1.
Algeria
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Algeria, officially the Peoples Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a sovereign state in North Africa on the Mediterranean coast. Its capital and most populous city is Algiers, located in the far north. With an area of 2,381,741 square kilometres, Algeria is the tenth-largest country in the world, the country is a semi-presidential republic consisting of 48 provinces and 1,541 communes. Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been President since 1999, Berbers are the indigenous inhabitants of Algeria. Algeria is a regional and middle power, the North African country supplies large amounts of natural gas to Europe, and energy exports are the backbone of the economy. According to OPEC Algeria has the 16th largest oil reserves in the world, Sonatrach, the national oil company, is the largest company in Africa. Algeria has one of the largest militaries in Africa and the largest defence budget on the continent, most of Algerias weapons are imported from Russia, with whom they are a close ally. Algeria is a member of the African Union, the Arab League, OPEC, the countrys name derives from the city of Algiers. The citys name in turn derives from the Arabic al-Jazāir, a form of the older Jazāir Banī Mazghanna. In the region of Ain Hanech, early remnants of hominid occupation in North Africa were found, neanderthal tool makers produced hand axes in the Levalloisian and Mousterian styles similar to those in the Levant. Algeria was the site of the highest state of development of Middle Paleolithic Flake tool techniques, tools of this era, starting about 30,000 BC, are called Aterian. The earliest blade industries in North Africa are called Iberomaurusian and this industry appears to have spread throughout the coastal regions of the Maghreb between 15,000 and 10,000 BC. Neolithic civilization developed in the Saharan and Mediterranean Maghreb perhaps as early as 11,000 BC or as late as between 6000 and 2000 BC and this life, richly depicted in the Tassili nAjjer paintings, predominated in Algeria until the classical period. The amalgam of peoples of North Africa coalesced eventually into a native population that came to be called Berbers. These settlements served as market towns as well as anchorages, as Carthaginian power grew, its impact on the indigenous population increased dramatically. Berber civilization was already at a stage in which agriculture, manufacturing, trade, by the early 4th century BC, Berbers formed the single largest element of the Carthaginian army. In the Revolt of the Mercenaries, Berber soldiers rebelled from 241 to 238 BC after being unpaid following the defeat of Carthage in the First Punic War. They succeeded in obtaining control of much of Carthages North African territory, the Carthaginian state declined because of successive defeats by the Romans in the Punic Wars
2.
Glossary of vexillology
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Flag terminology is the nomenclature, or system of terms, used in vexillology, the study of flags, to describe precisely the parts, patterns, and other attributes of flags and their display. Badge A coat of arms or simple heraldic symbol, canton Any quarter of a flag, but commonly means the upper hoist quarter, such as the field of stars in the flag of the United States or the Union Jack in the Australian Flag. Charge A figure or symbol appearing in the field of a flag, emblem A device often used as a charge on a flag. It may be heraldic in origin or modern, for example the maple leaf on the Canadian Flag, field The background of a flag, the color behind the charges. Fimbriation A narrow edging or border, often in white or gold, for example the white and gold lines of the South African Flag. Fly The half or edge of a flag farthest away from the flagpole and this term also sometimes refers to the horizontal length of a flag. Hoist The half or edge of a flag nearest to the flagpole and this term also sometimes refers to the vertical width of a flag. Length The span of a flag along the side at right angles to the flagpole, width The span of a flag down the side parallel to the flagpole. Flags often inherit traits seen in traditional European heraldry designs and as a result patterns often share names, banderole or bannerol A small flag or streamer carried on the lance of a knight, or a long narrow flag flying from the mast-head of a ship. Banner Generically, a synonym for a flag of any kind, in heraldry, a flag whose design is the same as the shield in a coat of arms, but usually in a square or rectangular shape, also known as a banner of arms. Burgee A distinguishing flag of a recreational boating organisation, Civil ensign, merchant flag or merchant ensign A version of the national flag flown by civil ships to denote nationality. Civil flag A version of the flag flown by civilians on non-government installations or craft. Colour or color The flag of a military unit, courtesy flag or courtesy ensign A flag flown by a visiting ship in foreign waters as a token of respect. Ensign The flag of a ship or military unit, may also be used generically as a synonym for a flag of any kind. Fanion A small flag used by the French military, gonfalon, gonfanon or gonfalone A type of heraldic flag suspended from a crossbar. Guidon A small flag borne by a military unit, in Scots heraldry, a smaller version of the Standard. Pennon or pennant A flag larger at the hoist than at the fly, pipe banner A decorative flag for the Scottish Highland bagpipes. Prayer flag A type of flag found strung along mountain ridges and peaks in the Himalayas, rank flag or distinguishing flag The flag flown by a superior naval officer on his flagship or headquarters
3.
National flag
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A national flag is a flag that symbolizes a country. The flag is flown by the government, but usually can also be flown by citizens of the country, historically, flags originate as military standards, used as field signs. The practice of flying flags indicating the country of origin outside of the context of warfare became common with the flag, introduced during the age of sail. Most countries of Europe adopted a flag in the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The specifications of the flag of Denmark were codified in 1748, the flag of Switzerland was introduced in 1889, also based on medieval war flags. The Netherlands introduced two national flags in 1813, the Ottoman flag was adopted in 1844. Other non-European powers followed the trend in the late 19th century, the flag of Japan being introduced in 1870, the Flag of the United States is not defined in the constitution but rather in a separate Flag Resolution passed in 1777. Minor design changes of national flags are passed on a legislative or executive level. A change in national flag is due to a change of regime. In such cases, the origins of the national flag. In such cases national flags acquire the status of a political symbol, the flag of Germany, for instance, was a tricolour of black-white-red under the German Empire, inherited from the North German Confederation. The Weimar Republic that followed adopted a black-red-gold tricolour, nazi Germany went back to black-white-red in 1933, and black-red-gold was reinstituted by the two successor states, West Germany and East Germany following World War II. Similarly the flag of Libya introduced with the creation of the Kingdom of Libya in 1951 was abandoned in 1969 with the coup led by Muammar Gaddafi. It was used again by National Transitional Council and by anti-Gaddafi forces during the Libyan Civil War in 2011 and officially adopted by the Libyan interim Constitutional Declaration. There are three types of national flag for use on land, and three for use at sea, though many countries use identical designs for several of these types of flag. On land, there is a distinction between civil flags, state flags, and war or military flags, state flags are those used officially by government agencies, whereas civil flags may be flown by anyone regardless of whether they are linked to government. War flags are used by organisations such as Armies, Marine Corps. In practice, many countries have identical flags for these three purposes, national flag is used as a vexillological term to refer to such a three-purpose flag
4.
Civil ensign
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Civil ensign is the ensign used by civilian vessels to denote nationality. It can be the same or different from the state ensign and its also known as the merchant ensign or merchant flag. Some countries have civil ensigns for yachts, and even for specific yacht clubs. Most countries have one national flag and ensign for all purposes. In other countries, a distinction is made between the flag and the civil, state and naval ensigns. The civil ensigns that are different from the flag can be grouped into a number of categories. Several countries use red flags with, in most cases, either the national flag or the Union Flag in the canton. British overseas territories fly the plain Red Ensign or a Red Ensign with the colonial arms in the fly. Saudi Arabia puts its national flag in the canton of an otherwise-green flag, Ghana stopped using its Red Ensign in 2003 with the adoption of a new merchant shipping act, which made the Ghanaian flag the proper national colors for Ghana ships. Similarly, Sri Lanka stopped using its Red Ensign in 1969, several countries have civil ensigns that are very different from the national flag, for instance Malta and Luxembourg. Well-known examples are the Italian civil ensign showing the shield with the arms of the sea republics or the Polish civil ensign with the arms of Poland, most of these emblems were added to distinguish the ensign from similar flags of other countries or from other signal flags. In several countries there are two versions of the flag, a simpler one and a more elaborate one with the national arms. The simpler one is used as ensign, whereas the version with the arms is mainly used by the government. In Spain and Argentina the flag without the arms is only a variant for civil use, in El Salvador, the civil ensign also differs from the national flag in the proportions. France is a case, the overall proportion is the same. Civil and merchant ensigns Civil air ensign
5.
Ensign
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Ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern of the ship, the naval ensign, used on warships, may be different from the civil ensign or the yacht ensign. Large versions of naval ensigns called battle ensigns are used when a warship goes into battle, the ensign differs from the jack which is flown from a jackstaff at the bow of a vessel. In its widest sense, an ensign is just a flag or other standard, the European military rank of ensign, once responsible for bearing a units standard derives from it. In contrast, the Arab rank of ensign, liwa, derives from the command of a unit or units with an ensign, not the carrier of such a units ensign, and is a general officer. In Arab armies, ensign is a title equivalent to a Western brigade. In nautical use, the ensign is flown on a ship or boat to indicate its appartenance, while this includes its nationality, it may well indicate more information rather than being the national flag itself. This is particularly common for commonwealth and European countries, ensigns are usually at the stern flagstaff when in port, and may be shifted to a gaff or mast amidships when the ship is under way, becoming known as a steaming ensign. Vexillologists distinguish three varieties of a national flag used as an ensign, A civil ensign is worn by merchant. In some countries the yacht ensign, used on boats or ships instead of merchant vessels. A state ensign or government ensign is worn by government vessels, a naval ensign is used by a countrys navy. Such ensigns are strictly regulated and indicate if the vessel is a warship, a merchant ship, several Commonwealth countries national flags had their origin in the ensigns of their original colonising power, the United Kingdom. Most notable of these flags are those of Australia, New Zealand. It is also likely that the original design from which the flag of the United States developed was strongly influenced by the British Red Ensign or the flag of the East India Company. With the creation of independent air forces and the growth in aviation in the first half of the 20th century. These may be divided into air force ensigns and civil air ensigns, in heraldry, an ensign is the ornament or sign, such as the crown, coronet, or mitre, borne above the charge or arms. Distinguishing mark Maritime flag Znamierowski, Alfred, the world encyclopedia of flags, The definitive guide to international flags, banners, standards and ensigns
6.
