specialized equipment to generate weak solutions of HClO from water and salt is sometimes used to generate adequate quantities of safe (unstable) disinfectant to treat food preparation surfaces and water supplies., In water treatment, hypochlorous acid is the active sanitizer in hypochlorite-based products (e.g. used in swimming pools). Similarly, in ships and yachts, marine sanitation devices use electricity to convert seawater into hypochlorous acid to disinfect macerated faecal waste before discharge into the sea. Addition of chlorine to water gives both hydrochloric acid (HCl) and hypochlorous acid (HOCl): When acids are added to aqueous salts of hypochlorous acid (such as sodium hypochlorite in commercial bleach solution), the resultant reaction is driven to the left, and chlorine gas is formed. Thus, the formation of stable hypochlorite bleaches is facilitated by dissolving chlorine gas into basic water solutions, such as sodium hydroxide. The acid can also be prepared by dissolving dichlorine monoxide in water; under standard aqueous conditions, anhydrous hypochlorous acid is currently impossible to prepare due to the readily reversible equilibrium between it and its anhydride: The presence of light or transition metal oxides of copper, nickel, or cobalt accelerates the exothermic decomposition into hydrochloric acid and oxygen: In aqueous solution, hypochlorous acid partially dissociates into the anion hypochlorite ClO: Salts of hypochlorous acid are called hypochlorites. One of the best-known hypochlorites is NaClO, the active ingredient in bleach. HOCl is a stronger oxidant than chlorine under standard conditions. HClO reacts with HCl to form chlorine gas: HOCl reacts with ammonia to form monochloramine: HOCl can also react with organic amines, forming N-chloroamines. Hypochlorous acid reacts with a wide variety of biomolecules, including DNA, RNA, fatty acid groups, cholesterol and proteins. Knox et al. first noted that HClO is a sulfhydryl inhibitor that, in sufficient quantity, could completely inactivate proteins containing sulfhydryl groups. This is because HClO oxidises sulfhydryl groups, leading to the formation of disulfide bonds that can result in crosslinking of proteins. The HClO mechanism of sulfhydryl oxidation is similar to that of monochloramine, and may only be bacteriostatic, because once the residual chlorine is dissipated, some sulfhydryl function can be restored. One sulfhydryl-containing amino acid can scavenge up to four molecules of HOCl. Consistent with this, it has been proposed that sulfhydryl groups of sulfur- containing amino acids can be oxidized a total of three times by three HClO molecules, with the fourth reacting with the α-amino group. The first reaction yields sulfenic acid (R–SOH) then sulfinic acid (R–SOH) and finally R–SOH. Sulfenic acids form disulfides with another protein sulfhydryl group, causing cross-linking and aggregation of proteins. Sulfinic acid and R–SOH derivatives are produced only at high molar excesses of HClO, and disulfides are formed primarily at bacteriocidal levels. Disulfide bonds can also be oxidized by HClO to sulfinic acid. Because the oxidation of sulfhydryls and disulfides evolves hydrochloric acid, this process results in the depletion HClO. Hypochlorous acid reacts readily with amino acids that have amino group side- chains, with the chlorine from HClO displacing a hydrogen, resulting in an organic chloramine. Chlorinated amino acids rapidly decompose, but protein chloramines are longer-lived and retain some oxidative capacity. Thomas et al. concluded from their results that most organic chloramines decayed by internal rearrangement and that fewer available NH groups promoted attack on the peptide bond, resulting in cleavage of the protein. McKenna and Davies found that 10 mM or greater HClO is necessary to fragment proteins in vivo. Consistent with these results, it was later proposed that the chloramine undergoes a molecular rearrangement, releasing HCl and ammonia to form an amide. The amide group can further react with another amino group to form a Schiff base, causing cross-linking and aggregation of proteins. Hypochlorous acid reacts slowly with DNA and RNA as well as all nucleotides in vitro. GMP is the most reactive because HClO reacts with both the heterocyclic NH group and the amino group. In similar manner, TMP with only a heterocyclic NH group that is reactive with HClO is the second-most reactive. AMP and CMP, which have only a slowly reactive amino group, are less reactive with HClO. UMP has been reported to be reactive only at a very slow rate. The heterocyclic NH groups are more reactive than amino groups, and their secondary chloramines are able to donate the chlorine. These reactions likely interfere with DNA base pairing, and, consistent with this, Prütz has reported a decrease in viscosity of DNA exposed to HClO similar to that seen with heat denaturation. The sugar moieties are nonreactive and the DNA backbone is not broken. NADH can react with chlorinated TMP and UMP as well as HClO. This reaction can regenerate UMP and TMP and results in the 5-hydroxy derivative of NADH. The reaction with TMP or UMP is slowly reversible to regenerate HClO. A second slower reaction that results in cleavage of the pyridine ring occurs when excess HClO is present. NAD is inert to HClO. Hypochlorous acid reacts with unsaturated bonds in lipids, but not saturated bonds, and the ClO ion does not participate in this reaction. This reaction occurs by hydrolysis with addition of chlorine to one of the carbons and a hydroxyl to the other. The resulting compound is a chlorhydrin. The polar chlorine disrupts lipid bilayers and could increase permeability. When chlorhydrin formation occurs in lipid bilayers of red blood cells, increased permeability occurs. Disruption could occur if enough chlorhydrin is formed. The addition of preformed chlorhydrins to red blood cells can affect permeability as well. Cholesterol chlorhydrins have also been observed, but do not greatly affect permeability, and it is believed that Cl is responsible for this reaction. E. coli exposed to hypochlorous acid lose viability in less than 0.1 seconds due to inactivation of many vital systems. Hypochlorous acid has a reported of 0.0104–0.156 ppm and 2.6 ppm caused 100% growth inhibition in 5 minutes. However, the concentration required for bactericidal activity is also highly dependent on bacterial concentration. In 1948, Knox et al. proposed the idea that inhibition of glucose oxidation is a major factor in the bacteriocidal nature of chlorine solutions. He proposed that the active agent or agents diffuse across the cytoplasmic membrane to inactivate key sulfhydryl-containing enzymes in the glycolytic pathway. This group was also the first to note that chlorine solutions (HOCl) inhibit sulfhydryl enzymes. Later studies have shown that, at bacteriocidal levels, the cytosol components do not react with HOCl. In agreement with this, McFeters and Camper found that aldolase, an enzyme that Knox et al. proposes would be inactivated, was unaffected by HOCl in vivo. It has been further shown that loss of sulfhydryls does not correlate with inactivation. That leaves the question concerning what causes inhibition of glucose oxidation. The discovery that HOCl blocks induction of β-galactosidase by added lactose led to a possible answer to this question. The uptake of radiolabeled substrates by both ATP hydrolysis and proton co-transport may be blocked by exposure to HOCl preceding loss of viability. From this observation, it proposed that HOCl blocks uptake of nutrients by inactivating transport proteins. The question of loss of glucose oxidation has been further explored in terms of loss of respiration. Venkobachar et al. found that succinic dehydrogenase was inhibited in vitro by HOCl, which led to the investigation of the possibility that disruption of electron transport could be the cause of bacterial inactivation. Albrich et al. subsequently found that HOCl destroys cytochromes and iron-sulfur clusters and observed that oxygen uptake is abolished by HOCl and adenine nucleotides are lost. It was also observed that irreversible oxidation of cytochromes paralleled the loss of respiratory activity. One way of addressing the loss of oxygen uptake was by studying the effects of HOCl on succinate-dependent electron transport. Rosen et al. found that levels of reductable cytochromes in HOCl-treated cells were normal, and these cells were unable to reduce them. Succinate dehydrogenase was also inhibited by HOCl, stopping the flow of electrons to oxygen. Later studies revealed that Ubiquinol oxidase activity ceases first, and the still-active cytochromes reduce the remaining quinone. The cytochromes then pass the electrons to oxygen, which explains why the cytochromes cannot be reoxidized, as observed by Rosen et al. However, this line of inquiry was ended when Albrich et al. found that cellular inactivation precedes loss of respiration by using a flow mixing system that allowed evaluation of viability on much smaller time scales. This group found that cells capable of respiring could not divide after exposure to HOCl. Having eliminated loss of respiration, Albrich et al. proposes that the cause of death may be due to metabolic dysfunction caused by depletion of adenine nucleotides. Barrette et al. studied the loss of adenine nucleotides by studying the energy charge of HOCl-exposed cells and found that cells exposed to HOCl were unable to step up their energy charge after addition of nutrients. The conclusion was that exposed cells have lost the ability to regulate their adenylate pool, based on the fact that metabolite uptake was only 45% deficient after exposure to HOCl and the observation that HOCl causes intracellular ATP hydrolysis. It was also confirmed that, at bacteriocidal levels of HOCl, cytosolic components are unaffected. So it was proposed that modification of some membrane-bound protein results in extensive ATP hydrolysis, and this, coupled with the cells inability to remove AMP from the cytosol, depresses metabolic function. One protein involved in loss of ability to regenerate ATP has been found to be ATP synthetase. Much of this research on respiration reconfirms the observation that relevant bacteriocidal reactions take place at the cell membrane. Recently it has been proposed that bacterial inactivation by HOCl is the result of inhibition of DNA replication. When bacteria are exposed to HOCl, there is a precipitous decline in DNA synthesis that precedes inhibition of protein synthesis, and closely parallels loss of viability. During bacterial genome replication, the origin of replication (oriC in E. coli) binds to proteins that are associated with the cell membrane, and it was observed that HOCl treatment decreases the affinity of extracted membranes for oriC, and this decreased affinity also parallels loss of viability. A study by Rosen et al. compared the rate of HOCl inhibition of DNA replication of plasmids with different replication origins and found that certain plasmids exhibited a delay in the inhibition of replication when compared to plasmids containing oriC. Rosen’s group proposed that inactivation of membrane proteins involved in DNA replication are the mechanism of action of HOCl. HOCl is known to cause post-translational modifications to proteins, the notable ones being cysteine and methionine oxidation. A recent examination of HOCl's bactericidal role revealed it to be a potent inducer of protein aggregation. Hsp33, a chaperone known to be activated by oxidative heat stress, protects bacteria from the effects of HOCl by acting as a holdase, effectively preventing protein aggregation. Strains of Escherichia coli and Vibrio cholerae lacking Hsp33 were rendered especially sensitive to HOCl. Hsp33 protected many essential proteins from aggregation and inactivation due to HOCl, which is a probable mediator of HOCl's bactericidal effects. Hypochlorites are the salts of hypochlorous acid; commercially important hypochlorites are calcium hypochlorite and sodium hypochlorite. Solutions of hypochlorites can be produced by electrolysis of an aqueous chloride solution. The composition of the resulting solution depends on the pH at the anode. In acid conditions the solution produced will have a high hypochlorous acid concentration, but will also contain dissolved gaseous chlorine, which can be corrosive, at a neutral pH the solution will be around 75% hypochlorous acid and 25% hypochlorite. Some of the chlorine gas produced will dissolve forming hypochlorite ions. Hypochlorites are also produced by the disproportionation of chlorine gas in alkaline solutions. HOCl is a strong oxidising agent. Hypochlorous acid has been investigated as a possible wound care agent, and as of early 2016 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved products whose main active ingredient is hypochlorous acid for use in treating wounds and various infections in humans and pets. It is also FDA-approved as a preservative for saline solutions. In a recent study, a saline hygiene solution preserved with pure hypochlorous acid was shown to reduce the bacterial load significantly without altering the diversity of bacterial species on the eyelids. After 20 minutes of treatment, there was >99% reduction of the Staphylococci bacteria. Dichlorine monoxide: the corresponding acidic oxide, Hypofluorous acid, Perchloric acid National Pollutant Inventory – Chlorine, Reuters – Mystery solved: How bleach kills germs, Royal Society of Chemistry-'The Mole' Magazine, MARCH 2014 issue Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product which is used industrially and domestically to clean, to lighten hair color and to remove stains. It often refers, specifically, to a dilute solution of sodium hypochlorite, also called "liquid bleach". Many bleaches have broad spectrum bactericidal properties, making them useful for disinfecting and sterilizing and are used in swimming pool sanitation to control bacteria, viruses, and algae and in many places where sterile conditions are required. They are also used in many industrial processes, notably in the bleaching of wood pulp. Bleaches also have other minor uses like removing mildew, killing weeds, and increasing the longevity of cut flowers. Bleaches work by reacting with many colored organic compounds, such as natural pigments, and turning them into colorless ones. While most bleaches are oxidizing agents (chemicals that can remove electrons from other molecules), some are reducing agents (that donate electrons). Chlorine, a powerful oxidizer, is the active agent in many household bleaches. Since pure chlorine is a toxic corrosive gas, these products usually contain hypochlorite which releases chlorine when needed. "Bleaching powder" usually means a formulation containing calcium hypochlorite. Oxidizing bleaching agents that do not contain chlorine are usually based on peroxides such as hydrogen peroxide, sodium percarbonate, and sodium perborate. These bleaches are called 'non-chlorine bleach,' 'oxygen bleach' or 'color-safe bleach.' Reducing bleaches have niche uses, such as sulfur dioxide used to bleach wool, either as gas or from solutions of sodium dithionite; and sodium borohydride. Bleaches generally react with many other organic substances besides the intended colored pigments, so they can weaken or damage natural materials like fibers, cloth, and leather, and intentionally applied dyes such as the indigo of denim. For the same reason, ingestion of the products, breathing of the fumes, or contact with skin or eyes can cause health damage. The earliest form of bleaching involved spreading fabrics and cloth out in a bleachfield to be whitened by the action of the sun and water. By the 17th century, there was a significant cloth bleaching industry in Western Europe, using alternating alkaline baths (generally lye) and acid baths (such as lactic acid from sour milk, and later diluted sulfuric acid). The whole process lasted up to six months. Chlorine-based bleaches, which shortened that process from months to hours, were invented in Europe in the late 18th century. Swedish chemist Scheele discovered chlorine in 1774, and in 1785 French scientist Claude Berthollet recognized that it could be used to bleach fabrics. Berthollet also discovered sodium hypochlorite, which became the first commercial bleach, named Eau de Javel ("Javel water") after the borough in Paris where it was produced. Scottish chemist and industrialist Charles Tennant proposed in 1798 a solution of calcium hypochlorite as an alternative for Javel water, and patented bleaching powder (solid calcium hypochlorite) in 1799. Around 1820, French chemist Labarraque discovered the disinfecting and deodorizing ability of hypochlorites, and was instrumental in popularizing their use for such purpose. His work greatly improved medical practice, public health, and the sanitary conditions in hospitals, slaughterhouses, and all industries dealing with animal products. Louis Jacques Thénard first produced hydrogen peroxide in 1818 by reacting barium peroxide with nitric acid. Hydrogen peroxide was first used for bleaching in 1882, but did not become commercially important until after 1930. Sodium perborate as a laundry bleach had been used in Europe since the early twentieth century, but did not become popular in North America until the 1980s. Colors of natural organic materials typically arise from organic pigments, such as beta carotene. Chemical bleaches work in one of two ways: An oxidizing bleach works by breaking the chemical bonds that make up the chromophore. This changes the molecule into a different substance that either does not contain a chromophore, or contains a chromophore that does not absorb visible light. This is the mechanism of bleaches based on chlorine but also of oxygen-anions which react through initial nucleophilic attack., A reducing bleach works by converting double bonds in the chromophore into single bonds. This eliminates the ability of the chromophore to absorb visible light. This is the mechanism of bleaches based on sulfur dioxide. Sunlight acts as a bleach through a process leading to similar results: high energy photons of light, often in the violet or ultraviolet range, can disrupt the bonds in the chromophore, rendering the resulting substance colorless. Extended exposure often leads to massive discoloration usually reducing the colors to white and typically very faded blue. The broad-spectrum effectiveness of most bleaches is due to their general chemical reactivity against organic compounds, rather than the selective inhibitory or toxic actions of antibiotics. They irreversibly denature or destroy many proteins, making them extremely versatile disinfectants. However, hypochlorite bleaches in low concentration were found to also attack bacteria by interfering with heat shock proteins on their walls. Most industrial and household bleaches belong to three broad classes: Chlorine-based bleaches, whose active agent is chlorine, usually from the decomposition of some chlorine compound like hypochlorite or chloramine., Peroxide-based bleaches, whose active agent is oxygen, almost always from the decomposition of a peroxide compound like hydrogen peroxide., Sulfur dioxide based bleaches, whose active agent is sulfur dioxide, possibly from the decomposition of some oxosulfur anion. Chlorine-based bleaches are found in many household "bleach" products, as well as in specialized products for hospitals, public health, water chlorination, and industrial processes. The grade of chlorine-based bleaches is often expressed as percent active chlorine. One gram of a 100% active chlorine bleach has the same bleaching power as one gram of elemental chlorine. The most common chlorine-based bleaches are: Sodium hypochlorite (), usually as a 3–6% solution in water, usually called "liquid bleach" or just "bleach". Historically called "Javel water". It is used in many households to whiten laundry, disinfect hard surfaces in kitchens and bathrooms, treat water for drinking and keep swimming pools free of infectious agents., Bleaching powder (formerly known as "chlorinated lime"), usually a mixture of calcium hypochlorite (), calcium hydroxide (lime, ), and calcium chloride () in variable amounts. Sold as a white powder or in tablets, is used in many of the same applications as sodium hypochlorite, but is more stable and contains more available chlorine., Chlorine gas (). It is used as a disinfectant in water treatment, especially to make drinking water and in large public swimming pools. It was used extensively to bleach wood pulp, but this use has decreased significantly due to environmental concerns., Chlorine dioxide (). This unstable gas is generated in situ or stored as dilute aqueous solutions. It finds large-scale applications for the bleaching of wood pulp, fats and oils, cellulose, flour, textiles, beeswax, skin, and in a number of other industries. Other examples of chlorine-based bleaches, used mostly as disinfectants, are monochloramine, halazone, and sodium dichloroisocyanurate. Peroxide-based bleaches are characterized by the peroxide chemical group, namely two oxygen atoms connected by a single bond, (–O–O–). This bond is easily broken, giving rise to very reactive oxygen species, which are the active agents of the bleach. The main products in this class are: Hydrogen peroxide itself (). It is used, for example, to bleach wood pulp and hair or to prepare other bleaching agents like the perborates, percarbonates, peracids, etc., Sodium percarbonate (), an adduct of hydrogen peroxide and sodium carbonate ("soda ash" or "washing soda", ). Dissolved in water, it yields a solution of the two products, that combines the degreasing action of the carbonate with the bleaching action of the peroxide., Sodium perborate (). Dissolved in water it forms some hydrogen peroxide, but also the perborate anion () which can perform nucleophilic oxidation., Peracetic (peroxoacetic) acid (). Generated in situ by some laundry detergents, and also marketed for use as industrial and agricultural disinfection and water treatment., benzoyl peroxide (). It is used in topical medications for acne and to bleach flour., Ozone (). While not properly a peroxide, its mechanism of action is similar. It is used in the manufacture of paper products, especially newsprint and white Kraft paper., Potassium persulfate ( KSO) and other persulfate salts. It, alongside ammonium and sodium persulfate, are common in hair lightening products., Permanganate salts such as Potassium permanganate (KMnO). In the food industry, other oxidizing products like bromates are used as flour bleaching and maturing agents. Sodium dithionite (also known as sodium hydrosulfite) is one of the most important reductive bleaching agents. It is a white crystalline powder with a weak sulfurous odor. It can be obtained by reacting sodium bisulfite with zinc It is used as such in some industrial dyeing processes to eliminate excess dye, residual oxide, and unintended pigments and for bleaching wood pulp. Reaction of sodium dithionite with formaldehyde produces Rongalite, which is used in bleaching wood pulp, cotton, wool, leather and clay. A Risk Assessment Report (RAR) conducted by the European Union on sodium hypochlorite conducted under Regulation EEC 793/93 concluded that this substance is safe for the environment in all its current, normal uses. This is due to its high reactivity and instability. The disappearance of hypochlorite is practically immediate in the natural aquatic environment, reaching in a short time concentration as low as 10 μg/L or less in all emission scenarios. In addition, it was found that while volatile chlorine species may be relevant in some indoor scenarios, they have a negligible impact in open environmental conditions. Further, the role of hypochlorite pollution is assumed as negligible in soils. Industrial bleaching agents can also be sources of concern. For example, the use of elemental chlorine in the bleaching of wood pulp produces organochlorines and persistent organic pollutants, including dioxins. According to an industry group, the use of chlorine dioxide in these processes has reduced the dioxin generation to under detectable levels. However, respiratory risk from chlorine and highly toxic chlorinated byproducts still exists. A recent European study indicated that sodium hypochlorite and organic chemicals (e.g., surfactants, fragrances) contained in several household cleaning products can react to generate chlorinated volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These chlorinated compounds are emitted during cleaning applications, some of which are toxic and probable human carcinogens. The study showed that indoor air concentrations significantly increase (8–52 times for chloroform and 1–1170 times for carbon tetrachloride, respectively, above baseline quantities in the household) during the use of bleach-containing products. The increase in chlorinated volatile organic compound concentrations was the lowest for plain bleach and the highest for the products in the form of “thick liquid and gel”. The significant increases observed in indoor air concentrations of several chlorinated VOCs (especially carbon tetrachloride and chloroform) indicate that the bleach use may be a source that could be important in terms of inhalation exposure to these compounds. While the authors suggested that using these cleaning products may significantly increase the cancer risk, this conclusion appears to be hypothetical: Sodium hypochlorite solution, 3–6%, (common household bleach) is typically diluted for safe use when disinfecting surfaces and when used to treat drinking water. A weak solution of 2% household bleach in warm water is typical for sanitizing smooth surfaces prior to the brewing of beer or wine. US Government regulations (21 CFR Part 178) allow food processing equipment and food contact surfaces to be sanitized with solutions containing bleach, provided that the solution is allowed to drain adequately before contact with food, and that the solutions do not exceed 200 parts per million (ppm) available chlorine (for example, one tablespoon of typical household bleach containing 5.25% sodium hypochlorite, per gallon of water). A 1-in-5 dilution of household bleach with water (1 part bleach to 4 parts water) is effective against many bacteria and some viruses, and is often the disinfectant of choice in cleaning surfaces in hospitals (primarily in the United States). Even "scientific-grade", commercially produced disinfection solutions such as Virocidin-X usually have sodium hypochlorite as their sole active ingredient, though they also contain surfactants (to prevent beading) and fragrances (to conceal the bleach smell). See Hypochlorous acid for a discussion of the mechanism for disinfectant action. Treatment of gingivitis Diluted sodium hypochlorite at a rate of 2000–1 (0.05% concentration) may represent an efficacious, safe and affordable antimicrobial agent in the prevention and treatment of periodontal disease. Color safe bleach is a chemical that uses hydrogen peroxide as the active ingredient (to help remove stains) rather than sodium hypochlorite or chlorine. It also has chemicals in it that help brighten colors. Hydrogen peroxide is also used for sterilization purposes and water treatment, but its disinfectant capabilities may be limited due to the concentration in the colorsafe bleach solution as compared to other applications. The safety of bleaches depends on the compounds present, and their concentration. Generally speaking, the ingestion of bleaches will cause damage to the esophagus and stomach, possibly leading to death. On contact with the skin or eyes, it causes irritation, drying, and potentially burns. Inhalation of bleach fumes can damage the lungs. Personal protective equipment should always be used when using bleach. Bleach should never be mixed with vinegar or products containing ammonia as this will create highly toxic chlorine gas and can cause severe burns internally and externally. In rare instances, bleach can be an addictive substance for certain individuals. Fraudulent product Miracle Mineral Supplement, whose main active ingredient is sodium chlorite, is sometimes dangerously promoted as a cure for a wide variety of health conditions. Tooth whitening Bodkins, Dr. Bailey. Bleach. Philadelphia: Virginia Printing Press, 1995., Trotman, E.R. Textile Scouring and Bleaching. London: Charles Griffin & Co., 1968. . Bleach in Britannica, Bleach (MSDS)

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Garbiñe Muguruza won her second Grand Slam singles title, defeating Venus Williams in the final, 7–5, 6–0 to win the Ladies' Singles tennis title at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships. Muguruza became the second Spanish woman to win Wimbledon after Conchita Martínez in 1994. Muguruza also became the first player to defeat both Williams sisters in Grand Slam singles finals. Serena Williams was the two-time defending champion, but did not participate this year due to . Venus Williams was the oldest player to reach the final since Martina Navratilova, also in 1994, and played her 100th singles match at Wimbledon when she defeated reigning French Open champion Jeļena Ostapenko in the quarterfinals; it was Williams’ first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon since 2009, her first Grand Slam singles final against a player other than her sister since defeating Marion Bartoli in the 2007 Wimbledon final, and (by virtue of her run to the Australian Open final in January) marked the first time Venus reached multiple Grand Slam finals in a calendar year since 2003. Johanna Konta became the first British woman to reach the semifinals since Virginia Wade in 1978, and Magdaléna Rybáriková became the first Slovak woman to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon. The tournament was the 17th consecutive women's singles Grand Slam event to feature a first-time semifinalist (Rybáriková). The streak of first-time semifinalists began at 2013 Wimbledon, and it would end at the 2017 US Open. Despite losing in the second round, Karolína Plíšková attained the WTA No. 1 singles ranking at the end of the tournament, after Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep, the other contenders for the top ranking, lost in the fourth round and quarterfinals, respectively. This was former world No. 1 and two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka's first appearance in a Grand Slam event since the 2016 French Open after giving birth to her first child in December 2016. She reached the fourth round before losing to Halep. This was also the Grand Slam main draw debut of future US Open champion Bianca Andreescu. She lost in the first round to Kristína Kučová. Women's Singles Draw 2017 Wimbledon Championships - Ladies' Singles Draw The Championships, Wimbledon is an annual tennis tournament first contested in 1877 and played on outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) in the Wimbledon suburb of London, United Kingdom. The Ladies' Singles was started in 1884. Wimbledon has historically been played in the last week of June and the first week of July (though changed to the first two weeks of July in 2017), and has been chronologically the third of the four Grand Slam tournaments of the tennis season since 1987. The event was not held from 1915 to 1918 because of World War I and again from 1940 to 1945 because of World War II. The Ladies' Singles' rules have undergone several changes since the first edition. From 1886 until 1921, the event started with a knockout phase, the All Comers' Singles, whose winner then faced the defending champion in a challenge round. The All Comers' winner was automatically awarded the title six times (1887, 1891, 1895, 1907, 1908) in the absence of the previous year's champion. The challenge round system was abolished with the 1922 edition. Since the first championships, all matches have been played at the best-of-three sets. Between 1877 and 1883, the winner of the next game at five games-all took the set in every match except the All Comers' final, and the challenge round, which were won with six games and a two games advantage. All sets were decided in two- game advantage format from 1884 to 1970. The lingering death best-of-12 points tie-break was introduced in 1971 for the first two sets, played at eight games-all until 1978 and at six games-all since 1979. The Ladies' Singles champion receives a sterling silver salver commonly known as the "Venus Rosewater Dish", or simply the "Rosewater Dish". The salver, which is 18.75 inches (about 48 cm) in diameter, is decorated with figures from mythology. New singles champions are traditionally elected honorary members of the AELTC by the club's committee. In 2012, the Ladies' Singles winner received prize money of £1,150,000. These records include the Amateur Era only, Dorothea Lambert Chambers (1903–1904, 1906, 1910–1911, 1913–1914) holds the record for most titles, with seven, and Lottie Dod (1891–1893) and Suzanne Lenglen (1919–1921) holds the record for most consecutive wins in the Ladies' Singles during the challenge round era, with three victories each. The record for most consecutive and most wins post challenge round during the Amateur Era is Helen Wills Moody (1927–1930), with four straight wins, and Moody holds the record for most victories in this era with eight (1927–1930, 1932–1933, 1935, 1938). These records only include the Open Era, since the inclusion of the professional tennis players, Martina Navratilova (1978–1979, 1982–1987, 1990) holds the record for most victories with nine. Navratilova holds the record for most consecutive victories with six (1982–1987). This event has been won without the loss of a set, during the Open Era of Tennis, by the following players: Billie Jean King in 1968, 1972, 1973 and 1975, Margaret Court in 1970, Evonne Goolagong Cawley in 1971 and 1980, Chris Evert in 1974 and 1981, Martina Navratilova in 1979, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, and 1990, Steffi Graf in 1992 and 1996, Jana Novotná in 1998, Lindsay Davenport in 1999, Venus Williams in 2000, 2007 and 2008, Serena Williams in 2002, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2016, Petra Kvitová in 2011 and 2014 and Marion Bartoli in 2013. Wimbledon Open other competitions List of Wimbledon gentlemen's singles champions, List of Wimbledon gentlemen's doubles champions, List of Wimbledon ladies' doubles champions, List of Wimbledon mixed doubles champions Grand Slam women's singles List of Australian Open women's singles champions, List of French Open women's singles champions, List of US Open women's singles champions, List of Grand Slam women's singles champions Since 2009, Centre Court features a retractable roof, allowing indoor and night-time play., Wimbledon entered the Open Era with the 1968 edition, allowing professional players to compete alongside amateurs., John McEnroe is the only player to have been denied membership in 1981, because of his on-court behaviour during the championships., Each year is linked to an article about that particular year's draws, but pre-1922 they did not have draws due to the challenge round system. In 1922 till the present they do have draws, but the years of 1925-1939 do not have draw pages with links, so it is linked to the year's articles instead., "British Isles" (BRI) is used for players from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801-1922), distinct from "Great Britain" (GBR) used for players from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1922-present)., The tournament was not held from 1915 to 1918 because of World War I., The tournament was not held from 1940 to 1945 because of World War II., Czechoslovakia (TCH, 1918-1992) split into the Czech Republic (CZE, 1992-present) and Slovakia (SVK, 1992-present)., Martina Navratilova was born in Czechoslovakia, but was stripped of her citizenship in 1975 when she defected to the United States. She became a US citizen in 1981., FRG is West Germany, but after unification became just Germany (GER) after 1990. General Specific The Championships, Wimbledon official website Jeļena Ostapenko defeated Simona Halep in the final, 4–6, 6–4, 6–3 to win the Women's Singles tennis title at the 2017 French Open. This was Ostapenko's first WTA Tour-level singles title. She became the first Latvian player, male or female, to win a Grand Slam singles tournament, the youngest woman to win the French Open since 1997, and the first woman since Barbara Jordan at the aforementioned 1979 Australian Open to win a Grand Slam event as her first tour-level singles title. Ostapenko was the first unseeded woman to win the French Open since 1933, as well as the lowest-ranked (47) since computer rankings began in 1975. Garbiñe Muguruza was the defending champion, having won the tournament in 2016, but she was defeated in the fourth round by Kristina Mladenovic. It was the first time at the French Open since 1977, and any Grand Slam event since the 1979 Australian Open that no former Grand Slam champion reached the quarterfinals. As a result of Halep's loss in the final, Angelique Kerber retained the WTA no. 1 singles ranking even though she lost in the first round. Kerber's loss marked the first time the top women's seed had lost her first round match at the French Open in the Open Era, and the first time this had happened at any Grand Slam tournament since the 2001 Wimbledon Championships. This was the first Grand Slam tournament to feature neither Serena Williams nor Maria Sharapova since the 2002 Australian Open. Angelique Kerber (First round)

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The Guns of Navarone is a 1961 British-American epic adventure war film directed by J. Lee Thompson. The screenplay by producer Carl Foreman was based on Alistair MacLean's 1957 novel The Guns of Navarone, which was inspired by the Battle of Leros during the Dodecanese Campaign of World War II. The film stars Gregory Peck, David Niven and Anthony Quinn, along with Stanley Baker, Anthony Quayle, Irene Papas, Gia Scala, and James Darren. The book and the film share the same basic plot: the efforts of an Allied commando unit to destroy a seemingly impregnable German fortress that threatens Allied naval ships in the Aegean Sea. In 1943, the Axis powers plan an assault on the island of Kheros, where 2,000 British soldiers are marooned, to display their military strength and convince neutral Turkey to join them. Rescue by the Royal Navy is prevented by two massive radar-directed large-calibre guns on (fictional) nearby Navarone Island. When aerial bombing efforts fail, Allied Intelligence gathers a commando unit to infiltrate Navarone and destroy the guns. Led by Major Roy Franklin (Anthony Quayle), the team is composed of Captain Keith Mallory (Gregory Peck), a renowned spy and an officer with the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG); Colonel Andrea Stavrou (Anthony Quinn) from the defeated Greek Army; Franklin's best friend Corporal Miller (David Niven), an explosives expert and former chemistry teacher; Greco-American Spyros Pappadimos (James Darren), a native of Navarone; and "Butcher" Brown (Stanley Baker), an engineer and expert knife fighter. Disguised as Greek fishermen on a decrepit fishing vessel, they sail across the Aegean Sea, where they successfully overwhelm the crew of a German patrol boat intercepting them. Later in the voyage, Mallory confides to Franklin that Stavrou had sworn to kill him after the war, because Mallory was inadvertently responsible for the deaths of Stavrou's wife and children. After shipwrecking on Navarone's coast during a storm, the experienced mountaineer Mallory leads the team in a climb up the cliff, during which Franklin badly injures his leg. While taking shelter in the mountains, Mallory stops Franklin from committing suicide and lies to him that their mission is only a diversion, and that a major naval attack will be mounted on the coast instead. They rendezvous with two local resistance fighters, Spyros' sister Maria (Irene Papas) and her friend Anna (Gia Scala), who was once captured and tortured by the Germans before escaping. The mission is continually dogged by German soldiers and the group is eventually captured in the town of Mandrakos by Oberleutnant Muesel (Walter Gotell) while trying to find a doctor for Franklin (whose leg is infected with gangrene). While being interrogated by SS Hauptsturmführer Sessler (George Mikell), Stavrou distracts the Germans and the team overpower their captors. They escape in German uniforms, leaving Franklin behind to receive medical attention. In due course, Franklin is injected with scopolamine and gives up Mallory's misinformation. As Mallory had hoped, most forces leave the fortress to counter the expected coastal attack. Upon infiltrating the village of Navarone, however, Miller discovers most of his explosives have been sabotaged and deduces that Anna is the culprit. She confesses that she did not escape but that the Germans recruited her as an informer in exchange for her release. Mallory reluctantly prepares to execute Anna as a precaution against detection, but Maria shoots her instead. The team splits up: Mallory and Miller go for the guns, Stavrou and Spyros create distractions in town (assisted by local residents), and Maria and Brown steal a boat for their escape. Spyros dies in a stand-off with a German officer, and Brown from being stabbed during the boat theft. Meanwhile, Mallory and Miller infiltrate the gun emplacement, but set off an alarm when they seal the doors behind them. Miller plants explosives on the guns and prepares a large booby trap below an ammunition hoist, with a trigger device set into the hoist's track. The Germans eventually gain entry into the gun emplacement and defuse the explosives planted directly on the guns; meanwhile, Mallory and Miller make their escape over the cliff, reaching the stolen boat. A wounded Stavrou is also able to reach the sea and is helped aboard by Mallory, thus resolving the blood feud between them. As the Allied destroyers trying to rescue the trapped British troops appear, the Germans open fire at them. When the hoist reaches Miller's trigger, the hidden explosives set off the surrounding shells in a huge explosion that destroys the guns and the entire fortress. Mallory's team safely reaches the British convoy, but Stavrou shakes Mallory's hand and decides to return to Navarone with Maria, with whom he has fallen in love. Mallory and Miller, returning home, observe the aftermath of their success from a destroyer. Gregory Peck as Captain Keith Mallory, David Niven as Miller, Anthony Quinn as Andrea, Stanley Baker as Brown, Anthony Quayle as Major Roy Franklin, James Darren as Spyros Pappadimos, Irene Papas as Maria, Gia Scala as Anna, James Robertson Justice as Jensen, Richard Harris as Barnsby, Bryan Forbes as Cohn, Allan Cuthbertson as Baker, Michael Trubshawe as Weaver, Percy Herbert as Grogan, George Mikell as Sessler, Walter Gotell as Muesel, Tutte Lemkow as Nicolai, Albert Lieven as Commandant, Norman Wooland as Group Captain, Cleo Scouloudi as Bride, Nicholas Papakonstantinou as Patrol Boat Captain, Christopher Rhodes as German Gunnery Officer Peter Grant, who had a brief (three films) career as an uncredited extra before becoming music manager of such popular English bands as the Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin and Bad Company, played an uncredited British commando. The film was part of a cycle of big-budget World War II adventures that included The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), The Longest Day (1962) and The Great Escape (1963). The screenplay, adapted by producer Carl Foreman, made significant changes from the novel The Guns of Navarone by Alistair MacLean. The film was directed by J. Lee Thompson. Thompson was brought in after original director Alexander Mackendrick was fired by Carl Foreman a week before shooting started due to "creative differences". The role played by Niven was originally intended for Kenneth More. Foreman had written the part for More, but the head of Rank, John Davis, refused to loan More out for the film. The Greek island of Rhodes provided locations and Quinn was so taken with the area that he bought land there in an area still called Anthony Quinn Bay. Some further scenes were shot on the islands of Gozo, near Malta, and Tino, in the Ligurian Sea. One of the warships in the film, the , then a training ship in the Hellenic Navy known as Aetos (D-01), is preserved as a museum ship in Albany, New York. As described by director Thompson in the DVD commentary track, David Niven became severely ill after shooting in the pool of water underneath the cave elevator and almost died, remaining in hospital for some weeks as other portions of the cave sequence were completed by the crew. However, since key scenes with Niven remained incomplete at that time, and it was doubtful whether he would be able to return to finish the film, the entire production was in jeopardy. Reshooting key scenes throughout the film with another actor, and abandoning the project to collect the insurance were contemplated. However, Niven was able to complete his scenes some weeks later. A complication arose when it was found that Gregory Peck, whose character was supposed to be fluent in German, could not speak the language convincingly. Voice actor Robert Rietty dubbed all of Peck's German dialogue for the film. The film's maps were created by Halas and Batchelor, a British team best known for their animated films. Although the island of Navarone is fictional, a map depicted in the film purporting to show the island of Navarone shows it as the real island of Antikythera. Several members of the Greek royal family visited the set the day the Mandrakos cafe scene was filmed and appear in the background as extras. The film's score was composed by Dimitri Tiomkin and featured arrangements of several traditional songs. "The Guns of Navarone" (music by Dimitri Tiomkin, lyrics by Paul Francis Webster), "Karagouna" (traditional, arranged by Andreas Markides), "Ena Karavi Apo Te Chio" (traditional, arranged by Andreas Markides), "Yalo Yalo" (traditional, arranged by Andreas Markides), "Treu Sein" (music by Dimitri Tiomkin, lyrics by Alfred Perry), "Das Sundenlied" (music by Dimitri Tiomkin, lyrics by Alfred Perry) Tiomkin's theme song featured on the soundtrack album with lyrics recounting the plot of the film. His theme became a popular instrumental with several cover versions including a 1965 version by The Skatalites. Other cover versions were performed by Johnny Griffin, Al Caiola and the Hollyridge Strings. The Guns of Navarone had its Royal World Premiere in aid of the Edwina Mountbatten Trust and in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh on 27 April 1961, at the Odeon Leicester Square in London's West End. The film grossed $28,900,000 at the box office and was the second top-grossing film of 1961, earning a net profit of $18,500,000. Reviews were mostly positive. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times called the film "one of those muscle-loaded pictures in the thundering tradition of DeMille, which means more emphasis is placed on melodrama than on character or credibility." He added that while the film was predictable, "for anyone given to letting himself be entertained by scenes of explosive action and individual heroic displays, there should be entertainment in this picture, for there is plenty of all that in it." Variety wrote that the film was "the sort of spectacular drama that can ignore any TV competition and, even with its flaws, should have patrons firmly riveted throughout its lengthy narrative. With a bunch of weighty stars, terrific special effects, several socko situations plus good camerawork and other technical okays, Foreman and director J. Lee Thompson have sired a winner." Harrison's Reports gave a grade of "Excellent," raving, "The script, direction, acting (by a brilliant cast) and photography are all prizeworthy." Richard L. Coe of The Washington Post called the film "a magnificently detailed cliff-hanger of spectacular settings and deeds of impossible derring-do ... What makes this one of the good ones is superlative photography of the storied Grecian isles, a crackerjack cast and a yarn about WWII in which unlikely incident succeeds unlikely incident with rare largesse." John L. Scott of the Los Angeles Times called it "the best adventure movie to hit the screen this year," adding, "Some viewers will deplore a lack of character motivation—the origins of the six heroes are passed by rather quickly at the beginning—and women may yearn for more romantic passages in the film—but most of us, I am sure, will be satisfied with the epic suspense and sweep of this highly pictorial adventure." Brendan Gill of The New Yorker called it one of those movies "that are no less thrilling because they are so preposterous ... Let me also confess that I was held more or less spellbound all the way through this many-colored rubbish." The Monthly Film Bulletin thought the film fell well short of its ambitions, finding that Foreman's script had "too much diffusion, too much talk, and too many themes raised and dropped, so that the adventure story is not lifted to another plane but overstretched, robbed of the tight narrative concentration needed for a mounting tension." The review also criticized director Thompson for lacking "the ability of the Hollywood veterans to hold a long picture together" and instead moving the action forward "in a series of jerks." Won Academy Award Best Effects, Special Effects (Bill Warrington & Chris Greenham), Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama, Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score (Dimitri Tiomkin) Nominated Academy Award for Best Picture, Academy Award for Best Director (J. Lee Thompson), Academy Award for Best Film Editing (Alan Osbiston), Academy Award for Best Original Score (Dimitri Tiomkin), Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing (John Cox), Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Carl Foreman, DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures (J. Lee Thompson), Grammy Award for Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture (Dimitri Tiomkin) The film is recognized by the American Film Institute in the following list: AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills—#89 In 1968, author Alistair MacLean reunited Mallory, Miller, and Stavros in the best-selling novel Force 10 From Navarone, the only sequel of his long writing career. That was in turn filmed as the significantly different Force 10 from Navarone in 1978 by British director Guy Hamilton, a veteran of several James Bond films. The cast included Robert Shaw, Harrison Ford and Edward Fox. Though the sequel was a modest success, it did not match the original critically or commercially. The 1981 video game Castle Wolfenstein was inspired by the film, The Guns of Abalone is the second story arc from the fourth season of Rocky and Bullwinkle, The Girls of Nazarone Affair is the penultimate episode from the first season of The Man from U.N.C.L.E., On The Dick Van Dyke Show, in the episode "You're Under Arrest", Rob Petrie (Dick Van Dyke) claims to have fallen asleep while watching the film at a drive-in theater, an alibi the police are skeptical of. In the episode "Bupkis", Petrie sings a song that he has written for The Alan Brady Show (the show-within-a-show in the series) titled "The Guns of Navarone" to an old army buddy, In the Wu-Tang Forever double album, Method Man cites The Guns of Navarone in the track "Triumph", In Pulp Fiction, Jules Winnfield, played by Samuel L. Jackson, says to John Travolta's Vincent Vega: "Every time my fingers touch brain, I'm Superfly TNT. I'm the Guns of the Navarone", In 1975 Louis Marx and Company released a Navarone playset that was later reissued by the Mego Corporation The Guns of Navarone at TV Guide (heavily cut and revised version of 1987 write-up originally published in The Motion Picture Guide) The Guns of Navarone is a 1957 novel about the Second World War by Scottish writer Alistair MacLean that was made into the film The Guns of Navarone in 1961. The Greek island of Navarone does not exist and the plot is fictional; however, the story takes place within the real historical context of the Dodecanese Campaign, the Allies' campaign to capture the Italian-held Greek islands in the Aegean Sea in 1943. The story is based on the Battle of Leros, and Leros island's coastal artillery guns – among the largest naval artillery guns used during World War II – that were built and used by the Italians until Italy capitulated in 1943 and subsequently used by the Germans until their defeat. The story concerns the efforts of an Allied commando team to destroy a seemingly impregnable German fortress that threatens Allied naval ships in the Aegean Sea, and prevents over 1,200 isolated British soldiers from being rescued. The story is based on the real events surrounding the Battle of Leros in World War II. The Guns of Navarone brings together elements that would characterise much of MacLean's subsequent works: tough, competent, worldly men as main characters; frequent but non-graphic violence; betrayal of the hero(es) by a trusted associate; and extensive use of the sea and other dangerous environments as settings. Its three principal characters — New Zealand mountaineer-turned-commando Keith Mallory, American demolitions expert "Dusty" Miller, and Greek resistance fighter Andrea – are among the most fully drawn in all of MacLean's work. The island of Navarone, off the Turkish coast, has been heavily fortified as the Germans attempt to stifle British naval activity in the Aegean. A force of twelve hundred British soldiers is now marooned on the nearby island of Kheros (another variation of the island Keros, which is situated to the west of Amorgos) and the Royal Navy is planning to send ships to rescue them. The heavy radar-controlled guns command the only deepwater channel that ships can use and must be silenced at all costs. Commando attacks have failed and after a bombardment by B-24 Liberator bombers fails to destroy the guns, Captain James Jensen RN, Chief of Operations for SOE in Cairo, decides to launch a desperate last-ditch attempt which he has already planned in case the bombing is unsuccessful. He has drawn together a team of specialist saboteurs to infiltrate the island via the "unclimbable" south cliff and get into the fortress to destroy the guns. They have less than one week. The team meet for the first time in Alexandria. They comprise: Captain Keith Mallory – a New Zealand officer with the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG). Mallory was a pre-war mountain climber, nicknamed "The Human Fly". He has been operating in the mountains of German-held Crete., Andrea – a former Lt. Colonel in the Greek army, a ruthless fighter and close friend and confidante of Mallory., Corporal Dusty Miller – an American explosives expert who transferred from the R.A.F. to the LRDG. Miller is described as a stringy, cynical man who doubts their chances of success., Petty Officer Telegraphist Casey Brown – a Royal Navy engineer and veteran of the Special Boat Service. He is a native of Clydeside and worked as a testing and installation engineer pre-war., Lt Andrew Stevens R.N.V.R. – Stevens is a young naval officer chosen as navigator. Like Mallory, he speaks fluent Greek and is an experienced mountaineer but considers himself an abject coward. The team travel via MTB and plane to Castelrosso, a British-held island. Here, they discover an eavesdropper, Nikolai the base laundry boy, who allegedly speaks no English but is spying on them anyway. They demand that he be arrested and held incommunicado, but the story implies that this does not happen. In an ancient caïque they sail towards Navarone. They carry papers identifying themselves as collaborators with, and couriers for, the German commandant of the island. They are intercepted by a German patrol boat, which appears to be expecting them. They sink it and kill all the crew. They are wrecked in a storm but manage to land on the island, having lost much of their equipment. They climb the 'unclimbable' south cliff, but Stevens slips and is badly injured. Evading German guards, they travel through heavy snow and rough terrain and are met by Louki, the steward of the exiled owner of the island, and Panayis, his enigmatic friend. They bring much needed food. By radio, Jensen tells the team that they have less time than was planned for. The ships are coming through that very night. But whilst resting in a cave, they are captured by a troop of German specialist mountain soldiers led by Oberleutnant Turzig, who recognises Mallory as a famous climber. They are taken to the town of Margaritha where they are ruthlessly interrogated by Hauptmann Skoda. Thanks to Andrea's diversionary behaviour, they turn the tables on them and Skoda is shot. With Turzig and the others securely tied up, they escape and make their way to the town of Navarone. They are harassed by troops and planes who are also apparently expecting them. With no medical facilities available, Stevens is clearly dying and beyond help. He asks to be left behind and feels curiously at peace. Miller discovers that much of his equipment has been damaged. Suspicion falls on Panayis, who is also suspected of being a double agent. He admits nothing, but the evidence is damning. Miller shoots him. Mallory and Miller manage to enter the fortress housing the guns, whilst the others create a diversion. They set the explosives and then get out to meet the others. They steal a boat and rendezvous with the destroyer HMS Sirdar, which is leading two others through the deepwater channel. Just in time, the explosives do their work, the guns are destroyed and the ships continue on their way to rescue the soldiers. In 1990 the British Crime Writers' Association placed The Guns of Navarone 89th on its list The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time. The success of the book's film adaptation prompted Alistair MacLean to write the only sequel of his writing career, Force 10 from Navarone (1968). However this is a sequel to the film, not the book. In 1997, BBC Radio 2 produced a two-hour adaptation for radio written by Bert Coules and directed by Patrick Rayner. The cast included: Toby Stephens as "Mallory", David Rintoul as "Andrea", Michael Williams as "Commodore Jensen", John Guerrasio as "Miller", Alex Norton as "Brown", Peter Kenny as "Stevens" The Guns of Navarone was also produced as an abridged audiobook with Patrick Allen narrating. The Guns of Navarone (film) Book review at AlistairMacLean.com "Guns Of Navarone" is a song and single by Jamaican group, The Skatalites. The music was written by Dimitri Tiomkin for the 1961 film of the same name, the soundtrack of which was released on 1 January 1961. Lyrics were added by Paul Francis Webster. AllMusic describes the song as a masterpiece of the ska genre with its feeling of optimism with a "jubilant harmonic horn chorus". The vocalist is Roland Alphonso, with Lee "Scratch" Perry who provided various shouts on the track. The rhythm section of drummer Lloyd Knibb and bassist, Lloyd Brevett provided sharp rim shots and a "thumping bass". Originally released in Jamaica on Coxsone Dodd's Muzik City label in 1965 under Alphonso's name, it was re-released the same year in the UK on Island using a slightly shorter edit. However, it did not appear in the UK charts until 1967, making number 36 in the spring of that year and staying on the charts for six weeks. It was The Skatalites' only hit in the UK. The song was again a hit when included on the UK Chart-topping The Special A.K.A. Live! EP by The Specials in 1980. The Specials version was a mostly instrumental version featuring scat-like toasting by Neville Staple and trombone by veteran ska musician Rico Rodriguez.

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Flash (Bartholomew Henry "Barry" Allen) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Showcase #4 (October 1956), created by writer Robert Kanigher and penciler Carmine Infantino. Barry Allen is a reinvention of a previous character called the Flash, who appeared in 1940s comic books as the character Jay Garrick. Because he is a speedster, his power consists mainly of superhuman speed. Various other effects are also attributed to his ability to control the speed of molecular vibrations, including his ability to vibrate at speed to pass through objects. The Flash wears a distinct red and gold costume treated to resist friction and wind resistance, traditionally storing the costume compressed inside a ring. Barry Allen's classic stories introduced the concept of the Multiverse to DC Comics, and this concept played a large part in DC's various continuity reboots over the years. The Flash has traditionally always had a significant role in DC's major company-wide reboot stories, and in the crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths #8 (Nov. 1985), Barry Allen died saving the Multiverse, removing the character from the regular DC lineup for 23 years. His return to regular comics is foreshadowed during the narrative (and a single image of a blur) in Grant Morrison's crossover story #3 (Nov. 2008), fully actualized in Geoff Johns' accompanying #1 (June 2009), kicking off a six-issue limited series. He has since played a pivotal role in the crossover stories Blackest Night (2009), Flashpoint (2011), Convergence (2015), and DC Rebirth (2016). Allen is the most well-known and commonly featured individual to take the mantle of the Flash, being present in numerous media adaptations, one-shots and comic-book story-arcs taking place in alternate universes. Barry Allen has been featured in several media, first appearing in animated form in the 1967 The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure and then in the related Super Friends program. Since then he has appeared in several DC Universe Animated Original Movies. Actor John Wesley Shipp portrayed the character in the live- action 1990s television show The Flash and the Arrowverse. Allen is currently portrayed by Grant Gustin in the Arrowverse shows in a main capacity, especially the 2014 television series The Flash, while Ezra Miller portrays the character in Crisis on Infinite Earths and the DC Extended Universe films , Justice League, and will return in the 2022 film The Flash. Barry Allen is a police scientist (his job was later changed to a forensic investigator) with a reputation for being very slow, and frequently late, which frustrates his fiancée, Iris West, who he loved for years after taking him in when his mom died and his dad was blamed even though it wasn't him it was the reverse flash. As the result of being absent-minded and his devotion to solving crime cases. One night, as he is working late on a new case, a lightning bolt strikes and shatters a case full of unspecified chemicals and drenches all over Barry, temporarily knocking him out. As a result, Allen later finds that he can run at super-human speeds and possesses equally enhanced reflexes, senses, and healing. He later dons a red bodysuit, sporting a lightning bolt in the chest (reminiscent of the original Fawcett Comics Captain Marvel), dubs himself the Flash (after his childhood comic book hero, Jay Garrick), and becomes Central City's resident costumed crime fighter and protector. Central City University professor Ira West (Iris's adoptive father) designed Allen's costume and the ring which stores it while Allen is in his civilian identity. The ring can eject the compressed clothing when Allen needs it and suck it back in with the aid of a special gas that shrinks the suit. In addition, Allen invented the cosmic treadmill, a device that allowed for precise time travel and was used in many stories. Allen was warmly received by his superhero colleagues, so much to the extent that nearly all speedsters that come after him are often compared to him. Batman once said "Barry is the kind of man that I would've hoped to become if my parents had not been murdered." As presented in Justice League of America #9, when the Earth is infiltrated by alien warriors sent to conquer the planet, some of the world's greatest heroes join forces, Allen among them. While the superheroes individually defeat most of the invaders, they fall prey to a single alien and only by working together are they able to defeat the warrior. Afterwards, the heroes decide to establish the Justice League. During the years, he is depicted as feeling slightly attracted to Black Canary and Zatanna, but he never pursues a relationship because he feels his real love is Iris West, whom he ultimately marries. Allen also becomes a good friend with Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), which would later be the subject of the limited series Flash and Green Lantern: The Brave and the Bold. In The Flash # 123—"Flash of Two Worlds"—Allen is transported to Earth-Two where he meets Jay Garrick, the original Flash in DC Continuity; it is revealed that Jay Garrick's adventures were captured in comic book form on Earth-One. This storyline initiated DC's multiverse and was continued in issues of Flash and in team-ups between the Justice League of America of Earth-One and the Justice Society of America of Earth-Two. In the classic story from Flash #179—"The Flash – Fact or Fiction?"—Allen is thrown into the universe eventually called Earth Prime, a representation of "our" universe, where he seeks the aid of the Flash comic book's editor Julius Schwartz to build a cosmic treadmill so that he can return home. He also gains a sidekick and protégé in Iris' nephew, Wally West, who gains super-speed in an accident similar to that which gave Allen his powers. In time, he married his girlfriend Iris West, who learned of his double identity because Allen talked in his sleep. She kept this secret, and he eventually revealed his identity to her of his own free will with Moreno's persuasion. Iris was eventually revealed to have been sent as a child from the 30th century and adopted. In the 1980s, Flash's life begins to collapse. Professor Zoom (a supervillain from the 25th century who had long loved her and been jealous of Allen), and when Allen prepares to marry another woman, Zoom tries the same trick again. Allen stops him, killing Zoom in the process by breaking his neck. Unfortunately, when Barry is unable to make an appearance at his own wedding, his fiancée eventually descends into madness and stomps out of the room walking in somber. Placed on trial for murder in connection with Zoom's death, Allen is found guilty by the jury. When he is told by a juror, who is being possessed by a mind from the future, that Reverse Flash (whom Allen knows to be dead) brainwashed the jury into this verdict, Flash flees his trial. The Flash is then attacked by Reverse Flash, and realizes that the answers to this mystery, and restoring his good name, lie in the future, so the juror uses a time device to send them forward. They discover that Abra Kadabra was disguised as Reverse Flash to ruin the Flash's good name. Defeating Kadabra, he retreats to the future to be reunited with Iris, having learned that Iris' spirit was in fact drawn to the 30th century, and given a new body (and was in fact the mind inhabiting the juror). The final issue of The Flash ends with Flash and Iris kissing passionately and the caption "And they lived happily ever after... for a while". There are a few references in the final issue (The Flash #350) to the upcoming events, and Flash's impending death. In the controversial storyline Identity Crisis (sets within the post- continuity), it is revealed that Barry voted to allow Zatanna to edit Doctor Light's mind with four of the members of the Justice League six months after Iris's death, essentially lobotomizing him. When Batman discovers what the League was doing, they have his memories edited as well despite the opposition from Green Arrow. Both Doctor Light and Batman would eventually recover from their respective mindwipe, leading Doctor Light to swear vengeance to all heroes and Batman's distrust towards his allies. Following the trial, Allen retires and joins Iris in the 30th century. After only a few weeks of happiness, the Crisis on Infinite Earths intervenes, and Allen is captured by the Anti-Monitor and brought to 1985; according to the Anti-Monitor, the Flash was the only being capable of traveling to other universes at will, so the Anti-Monitor could not allow him to stay free. Allen escapes and foils the Anti-Monitor's plan to destroy the Earth with an anti- matter cannon, creating a speed vortex to draw the power in, but dies in the process as the power becomes too much for his body. It has been said that Allen travels back through time and becomes the very same lightning bolt that gives him his powers, but later it is also strongly implied that the soul of Barry resides in the Speed Force, the mystical source and Valhalla open to all dead speedsters, and from which the living ones draw their amazing powers. After Allen's death, Kid Flash Wally West, his nephew and sidekick, takes up the mantle of the Flash. Marv Wolfman, scribe for the Crisis on Infinite Earths, has repeatedly stated (first hinted at in his introduction to the original Crisis collected edition hardcover), then fully explained on his website that he left a loophole in the script wherein the Barry Allen Flash could be reintroduced, without a retcon, into DC Universe continuity. This loophole would allow a writer to pull Barry out of his desperate run to annihilate the anti-matter cannon. However, Barry would know he must someday finish his death run, and would become more determined to use his speed to help others. It should also be noted that the way Barry Allen seemed to have "died" in Crisis on Infinite Earths, was that he ran so fast that he was able to stop the Anti-Monitor's anti-matter cannon from firing by catching the tachyon beam at the heart of the weapon. After this act, according to Secret Origins Annual #2 (1988), Barry Allen turns into a lightning bolt, goes back in time, becoming the lightning bolt that hit his lab, splashing his past-self with chemicals and transforming him into the Flash. In Deadman: Dead Again, Barry is one of the heroes whose spirit Deadman helps to enter Heaven, and the Green Arrow storyline "Quiver" depicts Barry Allen in Heaven. His spirit seems to still be alive within the Speed Force, along with Max Mercury and other speedsters. In Quasar by Marvel Comics, released between December 1990 and May 1994, an amnesiac Barry Allen, misremembering his name as "Buried Alien" and the Speed Force as the "Hyperforce", and surprised to have "form" again, enters the Marvel Universe in the middle of the great race to be the "Fastest Man Alive" after the players had passed the first warp junction, where he is discovered by the Runner co-ordinating it and invited to participate in his great race. Beating several other speedsters (Pietro "Quicksilver" Maximoff, Wendell "Quasar" Vaughn, Robert "The Whizzer" Frank, Captain Marvel, James "Speed Demon" Sanders, Ariana "Black Racer", Martin "Super Sabre" Fletcher and Makkari) he is declared to be the "fastest man alive", a title he believes feels "right", though he never recovers his memory during his time in the universe. He later adopted the alias "FastForward", before he is returned to his original universe with Makkari's assistance. Iris is pregnant, and she has two children who have super-speed powers, the Tornado Twins, who later meet the Legion of Super-Heroes. In the multiversal variant known as Earth-247, each of her children themselves have children with speed-based abilities. One, Jenni Ognats, grows up to become the Legionnaire XS, while the other, Bart Allen, is born with an accelerated metabolism that rapidly ages him, and is sent back to the 20th century where he is cured by Wally West. He remains there as the superhero Impulse under the tutelage of Max Mercury, and later becomes the second Kid Flash as a member of the Teen Titans. One year after the events of Infinite Crisis, Bart becomes the fourth Flash until he is abruptly killed by his clone Inertia and the Rogues. Wally then retook the identity of the Flash. Bart would later be resurrected as Kid Flash by the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st century to combat Superboy- Prime. Barry Allen appears in issue 3 as the Flash in the JLA when the two realities start changing, along with Hal Jordan. When the two teams see their real futures, Barry witnesses his death during Crisis on Infinite Earths as the Grandmaster shows the heroes how reality should be, but nevertheless resolves to help restore the timeline as it is not his place to play God. He talks with Hal Jordan over the similarity of their situation, stating that dying could not be so bad so long as they have left a legacy for others (Wally West and Kyle Rayner, in their cases) to fight for what they believe. He helps the team get into Krona's base by using his running on a treadmill to pass the ship through the dimensional barrier. With the Wasp, he is ordered by Captain America to find ways through Krona's defences, and alerts the group to a probably lethal force field. During the final battle, Barry saves Hawkeye from being killed when the Absorbing Man breaks the ground beneath him, but both of them are blasted and apparently killed by Dreamslayer. At the end, it is revealed that Barry got the two of them out alive and at Captain America's suggestion they laid low and because of this, Hawkeye is able to destroy Krona's machine with a TNT arrow while Barry distracts him, then Barry takes the 12 items of power. As a result, reality is restored, Barry disappears and Wally returns. Wally West, wracked by grief for the loss of his unborn twins at the hands of Zoom, regrets the public knowledge of his identity. Barry appears from somewhere in time—stating that he is from a period shortly before his death—counseling his nephew, and talking the Spectre into granting his wish, erasing all public knowledge of Wally and Barry's identities as the Flash (Although Wally himself also loses his memory of his identity for a time). Barry then disappears, telling his nephew that he will come to his aid three times, on the three most difficult days of his life of which this is the first. In fact, when Zoom enlists the aid of the original Professor Zoom to make Wally relive the loss of his beloved twins, Barry is already there, trying to stop his own Reverse Flash; Zoom apparently retrieved Eobard Thawne from the day that he attempted to kill Fiona Webb, with Barry following his nemesis. For the second time, he helps Wally to undo the damage dealt by Zoom, also allowing Wally to save his twins, and then he returns to his proper time, dragging his Zoom with him and breaking his enemy's neck in his timeline. In the fourth issue of Infinite Crisis, Barry Allen comes out from the Speed Force, along with Johnny Quick and Max Mercury, to help his grandson Bart deal with Superboy-Prime, taking the villainous teen with him in the Speed Force. Bart Allen appears wearing Barry Allen's costume in Tokyo near the end of Infinite Crisis #5 to tell the heroes that Superboy-Prime has escaped the Speed Force. Bart again reappears in Infinite Crisis #7 in Barry Allen's costume to combat Superboy-Prime once more. In Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #6 (2006) (with a portion taking place shortly before Infinite Crisis #5) it is told how Barry spent four years in an alternate Keystone City along with Max Mercury, Johnny Quick, and an alternate Jay Garrick, until he met Bart and Wally West, joining him after the battle against Superboy-Prime. After Superboy escapes, Barry suggests that someone has to absorb the whole Speed Force and cross the dimensional bridge back to Post-Crisis Earth. As Bart volunteers, Barry gives him his suit as a last gift, to keep the Force contained, and stays behind. Wally West did not go because of his wife and kids. Bart says he knows Barry would go if he could, but why Barry Allen could not make the journey himself is not stated. Twenty three years after his death in Crisis on Infinite Earths, Barry Allen's essence made a return to the present DC Universe proper in DC Universe #0, preceding his full-time return in the pages of writer Grant Morrison's Final Crisis. DC Universe #0 features an unnamed narrator who initially associates himself with "everything". As the story progresses, he begins to recall his past and association with Justice League members, particularly Hal Jordan and Superman. The lettering in which he speaks to the reader is yellow on backgrounds that are initially black. As the story moves forward, the background slowly begins turning red. In the final pages, the narration boxes feature a yellow lightning bolt. Over time, as he recalls friendships and connections with other people, his mind begins to narrow, remarking "I...know him. I am no longer everything. I am a shaft of light split through a prism". Yet he is still the only one able to see "the shadow falling over everything", in the form of Darkseid. On the final page, the moon appears in front of a red sky, as a yellow lightning bolt strikes diagonally in front of it creating the logo of the Flash, as he remarks "and now I remember". The title of the story is revealed to be "Let There Be Lightning". A Daily News story released on the same day proclaimed that Barry Allen has returned to life, with issue co- writer Geoff Johns stating, "When the greatest evil comes back to the DC Universe, the greatest hero needed to return." Barry makes his corporeal return in Final Crisis #2. On the second to last page, Jay Garrick and Wally West feel vibrations to which Jay remarks, "but, don't you recognize those vibrations? It can't be... Not after all these years... Not after all this time." On the final page, Barry Allen is seen in hot pursuit of the bullet which kills Orion, outrunning the Black Racer and shouting to Jay and Wally to "Run!" During Final Crisis #3, Jay Garrick speaks to Barry's wife, Iris, and tells her that her husband is truly alive. Meanwhile, Wally and Barry run a few weeks into the future. When they come to rest, Wally asks Barry if it is really him. Lamenting on Orion's death, which he was unable to stop, Barry wonders why he is now alive after being dead for so long. It is then that Barry and Wally are confronted by Wonder Woman, Batwoman, Catwoman, and Giganta, who have all been transformed into the new Female Furies following the release of the Anti-Life Equation. Despite the fact that this new version of the Female Furies is equipped with the ability to track down speedsters, perceived by Libra and Darkseid as the only obstacle left between them and world domination, Barry's expertise allows him to overcome their foes and run through the ruined Earth. Barry stops to see his wife Iris and save her from the slavery of the Anti-Life Equation. Seeing his wife again for the first time in years, Barry is overcome with emotion and gives his brainwashed wife a deep kiss. While kissing her, the Speed Force sparkles out of his body, enveloping Iris and freeing her from the Equation. The Allens and Wally West are left to fend in a conquered world. In the seventh and final issue of Final Crisis, Barry and Wally lead the Black Racer to Darkseid, dealing the cosmic tyrant a blow that, coupled with Batman shooting him in the shoulder with the god-bullet, would facilitate his ultimate defeat. In 2009, writer Geoff Johns and artist Ethan Van Sciver created , a 6-issue miniseries bringing Barry Allen back to a leading role in the DC Universe as the Flash, much in the same vein as . When asked what Flashes would appear in the series, Johns and Van Sciver said, "All of them." The series begins with the cities of Central and Keystone celebrating the return of, "Central City's Flash", Wonder Woman having used her government contacts to create the story that Barry was in witness protection to account for his resurrection. Avoiding the parades, parties, and other celebrations of his return, Barry instead contemplates why he is alive again. A visit to the Flash Museum and from his friend Hal Jordan is not enough to put his mind at ease as he runs off as the Flash. "I can't be late," he says. When asked by Hal late for what, Flash replies, "For whatever the rest of the world needs me for." It is then revealed that Flash's mother was murdered when he was a child, and his father was arrested for the crime (this is pointedly contrary to previous Flash stories, in which both his parents appear alive). Flash describes this as "the only one open case I left behind." Before he can contemplate this any further, the speedster villain Savitar escapes the Speed Force through Flash. When Flash manages to put his hand on Savitar's shoulder, the villain screams in agony and crumbles into dust, not before telling Flash, "...You were the beginning, Allen...and you're the end." At that moment, Wally West, West's children Iris and Jai, Liberty Belle, Jay Garrick, and Kid Flash all experience painful convulsions and are engulfed in lightning. Barry's conflict with the speed cult culminates in the death of their new leader who was attempting to avenge Savitar's death. It causes pain once again to all the speedsters, though Wally West manages to catch a glimpse of Allen directly afterwards, and sees him as the new Black Flash. When he realizes that his presence could damage or kill other innocents, Barry flees back into the Speed Force, where he encounters old friends Johnny Quick and Max Mercury. Max attempts to tell Allen that his becoming the Black Flash is not his fault. When Max and Barry are pulled into another pocket of the Speed Force, the real culprit reveals himself: Professor Zoom. Zoom reveals his plan: after Barry briefly aided Kid Flash against Superboy-Prime during the Infinite Crisis, Thawne was able to send a subliminal pulse into the Speed Force to draw back what was left of Barry's self-awareness. This led to the hero's reappearance during the Final Crisis. Afterward, Zoom transformed himself into "a new kind of speedster and created his negative Speed Force to contaminate Barry and the other heroic speedsters. Before Barry can fight any further, Zoom fades away. Wally enters the Speed Force to retrieve his uncle, and after venturing deeper into the Speed Force, Max reveals to Barry that it was Allen himself who created the Speed Force. Meanwhile, Wally manages to reach Barry and Max, and the three begin their escape. As the heroic speedsters are recharged with energy, Barry, Wally, Jay, Max, and Bart charge towards Zoom. The seven speedsters (the 5 men plus Jesse Chambers and Iris West-Park) battle against Zoom, and despite being outnumbered, Zoom pulls Barry away. He reveals that everything horrible that happened to Barry, including the murder of Barry's mother, was caused by Zoom. Zoom then decides to destroy everything by killing Barry's wife, Iris, before they met. Barry chases after Zoom, and is joined by Wally, who tells Barry to push as hard as he can to break the time barrier. They reach Thawne, becoming the lightning bolt that turns Barry into the Flash as they are able to stop Zoom from killing Iris. As the two Flashes push Zoom back through time to the present, they see that the Justice League, the Justice Society, and the Outsiders have built a device specifically for Thawne. Barry tosses him in and activates the device, severing his connection to the negative Speed Force. The Flashes tie Zoom up to stop him from running. With the threat ended, everyone celebrates by welcoming Barry back and the speedsters in general. Later, Barry closes the case on his mother's death and opts to take all the other cold cases they had after his death. Barry spends some time with Iris before racing to Washington to celebrate his return with the Justice League, apologizing for being late. Barry Allen is one of the main characters in Blackest Night alongside Hal Jordan. Allen appears alongside Jordan in the Free Comic Book Day issue Blackest Night #0 that acts as a prologue to the July company crossover. At the grave of Bruce Wayne in Gotham City, Hal and Barry reflect on Batman's death and how the hero community is avoiding linking Wayne and Batman. This reflection turns to the pair looking at their own deaths, comparing the sadness that Barry's death engendered in others while Hal's death produced anger. Hal sums it up by telling Barry, "I died a sinner. You died a saint." (though he admits he's not and reflecting of his past sins.) The conversation moves on to the world becoming "more dangerous" after Barry's death and observing that the deaths of Arthur Curry and Martian Manhunter cost the Justice League its "heart and soul". As they leave the cemetery, Barry expresses hope that their dead comrades will be returned to them. He specifically cites Batman noting, "If there's an escape, you can bet Batman's already planning it." Barry also appears alongside Hal in the July issues of Green Lantern tying into the event. Recently, in a fight with Black Lantern J'onn J'onzz, he found a mysterious black residue at Bruce Wayne's grave—a black form coagulating much like blood that started corrupting him by partly decaying his skin and muscle during the fight against his former friend, who is intent on killing both Hal and Barry, seeing how they both died, and in the eyes of the Black Lanterns, must return to that state to keep the universe in balance. After fighting off the undead Martian and the subsequent Black Lanterns with Hal and the arriving Atom, Mera, Firestorm, and two of the Indigo Tribe members, Barry, along with Wally and Bart, races across the globe to warn every superhero community across the planet. His message also inadvertently warns the Rogues. They all realize that their deceased members would come after them and decide to strike first at Iron Heights Penitentiary, unaware that the undead Rogues are ready for them. While doing so, Barry meets a Black Lantern version of Professor Zoom for a brief battle. Barry decides to go to Gorilla City to seek aid from its ruler Solovar, unaware the gorilla leader had been killed years before. Finding the city attacked, Barry assumed Grodd had struck only to be horrified to learn Solovar was now a Black Lantern. Their fight was shortened by Barry racing to Coast City. He stops at the city's memorial, where he witnesses the arrival of the Black Lanterns' demonic lord, Nekron, and his disciples Scar and Black Hand. The Justice League, the Titans, Wally, and Bart arrive to aid Barry to take a stand against Nekron. Nekron reveals that all the resurrected heroes are tied to him, because he allowed them to rise again. As such they belong to him. Nekron then used a series of black rings to turn Superman, Wonder Woman, Troia, Green Arrow, Bart, and several other resurrected heroes into Black Lanterns. Barry and Hal find themselves being targeted by black rings and are forced to flee or risk joining the others as Black Lanterns. Barry manages to save himself and Hal through time travel two seconds forward, leaving the rings with no present targets. As Barry and Hal rejoin the heroes against Nekron and his army, Ganthet, one of the Guardians of the Universe and a leader of the Blue Lantern Corps, summons a blue power ring and Barry is chosen as a Blue Lantern so he would be more effective during the battle. After being chosen as a Blue Lantern, Barry joins forces with the veteran Blue Corps member Saint Walker to continue battling the Black Lanterns alongside the understanding of the potentials and limitations of his new power ring. During the battle, Barry is forced to fight his own grandson, who his ring detects is still alive but would eventually die if not free from the black ring soon. Barry is shown to be skilled with his ring in creating energy constructs based on his imagination and an ability of flight (possibly because of the understanding with Hal's ring), as he is able to create images of Bart as Impulse and Kid Flash against him in order to make him feel again. Barry's plan almost works as Bart reacts to the images of his past and the constructs begin to attempt to take the black ring from him, but later is interrupted by the Black Lantern Professor Zoom and Solovar. Wally and Walker later join Barry to fight against them. Barry and Bart temporarily joined the White Lantern Corps during the final events of Blackest Night. The new Flash series begins after the completion of Blackest Night and the beginning of Brightest Day. After the events of , Barry Allen is reintegrating himself into life in Central City. Under the cover of having been in witness protection, Allen returns to the Central City Police Department's crime lab and returns to the streets as the Flash. While readjusting to life as the Flash, a man appears out of thin air in the costume of Flash rogue the Mirror Master, and promptly dies on the street. When Barry arrives on the scene to investigate, he sees the man is neither original Mirror Master Sam Scudder, or the current Rogue, Evan McCulloch. Hearing of another portal appearing, Barry transforms into the Flash and runs to investigate. When he arrives, a group of people in costumes similar to the Rogues, called The Renegades appear and tell Barry that they are from the 25th century, and that he is under arrest for murdering the "Mirror Monarch". Barry tells the crew that he has not killed anyone, to which their leader, "Commander Cold", tells him, "Not yet. But you will." After a brief struggle, where Weather Warlock's time disc was damaged, the Renegades were forced back to the 25th century, which also caused the destruction of an apartment building due to their uncontrolled jump back. Barry saves everyone in the building, even rebuilding the building in minutes, and goes on to search for the true killer of Mirror Monarch. He is attacked again by the Renegades, but only before Captain Boomerang shows up, now wielding explosive energy boomerangs. Boomerang fights both the Flash and the Renegades, and a confused Top (one of the Renegades from the 25th century) questions his teammates on whether or not Barry Allen is the man they are looking for, pointing out that in their timeline, Boomerang never showed up. The Renegades finally corner Captain Boomerang when the Rogues arrive with a giant mirror left by the previous Mirror Master that says "In Case The Flash Returns Break Glass". An all out brawl ensues as the Rogues battle the Renegades. Meanwhile, Flash is confronted by Top who warns him that the reason he will eventually kill Mirror Monarch is because of Iris's death, which he claims will be caused when the giant mirror breaks, releasing the Mirror Lords. Top tells Barry that one of the Mirror Lords will possess Iris and take her away from him. Barry races to stop the mirror from breaking, with Top at his side. However, when the White Lantern entity reaches out to Captain Boomerang, telling him to "Throw the Boomerang", Boomerang responds by throwing dozens of boomerangs in every direction. One of them hits the glass and it begins to break. Top tells Flash to stop the Mirror Lords, while he goes and protects Iris. Flash questions does not make sense, but Top throws him into the mirror and flees. In the mirror, Flash is exposed to strange visions of his mother. Outside, the Rogue Mirror Master tells the others that the mirror is actually a slow acting poison and they flee. Barry escapes the mirror confused and asks, "Where are the Mirror Lords?" He is then arrested by the Renegades, who realize that this was all a setup by Top to frame the Flash for his own personal gains. Barry is transported to a 25th-century court, while Top confronts Iris. The story concludes with Barry escaping the 25th century court and going after Top. Top reveals that the reason for all of his crimes is because Barry reopened a previously closed case. Barry felt that the person convicted was actually innocent. The person who is actually guilty of the crime is one of Top's ancestors. Top reveals that they do not allow anyone in the Renegades who has any ancestors with a criminal record. The Flash is able to beat Top, and convict the right man for murder, letting go the innocent man who was sent to prison. Afterward, the 25th century court and the Renegades go over the facts, realizing that the Flash was right and that their entire record of history is wrong. This alludes to the upcoming Flash event, . Meanwhile, a man on a Speed Force-powered motorcycle (later revealed to be a Speed Force police officer under the name of Hot Pursuit) moves through the desert and says that if Barry does not find the flashpoint, it will destroy the world. As he continues through the desert, Speed Force lightning strikes in the distance. In a Green Lantern storyline, Barry becomes the latest host for the embodiment of fear, Parallax, after he joins Hal Jordan's quest of locating all of the entities who each represent aspects of the power of the emotional spectrum. Barry was susceptible to the entity's attacks due to his fear for Jordan's safety. Barry is eventually freed after the embodiment of compassion, Proselyte, helps him remember his capability for benevolence over his fear. DC has also announced via the Flashpoint Friday Blog that Flash #12 will be the last in the series despite a thirteenth issue originally having been announced for sale on May 25, 2011, but which has since been withdrawn. As the story begins, Barry Allen wakes up in his office and discovers that his mother is alive, there is no trace of Superman, Wonder Woman and Aquaman leading their respective nations in a war, his wife Iris West is unmarried, and himself currently powerless. Barry seeks the aid of Batman, driving to Gotham City and entering a run-down Wayne Manor. He explores what turns out to be a small Batcave until he is attacked by Batman. Barry tries to explain who he is by saying he knows Batman is Bruce Wayne, only to find that in this reality, Batman is Thomas Wayne. While Barry is being beat up by Batman, he explains about his secret identity as the Flash and his relation to Bruce Wayne. Barry's memories spontaneously change and he realizes that the world of Flashpoint is not an alternate dimension, but his own. Barry uses his ring, which he uses to contain his Flash outfit, but the ring instead ejects Professor Zoom's costume. Barry tells Batman that Zoom is taunting him with it. Barry explains that both he and Zoom have the ability to alter time, leading Batman to ask him about how Bruce was to have lived in his place and if he can really change the world. Barry states that he needs his speed first. Later, Barry and Batman create an electric chair-like device to try and recreate the accident that gave him his speed; however, the first attempt meets with failure, leaving Barry severely burned. Barry awakes on an operating table in the Batcave and is covered in bandages and third degree burns. Despite Thomas' advice, Barry sits back down in the electric chair device. When lightning strikes a second time, Barry's super-speed returns, and he then saves the Batman from being impaled on a fence. Barry's injuries are healing rapidly due to his speed-enhanced regeneration. He also makes a new copy of his Flash costume. The Flash researches the incarnations of heroes of the DC timeline, believing that Zoom deliberately changed their lives to prevent the Flash from creating a Justice League, and learns of a rocket that crashed into Metropolis which carried the infant Superman, who instead of being raised in Kansas was taken in by the government. They then contact Cyborg for his help in sneaking into the government bunker of "Project: Superman" that is 'raising' Superman after his rocket destroyed Metropolis upon its arrival, only to be disappointed at Superman's frail appearance. They head towards Project: Superman's underground base via the sewer. The group comes across a giant vault door bearing the Superman logo. After they open the door, the three see a pale, weakened Kal-El. Despite his appearance, Barry says that no matter what, Superman will always be a good person. When the arrival of guards forces them to escape, Superman's powers begin to manifest and he flies off leaving them at the hands of the guards. While they fend off the guards, they are rescued by Element Woman. Barry's memories begin to change much more drastically, altering his past. He states that he is running out of time and soon he will not be able to restore the timeline to normal. After Barry is recovering, he asks the heroes to stop the Atlantean/Amazon war from creating more casualties, although the heroes are not willing to unless Batman wants to join them. Cyborg explains to him that they believe Batman was invincible. However, Barry convinces him that no one is invincible; the Marvel Family and Batman agree to join him. The heroes arrive at New Themyscira to stop the Atlantean/Amazon war, and appear to be winning until Enchantress reveals herself as the Amazon spy and uses her magic to separate the Marvel Family and restore them to their mortal forms. Penthesilea kills Billy Batson just as Professor Zoom reveals himself to Barry. Professor Zoom reveals to him that the "Flashpoint" timeline was actually created by Barry himself, after he traveled back in time to stop Zoom from killing his mother, but the timeline diverted into the near-apocalyptic world they find themselves in. He continues to taunt Barry with this knowledge, but is suddenly stabbed in the back by Batman wielding an Amazonian sword. Before Barry returns the timeline to normal, Batman thanks him for all he's done and gives him a letter addressed to his son. After this, Barry bids a farewell to his mother, knowing he must travel back in time to stop his younger self from altering time. Through the fusions of the time stream, Barry seemingly hears a voice explaining that the three timelines and worlds, need to become one again and would need his help to do this. After the ordeals, he visits the real Bruce Wayne and gives him the letter from his alternate father. Bruce is grateful to Barry of informing him of the events of the "Flashpoint" before the timeline was apparently returned to normal. DC Comics relaunched The Flash with issue #1 in September 2011, with writing and art chores handled by Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato as part of DC's company-wide title relaunch, The New 52. As with all of the books associated with the DC relaunch, Barry Allen appears to be about five years younger than the previous incarnation of the character. He gains his powers after getting frustrated and throwing a small machine at the window of his lab. The machine broke through the window, leaving a hole big enough for a bolt of lightning to charge through the hole and strike him. In the second issue of the new Justice League title (the first released comic series of the New 52 initiative and "opening shot" of the new DC Universe), Flash is called to assist Green Lantern and Batman in wrangling an out-of-control Superman, and later assists with the pursuit of an alien, revealed to be an agent of Darkseid. In this new continuity, Barry's marriage to Iris West never took place, and he is instead in a relationship with longtime co-worker Patty Spivot. In this new series, the Flash draws deeper into the Speed Force, enhancing his mental abilities while still trying to get a full grasp on his powers, which he does not yet exert total control over. As revealed in issue #0 of the current series, Barry Allen's father was placed in prison for the murder of his mother. The murder occurred shortly after Barry returned victorious from a school spelling bee, and Barry placed the trophy he won on his mother's grave in her memory. While the evidence seems to indicate his father's guilt, Barry makes proving his father's innocence a priority. Barry is also part of the main cast of the relaunched Justice League series, making his debut in the series' second issue. Following Convergence, Barry has a new suit in issue #41, which has a darker shade and features more streaks. During DC Rebirth, Barry is no longer the only Flash. It is revealed that Wally West has been lost in the Speed Force for ten years, realizing during this time that Barry is not responsible of changing the timeline after the Flashpoint crisis, the unknown entity used Barry's time travelling as an opportunity to fundamentally alter reality. The fallout of the recent Darkseid War allowed Wally to try and reach out to his former friends in the hopes of either returning or warning them of the truth, but each attempt caused him to fall further into the Speed Force. After realizing not even Linda (his traditional "lightning rod") could remember him, Wally sank into desolation and chose to appear before Barry one last time to thank him for the life he had given him. Just before Wally disappeared, Barry remembered him and dragged him free of the Speed Force. Following a tearful reunion, Wally gave Barry his warning of the true source of the universal change and the dangers to come. Because of Wally, Barry is now aware that the timeline is not reset correctly after Flashpoint and thus another alternate timeline. However, he still cannot remember his pre-Flashpoint life, such as people like Jay Garrick, his long- last marriage with Iris and the details of his feuds with the Reverse-Flash / Eobard Thawne (who now remembers their pre-Flashpoint history), and remembers Wally from their new DC Rebirth timeline history. Despite being informed by Wally that another party is responsible, Barry remains in guilt over his mistakes, and seeks to find and stop them in hopes of making amends. Although the two decide to keep Wally's return secret from Iris based on Wally's own experience with Linda, Barry encourages him to return to the Titans, but also recommends that he don a new costume to reflect that he is the Flash rather than 'Kid Flash'. While Wally considers his options, Barry visits Batman to discuss the new evidence of some outside force attacking them, musing on how personal this assault appears, but despite the potential danger, Batman and Barry agree to keep their investigation to themselves until they know what they are up against. Later, when Eobard Thawne attacks Iris and Wallace, Iris had glimpses of her pre-Flashpoint life with Barry and learns his secrets as the Flash in the process. Barry then learned of their marriage in the other timeline as well. Knowing from Thawne that her entire life has been drastically altered and that Barry is indirectly responsible for it as the result of his time-traveling actions, Iris now distrusts Barry. To make matters worse for Barry, while he's entering the Negative Speed Force, he becomes the Negative-Flash which is more lethal than the original, and mostly dangerous to control. After gotten rid of the Negative Speed Force, he investigates with the death of Turbine, but thanks to Godspeed's help, he discovers that Captain Cold was the one who killed him because he seeks redemption. He visits Wally after defeating the Top, he discusses about him telling Iris that he's alive and existed. While he's rekindling his relationship with Iris, the city is being attacked by Gorilla Grodd and his organization the Black Hole. After defeating Grodd and getting Wally to meet Iris for the first time, they've been encountered by the Renegades. The Renegades take the Flashes and Iris back to the 25th century to get answers about why Iris killed Eobard Thawne, only to discover that Hunter Zolomon has been manipulating everyone as a plot to bring conflict between Barry and Wally for the fate of the Speed Force. After Wally defeated Hunter, Barry place him under watch at the Sanctuary while he's moving with his girlfriend Iris at her place after Wallace angrily left them. Barry begins searching for the other forces such as Sage Force and Strength Force after the Force Barrier's broken; he ends up discovering about the four forces conflicting for the control of the Forever Force. Barry Allen has the ability to run at super-human velocities. He was at times during the Silver Age described as faster than the speed of thought. Flash #150, "straining every muscle", he ran at ten times the speed of light. However, when he pushed himself further (during the Crisis on Infinite Earths) he appeared to waste away as he was converted into pure energy, traveled back in time, and was revealed in Secret Origins Annual #2 to be the very bolt of lightning that gave him his powers. This was later retconned in The Flash: Rebirth #1, where Barry stated that he "ran into the Speed Force", and that, "When he stopped the Anti-Monitor, when [he] ran into the "Speed Force" and joined it, it was like shedding [his] identity." Allen possesses abilities that original Flash Jay Garrick has not always been able to duplicate, and most notably the ability to "vibrate" in such a way as to pass through solid matter. Allen regularly engaged in time travel by using his Cosmic Treadmill device. His speed also allows him, in certain circumstances, to "vibrate" between dimensions. In Grant Morrison's Final Crisis, using the Speed Force, Allen was able to undo the effects of the Anti-Life Equation upon an individual: an ability he used on his wife Iris to free her from the bondage of Darkseid's mind control. Barry's speed has numerous secondary applications. He can use it to generate cyclones by spinning his arms quickly. Barry can also manipulate the electrical Speed Force energy he generates. He can channel the energy into arcs of lightning, as well as use the electricity to manipulate magnetism on a minor level. He has also used the lightning to create blinding amounts of light. By interlocking his lightning with that of another speedster, Barry can short circuit their connection to the Speed Force. Barry is also immune to telepathic attacks and control as he can shift his thoughts at a speed faster than normal thought. Through "speed-reading", he can absorb large amounts of information into his short-term memory, which remain in his mind just long enough for him to make use of it. Using this technique, Barry was able to learn enough about building work to rebuild a destroyed apartment building. The Speed Force also supplies Barry with a protective aura that shields him from friction and kinetic impacts, as well as grants him superhuman durability. Other aspects of Barry's powers include an enhanced metabolism, which grants him a regenerative healing factor. In the New 52, Barry learned that his body is using the Speed Force to its full extent but his brain was not. With the help of Dr. Elias he was able to learn how to use the Speed Force to process more information, and make even quicker decisions, to the point where he feels like he can see everything before it happens. Barry also developed the ability to speed up the flow of time around him, which he used to negate the powers of Zoom, who was able to slow down time. In terms of DC's internal lexicon, Barry is classified as a metahuman: a human being who possesses extranormal abilities either through birth or (as in Barry's case) as the result of some external event. The Flash has acquired a colorful rogues gallery of villains. Their number includes (but is not limited to) several who formed a loose association and refer to themselves as the Rogues, disdaining the use of the term "supervillain" or "super-criminal". These criminals typically have unusually modest goals for their power level (robbery or other petty crimes), and each have adopted a specific theme in his or her equipment and methods. Barry Allen is a supporting character in Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Strikes Again. He has been kept by Lex Luthor as a power source for most of the East Coast, constantly running on a treadmill to provide cheap electrical power or else Iris will be executed. After being rescued, Barry wears a black version of his original Flash costume which Batman's young assistants deemed as "old"—"Kids, these days, can't tell the difference between just plain old and classic", he mutters. He then aids Batman and other heroes in restoring order, though they clash when Barry wants to save people in danger while Batman is prepared to let them die for the sake of his long-term strategy., Barry Allen appears in as a scientist working with Superman and a consortium of early twentieth-century scientists such as Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla. His uniform incorporates the Silver Age look with the Mercury-style helmet worn by Jay Garrick., In League of Justice, a Lord of the Rings-type story, Barry is recast as "Phaeton", who wears a mystical brooch resembling Flash's lightning-bolt chest emblem, and has bathed in dragon's blood in order to protect himself from speed friction., In , Barry is one of a number of metahumans imprisoned by a theocratic state, discovered and released by Batman during a raid on the government. He then shows Batman some of the attempts to recreate his powers in others, ranging from a man who cannot control his ability to vibrate to a woman whose brain operates at lightspeed while her body is still at normal speed or a man rapidly aging to death. While Barry and Batman are able to defeat the brainwashed Zatanna, Barry is then killed when his captor reveals that his research has included discovering how to deactivate the aura that protects Barry from being destroyed by the friction he generates while running., A version of Barry Allen aka Hot Pursuit appeared in the lead into Flashpoint. Little is known about the exact origins of Hot Pursuit, or how he came to be. The only thing known is the fact that he is a version of Barry Allen from the future, who goes back in time to warn himself about the upcoming events of Flashpoint. Hot Pursuit's history is assumed to be the same as Barry Allen's up until the single point in time, where a great anomaly altered the reality of the future all together. The unknown event that made Barry Allen don the role of Hot Pursuit is the same event he travels back in time to warn himself about, as well as the event that causes Flashpoint. With Flashpoint's widespread time-altering effects, it is possible that Barry Allen lost his connection to the Speed Force, thus needing the cosmic motorcycle Hot Pursuit is seen riding to access the Speed Force and travel back in time. This motorcycle also needs to be charged constantly with mass amounts of electricity in order for it to continue to be able to access the Speed Force, thus it is unable to naturally access the Speed Force like Barry Allen or the rest of the Flash Family. A story in the Marvel comic book series Quasar, written four years after Crisis on Infinite Earths, has the Marvel Universe speedsters facing off in a competition set up by a being called the Runner. The contest is a race from the Earth to the Moon. During the race, a surge of energy hits the track, leaving a being with blonde hair and dressed in the remains of a red outfit with yellow boots. This being has no memory, but an enormous desire to run. He goes on to win the race, passing Marvel speedsters such as Quicksilver and Speed Demon in the process. When asked what his name is, the man replies, "I'm not sure. "Buried Alien"... Something like that." When asked how it felt to be the fastest man alive, he replied, "It feels... right." The racer goes on to take the name Fast-Forward, disappearing into the universe in an attempt to help Makkari, who is stuck at hyper speed., In the Elseworlds tale , Barry's life is still the same, but heroes age in real time. This reality shows no sign of the Crisis ever happening, so an elderly Barry is seen to be alive and well in 2008., The Elseworlds story Flashpoint shows an alternate reality where Barry Allen becomes the Flash in 1956, the year he first appeared in comics. He is more involved in government affairs. By 1963, he has ended the Cold War and pushed the communists out of Vietnam. However, his career is cut short as he takes a bullet aimed at John F. Kennedy. He is paralyzed from the neck down, but he still has the fastest mind on Earth and forms Allen Industries. By 1988, he and Vandal Savage's Immortality, Inc. have begun an exploration of Mars. In 1998, Wally West leads an expedition to Mars, during which he finds the flashpoint, an object which killed all life on Mars. Savage reveals he is the one who shot Allen. Barry makes contact with Wally, who is going on a super speed rampage. Barry is cured and defeats Savage. He then enters the flashpoint, going into the Speed Force., In The Flash Annual #7, an alternate universe is shown where shortly after Wally West became Kid Flash, he became a superstar celebrity. However, Barry was tragically killed while battling Captain Cold. Ten years later, Wally is now a paraplegic and Captain Cold has written a supposedly "true" story about Barry that paints him as arrogant and incompetent. Wally decides to make a movie about his mentor that portrays the genuine Barry Allen. The resulting film is a success., The Barry Allen of Earth-51, where secret identities are no longer needed by superheroes, is seen alive. He is subsequently killed by the Monitor of New Earth., In a version of Barry Allen is a member of a Justice League where Superman did not become a hero and join the team until much later. In lieu of Superboy's adventures with the Legion of Super-Heroes, the Flash visited the 30th Century instead. Barry Allen of The Nail is almost identical to the pre-Crisis Earth-1 version, except that his costume resembles Wally's. His most prominent scene in the story is a confrontation with Amazo where he manages to defeat the android by turning intangible and removing his computerized brain before Amazo can process and mimic that attack., In the prequel comic to Barry joins Superman's Regime in a more forceful approach to saving the world from crime. However, Barry remains one of the few (alongside Shazam) to maintain some sense of morality, as he is more prone to questioning some of Superman's more drastic actions in the Year One series. Though Batman tries to convince Barry of the Regime's negative influence, he chooses to stay with them, though still tries to convince Superman his more drastic actions will not go down well. In the game, Barry finally defects from the Regime after Superman murders Shazam for questioning his ethics. He joins the Insurgency and plays a critical role in stopping Superman's dictatorship. While he and the other Regime members are arrested, he is pardoned thanks to Batman vouching for him and given a job at Luthor/Wayne climate research. His superior, Doctor Randall, convinces Barry to become the Flash again to aid the heroes in stopping Brainiac's invasion., A version of Barry Allen is present through . This version hails from Earth-Minus-52 of the Dark Multiverse, where Batman became mad due to the deaths of his crimefighting sidekicks. Batman manages to absorb Barry's body, taking the Speed Force for himself and calling himself "Red Death"; however Barry's mind remains present in Bruce's body, pleading Bruce to stop his dark crusade. When Red Death is hit by the positive energy, Bruce dies, leaving Barry alive and in control of his body, with the costume changing its color from red to gold. Barry tries his best to help his counterpart from Earth-0. However, because Barry from Earth-Minus-52 is a "creature of darkness", the exposure to the positive energy starts to rip him apart, killing him almost instantly. Ezra Miller portrays Barry Allen/The Flash in the DCEU. Barry is a college student, working multiple jobs while trying to fund his search for evidence to clear his father's name. His suit is described as being created using the same material used on the hull of the space shuttle, although it is not clear how he acquired the resources to create it. By the end of the events of Justice League he has a job as a forensic scientist for the Central City police department. Barry first appears in (2016), where he arrives from the future through time travelling to warn Bruce Wayne / Batman of post-apocalyptic events and to form the Justice League. Additionally, there is a sequence where Barry stops a robbery, seen through security footage that Lex Luthor secretly possessed., Miller reprised his role in Suicide Squad (2016), in a flashback where he is shown apprehending George "Digger" Harkness / Captain Boomerang., Miller reprises the role in Justice League (2017), where Barry joins the titular team, after meeting and being recruited by Bruce Wayne/Batman. It is stated that his father is in prison for killing his mother despite the nine-year-old Barry's insistence that his father was innocent. When Bruce contacts Barry and offers him membership of the team, Barry accepts, a conversation with his father forcing Barry to face the idea that he needs friends, but finding it hard to interact with other people because of his speed. However, he eventually become friends with Victor Stone, and the rest of the League all like Barry's jovial attitude. During the events of the film the team fights Steppenwolf, preventing his Apokoliptian invasion, seemingly preventing the alternate-future events shown in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Also in this film Barry calls himself a "hippie, long hair, very attractive Jewish boy", thus making the character the first explicitly Jewish superhero in film., Miller reprised his role as Barry Allen for Part 4 of the Arrowverse's “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover alongisde Grant Gustin's version of the same character during which he acquires the idea for “The Flash” name for himself from his alternate counterpart., Miller will reprise his role as Barry Allen / The Flash in The Flash (2022). Barry Allen appears in the animated film adaptation of entitled , voiced by Neil Patrick Harris., Barry Allen appears in animated film ., Barry Allen appears in the animated film , voiced by Michael Rosenbaum., Barry Allen appears in the animated film , an adaptation of the video game of the , with Charlie Schlatter reprising his role., Barry Allen appears in The Lego Movie. He appears as a Master Builder that assisted Metal Beard in his earlier invasion on the Octan Tower which led to his capture. By the end of the movie, he is seen with his fellow DC superheroes celebrating Emmet Brickowski's victory over the Kragle., Barry Allen appears in the animated film , voiced by Justin Chambers., Barry Allen appears in the animated film , voiced by Christopher Gorham., Barry Allen appears in the animated film , with Christopher Gorham reprising his role., Barry Allen appears in the animated film Justice League vs. Teen Titans, with Christopher Gorham reprising his role., Barry Allen appears in the animated film , but does not have a speaking role., Barry Allen appears in as a student at Super Hero High. He is voiced by Josh Keaton., Barry Allen appears in The Lego Batman Movie, voiced by Adam DeVine. He appears as a member of the Justice League and was seen at Superman's party which Superman forgot to invite Batman to., Barry Allen appears in DC Super Heroes vs. Eagle Talon, voiced by Daisuke Namikawa., Barry as Flash makes a brief appearance in Teen Titans Go! To the Movies., Barry as Flash makes a brief appearance in The Lego Movie 2. He had small adventures in the rotating series of superheroes cartoons included in The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure, with Kid Flash. He also was a founding member of the Justice League of America along with Superman, Green Lantern, Hawkman, and the Atom., He also appeared in Super Friends to help fellow Justice Leaguer Superman. JLA members Flash, Green Lantern, and Batman eventually joined forces with Superman and the rest of the Super Friends in Super Friends, The All-New Super Friends Hour, Challenge of the Super Friends, Super Friends, and where he was an important member of the superteam., Barry Allen never officially appears in the DCAU series of animated projects by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini. He is referenced and mentioned in several episodes. A police detective in the Justice League episode "The Brave and the Bold" has a passing resemblance to Barry Allen, acting as the "good cop" during the Flash's interrogation. In the Justice League Unlimited episode "Flash and Substance", the Wally West Flash mentions his uncle "flying in" to attend the dedication of a Flash Museum. There is also another character in the same episode who is Wally's teacher at the forensic lab and bears a resemblance to Barry. Although the series' Flash is Wally West in name and likeness, he has many of Barry Allen's story elements, such as his origin, job, city, foes, and status as being the first scarlet speedster and co-founding the Justice League. In part 1 of the episode "The Brave and the Bold" when the Flash goes into a comatose state he has some strange dreams; in one he has gained so much weight that he is too fat to run, a homage to the Silver Age issue of The Flash #115, and in another he has a giant head, a nod to another Silver Age comic, The Flash #177., He made a cameo appearance in "The Joining, Part Two", the season 4 finale of The Batman. He also appeared in the season 5 episode "A Mirror Darkly", portrayed by voice actor Charlie Schlatter, who reprised his role as the Flash from . Producer Alan Burnett said that while Flash had no distinct identity in the episodes, he considered this particular Flash to be Barry Allen., Barry Allen is featured in , voiced by Alan Tudyk. In "Sidekicks Assemble!", he made a cameo with the other Justice League members when an asteroid threatens Earth. In "Requiem for a Scarlet Speedster!", he was thought dead when he was pursuing Professor Zoom, only to be found in another time period which Zoom had conquered. With help from Jay Garrick, Kid Flash (Wally West), and Batman, he defeats Zoom and returns to his original time period. In a clip of "four star spectacular!", he saves Batman from Captain Boomerang, and tells him about an encounter he just had with Mirror Master and Abra Kadabra along the way., Barry Allen appears in the Young Justice animated series as a member of the JLA and Kid Flash's mentor. He is voiced by George Eads and later by James Arnold Taylor in "Endgame". He is shown wearing Wally's costume rather than his original Silver Age outfit. Issue #5 of the show's tie-in comic book reveals that rather than gaining his powers from a freak accident, Barry deliberately recreated the lab explosion that gave Jay Garrick his speed abilities back in the 1940s. Barry's death in Crisis on Infinite Earths is adapted and substituted with Wally's for the season 2 finale, as the three Flashes band together to deactivate a Reach device. Wally dies in a manner reminiscent of Barry's death battling the Anti-Monitor, and is referred to as casualty of an averted "crisis"., Grant Gustin reprises his role from The CW's television series The Flash in the web series spin-off Vixen., He appears in DC Super Hero Girls voiced by Josh Keaton., Barry Allen appears in Justice League Action with Charlie Schlatter reprising his role. Actor Rod Haase appeared as Barry Allen's Flash in 1979's two-part special, Legends of the Superheroes., The unsuccessful 1997 Justice League of America pilot featured actor Kenny Johnston as a 20-something, unemployed, Barry Allen., The fifth episode of season 4 of Smallville, entitled "Run", featured speedster Bart Allen as Impulse (played by Kyle Gallner). Bart is shown to be in possession of several fake I.D.-cards with the names "Jay Garrick", "Barry Allen" and "Wally West". In the season 11 storyline Haunted, Bart is revealed to have learned those names through his connection to the Speed Force, with the three being other existing speedsters. Barry Allen was the Flash in the 1990s Flash live-action TV series, although this character incorporated elements of Wally West's social life, as well as previously non-existent characters such as a brother and nephew. He was played by John Wesley Shipp. This version of the Flash reaches maximum speed upon breaking the sound barrier, at which point he has to stop to rest. CBS originally wanted to cast Jack Coleman, who declined the role to pursue a career in Broadway. As a police forensic scientist, Barry was working in the crime lab at the Central City Police Department headquarters when a lightning bolt struck his lab, dousing him in a combination of electricity and chemicals nearby. He discovered the accident gave him superhuman speed. With the help of S.T.A.R. Labs scientist Dr. Christina McGee, Barry learned how to control his powers with the help of a special prototype deep-sea diving suit. When Barry's older brother and police colleague Jay Allen was murdered by gang leader and Jay's former police partner Nicholas Pike, Barry wore a masked version of the suit and called himself the Flash. After capturing Pike, Barry sees his potentials of accomplishing some differences with his powers in a crime-ridden Central City, and started helping to bring other criminals to justice and provide hope to people as a masked superhero. Later, the Earth where this Flash lives is designated as Earth-90. Shipp also recurs as Earth-1's Barry Allen's (portrayed by Grant Gustin) father, Dr. Henry Allen, and Henry's Earth-3 equivalent Jay Garrick/The Flash in the 2014 television series. Shipp later reprises his role of 1990 television series for both crossovers "Elseworlds" and "Crisis on Infinite Earths", therefore like Garrick, this Flash is also Henry's doppelgänger. Barry Allen first appears in Arrow, played by Grant Gustin. In the episodes "The Scientist" and "Three Ghosts", Barry comes to Starling City to investigate a crime which may assist him in solving his mother's strange murder that occurred when he was 11 years old. He also hopes to meet his vigilante idol, the Arrow. Barry discovers that Oliver Queen is the Arrow after the archer's friends recruit him to save Oliver's life, and eventually he and Oliver become friends. Barry would later return after he becomes the Flash, in the crossover episodes “The Brave and the Bold”, “Legends of Yesterday”, and the second parts of “Invasion!”, “Crisis on Earth-X”, “Elseworlds” and "Crisis on Infinite Earths"., Gustin as Allen is then spun off into his own The Flash series on the network. which premiered in Fall 2014. The series chronicles Barry's journey to become a hero in his own right once he gained superhuman speed after being struck by lightning during S.T.A.R. Labs' particle accelerator explosion. He fights to protect Central City from the escalating violence of metahuman criminals and occasionally teams with Oliver and other heroes. As the series unfolds, he encounters several nemeses: the future speedster Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash, the Earth-2 speedster Hunter Zolomon/Zoom, a rogue alternate timeline counterpart Savitar, the intellectual Clifford DeVoe/Thinker, and the serial killer Cicada. He gradually develops super-speed-related abilities such as vibrating through solid objects, temporarily absorbing knowledge through speed-reading, or traveling through time and parallel universes. Gustin reprised his role for a crossover with the television series Supergirl episodes "Worlds Finest" “Medusa”, the first part of “Crisis on Earth-X”, and the third part of “Elseworlds”., Gustin also portrayed a non-metahuman Earth-2 doppelgänger of Barry Allen, and an evil alternate timeline future-time remnant who calls himself Savitar., Originally, Marc Guggenheim confirmed in an interview that Blitzkrieg of is the Earth-X doppelgänger of Barry Allen. However, much of the concepts for Earth-X has changed since the interview and the animated series' production started, with characters such as Black Arrow and Dark Arrow becoming different despite the original intentions. As such, it is unclear whether this information is still relevant to the character Blitzkrieg. He is voiced by Scott Whyte and is an amalgamation of Baron Blitzkrieg, Baroness Blitzkrieg, Blitzen and Nazi Flash., The Arrowverse Flash and the DCEU Flash appeared in the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover played by Grant Gustin and Ezra Miller respectively. In February 2007 it was announced that Warner Bros hired husband and wife duo Michele and Kieran Mulroney to write a script for a Justice League film. George Miller signed to direct in September 2007. Titled Justice League Mortal, Adam Brody was cast as Barry Allen and the film nearly went into production, but the film was pushed back with Writers Guild Strike and the Australian Film Commission refusing to house filming over tax rebate disagreements. Barry Allen is the Flash in the crossover video game Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, voiced by Taliesin Jaffe. He appears in a variant of his current costume. Although the character model contains green eyes, normally a sign of Wally West, as well as the dual lightning bolt belt (instead of Allen's single bolt belt), which is associated with West's, the game's "Bios" section confirms that it is indeed Allen. In Flash's ending, Flash discovered that he had retained a psychic bond with the warrior Liu Kang as a result of his aura attunement. The two agreed to warn each other of any cross universal breaches. It was not long before Liu Kang appeared and warned the Flash about the impending attack by the sorcerer Quan Chi., Barry Allen appears as the Flash in the MMOG DC Universe Online, voiced by Dwight Schultz. In the exclusive "Who do you trust" trailer, he appears to be taking an order from Batman, and runs upon being told. While running, he stops to see Hal Jordan about to get killed by Black Adam. He runs there to save Hal. Before he can, though, Black Adam sets off an explosion that kills Barry, Hal, and other heroes., Barry Allen was a playable character in the multiplayer battle arena game Infinite Crisis, voiced by Michael Rosenbaum., Barry Allen was a playable hero in mobile MOBA game that released by Tencent Games, Arena of Valor., Barry Allen appears as a playable character in DC Unchained. Barry Allen appears a member of the Justice League in LEGO films , , , and , voiced by James Arnold Taylor., Barry Allen appears a member of the Justice League in video games , and Lego Dimensions, voiced by Charlie Schlatter ; he also appears in the Lego DC Super-Villains game, with the role reprised by Michael Rosenbaum. Barry Allen is a playable character in , voiced by Neal McDonough. He is seen at the beginning taking part in a battle against Lex Luthor and his villain allies. In the alternate reality, Flash is one of the heroes serving in Superman's Regime, although he has doubts about Superman's true intentions. After Superman kills Shazam when the latter questions his plan to destroy Metropolis and Gotham City to show humanity that he is 'needed', the Flash realizes that the heroes have officially gone too far and defects to Batman's Insurgency. After the original Superman deposes the Regime, Barry surrenders himself due to his previous alliance with the Regime, but is assured by Green Arrow that his help in their defeat will be mentioned at the Regime's trial. In Flash's ending, he defeats Superman but is still overcome with guilt for his actions with the Regime and goes into exile. To make amends, he retakes his superhero mantle and begins fighting crime relentlessly in Central City where he is referred to as "The Ghost"., He returns as a playable character in Injustice 2, now with Taliesin Jaffe reprising his role from MK vs DC. In the story, Flash has been pardoned from prison in recognition of his aid in deposing Superman's regime, and now seeks to make amends for his time as a regime member. In his playable chapter, Flash single-handedly defends Metropolis from Brainiac's initial attack and briefly comes to blows with Hal Jordan, who is trying to atone for his misdeeds as a Regime partisan, much like Flash himself. The two put their differences aside and join Batman's Insurgency. After Brainiac is defeated, he sides with Batman on allowing Brainiac to live so the captured and lost cities could be restored. Flash attempts to stop an enraged Superman but is easily defeated. In his arcade mode ending, Flash throws Brainiac into the end of time and enters the Speed Force, where he is reunited with other speedsters. Together, they set out to stop a crisis that threatens multiple universes. "Ballad of Barry Allen"—A song by the band Jim's Big Ego on their album, They're Everywhere. The song portrays Barry as a tragic character, whose perception of the world is so accelerated that all of reality appears to proceed at a snail's pace, causing him to gradually slip into depression. The band's frontman, Jim Infantino, is the nephew of Flash (Barry Allen) co- creator Carmine Infantino, who provided the cover art for the same album. IGN ranked Barry as the 49th greatest hero of all time stating that even in his 20-year absence, Barry's legacy as the greatest Flash of them all lived on. In 2013, Barry Allen placed 8th on IGN's Top 25 Heroes of DC Comics. Flash (1956) at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. from the original on July 30, 2016., Arrowverse entry for The Flash The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 (cover date January 1940/release month November 1939). Nicknamed the "Scarlet Speedster", all incarnations of the Flash possess "super speed", which includes the ability to run, move, and think extremely fast, use superhuman reflexes, and seemingly violate certain laws of physics. Thus far, at least four different characters—each of whom somehow gained the power of "the speed force"—have assumed the mantle of the Flash in DC's history: college athlete Jay Garrick (1940–1951, 1961–2011, 2017–present), forensic scientist Barry Allen (1956–1985, 2008–present), Barry's nephew Wally West (1986–2011, 2016–present), and Barry's grandson Bart Allen (2006–2007). Each incarnation of the Flash has been a key member of at least one of DC's premier teams: the Justice Society of America, the Justice League, and the Teen Titans. The Flash is one of DC Comics' most popular characters and has been integral to the publisher's many reality-changing "crisis" storylines over the years. The original meeting of the Golden Age Flash Jay Garrick and Silver Age Flash Barry Allen in "Flash of Two Worlds" (1961) introduced the Multiverse storytelling concept to DC readers, which would become the basis for many DC stories in the years to come. Like his Justice League colleagues Wonder Woman, Superman and Batman, the Flash has a distinctive cast of adversaries, including the various Rogues (unique among DC supervillains for their code of honor) and the various psychopathic "speedsters" who go by the names Reverse- Flash or Zoom. Other supporting characters in Flash stories include Barry's wife Iris West, Wally's wife Linda Park, Bart's girlfriend Valerie Perez, friendly fellow speedster Max Mercury, and Central City police department members David Singh and Patty Spivot. A staple of the comic book DC Universe, the Flash has been adapted to numerous DC films, video games, animated series, and live-action television shows. In live-action, Barry Allen has been portrayed by Rod Haase for the 1979 television special Legends of the Superheroes, John Wesley Shipp in the 1990 The Flash series and Grant Gustin in the 2014 The Flash series, and by Ezra Miller in the DC Extended Universe series of films, beginning with (2016). Shipp also portrays a version of Jay Garrick in the 2014 The Flash series. The various incarnations of the Flash also feature in animated series such as , Justice League, and Young Justice, as well as the DC Universe Animated Original Movies series. The Flash first appeared in the Golden Age Flash Comics #1 (January 1940), from All-American Publications, one of three companies that would eventually merge to form DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, this Flash was Jay Garrick, a college student who gained his speed through the inhalation of hard water vapors. When re-introduced in the 1960s Garrick's origin was modified slightly, gaining his powers through exposure to heavy water. Jay Garrick was a popular character in the 1940s, supporting both Flash Comics and All-Flash Quarterly (later published bi-monthly as simply All-Flash); co-starring in Comic Cavalcade; and being a charter member of the Justice Society of America, the first superhero team, whose adventures ran in All Star Comics. With superheroes' post-war decline in popularity, Flash Comics was canceled with issue #104 (1949) which featured an evil version of the Flash called the Rival. The Justice Society's final Golden Age story ran in All Star Comics #57 (1951; the title itself continued as All Star Western). In 1956, DC Comics successfully revived superheroes, ushering in what became known as the Silver Age of comic books. Rather than bringing back the same Golden Age heroes, DC rethought them as new characters for the modern age. The Flash was the first revival, in the tryout comic book Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956). This new Flash was (Barry Allen), a police scientist who gained super-speed when bathed by chemicals after a shelf of them was struck by lightning. He adopted the name The Scarlet Speedster after reading a comic book featuring the Golden Age Flash. After several more appearances in Showcase, Allen's character was given his own title, The Flash, the first issue of which was #105 (resuming where Flash Comics had left off). Barry Allen and the new Flash were created by writers Robert Kanigher and John Broome and cartoonist Carmine Infantino. The Silver Age Flash proved popular enough that several other Golden Age heroes were revived in new incarnations (see: Green Lantern). A new superhero team, the Justice League of America, was also created, with the Flash as a main, charter member. Barry Allen's title also introduced a much- imitated plot device into superhero comics when it was revealed that Garrick and Allen existed on fictional parallel worlds. Their powers allowed them to cross the dimensional boundary between worlds, and the men became good friends. Flash of Two Worlds (The Flash (vol. 1) #123) was the first crossover in which a Golden Age character met a Silver Age character. Soon, there were crossovers between the entire Justice League and the Justice Society; their respective teams began an annual get-together which endured from the early 1960s until the mid-1980s. Allen's adventures continued in his own title until the event of Crisis on Infinite Earths. The Flash ended as a series with issue #350. Allen's life had become considerably confused in the early 1980s, and DC elected to end his adventures and pass the mantle on to another character. Allen died heroically in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8 (1985). Thanks to his ability to travel through time, he would continue to appear occasionally in the years to come. The third Flash was Wally West, introduced in The Flash (vol. 1) #110 (Dec. 1959) as Kid Flash. West, Allen's nephew by marriage, gained the Flash's powers through an accident identical to Allen's. Adopting the identity of Kid Flash, he maintained membership in the Teen Titans for years. Following Allen's death, West adopted the Flash identity in Crisis on Infinite Earths #12 and was given his own series, beginning with The Flash (vol. 2) #1 in 1987. Many issues began with the catchphrase: "My name is Wally West. I'm the fastest man alive." Due to the Infinite Crisis miniseries and the "One Year Later" jump in time in the DC Universe, DC canceled The Flash (vol. 2) in January 2006 at #230. A new series, The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive, began on June 21, 2006. The initial story arc of this series, written by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo with art by Ken Lashley, focused on Bart Allen's acceptance of the role of the Flash. Flash: Fastest Man Alive was canceled with issue #13. In its place The Flash (vol. 2) was revived with issue #231, with Mark Waid as the initial writer. Waid also wrote All-Flash #1, which acted as the bridge between the two series. DC had solicited Flash: Fastest Man Alive through issue #15. All Flash #1 replaced issue #14 and The Flash (vol. 2) #231 replaced issue #15 in title and interior creative team only. The covers and cover artists were as solicited by DC, and the information text released was devoid of any plot information. In 2009, Barry Allen made a full-fledged return to the DCU-proper in , a six-issue miniseries by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver. While several other individuals have used the name Flash, these have lived either on other parallel worlds, or in the future. Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, and Wally West are the best-known exemplars of the identity. The signature wingdings are never absent. Jay Garrick was a college student in 1938 who accidentally inhaled heavy water vapors after taking a smoke break inside his laboratory where he had been working. As a result, he found that he could run at superhuman speed and had similarly fast reflexes. After a brief career as a college football star, he donned a red shirt with a lightning bolt and a stylized metal helmet with wings (based on images of the Greek deity Hermes), and began to fight crime as the Flash. His first case involved battling the "Faultless Four", a group of blackmailers. Garrick kept his identity secret for years without a mask by continually vibrating his body while in public so that any photograph of his face would be blurred. Although originally from Earth-Two, he was incorporated into the history of New Earth following the Crisis on Infinite Earths and is still active as the Flash operating out of Keystone City. He is a member of the Justice Society. Barry Allen is an assistant scientist from the Criminal and Forensic Science Division of Central City Police Department. Barry had a reputation for being very slow, deliberate, and frequently late, which frustrated his fiancée, Iris West. One night, as he was preparing to leave work, a freak lightning bolt struck a nearby shelf in his lab and doused him with a cocktail of unnamed chemicals. As a result, Barry found that he could run extremely fast and had matching reflexes. He donned a set of red tights sporting a lightning bolt (reminiscent of the original Fawcett Comics Captain Marvel), dubbed himself the Flash (after his childhood hero, Jay Garrick), and became a crimefighter active in Central City. In his civilian identity, he stores the costume compressed in a special ring via the use of a special gas that could compress cloth fibers to a very small fraction of their normal size. Barry sacrificed his life for the universe in the 1985 maxi-series Crisis on Infinite Earths, and remained dead for over twenty years after that story's publication. With the 2008 series Final Crisis, Barry returned to the DC Universe and returned to full prominence as the Flash in the 2009 series , which was soon after followed by a new volume of The Flash ongoing series, where Barry's adventures as the Scarlet Speedster are currently published. Wallace Rudolph "Wally" West is the nephew of both Iris West and Barry Allen, by marriage, and was introduced in The Flash (vol. 1) #110 (1959). When West was about ten years old, he was visiting his uncle's police laboratory, and the freak accident that gave Allen his powers repeated itself, bathing West in electrically-charged chemicals. Now possessing the same powers as his uncle, West donned a copy of his uncle's outfit and became the young, crime fighter, Kid Flash. After the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths where Barry Allen was killed, Wally took over as the fastest man alive. Following the events of Infinite Crisis, Wally, his wife Linda, and their twins left Earth for an unknown dimension. Wally, his wife and twins were pulled back from the Speed Force by the Legion of Super-Heroes at the conclusion of The Lightning Saga. This set the stage for Wally West's return as the Flash after the events of The Flash: Fastest Man Alive #13 (see Bart Allen), in All Flash #1, and with The Flash (vol. 2) series, which resumed with issue #231 in August 2007. It subsequently ends with issue #247, and West, along with all the other Flash characters, play a large role in 2009's . He briefly appears in the Blackest Night story arc but shortly after the New 52 was launched and the character was nowhere to be seen. He is back as the Flash in DC Rebirth and joined the Titans. Bartholomew Henry "Bart" Allen II is the grandson of Barry Allen and his wife Iris. Bart suffered from accelerated aging and, as a result, was raised in a virtual reality machine until Iris took him back in time to get help from the then-current Flash, Wally West. With Wally's help, Bart's aging slowed, and he took the name Impulse. After he was shot in the knee by Deathstroke, Bart changed both his attitude and his costume, taking the mantle of Kid Flash. During the events of Infinite Crisis, the Speed Force vanished, taking with it all the speedsters save Jay Garrick. Bart returned, four years older, and for a year claimed that he was depowered from the event. However, the Speed Force had not disappeared completely, but had been absorbed into Bart's body; essentially, he now contained all of the Speed Force. Bart's costume as the Flash was a clone of his grandfather's, similarly stylized to Wally West's. Not long after taking the mantle of the Flash, Bart was killed by the Rogues in the thirteenth (and final) issue of The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive. However, he was later resurrected in the 31st century in #3 by Brainiac 5 to combat Superboy-Prime and the Legion of Super-Villains. Bart returned to the past and played a large role in . Daughter of the speedster Johnny Quick, Jesse Chambers becomes a speeding superhero like her father. She later meets Wally West, the Flash, who asks her to be his replacement if something were to happen to him (as part of an elaborate plan on his part, trying to force Bart Allen to take his role in the legacy of the Flash more seriously). She briefly assumes the mantle of the Flash, after Wally enters the Speed Force. John Fox was a historian for the National Academy of Science in Central City in the 27th Century. He was sent back in time to get the help of one or more of the three Flashes (Garrick, Allen, West), in order to defeat the radioactive villain Mota back in Fox's own time period. (Each Flash had individually fought Mota over the course of several years in the 20th century.) Fox's mission was a failure, but during his return trip, the tachyon radiation that sent him through the time stream gave him superspeed. He defeated Mota as a new iteration of the Flash and operated as his century's Flash for a time. Shortly after, he moved to the 853rd century and joined "Justice Legion A" (also known as Justice Legion Alpha) as seen in the DC One Million series of books. The name "John Fox" is combined from the names of seminal comic book writers John Broome, who co-created the Barry Allen and Wally West Flashes, and Gardner Fox, who co-created the Jay Garrick Flash. The father of Sela Allen, his wife and daughter were captured by Cobalt Blue. He is forced to watch his wife die and his daughter become crippled. As he and Max Mercury kill Cobalt Blue, a child takes Cobalt Blue's power gem and kills Allen. This Flash is one of the two destined Flashes to be killed by Cobalt Blue. Sela Allen is an ordinary human in the 23rd century until Cobalt Blue steals electrical impulses away from her, causing her to become as slow to the world as the world is to the Flash. Hoping to restore her, her father takes her into the Speed Force. When her father is killed, she appears as a living manifestation of the Speed Force, able to lend speed to various people and objects, but unable to physically interact with the world. Blaine Allen and his son live on the colony world of Petrus in the 28th century. In an attempt to end the Allen blood line, Cobalt Blue injects Allen's son Jace with a virus. Lacking super speed, Jace was unable to shake off the virus. In despair, Blaine takes his son to the Speed Force in the hopes that it would accept him. It takes Blaine instead and grants super speed to Jace so that he can shake off the sickness. Jace Allen gains super speed when his father brings him into the Speed Force to attempt to cure him of a virus injected into his body by Cobalt Blue in an attempt to end the Allen bloodline. In memory of his father, Jace assumes the mantle of the Flash and continues the feud against Cobalt Blue. After an alien creature invades Earth, a history buff named Kriyad travels back in time from the 98th century to acquire a Green Lantern power ring. He fails, so he tries to capture the Flash's speed instead. After being beaten by Barry Allen (The Flash (vol. 1) #309, May 1982), he travels back further in time and uses the chemicals from the clothes Barry Allen was wearing when he gained his powers to give himself super speed. Kryiad later sacrifices his life to defeat the alien creature. Bizarro-Flash was created when Bizarro cloned Flash. He had a costume the reverse colors of Flash's, however he had a mallet symbol because Flash was holding one when he was cloned. The modern version of Bizarro Flash has the symbol of a thunderbolt-shaped mustard stain. He has the powers of the Flash but he is completely intangible. All incarnations of the Flash can move, think, and react at light speeds as well as having superhuman endurance that allows them to run incredible distances. Some, notably later versions, can vibrate so fast that they can pass through walls in a process called quantum tunneling, travel through time and can also lend and borrow speed. Speedsters can also heal more rapidly than an average human. In addition, most incarnations have an invisible aura around their respective bodies that protects them from air friction and the kinetic effects of their powers. On several occasions, the Flash has raced against Superman, either to determine who is faster or as part of a mutual effort to thwart some type of threat; these races, however, often resulted in ties because of outside circumstances. Writer Jim Shooter and artist Curt Swan crafted the story "Superman's Race With the Flash!" in Superman #199 (Aug. 1967) which featured the first race between the Flash and Superman. Writer E. Nelson Bridwell and artist Ross Andru produced "The Race to the End of the Universe", a follow-up story four months later in The Flash #175 (Dec. 1967). However, after the DC Universe revision after Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Flash does successfully beat Superman in a race in Adventures of Superman #463 with the explanation that Superman is not accustomed to running at high speed for extended periods of time since flying is more versatile and less strenuous, which means the far more practiced Flash has the advantage. After Final Crisis in the Flash is shown as being significantly faster than Superman, able to outrun him as Superman struggles to keep up with him. He reveals that all the close races between them before had been "for charity". In the Smallville episode "Run", Flash is not only able to run faster than a pre-Superman Clark Kent but can match Clark's top speed while running backwards. While various incarnations of the Flash have proven their ability to run at light speed, the ability to steal speed from other objects allows respective Flashes to even significantly surpass this velocity. In Flash: The Human Race Wally is shown absorbing kinetic energy to an extent enabling him to move faster than teleportation and run from the end of the universe back to earth in less than a Planck instant (Planck time). Speedsters may at times use the ability to speed-read at incredible rates and in doing so, process vast amounts of information. Whatever knowledge they acquire in this manner is usually temporary. Their ability to think fast also allows them some immunity to telepathy, as their thoughts operate at a rate too rapid for telepaths such as Martian Manhunter or Gorilla Grodd to read or influence their minds. Flashes and other super-speedsters also have the ability to speak to one another at a highly accelerated rate. This is often done to have private conversations in front of non-fast people (as when Flash speaks to Superman about his ability to serve both the Titans and the JLA in The Titans #2). Speed-talking is also sometimes used for comedic effect where Flash becomes so excited that he begins talking faster and faster until his words become a jumble of noise. He also has the ability to change the vibration of his vocal cords making it so he can change how his voice sounds to others. While not having the physical strength of many of his comrades and enemies, Flash has shown to be able to use his speed to exert incredible momentum into physical attacks. In , Flash uses these kinds of attacks as many of his special moves. The Flash has also claimed that he can process thoughts in less than an attosecond. At times he is able to throw lightning created by his super speed and make speed vortexes. Some flashes also have the ability to create speed avatars (i.e. duplicates) and these avatars have sometimes been sent to different timelines to complete a particular mission. (Barry Allen exhibits this ability in the live action series "The Flash"). He can also be seen negating the effects of the anti-life equation, when he freed Iris-West from its control (probably due to his connection with the speed force). It is said that Wally West has reached the velocity of 23,759,449,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (about 24 tredecillion) × c (the speed of light) and he could only do this with the help of every human being on earth moving so the speed force was joined through everyone. With that speed he was able to not only run from planet to planet but different galaxies and universes at what would be considered a blink of an eye. In the final issue of 52, a new Multiverse is revealed, originally consisting of 52 identical realities. Among the parallel realities shown is one designated "Earth-2". As a result of Mister Mind "eating" aspects of this reality, it takes on visual aspects similar to the pre-Crisis Earth-2, including the Flash among other Justice Society of America characters. The names of the characters and the team are not mentioned in the panel in which they appear, but the Flash is visually similar to the Jay Garrick Flash. Based on comments by Grant Morrison, this alternate universe is not the pre-Crisis Earth-2. A variant of the Flash—a superfast college student named Mary Maxwell—was seen in the Elseworld book Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating The Flash. The Flash of Earth-D, Rei was a Japanese man who idolized Barry Allen, whose stories only existed in comic books on this world. Rei was inspired by Allen to become the Flash, much like Allen was inspired to become the Flash by his idol, Jay Garrick. Allen and Rei met during the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" when Barry was coming back from the 30th century and arrived in the wrong universe. As Earth-D was under attack by the shadow demons, Barry called on the Justice League and Tanaka called on the Justice Alliance, his world's version of the Justice League. They built a cosmic treadmill and were able to evacuate much of Earth-D's population. The Justice League left, but 39 seconds later, Earth-D perished. Rei made his only appearance in Legends of the DC Universe: Crisis on Infinite Earths (February 1999). The story was written by Marv Wolfman, with art by Paul Ryan (pencils) and Bob McLeod (ink). The young, female Flash of the Tangent Universe is not a speedster, but instead "the first child born in space" and a being made up of and able to control light. As a side effect, she can move at the speed of light, which actually makes her faster than most of the other Post-Crisis Flashes, as only Wally West has ever survived a light-speed run without becoming trapped in the Speed Force. She recently reappeared in Justice League of America #16, somehow summoned out of the paper 'green lantern' of her universe—an artifact that survived the Crisis that erased the Tangent Universe from existence. Lia Nelson also appeared in Countdown: Arena battling two versions of the Flash from other Earths within the Multiverse. In the 52-Earth Multiverse, the Tangent Universe is designated Earth-9. In , three different Flashes appear: Wally West as Kid Flash in 1964, Wally's cousin Carrie as Kid Flash in 1986, and Jay West, the son of Wally and his wife Magda as the fifth Flash in 2008. Barry Allen makes a cameo appearance out of costume in 1964. Ali Rayner-West, aka Green Lightning, is a descendant of both Kyle Rayner and Wally West. She has both a power ring and superspeed, as seen in . She was a living construct created by Kyle Rayner's subconscious, who later re-fused into his mind. A teenage version of Jesse Chambers appears as the Flash of the Ame-Comi universe. As with most of the other characters of that Earth, she sports an Anime-inspired costume. The 1980s series Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! presented the parallel Earth of "Earth-C-Minus", a world populated by funny animal superheroes that paralleled the mainstream DC Universe. Earth-C-Minus was the home of the Crash, a turtle with super-speed powers similar to those of Barry Allen's, and a member of his world's superhero team, the Just'a Lotta Animals. The Crash as a youth had read comics about Earth-C's Terrific Whatzit, similar to how Barry Allen enjoyed comics about Earth-Two's Jay Garrick. An African-American teenager named Danica Williams appears as the Flash in the Justice League Beyond series, acting as Wally West's successor during the 2040s (following the events of Batman Beyond). She is employed at the Flash Museum in Central City, and like Barry Allen, is chronically late. She later enters into a relationship with Billy Batson, who is the secret identity of the superhero, Captain Marvel. The following writers have been involved in the ongoing The Flash and Flash Comics series: The comics and characters have been nominated for and won several awards over the years, including: 1961 Alley Award for Best Cover (The Flash (vol. 1) #123), 1961 Alley Award for Best Single Comic (The Flash (vol. 1) #123 by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino), 1963 Alley Award for Cross-Over of DC Heroes for The Brave and the Bold (with Hawkman), 1964 Alley Award for Best Short Story ("Doorway to the Unknown" in The Flash (vol. 1) #148 by John Broome and Carmine Infantino), "2001 Eisner Award for Best Cover Artist (The Flash), by Brian Bolland, 2008 Salou Award for Best Super Hero (Flash – Danny Holmes by BUAFC) Throughout his 70-year history, the Flash has appeared in numerous media. The Flash has been included in multiple animated features, such as Superfriends and Justice League, as well as his own live action television series and some guest star appearances on Smallville (as the Bart Allen/Impulse version.) There are numerous videos that feature the character. In the Challenge of the Superfriends series which ran from 1978–1979, he appears in every episode and has spoken lines in only twelve out of the sixteen episodes of the series. He also had two arch enemies from the Legion of Doom, Captain Cold and Gorilla Grodd., The Flash appeared for one season (1990–1991) on the CBS Network, starring double-Emmy Award winner John Wesley Shipp as Barry Allen. Produced by Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo, the series was a mild amalgamation of the Barry Allen and Wally West versions of the comics in that the female lead was Tina McGee (portrayed by Amanda Pays) and Wally's need for large amounts of food after expending so much energy running all over Central City was transferred to Barry. After his lightning-induced chemical accident, Barry got into crime fighting after the death of his police officer brother, Jay; it is presumed that Jay was named for the original comic book Flash, Jay Garrick. A handful of the Scarlet Speedster's rogues gallery made guest appearances throughout the series: Captain Cold (Michael Champion) ("Captain Cold"), Mirror Master (David Cassidy) ("Done With Mirrors"), and the Trickster (Mark Hamill) ("The Trickster" and "Trial of the Trickster"). The Flash also fought a clone of himself who wore a blue costume. Wally West is the Flash who appears in the DCAU voiced by Michael Rosenbaum. He has Wally's personality like telling bad jokes and being attracted to most women. He does have some Barry Allen traits as well like being in Central City and working as a forensic scientist. He is the only Flash to appear in the DCAU however Jay Garrick's helmet is seen on display in the Flash museum in the Justice League Unlimited episode Flash and Substance., Kid Flash (Wally West) appears in the Teen Titans episode Lightspeed and protects Jump City while the Titans are away. He refers to a previous partnership with The Flash (presumably Barry Allen). He soon reforms Jinx and enters a romantic relationship with her., The Flash is a playable character in the Mortal Kombat and DC Comics crossover game Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe. The first official render for The Flash was released to the public on Monday July 7, 2008. His bio reveals that this version is Barry Allen. He is also a playable character in and its sequel, developed by NetherRealm Studios., Two versions of the Flash make appearances in DC Universe Online. Barry Allen fights alongside the heroes against Gorilla Grodd's army, and is a bounty for the villains. Jay Garrick appears in the Watchtower, selling powerful armor to Level 30 Heroes with the Metapower origin., Impulse is shown in as the grandson of Barry Allen and Iris West. He comes from the future to save his grandfather from Neutron (A.K.A. Nathaniel Tryon). Once he travels back he does succeed in saving Barry Allen, and stopping Neutron, this was supposed to save the future, but it is shown that the future remains the same. When he tries to travel back to his time (2056), his time machine doesn't work, it is shown in a backstory that he knew he was going to be stuck in the past, because the wires would be fried, though he doesn't reveal this to anyone on The Team, at that moment, he is considered an official member., In the Arrow episode titled "The Scientist", Central City CSI Investigator Barry Allen partners with Felicity Smoak to find the thief that broke into one of the Queen Consolidated Applied Sciences building. Barry claims that he was sent from Central City to Starling City to investigate since there were connections to a case in Central City. Oliver Queen soon finds out that Barry was actually an assistant who came to Starling to investigate this strange occurrence in the hope that he would find an answer to who murdered his mother when he was a child. His appearance set up the character for his own series in 2014. This Flash makes guest appearances in episodes of Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl., The Flash made his first theatrical film appearance in The Lego Movie. He was part of Metalbeard's pirate crew. He later made a brief appearance in The Lego Batman Movie., Ezra Miller portrays Barry Allen as the Flash in the DC Extended Universe. He had cameos in the 2016 films and Suicide Squad, and a larger role in Justice League (2017). A film centered on him has been delayed but may release in 2021., The Barry Allen version of the Flash appears in Justice League Action. Numerous references to the Flash are presented on the television show The Big Bang Theory. A particular reference is main character Sheldon Cooper's Flash t-shirt, which has become a staple of merchandise clothing. In the season 1 episode The Middle-Earth Paradigm, the four main male characters on the show all independently dress up for a Halloween party as the Flash before deciding that they can't all be the Flash so no one gets to. In the season 10 episode The Birthday Synchronicity, Sheldon bought a Flash onesie for Howard & Bernadette's newborn. In season 3 of Lost, in the episode "Catch-22", Charlie and Hurley debate over who would win a footrace between The Flash and Superman. The false name Barry Allen is used by character of con artist Frank Abagnale, Jr.(posing as a Secret Service Agent), in the movie Catch Me If You Can. When a coffee shop waiter notices the notes of FBI agent Carl Hanratty, he reveals that Barry Allen is the Flash, giving Carl a vital clue to his unknown subject's identity. In 2006, a near-pristine copy of Flash Comics #1 was sold in a Heritage Auction for $273,125. The same book was then sold privately for $450,000 in 2010. Renan Kanbay wears a Flash costume while playing Carrie, the manager of a comic book store, in Joe Lipari's Dream Job (2011). The band Jim's Big Ego wrote the song "The Ballad of Barry Allen" detailing the hardship having to watch time moving so slowly from the perspective of Allen. The frontman of the band, Jim Infantino is the nephew of Flash artist Carmine Infantino. In the film Daddy Day Care, one of the day care kids named Tony wore a Flash costume for the majority of the film. In the episode "Power Ponies", Pinkie Pie becomes a superhero based on the Flash called Fili-Second. In an episode of The Simpsons, Comic Book Guy dresses as The Flash while running in a marathon. He says "No one can outrun the Flash" but ends up falling in a pothole and gets stuck. Like Batman, Superman, and Green Lantern, the Flash has a reputation for having fought a distinctive and memorable rogues gallery of supervillains. In the Flash's case, some of these villains have adopted the term "Flash's Rogues Gallery" as an official title, and insist on being called "Rogues" rather than "supervillains" or similar names. At times, various combinations of the Rogues have banded together to commit crimes or take revenge on the Flash, usually under the leadership of Captain Cold. The Rogues are known for their communal style relationship, socializing together and operating under a strict moral code, sometimes brutally enforced by Captain Cold. Such "rules" include "no drugs" and, except in very dire situations or on unique occasions, "no killing". Crimson Lightning – An online index to the comic book adventures of the Flash., Alan Kistler's Profile On: The Flash – An analysis of the history of the Flash by comic book historian Alan Kistler., Alan Kistler's Guide To The Crisis, Index to Barry Allen's Earth-One adventures, comicfoundry.com Conversation with Flash writers Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo about Bart Allen as the new Flash. The Flash is an American television series developed by the writing team of Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo that aired on CBS from September 20, 1990 to May 18, 1991. It is based on the DC Comics character Barry Allen / Flash, a costumed superhero crime-fighter with the power to move at superhuman speeds. The Flash starred John Wesley Shipp as Allen, along with Amanda Pays, and Alex Désert. Barry Allen, a forensic scientist working for the Central City police, is struck by lightning and doused in chemicals in his lab. He develops superspeed and creates a superhero identity for himself to fight crime: The Flash. Research scientist Dr. Tina McGee works at S.T.A.R. Labs and helps Barry fight crime while trying to understand how his powers are developing. As well as his superheroics, Barry tries to maintain a private life, and tries to keep his superhero identity from his colleagues, his boss Lt. Garfield, and his best friend, Julio Mendez. John Wesley Shipp as Barry Allen / Flash: A forensic scientist in the Central City Police Department (CCPD) who gains the power of super speed after his lab is struck by lightning causing him to be doused with chemicals. Shipp also portrayed the Flash's "evil" clone, Pollux. Amanda Pays as Christina R. "Tina" McGee: A scientist at S.T.A.R. Labs who provides the Flash with experimental inventions to adapt and overcome his enemies and learn about his powers. She is also a love interest of Barry. Alex Désert as Julio Mendez: A Central City Police Department scientist who is Barry Allen's co-worker and close friend. Richard Belzer as Joe Kline: A WCCN TV news reporter, known as the "Voice of the City". Kline often does tabloid-style news stories about the Flash and his exploits. Jason Bernard as Dr. Desmond Powell / Nightshade: A 1950s vigilante who captured criminals using tranquilizer darts. Gave up being a vigilante after he stopped The Ghost in 1955; later became a Doctor and Chief of Staff at Central City Hospital. When the Ghost reappears in 1990, Powell becomes Nightshade once again and teams up with the Flash to apprehend the Ghost. Later unknowingly inspires the Deadly Nightshade; is framed for multiple counts of murder, but clears his name and captures the impostor. Makes his secret identity public and becomes a celebrity. Vito D'Ambrosio as Officer Tony Bellows: A CCPD patrol officer, partner of Murphy; in the early episodes, Bellows notices whenever the Flash appears, Murphy is never around. Bellows accuses Murphy of being the Flash, until he sees Murphy and the Flash at the same time. Biff Manard as Officer Michael Francis Murphy: A CCPD patrol officer, partner of Bellows; does not believe the Flash is real because he has never witnessed the Flash (until he saw the Flash save hostages trapped inside a frozen bus, courtesy of Captain Cold). Murphy has served the CCPD for many years and is considering retiring to a job where he does not get shot at all the time. Mike Genovese as Lt. Warren Garfield: A Lieutenant, CCPD; Barry & Julio's supervisor. Despite his gruff demeanor, Garfield actually cares for his men. It was Lt. Garfield who deduced the true identity of the Nightshade, Dr. Desmond Powell, who has been a friend of Garfield for more than 30 years. Mark Hamill as James Montgomery Jesse / The Trickster: A psychopath and delusional mass murderer with multiple personalities, and a con artist. Wanted for murder in six states. Obsessed with Megan Lockhart and kidnaps her to be his fantasy sidekick, Prank. Believing that Megan is under the influence of the Flash, the Trickster challenges him in order to be rid of his "evil spell". However, the Trickster fails and is arrested. He is put on trial & awaiting his verdict, when he is freed by Zoey Clark, who becomes the second Prank. As revenge, the Trickster captures the Flash and brainwashes him to do his bidding. The Trickster wreaks havoc upon Central City and puts the entire city on trial with the aid of his new partner. The Flash overcomes his programming and turns the tables on the Trickster, who is sent to a padded cell. Joyce Hyser as Megan Lockhart / Prank (1st): A private investigator and repossession agent; she deduced The Flash's Identity for a corrupt D.A. who would later blackmail The Flash. Opposed to what The Flash was working for until she witnessed him save someone she was spying on, and helped to put an end to the scheme of the corrupt D.A. becomes the Trickster's unwilling sidekick, Prank. Later helps Tina McGee stop the Trickster (fed up with the Trickster's antics, Megan punches and knocks out the Trickster) and the brainwashed Flash. Also becomes another one of Barry Allen's love interests. M. Emmet Walsh as Henry Allen: A sergeant, CCPD (retired); father of Barry and Jay Allen. Inspired his sons to join the police force, though his relationship with Barry is partially estranged. Henry is also a supporter of the Flash. Dick Miller as Fosnight: A police informant who provides Barry Allen with tips on criminals. Fosnight owes a "life debt" to Henry Allen, and extended that debt to his two sons as well. Was originally arrested by the first Nightshade and is the first person to believe his innocence. Priscilla Pointer as Nora Allen: The mother of Barry and Jay Allen; volunteer at a shelter for single mothers. Gloria Reuben as Sabrina: Julio's girlfriend. Constantly trying to set up Barry with blind dates, and constantly breaking up and getting back together with Julio. Robert Shayne as Reg the News Stand Vendor: Reg was the owner of a news stand whom Barry Allen buys his daily newspaper from. Also offers Barry occasional advice & information on underworld activities. Michael Nader as Nicholas Pike: A disgraced former CCPD patrol officer who became the leader of the Dark Riders biker gang; in revenge, Pike murders Barry Allen's brother Jay Allen, who was once Pike's partner and the person who turned Pike in for corruption. Pike is captured by the Flash and put on trial, but is released on a technicality. Pike tries to kill the Flash, but his plan backfires and Pike is arrested again. In an alternate future timeline, Pike becomes the fascist Mayor of Central City, but is again defeated by the Flash before the hero returns to the present to avert Pike's younger counterpart's attempt for power. Corinne Bohrer as Zoey Clark / Prank (2nd): The owner of Clarx Toys and a huge fan of the Trickster. Her obsession leads her to free him during his trial. Originally, the Trickster intends to recreate his criminal life but Zoey seduces him back to his Trickster self and becomes the Trickster's true sidekick, Prank, which is what she always wanted. Prank uses her wealth to finance the Trickster's evil schemes, including the brainwashing of the Flash. The corrupted Flash becomes the Trickster's favored sidekick and she is locked and tied up in her own toy store for complaining about it. Despite her best efforts, the Trickster has lost interest in Prank and ultimately boots her out of the getaway truck that they are in, resulting in Prank's arrest. Richard Burgi as Curtis Bohannan / Deadly Nightshade: A philanthropist and son of mob boss Derek Bohannan, an enemy of Nightshade; decides to atone for his father's sins by becoming a vigilante resembling Nightshade, except the Deadly Nightshade wears red-glowing goggles and uses real bullets. The Deadly Nightshade guns down a terrorist group and several of Derek Bohannan's former mob associates before the Flash confronts him. Due to their similar appearances, the real Nightshade is framed for the murders. Using his wealth, Bohannan builds a high-tech lair inside his mansion and an advanced cybernetic exoskeleton, which gives Bohannan super-speed similar to the Flash. The Flash then attempts to apprehend him, but is nearly overwhelmed by the exoskeleton and an injury he sustained earlier in the leg, but then it is Bohannan who is then tranquilized by the original Nightshade and arrested by the police. David Cassidy as Sam Scudder / Mirror Master: A professional thief who is an expert with mirrors and holography; steals a crystal from S.T.A.R. Labs and attempts to kill his ex-partner Stasia Masters, a high school girlfriend of Barry Allen. The Flash (with help from Tina) uses a high-powered spotlight to blind Scudder and drown out his illusions, allowing the Flash to capture him. Michael Champion as Leonard Wynters / Captain Cold: An infamous albino hitman known for freezing his victims to death with a nuclear-powered freeze gun. Captured by the Flash and arrested by CCPD pending trial, but later escapes using concealed freeze weapons. Killed by his own freeze ray when the Flash deflects the ray back at him. Jeffrey Combs as Jimmy Swain: A mob boss who hires Captain Cold to eliminate his enemies, including the Flash. Since Captain Cold initially failed to kill the Flash, Swain refuses to pay Cold, who kills Swain with a freeze bomb and takes his fee out of a twisted sense of honor. Denise Crosby as Dr. Rebecca Frost: A psychologist specializing in psychoanalyzing masked vigilantes such as the Flash, assigned to be Felicia Kane's psychiatrist. Went out on one date with Barry Allen. Paula Marshall as Iris West: A computer graphics artist who is dating Barry Allen at the time he is transformed into the Flash without her knowledge. Barry wants to marry Iris, but she refuses, feeling that their relationship is moving too fast, and they break up. Iris later moves to Paris in order to make a new start in her life. She sends a postcard to Barry in the second episode, but Barry's interest subsided, so Julio burns it to help Barry move on with his life. Even though Barry puts Iris behind him, he still keeps a family picture with her in it that they took during his brother's birthday party. Marshall was credited as a principal character for the pilot episode, but was subsequently written out of the show with the second episode. Bill Mumy as Roger Braintree: An eccentric but brilliant scientist who creates a sound wave device capable of putting its targets into a deep slumber. Braintree's cousin, small-time hoodlum Harry Milgrim, steals the device and uses it in a crime spree until he is caught by the Flash. Lois Nettleton as Belle Crocker / The Ghostess: The Ghost's sidekick and girlfriend; is saved by the Nightshade after their hideout catches on fire. Thinking the Ghost has died, she gives up the life of crime and becomes a lounge singer. Thirty-five years later, she learns that the Ghost survived the fire and has not aged. While she initially welcomes him back into her life, she cannot handle the fact that he is still a young man and eventually leaves him, informing Nightshade of the Ghost's location. Jeri Ryan as Felicia Kane: A wealthy heiress kidnapped and held for ransom by pro-Guevara Marxist revolutionaries; rescued by the Deadly Nightshade, who ruthlessly guns down Kane's kidnappers, then freed by the Flash. Severely traumatized by her ordeal, Kane's testimony clears the wrongly accused Flash of any wrongdoing, but puts the Original Nightshade inadvertently in the wrong light. Anthony Starke as Russell / The Ghost: A megalomaniacal extortionist and electronics expert who uses television to eavesdrop on his victims and broadcast his demands. In 1955, Nightshade attempts to capture the Ghost, who threatened to blow up downtown Central City if he was not paid $1 million by the Mayor, but the Ghost fakes his death and seals himself in a "freeze chamber", set to awaken the Ghost in 1999. The equipment malfunctions and thaws out the Ghost in 1990; the Ghost and his crew steal electronics from a TV charity telethon and S.T.A.R. Labs, then the Ghost connects himself to his computers & threatens to shut down Central City's computer network, communications and power grid if he is not paid a $1 billion ransom, but he is captured by the Flash and Nightshade. The Ghost's mind is trapped in cyberspace, with his body left in a catatonic state. Tim Thomerson as Jay Allen: The older brother of Barry Allen and head of the CCPD Motorcycle Patrol Division. He is killed by his former police partner, Nicholas Pike. His first name is a nod to Jay Garrick. Mariko Tse as Linda Park: A Central City news reporter, asking the Central City police department about their response in dealing with all the gang attacks in the city. Other guest stars in minor roles include Jonathan Brandis as Terry Cohan, Bryan Cranston as Phillip Moses, Mark Dacascos as Osako, Robert O'Reilly as Victor Kelso, and Sven-Ole Thorsen as the android assassin Omega. Development for the series began in 1988 when Warner Bros. Television tried to develop television films based on some DC Comics characters for CBS. Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo conceived one that featured several superheroes, including the Flash, though their project was not made. In January 1990, new CBS Entertainment president Jeff Sagansky expressed interest in creating a series featuring the Flash, and The Flash was announced a few months after. Bilson and De Meo were tapped to write the pilot episode, which they completed in January 1990. Filming for the episode took six weeks, from May through June 1990. The final effects for the pilot were completed a week before airing in September 1990. Bilson said, "There are 125 special effects. It's done on a grand scale." The 2-hour pilot cost $6 million, and each subsequent episode of The Flash cost around $1.6 million to produce. The four Flash suits made for the series for John Wesley Shipp cost a total of $100,000. On the suit, De Meo said, "John had to have his entire body cast. The suit is made out of latex. It was quite a process getting it." Bilson added, "The suit was critical. You can't, after Batman, have a guy running around in tights." The Flash's costume was designed and created by Robert Short, and built by Stan Winston Studios. Short said the latex suits were specially treated to disguise their rubber surface so they would look like basic stretch unitards, and Shipp wore a water-cooled undergarment to combat the heat of the suits. Bob Miller, costumer on the series, gave Amanda Pays "unaggressive clothing" though she is "an aggressive career woman," with retro 1930s and '40s long tapered skirts, pleated slacks and vests. Danny Elfman composed the series' title theme, and Shirley Walker composed each episode score for a full orchestra. In 2010, a limited-edition two-disc soundtrack was released by La-La Land Records, featuring Elfman's theme and the scores by Walker for the pilot and the episodes "Captain Cold", "The Trickster", "Watching the Detectives", "Ghost in the Machine", "Done With Mirrors", "Fast Forward" and "Trial of the Trickster". The Flash was originally scheduled to debut on CBS in the 8pm (EST) slot on Thursday, to go against The Cosby Show on NBC, in an attempt to attract younger viewers, before Fox moved The Simpsons from Sunday to the Thursday 8 pm slot for the same reason. After debuting on September 20, 1990, at 8 pm, CBS moved the series to 8:30pm with its second episode, in an attempt to broadcast opposite less formidable competition in Fox's Babes, NBC's A Different World and the second half-hour of ABC's Father Dowling Mysteries. Eventually, CBS moved the series off Thursdays entirely, moving the show to Saturday nights. Had the show continued, it was revealed the second season would have opened with the Flash's rogues teaming up to take down the hero. Warner Bros. Television and CBS began its promotion of the series in July 1990 during the 1990 NBA All-Star Game. It also had ad campaigns on radio and cable television during "wrestling matches on USA Cable and during [Batman airings] on the Family Channel", as well as ads in The Flash comic book and posters for the series in malls and Kmarts across the country. Four-minute promos of the series aired at all Six Flags amusement parks and a few weeks before the pilot's debut, Warner Bros. flew banners over beaches on both coasts. Describing the marketing, George Schweitzer, senior vice president of communications at the CBS Broadcast Group said, "It's not being sold as a comic book. It's being sold like Batman [the 1989 film] – dark and mysterious and exciting. The promos have a theatrical quality." The pilot debuted on July 15, 1990 at a "big bash" at the Warner Bros. Burbank lot. The Flash was released on DVD in January 2006. Several episodes were edited as three TV movies and released on VHS: The Flash (1990). The 2-hour pilot episode., The Flash II: Revenge of the Trickster (1991). Formed by the episodes "The Trickster" and "The Trial of the Trickster", The Flash III: Deadly Nightshade (1991). Formed by the episodes "Ghost in the Machine" and "The Deadly Nightshade". Laser-disc: The Flash (1990). The 2-hour pilot episode. A comic book tie-in special based on the TV series was published by DC Comics in 1991 titled The Flash TV Special #1, running at 76 pages. It features two stories, one written by John Byrne with art by Javier Saltares, and the second written by then-writer of the ongoing Flash (vol. 2) title, Mark Waid featuring a thief Kid Flash; plus a behind-the-scenes look on the making of the TV series with photos. A video game was released for Game Boy in 1991 by THQ, and was based on the TV series. It was released in the US and had a password system. A second game was programmed by Probe Entertainment and released only in Europe for the Master System in 1993. The 2014 television series, The Flash, features several references to the 1990 series. John Wesley Shipp plays the recurring role of Barry Allen's father, Henry Allen, and Amanda Pays once again portrays a character named Dr. Tina McGee. Shipp eventually portrays the Earth-3 version of Henry Allen, Jay Garrick / Flash. Regarding the difference in his portrayal of Garrick over Allen, Shipp "figured Jay is my version of Barry" from the 1990 series, adding, "I went back and I watched a couple of episodes of the 1990/91 version to kind of remind myself what I did. [Jay] is much more reminiscent of my Barry Allen from 25 years ago than my Henry Allen. I went back and I was amazed how much attitude my Barry Allen had in some situations. I went back and I picked up that thread and I brought it forward 25 years, and tried to weave it in." In "Welcome to Earth-2", as Barry, Cisco and Wells are traveling to Earth-2, glimpses of the multiverse are seen, including an image of Shipp as the Flash from the 1990 series, implying that the series was retroactively being added to the Arrowverse-multiverse. In the episode "Tricksters", Mark Hamill returns as James Jesse / Trickster and Vito D'Ambrosio plays Mayor Anthony Bellows (a character he played in 1991, but as a police officer) a later episode revealed he was formerly a cop, with images of Hamill as Trickster from the 1990 TV series being used in a police report; 2014 series composer Blake Neely incorporated Walker's theme for the Trickster into the episode. Alex Désert portrays Julio Mendez again in the series' season three episode, "Flashpoint", where he is the captain of the Central City Police Department in the Flashpoint timeline. Corinne Bohrer reprises her role as Zoey Clark / Prank in "The Elongated Knight Rises" which also featured stills from the 1990 show in her police file. Shipp reprises his role as Barry Allen from this series in the 2018 Arrowverse crossover, "Elseworlds". The crossover also links the 1990 series to the Arrowverse, designating its world as Earth-90. The character reappears in the next year's crossover "Crisis on Infinite Earths", having been captured by the Anti-Monitor and used to power his anti-matter cannon to destroy the multiverse. He ultimately sacrifices himself to destroy the machine, seeing his life with Tina (whom he had married at some point) flash before his eyes in the form of a clip from the original series, ending it properly with The Flash's sacrifice. After the filming of the scene, John Wesley Shipp told The Flash show-runner Eric Wallace,‘Thank you for giving me this opportunity to close a chapter.' Birds of Prey, Justice League of America, Aquaman, Super Friends Episode Guide from SciFi.com, Crimson Lightning - A blog featuring regular reviews of The Flash television series., Interview about the series with lead actor John Wesley Shipp, Pet Fly Podcast Page Including a downloadable commentary track in which series developers Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo discuss the "Trial of the Trickster" episode, The TV series on Hyperborea

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In basketball, a double-double or triple-double is when a player accumulates ten or more (a double-digit total) in two or three of five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots—in a single game. A double-double is when a player records ten or more in two of the five statistics, and a triple-double is a double-digit total in three of the five. Likewise, a quadruple-double is when a player reaches double figures in four of the five, and a quintuple-double is a double-digit total in all five categories in a game. These achievements are much more difficult to obtain. Only four quadruple doubles have occurred in the NBA, and while three quintuple-doubles have been recorded at the high school level—by Tamika Catchings, Alex Montgomery, and Aimee Oertner—none have occurred in a college or professional game in the United States. A similar accomplishment is the five-by-five, which is the accumulation of at least five points, five rebounds, five assists, five steals, and five blocks in a game. In the NBA, only Hakeem Olajuwon and Andrei Kirilenko have accumulated multiple five-by- fives since the season. A double-double is a performance in which a player accumulates a double-digit number total in two of five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots—in a game. The most common double-double combination is points and rebounds, followed by points and assists. During the 2008–09 NBA season, 69 players who were eligible for leadership in the main statistical categories recorded at least 10 double-doubles during the season. Since the season, Tim Duncan leads the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the points–rebounds combination with 841 double-doubles, John Stockton leads the points–assists combination with 714, and Russell Westbrook leads the rebounds–assists combinations with 142. Tim Duncan also holds the record for most total career double-doubles in the NBA, having recorded 841. Special double-doubles are rare. One such achievement is sometimes called a 20–20, double double-double or double-20, when a player accumulates 20 or more in two statistics in a game. Another similar feat is a 30–30. The only player in NBA history to record a 40–40 is Wilt Chamberlain, who achieved the feat eight times in his career, four of which were in his rookie season. Longest continuous streak of double-doubles: According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Wilt Chamberlain holds the record with 227 consecutive double-doubles from 1964 to 1967. Chamberlain also holds the second- and third-longest continuous streaks of double-doubles with 220 and 133. This record is before the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. The longest streak of double-doubles since the merger was 53 games, achieved by Kevin Love, then of the Minnesota Timberwolves., Youngest player: Tracy McGrady (Toronto Raptors), aged 18 years and 175 days, logged a double-double on November 15, 1997, versus the Indiana Pacers. He had 10 points and 11 rebounds., Oldest player: Dikembe Mutombo (Houston Rockets), aged 42 years and 289 days, logged a double-double on April 10, 2009, versus the Golden State Warriors. He had 10 points and 15 rebounds. A triple-double is defined as a performance in which a player accumulates a double-digit number total in three of five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots—in a game. The most common way for a player to achieve a triple-double is with points, rebounds, and assists, though on occasion players may record 10 or more steals or blocked shots in a game. The origin of the term "triple-double" is unclear. Some sources claim that it was coined in the NBA by former Los Angeles Lakers public relations director Bruce Jolesch in the 1980s in order to showcase Magic Johnson's versatility, while others claim that it was coined by then Philadelphia 76ers media relations director Harvey Pollack in 1980. The triple-double became an officially recorded statistic in the NBA during the . That season, there were 32 triple-doubles, 12 more than the previous season. From the to the , the NBA recorded a total of 543 triple-doubles, or 45.25 triple-doubles per season. This can be largely attributed to Magic Johnson, who was responsible for 137 of this time-span's triple-doubles, or about 25.23% of them. After Johnson retired in 1991, the number of triple- doubles in the league declined. From the to the , there were only 841 triple- doubles, or about 35.04 triple-doubles per season. Jason Kidd recorded the most triple-doubles in this timespan with 107, which was 68 more than second placed LeBron James. However, in the , the number of triple-doubles recorded in the NBA grew from 46 to 75. From the to the , the NBA recorded 352 triple doubles, which was approximately 117.33 triple-doubles per season. Over those three years, Russell Westbrook recorded 101 triple-doubles—28.69% of all triple-doubles in that timespan. There has been occasional controversy surrounding triple-doubles made when a player achieves the feat with a late rebound. Players with nine rebounds in a game have sometimes been accused of deliberately missing a shot late in the game in order to recover the rebound; a few have even gone so far as shooting off their opponent's basket trying to score a triple-double. To deter this, NBA rules allow rebounds to be nullified if the shot is determined not to be a legitimate scoring attempt. Currently, Oscar Robertson leads the all-time NBA list for career triple-doubles with 181 and is, along with Russell Westbrook, one of only two players ever to average a triple-double for a season. Westbrook currently holds the record for most triple-doubles in a season with 42 and is the only player to average a triple- double for three consecutive seasons. The following is a list of triple-double leaders: First triple-double in league history: Andy Phillip (Philadelphia Warriors) logged the league's first triple-double on December 14, 1950 versus the Fort Wayne Pistons. He had 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists., Averaging a triple-double in a single season: Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook are the only players in NBA history to achieve this feat. During the 1961–62 season, Robertson averaged 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 11.4 assists per game. Although Robertson only achieved the feat for a full season once, his cumulative stats over his first 5 seasons gave him an average of 30.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 10.6 assists per game. Westbrook is the only player to achieve this feat multiple times, doing so in three consecutive seasons. Westbrook finished the 2016–17 season averaging 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 10.4 assists, and followed it up in 2017–18 with averages of 25.4 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 10.3 assists. In the 2018–19 season, Westbrook averaged 22.9 points, 11.1 rebounds and 10.7 assists per game., Most triple-doubles in a single season: In 2016–17, Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) recorded 42 triple-doubles., Most triple-doubles in road games in a single season: Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) recorded 17 of 42 triple-doubles in away games., Most 50-point triple-doubles in a single season: Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) recorded three 50-point triple-doubles in the 2016–17 season. James Harden is the other player to record more than one 50-point triple-double with two in the same season., Most triple-doubles in a rookie season: Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati Royals) recorded 26 triple doubles in the 1960–61 season. Ben Simmons (Philadelphia 76ers) is in second with 12 in the 2017–18 season., Most triple-doubles in the NBA playoffs: Magic Johnson recorded 30 playoff triple-doubles over his career; LeBron James is second with 23., Most triple-doubles in NBA Finals: LeBron James recorded 10 Finals triple-doubles over his career. Magic Johnson is second with 8., Averaging a triple-double in an NBA Finals: LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers), in the 2017 Finals, averaged 33.6 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 10.0 assists per game., Youngest player: Markelle Fultz (Philadelphia 76ers), aged 19 years and 317 days, logged a triple-double on April 11, 2018, versus the Milwaukee Bucks. He had 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists., Oldest player: Karl Malone (Los Angeles Lakers), aged 40 years and 127 days—the only 40-year-old player to do so—logged a triple-double on November 28, 2003, versus the San Antonio Spurs. He had 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists., Triple-double in final career game: The only players known to have done so are Dwyane Wade, who logged 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists on April 10, 2019 for the Miami Heat against the Brooklyn Nets; Ben Uzoh, who logged 12 points, 11 rebounds, and 12 assists on April 26, 2012 for the Toronto Raptors against the New Jersey Nets; and Wilbur Holland, who logged 18 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists on April 8, 1979 for the Chicago Bulls against the Detroit Pistons., Fastest triple-double: Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets), holds the record for the fastest triple-double. On February 15, 2018, Jokić recorded the mark in 14 minutes and 33 seconds against the Milwaukee Bucks. The previous fastest triple-double had held for almost 63 years, as on February 20, 1955 Jim Tucker (Syracuse Nationals), in his rookie year, recorded the mark in just 17 minutes, with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists in a 104–84 win over the New York Knicks., Double-triple-double (at least 20 of any 3 statistics): Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia 76ers) and Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) are the only players to have accomplished this; in a February 2, 1968 game versus Detroit Pistons, Chamberlain tallied 22 points, 25 rebounds, and 21 assists. Westbrook recorded 20 points, 20 rebounds, and 21 assists against the Los Angeles Lakers on the April 2, 2019., Most points scored in a triple-double: James Harden (Houston Rockets) holds the record for the most points scored in a triple-double with 60 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists on January 30, 2018, against the Orlando Magic. The previous record was 57 points by Russell Westbrook., Most assists recorded in a triple-double: Isiah Thomas (Detroit Pistons), Rajon Rondo (Boston Celtics), and Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) are tied for the most assists recorded in a triple-double with 24. Isiah Thomas recorded 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 24 assists on February 7, 1985 against the Washington Bullets, Rajon Rondo recorded 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 24 assists on October 29, 2010 against the New York Knicks, and Russell Westbrook recorded 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 24 assists on January 10, 2019 against the San Antonio Spurs., Most rebounds recorded in a triple-double: Maurice Stokes (Rochester Royals) and Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia 76ers) are tied for the most rebounds recorded in a triple-double with 38. Maurice Stokes recorded 26 points, 38 rebounds, and 12 assists on January 14, 1956 against the Syracuse Nationals. Wilt Chamberlain achieved this feat twice, recording 24 points, 38 rebounds, and 13 assists on March 2, 1967 against the San Francisco Warriors, and 10 points, 38 rebounds, and 10 assists in a playoff game on April 16, 1967 against the San Francisco Warriors., Most steals recorded in a triple-double: Larry Kenon (San Antonio Spurs) and Kendall Gill (New Jersey Nets) are tied for the most steals recorded in a triple-double with 11. Larry Kenon recorded 29 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 steals on December 26, 1976 against the Kansas City Kings, and Kendall Gill recorded 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 steals on April 3, 1999 against the Miami Heat., Most blocks recorded in a triple-double: Elmore Smith (Los Angeles Lakers) holds the record for the most blocks recorded in a triple-double with 17. He recorded 12 points, 16 rebounds, and 17 blocks on October 28, 1973 against the Portland Trail Blazers., Triple-double not including points: The only such triple-double occurred on February 10, 2017, when Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors) scored only 4 points, but collected 12 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 steals against the Memphis Grizzlies. Green also recorded five blocked shots in the game., Longest continuous streak of triple-doubles: Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) currently holds the record for the most consecutive triple-doubles with 11. His streak began on January 22, 2019 and ended February 14, 2019. The previous record was 9 by Wilt Chamberlain from March 8 to 20, 1968, when Chamberlain was a member of the Philadelphia 76ers., Triple-doubles by teammates: Has occurred 11 times in NBA history., January 18, 1962, Bucky Bockhorn (Cincinnati Royals) had 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists and Oscar Robertson had 28 points, 14 rebounds, and 16 assists against the Philadelphia Warriors., March 14, 1964, Donnie Butcher (Detroit Pistons) had 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 15 assists and Ray Scott had 23 points, 20 rebounds, and 11 assists against the New York Knicks., March 12, 1969, Art Harris (Seattle SuperSonics) had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists and Lenny Wilkens had 36 points, 14 rebounds, and 14 assists against the San Diego Rockets., January 22, 1982, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Los Angeles Lakers) had 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 blocks and Magic Johnson had 26 points, 16 rebounds, and 12 assists against the Detroit Pistons., March 29, 1987, Larry Bird (Boston Celtics) had 17 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 assists and Robert Parish had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists against the Philadelphia 76ers., January 3, 1989, Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) had 41 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds and Scottie Pippen had 15 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds against the Los Angeles Clippers., April 7, 2007, Vince Carter (New Jersey Nets) had 46 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists and Jason Kidd had 10 points, 16 rebounds, and 18 assists against the Washington Wizards., December 15, 2018, Lonzo Ball (Los Angeles Lakers) had 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists and LeBron James had 24 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists against the Charlotte Hornets., February 11, 2019, Paul George (Oklahoma City Thunder) had 47 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists and Russell Westbrook had 21 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists against the Portland Trail Blazers., May 20, 2019, Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) had 37 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists and Draymond Green had 18 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists against the Portland Trail Blazers. This was the first time in NBA history that two teammates recorded triple-doubles in a playoff game., December 10, 2019, Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat) had 30 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists and Jimmy Butler had 20 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists against the Atlanta Hawks., Triple-doubles by opponents: This has occurred at least 32 times in NBA history. Both Jason Kidd and Ben Simmons have been involved in four of these:, Tom Gola and Richie Guerin (Philadelphia at New York, January 10, 1960), Richie Guerin and Guy Rodgers (New York at Philadelphia, February 5, 1961), Oscar Robertson and Richie Guerin (Cincinnati at New York, October 26, 1961), Bob Pettit and Jerry West (St. Louis at Los Angeles, November 8, 1961), Tom Gola and Jerry West (Philadelphia at Los Angeles, December 1, 1961), Wilt Chamberlain and Dave DeBusschere (San Francisco at Detroit, March 5, 1963), Bill Russell and Guy Rodgers (Boston at Chicago, January 17, 1967), Oscar Robertson and Wilt Chamberlain (Cincinnati at Philadelphia, March 19, 1968), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Walt Frazier (Milwaukee at New York, April 13, 1970), Oscar Robertson and Sidney Wicks (Milwaukee at Portland, March 24, 1974), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and George McGinnis (Los Angeles at Denver, November 16, 1979), Larry Bird and Micheal Ray Richardson (Boston at New York, March 24, 1981), Magic Johnson and Mychal Thompson (Los Angeles at Portland, April 5, 1983), Magic Johnson and Jeff Ruland (Los Angeles at Washington, February 10, 1984), Jason Kidd and Clyde Drexler (Dallas at Houston, April 11, 1995), Jason Kidd and Clyde Drexler (Phoenix at Houston, March 22, 1997), Gary Payton and Chris Webber (Seattle at Sacramento, April 18, 2000), Jason Kidd and Jay Williams (New Jersey at Chicago, November 9, 2002), Jason Kidd and Tracy McGrady (New Jersey at Orlando, February 23, 2003), Caron Butler and Baron Davis (Washington at Golden State, November 23, 2007), Victor Oladipo and Michael Carter-Williams (Orlando at Philadelphia, December 3, 2013 ), Oladipo and Carter-Williams were both rookies when accomplishing the feat, marking the first and only time in NBA history that two rookies have recorded triple-doubles in the same game. These were the first career triple-doubles for both players. The last time that two players had recorded their first career triple-doubles in the same game was when Donnie Butcher and Ray Scott (Detroit Pistons) did it on March 14, 1964 (they were not rookies)., Russell Westbrook and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Oklahoma City at Milwaukee, March 6, 2016), LeBron James and Stephen Curry (Cleveland at Golden State, June 4, 2017), Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokić (Denver at Milwaukee, February 15, 2018), D'Angelo Russell and Kyle Lowry (Brooklyn at Toronto, March 23, 2018), Ben Simmons and LeBron James (Cleveland at Philadelphia, April 6, 2018), Giannis Antetokounmpo and Ben Simmons (Philadelphia at Milwaukee, October 24, 2018), Ben Simmons and Russell Westbrook (Philadelphia at Oklahoma City, February 28, 2019), Elfrid Payton and Luka Dončić (New Orleans at Dallas, March 18, 2019), LeBron James and Luka Dončić (Los Angeles at Dallas, November 1, 2019), Ben Simmons and James Harden (Philadelphia at Houston, January 3, 2020), James Harden and Trae Young (Houston at Atlanta, January 8, 2020), With Harden and Young scoring 41 and 42 points, respectively, this was the first time in NBA history opposing players recorded 40-point triple doubles. Triple-doubles have been far more rare in the WNBA than in the NBA; the games are shorter in the WNBA (40 minutes vs 48), there are fewer teams and fewer games in a season (34 vs 82), and the playing style in the WNBA is more a team game than relying on star players. As of the 2019 season, nine triple-doubles have been recorded in the WNBA—eight in the regular season and one in the playoffs. The following is a list of all WNBA triple-doubles, with the playoff triple-double highlighted in italics. The feat is rare in the WNBA; indeed, nine years passed in 2005–2014 between two triple-doubles. Most triple-doubles in a career:, Men's: Kyle Collinsworth (BYU, 2010–11, 2013–16) with 12 — six in 2014–15 and six again as a senior in 2015–16. Before the triple-double being tracked as an NCAA statistic, Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati) had 10—five in 1958–59 and five in 1959–60., Although BYU was forced to vacate all but one of its wins in the 2015–16 season due to improper benefits provided by boosters to another BYU player, Collinsworth's triple-double record was not affected., Women's: Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon, 2016–present) with 18 – four in 2016–17, six in 2017–18, and eight in 2018–19., Consecutive triple-doubles: In Division I men's play, David Edwards (Texas A&M;), Penny Hardaway (Memphis State), Tony Lee (Robert Morris), Gerald Lewis (SMU), Shaquille O’Neal (LSU), and Kevin Roberson (Vermont) each recorded two consecutive games with a triple-double. Most triple-doubles in a single season:, Men's: Kyle Collinsworth (BYU), with six – performed twice: in the 2014–15 season, and again in 2015–16., Women's: Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon), with eight in the 2018–19 season., Triple-doubles in NCAA tournament history:, Others, Kalara McFadyen of Memphis achieved perhaps the most unusual triple-double in history, and she did it without scoring a point or even attempting a shot from either the field or the free-throw line. On February 3, 2002, in a women's Division I game against Charlotte, she had 12 assists, 10 steals, and 10 rebounds. Much like the WNBA, there are a few reasons why triple-doubles are far more rare in the EuroLeague than in the NBA. The games are 40 minutes long, 8 minutes shorter than in the NBA, there are 30 games in a season compared to the NBA's 82, and various rules, such as those on assists, are stricter than that of the NBA. As of 2019, only seven triple-doubles have been recorded in Euroleague history, and only three in the modern era of Euroleague basketball (since 2000). The following is a list of all seven of these triple-doubles: A quadruple-double is a performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in four of five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocked shots—in a game. These do not include turnovers or fouls, but triple- doubles with 10 or more turnovers or fouls have occurred (13 with turnovers, 1 with fouls). This feat is extremely rare: only four players have officially recorded a quadruple-double in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. The first American male player above the high school level to officially record a quadruple-double was Nate Thurmond, who achieved this feat in 1974 while playing for the NBA's Chicago Bulls. The first American female player above the high school level to officially record a quadruple-double was Ann Meyers, who achieved this feat in 1978 while playing for the UCLA Bruins, when women's college sports were under the auspices of the AIAW. The first male player in NCAA Division I history to record a quadruple-double was Lester Hudson in 2007. The first Division I women's player to have officially recorded a quadruple-double since the NCAA began sponsoring women's sports in 1981–82 was Veronica Pettry of Loyola–Chicago in 1989. Only three other women have done so since, and the only player to have recorded a quadruple-double since 1993 is Shakyla Hill of Grambling State, who accomplished the feat in 2018 and 2019. An earlier player, Jackie Spencer of Louisville, accomplished the feat against Cincinnati during the 1984–85 season, but the NCAA did not record assists and steals throughout Division I women's basketball at that time. The Metro Conference, then home to both schools, did officially record these statistics, but the NCAA did not start doing so until 1985–86 for assists and 1987–88 for steals. Quadruple-doubles have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when the NBA started recording both blocked shots and steals. It is often speculated by observers that other all-time greats, namely Oscar Robertson (all time triple- doubles leader with 181), Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell and Jerry West could conceivably have had quadruple-doubles. West's biography at NBA.com claims that he once recorded an unofficial quadruple-double with 44 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 blocks. A biography of Wilt Chamberlain claims that he also recorded an unofficial quadruple-double in Game 1 of the 1967 Eastern Division Finals against the Boston Celtics, when he had 24 points, 32 rebounds, 13 assists and 12 blocks. The four players listed below are the only players who have officially recorded a quadruple-double in an NBA game. Except for Thurmond, who retired before the award was established in 1983, all of them have won NBA Defensive Player of the Year at least once. Robertson is the only player who was not a center to accomplish the feat, doing so with steals rather than blocks. Only seven other players (Drexler did it twice) have managed to finish with triple-doubles and a total of 9 in a fourth statistical category (statistical categories in which they fell short are in bold): Notes Bird sat out the entire fourth quarter. After three quarters, head coach K. C. Jones informed Bird that he was one steal away from a quadruple-double and asked if he wanted to stay in the game. Bird declined, saying that he "already did enough damage.", Olajuwon was credited with 9 assists in the original box score. However, after Rockets officials reviewed the game tape and discovered what they believe was an uncredited assist in the first quarter, they revised the box score, crediting Olajuwon with 10 assists and the third quadruple-double in NBA history. NBA's director of operations, Rod Thorn, requested to review the tape. After reviewing the tape, the league disallowed Olajuwon's quadruple-double and announced that his original line—with 9 assists—is official. Notes This is the only quadruple-double in French National League history., This is the only quadruple-double in National Basketball League history., This is the only quadruple-double in NCAA Division I men's basketball history. The opponent, Central Baptist, plays in the NAIA. Mostly accurate . NCAA records are complete for Divisions I and II, but not for Division III; specifically, entering the 2018–19 season, there have been a total of eight quadruple-doubles in Division III play, and one player, Suzy Venet of Mount Union (1994–1998), had two in her career, both in the 1996–97 season. NAIA records are also incomplete. Notes A quintuple-double is defined as a performance in which a player accumulates a double-digit number total in all five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots—in a single game. There are only three known quintuple-doubles, all done at the girls' high-school level. The first was recorded by Tamika Catchings of Duncanville High School (Duncanville, Texas) with 25 points, 18 rebounds, 11 assists, 10 steals and 10 blocks in 1997. The second was by Alex Montgomery of Lincoln High School (Tacoma, Washington), who had 27 points, 22 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 steals, and 10 blocks in January 2007. The third was by Aimee Oertner of Northern Lehigh High School (Slatington, Pennsylvania), who had 26 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 steals, and 11 blocks on January 7, 2012. A five-by-five is defined as a performance in which a player accumulates a total of five in five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks—in a single game. Statistics for steals and blocks were not kept in the NBA until the 1973–74 season, so all NBA five-by-fives are known only from that season onward. Hakeem Olajuwon (six times) and Andrei Kirilenko (three times) are the only players to have recorded multiple five-by-fives (based on records since the season). Both are also the only players to record six-by-fives (at least six in all five statistical categories). Only twice has a five-by-five coincided with a triple-double (both by Olajuwon; one of which was 1 assist shy of a quadruple-double) and only three times has a player recorded a five-by-five without registering at least a double-double (two by Kirilenko and one by Marcus Camby). All facts based on data since : Greatest five-by-fives (most of each stat): Hakeem Olajuwon, on March 10, 1987, became the first in NBA history to record a six-by-five (at least 6 each of all five statistics: points, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals). It took nearly twenty years for the second official occurrence in NBA history. Andrei Kirilenko, on January 3, 2006, recorded a six-by-five against the Lakers. Though his numbers were not quite as impressive as Olajuwon's, Kirilenko performed the feat in regulation., Most five-by-fives in a career: Hakeem Olajuwon leads all players with 6 career five-by-fives. Andrei Kirilenko, with 3, is the only other player with more than one career five-by-five., Most five-by-fives in the same season: Only twice has a player recorded two five-by-fives in a season. Olajuwon in the 1993–94 season, and Kirilenko in the 2003–04 season., Quickest pair of five-by-fives: Kirilenko performed a five-by-five on December 3, 2003, and completed another just a week later, on December 10, 2003. The second-quickest five-by-fives were completed by Olajuwon on November 5, 1993, and another, 55 days later, on December 30, 1993., Youngest player: Kirilenko's first NBA five-by-five came on December 3, 2003, making him the youngest to record a five-by-five at age ., Oldest player: Olajuwon is the oldest player to record a five-by-five. His last career five-by-five came on December 30, 1993, at which time he was old., Six-by-fives: Olajuwon and Kirilenko are the only players to achieve this feat in NBA history. This page lists career accomplishments of the American professional basketball player LeBron James. Points – 4th (33,056), Points per game – 4th (27.16), Field goals made – 5th (12,036), Field goal attempts – 9th (23,478), Field goals missed – 9th (11,640), Free throws made – 7th (7,186), Free throw attempts – 6th (9,701), 3-point field goals made – 19th (1,727), 3-point field goal attempts – 15th (5,028), Defensive Rebounds - 21st (7,561), Total Rebounds – 53rd (9,023), Assists – 9th (9,000), Steals – 14th (1,966), Turnovers – 3rd (4,163), Minutes played – 17th (46,235), Minutes per game – 11th (38.59), Games played – 40th (1,230) Points – 1st (6,911), Points per game – 4th (28.92), Field goals made – 1st (2,457), Field goal attempts – 1st (5,006), Field goals missed – 1st (2,549), Free throws made – 1st (1,627), Free throw attempts – 2nd (2,191), 3-point field goals made – 4th (370), 3-point field goal attempts – 1st (1,116), Rebounds – 6th (2,122), Assists – 3rd (1,687), Steals – 1st (419), Blocks – 16th (232), Turnovers – 1st (866), Minutes played – 1st (10,049), Minutes per game – 12th (42.05), Games played – 4th (239) 3× NBA champion: , ,, 3× NBA Finals Most Valuable Player: , ,, 4× NBA Most Valuable Player: , , ,, 15x NBA All-Star: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,, 3× NBA All-Star Game MVP: , ,, 15× All-NBA selection:, 12× First team: , , , , , , , , , , ,, 2× Second team: ,, 1x Third team:, 6× NBA All-Defensive selection:, 5× First team: , , , ,, 1× Second team:, NBA Rookie of the Year:, NBA All-Rookie First Team:, NBA Scoring Champion:, 3× NBA minutes leader: , ,, J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award: 3× Olympic medalist:, 2× Gold: 2008, 2012, Bronze: 2004, FIBA World Cup medalist:, Bronze: 2006, FIBA AmeriCup medalist:, Gold: 2007 2012 National champion: 2003, 3× State champion: 2000, 2001, 2003, 2× Gatorade National Player of the Year: 2002, 2003, 2× Mr. Basketball USA: 2002, 2003, 2× USA Today High School Player of the Year: 2002, 2003, 3× Ohio Mr. Basketball: 2001, 2002, 2003, 3× USA Today All-USA First Team: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2× PARADE High School Player of the Year: 2002, 2003, 2× First-team Parade All-American: 2002, 2003, Second-team Parade All-American: 2001, Gatorade Male Athlete of the Year: 2003, Naismith Prep Player of the Year: 2003, McDonald's National Player of the Year: 2003, McDonald's High School All-American: 2003, McDonald's Slam Dunk Contest (Powerade Jam Fest): 2003, McDonald's All-American Game MVP: 2003, EA Sports Roundball Classic MVP: 2003, Jordan Capital Classic MVP: 2003, Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year: 2003 Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year: 2012, 2016, Sporting News Athlete of the Year: 2012, Sporting News NBA MVP: 2006, Sporting News Rookie of the Year: 2004, Sports Illustrated NBA All-Decade First Team: 2000–2009, 7× Best NBA Player ESPY Award: 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 3× Best Male Athlete ESPY Award: 2012, 2013, 2016, Best Breakthrough Athlete ESPY Award: 2004, 4× Best Championship Performance ESPY Award: 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 6× BET Sportsman of the Year: 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2013, 3× Associated Press Athlete of the Year: 2013, 2016, 2018, 2× Hickok Belt: 2012, 2013, Jackie Robinson Sports Award: 2017 Achievements are current as of the end of the 2019 NBA season. 1st in career Value Over Replacement Player (VORP) (129.79)., more than next player on the list, Michael Jordan (104.43)., 1st in career Box Plus/Minus (9.13)., more than the next player on the list, Michael Jordan (8.09)., Most career assists by a forward (9,021)., Most consecutive double-digit scoring games: 959 games., Most times being named Conference Player of the Week (62 times)., Most times being named Conference Player of the Month (44 times)., Most All-NBA First Team selections (12)., 2nd career in Player Efficiency Rating or PER (27.59), Behind Michael Jordan (27.91), 3rd most seasons with at least 2,000 points (10), Behind Karl Malone (12) and Michael Jordan (11)., 3rd most 30-point games in NBA history (445), Behind Michael Jordan (562) and Wilt Chamberlain (515)., 3rd most 20-point games in NBA history (1,000)., Behind Karl Malone (1,134) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1,122)., 4th most NBA Most Valuable Player Awards (4)., Behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6), Michael Jordan (5) and Bill Russell (5)., Tied with Wilt Chamberlain (4)., Only player in NBA history to record at least 33,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, and 9,000 assists., Only player in NBA history to record a triple double against all NBA teams., Only player in NBA history to post at least 2,000 points, 500 rebounds, 500 assists, and 100 steals in four consecutive seasons., Only player in NBA history to post at least 2,000 points, 500 rebounds, 500 assists, and 100 steals in a single season for at least eight seasons., Only player in NBA history to post at least 2,000 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists in a single season for at least eight seasons., Only player in NBA history to average at least 25 points per game for 15 consecutive seasons., Only player in NBA history to be in the top 5 all-time in points and top 10 all-time in assists., Only player in NBA history to have at least 9,000 rebounds and 9,000 assists., One of two players in NBA history to win four NBA Most Valuable Player Awards in a span of five years., The other is Bill Russell., One of two players in NBA history to win at least two NBA Most Valuable Player Awards for two different franchises., The other is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar., One of two players in NBA history to win NBA MVP, Finals MVP, and an Olympic Gold Medal in the same year., The other is Michael Jordan (1992)., One of two players in NBA history to win at least four NBA MVP awards and three NBA Finals MVP awards., The other is Michael Jordan., One of five players in NBA history to win consecutive Finals MVP Awards., Includes Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant Only player in NBA history to post 30 or more points and shoot over 60 percent for six consecutive games in a single season., One of five players in NBA history to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in their rookie season., Includes Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan, Tyreke Evans and Luka Dončić., One of five players in NBA history to average a triple-double in a calendar month, With Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Russell Westbrook and Luka Dončić. James is the oldest in age to do so., One of five players in NBA history to lead their team in all five major statistical categories (total points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals) in a single season (2008–09 season)., Includes Dave Cowens (1977–78), Scottie Pippen (1994–95), and Kevin Garnett (2002–03) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (2016–17). Only player in NBA history to record at least 35 points, 15 assists, and 0 turnovers in a game. Most points scored in All-Star games (362)., Most three-point field goals made in All-Star games (36)., Most field goals made in All-Star games (150)., Most times being a starter in All-Star games (15)., Tied with Kobe Bryant., 2nd place all-time in defensive rebounds made in All-Star games (85)., Behind Tim Duncan (98). Most playoff games with at least 20 points (210)., Most playoff games scoring at least 30 points (110 times)., Most playoff games with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists (20)., Most playoff games with at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists (37)., Most playoff games with at least 40 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists (18)., 1st in Win Shares (51.0)., 11.24 more than the next player on the list Michael Jordan (39.76)., 1st in Box Plus/Minus (11.05), 0.93 more than the next player on the list Michael Jordan (10.12)., 1st in VORP - Value Over Replacement Player (33.1)., 10.25 more than next player on the list Michael Jordan (22.85), T-1st place all-time for postseasons with at least 500 total points (8 times)., With Michael Jordan (8)., 2nd for consecutive 20-point games to start a playoff career (19)., Behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's (27)., 2nd place all-time for playoff games scoring at least 40 points (27 times)., Behind Michael Jordan (38)., 2nd place all-time for playoff games scoring at least 45 points (10 times)., Behind Michael Jordan (23)., 2nd place all-time for triple-doubles in the playoffs (23)., Behind Magic Johnson (30)., 2nd place all-time for most defensive rebounds in a playoffs career (1,756)., Behind Tim Duncan (2,081)., T-2nd place all-time for most NBA Finals MVP Awards (3)., Behind Michael Jordan (6)., Tied with Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Tim Duncan., Only player in NBA history to be in the top 10 all time in career playoff points, rebounds, assists and steals., Only player in NBA history to be in the top 5 all-time in career playoff points, assists, and steals. Only player in NBA history to score at least 25 points in 15 consecutive playoff games in a single postseason. Only player in NBA history to record at least 500 points, 200 rebounds, and 150 assists in a single postseason, multiple times., Only player in NBA history to record at least 600 points, 200 rebounds, and 150 assists in a single postseason., One of two players in NBA history to average at least 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists per game in a single postseason., Includes Oscar Robertson., One of two players in NBA history to record at least 600 points, 200 rebounds, and 100 assists in a single postseason twice., Includes Larry Bird. Only player in NBA history to lead both teams in points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals in a playoff series (2016 NBA Finals vs. Golden State Warriors)., Only player in NBA history to lead both teams in points, rebounds, assists in a playoff series (twice, 2015 and 2016 NBA Finals vs. Golden State Warriors), T-1st place all-time in NBA history to average at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in a playoff series (2017 NBA Finals vs. Golden State Warriors)., Includes Russell Westbrook., Only player in NBA history to win over 20 consecutive games in the first round, Only player in NBA history to sweep 10 series in the playoffs Most consecutive points scored for a team in a playoff game with 25 consecutive points at the Detroit Pistons on May 31, 2007., One of three players in NBA history to record at least 45 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 assists in a playoff game., Includes Wilt Chamberlain and Russell Westbrook., One of three players in NBA history to record a triple-double in their playoff debut., Includes Johnny McCarthy and Magic Johnson. Most triple-doubles with at least 30 points in the NBA Finals (4)., Most three-point field goals attempted in the NBA Finals (251)., Most NBA Finals games with at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists (9)., Most defensive rebounds in the NBA Finals (395)., Most turnovers in the NBA Finals (196)., Most triple-doubles in the NBA Finals (10)., 2nd for three-point field goals made in the NBA Finals (86)., Behind Steph Curry (98)., 2nd for most assists in the NBA Finals (379)., Behind Magic Johnson (584)., 2nd for most steals in the NBA Finals (86)., Behind Magic Johnson (102)., 2nd for most NBA Finals games with at least 40 points (7)., Behind Jerry West (10)., 2nd for most points scored in the NBA Finals (1,383). Oscar Palmer Robertson (born November 24, 1938), nicknamed "The Big O", is an American retired professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks. The , Robertson played point guard and was a 12-time All-Star, 11-time member of the All-NBA Team, and one-time winner of the MVP award in 14 seasons. In 1962, he became the first player in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season. In the 1970–71 NBA season, he was a key player on the team that brought the Bucks their only NBA title to date. His playing career, especially during high school and college, was plagued by racism. Robertson is a two-time Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, having been inducted in 1980 for his individual career, and in 2010 as a member of the 1960 United States men's Olympic basketball team and president of the National Basketball Players Association. He also was voted one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996. The United States Basketball Writers Association renamed their College Player of the Year Award the Oscar Robertson Trophy in his honor in 1998, and he was one of five people chosen to represent the inaugural National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame class in 2006. He was ranked as the 36th best American athlete of the 20th century by ESPN. Robertson was also an integral part of Robertson v. National Basketball Ass'n of 1970. The landmark NBA antitrust suit, which was filed when Robertson was the president of the NBA Players' Association, led to an extensive reform of the league's strict free agency and draft rules and, subsequently, to higher salaries for all players. Robertson was born in poverty in Charlotte, Tennessee, and grew up in a segregated housing project in Indianapolis. In contrast to many other boys who preferred to play baseball, he was drawn to basketball because it was "a poor kids' game". Because his family could not afford to buy a basketball, he learned how to shoot by tossing tennis balls and rags bound with rubber bands into a peach basket behind his family's home. Robertson attended Crispus Attucks High School, an all-black high school. At Crispus Attucks, Robertson was coached by Ray Crowe, whose emphasis on a fundamentally sound game had a positive effect on Robertson's style of play. As a sophomore in 1954, he starred on an Attucks team that lost in the semi- state finals (state quarterfinals) to eventual state champions Milan, whose story would later be the basis of the classic 1986 movie Hoosiers. When Robertson was a junior, Crispus Attucks dominated its opposition, going 31–1 and winning the 1955 state championship, the first for any all-black school in the nation. The following year, the team finished with a perfect 31–0 record and won a second straight Indiana state title, becoming the first team in Indiana to secure a perfect season and compiling a state-record 45 straight victories. The state championships were also the first ever by an Indianapolis team in the Hoosier tourney. After their championship game wins, the team was paraded through town in a regular tradition, but they were then taken to a park outside downtown to continue their celebration, unlike other teams. Robertson stated, "[Officials] thought the blacks were going to tear the town up, and they thought the whites wouldn't like it." Robertson scored 24.0 points per game in his senior season and was named Indiana "Mr. Basketball" in 1956. After his graduation that year, Robertson enrolled at the University of Cincinnati. Robertson continued to excel while at the University of Cincinnati, recording an incredible scoring average of 33.8 points per game, the third highest in college history. In each of his three years, he won the national scoring title, was named an All-American, and was chosen College Player of the Year, while setting 14 NCAA and 19 school records. Robertson's stellar play led the Bearcats to a 79–9 overall record during his three varsity seasons, including two Final Four appearances. However, a championship eluded Robertson, something that would become a repeated occurrence until late in his professional career. When Robertson left college he was the all-time leading NCAA scorer until fellow Hall of Fame player Pete Maravich topped him in 1970. Robertson took Cincinnati to national prominence during his time there, but the university's greatest success in basketball took place immediately after his departure, when the team won national titles in 1961, 1962, and just missed a third title in 1963. He continues to stand atop the Bearcats' record book. The many records he still holds include: points in one game, 62 (one of his six games of 50 points or more); career triple-doubles, 10; career rebounds per game, 15.2; and career points, 2,973. Robertson had many outstanding individual game performances, including 10 triple-doubles. His personal best might have been his line of 45 points, 23 rebounds and 10 assists vs. Indiana State in 1959. Despite his success on the court, Robertson's college career was soured by racism. In those days, southern university programs such as those of Kentucky, Duke, and North Carolina did not recruit black athletes, and road trips to segregated cities were especially difficult, with Robertson often sleeping in college dorms instead of hotels. "I'll never forgive them," he told The Indianapolis Star years later. Decades after his college days, Robertson's stellar NCAA career was rewarded by the United States Basketball Writers Association when, in 1998, they renamed the trophy awarded to the NCAA Division I Player of the Year the Oscar Robertson Trophy. This honor brought the award full circle for Robertson since he had won the first two awards ever presented. After college, Robertson and Jerry West co-captained the 1960 U.S. basketball team at the 1960 Summer Olympics. The team, described as the greatest assemblage of amateur basketball talent ever, steamrollered the competition to win the gold medal. Robertson was a starting forward along with Purdue's Terry Dischinger, but played point guard as well. He was the leading scorer of the team, as the U.S. team won its nine games by a margin of 42.4 points. Ten of the twelve college players on the American squad later played in the NBA, including Robertson as well as future Basketball Hall-of-Famers West, Lucas, and Walt Bellamy. Prior to the 1960–61 NBA season, Robertson made himself eligible for the 1960 NBA draft. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Royals as a territorial pick. The Royals gave Robertson a $33,000 signing bonus. In his NBA debut, Robertson recorded 21 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in a 140-123 win over the visiting Lakers. On November 15, 1960, Robertson recorded a then career-high of 44 points to go along with 15 rebounds and 11 assists in a 124-115 win over the Philadelphia Warriors. In his rookie season, Robertson averaged 30.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 9.7 assists (leading the league), almost averaging a triple-double for the entire season. He was named NBA Rookie of the Year, was elected into the All-NBA First Team—which would happen in each of Robertson's first nine seasons—and made the first of 12 consecutive All-Star Game appearances. In addition, he was named the 1961 NBA All-Star Game MVP following his 23-point, 14-assist, 9-rebound performance in a West victory. However, the Royals finished with a 33-46 record and stayed in the cellar of the Western Division. On February 10, 1962, Robertson recorded 32 points, 21 rebounds and 16 assists in a 134-118 win over the St. Louis Hawks. In the 1961–62 season, Robertson became the first player in NBA history to average a triple-double for an entire season, with 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists. Robertson also set a then-NBA record for the most triple-doubles during the regular season with 41 triple-doubles; the record would stand for over half a century when, in 2016–17, Russell Westbrook recorded 42 and joined Robertson as the only other player to average a triple-double for an entire season. He broke the assists record by Bob Cousy, who had recorded 715 assists two seasons earlier, by logging 899. And also, he also joins Johnny Green and Elgin Baylor as the only players in NBA History with the height of 6'5 or smaller to have grabbed 900+ rebounds in a season. The Royals earned a playoff berth; however, they were eliminated in the first round by the Detroit Pistons. In the next season, Robertson further established himself as one of the greatest players of his generation, averaging 28.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 9.5 assists, narrowly missing out on another triple-double season. The Royals advanced to the Eastern Division Finals, but succumbed in a seven-game series against a Boston Celtics team led by Bill Russell. In the 1963–64 season, the Royals achieved a 55–25 record, which put them second place in the Eastern Division. Under new coach Jack McMahon, Robertson flourished. Robertson led the NBA in free-throw percentage, scored a career-high 31.4 points per game, and averaged 9.9 rebounds and 11.0 assists per game. The averages for his first five NBA seasons are a triple-double: 30.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 10.6 assists per game. He won the NBA MVP award and became the only player other than Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain to win it from 1960 to 1968. Robertson also won his second All-Star Game MVP award that year after scoring 26 points, grabbing 14 rebounds, and dishing off 8 assists in an East victory. In the postseason, the Royals defeated the Philadelphia 76ers, but then were dominated by the Celtics 4 games to 1. Robertson averaged a triple- double over his first five seasons in the NBA with the Royals, recording averages of 30.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 10.6 assists per game in 451 contest. On December 18, 1964, Robertson recorded a career-high 56 points on 17-for-33 shooting from the field, to go along with 9 rebounds and 12 assists in a 111-107 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. From the 1964–65 season on, things began to turn sour for the franchise. Despite Robertson recording averages of at least 24.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 8.1 assists in the six following seasons, the Royals were eliminated in the first round from 1965 to 1967, then missed the playoffs from 1968 to 1970. In the 1969–70 season, the sixth disappointing season in a row, fan support was waning. To help attract the public, 41-year-old head coach Bob Cousy made a short comeback as a player. For seven games, the former Celtics point guard partnered with Robertson in the Royals' backcourt, but they missed the playoffs. Prior to the 1970–71 season, the Royals stunned the basketball world by trading Robertson to the Bucks for Flynn Robinson and Charlie Paulk. No reasons were officially given, but many pundits suspected head coach Bob Cousy was jealous of all the attention Robertson was getting. Robertson himself said: "I think he was wrong and I will never forget it." The relationship between Oscar and the Royals had soured to the point that Cincinnati had also approached the Lakers and Knicks about deals involving their star player (the Knicks players who were discussed in those scenarios are unknown, but Los Angeles stated publicly that the Royals asked about Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain, with the Lakers saying they would not consider trading either star). However, the trade proved highly beneficial for Robertson. After being stuck with an under-performing team the last six years, he now was paired with the young Lew Alcindor, who would years later become the all-time NBA scoring leader as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. With Alcindor in the low post and Robertson running the backcourt, the Bucks charged to a league-best 66–16 record, including a then-record 20-game win streak, a dominating 12–2 record in the playoffs, and crowned their season with the NBA title by sweeping the Baltimore Bullets 4–0 in the 1971 NBA Finals. For the first time in his career, Robertson had won an NBA championship. From a historical perspective, however, Robertson's most important contribution was made not on a basketball court, but rather in a court of law. It was the year of the landmark Robertson v. National Basketball Ass'n, an antitrust suit filed by the NBA's Players Association against the league. As Robertson was the president of the Players Association, the case bore his name. In this suit, the proposed merger between the NBA and American Basketball Association was delayed until 1976, and the college draft as well as the free agency clauses were reformed. Robertson himself stated that the main reason was that clubs basically owned their players: players were forbidden to talk to other clubs once their contract was up, because free agency did not exist until 1988. Six years after the suit was filed, the NBA finally reached a settlement, the ABA–NBA merger took place, and the Oscar Robertson suit encouraged signing of more free agents and eventually led to higher salaries for all players. On the hardwood, the veteran Robertson still proved he was a valuable player. Paired with Abdul- Jabbar, two more division titles with the Bucks followed in the 1971–72 and 1972–73 season. In Robertson's last season, he helped lead Milwaukee to a league-best 59–23 record and helped them to reach the 1974 NBA Finals. There, Robertson had the chance to end his stellar career with a second ring. The Bucks were matched up against a Boston Celtics team powered by an inspired Dave Cowens, and the Bucks lost in seven games. As a testament to Robertson's importance to the Bucks, in the season following his retirement the Bucks fell to last place in their division with a 38–44 record in spite of the continued presence of Abdul-Jabbar. Robertson was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995. After he retired as an active player, Robertson stayed involved in efforts to improve living conditions in his native Indianapolis, especially concerning fellow African-Americans. In addition, he worked as a color commentator with Brent Musburger on games televised by CBS during the 1974–75 NBA season. His trademark expression was "Oh, Brent, did you see that!" in reaction to flashy or spectacular situations such as fast breaks, slam dunks, player collisions, etc. After his retirement, the Kansas City Kings (the Royals moved there while Robertson was with the Bucks) retired his #14; the retirement continues to be honored by the Kings in their current home of Sacramento. The Bucks also retired the #1 he wore in Milwaukee. In 1994, a nine-foot bronze statue of Robertson was erected outside the Fifth Third Arena at Shoemaker Center, the current home of Cincinnati Bearcats basketball. Robertson attends many of the games there, viewing the Bearcats from a chair at courtside. In 2006, the statue was relocated to the entrance of the Richard E. Lindner Athletics Center at the University of Cincinnati. Starting in 2000, Robertson served as a director for Countrywide Financial Corporation, until the company's sale to Bank of America in 2008. After many years out of the spotlight, Robertson was recognized on November 17, 2006 for his impact on college basketball when he was chosen to be a member of the founding class of the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was one of five people, along with John Wooden, Bill Russell, Dean Smith and Dr. James Naismith, selected to represent the inaugural class. In July 2004, Robertson was named interim head coach of the Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team for approximately a month while head coach Bob Huggins served a suspension stemming from a drunk-driving conviction. In January 2011, Robertson joined a class action lawsuit against the NCAA, challenging the organization's use of the images of its former student athletes. In 2015, Robertson was among a group of investors who placed a marijuana legalization initiative on the Ohio ballot. The initiative sought exclusive grow rights for the group members while prohibiting all other cultivation except small amounts for personal use. Robertson appeared in a television advertisement advocating for passage of the initiative, but it was ultimately defeated. Robertson is regarded as one of the greatest players in NBA history, a triple threat who could score inside, outside and also was a stellar playmaker. His rookie scoring average of 30.5 points per game is the third highest of any rookie in NBA history, and Robertson averaged more than 30 points per game in six of his first seven seasons. Only three other players in the NBA have had more 30+ point per game seasons in their career. Robertson was the first player to average more than 10 assists per game, doing so at a time when the criteria for assists were more stringent than today. Furthermore, Robertson is the first guard in NBA history to ever average more than 10 rebounds per game, doing so three times. It was a feat that would not be repeated until Russell Westbrook managed to achieve it during the 2016–17 season. In addition to his 1964 regular season MVP award, Robertson won three All-Star Game MVPs in his career (in 1961, 1964, and 1969). He ended his career with 26,710 points (25.7 per game, ninth-highest all time), 9,887 assists (9.5 per game) and 7,804 rebounds (7.5 per game). He led the league in assists six times, and at the time of his retirement, he was the NBA's all-time leader in career assists and free throws made, and was the second all-time leading scorer behind Wilt Chamberlain. Robertson also set yardsticks in versatility. If his first five NBA seasons are strung together, Robertson averaged a triple-double over those, averaging 30.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 10.6 assists. For his career, Robertson had 181 triple-doubles, a record that has never been approached. These numbers are even more astonishing if it is taken into account that the three-point shot, which benefits sharpshooting backcourt players, did not exist when he played. In 1967–68, Robertson also became the first of only two players in NBA history to lead the league in both scoring average and assists per game in the same season (also achieved by Nate Archibald). The official scoring and assist titles went to other players that season, however, because the NBA based the titles on point and assist totals (not averages) prior to the 1969–70 season. Robertson did, however, win a total of six NBA assist titles during his career. For his career, Robertson shot a high .485 field goal average and led the league in free-throw percentage twice—in the 1963–64 and 1967–68 seasons. Robertson is recognized by the NBA as the first legitimate "big guard", paving the way for other oversized backcourt players like Magic Johnson. Furthermore, he is also credited with having invented the head fake and the fadeaway jump shot, a shot which Michael Jordan later became famous for. For the Cincinnati Royals, now relocated and named the Sacramento Kings, he scored 22,009 points and 7,731 assists, and is the all-time leader in both statistics for the combined Royals/Kings teams. Robertson was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on April 28, 1980. He received the "Player of the Century" award by the National Association of Basketball Coaches in 2000 and was ranked third on SLAM Magazine's Top 75 NBA Players in 2003, behind fellow NBA legends Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. Furthermore, in 2006, ESPN named Robertson the second greatest point guard of all time, praising him as the best post-up guard of all time and placing him only behind Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson. In 2017, it was announced that a life-sized bronze sculpture of Robertson would be featured alongside other Indiana sports stars at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis' Old National Bank Sports Legends Avenue of Champions, located in the museum's sports park opening in 2018. In 1959, the Player of the Year Award was established to recognize the best college basketball player of the year by the United States Basketball Writers Association. Five nominees are presented and the individual with the most votes receives the award during the NCAA Final Four. In 1998, it was renamed the Oscar Robertson Trophy in honor of the player who won the first two awards because of his outstanding career and his continuing efforts to promote the game of basketball. In 2004, an 18" bronze statue of Robertson was sculpted by world-renowned sculptor Harry Weber. 77 times in the regular season Robertson is the son of Mazell and Bailey Robertson. He has two brothers, Bailey Jr. and Henry. He remembers a tough childhood, plagued by poverty and racism. When a biography was going to be written about him in the 1990s, Robertson joked that his life had been "dull", and that he had been "married to the same woman for a long time". In 1997, Robertson donated one of his kidneys to his daughter Tia, who suffered lupus-related kidney failure. He has been an honorary spokesman for the National Kidney Foundation ever since. In 2003, he published his own autobiography, The Big O: My Life, My Times, My Game. Robertson also owns the chemical company Orchem, based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Regarding basketball, Robertson has stated that legendary Harlem Globetrotters players Marques Haynes and "clown prince" Goose Tatum were his idols. Now in his eighties, he is long retired from playing basketball, although he still follows it on TV and attends most home games for the University of Cincinnati, his alma mater. He now lists woodworking as his prime hobby. Robertson adds that he still could average a triple-double season in today's basketball, and that he is highly skeptical that anyone else could do it (it was later done by Russell Westbrook in the 2016–17 season). On June 9, 2007, Oscar received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the University of Cincinnati for both his philanthropic and entrepreneurial efforts. In August 2018, Robertson auctioned off his 1971 championship ring, Hall of Fame ring, and one of his Milwaukee Bucks game jerseys. Each item sold between $50,000 and $91,000. List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association career assists leaders, List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders, List of National Basketball Association career playoff assists leaders, List of National Basketball Association players with most assists in a game, List of National Basketball Association annual minutes leaders, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 60 or more points in a game, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 2000 points and 1000 rebounds, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career free throw scoring leaders Robertson, Oscar The Art of Basketball: A Guide to Self-Improvement in the Fundamentals of the Game (1998), Robertson, Oscar The Big O: My Life, My Times, My Game (2003) autobiography, Bradsher, Bethany, Oscar Robertson Goes to Dixie (2011) , Houston, Texas: Whitecaps Media (e-book), Bradsher, Bethany, The Classic: How Everett Case and His Tournament Brought Big-Time Basketball to the South (2011) , Houston, Texas: Whitecaps Media, Grace, Kevin. Cincinnati Hoops. Chicago, Illinois: Arcadia, 2003., Grace, Kevin; Hand, Greg; Hathaway, Tom; and Hoffman, Carey. Bearcats! The Story of Basketball at the University of Cincinnati. Louisville, Kentucky: Harmony House, 1998., Robertson, Oscar, Damian Aromando. Parquet Cronicles (2000), Roberts, Randy. But They Can't Beat Us: Oscar Robertson and the Crispus Attucks Tigers. NBA bio, Basketball Hall of Fame bio, Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame profile

