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1627

1627

Events


- July 22 - English under the Duke of Buckingham invade the Ré Island in support of the huguenots in La Rochelle. The invasion does not go well
- A Dutch ship makes the first recorded sighting of the coast of South Australia.
- The aurochs are hunted to extinction, the last being killed by poachers in Poland.
- England places the first European settlers on Barbados.
- Siege of La Rochelle begins
- Korea becomes a tributary state of China

Births


- January 25 - Robert Boyle, Irish scientist (d. 1691)
- March 27 - Sir Stephen Fox, English statesman (d. 1716)
- May 29 - Anne, Duchess of Montpensier, French writer (d. 1693)
- September 27 - Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, French bishop and writer (d. 1704)
- November 29 - John Ray, English biologist (d. 1705)
- Sir John Flavel, English dissenter (d. 1691)
- Philip Fruytiers, Flemish painter (d. 1666) See also :Category:1627 births.

Deaths


- February 22 - Olivier van Noort, Dutch navigator (b. 1558)
- March 6 - Krzysztof Zbaraski, Polish statesman (b. 1580)
- April 19 - Sir John Beaumont, English poet (b. 1583)
- May 2 - Lodovico Grossi da Viadana, Italian composer (b. 1560)
- May 24 - Luis de Góngora, Spanish poet (b. 1561)
- June 27 - Sir John Hayward, English historian
- August 21 - Jacques Mauduit, French composer (b. 1557)
- September 20 - Jan Gruter, Dutch scholar (b. 1560)
- October 28 - Jahangir, Mughal Emperor of India (b. 1569)
- Thomas Middleton, English playwright (b. 1580)
- Sir John Suckling, English politician (b. 1569) See also :Category:1627 deaths. Category:1627 ko:1627년

July 22

22 July is the 203rd day (204th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 162 days remaining.

Events


- 1298 - Battle of Falkirk - Edward I (Longshanks) of England and his longbowmen defeat William Wallace and his scottish schiltrons outside the town.
- 1499 - Battle of Dornach - The Swiss decisively defeat the Imperial army of Emperor Maximilian I.
- 1587 - Colony of Roanoke: A second group of English settlers arrive on Roanoke Island off of North Carolina to re-establish the deserted colony.
- 1793 - Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Pacific Ocean becoming the first Euro-American to complete a transcontinental crossing north of Mexico.
- 1796 - Surveyors of the Connecticut Land Company name an area in Ohio "Cleveland" after Gen. Moses Cleaveland, the superintendent of the surveying party.
- 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: War of the Third Coalition - inconclusive battle of Cape Finisterre fought between a combined French and Spanish fleets under Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve of Spain and a British fleet under Admiral Robert Calder.
- 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: Peninsular War - Battle of Salamanca - British forces led by Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) defeat French troops near Salamanca, Spain.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Atlanta - Outside of Atlanta, Georgia, Confederate General John Bell Hood leads an unsuccessful attack on Union troops under General William T. Sherman on Bald Hill.
- 1908 - Albert Fisher establishes the Fisher Body Company to manufacture carriage and automobile bodies.
- 1916 - In San Francisco, California, a bomb explodes on Market Street during a Preparedness Day parade killing 10 and injuring 40.
- 1933 - Wiley Post becomes first person to fly solo around the world traveling 15,596 miles in 7 days, 18 hours and 45 minutes.
- 1934 - Outside Chicago's Biograph Theatre, "Public Enemy No. 1" John Dillinger is mortally wounded by FBI agents.
- 1937 - New Deal: The United States Senate votes down President Franklin D. Roosevelt's proposal to add more justices to the Supreme Court of the United States.
- 1942 - The United States government begins compulsory civilian gasoline rationing due to the wartime demands.
- 1942 - Holocaust: The systematic deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto begins.
- 1943 - Allied forces capture the Italian city of Palermo.
- 1944 - The Polish Committee of National Liberation publishes its manifesto, starting the period of Communist rule in Poland
- 1946 - King David Hotel bombing: Irgun bombs King David Hotel in Jerusalem, headquarters of the British civil and military administration, killing 90.
- 1962 - Mariner program: Mariner 1 spacecraft flies erratically several minutes after launch and has to be destroyed.
- 1977 - Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping is restored to power.
- 1991 - Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer is arrested after the remains of 11 men and boys are found in his Milwaukee apartment.
- 1992 - Near Medellín, Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar escapes from his luxury prison fearing extradition to the United States.
- 1997 - The second Blue Water Bridge opens between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario.
- 2002 - Israel assasinates Salah Shahade, the Commander-in-Chief of Hamas's military arm, Ezzedeen-al-qassam Brigades, along with 14 civilians.
- 2003 - Members of 101st Airborne of the United States, aided by Special Forces, attack a compound in Iraq, killing Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Qusay, along with Mustapha Hussein, Qusay's 14-year old son, and a bodyguard.
- 2005 - A man is shot dead by police as the hunt begins for the London Bombers. See 7 July 2005 London bombings and 21 July 2005 London bombings
- 2005 - Microsoft releases the final name for its next-gen operating system, Longhorn. The name will be "Windows Vista".