Naval ensign
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Naval ensign is the ensign used by Navy vessels to denote nationality. It can be the same or different from the civil ensign and its also known as the war ensign. A large version of the naval ensign which is flown on a warships mast just before going into battle is called a battle ensign, the ensign differs from the jack which is flown from a jackstaff at the bow of a vessel. Most countries have one national flag and ensign for all purposes. In other countries, a distinction is made between the flag and the civil, state and naval ensigns. Some naval ensign differ in shape from the flag, such as the Nordic naval ensigns which have tongues. Naval ensigns that are different from the ensign and the national flag
7.
Maritime flag
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A maritime flag is a flag designated for use on ships, boats, and other watercraft. Naval flags are considered important at sea and the rules and regulations for the flying of flags are strictly enforced, the flag flown is related to the country of registration, so much so that the word flag is often used symbolically as a synonym for country of registration. Ensigns are usually required to be flown when entering and leaving harbour, when sailing through foreign waters, and when the ship is signalled to do so by a warship. Warships usually fly their ensigns between the morning ceremony and sunset when moored or at anchor, at all times when underway. When engaged in battle a warship often flies multiple battle ensigns and this tradition dates from the era of sailing vessels. Tradition dictated that if a ship lowered its ensign it was deemed to have surrendered, masts were targets of gunfire, and the second and subsequent ensigns were flown in order to keep the ensign flying even after a mast hit. Jacks are additional national flags flown by warships at the head of the ship and these are usually flown while not underway and when the ship is dressed on special occasions. Jacks in the Royal Navy must be run up when the first line is ashore when coming alongside, although they continued to fly the same ensign as U. S. Since then, commissioned ships of NOAA, which fly the same national ensign as U. S. Navy ships, have flown the flag of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as a distinguishing mark. Similarly, all ships of the United States Lighthouse Service flew the U. S, the rank flag or distinguishing flag is the flag flown by a superior officer on his flagship or headquarters. The origins of this are from the era before radiotelegraphy and radiotelephony, the flag denotes the ship which must be watched for signals designating orders. Such flags are also flown when leaders of the government are aboard Navy ships, today, with the progress in communications, this flag indicates the obligation of the other Naval vessels to pay the relevant honours according to nautical etiquette. In a group of ships all commanded by superior officers. In the Royal Navy, admirals fly rectangular rank flags, an Admiral of the Fleet flies a Union Flag, the flags of vice-admirals and rear-admirals have one and two additional red balls respectively. Commodores fly a Broad Pennant which is a short swallow-tailed pennant based on the St Georges Cross, in the United States Navy as well as in some other countries, admirals fly rectangular flags with stars according to rank. Line officer flags are blue with stars, while staff officer flags are white with blue stars. Captains, when commanding a flotilla or squadron, fly a burgee with the colours of Hellenic Navy Jack, when a rank flag is flown the commissioning pennant is displaced downward. The pennant, historically called a pennon, is a long narrow flag, conveying different meanings depending on its design, examples, A commissioning pennant, or masthead, which a warship flies from its masthead and indicates the commission of the captain of the ship
8.
Arabic
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Arabic is a Central Semitic language that was first spoken in Iron Age northwestern Arabia and is now the lingua franca of the Arab world. Arabic is also the language of 1.7 billion Muslims. It is one of six languages of the United Nations. The modern written language is derived from the language of the Quran and it is widely taught in schools and universities, and is used to varying degrees in workplaces, government, and the media. The two formal varieties are grouped together as Literary Arabic, which is the language of 26 states. Modern Standard Arabic largely follows the standards of Quranic Arabic. Much of the new vocabulary is used to denote concepts that have arisen in the post-Quranic era, Arabic has influenced many languages around the globe throughout its history. During the Middle Ages, Literary Arabic was a vehicle of culture in Europe, especially in science, mathematics. As a result, many European languages have borrowed many words from it. Many words of Arabic origin are found in ancient languages like Latin. Balkan languages, including Greek, have acquired a significant number of Arabic words through contact with Ottoman Turkish. Arabic has also borrowed words from languages including Greek and Persian in medieval times. Arabic is a Central Semitic language, closely related to the Northwest Semitic languages, the Ancient South Arabian languages, the Semitic languages changed a great deal between Proto-Semitic and the establishment of the Central Semitic languages, particularly in grammar. Innovations of the Central Semitic languages—all maintained in Arabic—include, The conversion of the suffix-conjugated stative formation into a past tense, the conversion of the prefix-conjugated preterite-tense formation into a present tense. The elimination of other prefix-conjugated mood/aspect forms in favor of new moods formed by endings attached to the prefix-conjugation forms, the development of an internal passive. These features are evidence of descent from a hypothetical ancestor. In the southwest, various Central Semitic languages both belonging to and outside of the Ancient South Arabian family were spoken and it is also believed that the ancestors of the Modern South Arabian languages were also spoken in southern Arabia at this time. To the north, in the oases of northern Hijaz, Dadanitic and Taymanitic held some prestige as inscriptional languages, in Najd and parts of western Arabia, a language known to scholars as Thamudic C is attested
9.
Charge (heraldry)
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In heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an escutcheon. This may be a design or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant. In French blazon, the ordinaries are called pièces while other charges are called meubles, while thousands of objects found in nature, mythology or technology have appeared in armory, there are several charges which have contributed to the distinctive flavour of heraldic design. Only these and a few other notable charges are discussed in this article, some heraldic writers distinguish, albeit arbitrarily, between honourable ordinaries and sub-ordinaries. While some authors hold that only nine charges are honourable ordinaries, the remainder are often termed sub-ordinaries, and narrower or smaller versions of the ordinaries are called diminutives. Apparently ceding the point for the moment, Fox-Davies lists the generally agreed-upon honourable ordinaries as the bend, fess, pale, pile, chevron, cross, saltire and chief. Boutell lists the chief, pale, bend, bend sinister, fess, bar, cross, saltire and cheveron as the honourable ordinaries. Thus, the chief, bend, pale, fess, chevron, cross and saltire appear to be the undisputed ordinaries, while authors disagree over the status of the pile, bar, inescutcheon, bordure and others. Several different figures are recognised as honourable ordinaries, each normally occupying about one-fifth to one-third of the field, the chief is the upper portion of the field. The bend runs from the left to the lower right, as \. The bend sinister runs from the right to the lower left. The pale, a stripe in the centre of the field. The fess is a horizontal stripe across the centre of the field. The chevron is a construction shaped like an inverted letter V, the cross is a geometric construction of two perpendicular lines or bands. It has hundreds of variants, most of which are common charges rather than ordinaries, the saltire is a diagonal cross, often called Saint Andrews cross. Most of the ordinaries have corresponding diminutives, narrower versions, most often mentioned when two or more appear in parallel, bendlets, pallets, bars, chevronels, in addition to those mentioned in the above section, other ordinaries exist. Some of these are variously called honourable ordinaries by different authors, the pall or pairle is shaped like the letter Y. The pile is a wedge issuing from the top of the field and its length and width vary widely
10.
Star and crescent
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The star and crescent develops in the iconography of the Hellenistic period in Pontus, the Bosporan Kingdom, and notably Byzantium by the 2nd century BC. Coins with crescent and star symbols represented separately have a longer history, the star or Sun is often shown within the arc of the crescent, In numismatics in particular, the term crescent and pellet is used in cases where the star is simplified to a single dot. In Byzantium, the symbol became associated its patron goddess Artemis-Hecate, Ancient depictions of the symbol always show the crescent with horns pointing upward, and with the star placed inside the crescent. This arrangement is found on Sassanid coins beginning in the 5th or 6th century. The combination is found rarely in late medieval and early modern heraldry. It rose to prominence with its adoption as the flag and emblem of the Ottoman Empire and of some of its administrative divisions, and later in the 19th-century Westernizing tanzimat. The Ottoman flag of 1844 with a white ay-yıldız on a red background continues to be in use as the flag of the Republic of Turkey with minor modifications, other states formerly part of the Ottoman Empire also used the symbol, including Libya, Tunisia and Algeria. The same symbol was used in national flags introduced during the 20th century, including the flags of Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Malaysia, Singapore. Unicode introduced a star and crescent character in its Miscellaneous Symbols block, in Late Bronze Age Canaan, star and crescent moon motifs are also found on Moabite name seals. The depiction of the crescent-and-star or star inside crescent as it would develop in Bosporan Kingdom is difficult to trace to Mesopotamian art. An example of such an arrangement is found in the reconstruction of a fragmentary stele of Ur-Nammu discovered in the 1920s. Mithradates VI Eupator of Pontus used an eight rayed star with a crescent moon as his emblem, several possible interpretations of the emblem have been proposed. In most of these, the star is taken to represent the Sun, if any goddess had a connection with the walls in Constantinople, it was Hecate. Hecate had a cult in Byzantium from the time of its founding, like Byzas in one legend, she had her origins in Thrace. Hecate was considered the goddess of Byzantium because she was said to have saved the city from an attack by Philip of Macedon in 340 BC by the appearance of a bright light in the sky. To commemorate the event the Byzantines erected a statue of the known as the Lampadephoros. Some Byzantine coins of the 1st century BC and later show the head of Artemis with bow and quiver, the star and crescent symbol appears on some coins of the Parthan vassal kingdom of Elymais in the late 1st century AD. The same symbol is present in coins that are associated with Orodes I of Parthia
11.
