Childhood.

Isabella spent her childhood in the Netherlands under the tutorage of the regent of the Netherlands, Margaret of Austria. Her fortune, her succession rights, and her connections made her a valuable pawn in the royal marriage market. The king of Denmark had first intended to marry her eldest sister Eleanor of Austria, but the Habsburgs considered Eleanor too valuable for the throne of Denmark, because as the eldest sister, there was a likelihood that her progeny may succeed. Therefore, Isabella was selected for the Danish king.  On 11 July 1514, one week short of her 13th birthday, Isabella was married by proxy to King Christian II of Denmark with Emperor Maximilian I, her grandfather, standing in for the king. She remained in the Netherlands, but is said to have fallen in love with her spouse at the sight of his painting, and asked to be taken to Denmark. A year after the wedding, the Archbishop of Nidaros was sent to escort her to Copenhagen. The marriage was ratified on 12 August 1515 (she was 14 years old).

Queen.

Isabella was crowned Queen of Denmark and Norway and began using another version of her name, Elisabeth, but the relationship between her and her new family and Christian was quite cool during the first years of the marriage. The King's Dutch mistress, Dyveke Sigbritsdatter, had been with him since 1507, and he was not about to give her up for a teenager. Dyveke's mother, Sigbrit Willoms, was also influential at court, and Isabella was given less influence than both of them. This angered the Emperor, and caused some diplomatic strife between him and King Christian, but the matter was resolved when Dyveke died in 1517, and Isabella's relationship with her husband improved vastly over the next few years; her relationship with Sigbrit Willoms improved as well, and both women acted as political advisors to the king. From 1516, Anne Meinstrup was head lady-in-waiting of her court.  In 1520, Christian took the throne of Sweden, thereby making Isabella Queen of Sweden. After taking Stockholm, he asked the Swedish representatives to turn it and the regency of Sweden over to Isabella if he himself should die when his children were minors. She was to be the last Queen of Sweden who was also Queen of Denmark during the Kalmar union, but she in fact never visited Sweden; pregnant at the time of her spouse's accession to the throne of Sweden, she did not follow him there. Isabella served as the regent of Denmark during Christian's stay in Sweden. Her husband was deposed as king of Sweden the following year. King Christian imprisoned many Swedish noblewomen, related to rebellious Swedish nobles, at the infamous "Blåtårn" ("Blue Tower") of Copenhagen Castle, including Christina Gyllenstierna, Cecilia Månsdotter and Margareta Eriksdotter Vasa, and King Gustav I of Sweden used their purported harsh treatment in captivity in his propaganda against Christian II and claimed that the Danish monarch starved the women and children, who only survived by the mercy showed them by the queen of Denmark, Isabella of Austria.  When King Christian was deposed in 1523 by disloyal noblemen supporting his uncle Duke Frederick, the new king wanted to be on good terms with Isabella's family. He wrote her a personal letter in her native German, offering her a dowager queen's pension and permitting her to stay in Denmark under his protection while King Christian fled to the Low Countries. But Isabella wrote back to Duke Frederick in Latin, stating that : "ubi rex meus, ibi regnum meum", that is "where my king is, there is my kingdom".

Exile.

Isabella left Denmark with her husband and their children after her husband was deposed in 1523 and travelled to the Netherlands. Isabella and Christian travelled around Germany in an attempt to gain help for Christian's restoration to the throne. Isabella made her own negotiations with her relatives, and also accompanied her husband on his travels. They visited Saxony in 1523 and Berlin in 1523–1524. In Berlin, Isabella became interested in the teachings of Luther, and felt sympathy for Protestantism, however she never converted officially. When she visited Nürnberg in 1524, she received communion in the Protestant way, which so enraged her birth family, the Habsburgs, that Christian decided that she should hide her Protestant views in the future, for political reasons  In the spring of 1525, Isabella caught some kind of serious illness, which worsened after she travelled through a storm later that year, and lasted all summer. The former queen died at the castle of Zwijnaarde near Ghent aged twenty-four. She received both Protestant and Catholic communion, but the Habsburgs declared that she had died a convinced Catholic. Her religious sympathies, and whether she was a Protestant or a Catholic after 1524, have been debated. At her deathbed, she gave the cause of her husband's restoration to her aunt, the regent of the Netherlands, Margaret of Austria.  Her fifteenth generation great-granddaughter, Princess Isabella of Denmark, was named after her.

Isabella of Austria ( 18 July 1501 – 19 January 1526), also known as Elizabeth, was queen of Denmark, Norway and Sweden as the wife of King Christian II. She was the daughter of King Philip I and Queen Joanna of Castile and the sister of Emperor Charles V. She was born at Brussels. She ruled Denmark as regent in 1520.


Biography.

According to "Heimskringla" and "Fagsrkinna", Halfdan was the son of the Yngling King Gudrød the Hunter. "Heimskringla" also names his mother, as Åsa, daughter of King Harald of Agder, and his half-brother as Olaf Geirstad-Alf. Heimskringla relates that when Halfdan's father was killed, Åsa took the 1 year-old Halfdan and returned to Agder, where Halfdan was raised. When he was 18 or 19 years old, Halfdan became king of Agder. He quickly began adding to his kingdom, through political negotiation and military conquest. He divided the kingdom of Vestfold with his brother Olaf and, through military action, persuaded King Gandalf of Vingulmark to cede half his kingdom. Based on the formulaic nature of his ties to his predecessors, his strong affiliation with Agder, and the failure of an early saga dedicated to him to name any family connections, some scholars have suggested that the linkage to the earlier Yngling dynasty of Vestfold was a later invention, created to associate a conquering Halfdan and his son Harald Fairhair with the family glorified in the "Ynglingatal", whom he had displaced. Halfdan next is said to have subdued an area called Raumarike. To secure his claim to Raumarike, Halfdan first defeated and killed the previous ruler, Sigtryg Eysteinsson, in battle. He then defeated Sigtryg's brother and successor Eystein, in a series of battles. This established Halfdan's claim not only to Raumarike, but also to half of Hedmark, the core of Sigtryg and Eystein's kingdom. These details are only mentioned in "Heimskringla".  "Fagrskinna" and "Heimskringla" both agree that Halfdan's first wife was Ragnhild, daughter of King Harald Gulskeg (Goldbeard) of Sogn. Halfdan and Ragnhild had a son named "Harald" after his grandfather, and they sent him to be raised at his grandfather's court. Harald Gulskeg, being elderly, named his grandson as his successor, shortly before his death. Ragnhild died shortly after her father, and the young king Harald fell sick and died the next spring. When Halfdan heard about his son's death, he travelled to Sogn and laid claim to the title of king. No resistance was offered, and Halfdan added Sogn to his realm.  The narrative in "Heimskringla" then adds another conquest for King Halfdan. In Vingulmark, the sons of Gandalf of Vingulmark, Hysing, Helsing, and Hake, attempted to ambush Halfdan at night, but he escaped into the forest. After raising an army, he returned to defeat the brothers, killing Hysing and Helsing. Hake fled the country, and Halfdan became king of all of Vingulmark.  According to "Heimskringla", Halfdan's second wife, also named Ragnhild, had been kidnapped from her home by Hake, a "berserker" who encountered her father in Hadeland and killed him. Halfdan had her kidnapped from Hake, so that he could marry her. "Fagrskinna" does not mention any of these details. However, both sagas agree that Ragnhild and Halfdan had a son who was also named Harald. (Among the more unlikely claims in "Fagrskinna" and "Heimskringla" are that this woman was Ragnhild Sigurdsdotter, daughter of Sigurd Hjort, king of Ringerike. This would make Ragnhild the granddaughter or even great-granddaughter of Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye – an impossibility, given that most sources suggest that Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye was active only in the "late" 9th century, which would mean that he was born a generation or two "after" Halfdan the Black.)

Halvdanshaugen.

"Heimskringla", "Fagrskinna", "Ágrip" and "Historia Norwegiæ" all relate that Halfdan drowned when he fell through the ice at the inlet Røykenvik in the lake Randsfjorden on his return home from Hadeland. His horse and sleigh broke through ice weakened by cattle dung near a watering hole dug in the frozen lake. He was buried in a mound at Stein in Ringerike ("Halvdanshaugen på Stein") "Heimskringla"s narrative adds that each of the districts of his kingdom wanted to claim his grave, and that it was agreed to divide his body into four pieces so each district could bury a piece of it, resulting in four different sites called "Halvdanshaugen" (from the Old Norse word "haugr" meaning mound). According to this version, only his head is buried in Ringerike.

Sources.

No contemporary sources mention Halfdan, and the details of his life that are provided by later kings' sagas are considered semi-legendary by modern historians. Although he has his own saga in Heimskringla, it lacks any skaldic verse, which is normally used by Snorri as supporting evidence and this, combined with its rather legendary character, leads historians to be wary of seeing much veracity in it. The "Black" nickname was given to him because of his black hair.  Halfdan is mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's "Heimskringla" (c. 1230), "Fagrskinna" (c. 1220), "Ágrip" (c. 1190) and "Historia Norwegiæ" (late 12th century). The most elaborate story is found in the latest saga, "Heimskringla". According to the Latin "Historia Norwegiæ", Halvdan was a king "in montanis" (in the mountains), which is usually equivalent to Oppland in the Old Norse. This conflicts with the version told in "Heimskringla".

Halfdan the Black (Old Norse: "Halfdanr Svarti") ( – ) was a ninth-century king of Vestfold. He belonged to the House of Yngling and was the father of Harald Fairhair, the first king of a unified Norway.


Early life.

He attended the Angelo Braschi School and entered the Pontifical Roman Seminary in 1903 from which he graduated with honours in philosophy and theology. 21 September 1912 he was ordained a priest. He accepted a call to teach liturgy and theology at the Roman Seminary and the "Collegio Urbano" of the Propaganda Fide. In 1923, he was nominated by Pope Pius XI to be general assistant of the Catholic Action movement. In 1925, the Pope nominated him to a second organisation, "Societa della Gioventu Cattolica Italiana". From 1921 onward, he worked as well in the Congregation of Ordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs where he was named Sustituto in 1929 and Secretary in 1937. With Giovanni Battista Montini, he was the main assistant to Cardinal Secretary of State Eugenio Pacelli until 1939.

Secretariat of State.

