1.
Kingdom of Great Britain
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The Kingdom of Great Britain, officially Great Britain, was a sovereign state in western Europe from 1 May 1707 to 31 December 1800. It did not include Ireland, which remained a separate realm, the unitary state was governed by a single parliament and government that was based in Westminster. Also after the accession of George I to the throne of Great Britain in 1714, the early years of the unified kingdom were marked by Jacobite risings which ended in defeat for the Stuart cause at Culloden in 1746. On 1 January 1801, the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland were merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922, five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the United Kingdom, the name Britain descends from the Latin name for the island of Great Britain, Britannia or Brittānia, the land of the Britons via the Old French Bretaigne and Middle English Bretayne, Breteyne. The term Great Britain was first used officially in 1474, in the instrument drawing up the proposal for a marriage between Edward IV of Englands daughter Cecily and James III of Scotlands son James. The Treaty of Union and the subsequent Acts of Union state that England and Scotland were to be United into one Kingdom by the Name of Great Britain. However, both the Acts and the Treaty also refer numerous times to the United Kingdom and the longer form, other publications refer to the country as the United Kingdom after 1707 as well. The websites of the UK parliament, the Scottish Parliament, the BBC, additionally, the term United Kingdom was found in informal use during the 18th century to describe the state. The new state created in 1707 included the island of Great Britain, the kingdoms of England and Scotland, both in existence from the 9th century, were separate states until 1707. However, they had come into a union in 1603. Each of the three kingdoms maintained its own parliament and laws and this disposition changed dramatically when the Acts of Union 1707 came into force, with a single unified Crown of Great Britain and a single unified parliament. Ireland remained formally separate, with its own parliament, until the Acts of Union 1800, legislative power was vested in the Parliament of Great Britain, which replaced both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. In practice it was a continuation of the English parliament, sitting at the location in Westminster. Newly created peers in the Peerage of Great Britain were given the right to sit in the Lords. Despite the end of a parliament for Scotland, it retained its own laws. As a result of Poynings Law of 1495, the Parliament of Ireland was subordinate to the Parliament of England, the Act was repealed by the Repeal of Act for Securing Dependence of Ireland Act 1782. The same year, the Irish constitution of 1782 produced a period of legislative freedom, the 18th century saw England, and after 1707 Great Britain, rise to become the worlds dominant colonial power, with France its main rival on the imperial stage
2.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
3.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
4.
Wellesley Barracks
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Wellesley Barracks is a military installation in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. The barracks was built in the Fortress Gothic Revival Style as a depot for the 33rd, on 1 April 1873 the depot was established, with construction completed in 1877. On 1 September the Depot Companies of the 33rd and 76th Regiments marched in and their creation took place as part of the Cardwell Reforms which encouraged the localisation of British military forces. Following the Childers Reforms, the 33rd and 76th Regiments amalgamated to form the Duke of Wellingtons Regiment with its depot at the barracks in 1881, a Regimental Museum was established at the barracks in 1921. Although many of the buildings on the site were subsequently demolished, in 2005 the barracks became the site of the new Halifax High School. Malcolm Bulls Calderdale Companion - Wellesley Barracks historical images
5.
Halifax, West Yorkshire
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Halifax is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. The town has been a centre of manufacture from the 15th century onward. Halifax is known for Mackintoshs chocolate and toffee products including Rolo, the Halifax Building Society was also founded in Halifax. Dean Clough, one of the largest textile factories in the world at more than 1⁄2 mile long, was in the north of the town, the premises have since been converted for office and retail use including a gym, theatre, Travelodge and radio station. The towns name was recorded in about 1091 as Halyfax, from the Old English halh-gefeaxe and this explanation is preferred to derivations from the Old English halig, in hālig feax or holy hair, proposed by 16th century antiquarians. The incorrect interpretation gave rise to two legends, one concerned a maiden killed by a lustful priest whose advances she spurned. Another held that the head of John the Baptist was buried here after his execution, the legend is almost certainly medieval rather than ancient, although the towns coat of arms carries an image of the saint. Another explanation is a corruption of the Old English hay and ley a clearing or meadow and this etymology is based on Haley Hill, the nearby hamlet of Healey, and the common occurrence of the surnames Hayley/Haley around Halifax. The erroneous derivation from halig has given rise to the demonym Haligonian, the Earldom of Halifax took the name of the town. Its first creation, in the Peerage of England in 1677, was for William Savile, george Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax, became the President of the Board of Trade in 1748. In 1749 he helped found Halifax, the capital of Nova Scotia and he fostered trade, especially with North America. The Halifax River in Central Florida, United States, was named after him. Halifax is not mentioned in the Domesday Book, and evidence of the settlement is sketchy. By the 12th century the township had become the centre of the vast parish of Halifax. Halifax Minster, parts of which date from the 12th century is dedicated to St John the Baptist, the minsters first organist, in 1766, was William Herschel, who discovered the planet Uranus. The coat of arms of Halifax include the chequers from the coat of arms of the Earls Warenne. Halifax was notorious for its gibbet, a form of guillotine used to execute criminals by decapitation. A replica has been erected on the site in Gibbet Street
6.
Third Anglo-Mysore War
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The Third Anglo–Mysore War was a conflict in South India between the Kingdom of Mysore and the East India Company and its allies, including the Maratha Empire and the Nizam of Hyderabad. It was the third of four Anglo–Mysore Wars, Tipu Sultan, the ruler of Kingdom of Mysore, and his father Hyder Ali before him, had previously fought twice with the forces of the British East India Company. The First Anglo-Mysore War, fought in the 1760s, had ended inconclusively, British failure to support Mysore in conflicts with the Maratha Empire and other actions supportive of Mysores enemies led Hyder to develop a dislike for the British. This war also ended somewhat inconclusively in 1784 with the signing of the Treaty of Mangalore and he refused to free British prisoners taken during the war, one of the conditions of the treaty. British General Charles, 2nd Earl Cornwallis became the Governor-General of India, in 1788 the company gained control of the Circar of Guntur, the southernmost of the Northern Circars, which the company had acquired under earlier agreements with the Nizam. In exchange, the company provided the Nizam with two battalions of company troops, both of these acts placed British troops closer to Mysore, but also guaranteed the Nizam would support the British in the event of conflict. The kingdom of Travancore had been a target of Tipu for acquisition or conquest since the end of the previous war, in 1789 Tipu Sultan sent forces onto the Malabar Coast to put down a rebellion. Many people fled to Travancore and Cochin, a state paying tribute to Tipu, Cornwallis, observing this build-up, reiterated to Campbells successor, John Holland, that an attack on Travancore should be considered a declaration of war, and met with a strong British response. On 29 December 1789, Tipu marched 14,000 troops from Coimbatore, the first phase was an embarrassing defeat for Tipu, when the defenders inflicted severe losses on the Tipus forces and drove them back. While the Mysorean forces and their allies regrouped, Governor Holland, much to Cornwallis dismay, Cornwallis was on the brink of going to Madras to take command when he received word that Hollands replacement, General William Medows was about to arrive. Medows forcibly removed Holland, and set about planning operations against Tipu while building up troops at Trichinopoly and it was May before Medows was prepared to march. In the meantime, Tipu had renewed his attack on Travancore, the plan of attack developed by Medows called for a two-pronged attack, with the main thrust against the Coimbatore district and a diversionary thrust into Mysore from the northeast. Cornwallis was unhappy with this plan, due in part to the lateness of the season, however, he was willing to give Medows the opportunity for independent command. Medows moved out of Trichinopoly in late May, hampered by weather and equipment problems, his progress was slow. He met little resistance, as Tipu had withdrawn his forces to the Mysore highlands. On 21 July Medows entered Coimbatore unopposed, after having some of the smaller fortifications in the district by either abandonment or the immediate surrender of the garrison. Further strong points in the fell, with Palghat and Dindigul requiring significant action to capture. The attack from Bengal, and a third from Bombay, were late in getting started when Tipu made his counterattack, on 2 September, Tipu left Srirangapatnam at the head of a 40, 000-man army
7.
Second Anglo-Maratha War
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The Second Anglo-Maratha War was the second conflict between the British East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India. The English had supported the fugitive Peshwa Raghunathrao in the First Anglo-Maratha War, continued with his fugitive son, though not as martial in his courage as his father, the son was a past master in deceit and intrigue. Coupled with his streak, Baji Rao II soon provoked the enmity of Malhar Rao Holkar when he had one of Holkars relatives killed. After the fall of Mysore in 1799–1800, the Marathas were the major power left outside British control in India. The Maratha chiefs were engaged in quarrels among themselves. Wellesley had repeatedly offered a treaty to the Peshwa and Scindia. In October 1802, the armies of Peshwa Baji Rao II and Scindia were defeated by Yashwantrao Holkar, ruler of Indore. The treaty would become the death knell of the Maratha Confederacy, the British strategy included Wellesley securing the Deccan Plateau, Lake taking Doab and then Delhi, Powell entering Bundelkhand, Murray taking Badoch, and Harcourt neutralizing Bihar. The British had available over 53,000 men to accomplish their goals. In September 1803, Scindia forces lost to Lord Gerard Lake at Delhi, on 18 October, British forces took the pettah of Asirgarh Fort with a loss of two killed and five wounded. The forts garrison surrendered on the 21st after the attackers had erected a battery. British artillery pounded ancient ruins used by Scindia forces as forward operating bases, in November, Lake defeated another Scindia force at Laswari, followed by Wellesleys victory over Bhonsale forces at Argaon on 29 November 1803. The Holkar rulers of Indore belatedly joined the fray and compelled the British to make peace, Wellesley, who went on to defeat Napoleon at Waterloo, would later remark that Assaye was tougher than Waterloo. On December 17,1803, Raghoji II Bhonsale of Nagpur signed the Treaty of Deogaon in Odisha with the British after the Battle of Argaon, the British started hostilities against Yashwantrao Holkar on 6 April 1804. The Treaty of Rajghat, signed on 24 December 1805, forced Holkar to give up Tonk, Rampura, at the Point of the Bayonet, A Tale of the Mahratta War. - historical fiction describing the war Third Anglo-Maratha War List of Maratha dynasties and states Fort of Ahmednagar Pettah of Ahmednagar Alexander Adams Citations Bibliography Chaurasian, new Delhi, Atlantic Publishers and Distributors
8.