Blazon
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In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb to blazon means to such a description. Blazon also refers to the language in which a blazon is written. This language has its own vocabulary, grammar and syntax, or rules governing word order, other objects — such as badges, banners, and seals — may also be described in blazon. The word blazon is not to be confused with the verb to emblazon, or the noun emblazonment, the word blazon is derived from French blason, shield. It was found in English by the end of the 14th century, formerly, experts in heraldry assumed that the word was related to the German verb blasen, to blow. Present-day lexicographers reject this theory as conjectural and disproved, the blazon of armorials follows a rigid formula, designed to eliminate ambiguity of interpretation, to be as concise as possible and to avoid repetition and extraneous punctuation. The nomenclature is equally significant, and its aim is to combine definitive exactness with a brevity that is indeed laconic. The rules of blazonry are as follows, Every blazon of a coat of arms begins by describing the field, with first letter as a capital, in a majority of cases this is a single tincture, e. g. Azure. If the field is complex, the variation is described, followed by the used, e. g. Chequy gules. The most common names are historically abbreviated. A Tincture is named only once in a given blazon, the principal charge are then named, with their tincture, e. g. a bend or. The principal charge is followed by any other charges placed around or on it, if a charge be a bird or beast, its attitude is described, followed by the animals tincture, followed by anything that may be differently coloured, e. g. An eagle displayed gules armed and wings charged with trefoils or, any accessories present — such as crown/coronet, helmet, torse, mantling, crest, motto, supporters and compartment — are then described in turn, using the same terminology and syntax. According to Boutell, It appears desirable always to print all heraldic blazon in italic, heraldry has its own vocabulary, word-order and punctuation, and showing it in italics thus indicates to the reader the presence of a quasi-foreign language. A quartered shield is blazoned one quarter at a time, proceeding by rows from chief to base, a divided shield is blazoned party per or parted per, though the word party or parted is almost always omitted. A tincture is sometimes replaced by of the first, of the second etc. to avoid repetition of tincture names, counterchanged means that a charge which straddles a line of division is tinctured of the same tinctures as the divided field, reversed. But as to the formulae of blazoning, John Brooke-Little, Norroy and Ulster King of Arms, wrote in 1985
12.
Barbary pirates
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This area was known in Europe as the Barbary Coast, a term derived from the name of its Berber inhabitants. The main purpose of their attacks was to capture Christian slaves for the Ottoman slave trade as well as the general Muslim slavery market in North Africa and the Middle East. In that period Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli came under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire, similar raids were undertaken from Salé and other ports in Morocco. Corsairs captured thousands of ships and repeatedly raided coastal towns, as a result, residents abandoned their former villages of long stretches of coast in Spain and Italy. The raids were such a problem coastal settlements were seldom undertaken until the 19th century, from the 16th to 19th century, corsairs captured an estimated 800,000 to 1.25 million people as slaves. Some corsairs were European outcasts and converts such as John Ward, Hayreddin Barbarossa and Oruç Reis, Turkish Barbarossa Brothers, who took control of Algiers on behalf of the Ottomans in the early 16th century, were also notorious corsairs. The European pirates brought advanced sailing and shipbuilding techniques to the Barbary Coast around 1600, the effects of the Barbary raids peaked in the early to mid-17th century. However, the ships and coasts of Christian states without such effective protection continued to suffer until the early 19th century. Following the Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna in 1814–15, European powers agreed upon the need to suppress the Barbary corsairs entirely and the threat was largely subdued. Occasional incidents occurred, including two Barbary wars between the United States and the Barbary States, until terminated by the French conquest of Algiers in 1830. Piracy by Muslim populations had been known in the Mediterranean since at least the 9th century, in the 14th century Tunisian corsairs became enough of a threat to provoke a Franco-Genoese attack on Mahdia in 1390, also known as the Barbary Crusade. The Barbary pirates had long attacked English and other European shipping along the North Coast of Africa and they had been attacking English merchant and passengers ships since the 1600s. Regular fundraising for ransoms was undertaken generally by families and local church groups, the government did not ransom ordinary persons. The English became familiar with captivity narratives written by Barbary pirates prisoners and ransomed captives, during the American Revolution the pirates attacked American ships. The Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship stands as the U. S. s oldest non-broken friendship treaty with a foreign power, in 1778 Morocco became the first nation to recognize the new United States. As late as 1798, an islet near Sardinia was attacked by the Tunisians, throughout history, geography was on the pirates side on the Northern coast of Africa. The coast was ideal for their wants and needs, with natural harbours often backed by lagoons, it provided a haven for guerrilla warfare, such as attacks on shipping vessels venturing through their territory. On the coast, mountainous areas provided ample reconnaissance for the corsairs as well, ships were spotted from afar, the pirates had time to prepare their attacks and surprise the ships
13.
Laureys a Castro
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Laureys a Castro or Lorenzo A. Castro was a Flemish painter of marine views and portraits who is mainly known for his work executed in England roughly between 1672 and 1700. He was regarded as a marine painter in England. There are very few details about Laureys a Castro’s life and training and it is assumed he was the son of the Flemish marine painter Sebastian Castro. His family was of Portuguese descent and had settled in Antwerp likely to escape the persecution of Jews during the Portuguese Inquisition of the early 1600s and it is assumed Laureys received his training from his father. Laureys is recorded as a wijnmeester in the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke in 1664-65, based on the subjects of his paintings, he likely travelled and visited many Mediterranean ports such as Lisbon, Genoa, Malta and Sicily. Around 1670-72 he settled in England where he was active as a marine and it is not know when or where he died. No paintings are attributed to him after the end of the 17th century, a record of 1695 of “Lawrence Castro” in Whitecross Street, London and various works by an artist of that name in English collections suggest that Castro was at that time still working in England. Castro’s period of activity is given as 1664 to 1700 and 1672 to 1686. The latter, shorter period is based on the dated paintings of Castro. While Castro is mainly known for his paintings, he also painted portraits, religious subjects. These compositions show him to be steeped in Flemish and Dutch traditions of marine painting and his seascapes evidence a vigour and vividness of colour while some of his battle scenes are surprisingly calm. He created many renderings of naval battles and his earliest dated painting is a 1672 imaginary interpretation of the Battle of Actium and he painted a panoramic view of the Battle of Lepanto. This painting may have inspired by the frequently reproduced Dutch line engraving after Stradanus of 1590. It is likely that the relief after the retreat of the Turks before Vienna provided the impulse for this composition. Castro also depicted more contemporary naval engagements such as in his A Sea Fight with Barbary Corsairs, another frequently recurring theme of his compositions are capriccios of Mediterranean ports. It is likely that Castro was acquainted with Mediterranean ports such as Genoa, Malta, the ports depicted in these compositions are not always identifiable. The harbour town and the many persons onshore are painted in detail making it possible to recognize a Knight of Malta. Castro is also believed to have painted religious paintings as indicated by a drawing of a Virgin with Child, St John the Baptist and Angels in the Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent
14.
Ottoman Algeria
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The regency of Algiers, is an ancient state of North Africa which, from 1515 to 1830, preceded the french conquest of Algeria. Each beylik was divided into various outan with at their head the caïds directly under the bey, to administer the interior of the country, the administration relied on the tribes said makhzen. These tribes were responsible for securing order and collect taxes on the regions of the country. It was through this system that, for three centuries, the State of Algiers extended its authority over the north of Algeria, however, society is still divided into tribes and dominated by maraboutics brotherhoods or local djouads. Several regions of the country thus only lightly recognize the authority of Algiers, throughout its history, they have formed or continue many revolts, confederations, tribal fiefs or sultanates on the confines of the regency. Around the same time, the Ottoman privateer brothers Oruç and Hayreddin—both known to Europeans as Barbarossa, or Red Beard—were operating successfully off Tunisia under the Hafsids. In 1516, Oruç moved his base of operations to Algiers and asked for the protection of the Ottoman Empire in 1517, Hayreddin succeeded him as military commander of Algiers. Oruç, Hayreddin Barbarossas brother, captured Algiers in 1516, apart from the Spanish Peñón of Algiers, before Ottoman help could arrive, the Spanish retook the city of Algiers in 1519. Barbarossa recaptured the city definitively in 1525, and in 1529 the Spanish Peñon in the capture of Algiers, Hayreddin Barbarossa established the military basis of the regency. The Ottomans provided a garrison of 2,000 Turkish troops with artillery. He left Hasan Agha in command as his deputy when he had to leave for Constantinople in 1533, the son of Barbarossa, Hasan Pashan was in 1544, when his father retired, the first governor of the Regency to be directly appointed by the Ottoman Empire. He took the title of beylerbey, Algiers became a base in the war against Spain, and also in the Ottoman conflicts with Morocco. Beylerbeys continued to be nominated for unlimited tenures until 1587, at this time, the Ottoman Empire set up a regular Ottoman administration in Algiers and its dependencies, headed by Pashas, with 3 year terms to help considate Ottoman power in the Maghreb. In the early 17th century, Algiers also became, along with other North African ports such as Tunis, there were as many as 8,000 renegades in the city in 1634. Hayreddin Barbarossa is credited with tearing down the Peñón of Algiers, Spain, Denmark, France, England, all led naval bombardments against Algiers. Abraham Duquesne fought the Barbary pirates in 1681 and bombarded Algiers between 1682 and 1683, to help Christian captives, in the mid-1700s Dano-Norwegian trade in the Mediterranean expanded. In order to protect the business against piracy, Denmark-Norway had secured a peace deal with the states of Barbary Coast. It involved paying a tribute to the individual rulers and additionally to the States
15.