After his election as Pope Pius XII, Pacelli appointed Luigi Maglione as his successor as Cardinal Secretary of State. Maglione did not exercise the influence of his predecessor, who as Pope continued his close relation with Monsignori Giovanni Battista Montini and Tardini. After the death of Maglione in 1944, Pius left the position vacant and named Tardini head of its foreign section and Montini head of the internal section. Tardini and Montini continued serving there until 1952, when Pius XII decided to elevate both of them into the College of Cardinals an honour which both turned down. When Tardini thanked him for not appointing him, Pius XII replied with a smile:  In November 1952, he was named Pro-Secretary of the State for Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs by Pope Pius XII, essentially co-serving as functional Secretary of State with Giovanni Battista Montini, who became Pro-Secretary of State for Ordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs. In addition they were granted the privilege to wear Episcopal Insignia. Tardini continued in that position until the death of Pius XII.  Tardini loved children and "adopted" the orphans of Villa Nazareth, for whom he organised recognition and assistance. Televised audiences with Pope Pius XII, and visits of Pope John XXIII and high-ranking foreign dignitaries, all arranged by Tardini, facilitated fundraising for the needy children.

Papabile and Cardinal Secretary of State.

After the death of Pope Pius on 9 October 1958, Tardini, though not a cardinal and not even a bishop, was prominently mentioned as a possible successor because of his familiarity with and closeness to Pius XII. Instead, Tardini was named Secretary of State by the newly elected Pope John XXIII, filling the previous vacancy. Having declined being made Cardinal by Pius XII in 1953, he accepted the red hat in the consistory of 15 December 1958 with the title of Cardinal-Deacon of "S. Apollinare alle Terme Neroniane-Alessandrine". He was ordained as a titular archbishop later that month.  Tardini did not seek the honour of the appointment. On the very night of the election or as the first papal appointment next morning (biographers differ on this) Tardini was asked to see the new Pope John XXIII, who asked him to become his Secretary of State. He went reluctantly:  As Secretary of State, Tardini broke the taboo on discussing Vatican finances in October 1959, holding a press conference with Vatican-accredited journalists during a pay dispute with Vatican employees. On 20 January 1959, Pope John summoned Cardinal Tardini to float the idea of an Ecumenical Council. It would involve all bishops of every rite. Tardini's response was positive to the point that the Pope was surprised. John XXIII later referred to this discussion as the decisive moment for his decision to hold an ecumenical council. He assisted in the preparation of the Council giving at times his own interpretation of the forthcoming epochal event. Reportedly, he tried to resign several times for health reasons but was asked to stay on by the disarmingly witty John XXIII.  Tardini died in Rome on 30 July 1961 of a massive heart attack. He was buried in the Carmel at Vetralla. At the first anniversary of his death, Pope John XXIII left the Vatican to pay his respects at his burial site.

Domenico Tardini (29 February 1888 – 30 July 1961) was a longtime aide to Pope Pius XII in the Secretariat of State. Pope John XXIII named him Cardinal Secretary of State and, in this position the most prominent member of the Roman Curia in Vatican City.


Description.

It is a medium to large deciduous shrub, growing tall, with dark greenish-brown branches and twigs. The leaves are opposite, long and broad, with an ovate to oblong shape and an entire margin; they are green above, slightly paler below, and rough with short stiff pubescence. The hermaphrodite flowers are small, diameter, with four creamy white petals, produced in clusters diameter, and are insect pollinated. The fruit is a globose black berry diameter, containing a single seed. The berries are sometimes called "dogberries".

Ecology.

It prefers moderate warmth in sunny places, though it can tolerate shade and in the more southern areas of its distribution area grows in the mountains. In cooler areas such as Scandinavia it grows at sea level.  It requires light, often alkaline soils. The species spreads by seeds and stolons. Its natural range covers most of Europe and western Asia. It is especially abundant in riversides, especially in shady areas and ravines. It grows in the margins of forests or unforested areas as woods in regeneration, prickly woodland fringes, with other thorny shrub species (for example, "Clematis vitalba", "Crataegus monogyna", "Malus sylvestris", "Prunus spinosa", "Rubus idaeus" or "Rubus ulmifolius").  It reproduces by seed and root sprouts, which makes it effective at occupying areas of land and forming dense groves. Depending on circumstances, it can be invasive.

Uses.

The leaves provide food for some animals, including Lepidoptera such as the case-bearer moth "Coleophora anatipennella". Dogberries are eaten by some mammals and many birds. Many frugivorous passerines find them irresistible, and prefer them over fruits grown by humans. The plant is thus often grown in organic gardening and permaculture to prevent harm to orchard crops, while benefitting from the fact that even frugivorous birds will hunt pest insects during the breeding season, as their young require much protein to grow.  Garden varieties are often called "winter fire" because the leaves turn orange-yellow in autumn and then fall to reveal striking red winter stems.  The straight woody shoots produced by the plant can be used as prods, skewers or arrows. The prehistoric archer known as Ötzi the Iceman, discovered in 1991 on the border between Italy and Austria, was carrying arrow shafts made from dogwood.

Cornus sanguinea, the common dogwood or bloody dogwood, is a species of dogwood native to most of Europe and western Asia, from England and central Scotland east to the Caspian Sea. It is widely grown as an ornamental plant.


Early life and education.

He was of Anglo-Saxon, not of Norman extraction, and therefore apparently a clerk from a modest background, whose career depended upon his education. Beyond that, and that he applied to himself the cognomen of "Parvus", "short", or "small", few details are known regarding his early life. From his own statements it is gathered that he crossed to France about 1136, and began regular studies in Paris under Peter Abelard, who had for a brief period re-opened his famous school there on Montagne Sainte-Geneviève.  His vivid accounts of teachers and students provide some of the most valuable insights into the early days of the University of Paris. When Abelard withdrew from Paris John studied under Master Alberic and Robert of Melun. In 1137 John went to Chartres, where he studied grammar under William of Conches, and rhetoric, logic and the classics under Richard l'Evêque, a disciple of Bernard of Chartres. Bernard's teaching was distinguished partly by its pronounced Platonic tendency, and partly by the stress laid upon literary study of the greater Latin writers. The influence of the latter feature is noticeable in all John of Salisbury's works.  Around 1140 John returned to Paris to study theology under Gilbert de la Porrée, then under Robert Pullus and Simon of Poissy, supporting himself as a tutor to young noblemen. In 1148 he resided at the Abbey of Moutiers-la-Celle in the diocese of Troyes, with his friend Peter of Celle. He was present at the Council of Reims in 1148, presided over by Pope Eugene III. It is conjectured that while there, he was introduced by St. Bernard of Clairvaux to Theobald, whose secretary he became.

Secretary to the Archbishop of Canterbury.

John of Salisbury was secretary to Archbishop Theobald for seven years. While at Canterbury he became acquainted with Thomas Becket, one of the significant potent influences in John's life. During this period he went on many missions to the Papal See; it was probably on one of these that he made the acquaintance of Nicholas Breakspear, who in 1154 became Pope Adrian IV. The following year John visited him, remaining at Benevento with him for several months. He was at the court of Rome at least twice afterward.  During this time he composed his greatest works, published almost certainly in 1159, the "Policraticus, sive de nugis curialium et de vestigiis philosophorum" and the "Metalogicon", writings invaluable as storehouses of information regarding the matter and form of scholastic education, and remarkable for their cultivated style and humanist tendency. The "Policraticus" also sheds light on the decadence of the 12th-century court manners and the lax ethics of royalty. The idea of contemporaries "standing on the shoulders of giants" of Antiquity first appears in written form in the "Metalogicon". After the death of Theobald in 1161, John continued as secretary to his successor, Thomas Becket, and took an active part in the long disputes between that primate and his sovereign, Henry II, who looked upon John as a papal agent.  His letters throw light on the constitutional struggle then agitating England. In 1163, John fell into disfavor with the king for reasons that remain obscure, and withdrew to France. The next six years he spent with his friend Peter of La Celle, now Abbot of St. Remigius at Reims. Here he wrote "Historia Pontificalis". In 1170 he led the delegation charged with preparing for Becket's return to England, and was in Canterbury at the time of Becket's assassination. In 1174 John became treasurer of Exeter cathedral.

Bishop of Chartres.

In 1176 he was made bishop of Chartres, where he passed the remainder of his life. In 1179 he took an active part in the Third Council of the Lateran. He died at or near Chartres on October 25, 1180.

Scholarship and influences.

John's writings are excellent at clarifying the literary and scientific position of 12th century Western Europe. Though he was well versed in the new logic and dialectical rhetoric of the university, John's views imply a cultivated intelligence well versed in practical affairs, opposing to the extremes of both nominalism and realism a practical common sense. His doctrine is a kind of utilitarianism, with a strong leaning on the speculative side to the modified literary scepticism of Cicero, for whom he had unbounded admiration and on whose style he based his own. His view that the end of education was moral, rather than merely intellectual, became one of the prime educational doctrines of western civilization, but his influence is to be found, not in his immediate contemporaries but in the world-view of Renaissance humanism.  Of Greek writers he appears to have known nothing at first hand, and very little in translations. He was one of the best Latinists of his age. The "Timaeus" of Plato in the Latin version of Chalcidius was known to him as to his contemporaries and predecessors, and probably he had access to translations of the "Phaedo" and "Meno". Of Aristotle he possessed the whole of the "Organon" in Latin; he is, indeed, the first of the medieval writers of note to whom the whole was known.  He first coined the term "theatrum mundi", a notion that influences the theater several centuries later. In several chapters of the third book of his "Policraticus", he meditates on the fact that "the life of man on earth is a comedy, where each forgetting his own plays another's role".

Fictional portrayals.

John was portrayed by actor Alex G. Hunter in the 1923 silent film "Becket", based on a play by Alfred Lord Tennyson.

John of Salisbury (late 1110s – 25 October 1180), who described himself as Johannes Parvus ("John the Little"), was an English author, philosopher, educationalist, diplomat and bishop of Chartres, and was born at Salisbury, England.


Design and development.