Napoleonic Wars
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The wars resulted from the unresolved disputes associated with the French Revolution and the Revolutionary Wars, which had raged on for years before concluding with the Treaty of Amiens in 1802. Napoleon became the First Consul of France in 1799, then Emperor five years later, inheriting the political and military struggles of the Revolution, he created a state with stable finances, a strong central bureaucracy, and a well-trained army. The British frequently financed the European coalitions intended to thwart French ambitions, by 1805, they had managed to convince the Austrians and the Russians to wage another war against France. At sea, the Royal Navy destroyed a combined Franco-Spanish fleet at Trafalgar in October 1805, Prussian worries about increasing French power led to the formation of the Fourth Coalition in 1806. France then forced the defeated nations of the Fourth Coalition to sign the Treaties of Tilsit in July, although Tilsit signified the high watermark of the French Empire, it did not bring a lasting peace for Europe. Hoping to extend the Continental System and choke off British trade with the European mainland, Napoleon invaded Iberia, the Spanish and the Portuguese revolted with British support. The Peninsular War lasted six years, featured extensive guerrilla warfare, the Continental System caused recurring diplomatic conflicts between France and its client states, especially Russia. Unwilling to bear the consequences of reduced trade, the Russians routinely violated the Continental System. The French launched an invasion of Russia in the summer of 1812. The resulting campaign witnessed the collapse and retreat of the Grand Army along with the destruction of Russian lands. In 1813, Prussia and Austria joined Russian forces in a Sixth Coalition against France, a lengthy military campaign culminated in a large Allied army defeating Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig in October 1813. The Allies then invaded France and captured Paris in the spring of 1814 and he was exiled to the island of Elba near Rome and the Bourbons were restored to power. However, Napoleon escaped from Elba in February 1815 and took control of France once again, the Allies responded by forming a Seventh Coalition, which defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in June. The Congress of Vienna, which started in 1814 and concluded in 1815, established the new borders of Europe and laid out the terms, Napoleon seized power in 1799, creating a de facto military dictatorship. The Napoleonic Wars began with the War of the Third Coalition, Kagan argues that Britain was irritated in particular by Napoleons assertion of control over Switzerland. Furthermore, Britons felt insulted when Napoleon stated that their country deserved no voice in European affairs, for its part, Russia decided that the intervention in Switzerland indicated that Napoleon was not looking toward a peaceful resolution of his differences with the other European powers. The British quickly enforced a blockade of France to starve it of resources. Napoleon responded with economic embargoes against Britain, and sought to eliminate Britains Continental allies to break the coalitions arrayed against him, the so-called Continental System formed a league of armed neutrality to disrupt the blockade and enforce free trade with France
9.
War of 1812
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Historians in the United States and Canada see it as a war in its own right, but the British often see it as a minor theatre of the Napoleonic Wars. By the wars end in early 1815, the key issues had been resolved, the view was shared in much of New England and for that reason the war was widely referred to there as Mr. Madison’s War. As a result, the primary British war goal was to defend their North American colonies, the war was fought in three theatres. Second, land and naval battles were fought on the U. S. –Canadian frontier, Third, large-scale battles were fought in the Southern United States and Gulf Coast. With the majority of its land and naval forces tied down in Europe fighting the Napoleonic Wars, early victories over poorly-led U. S. armies demonstrated that the conquest of the Canadas would prove more difficult than anticipated. Despite this, the U. S. was able to inflict serious defeats on Britains Native American allies, both governments were eager for a return to normality and peace negotiations began in Ghent in August 1814. This brought an Era of Good Feelings in which partisan animosity nearly vanished in the face of strengthened American nationalism, the war was also a major turning point in the development of the U. S. military, with militia being increasingly replaced by a more professional force. The U. S. also acquired permanent ownership of Spains Mobile District, the government of Canada declared a three-year commemoration of the War of 1812 in 2012, intended to offer historical lessons and celebrate 200 years of peace across the border. At the conclusion of the commemorations in 2014, a new national War of 1812 Monument was unveiled in Ottawa. The war is remembered in Britain primarily as a footnote in the much larger Napoleonic Wars occurring in Europe, historians have long debated the relative weight of the multiple reasons underlying the origins of the War of 1812. This section summarizes several contributing factors which resulted in the declaration of war by the United States, as Risjord notes, a powerful motivation for the Americans was the desire to uphold national honour in the face of what they considered to be British insults such as the Chesapeake–Leopard Affair. The approaching conflict was about violations of American rights, but it was also vindication of American identity. Americans at the time and historians since often called it the United States Second War of Independence, in 1807, Britain introduced a series of trade restrictions via a series of Orders in Council to impede neutral trade with France, with which Britain was at war. The United States contested these restrictions as illegal under international law, the American merchant marine had come close to doubling between 1802 and 1810, making it by far the largest neutral fleet. Britain was the largest trading partner, receiving 80% of U. S. cotton, the British public and press were resentful of the growing mercantile and commercial competition. The United States view was that Britains restrictions violated its right to trade with others, during the Napoleonic Wars, the Royal Navy expanded to 176 ships of the line and 600 ships overall, requiring 140,000 sailors to man. The United States believed that British deserters had a right to become U. S. citizens and this meant that in addition to recovering naval deserters, it considered any United States citizens who were born British liable for impressment. Aggravating the situation was the reluctance of the United States to issue formal naturalization papers and it was estimated by the Admiralty that there were 11,000 naturalized sailors on United States ships in 1805
10.
Duke of Wellington's Regiment
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The Duke of Wellingtons Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, forming part of the Kings Division. In 1702 Colonel George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, was authorised to raise a new regiment, as was the custom in those days the regiment was named Huntingdons Regiment after its Colonel. As Colonel succeeded Colonel the name changed, but in 1751 regiments were given numbers, in 1782 the regiments title was changed to the 33rd Regiment, thus formalising an association with the West Riding of Yorkshire which, even then, had been long established. The first Duke of Wellington died in 1852 and in the following year Queen Victoria, in recognition of the regiments long ties to him, in 1881, following the Childers Reforms, the 33rd was linked with the 76th Regiment of Foot, who shared their depot in Halifax. The two regiments became, respectively, the 1st and 2nd battalions of the Duke of Wellingtons Regiment, in 1948 the 1st and 2nd battalions were amalgamated into a single battalion, the 1st Battalion. On 6 June 2006 the Dukes were amalgamated with the Prince of Waless Own Regiment of Yorkshire, following further mergers, in 2012, the battalion was redesignated as the new 1st Battalion of the regiment. In Korea, the Dukes desperate defence of the Hook position halted the last major Chinese attempt to break the United Nations Line before the truce, in July 1953, brought the war to an end. In Cyprus the battalion was successful in Operation Golden Rain, destroying a major EOKA terrorist group operating in the Troodos Mountains in 1956. In 1964 the battalion joined the NATO deterrence in Germany on the front line in the Cold War and they were amongst the first units to cross the border from Kuwait in the 2003 Iraq War. The Duke of Wellingtons Regiment was originally formed in 1702 as Huntingdons Regiment, as regiments at that time took the name of the Colonel taking it over it became, - Henry Leighs Regiment, then Robert Duncansons Regiment and George Wades Regiment. On 31 August 1782 Lord Cornwallis heard that the King had approved of the new title, the 76th Regiment was originally raised, by Simon Harcourt as Lord Harcourts Regiment on 17 November 1745 and disbanded in June 1746. Following the loss of Minorca, to the French, it was reraised in November 1756 as the 61st Regiment, but renumbered to 76th, by General Order in 1758, and again disbanded in 1763. A second battalion raised by that regiment in October 1758, for service in Africa, was renumbered as the 86th Regiment and it was disbanded at Stirling Castle in March 1784. The regiment was raised for service in India by the Honorable East India Company in 1787. In 1881 the 76th Regiment, which shared the same Depot in Halifax as the 33rd, was linked to the 33rd, under the Childers Reforms, in January 1921 it was again retitled to The Duke of Wellingtons Regiment, or DWR for short. Within months of its raising the regiment was despatched to join Malboroughs army in Holland. After five months and only two battles it was sent to Portugal, along with five other of Malboroughs best regiments, the 33rd fought in many battles including Valencia de Alcantara, Zaragossa, and less favourably at Almansa and Brihuega. The 33rd itself had a reputation for its professionalism and capability
11.
Sir Thomas Musgrave, 7th Baronet
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General Sir Thomas Musgrave, 7th Baronet was an English soldier. He rose to the rank of general in the British Army and was noted for his service during the American Revolutionary War and he is one of the Musgrave baronets. He entered the British Army in 1754 as ensign in the 3rd Buffs, the action was commemorated by a silver medal, which was at one time worn as a regimental order of merit. The house is represented on the medal, and is the background of one of the portraits of Musgrave in the British Museum Prints. Musgrave went in 1778 to the West Indies as quartermaster-general of the troops sent from New York under Major-general James Grant of Ballindalloch, to capture and defend St. Lucia. He left the West Indies sick, but afterwards returned as general to America. In 1781, he returned home as aide-de-camp to the king, Cornwallis mentions him as at the reviews at Berlin in 1785 with Ralph Abercromby and David Dundas. On 12 Oct.1787, Musgrave was appointed colonel of the new 76th Regiment of Foot or Hindustan regiment, the rendezvous was at Chatham, and the recruits were chiefly from the Musgrave family estates in the north of England. Musgrave went out to India with it, and served on the staff at Madras for several years and he became a major-general,28 April 1790. His hopes of a command against Tipu Sultan were disappointed by Lord Cornwallis, musgraves plan of operations is published in Cornwalliss Correspondence. On his return Musgrave received many marks of attention from royalty and he was appointed governor of Chelsea Hospital, but exchanged with William Fawcett for that of Governor of Gravesend and Tilbury, which did not require residence. He became a lieutenant-general 26 June 1797, and general 29 April 1802 and he died in London on 31 Dec.1812, aged 75, and was buried in the churchyard of St Georges, Hanover Square, in which parish he had long resided. A portrait of Musgrave, painted by John White Abbott in 1786, was engraved and appeared in the British Military Panorama in 1813, there is also a memorial to him at St. Kentigerns Church, Aspatria. James was succeeded by his eldest son, Sir James Musgrave and he was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford, where he was awarded a Bachelor of Arts in 1807. He was Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 1825-6 and he died unmarried 6 December 1858. Sir Thomas was succeeded by his cousin Sir James Musgrave, 8th baronet of Barnsley Park, near Cirencester and he was the son of Reverent James Musgrave D. C. L. James was born in 1752, he matriculated at St John’s College, Oxford, where he received a Bachelor of Arts. in 1773 and he was Sheriff of Gloucestershire, 1802-03. He married Clarissa, daughter of Thomas Blackhall, of Great Haseley and he died on 27 April 1814
12.
Lemuel Francis Abbott
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Lemuel Francis Abbott was an English portrait painter, famous for his likeness of Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson and for those of other naval officers and literary figures of the 18th century. He was born Lemuel Abbott in Leicestershire in 1760 or 1761, in 1775, at the age of 14, he became a pupil of Francis Hayman and lived in London, but returned to his parents after his teachers death in 1776. There he continued to develop his artistic talents independently, but some authorities have suggested that he may also have studied with Joseph Wright of Derby, in 1780, Abbott married Anna Maria, and again settled in London, residing for many years in Caroline Street in Bloomsbury. Although he exhibited at the Royal Academy, he never became an Academician and it is said that overwork, due to the commissions he took on, and domestic unhappiness led to his becoming insane. He was declared insane in 1798 and was treated by Dr Thomas Munro, the physician to Bethlem Hospital. Abbott died in London on 5 December 1802 and his portrait of Henry Callender, Captain General of the Royal Blackheath Golf Club, is one of the earliest portrayals of the game of golf. Reproductions hang in golf clubs the world over and it is to be sold by auction at Bonhams London on 9 December 2015. Some of his paintings were signed Francis Lemuel Abbott, but it is not known why he assumed the additional Christian name, as it was not one with which he was baptised. Portraits of Lemuel Francis Abbott at the National Portrait Gallery, London L F Abbott online L F Abbott on Artnet Portrait of John Sims Portrait of Matthew Boulton Portrait of James Heath
13.