Births


- 1210 - Joan of England, queen of Alexander II of Scotland (d. 1238)
- 1478 - King Philip I of Castile (d. 1506)
- 1510 - Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence (d. 1537)
- 1519 - Pope Innocent IX (d. 1591)
- 1535 - Katarina Stenbock, queen of Gustav I of Sweden (d. 1621)
- 1559 - Lawrence of Brindisi, Italian monk (d. 1619)
- 1621 - Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, English politician (d. 1683)
- 1711 - Georg Wilhelm Richmann, Russian physicist (d. 1753)
- 1713 - Jacques-Germain Soufflot, French architect (d. 1780)
- 1733 - Mikhail Shcherbatov, Russian philosopher and writer (d. 1790)
- 1784 - Friedrich Bessel, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1846)
- 1822 - Gregor Mendel, Austrian geneticist (d. 1884)
- 1844 - William Archibald Spooner, English priest and scholar (d. 1930)
- 1859 - Emma Lazarus, American poet (d. 1887)
- 1882 - Edward Hopper, American painter (d. 1967)
- 1887 - Gustav Ludwig Hertz, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1975)
- 1888 - Selman Waksman, Ukrainian-born biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1973)
- 1893 - James Whale, English film director (d. 1957)
- 1898 - Stephen Vincent Benét, American author (d. 1943)
- 1898 - Alexander Calder, American artist (d. 1976)
- 1905 - Doc Cramer, baseball player (d. 1990)
- 1908 - Amy Vanderbilt, American author on etiquette (d. 1974)
- 1913 - Gorni Kramer, Italian bandleader and songwriter
- 1916 - Marcel Cerdan, French boxer (d. 1949)
- 1921 - William Roth, U.S. Senator (d. 2003)
- 1923 - Bob Dole, U.S. Senator from Kansas and Presidential candidate
- 1923 - Mukesh, Indian singer (d. 1976)
- 1924 - Margaret Whiting, singer
- 1928 - Orson Bean, American film actor
- 1932 - Oscar De la Renta, Dominican-born fashion designer
- 1934 - Louise Fletcher, American actress
- 1936 - Tom Robbins, American author
- 1939 - Terence Stamp, English actor
- 1940 - Alex Trebek, Canadian-born game show host
- 1941 - George Clinton, American musician
- 1941 - Ron Turcotte, Canadian jockey
- 1943 - Kay Bailey Hutchison, U.S. Senator from Texas
- 1944 - Estelle Bennett, American singer (Ronettes)
- 1944 - Rick Davies, British musician (Supertramp)
- 1944 - Sparky Lyle, baseball player
- 1946 - Mireille Mathieu, French singer
- 1946 - Stephen M. Wolownik, Russian musician (d. 2000)
- 1947 - Albert Brooks, American comedian
- 1947 - Danny Glover, American actor
- 1947 - Don Henley, American drummer, singer, and songwriter (Eagles)
- 1948 - S.E. Hinton, American author
- 1948 - Otto Waalkes, German comedian
- 1949 - Alan Menken, American composer
- 1949 - Lasse Virén, Finnish athlete
- 1954 - Lonette McKee, American actress
- 1954 - Al Di Meola, American guitarist
- 1955 - Willem Dafoe, American actor
- 1961 - Keith Sweat, American singer
- 1964 - Patrick Labyorteaux, American actor
- 1964 - John Leguizamo, Colombian actor
- 1964 - David Spade, American actor, comedian, and producer
- 1965 - Shawn Michaels, American professional wrestler
- 1966 - Tim Brown, American football player
- 1971 - Kristine Lilly, American soccer player
- 1972 - Keyshawn Johnson, American football player
- 1973 - Mike Sweeney, baseball player
- 1973 - Rufus Wainwright, American singer and songwriter
- 1974 - Daddy Kev, American record producer and engineer
- 1974 - Franka Potente, German actress
- 1978 - Dennis Rommedahl, Danish footballer
- 1980 - Scott Dixon, New Zealand race car driver
- 1980 - Dirk Kuyt, Dutch football striker
- 1983 - Shelby Belle, Canadian actress

Deaths


- 1362 - Louis of Durazzo, Italian soldier (poisoned) (b. 1324)
- 1387 - Franz Ackerman, Flemish statesman (b. 1330)
- 1461 - King Charles VII of France (b. 1403)
- 1525 - Richard Wingfield, English diplomat
- 1619 - Lawrence of Brindisi, Italian monk (b. 1559)
- 1645 - Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimentel, Count-Duke of Olivares, Spanish statesman (b. 1587)
- 1676 - Pope Clement X (b. 1590)
- 1713 - Jacques-Germain Soufflot, French architect (d. 1780)
- 1734 - Peter King, 1st Baron King, Lord Chancellor of England
- 1789 - Joseph-François Foulon, French administrator (executed) (b. 1715)
- 1802 - Marie François Xavier Bichat, French anatomist (b. 1771)
- 1832 - Emperor Napoleon II of France (b. 1811)
- 1852 - Auguste Marmont, French marshal (b. 1774)
- 1904 - Wilson Barrett, English actor (b. 1846)
- 1908 - William Randal Cremer, English politician and pacifist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1828)
- 1916 - James Whitcomb Riley, American author and poet (b. 1849)
- 1922 - Jokichi Takamine, Japanese chemist (b. 1854)
- 1932 - Errico Malatesta, Italian anarchist (b. 1853)
- 1932 - Florenz Ziegfeld, theatrical producer (b. 1867)
- 1934 - John Dillinger, American bank robber (shot) (b. 1903)
- 1950 - William Lyon Mackenzie King, tenth Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1874)
- 1958 - Mikhail Zoshchenko, Russian writer (b. 1895)
- 1967 - Carl Sandburg, American poet (b. 1878)
- 1974 - Wayne Morse, U.S. Senator from Oregon (b. 1900)
- 1979 - Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer (b. 1929)
- 1989 - Martti Talvela, Finnish bass (b. 1935)
- 1990 - Manuel Puig, Argentinian writer (b. 1932)
- 1998 - Hermann Prey, German bass-baritone (b. 1929)
- 2000 - Eric Christmas, British actor (b. 1916)
- 2003 - Qusay Hussein, son of Saddam Hussein (b. 1966)
- 2003 - Uday Hussein, son of Saddam Hussein (b. 1964)
- 2003 - Wahome Muthahi, Kenyan humourist
- 2004 - Sacha Distel, French singer (b. 1933)
- 2004 - George Kidd, Canadian diplomat (b. 1917)
- 2005 - Jean Charles de Menezes, Brazilian electrician (shot) (b. 1978)

Holidays and observances


- Saint Mary Magdalene
- Swaziland - Birthday of former King Sobhuza II
- Pi Approximation Day
- Ratcatcher's Day. See:The Pied Piper of Hamelin.

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/22 BBC: On This Day] ---- 21 July - 23 July - 22 June - 22 August -- listing of all days ko:7월 22일 ms:22 Julai ja:7月22日 simple:July 22 th:22 กรกฎาคม

Duke of Buckingham

The titles Marquess and Duke of Buckingham, named after Buckingham, have been created several times in the peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. There have also been Earls of Buckingham. On September 14, 1444, Humphrey Stafford, Anne's son, was created Duke of Buckingham. He was an important supporter of the House of Lancaster in the Wars of the Roses, and was killed at the Battle of Northampton in July 1460. He was succeeded by his grandson, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, who aided Richard III in his claiming the throne in 1483 (Edward IV of England's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville having been declared null and void and Edward's sons illegitimate by Act of Parliament Titulus Regius), but who then led a revolt against Richard and was executed later that same year. His son, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, was restored to the title upon Henry VII's ascension to the throne in 1485, but he was ultimately executed for treason in 1521 due to his opposition to Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Henry VIII's chief advisor. At this time the title became extinct. It was created anew for James I's favorite, George Villiers, who was successively Earl (1617), Marquess (1618), and Duke of Buckingham (1623). Buckingham, who continued in office as chief minister into the reign of James's son, Charles I, was responsible for a policy of war against Spain and France, and was assassinated by a Puritan fanatic in 1628 as he prepared an expedition to relieve the Huguenots of La Rochelle. His son, George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, was a notable advisor in the reign of Charles II, and, along with Lord Ashley made up the protestant axis of the famous Cabal. When he died in 1687, the title again became extinct. The title of Duke of Buckingham and Normanby was created in 1703 for John Sheffield, Marquess of Normanby, a notable Tory politician of the late Stuart period, who served under Queen Anne as Lord Privy Seal and Lord President of the Council. He died in 1721 and was succeeded by his son. Following the death of the 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Normanby without heirs in 1735, the title became extinct. In 1784, George Nugent Temple Grenville, 3rd Earl Temple, a son of Prime Minister George Grenville, was created Marquess of Buckingham in the peerage of Great Britain. He served as Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, among other offices. In 1822 his son, Richard Nugent Temple Grenville was created Duke of Buckingham and Chandos in 1822. His grandson, the 3rd Duke, was a prominent Conservative politician. When he died in 1889, the Dukedom became extinct. In November 2005 a man known as Christopher Buckingham was successfully prosecuted, and jailed for 21 months, for using an illegally obtained passport. His fake identity included a title (Lord Buckingham of Little Billing, Northampton) that had become extinct with the death of the Duke of Buckingham. The man used a trick made famous in the Frederick Forsyth novel The Day of the Jackal to steal the identity of Christopher Edward Buckingham, a baby who died aged 8 months in 1963. His true identity is unknown.