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"How Far I'll Go" is a song from Disney's 2016 animated feature film Moana. It was written and produced by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The song was performed in the film by American actress and singer Auliʻi Cravalho in her role as Moana. It was released along with the album on November 18, 2016. Canadian singer Alessia Cara also recorded the song for the Moana soundtrack. The song was nominated for Best Original Song at the 89th Academy Awards and Best Original Song at the 74th Golden Globe Awards but lost both to "City of Stars" from La La Land. It did however win the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards. "How Far I'll Go" was composed as Moana's "I Want" song, following in the long tradition of "I Want" songs in 1990s Disney animated musicals. It replaced an earlier attempt called "More", for which the demo version recorded by Marcy Harriell was released as an outtake on the deluxe version of the soundtrack album. Although Miranda has stressed that he is still "very proud of" the song as a first draft, "More" was not good enough in retrospect because it merely expressed Moana's vague desire to see more since she had already figured out everything about the island. In contrast, "How Far I'll Go" expresses a deeper, richer message: Moana's struggle with the irresistible impulse to explore beyond the reef notwithstanding her genuine love for her island, her family, and her people. As Miranda explained to People: "To me that's much more complicated than, 'I hate it here and I want to get out,' ... To say, ‘I love it here, I love my parents, but why can't I stop walking to the ocean and fantasizing about getting out of here?' And questioning that instinct? It's even more confusing. And that's a valid story too." To make himself write a song more compelling than "More", Miranda "went method". According to Miranda, he locked himself in his childhood bedroom at his parents' residence for an entire weekend in order to force his mind back to age 16 (the same age as Moana in the film), a time when he was facing what seemed like an "impossible distance" between the reality of his pleasant middle-class childhood which had no connection to show business whatsoever, and his dreams of a career in show business. He was well aware that he was composing the next Disney "I Want" song after "Let It Go" and that whatever he wrote had to be different from "Let It Go". According to sheet music published at Sheetmusicdirect.com by Disney Music Company, "How Far I'll Go" is a moderate tempo of 82 beats per minute. Written in common time, the song is in the key of E major with a key change to F major for the final 10 measures. Auliʻi Cravalho's vocal range spans from B to D during the song. A music video for the song was released on December 12, 2016. When the movie had its first theater release worldwide, the song numbered 44 versions, including a special Tahitian-language adaptation created specifically for the movie. For promotional purposes, South African singer Lira and Filipino singer and actress Janella Salvador recorded their own English-language versions of the song, while Indonesian singer Maudy Ayunda and Malaysian singer Ayda Jebat recorded their own versions of the song respectively in Indonesian and Malaysian language. On December 15, a 5-languages mash-up was released online, featuring singers from Southeast Asian countries: Janella Salvador from the Philippines, Maudy Ayunda from Indonesia, Myra Molloy from Thailand, Ayda Jebat from Malaysia and Trần Minh Như from Vietnam. Shortly thereafter, a 24-languages video was released on Disney's Vevo channel. In June 2017, a Māori-language version of the movie, featuring four voice-actors from the original English cast, was announced. Three weeks later, New Zealander Jaedyn Randell was introduced as Moana's singing voice. The movie was released in September 2017. In the same year, Shruti Rane (Hindi) reprised her role in the Bengali-language version of the movie. In November 2017, a Hawaiian-language dubbing was announced to be under way, with Auliʻi Cravalho reprising her role as Moana. The movie premiered on June 10, 2018. Canadian singer and songwriter Alessia Cara recorded "How Far I'll Go" for the Moana soundtrack, with the song being released ahead of the soundtrack on October 28, 2016. Rolling Stones Brittany Spanos called the song "inspirational and sweet" and went on to say "the uplifting song is a perfect fit into the Disney canon, with Cara belting lyrics about persevering to achieve her dreams in spite of her imperfections or detractors." US magazine Rap-Up said "the empowering anthem allows the Canadian songstress to deliver outstanding vocals about overcoming adversity to reach for goals" and labeled it "a song with a message" and an "emotionally-charged track." Taylor Weatherby of Billboard dubbed it a "bouncy, uplifting tune." Idolator's Mike Wass said "the inspiring anthem is the perfect antidote to the general ugliness of 2016" and called it "a soaring ballad." The official music video for the song, directed by Aya Tanimura, was released on November 3, 2016. Derek Lawrence of Entertainment Weekly described the video: "The video finds Cara roaming an empty beach as she belts out lyrics that reflect the film’s plot about a young Polynesian girl setting sail for an epic adventure." The video was filmed at El Matador Beach in Malibu, California. In many versions of Moana, Alessia Cara's version of the song played during the end credits. However, several localized adaptations of Cara's version of the song were recorded for the end credits of the film as released in certain markets around the world. In 2019, the Swedish pop group Dolly Style covered the song for a Swedish version of We Love Disney. Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American composer, lyricist, singer, actor, producer, and playwright, widely known for creating and starring in the Broadway musicals In the Heights and Hamilton. His awards include a Pulitzer Prize, three Tony Awards, three Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, a MacArthur Fellowship, and a Kennedy Center Honor in 2018. Miranda wrote the music and lyrics for the 2008 Broadway musical In the Heights. His work won the Tony Award for Best Original Score, the show's cast album won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, and the show won the Tony Award for Best Musical. Miranda was also nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his lead role. He gained wider recognition for writing the book, music and lyrics for Hamilton, which has been acclaimed as a pop culture phenomenon since its Broadway premiere in 2015. The show earned the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, and was nominated for a record-setting 16 Tony Awards, of which it won 11, including Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Book. For portraying the titular role, Miranda was nominated for another Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. The Hamilton cast recording spent ten weeks atop Billboards Top Rap Albums chart in 2015, and was eventually named by Billboard as the eleventh- biggest album of the 2010's; The Hamilton Mixtape, an album of covers of songs from the musical, developed by and featuring Miranda, reached number one on the Billboard 200. Miranda's television work includes recurring roles on The Electric Company (2009–2010) and Do No Harm (2013). He hosted Saturday Night Live for the first time in 2016 and earned his first Emmy award nomination for acting. Among other film work, Miranda contributed music and vocals for a scene in (2015); wrote music and songs in the animated musical Moana (2016), which gained him nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and the Academy Award for Best Original Song, for the song "How Far I'll Go"; and starred as Jack in the musical fantasy Mary Poppins Returns (2018), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Miranda has been politically active, most notably on behalf of Puerto Rico. He met with politicians in 2016 to speak out in favor of debt relief for Puerto Rico, and raised funds for rescue efforts and disaster relief after Hurricane Maria struck the island in 2017. Miranda was born in New York City and raised in the neighborhood of Washington Heights, the son of Dr. Luz Towns-Miranda, a clinical psychologist, and Luis A. Miranda, Jr., a Democratic Party consultant who advised New York City mayor Ed Koch. Miranda has one older sister, Luz, who is the Chief Financial Officer of the MirRam Group. During childhood and his teens, he spent at least one month each year with his grandparents in Vega Alta, Puerto Rico. He is of mostly Puerto Rican descent. His mother's ancestors include an interracial couple, Sophie, who was black, and David Towns, who was white; from the early 1800s, this couple spent their married life trying to outrun slavery as laws and governments changed around them. Ensuing branches of the Towns family primarily married Mexican spouses in Texas and Mexico, and Miranda, for his part, has described his ancestry as a quarter Mexican. The name "Lin-Manuel" was inspired by a poem about the Vietnam War, Nana roja para mi hijo Lin Manuel, by the Puerto Rican writer José Manuel Torres Santiago. Miranda attended Hunter College Elementary School and Hunter College High School, where his classmates included journalist Chris Hayes, who was Miranda's first director when the latter starred in a school play described by Hayes as "a 20-minute musical that featured a maniacal fetal pig in a nightmare that [Miranda] had cut up in biology class", and rapper Immortal Technique, who bullied Miranda during high school, although the two later became friends. It was during high school that Miranda began writing musicals. As a student, Miranda wrote the earliest draft of what would become his first Broadway musical, In the Heights, in 1999, his sophomore year of college at Wesleyan University. After the show was accepted by Wesleyan's student theater company, Second Stage, Miranda added freestyle rap and salsa numbers, and the show was premiered there in 1999. Miranda wrote and directed several other musicals at Wesleyan, and acted in many other productions, ranging from musicals to Shakespeare. He graduated from Wesleyan in 2002. In 2002, Lin Manuel and John Buffalo Mailer worked with director Thomas Kail to revise In the Heights. Playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes joined the team in 2004. After success off-Broadway, the musical went to Broadway, opening in March 2008. It was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, winning four, including Best Musical and Best Original Score. It also won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. Miranda's performance in the leading role of Usnavi earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. Miranda left the cast of the Broadway production on February 15, 2009. Miranda reprised the role when the national tour of In the Heights played in Los Angeles from June 23 to July 25, 2010. He again joined the tour in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Miranda rejoined the Broadway cast as Usnavi from December 25, 2010 until the production closed on January 9, 2011, after 29 previews and 1,185 regular performances. Miranda created other work for the stage during this period. He wrote Spanish language dialogue and worked with Stephen Sondheim to translate into Spanish song lyrics for the 2009 Broadway revival of West Side Story. During this time, he also performed at bar and bat mitzvahs. In 2008, he was invited by composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz to contribute two new songs to a revised version of Schwartz and Nina Faso's 1978 musical Working, which opened in May 2008 at the Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota, Florida. Miranda also did work for film and television. In 2007, he made a guest appearance on the television series The Sopranos in the episode "Remember When", and in 2009, he played Alvie, Gregory House's roommate in a psychiatric hospital, in the two- hour season six premiere episode of House; he returned to the role in May 2010. He also has done work for Sesame Street, playing occasional roles and singing the theme song to the recurring segment Murray Has a Little Lamb. He was a composer and actor on the 2009 revival of The Electric Company and appeared in the CollegeHumor sketch "Hardly Working: Rap Battle", playing himself working as an intern and rapper. During these years, Miranda also worked as an English teacher at his former high school, wrote for the Manhattan Times as a columnist and restaurant critic, and composed music for commercials. In 2003, Mr. Miranda co-founded Freestyle Love Supreme, a hip-hop improv group that has toured the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, as well as the Aspen, Melbourne and Montreal Comedy Festivals. The group created a limited television series for Pivot in 2014 and made its Broadway debut on 2 October 2019 at the Booth Theatre in a self-titled show to positive reviews. Miranda co-wrote the music and lyrics for with Tom Kitt and Amanda Green. Bring It On premiered at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia in January 2011. The musical began a US national tour on October 30, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. It then played a limited engagement on Broadway at the St. James Theatre, beginning previews on July 12, and officially opening on August 1, 2012. It closed on December 30, 2012. It was nominated for Tony Awards in the categories of Best Musical and Best Choreography. In February 2012, Miranda appeared in Merrily We Roll Along, in the role of Charley, in an Encores! staged concert at New York City Center. His theatrical achievements in 2014 included an Emmy Award for the song "Bigger!", which he and Kitt co-wrote for the opening number at the 67th Tony Awards. Miranda also wrote music and lyrics for the one-act musical 21 Chump Street, and performed as narrator for the show's single performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on June 7, 2014, which was broadcast on National Public Radio's This American Life on June 20, 2014. Later that month, he starred in the June 2014 Encores! revival of Jonathan Larson's Tick, Tick... Boom!, under the artistic direction of Jeanine Tesori. The show was directed by Oliver Butler. Earlier in 2014, he guest starred in a show by comedy duo The Skivvies. Miranda appeared in a small role in the Walt Disney Pictures live-action film The Odd Life of Timothy Green (2012). He also played several television roles during this period. He appeared on the TV series Modern Family in the 2011 episode "Good Cop Bad Dog". In 2013, he played the recurring role of Ruben Marcado in the NBC drama Do No Harm. He later appeared in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, in an all-verse episode titled "Bedtime Stories" that aired in November 2013. While on a vacation in 2008, Miranda read Ron Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton and, inspired by the book, wrote a rap about Hamilton that he performed for the White House Evening of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Word, on May 12, 2009, accompanied by Alex Lacamoire. Miranda later said he spent a year writing the Hamilton song "My Shot", revising it countless times for every verse to reflect Alexander Hamilton's intellect. By 2012, Miranda was performing an extended set of pieces based on the life of Hamilton, which he then referred to as the Hamilton Mixtape; the New York Times called it "an obvious game changer". Hamilton: An American Musical premiered off-Broadway at The Public Theater in January 2015, directed by Thomas Kail. Miranda wrote the book and score, and starred as the title character. The show received highly positive reviews, and its engagement was sold out. Chernow and Miranda received the 2015 History Makers Award from the New York Historical Society for their work in creating the musical. The show began previews on Broadway in July 2015 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre and officially opened on August 6, 2015, earning positive reviews. On the first night of Hamilton previews over 700 people lined up for lottery tickets. The Hamilton ticket lottery evolved into Ham4Ham, a series of outdoor mini-performances for lottery participants that was hosted daily by Miranda and cast members for over a year, until August 31, 2016. Miranda earns a 3% royalty on each performance of Hamilton, earning him $12.7 million by July 2017. On March 15, 2016, members of the cast of Hamilton performed at the White House and hosted workshops; Miranda performed freestyle rap from prompts held up by President Obama. In April 2016, Miranda and Jeremy McCarter published Hamilton: The Revolution, a book describing Hamiltons journey from conception to Broadway success and discussing the cultural revolution that permeates the show. Hamilton won the Tony Award for Best Musical; Miranda won the Tony Awards for Best Original Score and Best Book of a Musical and received a nomination for Best Actor in a Musical. Miranda also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for the musical, and the Hamilton cast album won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. In May 2016, for his work in the role of Alexander Hamilton, Miranda received the Drama League Distinguished Performance Award. Miranda gave his last performance in Hamilton on July 9, 2016 and vowed to return to the show. Miranda reprised the role of Alexander Hamilton's role for a three-week run in Puerto Rico January 11–27, 2019, for which the engagement was sold out in three hours, November 2018. In a review, Chris Jones praised "deeper on-stage emotions" on Miranda's reprisal, as well as improved vocal and dance technique than on Broadway. A documentary about the creation of the show, Hamilton's America, featuring Miranda, premiered at the New York Film Festival on October 1, 2016 and first aired on PBS' Great Performances series on October 21, 2016. Miranda interviewed with Disney in the winter of 2013, and submitted a six- song demo package to Walt Disney Animation Studios. This kicked off a series of collaborations with the studio: Moana – In spring 2014, the studio hired Miranda to help write and perform music for Moana, its 2016 animated feature film. From 2014 to 2016, Miranda collaborated with Opetaia Foa'i and Mark Mancina on the songs for Moana. He later explained that because he was so busy with Moana and Hamilton, he turned down other projects "that would have distracted" him, but this served as an "ego check" as Hamilton became a hit. Moana opened in November 2016 and was a box office hit, earning positive reviews and praise from critics for Miranda's songwriting. Miranda also sang the song "We Know the Way" in the film, and recorded a duet with Jordan Fisher of the song "You're Welcome", which was played over the film's end credits. For the song "How Far I'll Go", Miranda received Golden Globe, Critics' Choice, Oscar, and Grammy Award nominations., – While working on Hamilton, Miranda contributed music for the Disney-distribuited film Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), writing a song for the scene in Maz Kanata's cantina, an homage to the classic Mos Eisley Cantina scene and song., DuckTales – Miranda debuted in May 2018 as the voice of Gizmoduck ( Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera) in Disney Channel's 2017 reboot of DuckTales., Mary Poppins Returns – Miranda plays Jack, a lamplighter and former apprentice to Bert, the chimney sweep played by Dick Van Dyke in the original 1964 film Mary Poppins. This is his first major role after leaving the Broadway cast of Hamilton. Miranda traveled to London in 2017 to film the movie, directed by Rob Marshall, which was released in December 2018., \- Miranda made a cameo appearance as a Resistance trooper. On January 24, 2016, Miranda performed the offstage cameo role of Loud Hailer in the Broadway production of Les Misérables, fulfilling his childhood dream of being in the show, as it was the first production he ever saw on Broadway. On April 24, 2016, on the TV show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, at the end of a segment about the debt crisis in Puerto Rico, Miranda performed an emotional rap about allowing the island to restructure its debt. Miranda hosted Saturday Night Live on October 8, 2016 and played himself in two episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm in 2017, receiving Emmy Award nominations for both appearances. He plays Lee Scoresby in the 2019 television adaptation of His Dark Materials. In August 2016, Miranda agreed to write songs with Alan Menken for Disney's forthcoming live-action remake of The Little Mermaid. Miranda will also co- produce the film with Marc Platt. , no release date has been set, but Menken announced in July 2017 that he and Miranda had begun working on new songs for the project. Miranda agreed in 2016 to serve as executive producer and composer of Lionsgate's film adaptation of The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss, as well as a tie-in television series. Miranda will provide eleven new songs for Vivo, a Sony Pictures Animation film directed by Kirk DeMicco set to be released on April 16, 2021. Imagine Entertainment announced in July 2018 that Miranda will make his debut as a film director with an adaptation of Jonathan Larson's semi-autobiographical musical Tick, Tick... Boom!, to be scripted by Dear Evan Hansen librettist Steven Levenson. Miranda will also produce the film alongside Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, and will be released on Netflix. A film adaptation of In the Heights has been in development since 2008 when Universal Pictures acquired the film rights, with Kenny Ortega set to direct, but the film was canceled in 2011, the year it was initially set to be released. The following year, however, Miranda suggested that the film was once again under discussion and in 2016 it was announced that The Weinstein Company would be producing the film, with Jon M. Chu set to direct. The film hit another roadblock in 2017 following the scandal surrounding Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct, when playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes, who was set to serve as screenwriter, requested that Weinstein relinquish the film rights back to her and Miranda, which became official in April 2018. The following month, Warner Bros. acquired the film rights and announced the film was back in development, once again with Chu attached to direct. While Miranda has insisted since 2016 that he would not reprise his role as Usnavi in any potential film adaptation, it was announced in April 2019 that he would be in the film but playing the much smaller role of Piraguero, referred to as Piragua Guy in the musical. Miranda will serve as producer and star alongside Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, and Jimmy Smits. The film is set for release on June 26, 2020. On July 29, 2019, it was announced that Miranda had teamed with legendary TV producer Norman Lear to make an American Masters documentary about the life of Puerto Rican actress Rita Moreno, tentatively titled Rita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For It. Miranda married Vanessa Adriana Nadal, a high school friend, in 2010. At the wedding reception, Miranda, along with the wedding party, performed the Fiddler on the Roof song "To Life"; the video has been viewed more than six million times on YouTube. Nadal was a lawyer at the law firm Jones Day. Miranda and Nadal's first son, Sebastian, was born in November 2014. On December 3, 2017, Miranda announced he and Nadal were expecting their second child. Their second son, Francisco, was born in February 2018. Miranda discovered that he is related to artists Residente and ILE of Calle 13 during a 2009 concert by the group in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where Miranda was invited to perform. Backstage, the mother of Residente and ILE revealed their connection to Gilberto Concepción de Gracia, founder of the Puerto Rican Independence Party. Miranda and Residente have since confirmed the relationship. In 2017, Miranda performed on the opening track of Residente's self-titled debut album. After a meeting with President Barack Obama in March 2016, Miranda joined U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand, Chuck Schumer, Elizabeth Warren, and other Democratic lawmakers to call for congressional action to back a Senate bill in Washington that would allow Puerto Rico to declare bankruptcy and significantly ease its $70 billion government-debt burden. Miranda was particularly active in the wake of Hurricane Maria's devastation in Puerto Rico, and by December 2017, proceeds from his song "Almost Like Praying" had helped the Hispanic Federation to raise $22 million for rescue efforts and disaster relief. He performed with Ben Platt at the March for Our Lives anti- gun violence rally in Washington, D.C. on March 24, 2018. In order to raise money for Puerto Rico's reconstruction after being struck by hurricanes Irma and María, including at least $15 million to be channeled through the Flamboyán Foundation, Lin-Manuel decided to take, and once again play the protagonist role of, Hamilton to his father's native Puerto Rico. The Miranda family donated approximately $1 million to bring the University of Puerto Rico theater up to par in order to use it as the venue for the musical's performance in January 2018. After tickets sold out in two hours for the three-week run, producers decided to move out of the university venue due to warnings of potential disruptions by a university workers' labor organization, and move the already-installed set to the Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center in Santurce, where the performances ran from January 11 through 27th. The production donated additional hundreds of thousands of dollars worth in improvements to the Ferré Center. In 2015, Miranda was the recipient of Smithsonian Magazine's American Ingenuity Award in the History category. In 2019, Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery awarded Miranda the Portrait of a Nation prize. Miranda received an honorary degree in 2009 from Yeshiva University in Washington Heights, Manhattan, becoming the youngest person to receive an honorary degree from that university. Ed Koch, former mayor of New York City, presented Miranda with the degree. He received the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters in 2015 from his alma mater, Wesleyan University, and gave their commencement address. In May 2016, he received an honorary Doctorate of the Arts from the University of Pennsylvania and gave the commencement speech. Hamilton: The Revolution (2016) with Jeremy McCarter, Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You (2018) with Jonny Sun "Stop the Bots From Killing Broadway," The New York Times (2016), "Give Puerto Rico Its Chance to Thrive," The New York Times (2016) 2013: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz, 2016: Hamilton: The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeremy McCarter, & Mariska Hargitay, 2016: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz, 2018: Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You by Lin-Manuel Miranda Nuyorican, Nuyorican Movement, Puerto Rican literature, Puerto Ricans in New York City Ala Moana Beach Park is a free public park on the island of Oahu, U.S. state of Hawaii, located between Waikiki and downtown Honolulu. This park has a wide gold-sand beach that is over a half-mile (800 m) long. Protected by a shallow reef offshore, it is one of the most popular open ocean swimming sites in Hawai’i, with an estimated 4 million visitors annually. However, there are sharp corals, so most people prefer the east end of the beach (the one that's closer to Diamond Head) where the ocean bottom is sandy and has no reef or rocks. The middle section and west end of the beach has rocks on the nearshore ocean bottom, which makes entering the ocean trickier. Lifeguards are stationed on the beach daily. Ala Moana's ocean bottom drops quickly, so novice swimmers should use caution. Big grassy areas, banyans and palm trees make the park a good place to picnic, barbecue, play all kinds of ball games or go running. There are lifeguards, showers, restrooms, phones, tennis courts, picnic tables, food concessions and a music pavilion. Ala Moana Beach Park is a favorite among Honolulu residents. It is right next to "Magic Island" where many cultural events are held. The park is closed from 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. Police enforce the closure with citations and arrests. Like almost all of Honolulu's city parks, Ala Moana Beach Park had many homeless people during the day and night, until the city started closing the park for the night in 2006. Fodors travel guide rated it a "high crime area" at night after dark partly on this basis. Ala Moana Regional Park as we know it today rests on reclaimed land that was once swampy marshland. In the 1920s Ala Moana Beach Park was a wetland with bulrushes, kiawe trees, and coconut palms that the city used as a garbage dump. The land appears to have been included in land transferred to the US government following annexation. The federal government then deeded the land back to the Territory of Hawaii and then the city of Honolulu in 1927, with the condition that the property be used wholly as a public park. In 1931, the Parks Board designated the land as Moana Park and initiated development. The Hawaiian Dredging Company deposited their dredgings much of which was coral reef to fill in the marsh. The park added a sport pavilion, lawn bowling green, Banyan court, and bridal path bridge. The pavilion includes murals painted by and bas relief sculptures made by Marguerite Louis Blasingame. The bowling green was designed by Henry Sims Bent. Dredging created two ponds and drainage canals, which allowed runoff of natural water. The bridges and entry portals were also designed by Henry Sims Bent. There was no beach; swimming was discouraged because of the presence of two nearby sewage outfalls. Franklin Delano Roosevelt dedicated the park in 1934. The Sports Pavilion, Banyan Garden, tennis courts, and murals by Robert Lee Eskridge were completed in 1937 as part of the New Deal efforts by the Civil Works Administration and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. While the Federal government provided the labor, local resources were required for construction materials. Construction of the walls and terraces used a technique called concrete boulder construction. This allowed use of inexpensive materials and tools and local workers with limited construction experience. During World War II (1941-1946), the park was used as a staging area and military battery. The military constructed barracks, an armory, and temporary fortification to support a heavier presence of personnel and weapons Originally named Moana Park, the Parks Board changed the park’s name to Ala Moana, “path [to the] sea” in 1947. Originally named Moana Park, the Parks Board changed the park’s name to Ala Moana, “path to the sea in 1947. The beach was created in 1954. The deep swimming area fronting the beach is a former boat channel that was dredged through the coral reef in the late 1920s to join Kewalo Basin with the Ala Wai Harbor. In 1955, Hawaiian Dredging Company closed the west end of the channel with a landfill, now Kewalo Basin Park. Originally dredged for boat traffic, the channel is 20 to 30 feet deep and 1,000 yards long. From 1957 to 1961, concession stands and bathrooms were added. Henry Kaiser suggested the creation of a “magic island” of hotels, theaters, and swimming pools. The existing park would have been made into a parking lot. The land was constructed in 1962 through the reclamation of thirty acres of shallow reef. Named Magic Island by the developers, the peninsula was the first phase of a resort hotel complex that called for two more islands to be constructed on the reef off Ala Moana Beach Park. After public outcry, the project stopped after the development of Magic Island, leaving the State with a man-made peninsula, which they converted into a public park. In 1972 the State officially renamed Magic Island ‘Aina Moana, or “land [from the] sea,” to recognize that the park is made from dredged coral fill, but residents still call it Magic Island. McCoy Pavilion was added to the Diamond Head side of the courtyard in 1975 and is named after Charles Lester McCoy, who presided over the creation of the park in the 1930s. McCoy’s widow donated $1.2 million for construction after her death. McCoy Pavilion is currently used for special events such as the annual Greek Festival and the Hawaiian Scottish Festival and Highland games. The park was added to the Hawaii State Register of Historic Places in 1988. The Friday Night Champagne Series is popularly known as the Beer Can Races. The course runs from Ala Wai Harbor to the channel entrance buoy at Honolulu Harbor (or to the Diamond Head buoy, depending on commercial shipping traffic in the other direction) and then back again. Although there are prizes (cheap champagne) awarded to the top three finishers, this is not your typical regatta. Friday Night Fireworks - Hilton Hawaiian Village puts on a fireworks show every Friday at 7:45 p.m. from September to early summer. The show is at 8:00 during the summer. The view from Magic Island provides a backdrop of the high rises in Waikiki and includes reflections of the fireworks in the ocean. July 4 fireworks - Sponsored by the Ala Moana Shopping Center, fireworks are launched from three locations on Magic Island to create a great show. It starts at 8:30 p.m. Approximately 50,000 people attend, so walking, biking, or using public transportation is highly encouraged. There is a big traffic jam after the event. Shinnyo-en Lantern Floating Festival is held on Memorial Day. The festival is held to remember and honor loved ones who have died. Open to everyone and free to attend, it includes a large ceremony just before dusk followed by lantern floating. You can float a lantern yourself by picking one up at the Lantern Request Tent during the day. You can write your own remembrances on the lantern. Over 7,000 lanterns are floated. Approximately 50,000 people attend, so walking, biking, or using public transportation is highly encouraged. There is a big traffic jam after the event. Return of the Hokulea - Hokulea, the sailing canoe that spent 3 years navigating around the world using traditional Hawaiian navigational techniques, returned to Hawaii at Magic Island in 2017. The event drew thousands of people and was broadcast live on major Honolulu TV stations. The city of Honolulu has proposed an improvement plan for Ala Moana Beach Park and Magic Island. The proposal includes changes to parking, replenishment of the beach sand, renovations to canals, ponds, McCoy Pavilion, the lawn bowling and canoe halau areas, repairs to the canal bridge and park entrances, improved pedestrian access near Piikoi and Queen streets, and the addition of a dog park and playground. The proposed changes to parking and the dog park have been controversial, so the city has amended the proposals and sought additional public comment. As of November, 2018, the city is reviewing public comments. Of note, changes to parking have been controversial in the past; the 1975 park plan called for cars to be prohibited from the park roadways and three multistory garages for cars to be built. List of beaches in Oahu

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Nuclear power is the fifth-largest source of electricity in India after coal, gas, hydroelectricity and wind power. , India has 22 nuclear reactors in operation in 7 nuclear power plants, with a total installed capacity of 6,780 MW. Nuclear power produced a total of 35 TWh and supplied 3.22% of Indian electricity in 2017. 7 more reactors are under construction with a combined generation capacity of 4,300 MW. In October 2010, India drew up a plan to reach a nuclear power capacity of 63 GW in 2032. However, following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster there have been numerous anti-nuclear protests at proposed nuclear power plant sites. There have been mass protests against the Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project in Maharashtra and the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu, and a proposed large nuclear power plant near Haripur was refused permission by the Government of West Bengal. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has also been filed against the government’s civil nuclear programme at the Supreme Court. Nuclear power in India has suffered from generally low capacity factors. As of 2017, the lifetime weighted energy availability factor of the Indian fleet is 63.5%. However, capacity factors have been improving in recent years. The availability factor of Indian reactors was 69.4% in the years 2015-2017. One of the main reasons for the low capacity factors is lack of nuclear fuel. India has been making advances in the field of thorium-based fuels, working to design and develop a prototype for an atomic reactor using thorium and low-enriched uranium, a key part of India's three stage nuclear power programme. The country has also recently re- initiated its involvement in the LENR research activities, in addition to supporting work done in the fusion power area through the ITER initiative. As early as 1901, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) had recognised India as potentially having significant deposits of radioactive ores, including pitchblende, uranium and thorianite. In the ensuing 50 years, however, little to no effort was made to exploit those resources. During the 1920s and 1930s, Indian scientists maintained close links to their counterparts in Europe and the United States, and were well aware of the latest developments in physics. Several Indian physicists, notably Daulat Singh Kothari, Meghnad Saha, Homi J. Bhabha and R. S. Krishnan, conducted pioneering research in nuclear physics in Europe during the 1930s. By 1939, Meghnad Saha, the Palit Professor of Physics at the University of Calcutta, had recognised the significance of the discovery of nuclear fission, and had begun to conduct various experiments in his laboratory related to nuclear physics. In 1940, he incorporated nuclear physics into the university's post-graduate curriculum. In the same year, the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust sanctioned funds for installing a cyclotron at the University of Calcutta, but various difficulties likely related to the war delayed the project. In 1944, Homi J. Bhabha, a distinguished nuclear physicist who had established a research school at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, wrote a letter to his distant cousin J. R. D. Tata, the chairman of the Tata Group. He requested funds to establish a research institute of fundamental physics, "with special reference to cosmic rays and nuclear physics." The Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) was inaugurated in Mumbai the following year. Following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in August 1945, R.S. Krishnan, a nuclear physicist who had studied under Norman Feather and John Cockroft, and who recognised the massive energy-generating potential of uranium, observed, "If the tremendous energy released from atomic explosions is made available to drive machinery, etc., it will bring about an industrial revolution of a far- reaching character." He further noted, however, the difficulties in harnessing nuclear power for peaceful usage, "...a great deal more research work is needed before atomic power can be put to industrial use." In March 1946, the Board of Scientific and Industrial Research (BSIR), under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), set up an Atomic Research Committee under Bhabha's leadership to explore India's atomic energy resources and to suggest ways to develop and harness them, along with establishing contacts with similar organisations in other nations. At the same time, the University of Travancore's research council met to discuss Travancore's future industrial development. Among other matters, the council made recommendations for developing the state's resources of monazite, a valuable thorium ore, and ilmenite, with regard to their applications in atomic energy. The council suggested the project could be undertaken by an all-India programme. This was followed by the deputation of Bhabha and Sir Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar, the Director of the CSIR, to Travancore in April 1947 and the establishment of a working relationship with the kingdom's dewan, Sir C. P. Ramaswami Iyer. Early in 1947, plans were made to establish a Uranium Unit under the Geological Survey of India, to focus on identifying and developing resources of uranium- bearing minerals. In June 1947, two months before Indian independence, Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, then Minister for Industry, Supply, Education and Finance in the Interim Government of India, established an Advisory Board for Research in Atomic Energy. Chaired by Bhabha and placed under the CSIR, the Advisory Board included Saha, Bhatnagar and several other distinguished scientists, notably Sir K. S. Krishnan, the co-discoverer of the Raman effect, geologist Darashaw Nosherwan Wadia and Nazir Ahmed, a student of Ernest Rutherford. A Joint Committee comprising the above scientists and three representatives of the Travancore government was set up to determine how best to utilise Travancore's resources of monazite. Following the independence and partition of India, Travancore briefly declared itself independent before acceding to the new Dominion of India in 1949 after a period of intense negotiations, while Ahmad departed for Pakistan, where he would eventually head that nation's atomic energy agency. On 23 March 1948, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru introduced the Atomic Energy Bill in the Indian Parliament, and it was subsequently passed as the Indian Atomic Energy Act. Modelled on the British Atomic Energy Act 1946, the Act granted sweeping powers to the central government over nuclear science and research, including surveying for atomic minerals, the development of such mineral resources on an industrial scale, conducting research regarding the scientific and technical problems connected with developing atomic energy for peaceful purposes, the training and education of the necessary personnel and the fostering of fundamental research in the nuclear sciences in Indian laboratories, institutes and universities. Around the same time, the Government of West Bengal sanctioned the construction of a nuclear physics institute under the University of Calcutta; the cornerstone was laid in May 1948, and the institute was inaugurated on 11 January 1950 by Irène Joliot-Curie. With effect from 1 June 1948, the Advisory Board for Research in Atomic Energy, together with its parent organisation the CSIR, was folded into the new Department of Scientific Research and placed directly under the Prime Minister. On 3 August 1948, the Atomic Energy Commission of India (AEC) was established and made separate from the Department of Scientific Research, with Bhabha as its first chairman. In January 1949, the AEC met to formulate a uniform under- and post-graduate university syllabus for theoretical and fundamental physics and chemistry, to guarantee sufficient numbers of nuclear scientists and to ensure they would receive consistent levels of training and education. In the same year, the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research was designated by the CSIR as the hub for all major nuclear science research projects. In 1950, the government announced it would purchase all available stocks of uranium and beryllium minerals and ores, and declared large rewards for any significant discoveries of the same. On 3 January 1954, the Atomic Energy Establishment, Trombay (AEET) was established by the Atomic Energy Commission to consolidate all nuclear reactor research and technology-related developments; on 3 August, the Atomic Energy Commission and all its subordinate agencies, including the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and the nuclear research institute at Calcutta University, were transferred to the new Department of Atomic Energy and placed under the direct charge of the Prime Minister's Office. In May 1956, construction began at Trombay on a uranium metal plant and a fuel element fabrication facility for the research reactors; the uranium plant came into operation in January 1959, followed by the fuel element facility in February 1960. The AEET (renamed the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in 1967, after Bhabha's death) was formally inaugurated by Nehru in January 1957. With the expanding scope of Indian nuclear research, the 1948 Atomic Energy Act was amended in 1961, and was passed as the new Atomic Energy Act, coming into force in September 1962. At a meeting of the Atomic Energy Commission on 15 March 1955, the decision was made to construct a small nuclear reactor at Trombay. The reactor would be used for training personnel for the operation of future reactors and for research, including experiments in nuclear physics, studying the effects of irradiation and the production of isotopes for medical, agricultural and industrial research. In October 1955, an agreement was signed by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and the Indian Department of Atomic Energy, under which Britain would supply uranium fuel elements for a pool-type reactor to be designed by India. The agreement further ensured the "close cooperation and mutual assistance between the Department and the Authority in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy," and provided for future design and collaboration in the construction of a high flux reactor at a later date. Named Apsara, the reactor was housed in a 100 x 50 x 70 concrete building. India's and Asia's first nuclear reactor, Apsara reached criticality at 3:45 p.m on 4 August 1956 and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Nehru on 20 January 1957. In April 1955, the Canadian government under Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent offered to assist in building an NRX-type reactor for India under the Colombo Plan, of which both India and Canada were then members. Prime Minister St. Laurent expressed hopes the reactor would serve India well in the development of peaceful atomic research and development. On behalf of the Indian government, Nehru formally accepted the offer that September, stating the reactor would be made available to any accredited foreign scientists, including those from other Colombo Plan member states. On 28 April 1956, Nehru and the Canadian High Commissioner to India Escott Reid signed an agreement for a "Canada-India Colombo Plan Atomic Reactor Project." Under the terms of the agreement, Canada would provide a 40 MW CIRUS reactor for solely research purposes, including the initial manufacture and engineering of the reactor, and would also provide technical expertise, including training Indian personnel in its operation. India would supply the reactor site and foundation, and would also pay all "internal" costs, including the construction of the reactor complex, the costs of local labour and any shipping and insurance fees. Under Article II of the agreement, India would make the reactor facilities available to other Colombo Plan nations. Article III stipulated that the "reactor and any products resulting from its use will be employed for peaceful purposes only;" at the time, however, there were no effective safeguards to ensure this clause. A further agreement was made with the United States government to supply 21 tons of heavy water for the reactor. Construction of the reactor began later in 1956, with Indian technical personnel sent to Chalk River for training. CIRUS was completed in early 1960 and after achieving criticality in July 1960, was inaugurated by Nehru in January 1961. Construction of a third research reactor, ZERLINA (Zero Energy Reactor for Lattice Investigations and New Assemblies) began at Trombay in 1958; ZERLINA was also commissioned in 1961. In September 1955, the question of building a commercial nuclear power station was raised in Parliament. Shortly after the world's first commercial nuclear power plant came online at Obninsk in the Soviet Union, the Soviets invited a number of Indian experts to visit it; the United States concurrently offered training in atomic energy to Indian technical and scientific personnel. In August 1957, members of the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce in Ahmedabad (then in Bombay State) requested an atomic power station for their city, by which time the Indian government was actively considering the construction of at least "one or more large Atomic Power Stations to generate electricity." By November 1958, the Atomic Energy Commission had recommended construction of two nuclear power stations, each consisting of two units and able to generate 500 MW of power, for a total generating capacity of 1000 MW; the government decided that a minimum of 250 MW of electricity generated from nuclear reactors would be incorporated into the Third Five Year Plan (1961-1966). In February 1960, it was decided the first power plant would be erected in Western India, with locations in Rajasthan, near Delhi and near Madras noted for future commercial reactors. In September, the Punjab government requested a nuclear power station for their state. On 11 October 1960, the Indian government issued a tender for India's first nuclear power station near Tarapur, Maharashtra and consisting of two reactors, each generating around 150 MW of electricity and to be commissioned in 1965. In August 1961, the Indian and Canadian governments agreed to conduct a joint study on building a Canada-India nuclear power plant in Rajasthan; the reactor would be based on the CANDU reactor at Douglas Point and would generate 200 MW of energy. By this time, seven responses to India's global tender for the Tarapur power station had been received: three from the United States, two from the UK and one each from France and Canada. The agreement for India's first nuclear power plant at Rajasthan, RAPP-1, was signed in 1963, followed by RAPP-2 in 1966. These reactors contained rigid safeguards to ensure they would not be used for a military programme. RAPP-1 began operation in 1972. Due to technical problems the reactor had to be downrated from 200 MW to 100 MW. The technical and design information were given free of charge by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited to India. The United States and Canada terminated their assistance after the detonation of India's first nuclear explosion in 1974. After successful commissioning of Kudankulam units 1 & 2, an agreement was made with Russia in June 2017 for the units 5 & 6 (2 x 1000 MW) with an estimated cost of INR 250 million (3.85 million US$) per MW. Earlier, India had also entered in to an agreement with Russia in October 2016 for the units 3 & 4 (2 x 1000 MW) with an estimated cost of INR 200 million (3.08 million US$) per MW. India's domestic uranium reserves are small and the country is dependent on uranium imports to fuel its nuclear power industry. Since early 1990s, Russia has been a major supplier of nuclear fuel to India. Due to dwindling domestic uranium reserves, electricity generation from nuclear power in India declined by 12.83% from 2006 to 2008. Following a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) in September 2008 which allowed it to commence international nuclear trade, India has signed bilateral deals on civilian nuclear energy technology cooperation with several other countries, including France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and South Korea. India has also uranium supply agreements with Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Argentina and Namibia. An Indian private company won a uranium exploration contract in Niger. In March 2011 large deposits of uranium were discovered in the Tummalapalle belt and in the Bhima basin at Gogi in Karnataka by the Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD) of India. The Tummalapalle belt uranium reserves promises to be one of the world's top 20 uranium reserves discoveries. 44,000 tonnes of natural uranium have been discovered in the belt so far, which is estimated to have three times that amount. The natural uranium deposits of the Bhima basin has better grade of natural uranium ore, even though it is smaller than the Tummalapalle belt. In recent years, India has shown increased interest in thorium fuels and fuel cycles because of large deposits of thorium (518,000 tonnes) in the form of monazite in beach sands as compared to very modest reserves of low-grade uranium (92,000 tonnes). Kazakhstan is the largest supplier of uranium to India providing 5,000 tonnes during 2015-19. As of 2016, India has signed civil nuclear agreements with 14 countries: Argentina, Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Japan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Namibia, Russia, South Korea, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Vietnam. The 48-nation NSG granted a waiver to India on 6 September 2008 allowing it to access civilian nuclear technology and fuel from other countries. India the only known country with nuclear weapons which is not a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) but is still allowed to carry out nuclear commerce with the rest of the world. India and Mongolia signed a crucial civil nuclear agreement on 15 June 2009 for supply of Uranium to India, during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Mongolia making it the fifth nation in the world to seal a civil nuclear pact with India. The MoU on “development of cooperation in the field of peaceful uses of radioactive minerals and nuclear energy” was signed by senior officials in the department of atomic energy of the two countries. On 2 September 2009, India and Namibia signed five agreements, including one on civil nuclear energy which allows for supply of uranium from the African country. This was signed during President Hifikepunye Pohamba's five-day visit to India in May 2009. Namibia is the fifth largest producer of uranium in the world. The Indo-Namibian agreement in peaceful uses of nuclear energy allows for supply of uranium and setting up of nuclear reactors. On 14 October 2009, India and Argentina signed an agreement in New Delhi on civil nuclear cooperation and nine other pacts to establish strategic partnership. According to official sources, the agreement was signed by Vivek Katju, Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs and Argentine foreign minister Jorge Talana. Taking into consideration their respective capabilities and experience in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, both India and Argentina have agreed to encourage and support scientific, technical and commercial cooperation for mutual benefit in this field. The Prime Ministers of India and Canada signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement in Toronto on 28 June 2010 which when all steps are taken, will provide access for Canada's nuclear industry to India's expanding nuclear market and also fuel for India's reactors. Canada is one of the world's largest exporters of uranium and Canada's heavy water nuclear technology is marketed abroad with CANDU-type units operating in India, Pakistan, Argentina, South Korea, Romania and China. On 6 November 2012, India and Canada finalised their 2010 nuclear export agreement, opening the way for Canada to begin uranium exports to India. On 16 April 2011, India and Kazakhstan signed an inter-governmental agreement for Cooperation in Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy, that envisages a legal framework for supply of fuel, construction and operation of atomic power plants, exploration and joint mining of uranium, exchange of scientific and research information, reactor safety mechanisms and use of radiation technologies for healthcare. PM Manmohan Singh visited Astana where a deal was signed. After the talks, the Kazakh President Nazarbaev announced that his country would supply India with 2100 tonnes of uranium and was ready to do more. India and Kazakhstan already have civil nuclear cooperation since January 2009 when Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and Kazakh nuclear company KazAtomProm signed an MoU during the visit of Nazarbaev to Delhi. Under the contract, KazAtomProm supplies uranium which is used by Indian reactors. South Korea became the latest country to sign a nuclear agreement with India after it got the waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) in 2008. On 25 July 2011 India and South Korea signed a nuclear agreement, which will allow South Korea with a legal foundation to participate in India’s nuclear expansion programme, and to bid for constructing nuclear power plants in India. In 2014, India and Australia signed a civil nuclear agreement which allows the export of uranium to India. This was signed in New Delhi during Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott's meeting with the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 4 September 2014. Australia is the third largest producer of uranium in the world. The agreement allows supply of uranium for peaceful generation of power for civil use in India. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UK Prime Minister David Cameron signed Civil Nuclear Agreement on 12 Nov, 2015. After the Nuclear Suppliers Group agreed to allow nuclear exports to India, France was the first country to sign a civilian nuclear agreement with India, on 30 September 2008. During the December 2010 visit of the French President Nicolas Sarkozy to India, framework agreements were signed for the setting up two third-generation EPR reactors of 1650 MW each at Jaitapur, Maharashtra by the French company Areva. The deal caters for the first set of two of six planned reactors and the supply of nuclear fuel for 25 years. The contract and pricing is yet to be finalised. Construction is unlikely to start before 2014 because of regulatory issues and difficulty in sourcing major components from Japan due to India not being a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. In November 2016 Japan signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with India. Japanese nuclear plant builders saw this as potential lifeline given that domestic orders had ended following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, and India is proposing to build about 20 new reactors over the next decade. Russia has an ongoing agreement of 1988 vintage with India regarding establishing of two VVER 1000 MW reactors (water-cooled water-moderated light water power reactors) at Koodankulam in Tamil Nadu. A 2008 agreement caters for provision of an additional four third generation VVER-1200 reactors of capacity 1170 MW each. Russia has assisted in India’s efforts to design a nuclear plant for its nuclear submarine. In 2009, the Russians stated that Russia would not agree to curbs on export of sensitive technology to India. A new accord signed in Dec 2009 with Russia gives India freedom to proceed with the closed fuel cycle, which includes mining, preparation of the fuel for use in reactors, and reprocessing of spent fuel. In October 2018, India and Russia signed an agreement to construct 6 nuclear reactors. Russian state-owned reactor manufacturer Rosatom stated that it would offer its third-generation VVER reactors. The agreement is not a firm contract, but rather an agreement to work toward a firm contract. The nuclear agreement with USA led to India issuing a Letter of Intent for purchasing 10,000 MW from the USA. However, liability concerns and a few other issues are preventing further progress on the issue. Experts say that India's nuclear liability law discourages foreign nuclear companies. This law gives accident victims the right to seek damages from plant suppliers in the event of a mishap. It has "deterred foreign players like General Electric and Westinghouse Electric, a US-based unit of Toshiba, with companies asking for further clarification on compensation liability for private operators." On 5 October 2018, India and Russia signed an agreement to construct 6 Russian nuclear reactors in India. As of 2009, India envisages to increase the contribution of nuclear power to overall electricity generation capacity from 2.8% to 9% within 25 years. By 2020, India's installed nuclear power generation capacity was expected to increase to 20 GW. But the 2020 capacity will not exceed 7 GW, as the 2018 operating capacity is 6.2 GW, and only one more reactor is expected on line before 2020. , India stands 13th in the world in terms nuclear capacity. Indigenous atomic reactors include TAPS-3, and -4, both of which are 540 MW reactors. The Indian nuclear power industry is expected to undergo a significant expansion in the coming years, in part due to the passing of the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement. This agreement will allow India to carry out trade of nuclear fuel and technologies with other countries and significantly enhance its power generation capacity. When the agreement goes through, India is expected to generate an additional 25 GW of nuclear power by 2020, bringing total estimated nuclear power generation to 45 GW. Risks related to nuclear power generation prompted Indian legislators to enact the 2010 Nuclear Liability Act which stipulates that nuclear suppliers, contractors and operators must bear financial responsibility in case of an accident. The legislation addresses key issues such as nuclear radiation and safety regulations, operational control and maintenance management of nuclear power plants, compensation in the event of a radiation-leak accident, disaster clean-up costs, operator responsibility and supplier liability. A nuclear accident like the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster would have dire economic consequences in heavily populated India as did the 1984 Union Carbide Bhopal disaster, considered among the world's worst industrial disasters. India has already been using imported enriched uranium for light-water reactors that are currently under IAEA safeguards, but it has developed other aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle to support its reactors. Development of select technologies has been strongly affected by limited imports. Use of heavy water reactors has been particularly attractive for the nation because it allows Uranium to be burnt with little to no enrichment capabilities. India has also done a great amount of work in the development of a thorium centred fuel cycle. While uranium deposits in the nation are limited there are much greater reserves of thorium and it could provide hundreds of times the energy with the same mass of fuel. The fact that thorium can theoretically be utilised in heavy water reactors has tied the development of the two. A prototype reactor that would burn Uranium-Plutonium fuel while irradiating a thorium blanket is under construction at Kalpakkam by BHAVINI. Uranium used for the weapons programme has been separated from the power programme, using uranium from indigenous reserves. This domestic reserve of 80,000 to 112,000 tons of uranium (approx 1% of global uranium reserves) is large enough to supply all of India's commercial and military reactors as well as supply all the needs of India's nuclear weapons arsenal. Currently, India's nuclear power reactors consume, at most, 478 tonnes of uranium per year. Even if India were quadruple its nuclear power output (and reactor base) to 20 GW by 2020, nuclear power generation would only consume 2000 tonnes of uranium per annum. Based on India's known commercially viable reserves of 80,000 to 112,000 tons of uranium, this represents a 40–50 years uranium supply for India's nuclear power reactors (note with reprocessing and breeder reactor technology, this supply could be stretched out many times over). Furthermore, the uranium requirements of India's Nuclear Arsenal are only a fifteenth (1/15) of that required for power generation (approx. 32 tonnes), meaning that India's domestic fissile material supply is more than enough to meet all needs for it strategic nuclear arsenal. Therefore, India has sufficient uranium resources to meet its strategic and power requirements for the foreseeable future. Former Indian President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam stated while he was in office that, "energy independence is India's first and highest priority. India has to go for nuclear power generation in a big way using thorium-based reactors. Thorium, a non fissile material is available in abundance in our country." India has vast thorium reserves and quite limited uranium reserves. The long- term goal of India's nuclear program has been to develop an advanced heavy- water thorium cycle. The first stage of this employs the pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWR) fueled by natural uranium, and light water reactors, which produce plutonium incidentally to their prime purpose of electricity generation. The second stage uses fast neutron reactors burning the plutonium with the blanket around the core having uranium as well as thorium, so that further plutonium (ideally high-fissile Pu) is produced as well as U-233. The Atomic Minerals Directorate (AMD) has identified almost 12 million tonnes of monazite resources (typically with 6-7% thorium). In stage 3, Advanced Heavy Water Reactors (AHWR) would burn thorium-plutonium fuels in such a manner that breeds U-233 which can eventually be used as a self-sustaining fissile driver for a fleet of breeding AHWRs. An alternative stage 3 is molten salt breeder reactors (MSBR), which are believed to be another possible option for eventual large-scale deployment. In June 2014, Kudankulam-1 became the single largest power generating unit in India (1000 MWe). Currently, twenty-two nuclear power reactors have a total install capacity of 6,780 MW (3.5% of total installed base). The details of the nuclear power generation capacity in the country are given below : Following the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, populations around proposed Indian NPP sites have launched protests that had found resonance around the country. There have been mass protests against the French-backed 9,900 MW Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project in Maharashtra and the Russian-backed 2,000 MW Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu. The Government of West Bengal initially refused permission to a proposed 6,000 MW facility near the town of Haripur that intended to host 6 Russian reactors. But after stiff resistance from locals, the proposed Nuclear Power Plant planned in Haripur has been shifted to Kavali in Andhra Pradesh. Interestingly, the Nuclear Power Plant planned at Kovvada in Andhra Pradesh was shifted from Mithi Virdi in Gujarat after locals in the Western state too showed resistance. A Public-interest litigation (PIL) has also been filed against the government’s civil nuclear program at the Supreme Court. The PIL specifically asks for the "staying of all proposed nuclear power plants till satisfactory safety measures and cost-benefit analyses are completed by independent agencies". But the Supreme Court said it was not an expert in the nuclear field to issue a direction to the government on the nuclear liability issue. Economics of nuclear power plants, Energy policy of India, Electricity sector in India, Energy in India, India's three-stage nuclear power programme, List of nuclear reactors#India This article lists the largest power stations in the world, the ten overall and the five of each type, in terms of current installed electrical capacity. Non-renewable power stations are those that run on coal, fuel oils, nuclear, natural gas, oil shale and peat, while renewable power stations run on fuel sources such as biomass, geothermal heat, hydro, solar energy, solar heat, tides, waves and the wind. Only the most significant fuel source is listed for power stations that run on multiple sources. As of 2019 the largest power generating facility ever built is the Three Gorges Dam in China. The facility generates power by utilizing 32 Francis turbines each having a capacity of and two turbines, totalling the installed capacity to , more than twice the installed capacity of the largest nuclear power station, the Kashiwazaki- Kariwa (Japan) at . As of 2019 no power station comparable to Three Gorges is under construction, as the largest under construction power stations are hydroelectric Baihetan Dam () and Belo Monte Dam (). Although currently only a proposal, the Grand Inga Dam in the Congo would surpass all existing power stations, including the Three Gorges Dam, if construction commences as planned. The design targets to top in installed capacity, nearly twice that of the Three Gorges. Another proposal, Penzhin Tidal Power Plant Project, presumes an installed capacity up to . At any point in time since the early 20th century, the largest power station in the world has been a hydroelectric power plant. The following table lists the largest operating power station, and the largest single generating unit within each country. Power station, List of power stations, List of largest power stations in the United States, List of the largest nuclear power stations in the United States World's 39 largest electric power plants, The Top 100: The World's Largest Power Plants, The world's 25 biggest power plants A nuclear and radiation accident is defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as "an event that has led to significant consequences to people, the environment or the facility". Examples include lethal effects to individuals, radioactive isotope to the environment, or reactor core melt." The prime example of a "major nuclear accident" is one in which a reactor core is damaged and significant amounts of radioactive isotopes are released, such as in the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. The impact of nuclear accidents has been a topic of debate since the first nuclear reactors were constructed in 1954, and has been a key factor in public concern about nuclear facilities. Technical measures to reduce the risk of accidents or to minimize the amount of radioactivity released to the environment have been adopted, however human error remains, and "there have been many accidents with varying impacts as well near misses and incidents". As of 2014, there have been more than 100 serious nuclear accidents and incidents from the use of nuclear power. Fifty- seven accidents have occurred since the Chernobyl disaster, and about 60% of all nuclear-related accidents have occurred in the USA. Serious nuclear power plant accidents include the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster (2011), the Chernobyl disaster (1986), the Three Mile Island accident (1979), and the SL-1 accident (1961). Nuclear power accidents can involve loss of life and large monetary costs for remediation work. Nuclear-powered submarine accidents include the K-19 (1961), K-11 (1965), K-27 (1968), K-140 (1968), K-429 (1970), K-222 (1980), and K-431 (1985) accidents. Serious radiation incidents/accidents include the Kyshtym disaster, the Windscale fire, the radiotherapy accident in Costa Rica, the radiotherapy accident in Zaragoza, the radiation accident in Morocco, the Goiania accident, the radiation accident in Mexico City, the radiotherapy unit accident in Thailand, and the Mayapuri radiological accident in India. The IAEA maintains a website reporting recent nuclear accidents. The worst nuclear accident to date was the Chernobyl disaster which occurred in 1986 in Ukraine. The accident killed 31 people directly and damaged approximately $7 billion of property. A study published in 2005 by the World Health Organization estimates that there may eventually be up to 4,000 additional cancer deaths related to the accident among those exposed to significant radiation levels. Radioactive fallout from the accident was concentrated in areas of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia. Other studies have estimated as many as over a million eventual cancer deaths from Chernobyl. Estimates of eventual deaths from cancer are highly contested. Industry, UN and DOE agencies claim low numbers of legally provable cancer deaths will be traceable to the disaster. The UN, DOE and industry agencies all use the limits of the epidemiological resolvable deaths as the cutoff below which they cannot be legally proven to come from the disaster. Independent studies statistically calculate fatal cancers from dose and population, even though the number of additional cancers will be below the epidemiological threshold of measurement of around 1%. These are two very different concepts and lead to the huge variations in estimates. Both are reasonable projections with different meanings. Approximately 350,000 people were forcibly resettled away from these areas soon after the accident. 6,000 people were involved in cleaning Chernobyl and 10,800 square miles were contaminated. Social scientist and energy policy expert, Benjamin K. Sovacool has reported that worldwide there have been 99 accidents at nuclear power plants from 1952 to 2009 (defined as incidents that either resulted in the loss of human life or more than US$50,000 of property damage, the amount the US federal government uses to define major energy accidents that must be reported), totaling US$20.5 billion in property damages. Fifty-seven accidents have occurred since the Chernobyl disaster, and almost two-thirds (56 out of 99) of all nuclear- related accidents have occurred in the US. There have been comparatively few fatalities associated with nuclear power plant accidents. An academic review of many reactor accident and the phenomena of these events was published by Mark Foreman. The vulnerability of nuclear plants to deliberate attack is of concern in the area of nuclear safety and security. Nuclear power plants, civilian research reactors, certain naval fuel facilities, uranium enrichment plants, fuel fabrication plants, and even potentially uranium mines are vulnerable to attacks which could lead to widespread radioactive contamination. The attack threat is of several general types: commando-like ground-based attacks on equipment which if disabled could lead to a reactor core meltdown or widespread dispersal of radioactivity; and external attacks such as an aircraft crash into a reactor complex, or cyber attacks. The United States 9/11 Commission found that nuclear power plants were potential targets originally considered for the September 11, 2001 attacks. If terrorist groups could sufficiently damage safety systems to cause a core meltdown at a nuclear power plant, and/or sufficiently damage spent fuel pools, such an attack could lead to widespread radioactive contamination. The Federation of American Scientists have said that if nuclear power use is to expand significantly, nuclear facilities will have to be made extremely safe from attacks that could release radioactivity into the environment. New reactor designs have features of passive nuclear safety, which may help. In the United States, the NRC carries out "Force on Force" (FOF) exercises at all Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) sites at least once every three years. Nuclear reactors become preferred targets during military conflict and, over the past three decades, have been repeatedly attacked during military air strikes, occupations, invasions and campaigns. Various acts of civil disobedience since 1980 by the peace group Plowshares have shown how nuclear weapons facilities can be penetrated, and the group's actions represent extraordinary breaches of security at nuclear weapons plants in the United States. The National Nuclear Security Administration has acknowledged the seriousness of the 2012 Plowshares action. Non-proliferation policy experts have questioned "the use of private contractors to provide security at facilities that manufacture and store the government's most dangerous military material". Nuclear weapons materials on the black market are a global concern,Brian Michael Jenkins. A Nuclear 9/11? CNN.com, September 11, 2008. and there is concern about the possible detonation of a small, crude nuclear weapon or dirty bomb by a militant group in a major city, causing significant loss of life and property. The number and sophistication of cyber attacks is on the rise. Stuxnet is a computer worm discovered in June 2010 that is believed to have been created by the United States and Israel to attack Iran's nuclear facilities. It switched off safety devices, causing centrifuges to spin out of control. The computers of South Korea's nuclear plant operator (KHNP) were hacked in December 2014. The cyber attacks involved thousands of phishing emails containing malicious codes, and information was stolen. Serious radiation and other accidents and incidents include: 1940s May 1945: Albert Stevens was one of several subjects of a human radiation experiment, and was injected with plutonium without his knowledge or informed consent. Although Stevens was the person who received the highest dose of radiation during the plutonium experiments, he was neither the first nor the last subject to be studied. Eighteen people aged 4 to 69 were injected with plutonium. Subjects who were chosen for the experiment had been diagnosed with a terminal disease. They lived from 6 days up to 44 years past the time of their injection. Eight of the 18 died within two years of the injection. All died from their preexisting terminal illness, or cardiac illnesses. None died from the plutonium itself. Patients from Rochester, Chicago, and Oak Ridge were also injected with plutonium in the Manhattan Project human experiments., 6–9 August 1945: On the orders of President Harry S. Truman, a uranium-gun design bomb, Little Boy, was used against the city of Hiroshima, Japan. Fat Man, a plutonium implosion-design bomb was used against the city of Nagasaki. The two weapons killed approximately 120,000 to 140,000 civilians and military personnel instantly and thousands more have died over the years from radiation sickness and related cancers., August 1945: Criticality accident at US Los Alamos National Laboratory. Harry Daghlian dies., May 1946: Criticality accident at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Louis Slotin dies. 1950s 13 February 1950: a Convair B-36B crashed in northern British Columbia after jettisoning a Mark IV atomic bomb. This was the first such nuclear weapon loss in history., 12 December 1952: NRX AECL Chalk River Laboratories, Chalk River, Ontario, Canada. Partial meltdown, about 10,000 Curies released. Approximately 1202 people were involved in the two year cleanup. Future president Jimmy Carter was one of the many people that helped clean up the accident., 15 March 1953: Mayak, former Soviet Union. Criticality accident. Contamination of plant personnel occurred., 1 March 1954: The 15 Mt Castle Bravo shot of 1954 which spread considerable nuclear fallout on many Pacific islands, including several which were inhabited, and some that had not been evacuated. 1 March 1954: Daigo Fukuryū Maru, Japanese fishing vessel contaminated by fallout from Castle Bravo, 1 fatality., 2 March 1954: US Navy tanker contaminated by fallout from Castle Bravo while sailing from Enewetak Atoll to Pearl Harbor. September 1957: a plutonium fire occurred at the Rocky Flats Plant, which resulted in the contamination of Building 71 and the release of plutonium into the atmosphere, causing US$818,600 in damage., 21 May 1957: Mayak, former Soviet Union. Criticality accident in the factory number 20 in the collection oxalate decantate after filtering sediment oxalate enriched uranium. Six people received doses of 300 to 1,000 rem (four women and two men), one woman died., 29 September 1957: Kyshtym disaster: Nuclear waste storage tank explosion at the same Mayak plant, Russia. No immediate fatalities, though up to 200+ additional cancer deaths might have ensued from the radioactive contamination of the surrounding area; 270,000 people were exposed to dangerous radiation levels. Over thirty small communities were removed from Soviet maps between 1958 and 1991. (INES level 6), October 1957: Windscale fire, UK. Fire ignites a "plutonium pile" (an air cooled, graphite moderated, uranium fuelled reactor that was used for plutonium and isotope production) and contaminates surrounding dairy farms. An estimated 33 cancer deaths., 1957-1964: Rocketdyne located at the Santa Susanna Field Lab, 30 miles north of Los Angeles, California operated ten experimental nuclear reactors. Numerous accidents occurred including a core meltdown. Experimental reactors of that era were not required to have the same type of containment structures that shield modern nuclear reactors. During the Cold War time in which the accidents that occurred at Rocketdyne, these events were not publicly reported by the Department of Energy., 1958: Fuel rupture and fire at the National Research Universal reactor (NRU), Chalk River, Canada., 10 February 1958: Mayak, former Soviet Union. Criticality accident in SCR plant. Conducted experiments to determine the critical mass of enriched uranium in a cylindrical container with different concentrations of uranium in solution. Staff broke the rules and instructions for working with YADM (nuclear fissile material). When SCR personnel received doses from 7600 to 13,000 rem. Three people died, one man got radiation sickness and went blind., 30 December 1958: Cecil Kelley criticality accident at Los Alamos National Laboratory., March 1959: Santa Susana Field Laboratory, Los Angeles, California. Fire in a fuel processing facility., July 1959: Santa Susana Field Laboratory, Los Angeles, California. Partial meltdown. 1960s 7 June 1960: the 1960 Fort Dix IM-99 accident destroyed a CIM-10 Bomarc nuclear missile and shelter and contaminated the BOMARC Missile Accident Site in New Jersey., 24 January 1961: the 1961 Goldsboro B-52 crash occurred near Goldsboro, North Carolina. A B-52 Stratofortress carrying two Mark 39 nuclear bombs broke up in mid-air, dropping its nuclear payload in the process., July 1961: soviet submarine K-19 accident. Eight fatalities and more than 30 people were over-exposed to radiation., 21 March–August 1962: radiation accident in Mexico City, four fatalities., 23 July 1964: Wood River Junction criticality accident. Resulted in 1 fatality, 1964, 1969: Santa Susana Field Laboratory, Los Angeles, California. Partial meltdowns., 1965 Philippine Sea A-4 crash, where a Skyhawk attack aircraft with a nuclear weapon fell into the sea. The pilot, the aircraft, and the B43 nuclear bomb were never recovered. It was not until the 1980s that the Pentagon revealed the loss of the one-megaton bomb., October 1965: US CIA-led expedition abandons a nuclear-powered telemetry relay listening device on Nanda Devi, 17 January 1966: the 1966 Palomares B-52 crash occurred when a B-52G bomber of the USAF collided with a KC-135 tanker during mid-air refuelling off the coast of Spain. The KC-135 was completely destroyed when its fuel load ignited, killing all four crew members. The B-52G broke apart, killing three of the seven crew members aboard. Of the four Mk28 type hydrogen bombs the B-52G carried, three were found on land near Almería, Spain. The non-nuclear explosives in two of the weapons detonated upon impact with the ground, resulting in the contamination of a (0.78 square mile) area by radioactive plutonium. The fourth, which fell into the Mediterranean Sea, was recovered intact after a 2½-month-long search., 21 January 1968: the 1968 Thule Air Base B-52 crash involved a United States Air Force (USAF) B-52 bomber. The aircraft was carrying four hydrogen bombs when a cabin fire forced the crew to abandon the aircraft. Six crew members ejected safely, but one who did not have an ejection seat was killed while trying to bail out. The bomber crashed onto sea ice in Greenland, causing the nuclear payload to rupture and disperse, which resulted in widespread radioactive contamination., May 1968: Soviet submarine K-27 reactor near meltdown. 9 people died, 83 people were injured., In August 1968: Soviet nuclear ballistic missile submarine development program Project 667A. Nuclear-powered Yankee class submarine K-140 was in the naval yard at Severodvinsk for repairs. On August 27, an uncontrolled increase of the reactor's power occurred following work to upgrade the vessel. One of the reactors started up automatically when the control rods were raised to a higher position. Power increased to 18 times its normal amount, while pressure and temperature levels in the reactor increased to four times the normal amount. The automatic start-up of the reactor was caused by the incorrect installation of the control rod electrical cables and by operator error. Radiation levels aboard the vessel deteriorated., 10 December 1968: Mayak, former Soviet Union. Criticality accident. Plutonium solution was poured into a cylindrical container with dangerous geometry. One person died, another took a high dose of radiation and radiation sickness, after which he had two legs and his right arm amputated., January 1969: Lucens reactor in Switzerland undergoes partial core meltdown leading to massive radioactive contamination of a cavern. 1970s 1974–1976: Columbus radiotherapy accident, 10 fatalities, 88 injuries from cobalt-60 source., July 1978: Anatoli Bugorski was working on U-70, the largest Soviet particle accelerator, when he accidentally exposed his head directly to the proton beam. He survived, despite suffering some long-term damage., July 1979: Church Rock Uranium Mill Spill in New Mexico, USA, when United Nuclear Corporation's uranium mill tailings disposal pond breached its dam. Over 1,000 tons of radioactive mill waste and millions of gallons of mine effluent flowed into the Puerco River, and contaminants traveled downstream. 1980s 1980 to 1989: The Kramatorsk radiological accident happened in Kramatorsk, Ukrainian SSR. In 1989, a small capsule containing highly radioactive caesium-137 was found inside the concrete wall of an apartment building. 6 residents of the building died from leukemia and 17 more received varying radiation doses. The accident was detected only after the residents called in a health physicist., 1980: Houston radiotherapy accident, 7 fatalities., 5 October 1982: Lost radiation source, Baku, Azerbaijan, USSR. 5 fatalities, 13 injuries., March 1984: Radiation accident in Morocco, eight fatalities from overexposure to radiation from a lost iridium-192 source., 1984: Fernald Feed Materials Production Center gained notoriety when it was learned that the plant was releasing millions of pounds of uranium dust into the atmosphere, causing major radioactive contamination of the surrounding areas. That same year, employee Dave Bocks, a 39-year-old pipefitter, disappeared during the facility's graveyard shift and was later reported missing. Eventually, his remains were discovered inside a uranium processing furnace located in Plant 6., August 1985: Soviet submarine K-431 accident. Ten fatalities and 49 other people suffered radiation injuries., 4 January 1986: an overloaded tank at Sequoyah Fuels Corporation ruptured and released 14.5 tons of uranium hexafluoride gas (UF6), causing the death of a worker, the hospitalization of 37 other workers, and approximately 100 downwinders., October 1986: Soviet submarine K-219 reactor almost had a meltdown. Sergei Preminin died after he manually lowered the control rods, and stopped the explosion. The submarine sank three days later., September 1987: Goiania accident. Four fatalities, and following radiological screening of more than 100,000 people, it was ascertained that 249 people received serious radiation contamination from exposure to caesium-137. In the cleanup operation, topsoil had to be removed from several sites, and several houses were demolished. All the objects from within those houses were removed and examined. Time magazine has identified the accident as one of the world's "worst nuclear disasters" and the International Atomic Energy Agency called it "one of the world's worst radiological incidents"., 1989: San Salvador, El Salvador; one fatality due to violation of safety rules at cobalt-60 irradiation facility. 1990s 1990: Soreq, Israel; one fatality due to violation of safety rules at cobalt-60 irradiation facility., December 16, 1990: radiotherapy accident in Zaragoza. Eleven fatalities and 27 other patients were injured., 1991: Neswizh, Belarus; one fatality due to violation of safety rules at cobalt-60 irradiation facility., 1992: Jilin, China; three fatalities at cobalt-60 irradiation facility., 1992: USA; one fatality., April 1993: accident at the Tomsk-7 Reprocessing Complex, when a tank exploded while being cleaned with nitric acid. The explosion released a cloud of radioactive gas. (INES level 4)., 1994: Tammiku, Estonia; one fatality from disposed caesium-137 source., August — December 1996: Radiotherapy accident in Costa Rica. Thirteen fatalities and 114 other patients received an overdose of radiation., 1996: an accident at Pelindaba research facility in South Africa results in the exposure of workers to radiation. Harold Daniels and several others die from cancers and radiation burns related to the exposure., June 1997: Sarov, Russia; one fatality due to violation of safety rules., May 1998: The Acerinox accident was an incident of radioactive contamination in Southern Spain. A caesium-137 source managed to pass through the monitoring equipment in an Acerinox scrap metal reprocessing plant. When melted, the caesium-137 caused the release of a radioactive cloud., September 1999: two fatalities at criticality accident at Tokaimura nuclear accident (Japan) 2000s January–February 2000: Samut Prakan radiation accident: three deaths and ten injuries resulted in Samut Prakan when a cobalt-60 radiation-therapy unit was dismantled., May 2000: Meet Halfa, Egypt; two fatalities due to radiography accident., August 2000 – March 2001: Instituto Oncologico Nacional of Panama, 17 fatalities. Patients receiving treatment for prostate cancer and cancer of the cervix receive lethal doses of radiation., 9 August 2004: Mihama Nuclear Power Plant accident, 4 fatalities. Hot water and steam leaked from a broken pipe (not actually a radiation accident)., 9 May 2005: it was announced that the Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant at Sellafield in the UK suffered a large leak of a highly radioactive solution, which first started in July 2004., April 2010: Mayapuri radiological accident, India, one fatality after a cobalt-60 research irradiator was sold to a scrap metal dealer and dismantled. 2010s March 2011: Fukushima I nuclear accidents, Japan and the radioactive discharge at the Fukushima Daiichi Power Station., 17 January 2014: At the Rössing Uranium Mine, Namibia, a catastrophic structural failure of a leach tank resulted in a major spill. The France-based laboratory, CRIIRAD, reported elevated levels of radioactive materials in the area surrounding the mine. Workers were not informed of the dangers of working with radioactive materials and the health effects thereof., 1 February 2014: Designed to last ten thousand years, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) site approximately 26 miles (42 km) east of Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States, had its first leak of airborne radioactive materials. 140 employees working underground at the time were sheltered indoors. Thirteen of these tested positive for internal radioactive contamination increasing their risk for future cancers or health issues. A second leak at the plant occurred shortly after the first, releasing plutonium and other radiotoxins causing concern to nearby communities. The source of the drum rupture has been traced to the use of organic kitty litter at the WCRRF packaging facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where the drum was packaged and prepared for shipment., 8 August 2019: Nyonoksa radiation accident at the State Central Navy Testing Range at Nyonoksa, near Severodvinsk, Russia. Between 16 July 1945 and 23 September 1992, the United States maintained a program of vigorous nuclear testing, with the exception of a moratorium between November 1958 and September 1961. By official count, a total of 1,054 nuclear tests and two nuclear attacks were conducted, with over 100 of them taking place at sites in the Pacific Ocean, over 900 of them at the Nevada Test Site, and ten on miscellaneous sites in the United States (Alaska, Colorado, Mississippi, and New Mexico). Until November 1962, the vast majority of the U.S. tests were atmospheric (that is, above-ground); after the acceptance of the Partial Test Ban Treaty all testing was regulated underground, in order to prevent the dispersion of nuclear fallout. The U.S. program of atmospheric nuclear testing exposed a number of the population to the hazards of fallout. Estimating exact numbers, and the exact consequences, of people exposed has been medically very difficult, with the exception of the high exposures of Marshall Islanders and Japanese fishers in the case of the Castle Bravo incident in 1954. A number of groups of U.S. citizens — especially farmers and inhabitants of cities downwind of the Nevada Test Site and U.S. military workers at various tests — have sued for compensation and recognition of their exposure, many successfully. The passage of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990 allowed for a systematic filing of compensation claims in relation to testing as well as those employed at nuclear weapons facilities. As of June 2009 over $1.4 billion total has been given in compensation, with over $660 million going to "downwinders". The International Atomic Energy Agency says there is "a persistent problem with the illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive materials, thefts, losses and other unauthorized activities". The IAEA Illicit Nuclear Trafficking Database notes 1,266 incidents reported by 99 countries over the last 12 years, including 18 incidents involving HEU or plutonium trafficking: Security specialist Shaun Gregory argued in an article that terrorists have attacked Pakistani nuclear facilities three times in the recent past; twice in 2007 and once in 2008., In November 2007, burglars with unknown intentions infiltrated the Pelindaba nuclear research facility near Pretoria, South Africa. The burglars escaped without acquiring any of the uranium held at the facility., In February 2006, Oleg Khinsagov of Russia was arrested in Georgia, along with three Georgian accomplices, with 79.5 grams of 89 percent enriched HEU., The Alexander Litvinenko poisoning in November 2006 with radioactive polonium "represents an ominous landmark: the beginning of an era of nuclear terrorism," according to Andrew J. Patterson. A nuclear meltdown is a severe nuclear reactor accident that results in reactor core damage from overheating. It has been defined as the accidental melting of the core of a nuclear reactor, and refers to the core's either complete or partial collapse. A core melt accident occurs when the heat generated by a nuclear reactor exceeds the heat removed by the cooling systems to the point where at least one nuclear fuel element exceeds its melting point. This differs from a fuel element failure, which is not caused by high temperatures. A meltdown may be caused by a loss of coolant, loss of coolant pressure, or low coolant flow rate or be the result of a criticality excursion in which the reactor is operated at a power level that exceeds its design limits. Alternately, in a reactor plant such as the RBMK-1000, an external fire may endanger the core, leading to a meltdown. Large-scale nuclear meltdowns at civilian nuclear power plants include: the Three Mile Island accident in Pennsylvania, United States, in 1979., the Chernobyl disaster at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, Ukraine, USSR, in 1986., the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, March 2011. Other core meltdowns have occurred at: NRX (military), Ontario, Canada, in 1952, BORAX-I (experimental), Idaho, U.S.A., in 1954, EBR-I, Idaho, U.S.A., in 1955, Windscale (military), Sellafield, England, in 1957 (see Windscale fire), Sodium Reactor Experiment, Santa Susana Field Laboratory (civilian), California, U.S.A., in 1959, Fermi 1 (civilian), Michigan, U.S.A., in 1966, Chapelcross nuclear power station (civilian), Scotland, in 1967, the Lucens reactor, Switzerland, in 1969., Saint-Laurent Nuclear Power Plant (civilian), France, in 1969, A1 plant, (civilian) at Jaslovské Bohunice, Czechoslovakia, in 1977, Saint-Laurent Nuclear Power Plant (civilian), France, in 1980, Eight Soviet Navy nuclear submarines have had nuclear core melts: K-19 (1961), K-11(1965), K-27 (1968), K-140 (1968), K-429 (1970), K-222 (1980), K-314 (1985), and K-431 (1985). A criticality accident (also sometimes referred to as an "excursion" or "power excursion") occurs when a nuclear chain reaction is accidentally allowed to occur in fissile material, such as enriched uranium or plutonium. The Chernobyl accident is not universally regarded an example of a criticality accident, because it occurred in an operating reactor at a power plant. The reactor was supposed to be in a controlled critical state, but control of the chain reaction was lost. The accident destroyed the reactor and left a large geographic area uninhabitable. In a smaller scale accident at Sarov a technician working with highly enriched uranium was irradiated while preparing an experiment involving a sphere of fissile material. The Sarov accident is interesting because the system remained critical for many days before it could be stopped, though safely located in a shielded experimental hall. This is an example of a limited scope accident where only a few people can be harmed, while no release of radioactivity into the environment occurred. A criticality accident with limited off site release of both radiation (gamma and neutron) and a very small release of radioactivity occurred at Tokaimura in 1999 during the production of enriched uranium fuel. Two workers died, a third was permanently injured, and 350 citizens were exposed to radiation. In 2016, a criticality accident was reported at the Afrikantov OKBM Critical Test Facility in Russia. Decay heat accidents are where the heat generated by the radioactive decay causes harm. In a large nuclear reactor, a loss of coolant accident can damage the core: for example, at Three Mile Island a recently shutdown (SCRAMed) PWR reactor was left for a length of time without cooling water. As a result, the nuclear fuel was damaged, and the core partially melted. The removal of the decay heat is a significant reactor safety concern, especially shortly after shutdown. Failure to remove decay heat may cause the reactor core temperature to rise to dangerous levels and has caused nuclear accidents. The heat removal is usually achieved through several redundant and diverse systems, and the heat is often dissipated to an 'ultimate heat sink' which has a large capacity and requires no active power, though this method is typically used after decay heat has reduced to a very small value. The main cause of release of radioactivity in the Three Mile Island accident was a pilot-operated relief valve on the primary loop which stuck in the open position. This caused the overflow tank into which it drained to rupture and release large amounts of radioactive cooling water into the containment building. In 2011, an earthquake and tsunami caused a loss of electric power at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan. The decay heat could not be removed, and the reactor cores of units 1, 2 and 3 overheated, the nuclear fuel melted, and the containments were breached. Radioactive materials were released from the plant to the atmosphere and to the ocean. Transport accidents can cause a release of radioactivity resulting in contamination or shielding to be damaged resulting in direct irradiation. In Cochabamba a defective gamma radiography set was transported in a passenger bus as cargo. The gamma source was outside the shielding, and it irradiated some bus passengers. In the United Kingdom, it was revealed in a court case that in March 2002 a radiotherapy source was transported from Leeds to Sellafield with defective shielding. The shielding had a gap on the underside. It is thought that no human has been seriously harmed by the escaping radiation. On 17 January 1966, a fatal collision occurred between a B-52G and a KC-135 Stratotanker over Palomares, Spain (see 1966 Palomares B-52 crash). The accident was designated a "Broken Arrow", meaning an accident involving a nuclear weapon that does not present a risk of war. Equipment failure is one possible type of accident. In Białystok, Poland, in 2001 the electronics associated with a particle accelerator used for the treatment of cancer suffered a malfunction. This then led to the overexposure of at least one patient. While the initial failure was the simple failure of a semiconductor diode, it set in motion a series of events which led to a radiation injury. A related cause of accidents is failure of control software, as in the cases involving the Therac-25 medical radiotherapy equipment: the elimination of a hardware safety interlock in a new design model exposed a previously undetected bug in the control software, which could have led to patients receiving massive overdoses under a specific set of conditions. Many of the major nuclear accidents have been directly attributable to operator or human error. This was obviously the case in the analysis of both the Chernobyl and TMI-2 accidents. At Chernobyl, a test procedure was being conducted prior to the accident. The leaders of the test permitted operators to disable and ignore key protection circuits and warnings that would have normally shut the reactor down. At TMI-2, operators permitted thousands of gallons of water to escape from the reactor plant before observing that the coolant pumps were behaving abnormally. The coolant pumps were thus turned off to protect the pumps, which in turn led to the destruction of the reactor itself as cooling was completely lost within the core. A detailed investigation into SL-1 determined that one operator (perhaps inadvertently) manually pulled the central control rod out about 26 inches rather than the maintenance procedure's intention of about 4 inches. An assessment conducted by the Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique (CEA) in France concluded that no amount of technical innovation can eliminate the risk of human-induced errors associated with the operation of nuclear power plants. Two types of mistakes were deemed most serious: errors committed during field operations, such as maintenance and testing, that can cause an accident; and human errors made during small accidents that cascade to complete failure. In 1946 Canadian Manhattan Project physicist Louis Slotin performed a risky experiment known as "tickling the dragon's tail" which involved two hemispheres of neutron- reflective beryllium being brought together around a plutonium core to bring it to criticality. Against operating procedures, the hemispheres were separated only by a screwdriver. The screwdriver slipped and set off a chain reaction criticality accident filling the room with harmful radiation and a flash of blue light (caused by excited, ionized air particles returning to their unexcited states). Slotin reflexively separated the hemispheres in reaction to the heat flash and blue light, preventing further irradiation of several co-workers present in the room. However, Slotin absorbed a lethal dose of the radiation and died nine days later. The infamous plutonium mass used in the experiment was referred to as the demon core. Lost source accidents, also referred to as orphan sources, are incidents in which a radioactive source is lost, stolen or abandoned. The source then might cause harm to humans. One case occurred at Yanango where a radiography source was lost, also at Samut Prakarn a phosphorus teletherapy source was lost and at Gilan in Iran a radiography source harmed a welder. The best known example of this type of event is the Goiânia accident in Brazil. The International Atomic Energy Agency has provided guides for scrap metal collectors on what a sealed source might look like. The scrap metal industry is the one where lost sources are most likely to be found. Experts believe that up to 50 nuclear weapons were lost during the Cold War. Comparing the historical safety record of civilian nuclear energy with other forms of electrical generation, Ball, Roberts, and Simpson, the IAEA, and the Paul Scherrer Institute found in separate studies that during the period from 1970 to 1992, there were just 39 on-the-job deaths of nuclear power plant workers worldwide, while during the same time period, there were 6,400 on-the- job deaths of coal power plant workers, 1,200 on-the-job deaths of natural gas power plant workers and members of the general public caused by natural gas power plants, and 4,000 deaths of members of the general public caused by hydroelectric power plants. In particular, coal power plants are estimated to kill 24,000 Americans per year due to lung disease as well as causing 40,000 heart attacks per year in the United States. According to Scientific American, the average coal power plant emits 100 times more radiation per year than a comparatively sized nuclear power plant in the form of toxic coal waste known as fly ash. In terms of energy accidents, hydroelectric plants were responsible for the most fatalities, but nuclear power plant accidents rank first in terms of their economic cost, accounting for 41 percent of all property damage. Oil and hydroelectric follow at around 25 percent each, followed by natural gas at 9 percent and coal at 2 percent. Excluding Chernobyl and the Shimantan Dam, the three other most expensive accidents involved the Exxon Valdez oil spill (Alaska), the Prestige oil spill (Spain), and the Three Mile Island nuclear accident (Pennsylvania). Nuclear safety covers the actions taken to prevent nuclear and radiation accidents or to limit their consequences. This covers nuclear power plants as well as all other nuclear facilities, the transportation of nuclear materials, and the use and storage of nuclear materials for medical, power, industry, and military uses. The nuclear power industry has improved the safety and performance of reactors, and has proposed new safer (but generally untested) reactor designs but there is no guarantee that the reactors will be designed, built and operated correctly. Mistakes do occur and the designers of reactors at Fukushima in Japan did not anticipate that a tsunami generated by an earthquake would disable the backup systems that were supposed to stabilize the reactor after the earthquake. According to UBS AG, the Fukushima I nuclear accidents have cast doubt on whether even an advanced economy like Japan can master nuclear safety. Catastrophic scenarios involving terrorist attacks are also conceivable. In his book Normal Accidents, Charles Perrow says that unexpected failures are built into society's complex and tightly-coupled nuclear reactor systems. Nuclear power plants cannot be operated without some major accidents. Such accidents are unavoidable and cannot be designed around. An interdisciplinary team from MIT have estimated that given the expected growth of nuclear power from 2005 – 2055, at least four serious nuclear accidents would be expected in that period. To date, there have been five serious accidents (core damage) in the world since 1970 (one at Three Mile Island in 1979; one at Chernobyl in 1986; and three at Fukushima-Daiichi in 2011), corresponding to the beginning of the operation of generation II reactors. This leads to on average one serious accident happening every eight years worldwide. European Committee on Radiation Risk, Incident in Hospital Son Dureta, 1990 Clinic of Zaragoza radiotherapy accident, Nuclear whistleblowers, List of military nuclear accidents, Acute radiation syndrome Genpatsu-shinsai, International Nuclear Event Scale, Nuclear power debate, Radiation poisoning (disambiguation) " (2009), Chernobyl. Vengeance of peaceful atom. (2006), (2006), Contesting the Future of Nuclear Power (2011), Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis (1971), (2004), Fallout Protection (1961), "Fukushima: Japan's Tsunami and the Inside Story of the Nuclear Meltdowns (2013), Full Body Burden: Growing Up in the Nuclear Shadow of Rocky Flats (2012), Hiroshima (1946), Killing Our Own: The Disaster of America’s Experience with Atomic Radiation (1982), (2009), (1999), (2007), (1975), Normal Accidents: Living with High-Risk Technologies (1984), Nuclear or Not? Does Nuclear Power Have a Place in a Sustainable Energy Future? (2007), Nuclear Politics in America (1997), Nuclear Power and the Environment (1976), (2004), Nuclear War Survival Skills (1979), (1998), (1982), On Nuclear Terrorism (2007), Plutopia (2013) U.S. Nuclear Accidents (lutins.org) most comprehensive online list of incidents involving U.S. nuclear facilities and vessels, 1950–present, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) website with search function and electronic public reading room, International Atomic Energy Agency website with extensive online library, Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters, Annotated bibliography for civilian nuclear accidents from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues

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"Heroes (We Could Be)" is a song by Swedish DJ and record producer Alesso, featuring the vocals of Swedish singer Tove Lo. Released on 25 August 2014, the song has charted in a number of countries. In the US, the song went to number one on the dance chart. In an interview with Billboard, Alesso explained the song: "When Tove Lo and I first started working together, she'd tell me about how she wanted to be different, to stand out as an artist. And on some level, I think everyone goes through that. As a teenager, I was always wondering about who I was, what was my identity, did I secretly wish I was someone else. But as you [age], you realize that it's not about being someone else." When asked what inspired the song's lyrics, he continued, "My team and I reached out to [Lo] to see if she'd be interested in a collaboration, and a couple months later, we began writing the lyrics that would go over these instrumentals. We discussed what it should be about -- we knew it should be an emotional record -- and this gorgeous girl came back with this gorgeous topline." Even though the song's melody bears no similarity to David Bowie's 1977 single ""Heroes"", his and Brian Eno's names were added to the song's writing credits in July 2015. Alesso told the Daily Star: "I just didn't want to get sued. They aren't similar, but we needed protection in case we pissed off Bowie." The music video was released on 10 October 2014. It introduces teenagers with supernatural abilities, who are detained in a high security institute. An angel is being kept under strict supervision as scientists compel her to swallow drugs designed to remove her powers. Meanwhile, Alesso runs toward and enters the facility and to release the angelic woman. As he walks past the super human teens, they exhibit their abilities and break free. This triggers an alarm, allowing him and the woman to escape from the scientists. As they approach the top of the building, they decide to fall. As they fall, the angel flies away. However, Alesso falls on a car and perishes. He never came back alive in the video. The final scene involves the teens escaping into the night. Tove Lo is also featured in the video. List of number-one dance singles of 2014 (U.S.) Full Lyrics at LyricsOnDemand.com "Heroes and Villains" is a song written and produced by Brian Wilson with words by Van Dyke Parks, recorded by the American rock band the Beach Boys. Envisioned as a three-minute music comedy, it was the follow-up single to the group's "Good Vibrations" (1966) and intended as the centerpiece to the unfinished album Smile. After the album was shelved, the song was rearranged and issued as a single in July 1967 with "You're Welcome" as the B-side. It charted at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. Two months later, it was placed as the opening track to the studio album Smiley Smile. Parks said that he modeled the lyrics after "El Paso" (1959) and denied a popular theory claiming that "Heroes and Villains" was a song about the Vietnam War. Though the lyrics are distinctly Western with some allusions to the American Indian genocides, then-wife Marilyn Wilson said that Brian meant the "heroes" and "villains" to represent those in his life. Like "Good Vibrations", "Heroes and Villains" was produced using the same unorthodox method of recording a surplus of interchangeable musical sections at multiple Hollywood recording studios. Only during its final production stages would the song then be reduced and assembled into a coherent structure. This proved difficult for Wilson, who grew increasingly frustrated with the virtually limitless number of possible song edits. Bandmate Al Jardine later expressed dissatisfaction with the final composite, calling it "a pale facsimile" of Wilson's original vision, and believed that he had "underproduced" the song at the last minute. Jimi Hendrix dismissed the single as a "psychedelic barbershop quartet". "Heroes and Villains" was the first piece written for the Smile project and was originally written as a standalone song, but eventually led to the creation of more Western-themed music. Reflective of its complicated production history, many significantly different alternate versions have seen release on subsequent Beach Boys compilation albums, along with numerous pieces that were initially written as potential sections of the song. These include "Gee", "Do You Like Worms?", "I'm in Great Shape", "Barnyard", and "My Only Sunshine". Brian Wilson intended "Heroes and Villains" to eclipse the Beach Boys' previous number one hit "Good Vibrations", taking inspiration from Phil Spector's productions of "River Deep - Mountain High" and "The Bells of St. Mary's" — specifically the former's bass line. Composed in early May 1966 mostly in a large sandbox holding a piano built in Brian's living room, "Heroes and Villains" was the first collaboration between Wilson and Van Dyke Parks in tandem with the later-to-be-excised "Barnyard" and "I'm in Great Shape". When Wilson first played the melody to him, Parks devised the opening line on the spot, modeling its lyrics in the style of Marty Robbins' "El Paso". Wilson credits Parks with the title, while Parks credits Wilson, explaining: "I think he made that up. I think it was a great title, and he suggested it. To me, 'Heroes And Villains' sounds like a ballad out of the Southwest. That's what it was intended to be—as good as any of those—and, really, to be a ballad. This Spanish and Indian fascination is a big chapter in Californian history, and that's what it's supposed to be—historically reflective, to reflect this place. I think it did it." Then-wife Marilyn Wilson said: "There are so many screwed-up people in the music industry. The good guys and the bad guys ... That's one thing Brian had in mind when they did 'Heroes and Villains. The song was thought to have been written about the Vietnam War, but Parks clarified: "'Heroes And Villains' had nothing to do with Vietnam, but with the Indian thing we were trying to exculpate our guilt, to atone for what we had done to the aborigines of our own place. There's a lot of things about belief in Smile, and its very question of belief is what was plaguing Brian at that time. What should we keep from the structure that we had, the hard-wiring that we had with religion? He had religion beat into him, and I did in my own way, too. So there's a lot of thinking about belief, and you can hear it in the section with 'Child Is Father of the Man'." Although "Heroes and Villains" was originally written as a standalone song, it eventually led to the creation of more Western-themed music associated with the Smile album, including references to eggs and grits, barnyards, cabins, and railroads. Despite its early genesis, the recording of the song was a difficult and protracted process. Wilson halted work on the other Smile tracks at the end of 1966 and concentrated on producing a version of "Heroes and Villains" for single release. However, despite holding at least 20 recording sessions for the song over a period of several months and assembling several different edits of the track, he was unable to complete the work to his satisfaction until after the May 1967 announcement that Smile had been shelved. It underwent many changes during its production, and countless discrete pieces were obviated from the final edit. Vocal arrangements were recorded, discarded, and remade throughout its sessions. The first attempt at tracking "Heroes and Villains" was on May 11, 1966 (2:45 in length), and was deemed unsatisfactory and subsequently taped over; it apparently included "My Only Sunshine" as a section of the song according to one of the session musicians. In January 1967, the Beach Boys recorded a cappella sections labelled "Do a Lot", "Mission Pak", "Bridge to Indians", "Pickup to 3rd verse", "Children Were Raised", and "Whistling Bridge". Instrumentals entitled "Bag of Tricks", "Part 1 Tag", and "All Day" were also recorded, and so was a keyboard/vocal section called "Bicycle Rider". "Cantina", recorded between January and February 1967, was an unused section of "Heroes and Villains" that lasts about 30 seconds. It was projected to serve as a bridge between the second verse and the "Children Were Raised" section. The instrumentation features prominent use of a tack piano arranged in the style of old Western saloons. February and March saw the recording of stylistically diverse sections entitled "Fade", "Organ Waltz/Intro", "Prelude to Fade", "Part 2", "Part 3", "Part 4", and the song's "piano theme". The backing track for the song's verses was also remade in February, but was quickly discarded. Capitol Records had scheduled January 13, 1967 as the release date for the single. Al Jardine believed that Brian sabotaged the song once it was destined for Smiley Smile. After Smile was scrapped, the remainder of the track was worked on throughout June. The month's sessions involved scaling down sections such as "Prelude" and "Children Were Raised", into "Barbershop" and "Children Were Raised (2nd Version)". June's sessions were largely sourced for the song's final edit, which included revised vocals and Baldwin organ overdubs. The final edit also sources the verse backing track recorded on October 20, 1966 and the chorus backing track recorded on February 27, 1967. A piece recorded by the group on December 15, 1966 entitled "You're Welcome" was chosen as the B-side to the July "Heroes and Villains" single. It is a chant sung by the Beach Boys over a thumpy background track featuring a glockenspiel and a floor tom, with a runtime lasting only . In 1967, Mike Love said of the piece: "[It's] incredible. The title is 'You're Welcome'. No other lyrics. I don't know how Brian did it, but there's no accompaniment. 'Heroes and Villains' is going to be released as the first single on our new label, Brother Records…We are finishing it [the album] now." Terry Melcher was present for the public debut of "Heroes and Villains," as he recollects: Wilson is said to have had high hopes for "Heroes and Villains" as the follow- up single to the Beach Boys' previous "Good Vibrations". When the single failed to significantly replicate the success of "Good Vibrations", it destroyed his self-imposed competitive rivalry to the Beatles. According to Jack Rieley, Wilson would often recount in "agonizing detail" about how "Heroes and Villains" was supposed to lift the Beach Boys' public image from "surfing/car songs" to being perceived on "creative par with the Beatles". Wilson interpreted the failure of "Heroes and Villains" as an ultimate rejection by the public to his musical growth and artistry. Mike Love called the song "the last dynamic Brian moment". The single was dismissed as a "psychedelic barbershop quartet" by seminal rock figure Jimi Hendrix. British rock journalist Nik Cohn wrote in 1970: "It was good that [Wilson] should progress, that he should attempt outside his depth. But he took himself too solemnly, he was mildly megalomaniac about it all. Almost, he was ashamed of pop. He got snob. Running so fast and precious, his hat got away from his head." He then explained that the nature of pop music forces a stalemate on artists who wish to be experimental, because "pop is always teen music", and "the people who finally buy their records, are maybe sixteen years old, and by no means hooked on experiment". In 2012, Eric Luecking of NPR said that while "Heroes and Villains" was more adventurous than "Good Vibrations", listeners could not relate to the song's lyrics, which obscured the single's legacy. In North America, despite a nine-month wait for this single (the retro track "Then I Kissed Her" had been released as a stopgap around the rest of the world), the Beach Boys' most adventurous song to date did not roar to the top as had most of their previous hits. Among major markets radio station surveys rated it only as high as #3 in Washington DC and Boston; additionally top 6 in isolated cities only across the Midwest and in Toronto and Ottawa in Canada (where nationally it was reported at number five by Billboard). It began an era through which the group was better appreciated overseas. Although scoring number eight in the US Cash Box and Record World surveys, it was number five in the All-Japan Top 20 (foreign section) and top 10 in the national charts of the UK, Italy, Australia and New Zealand, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Israel, and Malaysia. The intended "Heroes And Villains" single was originally assigned as Capitol 5826 and issued with a white picture sleeve showing six pictures of the group members. However, Brian Wilson was still experimenting and creating further concepts for the song, thus the Capitol single was never pressed. By the time of the final single mix, the Beach Boys created their own Brother label and issued "Heroes and Villains" as its first single (Brother 1001) with the cartoon picture sleeve. The picture sleeve for the unreleased Capitol single is a rare, highly sought item among Beach Boys collectors. Innumerable alternate edits of the song exist; several so far have seen release. One Smile-era version was released as a bonus track on the Beach Boys Smiley Smile/Wild Honey two-fer in 1990. A 2001 stereo mix appears on Hawthorne, CA. On the Endless Harmony Soundtrack, there is a demo of the song which incorporates "I'm in Great Shape" and "Barnyard". In 2011, The Smile Sessions were released containing many alternate mixes of the song, plus extensive session highlights. The song was part of "The Cocaine Sessions", an informal name for recordings made between Brian and Dennis Wilson circa November 1982. Wilson recorded a new version of "Heroes and Villains" for his 2004 album Brian Wilson Presents Smile. There have been persistent rumors of a far longer two-part edit, reputedly running for six, seven or even ten minutes, and that this edit was intended for single release, split across the two sides of a single entitled "Heroes and Villains: Part One" and "Heroes and Villains: Part Two". Author Domenic Priore has said that when he questioned engineer Chuck Britz on the matter, he revealed that Wilson intended the 1990 variation to have served as the single's A-side, while the B-side was to have been three "Heroes and Villains" vocal chants strung together. During the 1960s, double-sided singles with different takes or different parts of the same song were common, and had been executed by Bob Dylan with "Like a Rolling Stone" and even Parks with "Donovan's Colours". These rumors have been said by some to have been a falsehood purported by Priore. However, it is possible that this rumored long edit, if it exists, may in fact have been an acetate disc meant to showcase different fragments of the song for Wilson's friends and family. A newly constructed two-part edit was packaged as a bonus 7" vinyl for the limited box set edition of The Smile Sessions. In late 1967 during sessions for the unreleased live album Lei'd in Hawaii, the Beach Boys recorded a stripped down live-in-the-studio version of "Heroes and Villains". Later, Mike Love and Brian Wilson would overdub this version with a self-deprecating monologue satirizing the song, with Love calling "Heroes and Villains" a "nuclear disaster" and that "being basically masochists, [The Beach Boys] kind of enjoyed having this record bomb." Love also assures the listener that "it's all in fun," despite it harshly criticizing Wilson's musical ability and commercial shortcomings; the recording ends with Love thanking the listener for coming to the Beach Boys' stage performance and throwing objects at the group. Although the track was meant to be taken lightheartedly, it can be interpreted as a reflection of Wilson's extremely low self-confidence as a musician at the time. The Beach Boys have released four different live versions of the song: on The Beach Boys in Concert; on , as part of a medley with "Cotton Fields"; on the Endless Harmony Soundtrack, and also on the Beach Boys Concert/Live in London twofer, as a bonus track. It is also on Al Jardine's Live in Las Vegas album. While Brian Wilson was absent from the touring section of the group, Jardine sang lead on this song. "Heroes and Villains" was included in the Beach Boys' 50th Anniversary Reunion Tour in 2012 with Wilson on lead, and was cited as one of the concert highlights. The Beach Boys Mike Love – harmony and backing vocals, Al Jardine – harmony and backing vocals, Brian Wilson – lead, harmony and backing vocals, organ, Carl Wilson – harmony and backing vocals, Dennis Wilson – harmony and backing vocals Additional musicians Billy Hinsche - harmony and backing vocals, Hal Blaine – drums, Carol Kaye – bass, Lyle Ritz – string bass, Larry Knechtel – harpsichord Outtake musicians A brief adaptation of the 1953 song "Gee" by the Crows was recorded by the Beach Boys to serve as an introduction to an unused "Heroes and Villains" vocal motif involving the band singing the lyrics "dit — dit — dit — heroes and villains" in unison. With its master tape labelled "Heroes and Villains: Part 2", the Beach Boys recorded follow-up variations of the piece titled "Part 3" and "Part 4". "I'm in Great Shape" and "Barnyard" were both considered for inclusion in "Heroes and Villains". Within surviving acetates unearthed in 2013, it's evident that Brian Wilson experimented with incorporating recorded sections of "I'm in Great Shape" as part of the projected "Heroes and Villains" single. A number of arrangements for "I'm in Great Shape" were attempted, each featuring significantly different instrumentation. Lyrics were penned for both songs, but never recorded by the group on recordings which have survived. However, "Barnyard" does feature animal noises roared by Wilson's Smile coterie. Participant Danny Hutton recalls: "Actually, the girl I was going with, June Fairchild, she was making all these noises. That was before the Beatles did 'Good Morning Good Morning'." In reference to both songs, Parks said: Brian stated at one point that there were intentions for what was known as "The Barnyard Suite", explaining: "[It] was going to be four songs—in four short pieces—combined together, but we never finished that one. We got into something else." In his 2004 live performances of Smile, "I'm in Great Shape" begins the third movement of the album, but on The Smile Sessions, it is presented earlier in the first movement as the link between "Do You Like Worms?" and "Barnyard". Brian Wilson Presents Smile music director Darian Sahanaja has explained: A medley of the traditional pop standards "The Old Master Painter" and "You Are My Sunshine" was recorded and considered for inclusion in "Heroes and Villains" under the label "My Only Sunshine". On "My Only Sunshine", Dennis and Brian Wilson bookend the lead vocals. The ending of "My Only Sunshine" is stylistically similar to a scrapped closing section for "Heroes and Villains", which ended up being restored in The Smile Sessions. During the recording which was engineered by Larry Levine and produced by Brian, the latter remarked that the session players should play as though they're far away, as the lyric suggests. Tying into the persistent spiritual themes in Smile, "The Old Master Painter" suggests God in the lyrics "painted the violets and the daffodils" and "then came his masterpiece and when he was through he smiled down from heaven and he gave me you". "You Are My Sunshine" ends with a string section descending to a low discordance where Brian used the adjectives "snappy" and "draggy" to instruct session players. When asked about "My Only Sunshine" in 2004, Parks could not remember having been involved with it. "Do You Like Worms?" contains prominent sections of the "Heroes and Villains" theme. In addition, the tracks "Vega-Tables" and "Love to Say Dada" began life as an interpolated section for "Heroes and Villains". 1997 – Forms, Smiling Pets, 2000 – Malcolm Ross, Caroline Now!, 2000 – Gary Usher, Add Some Music to Your Day: 1970 Symphonic Tribute to Brian Wilson (as " / Good Vibrations / Heroes and Villains"), 2002 – Phil Madeira, Making God Smile, 2010 – Van Dyke Parks with Clare and the Reasons, performed this song on radio appearances promoting their joint concert tour., 2011 – Salyu, s(o)un(d)beams+ (as "Our Prayer ~ Heroes And Villains") This song was used in the opening of Mr. Robot Season 4 Episode 11 'eXit'. 1966 and 1967 Smile sessionography Angry Boys is an Australian television mockumentary series written by and starring Chris Lilley, continuing the mockumentary style of his previous series. In Angry Boys, Lilley plays multiple characters: S.mouse, an American rapper; Jen, a manipulative Japanese mother; Blake Oakfield, a champion surfer; Ruth "Gran" Sims, a guard at a juvenile detention facility; and her teenage grandsons, South Australian twins Daniel and Nathan Sims. The series is a co-production between the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and US cable channel HBO, with a pre-sale to BBC Three in the United Kingdom. Filmed in Melbourne, Los Angeles and Tokyo, Angry Boys premièred on 11 May 2011 at 9:00 pm on ABC1. Executive producers Chris Lilley and Laura Waters brought together the same team of collaborators from Summer Heights High and to create six characters for the series. This included the casting director, director of photography, camera operators, art department, costume designer, make-up artist, location scout, 1st assistant director, composer and editor. On 25 August 2009, The Daily Telegraph reported that Lilley had planned to release a follow-up series to Summer Heights High, after years of working on the format. A casting call was held on 30 September 2009 for roles of an African-American female (aged 18–25) to play a model called LaFonda, an African-American male, (aged 50–65) to play a character called Carter, and a male Japanese-American professional skateboarder, (aged 16–20) to play Corey. On 2 October 2009, it was revealed that Lilley was searching for several American actors to appear in the series. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) also released details about the series, confirming that it would be called Angry Boys, and that it would be co-produced by the ABC and American network HBO. More than 3,500 people auditioned for roles, both actors and non-actors from Australia and overseas to find a wide range of looks, attitudes, races and ages for 89 main roles and 1,228 extras. Angry Boys was filmed over seven months in more than 70 locations across Australia, Los Angeles and Tokyo. The series was edited over a period of 12 months. A preview of the series premiered on 16 March 2011, introducing some of the new characters, and the return of identical twins Daniel and Nathan Sims from We Can Be Heroes. A preview was also shown during the Comic Relief benefit in the United Kingdom on 18 March 2011. During an interview with The Age in May 2011, Waters said that they wanted the series to be a "challenge" to make it more "fun" and believes that they have "taken everything to the next level". Angry Boys premiered on 11 May 2011 at 9:00 pm on ABC1. The theme music to Angry Boys was written and produced by Lilley. Bryony Marks helped Lilley arrange the theme music and produced all the incidental music in it. It was recorded over a number of sessions with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, with Lilley on grand piano for some pieces. Lilley also wrote and produced all the songs for the series, including S.mouse's rap songs, and recorded them in his home studio. There are six main characters featured in Angry Boys, all portrayed by Chris Lilley. Recurring characters from an earlier Chris Lilley series, , Nathan and Daniel are identical 17-year-old twins living on a small farm with their family in the fictional rural town of Dunt, South Australia; Daniel has been the man of the house since their dad died when they were 11. His dream is to rebuild the farm as a working sheep farm and run it with Nathan. Daniel and his mates enjoy doing mainies up and down Dunt's main street using his mum's Nissan Pulsar car. Nathan has only 10% of his hearing and is quiet, lonely and constantly harassed by Daniel; his response to everything is giving the finger. In the twins' bedroom is the "Wall of Legends", pictures of the people they consider their heroes: surfer Blake Oakfield; Japanese skater Tim Okazaki; US rapper S.mouse; bikini model Emily Chase; their late dad; and their Gran. During the show, Nathan makes a tribute video to S.mouse's song, "Poo on You" and gets himself in trouble with the local Dunt police. His hearing condition worsens and the authorities suggest that he should be sent to a deaf school in Adelaide for a two-year course. Daniel organises a "Legendary Farewell Party" for Nathan and invites all of their "Wall of Legends" heroes, enlisting Gran's help; later it's revealed that her mental condition caused her to forget to invite them, as she tells Daniel via Skype. But much to everyone's surprise, Oakfield, Okazaki, and S.mouse actually do show up at the party. S.mouse (born Shwayne Jnr.), is a 24-year-old African American rap artist from Los Angeles, California. He is known for releasing the biggest-selling hip hop single of all time, "Slap My Elbow". S.mouse claims he was an "underprivileged black kid from the slums", but it's revealed he comes from a wealthy suburban background in Calabasas, California. His father, Shwayne Snr. (Richard Lawson), reveals that he went to a predominantly white private school, sang gospel music at church, and begged him for the Wicked soundtrack. S.mouse spends most of his time hanging out with his best friend Danthony (Clyde Boraine). During the show, S.mouse finds himself under pressure from his record company over his self-penned YouTube released song, "Poo on You", the music video for which features him defecating on a police car. He later makes an online apology to his fans and is put under house arrest at his parents' house for two months, during which he receives a demo of the record company's song "Gingerbread S.mouse" and expresses great dislike of the track. He then decides to release a new single called "Grandmother Fucker". The song's music video features an appearance by S.mouse's grandmother, which angers his father. Later his manager phones to inform him that he has been dropped from the record company due to the video receiving a large number of complaints. S.mouse then sets up a home studio to work on his own music for his new album, The Real Me, to be executively produced by Danthony and released independently. Following the album's launch to a crowd who are less than pleased, S.mouse realises that he isn't really expressing the real him and decides to read Daniel's letter about an Aborigine child named Wally who was crushed by a truck. He writes a song about the incident called "Squashed Nigga" and decides to sing the song instead of rapping it. Following the song's release, S.mouse re-invents himself under the name Shwayne Jnr. Jen Okazaki is a softly-spoken Japanese wife and mother of three who moved with her family from Japan to Santa Barbara, California in the United States for a better life. She focuses mainly on turning her first son Tim Okazaki into a skateboarding champion. Deciding that she can promote his career better from Tokyo, she moves the family back to Japan. She markets him not only as a cute Japanese boy but also as a homosexual. She builds a successful empire around Tim's skateboarding success, "GayStyle Enterprises", in which she sells phallic whistles, perfume dispensers, water bottles and scrubbing brushes. During the show, Jen takes Tim to see the doctors and finds out that he is overworked and depressed. She tries to get Tim more relaxed and decides to take some of his responsibilities. She also gets Tim a dog named Gay Dog, which she claims is "the first ever gay dog". Jen wants Tim to become best friends with the dog and to teach it how to skate. Later on the show, Tim reveals to his fans on his website that he is straight and has a girlfriend, with whom he has been having a secret relationship for several months. In a fit of anger, Jen runs away from home, leaving a note behind which threatens that she will kill herself and Gay Dog if Tim doesn't reclaim he is gay. Jen is later dumped as Tim's manager and is replaced by Bruce (Billy Loh). They all move back to Santa Barbara, California and live in separate houses. Tim gets his own place near the beach and buys a family home for Jen, his father, and his two younger siblings. Jen does not enjoy the suburban lifestyle and hates being a household mum. Never to be defeated, Jen begins training her second son, Luke, to become the next golfing superstar. Ruth Sims, commonly referred to as "Gran", is Daniel and Nathan's 65-year-old grandmother who works as a prison officer at the Sydney Garingal Juvenile Justice Centre for teenage boys. Gran has been employed there for 25 years. She lives in a house within the premises with her co-worker Penny (Alison Roy). Gran describes herself as being "tough" and likes to think she is a mother figure for the inmates. However, she tends to show her love in many awful ways too, through the use of insults and swearing at the boys during altercations she does, however, care for the boys and act as someone they can talk to, and offers them support. Gran also looks after 23 guinea pigs; Pauline, Patch, Lucy, Henry, Fudge, Narelle, Jaffles, Kerry Anne, Ken, Ruffles, Princess Mary, Courtney, Keith, Pia and the Babies, Trizzy, Joyce, Darrel, Sonia, Ratty, Bok Choy and Parsley. Her favorite is named after the television presenter Kerri-Anne. During the show she displays a lack of political correctness, during the first episode she divides the inmates into two teams of "light skins" and "dark skins" for a football game. She also has said statements such as "I thought wogs were good at soccer." and "Get your lazy aboriginal ass up off the couch." Gran also plays her favorite game with the boys called "gotcha", in which she tricks one of the inmates into believing that he's about to be released, and tells lies such as that an inmate has gotten the news he'll be executed via the Electric Chair, then says "Gotcha." She also keeps them entertained with "Friday Night Song Night", where she performs various songs. Gran forms a close bond with new inmate Talib (Jake Glass), who was sent to the Garingal Juvenile Justice Centre for "wanking a dog". She tries to help make his life easier, as the rest of the inmates constantly harass him and the fact He hardly talks and constantly gets bullied by the other inmates. Gran reveals to Talib that she has Alzheimer's disease in a bid to get him to talk to her, and after he claims his mum doesn't visit him because she hates him. Later on the show, her guinea pig Kerri-Anne is found dead near the guinea pig hutches. Believing that Talib caused her death, the other inmates bully him more than ever; finally pushed to his limit, he beats up another named inmate Marlon and Gran is forced to give him two days in the Isolation Unit. Gran mistakenly gives Talib and another "Iso" inmate Justin extra bedsheets, which Justin uses for a suicide attempt. Now worried that Talib will do the same, Gran removes him from "Iso" early and Garingal's head officer informs her that she must retire because of her Alzheimer's. She moves to Dunt to live with her family. Blake Oakfield is a 38-year-old former champion surfer from the fictional town of Narmucca Bay, New South Wales, now a husband and a stepfather of two. He's dedicated to the surf gang he founded as a young man, the Mucca Mad Boys. Many of Narmucca's locals dislike him and his gang because they're known to cause trouble. Oakfield feels that his surfing career wasn't the same after he had his testicles shot and amputated after a gang fight with their enemy, the Fennel Hell Men, so he quit. He claims that his current occupation is keeping Narmucca Bay safe from the Fennel Hell Men. During the show Oakfield sets up a Fat Boys Surf School to not only teach young boys to enjoy the beauty of the ocean and to improve their confidence. But when one of the boys gets injured, Oakfield cancels the school. He ends up getting arrested after wrongly being accused of shooting Packo (Gareth Haeberle), the Fennel Hell Men's leader. His pregnant wife Kareena (Sarah Sutherland) eventually leaves him and goes to Sydney with their children. Oakfield's mate Hunter (Paul Pearson) moves in with him and he and the other Mucca Mad Boys try to cheer up Oakfield, who is distraught about losing his family. After attending the court case hearing with Packo, it is revealed that Oakfield's mate and former Mucca Mad Boy member, Ashley (Christian Stack), was responsible for the shooting and is sent back to prison. Oakfield undergoes the artificial testicles operation and reopens the Fat Boys Surf School with the other Mucca Mad Boys members helping out. Kareena also returns and has already given birth to their third child, Tyrone. Oakfield decides to surf again and wants to do the Billabong Legends of Surfing Tour. He believes that his new artificial testicles have made him confident again. Kerry (Debbie Jones) – Daniel and Nathan's mother., Steve (Greg Fairall) – Kerry's husband, Daniel and Nathan's step-father., Tyson (Liam Keltie) – Daniel and Nathan's younger brother., Jamie (Samuel Cooke) – Daniel and Nathan's younger brother., Julia (Virginia Cashmere) – Daniel and Nathan's younger sister., Tim Okazaki (Jordan Dang) – The son of Jen Okazaki. Jen is Tim's manager and she trains and pushes him into becoming a skateboarding champion. Jen markets him as a cute Japanese boy and a homosexual. However, during the show, Tim reveals he's actually American, and speaks with a fake Japanese accent and is not gay at all. Tim struggles to reconcile his mother with the desire to be a normal teenager., Danthony (Clyde Boraine) – S.mouse's best friend. He spends most of his time hanging out with S.mouse, and also is his producer when S.mouse is dropped by his record label., Lasquisha (Kristin Dione Metoyer) – S.mouse's girlfriend until episode 10., Shwayne Senior (Richard Lawson) – S.mouse's father., Talib (Jake Glass) – A new inmate at the Garingal Juvenile Justice Centre who rarely speaks. He is constantly bullied by the other inmates for masturbating a dog and is known as a "Dog Wanker". During the show, Talib forms a close bond with Gran., Kareena (Sarah Sutherland) – Blake's wife and mother of three. Kareena was pregnant over the majority of the series, but by the final episode she had already given birth to their third child, Tyrone., Hunter (Paul Pearson) – Blake's best mate and the second founding member of the surf gang, the Mucca Mad Boys. He is often found hanging out with Blake and has a Mucca Mad Boys tattoo., Penny (Alison Roy) – Works at the Garingal Juvenile Justice Centre. Penny is often nicknamed "Legs" due to her extreme height. She used to live and work with Gran, before Gran was forced to leave. S.mouse's song "Animal Zoo" was made available for digital download on the Australian iTunes Store on 26 May 2011. Another one of his songs, "Slap My Elbow" was released on 8 June 2011. The song debuted at number 93 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart on 13 June 2011, and peaked at number 37 the following week. It also peaked at number 13 on the ARIA Urban Singles Chart. S.mouse's third single, "Squashed Nigga", was released on 21 July 2011. It debuted at number 22 on the ARIA Urban Singles Chart, and has since peaked at #18. Following the broadcast of the last episode on 27 July 2011, the series' soundtrack was released the next day. It featured seventeen of S.mouse's songs, as well as the Angry Boys opening theme song, and nineteen videos. The album debuted at number 75 on the ARIA Albums Chart (on which it has since entered the top 50 and peaked at #36), and number 16 on the ARIA Urban Albums Chart, where it has since peaked at #9. The series was also released on DVD, featuring twelve of its episodes, deleted scenes, bloopers, and S.mouse music videos. The soundtrack would win the ARIA Award for Best Original Soundtrack Album on 27 November 2011. Angry Boys has received generally mixed reviews. The show's premiere was highly anticipated, with "Angry Boys" and "Gran" becoming worldwide trending topics on Twitter as the first episode went to air. It was met with enthusiasm by many, who declared it "worth the wait", but others complained about excessive swearing and a general lack of funniness. It was also criticised on talkback radio the next day, with some callers describing it as "racist, homophobic, and offensive". Among critics, the premiere episode also garnered a mixed reception. Karl Quinn of The Age wrote, "Chris Lilley's Angry Boys is bold, aggressive, unafraid to trample on some very shaky ground. But on the basis of last night's opening episode, it's hard to conclude that it's especially funny. Yet." Darren Devlyn of News.com.au said that it had "flashes of artistic brilliance" but felt "disappointed that there weren't more laughs." Holly Byrnes and Shoba Rao of The Daily Telegraph praised the show, writing, "pushing the boundaries of political correctness to breaking point, Lilley has delivered exactly what his fans expect – and why TV critics have hailed him an 'outrageous comic genius'." However, they also expressed concerns that younger viewers would not grasp the show's satirical nature. The premiere episode of Angry Boys achieved an audience of 1,368,000. It also served as ABC1's most popular program of 2011. The second episode saw a slight drop in ratings with 1,346,000 viewers, although the series remained the highest-rating show in its timeslot. The third episode only managed 805,000 viewers and placed fourteenth overall for the night. It aired simultaneously with the State of Origin Rugby League, which topped the nights overall ratings. The fourth episode reached an audience of 920,000. The fifth episode only managed 848,000 viewers and placed sixteenth overall for the night. The sixth episode had 569,000 viewers tuning in. The seventh episode picked up slightly in viewers from the previous week with 634,000 tuning in, however, the eighth episode dropped to 591,000 viewers. The ninth episode reached an audience of 391,000, becoming the lowest ratings for an episode of the series, although it aired against the third and final State of Origin game for 2011, which achieved close to 2.5 million viewers nationwide. The tenth episode picked up slightly with 453,000 viewers and was ranked twenty-third overall. The eleventh episode achieved an audience of 465,000. The twelfth and final episode picked up slightly in viewers from the previous four weeks, with 612,000 viewers tuning in. Angry Boys – ABC TV, Angry Boys – HBO