India
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India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and it is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast. It shares land borders with Pakistan to the west, China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the northeast, in the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Indias Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a border with Thailand. The Indian subcontinent was home to the urban Indus Valley Civilisation of the 3rd millennium BCE, in the following millennium, the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism began to be composed. Social stratification, based on caste, emerged in the first millennium BCE, early political consolidations took place under the Maurya and Gupta empires, the later peninsular Middle Kingdoms influenced cultures as far as southeast Asia. In the medieval era, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived, much of the north fell to the Delhi sultanate, the south was united under the Vijayanagara Empire. The economy expanded in the 17th century in the Mughal empire, in the mid-18th century, the subcontinent came under British East India Company rule, and in the mid-19th under British crown rule. A nationalist movement emerged in the late 19th century, which later, under Mahatma Gandhi, was noted for nonviolent resistance, in 2015, the Indian economy was the worlds seventh largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity. Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the major economies and is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, corruption, malnutrition, a nuclear weapons state and regional power, it has the third largest standing army in the world and ranks sixth in military expenditure among nations. India is a constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system. It is a pluralistic, multilingual and multi-ethnic society and is home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu, the latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River. The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi, which translates as The people of the Indus, the geographical term Bharat, which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in its variations. Scholars believe it to be named after the Vedic tribe of Bharatas in the second millennium B. C. E and it is also traditionally associated with the rule of the legendary emperor Bharata. Gaṇarājya is the Sanskrit/Hindi term for republic dating back to the ancient times, hindustan is a Persian name for India dating back to the 3rd century B. C. E. It was introduced into India by the Mughals and widely used since then and its meaning varied, referring to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan or India in its entirety
14.
East India Company
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The company also ruled the beginnings of the British Empire in India. The company received a Royal Charter from Queen Elizabeth I on 31 December 1600, wealthy merchants and aristocrats owned the Companys shares. Initially the government owned no shares and had only indirect control, during its first century of operation the focus of the Company was trade, not the building of an empire in India. The company eventually came to rule large areas of India with its own armies, exercising military power. Despite frequent government intervention, the company had recurring problems with its finances, the official government machinery of British India had assumed its governmental functions and absorbed its armies. Soon after the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, London merchants presented a petition to Queen Elizabeth I for permission to sail to the Indian Ocean, one of them, Edward Bonventure, then sailed around Cape Comorin to the Malay Peninsula and returned to England in 1594. In 1596, three ships sailed east, however, these were all lost at sea. Two days later, on 24 September, the Adventurers reconvened and resolved to apply to the Queen for support of the project, the Adventurers convened again a year later. For a period of fifteen years the charter awarded the newly formed company a monopoly on trade with all countries east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of the Straits of Magellan. Anybody who traded in breach of the charter without a licence from the Company was liable to forfeiture of their ships and cargo, the governance of the company was in the hands of one governor and 24 directors or committees, who made up the Court of Directors. They, in turn, reported to the Court of Proprietors, ten committees reported to the Court of Directors. According to tradition, business was transacted at the Nags Head Inn, opposite St Botolphs church in Bishopsgate. Sir James Lancaster commanded the first East India Company voyage in 1601, in March 1604 Sir Henry Middleton commanded the second voyage. Early in 1608 Alexander Sharpeigh was appointed captain of the Companys Ascension, thereafter two ships, Ascension and Union sailed from Woolwich on 14 March 1607–8. Initially, the company struggled in the trade because of the competition from the already well-established Dutch East India Company. The company opened a factory in Bantam on the first voyage, the factory in Bantam was closed in 1683. During this time belonging to the company arriving in India docked at Surat. In the next two years, the company established its first factory in south India in the town of Machilipatnam on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal
15.
Nottingham
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Nottingham is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, England, located 128 miles north of London, in the East Midlands. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robin Hood and to the lace-making, bicycle and it was granted its city charter in 1897 as part of Queen Victorias Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Nottingham is a tourist destination, in 2011, visitors spent over £1.5 billion - the thirteenth highest amount in Englands 111 statistical territories. In 2015, Nottingham had an population of 321,550 with the wider urban area. Its urban area is the largest in the east Midlands and the second largest in the Midlands, the population of the Nottingham/Derby metropolitan area is estimated to be 1,610,000. Its metropolitan economy is the seventh largest in the United Kingdom with a GDP of $50. 9bn, the city is also ranked as a sufficiency-level world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. It is also a sporting centre, and in October 2015 was named Home of English Sport. The city also has rugby, ice hockey and cricket teams, and the Aegon Nottingham Open. This accolade came just over a year after Nottingham was named as the UKs first City of Football, on 11 December 2015, Nottingham was named a Unesco City of Literature, joining Norwich, Melbourne, Prague and Barcelona as one of only a handful in the world. The title reflects Nottinghams literary heritage, with Lord Byron, DH Lawrence and it has two universities, the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University, which are attended by over 70,610 students. In modern Welsh it is known poetically as Y Ty Ogofog, when it fell under the rule of a Saxon chieftain named Snot it became known as Snotingaham, the homestead of Snots people. Some authors derive Nottingham from Snottenga, caves, and ham, Nottingham Castle was constructed in 1068 on a sandstone outcrop by the River Leen. Following the Norman Conquest the Saxon settlement developed into the English Borough of Nottingham and housed a Town Hall, a settlement also developed around the castle on the hill opposite and was the French borough supporting the Normans in the castle. Eventually, the space between was built on as the town grew and the Old Market Square became the focus of Nottingham several centuries later, defences, consisted initially of a ditch and bank in the early 12th century. The ditch was later widened, in the mid 13th century, a short length of the wall survives, and is visible at the northern end of Maid Marian Way, and is protected as a Scheduled Monument. On the return of Richard the Lionheart from the Crusades, the Castle was occupied by supporters of Prince John and it was besieged by Richard and, after a sharp conflict, was captured. In the legends of Robin Hood, Nottingham Castle is the scene of the showdown between the Sheriff and the hero outlaw. By the 15th century Nottingham had established itself as a centre of an export trade in religious sculpture made from Nottingham Alabaster
16.
Leicestershire
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Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. The border with most of Warwickshire is Watling Street, the county has a population of just under 1 million with over half the population living in Leicesters built-up area. Leicestershire was recorded in the Domesday Book in four wapentakes, Guthlaxton, Framland, Goscote and these later became hundreds, with the division of Goscote into West Goscote and East Goscote, and the addition of Sparkenhoe hundred. In 1087, the first recorded use of the name was as Laegrecastrescir, Leicestershires external boundaries have changed little since the Domesday Survey. These actions were reversed on 1 April 1997, when Rutland, Rutland became a distinct Ceremonial County once again, although it continues to be policed by Leicestershire Constabulary. The symbol of the county council, Leicestershire County Cricket Club, Leicestershire is considered to be the birthplace of fox hunting as it is known today. Hugo Meynell, who lived in Quorn, is known as the father of fox hunting, Melton Mowbray and Market Harborough have associations with fox hunting, as has neighbouring Rutland. A large part of the north-west of the county, around Coalville, the highest point of the county is Bardon Hill at 278 metres, which is also a Marilyn. The lowest point is about 24. 8m, north of Bottesford where the River Devon leaves Leicestershire, the population of Leicestershire is 609,578 people. The county covers an area of 2,084 km2 and its largest population centre is the city of Leicester, followed by the town of Loughborough. Other large towns include Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Coalville, Hinckley, Market Harborough, Melton Mowbray, Oadby, Wigston, some of the larger of villages are, Burbage Birstall, Broughton Astley, Castle Donington, Kibworth Beauchamp, Great Glen, Ibstock, Countesthorpe and Kegworth. One of the most rapidly expanding villages is Anstey, which has seen a large number of development schemes. The United Kingdom Census 2001 showed a resident population for Leicester of 279,921. Approximately 62,000 were aged under 16,199,000 were aged 16–74,76. 9% of Leicesters population claim they have been born in the UK, according to the 2001 UK Census. Mid-year estimates for 2006 indicate that the population of the City of Leicester stood at 289,700 making Leicester the most populous city in East Midlands, the population density is 3, 814/km2 and for every 100 females, there were 92.9 males. Of those aged 16–74 in Leicester,38. 5% had no academic qualifications,23. 0% of Leicesters residents were born outside of the United Kingdom, more than double than the English average of 9. 2%. Engineering has long been an important part of the economy of Leicestershire, John Taylor Bellfounders continues a history of bellfounding in Loughborough since the 14th century. In 1881 John Taylors cast the largest bell in Britain, Great Paul, snibston Discovery Park is built on one of three coal mines that operated in Coalville from the 1820s until 1986
17.
Aspatria
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Aspatria /ˌəsˈpeɪtriə/ is a civil parish in the non-metropolitan district of Allerdale, and is currently embraced in the Parliamentary constituency of Workington. Historically within Cumberland the town rests on the side of the Ellen Valley, overlooking a panoramic view of the countryside, with Skiddaw to the South. Its developments are aligned approximately east-west along the A596 Carlisle to Workington road and it lies about 8 miles northeast of Maryport, a similar distance to the Southwest of Wigton, about 9 miles north of Cockermouth and 5 miles from the coast and Allonby. It comprises the townships of Aspatria and Brayton, Hayton and Mealo, and Oughterside and Allerby, in earlier days a Roman road leading from Old Carlisle to Ellenborough passed through the hamlet. The population has increased since the mid nineteenth century. In 1801, the village comprised 98 dwellings with a population of 321, by 1851, there were 236 family entities, comprising 1,123 residents, by 1871, the numbers had increased to 1,778, and twenty years later stood at 2,714. By the start of the 20th century, the population had risen to 2,885, although the population slumped in the 1930s to 3,189, it recovered to 3,500, in 1951, and by 1981, the population appeared stable at 2,745. It is served by Aspatria railway station, Aspatria is located on the fringe of the English Lake District. The parish church of St Kentigern was completed in 1848, fragments of masonry and crosses from earlier structures on the same site are preserved there. Aspatria is an ancient settlement and seems to have been home to a group of Norsemen who fled to the area from Ireland around 900. In 1789, a surgeon by the name of a Mr Rigg employed a group of labourers to level a mound called Beacon Hill, situated close behind his house at Aspatria. After reaching a depth of one metre they dug into a cavity walled around with large stones. At the head of the gigantic skeleton lay a sword almost two metres in length, with a broad blade, ornamented with a gold and silver handle. The scabbard of the sword was made of wood, lined with cloth, the workmen also unearthed several pieces of armour, a dirk with a silver studded handle, a golden buckled belt, and a breast plate. The artefacts remain the property of the British Museum, further finds were made on the same site in 1997 when a mobile phone mast was being constructed. The manor of Aspatria is part of the ancient barony of Allerdale below Derwent, upon the division of the estates of William Fitz Duncan, and his wife Alice de Romney, among their three daughters, the manor passed to Alice the youngest. However Alice died without issue and the passed to an elder sister who had married into the Lucy family. The latter family terminated in a female heir Maud de Lucy and she married Henry Percy, the first Earl of Northumberland, who received the whole of her estates
18.
