1.
Czech Republic
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The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, is a nation state in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the east and Poland to the northeast. The Czech Republic covers an area of 78,866 square kilometres with mostly temperate continental climate and it is a unitary parliamentary republic, has 10.5 million inhabitants and the capital and largest city is Prague, with over 1.2 million residents. The Czech Republic includes the territories of Bohemia, Moravia. The Czech state was formed in the late 9th century as the Duchy of Bohemia under the Great Moravian Empire, after the fall of the Empire in 907, the centre of power transferred from Moravia to Bohemia under the Přemyslid dynasty. In 1002, the duchy was formally recognized as part of the Holy Roman Empire, becoming the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198 and reaching its greatest territorial extent in the 14th century. Following the Battle of Mohács in 1526, the whole Crown of Bohemia was gradually integrated into the Habsburg Monarchy alongside the Archduchy of Austria, the Protestant Bohemian Revolt against the Catholic Habsburgs led to the Thirty Years War. After the Battle of the White Mountain, the Habsburgs consolidated their rule, reimposed Roman Catholicism, the Czech part of Czechoslovakia was occupied by Germany in World War II, and was liberated in 1945 by the armies of the Soviet Union and the United States. The Czech country lost the majority of its German-speaking inhabitants after they were expelled following the war, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia won the 1946 elections. Following the 1948 coup détat, Czechoslovakia became a one-party communist state under Soviet influence, in 1968, increasing dissatisfaction with the regime culminated in a reform movement known as the Prague Spring, which ended in a Soviet-led invasion. Czechoslovakia remained occupied until the 1989 Velvet Revolution, when the communist regime collapsed, on 6 March 1990, the Czech Socialistic Republic was renamed to the Czech Republic. On 1 January 1993, Czechoslovakia peacefully dissolved, with its constituent states becoming the independent states of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004, it is a member of the United Nations, the OECD, the OSCE, and it is a developed country with an advanced, high income economy and high living standards. The UNDP ranks the country 14th in inequality-adjusted human development, the Czech Republic also ranks as the 6th most peaceful country, while achieving strong performance in democratic governance. It has the lowest unemployment rate in the European Union, the traditional English name Bohemia derives from Latin Boiohaemum, which means home of the Boii. The current name comes from the endonym Čech, spelled Cžech until the reform in 1842. The name comes from the Slavic tribe and, according to legend, their leader Čech, the etymology of the word Čech can be traced back to the Proto-Slavic root *čel-, meaning member of the people, kinsman, thus making it cognate to the Czech word člověk. The country has traditionally divided into three lands, namely Bohemia in the west, Moravia in the southeast, and Czech Silesia in the northeast. Following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia at the end of 1992, the Czech part of the former nation found itself without a common single-word geographical name in English, the name Czechia /ˈtʃɛkiə/ was recommended by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2.
Josef Hoffmann
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Josef Hoffmann was an Austrian architect and designer of consumer goods. Hoffmann was born in Pirnitz / Brtnice, Moravia, Austria-Hungary and he studied at the Higher State Crafts School in Brno / Brünn beginning in 1887 and then worked with the local military planning authority in Würzburg, Germany. Thereafter he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna with Karl Freiherr von Hasenauer and Otto Wagner, in Wagners office, he met Joseph Maria Olbrich, and together they founded the Vienna Secession in 1897 along with artists Gustav Klimt, and Koloman Moser. Beginning of 1899, he taught at the Kunstgewerbeschule, now University of Applied Arts Vienna, with the Secession, Hoffmann developed strong connections with other artists. He designed installation spaces for Secession exhibitions and a house for Moser which was built from 1901-1903, with the banker Fritz Wärndorfer and the artist Koloman Moser he established the Wiener Werkstätte, which was to last until 1932. Hoffmanns style eventually became sober and abstract and it was limited increasingly to functional structures. In 1906, Hoffmann built his first great work on the outskirts of Vienna, compared to the Moser House, with its rusticated vernacular roof, this was a great advancement towards abstraction and a move away from traditional Arts and Crafts and historicism. This project served as a precedent and inspiration for the modern architecture that would develop in the first half of the 20th century. It had the clarity, simplicity, and logic that foreshadowed Neue Sachlichkeit and