1.
William Orpen
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Major Sir William Newenham Montague Orpen, KBE, RA, RHA was an Irish artist who worked mainly in London. Orpen was a draughtsman and a popular, commercially successful, painter of portraits for the well-to-do in Edwardian society. During the First World War, he was the most prolific of the artists sent by Britain to the Western Front. There he produced drawings and paintings of ordinary soldiers, dead men, most of these works,138 in all, he donated to the British government and they are now in the collection of the Imperial War Museum. Both his parents were painters, and his eldest brother, Richard Caulfeild Orpen. The historian Goddard Henry Orpen was a cousin of his. The family lived at Oriel, a house with extensive grounds containing stables. Orpen appears to have had a happy childhood there, Orpen was a naturally talented painter and was enrolled, aged thirteen, at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art. He won every major prize there and also the British Isles gold medal for life drawing before leaving to study at the Slade School of Art between 1897 and 1899, at the Slade Orpen mastered oil painting and began to experiment with different painting techniques and effects. His two metre wide painting, The Play Scene from Hamlet won the Slade composition prize in 1899. Orpens The Mirror, shown at the NEAC in 1900, references both Jan van Eycks Arnolfini Portrait of 1434 and also elements of seventeenth-century Dutch interiors, such as muted tones and deep shadows. Orpen depicted the Arnolfini convex glass in other paintings, including A Mere Fracture in 1901. Also in 1901, Orpen held an exhibition at the Carfax Gallery in central London. Whilst at the Slade, Orpen became engaged to Emily Scobel, a model, in 1901, she ended their relationship and Orpen married Grace Knewstub, the sister-in-law of Sir William Rothenstein. After he left the Slade, from 1903 to 1907, Orpen ran a private teaching studio, between 1902 and 1915, Orpen divided his time between London and Dublin. He taught at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art and his teaching influenced a generation of young Irish artists and his pupils included Seán Keating, Grace Gifford, Patrick Tuohy, Leo Whelan and Margaret Clarke. A key figure in the Celtic revival was Hugh Lane, who was a friend and mentor to Orpen, from 1908 onwards, Orpen exhibited works in the Royal Academy on a regular basis. The most notable of these works was Midday on the Beach, John Singer Sargent promoted Orpens work and he soon built a lucrative reputation, in both London and Dublin, for painting society portraits
2.
War photography
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War photography involves photographing armed conflict and its effects on people and places. With the invention of photography in the 1830s, the possibility of capturing the events of war to public awareness was first explored. Similar to battle photography, portrait images of soldiers were often staged. In order to produce a photograph, the subject had to be perfectly still for a matter of minutes, so they were posed to be comfortable and minimize movement. A number of daguerreotypes were taken of the occupation of Saltillo during the Mexican–American War, in 1847 by an unknown photographer, John McCosh, a surgeon in the Bengal Army, is considered by some historians to be the first war photographer known by name. He produced a series of photographs documenting the Second Anglo-Sikh War from 1848–49 and he also photographed local people and architecture, artillery emplacements and the destructive aftermath. McCosh later photographed the Second Anglo-Burmese War where he photographed colleagues, captured guns, temple architecture in Yangon, the Hungarian–Romanian Carol Popp de Szathmàri took photographs of various officers in 1853 and of war scenes near Olteniţa and Silistra in 1854, during the Crimean War. He personally offered some 200 pictures albums to Napoleon III of France, the first official attempts at war photography were made by the British government at the start of the Crimean War. In 1854 Gilbert Elliott was commissioned to photograph views of the Russian fortifications along the coast of the Baltic Sea, Roger Fenton was the first official war photographer and the first to attempt a systematic coverage of war for the benefit of the public. Hired by Thomas Agnew, he landed at Balaclava in 1854, the photos were converted into woodblocks and published in The Illustrated London News. Due to the size and cumbersome nature of his photographic equipment, Fenton also photographed the landscape – his most famous image was of the area near to where the Charge of the Light Brigade took place. Fenton left the Crimea in 1855, and was replaced by the partnership of James Robertson, in contrast to Fentons depiction of the dignified aspects of war, Beato and Robertson showed the destruction. They photographed the fall of Sevastopol in September 1855, producing about 60 images, in February 1858, they arrived in Calcutta to document the aftermath of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. During this time they produced possibly the first-ever photographic images of corpses, in 1860 Beato left the partnership and documented the progress of the Anglo-French campaign during the Second Opium War. Teaming up with Charles Wirgman, a correspondent for The Illustrated London News, beatos photographs of the Second Opium War were the first to document a military campaign as it unfolded, doing so through a sequence of dated and related images. Their reconfigured scenes were designed to intensify the visual and emotional effects of battle, Gardner and Mathew Brady rearranged bodies of dead soldiers during the Civil War in order to create a clear picture of the atrocities associated with battle. In Soldiers on the Battlefield Brady produced a controversial tableau of the dead within a desolate landscape and this work, along with Alexander Gardners 1863 work Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter were images which, when shown to the public, brought home the horrific reality of war. Also during the American Civil War, Charleston photographer George S, the first photographs of South American warfare were published by the Montevideo firm of Bate & Cía
3.
Silhouette
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A silhouette is the image of a person, animal, object or scene represented as a solid shape of a single color, usually black, with its edges matching the outline of the subject. The interior of a silhouette is featureless, and the whole is typically presented on a background, usually white. The silhouette differs from an outline, which depicts the edge of an object in a linear form, while a silhouette appears as a solid shape. Silhouette images may be created in any visual media, but was first used to describe pieces of cut paper, which were then stuck to a backing in a contrasting colour. Other artists, especially from about 1790, drew an outline on paper, then painted it in, anything that appears this way, for example, a figure standing backlit in a doorway, may be described as in silhouette. Because of de Silhouettes austere economies, his name synonymous with anything done or made cheaply. Prior to the advent of photography, silhouette profiles cut from black card were the cheapest way of recording a persons appearance, the term silhouette, although existing from the 18th century, was not applied to the art of portrait-making until the 19th century. The silhouette is closely tied in mythology to the origins of art, pliny the Elder, in his Natural History Books XXXIV and XXXV, recounts the origin of painting. In Chapter 5 of Book XXXV, he writes, “We have no knowledge as to the commencement of the art of painting. The Egyptians assert that it was invented among themselves, six years before it passed into Greece. As to the Greeks, some say that it was invented at Sicyon, others at Corinth, but they all agree that it originated in tracing lines round the human shadow. “. In Chapter 15, he tells the story of Butades of Corinth, “Butades, a potter of Sicyon, was the first who invented, at Corinth, the art of modelling portraits in the earth which he used in his trade. Upon seeing this, her father filled in the outline, by compressing clay upon the surface, and so made a face in relief, the pots themselves exhibit strong forms in outline that are indicators of their purpose, as well as being decorative. For this reason profile portraits have been employed on coinage since the Roman era, the early Renaissance period saw a fashion for painted profile portraits and people such as Federico da Montefeltro and Ludovico Sforza were depicted in profile portraits. The profile portrait is linked to the silhouette. This is an important concept for artists who design characters for visual media, a silhouette portrait can be painted or drawn. However, the method of creating silhouette portraits is to cut them from lightweight black cardboard. This was the work of specialist artists, often working out of booths at fairs or markets, a traditional silhouette portrait artist would cut the likeness of a person, freehand, within a few minutes
4.