Cumbria
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Cumbria is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbrias county town is Carlisle, in the north of the county, the county of Cumbria consists of six districts, and in 2008 had a population of just under half a million. Cumbria is one of the most sparsely populated counties in the United Kingdom, a large area of the south east of the county is within the Yorkshire Dales National Park while the east of the county fringes the North Pennines AONB. Much of Cumbria is mountainous, and it contains every peak in England over 3,000 feet above sea level, with Scafell Pike at 3,209 feet being the highest point of England. An upland, coastal, and rural area, Cumbrias history is characterised by invasions, migration, notable historic sites in Cumbria include Carlisle Castle, Furness Abbey, Hardknott Roman Fort, Brough Castle and Hadrians Wall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. D. Based on inscriptional evidence from the area, the Roman civitas of the Carvetii seems to have covered portions of Cumbria, the names Cumbria, Cymru, Cambria, and Cumberland are derived from the name these people gave themselves, *kombroges in Common Brittonic, which originally meant compatriots. In the Early Middle Ages, Cumberland formed the core of the Brittonic kingdom of Rheged, for the rest of the first millennium, Cumbria was contested by several entities who warred over the area, including the Brythonic Kingdom of Strathclyde and the Anglian kingdom of Northumbria. Most of modern-day Cumbria was a principality in the Kingdom of Scotland at the time of the Norman conquest of England in 1066, in 1092 Cumberland was invaded by William II and incorporated into England. There were at least three sieges of Carlisle fought between England and Scotland, and two sieges during the Jacobite risings. In particular, the west-coast towns of Workington, Millom and Barrow-in-Furness saw large iron and steel mills develop, Kendal, Keswick and Carlisle all became mill towns, with textiles, pencils and biscuits among the products manufactured in the region. Later, the childrens writer Beatrix Potter also wrote in the region and became a major landowner and its strategic authority is Cumbria County Council. Local papers The Westmorland Gazette and Cumberland and Westmorland Herald continue to use the name of their historic county, other publications, such as local government promotional material, describe the area as Cumbria, as do the Lake District National Park Authority and most visitors. Cumbria is the most northwesterly county of England, the northernmost and southernmost points in Cumbria are just west of Deadwater, Northumberland and South Walney respectively. Kirkby Stephen and St Bees Head are the most easterly and westerly points of the county, at 978 metres Scafell Pike is the highest point in Cumbria and in England. Windermere is the largest natural lake in England, the Lancaster Canal runs from Preston into South Cumbria and is partly in use. The Ulverston Canal which once reached to Morecambe Bay is maintained although it was closed in 1945, the Solway Coast and Arnside and Silverdale AONBs lie in the lowland areas of the county, to the north and south respectively. Cumbria is bordered by the English counties of Northumberland, County Durham, North Yorkshire, Lancashire, the boundaries are along the Irish Sea to Morecambe Bay in the west, and along the Pennines to the east
19.
Moat
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A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams. In older fortifications, such as hillforts, they are referred to simply as ditches. In later periods, moats or water defences may be largely ornamental and they could also act as sewerage. Some of the earliest evidence of moats has been uncovered around ancient Egyptian castles, one example is at Buhen, a castle excavated in Nubia. Other evidence of ancient moats is found in the ruins of Babylon, and in reliefs from ancient Egypt, Assyria, and other cultures in the region. Evidence of early moats around settlements has been discovered in archaeological sites throughout Southeast Asia, including Noen U-Loke, Ban Non Khrua Chut, Ban Makham Thae. The use of the moats could have been either for defensive or agriculture purposes, moats were excavated around castles and other fortifications as part of the defensive system as an obstacle immediately outside the walls. In suitable locations they might be filled with water, a moat made access to the walls difficult for siege weapons, such as siege towers and battering rams, which needed to be brought up against a wall to be effective. A water-filled moat made the practice of mining, digging tunnels under the castles in order to effect a collapse of the defences, segmented moats have one dry section and one section filled with water. Dry moats cut across the part of a spur or peninsula are called neck ditches. Moats separating different elements of a castle, such as the inner and outer wards are cross ditches, the shared derivation implies that the two features were closely related and possibly constructed at the same time. The term moat is also applied to natural formations reminiscent of the artificial structure, the walls were further protected from infantry attack by wet or dry moats, sometimes in elaborate systems. When this style of fortification was superseded by lines of forts in the mid-19th century. The Walls of Benin were a combination of ramparts and moats, called Iya and it was considered the largest man-made structure lengthwise, second only to the Great Wall of China and the largest earthwork in the world. With more recent work by Patrick Darling, it has established as the largest man-made structure in the world. It enclosed 6,500 km² of community lands and its length was over 16,000 km of earth boundaries. It was estimated that earliest construction began in 800 and continued into the mid-15th century, the walls are built of a ditch and dike structure, the ditch dug to form an inner moat with the excavated earth used to form the exterior rampart
20.
Aligarh Fort
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Aligarh Fort also known as bohne chor ka qila(english-small thiefs fort, is one of the strongest forts in India, is located in the city of Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. It is also called Aligarh Qila and it is situated on the Grand Trunk road and consists of a regular polygon, surrounded by a very broad and deep ditch. It was built during the time of Ibrahim Lodi by Muhammad, son of Umar the governor of Kol, Sabit Khan, who was the governor of this region during the time of Farrukh Siyar and Muhammad Shah, further rebuilt the fort. In the rebellion of 1857 the troops stationed at Aligarh mutinied, but abstained from murdering their officers, the fort is built on a hill, north of the Aligarh Muslim University at Barauli Marg. It has steep ravines, over 30 feet high, on every side, now Aligarh fort is in the control of Aligarh Muslim University. The university uses part of the internal area fort as location for its department of Botany, the fort has been the seat of many governors and other rulers of this land, including Sabit Khan, Surajmal Jat in 1753 and mentioned Madhavrao Scindia in 1759. The fort was expanded three times in 1753 by lieutenant Banasaur, commanding officer of contemporary ruler Surajmal Jat, to include a basement, an explosives warehouse and an air cooled kitchen. Aligarh fort, as it today, is the work of the French engineers under the control of de Boigne. Presently, the houses a small primary school within its premises
21.
Siege of Bangalore
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Arriving before the town on 5 February 1791, Cornwallis captured the town by assault on 7 February, and after six weeks of siege, stormed the fortress on 21 March. 1791, was described as follows, Bangalore, like Madras, had a fort, with a pettah, or fortified town, outside it. This lay-out was a feature of almost all the cities or settlements in India, the fort at Bangalore had a perimeter of about one mile, it was of solid masonry, surrounded by a wide ditch which was commanded from 26 towers placed at intervals along the ramparts. To its north lay the pettah, several miles in circumference and protected by an indifferent rampart, a belt of thorn and cactus. Altogether Bangalore was not a place which invited attack, Tipu Sultan followed Cornwallis army, placing him in the awkward position of having an undefeated enemy army at his back while besieging the a strong fortification. Tipu kept away hoping to take assault when underway in flank, over the next twelve days, two companies of the Madras Pioneers provided sappes for eight batteries, dug several parallels and a trench up to the fort ditch. Cornwallis attacked secretly on the night of March 21,1791, the Madras Pioneers, led by Lt Colin Mackenzie, crossed the ditch with scaling ladders, mounted the breach and entered the fort, while the artillery engaged the fort with blank ammunition. With a breach made, the main stormers rushed in and the fort was captured after a hand-to hand fight in which a thousand defenders were killed, Cornwallis captured the fort and secured the force against Tipu. The Madras Pioneers, went on to make Bangalore their permanent home, Siege of Bangalore,1791 According to the British chronicler Mark Wilks, the British faced respectable resistance. However, the resistance lasted a few hours, and the fell to the British. Loss of the Bangalore Fort resulted in loss of morale amongst Tippus soldiers. The British occupied the Bangalore Fort only for a year, as it was returned to Tippu Sultan, following the defeat of Tippu Sultan in 1792, however, after the fall of Tippu Sultan in 1799, the Bangalore Fort came under British control. A British garrison was stationed at the fort till 1888, when it was handed over to the civil authorities, today, very little remains to remind people of the battle, except for a plaque, which reads “Through this breach the British assault was delivered. Homes painting shows the graves of Captains James Smith, James Williamson, John Shipper, Nathaniel Daws and Jeremiah Delany, Lieutenant Conan, as recorded in 1895, The cemetery was located just outside the Fort Church, with the church being responsible for its maintenance. The cemetery had cypress trees, rose bushes and flowers, the Government of Mysore, had constructed a wall and gate for the cemetery. However, as recorded in 1912 by Rev. Frank Penny in his book The Church in Madras, Volume II, the record of the offers who fell in the battle for the Bangalore Fort in 1791, were transferred to the cenotaph, raised by the Government of Mysore. The 35 feet tall cenotaph pillar was raised in memory of the lives lost in the Siege of Bangalore, opposite to the present Corporation Building, kannada activists led by Vatal Nagaraj and others made violent demands to demolish the cenotaph. As a result of protests, the Bangalore City Corporation demolished the memorial on 28 October 1964
22.
Siege of Seringapatam (1792)
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The 1792 Siege of Seringapatam was a battle and siege of the Mysorean capital city of Seringapatam at the end of the Third Anglo-Mysore War. With his agreement to the Treaty of Seringapatam on 18 March 1792, the prospects for Tipu Sultan, the Muslim ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore, had declined significantly during the 1791 campaign season of the Third Anglo-Mysore War. Cornwallis, whose army had been short of provisions, withdrew to Bangalore in May 1791 to resupply his army. Tipu punctuated the arrival of the British by showering them with rockets in an ineffective yet impressive display of technology, in addition to the grand army, Cornwallis had ordered General Robert Abercromby to lead a supporting army of about 6,000 men from the Malabar coast. The city of Seringapatam occupied an island in the Kaveri River and this line, three to four miles long, was studded with six redoubts, and much of the line was protected by a thick hedge. To the east the line was anchored by Karigaut Hill, Cornwallis, after inspecting the citys defences on 6 February, decided to attack even though Abercrombys column had not yet reached the area. Cornwallis planned an attack with three components. General Medows would lead 7 battalions on the right, where he was to drive Tipus left back toward the fort, Cornwallis himself would direct 8 battalions in the center with the objective of gaining the river near the eastern end of the fort. If successful, the Mysoreans would be driven onto the island, since the battle was to take place at night, they would be unable to use artillery to provide covering fire, so he ordered the attacks to be made only with musket and bayonet. Cornwallis deliberately excluded the nizams forces from the action, since he did not trust them to act effectively, Cornwallis did not divulge details of the plan until one hour before the attack. At around 9 pm the three divisions left camp, in the center, Cornwallis advanced to the hedge, which his force reached around 11. By then gunfire from his left indicated that Maxwells men had begun their attack on Karigaut Hill. Cornwallis ordered his men through the hedge, the British troops closed with the bayonet on the Mysoreans, who fled in near-panic, leaving artillery, tents, one redoubt gave resistance and was stormed. Maxwells and Cornwallis men chased the fleeing Mysoreans as they crossed the bridges onto the island, while this secured his own position, it left many of his troops at the mercy of the British. The division of General Medows did not fare quite as well as the other two and this created a gap in the British lines between the center and right, exposing Cornwallis, who had held back from the lines with a single battalion, to personal danger. Tipu sought to exploit this gap in order to recover the camp, Cornwallis was able to rally his men and repulse the counterattack, but his hand was grazed by a bullet during the action. When daylight arrived the field of battle was clearly visible to all. Significantly exposed, Cornwallis withdrew his command to Karigaut Hill, abandoning part of his camp in the process and this enabled the Mysorean cavalry to roam freely through the area while Tipus artillery continued to play on exposed British positions
23.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
24.