this masterpiece of Secession Style, was an example of Gesamtkunstwerk, replete with murals in the dining room by Klimt and four copper figures on the tower by Franz Metzner. In 1907, Hoffmann was co-founder of the Deutscher Werkbund, after World War II, he took on official tasks, that of an Austrian general commissioner with the Venice Biennale and a membership in the art senate. Some of Hoffmanns domestic designs can still be found in production today, originally produced in silver the range is now produced in high quality stainless steel. Another example of Hoffmann’s strict geometrical lines and the theme is the iconic Kubus Armchair. Designed in 1910, it was presented at the International Exhibition held in Buenos Aires on the centennial of Argentinean Independence known as May Revolution, Hoffmanns constant use of squares and cubes earned him the nickname Quadratl-Hoffmann. Although he said little to his students, Hoffmann was an esteemed and admired teacher. He tried to bring out the best in each member of his class by means of challenging assignments, and Gladys Aschermann and Louise Brigham. German designer Anni Schaad was another of his students, Le Corbusier was offered a job in his office, Schiele was helped financially and Kokoschka was given work in the Wiener Werkstätte. Hoffmann had voted for the union of Austria with Germany and, following its use by the British Government from 1945 to 1955 it was demolished. Hoffmann died in Vienna, aged 85, the critical reception of Hoffmann’s oeuvre has faithfully mirrored the changing tastes and ideologies in the history of 20th-century architecture
3.
Red Army
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The Workers and Peasants Red Army was the army and the air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, and after 1922 the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The army was established immediately after the 1917 October Revolution, the Bolsheviks raised an army to oppose the military confederations of their adversaries during the Russian Civil War. The Red Army is credited as being the land force in the Allied victory in the European theatre of World War II. During operations on the Eastern Front, it fought 75%–80% of the German land forces deployed in the war, inflicting the vast majority of all German losses and ultimately capturing the German capital. In September 1917, Vladimir Lenin wrote, There is only one way to prevent the restoration of the police, at the time, the Imperial Russian Army had started to collapse. The Tsarist general Nikolay Dukhonin estimated that there had been 2 million deserters,1.8 million dead,5 million wounded and 2 million prisoners and he estimated the remaining troops as numbering 10 million. Therefore, the Council of Peoples Commissars decided to form the Red Army on 28 January 1918 and they envisioned a body formed from the class-conscious and best elements of the working classes. All citizens of the Russian republic aged 18 or older were eligible, in the event of an entire unit wanting to join the Red Army, a collective guarantee and the affirmative vote of all its members would be necessary. Because the Red Army was composed mainly of peasants, the families of those who served were guaranteed rations, some peasants who remained at home yearned to join the Army, men, along with some women, flooded the recruitment centres. If they were turned away they would collect scrap metal and prepare care-packages, in some cases the money they earned would go towards tanks for the Army. Nikolai Krylenko was the supreme commander-in-chief, with Aleksandr Myasnikyan as deputy, Nikolai Podvoisky became the commissar for war, Pavel Dybenko, commissar for the fleet. Proshyan, Samoisky, Steinberg were also specified as peoples commissars as well as Vladimir Bonch-Bruyevich from the Bureau of Commissars, at a joint meeting of Bolsheviks and Left Socialist-Revolutionaries, held on 22 February 1918, Krylenko remarked, We have no army. The Red Guard units are brushed aside like flies and we have no power to stay the enemy, only an immediate signing of the peace treaty will save us from destruction. This provoked the insurrection of General Alexey Maximovich Kaledins Volunteer Army in the River Don region, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk aggravated Russian internal politics. The situation encouraged direct Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War, a series of engagements resulted, involving, amongst others, the Czechoslovak Legion, the Polish 5th Rifle Division, and the pro-Bolshevik Red Latvian Riflemen. The Whites defeated the Red Army on each front, Leon Trotsky reformed and counterattacked, the Red Army repelled Admiral Kolchaks army in June, and the armies of General Denikin and General Yudenich in October. By mid-November the White armies were all almost completely exhausted, in January 1920, Budennys First Cavalry Army entered Rostov-on-Don. 1919 to 1923 At the wars start, the Red Army consisted of 299 infantry regiments, Civil war intensified after Lenin dissolved the Russian Constituent Assembly and the Soviet government signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, removing Russia from the Great War
4.