The Privateer was externally similar to the Liberator, but the fuselage was longer to accommodate a flight engineer's station, and it had a tall single vertical stabilizer rather than the B-24's twin tail configuration. The Navy wanted a flight engineer crewmember to reduce pilot fatigue on long duration over water patrols. The single vertical tail was adopted from the USAAF's canceled B-24N design (and was slightly taller on the Privateer) because it would increase stability at low to medium altitudes for maritime patrol. The Ford Motor Company, which produced B-24s for the United States Army Air Forces, had earlier built an experimental variant (B-24K) using a single tail. Aircraft handling was improved. The single tail design was used on the B-32 Dominator and PB4Y-2 and was slated for the Air Corps' proposed B-24N production model to be built by Ford, but that order (for several thousand bombers) was canceled on 31 May 1945.  Defensive armament on the PB4Y-2 was increased to twelve.50-in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns in six power operated turrets (two dorsal, two waist, nose and tail); the B-24's ventral, retractable Sperry ball turret was omitted. Turbosuperchargers were not fitted to the Privateer's engines since maritime patrol missions were not usually flown at high altitude, improving performance and also saving weight.  The navigator's astrodome was moved from its (B-24/PB4Y-1) position on the aircraft's upper nose to behind the first dorsal gun turret. Electronic countermeasure (ECM), communication and radar antennas also protruded or were enclosed in fairings at various locations on the fuselage of the Privateer, including a manually retractable AN/APS-2 radome behind the nose wheel well.  The Navy eventually took delivery of 739 Privateers, the majority after the end of the war. Several PB4Y-2 squadrons saw operational service in the Pacific theater through August 1945 in the reconnaissance, search and rescue, electronic countermeasures, communication relay, and anti-shipping roles (the latter with the "Bat" radar-guided bomb).

Operational history.

The Privateer entered U.S. Navy service during late 1944, Patrol Bomber Squadrons 118 and 119 (VPB-118 and VPB-119) being the first Fleet squadrons to equip with the aircraft. The first overseas deployment began on 6 January 1945, when VPB-118 left for operations in the Marianas. On 2 March 1945 VPB-119 began "offensive search" missions out of Clark Field, Luzon in the Philippines, flying sectored searches of the seas and coastlines extending from the Gulf of Tonkin in the south, along the Chinese coast, and beyond Okinawa in the north.  Privateers were used as typhoon/hurricane hunters from 1945 to the mid-1950s. One aircraft, designated BuNo 59415 of VPB-119, went down when it experienced mechanical trouble while investigating a Category 1 typhoon near Batan Island in the Philippines. It attempted to land on the island, but was unable to do so and crashed. It was one of only six hurricane hunter flights that were ever lost, and the only one found. Another P4Y-2S, designated BuNo 59716 of Squadron VW-3 (formerly VJ-1), was lost during reconnaissance of Super Typhoon Doris on 16 December 1953. Flying out of NAS Agana, Guam, the Privateer with a crew of nine was tracking Typhoon Doris with sustained winds of 90-95 knots near the small island of Agrihan north of Guam. No sign of the crew nor wreckage of the plane was ever found.  PB4Y-2s were also used during the Korean War to fly "Firefly" night illumination missions dropping parachute flares to detect North Korean and Chinese seaborne infiltrators. In addition, Privateers were used by the U.S. Navy for signals intelligence (SIGINT) flights off of the coast of the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. On 8 April 1950, Soviet La-11 fighters shot down a U.S. Navy PB4Y-2 Privateer (BuNo 59645) over the Baltic Sea, off the coast of Liepāja, Latvia. Named the "Turbulent Turtle", the aircraft was assigned to Patrol Squadron 26 (VP-26), Det A.  The French "Aéronavale" was supplied with Privateers via the Mutual Defense Assistance Act, which they used as bombers during the Indochina War and later operated out of Bizerte, Tunisia and Algiers.  All U.S. Navy PB4Y-2s were retired by 1954, though unarmed PB4Y-2G Privateers served until 1958 with the Coast Guard before being auctioned off for salvage.  The Navy dropped the patrol-bomber designation in 1951 and its remaining PB4Y-2s were redesignated P4Y-2 Privateer. (The earlier XP4Y-1 Corregidor was a completely different design, based on the Consolidated Model 31 twin-engine flying boat.) PB4Y-2s were still being used as drones in the 1950s/early 1960s, designated PB4Y-2K, and P4Y-2K after 1951. They were then redesignated QP-4B under the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system, becoming part of the new patrol number series between the Lockheed P-3 Orion and the Martin P-5 Marlin.  A number of PB4Ys were supplied to the Republic of China Air Force for use in missions over the People's Republic of China. One was shot down by ground fire on 12 September 1954, near Xiamen, People's Republic of China. The crew of nine were killed. Another was shot down on 15 February 1961 by Burmese Hawker Sea Fury fighter aircraft, near the Thai-Burmese border, killing five members of the crew. Two other crew members were taken prisoner. This aircraft was carrying supplies for Chinese Kuomintang forces fighting in northern Burma.

Privateers in aerial firefighting.

A limited number of refitted PB4Ys and P4Ys continued in civilian service as airtankers, dropping fire retardant on forest fires throughout the western United States. On 18 July 2002, one such refitted P4Y, BuNo 66260 (seen in picture to right) operated by Hawkins and Powers Aviation of Greybull, Wyoming broke up in flight while fighting a wildfire near Rocky Mountain National Park. Both crew members were killed in the accident, and the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded all large air tankers in the region. Despite the fact that the crash was the result of poor maintenance, and a much newer C-130 based aircraft also broke apart due to similar stresses, all remaining Privateers were retired. (See 2002 United States airtanker crashes.)

The Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer is a World War II and Korean War era patrol bomber of the United States Navy derived from the Consolidated B-24 Liberator. The Navy had been using B-24s with only minor modifications as the PB4Y-1 Liberator, and along with maritime patrol Liberators used by RAF Coastal Command this type of patrol plane was proven successful. A fully navalized design was desired, and Consolidated developed a dedicated long-range patrol bomber in 1943, designated PB4Y-2 Privateer. In 1951, the type was redesignated P4Y-2 Privateer. A further designation change occurred in September 1962, when the remaining Navy Privateers (all having previously been converted to drone configuration as P4Y-2K) were redesignated QP-4B.


Naming.

The generic name "Galanthus", from the Greek "gala" (milk) and "anthos" (flower), was given to the genus by Carl Linnaeus in 1735. He described "Galanthus nivalis" in his "" published in 1753. The epithet means "of the snow", referring either to the snow-like flower or the plant's early flowering.  The common name snowdrop first appeared in the 1633 edition of John Gerard's "Great Herbal" (in the first edition (1597) he described it as the "Timely flowring Bulbus violet"). The derivation of the name is uncertain, although it may have come from the German word "Schneetropfen", which was a type of earring popular around that time. Other British traditional common names include "February fairmaids", "dingle-dangle", "Candlemas bells", "Mary's tapers" and, in parts of Yorkshire, "snow piercers" (like the French name "").

Distribution and habitat.

"Galanthus nivalis" is widely grown in gardens, particularly in northern Europe, and is widely naturalised in woodlands in the regions where it is grown. It is, however, native to a large area of Europe, from Spain in the west, eastwards to Ukraine. It is native to Albania, Armenia, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, and Ukraine. It is considered naturalised in Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and parts of North America (Newfoundland, New Brunswick, Ontario, Massachusetts, Alabama, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Washington State, New York State, Michigan, Utah, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina).  Although often thought of as a British native wild flower, or to have been brought to the British Isles by the Romans, it is now thought that it was probably introduced much later, perhaps around the early sixteenth century.

Description.

"Galanthus nivalis" grows to around 7–15 cm tall, flowering between January and April in the northern temperate zone (January–May in the wild). They are perennial, herbaceous plants which grow from bulbs. Each bulb generally produces two linear, or very narrowly lanceolate, greyish-green leaves and an erect, leafless scape (flowering stalk), which bears at the top a pair of bract-like spathe valves joined by a papery membrane. From between them emerges a solitary, pendulous, bell-shaped white flower, held on a slender pedicel.  The flower consists of six tepals, also referred to as segments. The outer three are larger and more convex than the inner ones. The inner flower segments are usually marked on their outer surface with a green or greenish-yellow V- or U-shaped mark (sometimes described as "bridge-shaped") over the small sinus (notch) at the tip of each tepal. The inner surface has a faint green mark covering all or most of it. Occasionally plants are found with green markings on the outer surface of the outer tepals.  The six long, pointed anthers open by pores or short slits. The ovary is three-celled, ripening into a three-celled capsule. Each whitish seed has a small, fleshy tail (the elaiosome) containing substances attractive to ants which distribute the seeds. The leaves die back a few weeks after the flowers have faded.  "G. nivalis" is a cross-pollinating plant, but sometimes self-pollination takes place. It is pollinated by bees.

Cultivation and propagation.

See "Galanthus": Propagation.

Active substances.

Snowdrops contain an active substance called galantamine (or galanthamine) which can be helpful in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, though it is not a cure.  Snowdrops contain also an active lectin or agglutinin named GNA for "Galanthus nivalis agglutinin". Potatoes have been genetically modified with the GNA gene. In 1998 Árpád Pusztai said in an interview on a World in Action programme that his group had observed damage to the intestines and immune systems of rats fed the genetically modified potatoes. He also said "If I had the choice I would certainly not eat it", and that "I find it's very unfair to use our fellow citizens as guinea pigs". These remarks started the so-called Pusztai affair.

Cultivars.

The common double snowdrop, "Galanthus nivalis" f. "pleniflorus" 'Flore Pleno', had appeared by 1703, when it was illustrated in "The Duchess of Beaufort's Book". It spread (and was spread) rapidly through northern Europe (by vegetative means, as it sets no seed). With 3–5 outer segments and 12–21 inner segments, which are often misshapen, the flowers may be less attractive to the eye of the purist than single-flowered or neater double cultivars, but they are good value in the garden as the bulbs spread rapidly and the large flowers show up well.  There are numerous named cultivars of "G. nivalis", single, semi-double, double and "poculiform" (meaning goblet or cup-shaped, this refers to flowers with inner segments that are almost the same shape and length as the outer ones). Apart from these traits they differ particularly in the size and markings of the flower and the period of flowering; other characteristics are less obvious to the untrained eye and are mainly of interest to "galanthophiles".

Snowdrop gardens.

In the UK and Ireland, many gardens open specially in February for visitors to admire the flowers. These displays may attract large numbers of sightseers. Some feature extensive displays of naturalised "G. nivalis"; others have more specialised collections of many species, forms and cultivars.