Pierre Cuillier-Perron
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Pierre Cuillier-Perron, French military adventurer in India born Pierre Cuillier at Luceau near Château-du-Loir, the son of a cloth merchant. In India, he changed his name to Perron and he was generally referred to by his contemporaries and posterity as General Perron. In 1790 he took service under De Boigne, and was appointed to the command of his second brigade. In 1795 he assisted the Maratha forces to win the battle of Kardla against the nizam of Hyderabad, at the battle of Malpura he defeated the Rajput forces. After the battle of Ujjain he refused to send his troops to the aid of Scindia and his treachery on this occasion shook his position, and on the outbreak of war between Scindia and the British in 1803 Perron was superseded and fled to the British camp. In the battles of Delhi, Laswari, Ally Ghur and Assaye, Perrons battalions were destroyed by Lord Lake. He returned to France with a fortune, and died in 1834. Sir Shah Sulaiman Hall s main Building, which serves as the Provost Office, was built by a him in year 1802. The palatial home he built for himself at Chinsurah was to house Hooghly College from 1837 to 1937, H. Compton, European Military Adventurers of Hindustan. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
25.
Maratha
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The Maratha is a group of castes in India found predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, Marathas are people of India, famed in history as yeoman warriors and they reside primarily in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The general body of lists are often at variance with each other. The term Maratha originally referred to the speakers of the Marathi language, in the 17th century, it emerged as a designation for soldiers serving in the armies of Deccan sultanates. A number of Maratha warriors, including Shivajis father, Shahaji, by the mid-1660s, Shivaji had established an independent Maratha kingdom. After his death, Marathas fought under his sons and defeated Aurangzeb in the war of 27 years, the Confederacy remained the pre-eminent power in India until their defeat by the British East India Company in the Third Anglo-Maratha War. By 19th century, the term Maratha had several interpretations in the British administrative records, in the Thane District Gazetteer of 1882, the term was used to denote elite layers within various castes, for example, Maratha-Agri within Agri caste, Maratha-Koli within Koli caste and so on. In the Pune District, the words Kunbi and Maratha had become synonymous, the Pune District Gazetteer of 1882 divided the Kunbis into two classes, Marathas and other Kunbis. The 1901 census listed three groups within the Maratha-Kunbi caste complex, Marathas proper, Maratha Kunbis and Konkani Marathas, the Kunbi class comprised agricultural workers and soldiers. The upper-class Marathas proper claimed Rajput descent with Kshatriya status, and included princes, some of the Maratha clans claiming Rajput descent include Bhonsales, Chavans, and Pawar. Gradually, the term Maratha came to denote an endogamous caste, from 1900 onwards, the Satyashodhak Samaj movement defined the Marathas as a broader social category of non-Brahmin groups. These non-Brahmins gained prominence in Indian National Congress during the Indian independence movement, in independent India, these Marathas became the dominant political force in the newly-formed state of Maharashtra. The empire also resulted in the relocation of substantial numbers of Maratha and other Marathi-speaking people outside Maharashtra. Today several small but significant communities descended from these live in the north, south. These descendant communities tend often to speak the languages, although many also speak Marathi in addition. Notable Maratha families outside Maharashtra include Scindia of Gwalior, Gaekwad of Baroda, Holkar of Indore, Puar of Dewas & Dhar, Ghorpade of Mudhol, and Bhonsle of Nagpur. These Brahmins supported the Maratha claim to Kshatriya status, but their success in political alliance was sporadic. Marathas have dominated the politics of Maharashtra since its inception in 1960
26.
Cheval de frise
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The cheval de frise was a medieval defensive anti-cavalry measure consisting of a portable frame covered with many projecting long iron or wooden spikes or spears. They were principally intended as an obstacle but could also be moved quickly to help block a breach in another barrier. They remained in use until they were replaced by wire obstacles just after the American Civil War. During the Civil War, the Confederates used this type of more often than the Union forces. During World War I, armies used chevaux de frise to temporarily plug gaps in barbed wire, Chevaux de frise of barbed wire were used in jungle fighting on south Pacific islands during World War II. The term is applied to defensive works comprising a series of closely set upright stones found outside the ramparts of Iron Age hillforts in northern Europe. French, Cheval de frise literally means Frisian horse, the Frisians, having few cavalry, relied heavily on such anti-cavalry obstacles in warfare. The Dutch also adopted use of the device when at war with Spain. The term came to be used for any spiked obstacle, such as broken glass embedded in mortar on the top of a wall. The cheval de frise was adapted in New York and Pennsylvania during the American Revolutionary War as a defensive measure installed in rivers to prevent upriver movement by enemy ships. During the American Revolutionary War, Robert Erskine designed a version of the cheval-de-frise to prevent British warships from proceeding up the Hudson River. A cheval-de-frise was placed between Fort Washington at northern Manhattan and Fort Lee in New Jersey in 1776, similar devices planned by Ben Franklin were used in the Delaware River near Philadelphia, between Fort Mifflin and Fort Mercer. A cheval-de-frise was retrieved from the Delaware River in Philadelphia on November 13,2007 in excellent condition, a small promontory on the north-east Essex coast in the United Kingdom, between Holland Haven and Frinton on Sea, was named Chevaux de Frise Point
27.
Scindia
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Scindia/Shinde is a Hindu Maratha clan from Maharashtra. The Scindia dynasty was founded by Ranoji Scindia, who was the son of Jankojirao Scindia, the Deshmukh of Kanherkhed, Peshwa Baji Raos career saw the strengthening of the Maratha Empire. Ranoji was in charge of the Maratha conquests in Malwa in 1726, Ranoji established his capital at Ujjain in 1731. His successors included Jayajirao, Jyotibarao, Dattajirao, Jankojirao, Mahadji Shinde, the Scindhia state of Gwalior became a major regional power in the latter half of the 18th century and figured prominently in the three Anglo-Maratha Wars. They held sway over many of the Rajput states, and conquered north India, after the death of Daulatrao, Maharani Baiza Bai ruled the empire, saving it from the British power, till the adopted child Jankoji Rao took over the charge. Jankoji died in 1843, and his widow Tarabai Raje scindia successfully maintained the position, the Scindia family ruled Gwalior until Indias independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, when the Maharaja Jivajirao Scindia acceded to the Government of India. Gwalior was merged with a number of princely states to become the new Indian state of Madhya Bharat. George Jivajirao served as the states rajpramukh, or appointed governor, from 28 May 1948 to 31 October 1956, in 1962, Rajmata Vijayraje Scindia, the widow of Maharaja Jiwajirao, was elected to the Lok Sabha, beginning the familys career in electoral politics. She was first a member of the Congress Party, and later became a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Her son Madhavrao Scindia was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1971 representing the Congress Party and his son, Jyotiraditya Scindia, also in the Congress Party, was elected to the seat formerly held by his father in 2004. Vijayarajes daughters have supported the Bharatiya Janata Party, Vasundhara Raje Scindia contested and won five parliamentary elections from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Under the Vajpayee government from 1998 onwards, Vasundhara was in charge of different ministries. In 2003 she led the Bharatiya Janata Party to its largest majority in Rajasthan, in 2013 again, she led Bharatiya Janata Party to a thumpin win in the state of Rajasthan, winning over 160 out of the 200 seats in the assembly elections. Her other daughter, Yashodhara Raje Scindia, contested elections from Shivpuri in Madhya Pradesh and won in 1998,2003 and 2013. Upon the BJPs win in the state, she became the states Minister for Tourism, Sports, vasundharas son Dushyant Singh entered the Lok Sabha in 2004 from Rajasthan. The Scindia served the Peshwa, and were also Shiledars under the sultanates of the Deccan, Born c 1720, died 25 July 1755. Vacant 15 January 1761 –25 November 1763 Kadarji Rao Scindia Died, Born c.1730, died 12 February 1794. Born 1779, died 21 March 1827, Born 1805, died 7 February 1843
28.
Battle of Delhi (1803)
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The Marathas initially occupied a strong position with the Yamuna River in their rear. But, General Gerard Lake, feigning a retreat, drew them from their lines and then turning upon them drove them with the bayonet into the river, finally, the city of Delhi fell three days later. As a result, the control of the city of Delhi passed from the Marathas to the British, a monument was later erected at the site in Patparganj, marked out by a surrounding ditch, commemorating Cornet Sanguine and British soldiers who fell during the battle. Delhi past and present p.68 Marshman, John Clark, the History of India, from the earliest period to the close Lord Dalhousies administration, Volume 2
29.
Battle of Laswari
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The Battle of Laswari took place on November 1,1803 near Laswari village, Alwar. It was part of the Second Anglo-Maratha War, dudrenec deserted and command fell onto Ambaji Ingle, a Maratha officer. The British, commanded by Lake were about 10,000 men strong, opposing Sindhias force of 9,000 veteran infantry and 5,000 cavalry under the command of Abaji, the British were also supported by allied troops from Alwar. The Maratha infantry made a most gallant defence, standing their ground until the survivors laid down their arms, seventy-two guns and a large quantity of ammunition and stores were captured. Lake later wrote I never was in so severe a business in my life or anything like it… these fellows fought like devils, the casualties on both sides were very heavy. The Company lost many officers, including Maj. Gen. Weir, Col. Vandeleur, on 17 December 1803, Raghuji Bhonsale of Nagpur signed the Treaty of Deogaon with the British after the Battle of Laswari and gave up the province of Cuttack including Balasore. The Anglo-Maratha Campaigns and the Contest for India, The Struggle for Control of the South Asian Military Economy
30.
Battle of Deeg
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The Battle of Deeg, fought on 13 November 1804, took place outside Deeg, now in the Bharatpur district of Rajasthan, India, then within the territories of the Maratha Empire. It was part of the Second Anglo-Maratha War, a force of the British East India Company led by Major General Fraser defeated a Maratha force. Fraser was himself wounded in the attack. The British captured about 87 guns of the enemys 160, British casualties were over 640 killed or wounded. Maratha casualties were estimated at over 2,000, the British loss was heavy -643 killed and wounded, including General Fraser. The action was followed up by a Siege of Deeg Fort, the battle and ensuing siege are briefly described in G. A. Hentys 1902 book, At the Point of the Bayonet, A Tale of the Mahratta War MacFarlane, Charles. A history of British India, from the earliest English intercourse to the present time Duff, a History of the Mahrattas, vol
31.