Moravian Gallery in Brno
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The Moravian Gallery in Brno is the second largest art museum in the Czech Republic, established in 1961 by merging of two older institutions. It is situated in five buildings, Pražák Palace, Governors Palace, Museum of Applied Arts, Jurkovič House, since 1963 the gallery has organized the International Biennial of Graphic Design Brno. Together with the neighbouring Besední dům, the Pražák Palace constitutes one of he most remarkable Neo-Renaissance architectural complexes in Moravia, the Pražák Palace houses a permanent exhibition as well as temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art. The latest trends in the art scene are put on show in the Atrium, Space for a Single Artwork, the visitors can take advantage of the museum shop. The Pražák Palace houses a specialist library and study room, open to the public since 1883 with no interruption and it offers a possibility to study art historical journals and publications, as well as specialist literature from related disciplines. The building is also the seat of the headquarters of the Moravian Gallery in Brno, the history of this remarkable Baroque complex in Brno dates back to the mid-14th century. However, the present appearance of the former Augustinian monastery is in fact a result of its rebuilding in Baroque style by Moritz Grimm from the mid-18th century. Following the reforms introduced by Emperor Joseph II the monks were replaced by officers of the local government and of the Estates who resided there until well after the end of World War I. Today, the Governors Palace offers a permanent exhibition of art from the Gothic period to the 19th century, which includes the Drawing and Graphic Cabinet, the Governors Palace incorporates a baroque hall with a capacity of 150 seats, ArtMap bookstore and MORGAL Café. After World War II the building was adapted to plans by the leading functionalist architect Bohuslav Fuchs, the restoration project, designed by Ivan Koleček, Viktor Rudiš and Zdeňka Vydrová and completed in 2001, was received with great public acclaim. The museum houses a permanent exhibition of applied arts from the Middle Ages to the present day, comprising collections of glass, ceramics and porcelain, textiles, in addition to seeing the traditional displays visitors can take a virtual tour of the museum exhibits accessible through the Microgallery. The building also contains rooms for exhibitions and The Camera. The Museum of Applied Arts has a lecture room seating 70 people, the backup facilities for lecturing are provided by the Childrens Studio. The Jurkovič Villa is among the fine examples of architecture created in Brno around the beginning of the 20th century. Together with buildings to Jurkovičs designs in Pustevny, Luhačovice and the Nové Město nad Metují chateau, what the Tugendhat Villa did for functionalism in Brno, the Jurkovič Villa does for art nouveau architecture. Dušan Samo Jurkovič spent the part of his active life in Slovakia. However, he was a light of Czech architecture around the turn of the 19th century. At the beginning of the 20th century, Jurkovič designed several buildings for Brno investors, although his most remarkable work in the city was his own villa, designed and built in 1906
5.