Battle of Broodseinde
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The Battle of Broodseinde was fought on 4 October 1917 near Ypres in Flanders, at the east end of the Gheluvelt plateau, by the British Second and Fifth armies and the German 4th Army. The battle was the most successful Allied attack of the Battle of Passchendaele, the unseasonal heavy rains in August had hampered British attempts to advance more than German attempts to maintain their positions. The plateau ran along the edge of the Ypres Salient and formed an obstacle to further eastward attacks. The battle followed the Battle of Menin Road on 20 September and the Battle of Polygon Wood on 26 September, Haig judged that the next attack, due on 6 October, would conclude the period of strictly limited advances. The following step would be an advance, with provision made for exploitation. Haig wanted XV Corps on the Belgian coast and the force of Operation Hush readied. Reserve formations of infantry, artillery, cavalry and tanks were to be made ready behind the Fifth and Second armies, capturing the ridge would probably take two more steps at three-day intervals, followed by another four days to repair roads over the captured ground. Haig explained that although exploitation of the due on 10 October was not certain. Divisions attacked on narrower fronts and troops advanced no more than 1,500 yards into the German defence zone, the tempo of the British operations added to the difficulty the Germans had in replacing tired divisions through the transport bottlenecks behind the German front. The British artillery preparation before Polygon Wood on 26 September, began 24 hours before the infantry attack, no formal artillery preparation was conducted before 4 October, except for the normal heavy artillery counter-battery fire and destructive fire on German strong-points. Despite the ruse of using practice barrages, a reliable agent informed the Germans that an attack was coming from as early as 1 October. The battle was almost called off when heavy rain began again on 2 October, the attack aimed to complete the capture of the Gheluvelt Plateau by the occupation of Broodseinde Ridge and Gravenstafel Spur. This would protect the flank of the British line and permit attacks on Passchendaele Ridge to the north-east. The attack was planned for 6 October, to give the II Anzac Corps time to prepare, twelve divisions were involved in the attack on a 14, 000-yard front. The original plan was to have the I Anzac Corps relieved after the Battle of Polygon Wood but the corps had fewer casualties and was fresher than expected, the two right flanking corps had 972 field guns and howitzers supported by 417 heavy and medium pieces. In the I Anzac Corps area, the 1st Australian Division objectives required an advance of 1, 200–1,800 yards, the first objective for the Anzac divisions was set just short of the crest of Broodseinde Ridge and the final objective another 200–400 yards beyond. The artillery plan had the first belt of creeping barrage beginning 150 yards beyond the jumping-off tapes, during the pause the barrage was to move 1,000 yards further to hit German counter-attacks and then suddenly return. At zero +130 minutes, it was to advance in 100-yard lifts every eight minutes to the final objective, after another pause the barrage was to creep forward at hourly intervals for 1,500 yards into the German defences
5.
East Yorkshire Regiment
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The East Yorkshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1685 as Sir William Cliftons Regiment of Foot and later renamed the 15th Regiment of Foot. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated with the West Yorkshire Regiment to form the Prince of Waless Own Regiment of Yorkshire in 1958. Subsequently, the regiment amalgamated with the Green Howards and the Duke of Wellingtons Regiment to form the Yorkshire Regiment on 6 June 2006. Raised in 1685 in Nottingham by Sir William Clifton, 3rd Baronet and it took part in the Battle of Killiecrankie in July 1689 and the Battle of Cromdale in April 1690 during the Jacobite rising of 1689 to 1692. It went on to fight at the Battle of Ramillies in May 1706, the Battle of Oudenarde in July 1708 and it returned to England in 1714. It was sent to Scotland and took part in the Battle of Glen Shiel in June 1719 during Jacobite rising, the regiment was deployed to South America where it took part in the Battle of Cartagena de Indias in March 1741 during the War of Jenkins Ear. It also saw action at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746 during the next Jacobite rising, in 1751, when the numerical system of designation of Regiments of Foot was adopted, it became the 15th Regiment of Foot. The regiment went on to part in the capture of Île-dAix in 1757 and, having sailed for North America in 1758. In 1782 the regiment became the 15th Regiment of Foot, the regiment was sent to North America again in spring 1776 for service in the American Revolutionary War. It saw action at the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, the Battle of White Plains in October 1776 and it also took part in the Battle of Brandywine in September 1777, the Battle of Germantown in October 1777 and the Battle of White Marsh in December 1777. The regiment was deployed to the West Indies in 1795 for service in the French Revolutionary Wars and fought at attacks on Martinique and Guadeloupe before returning to England in 1796. The regiment returned to the West Indies in 1805 for service in the Napoleonic Wars and took part in the invasion of Martinique in January 1809, the regiment spent most of the 19th century on garrison duty, both at home and throughout the Empire. The 1st Battalion was shipped to New Brunswick in 1862 at the time of the Trent Affair, when Britain, under the reforms the regiment became The East Yorkshire Regiment on 1 July 1881. The 2nd Battalion fought in the Second Anglo-Afghan War and the Second Boer War, the 1st Battalion landed at Saint-Nazaire as part of the 18th Brigade in the 6th Division in September 1914 for service on the Western Front. The 1/4th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the York, the 7th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of 50th Brigade in the 17th Division in July 1915 also for service on the Western Front. The 8th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 62nd Brigade in the 21st Division in September 1915 also for service on the Western Front, the 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th Battalions were raised in September 1914 from men volunteering in Hull. These units were additionally entitled 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th City of Hull battalions and they landed in Egypt as part of the 92nd Brigade in the 31st Division in December 1915 and then moved to France in March 1916 also for service on the Western Front. In 1935 the regiment was renamed The East Yorkshire Regiment, after its Colonel-in-Chief, in the Second World War, six hostilities-only battalions were raised
6.