Dukes of Buckingham, first Creation (1444)


- Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham (1402-1460)
- Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (1455-1483) (forfeit 1483)
- Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (1477-1521) (restored 1485; forfeit 1521)

Dukes of Buckingham, second Creation (1623)

[The Dukes of Buckingham of this creation bore the subsidiary titles of Marquess of Buckingham (1618), Earl of Buckingham (1617), Earl of Coventry (1623), Viscount Villiers (1616), and Baron Whaddon (1616), all in the Peerage of England]
- George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham (1592-1628)
- George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (1628-1687)

Dukes of Buckingham and Normanby (1703)

[The Dukes of Buckingham and Normanby bore the subsidiary titles of Marquess of Normanby (1694), Earl of Mulgrave (1626), and Baron Sheffield (1547), all in the Peerage of England]
- John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby (1647-1721)
- Edmund Sheffield, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Normanby (1716-1735)

Marquesses of Buckingham, 2nd Creation (1784)


- George Nugent-Temple-Grenville, 1st Marquess of Buckingham (1753-1813)
- Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Marquess of Buckingham (1776-1839), created Duke of Buckingham and Chandos in 1822

Dukes of Buckingham and Chandos (1822)

[The Dukes of Buckingham and Chandos bore the subsidiary titles of Marquess of Buckingham (1784), Marquess of Chandos (1822), Earl Temple (1779), and Earl Temple of Stowe (1822)]
- Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1776-1839)
- Richard Plantagenet Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1797-1861)
- Richard Plantagenet Campbell Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1823-1889)

External link


- [http://www.dukesofbuckingham.org/ A website about the Dukes of Buckingham and Chandos] Buckingham Buckingham

Huguenots

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the name of Huguenots came to apply to members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France, or historically as the French Calvinists.

Origin of the name

Used originally as a term of derision, the derivation of the name Huguenot remains uncertain. It may have been based on the name Besançon Hugues, or a French corruption of the German word Eidgenosse, meaning a Swiss person - Geneva, Switzerland was John Calvin's adopted home and the center of the Calvinist movement. In Geneva, Hugues was the leader of the "Confederate Party", so called because it favored an alliance between the city-state of Geneva and the Swiss Confederation. This theory of origin has support from the fact that the label Huguenot was first applied in France to those conspirators (all of them aristocratic members of the Reformed Church) involved in the Amboise plot of 1560: a foiled attempt to usurp power in France from the influential House of Guise, a move which would have had the side-effect of fostering relations with the Swiss. Thus, Hugues plus eidgenot becomes Huguenot, with the intention of associating the Protestant cause with some very unpopular politics. Another theory is offered by O.I.A. Roche, who writes in his book The Days of the Upright, A History of the Huguenots that "Huguenot" is :"a combination of a Flemish and a German word. In the Flemish corner of France, Bible students who gathered in each other's houses to study secretly were called Huis Genooten, or 'house fellows', while on the Swiss and German borders they were termed Eid Genossen, or 'oath fellows', that is, persons bound to each other by an oath. Gallicized into 'Huguenot', often used deprecatingly, the word became, during two and a half centuries of terror and triumph, a badge of enduring honor and courage."

Religious beliefs

Huguenot predecessors included the pro-reform and Gallican Roman Catholics, like Jacques Lefevre. Later, Huguenots followed the Lutheran movement, and finally, Calvinism. They shared John Calvin's fierce reformation beliefs which decried the priesthood, sacraments and doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church. They believed in salvation as an act of God as much as in creation as an act of God, and thus that only God's predestined mercy toward the elect made them fit for salvation. Some see this dual emphasis on creation and on salvation, and God's sovereignty over both, as a cornerstone principle for Huguenot developments in architecture, textiles and other merchandise. Above all, Huguenots became known for their fiery criticisms of worship as performed in the Roman Catholic Church, in particular the focus on ritual and what seemed an obsession with death and the dead. They believed the ritual, images, saints, pilgrimages, prayers, and hierarchy of the Catholic Church did not help anyone toward redemption. They saw Christian faith as something to be expressed in a strict and godly life, in obedience to Biblical laws, out of gratitude for God's mercy. Like other Protestants of the time, they felt that the Roman church needed radical cleansing of its impurities, and that the Pope represented a worldly kingdom, which sat in mocking tyranny over the things of God, and was ultimately doomed. Rhetoric like this became more fierce as events unfolded, and stirred up the hostility of the Catholic establishment. Huguenots faced periodic persecution from the outset of the Reformation; but Francis I (reigned 1515–1547) initially protected them from Parlementary measures designed for their extermination. The Affair of the Placards of 1534 changed the king's posture toward them: he stepped away from restraining persecution of the movement. Still, Huguenot numbers grew rapidly between 1555 and 1562, chiefly amongst the nobles and city-dwellers. During this time, their opponents first dubbed the Protestants Huguenots; but they called themselves reformés, "Reformed". They organized their first national synod in 1558, in Paris. By 1562, they had a total membership estimated at at least a million, especially numerous in the southern and central parts of the country. The Huguenots in France likely peaked in number at approximately two million, compared to approximately sixteen million Catholics during the same period. Violently opposed to the Catholic Church, the Huguenots attacked images, monasticism, and church buildings. Most of the cities in which the Huguenots gained a hold saw iconoclast attacks, in which altars and images in churches, and sometimes the buildings themselves were torn down. Bourges, Montauban and Orleans suffered particularly.