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The history of the United States, a country in North America, started with the arrival of Native Americans in the United States from before 15,000 B.C. Numerous indigenous cultures formed, and many disappeared before 1500. The arrival of Christopher Columbus in the year 1492 started the European colonization of the Americas. Most colonies were formed after 1600, and the early records and writings of John Winthrop make the United States the first nation whose most distant origins are fully recorded. By the 1760s, the thirteen British colonies contained 2.5 million people along the Atlantic Coast east of the Appalachian Mountains. After defeating France, the British government imposed a series of taxes, including the Stamp Act of 1765, rejecting the colonists' constitutional argument that new taxes needed their approval. Resistance to these taxes, especially the Boston Tea Party in 1773, led to Parliament issuing punitive laws designed to end self-government in Massachusetts. Armed conflict began in 1775. In 1776 in Philadelphia, the Second Continental Congress declared the independence of the colonies as the United States. Led by General George Washington, it won the Revolutionary War with large support from France. The peace treaty of 1783 gave the land east of the Mississippi River (except Canada and Florida) to the new nation. The Articles of Confederation established a central government, but it was ineffectual at providing stability as it could not collect taxes and had no executive officer. A convention in 1787 wrote a new Constitution that was adopted in 1789. In 1791, a Bill of Rights was added to guarantee inalienable rights. With Washington as the first president and Alexander Hamilton his chief adviser, a strong central government was created. Purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803 doubled the size of the United States. A second and final war with Britain was fought in 1812, which solidified national pride. Encouraged by the notion of manifest destiny, U.S. territory expanded all the way to the Pacific Coast. While the United States was large in terms of area, by 1790 its population was only 4 million. It grew rapidly, however, reaching 7.2 million in 1810, 32 million in 1860, 76 million in 1900, 132 million in 1940, and 321 million in 2015. Economic growth in terms of overall GDP was even greater. Compared to European powers, though, the nation's military strength was relatively limited in peacetime before 1940. Westward expansion was driven by a quest for inexpensive land for yeoman farmers and slave owners. The expansion of slavery was increasingly controversial and fueled political and constitutional battles, which were resolved by compromises. Slavery was abolished in all states north of the Mason–Dixon line by 1804, but the South continued to profit from the institution, mostly from the production of cotton. Republican Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860 on a platform of halting the expansion of slavery. Seven Southern slave states rebelled and created the foundation of the Confederacy. Its attack of Fort Sumter against the Union forces there in 1861 started the Civil War. Defeat of the Confederates in 1865 led to the impoverishment of the South and the abolition of slavery. In the Reconstruction era following the war, legal and voting rights were extended to freed slaves. The national government emerged much stronger, and because of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868, it gained explicit duty to protect individual rights. However, when white Democrats regained their power in the South in 1877, often by paramilitary suppression of voting, they passed Jim Crow laws to maintain white supremacy, as well as new disenfranchising state constitutions that prevented most African Americans and many poor whites from voting. This continued until the gains of the civil rights movement in the 1960s and the passage of federal legislation to enforce constitutional rights. The United States became the world's leading industrial power at the turn of the 20th century, due to an outburst of entrepreneurship and industrialization in the Northeast and Midwest and the arrival of millions of immigrant workers and farmers from Europe. The national railroad network was completed and large-scale mines and factories were established. Mass dissatisfaction with corruption, inefficiency, and traditional politics stimulated the Progressive movement, from the 1890s to 1920s. This era led to many reforms, including the Sixteenth to Nineteenth constitutional amendments, which brought the federal income tax, direct election of Senators, prohibition, and women's suffrage. Initially neutral during World War I, the United States declared war on Germany in 1917 and funded the Allied victory the following year. Women obtained the right to vote in 1920, with Native Americans obtaining citizenship and the right to vote in 1924. After a prosperous decade in the 1920s, the Wall Street Crash of 1929 marked the onset of the decade-long worldwide Great Depression. Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt ended the Republican dominance of the White House and implemented his New Deal programs, which included relief for the unemployed, support for farmers, Social Security and a minimum wage. The New Deal defined modern American liberalism. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the United States entered World War II and financed the Allied war effort and helped defeat Nazi Germany in the European theater. Its involvement culminated in using newly-invented nuclear weapons on two Japanese cities to defeat Imperial Japan in the Pacific theater. The United States and the Soviet Union emerged as rival superpowers in the aftermath of World War II. During the Cold War, the two countries confronted each other indirectly in the arms race, the Space Race, proxy wars, and propaganda campaigns. The goal of the United States in this was to stop the spread of communism. In the 1960s, in large part due to the strength of the civil rights movement, another wave of social reforms was enacted which enforced the constitutional rights of voting and freedom of movement to African Americans and other racial minorities. The Cold War ended when the Soviet Union was officially dissolved in 1991, leaving the United States as the world's only superpower. After the Cold War, the United States has been focusing on modern conflicts in the Middle East. The beginning of the 21st century saw the September 11 attacks carried out by Al-Qaeda in 2001, which was later followed by wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In 2007, the United States entered its worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, which was followed by slower-than-usual rates of economic growth during the early 2010s. However, in the late 2010s and early 2020s, economic growth increased significantly. It is not definitively known how or when Native Americans first settled the Americas and the present-day United States. The prevailing theory proposes that people from Eurasia followed game across Beringia, a land bridge that connected Siberia to present-day Alaska during the Ice Age, and then spread southward throughout the Americas. This migration may have begun as early as 30,000 years ago and continued through to about 10,000 years ago, when the land bridge became submerged by the rising sea level caused by the melting glaciers. These early inhabitants, called Paleo-Indians, soon diversified into hundreds of culturally distinct nations and tribes. This pre-Columbian era incorporates all periods in the history of the Americas before the appearance of European influences on the American continents, spanning from the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during the early modern period. While the term technically refers to the era before Christopher Columbus' voyage in 1492, in practice the term usually includes the history of American indigenous cultures until they were conquered or significantly influenced by Europeans, even if this happened decades or centuries after Columbus's initial landing. By 10,000 BCE, humans were relatively well-established throughout North America. Originally, Paleo-Indian hunted Ice Age megafauna like mammoths, but as they began to go extinct, people turned instead to bison as a food source. As time went on, foraging for berries and seeds became an important alternative to hunting. Paleo-Indians in central Mexico were the first in the Americas to farm, starting to plant corn, beans, and squash around 8,000 BCE. Eventually, the knowledge began to spread northward. By 3,000 BCE, corn was being grown in the valleys of Arizona and New Mexico, followed by primitive irrigation systems and early villages of the Hohokam. One of the earliest cultures in the present-day United States was the Clovis culture, who are primarily identified by the use of fluted spear points called the Clovis point. From 9,100 to 8,850 BCE, the culture ranged over much of North America and also appeared in South America. Artifacts from this culture were first excavated in 1932 near Clovis, New Mexico. The Folsom culture was similar, but is marked by the use of the Folsom point. A later migration identified by linguists, anthropologists, and archeologists occurred around 8,000 BCE. This included Na-Dene-speaking peoples, who reached the Pacific Northwest by 5,000 BCE. From there, they migrated along the Pacific Coast and into the interior and constructed large multi-family dwellings in their villages, which were used only seasonally in the summer to hunt and fish, and in the winter to gather food supplies. Another group, the Oshara Tradition people, who lived from 5,500 BCE to 600 CE, were part of the Archaic Southwest. The Adena began constructing large earthwork mounds around 600 BCE. They are the earliest known people to have been mound builders, however, there are mounds in the United States that predate this culture. Watson Brake is an 11-mound complex in Louisiana that dates to 3,500 BCE, and nearby Poverty Point, built by the Poverty Point culture, is an earthwork complex that dates to 1,700 BCE. These mounds likely served a religious purpose. The Adenans were absorbed into the Hopewell tradition, a powerful people who traded tools and goods across a wide territory. They continued the Adena tradition of mound building, with remnants of several thousand still in existence across the core of their former territory in southern Ohio. The Hopewell pioneered a trading system called the Hopewell Exchange System, which at its greatest extent ran from the present-day Southeast up to the Canadian side of Lake Ontario. By 500 CE, the Hopewellians had too disappeared, absorbed into the larger Mississippian culture. The Mississippians were a broad group of tribes. Their most important city was Cahokia, near modern-day St. Louis, Missouri. At its peak in the 12th century, the city had an estimated population of 20,000, larger than the population of London at the time. The entire city was centered around a mound that stood tall. Cahokia, like many other cities and villages of the time, depended on hunting, foraging, trading, and agriculture, and developed a class system with slaves and human sacrifice that was influenced by societies to the south, like the Mayans. In the Southwest, the Anasazi began constructing stone and adobe pueblos around 900 BCE. These apartment- like structures were often built into cliff faces, as seen in the Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde. Some grew to be the size of cities, with Pueblo Bonito along the Chaco River in New Mexico once consisting of 800 rooms. The indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest were likely the most affluent Native Americans. Many distinct cultural and political nations developed there, but they all shared certain beliefs traditions, and practices, such as the centrality of salmon as a resource and spiritual symbol. Permanent villages began to develop in this region as early as 1,000 BCE, and these communities celebrated by the gift-giving feast of the potlatch. These gatherings were usually organized to commemorate special events such as the raising of a Totem pole of the celebration of a new chief. In present-day upstate New York, the Iroquois formed a confederacy of tribal nations in the mid-15th century, consisting of the Oneida, Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca. Their system of affiliation was a kind of federation, different from the strong, centralized European monarchies. Each tribe had seats in a group of 50 sachem chiefs. It has been suggested that their culture contributed to political thinking during the development of the United States government. The Iroquois were powerful, waging war with many neighboring tribes, and later, Europeans. As their territory expanded, smaller tribes were forced further west, including the Osage, Kaw, Ponca, and Omaha peoples. Polynesians began to settle in the Hawaiian Islands between the 1st and 10th centuries. Around 1200 CE, Tahitian explorers found and began settling the area as well. This marked the rise of the Hawaiian civilization, which would be largely separated from the rest of the world until the arrival of the British 600 years later. Europeans under the British explorer James Cook arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in 1778, and within five years of contact, European military technology would help Kamehameha I conquer most of the people, and eventually unify the islands for the first time; establishing the Hawaiian Kingdom. After a period of exploration sponsored by major European nations, the first successful English settlement was established in 1607. Europeans brought horses, cattle, and hogs to the Americas and, in turn, took back maize, turkeys, tomatoes, potatoes, tobacco, beans, and squash to Europe. Many explorers and early settlers died after being exposed to new diseases in the Americas. However, the effects of new Eurasian diseases carried by the colonists, especially smallpox and measles, were much worse for the Native Americans, as they had no immunity to them. They suffered epidemics and died in very large numbers, usually before large-scale European settlement began. Their societies were disrupted and hollowed out by the scale of deaths. Spanish explorers were the first Europeans to reach the present-day United States, after Christopher Columbus's expeditions beginning in 1492 established possessions in the Caribbean. Juan Ponce de León landed in Florida in 1513. Spanish expeditions quickly reached the Appalachian Mountains, the Mississippi River, the Grand Canyon, and the Great Plains. In 1539, Hernando de Soto extensively explored the Southeast, and a year later Francisco Coronado explored from Arizona to central Kansas in search of golds. Escaped horses from Coronado's party spread over the Great Plains, and the Plains Indians mastered horsemanship within a few generations. Small Spanish settlements eventually grew to become important cities, such as San Antonio, Albuquerque, Tucson, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The Dutch West India Company sent explorer Henry Hudson to search for a Northwest Passage to Asia in 1609. New Netherland was established in 1621 by the company to capitalize on the North American fur trade. Growth was slow at first due to mismanagement by the Dutch and Native American conflicts. After the Dutch purchased the island of Manhattan from the Native Americans for a reported price of US$24, the land was named New Amsterdam and became the capital of New Netherland. The town rapidly expanded and in the mid 1600s and it became an important trading center and port. Despite being Calvinists and building the Reformed Church in America, the Dutch were tolerant of other religions and cultures and traded with the Iroquois to the north. The colony served as a barrier to British expansion from New England, and as a result a series of wars were fought. The colony was taken over by Britain in 1664 and its capital was renamed New York City. New Netherland left an enduring legacy on American cultural and political life of religious tolerance and sensible trade in urban areas and rural traditionalism in the countryside (typified by the story of Rip Van Winkle). Notable Americans of Dutch descent include Martin Van Buren, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt and the Frelinghuysens. Giovanni da Verrazzano landed in North Carolina in 1524, and was the first European to sail into New York Harbor and Narragansett Bay. A decade later, Jacques Cartier sailed in search of the Northwest Passage, but instead discovered the Saint Lawrence River and laid the foundation for French colonization of the Americas in New France. After the collapse of the first Quebec colony in the 1540s, French Huguenots settled at Fort Caroline near present-day Jacksonville in Florida. In 1565, Spanish forces led by Pedro Menéndez destroyed the settlement and established the first European settlement in what would become the United States — St. Augustine. After this, the French mostly remained in Quebec and Acadia, but far-reaching trade relationships with Native Americans throughout the Great Lakes and Midwest spread their influence. French colonists in small villages along the Mississippi and Illinois rivers lived in farming communities that served as a grain source for Gulf Coast settlements. The French established plantations in Louisiana along with settling New Orleans, Mobile and Biloxi. The English, drawn in by Francis Drake's raids on Spanish treasure ships leaving the New World, settled the strip of land along the east coast in the 1600s. The first British colony in North America was established at Roanoke by Walter Raleigh in 1585, but failed. It would be twenty years before another attempt. The early British colonies were established by private groups seeking profit, and were marked by starvation, disease, and Native American attacks. Many immigrants were people seeking religious freedom or escaping political oppression, peasants displaced by the Industrial Revolution, or those simply seeking adventure and opportunity. In some areas, Native Americans taught colonists how to plant and harvest the native crops. In others, they attacked the settlers. Virgin forests provided an ample supply of building material and firewood. Natural inlets and harbors lined the coast, providing easy ports for essential trade with Europe. Settlements remained close to the coast due to this as well as Native American resistance and the Appalachian Mountains that were found in the interior. The first successful English colony, Jamestown, was established by the Virginia Company in 1607 on the James River in Virginia. The colonists were preoccupied with the search for gold and were ill-equipped for life in the New World. Captain John Smith held the fledgling Jamestown together in the first year, and the colony descended into anarchy and nearly failed when he returned to England two years later. John Rolfe began experimenting with tobacco from the West Indies in 1612, and by 1614 the first shipment arrived in London. It became Virginia's chief source of revenue within a decade. In 1624, after years of disease and Indian attacks, including the Powhatan attack of 1622, King James I revoked the Virginia Company's charter and made Virginia a royal colony. New England was initially settled primarily by Puritans fleeing religious persecution. The Pilgrims sailed for Virginia on the Mayflower in 1620, but were knocked off course by a storm and landed at Plymouth, where they agreed to a social contract of rules in the Mayflower Compact. Like Jamestown, Plymouth suffered from disease and starvation, but local Wampanoag Indians taught the colonists how to farm maize. Plymouth was followed by the Puritans and Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. They maintained a charter for self- government separate from England, and elected founder John Winthrop as the governor for most of its early years. Roger Williams opposed Winthrop's treatment of Native Americans and religious intolerance, and established the colony of Providence Plantations, later Rhode Island, on the basis of freedom of religion. Other colonists established settlements in the Connecticut River Valley, and on the coasts of present-day New Hampshire and Maine. Native American attacks continued, with the most significant occurring in the 1637 Pequot War and the 1675 King Philip's War. New England became a center of commerce and industry due to the poor, mountainous soil making agriculture difficult. Rivers were harnessed to power grain mills and sawmills, and the numerous harbors facilitated trade. Tight-knit villages developed around these industrial centers, and Boston became one of America's most important ports. In the 1660s, the Middle Colonies of New York, New Jersey, and Delaware were established in the former Dutch New Netherland, and were characterized by a large degree of ethnic and religious diversity. At the same time, the Iroquois of New York, strengthened by years of fur trading with Europeans, formed the powerful Iroquois Confederacy. The last colony in this region was Pennsylvania, established in 1681 by William Penn as a home for religious dissenters, including Quakers, Methodists, and the Amish. The capital of colony, Philadelphia, became a dominant commercial center in a few short years, with busy docks and brick houses. While Quakers populated the city, German immigrants began to flood into the Pennsylvanian hills and forests, while the Scots-Irish pushed into the far western frontier. The extremely rural Southern Colonies contrasted greatly with the north. Outside of Virginia, the first British colony south of New England was Maryland, established as a Catholic haven in 1632. The economy of these two colonies was built entirely on yeoman farmers and planters. The planters established themselves in the Tidewater region of Virginia, establishing massive plantations with slave labor, while the small-scale farmers made their way into political office. In 1670, the Province of Carolina was established, and Charleston became the region's great trading port. While Virginia's economy was based on tobacco, Carolina was much more diversified, exporting rice, indigo, and lumber as well. In 1712 the colony was split in half, creating North and South Carolina. The Georgia Colony – the last of the Thirteen Colonies – was established by James Oglethorpe in 1732 as a border to Spanish Florida and a reform colony for former prisoners and the poor. Religiosity expanded greatly after the First Great Awakening, a religious revival in the 1740s led by preachers such as Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield. American Evangelicals affected by the Awakening added a new emphasis on divine outpourings of the Holy Spirit and conversions that implanted new believers with an intense love for God. Revivals encapsulated those hallmarks and carried the newly created evangelicalism into the early republic, setting the stage for the Second Great Awakening in the late 1790s. In the early stages, evangelicals in the South, such as Methodists and Baptists, preached for religious freedom and abolition of slavery; they converted many slaves and recognized some as preachers. Each of the 13 American colonies had a slightly different governmental structure. Typically, a colony was ruled by a governor appointed from London who controlled the executive administration and relied upon a locally elected legislature to vote on taxes and make laws. By the 18th century, the American colonies were growing very rapidly as a result of low death rates along with ample supplies of land and food. The colonies were richer than most parts of Britain, and attracted a steady flow of immigrants, especially teenagers who arrived as indentured servants. Over half of all European immigrants to Colonial America arrived as indentured servants. Few could afford the cost of the journey to America, and so this form of unfree labor provided a means to immigrate. Typically, people would sign a contract agreeing to a set term of labor, usually four to seven years, and in return would receive transport to the America and a piece of land at the end of their servitude. In some cases, ships' captains received rewards for the delivery of poor migrants, and so extravagant promises and kidnapping were common. The Virginia Company and the Massachusetts Bay Company also utilized indentured servant labor. The first African slaves were brought to Virginia from the British West Indies in 1619, just twelve years after the founding of Jamestown. Initially regarded as indentured servants who could buy their freedom, the institution of slavery began to harden and the involuntary servitude became lifelong as the demand for labor on tobacco and rice plantations grew in the 1660s. Slavery became identified with brown skin color, at the time seen as a "black race", and the children of slave women were born slaves (partus sequitur ventrem). By the 1770s African slaves comprised a fifth of the American population. The question of independence from Britain did not arise as long as the colonies needed British military support against the French and Spanish powers. Those threats were gone by 1765. London, however, continued to regard the American colonies as existing for the benefit of the mother country in a policy is known as mercantilism. Colonial America was defined by a severe labor shortage that utilized forms of unfree labor, such as slavery and indentured servitude.The British colonies were also marked by a policy of avoiding strict enforcement of parliamentary laws, known as salutary neglect. This permitted the development of an American spirit distinct from that of its European founders. An upper-class emerged in South Carolina and Virginia, with wealth based on large plantations operated by slave labor. A unique class system operated in upstate New York, where Dutch tenant farmers rented land from very wealthy Dutch proprietors, such as the Van Rensselaer family. The other colonies were more egalitarian, with Pennsylvania being representative. By the mid-18th century Pennsylvania was basically a middle-class colony with limited respect for its small upper-class. A writer in the Pennsylvania Journal in 1756 summed it up: The People of this Province are generally of the middling Sort, and at present pretty much upon a Level. They are chiefly industrious Farmers, Artificers or Men in Trade; they enjoy in are fond of Freedom, and the meanest among them thinks he has a right to Civility from the greatest. The French and Indian War (1754–63), part of the larger Seven Years' War, was a watershed event in the political development of the colonies. The influence of the French and Native Americans, the main rivals of the British Crown in the colonies and Canada, was significantly reduced and the territory of the Thirteen Colonies expanded into New France, both in Canada and Louisiana. The war effort also resulted in greater political integration of the colonies, as reflected in the Albany Congress and symbolized by Benjamin Franklin's call for the colonies to "Join, or Die". Franklin was a man of many inventions – one of which was the concept of a United States of America, which emerged after 1765 and would be realized a decade later. Following Britain's acquisition of French territory in North America, King George III issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763, with the goal of organizing the new North American empire and protecting the Native Americans from colonial expansion into western lands beyond the Appalachian Mountains. In following years, strains developed in the relations between the colonists and the Crown. The British Parliament passed the Stamp Act of 1765, imposing a tax on the colonies, without going through the colonial legislatures. The issue was drawn: did Parliament have the right to tax Americans who were not represented in it? Crying "No taxation without representation", the colonists refused to pay the taxes as tensions escalated in the late 1760s and early 1770s. The Boston Tea Party in 1773 was a direct action by activists in the town of Boston to protest against the new tax on tea. Parliament quickly responded the next year with the Intolerable Acts, stripping Massachusetts of its historic right of self-government and putting it under military rule, which sparked outrage and resistance in all thirteen colonies. Patriot leaders from every colony convened the First Continental Congress to coordinate their resistance to the Intolerable Acts. The Congress called for a boycott of British trade, published a list of rights and grievances, and petitioned the king to rectify those grievances. This appeal to the Crown had no effect, though, and so the Second Continental Congress was convened in 1775 to organize the defense of the colonies against the British Army. Common people became insurgents against the British even though they were unfamiliar with the ideological rationales being offered. They held very strongly a sense of "rights" that they felt the British were deliberately violating – rights that stressed local autonomy, fair dealing, and government by consent. They were highly sensitive to the issue of tyranny, which they saw manifested by the arrival in Boston of the British Army to punish the Bostonians. This heightened their sense of violated rights, leading to rage and demands for revenge, and they had faith that God was on their side. The American Revolutionary War began at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts in April 1775 when the British tried to seize ammunition supplies and arrest the Patriot leaders. In terms of political values, the Americans were largely united on a concept called Republicanism, which rejected aristocracy and emphasized civic duty and a fear of corruption. For the Founding Fathers, according to one team of historians, "republicanism represented more than a particular form of government. It was a way of life, a core ideology, an uncompromising commitment to liberty, and a total rejection of aristocracy." The Thirteen Colonies began a rebellion against British rule in 1775 and proclaimed their independence in 1776 as the United States of America. In the American Revolutionary War (1775–83) the Americans captured the British invasion army at Saratoga in 1777, secured the Northeast and encouraged the French to make a military alliance with the United States. France brought in Spain and the Netherlands, thus balancing the military and naval forces on each side as Britain had no allies. General George Washington (1732–99) proved an excellent organizer and administrator who worked successfully with Congress and the state governors, selecting and mentoring his senior officers, supporting and training his troops, and maintaining an idealistic Republican Army. His biggest challenge was logistics, since neither Congress nor the states had the funding to provide adequately for the equipment, munitions, clothing, paychecks, or even the food supply of the soldiers. As a battlefield tactician, Washington was often outmaneuvered by his British counterparts. As a strategist, however, he had a better idea of how to win the war than they did. The British sent four invasion armies. Washington's strategy forced the first army out of Boston in 1776, and was responsible for the surrender of the second and third armies at Saratoga (1777) and Yorktown (1781). He limited the British control to New York City and a few places while keeping Patriot control of the great majority of the population. The Loyalists, whom the British counted upon too heavily, comprised about 20% of the population but never were well organized. As the war ended, Washington watched proudly as the final British army quietly sailed out of New York City in November 1783, taking the Loyalist leadership with them. Washington astonished the world when, instead of seizing power for himself, he retired quietly to his farm in Virginia. Political scientist Seymour Martin Lipset observes, "The United States was the first major colony successfully to revolt against colonial rule. In this sense, it was the first 'new nation'." On July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, declared the independence of the colonies by adopting the resolution from Richard Henry Lee, that stated: On July 4, 1776 they adopted the Declaration of Independence and this date is celebrated as the nation's birthday. On September 9 of that year, Congress officially changed the nation's name to the United States of America. Until this point, the nation was known as the "United Colonies of America" The new nation was founded on Enlightenment ideals of liberalism and what Thomas Jefferson called the unalienable rights to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". It was dedicated strongly to republican principles, which emphasized that people are sovereign (not hereditary kings), demanded civic duty, feared corruption, and rejected any aristocracy. In the 1780s the national government was able to settle the issue of the western regions of the young United States, which were ceded by the states to Congress and became territories. With the migration of settlers to the Northwest, soon they became states. Nationalists worried that the new nation was too fragile to withstand an international war, or even internal revolts such as the Shays' Rebellion of 1786 in Massachusetts. Nationalists – most of them war veterans – organized in every state and convinced Congress to call the Philadelphia Convention in 1787. The delegates from every state wrote a new Constitution that created a much more powerful and efficient central government, one with a strong president, and powers of taxation. The new government reflected the prevailing republican ideals of guarantees of individual liberty and of constraining the power of government through a system of separation of powers. The Congress was given authority to ban the international slave trade after 20 years (which it did in 1807). A compromise gave the South Congressional apportionment out of proportion to its free population by allowing it to include three-fifths of the number of slaves in each state's total population. This provision increased the political power of southern representatives in Congress, especially as slavery was extended into the Deep South through removal of Native Americans and transportation of slaves by an extensive domestic trade. To assuage the Anti-Federalists who feared a too-powerful national government, the nation adopted the United States Bill of Rights in 1791. Comprising the first ten amendments of the Constitution, it guaranteed individual liberties such as freedom of speech and religious practice, jury trials, and stated that citizens and states had reserved rights (which were not specified). George Washington – a renowned hero of the American Revolutionary War, commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, and president of the Constitutional Convention – became the first President of the United States under the new Constitution in 1789. The national capital moved from New York to Philadelphia in 1790 and finally settled in Washington DC in 1800. The major accomplishments of the Washington Administration were creating a strong national government that was recognized without question by all Americans. His government, following the vigorous leadership of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, assumed the debts of the states (the debt holders received federal bonds), created the Bank of the United States to stabilize the financial system, and set up a uniform system of tariffs (taxes on imports) and other taxes to pay off the debt and provide a financial infrastructure. To support his programs Hamilton created a new political party – the first in the world based on voters – the Federalist Party. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison formed an opposition Republican Party (usually called the Democratic-Republican Party by political scientists). Hamilton and Washington presented the country in 1794 with the Jay Treaty that reestablished good relations with Britain. The Jeffersonians vehemently protested, and the voters aligned behind one party or the other, thus setting up the First Party System. Federalists promoted business, financial and commercial interests and wanted more trade with Britain. Republicans accused the Federalists of plans to establish a monarchy, turn the rich into a ruling class, and making the United States a pawn of the British. The treaty passed, but politics became intensely heated. Serious challenges to the new federal government included the Northwest Indian War, the ongoing Cherokee–American wars, and the 1794 Whiskey Rebellion, in which western settlers protested against a federal tax on liquor. Washington called out the state militia and personally led an army against the settlers, as the insurgents melted away and the power of the national government was firmly established. Washington refused to serve more than two terms – setting a precedent – and in his famous farewell address, he extolled the benefits of federal government and importance of ethics and morality while warning against foreign alliances and the formation of political parties. John Adams, a Federalist, defeated Jefferson in the 1796 election. War loomed with France and the Federalists used the opportunity to try to silence the Republicans with the Alien and Sedition Acts, build up a large army with Hamilton at the head, and prepare for a French invasion. However, the Federalists became divided after Adams sent a successful peace mission to France that ended the Quasi-War of 1798. During the first two decades after the Revolutionary War, there were dramatic changes in the status of slavery among the states and an increase in the number of freed blacks. Inspired by revolutionary ideals of the equality of men and influenced by their lesser economic reliance on slavery, northern states abolished slavery. States of the Upper South made manumission easier, resulting in an increase in the proportion of free blacks in the Upper South (as a percentage of the total non-white population) from less than one percent in 1792 to more than 10 percent by 1810. By that date, a total of 13.5 percent of all blacks in the United States were free. After that date, with the demand for slaves on the rise because of the Deep South's expanding cotton cultivation, the number of manumissions declined sharply; and an internal U.S. slave trade became an important source of wealth for many planters and traders. In 1809, president James Madison severed the US's involvement with the Atlantic slave trade. Jefferson's major achievement as president was the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, which provided U.S. settlers with vast potential for expansion west of the Mississippi River. Jefferson, a scientist himself, supported expeditions to explore and map the new domain, most notably the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Jefferson believed deeply in republicanism and argued it should be based on the independent yeoman farmer and planter; he distrusted cities, factories and banks. He also distrusted the federal government and judges, and tried to weaken the judiciary. However he met his match in John Marshall, a Federalist from Virginia. Although the Constitution specified a Supreme Court, its functions were vague until Marshall, the Chief Justice (1801–35), defined them, especially the power to overturn acts of Congress or states that violated the Constitution, first enunciated in 1803 in Marbury v. Madison. Thomas Jefferson defeated Adams for the presidency in the 1800 election. Americans were increasingly angry at the British violation of American ships' neutral rights in order to hurt France, the impressment (seizure) of 10,000 American sailors needed by the Royal Navy to fight Napoleon, and British support for hostile Indians attacking American settlers in the Midwest. They may also have desired to annex all or part of British North America. Despite strong opposition from the Northeast, especially from Federalists who did not want to disrupt trade with Britain, Congress declared war on June 18, 1812. The war was frustrating for both sides. Both sides tried to invade the other and were repulsed. The American high command remained incompetent until the last year. The American militia proved ineffective because the soldiers were reluctant to leave home and efforts to invade Canada repeatedly failed. The British blockade ruined American commerce, bankrupted the Treasury, and further angered New Englanders, who smuggled supplies to Britain. The Americans under General William Henry Harrison finally gained naval control of Lake Erie and defeated the Indians under Tecumseh in Canada, while Andrew Jackson ended the Indian threat in the Southeast. The Indian threat to expansion into the Midwest was permanently ended. The British invaded and occupied much of Maine. The British raided and burned Washington, but were repelled at Baltimore in 1814 – where the "Star Spangled Banner" was written to celebrate the American success. In upstate New York a major British invasion of New York State was turned back. Finally in early 1815 Andrew Jackson decisively defeated a major British invasion at the Battle of New Orleans, making him the most famous war hero. With Napoleon (apparently) gone, the causes of the war had evaporated and both sides agreed to a peace that left the prewar boundaries intact. Americans claimed victory on February 18, 1815 as news came almost simultaneously of Jackson's victory of New Orleans and the peace treaty that left the prewar boundaries in place. Americans swelled with pride at success in the "second war of independence"; the naysayers of the antiwar Federalist Party were put to shame and the party never recovered. The Indians were the big losers; they never gained the independent nationhood Britain had promised and no longer posed a serious threat as settlers poured into the Midwest. The Second Great Awakening was a Protestant revival movement that affected the entire nation during the early 19th century and led to rapid church growth. The movement began around 1790, gained momentum by 1800, and, after 1820 membership rose rapidly among Baptist and Methodist congregations, whose preachers led the movement. It was past its peak by the 1840s. It enrolled millions of new members in existing evangelical denominations and led to the formation of new denominations. Many converts believed that the Awakening heralded a new millennial age. The Second Great Awakening stimulated the establishment of many reform movements – including abolitionism and temperance designed to remove the evils of society before the anticipated Second Coming of Jesus Christ. As strong opponents of the war, the Federalists held the Hartford Convention in 1814 that hinted at disunion. National euphoria after the victory at New Orleans ruined the prestige of the Federalists and they no longer played a significant role as a political party. President Madison and most Republicans realized they were foolish to let the Bank of the United States close down, for its absence greatly hindered the financing of the war. So, with the assistance of foreign bankers, they chartered the Second Bank of the United States in 1816. The Republicans also imposed tariffs designed to protect the infant industries that had been created when Britain was blockading the U.S. With the collapse of the Federalists as a party, the adoption of many Federalist principles by the Republicans, and the systematic policy of President James Monroe in his two terms (1817–25) to downplay partisanship, the nation entered an Era of Good Feelings, with far less partisanship than before (or after), and closed out the First Party System. The Monroe Doctrine, expressed in 1823, proclaimed the United States' opinion that European powers should no longer colonize or interfere in the Americas. This was a defining moment in the foreign policy of the United States. The Monroe Doctrine was adopted in response to American and British fears over Russian and French expansion into the Western Hemisphere. In 1832, President Andrew Jackson, 7th President of the United States, ran for a second term under the slogan "Jackson and no bank" and did not renew the charter of the Second Bank of the United States of America, ending the Bank in 1836. Jackson was convinced that central banking was used by the elite to take advantage of the average American, and instead implemented state banks, popularly known as "pet banks". In 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, which authorized the president to negotiate treaties that exchanged Native American tribal lands in the eastern states for lands west of the Mississippi River. Its goal was primarily to remove Native Americans, including the Five Civilized Tribes, from the American Southeast; they occupied land that settlers wanted. Jacksonian Democrats demanded the forcible removal of native populations who refused to acknowledge state laws to reservations in the West; Whigs and religious leaders opposed the move as inhumane. Thousands of deaths resulted from the relocations, as seen in the Cherokee Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears resulted in approximately 2,000–8,000 of the 16,543 relocated Cherokee perishing along the way. Many of the Seminole Indians in Florida refused to move west; they fought the Army for years in the Seminole Wars. After the First Party System of Federalists and Republicans withered away in the 1820s, the stage was set for the emergence of a new party system based on well organized local parties that appealed for the votes of (almost) all adult white men. The former Jeffersonian (Democratic-Republican) party split into factions. They split over the choice of a successor to President James Monroe, and the party faction that supported many of the old Jeffersonian principles, led by Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren, became the Democratic Party. As Norton explains the transformation in 1828: Jacksonians believed the people's will had finally prevailed. Through a lavishly financed coalition of state parties, political leaders, and newspaper editors, a popular movement had elected the president. The Democrats became the nation's first well-organized national party...and tight party organization became the hallmark of nineteenth-century American politics. Opposing factions led by Henry Clay helped form the Whig Party. The Democratic Party had a small but decisive advantage over the Whigs until the 1850s, when the Whigs fell apart over the issue of slavery. Behind the platforms issued by state and national parties stood a widely shared political outlook that characterized the Democrats: The Democrats represented a wide range of views but shared a fundamental commitment to the Jeffersonian concept of an agrarian society. They viewed the central government as the enemy of individual liberty. The 1824 "corrupt bargain" had strengthened their suspicion of Washington politics. ... Jacksonians feared the concentration of economic and political power. They believed that government intervention in the economy benefited special- interest groups and created corporate monopolies that favored the rich. They sought to restore the independence of the individual (the "common man," i.e. the artisan and the ordinary farmer) by ending federal support of banks and corporations and restricting the use of paper currency, which they distrusted. Their definition of the proper role of government tended to be negative, and Jackson's political power was largely expressed in negative acts. He exercised the veto more than all previous presidents combined. Jackson and his supporters also opposed reform as a movement. Reformers eager to turn their programs into legislation called for a more active government. But Democrats tended to oppose programs like educational reform mid the establishment of a public education system. They believed, for instance, that public schools restricted individual liberty by interfering with parental responsibility and undermined freedom of religion by replacing church schools. Nor did Jackson share reformers' humanitarian concerns. He had no sympathy for American Indians, initiating the removal of the Cherokees along the Trail of Tears. The great majority of anti-slavery activists, such as Abraham Lincoln and Mr. Walters, rejected Garrison's theology and held that slavery was an unfortunate social evil, not a sin. The American colonies and the new nation grew rapidly in population and area, as pioneers pushed the frontier of settlement west. The process finally ended around 1890–1912 as the last major farmlands and ranch lands were settled. Native American tribes in some places resisted militarily, but they were overwhelmed by settlers and the army and after 1830 were relocated to reservations in the west. The highly influential "Frontier Thesis" of Wisconsin historian Frederick Jackson Turner argues that the frontier shaped the national character, with its boldness, violence, innovation, individualism, and democracy. Recent historians have emphasized the multicultural nature of the frontier. Enormous popular attention in the media focuses on the "Wild West" of the second half of the 19th century. As defined by Hine and Faragher, "frontier history tells the story of the creation and defense of communities, the use of the land, the development of markets, and the formation of states". They explain, "It is a tale of conquest, but also one of survival, persistence, and the merging of peoples and cultures that gave birth and continuing life to America." The first settlers in the west were the Spanish in New Mexico; they became U.S. citizens in 1848. The Hispanics in California ("Californios") were overwhelmed by over 100,000 gold rush miners. California grew explosively. San Francisco by 1880 had become the economic hub of the entire Pacific Coast with a diverse population of a quarter million. From the early 1830s to 1869, the Oregon Trail and its many offshoots were used by over 300,000 settlers. '49ers (in the California Gold Rush), ranchers, farmers, and entrepreneurs and their families headed to California, Oregon, and other points in the far west. Wagon-trains took five or six months on foot; after 1869, the trip took 6 days by rail. Manifest Destiny was the belief that American settlers were destined to expand across the continent. This concept was born out of "A sense of mission to redeem the Old World by high example ... generated by the potentialities of a new earth for building a new heaven". Manifest Destiny was rejected by modernizers, especially the Whigs like Henry Clay and Abraham Lincoln who wanted to build cities and factories – not more farms. Democrats strongly favored expansion, and won the key election of 1844. After a bitter debate in Congress the Republic of Texas was annexed in 1845, leading to war with Mexico, who considered Texas to be a part of Mexico due to the large numbers of Mexican settlers. The Mexican–American War (1846–48) broke out with the Whigs opposed to the war, and the Democrats supporting the war. The U.S. army, using regulars and large numbers of volunteers, defeated the Mexican armies, invaded at several points, captured Mexico City and won decisively. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the war in 1848. Many Democrats wanted to annex all of Mexico, but that idea was rejected by southerners who argued that by incorporating millions of Mexican people, mainly of mixed race, would undermine the United States as an exclusively white republic. Instead the U.S. took Texas and the lightly settled northern parts (California and New Mexico). The Hispanic residents were given full citizenship and the Mexican Indians became American Indians. Simultaneously, gold was discovered in California in 1849, attracting over 100,000 men to northern California in a matter of months in the California Gold Rush. A peaceful compromise with Britain gave the U.S. ownership of the Oregon Country, which was renamed the Oregon Territory. The central issue after 1848 was the expansion of slavery, pitting the anti- slavery elements in the North, against the pro-slavery elements that dominated the South. A small number of active Northerners were abolitionists who declared that ownership of slaves was a sin (in terms of Protestant theology) and demanded its immediate abolition. Much larger numbers in the North were against the expansion of slavery, seeking to put it on the path to extinction so that America would be committed to free land (as in low-cost farms owned and cultivated by a family), free labor, and free speech (as opposed to censorship of abolitionist material in the South). Southern whites insisted that slavery was of economic, social, and cultural benefit to all whites (and even to the slaves themselves), and denounced all anti-slavery spokesmen as "abolitionists". Justifications of slavery included economics, history, religion, legality, social good, and even humanitarianism, to further their arguments. Defenders of slavery argued that the sudden end to the slave economy would have had a profound and killing economic impact in the South where reliance on slave labor was the foundation of their economy. They also argued that if all the slaves were freed, there would be widespread unemployment and chaos. Religious activists split on slavery, with the Methodists and Baptists dividing into northern and southern denominations. In the North, the Methodists, Congregationalists, and Quakers included many abolitionists, especially among women activists. (The Catholic, Episcopal and Lutheran denominations largely ignored the slavery issue.) The issue of slavery in the new territories was seemingly settled by the Compromise of 1850, brokered by Whig Henry Clay and Democrat Stephen Douglas; the Compromise included the admission of California as a free state in exchange for no federal restrictions on slavery placed on Utah or New Mexico. The point of contention was the Fugitive Slave Act, which increased federal enforcement and required even free states to cooperate in turning over fugitive slaves to their owners. Abolitionists pounced on the Act to attack slavery, as in the best-selling anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. The Compromise of 1820 was repealed in 1854 with the Kansas–Nebraska Act, promoted by Senator Douglas in the name of "popular sovereignty" and democracy. It permitted voters to decide on the legality of slavery in each territory, and allowed Douglas to adopt neutrality on the issue of slavery. Anti-slavery forces rose in anger and alarm, forming the new Republican Party. Pro- and anti- contingents rushed to Kansas to vote slavery up or down, resulting in a miniature civil war called Bleeding Kansas. By the late 1850s, the young Republican Party dominated nearly all northern states and thus the electoral college. It insisted that slavery would never be allowed to expand (and thus would slowly die out). The Southern slavery-based societies had become wealthy based on their cotton and other agricultural commodity production, and some particularly profited from the internal slave trade. Northern cities such as Boston and New York, and regional industries, were tied economically to slavery by banking, shipping, and manufacturing, including textile mills. By 1860, there were four million slaves in the South, nearly eight times as many as there were nationwide in 1790. The plantations were highly profitable, due to the heavy European demand for raw cotton. Most of the profits were invested in new lands and in purchasing more slaves (largely drawn from the declining tobacco regions). For 50 of the nation's first 72 years, a slaveholder served as President of the United States and, during that period, only slaveholding presidents were re-elected to second terms. In addition, southern states benefited by their increased apportionment in Congress due to the partial counting of slaves in their populations. Slave rebellions, by Gabriel Prosser (1800), Denmark Vesey (1822), Nat Turner (1831), and most famously by John Brown (1859), caused fear in the white South, which imposed stricter oversight of slaves and reduced the rights of free blacks. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 required the states to cooperate with slave owners when attempting to recover escaped slaves, which outraged Northerners. Formerly, an escaped slave that reached a non-slave state was presumed to have attained sanctuary and freedom under the Missouri Compromise. The Supreme Court's 1857 decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional; angry Republicans said this decision threatened to make slavery a national institution. After Abraham Lincoln won the 1860 election, seven Southern states seceded from the union and set up a new nation, the Confederate States of America (Confederacy), on February 8, 1861. It attacked Fort Sumter, a U.S. Army fort in South Carolina, thus igniting the war. When Lincoln called for troops to suppress the Confederacy in April 1861, four more states seceded and joined the Confederacy. A few of the (northernmost) "slave states" did not secede and became known as the border states; these were Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri. During the war, the northwestern portion of Virginia seceded from the Confederacy. and became the new Union state of West Virginia. West Virginia is usually associated with the border states. The Civil War began on April 12, 1861, when elements of 100,000 Confederate forces attacked a U.S. military installation at Fort Sumter in South Carolina. In response to the attack, on April 15, Lincoln called on the states to send detachments totaling 75,000 troops to recapture forts, protect the capital, and "preserve the Union", which in his view still existed intact despite the actions of the seceding states. The two armies had their first major clash at the First Battle of Bull Run (Battle of Manassas), ending in a Union defeat, but, more importantly, proved to both the Union and Confederacy that the war would be much longer and bloodier than originally anticipated. The war soon divided into two theaters: Eastern and Western. In the western theater, the Union was relatively successful, with major battles, such as Perryville and Shiloh along with Union gunboat dominance of navigable rivers producing strategic Union victories and destroying major Confederate operations. Warfare in the Eastern theater began poorly for the Union as the Confederates won at Manassas Junction (Bull Run), just outside Washington. Major General George B. McClellan was put in charge of the Union armies. After reorganizing the new Army of the Potomac, McClellan failed to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia in his Peninsula Campaign and retreated after attacks from newly appointed Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Meanwhile, both sides concentrated in 1861–62 on raising and training new armies. The main action was Union success in controlling the border states, with Confederates largely driven out of Maryland, West Virginia (a new state), Kentucky and Missouri. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaign into Maryland was designed to hurt Union morale and win European support. It ended with Confederate retreat at the Battle of Antietam, and Lincoln's warning he would issue an Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863 if the states did not return. Making slavery a central war goal Energized Republicans in the North, as well as their enemies, the anti-war Copperhead Democrats. It ended the risk of British and French intervention. Lee's smaller army won at the Battle of Fredericksburg late in 1862, causing yet another change in commanders. Lee won again at the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863, while losing his top aide, Stonewall Jackson. But Lee pushed too hard and ignored the Union threat in the west. Lee invaded Pennsylvania in search of supplies and to cause war-weariness in the North. In perhaps the turning point of the war, Lee's army was badly beaten at the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1–3, 1863, and barely made it back to Virginia. On the homefront, industrial expansion in the North expanded dramatically, using its extensive railroad service, and moving industrial workers into munitions factories. Foreign trade increased, with the United States providing both food and cotton to Britain, And Britain sending in manufactured products and thousands of volunteers for the Union Army (plus a few to the Confederates). The British operated blockade runners bringing in food, luxury items and munitions to the Confederacy, bringing out tobacco and cotton. The Union blockade increasingly shut down Confederate ports, and by late 1864 the blockade runners were usually captured before they could make more than a handful of runs. In the West, on July 4, 1863, Union forces under the command of General Ulysses S. Grant gained control of the Mississippi River at the Battle of Vicksburg, thereby splitting the Confederacy. Lincoln made General Grant commander of all Union armies. Grant put General William Tecumseh Sherman in charge of the Western armies. In 1864, Sherman marched south from Chattanooga to capture Atlanta, a decisive victory that ended war jitters among Republicans in the North who feared they might fail to reelect Lincoln in 1864. Lincoln won a landslide. The last two years of the war were bloody for both sides, With Sherman marching almost unopposed through central and eastern Georgia, then moving up through South Carolina and North Carolina, burning cities, destroying plantations, ruining railroads and bridges, but avoiding civilian casualties. Sherman demonstrated that the South lacked the long-term ability to resist a northern invasion. Much of the heartland of the Confederacy was physically destroyed, and could no longer provide desperately needed food, horses, mules, wagons, boots or munitions to its combat armies. In spring 1864 Grant, realizing that Lee was unable to replenish casualties, while Lincoln would provide replacements for Union losses, launched a war of attrition against Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. This war of attrition was divided into three main campaigns. The first of these, the Overland Campaign forced Lee to retreat into the city of Petersburg where Grant launched his second major offensive, the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign in which he besieged Petersburg. After a near ten-month siege, Petersburg surrendered. However, the defense of Fort Gregg allowed Lee to move his army out of Petersburg. Grant pursued and launched the final, Appomattox Campaign which resulted in Lee surrendering his Army of Northern Virginia numbering 28,000 on April 9, 1865, at Appomattox Court House. Other Confederate armies followed suit and the war ended with no postwar insurgency. The American Civil War was the world's earliest industrial war. Railroads, the telegraph, steamships, and mass- produced weapons were employed extensively. The mobilization of civilian factories, mines, shipyards, banks, transportation and food supplies all foreshadowed the impact of industrialization in World War I. It remains the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of about 750,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties. About ten percent of all Northern males 20–45 years old, and 30 percent of all Southern white males aged 18–40 died. Its legacy includes ending slavery in the United States, restoring the Union, and strengthening the role of the federal government. According to historian Allan Nevins the Civil War had a major long-term impact on the United States in terms of developing its leadership potential and moving the entire nation beyond the adolescent stage: The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863. In a single stroke it changed the legal status, as recognized by the U.S. government, of 3 million slaves in designated areas of the Confederacy from "slave" to "free". It had the practical effect that as soon as a slave escaped the control of the Confederate government, by running away or through advances of federal troops, the slave became legally and actually free. The owners were never compensated. Plantation owners, realizing that emancipation would destroy their economic system, sometimes moved their slaves as far as possible out of reach of the Union army. By June 1865, the Union Army controlled all of the Confederacy and liberated all of the designated slaves. Large numbers moved into camps run by the Freedmen's Bureau, where they were given food, shelter, medical care, and arrangements for their employment were made. The severe dislocations of war and Reconstruction had a large negative impact on the black population, with a large amount of sickness and death. Reconstruction lasted from Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863 to the Compromise of 1877. The major issues faced by Lincoln were the status of the ex-slaves (called "Freedmen"), the loyalty and civil rights of ex-rebels, the status of the 11 ex-Confederate states, the powers of the federal government needed to prevent a future civil war, and the question of whether Congress or the President would make the major decisions. The severe threats of starvation and displacement of the unemployed Freedmen were met by the first major federal relief agency, the Freedmen's Bureau, operated by the Army. Three "Reconstruction Amendments" were passed to expand civil rights for black Americans: the Thirteenth Amendment outlawed slavery; the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteed equal rights for all and citizenship for blacks; the Fifteenth Amendment prevented race from being used to disenfranchise men. Ex-Confederates remained in control of most Southern states for over two years, but changed when the Radical Republicans gained control of Congress in the 1866 elections. President Andrew Johnson, who sought easy terms for reunions with ex-rebels, was virtually powerless in the face of the Radical Republican Congress; he was impeached, but the Senate's attempt to remove him from office failed by one vote. Congress enfranchised black men and temporarily stripped many ex-Confederate leaders of the right to hold office. New Republican governments came to power based on a coalition of Freedmen made up of Carpetbaggers (new arrivals from the North), and Scalawags (native white Southerners). They were backed by the U.S. Army. Opponents said they were corrupt and violated the rights of whites. State by state they lost power to a conservative-Democratic coalition, which gained control of the entire South by 1877. In response to Radical Reconstruction, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) emerged in 1867 as a white-supremacist organization opposed to black civil rights and Republican rule. President Ulysses Grant's vigorous enforcement of the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1870 shut down the Klan, and it disbanded. Paramilitary groups, such as the White League and Red Shirts emerged about 1874 that worked openly to use intimidation and violence to suppress black voting to regain white political power in states across the South during the 1870s. Rable described them as the military arm of the Democratic Party. Reconstruction ended after the disputed 1876 election. The Compromise of 1877 gave Republican candidate Rutherford B. Hayes the White House in exchange for removing all remaining federal troops in the South. The federal government withdrew its troops from the South, and Southern Democrats took control of every Southern state. From 1890 to 1908, southern states effectively disfranchised most black voters and many poor whites by making voter registration more difficult through poll taxes, literacy tests, and other arbitrary devices. They passed segregation laws and imposed second-class status on blacks in a system known as Jim Crow that lasted until the Civil Rights Movement. The latter half of the nineteenth century was marked by the rapid development and settlement of the far West, first by wagon trains and riverboats and then aided by the completion of the transcontinental railroad. Large numbers of European immigrants (especially from Germany and Scandinavia) took up low-cost or free farms in the Prairie States. Mining for silver and copper opened up the Mountain West. The United States Army fought frequent small-scale wars with Native Americans as settlers encroached on their traditional lands. Gradually the U.S. purchased the Native American tribal lands and extinguished their claims, forcing most tribes onto subsidized reservations. According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census (1894), from 1789 to 1894: The Indian wars under the government of the United States have been more than 40 in number. They have cost the lives of about 19,000 white men, women and children, including those killed in individual combats, and the lives of about 30,000 Indians. The actual number of killed and wounded Indians must be very much higher than the given... Fifty percent additional would be a safe estimate... The "Gilded Age" was a term that Mark Twain used to describe the period of the late 19th century with a dramatic expansion of American wealth and prosperity, underscored by the mass corruption in the government. Reforms of the Age included the Civil Service Act, which mandated a competitive examination for applicants for government jobs. Other important legislation included the Interstate Commerce Act, which ended railroads' discrimination against small shippers, and the Sherman Antitrust Act, which outlawed monopolies in business. Twain believed that this age was corrupted by such elements as land speculators, scandalous politics, and unethical business practices. Since the days of Charles A. Beard and Matthew Josephson, some historians have argued that the United States was effectively plutocratic for at least part of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. As financiers and industrialists such as J.P. Morgan and John D. Rockefeller began to amass vast fortunes, many U.S. observers were concerned that the nation was losing its pioneering egalitarian spirit. By 1890 American industrial production and per capita income exceeded those of all other world nations. In response to heavy debts and decreasing farm prices, wheat and cotton farmers joined the Populist Party. An unprecedented wave of immigration from Europe served to both provide the labor for American industry and create diverse communities in previously undeveloped areas. From 1880 to 1914, peak years of immigration, more than 22 million people migrated to the United States. Most were unskilled workers who quickly found jobs in mines, mills, factories. Many immigrants were craftsmen (especially from Britain and Germany) bringing human skills, and others were farmers (especially from Germany and Scandinavia) who purchased inexpensive land on the Prairies from railroads who sent agents to Europe. Poverty, growing inequality and dangerous working conditions, along with socialist and anarchist ideas diffusing from European immigrants, led to the rise of the labor movement, which often included violent strikes. Skilled workers banded together to control their crafts and raise wages by forming labor unions in industrial areas of the Northeast. Before the 1930s few factory workers joined the unions in the labor movement. Samuel Gompers led the American Federation of Labor (1886–1924), coordinating multiple unions. Industrial growth was rapid, led by John D. Rockefeller in oil and Andrew Carnegie in steel; both became leaders of philanthropy (Gospel of Wealth), giving away their fortunes to create the modern system of hospitals, universities, libraries, and foundations. The Panic of 1893 broke out and was a severe nationwide depression impacting farmers, workers, and businessmen who saw prices, wages, and profits fall. Many railroads went bankrupt. The resultant political reaction fell on the Democratic Party, whose leader President Grover Cleveland shouldered much of the blame. Labor unrest involved numerous strikes, most notably the violent Pullman Strike of 1894, which was shut down by federal troops under Cleveland's orders. The Populist Party gained strength among cotton and wheat farmers, as well as coal miners, but was overtaken by the even more popular Free Silver movement, which demanded using silver to enlarge the money supply, leading to inflation that the silverites promised would end the depression. The financial, railroad, and business communities fought back hard, arguing that only the gold standard would save the economy. In the most intense election in the nation's history, conservative Republican William McKinley defeated silverite William Jennings Bryan, who ran on the Democratic, Populist, and Silver Republican tickets. Bryan swept the South and West, but McKinley ran up landslides among the middle class, industrial workers, cities, and among upscale farmers in the Midwest. Prosperity returned under McKinley, the gold standard was enacted, and the tariff was raised. By 1900 the U.S. had the strongest economy on the globe. Apart from two short recessions (in 1907 and 1920) the overall economy remained prosperous and growing until 1929. Republicans, citing McKinley's policies, took the credit. The United States emerged as a world economic and military power after 1890. The main episode was the Spanish–American War, which began when Spain refused American demands to reform its oppressive policies in Cuba. The "splendid little war", as one official called it, involved a series of quick American victories on land and at sea. At the Treaty of Paris peace conference the United States acquired the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam. Cuba became an independent country, under close American tutelage. Although the war itself was widely popular, the peace terms proved controversial. William Jennings Bryan led his Democratic Party in opposition to control of the Philippines, which he denounced as imperialism unbecoming to American democracy. President William McKinley defended the acquisition and was riding high as the nation had returned to prosperity and felt triumphant in the war. McKinley easily defeated Bryan in a rematch in the 1900 presidential election. After defeating an insurrection by Filipino nationalists, the United States engaged in a large-scale program to modernize the economy of the Philippines and dramatically upgrade the public health facilities. By 1908, however, Americans lost interest in an empire and turned their international attention to the Caribbean, especially the building of the Panama Canal. In 1912 when Arizona became the final mainland state, the American Frontier came to an end. The canal opened in 1914 and increased trade with Japan and the rest of the Far East. A key innovation was the Open Door Policy, whereby the imperial powers were given equal access to Chinese business, with not one of them allowed to take control of China. Dissatisfaction on the part of the growing middle class with the corruption and inefficiency of politics as usual, and the failure to deal with increasingly important urban and industrial problems, led to the dynamic Progressive Movement starting in the 1890s. In every major city and state, and at the national level as well, and in education, medicine, and industry, the progressives called for the modernization and reform of decrepit institutions, the elimination of corruption in politics, and the introduction of efficiency as a criterion for change. Leading politicians from both parties, most notably Theodore Roosevelt, Charles Evans Hughes, and Robert La Follette on the Republican side, and William Jennings Bryan and Woodrow Wilson on the Democratic side, took up the cause of progressive reform. Women became especially involved in demands for woman suffrage, prohibition, and better schools; their most prominent leader was Jane Addams of Chicago, who created settlement houses. "Muckraking" journalists such as Upton Sinclair, Lincoln Steffens and Jacob Riis exposed corruption in business and government along with rampant inner city poverty. Progressives implemented antitrust laws and regulated such industries of meat-packing, drugs, and railroads. Four new constitutional amendments – the Sixteenth through Nineteenth – resulted from progressive activism, bringing the federal income tax, direct election of Senators, prohibition, and woman suffrage. The period also saw a major transformation of the banking system with the creation of the Federal Reserve System in 1913 and the arrival of cooperative banking in the US with the founding of the first credit union in 1908. The Progressive Movement lasted through the 1920s; the most active period was 1900–18. The women's suffrage movement began with the June 1848 National Convention of the Liberty Party. Presidential candidate Gerrit Smith argued for and established women's suffrage as a party plank. One month later, his cousin Elizabeth Cady Stanton joined with Lucretia Mott and other women to organize the Seneca Falls Convention, featuring the Declaration of Sentiments demanding equal rights for women, and the right to vote. Many of these activists became politically aware during the abolitionist movement. The women's rights campaign during "first-wave feminism" was led by Stanton, Lucy Stone and Susan B. Anthony, among many others. Stone and Paulina Wright Davis organized the prominent and influential National Women's Rights Convention in 1850. The movement reorganized after the Civil War, gaining experienced campaigners, many of whom had worked for prohibition in the Women's Christian Temperance Union. By the end of the 19th century a few western states had granted women full voting rights, though women had made significant legal victories, gaining rights in areas such as property and child custody. Around 1912 the feminist movement began to reawaken, putting an emphasis on its demands for equality and arguing that the corruption of American politics demanded purification by women because men could not do that job. Protests became increasingly common as suffragette Alice Paul led parades through the capital and major cities. Paul split from the large National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), which favored a more moderate approach and supported the Democratic Party and Woodrow Wilson, led by Carrie Chapman Catt, and formed the more militant National Woman's Party. Suffragists were arrested during their "Silent Sentinels" pickets at the White House, the first time such a tactic was used, and were taken as political prisoners. The old anti-suffragist argument that only men could fight a war, and therefore only men deserve the right to vote, was refuted by the enthusiastic participation of tens of thousands of American women on the home front in World War I. Across the world, grateful nations gave women the right to vote. Furthermore, most of the Western states had already given the women the right to vote in state and national elections, and the representatives from those states, including the first woman Jeannette Rankin of Montana, demonstrated that woman suffrage was a success. The main resistance came from the south, where white leaders were worried about the threat of black women voting. Congress passed the Nineteenth Amendment in 1919, and women could vote in 1920. NAWSA became the League of Women Voters, and the National Woman's Party began lobbying for full equality and the Equal Rights Amendment, which would pass Congress during the second wave of the women's movement in 1972. Politicians responded to the new electorate by emphasizing issues of special interest to women, especially prohibition, child health, and world peace. The main surge of women voting came in 1928, when the big-city machines realized they needed the support of women to elect Al Smith, a Catholic from New York City. Meanwhile, Protestants mobilized women to support Prohibition and vote for Republican Herbert Hoover. As World War I raged in Europe from 1914, President Woodrow Wilson took full control of foreign policy, declaring neutrality but warning Germany that resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare against American ships supplying goods to Allied nations would mean war. Germany decided to take the risk and try to win by cutting off supplies to Britain through the sinking of ships such as the RMS Lusitania; the U.S. declared war in April 1917 mainly from the threat of the Zimmermann telegram. American money, food, and munitions arrived quickly, but troops had to be drafted and trained; by summer 1918 American soldiers under General John J. Pershing's American Expeditionary Forces arrived at the rate of 10,000 a day, while Germany was unable to replace its losses. Dissent against the war was suppressed by the Sedition Act of 1918 & Espionage Act of 1917, German language, leftist & pacifist publications were suppressed, and over 2,000 were imprisoned for speaking out against the war, the political prisoners were later released by U.S President Warren G. Harding. The result was Allied victory in November 1918. President Wilson demanded Germany depose the Kaiser and accept his terms in the famed Fourteen Points speech. Wilson dominated the 1919 Paris Peace Conference but Germany was treated harshly by the Allies in the Treaty of Versailles (1919) as Wilson put all his hopes in the new League of Nations. Wilson refused to compromise with Senate Republicans over the issue of Congressional power to declare war, and the Senate rejected the Treaty and the League. In the 1920s the U.S. grew steadily in stature as an economic and military world power. The United States Senate did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles imposed by its Allies on the defeated Central Powers; instead, the United States chose to pursue unilateralism. The aftershock of Russia's October Revolution resulted in real fears of Communism in the United States, leading to a Red Scare and the deportation of aliens considered subversive. While public health facilities grew rapidly in the Progressive Era, and hospitals and medical schools were modernized, the nation in 1918 lost 675,000 lives to the Spanish flu pandemic. In 1920, the manufacture, sale, import and export of alcohol were prohibited by the Eighteenth Amendment, Prohibition. The result was that in cities illegal alcohol became a big business, largely controlled by racketeers. The second Ku Klux Klan grew rapidly in 1922–25, then collapsed. Immigration laws were passed to strictly limit the number of new entries. The 1920s were called the Roaring Twenties due to the great economic prosperity during this period. Jazz became popular among the younger generation, and thus the decade was also called the Jazz Age. The Great Depression (1929–1939) and the New Deal (1933–1936) were decisive moments in American political, economic, and social history that reshaped the nation. During the 1920s, the nation enjoyed widespread prosperity, albeit with a weakness in agriculture. A financial bubble was fueled by an inflated stock market, which later led to the Stock Market Crash on October 29, 1929. This, along with many other economic factors, triggered a worldwide depression known as the Great Depression. During this time, the United States experienced deflation as prices fell, unemployment soared from 3% in 1929 to 25% in 1933, farm prices fell by half, and manufacturing output plunged by one-third. In 1932, Democratic presidential nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt promised "a New Deal for the American people", coining the enduring label for his domestic policies. The result was a series of permanent reform programs including Relief for the unemployed, assistance for the elderly, jobs for young men, social security, unemployment insurance, public housing, bankruptcy insurance, farm subsidies, and regulation of financial securities. State governments added new programs as well, and introduced the sales tax to pay for them. Ideologically the revolution established modern liberalism in the United States and kept the Democrats in power in Washington almost continuously for Three decades thanks to the New Deal Coalition of ethnic Whites, Blacks, blue- collar workers, labor unions, and white Southerners. It provided relief to the long-term unemployed through numerous programs, such as the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and for young men, the Civilian Conservation Corps. Large scale spending projects designed to provide private sector construction jobs and rebuild the infrastructure were under the purview of the Public Works Administration. The Second New Deal was a turn to the left in 1935–36, building up labor unions through the Wagner Act. Unions became a powerful element of the merging New Deal Coalition, which won reelection for Roosevelt in 1936, 1940, and 1944 by mobilizing union members, blue collar workers, relief recipients, big city machines, ethnic, and religious groups (especially Catholics and Jews) and the white South, along with blacks in the North (where they could vote). Roosevelt seriously weakened his second term by a failed effort to pack the Supreme Court, which had been a center of conservative resistance to his programs. Most of the relief programs were dropped after 1938 in the 1940s when the conservatives regained power in Congress through the Conservative Coalition. Of special importance is the Social Security program, begun in 1935. The economy basically recovered by 1936, but had a sharp, short recession in 1937–38; long-term unemployment, however, remained a problem until it was solved by wartime spending. In an effort to denounce past U.S. interventionism and subdue any subsequent fears of Latin Americans, Roosevelt announced on March 4, 1933, during his inaugural address, "In the field of World policy, I would dedicate this nation to the policy of the good neighbor, the neighbor who resolutely respects himself and, because he does so, respects the rights of others, the neighbor who respects his obligations and respects the sanctity of his agreements in and with a World of neighbors." In order to create a friendly relationship between the United States and Central as well as South American countries, Roosevelt sought to stray from asserting military force in the region. This position was affirmed by Cordell Hull, Roosevelt's Secretary of State at a conference of American states in Montevideo in December 1933. In the Depression years, the United States remained focused on domestic concerns while democracy declined across the world and many countries fell under the control of dictators. Imperial Japan asserted dominance in East Asia and in the Pacific. Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy militarized and threatened conquests, while Britain and France attempted appeasement to avert another war in Europe. U.S. legislation in the Neutrality Acts sought to avoid foreign conflicts; however, policy clashed with increasing anti-Nazi feelings following the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 that started World War II. Roosevelt positioned the U.S. as the "Arsenal of Democracy", pledging full-scale financial and munitions support for the Allies – but no military personnel. This was carried out through the Lend-Lease agreements. Japan tried to neutralize America's power in the Pacific by attacking Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, which catalyzed American support to enter the war. The main contributions of the U.S. to the Allied war effort comprised money, industrial output, food, petroleum, technological innovation, and (especially 1944–45), military personnel. Much of the focus in Washington was maximizing the economic output of the nation. The overall result was a dramatic increase in GDP, the export of vast quantities of supplies to the Allies and to American forces overseas, the end of unemployment, and a rise in civilian consumption even as 40% of the GDP went to the war effort. This was achieved by tens of millions of workers moving from low-productivity occupations to high efficiency jobs, improvements in productivity through better technology and management, and the move into the active labor force of students, retired people, housewives, and the unemployed, and an increase in hours worked. It was exhausting; leisure activities declined sharply. People tolerated the extra work because of patriotism, the pay, and the confidence that it was only "for the duration", and life would return to normal as soon as the war was won. Most durable goods became unavailable, and meat, clothing, and gasoline were tightly rationed. In industrial areas housing was in short supply as people doubled up and lived in cramped quarters. Prices and wages were controlled, and Americans saved a high portion of their incomes, which led to renewed growth after the war instead of a return to depression. The Allies – the United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union, China, as well as Poland, Canada and other countries – fought the Axis powers of Germany, Italy, and Japan. The Allies saw Germany as the main threat and gave highest priority to Europe. The U.S. dominated the war against Japan and stopped Japanese expansion in the Pacific in 1942. After losing Pearl Harbor and in the Philippines to the Japanese, and drawing the Battle of the Coral Sea (May 1942), the American Navy inflicted a decisive blow at Midway (June 1942). American ground forces assisted in the North African Campaign that eventually concluded with the collapse of Mussolini's fascist government in 1943, as Italy switched to the Allied side. A more significant European front was opened on D-Day, June 6, 1944, in which American and Allied forces invaded Nazi-occupied France from Britain. On the home front, mobilization of the U.S. economy was managed by Roosevelt's War Production Board. The wartime production boom led to full employment, wiping out this vestige of the Great Depression. Indeed, labor shortages encouraged industry to look for new sources of workers, finding new roles for women and blacks. However, the fervor also inspired anti-Japanese sentiment, leading to internment of Japanese Americans. This was taken under the directive of President Roosevelt, who signed Executive Order 9066. The terms of this executive order resulted in some 120,000 people of Japanese descent living in the US removed from their homes and placed in internment camps. Two-thirds of those interned were American citizens and half of them were children. Those who were as little as 1/16 Japanese and orphaned infants with "one drop of Japanese blood" were placed in internment camps. The US Supreme Court held the Japanese American internment camps to be constitutional in a 6–3 decision in Korematsu v. United States Supreme Court case. Research and development took flight as well, best seen in the Manhattan Project, a secret effort to harness nuclear fission to produce highly destructive atomic bombs. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Nuclear physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer was the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory that designed the actual bombs. The first nuclear device ever detonated was an implosion-type bomb at the Trinity test, conducted at New Mexico's Alamogordo Bombing and Gunnery Range on 16 July 1945. The Allies pushed the Germans out of France but faced an unexpected counterattack at the Battle of the Bulge in December. The final German effort failed, and, as Allied armies in East and West were converging on Berlin, the Nazis hurriedly tried to kill the last remaining Jews. The western front stopped short, leaving Berlin to the Soviets as the Nazi regime formally capitulated in May 1945, ending the war in Europe. Over in the Pacific, the U.S. implemented an island hopping strategy toward Tokyo, establishing airfields for bombing runs against mainland Japan from the Mariana Islands and achieving hard-fought victories at Iwo Jima and Okinawa in 1945. Bloodied at Okinawa, the U.S. prepared to invade Japan's home islands when B-29s dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, forcing the empire's surrender in a matter of days and thus ending World War II. The U.S. occupied Japan (and part of Germany), sending Douglas MacArthur to restructure the Japanese economy and political system along American lines. During the war, Roosevelt coined the term "Four Powers" to refer four major Allies of World War II, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and China, which later became the foundation of the United Nations Security Council. Though the nation lost more than 400,000 military personnel, the mainland prospered untouched by the devastation of war that inflicted a heavy toll on Europe and Asia. Participation in postwar foreign affairs marked the end of predominant American isolationism. The awesome threat of nuclear weapons inspired both optimism and fear. Nuclear weapons were never used after 1945, as both sides drew back from the brink and a "long peace" characterized the Cold War years, starting with the Truman Doctrine on May 22, 1947. There were, however, regional wars in Korea and Vietnam. Following World War II, the United States emerged as one of the two dominant superpowers, the USSR being the other. The U.S. Senate on a bipartisan vote approved U.S. participation in the United Nations (UN), which marked a turn away from the traditional isolationism of the U.S. and toward increased international involvement. The primary American goal of 1945–1948 was to rescue Europe from the devastation of World War II and to contain the expansion of Communism, represented by the Soviet Union. U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War was built around the support of Western Europe and Japan along with the policy of containment, stopping the spread of communism. The U.S. joined the wars in Korea and Vietnam and toppled left-wing governments in the third world to try to stop its spread. The Truman Doctrine of 1947 provided military and economic aid to Greece and Turkey to counteract the threat of Communist expansion in the Balkans. In 1948, the United States replaced piecemeal financial aid programs with a comprehensive Marshall Plan, which pumped money into the economy of Western Europe, and removed trade barriers, while modernizing the managerial practices of businesses and governments. The Plan's $13 billion budget was in the context of a U.S. GDP of $258 billion in 1948 and was in addition to the $12 billion in American aid given to Europe between the end of the war and the start of the Marshall Plan. Soviet head of state Joseph Stalin prevented his satellite states from participating, and from that point on, Eastern Europe, with inefficient centralized economies, fell further and further behind Western Europe in terms of economic development and prosperity. In 1949, the United States, rejecting the long-standing policy of no military alliances in peacetime, formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance, which continues into the 21st century. In response the Soviets formed the Warsaw Pact of communist states, leading to the "iron curtain". In August 1949 the Soviets tested their first nuclear weapon, thereby escalating the risk of warfare. The threat of mutually assured destruction however, prevented both powers from nuclear war, and resulted in proxy wars, especially in Korea and Vietnam, in which the two sides did not directly confront each other. President Dwight D Eisenhower, elected in a landslide as the first Republican president since 1932, had a lasting impact on American life and politics. He ended the Korean War, and avoided any other major conflict. He cut military spending by reliance on very high technology, such as nuclear weapons carried by long-range bombers and intercontinental missiles. He gave strong support to the NATO alliance, and built other alliances along similar lines, but they never were especially effective. After Stalin died in 1953 he worked to obtain friendlier relationships with the Soviet Union. At home he ended McCarthyism, expanded the Social Security program and presided over a decade of bipartisan comity. He promoted civil rights cautiously, and sent in the Army when trouble threatened over racial integration in Little Rock Arkansas. The unexpected leapfrogging of American technology by the Soviets in 1957 with Sputnik, the first Earth satellite, began the Space Race, won in 1969 by the Americans as Apollo 11 landed astronauts on the Moon. The angst about the weaknesses of American education led to large-scale federal support for science education and research. In the decades after World War II, the United States became a global influence in economic, political, military, cultural, and technological affairs. In 1960, the charismatic John F. Kennedy was elected as the first and – thus far – only Roman Catholic President. The Kennedy clan brought a new life and vigor to the atmosphere of the White House. His time in office was marked by such notable events as the acceleration of the United States' role in the Space Race, escalation of the American role in the Vietnam War, the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the jailing of Martin Luther King, Jr. during the Birmingham campaign. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, leaving the nation in profound shock. The climax of liberalism came in the mid-1960s with the success of President Lyndon B. Johnson (1963–1969) in securing congressional passage of his Great Society programs. They included civil rights, the end of legal segregation, Medicare, extension of welfare, federal aid to education at all levels, subsidies for the arts and humanities, environmental activism, and a series of programs designed to wipe out poverty. As recent historians have explained: Gradually, liberal intellectuals crafted a new vision for achieving economic and social justice. The liberalism of the early 1960s contained no hint of radicalism, little disposition to revive new deal era crusades against concentrated economic power, and no intention to redistribute wealth or restructure existing institutions. Internationally it was strongly anti- Communist. It aimed to defend the free world, to encourage economic growth at home, and to ensure that the resulting plenty was fairly distributed. Their agenda-much influenced by Keynesian economic theory-envisioned massive public expenditure that would speed economic growth, thus providing the public resources to fund larger welfare, housing, health, and educational programs. Johnson was rewarded with an electoral landslide in 1964 against conservative Barry Goldwater, which broke the decades-long control of Congress by the Conservative Coalition. However, the Republicans bounced back in 1966 and elected Richard Nixon in 1968. Nixon largely continued the New Deal and Great Society programs he inherited; conservative reaction would come with the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980. Meanwhile, the American people completed a great migration from farms into the cities and experienced a period of sustained economic expansion. Starting in the late 1950s, institutionalized racism across the United States, but especially in the South, was increasingly challenged by the growing Civil Rights Movement. The activism of African-American leaders Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which launched the movement. For years African Americans would struggle with violence against them but would achieve great steps toward equality with Supreme Court decisions, including Brown v. Board of Education and Loving v. Virginia, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which ended the Jim Crow laws that legalized racial segregation between whites and blacks. Martin Luther King, Jr., who had won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to achieve equality of the races, was assassinated in 1968. Following his death others led the movement, most notably King's widow, Coretta Scott King, who was also active, like her husband, in the Opposition to the Vietnam War, and in the Women's Liberation Movement. There were 164 riots in 128 American cities in the first nine months of 1967. Frustrations with the seemingly slow progress of the integration movement led to the emergence of more radical discourses during the early 1960s, which, in turn, gave rise to the Black Power movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The decade would ultimately bring about positive strides toward integration, especially in government service, sports, and entertainment. Native Americans turned to the federal courts to fight for their land rights. They held protests highlighting the federal government's failure to honor treaties. One of the most outspoken Native American groups was the American Indian Movement (AIM). In the 1960s, Cesar Chavez began organizing poorly paid Mexican- American farm workers in California. He led a five-year-long strike by grape pickers. Then Chávez formed the nation's first successful union of farm workers. His United Farm Workers of America (UFW) faltered after a few years but after Chavez died in 1993 he became an iconic "folk saint" in the pantheon of Mexican Americans. A new consciousness of the inequality of American women began sweeping the nation, starting with the 1963 publication of Betty Friedan's best-seller, The Feminine Mystique, which explained how many housewives felt trapped and unfulfilled, assaulted American culture for its creation of the notion that women could only find fulfillment through their roles as wives, mothers, and keepers of the home, and argued that women were just as able as men to do every type of job. In 1966 Friedan and others established the National Organization for Women, or NOW, to act for women as the NAACP did for African Americans. Protests began, and the new Women's Liberation Movement grew in size and power, gained much media attention, and, by 1968, had replaced the Civil Rights Movement as the U.S's main social revolution. Marches, parades, rallies, boycotts, and pickets brought out thousands, sometimes millions. There were striking gains for women in medicine, law, and business, while only a few were elected to office. The Movement was split into factions by political ideology early on, however (with NOW on the left, the Women's Equity Action League (WEAL) on the right, the National Women's Political Caucus (NWPC) in the center, and more radical groups formed by younger women on the far left). The proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution, passed by Congress in 1972 was defeated by a conservative coalition mobilized by Phyllis Schlafly. They argued that it degraded the position of the housewife and made young women susceptible to the military draft. However, many federal laws (i.e., those equalizing pay, employment, education, employment opportunities, and credit; ending pregnancy discrimination; and requiring NASA, the Military Academies, and other organizations to admit women), state laws (i.e., those ending spousal abuse and marital rape), Supreme Court rulings (i.e. ruling that the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment applied to women), and state ERAs established women's equal status under the law, and social custom and consciousness began to change, accepting women's equality. The controversial issue of abortion, deemed by the Supreme Court as a fundamental right in Roe v. Wade (1973), is still a point of debate today. Amid the Cold War, the United States entered the Vietnam War, whose growing unpopularity fed already existing social movements, including those among women, minorities, and young people. President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society social programs and numerous rulings by the Warren Court added to the wide range of social reform during the 1960s and 1970s. Feminism and the environmental movement became political forces, and progress continued toward civil rights for all Americans. The Counterculture Revolution swept through the nation and much of the western world in the late sixties and early seventies, further dividing Americans in a "culture war" but also bringing forth more liberated social views. Johnson was succeeded in 1969 by Republican Richard Nixon, who attempted to gradually turn the war over to the South Vietnamese forces. He negotiated the peace treaty in 1973 which secured the release of POWs and led to the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The war had cost the lives of 58,000 American troops. Nixon manipulated the fierce distrust between the Soviet Union and China to the advantage of the United States, achieving détente (relaxation; ease of tension) with both parties. The Watergate scandal, involving Nixon's cover-up of his operatives' break-in into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex destroyed his political base, sent many aides to prison, and forced Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974. He was succeeded by Vice President Gerald Ford. The Fall of Saigon ended the Vietnam War and resulted in North and South Vietnam being reunited. Communist victories in neighboring Cambodia and Laos occurred in the same year. The OPEC oil embargo marked a long-term economic transition since, for the first time, energy prices skyrocketed, and American factories faced serious competition from foreign automobiles, clothing, electronics, and consumer goods. By the late 1970s the economy suffered an energy crisis, slow economic growth, high unemployment, and very high inflation coupled with high interest rates (the term stagflation was coined). Since economists agreed on the wisdom of deregulation, many of the New Deal era regulations were ended, such as in transportation, banking, and telecommunications. Jimmy Carter, running as someone who was not a part of the Washington political establishment, was elected president in 1976. On the world stage, Carter brokered the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt. In 1979, Iranian students stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and took 66 Americans hostage, resulting in the Iran hostage crisis. With the hostage crisis and continuing stagflation, Carter lost the 1980 election to the Republican Ronald Reagan. On January 20, 1981, minutes after Carter's term in office ended, the remaining U.S. captives held at the U.S. embassy in Iran were released, ending the 444-day hostage crisis. Ronald Reagan produced a major realignment with his 1980 and 1984 landslide elections. Reagan's economic policies (dubbed "Reaganomics") and the implementation of the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 lowered the top marginal tax rate from 70% to 28% over the course of seven years. Reagan continued to downsize government taxation and regulation. The U.S. experienced a recession in 1982, but the negative indicators reversed, with the inflation rate decreasing from 11% to 2%, the unemployment rate decreasing from 10.8% in December 1982 to 7.5% in November 1984, and the economic growth rate increasing from 4.5% to 7.2%. Reagan ordered a buildup of the U.S. military, incurring additional budget deficits. Reagan introduced a complicated missile defense system known as the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) (dubbed "Star Wars" by opponents) in which, theoretically, the U.S. could shoot down missiles with laser systems in space. The Soviets reacted harshly because they thought it violated the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, and would upset the balance of power by giving the U.S. a major military advantage. For years Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev argued vehemently against SDI. However, by the late 1980s he decided the system would never work and should not be used to block disarmament deals with the U.S. Historians argue how great an impact the SDI threat had on the Soviets – whether it was enough to force Gorbachev to initiate radical reforms, or whether the deterioration of the Soviet economy alone forced the reforms. There is agreement that the Soviets realized they were well behind the Americans in military technology, that to try to catch up would be very expensive, and that the military expenses were already a very heavy burden slowing down their economy. Reagan's Invasion of Grenada and bombing of Libya were popular in the U.S, though his backing of the Contras rebels was mired in the controversy over the Iran–Contra affair that revealed Reagan's poor management style. Reagan met four times with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who ascended to power in 1985, and their summit conferences led to the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. Gorbachev tried to save Communism in the Soviet Union first by ending the expensive arms race with America, then by shedding the East European empire in 1989. The Soviet Union collapsed on Christmas Day 1991, ending the U.S–Soviet Cold War. The United States emerged as the world's sole remaining superpower and continued to intervene in international affairs during the 1990s, including the 1991 Gulf War against Iraq. Following his election in 1992, President Bill Clinton oversaw one of the longest periods of economic expansion and unprecedented gains in securities values, a side effect of the digital revolution and new business opportunities created by the Internet. He also worked with the Republican Congress to pass the first balanced federal budget in 30 years. In 1998, Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives on charges of lying about a sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. He was acquitted by the Senate. The failure of impeachment and the Democratic gains in the 1998 election forced House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Republican, to resign from Congress. The Republican Party expanded its base throughout the South after 1968 (excepting 1976), largely due to its strength among socially conservative white Evangelical Protestants and traditionalist Roman Catholics, added to its traditional strength in the business community and suburbs. As white Democrats in the South lost dominance of the Democratic Party in the 1990s, the region took on the two-party apparatus which characterized most of the nation. The Republican Party's central leader by 1980 was Ronald Reagan, whose conservative policies called for reduced government spending and regulation, lower taxes, and a strong anti-Soviet foreign policy. His iconic status in the party persists into the 21st century, as practically all Republican Party leaders acknowledge his stature. Social scientists Theodore Caplow et al. argue, "The Republican party, nationally, moved from right-center toward the center in 1940s and 1950s, then moved right again in the 1970s and 1980s." They add: "The Democratic party, nationally, moved from left-center toward the center in the 1940s and 1950s, then moved further toward the right-center in the 1970s and 1980s." The presidential election in 2000 between George W. Bush and Al Gore was one of the closest in U.S. history and helped lay the seeds for political polarization to come. The vote in the decisive state of Florida was extremely close and produced a dramatic dispute over the counting of votes. The U.S. Supreme Court in Bush v. Gore ended the recount with a 5–4 vote. That meant Bush, then in the lead, carried Florida and the election. Including 2000, the Democrats outpolled the Republicans in the national vote in every election from 1992 to 2016, except for 2004. On September 11, 2001 ("9/11"), the United States was struck by a terrorist attack when 19 al-Qaeda hijackers commandeered four airliners to be used in suicide attacks and intentionally crashed two into both twin towers of the World Trade Center and the third into the Pentagon, killing 2,937 victims—206 aboard the three airliners, 2,606 who were in the World Trade Center and on the ground, and 125 who were in the Pentagon. The fourth plane was re-taken by the passengers and crew of the aircraft. While they were not able to land the plane safely, they were able to re-take control of the aircraft and crash it into an empty field in Pennsylvania, killing all 44 people including the four terrorists on board, thereby saving whatever target the terrorists were aiming for. Within two hours, both Twin Towers of the World Trade Center completely collapsed causing massive damage to the surrounding area and blanketing Lower Manhattan in toxic dust clouds. All in all, a total of 2,977 victims perished in the attacks. In response, President George W. Bush on September 20 announced a "War on Terror". On October 7, 2001, the United States and NATO then invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban regime, which had provided safe haven to al-Qaeda and its leader Osama bin Laden. The federal government established new domestic efforts to prevent future attacks. The controversial USA PATRIOT Act increased the government's power to monitor communications and removed legal restrictions on information sharing between federal law enforcement and intelligence services. A cabinet-level agency called the Department of Homeland Security was created to lead and coordinate federal counter-terrorism activities. Some of these anti-terrorism efforts, particularly the U.S. government's handling of detainees at the prison at Guantanamo Bay, led to allegations against the U.S. government of human rights violations. In 2003, from March 19 to May 1, the United States launched an invasion of Iraq, which led to the collapse of the Iraq government and the eventual capture of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, with whom the U.S. had long-standing tense relations. The reasons for the invasion cited by the Bush administration included the spreading of democracy, the elimination of weapons of mass destruction (a key demand of the UN as well, though later investigations found parts of the intelligence reports to be inaccurate), and the liberation of the Iraqi people. Despite some initial successes early in the invasion, the continued Iraq War fueled international protests and gradually saw domestic support decline as many people began to question whether or not the invasion was worth the cost. In 2007, after years of violence by the Iraqi insurgency, President Bush deployed more troops in a strategy dubbed "the surge". While the death toll decreased, the political stability of Iraq remained in doubt. In 2008, the unpopularity of President Bush and the Iraq war, along with the 2008 financial crisis, led to the election of Barack Obama, the first African-American President of the United States. After his election, Obama reluctantly continued the war effort in Iraq until August 31, 2010, when he declared that combat operations had ended. However, 50,000 American soldiers and military personnel were kept in Iraq to assist Iraqi forces, help protect withdrawing forces, and work on counter- terrorism until December 15, 2011, when the war was declared formally over and the last troops left the country. At the same time, Obama increased American involvement in Afghanistan, starting a surge strategy using an additional 30,000 troops, while proposing to begin withdrawing troops sometime in December 2014. With regards to Guantanamo Bay, President Obama forbade torture but in general retained Bush's policy regarding the Guantanamo detainees, while also proposing that the prison eventually be closed. In May 2011, after nearly a decade in hiding, the founder and leader of Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, was killed in Pakistan in a raid conducted by U.S. naval special forces acting under President Obama's direct orders. While Al Qaeda was near collapse in Afghanistan, affiliated organizations continued to operate in Yemen and other remote areas as the CIA used drones to hunt down and remove its leadership. The Boston Marathon bombing was a bombing incident, followed by subsequent related shootings, that occurred when two pressure cooker bombs exploded during the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. The bombs exploded about 12 seconds and 210 yards (190 m) apart at 2:49 pm EDT, near the marathon's finish line on Boylston Street. They killed 3 people and injured an estimated 264 others. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – formerly known as Al-Qaeda in Iraq – rose to prominence in September 2014. In addition to taking control of much of Western Iraq and Eastern Syria, ISIS also beheaded three journalists, two American and one British. These events lead to a major military offensive by the United States and its allies in the region. On December 28, 2014, President Obama officially ended the combat mission in Afghanistan and promised a withdrawal of all remaining U.S. troops at the end of 2016 with the exception of the embassy guards. In September 2008, the United States, and most of Europe, entered the longest post–World War II recession, often called the "Great Recession". Multiple overlapping crises were involved, especially the housing market crisis, a subprime mortgage crisis, soaring oil prices, an automotive industry crisis, rising unemployment, and the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. The financial crisis threatened the stability of the entire economy in September 2008 when Lehman Brothers failed and other giant banks were in grave danger. Starting in October the federal government lent $245 billion to financial institutions through the Troubled Asset Relief Program which was passed by bipartisan majorities and signed by Bush. Following his election victory by a wide electoral margin in November 2008, Bush's successor – Barack Obama – signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was a $787 billion economic stimulus aimed at helping the economy recover from the deepening recession. Obama, like Bush, took steps to rescue the auto industry and prevent future economic meltdowns. These included a bailout of General Motors and Chrysler, putting ownership temporarily in the hands of the government, and the "cash for clunkers" program which temporarily boosted new car sales. The recession officially ended in June 2009, and the economy slowly began to expand once again. The unemployment rate peaked at 10.1% in October 2009 after surging from 4.7% in November 2007, and returned to 5.0% as of October 2015. However, overall economic growth has remained weaker in the 2010s compared to expansions in previous decades. From 2009 to 2010, the 111th Congress passed major legislation such as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, informally known as Obamacare, the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act, which were signed into law by President Obama. Following the 2010 midterm elections, which resulted in a Republican- controlled House of Representatives and a Democratic-controlled Senate, Congress presided over a period of elevated gridlock and heated debates over whether or not to raise the debt ceiling, extend tax cuts for citizens making over $250,000 annually, and many other key issues. These ongoing debates led to President Obama signing the Budget Control Act of 2011. In the Fall of 2012, Mitt Romney challenged Barack Obama for the Presidency. Following Obama's reelection in November 2012, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 – which resulted in an increase in taxes primarily on those earning the most money. Congressional gridlock continued as Congressional Republicans' call for the repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act – popularly known as "Obamacare" – along with other various demands, resulted in the first government shutdown since the Clinton administration and almost led to the first default on U.S. debt since the 19th century. As a result of growing public frustration with both parties in Congress since the beginning of the decade, Congressional approval ratings fell to record lows, with only 11% of Americans approving as of October 2013. Other major events that have occurred during the 2010s include the rise of new political movements, such as the conservative Tea Party movement and the liberal Occupy movement. There was also unusually severe weather during the early part of the decade. In 2012, over half the country experienced record drought and Hurricane Sandy caused massive damage to coastal areas of New York and New Jersey. The debate over the issue of rights for the LGBT community, most notably that of same-sex marriage, began to shift in favor of same-sex couples, and has been reflected in dozens of polls released in the early part of the decade. In 2012, President Obama became the first president to openly support same-sex marriage, and the 2013 Supreme Court decision in the case of United States v. Windsor provided for federal recognition of same-sex unions. In June 2015, the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage nationally in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges. Political debate has continued over issues such as tax reform, immigration reform, income inequality and U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, particularly with regards to global terrorism, the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and an accompanying climate of Islamophobia. On November 8, 2016, Republican Party presidential nominee Donald Trump defeated Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton to become the President-elect of the United States. Trump's election became mired in controversy after U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that associates of the Russian government interfered in the election "to undermine public faith in the U.S. democratic process". This, along with questions about potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials, led to the launch of investigations into the matter by the FBI, and the Senate and the House Intelligence Committees. Encyclopedia of American Studies, sophisticated short articles on a wide range of topics., US History map animation Animated map of the US, showing territorial expansion and statehood by year (Quick Maps, Theodora.com)., US History map animation Animated map of the US, showing territorial expansion and statehood by year (Houston Institute for Culture)., Edsitement, History & Social Studies, lesson plans from the National Endowment for the Humanities, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, includes curriculum modules covering the Revolution to the present, BackStory, American history public radio show hosted by Ed Ayers, Brian Balogh, and Peter Onuf, Early 20th century USA High Quality photographs, Historical Hunt: U.S. History – Learning and Research Between 1776 and 1789 thirteen British colonies emerged as a new independent nation The United States of America. Fighting in the American Revolutionary War started between colonial militias and the British Army in 1775. The Second Continental Congress issued the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Under the leadership of General George Washington, the Continental Army and Navy defeated the British military securing the independence of the thirteen colonies. In 1789, the 13 states replaced the Articles of Confederation of 1777 with the Constitution of the United States of America. With its amendments it remains the fundamental governing law of the United States today. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, British colonies in America had been largely left to their own devices by the crown; it was called salutary neglect. The colonies were thus largely self-governing; half the white men in America could vote, compared to one percent in Britain. They developed their own political identities and systems which were in many ways separate from those in Britain. This new ideology was a decidedly republican political viewpoint, which rejected royalty, aristocracy, and corruption and called for sovereignty of the people and emphasized civic duty. In 1763 with British victory in the French and Indian War, this period of isolation came to an end with the Stamp Act of 1765. The British government began to impose taxes in a way that deliberately provoked the Americans, who complained that they were alien to the unwritten English Constitution because Americans were not represented in parliament. Parliament said the Americans were "virtually" represented and had no grounds for complaint. From the Stamp Act of 1765 onward, disputes with London escalated. By 1772 the colonists began the transfer of political legitimacy to their own hands and started to form shadow governments built on committees of correspondence that coordinated protest and resistance. They called the First Continental Congress in 1774 to inaugurate a trade boycott against Britain. Thirteen colonies were represented at the Congress. The other British colonies were under tight British control and did not rebel. When resistance in Boston culminated in the Boston Tea Party in 1773 with the dumping of taxed tea shipments into the harbor, London imposed the Intolerable Acts on the colony of Massachusetts, ended self-government, and sent in the Army to take control. The Patriots in Massachusetts and the other colonies readied their militias and prepared to fight. General Washington assumed five main roles during the war. First, he designed the overall strategy of the war, in cooperation with Congress. The goal was always independence. When France entered the war, he worked closely with the soldiers it sent--they were decisive in the great victory at Yorktown in 1781. Their help led to America winning the war overall. Second, he provided leadership of troops against the main British forces in 1775–77 and again in 1781. He lost many of his battles, but he never surrendered his army during the war, and he continued to fight the British relentlessly until the war's end. Washington worked hard to develop a successful espionage system to detect British locations and plans. In 1778, he formed the Culper Ring to spy on the British movements in New York City. In 1780 it discovered Benedict Arnold was a traitor. Third, he was charged selecting and guiding the generals. In June 1776, Congress made its first attempt at running the war effort with the committee known as "Board of War and Ordnance", succeeded by the Board of War in July 1777, a committee which eventually included members of the military. The command structure of the armed forces was a hodgepodge of Congressional appointees (and Congress sometimes made those appointments without Washington's input) with state-appointments filling the lower ranks. The results of his general staff were mixed, as some of his favorites never mastered the art of command, such as John Sullivan. Eventually, he found capable officers such as Nathanael Greene, Daniel Morgan, Henry Knox (chief of artillery), and Alexander Hamilton (chief of staff). The American officers never equaled their opponents in tactics and maneuver, and they lost most of the pitched battles. The great successes at Boston (1776), Saratoga (1777), and Yorktown (1781) came from trapping the British far from base with much larger numbers of troops. Fourth he took charge of training the army and providing supplies, from food to gunpowder to tents. He recruited regulars and assigned Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, a veteran of the Prussian general staff, to train them. He transformed Washington's army into a disciplined and effective force. The war effort and getting supplies to the troops were under the purview of Congress, but Washington pressured the Congress to provide the essentials. There was never nearly enough. Washington's fifth and most important role in the war effort was the embodiment of armed resistance to the Crown, serving as the representative man of the Revolution. His long-term strategy was to maintain an army in the field at all times, and eventually this strategy worked. His enormous personal and political stature and his political skills kept Congress, the army, the French, the militias, and the states all pointed toward a common goal. Furthermore, he permanently established the principle of civilian supremacy in military affairs by voluntarily resigning his commission and disbanding his army when the war was won, rather than declaring himself monarch. He also helped to overcome the distrust of a standing army by his constant reiteration that well-disciplined professional soldiers counted for twice as much as poorly trained and led militias. On April 19, 1775, the royal military governor sent a detachment of troops to seize gunpowder and arrest local leaders in Concord. At Lexington, Massachusetts, shots broke out with the Lexington militia, leaving eight colonists dead. The British failed to find their targets in Concord, and as they retreated back to Boston, the British came under continuous assault by upwards of 3,800 militia who had prepared an ambush. The Battle of Lexington and Concord ignited the American Revolutionary War. As news spread, local shadow governments (called "committees of correspondence") in each of the 13 colonies drove out royal officials and sent militiamen to Boston to besiege the British there. The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the aftermath of armed clashes in April. With all thirteen colonies represented, it immediately began to organize itself as a central government with control over the diplomacy and instructed the colonies to write constitutions for themselves as states. On June 1775, George Washington, a charismatic Virginia political leader with combat experience was unanimously appointed commander of a newly organized Continental Army. He took command in Boston and sent for artillery to barrage the British. In every state, a minority professed loyalty to the King, but nowhere did they have power. These Loyalists were kept under close watch by standing Committees of Safety created by the Provincial Congresses. The unwritten rule was such people could remain silent, but vocal or financial or military support for the King would not be tolerated. The estates of outspoken Loyalists were seized; they fled to British-controlled territory, especially New York City. During the winter of 1775–76, an attempt by the Patriots to capture Quebec failed, and the buildup of British forces at Halifax, Nova Scotia, precluded that colony from joining the 13 colonies. The Americans were able to capture a British fort at Ticonderoga, New York, and to drag its cannon over the snow to the outskirts of Boston. The appearance of troops and a cannon on Dorchester Heights outside Boston led the British Army to evacuate the city on March 17, 1776. On July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress, still meeting in Philadelphia, voted unanimously to declare the independence as the "United States of America". Two days later, on July 4, Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. The drafting of the Declaration was the responsibility of a Committee of Five, which included, among others, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin; it was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and revised by the others and the Congress as a whole. It contended that "all men are created equal" with "certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness", and that "to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed", as well as listing the main colonial grievances against the crown. July 4 ever since has been celebrated as the birthday of the United States. The Founding Fathers represented a cross-section of Patriot leadership. According to a study of the biographies of the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence: The British returned in force in August 1776, landing in New York and defeating the fledgling Continental Army at the Battle of Long Island in one of the largest engagements of the war. They quickly seized New York City and nearly captured General Washington and his army. The British made the city their main political and military base of operations in North America, holding it until late 1783. Patriot evacuation and British military occupation made the city the destination for Loyalist refugees, and a focal point of Washington's intelligence network. The British soon seized New Jersey, and American fortunes looked dim; Thomas Paine proclaimed "these are the times that try men's souls". But Washington struck back in a surprise attack, crossing the icy Delaware River into New Jersey and defeated British armies at Trenton and Princeton, thereby regaining New Jersey. The victories gave an important boost to Patriots at a time when morale was flagging, and have become iconic images of the war. In early 1777, a grand British strategic plan, the Saratoga Campaign, was drafted in London. The plan called for two British armies to converge on Albany, New York from the north and south, dividing the colonies in two and separating New England from the rest. Failed communications and poor planning resulted in the army descending from Canada, commanded by General John Burgoyne, bogging down in dense forest north of Albany. Meanwhile, the British Army that was supposed to advance up the Hudson River to meet Burgoyne went instead to Philadelphia, in a vain attempt to end the war by capturing the American capital city. Burgoyne's army was overwhelmed at Saratoga by a swarming of local militia, spearheaded by a cadre of American regulars. The battle showed the British, who had until then considered the colonials a ragtag mob that could easily be dispersed, that the Americans had the strength and determination to fight on. Said one British officer: The courage and obstinacy with which the Americans fought were the astonishment of everyone, and we now became fully convinced that they are not that contemptible enemy we had hitherto imagined them, incapable of standing a regular engagement, and that they would only fight behind strong and powerful works. The American victory at Saratoga led the French into an open military alliance with the United States through the Treaty of Alliance (1778). France was soon joined by Spain and the Netherlands, both major naval powers with an interest in undermining British strength. Britain now faced a major European war, and the involvement of the French navy neutralized their previous dominance of the war on the sea. Britain was without allies and faced the prospect of invasion across the English Channel. With the British in control of most northern coastal cities and Patriot forces in control of the hinterlands, the British attempted to force a result by a campaign to seize the southern states. With limited regular troops at their disposal, the British commanders realized that success depended on a large- scale mobilization of Loyalists. In late December 1778, the British had captured Savannah. In 1780 they launched a fresh invasion and took Charleston as well. A significant victory at the Battle of Camden meant that the invaders soon controlled most of Georgia and South Carolina. The British set up a network of forts inland, hoping the Loyalists would rally to the flag. Not enough Loyalists turned out, however, and the British had to move out. They fought their way north into North Carolina and Virginia, with a severely weakened army. Behind them, much of the territory they left dissolved into a chaotic guerrilla war, as the bands of Loyalists, one by one, were overwhelmed by the patriots. The British army under Lord Cornwallis marched to Yorktown, Virginia where they expected to be rescued by a British fleet. When that fleet was defeated by a French fleet, however, they were trapped, and were surrounded by a much stronger force of Americans and French under Washington's command. On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered. News of the defeat effectively ended the fighting in America, although the naval war continued. Support for the conflict had never been strong in Britain, where many sympathized with the rebels, but now it reached a new low. King George III personally wanted to fight on, but he lost control of Parliament, and had to agree to peace negotiations. Long negotiations resulted in the Treaty of Paris (1783), which provided highly favorable boundaries for the United States; it included nearly all land east of the Mississippi River and south of Canada, except British West Florida, which was awarded to Spain. Encompassing a vast region nearly as large as Western Europe, the western territories contained a few thousand American pioneers and tens of thousands of Indians, most of whom had been allied to the British but were now abandoned by London. Every nation constructs and honors the memory of its founding, and following generations use it to establish its identity and define patriotism. The memory of the Founding and the Revolution has long been used as a political weapon. For example, the right-wing "Tea Party movement" of the 21st century explicitly memorialized the Boston Tea Party as a protest against intrusive government. The Patriot reliance on Catholic France for military, financial and diplomatic aid led to a sharp drop in anti-Catholic rhetoric. Indeed the king replaced the pope as the demon patriots had to fight against. Anti-Catholicism remained strong among Loyalists, some of whom went to Canada after the war while 80% remained in the new nation. By the 1780s, Catholics were extended legal toleration in all of the New England states that previously had been so hostile. "In the midst of war and crisis, New Englanders gave up not only their allegiance to Britain but one of their most dearly held prejudices." Historians have portrayed the Revolution as the main source of the non- denominational "American civil religion" that has shaped patriotism, and the memory and meaning of the nation's birth ever since. Key events and people were viewed as icons of fundamental virtues. Thus the Revolution produced a Moses-like leader (George Washington), prophets (Thomas Jefferson, Tom Paine), disciples (Alexander Hamilton, James Madison) and martyrs (Boston Massacre, Nathan Hale), as well as devils (Benedict Arnold). There are sacred places (Valley Forge, Bunker Hill), rituals (Boston Tea Party), emblems (the new flag), sacred days (Independence Day), and sacred scriptures whose every sentence is carefully studied (The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights). During the 1780s, the nation was a loose confederation of 13 states and was beset with a wide array of foreign and domestic problems. The states engaged in small scale trade wars against each other, and they had difficulty suppressing insurrections such as Shays Rebellion in Massachusetts. The treasury was empty and there was no way to pay the war debts. There was no national executive authority. The world was at peace and the economy flourished. Some historians depict a bleak challenging time for the new nation. Merrill Jensen and others say the term “Critical Period” is exaggerated, and that it was also a time of economic growth and political maturation. The Treaty of Paris left the United States independent and at peace but with an unsettled governmental structure. The Second Continental Congress had drawn up Articles of Confederation on November 15, 1777, to regularize its own status. These described a permanent confederation, but granted to the Congress—the only federal institution—little power to finance itself or to ensure that its resolutions were enforced. There was no president and no judiciary. Although historians generally agree that the Articles were too weak to hold the fast-growing nation together, they do give Congress credit for resolving the conflict between the states over ownership of the western territories. The states voluntarily turned over their lands to national control. The Land Ordinance of 1785 and Northwest Ordinance created territorial government, set up protocols for the admission of new states, the division of land into useful units, and set aside land in each township for public use. This system represented a sharp break from imperial colonization, as in Europe, and provided the basis for the rest of American continental expansion through the 19th Century. By 1783, with the end of the British blockade, the new nation was regaining its prosperity. However, trade opportunities were restricted by the mercantilist policies of the European powers. Before the war the Americans had shipped food and other products to the British colonies in the Caribbean ( British West Indies ), but now these ports were closed, since only British ships could trade there. France and Spain had similar policies for their empires. The former imposed restrictions on imports of New England fish and Chesapeake tobacco. New Orleans was closed by the Spanish, hampering settlement of the West, although it didn't stop frontiersmen from pouring west in great numbers. Simultaneously, American manufacturers faced sharp competition from British products which were suddenly available again. The inability of the Congress to redeem the currency or the public debts incurred during the war, or to facilitate trade and financial links among the states aggravated a gloomy situation. In 1786–87, Shays's Rebellion, an uprising of farmers in western Massachusetts against the state court system, threatened the stability of state government and the Congress was powerless to help. The Continental Congress did have power to print paper money; it printed so much that its value plunged until the expression "not worth a continental" was used for some worthless item. Congress could not levy taxes and could only make requisitions upon the states, which did not respond generously. Less than a million and a half dollars came into the treasury between 1781 and 1784, although the states had been asked for two million in 1783 alone. In 1785, Alexander Hamilton issued a curt statement that the Treasury had received absolutely no taxes from New York for the year. States handled their debts with varying levels of success. The South for the most part refused to pay its debts off, which was damaging to local banks, but Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia fared well due to their production of cash crops such as cotton and tobacco. South Carolina would have done the same except for a series of crop failures. Maryland suffered from financial chaos and political infighting. New York and Pennsylvania fared well, although the latter also suffered from political quarrels. New Jersey, New Hampshire, Delaware, and Connecticut struggled. Massachusetts was in a state of virtual civil war (see above) and suffered from high taxes and the decline of its economy. Rhode Island alone among the New England states prospered and mostly because of its notorious harboring of pirates and smugglers. When Adams went to London in 1785 as the first representative of the United States, he found it impossible to secure a treaty for unrestricted commerce. Demands were made for favors and there was no assurance that individual states would agree to a treaty. Adams stated it was necessary for the states to confer the power of passing navigation laws to Congress, or that the states themselves pass retaliatory acts against Great Britain. Congress had already requested and failed to get power over navigation laws. Meanwhile, each state acted individually against Great Britain to little effect. When other New England states closed their ports to British shipping, Connecticut hastened to profit by opening its ports. By 1787 Congress was unable to protect manufacturing and shipping. State legislatures were unable or unwilling to resist attacks upon private contracts and public credit. Land speculators expected no rise in values when the government could not defend its borders nor protect its frontier population. The idea of a convention to revise the Articles of Confederation grew in favor. Alexander Hamilton realized while serving as Washington's top aide that a strong central government was necessary to avoid foreign intervention and allay the frustrations due to an ineffectual Congress. Hamilton led a group of like- minded nationalists, won Washington's endorsement, and convened the Annapolis Convention in 1786 to petition Congress to call a constitutional convention to meet in Philadelphia to remedy the long-term crisis. Congress, meeting in New York, called on each state to send delegates to a Constitutional Convention, meeting in Philadelphia. While the stated purpose of the convention was to amend the Articles of Confederation, many delegates, including James Madison and George Washington, wanted to use it to craft a new constitution for the United States. The Convention convened in May 1787 and the delegates immediately selected Washington to preside over them. Madison soon proved the driving force behind the Convention, engineering the compromises necessary to create a government that was both strong and acceptable to all of the states. The Constitution, proposed by the Convention, called for a federal government—limited in scope but independent of and superior to the states—within its assigned role able to tax and equipped with both Executive and Judicial branches as well as a two house legislature. The national legislature—or Congress—envisioned by the Convention embodied the key compromise of the Convention between the small states which wanted to retain the power they had under the one state/one vote Congress of the Articles of Confederation and the large states which wanted the weight of their larger populations and wealth to have a proportionate share of power. The upper House—the Senate—would represent the states equally, while the House of Representatives would be elected from districts of approximately equal population. The Constitution itself called for ratification by state conventions specially elected for the purpose, and the Confederation Congress recommended the Constitution to the states, asking that ratification conventions be called. Several of the smaller states, led by Delaware, embraced the Constitution with little reservation. But in the most populous two states, New York and Virginia, the matter became one of controversy. Virginia had been the first successful British colony in North America, had a large population, and its political leadership had played prominent roles in the Revolution. New York was likewise large and populous; with the best situated and sited port on the coast, the state was essential for the success of the United States. Local New York politics were tightly controlled by a parochial elite led by Governor George Clinton, and local political leaders did not want to share their power with the national politicians. The New York ratification convention became the focus for a struggle over the wisdom of adopting the Constitution. Those opposed to the new Constitution became known as the Anti-Federalists. They generally were local rather than cosmopolitan in perspective, oriented to plantations and farms rather than commerce or finance, and wanted strong state governments and a weak national government. According to political scientist James Q. Wilson the Anti-Federalists: Those who advocated the Constitution took the name Federalists and quickly gained supporters throughout the nation. The most influential Federalists were Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, the anonymous authors of The Federalist Papers, a series of 85 essays published in New York newspapers, under the pen name "Publius". The papers became seminal documents for the new United States and have often been cited by jurists. These were written to sway the closely divided New York legislature. Opponents of the plan for stronger government, the Anti-Federalists, feared that a government with the power to tax would soon become as despotic and corrupt as Great Britain had been only decades earlier. The most notable Anti-federalist writers included Patrick Henry and George Mason, who demanded a Bill of Rights in the Constitution. The Federalists gained a great deal of prestige and advantage from the approval of George Washington, who had chaired the Constitutional Convention. Thomas Jefferson, serving as Minister to France at the time, had reservations about the proposed Constitution. He resolved to remain neutral in the debate and to accept either outcome. Promises of a Bill of Rights from Madison secured ratification in Virginia, while in New York, the Clintons, who controlled New York politics, found themselves outmaneuvered as Hamilton secured ratification by a 30–27 vote. North Carolina and Rhode Island eventually signed on to make it unanimous among the 13 states. The old Confederation Congress now set elections to the new Congress as well as the first presidential election. The electoral college unanimously chose Washington as first President; John Adams became the first Vice President. New York was designated as the national capital; they were inaugurated in April 1789 at Federal Hall. Under the leadership of Madison, the first Congress set up all the necessary government agencies, and made good on the Federalist pledge of a Bill of Rights. The new government at first had no political parties. Alexander Hamilton in 1790–92 created a national network of friends of the government that became the Federalist party; it controlled the national government until 1801. However, there continued to be a strong sentiment in favor of states' rights and a limited federal government. This became the platform of a new party, the Republican or Democratic-Republican Party, which assumed the role of opposition to the Federalists. Jefferson and Madison were its founders and leaders. The Democratic-Republicans strongly opposed Hamilton's First Bank of the United States. American foreign policy was dominated by the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars between the United Kingdom and France. The Republicans supported France, encouraging the French Revolution as a force for democracy, while the Washington administration favored continued peace and commerce with Britain, signing the Jay Treaty much to the disgust of Democratic-Republicans, who accused Hamilton and the Federalists of supporting aristocracy and tyranny. John Adams succeeded Washington as President in 1797 and continued the policies of his administration. The Jeffersonian Republicans took control of the Federal government in 1801 and the Federalists never returned to power. Only a few thousand Americans had settled west of the Appalachian Mountains prior to 1775. Settlement continued , and by 1782 25,000 Americans had settled in Transappalachia. After the war, American settlement in the region continued. Though life in these new lands proved hard for many, western settlement offered the prize of property, an unrealistic aspiration for some in the East. Westward expansion stirred enthusiasm even in those who did not move west, and many leading Americans, including Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay, purchased lands in the west. Land speculators founded groups like the Ohio Company, which acquired title to vast tracts of land in the west and often came into conflict with settlers. Washington and others co- founded the Potomac Company to build a canal linking the Potomac River with Ohio River. Washington hoped that this canal would provide a cultural and economic link between the east and west, thus ensuring that the West would not ultimately secede. In 1784, Virginia formally ceded its claims north of the Ohio River, and Congress created a government for the region now known as the Old Northwest with the Land Ordinance of 1784 and the Land Ordinance of 1785. These laws established the principle that Old Northwest would be governed by a territorial government, under the aegis of Congress, until it reached a certain level of political and economic development. At that point, the former territories would enter the union as states, with rights equal to that of any other state. The federal territory stretched across most of the area west of Pennsylvania and north of the Ohio River, though Connecticut retained a small part of its claim in the West in the form of the Connecticut Western Reserve, a strip of land south of Lake Erie. In 1787, Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance, which granted Congress greater control of the region by establishing the Northwest Territory. Under the new arrangement, many of the formerly elected officials of the territory were instead appointed by Congress. In order to attract Northern settlers, Congress outlawed slavery in the Northwest Territory, though it also passed a fugitive slave law to appease the Southern states. While the Old Northwest fell under the control of the federal government, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia retained control of the Old Southwest; each state claimed to extend west to the Mississippi River. In 1784, settlers in western North Carolina sought statehood as the State of Franklin, but their efforts were denied by Congress, which did not want to set a precedent regarding the secession of states. By the 1790 Census, the populations of Tennessee and Kentucky had grown dramatically to 73,000 and 35,000, respectively. Kentucky, Tennessee, and Vermont would all gain statehood between 1791 and 1795. With the aid of Britain and Spain, Native Americans resisted western settlement. Spain's 1784 closure of the Mississippi River denied access to the sea for the exports of Western farmers, greatly impeding efforts to settle the West The British had restricted settlement of the trans-Appalachian lands prior to 1776, and they continued to supply arms to Native Americans after the signing of the Treaty of Paris. Between 1783 and 1787, hundreds of settlers died in low-level conflicts with Native Americans, and these conflicts discouraged further settlement. As Congress provided little military support against the Native Americans, most of the fighting was done by the settlers. By the end of the decade, the frontier was engulfed in the Northwest Indian War against a confederation of Native American tribes. These Native Americans sought the creation of an independent Indian barrier state with the support of the British, posing a major foreign policy challenge to the United States. Timeline of the American Revolution (1760–1789) Alden, John R. A history of the American Revolution (1966) 644pp online to borrow, Atkinson, Rick. The British Are Coming: The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777 (2019) (vol 1 of his 'The Revolution Trilogy'); called, "one of the best books written on the American War for Independence," [Journal of Military History Jan 2020 p 268]; the maps are online here, Chernow, Ron. (2010), Pulitzer Prize, Chernow, Ron. Alexander Hamilton (2004), Cogliano, Francis D. Revolutionary America, 1763–1815; A Political History (2008), British textbook, Ellis, Joseph J. Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation (2000), Ellis, Joseph J. Revolutionary Summer: The Birth of American Independence (2013) on 1776, Ferling, John. A Leap in the Dark: The Struggle to Create the American Republic (2003) online edition, Fremont-Barnes, Gregory, and Richard A. Ryerson, eds. The Encyclopedia of the American Revolutionary War: A Political, Social, and Military History (5 vol. 2006) 1000 entries by 150 experts, covering all topics, Graebner, Norman A., Richard Dean Burns, and Joseph M. Siracusa. Foreign Affairs and the Founding Fathers: From Confederation to Constitution, 1776–1787 (Praeger, 2011) 199 pp., Gray, Edward G., and Jane Kamensky, eds. The Oxford Handbook of the American Revolution (2013) 672 pp; 33 topical essays by scholars, Greene, Jack P. and J.R. Pole, eds. A Companion to the American Revolution (2nd ed, 2003), excerpt and text search, 90 essays by leading scholars; strong on all political, social and international themes; thin on military, Hattem, Michael D. "The Historiography of the American Revolution" Journal of the American Revolution (2013) online outlines ten different scholarly approaches to the Revolution, Higginbotham, Don. The War of American Independence: Military Attitudes, Policies, and Practice, 1763–1789. Massachusetts:Northeastern University Press, 1983. . Online in ACLS History E-book Project. Comprehensive coverage of military and other aspects of the war., Jensen, Merrill. "The Idea of a National Government During the American Revolution," Political Science Quarterly (1943) 58#3 pp: 356–379 in JSTOR, Jensen, Merrill. The Articles of Confederation: An Interpretation of the Social-Constitutional History of the American Revolution, 1774–1781 (1959), Jensen, Merrill. The New Nation: A History of the United States During the Confederation, 1781–1789 (1981), Kerber, Linda K. Women of the Republic: Intellect and Ideology in Revolutionary America (1979), McCullough, David. 1776 (2005), Middlekauff, Robert. The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763–1789. (2nd ed. 2005). . 696pp online edition, Miller, John C. Triumph of Freedom, 1775–1783 (1948) online edition, Morris, Richard B. The Forging of the Union, 1781–1789 (The New American Nation series) () (1987), Nevins, Allan; The American States during and after the Revolution, 1775–1789 (1927) online edition., Taylor, Alan. American Revolutions: A Continental History, 1750–1804 (2016) 704pp; recent survey by leading scholar, Wood, Gordon S. The American Revolution: A History (2003), short survey by leading scholar Commager, Henry Steele and Morris, Richard B., eds. The Spirit of 'Seventy-Six: The Story of the American Revolution As Told by Participants (1975) (), Humphrey; Carol Sue, ed. The Revolutionary Era: Primary Documents on Events from 1776 to 1800 Greenwood Press, 2003, Morison, S. E. ed. Sources and Documents Illustrating the American Revolution, 1764–1788, and the Formation of the Federal Constitution (1923) Interactive Google Map of the American Revolution Zoom in on the actual forts and battlefields of the American Revolution, complete with Wikipedia linked descriptions of each battle British–American relations, also referred to as Anglo-American relations, encompass many complex relations ranging from two early wars to competition for world markets. Since 1940 both countries have been close military allies enjoying the Special Relationship built as wartime allies and NATO partners. The two nations are bound together by shared history, an overlap in religion and a common language and legal system, and kinship ties that reach back hundreds of years, including kindred, ancestral lines among English Americans, Scottish Americans, Welsh Americans, Scotch-Irish Americans, Irish Americans, and American Britons, respectively. Today, large numbers of expatriates live in both countries. Through times of war and rebellion, peace and estrangement, as well as becoming friends and allies, Britain and the US cemented these deeply rooted links during World War II into what is known as the "Special Relationship". In long-term perspective, the historian Paul Johnson has called it the "cornerstone of the modern, democratic world order". In the early 20th century, the United Kingdom affirmed its relationship with the United States as its "most important bilateral partnership" in the current British foreign policy, and the American foreign policy also affirms its relationship with Britain as its most important relationship, as evidenced in aligned political affairs, mutual cooperation in the areas of trade, commerce, finance, technology, academics, as well as the arts and sciences; the sharing of government and military intelligence, and joint combat operations and peacekeeping missions carried out between the United States Armed Forces and the British Armed Forces. Canada has historically been the largest importer of U.S. goods and the principal exporter of goods to the United States. As of January 2015 the UK was fifth in terms of exports and seventh in terms of import of goods. The two countries also have had a significant impact of the cultures of many other countries. They are the two main nodes of the Anglosphere, with a combined population of just under 400 million in 2019. Together, they have given the English language a dominant role in many sectors of the modern world. Leaders of the United Kingdom and United States since 1940: The Special Relationship characterises the exceptionally close political, diplomatic, cultural, economic, military, and historical relations between the two countries. It is specially used for relations since 1940. After several failed attempts, the first permanent English settlement in mainland North America was established in 1607 at Jamestown in the Colony and Dominion of Virginia. By 1624, the Colony and Dominion of Virginia ceased to be a charter colony administered by the Virginia Company of London and became a crown colony. The Pilgrims were a small Protestant sect based in England and Amsterdam; they sent a group of settlers on the Mayflower. After drawing up the Mayflower Compact by which they gave themselves broad powers of self- governance, they established the small Plymouth Colony in 1620. In 1630 the Puritans established the much larger Massachusetts Bay Colony; they sought to reform the Church of England by creating a new and "more pure" church in the New World. Other colonies followed in Province of Maine (1622), Province of Maryland (1632), Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (1636) and Connecticut Colony (1636). Later came the founding of Province of Carolina (1663) (divided in 1729 into the Province of North Carolina and the Province of South Carolina). The Province of New Hampshire was founded in 1691. Next came the Province of Georgia in 1732. The Province of New York was formed from the conquered Dutch colony of New Netherland. In 1674, the Province of New Jersey was split off from New York. In 1681 William Penn was awarded a royal charter by King Charles II to found Province of Pennsylvania. The colonies each reported separately to London. There was a failed effort to group the colonies into the Dominion of New England, 1686-89. During the 17th century, an estimated 350,000 English and Welsh migrants arrived as permanent residents in the Thirteen Colonies. In the century after the Acts of Union 1707 this was surpassed in rate and number by Scottish and Irish migrants. During British settler colonization, liberal administrative, juridical, and market institutions were introduced, positively associated with socioeconomic development. At the same time, colonial policy was also quasi- mercantilist, encouraging trade within the Empire, discouraging trade with other powers, and discouraging the rise of manufacturing in the colonies, which had been established to increase the trade and wealth of the mother country. Britain made much greater profits from the sugar trade of its commercial colonies in the Caribbean. The introduction of coercive labor institutions was another feature of the colonial period. All of the Thirteen Colonies were involved in the slave trade. Slaves in the Middle Colonies and New England Colonies typically worked as house servants, artisans, laborers and craftsmen. Early on, slaves in the Southern Colonies worked primarily in agriculture, on farms and plantations growing indigo, rice, cotton, and tobacco for export. The French and Indian War, fought between 1754 and 1763, was the North American theatre of the Seven Years' War. The conflict, the fourth such colonial war between France and Britain in North America, resulted in the British acquisition of New France, with its French Catholic population. Under the Treaty of Paris signed in 1763, the French ceded control of French Louisiana east of the Mississippi River to the British, which became known as the Indian Reserve. The religious ties between the homeland and the colonies were pronounced. Most of the churches were transplants from England. The Puritans of New England seldom kept in touch with nonconformists in England. Much closer were the transatlantic relationships maintained by the Quakers, especially in Pennsylvania. The Methodists also maintained close ties. The Anglican Church was officially established in the Southern colonies, which meant that local taxes paid the salary of the minister, the parish had civic responsibilities such as poor relief, and the local gentry controlled the parish. The church was disestablished during the American Revolution. The Anglican churches in America were under the authority of the Bishop of London, and there was a long debate over whether to establish an Anglican bishop in America. The other Protestants blocked any such appointment. After the Revolution the newly formed Episcopal Church selected its own bishop and kept its distance from London. Data from the US Census in 2000 The Thirteen Colonies gradually obtained more, albeit limited, self- government. British mercantilist policies became more stringent, benefiting the mother country which resulted in trade restrictions, thereby limiting the growth of the colonial economy and artificially constraining colonial merchants' earning potential. The American Colonies were expected to help repay debt that had accrued during the French and Indian War. Tensions escalated from 1765 to 1775 over issues of taxation without representation and control by King George III. Stemming from the Boston Massacre of 1770 when British Redcoats opened fire on civilians, rebellion consumed the outraged colonists. The British Parliament had imposed a series of taxes such as the Stamp Act of 1765, and later the Tea Act of 1773, against which an angry mob of colonists protested in the Boston Tea Party by dumping chests of tea into Boston Harbor. The British Parliament responded to the defiance of the colonists by passing what the colonials called the Intolerable Acts in 1774. This course of events ultimately triggered the first shots fired in the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775 and the beginning of the American War of Independence. A British victory at the Battle of Bunker Hill in June 1775 agitated tensions even further. While the goal of attaining independence was sought by a majority known as Patriots, a minority known as Loyalists wished to remain as British subjects indefinitely. When the Second Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia in May 1775, deliberations conducted by notable figures such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and John Adams eventually resulted in seeking full independence from the mother country. Thus, the Declaration of Independence, unanimously ratified on 4 July 1776, was a radical and decisive break. The United States of America became the first colony in the world to successfully achieve independence in the modern era. In early 1775 the Patriots forced all the British officials and soldiers out of the new nation. The British returned in force in August 1776, and captured New York City, which became their base until the war ended in 1783. The British, using their powerful navy, could capture major ports, but 90% of the Americans lived in rural areas where they had full control. After the Patriots captured a British invasion force moving down from Canada in the Saratoga campaign of 1777, France entered the war as an ally of the US, and added the Netherlands and Spain as French allies. Britain lost naval superiority and had no major allies and few friends in Europe. The British strategy was then refocused on the South, where they expected large numbers of Loyalists would fight alongside the redcoats. Far fewer Loyalists took up arms than Britain needed; royal efforts to control the countryside in the South failed. When the British army tried to return to New York, its rescue fleet was turned back by the French fleet and its army was captured by combined French-American forces under General George Washington at the Siege of Yorktown in October 1781. That effectively ended the fighting. The Treaty of Paris ended the war in 1783 on terms quite favourable to the new nation. The key events were in September 1782, when the French Foreign Minister Vergennes proposed a solution that was strongly opposed by his ally the United States. France was exhausted by the war, and everyone wanted peace except Spain, which insisted on continuing the war until it captured Gibraltar from the British. Vergennes came up with a deal that Spain would accept instead of Gibraltar. The United States would gain its independence but be confined to the area east of the Appalachian Mountains. Britain would take the area north of the Ohio River. In the area south of that would be set up an independent Indian state under Spanish control. It would be an Indian barrier state. The Americans realised that French friendship was worthless during these negotiations: they could get a better deal directly from London. John Jay promptly told the British that he was willing to negotiate directly with them, cutting off France and Spain. The British Prime Minister Lord Shelburne agreed. He was in full charge of the British negotiations and he now saw a chance to split the United States away from France and make the new country a valuable economic partner. The western terms were that the United States would gain all of the area east of the Mississippi River, north of Florida, and south of Canada. The northern boundary would be almost the same as today. The United States would gain fishing rights off Canadian coasts, and agreed to allow British merchants and Loyalists to try to recover their property. It was a highly favourable treaty for the United States, and deliberately so from the British point of view. Shelburne foresaw a highly profitable two-way trade between Britain and the rapidly growing United States, which indeed came to pass. The treaty was finally ratified in 1784. The British evacuated their soldiers and civilians in New York, Charleston and Savannah in late 1783. Over 80 percent of the half-million Loyalists remained in the United States and became American citizens. The others mostly went to Canada, and referred to themselves as the United Empire Loyalists. Merchants and men of affairs often went to Britain to reestablish their business connections. Rich southern Loyalists, taking their slaves with them, typically headed to plantations in the West Indies. The British also took away about 3000 free blacks, former slaves who fought the British army; they went to Nova Scotia. Many found it inhospitable and went to Sierra Leone, the British colony in Africa. The new nation gained control of nearly all the land east of the Mississippi and south of the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes. The British colonies of East and West Florida were given to Spain as its reward. The Native American tribes allied with Britain struggled in the aftermath; the British ignored them at the Peace conference, and most came under American control unless they moved to Canada or to Spanish territory. The British kept forts in the American Midwest (especially in Michigan and Wisconsin), where they supplied weapons to Indian tribes. Trade resumed between the two nations when the war ended. The British allowed all exports to America but forbade some American food exports to its colonies in the West Indies. British exports reached £3.7 million, compared with imports of only £750,000. The imbalance caused a shortage of gold in the US. In 1785, John Adams became the first American plenipotentiary minister, now known as an ambassador, to the Court of St James's. King George III received him graciously. In 1791, Great Britain sent its first diplomatic envoy, George Hammond, to the United States. When Great Britain and France went to war in 1793, relations between the United States and Great Britain also verged on war. Tensions were subdued when the Jay Treaty was signed in 1794, which established a decade of peace and prosperous trade relations. The historian Marshall Smelser argues that the treaty effectively postponed war with Britain, or at least postponed it until the United States was strong enough to handle it. According to American historian Samuel Flagg Bemis, the U.S. had a list of outstanding issues: The British Army operated five forts in territory assigned to the U.S. in the 1783 peace treaty in modern-day Michigan, Ohio and New York., The British were funding American Indian attacks on settlers in the Northwest (Ohio and Michigan)., The British were continuing to impress sailors into British service who were U.S. citizens., American merchants wanted compensation for 250 merchant ships which the British had confiscated in 1793 and 1794., Southern interests wanted monetary compensation for slaves owned by Loyalists who were taken away to the West Indies along with their masters in 1781-83., American merchants wanted the British West Indies to be reopened to American trade., The boundary with Canada was vague in many places, and needed to be more sharply delineated. The final treaty settled some but not all of the issues. The Federalists called for the Senate to ratify the Jay treaty, but the Republicans were strongly opposed. Led by Jefferson and Madison, the Republicans strongly favored France and believed good relations with Britain would doom republicanism in America. President George Washington waited until the last moment then made the decisive intervention so the Treaty was ratified by exactly a 2/3 vote, and the necessary money was appropriated. The result was two decades of peace in a time of world war that lasted until the Republicans came to power and Jefferson rejected a new treaty and began an economic attack on Britain. Bradford Perkins argues that the treaty was the first to establish a special relationship between Britain and the United States, with a second installment under Lord Salisbury. In his view, the treaty worked for ten years to secure peace between Britain and America: "The decade may be characterised as the period of "The First Rapprochement." As Perkins concludes, "For about ten years there was peace on the frontier, joint recognition of the value of commercial intercourse, and even, by comparison with both preceding and succeeding epochs, a muting of strife over ship seizures and impressment. Two controversies with France… pushed the English-speaking powers even more closely together." Starting at swords' point in 1794, the Jay treaty reversed the tensions, Perkins concludes: "Through a decade of world war and peace, successive governments on both sides of the Atlantic were able to bring about and preserve a cordiality which often approached genuine friendship." Historian Joseph Ellis finds the terms of the treaty "one-sided in Britain's favor", but asserts a consensus of historians agrees that it was "a shrewd bargain for the United States. It bet, in effect, on England rather than France as the hegemonic European power of the future, which proved prophetic. It recognised the massive dependence of the American economy on trade with England. In a sense it was a precocious preview of the Monroe Doctrine (1823), for it linked American security and economic development to the British fleet, which provided a protective shield of incalculable value throughout the nineteenth century. Mostly, it postponed war with England until America was economically and politically more capable of fighting one." The US proclaimed its neutrality in the wars between Britain and France (1793–1815), and profited greatly by selling food, timber and other supplies to both sides. Thomas Jefferson had bitterly opposed the Jay Treaty because he feared it would strengthen anti-republican political enemies. When Jefferson became president in 1801, he did not repudiate the treaty. He kept the Federalist minister, Rufus King in London to negotiate a successful resolution to outstanding issues regarding cash payments and boundaries. The amity broke down in 1805, as relations turned increasingly hostile as a prelude to the War of 1812. Jefferson rejected a renewal of the Jay Treaty in the Monroe–Pinkney Treaty of 1806 as negotiated by his diplomats and agreed to by London; he never sent it to the Senate. The legal international slave trade was largely suppressed after Great Britain passed the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act in 1807. At the urging of President Jefferson, the United States passed the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves in 1807, to take effect January 1, 1808. The United States imposed a trade embargo, namely the Embargo Act of 1807, in retaliation for Britain's blockade of France, which involved the visit and search of neutral merchantmen, and resulted in the suppression of Franco- United States trade for the duration of the Napoleonic Wars. The Royal Navy also boarded American ships and impressed sailors suspected of being British deserters. Expansion into the Midwest (i.e. Ohio to Wisconsin) was hindered by Native American tribes given munitions and support by British agents. Indeed, Britain's goal was the creation of an independent Indian state to block expansion westward by the US. After diplomacy and the boycott had failed, the issue of national honour and independence came to the fore. Brands says, "The other war hawks spoke of the struggle with Britain as a second war of independence; [Andrew] Jackson, who still bore scars from the first war of independence held that view with special conviction. The approaching conflict was about violations of American rights, but it was also vindication of American identity." Finally in June 1812 President James Madison called for war, and overcame the opposition of business interests in the Northeast. The US strategy called for a war against British shipping and especially cutting off food shipments to the British sugar plantations in the West Indies. Conquest of the northern colonies that later became Canada was a tactic designed to give the US a strong bargaining position. The main British goal was to defeat France, so until that happened in 1814 the war was primarily defensive. To enlist allies among Native Americans, led by Tecumseh, the British promised an independent Indian state would be created in territory claimed by the United States. British and Canadian forces repeatedly repulsed invasions by US forces, which were inadequately prepared, poorly led, and undermined by the unavailability of militia units, whose commanders refused to place them temporarily under federal control. Nevertheless, US forces took control of Lake Erie in 1813, and destroyed the offensive abilities of Native American forces, allied to the British, in the Northwest and South. The British invasion of the Chesapeake Bay in 1814 culminated in the "Burning of Washington", but the subsequent British attack on Baltimore was repelled. A British incursion into New York state during 1814 was defeated at the Battle of Plattsburgh, and the invasion of Louisiana that launched before word of a ceasefire had reached General Andrew Jackson was decisively defeated at the Battle of New Orleans in 1815. Negotiations began in 1814 and produced the Treaty of Ghent, which restored the status quo ante bellum: there were no territorial gains by either side, and the British strategy of creating an independent Native American state was abandoned. The United Kingdom retained the theoretical right of impressment, but stopped impressing any sailors, while the United States dropped the issue for good. The US celebrated the outcome as a victorious "second war of independence". The British, having finally defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, celebrated that triumph and largely forgot their second war with the US. Tensions between the US and Canada were resolved through diplomacy. The War of 1812 marked the end of a long period of conflict (1775–1815) and ushered in a new era of peace between the two nations. The Monroe Doctrine, a unilateral response in 1823 to a British suggestion of a joint declaration, expressed American hostility to further European encroachment in the Western hemisphere. Nevertheless, the United States benefited from the common outlook in British policy and its enforcement by the Royal Navy. In the 1840s several states defaulted on bonds owned by British investors. London bankers avoided state bonds afterwards, but invested heavily in American railroad bonds. In several episodes the American general Winfield Scott proved a sagacious diplomat by tamping down emotions and reaching acceptable compromises. Scott handled the Caroline affair in 1837. Rebels from British North America (now Ontario) fled to New York and used a small American ship called the Caroline to smuggle supplies into Canada after their rebellion was suppressed. In late 1837, Canadian militia crossed the border into the US and burned the ship, leading to diplomatic protests, a flare-up of Anglophobia, and other incidents. Tensions on the vague Maine–New Brunswick boundary involved rival teams of lumberjacks in the bloodless Aroostook War of 1839. There was no shooting but both sides tried to uphold national honor and gain a few more miles of timber land. Each side had an old secret map that apparently showed the other side had the better legal case, so compromise was easily reached in the Webster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842, which settled the border in Maine and Minnesota. In 1859, the bloodless Pig War determined the position of the border in relation to the San Juan Islands and Gulf Islands. British leaders were constantly annoyed from the 1840s to the 1860s by what they saw as Washington's pandering to the democratic mob, as in the Oregon boundary dispute in 1844-46. However British middle-class public opinion sensed a "special relationship" between the two peoples based on language, migration, evangelical Protestantism, liberal traditions, and extensive trade. This constituency rejected war, forcing London to appease the Americans. During the Trent affair of late 1861, London drew the line and Washington retreated. In 1844-48 the two nations had overlapping claims to Oregon. The area was largely unsettled, making it easy to end the crisis in 1848 by a compromise that split the region evenly, with British Columbia to Great Britain, and Washington, Idaho, and Oregon to America. The US then turned its attention to Mexico, which threatened war over the annexation of Texas. Britain tried without success to moderate the Mexicans, but when the war began it remained neutral. The US gained California, in which the British had shown only passing interest. The British wanted a stable Mexico to block American expansion to the Southwest, but an unstable Mexico attacked Texas and wanted revenge for its defeat. The result was a vast American expansion. The discovery of gold in California in 1848 brought a heavy demand for passage to the gold fields, with the main routes crossing Panama to avoid a very long slow sailing voyage around all of South America. A railroad was built that carried 600,000 despite the dangerous environment in Panama. A canal in Nicaragua was a much more healthy and attractive possibility, and American businessmen gained the necessary permissions, along with a U.S. treaty with Nicaragua. However the British were determined to block an American canal, and seized key locations on the mosquito coast on the Atlantic that blocked it. The Whigs were in charge in Washington and unlike the bellicose Democrats wanted a business-like peaceful solution. The Whigs took a lesson from the British experience monopolizing the chokepoint of Gibraltar, which produced no end of conflicts, wars, and military and naval expenses for the British. The United States decided that a canal should be open and neutral to all the world's traffic, and not be militarized. Tensions escalated locally, with small-scale physical confrontations in the field. Washington and London found a diplomatic solution. The Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 1850 guaranteed equal canal rights to both the U.S. and Britain. Each agreed not to colonize Central America. However, disagreements arose and no Nicaragua canal was ever started. By 1857-59, the London government dropped its opposition to American territorial expansion. The opening of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 made travel to California fast, cheap and safe. Americans lost interest in canals and focused their attention on building long-distance railways. The British, meanwhile, turned their attention to building the Suez Canal through Egypt. London maintained a veto on American canal building in Nicaragua. In 1890s, the French made a major effort to build a canal through Panama, but it self- destructed through mismanagement, severe corruption, and especially the deadly disease environment. By the late 1890s Britain saw the need for much improved relations with the United States, and agreed to allow the U.S. to build a canal through either Nicaragua or Panama. The choice was Panama. The Hay–Pauncefote Treaty of 1901 replaced the Clayton–Bulwer Treaty, and adopted the rule of neutralization for the Panama Canal which the U.S. built; it opened in 1914. In the American Civil War a major Confederate goal was to win recognition from Britain and France, which it expected would lead them to war with the US and enable the Confederacy to win independence. Because of astute American diplomacy, no nation ever recognised the Confederacy and war with Britain was averted. Nevertheless, there was considerable British sentiment in favour of weakening the US by helping the South win. At the beginning of the war Britain issued . The Confederate States of America had assumed all along that Britain would surely enter the war to protect its vital supply of cotton. This "King Cotton" argument was one reason the Confederates felt confident in the first place about going to war, but the Southerners had never consulted the Europeans and were tardy in sending diplomats. Even before the fighting began in April 1861 Confederate citizens (acting without government authority) cut off cotton shipments in an effort to exert cotton diplomacy. It failed because Britain had warehouses filled with cotton, whose value was soaring; not until 1862 did shortages become acute. The Trent Affair in late 1861 nearly caused a war. A warship of the U.S. Navy stopped the British civilian vessel RMS Trent and took off two Confederate diplomats, James Murray Mason and John Slidell. Britain prepared for war and demanded their immediate release. President Lincoln released the diplomats and the episode ended quietly. Britain realised that any recognition of an independent Confederacy would be treated as an act of war against the United States. The British economy was heavily reliant on trade with the United States, most notably cheap grain imports which in the event of war, would be cut off by the Americans. Indeed, the Americans would launch all-out naval war against the entire British merchant fleet. Despite outrage and intense American protests, London allowed the British-built CSS Alabama to leave port and become a commerce raider under the naval flag of the Confederacy. The war ended in 1865; arbitration settled the issue in 1871, with a payment of $15.5 million in gold for the damages caused. In January 1863 Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which was strongly supported by liberal elements in Britain. The British government predicted that emancipation of the slaves would create a race war, and that intervention might be required on humanitarian grounds. There was no race war, and the declining capabilities of the Confederacy—such as loss of major ports and rivers—made its likelihood of success smaller and smaller. Relations were chilly during the 1860s as Americans resented British and Canadian roles during the Civil War. After the war American authorities looked the other way as Irish Catholic "Fenians" plotted and even attempted an invasion of Canada to create pressure for an independent Ireland. The Fenians movement collapsed from its own incompetence. Irish American politicians, a growing power in the Democratic Party demanded more independence for Ireland and made anti-British rhetoric—called "twisting the lion's tail"—a staple of election campaign appeals to the Irish vote. The arbitration of the Alabama Claims in 1872 provided a satisfactory reconciliation; The British paid the United States $15.5 million for the economic damage caused by Confederate warships purchased from it. Canada could never be defended so the British decided to cut their losses and eliminate the risk of a conflict with the U.S. The first ministry of William Gladstone withdrew from all its historic military and political responsibilities in North America. It brought home its troops (keeping Halifax as an Atlantic naval base), and turned responsibility over to the locals. That made it wise in 1867 to unify the separate Canadian colonies into a self-governing confederation named the "Dominion of Canada". Britain persisted in its free trade policy even as its major rivals, the US and Germany, turned to high tariffs (as did Canada). American heavy industry grew faster than Britain, and by the 1890s was crowding British machinery and other products out of the world market. London, however, remained the world's financial center, even as much of its investment was directed toward American railways. The Americans remained far behind the British in international shipping and insurance. The American economic "invasion" of the British home market demanded a response. Tariffs, although increasingly under consideration, were not imposed until the 1930s. Therefore, British businessmen were obliged to lose their market or else rethink and modernise their operations. The boot and shoe industry faced increasing imports of American footwear; Americans took over the market for shoe machinery. British companies realised they had to meet the competition so they re-examined their traditional methods of work, labour utilisation, and industrial relations, and to rethink how to market footwear in terms of the demand for fashion. In 1895 the Venezuela Crisis with the United States erupted. A border dispute between British Guiana and Venezuela caused a major Anglo-American crisis when the United States intervened to take Venezuela's side. Propaganda sponsored by Venezuela convinced American public opinion that the British were infringing on Venezuelan territory. The United States demanded an explanation and Prime Minister Salisbury refused. The crisis escalated when President Grover Cleveland, citing the Monroe Doctrine, issued an ultimatum in late 1895. Salisbury's cabinet convinced him he had to go to arbitration. Both sides calmed down and the issue was quickly resolved through arbitration which largely upheld the British position on the legal boundary line. Salisbury remained angry but a consensus was reached in London, led by Lord Landsdowne, to seek much friendlier relations with the United States. By standing with a Latin American nation against the encroachment of the British, the US improved relations with the Latin Americans, and the cordial manner of the procedure improved diplomatic relations with Britain. The Olney-Pauncefote Treaty of 1897 was a proposed treaty between the United States and Britain in 1897 that required arbitration of major disputes. Despite wide public and elite support, the treaty was rejected by the U.S. Senate, which was jealous of its prerogatives, and never went into effect. Arbitration was used to settle the dispute over the boundary between Alaska and Canada, but the Canadians felt betrayed by the result. The Alaska Purchase of 1867 drew the boundary between Canada and Alaska in ambiguous fashion. With the gold rush into the Yukon in 1898, miners had to enter through Alaska and Canada wanted the boundary redrawn to obtain its own seaport. Canada rejected the American offer of a long-term lease on an American port. The issue went to arbitration and the Alaska boundary dispute was finally resolved by an arbitration in 1903. The decision favoured the US when the British judge sided with the three American judges against the two Canadian judges on the arbitration panel. Canadian public opinion was outraged that their interests were sacrificed by London for the benefit of British-American harmony. The Great Rapprochement is the convergence of social and political objectives between the United Kingdom and the United States from 1895 until World War I began in 1914. The large Irish Catholic element in the US provided a major base for demands for Irish independence, and occasioned anti-British rhetoric, especially at election time. The most notable sign of improving relations during the Great Rapprochement was Britain's actions during the Spanish–American War (started 1898). Initially Britain supported the Spanish Empire and its colonial rule over Cuba, since the perceived threat of American occupation and a territorial acquisition of Cuba by the United States might harm British trade and commercial interests within its own imperial possessions in the West Indies. However, after the United States made genuine assurances that it would grant Cuba's independence (which eventually occurred in 1902 under the terms dictated in the Platt Amendment), the British abandoned this policy and ultimately sided with the United States, unlike most other European powers who supported Spain. In return the US government supported Britain during the Boer War, although many Americans favored the Boers. Victory in the Spanish–American War had given the United States its own rising empire. This new status was demonstrated in 1900–01, when the US and Britain, as part of the Eight-Nation Alliance, suppressed the Boxer Rebellion and maintained foreign Concessions (colonies) in Qing Dynasty China. The naval blockade of several months (1902-1903) imposed against Venezuela by Britain, Germany and Italy over President Cipriano Castro's refusal to pay foreign debts and damages suffered by European citizens in a recent failed . Castro assumed that the Monroe Doctrine would see the U.S. prevent European military intervention, but at the time President Theodore Roosevelt saw the Doctrine as concerning European seizure of territory, rather than intervention per se. Roosevelt also was concerned with the threat of penetration into the region by Germany and Britain. With Castro failing to back down under U.S. pressure and increasingly negative British and American press reactions to the affair, President Roosevelt persuaded the blockading nations to agree to a compromise, but maintained the blockade, during negotiations over the details of refinancing the debt on Washington Protocols. This incident was a major driver of the Roosevelt Corollary and the subsequent U.S. Big Stick policy and Dollar Diplomacy in Latin America. In 1907–09, President Theodore Roosevelt sent the "Great White Fleet" on an international tour, to demonstrate the power projection of the United States' blue-water navy, which had become second only to the Royal Navy in size and firepower. The United States had a policy of strict neutrality and was willing to export any product to any country. Germany could not import anything due to the British blockade, so the American trade was with the Entente. It was financed by the sale of American bonds and stocks owned by the British. When that was exhausted the British borrowed heavily from New York banks. When that credit ran dry in late 1916, a financial crisis was at hand for Britain. American public opinion moved steadily against Germany, especially in the wake of the Belgian atrocities in 1914 and the sinking of the RMS Lusitania in 1915. The large German American and Irish Catholic element called for staying out of the war, but the German Americans were increasingly marginalised. The Germans renewed unrestricted submarine warfare in 1917 knowing it would lead to war with the US. Germany's invitation to Mexico to join together in war against the US in the Zimmermann Telegram was the last straw, and the US declared war in April 1917. The Balfour Mission in April and May tried to promote cooperation between the UK and US. The Americans planned to send money, food and munitions, but it soon became clear that millions of soldiers would be needed to decide the war on the Western Front. The US sent two million soldiers to Europe under the command of General John J. Pershing, with more on the way as the war ended. Many of the Allied forces were skeptical of the competence of the American Expeditionary Force, which in 1917 was severely lacking in training and experience. By summer 1918, the American doughboys were arriving at 10,000 a day, as the German forces were shrinking because they had run out of manpower. The first summit conference took place in London in late 1918, between Wilson and Prime Minister David Lloyd George. It went poorly, as Wilson distrusted Lloyd George as a schemer, and Lloyd George grumbled that the president was excessively moralistic. The two did work together at the Paris Peace Conference, 1919, as part of the Big Four. They moderated the demands of French Prime Minister Clemenceau to permanently weaken Germany. Lloyd George later quipped that sitting between them was like "being seated between Jesus Christ and Napoleon". Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, The level of mutual hostility was moderately high. The British diplomatic establishment largely distrusted the United States for a series of reasons. They included British suspicion of America's power, intentions and reliability. Specific frictions included the American rejection of the League of Nations, Roosevelt's sudden devastating withdrawal from the 1933 London economic conference, the unwillingness to soften the war debts owed by Britain to the US treasury, the failure to join in a denunciation of Japan regarding Manchuria in 1933, and the 1930 high American tariffs. In both countries, isolationism was deeply rooted, and the other side was not popular. On the American side, there was widespread distrust of British imperialism, its trade restrictions on the United States, and the cruel treatment of India. The Irish-American community still had bitter resentments. Roosevelt himself was quietly hostile to British imperialism in the 1930s Despite the tone of hostility, the British government realized the United States was now the stronger power, and made it a cardinal principle of British foreign-policy to "cultivate the closest relations with the United States". As a result, Britain decided not to renew its military alliance with Japan, which was becoming a major rival to the United States in the Pacific. The US sponsored a successful Washington Naval Conference in 1922 that largely ended the naval arms race for a decade. The rise of American naval power in 1916-1918 marked the end of the Royal Navy's superiority, an eclipse acknowledged in the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922, when the United States and Britain agreed to equal tonnage quotas on warships. By 1932, the 1922 treaty was not renewed and Britain, Japan and the US were again in a naval race. In 1924 the aristocratic diplomat Esmé Howard returned to Washington as ambassador. Puzzled at first by the provincial background and eccentric style of President Calvin Coolidge, Howard came to like and trust the president, realizing that he was conciliatory and eager to find solutions to mutual problems, such as the Liquor Treaty of 1924 which diminished friction over smuggling. Washington was greatly pleased when Britain ended its alliance with Japan. Both nations were pleased when in 1923 the wartime debt problem was compromised on satisfactory terms. London renegotiated its £978 million debt to the U.S. Treasury by promising regular payments of £34 million for ten years then £40 million for 52 years. The idea was for the US to loan money to Germany, which in turn paid reparations to Britain, which in turn paid off its loans from the US government. In 1931 all German payments ended, and in 1932 Britain suspended its payments to the US, Which angered American public opinion. The British debt was finally repaid after 1945. The League of Nations was established, but Wilson refused to negotiate with Republican supporters of the League. They objected to the provision that allowed the League to force the United States to join in a war declared by the League without the approval of Congress or the president. It was defeated in the Senate. The United States never joined the League, leaving Britain and France to dominate the organization. In any case, it had very little effect on major issues and was replaced in 1945 with a United Nations, Largely designed by Roosevelt in his staff, in which both Britain and the United States had veto power. Major conferences, especially the Washington Conference of 1922 occurred outside League auspices. The US refused to send official delegates to League committees, instead sending unofficial "observers". Coolidge was impressed with the success of the Washington Naval Conference of 1921-22, and called the second international conference in 1927 to deal with related naval issues, especially putting limits on the number of warships under 10,000 tons. The conference met in Geneva. It failed because France refused to participate, and most of the delegates were admirals who did not want to limit their fleets. Coolidge listened to his own admirals, but President Hoover did not, and in 1930 did achieve a naval agreement with Britain. A second summit took place between President Herbert Hoover and Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald in the United States in 1929. Both men were seriously devoted to peace, and the meeting went smoothly in discussions regarding naval arms limitations, and the application of the Kellogg–Briand Pact peace pact of 1928. One result was the successful London Naval Treaty of 1930, which continued the warship limitations among the major powers first set out in 1922. During the Great Depression, starting in late 1929, the U.S. was preoccupied with its own internal affairs and economic recovery, espousing an isolationist policy. When the US raised tariffs in 1930, the British retaliated by raising their tariffs against outside countries (such as the US) while giving special trade preferences inside the Commonwealth. The US demanded these special trade preferences be ended in 1946 in exchange for a large loan. The overall world total of all trade plunged by over two-thirds, while trade between the US and Britain shrank from $848 million in 1929 to $288 million in 1932, a decline of almost two-thirds (66%). When Britain in 1933 called a worldwide London Economic Conference to help resolve the depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt killed it by refusing to cooperate. Tensions over the Irish question faded with the independence of the Irish Free State in 1922. The American Irish had achieved their goal, and in 1938 its leader Joseph P. Kennedy became ambassador to the Court of St. James's. He moved in high London society and his daughter married into the aristocracy. Kennedy supported the Neville Chamberlain policy of appeasement toward Germany, and when the war began he advised Washington that prospects for Britain's survival were bleak. When Winston Churchill came to power in 1940, Kennedy lost all his influence in London and Washington. Although many of the American people were sympathetic to Britain during the war with Nazi Germany, there was widespread opposition to American intervention in European affairs. This was reflected in a series of Neutrality Acts ratified by the United States Congress in 1935, 1936, and 1937. However, President Roosevelt's policy of cash-and-carry still allowed Britain and France to order munitions from the United States and carry them home. Churchill, who had long warned against Germany and demanded rearmament, became prime minister after Chamberlain's policy of appeasement had totally collapsed and Britain was unable to reverse the German invasion of Norway in April 1940. After the fall of France in June 1940, Roosevelt gave Britain and (after June 1941) the Soviet Union all aid short of war. The Destroyers for Bases Agreement which was signed in September 1940, gave the United States a 99-year rent-free lease of numerous land and air bases throughout the British Empire in exchange for the Royal Navy receiving 50 old destroyers from the United States Navy. Beginning in March 1941, the United States enacted Lend-Lease in the form of tanks, fighter airplanes, munitions, bullets, food, and medical supplies. Britain received $31.4 billion out of a total of $50.1 billion sent to the Allies. Roosevelt insisted on avoiding the blunder that Wilson had made in the First World War of setting up the financing as loans that had to be repaid by the recipients. Lend lease aid was freely given, with no payments. Also there were also cash loans were repaid at low rates over a half-century. Summit meetings became a standard practice starting with August 1941, when Churchill and Roosevelt met on British territory, and announced the Atlantic Charter. It became a fundamental document—All the Allies had to sign it—and it led to the formation of the United Nations. Shortly after Pearl Harbor, Churchill spent several weeks in Washington with the senior staff hammering out wartime strategy with the American counterparts at the Arcadia Conference. They set up the Combined Chiefs of Staff to plot and coordinate strategy and operations. Military cooperation was close and successful. Technical collaboration was even closer, as the two nations shared secrets and weapons regarding the proximity fuze (fuse) and radar, as well as airplane engines, Nazi codes, and the atomic bomb. Millions of American servicemen were based in Britain during the war. Americans were paid five times more than comparable British servicemen, which led to a certain amount of friction with British men and intermarriage with British women. In 1945 Britain sent a portion of the British fleet to assist the planned October invasion of Japan by the United States, but this was cancelled when Japan was forced to surrender unconditionally in August. Serious tension erupted over American demands that India be given independence, a proposition Churchill vehemently rejected. For years Roosevelt had encouraged Britain's disengagement from India. The American position was based on principled opposition to colonialism, practical concern for the outcome of the war, and the expectation of a large American role in a post- colonial era. In 1942 when the Congress Party launched a Quit India movement, the British authorities immediately arrested tens of thousands of activists (including Mahatma Gandhi). Meanwhile, India became the main American staging base for aid to China. Churchill threatened to resign if Roosevelt pushed too hard, so Roosevelt backed down. In Spring 1949 the Bank of England issued instructions to British banks restricting the conversion of sterling for any oil that was purchased outside the sterling area. This was particularly damaging to the Arabian American Oil Company (ARAMCO) — Standard Oil of Jersey and Socony had been invited to join the Saudi concession because of their extensive overseas contacts who were now subject to London's embargo. Britain also began bartering oil for payment in kind in defiance of international agreements with the US. Britain devalued its currency in September 1949 and promptly reduced exchanges-for-dollars by restricting American-affiliated oil companies from selling dollar oil within the sterling area until all the sterling oil had been sold. The disagreement was especially dire because Americans wanted to sell the oil they purchased from Saudi Arabia under the new concession arrangement. Eventually the British and the Americans reached an agreement that allowed American companies to sell Saudi oil in the sterling area. In the aftermath of the war Britain faced a financial crisis, whereas the United States was in the midst of an economic boom. The process of de- colonization accelerated with the independence Britain granted to India, Pakistan and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1947. The Labour government, which was alarmed at the threat of Communism in the Balkans, implored the US to take over the British role in Greece, which led to the Truman Doctrine in 1947, with financial and military aid to Greece and Turkey as Britain withdrew from the region. The US provided financial aid in the form of the Anglo-American loan of 1946, a 50-year loan with a low 2% interest rate starting in 1950. A more permanent solution was the Marshall Plan of 1948–51, which poured $13 billion into western Europe, of which $3.3 billion went to Britain to help modernise its infrastructure and business practices. The aid was a gift and carried requirements that Britain balance its budget, control tariffs and maintain adequate currency reserves. The need to form a united front against the Soviet threat compelled the US and Britain to cooperate in helping to form the North Atlantic Treaty Organization with their European allies. NATO is a mutual defence alliance whereby an attack on one member country is deemed an attack on all members. The United States had an anti-colonial and anti- communist stance in its foreign policy throughout the Cold War. Military forces from the United States and the United Kingdom were heavily involved in the Korean War, fighting under a United Nations mandate. Military forces withdrew when a stalemate was implemented in 1953. During the same year British and American intelligence agencies worked together and were instrumental in planning and initiating the 1953 Iranian coup d'etat. In 1954 the US attempted to help the beleaguered French army at the height of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. They planned Operation Vulture; a planned aerial assault on the opposing communist Viet Minh siege positions. President Eisenhower made American participation reliant on British support, but Foreign Secretary Sir Anthony Eden was opposed and Vulture was reluctantly cancelled. With the fall of Dien Bien Phu the U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles fell out with Eden. He left the 1954 Geneva Conference, leaving the US to avoid direct association with the negotiations that led to the creation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. When the Suez Crisis erupted in October 1956, the United States feared a wider war, after the Soviet Union threatened to intervene on the Egyptian side. Thus the United States applied sustained econo-financial pressure to encourage and ultimately force the United Kingdom, Israel and France to end their invasion of Egypt. British post-war debt was so large that economic sanctions could have caused a devaluation of sterling. This was something the UK government intended to avoid at all costs, and when it became clear that the international sanctions were serious, the British and their French allies withdrew their forces back to pre-war positions. The following year saw the resignation of Sir Anthony Eden. Anglo-American cooperation during Eisenhower's presidency was troubled, approaching in 1956 a complete breakdown that represented the lowest point in the relations between the two countries since the 1920s. Through the US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement signed in 1958, the United States assisted the United Kingdom in their own development of a nuclear arsenal. The British, however, were financially unable to develop their own delivery systems for nuclear weapons. In April 1963, the Polaris Sales Agreement called for the U.S. to sell the UGM-27 Polaris ballistic missile for use in the Royal Navy's submarine fleet starting in 1968. The American containment policy called for military resistance to the expansion of communism, and Vietnam became the main battlefield in the 1950s down to the communist victory in 1975. Harold Wilson, the Prime Minister (1964-1970) believed in a strong "Special Relationship" and wanted to highlight his dealings with the White House to strengthen his own prestige as a statesman. President Lyndon Johnson disliked Wilson, and ignored any "special" relationship. He agreed to provide financial help but he strongly opposed British plans to devalue the pound and withdraw military units east of Suez. Vietnam was the sore point. As the American military involvement deepened after 1964, Johnson repeatedly asked for British ground units to validate international support for American intervention. Wilson never sent troops, but he did provide help with intelligence, and training in jungle warfare, as well as verbal support. He also took the initiative in attempting numerous mediation schemes, typically involving Russian intervention, none of which gained traction. Wilson's policy Divided the Labour Party; the Conservative opposition generally supported the American position on Vietnam. Issues of foreign policy were rarely salient in general elections. Wilson and Johnson also differed sharply on British economic weakness and its declining status as a world power. Historian Jonathan Colman concludes it made for the most unsatisfactory "special" relationship in the 20th century. Edward Heath (Prime minister 1970-74) and Richard Nixon (President 1969-74) maintained a close working relationship. Heath deviated from his predecessors by supporting Nixon's decision to bomb Hanoi and Haiphong in Vietnam in April 1972. Nevertheless, relations deteriorated noticeably during the early 1970s. Throughout his premiership, Heath insisted on using the phrase "natural relationship" instead of "special relationship" to refer to Anglo-American relations, acknowledging the historical and cultural similarities but carefully denying anything special beyond that. Heath was determined to restore a measure of equality to Anglo-American relations which the United States had increasingly dominated as the power and economy of the United Kingdom flagged in the post-colonial era. Heath's renewed push for British admittance to the European Economic Community (EEC) brought new tensions between the United Kingdom and the United States. French President Charles De Gaulle, who believed that British entry would allow undue American influence on the organisation, had vetoed previous British attempts at entry. Heath's final bid benefited from the more moderate views of Georges Pompidou, De Gaulle's successor as President of France, and his own Eurocentric foreign policy schedule. The Nixon administration viewed this bid as a pivot away from close ties with the United States in favour of continental Europe. After Britain's admission to the EEC in 1973, Heath confirmed this interpretation by notifying his American counterparts that the United Kingdom would henceforth be formulating European policies with other EEC members before discussing them with the United States. Furthermore, Heath indicated his potential willingness to consider a nuclear partnership with France and questioned what the United Kingdom got in return for American use of British military and intelligence facilities worldwide. In return, Nixon and his Secretary of State Henry Kissinger briefly cut off the Anglo-American intelligence tap in August 1973. Kissinger then attempted to restore American influence in Europe with his abortive 1973 "Year of Europe" policy plan to update the NATO agreements. Members of the Heath administration, including Heath himself in later years, regarded this announcement with derision. In 1973, American and British officials disagreed in their handling of the Arab-Israeli Yom Kippur War. While the Nixon administration immediately increased military aid to Israel, Heath maintained British neutrality in the conflict and imposed a British arms embargo on all combatants, which mostly hindered the Israelis by preventing them obtaining spares for their Centurion tanks. Anglo-American disagreement intensified over Nixon's unilateral decision to elevate American forces, stationed at British bases, to DEFCON 3 status on 25 October in response to the breakdown of the United Nations ceasefire. Heath disallowed American intelligence gathering, resupplying, or refueling from British bases in Cyprus, which greatly limited the effective range of American reconnaissance planes. In return, Kissinger imposed a second intelligence cutoff over this disagreement and some in the administration even suggested that the United States should refuse to assist in the British missile upgrade to the Polaris system. Tensions between the United States and United Kingdom relaxed as the second ceasefire took effect. Wilson's return to power in 1974 helped to return Anglo-American relations to normality. On 23 July 1977, officials from the United Kingdom and the United States renegotiated the previous Bermuda I Agreement, and signed the Bermuda II Agreement under which only four airlines, two from the United Kingdom and two from the United States, were allowed to operate flights between London Heathrow Airport and specified "gateway cities" in the United States. The Bermuda II Agreement was in effect for nearly 30 years until it was eventually replaced by the EU-US Open Skies Agreement, which was signed on 30 April 2007 and entered into effect on 30 March 2008. Throughout the 1980s, Margaret Thatcher was strongly supportive of Ronald Reagan's unwavering stance towards the Soviet Union. Often described as "political soulmates" and a high point in the "Special Relationship", Reagan and Thatcher met many times throughout their political careers, speaking in concert when confronting Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev. In 1982, the British Government made a request to the United States, which the Americans agreed upon in principle, to sell the Trident II D5 ballistic missile, associated equipment, and related system support for use on four nuclear submarines in the Royal Navy. The Trident II D5 ballistic missile replaced the United Kingdom's previous use of the UGM-27 Polaris ballistic missile, beginning in the mid-1990s. In the Falklands War in 1982, the United States initially tried to mediate between the United Kingdom and Argentina, but ended up supporting the United Kingdom's counter-invasion. The U.S. supplied the British military with equipment as well as logistical support. In October 1983, the United States and a coalition of Caribbean nations undertook Operation Urgent Fury, codename for the invasion of the Commonwealth to the island nation of Grenada. A bloody Marxist coup had overrun Grenada, and neighboring countries in the region asked the United States to intervene militarily, which it did successfully despite having made assurances to a deeply resentful British Government. On 15 April 1986, the U.S. military launched Operation El Dorado Canyon from RAF air bases in England. Thatcher allowed Reagan to use Royal Air Force stations for its bombing of Tripoli and Benghazi in Libya. It was a counter-attack by the United States in response to Muammar Gaddafi's export of state-sponsored terrorism directed towards civilians and American servicemen stationed in Berlin. On 21 December 1988, Pan American Worldways' Flight 103 from London Heathrow Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport exploded over the town of Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 169 Americans and 40 Britons on board. The motive that is generally attributed to Libya can be traced back to a series of military confrontations with the United States Navy in the 1980s in the Gulf of Sidra, the whole of which Libya claimed as its territorial waters. Despite a guilty verdict on 31 January 2001 by the Scottish High Court of Justiciary which ruled against Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the bomber, on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder, Libya never formally admitted carrying out the 1988 bombing over Scotland until 2003. During the Soviet–Afghan War, the United States and the United Kingdom throughout the 1980s provided arms to the Mujahideen rebels in Afghanistan until the last troops from the Soviet Union left Afghanistan in February 1989. When the United States became the world's lone superpower after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, new threats emerged which confronted the United States and its NATO allies. With military build-up beginning in August 1990 and the use of force beginning in January 1991, the United States, followed at a distance by Britain, provided the two largest forces respectively for the coalition army which liberated Kuwait from Saddam Hussein's regime during the Persian Gulf War. In 1997, the British Labour Party was elected to office for the first time in eighteen years. The new prime minister, Tony Blair, and Bill Clinton both used the expression "Third Way" to describe their centre-left ideologies. In August 1997, the American people expressed solidarity with the British people, sharing in their grief and sense of shock on the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, who perished in a car crash in Paris, France. Throughout 1998 and 1999, the United States and Britain sent troops to impose peace during the Kosovo War. 67 Britons were among the 2,977 victims killed during the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, and in an open field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, on September 11, 2001, which were orchestrated by al-Qaeda. Following the 11 September 2001 attacks, there was an enormous outpouring of sympathy from the United Kingdom for the American people, and Tony Blair was one of George W. Bush's strongest international supporters for bringing al-Qaeda and the Taliban to justice. Indeed, Blair became the most articulate spokesman. He was the only foreign leader to attend an emergency joint session of Congress called immediately after the attacks (and remains the only foreign leader ever to attend such a session), where he received two standing ovations from members of Congress. During this session of Congress, President George W. Bush stated matter-of- factly that "America has no truer friend than Great Britain". The United States declared a War on Terror following the attacks. British forces participated in NATO's war in Afghanistan. Blair took the lead (against the opposition of France, Canada, Germany, China, and Russia) in advocating the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Again Britain was second only to the US in sending forces to Iraq. Both sides wound down after 2009, and withdrew their last troops in 2011. President Bush and Prime Minister Blair provided sustained mutual political and diplomatic support and won votes in Congress and parliament against their critics at home. During this period Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld said that "America has no finer ally than the United Kingdom." The 7 July 2005 London bombings emphasised the difference in the nature of the terrorist threat to both nations. The United States concentrated primarily on global enemies, like the al-Qaeda network and other Islamic extremists from the Middle East. The London bombings were carried out by homegrown extremist Muslims, and it emphasised the United Kingdom's threat from the radicalisation of its own people. After claims by Liberty that British airports had been used by the CIA for extraordinary rendition flights, the Association of Chief Police Officers launched an investigation in November 2005. The report was published in June 2007 and found no evidence to support the claim. This was on the same day the Council of Europe released its report with evidence that the UK had colluded in extraordinary rendition, thus directly contradicting ACPO's findings. A 2018 report by the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament found the United Kingdom, specifically the MI5 and MI6, to be complicit in many of the renditions done by the US, having helped fund them, supplying them with intelligence and knowingly allowing them to happen. By 2007, support amongst the British public for the Iraq war had plummeted. Despite Tony Blair's historically low approval ratings with the British people, mainly due to allegations of faulty government intelligence of Iraq possessing weapons of mass destruction, his unapologetic and unwavering stance for the British alliance with the United States can be summed up in his own words. He said, "We should remain the closest ally of the US ... not because they are powerful, but because we share their values." The alliance between George W. Bush and Tony Blair seriously damaged the prime minister's standing in the eyes of many British citizens. Tony Blair argued it was in the United Kingdom's interest to "protect and strengthen the bond" with the United States regardless of who is in the White House. A perception that the relationship was unequal led to use of the term "Poodle-ism" in the British media, that Britain and its leaders were lapdogs to the Americans. All British servicemen were withdrawn with the exception of 400 who remained in Iraq until 31 July 2009. On 11 June 2009, the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda accepted four Chinese Uighurs from the United States' detainment facility known as Guantanamo Bay detention camp located on the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. At the request of the United States Government, Bermudan officials agreed to host Khaleel Mamut, Hozaifa Parhat, Salahidin Abdulahat, and Abdullah Abdulqadirakhun as guest workers in Bermuda who seven years ago, were all captured by Pakistani bounty hunters during the United States-led invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001. This decision agreed upon by American and Bermudan officials drew considerable consternation and contempt by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as it was viewed by British officials in London that they should have been consulted on whether or not the decision to take in four Chinese Uighurs was a security and foreign issue of which the Bermudian government does not have delegated responsibility over. On 20 August 2009, The Scottish government headed by Alex Salmond announced that it would release Abdelbaset al-Megrahi on medical grounds. He was the only person convicted of the terrorist plot which killed 169 Americans and 40 Britons on Pan American Worldways' Flight 103 over the town of Lockerbie, Scotland on 21 December 1988. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2001, but was released after being diagnosed with terminal cancer, with around three months to live. Americans said the decision was uncompassionate and insensitive to the memory of the victims of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing. President Barack Obama said that the decision was "highly objectionable". U.S. Ambassador Louis Susman said that although the decision made by Scotland to release Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was seen by the United States as extremely regrettable, relations with the United Kingdom would remain fully intact and strong. The British government led by Gordon Brown was not involved in the release and Gordon Brown stated at a press conference that they had played 'no role' in the decision. Abdelbaset al-Megrahi died 20 May 2012 at the age of 60. In April 2010, the explosion, sinking and resultant oil spill from the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig led to diplomatic friction and populist anti- British sentiment, even though the rig was owned and operated by the Swiss company Transocean and the cement work carried out by the US company Halliburton . Commentators referred to "British Petroleum" even though the company had been known as "BP" since 1998. UK politicians expressed concerns about anti-British rhetoric in the US. BP's CEO Tony Hayward was called "the most hated man in America". Conversely, the widespread public demonisation of BP and the effects on the company and its image, coupled with Obama's statements with regard to BP caused a degree of anti-American sentiment in the UK. This was particularly evidenced by the comments of the Business Secretary Vince Cable, who said that "It's clear that some of the rhetoric in the US is extreme and unhelpful", for reasons of British pension funds, loss of revenues for the exchequer and the adverse effect such the rhetoric was having on the share price of one of the UK's largest companies. The meeting between Barack Obama and David Cameron in July somewhat helped strained diplomatic relations, and President Obama stated that there lies a "truly special relations" between the two countries. The degree to which anti-British or anti-American hostilities continue to exist, remains to be seen. British policy is that the relationship with the United States represents the United Kingdom's "most important bilateral relationship" in the world. United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton paid tribute to the relationship in February 2009 by saying, "it stands the test of time". On 3 March 2009, Gordon Brown made his first visit to the Obama White House. During his visit, he presented the president a gift in the form of a pen holder carved from HMS Gannet, which served anti-slavery missions off the coast of Africa. Barack Obama's gift to the prime minister was a box of 25 DVDs with movies including Star Wars and E.T. The wife of the prime minister, Sarah Brown, gave the Obama daughters, Sasha and Malia, two dresses from British clothing retailer Topshop, and a few unpublished books that have not reached the United States. Michelle Obama gave the prime minister's sons two Marine One helicopter toys. During this visit to the United States, Gordon Brown made an address to a joint session of the United States Congress, a privilege rarely accorded to foreign heads of government. In March 2009, a Gallup poll of Americans showed 36% identified Britain as their country's "most valuable ally", followed by Canada, Japan, Israel, and Germany rounding out the top five. The poll also indicated that 89% of Americans view the United Kingdom favourably, second only to Canada with 90%. According to the Pew Research Center, a global survey conducted in July 2009 revealed that 70% of Britons who responded had a favourable view of the United States. In 2010, Obama stated "the United States has no closer friend and ally than the United Kingdom, and I reiterated my deep and personal commitment to the special relationship between our two countries." In February 2011, The Daily Telegraph, based on evidence from WikiLeaks, reported that the United States had tendered sensitive information about the British Trident nuclear arsenal (whose missile delivery systems are manufactured and maintained in the United States) to the Russian Federation as part of a deal to encourage Russia to ratify the New START Treaty. Professor Malcolm Chalmers of the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies speculated that serial numbers could undermine Britain's non-verification policy by providing Russia "with another data point to gauge the size of the British arsenal". On 25 May 2011, during his official visit to the UK, Obama reaffirmed the relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States of America in an address to Parliament at Westminster Hall. Amongst other points, Obama stated: "I've come here today to reaffirm one of the oldest; one of the strongest alliances the World has ever known. It's long been said that the United States and the United Kingdom share a special relationship." In the final days before the Scottish independence referendum in September 2014, Obama announced in public the vested interest of the United States of America in enjoying the continued partnership with a 'strong and united' UK which he described as "one of the closest allies we will ever have". During a joint press conference with Prime Minister Theresa May, Obama stated "The bottom line is, is that we don't have a stronger partner anywhere in the world than the United Kingdom." President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May are continuing the United Kingdom–United States special relationship. May was the first foreign leader Trump hosted in Washington after taking office and UKIP leader Nigel Farage was the first foreign politician Trump met with after winning the presidential election, when he was still President-elect of the United States. However, Trump was the subject of popular protests in Britain even before he took office, particularly because of his anti-immigration proposals, misogyny and perceived racism. During his presidency there were protests when he was inaugurated, when he announced his first immigration ban on citizens from certain Muslim countries, and when he said he would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. On 4 June 2017, Trump responded to a terror attack on London Bridge by attacking London Mayor Sadiq Khan for saying that there "was no reason to be alarmed". The comments were condemned by Khan who stated that his remarks were deliberately taken out of context in that he was referring to an increased police presence in the days after the attack, which should not alarm the public. Trump also suggested that, "we must stop being politically correct and get down to the business of security for our people". On 29 November 2017, Trump re-tweeted three videos posted by Jayda Fransen, deputy leader of the far-right nationalist Britain First party. One of the videos, titled 'Muslim immigrant beats up Dutch boy on crutches', was subsequently discredited by the Dutch embassy in the United States. The spokesperson for the Prime Minister said that what the President had done was 'wrong' and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said that 'hate speech had no place in the UK'. In response, Trump tweeted at the Prime Minister suggesting that she worry about immigration in her own country rather than whom he chose to retweet. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said that the President attempted to start a conversation about immigration. May was the first foreign leader to visit Trump after his inauguration, and she invited him to make a return visit. More than 1.8 million U.K citizens signed a petition to rescind the invitation, and Parliament debated a nonbinding resolution to that effect in February 2017. The visit was tentatively planned for late February 2018, and would include a ceremonial opening of the new American embassy in Nine Elms. However, on 11 January 2018, he cancelled the visit and denounced the new embassy in a tweet saying This was despite the official reason for relocating the embassy due to the security, as the Grosvenor Square site couldn't accommodate the requirements for being 100 ft (30.5m) away from the street, and the fact that the move was decided by Obama's predecessor Bush, who approved the relocation in 2008. It was speculated that the real reason for cancelling the visit was due to Trump's unpopularity and the possibility of large protests against him in London. Trump made a second visit in June 2019, this time as guests of the Queen and to hold talks with May. Thousands protested his visit, just like they did when he made his first trip. On 7 July 2019, secret diplomatic cables from Ambassador Kim Darroch to the British government, dating from 2017 to 2019, were leaked to The Mail on Sunday. They included Darroch's unflattering assessments of the Trump administration, e.g. that it was "inept and insecure". In response, Nigel Farage said Darroch was "totally unsuitable" for office, and Trump tweeted that Darroch was "not liked or well thought of within the US" and that "we will no longer deal with him". The Prime Minister, Theresa May, expressed support for Darroch and ordered a leak inquiry. On 10 July, Darroch resigned as Ambassador to the United States. He wrote that "the current situation is making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like". Previously, Boris Johnson, the frontrunner in the election to replace May, had declined to publicly back Darroch. Consensus among political commentators in the UK was that this made Darroch's position untenable. May and the leader of the opposition, Jeremy Corbyn, praised Darroch's service in the House of Commons and deplored that he had to resign under pressure from the U.S. Darroch will remain in the post until a successor is appointed. The United States accounts for the United Kingdom's largest single export market, buying $57 billion worth of British goods in 2007. Total trade of imports and exports between the United Kingdom and the United States amounted to the sum of $107.2 billion in 2007. The United States and the United Kingdom share the world's largest foreign direct investment partnership. In 2005, American direct investment in the United Kingdom totaled $324 billion while British direct investment in the United States totaled $282 billion. In a press conference that made several references to the special relationship, US Secretary of State John Kerry, in London with UK Foreign Secretary William Hague on 9 September 2013, said: "We are not only each other's largest investors in each of our countries, one to the other, but the fact is that every day almost one million people go to work in America for British companies that are in the United States, just as more than one million people go to work here in Great Britain for American companies that are here. So we are enormously tied together, obviously. And we are committed to making both the U.S.-UK and the U.S.-EU relationships even stronger drivers of our prosperity." More than 4.5 million Britons visit the United States every year, spending approximately $14 billion. Around 3 million people from the United States visit the United Kingdom every year, spending approximately $10 billion. All three major American airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Airlines fly directly between the U.S. and the UK, principally between London and New York, although all three fly to London Heathrow Airport from a number of hubs, as well as to other major UK airports such as Birmingham Airport, Manchester Airport, Edinburgh Airport and Glasgow Airport. Additionally, Delta codeshares with the UK's Virgin Atlantic which it owns a 49% stake in. Low-cost carriers JetBlue & Southwest fly between the eastern U.S. and the British overseas territories of Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands and the Turks & Caicos Islands. The British flag carrier British Airways flies to over twenty destinations in the U.S. Also the main British charter airline, TUI Airways fly to the U.S. although principally to the holiday destinations of Florida and California. While long-haul low-cost carrier Norwegian flies from London Gatwick Airport to ten American airports. Both American Airlines and BA are founders of the airline alliance, Oneworld. BA, TUI Airways and Virgin Atlantic are major purchasers of American-made Boeing aircraft. Flying between the U.S. and UK is at the moment in 2019 supported by the US-EU Open Skies Agreement which came about in 2008, which allows any airline from both countries to fly between each other. New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport is the most popular international destination for people flying out of London Heathrow Airport. Approximately 2,802,870 people on multiple daily non-stop flights flew from Heathrow to JFK in 2008. Concorde, British Airways flagship supersonic airliner, began trans- Atlantic service to Washington Dulles International Airport in the United States on May 24, 1976. The trans-Atlantic route between London's Heathrow and New York's JFK in under 3½ hours, had its first operational flight between the two hubs on October 19, 1977 and the last being on October 23, 2003. The two main American intercity bus carriers; Greyhound Lines and during the period from 1999 to 2019 Coach USA, plus their subsidiaries are each owned by a major British transportation company FirstGroup with Greyhound and Stagecoach with Coach USA. Coach USA's budget brand Megabus which started in 2006, itself is a copycat of the British version of the discount coach company that started in 2003. The American private rail company Virgin Trains USA, formerly known as Brightline is partly owned by the British investor Virgin Group. In the 20th century, there were 78 formal and informal summits bringing together the president and the prime minister to deal with an agreed-upon agenda. The first was 1918, the second in 1929. The rest began in 1941, which marked the decline of ambassadors as the key transmitters of policy discussions. In three out of four of the summits, the British delegation traveled to America. Summits have become much less important in the 21st century, with its new communication modes. State visits involving the head of state have been made over the years by four presidents and two monarchs. Queen Elizabeth II has met all the presidents since Truman except Johnson. In addition, the Queen made three private visits in 1984, 1985, and 1991 to see stallion stations and stud farms. Of United States London (Embassy), Edinburgh (Consulate General), Belfast (Consulate General), Hamilton, Bermuda (Consulate General), George Town, Cayman Islands (Consular agent attached to embassy in Kingston, Jamaica), Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands (Consulate office attached to embassy in Nassau, Bahamas) Of United Kingdom Washington, D.C. (Embassy), Atlanta (Consulate-General), Boston (Consulate-General), Chicago (Consulate-General), Denver (Consulate-General), Houston (Consulate-General), Los Angeles (Consulate-General), Miami (Consulate-General), New York City (Consulate-General), San Francisco (Consulate-General) Bank for International Settlements, British-American Project, Food and Agriculture Organization, Group of Eight, Group of Ten, Group of Twenty Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, International Atomic Energy Agency, International Chamber of Commerce, International Court of Justice, International Electrotechnical Commission, International Energy Agency, International Monetary Fund, International Olympic Committee, International Renewable Energy Agency, International Telecommunication Union Interpol, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Pilgrims Society, Rim of the Pacific Exercise, UKUSA Community, United Nations, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, United Nations Security Council, Universal Postal Union, World Bank, World Health Organization, World Trade Organization The Strategic Alliance Cyber Crime Working Group is an initiative by Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and headed by the United States as a "formal partnership between these nations dedicated to tackling larger global crime issues, particularly organised crime". The cooperation consists of "five countries from three continents banding together to fight cyber crime in a synergistic way by sharing intelligence, swapping tools and best practices, and strengthening and even synchronising their respective laws". Within this initiative, there is increased information sharing between the United Kingdom's National Crime Agency and the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation on matters relating to serious fraud or cyber crime. The UK-USA Security Agreement is an alliance of five English-speaking countries; Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, for the sole purpose of sharing intelligence. The precursor to this agreement is essentially an extension of the historic BRUSA Agreement which was signed in 1943. In association with the ECHELON system, all five nations are assigned to intelligence collection and analysis from different parts of the world. For example, the United Kingdom hunts for communications in Europe, Africa, and Russia west of the Ural Mountains whereas the United States has responsibility for gathering intelligence in Latin America, Asia, Asiatic Russia, and northern mainland China. Ashby-de-la-Zouch and Evans, Colorado, Ashford and Hopewell, Virginia, Barnet, London and Barnet, Vermont, Barnet, London and Montclair, New Jersey, Barnstaple and Barnstable, Massachusetts, Belper and Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Berwick-upon-Tweed and Berwick, Pennsylvania, Billericay and Billerica, Massachusetts, Billericay and Fishers, Indiana, Birmingham and Chicago, Illinois, Bodmin and Grass Valley, California, Boston, Lincolnshire and Boston, Massachusetts, Brentwood and Brentwood, Tennessee, Burton upon Trent and Elkhart, Indiana, Bury and Woodbury, New Jersey, Calne and Caln Township, Pennsylvania, Canterbury and Bloomington, Illinois, Cheltenham and Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, Chester and Lakewood, Colorado, Cleveland, England, UK and Cleveland, Ohio, Cornwall and Cornwall, New York, County Durham and Durham County, North Carolina, Coventry and Coventry, Connecticut, Coventry and Coventry, New York, Coventry and Coventry, Rhode Island, Dalton-in-Furness and Dalton, Pennsylvania, Doncaster and Wilmington, North Carolina, Dover and Huber Heights, Ohio, Durham and Durham, North Carolina, Evesham and Evesham Township, New Jersey, Fleetwood and Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, Gravesend and Chesterfield, Virginia, Hartlepool and Muskegon, Michigan, Haverhill and Haverhill, Massachusetts, Haworth and Haworth, New Jersey, Hertford and Hartford, Connecticut, Hinckley and Midland, Ohio, Keighley and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Kettering and Kettering, Ohio, Kingston upon Hull and Raleigh, North Carolina, Leeds, City of and Louisville, Kentucky, Lincoln and Lincoln, Nebraska, Lambeth, London and Brooklyn, New York, London and New York City, New York, Manchester and Los Angeles, California, Mansfield and Mansfield, Massachusetts, Mansfield and Mansfield, Ohio, Middlesbrough and Middlesborough, Kentucky, Newcastle upon Tyne and Atlanta, Georgia, Newmarket and Lexington, Kentucky, Norfolk and Norfolk, Virginia, Northampton and Easton, Pennsylvania, Northampton and Northampton, Pennsylvania, Oakham and Dodgeville, Wisconsin, Oxford and Oxford, Michigan, Penzance and Nevada City, California, Plymouth and Plymouth, Massachusetts, Portsmouth and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Reading and Reading, Pennsylvania, Redruth and Mineral Point, Wisconsin, Richmond, London and Richmond, Virginia, Rochester and Rochester, New York, Rugeley and Western Springs, Illinois, Runnymede and Herndon, Virginia, Rye and Rye, New Hampshire, Salisbury and Salisbury, Maryland, Salisbury and Salisbury, North Carolina, Sefton, Metropolitan Borough of and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Sheffield and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Shrewsbury and Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, Southampton and Hampton, Virginia, Stafford and Stafford County, Virginia, Swindon and Chattanooga, Tennessee, Southwark, London and Cambridge, Massachusetts, Stourbridge and Sturbridge, Massachusetts, Stratford-upon-Avon and Stratford, Connecticut, Stroud and Stroud, Oklahoma, Sunderland and Washington, D.C., Taunton and Taunton, Massachusetts, Truro and Truro, Massachusetts, Warrington and Lake County, Illinois, Warwick and Warwick, New York, Warwick and Warwick, Rhode Island, Watford and Wilmington, Delaware, Whitby and Anchorage, Alaska, Whitby and Waimea, Hawaii, Winchester and Winchester, Virginia, Wirral, Metropolitan Borough of and Midland, Texas, Wolverhampton and Buffalo, New York, Worcester and Worcester, Massachusetts Aberdeen and Aberdeen, Washington, Blairgowrie and Pleasanton, California, Dundee and Alexandria, Virginia, Dunfermline and Sarasota, Florida, Edinburgh and San Diego, California, Inverness and Inverness, Florida, Livingston and Grapevine, Texas, Midlothian and Midlothian, Illinois, Prestwick and Vandalia, Ohio, Stirling and Dunedin, Florida, Stornoway and Pendleton, South Carolina, Dull, Perth and Kinross and Boring, Oregon Brecon and Saline, Michigan, Machynlleth and Belleville, Michigan, Nantyglo and Nanty Glo, Pennsylvania, Newport, Pembrokeshire, and Annapolis, Maryland Ballymena and Morehead, Kentucky, Bangor, County Down and Virginia Beach, Virginia, Belfast and Belfast, Maine, Belfast and Boston, Massachusetts, Belfast and Nashville, Tennessee, Carrickfergus and Anderson, South Carolina, Carrickfergus and Jackson, Michigan, Castlereagh and Kent, Washington, Craigavon and LaGrange, Georgia, Derry and Buffalo, New York, Killyleagh and Cleveland, North Carolina, Larne and Clover, South Carolina, Newtownabbey and Gilbert, Arizona Saint Helier, Jersey and Trenton, New Jersey Liverpool and Memphis, Tennessee, Liverpool and New Orleans, Louisiana, Newcastle upon Tyne and Little Rock, Arkansas, Wellingborough and Willingboro, New Jersey The United States and Britain share many threads of cultural heritage. Since English is the main language of both the British and the Americans, both nations belong to the English-speaking world. Their common language comes with (relatively minor) differences in spelling, pronunciation, and the meaning of words. The American legal system is largely based on English common law. The American system of local government is rooted in English precedents, such as the offices of county courts and sheriffs. Although the U.S. remains more highly religious than Britain, the largest Protestant denominations emerged from British churches brought across the Atlantic, such as the Baptists, Methodists, Congregationalists and Episcopalians. Britain and the United States practice what is commonly referred to as an Anglo-Saxon economy in which levels of regulation and taxes are relatively low, and government provides a low to medium level of social services in return. Independence Day, July 4, is a national celebration which commemorates the July 4, 1776 adoption of the Declaration of Independence from the British Empire. American defiance of Britain is expressed in the American national anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner", written during the War of 1812 to the tune of a British celebratory song as the Americans beat off a British attack on Baltimore. It is estimated that between 40.2 million and 72.1 million Americans today have British ancestry, i.e. between 13% and 23.3% of the U.S. population. In the 1980 US Census, 61,311,449 Americans reported British ancestry reaching 32.56% of the U.S. population at the time which, even today, would make them the largest ancestry group in the United States. Particular symbols of the close relationship between the two countries are the JFK Memorial and the American Bar Association's Magna Carta Memorial, both at Runnymede in England. Both the United States and the United Kingdom share the similarity that a majority of their populations state that their belief is Christian, at 70.4% in the U.S. and 59.5% in the UK. Also, both countries share that a majority of these Christian followers are members of the mainline Protestant group of churches, rather than the Roman Catholic Church, although the Catholic church is relatively sizeable in both countries. Many of these mainline Protestant churches in the United States have their origins in the United Kingdom or their founders were British. This includes Episcopal (Anglican), Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Congregational, and Quaker. Nevertheless, there are some three big disparities between the two nations in the role of religion and faith. Firstly, the United Kingdom has an established church in two of the four nations of the country; the Anglican Church of England, which the head of state is the head of the church in one, and the Presbyterian Church of Scotland who plays a notable role of the other. The United States on the other hand requires a strict separation of church and state, as stated in the First Amendment. Another sizable difference between the U.S. and the UK is the piety of followers, as the UK much more secular than the U.S. A Gallup poll in 2015 reported that 41% of Americans said they regularly attend religious services, compared to just 10% of Britons. Thirdly, a preeminent distinction amidst the two countries is the declaration of faith. In the United Kingdom, religion, especially those that follow the mainstream Protestant churches, is rarely discussed and the country is a secular society. However, in the U.S., religion and faith are seen as a major part of the personal being and declarations are much more stronger. The differing attitude about religion among the two nations has causes a large schism between the two nations, and much of the general attitude of the society as a whole on fundamental social issues including abortion, minority rights, blasphemy, the role of church and the state in society etc. Both the United States and the United Kingdom share a number of followers the other minority faiths that are practiced in both counties including Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Paganism and Buddhism. Although the numbers and type of faith practice in both countries differ wildly due to the ethnic and cultural makeup of both countries. The United Kingdom also has a large number of those possessing no faith or are agnostic with 25.7% saying they are irreligious, compared with just 10% in the United States who say that they don't believe in a God. Many notable British atheists including Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens are known in the U.S. The Atheist Bus campaign which started in London in 2008 by Ariane Sherine, was copied by local atheists in America and put on buses in Washington D.C. and the Bloomington, Indiana. Many classic dishes or foods from American cuisine such as hamburgers, hot dogs, barbecue chicken, southern fried chicken, deep-pan pizza, chewing gum, tomato soup, chilli-con-carne, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate brownies, soft-scoop ice cream and donuts are popular in the United Kingdom. Drinks like cola, milkshakes and bourbon are also popular. A number of major American food trends and fads have also been popular and influential in the British palate, for example weight management diets and craft beer. Some American foods like cornflakes, baked beans & crisps [potato chips] have become so entrenched in the UK's food culture that they have completely lost their American roots and are considered part of British cuisine. While some British foods have been just as nativised in the U.S. such as apple pie, whisky, macaroni and cheese and sandwiches. Breakfast cereals like corn flakes, bran flakes and puffed rice came from the U.S. to the UK in the beginning of twentieth century, and virtually changed the perception of breakfasts locally. Many major American food and fast moving consumer goods companies have British operations includes Molson Coors, McCormick & Company, Kellogg's, Campbell's, Kraft-Heinz, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola & Mondelez The major British food manufacturers that operate in the United States are Unilever, Associated British Foods and Diageo. The purchase of the British food company Cadbury's by then company Kraft Foods in 2010, caused a storm on whether the company would change the recipe for its signature chocolate and the conditions at Cadbury's food factories. Additionally, there are several American restaurant and café chains like McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, Domino's Pizza, Pizza Hut, Krispy Kreme, and Starbucks that have enterprises on the other side of the Atlantic. A small number of British chains like Pret a Manger, YO! Sushi and Itsu have operations in the U.S., principally around New York City. The British catering company Compass Group has several catering contracts in the States, including for the federal government and US military. Since the 2016 EU referendum, there has been growing concern about whether in a possible UK-U.S. free trade agreement would lead to changes in food practices and laws in the UK. The concern is that American food standards laws are much more looser than the UK, such as rules governing cleanliness, the use of antibiotics and pesticides, animal welfare conditions and the use of genetically modified food. Much of these concerns have been symbolised by the production process of American poultry, often known as "chlorinated chicken". Both the U.S. and UK are considered "cultural superpowers", with both countries having a large scale influence around the world in film, music, literature, and television. Literature is transferred across the Atlantic Ocean, as evidenced by the appeal of British authors such as William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, J. R. R. Tolkien, Jackie Collins, and J. K. Rowling in the United States, and American authors such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, Stephen King and Dan Brown in Britain. Henry James moved to Britain and was well known in both countries, as was T. S. Eliot. Eliot moved to England in 1914 and became a British subject in 1927. He was a dominant figure in literary criticism and greatly influenced the Modern period of British literature. In the UK, many noted American novels including The Catcher in the Rye, Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry , Of Mice & Men, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Great Gatsby & The Color Purple are frequently used texts for British secondary-level education English and English Literature exams as set by the main examination boards. In area of press, connections between the U.S. and the UK in terms of print content there is slight, however it is strong in online content. Until 2016, a condensed version of The New York Times was inside The Observer newspaper. In some newsagents in the UK, you can find international editions of USA Today, The New York Times International Edition, the Europe edition of Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker, New York magazine and Foreign Affairs. While in the US you would be able to find the international edition of The Economist and in New York City, the Financial Times. After Rupert Murdoch's purchase of the New York Post in November 1976, he redesigned the newspaper into a populist right- wing tabloid, likewise his earlier relaunch of the British Sun newspaper as a down-market tabloid from 1969. In magazine publishing, the two big American magazine publishing houses of Hearst and Condé Nast have operations in the UK, with British editions of Good Housekeeping, GQ, Men’s Health, Cosmopolitan, Vogue, National Geographic and Wired among others. On occasions, some of the American editions are also available for purchase usually next to the local edition or in the international section. In British magazines in the US, Northern & Shell has since 2005 created an American version of OK! magazine. There are a number of Americans and British in each other countries' press corp, including editors, correspondents, journalists and columnists. Individuals born in the United States active in the British press corp include the FTs news editor Peter Spiegel, Daily Telegraph columnist Janet Daley, and Guardian columnists Tim Dowling and Hadley Freeman. Originally from the UK were Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011) and the current editor of Vogue, Anna Wintour. The current CEO of The New York Times Company is the former Director- General of the BBC (effectively a CEO), Mark Thompson. The current editor-in- chief of the London-based Guardian since 2015, Katharine Viner was previously the editor of The Guardians American website between 2014 and 2015. In terms of online content, three newspaper-online sites have American editions, TheGuardian.com, Mail Online and The Independent. BBC News Online is a frequently visited by Americans. The American online news sites BuzzFeed, Breitbart News and HuffPost (formerly The Huffington Post) all possess British-based editions. There is much crossover appeal in the modern entertainment culture of the United Kingdom and the United States. For example, Hollywood blockbuster movies made by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas have had a large effect on British audiences in the United Kingdom, while the James Bond and Harry Potter series of films have attracted high interest in the United States. Also, the animated films of Walt Disney as well as those of Pixar, DreamWorks, Don Bluth, Blue Sky, Illumination and others have continued to make an indelible mark and impression on British audiences, young and old, for almost 100 years. Films by Alfred Hitchcock continuously make a lasting impact on a loyal fan base in the United States, as Alfred Hitchcock himself influenced notable American filmmakers such as John Carpenter, in the horror and slasher film genres. Production of films are often shared between the two nations, whether it be a concentrated use of British and American actors or the use of film studios located in London or Hollywood. Broadway theatre in New York City has toured London's West End theatre over the years, with notable performances such as The Lion King, Grease, Wicked, and Rent. British productions, such as Mamma Mia! and several of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musicals, including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Cats and The Phantom of the Opera have found success on Broadway. For over 150 years, Shakespeare's plays have been overwhelmingly popular with upscale American audiences. Both the United Kingdom and the United States have television shows which are similar, as they are either carried by the other nations' networks, or are re- created for distribution in their own nations. Some popular British television shows that were re-created for the American market in more recent years include House of Cards, The Office, Pop Idol (American Idol), Strictly Come Dancing (Dancing with the Stars), Top Gear, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Weakest Link and The X Factor. Some American television shows re-created for the British market in more recent years include The Apprentice and Deal or No Deal. Popular American television shows that are currently popular in the United Kingdom include The Big Bang Theory, series, Family Guy, Friends, Modern Family, Scrubs, The Simpsons, and South Park. The BBC airs two networks in the United States, BBC America and BBC World News. The American network PBS collaborates with the BBC and rebroadcasts British television shows in the United States such as Doctor Who, Keeping Up Appearances, Masterpiece Theatre, Monty Python's Flying Circus, Nova. The BBC also frequently collaborates with American network HBO, showing recent American mini-series in the United Kingdom such as Band of Brothers, The Gathering Storm, John Adams, and Rome. Likewise, the American network Discovery Channel has partnered with the BBC by televising recent British mini-series in the United States such as Planet Earth and The Blue Planet, the latter popularly known as The Blue Planet: Seas of Life in the American format. The United States' public affairs channel C-SPAN, broadcasts Prime Minister's Questions every Sunday. On some British digital television platforms, it is also possible to watch American television channels that are tailored for British audiences such as CNBC Europe, CNN International, ESPN Classic, Comedy Central, PBS America and Fox. The Super Bowl, the National Football League's championship tournament of American football which occurs every February, has been broadcast in the United Kingdom since 1982. Conversely, the Premier League has been shown on NBC Sports Network in the United States. Until 2017, Formula One television coverage in the United States has used an American-based team but the announcers are British; from 2018 Sky Sports has taken over Formula One coverage through ESPN2. Compared to music and television broadcasting, radio broadcasting is limited between both sides of the pond. There are several reasons for this. The major one is that the majority of radio broadcasting in the United States is commercial and funded by advertising and the small network of public radio stations are supported by donations, compared to the United Kingdom where the national public broadcaster, the BBC is the major player which funded by the obligatory television licence. This leads to a completely different structure of number and type of radio stations and its broadcasting schedules. Other factors include differing technical standards of radio broadcasting. This is influenced by their countries' broadcasting authorities which shapes over-the- air radio. In the UK, it is influenced by authorities of Ofcom and the EBU which are working towards DAB and DRM. While in the United States, it influenced by FCC which is working towards HD Radio. The British international broadcasting station, the BBC World Service is syndicated on various major city public radio stations in the United States such as WNYC, and on SiriusXM satellite radio, through the broadcaster American Public Media. However, due to the factor that the United Kingdom is English-speaking and has a democratic system, the American international broadcaster, Voice of America has got no remit in be needed to be heard in the UK, so it doesn't broadcast there and none of its programmes is relayed on domestic stations. In a resource-saving exercise between the two international broadcasters, Voice of America shares its transmission towers with the BBC World Service to help of shortwave transmissions in remote areas. Internet radio and streaming services are growing in popularity in both countries, however listening to each other's feeds are hampered by the countries’ broadcasting rights. This causes the internet radio feeds of American and British radio stations are sometimes blocked or on restricted bandwidth. For example, BBC Radio 2 is on a 128 kbit/s AAC domestic stream, while internationally it's on a 48 kbit/s AAC+ stream. However both the American and the British international broadcasters Voice of America and the BBC World Service is fully accessible online in each other's countries. Streaming services that are popular in both countries include the American TuneIn, Apple Music and Swedish-owned Spotify. The other major services in the US like Pandora Radio and Radio.com don't operate in the UK, and are inaccessible. In the past before the Second World War, connections between the United States and the United Kingdom in the radio industry was virtually unheard of. Radio in the UK was not influenced by the U.S., due to the vast distance, and the only regular services that were heard was the BBC and the "pirate" station Radio Luxembourg. When the Americans joined the war as part of the Allies, some soldiers were billeted in the UK in which the BBC provided programming for these people. So the Forces Programme, broadcast many popular American variety shows such as Charlie McCarthy, The Bob Hope Show, and The Jack Benny Program. As the Forces Programme, and the subsequent General Forces Programme, was easily available for civilians they were also heard by domestic audiences. After the War in 1946 on the Home Service, the BBC started to broadcast the factual programme Letter from America, which was presented by Alistair Cooke, bring informing about the States to British audiences until Cook's death in 2004. It was one of the BBC's longest-running radio programmes, broadcasting on the Home Service, and continuing on BBC Radio 4. It was also relayed on the BBC World Service. The programme itself was based on a similar programme by Alistair Cooke in the 1930s for American listeners about life in the UK on the NBC Red Network. After Letter from America, the BBC continued with a factual programme about the States in Americana from 2009 to 2011, presented by the resident American correspondent. As of 2019, the BBC co-produced with Public Radio International and WGBH Boston, a weekly factual programme called The World, which is broadcast on various American public radio stations. Parts of the show are put together for a shorter programme called Boston Calling, which is available on Radio 4 and the domestic feed of the World Service. There have been attempts in the past to bring British formats to American audiences, such as the News Quiz USA. From 2005 to 2011, a time-shifted version of BBC Radio 1 was available on Sirius satellite radio. While in the UK, A Prairie Home Companion (called Garrison Keillor's Radio Show) was available weekly from 2002 on BBC7 to 2016, on BBC Radio 4 Extra. There has been a number of American personalities that have been on British airwaves included music journalist Paul Gambaccini, disc jockey Suzi Quattro and comedians Rich Hall and Greg Proops. While New Zealand-born disc jockey Zane Lowe, who spent much of career in the UK was recruited to Apple's Beats 1 station. American artists such as Whitney Houston, Madonna, Tina Turner, Cher, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Diana Ross, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Frank Sinatra, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, are popular in the United Kingdom. British artists such as The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Sting, The Who, Queen, Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, the Spice Girls, the Bee Gees, Amy Winehouse, KT Tunstall, Leona Lewis, Elton John (Elton John recorded "Candle in the Wind" which, to date, is the best ever selling single worldwide), Coldplay and Adele have achieved much success in the large American market. Undoubtedly, the popular music of both nations has had a strong sway on each other. In the United Kingdom, many Hollywood films as well as Broadway musicals are closely associated and identified with the musical scores and soundtracks created by famous American composers such as George Gershwin, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Henry Mancini, John Williams, Alan Silvestri, Jerry Goldsmith, and James Horner. The Celtic music of the United Kingdom has had a dynamic effect upon American music. In particular, the traditional music of the Southern United States is descended from traditional Celtic music and English folk music of the colonial period, and the musical traditions of the South eventually gave rise to country music and, to a lesser extent, American folk. The birth of jazz, swing, big band, and especially rock and roll, all developed and originating in the United States, had greatly influenced the later development of rock music in the United Kingdom, particularly British rock bands such as The Beatles and Herman's Hermits, The Rolling Stones, while its American precursor, the blues, greatly influenced British electric rock. Despite sports being a major cultural interest in both the United States and the United Kingdom. The most popular team sports in each country, which are in the UK: football (soccer), rugby union, rugby league and cricket and the U.S.: [American] football, baseball, ice hockey and basketball are considered minor sports in either other country. However, there is a growing interest the other countries sports in each other country. Another area of differing tastes in sports between the UK and the U.S. is motorsport, In the UK: Formula 1, rallying and speedway are popular. While in the U.S., the main popular motorsports are NASCAR and the Indianapolis 500. In the current 2019-2020 season, three Americans are in the FA's top-tier Premier League: Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur), Christian Pulisic (Chelsea), and DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United). All three players play for the U. S. national team, although only Pulisic is the on the current team, while the others are in reserve. The current team also has two more players from the second tier EFL Championship, Tim Ream (Fulham) and Matt Miagza (Reading). In the current Major League Soccer 2019 season, there are nine English players playing; Mo Adams (Atlanta), Jack Elliott (Philadelphia), Michael Mancienne (New England), Luke Mulholland (Real Salt Lake), Nedum Onuoha (Real Salt Lake), Dion Pereira (Atlanta), Jack Price (Colorado), Wayne Rooney (D.C. United) and Bradley Wright-Phillips (New York Red Bulls). There are also four Scottish players playing in the 2019 season; Gary Mackay-Steven (New York City FC), Sam Nicholson (Colorado), Johnny Russell (Sporting Kansas City) & Danny Wilson (Colorado). Only Johnny Russell currently plays for the Scottish national team, while none of the English players play for their national team. The most noted Briton that is playing at the moment is Wayne Rooney who previously captained England, and the most noted former player is David Beckham who played from 2007 to 2012 for the LA Galaxy. The last competitive match between the national teams of England and the U.S., was at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The match ended in a 1-1 draw. The Premier League can be watched in the United States on NBC Sports, while a few MLS games can be watched in the UK on Sky Sports. Gridiron football, which is known in the United Kingdom as American football, originated from two British sports, association football and rugby union football. It came about in the later part of the 19th century due to the development into a separate code and led to becoming a separate sport from the other codes of football. Gridiron was in the past only known and played in UK by visiting American servicemen; firstly in 1910, by navy crews from USS Georgia, USS Idaho and USS Vermont, and then in the Second World War by UK- based service personnel. (The other gridiron code, Canadian football, is hardly known in UK.) It was not until the TV network Channel 4 started showing the highlights of the American NFL in 1982, that the sport became acknowledged the British sporting world. Due to unfamiliarity of the sport, television guides and newspapers had printed out guides explaining the sport. A year later, the first match between two British teams the London Ravens and the Northwich Spartans was played, in that game the Ravens won. Later the in the 1980s, the sport grew and rival teams started to play, which was helped by support from various American players, coaches and sponsors like Coca-Cola & Budweiser. In 1986, the first ever official NFL game to play at the home of English sport, Wembley between the Chicago Bears and the Dallas Cowboys. However, by the early 1990s due to the recession, Channel 4 stopping regular showings of the NFL in 1997 and falling interest, it lost its popularity. Nevertheless, the Super Bowl has continued been regularly shown on British television and the NFL has been broadcast by other broadcasters including ITV, Channel 5, ESPN UK, British Eurosport and the current broadcaster, Sky Sports. In 2007 the NFL returned to Wembley with a regular season game between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants. There has been a further games played at Wembley since with an average attendance of well over 80,000. Due to this, there has also been growing interest to setup a resident NFL franchise in London, with Jacksonville Jaguars being the most likely team to relocate to the city. As of 2019, noted currently playing British gridiron players are Carolina Panthers defensive end, Nigerian-born Efe Obada and Atlanta Falcons tight end, Alex Grey. The first recorded writings about a sport called "base-ball" came in the mid-18th century when a version of the sport played indoors in 1748 in London, where it was played by then Prince of Wales, George III, and played outside in 1755 in the southern English town of Guildford. It was later brought over to the United States by British immigrants, where it developed in the modern version of the sport in the early 19th century in the creation and fountain of the modern baseball rule book, the Knickerbocker Rules in 1845. Eventually, it suppressed the popularity of the other notable ball-and-bat sport which was played in the U.S. at the time which was cricket, by the end of the 19th century. Baseball was first brought over to the United Kingdom end of the 19th century, by Francis Ley, a Derby man who had 'discovered' the game on a trip to the United States, and Albert Goodwill Spalding, an American former star player and sporting goods businessman who saw opportunities to expand his business across the Atlantic. This continued with the establishment of the National Baseball League of Great Britain and Ireland in 1890, with many of current famous football teams like Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Derby County were also baseball teams. Like the other noted American sport of gridiron, during the First World War visiting U.S. service personnel from the U.S. Army and Navy did a demonstration game at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge in 1918. This was received to a crowd of 38,000 people which even included the king George V. This led to into a growing interest in the game across the Atlantic, and baseball teams were created during the inter-wars. This led to a peak in 1938 when there was a victory by Great Britain over the United States in the 1938 Amateur World Series which was held in England, which is considered the first World Cup of Baseball. The popularity of baseball in the United Kingdom diminished during and after the Second World War by other sports and today, baseball isn't widely played among Britons. Notwithstanding, Major League Baseball and the show Baseball Tonight are available to watch the United Kingdom on the BT Sport ESPN channel. On a growing back of interest in American sports, in 2018 Major League Baseball agreed a two-year deal to field four games a year during the 2019 and 2020 seasons at the London Stadium under the name MLB London Series. The games are between the four big teams; the New York Yankees, the Boston Red Sox, the Chicago Cubs and the St Louis Cardinals. These games are available to watch not just on BT Sport, but also the BBC. Anglophilia & Anglophobia, Anti-Americanism, Foreign policy of the United States, Foreign relations of the United Kingdom, Foreign relations of the United States, Timeline of British diplomatic history, Timeline of United States diplomatic history, Transatlantic relations, UKUSA Agreement, United Kingdom–United States relations in World War II Allen, H. C. Great Britain and the United States: A History of Anglo-American Relations, 1783–1952 (1954), 1032pp. online; most thorough scholarly coverage, Bailey, Thomas A. A Diplomatic History of the American People (10th edition 1980) online free to borrow., Burk, Kathleen. The Lion and the Eagle. The Interaction of the British and American Empires 1783-1972 (2018) online review, Burk, Kathleen. Old World, New World. The Story of Britain and America (2009)., Burt, Alfred L. The United States, Great Britain, and British North America from the Revolution to the Establishment of Peace after the War of 1812. (1940), detailed history by Canadian scholar; online, Campbell, Charles S. Anglo-American Understanding 1898–1903 (1957), Charmley, John. Churchill's Grand Alliance: The Anglo-American Special Relationship 1940–57 (1996), Collier, Basil. The lion and the eagle; British and Anglo-American strategy, 1900-1950 (1972) online free to borrow, Cook, James Gwin. Anglophobia: An Analysis of Anti-British Prejudice in the United States (1919) online free, Crawford, Martin. The Anglo-American Crisis of the Mid-Nineteenth Century: The Times and America, 1850–1862 (1987), Dobson, Alan P. Anglo-American Relations in the Twentieth Century (1995)., Dumbrell, John. A special relationship: Anglo-American relations from the cold war to Iraq (2006), Ellis, Sylvia. Historical Dictionary of Anglo-American Relations (2009) and text search, Foreman, Amanda. A World on Fire: Britain's Crucial Role in the American Civil War (Random House, 2011), 958 pp., Geoffrey Wheatcroft, "How the British Nearly Supported the Confederacy," New York Times Sunday Book Review June 30, 2011 online, Hollowell; Jonathan. Twentieth-Century Anglo-American Relations (2001), Hitchens, Christopher. Blood, Class and Empire: The Enduring Anglo-American Relationship (2004), Kaufman, Will, and Heidi Slettedahl Macpherson, eds. Britain and the Americas: Culture, Politics, and History (3 vol 2005), 1157pp; encyclopedic coverage, Lane, Ann. Strategy, Diplomacy and UK Foreign Policy (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010), Louis, William Roger; Imperialism at Bay: The United States and the Decolonization of the British Empire, 1941–1945 (1978), McKercher, B. J. C. Transition of Power: Britain’s Loss of Global Pre-eminence to the United States, 1930-1945 (1999) 403pp, Mowat, Robert Balmain. The diplomatic relations of Great Britain and the United States (1925).online free; scholarly survey; 350pp, Pederson, William D. ed. A Companion to Franklin D. Roosevelt (2011) online pp 493–516, covers FDR's policies to 1945, Perkins; Bradford. The First Rapprochement: England and the United States, 1795–1805 (1955), Perkins, Bradford. Prologue to war: England and the United States, 1805–1812 (1961) full text online free, Perkins, Edwin J. Financing Anglo-American trade: The House of Brown, 1800–1880 (1975), Peskin, Lawrence A. "Conspiratorial Anglophobia and the War of 1812." Journal of American History 98#3 (2011): 647-669. online, Reid, Brian Holden. "Power, Sovereignty, and the Great Republic: Anglo-American Diplomatic Relations in the Era of the Civil War" Diplomacy & Statecraft (2003) 14#2 pp 45–76., Reid, Brian Holden. "'A Signpost That Was Missed'? Reconsidering British Lessons from the American Civil War," Journal of Military History 70#2 (2006), pp. 385–414, Reynolds, David. From World War to Cold War: Churchill, Roosevelt, and the International History of the 1940s (2007) excerpt and text search, Shawcross, William. Allies: The U.S., Britain, Europe and the War in Iraq (2004), Tuffnell, Stephen. ""Uncle Sam is to be Sacrificed": Anglophobia in Late Nineteenth-Century Politics and Culture." American Nineteenth Century History 12#1 (2011): 77-99., Watt, D. Cameron. Succeeding John Bull: America in Britain's place 1900–1975: a study of the Anglo-American relationship and world politics in the context of British and American foreign-policy-making in the twentieth century (1984). 302pp., Williams, Andrew J. France, Britain and the United States in the Twentieth Century 1900–1940 (2014). 133-171., Woods, Randall Bennett. Changing of the Guard: Anglo-American Relations, 1941–1946 (1990), Woodward, David R. Anglo-American Relations. 1917-1918 (1993) complete book online Bartlett, Christopher John. The Special Relationship: A Political History of Anglo-American Relations Since 1945 (1992)., Coker, Christopher. "Britain and the new world order: the special relationship in the 1990s," International Affairs (1992): 407-421. in JSTOR, Colman, Jonathan. A 'Special Relationship'?: Harold Wilson, Lyndon B. Johnson and Anglo-American Relations' at the Summit, 1964-8 (Manchester University Press, 2004), Dimbleby, David, and David Reynolds. An Ocean Apart: The Relationship Between Britain and America in the Twentieth Century (1988), Dobson, Alan and Steve Marsh. "Anglo-American Relations: End of a Special Relationship?" International History Review 36:4 (August 2014): 673-697. DOI: 10.1080/07075332.2013.836124. online review argues it is still in effect, Dobson, Alan J. The Politics of the Anglo-American Economic Special Relationship (1988), Dobson, Alan. "The special relationship and European integration." Diplomacy and Statecraft (1991) 2#1 79-102., Dumbrell, John. A Special Relationship: Anglo-American Relations in the Cold War and After (2001), Dumbrell, John. "The US–UK Special Relationship: Taking the 21st-Century Temperature." The British Journal of Politics & International Relations (2009) 11#1 pp: 64-78. online, Glancy, Mark. "Temporary American citizens? British audiences, Hollywood films and the threat of Americanisation in the 1920s." Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television (2006) 26#4 pp 461–484., Hendershot, Robert M. Family Spats: Perception, Illusion, and Sentimentality in the Anglo-American Special Relationship (2008), Johnsen, William Thomas. The Origins of the Grand Alliance: Anglo-American Military Collaboration from the Panay Incident to Pearl Harbor (2016). 438 pp. online review, Louis, William Roger, and Hedley Bull. The "Special Relationship": Anglo-American Relations since 1945 (1987)., Lyons, John F. America in the British Imagination: 1945 to the Present (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013)., Malchow, H.L. Special Relations: The Americanization of Britain? (Stanford University Press; 2011) 400 pages; explores American influence on the culture and counterculture of metropolitan London from the 1950s to the 1970s, from "Swinging London" to black, feminist, and gay liberation. excerpt and text search, Reynolds, David. Rich relations: the American occupation of Britain, 1942-1945 (1995), Reynolds, David. "A 'special relationship'? America, Britain and the international order since the Second World War." International Affairs (1985): 1-20., Rofe, J. Simon and Alison R. Holmes, eds. The Embassy in Grosvenor Square: American Ambassadors to the United Kingdom, 1938-2008 (2012), essays by scholars how the ambassadors promoted a special relationship, Watry, David M. Diplomacy at the Brink: Eisenhower, Churchill, and Eden in the Cold War. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2014., Williams, Paul. British Foreign Policy under New Labour (2005), Woolner, David B. "The Frustrated Idealists: Cordell Hull, Anthony Eden and the Search for Anglo-American Cooperation, 1933- 1938" (PhD dissertation, McGill University, 1996) online free bibliography pp 373–91. Blair, Tony. A Journey: My Political Life (2010), memoir by UK prime minister, Barnes, James J. and Patience P. Barnes, eds. The American Revolution through British Eyes 2v (2013), Barnes, James J. and Patience P. Barnes, eds. The American Civil War through British Eyes: Dispatches from British Diplomats - Vol. 1 (2003) online, Barnes, James J. and Patience P. Barnes, eds. Private and Confidential: Letters from British Ministers in Washington to the Foreign Secretaries in London, 1844-1867 (1993), Loewenheim, Francis L. et al. eds. Roosevelt and Churchill, their secret wartime correspondence (1975) Robert F. Worth, "The End of the Show" (review of James Barr, Lords of the Desert: The Battle Between the United States and Great Britain for Supremacy in the Modern Middle East, Basic Books, 454 pp.; and Derek Leebaert, Grand Improvisation: America Confronts the British Superpower, 1945–1957, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 612 pp.), The New York Review of Books, vol. LXVI, no. 16 (24 October 2019), pp. 44–46. History of United Kingdom – United States relations from U.S. State Dept., Atlantic Archive: UK-US Relations in an Age of Global War 1939–1945, John Bull and Uncle Sam: Four Centuries of British American Relations, An analysis of the Special Relationship from a British perspective. From the Second World War to the latest global problems facing the United States., Lecture: Anti-Americanism and American Exceptionalism, British Embassy in the United States of America, Embassy of the United States of America in the United Kingdom, The Woodrow Wilson Center's Nuclear Proliferation International History Project or NPIHP is a global network of individuals and institutions engaged in the study of international nuclear history through archival documents, oral history interviews and other empirical sources.

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House of Cards is an American political thriller web television series created by Beau Willimon. It is an adaptation of the 1990 BBC miniseries of the same title and based on the novel of the same title by Michael Dobbs. The first 13-episode season was released on February 1, 2013, on the streaming service Netflix. House of Cards is set in Washington, D.C. and is the story of Congressman Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey), a Democrat from South Carolina's 5th congressional district and House Majority Whip, and his equally ambitious wife Claire Underwood (Robin Wright). Frank is passed over for appointment as Secretary of State, so he initiates an elaborate plan to attain power, aided by Claire. The series deals with themes of ruthless pragmatism, manipulation, betrayal, and power. House of Cards received positive reviews and several award nominations, including 33 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including for Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor for Spacey, and Outstanding Lead Actress for Wright. It is the first original online-only web television series to receive major Emmy nominations. The show also earned eight Golden Globe Award nominations, with Wright winning for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in 2014 and Spacey winning for Best Actor – Television Series Drama in 2015. In 2017, following sexual misconduct allegations against Spacey, Netflix announced that Spacey would be removed from the show. The sixth and final season was produced and released in 2018 without Spacey's involvement; in the narrative, his character Frank Underwood was killed off between seasons. Frank Underwood, a power-hungry Democratic congressman from South Carolina and House majority whip, celebrates the election of President Garrett Walker, whose campaign he aided to get himself appointed Secretary of State. However, Underwood learns that the President wants him to promote his agenda in Congress and will not honor their agreement. Inwardly seething, Underwood presents himself as a helpful lieutenant to Walker. In reality, Underwood begins an elaborate plan behind the President's back, with the ultimate goal of gaining a cabinet position. Frank's wife Claire runs an NGO, the Clean Water Initiative, which she uses to cultivate her own power, yet its ultimate purpose remains unknown. Despite the success of the operation, Claire seeks to expand its scope to the international stage, often using Frank's connections. It is clear from the outset that Claire shares both her husband's cold- hearted, ruthless pragmatism and lust for power, and they frequently scheme together to ensure the success of each other's ventures. They both work with Remy Danton, a corporate lobbyist and former Underwood staffer, to secure funds for their operations and expand their influence. Underwood begins a symbiotic, and ultimately sexual, relationship with Zoe Barnes, a young political reporter, secretly feeding her damaging stories about his political rivals to sway public opinion as needed. Meanwhile, he manipulates Peter Russo, a troubled alcoholic congressman from Pennsylvania, into helping him undermine Walker's pick for Secretary of State, Senator Michael Kern. Underwood eventually has Kern replaced with his own choice, Senator Catherine Durant. Underwood also uses Russo in a plot to end a teachers' strike and pass an education bill, which improves Underwood's standing with Walker. Because the new Vice President is the former Governor of Pennsylvania, a special election is to be held for his successor. Underwood helps Russo get clean and props up his candidacy, but later uses call girl Rachel Posner to break his sobriety and trigger his downfall shortly before the election. When Russo decides to come clean about his role in Underwood's schemes, Frank kills Russo and stages his death as a suicide. With the special election in chaos, Underwood convinces the Vice President to step down and run for his old position of governor – leaving the Vice Presidency open to Underwood, as was his plan all along. Underwood is introduced to Missouri billionaire Raymond Tusk, Walker's friend and advisor. Tusk reveals that he has been influencing Walker's decisions all along and convinced him to cancel the original agreement, and explains he will influence Walker to nominate Underwood for vice president if he does a favor benefiting Tusk's interests. Underwood counter-proposes to Tusk that they work together to fulfill both their interests, which Tusk accepts. Meanwhile, after ending their affair, Zoe begins piecing together clues about Underwood's various plots. The season ends when Underwood accepts the nomination for Vice President of the United States. Zoe and two colleagues, Lucas Goodwin and Janine Skorsky, continue investigating Frank and ultimately locate Rachel. As a protective measure, Frank's aide Doug Stamper brings Rachel to a safe house while Frank lures Zoe to a Metro station and, unseen by witnesses or security cameras, pushes her in front of an oncoming train. Zoe's death compels Janine to abandon the investigation, but Lucas continues the search alone. He solicits the help of a hacker to retrieve Frank's text history. However, the hacker, Gavin Orsay, actually works for Doug and frames Lucas for cyberterrorism. Later, Gavin uses Rachel to extort Doug. Rachel, fearing potential harm and Doug's growing obsession with her, ambushes Doug and leaves him for dead, fleeing into hiding. After Frank begins his vice presidential duties, Claire becomes close with the First Lady and learns Walker's marriage is strained. Meanwhile, Frank aims to drive a wedge between Walker and Tusk. He meets Xander Feng, a Chinese businessman and ally of Tusk's, to engage in back-channel negotiations that Frank intentionally scuttles at the expense of Tusk's credibility. In the resulting trade war with China, Tusk opposes Walker's efforts to deal with the crisis and begins having a tribal casino funnel money into Republican PACs in retaliation. When Frank discovers that Feng is the source of the donations, he gets Feng to end his partnership with Tusk in exchange for a lucrative contract for a bridge over Long Island Sound. The Justice Department investigates the White House's ties to Feng and Tusk. Frank manipulates Walker into volunteering his travel records, which reveal his visits to a marriage counselor and raise questions about whether the donations were discussed. Wishing to avoid public disclosure of his personal issues, Walker has the White House Counsel coach the counselor, which the special prosecutor interprets as witness tampering. As the House Judiciary Committee begins drafting articles of impeachment, both Walker and Frank offer Tusk a presidential pardon in exchange for implicating each other. Tusk sides with Walker at first, leaving Frank no other option than to regain the president's trust as a friend. Walker then calls off his deal with Tusk, who testifies against him. With Walker forced to resign, Frank is sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. Six months into his presidency, Frank pushes for a controversial jobs program called America Works. Determined not to be a "placeholder" President, Underwood reverses his previous pledge and runs in the 2016 election, competing against Heather Dunbar in the Democratic primaries. When Frank refuses to reinstate Doug as his Chief of Staff, Doug appears to switch sides and begins working for Dunbar. Gavin helps Doug track down Rachel and delivers findings purporting that she is dead, causing Doug to suffer a relapse. When Gavin reveals that Rachel is really alive, Doug brutalizes him into divulging her location. Doug finds Rachel living under a false identity in New Mexico, drives her into the desert, and eventually kills her. He returns to work as Frank's Chief of Staff after Remy resigns. Meanwhile, Claire is named the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and faces a crisis in the Jordan Valley, which pits Frank against Russian President Viktor Petrov. When Petrov has an American gay rights activist arrested in Russia, the Underwoods persuade him to secure a release. However, Petrov demands that the activist apologize on Russian television, leading the activist to kill himself while being visited by Claire. Later, after Russian troops are killed in the Jordan Valley, Petrov convinces Frank to remove Claire as Ambassador in exchange for a peaceful resolution. Claire resigns, giving the reason that she wants to be more active in Frank's campaign. Throughout the season, a writer named Thomas Yates is hired by Frank to write a biography for the purpose of promoting America Works. Yates, a fiction writer with a dark past of his own, decides to put a different spin on the book and writes less about Frank and more about his marriage with Claire. Yates reads Frank a prologue that he does not understand at first, but agrees is a decent beginning. By the end of the season, Yates has the first chapter written and Frank, not liking the direction the book is taking, fires Yates. By the season finale, tensions between the Underwoods reach a point where Claire states her intent to leave Frank. Claire relocates to Dallas and runs for Congress in her home district. The incumbent, Doris Jones, plans to retire and endorse her daughter Celia as her successor. Claire offers them federal funding for a key Planned Parenthood clinic in exchange for stepping down, but they refuse the offer. Frank wins back Claire's support by promising not to sabotage her campaign in Texas, but he later publicly endorses Celia in his State of the Union address. Frank and Claire travel to South Carolina for a primary, but a series of scandals causes Frank to narrowly lose the state to Dunbar. Frank discovers that Claire had been leaking information to Dunbar, and she threatens to continue unless he names her as his running mate. Frank refuses. Lucas Goodwin is released from prison, and seeks revenge against Frank for having him framed and Zoe Barnes killed. He explains his story to Dunbar, but she turns him away. Desperate, he attempts to assassinate Frank, severely wounding the president in the abdomen and killing bodyguard Edward Meechum, but not before Meechum fatally wounds Lucas. While Frank remains comatose, Donald Blythe is sworn in as Acting President of the United States. Blythe is indecisive during a military crisis involving Russia, and turns to Claire for guidance. Claire goes against Frank's wishes by convincing Blythe to involve China and secure a meeting with Petrov, where she brokers an ambitious peace deal. Doug leaks information about Dunbar's secret meeting with Lucas and forces her to suspend her campaign. Frank recovers and resumes his position as President, agreeing to put Claire on the ticket for the upcoming election. Tom Hammerschmidt, Zoe and Lucas's former news editor, digs deeper into the latter's claims of Frank's misdeeds. He approaches Remy and, with his help, starts to piece together Frank's corruption. Tom also meets with Walker, convincing him to help by appealing to his anger for being forced to resign. Remy Danton and Jackie Sharp also decide to go on the record against Frank to lend credibility to the story. An American family is kidnapped in Tennessee by two supporters of a radical Islamist group called the Islamic Caliphate Organization (ICO), who agree to negotiate only with the ambitious Republican nominee, Governor Will Conway. Frank invites Conway to the White House to assist in the negotiations as a publicity stunt, and Conway helps buy critical time in locating the suspects. However, tensions between the Conways and Underwoods lead to the governor ending his role in the crisis. Frank and Claire allow the kidnappers to speak to the deposed leader of ICO, Yusuf al Ahmadi, after successfully obtaining the release of two of the hostages. Instead of defusing the situation as he agreed, al Ahmadi urges the kidnappers to kill the remaining hostage and broadcast the killing to the public. Meanwhile, Hammerschmidt publishes his story and threatens to end Frank's campaign weeks before the election. Claire urges Frank to use a heavier hand in the situation, and they decide to fight back by creating chaos. Frank addresses the public declaring that the nation is at total war, ordering the full force of the military be used to combat global terrorism regardless of the cost. The season ends with Frank and Claire watching the live execution of the hostage together, and Claire breaking the fourth wall for the first time by looking into the camera along with Frank. In the weeks before the 2016 election, Frank uses ICO as a pretext to enacting martial law in urban areas and consolidating polling places in key states. Done mainly through back channels with Democratic governors, this is officially done in the name of safety, but in practice disenfranchises rural Republican voters. To keep the strategy of fear going, Doug blackmails hacker Aidan Macallan into launching a massive cyberattack on the NSA, slowing down Internet traffic and wiping out hundreds of thousands of files. The Underwood Administration pins the attack on ICO. On Election Day, the result hinges on Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Ohio. The early returns seem to favor Conway. Underwood's political machine stages a terrorist attack in Knoxville, Tennessee, which is pinned on a local suspected ICO sympathizer. With Pennsylvania secured by Conway and Ohio seeming to swing his way, Frank unofficially calls Conway directly to concede. However, this is merely a tactic to put Conway off guard, as the Underwoods contact Ohio's governor and convince him to close the polls early on the pretense of a terrorist threat. Ohio and Tennessee refuse to certify the election, and neither candidate reaches the requisite number of electoral votes. Nine weeks after the unresolved election, the Twelfth Amendment is invoked, with the vote being put up to members of Congress. During a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus, cracks begin to appear in Conway's facade as he loses his cool. In spite of this, Frank's own baggage and 12% approval rating only allows him a tie with Conway in the House, while Claire manages to secure the Senate vote, becoming Acting President of the United States. In light of the tie, Claire orders a special election for Ohio and Tennessee. Meanwhile, Jane Davis, a low-ranking Commerce Department official who has a wide-ranging network of connections and influence, begins working closely with the Underwoods. As a private citizen for the time being, Frank attends a meeting of powerful men at a secret society known as Elysian Fields, in an effort to secure their influence for votes in the upcoming special election. Meanwhile, Conway has a mental breakdown on his private plane due to feeling that the election was stolen from him. Eventually, this and other leaks from his campaign are slowly dripped to the media in a manner that seems unconnected to the Underwoods. Seeing that his candidate is losing, Conway's campaign manager, Mark Usher, switches sides to the Underwoods. The Underwood ticket wins both Ohio and Tennessee, and Frank is sworn in as President and Claire as Vice President. Meanwhile, Hammerschmidt continues to investigate Zoe's death, and is given information by an unknown leaker within the White House. Major document dumps are made available to Hammerschmidt, which, among other charges, prompts an impeachment hearing against Frank. In response, the Underwoods set up extensive surveillance on all White House personnel. Eventually, the leaker makes a voice-modulated call to Hammerschmidt, implicating Doug in Zoe's murder. The Underwoods convince Doug to take the fall for killing Zoe, and the leaker is revealed to be Frank himself. The leaks are revealed to be part of Frank's master plan to resign the presidency to Claire, believing his thirst for power can be better achieved in the private sector, working alongside his wife's presidency. Frank, concerned about Secretary Durant's intention to testify at the impeachment hearing, pushes her down a short flight of stairs upon accepting her resignation, hospitalizing her. Claire poisons Yates with an overdose of Gelsemium provided to her by Jane, concerned that he knows too much. Finally, contractors working for the Underwoods eliminate LeAnn by ramming her car off the road into a guard rail. Frank resigns as President, leaving Claire as the 47th President of the United States. The two await the proper moment for Claire to pardon him. This comes in the form of a military special operations unit finding and taking out the leader of ICO, which moves media focus away from Frank. Standing in the Oval Office, Claire appears to reconsider pardoning Frank, and ignores multiple concerned calls from him regarding the matter. The season ends with Claire ignoring Frank's call, then breaking the fourth wall to tell the viewers, "My turn." One hundred days after Claire takes office, she faces increased scrutiny, particularly in light of her husband's death following his resignation. The brother-sister duo of Bill and Annette Shepherd seek to influence Claire. The Shepherds are connected with Mark Usher, whom Claire has made Vice President, and is having an affair with Annette. Annette's son Duncan puts pressure on Claire through his media company, Gardner Analytics. Claire and the Shepherds battle over deregulation measures, and Claire uses a chemical leak from one of the Shepherd's operations to embarrass the two. Doug, meanwhile, is in therapy following his confession to Zoe's murder, and Claire uses Assistant Director Green and his psychiatrist to monitor him. The Shepherds decide to influence Claire by other means, including through a Supreme Court justice they convince her to nominate. They and Seth Grayson also develop a mobile application which can secretly be used to monitor the user's activity, including their location. Secretary of State Durant also comes within the Shepherds' sphere of influence, and they persuade her to speak with prosecutors investigating the Underwoods as the Shepherds become increasingly distant from Claire. As Durant's testimony proves more threatening, Claire and Jane Davis plot to assassinate her, but she fakes her death and flees the country. Following Durant's fake death, Claire and President Petrov forge a deal on Syria. Claire then discovers that Durant is alive and living in France with Petrov's help. Following this, Claire disappears for three weeks, prompting questions of her ability to lead, and leading Usher to plan to use the 25th Amendment to remove her from office. Claire foils Usher's plan and fires her Cabinet, replacing it with an all-female Cabinet, much to Annette's surprise. Annette plans to use Claire's prior abortions against her, but Claire retaliates by revealing to Duncan he is not Annette's biological son. With her new Cabinet in place, Claire decides to undertake a new, progressive, agenda. The Shepherds, meanwhile, continue to plot her downfall, enlisting the help of Brett Cole, an ambitious Congressman who seeks to become Speaker of the House. They also seek the help of Doug, but he refuses, initially. Doug meets with Hammerschmidt, providing him information on Frank's actions. Determined to strike back against her enemies, Claire frames Usher for Yates's murder, claiming he colluded with Russia to do so. She also has Hammerschmidt, Davis, and Durant killed. Claire then reveals to Doug that she is pregnant with Frank's child, who will become his heir even though Frank secretly left his assets to Doug. Four months after the murders, Claire reverts to her maiden name and continues her progressive agenda. Annette, now strained from Bill, plots with Usher, no longer Vice President, to assassinate Claire. She asks Doug to perpetrate the act, but he is reluctant, mainly desiring to protect Frank's legacy. Claire, through now-Speaker Cole, blackmails Justice Abruzzo into recusing himself in a case dealing with her power to launch nuclear weapons. Janine Skorsky and Doug continue to work to uncover the Underwoods, with Doug leaking contents of Frank's secret audio diary while Claire blames everything on Frank. Claire then uses the pretense of ICO obtaining a nuclear weapon to create a crisis, leading the Shepherds and Doug to accelerate their plans. Doug arrives at the White House, which Claire has placed on lockdown, but, before he can kill Claire, she forces him to reveal it was he who murdered Frank. Claire then stabs Doug with Frank's letter opener, and the series concludes with her turning to the audience and stating "no more pain." Kevin Spacey as Francis J. "Frank" Underwood, a Democrat from South Carolina's 5th congressional district. He is House Majority Whip in season one, Vice President of the United States in season two, 46th President of the United States in seasons three to five, and the First Gentleman of the United States in season five. (seasons 1–5), Robin Wright as Claire Underwood, Frank's wife. She runs the Clean Water Initiative, a nongovernmental organization, in season one before giving it up to become Second Lady of the United States in season two. She then becomes United States Ambassador to the United Nations in season three and First Lady of the United States in seasons three to five, acting President of the United States briefly in season five before becoming Vice President of the United States and then the 47th President of the United States at the end of the season., Kate Mara as Zoe Barnes, a reporter for The Washington Herald (and later Slugline). She forms an intimate relationship with Frank Underwood, her political informant, who in turn uses her as a mouthpiece to leak stories to the press and irk his political rivals. (season 1; guest seasons 2 and 4), Corey Stoll as Peter Russo is a Democratic congressman from Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district and recovering addict. (season 1; guest season 4), Michael Kelly as Douglas "Doug" Stamper is Underwood's unwaveringly loyal White House Chief of Staff and confidant. He is temporarily replaced by Remy Danton as chief of staff after his injury for most of season three, but returns as his new chief of staff at the end of the season., Kristen Connolly as Christina Gallagher is a congressional staffer and personal assistant to President Walker, and lover to Peter Russo. (seasons 1–2), Sakina Jaffrey as Linda Vasquez is President Walker's White House Chief of Staff. (seasons 1–2; guest season 6), Sandrine Holt as Gillian Cole is the leader of a grass-roots organization called World Well that provides clean water to developing countries. (season 1; guest season 2), Constance Zimmer as Janine Skorsky is a reporter for The Washington Herald. (seasons 1–2, 6; guest season 4), Michel Gill as Garrett Walker is the 45th President of the United States, and former Governor of Colorado. He trusts Underwood as a close adviser and lieutenant, but remains blind to his machinations. (seasons 1–2, 4–5), Sebastian Arcelus as Lucas Goodwin is an editor at The Washington Herald and later Zoe's boyfriend. (seasons 1–2 and 4), Mahershala Ali as Remy Danton is a lawyer for Glendon Hill and lobbyist, who works for natural gas company SanCorp in season one and Raymond Tusk in season two. He worked in Underwood's congressional office as Communications Director prior to the series, and after severing ties with Tusk, and serves as Underwood's chief of staff for most of season three until quitting at the end of the season. (seasons 1–4), Boris McGiver as Tom Hammerschmidt is the editor-in-chief of The Washington Herald. He opens an investigation into the secret dealings of Frank and his inner circle in season four. (seasons 1–2, 4–6), Nathan Darrow as Edward Meechum is a member of the United States Capitol Police and the Underwoods' bodyguard and driver. (seasons 1–4), Reg E. Cathey as Freddy Hayes is the owner of Freddy's BBQ, and one of Underwood's few true friends and confidants. When Raymond Tusk exposes Freddy's criminal past, Freddy loses out on a franchise opportunity; and he eventually gets and leaves a job as a White House groundskeeper. (seasons 1–4), Rachel Brosnahan as Rachel Posner is a prostitute trying to make a better life for herself using Stamper. (seasons 1–3), Molly Parker as Jacqueline "Jackie" Sharp is a Democratic congresswoman from California, who succeeded Frank as majority whip. She also briefly ran for the Democratic nomination for President in season three. (seasons 2–4), Gerald McRaney as Raymond Tusk is a billionaire businessman with a wide network of influence, although he prefers to live modestly. (seasons 1–2, 4–5), Jayne Atkinson as Catherine "Cathy" Durant is a Democratic Senator from Louisiana and Secretary of State., Jimmi Simpson as Gavin Orsay, a computer hacker turned reluctant FBI informant, who works secretly with Doug Stamper in exchange for help escaping the country. (seasons 2–3), Mozhan Marnò as Wall Street Telegraph reporter Ayla Sayyad. She is assigned to the White House and does freelance investigative reporting. (seasons 2–3), Elizabeth Marvel as Heather Dunbar is a lawyer and Solicitor General of the United States in the Walker administration. She runs against Underwood for the Democratic nomination. (seasons 2–4), Derek Cecil as Seth Grayson is a political operative who becomes press secretary for Vice President Underwood through blackmail. (seasons 2–6), Paul Sparks as Thomas Yates is a successful author whom Frank asks to write a book about the America Works jobs program. He stays on as a speech writer and Claire's lover. (seasons 3–5), Kim Dickens as Kate Baldwin is the chief political reporter of the Wall Street Telegraph. She replaces Sayyad at the White House after Seth Grayson dismisses Sayyad for protocol violations. (seasons 3–5), Lars Mikkelsen as Viktor Petrov is the President of Russia. (seasons 3–6), Joel Kinnaman as Will Conway is the Republican Governor of New York and nominee for President of the United States running against Frank. (seasons 4–5), Neve Campbell as LeAnn Harvey is a Texas-based political consultant Claire hires to run her congressional campaign. She later becomes the campaign manager for the Underwoods for the 2016 election. (seasons 4–5), Dominique McElligott as Hannah Conway is the wife of New York Governor and Republican presidential nominee Will Conway. (seasons 4–5), Campbell Scott as Mark Usher is Conway's campaign manager. He later joins the Underwoods' inner circle as a "special advisor". (seasons 5–6), Patricia Clarkson as Jane Davis is Deputy Undersecretary of Commerce for international trade. She is very well connected and able to successfully negotiate back-channel dealings for the Underwoods. (seasons 5–6), Damian Young as Aidan Macallan is a data scientist and NSA contractor, who is friends with LeAnn Harvey. (seasons 4–5), Korey Jackson as Sean Jeffries is a young reporter at the Washington Herald working under Hammerschmidt. (season 5), James Martinez as Alex Romero is a Democratic congressman who leads the House Intelligence Committee's investigation into Frank's alleged abuse of power. (season 5), Diane Lane as Annette Shepherd is a former childhood classmate of Claire's who is the co-head and public face of Shepherd Unlimited, a leading industrial conglomerate that has worked for years to shape and influence U.S. policy. (season 6), Greg Kinnear as Bill Shepherd is Annette's behind the scenes billionaire brother and co-head of Shepherd Unlimited that prefers to stay out of the limelight but is ruthless when it comes to playing politics to suit his business needs. (season 6), Cody Fern as Duncan Shepherd is Annette's ambitious and devoted son who represents the next generation of DC power players. (season 6) Independent studio Media Rights Capital (MRC), founded by Mordecai Wiczyk and Asif Satchu, producer of films such as Babel, purchased the rights to House of Cards with the intention to create a series. While finishing production on his 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, David Fincher's agent showed him House of Cards, a BBC miniseries starring Ian Richardson. Fincher was interested in producing a potential series with Eric Roth. Fincher said that he was interested in doing television because of its long-form nature, adding that working in film does not allow for complex characterizations the way that television allows. "I felt for the past ten years that the best writing that was happening for actors was happening in television. And so I had been looking to do something that was longer form," Fincher stated. MRC approached different networks about the series, including HBO, Showtime and AMC, but Netflix, hoping to launch its own original programming, outbid the other networks. Ted Sarandos, Netflix's Chief Content Officer, looked at the data of Netflix users' streaming habits and concluded that there was an audience for Fincher and Spacey. "It looked incredibly promising," he said, "kind of the perfect storm of material and talent." In finding a writer to adapt the series, Fincher stated that they needed someone who could faithfully translate parliamentary politics to Washington." Beau Willimon, who has served as an aide to Chuck Schumer, Howard Dean and Hillary Clinton, was hired and completed the pilot script in early 2011. Willimon saw the opportunity to create an entirely new series from the original and deepen its overall story. The project was first announced in March 2011, with Kevin Spacey attached to star and serve as an executive producer. Fincher was announced as director for the first two episodes, from scripts by Willimon. Netflix ordered 26 episodes to air over two seasons. Spacey called Netflix's model of publishing all episodes at once a "new perspective." He added that Netflix's commitment to two full seasons gave the series greater continuity. "We know exactly where we are going," he said. In a speech at the Edinburgh International Television Festival, he also noted that while other networks were interested in the show, they all wanted a pilot, whereas Netflix – relying solely on their statistics – ordered the series directly. In January 2016, show creator, executive producer and showrunner Beau Willimon's departure following season 4 was announced. He was replaced by Frank Pugliese and Melissa James Gibson, both of whom had begun writing for the series in season 3. Fincher stated that every main cast member was their first choice. In the first read through, he said "I want everybody here to know that you represent our first choice — each actor here represents our first choice for these characters. So do not fuck this up." Spacey, whose last regular television role was in the series Wiseguy, which ran from 1987 until 1990, responded positively to the script. He then played Richard III at The Old Vic, which Fincher said was "great training." Spacey supported the decision to release all of the episodes at once, believing that this type of release pattern will be increasingly common with television shows. He said, "When I ask my friends what they did with their weekend, they say, 'Oh, I stayed in and watched three seasons of Breaking Bad or it's two seasons of Game of Thrones." He was officially cast on March 18, 2011. Robin Wright was approached by Fincher to star in the series when they worked together in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. She was cast as Claire Underwood in June 2011. Kate Mara was cast as Zoe Barnes in early February 2012. Mara's sister, Rooney, worked with Fincher in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and when Kate Mara read the part of Zoe, she "fell in love with the character" and asked her sister to "put in a word for me with Fincher." The next month, she got a call for an audition. Principal photography for the first season began in January 2012 in Harford County, Maryland, on the Eastern seaboard of the United States. Filming of exterior scenes in 2013 centered primarily in and around the city of Baltimore, Maryland, which is about northeast of Washington, D.C. Among the numerous exteriors filmed in Baltimore, but set in Washington, D.C., are: Francis and Claire Underwood's residence, Zoe Barnes' apartment, Freddy's BBQ Rib Joint, The Clean Water Initiative building where Claire works, The Washington Herald offices, the Washington Opera House, the Secretary of State's building, Hotel Cotesworth, The Georgetown Hotel, Werner's Bar, Tio Pepe's, the DuPont Circle Bar, as well as scenes set in other locations, including Peter Russo's campaign rally in Pennsylvania and The Sentinel (military academy)'s Francis J. Underwood Library and Waldron Hall in South Carolina. Most of the interior scenes in House of Cards are filmed in a large industrial warehouse, which is located in Joppa, Maryland, also in Harford County, which is about north east of Baltimore. The warehouse is used for the filming of some of the most iconic scenes of the series, such as the full- scale reconstruction of most of the West Wing of the White House, including the Oval Office, the Congressional offices and corridors, the large 'Slugline' open-plan office interior, and domestic interiors such as the large townhouse rooms of the Underwood residence and a large loft apartment. Extensive filming for season 5 was also done at the Maryland Historical Society in Mount Vernon, Baltimore. The series uses green screen to augment the live action, inserting views of outdoor scenes in windows and broadcast images on TV monitors, often in post-production. The Production Designer, Steve Arnold, also describes in detail the use of a three-sided green screen to insert street scenes outside car windows, with synchronized LED screens above the car (and out of camera shot), that emit the appropriate light onto the actors and parts of the car, such as window frames: "All the driving in the show, anything inside the vehicle is done on stage, in a room that is a big three-sided green screen space. The car does not move, the actors are in the car, and the cameras are set up around them. We have very long strips of LED monitors hung above the car. We had a camera crew go to Washington, D.C. to drive around and shoot plates for what you see outside when you're driving. And that is fed into the LED screens above the car. So as the scene is progressing, the LED screens are synched up to emit interactive light to match the light conditions you see in the scenery you're driving past (that will be added in post). All the reflections on the car windows, the window frames and door jambs is being shot while we're shooting the actors in the car. Then in post the green screens are replaced with the synced up driving plates, and it works really well. It gives you the sense of light passing over the actors' faces, matching the lighting that is in the image of the plate". In June 2014, filming of three episodes in the UN Security Council chamber was vetoed by Russia at the last minute. However the show was able to film in other parts of the UN Building. In August 2014, the show filmed a "mock-motorcade scene" in Washington, D.C. In December 2014, the show filmed in Española, Santa Fe, and Las Vegas, New Mexico. According to the Maryland Film Office, the state provided millions in tax credits to subsidize the production costs. For season 1, the company received a final tax credit of $11.6 million. Production costs were $63 million, more than 1,800 Maryland businesses were involved, and nearly 2,200 Marylanders were hired with a $138 million economic impact., For season 2, the company was reported to expect to get a tax credit of about $15 million because filming costs were more than $55 million. There were nearly 2,000 Maryland businesses benefitting from the production and more than 3,700 Marylanders were hired with a $120 million estimated economic impact., For season 3, the company filed a letter of intent to film, and estimated costs and economic impact similar to season 2. Under the 2014 formula, "the show would qualify for up to $15 million in tax credits." On October 11, 2017, The Baltimore Sun reported that House of Cards had been renewed for a sixth season and that filming would begin by the end of October 2017. On October 29, actor Anthony Rapp publicly stated that lead actor Spacey had made a sexual advance on him at a 1986 party when Rapp was 14. The following day, Netflix announced that the upcoming sixth season of House of Cards would be its last. Multiple sources stated that the decision to end the series was made prior to Rapp's accusation, but the announcement nevertheless caused suspicions for its timing. The following day, it was announced that production on the season would be temporarily suspended, according to an official joint statement from Netflix and MRC, "to give us time to review the current situation and to address any concerns of our cast and crew". On November 3, 2017, Netflix announced that they would no longer be associated with Spacey in any capacity whatsoever. On December 4, 2017, Ted Sarandos, Netflix's chief content officer, announced that production would restart in 2018 with Robin Wright in the lead, and revealed that the final season of the show would now consist of eight episodes. Spacey was removed from the cast and as executive producer. In 2019, the last remaining related criminal charges against him were dropped. On December 24, 2018, Spacey posted an unofficial short film titled Let Me Be Frank to his YouTube channel, in which, in-character as Francis "Frank" Underwood, he denied the allegations and stated that his character was not in fact dead. The video has been described in the media as "bizarre", "extraordinarily odd", "unsettling", and "alarming"; several actors—including Patricia Arquette, Ellen Barkin, Jon Favreau and Rob Lowe—have criticized and ridiculed it on Twitter. As of September 2019, the video has over 11 million views, with 258,000 likes and 69,000 dislikes. On December 24, 2019, Spacey posted an follow-up short film to Let Me Be Frank titled KTWK to his YouTube channel, in which, once again in-character as Francis "Frank" Underwood, he wishes the world a "Merry Christmas", comments on it having been a "pretty good year", asking one as they enter 2020 to cast their vote for more good in the world, and rather than "go on the attack" in response to one who has harmed one to instead "kill them with kindness". In Australia, where Netflix was not available prior to 2015, the series was broadcast on Showcase, premiering on May 7, 2013. Australian subscription TV provider Foxtel, and owner of Showcase, offered the entire first season to Showcase subscribers via their On Demand feature on Foxtel set-top boxes connected to the internet, as well as through their Xbox 360, Internet TV, and mobile (Foxtel Go) services. Although the entire season was made available, it maintained its weekly timeslot on Showcase. Season two returned to Showcase on February 15, 2014. As with season one, the entire season was made available on demand to Showcase subscribers while also retaining a weekly timeslot. The series has also been made available to non-Foxtel subscribers through Apple's Apple TV service. Prior to Netflix's Australian launch on March 28, 2015, Netflix renounced Showcase's rights to House of Cards, with season 3 premiering on Netflix at launch. In New Zealand, where Netflix was unavailable prior to 2015, season 1 premiered on TV3 in early 2014, followed immediately by season 2. Netflix launched in New Zealand on March 24, 2015, and unlike Australia (which had Netflix launch on the same day) where House of Cards season 3 was available at launch, the series was initially unavailable. In India, where Netflix was unavailable prior to January 2016, House of Cards premiered on February 20, 2014, on Zee Café. Seasons 1 and 2 were aired back–to–back. The channel aired all 13 episodes of season 3 on March 28 and 29, 2015. This marked the first time that an English-language general entertainment channel in India aired all episodes of the latest season of a series together. The move was intended to satisfy viewers' urge to binge-watch the season. Although Netflix launched in India in January 2016, House of Cards was not available on the service until March 4. All episodes of season 4 had their television premiere on Zee Café on March 12 and 13, 2016. House of Cards was acquired by Canadian superstation CHCH for broadcast beginning September 13, 2017, making the program available throughout Canada on cable and free-to- air in CHCH's broadcast region, which includes portions of the United States. However, the show was removed from the CHCH primetime schedule two months later, following the sexual assault allegations towards Kevin Spacey. House of Cards began airing in the United Kingdom on September 19, 2018, on Virgin TV Ultra HD, a newly established UHD/4K entertainment channel. Season 1 was released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment in region 1 on June 11, 2013, season 2 was released on June 17, 2014, season 3 was released on July 7, 2015, season 4 was released on July 5, 2016, season 5 was released on October 3, 2017, and season 6 was released on March 5, 2019. The first season received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a rating of 86%, based on 43 reviews, with an average rating of 8.21/10. The site's consensus reads, "Bolstered by strong performances — especially from Kevin Spacey — and surehanded direction, House of Cards is a slick, engrossing drama that may redefine how television is produced." On Metacritic, the first season has a score of 76 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". USA Today critic Robert Bianco praised the series, particularly Spacey's and Wright's lead performances, stating "If you think network executives are nervous, imagine the actors who have to go up against that pair in the Emmys." Tom Gilatto of People Weekly lauded the first two episodes, calling them "cinematically rich, full of sleek, oily pools of darkness." In The Denver Post, critic Joanne Ostrow said the series is "[d]eeply cynical about human beings as well as politics and almost gleeful in its portrayal of limitless ambition". She added: "House of Cards is a wonderfully sour take on power and corruption." Writing in The New York Times, critic Alessandra Stanley noted that the writing in the series sometimes fails to match the high quality of its acting: "Unfortunately Mr. Spacey's lines don't always live up to the subtle power of his performance; the writing isn't Shakespeare, or even Aaron Sorkin, and at times, it turns strangely trite." Nevertheless, she lauded House of Cards as an entertainment that "revels in the familiar but always entertaining underbelly of government." Andrew Davies, the writer of the original British TV series, stated that Spacey's character lacks the "charm" of Ian Richardson's, while The Independent praised Spacey's portrayal as a more "menacing" character, "hiding his rage behind Southern charm and old-fashioned courtesy." Randy Shaw, writing for The Huffington Post, criticized House of Cards for glorifying "union bashing and entitlement slashing within a political landscape whose absence of activist groups or anyone remotely progressive resembles a Republican fantasy world". Critics such as Time television critic James Poniewozik and Hank Stuever of The Washington Post compare the series to Boss. Like the UK show and novel of the same name, many critics have noted that it is heavily influenced by both Macbeth and Richard III. In addition, some critics find elements of Othello, such as Iago's bitter ire. The second season received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the season has a rating of 84%, based on 45 reviews, with an average rating of 8.03/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "House of Cards proves just as bingeworthy in its second season, with more of the strong performances, writing, and visual design that made the first season so addictive." On Metacritic the season has a score of 80 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". But as the season progressed, reviews became more mixed. Jen Chaney of Vulture wrote that the second season "felt kind of empty" and that "the closest it came to feeling emotionally rich was when it focused on Claire". At the end of the second season, Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote that the show is a "ridiculous political potboiler that takes itself too seriously"; he gave the overall season a C-. The third season received mostly positive reviews, although many critics noted it felt repetitive. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 74%, based on 54 reviews, with an average rating of 6.97/10. The site's consensus reads, "Season three introduces intriguing new political and personal elements to Frank Underwood's character, even if it feels like more of the same for some." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 76 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Negative reviews came from The Daily Beasts Nick Gillespie, who accused the writers of "descending into prosaic moralism" in season 3 and asserted that it deviates from the show's original intent, and Michael Wolff of USA Today plainly asserts that "the third season of House of Cards is no good ... not just no good, but incompetent, a shambles, lost". IndieWire named the season one of the most disappointing shows of 2015. The fourth season received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 86%, based on 36 reviews, with an average rating of 7.69/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "House of Cards retains its binge-worthiness by ratcheting up the drama, and deepening Robin Wright's role even further." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 76 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Ben Travers of IndieWire had a positive response to season four, calling it an upgrade from what he perceived as a "messy and unsatisfying melodramatic" third season, writing that "House of Cards is aiming at authenticity, and–for what feels like the first time–consistently finding it." Emily Van DerWerff of Vox had a mixed review to season four, criticizing the repetitive and predictable nature of the series, writing: "There's no such mystery with House of Cards, where you know exactly what will happen as surely as you do on NCIS. Obstacles will present themselves, but Frank (the hammy Kevin Spacey) and Claire (the almost perfect Robin Wright) Underwood will overcome. What you see is what you get." The choice to have Frank and Claire run as running mates was highly criticized by some reviewers. Jonathan Holmes of Radio Times wrote that "there are limits to the stupidity viewers are willing to accept, and with season four [House of Cards] may have stepped over the line. Claire demanding her selection as Frank's running mate is stupid. Moronic. It turns a canny political operator into a ham-brained fish-eyed jar-opener." Spencer Kornhaber of The Atlantic wrote that "in moments like this it's good to remember that Cards really, fundamentally is a stupid TV show instead of a particularly cunning comment on political reality." The fifth season received mixed to positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 71% based on 45 reviews, with an average rating of 7.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "House of Cards enjoys a confident return to form this season, though its outlandish edge is tempered slightly by the current political climate." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 60 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". After the fifth season received a Best Drama Series nomination at the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards, Brian Grubb of Uproxx wrote: House of Cards has not been very good for multiple seasons now, if it was ever that good. I can understand the original excitement about it. Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright were on television. And not even "television," really. They were on a big budget series that was made for and by a streaming service. David Fincher was involved and even directed a few episodes. This was a borderline revolutionary development. ... I don't see how anyone who watched it can think it deserves a place in the best six or seven dramas on television. The sixth season received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 67% based on 66 reviews, with an average rating of 6.11/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "House of Cards folds slightly under the weight of its labyrinthian ending – thankfully Robin Wright's commanding performance is strong enough to keep it standing strong." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 62 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". In the U.S., the average season 6 viewership dropped from 1.9 million to 1.5 for the first week compared to the previous season. The last season has also received negative reviews, including those related to the absence of Kevin Spacey. For its first season, House of Cards received nine nominations for the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards in 2013, to become the first original online-only web television series to receive major nominations. Among House of Cards' nine nominations, "Chapter 1" received four nominations for the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards and 65th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards becoming the first webisode (online-only episode) of a television series to receive a major Primetime Emmy Award nomination: Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for David Fincher. This episode also received several Creative Arts Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series, Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series, and Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic). Although Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series is not a category that formally recognizes an episode, Spacey submitted "Chapter 1" for consideration to earn his nomination. At the Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Award presentation, "Chapter 1" and Eigil Bryld earned the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series, making "Chapter 1" the first Emmy-awarded webisode. At the Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, Fincher won for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for directing the pilot episode "Chapter 1" in addition to the pair of Creative Arts Emmy Awards, making "Chapter 1" the first Primetime Emmy-awarded webisode. None of the Emmy awards were considered to be in major categories. For the 71st Golden Globe Awards, House of Cards received four nominations. Among those nominations was Wright for Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama for her portrayal of Claire Underwood, which she won. In so doing she became the first actress to win a Golden Globe Award for an online-only web television series. For its second season, House of Cards received 13 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series, Kevin Spacey for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Robin Wright for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, Kate Mara for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, and Reg E. Cathey for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series. At the 72nd Golden Globe Awards, the series was nominated for Best Drama Series and Wright was nominated for Best Drama Actress, while Spacey won for Best Drama Actor. – official site, House of Cards at Emmys.com A house of cards (also known as a card tower or a card castle) is a structure created by stacking playing cards on top of each other pyramidally. "House of cards" is also an expression that dates back to 1645 meaning a structure or argument built on a shaky foundation or one that will collapse if a necessary (but possibly overlooked or unappreciated) element is removed. Structures built by layering in this way, such as Stonehenge, are referred to as "house of cards architecture", which dates back to the Cyclopean and Megalithic ages. The origin of the phrase is debated to be from the 18th century England but some believe that it has an American base. The structures created using this method rely on nothing more than balance and friction in order to stay upright. Ideally, adhesives or other external connecting methods are not used, and no damage or alterations are made to the cards themselves. The larger the structure, the higher the number of balanced cards that could fail and compromise the integrity of the card building. Professional card stacker Bryan Berg claims, however, that the more cards placed on a tower the stronger it becomes because the weight of the cards pushing down on the base (increasing friction) allows occasional cards to stumble without the entire structure collapsing. He also claims that proper stacking technique allows cards to function as shear walls, giving considerable stability to the structure. The earliest known record for card stacking was achieved by Victoria Maitland, of the United Kingdom. A photograph of her work was published in The Strand Magazine in September 1901. It was a fifteen-story structure. Following the publication of this record, a second was submitted in April 1902 by Rosie Farner of England with a picture of a twenty-storied tower. A third record was submitted by F. M. Hollams of England, with a tower of twenty-five stories, in February 1903. Other record holders (without bending or altering the cards) include: Joe Whitlam, of England, with twenty-seven stories, on February 28, 1972, James Warnock, of Canada, with sixty-one stories, on September 8, 1978, John Slain, of the United States, with sixty-eight stories, on August 3, 1983, Bryan Berg, of the United States, with seventy-five stories, on April 21, 1992 Berg has since kept the record and created many sub-records. He currently holds the world record for tallest house of cards, a "skyscraper" completed at the State Fair of Texas on October 14, 2007. He also holds the record for the largest house of cards, a category Guinness invented for the event, for a replica of Cinderella's Castle at Walt Disney World. On March 10, 2010, Berg broke his own record by building a replica of The Venetian Macao resort hotel. He completed it in 44 days, using 218,792 cards (more than 4,000 decks). The structure measured , and weighed more than . Architecture, Arts and crafts, Hobby, Sport stacking, Structure The third season of the American web television drama series House of Cards was commissioned on February 4, 2014. Netflix released the season in its entirety on February 27, 2015. The season was filmed from approximately June 12 through December 20, 2014. The season was recognized with numerous award nominations. Kevin Spacey won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series at the 22nd Screen Actors Guild Awards for his portrayal of Frank Underwood and Reg E. Cathey won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series at the 67th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards for his portrayal of Freddy Hayes. On February 4, 2014, Netflix announced it had renewed House of Cards for a third season of undisclosed length. On December 1, 2014, Netflix announced that the third season would be available on February 27, 2015. On February 11, 2015, 10 episodes from the third season became accidentally available on Netflix for approximately 25 minutes due to "a bug in the system"; however were quickly removed. In February 2014, Kevin Spacey stated that the show would again film in the Baltimore metropolitan area. On July 3, the show was denied filming access to the Security Council chamber at the Headquarters of the United Nations by Russia through its representative Mikael Agasandyan despite encouragement from Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon. Russia questioned the propriety of filming in the chambers and felt that the room should be kept available for normal uses. For a third consecutive season, the show filmed episodes at the offices of The Baltimore Sun, which in prior seasons served as the setting for the fictional Washington Herald. Among the municipalities filmed in for the season were Havre de Grace, Maryland, and Aberdeen, Maryland. On August 9, filming of a fictional motorcade at the National Mall caused road closures on Pennsylvania Avenue, Constitution Avenue and Independence Avenue. On October 6, filming occurred at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. Other D.C. filming occurred at George Washington University and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial. The season finale was planned to be filmed in Northern New Mexico areas in and around Santa Fe and Las Vegas, New Mexico in December 2014. On December 20, 2014, creator Beau Willimon tweeted that principal photography for the season had completed that day. Netflix, which had received $26 million in tax benefits for the first two seasons was only offered a $4 million incentive for season 3 by Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, which resulted in Netflix delaying production and threatening to move production. By March 2014, it was clear that the requested state tax incentives would not be approved by the Maryland Legislature. In response to Netflix's threat to move production if "sufficient tax incentives" were not provided, the Maryland House of Delegates threatened to use eminent domain power to purchase, condemn, or seize the production assets, equipment, and other property that remained in the state because the production had already been the beneficiary of tens of millions of dollars in tax benefits. By April 6, 2014, the Maryland General Assembly considered various methods to avail the tax incentives. However, the April 7 state budget only included a total of $15 million in tax incentives for filming, leaving a $3.5 million shortfall for House of Cards, which production company Media Rights Capital said might force them to move production. Baltimore Sun longtime television critic David Zurawik felt that the $3.5 million would not keep House of Cards from returning to resume production in the area. As of April 11, some predicted that no matter what happened the season 3 release date would be delayed. On April 25, a deal was reached to leave the 2015 fiscal year budget with the $3.5 million shortfall, but to allow the producers to collect the $11.5 million unallocated filming credit that remained in the 2014 fiscal year budget. On May 19, 2014, a May 19-21 casting call was posted in the Baltimore Sun for an NSA Director as well as senators, reporters, military colonels, emergency room doctors and a few other roles with projected shooting availability: June 12 – July 15, 2014. On June 3, 2014, an announcement for a June 7 casting call for extras and day players was made. In August 2014, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina of the punk band Pussy Riot were confirmed to be in the cast for season 3. In October 2014, two recurring roles were cast; Kim Dickens in an unspecified role, and Jenna Stern as an ambassador at the United Nations. Elizabeth Norment, who played Frank's secretary Nancy Kaufberger, died on October 13. Kevin Spacey as Francis J. Underwood, the President of the United States, Robin Wright as Claire Underwood, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations and First Lady of the United States, Michael Kelly as Douglas "Doug" Stamper, Frank Underwood's Chief of Staff, Elizabeth Marvel as Heather Dunbar, the United States Solicitor General who announces her candidacy for President of the United States., Mahershala Ali as Remy Danton, the White House Chief of Staff, Derek Cecil as Seth Grayson, the White House Press Secretary/White House Communications Director, Nathan Darrow as Edward Meechum, a United States Secret Service agent, Molly Parker as Jacqueline "Jackie" Sharp, the House Deputy Minority Whip and a Democratic U.S. Representative from California, Jimmi Simpson as Gavin Orsay, a computer hacker and FBI informant, Paul Sparks as Thomas Yates, an author hired by Underwood to write a biography on him, Kim Dickens as Kate Baldwin, a journalist and White House Correspondent for the Wall Street Telegraph, Alexander Sokovikov as Alexi Moryakov, the Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, Jayne Atkinson as Catherine Durant, the United States Secretary of State, Lars Mikkelsen as Viktor Petrov, the President of the Russian Federation, Kelly AuCoin as Gary Stamper, Doug Stamper's brother, Benito Martinez as Hector Mendoza, the Senate Majority Leader and a Republican United States Senator from Arizona, Larry Pine as Bob Birch, the House Minority Leader and a Democratic U.S. Representative from Michigan, Reed Birney as Donald Blythe, the Vice President of the United States, Jenna Stern as Eliana Caspi, the Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations, Christina Bennett Lind as Sharon, Doug Stamper's physical therapist, Rachel Brosnahan as Rachel Posner / Cassie Lockhart, Reg E. Cathey as Frederick 'Freddy' Hayes, Mozhan Marnò as Ayla Sayyad, a journalist for the Wall Street Telegraph, Kate Lyn Sheil as Lisa Williams, Eisa Davis as Cynthia Driscoll, Heather Dunbar's campaign manager, Curtiss Cook as Terry Womack, the House Minority Whip, Christian Camargo as Michael Corrigan, an LGBT rights activist, John Doman as Bishop Charles Eddis, Shawn Doyle as Alan Cooke, a cardiovascular surgeon and Jackie's boyfriend (and later, husband), Frank L. Ridley as Harlan Traub The third season has received positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the season has a score of 76 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 77%, based on 52 reviews, with an average rating of 7/10. The site's consensus reads, "Season three introduces intriguing new political and personal elements to Frank Underwood's character, even if it feels like more of the same for some." For the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards, the series received nominations for Outstanding Drama Series, Kevin Spacey for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Robin Wright for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, and Michael Kelly for Outstanding Supporting in a Drama Series. For the 67th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, Reg E. Cathey won for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series, Rachel Brosnahan was nominated for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, and Jeff Beal won for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series. For the 22nd Screen Actors Guild Awards, the cast was nominated for Best Drama Ensemble, Kevin Spacey won for Best Drama Actor, and Robin Wright was nominated for Best Drama Actress. For the 73rd Golden Globe Awards, Robin Wright was nominated for Best Drama Actress. The third season was released on DVD and Blu-ray in region 1 on July 7, 2015, and in region 2 on June 29, 2015.