George III of the United Kingdom
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He was concurrently Duke and prince-elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire until his promotion to King of Hanover on 12 October 1814. He was the third British monarch of the House of Hanover, early in his reign, Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years War, becoming the dominant European power in North America and India. However, many of Britains American colonies were soon lost in the American War of Independence, further wars against revolutionary and Napoleonic France from 1793 concluded in the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. In the later part of his life, George III had recurrent, although it has since been suggested that he had the blood disease porphyria, the cause of his illness remains unknown. After a final relapse in 1810, a regency was established, on George IIIs death, the Prince Regent succeeded his father as George IV. Historical analysis of George IIIs life has gone through a kaleidoscope of changing views that have depended heavily on the prejudices of his biographers and the sources available to them. Until it was reassessed in the half of the 20th century, his reputation in the United States was one of a tyrant. George was born in London at Norfolk House and he was the grandson of King George II, and the eldest son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. As Prince George was born two months prematurely and he was unlikely to survive, he was baptised the same day by Thomas Secker. One month later, he was baptised at Norfolk House. His godparents were the King of Sweden, his uncle the Duke of Saxe-Gotha, George grew into a healthy but reserved and shy child. The family moved to Leicester Square, where George and his younger brother Prince Edward, Duke of York, Family letters show that he could read and write in both English and German, as well as comment on political events of the time, by the age of eight. He was the first British monarch to study science systematically and his religious education was wholly Anglican. At age 10 George took part in a production of Joseph Addisons play Cato and said in the new prologue, What. It may with truth be said, A boy in England born, historian Romney Sedgwick argued that these lines appear to be the source of the only historical phrase with which he is associated. Georges grandfather, King George II, disliked the Prince of Wales, however, in 1751 the Prince of Wales died unexpectedly from a lung injury, and George became heir apparent to the throne. He inherited one of his fathers titles and became the Duke of Edinburgh, now more interested in his grandson, three weeks later the King created George Prince of Wales. Georges mother, now the Dowager Princess of Wales, preferred to keep George at home where she could imbue him with her moral values
32.
Military colours, standards and guidons
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The Roman Empire also made battle standards a part of their vast armies. It was formalized in the armies of Europe in the High Middle Ages, as armies became trained and adopted set formations, each regiments ability to keep its formation was potentially critical to its, and therefore its armys, success. In the chaos of battle, not least due to the amount of dust and smoke on a battlefield, Regimental flags are generally awarded to a regiment by a head-of-State during a ceremony. They were therefore treated with reverence as they represented the honour, Colours may be inscribed with the names of battles or other symbols representing former achievements. Regiments tended to adopt colour guards, composed of experienced or élite soldiers, as a result, the capture of an enemys standard was considered as a great feat of arms. They are never capriciously destroyed – when too old to use they are replaced and then laid-up in museums, religious buildings and other places of significance to their regiment. However, in most modern armies, standing orders now call for the Colours to be destroyed if they are ever in jeopardy of being captured by the enemy. Due to the advent of modern weapons, and subsequent changes in tactics, Colours are no longer carried into battle, but continue to be used at events of formal character. The Armed Forces of the Argentine Republics military Colours of the Argentine Army, Argentine Navy and Argentine Air Force are the Flag of Argentina as the National War Colour and the Unit Colour. The National War Colour is a variation of the Argentine national flag made for use, while the Unit Colour differs per service arm. Only the Regiment of Patricians uses company colors, cadet squadron colours are used by the Argentine Air Force Academy. Units of the Brazilian Armed Forces carry a stand of two Colours, differing per service, the standard of the Army measures 80 ×120 cm, white with the Army coat of arms in the centre, trimmed with gold fringe. The name of the service is inscribed in letters on a green scroll beneath the shield. Above the shield is a helmet with red and sky blue mantling. The staff is topped by a nickel-plated lance-head finial,32 cm high, ten red streamers with campaign honours inscribed in sky blue letters are also attached below the lance-head. The staff is 212 cm long, not including the lance-head and it is covered in sky blue velvet with a red spiral strip. The colour belt is 10 cm in width, covered with sky blue velvet with red velvet stripes, the Navys flag uses dark blue colours, the Air Force flag ultramarine blue. Brazilian military units also carry the flag as a National Colour
33.
Howdah
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It was also a symbol of wealth for the owner, and as a result was decorated with expensive gems. The Museum at the Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur, Rajasthan has a gallery of royal Howdahs, the Mehrangarh Fort Museum, Jodhpur, has a gallery dedicated to an array of Hathi Howdah, used by the Maharaja of Mewar, mostly for ceremonial occasions. Tolkien also wrote in Lord of The Rings of the Mûmakil of Harad with howdahs on their backs, a derived symbol used in Europe is the elephant and castle, an elephant carrying a castle on its back, being used especially to symbolize strength. The symbol was used in Europe in antiquity, and more recently has used in England since the 13th century. In antiquity, there was Roman use of war elephants, and turreted elephants feature on the coinage of Juba II of Numidia, when this unknown creature entered the river, the Britons and their horses fled and the Roman army crossed over. However, he may have confused this incident with the use of a war elephant in Claudius final conquest of Britain. Alternatively, modern uses may derive from later contacts with howdahs, fanciful images of war elephants with elaborate castles on their back date to 12th century Spain, as at right. The Cutlers, in turn, used the symbol due to the use of ivory in handles, the symbol of an elephant and castle is also used in the Order of the Elephant, the highest order in Denmark, since 1693. In Persia, a camel howdah used to be a means of transport. The Viceroys Howdah at Viceregal Lodge, Simla Mahout, the driver of an elephant Howdah pistols, large handguns used to defend howdahs from predators Persian war elephants
34.
Battle of Plattsburgh
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The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. Downies squadron attacked shortly after dawn on 11 September 1814, but was defeated after a fight in which Downie was killed. When the battle took place, American and British delegates were meeting at Ghent in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, retaining territory they held at the end of hostilities. The Treaty of Ghent, in which captured or occupied territories were restored on the basis of Status quo ante bellum, was signed three months after the battle, in 1814, most of Britains army was engaged in the Peninsular War. Then in April, Napoleon I abdicated the throne of France and this provided Britain the opportunity to send 16,000 veteran troops from the Peninsula and other garrisons to North America. Several experienced Major-Generals were also detached from the Duke of Wellingtons army to command them, Prévost lacked the means to transport the troops necessary for an attack on Sacketts Harbor and the supplies for them up the Saint Lawrence River. Prévost therefore prepared to launch his offensive to Lake Champlain. Prévosts choice of route on reaching the lake was influenced by the attitude of the American state of Vermont, to spare Vermont from becoming a seat of war, Prévost therefore determined to advance down the western, New York State, side of the lake. The main American position on this side was at Plattsburgh, Prévost organized the troops which were to carry out the invasion into a division commanded by Major General Sir Francis de Rottenburg, the Lieutenant Governor of Lower Canada. Each brigade was supported by a battery of five 6-pounder guns, a squadron of the 19th Light Dragoons was attached to the force. The force numbered 11,000 in total, however, some units were detached and some sick men did not take part, so the actual number of troops present at Plattsburgh was just over 8,000. There was some tension within the force between the brigade and regimental commanders who were veterans of the Peninsular War or of earlier fighting in Upper Canada, and Prévost and his staff. Prévost had not endeared himself by complaining about the standards of dress of the troops from the Peninsular Army, on the American side of the frontier, Major General George Izard was the commander of the Northern Army, deployed along the Northeast frontier. In late August, Secretary of War John Armstrong ordered Izard to take the majority of his force, about 4,000 troops, Izards force departed on 23 August, leaving Brigadier General Alexander Macomb in command at Plattsburgh with only 1,500 American regulars. Most of these troops were recruits, invalids or detachments of odds and ends, Macomb ordered General Benjamin Mooers to call out the New York militia and appealed to the governor of Vermont for militia volunteers. Up to 2,000 militia eventually reported to Plattsburgh, however, the militia units were mostly untrained, and hundreds of them were unfit for duty. Macomb put the militiamen to use digging trenches and building fortifications, Macombs main position was a ridge on the south bank of the Saranac River. Its fortifications had been out by Major Joseph Gilbert Totten, Izards senior Engineer officer
35.
Jersey
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Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is a Crown dependency of the United Kingdom, ruled by the Crown in right of Jersey, off the coast of Normandy, France. Jersey was part of the Duchy of Normandy, whose dukes went on to become kings of England from 1066. After Normandy was lost by the kings of England in the 13th century, and the ducal title surrendered to France, Jersey, Jersey is a self-governing parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy, with its own financial, legal and judicial systems, and the power of self-determination. The Lieutenant Governor on the island is the representative of the Queen. The island of Jersey is the largest of the Channel Islands, although the bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey are often referred to collectively as the Channel Islands, the Channel Islands are not a constitutional or political unit. Jersey has a relationship to the Crown from the other Crown dependencies of Guernsey. It is not part of the United Kingdom, and has an identity separate from that of the UK. The definition of United Kingdom in the British Nationality Act 1981 is interpreted as including the UK, Jersey is not fully part of the European Union but has a special relationship with it, notably being treated as within the European Community for the purposes of free trade in goods. The name Caesarea has been used as the Latin name for Jersey since William Camdens Britannia, the Latin name Caesarea was also applied to the colony of New Jersey as Nova Caesarea. Andium, Agna and Augia were used in antiquity, scholars variously surmise that Jersey and Jèrri derive from jarð or jarl, or perhaps a personal name, Geirr. The ending -ey denotes an island, Jersey history is influenced by its strategic location between the northern coast of France and the southern coast of England, the islands recorded history extends over a thousand years. La Cotte de St Brelade is a Palaeolithic site inhabited before rising sea levels transformed Jersey into an island, Jersey was a centre of Neolithic activity, as demonstrated by the concentration of dolmens. Evidence of Bronze Age and early Iron Age settlements can be found in locations around the island. In June 2012 it was announced what could be Europes largest hoard of Iron Age coins had been found in Grouville by two persons using metal detectors, the hoard may be worth up to £10 M. People had been searching for treasure for 30 years. It was reported that the hoard weighed about three quarters of a tonne and could contain up to 50,000 Roman and Celtic coins, in 2012 the same two men had found 60 Iron Age coins in the same area. Jersey was part of Neustria with the same Gallo-Frankish population as the continental mainland, Jersey was invaded by Vikings in the 9th century. In 933 it was annexed to the future Duchy of Normandy, together with the other Channel Islands, Cotentin and Avranchin, by William Longsword, count of Rouen and it became one of the Norman Islands
36.
Channel Islands
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The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are considered the remnants of the Duchy of Normandy, and although they are not part of the United Kingdom, it is responsible for the defence, the Crown dependencies are not members of the Commonwealth of Nations nor of the European Union. They have a population of about 168,000. The total area of the islands is 198 km2, the two bailiwicks have been administered separately since the late 13th century, each has its own independent laws, elections, and representative bodies. Any institution common to both is the rather than the rule. The Bailiwick of Guernsey is divided into three jurisdictions – Guernsey, Alderney and Sark – each with its own legislature, the term Channel Islands began to be used around 1830, possibly first by the Royal Navy as a collective name for the islands. The permanently inhabited islands of the Channel Islands are, Jersey Guernsey Alderney Sark Herm Jethou Brecqhou There are also several uninhabited islets and they are an incorporated part of the commune of Granville. While they are popular with visitors from France, Channel Islanders rarely visit them as there are no transport links from the other islands. Chausey is referred to as an Île normande, Îles Normandes and Archipel Normand have also, historically, been used in Channel Island French to refer to the islands as a whole. The lowest point is the Atlantic Ocean, the earliest evidence of human occupation of the Channel Islands has been dated to 250,000 years ago when they were attached to the landmass of continental Europe. The islands became detached by rising sea levels in the Neolithic period, hoards of Armorican coins have been excavated, providing evidence of trade and contact in the Iron Age period. Evidence for Roman settlement is sparse, although evidently the islands were visited by Roman officials, the Roman name for the Channel Islands was I. Lenuri and is included in the Peutinger Table The traditional Latin names used for the islands derive from the Antonine Itinerary, gallo-Roman culture was adopted to an unknown extent in the islands. In the sixth century, Christian missionaries visited the islands, samson of Dol, Helier, Marculf and Magloire are among saints associated with the islands. In the sixth century, they were included in the diocese of Coutances where they remained until reformation. The islands were inhabited by Britons, who also inhabited Wales, south west England, from the beginning of the ninth century, Norse raiders appeared on the coasts. Norse settlement succeeded initial attacks, and it is from this period that many names of Norse origin appear. In 933, the islands were granted to William I Longsword by Raoul King of Western Francia, in 1066, William II of Normandy invaded and conquered England, becoming William I of England, also known as William the Conqueror
37.