Wars of Religion

In reaction to the growing Huguenot influence, and the aforementioned excesses of Protestant zeal, Catholic violence against them grew, at the same time that concessions and edicts of toleration became more liberal. In 1561, the Edict of Orléans, for example, declared an end to the persecution; and the Edict of Saint-Germain recognized them for the first time (January 17, 1562); but these measures disguised the growing strain of relations between Protestant and Catholic. These bonds of peace became the knots of war; when violence unleashed them, the divisions became all the more irreconcilable. Tensions led to eight civil wars, interrupted by periods of relative calm, between 1562 and 1598. With each break in peace, the Huguenots' trust in the Catholic throne diminished, and the violence became more severe, and Protestant demands became more grand, until a lasting cessation of open hostility finally occurred in 1598. The wars gradually took on a dynastic character, developing into an extended feud between the Houses of Bourbon and Guise, which — in addition to holding rival religious views — both staked a claim to the French throne. The crown, occupied by the House of Valois, generally supported the Catholic side, but on occasion switched over to the Protestant cause when politically expedient. The French Wars of Religion began with a massacre at Wassy on March 1, 1562, in which at least 30 (some sympathetic sources say 1000 or more) Huguenots were killed, and about 200 were wounded. The Huguenots transformed themselves into a definitive political movement thereafter. Protestant preachers rallied a considerable army and a formidable cavalry, which came under the leadership of Admiral Gaspard de Coligny. Henry of Navarre and the House of Bourbon allied themselves to the Huguenots, adding wealth and holdings to the Protestant strength, which at its height grew to sixty fortified cities, and posed a serious threat to the Catholic crown and Paris over the next three decades. In what became known as the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of 24 August – 17 September, 1572, Catholics killed many Huguenots in Paris; similar massacres took place in other towns in the weeks following, with an estimated total death toll of 70,000. An amnesty granted in 1573 protected the perpetrators. The fifth holy war against the Huguenots began on February 23, 1574, and conflict continued periodically until 1598, when Henry of Navarre, having converted to Catholicism and become King of France as Henry IV, issued the Edict of Nantes, which granted the Protestants equality with Catholics under the throne, and a degree of religious and political freedom within their domains. The Edict simultaneously protected Catholic interests by discouraging the founding of new Protestant churches in the Catholic-controlled regions. Note the difficulty of the French vocabulary of the day, depending on the point of view. Protestants considered themselves to practice a "reformed" religion (religion réformée) — which of course implied that the Catholic religion was in need of reforms. In opposition, Catholics, when talking in polite terms, called the Protestant religion the "allegedly reformed religion" (religion prétendue réformée, or RPR) — with an obvious pejorative undertone of "pretense".

Flight

Under King Louis XIV (reigned 1643–1715), chief minister Cardinal Mazarin, who held real power during the king's minority up to his death in 1661, resumed persecution of the Protestants using soldiers to inflict dragonnades that made life so intolerable that many fled. The king revoked the "irrevocable" Edict of Nantes in 1685 and declared Protestantism illegal with the Edict of Fontainebleau. After this, huge numbers of Huguenots (with estimates ranging from 200,000 to 500,000) fled to surrounding Protestant countries: England, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark and Prussia — whose Calvinist Great Elector Frederick William welcomed them to help rebuild his war-ravaged and underpopulated country. On December 31, 1687 a band of Huguenots set sail from France to the colony at the Cape of Good Hope. Barred from settling in New France, many Huguenots moved instead to the 13 colonies of Great Britain in North America, the first in 1624 (in 1924 a commemorative half dollar, known as the Huguenot-Walloon Half Dollar, was coined in the United States to celebrate the 300th anniversary of this settlement), among them a silversmith called Apollos Rivoire, who would later anglicize his name to Paul Revere. He would, still later, give his name and his profession to his son, Paul Revere, the famous United States revolutionary. Huguenot immigrants founded New Paltz, New York, where is now located the oldest street in America with the original stone houses, New Rochelle, New York (named after the town of La Rochelle in France), and a neighborhood in New York City's borough of Staten Island was named "Huguenot" after them. Some of the settlers chose the Virginia Colony, and formed communities in present-day Chesterfield County and Powhatan County just west of Richmond, Virginia, where their descendents continue to reside. The Huguenot Memorial Bridge across the James River was named in their honor, as were many local features including several schools. Many Huguenots also settled in the area around the current site of Charleston, South Carolina. In 1865, Rev. Elie Prioleau from the town of Pons in France settled in what was then called Charlestown. He became pastor of the first Huguenot church in North America in that city. That church is the oldest continuously active Huguenot congregation in the United States today. A leading Huguenot theologian and writer who led the exiled Huguenot community in London, Andre Lortie (or Andrew Lortie), became known for articulating Huguenot criticism of the Holy See and transubstantiation. Huguenot refugees flocked to Shoreditch, London in large numbers. They established a major weaving industry in and around Spitalfields (see Petticoat Lane and the Tenterground), and in Wandsworth. The Old Truman Brewery, then known as the Black Eagle Brewery, appeared in 1724. Huguenot refugees fled Tours, France virtually wiping out the great silk mills they had built. Some of them took their skills to Northern Ireland and assisted in the founding of the Irish linen industry. The exodus of Huguenots from France created a kind of brain drain from which the kingdom would not fully recover for years. The French crown's refusal to allow Protestants to settle in New France was a factor behind that colony's slow population growth, which ultimately led to its conquest by the British. By the time of the French and Indian War, there may have been more people of French ancestry living in Britain's American colonies than there were in New France. A third of American Presidents have some proven Huguenot ancestry, as do Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and other leading statesmen, and (according to an oft-repeated belief) one quarter or more of all Englishmen. Frederick the Great of Prussia, a strong believer in the separation of church and state, invited Huguenots to settle in his realms, and a number of their descendents rose to positions of prominance in Prussia. The last Prime Minister of the (East) German Democratic Republic, Lothar de Maiziere, was a scion of a Huguenot family. Persecution of Protestants ended in 1764, and the French Revolution of 1789 finally made them full-fledged citizens.

External link


- [http://www.huguenotsocietyofamerica.org Huguenot Society of America]
- [http://www.huguenotsociety.org.uk Huguenot Society of London(Now Huguenot Society of Great Britain & Ireland)]
- [http://www.huguenotsociety.org.uk Huguenot Society of Great Britain & Ireland]
- [http://www.huguenotsociety.org Huguenot Society of South Carolina]
- [http://pages.prodigy.com/VRHZ10A/ressegui.htm History Of The French Huguenots In America] Category:Protestantism Category:Religion in France ja:ユグノー

La Rochelle

.]] marina.]] La Rochelle is a town and commune of western France, and a seaport on the Atlantic Ocean (population 76,584 in 1999). It is the préfecture (capital) of the Charente-Maritime département(17). The city is connected to the Île de Ré (island) by a 2.9 km bridge, completed in 1988. Its harbour opens into a protected strait, the Pertuis d'Antioche.