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The Siege of Jerusalem in the year 70 CE was the decisive event of the First Jewish–Roman War, in which the Roman army captured the city of Jerusalem and destroyed both the city and its Temple. The Roman army, led by the future Emperor Titus, with Tiberius Julius Alexander as his second-in-command, besieged and conquered the city of Jerusalem, which had been controlled by Judean rebel factions since 66 CE, following the Jerusalem riots of 66, when the Judean provisional government was formed in Jerusalem. The siege of the city began on 14 April 70 CE, three days before the beginning of Passover that year. The siege lasted for about four months; it ended in August 70 CE on Tisha B'Av with the burning and destruction of the Second Temple. The Romans then entered and sacked the Lower City. The Arch of Titus, celebrating the Roman sack of Jerusalem and the Temple, still stands in Rome. The conquest of the city was complete on approximately 8 September 70 CE. Josephus places the siege in the second year of Vespasian, which corresponds to year 70 of the Common Era. Despite early successes in repelling the Roman sieges, the Zealots fought amongst themselves, and they lacked proper leadership, resulting in poor discipline, training, and preparation for the battles that were to follow. At one point they destroyed the food stocks in the city, a drastic measure thought to have been undertaken perhaps in order to enlist a merciful God's intervention on behalf of the besieged Jews, or as a stratagem to make the defenders more desperate, supposing that was necessary in order to repel the Roman army. Titus began his siege a few days before Passover, on 14 April, surrounding the city with three legions (V Macedonica, XII Fulminata, XV Apollinaris) on the western side and a fourth (X Fretensis) on the Mount of Olives, to the east. If the reference in his Jewish War at 6:421 is to Titus' siege, though difficulties exist with its interpretation, then at the time, according to Josephus, Jerusalem was thronged with many people who had come to celebrate Passover. The thrust of the siege began in the west at the Third Wall, north of the Jaffa Gate. By May, this was breached and the Second Wall also was taken shortly afterwards, leaving the defenders in possession of the Temple and the upper and lower city. The Jewish defenders were split into factions: John of Gischala's group murdered another faction leader, Eleazar ben Simon, whose men were entrenched in the forecourts of the Temple. The enmities between John of Gischala and Simon bar Giora were papered over only when the Roman siege engineers began to erect ramparts. Titus then had a wall built to girdle the city in order to starve out the population more effectively. After several failed attempts to breach or scale the walls of the Fortress of Antonia, the Romans finally launched a secret attack, overwhelming the sleeping Zealots and taking the fortress by late July. After Jewish allies killed a number of Roman soldiers, Titus sent Josephus, the Jewish historian, to negotiate with the defenders; this ended with Jews wounding the negotiator with an arrow, and another sally was launched shortly after. Titus was almost captured during this sudden attack, but escaped. Overlooking the Temple compound, the fortress provided a perfect point from which to attack the Temple itself. Battering rams made little progress, but the fighting itself eventually set the walls on fire; a Roman soldier threw a burning stick onto one of the Temple's walls. Destroying the Temple was not among Titus' goals, possibly due in large part to the massive expansions done by Herod the Great mere decades earlier. Titus had wanted to seize it and transform it into a temple dedicated to the Roman Emperor and the Roman pantheon. However, the fire spread quickly and was soon out of control. The Temple was captured and destroyed on 9/10 Tisha B'Av, sometime in August 70 CE, and the flames spread into the residential sections of the city. Josephus described the scene: As the legions charged in, neither persuasion nor threat could check their impetuosity: passion alone was in command. Crowded together around the entrances many were trampled by their friends, many fell among the still hot and smoking ruins of the colonnades and died as miserably as the defeated. As they neared the Sanctuary they pretended not even to hear Caesar's commands and urged the men in front to throw in more firebrands. The partisans were no longer in a position to help; everywhere was slaughter and flight. Most of the victims were peaceful citizens, weak and unarmed, butchered wherever they were caught. Round the Altar the heaps of corpses grew higher and higher, while down the Sanctuary steps poured a river of blood and the bodies of those killed at the top slithered to the bottom. Josephus's account absolves Titus of any culpability for the destruction of the Temple, but this may merely reflect his desire to procure favor with the Flavian dynasty. The Roman legions quickly crushed the remaining Jewish resistance. Some of the remaining Jews escaped through hidden tunnels and sewers, while others made a final stand in the Upper City. This defense halted the Roman advance as they had to construct siege towers to assail the remaining Jews. Herod's Palace fell on 7 September, and the city was completely under Roman control by 8 September. The Romans continued to pursue those who had fled the city. The account of Josephus described Titus as moderate in his approach and, after conferring with others, ordering that the 500-year-old Temple be spared. According to Josephus, it was the Jews who first used fire in the Northwest approach to the Temple to try and stop Roman advances. Only then did Roman soldiers set fire to an apartment adjacent to the Temple, starting a conflagration which the Jews subsequently made worse. Josephus had acted as a mediator for the Romans and, when negotiations failed, witnessed the siege and aftermath. He wrote: Now as soon as the army had no more people to slay or to plunder, because there remained none to be the objects of their fury (for they would not have spared any, had there remained any other work to be done), [Titus] Caesar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and Temple, but should leave as many of the towers standing as they were of the greatest eminence; that is, Phasaelus, and Hippicus, and Mariamne; and so much of the wall enclosed the city on the west side. This wall was spared, in order to afford a camp for such as were to lie in garrison [in the Upper City], as were the towers [the three forts] also spared, in order to demonstrate to posterity what kind of city it was, and how well fortified, which the Roman valor had subdued; but for all the rest of the wall [surrounding Jerusalem], it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it [Jerusalem] had ever been inhabited. This was the end which Jerusalem came to by the madness of those that were for innovations; a city otherwise of great magnificence, and of mighty fame among all mankind. And truly, the very view itself was a melancholy thing; for those places which were adorned with trees and pleasant gardens, were now become desolate country every way, and its trees were all cut down. Nor could any foreigner that had formerly seen Judaea and the most beautiful suburbs of the city, and now saw it as a desert, but lament and mourn sadly at so great a change. For the war had laid all signs of beauty quite waste. Nor had anyone who had known the place before, had come on a sudden to it now, would he have known it again. But though he [a foreigner] were at the city itself, yet would he have inquired for it. Josephus claims that 1.1 million people were killed during the siege, of which a majority were Jewish. Josephus attributes this to the celebration of Passover which he uses as rationale for the vast number of people present among the death toll. Armed rebels, as well as the frail citizens, were put to death. All of Jerusalem's remaining citizens became Roman prisoners. After the Romans killed the armed and elder people, 97,000 were still enslaved, including Simon bar Giora and John of Giscala. Simon bar Giora was executed, and John of Giscala was sentenced to life imprisonment. Of the 97,000, thousands were forced to become gladiators and eventually expired in the arena. Many others were forced to assist in the building of the Forum of Peace and the Colosseum. Those under 17 years of age were sold into servitude. Josephus' death toll assumptions were rejected as impossible by Seth Schwartz (1984), as according to his estimates at that time about a million people lived in Palestine, about half of whom were Jews, and sizable Jewish populations remained in the area after the war was over, even in the hard-hit region of Judea. Titus and his soldiers celebrated victory upon their return to Rome by parading the Menorah and Table of the Bread of God's Presence through the streets. Up until this parading, these items had only ever been seen by the high priest of the Temple. This event was memorialized in the Arch of Titus. Many fled to areas around the Mediterranean. According to Philostratus, writing in the early years of the 3rd century, Titus reportedly refused to accept a wreath of victory, saying that the victory did not come through his own efforts but that he had merely served as an instrument of divine wrath. After the Fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the city and its Temple, there were still a few Judean strongholds in which the rebels continued holding out, at Herodium, Machaerus, and Masada. Both Herodium and Machaerus fell to the Roman army within the next two years, with Masada remaining as the final stronghold of the Judean rebels. In 73 CE, the Romans breached the walls of Masada and captured the fortress, with Josephus claiming that nearly all of the Jewish defenders had committed mass suicide prior to the entry of the Romans. With the fall of Masada, the First Jewish–Roman War came to an end. Judaea Capta coinage: Judaea Capta coins were a series of commemorative coins originally issued by the Roman Emperor Vespasian to celebrate the capture of Judaea and the destruction of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem by his son Titus in 70 CE during the First Jewish Revolt., Temple of Peace: In 75 CE, the Temple of Peace, also known as the Forum of Vespasian, was built under Emperor Vespasian in Rome. The monument was built to celebrate the conquest of Jerusalem and it is said to have housed the Menorah from Herod's Temple., Flavian Amphitheater: Otherwise known as the Colosseum built from 70 to 80. Archaeological discoveries have found a block of travertine that bears dowel holes that show the Jewish Wars financed the building of the Flavian Amphitheatre., Arch of Titus: 82 CE, Roman Emperor Domitian constructed the Arch of Titus on Via Sacra, Rome, to commemorate the capture and siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE, which effectively ended the Great Jewish Revolt, although the Romans did not achieve complete victory until the fall of Masada in 73 CE. Tisha B'Av The Jewish Amoraim attributed the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem as punishment from God for the "baseless hatred" that pervaded Jewish society at the time. Many Jews in despair are thought to have abandoned Judaism for some version of paganism, many others sided with the growing Christian sect within Judaism. The destruction was an important point in the separation of Christianity from its Jewish roots: many Christians responded by distancing themselves from the rest of Judaism, as reflected in the Gospels which some believe portray Jesus as anti-Temple and view the destruction of the temple as punishment for rejection of Jesus. The war in Judaea, particularly the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, have inspired writers and artists through the centuries. The bas-relief in the Arch of Titus has been influential in establishing the Menorah as the most dramatic symbol of the looting of the Second Temple. Siege of Jerusalem A fourteenth century Middle English poem., The Franks Casket. The back side of the casket depicts the siege., The Destruction of the Temple at Jerusalem by Nicolas Poussin (1637). Oil on canvas, 147 × 198.5 cm. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Depicts the destruction and looting of the Second Temple by the Roman army led by Titus., by Wilhelm von Kaulbach (1846). Oil on canvas, 585 × 705 cm. Neue Pinakothek, Munich. An allegorical depiction of the destruction of Jerusalem, dramatically centered on the figure of the High Priest, with Titus entering from the right., by David Roberts (1850). Oil on canvas, 136 × 197 cm. Private collection. Depicts the burning and looting of Jerusalem by the Roman army under Titus., by Francesco Hayez (1867). Oil on canvas, 183 × 252 cm. Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice. Depicts the destruction and looting of the Second Temple by the Roman army. Council of Jamnia, Fiscus Judaicus, Flight to Pella, Herod's Temple, Holyland Model of Jerusalem, Jesus ben Ananias, Kamsa and Bar Kamsa, Preterism, Robinson's Arch, Royal Stoa (Jerusalem), Siege of Jebus, Solomon's Temple The Temple Mount and Fort Antonia, Map of the siege of Jerusalem The Second Temple (, Beit HaMikdash HaSheni) was the Jewish holy temple which stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem during the Second Temple period, between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced Solomon's Temple (the First Temple), which was destroyed by the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 586 BCE, when Jerusalem was conquered and part of the population of the Kingdom of Judah was taken into exile to Babylon. The Second Temple was originally a rather modest structure constructed by a number of Jewish exile groups returning to the Levant from Babylon under the Achaemenid-appointed governor Zerubbabel. However, during the reign of Herod the Great, the Second Temple was completely refurbished, and the original structure was totally overhauled into the large and magnificent edifices and facades that are more recognizable. Much as the Babylonians destroyed the First Temple, the Romans destroyed the Second Temple and Jerusalem in 70 CE as retaliation for an ongoing Jewish revolt. The second temple lasted for a total of 585 years (516 BCE to 70 CE). Jewish eschatology includes a belief that the Second Temple will be replaced by a future Third Temple. The accession of Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid Empire in 559 BCE made the re-establishment of the city of Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Temple possible. Some rudimentary ritual sacrifice had continued at the site of the first temple following its destruction. According to the closing verses of the second book of Chronicles and the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, when the Jewish exiles returned to Jerusalem following a decree from Cyrus the Great (, ), construction started at the original site of the altar of Solomon's Temple. After a relatively brief halt due to opposition from peoples who had filled the vacuum during the Jewish captivity (), work resumed c. 521 BCE under Darius I () and was completed during the sixth year of his reign (c. 516 BCE), with the temple dedication taking place the following year. These events represent the final section in the historical narrative of the Hebrew Bible. The original core of the book of Nehemiah, the first-person memoir, may have been combined with the core of the Book of Ezra around 400 BCE. Further editing probably continued into the Hellenistic era. The book tells how Nehemiah, at the court of the king in Susa, is informed that Jerusalem is without walls and resolves to restore them. The king appoints him as governor of the province Yehud Medinata and he travels to Jerusalem. There he rebuilds the walls, despite the opposition of Israel's enemies, and reforms the community in conformity with the law of Moses. After 12 years in Jerusalem, he returns to Susa but subsequently revisits Jerusalem. He finds that the Israelites have been backsliding and taking non-Jewish wives, and he stays in Jerusalem to enforce the Law. Based on the biblical account, after the return from Babylonian captivity, arrangements were immediately made to reorganize the desolated Yehud Province after the demise of the Kingdom of Judah seventy years earlier. The body of pilgrims, forming a band of 42,360, having completed the long and dreary journey of some four months, from the banks of the Euphrates to Jerusalem, were animated in all their proceedings by a strong religious impulse, and therefore one of their first concerns was to restore their ancient house of worship by rebuilding their destroyed Temple and reinstituting the sacrificial rituals known as the korbanot. On the invitation of Zerubbabel, the governor, who showed them a remarkable example of liberality by contributing personally 1,000 golden darics, besides other gifts, the people poured their gifts into the sacred treasury with great enthusiasm. First they erected and dedicated the altar of God on the exact spot where it had formerly stood, and they then cleared away the charred heaps of debris which occupied the site of the old temple; and in the second month of the second year (535 BCE), amid great public excitement and rejoicing, the foundations of the Second Temple were laid. A wide interest was felt in this great movement, although it was regarded with mixed feelings by the spectators (, ). The Samaritans wanted to help with this work but Zerubbabel and the elders declined such cooperation, feeling that the Jews must build the Temple unaided. Immediately evil reports were spread regarding the Jews. According to , the Samaritans sought to "frustrate their purpose" and sent messengers to Ecbatana and Susa, with the result that the work was suspended. Seven years later, Cyrus the Great, who allowed the Jews to return to their homeland and rebuild the Temple, died () and was succeeded by his son Cambyses. On his death, the "false Smerdis", an impostor, occupied the throne for some seven or eight months, and then Darius became king (522 BCE). In the second year of his rule the work of rebuilding the temple was resumed and carried forward to its completion (), under the stimulus of the earnest counsels and admonitions of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. It was ready for consecration in the spring of 516 BCE, more than twenty years after the return from captivity. The Temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of Darius, amid great rejoicings on the part of all the people (), although it was evident that the Jews were no longer an independent people, but were subject to a foreign power. The Book of Haggai includes a prediction that the glory of the second temple would be greater than that of the first (). Some of the original artifacts from the Temple of Solomon are not mentioned in the sources after its destruction in 597 BCE, and are presumed lost. The Second Temple lacked the following holy articles: The Ark of the Covenant containing the Tablets of Stone, before which were placed the pot of manna and Aaron's rod, The Urim and Thummim (divination objects contained in the Hoshen), The holy oil, The sacred fire. In the Second Temple, the Kodesh Hakodashim (Holy of Holies) was separated by curtains rather than a wall as in the First Temple. Still, as in the Tabernacle, the Second Temple included: The Menorah (golden lamp) for the Hekhal, The Table of Showbread, The golden altar of incense, with golden censers. According to the Mishnah, the "Foundation Stone" stood where the Ark used to be, and the High Priest put his censer on it on Yom Kippur. The Second Temple also included many of the original vessels of gold that had been taken by the Babylonians but restored by Cyrus the Great. According to the Babylonian Talmud however, the Temple lacked the Shekhinah (the dwelling or settling divine presence of God) and the Ruach HaKodesh (holy spirit) present in the First Temple. Traditional rabbinic literature states that the Second Temple stood for 420 years and based on the 2nd-century work Seder Olam Rabbah, placed construction in 350 BCE (3408 AM), 166 years later than secular estimates, and destruction in 70 CE (3829 AM). The fifth order, or division, of the Mishnah, known as Kodashim, provides detailed descriptions and discussions of the religious laws connected with Temple service including the sacrifices, the Temple and its furnishings, as well as the priests who carried out the duties and ceremonies of its service. Tractates of the order deal with the sacrifices of animals, birds, and meal offerings, the laws of bringing a sacrifice, such as the sin offering and the guilt offering, and the laws of misappropriation of sacred property. In addition, the order contains a description of the Second Temple (tractate Middot), and a description and rules about the daily sacrifice service in the Temple (tractate Tamid). Following the conquest of Judea by Alexander the Great, it became part of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt until 200 BCE, when the Seleucid king Antiochus III the Great of Syria defeated Pharaoh Ptolemy V Epiphanes at the Battle of Paneion. Judea became at that moment part of the Seleucid Empire. When the Second Temple in Jerusalem was looted and its religious services stopped, Judaism was effectively outlawed. In 167 BCE, Antiochus IV Epiphanes ordered an altar to Zeus erected in the Temple. He also banned circumcision and ordered pigs to be sacrificed at the altar of the Temple. Following the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid empire, the Second Temple was rededicated and became the religious pillar of the Jewish Hasmonean Kingdom, as well as culturally associated with the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. There is some evidence from archaeology that further changes to the structure of the Temple and its surroundings were made during the Hasmonean rule. Salome Alexandra, the queen of Hasmonean Kingdom appointed her elder son Hyrcanus II as the high priest of Judaea. Her younger son Aristobulus II was determined to have the throne, and as soon as she died he seized the throne. Hyrcanus, who was in line to be the king, agreed to be contented with being the high priest. Antipater, the governor of Idumæa, encouraged Hyrcanus not to give up his throne. Eventually Hyrcanus fled to Aretas III, king of the Nabateans, and returned with an army to take back the throne. He defeated Aristobulus and besieged Jerusalem. The Roman general Pompey, who was in Syria fighting against the Armenians in the Third Mithridatic War, sent his lieutenant to investigate the conflict in Judaea. Both Hyrcanus and Aristobulus appealed to him for support. Pompey was not diligent in making a decision about this which caused Aristobulus to march off. He was pursued by Pompey and surrendered but his followers closed Jerusalem to Pompey's forces. The Romans besieged and took the city in 63 BCE. The priests continued with the religious practices inside the Temple during the siege. The temple was not looted or harmed by the Romans. Pompey himself, perhaps inadvertently, went into the Holy of Holies and the next day ordered the priests to repurify the Temple and resume the religious practices. Reconstruction of the temple under Herod began with a massive expansion of the Temple Mount. Herod's work on the Temple is generally dated from 20/19 BCE until 12/11 or 10 BCE. Writer Bieke Mahieu dates the work on the Temple enclosures from 25 BCE and that on the Temple building in 19 BCE, and situates the dedication of both in November 18 BCE. Religious worship and temple rituals continued during the construction process. When the Roman emperor Caligula planned to place his own statue inside the temple, Herod's grandson Agrippa I was able to intervene and convince him against this. Herod's Temple was one of the larger construction projects of the 1st century BCE. Josephus records that Herod was interested in perpetuating his name through building projects, that his construction programs were extensive and paid for by heavy taxes, but that his masterpiece was the Temple of Jerusalem. The old temple built by Zerubbabel was replaced by a magnificent edifice. An agreement was made between Herod and the Jewish religious authorities: the sacrificial rituals, called offerings, were to be continued unabated for the entire time of construction, and the Temple itself would be constructed by the priests. Later the Exodus 30:13 sanctuary shekel was reinstituted to support the temple as the temple tax. Mt. Moriah had a plateau at the northern end, and steeply declined on the southern slope. It was Herod's plan that the entire mountain be turned into a giant square platform. The Temple Mount was originally intended to be 1600 feet wide by 900 feet broad by 9 stories high, with walls up to 16 feet thick, but had never been finished. To complete it, a trench was dug around the mountain, and huge stone "bricks" were laid. Some of these weighed well over 100 tons, the largest measuring 44.6 feet by 11 feet by 16.5 feet and weighing approximately 567 to 628 tons, while most were in the range of 2.5 by 3.5 by 15 feet (approximately 28 tons). King Herod had architects from Greece, Rome and Egypt plan the construction. The blocks were presumably quarried by using pickaxes to create channels. Then they hammered in wooden beams and flushed them with water to force them out. Once they were removed, they were carved into precise squares and numbered at the quarry to show where they would be installed. The final carving would have been done by using harder stones to grind or chisel them to create precise joints. They would have been transported using oxen and specialized carts. Since the quarry was uphill from the temple they had gravity on their side but care needed to be taken to control the descent. Final installation would have been done using pulleys or cranes. Roman pulleys and cranes weren't strong enough to lift the blocks alone so they may have used multiple cranes and levers to position them. As the mountainside began to rise, the western side was carved away to a vertical wall and bricks were carved to create a virtual continuation of the brick face, which was continued for a while until the northern slope reached ground level. Part of the Antonian hill to the north of Moriah was annexed to the complex and the area between was filled up with landfill. The project began with the building of giant underground vaults upon which the temple would be built so it could be larger than the small flat area on top of Mount Moriah. Ground level at the time was at least 20 ft. (6m) below the current level, as can be seen by walking the Western Wall tunnels. Legend has it that the construction of the entire complex lasted only three years, but other sources such as Josephus say that it took far longer, although the Temple itself may have taken that long. During a Passover visit by Jesus the Jews replied that it had been under construction for 46 years. It is possible that the complex was only a few years completed when the future Emperor Titus destroyed the Temple in 70 CE. This area was primarily a bazaar, with vendors selling souvenirs, sacrificial animals, food, as well as currency changers, exchanging Roman for Tyrian money because the Jews were not allowed to coin their own money and they viewed Roman currency as an abomination to the Lord, as also mentioned in the New Testament account of Jesus and the Money Changers when Jerusalem was packed with Jews who had come for Passover, perhaps numbering 300,000 to 400,000 pilgrims. Guides that provided tours of the premises were also available. Jewish males had the unique opportunity to be shown inside the temple itself. The priests, in their white linen robes and tubular hats, were everywhere, directing pilgrims and advising them on what kinds of sacrifices were to be performed. Behind them, as they entered the Court of the Gentiles from the south through the Huldah Gates, was the Royal Porch, which contained a marketplace, administrative quarters, and a synagogue. On the upper floors, the great Jewish sages held court, priests and Levites performed various chores, and from there, tourists were able to observe the events. The Royal Porch is widely accepted to be part of Herod's work; however, recent archaeological finds in the Western Wall tunnels suggest that it was built in the first century during the reign of Agripas, as opposed to the first century BCE, while the theory that Herod began the extension and the Royal Porch is based mainly on Josephus's possibly politically motivated claim. During Herod's reign the porch was not yet open to the public. To the east of the court was Solomon's Porch, and to the north, the soreg, the "middle wall of separation", a stone wall separating the public area from the inner sanctuary where only Jews could enter, described as being 3 cubits high by Josephus (Wars 5.5.2 [3b] 6.2.4). The accounts of the temptation of Christ in the gospels of Matthew and Luke both suggest that the Second Temple had one or more 'pinnacles': The Greek word used is πτερυγιον (pterugion), which literally means a tower, rampart, or pinnacle. According to Strong's Concordance, it can mean little wing, or by extension anything like a wing such as a battlement or parapet. The archaeologist Benjamin Mazar thought it referred to the southeast corner of the Temple overlooking the Kidron Valley. According to Josephus, there were ten entrances into the inner courts, four on the south, four on the north, one on the east and one leading east to west from the Court of Women to the court of the Israelites, named the Nicanor Gate. The gates were: On the south side (going from west to east) the Fuel Gate, the Firstling Gate, the Water Gate. On the north side, from west to east, are the Jeconiah Gate, the Offering Gate, the Women's Gate and the Song Gate. On the Eastern side, the Nicanor gate, which is where most Jewish visitors entered. A few pieces of the Soreg have survived to the present day. Within this area was the Court of the Women, open to all Jews, male and female. Even a ritually unclean Cohen could enter to perform various housekeeping duties. There was also a place for lepers (considered ritually unclean), as well as a ritual barbershop for Nazirites. In this, the largest of the temple courts, one could see constant dancing, singing and music. Only men were allowed to enter the Court of the Israelites, where they could observe sacrifices of the high priest in the Court of the Priests. The Court of the Priests was reserved for Levite priests. Between the entrance of the building and the curtain veiling the Holy of Holies were the famous vessels of the temple: the menorah, the incense-burning altar, and various other implements. Jews from distant parts of the Roman Empire would arrive by boat at the port of Jaffa (now part of Tel Aviv), where they would join a caravan for the three-day trek to the Holy City and would then find lodgings in one of the many hotels or hostelries. Then they changed some of their money from the profane standard Greek and Roman currency for Jewish and Tyrian money, the latter two considered religious. The pilgrims would purchase sacrificial animals, usually a pigeon or a lamb, in preparation for the following day's events. The first thing pilgrims would do would be to approach the public entrance on the south side of the Temple Mount complex. They would check their animals, then visit a mikveh, where they would ritually cleanse and purify themselves. The pilgrims would then retrieve their sacrificial animals, and head to the Huldah gates. After ascending a staircase three stories in height, and passing through the gate, the pilgrims would find themselves in the Court of the Gentiles. In 66 CE the Jewish population rebelled against the Roman Empire. Four years later, on 4 August 70 CE (Tisha B'Av – 9th Day of Av) or 30 August 70 CE, Roman legions under Titus retook and destroyed much of Jerusalem and the Second Temple. The Arch of Titus, in Rome and built to commemorate Titus's victory in Judea, depicts a Roman victory procession with soldiers carrying spoils from the Temple, including the Menorah. According to an inscription on the Colosseum, Emperor Vespasian built the Colosseum with war spoils in 79 CE—possibly from the spoils of the Second Temple. The sects of Judaism that had their base in the Temple dwindled in importance, including the priesthood and the Sadducees. The destruction date according to the Hebrew calendar was the 9th of Av, also known as Tisha B'Av. The Temple was on the site of what today is the Dome of the Rock. The gates let out close to Al-Aqsa Mosque (which came much later). Although Jews continued to inhabit the destroyed city, Emperor Hadrian established a new city called Aelia Capitolina. At the end of the Bar Kokhba revolt in 135 CE, many of the Jewish communities were massacred and Jews were banned from living inside Jerusalem. A pagan Roman temple was set up on the former site of Herod's Temple. In 1871, a hewn stone measuring 60 × 90 cm. and engraved with Greek uncials was discovered near a court on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and identified by Charles Simon Clermont-Ganneau as being the Temple Warning inscription. The stone inscription outlined the prohibition extended unto those who were not of the Jewish nation to proceed beyond the soreg separating the larger Court of the Gentiles and the inner courts. The inscription read in seven lines: Translation: "Let no foreigner enter within the parapet and the partition which surrounds the Temple precincts. Anyone caught [violating] will be held accountable for his ensuing death." Today, the stone is preserved in Istanbul's Museum of Antiquities. In 1936 a fragment of a similar Temple warning inscription was found. After 1967, archaeologists found that the wall extended all the way around the Temple Mount and is part of the city wall near the Lions' Gate. Thus, the Western Wall is not the only remaining part of the Temple Mount. Currently, Robinson's Arch (named after American Edward Robinson) remains as the beginning of an arch that spanned the gap between the top of the platform and the higher ground farther away. This had been used by the priests as an entrance. Commoners had entered through the still-extant, but now plugged, gates on the southern side which led through colonnades to the top of the platform. One of these colonnades is still extant and reachable through the Temple Mount. The Southern wall was designed as a grand entrance. Recent archeological digs have found thousands of mikvehs (ceremonial bathtubs) for the ritual purification of the worshipers, and a grand stairway leading to the now blocked entrance. Inside the walls, the platform was supported by a series of vaulted archways, now called Solomon's Stables, which still exist and whose current renovation by the Waqf is extremely controversial. The temple was constructed of imported white marble that gleamed in the daylight. On September 25, 2007, Yuval Baruch, archaeologist with the Israeli Antiquities Authority announced the discovery of a quarry compound which may have provided King Herod with the stones to build his Temple on the Temple Mount. Coins, pottery and an iron stake found proved the date of the quarrying to be about 19 BCE. Archaeologist Ehud Netzer confirmed that the large outlines of the stone cuts is evidence that it was a massive public project worked by hundreds of slaves. More recent archaeological findings include mosaic floors from the Second Temple period. The Magdala stone is thought to be a representation of the Second Temple carved before its destruction in the year 70. The period between the construction of the Second Temple in 515 BCE and its destruction by the Romans in 70 CE witnessed major historical upheavals and significant religious changes that would affect most subsequent Abrahamic religions. The origins of the authority of scripture, of the centrality of law and morality in religion, of the synagogue and of apocalyptic expectations for the future all developed in the Judaism of this period. Archaeological remnants of the Jerusalem Temple, Herodian architecture, Jerusalem stone, List of artifacts significant to the Bible, List of megalithic sites, Replicas of the Jewish Temple, Temple of Peace, Rome, Timeline of Jewish history Grabbe, Lester. 2008. A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period. 2 vols. New York: T&T; Clark., Nickelsburg, George. 2005. Jewish Literature between the Bible and the Mishnah: A Historical and Literary Introduction. 2nd ed. Minneapolis: Fortress., Schiffman, Lawrence, ed. 1998. Texts and Traditions: A Source Reader for the Study of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism. Hoboken, NJ: KTAV., Stone, Michael, ed. 1984. The Literature of the Jewish People in the Period of the Second Temple and the Talmud. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Fortress. Resources > Second Temple and Talmudic Era > Second Temple Jerusalem The Jewish History Resource Center, Project of the Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jewish Encyclopedia: Temple, The Second, 4 Enoch: The Online Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism, Second Temple of Jerusalem (renders album of 3d model) / Zonerama photo gallery, Jerusalem Videos The Southern & Western walls in Jerusalem – The Temple Mount, Resources > Second Temple and Talmudic Era > Second Temple Jerusalem The Jewish History Resource Center, Project of the Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Temple Mount Photos The Temple Mount photos including sites below the Mount itself, off limits to any non-Muslims, Resources > Second Temple and Talmudic Era > Herod and the Herodian Dynasty The Jewish History Resource Center – Project of the Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jewish Encyclopedia: Temple of Herod, PBS Frontline: Temple Culture, Picture gallery of a model of the temple, Resources > Second Temple and Talmudic Era > Second Temple Jerusalem The Jewish History Resource Center, Project of the Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jewish Encyclopedia: Temple, The Second, 4 Enoch: The Online Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism The Roman province of Judea (; , ' '; '; ), sometimes spelled in its original Latin forms of Iudæa or Iudaea to distinguish it from the geographical region of Judea, incorporated the regions of Judea, Samaria and Idumea, and extended over parts of the former regions of the Hasmonean and Herodian kingdoms of Judea. It was named after Herod Archelaus's Tetrarchy of Judea, but the Roman province encompassed a much larger territory. The name "Judea" was derived from the Kingdom of Judah of the 6th century BCE. According to the historian Josephus, immediately following the deposition of Herod Archelaus, Judea was turned into a Roman province, during which time the Roman procurator was given authority to punish by execution. The general population also began to be taxed by Rome. The province of Judea was the scene of unrest at its founding in 6 CE during the Census of Quirinius, the Crucifixion of Jesus circa 30–33 CE, and several wars, known as the Jewish–Roman wars, were fought during its existence. The Second Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE near the end of the First Jewish–Roman War, and the Fiscus Judaicus was instituted. After the Bar Kokhba revolt (132–135), the Roman Emperor Hadrian changed the name of the province to Syria Palaestina and the name of the city of Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina, which certain scholars conclude was an attempt to disconnect the Jewish people from their homeland. The first intervention of Rome in the region dates from 63 BCE, following the end of the Third Mithridatic War, when Rome established the province of Syria. After the defeat of Mithridates VI of Pontus, Pompey (Pompey the Great) sacked Jerusalem and installed Hasmonean prince Hyrcanus II as Ethnarch and High Priest but not as king. Some years later Julius Caesar appointed Antipater the Idumaean, also known as Antipas, as the first Roman Procurator. Antipater's son Herod (Herod the Great) was designated "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate in 40 BCE but he did not gain military control until 37 BCE. During his reign the last representatives of the Hasmoneans were eliminated, and the huge port of Caesarea Maritima was built. Herod died in 4 BCE, and his kingdom was divided among three of his sons, two of whom (Philip and Herod Antipas) became tetrarchs ('rulers of a quarter part'). The third son, Archelaus, became an ethnarch and ruled over half of his father's kingdom. One of these principalities was Judea, corresponding to the territory of the historic Judea, plus Samaria and Idumea. Archelaus ruled Judea so badly that he was dismissed in 6 CE by the Roman emperor Augustus, after an appeal from his own population. Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee and Perea from 4 BCE was in 39 CE dismissed by Emperor Caligula. Herod's son Philip ruled the northeastern part of his father's kingdom. In 6 CE Archelaus' tetrachy (Judea, plus Samaria and Idumea) came under direct Roman administration. The Judean province did not initially include Galilee, Gaulanitis (today's Golan), nor Peraea or the Decapolis. Its revenue was of little importance to the Roman treasury, but it controlled the land and coastal sea routes to the "bread basket" of Egypt and was a buffer against the Parthian Empire. The capital was at Caesarea Maritima, not Jerusalem. Quirinius became Legate(Governor) of Syria and conducted the first Roman tax census of Syria and Judea, which was opposed by the Zealots. Judea was not a senatorial province, nor an imperial province, but instead was a "satellite of Syria" governed by a prefect who was a knight of the Equestrian Order (as was that of Roman Egypt), not a former consul or praetor of senatorial rank. Still, Jews living in the province maintained some form of independence and could judge offenders by their own laws, including capital offenses, until c. 28 CE. The Province during the late Hellenistic period and early Roman period was divided into five conclaves, or administrative districts: Jerusalem (ירושלים), Gadara (גדרה), Amathus (עמתו), Jericho (יריחו), and Sepphoris (ציפורין). The 'Crisis under Caligula' (37–41) has been proposed as the first open break between Rome and the Jews. Between 41 and 44 CE, Judea regained its nominal autonomy, when Herod Agrippa was made King of the Jews by the emperor Claudius, thus in a sense restoring the Herodian dynasty, although there is no indication that Judea ceased to be a Roman province simply because it no longer had a prefect. Claudius had decided to allow, across the empire, procurators, who had been personal agents to the Emperor often serving as provincial tax and finance ministers, to be elevated to governing magistrates with full state authority to keep the peace. He may have elevated Judea's procurator to imperial governing status because the imperial legate of Syria was not sympathetic to the Judeans. Following Agrippa's death in 44, the province returned to direct Roman control, incorporating Agrippa's personal territories of Galilee and Peraea, under a row of procurators. Nevertheless, Agrippa's son, Agrippa II was designated King of the Jews 48. He was the seventh and last of the Herodians. From 70 until 135 Judea's rebelliousness required a governing Roman legate capable of commanding legions. Because Agrippa II maintained loyalty to the Empire, the Kingdom was retained until he died, either in 93/94 or 100, when the area returned to complete, undivided Roman control. Judaea was the stage of two, possibly three, major Jewish–Roman wars: 66–70 CE– First Jewish–Roman War, resulting in the siege of Jerusalem, the destruction of Herod's Temple and ending with the siege of Masada in 73–74. (see Josephus). Before the war Judaea was a Roman province of the third category, that is, under the administration of a procurator of equestrian rank and under the overall control of the governor of Syria. After the war it became an independent Roman province with the official name of Judaea and under the administration of a governor of praetorian rank, and was therefore moved up into the second category (it was only later, in about 120 , that Judaea became a consular province, that is, with a governor of consular rank)., 115–117 – the Kitos War; Judea's role in it is disputed though, as it played itself out mainly in the Jewish diaspora and there are no fully trustworthy sources on Judea's participation in the rebellion, nor is there any archaeological way of distinguishing destruction levels of 117 CE from those of the major Bar Kokhba revolt of just a decade and a half later., 132–135 – Bar Kokhba's revolt; Following the suppression of Bar Kokhba's revolt, the emperor Hadrian changed the name of the province to Syria Palaestina and Jerusalem became Aelia Capitolina which Hayim Hillel Ben-Sasson states was done to erase the historical ties of the Jewish people to the region. However, this did not prevent the Jewish people from referring to the country in their writings as either "Yehudah" () or "The Land of Israel" (). Under Diocletian (284–305) the region was divided into three provinces: Palaestina Prima (Judea, Samaria, Idumea, Peraea and the coastal plain, with Caesarea Maritima as capital), Palaestina Secunda (Galilee, Decapolis and Golan, with Beth-Shean as capital), Palaestina Tertia (the Negev desert, with Petra as capital). Jewish Encyclopedia: Procurators of Iudaea, Procurators, Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906, The name Rome gave to the land of Israel

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Leonard Leakey Hofstadter, Ph.D., is a fictional character in the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, in which he is portrayed by actor Johnny Galecki. Leonard is an experimental physicist, who shares an apartment with colleague and best friend Dr. Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons). For his portrayal, Galecki was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award in 2011. Leonard has been described as the straight man of the series. Penny (Kaley Cuoco) is Leonard's next-door neighbor and main love interest, and the teasing of romance between the two of them is a major force driving the series. In "The Gorilla Dissolution", they finally become engaged, marrying in Las Vegas at the beginning of season 9. Leonard is named after actor/producer Sheldon Leonard, and Nobel Prize in Physics Laureate Robert Hofstadter. Johnny Galecki was originally asked to play the role of Sheldon Cooper, but thought he would be "better suited" for the character of Leonard. Leonard is one of four characters to appear in every episode of the series, along with Sheldon, Howard Wolowitz and Raj Koothrappali. Originally from New Jersey and a graduate of Princeton University, Leonard works as a Caltech experimental physicist, mainly working with lasers, and shares an apartment with colleague Sheldon Cooper in Pasadena, California. He is usually seen wearing his characteristic black thick-framed glasses, low-cut black Converse All Stars sneakers, pastel hoodies or neutral-colored sweat jackets (i.e. jackets with integrated hoodies) or a combination of the two, brown or red trousers, or (less frequently) jeans and physics-themed T-shirts, at night Leonard wears a white t shirt and a maroon robe with white socks. His various girlfriends have tried to change his outfits: Penny had no success while Stephanie got him to wear dress shirts and sweaters (which he found uncomfortable), and Priya got him to briefly switch to dress shirts, waistcoats and dark slacks; he reverted to his original outfits after she left for India, but started eschewing his hoodies in favor of button-down shirts and non-hooded jackets towards the end of the seventh season, a trend that continued into successive seasons. Although Leonard feels at home with his geek colleagues, he wants to be more social. Among the main characters, he is the one who has almost no difficulty interacting with "non-geek" individuals. He is instantly captivated by Penny, and from the beginning sets out to date her. In early episodes, Leonard is reluctant to let Penny know about his recreational activities (such as Klingon Boggle), as he does not want her to see him as a geek. While certainly a geek by most definitions, he is far less socially inept than Sheldon (who is unable to grasp social norms and is often even dismissive of them), Raj (who was unable to talk to women unless he was under the influence of alcohol or anti-anxiety prescription drugs, and even after getting over his handicap still tended to speak inappropriately), and Howard (who was often seen as "creepy" when flirting with women, including Penny). Leonard is also musically inclined, as he can play the cello. As seen in the season 1 episode "The Hamburger Postulate", he and Leslie Winkle practice their instruments and then leave to have sex, which Leonard calls "a little musical foreplay". Despite his attempts to not appear to be a geek, Leonard owns, among other things, Star Wars hygiene products, a prop of the One Ring, Star Trek and officer's uniforms, an expansive Superman comic book collection and a Battlestar Galactica Colonial warrior's flight suit. Early in the series, Leonard tried to get rid of his collectables to impress Penny with his maturity. However, he changed his mind when he saw that Penny was already dating another man. Because he has lived with Sheldon for several years, Leonard knows him better than his other colleagues: this has led Sheldon to believe (slightly erroneously) that Leonard is his best friend. Nevertheless, Leonard often finds himself explaining Sheldon's behavior or serving as a mediator between him and other people in many situations. For instance, when Penny and Sheldon engaged in a fierce dispute, Leonard gave Penny Sheldon's mother's phone number so she would call her son and scold him for his behavior, thus ending the fight. "The Staircase Implementation" features a flashback to when Leonard first moved in with Sheldon. Leonard explains to Penny that he moved in despite the difficulty of living with Sheldon because the rent was so reasonable. Shortly after moving in, during a rocketry experiment Leonard, Raj and Howard conducted, Sheldon observed miscalculations Leonard made in mixing the rocket fuel and managed to avert disaster by grabbing the fuel and placing it in their apartment building's elevator. The resulting explosion disabled the elevator, thus explaining why the elevator is out of order for the duration of the series. Leonard explains that Sheldon, despite his tendency to alienate others, kept quiet about Leonard's destruction of the elevator. (Leonard cites: "He didn't rat me out to the landlord, or the police... or Homeland Security.") Despite Leonard's reasonable and friendly personality, he occasionally demonstrates a mean streak. These include deliberately triggering Sheldon's obsessive compulsive problems, mocking Howard and Raj whenever they slip up, and making sniping comments when Penny's commitment issues flare up. He is also prone to jealousy, often feeling insecure and defensive whenever Penny interacts with other men, and on one occasion trying to frighten off a British college student she was doing a project with, because Penny commented positively on his accent. Leonard's primary health concern is his lactose intolerance: his consuming melon or any dairy products (and according to the pilot episode, even corn) results in flatulence. Leonard wears eyeglasses because of myopia, and cannot see without them. On one occasion, when his glasses were broken at the movie theater, he had to surreptitiously return to his apartment and retrieve his backup glasses. In order to avoid detection by a sick Sheldon and Penny, who was nursing him, Howard and Raj helped him to navigate through the living room by using a helmet camera. Leonard also states in one episode that he suffers from sleep apnea. During his relationship with Leslie Winkle, he tells her that many members of his family have died from heart disease and thus he has a genetic disposition to the condition. All of the members of Leonard's family are accomplished scientists, except for his younger brother Michael, who is a tenured law professor at Harvard University. Leonard's mother, Dr. Beverly Hofstadter, is a psychiatrist and neuroscientist. She has a personality almost identical to Sheldon's, including strict speech patterns, lack of social conventions, and attention to detail, and she is principally responsible for Leonard's difficult childhood. Sheldon and Beverly have a friendly relationship where they share details of each other's lives, with Sheldon often failing to pass on significant information to Leonard such as Leonard's parents divorcing and the family dog Mitsy's death. Leonard is upset with the fact that she tells Sheldon more than she tells him, but later decides it's okay. After a night out of bonding and drinking with Penny in which she notices an attractive busboy, Beverly kisses Sheldon but realizes she "would rather have the busboy". Due to his mother's views, Leonard never celebrated his birthday or Christmas when he was a child, and when she visited him she was not impressed with his unoriginal research. Leonard revealed to Penny that he built a "hugging machine" when he was young in order to compensate for the lack of affection from his mother. He further stated that his father used to borrow it. Beverly also belittles Leonard by pointing out that his brother and sister are more successful in their respective fields than he is. Leonard's brother, Michael, is a Harvard law professor and is engaged to the youngest appellate court judge in New Jersey history (and has since gone on to work with a Habitat for Humanity-esque organisation), and his older sister, whose name is unknown, is a cutting-edge medical researcher working with gibbons to cure diabetes. However, Beverly admits in season 11 that Leonard married the best out of his siblings, after she develops a genuine friendship with Penny. Leonard also dislikes his memories of Christmas, not just because he never celebrated it, but also because instead of gifts the Hofstadter kids had to turn in papers to "Santa" which were graded the next day. Over the course of six years he never got over a "C minus", which according to Sheldon was a true gift, because by Sheldon's lights he never deserved anything better. It is implied that at the end of the episode "The Peanut Reaction", Leonard begins to celebrate his birthday after Penny decided to throw him one after hearing that he had never had one; And one implication is at the end of the episode "The Russian Rocket Reaction" when Leonard asked Brent Spiner to come to his birthday party. As for Christmas, Leonard has learned and come to love it as an adult, unlike Sheldon. Leonard had two childhood pets, a cat named Dr. Boots Hofstadter and a dog named Mitsy. Leonard's father, Dr. Alfred Hofstadter is an anthropologist. Sheldon reveals that Leonard's middle name, "Leakey", comes from famed anthropologist Louis Leakey, with whom Leonard's father had worked. Leonard is embarrassed by his middle name and its humorous connotations, and rarely mentions it, as the name is an obvious embarrassment. Apparently his father was not very affectionate towards him either; he mentions that he had to compete with the bones of an Etruscan boy for his father's attention, but this was likely because his father was away from home a lot for work and wasn't able to get to know his children well. However, they seem to have developed a good, affectionate rapport by the time of Leonard and Penny's impending second wedding ceremony in the season 9 finale. Though little is known about Leonard's extended family, a few references to it have been made. In the first episode, Sheldon and Leonard discuss Leonard's grandmother, who had visited them on Thanksgiving the year before. She has Alzheimer's disease and apparently "had an episode" during her visit, which resulted in her stripping off her clothes and carving the turkey. On Beverly's first visit, she tells Leonard that his uncle Floyd has died, which greatly upsets him (according to him, Floyd was the only family member he really liked and of whom Leonard has warm memories from his childhood). Leonard also has several other uncles, whom Sheldon says are all very bald; when they gather together, they look "like a half carton of eggs." Leonard describes his aunt, however, as "one of the hairiest women you'll ever meet". He also mentioned an Aunt Nancy, apparently a "crazy cat lady" who had 25 cats, died, and was eaten by them. Leonard has an IQ of 173, and was 24 years old when he received his PhD from Princeton University. Leonard also received a dissertation of the year award for his doctoral paper on experimental particle physics. Leonard has been established to have been a child prodigy, and a gifted scientist with an impressive knowledge of theoretical physics. His work as an experimental physicist often includes the use of lasers, such as a helium–neon laser or free-electron laser, and his research topics have varied from Bose–Einstein condensates and foundations of quantum mechanics to soft cosmic rays at sea level and development of novel rocket propellants. Leonard designs experiments in order to test theories but, according to Sheldon, his work is mostly derivative and thus unimportant. Although Leonard's attempts to disprove the existence of dark matter were made moot by the work of another physicist, Leonard helped to solidify proof of the hypothetical matter's existence with a photomultiplier, and was invited as keynote speaker to a topical conference by the Institute of Experimental Physics for his successful research on super solids. From the season 6 finale, "The Bon Voyage Reaction" Leonard heads to the United Kingdom to work on a physics project seeking the hydrodynamics equivalent of the Unruh effect, sponsored by Professor Stephen Hawking, for three months on a ship in the North Sea. Leonard became interested in Penny almost immediately after seeing her for the first time. His infatuation with Penny becomes the major force that drives the series during the first few seasons. By the end of the first season, Leonard finally manages to ask Penny out, and they have their first date. Subsequently, they break up because Penny felt she was not as smart as Leonard would like. Besides Penny, Leonard has been involved with only a few other women. One of Leonard's former girlfriends who is mentioned on several occasions is Joyce Kim, who did not appear until the third season. Leonard's friends recalled on many occasions that they were together for only 27 days, after which Joyce, later revealed to be a spy, defected to North Korea. Initially, after feeling that Penny was not for him, Leonard turned his attention to fellow scientist Leslie Winkle. The first time Leonard asks Leslie out, she rejects him, and his further relationships with her proved to be only short-lived casual sexual encounters that only happened to satisfy Leslie's libido. Leslie briefly started dating Leonard in Season 2, but when he failed to back her up in an argument with Sheldon, she dumped him. In the second season, Leonard began a stable relationship with a physician named Stephanie Barnett (Sara Rue). Although the relationship went well, even earning Sheldon's approval, Leonard felt uncomfortable with Stephanie moving in with him, and the relationship ended. On another occasion, when Leonard's mother was visiting, he and Penny came very close to having sex, but Leonard ruined the moment by suggesting that they were burying their lifelong issues with their parents by doing so, which offended Penny. In the second-season finale, when Leonard, Sheldon, Howard, and Raj were due to leave for a three- month scientific expedition to the North Pole, Penny privately expresses sadness, and wishes that he would not leave. In the third season premiere, Leonard and Penny finally started a romantic relationship and had intercourse for the first time. However, the relationship ended after eight months, after Leonard told Penny he loved her and took umbrage at her inability to reciprocate, which led to friction that was exploited by guest star Wil Wheaton who appeared as a fictionalized version of himself, who observed and exacerbated it in order to break them up in the middle of a bowling match Wheaton's team was having against Leonard, Penny, Sheldon, Howard and Raj. Shortly after his breakup with Penny, in "The Plimpton Stimulation", Leonard has a one-night stand with Dr. Elizabeth Plimpton (Judy Greer), a physicist he admires, when Sheldon invited her to stay in their apartment for a brief visit. This encounter causes some tension between Leonard and Penny, who is somewhat judgmental of Leonard's doing so. However, the two later resolve their feelings and their friendship continues. In the third-season finale, "The Lunar Excitation", after Penny's failed attempts to move on from her relationship with Leonard, she becomes intoxicated and has sex with him. In the morning, Leonard believes that their relationship has resumed, though Penny tells him that the previous night was a mistake. This causes a strain on their friendship; at the end of the episode, Leonard becomes intoxicated and tries to have intercourse with her, prompting Penny to push him out of her apartment, to which Leonard suspects a double standard. He immediately makes the same advances towards Leslie Winkle, who replies, 'Let me think about it" and slams the door in his face. Throughout the fourth season, it becomes obvious that Penny is still in love with Leonard. It is unclear whether or not Leonard has noticed this, though he clearly is still interested in Penny. In "The Benefactor Factor", an older rich woman (Jessica Walter) propositions Leonard in exchange for a large donation to the physics department; he initially resists and she admits that she planned to make the donation anyway, after which they engage in a one-night stand. Leonard arrives home the next morning, whereupon Penny recognizes his "walk of shame" and Sheldon thinks Leonard has a future in becoming a gigolo to rich ladies in exchange for donations. Leonard also has an affair with Raj's younger sister Priya (apparently every time she comes to town), despite a pinky swear with Howard that neither of them would attempt to make a move on her, and Raj giving his strong disapproval. When Priya returns, she and Leonard begin a relationship. Raj strongly opposes this, and Penny is secretly uncomfortable with Leonard dating someone else, eventually breaking down and crying while talking with her friend Amy Farrah Fowler. Once again, Leonard is unaware of Penny's true feelings. Subsequently, Priya pressures Leonard into ending his friendship with Penny, which he attempts with extreme reluctance. Penny complies, though it is clear that she does not want Leonard out of her life. Penny eventually resolves to stay in Leonard's life by ingratiating herself to Priya. In the Season 4 finale, Leonard runs into Penny and Raj as they come out of his room in the morning, just after Leonard and Priya appear to break up upon Leonard's learning that Priya is soon moving back to India. At the start of Season 5, Leonard and Priya are trying to maintain a long-distance relationship via Skype (including a failed attempt at cybersex) with Priya continuing to treat Leonard like a submissive partner. Despite being the most eager to have sex, Leonard proves he is quite awkward in these situations. Leonard later goes to a wedding with Amy, and they seem to take a liking to each other, though Sheldon disapproves, karate-chopping Leonard and saying, "She's not for you...not for you!". Later, despite feeling that he and Priya were in love and might get married, Leonard finds himself attracted to a comic book artist named Alice. The attraction is mutual, and they even share a kiss. Right when they are about to have sex, however, he tells Alice that he has a girlfriend, thus ending the relationship. Leonard then decides to confess his behavior to Priya via Skype, but he is shocked to learn that Priya has also betrayed him, sleeping with her former boyfriend; Priya defends that they both slipped up a little, but Leonard corrects her saying that he slipped a little, while she slipped a lot, bringing the conversation to a strained end. In the next episode, Leonard tells Sheldon that he is single, implying that he and Priya have broken up; his actions since then have confirmed their split occurred. Through the fourth and fifth seasons, Penny was still single and dating, though when intoxicated, she has confessed that she regrets breaking up with Leonard. In "The Ornithophobia Diffusion", Leonard and Penny go to the movies as friends. Leonard decides that since they are no longer dating, he can be honest and does not have to pay for everything or do whatever Penny wants. The two bicker all evening and sabotage each other's attempts to chat up people in the bar. Penny admits that she likes the new, more assertive Leonard. Leonard sees this as another opportunity to grovel and try to get Penny to sleep with him, so she leaves. On the spur of the moment in "The Recombination Hypothesis", Leonard asks Penny out on a date after he imagines what getting back with her might be like. Their real date ends successfully and they agree to take their relationship slow in "The Beta Test Initiation." During their renewed relationship Penny has dismissed comments about him ever leaving or dumping her or about worrying about his unfaithfulness around other women and strippers as in the episode "The Stag Convergence". After Penny suggested having sex in "The Launch Acceleration", Leonard breaks the mood by proposing to her accidentally. They later meet and Penny does have the courage to tell him "no" and not break up with him as she did two years previously when he told her that he loved her. However, their relationship is still obviously strained. In season 5, Leonard and Penny watch Howard being launched into space while holding hands to comfort each other. With the start of season 6, he wants a reluctant Penny to define their relationship in "The Date Night Variable". Penny finally does admit her love to Leonard, in "The 43 Peculiarity". Penny and Leonard awkwardly stare at each other before running off in opposite directions. Leonard, though, is buoyed by optimism over Penny's admission. Alex Jensen asks Leonard out to dinner in "The Egg Salad Equivalency", which boosts Leonard's ego because two beautiful women are interested in him, however, Alex's interest makes Penny insecure. After another dispute with Sheldon, Leonard tries to move in with Penny in "The Spoiler Alert Segmentation", however she is not ready. During their Valentine's Day dinner in "The Tangible Affection Proof", Leonard again tries to propose to Penny and she cuts him off quickly. She admits that she is very happy with him, but she also admits to commitment issues and the thought of being married forever really "freaks" her out. Leonard then tells her that when she is ready to get married, she can propose to him. In the season finale, Leonard leaves for an overseas job for four months and Penny is confident enough in their relationship to wait for him. In "The Gorilla Dissolution", Leonard and Penny become engaged. Throughout season 8, a running gag is their reluctance to decide upon a wedding date. In the season 8 finale, Penny asks Leonard to marry her that night in Las Vegas. Leonard happily accepts, but during the journey, after Penny expresses happiness that they will get married while knowing everything about each other, Leonard confesses to having shared a drunken kiss with another woman while on the boat in Europe, though he adds that the woman started it and he rejected her. Penny becomes hurt by the revelation, and even though she claims to forgive Leonard, there is clearly tension between them, leaving the season ending in a cliffhanger as to whether or not they will go through with the wedding. At the beginning of season 9, Leonard and Penny marry, although not without some initial problems. They both reveal that they were subconsciously trying to sabotage their relationship, feeling unworthy of the other. Leonard, concerned that he was trying to sabotage his relationship with Penny, meets with the woman he kissed on the boat. She barely remembers the incident and quickly grows bored with Leonard's ramblings, taking a sarcastic and dismissive tone toward him. From that meeting Leonard comes to terms with his insecurities and he and Penny are able to become more comfortable in dealing with their mutual fears about their relationship. Leonard seriously tries to move into Penny's apartment though Sheldon has serious objections and makes them compromise to spend multiple nights a week in Leonard's old room. Early in season 10, the couple is very happy to be finally living alone after Sheldon moves in with Amy. In season 12, Penny announces that she doesn't want to have any children which Leonard somewhat reluctantly supports her decision. Later Penny's old boyfriend Zack Johnson and his new wife wants Leonard to be a surrogate father to their kid since Zack is infertile. Penny reluctantly agrees to let Leonard do it until Leonard finally changes his mind not wanting a child in the world that he can't raise. At the end of the season; however, Penny accidentally gets pregnant with Leonard's child, and changes her mind about wanting children. List of The Big Bang Theory characters The Big Bang Theory is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro. All three also served as head writers. The show premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007 and concluded on May 16, 2019, having broadcast a total of 279 episodes over 12 seasons. The show originally centered on five characters living in Pasadena, California: Leonard Hofstadter and Sheldon Cooper, both physicists at Caltech, who share an apartment; Penny, a waitress and aspiring actress who lives across the hall; and Leonard and Sheldon's similarly geeky and socially awkward friends and co-workers, aerospace engineer Howard Wolowitz and astrophysicist Raj Koothrappali. Over time, supporting characters were promoted to starring roles, including neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler, microbiologist Bernadette Rostenkowski, physicist Leslie Winkle, and comic book store owner Stuart Bloom. The show was filmed in front of a live audience and was produced by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions. The Big Bang Theory received mixed reviews from critics throughout its first season, but reception was more favorable in the second and third seasons. Later seasons saw a return to a lukewarm reception, with the show being criticized for a decline in comedic quality. Despite the mixed reviews, seven seasons of the show have ranked within the top ten of the final television season ratings, ultimately reaching the no. 1 spot in its eleventh season. The show was nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series from 2011 to 2014 and won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series four times for Jim Parsons. In total, it won seven Emmy Awards from 46 nominations. Parsons also won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Comedy Series in 2011. The series also spawned a prequel series in 2017 based on Parsons' character, Sheldon Cooper, named Young Sheldon, which also airs on CBS. The show's pilot episode premiered on September 24, 2007. This was the second pilot produced for the show. A different pilot was produced for the 2006–07 television season but never aired. The structure of the original unaired pilot was substantially different from the series' current form. The only main characters retained in both pilots were Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Sheldon (Jim Parsons), who are named after Sheldon Leonard, a longtime figure in episodic television as producer, director and actor. A minor character, Althea (Vernee Watson), appeared in the first scene of both pilots that was retained generally as-is. The first pilot included two female lead characters - Katie, "a street-hardened, tough-as-nails woman with a vulnerable interior" (played by Canadian actress Amanda Walsh) and Gilda, a scientist colleague and friend of the male characters (played by Iris Bahr). Sheldon and Leonard meet Katie after she breaks up with a boyfriend and they invite her to share their apartment. Gilda is threatened by Katie's presence. Test audiences reacted negatively to Katie, but they liked Sheldon and Leonard. The original pilot used Thomas Dolby's hit "She Blinded Me with Science" as its theme song. Although the original pilot was not picked up, its creators were given an opportunity to retool it and produce a second pilot. They brought in the remaining cast and retooled the show to its final format. Katie was replaced by Penny (Kaley Cuoco). The original unaired pilot has never been officially released, but it has circulated on the Internet. On the evolution of the show, Chuck Lorre said, "We did the 'Big Bang Pilot' about two and a half years ago, and it sucked ... but there were two remarkable things that worked perfectly, and that was Johnny and Jim. We rewrote the thing entirely and then we were blessed with Kaley and Simon and Kunal." As to whether the world will ever see the original pilot on a future DVD release, Lorre said, "Wow, that would be something. We will see. Show your failures..." The first and second pilots of The Big Bang Theory were directed by James Burrows, who did not continue with the show. The reworked second pilot led to a 13-episode order by CBS on May 14, 2007. Prior to its airing on CBS, the pilot episode was distributed on iTunes free of charge. The show premiered on September 24, 2007, and was picked up for a full 22-episode season on October 19, 2007. The show is filmed in front of a live audience, and is produced by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions. Production was halted on November 6, 2007, due to the Writers Guild of America strike. Nearly three months later, on February 4, 2008, the series was temporarily replaced by a short-lived sitcom, Welcome to The Captain. The series returned on March 17, 2008, in an earlier time slot and ultimately only 17 episodes were produced for the first season. After the strike ended, the show was picked up for a second season, airing in the 2008–2009 season, premiering in the same time slot on September 22, 2008. With increasing ratings, the show received a two-year renewal through the 2010–11 season in 2009. In 2011, the show was picked up for three more seasons. In March 2014, the show was renewed again for three more years through the 2016–17 season. This marked the second time the series gained a three-year renewal. In March 2017, the series was renewed for two additional seasons, bringing its total to 12, and running through the 2018–19 television season. Several of the actors in The Big Bang Theory previously worked together on the sitcom Roseanne, including Johnny Galecki, Sara Gilbert, Laurie Metcalf (who plays Sheldon's mother, Mary Cooper), and Meagen Fay (who plays Bernadette's mother). Additionally, Lorre was a writer on the series for several seasons. David Saltzberg, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles, checked scripts and provided dialogue, mathematics equations, and diagrams used as props. According to executive producer/co- creator Bill Prady, "We're working on giving Sheldon an actual problem that he's going to be working on throughout the [first] season so there's actual progress to the boards ... We worked hard to get all the science right." David Saltzberg, who has a Ph.D. in physics, has served as the science consultant for the show for six seasons and attends every taping. He saw early versions of scripts which needed scientific information added to them, and he also pointed out where the writers, despite their knowledge of science, have made a mistake. He was usually not needed during a taping unless a lot of science, and especially the whiteboard, was involved. He sometimes needed assistance from Mayim Bialik, who has a Ph.D. in neuroscience. The Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies wrote and recorded the show's theme song, which describes the history and formation of the universe and the Earth. Co-lead singer Ed Robertson was asked by Lorre and Prady to write a theme song for the show after the producers attended one of the band's concerts in Los Angeles. By coincidence, Robertson had recently read Simon Singh's book Big Bang, and at the concert improvised a freestyle rap about the origins of the universe. Lorre and Prady phoned him shortly thereafter and asked him to write the theme song. Having been asked to write songs for other films and shows, but ending up being rejected because producers favored songs by other artists, Robertson agreed to write the theme only after learning that Lorre and Prady had not asked anyone else. On October 9, 2007, a full-length (1 minute and 45 seconds) version of the song was released commercially. Although some unofficial pages identify the song title as "History of Everything," the cover art for the single identifies the title as "Big Bang Theory Theme." A music video also was released via special features on The Complete Fourth Season DVD and Blu-ray set. The theme was included on the band's greatest hits album, Hits from Yesterday & the Day Before, released on September 27, 2011. In September 2015, TMZ uncovered court documents showing that Steven Page sued former bandmate Robertson over the song, alleging that he was promised 20% of the proceeds, but that Robertson has kept that money entirely for himself. For the first three seasons, Galecki, Parsons, and Cuoco, the three main stars of the show, received at most $60,000 per episode. The salary for the three went up to $200,000 per episode for the fourth season. Their per-episode pay went up an additional $50,000 in each of the following three seasons, culminating in $350,000 per episode in the seventh season. In September 2013, Bialik and Rauch renegotiated the contracts they held since they were introduced to the series in 2010. On their old contracts, each was making $20,000–$30,000 per episode, while the new contracts doubled that, beginning at $60,000 per episode, increasing steadily to $100,000 per episode by the end of the contract, as well as adding another year for both. By season seven, Galecki, Parsons, and Cuoco were also receiving 0.25% of the series' back-end money. Before production began on the eighth season, the three plus Helberg and Nayyar, looked to renegotiate new contracts, with Galecki, Parsons, and Cuoco seeking around $1 million per episode, as well as more back-end money. Contracts were signed in the beginning of August 2014, giving the three principal actors an estimated $1 million per episode for three years, with the possibility to extend for a fourth year. The deals also include larger pieces of the show, signing bonuses, production deals, and advances towards the back- end. Helberg and Nayyar were also able to renegotiate their contracts, giving them a per-episode pay in the "mid-six-figure range", up from around $100,000 per episode they each received in years prior. The duo, who were looking to have salary parity with Parsons, Galecki, and Cuoco, signed their contracts after the studio and producers threatened to write the characters out of the series if a deal could not be reached before the start of production on season eight. By season 10, Helberg and Nayyar reached the $1 million per episode parity with Parsons, Galecki, and Cuoco, due to a clause in their deals signed in 2014. In March 2017, the main cast members (Galecki, Parsons, Cuoco, Helberg, and Nayyar) took a 10% pay cut to allow Bialik and Rauch an increase in their earnings. This put Galecki, Parsons, Cuoco, Helberg and Nayyar at $900,000 per episode, with Parsons, Galecki, and Helberg also receiving overall deals with Warner Bros. Television. By the end of April, Bialik and Rauch had signed deals to earn $500,000 per episode, each, with the deals also including a separate development component for both actors. The deal was an increase from the $175,000 – $200,000 the duo had been making per episode. These actors are credited in all episodes of the series: Johnny Galecki as Leonard Hofstadter: An experimental physicist with an IQ of 173, who received his PhD when he was 24 years old. Leonard is a nerd who loves video games, comic books, and Dungeons & Dragons. Leonard is the straight man of the series, in which he shares an apartment in Pasadena, CA, with Sheldon. Leonard is smitten with his new neighbor Penny when they first meet, and they eventually marry., Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper: Originally from Galveston, Texas, Sheldon was a child prodigy with an eidetic memory who began college at the age of eleven, and earned a PhD at age sixteen. He is a theoretical physicist researching quantum mechanics and string theory, and despite his IQ of 187, he finds many routine aspects of social situations difficult to grasp. He is determined to have his own way, continually boasts of his intelligence, and has an extremely ritualized way of living. Despite these quirks, he begins a relationship with Amy Farrah Fowler, and they eventually marry., Kaley Cuoco as Penny: An aspiring actress from Omaha, Nebraska. Penny moves in across the hall from Sheldon and Leonard. She waits tables and occasionally tends the bar at The Cheesecake Factory. After giving up hope of becoming a successful actress, Penny becomes a pharmaceutical sales representative. Penny becomes friends with Bernadette and Amy, and they often hang out in each other's apartments. Penny and Leonard form a relationship and eventually marry., Simon Helberg as Howard Wolowitz: An aerospace engineer who got his Masters at MIT. Howard is Jewish and lived with his mother, Debbie (Carol Ann Susi). Unlike Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, Bernadette and Amy, Howard does not hold a doctorate. He goes into space, training as an astronaut and serving as a payload specialist. Howard initially fancies himself as a womanizer, but he later starts dating Bernadette, and they get engaged and married. Howard also has a tendency to waste money on toys and argues with Bernadette because of his oddly low income as an engineer and her high income as a pharmaceutical biochemist., Kunal Nayyar as Rajesh Koothrappali: A particle astrophysicist originally from New Delhi, India. Raj is initially unable to talk to women unless he drinks alcohol. Raj also has very feminine tastes and often takes on a stereotypical female role in his friendship with Howard as well as in the group of four men. Raj later dates Lucy (Kate Micucci), who also suffers from social anxiety, but it eventually ends; he later speaks to Penny without alcohol and thus overcomes his selective mutism. He begins dating Emily and their relationship later becomes exclusive. Raj also has a Yorkshire Terrier named Cinnamon. These actors were first credited as guest stars and later promoted to main cast: Sara Gilbert as Leslie Winkle (recurring season 1, starring season 2, guest seasons 3, 9): A physicist who works in the same lab as Leonard. In appearance, she is essentially Leonard's female counterpart and has conflicting scientific theories with Sheldon. Leslie has casual sex with Leonard and later Howard. Gilbert was promoted to a main cast member during the second season but resumed guest star status because producers could not come up with enough material for the character. Gilbert returned to The Big Bang Theory for its 200th episode., Melissa Rauch as Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz (recurring season 3, starring seasons 4–12): A young woman who initially is a co-worker at The Cheesecake Factory with Penny to pay her way through graduate school, where she is studying microbiology. Bernadette is introduced to Howard by Penny; at first, they do not get along, apparently having nothing in common. They date and later get engaged and married. Although generally a sweet and good-natured person, Bernadette has a short fuse and can be vindictive and lash out when provoked., Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler (guest star season 3, starring seasons 4–12): A woman selected by an online dating site as Sheldon's perfect mate. Amy is from Glendale, CA. While she and Sheldon initially share social cluelessness, after befriending Penny and Bernadette she eventually becomes more interested in social and romantic interaction. Her relationship with Sheldon slowly progresses to the point at which Sheldon considers her his girlfriend, eventually they get married. Amy believes she and Penny are best friends, a sentiment that Penny does not initially share. Amy has a Ph.D. in neurobiology., Kevin Sussman as Stuart Bloom (recurring seasons 2–5, 7, starring seasons 6, 8–12): A mild-mannered, under-confident owner of a comic book store. A competent artist, Stuart is a graduate of the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design, and though he is socially awkward he possesses slightly better social skills. Stuart implies he is in financial trouble and that the comic book store now also is his home. He is later invited to join the guys' group while Howard is in space. Stuart gets a new job caring for Howard's mother later. After Mrs. Wolowitz's death, Stuart continues to live in her home, along with Howard and Bernadette, until he finds a place of his own., Laura Spencer as Emily Sweeney (recurring seasons 7–8, 10, starring season 9): A dermatologist at Huntington Hospital. Emily went to Harvard and delights in the macabre and states that she likes her job because she can cut things with knives. Prior to meeting Raj, Emily was set up on a blind date with Howard. After finding Emily's online dating profile, Raj has Amy contact her as his wingman instead. Their relationship becomes exclusive, but Raj later breaks up with Emily when he becomes infatuated with the bartender Claire (Alessandra Torresani). As the theme of the show revolves around science, many distinguished and high- profile scientists have appeared as guest stars on the show. Famous astrophysicist and Nobel laureate George Smoot had a cameo appearance in the second season. Theoretical physicist Brian Greene appeared in the fourth season, as well as astrophysicist, science populizer, and physics outreach specialist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who also appeared in the twelfth season. Cosmologist Stephen Hawking made a short guest appearance in a fifth-season episode; in the eighth season, Hawking video conferences with Sheldon and Leonard, and makes another appearance in the 200th episode. In the fifth and sixth seasons, NASA astronaut Michael J. Massimino played himself multiple times in the role of Howard's fellow astronaut. Bill Nye appeared in the seventh and twelfth seasons. Much of the series focuses on science, particularly physics. The four main male characters are employed at Caltech and have science-related occupations, as do Bernadette and Amy. The characters frequently banter about scientific theories or news (notably around the start of the show), and make science- related jokes. Science has also interfered with the characters' romantic lives. Leslie breaks up with Leonard when he sides with Sheldon in his support for string theory rather than loop quantum gravity. When Leonard joins Sheldon, Raj, and Howard on a three-month Arctic research trip, it separates Leonard and Penny at a time when their relationship is budding. When Bernadette takes an interest in Leonard's work, it makes both Penny and Howard envious and results in Howard confronting Leonard, and Penny asking Sheldon to teach her physics. Sheldon and Amy also briefly end their relationship after an argument over which of their fields is superior. The four main male characters are all avid science fiction, fantasy, and comic book fans and memorabilia collectors. Star Trek in particular is frequently referenced and Sheldon identifies strongly with the character of Spock, so much so that when he is given a used napkin signed by Leonard Nimoy as a Christmas gift from Penny he is overwhelmed with excitement and gratitude ("I possess the DNA of Leonard Nimoy?!"). cast members William Shatner and George Takei have made cameos, and Leonard Nimoy made a cameo as the voice of Sheldon's vintage Mr. Spock action figure. cast members Brent Spiner and LeVar Burton have had cameos as themselves, while Wil Wheaton has a recurring role as a fictionalized version of himself. Leonard and Sheldon have had conversations in the Klingon language. They are also fans of Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, and Doctor Who. In the episode "The Ornithophobia Diffusion", when there is a delay in watching Star Wars on Blu-ray, Howard complains, "If we don't start soon, George Lucas is going to change it again" (referring to Lucas' controversial alterations to the films) and in "The Hot Troll Deviation", Katee Sackhoff of Battlestar Galactica appeared as Howard's fantasy dream girl. The characters have different tastes in franchises with Sheldon praising Firefly but disapproving of Leonard's enjoyment of Babylon 5. With regard to fantasy, the four make frequent references to The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter novels and movies. Additionally, Howard can speak Sindarin, one of the two Elvish languages from The Lord of the Rings. Wednesday night is the group's designated "comic book night" because that is the day of the week when new comic books are released. The comic book store is run by fellow geek and recurring character Stuart. On a number of occasions, the group members have dressed up as pop culture characters, including The Flash, Aquaman, Frodo Baggins, Superman, Batman, Spock, The Doctor, Green Lantern, and Thor. As a consequence of losing a bet to Stuart and Wil Wheaton, the group members are forced to visit the comic book store dressed as Catwoman, Wonder Woman, Batgirl, and Supergirl. DC Comics announced that, to promote its comics, the company will sponsor Sheldon wearing Green Lantern T-shirts. Various games have been featured, as well as referenced, on the series (e.g. World of Warcraft, Halo, Mario, Donkey Kong, etc.), including fictional games like Mystic Warlords of Ka'a (which became a reality in 2011) and Rock-paper-scissors-lizard-Spock. One of the recurring plot lines is the relationship between Leonard and Penny. Leonard becomes attracted to Penny in the pilot episode and his need to do favors for her is a frequent point of humor in the first season. Meanwhile, Penny dates a series of muscular, attractive, unintelligent, and insensitive jocks. Their first long-term relationship begins when Leonard returns from a three-month expedition to the North Pole in the season 3 premiere. However, when Leonard tells Penny that he loves her, she realizes she cannot say it back. Both Leonard and Penny go on to date other people; most notably with Leonard dating Raj's sister Priya for much of season 4. This relationship is jeopardized when Leonard comes to falsely believe that Raj has slept with Penny, and ultimately ends when Priya sleeps with a former boyfriend in "The Good Guy Fluctuation". Penny, who admits to missing Leonard in "The Roommate Transmogrification", accepts his request to renew their relationship in "The Beta Test Initiation". After Penny suggests having sex in "The Launch Acceleration", Leonard breaks the mood by proposing to her. Penny says "no" but does not break up with him. She stops a proposal a second time in "The Tangible Affection Proof". In the sixth-season episode, "The 43 Peculiarity", Penny finally tells Leonard that she loves him. Although they both feel jealousy when the other receives significant attention from the opposite sex, Penny is secure enough in their relationship to send him off on an exciting four-month expedition without worrying in "The Bon Voyage Reaction". After Leonard returns, their relationship blossoms over the seventh season. In the penultimate episode "The Gorilla Dissolution", Penny admits that they should marry and when Leonard realizes that she is serious, he proposes with a ring that he had been saving for years. Leonard and Penny decide to elope to Las Vegas in the season 8 finale, but beforehand, wanting no secrets, Leonard admits to kissing another woman, Mandy Chow (Melissa Tang) while on an expedition on the North Sea. Despite this, Leonard and Penny finally elope in the season 9 premiere. In the third-season finale, Raj and Howard sign Sheldon up for online dating to find a woman compatible with Sheldon and discover neurobiologist Amy Farrah Fowler. Like him, she has a history of social ineptitude and participates in online dating only to fulfill an agreement with her mother. This spawns a storyline in which Sheldon and Amy communicate daily while insisting to Leonard and Penny that they are not romantically involved. In "The Agreement Dissection", Sheldon and Amy talk in her apartment after a night of dancing and she kisses him on the lips. Instead of getting annoyed, Sheldon says "fascinating" and later asks Amy to be his girlfriend in "The Flaming Spittoon Acquisition". The same night he draws up "The Relationship Agreement" to verify the ground rules of him as her boyfriend and vice versa (similar to his "Roommate Agreement" with Leonard). Amy agrees but later regrets not having had a lawyer read through it. In the episode "The Launch Acceleration", Amy tries to use her "neurobiology bag of tricks" to increase the attraction between herself and Sheldon. In the final fifth-season episode "The Countdown Reflection", Sheldon takes Amy's hand as Howard is launched into space. In the sixth season first episode "The Date Night Variable", after a dinner in which Sheldon fails to live up to this expectation, Amy gives Sheldon an ultimatum that their relationship is over unless he tells her something from his heart. Amy accepts Sheldon's romantic speech even after learning that it is a line from the first Spider-Man movie. In "The Cooper/Kripke Inversion" Sheldon states that he has been working on his discomfort about physical contact and admits that "it's a possibility" that he could one day have sex with Amy. Amy is revealed to have similar feelings in "The Love Spell Potential". Sheldon explains that he never thought about intimacy with anyone before Amy. "The Locomotive Manipulation" is the first episode in which Sheldon initiates a kiss with Amy. Although initially done in a fit of sarcasm, he discovers that he enjoys the feeling. Consequently, Sheldon slowly starts to open up over the rest of the season, and starts a more intimate relationship with Amy. However, in the season finale, Sheldon leaves temporarily to cope with several changes and Amy becomes distraught. However, in "The Prom Equivalency", he hides in his room to avoid going to a mock prom reenactment with her. In the resulting stand-off, Amy is about to confess that she loves Sheldon, but he surprises her by saying that he loves her too. This prompts Amy to have a panic attack. In the season eight finale, Sheldon and Amy get into a fight about commitment on their fifth anniversary. Amy tells Sheldon that she needs to think about the future of their relationship, unaware that Sheldon was about to propose to her. Season nine sees Sheldon harassing Amy about making up her mind until she breaks up with him. Both struggle with singlehood and trying to be friends for the next few weeks until they reunite in episode ten and have sex for the first time on Amy's birthday. In the season eleven premiere, Sheldon proposes to Amy and she accepts. The two get married in the eleventh-season finale. In the show, the song "Soft Kitty" was described by Sheldon as a song sung by his mother when he was ill. Its repeated use in the series popularized the song. A scene depicting the origin of the song in Sheldon's childhood is depicted in an episode of Young Sheldon, which aired on February 1, 2018. It shows Sheldon's mother Mary singing the song to her son, who is suffering with the flu. In scenes set at Howard's home, he interacts with his rarely-seen mother (voiced by Carol Ann Susi until her death) by shouting from room to room in the house. She similarly interacts with other characters in this manner. She reflects the Jewish mother stereotype in some ways, such as being overly controlling of Howard's adult life and sometimes trying to make him feel guilty about causing her trouble. She is dependent on Howard, as she requires him to help her with her wig and makeup in the morning. Howard, in turn, is attached to his mother to the point where she still cuts his meat for him, takes him to the dentist, does his laundry and "grounds" him when he returns home after briefly moving out. Until Howard's marriage to Bernadette in the fifth-season finale, Howard's former living situation led Leonard's psychiatrist mother to speculate that he may suffer from some type of pathology, and Sheldon to refer to their relationship as Oedipal. In season 8, Howard's mother dies in her sleep while in Florida, which devastates Howard and Stuart, who briefly lived with Mrs. Wolowitz. In the apartment building where Sheldon, Leonard and Penny (and later Amy) live, the elevator has been out of order throughout most of the series, forcing characters to have to use the stairs. Stairway conversations between characters occur in almost every episode, often serving as a transition between longer scenes. The Season 3 episode, "The Staircase Implementation" reveals that the elevator was broken when Leonard was experimenting with rocket fuel. In the penultimate episode of the series, the elevator is returned to an operational state, causing Sheldon some angst. Like most shows created by Chuck Lorre, The Big Bang Theory ends by showing for one second a vanity card written by Lorre after the credits, followed by the Warner Bros. Television closing logo. These cards are archived on Lorre's website. The series final vanity card reads simply "The End". Initial reception for the series was mixed. The review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 52% approval rating for the first season based on reviews from 23 critics, with an average rating of 5.18/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Big Bang Theory brings a new class of character to mainstream television, but much of the comedy feels formulaic and stiff." On Metacritic, the season holds a score of 57 out of 100, based on reviews from 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Later seasons received more acclaim and in 2013, TV Guide ranked the series #52 on its list of the 60 Best Series of All Time. The Big Bang Theory started off slowly in the ratings, failing to make the top 50 in its first season (ranking 68th), and ranking 40th in its second season. When the third season premiered on September 21, 2009, however, The Big Bang Theory ranked as CBS's highest-rated show of that evening in the adults 18–49 demographic (4.6/10) along with a then-series-high 12.83 million viewers. After the first three seasons aired at different times on Monday nights, CBS moved the show to Thursdays at 8:00 ET for the 2010–2011 schedule, to be in direct competition with NBC's Comedy Block and Fox's American Idol (then the longest reigning leading primetime show on U.S. television from 2004 to 2011). During its fourth season, it became television's highest rated comedy, just barely beating out eight-year champ Two and a Half Men. However, in the age 18–49 demographic (the show's target age range), it was the second highest rated comedy, behind ABC's Modern Family. The fifth season opened with viewing figures of over 14 million. The sixth season boasts some of the highest-rated episodes for the show so far, with a then-new series high set with "The Bakersfield Expedition", with 20 million viewers, a first for the series, which along with NCIS, made CBS the first network to have two scripted series reach that large an audience in the same week since 2007. In the sixth season, the show became the highest rated and viewed scripted show in the 18–49 demographic, trailing only the live regular NBC Sunday Night Football coverage, and was third in total viewers, trailing NCIS and Sunday Night Football. Season seven of the series opened strong, continuing the success gained in season six, with the second episode of the premiere, "The Deception Verification", setting the new series high in viewers with 20.44 million. Showrunner Steve Molaro, who took over from Bill Prady with the sixth season, credits some of the show's success to the sitcom's exposure in off-network syndication, particularly on TBS, while Michael Schneider of TV Guide attributes it to the timeslot move two seasons earlier. Chuck Lorre and CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler also credit the success to the influence of Molaro, in particular the deepening exploration of the firmly established regular characters and their interpersonal relationships, such as the on- again, off-again relationship between Leonard and Penny. Throughout much of the 2012–13 season, The Big Bang Theory placed first in all of syndication ratings, receiving formidable competition from only Judge Judy and Wheel of Fortune (first-run syndication programs). By the end of the 2012–13 television season, The Big Bang Theory had dethroned Judge Judy as the ratings leader in all of syndicated programming with 7.1, Judy descending to second place for that season with a 7.0. The Big Bang Theory did not place first in syndication ratings for the 2013–14 television season, beaten out by Judge Judy. The show made its United Kingdom debut on Channel 4 on February 14, 2008. The show was also shown as a 'first-look' on Channel 4's digital offshoot E4 prior to the main channel's airing. While the show's ratings were not deemed strong enough for the main channel, they were considered the opposite for E4. For each following season, all episodes were shown first-run on E4, with episodes only aired on the main channel in a repeat capacity, usually on a weekend morning. From the third season, the show aired in two parts, being split so that it could air new episodes for longer throughout the year. This was due to rising ratings. The first part began airing on December 17, 2009, at 9:00 p.m. while the second part, containing the remaining eleven episodes, began airing in the same time period from May 6, 2010. The first half of the fourth season began airing on November 4, 2010, at 9:00 p.m., drawing 877,000 viewers, with a further 256,000 watching on the E4+1 hour service. This gave the show an overall total of 1.13 million viewers, making it E4's most-watched programme for that week. The increased ratings continued over subsequent weeks. The fourth season's second half began on June 30, 2011. Season 5 began airing on November 3, 2011, at 8:00 p.m. as part of E4's Comedy Thursdays, acting as a lead-in to the channel's newest comedy, Perfect Couples. Episode 19, the highest-viewed episode of the season, attracted 1.4 million viewers. Season 6 premiered on November 15, 2012, with 1.89 million viewers and a further 469,000 on the time shift channel, bringing the total to 2.31 million, E4's highest viewing ratings of 2012, and the highest the channel had received since June 2011. The sixth season returned in mid-2013 to finish airing the remaining episodes. Season 7 premiered on E4 on October 31, 2013 at 8:30 pm and hit multiple ratings records this season. The second half of season seven aired in mid 2014. The eighth season premiered on E4 on October 23, 2014 at 8:30 pm. During its eighth season, The Big Bang Theory shared its 8:30 pm time period with fellow CBS comedy, 2 Broke Girls. Following the airing of the first eight episodes of that show's fourth season, The Big Bang Theory returned to finish airing its eighth season on March 19, 2015. Netflix UK & Ireland announced on February 13, 2016 that seasons 1–8 would be available to stream from February 15, 2016. The Big Bang Theory started off quietly in Canada, but managed to garner major success in later seasons. The Big Bang Theory is telecast throughout Canada via the CTV Television Network in simultaneous substitution with cross-border CBS affiliates. Now immensely popular in Canada, The Big Bang Theory is also rerun daily on the Canadian cable channel The Comedy Network. The season 4 premiere garnered an estimated 3.1 million viewers across Canada. This is the largest audience for a sitcom since the series finale of Friends (12.4 million viewers). The Big Bang Theory has pulled ahead and has now become the most- watched entertainment television show in Canada. The Big Bang Theory premiered in the United States on September 24, 2007 on CBS. The series debuted in Canada on CTV in September 2007. On February 14, 2008, the series debuted in the United Kingdom on channels E4 and Channel 4. In Australia the first seven seasons of the series began airing on the Seven Network and 7mate from October 2015 and also gained the rights to season 8 in 2016, though the Nine Network has rights to air seasons nine & ten. On January 22, 2018, it was announced that Nine had acquired the rights to Season 1–8. In May 2010, it was reported that the show had been picked up for syndication, mainly among Fox's owned and operated stations and other local stations, with Warner Bros. Television's sister cable network TBS holding the show's cable syndication rights. Broadcast of old shows began airing in September 2011. TBS now airs the series in primetime on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, with evening broadcasts on Saturdays (TBS's former local sister station in Atlanta also holds local weeknight rights to the series). Although details of the syndication deal have not been revealed, it was reported the deal "set a record price for a cable off-network sitcom purchase". CTV holds national broadcast syndication rights in Canada, while sister cable network The Comedy Network holds cable rights. Warner Bros. Television controls the online rights for the show. Full episodes are available at , while short clips and recently aired full episodes are available on cbs.com. In Canada, recent episode(s) and pictures are available on CTV.ca. Additionally in Canada, the first six seasons are available for streaming on Bell Media's CraveTV. After the show has aired in New Zealand the shows are available in full online at TVNZ's on demand web service. The first and second seasons were only available on DVD at their time of release in 2008 and 2009. Starting with the release of the third season in 2010 and continuing every year with every new season, a Blu-ray disc set has also been released in conjunction with the DVD. In 2012, Warner Bros. released the first two seasons on Blu-ray, marking the first time that all episodes were available on the Blu-ray disc format. In August 2009, the sitcom won the best comedy series TCA award and Jim Parsons (Sheldon) won the award for individual achievement in comedy. In 2010, the show won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy, while Parsons won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. On January 16, 2011, Parsons was awarded a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical, an award that was presented by co-star Kaley Cuoco. On September 18, 2011, Parsons was again awarded an Emmy for Best Actor in a Comedy Series. On January 9, 2013, the show won People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy for the second time. August 25, 2014, Jim Parsons was awarded an Emmy for Best Actor in a Comedy Series. The Big Bang Theory also won the 2016 People's Choice Awards for under Favorite TV Show and Favorite Network TV Comedy with Jim Parsons winning Favorite Comedic TV Actor. On January 20, 2016, The Big Bang Theory also won the International category at the UK's National Television Awards. On March 16, 2014, a Lego Ideas project portraying the living room scene in Lego style with the main cast as mini-figures reached 10,000 supporters on the platform, which qualified it to be considered as an official set by the Lego Ideas review board. On November 7, 2014, Lego Ideas approved the design and began refining it. The set was released in August 2015, with an exclusive pre- sale taking place at the San Diego Comic-Con International. Through the use of his vanity cards at the end of episodes, Lorre alleged that the program had been plagiarized by a show produced and aired in Belarus. Officially titled Теоретики (The Theorists), the show features "clones" of the main characters, a similar opening sequence, and what appears to be a very close Russian translation of the scripts. Lorre expressed annoyance and described his inquiry with the Warner Bros. legal department about options. The television production company and station's close relationship with the Belarus government was cited as the reason that any attempt to claim copyright infringement would be in vain because the company copying the episodes is operated by the government. However, no legal action was required to end production of the other show: as soon as it became known that the show was unlicensed, the actors quit and the producers canceled it. Dmitriy Tankovich (who plays Leonard's counterpart, "Seva") said in an interview, "I'm upset. At first, the actors were told all legal issues were resolved. We didn't know it wasn't the case, so when the creators of The Big Bang Theory started talking about the show, I was embarrassed. I can't understand why our people first do, and then think. I consider this to be the rock bottom of my career. And I don't want to take part in a stolen show". In November 2016, it was reported that CBS was in negotiations to create a spin-off of The Big Bang Theory centered on Sheldon as a young boy. The prequel series, described as "a Malcolm in the Middle-esque single-camera family comedy" would be executive-produced by Lorre and Molaro, with Prady expected to be involved in some capacity, and intended to air in the 2017–18 season alongside The Big Bang Theory. The initial idea for the series came from Parsons, who passed it along to The Big Bang Theory producers. In early March 2017, Iain Armitage was cast as the younger Sheldon, as well as Zoe Perry as his mother, Mary Cooper. Perry is the real-life daughter of Laurie Metcalf, who portrays Mary Cooper on The Big Bang Theory. On March 13, 2017, CBS ordered the spin-off Young Sheldon series. Jon Favreau directed and executive produced the pilot. Created by Lorre and Molaro, the series follows 9-year-old Sheldon Cooper as he attends high school in East Texas. Alongside Armitage as 9-year-old Sheldon Cooper and Perry as Mary Cooper, Lance Barber stars as George Cooper, Sheldon's father; Raegan Revord stars as Missy Cooper, Sheldon's twin sister; and Montana Jordan as George Cooper Jr., Sheldon's older brother. Jim Parsons reprises his role as adult Sheldon Cooper, as narrator for the series. Parsons, Lorre, Molaro and Todd Spiewak will also serve as executive producers on the series, for Chuck Lorre Productions, Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television. The show's pilot episode premiered on September 25, 2017. Subsequent weekly episodes began airing on November 2, 2017 following the broadcast of the 237th episode of The Big Bang Theory. On January 6, 2018, the show was renewed for a second season. On February 22, 2019, CBS renewed the series for both the third and fourth seasons. On May 16, 2019, a television special titled Unraveling the Mystery: A Big Bang Farewell aired following the series finale of The Big Bang Theory. It's a backstage retrospective featuring Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco. Christine Jane Baranski (born May 2, 1952) is an American actress, singer, and producer. She is a 15-time Emmy Award nominee, winning once in 1995 for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Maryann Thorpe in the sitcom Cybill (1995–98). Baranski has received further critical acclaim for her performance as Diane Lockhart in the legal drama series The Good Wife (2009–2016) and its spinoff series The Good Fight (2017–present), as well as her recurring role as Dr. Beverly Hofstadter in the sitcom The Big Bang Theory (2009–2019) for which she received four Emmy nominations. She is also known for her roles in numerous successful TV films, such as her portrayal of Kate in To Dance with the White Dog (1993), Prunella Stickler in Eloise at the Plaza, and Eloise at Christmastime (both 2003), and Amanda in Who Is Simon Miller? (2011). Baranski won two Tony Awards for Best Featured Actress in a Play for the original Broadway productions of The Real Thing in 1984 and Rumors in 1989. Her other major Broadway credits include Hide and Seek (1980), Hurlyburly (1984), The House of Blue Leaves (1986), Nick & Nora (1991), and Boeing Boeing (2008). Baranski has starred in numerous films, including 9½ Weeks (1986), Legal Eagles (1986), Reversal of Fortune (1990), Addams Family Values (1993), Jeffrey (1995), The Birdcage (1996), Bulworth (1998), Cruel Intentions (1999), Bowfinger (1999), Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Chicago (2002), Mamma Mia! (2008), The Bounty Hunter (2010), Into the Woods (2014), A Bad Moms Christmas (2017), and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018). Baranski was born in Buffalo, New York, the daughter of Virginia (née Mazurowski) and Lucien Baranski, who edited a Polish-language newspaper. She is of Polish descent, and her grandparents were actors in the Polish theater. Baranski was raised in a Polish-Catholic neighborhood in Cheektowaga, where she attended high school at the Villa Maria Academy. She then studied at New York City's Juilliard School (Drama Division Group 3: 1970–1974) where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974. Baranski made her Off-Broadway debut in Coming Attractions at Playwrights Horizons in 1980, and has appeared in several Off Broadway productions at the Manhattan Theatre Club, starting with Sally and Marsha in 1982. Baranski made her Broadway debut in Hide & Seek in 1980. For her next Broadway performance, in Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing, she won the 1984 Tony Award Best Featured Actress in a Play. Other Broadway credits include: Hurlyburly, The House of Blue Leaves, Rumors (for which she won her second Tony), Regrets Only, Nick & Nora, and the Encores! concert staging of Follies. At the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Baranski starred as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd in 2002 (for which she won the 2003 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical) and as the title character in Mame in 2006. In her first Broadway production since 1991, she was featured as the maid Berthe in the 2008 revival of Boeing Boeing. The show garnered two Tony Awards, one for Best Revival of a Play and the other for Best Actor (Mark Rylance). The original cast was Bradley Whitford (Bernard), Kathryn Hahn (Gloria), Christine Baranski (Berthe), Gina Gershon (Gabriella), and Mary McCormack (Gretchen). The show closed on January 4, 2009. She also appeared in a one night only concert benefit performance of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music for Roundabout Theatre Company as Countess Charlotte Malcolm on January 12, 2009. The cast included Vanessa Redgrave, Natasha Richardson, Victor Garber, and Marc Kudisch, among others. She has won both the Tony and Drama Desk Awards twice. In 2018 Baranski was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame. Baranski has also appeared in various film roles. Some of her better known roles are as Katherine Archer in The Birdcage (1996), Martha May Whovier in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Mary Sunshine in Chicago (2002), and Connie Chasseur in The Ref (1994). She received further recognition for her role as Tanya Chesham-Leigh in the hit musical film Mamma Mia! (2008), and its sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018). She also played Cinderella's stepmother in the 2014 film adaptation of the musical, Into the Woods. Baranski also starred in the films 9½ Weeks (1986), Legal Eagles (1986), Reversal of Fortune (1990), Addams Family Values (1993), Jeffrey (1995), Bulworth (1998), Cruel Intentions (1999), Bowfinger (1999), Chicago (2002), Trolls (2016), and A Bad Moms Christmas (2017) "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018)'. An urban legend is she appeared as a child actress as "Chris Charney", who is another actress, on The Brady Bunch. Baranski has denied this, and stated that "the first real TV show" that she worked on was the comedy series Cybill, when she was in her 40s. Earlier, she had appeared in short-term roles on various daytime soap operas, including All My Children and Another World. Baranski was featured as Cybill Shepherd's sarcastic, hard-drinking friend Maryann Thorpe in the CBS sitcom Cybill, which ran from 1995 until 1998, during which time she hosted Saturday Night Live and won an Emmy Award as Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series along with three other nominations. During this, Baranski portrayed a librarian named Sonja Umdahl in the "Dick and the Single Girl" episode of 3rd Rock from the Sun. A few years later, Baranski received an Emmy nomination for a guest starring role in the NBC series Frasier as a controversial tough love radio psychiatrist named Dr. Nora. The episode, which was named for the character, parodied Dr. Laura Schlessinger. The episode was pulled from syndication by Paramount. Baranski had an uncredited role in the series Now and Again as the voice of Roger's overbearing wife Ruth, who was never seen by viewers. Baranski later appeared in the 2000–2001 sitcom Welcome to New York and, with John Laroquette, in the 2003–2004 NBC sitcom Happy Family. She co-starred with Bernadette Peters in a pilot for an ABC sitcom, Adopted, in 2005, which was not picked up. She also played Faith Clancy, the mother of Jim Clancy in Ghost Whisperer. In 2009 Baranski began guest-starring in The Big Bang Theory as Dr. Beverly Hofstadter, a dispassionate psychiatrist and neuroscientist and mother of one of the protagonists, Leonard Hofstadter. She first appeared in the second-season episode , for which she received an Emmy nomination. Due to the popularity of her first appearance, Baranski returned in the third season for the Christmas episode , receiving another Emmy nomination. She would appear in a total of 16 episodes during the show's run, earning 4 Emmy nominations for her recurring role. From 2009 to 2016, she played the role of Diane Lockhart, a top litigator and senior partner of a Chicago law firm on the CBS series The Good Wife. She was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for six seasons of the series, in the years 2010 to 2015. Besides her work on The Good Wife and the aforementioned guest appearances on The Big Bang Theory, her other recent appearances include Ugly Betty in 2009 as Victoria Hartley, the haughty mother of Betty's new boyfriend. Baranski currently stars in a spinoff of The Good Wife, titled The Good Fight. The series began airing on CBS and then CBS All Access starting in February 2017. Her character, Diane Lockhart, joins another law firm after being forced to return to work. Baranski was married to actor Matthew Cowles from October 1983 until his death on May 22, 2014. They have two daughters, Isabel (born 1984), a lawyer, and Lily (born 1987), an actress. She is Roman Catholic. Christine Baranski at TV.com

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"Don't Look Back in Anger" is a song by the English rock band Oasis. It was released on 19 February 1996 as the fourth single from their second studio album, (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (1995). The song was written by the band's guitarist and main songwriter, Noel Gallagher. It became the band's second single to reach number one on the UK Singles Chart, where it also went platinum. It was also the first Oasis single with lead vocals by Noel (who had previously only sung lead on B-sides) instead of his brother, Liam. The song is in the key of C, but pitched slightly sharp of the standard concert tuning of A 440. It is one of the band's signature songs, and was played at almost every single live show from its release to the dissolution of the band. In 2012, it was ranked number one on a list of the '50 Most Explosive Choruses' by the NME, and the same year it was voted the fourth most popular number-one single of the last 60 years in the UK by the public in conjunction with the Official Charts Company's 60th anniversary. In 2015, Rolling Stone readers voted it the second greatest Britpop song in a poll (after "Common People" by Pulp). On 29 May 2017, Absolute Radio 90s broadcast a programme counting down the top 50 songs written by Noel Gallagher to mark his 50th birthday with the song voted number one. Noel Gallagher was so excited about the potential of the song when he first wrote it that he used an acoustic set to perform a work-in-progress version, without the second verse and a few other slight lyrical differences, at an Oasis concert at the Sheffield Arena on 22 April 1995. He said before playing that he'd only written it the previous Tuesday (18 April 1995) and that he didn't even have a title for it yet. The title was picked as a reference to the 1979 David Bowie song "Look Back in Anger" from the seminal art rock album Lodger, with Bowie's work being a massive Oasis influence. Noel Gallagher said of the song, "It reminds me of a cross between "All the Young Dudes" and something The Beatles might have done." Of the character "Sally" referred to in the song he commented, "I don't actually know anybody called Sally. It's just a word that fit, y'know, might as well throw a girl's name in there." Noel Gallagher (from Uncut magazine August 2007): "We were in Paris playing with the Verve, and I had the chords for that song and started writing it. We were due to play two days later. Our first-ever big arena gig, it's called Sheffield Arena now. At the sound check, I was strumming away on the acoustic guitar, and our kid (Liam) said, 'What's that you're singin'?' I wasn't singing anyway, I was just making it up. And our kid said, 'Are you singing 'So Sally can wait'?' And I was like – that's genius! So I started singing, 'So Sally can wait.' I remember going back to the dressing room and writing it out. It all came really quickly after that." Gallagher claims that the character "Lyla", from Oasis' 2005 single is the sister of Sally. In the interview on the DVD released with the special edition of Stop the Clocks, Gallagher also revealed that a girl approached him and asked him if Sally was the same girl as in the Stone Roses' track "Sally Cinnamon". Gallagher replied that he had never thought of that but thought it was good anyway. Noel Gallagher admits that certain lines from the song are lifted from John Lennon: "I got this tape in the United States that had apparently been burgled from the Dakota Hotel and someone had found these cassettes. Lennon was starting to record his memoirs on tape. He's going on about 'trying to start a revolution from me bed, because they said the brains I had went to my head.' I thought 'Thank you, I'll take that'!" "Revolution from me bed" most likely refers to Lennon's notorious bed-ins in 1969. The piano in the introduction of the song strongly resembles Lennon's "Imagine", as well as "Watching the Wheels". As Oasis are often criticised for borrowing parts of other artists' songs for their own, Noel Gallagher commented on the intro's similarity to "Imagine" saying, "In the case of Don't Look Back in Anger – I mean, the opening piano riff's "Imagine". 50% of its put in there to wind people up, and the other 50% is saying 'look, this is how songs like "Don't Look Back in Anger" come about – because they're inspired by songs like "Imagine"'. And no matter what people might think, there will be some 13 year old kid out there who'll read an interview and think '"Imagine"? I've never heard that song.' and he might go and buy the album, you know what I mean?" Gallagher also admits that he was under the influence of illegal substances when he wrote the song and to this day he claims he does not know what it means. The song became a favourite at Oasis's live performances. Noel Gallagher encouraged the crowd to sing along and often kept quiet during the first chorus, allowing the fans instead to sing along while he played the song's guitar part. During the Dig Out Your Soul Tour, Noel Gallagher abandoned the song's previous, full-band live arrangement in favour of a much slower, primarily acoustic arrangement in a lower key (B major). From 2008 through to Oasis's breakup, the song was performed by Gallagher on his Gibson J-200 acoustic guitar backed up by Gem Archer on electric guitar, and Chris Sharrock playing tambourine. On 11 and 12 July 2009, during performances of the song at London's Wembley Stadium, Gallagher didn't sing a word; instead, he stood back, played guitar, and allowed the crowd to sing the entire song. Since 2011, he has alternated between the acoustic version and the original arrangement when playing the song with his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Oasis became the first act since the Jam to perform two songs on the same showing of Top of the Pops, performing "Don't Look Back in Anger", followed by their cover of Slade's "Cum On Feel the Noize", also on the single. In June 2017, Liam Gallagher performed an a cappella version of the song at Glastonbury, making it the first time he has performed the song rather than Noel. Oasis formed in Manchester in 1991, and following the Manchester Arena bombing after a concert by US singer Ariana Grande on 22 May 2017, the song was used by the people of Manchester in remembrance of the bombing's 22 victims and to show the city's spirit. The song was sung by students of Manchester's Chetham's music school on 23 May, and on 25 May it was spontaneously sung by the crowd gathered for a minute of silence in the city centre. The woman who started the singing told The Guardian, "I love Manchester, and Oasis is part of my childhood. Don't Look Back in Anger--that's what this is about: we can't be looking backwards to what happened, we have to look forwards to the future." The song came back into the charts, along with Ariana Grande's "One Last Time," which was number one in the iTunes single charts as of 26 May. On 27 May, the song was performed as a tribute by 50,000 audience members of a performance by The Courteeners in Manchester. It was performed by Coldplay's Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland on either side of Ariana Grande at the One Love Manchester concert on 4 June 2017. Martin introduced the song by saying "Ariana, you've been singing a lot for us, so I think we in Britain want to sing for you. This is called "Don't Look Back in Anger", and this is from us to you". It was also performed by the military band of the French Republican Guard on 13 June 2017, at the France versus England football match at the Stade de France, as a tribute to the victims of the attacks in Manchester and, more recently, London. The single's picture sleeve contains a photo by Brian Cannon. He intended the cover as a homage to the incident where Ringo Starr, having briefly left the Beatles in 1968 during the recording of the White Album, was persuaded to return and George Harrison decorated Starr's drum kit in red, white and blue flowers to show their appreciation. The B-side "Step Out" was originally intended for the (What's the Story) Morning Glory? album but was taken off after Stevie Wonder requested 10 per cent of the royalties as the chorus bore a similarity to his hit "Uptight (Everything's Alright)". Also, because of this, Wonder, Henry Cosby and Sylvia Moy received credit for writing the song, along with Noel. The song's chart success coincided with its usage at the end of the final episode of the BBC television drama Our Friends in the North. The show's producers had included the track without knowing it was going to be released as a single. "Don't Look Back in Anger" was met with high critical praise and it became a commercial hit. Billboard said of the tune, "Noel Gallagher reveals a deft sense of timing and craft that turn his improprieties into masterful pop gems." In a 2006 readers' poll conducted by Q magazine, "Don't Look Back in Anger" was voted the 20th best song of all time. In May 2007, NME magazine placed "Don't Look Back in Anger" at number 14 in its list of the "50 Greatest Indie Anthems Ever". The song reached No.1 in the singles charts of Ireland and the United Kingdom, and it was a moderate success by reaching the top 60 in various countries. The song was the 10th-biggest-selling single of 1996 in the UK. It is Oasis's second biggest selling single in the UK (after Wonderwall), with sales of 970,000, going platinum in the process. The song returned to the UK charts in 2017 following Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland's cover version at the One Love Manchester concert, reaching number 25. "Don't Look Back in Anger" is also Oasis's sixth biggest Billboard hit in the US, reaching the number 10 spot on the Modern Rock Tracks for the week of 22 June 1996. The video for the song was directed by Nigel Dick and features Patrick Macnee, the actor who played John Steed in the 1960s television series The Avengers, apparently a favourite of Oasis. It was filmed at 1145 Arden Road in Pasadena, California on December 4, 1995. It features the band being driven to a mansion similar to the Playboy Mansion and performing the song there; a group of women dressed in white also occasionally lip sync to the lyrics. While filming the video, drummer Alan White met future wife Liz Atkins. They married on 13 August 1997 at Studley Priory Hotel in Oxfordshire, but later divorced. There are two versions of the music video. One being posted by Vevo which got 90 million views and the other one posted by the band themselves which generated over 113 million views. Glay covered the song for their 2011 album Rare Collectives Vol.4. The Killers covered this song at V Festival 2012. Portugal. The Man covered the song in their 2017 album Spotify Singles. The song was included as the closing track on Oasis' compilation album, Stop the Clocks. It is available for the music video game series Rock Band as a downloadable track. On the Wii version of the original Rock Band game, this song is included. It can also be found on-disc in the 2014 edition of Rocksmith. The song has been used in multiple television programmes since its original release: 11 March 1996: it played over the end credits of the final episode of the BBC Two drama serial Our Friends in the North the very week it was at the top of the UK charts., 4 September 2010: the song was used as the ending theme for the live-action film adaptation of the Japanese manga series BECK. Noel Gallagher – vocals, lead and rhythm guitars, mellotron, e-bow, organ, Liam Gallagher – tambourine, Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs – piano, rhythm guitar, Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan – bass, Alan White – drums All songs were written by Noel Gallagher, except where noted. CD (re-issued as ) 1. "Don't Look Back in Anger" – 4:47 2. "Step Out" (Gallagher/Wonder/Cosby/Moy) – 3:40 3. "Underneath the Sky" – 3:20 4. "Cum On Feel the Noize" (Holder/Lea) – 5:09 7" 1. "Don't Look Back in Anger" – 4:47 2. "Step Out" (Gallagher/Wonder/Cosby/Moy) – 3:40 12" 1. "Don't Look Back in Anger" – 4:47 2. "Step Out" (Gallagher/Wonder/Cosby/Moy) – 3:40 3. "Underneath the Sky" – 3:20 Cassette 1. "Don't Look Back in Anger" – 4:47 2. "Step Out" (Gallagher/Wonder/Cosby/Moy) – 3:40 CD re-issue (US) 1. "Don't Look Back in Anger" – 4:47 2. "Cum On Feel the Noize" (Holder/Lea) – 5:09 Look Back in Anger is a 1989 British videotaped television production of John Osborne's play. It features Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Siobhan Redmond, Gerard Horan, and Edward Jewesbury. It was directed by Judi Dench; and produced by Humphrey Barclay, Moira Williams, and First Choice Productions for Thames Television. Look Back in Anger is a love triangle involving the brilliant-but-disaffected young Jimmy Porter (Branagh), his upper-middle-class, impassive wife Alison Porter (Thompson), and her aristocratic best friend Helena Charles (Redmond). Cliff (Horan), an amiable Welsh lodger, attempts to keep the peace. Jimmy Porter - Kenneth Branagh, Alison Porter - Emma Thompson, Helena Charles - Siobhan Redmond, Cliff Lewis - Gerard Horan, Colonel Redfern - Edward Jewesbury Look Back in Anger (1956) is a realist play written by John Osborne. It focuses on the life and marital struggles of an intelligent and educated but disaffected young man of working-class origin, Jimmy Porter, and his equally competent yet impassive upper-middle-class wife Alison. The supporting characters include Cliff Lewis, an amiable Welsh lodger who attempts to keep the peace; and Helena Charles, Alison's snobbish friend. Osborne drew inspiration from his personal life and failing marriage with Pamela Lane while writing Look Back in Anger, which was his first successful outing as a playwright. The play spawned the term "angry young men" to describe Osborne and those of his generation who employed the harshness of realism in the theatre in contrast to the more escapist theatre that characterised the previous generation. This harsh realism has led to Look Back in Anger being considered one of the first examples of kitchen sink drama in theatre. The play was received favorably in the theatre community becoming an enormous commercial success, transferring to the West End and Broadway, and even touring to Moscow. It is credited with turning Osborne from a struggling playwright into a wealthy and famous personality, and also won him the Evening Standard Drama Award as the most promising playwright of 1956. The play was adapted into a motion picture of the same name by Tony Richardson, starring Richard Burton and Mary Ure, which was released in 1959. Film production credited circa 1958. Act 1 opens on a dismal April Sunday afternoon in Jimmy and Alison's cramped attic in the Midlands. Jimmy and Cliff are reading the Sunday papers, plus the radical weekly, "price ninepence, obtainable at any bookstall" as Jimmy snaps, claiming it from Cliff. This is a reference to the New Statesman, and in the context of the period would have instantly signalled the pair's political preference to the audience. Alison is attempting to do the week's ironing and is only half listening as Jimmy and Cliff engage in the expository dialogue. It becomes apparent that there is a huge social gulf between Jimmy and Alison. Her family is upper-middle-class military, while Jimmy belongs to working class. He had to fight hard against her family's disapproval to win her. "Alison's mummy and I took one look at each other, and from then on the age of chivalry was dead," he explains. We also learn that the sole family income is derived from a sweet stall in the local market—an enterprise that is surely well beneath Jimmy's education, let alone Alison's "station in life". As Act 1 progresses, Jimmy becomes more and more vituperative, transferring his contempt for Alison's family onto her personally, calling her "pusillanimous" and generally belittling her to Cliff. (Some actors play this scene as though Jimmy thinks everything is just a joke, while others play it as though he really is excoriating her.) The tirade ends with physical horseplay, resulting in the ironing board overturning and Alison's arm getting burned. Jimmy exits to play his trumpet off stage. Alison, alone with Cliff, confides that she's accidentally pregnant and can't quite bring herself to tell Jimmy. Cliff urges her to tell him. When Jimmy returns, Alison announces that her actress friend Helena Charles is coming to stay, and Jimmy despises Helena even more than Alison. He flies into a rage. Act 2 opens on another Sunday afternoon, with Helena and Alison making lunch. In a two-handed scene, Alison says that she decided to marry Jimmy because of her own minor rebellion against her upbringing and her admiration for Jimmy's campaigns against the dereliction of life in postwar England. She describes Jimmy to Helena as a "knight in shining armour". Helena says, firmly, "You've got to fight him". Jimmy enters, and the tirade continues. If his Act 1 material could be played as a joke, there's no doubt about the intentional viciousness of his attacks on Helena. When the women put on hats and declare that they are going to church, Jimmy's sense of betrayal peaks. When he leaves to take an urgent phone call, Helena announces that she has forced the issue. She has sent a telegram to Alison's parents asking them to come and "rescue" her. Alison is stunned but agrees that she will go. The next evening, Alison's father, Colonel Redfern, comes to collect her to take her back to her family home. The playwright allows the Colonel to come across as quite a sympathetic character, albeit totally out of touch with the modern world, as he himself admits. "You're hurt because everything's changed", Alison tells him, "and Jimmy's hurt because everything's stayed the same". Helena arrives to say goodbye, intending to leave very soon herself. Alison is surprised that Helena is staying on for another day, but she leaves, giving Cliff a note for Jimmy. Cliff in turn hands it to Helena and leaves, saying "I hope he rams it up your nostrils". Almost immediately, Jimmy bursts in. His contempt at finding a "goodbye" note makes him turn on Helena again, warning her to keep out of his way until she leaves. Helena tells him that Alison is expecting a baby, and Jimmy admits grudgingly that he's taken aback. However, his tirade continues. They first come to physical blows, and then as the Act 2 curtain falls, Jimmy and Helena are kissing passionately and falling on the bed. Act 3 opens as a deliberate replay of Act 1, but this time with Helena at the ironing-board wearing Jimmy's Act 1 red shirt. Months have passed. Jimmy is notably more pleasant to Helena than he was to Alison in Act 1\. She actually laughs at his jokes, and the three of them (Jimmy, Cliff, and Helena) get into a music hall comedy routine that obviously is not improvised. Cliff announces that he's decided to strike out on his own. As Jimmy leaves the room to get ready for a final night out for the three of them, he opens the door to find Alison, looking like death. He snaps over his shoulder "Friend of yours to see you" and abruptly leaves. Alison explains to Helena that she lost the baby (one of Jimmy's cruellest speeches in Act 1 expressed the wish that Alison would conceive a child and lose it). The two women reconcile, but Helena realises that what she's done is immoral and she in turn decides to leave. She summons Jimmy to hear her decision and he lets her go with a sarcastic farewell. The play ends with a sentimental reconciliation between Jimmy and Alison. They revive an old game they used to play, pretending to be bears and squirrels, and seem to be in a state of truce. Written in 17 days in a deck chair on Morecambe Pier, Look Back in Anger was a strongly autobiographical piece based on Osborne's unhappy marriage to actress Pamela Lane and their life in cramped accommodation in Derby. While Osborne aspired towards a career in theatre, Lane was more practical and materialistic. It also draws from Osborne's earlier life; for example, the wrenching speech of witnessing a loved one's death was a replay of the death of his father, Thomas. What it is best remembered for, though, are Jimmy's tirades. Some of these are directed against generalised British middle-class smugness in the post-atomic world. Many are directed against the female characters, a very distinct echo of Osborne's uneasiness with women, including his mother, Nellie Beatrice, whom he describes in his autobiography A Better Class of Person as "hypocritical, self-absorbed, calculating and indifferent". Madeline, the lost love Jimmy pines for, is based on Stella Linden, the older rep-company actress who first encouraged Osborne to write. After the first production in London, Osborne began a relationship with Mary Ure, who played Alison; he divorced his first wife (of five years) Pamela Lane to marry Ure in 1957. The play was premiered at London's Royal Court Theatre, on 8 May 1956 by the English Stage Company under the direction of Tony Richardson, setting by Alan Tagg, and music for songs by Tom Eastwood. The press release called the author an "angry young man", a phrase that came to represent a new movement in 1950s British theatre. Audiences supposedly gasped at the sight of an ironing board on a London stage. The cast was as follows: Kenneth Haigh (Jimmy), Alan Bates (Cliff), Mary Ure (Alison), Helena Hughes (Helena Charles) and John Welsh (Colonel Redfern). The following year, the production moved to Broadway under producer David Merrick and director Tony Richardson. Retaining the original cast but starring Vivienne Drummond as Helena, it would receive three Tony Award nominations including for Best Play and "Best Dramatic Actress" for Ure. At the time of production reviews of Look Back in Anger were deeply negative. Kenneth Tynan and Harold Hobson were among the few critics to praise it, and are now regarded among the most influential critics of the time. For example, on BBC Radio's The Critics, Ivor Brown began his review by describing the play's setting—a one-room flat in the Midlands—as "unspeakably dirty and squalid" such that it was difficult for him to "believe that a colonel's daughter, brought up with some standards", would have lived in it. He expressed anger at having watched something that "wasted [his] time". The Daily Mail's Cecil Wilson wrote that the beauty of Mary Ure was "frittered away" on a pathetic wife, who, "judging by the time she spends ironing, seems to have taken on the nation's laundry". Indeed, Alison, Ure's character, irons during Act One, makes lunch in Act Two, and leaves the ironing to her rival in Act Three. On the other hand, Kenneth Tynan wrote that he "could not love anyone who did not wish to see Look Back in Anger", describing the play as a "minor miracle" containing "all the qualities...one had despaired of ever seeing on the stage—the drift towards anarchy, the instinctive leftishness, the automatic rejection of "official" attitudes, the surrealist sense of humour (e.g., Jimmy describes an effeminate male friend as a 'female Emily Brontë'), the casual promiscuity, the sense of lacking a crusade worth fighting for and, underlying all these, the determination that no one who dies shall go unmourned." Harold Hobson was also quick to recognize the importance of the play "as a landmark of British theatre". He praised Osborne for the play, despite the fact that the "blinkers still obscure his vision". Alan Sillitoe, author of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning and The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (both of which are also part of the "angry young men" movement), wrote that Osborne "didn't contribute to British theatre, he set off a landmine and blew most of it up". The Renaissance Theatre Company's August 1989 production at the Lyric Theatre, London was directed by Judi Dench with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson. A television version of the production was broadcast in Britain in December of that year. In 1995 Greg Hersov directed a production at the Royal Exchange, Manchester with Michael Sheen as Jimmy Porter, Claire Skinner as Alison Porter, Dominic Rowan as Cliff Lewis and Hermione Norris as Helena Charles. Hersov directed a second production in 1999, again starring Michael Sheen, at the Royal National Theatre in London. In 1989 Osborne wrote a sequel to the play entitled Déjàvu, which was first produced in 1992. Déjàvu depicted Jimmy Porter, now known as J.P., in middle age, living with his daughter Alison. He rants about the state of the country to his old friend Cliff, while his Alison irons, just as her mother had done in Look Back. The play was not a commercial success, closing after seven weeks. It was Osborne's last play. A British film adaptation starring Richard Burton, Claire Bloom, and Mary Ure and directed by Tony Richardson was made in 1958 and released in 1959. The screenplay was written by the play's author, John Osborne, with Nigel Kneale. Interior set design was by Loudon Sainthill. The film was nominated in four categories in the 1959 BAFTA Awards, including a Best Actor nomination for Richard Burton, but it did not win any of them. In the United States, the film failed at the box office., A version released in 1980 was directed by Lindsay Anderson and David Hugh Jones., In December 1989 Judi Dench's stage direction of the play from earlier in the year was formed by her into a TV production that starred Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson.. An episode of the BBC radio comedy series Hancock's Half Hour paid tribute to Osborne's play in "The East Cheam Drama Festival" (1958). The episode features the regular cast spoofing a number of theatrical genres, with Look Back in Anger recast as "Look Back in Hunger—a new play by the Hungry Young Man, Mr. John Eastbourne". Scriptwriters Alan Simpson and Ray Galton mimic several elements of Osborne's play, from Jimmy's railing against the iniquities of modern life to the values of middle-class bourgeois life. The episode "Sunday Afternoon at Home" (1958) begins with a striking similarity to the opening of Osborne's play, with Hancock and Sid James sitting reading the papers and complaining there's nothing to do., "Ed Wood: Look Back in Angora", a 1994 documentary about Ed Wood, a B-movie director, released by Rhino Home Video. The cross-dressing Wood often wore an angora sweater and angora fabric is featured in many of his films., In Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, an American dramedy television series by Aaron Sorkin, the character Andy Mackinaw translates Look Back in Anger into Dutch., "Look Back in Annoyance" is the title a retrospective episode of Daria, an animated television series. Jimmy Porter appears as the protagonist - older, increasingly feeble, but still angry - in The Albion Band's "Ash on an Old Man's Sleeve," from their 1989 album Give Me a Saddle I'll Trade You a Car., "Look Back in Anger" is a song by British singer David Bowie from his 1979 album Lodger, however there is no connection to the play, only a shared title., "Look Back in Anger" is a song by British rock group Television Personalities from their first album ...And Don't the Kids Just Love It (1981). Look Back in Anger (1959 film)

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Long Walk to Freedom is an autobiography written by South African President Nelson Mandela, and first published in 1994 by Little Brown & Co. The book profiles his early life, coming of age, education and 27 years in prison. Under the apartheid government, Mandela was regarded as a terrorist and jailed on the infamous Robben Island for his role as a leader of the then-outlawed ANC. He later achieved international recognition for his leadership as president in rebuilding the country's once segregated society. The last chapters of the book describe his political ascension, and his belief that the struggle still continued against apartheid in South Africa. Mandela dedicated his book to "my six children, Madiba and Makaziwe (my first daughter) who are now deceased, and to Makgatho, Makaziwe, Zenani and Zindzi, whose support and love I treasure; to my twenty-one grandchildren and three great-grandchildren who give me great pleasure; and to all my comrades, friends and fellow South Africans whom I serve and whose courage, determination and patriotism remain my source of inspiration." In the first part of the autobiography, Mandela describes his upbringing as a child and adolescent in South Africa, and being connected to the royal Thembu dynasty. His childhood name was Rolihlahla, which is loosely translated as "pulling the branch of a tree", or a euphemism for "troublemaker". Mandela describes his education at a Thembu college called Clarkebury, and later at the strict Healdtown school, where students were rigorously put in routines. He mentions his education at the University of Fort Hare, and his practice of law later on. He also then writes; "Democracy meant all men to be heard, and decision was taken together as a people. Majority rule was a foreign notion. A minority was not to be clashed by a majority." (p. 29) In the second part of the book, Mandela introduces political and social aspects of apartheid in South Africa, and the influences of politicians such as Daniel François Malan who implemented the nadir of African freedoms, as he officially commenced the apartheid policies. Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1950 and describes his organisation of guerrilla tactics and underground organisations to battle against apartheid. In 1961, Mandela was convicted for inciting people to strike and leaving the country without a passport and sentenced to five years' imprisonment. However, Mandela was shortly thereafter sentenced to life imprisonment for sabotage in what was known as the "Rivonia Trial", by Justice Dr. Quartus de Wet, instead of a possible death sentence. (p. 159) Mandela describes prison time on Robben Island and Pollsmoor Prison. His 28-year tenure in prison was marked by the cruelty of Afrikaner guards, backbreaking labour, and sleeping in minuscule cells which were nearly uninhabitable. Unlike his biographer Anthony Sampson, Mandela does not accuse the warder James Gregory of fabricating a friendship with his prisoner. Gregory's book Goodbye Bafana discussed Mandela's family life and described Gregory as a close personal friend of Mandela. According to , Gregory's position was to censor the letters delivered to the future president, and he thereby discovered the details of Mandela's personal life, which he then made money from by means of his book Goodbye Bafana. Mandela considered suing Gregory for this breach of trust. In Long Walk to Freedom Mandela remarks of Gregory only that 'I had not known him terribly well, but he knew us, because he had been responsible for reviewing our incoming and outgoing mail.' Later on in his sentence, Mandela met South African president, Frederik Willem de Klerk, and was released from prison in 1990. Unlike his friend , Mandela's book does not discuss the alleged complicity of de Klerk in the violence of the eighties and nineties, or the role of his ex-wife Winnie Mandela in that bloodshed. Mandela became the President of South Africa in 1994. The book won the Alan Paton Award in 1995, and has been published in numerous languages, including an Afrikaans translation by Antjie Krog. Long Walk to Freedom has been adapted into a film titled directed by Justin Chadwick, written by William Nicholson, and produced by Anant Singh. Mandela personally awarded the film rights to the book to Singh's company some years before 2009. Singh believes that as the film is based on Mandela's own writing, it will be the "definitive" biopic of him. English actor Idris Elba portrays Mandela in the film. The film was limited released on 29 November 2013 in the United States. Full release happened on Christmas Day 2013 in the United States. When the film was shown in London for Prince William and his wife, Nelson Mandela's death was announced. In an obituary of Mandela, The Times of London reported that the latter chapters of Long Walk to Freedom had been "ghosted by a skilful US journalist", and that Mandela had later started work on a second set of memoirs without a ghost writer. A follow-up memoir was published in 2017, compiled by Mandla Langa from Mandela's handwritten notes and unfinished draft, together with archive material and with a prologue by Graça Machel: entitled Dare Not Linger: The Presidential Years, this volume took its title from the closing sentence of Long Walk to Freedom: "But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended." Excerpts from Long Walk To Freedom, poly-lingual audio excerpts from Long Walk To Freedom (abridged edition), Inspiring Quotes from Long Walk To Freedom Idrissa Akuna Elba (; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor, writer, producer, musician, DJ, rapper, and singer. He is known for roles including Stringer Bell in the HBO series The Wire, DCI John Luther in the BBC One series Luther, and Nelson Mandela in the biographical film (2013). He has been nominated four times for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film, winning one, and was nominated five times for a Primetime Emmy Award. Elba appeared in Ridley Scott's American Gangster (2007) and Prometheus (2012). Elba portrayed Heimdall in Thor (2011) and its sequels (2013) and (2017), as well as (2015) and (2018). He also starred in Pacific Rim (2013), Beasts of No Nation (2015), for which he received BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor, and Molly's Game (2017). In 2016, he voiced Chief Bogo in Zootopia, Shere Khan in the live action/CGI adaptation of The Jungle Book, Fluke in Finding Dory, and played the role of Krall in Star Trek Beyond. He made his directorial debut in 2018 with an adaptation of the 1992 novel Yardie by Victor Headley. In addition to his acting work, Elba performs as a DJ under the moniker DJ Big Driis (or Big Driis the Londoner) and as an R&B; musician. In 2016, he was named in the Time 100 list of the Most Influential People in the World. As of May 2019, his films have grossed over at the global box office, including over in North America, where he is one of the top 20 highest-grossing actors. Elba was born on 6 September 1972 at Forest Gate Hospital in Hackney, London, the son of Winston, a Sierra Leonean man who worked at the Ford Dagenham plant, and Eve, a Ghanaian woman. Elba's parents were married in Sierra Leone and later moved to London. Elba was raised up in Hackney and East Ham, and shortened his first name to "Idris" at school in Canning Town, where he first became involved in acting. He credits The Stage with giving him his first big break, having seen an advertisement for a play in it; he auditioned and met his first agent while performing in the role. In 1986, he began helping an uncle with his wedding DJ business; within a year, he had started his own DJ company with some of his friends. Elba left school in 1988, and won a place in the National Youth Music Theatre thanks to a £1,500 Prince's Trust grant. To support himself between roles in his early career, he worked in odd jobs including: tyre-fitting, cold-calling, and night shifts at Ford Dagenham. He was working in nightclubs under the DJ nickname "Big Driis" during his adolescence, but began auditioning for television roles in his early twenties. Elba's first acting role was in Crimewatch murder reconstructions and in 1994 he appeared in a BBC children's drama called The Boot Street Band. In 1995, he landed his first significant role on a series called Bramwell, a medical drama set in 1890s England. He played a central character in an episode of Season 1, an African petty thief named Charlie Carter, who lost his (white) wife to childbirth and had to figure out how to support his newborn daughter. His first named role arrived earlier in 1995, when he was cast as a gigolo on the "Sex" episode of Absolutely Fabulous. Many supporting roles on British television followed, including series such as The Bill and The Ruth Rendell Mysteries. He joined the cast of the soap opera Family Affairs and went on to appear on the television serial Ultraviolet and later on Dangerfield. He decided to move to New York City soon after. He returned to England occasionally for a television role, such as a part in one of the Inspector Lynley Mysteries. In 2001, Elba played Achilles in a stage production of Troilus and Cressida in New York City. After a supporting turn on a 2001 episode of Law & Order, Elba landed a starring role on the 2002 HBO drama series The Wire. From 2002 to 2004, Elba portrayed Russell "Stringer" Bell in the series, perhaps his best-known role in the United States. In 2005, he portrayed Captain Augustin Muganza in Sometimes in April, an HBO film about the Rwandan genocide. Elba appeared on the 2007 BET special Black Men: The Truth. He appeared as Charlie Gotso on The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, filmed in Botswana. The series premiered on 23 March 2008, Easter Sunday, on BBC One, receiving a high 6.3 million viewers and 27% of the audience share. In January 2009, it was reported by Variety that Elba would portray Charles Miner, a new rival to Dunder Mifflin regional manager Michael Scott (Steve Carell) for NBC's The Office. Elba appeared in a six-episode story arc later in the 2009 season as well as the season finale. In September 2009, he signed a deal to star as the lead role on the six-part BBC television series Luther, which aired in May 2010. He appeared on Showtime's The Big C in 2010. At the 69th Golden Globe Awards telecast on 15 January 2012, Elba won the Award for Best Actor in a Series, Mini-Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television for his role on the BBC crime thriller series Luther. In April 2018, it was announced that Elba was cast as Charlie in the Netflix comedy series, Turn Up Charlie. He also created and starred in the semi-autobiographical comedy In The Long Run. In 2007, Elba signed on as the lead role of the film Daddy's Little Girls, playing Monty, a blue-collar mechanic who falls in love with an attorney helping him gain custody of his kids, and finds the relationship and his custody hopes threatened by the return of his former wife. He appeared in 28 Weeks Later (2007) and This Christmas (2007), which brought in nearly $50 million at the box office in 2007. In 2008, he starred in the horror film Prom Night and the Guy Ritchie London gangster film RocknRolla. In 2009, he starred in the horror film The Unborn and in Obsessed, a thriller that had him cast opposite Beyoncé. The latter was a box office success, taking $29 million in its opening weekend. Elba's next film was Legacy (2010), in which he portrayed a black ops soldier who returns to Brooklyn after a failed mission in Eastern Europe, where he has undertaken a journey looking for retribution. He starred in Dark Castle's adaptation of DC/Vertigo's The Losers, under the direction of Sylvain White, in the role of Roque, the second-in-command of a black-ops team out for revenge against a government that did them wrong. Filming took place in Puerto Rico and the movie was released in April 2010. Elba appeared in the thriller Takers (2010). He played Heimdall in Kenneth Branagh's film Thor (2011) (based on the Marvel Comics superhero of the same name). In August 2010, Elba signed up to portray the title character in a reboot of James Patterson's Alex Cross film franchise. However, in February 2011, he was replaced by Tyler Perry. In (2011), the sequel to Ghost Rider (2007), Elba played an alcoholic warrior monk tasked with finding the title character. In February 2012, Elba confirmed that he would portray Nelson Mandela in the film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, which is based on his autobiography. As part of his preparation for the role, Elba spent a night locked in a cell alone on Robben Island, where Mandela had been imprisoned. His performance earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama. In June 2012, Elba portrayed Captain Janek in Ridley Scott's Prometheus. He joined the cast of the film Pacific Rim (2013) in the role of Stacker Pentecost. He reprised his role as Heimdall in in 2013. In January 2014, he confirmed that he would be starring in a film adaptation of Luther. In 2014, he starred in No Good Deed as a vengeful psychopathic serial killer. In 2015, Elba appeared as Heimdall in the superhero blockbuster , directed by Joss Whedon. Elba also starred alongside Abraham Attah in the film Beasts of No Nation which premiered in select theaters and on Netflix. He earned a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture as well as a BAFTA Award nomination for Supporting Actor in the Film category. In 2016, he had several voice roles: the cape buffalo chief of police, Chief Bogo, in Disney's Zootopia, alongside Ginnifer Goodwin and Jason Bateman; villainous tiger Shere Khan in The Jungle Book (2016), a live-action adaptation of the animated 1967 film of the same name, directed by Jon Favreau; and sea lion Fluke in Pixar's Finding Dory, alongside Ellen DeGeneres and Albert Brooks, both reprising their roles from Finding Nemo (2003). Also that year, he played the main antagonist, Krall, in the sequel Star Trek Beyond. In 2017, he played Roland Deschain in the Stephen King film adaptation The Dark Tower, and starred in Aaron Sorkin's directorial debut Molly's Game, alongside Jessica Chastain. In 2019, Elba starred as the villain in Hobbs & Shaw, a spin-off of The Fast and the Furious franchise, and played Macavity in Tom Hooper's film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, Cats. Elba has appeared in music videos for Fat Joe (2002), Angie Stone (2004) and rapper Giggs (2010). In 2006, he recorded the four-song EP Big Man for Hevlar Records. He co-produced and performed on the intro to Jay-Z's album American Gangster (2007). He DJed at the 2007 NBA All Star parties at The Venetian and Ice House Lounge in Las Vegas. In July 2009, Elba was the DJ for BET's current series Rising Icons. Elba announced the release of his first single "Please Be True." In the August 2009 issue of Essence magazine, he announced the name of his six-song EP as Kings Among Kings. He released his EP High Class Problems Vol. 1 in the United Kingdom in February 2010, for which he has won many prizes including a Billboard Music Awards nomination. In 2011, he performed on the intro to Pharoahe Monch's album W.A.R.. The following year, he co-directed and performed in the Mumford & Sons music video for "Lover of the Light". In 2014, he produced K. Michelle's "The Rebellious Soul Musical" which debuted on VH1 on 19 August 2014. In May, Elba featured on Mr Hudson's single "Step Into the Shadows". Mr Hudson also produced his album Idris Elba Presents mi Mandela, which was released in November 2014. He also featured on the remix of Ghanaian music group, VVIP's single "Selfie" together with Nigerian rapper Phyno released on 12 September 2014 and video released on YouTube on 11 April 2015. Elba performed a rap for the second album by Noel Fielding and Sergio Pizzorno's band, the Loose Tapestries. Elba also rapped in a remix of Skepta's "Shutdown" which was uploaded on 1 June 2015 to SoundCloud. On 17 August, a song was released on which Elba appeared on Nigerian singer D'banj's single "Confidential", featuring Sierra Leonean rapper Shadow Boxer with the video uploaded to YouTube on 20 August. In November 2015, Elba opened for Madonna during her Rebel Heart Tour in Berlin, Germany. Elba is also featured on the Macklemore & Ryan Lewis album This Unruly Mess I've Made (2016). In July 2018, he launched his record label, 7Wallace Music. Elba performed at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2019. In 2019 he featured on the track “Boasty” by British grime artist Wiley. Elba also appears in the “Boasty” music video, delivering his verse in a mansion that includes a film set. In 2019, Elba appears in Taylor Swift’s song "London Boy" from her seventh studio album Lover. The intro of the song samples a snippet from an interview by Elba. In October 2014, Elba presented the series Journey Dot Africa with Idris Elba on BBC Radio 2, exploring all types of African music. Elba has also featured in various television commercials for Sky box-sets in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2019. Elba has collaborated with the UK Parliament in their efforts to eradicate Ebola from West Africa, working alongside the UK Secretary of State for International Development Justine Greening in 2014. Elba has created a collaboration with British fashion label Superdry, which launched at the end of November 2015. In January 2016, Elba addresssd the UK Parliament in regards to the concern of the lack of diversity on screen. Stating, 'Change is coming but it's taking its sweet time', he spoke about the lack of diversity regarding race, gender and sexuality. Elba hosted The Best FIFA Football Awards 2017 at the London Palladium on 23 October 2017. During the show he took a selfie of "the best team in the world" which included Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar. He had the idea to develop the music from his album Idris Elba Presents mi Mandela into a show, which ultimately resulted in a play called Tree which premiered at the Manchester International Festival in 2019. However, authorship of the piece was disputed. On 2 July 2019, The Guardian published a story describing how writers Tori Allen-Martin and Sarah Henley claimed to have been removed from the production under what they described as questionable circumstances. The two writers had worked on the project for four years following an approach from Elba asking them to develop his idea for a musical based on the album, on which Allen-Martin had also collaborated. Kwame Kwei-Armah joined the project in May 2018 and rewrote part of their material. At the time of its premiere Tree was billed as "created by Idris Elba and Kwame Kwei-Armah". Allen-Martin and Henley described their creative input as having included research and script-writing, as well as coming up with the play's title, and that after being removed they were threatened with legal action if they went public with the story. Elba and Kwei-Armah both published rebuttals of the writers' account of what happened on Twitter. Discovery Channel produced a documentary, Idris Elba: Fighter, chronicling Elba's 12-month kickboxing and mixed martial arts training under Muay Thai coach Kieran Keddle, culminating in Elba's first professional kickboxing fight–and win–against Lionel Graves, a younger, more experienced Dutch opponent, at London's York Hall. Elba has been married three times: first to Hanne "Kim" Nørgaard (from 1999 to 2003) and then to Sonya Nicole Hamlin (for four months in 2006). He has two children: a daughter with Kim named Isan (born 2002), who resides with Nørgaard in Atlanta, Georgia, and a son named Winston (born 2014) with ex- girlfriend Naiyana Garth. Elba became engaged to Sabrina Dhowre on 10 February 2018, during a screening of his film Yardie at an East London cinema; the pair have been dating since early 2017. They married on 26 April 2019, in Marrakesh. Elba states that he is spiritual but not religious. Elba is an avid supporter of Arsenal F.C. In 2015, as part of his Discovery Channel miniseries Idris Elba: No Limits, Elba broke the course record land speed "Flying Mile" for the Pendine Sands. The Prince's Trust, a UK youth charity founded by Prince Charles in 1976, which Elba credits with helping to start his career, appointed him as their anti-crime ambassador in April 2009. Elba voiced support for a vote to remain in the European Union for the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum. In May 2007, Elba was selected as one of Peoples annual 100 Most Beautiful People in the World. In 2013, he was named Essences annual Sexiest Man of the Year and was ranked No. 2 in Peoples annual Sexiest Man Alive. In October 2014, Elba was presented with a MOBO Inspiration Award. In 2015, he was named one of GQ magazine's 50 best-dressed British men. Elba was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to drama. In 2017, Elba won the male title for the "Rear of the Year" award in Britain. In September 2018, he was one of 50 people named for "making London awesome" and helping to shape London's cultural landscape who were featured in Time Out to mark the magazine's 50th anniversary. On 5 November 2018, it was announced he had been named Peoples Sexiest Man alive via The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Albums 2015: Murdah Loves John (The John Luther Character Album) Extended plays 2006: Big Man, 2009: Kings Among Kings, 2010: High Class Problems Vol. 1, 2014: Idris Elba Presents Mi Mandela Remixes "Trust in Me", "The Bare Necessities" Mixtapes 2011: Merry DriisMas Holiday Mixtape Other appearances 2019: "London Boy" by Taylor Swift — The intro of the song samples a snippet from an interview by Elba., 2019: "Party & BullShit" by Sarkodie - He was featured in the song Featured singles Richard Allen Stengel (born May 2, 1955) is an American editor, author, and former government official. He was Time magazine's 16th managing editor from 2006 to 2013. He was also chief executive of the National Constitution Center from 2004 to 2006, and served as President Obama's Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs from 2014 to 2016. Stengel has written a number of books, including a collaboration with Nelson Mandela on Mandela's autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom. Stengel is an on-air analyst at MSNBC, a strategic advisor at Snap Inc., and a Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council. His newest book, Information Wars: How we Lost the Battle Against Disinformation and What to Do About It, recounts his time in the State Department countering Russian disinformation and ISIS propaganda. Stengel was born in New York City and raised in Westchester County. He attended Princeton University and played on the Princeton Tigers basketball team as part of the 1975 National Invitation Tournament. He graduated magna cum laude in 1977. After college, he won a Rhodes Scholarship and studied English and history at Christ Church, Oxford. Stengel joined Time in 1981 and contributed to the magazine through the early and mid-1980s, including articles on South Africa, which he also covered for Rolling Stone magazine. He became a senior writer and essayist for Time, covering both the 1988 and 1996 presidential campaigns. While working for Time, Stengel also wrote for The New Yorker, The New Republic, Spy, and the New York Times and appeared on television as a commentator. Using his experiences as a journalist as a basis, in 1999 Stengel became a Ferris Professor at Princeton teaching a course on "Politics and the Press". He was one of the original on-air contributors for MSNBC. Stengel left Time in 1999, to become a senior advisor and chief speechwriter for Bill Bradley who ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for the 2000 presidential election. Stengel returned to Time in 2000 and took on the role of managing editor of Time.com. As announced by Time Inc. in May 2000, Stengel replaced Richard Duncan in the role and took on the responsibilities of overseeing news coverage and editorial content. He later held several other roles at Time, including a period as national editor of the magazine. Stengel left his role as national editor of Time in February 2004 to become the president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, a museum and education center in Philadelphia on March 1, 2004. He succeeded Joe Torsella (who resigned to seek a seat in the U.S. House from the 13th district) in the position, with the role of raising the center's profile, adding to its endowment, and increasing the number of visitors. At the Constitution Center, Stengel was responsible for starting the Peter Jennings Institute, offering constitutional training for journalists; Constitution High, a charter school for students interested in history and government; summer teacher institutes; and brought the Liberty Medal to the organization. In 2006, Stengel once again returned to Time, this time as managing editor of the magazine. The appointment was announced on May 17, 2006 by the Editor in Chief of Time Inc., John Huey, and he officially entered the role on June 15, 2006 as the 16th managing editor of the magazine, which was in its 83rd year at the time. In his role as managing editor, Stengel oversaw Time magazine, which is one of the largest magazines worldwide, and Time.com, as well as Time Books, and Time for Kids. His first major initiative was to change the magazine's newsstand date to Friday, starting in early 2007. Following this, Stengel implemented an ambitious graphic redesign and changes in the magazine's content, stating that he wanted the magazine to be more selective and to give the reader "knowledge" rather than "undigested information." He increased reporting on war and politics, giving Time a more focused editorial profile. In his first year as managing editor, Stengel selected "You" — short for user-generated-content — as Time's "Person of the Year", which was the subject of much media coverage and debate. In 2010, Time chose another social media-oriented "Person of the Year", Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. In 2008, Stengel approved the changing of Time's emblematic red border for only the second time since its adoption. The border was changed to green for a special issue focused on the environment. The cover, which included an altered version of Joe Rosenthal's iconic Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima photograph—substituting a tree for the American flag—was criticized by some veterans groups. Explaining the analogy, Stengel stated his belief that there "needs to be an effort along the lines of preparing for World War II to combat global warming and climate change". Under his leadership, Time has reported on significant world events such as its coverage of the Iraq war, which he describes in an editorial as necessary in order to remind people not to "turn away", and the 2008 presidential campaign. Following the election, president- elect Barack Obama was selected by Stengel as "Person of the Year" for Obama's 14th appearance on Time's cover in 2008. Stengel writes editorials for Time, including a 2010 piece explaining their use on Time's cover of a portrait of an 18-year-old Afghan woman whose nose and ears had been cut off by the Taliban as a punishment for running away from her in-laws. For a Time cover story in December 2010, he interviewed WikiLeaks spokesperson Julian Assange over Skype, in which Assange called for the resignation of United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Stengel was listed as number 41 on Newsweek's 2010 "Power 50" list in November 2010. He also regularly appears on shows such as CNN's American Morning and MSNBC's Morning Joe to promote the magazine. In 2012, Stengel received a News & Documentary Emmy Award for his work as executive producer on Time.com's Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience and, on behalf of Time Magazine, Stengel accepted the "Magazine of the Year" award at the National Magazine Awards. In May of the same year, Stengel interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a cover story of his that referred to Netanyahu as the "King of Israel". In November 2012, Stengel conducted an interview with Mohamed Morsi after he became Egypt's president. Among other coverage, the interview drew media attention for Morsi's remarks on the 1968 science fiction film Planet of the Apes. On September 12, 2013 Stengel announced he would be leaving TIME magazine for a role as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, the role responsible for leading "America's public diplomacy outreach, which includes communications with international audiences, cultural programming, academic grants, educational exchanges, international visitor programs, and U.S. Government efforts to confront ideological support for terrorism," according to the State Department's website. In September 2007, Stengel wrote a Time cover story called "The Case For National Service" in which he argued that Americans needed to redouble their efforts to get involved in community service and volunteerism, and that the presidential candidates needed to make the issue a top priority in the 2008 presidential campaign. Through this essay, he became involved with national service groups Be the Change, City Year, Civic Enterprises, and others to form ServiceNation, a coalition of more than 100 organizations dedicated to promoting national service and volunteerism. ServiceNation announced that it had secured both U.S. Presidential candidates to participate in Presidential Forum on National Service at Columbia University on September 11, 2008. Stengel served as co-moderator of the forum, along with PBS journalist Judy Woodruff, and both Senators Barack Obama and John McCain answered questions in front of a live audience at Columbia University about their plans for national service. On September 12, 2008, Stengel was a featured speaker at the ServiceNation Summit in New York, along with Caroline Kennedy, Senator Hillary Clinton, First Lady Laura Bush and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In February 2009, he testified alongside Usher Raymond, former U.S. Senator Harris Wofford and others, in front of the United States House Committee on Education and Labor about the importance of national service, leading to the passage of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act (H.R. 1388). Among other provisions, the bill helped to establish a Summer of Service Program, increase the number of AmeriCorps opportunities and establish a nationwide Call to Service Campaign. Stengel was awarded Citizen of the Year at the Annual National Conference on Citizenship on September 17, 2010. He has also been presented with the 2010 Lifetime of Idealism Award, awarded to him by City Year Washington, D.C. for "his commitment to promoting and expanding opportunities for Americans to serve". As Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, Stengel modernized the State Department’s communications efforts, including getting all embassies on social media and using new digital platforms to help America tell its story abroad. Stengel led the department’s counter-disinformation efforts, which included managing State’s counter-ISIS messaging center, The Center for Strategic Counter Terrorism Communications, and started the first counter Russian disinformation hub at the department. That ultimately led to an executive order creating the Global Engagement Center, the one entity in government tasked with countering disinformation globally. He also helped create a joint effort between the Peace Corps and the State Department called “English for All,” a whole-of-government effort to teach English around the world. In December of 2016, Stengel became the longest serving Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy in American history. Stengel is currently an on- air analyst for MSNBC and NBC who comments on political news of the day. He is also a strategic adviser at Snap, Inc. working primarily on communications. Stengel is also a member of the board of directors of CARE, the global humanitarian and poverty relief organization. Stengel has authored several books including January Sun: One Day, Three Lives, A South African Town, a non-fiction work about the lives of three men in rural South Africa, published in 1990 and You're Too Kind: A Brief History of Flattery a popular history of flattery, published in 2000. Mandela's Way: Fifteen Lessons on Life, Love and Courage was released in March 2010 and is based on Stengel's personal interactions with Nelson Mandela. The book has drawn praise from President Bill Clinton, Deepak Chopra, and Harvard's Henry Louis Gates, Jr. In 2012, Stengel edited and wrote the lead essay for the book The Constitution: The Essential User's Guide, which explored the relevance of the U.S. Constitution in modern-day events. The book that Stengel is best known for is his collaboration with Nelson Mandela on Mandela's autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom. In 1992, he signed a ghostwriting deal with publishers Little, Brown to work on the book, having first been cleared by the African National Congress as a suitable author. The book was published in 1995, and was praised by the Financial Times, which stated: "Their collaboration produced surely one of the great autobiographies of the 20th century". Stengel later served as co-producer of the 1996 documentary film Mandela, which was nominated for an Academy Award. Stengel’s latest book, “Information Wars,” has been praised by Madeleine Albright, Walter Isaacson and Jon Meacham. It tells the story of his efforts to combat both Russian disinformation and ISIS messaging from the State Department, and the eventual formation of the Global Engagement Center, the one government agency tasked with fighting the global epidemic of disinformation. The book’s final chapter details what can be done about disinformation, everything from amending the Communications and Decency Act to make the big platform companies more liable for their content to making media literacy a compulsory subject in high school. Stengel is married to Mary Pfaff, a native of South Africa. They have two sons, Gabe and Anton. The couple met while Stengel was in South Africa working on Nelson Mandela's autobiography, and Mandela was godfather to their oldest son, Gabriel. Stengel delivered the commencement address and received honorary doctorates from Wittenberg University in 2009, Wheaton College in 2011 and Butler University in 2012. Official biography from Time Inc.

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The Stones in the Park was a free outdoor festival held in Hyde Park on 5 July 1969, headlined by The Rolling Stones and featuring Third Ear Band, King Crimson, Screw, Alexis Korner's New Church, Family and the Battered Ornaments, in front of a crowd estimated at between 250,000 and 500,000 fans. It was the Stones' first public concert in over two years, and was planned as an introduction of new guitarist, Mick Taylor, though circumstances inevitably changed following the death of former member Brian Jones two days earlier. The band rehearsed at the Beatles' studio in a basement on Savile Row, and Jagger and Richards came up with a 14-song set; the Hyde Park concert would be the first time many of the songs had been played before a public audience. The PA system was supplied by Watkins Electric Music, who had handled amplification at previous Hyde Park events. Fans started to arrive at the park with candles on 4 July in tribute to Jones, and by the morning of 5 July, 7,000 people had already gathered. Mick Jagger read a short eulogy on stage before the Stones' set began, reading two stanzas of Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem on John Keats's death, Adonaïs, from a calf-bound book. After this recital, several hundred cabbage white butterflies were released. The setlist for their performance was "I'm Yours & I'm Hers", "Jumpin' Jack Flash". "Mercy Mercy", "Down Home Girl", "Stray Cat Blues", "No Expectations", "I'm Free", "Loving Cup", "Love in Vain", "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", "Honky Tonk Women", "Midnight Rambler", "Street Fighting Man" and "Sympathy for the Devil". During the 18-minute-long rendition of "Sympathy for the Devil", a number of African tribal drummers joined the band. While the event is considered a memorable one by several critics, they also agree that it was not one of the Stones' best performances, and the guitars played during the concert were out of tune. In a 1971 interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Keith Richards evaluated their performance, "We played pretty bad until near the end, because we hadn't played for years ... Nobody minded, because they just wanted to hear us play again." The Stones' portion of concert was filmed by Granada Television and broadcast that September. It has since been released on DVD and Blu-ray. In April 2013, the band announced their intention to play two return concerts on 6 and 13 July, although the performances were not free. The festival was an important one for the Stones. They had not performed a public concert since their 1967 European Tour, and in 1968 had only performed at the NME Poll Winners Concert and at their television project The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus. In interviews, Mick Jagger stated that he felt the band's forte was performing live, rather than in the studio, and was keen to return to the stage. Blackhill Enterprises, which had already managed several successful concerts in Hyde Park, including a festival headlined by Blind Faith in June 1969 attended by 150,000 people, were contacted to organise one at the next convenient date after the organiser-compère of that concert, Sam Cutler, had met Jagger in the VIP area at the concert and later at the Royal Albert Hall. When asked why the festival would be free, Jagger noted that they had not made much money from previous concert tours anyway, and that he felt the audience would have a better time if they did not have to pay although he ensured that the cost of the concert would be covered by selling exclusive television rights to Granada Television. However, the gradual estrangement of Brian Jones and his decreasing musical contributions – he had only appeared on two tracks on the then in-progress Let It Bleed — made a return to touring problematic. They had shelved The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus after having been upstaged by The Who. By June 1969, matters had finally come to a head and it was decided that Jones should be replaced for the gig. Mick Taylor, who had by this time obtained a reputation for himself by playing with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, was invited to work on Let It Bleed. The band enjoyed his contributions and decided to make him an offer to join full-time. After considering this for a few days, he accepted, and his position was officially announced at a press conference in the park's bandstand on 13 June. The single "Honky Tonk Women," recorded on 1 June with Taylor, was rush-released to tie in with the festival date. The Hyde Park concert would be Taylor's first gig with the band, and as they had barely had any time to rehearse with him he was understandably nervous. Jagger, too, was nervous, unsure whether Jones's fans would take to Taylor and indeed whether they would boycott the concert; he did not expect the crowd to match the 150,000 who had come to the Blind Faith gig. In addition, the hot summer had sent the pollen levels soaring and Jagger suffered from hay-fever and laryngitis in the days leading up to the concert. Jones died on 3 July, two days before the festival. The Stones were in Olympic Studios when they were told of his death by Ian Stewart, and, although grief-stricken, decided they would go ahead with the gig and dedicate their performance to him. Keith Richards later wrote: The band rehearsed at the Beatles' studio in the basement of Savile Row, and Jagger and Richards came up with a 14-song set; the Hyde Park concert would be the first time many of the songs had been played before a public audience. The performers at the festival included Third Ear Band, Screw, King Crimson, Alexis Korner's New Church, Roy Harper, Battered Ornaments, Family and The Rolling Stones. Fans started to arrive at the park with candles on 4 July in tribute to Jones, and the police allowed the park to be opened late so they could stay. By the following morning, there were already 7,000 people. As with the Stones' performance at the infamous Altamont Free Concert later that year, the Hells Angels were hired as stewards to protect the stage and equipment, something suggested by the Grateful Dead's manager Rock Scully, who was used to the Angels performing this service at free festivals in California. According to Cutler, Jagger said that he was keen on doing a similar free concert in California at some time in the future. At Hyde Park, fifty Angels patrolled the vicinity of the stage, though there was little resemblance other than a superficial one to their American counterparts. They performed their duties in exchange for a cup of tea. In the event, there were only twelve arrests on the day and a subsequent police report claimed that the Angels were "totally ineffective". King Crimson at this point still consisted of the original line-up of Robert Fripp, Greg Lake, Ian McDonald, Michael Giles and lyricist Peter Sinfield. They had not yet released an album, and were invited to play on the strength of word of mouth after their live performances in venues such as the Marquee Club. Sam Cutler introduced them on stage, stating the "new band is gonna go a long way". The band's setlist was "21st Century Schizoid Man", "The Court of the Crimson King", "Get Thy Bearings", "Epitaph", "Mantra", "Travel Weary Capricorn" and "Mars". Three of the tracks appeared in studio form on the band's debut album, In the Court of the Crimson King, albeit with different lyrics compared with the performance here. The band's set has since been released on CD, with some bonus material. Recalling the event, Fripp remembers the sense of community at the event and the good weather, particularly noting a sense of goodwill backstage. Alexis Korner's involvement with Blues Incorporated had been a key ingredient in the Stones forming in 1962, and he had played onstage with several group members during this time. New Church had been formed with guitarist Peter Thorup after the demise of Blues Incorporated. Roy Harper had been regularly appearing at a number of Hyde Park festivals since 1968 and saw his popularity increase as a result of these. This eventually resulted in Blackhill's Peter Jenner managing him, leading to a contract with Harvest Records. For 5 July gig, he contributed a one-song set between equipment changes. The Battered Ornaments had been the backing band for Cream collaborator Pete Brown. They performed without Brown for the festival, who had been fired from the band the previous day. Guitarist Chris Spedding took over lead vocals. The band supplied the armoured personnel carrier that carried the Stones from their hotel to the park. The band met at the Londonderry Hotel on Park Lane, overlooking the park, where they had booked a tenth-floor suite, and proceeded to the park in the armoured personnel carrier, together with their two official photographers, Michael Cooper and Spanish Tony Sanchez. They alighted from the carrier into a caravan-trailer behind the stage. Jagger, his face heavily made up and with a studded leather collar around his neck, was clad in a white dress. He had borrowed the dress, which had been made for Sammy Davis Jr. at the Mr. Fish boutique, and wore it to Prince Rupert Lowenstein's white ball, where he had shown it to Princess Margaret. Jagger was only to wear it for half-an-hour at the Hyde Park concert, after which he tore it off to reveal a violet T-shirt and white loon pants. Before the Stones opened their set, Jagger addressed the crowd, asking them to be quiet so he could read something as a tribute to Jones. He then read two stanzas of Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem on John Keats's death, Adonaïs, from a calf-bound book. After this recital, several hundred cabbage white butterflies were released, despite the Royal Parks authority having stipulated before the concert that any butterflies released by the Stones should be sterilised and should certainly not be of the voracious cabbage white genus (Pieris spp.). 2,500 butterflies were due to be released, but due to the hot weather, many of them died from lack of air in storage. The Stones then launched into "I'm Yours and I'm Hers", which, according to Philip Norman, was an ironic choice given that Marianne Faithfull and Marsha Hunt, both of whom Jagger was alleged to be having relationships with at that time, were in the audience. The setlist for their performance was "I'm Yours & I'm Hers", "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "No Expectations", "Mercy Mercy", "Stray Cat Blues", "I'm Free", "Down Home Girl", "Love in Vain", "Give Me a Little Drink", "Midnight Rambler", "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", "Honky Tonk Women", "Street Fighting Man" and "Sympathy for the Devil". During the 18-minute-long rendition of "Sympathy for the Devil", a number of Ginger Johnson's African tribal drummers joined the band. After the concert ended, the volunteers who cleared up the 5,000 tonnes of rubbish were each given a copy of "Honky Tonk Women". Though park keepers feared that the crowd would cause damage to the park, an official estimate suggested the cost was only around £100 (now £). Park superintendent John Hare reported the most serious damage was to a silver birch tree planted the previous year. He praised the concertgoers, many of whom helped clear up after the concert and were awarded with a free Stones LP if they returned a full sack. Blackhill Enterprises provided a high stage, with the speakers being housed in a thirty-foot-high tower so that people at the far end of the park would be able to hear the music. The stage was flanked by palm trees in pots and behind the performers there was a blowup of the cover of the Beggars Banquet album. Richards had started experimenting with open tunings by this point in the band's career, particularly after hearing Ry Cooder, and the Hyde Park gig was the first chance audiences got to hear them. He played a Gibson ES-330 tuned to open E tuning with a capo on the fourth fret, and a Gibson Flying V. Taylor, meanwhile, played a Gibson Les Paul for the opening number, followed by an SG for the majority of the set. The PA system was supplied by Watkins Electric Music, who already handled amplification at previous Hyde Park shows. Company founder Charlie Watkins recalls it was the largest PA he had assembled to that point and, unable to provide enough gear himself, he was forced to borrow extras from other groups, later saying, "I didn't have many columns, but I wanted to put 1500W up. I borrowed some from T-Rex. They all chipped in — that's what we used to do." In 1971, in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Richards said, "We played pretty bad until near the end, because we hadn't played for years ... Nobody minded, because they just wanted to hear us play again." The Guardian's Richard Gott stated that the show was "a great and epoch-making event in British social history", although he added that "most of the music ... was indifferent". According to Norman, "the band's underpreparedness was painfully obvious. Keith and Mick Taylor's guitars, so harmonious at first meeting, turned into a pair of pneumatic drills fighting a grudge match to the death. Charlie's drumming and Bill's bass each seemed to have melted into jelly." The Daily Telegraph's Iain Martin stated that the Stones were "under-rehearsed and quite possibly nervous, not having performed live in front of an audience in more than two years. The guitars were badly out of tune and half the songs were approached at the wrong tempo", adding that Jagger appeared to be "trying to cover up for the shortcomings of his bandmates". Retrospectively reviewing the DVD release of the Stones' set, Film 4 commented: "It isn't the greatest film about the band and it isn't their greatest performance, but for fans it captures the band at a significant moment." The DVD, released on 25 September 2006, includes the same concert footage as the TV broadcast of 25 September 1969. The DVD includes three previously unseen songs which were filmed at the concert – "Mercy, Mercy", "Stray Cat Blues" and "No Expectations". The latter two are incomplete but are included here due to their uniqueness (HD). Also included is news footage of their early fame from 1964, footage of Mick Jagger discussing his arrest for drugs possession in July 1967 and his subsequent press conference on his release from prison, and a 1971 interview with Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts about their tour of France. Eagle Rock Entertainment later issued reissued the special on DVD and Blu-Ray as From the Vault – Hyde Park – Live in 1969 in 2015. 1. "Midnight Rambler" (4:30) 2. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" (4:00) 3. "I'm Free" (2:50) 4. Eulogy (for Brian Jones) (2:00) 5. "I'm Yours & I'm Hers" (Johnny Winter) (2:10) 6. "Jumpin' Jack Flash" (3:20) 7. "Honky Tonk Women" (3:05) 8. "Love in Vain" (Robert Johnson) (4:30) 9. "Sympathy for the Devil" (10:30) Bonus tracks "Mercy Mercy", "Stray Cat Blues", "No Expectations" On Richard Bacon's BBC Radio 5 Live show on 3 April 2013 it was announced that the Rolling Stones would hold a concert in Hyde Park as part of their 50th anniversary celebrations on 6 July. Mick Jagger quipped, "I'll try and keep the poetry to a minimum", and remarked, in respect of the white dress that he wore for the 1969 concert, "I can still just about get into the zippers." On 9 April it was announced that they would hold a second concert, on 13 July. List of historic rock festivals UK Rock Festivals − The Stones in the Park, British Pathé video of the Stones' set, Article of the Spanish website The Fifth Beatle Michael Kevin Taylor (born 17 January 1949) is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers (1967–69) and the Rolling Stones (1969–74). He has appeared on some of the Stones' classic albums, including Let It Bleed (1969), Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out! The Rolling Stones in Concert (1970), Sticky Fingers (1971) and Exile on Main St. (1972). Since leaving the Rolling Stones in December 1974, Taylor has worked with numerous other artists and released several solo albums. From November 2012 onwards he participated in the Stones' 50th-Anniversary shows in London and Newark, and in the band's 50 & Counting tour, which included North America, Glastonbury Festival and Hyde Park in 2013. The band decided to continue in 2014 with concerts in the UAE, Far East & Australia and Europe for the 14 On Fire tour. He was ranked 37th in Rolling Stone magazine's 2011 list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash states that Taylor had the biggest influence on him. Taylor was born to a working-class family in Welwyn Garden City, but was raised in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, where his father worked as a fitter (machinist) for the De Havilland aircraft company. He began playing guitar at age nine, learning to play from his mother's younger brother. As a teenager, he formed bands with schoolmates and started performing concerts under names such as The Juniors and the Strangers. They also appeared on television and put out a single. Part of the band was recruited for a new group called The Gods, which included Ken Hensley (later of Uriah Heep fame). In 1966, The Gods opened for Cream at the Starlite Ballroom in Wembley. In 1965, at age 16, Taylor went to see a John Mayall's Bluesbreakers performance at "The Hop" Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City. Taylor himself has said after seeing that Clapton hadn't appeared, but that his guitar had already been set up on the stage, he approached John Mayall during the interval to ask if he could play with them. Taylor mentioned that he was familiar with the band's repertoire, and after a moment of deliberation, Mayall agreed. Taylor amended, "I wasn't thinking that this was a great opportunity ... I just really wanted to get up on stage and play the guitar." After playing the second set, and garnering Mayall's respect in the process, Taylor left the stage, joined his friends and exited the venue before Mayall had the chance to speak with him. Still, this encounter proved to be pivotal in Taylor's career when Mayall needed someone to fill Peter Green's vacancy the following year, when Green quit to form Fleetwood Mac. Mayall placed a 'Guitarist Wanted' advert in the weekly Melody Maker music paper, and much to his relief immediately got a response from Taylor, whom he readily invited to join. Taylor made his debut with the Bluesbreakers at the Manor House, an old blues club in north London. For those in the music scene the night was an event ..."Let's go and see this 17-year-old kid try and replace Eric". Taylor toured and recorded the album Crusade with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. From 1966 to 1969, Taylor developed a guitar style that is blues-based with Latin and jazz influences. He is the guitarist on the Bluesbreaker albums Diary of a Band, Bare Wires, and Blues from Laurel Canyon. Later on in his career, he further developed his skills as a slide guitarist. After Brian Jones was removed from The Rolling Stones in June 1969, John Mayall and Ian Stewart recommended Taylor to Mick Jagger. Taylor believed he was being called in to be a session musician at his first studio session with the Rolling Stones. An impressed Jagger and Keith Richards invited Taylor back the following day to continue rehearsing and recording with the band. He overdubbed guitar on "Country Honk" and "Live With Me" for the album Let It Bleed, and on the single "Honky Tonk Women" released in the UK on 4 July 1969. Taylor's onstage debut as a Rolling Stone, at the age of 20, was the free concert in Hyde Park, London on 5 July 1969. An estimated quarter of a million people attended for a show that turned into a tribute to Brian Jones, who had died two days before the concert. After the 1973 European tour, Richards's drug problems had worsened and began affecting the ability of the band to function as a whole. Between recording sessions, the band members were living in various countries and during this period Taylor appeared on Herbie Mann's London Underground (1974) and also on Mann's album Reggae (1974). In November 1973, Taylor underwent surgery for acute sinusitis and missed some of the sessions when the band began working on the LP It's Only Rock 'n Roll at Musicland Studios in Munich, Not much was achieved during the first ten days at Musicland, but most of the actual recordings were made there in January 1974, and in April at Stargroves, Jagger's estate in Hampshire. When Taylor resumed work with the band, he found it difficult to get along with Richards. Not long after those recording sessions, Taylor went on a six-week expedition to Brazil, to travel down the Amazon River in a boat and explore Latin music. Just before the release of the album in October 1974, Taylor told Nick Kent from the NME about the new LP and that he had co-written "Till the Next Goodbye" and "Time Waits for No One" with Jagger. Kent showed Taylor the record sleeve, which revealed the absence of any songwriting credits for Taylor. In December 1974, Taylor announced he was leaving the Rolling Stones. The bandmates were at a party in London when Taylor told Jagger he was quitting and walked out. Taylor's decision came as a shock to many. The Rolling Stones were due to start recording a new album in Munich, and the entire band was reportedly angry at Taylor for leaving at such short notice. When interviewed by Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone in 1995, Jagger stated that Taylor never explained why he had left, and surmised that "[Taylor] wanted to have a solo career. I think he found it difficult to get on with Keith." In the same interview Jagger said of Taylor's contribution to the band: "I think he had a big contribution. He made it very musical. He was a very fluent, melodic player, which we never had, and we don't have now. Neither Keith nor Ronnie Wood plays that kind of style. It was very good for me working with him ... Mick Taylor would play very fluid lines against my vocals. He was exciting, and he was very pretty, and it gave me something to follow, to bang off. Some people think that's the best version of the band that existed". Asked if he agreed with that assessment, Jagger said: "I obviously can't say if I think Mick Taylor was the best, because it sort of trashes the period the band is in now." Charlie Watts stated: "I think we chose the right man for the job at that time just as Ronnie was the right man for the job later on. I still think Mick is great. I haven't heard or seen him play in a few years. But certainly what came out of playing with him are musically some of the best things we've ever done". In an October 2002 Guitar World interview, Richards reflected on his relationship with Taylor: "Mick Taylor and I worked really well together ... He had some lovely energy. Sweetly sophisticated playing, way beyond his years. Lovely sense of melody. I never understood why he left the Stones. Nor does he, I think ... I had no desire to see him go." Taylor later admitted in the 2012 documentary Crossfire Hurricane that he left because he wanted to protect his family from the drug culture surrounding the band. He further stated that in order to stay alive and fight his own demons (Taylor had turned into a drug addict himself by 1973), he needed to escape the realm of the Stones. In an essay about the Rolling Stones published after Taylor's resignation, New York Times music critic Robert Palmer wrote that "Taylor is the most accomplished technician who ever served as a Stone. A blues guitarist with a jazzman's flair for melodic invention, Taylor was never a rock and roller and never a showman." Taylor has worked with his former bandmates on various occasions since leaving the Rolling Stones. In 1977 he attended London-based sessions for the John Phillips album Pay Pack & Follow, appearing on several tracks alongside Jagger (vocals), Richards (guitar) and Wood (bass). A possibly apocryphal story is that after Taylor played a particularly jaw-dropping solo in the studio, Richards half-jokingly exclaimed, "That's why I never liked you, you bastard!" On 14 December 1981 he performed with the band at their concert at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri. Keith Richards appeared on stage at a Mick Taylor show at the Lone Star Cafe in New York on 28 December 1986, jamming on "Key to the Highway" and "Can't You Hear Me Knocking"; and Taylor is featured on one track ("I Could Have Stood You Up") on Richards' 1988 album Talk is Cheap. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Taylor along with the Rolling Stones in 1989. Taylor also worked with Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings in the early 1990s. In addition to his contributions to Rolling Stones albums released during his tenure with the band, Taylor's guitar is also on two tracks on their 1981 release Tattoo You: "Tops" and "Waiting on a Friend", which were recorded in 1972. (Taylor is sometimes mistakenly credited as playing on "Worried About You", but the solo on that track is performed by Wayne Perkins.) Taylor's onstage presence with the Rolling Stones is preserved on the album Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!, recorded over four concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York and the Civic Center in Baltimore in November 1969, and on the album Brussels Affair (Live 1973), compiled from two shows recorded in Brussels on 17 October 1973 in the Forest National Arena, during their European Tour. Taylor's live performances also feature in the documentary films Stones in the Park (released on DVD in 2001), Gimme Shelter (released in 1970) and Cocksucker Blues (unreleased); and in the concert film (shown in cinemas in 1974, and released on DVD and Blu-ray in 2010); these performances were also released on an album with the same title. Bootleg recordings from the Rolling Stones' tours from 1969 through 1973 also document Taylor's concert performances with the Rolling Stones. For the 2010 re-release of Exile on Main St. Taylor worked with Mick Jagger at a London studio (November 2009) to record new guitar and vocal parts for the previously unreleased song, "Plundered My Soul". The track was selected by the Rolling Stones for release as a limited edition single on Record Store Day. On 24 October 2012, the Rolling Stones announced, via their latest Rolling Stone magazine interview, that Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor were expected to join the Rolling Stones on stage at the upcoming November shows in London. Richards went on to say that the pair would strictly be guests. At the two London shows on 25 and 29 November, Taylor played on "Midnight Rambler". During an interview on the Late Night with Jimmy Fallon show (broadcast on 8 April 2013), Keith Richards stated that Taylor would be performing with the Stones for their upcoming 2013 tour dates. Between 25 November 2012 and 13 July 2013 Taylor joined the Stones' 50 & Counting Tour performing at each of the 30 shows across Europe and North America, including sitting in on four songs at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and several numbers during their headline set at the Glastonbury Festival. The tour ended with two concerts at Hyde Park, London, which resulted in the album, Hyde Park Live and the concert film . He once again accompanied the Stones between 21 February and 22 November 2014 for the 29 dates of the 14 On Fire concerts across Asia, Europe and Australia/New Zealand. Taylor worked on various side projects during his tenure with the Rolling Stones. In June 1973, he joined Mike Oldfield onstage at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in a performance of Oldfield's Tubular Bells. Taylor was asked to take part in this project by Richard Branson as he felt Oldfield was unknown, having just been signed to Branson's fledgling label, Virgin Records. Taylor joined Oldfield once more for a BBC television broadcast in November 1973. After his resignation from the Rolling Stones, Jack Bruce invited him to form a new band with keyboardist Carla Bley and drummer Bruce Gary. In 1975, the band began rehearsals in London with tour dates scheduled for later that year. The group toured Europe, with a sound leaning more toward jazz, including a performance at the Dutch Pinkpop festival, but disbanded the following year. A performance recorded on 1 June 1975 (which was finally released on CD in 2003 as "Live at the Manchester Free Trade Hall" by The Jack Bruce Band) and another performance from the Old Grey Whistle Test seem to be the only material available from this brief collaboration. Taylor appeared as a special guest of Little Feat at the Rainbow Theatre in London, 1977, sharing slide guitar with then-frontman Lowell George on "A Apolitical Blues": this song appears on Little Feat's critically acclaimed live album Waiting for Columbus. In the summer of 1977, he collaborated with Pierre Moerlen's Gong for the album Expresso II, released in 1978. Taylor began writing new songs and recruiting musicians for a solo album and worked on projects with Miller Anderson, Alan Merrill and others. He was present at many of the recording sessions for John Phillips' prospective second solo album. The recordings for Phillips' LP took place in London over a prolonged period between 1973-77. This led to Taylor working with Keith Richards and Mick Jagger who were also involved with the album. The LP was to be released on the Stones' own label Rolling Stones Records (distributed by Atlantic Records). Ahmet Ertegun decided to pull the plug on the project after hearing alarming reports of excessive drug use by Phillips and Richards, but bootleg recordings of the sessions circulated among fans under the titles "Half Stoned" and "Phillips '77". Eventually Eagle Rock Records made funds available to restore the original, rescued tapes and the album finally saw an official release in 2002 as Pay Pack & Follow. In 1977, Taylor signed a solo recording deal with Columbia Records. By April 1978 he had given several interviews to music magazines to promote a new, completed album which mixed rock, jazz and Latin- flavoured blues musical styles. The album, titled Mick Taylor, was finally released by Columbia Records in 1979 and reached No. 119 on the Billboard charts in early August, with a stay of five weeks on the Billboard 200. CBS advised Taylor to promote the album through American radio stations but was unwilling to back him for any supporting tour. Frustrated with this situation, Taylor took a break from the music industry for about a year. In 1981, he toured Europe and the United States with Alvin Lee of Ten Years After, sharing the bill with Black Sabbath. He spent most of 1982 and 1983 on the road with John Mayall, for the "Reunion Tour" with John McVie of Fleetwood Mac and Colin Allen. During this tour Bob Dylan showed up backstage at The Roxy in Los Angeles to meet Taylor. In 1983, Taylor joined Mark Knopfler and played on Dylan's Infidels album. He also appeared on Dylan's live album Real Live, as well as the follow-up studio album Empire Burlesque. In 1984, Dylan asked Mick Taylor to assemble an experienced rock and roll band for a European tour he signed with Bill Graham. Ian McLagan was hired to play piano and Hammond organ, Greg Sutton to play bass and Colin Allen, a long-time friend of Taylor, on drums. The tour lasted for four weeks at venues such as Munich's Olympic Stadium Arena and Milan's San Siro Stadium, sharing the bill with Carlos Santana and Joan Baez, who appeared on the same bill for a couple of shows. Mick Taylor performed the lead guitar solo on the 1988 Joan Jett & the Blackhearts top-10 single, "I Hate Myself for Loving You." Taylor guested with the Grateful Dead on 24 September 1988 at the last show of that year's Madison Square Garden run in New York. Taylor lived in New York throughout the 1980s. He battled with addiction problems before getting back on track in the second half of the 1980s and moving to Los Angeles in 1990. During this time Taylor did session work and toured in Europe, America and Japan with a band including; He began what was to be a significant series of collaborations with L.A. based Carla Olson with their "Live at the Roxy" album Too Hot For Snakes, the centrepiece of which is an extended seven-minute performance of "Sway". Another highlight is the lead track on the album, "Who Put the Sting (On the Honey Bee)", by Olson's then-bassist Jesse Sublett. It was followed by Olson's Within An Ace, which featured Taylor on seven songs. He appeared on three songs from Reap The Whirlwind and then again on Olson's The Ring of Truth, on which he plays lead guitar on nine tracks, including a twelve-minute version of the song "Winter". Further work by Olson and Taylor can be heard on the Olson-produced Barry Goldberg album Stoned Again. Taylor went on to appear on Percy Sledge's Blue Night (1994), along with Steve Cropper, Bobby Womack and Greg Leisz. After spending two years as a resident of Miami, during which time he played with a band called 'Tumbling Dice' featuring Bobby Keys, Nicky Hopkins and others, Taylor moved back to England in the mid-1990s. He released a new album in 1998 entitled A Stone's Throw. Playing at clubs and theatres as well as appearing at festivals has kept Taylor connected with an appreciative audience and fan base. In 2003, Taylor reunited with John Mayall for his 70th Birthday Concert in Liverpool along with Eric Clapton. A year later, in autumn 2004, he also joined John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers for a UK theatre tour. He toured the US East Coast with the Experience Hendrix group during October 2007. The Experience Hendrix group appeared at a series of concerts to honour Jimi Hendrix and his musical legacy. Players included Taylor, Mitch Mitchell, Billy Cox, Buddy Guy, Hubert Sumlin and Robby Krieger. On 1 December 2010, Taylor reunited with Ronnie Wood at a benefit gig arranged by blues guitarist Stephen Dale Petit to save the 100 Club in London. Other special guests at the show were Dick Taylor (first bassist in the Rolling Stones) and blues/jazz trombonist Chris Barber. Taylor toured the UK with Petit, appearing as his special guest, featured on a Paul Jones BBC Radio 2 session with him and guested on Petit's 2010 Classic Rock magazine Album of the Year, The Crave. Taylor also helped to promote the Boogie for Stu album, which was recorded by Ben Waters to honour Ian Stewart (original Stones pianist and co-founder of the band), by taking part in a concert to mark the CD's official launch at the Ambassadors Theatre, London on 9 March 2011. Proceeds from the event were donated to the British Heart Foundation. Although Mick Jagger and Keith Richards didn't show up, Taylor noticeably enjoyed performing with, amongst others, Charlie Watts, Ronnie Wood and Bill Wyman. Throughout his career, Taylor has used various guitars, but is mostly associated with the Gibson Les Paul. His first Les Paul was bought when he was still playing with The Gods (from Selmer's, London in '65). He acquired his second Les Paul in 1967, not long after joining The Bluesbreakers: Taylor came to Olympic Studios to buy a Les Paul that Keith Richards wanted to sell. On the '72/'73 tours Taylor used a couple of Sunburst Les Paul guitars without a Bigsby. Other guitars include a Gibson ES-355 for the recording of Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main St., a Gibson SG on the 1969, 1970 and 1971 tours, and occasionally a Fender Stratocaster and a Fender Telecaster. Taylor has been married twice and has two daughters. Chloe (born 6 January 1971) is a daughter by his first wife Rose Millar. Taylor married Rose in 1975 after leaving the Stones, but the relationship was reportedly "on the rocks" before long and resulted in divorce only a few years later. His second daughter Emma was born from a short relationship with an American woman, who sang backing vocals with Taylor's band on one occasion. Inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame (with the Rolling Stones, 1989), Taylor's handprints have been on Hollywood's RockWalk since 6 September 1998., Taylor was ranked in 37th place by Rolling Stone magazine in its 2012 list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. Crusade (Decca, 1967/LP; 1987/CD), The Diary of A Band, Volumes 1 & 2 (Decca, 1968/2LP; 2007/2CD), Bare Wires (Decca, 1968/LP; 1988/CD), Blues from Laurel Canyon (Decca, 1968/LP; 1989/CD), Back to the Roots (Polydor, 1971/LP; 2001/2CD), Primal Solos (Decca, 1977/LP; 1990/CD) – selection of live recordings 1965 (with Eric Clapton), and 1968 (with Mick Taylor), Return of the Bluesbreakers (AIM, 1985/LP; 1993/CD), Wake Up Call (Silvertone, 1993/CD), The 1982 Reunion Concert (Repertoire, 1994/CD) – with John Mayall, John McVie, and Colin Allen, Silver Tones: The Best of John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers (Silvertone, 1998/CD), Along For The Ride (Eagle, 2001/CD), Rolling With The Blues (Recall, 2005/2CD) – selection of live recordings 1972, 1973, 1980, and 1982, Essentially John Mayall (Eagle, 2007/5-CD box set) Through the Past, Darkly (Decca, 1969) – (compilation) UK/US #2, Let It Bleed (Decca, 1969) – UK #1 / US #3, Live'r Than You'l Ever Be (?, 1969) – bootleg, certified Gold Album, Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out! (Decca, 1970) – UK #1 / US #6, Sticky Fingers (Rolling Stones Records, 1971) – UK/US #1, Gimme Shelter (Decca, 1971) – (compilation) UK #19, Hot Rocks 1964–1971 (Abkco Records, 1972) – (compilation) UK #3 / US #4, Exile on Main St. (Rolling Stones Records, 1972) – UK/US #1, Rock'n'Rolling Stones (Decca, 1972) – (compilation) UK #41, Goats Head Soup (Rolling Stones Records, 1973) – UK/US #1, It's Only Rock 'n Roll (Rolling Stones Records, 1974) – UK #2 / US #1, Made in the Shade (Rolling Stones Records, 1975) – (compilation) UK #14 / US #6, Metamorphosis (Abkco Records, 1975) – UK #45 / US #8, (Decca, 1975) – (compilation) UK #7, Get Stoned (30 Greatest Hits) (ARCADE, 1977) – (compilation) UK #8, Sucking in the Seventies (Rolling Stones Records, 1981) – (compilation)US #15, Tattoo You (Rolling Stones Records, 1981) – UK #2 / US #1, In Concert (Rolling Stones album) (LONDON, 1982) – (live compilation) UK #94, Story of The Stones (K-tel, 1982) – (compilation) UK #24, Rewind (Rolling Stones Records, 1984) – (compilation) UK #23 / US #86, . (Abkco Records, 1989) – US #91, (Rolling Stones Records, 1993) – UK #16 / US #30, Forty Licks (Rolling Stones Records, 2002) – (compilation) UK/US #2, Rarities 1971–2003 (Rolling Stones Records, 2005) – US #76, Exile On Main St. (Rarities Edition) (Universal Records, 2010) – US #27, Brussels Affair (Rolling Stones Records, 2011) – 1973 live performance, GRRR! (Rolling Stones Records, 2012) – (compilation) UK #3 / US #19, Hyde Park Live (Rolling Stones Records, 2013) – (2013 live performance) UK #16 / US #19 Non-Rolling Stones work with Rolling Stones members: Pay Pack & Follow (Eagle Rock Records, 2001) – John Phillips solo album, I've Got My Own Album to Do (Warner, 1974) – Ronnie Wood solo album, Now Look (Warner, July 1975) – Ronnie Wood solo album. US #118, Gimme Some Neck (Columbia, 1979) – Ronnie Wood solo album. US #45, Talk Is Cheap (BMG, 1988) – Keith Richards solo album. UK #37 / US #24 Live on the Old Grey Whistle Test (Strange Fruit, 1995) – Tracks from several Old Grey Whistle Test shows recorded between '75 and '81. Seven of the songs feature Taylor on guitar., Live at the Manchester Free Trade Hall (Polydor, 2003) – 2 CDs. Infidels (Columbia, 1983) – UK # 9 / US #20, Real Live (In Europe, 1984) (Columbia, 1984) – UK #54 / US #115, Empire Burlesque (Columbia, 1985) – UK #11 / US #33, The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991 (Columbia, 1991) – UK #32 / US #49 Too Hot For Snakes (?, 1991) – Live at the Roxy; includes two Mick Taylor compositions: "Broken Hands" and "Hartley Quits"., Too Hot For Snakes Plus (Collectors' Choice, 2008) – 2-CD set of the Roxy album plus "You Gotta Move", and a second disc of 13 studio tracks from 1993–2004, including a previously unreleased versions of "Winter" and "Think I'm Goin' Mad" from the Olson-produced Barry Goldberg album Stoned Again., Within An Ace (?, 1993) – Taylor performs on 7 of the 10 songs., Reap The Whirlwind (?, 1994) – Taylor is featured on 3 tracks., The Ring Of Truth (?, 2001) – Taylor plays on 9 of the 12 tracks. Note: Too Hot For Snakes and The Ring of Truth were released by Fuel/Universal autumn of 2012 as a 2-CD set with 3 bonus tracks including 2 previously unreleased songs from the Roxy Theatre. Studio albums Mick Taylor (1979) US #119 (5 weeks in top 200), A Stone's Throw (1998) Live albums Stranger in This Town (1990) (produced by Mick Taylor and Phil Colella), Arthur's Club-Geneve 1995 (Mick Taylor & Snowy White) (Promo CD/TV Especial), Coastin' Home [AKA Live at the 14 Below] (1995) re-issued 2002, 14 Below (2003), Little Red Rooster (2007) recorded live in Hungary during 2001 with the Mick Taylor Band Up Your Alley (Joan Jett & the Blackhearts) on "I Hate Myself for Loving You", Tubular Bells Premiere (Mike Oldfield) (June '73) Queen Elizabeth Hall, Tubular Bells (Mike Oldfield) Telecast Tubular Bells Part One and Tubular Bells Part Two. Recorded at BBC Broadcasting House November 1973 and aired in early '74 and June '74. Available on Oldfield's Elements DVD., The Tin Man Was A Dreamer (Nicky Hopkins) (1973), London Underground (Herbie Mann) (Atlantic, 1973), Reggae (Herbie Mann) (Atlantic, 1973), Live European Tour (Billy Preston) (A&M; Records, 1974). Recorded with the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio during their '73 tour. Preston opened up for the band with Mick Taylor on guitar. (Released on CD by A&M; Japan, 2002.), Have Blues Will Travel (Speedo Jones) (Integrity Records, 1988), Reggae II (Herbie Mann) (Atlantic, 1973 [1976]), Just A Story From America (Elliott Murphy) (Columbia 1977), Waiting for Columbus (Little Feat) (1978) double CD released 2002, Expresso II (Gong) (1978), Downwind (Pierre Moerlen's Gong) (1979) lead guitar on "What You Know", Alan Merrill (Alan Merrill)'s solo album (Polydor, 1985) recorded in London 1977, Vinyl (Dramarama) (1991), "John McVie's "Gotta Band" with Lola Thomas (1992), Burnin' Blues (Coupe De Villes) (1992), Piedra rodante (Tonky Blues Band) (1992), Once In A Blue Moon (Gerry Groom) (1993), Cartwheels (Anthony Thistlethwaite) (1993), Hecho en Memphis (Ratones Paranoicos) (Sony Music) (1993), Let's Get Stoned (The Chesterfield Kings) (Mirror Records,1994), Crawfish and Caviar (Anthony Thistlethwaite), Blue Night (Percy Sledge) (Virgin Records, 1994), Навигатор (Аквариум, 1995) guitar on two tracks ("Не Коси", "Таможенный блюз"), Taylormade (Black Cat Bone, 1997), Music Maniac Records., Mick & I (2001) Miyuki & Mick Taylor, New York Times (Adam Bomb) (2001) (Taylor plays slide guitar on "MacDougal Street" & lead guitar on "Heaven come to me") produced by Jack Douglas, From Clarksdale To Heaven [various artists] (BlueStorm, 2002) – John Lee Hooker tribute album, Stoned Again (Barry Goldberg) (Antone's Records, 2002), Meaning of Life (Todd Sharpville) (Cathouse/Universal, 2003), Key To Love (Debbie Davies) (Shanachie Records, 2003), Shadow Man (re-release of an album from 1996) (2003) – originally released by Alpha Music in Japan in 1996, this "Mick Taylor featuring Sasha" album should have read "Sasha featuring Mick Taylor", but the company felt it would sell better under a household name. It features Mick Taylor on guitar, but is basically a Sasha Gracanin album., Treasure Island (Nikki Sudden) (Secretly Canadian, 2004), Unterwegs () (2009), Chicago Blues () (2010) Blues Alive video (RCA/Columbia Pictures 1983), recorded at Capitol Theatre, NJ 1982, Jamming with the Blues Greats – DVD release from the 1983 video, featuring John Mayall's Bluesbreakers (Mick Taylor, Colin Allen, John McVie) and special guests Albert King, Etta James, Buddy Guy, Junior Wells and Sippie Wallace (Lightyear/Image Entertainment 2005), The Stones in the Park concert video (Granada Television, 1969), Gimme Shelter (Maysles Films, 1970) music documentary film by Albert and David Maysles, shot at the Rolling Stones concerts at Madison Square Garden, NY on 27/28 November and Altamont, CA on 6 Dec December 1969. John Mayall, the Godfather of British Blues documentary about John Mayall's life and career (Eagle Rock, 2004. Region 1: 2005), 70th Birthday Concert (Eagle Rock, 2004. Region 1: 2005). Bluesbreakers Charity Concert (Unite for UNICEF) filmed in Liverpool, July 2003. John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers with special guests Chris Barber, Eric Clapton and Mick Taylor., Stones in Exile 2010, Ladies & Gentlemen The Rolling Stones 2010 Music DVDs – Unofficial Cocksucker Blues The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) directed by Nicolas Roeg and starring David Bowie as Thomas Jerome Newton. Taylor played guitar on various songs, including "Hello Mary Lou" after developing ideas for the soundtrack with John Phillips. The Last of the Finest (1990) directed by John Mackenzie. Taylor assisted composer Jack Nitzsche with the moviescore., Bad City Blues (1999) directed by Michael Stevens, based on the book by Tim Willocks. Music composers: Mick Taylor and Max Middleton Mick Taylor official Facebook page, Interview with Gary James from classicbands.com, Interview with JAZZed Magazine. Oct 2007, Rolling Stone Magazine article about Exile on Main Street. Hyde Park is a Grade I-listed major park in Central London. It is the largest of four Royal Parks that form a chain from the entrance of Kensington Palace through Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, via Hyde Park Corner and Green Park past the main entrance to Buckingham Palace. The park is divided by the Serpentine and the Long Water lakes. The park was established by Henry VIII in 1536 when he took the land from Westminster Abbey and used it as a hunting ground. It opened to the public in 1637 and quickly became popular, particularly for May Day parades. Major improvements occurred in the early 18th century under the direction of Queen Caroline. Several duels took place in Hyde Park during this time, often involving members of the nobility. The Great Exhibition of 1851 was held in the park, for which The Crystal Palace, designed by Joseph Paxton, was erected. Free speech and demonstrations have been a key feature of Hyde Park since the 19th century. Speakers' Corner has been established as a point of free speech and debate since 1872, while the Chartists, the Reform League, the suffragettes, and the Stop the War Coalition have all held protests there. In the late 20th century, the park was known for holding large-scale free rock music concerts, featuring groups such as Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones and Queen. Major events in the park have continued into the 21st century, such as Live 8 in 2005, and the annual Hyde Park Winter Wonderland from 2007. Hyde Park is the largest Royal Park in London. It is bounded on the north by Bayswater Road, to the east by Park Lane, and to the south by Knightsbridge. Further north is Paddington, further east is Mayfair and further south is Belgravia. To the southeast, outside the park, is Hyde Park Corner, beyond which is Green Park, St. James's Park and Buckingham Palace Gardens. The park has been Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens since 1987. To the west, Hyde Park merges with Kensington Gardens. The dividing line runs approximately between Alexandra Gate to Victoria Gate via West Carriage Drive and the Serpentine Bridge. The Serpentine is to the south of the park area. Kensington Gardens has been separate from Hyde Park since 1728, when Queen Caroline divided them. Hyde Park covers 142 hectares (350 acres), and Kensington Gardens covers 111 hectares (275 acres), giving a total area of 253 hectares (625 acres). During daylight, the two parks merge seamlessly into each other, but Kensington Gardens closes at dusk, and Hyde Park remains open throughout the year from 5 a.m. until midnight. The park's name comes from the Manor of Hyde, which was the northeast sub- division of the manor of Eia (the other two sub-divisions were Ebury and Neyte) and appears as such in the Domesday Book. The name is believed to be of Saxon origin, and means a unit of land, the hide, that was appropriate for the support of a single family and dependents. Through the Middle Ages, it was property of Westminster Abbey, and the woods in the manor were used both for firewood and shelter for game. Hyde Park was created for hunting by Henry Vlll in 1536 after he acquired the manor of Hyde from the Abbey. It was enclosed as a deer park and remained a private hunting ground until James I permitted limited access to gentlefolk, appointing a ranger to take charge. Charles I created the Ring (north of the present Serpentine boathouses), and in 1637 he opened the park to the general public. It quickly became a popular gathering place, particularly for May Day celebrations. At the start of the English Civil War in 1642, a series of fortifications were built along the east side of the park, including forts at what is now Marble Arch, Mount Street and Hyde Park Corner. The latter included a strongpoint where visitors to London could be checked and vetted. In 1652, during the Interregnum, Parliament ordered the then park to be sold for "ready money". It realised £17,000 with an additional £765 6s 2d for the resident deer. During the Great Plague of London in 1665, Hyde Park was used as a military camp. Following the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, Charles II retook ownership of Hyde Park and enclosed it in a brick wall. He restocked deer in what is now Buck Hill in Kensington Gardens. The May Day parade continued to be a popular event; Samuel Pepys took part in the park's celebrations in 1663 while attempting to gain the King's favour. In 1689, William III moved his residence to Kensington Palace on the far side of Hyde Park and had a drive laid out across its southern edge which was known as the King's Private Road. The drive is still in existence as a wide straight gravelled carriage track leading west from Hyde Park Corner across the southern boundary of Hyde Park towards Kensington Palace and now known as Rotten Row, possibly a corruption of rotteran (to muster), Ratten Row (roundabout way), Route du roi, or rotten (the soft material with which the road is covered). It is believed to be the first road in London to be lit at night, which was done to deter highwaymen. In 1749, Horace Walpole was robbed while travelling through the park from Holland House. The row was used by the wealthy for horseback rides in the early 19th century. Hyde Park was a popular duelling spot during the 18th century, with 172 taking place, leading to 63 fatalities. The Hamilton–Mohun Duel took place there in 1712 when Charles Mohun, 4th Baron Mohun fought James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Hamilton. Baron Mohun was killed instantly, while the Duke died shortly afterwards. John Wilkes fought Samuel Martin in 1772, as did Richard Brinsley Sheridan with Captain Thomas Mathews over the latter's libellous comments about Sheridan's fiancée Elizabeth Ann Linley. Edward Thurlow, 1st Baron Thurlow fought Andrew Stuart in a Hyde Park duel in 1770. Military executions were common in Hyde Park at this time; John Rocque's Map of London, 1746 marks a point inside the park, close to the Tyburn gallows, as "where soldiers are shot." The first coherent landscaping in Hyde Park began in 1726. It was undertaken by Charles Bridgeman for King George I, but following the king's death the following year, it continued with approval of his daughter-in-law, Queen Caroline. Work was undertaken under the supervision of Charles Withers, the Surveyor-General of Woods and Forests. The principal effect of the work was to sub-divide Hyde Park and create Kensington Gardens. The Serpentine was formed by damming the River Westbourne, which runs through the park from Kilburn towards the Thames. It is divided from the Long Water by a bridge designed by George Rennie in 1826. The work was completed in 1733. The 2nd Viscount Weymouth was made Ranger of Hyde Park in 1739 and shortly after began digging the Serpentine lakes at Longleat. A powder magazine was built north of the Serpentine in 1805. Hyde Park hosted a Great Fair in the summer of 1814 to celebrate the Allied sovereigns' visit to England, and exhibited various stalls and shows. The Battle of Trafalgar was re-enacted on the Serpentine, with a band playing the National Anthem while the French fleet sank into the lake. The coronation of King George IV in 1821 was celebrated with a fair in the park, including an air balloon and firework displays. One of the most important events to take place in Hyde Park was the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Crystal Palace was constructed on the south side of the park. The public did not want the building to remain after the closure of the exhibition, and its architect, Joseph Paxton, raised funds and purchased it. He had it moved to Sydenham Hill in South London. Another significant event was the first Victoria Cross investiture, on 26 June 1857, when 62 men were decorated by Queen Victoria in the presence of Prince Albert and other members of the Royal Family, including their future son-in-law Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia, later Emperor Frederick III. The Hyde Park Lido sits on the south bank of the Serpentine. It opened in 1930 to provide improved support for bathing and sunbathing in the park, which had been requested by the naturist group, the Sunlight League. The Lido and accompanying Pavilion was designed by the Commissioner of Works, George Lansbury, and was half funded by a £5,000 (now £) donation from Major Colin Cooper (1892–1938). It still sees regular use in the summer into the 21st century. Hyde Park has been a major venue for several Royal jubilees and celebrations. For the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887, a party was organised on 22 June where around 26,000 school children were given a free meal as a gift. The Queen and the Prince of Wales made an unexpected appearance at the event. Victoria remained fond of Hyde Park in the final years of her life and often drove there twice a day. As part of the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977, a Jubilee Exhibition was set up in Hyde Park, with the Queen and Prince Philip visiting on 30 June. In 2012, a major festival took place in the park as part of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. On 6 February, the King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery fired a 41-gun Royal Salute at Hyde Park Corner. On 20 July 1982, in the Hyde Park and Regents Park bombings, two devices linked to the Provisional Irish Republican Army caused the death of eight members of the Household Cavalry and the Royal Green Jackets and seven horses. A memorial was constructed to the left of the Albert Gate to commemorate the soldiers and horses killed in the blast. Since 2007, Hyde Park has played host to the annual Winter Wonderland event, which features numerous Christmas-themed markets, along with various rides and attractions, alongside bars and restaurants. It has become one of the largest Christmas events in Europe, having attracted over 14 million visitors as of 2016, and has expanded to include the largest ice rink in London, live entertainment and circuses. On 18 September 2010, Hyde Park was the setting for a prayer vigil with Pope Benedict XVI as part of his visit to the United Kingdom, attended by around 80,000 people. A large crowd assembled along the Mall to see the Pope arrive for his address. An attempt to assassinate the Pope had been foiled after five street cleaners were spotted within a mile of Hyde Park, and arrested along with sixth suspect. During the late 18th century, plans were made to replace the old toll gate at Hyde Park Corner with a grander entrance, following the gentrification of the area surrounding it. The first design was put forward by Robert Adam in 1778 as a grand archway, followed by John Soane's 1796 proposal to build a new palace adjacent to the corner in Green Park. Following the construction of Buckingham Palace, the improvement plans were revisited. The grand entrance to the park at Hyde Park Corner was designed by Decimus Burton, and was constructed in the 1820s. Burton laid out the paths and driveways and designed a series of lodges, the Screen/Gate at Hyde Park Corner (also known as the Grand Entrance or the Apsley Gate) in 1825 and the Wellington Arch, which opened in 1828. The Screen and the Arch originally formed a single composition, designed to provide a monumental transition between Hyde Park and Green Park, although the arch was moved in 1883. It originally had a statue of the Duke of Wellington on top; it was moved to Aldershot in 1883 when the arch was re-sited. An early description reports: "It consists of a screen of handsome fluted Ionic columns, with three carriage entrance archways, two-foot entrances, a lodge, etc. The extent of the whole frontage is about . The central entrance has a bold projection: the entablature is supported by four columns; and the volutes of the capitals of the outside column on each side of the gateway are formed in an angular direction, so as to exhibit two complete faces to view. The two side gateways, in their elevations, present two insulated Ionic columns, flanked by antae. All these entrances are finished by a blocking, the sides of the central one being decorated with a beautiful frieze, representing a naval and military triumphal procession. This frieze was designed by Mr. Henning, junior, the son of Mr. Henning who was well known for his models of the Elgin Marbles. The gates were manufactured by Messrs. Bramah. They are of iron, bronzed, and fixed or hung to the piers by rings of gun-metal. The design consists of a beautiful arrangement of the Greek honeysuckle ornament; the parts being well defined, and the raffles of the leaves brought out in a most extraordinary manner." The Wellington Arch was extensively restored by English Heritage between 1999 and 2001. It is now open to the public, who can see a view of the parks from its platforms above the porticoes. Popular areas within Hyde Park include Speakers' Corner (located in the northeast corner near Marble Arch), close to the former site of the Tyburn gallows, and Rotten Row, which is the northern boundary of the site of the Crystal Palace. Flowers were first planted in Hyde Park in 1860 by William Andrews Nesfield. The next year, the Italian Water Garden was constructed at Victoria Gate, including fountains and a summer house. Queen Anne's Alcove was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and was moved to the park from its original location in Kensington Gardens. During the late 20th century, over 9,000 elm trees in Hyde Park were killed by Dutch elm disease. This included many trees along the great avenues planted by Queen Caroline, which were ultimately replaced by limes and maples. The park now holds of greenhouses which hold the bedding plants for the Royal Parks. A scheme is available to adopt trees in the park, which helps fund their upkeep and maintenance. A botanical curiosity is the weeping beech, which is known as "the upside-down tree". A rose garden, designed by Colvin & Moggridge Landscape Architects, was added in 1994. There are a number of assorted statues and memorials around Hyde Park. The Cavalry Memorial was built in 1924 at Stanhope Gate. It moved to the Serpentine Road when Park Lane was widened to traffic in 1961. South of the Serpentine is the Diana, Princess of Wales memorial, an oval stone ring fountain opened on 6 July 2004. To the east of the Serpentine, just beyond the dam, is London's Holocaust Memorial. The 7 July Memorial in the park commemorates the victims of 7 July 2005 London bombings. The Standing Stone is a monolith at the centre of the Dell, to the east of Hyde Park. Made of Cornish stone, it was originally part of a drinking fountain, though an urban legend was established, claiming it was brought from Stonehenge by Charles I. An assortment of unusual sculptures are scattered around the park, including: Still Water, a massive horse head lapping up water; Jelly Baby Family, a family of giant Jelly Babies standing on top of a large black cube; and Vroom Vroom, which resembles a giant human hand pushing a toy car along the ground. The sculptor Jacob Epstein constructed several works in Hyde Park. His memorial to the author William Henry Hudson, featuring his character Rima caused public outrage when it was unveiled in 1925. There has been a fountain at Grosvenor Gate since 1863, designed by Alexander Munro. There is another fountain opposite Mount Street on the park's eastern edge. Hyde Park's Speakers' Corner has acquired an international reputation for demonstrations and other protests due to its tolerance of free speech. In 1855, a protest at the park was organised to demonstrate against Robert Grosvenor's attempt to ban Sunday trading, including a restriction on pub opening times. Karl Marx observed approximately 200,000 protesters attended the demonstration, which involved jeering and taunting at upper-class horse carriages. A further protest occurred a week later, but this time the police attacked the crowd. In 1867 the policing of the park was entrusted to the Metropolitan Police, the only royal park so managed, due to the potential for trouble at Speakers' Corner. A Metropolitan Police station ('AH') is situated in the middle of the park. The 1872 Parks Regulation Act created positions of "park keeper" and also provided that "Every police constable belonging to the police force of the district in which any park, garden, or possession to which this Act applies is situate shall have the powers, privileges, and immunities of a park-keeper within such park, garden, or possession." Speakers' Corner became increasingly popular in the late 19th century. Visitors brought along placards, stepladders and soap boxes in order to stand out from others, while heckling of speakers was popular. Donald Soper, Baron Soper was a regular visitor throughout the 20th century, until just before his death in 1998. The rise of the Internet, particularly blogs, has diminished the importance of Speakers' Corner as a political platform, and it is increasingly seen as simply a tourist attraction. As well as Speakers' Corner, several important mass demonstrations have occurred in Hyde Park. On 26 July 1886, the Reform League staged a march from their headquarters towards the park, campaigning for increased suffrage and representation. Though the police had closed the park, the crowd managed to break down the perimeter railings and get inside, leading to the event being dubbed "The Hyde Park Railings Affair". After the protests turned violent, three squadrons of Horse Guards and numerous Foot Guards were sent out from Marble Arch to combat the situation. On 21 June 1908, as part of "Women's Sunday", a reported 750,000 people marched from the Embankment to Hyde Park protesting for votes for women. The first protest against the planned 2003 invasion of Iraq took place in Hyde Park on 28 September 2002, with 150,000–350,000 in attendance. A further series of demonstrations happened around the world, culminating in the 15 February 2003 anti-war protests, part of a global demonstration against the Iraq War. Over a million protesters are reported to have attended the Hyde Park event alone. The bandstand in Hyde Park was originally built in Kensington Gardens in 1869, moving to its current location in 1886. It became a popular place for concerts in the 1890s, featuring up to three every week. Military and brass bands continued to play into the 20th century. The music management company Blackhill Enterprises held the first rock concert in Hyde Park on 29 June 1968, attended by 15,000 people. On the bill were Pink Floyd, Roy Harper and Jethro Tull, while John Peel later said it was "the nicest concert I’ve ever been to". Subsequently, Hyde Park has featured some of the most significant concerts in rock. The supergroup Blind Faith (featuring Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood) played their debut gig in Hyde Park on 7 June 1969. The Rolling Stones headlined a concert (later released as The Stones in the Park) on 5 July that year, two days after the death of founding member Brian Jones, and is now remembered as one of the most famous gigs of the 1960s. Pink Floyd returned to Hyde Park on 18 July 1970, playing new material from Atom Heart Mother. All of the early gigs from 1968 to 1971 were free events, contrasting sharply with the later commercial endeavours. Queen played a free concert organised by Richard Branson in the park on 18 September 1976, partway through recording the album A Day at the Races. The band drew an audience of 150,000 – 200,000, which remains the largest crowd for a Hyde Park concert. The group were not allowed to play an encore, and police threatened to arrest frontman Freddie Mercury if he attempted to do so. The British Live 8 concert took place in Hyde Park on 2 July 2005, as a concert organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise awareness of increased debts and poverty in the third world. Acts included U2, Coldplay, Elton John, R.E.M., Madonna, The Who and Paul McCartney, and the most anticipated set was the reformation of the classic 1970s line-up of Pink Floyd (including David Gilmour and Roger Waters) for the first time since 1981. The gig was the Floyd's final live performance. Acts from each of the four nations in the UK played a gig in the park as part of the opening ceremony for the 2012 Summer Olympics. The headliners were Duran Duran, representing England, alongside the Stereophonics for Wales, Paolo Nutini for Scotland and Snow Patrol for Northern Ireland. Since 2011, Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park has taken place each September. Local residents have become critical of Hyde Park as a concert venue, due to the sound levels, and have campaigned for a maximum sound level of 73 decibels. In July 2012, Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney found their microphones switched off after Springsteen had played a three-hour set during the Park's Hard Rock Calling festival, and overshot the 10:30 pm curfew time. Hyde Park contains several sporting facilities, including several football pitches and a Tennis centre. There are numerous cycle paths, and horse riding is popular. In 1998 British artist Marion Coutts recreated Hyde Park, along with Battersea and Regent's Park, as a set of asymmetrical ping-pong tables for her interactive installation Fresh Air. For the 2012 Summer Olympics, the park hosted the triathlon, which brothers Alistair Brownlee and Jonathan Brownlee took the Gold and Bronze medals for Team GB, and the 10 km open water swimming events. The park has also hosted the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final. There are five London Underground stations located on or near the edges of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens (which is contiguous with Hyde Park). In clockwise order starting from the south-east, they are: Hyde Park Corner (Piccadilly line), Knightsbridge (Piccadilly line), Queensway (Central line), Lancaster Gate (Central line), Marble Arch (Central line) Bayswater tube station, on the Circle and District lines, is also close to Queensway station and the north-west corner of the park. High Street Kensington tube station, on the Circle and District is very close to Kensington Palace located on the Southwest corner of Kensington Gardens. Paddington station, served by Bakerloo, Circle and District, and Hammersmith & City lines, is close to Lancaster Gate station and a short walk away from Hyde Park. Several main roads run around the perimeter of Hyde Park. Park Lane is part of the London Inner Ring Road and the London Congestion Charge zone boundary. The A4, a major road through West London, runs along the southeastern edge of the park, while the A5, a major road to Milton Keynes and the Midlands runs northwest from Marble Arch. Transport within the park for people lacking mobility and disabled visitors is provided free of charge by Liberty Drives, located at Triangle Carpark. Cycle Superhighway 3 (CS3) begins at Lancaster Gate, on the northern perimeter of Hyde Park. It is one of several TfL-coordinated cycle routes to cross the Park. CS3 also crosses Hyde Park Corner on its route towards Westminster and the City of London. The route opened in September 2018 and is signposted and cyclists are segregated from other road traffic on wide cycle tracks. Citations Map showing Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens

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Ramayan is an Indian historical-drama epic television series, which aired during 1987-1988, created, written, and directed by Ramanand Sagar. The remake of Ramayan series was again presented by Sagar Arts and which aired on NDTV Imagine in 2008. Ramayan introduced the concept of Hindu epics to Indian Television and went on to become a national classic, it was aired on Zee TV in mid-90's. Also, it was aired on Star Plus and Star Utsav in 2000's. It is a television adaptation of the ancient Indian Hindu epic of the same name, and is primarily based on Valmiki's Ramayan and Tulsidas' Ramcharitmanas. The serial was brought to the small screen by Sagar Art Enterprises. The list of technicians is as follows: Screenplay & Dialogue - Ramanand Sagar; Special Effects - Ravikant Nagaich; Technical Advisor - Prem Sagar; Lyrics & Music - Ravindra Jain; Title Music - Jaidev; Executive Producer - Subhash Sagar; Second Unit Directors - Anand Sagar & Moti Sagar; Produced & Directed - Ramanand Sagar. The series had a viewership of 82 per cent, a record high for any Indian television series. Each episode of the series reportedly earned Doordarshan 40 lakh. Arun Govil as Ram/Vishnu, Deepika Chikhalia as Sita/Lakshmi, Sunil Lahri as Lakshman, Sanjay Jog as Bharat, Sameer Rajda as Shatrughna, Dara Singh as Hanuman, Bal Dhuri as Dashratha, Jayshree Gadkar as Kaushalya, Rajni Bala as Sumitra, Padma Khanna as Kaikeyi, Lalita Pawar as Manthara, Anjali Vyas as Urmila, Sulakshana Khatri as Mandavi, Poonam Shetty as Shrutakirti, Arvind Trivedi as Ravana / Sage Vishrava, Vijay Arora as Indrajit, Nalin Dave as Kumbhakarna, Mukesh Rawal as Vibhishana, Aparajita Bhooshan (Prabha Mishra) as Mandodari, Mulraj Rajda as Janak, king of Mithila, Urmila Bhatt as Sunaina, Janak's wife, queen of Mithila, Chandrashekhar as Sumanta, Shyamsundar Kaalaani as Sugriva / Vali, Vijay Kavish as Shiva / Valmiki / Mayasura, Murari Lal Gupta as Akampana, Ramesh Goyal as Maricha, Rajshekhar as Jambavan, Bashir Khan as Angada, Amit Tomar as Arjuna, Bandini Mishra as Parvati, Sudhir Dalvi as Vasishta, Anita Kashyap as Trijata, Shrikant Soni as Vishwamitra, Giriraj Shukla as Neel / Prahasta, Girish Seth as Nal / Gandhrva Putra, Renu Dhariwal as Shurpanakha, Radha Yadav as Tara Credit -Naarad TV Writing for the Indian Express upon completion of the airing of the series' final episode, former bureaucrat S. S. Gill wrote that it was during his tenure as the secretary with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in September 1985 that he contacted Ramanand Sagar in association with the project. Gill added that in a letter to Sagar, he had written about the Ramayana as a subject for the television series was ideal in that it was "a repository of moral and social values" and that its message was "secular and universal". He added that he had noted in the letter that Sagar's "real challenge would lie in seeing the epic "with the eyes of a modern man and relating its message to the spiritual and emotional needs of our age". Gill added that he also wrote a similar letter to B. R. Chopra over the production of the series Mahabharat based on another epic of the same name, and mentioned that both he and Sagar accepted to his suggestions and constituted panels of experts and scholars to conceptualize the production. The series was initially conceptualized to run for 52 episodes of 45 minutes each. But, owing to popular demand it had to be extended thrice, eventually ending after 78 episodes. Ramayan notably broke viewership for any Indian television series during the time. It was telecast in 55 countries and at a total viewership of 650 million, it became the highest watched Indian television series by a distance. It entered in the Limca Book of Records as the most watched mythological series. D. K. Bose, the media director of Hindustan Thompson Associates, remarked, "The unique thing about the Ramayana was its consistency. Other programmes like Buniyaad and even Hum Log did achieve viewership of around 80 per cent and more, on occasion. In the case of Ramayana that figure had been maintained almost from the beginning." He added, "Starting at around 50 per cent the 80 per cent figure was reached within a few months and never went down." He noted that the viewership was more than 50 per cent even in the predominantly non-Hindi speaking southern Indian States of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. He also added that the show's popularity spanned across religions and was watched by people of the Islam faith in high numbers as well. He mentioned that it was common among people threatening to burn down the local electricity board headquarters during a power outage. The success of the series was documented well by the media. Soutik Biswas of BBC recalled that when the series was telecast every Sunday morning, "streets would be deserted, shops would be closed and people would bathe and garland their TV sets before the serial began." Writing for the Telegraph, William Dalrymple noted, "In villages across south Asia, hundreds of people would gather around a single set to watch the gods and demons play out their destinies. In the noisiest and most bustling cities, trains, buses and cars came to a sudden halt, and a strange hush fell over the bazaars. In Delhi, government meetings had to be rescheduled after the entire cabinet failed to turn up for an urgent briefing." However, critics dismissed the series calling it a "technically flawed melodrama". The telecast of Ramayan was seen as a precursor to the Ayodhya dispute. Arvind Rajagopal in his book Politics After Television: Hindu Nationalism and the Reshaping of the Public in India (2000) wrote that with the series, the government "violated a decades-old taboo on religious partisanship, and Hindu nationalists made the most of the opportunity." He added that it "confirm[ed] to the idea of Hindu awakening" and the rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party capitalizing on this. Manik Sharma of Hindustan Times voiced similar views in that the series "played in the backdrop of a Hindutva shift in Indian politics, under the aegis of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its political outfit, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). While the media and cultural commentators struggled to consider Sagar's epic one way or the other, there were some who saw it as a catalyst, even if unintended, to the turmoil that the movement resulted in." Regarding initial apprehensions about the series being aired by a government-owned broadcaster, its hitherto producer Sharad Dutt said that "a lot of people within the channel's office weren't supportive of the idea to begin with. But it had no motivation with what was going on politically. The Congress was in power and it had no agenda of the sort." He however felt the execution was poor and remembered questioning Sagar upon watching "the tape" if he had "made Ramayana or Ram-Leela". Sharma noted that the political clout the series held could be adjudged by the fact that Sagar and Arun Govil (who played Rama) "were repeatedly courted by both the Congress and the BJP to campaign for them", and that Deepika Chikhalia (Sita) and Arvind Trivedi (Ravana) went on to become members of parliament. Mahabharat (1988 TV series) Karp, Jonathan and Williams, Michael. "Reigning Hindu TV Gods of India Have Viewers Glued to Their Sets." The Wall Street Journal, 22 April 1998, National Endowment for the Humanities. "Lessons of the Epics: The Ramayana". EdSITEment Lesson Plans. Available online from https://web.archive.org/web/20070205233230/http://edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?id=599 (18 January 2006). Urmila (Sanskrit:: ऊर्मिला) is a character in the Hindu epic Ramayana. She was daughter of King Janaka of Mithila and Queen Sunaina and younger sister of Sita. She was wife of Lakshmana, younger brother of Rama. They had two sons - Angada and Chandraketu. When Lakshman went to exile along with Ram and Sita, Urmila was ready to accompany him but he hesitated and asked her to stay back in Ayodhya to take care of his aging parents. Urmila is notable for her unparalleled sacrifice called Urmila Nidra In Bharatpur district of Rajasthan, there is a temple dedicated to Lakshman and Urmila. The temple was built in 1870 AD by the then ruler Balwant Singh of Bharatpur and is considered as a royal temple by the royal family of Bharatpur State. Urmila, the sleeping princess - The New Indian Express, Lakshman's wife goes to sleep - Devlok Valmiki Ramayana, English verse translation by Desiraju Hanumanta Rao, K. M. K. Murthy et al., Ramayana, English verse translation by Ralph T. H. Griffith at the Project Gutenberg Shatrughna (), also spelled as Shatrughan was the youngest brother of Lord Rama in the Hindu epic Ramayana. He is twin brother of Lakshmana. According to Valmiki Ramayana, Shatrughna is one half component of manifest Vishnu (Rama). Shatrughna also appears as the 412th name of Vishnu in Vishnu Sahasranama of Mahabharata. According to the Ramayana, Rama is the seventh avatar of Vishnu while Lakshmana, Bharata and Shatrughna are considered as part-incarnations of Sheshanaga, Shankha and Sudarshana chakra respectively. Shatrughna was born to the virtuous king of Ayodhya, Dasharatha and his third wife, Queen Sumitra, princess of Kashi. Dasharatha's other two wives, Kaushalya and Kaikeyi, had sons as well. Kaushalya had Rama and Kaikeyi had Bharata, who were Shatrughna's half-brothers. Shatrughna's twin brother was Lakshmana. Shatrughna was married to Shrutakirti, daughter of Kushadhwaja, Janaka's younger brother. Thus, Shrutakirti was Sita's cousin. They had two sons - Shatrughati and Subahu. When Rama is exiled, Shatrughna drags Kaikeyi's old nurse Manthara(who was responsible for poisoning the queen's mind against Rama) and makes an attack to kill her, but he is restrained by Bharata who feels that Rama would not approve. Bharata goes to Rama and asks him to come back to Ayodhya but Rama refuses. Bharata rules Ayodhya from Nandigramam and is an excellent leader, often referred to as the avatar of dharma. Though Bharata was the king designate of Ayodhya during Rama's exile, it was Shatrughna who took care of the administration of the whole kingdom, during Rama's absence. Shatrughna also was the only solace for the three Queen mothers during the absence of Rama, Lakshman and Bharata from Ayodhya. Manthara appears only once in Ramayana after Rama's banishment. Having been rewarded by Kaikeyi with costly clothing and jewels, she is walking in the palace gardens when Bharata and his half-brother Shatrughna come upon her. Seeing her, Shatrughna flies into a violent rage over Rama's banishment and assaults her murderously. Kaikeyi begs Bharata to save her, which he does, telling Shatrughna that it is a sin to kill a woman and that Rama would be furious with them both if he does such a thing. He relents and the brothers leave, while Kaikeyi attempts to comfort Manthara. Although he plays a relatively minor role in the Ramayana, Shatrughna is important to the main story and goal of the epic. His chief exploit is the killing of Lavanasura the demon King of Mathura, who was a nephew of Ravana, the King of Lanka, slain by Rama. Lavanasura was the son of Madhu, the pious demon-king after whom the city of Mathura was named. Madhu's wife and Lavanusara's mother Kumbhini was sister of Ravana. Lavanasura was holder of the divine Trishula(Trident) of Lord Shiva and nobody was able to kill him or prevent him from committing sinful activities. Shatrughna begged Rama and his elder brothers to allow him the opportunity to serve them by killing Lavanasura. Shatrughna killed the great demon with an arrow imbibed with the power of Vishnu. After Lavanasura's death, Rama crowned him King of Mathura. After Rama, the seventh Avatar of Vishnu completes 11, 000 years of perfectly pious rule upon earth, he walks into the river Sarayu to return to his true and eternal Mahavishnu form. Bharata and Shatrughna follow him into the river and merge into Mahavishnu. Shatrughna Temple at Payammal in Thrissur District of Kerala, Shatrughna Temple at Muni Ki Reti, Rishikesh, Shatrughna Temple near Kans-tila, Mathura, UP Satrughna and Mathura in the Uttarakanda, Shatrughna Temple at Muni Ke Reti, Rishikesh

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The Silence of the Lambs is a 1991 American psychological horror film directed by Jonathan Demme from a screenplay written by Ted Tally, adapted from Thomas Harris's 1988 novel of the same name. The film stars Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine, and Anthony Heald. In the film, Clarice Starling, a young FBI trainee, seeks the advice of the imprisoned Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer to apprehend another serial killer, known only as "Buffalo Bill", who skins his female victims' corpses. The novel was Harris's first and second respectively to feature the characters of Starling and Lecter, and was the second adaptation of a Harris novel to feature Lecter, preceded by the Michael Mann-directed Manhunter (1986). The Silence of the Lambs was released on February 14, 1991 and grossed $272.7 million worldwide against its $19 million budget, becoming the fifth-highest grossing film of 1991 worldwide. The film premiered at the 41st Berlin International Film Festival, where it competed for the Golden Bear, while Demme received the Silver Bear for Best Director. Critically acclaimed upon release, it became only the third film (the other two being It Happened One Night (1934) and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)) to win Academy Awards in all the top five categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It is also the first (and so far only) Best Picture winner widely considered to be a horror film, and one of only six such films to be nominated in the category, along with The Exorcist (1973), Jaws (1975), The Sixth Sense (1999), Black Swan (2010) and Get Out (2017). It is regularly cited by critics, film directors and audiences alike as one of the greatest and most influential films of all time. In 2018 Empire ranked it 48th on their list of the 500 greatest movies of all time. The American Film Institute ranked it as the 5th greatest and most influential thriller film of all time while the characters Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lecter were ranked as the greatest film heroine and villain respectively. The film is considered "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant by the U.S. Library of Congress and was selected to be preserved in the National Film Registry in 2011. A sequel titled Hannibal was released in 2001, in which Hopkins reprised his role. It was followed by two prequels: Red Dragon (2002) and Hannibal Rising (2007). FBI trainee Clarice Starling is pulled from her training at the FBI Academy at Quantico, Virginia by Jack Crawford of the Bureau's Behavioral Science Unit. He assigns her to interview Hannibal Lecter, a former psychiatrist and incarcerated cannibalistic serial killer, whose insight might prove useful in the pursuit of a psychopath serial killer nicknamed "Buffalo Bill", who kills young women and then removes the skin from their bodies. Starling travels to the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, where she is led by Frederick Chilton to Lecter's solitary quarters. Although initially pleasant and courteous, Lecter grows impatient with Starling's attempts at "dissecting" him and rebuffs her. As she is leaving, one of the prisoners flicks semen at her. Lecter, who considers this act "unspeakably ugly", calls Starling back and tells her to seek out an old patient of his. This leads her to a storage shed, where she discovers a man's severed head with a sphinx moth lodged in its throat. She returns to Lecter, who tells her that the man is linked to Buffalo Bill. He offers to profile Buffalo Bill on the condition that he may be transferred away from Chilton, whom he detests. Buffalo Bill abducts a Senator's daughter, Catherine Martin. Crawford authorizes Starling to offer Lecter a fake deal, promising a prison transfer if he provides information that helps them find Buffalo Bill and rescue Catherine. Instead, Lecter demands a quid pro quo from Starling, offering clues about Buffalo Bill in exchange for personal information. Starling tells Lecter about the murder of her father when she was ten years old. Chilton secretly records the conversation and reveals Starling's deceit before offering Lecter a deal of Chilton's own making. Lecter agrees and is flown to Memphis, where he verbally torments Senator Ruth Martin, and gives her misleading information on Buffalo Bill, including the name "Louis Friend". Starling notices that "Louis Friend" is an anagram of "iron sulfide"–fool's gold. She visits Lecter, who is now being held in a cage-like cell in a Tennessee courthouse, and asks for the truth. Lecter tells her that all the information she needs is contained in the case file. Rather than give her the real name, he insists that they continue their quid pro quo and she recounts a traumatic childhood incident where she was awakened by the sound of spring lambs being slaughtered on a relative's farm in Montana. Starling admits that she still sometimes wakes thinking she can hear lambs screaming, and Lecter speculates that she is motivated to save Catherine in the hope that it will end the nightmares. Lecter gives her back the case files on Buffalo Bill after their conversation is interrupted by Chilton and the police, who escort her from the building. Later that evening, Lecter kills his guards, escapes from his cell, and disappears. Starling analyzes Lecter's annotations to the case files and realizes that Buffalo Bill knew his first victim personally. Starling travels to the victim's hometown and discovers that Buffalo Bill was a tailor, with dresses and dress patterns identical to the patches of skin removed from each of his victims. She telephones Crawford to inform him that Buffalo Bill is trying to form a "woman suit" out of real skin, but Crawford is already en route to make an arrest, having cross-referenced Lecter's notes with hospital archives and finding an autogynephilic man named Jame Gumb, who once applied unsuccessfully for a sex- change operation, believing himself to be a transgender woman. Starling continues interviewing friends of Buffalo Bill's first victim in Ohio, while Crawford leads an FBI HRT team to Gumb's address in Illinois. The house in Illinois is empty, and Starling is led to the house of "Jack Gordon", whom she realizes is actually Jame Gumb, again by finding a sphinx moth. She pursues him into his multi-room basement, where she discovers that Catherine is still alive, but trapped in a dry well. After turning off the basement lights, Gumb stalks Starling in the dark with night-vision goggles, but gives his position away when he cocks his revolver. Starling reacts just in time and fires all of her rounds, killing Gumb. Sometime later, at the FBI Academy graduation party, Starling receives a phone call from Lecter, who is at an airport in Bimini. He assures her that he does not plan to pursue her and asks her to return the favor, which she says she cannot do. Lecter then hangs up the phone, saying that he is "having an old friend for dinner", and starts following a newly arrived Chilton before disappearing into the crowd. Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling, Masha Skorobogatov as young Clarice, Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, Scott Glenn as Jack Crawford, Ted Levine as Jame "Buffalo Bill" Gumb, Anthony Heald as Dr. Frederick Chilton, Brooke Smith as Catherine Martin, Diane Baker as U.S. Senator Ruth Martin, Kasi Lemmons as Ardelia Mapp, Frankie Faison as Barney Matthews, Tracey Walter as Lamar, Charles Napier as Lt. Boyle, Danny Darst as Sgt. Tate, Alex Coleman as Sgt. Jim Pembry, Dan Butler as Roden, Paul Lazar as Pilcher, Ron Vawter as Paul Krendler, Roger Corman as FBI Director Hayden Burke, Chris Isaak as SWAT Commander, Harry Northup as Mr. Bimmel, Brent Hinkley as Officer Murray The Silence of the Lambs is based on Thomas Harris' 1988 novel of the same name and is the second film to feature the character Hannibal Lecter following the 1986 film Manhunter. Prior to the novel's release, Orion Pictures partnered with Gene Hackman to bring the novel to the big screen. With Hackman set to direct and possibly star in the role of Crawford, negotiations were made to split the $500,000 cost of rights between Hackman and the studio. In addition to securing the rights to the novel, producers also had to acquire the rights to the name "Hannibal Lecter", which were owned by Manhunter producer Dino De Laurentiis. Owing to the financial failure of the earlier film, De Laurentiis lent the character rights to Orion Pictures for free. In November 1987, Ted Tally was brought on to write the adaptation; Tally had previously crossed paths with Harris many times, with his interest in adapting The Silence of the Lambs originating from receiving an advance copy of the book from Harris himself. When Tally was about halfway through with the first draft, Hackman withdrew from the project and financing fell through. However, Orion Pictures co-founder Mike Medavoy assured Tally to keep writing as the studio itself took care of financing and searched for a replacement director. As a result, Orion Pictures sought director Jonathan Demme to helm the project. With the screenplay not yet completed, Demme signed on after reading the novel. From there, the project quickly took off, as Tally explained, "[Demme] read my first draft not long after it was finished, and we met, then I was just startled by the speed of things. We met in May 1989 and were shooting in November. I don't remember any big revisions." Jodie Foster was interested in playing the role of Clarice Starling immediately after reading the novel. However, in spite of the fact that Foster had just won an Academy Award for her performance in the film The Accused (1988), Demme was not convinced that she was right for the part. Having just collaborated on Married to the Mob (1988), Demme's first choice for the role of Starling was Michelle Pfeiffer, who turned it down, later saying, "It was a difficult decision, but I got nervous about the subject matter". Still not convinced, he went to Meg Ryan who rejected it as well for its gruesome themes and then to Laura Dern, of whom the studio was skeptical as not being a bankable choice. As a result, Foster was awarded the role due to her passion towards the character. For the role of Dr. Hannibal Lecter, Demme originally approached Sean Connery. After the actor turned it down, Anthony Hopkins was then offered the part based on his performance in The Elephant Man (1980). Other actors considered for the role included Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, Derek Jacobi and Daniel Day-Lewis. The mask Hopkins wore became an iconic symbol for the movie. It was created by Ed Cubberly, of Frenchtown, NJ, who had made numerous masks for NHL goalies. Gene Hackman was originally cast to play Jack Crawford, the Agent-in-Charge of the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI in Quantico, Virginia but he found the script "too violent." Scott Glenn was then cast in the role. To prepare for the role, Glenn met with John E. Douglas. Douglas gave Glenn a tour of the Quantico facility and also played for him an audio tape containing various recordings that serial killers Lawrence Bittaker and Roy Norris had made of themselves raping and torturing a 16-year-old girl. According to Douglas, Glenn wept as he experienced the recordings and even changed his liberal stance on the death penalty. Principal photography for The Silence of the Lambs began on November 15, 1989 and concluded on March 1, 1990. Filming primarily took place in and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with some scenes shot in nearby northern West Virginia. The home of Buffalo Bill used for exterior scenes was in Layton, Pennsylvania. The exterior of the Western Center near Canonsburg, Pennsylvania served as the setting for Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. In what was a rare act of cooperation at the time, the FBI allowed scenes to be filmed at the FBI Academy in Quantico; some FBI staff members even acted in bit parts. The musical score for The Silence of the Lambs was composed by Howard Shore, who would also go on to collaborate with Demme on Philadelphia. Recorded in Munich during the latter half of the summer of 1990, the score was performed by the Munich Symphony Orchestra. "I tried to write in a way that goes right into the fabric of the movie," explained Shore on his approach. "I tried to make the music just fit in. When you watch the movie you are not aware of the music. You get your feelings from all elements simultaneously, lighting, cinematography, costumes, acting, music. Jonathan Demme was very specific about the music." A soundtrack album was released by MCA Records on February 5, 1991. Music from the film was later used in the trailers for its 2001 sequel, Hannibal. The Silence of the Lambs was released on February 14, 1991, grossing $14 million during its opening weekend. At the time it closed on October 10, 1991, the film had grossed $131 million domestically with a total worldwide gross of $273 million. It was the 5th-highest grossing film of 1991 worldwide. The film was released on VHS on August 27, 2002 and on DVD on March 6, 2001 by MGM. The Silence of the Lambs was a sleeper hit that gradually gained widespread success and critical acclaim. Foster, Hopkins, and Levine garnered much acclaim for their performances. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 96% of 93 film critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 8.85/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Director Jonathan Demme's smart, taut thriller teeters on the edge between psychological study and all-out horror, and benefits greatly from stellar performances by Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster." Metacritic, another review aggregator, assigned the film a weighted average score of 85 out of 100, based on 19 reviews from mainstream critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A-" on an A+ to F scale. Roger Ebert, of Chicago Sun-Times, specifically mentioned the "terrifying qualities" of Hannibal Lecter. Ebert later added the film to his list of The Great Movies, recognizing the film as a "horror masterpiece" alongside such classics as Nosferatu, Psycho, and Halloween. However, the film is also notable for being one of two multi-Academy Award winners (the other being Unforgiven) disapproved of by Ebert's colleague, Gene Siskel. Writing for Chicago Tribune, Siskel said, "Foster's character, who is appealing, is dwarfed by the monsters she is after. I'd rather see her work on another case." The film won the Big Five Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director (Demme), Best Actor (Hopkins), Best Actress (Foster), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Ted Tally), making it only the third film in history to accomplish that feat. It was also nominated for Best Sound (Tom Fleischman and Christopher Newman) and Best Film Editing, but lost to and JFK, respectively. It is interesting to note that Anthony Hopkins won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a movie where he was onscreen for only 16 minutes. Other awards include being named Best Film by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, CHI Awards and PEO Awards. Demme won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 41st Berlin International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Director. The film was nominated for the Grand Prix of the Belgian Film Critics Association. It was also nominated for the British Academy Film Award for Best Film. Screenwriter Ted Tally received an Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. The film was awarded Best Horror Film of the Year during the 2nd Horror Hall of Fame telecast, with Vincent Price presenting the award to the film's executive producer Gary Goetzman. In 1998, the film was listed as one of the 100 greatest films in the past 100 years by the American Film Institute. In 2006, at the Key Art Awards, the original poster for The Silence of the Lambs was named best film poster "of the past 35 years". The Silence of the Lambs placed seventh on Bravo's The 100 Scariest Movie Moments for Lecter's escape scene. The American Film Institute named Hannibal Lecter (as portrayed by Hopkins) the number one film villain of all time and Clarice Starling (as portrayed by Foster) the sixth-greatest film hero of all time. In 2011, ABC aired a prime-time special, , that counted down the best films chosen by fans based on results of a poll conducted by ABC and People magazine. The Silence of the Lambs was selected as the 1 Best Suspense/Thriller and Dr. Hannibal Lecter was selected as the 4 Greatest Film Character. The film and its characters have appeared in the following AFI "100 Years" lists: AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies—#65, AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills—#5, AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains:, Clarice Starling—#6 Hero, Hannibal Lecter—#1 Villain, AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes:, "A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti."—#21, AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)—#74 In 2015, Entertainment Weekly's 25th anniversary year, it included The Silence of the Lambs in its list of the 25 best movies made since the magazine's beginning. Upon its release, The Silence of the Lambs was criticized by members of the LGBT community for its portrayal of Buffalo Bill as bisexual and transsexual. In response to the critiques, Demme replied that Buffalo Bill "wasn't a gay character. He was a tormented man who hated himself and wished he was a woman because that would have made him as far away from himself as he possibly could be." Demme added that he "came to realize that there is a tremendous absence of positive gay characters in movies". Much of the criticism was directed towards Foster, whom the critics alleged was herself a lesbian. In a 1992 interview with Playboy magazine, the feminist and women's rights advocate Betty Friedan stated: "I thought it was absolutely outrageous that The Silence of the Lambs won four Oscars. […] I'm not saying that the movie shouldn't have been shown. I'm not denying the movie was an artistic triumph, but it was about the evisceration, the skinning alive of women. That is what I find offensive. Not the Playboy centerfold." List of films based on crime books, Silence! The Musical, an unauthorized parody musical adaptation of the film., List of Academy Award records The Silence of the Lambs an essay by Amy Taubin at the Criterion Collection The Silence of the Lambs is a psychological horror novel by Thomas Harris. First published in 1988, it is the sequel to Harris' 1981 novel Red Dragon. Both novels feature the cannibalistic serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter, this time pitted against FBI Special Agent Clarice Starling. Its film adaptation directed by Jonathan Demme was released in 1991 to box office success and critical acclaim. Clarice Starling, a young FBI trainee, is asked to carry out an errand by Jack Crawford, the head of the FBI division that draws up psychological profiles of serial killers. Starling is to present a questionnaire to the brilliant forensic psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer, Hannibal Lecter. Lecter is serving nine consecutive life sentences in a Maryland mental institution for a series of murders. Crawford's real intention, however, is to try to solicit Lecter's assistance in the hunt for a serial killer dubbed "Buffalo Bill", whose modus operandi involves kidnapping overweight women, starving them for up to two weeks, killing and skinning them, and dumping the remains in nearby rivers. The nickname was started by Kansas City Homicide, as a sick joke that "he likes to skin his humps." Throughout the investigation, Starling periodically returns to Lecter in search of information, and the two form a strange relationship in which he offers her cryptic clues in return for information about her troubled and bleak childhood as an orphan. When Bill's sixth victim is found in West Virginia, Starling helps Crawford perform the autopsy. Starling finds a pupa in the throat of the victim, and just as Lecter predicted, she has been scalped. Triangular patches of skin have also been taken from her shoulders. Furthermore, autopsy reports indicate that Bill had killed her within four days of her capture, much faster than his earlier victims. Starling takes the pupa to the Smithsonian, where it is eventually identified as the black witch moth, a species that does not naturally occur where the victim was found. On the basis of Lecter's prediction, Starling believes that he knows who Buffalo Bill really is. She asks Crawford why she was sent to fish for information on Buffalo Bill without being told she was doing so; Crawford explains that if she had had an agenda, Lecter would have sensed it and never spoken up. In Tennessee, Catherine Baker Martin, daughter of Senator Ruth Martin, is kidnapped. Within six hours, her blouse is found on the roadside, slit up the back: Buffalo Bill's calling card. He traps her in an oubliette and begins to starve her. Crawford is advised that no less than the President of the United States has expressed "intense interest" in the case, and that a successful rescue is preferable. Crawford estimates they have three days before Catherine is killed. Starling is sent to Lecter with the offer of a deal: if he assists in Catherine's rescue and Buffalo Bill's capture, he will be transferred out of the asylum, something he has continually longed for. Lecter expresses skepticism at the genuineness of the offer. After Starling leaves, Lecter reminisces on the past, recalling a conversation with Benjamin Raspail, a former patient whom he had eventually murdered. During therapy sessions, Raspail told Lecter about a former lover, Jame Gumb: after Raspail left Gumb and began dating a sailor named Klaus, Gumb became jealous and murdered Klaus, using his skin to make an apron. Raspail also revealed that Gumb had an epiphany upon watching a moth hatch. Lecter's ruminations are interrupted when Dr. Frederick Chilton – the asylum's administrator and Lecter's self-styled nemesis – steps in. A listening device allowed him to record Starling's offer, and Chilton has found out that Crawford's deal is a lie. He offers one of his own: If Lecter reveals Buffalo Bill's identity, he will indeed get a transfer to another asylum, but only if Chilton gets credit for getting the information from him. Lecter agrees, but insists that he be allowed to give the information to Senator Martin in person, in Tennessee. Unknown to Chilton, Lecter has secretly collected the ingredients for an improvised handcuff lockpick, which he deduces will be useful at some point during the travel. In Tennessee, Lecter toys with Senator Martin briefly, enjoying the woman's anguish, but eventually gives her some information about Buffalo Bill: his name is William "Billy" Rubin, and he has suffered from "elephant ivory anthrax", a knifemaker's disease. He also provides an accurate physical description. The name, however, is a red herring: bilirubin is a pigment in human bile and a chief coloring agent in human feces, which the forensic lab compares to the color of Chilton's hair. Starling tries one last time to get information from Lecter as he is held in police custody. He offers a final clue – "we covet what we see every day" – and demands to hear her worst memory. Starling reveals that, after her father's death, she was sent to live with a cousin on a sheep and horse ranch. One night, she discovered the farmer slaughtering the spring lambs, and fled in terror with a mare also destined for the slaughterhouse whom she named Hannah. The farmer caught her and sent her to an orphanage, where she spent the rest of her childhood. Lecter, seeing the parallels between the helpless lambs and the equally helpless Catherine, thanks her for her candor, and the two share a brief moment of connection before Chilton forces her to leave. Shortly after this, Lecter escapes by killing and eviscerating his guards, using one of their faces as a mask to fool paramedics. Starling continues her search for Buffalo Bill, deducing that he knew his first victim, Fredrica Bimmel, from everyday life. She visits Fredrica's family home and discovers that both she and Buffalo Bill were accomplished tailors. By canvassing Bimmel's known associates, she ends up at the house of one Jame Gumb, a dressmaker and leatherworker. She spies a black witch moth in his home and knows whom she has found; however, Gumb escapes into his basement. Starling, armed only with a revolver but aware that calling for backup will result in Catherine's death, follows him down, and kills him after a protracted chase. Catherine is returned to her family unharmed. Starling receives a congratulatory telegram from Lecter, who hopes that "the lambs have stopped screaming" and indicates that he has no plans to pursue her. He also predicts correctly that saving Catherine Martin may have granted Clarice some relief, but that the silence will never become eternal, heralding her motives for a continued career at the FBI. Clarice eventually finds rest even after Lecter's letter, sleeping peacefully "in the silence of the lambs". Clarice Starling, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, Jack Crawford, Jame "Buffalo Bill" Gumb, Dr. Frederick Chilton, Catherine Baker Martin, Sen. Ruth Martin, Ardelia Mapp, Barney Matthews, John Brigham, Albert Roden, Noble Pilcher, Paul Krendler, I. J. Miggs The novel was a great success. Craig Brown of The Mail on Sunday wrote, "No thriller writer is better attuned than Thomas Harris to the rhythms of suspense. No horror writer is more adept at making the stomach churn". The Independent wrote that it is "Utterly gripping", and Amazon.com called it "driving suspense, compelling characters, ... a well-executed thriller". Children's novelist Roald Dahl also greatly enjoyed the novel, describing it as "subtle, horrific and splendid, the best book I have read in a long time". Author David Foster Wallace used the book as part of his curriculum while teaching at Pomona College and later included the book as well as Harris's Red Dragon on his list of ten favorite novels. John Dunning says of Silence of the Lambs: [it is] "simply the best thriller I've read in five years". Critics and transgender activists decried the novel as transphobic and homophobic because of its portrayal of Buffalo Bill. Because of this there were protests against the film version when it was released. The book was criticized by feminist author Julia Serano for presenting transsexualism as psychosis. The novel won the 1988 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel., The novel also won the 1989 Anthony Award for Best Novel., It was nominated for the 1989 World Fantasy Award. Following the 1986 adaptation of Red Dragon (filmed as Manhunter), The Silence of the Lambs was adapted by Jonathan Demme in 1991. The Silence of the Lambs became the third film in Oscar history to win the following five Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It stars Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling and Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter. In 2005, comedian-musicians Jon and Al Kaplan parodied the story, especially the film, in Silence! The Musical. It premiered Off-Off-Broadway and has since had productions in London and Los Angeles. In 2012, the Los Angeles production won the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle awards for Score, Lead Performance, and Choreography. Dr. Hannibal Lecter is a fictional character in a series of suspense novels by Thomas Harris. He is a respected Baltimore forensic psychiatrist, as well as a cannibalistic serial killer. After he is caught and incarcerated for his crimes, he consults with the FBI to assist them in finding other serial killers. Lecter was introduced in the 1981 thriller novel Red Dragon. The novel and its sequel, The Silence of the Lambs, feature Lecter as one of the primary antagonists. In the third novel, Hannibal, Lecter becomes a protagonist. His role as the antihero occurs in the fourth novel, Hannibal Rising, which explores his childhood and development into a serial killer. The first film adapted from the Harris novels was Manhunter (based on Red Dragon) which features Brian Cox as Lecter, spelled "Lecktor". Anthony Hopkins won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the character in The Silence of the Lambs (1991). He would reprise the role in Hannibal in 2001 and in a second adaptation of Red Dragon made in 2002 under the original title. The most recent film adapted from the Harris novels is Hannibal Rising (2007), in which Lecter is portrayed by Gaspard Ulliel. Harris himself wrote the screenplay for this film. The NBC television series Hannibal debuted in 2013, and focuses on the development of the relationship between Lecter and Will Graham, an FBI profiler. In the series, Lecter is portrayed by Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen, who won a Saturn Award for his performance. In 2003, Hannibal Lecter (as portrayed by Hopkins) was chosen by the American Film Institute as the greatest villain in American cinema. In June 2010, Entertainment Weekly named him one of the 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years. In 2019, Hannibal (as portrayed by Mikkelsen) was listed as the 18th greatest villain in television history by Rolling Stone. In the novel Red Dragon, protagonist Will Graham says that psychologists refer to Lecter as a sociopath "because they don't know what else to call him". Graham claims that "he has no remorse or guilt at all", and tortured animals as a child, but does not exhibit any of the other criteria traditionally associated with sociopathy. Asked how he himself would describe Lecter, Graham responds, "he's a monster", implying that Lecter's mind is somehow "incomplete" in the same way that some babies are born with missing limbs or non-functioning organs. In The Silence of the Lambs, Lecter's keeper, Dr. Frederick Chilton, claims that Lecter is a "pure sociopath" ("pure psychopath" in the film adaptation). In the film adaptation of The Silence of the Lambs, protagonist Clarice Starling says of Lecter, "They don't have a name for what he is." Lecter's pathology is explored in greater detail in Hannibal and Hannibal Rising, which explains that he was traumatized as a child in Lithuania in 1944 when he witnessed the murder and cannibalism of his beloved sister, Mischa, by a group of deserting Lithuanian Hilfswillige, one of whom claimed that Lecter unwittingly ate his sister as well. All media in which Lecter appears portray him as intellectually brilliant, cultured and sophisticated, with refined tastes in art, music and cuisine. He is frequently depicted preparing gourmet meals from his victims' flesh, the most famous example being his admission that he once ate a census taker's liver "with some fava beans and a nice Chianti" (a "big Amarone" in the novel). He is deeply offended by rudeness, and frequently kills people who have bad manners. Prior to his capture and imprisonment, he was a member of Baltimore, Maryland's social elite, and a sitting member of the Baltimore Philharmonic Orchestra's Board of Directors. In The Silence of the Lambs, Lecter is described through Starling's eyes: "small, sleek, and in his hands and arms she saw wiry strength like her own". The novel also reveals that Lecter's left hand has a condition called mid ray duplication polydactyly, i.e. a duplicated middle finger. In Hannibal, he performs plastic surgery on his own face on several occasions, and removes his extra digit. Lecter's eyes are a shade of maroon, and reflect the light in "pinpoints of red". He has small white teeth and dark, slicked-back hair with a widow's peak. He also has a keen sense of smell; in The Silence of the Lambs, he is able to identify through a plexiglass window with small holes the brand of perfume that Starling wore the day before. He has an eidetic memory with which he has constructed in his mind an elaborate "memory palace" with which he relives memories and sensations in rich detail. Anthony Hopkins, the actor most closely identified with the character, said on the commentary track to the DVD release of The Silence of the Lambs that he was inspired by HAL 9000 from Stanley Kubrick's . In his "Great Movies" essay on Silence of the Lambs, Roger Ebert further elaborated on this comparison: "He is a dispassionate, brilliant machine, superb at logic, deficient in emotions." In the same essay, Ebert theorized: One key to the film's appeal is that audiences like Hannibal Lecter... He may be a cannibal, but as a dinner party guest he would give value for money (if he didn't eat you). He does not bore, he likes to amuse, he has his standards, and he is the smartest person in the movie... He bears comparison, indeed, with such other movie monsters as Nosferatu, Frankenstein... King Kong and Norman Bates. They have two things in common: They behave according to their natures, and they are misunderstood. Nothing that these monsters do is "evil" in any conventional moral sense, because they lack any moral sense. They are hard-wired to do what they do. They have no choice. In the areas where they do have choice, they try to do the right thing. In the backstory of the 1981 novel Red Dragon, FBI profiler Will Graham interviews Lecter about one of his patients who was murdered by a serial killer, before intuiting that Lecter is the culprit; he sees the antique medical diagram “Wound Man” in Lecter’s office, and remembers that the victim suffered the same injuries depicted in the drawing. Realizing that Graham is on to him, Lecter creeps up behind Graham and stabs him with a linoleum knife, nearly disemboweling him. Graham survives, but is so traumatized by the incident that he takes early retirement from the FBI. Lecter is charged with a series of nine murders, but is found not guilty by reason of insanity. He is institutionalized in the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane under the care of Dr. Frederick Chilton, a pompous, incompetent psychologist whom he despises, and who subjects him to a series of petty cruelties. Some years later, Graham comes out of retirement and consults Lecter in order to catch another serial killer, Francis Dolarhyde, known by the nickname "The Tooth Fairy". Through the classifieds of a tabloid called The National Tattler, Lecter provides Dolarhyde with Graham's home address; Dolarhyde later uses this information to break into Graham’s home, stab him in the face, and threaten his family before Graham and his wife Molly shoot him dead. At the end of the novel, Lecter sends Graham a letter saying that he hopes Graham isn't "too ugly". In the 1988 sequel The Silence of the Lambs, Lecter assists FBI agent-in- training Clarice Starling in catching a serial killer, Jame Gumb, known by the nickname "Buffalo Bill". Lecter is fascinated by Starling, and they form an unusual relationship in which he provides her with a profile of the killer and his modus operandi in exchange for details about her unhappy childhood. Lecter had previously met Gumb, the former lover of his patient (and eventual victim) Benjamin Raspail. He does not reveal this information directly, instead giving Starling vague clues to help her figure it out for herself. In return for Lecter's assistance, the FBI and Chilton arrange for him to be transferred to a lower security facility. Lecter escapes while in transit, however, killing and mutilating his guards and using one of their faces as a mask to fool police and paramedics before killing the latter and escaping. While in hiding, he writes one letter to Starling wishing her well, a second to Barney (his primary orderly at the asylum), thanking him for his courteous treatment, and a third to Chilton, promising gruesome revenge; Chilton disappears soon afterward. In the third novel, 1999's Hannibal, Lecter lives in a palazzo in Florence, Italy, and works as a museum curator under the alias "Dr. Fell". One of Lecter’s surviving victims, Mason Verger - a wealthy, sadistic pedophile whom Lecter had brutalized during a court-ordered therapy session, leaving him a horrifically disfigured quadriplegic - offers a huge reward for anyone who apprehends Lecter, whom he intends to feed to wild boars specially bred for the purpose. Verger enlists the help of Rinaldo Pazzi, a disgraced Italian police inspector, and Paul Krendler, a corrupt Justice Department official and Starling's boss. Lecter kills Pazzi and returns to the United States to escape Verger's Sardinian henchmen, only to be captured. Starling follows them, intent on apprehending Lecter personally, and is injured in a gunfight with Verger's henchmen. Lecter escapes twice and persuades Verger's sister Margot – his former patient, whom Verger had molested and raped years earlier – to kill her brother, promising to take the blame. He rescues the wounded Starling and takes her to Krendler's rented lake house to treat her, subjecting her to a regimen of mind-altering drugs and classical conditioning in order to make her believe she is his long-dead sister Mischa. One day, he invites her to a formal dinner where the guest and first course is Paul Krendler, whose brain they consume together. On this night, Starling tells Lecter that Mischa's memory can live within him instead of taking her place. She then offers him her breast, and they become lovers. Three years later, former orderly Barney Matthews, who had treated Lecter with respect while he was incarcerated in Baltimore, sees Lecter and Starling entering the Teatro Colón opera house in Buenos Aires. Fearing for his life, Barney leaves Buenos Aires immediately, never to return. Harris wrote a 2006 prequel, Hannibal Rising, after film producer Dino De Laurentiis (who owned the cinematic rights to the Lecter character) announced an intended film project depicting Lecter's childhood and development into a serial killer with or without Harris' help. Harris would also write the film's screenplay. The novel chronicles Lecter's early life, from his birth into an aristocratic family in Lithuania in 1933, to being orphaned, along with his beloved sister Mischa, in 1944 when a Nazi Stuka bomber attacks a Soviet tank in front of their forest hideaway. Shortly thereafter, he and Mischa are captured by a band of Nazi collaborators, who murder and cannibalize Mischa before her brother's eyes; Lecter later learns that the collaborators also fed him Mischa's remains. Irreparably traumatized, Lecter escapes from the deserters and wanders through the forest, dazed and unable to speak. He is found and taken back to his family's old castle, which had been converted into a Soviet orphanage, where he is bullied by the other children and abused by the dean. He runs away to find his uncle Robert, who he learns has died, and Robert's Japanese wife, Lady Murasaki, who nurses him back to health and teaches him to speak again. Lecter forms a close, pseudo-romantic relationship with his step-aunt. During this time he also shows great intellectual aptitude, entering medical school at a young age and distinguishing himself. Despite his seemingly comfortable life, Lecter is consumed by a savage obsession with avenging Mischa's death. He kills for the first time as a teenager, beheading a racist fishmonger who insulted Murasaki. He then methodically tracks down, tortures, and murders each of the men who had killed his sister. In the process of taking his revenge, he forsakes his relationship with Murasaki and seemingly loses all traces of his humanity. The novel ends with Lecter being accepted to the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Red Dragon was first adapted to film in 1986 as the Michael Mann film Manhunter, although the spelling of Lecter's name was changed to "Lecktor". He was played by actor Brian Cox. Cox based his performance on Scottish serial killer Peter Manuel. In 1991, Orion Pictures produced a Jonathan Demme- directed adaptation of The Silence of the Lambs, in which Lecter was played by actor Anthony Hopkins. Hopkins' Academy Award-winning performance made Lecter into a cultural icon. In 2001, Hannibal was adapted to film, with Hopkins reprising his role. In the film adaptation, the ending is revised: Starling attempts to apprehend Lecter, who escapes after cutting off his own hand to free himself from her handcuffs. In 2002, Red Dragon was adapted again, this time under its original title, with Hopkins again as Lecter and Edward Norton as Will Graham. Hopkins wrote a screenplay for a Hannibal sequel, ending with Starling killing Lecter, but it was never produced. In late 2006, the novel Hannibal Rising was adapted into the film of the same name, which portrayed Lecter's development into a serial killer. In the film, which was finished by 2007, eight-year-old Lecter is portrayed by Aaran Thomas, while Gaspard Ulliel portrays him as a young man. Both the novel and film, as well as Ulliel’s performance as Lecter, received generally negative critical reviews. In February 2012, NBC gave a series order to Hannibal, a television adaptation of Red Dragon to be written and executive-produced by Bryan Fuller. Mads Mikkelsen plays Lecter, opposite Hugh Dancy as Will Graham. Fuller commented on Mikkelsen's version of Lecter: "What I love about Mads' approach to the character is that, in our first meeting, he was adamant that he didn't want to do Hopkins or Cox. He talked about the character not so much as 'Hannibal Lecter the cannibal psychiatrist', but as Satan – this fallen angel who's enamoured with mankind and had an affinity for who we are as people, but was definitely not among us – he was other. I thought that was a really cool, interesting approach, because I love science fiction and horror and – not that we'd ever do anything deliberately to suggest this – but having it subtextually play as him being Lucifer felt like a really interesting kink to the series. It was slightly different than anything that's been done before and it also gives it a slightly more epic quality if you watch the show through the prism of, 'This is Satan at work, tempting someone with the apple of their psyche'. It appealed to all of those genre things that get me excited about any sort of entertainment." The first season amends the series' continuity so that Graham and Lecter first work together during the hunt for Garrett Jacob Hobbs (Vladimir Jon Cubrt), the "Minnesota Shrike", a serial killer who preys on college girls. During the investigation, Lecter secretly calls Hobbs to tip him off that Graham is on to him, just to see what Hobbs will do. As a result, Hobbs turns on his own family, killing his wife and trying to kill his daughter Abigail (Kacey Rohl) as Graham charges in and shoots him dead. Killing Hobbs weighs on Graham's conscience and gives him nightmares, so his boss Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) sends him to Lecter for counseling. Throughout the first season, Lecter acts as Graham's unofficial psychiatrist, and they form a tenuous friendship. Lecter and Graham also become father figures to Abigail, and cover for her when they discover that she was her father's unwilling accomplice. Lecter is fascinated by Graham's ability to empathize with psychopaths, and he spends much of the series trying to undermine Graham's fragile sanity and push him into becoming a killer. To this end, Lecter prevents Graham from learning that he has advanced encephalitis, just to see how Graham would function under the circumstances. In the first-season finale, Lecter reluctantly frames Graham for a series of murders that he himself committed throughout the season – including, apparently, Abigail's – but not before Graham realizes that Lecter is the “Chesapeake Ripper”, the very serial killer he has been trying to catch. Throughout the beginning of the second season, Graham, who is now institutionalized, attempts to convince his skeptical former colleagues that Lecter is the real killer and begins pulling strings from within his cell in order to expose him. Meanwhile, Lecter begins to manipulate evidence from the outside, exonerating himself after the FBI's initial investigations into Graham's claims. Eventually, Graham persuades his friend and colleague Beverly Katz (Hetienne Park), a forensic scientist, to investigate Lecter in exchange for help on a case. She breaks into Lecter's house, where she finds evidence of his guilt. Lecter catches her, however, and kills her; he then sections her body vertically and displays it in tableau. Angry and vengeful, Graham convinces deranged hospital orderly Matthew Brown (Jonathan Tucker) to try to kill Lecter, but Lecter gets the better of Brown and kills him. Lecter retaliates by taking as his lover Alana Bloom (Caroline Dhavernas), a psychologist for whom Graham has romantic feelings. Lecter then exonerates Graham by planting forensic evidence of Graham's alleged victims at the scene of one of his own murders, resulting in Graham's release. He also frames his colleague Frederick Chilton (Raúl Esparza) by planting a mutilated corpse in his house and "influencing" his surviving victim Miriam Lass (Anna Chlumsky), into believing that Chilton had abducted and tortured her. Graham resumes therapy with Lecter as an attempt to entrap him. Lecter is aware of the ruse, but is fascinated by the experience and allows it to continue in an attempt to examine his connection with Graham. In an attempt to push Graham into becoming a killer, Lecter sends his psychotic former patient Randall Tier (Mark O'Brien) after him, and Graham kills and mutilates Tier – just as Lecter hoped he would. Later, Graham attacks tabloid reporter Fredericka "Freddy" Lounds (Lara Jean Chorostecki), who is investigating him and Lecter. Graham shares a meal with Lecter of what is implied to be her flesh, but it is soon revealed that Lounds is still alive and conspiring with Graham and Crawford to draw Lecter into their trap. Lecter and Graham acquire a common enemy in Mason Verger (Michael Pitt), a wealthy sadist whom they both despise for emotionally and sexually abusing his twin sister, and Lecter’s patient, Margot (Katharine Isabelle). Verger briefly enters therapy with Lecter to find out what Margot is saying about him, but soon kidnaps Lecter and Graham, intent on feeding them both to his prize pigs. They both escape, however, and Lecter takes Verger hostage in Graham's house. Lecter gives Mason a hallucinogenic drug cocktail, and tells him to cut off pieces of his own face and feed them to Graham's dogs. With Graham's tacit approval, Lecter then breaks Verger's neck with his bare hands, paralyzing him from the neck down. In the second-season finale, Crawford arrives at Lecter's house to arrest him. In the ensuing struggle, Lecter seriously wounds Crawford, while a very much alive Abigail Hobbs pushes Bloom out of a window. Lecter then stabs Graham and cuts Abigail's throat in front of him, and flees before the police arrive. He is shown in a post-credits scene aboard a flight to France with his psychiatrist, Bedelia Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson). The third season amends the series' continuity to incorporate events from the novels Red Dragon and Hannibal. It also changes Lecter's origin story: in this continuity, Lecter's sister Mischa was murdered, cannibalized, and fed to him by a peasant in his native Lithuania; Lecter eventually made the peasant his prisoner. Certain episodes also suggest that, in his youth, Lecter was the unidentified serial killer known as "The Monster of Florence". Months after his escape, Lecter is living in Florence with Du Maurier, working as a museum curator under the alias "Dr. Fell" – having murdered the original curator and stolen his identity. Disgraced Italian detective Rinaldo Pazzi (Fortunato Cerlino) tries to apprehend him to collect a bounty placed by Mason Verger (Joe Anderson), who is also consulting with Bloom to capture Lecter. Lecter kills Pazzi and tries to flee the country, but is accosted by Crawford, who engages him in brutal hand-to-hand combat. Meanwhile, Graham goes looking for Lecter with the help of the doctor's family servant Chiyoh (Tao Okamoto), traveling to his adversary's home country to find out more about him. Lecter manages to escape from Crawford and meet up with Graham when he arrives to Italy again. Graham makes peace with Lecter before pulling a knife on him, but Chiyoh shoots and wounds Graham. Lecter takes Graham back to his villa and tries to perform a craniotomy on him in front of Crawford, but is interrupted by Italian detectives on Mason’s payroll, who deliver them both to his estate in Maryland. Mason’s physician Cordell Doemling (Glenn Fleshler) tells Lecter that he will mutilate him until he dies, and prepare gourmet cuisine from his flesh for Mason to eat. Influenced by Graham, Bloom frees Lecter, who suggests that Margot kill her brother, promising to take the blame. Lecter then kills Doemling, who is about to surgically remove Graham's face and graft it onto Mason's, and later instructs Margot and Bloom on how to “milk” the unconscious Mason's prostate to give Margot the sperm she needs to conceive a child and thus inherit the Verger family fortune. After Margot kills her brother, Lecter goes to Graham's house, carrying the wounded and unconscious Graham. When Graham wakes up, he allows Lecter to escape, claiming that he never wants to see him again. To spite Graham, Lecter surrenders to Crawford later that evening and is taken into custody. Lecter is found insane at his trial, and incarcerated in the Baltimore Hospital for the Criminally Insane, under Chilton and Bloom's care. Three years later, Graham visits him at the hospital to ask for help in profiling a serial killer dubbed "The Tooth Fairy", who murders entire families. Lecter begins communicating with the killer, Francis Dolarhyde (Richard Armitage), and gives him Graham's home address. Dolarhyde attacks and wounds Graham's wife, Molly (Nina Arianda). Bloom and Crawford threaten to take away Lecter's hospital privileges unless he lets them listen in on his conversations with Dolarhyde. Lecter complies, but then suddenly tells Dolarhyde they are listening. Bloom punishes him by taking away his books and toilet, and confining him in a straitjacket and muzzle. Graham, in an attempt to make Dolarhyde come out of hiding, gives an interview with Chilton and Lounds in which he describes "The Tooth Fairy" as ugly, impotent, and a product of incest. Dolarhyde, enraged by the "bad review", abducts, burns and disfigures Chilton, and sends Lecter Chilton's severed lips, one of which Lecter eats. In the series finale, "The Wrath of the Lamb", Lecter and Graham develop a plan to catch Dolarhyde, using Lecter as bait. Lecter goes with Graham on a police convoy, to be transferred to another facility in order to eventually draw the killer out. However, Graham has made a deal with Dolarhyde to free Lecter, and Dolarhyde attacks the convoy, killing the guards and letting Lecter and Graham live. Lecter then takes Graham to a secluded clifftop cottage where he previously held Abigail Hobbs and Miriam Lass. Dolarhyde tracks them down and attacks them, shooting Lecter in the back and stabbing Graham in the face. Though they are both badly wounded, Lecter and Graham manage to get the better of Dolarhyde and kill him together: Graham slices open Dolarhyde's chest, while Lecter tears out his throat with his teeth. Lecter and Graham then embrace, before Graham pushes them both off a cliff. Their ultimate fate is left ambiguous; a post-credits scene shows Du Maurier dining on her own leg at a table set for three. Series creator Bryan Fuller has said this scene is meant to suggest that Lecter and Graham survived and that Graham has become Lecter's partner in murder. Fuller has stated that Season 4 would have depicted Lecter and Graham on the run from the FBI in Argentina, mirroring Lecter and Starling's storyline from the novels. The emotional relationship between Graham and Lecter forms the foundation of the series. In season 3, their developing romance has been taken from subtext into text. As to whether it was a part of the initial plan to portray their relationship as romantic, Fuller stated: "No, it naturally evolved because I guess I was absorbing so much of Mads and Hugh's performance, which felt like it was growing in intimacy, and it would have been inauthentic not to address it. Because all of these characters, and particularly Bedelia, was able to call out what she had witnessed [between Lecter and Graham], it seemed like a natural conclusion. I remember when I turned in the rewrite pages where Will asks Bedelia if Hannibal is in love with him, I got a note from Don Mancini, one of our writers who was always pushing for more homosexual text – not just context or subtext but text, text, text – and he was like, "I'm so glad you put that in there! They said it! They said it!" Discussing what motivated him to verbally acknowledge the romance between Graham and Lecter, Fuller said, "It felt like we had to shit or get off the pot, ultimately, because there had been so much going on between these two men that when Will asks, "Is Hannibal Lecter in love with me?" it is very much about death and the romance between these two men. There is a quality to connections that go above and beyond sexuality. You can have this intimate connection with somebody that then causes you to wonder where the lines of your own sexuality are. And we didn't quite broach the sexuality. It was certainly suggested, but the love is absolutely on the table." Remembering how the song for the finale of the series – "Love Crime" by Siouxsie Sioux – was created, Fuller said: "It was interesting. She [Siouxsie Sioux] was like, "I want to write this song, and what are the things I should really be thinking about?" And I was like, 'this is a love story. A love story between a full-fledged psychopath and someone who has nascent psychopathic abilities.' Actually, Hannibal Lecter is not a psychopath; he's something else entirely. But it's a love relationship between two men: one of them is a cannibal, and one of them understands those cannibalistic instincts all too well." Lecter is the subject of the 1998 song "Hannibal (Se) Lectah" by The Skalatones. Lecter is parodied in the 2005 musical Silence! The Musical, with the character being originated by actor Brent Barrett. Thomas Harris has given few interviews and did not explain where he got inspiration for Hannibal Lecter until mid-2013. Harris revealed that the character was inspired by a real-life doctor and murderer he met while visiting a prison in the city of Monterrey during a trip to Mexico in the 1960s when he was a 23-year-old reporter. The doctor was serving a life sentence for murdering a young man, supposedly a "close friend", mutilating his body into several body parts, and putting them in a very small box. Harris, who would only refer to the surgeon by the fake name "Dr. Salazar", described him as a "small little pale man with dark red hair". He added: "There was certain intelligence and elegance about him." Harris had gone to Mexico to interview Dykes Askew Simmons, an American citizen on death row for murdering three young people in the country, but he ended up also speaking to "Salazar", who saved Simmons' life after a guard shot him during an escape bid. "Salazar" revealed his dark side as he began discussing Simmons' disfigured face, tormented upbringing and how attractive his victims had been. Several reporters and investigators have traced the records and whereabouts of the Mexican prison doctor in later years and discovered that "Salazar" was in reality Alfredo Ballí Treviño, a physician from an upper-class Monterrey family who was found guilty of murdering his close friend (and lover) Jesus Castillo Rangel and mutilating his body; he was also suspected of killing and dismembering several hitchhikers in the city outskirts during the late 1950s and early 1960s. Harris also incorporated some of these details into Buffalo Bill's development as a killer in Silence of the Lambs. Ballí was initially condemned to death, but his sentence was later commuted to 20 years and he was released in 1981. After his release, Ballí continued working as a physician in an austere office until his death by natural causes in 2009. In her book Evil Serial Killers, Charlotte Greig asserts that the serial killer Albert Fish was the inspiration, at least in part, for Lecter. Greig also states that to explain Lecter's pathology, Harris borrowed the story of serial killer and cannibal Andrei Chikatilo's brother Stepan being kidnapped and eaten by starving neighbors (though she states that it is unclear whether the story was true or whether Stepan Chikatilo even existed). The location of the book Hannibal was inspired by The Monster of Florence. While preparing the book, Harris traveled to Italy and was present at the trial of the main suspect, Pietro Pacciani, where he was seen taking notes. List of horror film antagonists, Fictional serial killers Hannibal Lecter on IMDb, Information about Hannibal Lecter, with a focus on Manhunter (1986), NPR broadcast on Lecter, Brian Cox interview about portraying Hannibal Lecter

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Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/keyboardist Joe Hahn and drummer Rob Bourdon, all of whom are founding members. Vocalists Mark Wakefield and Chester Bennington and bassist Kyle Christner are former members of the band. Categorized as alternative rock, Linkin Park has experimented with their music throughout their career by incorporating heavy metal, hard rock, hip hop, pop, and electronica. Formed in 1996, Linkin Park rose to international fame with their debut studio album, Hybrid Theory (2000), which became certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Their second album, Meteora (2003), continued the band's success, topping the Billboard 200, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work. Having adapted nu metal and rap metal to a radio-friendly yet densely layered style in their first two albums, the band explored other genres on their third album, Minutes to Midnight (2007), which also topped the Billboard 200. Linkin Park continued to explore a wider variation of musical types in their fourth album, A Thousand Suns (2010), layering their music with more electronic sounds. The band's fifth album, Living Things (2012), combined musical elements from all of their previous records. Their sixth album, The Hunting Party (2014), returned to a heavier rock sound, and their seventh album, One More Light (2017), is a more electronic and pop-oriented record. Linkin Park is among the best-selling bands of the 21st century and the world's best-selling music artists, having sold over 70 million albums worldwide. They have won two Grammy Awards, six American Music Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards and three World Music Awards. In 2003, MTV2 named Linkin Park the sixth-greatest band of the music video era and the third-best of the new millennium. Billboard ranked Linkin Park No. 19 on the Best Artists of the Decade list. In 2012, the band was voted as the greatest artist of the 2000s in a Bracket Madness poll on VH1. In 2014, the band was declared as "The Biggest Rock Band in the World Right Now" by Kerrang!. Linkin Park has been on an indefinite hiatus since longtime lead vocalist Bennington committed suicide in July 2017, and has not yet made plans to continue with a new vocalist, leaving the band's future uncertain. Linkin Park was founded by three high school friends: Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon, and Brad Delson. The three attended Agoura High School in Agoura Hills, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. After graduating from high school, the three began to take their musical interests more seriously, recruiting Joe Hahn, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell, and Mark Wakefield to perform in their band, then called Xero. Though limited in resources, the band began recording and producing songs within Shinoda's makeshift bedroom studio in 1996, resulting in a four-track demo tape, entitled Xero. Tensions and frustration within the band grew however after they failed to land a record deal. The lack of success and stalemate in progress prompted Wakefield, at that time the band's vocalist, to leave the band in search of other projects. Farrell also left to tour with Tasty Snax, a Christian punk and ska band. After spending a considerable time searching for Wakefield's replacement, Xero recruited Arizona vocalist Chester Bennington, who was recommended by Jeff Blue, the vice president of Zomba Music in March 1999. Bennington, formerly of a post- grunge band Grey Daze, became a standout among applicants because of the dynamic in his singing style. The band then agreed on changing their name from Xero to Hybrid Theory; the newborn vocal chemistry between Shinoda and Bennington helped revive the band, inciting them to work on new material. In 1999 the band released a self-titled extended play, which they circulated across internet chat-rooms and forums with the help of an online 'street team'. The band still struggled to sign a record deal. They turned to Jeff Blue for additional help after facing numerous rejections from several major record labels. After failing to catch Warner Bros. Records on three previous reviews, Blue, who was now the vice president of Warner Bros. Records, helped the band sign a deal with the company. However, the label advised the band to change their name to avoid confusion with Hybrid. The band changed their name to Linkin Park, a play on and homage to Santa Monica's Lincoln Park, now called Christine Emerson Reed Park. They initially wanted to use the name "Lincoln Park", however they changed it to "Linkin" to acquire the internet domain "linkinpark.com". Farrell returned in 2000, and the band released their breakthrough album, Hybrid Theory, that same year. Linkin Park released Hybrid Theory on October 24, 2000. The album, which represented half a decade's worth of the band's work, was edited by Don Gilmore. Hybrid Theory was a massive commercial success; it sold more than 4.8 million copies during its debut year, earning it the status of best-selling album of 2001, while singles such as "Crawling" and "One Step Closer" established themselves as staples among alternative rock radio play lists during the year. Additionally, other singles from the album were featured in films such as Dracula 2000, Little Nicky, and Valentine. Hybrid Theory won a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance for the song "Crawling" and was nominated for two other Grammy Awards: Best New Artist and Best Rock Album. MTV awarded the band their Best Rock Video and Best Direction awards for "In the End". Through the winning of the Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance, Hybrid Theorys overall success had catapulted the band into mainstream success. During this time, Linkin Park received many invitations to perform on many high-profile tours and concerts including Ozzfest, Family Values Tour, and KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas. The band worked with Jessica Sklar to found their official fan club and street team, "Linkin Park Underground", in November 2001. Linkin Park also formed their own tour, Projekt Revolution, which featured other notable artists such as Cypress Hill, Adema, and Snoop Dogg. Within a year's stretch, Linkin Park had performed at over 320 concerts. The experiences and performances of the precocious band were documented in their first DVD, Frat Party at the Pankake Festival, which debuted in November 2001. Now reunited with former bassist Phoenix, the band began work on a remix album, dubbed Reanimation, which would include works from Hybrid Theory and non-album tracks. Reanimation debuted on July 30, 2002, featuring the likes of Black Thought, Jonathan Davis, Aaron Lewis, and many others. Reanimation claimed the second spot on the Billboard 200, and sold nearly 270,000 copies during its debut week. Hybrid Theory is also in the RIAA's Top 100 Albums. Following the success of Hybrid Theory and Reanimation, Linkin Park spent a significant amount of time touring around the United States. The band members began to work on new material amidst their saturated schedule, spending a sliver of their free time in their tour bus' studio. The band officially announced the production of a new studio album in December 2002, revealing their new work was inspired by the rocky region of Meteora in Greece, where numerous monasteries have been built on top of the rocks. Meteora features a mixture of the band's nu metal and rap metal style with newer innovative effects, including the induction of a shakuhachi (a Japanese flute made of bamboo) and other instruments. Linkin Park's second album debuted on March 25, 2003 and instantly earned worldwide recognition, going to No. 1 in the US and UK, and No. 2 in Australia. Meteora sold more than 800,000 copies during its first week, and it ranked as the best selling album on the Billboard charts at the time. The album's singles, including "Somewhere I Belong", "Breaking the Habit", "Faint", and "Numb", received significant radio attention. By October 2003, Meteora sold nearly three million copies. The album's success allowed Linkin Park to form another Projekt Revolution, which featured other bands and artists including Mudvayne, Blindside, and Xzibit. Additionally, Metallica invited Linkin Park to play at the Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003, which included well-known acts such as Limp Bizkit, Mudvayne and Deftones. The band released an album and DVD, titled Live in Texas, which featured some audio and video tracks from the band's performances in Texas during the tour. In early 2004, Linkin Park started a world tour titled the Meteora World Tour. Supporting bands on the tour included Hoobastank, P.O.D., Story of the Year and Pia. Meteora earned the band multiple awards and honors. The band won the MTV awards for Best Rock Video for "Somewhere I Belong" and the Viewer's Choice Award for "Breaking the Habit". Linkin Park also received significant recognition during the 2004 Radio Music Awards, winning the Artist of the Year and Song of the Year ("Numb") awards. Although Meteora was not nearly as successful as Hybrid Theory, it was the third best selling album in the United States during 2003. The band spent the first few months of 2004 touring around the world, first with the third Projekt Revolution tour, and later several European concerts. At the same time, the band's relationship with Warner Bros. Records was deteriorating rapidly on account of several trust and financial issues. After months of feuding, the band finally negotiated a deal in December 2005. Following Meteora's success, the band worked on many side projects. Bennington appeared on DJ Lethal's "State of the Art" and other work with Dead by Sunrise, while Shinoda did work with Depeche Mode. In 2004, the band began to work with Jay-Z to produce another remix album, titled Collision Course. The album, which featured intermixed lyrics and background tracks from both artists' previous albums, debuted in November 2004. Shinoda also formed Fort Minor as a side project. With the aid of Jay-Z, Fort Minor released their debut album, The Rising Tied, to critical acclaim. Linkin Park also participated in numerous charitable events, most notably raised money to benefit victims of Hurricane Charley in 2004 and later Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The band donated $75,000 to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation in March 2004. They also helped relief efforts for the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami victims by staging several charity concerts and setting up an additional fund called Music for Relief. Most notably, however, the band participated at Live 8, a series of charitable benefit concerts set up to raise global awareness. Alongside Jay-Z, the band performed on Live 8's stage in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to a global audience. The band would later be reunited with Jay-Z at the Grammy Award Ceremony 2006, during which they performed "Numb/Encore", en route to winning a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. They were joined on stage by Paul McCartney who added verses from the song "Yesterday". They would later go on to play at the 2006 Summer Sonic music festival, which was hosted by Metallica in Japan. Linkin Park returned to the recording studios in 2006 to work on new material. To produce the album, the band chose producer Rick Rubin. Despite initially stating the album would debut sometime in 2006, the album was delayed until 2007. The band had recorded thirty to fifty songs in August 2006, when Shinoda stated the album was halfway completed. Bennington later added that the new album would stray away from their previous nu metal sound. Warner Bros. Records officially announced that the band's third studio album, titled Minutes to Midnight, would be released on May 15, 2007 in the United States. After spending fourteen months working on the album, the band members opted to further refine their album by removing five of the original seventeen tracks. The album's title, a reference to the Doomsday Clock, foreshadowed the band's new lyrical themes. Minutes to Midnight sold over 625,000 copies in its first week, making it one of the most successful debut week albums in recent years. The album also took the top spot on the Billboard Charts. The album's first single, "What I've Done", was released on April 2, and premiered on MTV and Fuse within the same week. The single was acclaimed by listeners, becoming the top-ranked song on the Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks and Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. The song is also used in soundtrack for the 2007 action film, Transformers. Mike Shinoda was also featured on the Styles of Beyond song "Second to None", which was also included in the film. Later in the year, the band won the "Favorite Alternative Artist" in the American Music Awards. The band also saw success with the rest of the album's singles, "Bleed It Out", "Shadow of the Day", "Given Up", and "Leave Out All the Rest", which were released throughout 2007 and early 2008. The band also collaborated with Busta Rhymes on his single "We Made It", which was released on April 29. Linkin Park embarked on a large world tour titled "Minutes to Midnight World Tour". The band promoted the album's release by forming their fourth Projekt Revolution tour in the United States which included many musical acts like My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, HIM, Placebo, and many others. They also played numerous shows in Europe, Asia, and Australia which included a performance at Live Earth Japan on July 7, 2007. and headlining Download Festival in Donington Park, England and Edgefest in Downsview Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The band completed touring on their fourth Projekt Revolution tour before taking up an Arena tour around the United Kingdom, visiting Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester, before finishing on a double night at the O2 arena in London. Bennington stated that Linkin Park plans to release a follow-up album to Minutes to Midnight. However, he stated the band will first embark on a United States tour to gather inspiration for the album. Linkin Park embarked on another Projekt Revolution tour in 2008. This was the first time a Projekt Revolution tour was held in Europe with three shows in Germany and one in the United Kingdom. A Projekt Revolution tour was also held in the United States which featured Chris Cornell, The Bravery, Ashes Divide, Street Drum Corps and many others. Linkin Park finished the tour with a final show in Texas. Mike Shinoda announced a live CD/DVD titled , which is a live video recording from the Projekt Revolution gig at the Milton Keynes Bowl on June 29, 2008, which was officially released on November 24, 2008. In May 2009, Linkin Park announced they were working on a fourth studio album, which was planned to be released in 2010. Shinoda told IGN that the new album would be 'genre-busting,' while building off of elements in Minutes to Midnight. He also mentioned that the album would be more experimental and "hopefully more cutting-edge". Bennington also addressed the media to confirm that Rick Rubin would return to produce the new album. The band later revealed the album would be called A Thousand Suns. While working on the new album, Linkin Park worked with successful film composer Hans Zimmer to produce the score for . The band released a single for the movie, titled "New Divide". Joe Hahn created a music video for the song, which featured clips from the film. On June 22, Linkin Park played a short set in Westwood Village after the premier of the movie. After completing work for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the band returned to the studio to finalize their album. On April 26, the band released an app for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, a game called 8-Bit Rebellion! It featured the band as playable characters, and a new song called "Blackbirds" which was unlockable by beating the game. The song was also later released as an iTunes bonus track on A Thousand Suns. A Thousand Suns was released on September 14. The album's first single, "The Catalyst", was released on August 2. The band promoted their new album by launching a concert tour, which started in Los Angeles on September 7. Linkin Park also relied on MySpace to promote their album, releasing two additional songs, "Waiting for the End" and "Blackout" on September 8. Furthermore, a documentary about the album's production, titled Meeting of A Thousand Suns, was available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. On August 31, 2010, it was announced that the band would perform the single live for the first time at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010. The venue of the debut live performance of the single was Griffith Observatory, an iconic location used in Hollywood movies. "Waiting for the End" was released as the second single of A Thousand Suns. Linkin Park reached No.8 in Billboard Social 50, a chart of the most active artists on the world's leading social networking sites. In other Billboard Year-End charts, the band reached No.92 in the "Top Artists" chart, as well as A Thousand Suns reaching No.53 in the Year-End chart of the Billboard Top 200 albums and No.7 in the 2010 Year-End Rock Albums, and "The Catalyst" reaching No.40 in the Year-End Rock Songs chart. The band was nominated for six Billboard Awards in 2011 for Top Duo or Group, Best Rock Album for A Thousand Suns, Top Rock Artist, Top Alternative Artist, Top Alternative Song for "Waiting for the End" and Top Alternative Album for A Thousand Suns, but did not win any award. The band charted in numerous Billboard Year-End charts in 2011. The band was No.39 in the Top Artists Chart, No.84 in the Billboard 200 Artists chart, No.11 in the Social 50 Chart, No.6 in the Top Rock Artists Chart, No.9 in the Rock Songs Artists Chart, No.16 in the Rock Albums Chart, No.4 in the Hard Rock Albums Chart, and No.7 in the Alternative Songs Chart. In July 2011, Bennington told Rolling Stone that Linkin Park aims to produce a new album every eighteen months, and that he would be shocked if a new album did not come out in 2012. He later revealed in another interview in September 2011 that the band was still in the beginning phases of the next album, saying "We just kind of began. We like to keep the creative juices flowing, so we try to keep that going all the time ... we like the direction that we're going in". Later, on March 28, 2012, Shinoda confirmed that the band is filming a music video for "Burn It Down". Joe Hahn directed the video. Shinoda spoke to Co.Create about the album's art, saying that it will "blow them [the fans] away ... the average person is not going to be able to look at it and go, I understand that that's completely new, like not just the image but the way they made the image is totally new. So there's going to be that". On April 15, 2012, Shinoda announced that Living Things would be the title of Linkin Park's fifth album. Shinoda stated that they chose the title Living Things because the album is more about people, personal interactions, and it is far more personal than their previous albums. The band promoted the album on the 2012 edition of the Honda Civic Tour, with co-headliners Incubus. The band performed "Burn It Down" at 2012 Billboard Music Awards. On May 24, the band released the music video for "Burn It Down" and debuted "Lies Greed Misery", another song from Living Things, on BBC Radio 1. "Powerless", the twelfth and closing track of the album, was featured in the closing credits of the film . Living Things sold over 223,000 copies during its debut week, ranking No. 1 on the US Albums Charts. Linkin Park's single, "Castle of Glass", was nominated for 'Best Song in a Game' at the 2012 Spike Video Game Awards. The band also performed at the award ceremony on December 7, but lost the award to "Cities" by Beck. Linkin Park also played at the Soundwave music festival in Australia, where they shared the stage with Metallica, Paramore, Slayer and Sum 41. On August 10, 2013, the band collaborated with American musician Steve Aoki to record the song "A Light That Never Comes" for Linkin Park's online puzzle- action game LP Recharge (short for Linkin Park Recharge), which was launched on Facebook and the official LP Recharge website on September 12, 2013. On the day of the game's release, Linkin Park made a post on their Facebook explaining that the song used to promote the game would be included on a new remix album, entitled Recharged, which was released on October 29, 2013 on CD, vinyl, and digital download. Similar to Reanimation, the album features remixes of ten of the songs from Living Things, with contributions from other artists, such as Ryu of Styles of Beyond, Pusha T, Datsik, KillSonik, Bun B, Money Mark, and Rick Rubin. The band also worked on the soundtrack for the film Mall, which was directed by Joe Hahn. In an interview with Fuse, Shinoda confirmed that Linkin Park had begun recording their sixth studio album in May 2013. The band released the first single from their upcoming album, titled, "Guilty All the Same" on March 6, 2014 through Shazam. The single was later released on the following day by Warner Bros. Records and debut at No. 28 on the US Billboard Rock Airplay charts before peaking at No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock charts in the following weeks. Shortly after the single's release, the band revealed their sixth album would be titled The Hunting Party. The album was produced by Shinoda and Delson, who wanted to explore musical elements from Hybrid Theory and the band's earlier material. Shinoda commented the album is a "90s style of rock record". He elaborated, "It's a rock record. It's loud and it's rock, but not in the sense of what you've heard before, which is more like '90s hardcore- punk-thrash.' The album includes musical contributions from rapper Rakim, Page Hamilton of Helmet, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, and Daron Malakian of System of a Down. The Hunting Party was released on June 13, 2014, in most countries, and later released in the United States on June 17. Linkin Park performed at Download Festival on June 14, 2014, where they played their debut album, Hybrid Theory, in its entirety. Linkin Park headlined Rock am Ring and Rock im Park in 2014, along with Metallica, Kings of Leon, and Iron Maiden. They also headlined with Iron Maiden again at the Greenfield Festival in July. On June 22, Linkin Park made an unscheduled headline appearance at the Vans Warped Tour, where they played with members of Issues, The Devil Wears Prada, A Day To Remember, Yellowcard, Breathe Carolina, Finch, and Machine Gun Kelly. In January 2015, the band embarked on a tour to promote the release of The Hunting Party, consisting of 17 concerts across the United States and Canada. The tour was canceled after only three concerts when Bennington injured his ankle. On May 9, Linkin Park performed at the first edition of Rock in Rio USA, in direct support for Metallica. On November 9, 2014, MTV Europe named Linkin Park the "Best Rock" act of 2014 at their annual music awards ceremony. The band won the 'Best Rock Band' and 'Best Live Act' titles of 2014 on Loudwire's Music Awards. Revolver ranked The Hunting Party as the fourth best album of 2014. In an interview with AltWire on May 4, Shinoda reflected on The Hunting Party and commented on Linkin Park's future, stating; "I'm really happy with the reaction from The Hunting Party, and I think we're ready to move somewhere new on the next album, which will be coming [in 2016]". Linkin Park collaborated with Steve Aoki on the song "Darker Than Blood" for Aoki's album Neon Future II, which was released in May 2015. The first preview of the song came during Aoki's performance on February 28, 2015 at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, Illinois. The song was debuted on Twitch on April 13 and released on April 14. Linkin Park performed at the closing ceremony of BlizzCon 2015, Blizzard's video game convention. Linkin Park began working on new material for a seventh studio album in November 2015. Chester Bennington commented on the album's direction by stating, "We've got a lot of great material that I hope challenges our fanbase as well as inspires them as much as it has us." In February 2017, Linkin Park released promotional videos on their social network accounts, which featured Shinoda and Bennington preparing new material for the album. Mike Shinoda stated the band was following a new process when producing the album. Brad Delson elaborated: "We've made so many records and we clearly know how to make a record and we definitely didn't take the easy way out this time." The first single from the new album was revealed to be titled "Heavy" and features pop singer Kiiara, the first time the band has featured a female vocalist on an original song for a studio album. The lyrics for the song were co-written by Linkin Park with Julia Michaels and Justin Tranter. The single was released for download on February 16. As they have done in the past, Linkin Park had cryptic messages online in relation to the new album. The album cover was revealed through digital puzzles across social media; the cover features six kids playing in the ocean. The band's seventh album, One More Light, was released on May 19, 2017. Bennington died on July 20, 2017; his death was ruled a suicide by hanging. Shinoda confirmed Bennington's death on Twitter, writing, "Shocked and heartbroken, but it's true. An official statement will come out as soon as we have one". The band had released a music video for their single "Talking to Myself" earlier that day. One day after Bennington's death, the band canceled the North American leg of their One More Light World Tour. On the morning of July 24, Linkin Park released an official statement on their website as a tribute to Bennington. On July 28, Shinoda announced that donations made to the band's Music for Relief charity would be redirected to the One More Light Fund, which had been set up in Bennington's memory. On August 4, when the band was initially scheduled to play on Good Morning America, Chris Cornell's twelve-year-old daughter Toni (who was also Bennington's goddaughter) appeared with OneRepublic to perform "Hallelujah" as a tribute to Bennington and her father. Bennington had previously performed the song at the funeral for Cornell, who had also died from a suicide by hanging two months earlier. On August 22, Linkin Park announced plans to host a tribute concert in Los Angeles to honor Bennington. The band thanked fans for their support, stating, "The five of us are so grateful for all of your support as we heal and build the future of Linkin Park". The band later confirmed that the concert, titled , would take place on October 27 at the Hollywood Bowl. The event included Linkin Park's first performance following Bennington's death. The event featured multiple guests performing Linkin Park songs along with the band. The event was over three hours long and was streamed live via YouTube. In November 2017, the band announced that a live album compiled from their final tour with Bennington, titled One More Light Live, would be released on December 15. On November 19, Linkin Park received an American Music Award for Favorite Alternative Artist and dedicated the award to Bennington. During an Instagram live chat on December 17, 2017, Shinoda was asked whether Linkin Park would perform with a hologram version of Bennington in the future. He replied, "Can we not do a holographic Chester? I can't even wrap my head around the idea of a holographic Chester. I've actually heard other people outside the band suggest that, and there's absolutely no way. I cannot fuck with that." On January 28, 2018, Shinoda replied to a tweet from a fan inquiring about his future with Linkin Park, writing "I have every intention on continuing with LP, and the guys feel the same. We have a lot of rebuilding to do, and questions to answer, so it'll take time." On March 29, 2018, however, Shinoda stated that he is uncertain of Linkin Park's future when being interviewed by Vulture. On April 17, 2018, Linkin Park was nominated for three awards at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards, but did not win any of them. The band was presented with The George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement at UCLA on May 18, 2018. On February 18, 2019, Shinoda said in an interview that the band is open to the idea of continuing though what form that takes has yet to be decided. Shinoda stated "I know the other guys, they love to be onstage, they love to be in a studio, and so to not do that would be like, I don’t know, almost like unhealthy.” When asked about the band's future minus Bennington, Shinoda stated, “It’s not my goal to look for a new singer. If it does happen, it has to happen naturally. If we find someone that is a great person and good stylistic fit, I could see trying to do some stuff with somebody. I would never want to feel like we are replacing Chester.” As of October 2019, the band remains on an "indefinite hiatus". On January 19, 2010, Linkin Park released a new song titled "Not Alone" as part of a compilation from Music for Relief called Download to Donate for Haiti in support of the Haiti Earthquake crisis. On February 10, 2010, Linkin Park released the official music video for the song on their homepage. The single itself was released on October 21, 2011. On January 11, 2011, an updated version of Download to Donate for Haiti was launched, called Download to Donate for Haiti V2.0, with more songs to download. For the updated compilation, the band released Keaton Hashimoto's remix of "The Catalyst" from the "Linkin Park featuring YOU" contest. Shinoda designed two T-shirts, in which the proceeds would go to Music for Relief to help the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami disasters. Music for Relief released Download to Donate: Tsunami Relief Japan, another compilation of songs, in which the proceeds would go to Save the Children. The band released the song titled as "Issho Ni", meaning "we're in this together", on March 22, 2011 via . In the wake of Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, Linkin Park played at Club Nokia during the "Music for Relief: Concert for the Philippines" in Los Angeles, and raised donations for victims. The show was broadcast on AXS TV on February 15. Other artists during the show included The Offspring, Bad Religion, Heart, and The Filharmonic. Linkin Park combines elements of rock music, hip hop and electronica, and have been categorized as alternative rock, nu metal, alternative metal, rap rock, electronic rock, hard rock, hip hop, rap metal, pop, industrial rock, and pop rock. Despite being considered nu metal, the band never considered themselves as such. Both Hybrid Theory and Meteora combine the alternative metal, nu metal, rap rock, rap metal, and alternative rock sound with influences and elements from hip hop, and electronica, utilizing programming and synthesizers. William Ruhlmann from AllMusic regarded it as "a Johnny-come- lately to an already overdone musical style," whereas Rolling Stone described their song "Breaking the Habit" as "risky, beautiful art". In Minutes to Midnight the band experimented with their established sound and drew influences from a wider and more varied range of genres and styles, a process Los Angeles Times compares to a stage in U2's work. Only two songs on the album's tracklist feature rap vocals and the majority of the album can be considered alternative rock. The vocal interplay between Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda plays as a major part within Linkin Park's music, with Bennington being the lead vocalist and Shinoda as the rapping vocalist. On Linkin Park's third album, Minutes to Midnight, Shinoda sings lead vocals on "In Between", "Hands Held High", and on the B-side "No Roads Left". On numerous songs from band's fourth album, A Thousand Suns, such as the album's singles ("The Catalyst", "Burning in the Skies", "Iridescent"), both Shinoda and Bennington sing. The album has been regarded as a turning point in the band's musical career, having a stronger emphasis on electronica. James Montgomery, of MTV, compared the record to Radiohead's Kid A, while Jordy Kasko of Review, Rinse, Repeat likened the album to both Kid A and Pink Floyd's landmark album The Dark Side of the Moon. Shinoda stated that he and the other band members were deeply influenced by Chuck D and Public Enemy. He elaborated: "Public Enemy were very three-dimensional with their records because although they seemed political, there was a whole lot of other stuff going on in there too. It made me think how three-dimensional I wanted our record to be without imitating them of course, and show where we were at creatively". One of the record's political elements is its samples of notable speeches by American political figures. A Thousand Suns was described as trip hop, electronic rock, ambient, alternative rock, industrial rock, experimental rock, rap rock, and progressive rock. Their fifth album, Living Things, is also an electronic-heavy album, but includes other influences, resulting in a harder sound by comparison. The band returned to a heavier sound compared to their last three albums on The Hunting Party, which was described as an alternative metal, nu metal, hard rock, rap rock, and rap metal album. Their seventh album, One More Light, was described as pop, pop rock and electropop. Linkin Park's influences include Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, Skinny Puppy, Machines of Loving Grace, Metallica, Refused, Minor Threat, Fugazi, Descendents, Misfits, Beastie Boys, Run-DMC, A Tribe Called Quest, Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock, N.W.A, Public Enemy, KRS-One, Boogie Down Productions, Led Zeppelin, Rage Against the Machine, and the Beatles. Linkin Park has sold 70 million records worldwide. The group's first studio album Hybrid Theory is one of the best-selling albums in the US (11 million copies shipped) and worldwide (30 million copies sold). Billboard estimates that Linkin Park earned US$5 million between May 2011 and May 2012, making them the 40th-highest-paid musical artist. 11 of the band's singles have reached the number one position on Billboard Alternative Songs chart, the second-most for any artist. In 2003, MTV2 named Linkin Park the sixth-greatest band of the music video era and the third-best of the new millennium. Billboard ranked Linkin Park No. 19 on the Best Artists of the Decade chart. The band was recently voted as the greatest artist of the 2000s in a Bracket Madness poll on VH1. In 2014, the band was declared as the Biggest Rock Band in the World Right Now by Kerrang!. In 2015, Kerrang! gave "In the End" and "Final Masquerade" the top two positions on Kerrang!s Rock 100 list. Linkin Park became the first rock band to achieve more than one billion YouTube hits. Linkin Park also became the fifteenth most liked page on Facebook, tenth most liked artist, and most liked group followed by the Black Eyed Peas. Linkin Park's "Numb" is the third and "In the End" is the sixth "timeless song" on Spotify. The two songs making Linkin Park the only artist to have two timeless songs in top ten. Hybrid Theory by the group is listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, It was also ranked at #11 on Billboard Hot 200 Albums of the Decade. In addition the album was included in Best of 2001 by Record Collector, The top 150 Albums of the Generation by Rock Sound and 50 Best Rock Albums of the 2000's by Kerrang!. The album Meteora was included in Top 200 Albums of the Decade by Billboard at #36. The album sold 20 million copies worldwide. The collaborated EP Collision Course with Jay-Z, became the second ever EP to top the Billboard 200, going on to sell over 300,000 copies in its first week after Alice in Chains' Jar of Flies in 1994. The album Minutes to Midnight in the United States, the album had the biggest first week sales of 2007 at the time, with 625,000 albums sold. In Canada, the album sold over 50,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart. Worldwide, the album shipped over 3.3 million copies in its first four weeks of release. The New York Times Jon Caramanica commented Linkin Park "brought the collision of hard rock and hip-hop to its commercial and aesthetic peak" at the beginning of the 2000s. Several rock and non-rock artists have cited Linkin Park as an influence, including Proyecto Eskhata, Of Mice & Men, One Ok Rock, Bishop Nehru, Misono, From Ashes to New, Bring Me the Horizon, Red, Girl on Fire, Manafest, Silentó, 3OH!3, The Prom Kings, AJ Tracey, Kiiara, The Chainsmokers, Kevin Rudolf, Blackbear, Amber Liu, Tokio Hotel, Stormzy and Imagine Dragons. Current members Mike Shinoda – vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboard, synthesizer, samples, programming (1996–present), Brad Delson – lead guitar, backing vocals (1996–present), Dave Farrell – bass, backing vocals (1996–1998; 2000–present), Joe Hahn – turntables, keyboard, synthesizer, samples, programming, backing vocals (1996–present), Rob Bourdon – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1996–present) Former members Mark Wakefield – lead vocals (1996–1998), Chester Bennington – lead vocals, occasional rhythm guitar (1999–2017; died 2017), Kyle Christner – bass (1998–1999) Hybrid Theory (2000), Meteora (2003), Minutes to Midnight (2007), A Thousand Suns (2010), Living Things (2012), The Hunting Party (2014), One More Light (2017) Headlining Hybrid Theory World Tour (2001), Projekt Revolution (2002–2008, 2011), LP Underground Tour (2003), Meteora World Tour (2004), Minutes to Midnight World Tour (2007–08), International Tour (2009), A Thousand Suns World Tour (2010–11), Living Things World Tour (2012–13), The Hunting Party Tour (2014–15), One More Light Tour (2017), (2017) Co-headlining 11th Annual Honda Civic Tour (2012), Carnivores Tour (2014) List of best-selling music artists, List of best-selling albums, List of best-selling remix albums, List of best-selling singles, List of best-selling albums in the United States, List of songs recorded by Linkin Park, List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. alternative rock chart Works cited Saulmon, Greg. Linkin Park. Contemporary Musicians and Their Music. New York: Rosen Pub. Group, 2007. ., Baltin, Steve. From The Inside: Linkin Park's Meteora. California: Bradson Press, 2004. . Official YouTube channel, musicforrelief.org One More Light is the seventh studio album by American rock band Linkin Park. It was released on May 19, 2017, through Warner Records and Machine Shop. It is the last Linkin Park album to feature lead vocalist Chester Bennington before his death on July 20, 2017. The band recorded the album between September 2015 and February 2017 in multiple studios. Band members Brad Delson and Mike Shinoda served as the album's primary producers. The sound of One More Light has been described as being more pop-focused, departing from the alternative rock and alternative metal sounds of their previous albums. The album features guest vocal appearances from Pusha T, Stormzy, and Kiiara, and production and songwriting collaborations with JR Rotem, Julia Michaels, Justin Tranter, Ross Golan, Andrew Goldstein, blackbear, and Eg White. The album is also the band's first to feature a title track, as they felt that the song "One More Light" was the heart of the album. The album's lead single, "Heavy", featuring Kiiara, was released on February 16, 2017. "Battle Symphony", "Good Goodbye", and "Invisible" were released as promotional singles prior to the album's release. "Talking to Myself" and "One More Light" were released as radio singles later on. The album performed well commercially, debuting at number one in several countries; it also became the band's fifth number-one album on the Billboard 200 and was certified Gold in five countries. Despite a positive commercial performance, it received mixed reviews from music critics. This, along with accusations of selling out, prompted an angry response from Bennington. In 2014, Linkin Park released their sixth studio album The Hunting Party. The album, produced by Mike Shinoda and Brad Delson, marked a shift from the overall rock sound in their previous albums produced with help of Rick Rubin. The pre-production of One More Light began in mid-2015 during The Hunting Party Tour by Shinoda on his phone. The main production began as soon as the tour ended. In the process, the band decided to write songs with some external help. They worked with Zayed Hassan, which resulted in his song "Sailing Through the Clouds", Martin Garrix, Hot Karl, Mike Baczor of the band Her0, The Lonely Island, which resulted in "Things in My Jeep", and One Ok Rock. None of these collaborations, however, made the final version of the album. The album marks the second to be self-produced following The Hunting Party. As a new concept to the band, all the songs featured on the album began with vocals being recorded first. They worked on the story first, then the hook, and finally the music. In an interview with Zane Lowe, Shinoda explained the composition as, "In terms of the style of the record, it's one of the most diverse stylistically, there's more genres mashed into this album than anything we've ever put out. You don't hear a lot of super heavy guitars. There isn't any screaming on the record." He adds, "To some extent it is a very polished record. Stylistically we wanted to blend all of the sound and genres together in a way you can’t tell them apart". As to why they chose "Heavy" to present the album to the world, he told Billboard, "One of the reasons why we chose 'Heavy' as the first single is because it is really the core sound of the album. This wasn't a scenario where the whole album sounds one way and the single sounds different. This is how the album sounds. So we wanted to go out with a song like that, where everybody can get a sense of the direction of this body of work." According to him, a lot of songs on the album can make the listener think of old songs by The Cure or Tears for Fears. In an interview with MusicRadar, Brad Delson explained, Further elaborating on his guitar work, Delson said, "I love the acoustic work on 'Sharp Edges'. I really like all of the layering of guitars on 'Invisible' as well. There's also a really unique presentation of the guitar in a way that I don’t think we’ve ever done on a song called 'Sorry For Now'. That was one of the things that we were really excited about – it is wildly different to anything else that we have been doing." The albums features collaborations with songwriters and other artists. "Heavy" features vocals by pop singer Kiiara, and "Good Goodbye" features verses by rappers Pusha T and Stormzy. Genre-wise, the album has been described as pop, pop rock and electropop. The band had been writing and recording mostly in Los Angeles but also had a few sessions in London and Canada where they worked with a few songwriters. In Los Angeles, the band started working at the Larrabee Studios where they had worked for their previous album. After noticing the band needed a bit more space they shifted to Sphere Studios. Starting in the early 2016 the band decided, for the first time, to open up their process to fans through social media by doing live streams, posting pictures and videos of their day by day in the studio, and sending studio updates to their mailing list. In an interview with Billboard, Shinoda said "We've focused almost exclusively on songwriting, not on sound, not on genre, not on arrangement, on words and melodies. And that is something Rick [Rubin] has always told us to do years past and we never listened because we started always track first. Now we're writing songs and now we're just starting to get into the style of that." While working with Justin Parker in London, Mike also learned a different approach to songwriting: to write without any sound in mind and, instead, write with meaning in mind. Instead of writing tracks piece by piece, the band wouldn't leave a session without having a song. It would all start as a conversation, and out of those the songs would build progressively from a chord progression to lyrics. Among the collaborators are Justin Parker, Conner Youngblood, Jon Green, blackbear, Andrew Goldstein, Eg White, Emily Wright, Andrew Bolooki, Andrew Dawson, RAC, Corrin Roddick, and Ross Golan. American singer Kiiara also had a seven-hour session with Linkin Park to record her vocals for "Heavy", and rappers Stormzy and Pusha T contributed to the album with original verses. In the past the band had a different approach to collaborations, as explained by Mike: "Usually it means we’ve finished the song but we'll ask somebody to add something to the top of it." He added: "Generally, here's how it would work: we'd get in the room with someone, and start on something from scratch with them. We worked mostly in the same way we always write songs, but with extra firepower in the room." Bennington had also reached out to Billy Howerdel of A Perfect Circle to collaborate on a song for the album. The two collaborated on a track titled "Eat the Elephant", but it was ultimately left off the album, not really matching the direction One More Light's sound. Howerdel completely reworked the song musically and lyrically, and recorded it with Maynard James Keenan on vocals for their April 2018 album Eat the Elephant. In an interview with Kerrang! magazine, Shinoda explained that the children seen on the album cover are those of a friend of the band and represent what the band members feel when their respective families get together. The photo was shot at Venice Beach by Frank Maddocks, who has previously contributed to artworks for Deftones and Green Day's Revolution Radio. The album was made available on Linkin Park's official website in five different packages: CD + LPU membership, vinyl + LPU Membership, CD bundle, vinyl bundle, and the "Just Give Me Everything" box set. All offers were accompanied by an LPU digital membership. Both the CD bundle and vinyl bundle include a One More Light T-shirt and a silver Linkin Park logo enamel pin. The box set was bound inside a special One More Light super deluxe box with a 48-page hardcover book featuring all the best photos from the album package and all the lyrics, a unique 2.4" × 1.8" instant photo of the band, and a gold enamel pin set featuring a Linkin Park pin, a LP Hex logo pin, and a "OML" logo pin. It also included both the CD and vinyl versions of the album as well as the One More Light T-shirt. The first single, "Heavy", was released via Los Angeles radio station KROQ on February 16, 2017. The track is a duet with American singer and songwriter Kiiara, marking the first time a Linkin Park song from a studio album has featured a female vocalist. The song was written by Linkin Park with Julia Michaels and Justin Tranter, while Emily Wright and Andrew Bolooki handled vocal production. The band released a second track from the album, "Battle Symphony", on March 16, 2017, with an accompanying lyric video. A third track from the album, "Good Goodbye", was released for download on April 13, 2017, along with an accompanying lyric video followed by a music video. The song features American rapper Pusha T and English hip hop artist Stormzy. On May 10, 2017, the band put out one final pre-release track, "Invisible", with an accompanying lyric video. "Talking to Myself" was sent to alternative radio July 25, 2017, as the album's second official single. The music video for "Talking to Myself" was released on July 20, 2017, the same day of Bennington's death. In early 2017, the band introduced Linkin Park Global Ambassadors, which were selected each for a country. The ambassadors would promote the Linkin Park updates in their respective countries. The Ambassadors were also given various tasks respective to the updates. For promotional purposes, a picture of TV color bars was uploaded to the Instagram by the Linkin Park Global Ambassadors and many other people related to the band such as Joe Hahn, Mike Shinoda, Chester Bennington, Phoenix, Lorenzo Errico, Adam Ruehmer, Jim Digby, Christian Tachiera, Tobias Fance, Frank Maddocks, Tal Cooperman, and Warner Bros. Records' official account. The band also released a series of 8 videos on their official website showing fans their process of creating songs for the album. On February 13, Linkin Park tweeted a blank grid, and each of the Linkin Park Global Ambassadors tweeted a numbered image. When put together, the images formed the album cover. The lyrics of "Heavy" were unveiled on Genius on the same day. Linkin Park did a stripped-down performance with Kiiara at NRG Studios, which was broadcast live on Facebook the same day "Heavy" was released along with its lyric video and the album pre-order. The stripped-down version of the song was performed on various occasions. Shinoda and Bennington played the song fourteen times at different venues for the promotion. The band played the song on The Late Late Show with James Corden and at the ECHO Awards 2017 with Kiiara. Acoustic performances of the lead single by Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda helped promote One More Light. A few of them included performances with Kiiara, Waxx, and Sofia Karlberg. The band were set to embark on a world tour in the promotion of the album, which began in South America in May 2017. The tour included stops at various festivals, including the Download Festival Paris, Aerodrome Festival, NovaRock, Impact Festival, I-Days Milano, Hellfest, Download Festival Madrid, Hurricane Festival, Southside Festival, Telekom VOLT Fesztivál, Bråvalla Festival, Rock Werchter, and many others. The tour visited 20 cities in the South America and Europe. The North American part of the tour was cancelled following Chester Bennington's death on July 20, 2017. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 46 out of 100 based on 7 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average" reviews. NME criticized the album's quality, giving it a 2/10 score and concluding that "It’s harsh to criticise a great band for trying something different, and it’s not an issue that this is a pop album. The issue is that it’s a weak and contrived commercial move (perhaps to compete with the likes of Twenty One Pilots)." Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic agreed, stating that "The issue isn't that it's a pop effort; indeed, they get points for a brave attempt so outside of their wheelhouse. The problem is that much of One More Light is devoid of that visceral charge that previously defined much of their catalog... there's no feral screaming from Chester Bennington, there are barely any riffs, and DJ Hahn has disappeared beneath the textured studio sheen." Team Rock criticized the move away from rock music, stating that the album "makes Ed Sheeran sound like Extreme Noise Terror...With One More Light, Linkin Park have waved goodbye to rock." Troy L. Smith at The Plain Dealer described "Invisible" and "Nobody Can Save Me" as "well-rounded pop songs," but also noting, "That won't stop Linkin Park diehards from getting a sweet tooth from the whiny 'Halfway Right' or the boring title track. Heck, even Skrillex-like EDM can't save 'Sorry for Now' from corny territory." Consequence of Sound criticized the album for sounding like it was trying to "chase the trend of pop-EDM in an attempt to capitalize on its ubiquity" and sound "as if they were selected by committee", leading the album to sound like "a muddled mess of a record from a band that completely abandoned any sense of identity". Newsday gave the album a B+ and praised the band's new direction, comparing it to the works of Coldplay and Owl City and concluding "One More Light shows how well Linkin Park has absorbed the current pop scene and applied it to their own music to genuinely reflect who they are today, not who some fans want them to be." The band, specifically frontman Chester Bennington, lashed out in response to the negative reception of One More Lights material. As documented through Spin magazine, in an interview with Music Week, Bennington, at the accusations that the band had "sold out", suggested that those people should "stab [themselves] in the face" and "move the fuck on" from the band's past sound. Similarly, in a separate interview with Kerrang, Bennington, in response to claims of selling out with the album, said "If you're gonna be the person who says like 'they made a marketing decision to make this kind of record to make money' you can fucking meet me outside and I will punch you in your fucking mouth." In the same interview, Mike Shinoda also rejected the claims that they had made the album "for monetary reasons", responding, "that's not how I operate." Bennington explained that the accusation of "selling out" angered him because he saw it as a personal attack, concluding that "when you make it personal, like a personal attack against who we are as people, like, dude, shut up. That means that I can actually have feelings about it and most of the time my feelings are 'I want to kill you.'" In response to the comments, Slipknot and Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor stated that he understood Bennington's frustrations, but advised him to "be fortunate for what you have, be fortunate for the fact that people are still coming to see you to hear the music. Give it a little time, you have to give it a little time." Bennington later responded that he agreed with Taylor's statements, saying: Notes Track listing and credits from streaming website Qobuz., signifies a co-producer, signifies an additional producer, signifies a vocal producer Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. Linkin Park Chester Bennington – lead vocals, backing vocals on "Invisible" and "Sorry for Now", Rob Bourdon – drums, backing vocals, Brad Delson – guitar, backing vocals, production, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell – bass, backing vocals, Joe Hahn – programming, backing vocals, creative direction, Mike Shinoda – keyboard, backing vocals, programming; rap vocals on "Good Goodbye", lead vocals on "Invisible" and "Sorry for Now", creative direction, engineering, photography, production Additional musicians Kiiara – vocals on "Heavy", Pusha T – rap vocals on "Good Goodbye", Stormzy – rap vocals on "Good Goodbye", Ilsey Juber – backing vocals on "Talking to Myself" and "Sharp Edges", Ross Golan – backing vocals on "Halfway Right", Eg White – guitar and piano on "One More Light", Jon Green – additional guitar, backing vocals and bass on "Nobody Can Save Me", Jesse Shatkin – additional keyboard and programming on "Invisible", Andrew Jackson – additional guitar on "Talking to Myself" Technical Alejandro Baima – assistant engineer, Blackbear – co-producer, Andrew Bolooki – vocal production, Andrew Dawson – additional production, Ryan DeMarti – A&R; coordination, Lorenzo Errico – photography, Robin Florent – assistant mixing engineer, Chris Galland – mixing engineer, Chris Gehringer – mastering, Serban Ghenea – mixing, Andrew Goldstein – co-producer, Jon Green – additional production, John Hanes – mixing engineer, Andrew Jackson – additional production, Jeff Jackson – assistant mixing engineer, Jerry Johnson – studio drum technician, Tom Kahre – vocal engineering for Pusha T, Michael Keenan – additional production, Peter J. Lee – art direction, creative direction, design, photography, Frank Maddocks – art direction, creative direction, design, photography, Manny Marroquin – mixing, Ethan Mates – engineering, Dan McCarroll – A&R;, Josh Newell – engineering, RAC – additional production, JR Rotem – co-production, Jesse Shatkin – additional production , co-production, Fraser T Smith – vocal engineering for Stormzy, Alexander Spit – additional production, Peter Standish – marketing, Christian Tachiera – photography, Jonna Terrasi – A&R;, Warren Willis – studio assistant engineer, Emily Wright – vocal production The Hunting Party is the sixth studio album by American rock band Linkin Park. The album, produced by band members Mike Shinoda and Brad Delson, was released by Warner Bros. Records and Machine Shop on June 13, 2014. It is the first album since Meteora (2003) not to be produced with Rick Rubin, after producing the band's previous three studio albums. The title The Hunting Party is a contextual metaphor: Linkin Park is the party that is hunting to bring back the energy and soul of rock. The Hunting Party is a departure from the electronic rock sound of the band's previous two studio albums, A Thousand Suns (2010) and Living Things (2012). The album, described by Shinoda as simply "a rock record", serves a statement by the band against contemporary mainstream and active rock bands, accused by him as "trying to be other bands and playing it safe". Packaged by an artwork by Brandon Parvini based on an original drawing by James Jean, the album took under a year to record and produce, with material being improvisationally written by the band. The album also features guest appearances from Helmet's Page Hamilton, System of a Down's Daron Malakian, Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello, and Rakim, marking the first time Linkin Park has collaborated with other artists on a studio album. The album was promoted by the band and Warner Bros, with multiple promotional teasers and interviews produced and published in the lead-up to the album's release and listening parties of the album being held worldwide on multiple dates. The band embarked on the Carnivores Tour, a double-headline tour with Thirty Seconds to Mars, as well as The Hunting Party Tour, in support of the album. Five singles from The Hunting Party have been released; "Guilty All the Same" in March 2014, "Until It's Gone" in May 2014, and "Wastelands", "Rebellion" and "Final Masquerade" in June 2014. The album received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its return to the heavier rock sound of their older albums. It debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200, and has placed at number four on Revolvers list of "The 20 Best Albums of 2014". The album was certified Platinum in United States for the sales of one million copies. In 2010 and 2012 respectively, Linkin Park released their fourth and fifth studio albums A Thousand Suns and Living Things. The albums, both produced by Rick Rubin and Mike Shinoda, marked a shift in the band's musical direction from a nu metal-oriented sound, recognized with Hybrid Theory (2000) and Meteora (2003), to a more experimental and "cutting edge" sound. The electronica-influenced albums were commercially successful. Production on the band's sixth studio album began as a result of a series of events in which Shinoda decided to drop the electronic and experimental sound of the band's previous two studio albums. Shinoda had originally recorded and produced demos, which continued the sound of A Thousand Suns and Living Things, for the band's sixth studio album during the band's Living Things World Tour in 2013. He presented the demos to his bandmates, which received positive reception from the rest of the band, and to Rubin, who was also positive towards the demos, though describing them to Shinoda as more "poppy" than he expected. However, Shinoda, after listening to the demos again after the end of the tour, felt a strong negativity towards his material, especially after Rubin's statements. In a Warner Music interview, Shinoda stated that "I don't even believe in this music. This is a mistake; I don't like what I'm making. I kind of went backwards into the process and scrapped all of it and started new stuff." Following A Thousand Suns and Living Things, albums which were created with leaving behind a sound that was "not new and not cool anymore" in mind, the band's sixth studio album was approached as a return to the band's early sound, with the electronic sounds of their previous two studio albums being dropped in favor of the band's traditional rock instrumentation. Using Hybrid Theory as a template, the band composed and recorded it in context of modern times, in 2014 rather than 2000. Guitarist Brad Delson jokingly stated that the album was an "alternative Hybrid Theory" and "maybe its prequel", with the album being inspired by artists the band listened to before they started their musical career. Shinoda told Rolling Stone about the ideas surrounding The Hunting Party: "We're not 18-year-old kids making a loud record – we're 37-year-old adults making a loud record. And what makes a 37-year-old angry is different than what made us angry back in the day." The band took a different method in writing new material for The Hunting Party as opposed to their previous albums. While for all their previous albums they used the traditional method of writing, demoing and rerecording in the studio, songs were instead written and composed in the studio itself, with no material being written or composed beforehand. Delson spoke about the methods used on the album in an interview with Premier Guitar, saying that "Something unintentional might be the coolest sound I make all day, and knowing how to allow those mistakes to happen and to shape them potentially makes for some great music." The album has been described as alternative metal, nu metal, hard rock, rap rock and rap metal by professional reviewers. Shinoda described the album's sound as a 1990s style of rock record: "It's a Rock record; "it's loud and it's Rock, but not in the sense of what you've heard before, which is more like '90s hardcore-punk–thrash". He described the "weak" status of modern rock in the music industry as an inspiration in recording a heavier rock album; to try to bring the sound of the 1990s back to the forefront. Shinoda criticized the modern state of alternative radio, stating "There’s so much stuff that sounds like HAIM or CHVRCHES or Vampire Weekend that I’m full. The thing I’m hungry for is not that. I turn on the rock station in L.A. and it sounds like Disney commercial music.” This led to a response from CHVRCHES, with their lead singer Lauren Mayberry calling Shinoda's comment "a pointless dig." Bennington agreed with Shinoda's comments, as he said, "The bands I was listening to when I was growing up were all doing really innovative shit—Jane’s Addiction, Alice in Chains, Nirvana... Bands like the Refreshments and the Rembrandts, that music fucking angers me to this day. And the same thing is happening now, where there’s all this stuff that feels like the soundtrack to 'Friends' or 'The Wizards of Waverly Place.'” In an interview with MusicRadar, Delson stated that the album would feature more guitar solos. He further stated that "this is from someone who was quoted early on as saying I hated them. Not that I hated them as a listener; I just don’t want to play any; I shirked guitar solos. Early on, I felt as though the songs we were making aesthetically didn't want them. This new batch of songs, to me, always want solos. I feel like every song has one." The Hunting Party was recorded at the Larrabee Sound Studios, located in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During the recording for the band's sixth studio album, the band would spend five or six days a week at the Larrabee Studios working on the record. The Hunting Party was also recorded in part at EastWest Studios, also located in Hollywood. There, drummer Rob Bourdon and Shinoda would record drums and percussion for the album. The band would also record other material for the album at EastWest on occasion. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Shinoda said that the album was difficult for drummer Rob Bourdon, where he had to push himself to meet the music speed and style. He commented that "It's probably the hardest stuff he's ever played on one of our albums. He had to physically work his way up to it. He had to go running, lift weights, work with a trainer", eventually Bourdon feels that he had become a better drummer at the end of each day after recording. Shinoda later told Q magazine that Bourdon had to seek help from a chiropractor after he had broken his back recording material for the new album. Shinoda told Q that "Rob was killing himself. He played 10 hours a day for seven days straight and blew his back." Orange, Bogner and ENGL brand amplifiers were used on the record by Delson, providing a "core sound" described by engineer Ethan Mates as "a small collection of core tones to be used in a sonically consistent way throughout the record". Chandler brand amps were also used for overdubs and "higher parts". Delson spoke about his studio setup for The Hunting Party, stating that "It's great to have a setup where I can run combinations of heads and cabs simultaneously to get the most appropriate tone, or do something more straightforward like record just one cabinet with two mikes". Lead singer Chester Bennington arrived late in the recording process of the album, having been chosen to replace Scott Weiland in the band Stone Temple Pilots, and then proceeded to record High Rise and tour with the band for most of 2013. When he eventually joined the band in the studio, he was surprised to find the band had reverted to their heavier rock-centric sound. Bennington stated in an interview with Kerrang!: "Mike wrote tons while I was touring with Stone Temple Pilots last year. When I got home, there was a lot for me to catch up with, and he was playing me things and I was like, 'Dude, this is fucking awesome!' I was really surprised how heavy it was". The album features four guest artists; Rakim from the hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim on "Guilty All the Same", Page Hamilton from the American alternative metal band Helmet on "All for Nothing", Daron Malakian from System of a Down for the song "Rebellion" and Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine fame on the song "Drawbar". Bennington commented on the collaborations, stating that "We really felt like if we need to be inspired and move in another direction. I think when we got Page in, Mike had written this chorus and sang it, and his voice had this tone, and it was unlike anything I'd heard from him before. And I was like, "Dude this is crazy, this sounds like a Helmet song! It's cool!" And we were like, "Dude, why don't we see if we can get like Page in here?" You know? And if that's why the song says it's feeling like it should be, then why don't we just go straight to the source". The album cover for The Hunting Party features a 3D modeled artwork by Brandon Parvini, who had previously designed the artworks for Living Things and the band's singles during the album's release cycle. The artwork was based off an original drawing, entitled "Archer", by visual artist James Jean that was created for the album. It is one of many artworks by Jean to be used in the packaging of the album, which also features, in deluxe editions of the album, a lithograph, T-shirt and a 36-page art book by him. Jean's traditional style, notably different to the artwork created for The Hunting Party had been previously described by Dana Jennings of The New York Times as "suffused with a dreamy romanticism and lyricism worthy of Maxfield Parrish, even as Mr. Jean subverts those and other isms." Linkin Park had professed that they have been fans of James Jean's art for a while, describing discussions between the band and Jean as having "started naturally". Joe Hahn served as a creative director for the artwork of The Hunting Party, instructing Jean to "create a universe inhabited by powerful characters and defined by strange landscapes", with a general concept of having a unique "character" for each track on the album. Delson also contributed ideas of "internal and external struggles", metaphorically depicted on a battlefield, where images such as "flesh tearing and transforming into different forms and brittle shards of crystal erupting from organic matter" would recur. Shinoda explained: "We try to approach our art—packaging, merchandise, tour visuals, videos, anything—in a holistic way. All the parts are interconnected, and by creating great imagery that can be used in multiple contexts, we can immerse the fans in a universe that is consistent and unique to each release. It's always a work in progress, but I feel like we've learned a lot and continue to make it better each time." James Jean was invited by Shinoda and Delson to listen to the band's rough material created early on during the recording sessions for The Hunting Party. He acknowledged the band's change of musical direction from A Thousand Suns and Living Things, and was inspired by the material to create artworks that were "charged with [the band's] intensity as well as their rationale for that change". However, Joe Hahn banned Jean from listening to any more material after Jean had performed some of the songs from memory on his piano. Jean originally sketched each individual artwork for The Hunting Party in a personal sketchbook, where it felt more intimate and less precious to Jean. The minimality of the images was intentional, as the artworks would eventually be made into 3D-modelled artworks where lighting and texture would be added to each character. 20 artworks were made in the space of a month by Jean for Brandon Parvini and his team to transform into 3D-modelled artworks, with Parvini choosing exactly which artworks would be modelled for The Hunting Party. The title of the album, The Hunting Party, is a contextual metaphor. The album, a return to the band's original harder rock-centric sounds, represents the band's desire to not only create something different from other rock bands, but to also bring back the "energy and soul" of rock itself, and that Linkin Park are the party that will hunt for that energy and soul. Shinoda elaborated on the title of the album in an interview with Kerrang! explaining: "We got so sick of other bands trying to be other bands and playing it safe the whole time, so the album name comes from a theory about culture becoming too passive, everyone just standing around waiting for opportunities to come to them instead of going out and getting theirs. I'm aware there are always going to be heavier bands than us, but The Hunting Party is Linkin Park going out and getting it for ourselves." The inspiration for the title came from a news article Shinoda read online about a Japanese writer's concerns about today's growing society. The writer described the young men of today as "herbivores", and explained how they are essentially grazing, waiting for an opportunity to come to them, rather than hunting for it. On March 6, 2014, the band premiered "Guilty All the Same", which features Rakim, from the album through Shazam. The track was later released by Warner Bros. on March 7, 2014 as the lead single promoting the then-unannounced sixth studio album by the band. A music video for "Guilty All the Same" also premiered on YouTube on March 25, 2014. The music video, a continuation of the band's collaboration with Xbox, was made entirely with the in-game engine of Team Dakota's 2014 sandbox video game Project Spark. Additionally, the course made for the music video was made openly available by the band, giving players of Project Spark on Microsoft Windows and the Xbox One the opportunity of editing and remixing the course. While information about Linkin Park's sixth studio album had leaked beforehand, including the album's title and release date, The Hunting Party was officially unveiled by the band and Warner Bros. Records on April 9, 2014. The track listing of the album was additionally unveiled by Shinoda and Linkin Park's management team on April 27, 2014. "Until It's Gone" became the second track to be unveiled, and was released as the album's second single on May 6, 2014. Pre-orders for the album were also opened on the same day, with "Guilty all the Same" and "Until It's Gone" released early on the album's iTunes Store page. A music video for "Until It's Gone" was then released on June 11, 2014. "Wastelands" was released on the iTunes Store on June 1, 2014, and later as a single on June 2. On June 3, 2014, Bennington appeared on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 to premiere the song, "Rebellion". An official lyric video was released alongside a release of the track on the iTunes Store the same day. It was later released as a single on June 4, and was released as the album's fourth retail single on October 13. On June 8, 2014, Linkin Park premiered the third single "Final Masquerade" on MTV. A listening session for the album took place on May 23, 2014 in Los Angeles. Further listening sessions for Linkin Park Underground members were announced for June 4, 2014 in various locations worldwide. The band, additionally, hosted the tenth and eleventh editions of the LPU summit, a convention for Underground members, during the album cycle. The tenth edition was held at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center in Darien, New York on August 21, 2014, and the eleventh edition was held at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Texas on September 5, 2014. The band's first live performance of The Hunting Party album cycle was on May 24, 2014 at the KMFA Day music festival, in which they headlined. The band performed "Guilty All the Same", "Until It's Gone" and "Wastelands" for the first time. The band also performed as headliners at Rock in Rio Lisboa VI on May 30, 2014. During the performance, Shinoda tossed promotional singles containing the studio version of "Wastelands" out into the open audience, days before the song's official single release. Linkin Park are also set to embark on a double-headline tour of North America with Thirty Seconds to Mars in support of both The Hunting Party and Thirty Seconds to Mars' 2013 album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams. The tour, dubbed the Carnivores Tour, spanned 25 dates in August and September 2014, with American rock band AFI serving as opening act during the entire tour. The band held another tour named as "The Hunting Party Tour", which started in May 30, 2014. However, some of the shows on the tour were cancelled due to Bennington breaking his leg. Upon its release, The Hunting Party received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, the album has received an aggregated score of 65/100, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 15 reviews. Dave Simpson of The Guardian gave the album a positive review. Upon giving the album three stars, he praised the band's return to their original sound, stating that "Shinoda's desire to make a punk rock record and Bennington's more ethereal electropop segments don't always make comfortable bedfellows, but Rob Bourdon's terrific drumming means the energy never lets up". Despite labeling some tracks of the record like "Until It's Gone" as cliché, he commented positively on the music and writing of others such as "Drawbar" and "Rebellion". He further wrote, "Linkin Park certainly know their audience, and here delicately navigate the gulf between their own aspirations and a fanbase who will celebrate the band's loud return to rocking hard." Chris Schulz of The New Zealand Herald also gave the album a positive review, describing the record as "Loud, spontaneous and free", attributes that, he states, "aren't normally associated with Linkin Park, but The Hunting Party takes just seconds to prove the sixth release from the Californian precision-metal act is a different beast". He continues to compare the album with the band's recent discography, describing their previous three albums as having "sagged with overwrought ballads and pretentious soft-rock", while The Hunting Party "gets on with the task of rap-rocking like it's 1999 all over again." David Renshaw at NME opined that "It might not kill the Mumford and Butler clones, but The Hunting Party is an energetic effort at least." Renshaw also praises Daron Malakian's guest spot, but considers Tom Morello's contribution a disappointment. AllMusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine observes "Far from sounding as if they're grasping at straws, Linkin Park seem rejuvenated, proving there is value in the cliché of returning to roots." Dan Epstein from Revolver described the album as "...not only the hardest and heaviest thing they've ever released, but it's also their first album to pack the sort of guitar firepower that would actually appeal to your average headbanger." Epstein concludes by stating that it's proof that bands don't need to get softer in order to mature. At Billboard, Kenneth Partridge states "...these Cali rap-rock commandos go rogue, flinging missiles in all directions. They attack record companies, politicians, rule makers, exes, and anyone else in sight, all the while rediscovering the savage fun of super-loud guitars." Neil McCormick from The Daily Telegraph stated "...it is sleek, exciting and committed enough to suggest there is life in the rock beast yet." Jordan Blum at PopMatters rated it a 5/10, describing it as a "solid album", but considers it "too repetitive, uninspired, and generic", compared to the three previous albums. Rolling Stone reviewer Jon Dolan states that "on Album Six they're back with a retro-neo-aggro sound that would've been too intense for modern- rock radio in 1999...these dudes can still bring it like backward-ball-cap warriors hopped up on Mountain Dew and Dad's fourth divorce." The Hunting Party was featured in a number of year end "best of" lists. The album also was nominated for the "2014 Rock Album of the Year" by Loudwire, but lost to "Islander"'s Violence & Destruction by a close margin of 0.29% of votes. Whereas the band won the "Best Rock Band of 2014" and "Best Live Act of 2014". The song Rebellion from the album got a nomination for "2014 Rock Song of the Year" where it lost to Three Days Grace's "Painkiller". The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 behind Lana Del Rey's Ultraviolence and Sam Smith's In the Lonely Hour, with first-week sales of 110,000 copies in the United States. Although it was the first week of 2014 where three albums sold more than 100,000 copies in the United States, it became Linkin Park's lowest first-week sales for a studio album since Meteora, and also their lowest-peaking studio album. In its second week, the album dropped to number nine on the chart, selling 29,000 copies. In its third week, the album sold 16,000 more copies, bringing its total album sales to 155,000 in the United States. As of December 2014, the album had sold 274,000 copies in the United States and 900,000 copies worldwide. Despite its slow sales, the album was certified Platinum in the US, in December 2017, for one million copies sold. Notes Live from Mexico is Linkin Park's 2012 live performance in Monterrey, Mexico, originally recorded for MTV World Stage. The Hunting Party (Acapellas + Instrumentals) is the second instrumental and a cappella tracks album performed by Linkin Park, taken from The Hunting Party. The album was released on iTunes and Amazon on August 12, 2014. Linkin Park Chester Bennington – lead vocals, rhythm guitar on "War", Rob Bourdon – drums, percussion, Brad Delson – lead guitar, backing vocals, production, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell – bass guitar, backing vocals, Joe Hahn – turntables, sampling, programming, Mike Shinoda – vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, synthesizer, production, creative director, engineering, rap vocals on "Keys to the Kingdom", "All for Nothing", "Wastelands", and "A Line in the Sand" Additional musicians Page Hamilton – chorus vocals and additional guitar (on "All for Nothing"), Daron Malakian – additional guitar (on "Rebellion"), Tom Morello – additional guitar (on "Drawbar"), Rakim – rap vocals (on "Guilty All the Same") Technical Rob Cavallo – co-production (on "Wastelands"), A&R;, Emile Haynie – co-production (on "Final Masquerade"), Ryan DeMarti – production coordination, Ethan Mates – engineering, Andy Wallace – mixing, Paul Suarez – Pro Tools, Josh Newell – digital editing, Emily Lazar – mastering, Rich Morales – mastering assistance, Alejandro Baima – assistant engineering, Brendan Dekora – assistant engineering, Jennifer Langdon – assistant engineering, Jerry Johnson – drum technician, Brandon Parvini – computer graphics, creative direction, Rickey Kim – creative direction, Annie Nguyen – art direction, James Jean – artwork, Brandon Cox – photography, Kymm Britton – publicity, Kas Mercer – publicity

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The top tier of English football was renamed the Premier League for the start of the 1992–93 season. The following page details the football records and statistics of the Premier League. Most titles: 13, Manchester United, Most consecutive title wins: 3, Manchester United (1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01), Manchester United (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09), Biggest title-winning margin: 19 points, 2017–18; Manchester City (100 points) over Manchester United (81 points), Smallest title-winning margin: 0 points and +8 goal difference – 2011–12; Manchester City (+64) over Manchester United (+56). Both finished on 89 points, but Manchester City won the title with a superior goal difference – the only time that goal difference has decided the Premier League title. Most points in a season: 100, Manchester City (2017–18), Most points over 38 consecutive Premier League games: 104, Liverpool (2018–19, 2019–20), Most home points in a season: 55, Chelsea (2005–06), Manchester United (2010–11), Manchester City (2011–12), Most away points in a season: 50, Manchester City (2017–18), Fewest points in a season: 11, Derby County (2007–08), Fewest home points in a season: 7, Sunderland (2005–06), Fewest away points in a season: 3, Derby County (2007–08), Most points in a season without winning the league: 97, Liverpool (2018–19), Fewest points in a season while winning the league: 75, Manchester United (1996–97), Most points in a season while being relegated:, 42 games: 49, Crystal Palace (1992–93), 38 games: 42, West Ham United (2002–03), Fewest points in a season while avoiding relegation: 34, West Bromwich Albion (2004–05), Most points in a season by a team promoted in the previous season:, 42 games: 77, Nottingham Forest (1994–95), 38 games: 66, Ipswich Town (2000–01) Most wins in total: 656, Manchester United, Most wins in a season: 32, Manchester City (2017–18, 2018–19), Most home wins in a season: 18, Chelsea (2005–06), Manchester United (2010–11), Manchester City (2011–12, 2018–19), Most away wins in a season: 16, Manchester City (2017–18), Fewest wins in a season: 1, Derby County (2007–08), Fewest home wins in a season: 1, Sunderland (2005–06), Derby County (2007–08), Fewest away wins in a season: 0, Leeds United (1992–93), Coventry City (1999–2000), Wolverhampton Wanderers (2003–04), Norwich City (2004–05), Derby County (2007–08), Hull City (2009–10), Most consecutive wins: 18, Manchester City (26 August – 27 December 2017), Most consecutive wins from the start of a season: 9, Chelsea (14 August – 15 October 2005), Most consecutive wins to the end of a season: 14, Manchester City (3 February – 12 May 2019), Most consecutive home wins: 20, Manchester City (5 March 2011 – 21 March 2012), Most consecutive away wins: 11, Chelsea (6 April – 7 December 2008), Manchester City (21 May – 27 December 2017), Most consecutive games without a win: 32, Derby County (2007–08), Most consecutive games without a win from the start of a season: 16, Queens Park Rangers (18 August – 8 December 2012) Most defeats in total: 375, Everton and West Ham United, Most defeats in a season: 29, Ipswich Town (1994–95), Sunderland (2005–06), Derby County (2007–08), Most home defeats in a season: 14, Sunderland (2002–03, 2005–06), Huddersfield Town (2018–19), Most away defeats in a season: 17, Burnley (2009–10), Fewest defeats in a season: 0, Arsenal (2003–04), Fewest home defeats in a season: 0, Manchester United (1995–96, 1999–2000, 2010–11), Arsenal (1998–99, 2003–04, 2007–08), Chelsea (2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2014–15), Liverpool (2008–09, 2017–18, 2018–19), Manchester City (2011–12), Tottenham Hotspur (2016–17), Fewest away defeats in a season: 0, Arsenal (2001–02, 2003–04), Most consecutive games undefeated: 49, Arsenal (7 May 2003 – 24 October 2004), Most consecutive home games undefeated: 86, Chelsea (20 March 2004 – 5 October 2008), Most consecutive away games undefeated: 27, Arsenal (5 April 2003 – 25 September 2004), Most consecutive defeats over more than one season: 20, Sunderland (2002–03, 2005–06) Most draws in total: 300, Everton, Most draws in a season (42 games): 18, Manchester City (1993–94), Sheffield United (1993–94), Southampton (1994–95), Most draws in a season (38 games): 17, Newcastle United (2003–04), Aston Villa (2006–07, 2011–12), Sunderland (2014–15), Most home draws in a season: 10, Sheffield Wednesday (1996–97), Leicester City (1997–98, 2003–04), Manchester United (2016–17), Most away draws in a season: 10, Newcastle United (2003–04), Manchester United (2010–11), Fewest draws in a season: 2, Manchester City (2018–19), Tottenham Hotspur (2018–19), Fewest home draws in a season: 0, Manchester City (2008–09, 2018–19), Manchester United (2012–13), Chelsea (2016–17), Fewest away draws in a season: 0, Tottenham Hotspur (2018–19), Most consecutive draws: 7, Norwich City (1993–94), Southampton (1994–95), Manchester City (2009–10), Most consecutive games without a draw: 32, Tottenham Hotspur (9 May 2018 – 27 February 2019) Most goals scored in a season: 106, Manchester City (2017–18), Fewest goals scored in a season: 20, Derby County (2007–08), Most goals conceded in a season (42 games): 100, Swindon Town (1993–94), Most goals conceded in a season (38 games): 89, Derby County (2007–08), Fewest goals conceded in a season: 15, Chelsea (2004–05), Best goal difference in a season: 79, Manchester City (2017–18), Worst goal difference in a season: –69, Derby County (2007–08), Highest finish with a negative goal difference: 3rd, Norwich City (1992–93, –4), Lowest finish with a positive goal difference: 16th, Manchester City (2003–04, +1), Most goals scored in a season by a relegated team: 55, Blackpool (2010–11), Most goals scored at home in a season: 68, Chelsea (2009–10), Fewest goals scored at home in a season: 10, Manchester City (2006–07), Huddersfield Town (2018–19), Most goals conceded at home in a season (21 games): 45, Swindon Town (1993–94), Most goals conceded at home in a season (19 games): 43, Derby County (2007–08), Wolverhampton Wanderers (2011–12), Fewest goals conceded at home in a season: 4, Manchester United (1994–95), Most goals scored away in a season: 48, Liverpool (2013–14), Fewest goals scored away in a season: 8, Middlesbrough (1995–96), Southampton (1998–99), Sheffield United (2006–07), Derby County (2007–08), Most goals conceded away in a season (21 games): 59, Ipswich Town (1994–95), Most goals conceded away in a season (19 games): 55, Wigan Athletic (2009–10), Fewest goals conceded away in a season: 9, Chelsea (2004–05), Fewest failures to score in a match in a season: 0 (scored in every game), Arsenal (2001–02), Most consecutive matches scored in: 55, Arsenal (19 May 2001 – 30 November 2002), Most goals scored in total: 2,021, Manchester United, Most goals conceded in total: 1,343, Everton Highest attendance, single game: 83,222, Tottenham Hotspur 1–0 Arsenal (at Wembley Stadium, 10 February 2018), Lowest attendance, single game: 3,039, Wimbledon 1–3 Everton (at Selhurst Park, 26 January 1993), Highest season average attendance: 75,821 – Old Trafford, Manchester United (2006–07), Lowest season average attendance: 8,353 – Selhurst Park, Wimbledon (1992–93) Most Premier League appearances: 653, Gareth Barry (2 May 1998 to 24 February 2018), Oldest player: John Burridge, 43 years and 162 days (for Manchester City v. Queens Park Rangers, 14 May 1995), Youngest player: Harvey Elliott, 16 years and 30 days (for Fulham v. Wolverhampton Wanderers, 4 May 2019), Most consecutive Premier League appearances: 310, Brad Friedel (14 August 2004 until 7 October 2012), Most seasons appeared in: 22, Ryan Giggs (every season from 1992–93 to 2013–14) First Premier League goal: Brian Deane (for Sheffield United v. Manchester United, 15 August 1992), Most Premier League goals: 260, Alan Shearer, Most Premier League goals at one club: 183, Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Oldest goalscorer: 40 years and 268 days, Teddy Sheringham (for West Ham United v. Portsmouth, 26 December 2006), Youngest goalscorer: 16 years and 271 days, James Vaughan (for Everton v. Crystal Palace, 10 April 2005), Most consecutive Premier League matches scored in: 11, Jamie Vardy (for Leicester City, 29 August – 28 November 2015), Most seasons scored in: 21, Ryan Giggs (every season from 1992–93 to 2012–13) Players currently playing in the Premier League are highlighted in bold. Most goals in a season (42 games): 34, Andy Cole (Newcastle United, 1993–94), Alan Shearer (Blackburn Rovers, 1994–95), Most goals in a season (38 games): 32, Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, 2017–18), Most games scored in during a Premier League season: 24, Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, 2017–18), Most Premier League goals in a calendar year: 39, Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur, 2017), Number of teams scored against in a season: 17, 20-team league:, Ian Wright (Arsenal, 1996–97), Robin van Persie (Arsenal, 2011–12), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, 2017–18), 22-team league:, Andy Cole (Newcastle United, 1993–94), Alan Shearer (Blackburn Rovers, 1994–95), Most goals in a debut season: 30, Kevin Phillips (Sunderland, 1999–2000), Most Premier League hat-tricks in a season: 5, Alan Shearer (Blackburn Rovers, 1995–96), Most Premier League hat-tricks: 12, Sergio Agüero, Most goals in a game: 5, Andy Cole (for Manchester United v. Ipswich Town, 4 March 1995) W 9–0, Alan Shearer (for Newcastle United v. Sheffield Wednesday, 19 September 1999) W 8–0, Jermain Defoe (for Tottenham Hotspur v. Wigan Athletic, 22 November 2009) W 9–1, Dimitar Berbatov (for Manchester United v. Blackburn Rovers, 27 November 2010) W 7–1, Sergio Agüero (for Manchester City v. Newcastle United, 3 October 2015) W 6–1, Most goals in one half: 5, Jermain Defoe (for Tottenham Hotspur v. Wigan Athletic, 22 November 2009) W 9–1, Fastest goal: 7.69 seconds, Shane Long (for Southampton v. Watford, 23 April 2019), Most goals scored by a substitute in a game: 4, Ole Gunnar Solskjær (for Manchester United v. Nottingham Forest, 6 February 1999), Most consecutive away league matches scored in: 9, Robin van Persie (for Arsenal, 1 January – 22 May 2011), Most consecutive seasons to score at least 30 goals: 3 (1993–1996), Alan Shearer (all for Blackburn Rovers), Most consecutive seasons to score at least 25 goals: 4 (1993–1997), Alan Shearer (1993–1996 for Blackburn Rovers, 1996–1997 for Newcastle United), Most consecutive seasons to score at least 20 goals: 5, Thierry Henry (2001–06, all for Arsenal), Sergio Agüero (2014–19, all for Manchester City), Most consecutive seasons to score at least 10 goals: 11 (2004–2015), Wayne Rooney (all for Manchester United), Most consecutive seasons to score at least 1 goal: 21 (1992–2013), Ryan Giggs (all for Manchester United), Fastest Premier League hat-trick: 2 minutes 56 seconds, Sadio Mané (for Southampton v. Aston Villa, 16 May 2015), Most different clubs to score for: 7, Craig Bellamy (for Coventry City, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers, Liverpool, West Ham United, Manchester City, Cardiff City), Most own goals: 10, Richard Dunne, Most own goals in a season: 4, Martin Škrtel (2013–14), Lewis Dunk (2017–18), Most hat-tricks against a single club: 3, Luis Suárez (for Liverpool v. Norwich City), Most goals in a calendar month: 10 (December 2013), Luis Suárez (Liverpool), Most penalties scored: 56, Alan Shearer Players currently playing in the Premier League are highlighted in bold. Most Premier League assists in a season: 20, Thierry Henry (Arsenal, 2002–03), Most Premier League assists in a season by a defender: 12, Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool, 2018–19), Most consecutive Premier League matches with an assist: 7, Mesut Özil (for Arsenal, 26 September – 21 November 2015), Most assists from one player to another: 24, Frank Lampard to Didier Drogba, Youngest player to complete a hat-trick of assists: 20 years and 143 days, Trent Alexander-Arnold (for Liverpool v. Watford, 27 February 2019), Most assists in a single Premier League match: 4, Dennis Bergkamp (for Arsenal v. Leicester City, 20 February 1999), José Antonio Reyes (for Arsenal v. Middlesbrough, 14 January 2006), Cesc Fàbregas (for Arsenal v. Blackburn Rovers, 4 October 2009), Emmanuel Adebayor (for Tottenham Hotspur v. Newcastle United, 11 February 2012), Santi Cazorla (for Arsenal v. Wigan Athletic, 14 May 2013), Dušan Tadić (for Southampton v. Sunderland, 18 October 2014) Players currently playing in the Premier League are highlighted in bold. Most clean sheets in one season: 24, Petr Čech (for Chelsea, 2004–05), Longest consecutive run without conceding a goal: 14 games (1,311 minutes), Edwin van der Sar (for Manchester United, 2008–09), Goalscoring goalkeepers (excluding own goals):, Peter Schmeichel (Everton 3–2 Aston Villa, 20 October 2001), Brad Friedel (Charlton Athletic 3–2 Blackburn Rovers, 21 February 2004), Paul Robinson (Tottenham Hotspur 3–1 Watford, 17 March 2007), Tim Howard (Everton 1–2 Bolton Wanderers, 4 January 2012), Asmir Begović (Stoke City 1–1 Southampton, 2 November 2013) Most red cards: 8, Duncan Ferguson, Patrick Vieira, Richard Dunne, Most yellow cards for a player: 123, Gareth Barry, Most yellow cards for a single team in one game: 9 (Tottenham Hotspur v. Chelsea, 2 May 2016), Fouling record: 782, Kevin Davies (since 2000–01, the first season for which reliable records are available), Longest ban: 12 matches, Joey Barton. After being dismissed for violent conduct, Barton was found guilty of two further separate counts of violent conduct after his dismissal against Manchester City on 13 May 2012 Most Premier League winners' medals: 13, Ryan Giggs (1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13), Most Player of the Season awards: 2, Thierry Henry (2003–04 and 2005–06), Cristiano Ronaldo (2006–07 and 2007–08), Nemanja Vidić (2008–09 and 2010–11), Most Player of the Month awards: 6, Steven Gerrard (March 2001, March 2000, December 2004, April 2006, March 2009, March 2014), Harry Kane (January 2015, February 2015, March 2016, February 2017, September 2017, December 2017), Sergio Agüero (October 2013, November 2014, January 2016, April 2016, January 2018, February 2019) This is a list of the top 10 youngest players to score a goal in the Premier League. Biggest home win: 9–0, Manchester United v. Ipswich Town (4 March 1995), Biggest away win: 0–9, Southampton v. Leicester City (25 October 2019), Biggest aggregate win: 12–1, Blackburn Rovers 7–0 Nottingham Forest (18 November 1995) and Nottingham Forest 1–5 Blackburn Rovers (13 April 1996), Tottenham Hotspur 9–1 Wigan Athletic (22 November 2009) and Wigan Athletic 0–3 Tottenham Hotspur (21 February 2010), Biggest loss by reigning champions: 1–6, Manchester United 1–6 Manchester City (23 October 2011), after Manchester United won the 2010–11 season, Leicester City 1–6 Tottenham Hotspur (18 May 2017), after Leicester City won the 2015–16 season, Largest goal deficit overcome to win: 3, Leeds United 4–3 Derby County (8 November 1997), West Ham United 3–4 Wimbledon (9 September 1998), Tottenham Hotspur 3–5 Manchester United (29 September 2001), Wolverhampton Wanderers 4–3 Leicester City (25 October 2003), Largest goal deficit overcome to draw: 4, Newcastle United 4–4 Arsenal (5 February 2011), with Newcastle United scoring last, Highest scoring: 7–4, Portsmouth v. Reading (29 September 2007), Highest scoring draw: 5–5, West Bromwich Albion v. Manchester United (19 May 2013), Highest scoring in the first half: 7 goals, Blackburn Rovers 3–4 Leeds United (14 September 1997 – final score: 3–4), Bradford City 4–3 Derby County (21 April 2000 – final score: 4–4), Reading 3–4 Manchester United (1 December 2012 – final score: 3–4), Highest scoring in the second half: 9 goals, Tottenham Hotspur 9–1 Wigan Athletic (22 November 2009 – first half score: 1–0), Most individual goal scorers in one game: 9, Tottenham Hotspur 4–5 Arsenal (13 November 2004), Portsmouth 7–4 Reading (29 September 2007), Most individual goal scorers in one game for the same team: 7, Chelsea 8–0 Aston Villa (23 December 2012), Manchester City 7–0 Norwich City (2 November 2013), Southampton 8–0 Sunderland (18 October 2014) The all-time Premier League table is a cumulative record of all match results, points and goals of every team that has played in the Premier League since its inception in 1992. The table that follows is accurate as of the end of the 2018–19 season. Teams in bold are part of the 2019–20 Premier League. Numbers in bold are the record (highest either positive or negative) numbers in each column. League or status at 2019–20: Notes By a 2007 agreement, neither Milton Keynes Dons nor AFC Wimbledon regards itself as custodian of Wimbledon F.C.'s statistics. Most Premier League titles: 13, Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United) – 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, Most Premier League Manager of the Month awards: 27, Sir Alex Ferguson, Most consecutive Premier League Manager of the Month awards: 4, Pep Guardiola, Most promotions to the Premier League: 4, Steve Bruce (Birmingham City in 2001–02 and 2006–07 and Hull City in 2012–13 and 2015–16), Most relegations from the Premier League: 3, Dave Bassett (Sheffield United in 1993–94, Nottingham Forest in 1996–97, and Leicester City in 2001–02), Most clubs managed: 7, Sam Allardyce (Bolton Wanderers, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United, Sunderland, Crystal Palace, Everton), Quickest to reach 100 Premier League wins: Pep Guardiola, 134 games, Longest spell as manager: , Arsène Wenger (Arsenal, 1 October 1996 – 13 May 2018), Shortest spell as manager (excluding caretakers):, in terms of days in function: 41 days, Les Reed (Charlton Athletic, 14 November – 24 December 2006), in terms of games in charge: 4 games, Frank de Boer (Crystal Palace, 26 June – 10 September 2017) General Specific The Premier League is an association football league that serves as the top tier of the English football league system. The league was founded in 1992 when the clubs of the First Division decided to break away from the Football League, as a commercially independent entity that negotiated its own broadcast and sponsorship agreements. Since the 2012–13 season, a player needs to have played in a minimum of five matches for a title-winning team to qualify for a medal. This is down from the previous standard of ten matches played. At the discretion of the Premier League board, additional medals can be awarded to players who played less than five matches. This special dispensation is usually reserved for back-up goalkeepers and players who did not make the minimum number of appearances through injury. For the first season, players received a miniature version of the trophy rather than a medal. As of the end of the 2018–19 season, six clubs have won the title – Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Leicester City – with 508 medals awarded to 262 players. Having won 13 Premier League championships, Manchester United have more title-winning players to their name than any other club, with 86 players awarded 247 medals. Ryan Giggs, who spent his entire career at the club, has won more medals than any other player with 13. Over a third of medals have been awarded to English players and the next most frequent nationalities of winners are French and Brazilian. The list is initially ordered first by number of medals, then by season, and then if necessary by alphabetical order., Position key: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward., Club (X) denotes the number of times a player won a medal with that club. The Premier League is a professional football league in England which is the top tier of the English football league system. The league was formed in 1992 as a replacement for the original First Division. Arsène Wenger holds the record for most games managed in the Premier League with 828 games, all with Arsenal. He broke the record set by Alex Ferguson, who had managed 810 games with Manchester United from the Premier League's inception to his retirement at the end of the 2012–13 season. Ferguson, however, remains the most successful manager in the Premier League, having won thirteen titles, more than four times as many as any other manager. Sam Allardyce has managed the most teams in the Premier League, having taken charge of seven different clubs: Bolton Wanderers, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United, Sunderland, Crystal Palace and Everton. Many of the managers listed below served as caretaker (temporary) managers in the period between a managerial departure and appointment. Several of these, however, went on to secure a permanent managerial post. The list of managers includes everyone who has managed clubs while they were in the Premier League, whether in a permanent or temporary role. Caretaker managers are listed only when they managed the team for at least one match in that period. The dates of appointment and departure may fall outside the club's period in the Premier League, for example, Ron Atkinson was appointed as Aston Villa manager in 1991 (before the Premier League was formed in 1992) and remained in his position through the Premier League's establishment. Similarly, Wolverhampton Wanderers' first spell in the Premier League lasted for only one season (2003–04) but manager Dave Jones remained in his position until November 2004. List of current Premier League and English Football League managers General Specific Managers at the official Premier League website

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The 2018 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXI Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Gold Coast 2018, were an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth that were held on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, between 4 and 15 April 2018. It was the fifth time Australia had hosted the Commonwealth Games and the first time a major multi-sport event achieved gender equality by having an equal number of events for male and female athletes. More than 4,400 athletes including 300 para-athletes from 71 Commonwealth Games Associations took part in the event. The Gambia which withdrew its membership from the Commonwealth of Nations and Commonwealth Games Federation in 2013, was readmitted on 31 March 2018 and participated in the event . With 275 sets of medals, the games featured 19 Commonwealth sports, including beach volleyball, para triathlon and women's rugby sevens. These sporting events took place at 14 venues in the host city, two venues in Brisbane and one venue each in Cairns and Townsville. These were the first Commonwealth Games to take place under the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) presidency of Dame Louise Martin. The host city Gold Coast was announced at the CGF General Assembly in Basseterre, Saint Kitts, on 11 November 2011. Gold Coast became the seventh Oceanian city and the first regional city to host the Commonwealth Games. These were the eighth games to be held in Oceania and the Southern Hemisphere. The host nation Australia topped the medal table for the fourth time in the past five Commonwealth Games, winning the most golds (80) and most medals overall (198). England and India finished second and third respectively. Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Solomon Islands, British Virgin Islands and Dominica each won their first Commonwealth Games medals. On 22 August 2008, the Premier of Queensland, Anna Bligh, officially launched Gold Coast City's bid to host the Commonwealth Games in 2018. On 7 April 2009, the ABC reported a land exchange deal between Gold Coast City and State of Queensland for Carrara Stadium. According to Mayor Ron Clarke, the land would aid a potential bid for the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The land exchanged would be used as the site of an aquatics centre. In the same article, Mayor Clarke raised the question of the Australian Federal Government's commitment to a 2018 Commonwealth Games bid in light of the Government's support for Australia's 2018 FIFA World Cup Finals bid. On 16 April 2009, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told reporters that a successful Commonwealth Games bid by Gold Coast City could help the tourist strip win a role in hosting the World Cup. "Some of the infrastructure that would be built for the Commonwealth Games will be useful for Gold Coast City to get a World Cup game out of the soccer World Cup if we're successful as a nation," she said. However the decision on the venues for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups were made eleven months prior to the bid decision for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, so the potential World Cup venues had already been chosen. On 3 June 2009, Gold Coast City was confirmed as Australia's exclusive bidder vying for the 2018 Commonwealth Games. "Should a bid proceed, Gold Coast City will have the exclusive Australian rights to bid as host city for 2018," Bligh stated. "Recently I met with the president and CEO of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association and we agreed to commission a full and comprehensive feasibility study into the potential for the 2018 Commonwealth Games," she said. "Under the stewardship of Queensland Events new chair, Geoff Dixon, that study is now well advanced." On 15 March 2010, it was announced that the Queensland Government will provide initial funding of A$11 million for the 2018 Commonwealth Games bid. The Premier of Queensland has indicated the Government's support for the bid to the Australian Commonwealth Games Association. On 31 March 2010, the Australian Commonwealth Games Association officially launched the bid to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games. In October 2011, Gold Coast City Mayor Ron Clarke stated that the games would provide a strong legacy for the city after the games have ended. On 31 March 2010, a surprise bid was made for the 2018 Commonwealth Games by the Sri Lankan city of Hambantota. Hambantota was devastated by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, and is undergoing a major face lift. The first phase of the Port of Hambantota is nearing completion and it is funded by the government of China. The Mattala International Airport, which is the second international Airport of Sri Lanka is built close to Hambantota. A new Hambantota International Cricket Stadium had also been built, which had hosted matches in the 2011 Cricket World Cup. On 10 November 2011, the Hambantota bidders claimed they had already secured enough votes to win the hosting rights. However, on 11 November it was officially announced Gold Coast City had won the rights to host the games. The event was overseen by the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation (GOLDOC). The GOLDOC was formed in 2012 by the Government of Queensland. Its headquarters were located in Ashmore, a suburban region of Gold Coast. In February 2012, Mark Peters was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the GOLDOC. The Queensland Government Minister tasked with overseeing the Games was Kate Jones. Peter Beattie served as the Chairman of GOLDOC who was appointed on 17 May 2016 to replace Nigel Chamier . One of the key technical aspects of Gold Coast City's successful bid was the fact that the city had 80 percent of the planned venues in place before the bidding deadline. The vast majority of venues were located within 20-minutes driving time of the Athletes Village in Parkwood. Lendlease was the overlay delivery partner and official supporter property & infrastructure of the Games. Carrara Stadium, located in the suburb of Carrara, was the main venue for Athletics, the opening ceremony and the closing ceremony. The seating capacity of the stadium was temporarily increased to 40,000 for the games by the installation of a large temporary North Stand. The Gold Coast City Convention and Exhibition Centre, located in the suburb of Broadbeach, hosted Basketball, Netball (preliminaries) and Weightlifting events, also serving as the Main Media Centre and International Broadcast centre hosting over 3000 members of the worlds press. The Broadbeach Bowls Club hosted the Bowls competition. The Hinze Dam, located in the suburb of Advancetown, was the location for the Mountain Bike competition. A new course was constructed to meet international competition requirements and temporary spectator seating for 2,000 spectators. The newly built Coomera Sport and Leisure Centre hosted Gymnastics and Netball (finals). The existing sound stages of the Village Roadshow Studios complex in the suburb of Oxenford hosted the sports of Boxing, Table Tennis and Squash. During Games mode the venue was enhanced to provide for the International Sporting Federation technical venue requirements and provide spectator seating of 3,000 (boxing) and 3,200 (table tennis). The Gold Coast Hockey Centre hosted the men's and women's Hockey events during the games. The Southport Broadwater Parklands hosted Triathlon and athletic events. The Optus aquatic centre hosted the swimming and diving events. Robina Stadium hosted the Rugby 7s competition and upgraded to meet World Rugby standards. The Elanora/Currumbin Valley area hosted the road racing elements of the cycling programme. Coolangatta Beachfront hosted the beach volleyball event. Brisbane, along with the Gold Coast, forms part of the South East Queensland conurbation. Track Cycling was held at the Sleeman Sports Complex in the suburb of Chandler, where a new indoor cycling velodrome (Anna Meares Velodrome) was built. The Velodrome's seat capacity was 4,000 during the games mode. The Shooting disciplines were held at the Belmont Shooting Centre. In Tropical North Queensland, the Cairns Convention Centre and Townsville Entertainment Centre hosted the preliminary rounds of both the men's and women's basketball competitions. The Queensland state government spent A$1.5 billion (US$1.2 billion) to deliver the event. From this, A$550 million (US$425 million) were spent on the procurement programme. Procurement of the security and security infrastructure included contracts for four prime suppliers which delivered around 4,200 security guards. Another A$34 million (US$26 million) were spent on the deployment of the armed forces to provide rapid-response squads, bomb detectors, offshore patrols and surveillance. A$657 million (US$509 million) were spent for the construction of the venues and the Games Village. From the infrastructure budget, seven Games venues were upgraded and only three were newly built and they were the A$105.3 million (US$81.6 million) Gold Coast Sport and Leisure Centre, the A$40 million (US$31 million) Coomera Indoor Sports Centre and the A$59 million Anna Meares Velodrome. The Broadbeach Bowls Club was renovated for A$4.95 million (US$3.84 million). Additional A$2.6 billion were spent in upgrading transport infrastructure. More than A$6.4 million were spent on the Queen's Baton Relay. The countdown clock was unveiled on 4 April 2013, exactly five years from the opening ceremony of the games. The clock was shaped as a surfboard and was located at the beach end of Cavill Avenue in Surfers Paradise. The Countdown Clock was the first fixed element of the Commonwealth Games visual identity program. The ticket requests began on 24 April 2017 and ended on 22 May 2017. The first round of tickets were allocated on 22 June 2017 via a computer-generated ballot system. About 70% of the people who applied for the tickets had received some or all of the tickets requested in the first phase. In Australia, ticket prices ranged from A$10 for many events to A$495 for the most expensive seats at the opening ceremony. The games expected to have 1.2 million tickets for sale. Around 1.06 million tickets were sold by 3 April 2018. Ticketek was the provider of ticketing services for the Games. The organizing committee expected 15,000 volunteers for the games. Over 45,000 applicants applied to become a volunteer. The uniforms for the volunteers were revealed on 11 November 2017 at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Former Gold Coast Titans player Mat Rogers who was present at the uniform showcase ceremony, said that the uniforms were "very Gold Coast" and it was like an "active wear". Hard Yakka was the official supplier of the uniforms for the volunteers. At a charity gala held on 4 November 2017, the medals for the games were officially unveiled. Australian Indigenous artist Delvene Cockatoo-Collins designed the medals, while they were produced by the Royal Australian Mint. The design of the medals was inspired by the coastline of Gold Coast along with Indigenous culture. Furthermore, Cockatoo-Collins mentioned, "the medal design represents soft sand lines which shift with every tide and wave, also symbolic of athletic achievement, The continual change of tide represents the evolution in athletes who are making their mark, Records are made and special moments of elation are celebrated". Approximately 1,500 medals were created to be distributed to the medallists and each measures approximately 63 millimetres in diameter. The medals weigh between 138 and 163 grams. The 2018 Commonwealth Games Athletes Village was located on 59 hectares at Southport, Gold Coast. which provided accommodation and services to 6,600 athletes and officials in 1252 permanent dwellings. There are 1170 one and two bedroom apartments and 82 three bedroom townhouses which will serve as student accommodation to the nearby Griffith University. It offered services like laundry, refreshments and television and computer spaces and four residential pools. The village consisted a gym which was designed with guidance from the Australian Institute of Sport and the equipment was sponsored by Technogym. Adjoining the gym was the Athlete Recovery Area which provided services like plunge baths, including accessible baths, saunas, massage and consults from the Sports Medical personnel. The Main Dining served over 18,000 meals per day to the athletes during the games. The village also consisted of retail shops, Optus phone store, salon, bar and a games room which featured a number of arcade games, pool tables and game consoles. The Gold Coast 2018 Queen's Baton Relay was launched on Commonwealth Day, 13 March 2017, on the historic forecourt at Buckingham Palace, signalling the official countdown to the start of the Games. Accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh and Prince Edward The Earl of Wessex, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II heralded the start of the relay by placing her 'message to the Commonwealth and its athletes' into the distinctive loop-design Queen's Baton which then set off on its journey around the globe. It traveled for 388 days, spending time in every nation and territory of the Commonwealth. The Gold Coast 2018 Queen's Baton Relay was the longest in Commonwealth Games history. Covering 230,000 km over 388 days, the baton made its way through the six Commonwealth regions of Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Oceania. The baton landed on Australian soil in December 2017 and then spent 100 days travelling through Australia, finishing its journey at the Opening Ceremony on 4 April 2018, where the message was removed from the Baton and read aloud by Charles, Prince of Wales. A total of 3,500 police officers from Queensland and 4,000 security personnel from the Australian security companies MSS Security, Wilson Security, SecureCorp and SNP were present at the Games. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) assisted the Gold Coast authorities in ensuring the security of the Games. The ADF deployed 1,000 personnel to help with the effort. The Australian Federal Police and Australian Border Force also assisted the Queensland Police Service (QPS), who were the lead agency in charge of security of the Games. The ADF provided operational, logistical and transport personnel, while the extra border force officers were based at Gold Coast airport. A security force of more than 10,000 worked together to ensure the safety of athletes, officials and spectators during the Games. American cyber security software company Symantec provided IT and cyber security services for the Games. During the games period, free public transportation within Queensland region was provided to ticket and accreditation holders. The free transportation services were available on local buses, train and Gold Coast light rail (G:link) services in Gold Coast and on TransLink and Qconnect bus services in Cairns and Townsville. The Gold Coast light rail system, connected a number of the key games venues including the Optus Aquatic Centre, Broadwater Parklands and the Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre with the major accommodation centres of Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach and the Athletes Village at Parklands. An extension to the system was announced in October 2015, connecting the then current terminus at Gold Coast University Hospital to the railway line to Brisbane at Helensvale. The extension opened in December 2017, in time for the games. The Gold Coast Airport served as the official airport of the Games. The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority conducted an anti-doping drive in the months prior to the games, covering around 2500 tests of Australian athletes, as well as 500 tests against international athletes. Three Australians failed drug tests in this process, along with around 20 international athletes, subject to appeal. The Commonwealth Games Federation conducted in-competition testing and, matching protocol at the Olympic Games, launched a sample storage initiative to allow for future testing of samples up to ten years later, should detection technology improve. The Festival 2018 was the multi-arts program for the Gold Coast 2018 with 12 days of free performances, activities, public art and other family-friendly events throughout the Host City of Gold Coast and Event Cities Brisbane, Cairns and Townsville. The program took place at Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach in Gold Coast, Cultural Forecourt, South Bank in Brisbane, Lagoon Precinct in Cairns and Jezzine Barracks, Strand Park and Queens Gardens in Townsville. The GOLDOC delivered the event with a focus on sustainability under the guidance of the ISO 20121 event sustainability management system and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework Sustainability Reporting Standards. The GOLDOC received the Sustainability Award in the Australian Business Awards 2016 for focusing on sustainable practices and planning in the preparation of the games. The GOLDOC headquarters received the 4 Star Green Star – Interiors PILOT rating from the Green Building Council of Australia. The new Anna Meares Velodrome, built specifically for the games, is the first velodrome in the world to have full LED broadcast-quality lighting that cuts energy consumption by up to 60% and reduces running costs and carbon emissions. The opening ceremony was held at Carrara Stadium in the Gold Coast, Australia, between 20:00 and 22:40 AEST, on 4 April 2018. The Head of the Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth II, was represented by her son, Charles, Prince of Wales. David Zolkwer was its artistic director, with music direction by Katie Noonan. Live musical performers included Christine Anu, Delta Goodrem, Katie Noonan, Ricki-Lee Coutler and Ruel who performed "Golden Years" as the closing act. The ceremony transmitted live on Channel 7 attracted a peak viewing audience of over 2 million in Australia. The closing ceremony was held at Carrara Stadium on Sunday 15 April and was produced by Jack Morton Worldwide at a cost of AU$30 million. Australian pop stars Guy Sebastian, Samantha Jade, Dami Im, Ricki Lee and The Veronicas were among the performers. Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, declared the Games closed and passed the Commonwealth Games flag to Birmingham, England which will host the 2022 Games. There were 71 nations competing at 2018 Commonwealth Games. Maldives were scheduled to participate, but in October 2016 they withdrew from the Commonwealth. The Gambia returned to the Commonwealth Games after being readmitted as a Commonwealth Games Federation member on 31 March 2018. The regulations stated that from the 26 approved sports administered by Commonwealth Governing Bodies, a minimum of ten core sports and maximum of seventeen sports must be included in any Commonwealth Games schedule. The approved sports included the 10 core sports: athletics, badminton, boxing, hockey, lawn bowls, netball (for women), rugby sevens, squash, swimming and weightlifting. Integrated disabled competitions were also scheduled for the Games in nine sports: swimming, athletics, cycling, table tennis, powerlifting and lawn bowls. Along with these events for the first time EAD events in triathlon were held, with the medals added to the final tally for each nation. A record 38 para events were contested at these games. On 8 March 2016, beach volleyball was announced as the 18th sport. The program was broadly similar to that of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, with the major changes being the dropping of judo, the reintroduction of basketball, the debut of women's rugby sevens and beach volleyball. On 7 October 2016, it was announced seven new events for women were added to the sport program, meaning there are an equal number of events for men and women. This marks the first time in history that a major multi-sport event has equality in terms of events. In total 275 events in 18 sports are being contested. Numbers in parentheses indicate the number of medal events contested in each sport. Aquatics Mountain biking, Road, Track, Artistic, Rhythmic Only the top ten successful nations are displayed here. NEP Australia was the host broadcaster of the event. It produced high definition coverage of the event and delivered to the rights-holding broadcasters of other nations. In Australia, the games were broadcast live on three Seven Network channels - 7HD, 7TWO and 7Mate. In the United Kingdom, BBC provided Commonwealth Games coverage of more than 200 hours across BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Red Button, BBC Sport website, BBC iPlayer and BBC radio. ESPN provided the games coverage for viewers in the USA. Sony Pictures Networks India broadcast the games for the viewers in India on three channels - Sony Six, Sony Ten 2 in English and Sony Ten 3 in Hindi. Flow Sports provided games coverage in the Caribbean countries such as Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Kitts & Nevis, St. Martin, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago and Turks & Caicos. Flow Sports provided coverage of the event on Flow Sports 1, Flow Sports 2 and up to three additional "Flow Sports Extra" channels. The New Zealand government funded Pacific Cooperation Broadcasting Limited (PCBL) broadcast the event on Pasifika TV in the Oceanian countries such as Cook Islands, Fiji, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, Kiribati and Tuvalu. The official motto for the 2018 Commonwealth Games was "Share the Dream". It was chosen to highlight the dreams and experience at the games that were shared by participants of the games, ranging from athletes to volunteers and the host country Australia to the world including the Commonwealth nations. The emblem was launched on 4 April 2013, which marked exactly five years until its opening ceremony. It was unveiled at the Southport Broadwater Parklands. It was designed by the New South Wales based brand consultancy WiteKite. The emblem of the 2018 Commonwealth Games was a silhouette of the skyline and landscape of Gold Coast, the host city of the games. Nigel Chamier , former Chairman of the GOLDOC, said that it was the result of months of market research. Borobi was named as the mascot of the 2018 Commonwealth Games in 2016. Borobi is a blue koala, with indigenous markings on its body. The term "borobi" means koala in the Yugambeh language, spoken by the indigenous Yugambeh people of the Gold Coast and surrounding areas. The song Days of Gold composed by the Australian Duo band Busby Marou, which was released on 17 October 2014, was considered as the official song of the Mascot Borobi. The official partners of the games were The Star Gold Coast, Griffith University, TAFE Queensland, Longines, Optus, Atos and Woolworths Supermarkets. Griffith University was also the Creative Arts partner of the games and Presenting partner of the Gold Coast Marathon. TAFE Queensland was responsible for providing vocational education and training program for the volunteers of the games. Longines served as the official timekeeper of the games. The official song of the opening ceremony of the 2018 Commonwealth Games Welcome to Earth was recorded by the Australian Singer Delta Goodrem. The song was performed for the first time by Goodrem during the opening ceremony of the games. The song was worldwide released on 5 April 2018 in Delta Goodrem's official YouTube channel. On 2 April 2018, CGF chief executive David Grevemberg said that needles were found in a water bottle by a cleaner at the Athletes' village. The event has a no-needles policy. Grevemberg said he could not identify which team was involved. Later, Indian team manager Ajay Narang has said his team found the syringes in a water bottle outside their accommodation and he gave it to the Games medical authorities for analysis. The deputy chief coach of Indian athletics team Radhakrishnan Nair also said that the needles were found in the common area of the building and no Indian team member was involved in it. At least 13 athletes from four countries - Cameroon, Uganda, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone - absconded during or immediately after the Games. Some missed their competitions. Athletes regularly abscond during major sporting events, and many subsequently claim asylum in their host countries. Most hold nationalities that are deemed high-risk by immigration authorities and find it impossible to get visas outside of exceptional events, such as major games. A month after the games ended, officials estimated that fifty athletes had remained in Australia illegally, with another 200 staying in the country on visas. In October 2019, it was found from the official documents that 217 of the 230 who made asylum claims have had their requests refused by the Department of Home Affairs. The official documents also found 17 "unlawful non-citizens" that took part in the Commonwealth Games are still in Australia, 14 of which were from Ghana and Rwanda. A total of 13 remain unaccounted for, while four are in detention. A third of the Cameroon team went missing after the Games, including weightlifters Arcangeline Fouodji Sonkbou, Olivier Matam Matam and Petit Minkoumba. Boxers Ndzie Tchoyi, Simplice Fotsala, Fokou Arsene, Christelle Ndiag and Yombo Ulrich have also gone missing. The organising committee decided to bring in the athletes before the start of the closing ceremony. This caused an uproar on social media as, contrary to public expectations, none of the athletes were shown entering the stadium during the ceremony. Broadcast rights holders Channel 7 complained on air about the decision and concluded that, "it hasn't really lived up to expectations". Many spectators and athletes left during the ceremony, resulting in a half-empty stadium for much of the event. Following this, the ABC claimed that Channel 7 was briefed on the closing ceremony schedule, a claim which Channel 7 later refuted. According to the Gold Coast 2018 post games report, the Games are estimated to deliver a $2.5 billion rise to the economy of Queensland, including $1.8 million to the Gold Coast. Approximately 82 per cent of Games-wide contracts, worth nearly $1.7 billion, were awarded to Queensland businesses and 20,000 pieces of sports equipment were gifted to schools, councils, sporting organisations and communities across Queensland. The arts and cultural program Festival 2018 was the largest arts and culture event ever hosted in Queensland attracting more than 1.1 million attendances. The Gold Coast airport, which served as the Games' official airport, received the best airport award for customer experience at the 2018 National Airport Industry Awards hosted by the Australian Airports Association in Brisbane. The city hosted the 17th Sport Accord World Sport and Business Summit from 5 to 10 May 2019 at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced on 9 December 2019 that the state of Queensland will make an official bid for the 2032 Summer Olympics featuring venues across Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast. Commonwealth Games celebrated in Australia, 1938 Commonwealth Games – Sydney, 1962 Commonwealth Games – Perth, 1982 Commonwealth Games – Brisbane, 2006 Commonwealth Games – Melbourne, Commonwealth Youth Games celebrated in Australia, 2004 Commonwealth Youth Games – Bendigo, Olympic Games celebrated in Australia, 1956 Summer Olympics – Melbourne, 2000 Summer Olympics – Sydney, Paralympic Games celebrated in Australia, 2000 Summer Paralympics – Sydney "Gold Coast 2018". Thecgf.com. Commonwealth Games Federation., "Results and Medalists—2018 Commonwealth Games". Gc2018.com. Gold Coast 2018., "Post Games Report—2018 Commonwealth Games" . Thecgf.com. Commonwealth Games Federation., "Official Website". Gc2018.com. Gold Coast 2018. The Commonwealth Games is an international multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and has taken place every four years since then. The Commonwealth Games were known as the British Empire Games from 1930 to 1950, the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954 to 1966, and British Commonwealth Games from 1970 to 1974. Athletes with a disability are also included as full members of their national teams, making the Commonwealth Games as the first fully inclusive international multi-sport event. It is also the world's first multi-sport event which inducts equal number of women’s and men’s medal events and was implemented recently in the 2018 Commonwealth Games. With such unique features, the World Economic Forum called the event inspiring and significant. Their creation was inspired by the Inter-Empire Championships, as a part of the Festival of Empire, which were held in London, United Kingdom in 1911. Melville Marks Robinson founded the games as the British Empire Games which were first hosted in Hamilton in 1930. During the 20th and 21st centuries, the evolution of the games movement has resulted in several changes to the Commonwealth Games. Some of these adjustments include the creation of the Commonwealth Winter Games for snow and ice sports for the commonwealth athletes, the Commonwealth Paraplegic Games for commonwealth athletes with a disability and the Commonwealth Youth Games for commonwealth athletes aged 14 to 18. The first edition of the winter games and paraplegic games were held in 1958 and 1962 respectively, with their last edition held in 1966 and 1974 respectively and the first youth games were held in 2000. The 1942 and 1946 Commonwealth Games were cancelled because of the Second World War. The Commonwealth Games are overseen by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), which also controls the sporting programme and selects the host cities. The games movement consists of international sports federations (IFs), (CGAs), and organising committees for each specific Commonwealth Games. There are several rituals and symbols, such as the Commonwealth Games flag and Queen's Baton, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies. Over 5,000 athletes compete at the Commonwealth Games in more than 15 different sports and more than 250 events. The first, second, and third-place finishers in each event receive Commonwealth Games medals: gold, silver, and bronze, respectively. Apart from many Olympic sports, the games also include some sports which are played predominantly in Commonwealth countries but which are not part of the Olympic programme, such as lawn bowls, netball, cricket and squash. Although there are currently 53 members of the Commonwealth of Nations, 71 teams currently participate in the Commonwealth Games, as a number of dependent territories compete under their own flags. The four Home Nations of the United Kingdom—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—also send separate teams. Nineteen cities in nine countries (counting England, Wales, and Scotland separately) have hosted the event. Australia has hosted the Commonwealth Games five times (1938, 1962, 1982, 2006 and 2018); this is more times than any other nation. Two cities have hosted Commonwealth Games more than once: Auckland (1950, 1990) and Edinburgh (1970, 1986). Only six countries have attended every Commonwealth Games: Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales. Australia has been the highest achieving team for twelve games, England for seven, and Canada for one. The most recent Commonwealth Games were held in Gold Coast from 4 to 15 April 2018. The next Commonwealth Games are to be held in Birmingham from 27 July to 7 August 2022. A sporting competition bringing together the members of the British Empire was first proposed by John Astley Cooper in 1891. He wrote a letter, published in The Times suggesting a "Pan-Britannic-Pan-Anglican Contest and Festival every four years as a means of increasing goodwill and good understanding of the British Empire". John Astley Cooper Committees were formed in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in order to promote the idea and inspired Pierre de Coubertin to start the international Olympic Games movement. In 1911, the Festival of the Empire was held at The Crystal Palace in London to celebrate the coronation of George V and as part of it, an Inter-Empire Championship was held. Teams from Australia, Canada, South Africa, and the United Kingdom competed in athletics, boxing, wrestling and swimming events. Canada won the championships and was presented with a silver cup (gifted by Lord Lonsdale) which was high and weighed . However, the 1911 championships brought some criticism, most notably by a correspondent of the Auckland Star, who described them as a "grievous disappointment" that were "not worthy of the title of 'Empire Sports'". Melville Marks Robinson, who went to the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam to serve as the manager of the Canadian track and field team, strongly lobbied for the proposal of organising the first British Empire Games in Hamilton in 1930. The 1930 British Empire Games were the first of what later become known as the Commonwealth Games, and were held in Hamilton, in the province of Ontario in Canada from 16–23 August 1930. Eleven countries sent a total of 400 athletes to the Hamilton Games. The opening and closing ceremonies as well as athletics took place at Civic Stadium, with Lord Willingdon officially starting the Games. The participant nations were Australia, Bermuda, British Guyana, Canada, England, Northern Ireland, Newfoundland, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa and Wales. The Hamilton Games featured six sports: athletics, boxing, lawn bowls, rowing, swimming and diving and wrestling and ran at a cost of $97,973. Women competed in only the aquatic events. Canadian triple jumper Gordon Smallacombe won the first ever gold medal in the history of the Games.The 1934 British Empire Games were the second of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, held in London, England. The host city was London, with the main venue at Wembley Park, although the track cycling events were in Manchester. The 1934 Games had originally been awarded to Johannesburg, but were given to London instead because of serious concerns about prejudice against black and Asian athletes in South Africa. Seventeen national teams took part, including the Irish Free State (the only Games in which they did take part) and new participants Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Southern Rhodesia and Trinidad and Tobago. The 1938 British Empire Games were the third British Empire Games, which were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. They were timed to coincide with Sydney's sesqui-centenary (150 years since the foundation of British settlement in Australia). Held in the southern hemisphere for the first time, the III Games opening ceremony took place at the famed Sydney Cricket Ground in front of 40,000 spectators. Fifteen nations participated down under at the Sydney Games involving a total of 464 athletes and 43 officials. Fiji and Ceylon made their debuts. Seven sports were featured in the Sydney Games – athletics, boxing, cycling, lawn bowls, rowing, swimming and diving and wrestling. The 1950 British Empire Games were the fourth edition and was held in Auckland, New Zealand after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The fourth games were originally awarded to Montreal, Canada and were to be held in 1942 but were cancelled due to the Second World War. The opening ceremony at Eden Park was attended by 40,000 spectators, while nearly 250,000 people attended the Auckland Games. Twelve countries sent a total of 590 athletes to Auckland. Malaya and Nigeria made their first appearances. The fifth edition of the Games, the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, were held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. These were the first Games since the name change from British Empire Games took effect in 1952. The fifth edition of the Games placed Vancouver on a world stage and featured memorable sporting moments as well as outstanding entertainment, technical innovation and cultural events. The ‘Miracle Mile’, as it became known, saw both the gold medallist, Roger Bannister of England and silver medallist John Landy of Australia, run sub-four minute races in an event that was televised live across the world for the first time. Northern Rhodesia and Pakistan made their debuts and both performed well, winning eight and six medals respectively. The 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Cardiff, Wales. The sixth edition of the games marked the largest sporting event ever held in Wales and it was the smallest country ever to host a British Empire and Commonwealth Games. Cardiff had to wait 12 years longer than originally scheduled to become host of the Games, as the 1946 event was cancelled because of the Second World War. The Cardiff Games introduced the Queen's Baton Relay, which has been conducted as a prelude to every British Empire and Commonwealth Games ever since. Thirty-five nations sent a total of 1,122 athletes and 228 officials to the Cardiff Games and 23 countries and dependencies won medals, including for the first time, Singapore, Ghana, Kenya and the Isle of Man. In the run up to the Cardiff games, many leading sports stars including Stanley Matthews, Jimmy Hill and Don Revie were signatories in a letter to The Times on 17 July 1958 deploring the presence of white-only South African sports, opposing 'the policy of apartheid' in international sport and defending 'the principle of racial equality which is embodied in the Declaration of the Olympic Games'. The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Western Australia, Australia. Thirty-five countries sent a total of 863 athletes and 178 officials to Perth. Jersey was among the medal winners for the first time, while British Honduras, Dominica, Papua and New Guinea and St Lucia all made their inaugural Games appearances. Aden also competed by special invitation. Sarawak, North Borneo and Malaya competed for the last time before taking part in 1966 under the Malaysian flag. In addition, Rhodesia and Nyasaland competed in the Games as an entity for the first and only time. The 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Kingston, Jamaica. This was the first time that the Games had been held outside the so-called White Dominions. Thirty-four nations (including South Arabia) competed in the Kingston Games sending a total of 1,316 athletes and officials. The 1970 British Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland. This was the first time the name British Commonwealth Games was adopted, the first time metric units rather than imperial units were used in events, the first time the games were held in Scotland and also the first time that HM Queen Elizabeth II attended in her capacity as Head of the Commonwealth. The 1974 British Commonwealth Games were held in Christchurch, New Zealand. The Games were officially named "the friendly games". Following the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics, the tenth games at Christchurch were the first multi-sport event to place the safety of participants and spectators as its uppermost requirement. Security guards surrounded the athlete’s village and there was an exceptionally high-profile police presence. Only 22 countries succeeded in winning medals from the total haul of 374 medals on offer, but first time winners included Western Samoa, Lesotho and Swaziland. The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. This event was the first to bear the current day name of the Commonwealth Games and also marked a new high as almost 1,500 athletes from 46 countries took part. They were boycotted by Nigeria in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with apartheid-era South Africa, as well as by Uganda in protest of alleged Canadian hostility towards the government of Idi Amin. The 1982 Commonwealth Games were held in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Forty-six nations participated in the Brisbane Games with a new record total of 1,583 athletes and 571 officials. As hosts, Australia headed the medal table leading the way ahead of England, Canada, Scotland and New Zealand respectively. Zimbabwe made its first appearance at the Games, having earlier competed as Southern Rhodesia and as part of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. The 1986 Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland and were the second Games to be held in Edinburgh. Participation at the 1986 Games was affected by a boycott by 32 African, Asian and Caribbean nations in protest at British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's refusal to condemn sporting contacts of apartheid era South Africa in 1985, but the Games rebounded and continued to grow thereafter. Twenty-six nations did attend the second Edinburgh Games and sent a total of 1,662 athletes and 461 officials. The 1990 Commonwealth Games were held in Auckland, New Zealand. It was the fourteenth Commonwealth Games, the third to be hosted by New Zealand and Auckland’s second. A new record of 55 nations participated in the second Auckland Games sending 2,826 athletes and officials. Pakistan returned to the Commonwealth in 1989 after withdrawing in 1972, and competed in the 1990 Games after an absence of twenty years. The 1994 Commonwealth Games were held in Victoria, British Columbia, the fourth to take place in Canada. The games marked South Africa's return to the Commonwealth Games following the apartheid era, and over 30 years since the country last competed in the Games in 1958. Namibia made its Commonwealth Games debut. It was also Hong Kong's last appearance at the games before the transfer of sovereignty from Britain to China. Sixty-three nations sent 2,557 athletes and 914 officials. The 1998 Commonwealth Games were held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. For the first time in its 68-year history, the Commonwealth Games were held in Asia. The sixteenth games were also the first Games to feature team sports - an overwhelming success that added large numbers to both participant and TV audience numbers. A new record of 70 countries sent a total of 5,065 athletes and officials to the Kuala Lumpur Games. The top five countries in the medal standing were Australia, England, Canada, Malaysia and South Africa. Nauru also achieved an impressive haul of three gold medals. Cameroon, Mozambique and Kiribati debuted. The 2002 Commonwealth Games were held in Manchester, England. The 2002 Games were hosted in England for the first time since 1934 and hosted to coincide with the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II, head of the Commonwealth. In terms of sports and events, the 2002 Games were until the 2010 edition the largest Commonwealth Games in history featuring 281 events across 17 sports. The final medal tally was led by Australia, followed by host England and Canada. The 2002 Commonwealth Games had set a new benchmark for hosting the Commonwealth Games and for cities wishing to bid for them with a heavy emphasis on legacy. The 2006 Commonwealth Games were held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The only difference between the 2006 games and the 2002 games was the absence of Zimbabwe, which withdrew from the Commonwealth of Nations. For the first time in the history of the Games the Queen's Baton visited every single Commonwealth nation and territory taking part in the Games, a journey of . Over 4000 athletes took part in the sporting competitions. Again the Top 3 on the medal table is Australia, followed by England and Canada. The 2010 Commonwealth Games were held in Delhi, India. The Games cost $11 billion and are the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever. It was the first time that the Commonwealth Games were held in India, also the first time that a Commonwealth republic hosted the games and the second time they were held in Asia after Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1998. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events. The final medal tally was led by Australia. The host nation India achieved its best performance ever in any sporting event, finishing second overall. Rwanda made its Games debut. The 2014 Commonwealth Games were held in Glasgow, Scotland. It was the largest multi-sport event ever held in Scotland with around 4,950 athletes from 71 different nations and territories competing in 18 different sports, outranking the 1970 and 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, capital city of Scotland. Usain Bolt competed in the 4×100 metres relay of the 2014 Commonwealth Games and set a Commonwealth Games record with his teammates. The Games received acclaim for their organisation, attendance, and the public enthusiasm of the people of Scotland, with Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper hailing them as "the standout games in the history of the movement". The 2018 Commonwealth Games were held in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, the fifth time Australia hosted the Games. There were an equal number of events for men and women, the first time in history that a major multi-sport event had equality in terms of events. The 2022 Commonwealth Games will be held in Birmingham, England. They will be the third Commonwealth Games to be hosted in England following London 1934 and Manchester 2002. The three nations to have hosted the Commonwealth Games the most times are Australia (5), Canada (4) and New Zealand (3). Furthermore, six editions have taken place in the countries within the United Kingdom (Scotland (3), England (2) and Wales (1)), twice in Asia (Malaysia (1) and India (1)) and once in the Caribbean (Jamaica (1)). The Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were an international, multi-sport event involving athletes with a disability from the Commonwealth countries. The event was sometimes referred to as the Paraplegic Empire Games and British Commonwealth Paraplegic Games. Athletes were generally those with spinal injuries or polio. The event was first held in 1962 and disestablished in 1974. The Games were held in the country hosting the Commonwealth Games for able-bodied athletes. The countries that had hosted the Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were Australia, Jamaica, Scotland and New Zealand in 1962, 1966, 1970 and 1974 respectively. Six countries — Australia, England, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales — had been represented at all Commonwealth Paraplegic Games. Australia and England had been the top-ranking nation two times each: 1962, 1974 and 1966, 1970 respectively. Athletes with a disability were then first included in exhibition events at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, British Columbia, and, at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, England, they were included as full members of their national teams, making them the first fully inclusive international multi-sport games. This meant that results were included in the medal count. During the 2007 General Assembly of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) at Colombo, Sri Lanka, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and CGF signed a co-operative agreement to ensure a formal institutional relationship between the two bodies and secure the future participation of elite athletes with a disability (EAD) in future Commonwealth Games. IPC President Philip Craven said during the General Assembly: The co-operation agreement outlined the strong partnership between the IPC and the CGF. It recognized the IPC as the organization for overseeing the co-ordination and delivery of the Commonwealth Games EAD sports programme and committed both organizations to work together in supporting the growth of the Paralympic and Commonwealth Games Movements. The Commonwealth Winter Games were a multi-sport event comprising winter sports, last held in 1966. Three editions of the Games have been staged. The Winter Games were designed as a counterbalance to the Commonwealth Games, which focuses on summer sports, to accompany the Winter Olympics and Summer Olympic Games. The winter Games were founded by T.D. Richardson. The 1958 Commonwealth Winter Games were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland and was the inaugural games for the winter edition. The 1962 Games were also held in St. Moritz, complementing the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia, and the 1966 event was held in St. Moritz as well, following which the idea was discontinued. The Commonwealth Youth Games are an international multi-sport event organized by the Commonwealth Games Federation. The games are held every four years with the current Commonwealth Games format. The Commonwealth Games Federation discussed the idea of a Millennium Commonwealth Youth Games in 1997. In 1998 the concept was agreed on for the purpose of providing a Commonwealth multi- sport event for young people born in the calendar year 1986 or later. The first version was held in Edinburgh, Scotland from 10 to 14 August 2000. The age limitation of the athletes is 14 to 18. The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) is the international organisation responsible for the direction and control of the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games, and is the foremost authority in matters relating to the games. The Commonwealth House in London, United Kingdom hosts the headquarters of CGF. The Commonwealth House also hosts the headquarters of the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum. The Commonwealth Games Movement is made of three major elements: International Federations (IFs) are the governing bodies that supervise a sport at an international level. For example, the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) is the international governing body for basketball., (CGAs) represent and regulate the Commonwealth Games Movement within each country. For example, the Commonwealth Games England (CGE) is the CGA of England. There are currently 70 CGAs recognised by the CGF., Organising Committees for the Commonwealth Games (OCCWGs) are temporary committees responsible for the organisation of each Commonwealth Games. OCCWGs are dissolved after each Games once the final report is delivered to the CGF. English is the official language of the Commonwealth. The other language used at each Commonwealth Games is the language of the host country (or languages, if a country has more than one official language apart from English). Every proclamation (such as the announcement of each country during the parade of nations in the opening ceremony) is spoken in these two (or more) languages, or the main depending on whether the host country is an English speaking country. The Queen's Baton Relay, is a relay around the world held prior to the beginning of the Commonwealth Games. The Baton carries a message from the Head of the Commonwealth, currently Queen Elizabeth II. The Relay traditionally begins at Buckingham Palace in London as a part of the city's Commonwealth Day festivities. The Queen entrusts the baton to the first relay runner. At the Opening Ceremony of the Games, the final relay runner hands the baton back to the Queen or her representative, who reads the message aloud to officially open the Games. The Queen's Baton Relay is similar to the Olympic Torch Relay. The Relay was introduced at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Wales. Up until, and including, the 1994 Games, the Relay only went through England and the host nation. The Relay for the 1998 Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was the first to travel to other nations of the Commonwealth. The Gold Coast 2018 Queen’s Baton Relay was the longest in Commonwealth Games history. Covering 230,000 km over 388 days, the Baton made its way through the six Commonwealth regions of Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Oceania. For the first time, the Queen's Baton was presented at the Commonwealth Youth Games during its sixth edition in 2017 which were held in Nassau, Bahamas. Various elements frame the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games. This ceremony takes place before the events have occurred. The ceremony typically starts with the hoisting of the host country's flag and a performance of its national anthem. The flag of the Commonwealth Games Federation, flag of the last hosting nation and the next hosting nation are also hosted during the opening ceremony. The host nation then presents artistic displays of music, singing, dance and theatre representative of its culture. The artistic presentations have grown in scale and complexity as successive hosts attempt to provide a ceremony that outlasts its predecessor's in terms of memorability. The opening ceremony of the Delhi Games reportedly cost $70 million, with much of the cost incurred in the artistic segment. After the artistic portion of the ceremony, the athletes parade into the stadium grouped by nation. The last hosting nation is traditionally the first nation to enter. Nations then enter the stadium alphabetical or continental wise with the host country's athletes being the last to enter. Speeches are given, formally opening the Games. Finally, the Queen's Baton is brought into the stadium and passed on until it reaches the final baton carrier, often a successful Commonwealth athlete from the host nation, who hands it over to the Head of the Commonwealth or her representative. The closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games takes place after all sporting events have concluded. Flag-bearers from each participating country enter the stadium, followed by the athletes who enter together, without any national distinction. The president of the organizing committee and the CGF president make their closing speeches and the Games are officially closed. The CGF president also speaks about the conduct of the games. The mayor of the city that organized the Games transfers the CGF flag to the president of the CGF, who then passes it on to the mayor of the city hosting the next Commonwealth Games. The next host nation then also briefly introduces itself with artistic displays of dance and theater representative of its culture. Many great artists and singers had performed at the ceremonies of the Commonwealth Games. At the closing ceremony of every Commonwealth Games the CGF President makes an award and presents a trophy to one athlete who has competed with particular distinction and honour both in terms of athletic performance and overall contribution to his or her team. Athletes are nominated by their Commonwealth Games Association at the end of the final day of competition and the winner is selected by a panel comprising the CGF President and representatives from each of the six Commonwealth Regions. The ‘David Dixon Award’ as it is called was introduced in Manchester 2002, after the late David Dixon, former Honorary Secretary of the CGF, in honour of his monumental contribution to Commonwealth sport for many years. A medal ceremony is held after each event is concluded. The winner, second and third-place competitors or teams stand on top of a three-tiered rostrum to be awarded their respective medals. After the medals are given out by a CGF member, the national flags of the three medallists are raised while the national anthem of the gold medallist's country plays. Volunteering citizens of the host country also act as hosts during the medal ceremonies, as they aid the officials who present the medals and act as flag-bearers. Note: The 1911 Inter-Empire Championships held in London is seen as a precursor to the modern Commonwealth Games, but is not normally considered an official edition of the Games themselves. Also, the United Kingdom competed as one country, unlike the Commonwealth Games today when they compete as England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Canada topped the medal table by winning 4 events. Below is a Top 10 all-time medal table. There are a total of 22 sports (with three multi-disciplinary sports) and a further seven para-sports which are approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation. Core sports must be included on each programme. A number of optional sports may be picked by the host nation, which may include some team sports such as basketball. In 2015, the Commonwealth Games Federation agreed large changes to the programme which increased the number of core sports, whilst removing a number of optionals, those removed are listed below. Recognised sports are sports which have been approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation but which are deemed to need expansion; host nations may not pick these sports for their programme until the Federation's requirements are fulfilled. Only six teams have attended every Commonwealth Games: Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales. Australia has been the highest scoring team for thirteen games, England for seven and Canada for one. Notes Aden later joined South Arabia in 1963 and departed the Commonwealth in 1967., Anguilla was completely separated from Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla in 1980 and remaining Saint Kitts and Nevis became independent from the United Kingdom in 1983., British Guiana was renamed Guyana in 1966., British Honduras was renamed Belize in 1973., Ceylon was renamed Sri Lanka in 1972., Fiji was re-suspended from the Commonwealth and the 2010 Games in 2009. Fiji's suspension from the Commonwealth was lifted in time for the 2014 Games following democratic elections in March, 2014., The Gambia withdrew from the Commonwealth in 2013, but rejoined on 8 February 2018; The Gambia was readmitted to the Commonwealth Games Federation in March 2018., Gold Coast (British colony) was renamed Ghana in 1957., Including neighbouring Islands., Hong Kong was never a Commonwealth member but was a territory of a Commonwealth country; it ceased to be in the Commonwealth when the territory was handed over to China in 1997., Ireland was represented as a single team from the whole of the island in 1930, and by two teams, representing the Irish Free State, and Northern Ireland in 1934. The Irish Free State was officially renamed Éire in 1937 but did not participate in the 1938 Games, and withdrew from the Commonwealth when it unilaterally declared that it was the Republic of Ireland on 18 April 1949., Contemporary illustrations show Green Flag used for the Irish team., Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore federated as Malaysia in 1963. Singapore left the federation in 1965., The Maldives withdrew from the Commonwealth in 2016., Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949., The Ulster Banner was the flag of the former Government of Northern Ireland only between 1953 and 1972, but the flag has been regarded as flag of Northern Ireland since 1924 among unionists and loyalists. The Ulster Banner is the sporting flag of Northern Ireland in other events as the FIFA World Cup and in the FIVB Volleyball World Championship., Southern Rhodesia and Northern Rhodesia federated with Nyasaland in 1953 as Rhodesia and Nyasaland, which dissolved at the end of 1963., Southern Rhodesia and Northern Rhodesia competed separately in 1954 and 1958 while both were part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland., Under the name of "Saint Helena" in the Commonwealth Games. Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha were dependencies of Saint Helena, so the territory was officially called "Saint Helena and Dependencies" until 2009. Saint Helena, Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha became equal parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in 2009., Western Samoa was renamed Samoa in 1997., Zanzibar and Tanganyika federated to form Tanzania in 1964., Zimbabwe withdrew from the Commonwealth in 2003., United Kingdom were the host of the Inter-Empire Championships in 1911. This event was held before the 1st edition of the Games held in Hamilton, Canada in 1930. Very few Commonwealth dependencies and nations have yet to take part: Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha, former dependencies of Saint Helena and current parts of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, have never formed their own teams independent from the Saint Helena team., Other states, territories and territorial autonomies with native populations within the Commonwealth that may be eligible include Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands (territories of Australia), Nevis (a federal entity of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis), Rodrigues (outer islands of Mauritius), and Zanzibar (a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania)., Cornwall, represented by the Cornwall Commonwealth Games Association (CCGA), sent a bid for participation in the 2006 Commonwealth Games in 2004. However, their application was rejected by the CGF, who stated that the constitutional status of Cornwall was not an issue that should be resolved through this medium., The British Indian Ocean Territory currently has no permanent population although there is a sizeable population who were born in the BIOT but currently live in Mauritius and the United Kingdom and so would be eligible to compete on birth criteria., Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has made applications to the CGF to send teams., It is also conceivable that any future members of the Commonwealth such as applicants (for example South Sudan, Sudan and Yemen) may participate in future games. The Colony of Aden and Federation of South Arabia, precursors to modern Yemen, participated before in 1962 and in 1966. Sudan was an Anglo-Egyptian protectorate until independence in 1956., The Pitcairn Islands' tiny population (currently 50 to 60 people) would appear to prevent this British overseas territory from competing., Tokelau was expected to take part in the 2010 Games in Delhi but did not do so., The lack of a permanent population would seem to prevent the British overseas territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands and British Antarctic Territory, the New Zealand territory of Ross Dependency and the Australian external territories of Australian Antarctic Territory, Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Coral Sea Islands and Heard Island and McDonald Islands from competing. The 1934 British Empire Games, originally awarded in 1930 to Johannesburg was moved to London after South Africa's pre-apartheid government refused to allow nonwhite participants. The 2022 Commonwealth Games were originally awarded to Durban on 2 September 2015, at the CGF General Assembly in Auckland. It was reported in February 2017 that Durban may be unable to host the games due to financial constraints. On 13 March 2017, the CGF stripped Durban of their rights to host and reopened the bidding process for the 2022 games. Many cities from Australia, Canada, England and Malaysia expressed interest to host the games. However, the CGF received only one official bid and that was from Birmingham, England. On 21 December 2017, Birmingham was awarded for the 2022 Games as Durban's replacement host. Nigeria boycotted the 1978 Commonwealth Games at Edmonton in protest of New Zealand's sporting contacts with apartheid-era South Africa. Uganda also stayed away, in protest of alleged Canadian hostility towards the government of Idi Amin. During the 1986 Commonwealth Games at Edinburgh, a majority of the Commonwealth nations staged a boycott, so that the Games appeared to be a whites-only event. Thirty two of the eligible fifty nine countries—largely African, Asian and Caribbean states—stayed away because of the Thatcher government's policy of keeping Britain's sporting links with apartheid South Africa in preference to participating in the general sporting boycott of that country. Consequently, Edinburgh 1986 witnessed the lowest number of athletes since Auckland 1950. The boycotting nations were Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Belize, Cyprus, Dominica, Gambia, Ghana, Guyana, Grenada, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Malaysia, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sierra Leone, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Mauritius, Trinidad and Tobago, Tanzania, Turks and Caicos Islands, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Bermuda was a particularly late withdrawal, as its athletes appeared in the opening ceremony and in the opening day of competition before the Bermuda Olympic Association decided to formally withdraw. The estimated cost of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi were US$11 billion, according to Business Today magazine. The initial total budget estimated by the Indian Olympic Association in 2003 was US$250 million. In 2010, however, the official total budget soon escalated to an estimated US$1.8 billion, a figure which excluded non-sports-related infrastructure development. The 2010 Commonwealth Games are reportedly the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever. Lawn bowler Willie Wood from Scotland was the first competitor to have competed in seven Commonwealth Games, from 1974 to 2002, a record equalled in 2014 by Isle of Man cyclist Andrew Roche. They have both been surpassed by David Calvert of Northern Ireland who in 2018 attended his 11th games. Greg Yelavich, a sports shooter from New Zealand, has won 12 medals in seven games from 1986 to 2010. Lawn Bowler Robert Weale has represented Wales in 8 Commonwealth Games, 1986–2014, winning 2 gold, 3 silver and 1 bronze. Nauruan weightlifter Marcus Stephen won twelve medals at the Games between 1990 and 2002, of which seven gold, and was elected President of Nauru in 2007. His performance has helped place Nauru (the smallest independent state in the Commonwealth, at and with a population of fewer than 9,400 in 2011) in nineteenth place on the all-time Commonwealth Games medal table. Ian Thorpe, Australian swimmer (now retired), has won 10 Commonwealth Games gold medals and 1 silver medal. At the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, he won 4 gold medals. At the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, he won 6 gold medals and 1 silver medal. Chad le Clos, South Africa’s most decorated swimmer, has won 17 medals from just three Commonwealth Games (2010, 2014 & 2018), seven of which are gold. At the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, he won three golds, a silver and a bronze. English actor Jason Statham took part as a diver in the 1990 Commonwealth Games. Brown, Geoff and Hogsbjerg, Christian. Apartheid is not a Game: Remembering the Stop the Seventy Tour campaign. London: Redwords, 2020. . Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) at the Commonwealth website, "Commonwealth Games". Encyclopædia Britannica Online., insidethegames – the latest and most up to date news and interviews from the world of Olympic, Commonwealth and Paralympic Games, ATR – Around the Rings – the Business Surrounding the Multi-sport events, GamesBids.com – An Authoritative Review of Games Bid Business (home of the BidIndex™) The Commonwealth Games sports comprise all the sports officially recognised and approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF). There are a total of 31 approved sports, two multi-disciplinary sports, and a further 7 para- sports. Not all sports are competed at each edition of the Games as programmes must be limited to a maximum of 17 sports and a maximum 15 para-sports events. At the 1930 British Empire Games, the precursor to the modern Games, there were six sports: athletics, aquatics (swimming and diving), boxing, lawn bowls, rowing and wrestling. If a number of activities are controlled by the same international federation then the Commonwealth Games Federation recognises each activity as a discipline, which belongs to the respective sport. For example, aquatics, which is organised by the International Swimming Federation, is a sport at the Commonwealth Games that comprises four disciplines: swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo. Furthermore, the sport cycling also contains three separate disciplines: track, road, and mountain biking. Sports and disciplines often feature separate events for which athletes can receive medals. For example, boxing has a number of weight divisions, gymnastics and diving have a number of styles, while athletics has numerous events based upon a wide range of activities. The Commonwealth Games sports are divided into three main types: core sports, optional sports, and recognised sports. All ten core sports must be included in the Games programme, while the host nation may choose to include up to seven optional sports. Recognised sports are sports which have been approved by the CGF but are deemed to need further growth before their inclusion. The host nation may also apply for the inclusion of a maximum of four team sports to the CGF General Assembly, as the Melbourne organising committee did with basketball for the 2006 Games. There is also a requirement to include some events for Elite Athletes with a Disability (EAD): there are four core para- sports and three optional para-sports. Some optional sports, like billiards and sailing, have not yet been included in a Games programme. There have also been a number of exhibition sports. In 1958 there were exhibitions of polo and show jumping, and in 1978 lacrosse appeared as an exhibition sport. Cricket was included at the 1998 Commonwealth Games although it is not currently a recognised sport. The CGF recognises Commonwealth Games records for a number of sports. In 2002, the CGF introduced the David Dixon Award for the outstanding athlete of the Games. On 18 November 2006, tennis and archery were added to the list of disciplines for the 2010 Games in New Delhi, bringing the total number of sports to 17. Billiards and snooker were considered but not accepted. In 2010, rowing was upgraded back from "recognised" to "optional", and is thus eligible to be included again from the 2018 Games. The following sports (or disciplines of a sport) made up the most recent (2018) Commonwealth Games official program and are listed alphabetically according to the name used by the CGF. The figures in each cell indicate the number of events for each sport contested at the respective Games. Asian Games sports, Olympic sports, World Games sports