Galanthus nivalis, the snowdrop or common snowdrop, is the best-known and most widespread of the 20 species in its genus, "Galanthus". Snowdrops are among the first bulbs to bloom in spring and can form impressive carpets of white in areas where they are native or have been naturalised. They should not be confused with the snowflakes, in the genera "Leucojum" and "Acis".


Biography.

Student.

Dmitry Bortniansky was born on 28 October 1751 in the city of Glukhov, Cossack Hetmanate, Russian Empire (in present-day Ukraine). His father was Stefan Skurat (or Shkurat), a Lemko-Rusyn Orthodox religious refugee from the village of Bartne in the Malopolska region of Poland. Stefan Skurat served as a Cossack under Kirill Razumovsky, he was entered in the Cossack register in 1755. Dmitry's mother was a Cossack origin woman, her surname after the first marriage was Marina Dmitrievna Tolstaya, she was a widow of a Russian landlord Tolstoy, who lived in Glukhov. At the age of seven, Dmitry's prodigious talent at the local church choir afforded him the opportunity to go the capital of the empire and sing with the Imperial Chapel Choir in St. Petersburg. Dmitry's half brother Ivan Tolstoy also sang with the Imperial Chapel Choir. There Dmitry Bortniansky studied music and composition under the director of the Imperial Chapel Choir, the Italian master Baldassare Galuppi. When Galuppi left for Italy in 1769, he took the boy with him. In Italy, Bortniansky gained considerable success composing operas: "Creonte" (1776) and "Alcide" (1778) in Venice, and "Quinto Fabio" (1779) at Modena. He also composed sacred works in Latin and German, both a cappella and with orchestral accompaniment (including an "Ave Maria" for two voices and orchestra).

Master.

Bortniansky returned to the Saint Petersburg Court Capella in 1779 and flourished creatively. He composed at least four more operas (all in French, with libretti by Franz-Hermann Lafermière): "Le Faucon" (1786), "La fête du seigneur" (1786), "Don Carlos" (1786), and "Le fils-rival ou La moderne Stratonice" (1787). Bortniansky wrote a number of instrumental works at this time, including piano sonatas and a piano quintet with harp, and a cycle of French songs. He also composed liturgical music for the Orthodox Church, combining the Eastern and Western European styles of sacred music, incorporating the polyphony he learned in Italy; some works were polychoral, using a style descended from the Venetian polychoral technique of the Gabrielis.  After a while, Bortniansky's genius proved too great to ignore, and in 1796 he was appointed Director of the Imperial Chapel Choir, the first director not to have been imported from outside of the Russian Empire. With such a great instrument at his disposal, he produced scores upon scores of compositions, including over 100 religious works, sacred concertos (35 for four-part mixed choir, 10 for double choruses), cantatas, and hymns.  Dmitry Bortniansky died in St. Petersburg on 10 October 1825, and was interred at the Smolensky Cemetery in St. Petersburg. His remains were transferred to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in the 20th century.

Musical legacy.

In 1882, Pyotr Tchaikovsky edited the liturgical works of Bortniansky, which were published in ten volumes. While Bortniansky wrote operas and instrumental compositions, it is his sacred choral works that are performed most often today. This vast body of work remains central not only to understanding 18th-century Orthodox sacred music, but also served as inspiration to his fellow Ukrainian composers in the 19th century.  The tune he wrote for the Latin hymn "Tantum Ergo" eventually became known in Slavic lands as "Коль славен (Kol slaven)", in which form it is still sung as a church hymn today. The tune was also popular with freemasons. It travelled to English-speaking countries and came to be known by the names "Russia", "St. Petersburg" or "Wells". In Germany, the song was paired with a text by Gerhard Tersteegen, and became a well-known chorale and traditional part of the military ceremony "Großer Zapfenstreich (the Grand Tattoo)", the highest ceremonial act of the German army, rendered as an honor for distinguished persons on special occasions. Prior to the October revolution in 1917, the tune was played by the Moscow Kremlin carillon every day at midday.  James Blish, who novelized many episodes of the original series of "Star Trek", noted in one story, "", that Bortniansky's "Ich bete an die Macht der Liebe" was the theme "to which all Starfleet Academy classes marched to their graduation."  He composed "The Angel Greeted the Gracious One" (hymn to the Mother of God used at Pascha) as a trio used by many Orthodox churches in the Easter season.

Dmitry Stepanovich Bortniansky (, Ukrainian: Дмитро Степанович Бортнянський; alternative transcriptions of names are "Dmitri Bortnianskii", and "Bortnyansky"; 28 October 1751, Glukhov, St. Petersburg) was a Russian and Ukrainian composer, harpsichordist and conductor, who served at the court of Catherine the Great. Bortniansky was critical to the musical history of both Ukraine and Russia, with both nations claiming him as their own.


Signs and symptoms.

The symptoms of gingivitis are somewhat non-specific and manifest in the gum tissue as the classic signs of inflammation:  Additionally, the stippling that normally exists in the gum tissue of some individuals will often disappear and the gums may appear shiny when the gum tissue becomes swollen and stretched over the inflamed underlying connective tissue. The accumulation may also emit an unpleasant odor. When the gingiva are swollen, the epithelial lining of the gingival crevice becomes ulcerated and the gums will bleed more easily with even gentle brushing, and especially when flossing.

Complications.

Alzheimer's and dementia.

A new study from 2018 found compelling evidence that gingivitis bacteria may be linked to Alzheimer's disease. Scientists agree that more research is needed to prove a cause and effect link. "Studies have also found this bacteria, P. gingivalis – which is responsible for many forms of gum disease – can migrate from the mouth to the brain in mice. And on entry to the brain, P. gingivalis can reproduce all of the characteristic features of Alzheimer’s disease."

Cause.

The cause of plaque-induced gingivitis is bacterial plaque, which acts to initiate the body's host response. This, in turn, can lead to destruction of the gingival tissues, which may progress to destruction of the periodontal attachment apparatus. The plaque accumulates in the small gaps between teeth, in the gingival grooves and in areas known as "plaque traps": locations that serve to accumulate and maintain plaque. Examples of plaque traps include bulky and overhanging restorative margins, clasps of removable partial dentures and calculus (tartar) that forms on teeth. Although these accumulations may be tiny, the bacteria in them produce chemicals, such as degradative enzymes, and toxins, such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS, otherwise known as endotoxin) or lipoteichoic acid (LTA), that promote an inflammatory response in the gum tissue. This inflammation can cause an enlargement of the gingiva and subsequent formation. Early plaque in health consists of a relatively simple bacterial community dominated by Gram-positive cocci and rods. As plaque matures and gingivitis develops, the communities become increasingly complex with higher proportions of Gram-negative rods, fusiforms, filaments, spirilla and spirochetes. Later experimental gingivitis studies, using culture, provided more information regarding the specific bacterial species present in plaque. Taxa associated with gingivitis included "Fusobacterium nucleatum" subspecies "polymorphum", "Lachnospiraceae" [G-2] species HOT100, "Lautropia" species HOTA94, and "Prevotella oulorum" (a species of "Prevotella" bacterium), whilst "Rothia dentocariosa" was associated with periodontal health. Further study of these taxa is warranted and may lead to new therapeutic approaches to prevent periodontal disease.

Risk factors.

Risk factors associated with gingivitis include the following:

Diagnosis.

Gingivitis is a category of periodontal disease in which there is no loss of bone but inflammation and bleeding are present.  Each tooth is divided into four gingival units (mesial, distal, buccal, and lingual) and given a score from 0–3 based on the gingival index. The four scores are then averaged to give each tooth a single score.  The diagnosis of the periodontal disease gingivitis is done by a dentist. The diagnosis is based on clinical assessment data acquired during a comprehensive periodontal exam. Either a registered dental hygienist or a dentist may perform the comprehensive periodontal exam but the data interpretation and diagnosis are done by the dentist. The comprehensive periodontal exam consists of a visual exam, a series of radiographs, probing of the gingiva, determining the extent of current or past damage to the periodontium and a comprehensive review of the medical and dental histories.  Current research shows that activity levels of the following enzymes in saliva samples are associated with periodontal destruction: aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and acid phosphatase (ACP). Therefore, these enzyme biomarkers may be used to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of gingivitis and periodontitis.  A dental hygienist or dentist will check for the symptoms of gingivitis, and may also examine the amount of plaque in the oral cavity. A dental hygienist or dentist will also look for signs of periodontitis using X-rays or periodontal probing as well as other methods.  If gingivitis is not responsive to treatment, referral to a periodontist (a specialist in diseases of the gingiva and bone around teeth and dental implants) for further treatment may be necessary.

Classification.

1999 Classification.

As defined by the 1999 World Workshop in Clinical Periodontics, there are two primary categories of gingival diseases, each with numerous subgroups:

2017 Classification.

As defined by the 2017 World Workshop, periodontal health, gingival diseases/ conditions have been categorised into the following:

Prevention.

Gingivitis can be prevented through regular oral hygiene that includes daily brushing and flossing. Hydrogen peroxide, saline, alcohol or chlorhexidine mouth washes may also be employed. In a 2004 clinical study, the beneficial effect of hydrogen peroxide on gingivitis has been highlighted. The use of oscillation type brushes might reduce the risk of gingivitis compared to manual brushing.  Rigorous plaque control programs along with periodontal scaling and curettage also have proved to be helpful, although according to the American Dental Association, periodontal scaling and root planing are considered as a treatment for periodontal disease, not as a preventive treatment for periodontal disease. In a 1997 review of effectiveness data, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found clear evidence showing that toothpaste containing triclosan was effective in preventing gingivitis.

Treatment.