Waldstein family
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The House of Waldstein is a Bohemian noble family, named after Valdštejn Castle near Turnov. The Waldstein noble family originated from the medieval Markvartici clan, which gained influence at the Přemyslid court in Prague under King Ottokar II of Bohemia, from about 1260, Burgrave Jaroslav of Hruštice had Valdštejn Castle erected. His son Zdeněk was the first documented Lord of Valdštejn, allegedly he accompanied King Ottokar II on his Prussian crusade, upon his death, his possessions were divided among his numerous descendants. The Waldsteins again appeared in life from the 15th century onwards. Albrecht von Wallenstein himself came from a modest cadet branch which since 1548 held the estate of Heřmanice. After the 1620 Battle of White Mountain, he purchased several confiscated lordships of his Protestant relatives, in 1628, he was one of the first among the Bohemian nobility to be promoted to Graf status, then to Reichsgraf two years later. After uniting with the line of another Bohemian noble family, the Lords of Vartenberk. After World War II, the Waldsteins, then almost completely Germanized, were expelled from Czechoslovakia and they then moved to Salzburg and Vienna in Austria, where parts of the family live to this day, but others returned to Bohemia. Valdštejn Castle was the main seat of the family until 1821. In 1582, they purchased the lands of the monastery of Třebíč. Mnichovo Hradiště Castle was acquired by Wallenstein in 1623 and he was buried there and it remained in his family until expropriation in 1945, so did Wallensteins Prague city palace, Wallenstein Palace. In 1622, he had purchased the lordship of Bělá pod Bezdězem. Duchcov Chateau passed into the family by inheritance from the House of Lobkowicz in 1642, together with Horní Litvinov, Dolní Litvinov and Dolní Jiřetín, in 1945, all properties in Czechoslovakia were confiscated. Jan VI of Valdštejn, Bishop of Olomouc 1302–1311 Jan was Supreme Land Judge of Bohemia from 1554 to 1570 and, until 1576 and he was a follower of the utraquist faith. His son, Adam the Younger, was also appointed Supreme Land Judge and he was a faithful Catholic supporter of the Holy Roman Emperor during the anti-Habsburg Bohemian Revolt and for these services he was granted more lands and posts in 1621. In 1627 was appointed Supreme Burgrave of Bohemia and a year later was elevated to the status of Reichsgraf of the Holy Roman Empire. These distinctions were received with mixed feelings – as a Bohemian šlechtic, he still recognized old Bohemian statehood and rules, with the support of other Bohemian noblemen, he brought about the abandonment of the policy of appointing more and more reichsgrafs. He wished to be allowed to die as a Bohemian pán, albrecht von Wallenstein Duke of Friedland, Mecklenburg & Fürst of Sagan, was a famous Imperial general during the Thirty Years War, known for his immense ambitions and tragic end
6.
Sister city
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In recent times, town twinning has increasingly been used to form strategic international business links between member cities. In the United Kingdom, the twin towns is most commonly used. In mainland Europe, the most commonly used terms are twin towns, partnership towns, partner towns, the European Commission uses the term twinned towns and refers to the process as town twinning. Spain uses the term ciudades hermanadas that means sister cities, Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic use Partnerstadt / Miasto Partnerskie / Partnerské město, which translate as Partner Town or City. France uses Ville Jumelée, and Italy has Gemellaggio and Comune gemellato, in the Netherlands, the term is Stedenband. In Greece, the word αδελφοποίηση has been adopted, in Iceland, the terms vinabæir and vinaborgir are used. In the former Soviet Bloc, twin towns and twin cities are used, the Americas, South Asia, and Australasia use the term sister cities or twin cities. In China, the term is 友好城市, sometimes, other government bodies enter into a twinning relationship, such as the agreement between the provinces of Hainan in China and Jeju-do in South Korea. The Douzelage is a twinning association with one town from each of the member states of the European Union. In recent years, the term city diplomacy has gained increased usage and acceptance, particularly as a strand of paradiplomacy and public diplomacy. It is formally used in the workings of the United Cities and Local Governments, the importance of cities developing their own foreign economic policies on trade, foreign investment, tourism and attracting foreign talent has also been highlighted by the World Economic Forum. The earliest known town twinning in Europe was between Paderborn, Germany, and Le Mans, France, in 836, starting in 1905, Keighley in West Yorkshire, England, had a twinning arrangement with French communities Suresnes and Puteaux. The first recorded modern twinning agreement was between Keighley and Poix-du-Nord in Nord, France, in 1920 following the end of the First World War and this was initially referred to as an adoption of the French town, formal twinning charters were not exchanged until 1986. The practice was continued after the Second World War as a way to promote mutual understanding, for example, Coventry twinned with Stalingrad and later with Dresden as an act of peace and reconciliation, all three cities having been heavily bombed during the war. Similarly, in 1947, Bristol Corporation sent five leading citizens on a mission to Hanover. Reading in 1947 was the first British town to form links with an enemy city – Düsseldorf. Since 9 April 1956 Rome and Paris have been exclusively and reciprocally twinned with other, following the motto, Only Paris is worthy of Rome. Within Europe, town twinning is supported by the European Union, the support scheme was established in 1989
7.