15th century
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The 15th century was the century which spans the Julian years 1400 to 1500. In Europe, the 15th century is seen as the bridge between the Late Middle Ages, the Early Renaissance, and the Early modern period. Many technological, social and cultural developments of the 15th century can in retrospect be seen as heralding the European miracle of the following centuries, in religious history, the Roman Papacy was split in two parts in Europe for decades, until the Council of Constance. The division of the Catholic Church and the unrest associated with the Hussite movement would become factors in the rise of the Protestant Reformation in the following century. The event forced Western Europeans to find a new route, adding further momentum to what was the beginning of the Age of Discovery. Explorations by the Spanish and Portuguese led to European sightings of the Americas and these expeditions ushered in the era of the Portuguese and Spanish colonial empires. The fall of Constantinople led to the migration of Greek scholars and texts to Italy and these two events played key roles in the development of the Renaissance. The Spanish Reconquista leads to the fall of the Emirate of Granada by the end of the century, ending over seven centuries of Muslim rule. The Hundred Years War end with a decisive French victory over the English in the Battle of Castillon, financial troubles in England following the conflict results in the Wars of the Roses, a series of dynastic wars for the throne of England. The conflicts ends with the defeat of Richard III by Henry VII at the Battle of Bosworth Field, establishing the Tudor dynasty in the later part of the century. In Asia, under the rule of the Yongle Emperor, who built the Forbidden City and commanded Zheng He to explore the world overseas, tamerlane established a major empire in the Middle East and Central Asia, in order to revive the Mongol Empire. In Africa, the spread of Islam leads to the destruction of the Christian kingdoms of Nubia, the formerly vast Mali Empire teeters on the brink of collapse, under pressure from the rising Songhai Empire. In the Americas, both the Inca Empire and the Aztec Empire reach the peak of their influence, 1400s 1401, Dilawar Khan establishes the Malwa Sultanate in present-day central India 1402, Ottoman and Timurid Empires fight at the Battle of Ankara resulting in Timurs capture of Bayezid I. 1402, Sultanate of Malacca founded by Parameshwara,1403, The Yongle Emperor moves the capital of China from Nanjing to Beijing. 1403, The settlement of the Canary Islands signals the beginning of the Spanish Empire, 1405–1433, Zheng He of China sails through the Indian Ocean to India, Arabia, and East Africa to spread Chinas influence and sovereignty. 1405, Paregreg war, Majapahit civil war of succession between Wikramawardhana against Wirabhumi, 1405–1407, The first voyage of Zheng He, a massive Ming dynasty naval expedition visited Java, Palembang, Malacca, Aru, Samudera and Lambri. 1410s 1410, The Battle of Grunwald is the battle of the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War leading to the downfall of the Teutonic Knights. 1410–1413, Foundation of St Andrews University in Scotland,1414, Khizr Khan, deputised by Timur to be the governor of Multan, takes over Delhi founding the Sayyid dynasty
16.
17th century
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The 17th century was the century that lasted from January 1,1601, to December 31,1700, in the Gregorian calendar. The greatest military conflicts were the Thirty Years War, the Great Turkish War, in the Islamic world, the Ottoman, Safavid Persian and Mughal empires grew in strength. In Japan, Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Edo period at the beginning of the century, European politics were dominated by the Kingdom of France of Louis XIV, where royal power was solidified domestically in the civil war of the Fronde. With domestic peace assured, Louis XIV caused the borders of France to be expanded and it was during this century that English monarch became a symbolic figurehead and Parliament was the dominant force in government – a contrast to most of Europe, in particular France. It was also a period of development of culture in general,1600, On February 17 Giordano Bruno is burned at the stake by the Inquisition. 1600, Michael the Brave unifies the three Romanian countries, Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania after the Battle of Șelimbăr from 1599. 1601, Battle of Kinsale, England defeats Irish and Spanish forces at the town of Kinsale, driving the Gaelic aristocracy out of Ireland and destroying the Gaelic clan system. 1601, Michael the Brave, voivode of Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania, is assassinated by the order of the Habsburg general Giorgio Basta at Câmpia Turzii, 1601–1603, The Russian famine of 1601–1603 kills perhaps one-third of Russia. 1601, Panembahan Senopati, first king of Mataram, dies and passes rule to his son Panembahan Seda ing Krapyak 1601,1602, Matteo Ricci produces the Map of the Myriad Countries of the World, a world map that will be used throughout East Asia for centuries. 1602, The Portuguese send an expeditionary force from Malacca which succeeded in reimposing a degree of Portuguese control. 1602, The Dutch East India Company is established by merging competing Dutch trading companies and its success contributes to the Dutch Golden Age. 1602, Two emissaries from the Aceh Sultanate visit the Dutch Republic,1603, Elizabeth I of England dies and is succeeded by her cousin King James VI of Scotland, uniting the crowns of Scotland and England. 1603, Tokugawa Ieyasu takes the title of Shogun, establishing the Tokugawa Shogunate and this begins the Edo period, which will last until 1869. 1603–1623, After modernizing his army, Abbas I expands the Persian Empire by capturing territory from the Ottomans,1603, First permanent Dutch trading post is established in Banten, West Java. First successful VOC privateering raid on a Portuguese ship,1604, A second English East India Company voyage commanded by Sir Henry Middleton reaches Ternate, Tidore, Ambon and Banda. 1605, Gunpowder Plot failed in England,1605, The fortresses of Veszprém and Visegrad are retaken by the Ottomans. 1605, February, The VOC in alliance with Hitu prepare to attack a Portuguese fort in Ambon,1605, Panembahan Seda ing Krapyak of Mataram establishes control over Demak, former center of the Demak Sultanate. 1606, Treaty of Vienna ends anti-Habsburg uprising in Royal Hungary,1606, Assassination of Stephen Bocskay of Transylvania
17.
Crescent
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A crescent shape is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter, or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. It is used as the symbol for the Moon. It was also the emblem of Diana-Artemis, and hence represented virginity, in Roman Catholic Marian veneration, it is associated with the Virgin Mary. From its use as roof finial in Ottoman era mosques, it has become associated with Islam. The crescent symbol is used to represent the Moon, not necessarily in a particular lunar phase. When used to represent a waxing or waning lunar phase, crescent or increscent refers to the waxing first quarter, the crescent symbol was long used as a symbol of the Moon in astrology, and by extension of Silver in alchemy. The astrological use of the symbol is attested in early Greek papyri containing horoscopes, in the 2nd-century Bianchinis planisphere, the personification of the Moon is shown with a crescent attached to her headdress. Its ancient association with Ishtar/Astarte and Diana is preserved in the Moon representing the female principle, as such, it belongs to the class of figures known as lune in planar geometry. The tapering towards the points of intersection of the two arcs are known as the horns of the crescent, the word crescent is derived etymologically from the present participle of the Latin verb crescere to grow, technically denoting the waxing moon. Unicode encodes a crescent at U+263D and a decrescent at U+263E, the Miscellaneous Symbols and Pictographs block provides variants with faces, FIRST QUARTER MOON WITH FACE at U+1F31B and LAST QUARTER MOON WITH FACE at U+1F31C. The crescent shape is used to represent the Moon, and the Moon deity Nanna/Sin from an early time, visible in Akkadian cylinder seals as early as 2300 BC. The crescent was used in the iconography of the Ancient Near East and was used transplanted by the Phoenicians in the 8th century BC as far as Carthage in modern Tunisia. The crescent and star also appears on coins of South Arabia. The combination of star and crescent also arises in the Ancient Near East, representing the Moon and Ishtar and it was inherited both in Sassanian and Hellenistic iconography. In the iconography of the Hellenistic period, the crescent became the symbol of Artemis-Diana, numerous depictions show Artemis-Diana wearing the crescent Moon as part of her headdress. The related symbol of the star and crescent was the emblem of the Mithradates dynasty in the Kingdom of Pontus and was used as the emblem of Byzantium. The crescent remained in use as an emblem in Sassanid Persia, in the Crusades it came to be associated with the Orient and was widely used in Crusader seals and coins. It was used as a charge by the later 13th century
18.
Algiers
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Algiers is the capital and largest city of Algeria. In 2011, the population was estimated to be around 3,500,000. An estimate puts the population of the metropolitan city to be around 5,000,000. Algiers is located on the Mediterranean Sea and in the portion of Algeria. The casbah and the two form a triangle. A Phoenician commercial outpost called Ikosim which later developed into a small Roman town called Icosium existed on what is now the quarter of the city. The rue de la Marine follows the lines of what used to be a Roman street, Roman cemeteries existed near Bab-el-Oued and Bab Azoun. The city was given Latin rights by Emperor Vespasian, the bishops of Icosium are mentioned as late as the 5th century. The present-day city was founded in 944 by Bologhine ibn Ziri and he had earlier built his own house and a Sanhaja center at Ashir, just south of Algiers. Although his Zirid dynasty was overthrown by Roger II of Sicily in 1148, the city was wrested from the Hammadids by the Almohads in 1159, and in the 13th century came under the dominion of the Ziyanid sultans of Tlemcen. Nominally part of the sultanate of Tlemcen, Algiers had a measure of independence under amirs of its own due to Oran being the chief seaport of the Ziyanids. As early as 1302 the islet of Peñón in front of Algiers harbour had been occupied by Spaniards, thereafter, a considerable amount of trade began to flow between Algiers and Spain. However, Algiers continued to be of little importance until after the expulsion of the Moors from Spain. In 1510, following their occupation of Oran and other towns on the coast of Africa, in 1516, the amir of Algiers, Selim b. Teumi, invited the corsair brothers Aruj and Hayreddin Barbarossa to expel the Spaniards, Aruj came to Algiers, ordered the assassination of Selim, and seized the town and ousted the Spanish in the Capture of Algiers. Hayreddin, succeeding Aruj after the latter was killed in battle against the Spaniards in the Fall of Tlemcen, was the founder of the pashaluk, Algiers from this time became the chief seat of the Barbary pirates. Formally part of the Ottoman Empire but essentially free from Ottoman control, starting in the 16th century Algiers turned to piracy, repeated attempts were made by various nations to subdue the pirates that disturbed shipping in the western Mediterranean and engaged in slave raids as far north as Iceland. The United States fought two wars over Algiers attacks on shipping, among the notable people held for ransom was the future Spanish novelist Miguel de Cervantes, who was captive in Algiers almost five years, and who wrote two plays set in Algiers of the period
19.