The focus of treatment is to remove plaque. Therapy is aimed at the reduction of oral bacteria and may take the form of regular periodic visits to a dental professional together with adequate oral hygiene home care. Thus, several of the methods used in the prevention of gingivitis can also be used for the treatment of manifest gingivitis, such as scaling, root planing, curettage, mouth washes containing chlorhexidine or hydrogen peroxide, and flossing. Interdental brushes also help remove any causative agents.  Powered toothbrushes work better than manual toothbrushes in reducing the disease.  The active ingredients that "reduce plaque and demonstrate effective reduction of gingival inflammation over a period of time" are triclosan, chlorhexidine digluconate, and a combination of thymol, menthol, eucalyptol, and methyl salicylate. These ingredients are found in toothpaste and mouthwash. Hydrogen peroxide was long considered a suitable over-the-counter agent to treat gingivitis. There has been evidence to show the positive effect on controlling gingivitis in short-term use. A study indicates the fluoridated hydrogen peroxide-based mouth rinse can remove teeth stain and reduce gingivitis.  Based on a limited evidence, mouthwashes with essential oils may also be useful, as they contain ingredients with anti-inflammatory properties, such as thymol, menthol and eucalyptol.  The bacteria that causes gingivitis can be controlled by using an oral irrigator daily with a mouthwash containing an antibiotic. Either amoxicillin, cephalexin, or minocycline in 500 grams of a non-alcoholic fluoride mouthwash is an effective mixture.  Overall, intensive oral hygiene care has been shown to improve gingival health in individuals with well-controlled type 2 diabetes. Periodontal destruction is also slowed due to the extensive oral care. Intensive oral hygiene care (oral health education plus supra-gingival scaling) without any periodontal therapy improves gingival health, and may prevent progression of gingivitis in well-controlled diabetes.

Gingivitis is a non-destructive disease that causes inflammation of the gums. The most common form of gingivitis, and the most common form of periodontal disease overall, is in response to bacterial biofilms (also called plaque) that is attached to tooth surfaces, termed "plaque-induced gingivitis". Most forms of gingivitis are plaque-induced. While some cases of gingivitis never progress to periodontitis, periodontitis is always preceded by gingivitis. Gingivitis is reversible with good oral hygiene; however, without treatment, gingivitis can progress to periodontitis, in which the inflammation of the gums results in tissue destruction and bone resorption around the teeth. Periodontitis can ultimately lead to tooth loss.


Life.

Born in Ins as the son of veterinarian Samuel Anker (then a member of the constituent assembly of the Canton of Bern), Anker attended school in Neuchâtel, where he and Auguste Bachelin, later a fellow artist, took early drawing lessons with Louis Wallinger in 1845–48. In 1849–51, he attended the in Bern, graduating with the "Matura." Afterwards, he studied theology, beginning in 1851 in Bern and continuing at the university of Halle, Germany. But in Germany he was inspired by the great art collections, and in 1854 he convinced his father to agree to an artistic career. In Neuchâtel he began using the name Albert, because it was easier to pronounce for his French-speaking classmates.  Anker moved to Paris, where he studied with Charles Gleyre and attended the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in 1855–60. He installed a studio in the attic of his parents' house and participated regularly in exhibitions in Switzerland and in Paris. Anker married Anna Rüfli in 1864, and they had six children together; the four children who did not die at an early age – Louise, Marie, Maurice and Cécile – appear in some of Anker's paintings. In 1866, he was awarded a gold medal at the Paris Salon for "Schlafendes Mädchen im Walde" (1865) und "Schreibunterricht" (1865); in 1878 he was made a knight of the Légion d'honneur. In 1870–74 he was a member of the Grand Council of Bern, where he advocated the construction of the Kunstmuseum Bern.  Apart from his regular wintertime stays in Paris, Anker frequently travelled to Italy and other European countries. In 1889–93 and 1895–98 he was a member of the Swiss Federal Art Commission and in 1900 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Bern. A stroke in 1901 reduced his ability to work. Only after his death in 1910 was there a first exposition dedicated to him, held at the Musée d'art et d'histoire in Neuchâtel.

Works.

During his studies, Anker produced a series of works with historical and biblical themes, including paintings of Luther and Calvin. Soon after returning to Ins, though, he turned to what would become his signature theme: the everyday life of people in rural communities. His paintings depict his fellow citizens in an unpretentious and plain manner, without idealising country life, but also without the critical examination of social conditions that can be found in the works of contemporaries such as Daumier, Courbet or Millet. Although Anker did paint occasional scenes with a social significance, such as visits by usurers or charlatans to the village, his affirmative and idealistic Christian world-view did not include an inclination to issue any sort of overt challenge.  Also prominent in Anker's work are the more than 30 still lifes he created. They depict both rural and urban table settings in the tradition of Chardin, their realist solidity reflecting Anker's vision of a harmonic and stable world order. In addition, Anker created hundreds of commissioned watercolours and drawings, mostly portraits and illustrations, including for an edition of Jeremias Gotthelf's collected works. To provide for a steady income, Anker also decorated more than 500 faience plates for the Alsatian producer Théodore Deck.  Anker was quick to reach his artistic objectives and never strayed from his chosen path. His works, though, exude a sense of conciliation and understanding as well as a calm trust in Swiss democracy; they are executed with great skill, providing brilliance to everyday scenes through subtle choices in colouring and lighting. Their parochial motives belie the open-mindedness towards contemporary European art and events that Anker's correspondence reflects.

Reception.

Albert Anker's work made him Switzerland's most popular genre painter of the 19th century, and his paintings have continued to enjoy a great popularity due to their general accessibility. Indeed, as a student, Anker summed up his approach to art as follows: "One has to shape an idea in one's imagination, and then one has to make that idea accessible to the people."  Many Swiss postage stamps and other media have incorporated Anker's work. His studio in Ins has been preserved as a museum by the Albert Anker Foundation. One of Anker's greatest admirers and collectors is former Swiss Federal Councillor Christoph Blocher, since the 1980s Switzerland's most influential conservative politician, who also published an apologetic essay on Anker.

Albrecht Samuel Anker (April 1, 1831 – July 16, 1910) was a Swiss painter and illustrator who has been called the "national painter" of Switzerland because of his enduringly popular depictions of 19th-century Swiss village life.


Early years.

Lorenz was brought up in East Germany and still lives in Prenzlauer Berg area of East Berlin (now a part of the borough of Pankow). He chose to play the piano because a childhood friend of his played from the age of three. His parents sent him to a music school, where he said he "began by painting the keys on a window ledge" and "practiced one-half-year on the window ledge". His parents bought him a piano for one hundred East German marks for his 15th birthday.  Lorenz became "addicted" to rock and roll as a boy. He stopped his lessons in order to play with his father's jazz records. "When I joined my first band", Flake has said, "I noticed that I couldn't play modern music. I still can't!" At the age of sixteen, he apprenticed as a toolmaker.

Career.

Feeling B.

In 1983, at age sixteen, he began to play in the band Feeling B with Paul Landers and Aljoscha Rompe, a Swiss singer living in East Berlin. He stayed with the band for about ten years. Feeling B started out firmly grounded in the underground punk scene.  Lorenz lived in an apartment with Landers during their early years. When they were not playing gigs, they would sell jackets made from cut-up bed sheets and dusters on the black market. Two jackets a month meant as much money as an average salaried worker. "It was quite easy to make a living; not to work and stay out of trouble," said Landers, "You only got problems if you were caught."  The group disbanded in the mid-1990s. On special occasions, the band members would get together for concerts at punk festivals, until Rompe died in November 2000 of an asthma attack.

Rammstein.

In 1994, Till Lindemann, Richard Kruspe, Oliver Riedel and Christoph Schneider entered and won the Berlin Senate Metro beat contest that allowed them to professionally record a four track demo. Paul Landers formally joined the band, followed by Lorenz. He was initially reluctant to join his five bandmates and had to be pestered into becoming a member of Rammstein, as he thought they would be too boring. Eventually, he agreed to join, and the group began work on their first album, "Herzeleid" ("Heartache").  In early live performances of the song "Bück dich" ("Bend down" or "Bend over"), Lorenz and vocalist Till Lindemann engaged in simulated sodomy with a liquor-squirting dildo. On 23 September 1998, in Worcester, Massachusetts (USA) Lindemann and Lorenz were arrested and charged with lewd and lascivious behavior. A statement from Sergeant Thomas Radula of the Worcester Police Department stated that Lindemann was simulating sex with Lorenz onstage "using a phallic object that shot water over the crowd". They were held and released the following day on US$25 bail. After months of legal debate, they were eventually fined US$100.  Until 2002, Lorenz would "surf" the audience in an inflatable rubber dinghy during the performance of "Seemann" ("Seaman"). Riedel took his place in 2002. According to Lorenz, the change occurred because he was injured too often. During a 2001 concert in St. Petersburg, Flake was tipped out of the boat by the crowd and almost completely undressed. Despite this, Lorenz returned to riding the dinghy for Rammstein's 2009 tour during the performance of "Haifisch" ("Shark").  During a concert in Gothenburg, Sweden on 30 July 2005, Till Lindemann suffered a knee injury when Lorenz accidentally ran into him with the Segway he rides during the performance of "Amerika" ("America"). This caused concerts scheduled in Asia to be cancelled.  In 2005, Lorenz suffered from mumps, causing concerts in South America to be cancelled.  In January 2012, Lorenz, along with Lindemann, was interviewed by heavy metal anthropologist Sam Dunn for the VH1 Classic series "Metal Evolution", on the topic of shock rock.

Personal life.

Lorenz has been divorced once and has five children. On 12 September 2008, Lorenz married artist Jenny Rosemeyer, who provided the whistling for Rammstein's song "Roter Sand". He has a brother who is four years older. Lorenz is an amateur painter and likes classic cars. He has a Mercedes and is involved in vintage car hire business. In November 2011 Lorenz's house was set on fire. The police managed to identify and capture the arsonist, a 28-year-old male with a criminal record. After Lorenz escaped, he crashed his car nearby.

Nicknames.

Lorenz commonly goes by the nicknames "Flake" (pronounced as "Flak-eh" in German) and "Doktor". "Doktor" came about because at one point he wanted to be a surgeon, but he was unable to study to become one because of his refusal to join the East German military. In a 16 December 2000 interview, he stated that "Flake" is his proper name.

Religion and politics.