Wiltshire Regiment
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The regiment was originally formed as the Duke of Edinburghs, taking the county affiliation from the 62nd Foot and the honorific from the 99th Foot. In 1921, the titles switched to become the Wiltshire Regiment, the regiments depot was at Le Marchant Barracks in Devizes. The senior partner in the amalgamated Wiltshire Regiment was the 62nd Regiment of Foot, the 62nd was formed in 1756, originally as the second battalion of the 4th Regiment of Foot. In 1758, the battalion was redesignated as the 62nd Regiment of Foot, although a regiment of the line, many of its companies were initially deployed as marines, serving with Admiral Boscawens fleet during the Siege of Louisbourg in 1758. The balance of the regiment remained in Ireland where they defended Castle Carrickfergus from a French invasion force in 1758, after its initial baptism, the regiment would go on to see active service in the American Revolutionary War. Being used as infantry, the regiment took part in General John Burgoynes doomed campaign. Twelve years after the end of the American Revolution, the regiment would fight against revolutionary, taking part in campaigns in West Indies, Sicily, and the Peninsula where they won the battle honours Nive and Peninsula. Following the conclusion of the Napoleonic wars, the 62nd rotated through the expanding British Empire and it would serve as parts of garrisons in Canada and Ireland before being dispatched to India. While in India, the 62nd became part of General Sir Goughs army during the First Sikh War, during the war, although it lost its colours twice to various mishaps, the regiment would earn its proudest honour at the Battle of Ferozeshah. In tribute to the service of its sergeants, who commanded the regiment when virtually all the officers were killed or incapacitated, eventually, the regiment rotated back to the Home Islands in time to be available for the Crimean War. From 1854 to 1856, the regiment served in the Crimea, the 62nd took part in the failed attack on the Great Redan Bastion, suffering heavy casualties. With the end of the Crimean War, the 62nd returned to its task of policing the British Empire, during its last quarter century as an independent regiment, the 62nd would serve in Canada, Ireland, India and as part of Aden garrison. In 1871, as part of Cardwell reforms, the 62nd was linked with the 99th Regiment of Foot, with the subsequent Childers reforms, the two regiments were amalgamated into a single regiment, the Duke of Edinburghs Regiment, in 1881. The 99th Regiment of Foot was raised in 1824 in Edinburgh by Major-General Gage John Hall. It was unrelated to earlier units designated as the 99th Regiment of the British Army, including the 99th Regiment of Foot, in 1832, the new 99th Regiment received its county title, becoming the 99th Regiment of Foot. During its early years, the 99th spent much of its time in the Pacific, the first detachments of the 99th Regiment arrived in Australia with convicts transported aboard the transport ship North Briton, destined for Tasmania, in 1842. The rest of the 99th arrived with successive shipments of convicts, the 99th rotated through various colonial posts during much of 1842 until being ordered to Sydney, Australia. However, the 99th soon earned a reputation, alienating the locals to such an extent that an additional regiment had to be assigned to Sydney
7.
Battle of the Somme
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The Battle of the Somme, also known as the Somme Offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British and French empires against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 November 1916 on both sides of the reaches of the River Somme in France. The battle was intended to hasten a victory for the Allies and was the largest battle of the First World War on the Western Front, more than one million men were wounded or killed, making it one of the bloodiest battles in human history. The French and British had committed themselves to an offensive on the Somme during Allied discussions at Chantilly, Oise, in December 1915. Initial plans called for the French army to undertake the main part of the Somme offensive, the first day on the Somme was, in terms of casualties, also the worst day in the history of the British army, which suffered 57,470 casualties. These occurred mainly on the front between the Albert–Bapaume road and Gommecourt, where the attack was defeated and few British troops reached the German front line, the battle is notable for the importance of air power and the first use of the tank. At the end of the battle, British and French forces had penetrated 10 km into German-occupied territory, the Anglo-French armies failed to capture Péronne and halted 5 km from Bapaume, where the German armies maintained their positions over the winter. Debate continues over the necessity, significance and effect of the battle, David Frum opined that a century later, the Somme remains the most harrowing place-name in the history of the British Empire. Allied war strategy for 1916 was decided at the Chantilly Conference from 6–8 December 1915, in December 1915, General Sir Douglas Haig replaced Field Marshal Sir John French as Commander-in-Chief of the BEF. Haig favoured a British offensive in Flanders close to BEF supply routes, to drive the Germans from the Belgian coast, Haig was not formally subordinate to Marshal Joseph Joffre but the British played a lesser role on the Western Front and complied with French strategy. A week later the Germans began an offensive against the French at Verdun, by 31 May, the ambitious Franco-British plan for a decisive victory, had been reduced to a limited offensive to relieve pressure on the French at Verdun with a battle of attrition on the Somme. The Chief of the German General Staff, Erich von Falkenhayn, intended to end the war by splitting the Anglo-French Entente in 1916, Falkenhayn chose to attack towards Verdun to take the Meuse heights and make Verdun untenable. The British would then have to begin a hasty relief offensive, Falkenhayn expected the relief offensive to fall south of Arras against the Sixth Army and be destroyed. If such Franco-British defeats were not enough, Germany would attack the remnants of armies and end the western alliance for good. Eloi, south of Ypres and reduced the German counter-offensive strategy north of the Somme, to one of passive, the Battle of Verdun began a week after Joffre and Haig agreed to mount an offensive on the Somme. The battle changed the nature of the offensive on the Somme, as French divisions were diverted to Verdun, German overestimation of the cost of Verdun to the French contributed to the concentration of German infantry and guns on the north bank of the Somme. The German offensive at Verdun was suspended in July, and troops, guns, the Brusilov Offensive, absorbed the extra forces that had been requested on 2 June by Fritz von Below, commanding the German Second Army, for a spoiling attack on the Somme. During the offensive the Russians inflicted c. 1,500,000 losses including c. 407,000 prisoners, three divisions were ordered from France to the Eastern Front on 9 June and the spoiling attack on the Somme was abandoned
8.
Windsor, Berkshire
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Windsor is a historic market town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the residences of the British Royal Family. The town is situated 23 miles west of Charing Cross, London,7 miles south east of Maidenhead and it is immediately south of the River Thames, which forms its boundary with its ancient twin town of Eton. Windlesora is first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the name originates from old English Windles-ore or winch by the riverside. By the late 12th century the settlement at Windelsora was renamed Old Windsor, the early history of the site is unknown, although it was almost certainly settled some years before 1070 when William the Conqueror had a timber motte and bailey castle constructed. The focus of royal interest at that time was not the castle, however, from about the 8th century, high status people started to visit the site occasionally, and possibly this included royalty. From the 11th century the sites link with king Edward the Confessor is documented, after the Conquest of 1066 royal use of the site increased, probably because it offered good access to woodlands and opportunities for hunting – a sport which also practised military skills. Windsor Castle is noted in the Domesday Book under the entry for Clewer, although this might seem strange, it occurred because plans for the castle had changed since 1070, and more land had been acquired in Clewer on which to site a castle town. This plan was not actioned until the early 12th century, King Henry married his second wife at Windsor Castle in 1121, after the White Ship disaster. The settlement at Old Windsor largely transferred to New Windsor during the 12th century,1170, under Henry II, following the civil war of Stephens reign. At about the time, the present upper ward of the castle was rebuilt in stone. It had a merchant guild from the early 13th century and, under patronage, was made the chief town of the county in 1277. Somewhat unusually, this gave no new rights or privileges to Windsor. Windsors position as town of Berkshire was short-lived, however. Wallingford took over this position in the early 14th century, as a self-governing town Windsor enjoyed a number of freedoms unavailable to other towns, including the right to hold its own borough court, the right of membership and some financial independence. The town accounts of the 16th century survive in part, although most of the once substantial borough archive dating back to the 12th century was destroyed, probably in the late 17th century. New Windsor was a significant town in the Middle Ages. Its prosperity came from its association with the royal household
9.