19th century
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The 19th century was the century marked by the collapse of the Spanish, Napoleonic, Holy Roman and Mughal empires. After the defeat of the French Empire and its allies in the Napoleonic Wars, the Russian Empire expanded in central and far eastern Asia. By the end of the century, the British Empire controlled a fifth of the worlds land, the Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain and spread to continental Europe, North America and Japan. The Victorian era was notorious for the employment of children in factories and mines, as well as strict social norms regarding modesty. Japan embarked on a program of rapid modernization following the Meiji Restoration, before defeating China, under the Qing Dynasty, europes population doubled during the 19th century, from approximately 200 million to more than 400 million. Numerous cities worldwide surpassed populations of a million or more during this century, London became the worlds largest city and capital of the British Empire. Its population increased from 1 million in 1800 to 6.7 million a century later, liberalism became the pre-eminent reform movement in Europe. Slavery was greatly reduced around the world, following a successful slave revolt in Haiti, Britain and France stepped up the battle against the Barbary pirates and succeeded in stopping their enslavement of Europeans. The UKs Slavery Abolition Act charged the British Royal Navy with ending the slave trade. The first colonial empire in the century to abolish slavery was the British, americas 13th Amendment following their Civil War abolished slavery there in 1865, and in Brazil slavery was abolished in 1888. Similarly, serfdom was abolished in Russia, in the 19th century approximately 70 million people left Europe, with most migrating to the United States of America. The 19th century also saw the creation, development and codification of many sports, particularly in Britain. Also, ladywear was a sensitive topic during this time. 1801, Ranjit Singh crowned as King of Punjab,1801, Napoleon signs the Concordat of 1801 with the Pope. 1801, Cairo falls to the British,1801, Assassination of Tsar Paul I of Russia. 1802, Ludwig van Beethoven performs his Moonlight Sonata for the first time,1803, William Symington demonstrates his Charlotte Dundas, the first practical steamboat. 1803, The United States more than doubles in size when it buys out Frances territorial claims in North America via the Louisiana Purchase. This begins the U. S. s westward expansion to the Pacific referred to as its Manifest Destiny which involves annexing and conquering land from Mexico, Britain,1803, The Wahhabis of the First Saudi State capture Mecca and Medina
20.
Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic
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The Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic was the government-in-exile of the Algerian National Liberation Front during the latter part of the Algerian War of Independence. The GPRA was set up in Cairo, Egypt, by the FLN on September 19,1958, four years into the Algerian War of Independence. He was once re-elected to the post, in 1960, but already next year he was sidelined and replaced by Benyoucef Benkhedda, the purpose of the GPRA was to serve as a diplomatic and political tool for the FLN. It allowed sympathizing governments to extend recognition to it. Its headquarters were located in Tunis, but diplomats were posted in most major world capitals to try to lobby governments, after the war, infighting broke out in FLN ranks. Benkhedda of the GPRA briefly held power in Algiers, but there was no unified power for the whole country, an attempt by GPRA politicians and loyal guerrilla units to resist the military-backed takeover was crushed in a short but intense burst of internal fighting. A compromise forced by Boumédiène saw most of the provisional government enter an expanded Political Bureau, a one-party state under Ben Bellas command was then set up, after a constitution had been approved for the new republic. The GPRA was reformed twice, in 1960 and 1961, with the change of ministers, below is a list of the three versions of the GPRA. Dictionnaire biographique Jacques Duchemin, Histoire du F. L. N. Benjamin Stora, a Short History Alistair Horne, A Savage War of Peace
21.
Algerian National Navy
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The Algerian National Navy is the naval branch of the Military of Algeria. Additional missions include coast guard and maritime safety missions as well a projection of marine forces, Algerian forces are an important player in the Western Mediterranean. Since the end of the Cold War, Russia has remained an important partner, the origins of the Algerian Navy ) At that time the Maghreb under the control of the Almohad dynasty which also ruled the current Spain al-Andalus and 1147 to 1269. The Navy was born with the installation by Abd El Moumen naval shipyards the Almohad empire in the ports of Oran, but the reign of this great dynasty would soon be glazed at first by a few internal disagreements, mainly related to the difficulties of managing a vast territory. He moved later to head its fleet to Algeria to its liberation from the Spanish colonization, from there a new page was opened for Algeria which through its Marine could impose its leadership in the Mediterranean for nearly three centuries. However the Algerian armada also lost a number of vessels. Some Algerian squadrons took part to the Greek war of independence from 1821 on, as suppletive forces to the Ottoman fleet, in June 1827, Charles X launched a naval blockade on Algiers and three years later a military expedition which finally took the city in 1830. Algeria, endured for a century and 32 years of French rule until July 5,1962, principal naval bases are located at Algiers, Annaba, Mers el-Kebir, Oran, Jijel and Tamentfoust. Mers el Kébir is home to the OMCN/CNE shipbuilding facilities where several Algerian vessels have been built, algerias naval academy at Tamentfoust provides officer training equivalent to that of the army and the air force academies. The navy also operates a training school for its personnel at Tamentfoust. The bulk of the Algerian Navy is still based on Cold War designs, the surface fleet is equipped with a mixture of smaller ships well suited to coastal and Exclusive Economic Zone patrol work. The fleet is led by three Koni class frigates which have been updated with modern systems. A mixture of six corvettes and off-shore patrol vessels complement the frigates, Algeria had maintained a relatively large fleet of Osa class fast attack craft by the end of the Cold War, but it is questionable whether any of these remain in operational use. Their amphibious warfare capacity has traditionally been limited with a group of landing ships essentially for coastal transport roles. This capacity will be upgraded with the planned acquisition of an amphibious transport dock capable of supporting more robust operations. The Algerian military has maintained a strong veil of secrecy over its organization and equipment. Open sources are known to vary widely in their reports of several aspects of Algerian equipment, the Navy is currently being upgraded with the following technological developments, the existing units are being modernized, with the submarine force strengthened by two new Kilo class submarines. One LPD form Italy in 2014, four MEKO A200 frigates from Germany
22.
Wavelength
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In physics, the wavelength of a sinusoidal wave is the spatial period of the wave—the distance over which the waves shape repeats, and thus the inverse of the spatial frequency. Wavelength is commonly designated by the Greek letter lambda, the concept can also be applied to periodic waves of non-sinusoidal shape. The term wavelength is also applied to modulated waves. Wavelength depends on the medium that a wave travels through, examples of wave-like phenomena are sound waves, light, water waves and periodic electrical signals in a conductor. A sound wave is a variation in air pressure, while in light and other electromagnetic radiation the strength of the electric, water waves are variations in the height of a body of water. In a crystal lattice vibration, atomic positions vary, wavelength is a measure of the distance between repetitions of a shape feature such as peaks, valleys, or zero-crossings, not a measure of how far any given particle moves. For example, in waves over deep water a particle near the waters surface moves in a circle of the same diameter as the wave height. The range of wavelengths or frequencies for wave phenomena is called a spectrum, the name originated with the visible light spectrum but now can be applied to the entire electromagnetic spectrum as well as to a sound spectrum or vibration spectrum. In linear media, any pattern can be described in terms of the independent propagation of sinusoidal components. The wavelength λ of a sinusoidal waveform traveling at constant speed v is given by λ = v f, in a dispersive medium, the phase speed itself depends upon the frequency of the wave, making the relationship between wavelength and frequency nonlinear. In the case of electromagnetic radiation—such as light—in free space, the speed is the speed of light. Thus the wavelength of a 100 MHz electromagnetic wave is about, the wavelength of visible light ranges from deep red, roughly 700 nm, to violet, roughly 400 nm. For sound waves in air, the speed of sound is 343 m/s, the wavelengths of sound frequencies audible to the human ear are thus between approximately 17 m and 17 mm, respectively. Note that the wavelengths in audible sound are much longer than those in visible light, a standing wave is an undulatory motion that stays in one place. A sinusoidal standing wave includes stationary points of no motion, called nodes, the upper figure shows three standing waves in a box. The walls of the box are considered to require the wave to have nodes at the walls of the box determining which wavelengths are allowed, the stationary wave can be viewed as the sum of two traveling sinusoidal waves of oppositely directed velocities. Consequently, wavelength, period, and wave velocity are related just as for a traveling wave, for example, the speed of light can be determined from observation of standing waves in a metal box containing an ideal vacuum. In that case, the k, the magnitude of k, is still in the same relationship with wavelength as shown above
23.
Emblem of Algeria
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The national emblem of Algeria is the seal used by the government, as other states use coats of arms. The current form of the emblem with Arabic writing was adopted on 1 November 1976, contained on the emblem is the crescent that is also found on the flag of Algeria, and is a symbol of Islam. The text that rings the emblem says in Arabic, الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية, the hand of Fatima, a traditional symbol of the region, appears in front of the Atlas Mountains, below a rising sun representing a new era. Buildings stand for industry and plants for agriculture, official website of the Government of Algeria Algeria at national-symbol. com
24.