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The oxygen-evolving complex (OEC), also known as the water-splitting complex, is a water-oxidizing enzyme involved in the photo-oxidation of water during the light reactions of photosynthesis. It is surrounded by 4 core proteins of photosystem II at the membrane-lumen interface. Based on a widely accepted theory from 1970 by Kok, the complex can exist in 5 states: S to S. Photons trapped by photosystem II move the system from state S to S. S is unstable and reacts with water producing free oxygen. Currently, the mechanism of the complex is not completely understood. Much of what is known has been collected from flash experiments, EPR, and x-ray spectroscopy. The OEC appears to have a metalloenzyme core containing both manganese and calcium, with the empirical formula for the inorganic core of MnCaOCl(HCO). Other characteristics of it have been reviewed; see It is suggested that the evolution of the OEC was triggered by the presence of the manganese-containing minerals rancieite and hollandite in the early oceans. The minerals were, it is presumed, assimilated by the early cyanobacteria, which have incorporated them in the active center of the complex. In order to determine more about the structure, most research focuses on creating manganese-core dimers at various protonation states and comparing the resultant data with observed behavior of the complex. 'Life Ascending' by Nick Lane, Profile Books 2009; pp 83–87 - outlines a possible route for the evolution of the OEC. The Hill reaction is the light-driven transfer of electrons from water to Hill reagents (non-physiological oxidants) in a direction against the chemical potential gradient as part of photosynthesis. The discovery of the reaction, by Robin Hill in 1937, demonstrated that the process by which plants produce oxygen is separate from the process that converts carbon dioxide to sugars. The evolution of oxygen during the light-dependent steps in photosynthesis (Hill reaction) was proposed and proven by the British biochemist Robin Hill. He demonstrated that isolated chloroplasts would make oxygen (O) but not fix carbon dioxide (CO). This is evidence that the light and dark reactions occur in different places within the cell. The Hill reaction of photosynthesis was discovered by Robin Hill (1937). He found that isolated chloroplasts from plants can release oxygen when they are illuminated by sunlight in the presence of a suitable electron acceptor, such as ferricyanide. To demonstrate the Hill reaction in the laboratory, dichlorophenolindophenol (DCPIP) was used as the terminal electron acceptor, replacing nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate NADP which was not available due to the extraction of the chloroplasts from the plant cellular environment. The ferrocyanide is reduced (just as NADP is when the chloroplast is in vivo) while water (HO) is oxidized into oxygen (O) and hydrogen cations during the reaction. By using this technique to observe the reaction, Hill revealed a variety of valuable facts about photosynthesis. The Hill reaction confirms that oxygen (O) is produced by a reaction that is separate from carbon dioxide (CO) fixation. The reaction in which oxygen is released requires light; therefore the Hill reaction can be described as the light- dependent reaction of photosynthesis. The reaction in which oxygen is released takes place within the chloroplast of plants and the Hill reaction demonstrated that the release of oxygen (O) is only a partial reaction which requires one step of photosynthesis. The Hill reaction implies that the light- dependent reaction of photosynthesis is a result of a series of redox reactions and a suitable terminal electron acceptor is required for that reaction to occur. Plants have natural electron acceptors such as NADP, which play a major role in the oxidation of water. The Hill reaction also shows that the natural electron acceptors of the reaction can be substituted by an artificial electron acceptor such as DCPIP, again allowing for the discharge of oxygen. The technique of replacing the natural electron acceptors with artificial electron acceptors can be used in the laboratory to provide a means to measure phosphorylation in chloroplasts and observe its relation to the discharge of oxygen in this reaction. Hill's finding was that the origin of oxygen in photosynthesis is water (HO) not carbon dioxide (CO) as previously believed. Hill's reaction also demonstrates that the light-dependent redox reaction is the first reaction to take place in photosynthesis. The electrons thus freed by the splitting of water provides the electrons needed by the antenna system of photosystem II where they are boosted in energy and then sent along the electron transport system (ETS). Those high energy electrons can move against a chemical potential gradient. Hence, solar energy is converted to chemical energy by the reduction of NADP to NADPH. Photosynthesis is the process in which light energy is absorbed and converted to chemical energy. This chemical energy is eventually used in the conversion of carbon dioxide (CO) to sugar (CHO) in plants. During the process of photosynthesis, a natural electron acceptor NADP is reduced to NADPH in chloroplasts. Overall within a chloroplast, the following equilibrium reaction takes place. A reduction reaction that stores energy as NADPH: An oxidation reaction as NADPH's energy is used elsewhere: Ferredoxin, also known as a NADH+ reductase, is an enzyme that catalyzes the reduction reaction. It is easy to oxidize NADPH but difficult to reduce NADP, hence a catalyst is involved. Cytochromes are conjugate proteins that contain a haem group. The iron atom from this haem group undergoes redox reactions: Robin Hill (1937) studied the redox reactions in photosynthesis using artificial electron acceptors. He studied the reaction with the absence of CO by placing isolated active chloroplasts under light and dark conditions. During his observations of isolated chloroplasts placed under light conditions but with the absence of CO, the artificial electron acceptors were reduced and then oxidized, completing the cycle and allowing the process to proceed. Oxygen (O) was released as a byproduct, but there was no production of sugar (CHO) under those conditions. On the other hand, during Hill's observation of chloroplasts placed under dark conditions and in the absence of CO, the artificial electron acceptor was oxidized but not reduced, terminating the process, with the result that there was also no production of oxygen and sugar. This observation allowed Hill to conclude that oxygen is released during the light-dependent steps (Hill reaction) of photosynthesis. Further studies of the Hill reaction were made in 1957 by the American plant physiologist Daniel I. Arnon. Arnon studied the Hill reaction using a natural electron acceptor, NADP. This natural electron acceptor inhibits the formation of ATP, NADPH, and H which are used in the light-independent reaction. He demonstrated that the isolated active chloroplasts which are subjected to light but without CO will release oxygen but no sugar will be produced. He then demonstrated the light-independent reaction, observing the reaction under dark conditions with an abundance of carbon dioxide. He found carbon fixation was independent of the light reaction. Arnon had effectively separated the light-dependent reaction, which produces ATP, NADPH, H and oxygen, from the light-independent reaction, which produces sugars. He was able to conclude that that part of the reaction happens without the presence of light. The association of phosphorylation and the reduction of an electron acceptor such as ferricyanide increase similarly with the addition of phosphate, magnesium (Mg), and ADP. The existence of these three components is important for maximal reductive and phosphorylative activity. Similar increases in the rate of ferricyanide reduction can also be stimulated by a dilution technique. The dilution technique will not cause a further increase in the rate in which ferricyanide is reduced with the accumulation of ADP, phosphate, and Mg to a treated chloroplast suspension. ATP has been shown to inhibit the rate of ferricyanide reduction. By the studies of light intensities, it is concluded that the effect is largely on the light-independent steps of the Hill reaction. These observations are explained in terms of a proposed method in which phosphate esterifies during electron transport reactions, leading to the reduction of ferricyanide, and the rate of electron transport is limited by the rate of phosphorylation. If there is an increase in the rate of phosphorylation, then there will be an increase in the rate by which electrons are transported in the electron transport system. It is possible to introduce into the light reaction an artificial electron acceptor, such as a dye that changes color when it is reduced. These are known as Hill reagents. The Hill reagent was discovered in 1937 by Robin Hill. These dyes permitted the finding of electron transport chains during photosynthesis. Dichlorophenolindophenol (DCPIP), an example of these dyes, is widely used by experimenters. DCPIP is a dark blue solution that becomes lighter as it is reduced. It provides experimenters with a simple visual test and easily observable light reaction. In another approach to studying photosynthesis, light-absorbing pigments such as chlorophyll can be extracted from the chloroplasts of plant leaves or other photosynthetic living organisms. Like so many important biological systems in the cell, the photosynthetic system is ordered and compartmentalized in a system of membranes. Cell biology, Photophosphorylation, Daniel I. Arnon In photosynthesis, the light-dependent reactions take place on the thylakoid membranes. The inside of the thylakoid membrane is called the lumen, and outside the thylakoid membrane is the stroma, where the light-independent reactions take place. The thylakoid membrane contains some integral membrane protein complexes that catalyze the light reactions. There are four major protein complexes in the thylakoid membrane: Photosystem II (PSII), Cytochrome b6f complex, Photosystem I (PSI), and ATP synthase. These four complexes work together to ultimately create the products ATP and NADPH. The four photosystems absorb light energy through pigments—primarily the chlorophylls, which are responsible for the green color of leaves. The light-dependent reactions begin in photosystem II. When a chlorophyll a molecule within the reaction center of PSII absorbs a photon, an electron in this molecule attains an excited energy level. Because this state of an electron is very unstable, the electron is transferred from one to another molecule creating a chain of redox reactions, called an electron transport chain (ETC). The electron flow goes from PSII to cytochrome bf to PSI. In PSI, the electron gets the energy from another photon. The final electron acceptor is NADP. In oxygenic photosynthesis, the first electron donor is water, creating oxygen as a waste product. In anoxygenic photosynthesis various electron donors are used. Cytochrome bf and ATP synthase work together to create ATP. This process is called photophosphorylation, which occurs in two different ways. In non-cyclic photophosphorylation, cytochrome bf uses the energy of electrons from PSII to pump protons from the stroma to the lumen. The proton gradient across the thylakoid membrane creates a proton-motive force, used by ATP synthase to form ATP. In cyclic photophosphorylation, cytochrome bf uses the energy of electrons from not only PSII but also PSI to create more ATP and to stop the production of NADPH. Cyclic phosphorylation is important to create ATP and maintain NADPH in the right proportion for the light-independent reactions. The net-reaction of all light-dependent reactions in oxygenic photosynthesis is: The two photosystems are protein complexes that absorb photons and are able to use this energy to create a photosynthetic electron transport chain. Photosystem I and II are very similar in structure and function. They use special proteins, called light-harvesting complexes, to absorb the photons with very high effectiveness. If a special pigment molecule in a photosynthetic reaction center absorbs a photon, an electron in this pigment attains the excited state and then is transferred to another molecule in the reaction center. This reaction, called photoinduced charge separation, is the start of the electron flow and is unique because it transforms light energy into chemical forms. In chemistry, many reactions depend on the absorption of photons to provide the energy needed to overcome the activation energy barrier and hence can be labelled light-dependent. Such reactions range from the silver halide reactions used in photographic film to the creation and destruction of ozone in the upper atmosphere. This article discusses a specific subset of these, the series of light-dependent reactions related to photosynthesis in living organisms. The reaction center is in the thylakoid membrane. It transfers light energy to a dimer of chlorophyll pigment molecules near the periplasmic (or thylakoid lumen) side of the membrane. This dimer is called a special pair because of its fundamental role in photosynthesis. This special pair is slightly different in PSI and PSII reaction center. In PSII, it absorbs photons with a wavelength of 680 nm, and it is therefore called P680. In PSI, it absorbs photons at 700 nm, and it is called P700. In bacteria, the special pair is called P760, P840, P870, or P960. "P" here means pigment, and the number following it is the wavelength of light absorbed. If an electron of the special pair in the reaction center becomes excited, it cannot transfer this energy to another pigment using resonance energy transfer. In normal circumstances, the electron should return to the ground state, but, because the reaction center is arranged so that a suitable electron acceptor is nearby, the excited electron can move from the initial molecule to the acceptor. This process results in the formation of a positive charge on the special pair (due to the loss of an electron) and a negative charge on the acceptor and is, hence, referred to as photoinduced charge separation. In other words, electrons in pigment molecules can exist at specific energy levels. Under normal circumstances, they exist at the lowest possible energy level they can. However, if there is enough energy to move them into the next energy level, they can absorb that energy and occupy that higher energy level. The light they absorb contains the necessary amount of energy needed to push them into the next level. Any light that does not have enough or has too much energy cannot be absorbed and is reflected. The electron in the higher energy level, however, does not want to be there; the electron is unstable and must return to its normal lower energy level. To do this, it must release the energy that has put it into the higher energy state to begin with. This can happen various ways. The extra energy can be converted into molecular motion and lost as heat. Some of the extra energy can be lost as heat energy, while the rest is lost as light. (This re-emission of light energy is called fluorescence.) The energy, but not the e- itself, can be passed onto another molecule. (This is called resonance.) The energy and the e- can be transferred to another molecule. Plant pigments usually utilize the last two of these reactions to convert the sun's energy into their own. This initial charge separation occurs in less than 10 picoseconds (10 seconds). In their high- energy states, the special pigment and the acceptor could undergo charge recombination; that is, the electron on the acceptor could move back to neutralize the positive charge on the special pair. Its return to the special pair would waste a valuable high-energy electron and simply convert the absorbed light energy into heat. In the case of PSII, this backflow of electrons can produce reactive oxygen species leading to photoinhibition. Three factors in the structure of the reaction center work together to suppress charge recombination nearly completely. Another electron acceptor is less than 10 Å away from the first acceptor, and so the electron is rapidly transferred farther away from the special pair., An electron donor is less than 10 Å away from the special pair, and so the positive charge is neutralized by the transfer of another electron, The electron transfer back from the electron acceptor to the positively charged special pair is especially slow. The rate of an electron transfer reaction increases with its thermodynamic favorability up to a point and then decreases. The back transfer is so favourable that it takes place in the inverted region where electron-transfer rates become slower. Thus, electron transfer proceeds efficiently from the first electron acceptor to the next, creating an electron transport chain that ends if it has reached NADPH. The photosynthesis process in chloroplasts begins when an electron of P680 of PSII attains a higher-energy level. This energy is used to reduce a chain of electron acceptors that have subsequently lowered redox-potentials. This chain of electron acceptors is known as an electron transport chain. When this chain reaches PS I, an electron is again excited, creating a high redox-potential. The electron transport chain of photosynthesis is often put in a diagram called the z-scheme, because the redox diagram from P680 to P700 resembles the letter Z. The final product of PSII is plastoquinol, a mobile electron carrier in the membrane. Plastoquinol transfers the electron from PSII to the proton pump, cytochrome b6f. The ultimate electron donor of PSII is water. Cytochrome bf proceeds the electron chain to PSI through plastocyanin molecules. PSI is able to continue the electron transfer in two different ways. It can transfer the electrons either to plastoquinol again, creating a cyclic electron flow, or to an enzyme called FNR (Ferredoxin—NADP(+) reductase), creating a non- cyclic electron flow. PSI releases FNR into the stroma, where it reduces to NADPH. Activities of the electron transport chain, especially from cytochrome bf, lead to pumping of protons from the stroma to the lumen. The resulting transmembrane proton gradient is used to make ATP via ATP synthase. The overall process of the photosynthetic electron transport chain in chloroplasts is: PS II is extremely complex, a highly organized transmembrane structure that contains a water-splitting complex, chlorophylls and carotenoid pigments, a reaction center (P680), pheophytin (a pigment similar to chlorophyll), and two quinones. It uses the energy of sunlight to transfer electrons from water to a mobile electron carrier in the membrane called plastoquinone: Plastoquinone, in turn, transfers electrons to cyt bf, which feeds them into PS I. The step → P680 is performed by a poorly understood structure embedded within PS II called the water-splitting complex or the oxygen-evolving complex. It catalyzes a reaction that splits water into electrons, protons and oxygen: 2 → 4H + 4e + The actual steps of the above reaction are running in the following way (Dolai's diagram of S-states): The electrons are transferred to special chlorophyll molecules (embedded in PS II) that are promoted to a higher-energy state by the energy of photons. The excitation P680 → P680of the reaction center pigment P680 occurs here. These special chlorophyll molecules embedded in PS II absorb the energy of photons, with maximal absorption at 680 nm. Electrons within these molecules are promoted to a higher-energy state. This is one of two core processes in photosynthesis, and it occurs with astonishing efficiency (greater than 90%) because, in addition to direct excitation by light at 680 nm, the energy of light first harvested by antenna proteins at other wavelengths in the light- harvesting system is also transferred to these special chlorophyll molecules. This is followed by the step P680→ pheophytin, and then on to plastoquinone, which occurs within the reaction center of PS II. High-energy electrons are transferred to plastoquinone before it subsequently picks up two protons to become plastoquinol. Plastoquinol is then released into the membrane as a mobile electron carrier. This is the second core process in photosynthesis. The initial stages occur within picoseconds, with an efficiency of 100%. The seemingly impossible efficiency is due to the precise positioning of molecules within the reaction center. This is a solid-state process, not a chemical reaction. It occurs within an essentially crystalline environment created by the macromolecular structure of PS II. The usual rules of chemistry (which involve random collisions and random energy distributions) do not apply in solid-state environments. When the chlorophyll passes the electron to pheophytin, it obtains an electron from P. In turn, P can oxidize the Z (or Y) molecule. Once oxidized, the Z molecule can derive electrons from the oxygen-evolving complex (OEC). Dolai's S-state diagrams show the reactions of water splitting in the oxygen-evolving complex. PS II is a transmembrane structure found in all chloroplasts. It splits water into electrons, protons and molecular oxygen. The electrons are transferred to plastoquinone, which carries them to a proton pump. Molecular oxygen is released into the atmosphere. The emergence of such an incredibly complex structure, a macromolecule that converts the energy of sunlight into potentially useful work with efficiencies that are impossible in ordinary experience, seems almost magical at first glance. Thus, it is of considerable interest that, in essence, the same structure is found in purple bacteria. PS II and PS I are connected by a transmembrane proton pump, cytochrome bf complex (plastoquinol—plastocyanin reductase; ). Electrons from PS II are carried by plastoquinol to cyt bf, where they are removed in a stepwise fashion (reforming plastoquinone) and transferred to a water-soluble electron carrier called plastocyanin. This redox process is coupled to the pumping of four protons across the membrane. The resulting proton gradient (together with the proton gradient produced by the water-splitting complex in PS II) is used to make ATP via ATP synthase. The structure and function of cytochrome bf (in chloroplasts) is very similar to cytochrome bc (Complex III in mitochondria). Both are transmembrane structures that remove electrons from a mobile, lipid- soluble electron carrier (plastoquinone in chloroplasts; ubiquinone in mitochondria) and transfer them to a mobile, water-soluble electron carrier (plastocyanin in chloroplasts; cytochrome c in mitochondria). Both are proton pumps that produce a transmembrane proton gradient. In fact, cytochrome b and subunit IV are homologous to mitochondrial cytochrome b and the Rieske iron- sulfur proteins of the two complexes are homologous. However, cytochrome f and cytochrome c are not homologous. PS I accepts electrons from plastocyanin and transfers them either to NADPH (noncyclic electron transport) or back to cytochrome bf (cyclic electron transport): PS I, like PS II, is a complex, highly organized transmembrane structure that contains antenna chlorophylls, a reaction center (P700), phylloquinine, and a number of iron-sulfur proteins that serve as intermediate redox carriers. The light-harvesting system of PS I uses multiple copies of the same transmembrane proteins used by PS II. The energy of absorbed light (in the form of delocalized, high-energy electrons) is funneled into the reaction center, where it excites special chlorophyll molecules (P700, maximum light absorption at 700 nm) to a higher energy level. The process occurs with astonishingly high efficiency. Electrons are removed from excited chlorophyll molecules and transferred through a series of intermediate carriers to ferredoxin, a water-soluble electron carrier. As in PS II, this is a solid- state process that operates with 100% efficiency. There are two different pathways of electron transport in PS I. In noncyclic electron transport, ferredoxin carries the electron to the enzyme ferredoxin reductase (FNR) that reduces to NADPH. In cyclic electron transport, electrons from ferredoxin are transferred (via plastoquinone) to a proton pump, cytochrome bf. They are then returned (via plastocyanin) to P700. NADPH and ATP are used to synthesize organic molecules from . The ratio of NADPH to ATP production can be adjusted by adjusting the balance between cyclic and noncyclic electron transport. It is noteworthy that PS I closely resembles photosynthetic structures found in green sulfur bacteria, just as PS II resembles structures found in purple bacteria. PS II, PS I, and cytochrome bf are found in chloroplasts. All plants and all photosynthetic algae contain chloroplasts, which produce NADPH and ATP by the mechanisms described above. In essence, the same transmembrane structures are also found in cyanobacteria. Unlike plants and algae, cyanobacteria are prokaryotes. They do not contain chloroplasts. Rather, they bear a striking resemblance to chloroplasts themselves. This suggests that organisms resembling cyanobacteria were the evolutionary precursors of chloroplasts. One imagines primitive eukaryotic cells taking up cyanobacteria as intracellular symbionts in a process known as endosymbiosis. Cyanobacteria contain both PS I and PS II. Their light-harvesting system is different from that found in plants (they use phycobilins, rather than chlorophylls, as antenna pigments), but their electron transport chain is, in essence, the same as the electron transport chain in chloroplasts. The mobile water-soluble electron carrier is cytochrome c in cyanobacteria, plastocyanin in plants. Cyanobacteria can also synthesize ATP by oxidative phosphorylation, in the manner of other bacteria. The electron transport chain is where the mobile electron carriers are plastoquinone and cytochrome c, while the proton pumps are NADH dehydrogenase, cyt bf and cytochrome aa (member of the COX3 family). Cyanobacteria are the only bacteria that produce oxygen during photosynthesis. Earth's primordial atmosphere was anoxic. Organisms like cyanobacteria produced our present-day oxygen-containing atmosphere. The other two major groups of photosynthetic bacteria, purple bacteria and green sulfur bacteria, contain only a single photosystem and do not produce oxygen. Purple bacteria contain a single photosystem that is structurally related to PS II in cyanobacteria and chloroplasts: This is a cyclic process in which electrons are removed from an excited chlorophyll molecule (bacteriochlorophyll; P870), passed through an electron transport chain to a proton pump (cytochrome bc complex; similar to the chloroplastic one), and then returned to the chlorophyll molecule. The result is a proton gradient, which is used to make ATP via ATP synthase. As in cyanobacteria and chloroplasts, this is a solid-state process that depends on the precise orientation of various functional groups within a complex transmembrane macromolecular structure. To make NADPH, purple bacteria use an external electron donor (hydrogen, hydrogen sulfide, sulfur, sulfite, or organic molecules such as succinate and lactate) to feed electrons into a reverse electron transport chain. Green sulfur bacteria contain a photosystem that is analogous to PS I in chloroplasts: There are two pathways of electron transfer. In cyclic electron transfer, electrons are removed from an excited chlorophyll molecule, passed through an electron transport chain to a proton pump, and then returned to the chlorophyll. The mobile electron carriers are, as usual, a lipid-soluble quinone and a water-soluble cytochrome. The resulting proton gradient is used to make ATP. In noncyclic electron transfer, electrons are removed from an excited chlorophyll molecule and used to reduce NAD to NADH. The electrons removed from P840 must be replaced. This is accomplished by removing electrons from , which is oxidized to sulfur (hence the name "green sulfur bacteria"). Purple bacteria and green sulfur bacteria occupy relatively minor ecological niches in the present day biosphere. They are of interest because of their importance in precambrian ecologies, and because their methods of photosynthesis were the likely evolutionary precursors of those in modern plants. The first ideas about light being used in photosynthesis were proposed by Colin Flannery in 1779 who recognized it was sunlight falling on plants that was required, although Joseph Priestley had noted the production of oxygen without the association with light in 1772. Cornelis Van Niel proposed in 1931 that photosynthesis is a case of general mechanism where a photon of light is used to photo decompose a hydrogen donor and the hydrogen being used to reduce . Then in 1939, Robin Hill showed that isolated chloroplasts would make oxygen, but not fix showing the light and dark reactions occurred in different places. Although they are referred to as light and dark reactions, both of them take place only in the presence of light. This led later to the discovery of photosystems I and II. Light-independent reaction, Photosynthetic reaction centre, Photosystem II, Compensation point

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A declaration of war is a formal declaration issued by a national government indicating that a state of war exists between that nation and another. The document Declarations of War and Authorizations for the Use of Military Force: Historical Background and Legal Implications gives an extensive listing and summary of statutes which are automatically engaged upon the US declaring war. For the United States, of the Constitution says "Congress shall have power to ... declare War." However, that passage provides no specific format for what form legislation must have in order to be considered a "declaration of war" nor does the Constitution itself use this term. In the courts, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, in Doe v. Bush, said: "[T]he text of the October Resolution itself spells out justifications for a war and frames itself as an 'authorization' of such a war." in effect saying an authorization suffices for declaration and what some may view as a formal Congressional "Declaration of War" was not required by the Constitution. The last time the United States formally declared war, using specific terminology, on any nation was in 1942, when war was declared against Axis-allied Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania, because President Franklin Roosevelt thought it was improper to engage in hostilities against a country without a formal declaration of war. Since then, every American president has used military force without a declaration of war. This article will use the term "formal declaration of war" to mean Congressional legislation that uses the phrase "declaration of war" in the title. Elsewhere, this article will use the terms "authorized by Congress," "funded by Congress" or "undeclared war" to describe other such conflicts. The United States has formally declared war against foreign nations five separate times, each upon prior request by the President of the United States. Four of those five declarations came after hostilities had begun. James Madison reported that in the Federal Convention of 1787, the phrase "make war" was changed to "declare war" in order to leave to the Executive the power to repel sudden attacks but not to commence war without the explicit approval of Congress. Debate continues as to the legal extent of the President's authority in this regard. Public opposition to American involvement in foreign wars, particularly during the 1930s, was expressed as support for a Constitutional Amendment that would require a national referendum on a declaration of war. Several Constitutional Amendments, such as the Ludlow Amendment, have been proposed that would require a national referendum on a declaration of war. After Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in January 1971 and President Richard Nixon continued to wage war in Vietnam, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution () over the veto of Nixon in an attempt to rein in some of the president's claimed powers. The War Powers Resolution proscribes the only power of the president to wage war which is recognized by Congress. The table below lists the five wars in which the United States has formally declared war against eleven foreign nations. The only country against which the United States has declared war more than once is Germany, against which the United States has declared war twice (though a case could be made for Hungary as a successor state to Austria-Hungary). In World War II, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Germany and Italy, led respectively by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, declared war on the United States, and the U.S. Congress responded in kind. In other instances, the United States has engaged in extended military combat that was authorized by Congress. In many instances, the United States has engaged in extended military engagements that were authorized by United Nations Security Council Resolutions and funded by appropriations from Congress. On at least 125 occasions, the President has acted without prior express military authorization from Congress. These include instances in which the United States fought in the Philippine–American War from 1898–1903, in Nicaragua in 1927, as well as the NATO bombing campaign of Yugoslavia in 1999, and the 2017 missile strikes on Syria. The United States' longest war was fought between 2001 and 2016 against the Taliban in Afghanistan. The Indian Wars comprise at least 28 conflicts and engagements. These localized conflicts, with Native Americans, began with European colonists coming to North America, long before the establishment of the United States. For the purpose of this discussion, the Indian Wars are defined as conflicts with the United States of America. They begin as one front in the American Revolutionary War in 1775 and had concluded by 1918. The United States Army still maintains a campaign streamer for Pine Ridge 1890–1891 despite opposition from certain Native American groups. The American Civil War was not an international conflict under the laws of war, because the Confederate States of America (CSA) was not a government that had been granted full diplomatic recognition as a sovereign nation by other sovereign states or by the government of the United States. In 1973, following the withdrawal of most American troops from the Vietnam War, a debate emerged about the extent of presidential power in deploying troops without a declaration of war. A compromise in the debate was reached with the War Powers Resolution. This act clearly defined how many soldiers could be deployed by the President of the United States and for how long. It also required formal reports by the President to Congress regarding the status of such deployments, and limited the total amount of time that American forces could be deployed without a formal declaration of war. Although the constitutionality of the act has never been tested, it is usually followed, most notably during the Grenada Conflict, the Panamanian Conflict, the Somalia Conflict, the Persian Gulf War, and the Iraq War. The only exception was President Clinton's use of U.S. troops in the 78-day NATO air campaign against Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. In all other cases, the President asserted the constitutional authority to commit troops without the necessity of Congressional approval, but in each case the President received Congressional authorization that satisfied the provisions of the War Powers Act. On March 21, 2011, a number of lawmakers expressed concern that the decision of President Barack Obama to order the U.S. military to join in attacks of Libyan air defenses and government forces exceeded his constitutional authority because the decision to authorize the attack was made without Congressional permission. Obama explained his rationale in a two-page letter, stating that as commander in chief, he had constitutional authority to authorize the strikes, which would be limited in scope and duration, and necessary to prevent a humanitarian disaster in Libya. Cold War, Declaration of war by Canada, Declaration of war by the United Kingdom, Just War Theory, Police action, Timeline of United States military operations, War on Terror, War on Drugs Kenneth A. Schultz, Tying Hands and Washing Hands: The U.S. Congress and Multilateral Humanitarian Intervention, Ch. 4, pp 105–142, in Daniel Drezner, Ed. Locating the Proper Authorities: The Interaction of Domestic and International Institutions, University of Michigan Press, 2003. The House of Rep, Republican Study Committee of War and Military Authorized Conflicts. 2003., Declarations of war and votes, Text of Declaration of War on Japan, Text of Declaration of War on Germany, Text of Declaration of War on Bulgaria, Authorization for Use of Military Force — signed September 18, 2001, House Joint Resolution Authorizing Use of Force Against Iraq — signed October 16, 2002, Instances of Use of United States Forces Abroad, 1798–1993, A partial list of U.S. military interventions from 1890 to 2006, U.S.-Africa Chronology On 11 December 1941, four days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States declaration of war against the Japanese Empire, Nazi Germany declared war against the United States, in response to what was claimed to be a series of provocations by the United States government when the US was still officially neutral during World War II. The decision to declare war was made by Adolf Hitler, apparently offhand, almost without consultation. Later that day, the United States declared war on Germany. The course of relations between Germany and the United States had deteriorated since the beginning of World War II, inevitably so given the increasing cooperation between the United States and the United Kingdom. The Destroyers for Bases Agreement, Lend-Lease, the Atlantic Charter, the hand-over of military control of Iceland from the United Kingdom to the United States, the extension of the Pan-American Security Zone, and many other results of the special relationship which had developed between the two countries had put a strain on relations between the US, still technically a neutral country, and Nazi Germany. US destroyers escorting American supply vessels bound for the UK were already engaged in a de facto war with German U-Boats. Roosevelt's desire to help the UK, despite the objections of the influential US isolationist lobby, and legal impediments imposed by Congress which prevented direct involvement in the war, brought the US to push hard against the traditional boundaries of neutrality. On 7 December 1941, the Empire of Japan launched an attack on the US naval and army base on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, beginning a war between Japan and the United States. Japan had not informed its ally, Germany, in advance of the attack, although the Japanese ambassador had informed the German Foreign Minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop, at the beginning of December that relations between the US and the Japanese Empire were at a breaking point, and that war was imminent. He was instructed to ask Germany for commitment to declare war under the terms of the Tripartite Pact should that occur. Hitler and Ribbentrop had been urging Japan to attack and take over Singapore from the British, on the theory that doing so would not only hurt the UK, but would also serve to help keep the US out of the war. According to the terms of their agreements, Germany was obliged to come to the aid of Japan if a third country attacked Japan, but not if Japan attacked a third country. Ribbentrop reminded Hitler of this, and pointed out that to declare war against the US would add to the number of enemies Germany was fighting, but Hitler dismissed this concern as not being important, and, almost entirely without consultation, chose to declare war against the US, wanting to do so before, he thought, Roosevelt would declare war on Germany. In fact, Hitler's declaration of war came as a great relief to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who feared the possibility of two parallel but disconnected wars - the UK and Soviet Union versus Germany in Europe, and the US and the British Empire versus Japan in the Far East and the Pacific. With Nazi Germany's declaration against the United States in effect, American assistance for Britain in both theaters of war as a full ally was assured. It also simplified matters for the American government, as John Kenneth Galbraith recalled: When Pearl Harbor happened, we [Roosevelt's advisors] were desperate. ... We were all in agony. The mood of the American people was obvious - they were determined that the Japanese had to be punished. We could have been forced to concentrate all our efforts on the Pacific, unable from then on to give more than purely peripheral help to Britain. It was truly astounding when Hitler declared war on us three days later. I cannot tell you our feelings of triumph. It was a totally irrational thing for him to do, and I think it saved Europe." Hitler's reasons for declaring war against the US when he was not obligated to were numerous. One was an emotional response: the Japanese tactic of using a surprise attack without making a declaration of war appealed to him - he had done the same thing when he attacked the Soviet Union with Operation Barbarossa in June 1941; indeed, he told the Japanese ambassador "[O]ne should strike - as hard as possible - and not waste time declaring war." Also, the prospect of a worldwide war fed Hitler's tendency towards grandiose thinking, and reinforced his feeling that he was a world- historical figure of destiny. As he said in his declaration speech to the Reichstag: I can only be grateful to Providence that it entrusted me with the leadership in this historic struggle which, for the next five hundred or a thousand years, will be described as decisive, not only for the history of Germany, but for the whole of Europe and indeed the whole world. Hitler's lack of knowledge about the US and its industrial and demographic capacity for mounting a war on two fronts also entered into his decision. As early as mid- March 1941 - nine months before the Japanese attack - President Roosevelt was acutely aware of Hitler's hostility towards the United States, and the destructive potential it presented. Due to this attitude within the White House, and the rapidly progressing efforts of the Americans' industrial capacity before and through 1941 to start providing its armed forces with the ordnance, combat aircraft and ships that would be required to defeat the Axis as a whole, the US was already well on its way towards the full-scale wartime economy which would make it the "arsenal of democracy" for itself and its allies. Finally, Hitler's deeply-held racial prejudices made him see the US as a decadent bourgeois democracy filled with people of mixed race, a population heavily under the influence of Jews and "Negroes", with no history of authoritarian discipline to control and direct them, interested only in luxury and living the "good life" while dancing, drinking and enjoying "negrofied" music. Such a country, in Hitler's mind, would never be willing to make the economic and human sacrifices necessary to threaten National Socialist Germany — and thus set the stage for a dangerously inaccurate view of the very nation that Hitler had stated in his unpublished Zweites Buch (Second Book, 1928) would be the Third Reich's most serious challenge beyond his intended defeat of the Soviet Union. The economic potential and racial composition of America had implications for Hitler's own ideological construct, indeed, how he saw Germany's current problems and future hopes. His central ideas of 'living space' and race held the key to his image of the United States. To Hitler the United States was a country with a white 'Nordic' racial core, to which he attributed its economic success and standard of living, and in which he saw a model for his vision of German 'living space' in Europe. The one advantage which the declaration of war against the US provided for Hitler was as a propaganda diversion for the German public, to distract them from the state of the war against the Soviet Union, in which Germany had suffered severe setbacks and an unexpectedly prolonged engagement. Hitler had assured the German people that the Soviet Union would be crushed well before the onset of winter, but that, in fact, did not happen, and there was little in the way of good news. The timing of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor enabled Hitler to angle his planned speech to the Reichstag in a more positive fashion, squeezing as much propaganda value out of it as possible. Hitler, in fact, put off the speech - and the declaration of war - for several days, trying to arrive at the proper psychological moment to make the announcement. Still, the propaganda motive was hardly sufficient to justify declaring war on the US, especially considering that doing so would create an otherwise "unnatural alliance" between two disparate and heretofore antagonistic polities, the United States and the Soviet Union. Joachim C. Fest, one of Hitler's biographers, has argued that Hitler's decision was "really no longer an act of his own volition, but a gesture governed by a sudden awareness of his own impotence. That gesture was Hitler's last strategic initiative of any importance." Regardless of Hitler's reasons for the declaration, the decision is generally seen as an enormous strategic blunder on his part, as it allowed the United States to enter the European war in support of the United Kingdom and the Allies without much public opposition, while still facing the Japanese threat in the Pacific. Hitler had, in fact, committed Germany to fight the US while in the midst of a war of extermination against Russia, and without having first defeated the UK, instead of taking the option of putting off a conflict with the US for as long as possible, forcing it to concentrate on the war in the Pacific against Japan, and making it much more difficult for it to become involved in the European war. At least to some extent he had held in his hands the power to control the timing of the intervention of the US, and instead, by declaring war against America, he freed Roosevelt and Churchill to act as they saw fit. From the point of view of Hitler and much of the German political and military elite, declaring war against the U.S. in response to the Pearl Harbor attack was a calculated risk in fighting the U.S. before they were prepared to effectively defend themselves. By that time, the German leadership believed that the United States was effectively acting as a belligerent in the conflict, given actions such as Lend-Lease of supplies to Britain to sustain their war effort, President Roosevelt's public statements, the deployment of American soldiers and Marines to Iceland, and U.S. Navy escorts of convoys across the Atlantic, which sometimes came into contact with U-boats; these acts, as well as America's previous intervention in World War I, led to the assumption that war between them was inevitable. As such, the decision was made to use the attack as a rationale for an official declaration of war in order to drive Britain out of the conflict by widening submarine operations and directly attacking U.S. commercial shipping. While Hitler's declaration of war against the United States eventually led to his downfall, initially it seemed successful in its objective of more effectively cutting Britain's supply lines, as the U.S. military's lack of tactics, equipment, and procedures for fighting U-boats caused 1942 to be the most devastating year of the war for shipping losses; the war declaration enabled the Second Happy Time for U-boats. According to Hitler's Naval Adjutant, Admiral von Puttkamer, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor actually buoyed Hitler's assurance in winning the war, and improved morale among the high leadership of the armed forces. Peter Padfield writes: The news [of Pearl Harbor] came as a surprise to Hitler although he knew of their intention to attack somewhere at some time and had made up his mind to support them if they attacked the United States. Now frivolously disregarding the huge financial and productive power of America and, according to ... von Puttkamer, blind to the realization that this power could be projected across the Atlantic, he gained renewed confidence in a victorious outcome to the war. His generals suffered from the same land-locked hallucination: his entire headquarters staff gave themselves up to 'an ecstasy of rejoicing'; the few who saw further 'became even lonelier'. Naval officers saw no more clearly than the generals. On 11 December 1941, American Chargé d'Affaires Leland B. Morris, the highest ranking American diplomat in Germany, was summoned to Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop's office where Ribbentrop read Morris the formal declaration. The text was: MR. CHARGE D'AFFAIRES: The Government of the United States having violated in the most flagrant manner and in ever increasing measure all rules of neutrality in favor of the adversaries of Germany and having continually been guilty of the most severe provocations toward Germany ever since the outbreak of the European war, provoked by the British declaration of war against Germany on September 3, 1939, has finally resorted to open military acts of aggression. On September 11, 1941, the President of the United States publicly declared that he had ordered the American Navy and Air Force to shoot on sight at any German war vessel. In his speech of October 27, 1941, he once more expressly affirmed that this order was in force. Acting under this order, vessels of the American Navy, since early September 1941, have systematically attacked German naval forces. Thus, American destroyers, as for instance the Greer, the Kearney and the Reuben James, have opened fire on German submarines according to plan. The Secretary of the American Navy, Mr. Knox, himself confirmed that-American destroyers attacked German submarines. Furthermore, the naval forces of the United States, under order of their Government and contrary to international law have treated and seized German merchant vessels on the high seas as enemy ships. The German Government therefore establishes the following facts: Although Germany on her part has strictly adhered to the rules of international law in her relations with the United States during every period of the present war, the Government of the United States from initial violations of neutrality has finally proceeded to open acts of war against Germany. The Government of the United States has thereby virtually created a state of war. The German Government, consequently, discontinues diplomatic relations with the United States of America and declares that under these circumstances brought about by President Roosevelt Germany too, as from today, considers herself as being in a state of war with the United States of America. Accept, Mr. Charge d'Affaires, the expression of my high consideration. December 11, 1941. RIBBENTROP. Kellogg–Briand Pact Notes Bibliography Genoud, François (ed.) (1961) The Testament of Adolf Hitler. The Hitler–Bormann Documents, February–April 1945. London., Hillgruber, Andreas (1981) Germany and the Two World Wars Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. ., Kershaw, Ian (2007) Fateful Choices: Ten Decisions the Changed the World, 1940-1941 New York: Penguin., Kershaw, Ian (2000) Hitler: 1936–1945: Nemesis London., United States Department of State (December 13, 1941) Department of State Bulletin. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office On 25 April 1898, the United States Congress declared war upon Spain. The ensuing Spanish–American War resulted in a decisive victory for the United States, and arguably served as a transitional period for both nations. Spain saw its days of empire fade, as the United States saw the prospect of overseas empire emerge. The war was ended by the Treaty of Paris signed on December 10 that same year. The Spanish–American War originated out of the Cuban War of Independence, launched in February 1895. For decades the United States had watched political developments on Cuba, with which it had extensive economic ties. Historians have long debated America's intentions in becoming involved in the conflict. For a significant period during and after the war, selfless humanitarian interest in the fate of the Cuban people was accepted as the major impetus for the declaration of war. A supporting argument for this line of thinking is that yellow journalism created an inflammatory mood in the country and swayed public opinion to sympathize with Cuba. Recently this school of thinking has grown less popular. Many historians now believe that the United States was acting more out of its own self-interest, in particular to assist long-term goals of creating an Isthmian canal (eventually realized by the Panama Canal), and pursuing trade with China. On February 15, 1898, an explosion aboard the USS Maine in Havana harbor killed 260 US personnel. Public opinion in the U.S., driven in part by the yellow journalism of William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer, blamed Spain, though Spain has no reason for wanting to provoke the U.S. to intervene in Cuba's war for independence, then more than three years old. The U.S. Congress passed legislation allocating an additional $50 million for the military on March 9 and on March 26 President William McKinley demanded that Spain end hostilities by October 1. Spain rejected McKinley's proposal and objected to his interference. McKinley requested authorization from Congress to intervene in Cuba on April 11. Two days later the U.S. Congress by vote of 311 to 6 in the House and 42 to 35 in the Senate passed the Joint Resolution for Cuban independence, which both disavowed any intention of annexing Cuba and authorized the President to use military force to end hostilities between Spain and Cuba. An ultimatum to leave Cuba or face American military intervention was forwarded to Spain on April 20. The Spanish interpreted this ultimatum as declaration of war, even though it technically was not, dismissed the U.S. ambassador, and declared war. On April 22, the U.S. fleet set sail from Key West, Florida, to establish a blockade and prevent the Spanish from delivering supplies to its military forces in Cuba. The U.S. responded by declaring on April 25 that a state of war had existed since the 21st. The declaration read: Teller Amendment, an amendment to the Declaration of War Trask, David F. The War with Spain in 1898. University of Nebraska Press, 1996.

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The 2015–16 NHL season was the 99th season of operation (98th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). Thirty teams competed in 82-game regular season schedules from October 7, 2015 to April 10, 2016. The 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs following the regular season began on April 13 and ended June 12 with the Pittsburgh Penguins winning their fourth Stanley Cup. None of the seven Canadian-based teams qualified for the playoffs; this was the second season in league history that the playoff field consisted of only United States-based teams. The only other time in league history that no Canadian teams qualified for the postseason was in 1970. In December 2014, commissioner Gary Bettman told teams that he projected the salary cap to increase to at least $73 million for the 2015–16 season, citing the fluctuating value of the Canadian dollar. The cap was ultimately set at $71.4 million. Rule changes approved by the NHL Board of Governors on June 24, 2015, include: 3-on-3 overtime: Overtime during the regular season will now have three skaters per side, instead of the 4-on-4 overtime system that had been used since 1999–2000. However, if there are carry-over penalties from the third period to overtime, a side is still guaranteed to have at least three skaters and the man-advantage will be adjusted accordingly (e.g. a 5-on-4 power play at the end of regulation will be converted to a 4-on-3 one at the start of overtime). The Board of Governors implemented 3-on-3 overtime to help decrease shootouts. Jason Garrison of the Tampa Bay Lightning scored the first 3-on-3 overtime goal on October 9, 2015 for a 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers., Expanded video review with coach's challenge: Video review has been expanded to include a coach's challenge, similar to the system used by the NFL since 1999:, Like the NFL, each challenge will require the use of a team's timeout. If the challenge is successful, the timeout is restored., Teams may only challenge the following situations:, Whether a goal called on the ice should have been disallowed because the attacking team was offside or interfered with the goaltender;, Whether a disallowed goal, called on grounds of goalkeeper interference, should instead be overturned because either:, there was no actual contact between the attacking player and the goalie, the attacking player was actually pushed or fouled by a defender into the goalie, the attacking player's position in the crease did not actually impair or impact the goalie's play, Inside the final minute of regulation, and during overtime, all reviews that would otherwise be subject to the coach's challenge will instead be initiated by the NHL's Situation Room in Toronto, All reviews that are subject to the coach's challenge will be conducted by the on-ice officials on an ice-level tablet monitor instead of the Situation Room., All reviews involving whether the puck entered the net will still be initiated by the Situation Room., New faceoff rule: During faceoffs not at center-ice, the player who is on the defensive side of the red line will now be required to put his stick down first. For faceoffs at the center-ice dot, the visiting player will still be the first one to place down his stick. This rule change, giving the attacking team a slight advantage during faceoffs (as opposed to giving this advantage to the home team all the time), is intended to help increase puck-possession time and potentially more goals. For the second time since 2000, the league ended a moratorium on potential expansion teams and began accepting bids for potential expansion teams that, if approved, would begin play in the 2017–18 season. During the 2015 offseason, two ownership groups offered bids: Quebecor, which planned on reviving the Quebec Nordiques at a new arena in Quebec City, Quebec, and Bill Foley's Black Knight Sports & Entertainment, which intended to place an expansion team at a new arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The league concluded the vetting process on September 4, 2015, with a final decision to follow in June 2016. In August 2015, the league announced a six-year deal with MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM) to take over the technical operations of the NHL's in-house digital properties. Under the agreement, MLBAM took over the operations of the NHL's websites, apps, streaming services, and other digital properties starting in January 2016. MLBAM also took over international distribution of the league's digital out-of-market streaming services outside of Canada and Scandinavia. The NHL also took an equity stake of up to 10 percent in BAM Tech, a spin-off of MLBAM's streaming media business. As an aspect of the deal, the U.S. version of NHL Network was also relocated to the facilities of MLB Network. The Canadian version of NHL Network was shut down August 31, 2015. The re- launch of the league's digital properties under MLBAM occurred in February 2016, with the launch of the new NHL.com website and mobile app following the 2016 NHL All-Star Game. The re-launched NHL GameCenter Live service outside of Canada was re-branded as NHL.tv, while the Canadian service remains branded as Rogers NHL GameCentre Live. Both services were upgraded to utilize a new client on MLBAM architecture with support for 60 FPS streaming. The re-launch of the services, however, was marred by technical issues caused by a malfunctioning content delivery network. As the result of a lawsuit settlement, the NHL agreed to offer single-team packages for its out-of-market services in the United States. The updated NHL app also offers a downsized out-of-market subscription service known as NHL Premium, which streams the conclusion of each game (final five minutes, plus overtime/shootouts if needed). In Canada, the Sunday-night Hometown Hockey game of the week on City was moved to Sportsnet. Both Sportsnet and TSN announced plans to produce telecasts of selected national and regional games in 4K ultra high-definition television. On March 10, 2016, the NHL announced a deal with Yahoo! Sports, in which it will offer free online streaming in the U.S. of up to four out-of- market games per-week. The site will also feature additional NHL content, such as condensed games and highlight showcases. The deal expands upon an ongoing relationship with U.S. rightsholder NBC, as well as a relationship with Major League Baseball to host the MLB.tv Game of the Day stream. On May 5, 2016, NBC Sports announced that it would provide national radio broadcasts of the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals via NBC Sports Radio. NHL Radio broadcasts had not been heard continent-wide since 2008. On September 15, 2015, the NHL announced that Adidas would replace Reebok as the supplier of all team jerseys beginning in the 2017–18 season. (*) Indicates interim. The 2015–16 season marked the New York Islanders' move from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale to Barclays Center in Brooklyn., The Edmonton Oilers played their final season at Rexall Place. They moved to the newly constructed Rogers Place in the 2016–17 season. The regular season began on October 7, 2015, and ended on April 10, 2016. The playoffs began on Wednesday, April 13, 2016. The 2016 NHL Winter Classic was held on January 1, 2016. The game, the eighth Winter Classic, saw the Montreal Canadiens defeat the Boston Bruins, 5–1, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, a significant event in one of the NHL's best-known rivalries. A Bruins and Canadiens alumni game was also played on December 31, 2015. The Boston Pride women's professional hockey team played before the alumni game against Les Canadiennes of the Canadian Women's Hockey League to a 1–1 tie in the first ever Women's Winter Classic. There were two Stadium Series games planned. The first one featured the Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild at TCF Bank Stadium on Sunday, February 21, 2016, where the Wild defeated the Blackhawks 6–1. The other game was the Detroit Red Wings and the Colorado Avalanche at Coors Field on Saturday, February 27, 2016, where the Red Wings defeated the Avalanche 5–3. The 61st National Hockey League All-Star Game was held in Nashville, Tennessee at Bridgestone Arena, home of the Nashville Predators, on January 31, 2016. The All-Star Game adopted a new, three-on-three tournament format; there were three 20-minute games, with four All-Star teams based on the league's four divisions. The Atlantic Division All-Stars faced the Metropolitan Division All-Stars, while the Central Division All-Stars played against the Pacific Division All-Stars. The winners of these two games then met in an All-Star Game Final. Had a tie remained after 20 minutes, then it would have immediately gone to a shootout to determine the winner; there would be no standard overtime. The Pacific Division All-Stars, led by fan-voted captain and MVP John Scott, won the tournament, beating the Atlantic All-Stars in the finals Three games were postponed due to the January 2016 United States blizzard: the Anaheim Ducks–Washington Capitals game originally scheduled for January 22, the Philadelphia Flyers–New York Islanders game originally scheduled for January 23, and the Pittsburgh Penguins–Washington Capitals game originally scheduled for January 24. The Penguins–Capitals game was rescheduled for March 1, while the Ducks–Capitals and Flyers–Islanders games were rescheduled for April 10. Tie Breakers: 1\. Fewer number of games played. 2\. Greater Regulation + OT Wins (ROW) 3\. Greatest number of points earned in head-to-head play (If teams played an unequal # of head-to-head games, the result of the first game on the home ice of the team with the extra home game is discarded.) 4\. Greater Goal differential The following players led the league in regular season points at the conclusion of games played on April 10, 2016. The following goaltenders led the league in regular season goals against average at the conclusion of games played on April 10, 2016, while playing at least 1800 minutes. Awards were presented at the NHL Awards ceremony, to be held following the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs. Finalists for voted awards are announced during the playoffs and winners are presented at the award ceremony. Voting will conclude immediately after the end of the regular season. The Presidents' Trophy, the Prince of Wales Trophy and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl are not presented at the awards ceremony. The Lester Patrick Trophy is announced during the summer and presented in the fall. The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game during the 2015–16 season, listed with their first team. The following is a list of players of note who played their last NHL game in 2015–16, listed with their team: On November 21, 2015, San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau scored his 1,000th career point, becoming the 83rd player in league history to reach this milestone., On November 27, 2015, Arizona Coyotes coach Dave Tippett won his 500th game, becoming the 22nd coach in league history to reach this milestone., On December 19, 2015, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Phil Kessel played his 500th consecutive game, becoming the 23rd player in league history to reach this milestone., On January 4, 2016, Colorado Avalanche forward Jarome Iginla scored his 600th NHL goal, becoming the 19th player in league history to reach this milestone., On January 10, 2016, Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin scored his 500th NHL goal, becoming the 43rd player in league history to reach this milestone., On January 14, 2016, Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville won his 783rd game, surpassing Al Arbour to become the second winningest coach in league history., On January 21, 2016, Vancouver Canucks forward Daniel Sedin scored his 347th NHL goal, surpassing Markus Naslund for most goals in franchise history., On January 26, 2016, San Jose Sharks forward Joe Thornton scored his 1,300th career point, becoming the 33rd player in league history to reach this milestone., On February 4, 2016, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr scored his 1,100th career assist, becoming the sixth player in league history to reach this milestone., On February 13, 2016, Boston Bruins coach Claude Julien won his 500th game, becoming the 23rd coach in league history to reach this milestone., On February 20, 2016, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr scored his 742nd career goal, surpassing Brett Hull to become third in career goals., On March 7, 2016, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr scored his 1,851st career point, surpassing Gordie Howe to become third in career points., On March 7, 2016, Los Angeles Kings center Jeff Carter scored his 300th NHL goal., On March 14, 2016, Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick recorded his 41st career shutout, surpassing both Frank Brimsek and John Vanbiesbrouck to become the all-time shutout leader for U.S.-born goaltenders., On April 2, 2016, Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff won his 700th game, becoming the fifth coach in league history to reach this milestone., For the first time in the history of the NHL, Canadian-born players do not comprise a majority the league's players. Of the 680 players who appeared in games over the course of the first two weeks of the season, 49.7 percent were born in Canada, while 24.2 percent were American-born. A record 9.1 percent were from Sweden, and 4.5 percent from Russia. The Anaheim Ducks made a minor change to their home jersey. They changed the collar laces from black to white. The team also unveiled their new third jersey; the jersey shows a modern Ducks re-colouring of the old Mighty Ducks of Anaheim logo used from the 1993-94 season to the 2005–06 season. The jersey is primarily orange with black and bronze striping. On both shoulders it features the teams current primary logo and on one side of the collar it features the team's wordmark "ANAHEIM"., The Arizona Coyotes began using new home and away jerseys. The primary logo stays the same. The jerseys have added a large black stripe on each arm running from just below the shoulder to the elbow. From there it is red-white-red before it runs white right to the cuff. There's a single hem stripe, black on homes and red on the whites. The home red features a new shoulder patch, a beige/sand coyote paw print with a black "A" on it. The road white features a modernized "AZ/map" patch, with the font updated to match the new team wordmark. The pants are black, socks are red, black and white similar to the striping on each arm. The new home and away jerseys replace the home and away jerseys that the Coyotes unveiled last year., The Boston Bruins unveiled their new 2016 NHL Winter Classic uniform. The jersey is based on their jersey they wore during the 1924-25 season. The colors have been modernized as black is the primary color, gold and brown as the secondary colors. Two gold horizontal stripes are on each arm and one across the waist. The "Boston" wordmark arched over an illustrated bear and Bruins, the crest varies only slightly in the layout from the 1924-25 original. The crest colors celebrate both the beginning and modern day color palette of this historic franchise, and are executed in felt and chenille materials, similar to the original crest. The numbers are in your standard jersey semi-serif block lettering, names and numbers are in white or cream. The numbers on the sleeves are located between the two gold horizontal stripes. The 2016 Winter Classic logo appears on one shoulder as a patch., The Buffalo Sabres have scrapped their alternate jersey that was unveiled for the 2013-14 season. In lieu of a third jersey, with special permission from the league, the team will wear their white away jerseys for six home games in this season., The Chicago Blackhawks unveiled a unique jersey for their 2016 NHL Stadium Series game. This jersey is primarily white with black/red/black stripes on the sleeves and socks. The current logo is on the chest. Framed between the two black stripes and over the red stripe on the sleeve is the familiar "C" with crossed tomahawks. The collar of the jersey features two different colors. The four, six-pointed red stars from the Flag of Chicago is featured on the white portion of the collar, while the other side of the collar is black. Sleeve numbers have been shifted to the shoulders and enlarged. With the shoulders being black, the numbering is white. But, the numbering and lettering on the back is also enlarged and black in color., The Colorado Avalanche will replace their "Sasquatch" alternate logo by a re-coloured "CO" from the State of Colorado flag. A new third jersey features the logo of the long-departed Colorado Rockies, set in Avalanche colors and number font. In addition to that, they're marking their 20th anniversary with a patch on the front of their jerseys., The Avalanche will also wear a special jersey, which will be primarily white with black, red and blue also featured for the 2016 NHL Stadium Series. It incorporates the same Colorado 'C' design that was added to the Avalanche jersey designs earlier this year. It also features larger numbers on the back and on the shoulders. The collar features a "5280" call out, referencing the Avalanche's home in the Mile-High City., The Columbus Blue Jackets altered their home and road jerseys slightly. The blue Union Army cap shoulder patch worn from the 2003–04 season until the 2014–15 season was replaced with a new shoulder patch logo. The new shoulder patch logo features the 1857 Napoleon cannon. It is very similar to the club's current third jersey logo, with the only difference is that the logo features the club's primary colors – Navy Blue, Red, Silver and White., The Detroit Red Wings unveiled a unique jersey for their 2016 NHL Stadium Series game. This jersey is primarily red with a diagonal white stripe across the chest. Featured inside the diagonal white stripe is the large red redesigned "D" logo. The current Red Wings logo is featured on one shoulder and the 2016 Stadium Series logo is featured on the other shoulder. The word "EST 1926" is written on the inside rear collar and the word "RED WINGS" is written on one side of the front collar. The jersey also features large numbers on the back and on the shoulder as well as a nameplate featuring arched lettering which is all white in color., The Edmonton Oilers unveiled a new alternate jersey. This new throwback jersey is a remake of the jersey worn by the franchise during their inaugural season as the Alberta Oilers of the World Hockey Association. The jersey is orange with blue and white shoulders and blue/white/blue stripes on the sleeves. The numbers are in the same location as the original WHA jersey on which they are based., The Minnesota Wild unveiled a unique jersey for their 2016 NHL Stadium Series game. This jersey is primarily green with red and beige stripes on the sleeves. Beige is also featured on the shoulders. The current logo is on the chest. On the left shoulder is their "State of Hockey" logo and on the right shoulder is the 2016 Stadium Series logo. The numbering and lettering which are beige in color are enlarged on the sleeve and on the back of the jersey., The Montreal Canadiens made some slight alterations to their home and away jerseys. Four brass hexagonal eyelets and white laces will be reintroduced around the collar, which will also revert to pure white in color. On the team's red home jersey, the French "LNH" logo will be stitched at the nape of the neck, and the lone exception to the English "NHL" on the away jersey. It is very similar to the club's home and away jerseys worn from the 1970–71 season to the 1974–75 season. The new home and away jerseys replace the home and away jerseys worn from the 2007–08 season until the 2014–15 season., The Montreal Canadiens unveiled their 2016 NHL Winter Classic jerseys. The chest stripe is a shade of blue. The "C" is white and the "H" is red, as they were in 1923-24. An image of the globe is on the sleeves that closely resembles the 1925 version. The French "LNH" logo will be stitched near the collar. Other features included into the design are a red collar, red letters, red numbers and red stripes., The Nashville Predators added the 2016 NHL All-Star Game logo as their patch on the front of their jerseys. They hosted it on January 31, 2016., The Nashville Predators normally wear blue helmets with their gold home jerseys, but this season they'll switch to gold helmets for Saturday home games., The New York Islanders unveiled a new alternate jersey. This New Jersey is in black with white trim, with blue and orange relegated to the back collar. The "NY" wordmark from the Stadium Series thirds was moved to the new alternates, sans the chrome accents. The new third jersey replaces the Stadium Series third jerseys the Islanders wore in the 2014–15 season., The New York Islanders added a patch on the right shoulder of the jerseys commemorating their first season in Brooklyn. In addition to that, they have also added a left shoulder "Al" patch in memory of former coach Al Arbour who died on August 28, 2015, at the age of 82., The San Jose Sharks added a 25th anniversary patch. The patch features a new, "swimming" Shark with an exposed tail hovering above a diamond-encrusted "25"., The San Jose Sharks unveiled their "heritage jersey." This design is identical to the road jerseys worn from 1991-92 season through 1997-98 season, adapted to the Reebok Edge uniform system., The Washington Capitals added a new alternate jersey to their lineup. The primary color for the uniform is red and closely resembles the team's jersey worn from 1974–75 season through 1994–95 season. The original Capitals wordmark is featured on the front of the jersey with six stars above it and five stars beneath the numbers on each sleeve. The Capitals will wear blue pants and red helmets with their third jerseys. The new third jersey replaces the white third jersey the Capitals wore from the 2011–12 season to the 2014–15 season. 2015–16 NHL transactions, 2015–16 NHL suspensions and fines, 2015–16 NHL Three Star Awards, 2016 NHL playoffs, 2015 in sports, 2016 in sports 2015–16 NHL season Schedule The 2016–17 NHL season was the 100th season of operation (99th season of play) of the National Hockey League. Thirty teams were competing in an 82-game regular season from October 12, 2016, to April 9, 2017. The 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs began on April 12 and concluded on June 11, with the Pittsburgh Penguins winning the Stanley Cup over the Nashville Predators in six games. On June 11, the Pittsburgh Penguins became the first team to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997–98, winning the franchise's fifth Stanley Cup and their third in nine seasons. In December 2015 commissioner Gary Bettman informed teams that he projected the salary cap to be at least $74.5 million for the 2016–17 season, and that it could increase as much as $3.1 million. It was eventually set at $73.1 million. No major rule changes were implemented this season. On June 22, 2016, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman officially announced that the league had approved an expansion team in Las Vegas, Nevada, later christened the Vegas Golden Knights, who were set to begin play in the 2017–18 season. Canadian rightsholder Rogers Media reinstated Ron MacLean as host of Hockey Night in Canada for the 2016–17 season to replace George Stroumboulopoulos, whose introduction in the 2014–15 season was met with mixed reception by viewers. MacLean will host the early game of the weekly doubleheader, with David Amber handling the late games. Alongside HNIC, MacLean continues to host the travelling, Sunday-night Hometown Hockey games on Sportsnet. On June 20, 2016, the Buffalo Sabres announced that it had agreed to a 10-year extension of its regional television rights deal with MSG, which saw the establishment of a joint venture known as MSG Western New York—an expansion of MSG's existing regional feed for the Sabres' market which contains additional team- produced programming for the Sabres and their sister NFL team, the Buffalo Bills. There were no on-air changes in staffing for Sabres telecasts. On June 27, 2016, Sports Business Daily reported that the NHL had reached a deal in principle with Fox Sports to allow in-market, authenticated online streaming for eligible pay TV subscribers, of regional NHL games on Fox Sports Networks via the Fox Sports Go service. On September 27, 2016, the NHL announced that it would organize a series of initiatives and events throughout 2017 to mark the league's 100th year of operations, and the upcoming 2017-18 season, which will be the NHL's 100th season of play. The campaign began with the NHL Centennial Classic outdoor game on January 1, 2017, and will continue throughout the calendar year, including documentaries and a daily "Time Capsule" feature across NHL media properties, a "Centennial Truck Tour" with a traveling museum and other activities that will visit each NHL market over the course of the year, a 2017 Winter Classic-themed float appearing during the Tournament of Roses Parade, and the unveiling of the top 100 players during the weekend of the All-Star Game, and the top 100 moments of the league's history later in the year. A centennial emblem was designed, which features a banner wrapped around the number 100 with the current NHL shield in the foreground. Both the banner and the number 100 are in same silver colour as the NHL shield. Since January 1, this emblem has been featured on all game pucks, and as shoulder patches on all jerseys. The centennial campaign extends into the following 2017-18 season. On March 17, 2017, the NHL announced that the Ottawa Senators would host an outdoor game against the Montreal Canadiens, the NHL 100 Classic, at TD Place Stadium on December 16, 2017. (*) Indicates interim. This is the Edmonton Oilers' first season at Rogers Place replacing their old arena, Rexall Place. The team played its first regular season home game on October 12, 2016, against the Calgary Flames., This was the Detroit Red Wings' final season at Joe Louis Arena before moving into their new arena, Little Caesars Arena, in October 2017 in time for the 2017–18 NHL season., The Pittsburgh Penguins' home arena was renamed from "Consol Energy Center" to PPG Paints Arena on October 4, 2016, although previous rights owner Consol Energy will remain a corporate sponsor with the Penguins., The Buffalo Sabres' home arena was renamed to KeyBank Center, following KeyCorp's acquisition of previous rights holder First Niagara Bank. This is the fourth name change for the arena since it opened in 1996, all related to bank mergers. The regular season began on October 12, 2016, and ended on April 9, 2017. The playoffs began on April 12, 2017, and ended on June 11, 2017. The schedule was released on June 21, 2016. Each team will receive a five-day "bye week" and no practices can be held during the time period. Four outdoor games were played during the 2016–17 season. The Winnipeg Jets hosted the Heritage Classic against the Edmonton Oilers at Investors Group Field on October 23, 2016. The Oilers won the game, 3–0. The Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Centennial Classic at BMO Field on January 1, 2017, against the Detroit Red Wings. The game commemorated the 100th season of the Maple Leafs and NHL as a whole. The following Monday, January 2, 2017, the St. Louis Blues hosted the Winter Classic at Busch Stadium against the Chicago Blackhawks. On February 25, 2017, the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 4–2 at Heinz Field in the Stadium Series game. The 62nd National Hockey League All-Star Game was held in Los Angeles at Staples Center, home of the Los Angeles Kings, on January 29, 2017. The format was identical to the 2016 All-Star Game. The Detroit Red Wings – Carolina Hurricanes game scheduled for December 19, 2016, at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, was postponed due to poor ice conditions. The game was rescheduled for March 27, 2017. This resulted in the two teams playing in Raleigh on consecutive nights, as they were already scheduled to play each other on March 28, and caused Detroit to play games on three consecutive nights. The Winnipeg Jets – New Jersey Devils game scheduled for March 14, 2017, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, was postponed due to the effects of the March 2017 nor'easter. The game was rescheduled for March 28. This resulted in both teams forfeiting a three-day break from March 27 to 29. Tie Breakers: 1\. Fewer number of games played. 2\. Greater Regulation + OT Wins (ROW) 3\. Greatest number of points earned in head-to-head play (If teams played an unequal # of head-to-head games, the result of the first game on the home ice of the team with the extra home game is discarded.) 4\. Greater Goal differential The following players led the league in regular season points at the conclusion of games played on April 9, 2017. The following goaltenders led the league in regular season goals against average at the conclusion of games played on April 9, 2017, while playing at least 1800 minutes. Awards were presented at the NHL Awards ceremony, to be held following the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. Finalists for voted awards are announced during the playoffs and winners are presented at the award ceremony. Voting will conclude immediately after the end of the regular season. The Presidents' Trophy, the Prince of Wales Trophy and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl are not presented at the awards ceremony. The Lester Patrick Trophy is announced during the summer and presented in the fall. The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game during the 2016–17 season, listed with their first team. The following is a list of players of note who played their last NHL game in 2016–17, listed with their team: On October 12, 2016, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews became the first player in the modern era to score four goals in his NHL debut., On October 18, 2016, Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa became the 44th player in league history to score 500 goals., On October 20, 2016, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr became the third player in league history to score 750 goals., On October 23, 2016, Minnesota Wild forward Zach Parise scored his 300th goal., On November 1, 2016, St. Louis Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester played his 1,000th NHL game. becoming the 307th player in league history to reach the mark., On November 8, 2016, New York Rangers forward Rick Nash became the 92nd player in league history to score 400 goals., On November 12, 2016, Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price became the first goaltender in league history to win his first 10 games of the season., On November 20, 2016, Los Angeles Kings forward Jeff Carter scored his 600th point., On December 8, 2016, Dallas Stars forward Jamie Benn scored his 200th goal., On December 10, 2016, Ottawa Senators forward Chris Neil played his 1,000th NHL game. becoming the 308th player in league history to reach the mark., On December 10, 2016, Colorado Avalanche forward Jarome Iginla participated in his 1,500th NHL game becoming the 16th player to do so., On December 11, 2016, Minnesota Wild forward Eric Staal scored his 800th point., On December 18, 2016, Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella won his 500th game, becoming the first American-born coach, as well as 24th overall, with 500 victories., On December 22, 2016, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr scored his 1,888th career point, surpassing Mark Messier to become second in career points., On December 22, 2017, Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar scored his 700th point., On December 23, 2016, Arizona Coyotes forward Shane Doan scored his 400th goal and played his 1,500th game with the Coyotes., On December 27, 2016, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin scored his 800th point., On December 29, 2016, Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane scored his 700th point., On December 31, 2016, New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist recorded his 390th career win, surpassing Dominik Hasek to become the all-time wins leader among European-born goaltenders., On January 2, 2017, St. Louis Blues forward Alexander Steen scored his 500th point., On January 7, 2017, San Jose Sharks forward Joe Pavelski scored his 600th point., On January 11, 2017, Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin became the 84th player in league history to score 1,000 points., On January 13, 2017, New York Islanders forward John Tavares scored his 500th point., On January 14, 2017, Boston Bruins forward David Krejci scored his 500th point., On January 20, 2017, Vancouver Canucks forward Henrik Sedin became the 85th player in league history to score 1,000 points., On January 22, 2017, Nashville Predators head coach Peter Laviolette won his 500th game, becoming the 25th coach, and second American-born, to reach the mark., On February 2, 2017, San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau became the 45th player in league history to score 500 goals., On February 3, 2017, New York Islanders forward Jason Chimera played his 1,000th game, becoming the 309th player in league history to reach the mark., On February 11, 2017, New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist became the 12th goaltender in league history to win 400 games., On February 11, 2017, Washington Capitals forward Nicklas Backstrom scored his 700th point., On February 14, 2017, Dallas Stars forward Jamie Benn scored his 500th point., On February 15, 2017, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr scored his 1,900th point., On February 16, 2017, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby became the 86th player in league history to score 1,000 points., On February 18, 2017, Chicago Blackhawks forward Jonathan Toews scored his 600th point., On February 19, 2017, Minnesota Wild forward Mikko Koivu scored his 600th point., On February 19, 2017, Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane became the first American-born player in league history to score 20 or more goals in his first 10 seasons., On February 26, 2017, Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith scored his 500th point., On February 26, 2017, Arizona Coyotes forward Radim Vrbata scored his 600th point., On February 28, 2017, Washington Capitals head coach Barry Trotz won his 700th game, becoming the sixth coach to reach the mark., On March 6, 2017, San Jose Sharks forward Joe Thornton became the 13th player in league history to reach 1,000 assists., On March 9, 2017, Arizona Coyotes forward Radim Vrbata played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 310th player in league history to reach the mark., On March 13, 2017, the Calgary Flames won their tenth consecutive game, joining the Columbus Blue Jackets (16 games), Minnesota Wild (12) and Philadelphia Flyers (10), marking the 2016–17 season as the first with a win streak of 10 or more games from four teams., On March 16, 2017, Los Angeles Kings forward Dustin Brown scored his 500th point., On March 18, 2017, Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf scored his 800th point., On March 19, 2017, Minnesota Wild forward Eric Staal played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 311th player in league history to reach the mark., On March 19, 2017, Winnipeg Jets forward Blake Wheeler scored his 500th point., On March 19, 2017, Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr played his 1,700th NHL game, becoming the fourth player in league history to reach the mark., On March 27, 2017, Buffalo Sabres forward Brian Gionta played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 312th player in league history to reach the mark., On March 28, 2017, Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby became the third goaltender in league history to record at least 40 wins in three consecutive seasons, joining Martin Brodeur (2005–2008) and Evgeni Nabokov (2007–2010)., On March 28, 2017, Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin scored his 558th career goal, passing Johnny Bucyk for 26th on the NHL's all-time scoring list., On March 28, 2017, Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara scored his 600th point., On April 8, 2017, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews scored his 40th goal of the season, becoming the second rookie since the 2004–05 lockout to reach the milestone and only the fourth teenager in league history to do so., On April 9, 2017, Detroit Red Wings forward Henrik Zetterberg played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 313th player to reach the mark. The Calgary Flames changed alternate jerseys, retiring the script-laden, Western-style alternate used since 2013 in favor of their throwback red uniforms, which had previously been given alternate distinction from 2010 to 2013., The Florida Panthers unveiled a brand new logo and uniform set on June 2, 2016, for the 2016–17 season., The Los Angeles Kings unveiled a special third jersey for their 50th anniversary., The Nashville Predators switched to gold helmets full-time when playing at home., The New York Rangers added a shoulder patch to commemorate their 90th anniversary., The Philadelphia Flyers released a special third jersey for their 50th anniversary. The team had previously unveiled a teaser photo of this jersey, showing the 50th anniversary patch on the right shoulder of the uniform. The numbers on the back and sleeves of this jersey are gold, and the main crest is also outlined in gold. The team has also announced a black Stadium Series jersey with orange detailing for its Stadium Series game against the Penguins., The Pittsburgh Penguins return to using black and "Pittsburgh gold" as their primary colors and will debut a new away uniform retiring "Vegas gold" that has been used in at least some capacity since 2000. As with the Flyers, the Penguins are debuting a new Stadium Series jersey for the February 25 outdoor game, this one being predominantly yellow with black sleeves and a keystone-shaped "City of Champions" patch., The Toronto Maple Leafs unveiled a new logo on February 2, 2016, for the team's centennial season. Their new uniforms were unveiled during the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. For the 2017 Centennial Classic, the Leafs wore specially designed jerseys which recalled their history as the Toronto Arenas and Toronto St. Patricks., The Detroit Red Wings joined the Maple Leafs in unveiling Centennial Classic jerseys for the game played on January 1, 2017., Beginning January 1, 2017, all jerseys contain patches of the NHL's centennial emblem, located above or below the numbers on their right sleeves., From February 15, 2017, until the end of the regular season, the Detroit Red Wings wore a commemorative "Mr. I" patch on the shoulder of their jerseys in memory of team owner, Mike Ilitch, who died on February 10, 2017. 2016–17 NHL transactions, 2016–17 NHL suspensions and fines, 2016–17 NHL Three Star Awards, 2016 in sports, 2017 in sports, List of National Hockey League attendance figures (2016-17 season) 2016–17 NHL season schedule The 2017–18 NHL season was the 101st season of operation (100th season of play) of the National Hockey League. With the addition of a new expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, 31 teams competed in an 82-game regular season. The regular season began on October 4, 2017, and ended on April 8, 2018. The 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs began on April 11, 2018, and concluded on June 7, with the Washington Capitals winning their first Stanley Cup in the Finals over the Vegas Golden Knights in five games. On June 22, 2016, the NHL confirmed that it had granted an expansion franchise in the city of Las Vegas to an ownership group led by Bill Foley, whose identity was revealed as the Vegas Golden Knights on November 22. The team plays in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. On April 3, 2017, the NHL announced that, after five Olympic tournaments in which the NHL allowed its players to participate in the event, it would not do so for the men's hockey tournament at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Furthermore, the league did not include a break for the Olympics in its schedule, and scheduled its All-Star Game as usual for late-January shortly prior to the Olympics (historically, the All-Star Game was not played during Olympic years). Each team's mandatory bye week, stipulated in the league's CBA, was also scattered throughout the month of January. The restriction will apply to any player under NHL contract, including those in its affiliated minor leagues, but not to players signed to one-way contracts directly with the teams in those minor leagues nor players signed to entry- level contracts who are playing junior ice hockey. Several players had vowed to participate anyway, most notably Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin. They did not wind up participating. The league had initially stated that minor league prospects would not be subject to the ban. As the league had little legal room to enforce a ban itself without running afoul of the National Hockey League Players' Association, the league instead colluded with the International Ice Hockey Federation, who agreed to establish a blacklist forbidding the national teams from offering invitations to players under NHL contracts. Players with Olympic aspirations who were free agents, especially those whose NHL prospects were marginal, were advised not to sign NHL contracts and, if they wished to play professionally, sign directly with minor league clubs to maintain Olympic eligibility. Former Buffalo Sabres captain Brian Gionta and former Olympian Jarome Iginla were among those who opted not to sign NHL contracts for the season prior to the Olympics; Iginla, because of a lingering injury, would not go to the Olympics. On June 18, 2017, the National Hockey League Players' Association announced that the salary cap would be set at $75 million per team for the 2017–18 season. The NHL Board of Governors passed some new rules that take effect this season, including: coach's challenge of offside - the original rule was put in place after a series of highly blatant off-side calls had been missed. The rule soon became a huge time waster, often requested by coaches whose team had allowed a goal wanting a review of the exact millimeter that a skate and the puck pass the blue line. To reduce the number of coach's challenges, there is now a two-minute penalty for delay of game if the review does not result in an offside being overturned., no timeouts after icing - as a team that causes an icing is not allowed to change the players on the ice, coaches took to calling their 30-second timeout to allow their players to rest, getting around the intent of the "no-changes" rule. This rule change eliminates that practice., touching high-sticked puck by power play team - previously, if a team on the man advantage played a puck after it was high-sticked, no matter where on the ice this happened, the play was stopped and the faceoff come all the way back to their own zone. This has been adjusted slightly so that, if the infraction happens in the short handed team's zone, the faceoff would only be moved back to the neutral zone just outside the short handed team's zone. The Board of Governors has also stated that existing rules be fully enforced in certain situations that had become "unofficially" ignored: enforcement of slashing rules - not a rule change as such, referees are now expected to enforce the existing two-minute penalty for slashing when players chop at the wrists and hands of a puck carrier. This follows a series of injuries - including a partially chopped-off finger - for this common practice that was rarely being penalized., faceoff infractions - not a rule change as such, referees are now expected to enforce the existing two-minute penalty for improper stance by a player taking a faceoff. This follows an extensive period where players have not been standing with their feet properly placed within the limits of the markings by the dot, with their bodies square to the end boards. This was the seventh season under the NHL's ten-year U.S. rights deal with NBC Sports, and the fourth season of its twelve-year Canadian rights deals with Sportsnet and TVA Sports. On December 19, 2017, Rogers Media renewed its sub- licensing agreement with CBC Television for Hockey Night in Canada (which was to expire after this season) through the remainder of its tenure as national rightsholder. Since CBC and NBC also hold the rights to air the Olympics in their respective countries, Rogers did not schedule any HNIC games on CBC during those Saturdays nights, only airing games on City and Sportsnet. NBC originally decided not to air any NHL games at all during the Olympics, but later reversed course, and added three Sunday afternoon telecasts during the Olympics. AT&T; SportsNet Rocky Mountain (which, along with AT&T; SportsNet Pittsburgh, the regional broadcaster of the Pittsburgh Penguins, re-branded from Root Sports over the off-season) was the inaugural regional television rightsholder for the Vegas Golden Knights. TSN re-gained regional English- language rights to the Montreal Canadiens, and extended its radio contract for co-owned CKGM. Rogers Media acquired the radio rights to the Vancouver Canucks for newly acquired 650 CISL. The NHL's centennial commemorations continued into the 2017–18 season, as its 100th season of play. On March 17, 2017, the NHL announced that it would hold an outdoor game at TD Place Stadium between the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens on December 16, 2017, to formally mark the 100th anniversary of their first NHL game. The Toronto Maple Leafs marked the centennial of the NHL's first game (which involved their predecessor, the Toronto Arenas) with a "Next Century Game" on December 19, 2017 against the Carolina Hurricanes; the team wore special Toronto Arenas jerseys, and season ticket holders were encouraged to donate their tickets to the MLSE Foundation to allow students to attend this matinee game. Mayor of Toronto John Tory also declared December 19 "Toronto Maple Leafs Day". On March 30, 2017, it was announced that the Los Angeles Kings and Vancouver Canucks would play two preseason games in China; on September 21 at Mercedes- Benz Arena in Shanghai and September 23 at the Beijing Wukesong Culture & Sports Center in Beijing. These were the first NHL games played in China. This was the first NHL season since the 1966–67 season in which no coaching changes took place during the regular season. The Detroit Red Wings moved to Little Caesars Arena, replacing their longtime home, the Joe Louis Arena., The Vegas Golden Knights played their inaugural season at T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada., The Washington Capitals' home arena was renamed from Verizon Center to Capital One Arena., The Winnipeg Jets' home arena was renamed from MTS Centre to Bell MTS Place in observance of the BCE Inc. acquisition of Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS) earlier in the year. The regular season began on October 4, 2017, and ended on April 8, 2018. Each team received a five-day "bye week", all of which took place in mid-January. Two regular season games between the Colorado Avalanche and the Ottawa Senators were played at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden on November 10 and 11, 2017, branded as the SAP NHL Global Series. The NHL 100 Classic was held on December 16, 2017, at TD Place Stadium in Lansdowne Park, Ottawa, featuring the Montreal Canadiens against the Ottawa Senators., The Winter Classic was held on January 1, 2018, at Citi Field in Flushing, New York, with the New York Rangers playing the Buffalo Sabres., A Stadium Series game was held on March 3, 2018, at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland, featuring two of last season's playoff teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Washington Capitals. The 63rd National Hockey League All-Star Game was held in Tampa, Florida at Amalie Arena, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning, on January 28, 2018. The format did not change, and followed the format used in two previous All-Star games. The Florida Panthers – Boston Bruins game scheduled for January 4, 2018, at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, was postponed due to the effects of the January 2018 nor'easter. The game was rescheduled for April 8, the day after the regular season was originally scheduled to end. Tie Breakers: 1\. Fewer number of games played. 2\. Greater Regulation + OT Wins (ROW) 3\. Greatest number of points earned in head-to-head play (If teams played an unequal # of head-to-head games, the result of the first game on the home ice of the team with the extra home game is discarded.) 4\. Greater Goal differential The following players led the league in regular season points at the conclusion of games played on April 7, 2018. The following goaltenders led the league in regular season goals against average at the conclusion of games played on April 8, 2018, while playing at least 1,800 minutes. The league's awards were presented at the NHL Awards ceremony, that was held following the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs on June 20 at the Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. Finalists for voted awards were announced during the playoffs and winners were presented at the award ceremony. Voting concluded immediately after the end of the regular season. The Presidents' Trophy, the Prince of Wales Trophy and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl are not presented at the awards ceremony. The Lester Patrick Trophy is announced during the summer and presented in the fall. For the first time, the Professional Hockey Writers' Association voted to release each voters' ballot to the public after the awards ceremony. The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game during the 2017–18 season, listed with their first team. The following is a list of players of note who played their last NHL game in 2017–18, listed with their team: On October 4, 2017, Philadelphia Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds scored his 400th point., On October 4, 2017, San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns scored his 500th point., On October 5, 2017, Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Sharp scored his 600th point., On October 7, 2017, Anaheim Ducks forward Antoine Vermette scored his 500th point., On October 15, 2017, Philadelphia Flyers forward Valtteri Filppula played in his 800th career NHL game., On October 15, 2017, New York Islanders forward Andrew Ladd scored his 500th point., On October 17, 2017, Vancouver Canucks forward Thomas Vanek scored his 700th point., On October 18, 2017, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Patrick Marleau played his 1,500th NHL game, becoming the 18th player to do so., On October 19, 2017, St. Louis Blues forward Paul Stastny scored his 600th point., On October 19, 2017, Philadelphia Flyers forward Dale Weise played in his 400th career NHL game., On October 20, 2017, Winnipeg Jets forward Blake Wheeler scored his 200th goal., On October 20, 2017, Winnipeg Jets head coach Paul Maurice won his 600th game, becoming the 17th coach to reach the mark., On October 20, 2017, Detroit Red Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall played in his 800th NHL game., On October 21, 2017, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos scored his 600th point., On October 24, 2017, Philadelphia Flyers forward Jakub Voracek scored his 500th point., On October 24, 2017, Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier scored his 200th point., On October 26, 2017, New York Rangers forward Rick Nash played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 314th player to reach the mark., On October 26, 2017, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Phil Kessel scored his 300th goal., On November 2, 2017, San Jose Sharks forward Joe Thornton scored his 1,400th career point, becoming the 20th player in league history to reach this milestone., On November 4, 2017, St. Louis Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko scored his 300th point., On November 4, 2017, Anaheim Ducks forward Andrew Cogliano played his 800th consecutive game, becoming the 4th player in league history to reach this milestone., On November 10, 2017, Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby reached his 200th NHL win, becoming the second-fastest goaltender to reach this mark., On November 15, 2017, Anaheim Ducks forward Antoine Vermette played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 315th player to reach the mark., On November 24, 2017, Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Giroux scored his 700th point., On November 30, 2017, Vancouver Canucks forward Daniel Sedin became the 87th player in league history to score 1,000 points., On December 1, 2017, San Jose Sharks forward Joe Pavelski scored his 300th goal., On December 1, 2017, Carolina Hurricanes forward Justin Williams scored his 700th point., On December 4, 2017, Boston Bruins forward David Backes scored his 500th point., On December 5, 2017, Montreal Canadiens defenseman Shea Weber scored his 500th point., On December 5, 2017, Los Angeles Kings forward Marian Gaborik scored his 400th goal and 800th point., On December 12, 2017, Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward recorded his 300th win, becoming the 32nd goaltender to reach the mark., On December 13, 2017, Dallas Stars goaltender Kari Lehtonen recorded his 300th win, becoming the 33rd goaltender to reach the mark., On December 15, 2017, Buffalo Sabres forward Jack Eichel scored his first NHL hat trick in a 5–4 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes., On December 15, 2017, Los Angeles Kings forward Marian Gaborik played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 316th player to reach the mark., On December 18, 2017, Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan Strome scored the 10,000th goal in Oilers history., On December 19, 2017, Toronto Maple Leafs forward James van Riemsdyk scored the 20,000th goal in Maple Leafs history., On December 21, 2017, Dallas Stars head coach Ken Hitchcock became the 3rd coach in league history to reach 800th wins., On December 21, 2017, Los Angeles Kings forward Dustin Brown played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 317th player to reach the mark and the 30th to play 1,000 games with one franchise., On December 23, 2017, Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane scored his 300th goal., On December 30, 2017, Detroit Red Wings forward Frans Nielsen recorded his 47th shootout goal, making him the all-time leader in shootout goals., On December 31, 2017, Detroit Red Wings forward Gustav Nyquist scored his 100th goal., On January 6, 2018, Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron scored his 700th point., On January 12, 2018, Carolina Hurricanes forward Jordan Staal scored his 200th goal., On January 14, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Phil Kessel scored his 700th point., On January 16, 2018 New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist became the first goaltender to win 20 games in 13 consecutive NHL seasons., On January 17, 2018, Dallas Stars head coach Ken Hitchcock became the fourth coach in league history to coach 1,500 games., On January 17, 2018, Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf recorded his 600th assist., On January 20, 2018, Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane scored his 800th point., On January 20, 2018, Minnesota Wild forward Matt Cullen scored his 700th point., On January 25, 2018, Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin recorded his 500th assist., On January 30, 2018, San Jose Sharks forward Logan Couture scored his 200th goal., On January 30, 2018, Dallas Stars defenseman Dan Hamhuis played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 318th player to reach the mark., On February 2, 2018, Minnesota Wild defenseman Ryan Suter recorded his 400th assist., On February 4, 2018, Montreal Canadiens forward Tomas Plekanec scored his 600th point., On February 6, 2018, Washington Capitals centre Nicklas Backstrom scored his 200th career goal., On February 9, 2018, NHL Linesman Ryan Galloway officiated his 1,000th NHL game., On February 12, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby recorded his 400th goal, becoming the 95th player to reach that milestone., On February 13, 2018, New York Islanders forward John Tavares scored his 600th point., On February 15, 2018, Nashville Predators forward Scott Hartnell scored his 700th point., On February 17, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin scored his 900th point., On February 17, 2018, Washington Capitals head coach Barry Trotz became the fifth coach in league history to coach 1,500 games., On February 17, 2018, Calgary Flames defensemen Dougie Hamilton played in his 400th game., On February 20, 2018, Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar played his 900th game and scored his 800th point., On February 22, 2018, Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne reached his 300th win, becoming the 34th goaltender to reach the mark., On February 22, 2018, Minnesota Wild forward Eric Staal scored his 900th point., On February 22, 2018, Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner scored his 200th point., On February 22, 2018, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Nazem Kadri scored his 300th point., On February 27, 2018, Boston Bruins forward Rick Nash scored his 800th point., On March 1, 2018, Nashville Predators general manager David Poile won his 1,320 game as a general manager, surpassing Glen Sather for most career wins as a general manager., On March 12, 2018, Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin scored his 600th goal, became the 20th player in league history to reach the mark., On March 12, 2018, Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury recorded his 400th win, becoming the 13th goaltender to reach the mark., On March 21, 2018, Calgary Flames forward Matt Stajan played in his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 319th player to reach the mark., On March 21, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby recorded his 700th assist., On March 23, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Justin Schultz played in his 400th career NHL game., On March 27, 2018, Detroit Red Wings defenceman Niklas Kronwall recorded his 400th career NHL point., On March 29, 2018, Chicago Blackhawks defenceman Brent Seabrook played his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 320th player to reach the mark., On April 1, 2018, Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin played in his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 321st player to reach the mark., On April 1, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Olli Maatta played in his 300th career NHL game., On April 5, 2018, Florida Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo played his 1,000 NHL game, becoming the 322nd player and 3rd goaltender to reach the mark., On April 18, 2018, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby recorded his 173rd career playoff point, passing Mario Lemieux as the Penguins' all-time leading playoff scorer. Adidas became the official apparel provider of the NHL beginning with the 2017–18 season. New or otherwise refreshed jerseys for all teams were unveiled on June 20, 2017., The Ottawa Senators wore helmet stickers honouring former general manager Bryan Murray, who died in August 2017., All jerseys continued to have patches of the NHL's centennial emblem, located above or below the numbers on their right sleeves, for at least up to mid-December and the playing of the NHL 100 Classic., The Toronto Maple Leafs wore Toronto Arenas throwback jerseys during their game on December 19, 2017., The Buffalo Sabres introduced a new third jersey at the 2018 NHL Winter Classic, wearing the uniform for three additional games later in the season. 2017–18 NHL transactions, 2017–18 NHL suspensions and fines, List of 2017–18 NHL Three Star Awards, 2017 in sports, 2018 in sports 2017–18 NHL season schedule

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System of a Down is the eponymous debut studio album by Armenian-American heavy metal band System of a Down, released on June 30, 1998, by American Recordings and Columbia Records. The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on February 2, 2000. Two years later, after the success of System of a Down's next album, Toxicity, the album was later certified platinum. The cover artwork is from a 1928 anti-fascist poster designed by visual artist John Heartfield for the Communist Party of Germany. The text on the original poster is: "A hand has 5 fingers! With these 5 grab the enemy!" This slogan inspired part of the text contained on the back of the System of a Down album: "The hand has five fingers, capable and powerful, with the ability to destroy as well as create". Later, it is written in bold letters: "Open your eyes, open your mouths, close your hands and make a fist" (used later by Serj Tankian in the song "Uneducated Democracy"). System of a Down received acclaim from music critics. Q magazine (10/01, p. 152) - 4 stars out of 5 - "This remains an excellent starting point for this most curious band". The album is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Loudwire included the album in its list of The Best Metal Debut Albums, at number 22. All lyrics written by Serj Tankian, except where noted, and all music written by Daron Malakian, except where noted. The songs "Honey" and "Temper" from Demo Tape 2 were recorded for this album as well but ultimately did not make the cut. The re-recorded versions of these songs have yet to surface anywhere. System of a Down Serj Tankian – vocals, keyboards, samples, Daron Malakian – guitars, vocals, Shavo Odadjian – bass, John Dolmayan – drums Production Produced by Rick Rubin with System of a Down, Mixed by D. Sardy, Engineered by Sylvia Massy, Engineer/Assistant Engineer: Greg Fidelman, Additional Recording/Finishing Touches: D. Sardy, Assistant Engineers: Sam Storey, Nick Raskulinecz, Assistant Mixdown Engineers: James Saez, Greg Gordon, Andy Haller, Second Assistant Mixdown Engineer: Bryan Davis, Extra piano by Rick Rubin, Photography: Anthony Artiaga, Cover Art: John Heartfield, Art Direction: Frank Harkins & System of a Down, A&R; Direction: Dino Paredes, Sam Wick, Management: Velvet Hammer Management, David Benveniste, Recorded at Sound City, Van Nuys, CA, Vocals and Additional Recordings at Akademie Mathematique of Philosophical Sound Research, Hollywood, CA, Mixed at Record Plant Studios, Hollywood, CA & Hollywood Sound, CA, Mastered by Vlado Meller at Sony Studios, New York, NY Before some of the lyrics in the booklet for the album, footnotes appear. "Spiders" : "Your thoughts, and dreams are no longer sacred, as they are exposed to aweapon known as remote viewing and monitoring." "DDevil" : "For those that control the central nervous system,control society, and the world." "War?" : "We first fought the heathens in the name of religion, then Communism, and now inthe name of drugs and terrorism. Our excuses for global domination always change." "Mind" : "Mind control technology has been used by the CIA since the 1950s as part oftheir non-lethal, covert weapons program." "Peephole" : "The February 18 edition of Britain's NEW SCIENTIST Magazine reports that theGeneva-based World Health Organization suppressed, under political pressure,a report which confirmed that marijuana is safer than either alcohol or tobacco." "Darts" : "Why do old societies hold the pantheon of 12 gods to be true,while modern societies generally have one God?" "P.L.U.C.K." : "System of a Down would like to dedicate this song to the memory of the 1.5million victims of the Armenian Genocide, perpetrated by the TurkishGovernment in 1915." In the booklet, underneath the band member's photos, the text reads in all capitals: "Announce your anthems on the ceiling. We dance, annexed by power. Casual neckties embrace, the hungry hunger further, images rule through the media, commercial Orwellianism, producing unveiled icebergs, running transparent electrical cables, curving string ensembles, witnessed by hangings from flagpoles of souls avenged by Dr. Clock. Fresh paint, naked melting figures mixing the revolution against T.V. sentencing, at the hands of brutal men and their military business world. Let us instigate the revolt, down with the system!" This message was also found in some of the Toxicity booklets. System of a Down is an heavy metal band from Glendale, California, formed in 1994. The band currently consists of Serj Tankian (lead vocals, keyboards), Daron Malakian (vocals, guitar), Shavo Odadjian (bass, backing vocals) and John Dolmayan (drums). The band achieved commercial success with the release of five studio albums, three of which debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200. System of a Down has been nominated for four Grammy Awards, and their song "B.Y.O.B." won a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2006. The band went on hiatus in 2006 and reunited in 2010; since then, they have performed live occasionally despite having not released any new material since the Mezmerize and Hypnotize albums in 2005. System of a Down has sold over 40 million records worldwide, while two of their singles "Aerials" and "Hypnotize" reached number one on Billboards Alternative Songs chart. Serj Tankian and Daron Malakian attended Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School as children, although due to their eight-year age difference they did not meet until 1992 while working on separate projects at the same recording studio. They formed a band named Soil with Tankian on vocals and keyboards, Malakian on vocals and guitar, Dave Hakopyan (who later played in The Apex Theory/Mt. Helium) on bass and Domingo "Dingo" Laranio on drums. The band hired Shavo Odadjian (another Rose and Alex Pilibos alumnus) as manager, although he eventually joined Soil as rhythm guitarist. In 1994, after only one live show at the Roxy and one jam session recording, Hakopyan and Laranio left the band. After Soil split up, Tankian, Odadjian, and Malakian formed a new band, System of a Down. The group took its name from a poem that Malakian had written titled "Victims of a Down". The word "victims" was changed to "system" because Odadjian believed that it would appeal to a much wider audience and also because the group wanted their records to be alphabetically shelved closer to their musical heroes, Slayer. Odadjian switched from guitar to bass and passed on his managerial duties to Velvet Hammer Music and Management Group and its founder David "Beno" Benveniste. The band recruited drummer Ontronik "Andy" Khachaturian, an old school friend of Malakian's and Odadjian's who had played with Malakian in a band called Snowblind during their teens. In early 1995, System played as "Soil" at the Cafe Club Fais Do-Do, a nightclub in Los Angeles. Shortly after the event, System of a Down made what is known as Untitled 1995 Demo Tape, which was not commercially released but appeared on file sharing networks around the time of the band's success with Toxicity about six years later. Demo Tape 2 was released in 1996. At the beginning of 1997, System of a Down recorded their final publicly released demo tape, Demo Tape 3. In mid-1997, drummer Khachaturian left the band because of a hand injury (he subsequently co-founded The Apex Theory, which included former Soil bassist Dave Hakopyan). Khachaturian was replaced by John Dolmayan. The band's first official release of a professionally recorded song was on a collection called Hye Enk ("we're Armenian" in English), an Armenian Genocide recognition compilation, in 1997. Soon after playing at notable Hollywood clubs such as the Whisky-A-Go-Go and Viper Room the band caught famed producer Rick Rubin's attention who asked them to keep in touch with him. Showing great interest, the group recorded Demo Tape 4 near the end of 1997. Unlike the previous demo tapes, however, Demo Tape 4 was made only to be sent to record companies (although it has since been leaked onto the internet). Rubin signed the group onto his American/Columbia Records, and System of a Down began to record in Rubin's studio with engineer Sylvia Massy, laying down tracks that would eventually be released on their debut album. Also in 1997, the group won the Best Signed Band Award from the Rock City Awards. In June 1998, System of a Down released their debut album, System of a Down. They enjoyed moderate success as their first singles "Sugar" and "Spiders" became radio favorites and the music videos for both songs were frequently aired on MTV. After the release of the album, the band toured extensively, opening for Slayer and Metallica before making their way to the second stage of Ozzfest. Following Ozzfest, they toured with Fear Factory and Incubus before headlining the Sno-Core Tour with Puya, Mr. Bungle, The Cat and Incubus providing support. In November 1998, System of a Down appeared on South Park's album, providing the music for the song "Will They Die 4 You?" Near the end of the song Tankian can be heard saying, "Why must we kill our own kind?" a line that would later be used in the song "Boom!" Although System of a Down is credited on the album, South Park character Chef does not introduce them as he does every other artist featured on the record. System of a Down's former drummer, Ontronik Khachaturian, briefly reunited with the band at a show at The Troubadour in 1999, filling in on vocals for an ill Tankian. In 2000, the band contributed their cover of the Black Sabbath song "Snowblind" to the Black Sabbath tribute album Nativity in Black 2. On September 3, 2001, System of a Down had planned on launching their second album at a free concert in Hollywood as a "thank you" to fans. The concert, which was to be held in a parking lot, was set up to accommodate 3,500 people; however, an estimated 7,000 to 10,000 fans showed up. Because of the large excess number of fans, the performance was cancelled by police officers just before the group took the stage. No announcement was made that the concert had been cancelled. Fans waited for more than an hour for the group to appear, but when a banner hanging at the back of the stage that read "System of a Down" was removed by security, the audience rushed the stage, destroying all the band's touring gear (approximately $30,000 worth of equipment) and began to riot, throwing rocks at police, breaking windows, and knocking over portable toilets. The riot lasted six hours, during which six arrests were made. The band's manager, David "Beno" Benveniste, later said that the riot could have been avoided if the group had been permitted to perform or had they been allowed to make a statement at the concert regarding the cancellation. System of a Down's scheduled in-store performance the next day was cancelled to prevent a similar riot. The group's big break arrived when their second album, Toxicity, debuted at No. 1 on the American and Canadian charts, despite the events of 9/11. The album has eventually achieved 3x multi-platinum certification in the United States It was still on top in America during the week of the 9/11 attacks and the political environment caused by the attacks added to the controversy surrounding the album's hit single "Chop Suey!" The song was taken off the radio as it contained politically sensitive lyrics according to the 2001 Clear Channel memorandum at the time such as "(I don't think you) trust in my self-righteous suicide." Regardless, the video gained constant play on MTV as did the album's second single, "Toxicity". Even with the controversy surrounding "Chop Suey!" (which earned a Grammy nomination), System of a Down still received constant airplay in the United States throughout late 2001 and 2002 with "Toxicity" and "Aerials". In May 2006, VH1 listed "Toxicity" in the number 14 slot in the 40 Greatest Metal Songs. In 2001, the band went on tour with Slipknot throughout the United States and Mexico. Following a performance in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Odadjian was allegedly harassed, ethnically intimidated, and was physically assaulted by security guards backstage, who then dragged him out of the venue. Odadjian received medical attention from police and later filed a suit against the security company. Despite the incident, the tour was a success and System of a Down and Slipknot went on the Pledge of Allegiance Tour with Rammstein in 2001. In late 2001, unreleased tracks from the Toxicity sessions made their way onto the internet. This collection of tracks was dubbed Toxicity II by fans. The group released a statement that the tracks were unfinished material and subsequently released the final versions of the songs as their third album, Steal This Album!, which was released in November 2002. Steal This Album! resembled a burnable CD that was marked with a felt-tip marker. 50,000 special copies of the album with different CD designs were also released, each designed by a different member of the band. The name of the album is a reference to Abbie Hoffman's counter-culture book, Steal This Book as well as a message to those who leaked the songs onto the internet. The song "Innervision" was released as a promo single and received constant airplay on alternative radio. A video for "Boom!" was filmed with director Michael Moore as a protest against the War in Iraq. Between 2004 and 2005, the group recorded the follow-up to Steal This Album!, a double album, which they released as separate installments six months apart from each other. The releases notably included album cover artwork by Malakian's father, Vartan Malakian, and were designed to connect the two separate album covers. The first album, Mezmerize, was released on May 17, 2005 to favorable reviews by critics. It debuted at No. 1 in the United States, Canada, Australia and all around the world, making it System of A Down's second No. 1 album. First week sales rocketed to over 800,000 copies worldwide. The Grammy Award-winning single "B.Y.O.B.", which questions the integrity of military recruiting in America, worked its way up the Billboard Modern Rock and Mainstream Rock charts. The next single, "Question!" was released with Shavo Odadjian co-directing the music video. Following the release of Mezmerize, the band toured extensively throughout the United States and Canada with The Mars Volta and Bad Acid Trip supporting. The second part of the double album, Hypnotize, was released on November 22, 2005. Like Mezmerize, it debuted at No. 1 in the US, making System of a Down, along with The Beatles, Guns N' Roses, and rappers 2Pac and DMX, the only artists to ever have two studio albums debut at No. 1 in the same year. In February 2006, System of a Down won the Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance for "B.Y.O.B.", beating out other established artists such as Nine Inch Nails and Robert Plant. Their second single off the Hypnotize album, "Lonely Day" was released in March in the United States. System of a Down released "Kill Rock 'N Roll" and "Vicinity of Obscenity" as their next promo singles. The band headlined Ozzfest 2006 in cities where tour founder Ozzy Osbourne opted not to appear or was not playing on the main stage (with the exception of the show at Randall's Island, where Ozzy Osbourne headlined the second stage before System of a Down's performance that night). Whereas on System of a Down's previous albums most of the lyrics were written and sung by Tankian and the music was co- written by Tankian and Malakian (and sometimes Odadjian), much of the music and lyrics on Mezmerize/Hypnotize were written by Malakian who also took on a much more dominant role as vocalist on both albums, often leaving Tankian providing keyboards and backing vocals. System of a Down's song "Lonely Day" was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance in the 49th Grammy Awards in 2007, but lost to "Woman" by Wolfmother. May 2006 saw the UK publication of a biography of the band entitled System of a Down: Right Here in Hollywood by writer Ben Myers. It was published in the US in 2007 through The Disinformation Company. Also in 2006, concert footage and interviews with the band concerning the importance of helping create awareness and recognition of the Armenian Genocide were featured in the film Screamers, directed by Carla Garapedian. An interview with Tankian's grandfather, a survivor of the Genocide, was also included in the film as well as Tankian's and Dolmayan's meeting with (then) Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert during which the two musicians campaigned for the United States government's official recognition of the Genocide. Footage of Tankian and Dolmayan marching with protesters outside the Turkish embassy in Washington D.C. was also used in Screamers. In May also, the band announced they were going on hiatus. Malakian confirmed the break would probably last a few years, which Odadjian specified as a minimum of three years in an interview with Guitar magazine. He told MTV, "We're not breaking up. If that was the case, we wouldn't be doing this Ozzfest. We're going to take a very long break after Ozzfest and do our own things. We've done System for over ten years, and I think it's healthy to take some rest." System of a Down's final performance before their separation took place on August 13, 2006 in West Palm Beach, Florida. "Tonight will be the last show we play for a long time together," Malakian told the crowd during Sunday's last performance. "We'll be back. We just don't know when." During the band's hiatus, Malakian formed a band called Scars on Broadway, which was joined by Dolmayan. After one self-titled album the project became dormant and Dolmayan left the band. However, the band released their long-awaited sophomore album in 2018, under the name Daron Malakian and Scars On Broadway. Dolmayan, alongside working with Scars on Broadway, formed his own band, Indicator, as well as opened Torpedo Comics, an online comic book store. Odadjian pursued his project with RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, a hip-hop group named AcHoZeN, worked on his urSESSION website/record label, and performed as a member of funk legend George Clinton's backing band. Tankian opted for solo career and released his debut solo album Elect the Dead in the autumn of 2007. He has continued releasing solo albums, recording them almost entirely by himself, after System of a Down reunited. On November 29, 2010, following several weeks of Internet rumors, System of a Down officially announced that they would be reuniting for a string of large European festival dates in June 2011. Among the announced tour dates included UK's Download Festival, Switzerland's Greenfield Festival, Germany's Rock am Ring/Rock im Park, Sweden's Metaltown, Austria's Nova Rock Festival and Finland's Provinssirock. The reunion tour commenced on May 10, 2011 in Edmonton, Alberta. System's first tour through Mexico and South America began on September 28, 2011 in Mexico City, ending in Santiago (Chile) on October 7, 2011. From late February to early March 2012, they headlined five dates at Soundwave festival. This was the band's first visit to Australia since 2005. The band have continued playing around the world. On August 11 and 12, 2012, they played the Heavy MTL and Heavy T.O. music festivals in Montreal and Toronto, respectively. In August 2013 System of a Down played at the UK's Reading and Leeds Festivals, among other festivals and venues that year. System of a Down played their only 2013 US performance at the Hollywood Bowl on July 29; tickets sold out hours after going on sale on March 22. On November 23, 2014, System of a Down announced the Wake Up The Souls Tour to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The tour included a free concert in Republic Square in Yerevan, Armenia on April 23, 2015, their first show in the country. In a November 2016 interview with Kerrang!, drummer John Dolmayan revealed that System of a Down was working on more than a dozen songs for their follow- up to the Mezmerize and Hypnotize albums. Although he stated that the band does not know when the album will be released, he added that, "I want everyone on board and feeling good about it. That's what we're trying to accomplish right now. There's a tremendous amount of pressure on us, though, because it's been 11 years—at least 12 by the time it comes out." In a video Q&A; session with fans on July 2, 2017, Shavo Odadjian was asked about the status of the next album, and he responded, "I'm waiting for a new album too. It's not happening. I don't know. I don't know when it's gonna be. Not right now." In a December 2017 interview with Rolling Stone, Serj Tankian said that System of a Down wrote some new material but was uncertain of what to do with it. He then said that he doesn't want to commit to a new album due to the lack of committing to longform touring. In an April 2018 interview, Daron Malakian said that the band did not abandon the idea of making new material, and made a passing mention that System of a Down is not making any music at the moment. Dolmayan said that he is ready to start work on the next album, but that "certain members of my band haven’t been able to make it work for themselves", expressing uncertainty on if it would ever be made. Malakian singled Tankian out as the reason no new album had yet been released. Tankian detailed his view of the band's past and present conflicts and their overall situation, saying "[A]s we couldn’t see eye to eye on all these points we decided to put aside the idea of a record altogether for the time being." Dolmayan blamed all of the members due to the personal and creative differences that have been preventing them from recording a new studio album. Tankian also expressed uncertainty on if the new album would be made or not, but did not rule out the possibility. He then described on how the sound would be, "It's gotta be organic, it's gotta feel right in every way." Odadjian said that the band has material written from "like the last 10, 12 years", but is uncertain on if it would form into a System of a Down album or not. He also said that Malakian and Tankian have visual differences on what the album should sound like, and that the band's inner tension have been building far longer than fans would be aware of, despite having love and respect for one another nonetheless. He would later say that there is no conflict between the members, expressing confidence that System of a Down would eventually record a new album, and claims that they have material written which would be their best to date. However, Tankian stated that there was no talk of the band recording a new album. Malakian explained that there is a mixture between the matter of different creative perspectives for the band's hesitation to record a new studio album and the lack of desire to tour; however he did not dismiss the possibility of an album being made, but that it would likely not happen anytime soon. He feels that the fans don't care that the band isn't making an album, "but I think a lot of the fans just want an album." He expressed hopes that the members would get together and record new music, but is content with the direction of his band Scars on Broadway, noting about the members' good friendship, "But at the same time, I don't see that happening anytime soon that we're all going to get together and make a new System of a Down album." Malakian said that Tankian and the rest of the band members have been unable to come to an agreement over how to go about making new music, but insists that there is no negativity between them. Despite System of a Down's ability to perform live, Odadjian expressed disappointment in the their inability to record new music, explaining that there have been material written from the other members in the form of a possible new album, but without Tankian's presence and no recordings made. He questioned why the band still hasn't made an album, citing creative differences as the problem. With the lack of commitment to record new music, Tankian however, is in favor of releasing a collection of previously unreleased System of a Down songs from the band's past album sessions, but would have to have the other members convinced to release it. System of a Down's lyrics are often oblique or dadaist, and have discussed topics such as drug abuse, politics and sexual intercourse. "Prison Song" criticizes the War on Drugs whereas Rolling Stone describes "Roulette" as a "scared, wounded love letter". "Boom!", among the band's most straightforward and unambiguous songs, lambasts globalization and spending on bombs and armament. Commenting on the track "I-E-A-I-A-I-O", drummer John Dolmayan said it was inspired by an encounter he had with Knight Rider's actor David Hasselhoff in a liquor store in Los Angeles when he was around 12. On Mezmerize, "Cigaro" makes explicit references to phallic imagery and bureaucracy, while "Violent Pornography" harshly views television and degradation of women. System of a Down's discontent towards the controversial Iraq War arises in "B.Y.O.B.", which includes a double entendre reference to both beer and bombs, containing the forthright lyric "Why don't presidents fight the war? Why do they always send the poor?" "Old School Hollywood" describes a celebrity baseball game. On their album "Hypnotize", "Tentative" describes war, "Hypnotize" refers to the Tiananmen Square events and "Lonely Day" describes angst. The album title Steal This Album! is a play on the book Steal This Book by left-wing political activist Abbie Hoffman. System of a Down's firm commitment for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide emerges in two songs: "P.L.U.C.K." and "Holy Mountains", which rank among the band's most political songs. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic stated "Like many late-'90s metal bands System of a Down struck a balance between '80s underground thrash metal and metallic early-'90s alternative rockers like Jane's Addiction". System of a Down's music has variously been termed heavy metal, alternative metal, nu metal, hard rock, progressive metal, thrash metal, art rock and avant-garde metal. Malakian has stated that "We don't belong to any one scene" and that "I don't like the nu-metal drop-A 7-string guitar sound; it is not my thing, at least not yet." In interview with Mike Lancaster, he also said, "People always seem to feel the need to put us into a category, but we just don't fit into any category." According to Tankian, "As far as arrangement and everything, [our music] is pretty much pop. To me, System of a Down isn't a progressive band. [...] But it's not a typical pop project, obviously. We definitely pay attention to the music to make sure that it's not something someone's heard before." The band has used a wide range of instruments, such as electric mandolins, baritone electric guitars, acoustic guitars, ouds, sitars and twelve string guitars. According to Malakian, he would often write songs in E♭ tuning, which would later be changed to drop C tuning in order to be performed by the band. Malakian states that "For me, the drop-C tuning is right down the center. It has enough of the clarity and the crisp sound—most of our riffy stuff is done on the top two strings, anyway—but it's also thicker and ballsier." System of a Down's influences include Middle Eastern music, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Def Leppard, Scorpions, Morbid Angel, Death, Obituary, Eazy-E, N.W.A, Run-DMC, Umm Kulthum, Abdel Halim Hafez, the Bee Gees, Grateful Dead, The Beatles, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dead Kennedys, Metallica, Miles Davis, Alice In Chains, Bad Brains, Slayer, and Kiss. One reviewer claimed that their music encompasses different sounds, from sounding like "Fugazi playing Rush" to sometimes "tread[ing] close to Frank Zappa territory." Malakian has stated that "I'm a fan of music. I'm not necessarily a fan of any one band." Dolmayan stated "I don't think we sound like anybody else. I consider us System of a Down." Odadjian stated "You can compare us to whoever you want. I don't care. Comparisons and labels have no effect on this band. Fact is fact: We are who we are and they are who they are." System of a Down has been nominated for four Grammy Awards, of which has won one in 2006 for Best Hard Rock Performance for the song "B.Y.O.B." The band has also been nominated for several Kerrang! and MTV awards. Current members Serj Tankian – lead vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar, Daron Malakian – lead guitar, co-lead vocals, Shavo Odadjian – bass, backing vocals, John Dolmayan – drums Former members Andy Khachaturian – drums Occasional contributors Arto Tunçboyacıyan – percussion, composition (on Toxicity: "Science" and "ATWA". Steal This Album!: "Bubbles". Some live concerts in 2005, 2013) Timeline System of a Down (1998), Toxicity (2001), Steal This Album! (2002), Mezmerize (2005), Hypnotize (2005) Mezmerize is the fourth studio album by Armenian-American heavy metal band System of a Down, released on May 17, 2005 by American Recordings and Columbia Records. Upon its release, the album received widespread acclaim from critics. Despite the time difference between releases, Mezmerize and Hypnotize were recorded within the same time frame. The album features guitarist Daron Malakian sharing most of the vocal work with vocalist Serj Tankian, splitting the vocals at least halfway on many of the tracks. In 2018, Malakian and Tankian both independently revealed that at the time of recording the two albums, Tankian was almost out of the band. According to Tankian, this was because of differences in creative input and financial revenue split. Malakian wrote "Old School Hollywood" after playing in a celebrity baseball game for charity. The song mentions Tony Danza and Frankie Avalon, who also played in the game. In "Radio/Video", there are lines referring to two people named Danny and Lisa. Malakian commented on the song to Revolver magazine: "My neighbors were Danny and Lisa, who I sing about in "Radio/Video" with System — they had that record [Paul Stanley 1978 solo album] and it ended up at my apartment. I would listen to that record all the time. I first saw Kiss at a relative's house. They were older teenagers and had Kiss all over the walls in their bedrooms. I remember being so afraid of Kiss, and it just stuck. Kiss started the metal attitude, metal theatrics and metal fashion — they contributed to that a lot. I was listening to that album in my car with my girlfriend a few months back. When I put it on, I said: 'This album is extremely special to me.'" In the same interview Daron Malakian talked about "Violent Pornography" "non-stop disco" lines: "I've always been a huge fan of disco music through my life. We have a song called "Violent Pornography" in System of a Down, and the lyrics are: "It's a non-stop disco/Betcha didn't know/Betcha didn't know …" That line means, "I love disco, betcha didn't know." That has nothing to do with the rest of the song, by the way." The Japanese version of the album contains a slightly different mix of "Soldier Side (Intro)" with strings, while the leaked mp3 version of "Cigaro" contains a 4-stick hit intro not present in the retail version. The album artwork is done by Vartan Malakian, the father of guitarist Daron Malakian. Mezmerize was acclaimed by critics, scoring 85 at Metacritic based on 19 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". The album debuted at number one in at least 12 countries, including the US Billboard 200, with 453,000 copies, and has since been certified Platinum by the RIAA. It was chosen as one of Amazon.com's Top 100 Editor's Picks of 2005. The hit single "B.Y.O.B." won a Grammy Award in 2006 for Best Hard Rock Performance. "B.Y.O.B." appeared In , and was DLC for Rock Band 2. All lyrics written by Daron Malakian and Serj Tankian, except where noted. All music written by Daron Malakian, except where noted. System of a Down Serj Tankian – vocals, keyboards, acoustic guitar on "Question!" (uncredited), Daron Malakian – vocals, guitars, bass (uncredited), keyboards (uncredited), Shavo Odadjian – bass, John Dolmayan – drums Vocals Soldier Side - Intro: Daron Malakian and Serj Tankian (both main), B.Y.O.B.: Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice), Revenga: Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice), Cigaro: Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice), Radio/Video: Malakian and Tankian (both main), This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm on this Song: Tankian, Violent Pornography: Malakian and Tankian (both main), Question!: Tankian (main), Malakian (backing vocals), Sad Statue: Malakian and Tankian (both main), Old School Hollywood: Malakian and Tankian (both main), Lost in Hollywood: Malakian (main) and Tankian (second voice) Production Rick Rubin – production, Andy Wallace – mixing, David Schiffman – engineering, Jason Lader – editing, Dana Neilsen – editing, Phillip Broussard – engineering assistance, John O'Mahony – Pro Tools engineering, Steve Sisco – mixing assistance, Joe Peluso – mixing assistance Additional personnel Marc Mann – string arrangements, Vartan Malakian – artwork, Brandy Flower – graphic design

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Kansas State Fair is a State Fair that is held annually in Hutchinson, Kansas, United States. It starts the Friday following Labor Day in September, and lasts for 10 days. This fair is the largest single event in the State, and annually attracts approximately 350,000 people. The fairgrounds is centered at 23rd Ave between Main St and Plum St in Hutchinson, and consists of over 70 buildings on 280 acres. It has full-time year-round staff. In 2019, it was held from September 6 to 15. During the 19th century, the Kansas State Fair was held in Topeka and Wichita. The first fair association was made on January 18, 1873, when the Reno County Agricultural Society was created. On September 23–24, 1873, the society hosted a fair which was held in a small wooden livery stable behind the bank on the northwest corner of Sherman and Main in Hutchinson. Encouraged by the success of this first event, plans began for a bigger fair in 1874, with the society proposing a tax levy to support the event, but voters rejected the idea. Though turned down, the Agricultural Society pushed ahead and found acreage southeast of where the state reformatory would later be located, paid cash for the grounds, and on September 28–30 of 1875, presented the First Annual Reno County Fair. It featured 20 classes for entries, with most awards in the form of certificates, and a few $5 cash prizes. Agricultural exhibitions were also held during 1877. The Reno County Agricultural and Joint Stock Association was incorporated on September 2, 1878. In 1878, new grounds were purchased just north of Eastside Cemetery, and fairs were held there through the early 1880s. Reorganized and renamed the Arkansas Valley Fair Association, the fair was moved back to its previous grounds for the 1885 event. These grounds southeast of the present Hutchinson Correctional Facility grew in the late 1880s and 1890s. New buildings were added nearly every year. A fence surrounded the property and the half-mile racetrack. The present state fair had its beginning on February 7, 1901, when a few men met to talk about organizing a fair association. The board of directors met on April 24, 1901 to elect officers. The name Central Kansas Fair Association was created. The fair was held in 1901 on 50 acres of land, which stretched along the east side of Main Street to Poplar, from 11th Avenue north to 17th Avenue in Hutchinson. The land was leased in trade for 10 percent of the gate receipts and half the concession privileges in 1901. In 1903, the Central Kansas Fair was recognized by an act of the state legislature to give the fair association the license to legitimately call their event "The Kansas State Fair". In 1912, of land north of 17th Avenue and east of Main Street were purchased for expansion. It was decided for bonds to pay for this new land was put to a vote by Reno County voters in April 1913, and won by a margin of 4 to 1. A bill was passed in the Kansas legislature to grant Hutchinson fair monetary support in exchange for the city giving the state the fairgrounds. The first "official" Kansas State Fair was held September 13–20, 1913. The Old Mill was completed for the opening of the 1915 fair. One thousand feet of water-filled channels featured boats which promised to transport passengers through "gloomy caves of gleesome gladness". In 1916, the House of Capper, a covered Veranda, was built. It was formerly a shaded place to rest, the Professional Arts Building, and a bandstand at one time. The Cottonwood Court was built in 1928 and renovated in 2003. The building was originally used as an automobile building, which later became the Commercial Building, the finally the Cottonwood Court. The Grandstand was built in 1930. The Domestic Arts Building was built in 1930 and renovated in 2003. In 1931, a sandpit was landscaped and rename as Lake Talbott. The Encampment Building was built in 1934. It was home to POWs and State Fair Soldiers during WWII. During the fair, tickets can be purchased at gates 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, or any Dillons grocery stores in Kansas, or McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita. In 2019, the admission price during the fair was: Children (under age 6): Free., Children (age 6-12): $6, or $4 advance discount before first day of fair., Adults (age 13-59): $10, or $7 advance., Seniors (age 60+): $6, or $4 advance., Military (military ID): $6, or $4 advance., Exhibitors: $3., On Monday, $1 per person, or free with Dillons Shopper Plus Card. Wheelchair / Stroller / Mobility Cart rentals: Available on a first-come first-serve basis at two locations: south of gate 5 and west of gate 9. The state fair grandstand hosts events every evening, with music concerts, demolition derby, auto races, and truck / tractor pulls. The state fair has over 1,000 commercial exhibit locations; for competition, with over 30,000 entries in various competitive exhibit departments; for education, through its Kansas' Largest Classroom field trip program; and for entertainment with strolling and stage entertainment in addition to the national acts performing at the grandstand. In addition to the annual state fair, the fairgrounds facilities are utilized throughout the year for a wide array of events, including horse and livestock shows, RV rallies, trade shows, flea markets, wedding receptions, family reunions, and company picnics, to name just a few. State fair and Agricultural show, Cosmosphere, space museum, in Hutchinson, Strataca, salt mine museum, in Hutchinson Official Visitor guide: 2019, Fairgrounds map: 2019, 2014, Grandstand map: 2019, 2014, City of Hutchinson map, Kansas Department of Transportation Historical History of the Kansas State Fair, List of Grandstand entertainment from 1913 to 2018, Kansas State Fair premium books 1958 to 2001, State Library of Kansas, Historic Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, KansasMemory.org The Great New York State Fair is a 13-day showcase of agriculture, entertainment, education and technology. With midway rides, concessionaires, exhibits and concerts, it has become New York's largest annual event and an end-of-summer tradition for hundreds of thousands of families from all corners of the state. The first fair took place in Syracuse in 1841 and took permanent residence there in 1890. It is the oldest and one of the largest state fairs in the United States, with over one million visitors annually. The Great New York State Fair begins on the third or fourth Wednesday in August and runs for 13 days, ending on Labor Day. It is held at the Empire Expo Center on the shores of Onondaga Lake, in the town of Geddes, near the western border of Syracuse. The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets owns five of the buildings at the fair and employs its workers. In February 1832, The New York State Agricultural Society was founded in Albany by a group of farmers, legislators, and others to promote agricultural improvement and local fairs. The nation's first state fair was later held in Syracuse from September 29–30, 1841. Attendance was estimated at 10,000-15,000; features included speeches, animal exhibits, a plowing contest, and samples of manufactured farm and home goods. The second New York State Fair was held in Albany in 1842. Between 1842 and 1889, the fair traveled among 11 different cities: Albany, Auburn, Buffalo, Elmira, New York City, Poughkeepsie, Rochester, Saratoga Springs, Syracuse, Utica, and Watertown. In September 1890, the Syracuse Land Company donated a tract of land in Geddes to the Agricultural Society. Crossed by railways that facilitated exhibit transport, the Onondaga County location became the fair's permanent home. In the late 1890s, The Agricultural Society turned to state government for relief from debt due to the construction of permanent buildings on the site. The state purchased the grounds in 1899, and assumed management of the fair the next year, creating an 11-member State Fair Commission appointed by the governor. A $2-million long-term building plan was enacted in 1908, which would last for two decades. During this time, the Manufacturers and Liberal Arts Building, now the Center of Progress Building, was constructed. It was joined by the Dairy Products Building and Grange Building (now the Science & Industry Building) in 1910. During the Great War, the fairgrounds was utilized for military training beginning in May 1917, being designated Camp Syracuse; it trained about 40,000 Soldiers, and was impacted by the Spanish flu in 1918, and closed as a military base in November 1918. The Coliseum was opened in 1923, initially serving as host to the World's Dairy Congress. To address a growing and nostalgic public interest in local history, the Iroquois village exhibit and an agricultural museum were opened in 1928. The fair was re- branded as the New York State Agricultural and Industrial Exposition in 1938, reflecting closer ties to industry, and included an extended 14-day schedule featuring popular entertainment acts. The fairgrounds were used as a military base during World War II between 1942 and 1947; during this period, no fair was held. A truncated fair returned in 1948, followed the next year by a six- day, full-scale exposition, with large crowds. By the end of the 1950s, the fair had expanded to nine days and achieved an attendance of over 500,000. The James E. Strates Midway was added during this time, with nationally known entertainers to attract families and teenagers. In 1967, the 1925 Mighty Wurlitzer Theatre Pipe Organ was permanently installed in the Empire Theatre of the Art & Home Center where it has entertained audiences for over 50 years of music history at the fairgrounds. Between 1962 and 1966, the fair was officially known as New York State Exposition before being named the New York State Fair in 1967. The fair expanded to 10 days in 1978, and the buildings at the fairgrounds began to be rented during the off-season. The fair expanded to 12 days in 1990. During the 1980s and 1990s, fair officials responded to criticism of slim minority presence by adding gospel festivals and a Pan- African village display. Sign language interpreters were also added, and the grounds were made accessible to people with disabilities. On September 7, 1998, the fair closed one day early for the first time, due to the Syracuse Labor Day derecho. Two of the storm's three deaths occurred on the fairgrounds. In 2006, the Industrial Exhibit Authority, a New York state public-benefit corporation that owned 5 of the buildings at the New York State Fair and employed its workers, was disbanded by the New York State Senate and its workers and buildings were transferred to the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. In 2008, fair administration began to focus more on agriculture, with exhibits showcasing products made in New York State, such as the Pride of New York Marketplace and a permanent maple exhibit. The fair changed its Chevy Court format to include two different performers each day in 2009. The Syracuse Crunch hosted the first outdoor game in American Hockey League history on February 20, 2010 at the Fairgrounds and set a league attendance record with 21,508 fans. A record of 206,000 fairgoers attend Chevy Court concerts during the 12 day run in 2010. A $50 million transformation of the Fairgrounds, the first major renovation the Fairgrounds had seen in over 100 years, was announced January 21, 2015. Chevy Court's most recent attendance record was set September 6, 2015 with 36,900 people attending a performance by the Steve Miller Band. The Fair's previous 2001 attendance record was broken on September 5, 2016, with 1,117,630 Fairgoers visiting the Fair. The 2016 Fair also broke three attendance records and had four days over 100,000 - the most ever. Governor Cuomo announced a transformation of the Fairgrounds in 2015 that included a sweeping redesign of the Fairgrounds that included taking out what was previously the 17,000 seat Grandstand and mile-long dirt track. This marked the first major transformation the Fairgrounds had seen in 100 years. The transformation including rebuilding the main gate, making it reminiscent of the 1840 carriage entrance. The brand-new Main Gate is ADA-compliant and technologically equipped for faster ticketing and admissions. The midway received a new layout that now included 15 acres. The Midway's new asphalt pad is the size of over 10 football fields with more room and better layout for rides and attractions. Improvements include a Kiddieland area, phone charging stations, shaded rest areas, and underground electric/water/sewer for vendors. A new Empire RV Park was added, included 313 RV sited, fully equipped with sewer, electric and water hookups. The new Empire RV Park is spacious, secure and organized and makes the Fairgrounds accessible year-round for distant travelers. Features include a new grid layout, camera and blue light systems, and online reservations. The redesign also included preserving the Historic Quad which includes five of the oldest buildings around an open park setting. Commercial vendors were removed from the Quad to restore the park as a relaxing space to gather and rest, with more seating and better signage. A new curbed median was added along Hiawatha Street with trees, shrubs and new lighting. A new entrance along Bridge Street, Gate 11A, ties in with the larger Onondaga Lake West Revitalization Project. Pedestrians can access Gate 11A via a new walkway and viewing platform leading past the Historic Quad to the Crossroads. In 2016, Governor Cuomo appointed a Task Force to determine how an addition $50 million for Phase Two of the Fairgrounds would be spent. Chevy Court is an open-air concert theater. In 2009, the fair changed its format to feature two different national performing artists every day, rather than having the same artist perform twice on the same date, in order to attract additional people to the fair with acts appealing to different audiences. Chevy Court performances attracted an estimated 150,000 people in 2009 and more than 170,000 in 2010 and over 200,000 in 2011. The stage has hosted Lady Antebellum, Bruno Mars, REO Speedwagon, and many others. The Syracuse New Times, a regional arts and entertainment publication, named Chevy Court the best free concert venue in Central New York in 2009, 2010 and 2012, and best state fair attraction in 2011. In 2015, Syracuse.com suggested that Chevy Court be named the "Best Free Concert Series in America." The Fair was also the recipient of the People's Choice Syracuse Area Music Award in 2016 for Best Festival. The Midway features several rides, funhouses, games, and concession stands. The 2014 Fair brought the first new midway to the Fair in over 70 years, provided by Wade Shows. This change brought new rides, concession stands, and games to the fair. Wade Shows offers promotions to Fairgoers such as dollar ride specials and a Mega Pass which can be used by one person for the entire fair's duration. In addition to the Midway is the Kiddie Midway which features rides and games for younger fairgoers. Approximately 100 rides are located in both the Midway and Kiddie Midway. Agriculture is a large component of New York State, and a big part of the fair as well. The fairgrounds host a variety of displays, events, competitions, and attractions that teach fairgoers the importance of agriculture. In 2011, the fair had over 14,000 animals entered to be exhibited including horses, dairy cattle, rabbits, and dairy goats. In addition to animal entries, 2014 brought in over 10,000 agricultural entries including antique tractors, beverages, Christmas trees, flowers, forage, grain, and 4-H. The fair also aims to promote New York-grown products and foods. In 2008, the "Pride of New York Marketplace" occupied a permanent structure at the main entrance to the fairgrounds, selling various goods and foods produced in New York state. In 2013, the fair brought a new attraction to allow Fairgoers to sample different products from vendors in all regions of the state in the "Taste NY" tent. Each day, up to a dozen different food and beverage vendors would offer samples of their products. The Center of Progress Building is one of the largest of the 110 buildings on the fairgrounds. The building is located just inside the fair's main gate, along the perimeter of Chevy Court. This building hosts up to 250 vendors and concessionaires and was previously the home of the fair's 180-ton sand sculpture until 2018, when the sand sculpture was moved to the new Exposition Center. The new (2018) Exposition Center contains the 180-ton sand sculpture, which is constructed throughout the 13 days of the fair. In 2011, the fair received positive feedback as they paid respect to the victims of 9/11 with a sand sculpture recognizing the 10 years that had passed since the terrorist attacks. Past sand sculpture themes have included The Beatles, Syracuse University, USS New York, Dr. Seuss, and The Olympics. The State Fair Coliseum was built in 1923 and its first event was the World's Dairy Congress. Five thousand people came to see Dairy cattle from 40 different countries. In 1947-48 Syracuse University basketball team held their games there and in 1949-1952 the NBA Syracuse Nats called this home. The 1949 game set all-time records for the most points, most fouls, most free throws, most missed free throws, most overtimes, and longest game; most records still hold. During the fair, the Coliseum is used mainly for the multi-breed horse shows which include breeds such as Pinto's, Arabians, Miniature horses, Quarter horses, Morgan, and Appaloosas, hunter/jumpers as well as the draft breeds and the heavy and light horse pulls. This arena also accommodates the Holstein Dairy Cattle Show on the dairy day, the 4-H agility dog show, and multiple other shows on Labor Day. The Syracuse Stars hockey team played their games in the Coliseum and won the Calder Cup in the Inaugural Season of (what is now) the American Hockey League. The Midstate Stampede, a youth hockey team, also played in the Coliseum until the ice was removed around 2013. The Syracuse Hornets also played at the Coliseum, but due to financial troubles, the team folded after only 10 games. This building is located in proximity to the fair's veterans' memorials and the 9-11 memorials. During the fair, it hosts many horticultural exhibits and concessionaires such as a baked potato booth, the New York Maple Center, and produce, flower, and apple exhibits. A wide variety of additional events are held at the building throughout the year. It includes the fair's New York Café, which operates during the fair and selected events. Horticulture Building also hosts the Taste NY where visitors can try some food and drink samples for free and by their favorite products on the spot. Ten Dairy Products Buildering is family-oriented and contains attractions such as the butter sculpture, and a Milk Bar serving multiple varieties of milk. In 2012, 403,189 cups of milk were sold to fairgoers, breaking an all-time record at the New York State Fair. Other attractions include Dairy Princesses, entertainment on center stage, and samples of various dairy products. Located in the center of the Dairy Products Building is the rotating butter sculpture, comprising of unsalted butter. The sculpture has been a feature at the fair since 1969. Once the fair is over, the butter is converted to biofuel to fuel college buses by students of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. The butter sculpture is sponsored by the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council. During the twelve days of the fair, the Dairy Cattle Barn is used by dairy cattle exhibitors. During the offseason, it is utilized as an exhibit building and hosts many trade shows for the public and for various industrial groups. This century-old structure serves as an anchor for Chevy Court. During the fair, the building hosts a variety of health and safety-related exhibitions. The Art & Home Center is home to a recently renovated demonstration kitchen, which has been the host of several celebrity cooking demonstrations by such chefs as Adam Richman, Bobby Flay, and Mario Batali. The Art & Home Center is the hub of all culinary, art, and craft exhibitions, with various New York's artists displaying photography, woodworking, quilting, needlework, and the fine arts. Each year, the Art & Home Center hosts its annual Women's Day Luncheon. In 2009, the building celebrated its 75th anniversary by celebrating the life of suffragette Harriet May Mills, whom the building is dedicated to. The building also hosts a display of operating model trains and circus trains during each year's fair. In 1966 the Empire State Theatre & Musical Instrument Museum was established featuring an extensive collection of pianos, organs, phonographs, vintage motion picture projectors, and movie palace artifacts, many of which are on permanent display. The Art & Home Center contains the Empire Theatre. In addition to being home to local theatrical productions meetings and seminars, the theatre is home to a 1925 Wurlitzer Co. 3 manual 11 rank theatre pipe organ, opus 1143, which was moved from the RKO Keiths Theatre in downtown Syracuse in 1966. This building serves as a staple for food enthusiasts during the fair, where fairgoers can choose foods from select countries around the world. In 2010, the International Building was redesigned to feature more seating and a new New York Beer and Wine Pub. In 2015, the International Building added a new Vegan and Vegetarian vendor, which was the first of its kind at the State Fair. An educational building for youth and families attending the fair. Upstairs serves as a dormitory for 4-H and FFA youth that are competing at the fair. There are 800 beds, lockers, full shower/bathroom facilities, and laundry. Downstairs has a variety of interactive sections for the youth to participate in, including a newsroom, demo kitchen, animal husbandry, crafts, and GPS mapping. Located within the fairgrounds is the "State Park at the Fair", billed as the smallest park operated by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. The park was first opened in 1974 during celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the New York State Council of Parks. The facility is located in front of the Horticulture Building and aims to recreate a park-like setting within the fair, including a reflecting pool and mini-golf course. Exhibits within the park demonstrate features and activities available at New York's state parks and historic sites; additional exhibits have included live birds of prey and boating safety demonstrations. 2019: August 21 - September 2, 2020: August 26 - September 7 The fairgrounds complex operates year-round and annually hosts more than 500 non-fair events. These range from major entertainment and sporting events to a variety of equestrian competitions, consumer shows, community events, and meetings. The Syracuse Nationals classic car show draws nearly 80,000 people to its weekend event at the fairgrounds. The fairgrounds is a key player in New York's equine industry, hosting more than 40 horse events each year. In 2015, 65 trade and consumer shows brought nearly 400,000 people to the fairgrounds. A total of 50 entertainment events ranging from major rock concerts to theater pipe organ concerts attracted 133,235 people. The Great New York State Fair, New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets, Pride of New York, Taste NY, New York State Fair 2017 The California State Fair is the annual state fair for the state of California. The fair is held at Cal Expo in Sacramento, California. The Fair is a 17-day event showcasing California's industries, agriculture, and diversity of people. The CSF features blue-ribbon animal displays, culinary delights and competitions, live music concerts, a carnival, fireworks, and other family fun. California State Fair officials report that the Fair draws between 20,000 and 60,000 people per day with about $8.5 million of food and beverage expenditures. According to an editorial in the Daily Alta on November 5, 1850, fairs were common on the east coast of the United States. They believed the state had potential. In 1851 the same editorial staff attended the "Exhibit of California Curiosities" and found it to only be a small sample of the resources of California. In 1854 the California State Legislature created the State Agricultural Society and an exhibit of the state's fruits, vegetables, flowers, grain and livestock, was scheduled for the first time. $5000 worth of premiums were offered for the best of the show. The First California State Fair was held, beginning on October 4, 1854. It was held in San Francisco at the Music Hall on Bush Street, close to Montgomery Street, with the stock being shown at Mission Dolores. At this time the fair was held in a different city each year with Sacramento hosting the following year, in 1855. It then moved to San Jose in 1856, Stockton in 1857 and Marysville in 1858. An exhibit hall was built at Sixth and M Streets in Sacramento for the fair to return in both 1859 and 1860 and then finally given official, permanent residence there. Farmers and people from all over the state came to Sacramento after the fair's permanent move to the city. They came to see the farm machinery and all enjoy the fair entertainment as well as compete for cash premiums for best of show. In 1968, the State Fair moved to its current location in the center of the City of Sacramento to the California Exposition (known as Cal Expo) at 1600 Exposition Boulevard. In addition to the State Fair, Cal Expo plays host to hundreds of other signature events each year. Featuring 350 beautifully landscaped acres, Cal Expo was initiated by Governor Pat Brown and opened by Governor Ronald Reagan. The current Cal Expo facilities were dedicated as a place to celebrate California’s achievements, agriculture, diversity of its people, traditions and trends that will shape the Golden State’s future. The 2020 fair will run from 10-26 July. Main gate hours are 11:00-22:00 Monday to Thursday, 10:00-22:00 Friday to Sunday. Carnival hours are 14:00-23:00 on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday; 11:00-23:00 Tuesdays; 11:00-0:00 on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Rides and Games are operated by Butler Amusements. Butler Amusements' first year at the state fair was in 2009, while all other years before the rides and games operator were RCS Amusements. There is a permanent monorail system at the fairgrounds. The storage facility for the monorail trams are located in the northwest corner of the grounds. There are four different trams (Blue, Green, Orange, Red). They are only used during the state fair.

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The history of the Great Wall of China began when fortifications built by various states during the Spring and Autumn (771–476) and Warring States periods (475–221) were connected by the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, to protect his newly founded Qin dynasty (221–206) against incursions by nomads from Inner Asia. The walls were built of rammed earth, constructed using forced labour, and by 212 ran from Gansu to the coast of southern Manchuria. Later dynasties adopted different policies towards northern frontier defense. The Han (202 – 220), the Northern Qi (550–574), the Jurchen Jin (1115-1234), and particularly the Ming (1369–1644) were among those that rebuilt, re-manned, and expanded the Walls, although they rarely followed Qin's routes. The Han extended the fortifications furthest to the west, the Qi built about of new walls, while the Sui mobilised over a million men in their wall-building efforts. Conversely, the Tang (618–907), the Song (960–1279), the Yuan (1271–1368), and the Qing (1644–1911) mostly did not build frontier walls, instead opting for other solutions to the Inner Asian threat like military campaigning and diplomacy. Although a useful deterrent against raids, at several points throughout its history the Great Wall failed to stop enemies, including in 1644 when the Manchu Qing marched through the gates of Shanhai Pass and replaced the most ardent of the wall-building dynasties, the Ming, as rulers of China. The Great Wall of China visible today largely dates from the Ming dynasty, as they rebuilt much of the wall in stone and brick, often extending its line through challenging terrain. Some sections remain in relatively good condition or have been renovated, while others have been damaged or destroyed for ideological reasons, deconstructed for their building materials, or lost due to the ravages of time. For long an object of fascination for foreigners, the wall is now a revered national symbol and a popular tourist destination. The conflict between the Chinese and the nomads, from which the need for the Great Wall arose, stemmed from differences in geography. The 15" isohyet marks the extent of settled agriculture, dividing the fertile fields of China to the south and the semi-arid grasslands of Inner Asia to the north. The climates and the topography of the two regions led to distinct modes of societal development. According to the model by sinologist Karl August Wittfogel, the loess soils of Shaanxi made it possible for the Chinese to develop irrigated agriculture early on. Although this allowed them to expand into the lower reaches of the Yellow River valley, such extensive waterworks on an ever- increasing scale required collective labour, something that could only be managed by some form of bureaucracy. Thus the scholar-bureaucrats came to the fore to keep track of the income and expenses of the granaries. Walled cities grew up around the granaries for reasons of defence along with ease of administration; they kept invaders out and ensured that citizens remained within. These cities combined to become feudal states, which eventually united to become an empire. Likewise, according to this model, walls not only enveloped cities as time went by, but also lined the borders of the feudal states and eventually the whole Chinese empire to provide protection against raids from the agrarian northern steppes. The steppe societies of Inner Asia, whose climate favoured a pastoral economy, stood in stark contrast to the Chinese mode of development. As animal herds are migratory by nature, communities could not afford to be stationary and therefore evolved as nomads. According to the influential Mongolist Owen Lattimore this lifestyle proved to be incompatible with the Chinese economic model. As the steppe population grew, pastoral agriculture alone could not support the population, and tribal alliances needed to be maintained by material rewards. For these needs, the nomads had to turn to the settled societies to get grains, metal tools, and luxury goods, which they could not produce by themselves. If denied trade by the settled peoples, the nomads would resort to raiding or even conquest. Potential nomadic incursion from three main areas of Inner Asia caused concern to northern China: Mongolia to the north, Manchuria to the northeast, and Xinjiang to the northwest. Of the three, China's chief concern since the earliest times had been Mongolia - the home of many of the country's fiercest enemies including the Xiongnu, the Xianbei, the Khitans, and the Mongols. The Gobi Desert, which accounts for two-thirds of Mongolia's area, divided the main northern and southern grazing lands and pushed the pastoral nomads to the fringes of the steppe. On the southern side (Inner Mongolia), this pressure brought the nomads into contact with China. For the most part, barring intermittent passes and valleys (the major one being the corridor through Zhangjiakou and the Juyong Pass), the North China Plain remained shielded from the Mongolian steppe by the Yin Mountains. However, if this defence were breached, China's flat terrain offered no protection to the cities on the plain, including the imperial capitals of Beijing, Kaifeng, and Luoyang. Heading west along the Yin Mountains, the range ends where the Yellow River circles northwards upstream in the area known as the Ordos Looptechnically part of the steppe, but capable of irrigated agriculture. Although the Yellow River formed a theoretical natural boundary with the north, such a border so far into the steppe was difficult to maintain. The lands south of the Yellow River—the Hetao, the Ordos Desert, and the Loess Plateau—provided no natural barriers on the approach to the Wei River valley, the oft-called cradle of Chinese civilization where the ancient capital Xi'an lay. As such, control of the Ordos remained extremely important for the rulers of China: not only for potential influence over the steppe, but also for the security of China proper. The region's strategic importance combined with its untenability led many dynasties to place their first walls here. Although Manchuria is home to the agricultural lands of the Liao River valley, its location beyond the northern mountains relegated it to the relative periphery of Chinese concern. When Chinese state control became weak, at various points in history Manchuria fell under the control of the forest peoples of the area, including the Jurchens and the Manchus. The most crucial route that links Manchuria and the North China Plain is a narrow coastal strip of land, wedged between the Bohai Sea and the Yan Mountains, called the Shanhai Pass (literally the "mountain and sea pass"). The pass gained much importance during the later dynasties, when the capital was set in Beijing, a mere away. In addition to the Shanhai Pass, a handful of mountain passes also provide access from Manchuria into China through the Yan Mountains, chief among them the Gubeikou and Xifengkou (). Xinjiang, considered part of the Turkestan region, consists of an amalgamation of deserts, oases, and dry steppe barely suitable for agriculture. When influence from the steppe powers of Mongolia waned, the various Central Asian oasis kingdoms and nomadic clans like the Göktürks and Uyghurs were able to form their own states and confederations that threatened China at times. China proper is connected to this area by the Hexi Corridor, a narrow string of oases bounded by the Gobi Desert to the north and the high Tibetan Plateau to the south. In addition to considerations of frontier defence, the Hexi Corridor also formed an important part of the Silk Road trade route. Thus it was also in China's economic interest to control this stretch of land, and hence the Great Wall's western terminus is in this corridor—the Yumen Pass during Han times and the Jiayu Pass during the Ming dynasty and thereafter. One of the first mentions of a wall built against northern invaders is found in a poem, dated from the seventh century BC, recorded in the Classic of Poetry. The poem tells of a king, now identified as King Xuan (r. 827782) of the Western Zhou dynasty (1046771), who commanded General Nan Zhong () to build a wall in the northern regions to fend off the Xianyun. The Xianyun, whose base of power was in the Ordos region, were regarded as part of the charioteering Rong tribes, and their attacks aimed at the early Zhou capital region of Haojing were probably the reason for King Xuan's response. Nan Zhong's campaign was recorded as a great victory. However, only a few years later in 771 BC another branch of the Rong people, the Quanrong, responded to a summons by the renegade Marquess of Shen by over-running the Zhou defences and laying waste to the capital. The cataclysmic event killed King Xuan's successor King You (795-771 ), forced the court to move the capital east to Chengzhou (, later known as Luoyang) a year later, and thus ushered in the Eastern Zhou dynasty (770–256). Most importantly, the fall of Western Zhou redistributed power to the states that had acknowledged Zhou's nominal rulership. The rule of the Eastern Zhou dynasty was marked by bloody interstate anarchy. With smaller states being annexed and larger states waging constant war upon one another, many rulers came to feel the need to erect walls to protect their borders. Of the earliest textual reference to such a wall was the State of Chu's wall of 656 BC, of which were excavated in southern Henan province in the modern era. However the Chu border fortifications consisted of many individual mountain fortresses; they do not constitute to a lengthy, single wall. The State of Qi also had fortified borders up by the 441BC, and the extant portions in Shandong province had been christened the Great Wall of Qi. The State of Wei built two walls, the western one completed in 361 BC and the eastern in 356 BC, with the extant western wall found in Hancheng, Shaanxi. Even non-Chinese peoples built walls, such as the Di state of Zhongshan and the Yiqu Rong, whose walls were intended to defend against the State of Qin. Of these walls, those of the northern states Yan, Zhao, and Qin were connected by Qin Shi Huang when he united the Chinese states in 221 BC. The walls, known as Changcheng (長城) – literally "long walls", but often translated as "Great Wall" – were mostly constructed of tamped earth, with some parts built with stones. Where natural barriers like ravines and rivers sufficed for defence, the walls were erected sparingly, but long fortified lines were laid where such advantageous terrains did not exist. Often in addition to the wall, the defensive system included garrisons and beacon towers inside the wall, and watchtowers outside at regular intervals. In terms of defence, the walls were generally effective at countering cavalry shock tactics, but there are doubts as to whether these early walls were actually defensive in nature. Nicola Di Cosmo points out that the northern frontier walls were built far to the north and included traditionally nomadic lands, and so rather than being defensive, the walls indicate the northward expansions of the three northern states and their desire to safeguard their recent territorial acquisitions. This theory is supported by the archeological discovery of nomadic artifacts within the walls, suggesting the presence of pre-existing or conquered barbarian societies. It is entirely possible, as Western scholars like di Cosmo and Lattimore suggest, that nomadic aggression against the Chinese in the coming centuries was partly caused by Chinese expansionism during this period. The State of Yan, the easternmost of the three northern states, began to erect walls after the general Qin Kai drove the Donghu people back "a thousand li" during the reign of Jiping, King Zhao of Yan (312–279 BC) (; r. 311-279 BC). The Yan wall stretched from the Liaodong peninsula, through Chifeng, and into northern Hebei, possibly bringing its western terminus near the Zhao walls. The ruins in Jianping County, Chaoyang, are its best existing section. Ruins of the Yan Great Wall were also found close to the Ming Great Wall at Badaling, Changping, northeast of Beijing. A southern Yan wall was erected to defend against the Zhao; it was southwest of present-day Beijing and ran parallel to the Juma River for several dozen miles. The Zhao walls to the north were built under King Wuling of Zhao (r. 325-299 BC), whose groundbreaking introduction of nomadic cavalry into his army reshaped Chinese warfare and gave Zhao an initial advantage over his opponents. He attacked the Xiongnu tribes of Linhu () and Loufan () to the north, then waged war on the state of Zhongshan until it was annexed in 296 . In the process, he constructed the northernmost fortified frontier deep in nomadic territory. The Zhao walls were dated in the 1960s to be from King Wuling's reign: a southern long wall in northern Henan encompassing the Yanmen Pass; a second line of barricades encircling the Ordos Loop, extending from Zhangjiakou in the east to the ancient fortress of Gaoque () in the Urad Front Banner; and a third, northernmost line along the southern slopes of the Yin Mountains, extending from Qinghe in the east, passing north of Hohhot, and into Baotou. Qin was originally a state on the western fringe of the Chinese political sphere, but it grew into a formidable power in the later parts of the Warring States period when it aggressively expanded in all directions. In the north, the state of Wei and the Yiqu built walls to protect themselves from Qin aggression, but were still unable to stop Qin from eating into their territories. The Qin reformist Shang Yang forced the Wei out of their walled area west of the Yellow River in 340 , and King Huiwen of Qin (r.338–311) took 25 Yiqu forts in a northern offensive. When King Huiwen died, his widow the Queen Dowager Xuan acted as regent because the succeeding sons were deemed too young to govern. During the reign of King Zhaoxiang (r.306–251), the queen dowager apparently entered illicit relations with the Yiqu king and gave birth to two of his sons, but later tricked and killed the Yiqu king. Following that coup, the Qin army marched into Yiqu territory at the queen dowager's orders; the Qin annihilated the Yiqu remnants and thus came to possess the Ordos region. At this point the Qin built a wall around their new territories to defend against the true nomads even further north, incorporating the Wei walls. As a result, an estimated total of of Qin walls (including spurts) extended from southern Gansu to the bank of the Yellow River in the Jungar Banner, close to the border with Zhao at the time. In 221BC, the state of Qin completed its conquest over the other Warring States and united China under Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. These conquests, combined with the Legalist reforms started by Shang Yang in the 4th century BC, transformed China from a loose confederation of feudal states to an authoritarian empire. With the transformation, Qin became able to command a far greater assembly of labourers to be used in public works than the prior feudal kingdoms. Also, once unification was achieved, Qin found itself in possession of a large professional army with no more internal enemies to fight and thus had to find a new use for them. Soon after the conquests, in the year 215 BC, the emperor sent the famed general Meng Tian to the Ordos region to drive out the Xiongnu nomads settled there, who had risen from beyond the fallen marginal states along the northern frontier. Qin's campaign against the Xiongnu was preemptive in nature, since there was no pressing nomadic menace to be faced at the time; its aim was to annexe the ambiguous territories of the Ordos and to clearly define the Qin's northern borders. Once the Xiongnu were chased away, Meng Tian introduced 30,000 settler families to colonize the newly conquered territories. Wall configurations were changed to reflect the new borders under the Qin. General Meng Tian erected walls beyond the northern loop of the Yellow River, effectively linking the border walls of Qin, Zhao, and Yan. Concurrent to the building of the frontier wall was the destruction of the walls within China that used to divide one warring state from another—contrary to the outer walls, which were built to stabilize the newly united China, the inner walls threatened the unity of the empire. In the following year, 214BC, Qin Shi Huang ordered new fortifications to be built along the Yellow River to the west of the Ordos while work continued in the north. This work was completed probably by 212BC, signalled by Qin Shi Huang's imperial tour of inspection and the construction of the Direct Road () connecting the capital Xianyang with the Ordos. The result was a series of long walls running from Gansu to the seacoast in Manchuria. Details of the construction were not found in the official histories, but it could be inferred that the construction conditions were made especially difficult by the long stretches of mountains and semi-desert that the Great Wall traversed, the sparse populations of these areas, and the frigid winter climate. Although the walls were rammed earth, so the bulk of the building material could be found in situ, transportation of additional supplies and labour remained difficult for the reasons named above. The sinologist Derk Bodde posits in The Cambridge History of China that "for every man whom Meng Tian could put to work at the scene of actual construction, dozens must have been needed to build approaching roads and to transport supplies." This is supported by the Han dynasty statesman Zhufu Yan's description of Qin Shi Huang's Ordos project in 128BC: ... the land was brackish and arid, crops could not be grown on them. ... At the time, the young men being drafted were forced to haul boats and barges loaded with baggage trains upstream to sustain a steady supply of food and fodder to the front. ... Commencing at the departure point a man and his animal could carry thirty zhong (about ) of food supply, by the time they arrived at the destination, they merely delivered one dan (about ) of supply. ... When the populace had become tired and weary they started to dissipate and abscond. The orphans, the frail, the widowed and the seniors were desperately trying to escape from their appallingly derelict state and died on the wayside as they wandered away from their home. People started to revolt. The settlement of the north continued up to Qin Shi Huang's death in 210BC, upon which Meng Tian was ordered to commit suicide in a succession conspiracy. Before killing himself, Meng Tian expressed regret for his walls: "Beginning at Lintao and reaching to Liaodong, I built walls and dug moats for more than ten thousand li; was it not inevitable that I broke the earth's veins along the way? This then was my offense." Meng Tian's settlements in the north were abandoned, and the Xiongnu nomads moved back into the Ordos Loop as the Qin empire became consumed by widespread rebellion due to public discontent. Owen Lattimore concluded that the whole project relied upon military power to enforce agriculture on a land more suited for herding, resulting in "the anti- historical paradox of attempting two mutually exclusive forms of development simultaneously" that was doomed to fail. In 202BC, the former peasant Liu Bang emerged victorious from the Chu–Han Contention that followed the rebellion that toppled the Qin dynasty, and proclaimed himself Emperor of the Han dynasty, becoming known as Emperor Gaozu of Han (r.202–195) to posterity. Unable to address the problem of the resurgent Xiongnu in the Ordos region through military means, Emperor Gaozu was forced to appease the Xiongnu. In exchange for peace, the Han offered tributes along with princesses to marry off to the Xiongnu chiefs. These diplomatic marriages would become known as heqin, and the terms specified that the Great Wall (determined to be either the Warring States period Qin state wall or a short stretch of wall south of Yanmen Pass) was to serve as the line across which neither party would venture. In 162BC, Gaozu's son Emperor Wen clarified the agreement, suggesting the Xiongnu chanyu held authority north of the Wall and the Han emperor held authority south of it. Sima Qian, the author of the Records of the Grand Historian, describes the result of this agreement as one of peace and friendship: "from the chanyu downwards, all the Xiongnu grew friendly with the Han, coming and going along the Long Wall". However, Chinese records show that the Xiongnu often did not respect the agreement, as the Xiongnu cavalry numbering up to 100,000 made several intrusions into Han territory despite the intermarriage. To Chinese minds, the heqin policy was humiliating and ran contrary to the Sinocentric world order like "a person hanging upside down", as the statesman Jia Yi (d. 169 BC) puts it. These sentiments manifested themselves in the Han court in the form of the pro-war faction, who advocated the reversal of Han's policy of appeasement. By the reign of Emperor Wu (r.141–87), the Han felt comfortable enough to go to war with the Xiongnu. After a botched attempt at luring the Xiongnu army into an ambush at the Battle of Mayi in 133 BC, the era of heqin-style appeasement was broken and the Han–Xiongnu War went into full swing. As the Han–Xiongnu War progressed in favour of the Han, the Wall became maintained and extended beyond Qin lines. In 127BC, General Wei Qing invaded the much-contested Ordos region as far as the Qin fortifications set up by Meng Tian. In this way, Wei Qing reconquered the irrigable lands north of the Ordos and restored the spur of defences protecting that territory from the steppe. In addition to rebuilding the walls, archeologists believe that the Han also erected thousands of kilometres of walls from Hebei to Inner Mongolia during Emperor Wu's reign. The fortifications here include embankments, beacon stations, and forts, all constructed with a combination of tamped-earth cores and stone frontages. From the Ordos Loop, the sporadic and non-continuous Han Great Wall followed the northern edge of the Hexi Corridor through the cities of Wuwei, Zhangye, and Jiuquan, leading into the Juyan Lake Basin, and terminating in two places: the Yumen Pass in the north, or the Yang Pass to the south, both in the vicinity of Dunhuang. Yumen Pass was the most westerly of all Han Chinese fortifications - further west than the western terminus of the Ming Great Wall at Jiayu Pass, about to the east. The garrisons of the watchtowers on the wall were supported by civilian farming and by military agricultural colonies known as tuntian. Behind this line of fortifications, the Han government was able to maintain its settlements and its communications to the Western Regions in central Asia, generally secure from attacks from the north. The campaigns against the Xiongnu and other nomadic peoples of the west exhausted the imperial treasury, and the expansionist policies were reverted in favour of peace under Emperor Wu's successors. The peace was largely respected even when the Han throne was usurped by the minister Wang Mang in 9AD, beginning a brief 15-year interregnum known as the Xin dynasty (923). Despite high tensions between the Xin and the Xiongnu resulting in the deployment of 300,000 men on the Great Wall, no major fighting broke out beyond minor raids. Instead, popular discontent led to banditry and, ultimately, full-scale rebellion. The civil war ended with the Liu clan on the throne again, beginning the Eastern Han dynasty (25220). The restorer Emperor Guangwu (r.25–57) initiated several projects to consolidate his control within the frontier regions. Defense works were established to the east of the Yanmen Pass, with a line of fortifications and beacon fires stretching from Pingcheng County (present-day Datong) through the valley of the Sanggan River to Dai County, Shanxi. By 38 AD, as a result of raids by the Xiongnu further to the west against the Wei River valley, orders were given for a series of walls to be constructed as defences for the Fen River, the southward course of the Yellow River, and the region of the former imperial capital, Chang'an. These constructions were defensive in nature, which marked a shift from the offensive walls of the preceding Emperor Wu and the rulers of the Warring States. By the early 40sAD the northern frontiers of China had undergone drastic change: the line of the imperial frontier followed not the advanced positions conquered by Emperor Wu but the rear defences indicated roughly by the modern (Ming dynasty) Great Wall. The Ordos region, northern Shanxi, and the upper Luan River basin around Chengde were abandoned and left to the control of the Xiongnu. The rest of the frontier remained somewhat intact until the end of the Han dynasty, with the Dunhuang manuscripts (discovered in 1900) indicating that the military establishment in the northwest was maintained for most of the Eastern Han period. Following the end of the Han dynasty in 220, China disintegrated into warlord states, which in 280 were briefly reunited under the Western Jin dynasty (265316). There are ambiguous accounts of the Jin rebuilding the Qin wall, but these walls apparently offered no resistance during the Wu Hu uprising, when the nomadic tribes of the steppe evicted the Chinese court from northern China. What followed was a succession of short-lived states in northern China known as the Sixteen Kingdoms, until they were all consolidated by the Xianbei-led Northern Wei dynasty (386535). As Northern Wei became more economically dependent on agriculture, the Xianbei emperors made a conscious decision to adopt Chinese customs, including passive methods of frontier defence. In 423, a defence line over 2,000 li () long was built to resist the Rouran; its path roughly followed the old Zhao wall from Chicheng County in Hebei Province to Wuyuan County, Inner Mongolia. In 446, 100,000 men were put to work building an inner wall from Yanqing, passing south of the Wei capital Pingcheng, and ending up near Pingguan on the eastern bank of the Yellow River. The two walls formed the basis of the double-layered Xuanfu–Datong wall system that protected Beijing a thousand years later during the Ming dynasty. The Northern Wei also built Six Frontier Towns to protect the Hetao meander against northern invasions. The Northern Wei collapsed in 535 due to civil insurrection to be eventually succeeded by the Northern Qi (550575) and Northern Zhou (557580). Faced with the threat of the Göktürks from the north, from 552 to 556 the Qi built up to 3,000 li (about ) of wall from Shanxi to the sea at Shanhai Pass. Over the course of the year 555 alone, 1.8 million men were mobilized to build the Juyong Pass and extend its wall by through Datong to the eastern banks of the Yellow River. In 557 a secondary wall was built inside the main one. These walls were built quickly from local earth and stones or formed by natural barriers. Two stretches of the stone-and-earth Qi wall still stand in Shanxi today, measuring wide at their bases and high on average. In 577 the Northern Zhou conquered the Northern Qi and in 580 made repairs to the existing Qi walls. The route of the Qi and Zhou walls would be mostly followed by the later Ming wall west of Gubeikou, which includes reconstructed walls from Qi and Zhou. In more recent times, the reddish remnants of the Zhou ramparts in Hebei gave rise to the nickname "Red Wall". The Sui took power from the Northern Zhou in 581 before reuniting China in 589. Sui's founding emperor, Emperor Wen of Sui (r.581604), carried out considerable wall construction in 581 in Hebei and Shanxi to defend against Ishbara Qaghan of the Göktürks. The new walls proved insufficient in 582 when Ishbara Qaghan avoided them by riding west to raid Gansu and Shaanxi with 400,000 archers. Between 585 and 588 Emperor Wen sought to close this gap by putting walls up in the Ordos Mountains (between Suide and Lingwu) and Inner Mongolia. In 586 as many as 150,000 men are recorded as involved in the construction. Emperor Wen's son Emperor Yang (r.604618) continued to build walls. In 607608 he sent over a million men to build a wall from Yulin to near Huhhot to protect the newly refurbished eastern capital Luoyang. Part of the Sui wall survives to this day in Inner Mongolia as earthen ramparts some high with towers rising to double that. The dynastic history of Sui estimates that 500,000 people died building the wall, adding to the number of casualties caused by Emperor Yang's projects including the aforementioned redesign of Luoyang, the Grand Canal, and two ill-fated campaigns against Goguryeo. With the economy strained and the populace resentful, the Sui dynasty erupted in rebellion and ended with the assassination of Emperor Yang in 618. Frontier policy under the Tang dynasty reversed the wall-building activities of most previous dynasties that had occupied northern China since the third century BC, and no extensive wall building took place for the next several hundred years. Soon after the establishment of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Taizong (r.626649), the threat of Göktürk tribesmen from the north prompted some court officials to suggest drafting corvée labourers to repair the aging Great Wall. Taizong scoffed at the suggestion, alluding to the Sui walls built in vain: "The Emperor Yang of Sui made the people labor to construct the Great Wall in order to defend against the Turks, but in the end this was of no use." Instead of building walls, Taizong claimed he "need merely to establish Li Shiji in Jinyang for the dust on the border to settle." Accordingly, Taizong sent talented generals like Li Shiji with mobile armies to the frontier, while fortifications were mostly limited to a series of walled garrisons, such as the euphemistically-named "cities for accepting surrender" (受降城, shòuxiáng chéng) that were actually bases from which to launch attacks. As a result of this military strategy, the Tang grew to become one of the largest of all the Chinese empires, destroying the Göktürks of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate and acquiring territory stretching all the way to Kazakhstan. Nevertheless, records show that in the Kaiyuan era (713742) of Emperor Xuanzong's reign, the general Zhang Yue built a wall 90 li () to the north of Huairong (懷戎; present-day Huailai County, Hebei), although it remains unclear whether he erected new walls or only reinforced the existing Northern Qi walls. The Great Wall, or the ruins of it, features prominently in the subset of Tang poetry known as biansai shi (邊塞詩, "frontier verse") written by scholar-officials assigned along the frontier. Emphasizing the poets' loneliness and longing for home while hinting at the pointlessness of their posts, these frontier verses are characterized by imagery of desolate landscapes, including the ruins of the now-neglected Great Wall—a direct product of Tang's frontier policy. Han Chinese power during the tumultuous post-Tang era was represented by the Song dynasty (9601279), which completed its unification of the Chinese states with the conquest of Wuyue in 971. Turning to the north after this victory, in 979 the Song eliminated the Northern Han, ultimate successors to the Later Jin, but were unable to take the Sixteen Prefectures from the Liao dynasty. As a result of Song's military aggression, relations between the Song and Liao remained tense and hostile. One of the battlegrounds in the Song–Liao War was the Great Wall Gap (長城口), so named because the southern Yan wall of the Warring States period crossed the Juma River here into Liao territory. The Great Wall Gap saw action in 979, 988989, and 1004, and a Song fortress was built there in 980. Intermittent wars between the Song and the Liao lasted until January 1005, when a truce was called and led to the Treaty of Chanyuan. This agreement, among other things, required the Song to pay tribute to the Liao, recognized the Song and Liao as equals, and demarcated the Song–Liao border, the course of which became more clearly defined in a series of subsequent bilateral agreements. Several stretches of the old Great Walls, including the Northern Qi Inner Wall near the Hengshan mountain range, became the border between the Song and the Liao. In the northwest, the Song were in conflict with the Western Xia, since they occupied what the Song considered as Chinese land lost during the Tang dynasty. The Song utilized the walls built during the reign of Qin's King Zhaoxiang of the Warring States period, making it the Song–Western Xia border, but the topography of the area was not as sharp and distinct as the Song–Liao defences to the east. The border general Cao Wei (; 9731030) deemed the Old Wall itself insufficient to slow a Tangut cavalry attack, and had a deep trench dug alongside. This trench, between in width and depth, proved an effective defence, but in 1002 the Tanguts caught the Song patrollers off guard and filled the trench to cross the Old Wall. Later, in 1042, the Tanguts turned the trench against the Song by removing the bridges over it, thereby trapping the retreating army of Ge Huaimin (葛懷敏) before annihilating it at the Battle of Dingchuan Fortress (定川寨). Despite the war with the Western Xia, the Song also settled land disputes with them by referring to prior agreements, as with the Liao. However, soon after the Jin dynasty overthrew the Liao dynasty, the Jurchens sacked the Song capital in 1127 during the Jin–Song wars, causing the Song court to flee south of the Yangtze River. For the next two and a half centuries, the Great Wall played no role in Han Chinese geopolitics. After the Tang dynasty ended in 907, the northern frontier area remained out of Han Chinese hands until the establishment of the Ming dynasty in 1368. During this period, non-Han "conquest dynasties" ruled the north: the Khitan Liao dynasty (9071125) and the succeeding Jurchen Jin dynasty (11151234) in the east and the Tangut Western Xia (10381227) in the west, all of which had built walls against the north. In 907, the Khitan chieftain Abaoji succeeded in getting himself appointed khaghan of all Khitan tribes in the north, laying the foundations to what would officially become the Liao dynasty. In 936, the Khitan supported the Shanxi rebel Shi Jingtang in his revolt against the Shatuo Turkic Later Tang, which had destroyed the usurpers of the Tang in 923. The Khitan leader, Abaoji's second son Yelü Deguang, convinced Shi to found a new dynasty (the Later Jin, 936946), and received the crucial border region known as the Sixteen Prefectures in return. With the Sixteen Prefectures, the Khitan now possessed all the passes and fortifications that controlled access to the plains of northern China, including the main Great Wall line. Settling in the transitional area between agricultural lands and the steppe, the Khitans became semi-sedentary like their Xianbei predecessors of the Northern Wei, and started to use Chinese methods of defence. In 1026 walls were built through central Manchuria north of Nong'an County to the banks of the Songhua River. When the Jurchens, once Liao vassals, rose up to overthrow their masters and established the Jin dynasty, they continued Liao's wall-building activities with extensive work begun before 1138. Further wall construction took place in 1165 and 1181 under the Jin Emperor Shizhong, and later from 1192 to 1203 during the reign of his successor Emperor Zhangzong. This long period of wall- building burdened the populace and provoked controversy. Sometime between 1190 and 1196, during Zhangzong's reign, the high official Zhang Wangong (張萬公) and the Censorate recommended that work on the wall be indefinitely suspended due to a recent drought, noting: "What has been begun is already being flattened by sandstorms, and bullying the people into defence works will simply exhaust them." However, Chancellor Wanyan Xiang (完顏襄) convinced the emperor of the walls' merits based on an optimistic cost estimate – "Although the initial outlay for the walls will be one million strings of cash, when the work is done the frontier will be secure with only half the present number of soldiers needed to defend it, which means that every year you will save three million strings of cash ... The benefits will be everlasting" – and so construction continued unabated. All this work created an extensive systems of walls, which consisted of a "outer wall" from Heilongjiang to Mongolia and a network of "inner walls" north and northeast of Beijing. Together, they formed a roughly elliptical web of fortifications in length and in diameter. Some of these walls had inner moats (from in width), beacon towers, battlements, parapets, and outward-facing semicircular platforms protruding from the wall—features that set the Jin walls apart from their predecessors. In the west, the Tanguts took control of the Ordos region, where they established the Western Xia dynasty. Although the Tanguts were not traditionally known for building walls, in 2011 archeologists uncovered of walls at Ömnögovi Province in Mongolia in what had been Western Xia territory. Radiocarbon analysis showed that they were constructed from 1040 to 1160. The walls were as tall as at places when they were discovered, and may have been around taller originally. They were built with mud and saxaul (a desert shrub) in one section, and dark basalt blocks in another, suggesting that the rocks may have been quarried from nearby extinct volcanoes and transported to the construction site. Archaeologists have not yet found traces of human activity around this stretch of wall, which suggests that the Western Xia wall in this location may have been incomplete and not ready for use. In the 13th century, the Mongol leader Genghis Khan, once a vassal of the Jurchens, rose up against the Jin dynasty. In the ensuing Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty, the nomadic invaders avoided direct attacks on the Jin fortifications. Instead, when they could, the Mongols simply rode around the walls; an effective example of this tactic is in 1211, when they circumvented the substantial fortress in Zhangjiakou and inflicted a terrible defeat upon the Jin armies at the Battle of Yehuling. The Mongols also took advantage of lingering Liao resentment against the Jin; the Khitan defenders of the garrisons along the Jin walls, such as those in Gubeikou, often preferred to surrender to the Mongols rather than fight them. The only major engagement of note along the main Great Wall line was at the heavily defended Juyong Pass: instead of laying siege, the Mongol general Jebe lured the defenders out into an ambush and charged in through the opened gates. In 1215, Genghis Khan besieged, captured, and sacked the Jin capital of Yanjing (modern-day Beijing). The Jin dynasty eventually collapsed following the siege of Caizhou in 1234. Western Xia had already fallen in 1227, and the Southern Song resisted the Mongols until 1279. With that, the Yuan dynasty, established by Genghis Khan's grandson Khublai Khan, became the first foreign dynasty to rule all of China. Despite being the head of the Mongol Empire, Khublai Khan's rule over China was not free from the threat of the steppe nomads. The Yuan dynasty faced challenges from rival claimants to the title of Great Khan and from rebellious Mongols in the north. Khublai Khan dealt with such threats by using both military blockades and economic sanctions. Although he established garrisons along the steppe frontier from the Juyan Lake Basin in the far west to Yingchang in the east, Khublai Khan and the Yuan emperors after him did not add to the Great Wall (except for the ornate Cloud Platform at Juyong Pass). When the Venetian traveller Marco Polo wrote of his experiences in China during the reign of Khublai Khan, he did not mention a Great Wall. In 1368, the Hongwu Emperor ( r.136898) ousted the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty from China to inaugurate the Ming dynasty. The Mongols fled back to Mongolia, but even after numerous campaigns, the Mongol problem remained. During his early reign, Hongwu set up the "eight outer garrisons" close to the steppe and an inner line of forts more suitable for defence. The inner line was the forerunner to the Ming Great Wall. In 1373, as Ming forces encountered setbacks, Hongwu put more emphasis on defence and adopted Hua Yunlong's (華雲龍) suggestion to establish garrisons at 130 passes and other strategic points in the Beijing area. More positions were set up in the years up Hongwu's death in 1398, and watchtowers were manned from the Bohai Sea to Beijing and further onto the Mongolian steppes. These positions, however, were not for a linear defence but rather a regional one in which walls did not feature heavily, and offensive tactics remained the overarching policy at the time. In 1421, the Ming capital was relocated from Nanjing in the south to Beijing in the north, partly to better manage the Mongol situation. Thus defenses were concentrated around Beijing, where stone and earth began to replace rammed earth in strategic passes. A wall was erected by the Ming in Liaodong to protect Han settlers from a possible threat from the Jurched-Mongol Oriyanghan around 1442. In 146768, expansion of the wall provided further protection for the region from against attacks by the Jianzhou Jurchens in the northeast. Meanwhile, the outer defenses were gradually moved inward, thereby sacrificing a vital foothold in the steppe transitional zone. Despite the withdrawal from the steppe, the Ming military remained in a strong position against the nomads until the Tumu Crisis in 1449, which caused the collapse of the early Ming security system. Over half of the campaigning Chinese army perished in the conflict, while the Mongols captured the Zhengtong Emperor. This military debacle shattered the Chinese military might that had so impressed and given pause to the Mongols since the beginning of the dynasty, and caused the Ming to be on the defensive ever after. The deterioration of the Ming military position in the steppe transitional zone gave rise to nomadic raids into Ming territory, including the crucial Ordos region, on a level unprecedented since the dynasty's founding. After decades of deliberation between an offensive strategy and an accommodative policy, the decision to build the first major Ming walls in the Ordos was agreed upon as an acceptable compromise the 1470s. Yu Zijun (余子俊; 14291489) first proposed constructing a wall in the Ordos region in August 1471, but not until 20December 1472 did the court and emperor approve the plan. The 1473 victory in the Battle of Red Salt Lake (紅鹽池) by Wang Yue (王越) deterred Mongol invasions long enough for Yu Zijun to complete his wall project in 1474. This wall, a combined effort between Yu Zijun and Wang Yue, stretched from present day Hengcheng (橫城) in Lingwu (northwestern Ningxia province) to Huamachi town (花馬池鎮) in Yanchi County, and from there to Qingshuiying (清水營) in northeastern Shaanxi, a total of more than 2000 li (about ) long. Along its length were 800 strong points, sentry posts, beacon- fire towers, and assorted defences. 40,000 men were enlisted for this effort, which was completed in several months at a cost of over one million silver taels. This defence system proved its initial worth in 1482, when a large group of Mongol raiders were trapped within the double lines of fortifications and suffered a defeat by the Ming generals. This was seen as a vindication of Yu Zijun's strategy of wall-building by the people of the border areas. By the mid-16th century, Yu's wall in the Ordos had seen expansion into an extensive defence system. It contained two defence lines: Yu's wall, called the "great border" (大邊, dàbiān), and a "secondary border" (二邊, èrbiān) built by Yang Yiqing (14541530) behind it. Following the success of the Ordos walls, Yu Zijun proposed construction of a further wall that would extend from the Yellow River bend in the Ordos to the Sihaiye Pass (四海冶口; in present-day Yanqing County) near the capital Beijing, running a distance of more than 1300 li (about ). The project received approval in 1485, but Yu's political enemies harped on the cost overruns and forced Yu to scrap the project and retire the same year. For more than 50 years after Yu's resignation, political struggle prevented major wall constructions on a scale comparable to Yu's Ordos project. However, wall construction continued regardless of court politics during this time. The Ordos walls underwent extension, elaboration, and repair well into the 16th century. Brick and stone started to replace tamped earth as the wall building material, because they offered better protection and durability. This change in material gave rise to a number of necessary accommodations with regard to logistics, and inevitably a drastic increase in costs. Instead of being able to draw on local resources, building projects now required brick-kilns, quarries, and transportation routes to deliver bricks to the work site. Also, masons had to be hired since the local peasantry proved inadequate for the level of sophistication that brick constructions required. Work that originally could be done by one man in a month with earth now required 100 men to do in stone. With the Ordos now adequately fortified, the Mongols avoided its walls by riding east to invade Datong and Xuanfu (宣府; present-day Xuanhua, Hebei Province), which were two major garrisons guarding the corridor to Beijing where no walls had been built. The two defence lines of Xuanfu and Datong (abbreviated as "Xuan–Da") left by the Northern Qi and the early Ming had deteriorated by this point, and for all intents and purposes the inner line was the capital's main line of defence. From 1544 to 1549, Weng Wanda (翁萬達; 14981552) embarked on a defensive building program on a scale unprecedented in Chinese history. Troops were re-deployed along the outer line, new walls and beacon towers were constructed, and fortifications were restored and extended along both lines. Firearms and artillery were mounted on the walls and towers during this time, for both defence and signalling purposes. The project's completion was announced in the sixth month of 1548. At its height, the Xuan–Da portion of the Great Wall totalled about of wall, with some sections being doubled-up with two lines of wall, some tripled or even quadrupled. The outer frontier was now protected by a wall called the "outer border" (外邊, wàibiān) that extended from the Yellow River's edge at the Piantou Pass (偏頭關) along the Inner Mongolia border with Shanxi into Hebei province; the "inner border" wall (內邊, nèibiān) ran southeast from Piantou Pass for some , ending at the Pingxing Pass; a "river wall" (河邊, hébiān) also ran from the Piantou Pass and followed the Yellow River southwards for about . As with Yu Zijun's wall in the Ordos, the Mongols shifted their attacks away from the newly strengthened Xuan–Da sector to less well-protected areas. In the west, Shaanxi province became the target of nomads riding west from the Yellow River loop. The westernmost fortress of Ming China, the Jiayu Pass, saw substantial enhancement with walls starting in 1539, and from there border walls were built discontinuously down the Hexi Corridor to Wuwei, where the low earthen wall split into two. The northern section passed through Zhongwei and Yinchuan, where it met the western edge of the Yellow River loop before connecting with the Ordos walls, while the southern section passed through Lanzhou and continued northeast to Dingbian. The origins and the exact route of this so-called "Tibetan loop" are still not clear. In 1550, having once more been refused a request for trade, the Tümed Mongols under Altan Khan invaded the Xuan–Da region. However, despite several attempts, he could not take Xuanfu due to Weng Wanda's double fortified line while the garrison at Datong bribed him to not attack there. Instead of continuing to operate in the area, he circled around Weng Wanda's wall to the relatively lightly defended Gubeikou, northeast of Beijing. From there Altan Khan passed through the defences and raided the suburbs of Beijing. According to one contemporary source, the raid took more than 60,000 lives and an additional 40,000 people became prisoners. As a response to this raid, the focus of the Ming's northern defences shifted from the Xuan–Da region to the Jizhou (薊州鎮) and Changping Defence Commands (昌平鎮) where the breach took place. Later in the same year, the dry-stone walls of the Jizhou–Changping area (abbreviated as "Ji–Chang") were replaced by stone and mortar. These allowed the Chinese to build on steeper, more easily defended slopes and facilitated construction of features such as ramparts, crenelations, and peepholes. The effectiveness of the new walls was demonstrated in the failed Mongol raid of 1554, where raiders expecting a repeat of the events of 1550 were surprised by the higher wall and stiff Chinese resistance. In 1567 Qi Jiguang and Tan Lun, successful generals who fended off the coastal pirates, were reassigned to manage the Ji–Chang Defense Commands and step up the defences of the capital region. Under their ambitious and energetic management, 1200 brick watchtowers were built along the Great Wall from 1569 to 1571. These included the first large-scale use of hollow watchtowers on the Wall: up until this point, most previous towers along the Great Wall had been solid, with a small hut on top for a sentry to take shelter from the elements and Mongol arrows; the Ji–Chang towers built from 1569 onwards were hollow brick structures, allowing soldiers interior space to live, store food and water, stockpile weapons, and take shelter from Mongol arrows. Altan Khan eventually made peace with China when it opened border cities for trade in 1571, alleviating the Mongol need to raid. This, coupled with Qi and Tan's efforts to secure the frontier, brought a period of relative peace along the border. However, minor raids still happened from time to time when the profits of plunder outweighed those of trade, prompting the Ming to close all gaps along the frontier around Beijing. Areas of difficult terrain once considered impassable were also walled off, leading to the well-known vistas of a stone-faced Great Wall snaking over dramatic landscapes that tourists still see today. Wall construction continued until the demise of the Ming dynasty in 1644. In the decades that led to the fall of the Ming dynasty, the Ming court and the Great Wall itself had to deal with simultaneous internal rebellions and the Manchu invasions. In addition to their conquest of Liaodong, the Manchus had raided across the Great Wall for the first time in 1629, and again in 1634, 1638, and 1642. Meanwhile, the rebels led by warlord Li Zicheng had been gathering strength. In the early months of 1644, Li Zicheng declared himself the founder of the Shun and marched towards the Ming capital from Shaanxi. His route roughly followed the line of the Great Wall, in order to neutralize its heavily fortified garrisons. The crucial defences of Datong, Xuanfu, and Juyong Pass all surrendered without a fight, and the Chongzhen Emperor hanged himself on 25 April as the Shun army entered Beijing. At this point, the largest remaining Ming fighting force in North China was in Shanhai Pass, where the Great Wall meets the Bohai Sea. Its defender Wu Sangui, wedged between the Shun army within and the Manchus without, decided to surrender to the Manchus and opened the gates for them. The Manchus, having thus entered through the Great Wall, defeated Li Zicheng at the Battle of Shanhai Pass and seized Beijing on June5. They eventually defeated both the rebel-founded Shun dynasty and the remaining Ming resistance, establishing their rule over all of China as the Qing dynasty. Opinions about the Wall's role in the Ming dynasty's downfall are mixed. Historians such as Arthur Waldron and Julia Lovell are critical of the whole wall-building exercise in light of its ultimate failure in protecting China; the former compared the Great Wall with the failed Maginot Line of the French in World War II. However, independent scholar David Spindler notes that the Wall, being only part of a complex foreign policy, received "disproportionate blame" because it was the most obvious relic of that policy. The usefulness of the Great Wall as a defence line against northern nomads became questionable under the Qing dynasty, since their territory encompassed vast areas inside and outside the wall: China proper, Manchuria, and Mongolia were all under Qing control. So instead, the Great Wall became the means to limit Han Chinese movement into the steppes. In the case of Manchuria, considered to be the sacred homeland by the ruling Manchu elites, some parts of the Ming Liaodong Wall were repaired so it could serve to control Han Chinese movement into Manchuria alongside the newly erected Willow Palisade. Culturally, the wall's symbolic role as a line between civilized society and barbarism was suppressed by the Qing, who were keen to weaken the Han culturalism that had been propagated by the Ming. As a result, no special attention was paid to the Great Wall until the mid-Qing dynasty, when Westerners started to show interest in the structure. The existence of a colossal wall in Asia had circulated in the Middle East and the West even before the first Europeans arrived in China by sea. The late antiquity historian Ammianus Marcellinus (330?395?) mentioned "summits of lofty walls" enclosing the land of Seres, the country that the Romans believed to be at the eastern end of the Silk Road. In legend, the tribes of Gog and Magog were said to have been locked out by Alexander the Great with walls of steel. Later Arab writers and travellers, such as Rashid-al-Din Hamadani (12481318) and Ibn Battuta (13041377), would erroneously identify the Great Wall in China with the walls of the Alexander romances. Soon after Europeans reached Ming China in the early 16th century, accounts of the Great Wall started to circulate in Europe, even though no European would see it with their own eyes for another century. The work A Treatise of China and the Adjoyning Regions by Gaspar da Cruz (c. 152070) offered an early discussion of the Great Wall in which he noted, "a Wall of an hundred leagues in length. And some will affirme to bee more than a hundred leagues." Another early account written by Bishop Juan González de Mendoza (15501620) reported a wall five hundred leagues long, but suggested that only one hundred leagues were man- made, with the rest natural rock formations. The Jesuit priest Matteo Ricci (15521610) mentioned the Great Wall once in his diary, noting the existence of "a tremendous wall four hundred and five miles long" that formed part of the northern defences of the Ming Empire. Europeans first witnessed the Great Wall in the early 1600s. Perhaps the first recorded instance of a European actually entering China via the Great Wall came in 1605, when the Portuguese Jesuit brother Bento de Góis reached the northwestern Jiayu Pass from India. Ivan Petlin's 1619 deposition for his Russian embassy mission offers an early account based on a first-hand encounter with the Great Wall, and mentions that in the course of the journey his embassy travelled alongside the Great Wall for ten days. Early European accounts were mostly modest and empirical, closely mirroring contemporary Chinese understanding of the Wall. However, when the Ming Great Wall began to take on a shape recognizable today, foreign accounts of the Wall slid into hyperbole. In the Atlas Sinensis published in 1665, the Jesuit Martino Martini described elaborate but atypical stretches of the Great Wall and generalized such fortifications across the whole northern frontier. Furthermore, Martini erroneously identified the Ming Wall as the same wall built by Qin Shi Huang in the 3rd century BC, thereby exaggerating both the Wall's antiquity and its size. This misconception was compounded by the China Illustrata of Father Athanasius Kircher (160280), which provided pictures of the Great Wall as imagined by a European illustrator. All these and other accounts from missionaries in China contributed to the Orientalism of the eighteenth century, in which a mythical China and its exaggerated Great Wall feature prominently. The French philosopher Voltaire (16941774), for example, frequently wrote about the Great Wall, although his feelings towards it oscillate between unreserved admiration and condemnation of it as a "monument to fear". The Macartney Embassy of 1793 passed through the Great Wall at Gubeikou on the way to see the Qianlong Emperor in Chengde, who was there for the annual imperial hunt. One of the embassy's members, John Barrow, later founder of the Royal Geographical Society, spuriously calculated that the amount of stone in the Wall was equivalent to "all the dwelling houses of England and Scotland" and would suffice to encircle the Earth at the equator twice. The illustrations of the Great Wall by Lieutenant Henry William Parish during this mission would be reproduced in influential works such as Thomas Allom's 1845 China, in a series of views. Exposure to such works brought many foreign visitors to the Great Wall after China opened its borders as a result of the nation's defeat in the Opium Wars of the mid-19th century at the hands of Britain and the other Western powers. The Juyong Pass near Beijing and the "Old Dragon Head," where the Great Wall meets the sea at the Shanhai Pass, proved popular destinations for these wall watchers. The travelogues of the later 19th century in turn further contributed to the elaboration and propagation of the Great Wall myth. Examples of this myth's growth are the false but widespread belief that the Great Wall of China is visible from the Moon or Mars. The Xinhai Revolution in 1911 forced the abdication of the last Qing Emperor Puyi and ended China's last imperial dynasty. The revolutionaries, headed by Sun Yat-sen, were concerned with creating a modern sense of national identity in the chaotic post-imperial era. In contrast to Chinese academics such as Liang Qichao, who tried to counter the West's fantastic version of the Great Wall, Sun Yat-sen held the view that Qin Shi Huang's wall preserved the Chinese race, and without it Chinese culture would not have developed enough to expand to the south and assimilate foreign conquerors. Such an endorsement from the "Father of Modern China" started to transform the Great Wall into a national symbol in the Chinese consciousness, though this transformation was hampered by conflicting views of nationalism with regard to the nascent "new China." The failure of the new Republic of China fanned disillusionment with traditional Chinese culture and ushered in the New Culture Movement and the May Fourth Movement of the mid-1910s and 1920s that aimed to dislodge China's future trajectory from its past. Naturally, the Great Wall of China came under attack as a symbol of the past. For example, an influential writer of this period, Lu Xun, harshly criticized the "mighty and accursed Great Wall" in a short essay: "In reality, it has never served any purpose than to make countless workers labour to death in vain ... [It] surrounds everyone." The Sino-Japanese conflict (193145) gave the Great Wall a new lease of life in the eyes of the Chinese. During the 1933 defence of the Great Wall, inadequately- equipped Chinese soldiers held off double their number of Japanese troops for several months. Using the cover of the Great Wall, the Chinese – who were at times only armed with broadswords – were able to beat off a Japanese advance that had the support of aerial bombardment. With the Chinese forces eventually overrun, the subsequent Tanggu Truce stipulated that the Great Wall was to become a demilitarized zone separating China and the newly created Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo. Even so, the determined defence of the Great Wall made it a symbol of Chinese patriotism and the resoluteness of the Chinese people. The Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong picked up this symbol in his poetry during his "Long March" escaping from Kuomintang prosecution. Near the end of the trek in 1935, Mao wrote the poem "Mount Liupan" that contains the well-known line that would be carved in stone along the Great Wall in the present day: "Those who fail to reach the Great Wall are not true men" (). Another noteworthy reference to the Great Wall is in the song "The March of the Volunteers", whose words came from a stanza in Tian Han's 1934 poem entitled "The Great Wall". The song, originally from the anti-Japanese movie Children of Troubled Times, enjoyed continued popularity in China and was selected as the provisional national anthem of the People's Republic of China (PRC) at its establishment in 1949. In 1952, the scholar-turned-bureaucrat Guo Moruo laid out the first modern proposal to repair the Great Wall. Five years later, the renovated Badaling became the first section to be opened to the public since the establishment of the PRC. The Badaling Great Wall has since become a staple stop for foreign dignitaries who come to China, beginning with Nepali prime minister Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala in 1960, and most notably the American president Richard Nixon in his historic 1972 visit to China. To date, Badaling is still the most visited stretch of the Great Wall. Other stretches did not fare so well. During the Cultural Revolution (196676), hundreds of kilometres of the Great Wall—already damaged in the wars of the last century and eroded by wind and rain—were deliberately destroyed by fervent Red Guards who regarded it as part of the "Four Olds" to be eradicated in the new China. Quarrying machines and even dynamite were used to dismantle the Wall, and the pilfered materials were used for construction. As China opened up in the 1980s, reformist leader Deng Xiaoping initiated the "Love our China and restore our Great Wall" campaign () to repair and preserve the Great Wall. The Great Wall was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. However, while tourism boomed over the years, slipshod restoration methods have left sections of the Great Wall near Beijing "looking like a Hollywood set" in the words of the National Geographic News. The less prominent stretches of the Great Wall did not get as much attention. In 2002 the New York-based World Monuments Fund put the Great Wall on its list of the World's 100 Most Endangered Sites. In 2003 the Chinese government began to enact laws to protect the Great Wall. In China, one of the first individuals to attempt a multi-dynastic history of the Great Wall was the 17th-century scholar Gu Yanwu. More recently, in the 1930s and 1940s, Wang Guoliang () and Shou Pengfei () produced exhaustive studies that culled extant literary records to date and mapped the courses of early border walls. However, these efforts were based solely on written records that contain obscure place names and elusive literary references. The rise of modern archeology has contributed much to the study of the Great Wall, either in corroborating existing research or in refuting it. However these efforts do not yet give a full picture of the Great Wall's history, as many wall sites dating to the Period of Disunity (220589) had been overlaid by the extant Ming Great Wall. Western scholarship of the Great Wall was, until recently, affected by misconceptions derived from traditional accounts of the Wall. When the Jesuits brought back the first reports of the Wall to the West, European scholars were puzzled that Marco Polo had not mentioned the presumably perennial "Great Wall" in his Travels. Some 17th-century scholars reasoned that the Wall must have been built in the Ming dynasty, after Marco Polo's departure. This view was soon replaced by another that argued, against Polo's own account, that the Venetian merchant had come to China from the south and so did not come into contact with the Wall. Thus, Father Martino Martini's mistaken claim that the Wall had "lasted right up to the present time without injury or destruction" since the time of Qin was accepted as fact by the 18th-century philosophes. Since then, many scholars have operated under the belief that the Great Wall continually defended China's border against the steppe nomads for two thousand years. For example, the 18th-century sinologist Joseph de Guignes assigned macrohistorical importance to such walls when he advanced the theory that the Qin construction forced the Xiongnu to migrate west to Europe and, becoming known as the Huns, ultimately contributed to the decline of the Roman Empire. Some have attempted to make general statements regarding Chinese society and foreign policy based on the conception of a perennial Great Wall: Karl Marx took the Wall to represent the stagnation of the Chinese society and economy, Owen Lattimore supposed that the Great Wall demonstrated a need to divide the nomadic way of life from the agricultural communities of China, and John K. Fairbank posited that the Wall played a part in upholding the Sinocentric world order. Despite the significance that the Great Wall seemed to have, scholarly treatment of the Wall itself remained scant during the 20th century. Joseph Needham bemoaned this dearth when he was compiling the section on walls for his Science and Civilisation in China: "There is no lack of travelers' description of the Great Wall, but studies based on modern scholarship are few and far between, whether in Chinese or Western languages." In 1990, Arthur Waldron published the influential The Great Wall: From History to Myth, where he challenged the notion of a unitary Great Wall maintained since antiquity, dismissing it as a modern myth. Waldron's approach prompted a re-examination of the Wall in Western scholarship. Still, as of 2008, there is not yet a full authoritative text in any language that is devoted to the Great Wall. The reason for this, according to The New Yorker journalist Peter Hessler, is that the Great Wall fits into neither the study of political institutions (favoured by Chinese historians) nor the excavation of tombs (favoured by Chinese archeologists). Some of the void left by academia is being filled by independent research from Great Wall enthusiasts such as ex-Xinhua reporter Cheng Dalin (成大林) and self-funded scholar David Spindler. History of China, History of Central Asia, Military history of China before 1911, Foreign relations of Imperial China, Lady Meng Jiang, a Chinese folk tale about the Great Wall, Battle of Shanhaiguan (1900), British forces occupy and damage parts of Shanhai Pass during the Boxer Rebellion, The Great Wall of China, a short story by Franz Kafka, Great Wall of China hoax, published in 1899 and expanded in 1939 ., . In two volumes. The Great Wall () is a 2016 action monster film directed by Zhang Yimou, with a screenplay by Carlo Bernard, Doug Miro and Tony Gilroy, from a story by Max Brooks, Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. It is an American-Chinese co- production starring Matt Damon, Jing Tian, Pedro Pascal, Willem Dafoe, and Andy Lau. The Great Wall is Zhang's first English-language film. Principal photography for the film began on March 30, 2015, in Qingdao, China, and it premiered in Beijing on December 6, 2016. It was released by China Film Group in China on December 16, 2016, and in the United States on February 17, 2017 by Universal Pictures. The film received mixed reviews from critics, who said it "sacrifices great story for great action." Also, despite grossing over $330 million worldwide and making back the studios investment 2 times over, it was considered a box-office bomb. A band of European mercenaries, including Irishman William Garin and Spaniard Pedro Tovar, travel to China during the reign of the Song dynasty's Renzong Emperor, in search of the secret to gunpowder. Resting in a cave a few miles north of the Great Wall, they are attacked by a monster, leaving only William and Tovar alive. They cut off the monster's arm and bring it with them. The next day, reaching the Wall, they are taken prisoner by soldiers of the Nameless Order, led by General Shao and Strategist Wang. The Nameless Order exists to combat a horde of alien monsters called Tao Tei, which attacks once every sixty years. The Tao Tei came to Earth when a meteorite fell from the heavens. While examining the severed monster arm, the Order's commanders are surprised by the first assault from the monster horde, one week early. Shortly afterwards, a huge monster horde assails the Wall. Both sides sustain heavy losses before the monsters' queen aborts the attack. During the battle, William and Tovar are freed by Ballard, another European who ventured east, twenty-five years earlier, in search of gunpowder. Detained, he now serves as an English and Latin teacher. William and Tovar display amazing battle skills, saving the life of young warrior Peng Yong, then slaying two monsters that scale the Wall, which earns them the Order's respect. The three Europeans secretly plan to steal gunpowder and flee during the next monster attack. That night, two Tao Tei reach the top of the Wall. General Shao is killed, placing Commander Lin in charge of the Nameless Order. Around this time, an envoy from the capital arrives with an ancient scroll which suggests that the monsters are pacified by magnets. Wang believes the stone William carries enabled him to slay the Tao Tei he fought at the cave. To test the hypothesis, William suggests they capture a Tao Tei alive and agrees to help. This delays his escape plans, angering Tovar, who nevertheless assists William despite Ballard's protests. During the next attack, the Tao Tei are numerous enough to cause Lin to resort to using arrows equipped with black powder, whose capabilities had been kept secret from the Westerners until now. They capture a living Tao Tei and prove the theory. However, the Imperial envoy claims the monster and takes it to the capital to present to the Emperor. A tunnel is discovered at the base of the Wall; the previous attacks had been a distraction so that the Tao Tei could dig the tunnel. While Lin investigates, Tovar and Ballard steal a supply of black powder and escape, knocking William unconscious for trying to stop them. William is arrested by the Nameless Order, and is locked up in the Wall. Some distance away, Ballard betrays and abandons Tovar, but is captured by bandits, who accidentally kill themselves and Ballard after igniting the powder. At the capital, the envoy presents the captive Tao Tei to the Emperor and his entourage, but it awakens and reveals its position to its queen, who signals the Tao Tei to attack. The Order rushes to the capital. Lin orders the use of hot-air balloons, and before setting out, Lin sets William free. Wang tells him to warn the outside world, but William boards the last balloon with Peng and Wang. They arrive just in time to save Lin from being devoured. They land in the Emperor's palace, where Wang proposes killing the queen by tying explosives to the captured Tao Tei and giving it meat to be delivered to the queen. While approaching the site, a horde of Tao Tei attack the band, and Peng sacrifices himself to save the others. After releasing the Tao Tei, Lin and William climb a tower so that William can detonate the explosives with an arrow. Wang sacrifices himself to buy time for Lin and William to reach the upper floors. Two of William's arrows are deflected by the Tao Tei queen's bodyguards, but William throws the magnet into the horde, creating a gap in the shields, allowing Lin's spear to get through. The queen is killed, and the rest of the horde is paralyzed. With the threat eliminated, William is allowed to return home and elects to take Tovar (whom the Nameless Order recaptured) with him instead of a reward of black powder, much to Tovar's annoyance. Matt Damon as William Garin (威廉·加林), a European mercenary., Jing Tian as Commander Lin Mae (), the leader of the Crane Troop, Pedro Pascal as Pedro Tovar (佩罗· 托瓦尔), a European mercenary., Willem Dafoe as Sir Ballard (巴拉德), a European adventurer-turned-teacher in China., Andy Lau as Strategist Wang (王军师), the Strategist and War Counselor for the Nameless Order., Zhang Hanyu as General Shao (邵殿帅), the leader of the Bear Troop and General of the Nameless Order., Lu Han as Peng Yong (彭勇), a soldier in the Bear Troop., Eddie Peng as Commander Wu (吴将军), head of the Tiger Troop., Kenny Lin as Commander Chen (陈将军), head of the Eagle Troop., Karry Wang as The Emperor, Zheng Kai as Shen (沈), Huang Xuan as Commander Deng (邓将军), head of the Deer Troop., Cheney Chen as Commander of the Imperial Guard Principal photography of the film began on March 30, 2015, on location in Qingdao. It is the most expensive film ever shot entirely in China. Three walls were built during production as they could not shoot on the actual Great Wall. During the filmmaking, the director said the most impressive part for him was the presence of so many translators to handle communication, as he assembled an international crew for the filming. More than 100 on-set translators worked with the various cast and crew members. The film's score is composed by Ramin Djawadi. The first track called "Nameless Order" was released on December 14, 2016. The Great Wall was released in China on December 16, 2016. It was released on February 17, 2017 in the United States by Universal Pictures in 3D, 2D and IMAX 3D. The Great Wall released its first trailer in July 2016. The trailer shows views of the Great Wall in fog, thousands of soldiers on a battlefield ready for war, and a mysterious monster, as well as the roster views of the cast, including Matt Damon and Andy Lau. A song from Leehom Wang and Tan Weiwei was released on November 15, 2016, to promote The Great Wall. Bridge of Fate was composed by pop singer Wang, with lyrics written by Vincent Fang, a long time collaborator of singer-songwriter Jay Chou. Female rocker Tan Weiwei joined Wang for a duet, but with two different vocal styles. Wang sang pop, while Tan performed a traditional Qinqiang – a folk Chinese opera style from Shaanxi Province. Chinese pop diva Jane Zhang released another new English song, Battle Field, and its promotional music video, for The Great Wall on November 22, 2016. The song was composed by King Logan and Maroon 5's keyboardist PJ Morton, and written by Josiah "JoJo" Martin and Jane Zhang. It was produced by Timbaland. Universal Pictures and Legendary Entertainment debuted eight character posters of the film on November 17, 2016. All in all, Legendary spent $110–120 million on promotion and advertising worldwide. Legendary Pictures made a strategic decision to work with Chinese talent and investors, and altered their production plan to better cater to Chinese audiences. The Great Wall, funded by Legendary, China Film Group, and Universal Pictures was an attempt at a joint production between Chinese and American talent. The film was directed by a big-time Chinese director, Zhang Yimou, and starred Hollywood stars Matt Damon and Willem Defoe alongside Chinese film stars in an attempt to capture Chinese audiences. Although the film was considered to be a box office failure in China, the intent was clear and compelling. Other film studios such as Pixar have been making these minor adjustments to appeal to international audiences for years. The film was released for digital download on May 9, 2017, and on DVD, Blu-ray on May 23, 2017. The Great Wall grossed $45.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $289.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $334.9 million, against a production budget of $150 million. In China, The Great Wall opened on December 16, 2016, and made $24.3 million on its first day and $67.4 million in its opening weekend. In the second weekend, it grossed $26.1 million. The film went on to gross $170.9 million at the Chinese box office, which is considered a disappointment. In the United States and Canada, the film opened alongside A Cure for Wellness and Fist Fight, and was projected to gross $17–19 million from about 3,200 theaters in its opening weekend. The film made $970,000 at 2,470 theaters from Thursday night previews, and $5.9 million on its first day. It went on to open to $18.1 million, finishing third at the box office, behind holdovers The Lego Batman Movie and Fifty Shades Darker, and eventually grossing $45.2 million. The film joined Terminator Genisys, Warcraft and fellow 2017 release as the only Hollywood films to earn $100 million in China without making $100 million in the United States. In March 2017, The Hollywood Reporter wrote that the film was likely to lose about $75 million due to its underwhelming performance theatrically, as its performance in most major markets, including the United States and Canada, was disappointing. The loss incurred by all four studios will however vary, with Universal Pictures, which funded about 25% of the film's $150 million production budget, losing around $10 million. The rest of the investors, Legendary Entertainment, China Film Group and Le Vision Pictures, will have an equal loss. However, since Universal also covered almost all of the film's global marketing expenses (which were above $80 million), the studio will incur an even more heavy loss. However, if the film was able to generate enough income through ancillary revenues (such as home entertainment sales and TV rights), it might be able to cover up the loss. In March 2018, Deadline Hollywood calculated the film lost the studio $74.5 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues. On Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, the film has an approval rating of 36% based on 223 reviews, and an average rating of 4.93/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "For a Yimou Zhang film featuring Matt Damon and Willem Dafoe battling ancient monsters, The Great Wall is neither as exciting nor as entertainingly bonkers as one might hope." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 42 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, writing for The A.V. Club, gave the film a B− on an A to F scale, saying: "There is no logical reason for the film to climax in a tower of stained glass that paints Lin Mae and William in psychedelic Suspiria lighting, but boy does it look gorgeous in 3-D." Simon Abrams, a contributor for RogerEbert.com, gave the film a 3 out of 4 stars, summarizing: "The Great Wall is unlike any American blockbuster you've seen, a conservative movie with action set pieces that are actually inventive and thrilling enough to be worthwhile. See it on as big a screen as you can." Clarence Tsui, writing for The Hollywood Reporter, gave the film a negative review, saying: "The Great Wall is easily the least interesting and involving blockbuster of the respective careers of both its director and star." Because some of the characters, including a main character played by Matt Damon, are white in a film set in medieval China, the film was accused of whitewashing and using the white savior narrative prior to its release. Ann Hornaday, chief film critic for The Washington Post, wrote that "early concerns about Damon playing a 'white savior' in the film turn out to be unfounded: his character, a mercenary soldier, is heroic, but also clearly a foil for the superior principles and courage of his Chinese allies." Jonathan Kim, in a review for the Huffington Post, writes that "having seen The Great Wall, I can say that ... on the charge of The Great Wall insulting the Chinese and promoting white superiority, I say: Not Guilty. The question of whether The Great Wall is a white savior movie is a bit trickier, but I'm still going to say Not Guilty. ... On the charge of whitewashing, I say: Not Guilty." Director Zhang said that Damon was not playing a role that was intended for a Chinese actor. He criticized detractors for not being "armed with the facts" and stated that "In many ways The Great Wall is the opposite of what is being suggested. For the first time, a film deeply rooted in Chinese culture, with one of the largest Chinese casts ever assembled, is being made at tentpole scale for a world audience. I believe that is a trend that should be embraced by our industry." The film's largest investor, the Wanda Group (owner of Legendary Pictures) has a good relationship with the Chinese government and the Communist Party of China. As of July 2017, users of film review website Douban rated The Great Wall 4.9 out of 10, which is considered very low. On Maoyan, another film review aggregator, the "professional score" is 4.9 out of 10. On December 28, 2016, the Communist Party's official media outlet People's Daily published an article on its website severely criticizing Douban and Maoyan for doing harm to the Chinese movie industry with their bad reviews. On the same day, Maoyan took down its 'professional score' for The Great Wall. The Great Firewall of China (GFW) is the combination of legislative actions and technologies enforced by the People's Republic of China to regulate the Internet domestically. Its role in Internet censorship in China is to block access to selected foreign websites and to slow down cross-border internet traffic. The effect includes: limiting access to foreign information sources, blocking foreign internet tools (e.g. Google search, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, and others) and mobile apps, and requiring foreign companies to adapt to domestic regulations. Besides censorship, the GFW has also influenced the development of China's internal internet economy by nurturing domestic companies and reducing the effectiveness of products from foreign internet companies. The techniques deployed by the Chinese government to maintain control of the Great Firewall can include modifying search results for terms, such as they did following Ai Weiwei’s arrest, and petitioning global conglomerates to remove content, as happened when they petitioned Apple to remove the Quartz business news publication’s app from its Chinese App Store after reporting on the 2019 Hong Kong protests. The Great Firewall was formerly operated by the SIIO, as part of the Golden Shield Project. Since 2013, the firewall is technically operated by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), which is the entity in charge of translating the Communist Party of China's will into technical specifications. As mentioned in the "One country, two systems" principle, China's special administrative regions (SARs) such as Hong Kong and Macau are not affected by the firewall, as SARs have their own governmental and legal systems and therefore enjoy a high degree of autonomy. Nevertheless, the U.S. State Department has reported that the central government authorities have closely monitored Internet use in these regions. The term Great Firewall of China is a portmanteau of firewall and the Great Wall of China, and was first used in print by Geremie Barmé in 1997. The term started its use in Beijing in 1996 by Stephen Guerin of Redfish Group, a Beijing-based web consultancy. 1996 interviews of Guerin by CNN's Andrea Koppel and NPR's Mary Kay Magistad included Guerin discussing China's "reversing the firewall". The political and ideological background of the GFW Project is considered to be one of Deng Xiaoping’s favorite sayings in the early 1980s: "If you open the window, both fresh air and flies will be blown in." The saying is related to a period of the economic reform of China that became known as the "socialist market economy". Superseding the political ideologies of the Cultural Revolution, the reform led China towards a market economy and opened up the market for foreign investors. Nonetheless, despite the economic freedom, values and political ideas of the Communist Party of China have had to be protected by "swatting flies" of other unwanted ideologies. The Internet in China arrived in 1994, as the inevitable consequence of and supporting tool for the "socialist market economy". Gradually, while Internet availability has been increasing, the Internet has become a common communication platform and tool for trading information. The Ministry of Public Security took initial steps to control Internet use in 1997, when it issued comprehensive regulations governing its use. The key sections, Articles 4–6, are: In 1998, the Communist Party of China feared that the China Democracy Party (CDP) would breed a powerful new network that the party elites might not be able to control. The CDP was immediately banned, followed by arrests and imprisonment. That same year, the GFW project was started. The first part of the project lasted eight years and was completed in 2006. The second part began in 2006 and ended in 2008. On 6 December 2002, 300 people in charge of the GFW project from 31 provinces and cities throughout China participated in a four-day inaugural "Comprehensive Exhibition on Chinese Information System". At the exhibition, many western high-tech products, including Internet security, video monitoring and human face recognition were purchased. It is estimated that around 30,000–50,000 police were employed in this gigantic project. Fang Binxing is known for his substantial contribution to China's Internet censorship infrastructure, and has been dubbed "Father of China's Great Fire Wall". China's view of the internet is as "Internet sovereignty": the notion that the Internet inside the country is part of the country's sovereignty and should be governed by the country. While the United States and several other western countries passed laws creating computer crimes beginning in the 1970s, China had no such legislation until 1997. That year, China's sole legislative body, the National People's Congress (NPC) passed CL97, a law that criminalizes "cyber crimes", which it divided into two broad categories: crimes that target computer networks and crimes carried out over computer networks. Behavior illegal under the latter category includes among many things the dissemination of pornographic material and the usurping of "state secrets." Some Chinese judges were critical of CL97, calling it ineffective and unenforceable. However, the NPC claimed it intentionally left the law "flexible" so that it could be open to future interpretation and development. Given the gaps in the law, the central government of China relies heavily on its administrative body, the State Council, to determine what falls under the definitions, and their determinations are not required to go through the NPC legislative process. As a result, the CPC has ended up relying heavily on state regulation to carry out CL97. The latter definition of online activities punishable under CL97, or "crimes carried out over computer networks" is used as justification for the Great Firewall and can be cited when the government blocks any ISP, gateway connections, or any access to anything on the internet. The definition also includes using the internet to distribute information considered "harmful to national security," and using the internet to distribute information considered "harmful to public order, social stability, and Chinese morality." The central government relies heavily on its State Council regulators to determine what specific online behavior and speech fall under these definitions. The reasons behind the Internet censorship in China include: Social Control: The Internet is a means for freedom of speech, and dissemination of campaigns could lead to protests against the government., Sensitive Content: To control information about the government in China., Economic Protectionism: China prefers the use of local companies that are regulated by Chinese regulations, since they have more power over them. E.g. Baidu over Google. As part of the Great Firewall, beginning in 2003 China started the Golden Shield Project , a massive surveillance and censoring system, the hardware for which was provided by mostly U.S. companies, including Cisco Systems. The project was completed in 2006 and is now carried out in buildings with machines manned by civilians and supervised by China's national police force, the Public Security Bureau (PSB). The main operating activities of the gatekeepers at the Golden Shield Project include monitoring domestic websites and email and searching for politically sensitive language and calls to protest. When damaging content is found, local PSB officials can be dispatched to investigate or make arrests. However, by late 2007 the Golden Shield Project proved to operate sporadically at best, as users had long adapted to internet blocking by using proxy servers, among other strategies, to make communications and circumnavigate to blocked content. In February 2008, the Chinese government announced "Operation Tomorrow," an effort to crack down on youth usage of internet cafés to play online games and view content declared illegal. Internet cafés, an extremely popular way of getting online in developing countries where fewer people can afford a personal computer, are regulated by the Chinese government and by local Chinese government officials. Minors (in China, those under the age of 18) are not allowed into Internet cafés, although this law is widely ignored and when enforced, has spurred the creation of underground "Black Web Bars" visited by those underage. As of 2008 internet cafés were required to register every customer in a log when they used the internet there; these records may be confiscated by local government officials and the PSB. To illustrate local regulation of internet cafés, in one instance, a government official in the town of Gedong lawfully banned internet cafés from operating in the town because he believed them to be harmful to minors, who frequented them to play online games (including those considered violent) and surf the internet. However, internet cafés in this town simply went underground and most minors were not deterred from visiting them. In May 2015, China indefinitely blocked access to the Chinese-language Wikipedia. In contrast (as of 2018), the English-language Wikipedia was blocked only rarely and intermittently. China in 2017 discussed plans for its own version of Wikipedia. As of May 2019, all language versions of Wikipedia have been blocked by the Chinese government. The Chinese firewall works by selectively preventing content from being accessed. It is mostly made of Cisco, Huawei and Semptian hardware that provides censorship services within key networking components such as IPS, PE routers, or DNS servers. Researchers at the University of California, Davis, and at the University of New Mexico said that the censorship system is not a true firewall since banned material is sometimes able to pass through several routers or through the entire system without being blocked. The filtering mechanism may differ from one Chinese ISP to another, but tend to be as common as possible : In addition to the performed filtering, the CAC is also using Active Probing in order to identify and block network services that would help escaping the Firewall. Multiple services such as Tor or VPN providers reported receiving unsolicited TCP/IP connections for the purported purpose of network enumeration of services, in particular TLS/SSL and Tor (anonymity network) services, with the aim of facilitating IP blocking. This active probing system seems to be using unused IP addresses within China Telecom and China Unicom IPs pools dedicated to Residential gateways, making the probes hard to block without affecting Chinese users. The Great Firewall in China had direct influence on population's belief and way of thinking. It is mainly used by the Chinese government to perform and encourage "right thinking" by censoring dissident ideas. One of the main goals of the Great Chinese firewall is to create an environment where people have the same values and are having the same opinion. Therefore, the GFW is a political tool using Chinese citizens to promote Chinese Communist Party ideas. The impact of this tool is difficult to evaluate, but It is estimated that its consequences are very strong and worldwide : instead of directly using force to control the population, the GFW quietly sets up an environment in which people share the same values and have same ideas, which are directly controlled by the CAC. Some example of ideas are : Taiwan, Hong Kong and Tibet are part of China., 1989 Tiananmen Square protests should not be considered as very important, Pornography, obscenity and eroticism are shabby activities., Democracy is not the best system for governing a country. As such Pro-democracy groups should be considered as terrorists and Hong Kong protests are supposedly organized by foreign entities., Falun Gong and other anti CCP groups, are "outlawed"., etc.. The role of the firewall is to play with the social aspects of Chinese citizens, by blocking access to websites discouraging or criticizing these ideas. Other tools and means (50 Cent party, forcing companies in China to promote these ideas using loans as threat, pressuring citizens not complying with these ideas) are used to fill the space left with a "right thinking" voice. Because the social environment of an individual doesn't necessarily change when moving country, there is multiple reports of Chinese users still promoting these ideas even when they are going abroad and are not under direct influence of the GFW. It is largely admitted that the GFW, as well as other means, is playing a non-negligible role in keeping stable, patriotic and CAC- compliant values. The GFW is also putting foreign website, applications, and software owners under fear to get banned in China for having a user using their technology to express a non-CAC compliant opinion. This pressure is leading to chilled speech and self-censorship on all internet related services, from websites to mobile applications and video-games software. This self-censorship is encouraged by the Chinese government, and is currently more effective at blocking internet content than the Great Firewall has been. Aside from the population-control aspect, the Great Firewall also act as a form of trade protectionism that has allowed China to grow its own internet giants, such as Tencent, Alibaba, and Baidu. China has its own version of many foreign web properties, for example: Tencent Video (YouTube), Tencent Weibo (Twitter), Qzone (Facebook), WeChat (WhatsApp), Ctrip (Orbitz and others), Zhihu (Quora). With nearly one quarter of the global internet population (700 million users), the internet behind the GFW can be considered a "parallel universe" to the Internet that exists outside. Because the Great Firewall blocks destination IP addresses and domain names and inspects the data being sent or received, a basic censorship circumvention strategy is to use proxy nodes and encrypt the data. Most circumvention tools combine these two mechanisms: Proxy servers outside China can be used, although using just a simple open proxy (HTTP or SOCKS) without also using an encrypted tunnel (such as HTTPS) does little to circumvent the sophisticated censors., Freegate, Ultrasurf, Psiphon, and Lantern are free programs that circumvent the China firewall using multiple open proxies., VPNs (virtual private network) is one of the most popular tools used by Westerners for bypassing censorship technologies. They use the same basic approaches, proxies and encrypted channels, used by other circumvention tools, but depend on a private host, a virtual host, or an account outside of China, rather than open, free proxies. GreatFire maintains a list of which VPNs are working most effective in China at the moment., Tor partially can be used in China. Almost all public bridges are detected by impersonating Tor users requesting bridge IPs and then blocked. Tor still functions in China using Obfs4 bridges distributed through social networks or self-published and meek., I2P or garlic routing is useful when properties similar to Tor's anonymity are needed. Due to I2P being much less popular than Tor, it has faced little to no blocking attempts. Non-proxy circumvention strategies include: Using encrypted DNS may bypass blocking of all but the most popular sites. In 2019 Firefox released an update to make it easy to enable DNS over HTTPS., Ignoring TCP reset packets sent by the GFW. Distinguishing them by the TTL value (time to live), and not routing any further packets to sites that have triggered blocking behavior. OpenVPN protocol is detected and blocked. Connections not using symmetric keys or using "tls-auth" are blocked at handshake, and connections using the new "tls-crypt" option are detected and slowed down (under 56kbit/s) by the QoS filtering system., GRE tunnels and protocols that use GRE (e.g., PPTP) are blocked., IPSec tunnels and protocols that use it (L2TP) are detected and slowed down (under 56kbit/s) by the QoS filtering system and are sometimes blocked at handshake. Reporters Without Borders suspects that countries such as Cuba, Vietnam, Zimbabwe and Belarus have obtained surveillance technology from China, although the censorship in these countries is less stringent than in China. Even so, one can see the booming sector as well as one of the most dynamic. China is the second largest information and communication technology market, according to the International Data Corporation this market should reach US$844 billion by 2020. The market for big data is expected to become part of the industrial world of China by 2025. Regardless of the strictness the industrial internet architecture is already in place. Despite strict government regulations, some Chinese people continue to protest against their government's attempt to censor the Internet. The more covert protesters set up secure SSH and VPN connections using tools such as UltraSurf. They can also utilize the widely available proxies and virtual private networks to fanqiang (翻墙, "climb over the wall"), or bypass the GFW. Active protest is not absent. Chinese people post their grievances online, and on some occasions, have been successful. In 2003, the death of Sun Zhigang, a young migrant worker, sparked an intense, widespread online response from the Chinese public, despite the risk of the government's punishment. A few months later, Premier Wen Jiabao abolished the Chinese law that led to the death of Sun. Ever since, dissent has regularly created turmoil on the Internet in China. Also in January 2010, when Google announced that it will no longer censor its Web search results in China, even if this means it might have to shut down its Chinese operations altogether, many Chinese people went to the company's Chinese offices to display their grievances and offer gifts, such as flowers, fruits and cigarettes. Critics argue that the GFW is a consequence of China's paranoia of the potential that the Internet has of spreading opposition to their one-party rule. Other arguments given against China are that their method of having a limited Internet impedes freedom of speech and that it holds them down, economically speaking, by discouraging innovation, disapproving communication of important ideas and prohibiting firms the use of certain services that they use. It is also thought to be a detrimental approach for students and professors since they do not have access to resources which promote the sharing of work and ideas for a more comprehensive learning. Another important argument against the GFW and fear that the critics have is that if other big countries begin following China's approach, the whole purpose of the creation of the Internet could be put in jeopardy. If like-minded countries are successful in imposing the same restrictions on their inhabitants and globalized online companies, then the free global exchange of information could cease to exist. The United States Trade Representative's (USTR) "National Trade Estimate Report" in 2016 referred the China's digital Great Firewall: "China's filtering of cross-border Internet traffic has posed a significant burden to foreign suppliers." Claude Barfield, the American Enterprise Institute's expert of International trade, suggested that the U.S. government should bring a case against the Firewall, a huge trade barrier, in the World Trade Organization in January 2017. 8 of the 24 more trafficked websites in China have been blocked by The Great Firewall. This has created a burden to foreign suppliers who rely on these websites to sell their products or services.The lobby's 2016 business climate survey showed 79 percent of its members reported a negative impact on business due to internet censorship. According to Stephen Rosen, the GFW is reflective of the Chinese government's fear of civil disobedience or rebellion among the Chinese population against the Chinese Communist Party's rule: Fang Binxing, considered to be the Father of the Great Firewall of China, Bamboo Curtain, Berlin Wall, Great Cannon — A distributed denial-of-service attack tool co-located with the Great Firewall., GreatFire — An organization monitoring the Great Firewall., Great Wall of China — the physical analogy and the origin of the term, protecting China from foreign invasions in ancient times., Great Wall of Sand, Blocking of Wikipedia by China, Censorship in China, Green Dam Youth Escort, Internet in China, Internet censorship in the People's Republic of China, Internet censorship circumvention, International Freedom of Expression Exchange – monitors Internet censorship in China, Media of China, Politics of China, Splinternet, Who Controls the Internet?, Cypher Nilekani, Nandan, "Data to the People: India's Inclusive Internet", Foreign Affairs, vol. 97, no. 5 (September / October 2018), pp. 19–26., Segal, Adam, "When China Rules the Web: Technology in Service of the State", Foreign Affairs, vol. 97, no. 5 (September / October 2018), pp. 10–14, 16–18.