Windsor Great Park
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Windsor Great Park is a Royal Park of 2020 hectares, including a deer park, to the south of the town of Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. The park was, for centuries, the private hunting ground of Windsor Castle. Historically the park covered an area many times the known as Windsor Forest. The park is managed and funded by the Crown Estate, most parts of the park are open to the public, free of charge, from dawn to dusk, although there is a charge to enter Savill Garden. The park is Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks, the Great Park is a gently undulating area of varied landscape. It has sweeping deer lawns, small woods, coverts and areas covered by huge solitary ancient oak trees, there is a small river in the north of the park called the Battle Bourne running to the Thames near Datchet. The River Bourne runs through a number of ponds to the south, chief amongst these are Great Meadow Pond and Obelisk Pond, near the great lake of Virginia Water. The most prominent hill is Snow Hill and the avenue of trees known as the Long Walk runs between here and Windsor Castle, the main Sheet Street Road into Windsor runs through the north-east of the park. On the western side of the park is The Village, built in the 1930s to house Royal estate workers, other buildings include the Royal Lodge, Cumberland Lodge, the Cranbourne Tower and Norfolk Farm. The park lies mostly within the parish of Old Windsor, though the eastern regions are in the Borough of Runnymede and there are small areas in the parishes of Winkfield. Areas associated with or attached to the Great Park, but not officially within its borders include the Home Park, Mote Park, Flemish Farm, Cranbourne Chase, Forest Lodge, the modern enclosed Deer Park is at the northern end of the Great Park. It is home to a herd of semi-wild deer, reflecting the original medieval purpose of the park. The Long Walk runs south from Windsor Castle to the 1829 Copper Horse statue of King George III atop Snow Hill where there are views of the castle. It is 2.65 miles from George IV Gateway at Windsor Castle to The Copper Horse, other equestrian statues in the park include one of the Prince Consort, to the west of the polo grounds, and one of Queen Elizabeth II near the Village. The Royal Lodge was built in the centre of the park as the Deputy Rangers house and it was made in to a retreat for the Prince Regent from 1812, but was largely pulled down after his death. The remains were renovated, in the 1930s, as a home for the Duke and Duchess of York before their accession as George VI and it is now the official residence of the Prince Andrew, Duke of York and not accessible by the public. The Royal Chapel of All Saints was built after the chapels of the Royal, the chapel was built in 1825 by Jeffry Wyattville and regularly used by George IV during the refurbishment of Windsor Castle. It was later remodelled in the Gothic Revival style by Samuel Sanders Teulon, Queen Victoria often attended the chapel as did the Duke and Duchess of York before their accession as George VI and Queen Elizabeth
10.
Queen Victoria
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Victoria was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she adopted the title of Empress of India. Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, both the Duke of Kent and King George III died in 1820, and Victoria was raised under close supervision by her German-born mother Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. She inherited the throne aged 18, after her fathers three brothers had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. The United Kingdom was already a constitutional monarchy, in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, Victoria attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments, publicly, Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together, after Alberts death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, republicanism temporarily gained strength and her Golden and Diamond Jubilees were times of public celebration. Her reign of 63 years and seven months is known as the Victorian era and it was a period of industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. She was the last British monarch of the House of Hanover and her son and successor, Edward VII, belonged to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the line of his father. Victorias father was Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, until 1817, Edwards niece, Princess Charlotte of Wales, was the only legitimate grandchild of George III. Her death in 1817 precipitated a crisis that brought pressure on the Duke of Kent. In 1818 he married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, a widowed German princess with two children—Carl and Feodora —by her first marriage to the Prince of Leiningen and her brother Leopold was Princess Charlottes widower. The Duke and Duchess of Kents only child, Victoria, was born at 4.15 a. m. on 24 May 1819 at Kensington Palace in London. Victoria was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on 24 June 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace and she was baptised Alexandrina, after one of her godparents, Emperor Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. Additional names proposed by her parents—Georgina, Charlotte, and Augusta—were dropped on the instructions of the Dukes eldest brother, George, the Duke of Clarence and the Duke of Kent married on the same day in 1818, but both of Clarences daughters died as infants. Victorias father died in January 1820, when Victoria was less than a year old, a week later her grandfather died and was succeeded by his eldest son, George IV. The Duke of York died in 1827, when George IV died in 1830, he was succeeded by his next surviving brother, William IV, and Victoria became heir presumptive
11.
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
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His term as Commander-in-Chief of the Army in India saw him quarrel with another eminent proconsul, the Viceroy Lord Curzon, who eventually resigned. Kitchener then returned to Egypt as British Agent and Consul-General, in 1914, at the start of the First World War, Kitchener became Secretary of State for War, a Cabinet Minister. Kitchener died on 5 June 1916 when HMS Hampshire sank west of the Orkney Islands and he was making his way to Russia in order to attend negotiations when the ship struck a German mine. He was one of more than 600 killed on board the ship, Kitchener was born in Ballylongford near Listowel, County Kerry, in Ireland, son of army officer Henry Horatio Kitchener and Frances Anne Chevallier. His father had recently bought land in Ireland under a scheme to encourage the purchase of land after selling his commission. They then moved to Switzerland where the young Kitchener was educated at Montreux, then at the Royal Military Academy, pro-French and eager to see action, he joined a French field ambulance unit in the Franco-Prussian War. His father took him back to England after he caught pneumonia after ascending in a balloon to see the French Army of the Loire in action. Commissioned into the Royal Engineers on 4 January 1871, his service in France had violated British neutrality, and he was reprimanded by the Duke of Cambridge, the commander-in-chief. He served in Palestine, Egypt, and Cyprus as a surveyor, learned Arabic, Sir Walter Kitchener, had also entered the army, and was Governor of Bermuda from 1908 to 1912. In 1874, at age 24, Kitchener was assigned by the Palestine Exploration Fund to a mapping-survey of the Holy Land, replacing Charles Tyrwhitt-Drake, who had died of malaria. Conder and Kitchener’s expedition became known as the Survey of Western Palestine because it was confined to the area west of the Jordan River. The survey collected data on the topography and toponymy of the area, as well as local flora, the results of the survey were published in an eight-volume series, with Kitchener’s contribution in the first three tomes. This survey has had an effect on the Middle East for several reasons, The ordnance survey serves as the basis for the grid system used in the modern maps of Israel. The collection of data compiled by Conder and Kitchener are still consulted by archaeologists, the survey itself effectively delineated and defined the political borders of the southern Levant. For instance, the border between Israel and Lebanon is established at the point in upper Galilee where Conder and Kitchener’s survey stopped. In 1878 having completed the survey of Western Palestine, Kitchener was sent to Cyprus to undertake a survey of newly acquired British protectorate. Then in 1879 he became vice-consul in Anatolia, in 1883 Kitchener became a Freemason. On 4 January 1883 Kitchener was promoted to captain, given the Turkish rank bimbashi, Egypt had recently become a British puppet state, its army led by British officers, although still nominally under the sovereignty of the Khedive and his nominal overlord the Sultan of Turkey
12.