History

La Rochelle was founded during the 10th century, and became an important harbour from the 12th century. In 1137, Guillaume X, Duke of Aquitaine essentially made La Rochelle a free port. Fifty years later, and for the first time in France, a city mayor was named for La Rochelle, Guillaume de Montmirail. Until the 15th century, La Rochelle was to be the largest French harbour on the Atlantic coast, dealing mainly in wine and salt. During the Renaissance, La Rochelle adopted reformist ideas, and from 1568 became a centre for the Huguenots, initiating a period of freedom and prosperity until the 1620s. The city finally entered in conflict with the central authority of the King Louis XIII, when cannon shots were exchanged on September 10th 1627 with Royal troops. This resulted into the Siege of La Rochelle in which Cardinal Richelieu blockaded the city for 14 months, until the city surrendered and lost its mayor and its privileges. The growing persecution of the Huguenots culminated with the revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV. Many Huguenots emigrated, founding such cities as New Rochelle in the vicinity of today's New York in 1689. The following period was a prosperous one, marked by intense exchanges with the New World (Nouvelle France in Canada, and the Antilles). La Rochelle became very active in triangular trade with the New World, dealing in the slave trade with Africa, sugar trade with plantations of the Antilles, and fur trade with Canada. This was a period of high artistic, cultural and architectural achievements for the city. The city eventually lost its trade and prominence during the decades spanning the Seven Years War, the French revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. During that period France lost many of the territorial possessions it had in the new World, and also saw a strong decrease in its sea power in the continuing conflicts with Britain, ultimately diminishing the role of such harbours as La Rochelle. During the Second World War, Germany established a submarine naval base at La Rochelle, which became the setting for the movie Das Boot. A German stronghold, La Rochelle was the last French city to be freed at the end of the War.

Today

The city has beautifully maintained its past architecture, making it one of the most picturesque and historically rich cities on the Atlantic coast. This helped develop a strong tourism industry. One of the biggest music festivals in France, "FrancoFolies," takes place each summer in La Rochelle, where Francophone musicians come together for a week of concerts and celebration. 2004 marked the 20th anniversary of this event. La Rochelle also maintains strong links with the sea by harbouring the largest marina for pleasure boats in Europe at Les Minimes, and a rather rich boat-building industry. The Calypso, the ship used by Jacques-Yves Cousteau as a mobile laboratory for oceanography, and which was sunk after a collision in the port of Singapore (1996) is now displayed (actually, and sadly, rotting) at the Maritime Museum of La Rochelle. La Rochelle is the setting for the best-selling series of French language textbooks in the UK, titled Tricolore. The central character, Martine Domme, lives with her family at the fictional address of 12, Rue de la République.

Climate

Although at the same latitude as Montreal in Canada or the Kuril islands in Russia, the area is quite warm throughout the year due to the influence of the Gulf Stream waters, and insolation is remarkably high, on a par with the French Riviera on the Mediterranean Southern coast of France.

Gallery

Image:Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot 028.jpg|La Rochelle, entrance to the harbour, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, 1851. Image:La rochelle de nuit.jpg|Harbour towers at night

External links


- [http://www.ville-larochelle.fr/ City council website]
- [http://ubacto.com/ La Rochelle News]
- [http://france-for-visitors.com/atlantic/la-rochelle/index.html Visiting La Rochelle] (English with PDF map and photos) Category:Coastal towns of France Category:Communes of Charente-Maritime ja:ラ・ロシェル

Netherlands

The Netherlands (Dutch: Nederland; IPA pronunciation: /"ne:dərlant/) is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands that is formed by the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. (Dutch: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden). The Netherlands is a parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch, located in northwestern Europe. It borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east. In many countries, the Netherlands is often referred to by the name Holland, and even within the Netherlands itself this name is occasionally used as an acceptable translation of the country's name. However widespread, this usage is technically incorrect, as "Holland" is actually a region in the central-western part of the Netherlands, divided into two provinces. Also, the English plural form 'the Netherlands' is a remnant from times when the country was not yet independent and united. See below under 'naming conventions'. The Netherlands is one of the most densely populated and geographically low-lying countries in the world (its name literally means "low country") and is famous for its dikes, windmills, wooden shoes, tulips, bicycles and social tolerance. Its liberal policies (towards drugs and prostitution among other things) receive international attention. The country is host to the International Court of Justice. The English adjective and noun for "of or relating to the Netherlands" is "Dutch," which is also the name of the Dutch language. In the Netherlands, "Netherlands" is sometimes used as an adjective. The origin of this local usage may be that the Dutch word for "Dutch" is Nederlands and to avoid confusion with the words "Duits" (in Dutch) and "Deutsch" (in German) that refer to the country Germany and its language.

Capital

Amsterdam is the hoofdstad ("capital city"), where according to the constitution, the sovereign must be sworn in. The Hague is the Netherlands regeringszetel or residentie (seat of government, residence of the monarch). It is the seat of government, the home of the monarch, and the location of most foreign embassies.

History

:For more details on this topic, see History of the Netherlands and Dutch monarchy. Under Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and king of Spain, the region was part of the Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands, which also includes most of present-day Belgium, Luxembourg, and some land of France and Germany. In 1568 the Eighty Years' War started after the entire population had been condemned to death by the Holy See and confirmed by the king, and in 1579, the northern half of the Seventeen Provinces declared itself independent and formed the Union of Utrecht, which is seen as the foundation of the modern Netherlands. Philip II, the son of Charles V, was not prepared to let them go that easily. It would not be until 1648 that Spain would recognize Dutch independence. After gaining formal independence from the Spanish Empire under King Philip IV, the Dutch grew to become one of the major seafaring and economic powers of the 17th century during the period of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. In the era, referred to as the Dutch Golden Age, colonies and trading posts were established all over the globe. (See Dutch colonial empire) Many economic historians regard the Netherlands as the first thoroughly capitalist country in the world. In early modern Europe it featured the wealthiest trading city (Amsterdam) and the first full-time stock exchange. The inventiveness of the traders led to insurance and retirement funds as well as such less benign phenomena as the boom-bust cycle, the world's first asset-inflation bubble, the tulip mania of 1636-1637, and according to Murray Sayle, the world's first bear raider - Isaac le Maire, who forced prices down by dumping stock and then buying it back at a discount ("Japan Goes Dutch", London Review of Books [April 5, 2001]: 3-7). After briefly being incorporated in the First French Empire under Napoleon, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815, consisting of the present day Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. In addition, the king of the Netherlands became hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Belgium rebelled and gained independence in 1830, while the personal union between Luxembourg and the Netherlands was severed in 1890 as a result of ascendancy laws which prevented Queen Wilhelmina from becoming Grand Duke. The Netherlands possessed several colonies, most notably the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) and Suriname (the latter was traded with the British for New Amsterdam, now known as New York). These 'colonies' were first administered by the Dutch East India Company and the Dutch West India Company, both collective private enterprises. Three centuries later these companies got into financial trouble and the territories in which they operated were taken over by the Dutch government (in 1815 and 1791 respectively). Only then did they become official colonies. During the 19th century, The Netherlands was slow to industrialize compared to neighboring countries, mainly due to its unique infrastructure of waterways and reliance on wind power. After remaining neutral in World War I, over 100,000 Dutch Jews were murdered in the Holocaust of World War II, along with significant numbers of Dutch Roma (gypsies). After the war, the Dutch economy prospered again, being a member of the Benelux (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg) and European Economic Community unions. The Netherlands was among the twelve founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and among the six founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community, which would later evolve into the European Union.