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Israel Kaʻanoʻi Kamakawiwoʻole (; ; May 20, 1959 – June 26, 1997), also called Bruddah Iz or IZ, was a Native Hawaiian singer-songwriter, musician, and Hawaiian sovereignty activist. He achieved commercial success outside Hawaii when his album Facing Future was released in 1993. His medley of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" was released on his albums Ka ʻAnoʻi and Facing Future. It was subsequently featured in several films, television programs, and television commercials. Along with his ukulele playing and incorporation of other genres, such as jazz and reggae, Kamakawiwoʻole remains influential in Hawaiian music. Kamakawiwoʻole was born at Kuakini Medical Center in Honolulu to Henry "Hank" Kaleialoha Naniwa Kamakawiwoʻole, Jr. and Evangeline "Angie" Leinani Kamakawiwoʻole. The notable Hawaiian musician Moe Keale was his uncle and a major musical influence. He was raised in the community of Kaimuki, where his parents had met and married. He began playing music with his older brother Skippy and cousin Allen Thornton at the age of 11, being exposed to the music of Hawaiian entertainers of the time such as Peter Moon, Palani Vaughn and Don Ho, who frequented the establishment where Kamakawiwoʻole's parents worked. Hawaiian musician Del Beazley spoke of the first time he heard Kamakawiwoʻole perform, when, while playing for a graduation party, the whole room fell silent on hearing him sing. Kamakawiwoʻole continued his path as his brother Skippy entered the Army in 1971 and his cousin Allen left in 1976 for the mainland. In his early teens, he studied at Upward Bound (UB) of the University of Hawaii at Hilo and his family moved to Mākaha. There he met Louis Kauakahi, Sam Gray, and Jerome Koko. Together with his brother Skippy they formed the Makaha Sons of Niʻihau. A part of the Hawaiian Renaissance, the band's blend of contemporary and traditional styles gained in popularity as they toured Hawaii and the continental United States, releasing fifteen successful albums. Kamakawiwoʻole's aim was to make music that stayed true to the typical sound of traditional Hawaiian music. During that time period, the songs that many people associated with Hawaii, typically, were not traditional-sounding songs. The Makaha Sons of Niʻihau recorded No Kristo in 1976 and released four more albums, including Kahea O Keale, Keala, Makaha Sons of Niʻihau and Mahalo Ke Akua. In 1982, Kamakawiwoʻole's brother, Skippy, died at age 28 of a heart attack related to obesity. In that same year, Kamakawiwoʻole married his childhood sweetheart Marlene. Soon after, they had a daughter whom they named Ceslieanne "Wehi" (born in ). The group became Hawaii's most popular contemporary traditional group with breakout albums 1984's Puana Hou Me Ke Aloha and its follow-up, 1986's Hoʻola. Kamakawiwoʻole's last recorded album with the group was 1991's Hoʻoluana. It remains the group's top-selling CD. In 1990, Kamakawiwoʻole released his first solo album Ka ʻAnoʻi, which won awards for Contemporary Album of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year from the Hawaiʻi Academy of Recording Arts (HARA). Facing Future was released in 1993 by The Mountain Apple Company. It featured a version of his most popular song, the medley "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" (listed as "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World"), along with "Hawaiʻi 78", "White Sandy Beach of Hawaiʻi", "Maui Hawaiian Sup'pa Man", and "Kaulana Kawaihae". The decision to include a cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" was said to be a last-minute decision by his producer Jon de Mello and Kamakawiwoʻole. Facing Future debuted at #25 on Billboard magazine's Top Pop Catalogue chart. On October 26, 2005, Facing Future became Hawaiʻi's first certified platinum album, selling more than a million CDs in the United States, according to figures furnished by the Recording Industry Association of America. On July 21, 2006, BBC Radio 1 announced that "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World (True Dreams)" would be released as a single in America. In 1994, Kamakawiwoʻole was voted favorite entertainer of the year by the Hawaiʻi Academy of Recording Arts (HARA). E Ala E (1995) featured the political title song "ʻE Ala ʻE" and "Kaleohano", and N Dis Life (1996) featured "In This Life" and "Starting All Over Again". In 1997, Kamakawiwoʻole was again honored by HARA at the Annual Nā Hōkū Hanohano awards for Male Vocalist of the Year, Favorite Entertainer of the Year, Album of the Year, and Island Contemporary Album of the Year. He watched the awards ceremony from a hospital room. Alone in Iz World (2001) debuted at #1 on Billboard's World Chart and #135 on Billboard's Top 200, #13 on the Top Independent Albums Chart, and #15 on the Top Internet Album Sales charts. Kamakawiwo'ole's Facing Future has become the best-selling Hawaiian album of all time. Kamakawiwoʻole was known for promoting Hawaiian rights and Hawaiian independence, both through his lyrics, which often stated the case for independence directly, and through his own actions. For example, the lyric in his song "Hawaiʻi '78": "The life of this land is the life of the people/and that to care for the land (malama ʻāina) is to care for the Hawaiian culture", is a statement that many consider to summarize his Hawaiian ideals. The state motto of Hawaiʻi is a recurring line in the song and encompasses the meaning of Kamakawiwoʻole's message: "Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ʻĀina i ka Pono" (proclaimed by King Kamehameha III when Hawaiʻi regained sovereignty in 1843. It can be roughly translated as: "The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness"). Kamakawiwoʻole used his music to promote awareness of his belief that a second-class status had been pushed onto the natives by the tourist industry. At some point in his later years, Kamakawiwoʻole converted to Christianity. In 1996, he was baptized at the Word of Life Christian Center in Honolulu and spoke publicly about his beliefs at the Na Hoku Hanohano Awards. He also recorded the song "Ke Alo O Iesu" (). Kamakawiwoʻole suffered from obesity throughout his life, at one point weighing while standing tall, representing a body mass index of 97.2 (considered "hyper obese" on the BMI). He endured several hospitalizations because of health problems. Beset with respiratory, heart, and other medical problems, he died at the age of 38 in Queen's Medical Center at 12:18 a.m. on June 26, 1997. Kamakawiwoʻole was survived by his wife, Marlene Kamakawiwoʻole, and their daughter, Ceslie-Ann "Wehi". The Hawaii state flag flew at half-staff on July 10, 1997, the day of Kamakawiwoʻole's funeral. His koa wood coffin lay in state at the state capitol building in Honolulu, the third person and the only non-government official to be so honored. Approximately 10,000 people attended the funeral. Thousands of fans gathered as his ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean at Mākua Beach on July 12, 1997. According to witnesses, many people on land commemorated him by honking their car and truck horns on all Hawaiian highways that day. Scenes from the funeral and scattering of Kamakawiwoʻole's ashes were featured in official music videos of "Over the Rainbow" released posthumously by Mountain Apple Company. , the two videos as featured on YouTube have collectively received over 800 million views. On September 20, 2003, hundreds paid tribute to Kamakawiwoʻole as a bronze bust (located at ) of the revered singer was unveiled at the Waianae Neighborhood Community Center on Oʻahu. The singer's widow, Marlene Kamakawiwoʻole, and sculptor Jan-Michelle Sawyer were present for the dedication ceremony. On December 6, 2010, NPR named Kamakawiwoʻole as "The Voice of Hawaii" in its 50 great voices series. On March 24, 2011, Kamakawiwoʻole was honored with the German national music award Echo. The music managers Wolfgang Boss and Jon de Mello accepted the trophy in his stead. A 2014 Pixar short film, Lava, features two volcanoes as the main characters. Kamakawiwoʻole's cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and his style of music was James Ford Murphy's partial inspiration for the short film. Kamakawiwoʻole's recording of "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" gained notice in 1999 when an excerpt was used in the TV commercials for eToys.com (later part of Toys "R" Us). The full song was featured in the movies K-Pax, Meet Joe Black, Finding Forrester, Son of the Mask, 50 First Dates, Fred Claus, Letters to Santa and IMAX: Hubble 3D. It was also featured in TV series ER, American Dad!, Scrubs, Cold Case, Glee, South Pacific, Lost, Storm Chasers, and in the UK original version of Life on Mars among others. Kamakawiwoʻole called the recording studio at 3 am. He was given 15 minutes to arrive by Milan Bertosa. Bertosa said, "And in walks the largest human being I had seen in my life. Israel was probably like 500 pounds. And the first thing at hand is to find something for him to sit on." A security guard gave Kamakawiwoʻole a large steel chair. "Then I put up some microphones, do a quick sound check, roll tape, and the first thing he does is 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow.' He played and sang, one take, and it was over." "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" reached #12 on Billboard's Hot Digital Tracks chart the week of January 31, 2004 (for the survey week ending January 18, 2004). It passed the 2 million paid downloads mark in the USA by September 27, 2009, and then sold 3 million in the USA as of October 2, 2011. And as of October 2014, the song has sold over 4.2 million digital copies. The song is longest-leading number one hit on any of the Billboard song charts, having spent 185 on top of the World Digital Songs chart. On July 8, 2007, Kamakawiwoʻole debuted at No. 44 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart with "Wonderful World," selling 17,000 units. In April 2007, "Over the Rainbow" entered the UK charts at #68, and eventually climbed to #46, spending 10 weeks in the Top 100 over a 2-year period. In October 2010, following its use in a trailer for the TV channel VOX and on a TV advertisement – for Axe deodorant (which is itself a revival of the advertisement originally aired in 2004) – it hit #1 on the German singles chart, was the number one seller single of 2010 and was eventually certified 2× Platinum in 2011. As of November 1, 2010, "Over the Rainbow" peaked at No. 6 on the OE3 Austria charts, which largely reflect airplay on Austria's government-operated Top 40 radio network. It also peaked at No.1 in France and Switzerland in late December 2010. On October 24, 2016 The Healer premiered at the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis, which featured "Over the Rainbow". Radio host George Noory uses "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" as bumper music on the overnight talk radio show Coast To Coast AM. Ka ʻAnoʻi (1990), Facing Future (1993), E Ala E (1995), N Dis Life (1996) Iz in Concert: The Man and His Music (1998), Alone in IZ World (2001), Wonderful World (2007), Somewhere Over the Rainbow: The Best of Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (2011) "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" (also known as "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World") is a medley of the songs "Over the Rainbow" and "What a Wonderful World", by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole and released on his albums Ka ʻAnoʻi and Facing Future. The song was originally recorded in a spur-of-the-moment demo session in 1988. Israel called the recording studio at 3am, and was given 15 minutes to arrive by recording engineer Milan Bertosa. Bertosa is quoted as saying "And in walks the largest human being I had seen in my life. Israel was probably like 500 pounds. And the first thing at hand is to find something for him to sit on." The building security found Israel a large steel chair. "Then I put up some microphones, do a quick sound check, roll tape, and the first thing he does is 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow.' He played and sang, one take, and it was over." At the time, copies of the recording were only made for Kamakawiwoʻole himself and Bertosa. The song was re-recorded as an "upbeat Jawaiian version" for Kamakawiwoʻole's debut album Ka ʻAnoʻi, listed as "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World." In 1993, five years after the original recording, Bertosa played the song for producer Jon de Mello while the two were completing work on Facing Future, and de Mello decided to include it in the album as "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World". "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" reached number 12 on Billboard's Hot Digital Tracks chart the week of January 31, 2004 (for the survey week ending January 18, 2004). According to the Israel Kamakawiwoʻole website, Universal Studios first became interested in using the song in the movie and on the soundtrack for Meet Joe Black after director Martin Brest became interested in it. Kamakawiwoʻole's recording of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" has been used on other soundtracks as well, including the soundtracks for Finding Forrester; 50 First Dates; Fred Claus; Happy, Happy; ; and IMAX: Hubble 3D. It was also featured on TV series like Charmed, ER, Scrubs, Cold Case, Glee, the UK original version of Life On Mars, and more. Other artists have recorded the medley as well. Cliff Richard recorded his own version of the medley, released as a single from the 2001 album Wanted, which peaked at number 11 on the UK Official Charts in 2001. Aselin Debison recorded the medley for her 2002 album Sweet Is the Melody. Elisabeth von Trapp included her interpretation of the medley in her album Poetic License, released in June 2004. During season seven of American Idol, Jason Castro performed a cover of the song for his "Top 8" performance. Maddie Poppe and Caleb Lee Hutchinson performed the song as a duet during the grand finale of season sixteen of American Idol. Lyrics, Ka 'Ano'i, Facing Future "What a Wonderful World" is a jazz song written by Bob Thiele (as "George Douglas") and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released in 1967 as a single, which topped the pop charts in the United Kingdom. Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. The publishing for this song is controlled by Memory Lane Music Group, Carlin Music Corp. and BMG Rights Management. The song was written by producer Bob Thiele (as "George Douglas") and composer and performer George David Weiss. One source claims the song was first offered to Tony Bennett, who turned it down, although Louis Armstrong biographer Ricky Riccardi disputes this claim. George Weiss recounts in the book Off the Record: Songwriters on Songwriting by Graham Nash that he wrote the song specifically for Louis Armstrong. Weiss was inspired by Armstrong's ability to bring people of different races together. Because he was gigging at the Tropicana Hotel, Armstrong recorded the song in Las Vegas at Bill Porter’s United Recording studio. The session was scheduled to follow Armstrong's midnight show, and by 2 am the musicians were settled and tape was rolling. Arranger Artie Butler was there with songwriters Weiss and Theile, and Armstrong was in the studio singing with the orchestra. Armstrong had recently signed to ABC Records, and ABC president Larry Newton showed up to photograph Armstrong. Newton wanted a swingy pop song like "Hello, Dolly!", a big hit for Armstrong when he was with Kapp Records, so when Newton heard the slow pace of "What a Wonderful World", he tried to stop the session. Newton was locked out of the studio for his disruption, but a second problem arose: nearby freight train whistles interrupted the session twice, forcing the recording to start over. Armstrong shook his head and laughed off the distractions, keeping his composure. The session ended around 6 am, going longer than expected. To make sure the orchestra members were paid extra for their overtime, Armstrong accepted only $250 musicians union scale for his work. The song was not initially a hit in the United States, where it sold fewer than 1,000 copies because Newton did not like or promote it, but was a major success in the United Kingdom, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, the song hit No. 16 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Chart. It was also the biggest-selling single of 1968 in the UK where it was among the last pop singles issued by HMV Records before becoming an exclusive classical music label. The song made Armstrong the oldest male to top the UK Singles Chart. Armstrong's record was broken in 2009 when a remake of "Islands in the Stream" recorded for Comic Relief—which included the 68-year-old Tom Jones—reached number one in that chart. Tony Bennett did go on to record "What A Wonderful World" several times, as in 2003 with k.d. lang, paying homage to Bennett's friend, Armstrong. ABC Records' European distributor EMI forced ABC to issue a What a Wonderful World album in 1968 (catalogue number ABCS-650). It did not chart in the United States, due to ABC not promoting it, but charted in the UK where it was issued by Stateside Records with catalogue number SSL 10247 and peaked on the British chart at No. 37. The song gradually became something of a standard and reached a new level of popularity. In 1978, it was featured in the closing scenes of BBC radio's, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and was repeated for BBC's 1981 TV adaptation of the series. In 1988, Armstrong's recording appeared in the film Good Morning, Vietnam (despite the film being set in 1965 – two years before it was recorded) and was re-released as a single, hitting No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1988. The single charted at number one for the fortnight ending June 27, 1988 on the Australian chart. It is also the closing song for the 1995 movie 12 Monkeys. In 2001, rappers Ghostface Killah, Raekwon and The Alchemist released "The Forest," a song that begins with three lines of lyric adapted from "What a Wonderful World", altered to become "an invitation to get high" on marijuana. The rappers and their record company, Sony Music Entertainment, were sued by the owners of "What a Wonderful World," Abilene Music. The suit was thrown out of court after Judge Gerard E. Lynch determined that the altered lyric was a parody, transforming the uplifting original message to a new one with a darker nature. By April 2014, Louis Armstrong's 1967 recording had sold 2,173,000 downloads in the United States after it was released digitally. In 2007, Georgian-British singer-songwriter Katie Melua recorded a version of the song with American singer and guitarist Eva Cassidy, who had died in 1996. Recorded by Melua singing over the original Cassidy track, the duet was released in late 2007 as a charity single for the British Red Cross. Melua, who considers Cassidy one of her musical idols, had previously sung with Cassidy in this manner on Christmas Eve 2006, when she performed "Over the Rainbow" on the BBC One television program Duets Impossible with a videotape of Cassidy singing the song. Upon its release, the single debuted at number 45 on the Scottish Singles Chart on the week of December 9, 2007. The next week, the song rose 44 positions to number one while also debuting at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming both Cassidy's and Melua's first number-one single in the United Kingdom. However, the song quickly dropped off the UK chart after peaking, spending only five weeks in the UK top 100. In Scotland, the song stayed in the top 100 for 11 weeks. The cover was also successful in Poland, reaching number five on the LP3 chart in February 2008. In November the same year, it peaked at number 19 in Sweden and became a minor hit in Walloon Belgium. When the song reached number one in the UK, Melua thanked everyone who bought the single, saying, "Thank you to everyone who has shown such festive goodwill." The duet was later included on her 2008 compilation album The Katie Melua Collection. 1989: Roy Clark, on his album What a Wonderful World (peaked at No. 73 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart), 1990: The Flaming Lips, as the final track on their fourth album In a Priest Driven Ambulance, 1992: Nick Cave and Shane MacGowan, the lead single and title track to their split album What a Wonderful World (reached number 72 on the UK charts), 1993: Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Hawaiian ukulele version (medley with "Somewhere Over the Rainbow") on the album Facing Future (sold over 2.5 million copies in the U.S. and Canada alone), 1994: Patti Smith performed the song at the memorial service to her late husband Fred "Sonic" Smith. In her 2015 memoir M Train, Patti Smith wrote: "Whenever we heard it Fred would say, Trisha, it's your song. Why does it have to be my song? I'd protest. I don't even like Louis Armstrong. But he would insist the song was mine… so I decided to sing 'Wonderful World' a cappella at the service. As I sang I felt the simplistic beauty of the song.", 1998: Actor Joe Pesci covered the song on his second album Vincent LaGuardia Gambini Sings Just for You., 1999: Anne Murray, on What a Wonderful World which also spawned a book and video (the album reached No. 1 on the US CCM chart, No. 4 on the US Country chart, and No. 38 on the top 200), 1999: Saxophonist Kenny G re-recorded the song, keeping Armstrong's original vocals intact for the album Classics in the Key of G., 2002: Joey Ramone's posthumous version was used for the ending credits of Michael Moore's film Bowling for Columbine and in the 2003 film Freaky Friday., 2003: Classical crossover artist Sarah Brightman included a darker and quieter rendition of the song on her eighth studio album Harem., 2017: A game developer only known as Unknown Developer had a version of the song in one of his games For Me and You, where he manipulated the lines of "skies of blue" to "skies of green". While this is somewhat of an odd decision, it may have been editing by using Speech synthesis and Audio editing software., 2004: LeAnn Rimes covered the song on her debut Christmas album What a Wonderful World., 2004: Rod Stewart recorded a version of the song with Stevie Wonder for Stewart's album (released in the United States as the lead single from the album and by early 2005 reached No. 13 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart)., 2009: The Clarks' version was recorded for their album Restless Days. This version was featured on The Simpsons season 27 premiere, "Every Man's Dream". It is also used after every home victory for the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena., 2012: Pat Byrne's version reached No. 3 in the Irish Singles Chart after appearing on The Voice of Ireland., 2015: Tiago Iorc's version was recorded to be used as the opening theme of the Brazilian telenovela Sete Vidas. A recreation of the song was used in a 2004 MCI Inc. commercial., Joey Ramone's version was used in a Windows Vista commercial in January 2007, during its official release., Joey Ramone's version was used in a commercial for the video game in 2007., The song was used briefly in Episode 31 of Feisty Films., The song was featured multiple times in William Leonard Pickards book titled "The rose of Paracelsus" Internet Movie Database, Jim Henson's Red Book How political is What A Wonderful World? – BBC News article about history and meaning of song, Barrueco & Balles Music play What a Wonderful World

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Double Dare is an American television game show on which two teams compete to win cash and prizes by answering trivia questions and completing messy stunts known as physical challenges. It originally ran from 1986 to 1993. A revival ran in 2000, and the most recent revival aired from 2018 to 2019. Hosted by Marc Summers, the program originally premiered on Nickelodeon on October 6, 1986, as its first game show. The series saw many adjustments in scheduling and titling throughout its run. Almost immediately after its debut, Double Dare had more than tripled viewership for Nickelodeon's afternoon lineup, becoming the most-watched original daily program on cable television. The program was a major success for Nickelodeon, helping to establish the network as a major player in cable television, and to revitalize the genre of game shows for children. Double Dare remains Nickelodeon's longest-running game show. In January 2001, TV Guide ranked the show number 29 on its list of 50 Greatest Game Shows. A continuation for syndication premiered on February 22, 1988, later revamped as Super Sloppy Double Dare on January 22, 1989. The program also had a short run on Fox as Family Double Dare, airing from April 3 to July 23, 1988. Nickelodeon continued Family Double Dare, premiering a new version on October 6, 1990. The original series ended on February 6, 1993. The series was revived, hosted by Jason Harris, and titled Double Dare 2000; this aired from January 22 to November 10, 2000. A second revival of the series, hosted by Liza Koshy and featuring Marc Summers, premiered on June 25, 2018. The second revival series ended on December 20, 2019. Each team on the original Double Dare and Super Sloppy Double Dare consisted of two children, while teams on Family Double Dare and Double Dare 2000 included two adults and two children. Originally, both teams wore red uniforms, but after Double Dare entered syndication in 1988, one team wore blue uniforms while the other wore red. Each round begins with a toss-up physical challenge in which both teams compete, with the winning team receiving both initial control of the round, and money for their score. After the toss-up, the host begins asking trivia questions of the team in control. Each correct answer earns a monetary award, and allows the team to maintain control, while an incorrect answer, or failure to respond within approximately ten seconds turns control over to the opponents. However, the team can dare their opponents to answer the question, doubling its value; in response, the opponents can double dare for quadruple the original value. When the team in control is challenged to a double dare, they have to either answer or compete in a physical challenge. An incorrect answer, or not responding within approximately five seconds on a dare or double dare, awards both control and the appropriate amount of money to the team that issues it. The second round plays the same as the first, with question values doubled. On the original Double Dare and Super Sloppy Double Dare, a question was initially worth $10. On Family Double Dare and Double Dare 2000, a question was initially worth $25. On the 2018 Double Dare, a question was initially worth $50, later 50 points. After the toss-up at the start of the first round, the host explains the rules as follows: Physical challenges are often messy stunts that a team has to perform in a specified time, usually 20 or 30 seconds, although occasionally 10 or 15 seconds. All physical challenges on Double Dare 2000 were 30 seconds in length, unless a time reduction was in play due to the Triple Dare Challenge. The team wins money and retained control for completing the stunt. Otherwise, the money and control pass to their opponents. Many challenges have involved filling a container past a line with one of a variety of substances including water, uncooked rice, green slime, whipped cream, and milk. Others involve catching a specific number of items before time runs out. For example, during "Pies in the Pants," a contestant has to catch a set number of pies in a pair of oversized clown pants within the specified time limit, while their teammate launches the pies from a foot-operated catapult at the opposite end of the stage. On the original Double Dare and Super Sloppy Double Dare, both contestants on a team competed in all physical challenges. For the 1988 version of Family Double Dare, all four members of a team competed in the challenges. On the 1990–93 version of Family Double Dare and on Double Dare 2000, two members of a team competed in round one, and all four members competed in round two. All members of a team competed in physical challenges in the first season of the 2018 Double Dare, while most challenges in the second season are for two players. Double Dare 2000 introduced the Triple Dare Challenge. Available only in round two, this allowed a team to make their physical challenge more difficult, increasing its value by $100, and putting a bonus prize at stake. Difficulties included reducing the time limit, adding an extra item to the stunt, or increasing the overall difficulty of the stunt. The actual modifier was not revealed unless the team decided to accept the challenge. If the team did not complete the challenge successfully, the money, prize, and control went to their opponents. The team with the highest score at the end of round two goes on to the bonus round, the obstacle course (renamed the Slopstacle Course for Double Dare 2000). From the original Double Dare through Double Dare 2000 both teams keep all money earned, regardless of the outcome. Only the winning team on the 2018 version gets to keep their money. The course consists of eight obstacles which have to be completed within 60 seconds. Each obstacle has an orange flag either at its end or hidden within it. One team member runs the first obstacle, then passes its flag to a partner, who then moves on to the next obstacle. The team continues to alternate in this manner until they have completed the course or until time expires. For safety reasons, team members are given helmets, elbow pads, and knee pads to wear while running the course. Many obstacles have appeared in the course rotation, often based on body parts, food, and enlarged items found in daily life. Popular elements of the obstacle course have included The One-Ton Human Hamster Wheel, an oversized hamster wheel; Pick It, a giant human nose with a flag hidden inside; The Sundae Slide, a chocolate-covered ramp leading to a playground slide with ice cream at the bottom; and Gum Drop, which required contestants to leap into a giant gumball machine filled with plastic balls and slide out through the dispensing hatch at the bottom. Through January 2019, the team would win a prize for each obstacle completed, escalating in value up to a grand prize for completing the entire course. Two-person teams split cash earnings from the front game, and both contestants receive the same physical prize for each obstacle. Prizes have included televisions, concert tickets, encyclopedias, electronics, gift certificates, non-motorized modes of transportation and, on the Fox Family Double Dare, cash. On the original and Super Sloppy versions, the grand prize was usually a vacation or an experience at Space Camp. All eight prizes were usually worth a total of between $3,000 and $4,000, with some episodes featuring a prize package nearing $10,000. On the Fox Family Double Dare, as well as the first season of the Nickelodeon run, the grand prize was a vehicle, making all eight prizes worth between $15,000 and $25,000. Once again, the grand prize was typically a vacation for the second season of Nickelodeon's Family Double Dare, Double Dare 2000 and the first season of the 2018 Double Dare, with grand prize packages on the 2018 version having a value of more than $6,000. With the premiere of the second season of the 2018 revival, the obstacle course is now played for $500 cash for each obstacle completed, with a total jackpot of $5,000 for successfully completing the course. Cash values were doubled for the finals game of a tournament series. In the mid-1980s, Nickelodeon was approached by production and consulting groups with the idea of doing a game show for children, a first for the network. Nickelodeon conducted focus groups and concluded that children enjoyed watching game shows with adults, but they did not have a game show targeted at their demographic. Dee LaDuke, Robert Mittenthal, Michael Klinghoffer, and Geoffrey Darby worked to develop a new format, basing it on a combination of trivia, truth or dare, and the board game Mouse Trap. The pilot presentation was recorded in May 1986, hosted by Darby. Double Dare was green- lighted and announced in June 1986. Initial candidates to host the program included Soupy Sales, host of children's variety shows in the 1950s and 1960s, and comedian Dana Carvey. After Nickelodeon determined Sales to be too old for the role, and Carvey was offered a chance to audition for Saturday Night Live, the search for a host continued. Producers viewed over 1,000 applicants from New York or Los Angeles. First attending a tryout in lieu of a friend, and later passing multiple auditions, television warm-up comedian Marc Summers was one of two finalists advancing to a final audition. Each hosted a mock game for Nickelodeon to make an ultimate decision on who would host Double Dare. The producers felt the way Summers ended the game by leading into a commercial break was more professional and he was hired for the position in the first week of September 1986. Because focus groups showed that the audience thought he was more than 10 years younger than he actually was, Summers, then 34 years old, was obligated by Nickelodeon for years to not mention his age publicly. In need of an announcer, Double Dare producers were made aware of Philadelphia-area radio host John Harvey, known on-air as Harvey, whose Harvey in the Morning program on WIOQ had been canceled months earlier. He accepted the offer to be announcer of the program. Stage assistants also appeared on- camera on Double Dare, initially only assisting in setting up physical challenges and obstacles, but expanding the role as the series continued to sometimes interacting with Summers, demonstrating challenges, and modeling prizes. Robin Marrella and Dave Shikiar were the two permanent stage assistants when the program began. James Fenhagen and Byron Taylor created the original stage design for Double Dare. The design for the original series' set was inspired by a 1980s Italian postmodern design and architecture group known as the Memphis Group. Glass brick walls and yellow and pink, often in a checkerboard pattern, were prominent aspects of the set design. Highlighted by blue and yellow tile-style floors, Geoffrey Darby gave the direction for the set to look like a natatorium (swimming pool), while Robert Mittenthal feels its inspiration is derived from a bathroom. All the original Double Dare music was composed by Edd Kalehoff. Production originated at the studios of PBS affiliate WHYY-TV in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. WHYY offered Nickelodeon their newly opened production wing to use, and Nickelodeon felt Philadelphia was a better location to initially produce Double Dare because of its lower production costs, instead of cities like New York or Los Angeles where national television production is more common. The 65-episode first season was recorded in a 23-day period beginning September 18, 1986. Double Dare premiered on Nickelodeon on October 6, 1986. New episodes aired weekdays at 5:30p.m. ET during the original series' run on Nickelodeon. After the success of the first 65 episodes, a second 65-episode season was ordered. A weekend edition titled Super Sloppy Double Dare began taping in July 1987 and premiered August 2, 1987, with an initial 26-episode run. Super Sloppy Double Dare featured gameplay identical to the original format; however, physical challenges and obstacles were designed to make a bigger mess. Viewers were encouraged to send in a postcard with their contact information and could win a prize if their card was selected, and a team performing a physical challenge completed the stunt successfully. Episodes of Super Sloppy Double Dare were taped at Unitel Studio in New York City before production moved back to WHYY- TV. In July 1987, pilots hosted by Bruce Jenner were produced by Viacom for two possible versions of Double Dare with adult players: one pairing celebrities with contestants, and another with married couples. Neither concept advanced to a full series. By November 1987, Fox announced they had partnered with Viacom to purchase the distribution rights for new episodes of the program in syndication. New episodes of Double Dare aired on independent stations and Fox affiliates beginning on February 22, 1988. There were 130 first-run syndication episodes in 1988. A 13-episode Saturday night edition titled Family Double Dare aired on Fox from April 3 to July 23, 1988. Teams on this version consisted of four family members, most often a mother, father, and two children. The budget was increased, and the prize total featured during the obstacle course was larger than that featured on the Nickelodeon series. A further 13 episodes of Family Double Dare were then ordered, but Fox canceled the series shortly before production was to begin because of "creative differences." On January 5, 1989, production began on a new version of Super Sloppy Double Dare from Philadelphia at WHYY-TV, continuing in syndication. The series premiered on January 22, 1989. The second half of the series was produced at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, with production beginning in April 1989. This version of the show recorded in larger studios with a larger set allowed for a lower level devoted to physical challenges and obstacles with a bigger size and, typically, bigger messes. Many episodes in this part of the series featured unique and offbeat themes that questions, challenges, and sometimes wardrobe would be patterned after. Themes included a Salute to Baseball, Backwards Day, Stupid Hat Day, a Salute to Breakfast, and two Super-Slop-a-Mania episodes featuring wrestlers and personalities from the World Wrestling Federation. Another special episode saw Summers and Harvey each team with a contestant to compete against each other, with Jim J. Bullock taking over hosting duties. By the end of Super Sloppy Double Dare, the program was syndicated to 154 stations. The series left syndication on September 8, 1989. Family Double Dare returned to Nickelodeon on August 13, 1990, first airing repeats of the Fox version. A Salute to Double Dare special aired September 2, 1990, with Summers, Harvey, and Marrella highlighting moments from Double Dare, discussing its popularity, and previewing the upcoming Family Double Dare. Nickelodeon launched its own version of Family Double Dare on weekends beginning October 6, 1990. Nickelodeon produced the series at the newly-opened Nickelodeon Studios on the Universal Studios Florida grounds in Orlando. Production began in July 1990 and ended on July 24, 1992, with 80 episodes taped over two seasons. Between the production cycles of Family Double Dare, two special episodes of Double Dare were recorded in January 1992: NBA All- Star Double Dare with National Basketball Association alumni and Super Special Double Dare with members of the casts of Clarissa Explains It All and Welcome Freshmen. Jamie Bojanowski and Chris Miles joined Robin Marrella as stage assistants for Family Double Dare, replacing Dave Shikiar who left the series between the ending of Super Sloppy Double Dare in 1989 and the beginning of Family Double Dare in 1990 to pursue production opportunities on other programs like The Home Show and Wild & Crazy Kids. In order to spend time with his wife and his newborn son Caleb, Harvey did not announce the last season of Family Double Dare in 1992. He was replaced as announcer by Doc Holliday, an Orlando-area radio host on WXXL's Doc & Johnny in the Morning. Harvey made a cameo appearance on the final episode of the season and the series. Family Double Dare concluded on February 6, 1993, with a one-hour Tournament of Champions episode. The episode featured a "brains vs. brawn" mini-tournament where the two families from the final season who answered the most questions correctly played against each other, and the two families from the final season with the fastest obstacle course times played against each other. The winners of those games competed to determine the 1993 Family Double Dare champions. Physical challenges from Double Dare appeared on Nickelodeon All- Star Challenge, a three-part special combining elements from many of Nickelodeon's game shows, airing on October 3, 1994. Repeats of the original Double Dare continued to air on Nickelodeon until March 15, 1991, and returned to Nickelodeon's schedule again from June 12 to September 30, 1994. Repeats of Family Double Dare remained on the Nickelodeon schedule until January 31, 1999. At this time, development began for the revival that would become Double Dare 2000. Double Dare has spawned versions in foreign countries throughout the world, including: Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, The Netherlands, Germany, India, and Brazil. Six episodes of the Australian version recorded for American consumption, one featuring an American team competing against an Australian team, aired on Nickelodeon during a special marathon on September 3, 1990. Repeats of all versions of Double Dare aired in various cycles on Nick GAS from the network's inception in 1999 until its closure in 2009. From 2011 to 2019, Double Dare was incorporated into the branding of TeenNick's classic Nickelodeon blocks The '90s Are All That, and its successor, The Splat (later known as NickSplat and presently NickRewind). Episodes of Double Dare have occasionally aired in these blocks. On December 20, 1999, Nickelodeon announced a revival of the original Double Dare show, titled Double Dare 2000. Production began on January 5, 2000, and the show broadcast its first episode later that same month on January 22, 2000, now hosted by Jason Harris with Tiffany Phillips as announcer. Additional episodes were taped in July of the same year. Eileen Braun, who worked on the original Double Dare as a production assistant and a production coordinator, was the executive producer for Double Dare 2000. Marc Summers advised on production as an executive consultant. Tia Schroeder and Will Finley worked on Double Dare 2000 as stage assistants. Double Dare 2000 followed the Family Double Dare format with a revamped set and bigger physical challenges. It also featured the new Triple Dare Challenge option in round two, and referred to the obstacle course as the Slopstacle Course. In association with Sony and National Mobile Television, five episodes of Double Dare 2000 were produced in high-definition with a aspect ratio. The episodes were broadcast in a letterboxed format as Nickelodeon did not broadcast in high-definition until 2008. The music for Double Dare 2000, a remix of the original soundtrack, was composed by former Crack the Sky guitarist Rick Witkowski. Byron Taylor again served as set designer. The series concluded on November 10, 2000. Repeats remained on the Nickelodeon schedule until July 29, 2001. Beginning May 21, 2012, Nickelodeon Suites Resort in Orlando produced Double Dare as a nightly live stage presentation, Double Dare Live. As part of the Studio Nick feature of the hotel, shows were performed each night exclusively for the resort's guests. The show featured elements and updates from the various versions of Double Dare, including remixed music, physical challenges and an obstacle course similar to the TV show. Like the most recent formats of the program, eight contestants were selected to participate for the game- playing teams, while additional audience members played other physical challenges throughout the program. The production continued until Nickelodeon Suites Resort Orlando rebranded as a Holiday Inn Resort on June 1, 2016. A scaled-down version of Double Dare Live, called Double Dare Challenge, has been presented at Nickelodeon Universe in Mall of America in seasonal cycles since 2016. On July 22, 2016, special live editions of Double Dare, produced by Nickelodeon and The Splat with original host Marc Summers, took place at Fluxx nightclub during San Diego Comic-Con 2016. The event was live-streamed on The Splat's Facebook page and included in the later anniversary special. The week of July 25, 2016, The Splat aired a Double Dare-themed week featuring episodes and moments from the series' history, and included edited versions of the Comic-Con games. These events marked Summers' first Nickelodeon-sponsored involvement with the brand since Double Dare 2000. A half-hour special presentation, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the show's premiere, the Double Dare Reunion Special, aired on November 23, 2016, on Nick at Nite, with an encore airing on The Splat. The special included vintage clips, behind-the-scenes footage, and a new game recorded at San Diego Comic-Con 2016 played by cast members from All That. Summers, announcer Harvey, and stage assistant Robin Russo (née Marrella) appeared in the special. 1.126 million viewers watched the special on Nick at Nite, outperforming all other shows on the network for the evening, and finishing as the third-most viewed of all non-sports original cable telecasts among viewers ages 18 to 34 for that day. In 2017, Summers stated that, due to the success of the special, he was in negotiations to return to Double Dare in some form with Nickelodeon. News outlets reported in March 2018 that Nickelodeon was producing a new series of Blue's Clues, and was in negotiations to reboot Clarissa Explains It All, two shows originally made by the network in the 1990s. Upon learning of these developments, and inspired by the success of other contemporary television revivals like Will & Grace, Summers emailed Nickelodeon executives to ask if he was going to be the person to receive "the next phone call." On April 25, 2018, Nickelodeon announced a new version of Double Dare, which is the second revival of the show. The network ordered 40 episodes that recorded in Los Angeles at CBS Studio Center throughout June 2018. The series premiered on June 25, airing weeknights. Actress and television/internet personality Liza Koshy hosted the series. Original host Marc Summers also appeared on the series in an on-camera role. Along with performing traditional duties of an announcer, Summers provided commentary on the show's physical challenges and helped introduce elements and transition the game. Summers was also one of the show's executive producers. Fremantle produces the series on behalf of Nickelodeon. The set, designed by James Pearse Connelly, bore a heavy resemblance to the original set used in the 1980s. Updates included using digital screens for displays and decoration, enhanced lighting, and a dedicated space for the obstacle course, though timing and scoring uses emulation of the original vane display-type numerals. Members of the "challenge team" also appeared as stage assistants, including Eric Pierce, Michelle Kallman, James Michael Ryan Jr., and Stad St. Fleur. Edd Kalehoff remixed and re-composed the original theme song and soundtrack for this version. Episodes broadcast predominantly featured teams of two children competing, but some episodes have participation from teams of one child and one adult family member. An episode also aired with teams of three siblings, and one with teams of two children with two adult family members. Some episodes featured celebrity participants, such as actors from past Nickelodeon series competing, including All That's Jamie Lynn Spears and Josh Server. The 2018 Kids' Choice Sports Awards, which aired on July 20, 2018, culminated with host and basketball player Chris Paul competing against Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps in the Double Dare obstacle course, presented by Liza Koshy and Marc Summers. Because Koshy had difficulty with her voice during the taping of an episode, Summers filled in as host for the second half of a show, which aired on July 26. The first cycle of season one, airing 24 half-hour episodes, concluded on July 27. Episodes resumed airing on September 30, with weekly airings, culminating with a special 60-minute episode featuring Kenan & Kel stars Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell aired on November 21. The final episode of season one aired on February 1, 2019. In celebration of Super Bowl LIII, a special 45-minute episode featuring stars of Nickelodeon comedy Cousins for Life and NFL players was recorded on January 31, 2019 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, as part of the Super Bowl Experience. The episode was simulcast on Nickelodeon, TeenNick, and Nicktoons on February 3, the same day Super Bowl LIII was held. In January 2019, casting began for a second season of Double Dare. Filming of season two began on February 27 and ran through early March. The season premiered on March 11, with a new tournament format offering cash prizes in the obstacle course. Two teams of four children compete in the first episode, with the winning team splitting up into four individual teams, where each child is paired up with a celebrity. The winning teams from these episodes play against each other in the fourth and final episode of the tournament. The premiere week featured the Kids' Choice Awards Tournament, teaming kids with nominees of the 2019 awards. WWE Superstars Week aired the week of April 22, teaming kids with wrestlers in WWE. SpongeBob Week aired the week of July 8, celebrating the 20th anniversary of SpongeBob Squarepants. Halloween Week aired the week of October 21, celebrating Halloween. The Holiday Tournament aired in four weekly installments, beginning November 29. On August 31, 2019, Summers announced that Double Dare would not be renewed for a third season. The series concluded with the finals of the Holiday Tournament, which aired on December 20, 2019. Within a month of its premiere, Double Dare had more than tripled viewership for Nickelodeon's afternoon schedule becoming the highest-rated original, daily program on cable. During Double Dares first year, the program averaged a 3.0 household Nielsen rating, with over 1 million households tuned in each week. On its February 1988 debut in syndication, the program averaged a 5.4 household Nielsen rating and a 15.4 rating among children ages 2 to 11, and was the second-highest rated syndicated program in that demographic. By January 1989, Double Dare averaged a 3.1 household Nielsen rating. The special Sunday premiere episode of Family Double Dare on Fox on April 3, 1988, scored a 4.0 household Nielsen rating, finishing 5th out of 10 programs broadcast on Fox that week helping to give Fox's Sunday night schedule its highest ratings to that point. When Double Dare 2000 premiered in January 2000, episodes in its first two weeks averaged household Nielsen ratings of up to 3.0, being viewed by up to 2.7 million households, and finishing in the top 25 basic cable programs each week. Double Dare 2000 often won its time slot in viewership among children ages 2 to 11. The June premiere of the 2018 revival was watched by 1.843 million viewers, outperforming all other shows on Nickelodeon for the day, finishing as the highest-rated broadcast for teenagers ages 12 to 17. Double Dare's premiere was Nickelodeon's most-viewed series launch among adults 18 to 49 in more than five years. By the end of its second week, viewership for new episodes hovered around one million overall viewers. At its peak, Double Dare was the highest-rated, live-action show for children ages 8 to 15. The show was also popular with college students, with many schools offering Double Dare fan clubs. Half of Nickelodeon's operating profit in 1988 was due to the success of Double Dare and its syndication. On the show's success, then-senior vice-president of Nickelodeon programming Herb Scannell said that Double Dare was like "having a hit record your first time out. Double Dare put Nick on the map." Double Dare revitalized interest in the concept of a game show for children. Less than a year after the program launched, NBC had premiered I'm Telling!, Lorimar Television had announced plans for Fun House, and Nickelodeon's Finders Keepers began airing--all shows based on competition between teams of children. During Double Dares first year on television, junior versions of established game shows including Hollywood Squares and The Cross-Wits were developed for syndication, but ultimately were not produced. Game show executive and producer Bob Boden noted that Double Dare "allowed kids to get dirty and have a good time in ways that really were not acceptable before that show". Double Dare remains the longest-running game show produced by Nickelodeon. As Double Dare grew messier, a green slime substance became more commonly used in physical challenges and obstacles. Slime was originally introduced on another Nickelodeon program, You Can't Do That on Television. Double Dare's high viewership led to greater visibility for Nickelodeon's association with slime, and saw it featured in promotions for the network in the late 1980s. The substance proliferated further, including annual slimings on the Kids' Choice Awards, a slime geyser at Nickelodeon Studios, and slime-based segments on other game shows including Wild & Crazy Kids and Figure It Out. The relationship of Nickelodeon and slime still lasts on the network. Reviews of the show were often favorable, noting it was fun entertainment for the family. After Double Dare premiered, Kenneth R. Clark, media writer for the Chicago Tribune, observed that when contestants "squeal and make faces, it is somehow natural, wholesome and infectious," and said, "Double Dare is so refreshing." Noel Holston of the Minneapolis Star and Tribune wrote that "kids and game shows, when you think about it, go together like hot fudge and ice cream". The Orange County Registers Ellen T. Klein said Double Dare is "such fast-paced, furious and messy fun" and rated the show as "good". In 1988, television critic Ken Tucker cited the interaction between, and the performances of host Marc Summers and announcer Harvey as "the not-so-secret ingredients in the show's success in drawing adult, as well as youthful, viewers". Some criticism came from the feeling that the program was not educational. Others were concerned about food waste like beans and eggs in physical challenges and obstacles. In a "Cheers and Jeers" section in 1988, TV Guide gave "jeers" to Double Dare for "daring to push beyond the limits of good taste," saying it was "gross and insulting to watch." In 1989, television and film critic Jeffrey Lyons wrote that he "wouldn't dream of proclaiming that Super Sloppy Double Dare is good for your child. But what's wrong with watching an admittedly dumb—but hilarious—program just for fun?" Andrea Graham wrote for Common Sense Media that revival series Double Dare 2000 is a "fun, action-filled game show that families can watch together – amid all the slime are some good messages about family togetherness". Original host and executive consultant for Double Dare 2000 Marc Summers said that "there were issues" with the revival. In an interview with AfterBuzz TV, he said that he felt the length of the Triple Dare Challenge took away from the game and that "if we would have done it the way we originally did it, we would have been fine, but unfortunately, it didn't happen". The 2018 revival of Double Dare premiered to positive reviews, particularly for host Liza Koshy. Reality Blurred's Andy Dehnart said that the reboot "did an excellent job of balancing the old and new," and praised the combination of Koshy and Marc Summers, saying she "can absolutely hold her own as host," and "her rapport with [Summers] felt natural and playful." Joel Keller of the New York Post's Decider observed that "the show belongs to Koshy, who ad libs well and makes the kids feel at ease," and gave Double Dare a favorable "stream it" rating. Double Dare was nominated for a CableACE Award in the Game Show Special or Series category at the 1989 and 1993 ceremonies, winning the award in 1989, but losing to MTV's Lip Service in 1993. Dana Calderwood was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing in a Children's Series in 1989. Nickelodeon was nominated for a 1988 Golden ACE award, cable's then-highest programming honor, for its "pro-social television," including Double Dare by name. In January 2001, TV Guide ranked the show number 29 on its list of 50 Greatest Game Shows. At the 2019 Kids' Choice Awards, Double Dare was nominated in the category of Favorite Reality Show, and Liza Koshy and Marc Summers were nominated as a duo in the category of Favorite TV Host. Double Dare has been featured in a number of notable visual media since its premiere, often with one or more characters participating as contestants in homages to the series. On "Double Dare", a 2016 episode of the 1980s-set sitcom The Goldbergs, Adam Goldberg (Sean Giambrone) tries to find the perfect partner to audition to be a contestant on Double Dare. After rejecting his friend Emmy Mirsky (Stephanie Katherine Grant), he eventually runs through a mock obstacle course at a tryout with his grandfather Albert "Pops" Solomon (George Segal). Neither are selected to take part in the program. Benjamin Bauman and Amy Gross, real-life friends of series' creator Adam F. Goldberg who appeared as contestants on Double Dare in 1988, cameo as producers of the show. A first-season episode of the 2013 Nickelodeon series Sanjay and Craig titled "Trouble Dare" features the titular characters (voiced by Maulik Pancholy and Chris Hardwick), along with Sanjay's mother and father (voiced by Grey Griffin and Kunal Nayyar), leaving their home after a bug infestation. After asking Remington Tufflips (voiced by Chris D'Elia) to stay in his trailer, and finding that the Dickson family is already occupying it, Tufflips decides which family can stay through a game of Family Double Dare hosted by himself. Harvey (voiced by himself) is concerned with how Tufflips is running the game, until Marc Summers (voiced by himself) appears and declares Sanjay's family the winners of a night's sleep inside the Pick It obstacle. Another Family Double Dare game is seen in the music video for rock band Good Charlotte's 2011 single "Last Night." The video shows an abridged game of Family Double Dare, going through questions, physical challenges, and the obstacle course. Marc Summers appears as himself, guitarist Benji Madden appears as Harvey, and band members play contestants and stage assistants. Double Dare has also been subject to parodies and spoofs in various forms. The October 1988 issue of Mad has a spoof of Double Dare called "Double Damp". Marc Summers and Harvey are lampooned as "Muck Slummers" and "Hardly". The piece mocked the program's use of food products, the dangerous nature of some stunts, and the similarity to game show Beat the Clock. Both Summers and Harvey consider being parodied in Mad a high point in their careers. A 2015 episode of the truTV sketch comedy series Friends of the People titled "Double Dare" guest stars Marc Summers as himself, hosting "banned" moments from Double Dare. Sketches include a contestant exploding, and another being stuck permanently inside an obstacle. "March Dadness," a 2012 episode of The Cleveland Show, features a flashback to a Family Double Dare-like program called Dare Squared. A young Cleveland Brown (voiced by Mike Henry) has difficulty finding an orange flag in an oversized stack of pancakes at the end of the program's obstacle course. Marc Summers voices the frustrated host. Also, in a 2017 episode of Billy on the Street, host Billy Eichner led guest Keegan-Michael Key through an obstacle course with gun law themes titled Super Sloppy Semi-Automatic Double Dare. Eichner has cited Double Dare as a favorite show of his. Reebok has been a major sponsor of Double Dare throughout its run. Every contestant and stage crew member wore a pair of the company's shoes. Additional corporate sponsorships and tie-ins were proposed, including Casio putting their logo on the stage clock, and a Double Dare-branded breakfast cereal, but Nickelodeon declined the offers. From 1987 to 1995, various Double Dare live tours visited venues around the United States. Featuring a format similar to the TV show wherein members of a live local audience could participate, the tour would later incorporate aspects of What Would You Do?, another show hosted by Marc Summers for Nickelodeon. Some events in these tours sold-out arenas they were held in, with attendance of more than 20,000 spectators. The tours and events resumed in 2000 to promote Double Dare 2000. Beginning October 30, 2018, a version of Double Dare once again began touring nationwide. Marc Summers serves as host, with previous Double Dare personality Robin Russo appearing as well. The tour ran through the end of 2019. Double Dares lasting popularity has led to a variety of products being made available. Pressman Toy Corporation released two traditional board games based on the show: The Double Dare home game was released in September 1987 and Wet 'N Wild Double Dare was released in March 1989. Another board game titled Double Dare: The Game was manufactured by Mattel in 2001. GameTek published a PC game in 1988, and a video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990 based on the program. Containing facts about the show, along with trivia and activities to host a home version of the game, two editions of The Double Dare Game Book were released by Parachute Press in 1988 and 1989. Based on substances referenced on Double Dare and Double Dare 2000, Mattel and Jakks Pacific manufactured a series of toy slimes called Gak and Goooze. Other toys, apparel, lunchboxes, and school supplies have been sold featuring the show's logo and art. Double Dare was heavily featured in the summer 2016 "Remember When" promotion at New York concept store STORY. Their partnership with Nickelodeon offered exclusive in-store products like Double Dare T-shirts and other goods designed in the style of the program's themes. Patrons at STORY could also participate in Double Dare experiences, like running the One-Ton Human Hamster Wheel obstacle. As well, other Double Dare-inspired products available in-store, including Keds shoes and Stance socks, were offered online through retail partner Neiman Marcus. Four collections of Double Dare highlights and special features were released on home video by Kids Klassics on October 1, 1988,-- Double Dare: The Inside Scoop and Double Dare: The Messiest Moments. On October 17, 1989, a home party guide titled How to Throw a Double Dare Party was released by Elektra Video. Sony Wonder released Double Dare: Super Sloppiest Moments on May 31, 1994. Collections of episodes of the original Super Sloppy Double Dare and versions of Family Double Dare were made available for purchase via digital distribution on Amazon Prime Video and the iTunes Store throughout 2013. A DVD titled Nickelodeon Games and Sports: All- Star Collection, released by Nickelodeon for Amazon.com on April 27, 2015, features an episode of the original Super Sloppy Double Dare and Family Double Dare. Added at launch in August 2018, select episodes of Double Dare 2000 have been available to view on the NickSplat channel on Otter Media's VRV streaming service. In December 2019, 250 episodes from the first three years of the original Double Dare were added to the NickHits channel, available on Prime Video and Apple TV. Episodes of the 2018 version of Double Dare are available for purchase through many online video retailers, sold individually and in multi-episode volumes. In August 2018, a Double Dare game was released on Facebook Messenger, allowing users to play against friends or other Messenger users in a turn-based version of the program. Double Dare is a television play by Dennis Potter, first broadcast on BBC1 on 6 April 1976 as part of the Play for Today series. The play explores the link between author and viewer, one of Potter's major themes, and is referenced several times in his later work. The play's title is taken from the 1938 Al Bowlly song "I Double Dare You", which is featured in both the opening and closing credits. Martin Ellis (Dobie) is a blocked screenwriter who invites Helen, an actress (Markham), to a hotel in central London to discuss an idea for a play he is writing with her in mind. As he waits for her to arrive he picks up the telephone in his room and considers calling an escort agency. Thinking better of it, he decides to call his wife instead. He goes to meet Helen at the hotel bar and they start discussing his project. He explains that the play he intends to write involves a meeting between a businessman and a call girl at a hotel; Martin's intention is to explore the tension this scenario would create by talking to Helen about how far she would go for the sake of her profession. As they discuss the play, Martin discovers that a businessman and an escort named Carol are sat at a nearby table and appear to be speaking lines from the as yet unwritten piece. Martin becomes anxious at what will eventually become of the girl, already knowing that the play will not have a happy resolution. As Helen becomes uncomfortable and is about to leave, Martin's agent Benn (Melia) arrives to make sure that the meeting is going as planned. Angry at having been set up for Martin to seduce her, Helen calls Ben a pimp, which leads him to reveal that Martin is actually in love with her. After Ben leaves, Helen informs Martin that there is no possibility of a romantic attachment happening between them and asks to collect her belongings from his room; all the while Martin remains fixated on the businessman and the call girl on the other table. When they head up to Martin's room, so do the characters who appear to have escaped from Martin's play. As Helen bids Martin goodnight he claims to hear shouting from next door: the businessman is in there with the escort girl and has become violent at her sexual taunting. Martin stands against the wall and describes the businessman raping and murdering her. When it is over he turns to face Helen on the bed, only to find that she has been sexually assaulted and strangled -- seemingly at his hand. There is a knock at the door. Martin answers it only to be confronted by the businessman, who it is revealed is actually a mild-mannered and married man concerned by the noise coming from Martin's room. Martin tells him to mind his own business and slams the door. He walks over to the bedside table, picks up the telephone and calls the escort agency. When there is no reply, he lies back on the bed next to Helen's body and weeps. Alan Dobie as Martin Ellis, Kika Markham as Helen/Carol, Malcolm Terris as Businessman, Joe Melia as Ben, John Hamill as Peter, Linda Beckett as the businessman's wife In 1974, Potter's father died, and this, coupled with a severe bout of psoriatic arthropathy, led to him developing writer's block. Having the bare bones of an idea about a meeting between a businessman and a prostitute for his next piece, Potter contacted producer Kenith Trodd to arrange a meeting with actress Kika Markham, hoping to cast her in one of his own television productions. The two met in a hotel at The Strand and began discussing their relative professions. Markham claims that much of the dialogue featured in the play was a faithful transcript of their meeting. According to Markham, early rehearsals were spent trying to "wring the giggles" out of the material; Potter's very specific stage directions appearing overwrought compared to the 'clipped-down' style of other writers. Having broken this barrier, the performers were able to explore the darker context of the play through close reading of the text and various theatrical exercises. As the production would be shot on location, director John Mackenzie was granted the opportunity of using film stock rather than video. Double Dare explores the relationship between fact and fiction, as well as the connection between author and viewer. The doubling up of Helen and the call girl, and to a lesser extent the comparisons between Martin and the businessman, are "Potteresque" tropes that serve to challenge the audience's perspective on what they are seeing. Dialogue between Martin and Helen is often repeated verbatim in the fictional world of the businessman and the call girl (most notably the exchange about the automatic shoe polisher in the hallway outside Martin's room, which bookends Helen's arrival at the hotel and the escort heading to her client's room). Although containing very few of the non-naturalistic flourishes of his other plays, Double Dare does, however, contain one sequence where Potter deliberately breaks the artificial naturalism of the drama by having Martin question Helen if she would sleep with him if they were characters in a play before turning direct to camera and indicating an audience "somewhere out there". This question, and others like it, forms the basis of one of Potter's other major themes – individual choice in the face of an omniscient author. While Martin assumes responsibility for the eventual fate of the call girl, even going so far as attempting to warn her of the danger she faces, he ultimately resigns himself to the view that the act of writing is nothing more than a form of precognition. Martin recites Dante Gabriel Rossetti's poem "Sudden Light" (c.1853-4) to Helen in an attempt to woo her, but emphasises the subtext that all things, even human relationships, are mapped out in advance by unseen forces. The play was originally intended to be part of a trilogy exploring an individual's choices (or rather, lack of them) in the face of an omniscient narrator; Double Dare was to form the first part, followed by Brimstone and Treacle, also produced for the Play for Today slot, and Where Adam Stood — a free adaptation of Edmund Gosse's autobiographical book Father and Son (1907). The BBC's decision not to broadcast Brimstone caused some surprise from both Potter and Trodd, the latter assuming that if any of the trilogy would cause offence it would be Double Dare, citing its "ferocious" attitude towards women as a potential problem. When the play went out on BBC1 on 6 April 1976, it attracted very positive reviews stating that Potter was maturing as a playwright. Reviewing the play for The Guardian, Martin Amis praised the drama's build-up of tension, its Russian doll effect and commented that it forced him to "increase [my] nicotene intake." The sex scenes between Markham and John Hamill, included as a flashback from another play, intended to show the lengths to which Helen will go in the pursuit of her craft, were considered to be among the strongest shown on British television up to that point. The play would not be repeated until 2005, when it was shown on BBC Four amongst a season of programming intended to mark the tenth anniversary of Potter's death. When director Herbert Ross was preparing a film version of Pennies from Heaven for MGM, producer Rick McCallum drew his attention to Double Dare as a potential project to adapt for the cinema. Potter told editor Graham Fuller in Potter on Potter that he had written a movie adaptation that transferred the action to Los Angeles, and featured an English screenwriter whose experiences in Hollywood are 'doubled up' with those back home in England. Potter described this new version of the play as "more sexually disturbing" than the original, but after the box office failure of the movie version of Pennies from Heaven the project was shelved. Ross claims, however, that he held a read-through with Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. The central premise of Double Dare would be revisited in the serial Karaoke (1996), the first part of Potter's two last television works. Karaoke features a writer called Daniel Feeld (Albert Finney) who starts to hear lines from his latest screenplay coming from the mouths of total strangers and those closest to him. The centrepiece of the serial involves a sequence in a brasserie where Feeld, meeting with his producer (Anna Chancellor), overhears a young woman on the next table arguing with her boyfriend. Their conversation appears to consist of Daniel's dialogue and the young girl ("Sandra", played by Saffron Burrows) is being asked to have sex with one of her gangster boyfriend's business associates to broker a favour. The intercutting of the scene between Daniel and the girl's perspectives is largely identical to Double Dare, as is the suggestion that the girl will meet a horrible fate if Daniel does not intervene. A minor reference to Double Dare is the fact that Daniel's literary agent (Roy Hudd) is also called Ben. Double Dare is also a follow-on from an earlier Potter play, Follow the Yellow Brick Road (1972), which features an embittered, cuckolded actor ('Jack Black', played by Denholm Elliott) who believes himself to be an actor trapped in a television play. Unlike Double Dare, however, the central protagonist is able to subvert the narrative by challenging its anonymous author. Follow the Yellow Brick Road, Karaoke Humphrey Carpenter, Dennis Potter: A Biography; 1998, Graham Fuller (Ed.), Potter on Potter; 1993, W.S. Gilbert, Fight and Kick and Bite: The Life and Work of Dennis Potter; 1995, Nigel Williams (Ed.) Arena: Painting the Clouds; 2005 Elizabeth Shaila Koshy (born March 31, 1996) is an American actress, television host, comedian and YouTuber. She began her career on Vine in 2013, before starting a YouTube channel. Among her acting roles have been Aday Walker in Tyler Perry's horror comedy film Boo! A Madea Halloween (2016) and The Explorer in the YouTube Premium series Escape the Night (2017). She starred as Violet Adams in the Hulu drama television series Freakish (2016–2017). From 2017 to 2018, she was a contributor to the MTV television series Total Request Live. Since 2018, Koshy has produced and starred as the title character in the YouTube Premium comedy series Liza on Demand. She also hosted the Nickelodeon game show revival Double Dare, from 2018 to 2019. Koshy's main YouTube channel has amassed more than 17 million subscribers, and her two channels have a total of more than 2.5 billion combined views. She has received four Streamy Awards, four Teen Choice Awards, and a Kids' Choice Award. She was included in the 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment list and the Time 2019 list of the 25 Most Influential People on the Internet and its 2019 100 Next list. Koshy was born and raised in Houston, Texas. Her father is Indian and her mother is of German descent; her parents are Jose Koshy, a petroleum executive, and Jean Carol (née Hertzler), a yoga instructor. She has two older sisters. From kindergarten until 5th grade, she was placed in a dual language educational and cultural program, where she learned to speak Spanish. In 2014, after attending Lamar High School, Koshy enrolled in the University of Houston and began to study business marketing. In 2015, Koshy left college and moved to Los Angeles to pursue her career. Koshy began posting comic videos on the Vine platform, in 2013, under the pseudonym "Lizzza", where she posted short comedic videos. When Vine closed in 2017, Koshy had 7 million followers. By 2016, Koshy was also becoming noted on the YouTube platform. In November 2016, just before the 2016 election, Koshy interviewed president Barack Obama on her YouTube channel to encourage voter registration. Koshy's videos feature "her loud facial expressions, quick pace, and her commitment to looking as ridiculous as possible as the joke demands. [Some of her videos] take serious issues – like anxiety, the pressure to fit in, and internet trolls – and make them accessible and engaging for her viewers." She suspended adding new videos to her main YouTube account in early 2018 as she turned to full-time acting and hosting work. She resumed posting new videos in 2019. In 2017, Koshy became "the fastest YouTube personality to reach 10 million subscribers". As of October 2019, her main YouTube channel had over 17 million subscribers and more than 2 billion views. Videos on her main channel average nearly 15 million views. Her second YouTube channel had more than 8 million subscribers, and her two channels had a combined total of more than 2.5 billion views. She also had more than 17 million followers on Instagram, more than 11 million on TikTok (formerly Musical.ly), more than 2.9 million on Facebook and more than 2.8 million on Twitter. By 2017, her total social media penetration was approximately 45 million followers. Time named Koshy to its 2019 list of the 25 Most Influential People on the Internet and its 2019 100 Next list. In 2016, Koshy starred in the Hulu original horror series Freakish as Violet Adams. She reprised the role in the show's second season in 2017. Also in 2016, she played the role of Aday Walker in the horror-comedy feature film, Boo! A Madea Halloween, and starred as herself in the YouTube Premium series, Jingle Ballin. Koshy starred as Princess Aubrey in the 2016 comedy film FML. In 2017, she played a recurring character, The Explorer, in the YouTube Premium mystery-reality series Escape the Night. Koshy stars in and co- produces a YouTube Premium situation comedy series, Liza on Demand, which premiered in June 2018, "following the chaotic misadventures of the eponymous character" as she works to become an "elite tasker" doing odd jobs for pay. A reviewer for the Los Angeles Times wrote: "The first episode ... is not bad. Yet it's also ordinary and a little stiff. … But the second ... is better ... and shows off Koshy to good effect, some effective physical comedy included. It made me laugh, anyway." Season 2 premiered in September 2019. Alexis Gunderson of Paste wrote in 2019: "Liza on Demand a truly excellent comedy." In November 2018, Koshy voiced the character Owl in Crow: The Legend, an animated virtual-reality short film written and directed by Eric Darnell, starring John Legend. The film premiered on the Liza Koshy Too YouTube channel and Oculus VR on November 15, 2018. She returned to Escape the Night in 2019. She is set to appear in the Netflix dance-comedy film Work It, alongside Sabrina Carpenter, which filmed in 2019. Koshy hosted the live preshow at the 2017 Golden Globes Awards, which received 2.7 million live viewers on Twitter – a record for the medium. She also hosted Nigel Lythgoe's series Every Single Step and was "the only social entertainer chosen to promote the 2016 MTV Movie Awards." She was one of the hosts on Total Request Live on MTV from 2017 to 2019 and served as a producer and developer of content for MTV. Koshy was the first "digital star" interviewed for Vogue magazine's "73 Questions" web series. Koshy conducted interviews of the celebrities attending the 2018 and 2019 Met Galas on behalf of Vogue. She hosted the revival of the Nickelodeon game show Double Dare from June 2018 to December 2019. Her online advertisements for Beats Electronics draw four times more viewers than those of other celebrities. Koshy collaborates with The Giving Keys, a jewelry company that employs and supports the formerly homeless population, on a necklace collection. She is a co-chairs of "When We All Vote", a nonpartisan group dedicated to increasing voter participation. Koshy dated fellow YouTube personality David Dobrik from late 2015 to late 2017, revealing their break-up in June 2018. Teen Vogue named Koshy to its 2016 list of "The 7 Female Comedians You Need to Know". The Hollywood Reporter included Koshy in its 2017 list of "15 Rising Crossover Stars". The Washington Post cited Koshy as one of the "funny women...at the top of their game today [who] girls get to study" as models for comedy and empowerment. She is a member of the 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment list. John Jurgensen of The Wall Street Journal described Koshy's appeal as follows: "Her comedy is heavy on self-deprecation, slapstick and wordplay, more goofy than snarky. ... One reason her sketches work for advertisers is the replay factor, [squeezing] in dozens of puns and double meanings, in part to encourage easily distracted viewers to re-watch. ... Koshy has proven to be safe territory for established entertainment companies and advertisers who have fled from edgier online content". Alexis Gunderson of Paste compared Koshy to Lucille Ball and calls her a "physical comedy wunderkind" and "a tiny magnetic goofball". Koshy has won four Streamy Awards and Teen Choice Awards, and a Kids' Choice Award. Trailer for Liza on Demand (2018)

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The Dolphins–Jets rivalry is a rivalry between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets in the National Football League. The teams both play in the American Football Conference East Division, and play two scheduled games each season as a result. They have often competed for divisional supremacy, and have played a number of classic games. Currently, the Jets lead the series 55–53–1, while the Dolphins have won the lone postseason meeting, defeating the Jets in the 1982 AFC Championship. The Jets and Dolphins were established in 1960 and 1966 respectively; both as members of the American Football League. After the AFL–NFL merger in 1970 the Dolphins and the Jets were placed in the AFC East, guaranteeing that they would meet twice a year annually. The rivalry has stayed intense through the years as both teams are always competitive against one another no matter what the standings indicate. The rivalry also keeps a high intensity because of the large amount of transplanted New York Jets fans that retire to South Florida. Prior to the New England Patriots rise to dominance in the early 2000s, the Jets and Dolphins regularly contested for the AFC East title (along with the Buffalo Bills in the late 1980s and early 1990s). Upon the Dolphins' joining of the AFL in 1966, the Jets were laying the seeds for their 1968 Super Bowl III victory. After the Jets Super Bowl victory in 1968, the Dolphins began their ascension to the top of the NFL, culminating back-to-back Super Bowl wins in 1972 and 1973. The 1972 season also saw Miami finish with a 17–0 record; the only NFL team to finish the regular season and post-season without a loss or tie. When the Dolphins joined the AFL in 1966, the Jets were ascending the ranks of the AFL powerhouses on the arm of quarterback Joe Namath. The Jets won the first eight contests against the Dolphins beginning with the very first meeting, a 19-14 Jets win in Miami's second game of the Dolphins' existence. When the Dolphins finally posted their first winning record in 1970, injuries plagued Namath and the Jets stumbled to a 4–10 record. Due to Namath's inability to consistently stay healthy, the Jets never posted a record above .500 in the 1970s (they finished 7–7 in 1972 and 1974, then 8–8 in 1978 and 1979). Meanwhile, the Dolphins quickly surged to the NFL's elite after the AFL–NFL merger, peaking with the only undefeated season in NFL History (New England later had an undefeated regular season, but failed to win the Super Bowl) in 1972 and back-to-back Super Bowl wins in Super Bowls VII and VIII. The Dolphins went 14–2 against the Jets during these seasons. The 1978 season began a string of Jets success against the Dolphins that ran into the early 1980s. Entering the 1980 season, the Dolphins were aiming toward another playoff run, while the Jets were struggling. The Jets won a total of only four games. Two of those games were wins over Miami: 17–14 in New York on October 27, and 24–17 in Miami on December 20 (a game whose telecast drew higher ratings than it might otherwise have when NBC decided to broadcast it without announcers as an experiment). Miami went on to finish with an 8–8 record, but it was the season sweep by the Jets that largely cost them their chances of a playoff berth. The mid-1980s saw both teams become simultaneously competitive for the first time, beginning with a battle for the AFC East in 1981. That season also saw the only tie in the series, a 28–28 stalemate in Miami. The game lead tied or changed on every score; in the first half Jet leads of 7–0 and 14–7 were answered by Miami touchdowns. Miami took a 21–14 lead in the third but in the fourth touchdowns by Wesley Walker and a Richard Todd pass to Bobby Jones offset a Don Strock touchdown to Nat Moore. In overtime neither team could advance the ball, ending the game deadlocked. Todd finished with 310 passing yards and four touchdowns to Strock's 279 yards and two scores. The tie became crucial in the final standings; had the Jets won the game, combined with their 16–15 home victory during the season, they would've clinched the division on a tiebreaker. Instead, Miami won the division by one game. Still, the Jets' 10–5–1 record allowed them to clinch their first postseason berth in twelve seasons. but they lost to the Bills in the Wild Card round, 31–27, while Miami lost a 41-38 overtime epic to the Chargers. With the conclusion of the 1981 season the Jets had won seven of the previous eight meetings with the Dolphins with the one tie. Miami, however, returned to the rivalry's fore in 1982, a season that saw the apex of the rivalry, coming in the 1982 AFC Championship on January 23, 1983, more appropriately known as "The ." After the Dolphins swept the Jets during the strike-shortened regular season (winning 45–28 in New York and 20–19 in Miami, the two teams met again, this time with a trip to Super Bowl XVII on the line. The tarp was left off the field of the Orange Bowl during a 72-hour rainstorm leading up to the game, which resulted in a sloppy field covered in mud which kept both teams scoreless in the first half. The game was a classic defensive battle that featured ten turnovers, eight of them on quarterback interceptions. The star of the game was Dolphins linebacker A. J. Duhe who picked off Jets quarterback Richard Todd three times, returning one 35 yards for a touchdown to help seal the 14–0 win and send the Dolphins to Super Bowl XVII. For the rest of his life former Jets coach Walt Michaels believed that Miami coach Don Shula ordered to keep the tarp off the field, to neutralize New York's superior team speed. In 1985 the Jets beat the Dolphins at Giants Stadium, 23–7, on Monday Night Football on October 14; three Jets backs led by Freeman McNeil rushed for 245 yards; the win was the Jets' fifth straight after an opening-week shutout by the Raiders. On November 10, 1985, Mark "Super" Duper set a Dolphins single game record with 217 receiving yards and helped catapult Miami to victory. Down 17–14 with less than a minute to play, Dan Marino fired a 50-yard touchdown pass to Duper for the 21–17 win. It was Marino's third touchdown of the game and Duper's second. Two of the most memorable contests between the teams occurred in 1986. On September 21, Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien and Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino put on a legendary offensive performance. The two quarterbacks combined set NFL single game records of 884 net passing yards and ten touchdown passes, records which have since been broken. Dan Marino completed 30 of 50 passes for 448 yards and six touchdown passes. Mark Duper and Mark Clayton had big games, each having over 100 yards receiving (Duper with 154, Clayton with 174). O'Brien threw for 479 yards and four touchdown passes all to wide receiver Wesley Walker, including one with no time left on the clock to force overtime, and then the game clincher in overtime for the win, 51–45. To this day, it is the highest scoring game between the teams (96 total points). The win propelled the Jets to a team-record nine-game winning streak, and an NFL-leading 10–1 record, when the teams met again on November 24 on Monday Night Football. However, Marino and the Dolphins got revenge with a blowout win at home. Dan Marino completed 29 of 36 passes for 288 yards and four touchdown passes, while Dolphins running back Lorenzo Hampton rushed for 148 yards on 19 carries and two scores, one being a 50-yard touchdown run. As for the Jets, they could only manage three points, as the Dolphins defeated the Jets 45–3. The game also reflected a swift change in momentum for the Jets, who lost their final five games of 1986 to finish with a 10–6 record, but managed to still back into a playoff berth. They eventually fell to the Cleveland Browns in a double-overtime Divisional round loss. Dan Marino made history in 1988; on October 23 he joined a very elite club, becoming one of the few quarterbacks in NFL history to throw for 500 yards, completing 35 of 60 passes for a career-high 521 yards. However, he also threw five interceptions; three of them were to rookie Jets cornerback Erik McMillan, who returned one of them 55 yards for a touchdown. The Jets were ahead the entire game, including 30–10 at halftime, and despite a Dolphins rally (scoring three touchdowns but missing the PAT on one of them) the Jets won 44–30. The game, however, was overshadowed in the Jets locker room, for days earlier defensive end Mark Gastineau announced he was retiring from football to be with his girlfriend Brigitte Nielsen, who claimed to be suffering cancer in the uterus. In the rematch on November 27 the Dolphins fell behind 24–14 at the half but Marino (353 passing yards) exploded in the third quarter with two touchdowns to Mark Clayton (marred by a missed PAT) and an 80-yard score to Ferrell Edmunds for a 34–24 Miami lead. Pat Ryan had started the game for the Jets, throwing for 341 yards and two touchdowns, but in the fourth quarter Ken O'Brien came in and wiped out Miami's lead with scores to Mickey Shuler and Wesley Walker and a 38–34 Jets win. The two teams met in yet another high-scoring affair on September 24, 1989 in Miami, the Jets looking for their first win at 0–2 while Miami was 1–1. Throwing for 427 yards and three touchdowns, Dan Marino raced the Dolphins to a 30–19 lead after three quarters, but again Ken O'Brien whipped the Jets to the win with two touchdown passes and a Johnny Hector rushing score in the fourth, ending a 40–33 Jets win. The Jets, however, lost five of their next six games when they hosted the 5–4 Dolphins on November 12. This time it was Marino leading a comeback; down 20–3 in the second quarter, Marino erupted with three touchdown passes while Sammie Smith added a two-yard rushing score and the Dolphins defense limited the Jets to one fourth-quarter field goal and a 31–23 Miami win. The teams met in the season finale on December 22, 1991 a winner-take-all game for the final wild card spot in the playoffs. It was a seesaw battle, and the Dolphins took the lead 20–17 with 44 seconds remaining. When the Jets got the ball back, they drove down the field and tied the game to force overtime on Raul Allegre's 44-yard field goal. Allegre came through for the Jets once again in OT with a 30-yard field goal, sending the Jets to the playoffs, and sending the Dolphins home. In 1994, the Jets found themselves one game back of the Dolphins for the AFC East division lead heading into their November 27 match at the Meadowlands. In a game with first place on the line, the Jets held a 24–6 lead, outplaying the Dolphins for three quarters. However, Marino led the Dolphins back with two touchdowns, cutting the score to 24–21. Marino got the ball one last time and drove the Dolphins down the field to within the Jets' five-yard line. With thirty seconds left, and the clock continuing to wind down, Marino motioned that he was going to spike the ball to stop the clock and send out the field goal unit to tie the game. Instead, Marino took the snap from center and fired the ball in the corner of the end zone past Aaron Glenn to Mark Ingram. It was Ingram's fourth touchdown catch of the game, which tied a club record with former Dolphins wide receiver Paul Warfield. The touchdown gave the Dolphins a 28–24 victory, and Miami went on to win the division. This game is famous in NFL history known as "The Fake Spike Game" but the fake spike play itself is also known as the Clock Play. The Jets went into a spiral after that play, losing all of their remaining games. Indeed, the game marked the beginning of a period of ignominy for the Jets as they compiled a record of 4–33 from that game to the end of the 1996 season. One of the more bitter losses for the Jets in 1996 was at Miami in Week 3. The Dolphins clawed to the Jets 5-yard line and tried for the touchdown on 4th and goal, but Aaron Glenn picked off the pass in the end zone and ran 100 yards for the touchdown. Later Neil O'Donnell connected with ex- Oiler Webster Slaughter on a 35-yard score, but after this score Marino went 74 yards to Stanley Pritchett for the touchdown. After Karim Abdul-Jabbar tied the score the Dolphins took over, scoring two touchdowns marred by a missed Joe Nedney PAT and a botched 2-point try. The Jets despite being down 33–14 in the fourth kept fighting as Jeff Graham caught a long touchdown pass; later the Jets forced a Dolphins fumble but were pinned 4th and goal at the 29; O'Donnell threw deep and Keyshawn Johnson out-jumped the entire Dolphins defense to catch the touchdown. But the Dolphins iced it on a Nedney field goal for a 36–27 final. O'Donnell finished with 325 passing yards and three touchdowns. After 1996, the Jets made several changes to turn things around, the most significant of which was the hiring of Bill Parcells from the Patriots. The turnaround was immediate; when the Jets hosted the Dolphins on October 12 they were 4-2 with the Dolphins 3–2. Marino led the Dolphins to a 31–20 win. On November 9 at Miami Glenn Foley had replaced starter Neil O'Donnell under center for New York; he threw for 322 yards, a touchdown, and a pick in a 24–17 Dolphins win. The two teams finished the season both 9–7 while New England won the division at 10–6; the Dolphins won the divisional tiebreaker being 4–4 in division games and the Jets 2–6 and thus earned the last wildcard playoff spot. By 1998 the Jets were a serious division contender. Both teams were 9–4 on December 13, 1998 when they met on Sunday Night Football with the division lead, and possibly the division title, on the line. The Jets led 14-10 when Jets defender Chad Cascadden picked up a Marino fumble and returned it for a touchdown with just under two minutes to play to put the Jets ahead, 21–10. The Dolphins were able to score a quick touchdown to come close, but it was not enough, and the Jets won, 21–16, and they went on to win their first post-merger division title the following Saturday at Buffalo. The Dolphins made the playoffs as the fourth seed and hosted the Bills in the Wildcard round; they defeated the Bills 24–17 before falling at Denver 38–3. The Jets defeated the AFC Central champion Jaguars, 34–24, but fell to Denver in the AFC Championship Game. The teams' 1999 season marked Marino's last against the Jets. On December 12 at Giants Stadium the 8–4 Dolphins fell to the 4–8 Jets, 28–20; Marino was intercepted twice and benched for Damon Huard. Two weeks later on December 27 the Dolphins, now 9–5, hosted the 6–8 Jets. The Dolphins were trying to clinch a playoff spot, while the Jets, who started their season 1–6, had won five out of their last seven. The Jets did not make it easy for the Dolphins. Lucas completed 11 of 23 passes for 190 yards and three touchdowns. Marino put on one of his last great performances, completing 29 of 52 passes for 322 yards and three touchdown passes, but also three interceptions. It was the last of Marino's NFL regular season record 63 career games with 300 yards passing. The Jets came away with a 38–31 victory, with two long Lucas touchdowns sealing the game. The Jets finished the season 8–8 (including a season sweep of Miami), while the Dolphins finished the season 9–7 and made it to the second round of the playoffs; after defeating the Seattle Seahawks, 20–17, they lost handily to the Jacksonville Jaguars, 62–7. Marino retired six weeks later; he compiled a 17–13 record against the Jets and 72 touchdown throws, the most for Marino against any opponent. The Jets and Dolphins started the 2000 season 5–1 when they met on October 23, 2000, to determine control of the AFC East. What looked to be an exciting match between two of the top teams in the NFL at the time was anything but for the first three quarters. The Dolphins held 30–7 at the end of the third quarter. Vinny Testaverde threw three interceptions, running back Curtis Martin was limited to 30 yards on the ground, and the Jets offense could only manage two first downs in the first half. Meanwhile, running back Lamar Smith scored two touchdowns for the Dolphins on his way to 155 rushing yards for the night. However, the Jets came back in the fourth quarter with touchdowns from Testaverde to Laveranues Coles, Jermaine Wiggins, Wayne Chrebet and cut the lead to 30–20. After a field goal by John Hall, Testaverde fired a touchdown pass to Wayne Chrebet to tie the game at 30 with 3:55 left. It took only two plays for Miami to respond. Jay Fiedler threw a touchdown pass to Leslie Shepherd to retake the lead, 37–30. Testaverde drove the Jets down field and, with 42 seconds left, found eligible offensive tackle Jumbo Elliott on a three-yard touchdown to tie the game at 37 and sent it to overtime. In the fourth quarter, Testaverde was 18 for 26 for 235 yards and four touchdowns, and the offense converted twenty first downs in the quarter, after managing just five beforehand. The Jets won in overtime, 40–37. The game came to be known as The Monday Night Miracle. When Monday Night Football celebrated its 500th telecast in 2002, fans picked the game as the greatest in the series' history. It was also the largest comeback from a fourth quarter deficit in NFL history. Despite the win, and a subsequent victory later in the season in Miami, the Jets failed to make the playoffs while the Dolphins won the division. 2002 was the tightest AFC East race in the division's history. Miami ended their losing streak to the Jets with a 30–3 rout at Miami on September 22; the next week the Jets finally benched Vinny Testaverde early in a loss to the Jaguars and Chad Pennington took over under center; when the Jets hosted Miami on November 10 Pennington led the Jets to a 13–10 win; Ray Lucas started for the Dolphins but a late rally failed. The Jets, Dolphins, and Patriots entered the final week of the season all with a chance to win the AFC East; the Dolphins had a 9–6 record, while the Patriots and Jets were 8–7. The Dolphins and Patriots met in Foxborough in what was essentially an elimination game, while the Jets played the Green Bay Packers later in the afternoon. The Dolphins simply needed to win the game to win the division, while the Jets needed a Patriots victory coupled with their own. The Patriots came back from an 11-point fourth quarter deficit to force overtime, and won on an Adam Vinatieri field goal. News of the Patriots' victory sent the crowd at the Meadowlands into celebration. The Jets, meanwhile, played a close first half with Green Bay before opening the game up in the second half for a 42–17 victory and the AFC East championship. Both games in 2006 were tight contests that came down to the wire. The season was surprising for both teams; the Dolphins were considered a serious playoff contender in the preseason, but stumbled to a 6–10 record, while the Jets were considered to be in a rebuilding stage, yet managed to go 10–6 and reach the playoffs. On October 15, 2006, the Jets opened up a 20–3 lead with less than 13 minutes to play at home. Miami didn't give up, though, as touchdowns by Chambers and Ronnie Brown cut the margin to three. The Dolphins got the ball one last time and got in field goal range for kicker Olindo Mare to attempt a 51-yard field goal with 33 seconds left to tie the game but it was wide right, preserving a 20–17 Jets win. The teams met again on Christmas night that season. The Jets were 8–6 and in the position to clinch a playoff berth with victories in their final two games. A rainy field kept both offenses quiet for most of the night. All of the scoring happened in the final 17:25 of the game. Miami hit a game-tying field goal with 2:09 remaining to make the score 10–10. However, Chad Pennington threw a short pass to Leon Washington, which he turned into a 64-yard gain. Four plays later, Jets kicker Mike Nugent hit a 30-yard field goal with 10 seconds left to give the Jets a 13–10 win. On August 7, 2008 the Jets acquired quarterback Brett Favre from the Packers. Favre's acquisition made Chad Pennington expendable, and he was subsequently released from the team. Pennington immediately signed with the Dolphins and became their starting quarterback. Favre made his debut for the Jets against Pennington and the Dolphins in Miami on September 7. Favre threw two touchdown passes for the Jets, while Pennington attempted to rally the Dolphins in the fourth quarter, reaching the Jets' red zone with under a minute to play, before throwing an interception in the end zone to end a 20–14 Jets win. The teams met again in the season finale at the Meadowlands with the division title at stake in what was essentially an elimination game. Pennington out-dueled Favre (who threw 3 costly interceptions) in leading his Dolphins to a 24–17 win and the team's first AFC East crown since 2000. The loss led the Jets to fire coach Eric Mangini. The Dolphins in 2009 authored their first sweep of the Jets since 2003, winning 31–27 in Miami and 30–25 in The Meadowlands; in the latter game Ted Ginn Jr., who'd been demoted to special teams weeks earlier, ran back two kick-returns for touchdowns, accounting for 201 return yards. Both wins came with a reliance on the power-running Wildcat formation—notable because new Jets head coach Rex Ryan, who panned the formation in post-match interviews, then used the formation to re-ignite his team's playoff run. On April 20, 2010, longtime Dolphin Jason Taylor signed with the Jets. Taylor was known for making derogatory comments about the Jets during his tenure in Miami. On December 12, 2010, strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi was caught by CBS Sports cameras as he tripped Dolphins player Nolan Carroll as he ran along the sideline on a kick return. He was fined $25,000 by the Jets and suspended for the rest of the season; the suspension became indefinite after it was discovered that he had instructed inactive Jets players to line up along the sideline so as to potentially impede opposing players. Later on December 30, the Jets were fined $100,000 by the NFL for violating league rules in this incident. In 2011, the Jets defeated the Dolphins on October 17 at the New Meadowlands, but a 19–17 loss in Miami in Week 17 left the Jets at 8–8 and out of the 2011 playoffs. The Week 17 game was notable for Miami as it was the last game for longtime Dolphin and ex-Jet Jason Taylor, and 400th victory in Dolphins franchise history. An apparent Jets fumble in the final three minutes inside their own 20 was picked up by Taylor and run into the end zone but the score was called back. Shortly after the 2011 season ended, the Jets hired former Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano as Offensive Coordinator who was fired during the 2011 season. In his first game against his former team on September 23, 2012, Sparano saw the Jets fall behind, 10–3, at the half before LaRon Landry intercepted Dolphins rookie Ryan Tannehill and scored in the third. The Jets raced to a 20–17 lead but the Dolphins tied the game on Dan Carpenter's 41-yard field goal. In overtime Carpenter missed a 48-yarder, then the Dolphins blocked a Nick Folk attempt, but the play was nullified when the Dolphins called timeout before the snap. Folk drilled a 33-yard field goal for the 23–20 Jets win. On December 28, 2014, Jets quarterback Geno Smith posted a perfect passer rating en route to leading the Jets to a 37–24 win over the Dolphins. After splitting the regular season series five consecutive seasons, the Jets swept the Dolphins in 2015. Following a 27–14 Jets win at Wembley Stadium in London, a Dolphins home game, the Dolphins fired head coach Joe Philbin and defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle. overseas. During the rematch, which the Jets won 38–20, the Dolphins managed only twelve rushing yards while New York's defense forced Ryan Tannehill into two fumbles. The Dolphins got their own season sweep over the Jets in 2016. They won 27–23 at Miami with the help of a 96-yard Kenyan Drake kick-return score in the fourth quarter. In the rematch, the Dolphins intercepted the Jets three times and getting four touchdowns from quarterback Matt Moore, in a 34–13 win. The win helped Miami make the playoffs for the first time since 2008. On November 3, 2019, former Dolphins coach Adam Gase faced his previous team as head coach of the Jets. Both teams were at that point at the bottom of the AFC in terms of win-loss records, with Miami entering the game at 0–7 and New York one game ahead at 1–6. Miami won this game to earn its first win of the year, thanks to three touchdown passes from former Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. In the Adam Sandler movie Little Nicky, Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino (appearing as himself) visits Hell and tries to plead with the Devil (Harvey Keitel) to give him one Super Bowl win in exchange for his soul (referencing Joe Namath's alleged "deal" prior to winning Super Bowl III for the Jets) but the Devil declines, saying that Marino is "too nice of a guy" and that Namath was "coming here anyways". After Marino leaves, the Devil reveals he is in fact a Jets fan. The Football Database: Miami Dolphins vs. New York Jets, Pro Football Reference Box Scores: Miami Dolphins vs. New York Jets The 1984 Miami Dolphins season was the team's 19th season, and 15th in the National Football League. It was also the 15th season with the team for head coach Don Shula. The Dolphins sought to build on a spectacular 1983 season where they went 12–4 with rookie quarterback Dan Marino, only to be upset by the Seattle Seahawks in the playoffs. The Dolphins won the 1984 AFC Championship, and appeared in Super Bowl XIX, where they lost to the San Francisco 49ers, 38–16. To date this is the last season the Dolphins appeared in the Super Bowl. Second year quarterback Dan Marino's passing ability became the focal point of Miami's offense and in 1984 he exploded to set league records with 5,084 passing yards and 48 touchdowns. Marino's touchdown record was broken by Peyton Manning twenty years later and the yardage record was broken by Drew Brees twenty-seven years later. The Dolphins attempted early on to make a run at a perfect season twelve years after pulling off the feat, as they won their first eleven games but were upended in overtime by the San Diego Chargers. The Dolphins scored more than 500 points for the first and to date only time in their history, as they scored 513 points and finished 14–2, their best record since the undefeated season. The year began on a somber note, as running back David Overstreet was killed in a traffic collision in June. The Dolphins wore helmet decals with the number 20 (his jersey number) in his memory during this season. Dan Marino had one of the best passing days of his career, completing 21 of 28 passes for 311 yards with 5 TDs and no interceptions for a QB Rating of 150.4. This game also marked the emergence of Jim "Crash" Jensen, who lined up as a receiver for the first time and caught 2 of Marino's TD passes. Dan Marino increased his two game total of seven touchdown passes as he tossed a pair of scoring strikes to Mark Clayton within a 1:36 span in the third quarter to lead Miami to its 17th straight victory against the Patriots at The Orange Bowl. Miami intercepted four Steve Grogan passes. Mike Kozlowski returned one 26 yards, then laterred to William Judson who rambled the remaining 60 yards for a touchdown. A year after being upended in the playoffs by the Seattle Seahawks the Dolphins routed Seattle 31–10. Dan Marino threw for 264 yards and three touchdowns despite being intercepted twice by Seahawks defensive back John Harris. The Dolphins rushed for 143 yards and a Tony Nathan rushing score as well. In a shootout, quarterback Dan Marino led the Dolphins to a victory by throwing for 421 yards and four touchdowns with one interception. Steelers quarterback Mark Malone recorded 312 yards and 3 touchdowns, but was intercepted three times. Super Bowl XIX was played on January 20, 1985, and featured the San Francisco 49ers and the Miami Dolphins. The 49ers won their second Super Bowl, defeating the Dolphins 38–16. Dan Marino, the Dolphins quarterback passed for one touchdown and two interceptions, while Joe Montana, the 49ers quarterback passed for 3 touchdowns and rushed for another. MIA – FG: Uwe von Schamann 37 yards 3–0 MIA, SF – TD: Carl Monroe 33-yard pass from Joe Montana (Ray Wersching kick) 7–3 SF, MIA – TD: Dan Johnson 2-yard pass from Dan Marino (Uwe von Schamann kick) 10–7 MIA, SF – TD: Roger Craig 8-yard pass from Joe Montana (Ray Wersching kick) 14–10 SF, SF – TD: Joe Montana 6-yard run (Ray Wersching kick) 21–10 SF, SF – TD: Roger Craig 2-yard run (Ray Wersching kick) 28–10 SF, MIA – FG: Uwe von Schamann 31 yards 28–13 SF, MIA – FG: Uwe von Schamann 30 yards 28–16 SF, SF – FG: Ray Wersching 27 yards 31–16 SF, SF – TD: Roger Craig 16-yard pass from Joe Montana (Ray Wersching kick) 38–16 SF Dan Marino, 1984 NFL MVP, Dan Marino, 1984 PFWA MVP, Dan Marino, 1984 NEA MVP, Dan Marino, 1984 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, Dan Marino, 1984 UPI AFL-AFC Player of the Year, Dan Marino, Bert Bell Award Miami Dolphins on Pro Football Reference, Miami Dolphins on jt-sw.com This is a list of seasons completed by the Miami Dolphins American football franchise of the National Football League (NFL). The list documents the season-by-season records of the Dolphins franchise from to present, including postseason records, and league awards for individual players or head coaches. Although the Miami Dolphins were not successful before joining the NFL, from 1970 when they played their first season after the AFL–NFL merger until 2001 they were one of the most successful teams in the league, playing in the postseason on 22 occasions over those 32 years and winning 335 and tying two of 528 games for an overall win percentage of 63.6. Early in this period the Dolphins won their only two Super Bowls in consecutive seasons, in the process achieving the only modern-day perfect season in any major professional sports league during only their third year in the NFL. Much of this success was orchestrated by coach Don Shula who joined the team in 1970 and stayed with them until his retirement in 1995. After Shula retired in 1995, the Dolphins remained a force for six years under successors Jimmy Johnson and Dave Wannstedt, but since 2002 and especially since 2004 have fallen on harder times, reaching the postseason only twice in the twelve seasons since, and during the mid-2000s, briefly intensified the Dolphins-Patriots rivalry, when Nick Saban, a former Bill Belichick assistant was hired as the Dolphins head coach in 2005 and when he nearly signed quarterback Drew Brees with the Dolphins the following year. In 2007, if not for their overtime victory over the Baltimore Ravens, would've suffered an imperfect season, a year before the Detroit Lions became the first team to go winless since the NFL expanded to a 16-game schedule. That same season, the Dolphins became the first team in NFL history to win their division following a 1-15 season, and as of 2018, marked the last non-Patriot division title in the AFC East. For complete team history, see History of the Miami Dolphins. Note: Statistics are correct through the end of the 2019 NFL season.

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This is a list of players who have scored five or more goals in a National Hockey League (NHL) game. Scoring five or more goals in a single game is considered a great feat, as it has only been accomplished 61 times, by 45 players, in the history of the league. The first player to do so was Joe Malone, with the Montreal Canadiens, in the first ever NHL game, on December 19, 1917. The most recent player to do so was Patrik Laine, with the Winnipeg Jets, in the 101st NHL season of play, on November 24, 2018. In addition to being first, Joe Malone holds the overall record with five different five-or- more goal games, including the NHL record seven goals in a game, as well as a six-goal game and three five-goal games - all in the first three seasons of the NHL’s existence. He is also the only player to record a five-goal game with more than one team, accomplishing his first three with the Montreal Canadiens and his last two with the Quebec Bulldogs. Overall, seven different players have scored six goals in a game--including brothers Corb and Cy Denneny, with different teams, within a few weeks of each other in 1921. A total of 40 individual players have scored exactly five goals in a game, on one or more occasions. While five-goal games continue to occur from time to time, no player has scored six or more goals since Darryl Sittler scored six in February 1976. Only eight players have multiple five-goal games. Next to Malone achieving the mark five different times, both Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux attained the feat four times, Newsy Lalonde did it three times, while four other players have had two five-goal games. Of the eight players with multiple five-goal games, only two have achieved the multiple in a single season: Malone (3 times in 1917–18, twice in 1919–20) and Sittler (twice in 1975–76). Gretzky (early and late 1981) and Maurice Richard (early and late 1944) had two five-goal games in the same calendar year, across two NHL seasons. Ian Turnbull is the only defenseman who has scored five goals in a game, doing so in February 1977. Mario Lemieux is the only player in history to achieve a five-goal game by scoring in five different ways - in December 1988, he scored an even-strength goal, a power-play goal, a short-handed goal, a penalty shot goal and an empty net goal. Wayne Gretzky’s second five-goal game, in December 1981, also marked his achievement of the NHL’s fastest ever 50 goals in 50 games, when he scored five goals in his 39th game of the season. Of the 61 different five-goal games, five instances were achieved in a playoff game. The Montreal Canadiens have had the highest number of players, 9, and the highest number of occurrences, 14, of a five-goal game. The Toronto St. Patricks/Toronto Maple Leafs are second in both categories, with 7 different players scoring a five-goal game, on 9 different occasions. Legend General Specific Sidney Patrick Crosby (born August 7, 1987) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who serves as captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "Sid the Kid" and dubbed "The Next One", Crosby was selected first overall by the Penguins in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest hockey players of all time. During his two-year major junior career with the Rimouski Océanic, he earned many awards and led his club to the 2005 Memorial Cup final. Océanic and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League retired Crosby's jersey number 87 in 2019. Crosby debuted in the NHL during the 2005–06 season, recording 102 points and finishing as runner-up for the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL Rookie of the Year. By his second season, he led the NHL with 120 points to capture the Art Ross Trophy, becoming the youngest player and the only teenager to win a scoring title in any major North American sports league. That same season, Crosby won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player (MVP) and the Lester B. Pearson Award for most outstanding player as judged by his peers. He started the 2007–08 season with the team's captaincy and subsequently led them to the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals, where they were defeated by the Detroit Red Wings in six games. The Penguins returned to the Finals against Detroit the following year and won in seven games; Crosby became the youngest captain in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup. In 2009–10, he received the Mark Messier Leadership Award and scored 51 goals, winning the Maurice Richard Trophy as the NHL's leading goal scorer. In early 2011, Crosby sustained a concussion that left him sidelined for the rest of the season and for most of the 2011–12 campaign. In 2014, Crosby again won the Hart Memorial Trophy as well as his second Art Ross Trophy (104 points) and his third Ted Lindsay Award. Crosby led Pittsburgh to Stanley Cup championships in 2016 and 2017, becoming the third player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy (playoff MVP) in consecutive years. In 2017, he also captured his second Richard Trophy and was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history. Internationally, Crosby has represented Canada on numerous occasions. He won gold at the 2005 World Junior Championships, and was later named to Team Canada for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Playing against the United States in the gold medal game, he scored the game-winning goal in overtime. Crosby captained Team Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics, winning his second consecutive Olympic gold medal. A year later, he led his country to gold in the World Championship in Prague, thus becoming a member of the Triple Gold Club and the only player in the club to have captained all three winning teams. In 2016, Crosby captained Canada to gold in the World Cup of Hockey and was elected MVP by a unanimous vote. Crosby was born in the Grace Maternity Hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia on August 7, 1987 to Troy and Trina (née Forbes) Crosby. Crosby's jersey number (87) and 2007 contract signing ($8.7 million per year) reflect his birthdate (8/7/87). Crosby grew up in nearby Cole Harbour and has a younger sister named Taylor. His father was a goaltender who played for the Verdun Junior Canadiens in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Troy played in the 1985 Memorial Cup and had been drafted 240th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 1984, but never played at the NHL level. Growing up, Crosby admired Steve Yzerman and, like his father, was a Canadiens fan. Crosby began playing hockey by himself in his basement at the age of two, shooting pucks in a net that had the family dryer behind it, leading to a longstanding misconception that he was actually practising with the dryer; he learned to skate at age three. From age 12 to 15, Crosby attended Astral Drive Junior High School. He was a straight-A student and, according to the vice-principal, "an amazing role model, who was really kind to students in the learning centre and to special needs kids". At age 15, Crosby transferred to Shattuck-Saint Mary's in Faribault, Minnesota, to play with the school's hockey program. While playing for the Rimouski Océanic of the QMJHL, Crosby attended and graduated in 2005 from Harrison Trimble High School, in Moncton, New Brunswick. Early in his minor hockey years, Crosby began attracting media attention for his play and gave his first newspaper interview at age seven. When Crosby was 13, Nova Scotia's Minor Hockey Council refused to allow him to play midget, a level of minor hockey designated for 15- to 17-year-olds. His family sued but lost. The following year, he entered the midget level with the triple-A Dartmouth Subways and went on to score a combined 217 regular season and playoff points, leading Dartmouth to a second-place finish at the 2002 Air Canada Cup. He was named the MVP and Top Scorer awards at the national tournament at the tournament banquet held after the preliminary round and he finished the tournament with 24 points (11 goals and 13 assists) in 7 games. Crosby was called up as a 14-year-old to play two games with the Maritime Junior A Hockey League's Truro Bearcats that season. Crosby had been drafted by the Bearcats in the 2001 MJAHL Draft as a 13-year-old. During his midget season, Crosby appeared on the CBC's Hockey Day in Canada telecast. He has recalled numerous instances in which opposing players intentionally attempted to injure him, as well as constant verbal abuse from parents on and off the ice. Parents taunted and threatened Crosby so harshly, he took to not wearing his jersey between tournament games while he waited to play so that he would not be recognized. Due to this treatment, he elected to play for the American hockey program at Shattuck-Saint Mary's Boarding School, Minnesota for the 2002–03 hockey season. In 57 games with the Sabres, he recorded 72 goals and 162 points, leading the team to a U18 AAA national championship. Crosby was selected first overall in the 2003 Midget Draft by the Rimouski Océanic of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). In his first exhibition game, he scored eight points, leading his teammates to nickname him "Darryl" (in reference to Darryl Sittler's ten-point NHL game in 1976). In his first regular season game in the QMJHL, he scored one goal and added two assists. He was named QMJHL Player of the Week for two consecutive weeks at the start of the season and won the honour four more times as the season progressed. He was named QMJHL Player of the Month and Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Player of the Week three times each. Crosby finished his rookie QMJHL season with 54 goals and 81 assists over 59 games to capture the Jean Béliveau Trophy as the league's leading point-scorer. He was further recognized with the RDS/JVC Trophy (overall rookie of the year) and Michel Brière Memorial Trophy (most valuable player), becoming the first QMJHL player to win all three major awards at once. Rounding out Crosby's accolades for the 2003–04 regular season were QMJHL All-Rookie and First All-Star Team honours, as well as Offensive Rookie, Offensive Player and Personality of the Year Awards. As a team, the Océanic led the Eastern Division with 34 wins and 76 points. After receiving a first-round bye in the 2003 QMJHL playoffs, they defeated the Shawinigan Cataractes in the quarterfinals, then were eliminated by the Moncton Wildcats in the semi-finals. Crosby recorded 16 points (7 goals and 9 assists) over 9 playoff games. During the off-season, the World Hockey Association, a major professional league proposed to rival the NHL, held an Entry Draft on July 17, 2004. Holding the first overall selection, Toronto chose Crosby. The following month, it was reported that Crosby turned down a US$7.5 million contract over three years to play for Hamilton. Crosby told reporters that while "it took a lot to say no to that much money", he "work[ed] hard most of his life to play in the NHL". The contract would have paid him $2.5 million annually and an additional $2 million payout regardless of whether the WHA was realized as a legitimate league or not. However, it was not clarified, how Hamilton could have signed Crosby, as Toronto held his WHA playing rights. Nevertheless, the WHA never materialized. Returning to the Océanic for the 2004–05 season, Crosby continued dominating the league, leading the league with 66 goals, 102 assists and 168 points over 62 games to capture his second consecutive Beliveau Trophy. Joining Crosby on Rimouski's top line were wingers Dany Roussin and Marc-Antoine Pouliot, who finished second and third in league-scoring with 116 and 114 points respectively. In addition to his scoring title, Crosby was once again awarded Most Valuable Player, Offensive Player and Personality of the Year, while repeating as a QMJHL First All-Star. The Océanic finished with the regular season with the best record in the league, registering 45 wins and 98 points, including a league record-setting 28-game undefeated streak. They went on to capture the President's Cup as QMJHL playoff champions, defeating the Halifax Mooseheads in the finals. Crosby led the playoffs with 31 points (14 goals and 17 assists) over 13 games, earning him the Guy Lafleur Trophy as post-season MVP. With their QMJHL championship, the Océanic qualified for the 2005 Memorial Cup, Canada's national major junior tournament. Meeting the London Knights in the final, the Océanic were shut-out 4–0. Despite the loss, Crosby was named to the Tournament All-Star Team and captured the Ed Chynoweth Trophy as the competition's leading scorer with 11 points (6 goals and 5 assists) over 5 games. Knights forward Corey Perry was awarded the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as the MVP. Soon after, he attended the NHL prospect combine in preparation for the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. Rimouski Océanic retired jersey number 87 in Crosby's honor in 2019, and the QMJHL also retired the number for all of its teams. Entering the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, Crosby was listed first overall in the NHL Central Scouting Bureau and International Scouting Services' respective rankings of prospects. He had also won the Mike Bossy Trophy as the QMJHL's best prospect. Crosby went on to be selected first overall in the draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 30, 2005. Due to the labour lockout that suspended the entire 2004–05 NHL season, positioning for the 2005 draft was conducted via a weighted lottery based on each team's playoff appearances and draft lottery victories in the last four years. This lottery system led to the draft being popularly referred to as the "Sidney Crosby Lottery" or the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes". "Sid the Kid", a nickname given to him by the media early in his career, made his NHL debut on October 5, 2005, against the New Jersey Devils, and registered an assist on the team's first goal of the season, scored by Mark Recchi in a 5–1 loss. He scored his first NHL goal in the Penguins' home opener on October 8 against goaltender Hannu Toivonen of the Boston Bruins. Despite having registered two assists for a three-point night, the Penguins were defeated 7–6 in overtime. Crosby began his rookie season playing alongside Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux. Unfortunately, Lemieux was forced to retire due to an irregular heartbeat after having played just 26 games of the season. Near the midway point of the season, Penguins head coach Ed Olczyk was fired and replaced by Michel Therrien on December 15, 2005. The following day, Therrien designated Crosby as an alternate captain for the Penguins. The move drew criticism from some hockey pundits, including Don Cherry, who claimed that Crosby did not have the experience for the position. Cherry said, "An 18-year-old kid says he's going to give us ideas. What, from the Quebec League, he's going to give them ideas? Come on. That's ridiculous." Although hopes were high in Pittsburgh for the club to succeed, largely in part to the beginning of Crosby's NHL career and bolstered by the acquisitions of Sergei Gonchar, Žigmund Pálffy and Mark Recchi, the Penguins still finished with the worst record in the Eastern Conference. Nevertheless, Crosby's first NHL campaign was a personal success as he established franchise records in assists (63) and points (102) for a rookie, both of which had been previously held by Mario Lemieux. He also became the youngest player in NHL history to score 100 points in a single season, and only the seventh rookie ever to hit the benchmark. Overall, Crosby finished sixth in the NHL scoring race and seventh in the NHL in assists. Among Canadian NHL players, he trailed only Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley. Throughout the season, Crosby had battled with Washington Capitals forward and 2004 first-overall pick Alexander Ovechkin for the rookie scoring lead. He would finish second to Ovechkin's 106 points and also lose out to the Capitals forward for the Calder Memorial Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. It marked the start of a rivalry that would help "define the league" for over a decade. Throughout his first season, Crosby was accused by opposing players and coaches of taking dives and complaining to officials, which was typically attributed to his youth. He became the first rookie to earn 100 penalty minutes and 100 points in the same season, which magnified his reputation for complaining to NHL officials. Hockey analyst Kelly Hrudey compared Crosby to Wayne Gretzky, who had a similar reputation as a "whiner" in his youth, and suggested that as Crosby matured, he would mellow out and his reputation would fade. In his second NHL season, Crosby built on his rookie success. On October 28, 2006, Crosby scored his first NHL hat-trick in an 8–2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. His success against the Flyers continued as just over six weeks later, on December 13, he recorded the first six-point game of his career (one goal and five assists). The multi-point effort vaulted Crosby into the NHL scoring lead, which he would retain for the remainder of the season. He finished the 2006–07 with 36 goals and 84 assists in 79 games to become the first teenager to lead the NHL in scoring since Wayne Gretzky in 1980. Being only 19 years old at the time, he became the youngest player in NHL history to win the Art Ross Trophy and the youngest scoring champion in any major North American professional sport. Crosby's second NHL season also saw significant improvements for the Penguins franchise as a whole, as the emergence of Calder Trophy-winner Evgeni Malkin and runner- up Jordan Staal complemented the club's offence. As a result, the Penguins jumped from last place in the Eastern Conference the previous season to fifth for the club's first playoff appearance since 2001. Playing the Ottawa Senators in the opening round, Crosby scored a goal in his Stanley Cup playoff debut in a 6–3 loss. He finished the series with five points in five games as the Penguins were ousted by the eventual Stanley Cup runner-up. Following the Penguins defeat, Crosby was named Pittsburgh's team captain on May 31, 2007, making him (at 19 years, 9 months, and 24 days) the youngest team captain in NHL history. During the season, the Penguins had offered him the captaincy, but he had turned it down. In the press conference naming him the team captain, he explained: "I just thought it wasn't right for me. As a team, we were playing great and you don't want to disrupt things like that. Individually, I was not ready to accept that responsibility quite yet. Going through the playoffs and having that experience has probably given me more confidence. I understand there is going to be a lot more responsibility on my shoulders with this, but it's something I'm ready for, I feel very comfortable with it and I'm just excited to get things going." At the NHL's annual awards show later in June 2007, Crosby completed a rare off-season "hat-trick", winning the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Lester B. Pearson Award in addition to his previously-clinched Art Ross Trophy. He became the youngest player in NHL history to win the Lester B. Pearson, and only the second youngest player ever to win the Hart (after Gretzky). He became the youngest player ever to be named to the NHL's First All-Star Team. With Crosby's initial three-year, entry-level contract set to expire at the end of the following season, the Penguins signed him to a five-year, $43.5 million contract extension on July 10, 2007, ensuring his stay with the Penguins through the 2012–13 season. Midway through the subsequent season, Crosby recorded a Gordie Howe hat-trick on December 20, 2007, in a game against the Boston Bruins. His first assist came 55 seconds into the first period. At 8:26 of the same period, Crosby scored to give the Penguins a 2–0 lead. Then, five minutes and nine seconds into the second frame, Crosby fought ex-Penguin defenceman Andrew Ference to complete the hat-trick. This was Crosby's first NHL fight. In NHL's first Winter Classic (with a record crowd of 71,217 fans in attendance), Crosby scored the shootout winner in heavy snowfall to defeat the Buffalo Sabres. However, two weeks later, on January 18, 2008, Crosby suffered a high ankle sprain crashing leg-first into the boards in a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. As a result, he missed the 2008 All-Star Game, to which he was named a starter. After missing 21 games, he returned on March 4 against the Lightning and earned an assist. However, two games after his return, he felt his ankle was not up to shape and decided that he needed more time for it to heal. Crosby consequently sat out of the Penguins' next seven games and returned on March 27, 2008, to help the Penguins defeat the New York Islanders 3–1. Despite his injury-shortened campaign, Crosby still managed 72 points in just 53 games. Crosby's absence from the Penguins' line-up served as a stepping stone for teammate Evgeni Malkin, who, now in his second season, was developing into a superstar in his own right. Picking up the offensive slack, Malkin finished second in league scoring to Alexander Ovechkin and was also a Hart Memorial Trophy nominee as MVP honours also went to Ovechkin. In addition to Crosby's return to the line- up late in the regular season, the Penguins acquired star winger Marián Hossa from the Atlanta Thrashers at the trade deadline, placing the club in a strong position to make a deep playoff run. Pittsburgh finished the regular season as Atlantic Division champions and just two points shy of the first-seeded Montreal Canadiens. In a rematch of the previous year's opening round, the Penguins began the 2008 playoffs facing the Ottawa Senators, whom they quickly swept in four games. After then defeating the New York Rangers and archrival Philadelphia Flyers, each in five games, the Penguins reached the final round for the first time since 1992, to face the Detroit Red Wings. After being shut-out as a team for the first two games of the series, Crosby scored the first two goals of game three as the series shifted to Pittsburgh to fuel a 3–2 win. The Penguins lost the next game and despite staving off defeat in game five, they were overcome by the Red Wings in six games. Crosby finished the playoffs with 27 points (6 goals and 21 assists in 20 games), tying Conn Smythe-winner Henrik Zetterberg (13 goals and 14 assists in 22 games) for the playoff scoring lead. Early in the following season, on October 18, 2008, Crosby scored one goal and three assists to surpass benchmarks of 100 goals, 200 assists, and 300 points for his career. On the play in which Crosby scored, teammate Evgeni Malkin assisted to record his own 200th point. As a result, Crosby had a team trainer cut the puck in half so both players could commemorate the achievement. Minor injury troubles kept Crosby from five games early in the season as he was listed day-to-day, but he was, for the most part, able to bounce back from the previous injury-riddled season and stay healthy. He recorded 33 goals and 70 assists to finish third in league scoring, as Evgeni Malkin captured his first career Art Ross Trophy. Entering the 2009 playoffs as the defending Prince of Wales Trophy winners, the Penguins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the opening round before meeting the Washington Capitals for a highly publicized second-round matchup. The series was heavily followed as it pitted Ovechkin of the Capitals against both Crosby and Malkin, who together finished as the league's top three scorers that season. In the second game, Crosby and Ovechkin recorded matching three- goal efforts for their first career playoff hat tricks in a 4–3 Capitals victory. Despite being down 2–0 in the series, Crosby and the Penguins won the next three games and eventually defeated the Capitals in a seventh and deciding game, in which Crosby added another two goals. Following a sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final, Crosby opted against recent NHL tradition and picked up the Prince of Wales Trophy, which he had left untouched the previous year. In explanation of the change of heart, Crosby said, "We didn't touch the trophy last year, and obviously we didn't have the result we wanted ... Although we haven't accomplished exactly what we want ... we can still enjoy it." The Penguins met the Detroit Red Wings for the second straight year in the Finals, and this time Crosby won his first Stanley Cup title in seven games. At 21 years, 10 months, and 5 days, Crosby became the youngest NHL captain to win the Stanley Cup since 1895. (The youngest captain to lead his team to the Stanley Cup in the history of the trophy is Mike Grant of the 1895 Montreal Victorias, who was 21 years and 2 months at the time.) In the deciding Game 7, Crosby was forced to watch all but 32 seconds of the third period from the bench after suffering a knee injury less than halfway through the second period due to a hit from Johan Franzén. Following the game, Crosby was criticized by Detroit forward Kris Draper for neglecting to shake hands with some of Detroit's players, most notably captain Nicklas Lidström. An irate Draper was quoted as saying, "Nick was waiting and waiting, and Crosby didn't come over to shake his hand. That's ridiculous, especially as their captain." Crosby replied afterward, saying, "I just won the Stanley Cup. I think I have the right to celebrate with my teammates. I know it's not easy waiting around... I understand if they don't feel like waiting around. But you know what? It's the easiest thing to do in the world, to shake hands after you win. I had no intentions of trying to skip guys and not shake their hands. I think that was a pretty unreasonable comment." In the 2009–10 NHL season, Crosby tied Tampa Bay Lightning centre Steven Stamkos for the lead in goals scored, with 51 goals, earning the Rocket Richard Trophy. He also garnered 58 assists for a total of 109 points, enough to tie with Alexander Ovechkin for second in league points, trailing only the Vancouver Canucks' Henrik Sedin's 112. Crosby was also named a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. Crosby won the Mark Messier Leadership Award, getting recognized as a "superior leader within the sport, setting a positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to the community". This was the second time he had received this honour, the other being in January 2007, during the award's first year when it was presented monthly. Crosby's Penguins were defeated in the second round of the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs, losing to the Montreal Canadiens in seven games. Crosby had 19 points in 13 games in the playoffs, though through seven games against the Canadiens, he had only one goal and four assists. Game 7 was also the last game to be played at Mellon Arena, the Penguins' home rink since the start of the franchise. On July 27, 2010, Crosby joined his mentor Mario Lemieux to be the first to skate on the new ice at the Consol Energy Center. The two skated for about five minutes before being joined on the ice by a group of young hockey fans all wearing Lemieux's 66 or Crosby's 87 jerseys. In the 2010–11 season, Crosby had a 25-game point streak, which began November 5, 2010 against the Anaheim Ducks and ended December 28, 2010 against the New York Islanders. During this streak, he had 27 goals (including three hat-tricks) and 24 assists for 51 points. This streak was tied for 11th-longest point streak in NHL history, and he was named First Star of the Month in both November and December. On January 3, 2011, Crosby was selected as a 2011 All-Star, along with teammates Evgeni Malkin, Marc-André Fleury and Kris Letang. However, neither Crosby nor Malkin were available to play in the All-Star Game due to injuries, and rookie Jeff Skinner (along with Paul Stastny) were named as replacements. In consecutive games – the 2011 NHL Winter Classic on January 1, 2011, against the Washington Capitals and then January 5 against the Tampa Bay Lightning – Crosby suffered hits to his head from Dave Steckel and Victor Hedman respectively. After experiencing several concussion symptoms, Crosby did not return for the rest of the regular season, and he missed the 2011 playoffs. The Penguins were further crippled when Evgeni Malkin suffered a torn ACL and MCL, taking him out for the rest of the season and leaving the Penguins without their two highest-scoring players. Despite Crosby's injury and subsequent absence for the final 41 games of the season, he finished as the Penguins' leading scorer. His 66 points in 41 games were 16 points ahead of the second-highest team scorer, defenceman Kris Letang. In so doing, Crosby set an NHL record for fewest games played by an NHL team's points leader. Crosby missed the first 20 games of the 2011–12 season due to the lingering effects of his concussion. He returned on November 21, 2011 in a game against the New York Islanders, scoring two goals and two assists in a 5–0 shutout for the Penguins. However, after playing another seven games – scoring a total of 12 points in 8 games – Crosby's concussion- like symptoms returned in December 2011, possibly following an elbow hit by David Krejčí in his eighth game of the season. Despite passing a successful ImPACT test, Crosby decided not to return on the ice until he felt perfectly fine, stating that he also must "listen to [his] body". Crosby returned to action on March 15, 2012, scoring an assist in a 5–2 win against the New York Rangers. Despite only playing 22 games, Crosby recorded 29 assists to go with 8 goals for 37 points, including his 600th career point. He later credited neurologists at UPMC and chiropractic neurologist Ted Carrick with helping him return to hockey. Crosby's return in advance of the playoffs resulted in many experts predicting that the Penguins would win their second Stanley Cup title in four years, and though the Penguins were accordingly picked to oust the Philadelphia Flyers in their first round series, it was acknowledged that it would be a tough series for both teams. The Flyers shocked the Penguins by winning the first three consecutive games, the third of which saw the teams combine for 158 penalty minutes. After the 8–4 loss in Game 3, Crosby was widely criticized for his conduct during the game, and for his testy post-game interview. When asked about an incident where Flyer forward Jakub Voráček had dropped his glove and Crosby swatted it away with his stick before Voráček could pick it up, Crosby replied, saying, "I don't like any guy on their team there, so his glove was near me, went to pick it up, and I pushed it, so yeah, that's... [...] I don't like them. Because I don't like them. I don't like... I don't like any guy on their team." When the interviewer suggested that he could have skated away, Crosby replied, "Skate away? Yeah, well, I didn't that time." The Penguins went on to win the next two games, but ultimately lost the series in Game 6. Crosby would finish with three goals and five assists in the six games. On June 28, 2012, the Penguins announced that Crosby had agreed to a 12-year, $104.4 million contract extension set to keep Crosby in Pittsburgh through to the end of the 2024–25 NHL season. The start of the 2012–13 was postponed until January 2013 due to the owners locking out the players as negotiations took place to solidify a new collective agreement for the players. During this time, Crosby was a regular attendee of meetings taking place between National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) representatives and NHL owners. The lock-out began on September 15, 2012, and ended January 6, 2013, with the NHL regular season beginning on January 19. During the 119-day lock-out, Crosby was often questioned about his future plans should the lockout persist, and said on more than one occasion that he was entertaining contract offers from various teams in European leagues (where many NHL players went so that they could continue playing in a professional capacity while waiting for the lock-out to end or for the NHL season to be officially cancelled). Crosby continued to practice and participated with other NHL players who had not gone overseas in several exhibition games open to the public. With the season finally underway in late- January, Crosby set the pace for scoring, totalling 31 points (9 goals and 22 assists) through the first 21 games. He remained hot through March, scoring another 25 points (6 goals and 19 assists) in 15 games as the Penguins went unbeaten over this stretch. However, his regular season came to an abrupt end on March 30 in a home game against the New York Islanders. Crosby's teammate Brooks Orpik unleashed a slapshot which caught Crosby in the mouth, causing the centreman to lose several teeth. Crosby was down on the ice for several minutes before the medical staff was able to help him to the dressing room with Crosby holding a towel over his face. Initially the prognosis was not severe, but it was discovered a short while later that Crosby had broken his jaw and would require several rounds of reconstructive dental surgery. He missed the final 12 games of the regular season and finished fourth in the scoring race, losing the title to Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis by four points. Crosby returned to the ice May 5 for the Penguins' second game against their first-round playoff opponents, the New York Islanders, ironically, the team Pittsburgh had been playing when Crosby was injured. Despite two goals from Crosby, Pittsburgh lost the game 3–2, tying the series at one game a piece. The Penguins would ultimately prevail 4–2 in the series over the Isles with Crosby scoring nine points (three goals and six assists) in the five games in which he played. Crosby and the Penguins moved on to face the Ottawa Senators in the second round, with Crosby scoring a hat-trick in Game 2 of the series. Pittsburgh quickly defeated Ottawa four games to one in the series with a still-hot Crosby finishing the series with four goals and two assists. The Eastern Conference Finals came down to what many felt were the two best teams in the conference: Pittsburgh and Boston. Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask put on an outstanding performance, shutting-down Pittsburgh's potent offence with the help of a stifling defensive effort from his teammates. The Penguins were held to just two goals in the series, with Rask stopping 134 of 136 shots on goal (.985%). Crosby, who had been strong for the Penguins in the regular season and through the first two rounds of the playoffs was held off the score sheet entirely, finishing the series with no goals and no assists on 13 shots. The Bruins swept the Penguins in four-straight games, ending Crosby's bid for a second Stanley Cup championship. In the off-season, Crosby was awarded his second Ted Lindsay Award and finished as runner-up to the Hart Memorial Trophy and Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. Crosby put together a healthy and productive campaign in 2013–14, playing 80 games for the first time since the 2009–10 season. Crosby finished the season with 36 goals and a league-leading 68 assists, marking the first time in his career that he led the league in assists. He also finished with a league-high 104 points, winning the Art Ross Trophy for the second time in his career. He also went on to win the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award. Finishing first overall in the Metropolitan Division, the Penguins were matched-up with a new division rival, the Columbus Blue Jackets, in the first round of the 2014 playoffs. Despite a very back-and-forth series and not a single goal by Crosby, the Penguins defeated the Jackets in six games to advance to a second-round matchup with the New York Rangers. Going into their second-round series with the Rangers, Crosby looked to end a long playoff goal drought, which dated back to the 2013 Conference Finals against the Boston Bruins. After dropping Game 1 at home, Crosby broke his goal drought in Game 2 as the Pens tied the series at 1–1 heading back to Madison Square Garden. The Penguins would capitalize on their Game 2 win, taking next two games and eliminating the Rangers home ice advantage. However, the Rangers would quickly rebound, winning Game 5, 6 and 7, sending the Penguins home without a prize for the fifth straight season. The team's collapse prompted Penguins ownership to fire general manager Ray Shero, replacing him with Jim Rutherford, the former general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes. Rutherford's first action as GM was to fire Dan Bylsma as head coach, and on June 25, he announced that Mike Johnston was hired as new head coach. Crosby finished the 2014–15 season with the highest point-per-game average and a total of 84 points, trailing only John Tavares (86 points) and Art Ross winner Jamie Benn (87 points). On November 26, 2014, Crosby scored his 800th career point, becoming the sixth-fastest player in NHL history to reach that milestone. On January 4, 2015, in a game against Philadelphia, Crosby scored his 300th career NHL goal. Despite a strong start to the season, the injury-plagued Penguins entered the playoffs as the Eastern Conference's second wild card. Facing the New York Rangers, Crosby helped even the series with two goals in Game 2. Despite this, the Penguins were defeated in five games and was eliminated in the first round for the first time since the 2012 playoffs. Starting the 2015–16 season, the Penguins had gone through a major overhaul of their roster, adding a number of offensive players such as right winger Phil Kessel. Despite a line-up laced with some of the world's finest offensive talents, Crosby struggled to score points, as he and the team had for much of the Johnston era. By the time Johnston was fired on December 12, 2015, after posting a 15–10–3 record through 28 games, some media outlets began speculating that Crosby had aged out of his prime scoring years. On December 16, The Washington Post wrote, "Sidney Crosby has widely been regarded as the NHL's best player since he burst on the scene as a rookie in 2005 ... But Crosby just hasn't been himself this season, scoring just six goals in 29 games and sitting with a plus/minus of minus-seven. All players go through slumps, but it is clear that the Crosby we knew has been on the decline for some time." His slow start was capped off by not being selected as a starter for the 2016 NHL All-Star Game. However, under new head coach Mike Sullivan, the 28-year-old turned his season around, outscoring all NHL players from December 12 through the end of the season. On February 2, Crosby scored three- straight goals for his first natural hat-trick in more than five years. Four days later, Crosby scored his 900th, 901st and 902nd career NHL points to fuel a 3–2 overtime comeback victory over the Florida Panthers. He tallied at least 1 point in 15 of Pittsburgh's 16 games in March, including six multi-point efforts, and was subsequently named the NHL's First Star of the Month. On April 2, Crosby recorded his 600th NHL assist as the Penguins clinched their berth in the 2016 playoffs. Six days later, he scored in overtime against Washington Capitals to secure home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Crosby finished the season with 36 goals and 85 points in 80 games, including a career-high nine game-winning goals, and was voted team MVP for the sixth time in his career. His two-way game also received league-wide praise, with Hockey Hall of Fame coach Scotty Bowman stating that Crosby would be a good candidate for the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the league's best defensive forward. Crosby's comeback also impressed Wayne Gretzky, who said, "He had a tough start, but the sign of an elite athlete is a guy that battles through it. He didn't point any fingers, he just battled through it, and I don't think there is any question the last 40 or so games, he made a case for the MVP. He was that good. He went to another level." On May 7, Crosby was named a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy. He finished as the first runner-up with 800 points and 11 first-place votes. After losing to New York in the past two playoffs, the Penguins eliminated the Rangers in the first round, winning four games to one, after losing to the Rangers by the same series margin in the first round the previous year. Crosby led the team in scoring with three goals and eight points. The Penguins then eliminated the Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington Capitals in six games, without much offensive production from either Crosby (two assists) or Malkin (one goal and one assist). Advancing to their first Conference Final since 2013, Crosby scored the overtime winner against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 2. The goal was scored 40 seconds into overtime for a 3–2 win, the fastest overtime goal in Penguins' playoff history, and the first of his career in the playoffs. In the following game, he scored the game-winning goal in a 4–2 victory. After dropping the next two games, Crosby scored his third game-winning goal of the series in Game 6, forcing a final game in Pittsburgh. Defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 2–1 in Game 7, Crosby helped his team win the Eastern Conference championship, advancing to the Stanley Cup Final against the San Jose Sharks. In the series, the Penguins defeated the Sharks in six games to earn Crosby his second Stanley Cup title. He became the ninth player to win the Stanley Cup twice as well as two Olympic gold medals. Finishing the playoffs with 19 points (6 goals and 13 assists), including the primary helper on the Cup- winning goal scored by Kris Letang, Crosby was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. Crosby missed the first six games of the 2016–17 season after being diagnosed with a concussion just a few days before the season opener against the Washington Capitals. Upon his return, he scored 30 goals in his first 45 games, and on February 16, 2017, he registered an assist on a Chris Kunitz goal against the Winnipeg Jets to reach 1,000 NHL points, doing so in just his 757th game to become the 12th-fastest (and 11th-youngest) player to reach that milestone. He also participated in his first NHL All-Star Game since 2007, winning the shooting accuracy segment of the Skills Competition. He was named team MVP and finished the season as the runner up for the Art Ross Trophy with 44 goals and 89 points in 75 games. It marked the eighth time he finished a season in the top-three in NHL scoring, tying Mario Lemieux, Stan Mikita and Phil Esposito for the third-most instances in history behind only Wayne Gretzky (15 times) and Gordie Howe (12 times). With his 44 goals, Crosby captured the Rocket Richard Trophy for the second time in his career. Crosby was also named a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. Entering the 2017 playoffs as the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Penguins defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets in five games before meeting the Washington Capitals in the second round. After winning the first two games on the road, Crosby sustained a concussion after suffering an injury from a slash and cross-check from Alexander Ovechkin and Matt Niskanen in Game 3. He missed Game 4 but returned to practice the next day and played in Game 5. The Penguins would eventually eliminate the Capitals in Game 7, with Crosby assisting on the series-winning goal. The Penguins then defeated the Ottawa Senators in a gruelling seven-game series to secure their second consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Crosby had the primary assist on the series-clinching goal, scored by Chris Kunitz in double overtime. Facing the Nashville Predators in the Finals, Pittsburgh jumped out to a two-game lead, despite being outplayed for long stretches in both games. The Predators responded by tying up the series, winning Game 3 and 4 at home. In Game 5, the Penguins' captain delivered a dominant performance, adding three assists in a 6–0 win to pass Lemieux for most Stanley Cup Final points (20) in franchise history. After defeating the Predators 2-0 in Game 6, the Penguins became the first team to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since the 1997–98 Detroit Red Wings, and the first to do so in the salary cap era. Crosby won his second consecutive Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs, only the third player to do so after Bernie Parent (1974, 1975) and Mario Lemieux (1991, 1992). He finished second in scoring behind Evgeni Malkin with 27 points (8 goals and 19 assists) in 24 games. In the 2017–18 season, Crosby appeared in all 82 of Pittsburgh's regular season games for the first time in his career, finishing with 29 goals and 60 assists for 89 points. On February 12, 2018, he scored his 400th NHL goal, becoming the 95th player to reach the milestone. On March 21, he recorded his 700th career NHL assist. The Penguins began their 2018 playoff campaign against the Philadelphia Flyers. In Game 1 of the Battle of Pennsylvania, Crosby recorded a natural hat-trick in a 7–0 win. On April 18, in Game 4, Crosby passed Mario Lemieux as the Penguins' all-time playoff points leader with 173. The Penguins ultimately defeated the Flyers in six games, with Crosby scoring 6 goals and 13 points. After the series, retired Hockey Hall of Fame centre Bryan Trottier said of Crosby, "Sid has a wonderful gift to maintain his composure and not get rattled. You like the emotion he shows, too. I think he fires his team up, and that's why he's wearing the 'C' [for captain]." The Penguins were eventually eliminated in Game 6 of the second round by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals, ending Penguins's bid for a three-peat. Crosby finished with 21 points (9 goals and 12 assists) in 12 games, pushing his career playoff total to 185, tied with Steve Yzerman for tenth-most all-time. On January 3, 2019, Crosby was selected to play in the NHL All-Star Game for the eighth time in his career. He scored four goals and four assists, helping the Metropolitan Division to victory; his efforts won him his first All-Star MVP award, making him the sixth in NHL history to have won that award after having won the Conn Smythe Trophy and Hart Memorial Trophy. During the 2018–19 season, Crosby passed Mario Lemieux to become the Penguins' all-time leader in games played (916), and moved into second place on the Pens' all-time scoring list with his 440th career goal in a 5–1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on March 3, 2019. Two days later, he became the 48th player in NHL history to score at least 1,200 career points. On April 5, the Penguins clinched a playoff berth for the 13th consecutive season under Crosby's captaincy. He finished the season with 100 points (35 goals and 65 assists), the first time he has reached the 100-point mark since scoring 104 points in 2013–14. Crosby finished 4th in voting for the Selke Trophy and became a Hart Trophy finalist for the seventh time in his career. He was also elected team-MVP. Crosby debuted internationally for Canada at the 2003 U-18 Junior World Cup in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. He was the youngest player on the under-18 team, having turned 16 shortly before the beginning of the tournament. After seven consecutive gold medals at the tournament, Team Canada lost in the bronze medal game to the Czech Republic 8–2. He scored four goals and six points over five tournament games. Crosby went on to compete in two World Junior Championships with Team Canada's under-20 team. When he was named to the team in December 2003, he became the fifth 16-year-old to represent Canada at the tournament, following Jay Bouwmeester, Jason Spezza, Eric Lindros and Wayne Gretzky. Competing in the 2004 World Junior Championships in Helsinki, he then became the youngest player to score a goal in the history of the tournament at 16 years, 4 months, and 21 days when he scored against Switzerland in a 7–2 win. This record would last until the 2012 World Juniors, when Aleksander Barkov of Finland scored a goal aged 16 years, 4 months. Crosby finished the tournament with two goals and three assists in six games, helping Canada to a silver medal finish. The following year, he returned for Canada at the 2005 World Junior Championships in Grand Forks, North Dakota. He improved to six goals and three assists as Canada earned gold. Crosby stated the following year that his most memorable hockey moment was winning his World Junior gold medal. After completing his rookie season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Crosby competed in the 2006 IIHF World Championship as an alternate captain for Canada. Scoring a tournament-best eight goals and eight assists in nine games, he became the youngest player ever to win a World Championship scoring title. Despite his performance, Canada failed to medal, being shut-out by Finland 5–0 in the bronze medal game. Crosby was named the tournament's top forward and to the competition's all-star team. After omitted from Canada's Olympic team in 2006, Crosby was named to the Canadian roster on December 30, 2009, as an alternate captain for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. He scored the game-winning shootout goal for Canada in the second game of the preliminary round against Switzerland. After going pointless in the quarter- and semi- final against Russia and Slovakia respectively, Crosby scored the winning goal 7 minutes and 40 seconds into overtime against the United States in the gold medal game. The goal has later become known as the "Golden Goal" due to it being scored in the gold medal game. It is also regarded by some as "Canada's most iconic sports moment". Following the Penguins' second-round elimination in the 2010 playoffs, Crosby declined an invitation to join Canada midway through the 2010 IIHF World Championship in Germany. Crosby was selected to represent Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics and was later named team captain. Canada won gold, with Crosby contributing one goal and two assists in six games. He scored his only goal in the final against Sweden, further establishing his reputation as "a player who rises up in big games". In 2015, Crosby captained Canada to its first World Championship title since 2007, with the team winning all 10 games and scoring 66 goals. Crosby, scoring four goals and seven assists in nine games, became the 26th member of the Triple Gold Club. He is the first member of the club to captain all three championship teams, and the first member to be a first overall NHL draft pick. In 2016, Hockey Canada named Crosby captain for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto. Crosby, who led the tournament in scoring with ten points, helped Team Canada win the championship, and was named the Most Valuable Player. He joined Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky as the only players to win the Conn Smythe, Hart Memorial Trophy and World Cup MVP. Team Canada head coach Mike Babcock described Crosby as a serial winner, saying, "He's that high-end competitor. He's a good leader because he tries to do it right all the time. He demands a lot out of himself. In doing so, he demands a lot out of his teammates." As captain and first line centre for Canada, Crosby played with different line mates in almost every game as the coaching staff struggled to find players capable of keeping pace with the superstar centre at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, and again at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. Crosby's fellow countryman and Olympic teammate, Rick Nash, was questioned by the media about this, at one point saying, "I think he's a tough guy to keep up with. He's so fast. The way he thinks about the game seems like it's far beyond everyone else's process. It's the same thing in the last Olympics, keep shuffling around until you found something that fit." Team Canada's assistant coach in Vancouver, Ken Hitchcock, recalled, "Sid thinks at a level, when the other team has the puck, that's above everyone else in the league [NHL]. His anticipation when the other team has the puck is so high, he knows where it's going ahead of time. He can pick off passes, make you make errors. And then he also knows where people are located on the ice, so he can turn that turnover into a scoring chance." Other professional NHL players have particularly noted Crosby for his backhand shot. For example, in his column for The Players' Tribune, Jonathan Quick of Los Angeles Kings praised Crosby for having "the best backhand shot" in the NHL. "His blade is almost completely flat, which combined with his ridiculous forearm strength gives him the ability to go forehand to your five hole instantly or turn it over to the backhand and roof it (a lot of guys can't do this with a flat blade)." Noted for his on-ice vision, passing ability, leadership, work ethic and complete overall game, Crosby is considered one of the greatest players of all time. Wayne Gretzky said of Crosby, "He's proven over and over that he's the best player in the game today. And it seems like the more important the game, the more impact that he makes on a game." Gordie Howe was also impressed by Crosby, "I met him and I've seen him play. Unless you put two guys on him, he'll kill you in a game." In 2016, Mario Lemieux praised his protégé for his ability to play both sides of the puck: "I think he's more of a complete player. Defensively, I think he's improved a lot over the last couple of years." In an article for The Washington Post, other players, teammates and coaches highlighted his work ethic and strive for greatness as a major factor to Crosby's lasting success. "While his natural ability – powerful skating, pistol-quick hands, uncommon feel – made him a phenom, his creative, distinct capacity for work has enabled him to stay atop the NHL." Current Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan described Crosby as "best 200-foot player in the game" and the "heartbeat" of the Penguins. On January 27, 2017, in a ceremony during the All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, Crosby was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history. In that same year, Fox Sports ranked Crosby 15th on their "21 greatest athletes of the 21st century (so far)" list, and TSN named him the eighth-best NHL player of all-time. In a survey conducted by Sportsnet in June 2017, Crosby was voted by Canadians to be the greatest athlete of the 21st century. A poll conducted by the NHLPA in 2018 of more than 500 players resulted in Crosby being voted the "most difficult to play against, best role model, best team player, the player you'd want to win one game, and the player who would be a great coach upon retirement". In 2018, Crosby was chosen as Nova Scotia's "Best athlete ever" by the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame. In 2019, an anonymous survey conducted by The Athletic showed that Crosby was regarded the best all-around NHL player by his peers. Considered a generational talent and a franchise player, drafting Crosby changed the fortunes of a struggling Pittsburgh Penguins. It helped secure funding for a new arena and ended speculation that the franchise would relocate to another city. In 2005–06, his presence helped Pittsburgh's attendance increase by 33%. Crosby's arrival also aided in reinvigorating and expanding the roots of hockey in the Pittsburgh area. Penguins CEO and president David Morehouse said, "We were in last place, we were last in revenues, we were last in attendance, our TV ratings were minimal and we were in the oldest building in the NHL... We were able to draw attention to us as a franchise because of the drafting of Sidney Crosby and the subsequent success we had." Crosby's number 87 Pittsburgh Penguins jersey was the top seller on the NHL's website from September 2005 to February 2008. It has continued to be among the top-selling jerseys since his rookie season. In January 2005, an Air Canada baggage handler in Montreal stole Crosby's red Canada jersey from the World Junior Hockey Championship. It was recovered later in a mailbox. His white jersey from the tournament was temporarily delisted from an auction while the red one was missing. It eventually sold for $22,100, which went to youth hockey charities and 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake relief. Less than a year later, one of Crosby's game-worn sweaters disappeared. The jersey he wore in his first NHL game, played against the New Jersey Devils, disappeared from his father's luggage during a flight from Pittsburgh to Buffalo. The jersey was later found at the Pittsburgh International Airport between a piece of equipment and a stairwell. Crosby's jersey from his third NHL game was the highest-selling NHL jersey in an auction for Hurricane Katrina relief – it sold for $21,010. During an online auction held by the NHL and the NHL Players Association to benefit Hockey Fights Cancer, Crosby's game-worn jersey from the first period of the 2007 All-Star Game earned the most money. Crosby's sold for $47,520, more than eight times the next highest price—$5,681 for the jersey worn by Brendan Shanahan of the New York Rangers. Following Crosby's Olympic gold medal victory with Canada in 2010, it was announced that his stick and glove were missing. It was initially suspected that they might have been stolen; Reebok Canada offered a reward of CAD$10,000 for their return, "no questions asked". On March 10, the items were found: Crosby's stick had been placed in a shipment bound for the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame in Saint Petersburg, Russia, (the shipment was intercepted in Toronto) and his glove was found in a hockey bag belonging to Olympic teammate and Boston Bruins' centre Patrice Bergeron, whose stall was beside Crosby's in the locker room. Crosby rarely discusses his personal life and avoids social media. Andy O'Brien, Crosby's fitness trainer for over 15 years, has said: "He [Crosby] wants to be one of the guys and doesn't really seek to separate himself or get special treatment in any way... He takes a lot of enjoyment in the regular, simple things in life and having a normal, ordinary routine". Greg Powers described Crosby as essentially the brother of Lemieux's son Austin, as he lived with Lemieux's family in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, from 2005 until 2010. In the spring of 2010, Crosby purchased his own home in the same area. In June 2006, he bought his first house on Grand Lake in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On May 29, 2010, it was announced that Crosby would sign the richest endorsement contract in NHL history with Reebok, expected to pay Crosby $1.4 million per year for five to seven years. In 2015, he signed a six-year endorsement contract with Adidas. Crosby also has endorsement deals with Bell, Tim Hortons and Gatorade. Regarded as one of Canada's "legendary goal-scorers and storied leaders", Crosby was featured in Canada Post's NHL Great Canadian Forwards stamp collection, alongside Phil Esposito, Guy Lafleur, Darryl Sittler, Mark Messier and Steve Yzerman. In 2016, he won an Emmy Award for his role in There's No Place Like Home With Sidney Crosby. Crosby has a younger sister named Taylor who is a hockey goaltender. Like her brother, she went to high school at Shattuck-Saint Mary's in Faribault, Minnesota, to play with the school's hockey program. In 2014, Taylor joined the Northeastern Huskies women's ice hockey team as a freshman at Northeastern University in Boston. In 2015, she transferred to Minnesota’s St. Cloud State University and played with the St. Cloud State Huskies women's ice hockey team through to graduation at the end of the 2017–18 school year. Crosby continues to be active in the community in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia. He created the Sidney Crosby Foundation in 2009, an organization committed to providing support to charities benefiting children. In 2015, he launched an inaugural Hockey School in Cole Harbour. His "Little Penguins Program" has provided free equipment and lessons to more than ten thousand local youngsters in Pittsburgh. Youngest player to win a World Championship scoring title Assists (63) and points (102) in a season by a rookie, Most regular-season OT goals (13), Most games played, Most playoff points, Most playoff assists, Most playoff games, Most points in the Stanley Cup Finals (20), Most playoff multi-point games First rookie to record 100 points and 100 penalty minutes in a season, Youngest player to record 100 points in a season (18 years, 253 days), Youngest player to record 200 career points (19 years and 207 days), Youngest player to record 2 consecutive 100-point seasons (19 years, 215 days)., Youngest player voted to the starting line-up in an All-Star Game, Youngest Art Ross Trophy and Lester B. Pearson Award winner, Youngest player to be named to the First All-Star Team, Youngest player to lead NHL playoffs in scoring (20 years, 9 months, and 28 days), Youngest NHL captain to win Stanley Cup (21 years, 10 months, and 5 days), 6th player in NHL history to win multiple Conn Smythe Trophies., Fewest games played by an NHL team's leading scorer (his 66 points in 41 games were the most of any player on the 2010–11 Penguins squad) List of Pittsburgh Penguins players, List of NHL players with 50 goal seasons, List of NHL players with 100-point seasons, List of NHL players with 1,000 points Jaromír Jágr (; born 15 February 1972) is a Czech professional ice hockey right winger for HC Kladno of the Czech Extraliga (ELH). He has previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Dallas Stars, Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Florida Panthers and Calgary Flames, serving as captain of the Penguins and the Rangers. After leaving the Rangers in 2008, he played three seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) with Avangard Omsk. He returned to the NHL in 2011 with the Flyers and remained in the league for seven more years before being assigned by the Flames in 2018 to HC Kladno, which he owns. Jágr has the second-most points in NHL history, after Wayne Gretzky. He is the most productive European player who has ever played in the NHL and is considered one of the greatest professional hockey players of all time. In 1990, at age 18, he was the youngest player in the NHL. Until his transfer, at age 45, he was the oldest player in the NHL, and is the oldest player to record a hat-trick. In 2017, Jágr was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history. Jágr was the fifth overall selection in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. He won consecutive Stanley Cups in the 1991 and 1992 seasons with the Penguins. Individually, he has won the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL scoring champion five times (four times in a row), the Lester B. Pearson Award for the NHL's outstanding player as voted by the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) three times and the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player once, while finishing second four times. Jágr is a member of the Triple Gold Club, individuals who have played for teams that have won the Stanley Cup (1991, 1992), the Ice Hockey World Championships (2005, 2010) and the Olympic gold medal in ice hockey (1998). Jágr is one of only two Czech players (the other being Jiří Šlégr) in the Club, achieving this feat in 2005. Jágr was the Czech Republic's flag bearer at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Jágr is also one of only three players from 1981 to 2001 to win the Art Ross Trophy as the leading point-scorer during the regular season; the others are Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. Jágr has won the award more times than any other non-Canadian player. He is a member of the Czech Ice Hockey Hall of Fame. Jágr began skating at age three, and he immediately showed exceptional abilities. At age 15, he was playing at the highest level of competition in Czechoslovakia for HC Kladno, and when he was 17, he became the youngest member of the Czechoslovakia national team. As a youth in his native country, he kept a photograph of American president Ronald Reagan in his school gradebook, in detest of the policies of the Soviet Union. Jágr was the first Czechoslovak player to be drafted by the NHL without first having to defect to the West; his selection in the NHL draft came as the Iron Curtain was falling. Because of this, after Jágr was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins with the fifth overall pick in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, he was able to immediately relocate to North America from Czechoslovakia. When he attended the draft, in Vancouver, he was the first Czechoslovak player present at the NHL draft with his government's blessings. Jágr was a supporting player with the powerhouse Penguins that won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992. He was one of the youngest players in NHL history, at age 20, to score a goal in the Stanley Cup Finals. Before he had a clear grasp of the English language, Jágr could be heard reading the daily weather forecast on Pittsburgh radio station WDVE in his broken, thickly-accented English. He and teammate (and fellow countryman) Jiří Hrdina were promoted as the "Czechmates", a play on the term "checkmate" from chess. He would also play Scrabble in an attempt to increase his English vocabulary. Some Penguins fans realized that the letters in his first name could be scrambled to form the anagram "Mario Jr.", a reference to teammate Mario Lemieux. In the 1994–95 season, Jágr won his first Art Ross Trophy after finishing the regular season with the most points in the NHL; he tied Eric Lindros with 70 points but won based on his 32 goals to Lindros' 29. The next year, Jágr set a record for most points, 149, by a European-born player. Both his 62 goals and 87 assists from that season still stand as career-highs. His 1995–96 totals for assists and points stand as the records for right-wingers in those categories. After the 1997–98 season, Penguins captain Ron Francis signed with the Carolina Hurricanes, leaving Jágr the Penguins' captaincy. From 1997–98 to 2000–01, Jágr would win four-straight NHL scoring titles. In 1999, he would win the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player, as well as the Lester B. Pearson Award. In 1998, he led the Czech Republic to a gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics. On 30 December 1999, against the New York Islanders, Jágr scored three goals and four assists for a career high seven-point night. He would later match this feat on 11 January 2003 by once again scoring three goals and four assists in a game against the Florida Panthers as a member of the Washington Capitals. In 2000–01, Jágr was struggling to find his scoring touch and faced criticisms about his relationship with Penguins head coach Ivan Hlinka. With the return of Mario Lemieux from retirement, the Penguins had two superstars, but friction developed between the two; Jágr held the captaincy but many fans regarded Lemieux as the talisman of the team. Additionally, the struggling, medium-market Penguins could, with Lemieux back, no longer hope to afford Jágr's high salary. Thus, on 11 July 2001, the organization traded him, along with František Kučera, to the Washington Capitals in exchange for Kris Beech, Michal Sivek and Ross Lupaschuk. In 806 games with Pittsburgh, Jágr became only the second player (after Lemieux) to score 1,000 points as a Penguin. Jágr sits second behind Lemieux in career goals in franchise history and third in games played, assists and points, having since been surpassed by Sidney Crosby. Later in 2001, the Capitals signed Jágr to the then-largest contract ever in NHL history at $77 million over seven years, an average annual value of $11 million, with an option for an eighth year. However, Jágr did not live up to expectations in Washington, as the Capitals failed to defend their division title and missed the 2002 Stanley Cup playoffs. For the first time during his tenure with the Capitals, Jágr failed to finish among the NHL's top scorers, help his team qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs or make the NHL All-Star Team. During the summer of 2002, the Capitals reunited Jágr with former linemate Robert Lang. In 2002–03, Washington finished sixth overall in the Eastern Conference but lost to the upstart Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the 2003 playoffs despite winning the series' first two games. The lack of organizational success prompted the Capitals to unload much of their high-priced talent in order to save money—not just a cost-cutting spree, but also an acknowledgement that their attempt to build a contender with high- priced veteran talent had failed. Disgruntled, Washington ownership spent much of 2003 trying to trade Jágr, but a year before a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) was to be signed, few teams were willing to risk $11 million on Jágr. On 23 January 2004, Jágr was eventually traded to the New York Rangers in exchange for Anson Carter and an agreement that Washington would pay approximately $4 million per year of Jágr's salary. Jágr also agreed to defer (with interest) $1 million per year for the remainder of his contract to allow the trade to go through. Due to the new CBA signed before the start of the 2005–06 season, Jágr's salary was reduced to $7.8 million, the maximum allowed under the terms of the new salary cap. During the NHL labor dispute in 2004–05, he had played for HC Kladno in the Czech Republic, and afterward for Avangard Omsk in the Russian Superleague (RSL). Jágr led the Czech Republic to gold at the 2005 World Hockey Championships in Austria and was elected a tournament all-star in the process. He also became a member of hockey's prestigious Triple Gold Club, players who have won a Stanley Cup, a World Hockey Championship and an Olympic gold medal. Prior to the 2005–06 season, the Rangers had missed the playoffs for seven consecutive seasons. Following the fire sale of the high-priced, underachieving veterans that made up the team's roster (as well as the retirement of long-time captain Mark Messier), many experts picked the Rangers to be the worst team in the NHL. Jágr disagreed and promised the team would surprise a lot of people and make the Stanley Cup playoffs. He started strong during the beginning of the 2005 season and the return from the lockout of the NHL. He became only the fourth player in NHL history to score ten or more goals in less than ten games at the start of a season. His return to dominance helped the Rangers return to the Stanley Cup playoffs, but injuries to Jágr and others contributed to a four-game sweep in the first round by the New Jersey Devils. Jágr scored his 1,400th point on a power play goal against the Philadelphia Flyers on 2 March 2006, pushing him past Jari Kurri into second place all-time among European-born players. He later passed Stan Mikita to become the all-time leader. On 18 March 2006, against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Jágr became only the sixth Rangers player in team history to break the 100-point barrier, and became the only Ranger right winger to score 100 points in a season. On 27 March 2006, against the Buffalo Sabres, Jágr had a goal and an assist, which tied both the Rangers' single-season goal record of 52 (Adam Graves, 1993–94) and the Rangers' single season points record of 109 (Jean Ratelle, 1971–72). Two nights later, on 29 March, Jágr passed Ratelle when he assisted on Petr Průcha's first-period goal against the New York Islanders' Rick DiPietro. On 8 April, against the Boston Bruins, Jágr scored his NHL- leading 53rd goal of the season, breaking the Rangers' single-season goals record. After leading the NHL in points and goals for most of the 2005–06 season, Jágr was surpassed by the San Jose Sharks' duo of Joe Thornton (125 points) and Jonathan Cheechoo (56 goals), losing both the Art Ross and Maurice Richard trophies in the final week of the season. Jágr finished with 123 points, 54 goals and 24 power-play goals, second in the NHL in all three categories. He also finished third in the NHL in both assists (69) and plus- minus (+34). However, just as in Washington, playoff success was not to be for Jágr, whose Rangers were swept in four games by New Jersey. In the series, he suffered a dislocated shoulder in the third period of the first game of the series, which kept him from playing at his top form for the rest of the series. Jágr had surgery on the shoulder after the Rangers were eliminated from the playoffs. Despite being inched out by Joe Thornton for the Art Ross Trophy and Hart Trophy (league MVP), Jágr won his third Lester B. Pearson Award as the NHL's most outstanding player. During his acceptance speech for the Award, Jágr said, "With this award, you get voted on by players you play against every night and I think they understand the game better than the media." He has been named to seven NHL First All-Star Teams. On 5 October 2006, before the first game of the 2006–07 season (against his former team Washington), Jágr was named as the 24th captain in the history of the New York Rangers, replacing Mark Messier, who had retired before the 2005–06 season. Jágr then proceeded to score a goal on his first shift in the game, just under 30 seconds into the new season. Jágr scored his 600th career NHL goal on 19 November 2006 against Tampa Bay goaltender Johan Holmqvist, making him the 16th player in NHL history to do so. Power play linemate Brendan Shanahan had scored his 600th goal almost three weeks earlier, making them the first teammates in NHL history to score their 600th goal in the same season. On 10 February 2007, against Washington, Jágr earned an assist on a goal by Michal Rozsíval to record his 1,500th career point. He is only the 12th NHLer to reach this mark, and the fourth-fastest player to do so after Marcel Dionne, Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky. On 5 April 2007, against the Montreal Canadiens, Jágr scored his 30th goal of the 2006–07 season to record 15 consecutive seasons of 30 or more goals, tying the NHL record held by Mike Gartner. After a regular season slowed by a weak shoulder, Jágr then led the New York Rangers to a sweep of the Atlanta Thrashers in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, the Rangers would fall to the Buffalo Sabres in Game 6 of the Conference Semifinals. On 14 November 2007, against New Jersey, Jágr scored his fourth goal of the 2007–08 season at the Prudential Center in Newark, making him the first player to score a goal in 53 different NHL arenas. On 3 July 2008, Jágr, an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career, was informed by Rangers general manager Glen Sather that the club would not offer him a new contract. Sather admitted that the two sides never engaged in detailed negotiations for a new contract, and that after many months of speculation, Jágr was "seriously considering" going to Russia to finish his career, despite offers from other NHL teams. Jágr expressed a desire to possibly finish out his career at his father's club, HC Kladno. On 4 July, Jágr agreed to a two-year contract with Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL); the contract was reported to pay Jágr the equivalent of US$5 million annually. Jágr was named Avangard's captain on 30 January 2009. As a member of Avangard, Jágr was sitting next to Alexei Cherepanov, a first- round pick of the New York Rangers, who died during a game against Vityaz Chekhov. They were discussing the past shift when the 19-year-old Cherepanov collapsed onto Jágr on the bench at the Ice Hockey Center 2004 in Chekov. In April 2009, Jágr publicly stated an interest in returning to the NHL, stating that he really just needed a break from the pressures of an 82-game NHL schedule. Jágr, who claimed to have lost 15 pounds since his last NHL season, and who was "practicing a lot harder than [he] ever did in [his] life", stated that he would be interested in joining the Edmonton Oilers because of the interest they showed in July 2008. However, following the expiration of his initial contract with Avangard, Jágr signed a new contract with Avangard for the 2010–11 season. On 1 July 2011, Jágr returned to the NHL, but rather than signing with his original NHL team in Pittsburgh, he signed a one-year, $3.3 million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers, the Penguins' cross-state rival. He scored his 1,600th NHL point during his debut game with the Flyers, assisting on a Claude Giroux goal as the Flyers won their season opener 2–1 over the Boston Bruins on 6 October 2011. Typically playing on the first line with Giroux and Scott Hartnell, Jágr was among the top scorers during the start of the 2011–12 season. He scored his first and second goals as a Flyer on 24 October against the Toronto Maple Leafs. On 29 October 2011, against the Carolina Hurricanes, he scored his 650th and 651st NHL goals. He scored his only goal of the 2012 playoffs during Philadelphia's series against Pittsburgh. The Flyers were eliminated by the New Jersey Devils, who would ultimately become the 2012 Eastern Conference champions. On 3 July 2012, Jágr signed a one-year contract with the Dallas Stars reportedly worth $4.5 million. The signing marked Jágr's first time playing for a club in the Western Conference. Jágr said during a conference call two days later that the Montreal Canadiens had been his first choice as a free agent. "I always wanted to play in Canada and I wanted to go to Montreal if I had a chance, but Montreal wasn't interested," Jágr said. "All of a sudden I got a phone call from Stars' general manager Joe Nieuwendyk that Dallas was interested." During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Jágr played for his own team, Rytíři Kladno, in the Czech Extraliga. During the lockout, he scored 24 goals and 33 assists in 34 games and, before leaving Kladno for the Stars, was in second place of Czech Extraliga's scoring list. After the NHL lockout ended, he made his debut as a Star on 19 January 2013, when he tallied two goals and two assists in a 4–3 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes. Jágr reached the 1,000-assist mark on 29 March 2013 in a game against the Minnesota Wild, becoming just the 12th player to do so and the first non-Canadian NHLer to reach the milestone. On 2 April 2013, Jágr was traded to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Lane MacDermid, Cody Payne and a conditional third-round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. He made his Bruins debut on 4 April, scoring the lone goal in Boston's 1–0 win over the New Jersey Devils, and with his second Bruins goal, the first scored in a 3–0 shutout over the Florida Panthers on 21 April 2013, Jágr tied the record for the most game-winning goals in an NHL career (118), previously set by Phil Esposito. When Jágr played in the first game of the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals, he set a new record for the longest gap between Finals appearances at 21 years, surpassing the previous record of 19 years, which was established by Gary Roberts in 2008; coincidentally, both instances involved someone with the Penguins at one end of those streaks. Also coincidental was that, as in his previous Stanley Cup appearance, Jágr's opponents were the Chicago Blackhawks. After the Bruins lost the Finals to Chicago, the team announced on 26 June 2013 that they did not intend to offer Jágr a new contract. On 22 July 2013, Jágr signed a one-year contract with the New Jersey Devils; the contract included $2 million guaranteed and another $2 million as an incentive bonus if Jágr was to play in at least 40 games. Jágr, at age 41, hoped to help the Devils overcome the loss of Ilya Kovalchuk, who had previously departed for the KHL. Jágr scored his first goal as a Devil on 7 October 2013 in a 5–4 shootout loss to the Edmonton Oilers. The goal came on the 23rd anniversary of his first NHL goal which, coincidentally, was against the Devils. On 21 November 2013, Jágr tied Gordie Howe's record of game- winning goals with 121, with his 690th goal, which tied him in ninth place (with former teammate Mario Lemieux) for all-time goal-scoring leaders. On 20 December, he scored his 693rd goal, putting him in eighth place over Steve Yzerman. A day later, Jágr tied Mark Messier for seventh place in NHL history for goals scored with 694. Later in the season, on 14 January 2014, he scored his 695th goal, passing Messier, putting him 14 goals away from passing Mike Gartner. On 1 March, Jágr scored his 700th career NHL goal as the Devils won 6–1 against the New York Islanders at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. On 8 April, near the conclusion of the Devils' season, he was awarded the New Jersey Devils MVP Award at their annual team awards ceremony. He scored two points in his final game of the season (two assists in the third period), surpassing Gordie Howe for eighth place on the NHL's all-time list for career assists and tying Steve Yzerman for sixth on the all-time points list at 1,755. Jágr finished the season as the team's leading scorer, with his highest points total in a season since 2007–08. Jágr's play led the Devils to re-sign him to another one-year contract on 30 April. He became the joint sixth- highest scorer in NHL history in November 2014 after scoring his 708th NHL goal for the Devils against Boston. On 8 December, in his 1,500th NHL game, he moved ahead of Marcel Dionne for fifth place on the NHL's all-time points list with 1,772. On 3 January 2015, in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Jágr became the oldest player in NHL history to score a hat-trick at 42 years and 322 days. The record was previously held by Detroit Red Wings defenceman Nicklas Lidström. On 26 February 2015, Jágr was traded to the Florida Panthers in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft and a third-round pick in 2016. He made his team debut on 28 February in a 5–3 Panthers win over the Buffalo Sabres and registered his first points with the team in the following game on 1 March, posting a goal and an assist in a 4–3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. On 19 March, Jágr scored his 718th career goal against Detroit to move him past Phil Esposito and fifth on the all-time goal scoring list. In a 9 April, 4–2 Panthers victory over the Bruins, Jágr registered two assists to give him 1,800 career points in the NHL and sole possession of fourth place on the all-time points list, surpassing former Penguins teammate Ron Francis. On 11 April, in the Panthers' season finale, Jágr reached 2,000 NHL points (including playoff games) when he assisted on a Jonathan Huberdeau goal. He then scored his 800th NHL goal (including playoffs) later in the third period. On 12 April, one day after the end of the 2014–15 regular season, Jágr signed a new one-year, $3.5 million contract with Florida for the 2015–16 season. Jágr reached multiple milestones as a Panther. On 20 December 2015, he moved into fourth all-time on the NHL scoring list, scoring his 732nd goal to move past Marcel Dionne for fourth place in NHL history. On 4 February 2016, Jágr became the sixth player in NHL history to record 1,100 career assists. On 20 February, he scored his 742nd goal, surpassing Brett Hull for third place in NHL history. In a 7 March, 5–4 overtime loss to the Bruins, an assist on Aleksander Barkov's goal put Jágr at 1,851 career points, passing Gordie Howe on the all-time points list and putting him in sole possession of third place overall. With the Panthers qualifying for the 2016 playoffs, Jágr played in his first playoff series since the 2013 Stanley Cup Final. Though he only registered two assists in the Panthers' six-game first round exit to the Islanders (who would win their first playoff series since 1993), he became the fifth NHL player all-time to record 200 career playoff points. At age 44, Jágr led the Panthers in scoring with 66 points. In reward for his strong play and leadership abilities, the team announced on 5 May 2016 that they had signed Jágr to a new one-year, $4 million contract. On 20 October 2016, Jágr became the third player in NHL history to score 750 goals. On 22 December 2016, he scored his 1,888th career point, surpassing Mark Messier to become second in career points, and on 15 February 2017, his 45th birthday, he became the second player to register his 1,900th NHL point. In 2017 on Twitter, as a free agent, Jágr tweeted: "FA 1994 - all GMs called, FA 2017- 0 calls" accompanied by a trophy emoji and a smiley emoji, as well as pictures taken in 1994 and 2017. In the 1994 picture, a smiling Jágr is on the phone with an unspecified general manager. In the 2017 picture, he is seen looking at his mobile phone with a puzzled expression on his face. The Panthers organization announced shortly after that they would not offer Jágr a new contract. On 4 October 2017, Jágr signed a one-year contract with the Calgary Flames. Jágr had indicated before that he would like to play professionally until age 50, but later said that it would be very likely that he would stop playing after the 2017–18 season, at which point he would be 46. He noted the tendency of teams to focus on younger players to the exclusion of older ones like himself, which he considers understandable and in light of which he remarked, "I was pretty lucky." The Flames were Jágr's ninth NHL team, but his first Canadian team, which prompted him to say, "I want to get the experience so I can one day say I played for a Canadian team. So I'm here." On 9 November 2017 against the Detroit Red Wings, Jágr scored his first goal as a Flame, earning two points in a 6–3 win. However, on 6 January 2018, it was reported that Jágr and the Flames were negotiating the termination of his contract, as injuries had limited Jágr to a career-low seven points (including the aforementioned one goal) in 22 games. On 14 January 2018, Jágr was placed on the injured reserve, retroactive to 31 December 2017, while the Flames called up Ryan Lomberg from their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Stockton Heat, in his place. On 28 January, it was reported that Jágr was placed on waivers, signalling the end of his brief tenure with the Flames; he cleared waivers the following day and was assigned to HC Kladno in the WSM Liga. On 3 February 2018, Jágr played his first game for his hometown team, and his first game since 31 December 2017, playing nearly 20 minutes and recording three assists. In his fifth game for Kladno, he was injured and remained sidelined for the rest of the season with knee injury. In order to be eligible for participation in the playoff finals, he played a few seconds in ten playoff games. On 14 May, Jágr announced his plans to remain with Kladno for his 30th professional season. On 19 April, Jágr scored four goals in one game as Kladno was promoted to the top-flight Czech Extraliga. Although he has repeatedly denied that he has a gambling problem, Jágr admitted in 2003 that he settled debts totaling $950,000 with two internet gambling sites between 1998 and 2002. The first of these incidents centered on Belize-based website CaribSports and its owner, William Caesar, to which Jágr owed $500,000. Sports Illustrated reported that Jágr agreed to make monthly payments to Caesar to settle the debt, and Caesar leaked the story to the press when Jágr stopped making payments. In 2003, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) filed a $3.27 million lien against him for unpaid taxes for the 2001 tax year. Only a few months before, Jágr had settled a $350,000 claim for taxes dating to 1999. In the summer of 2006, Jágr sued his former accountant over a tax form that was supposed to have been filed in 2003, claiming that the form would have saved him $6 million had it been timely filed. Jágr resides in the Czech Republic during the off-season. His father, also named Jaromír Jágr, owns a chain of hotels and serves as president of HC Kladno. Jágr wears the number 68, which he has worn through his entire career, in honour of the Prague Spring that occurred in Czechoslovakia in 1968 and his grandfather, who died while in prison that same year, and had earlier been imprisoned for opposing the collectivization of his farm in the post-war Communist takeover of Czechoslovakia. In any interviews when asked about his number, Jágr explains that he wears it not due to bad relations with Russian people, but rather due to disaffection with Communism. During his time with the New Jersey Devils, Jágr was granted special exception to keep wearing number 68, as then-general manager Lou Lamoriello had a policy in place which generally forbade players from wearing any number higher than 35. Jágr has been a long-time supporter of the liberal conservative Civic Democratic Party (ODS), stating in 2004 that he "had always" voted for the party. In the previous election, he appeared on the party's billboards and was among its sponsors. On 26 May 2010, Jágr announced that he was backing the Civic Democrats and its leader Petr Nečas. At the press conference, he said, "I realize that there will be elections in two to three days. I would like their outcome to be good." He also urged the party not to forget about sports when distributing money. "We all know what would happen if the young did not practice any sport. If children practice some sport, they do not have time for other things such as alcohol." Jágr is an Orthodox Christian; he was baptized in 2001 by Prague's metropolitan. He began to speak more publicly about his faith during his three-year stint in Russia, a historically Orthodox nation. Jágr's longevity in the NHL has spawned a fan club known as "The Traveling Jagrs", a group of hockey fans from the Alberta cities of Calgary and Camrose who share interest in the player. The group dresses in the sweater, hockey socks and pant shells of 11 of Jágr's teams (his nine NHL teams, the NHL All- Star Team and the Czech national team) plus long black wigs in reference to Jágr's traditional hair-style. Usually the club would travel once or twice a year to see him play in person, but with Jágr signing with the Flames, they announced that they would be a more regular fixture at games. Jágr has represented his country many times. In 1994, he and Pittsburgh Penguins teammate Martin Straka arrived in the middle of the 1994 World Championships after Pittsburgh's elimination from the Stanley Cup playoffs. Czech fans' expectations were high as Jágr was an NHL star, but before the team was able to integrate him into the team, the Czechs lost their quarterfinal game and were eliminated from tournament. Jágr was also hurt in numerous other games. The 1996 World Cup of Hockey also did not see Jágr at his best. His performance was hampered by the flu and it only underscored the poor play of the whole team — after losing 7–3 to Finland, 3–0 to Sweden and even 7–1 to a relatively weak Germany, the team did not qualify for the tournament's playoffs. The team's recent failures, however, were mitigated in 1998 when the Czech Republic won the men's gold medal in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. It was only the third gold medal for Czech or Czechoslovak sportsmen from the Winter Olympics and it is still fondly remembered. Jágr did not play in the 1996, 1999, 2000 nor 2001 World Championships in which the Czech Republic won the gold medals. He was, however, a member of the team at the 2004 World Championship in Prague, where the expectations were high. However, after the team won all the games in the group, they lost in the quarterfinals game, stumbling out of the tournament. It was the 2005 edition of the tournament that finally brought a gold medal to Jágr. Although he broke his finger in an early game against Germany, he played with it bandaged during the rest of the tournament and led his team to victory. More injuries struck Jágr in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. He was injured after a hit from Finland's Jarkko Ruutu, requiring stitches to his eyebrow. However, the injury was not as serious as first anticipated, and Jágr was able to play in the following games, though he was unable to finish the bronze medal game due to muscle injury. Despite the trouble, Jágr won his second-career Olympic medal, the bronze. In 2010, Jágr was his nation's flag bearer at the 2010 Winter Olympics, but in the men's ice hockey tournament, the Czechs finished a disappointing seventh after a defeat in the quarterfinals to Finland. Jágr again represented his country at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, scoring two goals and one assist in five games as the Czech Republic again lost in the quarterfinals. After losing to Sweden in a battle for a bronze medal on 2014 IIHF World Championship in Minsk, Jágr announced the end of his career in international play with the Czech national team, focusing his efforts on returning to the NHL playoffs after New Jersey failed to qualify in 2014. However, Jágr stepped back from his decision after being called up to the Czech team for the 2015 IIHF World Championship in Prague and Ostrava, making the team's roster. On 1 May, he scored a goal in the Czechs' 6–5 loss to Sweden, his 50th for the national team, to become the oldest player to score at the World Championship. In the Czech Republic's quarterfinal game against Finland, Jágr scored one assist and two goals, including the game-winning goal. At the end of the tournament, despite the Czechs' loss in the bronze medal game, Jágr was named the tournament's most valuable player. These records are as of 27 February 2017 for regular season games unless stated otherwise. Most career game-winning goals – 135, Most career points by a right wing – 1902, Most career assists by a right wing – 1142, Most single-season points by a right wing – 149, Most single-season assists by a right wing – 87, Most single-season points by a European-born player – 149, Most single-season assists by a European-born player – 87, Most career goals by a European-born player – 760, Most career assists by a European-born player – 1142, Most career points by a European-born player – 1902, Most career game-tying goals by a European-born player – 11, Most career shots on goal by a European-born player – 5554, Most career playoff game-winning goals by a European-born player – 16, Most consecutive 30-goal seasons (1991–2007) – 15, Most consecutive 70-point seasons (15), Longest gap between Stanley Cup Finals appearances – 21 years, Only player to play in the Stanley Cup Finals as a teenager and at over 40 years of age, Oldest player to score 60 points in a season, Oldest player to score a hat-trick (42 years and 322 days old), Most different teams played on by a 1000-point scorer - 9 Most single-season points by a right wing – 149, Most single-season assists by a right wing – 87, Most single-season assists by a European-born player – 87, Most single-season power-play goals by a European-born player – 20, Most single-season game-winning goals – 12, Most single-season shots on goal – 403, Most career points by a right wing – 1079, Most career points by a European-born player – 1079, Most career goals by a right wing – 439, Most career goals by a European-born player – 439, Most career assists by a right wing – 640, Most career assists by a European-born player – 640, Most career playoff game-winning goals – 78, Most career power-play goals by a right wing – 110, Most career power-play goals by a European-born player – 110, Most career shorthanded goals by a European-born player – 9, Most career overtime goals – 9, Most career game-tying goals – 10, Most career shots on goal by a right wing – 2911, Most career shots on goal by a European-born player – 2911, Most career playoff goals by a right wing – 65, Most career playoff goals by a European-born player – 65, Most career playoff points by a right wing – 147, Most career playoff points by a European-born player – 147, Most career playoff shorthanded goals by a right wing – 2, Most career playoff shorthanded goals by a European-born player – 2, Most career playoff game-winning goals – 14, Most career playoff overtime goals – 4, Most career playoff shots on goal – 461, Most career playoff power-play goals by a right wing – 19, Most career playoff power-play goals by a European-born player – 19 Most single-season goals (2005–06) – 54, Most single-season points (2005–06) – 123, Most single-season power-play goals (2005–06) – 24, Most single-season shots on goal (2005–06) – 368, Most single-season game-winning goals (2005–06) – 9, Most single-season assists by a right wing (2005–06) – 69 Jágr is currently second in NHL career regular season points and is fifth in career playoff points. He is also currently amongst the career leaders in several other major NHL regular season statistical categories: goals (3rd), assists (5th), games played (2nd), overtime goals (1st), game-winning goals (1st), even strength goals (2nd), power play goals (T-11th), points per game (20th) and shots on goal (2nd). Also amongst all-time leaders in NHL playoff statistical categories, Jágr ranks in the top 20 in points (5th), goals (11th), assists (9th), overtime goals (T-3rd), game-winning goals (8th), games played (T-15th), power play goals (T-15th) and shots on goal (3rd). Jaromír Jágr stats at hokej.cz