3rd Dragoon Guards
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The 3rd Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1685 as the Earl of Plymouths Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as the 3rd Regiment of Dragoon Guards in 1751 and it saw service for two centuries, including the First World War, before being amalgamated into the 3rd/6th Dragoon Guards in 1922. In 1746 it was ranked as the 3rd Dragoon Guards, shortly thereafter, in 1765, it took the title 3rd Dragoon Guards, for the future George IV. It took part in the suppression of the Bristol riots in 1831 and, after service in India, the regiment was employed chasing the elusive General Christiaan de Wet in spring 1901 during the Second Boer War. It retitled as 3rd Dragoon Guards in 1921, and was amalgamated with the 6th Dragoon Guards to form the 3rd/6th Dragoon Guards the following year, lord Robert Manners 1782 Gen. Philip Honywood 1785 Lt-Gen. Sir William Fawcett 1804 Gen. Richard Vyse 1825 Gen, sir William Payne-Gallwey, 1st Baronet 1831 Gen. Samuel Hawker 1839 Lt-Gen. Sir James Charles Dalbiac 1842 Lt-Gen, francis Newbery 1847 Gen. Charles Cathcart, 2nd Earl Cathcart 1851 Lt-Gen. Sir John Scott 1866 Gen. Robert Richardson Robertson 1883 Gen, sir William Henry Seymour 1891 Lt-Gen. Andrew Smythe Montague Browne 1905 Maj-Gen, sir Nevill Maskelyne Smyth after the regiment was amalgamated with the 6th Dragoon Guards British cavalry during the First World War Chant, Christopher. Battle Honours Awarded for the Great War
13.
Glamorgan Yeomanry
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The Glamorgan Yeomanry was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army originally raised in the late eighteenth century as a result of concern over the threat of invasion by the French. It also saw service in the Boer War, First World War, on 13 December 1899, the decision to allow volunteer forces to serve in the Second Boer War was made. This warrant officially created the Imperial Yeomanry, the Royal Warrant asked standing Yeomanry regiments to provide service companies of approximately 115 men each. In addition to this, many British citizens volunteered to join the new regiment, although there were strict requirements, many volunteers were accepted with substandard horsemanship/marksmanship skills, however they had significant time to train while awaiting transport. The first contingent of recruits contained 550 officers,10,371 men with 20 battalions and four companies, upon arrival, the regiment was sent throughout the zone of operations. The Glamorgan Yeomanry provided troops for the 4th Company, 1st Battalion, however, on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, many members volunteered for Imperial Service. Therefore, TF units were split in August and September 1914 into 1st Line, later, a 3rd Line was formed to act as a reserve, providing trained replacements for the 1st and 2nd Line regiments. The 1/1st Glamorgan Yeomanry was mobilised on 4 August 1914 as part of the South Wales Mounted Brigade on the outbreak of the First World War, the brigade was assembled at Hereford and moved to East Anglia by the end of August 1914. It joined the 1st Mounted Division the same month, replacing 1st South Midland Mounted Brigade which then moved to the 2nd Mounted Division, in November 1915, the brigade was dismounted. It was replaced in 1st Mounted Division by 2/1st Eastern Mounted Brigade when it departed for Egypt, with the brigade, the regiment was posted to Egypt in March 1916. On 20 March, the South Wales Mounted Brigade was absorbed into the 4th Dismounted Brigade, in March 1917 the regiment was re-roled as infantry and together with the Pembroke Yeomanry was converted into the 24th Battalion, The Welsh Regiment. It joined 231st Brigade in the 74th Division, in May 1918, the Division moved to France, where the battalion saw action on the Western Front. As part of the 74th Yeomanry Division it was involved in the following battles Second Battle of Gaza, Third Battle of Gaza, Battle of Beersheba, the 2nd Line regiment was formed in 1914. In January 1915 it joined the 2/1st South Wales Mounted Brigade, in September 1915, it moved with the brigade to Suffolk and joined the 1st Mounted Division. On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence, in July 1916 there was a major reorganization of 2nd Line yeomanry units in the United Kingdom. All but 12 regiments were converted to cyclists and as a consequence the regiment was dismounted, further reorganization in November 1916 saw the regiment departing for the 1st Cyclist Brigade where it was amalgamated with the 2/1st Pembroke Yeomanry as the 2nd Cyclist Battalion. The regiment resumed its identity as 2/1st Glamorgan Yeomanry in March 1917 at Leiston. It moved to Benacre in July and to Worlingham near Lowestoft at the end of the year and it was still at Worlingham in 1st Cyclist Brigade at the end of the war
14.
Hussey Vivian, 3rd Baron Vivian
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Hussey Crespigny Vivian, 3rd Baron Vivian GCMG CB DL FRGS was a British diplomat from the Vivian family. Born at Connaught Place, London, Vivian was the eldest son of Charles Vivian, 2nd Baron Vivian, and was educated at Eton College. In 1864, he was sent to Athens with a treaty for the transfer of the Ionian Islands to Greece. In 1873, Vivian was sent to Alexandria as Consul-General, transferred to Bucharest a year later, in 1878, he was appointed to the Order of the Bath as a Companion. He was sent to Bern as Minister Resident in 1879 and was promoted to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the Swiss Confederation in 1881. Few months later, he was transferred to Copenhagen and in 1884 to Brussels, having succeeded to his fathers title in 1886, he was appointed to be a Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Cornwall in 1887. In the 1890 Birthday Honours, he was promoted in the Order of St Michael and his final and highest position was to Rome in 1892, where he remained until he died from pneumonia in 1893. He was sworn of the Privy Council on the year of his death, the Prince of Naples was present at his funeral. On 8 June 1876, Vivian married Louisa Duff and they had five children, including, Dorothy Maud Vivian, George Crespigny Brabazon Vivian Alexandra Mary Freesia Vivian, married Charles Pelham, Lord Worsley. 1834–1842, Mr Hussey Vivian 1842–1878, The Hon. Hussey Vivian 1878–1881, The Hon. Hussey Vivian CB 1881–1886, His Excellency The Hon. Hussey Vivian CB1886, the Lord Vivian CB 1886–1887, His Excellency The Rt Hon. The Lord Vivian KCMG CB 1887–1890, His Excellency The Rt Hon, the Lord Vivian KCMG CB DL 1890–1893, His Excellency The Rt Hon. The Lord Vivian GCMG CB DL1893, His Excellency The Rt Hon, the Lord Vivian GCMG CB PC DL Radford, E. L. rev. Matthew, H. C. G. Vivian, Hussey Crespigny, third Baron Vivian, diplomatist, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
15.