Angus Konstam
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Angus Konstam is a Scottish author and historian. Born in Aberdeen, Scotland and raised on the Orkney Islands and he has written more than 60 books on maritime history, naval history, historical atlases, and other historical non-fiction. Although born in Aberdeen, Scotland, he was raised on the Orkney Islands, in 1978, at the age of 18 he left to join the Royal Navy. He received a scholarship to the Royal Navy College in Dartmouth, after receiving a degree, he returned to the Royal Navy and spent a year at sea, during which, he visited many places that would later be written about in his naval books including the Caribbean. He also gained important knowledge of military service, customs, seamanship and he then studied for a Masters Degree at the University of St. Andrews. During this time, he explored the new field of maritime archaeology, two decades later this formed the basis for Sovereigns of the Sea, his history of Renaissance warships. He left the navy in 1983, and the year he began a Master of Letters in Maritime Studies at St. Andrews University. While he was working in the Royal Armouries, The Tower, at the same time the curators of both museums were encouraged to exchange information, and to examine each others collections. This ended up with Konstam studying the 18th century Russian military, a mutual colleague introduced him to a historian working for Osprey Publishing, who turned out to want someone to write a book about Peter the Greats Army. The result was two books which first appeared in 1993 – the first easily accessible account of the foundation of the Russian army to appear in English. Konstam moved to Key West, Florida in 1995 and became the Chief Curator in the Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Museum, Mel Fisher was a treasure hunter who found the wreck of the Spanish treasure galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha off the Florida Keys. One of his jobs during this time was to create traveling exhibits which toured the United States, during the research for a pirate exhibition, he gained an increasing interest in the subject of 18th century piracy. He spent six years in Key West and wrote more books, including The History of Pirates. As he gained more information through his research, he produced Piracy, The Complete History and he returned to Britain in early 2001, and now resides in Edinburgh, Scotland. He continues to write about naval and general history subjects and his favorite subject is the historical period of the 16th and 17th centuries. He currently has over 70 books in print and is on the board of The Society of Authors in Scotland, Konstam has also been a talking head on many cable TV shows. Warships, From the Galley to the Present Day, with Leo Marriott and Nick Grant. The Civil War, A Visual Encyclopaedia, 7th U-Boat Flotilla, Dönitz’s Atlantic Wolves
25.
Oxford
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Oxford is a city in the South East region of England and the county town of Oxfordshire. With an estimated 2015 population of 168,270, it is the 52nd largest city in the United Kingdom, the city is situated 57 miles from London,69 miles from Bristol,65 miles from both Southampton and Birmingham and 25 miles from Reading. The city is known worldwide as the home of the University of Oxford, buildings in Oxford demonstrate notable examples of every English architectural period since the late Saxon period. Oxford is known as the city of dreaming spires, a term coined by poet Matthew Arnold, Oxford has a broad economic base. Its industries include motor manufacturing, education, publishing and a number of information technology and science-based businesses. Oxford was first settled in Saxon times and was known as Oxenaforda, meaning Ford of the Oxen. It began with the establishment of a crossing for oxen around AD900. In the 10th century, Oxford became an important military frontier town between the kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex and was on several occasions raided by Danes, Oxford was heavily damaged during the Norman Invasion of 1066. Following the conquest, the town was assigned to a governor, Robert DOyly, the castle has never been used for military purposes and its remains survive to this day. DOyly set up a community in the castle consisting of a chapel. The community never grew large but it earned its place in history as one of Britains oldest places of formal education and it was there that in 1139 Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote his History of the Kings of Britain, a compilation of Arthurian legends. Mary at Oseney and to the canons serving God in that place and we have made this concession and confirmation in the Common council of the City and we have confirmed it with our common seal. These are those who have made this concession and confirmation, a grandson of King John established Rewley Abbey for the Cistercian Order, and friars of various orders all had houses of varying importance at Oxford. Parliaments were often held in the city during the 13th century, the Provisions of Oxford were instigated by a group of barons led by Simon de Montfort, these documents are often regarded as Englands first written constitution. Richard I of England and John, King of England the sons of Henry II of England, were born at Beaumont Palace in Oxford, on 8 September 1157 and 24 December 1166 respectively. A plaque in Beaumont Street commemorates these events, the University of Oxford is first mentioned in 12th century records. Of the hundreds of Aularian houses that sprang up across the city, what put an end to the halls was the emergence of colleges. Oxfords earliest colleges were University College, Balliol and Merton and these colleges were established at a time when Europeans were starting to translate the writings of Greek philosophers
26.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
27.
Flags of the World
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Flags of the World is an Internet-based vexillological association and resource. Its principal project is the Internets largest website devoted to vexillology, containing information about all kinds of flags. The mailing list began as a group in about September 1993, while the website was founded by Giuseppe Bottasini in late 1994. FotW became the 56th member of the FIAV in 2001, both the website and the mailing list operate in the English language, though there are members from around the world and as such information from many languages is translated and included. The mailing list is monitored by the FOTW Listmaster, while work on the website is coordinated by the FOTW Editorial Director, the website is updated once a week with fresh material, some mirrors update monthly. Due to the amount of material there is an editing backlog. There are also some mirrors that have not been updated for varying periods of time, the source for material on the FOTW website are contributions to the FOTW mailing list, which has over 1000 members, of which some 100 are active contributors. The mailing list has notable minorities of Portuguese, French, Dutch, a staff of three unpaid volunteers manages and moderates the list. An affiliated Flags of the World Facebook group has established, inaugurated by Edward Mooney. As of November 2016 the group is run and moderated by a team of ten administrators, FOTW displays standardized flag images in GIF format, usually at a height of 216 pixels. While the GIF file format is capable of displaying 256 colours, the organizations flag is a design by Mark Sensen, which was selected over 10 challengers in a poll of FOTW mailing list members and was adopted 8 March 1996. Since then, March 8 has been regarded as FOTWs Flag day, Sensen described its symbolism, White on the hoist stands for peace, blue on the fly for progress. The six colours of the stars are the colours used in flags. The stars help to make one bigger symbol, the way the stars are all connected to each other represents the Internet. The flag is used as a rare representation of the Internet on a flag. List of flags List of flags by country Gallery of country flags Flags of the World Dictionary of Vexillology Flag Days Of The World FOTW mailing list
28.
Flag of Bahrain
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The national flag of Bahrain consists of a white band on the left, separated from a red area on the right by five triangles that serve as a serrated line. The five white triangles symbolize the 5 pillars of Islam and it is sometimes mistaken for the flag of Qatar, but that flag is maroon, not red, has more points, and normally has a much greater length-to-width ratio. The white color comprises 13⁄40 of the area, while the red color comprises 27⁄40 of the area. The color specification is red, Pantone 186 c / CMYK C0 – M90 – Y80 – K5 The flag is used on land and at sea as a national, civil and war ensign. In 2002, the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, article II, The King shall have his own flag, for which a royal order shall be issued to determine its shape, measures, and places. Article III, The Flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain shall be hoisted on the Royal Court, Palaces, governmental buildings, public establishments, embassies, Bahraini bureaus abroad, and Bahraini ships. Article V, The Flag shall be hoisted on governmental buildings, public institutions during public holidays, article VI, The Flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain shall not be hoisted on vehicles, except on the official protocol vehicles. Article VII, The Flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain shall be hoisted half mast at the state of mourning, article VIII, The Flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain shall not be used for commercial purposes. The earliest known flags of Bahrain were plain red, in 1932, a serrated edge was added to the flag in order to differentiate it from those of its neighbours. The flag originally had twenty-eight white points, but this was reduced to eight in 1972, on 14 February 2002, the number was again reduced to five, so that each of the points could stand for one of the Five Pillars of Islam
29.
Flag of Chad
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The national flag of Republic of Chad is a vertical tricolor consisting of a blue, a gold and a red field. The basic design is the same as that of the flag of Romania, the flag of Chad is a vertical tricolour consisting of a blue, a gold and a red column. These were intended to be a combination of the colours of blue, white and red as seen on the Flag of France with the Pan-African colours of green, yellow and red. Furthermore, the blue represents the sky and hope, the gold is the sun and desert, the flag was adopted by law #59/13 for the autonomous republic and retained on independence in 1960, and in the constitution of 1962. Despite many political upheavals within Chad since independence, the flag has not been changed and this may be because the flag is not associated with any of the main power rivals within Chad, which had no sense of national identity before independence, and little after independence. The flag of Chad is almost identical to Romanias flag, during their Communist-era of the second half of the 20th Century, Romanias flag featured an insignia in the middle of the flag on top of the tricolour. The issue of Romania and Chad sharing similar flags has concerned the Chadian government on occasion, in response, Romanian President Ion Iliescu stated to the media, The tricolour belongs to us. We will not give up the tricolour, coat of arms of Chad Chad at Flags of the World
30.
Flag of the Comoros
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The national flag of the Union of the Comoros was designed in 2001 and officially adopted on January 7,2002. It continues to display the crescent and four stars, which is a motif that has been in use in various forms since 1975 during the independence movement. In its constitution, the government of the Comoros refers to the insigne as lemblème national, or the national emblem, the design consists of a white crescent with four white five-pointed stars inside of a green triangle. The flag has four stripes, representing four islands of the nation, yellow is for Mohéli, white is for Mayotte, red is for Anjouan, the four stars on the flag also symbolize the four islands of the Comoros. The star and crescent symbol stands for Islam, which is the major religion. The first official flag of Comoros was designed and adopted for use in 1963 by Suzanne Gauthier. It had a crescent at upper hoist facing the fly, four stars in a diagonal. This design continued to be used after independence in 1975, the flag changed in 1975 under Ali Soilih. The crescent was moved and the stars were rearranged into a diamond, two thirds of the flag became red and symbolized the regimes socialist ideology. When Ahmed Abdallah was returned to the presidency in 1978, the flag changed again and it returned to being completely green, with the crescent moving to the center of the flag and the stars forming a line between its horns. Information about the proportions of this variant suggest either a 1,2,2,3, with the adoption of a new constitution in 1992, the flag changed again such that the crescent and stars were rotated to face upward rather than down and to the right. The adoption of yet another constitution chaned the flag again in 1996, rotating the flag to face the fly and adding an inscription to the lower hoist. The inscriptions are writen in simplified Arabic with the former reading Muhammed, the proportions of this flag was reported to be 21,15. This flag was changed by referendum in 2001 to the modern one, star and crescent Comoros Comoros at Flags of the World
31.