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Pranab Mukherjee (born 11 December 1935) is an Indian politician who served as the 13th President of India from 2012 until 2017. In a political career spanning five decades, Mukherjee has been a senior leader in the Indian National Congress and has occupied several ministerial portfolios in the Government of India. Prior to his election as President, Mukherjee was Union Finance Minister from 2009 to 2012. He was awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna in 2019 by the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind. Mukherjee got his break in politics in 1969 when the Then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi helped him get elected to the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of Parliament of India, on a Congress ticket. Following a meteoric rise, he became one of Gandhi's most trusted lieutenants and a minister in her cabinet by 1973. During the controversial Internal Emergency of 1975–77, he was accused (like several other Congress leaders) of committing gross excesses. Mukherjee's service in a number of ministerial capacities culminated in his first stint as Finance Minister of India in 1982–84. He was also the Leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha from 1980 to 1985. Mukherjee was sidelined from the Congress during the premiership of Rajiv Gandhi (Indira Gandhi's son). Mukherjee had viewed himself and not the inexperienced Rajiv, as the rightful successor to Indira following her assassination in 1984. Mukherjee lost out in the ensuing power struggle. He formed his own party, the Rashtriya Samajwadi Congress, which merged with the Congress in 1989 after reaching a consensus with Rajiv Gandhi. After Rajiv Gandhi's assassination in 1991, Mukherjee's political career revived when Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao appointed him Planning Commission head in 1991 and foreign minister in 1995. Following this, as elder statesman of the Congress, Mukherjee was the principal and architect of Sonia Gandhi's ascension to the party's presidency in 1998. When the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) came into power in 2004, Mukherjee won a Lok Sabha seat (the popularly elected lower house of Parliament) seat for the first time. From then until his resignation in 2012, Mukherjee was practically number-two in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government. He held a number of key cabinet portfolios—Defence (2004–06), External Affairs (2006–09) and Finance (2009–12)—apart from heading several Groups of Ministers (GoMs) and being Leader of the House in the Lok Sabha. After securing the UPA's nomination for the country's presidency in July 2012, Mukherjee comfortably defeated P. A. Sangma in the race to Rashtrapati Bhavan, winning 70 percent of the electoral-college vote. In 2017, Mukherjee decided not to run for re-election and to retire from politics after leaving the presidency due to "health complications relating to old age". His term expired on 25 July 2017. He was succeeded as President by Ram Nath Kovind. In June 2018 Mukherjee became first former President of India to address a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) event. Pranab was born in a Bengali family in Mirati, a village in the Bengal Presidency of British India (now in Birbhum district, West Bengal, India). His father, Kamada Kinkar Mukherjee was active in the Indian independence movement and was a member of West Bengal Legislative Council between 1952 and 1964 as a representative of the Indian National Congress and was the member of AICC. His mother was Rajlakshmi Mukherjee. He attended the Suri Vidyasagar College in Suri (Birbhum), then affiliated to University of Calcutta. He subsequently earned MA degree in Political Science & History and LL.B. degree; both from University of Calcutta;Kolkata He was an upper-division Clerk in the Office of Deputy Accountant-General (Post and Telegraph) in Calcutta. In 1963, he became Lecturer(Assistant Professor) of Political Science at Vidyanagar College;Kolkata-affiliated to University of Calcutta;Kolkata and he also worked as a Journalist with the Desher Dak (Call of Motherland) before entering politics. Mukherjee's political career began in 1969, when he managed the successful Midnapore by-election campaign of an independent candidate, V. K. Krishna Menon. Then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, recognised Mukherjee's talents and recruited him to her party, the Indian National Congress. He became a member of the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of Indian parliament) in July 1969. Mukherjee was re-elected to the house in 1975, 1981, 1993 and 1999. Mukherjee became a Gandhi loyalist and is often described as his "man for all seasons". Mukherjee's rise was rapid in the early phase of his career and he was appointed Union Deputy Minister of Industrial Development in Indira Gandhi's cabinet in 1973. Mukherjee was active in the Indian cabinet during the controversial Internal Emergency of 1975–77. Ruling Congress politicians of the day including Mukherjee were accused of using extra-constitutional powers to "wreck established norms and rules of governance". Following the Congress's defeat in the 1977 general elections, the newly formed Janata government-appointed Shah Commission indicted Mukherjee; however, the commission was itself later indicted for stepping "outside its jurisdiction" in 1979. Mukherjee emerged unscathed and rose through a series of cabinet posts to become Finance Minister from 1982 to 1984. His term was noted for his work in improving the finances of the government that enabled Gandhi to score a political point by returning the last instalment of India's first IMF loan. As Finance Minister, Mukherjee signed the letter appointing Manmohan Singh as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India. In 1979, Mukherjee became Deputy Leader of the INC in the Rajya Sabha, and in 1980 he was appointed Leader of the House. Mukherjee was considered the top-ranking Indian cabinet minister and he presided over cabinet meetings in the absence of the Prime Minister. Mukherjee was sidelined from the INC following the assassination of Indira Gandhi. Although Mukherjee was much more experienced in politics than Indira's son, Rajiv Gandhi, it was Rajiv who gained control. Mukherjee lost his position in the cabinet and was sent to manage the regional West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee. He was considered to be Indira's likely successor and, siding with those within his party who aligned themselves against Rajiv Gandhi, Mukherjee was sidelined and eventually expelled from the mainstream. In 1986, Mukherjee founded another party, the Rashtriya Samajwadi Congress (RSC), in West Bengal. The RSC and INC merged three years later after reaching a compromise with Rajiv Gandhi. The RSC had fared terribly in the 1987 Assembly polls in West Bengal. Many analysts, over the years, have attributed the muting of Mukherjee's political aspirations as the supreme leader due to his inability to emerge as a magnetic mass leader. On later being asked that did he ever desire to become Prime Minister, Mukherjee, however, replied, "7 RCR was never my destination." The Zee News noted: "The statement assumes heft in the light of the longstanding speculation that Mukherjee, as one of the doyens of Congress, always nursed an ambition to occupy the top executive post." Mukherjee's political career revived following Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi in 1991 when P. V. Narasimha Rao chose to appoint him as deputy chairman of the Indian planning commission and subsequently as a union cabinet minister. Mukherjee served as External Affairs Minister for the first time from 1995 to 1996 in Rao's cabinet. Mukherjee today is considered to be a Gandhi family loyalist and the principal architect of Sonia Gandhi's entry into politics, a mentoring responsibility he is still believed to be shouldering. He was made General Secretary of the AICC in 1998–99 after Sonia Gandhi became Congress President. Mukherjee was made President of the West Bengal Congress in 2000 and held the position until his resignation in 2010. He had earlier held the position in 1985. Mukherjee became Leader of the House in the Lok Sabha in 2004. He contested and won a Lok Sabha seat from Jangipur in West Bengal which he would later retain in 2009. It was speculated in 2004 that Mukherjee would be made Prime Minister of India after Sonia Gandhi declined to become Prime Minister and Manmonhan Singh was appointed. Mukherjee was briefly considered for the post of the largely ceremonial Indian presidency in 2007 but his name was subsequently dropped after his contribution in the Union Cabinet was considered practically indispensable. Mukherjee held many important posts in the Manmohan Singh government. He had the distinction of being the Minister for various high-profile Ministries including Defence, Finance, and External Affairs. Mukherjee also headed the Congress Parliamentary Party and the Congress Legislative Party which consists of all the Congress MPs and MLAs in the country apart from being Leader of the House in Lok Sabha and Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee President. Mukherjee ended his affiliation with the Indian National Congress and retired from active political life following his election as President in 2012. The Economic Times had noted: "[the] decades of activity in critical all-round roles make [Mukherjee's] exit both a structural and generation shift. With him, the last of the Congress triumvirate – along with Rao and R Venkataraman – who formed the core team of Indira/Rajiv regimes bows out. While Rao became PM, Pranab's political marathon too ends where [Venkataraman's] did, at the Rashtrapati Bhavan." Pranab Mukherjee is "very well respected within the party social circles." Media accounts describe him as having "a reputation as a number-crunching politician with a phenomenal memory and an unerring survival instinct." Mukherjee became a member of the Congress Working Committee on 27 January 1978. He also became a member of the Central Parliamentary Board of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) that year. Mukherjee briefly held the position of treasurer of the AICC and the Congress party in 1978. Mukherjee was appointed chairman of the Campaign Committee of AICC for conducting National Elections to Parliament in 1984, 1991, 1996 and 1998. He was chairman of the Central Election Coordination Committee of the AICC from 28 June 1999 to 2012. He was appointed to the Central Election Committee on 12 December 2001. Mukherjee was appointed General Secretary of the AICC in 1998. In 1997 Mukherjee was voted Outstanding Parliamentarian by the Indian Parliamentary Group. After Sonia Gandhi reluctantly agreed to join politics, Mukherjee was one of her mentors, guiding her through difficult situations with examples of how her mother-in-law, Indira Gandhi would have done things. His talents were on display during the negotiations for the Patent's Amendment Bill in early 2005. The Congress was committed to passing an IP bill, but their allies in the United Progressive Alliance from the Left front had a long tradition of opposing some of the monopoly aspects of intellectual property. Pranab Mukherjee, as Defence Minister, was not formally involved but was roped in for his negotiation skills. He drew on many old alliances including the CPI-M leader Jyoti Basu (former Chief Minister of West Bengal), and formed new intermediary positions, which included product patent and little else. Then he had to convince his own colleagues including commerce minister Kamal Nath, at one point saying: "An imperfect legislation is better than no legislation." Finally the bill was approved on 23 March 2005. India Today wrote that Mukherjee's role in "skillfully pushing through the historic 123 Agreement and treaty with the Nuclear Suppliers Group" may have saved UPA-II government from the 2008 motion of no confidence. Mukherjee played a crucial role in steering the Cabinet pre Lok Sabha elections when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh underwent a by-pass surgery in 2008–09 by taking additional charges as chairman of the Cabinet Committee of Political Affairs and Union Minister in Finance Ministry despite already being Union Minister of External Affairs. Mukherjee was the recipient of "The Best Administrator in India" award in 2011. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh commented: "Mr. Mukherjee's knowledge of parliamentary matters was stupendous. The wide respect he commanded and his long association with the political leaders across the spectrum had proved invaluable in conducting the parliamentary business." Mukherjee's political skills and long experience in government have also led him to heading a large number of committees of Ministers in the government, a device that has been employed to obtain consensus within the members of the governing coalition on contentious issues. At the time of his resignation on being nominated as the UPA's presidential candidate, Mukherjee was heading several Groups of Ministers(GoMs) and Empowered Groups of Ministers (EGoMs). Manmohan Singh appointed Mukherjee as the Minister of Defence of India when the Congress came to power in 2004. Mukherjee held the post until 2006. He expanded co-operation with the United States during his tenure. The Times of India reported on the Wikileaks cables release and noted how " United States is full of praise for the "uniformed leadership" of Indian armed forces, especially Navy, as well as ministers like Mukherjee." Mukherjee in June 2005 had inked the 10-year Indo-US Defence Framework deal. Despite increasing co- operation with the United States, Mukherjee maintained that Russia will remain India's 'topmost' defence partner. He asserted that "Russia has been and will remain India's largest defence partner in the years to come" while inaugurating the 5th session of the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) in Moscow in 2005. Russia held the first joint anti-terror war games with India in Rajasthan in October 2005, during which Mukherjee and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov narrowly escaped injury after a heavy mortar landed several metres from their platform. The Russian ministry subsequently declared its hopes to follow up joint military exercises in India with further joint exercises on Russian territory. Mukherjee was appointed the External Affairs Minister of India in 1995. Under his leadership, India was made "Full Dialogue Partner" of ASEAN as part of the Look East foreign policy initiated by Narasimha Rao. Mukherjee left the position in 1996. Mukherjee's second term began in 2006. He oversaw the successful signing of the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement with the US government and then with the Nuclear Suppliers Group, allowing India to participate in civilian nuclear trade in spite of not having signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Mukherjee played a crucial role in mobilising world opinion against Pakistan after the 2008 Mumbai attacks. He left the position a year later to take over the Finance Ministry of India. When asked what legacy he wanted to leave behind as Foreign Minister of India, Mukherjee replied, "As the [man] who prepared Indian diplomacy to address the challenges of a more globalised, interdependent and uncertain world." Mukherjee has thrice served as Commerce Minister of India. His first stints were in the Indira Gandhi government from 1980–82 and again in 1984. His third stint in the 1990s saw him contribute significantly to the negotiations leading to the establishment of the World Trade Organization. Pranab Mukherjee's first stint as the Finance minister of India was during the Indira Gandhi government in 1982. He presented his first annual budget in 1982–83. Mukherjee's first term was noted for his work in improving the finances of the government and for successfully returning the last instalment of India's first IMF loan. Mukherjee signed the letter appointing Manmohan Singh as the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India in 1982. Mukherjee was accused of patronage practices in the Ambani–Wadia industrial feuds. Mukherjee was credited with being an early reformer of the Indian economy. India Today wrote: "Operation Forward, which [Mukherjee] and then Industries Minister Charanjit Chanana launched in the early 1980s, started the liberalisation process that flowered under Rao and Manmohan Singh." A Left wing magazine once commented that "socialism did not grow out of the pipe Mukherjee smoked." Mukherjee was removed from his position as Finance Minister by Rajiv Gandhi in 1984. Gandhi had wished to bring in his own team of staff to govern India. Mukherjee was removed from his position even though he was rated as the best Finance Minister in the World that year according to a survey of Euromoney magazine. Mukherjee returned to handling the finance of India during the premiership of Narasimha Rao. He was appointed the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. Since the Prime Minister of India happens to be the ex- officio chairperson of Planning Commission of India, the position of the deputy chairperson has great significance. During Mukherjee's tenure 1991–96, Dr. Manmohan Singh as Finance Minister oversaw many economic reforms to end the Licence Raj system and help open the Indian economy. Mukherjee again became the Finance Minister of India in 2009. He presented the annual budgets in 2009, 2010 and 2011. The 2010–11 budget included the country's first explicit target to cut public debt as a proportion of GDP and Mukherjee had targeted a budget deficit reduction to 4.1% of GDP in fiscal year 2012–13, from 6.5% in 2008–09. Mukherjee implemented many tax reforms. He scrapped the Fringe Benefits Tax and the Commodities Transaction Tax. He implemented the Goods and Services Tax during his tenure. These reforms were well received by major corporate executives and economists. The introduction of retrospective taxation by Mukherjee, however, has been criticised by some economists. Mukherjee expanded funding for several social sector schemes including the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. He also supported budget increases for improving literacy and health care. He expanded infrastructure programmes such as the National Highway Development Programme. Electricity coverage was also expanded during his tenure. Mukherjee also reaffirmed his commitment to the principle of fiscal prudence as some economists expressed concern about the rising fiscal defits during his tenure, the highest since 1991. Mukherjee declared the expansion in government spending was only temporary. In 2010 Mukherjee was awarded "Finance Minister of the Year for Asia" by Emerging Markets, the daily newspaper of record for the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Mukherjee was praised for "the confidence [he] has inspired in key stakeholders, by virtue of his fuel price reforms, fiscal transparency and inclusive growth strategies". The Banker also recognised him as "Finance Minister of the Year." The final years of Mukherjee in the finance ministry were not considered a success. The NDTV upon his resignation as Finance Minister in June 2012 wrote: "There [had] been a clamour from many quarters for a change in the Finance Ministry, with Mr Mukherjee having faced flak for several decisions where politics seemed to overwhelm economic imperatives." Mukherjee was chairman of the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata. He is also the former chairman and president of the Rabindra Bharati University and the Nikhil Bharat Banga Sahitya Sammelan, as well as a former trustee of the Bangiya Sahitya Parishad and the Bidhan Memorial Trust. He has served on the Planning Board of the Asiatic Society. Mukherjee was nominated as the presidential candidate of the United Progressive Alliance on 15 June 2012 after considerable political intrigue. The elections were scheduled to be conducted on 19 July 2012 and the results were expected to be announced on 22 July 2012. As many as 81 other candidates had filed nominations but the Election Commission rejected all except that of P. A. Sangma, the nominee of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). To file his nomination for the presidential poll on 28 June, Mukherjee had resigned from the government on 26 June 2012. In the election, Mukherjee received 713,763 votes, while Sangma had 315,987. In his victory speech, delivered outside his residence before the results were officially announced, he said: Mukherjee was sworn-in by the Chief Justice of India on 25 July 2012, becoming the first Bengali to hold the post of President of India. After being administered the oath of office, he said we are amidist of fourth world war of terror and what minutes of peace can achieve cannot be achieved in many years of war. Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh both congratulated Pranab Mukherjee on his election as President. Former Communist leader Somnath Chatterjee termed Mukherjee as one of "the best parliamentarians and statesmen of India" and said the country "has got the most able man for the top job". Opposition leader Sharad Yadav declared "the nation needed a president like Pranab Mukherjee." Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit commented and said Mukherjee will be "one of the wisest presidents." She further marvelled at the fact that parties in the opposition ranks supported Mukherjee. "Even the NDA broke up and wanted to vote for the president to be Pranab Mukherjee." The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was reportedly "shocked" and "upset" at the cross-voting for Mukherjee by its legislative members. However, the BJP party President Nitin Gadkari congratulated Mukherjee and said "I extend my hearty congratulations to Pranab Mukherjee on his election today as the new President of India." Gadkari further declared "I am sure that the country will make further development and progress. I wish him all success and a bright future." The Zee News noted: "What is striking about [Mukherjee] is that after more than four decades in public life, the Opposition had no ammunition against him after he was declared UPA’s choice for President. In spite of Team Anna making some noise about him being involved in some corruption cases, it has been more or less an easy ride for Pranab to Raisina Hill. Once when Sonia Gandhi announced his name, most of the allies and the Opposition came on board. Whereas, NDA partner JD(U) saw no merit in opposing him, one of the bitter critics of the Congress Shiv Sena too toed the line a little too easily. This support was not for Congress but for [Mukherjee]". Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 was promulgated by Pranab Mukherjee on 3 February 2013, which provides for amendment of Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act, and Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 on laws related to sexual offences. As of July 2015, President Pranab Mukherjee has rejected 24 mercy pleas including that of Yakub Memon, Ajmal Kasab, Afzal Guru. In January 2017, Mukherjee stated that he would not contest for 2017 Presidential elections. The reason he told for this was advanced age and failing health. Pranab Mukherjee married Suvra Mukherjee on 13 July 1957. Suvra Mukherjee was born and raised in Narail, Bangladesh. She immigrated to Kolkata while she was 10 and married to Pranab in 1957. The couple had two sons and a daughter. Suvra died on 18 August 2015, aged 74 of heart failure while Mr.Mukherjee was still in office. He is inspired by Deng Xiaoping and has quoted him quite frequently. His hobbies are reading, gardening and music. His elder son, Abhijit Mukherjee, is a Congress MP from Jangipur, West Bengal. He was elected in the by-polls held after his father vacated the seat. Before his election to Lok Sabha, Abhijit was an MLA from Nalhati in Birbhum. His daughter Sharmistha is a Kathak dancer and politician of the Indian National Congress. Mukherjee celebrates the Durga Puja at his ancestral home in Mirati village. He makes it a point to be at Mirati village every year to take part in the four-day rituals, the puja having a 'social dimension' for him. "I want to avail this opportunity to be with the people of my area," Mukherjee said during a puja ceremony on 4 October 2011. Mukherjee has received several accolades and honours: Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award, in 2008., Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 2019. Bangladesh Liberation War Honour (Bangladesh Muktijuddho Sanmanona),(5 March 2013; ), Grand Cross of National Order of the Ivory Coast (June 2016; ), Grand Collar of the Order of Makarios III (28 April 2017; ) Hon.Doctor of Letters degree by the University of Wolverhampton, UK in 2011., Hon.D.Litt by Assam University in March 2012., Hon.D.Litt. by Visvesvaraya Technological University; Belgaum, Karnataka in 2012, Hon.LL.D. by President of Bangladesh and Chancellor Md. Zillur Rahman at University of Dhaka on 4 March 2013., DCL (Doctor of Civil Law) (honoris causa) by University of Mauritius on 13 March 2013., Hon.Doctorate by Istanbul University on 5 October 2013., Honorary Doctorate from the University of Calcutta in on 28 November 2014., Hon.Doctorate in Political Science by University of Jordan on 11 October 2015., Hon.Doctorate by Al-Quds University of Ramallah, Palestine on 13 October 2015., Hon. Doctorate by Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel on 15 October 2015., Hon.Doctorate by Kathmandu University, Nepal on 3 November 2016., Hon. Doctorate by Goa University on 25 April 2017., D.Litt.(Honoris Causa) by the Jadavpur University on 24 December 2017., Hon.D.Litt by University of Chittagong on 16 January 2018. Best Finance Minister in World (1984), according to survey of Euromoney magazine., Finance Minister of Year for Asia (2010), by Emerging Markets, daily newspaper of record for World Bank and IMF., Finance Minister of Year (2010), by The Banker), Honorary Citizenship of Abidjan, Republic of Côte d'Ivoire on 15 June 2016. Pranab Mukherjee's positions in chronological order: Union Minister of Industrial Development 1973–1974, Union Minister of Shipping and Transport 1974, Minister of State for Finance 1974–1975, Union Minister of Revenue and Banking 1975–1977, Treasurer of Congress Party 1978–79, Treasurer of All India Congress Committee 1978–79, Leader of House of Rajya Sabha 1980–85, Union Minister of Commerce and Steel and Mines 1980–1982, Union Minister of Finance 1982–1984, Board of Governors of International Monetary Fund 1982–1985, Board of Governors of World Bank 1982–1985, Board of Governors of Asian Development Bank 1982–1984, Board of Governors of African Development Bank 1982–1985, Union Minister of Commerce and Supply 1984, Chairman; Campaign Committee of Congress-I for conducting National Elections to Parliament, 1984 Indian general election, 1991 Indian general election, 1996 Indian general election and 1998 Indian general election, Chairman of Group of 24(a Ministerial Group attached to IMF and World Bank)1984 and 2009–2012, President of State Unit of Congress Party 1985 and 2000–08, Chairman of Economic Advisory Cell of AICC 1987–1989, Dy Chairman of Planning Commission 1991–1996, Union Minister of Commerce 1993–1995, Union Minister of External Affairs 1995–1996, President, SAARC Council of Ministers Conference 1995, General Secretary of AICC 1998–1999, Chairman of Central Election Coordination Committee 1999–2012, Leader of House of Lok Sabha 2004–2012, Union Minister of Defence 2004–2006, Union Minister of External Affairs 2006–2009, Union Minister of Finance 2009–2012, President of India 25 July 2012 – 25 July 2017. Midterm Poll, Beyond Survival: Emerging Dimensions of Indian Economy - 1984, Off the Track - 1987, Saga of Struggle and Sacrifice - 1992, Challenges before the Nation - 1992, "A Centenary History of the Indian National Congress - Vol. V: Volume-V: 1964-1984" - 2011, "Congress and the Making of the Indian Nation" - 2011, "Thoughts and Reflections" - 2014, The Dramatic Decade: The Indira Gandhi Years - 2014, "Selected Speeches - Pranab Mukherjee" - 2015, The Turbulent Years: 1980 - 1996" - 2016, The Coalition Years President of India Official website of the president of India, Parliamentary profile at India.gov.in Pratibha Devisingh Patil (born 19 December 1934) is an Indian politician who served as the 12th President of India from 2007 to 2012. A member of the Indian National Congress, Patil is the only woman to hold the office. She previously served as the Governor of Rajasthan from 2004 to 2007. She has been felicitated with Mexico's highest civilian award Order of the Aztec Eagle in 2019. Pratibha Devisingh Patil is the daughter of Narayan Rao Patil. She was born on 19 December 1934 in the village of Nadgaon, in the Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, India. She was educated initially at R. R. Vidyalaya, Jalgaon, and subsequently was awarded a master's degree in Political Science and Economics by Mooljee Jetha College, Jalgaon (then under Pune University), and then a Bachelor of Law degree by Government Law College, Mumbai, affiliated to the University of Mumbai. Patil then began to practice law at the Jalgaon District Court, while also taking interest in social issues such as improving the conditions faced by Indian women. Patil married Devisingh Ransingh Shekhawat on 7 July 1965. The couple have a daughter and a son, Raosaheb Shekhawat, who is also a politician. The BBC has described Patil's political career prior to assuming presidential office as "long and largely low-key". In 1962, at the age of 27, she was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for the Jalgaon constituency. Thereafter she won in the Muktainagar (formerly Edlabad) constituency on four consecutive occasions between 1967 and 1985, before becoming a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha between 1985 and 1990. In the 1991 elections for the 10th Lok Sabha, she was elected as a Member of Parliament representing the Amravati constituency. A period of retirement from politics followed later in that decade. Patil had held various Cabinet portfolios during her period in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and she had also held official positions while in both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha. In addition, she had been for some years the president of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee and also held office as Director of the National Federation of Urban Co-operative Banks and Credit Societies and as a Member of the Governing Council of the National Co-operative Union of India. On 8 November 2004 she was appointed as the 24th Governor of Rajasthan, the first woman to hold that office and according to the BBC was "a low-profile" incumbent. Patil was announced as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) candidate on 14 June 2007. She emerged as a compromise candidate after the left-wing parties of the alliance would not agree to the nomination of former Home Minister Shivraj Patil or Karan Singh. Patil had been loyal to the INC and the Nehru–Gandhi family for decades and this was considered to be a significant factor in her selection by INC leader Sonia Gandhi, although Patil said that she had no intention of being a "rubber-stamp president". In the same month that she was selected, as the member of the UPA Patil was accused of shielding her brother, G. N. Patil, in the 2005 Vishram Patil murder case. Vishram Patil had narrowly defeated G. N. Patil in an election to be the President of the District Congress Committee of Jalgaon and in September of that year had been murdered. Vishram Patil's widow eventually accused G. N. Patil of involvement in the crime and claimed that Pratibha Patil had influenced the criminal investigation and that the issue needed to be examined before presidential immunity became active. Her accusations were rejected by the courts in 2009 but in 2015 G. N. Patil was charged. No reference to the alleged involvement of Pratibha Patil was made at this time. Due to the presidential role being largely a figurehead position, the selection of candidate is often arranged by consensus among the various political parties and the candidate runs unopposed. Contrary to the normal pattern of events, Patil faced a challenge in the election. The BBC described the situation as "the latest casualty of the country's increasingly partisan politics and [it] highlights what is widely seen as an acute crisis of leadership". It "degenerated into unseemly mud slinging between the ruling party and the opposition". Her challenger was Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the incumbent vice-president and a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran. Shekhawat stood as an independent candidate and was supported by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), a group led by the BJP, although the Shiv Sena party, which was a part of NDA, supported her because of her Marathi origin. Those opposed to Patil becoming president claimed that she lacked charisma, experience and ability. They also highlighted her time spent away from high-level politics and queried her belief in the supernatural, such as her claim to have received a message from Dada Lekhraj, a dead guru. Various specific issues were raised, such as a comment made by her in 1975 that those suffering from hereditary diseases should be sterilised. Another alleged that while a Member of Parliament for Amravati she diverted Rs 3.6 million from her MPLADS fund to a trust run by her husband. This was in violation of Government rules which barred MPs from providing funds to organisations run by their relatives. The parliamentary affairs minister denied any wrongdoing on Patil's part, and noted that the funds utilized under MPLADS are audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Patil won the election held on 19 July 2007. She garnered nearly two- thirds of the votes and took office as India's first woman president on 25 July 2007. Patil's term as the President of India saw various controversies. She commuted death sentences of 35 petitioners to life, a record. President's Office, however, defended this by saying that President had granted clemency to the petitioners after due consideration and examining the advice of the Home Ministry. Patil was noted for having spent more money on foreign trips, and having taken a greater number of foreign trips, than any previous president. Sometimes accompanied by as many as 11 members of her family, there had been 12 foreign trips spanning 22 countries by May 2012, when she was away on her 13th trip. Those completed travels had cost Rs 205 crore (Rs 2.05 billion). The Ministry of External Affairs said that taking family members "was not abnormal". The Office of President has a five-year term and Patil retired from the role in July 2012. Patil allegedly used public funds to build a retirement mansion on a plot of military land in Pune.Tradition is that a retiring president either takes residence in Government accommodation in Delhi or moves back to their residence in their home state;her use of government money to build a retirement home at the end of the presidential term was unprecedented. Other controversies that arose after her retirement included her desire to claim both an official government car and fuel allowance for the running of a private car, despite rules clearly stipulating that this was an either/or situation. She also took possession of many gifts that had been given to her in her official role and was later forced to return them. Patil set up Vidya Bharati Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, an educational institute which runs a chain of schools and colleges in Amravati, Jalgaon, Pune and Mumbai. She also set up Shram Sadhana Trust, which runs hostels for working women in New Delhi, Mumbai and Pune; and an engineering college for rural students in Jalgaon district. She also co-founded a cooperative sugar factory known as Sant Muktabai Sahakari Sakhar Karkhana at Muktainagar. In addition, Patil founded a cooperative bank, Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank, that ceased trading in February 2003 when its licence was cancelled by the Reserve Bank of India. Among other failings, the bank had given illegal loans to her relatives that exceeded the bank's share capital. It had also given a loan to her sugar mill which was never repaid. The bank waived these loans, and this drove it into liquidation. The government liquidator of the bank, P. D. Nigam, said, "The fact that relatives of the founder chairperson (Pratibha Patil) were among those indiscriminately granted loans and that some illegal loan waivers were done has come up in our audit." Six of the top ten defaulters in the bank were linked to her relatives. The INC claimed that Patil had not been involved with the bank since 1994 but The Indian Express reported that it had official documents showing her involvement as late as 2002. Pratibha Patil has held various official offices during her career. These are: : Special Category Sash (Banda en Categoría Especial) of the Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle (awarded 3 August 2018 - presented 1 June 2019, President of India Official Site, ex-President of India Pratibha Patil's Official Site, ex-President Pratibha Patil's Personal Site (www.pratibha patil.info) This is a list of the heads of state of India, from the independence of India in 1947 to the present day. The current head of state of India is Ram Nath Kovind, elected in 2017 after being nominated by BJP, the party run by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. From 1947 to 1950 the head of state under the Indian Independence Act 1947 was King of India, who was also the Monarch of the United Kingdom and of the other Dominions of the British Commonwealth. The monarch was represented in India by a Governor-General. India became a republic under the Constitution of 1950 and the Monarch and Governor-General were replaced by a ceremonial President. The succession to the throne was the same as the succession to the British throne. The Governor-General was the representative of the Monarch in India and exercised most of the powers of the Monarch. The Governor-General was appointed for an indefinite term, serving at the pleasure of the Monarch. After the passage of the Statute of Westminster 1931, the Governor-General was appointed solely on the advice of the Cabinet of India without the involvement of the British government. In the event of a vacancy the Chief Justice served as Officer Administering the Government. Under the Constitution, of the Republic of India, the President replaced the Monarch as ceremonial head of state. The President is elected by the Electoral College for a five-year term. In the event of a vacancy the Vice-President serves as Acting President. Status There are two living former Indian heads of state: World Statesmen – India, Rulers.org – India

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The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of working-class life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The show is set in the fictional town of Springfield and parodies American culture and society, television, and the human condition. The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a solicitation for a series of animated shorts with producer James L. Brooks. Groening created a dysfunctional family and named the characters after his own family members, substituting Bart for his own name. The shorts became a part of The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. After three seasons, the sketch was developed into a half-hour prime time show and became Fox's first series to land in the Top 30 ratings in a season (1989–90). Since its debut on December 17, 1989, episodes of The Simpsons have been broadcast. It is the longest-running American sitcom, and the longest-running American scripted primetime television series, both in terms of seasons and number of episodes. The Simpsons Movie, a feature-length film, was released in theaters worldwide on July 27, 2007, and grossed over $527 million. Then on October 30, 2007, a video game was released. Currently, The Simpsons finished airing its thirtieth season, which began airing September 30, 2018. The Simpsons was renewed for a thirty-first and thirty-second season on February 6, 2019, the latter of which will contain the 700th episode. The Simpsons is a joint production by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television and syndicated by 20th Television. The Simpsons received acclaim throughout its first nine or ten seasons, which are generally considered its "Golden Age". Time named it the 20th century's best television series, and Erik Adams of The A.V. Club named it "television's crowning achievement regardless of format". On January 14, 2000, the Simpson family was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 34 Primetime Emmy Awards, 34 Annie Awards, and a Peabody Award. Homer's exclamatory catchphrase "D'oh!" has been adopted into the English language, while The Simpsons has influenced many other later adult-oriented animated sitcoms. However, it has also been criticized for a perceived decline in quality over the years. The Simpsons is known for its wide ensemble of main and supporting characters. The main characters are the Simpson family, who live in a fictional "Middle America" town of Springfield. Homer, the father, works as a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, a position at odds with his careless, buffoonish personality. He is married to Marge Bouvier, a stereotypical American housewife and mother. They have three children: Bart, a ten-year-old troublemaker and prankster; Lisa, a precocious eight-year-old activist; and Maggie, the baby of the family who rarely speaks, but communicates by sucking on a pacifier. Although the family is dysfunctional, many episodes examine their relationships and bonds with each other and they are often shown to care about one another. Homer's dad Grampa Simpson lives in the Springfield Retirement Home after Homer forced his dad to sell his house so that his family could buy theirs. Grampa Simpson has had starring roles in several episodes. The family also owns a dog, Santa's Little Helper, and a cat, Snowball V, renamed Snowball II in "I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot". Both pets have had starring roles in several episodes. The show includes an array of quirky supporting characters, which include Homer's co-workers (also friends) Lenny Leonard and Carl Carlson, the school principal Seymour Skinner and teachers Edna Krabappel and Elizabeth Hoover, neighbor Ned Flanders, friends Barney Gumble, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, Moe Szyslak, Milhouse Van Houten, and Nelson Muntz, extended relatives Patty and Selma Bouvier, townspeople such as Mayor Quimby, Chief Clancy Wiggum, tycoon Charles Montgomery Burns and his executive assistant Waylon Smithers, and local celebrities Krusty the Clown and news reporter Kent Brockman. The creators originally intended many of these characters as one-time jokes or for fulfilling needed functions in the town. A number of them have gained expanded roles and subsequently starred in their own episodes. According to Matt Groening, the show adopted the concept of a large supporting cast from the comedy show SCTV. Despite the depiction of yearly milestones such as holidays or birthdays passing, the characters do not age between episodes (either physically or in stated age), and generally appear just as they did when the series began. The series uses a floating timeline in which episodes generally take place in the year the episode is produced even though the characters do not age. Flashbacks and flashforwards do occasionally depict the characters at other points in their lives, with the timeline of these depictions also generally floating relative to the year the episode is produced. For example, in the 1991 episode "I Married Marge", Bart (who is always 10 years old) appears to be born in 1980 or 1981. But in the 1995 episode "And Maggie Makes Three", Maggie (who always appears to be around 1 year old) appears to be born in 1993 or 1994. In the 1992 episode "Lisa's First Word", Lisa (who is always 8) is shown to have been born in 1984. A canon of the show does exist, although Treehouse of Horror episodes and any fictional story told within the series are typically non-canon. However, continuity is inconsistent and limited in The Simpsons. For example, Krusty the Clown may be able to read in one episode, but may not be able to read in another. Lessons learned by the family in one episode may be forgotten in the next. Some examples of limited continuity include Sideshow Bob's appearances where Bart and Lisa flashback at all the crimes he committed in Springfield or when the characters try to remember things that happened in previous episodes. The Simpsons takes place in the fictional American town of Springfield in an unknown and impossible-to-determine U.S. state. The show is intentionally evasive in regard to Springfield's location. Springfield's geography, and that of its surroundings, contains coastlines, deserts, vast farmland, tall mountains, or whatever the story or joke requires. Groening has said that Springfield has much in common with Portland, Oregon, the city where he grew up. The name "Springfield" is a common one in America and appears in at least 29 states. Groening has said that he named it after Springfield, Oregon, and the fictitious Springfield which was the setting of the series Father Knows Best. He "figured out that Springfield was one of the most common names for a city in the U.S. In anticipation of the success of the show, I thought, 'This will be cool; everyone will think it's their Springfield.' And they do." When producer James L. Brooks was working on the television variety show The Tracey Ullman Show, he decided to include small animated sketches before and after the commercial breaks. Having seen one of cartoonist Matt Groening's Life in Hell comic strips, Brooks asked Groening to pitch an idea for a series of animated shorts. Groening initially intended to present an animated version of his Life in Hell series. However, Groening later realized that animating Life in Hell would require the rescinding of publication rights for his life's work. He therefore chose another approach while waiting in the lobby of Brooks's office for the pitch meeting, hurriedly formulating his version of a dysfunctional family that became the Simpsons. He named the characters after his own family members, substituting "Bart" for his own name, adopting an anagram of the word "brat". The Simpson family first appeared as shorts in The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. Groening submitted only basic sketches to the animators and assumed that the figures would be cleaned up in production. However, the animators merely re-traced his drawings, which led to the crude appearance of the characters in the initial shorts. The animation was produced domestically at Klasky Csupo, with Wes Archer, David Silverman, and Bill Kopp being animators for the first season. Colorist Gyorgyi Peluce was the person who decided to make the characters yellow. In 1989, a team of production companies adapted The Simpsons into a half-hour series for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The team included the Klasky Csupo animation house. Brooks negotiated a provision in the contract with the Fox network that prevented Fox from interfering with the show's content. Groening said his goal in creating the show was to offer the audience an alternative to what he called "the mainstream trash" that they were watching. The half-hour series premiered on December 17, 1989, with "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". "Some Enchanted Evening" was the first full-length episode produced, but it did not broadcast until May 1990, as the last episode of the first season, because of animation problems. In 1992, Tracey Ullman filed a lawsuit against Fox, claiming that her show was the source of the series' success. The suit said she should receive a share of the profits of The Simpsons—a claim rejected by the courts. Matt Groening and James L. Brooks have served as executive producers during the show's entire history, and also function as creative consultants. Sam Simon, described by former Simpsons director Brad Bird as "the unsung hero" of the show, served as creative supervisor for the first four seasons. He was constantly at odds with Groening, Brooks and the show's production company Gracie Films and left in 1993. Before leaving, he negotiated a deal that sees him receive a share of the profits every year, and an executive producer credit despite not having worked on the show since 1993, at least until his passing in 2015. A more involved position on the show is the showrunner, who acts as head writer and manages the show's production for an entire season. The first team of writers, assembled by Sam Simon, consisted of John Swartzwelder, Jon Vitti, George Meyer, Jeff Martin, Al Jean, Mike Reiss, Jay Kogen and Wallace Wolodarsky. Newer Simpsons writing teams typically consist of sixteen writers who propose episode ideas at the beginning of each December. The main writer of each episode writes the first draft. Group rewriting sessions develop final scripts by adding or removing jokes, inserting scenes, and calling for re-readings of lines by the show's vocal performers. Until 2004, George Meyer, who had developed the show since the first season, was active in these sessions. According to long-time writer Jon Vitti, Meyer usually invented the best lines in a given episode, even though other writers may receive script credits. Each episode takes six months to produce so the show rarely comments on current events. Credited with sixty episodes, John Swartzwelder is the most prolific writer on The Simpsons. One of the best-known former writers is Conan O'Brien, who contributed to several episodes in the early 1990s before replacing David Letterman as host of the talk show Late Night. English comedian Ricky Gervais wrote the episode "Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife", becoming the first celebrity to both write and guest star in the same episode. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, writers of the film Superbad, wrote the episode "Homer the Whopper", with Rogen voicing a character in it. At the end of 2007, the writers of The Simpsons went on strike together with the other members of the Writers Guild of America, East. The show's writers had joined the guild in 1998. The Simpsons has six main cast members: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer. Castellaneta voices Homer Simpson, Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, Groundskeeper Willie, Mayor Quimby, Barney Gumble, and other adult, male characters. Julie Kavner voices Marge Simpson and Patty and Selma, as well as several minor characters. Castellaneta and Kavner had been a part of The Tracey Ullman Show cast and were given the parts so that new actors would not be needed. Cartwright voices Bart Simpson, Nelson Muntz, Ralph Wiggum and other children. Smith, the voice of Lisa Simpson, is the only cast member who regularly voices only one character, although she occasionally plays other episodic characters. The producers decided to hold casting for the roles of Bart and Lisa. Smith had initially been asked to audition for the role of Bart, but casting director Bonita Pietila believed her voice was too high, so she was given the role of Lisa instead. Cartwright was originally brought in to voice Lisa, but upon arriving at the audition, she found that Lisa was simply described as the "middle child" and at the time did not have much personality. Cartwright became more interested in the role of Bart, who was described as "devious, underachieving, school-hating, irreverent, [and] clever". Groening let her try out for the part instead, and upon hearing her read, gave her the job on the spot. Cartwright is the only one of the six main Simpsons cast members who had been professionally trained in voice acting prior to working on the show. Azaria and Shearer do not voice members of the title family, but play a majority of the male townspeople. Azaria, who has been a part of the Simpsons regular voice cast since the second season, voices recurring characters such as Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and Professor Frink. Shearer provides voices for Mr. Burns, Mr. Smithers, Principal Skinner, Ned Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy and Dr. Hibbert. Every main cast member has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance. With one exception, episode credits list only the voice actors, and not the characters they voice. Both Fox and the production crew wanted to keep their identities secret during the early seasons and, therefore, closed most of the recording sessions while refusing to publish photos of the recording artists. However, the network eventually revealed which roles each actor performed in the episode "Old Money", because the producers said the voice actors should receive credit for their work. In 2003, the cast appeared in an episode of Inside the Actors Studio, doing live performances of their characters' voices. The six main actors were paid $30,000 per episode until 1998, when they were involved in a pay dispute with Fox. The company threatened to replace them with new actors, even going as far as preparing for casting of new voices, but series creator Groening supported the actors in their action. The issue was soon resolved and, from 1998 to 2004, they were paid $125,000 per episode. The show's revenue continued to rise through syndication and DVD sales, and in April 2004 the main cast stopped appearing for script readings, demanding they be paid $360,000 per episode. The strike was resolved a month later and their salaries were increased to something between $250,000 and $360,000 per episode. In 2008, production for the twentieth season was put on hold due to new contract negotiations with the voice actors, who wanted a "healthy bump" in salary to an amount close to $500,000 per episode. The negotiations were soon completed, and the actors' salary was raised to $400,000 per episode. Three years later, with Fox threatening to cancel the series unless production costs were cut, the cast members accepted a 30 percent pay cut, down to just over $300,000 per episode. In addition to the main cast, Pamela Hayden, Tress MacNeille, Marcia Wallace, Maggie Roswell, and Russi Taylor voice supporting characters. From 1999 to 2002, Roswell's characters were voiced by Marcia Mitzman Gaven. Karl Wiedergott has also appeared in minor roles, but does not voice any recurring characters. Wiedergott left the show in 2010, and since then Chris Edgerly has appeared regularly to voice minor characters. Repeat "special guest" cast members include Albert Brooks, Phil Hartman, Jon Lovitz, Joe Mantegna, Maurice LaMarche, and Kelsey Grammer. Following Hartman's death in 1998, the characters he voiced (Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz) were retired; Wallace's character of Edna Krabappel was retired as well after her death in 2013. Episodes will quite often feature guest voices from a wide range of professions, including actors, athletes, authors, bands, musicians and scientists. In the earlier seasons, most of the guest stars voiced characters, but eventually more started appearing as themselves. Tony Bennett was the first guest star to appear as himself, appearing briefly in the season two episode "Dancin' Homer". The Simpsons holds the world record for "Most Guest Stars Featured in a Television Series". The Simpsons has been dubbed into several other languages, including Japanese, German, Spanish, and Portuguese. It is also one of the few programs dubbed in both standard French and Quebec French. The show has been broadcast in Arabic, but due to Islamic customs, numerous aspects of the show have been changed. For example, Homer drinks soda instead of beer and eats Egyptian beef sausages instead of hot dogs. Because of such changes, the Arabized version of the series met with a negative reaction from the lifelong Simpsons fans in the area. Several different U.S. and international studios animate The Simpsons. Throughout the run of the animated shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, the animation was produced domestically at Klasky Csupo. With the debut of the series, because of an increased workload, Fox subcontracted production to several local and foreign studios. These are AKOM, Anivision, Rough Draft Studios, USAnimation, and Toonzone Entertainment. For the first three seasons, Klasky Csupo animated The Simpsons in the United States. In 1992, the show's production company, Gracie Films, switched domestic production to Film Roman, who continued to animate the show until 2016. In Season 14, production switched from traditional cel animation to digital ink and paint. The first episode to experiment with digital coloring was "Radioactive Man" in 1995. Animators used digital ink and paint during production of the season 12 episode "Tennis the Menace", but Gracie Films delayed the regular use of digital ink and paint until two seasons later. The already completed "Tennis the Menace" was broadcast as made. The production staff at the U.S. animation studio, Film Roman, draws storyboards, designs new characters, backgrounds, props and draws character and background layouts, which in turn become animatics to be screened for the writers at Gracie Films for any changes to be made before the work is shipped overseas. The overseas studios then draw the inbetweens, ink and paint, and render the animation to tape before it is shipped back to the United States to be delivered to Fox three to four months later. The series began high-definition production in Season 20; the first episode, "Take My Life, Please", aired February 15, 2009. The move to HDTV included a new opening sequence. Matt Groening called it a complicated change because it affected the timing and composition of animation. The Simpsons uses the standard setup of a situational comedy, or sitcom, as its premise. The series centers on a family and their life in a typical American town, serving as a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle. However, because of its animated nature, The Simpsons scope is larger than that of a regular sitcom. The town of Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. By having Homer work in a nuclear power plant, the show can comment on the state of the environment. Through Bart and Lisa's days at Springfield Elementary School, the show's writers illustrate pressing or controversial issues in the field of education. The town features a vast array of media channels—from kids' television programming to local news, which enables the producers to make jokes about themselves and the entertainment industry. Some commentators say the show is political in nature and susceptible to a left- wing bias. Al Jean acknowledged in an interview that "We [the show] are of liberal bent." The writers often evince an appreciation for liberal ideals, but the show makes jokes across the political spectrum. The show portrays government and large corporations as callous entities that take advantage of the common worker. Thus, the writers often portray authority figures in an unflattering or negative light. In The Simpsons, politicians are corrupt, ministers such as Reverend Lovejoy are indifferent to churchgoers, and the local police force is incompetent. Religion also figures as a recurring theme. In times of crisis, the family often turns to God, and the show has dealt with most of the major religions. The Simpsons opening sequence is one of the show's most memorable hallmarks. The standard opening has gone through three iterations (a replacement of some shots at the start of the second season, and a brand new sequence when the show switched to high-definition in 2009). Each has the same basic sequence of events: the camera zooms through cumulus clouds, through the show's title towards the town of Springfield. The camera then follows the members of the family on their way home. Upon entering their house, the Simpsons settle down on their couch to watch television. The original opening was created by David Silverman, and was the first task he did when production began on the show. The series' distinctive theme song was composed by musician Danny Elfman in 1989, after Groening approached him requesting a retro style piece. This piece has been noted by Elfman as the most popular of his career. One of the most distinctive aspects of the opening is that three of its elements change from episode to episode: Bart writes different things on the school chalkboard, Lisa plays different solos on her saxophone (or occasionally a different instrument), and different gags accompany the family as they enter their living room to sit on the couch. The special Halloween episode has become an annual tradition. "Treehouse of Horror" first broadcast in 1990 as part of season two and established the pattern of three separate, self-contained stories in each Halloween episode. These pieces usually involve the family in some horror, science fiction, or supernatural setting and often parody or pay homage to a famous piece of work in those genres. They always take place outside the normal continuity of the show. Although the Treehouse series is meant to be seen on Halloween, this changed by the 2000s, when new installments have premiered after Halloween due to Fox's current contract with Major League Baseball's World Series, however, since 2011, every Treehouse of Horror episode has aired in October. The show's humor turns on cultural references that cover a wide spectrum of society so that viewers from all generations can enjoy the show. Such references, for example, come from movies, television, music, literature, science, and history. The animators also regularly add jokes or sight gags into the show's background via humorous or incongruous bits of text in signs, newspapers, billboards, and elsewhere. The audience may often not notice the visual jokes in a single viewing. Some are so fleeting that they become apparent only by pausing a video recording of the show or viewing it in slow motion. Kristin Thompson argues that The Simpsons uses a "flurry of cultural references, intentionally inconsistent characterization, and considerable self-reflexivity about television conventions and the status of the programme as a television show." One of Bart's early hallmarks was his prank calls to Moe's Tavern owner Moe Szyslak in which Bart calls Moe and asks for a gag name. Moe tries to find that person in the bar, but soon realizes it is a prank call and angrily threatens Bart. These calls were apparently based on a series of prank calls known as the Tube Bar recordings, though Groening has denied any causal connection. Moe was based partly on Tube Bar owner Louis "Red" Deutsch, whose often profane responses inspired Moe's violent side. As the series progressed, it became more difficult for the writers to come up with a fake name and to write Moe's angry response, and the pranks were dropped as a regular joke during the fourth season. The Simpsons also often includes self-referential humor. The most common form is jokes about Fox Broadcasting. For example, the episode "She Used to Be My Girl" included a scene in which a Fox News Channel van drove down the street while displaying a large "Bush Cheney 2004" banner and playing Queen's "We Are the Champions", in reference to the 2004 U.S. presidential election and claims of conservative bias in Fox News. The show uses catchphrases, and most of the primary and secondary characters have at least one each. Notable expressions include Homer's annoyed grunt "D'oh!", Mr. Burns' "Excellent" and Nelson Muntz's "Ha- ha!" Some of Bart's catchphrases, such as "¡Ay, caramba!", "Don't have a cow, man!" and "Eat my shorts!" appeared on T-shirts in the show's early days. However, Bart rarely used the latter two phrases until after they became popular through the merchandising. The use of many of these catchphrases has declined in recent seasons. The episode "Bart Gets Famous" mocks catchphrase- based humor, as Bart achieves fame on the Krusty the Clown Show solely for saying "I didn't do it." The Simpsons has gained notoriety for jokes that eventually became reality. Perhaps the most famous example comes from the episode "Bart to the Future", which mentions billionaire Donald Trump having been President of the United States at one time and leaving the nation broke. The episode first aired in 2000, sixteen years before Trump was elected. Another episode, "When You Dish Upon a Star", lampooned 20th Century Fox as a division of The Walt Disney Company. Nineteen years later, Disney purchased Fox. Other examples of The Simpsons predicting the future include the introduction of the Smartwatch, video chat services, autocorrection technology, and Lady Gaga's acrobatic performance at the Super Bowl LI halftime show. Conversely, some fact-checking sources such as Snopes have debunked many of these claims, including the aforementioned Lady Gaga one. A number of neologisms that originated on The Simpsons have entered popular vernacular. Mark Liberman, director of the Linguistic Data Consortium, remarked, "The Simpsons has apparently taken over from Shakespeare and the Bible as our culture's greatest source of idioms, catchphrases and sundry other textual allusions." The most famous catchphrase is Homer's annoyed grunt: "D'oh!" So ubiquitous is the expression that it is now listed in the Oxford English Dictionary, but without the apostrophe. Dan Castellaneta says he borrowed the phrase from James Finlayson, an actor in many Laurel and Hardy comedies, who pronounced it in a more elongated and whining tone. The staff of The Simpsons told Castellaneta to shorten the noise, and it went on to become the well-known exclamation in the television series. Groundskeeper Willie's description of the French as "cheese-eating surrender monkeys" was used by National Review columnist Jonah Goldberg in 2003, after France's opposition to the proposed invasion of Iraq. The phrase quickly spread to other journalists. "" and "embiggen", words used in "Lisa the Iconoclast", have since appeared in the Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon, and scientific journals respectively. "Kwyjibo", a fake Scrabble word invented by Bart in "Bart the Genius", was used as one of the aliases of the creator of the Melissa worm. "I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords", was used by Kent Brockman in "Deep Space Homer" and has become a snowclone, with variants of the utterance used to express obsequious submission. It has been used in media, such as New Scientist magazine. The dismissive term "Meh", believed to have been popularized by the show, entered the Collins English Dictionary in 2008. Other words credited as stemming from the show include "yoink" and "craptacular". The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations includes several quotations from the show. As well as "cheese-eating surrender monkeys", Homer's lines, "Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is never try", from "Burns' Heir" (season five, 1994) as well as "Kids are the best, Apu. You can teach them to hate the things you hate. And they practically raise themselves, what with the Internet and all", from "Eight Misbehavin'" (season 11, 1999), entered the dictionary in August 2007. Many quotes/scenes have become popular internet memes, including Jasper Beardley‘s quote "That's a paddlin’" from The PTA Disbands (season 6, 1995) and Steamed Hams from 22 Short Films About Springfield (season 7, 1996). The Simpsons was the first successful animated program in American prime time since Wait Till Your Father Gets Home in the 1970s. During most of the 1980s, US pundits considered animated shows as appropriate only for children, and animating a show was too expensive to achieve a quality suitable for prime- time television. The Simpsons changed this perception, initially leading to a short period where networks attempted to recreate prime-time cartoon success with shows like Capitol Critters, Fish Police, and Family Dog, which were expensive and unsuccessful. The Simpsons use of Korean animation studios for tweening, coloring, and filming made the episodes cheaper. The success of The Simpsons and the lower production cost prompted US television networks to take chances on other adult animated series. This development led US producers to a 1990s boom in new, animated prime-time shows for adults, such as Beavis and Butt-Head, South Park, Family Guy, King of the Hill, Futurama and The Critic. For Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, "The Simpsons created an audience for prime-time animation that had not been there for many, many years ... As far as I'm concerned, they basically re-invented the wheel. They created what is in many ways—you could classify it as—a wholly new medium." The Simpsons has had crossovers with four other shows. In the episode "A Star Is Burns", Marge invites Jay Sherman, the main character of The Critic, to be a judge for a film festival in Springfield. Matt Groening had his name removed from the episode since he had no involvement with The Critic. South Park later paid homage to The Simpsons with the episode "Simpsons Already Did It". In "Simpsorama", the Planet Express crew from Futurama come to Springfield in the present to prevent the Simpsons from destroying the future. In the Family Guy episode "The Simpsons Guy", the Griffins visit Springfield and meet the Simpsons. The Simpsons has also influenced live-action shows like Malcolm in the Middle, which featured the use of sight gags and did not use a laugh track unlike most sitcoms. Malcolm in the Middle debuted January 9, 2000, in the time slot after The Simpsons. Ricky Gervais called The Simpsons an influence on The Office, and fellow British sitcom Spaced was, according to its director Edgar Wright, "an attempt to do a live-action The Simpsons." In Georgia, the animated television sitcom The Samsonadzes, launched in November 2009, has been noted for its very strong resemblance with The Simpsons, which its creator Shalva Ramishvili has acknowledged. The Simpsons was the Fox network's first television series to rank among a season's top 30 highest-rated shows. In 1990, Bart quickly became one of the most popular characters on television in what was termed "Bartmania". He became the most prevalent Simpsons character on memorabilia, such as T-shirts. In the early 1990s, millions of T-shirts featuring Bart were sold; as many as one million were sold on some days. Believing Bart to be a bad role model, several American public schools banned T-shirts featuring Bart next to captions such as "I'm Bart Simpson. Who the hell are you?" and "Underachiever ('And proud of it, man!')". The Simpsons merchandise sold well and generated $2 billion in revenue during the first 14 months of sales. Because of his popularity, Bart was often the most promoted member of the Simpson family in advertisements for the show, even for episodes in which he was not involved in the main plot. Due to the show's success, over the summer of 1990 the Fox Network decided to switch The Simpsons time slot from 8:00 p.m. ET on Sunday night to the same time on Thursday, where it competed with The Cosby Show on NBC, the number one show at the time. Through the summer, several news outlets published stories about the supposed "Bill vs. Bart" rivalry. "Bart Gets an F" (season two, 1990) was the first episode to air against The Cosby Show, and it received a lower Nielsen ratings, tying for eighth behind The Cosby Show, which had an 18.5 rating. The rating is based on the number of household televisions that were tuned into the show, but Nielsen Media Research estimated that 33.6 million viewers watched the episode, making it the number one show in terms of actual viewers that week. At the time, it was the most watched episode in the history of the Fox Network, and it is still the highest rated episode in the history of The Simpsons. The show moved back to its Sunday slot in 1994 and has remained there ever since. The Simpsons has received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics, and it has been noted for being described as "the most irreverent and unapologetic show on the air." In a 1990 review of the show, Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly described it as "the American family at its most complicated, drawn as simple cartoons. It's this neat paradox that makes millions of people turn away from the three big networks on Sunday nights to concentrate on The Simpsons." Tucker also described the show as a "pop-cultural phenomenon, a prime-time cartoon show that appeals to the entire family." On February 9, 1997, The Simpsons surpassed The Flintstones with the episode "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" as the longest-running prime-time animated series in the United States. In 2004, The Simpsons replaced The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952 to 1966) as the longest-running sitcom (animated or live action) in the United States. In 2009, The Simpsons surpassed The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriets record of 435 episodes and is now recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's longest running sitcom (in terms of episode count). In October 2004, Scooby-Doo briefly overtook The Simpsons as the American animated show with the highest number of episodes (albeit under several different iterations). However, network executives in April 2005 again cancelled Scooby-Doo, which finished with 371 episodes, and The Simpsons reclaimed the title with 378 episodes at the end of their seventeenth season. In May 2007, The Simpsons reached their 400th episode at the end of the eighteenth season. While The Simpsons has the record for the number of episodes by an American animated show, other animated series have surpassed The Simpsons. For example, the Japanese anime series Sazae-san has over 7,000 episodes to its credit. In 2009, Fox began a year-long celebration of the show titled "Best. 20 Years. Ever." to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the premiere of The Simpsons. One of the first parts of the celebration is the "Unleash Your Yellow" contest in which entrants must design a poster for the show. The celebration ended on January 10, 2010 (almost 20 years after "Bart the Genius" aired on January 14, 1990), with The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special – In 3-D! On Ice!, a documentary special by documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock that examines the "cultural phenomenon of The Simpsons". As of the twenty-first season (2009–2010), The Simpsons became the longest-running American scripted primetime television series, having surpassed the 1955–1975 run of Gunsmoke. On April 29, 2018, The Simpsons also surpassed Gunsmokes 635-episode count with the episode "Forgive and Regret." On February 6, 2019, it was announced that The Simpsons has been renewed for Seasons 31 and 32. The Simpsons has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 34 Primetime Emmy Awards, 34 Annie Awards and a Peabody Award. In a 1999 issue celebrating the 20th century's greatest achievements in arts and entertainment, Time magazine named The Simpsons the century's best television series. In that same issue, Time included Bart Simpson in the , the publication's list of the century's 100 most influential people. Bart was the only fictional character on the list. On January 14, 2000, the Simpsons were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Also in 2000, Entertainment Weekly magazine TV critic Ken Tucker named The Simpsons the greatest television show of the 1990s. Furthermore, viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 have voted The Simpsons at the top of two polls: 2001's 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows, and 2005's The 100 Greatest Cartoons, with Homer Simpson voted into first place in 2001's 100 Greatest TV Characters. Homer also placed ninth on Entertainment Weekly list of the "50 Greatest TV icons". In 2002, The Simpsons ranked #8 on TV Guides 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time, and was ranked the #6 cult show in 2004. In 2007, it moved to #8 on TV Guide's cult shows list and was included in Time list of the "100 Best TV Shows of All Time". In 2008 the show was placed in first on Entertainment Weekly "Top 100 Shows of the Past 25 Years". Empire named it the greatest TV show of all time. In 2010, Entertainment Weekly named Homer "the greatest character of the last 20 years", while in 2013 the Writers Guild of America listed The Simpsons as the 11th "best written" series in television history. In 2013, TV Guide ranked The Simpsons as the greatest TV cartoon of all time and the tenth greatest show of all time. A 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people named it as their #10 favorite show. In 2015, British newspaper The Telegraph named The Simpsons as one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time. Television critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz ranked The Simpsons as the greatest American TV series of all time in their 2016 book . Bart's rebellious, bad boy nature, which underlies his misbehavior and rarely leads to any punishment, led some people to characterize him as a poor role model for children. In schools, educators claimed that Bart was a "threat to learning" because of his "underachiever and proud of it" attitude and negative attitude regarding his education. Others described him as "egotistical, aggressive and mean-spirited". In a 1991 interview, Bill Cosby described Bart as a bad role model for children, calling him "angry, confused, frustrated". In response, Matt Groening said, "That sums up Bart, all right. Most people are in a struggle to be normal [and] he thinks normal is very boring, and does things that others just wished they dare do." On January 27, 1992, then- President George H. W. Bush said, "We are going to keep on trying to strengthen the American family, to make American families a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons." The writers rushed out a tongue-in- cheek reply in the form of a short segment which aired three days later before a rerun of "Stark Raving Dad" in which Bart replied, "Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're praying for an end to the Depression, too." Various episodes of the show have generated controversy. The Simpsons visit Australia in "Bart vs. Australia" (season six, 1995) and Brazil in "Blame It on Lisa" (season 13, 2002) and both episodes generated controversy and negative reaction in the visited countries. In the latter case, Rio de Janeiro's tourist board—which claimed that the city was portrayed as having rampant street crime, kidnappings, slums, and monkey and rat infestations—went so far as to threaten Fox with legal action. Groening was a fierce and vocal critic of the episode "A Star Is Burns" (season six, 1995) which featured a crossover with The Critic. He felt that it was just an advertisement for The Critic, and that people would incorrectly associate the show with him. When he was unsuccessful in getting the episode pulled, he had his name removed from the credits and went public with his concerns, openly criticizing James L. Brooks and saying the episode "violates the Simpsons' universe." In response, Brooks said, "I am furious with Matt, ... he's allowed his opinion, but airing this publicly in the press is going too far. ... his behavior right now is rotten." "The Principal and the Pauper" (season nine, 1997) is one of the most controversial episodes of The Simpsons. Many fans and critics reacted negatively to the revelation that Seymour Skinner, a recurring character since the first season, was an impostor. The episode has been criticized by Groening and by Harry Shearer, who provides the voice of Skinner. In a 2001 interview, Shearer recalled that after reading the script, he told the writers, "That's so wrong. You're taking something that an audience has built eight years or nine years of investment in and just tossed it in the trash can for no good reason, for a story we've done before with other characters. It's so arbitrary and gratuitous, and it's disrespectful to the audience." The show has reportedly been taken off the air in several countries. China banned it from prime-time television in August 2006, "in an effort to protect China's struggling animation studios." In 2008, Venezuela barred the show from airing on morning television as it was deemed "unsuitable for children". The same year, several Russian Pentecostal churches demanded that The Simpsons, South Park and some other Western cartoons be removed from broadcast schedules "for propaganda of various vices" and the broadcaster's license to be revoked. However, the court decision later dismissed this request. Critics' reviews of early Simpsons episodes praised the show for its sassy humor, wit, realism, and intelligence. However, in the late 1990s, around the airing of season 10, the tone and emphasis of the show began to change. Some critics started calling the show "tired". By 2000, some long-term fans had become disillusioned with the show, and pointed to its shift from character- driven plots to what they perceived as an overemphasis on zany antics. Jim Schembri of The Sydney Morning Herald attributed the decline in quality to an abandonment of character-driven storylines in favor of and overuse of celebrity cameo appearances and references to popular culture. Schembri wrote in 2011: "The central tragedy of The Simpsons is that it has gone from commanding attention to merely being attention-seeking. It began by proving that cartoon characters don't have to be caricatures; they can be invested with real emotions. Now the show has in essence fermented into a limp parody of itself. Memorable story arcs have been sacrificed for the sake of celebrity walk-ons and punchline-hungry dialogue." In 2010, the BBC noted "the common consensus is that The Simpsons golden era ended after season nine", and Todd Leopold of CNN, in an article looking at its perceived decline, stated "for many fans ... the glory days are long past." Similarly, Tyler Wilson of Coeur d'Alene Press has referred to seasons one to nine as the show's "golden age", and Ian Nathan of Empire described the show's classic era as being "say, the first ten seasons." Jon Heacock of LucidWorks stated that "for the first ten years [seasons], the show was consistently at the top of its game", with "so many moments, quotations, and references – both epic and obscure – that helped turn the Simpson family into the cultural icons that they remain to this day." Mike Scully, who was showrunner during seasons nine through twelve, has been the subject of criticism. Chris Suellentrop of Slate wrote that "under Scully's tenure, The Simpsons became, well, a cartoon ... Episodes that once would have ended with Homer and Marge bicycling into the sunset now end with Homer blowing a tranquilizer dart into Marge's neck. The show's still funny, but it hasn't been touching in years." When asked in 2007 how the series' longevity is sustained, Scully joked: "Lower your quality standards. Once you've done that you can go on forever." Al Jean, showrunner since season thirteen, has also been the subject of criticism, with some arguing that the show has continued to decline in quality under his tenure. Former writers have complained that under Jean, the show is "on auto-pilot", "too sentimental", and the episodes are "just being cranked out." Some critics believe that the show has "entered a steady decline under Jean and is no longer really funny." John Ortved, author of , characterized the Jean era as "toothless", and criticized what he perceived as the show's increase in social and political commentary. Jean responded: "Well, it's possible that we've declined. But honestly, I've been here the whole time and I do remember in season two people saying, 'It's gone downhill.' If we'd listened to that then we would have stopped after episode 13. I'm glad we didn't." In 2004, Harry Shearer criticized what he perceived as the show's declining quality: "I rate the last three seasons as among the worst, so season four looks very good to me now." Dan Castellaneta responded: "I don't agree, ... I think Harry's issue is that the show isn't as grounded as it was in the first three or four seasons, that it's gotten crazy or a little more madcap. I think it organically changes to stay fresh." Also in 2004 author Douglas Coupland described claims of declining quality in the series as "hogwash", saying "The Simpsons hasn't fumbled the ball in fourteen years, it's hardly likely to fumble it now." In an April 2006 interview, Groening said: "I honestly don't see any end in sight. I think it's possible that the show will become too financially cumbersome ... but right now, the show is creatively, I think, as good or better than it's ever been. The animation is incredibly detailed and imaginative, and the stories do things that we haven't done before. So creatively there's no reason to quit." In 2016, popular culture writer Anna Leszkiewicz suggested that even though The Simpsons still holds cultural relevance, contemporary appeal is only for the first ten seasons, with recent episodes only garnering mainstream attention when a favorite character from the golden era is killed off, or when new information and shock twists are given for old characters. The series' ratings have also declined; while the first season enjoyed an average of 13.4 million viewing households per episode in the U.S., the twenty-first season had an average of 7.2 million viewers. Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz argued in their 2016 book titled TV (The Book) that the peak of The Simpsons are "roughly seasons [three through twelve]", and that despite the decline, episodes from the later seasons such as "Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind" and "Holidays of Future Passed" could be considered on par with the earlier classic episodes, further stating that "even if you want to call the show today a thin shadow of its former self, think about how mind-boggingly great its former self had to be for so- diminished a version to be watchable at all." The stereotypical nature of the character Apu Nahasapeemapetilon has long been the subject of controversy. This was particularly highlighted by Indian- American comedian Hari Kondabolu's 2017 documentary The Problem with Apu. In the film, Kondabolu states that as a child he was a fan of The Simpsons and liked Apu, but he now finds the character's stereotypical nature troublesome. Defenders of the character responded that the show is built on comical stereotypes, with creator Matt Groening saying, "that's the nature of cartooning." He added that he was "proud of what we do on the show", and "it's a time in our culture where people love to pretend they're offended". In response to the controversy, Apu's voice actor, Hank Azaria, said he was willing to step aside from his role as Apu: "The most important thing is to listen to South Asian people, Indian people in this country when they talk about what they feel and how they think about this character." The criticisms were referenced in the season 29 episode "No Good Read Goes Unpunished", when Lisa breaks the fourth wall and addresses the audience by saying, "Something that started decades ago and was applauded and inoffensive is now politically incorrect. What can you do?" to which Marge replies, "Some things will be addressed at a later date." Lisa adds, "If at all." This reference was clarified by the fact that there was a framed photo of Apu with the caption on the photo saying "Don't have a cow, Apu", a play on Bart's catchphrase "Don't have a cow, man," as well as the fact that Hindus do not eat cows as they are considered sacred. In October 2018, it was reported that Apu would be written out of the show, however that report was later debunked by the producers. Numerous Simpson-related comic books have been released over the years. So far, nine comic book series have been published by Bongo Comics since 1993. The first comic strips based on The Simpsons appeared in 1991 in the magazine Simpsons Illustrated, which was a companion magazine to the show. The comic strips were popular and a one-shot comic book titled Simpsons Comics and Stories, containing four different stories, was released in 1993 for the fans. The book was a success and due to this, the creator of The Simpsons, Matt Groening, and his companions Bill Morrison, Mike Rote, Steve Vance and Cindy Vance created the publishing company Bongo Comics. Issues of Simpsons Comics, Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror and Bart Simpson have been collected and reprinted in trade paperbacks in the United States by HarperCollins. 20th Century Fox, Gracie Films, and Film Roman produced The Simpsons Movie, an animated film that was released on July 27, 2007. The film was directed by long-time Simpsons producer David Silverman and written by a team of Simpsons writers comprising Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, Al Jean, George Meyer, Mike Reiss, John Swartzwelder, Jon Vitti, David Mirkin, Mike Scully, Matt Selman, and Ian Maxtone-Graham. Production of the film occurred alongside continued writing of the series despite long-time claims by those involved in the show that a film would enter production only after the series had concluded. There had been talk of a possible feature-length Simpsons film ever since the early seasons of the series. James L. Brooks originally thought that the story of the episode "Kamp Krusty" was suitable for a film, but he encountered difficulties in trying to expand the script to feature-length. For a long time, difficulties such as lack of a suitable story and an already fully engaged crew of writers delayed the project. On August 10, 2018, 20th Century Fox announced that a sequel is in development. Collections of original music featured in the series have been released on the albums Songs in the Key of Springfield, Go Simpsonic with The Simpsons and . Several songs have been recorded with the purpose of a single or album release and have not been featured on the show. The album The Simpsons Sing the Blues was released in September 1990 and was a success, peaking at #3 on the Billboard 200 and becoming certified 2× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The first single from the album was the pop rap song "Do the Bartman", performed by Nancy Cartwright and released on November 20, 1990. The song was written by Michael Jackson, although he did not receive any credit. The Yellow Album was released in 1998, but received poor reception and did not chart in any country. In 2007, it was officially announced that The Simpsons Ride, a simulator ride, would be implemented into the Universal Studios Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood. It officially opened May 15, 2008 in Florida and May 19, 2008, in Hollywood. In the ride, patrons are introduced to a cartoon theme park called Krustyland built by Krusty the Clown. However, Sideshow Bob is loose from prison to get revenge on Krusty and the Simpson family. It features more than 24 regular characters from The Simpsons and features the voices of the regular cast members, as well as Pamela Hayden, Russi Taylor and Kelsey Grammer. Harry Shearer did not participate in the ride, so none of his characters has vocal parts. Numerous video games based on the show have been produced. Some of the early games include Konami's arcade game The Simpsons (1991) and Acclaim Entertainment's (1991). More modern games include (2001), (2003) and The Simpsons Game (2007). Electronic Arts, which produced The Simpsons Game, has owned the exclusive rights to create video games based on the show since 2005. In 2010, they released a game called The Simpsons Arcade for iOS. Another EA- produced mobile game, , was released in 2012 for iOS users, then in 2013 for Android and Kindle users. Two Simpsons pinball machines have been produced: one that was available briefly after the first season, and another in 2007, both out of production. The cable television network FXX has exclusive cable and digital syndication rights for The Simpsons. Original contracts had previously stated that syndication rights for The Simpsons would not be sold to cable until the series conclusion, at a time when cable syndication deals were highly rare. The series has been syndicated to local broadcast stations in nearly all markets throughout the United States since September 1993. FXX premiered The Simpsons on their network on August 21, 2014 by starting a twelve-day marathon which featured the first 552 episodes (every single episode that had already been released at the time) aired chronologically, including The Simpsons Movie, which FX Networks had already owned the rights to air. It was the longest continuous marathon in the history of television (until VH1 Classic aired a 433-hour, nineteen-day, marathon of Saturday Night Live in 2015; celebrating that program's 40th anniversary). The first day of the marathon was the highest rated broadcast day in the history of the network so far, the ratings more than tripled that those of regular prime time programming for FXX. Ratings during the first six nights of the marathon grew night after night, with the network ranking within the top 5 networks in basic cable each night. On May 14, 2019, it was announced that FX Networks would share The Simpsons with Freeform starting October 2, 2019. On October 21, 2014, a digital service courtesy of the FXNOW app, called Simpsons World, launched. Simpsons World with every episode of the series accessible to authenticated FX subscribers, and is available on game consoles such as Xbox One, streaming devices such as Roku and Apple TV, and online via web browser. There was early criticism of both wrong aspect ratios for earlier episodes and the length of commercial breaks on the streaming service, but there are now fewer commercial breaks during individual episodes. Later it was announced that Simpsons World would now let users watch all of the SD episodes in their original format. Simpsons World was discontinued after the launch of Disney+ on November 12, 2019, where the series streams exclusively. However, the series is only available cropped to with no option to view the original versions, reigniting criticisms of cropping old episodes. In response, Disney stated "...in early 2020, Disney+ will make the first 19 seasons (and some episodes from Season 20) of The Simpsons available in their original 4:3 aspect ratio, giving subscribers a choice of how they prefer to view the popular series." The season 3 premiere "Stark Raving Dad", which features Michael Jackson as the voice of Leon Kompowsky, was pulled out of rotation in 2019 by Matt Groening, James L. Brooks and Al Jean after HBO aired the documentary Leaving Neverland, in which two men share details into how Jackson allegedly abused them as children. It is therefore unavailable on Disney+. However, the episode is still available on The Complete Third Season DVD box set released on August 26, 2003. In July 2017, all episodes from seasons 4 to 19 were made available for purchase on the iTunes Store, in Canada. The popularity of The Simpsons has made it a billion-dollar merchandising industry. The title family and supporting characters appear on everything from T-shirts to posters. The Simpsons has been used as a theme for special editions of well-known board games, including Clue, Scrabble, Monopoly, Operation, and The Game of Life, as well as the trivia games What Would Homer Do? and Simpsons Jeopardy!. Several card games such as trump cards and The Simpsons Trading Card Game have also been released. Many official or unofficial Simpsons books such as episode guides have been published. Many episodes of the show have been released on DVD and VHS over the years. When the first season DVD was released in 2001, it quickly became the best-selling television DVD in history, although it was later overtaken by the first season of Chappelle's Show. In particular, seasons one through seventeen were released on DVD for 13 years between September 2001 to December 2014 in the U.S./Canada (Region 1), Europe (Region 2) and Australia/New Zealand/Latin America (Region 4). However, on April 19, 2015, Al Jean announced that the Season 17 DVD would be the last one ever produced, leaving the collection from Seasons 1 to 17, Season 20 (released out of order in 2010), with Seasons 18, 19, and 21 onwards unreleased. Jean also stated that the deleted scenes and commentaries would try to be released to the Simpsons World app, and that they were pushing for Simpsons World to be expanded outside of the U.S. Two years later, however, on July 22, 2017, it was announced that Season 18 would be released on December 5, 2017 on DVD. Another two years later, on July 20, 2019, it was announced that Season 19 would be released on December 3, 2019 on DVD. In 2003, about 500 companies around the world were licensed to use Simpsons characters in their advertising. As a promotion for The Simpsons Movie, twelve 7-Eleven stores were transformed into Kwik-E-Marts and sold The Simpsons related products. These included "Buzz Cola", "Krusty-O" cereal, pink doughnuts with sprinkles, and "Squishees". In 2008, consumers around the world spent $750 million on merchandise related to The Simpsons, with half of the amount originating from the United States. By 2009, 20th Century Fox had greatly increased merchandising efforts. On April 9, 2009, the United States Postal Service unveiled a series of five 44-cent stamps featuring Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie, to commemorate the show's twentieth anniversary. The Simpsons is the first television series still in production to receive this recognition. The stamps, designed by Matt Groening, were made available for purchase on May 7, 2009. Approximately one billion were printed, but only 318 million were sold, costing the Postal Service $1.2 million. The Simpsons at Don Markstein's Toonopedia Archived from the original on June 4, 2017., The Simpsons Archive The Simpsons is an American animated television sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a satirical depiction of a dysfunctional middle class American lifestyle starring the eponymous family: Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. Set in the town of Springfield, the show lampoons both American culture and the human condition. The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a pitch for a series of animated shorts with producer James L. Brooks. Groening named each character (other than Bart) after members of his own family. The shorts became part of the Fox series The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. After a three-season run, the sketch was developed into a half-hour prime-time hit show. Since its debut on December 17, 1989, The Simpsons has broadcast 673 episodes. The show holds several American television longevity records. It is the longest-running prime-time animated series and longest-running sitcom in the United States. On February 19, 2012, The Simpsons reached its 500th episode in the twenty-third season. With its twenty-first season (2009–10), the series surpassed Gunsmoke in seasons to claim the spot as the longest-running American prime-time scripted television series, and later also surpassed Gunsmoke in episode count with the episode "Forgive and Regret" on April 29, 2018. Episodes of The Simpsons have won dozens of awards, including 31 Emmys (ten for Outstanding Animated Program), 30 Annies, and a Peabody. The Simpsons Movie, a feature-length film, was released in theaters worldwide on July 26 and 27, 2007 and grossed US$526.2 million worldwide. The first twenty seasons are available on DVD in regions 1, 2, and 4, with the twentieth season released on both DVD and Blu- ray in 2010 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the series. On April 8, 2015, showrunner Al Jean announced that there would be no more DVD or Blu-ray releases, shifting focus to digital distribution, although this was later reversed on July 22, 2017. Another two years later, on July 20, 2019, it was announced that Season 19 would be released on December 3, 2019, on DVD. On November 4, 2016, The Simpsons was renewed for seasons 29 and 30. It reached its 600th episode on October 16, 2016, in its twenty-eighth season. The thirtieth season ended on May 12, 2019. On February 6, 2019, The Simpsons was renewed for seasons 31 and 32, in which the latter will contain the 700th episode. Season 31 premiered on September 29, 2019. With its first season, The Simpsons became the Fox network's first series to rank among the top thirty highest rated shows of a television season. Due to this success, Fox decided to switch The Simpsons timeslot in hopes of higher ratings for the shows airing after it. The series moved from 8:00 p.m. on Sunday nights to the same time on Thursdays, where it competed with The Cosby Show, the number one show at the time. Many of the producers were against the move, as The Simpsons had been in the top ten while airing on Sunday, and they felt the move would destroy its ratings. Ratings wise, new episodes of The Cosby Show beat The Simpsons every time during the second season and The Simpsons eventually fell out of the top ten. At the end of the season Cosby averaged as the fifth highest rated show on television, while The Simpsons was thirty-eighth. The show continued in its Thursday timeslot until the sixth season, when, in 1994, it reverted to its original slot on Sunday. It has remained there ever since. Seasons 1–11 are ranked by households (in millions)., Seasons 12–30 are ranked by total viewers (in millions). 1. Until the 1996/97 television season, ratings were calculated over 30 weeks from September to mid April. Episodes that aired after mid-April were not part of the overall average and ranking. 2. Season one had approximately 13.4 million viewing households. Season two dropped 9%, resulting in an average of approximately 12.2 million viewing households. 3. Season three had an average rating of 13.0 points. For the 1991/92 season, each point represented 921,000 viewing households, resulting in a total average of approximately 12.0 million viewing households. 4. Season four had approximately 12.1 million viewing households. Season five dropped 13%, resulting in an average of approximately 10.5 million viewing households. "The Simpsons Guy" – a crossover episode of Family Guy, The Simpsons home media Bibliography List of The Simpsons episodes at The Simpsons.com, List of The Simpsons episodes at TV.com The Simpsons twentieth season aired on Fox from September 28, 2008 to May 17, 2009. With this season, the show tied Gunsmoke as the longest-running American primetime television series in terms of total number of seasons. The season was released on Blu-ray on January 12, 2010, making this the first season to be released on Blu-ray. It was released on DVD in Region 1 on January 12, 2010, and in Region 4 on January 20, 2010. The season was only released on DVD in Region 2 on September 17, 2010 in a few areas. It contained nine holdover episodes from the season 19 (KABF) production line. Production on the season was delayed because of contract negotiations with the six main voice actors. The dispute was resolved, and the actors' salary was raised to $400,000 (US) per episode. The delay in production caused the planned 22 episodes to be shortened to 20. In addition, voice actor Dan Castellaneta was credited as a consulting producer for the first time. The main cast consisted of Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer. The recurring cast consisted of Marcia Wallace, Pamela Hayden, Tress MacNeille, Russi Taylor, and Karl Wiedergott. The Simpsons began high-definition production in season 20. The first episode in HD, "Take My Life, Please", aired on February 15, 2009. "Take My Life, Please" is also the first to feature the new opening sequence. Also, more episodes were given the TV-14 rating than any previous season. The episodes that were given this rating were "Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes", "Treehouse of Horror XIX", "Gone Maggie Gone", "No Loan Again, Naturally", "Dangerous Curves", "Wedding For Disaster", and "Four Great Women and a Manicure". In 2009, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the premiere of The Simpsons, Fox announced that a year-long celebration of the show titled "Best. 20 Years. Ever." would run from January 14, 2009 to January 14, 2010. Several contests were run, including the "Unleash Your Yellow" contest in which entrants designed a poster for the show and "Best. Couch Gag. Ever." where fans created their own live-action couch gag video. As part of the celebration, the Irish- themed episode "In the Name of the Grandfather" premiered on Sky1 in the United Kingdom and Ireland on March 17, 2009. It was the first-ever episode of the show to air in Europe before being seen in the United States. The American debut of the episode was on March 22. Robert Canning of IGN gave the season a 7.9 out of 10 improving 1.3 from the past season. He gave it a positive review saying that it was "Good" and that "With at least two more years of The Simpsons guaranteed, this unexpected but very welcome resurgence has come at a perfect time. If they can keep the momentum moving, the series is primed to once again approach perfection and go out at the top of its game." Episodes from the twentieth season received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations. "Gone Maggie Gone" was nominated for Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming less than One Hour) and Outstanding Music Composition for a Series. Dan Castellaneta won the Outstanding Voice-Over Performance Emmy for voicing Homer in the episode "Father Knows Worst"; Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer were also nominated for the episodes "Eeny Teeny Maya Moe" and "The Burns and the Bees", respectively. The winners were announced on September 12, 2009. The Simpsons was the only series to be nominated in the Animation category at the Writers Guild of America Awards in 2010. The nominees were: Stephanie Gillis for "The Burns and the Bees", John Frink for "Eeny Teeny Maya, Moe", Billy Kimball & Ian Maxtone-Graham for Gone Maggie Gone", Don Payne for "Take My Life, Please", and Joel H. Cohen for "Wedding for Disaster". The award was won by Joel H. Cohen. The season ranked 77th in ratings with an average of 6.93 million viewers and an 18/49 rating of 3.4/9 and the rerun timeslot ranking 113th. The most viewed episode was "Treehouse of Horror XIX", with 12.48 million watching it and a 4.9 Nielsen rating. The least viewed episode was "Four Great Women and a Manicure" which is the second-least-viewed episode of the series, after Season 21's "Million Dollar Maybe". The DVD and Blu-ray boxset for season twenty was released by 20th Century Fox in the United States and Canada on January 12, 2010, eight months after it had completed broadcast on television. As well as every episode from the season, the Blu-ray and DVD releases feature hand-drawn menus by Matt Groening. Bibliography Season 20 at The Simpsons.com

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Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is a 2018 jukebox musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Ol Parker, from a story by Parker, Catherine Johnson, and Richard Curtis. It is a follow-up to the 2008 film Mamma Mia!, which in turn is based on the West End/Broadway musical of the same name using the music of ABBA. The film features an ensemble cast, including Dominic Cooper, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Jeremy Irvine, Josh Dylan, Hugh Skinner, Lily James, Jessica Keenan Wynn, Alexa Davies, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Andy García, Meryl Streep, and Cher. Both a prequel and a sequel, the plot is set after the events of the previous film, and also features flashbacks to 1979, telling the story of Donna Sheridan's arrival on the island of Kalokairi and her first meetings with her daughter Sophie's three possible fathers. Due to the financial success of the first film, Universal Pictures had long been interested in a sequel. The film was officially announced in May 2017, with Parker hired to write and direct. In June 2017, many of the original cast confirmed their involvement, with James being cast in the role of Young Donna that July. Filming took place from August to December 2017 in Croatia, Bordeaux, Stockholm, Oxford, Hampton and at Shepperton Studios. A British and American joint venture, the film was co-produced by Playtone, Littlestar Productions and Legendary Entertainment. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was premiered at the Hammersmith Apollo in London on July 16, 2018, and was released in the United Kingdom and the United States on July 20, 2018, ten years to the week after its predecessor's release, in both standard and IMAX formats. The film was a box office success, grossing $395 million worldwide and received generally positive reviews, with critics praising the performances and musical numbers. The film is dedicated to the memory of production designer Alan Macdonald. Sophie Sheridan is preparing for the grand reopening of her mother Donna's hotel, following Donna's death a year earlier ("Thank You for the Music"). She is upset because two of her fathers, Harry and Bill, are unable to make it to the reopening and she is having trouble in her relationship with Sky, who is in New York learning about hotel management, over her memorializing her mother's life ("One of Us"). In 1979, a young Donna graduates from New College, Oxford with Rosie and Tanya ("When I Kissed the Teacher"), and prepares to travel the world. In Paris, she meets and parties with Harry. They spend the night together ("Waterloo"), but Donna leaves soon after. She misses her boat to Kalokairi but is offered a ride by Bill, and along the way, they are able to help a stranded fisherman, Alexio, back to shore in time to stop the love of his life from marrying another. Unbeknownst to Donna, Harry has followed her to Greece; however, he arrived too late, and sadly watches the boat sailing off in the distance ("Why Did it Have to Be Me?"). In the present, Tanya and Rosie arrive to support Sophie with the reopening and it's revealed that Rosie and Bill have split up ("Angel Eyes"). Sophie then visits Sam, who is still grieving over the death of Donna. Back in the past, Donna arrives on the island ("I Have a Dream") and while exploring the farmhouse, a sudden storm causes her to discover a spooked horse in the basement. She seeks for help and finds a young Sam riding his motorcycle and he helps her to save the horse. Back in the present, a storm has caused serious disruption to Sophie's plans for the grand reopening and prevented media coverage of the event. Back in the past, Donna and Sam are enjoying a whirlwind romance ("Andante, Andante", "The Name of the Game"), until Donna discovers a picture of Sam's fiancée Lorraine in his drawer. Devastated, Donna demands Sam to leave the island and refuses to see him again ("Knowing Me, Knowing You"). In the present, Sam tells Sophie about her value to her mother. Meanwhile, Harry leaves his business deal in Tokyo to support Sophie, and in Stockholm, Bill gets the same idea. Bill and Harry meet at the docks but are told there are no boats. However, Alexio gives Bill, Harry, the newly arrived Sky and hundreds of others boat passage. In the past, a depressed Donna is visited by Tanya and Rosie. In a local bar, Donna regains her spirit with Tanya and Rosie’s help (“Mamma Mia”). She meets Bill again and they go out on his boat; while they are gone, Sam returns, having recently ended his engagement for Donna, but is saddened to hear that she is with another man and leaves the island once again. Donna discovers she is pregnant but has no idea which one of her three recent lovers is the father. Sofia, the mother of the owner of the bar where Donna and the Dynamos performed, overhears Donna's wish to stay on the island, and Donna happily accepts her offer to let her live at her farmhouse, where she eventually gives birth to Sophie. Back in the present, the guests have arrived at the party and Sophie is reunited with her other two fathers and Sky ("Dancing Queen"). Sophie reveals to Sky that she is pregnant and has never felt closer to her mother, having now understood what her mother went through. Bill and Rosie reunite over their grief for Donna. Sophie's estranged grandmother and Donna's mother, Ruby, arrives despite Sophie having decided not to invite her. She reveals that Sky tracked her down in New York and she wants to build a real relationship with Sophie. Sophie then performs a song with Tanya and Rosie in honor of her mother ("I've Been Waiting For You"), with her grandmother tearfully telling her afterwards how proud she is of her. Ruby later reunites with Fernando, the hotel’s manager and her former lover back in 1959 (“Fernando”). Nine months later, Sophie has given birth to a baby boy. Everyone has gathered for his christening where Tanya flirts with Fernando's brother. The ceremony takes place with Donna's spirit watching over her daughter with pride as the two of them have one final moment before Donna's spirit passes on ("My Love, My Life"). At the end, all the characters, including Donna and the younger cast, sing "Super Trouper" at a huge party at Hotel Bella Donna. Amanda Seyfried as Sophie Sheridan-Rymand, Donna's 25-year-old daughter and Ruby's granddaughter., Meryl Streep as Donna Sheridan-Carmichael, founder of Donna and the Dynamos, Sophie's mother, Ruby's daughter, and Sam's late wife., Lily James as Young Donna., Christine Baranski as Tanya Chesham-Leigh, one of Donna's best friends and former bandmates in Donna and the Dynamos; a rich three-time divorcee., Jessica Keenan Wynn as Young Tanya., Julie Walters as Rosie Mulligan, one of Donna's best friends and former bandmates in Donna and the Dynamos; a fun-loving author in a relationship with Bill., Alexa Davies as Young Rosie., Pierce Brosnan as Sam Sheridan-Carmichael, an architect, Sophie's possible father, Ruby's son-in-law, and Donna's widower., Jeremy Irvine as Young Sam., Colin Firth as Harry Bright, Sophie's possible father, a British businessman., Hugh Skinner as Young Harry., Stellan Skarsgård as Bill Anderson, Sophie's possible father, a Swedish sailor and travel writer, Sofia's great-nephew, Lazaros's cousin, and also as Kurt Anderson, Bill's obese twin brother., Josh Dylan as Young Bill., Dominic Cooper as Sky Rymand, Sophie's husband., Cher as Ruby Sheridan, Donna's mother, Sophie's grandmother, and Sam's mother-in-law., Andy García as Fernando Cienfuegos, the Mexican manager of the Hotel Bella Donna, old lover of Ruby's from 1959., Omid Djalili as a Greek customs officer., Celia Imrie as the Vice-Chancellor of the university at which Donna, Tanya and Rosie studied., Maria Vacratsis as Sofia, Bill's great aunt and Sophie's namesake, a local who owns the shack in which Donna and Sam stay and which eventually becomes Donna's home., Panos Mouzourakis as Lazaros, Sofia's son and Bill's cousin who owns the bar at which both his band and Donna and the Dynamos perform., Gerard Monaco as Alexio, a local Greek fisherman., Anna Antoniades as Apollonia, Alexio's lover and later wife., Jonathan Goldsmith as Raphael Cienfuegos, Fernando Cienfuegos's widower brother. Cameo appearances Björn Ulvaeus as a university professor., Benny Andersson as the pianist in the Parisian restaurant during "Waterloo". A soundtrack album was released on July 13, 2018 by Capitol and Polydor Records in the United States and internationally, respectively. The album was produced by Benny Andersson, who also served as the album's executive producer alongside Björn Ulvaeus and Judy Craymer. Each song is featured within the film, with the exception of "I Wonder (Departure)" and "The Day Before You Came". 1. "Thank You for the Music" – Sophie 2. "When I Kissed the Teacher" – Young Donna and the Dynamos, Vice-Chancellor 3. "I Wonder (Departure)" – Young Donna and the Dynamos 4. "One of Us" – Sophie and Sky 5. "Waterloo" – Young Harry and Young Donna 6. "SOS" – Sam 7. "Why Did It Have to Be Me?" – Young Bill, Young Donna and Young Harry 8. "I Have a Dream" – Young Donna 9. "Kisses of Fire" – Lazaros 10. "Andante, Andante" – Young Donna 11. "The Name of the Game" – Young Donna 12. "Knowing Me, Knowing You" – Young Donna and Young Sam 13. "Mamma Mia" – Young Donna and the Dynamos 14. "Angel Eyes" – Rosie, Tanya, and Sophie 15. "Dancing Queen" – Sophie, Rosie, Tanya, Sam, Bill, and Harry 16. "I've Been Waiting for You" – Sophie, Rosie, and Tanya 17. "Fernando" – Ruby, Fernando 18. "My Love, My Life" – Young Donna, Donna, Sophie 19. "Super Trouper" – Ruby, Donna, Rosie, Tanya, Sophie, Sky, Sam, Bill, Harry, Fernando, Young Donna, Young Rosie, Young Tanya, Young Bill, Young Sam, and Young Harry 20. "The Day Before You Came" – Donna Songs featured on the soundtrack album but omitted from the film., Songs featured in the film but omitted from the soundtrack album. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was announced on May 19, 2017, with a release date of July 20, 2018. It was written and directed by Ol Parker. On September 27, 2017, Benny Andersson confirmed 3 ABBA songs that would be featured in the film: "When I Kissed the Teacher," "I Wonder (Departure)," and "Angeleyes." "I Wonder (Departure)" was cut from the film, but is included on the soundtrack album. On June 1, 2017, it was announced that Seyfried would return as Sophie. Later that month, Dominic Cooper confirmed that he would return for the sequel, along with Streep, Firth and Brosnan as Sky, Donna, Harry, and Sam, respectively. In July 2017, Baranski was also confirmed to return as Tanya. On July 12, 2017, Lily James was cast to play the role of young Donna. On August 3, 2017, Jeremy Irvine and Alexa Davies were also cast in the film, with Irvine playing Brosnan's character Sam in a past era, and Hugh Skinner to play Young Harry, Davies as a young Rosie, played by Julie Walters. On August 16, 2017, it was announced that Jessica Keenan Wynn had been cast as a young Tanya, who is played by Baranski. Julie Walters and Stellan Skarsgård also reprised their roles as Rosie and Bill, respectively. On October 16, 2017, it was announced that singer and actress Cher had joined the cast, in her first on-screen film role since 2010, and her first film with Streep since Silkwood. The part was written specifically for Cher, and she got to choose Andy García as her romantic partner. Principal photography on the film began on August 12, 2017 in Croatia, including the island of Vis. In October 2017, the cast gathered at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England, to film song and dance numbers with Cher. Filming wrapped on December 2, 2017. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was released on July 20, 2018 by Universal Pictures, in the UK, US and other selected countries in both standard and IMAX formats. The film premiered on July 16, 2018 at the Hammersmith Apollo in London. The first trailer for the film was released on December 21, 2017, in front of Pitch Perfect 3, another Universal Pictures film. Cher performed "Fernando" at the Las Vegas CinemaCon on April 25, 2018, after footage of the film was shown. Universal sponsored YouTube stars the Merrell Twins to perform a cover version of the song "Mamma Mia" to promote the film. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was released via digital copy on October 9, 2018 and released on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K UHD Combo Pack on October 23, 2018. The film debuted at the top of the NPD VideoScan First Alert chart for the week ending on October 27, 2018. It retained the top spot on the chart for the week ending on November 3, 2018. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again grossed $120.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $274.4 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $395 million, against a production budget of $75 million. In June 2018, three weeks prior to its release, official industry tracking had the film debuting to $27–33 million, which increased to as much as $36 million by the week of its release. It made $14.3 million on its first day, including $3.4 million from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $35 million, finishing second, behind fellow newcomer The Equalizer 2 ($36 million), and besting the opening of the first film ($27.8 million) by over 24%. It fell 57% to $15.1 million in its second weekend, finishing second behind newcomer . In its third weekend the film grossed $9 million, dropping to fourth place, and $5.8 million in its fourth weekend, finishing seventh. In the United Kingdom, the film grossed $12.7 million in its opening weekend, topping the box office and achieving the fourth biggest opening for a film in 2018. In its second weekend of international release, the film made $26.6 million (for a running total of $98.6 million). Its largest new markets were France ($1.7 million), Poland ($1.3 million), Switzerland ($223,000) and Croatia ($151,000), while its best holdovers were Australia ($9.5 million), the UK ($8.6 million) and Germany ($8.2 million). In the United Kingdom, the film was the second highest grossing film of 2018, following . On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 80% based on 264 reviews, and a weighted average of 6.28/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again doubles down on just about everything fans loved about the original—and my my, how can fans resist it?" On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 60 out of 100 based on 46 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale, the same score as its predecessor, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it an 83% overall positive score. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian termed the sequel as "weirdly irresistible" and gave it three out of five stars. He described his reaction to the first film as "a combination of hives and bubonic plague," but concedes that this time, the relentlessness and greater self-aware comedy made him smile. He concludes: "More enjoyable than I thought. But please. Enough now." Mark Kermode of The Observer gave the film five stars and commented, "This slick sequel delivers sharp one-liners, joyously contrived plot twists and an emotional punch that left our critic reeling." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone awarded the film two and a half stars out of five, noting the absence of Streep for the majority of the film hindered his enjoyment, and saying, "her absence is deeply felt since the three-time Oscar winner sang and danced her heart out as Donna Sheridan". Lindsay Bahr of Associated Press awarded the film three out of four stars, calling it "wholly ridiculous", but complimenting its self-awareness. She also praised James' performance and singing talent. Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the sequel a mixed review, awarding it two stars out of four, criticizing the reprises of "Dancing Queen" and "Super Trouper" as uninspired, and feeling that some of the musical numbers dragged the pacing. He considered the younger counterparts to the main characters "energetic" and "likeable." Stephanie Zacharek of Time gave the film a mixed review, writing "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is atrocious. And wonderful. It's all the reasons you should never go to the movies. And all the reasons you should race to get a ticket." ABBA () is a Swedish pop supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's name is an acronym of the first letters of their first names. They became one of the most commercially successful acts in the history of popular music, topping the charts worldwide from 1974 to 1982. ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest 1974, giving Sweden its first triumph in the contest. They are the most successful group to have taken part in the competition. During the band's main active years, it was composed of two married couples: Fältskog and Ulvaeus, and Lyngstad and Andersson. With the increase of their popularity, their personal lives suffered which eventually resulted in the collapse of both marriages. The relationship changes were reflected in the group's music, with latter compositions featuring darker and more introspective lyrics. After ABBA disbanded, Andersson and Ulvaeus achieved success writing music for the stage, while Lyngstad and Fältskog pursued solo careers. Ten years after their disbanding, a compilation, ABBA Gold was released, which became a worldwide bestseller. In 1999, ABBA's music was adapted into the successful musical Mamma Mia! that toured worldwide. A film of the same name, released in 2008, became the highest-grossing film in the United Kingdom that year. A sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, was released in 2018. That same year it was announced that the band had recorded two new songs after 35 years of being inactive. Estimates of ABBA's total record sales are over 385 million, making them one of the best-selling music artists of all time. ABBA were the first group from a non-English-speaking country to achieve consistent success in the charts of English-speaking countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States. They have a joint record eight consecutive number-one albums in the UK. The group also enjoyed significant success in Latin America, and recorded a collection of their hit songs in Spanish. ABBA were honoured at the of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2005, when their hit "Waterloo" was chosen as the best song in the competition's history. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2015, their song "Dancing Queen" was inducted into the Recording Academy's Grammy Hall of Fame. Benny Andersson (born 16 December 1946 in Stockholm, Sweden) became (at age 18) a member of a popular Swedish pop-rock group, the Hep Stars, that performed covers, amongst other things, of international hits. The Hep Stars were known as "the Swedish Beatles". They also set up Hep House, their equivalent of Apple Corps. Andersson played the keyboard and eventually started writing original songs for his band, many of which became major hits, including "No Response" that hit number-three in 1965, "Sunny Girl", "Wedding", and "Consolation", all of which hit number-one in 1966. Andersson also had a fruitful songwriting collaboration with Lasse Berghagen, with whom he wrote his first Svensktoppen entry, "Sagan om lilla Sofie" ("The Story of Little Sophie"), in 1968. Björn Ulvaeus (born 25 April 1945 in Gothenburg, Sweden) also began his musical career at the age of 18 (as a singer and guitarist), when he fronted the Hootenanny Singers, a popular Swedish folk–skiffle group. Ulvaeus started writing English-language songs for his group, and even had a brief solo career alongside. The Hootenanny Singers and the Hep Stars sometimes crossed paths while touring. In June 1966, Ulvaeus and Andersson decided to write a song together. Their first attempt was "Isn't It Easy to Say", a song later recorded by the Hep Stars. Stig Anderson was the manager of the Hootenanny Singers and founder of the Polar Music label. He saw potential in the collaboration, and encouraged them to write more. The two also began playing occasionally with the other's bands on stage and on record, although it was not until 1969 that the pair wrote and produced some of their first real hits together: "Ljuva sextital" ("Sweet Sixties"), recorded by Brita Borg, and the Hep Stars' 1969 hit "Speleman" ("Fiddler"). Andersson wrote and submitted the song "Hej, Clown" for Melodifestivalen 1969, the national festival to select the Swedish entry to the Eurovision Song Contest. The song tied for first place, but re-voting relegated Andersson's song to second place. On that occasion Andersson briefly met his future spouse, singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad, who also participated in the contest. A month later, the two had become a couple. As their respective bands began to break up during 1969, Andersson and Ulvaeus teamed up and recorded their first album together in 1970, called Lycka ("Happiness"), which included original songs sung by both men. Their partners were often present in the recording studio, and sometimes added backing vocals; Fältskog even co-wrote a song with the two. Ulvaeus still occasionally recorded and performed with the Hootenanny Singers until the middle of 1974, and Andersson took part in producing their records. Agnetha Fältskog (born 5 April 1950 in Jönköping, Sweden) sang with a local dance band headed by Bernt Enghardt who sent a demo recording of the band to Karl Gerhard Lundkvist. The demo tape featured a song written and sung by Agnetha: "Jag var så kär" ("I Was So in Love"). Lundkvist was so impressed with her voice that he was convinced she would be a star. After going through considerable effort to locate the singer, he arranged for Agnetha to come to Stockholm and to record two of her own songs. This led to Agnetha at the age of 18 having a number-one record in Sweden with a self-composed song, which later went on to sell over 80,000 copies. She was soon noticed by the critics and songwriters as a talented singer/songwriter of schlager style songs. Fältskog's main inspiration in her early years were singers such as Connie Francis. Along with her own compositions, she recorded covers of foreign hits and performed them on tours in Swedish folkparks. Most of her biggest hits were self-composed, which was quite unusual for a female singer in the 1960s. Agnetha released four solo LPs between 1968 and 1971. She had many successful singles in the Swedish charts. During filming of a Swedish TV special in May 1969, Fältskog met Ulvaeus, and they married on 6 July 1971. Fältskog and Ulvaeus eventually were involved in each other's recording sessions, and soon even Andersson and Lyngstad added backing vocals to Fältskog's third studio album, Som jag är ("As I Am") (1970). In 1972, Fältskog starred as Mary Magdalene in the original Swedish production of Jesus Christ Superstar and attracted favourable reviews. Between 1967 and 1975, Fältskog released five studio albums. Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad (born 15 November 1945 in Bjørkåsen in Ballangen, Norway) sang from the age of 13 with various dance bands, and worked mainly in a jazz-oriented cabaret style. She also formed her own band, the Anni-Frid Four. In the middle of 1967, she won a national talent competition with "En ledig dag" ("A Day Off") a Swedish version of the bossa nova song "A Day in Portofino", which is included in the EMI compilation Frida 1967–1972. The first prize was a recording contract with EMI Sweden and to perform live on the most popular TV shows in the country. This TV performance, amongst many others, is included in the 3-hour documentary Frida – The DVD. Lyngstad released several schlager style singles on EMI without much success. When Benny Andersson started to produce her recordings in 1971, she had her first number-one single, "Min egen stad" ("My Own Town"), written by Benny and featuring all the future ABBA members on backing vocals. Lyngstad toured and performed regularly in the folkpark circuit and made appearances on radio and TV. She met Ulvaeus briefly in 1963 during a talent contest, and Fältskog during a TV show in early 1968. Lyngstad linked up with her future bandmates in 1969. On 1 March 1969, she participated in the Melodifestival, where she met Andersson for the first time. A few weeks later they met again during a concert tour in southern Sweden and they soon became a couple. Andersson produced her single "Peter Pan" in September 1969—her first collaboration with Benny & Björn, as they had written the song. Andersson would then produce Lyngstad's debut studio album, Frida, which was released in March 1971. Lyngstad also played in several revues and cabaret shows in Stockholm between 1969 and 1973. After ABBA formed, she recorded another successful album in 1975, Frida ensam, which included a Swedish rendition of "Fernando", a hit on the Swedish radio charts before the English version was released. An attempt at combining their talents occurred in April 1970 when the two couples went on holiday together to the island of Cyprus. What started as singing for fun on the beach ended up as an improvised live performance in front of the United Nations soldiers stationed on the island. Andersson and Ulvaeus were at this time recording their first album together, Lycka, which was to be released in September 1970. Fältskog and Lyngstad added backing vocals on several tracks during June, and the idea of their working together saw them launch a stage act, "Festfolket" (which translates from Swedish to mean both "Party People" and "Engaged Couples"), on 1 November 1970 in Gothenburg. The cabaret show attracted generally negative reviews, except for the performance of the Andersson and Ulvaeus hit "Hej, gamle man" ("Hello, Old Man")–the first Björn and Benny recording to feature all four. They also performed solo numbers from respective albums, but the lukewarm reception convinced the foursome to shelve plans for working together for the time being, and each soon concentrated on individual projects again. "Hej, gamle man", a song about an old Salvation Army soldier, became the quartet's first hit. The record was credited to Björn & Benny and reached number five on the sales charts and number one on Svensktoppen, staying on the latter chart (which was not a chart linked to sales or airplay) for 15 weeks. It was during 1971 that the four artists began working together more, adding vocals to the others' recordings. Fältskog, Andersson and Ulvaeus toured together in May, while Lyngstad toured on her own. Frequent recording sessions brought the foursome closer together during the summer. After the 1970 release of Lycka, two more singles credited to "Björn & Benny" were released in Sweden, "Det kan ingen doktor hjälpa" ("No Doctor Can Help with That") and "Tänk om jorden vore ung" ("Imagine If Earth Was Young"), with more prominent vocals by Fältskog and Lyngstad–and moderate chart success. Fältskog and Ulvaeus, now married, started performing together with Andersson on a regular basis at the Swedish folkparks in the middle of 1971. Stig Anderson, founder and owner of Polar Music, was determined to break into the mainstream international market with music by Andersson and Ulvaeus. "One day the pair of you will write a song that becomes a worldwide hit," he predicted. Stig Anderson encouraged Ulvaeus and Andersson to write a song for Melodifestivalen, and after two rejected entries in 1971, Andersson and Ulvaeus submitted their new song "Säg det med en sång" ("Say It with a Song") for the 1972 contest, choosing newcomer Lena Anderson to perform. The song came in third place, encouraging Stig Anderson, and became a hit in Sweden. The first signs of foreign success came as a surprise, as the Andersson and Ulvaeus single "She's My Kind of Girl" was released through Epic Records in Japan in March 1972, giving the duo a Top 10 hit. Two more singles were released in Japan, "En Carousel" ("En Karusell" in Scandinavia, an earlier version of "Merry-Go-Round") and "Love Has Its Ways" (a song they wrote with Kōichi Morita). Ulvaeus and Andersson persevered with their songwriting and experimented with new sounds and vocal arrangements. "People Need Love" was released in June 1972, featuring guest vocals by the women, who were now given much greater prominence. Stig Anderson released it as a single, credited to Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid. The song peaked at number 17 in the Swedish combined single and album charts, enough to convince them they were on to something. The single also became the first record to chart for the quartet in the United States, where it peaked at number 114 on the Cashbox singles chart and number 117 on the Record World singles chart. Labeled as Björn & Benny (with Svenska Flicka), it was released there through Playboy Records. However, according to Stig Anderson, "People Need Love" could have been a much bigger American hit, but a small label like Playboy Records did not have the distribution resources to meet the demand for the single from retailers and radio programmers. In 1973, the band and their manager Stig Anderson decided to have another try at Melodifestivalen, this time with the song "Ring Ring". The studio sessions were handled by Michael B. Tretow, who experimented with a "wall of sound" production technique that became the wholly new sound. Stig Anderson arranged an English translation of the lyrics by Neil Sedaka and Phil Cody and they thought this would be a surefire winner. However, on 10 February 1973, the song came third in Melodifestivalen; thus it never reached the Eurovision Song Contest itself. Nevertheless, the group released their debut studio album, also called Ring Ring. The album did well and the "Ring Ring" single was a hit in many parts of Europe and also in South Africa. However, Stig Anderson felt that the true breakthrough could only come with a UK or US hit. When Agnetha Fältskog gave birth to her daughter Linda in 1973, she was replaced for a short period by Inger Brundin on a trip to West Germany. In 1973, Stig Anderson, tired of unwieldy names, started to refer to the group privately and publicly as ABBA (a palindrome). At first, this was a play on words, as Abba is also the name of a well-known fish-canning company in Sweden, and itself an abbreviation. However, since the fish-canners were unknown outside Sweden, Anderson came to believe the name would work in international markets. A competition to find a suitable name for the group was held in a Gothenburg newspaper and it was officially announced in the summer that the group were to be known as "ABBA". The group negotiated with the canners for the rights to the name. Fred Bronson reported for Billboard that Fältskog told him in a 1988 interview that "[ABBA] had to ask permission and the factory said, 'O.K., as long as you don't make us feel ashamed for what you're doing. "ABBA" is an acronym formed from the first letters of each group member's first name: Agnetha, Björn, Benny, and Anni-Frid. The earliest known example of "ABBA" written on paper is on a recording session sheet from the Metronome Studio in Stockholm dated 16 October 1973. This was first written as "Björn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida", but was subsequently crossed out with "ABBA" written in large letters on top. Their official logo, distinct with the backward ‘B', was designed by Rune Söderqvist, who designed most of ABBA's record sleeves. The logo first appeared on the French compilation album, Golden Double Album, released in May 1976 by Disques Vogue, and would henceforth be used for all official releases. The idea for the official logo was made by the German photographer Wolfgang "Bubi" Heilemann () on a velvet jumpsuit photo shoot for the teenage magazine Bravo. On the photo, the ABBA members held a giant initial letter of his/her name. After the pictures were made, Heilemann found out that Benny Andersson reversed his letter "B"; this prompted discussions about the mirrored "B", and the members of ABBA agreed on the mirrored letter. From 1976 onward, the first "B" in the logo version of the name was "mirror-image" reversed on the band's promotional material, thus becoming the group's registered trademark. Following their acquisition of the group's catalogue, PolyGram began using variations of the ABBA logo, employing a different font. In 1992, Polygram added a crown emblem to it for the first release of the ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits compilation. After Universal Music purchased PolyGram (and, thus, ABBA's label Polar Music International), control of the group's catalogue returned to Stockholm. Since then, the original logo has been reinstated on all official products. As the group entered the Melodifestivalen with "Ring Ring" but failed to qualify as the 1973 Swedish entry, Stig Anderson immediately started planning for the 1974 contest. Ulvaeus, Andersson and Stig Anderson believed in the possibilities of using the Eurovision Song Contest as a way to make the music business aware of them as songwriters, as well as the band itself. In late 1973, they were invited by Swedish television to contribute a song for the Melodifestivalen 1974 and from a number of new songs, the upbeat song "Waterloo" was chosen; the group was now inspired by the growing glam rock scene in England. ABBA won their national heats on Swedish television on 9 February 1974, and with this third attempt were far more experienced and better prepared for the Eurovision Song Contest. Winning the 1974 Contest on 6 April 1974 (and singing "Waterloo" in English instead of their native tongue) gave ABBA the chance to tour Europe and perform on major television shows; thus the band saw the "Waterloo" single chart in many European countries. "Waterloo" was ABBA's first number-one single in big markets such as the UK and West Germany. In the United States, the song peaked at number-six on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, paving the way for their first album and their first trip as a group there. Albeit a short promotional visit, it included their first performance on American television, The Mike Douglas Show. The album Waterloo only peaked at number 145 on the Billboard 200 chart, but received unanimous high praise from the US critics: Los Angeles Times called it "a compelling and fascinating debut album that captures the spirit of mainstream pop quite effectively ... an immensely enjoyable and pleasant project", while Creem characterised it as "a perfect blend of exceptional, lovable compositions". ABBA's follow-up single, "Honey, Honey", peaked at number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and was a number-two hit in West Germany. However, in the United Kingdom, ABBA's British record label, Epic, decided to re- release a remixed version of "Ring Ring" instead of "Honey, Honey", and a cover version of the latter by Sweet Dreams peaked at number 10. Both records debuted on the UK chart within one week of each other. "Ring Ring" failed to reach the Top 30 in the United Kingdom, increasing growing speculation that the group was simply a Eurovision one-hit wonder. In November 1974, ABBA embarked on their first European tour, playing dates in Denmark, West Germany and Austria. It was not as successful as the band had hoped, since most of the venues did not sell out. Due to a lack of demand, they were even forced to cancel a few shows, including a sole concert scheduled in Switzerland. The second leg of the tour, which took them through Scandinavia in January 1975, was very different. They played to full houses everywhere and finally got the reception they had aimed for. Live performances continued in the middle of 1975 when ABBA embarked on a fourteen open-air date tour of Sweden and Finland. Their Stockholm show at the Gröna Lund amusement park had an estimated audience of 19,200. Björn Ulvaeus later said that "If you look at the singles we released straight after Waterloo, we were trying to be more like The Sweet, a semi-glam rock group, which was stupid because we were always a pop group." In late 1974, "So Long" was released as a single in the United Kingdom but it received no airplay from Radio 1 and failed to chart. In the middle of 1975, ABBA released "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do", which again received little airplay on Radio 1 but managed to climb the charts, to number 38. Later that year, the release of their self-titled third studio album ABBA and single "SOS" brought back their chart presence in the UK, where the single hit number six and the album peaked at number 13. "SOS" also became ABBA's second number-one single in Germany and their third in Australia. Success was further solidified with "Mamma Mia" reaching number-one in the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia. In the United States, "SOS" peaked at number 10 on the Record World Top 100 singles chart and number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, picking up the BMI Award along the way as one of the most played songs on American radio in 1975. The success of the group in the United States had until that time been limited to single releases. By early 1976, the group already had four Top 30 singles on the US charts, but the album market proved to be tough to crack. The eponymous ABBA album generated three American hits, but it only peaked at number 165 on the Cashbox album chart and number 174 on the Billboard 200 chart. Opinions were voiced, by Creem in particular, that in the US ABBA had endured "a very sloppy promotional campaign". Nevertheless, the group enjoyed warm reviews from the American press. Cashbox went as far as saying that "there is a recurrent thread of taste and artistry inherent in Abba's marketing, creativity and presentation that makes it almost embarrassing to critique their efforts", while Creem wrote: "SOS is surrounded on this LP by so many good tunes that the mind boggles." In Australia, the airing of the music videos for "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" and "Mamma Mia" on the nationally broadcast TV pop show Countdown (which premiered in November 1974) saw the band rapidly gain enormous popularity, and Countdown become a key promoter of the group via their distinctive music videos. This started an immense interest for ABBA in Australia, resulting in both the single and album holding down the No. 1 positions on the charts for months. In March 1976, the band released the compilation album Greatest Hits. It became their first UK number-one album, and also took ABBA into the Top 50 on the US album charts for the first time, eventually selling more than a million copies there. Also included on Greatest Hits was a new single, "Fernando", which went to number-one in at least thirteen countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia, and the single went on to sell over 10 million copies worldwide. In Australia, "Fernando" occupied the top position for a then record breaking 14 weeks (and stayed in the chart for 40 weeks), and was the longest-running chart-topper there for over 40 years until it was overtaken by Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You" in May 2017. It still remains as one of the best-selling singles of all time in Australia. Also in 1976, the group received its first international prize, with "Fernando" being chosen as the "Best Studio Recording of 1975". In the United States, "Fernando" reached the Top 10 of the Cashbox Top 100 singles chart and number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. It topped the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, ABBA's first American number-one single on any chart. At the same time, Germany released a compilation named The Very Best of ABBA, also becoming a number-one album there whereas the Greatest Hits compilation followed a few months later to number-two on the German charts, despite all similarities with The Very Best album. The group's fourth studio album, Arrival, a number-one best-seller in Europe and Australia, represented a new level of accomplishment in both songwriting and studio work, prompting rave reviews from more rock-oriented UK music weeklies such as Melody Maker and New Musical Express, and mostly appreciative notices from US critics. Hit after hit flowed from Arrival: "Money, Money, Money", another number-one in Germany and Australia, and "Knowing Me, Knowing You", ABBA's sixth consecutive German number-one as well as another UK number-one. The real sensation was "Dancing Queen", not only topping the charts in loyal markets the UK, Germany and Australia, but also reaching number-one in the United States. In South Africa, ABBA had astounding success with "Fernando", "Dancing Queen" and "Knowing Me, Knowing You" being among the top 20 best-selling singles for 1976–77. In 1977, Arrival was nominated for the inaugural BRIT Award in the category "Best International Album of the Year". By this time ABBA were popular in the United Kingdom, most of Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand. In Frida – The DVD, Lyngstad explains how she and Fältskog developed as singers, as ABBA's recordings grew more complex over the years. The band's popularity in the United States would remain on a comparatively smaller scale, and "Dancing Queen" became the only Billboard Hot 100 number-one single ABBA had there (they did, however, get three more singles to the number-one position on other Billboard charts, including Billboard Adult Contemporary and Hot Dance Club Play). Nevertheless, Arrival finally became a true breakthrough release for ABBA on the US album market where it peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified gold by RIAA. In January 1977, ABBA embarked on their first major tour. The group's status had changed dramatically and they were clearly regarded as superstars. They opened their much anticipated tour in Oslo, Norway, on 28 January, and mounted a lavishly produced spectacle that included a few scenes from their self- written mini-operetta The Girl with the Golden Hair. The concert attracted immense media attention from across Europe and Australia. They continued the tour through Western Europe, visiting Gothenburg, Copenhagen, Berlin, Cologne, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Essen, Hanover, and Hamburg and ending with shows in the United Kingdom in Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow and two sold-out concerts at London's Royal Albert Hall. Tickets for these two shows were available only by mail application and it was later revealed that the box-office received 3.5 million requests for tickets, enough to fill the venue 580 times. Along with praise ("ABBA turn out to be amazingly successful at reproducing their records", wrote Creem), there were complaints that "ABBA performed slickly...but with a zero personality coming across from a total of 16 people on stage" (Melody Maker). One of the Royal Albert Hall concerts was filmed as a reference for the filming of the Australian tour for what became , though it is not exactly known how much of the concert was filmed. After the European leg of the tour, in March 1977, ABBA played 11 dates in Australia before a total of 160,000 people. The opening concert in Sydney at the Sydney Showground on 3 March to an audience of 20,000 was marred by torrential rain with Lyngstad slipping on the wet stage during the concert. However, all four members would later recall this concert as the most memorable of their career. Upon their arrival in Melbourne, a civic reception was held at the Melbourne Town Hall and ABBA appeared on the balcony to greet an enthusiastic crowd of 6,000. In Melbourne, the group played three concerts at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl with 14,500 at each including the Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser and his family. At the first Melbourne concert, an additional 16,000 people gathered outside the fenced-off area to listen to the concert. In Adelaide, the group performed one concert at West Lakes Football Stadium in front of 20,000 people, with another 10,000 listening outside. During the first of five concerts in Perth, there was a bomb scare with everyone having to evacuate the Entertainment Centre. The trip was accompanied by mass hysteria and unprecedented media attention ("Swedish ABBA stirs box-office in Down Under tour...and the media coverage of the quartet rivals that set to cover the upcoming Royal tour of Australia", wrote Variety), and is captured on film in , directed by Lasse Hallström. The Australian tour and its subsequent ABBA: The Movie produced some ABBA lore, as well. Fältskog's blonde good looks had long made her the band's "pin-up girl", a role she disdained. During the Australian tour, she performed in a skin-tight white jumpsuit, causing one Australian newspaper to use the headline "Agnetha's bottom tops dull show". When asked about this at a news conference, she replied: "Don't they have bottoms in Australia?" In December 1977, ABBA followed up Arrival with the more ambitious fifth album , released to coincide with the debut of ABBA: The Movie. Although the album was less well received by UK reviewers, it did spawn more worldwide hits: "The Name of the Game" and "Take a Chance on Me", which both topped the UK charts, and peaked at number 12 and number three, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US. Although "Take a Chance on Me" did not top the American charts, it proved to be ABBA's biggest hit single there, selling more copies than "Dancing Queen". The Album also included "Thank You for the Music", the B-side of "Eagle" in countries where the latter had been released as a single, and was belatedly released as an A-side single in the United Kingdom and Ireland in 1983. "Thank You for the Music" has become one of the best loved and best known ABBA songs without being released as a single during the group's lifetime. By 1978 ABBA were one of the biggest bands in the world. They converted a vacant cinema into the Polar Music Studio, a state-of-the-art studio in Stockholm. The studio was used by several other bands; notably Genesis' Duke and Led Zeppelin's In Through the Out Door were recorded there. During May, the group went to the United States for a promotional campaign, performing alongside Andy Gibb on Olivia Newton-John's TV show. Recording sessions for the single "Summer Night City" were an uphill struggle, but upon release the song became another hit for the group. The track would set the stage for ABBA's foray into disco with their next album. On 9 January 1979, the group performed "Chiquitita" at the Music for UNICEF Concert held at the United Nations General Assembly to celebrate UNICEF's Year of the Child. ABBA donated the copyright of this worldwide hit to the UNICEF; see Music for UNICEF Concert. The single was released the following week, and reached number-one in ten countries. In mid-January 1979, Ulvaeus and Fältskog announced they were getting divorced. The news caused interest from the media and led to speculation about the band's future. ABBA assured the press and their fan base they were continuing their work as a group and that the divorce would not affect them. Nonetheless, the media continued to confront them with this in interviews. To escape the media swirl and concentrate on their writing, Andersson and Ulvaeus secretly travelled to Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas, where for two weeks they prepared their next album's songs. The group's sixth studio album, Voulez-Vous, was released in April 1979, the title track of which was recorded at the famous Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida, with the assistance of recording engineer Tom Dowd amongst others. The album topped the charts across Europe and in Japan and Mexico, hit the Top 10 in Canada and Australia and the Top 20 in the United States. None of the singles from the album reached number-one on the UK charts, but "Chiquitita", "Does Your Mother Know", "Angeleyes" (with "Voulez-Vous", released as a double A-side) and "I Have a Dream" were all UK Top 5 hits. In Canada, "I Have a Dream" became ABBA's second number-one on the RPM Adult Contemporary chart (after "Fernando" hit the top previously). Also in 1979, the group released their second compilation album, Greatest Hits Vol. 2, which featured a brand new track: "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)", another number-three hit in both the UK and Germany. In Russia during the late 1970s, the group was paid in oil commodities because of an embargo on the ruble. On 13 September 1979, ABBA began at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton, Canada, with a full house of 14,000. "The voices of the band, Agnetha's high sauciness combined with round, rich lower tones of Anni-Frid, were excellent...Technically perfect, melodically correct and always in perfect pitch...The soft lower voice of Anni-Frid and the high, edgy vocals of Agnetha were stunning", raved Edmonton Journal. During the next four weeks they played a total of 17 sold-out dates, 13 in the United States and four in Canada. The last scheduled ABBA concert in the United States in Washington, D.C. was cancelled due to Fältskog's emotional distress suffered during the flight from New York to Boston, when the group's private plane was subjected to extreme weather conditions and was unable to land for an extended period. They appeared at the Boston Music Hall for the performance 90 minutes late. The tour ended with a show in Toronto, Canada at Maple Leaf Gardens before a capacity crowd of 18,000. "ABBA plays with surprising power and volume; but although they are loud, they're also clear, which does justice to the signature vocal sound...Anyone who's been waiting five years to see Abba will be well satisfied", wrote Record World. On 19 October 1979, the tour resumed in Western Europe where the band played 23 sold-out gigs, including six sold-out nights at London's Wembley Arena. In March 1980, ABBA travelled to Japan where upon their arrival at Narita International Airport, they were besieged by thousands of fans. The group played eleven concerts to full houses, including six shows at Tokyo's Budokan. This tour was the last "on the road" adventure of their career. In July 1980, ABBA released the single "The Winner Takes It All", the group's eighth UK chart topper (and their first since 1978). The song is widely misunderstood as being written about Ulvaeus and Fältskog's marital tribulations; Ulvaeus wrote the lyrics, but has stated they were not about his own divorce; Fältskog has repeatedly stated she was not the loser in their divorce. In the United States, the single peaked at number-eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became ABBA's second Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one. It was also re- recorded by Andersson and Ulvaeus with a slightly different backing track, by French chanteuse Mireille Mathieu at the end of 1980 – as "Bravo tu as gagné", with French lyrics by Alain Boublil. November the same year saw the release of ABBA's seventh album Super Trouper, which reflected a certain change in ABBA's style with more prominent use of synthesizers and increasingly personal lyrics. It set a record for the most pre-orders ever received for a UK album after one million copies were ordered before release. The second single from the album, "Super Trouper", also hit number-one in the UK, becoming the group's ninth and final UK chart-topper. Another track from the album, "Lay All Your Love on Me", released in 1981 as a Twelve-inch single single only in selected territories, managed to top the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart and peaked at number-seven on the UK singles chart becoming, at the time, the highest ever charting 12-inch release in UK chart history. Also in 1980, ABBA recorded a compilation of Spanish-language versions of their hits called Gracias Por La Música. This was released in Spanish-speaking countries as well as in Japan and Australia. The album became a major success, and along with the Spanish version of "Chiquitita", this signalled the group's breakthrough in Latin America. ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos, the Spanish equivalent of ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits, was released in 1999. In January 1981, Ulvaeus married Lena Källersjö, and manager Stig Anderson celebrated his 50th birthday with a party. For this occasion, ABBA recorded the track "Hovas Vittne" (a pun on the Swedish name for Jehovah's Witness and Anderson's birthplace, Hova) as a tribute to him, and released it only on 200 red vinyl copies, to be distributed to the guests attending the party. This single has become a sought-after collectable. In mid-February 1981, Andersson and Lyngstad announced they were filing for divorce. Information surfaced that their marriage had been an uphill struggle for years, and Benny had already met another woman, Mona Nörklit, whom he married in November 1981. Andersson and Ulvaeus had songwriting sessions in early 1981, and recording sessions began in mid-March. At the end of April, the group recorded a TV special, Dick Cavett Meets ABBA with the US talk show host Dick Cavett. The Visitors, ABBA's eighth and final studio album, showed a songwriting maturity and depth of feeling distinctly lacking from their earlier recordings but still placing the band squarely in the pop genre, with catchy tunes and harmonies. Although not revealed at the time of its release, the album's title track, according to Ulvaeus, refers to the secret meetings held against the approval of totalitarian governments in Soviet-dominated states, while other tracks address topics like failed relationships, the threat of war, aging, and loss of innocence. The album's only major single release, "One of Us", proved to be the last of ABBA's nine number-one singles in Germany, this being in December 1981; and the swansong of their sixteen Top 5 singles on the South African chart. "One of Us" was also ABBA's final Top 3 hit in the UK, reaching number- one on some charts (such as Record Mirror). Although it topped the album charts across most of Europe, including Ireland, the UK and Germany, The Visitors was not as commercially successful as its predecessors, showing a commercial decline in previously loyal markets such as France, Australia and Japan. A track from the album, "When All Is Said and Done", was released as a single in North America, Australia and New Zealand, and fittingly became ABBA's final Top 40 hit in the US (debuting on the US charts on 31 December 1981), while also reaching the US Adult Contemporary Top 10, and number-four on the RPM Adult Contemporary chart in Canada. The song's lyrics, as with "The Winner Takes It All" and "One of Us", dealt with the painful experience of separating from a long-term partner, though it looked at the trauma more optimistically. With the now publicised story of Andersson and Lyngstad's divorce, speculation increased of tension within the band. Also released in the United States was the title track of The Visitors, which hit the Top Ten on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. In the spring of 1982, songwriting sessions had started and the group came together for more recordings. Plans were not completely clear, but a new album was discussed and the prospect of a small tour suggested. The recording sessions in May and June 1982 were a struggle, and only three songs were eventually recorded: "You Owe Me One", "I Am the City" and "Just Like That". Andersson and Ulvaeus were not satisfied with the outcome, so the tapes were shelved and the group took a break for the summer. Back in the studio again in early August, the group had changed plans for the rest of the year: they settled for a Christmas release of a double album compilation of all their past single releases to be named . New songwriting and recording sessions took place, and during October and December, they released the singles "The Day Before You Came"/"Cassandra" and "Under Attack"/"You Owe Me One", the A-sides of which were included on the compilation album. Neither single made the Top 20 in the United Kingdom, though "The Day Before You Came" became a Top 5 hit in many European countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. The album went to number-one in the UK and Belgium, Top 5 in the Netherlands and Germany and Top 20 in many other countries. "Under Attack", the group's final release before disbanding, was a Top 5 hit in the Netherlands and Belgium. "I Am the City" and "Just Like That" were left unreleased on The Singles: The First Ten Years for possible inclusion on the next projected studio album, though this never came to fruition. "I Am the City" was eventually released on the compilation album in 1993, while "Just Like That" has been recycled in new songs with other artists produced by Andersson and Ulvaeus. A reworked version of the verses ended up in the musical Chess. The chorus section of "Just Like That" was eventually released on a retrospective box set in 1994, as well as in the ABBA Undeleted medley featured on disc 9 of The Complete Studio Recordings. Despite a number of requests from fans, Ulvaeus and Andersson are still refusing to release ABBA's version of "Just Like That" in its entirety, even though the complete version has surfaced on bootlegs. The group travelled to London to promote The Singles: The First Ten Years in the first week of November 1982, appearing on Saturday Superstore and The Late, Late Breakfast Show, and also to West Germany in the second week, to perform on Show Express. On 19 November 1982, ABBA appeared for the last time in Sweden on the TV programme Nöjesmaskinen, and on 11 December 1982, they made their last performance ever, transmitted to the UK on Noel Edmonds' The Late, Late Breakfast Show, through a live link from a TV studio in Stockholm. Andersson and Ulvaeus began collaborating with Tim Rice in early 1983 on writing songs for the musical project Chess, while Fältskog and Lyngstad both concentrated on international solo careers. While Andersson and Ulvaeus were working on the musical, a further co-operation among the three of them came with the musical Abbacadabra that was produced in France for television. It was a children's musical utilising 14 ABBA songs. Alain and Daniel Boublil, who wrote Les Misérables, had been in touch with Stig Anderson about the project, and the TV musical was aired over Christmas on French TV and later a Dutch version was also broadcast. Boublil previously also wrote the French lyric for Mireille Mathieu's version of "The Winner Takes It All". Lyngstad, who had recently moved to Paris, participated in the French version, and recorded a single, "Belle", a duet with French singer Daniel Balavoine. The song was a cover of ABBA's 1976 instrumental track "Arrival". As the single "Belle" sold well in France, Cameron Mackintosh wanted to stage an English- language version of the show in London, with the French lyrics translated by David Wood and Don Black; Andersson and Ulvaeus got involved in the project, and contributed with one new song, "I Am the Seeker". "Abbacadabra" premiered on 8 December 1983 at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre in London, to mixed reviews and full houses for eight weeks, closing on 21 January 1984. Lyngstad was also involved in this production, recording "Belle" in English as "Time", a duet with actor and singer B. A. Robertson: the single sold well, and was produced and recorded by Mike Batt. In May 1984, Lyngstad performed "I Have a Dream" with a children's choir at the United Nations Organisation Gala, in Geneva, Switzerland. All four members made their (at the time, final) public appearance as four friends more than as ABBA in January 1986, when they recorded a video of themselves performing an acoustic version of "Tivedshambo" (which was the first song written by their manager Stig Anderson), for a Swedish TV show honouring Anderson on his 55th birthday. The four had not seen each other for more than two years. That same year they also performed privately at another friend's 40th birthday: their old tour manager, Claes af Geijerstam. They sang a self-written song titled "Der Kleine Franz" that was later to resurface in Chess. Also in 1986, ABBA Live was released, featuring selections of live performances from the group's 1977 and 1979 tours. The four members were guests at the 50th birthday of Görel Hanser in 1999. Hanser was a long-time friend of all four, and also former secretary of Stig Anderson. Honouring Görel, ABBA performed a Swedish birthday song "Med En Enkel Tulipan" a cappella. Andersson has on several occasions performed ABBA songs. In June 1992, he and Ulvaeus appeared with U2 at a Stockholm concert, singing the chorus of "Dancing Queen", and a few years later during the final performance of the B & B in Concert in Stockholm, Andersson joined the cast for an encore at the piano. Andersson frequently adds an ABBA song to the playlist when he performs with his BAO band. He also played the piano during new recordings of the ABBA songs "Like an Angel Passing Through My Room" with opera singer Anne Sofie von Otter, and "When All Is Said and Done" with Swede Viktoria Tolstoy. In 2002, Andersson and Ulvaeus both performed an a cappella rendition of the first verse of "Fernando" as they accepted their Ivor Novello award in London. Lyngstad performed and recorded an a cappella version of "Dancing Queen" with the Swedish group the Real Group in 1993, and also re-recorded "I Have a Dream" with Swiss singer Dan Daniell in 2003. ABBA never officially announced the end of the group or an indefinite break, but it was long considered dissolved after their final public performance together in 1982. Their final public performance together as ABBA before their 2016 reunion was on the British TV programme The Late, Late Breakfast Show (live from Stockholm) on 11 December 1982. While reminiscing on "The Day Before You Came", Ulvaeus said: "we might have continued for a while longer if that had been a number one". In January 1983, Fältskog started recording sessions for a solo album, as Lyngstad had successfully released her album Something's Going On some months earlier. Ulvaeus and Andersson, meanwhile, started songwriting sessions for the musical Chess. In interviews at the time, Björn and Benny denied the split of ABBA ("Who are we without our ladies? Initials of Brigitte Bardot?"), and Lyngstad and Fältskog kept claiming in interviews that ABBA would come together for a new album repeatedly during 1983 and 1984. Internal strife between the group and their manager escalated and the band members sold their shares in Polar Music during 1983. Except for a TV appearance in 1986, the foursome did not come together publicly again until they were reunited at the Swedish premiere of the Mamma Mia! movie on 4 July 2008. The individual members' endeavours shortly before and after their final public performance coupled with the collapse of both marriages and the lack of significant activity in the following few years after that widely suggested that the group had broken up. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, following the premiere, Ulvaeus and Andersson said that there was nothing that could entice them back on stage again. Ulvaeus said: "We will never appear on stage again. [...] There is simply no motivation to re-group. Money is not a factor and we would like people to remember us as we were. Young, exuberant, full of energy and ambition. I remember Robert Plant saying Led Zeppelin were a cover band now because they cover all their own stuff. I think that hit the nail on the head." However, on 3 January 2011, Fältskog, long considered to be the most reclusive member of the group and a major obstacle to any reunion, raised the possibility of reuniting for a one-off engagement. She admitted that she has not yet brought the idea up to the other three members. In April 2013, she reiterated her hopes for reunion during an interview with Die Zeit, stating: "If they ask me, I'll say yes." In a May 2013 interview, Fältskog, aged 63 at the time, stated that an ABBA reunion would never occur: "I think we have to accept that it will not happen, because we are too old and each one of us has their own life. Too many years have gone by since we stopped, and there's really no meaning in putting us together again." Fältskog further explained that the band members remained on amicable terms: "It's always nice to see each other now and then and to talk a little and to be a little nostalgic." In an April 2014 interview, Fältskog, when asked about whether the band might reunite for a new recording said: "It's difficult to talk about this because then all the news stories will be: 'ABBA is going to record another song!' But as long as we can sing and play, then why not? I would love to, but it's up to Björn and Benny." The same year the members of ABBA went their separate ways, the French production of a "tribute" show (a children's TV musical named Abbacadabra using 14 ABBA songs) spawned new interest in the group's music. After receiving little attention during the mid-to-late-1980s, ABBA's music experienced a resurgence in the early 1990s due to the UK synth-pop duo Erasure, who released Abba-esque, a four track extended play release featuring cover versions of ABBA songs which topped several European charts in 1992. As U2 arrived in Stockholm for a concert in June of that year, the band paid homage to ABBA by inviting Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson to join them on stage for a rendition of "Dancing Queen", playing guitar and keyboards. September 1992 saw the release of , a new compilation album. The single "Dancing Queen" received radio airplay in the UK in the middle of 1992 to promote the album. The song returned to the Top 20 of the UK singles chart in August that year, this time peaking at number 16. With sales of 30 million, Gold is the best-selling ABBA album, as well as one of the best-selling albums worldwide. With sales of 5.5 million copies it is the second-highest selling album of all time in the UK, after Queen's Greatest Hits. The enormous interest in the ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits compilation saw the release of in 1993. In 1994, two Australian cult films caught the attention of the world's media, both focusing on admiration for ABBA: The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Muriel's Wedding. The same year, Thank You for the Music, a four-disc box set comprising all the group's hits and stand-out album tracks, was released with the involvement of all four members. "By the end of the twentieth century," American critic Chuck Klosterman wrote a decade later, "it was far more contrarian to hate ABBA than to love them." ABBA were soon recognised and embraced by other acts: Evan Dando of the Lemonheads recorded a cover version of "Knowing Me, Knowing You"; Sinéad O'Connor and Boyzone's Stephen Gately have recorded "Chiquitita"; Tanita Tikaram, Blancmange and Steven Wilson paid tribute to "The Day Before You Came". Cliff Richard covered "Lay All Your Love on Me", while Dionne Warwick, Peter Cetera, and Celebrity Skin recorded their versions of "SOS". US alternative-rock musician Marshall Crenshaw has also been known to play a version of "Knowing Me, Knowing You" in concert appearances, while legendary English Latin pop songwriter Richard Daniel Roman has recognised ABBA as a major influence. Swedish metal guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen covered "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" with slightly altered lyrics. Two different compilation albums of ABBA songs have been released. ABBA: A Tribute coincided with the 25th anniversary celebration and featured 17 songs, some of which were recorded especially for this release. Notable tracks include Go West's "One of Us", Army of Lovers "Hasta Mañana", Information Society's "Lay All Your Love on Me", Erasure's "Take a Chance on Me" (with MC Kinky), and Lyngstad's a cappella duet with the Real Group of "Dancing Queen". A second 12-track album was released in 1999, entitled ABBAmania, with proceeds going to the Youth Music charity in England. It featured all new cover versions: notable tracks were by Madness ("Money, Money, Money"), Culture Club ("Voulez-Vous"), the Corrs ("The Winner Takes It All"), Steps ("Lay All Your Love on Me", "I Know Him So Well"), and a medley entitled "Thank ABBA for the Music" performed by several artists and as featured on the Brits Awards that same year. In 1997, an ABBA tribute group was formed, the ABBA Teens, which was subsequently renamed the A-Teens to allow the group some independence. The group's first album, "The ABBA Generation", consisting solely of ABBA covers reimagined as 1990s pop songs, was a worldwide success and so were subsequent albums. The group disbanded in 2004 due to a gruelling schedule and intentions to go solo. In Sweden, the growing recognition of the legacy of Andersson and Ulvaeus resulted in the 1998 B & B Concerts, a tribute concert (with Swedish singers who had worked with the songwriters through the years) showcasing not only their ABBA years, but hits both before and after ABBA. The concert was a success, and was ultimately released on CD. It later toured Scandinavia and even went to Beijing in the People's Republic of China for two concerts. In 2000, ABBA was reported to have turned down an offer of approximately one billion US dollars to do a reunion tour consisting of 100 concerts. For the 2004 semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest, staged in Istanbul 30 years after ABBA had won the contest in Brighton, all four members made cameo appearances in a special comedy video made for the interval act, entitled "Our Last Video Ever". Other well-known stars such as Rik Mayall, Cher and Iron Maiden's Eddie also made appearances in the video. It was not included in the official DVD release of the Eurovision Contest, but was issued as a separate DVD release, retitled The Last Video at the request of the former ABBA members. The video was made using puppet models of the members of the band. The video has surpassed 8 millions views on YouTube as of November 2019. In 2005, all four members of ABBA appeared at the Stockholm premiere of the musical Mamma Mia!. On 22 October 2005, at the , "Waterloo" was chosen as the best song in the competition's history. On 4 July 2008, all four ABBA members were reunited at the Swedish premiere of the film Mamma Mia!. It was only the second time all of them had appeared together in public since 1986. During the appearance, they re- emphasised that they intended never to officially reunite, citing the opinion of Robert Plant that the re-formed Led Zeppelin was more like a cover band of itself than the original band. Ulvaeus stated that he wanted the band to be remembered as they were during the peak years of their success. The compilation album , originally released in 1992, returned to number-one in the UK album charts for the fifth time on 3 August 2008. On 14 August 2008, the Mamma Mia! The Movie film soundtrack went to number-one on the US Billboard charts, ABBA's first US chart-topping album. During the band's heyday the highest album chart position they had ever achieved in America was number 14. In November 2008, all eight studio albums, together with a ninth of rare tracks, was released as The Albums. It hit several charts, peaking at number- four in Sweden and reaching the Top 10 in several other European territories. In 2008, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, in collaboration with Universal Music Group Sweden AB, released SingStar ABBA on both the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 games consoles, as part of the SingStar music video games. The PS2 version features 20 ABBA songs, while 25 songs feature on the PS3 version. On 22 January 2009, Fältskog and Lyngstad appeared together on stage to receive the Swedish music award "Rockbjörnen" (for "lifetime achievement"). In an interview, the two women expressed their gratitude for the honorary award and thanked their fans. On 25 November 2009, PRS for Music announced that the British public voted ABBA as the band they would most like to see re-form. On 27 January 2010, ABBAWORLD, a 25-room touring exhibition featuring interactive and audiovisual activities, debuted at Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London. According to the exhibition's website, ABBAWORLD is "approved and fully supported" by the band members. "Mamma Mia" was released as one of the first few non-premium song selections for the online RPG game Bandmaster. On 17 May 2011, "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" was added as a non-premium song selection for the Bandmaster Philippines server. On 15 November 2011, Ubisoft released a dancing game called for the Wii. In January 2012, Universal Music announced the re-release of ABBA's final album The Visitors, featuring a previously unheard track "From a Twinkling Star to a Passing Angel". A book entitled ABBA: The Official Photo Book was published in early 2014 to mark the 40th anniversary of the band's Eurovision victory. The book reveals that part of the reason for the band's outrageous costumes was that Swedish tax laws at the time allowed the cost of garish outfits that were not suitable for daily wear to be tax deductible. A sequel to the 2008 movie Mamma Mia!, titled Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, was announced in May 2017; the film was released on 20 July 2018. Cher, who appeared in the movie, also released Dancing Queen, an album full of ABBA covers, in September 2018. In June 2017, a blue plaque outside Brighton Dome was set to commemorate their 1974 Eurovision win. On 20 January 2016, all four members of ABBA made a public appearance at Mamma Mia! The Party in Stockholm. On 6 June 2016, the quartet appeared together at a private party at Berns Salonger in Stockholm, which was held to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Andersson and Ulvaeus's first meeting. Fältskog and Lyngstad sang the ABBA song "The Way Old Friends Do" before they were joined on stage by Andersson and Ulvaeus. British manager Simon Fuller announced in a statement in October 2016 that the group would be reuniting to work on a new 'digital entertainment experience'. The project would feature the members in their "life-like" avatar form ('abbatars') based on their late 1970s tour and would be set to launch by the spring of 2019. On 27 April 2018, the members announced that they had recorded two new songs, one entitled "I Still Have Faith in You", to feature in a TV special set to air later that year. The other new track is called "Don't Shut Me Down". In September 2018, Ulvaeus revealed that the two new songs, "I Still Have Faith in You" and "Don't Shut Me Down", as well as the aforementioned TV special now called , would be released no earlier than March 2019. In January 2019, Ulvaeus revealed that neither song was finished yet, hinting at a final mix date of spring 2019 and the possibility of a third song. In June 2019, Ulvaeus announced that the first new song and video containing the Abbatars would be released in November 2019. In September, he stated in an interview that there were now five new ABBA songs to be released in 2020. In October 1984, Ulvaeus and Andersson together with lyricist Tim Rice released the musical concept double-album Chess. The singles "One Night in Bangkok" (with vocals by Murray Head and Anders Glenmark ) and "I Know Him So Well" (a duet by Barbara Dickson and Elaine Paige, and later also recorded by Barbra Streisand and Whitney Houston) were both hugely successful. The former reached number-one in Australia, Germany, Spain and Switzerland; number-two in Austria, France and New Zealand, and number-three in Canada, Norway, Sweden and the US. In May 1986, the musical premiered in London's West End, and ran for almost three years. Chess also opened on Broadway in April 1988, but closed within two months due to bad reviews. In Stockholm, the composers staged Chess på svenska (Chess in Swedish) in 2003, with some new material, including the musical numbers "Han är en man, han är ett barn" ("He's a Man, He's a Child") and "Glöm mig om du kan" ("Forget Me If You Can"). In 2008, the musical was again revived for a successful staging at London's Royal Albert Hall which was subsequently released on DVD, and then in two successful separate touring productions in the United States and United Kingdom, in 2010. Andersson and Ulvaeus' next project, Kristina från Duvemåla, an epic Swedish musical, premiered in Malmö, in southern Sweden in October 1995. The musical ran for five years in Stockholm, and an English version has been in development for some considerable time. It has been reported that a Broadway production is in its earliest stages of pre-production. In the meantime, following some earlier workshops, a full presentation of the English translation of the musical in concert, now with the shortened name of "Kristina", took place to capacity crowds in September 2009 at New York's Carnegie Hall, and in April 2010 at London's Royal Albert Hall, followed by a CD release of the New York recordings. Since 1983, besides Chess and Kristina från Duvemåla, Andersson has continued writing songs with Ulvaeus. The pair produced two English-language pop albums with Swedish duo Gemini in 1985 and 1987. In 1987, Andersson also released his first solo album on his own label, Mono Music, called "Klinga mina klockor" ("Ring My Bells"), containing material inspired by Swedish folk music – and followed it with a second album titled November 1989. During the 1990s, Andersson wrote music for the popular Swedish cabaret quartet Ainbusk Singers, giving them two hits: "Lassie" and "Älska mig" ("Love me"), and later produced Shapes, an English-language album by group's Josefin Nilsson with all-new material by Andersson and Ulvaeus. Andersson has also regularly written music for films (most notably to Roy Andersson's Songs from the Second Floor). In 2001, Andersson formed his own band, Benny Anderssons Orkester (BAO), which released three successful albums in 2001, 2004 and 2007. Andersson has the distinction of remaining the longest in the Swedish Radio Svensktoppen charts; the song "Du är min man" ("You Are My Man"), sung by Helen Sjöholm, spent 278 weeks there between 2004 and 2009. Andersson released his third album BAO 3 in October 2007, of new material with his band BAO and vocalists Helen Sjöholm and Tommy Körberg, as well as playing to full houses at two of Sweden's largest concert venues in October and November 2007, with an audience of 14,000. Andersson and Ulvaeus have been highly involved in the worldwide productions of the musical Mamma Mia!, alongside Lyngstad who attends premieres. They were also involved in the production of the successful film version of the musical, which opened in July 2008. Andersson produced the soundtrack utilising many of the musicians ABBA used on their albums and tours. Andersson made a cameo appearance in the movie as a "fisherman" piano player in the "Dancing Queen" scene, while Ulvaeus is seen as a Greek god playing a lyre during the closing credits. Andersson and Ulvaeus have continuously been writing new material; most recently they wrote seven songs for Andersson's 2011 BAO album O Klang Och Jubeltid, performed as usual by vocalists Sjöholm, Körberg and Moreus. In July 2009, BAO (now renamed the Benny Andersson Band) released their first international album, The Story of a Heart. The album was a compilation of 14 tracks from Andersson's five Swedish-language releases between 1987 and 2007, including five songs now recorded with lyrics by Ulvaeus in English; the new title song premiered on BBC2's Ken Bruce Show. A Swedish-language version of the title track, "Sommaren Du Fick" ("The Summer You Got"), was released as a single in Sweden prior to the English version, with vocals by Helen Sjöholm. In May 2009, Andersson released a single recorded by the staff at his privately owned Stockholm hotel Hotel Rival, titled "2nd Best to None", accompanied by a video showing the staff at work. In 2008, Andersson and Ulvaeus wrote a song for Swedish singer Sissela Kyle, titled "Jag vill bli gammal" ("I Wanna Grow Old"), for her Stockholm stage show "Your Days Are Numbered", which was never recorded and released, but was performed on television. Ulvaeus also contributed lyrics to ABBA's 1976 instrumental track "Arrival" for Sarah Brightman's cover version recorded for her 2008 album Winter Symphony. New English lyrics have also been written for Andersson's 1999 song "Innan Gryningen" (then also named "Millennium Hymn"), with the new title "The Silence of the Dawn" for Barbara Dickson (performed live, but not yet recorded and released). In 2007, they wrote the song "Han som har vunnit allt" ("He Who's Won It All") for actor/singer Anders Ekborg. Ulvaeus also wrote English lyrics for two older songs from Andersson's solo albums: "After the Rain" ("Efter regnet", 1987) for opera singer Anne Sofie von Otter, for her Andersson tribute album I Let the Music Speak, and "I Walk with You Mama" ("Stockholm by Night", 1989). Barbara Dickson recorded (but not yet released) a Björn & Benny song entitled "The Day The Wall Came Tumbling Down"; the track was eventually released by Australian Mamma Mia! musical star Anne Wood on her album of ABBA covers, Divine Discontent. , Ulvaeus has mentioned writing new material with Andersson for a BAO Christmas release (also mentioned as a BAO 'box'). Andersson (together with Kristina Lugn and Lars Rudolfsson) composed music for a Swedish language obscure musical, "Hjälp Sökes" ("Help Wanted"), which premiered In February 2013. Andersson has also written music for a documentary film about Olof Palme, re-recording the track "Sorgmarsch" ("Dirge"). Both female members of ABBA pursued solo careers on the international scene after their work with the group. In 1982, Lyngstad chose Genesis drummer and vocalist Phil Collins to produce the album Something's Going On and unveiled the hit single and video "I Know There's Something Going On" in August of that year. The single became a number-one hit in Belgium and Switzerland and was a Top 10 hit in Australia, Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, South Africa and Sweden. The track also proved successful in the US, peaking at No. 13 (and spending almost four months on the Billboard Hot 100). Sveriges Television documented this historical event, by filming the whole recording process. The result became a one-hour TV documentary, including interviews with Lyngstad, Collins, Ulvaeus and Andersson as well as all the musicians. This documentary and the promotion videos from the album are included in Frida – The DVD. Lyngstad's second international solo album, Shine (produced by Steve Lillywhite), was recorded in Paris and released in 1984. This would be Lyngstad's final studio album release for twelve years. It featured "Slowly", the last known Andersson- Ulvaeus composition to have been recorded by one of the former female ABBA vocalists to date. The promotional videos and clips for "Shine" are included in Frida – The DVD. In 1992, Lyngstad was chosen to be the chairperson for the environmental organisation "Artister för miljön" ("Artists for the Environment") in Sweden. She was chairperson for this organisation until 1995. To mark her interests for the environment, she recorded the Julian Lennon song "Saltwater" and performed it live in Stockholm. She arranged and financed summer camps for poor children in Sweden, focusing on environmental and ecological issues. Her environmental work for the organisation led to the decision to record again. The album Djupa andetag (Deep Breaths) was released in 1996 and became a number-one success in Sweden. The lyrics for the single, "Även en blomma" ("Even a Flower"), deal with environmental issues. In 2004, Lyngstad recorded a song entitled "The Sun Will Shine Again", written especially for her and released with former Deep Purple member Jon Lord. The couple made several TV performances with the song in Germany. On 5 December 2005, Universal released her box set, Frida – 4xCD 1xDVD, consisting of the solo albums she recorded for the Polar Label and the 3-hour documentary Frida – The DVD. On this DVD, which covers her entire singing career, the viewer is guided by Lyngstad herself through the years from her TV debut in Sweden in 1967 to the TV performances she made in Germany in 2004. Many rare clips are included in the set and each performance is explained by Lyngstad herself. The interview with Lyngstad was filmed in the Swiss Alps in mid-2005. Lyngstad returned to the recording studio in 2010 to record vocals for the Cat Stevens song "Morning Has Broken", for Swedish guitarist Georg Wadenius's album Reconnection. The album, which featured other guest vocalists, reached number 17 in Sweden. In 1980, Fältskog and her then 7-year-old daughter Linda recorded Nu tändas tusen juleljus, a Swedish Christmas album. Released in 1981, it was Fältskog's first Swedish-language recording for the Polar Music label after she left CBS-Cupol. It peaked at No. 6 on the Swedish album chart in January 1982, and has since been re-released on CD by Polar Music/PolyGram/Universal Music. The album title is derived from one of Scandinavia's best-known Christmas carols, "Nu tändas tusen juleljus" ("Now a thousand Christmas candles are lit"). In 1983, Fältskog released the solo album Wrap Your Arms Around Me, which achieved platinum sales in Sweden. This included the single "The Heat Is On", which was a hit in Europe and Scandinavia. It reached number-one in Sweden and Norway and peaked at number- two in the Netherlands and Belgium. In the United States, Fältskog earned a Billboard Top 30 hit with "Can't Shake Loose". The title track of the album was another successful hit, topping the charts in Belgium and Denmark, reaching the Top 5 in the Netherlands, South Africa and Sweden, and the Top 20 in Germany and France. The album sold 1.2 million copies worldwide. The album was produced Mike Chapman, also known for his work with The Sweet, Mud, Suzi Quatro, Blondie, Pat Benatar and The Knack. Fältskog's second English-language solo album, Eyes of a Woman (produced by Eric Stewart of 10cc), was released in March 1985. It peaked at number two in Sweden (becoming a platinum seller). The first single from the album was her self-penned "I Won't Let You Go". Her duet with Ola Håkansson, "The Way You Are", was a number-one hit in Sweden in 1986 and was awarded double platinum status. In early 1987, Fältskog recorded a Swedish-language album, Kom följ med i vår karusell (Come Join Us on Our Carousel) with her son Christian and a children's choir. The single "På Söndag" ("On Sunday") received significant airplay on Swedish radio and even made the Swedish Top 10, unique for a song made for kids to enjoy. Also in 1987, Fältskog released her third English-language solo album, the Peter Cetera-produced I Stand Alone, which also included the Billboard Adult Contemporary duet with Cetera, "I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)", as well as the European charting singles "The Last Time" and "Let It Shine". The album was extremely successful in Sweden, where it spent eight weeks at number-one and was awarded double-platinum status. Shortly after some minor European promotion for the album in early 1988, Fältskog withdrew from public life and halted her music career. In 1996, she released her autobiography, As I Am, and a compilation album featuring her solo hits alongside some ABBA classics. In 2004, Fältskog made a successful comeback, with the release of the critically acclaimed album My Colouring Book, containing covers of songs that had the most impact on her teenage years in the 1960s. It debuted at number-one in Sweden (achieving triple-platinum status), and was a Top 10 hit in Denmark, Finland and Germany. It also became Fältskog's second solo album to reach the UK Top 20, peaking at number 12. The single "If I Thought You'd Ever Change Your Mind" (a cover of the song recorded by Cilla Black) became Fältskog's biggest solo hit in the UK, reaching number 11, while peaking at number-two in her native Sweden. A second single, "When You Walk in the Room", was released but met with less success. In January 2007, Fältskog sang a live duet on stage with Swedish singer Tommy Körberg at the after party for the final performance of the musical, Mamma Mia!, in Stockholm, at which Andersson and Ulvaeus were also present. In May 2013, Fältskog released a solo album entitled A through Universal International. In a promotional interview, Fältskog explained that the album was unplanned and it was after she heard the first three songs that she felt that she "had to do this [record the album]". She also revealed that she completed singing lessons prior to recording the album, as she felt her throat was "a bit rusty". Fältskog stated that she would not be undertaking any tours or live performances in support of the album, explaining: "I'm not that young anymore. I don't have the energy to do that, and also I don't want to travel too much." The title of the album was conceived of by the studio production team. A proved successful upon release, reaching the Top 10 in many European countries, including Germany, Sweden and the UK (where it peaked at number-six and is Fältskog's highest-charting solo album to date), as well as Australia. In 2018, Lyngstad and multi-Grammy winning Jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval released a reworking of the ABBA song "Andante, Andante" as a single, which is also featured on Sandoval's album Ultimate Duets. ABBA were perfectionists in the studio, working on tracks until they got them right rather than leaving them to come back to later on. The band created a basic rhythm track with a drummer, guitarist and bass player, and overlaid other arrangements and instruments. Vocals were then added, and orchestra overdubs were usually left until last. Fältskog and Lyngstad contributed ideas at the studio stage. Andersson and Ulvaeus played them the backing tracks and they made comments and suggestions. According to Fältskog, she and Lyngstad had the final say in how the lyrics were shaped. Their single "S.O.S." was "heavily influenced by Phil Spector's Wall of Sound and the melodies of the Beach Boys", according to Billboard writer Fred Bronson, who also reported that Ulvaeus had said, "Because there was the Latin-American influence, the German, the Italian, the English, the American, all of that. I suppose we were a bit exotic in every territory in an acceptable way." ABBA was widely noted for the colourful and trend-setting costumes its members wore. The reason for the wild costumes was Swedish tax law. The cost of the clothes was deductible only if they could not be worn other than for performances. Choreography by Graham Tainton also contributed to their performance style. The videos that accompanied some of the band's biggest hits are often cited as being among the earliest examples of the genre. Most of ABBA's videos (and ABBA: The Movie) were directed by Lasse Hallström, who would later direct the films My Life as a Dog, The Cider House Rules and Chocolat. ABBA made videos because their songs were hits in many different countries and personal appearances were not always possible. This was also done in an effort to minimise travelling, particularly to countries that would have required extremely long flights. Fältskog and Ulvaeus had two young children and Fältskog, who was also afraid of flying, was very reluctant to leave her children for such a long time. ABBA's manager, Stig Anderson, realised the potential of showing a simple video clip on television to publicise a single or album, thereby allowing easier and quicker exposure than a concert tour. Some of these videos have become classics because of the 1970s-era costumes and early video effects, such as the grouping of the band members in different combinations of pairs, overlapping one singer's profile with the other's full face, and the contrasting of one member against another. In 1976, ABBA participated in an advertising campaign to promote the Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.'s brand, National, in Australia. The campaign was also broadcast in Japan. Five commercial spots, each of approximately one minute, were produced, each presenting the "National Song" performed by ABBA using the melody and instrumental arrangements of "Fernando" and revised lyrics. In September 2010, band members Andersson and Ulvaeus criticised the right- wing Danish People's Party (DF) for using the ABBA song "Mamma Mia" (with modified lyrics) at rallies. The band threatened to file a lawsuit against the DF, saying they never allowed their music to be used politically and that they had absolutely no interest in supporting the party. Their record label Universal Music later said that no legal action would be taken because an agreement had been reached. During their active career, from 1972 to 1982, ABBA placed 20 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, 14 of which made the Top 40 (13 on the Cashbox Top 100), with 10 making the Top 20 on both charts. A total of four of those singles reached the Top 10, including "Dancing Queen" which reached number-one in April 1977. While "Fernando" and "SOS" did not break the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 (reaching number 13 and 15 respectively), they did reach the Top 10 on Cashbox ("Fernando") and Record World ("SOS") charts. Both "Dancing Queen" and "Take a Chance on Me" were certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America for sales of over one million copies each. The group also had 12 Top 20 singles on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart with two of them, "Fernando" and "The Winner Takes It All", reaching number-one. "Lay All Your Love on Me" was ABBA's fourth number-one single on a Billboard chart, topping the Hot Dance Club Play chart. Nine ABBA albums made their way into the top half of the Billboard 200 album chart, with seven reaching the Top 50 and four reaching the Top 20. ABBA: The Album was the highest-charting album of the group's career, peaking at No. 14. Five albums received RIAA gold certification (more than 500,000 copies sold), while three acquired platinum status (selling more than one million copies). The compilation album topped the Billboard Top Pop Catalog Albums chart in August 2008 (15 years after it was first released in the US in 1993), becoming the group's first number-one album ever on any of the Billboard album charts. It has sold 6 million copies there. On 15 March 2010, ABBA were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Bee Gees members Barry Gibb and Robin Gibb. The ceremony was held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City. The group was represented by Anni- Frid Lyngstad and Benny Andersson. Agnetha Fältskog – lead and backing vocals, Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad – lead and backing vocals, Björn Ulvaeus – guitars, backing and lead vocals, Benny Andersson – keyboards, synthesizers, piano, accordion, guitars, backing and lead vocals Abbaesque – An Irish ABBA tribute band, A-Teens – A pop music group from Stockholm, Sweden, Björn Again – The earliest-formed ABBA tribute band (1988), Gabba – An ABBA–Ramones tribute band that covers the former in the style of the latter, the name being a pun on "Gabba Gabba Hey". Saturday Night (1975) (TV) ... Season 1 Episode 5 (Hosted by Robert Klein with Musical Numbers by ABBA and Loudon Wainwright III), Abbacadabra – A French children's musical based on songs from ABBA, Abba-esque – A 1992 cover EP by Erasure, Abbasalutely – A compilation album released in 1995 as a tribute album to ABBA, Mamma Mia! – A musical stage show based on songs of ABBA, ABBAmania – An ITV programme and tribute album to ABBA released in 1999, Mamma Mia! – A film adaptation of the musical stage show, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again – A prequel/sequel to the original film, – A dance video game released by Ubisoft in 2011 with songs from ABBA and also a spin-off of Just Dance video game series, Dancing Queen \- A 2018 cover album by Cher Studio albums Ring Ring (1973), Waterloo (1974), ABBA (1975), Arrival (1976), (1977), Voulez-Vous (1979), Super Trouper (1980), The Visitors (1981) 1973: Swedish Folkpark Tour, 1974–75: European Tour, 1977: European & Australian Tour, 1979–80: List of Swedes in music, ABBA City Walks – Stockholm City Museum, ABBAMAIL, List of best-selling music artists, Music of Sweden, Popular music in Sweden Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, Judy Craymer: Mamma Mia! How Can I Resist You?: The Inside Story of Mamma Mia! and the Songs of ABBA. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006, Carl Magnus Palm. ABBA – The Complete Recording Sessions (1994), Carl Magnus Palm (2000). From "ABBA" to "Mamma Mia!", Elisabeth Vincentelli: ABBA Treasures: A Celebration of the Ultimate Pop Group. Omnibus Press, 2010,, Oldham, Andrew, Calder, Tony & Irvin, Colin (1995) "ABBA: The Name of the Game",, Potiez, Jean-Marie (2000). ABBA – The Book, Simon Sheridan: The Complete ABBA. Titan Books, 2012,, Anna Henker (ed.), Astrid Heyde (ed.): Abba – Das Lexikon. Northern Europe Institut, Humboldt-University Berlin, 2015 (German), Steve Harnell (ed.): Classic Pop Presents Abba: A Celebration. Classic Pop Magazine (special edition), November 2016 A for ABBA. BBC, 20 July 1993, Thierry Lecuyer, Jean-Marie Potiez: Thank You ABBA. Willow Wil Studios/A2C Video, 1993, Barry Barnes: ABBA − The History. Polar Music International AB, 1999, Chris Hunt: The Winner Takes it All − The ABBA Story. Littlestar Services/lambic Productions, 1999, Steve Cole, Chris Hunt: Super Troupers − Thirty Years of ABBA. BBC, 2004, The Joy of ABBA. BBC 4, 27 December 2013 (BBC page), Carl Magnus Palm, Roger Backlund: ABBA – When Four Became One. SVT, 2 January 2012, Carl Magnus Palm, Roger Backlund: ABBA – Absolute Image. SVT, 2 January 2012, ABBA – Bang a boomerang. ABC 1, 30. Januar 2013 (ABC page), ABBA: When All Is Said and Done, 2017, Thank you for the music . Sunday Night (7 News), 1 October 2019 ABBAinter.net TV-performances archive, ABBA Songs – ABBA Album and Song details., Abba – The Articles – extensive collection of contemporary international newspaper and magazine articles on Abba "Mamma Mia" is a song by Swedish singer and songwriter Darin featuring vocals by rapper Prophet of 7Lions. It was released on April 14, 2014 in the Nordic countries in occasion of his 10-year anniversary as an artist. It's Darin's first single with Warner Music Sweden. The song was originally written for Darin's sixth studio album Exit, but it didn't make the final cut. On March 14, 2014 Darin announced via his Instagram account the release of a new single called Mamma Mia, along with a competition which consisted of sharing a picture on the social network in order to win an exclusive ticket for the premiere of the music video of the song which would take place in a secret venue in Stockholm two days before the single release. A trailer of the music video was also posted on Darin's official YouTube channel the same day. Winners were contacted by Darin himself on April 2 and the event took place in a cinema in Stockholm called Rigoletto on April 12. A seven track EP called Mamma Mia - Remixes was released on June 18, 2014. The music video of the single was released on April 21 on Darin's YouTube channel. It was directed by Alex Herron and filmed in Palmdale, California. As stated by the director himself, "the video feels as if it's a love story in the beginning but then it starts to escalate and she's a Mamma Mia, she's the ultimate crazy woman. They rob a bank, she strips for him. It's pretty dirty, it's pretty good". The production of the video costed 500.000 Swedish crowns.

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The Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan (), is the president-chair of the Senate of Pakistan. According to the Constitution of Pakistan, the chairman is a presiding official and that Senate must choose a chairman and deputy chairman for a time interval of three years. During the President's absence, the chairman senate is empowered with the duties of the presidency; in rare events involving the absence of the chairman, the presidential duties are usually held by Speaker National Assembly. The Chairman of the Senate is the second in the line of succession to the President of Pakistan, ahead of the Speaker National Assembly. The 1st Chairman of the Senate was Habibullah Marwat while Wasim Sajjad remains the longest-serving chairman. Balochistan Senator Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani elected to Senate as an independent in the March 3 election, is the current Chairman of the Senate, having assumed office on 12 March 2018. He is the first-ever Senate chairman from Balochistan. The office of Chairman of the Senate is created by Article 60(1) of the Chapter 2 in Part III of the Constitution of Pakistan: The main purpose for the creation of the Senate was to give equal representation to all the federating units since the membership of the National Assembly was based on the population of each four province. Equal provincial membership in the Senate, thus, balances the provincial inequality in the National Assembly and dispels doubts and apprehension, if any, regarding deprivation and exploitation. The role of the Senate is to promote national cohesion and harmony and to alleviate fears of the smaller provinces regarding domination by any one province because of its majority, in the National Assembly. The Senate act as an legislative institution that represents the provinces and territories of the country and promotes a feeling of equality, peace and good understanding between them, which is so essential for the growth and prosperity of a nation. Thus, the Senate in Pakistan, over the years, has emerged as an essential organ and a stabilizing factor of the federation. After the creation of Pakistan on 14 August 1947, the first Constituent Assembly, elected in December 1945 in undivided India, was assigned the task of framing the Constitution of Pakistan. This Assembly passed the Objectives Resolution on 12 March 1949, laying down principles which later became substantive part of the Constitution of Pakistan. However, before it could accomplish the task of framing the constitution, it was dissolved in 1954. Thereafter, the Governor General, convened the Second Constituent Assembly in 1955, which framed and passed the first Constitution of Pakistan on 29 February 1956. That Constitution was promulgated on 23 March 1956, which provided for a parliamentary form of Government with a unicameral legislature. However, from 14 August 1947 to 1 March 1956 the Government of India Act, 1935, was retained as the Constitution of Pakistan. On 7 October 1958, Martial Law was promulgated and the Constitution abrogated. The Military Government appointed a Constitution Commission in February 1960 which framed the 1962 Constitution. That Constitution provided for a Presidential form of Government with a unicameral legislature. The 1962 Constitution was abrogated on 25 March 1969. The Civil Government, which came to power in December 1971 pursuant to 1970 elections, gave the nation an interim Constitution in the year 1972. In 1973, the constitutional conventional framed the comprehensive Constitution which was rectify on 12 April and promulgated on 14 August 1973. Retired Senior Justice Habibullah Khan Marwat was elected its first chairman and remained until 1977. The 1973 Constitution also provided a parliamentary system of government with a bicameral legislature: the National Assembly and the Senate . The membership of the Senate, which was originally 45, was raised to 63 in 1977 and to 87 in 1985. In 2002, the membership rose to 100 through the legal framework enforced on 21 August 2002. Now there are 104 members. The Parliament of Pakistan consists of the President and the two legislative houses: National Assembly and the Senate . The President is elected by members of both Houses of the Parliament and the four provincial assemblies. The President may be removed from office or impeached through a resolution, passed by not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the Parliament in a joint sitting of the two Houses, convened for the purpose. In case the office of the president becomes vacant for any reason, the chairman, or if he is unable to perform the functions of the office of the president, the Speaker, acts as president till such time that a president is elected. Same is the case when the president by reason of absence from Pakistan or any other cause is unable to perform his functions. Parliament of Pakistan Senate of Pakistan The Parliament of Pakistan ( , literally "Pakistan advisory council" or "Pakistan consultative assembly") is the federal and supreme legislative body of Pakistan. It is a bicameral federal legislature that consists of the Senate as the upper house and the National Assembly as the lower house. According to the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the President of Pakistan is also a component of the Parliament. The National Assembly is elected for a five-year term on the basis of adult franchise and one-man one- vote. The tenure of a Member of the National Assembly is for the duration of the house, or sooner, in case the Member dies or resigns. The tenure of the National Assembly also comes to an end if dissolved on the advice of the Prime Minister or by the president in his discretion under the Constitution. The Parliament meets at the Parliament House building in Islamabad, where debating chambers for both houses are present. Until 1960, the Parliament House was located in Karachi. Qaumi Assembly (English: National Assembly of Pakistan) is the lower house of the parliament. The National Assembly has 342 seats, 272 of which are directly elected, 60 are reserved for women and a further 10 for religious minorities. The National Assembly of Pakistan is the country's sovereign legislative body. It embodies the will of the people to let themselves be governed under the democratic, multi-party Federal Parliamentary System. The National Assembly makes laws for the Federation in respect of the powers enumerated in the Federal Legislative list. Through its debates, adjournment motion, question hour and Standing Committees, the National Assembly keeps as check over the Executive and ensures that the government functions within the parameters set out in the Constitution and does not violate the fundamental rights of citizens. Only the National Assembly, through its Public Accounts Committee, scrutinizes public spending and exercises control of expenditure incurred by the government. The Members of the National Assembly are to be elected by direct and free vote in accordance with law. Article 50 of the Constitution provides that the Parliament of Pakistan shall consist of president and the two houses known as the National Assembly and the Senate. The National Assembly has an edge over the Senate by legislating exclusively on money matters. With exception to money bills, however, both the houses work together to carry out the basic work of the Parliament, i.e. law making. The bill relating to the Federal Legislative List can be originated in either house. If the house passed the bill through majority vote, it shall be transmitted to the other house. If the other house passes it without amendment, it shall be presented to the president for assent. If the bill, transmitted to the other house, is not passed within ninety days or rejected, it shall be considered in a joint sitting to be summoned by the president on the request of the house in which the bill was originated. If the bill is passed in the joint sitting, with or without amendments, by the votes of majority of the members of the two houses, it shall be presented to the president for assent. If the bill is presented to the president for assent, he shall assent to the bill in not later than ten days. If it is not a money bill, the president may return the bill to the Majlis-e-Shoora with a message requesting that the bill be reconsidered and that an amendment specified in the message be considered. The Majlis-e-Shoora shall reconsider the bill in a joint sitting. If the bill is passed again, with or without amendment, by vote of the majority of the members present and voting, it shall be presented to the president and the president shall give his assent within ten days; failing which such assent shall be deemed to have been given. Under the Constitution, the Parliament may also legislate for two or more Provinces by consent and request made by those Provinces. If the Federal Government proclaims State of Emergency in any province, the power to legislate about that province is vested in the Parliament. But the bills passed by the Parliament during the State of Emergency, shall cease to be in force after the expiration of six months from the date Emergency is lifted. Nevertheless, the steps already taken under these Acts shall remain valid. In exercises of its constitutional role, the Parliament also has other very important duties to perform. The president, who is at the apex, is elected by members of both houses of the Parliament and the Provincial Assemblies. The Prime Minister, who heads the Cabinet and is meant to aid and advise the president in his functions, belongs to the National Assembly. He enjoys the confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly. Members of the Cabinet are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister. In the formation of the Cabinet the major portion (75%), goes to National Assembly while the rest (25%) are taken from the Senate. There is a democratic procedure to remove the Prime Minister from his office if he loses confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly. In this respect a resolution for a vote of no-confidence is moved by not less than 20% of the total membership of the National Assembly. If the resolution is passed by majority of the total membership of the National Assembly, the Prime Minister immediately relinquished powers. Similarly, for the removal or impeachment of the president, not less than one- half of the total membership of either house may give in writing its intention to do so, to the Speaker National Assembly, or, as the case may be, to the Chairman Senate, for moving a resolution for the purpose. In a joint sitting of the two houses, convened for the purpose, and after the deliberations, if the resolution is passed by the votes of not less than two thirds of the total membership of the Parliament, the president shall cease to hold office immediately on the passing of the resolution. In case emergency is proclaimed, the Parliament holds the authority to extend the term of the National Assembly. Under the Constitution, the Parliament may also, on the request of the Federal Government, by law, confer functions upon officers or authorities subordinate to the Federal Government. The main purpose for the creation of the Aiwan-e Bala (English: Senate of Pakistan) was to give equal representation to all the federating units since the membership of the National Assembly was based on the population of each province. Equal provincial membership in the Senate, thus, balances the provincial inequality in the National Assembly and dispels doubts and apprehension, if any, regarding deprivation and exploitation. The role of the Senate is to promote national cohesion and harmony and to alleviate fears of the smaller provinces regarding domination by any one province because of its majority, in the National Assembly. The Senate, is a body which represents the provinces/territories of the country and promotes a feeling of equality, peace and harmony, which is so essential for the growth and prosperity of a nation. Thus, the Senate in Pakistan, over the years, has emerged as an essential organ and a stabilizing factor of the federation. The Senate consists of 104 members, of whom 14 members are elected by each Provincial Assembly, 8 members are elected from Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATAs) by the Members of National Assembly from these areas, 2 members, 1 woman and 1 Technocrat is elected from the Federal Capital by the Members of National Assembly, 4 women and 4 Technocrats are elected by the members of each Provincial Assembly. And 1 Non - Muslim Member is selected from each Province. The breakup of seats allocated to each Province, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATAs), Federal Capital, Women and Ulema/Technocrats. It is the responsibility of the Chief Election Commissioner to hold and make arrangements for the Senate elections in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote through electoral colleges. The term of the members of the Senate is 6 years. However, the term of the first group of the Senators, who shall retire after completion of first 3 years of the Senate, is determined by drawing of lots by the Chief Election Commissioner. The Muslim League of India had, since the middle of twentieth century, demanded for a separate homeland on the basis of the Two-nation theory. The British rulers realized that the Hindus and Muslims of India remained two separate and distinct nations and socio-cultural entities. The British rulers were left with no option but to eventually accept the demand of the Muslims of India. On 3 June 1947, Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, called the conference of all the leaders of the Sub-continent and communicated to them his Government's Plan for the transfer of power. At that time, a notification was issued in the Gazette of India, published on 26 July 1947 in which the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was given shape with 69 Members (later on the membership was increased to 79), including one female Member. The State of Pakistan was created under the Independence Act of 1947. The Act made the existing Constituent Assemblies, the dominion legislatures. These Assemblies were allowed to exercise all the powers which were formerly exercised by the Central Legislature, in addition to the powers regarding the framing of a new Constitution, prior to which all territories were to be governed in accordance with the Government of India Act, 1935. The first session of the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was held on 10 August 1947 at Sindh Assembly Building in Karachi. On 11 August 1947 Muhammad Ali Jinnah was elected unanimously as the president of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and the National Flag was formally approved by the Assembly. On 12 August 1947, a resolution was approved regarding officially addressing Jinnah as Quaid-i- Azam. On the same day, a special committee called the "Committee on Fundamental Rights of Citizens and Minorities of Pakistan" was appointed to look into and advise the Assembly on matters relating to fundamental rights of the citizens, particularly the minorities, with the aim to legislate on these issues appropriately. On 14 August 1947, the Transfer of Power took place. Lord Mountbatten, Governor General of India, addressed the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. The Quaid gave a reply to the address in the house, on which the principles of the State of Pakistan were laid. On 15 August 1947, the Quaid-i-Azam was sworn in as the first Governor General of Pakistan. Mian Sir Abdur Rashid, Chief Justice of Pakistan, administered the oath of office from him. The Quaid remained in this position till his death on 11 September 1948. The foremost task before the first Constituent Assembly was the framing the Constitution for the nation. On 7 March 1949, the Objectives Resolution, which now serves as the basic law of Pakistan, was introduced by the first Prime Minister Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan, and later adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 12 March 1949. On the same day, a 24-member Basic Principles Committee was formed to prepare a draft Constitution on the basis of the Objectives Resolution. On 16 October 1951, Khan, the mover of the Objective Resolution, was assassinated and Khawaja Nazimuddin took over as the Prime Minister on 17 October 1951. The final draft of the Constitution was prepared in 1954. By that time, Muhammad Ali Bogra had taken over as the Prime Minister. However, just before the draft could be placed in the house for approval, the Assembly was dissolved by the then Governor General Ghulam Muhammad on 24 October 1954. The Prime Minister was, however, not dismissed and was asked to run the administration, with a reconstituted Cabinet, until such time as the elections were held. Maulvi Tamizuddin, President of the Assembly, challenged the dissolution in the Sindh Chief Court, and won the case. The Government in return, went to the Federal Court, where the famous judgment was given by the then Chief Justice Muhammad Munir, according to which Maulvi Tamizuddin lost the case. Furthermore, according to the book: Nigel Kelly, the objective resolution was filed on 12 March 1949, filed by Khwaja Nazimudin, Liaquat ali khan along with 25 members of the basic principle committee. It declared the some objectives including that the legal system should be independent of government. It also contained references to Islam, but was criticized. The second Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was created on 28 May 1955 under Governor General's Order No.12 of 1955. The Electoral College for this Assembly was the Provincial Assemblies of respective Provinces. The strength of this Assembly was 80 Members, half each from East Pakistan and West Pakistan. One of the major decisions taken by this Assembly was the establishment of West Pakistan (One Unit), with the aim to create parity between the two wings (East and West Pakistan). This Assembly also achieved its target by giving the first Constitution to the nation i.e. the Constitution of Pakistan 1956. Chaudhry Muhammad Ali was the Prime Minister at that time. The draft of this Constitution was introduced in the Assembly on 9 January 1956 and was passed by the Assembly on 29 February 1956. The assent was given on it by the Governor General on 2 March 1956. This Constitution was enforced with effect from 23 March 1956. Under this Constitution, Pakistan became an Islamic Republic, hence 23 March became the country's Republic day. It was the same day in 1940 that the historic Pakistan Resolution was adopted at Minto Park, Lahore. On 5 March 1956, Major General Iskandar Mirza became the first President of Pakistan. The 1956 constitution provided for Parliamentary form of government with all the executive powers in the hands of Prime Minister. The President was the Head of State, and was to be elected by all Members of the National and Provincial Assemblies. He was to hold office for 5 years. The President was to act on the advice of Prime Minister, except where he was empowered to act in his discretion. Under 1956 Constitution, Parliament was unicameral. Legislative powers vested in the Parliament, which consisted of the president and the National Assembly with 300 Members divided equally between East and West Pakistan. In addition to these 300 seats, five seats were reserved for women for each of the two wings, for a period of ten years: thus bringing the total membership of the house to 310. However, in the absence of any law to control the Political Parties and the problem of floor crossing, political instability perpetually ensued. Although the first general election were scheduled for early 1959, President Iskandar Mirza abrogated the Constitution, dissolved the National and Provincial Assemblies, and declared Martial Law, on 7 October 1958. He appointed General Muhammad Ayub Khan, Commander-in-Chief of the Army, as the Chief Martial Law Administrator. The new administration did not satisfy CMLA Ayub Khan who had more control in the administration than President Mirza. Ayub dispatched the military unit to enter in presidential palace on the midnight of 26–27 October 1958 and placed him in an airplane to exile in England. On 27 October 1958 General Muhammad Ayub Khan took over as second President of Pakistan. One of the first major steps taken by General Ayub Khan was the appointment of a Constitution Commission on 17 February 1960. The objective of this commission was to submit proposals, as to how best democracy can be strengthened and molded according to the country’s socio-political environment and Islamic principles of justice. The Commission submitted its report to the government on 29 April 1961. On the basis of this report a new Constitution was framed and given to the nation on 1 March 1962. General elections under the new Constitution were held on 28 March 1962 and elections to the special seats reserved for women were held on 29 May 1962. The first session of the third National Assembly was held on 8 June 1962 at Ayub Hall, Rawalpindi. The Constitution of 1962 envisaged a Federal State with Presidential form of government, with the National Assembly at the centre and the Provincial Assemblies in the Provinces. The Legislatures, both at center and in provinces were unicameral. The Federal system had been curtailed by allowing the Provincial Governors to be appointed directly by the president. All executive authority of the Republic of Pakistan, under the Constitution, vested in the office of the president. The President appointed his Cabinet members who were directly responsible to him. The electoral system was made indirect, and the `Basic Democrats', for both wings were declared Electoral College for the purpose of electing the assemblies and the president. Basic democrats were 80,000 in number (40,000 from each East and West Pakistan). The total membership of the National Assembly was 156, one half of whom were to be elected from East Pakistan and other half from West Pakistan, also three seats were reserved for women from each province. The term of this Assembly was three years. The norm was established that if the president was from West Pakistan, the Speaker was to be from East Pakistan and vice versa. One of the major achievements of this Assembly was the passage of Political Parities Act, 1962. On 25 March 1969 the second Martial law was imposed and General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan took over as the president of Pakistan and Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA). He later issued a Legal Framework Order (LFO), under which the first ever general elections were held on 7 December 1970. This was the first Assembly elected on the adult franchise and population basis. It consist of 313 members, 169 from East Pakistan and 144 from West Pakistan including 13 reserved seats for women (6 were from West Pakistan and 7 from East Pakistan). Soon after the elections, due to grave political differences, the Province of East Pakistan seceded from West Pakistan and became Bangladesh. On 20 December 1971 Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took over as the President of Pakistan as well as the first civil Chief Martial Law Administrator. The first session of the National Assembly, due to the delay caused by the separation of East Pakistan, was held on 14 April 1972 at the State Bank Building, Islamabad, in which all 144 Members from West Pakistan and two from former East Pakistan (Mr. Noor-ul-Amin and Raja Tridev Roy who had chosen to join Pakistan) participated. On 17 April 1972 an Interim Constitution was adopted by the National Assembly, which provided for a Presidential form of Government. Under this Constitution, the National Assembly was not to be dissolved earlier than 14 August 1973. The Interim Constitution dealt in detail with the distribution of powers between the Centre and the Provinces. The Assembly also formed a Constitution Committee on 17 April 1972 to prepare the first draft for framing a Constitution. The report of the Committee was presented with a draft Constitution on 31 December 1972. It was unanimously passed by the Assembly in its session on 10 April 1973 and was authenticated by the president on 12 April 1973. This Constitution, called the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973, was promulgated on 14 August 1973. On the same day, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took oath as the Prime Minister, while Mr. Fazal Illahi Choudhary took oath as the president of Pakistan. The 1973 Constitution provides for a parliamentary form of government where the executive authority of the state vests with the Prime Minister. The President, according to the Constitution, is at the apex, representing the unity of the Republic. From 1947 to 1973, the country had had a unicameral system, but under the 1973 Constitution, Pakistan adopted a bicameral federal legislature, called Parliament, composed of the President, the Senate and the National Assembly. Originally, the general seats of the National Assembly were 200 with additional 10 seats reserved for women, bringing the total strength to 210. The newly created Upper house i.e. the Senate had 63 members. Later in 1985 through a Presidential Order (P.O. No. 14 of 1985), seven seats were added to the general seats and ten to the reserved seats for women in the National Assembly. Ten seats were exclusively reserved for minorities to be filled through separate electorate system. Thus the total strength of the lower house reached to 237 members. Similarly the size of the Senate was also increased from 63 to 87 members. Under the 1973 Constitution the National Assembly is elected for five years term, unless sooner dissolved. The seats in National Assembly, unlike the Senate, are allocated to each province and other units of the federation, on the basis of population. The Constitutional provision of 20 special seats for women lapsed in 1990, thus decreased the Assembly strength from 237 to 217. Under the Constitution, elections to the 10 seats reserved for minority were held on separate electorate basis. Despite the tenure of the Assembly being five years, as prescribed in the Constitution, Mr. Z.A. Bhutto, on 7 January 1977 announced the holding of elections before time. Consequently, on 10 January 1977, he advised the president to dissolve the National Assembly. Elections were held on 7 March 1977. The opposition charged the government with rigging the elections to the National Assembly and thereafter boycotted the Provincial Assemblies elections. Since the opposition had not accepted the National Assembly elections result, they did not take oath. This resulted in severe political crisis and Martial Law was imposed by the then Army Chief, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, on 5 July 1977. On 24 December 1981, under Presidential Order (P.O.15 of 1981) a Federal Council (Majlis-e-Shoora) was constituted by the president. Its members were nominated by the president. The first session of this Council was held on 11 January 1982. In this way, limited and controlled political activities were resumed. General elections were later held for the National and Provincial Assemblies on 25 February 1985, on non-party basis. 1985 Amendments On 2 March 1985, the revival of Constitution Order (P.O.14 of 1985) was issued in which a large number of amendments were made in the Constitution. Article 1 substituted the name "Parliament" for the more Islamic term Majlis-e-Shoora. The first session of the National Assembly was held 20 March 1985. Mr. Muhammad Khan Junejo, was nominated as the Prime Minister of Pakistan by the president (General Zia-ul-Haq). He received vote of confidence on 24 March 1985. In November 1985, the 8th Constitutional Amendment was adopted by the Parliament. Besides changes in other Articles in the Constitution the significant Article 58(2)(b) was added, according to which the president acquired discretionary powers to dissolves the National Assembly. On 29 May 1988 the Assembly was dissolved by the president by using the power acquired under Article 58(2)(b). The General elections for the eighth National Assembly was held on 16 November 1988. The first session was convened by the President on 30 November 1988. Mr. Miraj Khalid was elected as the Speaker of the National Assembly on 3 December 1988. Benazir Bhutto was nominated as Prime Minister of Pakistan and took the oath of the Office on 2 December 1988. The Assembly was later dissolved by President Ghulam Ishaq Khan under Article 58(2)(b) of the Constitution of Pakistan, on 6 August 1990. The General elections for the ninth National Assembly was held on 24 October 1990. The first session was held on 3 November 1990. Mr. Gohar Ayub Khan was elected as the Speaker of the National Assembly and he took oath on 4 November 1990. Muhammad Nawaz Sharif was elected as Prime Minister of Pakistan and took oath on 11 November 1990. The Assembly was again dissolved by the then President Ghulam Ishaq Khan, under Article 58(2)(b) on 18 April 1993. The dissolution of the National Assembly was challenged in the Supreme Court of Pakistan and after hearing the case the Assembly was restored by the Supreme Court on 26 May 1993. The Assembly was later dissolved on the advice of the Prime Minister on 18 July 1993. The elections for tenth National Assembly was held on 6 October 1993. The first session was held on 15 October 1993. Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani took oath of the office of the Speaker National Assembly on 17 October 1993. Mohtarma Benizar Bhutto administered the oath as Prime Minister of Pakistan on 19 October 1993. The Assembly was dissolved by President Farooq Ahmad Khan Laghari on 5 November 1996. The elections for eleventh National Assembly was held on 3 February 1997. The first session was held on 15 February 1997. Mr. Illahi Bukhsh Soomro took oath of the office of the Speaker National Assembly on 16 February 1997. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif took oath as prime minister of Pakistan and leader of the house on 17 February 1997. The new Assembly came into power with an overwhelming majority. The Article 58(2)(b) was later on omitted from the Constitution vide 13th Amendment in the Constitution in April 1997. It may be pertinent to note at this point that while, ostensibly, sixteen amendments have been made in the Constitution so far, the ninth and the eleventh Constitutional Amendments were, however, passed by the Senate alone and fifteenth by the National Assembly alone, hence these amendments lapsed. The fourteenth Amendment in the Constitution empowered a check on floor crossing of legislators. Chief of Army Staff General Pervaz Musharraf, who was also Chairman Joint Staff Committee, took over the government from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and declared himself as Chief Executive through a Proclamation of Emergency, on 12 October 1999. Through Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) issued on 14 October 1999, he held the Constitution in abeyance, suspended the Senate, National and Provincial Assemblies, Chairman and Deputy Chairman Senate, Speaker, Deputy Speaker National and Provincial Assemblies and dismissed the Federal and Provincial governments. President Mr. Muhammad Rafiq Tarar was, however, allowed to continue in his office. Under PCO (order No. 6) 29 October 1999, (as amended by C.E. Order No.5, 4 July 2001), the National Security Council was established for the purpose to tender advice to the Chief Executive (later on President), on matters relating to Islamic ideology, national security, sovereignty, integrity and solidarity of Pakistan so as to achieve the aims and objective as enshrined in the Objectives Resolution 1949. Syed Zafar Ali Shah, MNA and Illahi Bukhsh Soomro, Speaker National Assembly, challenged the suspension orders in the Supreme Court. The Court in its judgment on 12 May 2000 validated the military takeover by giving three years time frame to the government, starting from 12 October 1999. The Court in its judgement asked the government to complete its agenda and then hand over powers to the elected government. The court also allowed the military government to bring necessary Constitutional Amendments, provided that those should not change the basic feature of Federal Parliamentary democracy, independence of judiciary and Islamic provisions in the Constitution. The court reserved the right of Judicial Review and power of validity of any act or any action of the government, if challenged, in the light of State necessity. On 20 June 2001, through a notification (C.E. Order No.1) the Chief Executive assumed the office of the president of Pakistan under President's Succession Order, 2001. On the same day, through another Order (C.E. Order No. 2, 2001), the president converted the orders of suspension of legislative bodies and their presiding officers, into dissolution. The elections for twelfth National Assembly was held on 10 October 2002. The inaugural session of the National Assembly was held on 16 November 2002 and Ch Amir Hussain and Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob were elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively on 19 November 2002. Mir Zafar ullah Jamali was elected leader of the house on 21 November 2002. Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain gave the ruling on 14 June 2003 that LFO is the part of the Constitution of Pakistan. On this issue, Opposition Parties submitted a resolution for vote of no confidence against Speaker National Assembly on 20 June 2003 which was rejected on 28 June 2003. National Assembly of Pakistan expressed confidence in the leadership of President General Pervez Musharraf through the resolution on 1 January 2004. President General Pervez Musharraf addressed the Joint Session of the Parliament on 17 January 2004. Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali resigned from his office on 26 June 2004. Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was elected the 21st Prime Minister of Pakistan on 29 June 2004 and obtained a vote of confidence from the National Assembly on 30 June 2004. Mr. Shaukat Aziz was elected the leader of the house on 27 August 2004 and was administered oath of the Prime Minister of Pakistan on 28 August 2004. National Assembly of Pakistan completed its Constitutional tenure on 15 November 2007. After the resignation from the post of Chief of Army Staff, Mr. Pervez Musharraf administered the oath of President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 29 November 2007. The date of next General Election was fixed for 28 January 2008. After the assassination of Muhatarma Benazir Bhutto on 27 December 2007, date of election was rescheduled for 18 February 2008. The first session of the National Assembly was held on 17 March 2008. Dr. Fehmida Mirza and Mr. Fasial Karim Kundi were elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly respectively on 19 March 2008. Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani was elected the Prime Minister of Pakistan by the house on 24 March 2008 and unanimously obtained the Vote of Confidence from the house on 29 March 2008. Mr. Pervez Musharaf submitted his resignation from his office to the Speaker National Assembly on 18 August 2008 and Mr. Asif Ali Zardari was elected 13th President of Pakistan for next five years on 6 September 2008. He addressed the Joint Session of the Parliament on 20 September 2008. President Asif Ali Zardari during his address to the Joint Session of the Parliament on 28 March 2009 asked the Speaker National Assembly to form a committee of both houses for the purpose of proposing amendments in the Constitution in the light of Charter of Democracy (COD). After consultation with the leadership of all political parties in the Parliament, Speaker National Assembly announced the Constitutional Reforms Committee (CRC) on 29 April 2009. After the marathon consultation in 77 meetings, CRC under the Chairmanship of Senator Raza Rabbani presented report of the Committee on 18th Amendment in the Constitution to the Speaker National Assembly on 31 March 2010. The historic 18th Constitutional Amendment was presented and passed by the National Assembly on 8 April 2010 and Senate on 15 April 2010 respectively. After the assent of the president on 19 April 2010, 18th Amendments became part of Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. 19th Amendment was passed by the National Assembly on 22 December 2010 and Senate on 30 December 2010 respectively. 19th Amendment became part of the Constitution after the assent of President Asif Ali Zardari on 1 January 2011. 20th Amendment was passed unanimously by National Assembly and Senate on 20 February 2012. At the national level, Pakistan elects a bicameral legislature, the Parliament of Pakistan, which consists of a directly elected National Assembly of Pakistan and a Senate, whose members are chosen by elected provincial legislators. The Prime Minister of Pakistan is elected by the National Assembly. The president is elected by the Electoral college, which consists of both houses of Parliament together with the provincial assemblies. In addition to the national parliament and the provincial assemblies, Pakistan also has more than five thousand elected local governments. Elections in Pakistan are conducted under the supervision of Election Commission of Pakistan. The country offers a multi-party system, with numerous parties. Frequently, no single party holds a majority, and therefore parties must form alliances during or after elections, with coalition governments forming out of negotiations between parties. The Parliament of Pakistan consists of the president and two houses to be known respectively as National Assembly and the Senate. The National Assembly consists of 342 Seats including 60 seats reserved for Women and 10 Seats reserved for Non-Muslims. The Senate consists of 104 Members including 17 Seats reserved for Women and 17 Seats reserved for Technocrats and Ulema. The Members of the National Assembly are elected for a term of 5 years whereas the Members of the Senate are elected for a term of 6 years with staggered elections every 3 years The Parliament of Pakistan – viz the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan – met on 10 August 1947 in the old Sindh Assembly Building at Karachi. It was in this venue that the Objectives Resolution, which now serves as the Grundnorm of Pakistan, was passed. In 1956, the first Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was adopted in Karachi at the same Sindh Assembly building which also passed as the Parliament of Pakistan. After the adoption of the Second Constitution of 1962, Parliament sessions were arranged both at Dhaka and a newly constructed building (Ayub Hall) at Rawalpindi. The Parliament was unicameral. At the first session of the Parliament at the Ayub Hall, the Martial Law, imposed in 1958, was revoked. Later, in October, 1966, the Parliament was shifted to Dhaka. From 1972 onward, the State Bank auditorium in Islamabad functioned as the National Assembly of Pakistan. The Interim Constitution of Pakistan was adopted here in April, 1972. It was here that the first bicameral legislature of Pakistan was also born after the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was adopted in 1973. It was again here that the Martial Law, imposed in July, 1977, was revoked on 30 December 1985. The Parliament – the Senate and the National Assembly – have acquired a permanent abode in the present Parliament House, which was inaugurated on 28 May 1986. The Hall was renovated on the orders of the Speaker and inaugurated by the Prime Minister of Pakistan on 3 November 1996. Seats in the Senate of Pakistan Seats in the National Assembly of Pakistan Politics of Pakistan, List of legislatures by country Senate of Pakistan, National Assembly of Pakistan The Deputy Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan (Urdu: ڈپٹی چیئرمین سینیٹ) is the Deputy Chair of the Senate of Pakistan. According to the Constitution of Pakistan, the Deputy Chairman is the presiding official when the chairman is unavailable. The Senate must choose a chairman and deputy chairman for a time interval of three years. Saleem Mandviwalla has served as the Deputy chairman since 12 March 2018. During the President's absence, the chairman senate is empowered with the duties of the presidency; in rare events involving the absence of the chairman, the presidential duties are usually held by Speaker National Assembly. The Chairman of the Senate is the second in the line of succession to the President of Pakistan, ahead of the Speaker National Assembly. The office of Deputy Chairman of the Senate is created by Article 60(1) of the Chapter 2 in Part III of the Constitution of Pakistan: Abdull Malik Baloch (26 April 1977 – 4 July 1977), Sajjad Hussain Qureshi (21 March 1985 – 29 December 1985), Malik Muhammad Ali Khan (23 January 1986 – 20 March 1988), Sayed Muhammad Fazal Agha (21 March 1988 – 20 March 1991), Noor Jehan Panezai (21 March 1991 – 20 March 1994), Mir Abdul Jabbar Khan (21 March 1994 – 20 March 1997), Mir Humayun Khan Marri (21 March 1997 – 12 October 1999), Khalilur Rehman (12 March 2003 – 15 March 2005), Jan Mohammad Jamali (12- March 2006 – 11 March 2012), Sabir Ali Baloch (12 March 2012 – 12 March 2015), Abdul Ghafoor Haideri (12 March 2015 – 12 March 2018), Saleem Mandviwalla (12 March 2018 - current) Parliament of Pakistan Senate of Pakistan