Guinea (coin)
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The guinea was a coin of approximately one quarter ounce of gold that was minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814. From 1717 to 1816, its value was fixed at twenty-one shillings. Then, Britain adopted the standard and guinea became a colloquial or specialised term. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, where much of the used to make the coins originated. The name also forms the basis for the Arabic word for the Egyptian pound الجنيه el-Genēh / el-Geni, the first guinea was produced on 6 February 1663, a proclamation of 27 March 1663 made the coins legal currency. One troy pound of 11/12 fine gold would make 44½ guineas, the denomination was originally worth one pound, or twenty shillings, but an increase in the price of gold during the reign of King Charles II led to the market trading it at a premium. The price of gold continued to increase, especially in times of trouble, and by the 1680s, indeed, in his diary entries for 13 June 1667, Samuel Pepys records that the price was 24 to 25 shillings. The diameter of the coin was 1 inch throughout Charles IIs reign, Guinea was not an official name for the coin, but much of the gold used to produce the early coins came from Guinea in Africa. The coin was produced each year between 1663 and 1684, with the elephant appearing on some coins each year from 1663 to 1665 and 1668, and the elephant and castle on some coins from 1674 onward. The elephant, with or without the castle, symbolises the Royal African Company, the obverse and reverse of this coin were designed by John Roettier. The edge was milled to deter clipping or filing, and to distinguish it from the silver half-crown which had edge lettering, until 1669 the milling was perpendicular to the edge, giving vertical grooves, while from 1670 the milling was diagonal to the edge. John Roettier continued to design the dies for this denomination in the reign of King James II. In this reign, the coins weighed 8.5 g with a diameter of 25–26 mm, Coins of each year were issued both with and without the elephant and castle mark. The edge of the coins are milled diagonally, with the removal of James II in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, his daughter Mary, and her husband Prince William of Orange ruled jointly by agreement as co-monarchs. Their heads appear conjoined on the piece in Roman style, with Williams head uppermost. By the early part of this reign the value of the guinea had increased to thirty shillings. The guineas of this reign weighed 8, following the death of Queen Mary from smallpox in 1694, William continued to reign as William III. The coins of William IIIs reign weighed 8.4 g with a gold purity of 0.9123
16.
Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
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Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg was Queen of Spain as the wife of King Alfonso XIII. Victoria Eugenie was born on 24 October 1887 at Balmoral Castle, as Prince Henry was the product of a morganatic marriage, he took his style of Prince of Battenberg from his mother, who had been created Princess of Battenberg in her own right. To her family, and the British general public, she was known by the last of her names, therefore, she spent her childhood at Windsor Castle, Balmoral, and Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. She was a bridesmaid at the wedding of her cousins, the Duke and her father died while on active military service after contracting fever in Africa in 1896. After the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, the Battenbergs moved to London, in 1905, the King of Spain made an official state visit to the United Kingdom. Victoria Eugenies uncle, King Edward VII, hosted a dinner in Buckingham Palace, Alfonso was seated between Queen Alexandra and Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, King Edwards sister. He noticed Victoria Eugenie and asked who was the dinner guest with almost white hair, everybody knew that King Alfonso was looking for a suitable bride and one of the strongest candidates was Princess Patricia of Connaught, daughter of King Edwards brother, the Duke of Connaught. As Princess Patricia seemed not to be impressed by the Spanish monarch, Alfonso indulged his interest in Victoria Eugenie, when Alfonso returned to Spain he frequently sent postcards to Victoria Eugenie and spoke of her approvingly. Another obstacle to a marriage was Victoria Eugenies Protestantism, another potential problem was haemophilia, the disease that Victoria had transmitted to some of her descendants. Eugenies brother Leopold was a haemophiliac, so there was a 50% probability that Victoria Eugenie would be a carrier, still, if Alfonso married her, their issue could be affected by the disease. Some days later at Windsor, King Edward congratulated his niece on her future engagement, Princess Beatrice and her daughter arrived in Biarritz on 22 January and stayed at the Villa Mauriscot where some days later King Alfonso met them. At the Villa Mauriscot, Alfonso and his future bride conducted a chaperoned, then, Alfonso took Victoria Eugenie and her mother to San Sebastián to meet Queen Maria Cristina. The official reception of Victoria Eugenie into the Catholic faith took place on 5 March 1906 at Miramar Palace in San Sebastián, the terms of the marriage were settled by two agreements, a public treaty and a private contractual arrangement. Ratifications were exchanged on 23 May following. Article I, the treatys reference to the forfeiture of Victoria Eugénies British succession rights reflected neither the British governments censure of the alliance, nor any renunciation made by her. Rather, it was a recognition of the fact that by marrying a Roman Catholic. This exclusion was personal and limited, those among her descendants who do not become Roman Catholic remain in the line of succession to the British Throne, given at Our Court of Saint Jamess, the Third day of April 1906, in the Sixth Year of Our Reign. M Gladstone This was accompanied by a published declaration which read. Princess Victoria Eugenie married King Alfonso XIII at the Royal Monastery of San Jerónimo in Madrid on May 31,1906, present at the ceremony were her widowed mother and brothers, as well as her cousins, the Prince and Princess of Wales
17.
