Bleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas, or the Border War was a series of violent civil confrontations in the United States between 1854 and 1861 which emerged from a political and ideological conflict over the legality of slavery in the proposed state of Kansas. The conflict was characterized by years of electoral fraud, raids and retributive murders carried out in Kansas and neighboring Missouri by pro-slavery "Border Ruffians" and anti-slavery "Free-Staters". There were during part of this period two different governments, in different cities, with different constitutions, each — one slave, one free — claiming to be the legitimate government of the Territory of Kansas. At the core of the conflict was the question of whether the Kansas Territory would allow or prohibit slavery, thus enter the Union as a slave state or a free state; the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 called for popular sovereignty, specifying that the decision about slavery would be made by popular vote of the territory's settlers, rather than legislators.

Who the settlers of the territory were, therefore who had the right to vote on the question, became bitterly disputed matters. Those in favor of slavery argued that every settler had the right to bring his own property, including slaves, into the territory. In contrast, while some "free soil" proponents opposed slavery on ethical and humanitarian grounds, at the time the most persuasive argument against introducing slavery in Kansas was that it would allow rich slaveholders to control the land, to the exclusion of white non-slaveholders who regardless of their moral inclinations did not have the means to acquire either slaves or sizable land holdings for themselves. Missouri, a slave state since 1821, was populated by settlers with Southern sympathies and pro-slavery views, some of whom tried to influence the decision by entering Kansas and claiming to be residents; this faction used brutal gang violence and paramilitary guerrilla warfare, although there was some among the anti-slavery activists.

At the same time, anti-slavery societies in the Northeast were helping anti-slavery settlers move to Kansas. Kansas was admitted to the Union as a free state on January 29, 1861, made possible by the departure of the legislators from the states that had seceded earlier in January. However, partisan violence continued along the Kansas–Missouri border for most of the war; the term "Bleeding Kansas" was popularized by Horace Greeley's New York Tribune. Bleeding Kansas demonstrated the gravity of the era's most pressing social issues, from the matter of slavery to states' rights, its severity made national headlines, which suggested to the American people that the sectional disputes were unlikely to be resolved without bloodshed, it therefore anticipates the American Civil War. The episode is commemorated with historic sites; as abolitionism became popular in the United States and tensions between its supporters and detractors grew, the U. S. Congress maintained a tenuous balance of political power between Northern and Southern representatives.

At the same time, the increasing emigration of Americans to the country's western frontier and the desire to build a transcontinental railroad that would connect the eastern states with California urged incorporation of the western territories into the Union. The inevitable question was how these territories would treat the issue of slavery when promoted to statehood; this question had plagued Congress during political debates following the Mexican–American War. The Compromise of 1850 had at least temporarily solved the problem by permitting residents of the Utah and New Mexico Territories to decide their own laws with respect to slavery by popular vote, an act which set a new precedent in the ongoing debate over slavery. In May 1854, the Kansas–Nebraska Act created from unorganized Indian lands the new territories of Kansas and Nebraska for settlement by U. S. citizens. The Act was proposed by Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois as a way to appease Southern representatives in Congress, who had resisted earlier proposals to organize the Nebraska Territory because they knew it must be admitted to the Union according to the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which had explicitly forbidden the practice of slavery in all U.

S. territory north of 36°30' latitude and west of the Mississippi River, except in the state of Missouri. Southerners feared the incorporation of Nebraska would upset the balance between slave and free states and thereby give abolitionist Northerners an advantage in Congress. Douglas' proposal attempted to allay these fears with the organization of two territories instead of one, as well as the inclusion of a "popular sovereignty" clause that would, like the condition prescribed for Utah and New Mexico, permit settlers of Kansas and Nebraska to vote on the legality of slavery in their own territories – a notion which directly contradicted and repealed the Missouri Compromise. Like many others in Congress, Douglas assumed that settlers of Nebraska would vote to prohibit slavery and that settlers of Kansas, further south and closer to the slave state of Missouri, would vote to allow it, thereby the balance of slave and free states would not change. Regarding Nebraska this assumption was correct.

In Kansas, the assumption of legal slavery underestimated abolitionist resistance to the repeal of the long-standing Missouri Compromise. Southerners saw the passage of the Kansas–Nebraska Act as an emboldening victory

Nathaniel Meyer von Rothschild was a member of the Rothschild banking family of Austria, known as art collector and patron. Born in Vienna, he was the fifth child and first son of Anselm von Rothschild and his wife Charlotte von Rothschild, his grandfather Salomon Mayer von Rothschild, a native from Frankfurt, had founded the Viennese S M von Rothschild banking house in 1820, continued as the Creditanstalt by his father. Nathaniel as the eldest male was expected to take over the running of the family's Austrian banking business, he studied at Brünn but fell out of favor with his father who considered him extravagant and financially irresponsible. Rather than going into business, Nathaniel spent his life as a socialite who built mansions and collected works of art. From 1872 to 1884, he had the Palais Nathaniel Rothschild erected at 14-16 Theresianumgasse in Vienna-Wieden in a lavish Ringstraße style inspired by French Renaissance architecture, he himself lived alone in a small apartment, while in various parts of the building his large collection of art was on display.