Naming conventions

The name Holland is often used, incorrectly, for The Netherlands, especially in other languages. The origin of the misnomer lies in the fact that the region of Holland was the economic powerhouse during the time of the United Provinces (1581-1795). After the Napoleonic era, Holland became a mere province of the Kingdom and was split into North and South Holland in 1840. Many people, especially from the northern and southern provinces, object to the use of the name Holland for The Netherlands. But to avoid confusion when addressing other nationals, the Dutch themselves often use the name 'Holland'. The plural "Netherlands" is actually an archaic term, referring to the time when it was a collection of regions that were not yet fully united. In The Netherlands itself the country is called Nederland (literally meaning "low country"), the people are called Nederlanders ("Dutch" in English) and the language is called Nederlands (again, "Dutch" in English); the -s in Nederlands is not a plural ending, but rather is cognate to the English suffix -ish. The English word "Dutch" is akin to the German word Deutsch, which originally meant "(Language) of the (common) people" in contrast with the medieval elite who spoke Latin. An old term for the language of The Netherlands is Diets or Nederdietsch. All these terms derive from what in Latin was known as Theodisca, from Germanic
- Þeudiskaz.

Politics

The Netherlands has been a parliamentary democracy since 1848 and a constitutional monarchy since 1815; before that it had been a republic from 1581 to 1806 (it was occupied by France between 1806 and 1815). The pro forma head of state, since 1980, is Queen Beatrix of the House of Orange-Nassau. The Dutch monarch has little political power, but serves mostly as a ceremonial figurehead to represent the nation. Dutch governments always consist of a coalition, as there is not (and has never been) a single political party large enough to get the majority vote. Formally, the queen appoints the members of the government. In practice, once the results of parliamentary elections are known, a coalition government is formed (in a process of negotiations that can take several months), after which the government formed in this way is officially appointed by the queen. The head of the government is the Prime Minister, in Dutch Minister President or Premier, a primus inter pares who is usually also the leader of the largest party in the coalition. The degree of influence the queen has on actual government decision making is a topic of ongoing speculation. The parliament consists of two houses. The 150 members of the Lower House (Tweede Kamer, or Second Chamber) are elected every four years in direct elections. The provincial parliaments are directly elected every 4 years as well. The members of the provincial parliaments vote (indirectly) for the less important Senate (Eerste Kamer, or First Chamber). Together, the First and Second Chamber are known as the Staten Generaal, the States General. Political scientists consider The Netherlands a classic example of a consociational state, at least in part caused by the necessity in the Netherlands since the middle ages for different cities to cooperate in order to fight the water (different cities were at the time like different countries by today's standards, and often at war). This necessity to reach an agreement despite differences is called the polder model in Dutch. Also, the Netherlands has long been a nation of traders and for international trade one has to be tolerant of the other person's culture. The Netherlands is a neutral country in most international affairs and thus managed to keep out of World War I (although this did not work in World War II). As a result, the Dutch have a 'friendly' reputation in other countries, to the point that bearers of a Dutch passport often have relatively little difficulty getting into other countries, for visits or even for emigration purposes. However, the early years of the 21st century have seen a political change with the right wing in politics gaining on the left. This is illustrated by the quick rise (and fall) of the LPF. Pim Fortuyn, its founder, held former cabinets responsible for the failing integration of immigrants. The present government is led by the cabinet Balkenende II. This cabinet got some critique about economic reforms and the immigration policies. On June 1 2005 the Dutch electorate voted in a referendum against the proposed EU Constitution by a majority of 61.6%, three days after the French had also voted against. See also: Prime Minister of the Netherlands, List of Prime Ministers of the Netherlands

Provinces

List of Prime Ministers of the Netherlands The Netherlands is divided into twelve administrative regions, called provinces, each under a Governor, who is called Commissaris van de Koningin (Commissionair of the Queen).
- Friesland - north west; capital Leeuwarden
- Groningen - north east; capital Groningen
- Drenthe - south of Groningen; capital Assen
- Overijssel - east central, south of Drenthe; capital Zwolle
- Flevoland - central, north of Utrecht; capital Lelystad
- Gelderland - east central, south of Overijssel; capital Arnhem
- Utrecht - central; capital Utrecht
- North Holland - (Noord-Holland) north west (including Amsterdam); capital Haarlem
- South Holland - (Zuid-Holland) west central, south of North Holland (including Rotterdam); capital The Hague (s-Gravenhage or Den Haag)
- Zeeland - south west; capital Middelburg
- North Brabant - (Noord-Brabant) south central; capital 's-Hertogenbosch (or Den Bosch)
- Limburg - south east; capital Maastricht. All provinces are divided into municipalities (gemeenten), together 467; see Municipalities in the Netherlands, and also List of cities in the Netherlands by province. The country is also subdivided in water districts, governed by a water board (waterschap or hoogheemraadschap), each having authority in matters concerning water management. As of 1 January 2005 there are twenty seven. The creation of water boards actually pre-dates that of the nation itself, the first appearing in 1196. In fact, the Dutch water boards are one of the oldest democratic entities in the world still in existence. See also: Ranked list of Dutch provinces.