Lorenz has stated "I disapprove of religions which are made into rigid institutions. I also think that religious fanaticism and missionary work are dangerous."  Lorenz has a distaste towards the United States, which he has called a "sick and decadent country with no culture". On 5 October 2005, Lorenz appeared briefly on Deutsche Welle. When asked how he felt about the reunification of Germany, he said he misses the way things were then. "Even if the GDR survived, I still would've stayed a musician. The increased size of the world also brought the danger of being compared to all of the international acts. The bands which were in the east were the only ones there, and if you were successful there, you were successful. I miss the simplicity. You went into a bar, ordered a beer, and you got a beer!... They didn't ask if you wanted... with a head or without a head, foam top or bottom... It really gets on my nerves having all of these choices I really don't want". In 2014, in an essay titled "I'm missing the GDR" Flake Lorenz stated "I miss the GDR even today. More so than the bands from that time." In a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone, Lindemann stated that "Flake is still a citizen of the GDR, and he will die a citizen of the GDR"

Christian "Flake" Lorenz (; born 16 November 1966) is a German musician and keyboard player for the Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein. He was also a member of the East German punk band Feeling B.


Biography.

Georges Feydeau was born in Paris, the son of novelist Ernest-Aimé Feydeau and Léocadie Boguslawa Zalewska. At the age of twenty, he wrote his first comic monologue in earnest. He found his first success four years later with "Tailleur pour dames" ("Ladies' Dressmaker", 1889). That year Feydeau married Marianne Carolus-Duran, the daughter of the famous portrait painter Carolus-Duran. To Feydeau, the marriage brought wealth that would sustain him until he found greater success. The marriage lasted 15 years after which the couple underwent a judicial separation and were formally divorced in 1916. Feydeau began investigating the great farces in 1890, studying the works of Eugène Labiche, Henri Meilhac and Alfred Hennequin. This study inspired him to write his acclaimed play "Champignol malgré lui" ("Champignol in Spite of Himself", 1892). Following this, Feydeau made a name for himself both in France and abroad, some of his plays opening overseas and in other languages before they opened in France.  These farces often involved Paris' "demi-monde". They are noted for their great wit and complex plots, featuring misunderstandings and coincidences, and what one critic called a "jack-in-the-box construction".  Among his 60 plays, his most famous are: "Une puce à l'oreille" ("A Flea in Her Ear", 1907), "Le Système Ribadier" (1892), "La Dame de Chez Maxim" ("The Girl from Maxim's", 1899), and "Hortense a dit: "Je m'en fous!"" ("Hortense says, "I don't give a damn!"", 1916). Other notable Feydeau farces include "L'Hôtel du libre échange", "Le Dindon" ("Sauce for the Goose", 1896) and the series of plays he wrote after 1908, grouped under the title "Du Mariage au Divorce": "On purge bébé", "Feu la mère de madame", "Léonie est en avance" and "Mais ne te promène donc pas toute nue").  Though critics at the time dismissed Feydeau's works as light entertainment, he is now recognized as one of the great French playwrights of his era. His plays are seen today as precursors of Surrealist and Dada theatre, and the vaudeville. They have been continuously revived and are still performed today, 17 of them having been performed on Broadway between 1895 and 1992. In Serbia, Ljubisa Ristic directed "A Flea in Her Ear", which has been performed more than 1,600 times. The play's premiere was on June 7, 1971, and up to 2016 had been performed continuously for more than 45 years.  Despite being a phenomenally successful playwright during his lifetime, his propensity for high living (he had a table permanently reserved for him at Maxim's), gambling, and the failure of his marriage led to financial difficulties.  During the winter of 1918, Feydeau contracted syphilis and slowly descended into madness until his death three years later at age 58. He is buried in the Cimetière de Montmartre in Paris.

Theatrical adaptations.

"The Party's Over", a one-act play by Jay Parker is loosely based on Feydeau's one-act "Par la Fenêtre".  Feydeau's one-act farce "Maisn'te promène donc pas toute nue!", translated by Olivier Bernier as "Please don't walk around in the nude" was produced at Harvard in 1960.  John Cleese's adaption of Feydeau's "Monsieur Chasse!" – entitled "Bang Bang!" in 2020.  Paxton Whitehead and Suzanne Grossman adapted three of Feydeau's plays: "There's One in Every Marriage" for the Broadway stage in 1971, "Chemin de Fer" in 1974 and "A Flea in Her Ear" in 1982.  Charles Morey's English adaptation of "Tailleur pour dames", titled "The Ladies Man", was first performed in 2007.

Georges Feydeau (; 8 December 1862 – 5 June 1921) was a French playwright of the era known as the Belle Époque. He is remembered for his many lively farces. He wrote over sixty plays and was a forerunner of vaudeville.


History.

Historical population.

Perhaps the earliest exact census figures on ethnic or national structure of Regierungsbezirk Oppeln (Regierungsbezirk Kattowitz did not yet exist) are from 1819. In 1819 the Oppeln Region had 561,203 inhabitants, including the following "Nationalverschiedenheit":  The population more than doubled during the next five decades, reaching over 1,2 million inhabitants by year 1867, including around 742 thousand Poles and around 457 thousand Germans. The last pre-World War I general census figures available, are from 1910 (if not including the 1911 census of school children - Sprachzählung unter den Schulkindern - which revealed a higher percent of Polish-speakers among school children than the 1910 census among the general populace). Large demographic changes took place between 1819 and 1910, with the region's total population quadrupling, the percent of German-speakers increasing significantly, and that of Polish-speakers declining considerably. Also the total land area in which Polish was spoken, as well as the land area in which it was spoken by the majority, declined between 1790 and 1890. Polish authors before 1918 estimated the number of ethnic Poles in Prussian Upper Silesia as slightly higher than according to figures from official German censuses.  Exact ethnolinguistic figures for the 19th century and early 20th century can be found in Table 1.:

Weimar Republic.

From 1919-1921 three Silesian Uprisings occurred among the Polish-speaking populace of Upper Silesia; the Battle of Annaberg was fought in the region in 1921. In the Upper Silesia plebiscite of March 1921, a majority of 59,4% voted against merging with Poland and a minority of 40,6% voted for, with clear lines dividing Polish and German communities. The exact border, the maintenance of cross-border railway traffic and other necessary co-operations, as well as equal rights for all inhabitants in both parts of Upper Silesia, were all fixed by the German-Polish Accord on East Silesia, signed in Geneva on May 15, 1922. On June 20, the Weimar Republic ceded, "de facto", the eastern parts of Upper Silesia, becoming part of Silesian Voivodeship of the Second Polish Republic. Within Weimar Germany, the Prussian Province of Silesia was so divided into the provinces of Upper Silesia and Lower Silesia The territory remaining in Prussian Upper Silesia was administered within the Oppeln Region and — according to Polish sources — had 530,000 Poles within it.

Nazi Germany.

After the Nazis' takeover in Germany, anti-Semitic laws were also introduced in German Upper Silesia, against the "German-Polish Accord on East Silesia" of 1922. Among other stipulations, according to the treaty each contractual party guaranteed in its respective part of Upper Silesia equal civil rights for all the inhabitants. The German Upper Silesian Franz Bernheim succeeded in convincing the League of Nations to force Nazi Germany to abide by the Accord, by filing the Bernheim petition. Accordingly, in September 1933 the Reich's Nazi government suspended in German Upper Silesia all anti-Semitic discrimination laws already imposed and excepted the province from all new such future decrees, until the Accord expired in May 1937.  The Province of Upper Silesia was joined to Lower Silesia to form the Province of Silesia in 1938.

World War II.

After the invasion of Poland in 1939, Polish Upper Silesia, including the Polish industrial city of Kattowitz, was directly annexed into the Province of Silesia. This annexed territory, also known as East Upper Silesia ("Ostoberschlesien"), became part of the new Regierungsbezirk Kattowitz.  German occupation forces began a policy of repression against the Polish population of eastern Upper Silesia, which started as early as September 1939 based on lists made before the war that pointed out Poles active in social and political life. A second wave of arrests happened during October and November in "Intelligenzaktion Schlesien", aimed against Polish intellectuals, many of whom perished in prison camps. A third wave of arrests came in April and May 1940 during the AB Aktion.  In Katowice, according to the historian Czesław Madajczyk, one of the harshests centres of oppression was the prison on Mikołowska street where people were reported to be murdered by Germans through the use of guillotine. A prison and penal camp were also established in the region in which Polish activists from Upper Silesia were held.  At the same time, Polish population was expelled from eastern Upper Silesia; from 1939 until 1942, 40,000 Poles were expelled. In their place, ethnic Germans from Volhynia and the Baltic countries were settled in Upper Silesia's urban areas. Until 1943, about 230,000 ethnic Germans were located on the Polish territories of eastern Upper Silesia and the Wartheland. The death toll of the Polish population in Upper Silesia at the hands of Germans is about 25,000 victims, with 20,000 of them being from urban population. In 1941, the Province of Silesia was again divided into the Provinces of Upper and Lower Silesia; Kattowitz (Katowice, in the former Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship of pre-war Poland) was made the capital of Upper Silesia instead of the smaller town of Oppeln.  The German province of Upper Silesia was conquered by the Soviet Red Army from February until the end of March 1945 during World War II's Lower and Upper Silesian Offensives. The post-war Potsdam Agreement granted the entire province's territory to the People's Republic of Poland; the territory is now in the Polish Opole and Silesian Voivodeships. Most Germans remaining in the territory were expelled westward. The Landsmannschaft Schlesien represents German Silesians from Upper and Lower Silesia. Near and in Opole, a German minority remains.  Upper Silesia was known to be a poor, but heavily industrialised and polluted area. This was one of the Areas that P. G. Wodehouse was sent to after he was captured in the North of France as an Enemy Alien. He was said to have commented on the state of the area "If this is Upper Silesia, one has to wonder what Lower Silesia is like."

Post-war period.

During the Polish post-war census of December 1950, data about the pre-war places of residence of the inhabitants as of August 1939 was collected. In case of children born between September 1939 and December 1950, their origin was reported based on the pre-war places of residence of their mothers. Thanks to this data it is possible to reconstruct the pre-war geographical origin of the post-war population. The same territory corresponding to pre-1938 Province of Upper Silesia (which became part of Poland in 1945) was inhabited as of December 1950 by:  Before the war, German Upper Silesia was home to a very large ethnically Polish/Silesian minority in Germany, so the flight and expulsion of Germans did not affect the region as much. In 1950, most of the region's population were its autochthons, who had had German citizenship before World War II, and were granted Polish citizenship after 1945. There were also many newcomers, especially from Eastern Poland annexed by the USSR and from pre-war Polish Upper Silesia.