Alfonso XIII of Spain
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Alfonso XIII was King of Spain from 1886 until the proclamation of the Second Republic in 1931. Alfonso was monarch from birth as his father, Alfonso XII, had died the previous year, Alfonsos mother, Maria Christina of Austria, served as regent until he assumed full powers on his sixteenth birthday in 1902. With the political failure of the dictatorship, Alfonso impelled a return to the democratic normality with the intention of regenerating the regime, nevertheless, it was abandoned by all political classes, as they felt betrayed by the kings support of the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera. He left Spain voluntarily after the elections of April 1931. In exile, he retained his claim to the throne until 1941. Buried in Rome, his remains were not transferred until 1980 to the Pantheon of the Kings in the monastery of El Escorial, Alfonso was born in Madrid on 17 May 1886. He was the son of Alfonso XII of Spain, who had died in November 1885. The French newspaper Le Figaro described the king in 1889 as the happiest. His mother, Maria Christina of Austria, served as his regent until his 16th birthday, during the regency, in 1898, Spain lost its colonial rule over Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines to the United States as a result of the Spanish–American War. When he came of age in May 1902, the week of his majority was marked by festivities, bullfights, balls, by 1905, Alfonso was looking for a suitable consort. On a state visit to the United Kingdom, he stayed at Buckingham Palace with King Edward VII, there he met Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, the Scottish-born daughter of Edwards youngest sister Princess Beatrice, and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. He found her attractive, and she returned his interest, there were obstacles to the marriage. Victoria was a Protestant, and would have to become a Catholic, Victorias brother Leopold was a haemophiliac, so there was a 50 percent chance that Victoria was a carrier of the trait. Victoria was willing to change her religion, and her being a carrier was only a possibility. Maria Christina was eventually persuaded to drop her opposition, in January 1906 she wrote an official letter to Princess Beatrice proposing the match. Victoria met Maria Christina and Alfonso in Biarritz, France, later that month, in May, diplomats of both kingdoms officially executed the agreement of marriage. Alfonso and Victoria were married at the Royal Monastery of San Jerónimo in Madrid on 31 May 1906, with British royalty in attendance, including Victorias cousins the Prince, the wedding was marred by an assassination attempt on Alfonso and Victoria by Catalan anarchist Mateu Morral. As the wedding procession returned to the palace, he threw a bomb from a window which killed or injured several bystanders and members of the procession, on 10 May 1907, the couples first child, Alfonso, Prince of Asturias, was born
18.
Daily Mirror
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The Daily Mirror is a British national daily tabloid newspaper founded in 1903. It is owned by parent company Trinity Mirror, from 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply The Mirror. It had a daily print circulation of 716,923 in December 2016. Its Sunday sister paper is the Sunday Mirror, originally pitched to the middle class reader, it was transformed into a working-class newspaper after 1934, in order to reach a large, lowbrow audience. The Mirror has had a number of owners and it was founded by Alfred Harmsworth, who sold it to his brother Harold Harmsworth in 1913. In 1963 a restructuring of the interests of the Harmsworth family led to the Mirror becoming a part of International Publishing Corporation. The Mirror was owned by Robert Maxwell between 1984 and 1991, the paper went through a protracted period of crisis after his death before merging with the regional newspaper group Trinity in 1999 to form Trinity Mirror. The paper has supported the Labour Party since the 1945 general election. The Daily Mirror was launched on 2 November 1903 by Alfred Harmsworth as a newspaper for women, hence the name, he said, I intend it to be really a mirror of feminine life as well on its grave as on its lighter sides. To be entertaining without being frivolous, and serious without being dull and it was not an immediate success and in 1904 Harmsworth decided to turn it into a pictorial newspaper with a broader focus. Harmsworth appointed Hamilton Fyfe as editor and all of the female journalists were fired. The masthead was changed to The Daily Illustrated Mirror, which ran from 26 January to 27 April 1904, when it reverted to The Daily Mirror. The first issue of the paper did not have advertisements on the front page as previously. Two days later, the price was dropped to one halfpenny and to the masthead was added, circulation grew to 466,000 making it the second-largest morning newspaper. Alfred Harmsworth sold the newspaper to his brother Harold Harmsworth in 1913, in 1917, the price was increased to one penny. Circulation continued to grow, in 1919, some issues more than a million copies a day. Lord Rothermere was a friend of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler, the Mirror was the first British paper to adopt the appearance of the New York tabloids. By 1939, the publication was selling 1.4 million copies a day, in 1937, Hugh McClelland introduced his wild Western comic strip Beelzebub Jones in the Daily Mirror
19.
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
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Upon graduation, he was commissioned as a lieutenant in the British Army, where he served for some 40 years, seeing service in various parts of the British Empire. During this time he was created a royal duke, becoming the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. In 1911, he was appointed as Governor General of Canada and he occupied this post until being succeeded by the Duke of Devonshire in 1916. After the end of his tenure, Arthur returned to the United Kingdom and there, as well as in India, performed various royal duties. Though he retired from life in 1928, he continued to make his presence known in the army well into the Second World War. He was Queen Victorias last surviving son, Arthur was born at Buckingham Palace on 1 May 1850, the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The prince was baptised by the Archbishop of Canterbury, John Bird Sumner, as with his older brothers, Arthur received his early education from private tutors. It was reported that he became the Queens favourite child, following his arrival at Halifax, Arthur toured the country for eight weeks and made a visit in January 1870 to Washington, D. C. where he met with President Ulysses S. Grant. Arthur made an impression on many in Canada, as he became the 51st chief on the council, his appointment broke the centuries-old tradition that there should only be 50 chiefs of the Six Nations. Arthur was promoted to the rank of colonel on 14 June 1871, substantive lieutenant-colonel in 1876, colonel on 29 May 1880 and. He gained military experience as Commander-in-Chief of the Bombay Army from December 1886 to March 1890 and he went on to be General Officer Commanding Southern District, at Portsmouth, from September 1890 to 1893. The Prince had hoped to succeed his first cousin once-removed, the elderly Prince George, Duke of Cambridge, as Commander-in-chief of the British Army, upon the latters forced retirement in 1895. But this desire was denied to Arthur, and instead he was given, between 1893 and 1898, command of the Aldershot District Command, the regiment had recently been converted to the infantry role from the 2nd Battalion, 5th British Columbia Regiment of Canadian Artillery. With the Princes agreement the unit was renamed 6th Regiment, Duke of Connaughts Own Rifles on 1 May 1900 and he was subsequently appointed colonel-in-chief of the regiment, then known as The British Columbia Regiment, in 1923. He held that appointment until his death, on his mothers birthday in 1874, Arthur was created a royal peer, being titled as the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn and Earl of Sussex. Through his childrens marriages, Arthur became the father-in-law of Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Princess Alexandra, Duchess of Fife, arthurs first two children predeceased him, Margaret while pregnant with his sixth grandchild. For many years, Arthur maintained a liaison with Leonie, Lady Leslie, sister of Jennie Churchill, alongside his military career, he continued to undertake royal duties beyond, or vaguely associated with, the army. On the return from a posting in India, he again and he also toured Canada in 1906
20.