Geography

Ranked list of Dutch provinces Ranked list of Dutch provinces A remarkable aspect of the Netherlands is the flatness of the country. About half of its surface area is less than 1 m above sea level, and large parts of it are actually below sea level (see [http://www.minbuza.nl/default.asp?CMS_ITEM=MBZ302750 map showing these areas]). An extensive range of dikes and dunes protect these areas from flooding. Numerous massive pumping stations keep the ground water level in check. The highest point, the Vaalserberg, in the south-eastern most point of the country, is 321 m above sea level. A substantial part of the Netherlands, for example, all of Flevoland and large parts of Holland, has been reclaimed from the sea. These areas are known as polders. This has led to the saying "God created the world, but the Dutch created the Netherlands." In years past, the Dutch coastline has changed considerably due to human intervention and natural disasters. Most notable in terms of land loss are the 1134 storm, which created the archipelago of Zeeland in the south west, and the 1287 storm, which killed 50,000 people and created the Zuyderzee (now dammed in and renamed the IJsselmeer - see below) in the northwest, giving Amsterdam direct access to the sea. The St. Elizabeth flood of 1421 and the mismanagement in its aftermath destroyed a newly reclaimed polder, replacing it with the 72 km² Biesbosch tidal floodplains in the southcentre. The most recent parts of Zeeland were flooded during the North Sea Flood of 1953 and 1,836 people were killed, after which the Delta Plan was executed. The disasters were partially man-made; the people drained relatively high lying swampland for use as farmland. This drainage caused the fertile peat to compress and the ground level to drop, locking the land users in a vicious circle whereby they would lower the water level to compensate for the drop in ground level, causing the underlying peat to compress even more. The vicious circle is unsolvable and remains to this day. Up until the 19th century peat was dug up, dried, and used for fuel, further adding to the problem. To guard against floods, a series of defences against the water were contrived. In the first millennium, villages and farmhouses were built on man-made hills called terps. Later these terps were connected by dikes. In the 12th century, local government agencies called "waterschappen" (English "waterbodies") or "hoogheemraadschappen" ("high home councils") started to appear, whose job it was to maintain the water level and to protect a region from floods. (The waterbodies are still around today performing the exact same function.) As the ground level dropped, the dikes by necessity grew and merged into an integrated system. In the 13th century, windmills came into use to pump water out of the areas by now below sea level. The windmills were later used to drain lakes, creating the famous polders. In 1932, the Afsluitdijk (English "Closure Dike") was completed, blocking the former Zuyderzee (Southern Sea) off from the North Sea and thus creating the IJsselmeer (IJssel Lake). It became part of the larger Zuiderzee Works in which four polders totalling 1,650 km² were reclaimed from the sea. After the 1953 disaster, the Delta project, a vast construction effort designed to end the threat from the sea once and for all, was launched in 1958 and largely completed in 2002. The official goal of the Delta project was to reduce the risk of flooding in Holland to once per 10,000 years. (For the rest of the country, the protection-level is once per 4,000 years). This was achieved by raising 3,000 km of outer sea-dikes and 10,000 km of inner, canal, and river dikes to "delta" height, and by closing off the sea estuaries of the Zeeland province. New risk assessments occasionally incur additional Delta project work in the form of dike re-enforcements. The Delta project is the single largest construction effort in human history and is considered by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the seven wonders of the modern world. Because of the high cost of maintaining the polders some have argued that maybe some of the deepest polders should be given up. Additionally, the Netherlands is one of the countries that may suffer most from climatic change. Not only is the rising sea a problem, but also erratic weather patterns may cause the rivers to overflow. These flooded polders might then be used as water catchments to take part of the blow. The country is divided into two main parts by three rivers Rhine (Rijn), Waal, and Meuse (Maas). The south western part of the Netherlands is actually one big river delta of these rivers. These rivers not only function as a natural barrier, but also as a cultural divide, as is evident in the different dialects spoken north and south of these great rivers and the (previous) religious dominance of Catholics in the south and Calvinists in the north. The predominant wind direction in the Netherlands is south west, which causes a moderate maritime climate, with cool summers and mild winters. See also: National parks (Netherlands).

Economy

The Netherlands has a prosperous and open economy in which the government has reduced its role since the 1980s. Industrial activity is predominantly in food-processing (for example Unilever and Heineken), chemicals (for example DSM), petroleum refining (for example Royal Dutch Shell), and electrical machinery (for example Philips). A highly mechanised agricultural sector employs no more than 4% of the labour force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Dutch rank third worldwide in value of agricultural exports, behind the US and France. Other important parts of the economy are international trade (Dutch colonialism started with cooperative private enterprises such as the VOC), banking and transport (for example the Rotterdam harbour). The Netherlands successfully addressed the issue of public finances and stagnating job growth long before its European partners. As a founding member of the Euro, the Netherlands replaced its former currency, the Gulden, on January 1 1999 along with the other adopters of the single European currency, with the actual Euro coins and banknotes following on January 1, 2002. However, in the first years of the third millennium, economic and employment growth came to a standstill, which the government tried to resolve by cutting into its expenses. In 2003 the economy shrunk 0.9%. In 2004, the recession was over and the economy began its slow recovery with a meager 1.3% growth. The CPB ("Centraal Plan Bureau", Central Planning Bureau), a think tank of leading Dutch economists linked with the government, expects a recovery of the economy in 2005, with a growth of 2.25%. In 2004, inflation was 1.2%, the lowest level since 1989.
- Economic data for the Netherlands: [http://statline.cbs.nl Dutch] [http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/start.asp?lp=Search/Search&LA=EN English]
- List of Dutch companies

Demographics

The Netherlands is the 15th most densely populated country in the world, with 393 inhabitants per square km (or 482/km² if only the land area is counted, 20% is water). Partly because of this it is also one of the most densely cabled countries in the world. Internet penetration [http://www.internetworldstats.com/top25.htm] is at 66.2% the 7th highest in the world. According CBS Statline, the official statistics bureau of the Netherlands, the ethnic origins of the citizens are very diverse. The vast majority of the population however still remains Dutch. They were: 80.8% Dutch, 8.7% other European, 2.2% Turkish, 1.9% Moroccan, 6.4% other There are no cities with a population over 1 million in the Netherlands, but the 'four big cities' as they are called (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht) can in many ways be regarded as one 'big city' agglomeration, the Randstad ('fringe city'), with an agricultural 'green heart' (het Groene Hart). This is illustrated by the idea to create a circular train network with a frequency and carriages similar to a metropolitan railway.

Languages

The official language is Dutch, which is spoken by practically all inhabitants. Another official language is Frisian, which is spoken in the northern province of Friesland and has a strong resemblance to English. Frisian is co-official only in the province of Friesland, although with a few restrictions. Several dialects of Plattdüütsch are spoken in much of the north and are recognised as regional languages, as protected by the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. To the south, the Dutch language shifts into other varieties of Low Franconian and German, which may or may not be best classified as Dutch, most notably West Flemish. One of these, Limburgish, which is spoken in the south-eastern province of Limburg has been recognised as a minority language since 1977.

Religion

According to the governmental statistics agency (CBS) 30% of the population consider themselves to be Roman Catholic, 20% Protestant (predominantly Dutch Reformed) and 8% 'other denominations'. 42% consider themselves not to belong to any religious denomination. Church attendance however is much lower than these figures may suggest: some 70% of the population 'rarely or never' visit a house of worship (be it a church, mosque, synagogue or temple). The most protestants live in the northern provinces while the southern provinces (Noord-Brabant and Limburg) are mainly Roman Catholic. The largest part of the 'other denominations', at 920,000, are Muslim immigrant workers mainly living in the bigger cities, mostly from Morocco and Turkey, and their offspring. The other denominations also include some 200,000 (1.3%) Hindu, mostly descendants of indentured servants who migrated from India to the former Dutch colony of Surinam around 1900. Prior to the Holocaust about 140,000 Jews lived in the Netherlands, however the vast majority of [http://www.worldjewishcongress.org/communities/weurope/comm_netherlands.html Dutch Jewry] was murdered in the Holocaust. About 30,000 Dutch Jews now live in The Netherlands.