Peninsular War
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The Peninsular War was a military conflict between Napoleons empire and the allied powers of Spain, Britain and Portugal, for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war started when French and Spanish armies invaded and occupied Portugal in 1807, the Peninsular War overlaps with what the Spanish-speaking world calls the Guerra de la Independencia Española, which began with the Dos de Mayo Uprising on 2 May 1808 and ended on 17 April 1814. The French occupation destroyed the Spanish administration, which fragmented into quarrelling provincial juntas, the British Army, under the then Lt. Gen. Arthur Wellesley, guarded Portugal and campaigned against the French in Spain alongside the reformed Portuguese army. The demoralised Portuguese army was reorganised and refitted under the command of Gen, in the following year Wellington scored a decisive victory over King Josephs army at Vitoria. The years of fighting in Spain were a burden on Frances Grande Armée. The Spanish armies were beaten and driven to the peripheries. This drain on French resources led Napoleon, who had provoked a total war. War and revolution against Napoleons occupation led to the Spanish Constitution of 1812, the burden of war destroyed the social and economic fabric of Portugal and Spain, and ushered in an era of social turbulence, political instability and economic stagnation. Devastating civil wars between liberal and absolutist factions, led by officers trained in the Peninsular War, persisted in Iberia until 1850. The cumulative crises and disruptions of invasion, revolution and restoration led to the independence of most of Spains American colonies, the Treaties of Tilsit, negotiated during a meeting in July 1807 between Emperors Alexander I of Russia and Napoleon, concluded the War of the Fourth Coalition. With Prussia shattered, and Russia allied with France, Napoleon expressed irritation that Portugal was open to trade with the United Kingdom, furthermore, Prince John of Braganza, regent for his insane mother Queen Maria I, had declined to join the emperors Continental System against British trade. After a few days, a large force started concentrating at Bayonne, meanwhile the Portuguese governments resolve was stiffening, and shortly afterward Napoleon was once again told that Portugal would not go beyond its original agreements. After he received the Portuguese answer, he ordered Junots corps to cross the frontier into Spain, while all this was going on, the secret Treaty of Fontainebleau had been signed between France and Spain. The document was drawn up by Napoleons marshal of the palace Géraud Duroc and Eugenio Izquierdo, the treaty proposed to carve up Portugal into three entities. Porto and the part was to become the Kingdom of Northern Lusitania. The southern portion, as the Principality of the Algarves, would fall to Godoy, the rump of the country, centered on Lisbon, was to be administered by the French. According to the Treaty of Fontainebleau, Junots invasion force was to be supported by 25,500 men in three Spanish columns, Gen. Taranco and 6,500 troops were ordered to march from Vigo to seize Porto in the north. Capt. Gen. Solano would advance from Badajoz with 9,500 soldiers to capture Elvas, Gen. Caraffa and 9,500 men were instructed to assemble at Salamanca and Ciudad Rodrigo, and cooperate with Junots main force
38.
Battle of Corunna
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The Battle of Corunna took place on 16 January 1809, when a French corps under Marshal of the Empire Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult attacked a British army under Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore. The battle took place amidst the Peninsular War, which was a part of the wider Napoleonic Wars, doggedly pursued by the French under Soult, the British made a retreat across northern Spain while their rearguard fought off repeated French attacks. Both armies suffered extremely from the winter conditions. Much of the British army, excluding the elite Light Brigade under Robert Craufurd, suffered from a loss of order and discipline during the retreat. When the British eventually reached the port of Corunna on the northern coast of Galicia in Spain a few days ahead of the French they found their transport ships had not arrived. During the battle, Sir John Moore, the British commander, was mortally wounded, dying after hearing all the French attacks had been repulsed. In addition, Sir David Baird in command of an expedition of reinforcements out of Falmouth consisting of 150 transports carrying between 12,000 and 13,000 men, convoyed by H. M. S. Louie, Amelia and Champion, entered Corunna Harbour on the 13 October, by November 1808 the British army, led by Moore, advanced into Spain with orders to assist the Spanish armies in their struggle against the invading forces of Napoleon. After the surrender of a French army corps at Bailén and the loss of Portugal Napoleon was convinced of the peril he faced in Spain, deeply disturbed by news of Sintra, the Emperor remarked, I see that everybody has lost their head since the infamous capitulation of Bailén. I realise that I must go there myself to get the machine working again, the French, all but masters of Spain in June, stood with their backs to the Pyrenees, clutching at Navarre and Catalonia. It was not known if even these two footholds could be maintained in the face of a Spanish attack, by October French strength in Spain, including garrisons, was about 75,000 soldiers. They were facing 86,000 Spanish troops with Spains 35,000 British allies en route, with the fall of the monarchy, constitutional power devolved to local juntas. The British army in Portugal, meanwhile, was immobilized by logistical problems and bogged down in administrative disputes. Months of inaction had passed at the front, the revolution having temporarily crippled Patriot Spain at the moment when decisive action could have changed the whole course of the war. Certainly not your wretched Spanish troops who do not know how to fight, I shall conquer Spain in two months and acquire the rights of a conqueror. Starting in October 1808 Napoleon led the French on a brilliant offensive involving a double envelopment of the Spanish lines. The attack began in November and has described as an avalanche of fire. The main army, under Moore, had advanced to Salamanca and were joined by Hopes detachment on 3 December when Moore received news that the Spanish forces had suffered several defeats and he considered that to avoid disaster he must give up and retreat back to Portugal
39.
Walcheren Campaign
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Around 40,000 soldiers,15,000 horses together with field artillery and two siege trains crossed the North Sea and landed at Walcheren on 30 July. This was the largest British expedition of that year, larger than the serving in the Peninsular War in Portugal. The Walcheren Campaign involved little fighting, but heavy losses from the popularly dubbed Walcheren Fever. Although more than 4,000 British troops died during the expedition, only 106 died in combat, in July 1809, the British decided to seal the mouth of the Scheldt to prevent the port of Antwerp being used as a base against them. The primary aim of the campaign was to destroy the French fleet thought to be in Flushing whilst providing a diversion for the hard-pressed Austrians, however, the Battle of Wagram had already occurred before the start of the campaign and the Austrians had effectively already lost the war. John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham commanded the army, whilst Sir Richard Strachan commanded the navy, as a first move, the British seized the swampy island of Walcheren at the mouth of river Scheldt, as well as South Beveland island, both in the present-day Netherlands. The British troops soon began to suffer from malaria, within a month of seizing the island, the medical provisions for the expedition proved inadequate despite reports that an occupying French force had lost 80% of its numbers a few years earlier, also due to disease. Once it had decided to garrison Walcheren Island in September 1809. The French forces were commanded by Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, who had just been stripped of his command after disobeying orders at Wagram, dismissed from Napoleons Grande Armée, Bernadotte returned to Paris and was sent to defend the Netherlands by the council of ministers. With the main objective for the British out of reach, the expedition was called off in early September, around 12,000 troops stayed on Walcheren, but by October only 5,500 remained fit for duty. In all, the British government spent almost £8 million on the campaign, along with the 4,000 men that had died during the campaign, almost 12,000 were still ill by February 1810 and many others remained permanently weakened. Those sent to the Peninsular War to join Wellingtons army caused a permanent doubling of the sick lists there, a number of smaller vessels including customs-house and excise cutters were also involved, as was a packet ship. The City of London, Loyal Greenwich, and Royal Harbour River Fencibles also contributed men to the expedition, the 1st battalion of the Irish Legion was stationed in Flushing during the assault and received its baptism of fire there. It fought a rear guard action for days but the battalion was almost completely captured. The Legions brass band followed by the Irish battalion led the surrendered French garrison out of the town, however, a small party of Irishmen escaped and went into hiding with the battalions cherished imperial eagle, and after a few days they crossed the Scheldt River and escaped. Commandant Lawless was presented to Napoleon and he together with Captain OReilly received the Légion dhonneur in gratitude, the British Expeditionary Force to Walcheren,1809
40.
Battle of Nivelle
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The Battle of Nivelle took place in front of the River Nivelle near the end of the Peninsular War. After the Allied siege of San Sebastian, Wellingtons 80,000 British, Portuguese, after the Light Division, the main British army was ordered to attack and the 3rd Division split Soults army into two. By 2 oclock, Soult was in retreat and the British in an offensive position. Soult had lost 4,351 men to Wellingtons 2,450, in the Siege of San Sebastian, the Anglo-Portuguese stormed and captured the port at the beginning of September 1813. In the Battle of San Marcial on 31 August, Soult failed to break through the Spanish defences in his attempt to relieve the siege. The French army then fell back to defend the Bidassoa River, at dawn on 7 October the Anglo-Allied army overran the French river defences in the Battle of the Bidassoa in a surprise crossing. During this action, the allies also captured several fortified positions in the area of La Rhune mountain, both sides lost about 1,600 men in these actions. Soults lines stretched from the shores of the Atlantic on the French right flank to the pass of Roncesvalles on the left. With only 60,000 men, Soult was stretched to an almost impossible point and this also means that he could not hold troops back as reserves, something which may have turned the tide of the battle. As Soult moved back to his base at Bayonne, his position strengthened but he was not quick enough, the French position was dominated by the Greater Rhune, a gorse-covered, craggy mountain nearly 3,000 feet high. Separated from the Greater Rhune by a ravine, roughly 700 yards below it, is the Lesser Rhune along the precipitous crest of which the French had constructed three defensive positions. If the French defences on La Rhune could be taken Soults position would become dangerous as it would open him to attack from all elements of the British three point pincer plan. Wellingtons plan was to distribute troops along the whole of Soults line, any breakthrough in the centre or the French left flank would enable the British to cut off the French right Flank. So, Wellington ordered that the British left would be led by Sir John Hope and would involve the 1st, Wellington decided to attack on the 10th of November. The battle started just before dawn as the Light Division headed towards the plateau on the summit of the Greater Rhune, the objective of the division was to sweep the three defensive forts the French had constructed out of the battle. They moved down into the ravine in front of the Lesser Rhune and were ordered to lie down, after the signal from a battery of cannon, the offensive began. It started with the men of the 43rd, 52nd and 95th - with the 17th Portuguese Caçadores in support - storming the redoubts on the crest of the Rhune. Despite this being a move and the men being almost exhausted
41.