The Province of Upper Silesia (; Silesian German: "Provinz Oberschläsing"; ; ) was a province of the Free State of Prussia from 1919 to 1945. It comprised much of the region of Upper Silesia and was eventually divided into two government regions ("Regierungsbezirke") called "Kattowitz" (1939-1945), and "Oppeln" (1819-1945). The provincial capital was Oppeln (1919–1938) and Kattowitz (1941–1945), while other major towns included Beuthen, Gleiwitz, Hindenburg O.S., Neiße, Ratibor and Auschwitz, added in 1941 (the place of future extermination of Jews in World War II). Between 1938 and 1941 it was reunited with Lower Silesia as the Province of Silesia.


Description.

Besides their missile armament, the Typhoon class features six torpedo tubes designed to handle RPK-2 (SS-N-15) missiles or Type 53 torpedoes. A Typhoon-class submarine can stay submerged for 120 days in normal conditions, and potentially more if deemed necessary (e.g., in the case of a nuclear war). Their primary weapons system is composed of 20 R-39 (NATO: SS-N-20) ballistic missiles (SLBM) with a maximum of 10 MIRV nuclear warheads each. Technically, Typhoons were able to deploy their long-range nuclear missiles while moored at their docks.  Typhoon-class submarines feature multiple pressure hulls, similar to the World War II Japanese, that simplifies internal design while making the vessel much wider than a normal submarine. In the main body of the sub, two long pressure hulls lie parallel with a third, smaller pressure hull above them (which protrudes just below the sail), and two other pressure hulls for torpedoes and steering gear. This also greatly increases their survivability – even if one pressure hull is breached, the crew members in the other are safe and there is less potential for flooding.  The Typhoon is capable of traveling at underwater.

History.

The Typhoon class was developed under Project 941 as the Russian "Akula" class (Акула), meaning shark. It is sometimes confused with other submarines, as Akula is the name NATO uses to designate the Russian Project 971 "Shchuka-B" (Щука-Б)-class attack submarines. The project was developed with the objective to match the SLBM armament of s, capable of carrying 192 nuclear warheads, 100 kt each, but with significantly longer range. To accommodate this increase in range, Soviet SLBMs were substantially larger and heavier than their American counterparts (the R-39 Rif is more than twice as heavy as the UGM-96 Trident I; it remains the heaviest SLBM to have been in service worldwide). The submarine had to be scaled accordingly.  In the early 1990s, there were also proposals to rebuild some of the Typhoon-class submarines to submarine cargo vessels for shipping oil, gas and cargo under polar ice to Russia's far flung northern territories. The submarines could take up to 10,000 tonnes of cargo on-board and ship it under the polar ice to tankers waiting in the Barents Sea. These ships – after the considerable engineering required to develop technologies to transfer oil from drilling platforms to the submarines, and later, to the waiting tankers – would then deliver their cargo world-wide.  Six Typhoon-class submarines were built. Originally, the submarines were designated by hull numbers only. Names were later assigned to the four vessels retained by the Russian Navy, which were sponsored by either a city or company. The construction order for an additional vessel (hull number TK-210) was cancelled and never completed. Only the first of these submarines to be constructed, "Dmitriy Donskoy", is still in active service with the Russian Navy, serving as a test platform for the Bulava (SS-NX-32) missile. "Arkhangelsk" (TK-17) and "Severstal" (TK-20) remain in reserve, not currently active with the Russian fleet. All the R-39 missiles have been retired. The Typhoons have been replaced by the Borei class since 2010-2011.  In late December 2008, a senior Navy official announced that the two Typhoon-class submarines, TK-17 "Arkhangelsk" and TK-20 "Severstal", that are in reserve would not be rearmed with the new Bulava SLBM missile system. They could however be modified to carry cruise missiles or to lay mines, or could be used in special operations. In late June 2009, the Navy Commander-in-Chief, Admiral Vladimir Vysotskiy told reporters that the two submarines would be reserved for possible future repairs and modernisation. In May 2010, the Navy Commander-in-Chief reported that Russia's Typhoon-class submarines would remain in service with the Navy until 2019. In September 2011, the Russian defense ministry decided to write off all Project 941 "Akula" nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines until 2014. The reasons for decommissioning the Typhoon-class vessels are the restrictions imposed on Russia by the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and successful trials of new Borei-class submarine.  Despite being a replacement for many types of submarines, the Borei-class submarines are slightly shorter than the Typhoon class ( as opposed to ), and have a smaller crew (107 people as opposed to 160). These changes were in part designed to reduce the cost to build and maintain the submarines. In addition, the United States and Canada provided 80% of funds for scrapping the older Typhoon-class submarines, making it much more economical to build a new submarine. However, according to other sources at the Russian defence ministry, no such decision has been made; in that case, the submarines would remain with the Russian Navy.  In 2013, the state-run RIA Novosti news has announced that the Navy will scrap two Typhoons beginning in 2018. They will be TK-17 "Arkhangelsk" and TK-20 "Severstal". As of 2017, the decision about scrapping of TK-17 and TK-20 is still not certain.

Timeline.

TK-208 "Dmitriy Donskoy" (Typhoon #1)  TK-17 "Arkhangelsk" (Typhoon #5)  TK-20 "Severstal" (Typhoon #6)

Photos.

Satellite photos Interior photos

Notable appearances in media.

Probably the best-known fictional Typhoon-class submarine was the stealth equipped "Red October", the subject of the Tom Clancy novel "The Hunt for Red October" and its 1990 movie adaptation, starring Sean Connery as the fictional Captain Marko Ramius.  The 2001 documentary "Mission Invisible" about the Russian submarine "Severstal" was produced by Corona Films for Discovery Channel with the participation of ZED, France 5, ZDF, RTBF, TV5 Monde and the Scottish Screen Fund.  In 2008 National Geographic released a documentary about the scrapping of one of the Typhoons in the series "Break It Down". This boat is TK-13, which was scrapped over the time period 2007–2009.

The Typhoon class, Soviet designation Project 941 "Akula" () is a class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines designed and built by the Soviet Union for the Soviet Navy. With a submerged displacement of 48,000 tonnes, the Typhoons are the largest submarines ever built, able to accommodate comfortable living facilities for the crew when submerged for months on end. The source of the NATO reporting name remains unclear, although it is often claimed to be related to the use of the word "typhoon" ("тайфун") by General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev of the Communist Party in a 1974 speech while describing a new type of nuclear ballistic missile submarine, as a reaction to the United States Navy's new.


History of the Order.

The Order of the Visitation was founded in 1610 by Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Jane Frances de Chantal in Annecy, Haute-Savoie, France. At first the founder had not a religious order in mind; he wished to form a congregation without external vows, where the cloister should be observed only during the year of novitiate, after which the sisters should be free to go out by turns to visit the sick and poor. The order was given the name of The Visitation of Holy Mary with the intention that the sisters would follow the example of Virgin Mary and her joyful visit to her kinswoman Elizabeth, (known as "The Visitation" in the Roman Catholic Church).  He invited Jane de Chantal to join him in establishing a new type of religious life, one open to older women and those of delicate constitution, that would stress the hidden, inner virtues of humility, obedience, poverty, even-tempered charity, and patience, and founded on the example of Mary in her journey of mercy to her cousin Elizabeth. The order was established to welcome those not able to practice austerities required in other orders. Instead of chanting the canonical office in the middle of the night the sisters recited the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin at half-past eight in the evening. There was no perpetual abstinence nor prolonged fast. The Order of the Visitation of Mary was canonically erected in 1618 by Paul V who granted it all the privileges enjoyed by the other orders. A Bull of Urban VIII solemnly approved it in 1626.

Charism.

The special charism of the Visitation Order is an interior discipline expressed primarily through the practice of two virtues: humility and gentleness. The motto of the order is "Live Jesus".

Expansion.

A foundation was established in Lyons in 1615 followed by Moulines (1616), Grenoble (1618), Bourges (1618), and Paris (1619). When Saint Francis de Sales died (1622) there were 13 convents established; at the death of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal in 1641 there were 86. The Order spread from France throughout Europe and to North America. As of 2017, there are about 160 autonomous Visitation monasteries throughout the world.

Portugal.

The Order of the Visitation has been present in Portugal since 1784, maintaining today three monasteries: in Braga, in Vila das Aves and in Batalha. The Sisters of the Visitation in Portugal produce and distribute the emblems of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (like devotional scapulars) as Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque did in the past.

England.

At the French Revolution in 1789 when all the religious houses were suppressed many of the French Sisters took refuge in other Catholic countries. The sisters in Rouen, northern France, fled to Portuguese monasteries, having only escaped the guillotine by the death of Robespierre in 1794. In 1803 six sisters left Lisbon in an English packet ship and while at sea they were attacked by French pirates. They were spared because of their nationality (they were French not English) and were returned safely to the Spanish seaport of Vigo. After a brief sojourn in Spain three of the Sisters made a second attempt to cross from Porto and without further encounters with pirates arrived in Falmouth on 29 January 1804. They later journeyed to Acton and founded the first monastery of the Visitation on English soil on 19 March 1804.

Germany.

In 1835, the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary of Dietramszell acquired Beuerberg Abbey (Kloster Beuerberg), in Eurasburg, Germany. Between 1846 and 1938 they ran a girls' school and a home for nursing mothers at Beuerberg Abbey, and afterwards an old people's convalescent home. The abbey still belongs to the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary.

Colombia.

The nine Visitation Sisters from Madrid, Spain came to Colombia in 1892 and founded the first Monastery at Santa Fe, Bogotá.

Ireland.

The Visitation Sisters came to Ireland in 1955 and founded a Monastery at Stamullen, Co. Meath. When Mother Mary Teresa O’ Dwyer, Superior of the Visitation Monastery of Roseland, England learned that the Brothers of St. John of God were moving out of Silverstream, she applied to the Bishop of Meath, Dr. Kyne for permission for the order of the Visitation to enter his diocese. Staffing problems were solved by borrowing three Sisters from America. The Visitation Monasteries of St. Paul Minnesota, Brooklyn New York and Atlanta Georgia each lent a Sister.

Korea.

In 2005, The six Visitation Sisters from Manizales, Colombia came to South Korea. The Monastery of the Visitation was established in Jeongok-eup, Yeoncheon County in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea.

In the United States.