The palais was badly afterwards demolished. In 1880, he purchased Enzesfeld Castle with its vast property from the Counts of Schönburg-Hartenstein, he had Hinterleiten Palace in Reichenau an der Rax erected in a Louis XIII style from 1884. The picturesque Reichenau area had become accessible from Vienna by the opening of the Southern Railway line and evolved into a popular retreat of the Viennese society, among them Habsburg Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria who had Villa Wartholz built nearby. Nathaniel Rothschild only spent two years at his palace before he placed it at the disposal of the Ministry of War to use it as a convalescent home for veterans. On his father's death in 1874, Nathaniel and his brother Ferdinand, owner of Waddesdon Manor, inherited most of the family's real estate and art collection; the family business went to the youngest brother Albert, who carried on the financial empire. Nathaniel Rothschild became known for his substantial philanthropic and charitable activities and was popular with members of Vienna's aristocratic society, something that aided the family image and therefore its business.

Beyond Vienna, he was as a benefactor to the Enzesfeld community, where in 1900 he donated the elementary school and funded other municipal works. Nathaniel Anselm von Rothschild died a bachelor in 1905, he is buried in Vienna. See the list of references at Rothschild banking family of Austria

Carl Brian Griffiths is an English-born Welsh former footballer and manager. He started his career with Shrewsbury Town in 1988, after being voted onto the PFA Team of the Year, moved on to Manchester City for £500,000 in October 1993. In August 1995 he transferred to Portsmouth for £200,000, moving on to Peterborough United for £225,000 in March 1996, he joined Leyton Orient for £65,000 in March 1997, where he stayed for four years, interrupted by short spells at Wrexham and Port Vale. He played for Luton Town between July 2001 and 2003 following a £65,000 transfer dropping into non-league football with Harlow Town, Braintree Town, Brentwood Town, Maldon Town, he represented Wales at under-21 level and for the "B" team. Within his three spells with Leyton Orient he achieved cult status and in 2004 received 9% of the vote for all-time cult hero behind Peter Kitchen and Terry Howard. Turning to management in 2008, he took charge of Brentwood Town for a year. In 2010, he was made manager of Aveley, before leaving this post the following year.

Griffiths started his career with Shrewsbury Town in September 1988 under the stewardship of Ian McNeill. The "Shrews" were relegated out of the Second Division in 1988–89 after finishing five points behind Hull City, they finished 11th in the Third Division in 1989–90 and 18th in 1990–91 under Asa Hartford, before suffering relegation under new boss John Bond in 1991–92 after finishing six points behind 20th place Exeter City, a team they had beaten 6–1 early in the campaign. He scored 27 goals in 1992 -- 93. For this achievement he was named on the PFA Team of the Year. Hitting 62 goals in 170 games during a difficult period at the Gay Meadow, he had done enough to be picked up by Brian Horton's Manchester City in October 1993 for a fee of £500,000, he scored four goals in 18 Premier League games in 1993–94 and 1994–95. He was moved on to Portsmouth as a £200,000 make-weight in the Kit Symons transfer in August 1995, he was utilized exclusively as a substitute by manager Terry Fenwick, making just two starts in 1995–96.

He moved on to Peterborough United for £225,000 in March 1996. The "Posh" avoided relegation in 1995–96 by a three-point margin. Peterborough could not avoid relegation out of the Second Division in 1996–97, though Griffiths had arrived back in the Third Division after spending November 1996 on loan at Leyton Orient. Scoring three goals in five games was enough to convince Tommy Taylor to spend £100,000 to bring him to Brisbane Road permanently in March 1997, he found his form with the "O's", finished as the fifth highest scorer in the Third Division in 1997–98 with 18 league goals. This tally included a hat-trick in an 8–0 demolition of Doncaster Rovers on 28 December, he hit nine goals in 31 games to fire Orient into the play-offs in 1998–99. However, he could not feature in the play-off Final, as he had left the club, he spent four weeks on loan at Wrexham from 14 January 1999, found the net in four of his five appearances for Brian Flynn's "Dragons". He moved to Port Vale in March 1999 for £100,000, as part of new manager Brian Horton's spending spree.

Making just three appearances in 1998–99, he played just seven times in 1999–2000, returned to former club Leyton Orient for £100,000 in December 1999. He scored four times in eleven games in 1999–2000, including a hat-trick in a 5–1 win over Chester at the Deva Stadium on 28 December, he returned to form in 2000–01, hitting 19 goals in 43 appearances to fire Orient into the play-offs, though he did not feature in the play-off Final defeat to Blackpool. In July 2001, he was sold to Joe Kinnear's Luton Town for £65,000, he scored a hat-trick of headers in a 5–1 win over Torquay United at Kenilworth Road on 22 September 2001. However injuries limited him to just ten appearances in 2001–02 and three appearances in 2002–03. Griffiths moved into non-league football with Harlow Town, Brentwood Town and Braintree Town. In November 2010, at the age of 39, Griffiths was still playing, scoring, for Barkingside of the Essex Senior League. On 24 May 2008, Griffiths was appointed manager of Brentwood Town.

He left the club despite the chairman's open pleas for him to stay. He was appointed assistant manager at Barkingside of the Essex Senior League. On 19 November 2010, Aveley announced that Griffiths had been appointed manager of the club with immediate effect and would bring together his ex-management team from Brentwood, consisting of Scott Canham, Gary Foley, Harry McCullum and Dean Parratt, he left Aveley in November 2011. Source: IndividualPFA Team of the Year: 1992–93