Battle of the Nive
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The Battles of the Nive were fought towards the end of the Peninsular War. Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellingtons Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish army defeated Marshal Nicolas Soults French army in a series of battles near the city of Bayonne, unusually, for most of the battle, Wellington remained with the Reserve delegating command to his senior Lieutenant-Generals Rowland Hill and John Hope. Wellingtons army had pushed the French army out of Spain, over the Pyrenees. After his defeat at Nivelle, Marshal Soult fell back to a line south of the town of Bayonne along the Adour. The rivers and the Bay of Biscay near Bayonne form a rough Greek letter Pi, the left vertical leg is the coast, the right vertical leg is the Nive and the crossbar is the Adour. Bayonne is located where the Nive joins the Adour, initially, Wellingtons army was confined to the area between the Bay of Biscay and the Nive. To gain room to manoeuvre, the British general had to establish his army on the east bank of the Nive, Wellingtons dilemma was that by separating two wings of his army, he would leave himself open to defeat in detail. Soult, a wily strategist, understood this and tried to take advantage of the situation, by moving the French army through the fortified city of Bayonne, Soult could easily switch his army from one bank of the Nive to the other. Despite poor weather, Hill led five Anglo-Portuguese divisions across to the east bank of the Nive near Ustaritz on 9 December, meanwhile, the remainder of the British force under Hope launched diversionary attacks towards Bayonne on the west bank of the Nive. Wellingtons Reserve included the 4th and 7th Divisions, about 630 casualties were suffered in these operations. The right flank of Hopes line was held by one brigade of the 7th Division at the bridge of Urdains, Charles Altens Light Division defended the centre near Bassussary. The left, under John Wilson, was held by Bradford, the ravine-filled terrain forced the French into these three corridors of attack. The 5th Division lay three miles to the rear while the 1st Division and Lord Aylmers independent British brigade were ten miles away, though Wellington ordered the line to be fortified, Hope failed to do this. The four divisions leading the attack were fresh while the troops were tired from skirmishing with Hills troops. The Light Divisions outpost line alertly detected the attack, though 50 men were cut off. The French advance soon came upon the ridge of Arcangues, topped by a chateau, Aylmers brigade arrived about 2 pm. The picket line on Hopes left flank was quickly gobbled up by Reilles attack and 200 men captured, for the most part, the Portuguese held sturdily, but one unit was broken by French cavalry. Fighting their way back to Barroilhet, the Portuguese held onto the village, the 5th Division arrived, but, due to a staff blunder, was low on ammunition
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Ireland
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Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth. Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, in 2011, the population of Ireland was about 6.4 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland, the islands geography comprises relatively low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland. The island has lush vegetation, a product of its mild, thick woodlands covered the island until the Middle Ages. As of 2013, the amount of land that is wooded in Ireland is about 11% of the total, there are twenty-six extant mammal species native to Ireland. The Irish climate is moderate and classified as oceanic. As a result, winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, however, summers are cooler than those in Continental Europe. Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant, the earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BC. Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century CE, the island was Christianised from the 5th century onward. Following the Norman invasion in the 12th century, England claimed sovereignty over Ireland, however, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the 16th–17th century Tudor conquest, which led to colonisation by settlers from Britain. In the 1690s, a system of Protestant English rule was designed to materially disadvantage the Catholic majority and Protestant dissenters, with the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s and this subsided following a political agreement in 1998. In 1973 the Republic of Ireland joined the European Economic Community while the United Kingdom, Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the fields of literature. Alongside mainstream Western culture, an indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music. The culture of the island shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, and sports such as association football, rugby, horse racing. The name Ireland derives from Old Irish Eriu and this in turn derives from Proto-Celtic *Iveriu, which is also the source of Latin Hibernia. Iveriu derives from a root meaning fat, prosperous, during the last glacial period, and up until about 9000 years ago, most of Ireland was covered with ice, most of the time
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West Indies
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Indigenous peoples were the first inhabitants of the West Indies. In 1492, Christopher Columbus became the first European to arrive at the islands, after the first of the voyages of Christopher Columbus to the Americas, Europeans began to use the term West Indies to distinguish the region from the East Indies of South Asia and Southeast Asia. In the late century, French, English and Dutch merchants and privateers began their operations in the Caribbean Sea, attacking Spanish and Portuguese shipping. These African slaves wrought a demographic revolution, replacing or joining with either the indigenous Caribs or the European settlers who were there as indentured servants. The Dutch, allied with the Caribs of the Orinoco would eventually carry the struggles deep into South America, first along the Orinoco and these interconnected commercial and diplomatic relations made up the Western Caribbean Zone which was in place in the early eighteenth century. In 1916, Denmark sold the Danish West Indies to the United States for US$25 million in gold, the Danish West Indies became an insular area of the US, called the United States Virgin Islands. Between 1958 and 1962, the United Kingdom re-organised all their West Indies island territories into the West Indies Federation and they hoped that the Federation would coalesce into a single, independent nation. West Indian is the term used by the U. S. government to refer to people of the West Indies. Tulane University professor Rosanne Adderly says he phrase West Indies distinguished the territories encountered by Columbus, … The term West Indies was eventually used by all European nations to describe their own acquired territories in the Americas. Despite the collapse of the Federation … the West Indies continues to field a joint cricket team for international competition, the West Indies cricket team includes participants from Guyana, which is geographically located in South America. More than Slaves and Sugar, Recent Historiography of the Trans-imperial Caribbean, a Concise History of the Caribbean. Martin, Tony, Caribbean History, From Pre-colonial Origins to the Present
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Canada
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Canada is a country in the northern half of North America. Canadas border with the United States is the worlds longest binational land border, the majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its territory being dominated by forest and tundra. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, One third of the population lives in the three largest cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg. Various aboriginal peoples had inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1,1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick and this began an accretion of provinces and territories to the mostly self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. With the Constitution Act 1982, Canada took over authority, removing the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level and it is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources, Canadas long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture. Canada is a country and has the tenth highest nominal per capita income globally as well as the ninth highest ranking in the Human Development Index. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, Canada is an influential nation in the world, primarily due to its inclusive values, years of prosperity and stability, stable economy, and efficient military. While a variety of theories have been postulated for the origins of Canada. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec City region used the word to direct French explorer Jacques Cartier to the village of Stadacona, from the 16th to the early 18th century Canada referred to the part of New France that lay along the St. Lawrence River. In 1791, the area became two British colonies called Upper Canada and Lower Canada collectively named The Canadas, until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841. Upon Confederation in 1867, Canada was adopted as the name for the new country at the London Conference. The transition away from the use of Dominion was formally reflected in 1982 with the passage of the Canada Act, later that year, the name of national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day
45.
Rebecca Riots
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The Rebecca Riots took place between 1839 and 1843 in South and Mid Wales. They were a series of protests undertaken by local farmers and agricultural workers in response to perceived unfair taxation, the rioters, often men dressed as women, took their actions against toll-gates, as they were tangible representations of high taxes and tolls. In 1844 a Parliamentary act to consolidate and amend the laws relating to trusts in Wales was passed. In the late 1830s and early 1840s, the communities of south Wales were in dire poverty. Grain harvests collapsed, but the price of butter between 1837 and 1841, and sheep between 1839 and 1841, was high, and even the low cattle prices of 1839 recovered by 1841. But by 1842 a general fall in prices occurred throughout the agricultural markets that continued into 1843, cattle prices slumped sharply in 1842, and the blame was placed on the Government, and in particular Robert Peels tariff measures which eased importation of foreign cattle and meat. In 1842, the harvest was one of the most successful in years, farm rents stayed mainly static, but the tithes, tolls and poor rates increased. Seeing themselves as victims of tyranny and oppression, the farmers, the first institutions to be attacked were the hated toll-gates. In the early 19th century many toll-gates on the roads in Wales were operated by trusts which were supposed to maintain and improve the roads, however, many trusts charged extortionate tolls and diverted the money raised to other uses. Even where this was not done, the laws imposed an additional financial burden on poor farming communities. The oppression, felt by the farmers, began in the late 1830s and this group was led by Thomas Bullin, an Englishman, who was hated by those who paid his tolls. The main reason for his dislike was the method of the toll collection. The side-bars were simple toll gates, away from the trunk roads. The first appearance of Rebecca, as the members called themselves, although this precedes the economic events of 1842, the early appearances of Rebecca were sporadic isolated outbursts, with the true body of rioting not beginning until the winter of 1842. Although these early uprisings were few and uncommon, they were the first appearance of mobs dressed in the guise of Rebecca and these gangs became known as Merched Beca or merely the Rebeccas. This verse was shouted many a time from the urban dwellers. Prior to destroying the toll gates, Rebecca would call to his followers who were dressed as women and perform a scene which involved the following words, Rebecca. There is something in my way, rioters, What is it, mother Rebecca
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Corfu
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Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its satellite islands. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality, the municipality has an area of 610.936 km2, the island proper 592.877 km2. The principal city of the island and seat of the municipality is also named Corfu, Corfu is home to the Ionian University. The island is bound up with the history of Greece from the beginnings of Greek mythology and its history is full of battles and conquests. Castles punctuating strategic locations across the island are a legacy of these struggles, two of these castles enclose its capital, which is the only city in Greece to be surrounded in such a way. As a result, Corfus capital has been declared a Kastropolis by the Greek government. From medieval times and into the 17th century, the island was recognised as a bulwark of the European States against the Ottoman Empire, the fortifications of the island were used by the Venetians to defend against Ottoman intrusion into the Adriatic. Corfu repulsed several Ottoman sieges, before falling under British rule following the Napoleonic Wars, in 2007, the citys old quarter was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List, following a recommendation by ICOMOS. Corfu is a popular tourist destination. The island was the location of the 1994 European Union summit, the Greek name, Kerkyra or Korkyra, is related to two powerful water deities, Poseidon, god of the sea, and Asopos, an important Greek mainland river. According to myth, Poseidon fell in love with the beautiful nymph Korkyra, daughter of Asopos and river nymph Metope, Poseidon brought Korkyra to the hitherto unnamed island and, in marital bliss, offered her name to the place, Korkyra, which gradually evolved to Kerkyra. They had a child they called Phaiax, after whom the inhabitants of the island were named Phaiakes, Corfus nickname is the island of the Phaeacians. The name Corfù, an Italian version of the Byzantine Κορυφώ, meaning city of the peaks, derives from the Byzantine Greek Κορυφαί, the northeastern edge of Corfu lies off the coast of Sarandë, Albania, separated by straits varying in width from 3 to 23 km. The southeast side of the island lies off the coast of Thesprotia and its shape resembles a sickle, to which it was compared by the ancients, the concave side, with the city and harbour of Corfu in the centre, lies toward the Albanian coast. With the islands area estimated at 592.9 square kilometres, it runs approximately 64 km long, two high and well-defined ranges divide the island into three districts, of which the northern is mountainous, the central undulating, and the southern low-lying. The more important of the two ranges, that of Pantokrator stretches east and west from Cape Falacro to Cape Psaromita, and attains its greatest elevation in the summit of the same name. The second range culminates in the mountain of Santi Jeca, or Santa Decca, as it is called by misinterpretation of the Greek designation Άγιοι Δέκα, or the Ten Saints
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