Switzerland
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Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a federal republic in Europe. It consists of 26 cantons, and the city of Bern is the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in western-Central Europe, and is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is a country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning an area of 41,285 km2. The establishment of the Old Swiss Confederacy dates to the medieval period, resulting from a series of military successes against Austria. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognized in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. The country has a history of armed neutrality going back to the Reformation, it has not been in a state of war internationally since 1815, nevertheless, it pursues an active foreign policy and is frequently involved in peace-building processes around the world. In addition to being the birthplace of the Red Cross, Switzerland is home to international organisations. On the European level, it is a member of the European Free Trade Association. However, it participates in the Schengen Area and the European Single Market through bilateral treaties, spanning the intersection of Germanic and Romance Europe, Switzerland comprises four main linguistic and cultural regions, German, French, Italian and Romansh. Due to its diversity, Switzerland is known by a variety of native names, Schweiz, Suisse, Svizzera. On coins and stamps, Latin is used instead of the four living languages, Switzerland is one of the most developed countries in the world, with the highest nominal wealth per adult and the eighth-highest per capita gross domestic product according to the IMF. Zürich and Geneva have each been ranked among the top cities in the world in terms of quality of life, with the former ranked second globally, according to Mercer. The English name Switzerland is a compound containing Switzer, a term for the Swiss. The English adjective Swiss is a loan from French Suisse, also in use since the 16th century. The name Switzer is from the Alemannic Schwiizer, in origin an inhabitant of Schwyz and its associated territory, the Swiss began to adopt the name for themselves after the Swabian War of 1499, used alongside the term for Confederates, Eidgenossen, used since the 14th century. The data code for Switzerland, CH, is derived from Latin Confoederatio Helvetica. The toponym Schwyz itself was first attested in 972, as Old High German Suittes, ultimately related to swedan ‘to burn’
8.
Orpund
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Orpund is a municipality in the Biel/Bienne administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Orpund is first mentioned in 1255 as Orpunt, the municipality was formerly known by its unknown name er Orpondes, however, that name is no longer used. The oldest traces of settlements in the area were neolithic, Bronze Age, a horde of Bronze Age items and a Roman era settlement were found on the Büttenberg. During the Middle Ages, the Counts of Neuchâtel-Nidau founded a monastery at Gottstatt, the village and the monastery jointly owned an island in the Thielle/Zihl river, which they used for fishing. At the end of the 14th century, Bern acquired all the lands around Nidau, part of the village was in the parish of Mett while the rest belonged to the parish church located on the Büttenberg hill near Orpund. During the Protestant Reformation of 1528, Gottstatt Monastery was secularized, on 8 May 1778 eight houses in the village burned to the ground. After the fire they were all rebuilt, however, the straw roofing and close quarters made another fire almost inevitable. On 24 February 1868 three houses were destroyed in a fire and this was followed by a major fire on 26 May 1868 which destroyed 26 houses and damaged several others. According to an 1808 survey, there were about 40 houses in the entire village, the Jura water correction projects of 1868-75 diverted the Aare river into Lake Biel and built the Nidau-Büren Canal through Orpund. The canal drained the Orpundmoos marsh and reduced flooding in the village, however, the changed river course also changed the border between Orpund and the neighboring municipality of Schwadernau. Orpund was generally rural and agrarian until the 1950s when it became a suburb of Biel/Bienne, both the population and industry increased rapidly in the municipality after the 1950s. A number of new housing developments sprang up around Orpund in the 1960s, a municipal school opened in 1970, with students coming from several surrounding municipalities. Today, many of the commute to jobs in Biel or other nearby cities. In 2005, industry still provides about 60% of all jobs in Orpund, Orpund has an area of 3.96 km2. As of 2012, a total of 1.55 km2 or 39. 1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 1.48 km2 or 37. 4% is forested. Of the rest of the land,0.82 km2 or 20. 7% is settled,0.09 km2 or 2. 3% is either rivers or lakes and 0.01 km2 or 0. 3% is unproductive land. During the same year, industrial buildings made up 1. 8% of the area while housing and buildings made up 14. 9%. Out of the land, all of the forested land area is covered with heavy forests
9.