George V
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George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. He was the son of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. From the time of his birth, he was third in the line of succession behind his father and his own brother, Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence. From 1877 to 1891, George served in the Royal Navy, on the death of his grandmother in 1901, Georges father became King-Emperor of the British Empire, and George was created Prince of Wales. He succeeded his father in 1910 and he was the only Emperor of India to be present at his own Delhi Durbar. His reign saw the rise of socialism, communism, fascism, Irish republicanism, the Parliament Act 1911 established the supremacy of the elected British House of Commons over the unelected House of Lords. In 1917, George became the first monarch of the House of Windsor, in 1924 he appointed the first Labour ministry and in 1931 the Statute of Westminster recognised the dominions of the Empire as separate, independent states within the Commonwealth of Nations. He had health problems throughout much of his reign and at his death was succeeded by his eldest son. George was born on 3 June 1865, in Marlborough House and he was the second son of the Prince and Princess of Wales, Albert Edward and Alexandra. His father was the eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and he was baptised at Windsor Castle on 7 July 1865 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Longley. As a younger son of the Prince of Wales, there was expectation that George would become king. He was third in line to the throne, after his father and elder brother, George was only 17 months younger than Albert Victor, and the two princes were educated together. John Neale Dalton was appointed as their tutor in 1871, neither Albert Victor nor George excelled intellectually. For three years from 1879, the brothers served on HMS Bacchante, accompanied by Dalton. They toured the colonies of the British Empire in the Caribbean, South Africa and Australia, and visited Norfolk, Virginia, as well as South America, the Mediterranean, Egypt, Dalton wrote an account of their journey entitled The Cruise of HMS Bacchante. Between Melbourne and Sydney, Dalton recorded a sighting of the Flying Dutchman, after Lausanne, the brothers were separated, Albert Victor attended Trinity College, Cambridge, while George continued in the Royal Navy. He travelled the world, visiting many areas of the British Empire, during his naval career he commanded Torpedo Boat 79 in home waters then HMS Thrush on the North America station, before his last active service in command of HMS Melampus in 1891–92. From then on, his rank was largely honorary
21.
Delhi Durbar
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The Delhi Durbar, meaning Court of Delhi, was a mass assembly at Coronation Park, Delhi, India, to mark the succession of an Emperor or Empress of India. Also known as the Imperial Durbar, it was three times, in 1877,1903, and 1911, at the height of the British Empire. The 1911 Durbar was the only one attended by the sovereign, the term was derived from common Mughal term durbar. The 1877 Durbar was largely an official event and not a popular occasion with mass participation like later durbars in 1903 and 1911 and it was attended by the 1st Earl of Lytton—Viceroy of India, maharajas, nawabs and intellectuals. This was the culmination of transfer of control of much of India from the British East India Company to The Crown and it was at this glittering durbar that a man in homespun spotless white khadi rose to read a citation on behalf of the Pune Sarvajanik Sabha. Ganesh Vasudeo Joshi put forth a demand couched in polite language. With this demand, it can be said that the campaign for a free India was formally launched, the durbar would later be seen as controversial because it directed funds away from the Great Famine of 1876–78. The durbar was held to celebrate the succession of Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark as Emperor, the two full weeks of festivities were devised in meticulous detail by Lord Curzon, Viceroy of India. It was a display of pomp, power and split second timing. Neither the earlier Delhi Durbar of 1877, nor the later Durbar held there in 1911, souvenir guide books were sold and maps of the camping ground distributed. A special Delhi Durbar Medal was struck, firework displays, exhibitions, the assembly awaiting them displayed possibly the greatest collection of jewels to be seen in one place. Each of the Indian princes was adorned with the most spectacular of his gems from the collections of centuries, on the first day, the Curzons entered the area of festivities, together with the maharajahs, riding on elephants, some with huge gold candelabras stuck on their tusks. The durbar ceremony itself fell on New Years Day and was followed by days of polo and other sports, dinners, balls, military reviews, bands, the world’s press dispatched their best journalists, artists and photographers to cover proceedings. The popularity of movie footage of the event, shown in cinemas throughout India, is often credited with having launched the country’s early film industry. The India Post issued a set of two commemorative souvenir sheets with special cancellation struck on 1 January 1903 -12 noon, a sought after item for the stamp collectors today. Practically every ruling prince and nobleman in India, plus thousands of landed gentry and other persons of note, the official ceremonies lasted from 7 December to 16 December, with the Durbar itself occurring on Tuesday,12 December.05 ounces. His action was interpreted at the time as a sign of dissent to British rule, afterwards, the royal couple ascended to the domed royal pavilion, where the King-Emperor announced the move of Indias capital from Calcutta to Delhi. Then on 14 December the King-Emperor presided over a parade of 50,000 troops
22.
Royal Naval Reserve
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The Royal Naval Reserve is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve, created in 1859, the Royal Naval Reserve has seen action in World War I, World War II, the Iraq War and Afghanistan. This led to a Royal Commission on Manning the Navy in 1858 and this established the RNR as a reserve of professional seamen from the British Merchant Navy and fishing fleets, who could be called upon during times of war to serve in the regular Royal Navy. The RNR was originally a reserve of only, but in 1862 this was extended to include the recruitment. From its creation, RNR officers wore on their uniforms a unique, after initial shore training, officers embarked in larger ships of the Royal Navys fleet for one year, to familiarise themselves with gunnery and naval practice. In 1910, the RNR was formed to recruit and train fishermen for wartime service in minesweepers, prior to the First World War, one hundred RNR officers were transferred to permanent careers in the regular navy—forever after referred to as the hungry hundred. In their professional careers, many RNR officers went on to command the largest passenger liners of the day and some also held positions in the shipping industry. On mobilisation in 1914, the RNR consisted of 30,000 officers, Officers of the permanent RNR on general service quickly took up seagoing appointments in the fleet, many in command, in destroyers, submarines, auxiliary cruisers and Q-ships. Others served in units of the battle fleet including a large number with the West Indies Squadron who became casualties at the Battle of Coronel. One such casualty was armed naval drifter HMT Frons Olivae, which hit a mine off Ramsgate on 12 October 1915 in an explosion killed at least five other seamen. One casualty, a Newfoundlander serving with the Royal Naval Reserve, was buried in the Hamilton Road Cemetery, Deal. Merchant service officers and men serving in armed merchant cruisers, hospital ships, fleet auxiliaries, although considerably smaller than both the RN and the RNVR, the RNR had an exceptional war record, members being awarded twelve Victoria Crosses. Again, RNR officers found themselves in command of destroyers, frigates, sloops, landing craft and submarines, or as specialist navigation officers in cruisers, in convoy work, the convoy commodore or escort commander was often an RNR officer. As in the First World War, the RNR acquitted itself well, during the Second World War, no more ratings were accepted into the RNVR, which then became the main route for wartime officer entry. The service was called the Wavy Navy, after the 3/8-inch wavy sleeve rings that RNVR officers wore to differentiate them from RN/RNR officers. From 30 November 2007, mainly due to increasing involvement of the RNR in RN operations and deployments, similarly, RNR ratings no longer wear RNR shoulder flashes. From 1938 until 1957, the RNVR provided aircrew personnel in the form of their own Air Branch, in 1947, their contribution was cut to anti-submarine and fighter squadrons only. By 1957, it was considered by the UK government that the required to operate modern equipment was beyond that expected of reservists