Culture

The Netherlands has had many well-known painters. The 17th century, when the Dutch republic was prosperous, was the age of the "Dutch Masters" such as Rembrandt van Rijn, Johannes Vermeer, Jan Steen and many others. Famous Dutch painters of the 19th and 20th century are Vincent van Gogh and Piet Mondriaan. M. C. Escher is a well-known graphics artist. Willem de Kooning was born and trained in Rotterdam, although he is considered to have reached acclaim as an American artist. A (in)famous Dutch master art forger is Han van Meegeren. The Netherlands is the country of philosophers Erasmus of Rotterdam and Spinoza, and all of Descartes' major work was done there. Christiaan Huygens(1629-1695) is a famous astronomer and mathematician. He discovered Saturn's moon Titan and invented an accurate clock. In the Dutch Golden Age, literature flowered as well, with Joost van den Vondel and P. C. Hooft as the two most famous writers. In the 19th century, Multatuli wrote about the bad treatment of the natives in Dutch colonies. Important 20th century authors include Harry Mulisch, Jan Wolkers, Simon Vestdijk, Cees Nooteboom, Gerard van het Reve and Willem Frederik Hermans. The Diary of Anne Frank was also written in the Netherlands. See also: List of museums in The Netherlands, Sport in the Netherlands, Music of the Netherlands, List of Dutch people, Public holidays in the Netherlands Replicas of Dutch buildings can be found in Huis ten Bosch, Nagasaki, Japan. A similar Holland Village is being built in Shenyang, China. Windmills, tulips, wooden shoes, cheese and Delftware pottery are among the numerous items associated with the Netherlands. Dutch policies on recreational drugs, prostitution, same-sex marriage and euthanasia are among the most liberal in the world.

Miscellaneous topics


- City rights in the Netherlands
- Communications in the Netherlands
- Drug policy of the Netherlands
- Dutch colonial empire
- Dutch people
- Dutch-Belgian War
- Education in the Netherlands
- Euthanasia in the Netherlands
- Foreign relations of the Netherlands
- General Intelligence and Security Office (AIVD)
- Income tax in the Netherlands
- List of football clubs in the Netherlands
- Military of the Netherlands
- Netherlands and weapons of mass destruction
- New Netherland
- Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) of the Netherlands
- Prostitution in the Netherlands
- Public holidays in the Netherlands
- Reporters Without Borders worldwide press freedom index 2004 — first place
- Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands
- Statistics Netherlands
- Telephone numbers in the Netherlands
- Television networks in the Netherlands
- Tourism in the Netherlands
- Transportation in the Netherlands

External links


-
- [http://www.statoids.com/unl.html Provinces of Netherlands]
- [http://www.amsterdam-netherlands.info/ Amsterdam / Netherlands info] - Information about the Netherlands, its provinces and Amsterdam.
- [http://www.haganum.nl Best School of The Netherlands- The Gymnasiun Haganum in the Hague]
- [http://www.cbs.nl/en-GB/menu/cijfers/default.htm CBS] - Key figures from the Dutch bureau of statistics
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/nl.html CIA - The World Factbook -- Netherlands]
- Dutch news: [http://www.rnw.nl/ Radio Netherlands], [http://www.expatica.com/source/site_content_subchannel.asp?subchannel_id=1 Expatica]
- [http://www.colonialvoyage.com Dutch Portuguese Colonial History] Dutch Colonial History in Sri Lanka, Ceylon, Brazil, India, Malacca (Malaysia), Bengal, Formosa(Taiwan), South Africa, New York, Caribbean, Indonesia. Language Heritage. Maps, chronologies, bibliographies.
- [http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761572410/Netherlands.html Encarta entry on the Netherlands]
- [http://flagspot.net/flags/nl-index.html Flagspot.net - The Netherlands]- site about flags, but also with province maps showing municipalities, and some other info
- Foreign government info about the Netherlands and their relations with it:
[http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/netherlands/index.html Australia] | [http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/canadaeuropa/country_net-en.asp Canada] | [http://meaindia.nic.in/foreignrelation/netherland.htm India] | [http://www.esteri.it/eng/3_22_40_214.asp Italy] | [http://www.mfat.govt.nz/foreign/regions/europe/countrypapers/netherlands.html New Zealand] | [http://www.dfa.gov.za/foreign/bilateral/netherlands.html South Africa] | [http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029394365&a=KCountryProfile&aid=1019061813313 UK] | [http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3204.htm US]
- [http://www.government.nl Government.nl] - official Dutch government web site
- [http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Dutch] Dutch for English speakers (from Wikibooks)
- [http://www.skyscrapercity.info/200.php?id=4&country=NL&limit=0 List of ca. 1500 tall buildings in the Netherlands]
- [http://www.nlplanet.com/ NL Planet] - English language resources, background information and free forums
- [http://overheid.nl/guest/sites/ Overheid.nl] - official Dutch government portal (includes official publications from 1995; older ones are only available in some libraries, on paper or microfiche)
- [http://www.sdu.nl/staatscourant/gemeentes/gemprovin.htm Province maps showing subdivision in municipalities, and linking each municipality to its basic data page]
- [http://www.koninklijkhuis.nl/english/index.jsp The Dutch Royal House]
- [http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=1104447749&men=gmap&lng=en&gln=xx&dat=32&geo=-160&srt=npan&col=aohdq Maps and data]
- [http://www.track.nl/ Track.nl] - An Internet search-engine that specialises in the Netherlands.
- [http://www.world66.com/europe/netherlands World66 Guide to The Netherlands] A travel guide written by its users.
- [http://www.deltaworks.org Deltaworks Online - Flood protection and watermanagement in the Netherlands] Category:European Union member states Category:Monarchies als:Niederlande zh-min-nan:Kē-tē-kok [[got:

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia, in the southern central part of the country, along the Southern Ocean. It covers an area of 984 377 km² (380 070 square miles). South Australia is known as both the Festival State and the Wine State and its capital is Adelaide. South Australia became a British province in 1836 and joined the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901 (see Federation of Australia). The state's population is approximately 1.54 million (2005). Most of those reside in the fertile coastal areas and in the valley of the Murray River.

History

The first recorded European sighting of the South Australian coast was in 1627 when the Dutch ship the Gulden Zeepaert, skippered by Francois Thijssen, examined the coastline. Thijssen named his discovery "Pieter Nuyts Land", after the highest ranking individual on board. The coastline of South Australia was first mapped by Matthew Flinders and Nicolas Baudin in 1802.

Geography

The terrain consists largely of arid and semi-arid rangelands, with several low mountain ranges in which the most important mountains are the Mt Lofty-Flinders Ranges system which extends north about 800 kilometres from Cape Jervis to the northern end of Lake Torrens and salt lakes. The western portion of the state consists of the sparsely-inhabited Nullarbor Plain. The principal industries and export of South Australia are wheat, wine and wool. More than half of Australia's wines are produced here. South Australia has boundaries with every other Australian state and territory except the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania. The Northern Territory was originally the Northern Territory of South Australia, becoming a separate territory in 1911. South Australia's south coast is flanked by the Southern Ocean. Its mean temperature range is 29°C in January and 15°C in July. Daily temperatures in parts of the state in January can be up to 48°C.

Economy