Flag of Djibouti
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The national flag of Djibouti was adopted on 27 June 1977, following the countrys independence from France. No clan are mentioned in the national anthem, before the establishment of French Somaliland, the flag of the Sultanate of Tajoura was the only ensign used in the territory. The flag of Djibouti was later created in 1972, adopted in 1977, the national flag was an adaptation of the flag of the Ligue Populaire Africaine pour lIndependence, a political party that led Djibouti to independence. The LPAI flag had a red triangle with a white star, for the national flag, the star was placed in an upright rather than a slanted position, and the proportions of the flag were lengthened. White, green, and light blue are the colors of the LPAI, the flag of Djibouti was raised for the first time upon independence on 27 June 1977, by the head of police Yacine Yabeh Galab. It is today flown on governmental buildings. The flag of Djibouti features two horizontal bands of blue and green, with a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist side. The triangle bears a red star in its centre, which represents unity, each colour symbolizes something different, namely, the earth, the sea and sky, peace, and unity. The light blue represents the Sky, and the green represents the green of the earth. The red star signifies the unity of the state, the following are the flags historically used in the territory of present-day Djibouti, History of Djibouti Djibouti CIA World Factbook - Djibouti Djibouti at Flags of the World
32.
Flag of Egypt
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The flag of Egypt is a tricolour consisting of the three equal horizontal red, white, and black bands of the Arab Liberation flag dating back to the Egyptian Revolution of 1952. The flag bears Egypts national emblem, the Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band, the Free Officers who toppled King Farouk in the Revolution of 1952 assigned specific symbolism to each of the three bands of the Arab Liberation flag. The red band symbolizes the period before the Revolution, a characterized by the struggle against the monarchy. The white band symbolizes the nature of the Revolution itself. The black band symbolizes the end of the oppression of the Egyptian people at the hands of the monarchy, Egypts use of the Arab Liberation flag inspired its adoption by a number of other Arab states. The same horizontal tricolour is used by Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, the development of the modern Egyptian flag was determined first by the Muhammad Ali Dynasty, under whom Egypt was united with Sudan, and later by the rise of Arab nationalism. When Muhammad Ali successfully seized power in Egypt, the country was officially an Eyalet of the Ottoman Empire, however, throughout his reign, and that of his sons and grandsons, Egypt enjoyed virtual independence as a Khedivate. The meaning of the three stars and crescents has been suggested that this was to symbolise the victory of his armies in three continents, and his own sovereignty over Egypt, Sudan, and Hejaz. The similarity with the flag of the Ottoman Empire was deliberate, as Muhammad Ali harbored grandiose ambitions of deposing the Ottoman dynasty, Egypt retained this flag even after formal Ottoman sovereignty was terminated in 1914, when Egypt was declared to be a sultanate, and a British protectorate. After the Urabi Revolt in 1882, British forces occupied the country and this reached a peak in the Revolution of 1919, when both the red flag introduced by Muhammad Ali, and a special green banner bearing a crescent and cross were used in protests against the British. In 1922, Britain agreed to formally recognize Egyptian independence, but only on the condition that the Sultan of Egypt, Fuad I, change his title to King. Upon so doing, the now King Fuad issued a Royal Decree formally adopting a new flag of a white crescent with three white stars on a green background in it. It has also suggested that the three stars represented the three religious communities of the country, Muslims, Christians and Jews. This earlier version of the eagle differs somewhat from the one later adopted, in 1958, Egypt and Syria united as the United Arab Republic and adopted a national flag based on the Arab Liberation flag, with two green stars replacing the Eagle of Saladin in the white band. A modified version of the Eagle of Saladin was adopted as the UARs coat of arms. Though Syria withdrew from the U. A. R. in 1961, Egypt continued to use the name of the United Arab Republic until 1971. In 1972, when Egypt formed the Federation of Arab Republics along with Syria, and Libya, the U. A. R. flag was replaced by a common flag for the Federation, once again based on the Arab Liberation flag. The two green stars in the band were replaced by the Hawk of Qureish, which had been the coat of arms of Syria prior to the formation of the U. A. R. in 1958
33.
Flag of Iraq
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The flag of Iraq includes the three equal horizontal red, white, and black stripes of the Arab Liberation flag. This basic tricolor has been in use since 1963, with changes to the green symbols in the central white stripe. The first flag of modern Iraq was the Kingdom of Iraq and it was a black-white-green horizontal flag, with a red trapezoid extending from the mast side, inspired by the flag of the Arab Revolt. Two seven-point white stars on the triangle denoted the two peoples of the kingdom, the Arabs and the Kurds. The design also reflected the newly installed Hashemite Dynasty in Iraq, as such, it was similar to the flags of Hashemite Jordan, and the short-lived Kingdom of Hejaz. Prior to Iraqi independence in 1932, this flag was used by the British Mandate of Mesopotamia. Today, it is used by pro-Hashemite monarchists in Iraq, in 1958, in response to the merger of Egypt and Syria in the United Arab Republic, the two Hashemite kingdoms of Iraq and Jordan established the Arab Federation, a confederation of the two states. The flag of the union was essentially that of Jordan but without seven pointed star in the red chevron and this flag is identical to the flag of Palestine adopted in 1964, and almost identical to the flag of the Baath Party. The union lasted less than six months, being terminated by the Iraqi Revolution of 1958 in July, the black, white, green, and red are the pan-Arab colours, representing pan-Arabism, while the yellow sun represented the Kurdish minority. In addition, the red star was used to represent Iraqs ancient heritage, after Qassim was overthrown by the Baath Party in 1963, the new Baathist government adopted a modified version of the Arab Liberation flag as the new flag of Iraq on 31 July 1963. This horizontal tricolour of red, white, and black bands formed the basis of the flag of the United Arab Republic, though the UAR broke up in 1961, hopes for Arab unity persisted. Sharing this goal, Syria adopted the new Iraqi flag as its own later that same year and this remained the flag of Syria until 1971, when the green stars were replaced by the Hawk of Qureish. The Iraqi Flag Law No.28 of 1963 was replaced by Flag Law No, on 13 January 1991, the flag was modified by Flag Law No.6 of 1991. At the instigation of Saddam Hussein, the takbīr was added in green between the stars, the form of the takbīr was said to be Saddams own handwriting. As with other flags inscribed with Arabic script, the hoist is to the right of the obverse of the flag. The basic form of the flag was retained, however. The modified flag was unveiled at the marking the technical handover of power from the Coalition Provisional Authority occupation forces to the U. S. -appointed administration on 28 June 2004. On 22 January 2008, a new design for the flag was confirmed by Law 9 of 2008, in this current version, the three stars were removed
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Flag of Jordan
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The flag of Jordan, officially adopted on 18 April 1928, is based on the flag of the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The flag consists of black, white, and green bands that are connected by a red chevron. The colors stand are the Pan-Arab Colors, representing the Abbasid, Umayyad, the red chevron is for the Hashemite dynasty, and the Arab Revolt. In addition to the bands and chevron, a star with seven points is featured on the hoist side of the red chevron. The star stands for the unity of the Arab people and it is also said to stand for the seven verses of the first surah in the Quran, or refer to the seven hills on which Amman, the capital, was built. The seven points represent faith in one God, humanity, humility, national spirit, virtue, social justice, flag of the Arab Revolt Palestinian flag Kingdom of Hejaz Jordan at Flags of the World
35.
Flag of Kuwait
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The flag of Kuwait was adopted on September 7,1961, and officially hoisted November 24,1961. Before 1961, the flag of Kuwait was red and white, like those of other Persian Gulf states at the time, with the field being red, until 1899, the flag consisted solely of a red field. Between 1915 and 1956, the crescent and star were removed, the present flag is in the Pan-Arab colours, but each colour is also significant in its own right. Black represents the defeat of the enemy, while red is the colour of blood on the Kuwaiti swords, white symbolizes purity, and green is for the fertile land. Vertically, The black stripe should be on the side of the flag. In 2005, it became the design of the worlds largest kite at a size of 1019 square metres. It was made in New Zealand by Peter Lynn, launched to the public for the first time in 2004 in the United Kingdom, officially launched in Kuwait in 2005, the current Amir of Kuwait is not known to have a personal royal standard. It is a possibility that he uses the flag as his own. In photographs he appears with the flag with a golden fringe. Formerly the flag of the Amir was the one with a yellow crown on the green stripe. Kuwait at Flags of the World Naval Jack
36.