Town
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A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size definition for what constitutes a town varies considerably in different parts of the world, the word town shares an origin with the German word Zaun, the Dutch word tuin, and the Old Norse tun. The German word Zaun comes closest to the meaning of the word. An early borrowing from Celtic *dunom, in English and Dutch, the meaning of the word took on the sense of the space which these fences enclosed. In England, a town was a community that could not afford or was not allowed to build walls or other larger fortifications. In the Netherlands, this space was a garden, more specifically those of the wealthy, in Old Norse tun means a place between farmhouses, and is still used in a similar meaning in modern Norwegian. If there was any distinction between toun and burgh as claimed by some, it did not last in practice as burghs, for example, Edina Burgh or Edinburgh was built around a fort and eventually came to have a defensive wall. In some cases, town is a name for city or village. Sometimes, the town is short for township. A places population size is not a determinant of urban character. In many areas of the world, as in India at least until recent times, in the United Kingdom, there are historical cities that are far smaller than the larger towns. Some forms of settlement, such as temporary mining locations, may be clearly non-rural. Towns often exist as governmental units, with legally defined borders. In the United States these are referred to as incorporated towns, in other cases the town lacks its own governance and is said to be unincorporated. Note that the existence of a town may be legally set forth through other means. In the case of planned communities, the town exists legally in the form of covenants on the properties within the town. Australian geographer Thomas Griffith Taylor proposed a classification of towns based on their age, although there is no official use of the term for any settlement. In Albanian qytezë means small city or new city, while in ancient times small residential center within the walls of a castle
10.
Village
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A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town, with a population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Though often located in areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods. Villages are normally permanent, with fixed dwellings, however, transient villages can occur, further, the dwellings of a village are fairly close to one another, not scattered broadly over the landscape, as a dispersed settlement. In the past, villages were a form of community for societies that practise subsistence agriculture. In Great Britain, a hamlet earned the right to be called a village when it built a church, in many cultures, towns and cities were few, with only a small proportion of the population living in them. The Industrial Revolution attracted people in numbers to work in mills and factories. This also enabled specialization of labor and crafts, and development of many trades, the trend of urbanization continues, though not always in connection with industrialization. Although many patterns of life have existed, the typical village was small. Homes were situated together for sociability and defence, and land surrounding the living quarters was farmed, Traditional fishing villages were based on artisan fishing and located adjacent to fishing grounds. The soul of India lives in its villages, declared M. K. Gandhi at the beginning of 20th century, according to the 2011 census of India,68. 84% of Indians live in 640,867 different villages. The size of these villages varies considerably,236,004 Indian villages have a population of fewer than 500, while 3,976 villages have a population of 10, 000+. Most of the villages have their own temple, mosque, or church, auyl is a Kazakh word meaning village in Kazakhstan. According to the 2009 census of Kazakhstan,42. 7% of Kazakhs live in 8172 different villages, to refer to this concept along with the word auyl often used the slavic word selo in Northern Kazakhstan. Peoples Republic of China In mainland China, villages 村 are divisions under township Zh, 乡 or town Zh, Republic of China In the Republic of China, villages are divisions under townships or county-controlled cities. The village is called a tsuen or cūn under a rural township, japan South Korea In Indonesia, depending on the principles they are administered, villages are called Kampung or Desa. A Desa is administered according to traditions and customary law, while a kelurahan is administered along more modern principles, Desa are generally located in rural areas while kelurahan are generally urban subdivisions. A village head is respectively called kepala desa or lurah, both are elected by the local community. A desa or kelurahan is the subdivision of a kecamatan, in turn the subdivision of a kabupaten or kota, the same general concept applies all over Indonesia