In the United States there are 10 monasteries in two federations. The monasteries of the First Federation live the purely contemplative life, observing papal enclosure, with solemn vows, and have retained the traditional habit of the Order. Of the ten monasteries of the Visitation in the United States, six belong to the First Federation,

Second federation.

Sisters of the Second Federation add apostolic monasteries to their contemplative life.  The Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy was founded in 1848 as the Wheeling Female Academy in downtown Wheeling, West Virginia and in 1865 assumed its current name. While grades five through twelve were all female, Mount de Chantal's Montessori and Elementary schools were co-ed. The school ceased operations on May 31, 2008, and the nuns re-located to the Georgetown Visitation in Washington, D.C. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, before being razed on November 7, 2011.

Noted Visitandines.

The best known saint of the Order is St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, who reportedly received the revelations of the Sacred Heart resulting in the First Friday Devotions and Holy Hours. On May 10, 1998, seven Visitandines of the First Monastery of Madrid, Spain, martyred during the Spanish Revolution of 1936, were beatified in Rome by Pope John Paul II.  The nuns were members of the Madrid House of the Order of the Visitation. In early 1936, during the Spanish Civil War, as religious persecution intensified, most of the community moved to Oronoz, leaving a group of six nuns in the charge of Sr Maria Gabriela de Hinojosa. By July they were confined to their apartment, When a neighbour reported them to the authorities, and in November 1936 their apartment searched. Nevertheless, they refused to seek refuge in the consulates.  The following evening, a patrol of the Iberian Anarchist Federation broke into the apartment and ordered all the sisters to leave. They were taken by van to a vacant area and shot. Sr Maria Cecilia, who had run when she felt the sister next to her fall, surrendered shortly after and was shot five days later at the cemetery wall in Vallecas on the outskirts of Madrid.  In 2010, in honor of the worldwide Jubilee Year for the Visitation order, Pope Benedict XVI granted a plenary indulgence to those who would make a visit to and pray in a Visitation monastery.  Léonie Martin, the sister of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, became a nun of the Order of the Visitation. She received the veil on the 2nd of July 1900 and took the name Sister Françoise-Thérèse Martin. On the 24 January 2015 the process for Leonie's beatification began and she is now known as Servant of God.

The Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary ( V.H.M., Latin: "Ordo Visitationis Beatissimae Mariae Virginis") or the Visitation Order is an enclosed Roman Catholic religious order for women. Members of the order are also known as the Salesian Sisters (not to be confused with the Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco) or, more commonly, as the Visitandines or Visitation Sisters.


Method and process.

A low-growing stem is bent down to touch a hole dug in the ground, then pinned in place using something shaped like a clothes hanger hook and covered over with soil. However, a few inches of leafy growth must remain above the ground for the bent stem to grow into a new plant. Removing a section of skin from the lower-facing stem part before burying may help the rooting process. If using rooting hormone, the stem should be cut just beneath a node. The resultant notch should be wedged open with a toothpick or similar piece of wood and the hormone applied before burying.  The buried stem part then grows new roots which take hold in the soil while the above parts grow as individual new plants. Once the end of the stem has grown long enough the process can be repeated, creating the appearance of a row of plants linked by humped, intermittently buried stems. Better results can be achieved when the top of the plant is closer to the vertical.  Once the process is completed, the buried section should be kept well-watered until roots begin to form. The new individual plant may require one to two years before it is strong enough to survive on its own. When it is, the original stem should be cut where it enters the ground, thereby separating the two plants.

Plant types and benefits.

As layering does not involve sexual reproduction, new plants are effectively clones of the original plant and will exhibit the same characteristics. This includes flower, fruit and foliage. Plant selection usually involves plants with a flexible stem.  Simple layering can be more attractive when managing a cascading or spreading plant. These plants tend to propagate in this manner anyway, and potting a new limb will give extra plants without having to sow new seed.  Simple layering can also help when a plant has overgrown its pot and is drooping over the side. The long stem is layered into another pot until it roots, thus bringing it back to soil level.

Ground layering.

Ground layering or mound layering is the typical propagation technique for the popular Malling-Merton series of clonal apple root stocks, in which the original plants are set in the ground with the stem nearly horizontal, which forces side buds to grow upward. After these are started, the original stem is buried up to some distance from the tip. At the end of the growing season, the side branches will have rooted, and can be separated while the plant is dormant. Some of these will be used for grafting rootstocks, and some can be reused in the nursery for the next growing season's crop.  Ground layering is used in the formation of visible surface roots, known as "nebari", on bonsai trees.

Air layering.

In air layering (or marcotting), the target region is wounded by an upward 4 cm long cut and held open with a toothpick or similar, or a strip of bark is removed. The wound is then surrounded with a lump of moisture-retaining medium such as sphagnum moss or cloth, and then further surrounded by a moisture barrier such as plastic film tied or taped to the branch to prevent moisture loss or ingress of too much water as from rain. Rooting hormone is often applied to the wound to encourage root growth. When sufficient roots have grown from the wound, the stem is removed from the parent plant and planted, taking care to shield it from too much sun and to protect it from drying out until the new roots take hold. It can take the layer from a few weeks to one or more growing seasons to produce sufficient roots; this is largely dependent on the plant species and the vigor of the parent plant.

Layering has evolved as a common means of vegetative propagation of numerous species in natural environments. Layering is also utilized by horticulturists to propagate desirable plants.


Biography.

Coming to power.

He was the son of John, Count Palatine of Neumarkt (1383–1443) and Catherine of Pomerania (c. 1390–1426). Catherine was the daughter of Wartislaw VII, Duke of Pomerania in Pomerania-Stolp, and sister of the Scandinavian king, Eric of Pomerania. Count Palatine John was a son of King Rupert of Germany (1352–1410). Christopher was probably born at Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz in Upper Palatinate, in Bavaria, Germany. In 1445, Christopher married Dorothea of Brandenburg (1430 – 25 November 1495) in Copenhagen.  Eric of Pomerania was deposed as king of Denmark and Sweden in 1439. As Eric's nephew, Christopher, who was rather unfamiliar with Scandinavian conditions, was elected by the Danish State Council as the successor to his uncle, first as regent from 1439, and then proclaimed King of Denmark at the Viborg Assembly (Danish "landsting") on 9 April 1440. He was meant to be a puppet, as evidenced by the saying: "Had the Council demanded the stars of heaven from him, he would have ordered it." However he succeeded in maintaining some personal control. As a whole his rule, according to the politics of the nobility and his succession, might be called the start of the long period of balance between royal power and nobility which lasted until 1660. He was later elected king of Sweden in 1441, and Norway in June 1442.

Peasant rebellions.

At the start of his reign, he put down peasant rebellions in Funen and Jutland. Once the rebellion on Funen was suppressed, he turned his attention the uprising in Jutland. North Jutland, especially Vendsyssel, was so restive that a peasant army of 25,000 led by Henrik Tagesen Reventlow (executed 1441) posed a serious threat to Christopher's continued reign. Before the king could act, Jutland's noble families raised their own army and marched west of Aalborg to meet Reventlow's forces.  The peasants had created a gigantic wagon fortress three layers deep to protect themselves from the mounted knights they knew would come against them. They also placed tree branches across the bog in front of the camp and then cast earth on top to make it look like solid ground. The overconfident army of nobles led by Eske Jensen Brock appeared at St Jorgen's Hill ("St. Jørgensbjerg") on 3 May 1441. The knights charged the camp, and were quickly mired down in the bog. The peasants moved in for the kill. Brock was killed in the Battle of St Jorgen's Hill ("Slaget ved Skt. Jørgensbjerg") and dismembered and the pieces sent to the towns in the area as a warning. The peasants then raided Aalborghus (the area's most important manor) forcing the noble Niels Guldenstierne to flee.  The treatment of the captives after the battle strengthened Christopher's determination to put down the peasants. With his own army Christopher rode north to the rebel camp at Husby Hole near St Jorgen's Hill in northern Jutland. Because the rebels outnumbered his troops, Christopher sent word that anyone who left the camp and went home would not be punished for rebellion. The men from the island of Mors and Thisted left, for which they were called cowards and traitors ever after. Christopher ordered the attack on the rebel camp on 8 June 1441 and despite fighting ferociously the rebels could not overcome the heavily armed knights. Thousands of rebels were killed, those who survived were fined heavily. The more severe consequence was that rebels lost their free status and became serfs on the farms where they worked. The king made it a capital crime for peasants to carry weapons longer than a short knife. The subjugation of Denmark's once free peasants was complete.

Coronation, relations with Swedes.

In May 1442 Christopher traveled to Lödöse to meet with the nobles from all three kingdoms. He was elected King of Norway there and then went to Oslo where he was crowned on 2 July 1442. The next year he was proclaimed King of Denmark at the Urnehoved Assembly near Ribe. When his residence at Roskilde burned down, Christopher moved to Copenhagen and made it the capital of Denmark.  The Swedish nobles were not happy to relinquish any power and thus didn't like him, claiming he was too German for them and that he allowed his uncle (ex-King Eric) to plunder shipping from his castle on Gotland without any attempt to stop him. They blamed a series of bad harvests on him. People were so hungry they mixed ground tree bark with the little flour they could find. Christopher was contemptuously nicknamed the "Bark King" in Sweden. On the other hand, he tried to support the cities and their merchants as far as the limits of nobility and Hanseatic cities allowed. During his reign Copenhagen was made permanently the capital of Denmark (municipal charter of 1443).  He carried on an ineffective policy of war and negotiations against Eric in Gotland which did little to help the dissatisfaction within both Sweden and the Hanseatic League. The Kalmar Union Treaty was changed so that the aristocracy had most of the policy-making powers, and the king lost many of the powers monarchs had acquired since Viking times. The results of this policy of balance were still not reached when he suddenly died as the last descendant of Valdemar IV of Denmark.

Death.

In 1448, Christopher died suddenly at Helsingborg at age 32. King Christopher was buried in Roskilde Cathedral. On 28 October 1449, his widow Dorothea married King Christian I of Denmark. They were the parents of John, King of Denmark ("Kong Hans") who succeeded King Christian.

Full title.

Christopher's full title was: "By the Grace of God, King of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria".

Christopher of Bavaria (26 February 1416 – 5/6 January 1448) was King of Denmark (1440–48, as Christopher III), Sweden (1441–48) and Norway (1442–48) during the era of the Kalmar Union.