Flag of Lebanon
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The flag of Lebanon is formed of two horizontal red stripes enveloping a horizontal white stripe. The white stripe is to be two times a red one —a Spanish fess, the green cedar in the middle touches each of the red stripes and its width is one third of the width of the flag. Presence and position of the Cedar in the middle of the flag is inspired by the mountains of Lebanon cedar. The Cedar is a symbol of holiness, eternity and peace, as an emblem of longevity, the cedar of Lebanon has its origin in many biblical references. They know the history of the earth, better than the story itself, antoine de Saint-Exupéry, who loved the cedars and also had visited Lebanon in 1935, wrote in his work Citadel he peace is a long growing tree. We need, as the cedar, to rock its unity, for the Lebanese, the cedar is a symbol of hope, freedom and memory. In 1920, in a text of the proclamation of the State of Greater Lebanon, it was said, although oppressed, never conquered, the cedar is its rallying. By the union, it will break all attacks, the white color on the flag represents the snow as a symbol of purity and peace. The two red stripes refer to the Lebanese blood shed to preserve the country against the successive invaders, according to the Article 5 of the constitution of Lebanon, The Lebanese flag shall be composed of three horizontal stripes, a white stripe between two red ones. The width of the white stripe shall be equal to that of red stripes. In the center of and occupying one-third of the stripe is a green cedar tree with its top touching the upper red strip. It was similar to the flag of France but with a green cedar in the middle. The present Lebanese flag was adopted just prior to independence from France in 1943, seeking independence, the actual flag was first drawn by member of parliament Henri Pharaon in the Chamber of deputies Saeb Salams house in Mousaitbeh by the deputies of the Lebanese parliament. It was adopted on December 7,1943, during a meeting in the parliament, and the green cedar in the middle of the white part touches each of the red stripes is added because Lebanon is sometimes metonymically referred to as the Land of the Cedars. The Austrian flag is the second oldest in the world, dating to the 13th century when it first probably appeared after the Siege of Acre during the Third Crusade
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Flag of Libya
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The flag of Libya was originally introduced in 1951, following the creation of the Kingdom of Libya. The flag of the Kingdom of Libya was adopted when Libya gained full independence in 1951 and it consisted of a white star and crescent on a triband red-black-green design, with the central black band being twice the width of the outer bands. The design was based on the banner of the Senussi dynasty from Cyrenaica, which consisted of a field and star and crescent design. According to Pelt, during deliberations of the Libyan National Constitutional Convention, the design was composed of three colors, red, black and green, with a white Crescent and Star centered in the middle black stripe. Mr. Shennib informed the delegates that this design had met the approval of His Highness Emir of Cyrenaica, the assembly subsequently approved that design. This flag represented Libya from its independence in 1951 until the 1969 Libyan coup détat and it brings back to our minds the story of Hijra of our Prophet Mohammed from his home in order to spread Islam and teach the principles of right and virtue. The Star represents our hope, the beauty of aim and object. In 2011, interviews with Ibtisam Shennib and Amal Omar Shennib, the star and crescent were placed within the black central strip of the flag as a reference to the Senussi flag and the role of King Idris in leading the country to independence. The National Transitional Council, formed on 27 February 2011, adopted the previously used in the Kingdom of Libya between 1951 and 1969 as the emblem of the Libyan Republic. On 10 March 2011, France was the first country to recognize the council as the government of Libya. In the following many other Libyan embassies replaced the green flag of Gaddafi with the tricolor flag. All Libyan diplomatic posts, such as embassies and consulates, use the flag of Libya. The flag of Libya is described in Article 7 of the Constitution of 7 October 1951 and it was officially adopted on 24 December 1951. Both the precise shade and legal construction is described in an issued by the Ministry of Information. The passage reads, The exact particulars of the Libyan National Flag prescribed by Article 7 of the Constitution shall be as follows, The red shall be red. The Crescent shall be on the side of the star. The star shall be in the end of the crescent. The maximum width of the 270 crescent shall equal 1⁄6 of its outside diameter which is 1⁄4 of the width of the flag
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Flag of Mauritania
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The flag of Mauritania is the common name for the national flag of Mauritania in north-west Africa. The flag was adopted on April 1,1959 and it was introduced under the instructions of Moktar Ould Daddah, and the subsequent constitution of 22 March 1959. It is almost unique among national flags as it not contain any of the three most common flag colours, red, white, or blue – a distinction only shared with Jamaica. The colors green and gold are considered Pan-African colors, green is also used to symbolize Islam, and the gold for the sands of the Sahara desert. The crescent and star are symbols of Islam, which is the religion in the nation. Some writers have speculated that green symbolises a bright future. There is no official specification or construction sheet for the exact measurements of the star and crescent. The design acts as the flag of Mauritania, and is also used in circular form as an aircraft roundel. However, the flag has its basis in the earlier constitution of 22 March 1959. A Referendum scheduled for January 2017 by the President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz contained amidst others constitutional amendments a modification of the national flag. Two red bands would be added, one on the upper side, the referendum was canceled by the government on 30 December 2016, judging it too expensive in a difficult economic context. The Parliament would have called into Congress to vote on the proposed reforms. Seal of Mauritania Mauritania at Flags of the World
39.
Flag of Morocco
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The flag of Morocco is made of a red field with a black-bordered green pentagram representing the Seal of Solomon. Red has considerable significance in Morocco, proclaiming the descent of the royal Alaouite family from the Islamic prophet Muhammad via Fatimah, the wife of Ali. Red is also the color that was used by the sharifs of Mecca, from the 17th century on, when Morocco was ruled by the Alaouite dynasty, the flags of the country were plain red. In 1915, during the reign of Mulay Yusef, the green interlaced pentangle was added to the national flag, while Morocco was under French and Spanish control, the red flag with the seal in the center remained in use, but only inland. Its use at sea was prohibited, when independence was restored in 1955, it once again became the national flag. On May 8,2010, a Moroccan flag with a size of 60,409.78 square metres, weighing 20 tonnes, was set in Dakhla and it was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest flag ever draped
40.
Flag of Oman
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The national flag of Oman consists of three stripes with a red bar on the left that contains the national emblem of Oman. Until 1975, Oman used the red banner of the indigenous people. In 1970, the Sultan introduced a new set of national flags. Bands of green and white were added to the fly, and the national emblem and this depicts crossed swords over a khanjar, a traditional curved dagger. White has been associated historically with the Imam, the leader of Oman. Green is traditionally associated with the Jabal al Akdar, or Green Mountains, red is a common color in Gulf state flags. The national emblem is said to back to the 18th century. A curved dagger is fastened over a pair of crossed swords, an ornate horsebit links the weapons. Between 1970 and 1995, the size of the band of the triband was slimmer than the other two, making up approximately one fifth of its height, the other bands two-fifths. The naval ensign shows a field, with the Oman in the canton or top-left quarter. The standard of the Sultan of Oman shows a red fly, with a green border whose width is about one-sixth of the height of the flag and it bears the countrys emblem as a charge in the center, colored gold. Oman at Flags of the World
41.
Flag of Palestine
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The Palestinian flag is based on the Flag of the Arab Revolt, and is used to represent the State of Palestine and the Palestinian people. The flag is a tricolor of three horizontal stripes overlaid by a red triangle issuing from the hoist. Prior to being the flag of the Palestinian people, it was the flag of the short lived Arab Federation of Iraq, the flag of the Arab Revolt had the same graphic form, but the colours were arranged differently. The flag used by the Arab Palestinian nationalists in the first half of the 20th century is the flag of the 1916 Arab Revolt, the origins of the flag are the subject of dispute and mythology. Yet another version is that the flag was designed by Sir Mark Sykes of the British Foreign Office, whatever the correct story, the flag was used by Sharif Hussein by 1917 at the latest and quickly became regarded as the flag of the Arab national movement in the Mashriq. On October 18,1948, the flag of the Arab Revolt was adopted, a modified version has been used in Palestine at least since the late 1930s and was officially adopted as the flag of the Palestinian people by the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1964. On November 15,1988 the PLO adopted the flag as the flag of the State of Palestine, on the ground the flag became widely used since the Oslo Agreements, with the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1993. Today the flag is flown widely by Palestinians and their supporters, in 1967, immediately following the Six Day War, the State of Israel banned the Palestinian flag in the occupied Gaza Strip and West Bank. A1980 law forbidding artwork of political significance banned artwork composed of its four colours, since the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords in 1993, the ban has been abolished
42.
Flag of Qatar
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The flag of Qatar is in the ratio of 11,28. It is maroon with a broad white serrated band on the hoist side and it was adopted shortly before the countrys declaration of independence from Britain on September 3,1971. The flag is similar to the flag of the neighbouring country Bahrain, which has fewer points, a 3,5 proportion. Qatars flag is the national flag having a width more than twice its height. Qatars historic flag was red, in correspondence with the red banner traditionally used by the Kharjite Muslims. In the 19th century, the country modified its entirely red flag with the addition of a vertical stripe at the hoist to suit the British directive. After this addition, Sheikh Mohammed bin Thani officially adopted a patterned purple-red, several additions were made to the Qatari flag in 1932, with the nine-pointed serrated edge, diamonds and the word Qatar being integrated in its design. The maroon color was standardized in 1949, in the 1960s, Sheikh Ali Al Thani removed the wording and diamonds from the flag. The flag was adopted on July 9,1971 and was virtually identical to the 1960s flag. Nine serrated edges separate the colored and white portions and they signify Qatars inclusion as the 9th member of the reconciled Emirates of the Persian Gulf at the conclusion of the Qatari-British treaty in 1916. The shade of Qatars colored portion is referred to as Qatar maroon, the history of purple dye in the country dates back several centuries. It has been asserted that Qatar was the site of the earliest known production of shellfish dye during the rule of the Kassites due to the presence of a purple dye industry on Al Khor Islands. Qatar was also known for its production of purple dye during the rule of the Sasanian Empire. Mohammed bin Thani, who ruled from 1847 to 1876, proposed the creation a flag with a color in order to unify the state. In 1932, the British Navy suggested an official flag should be designed and they proposed that the flag be white and red, but Qatar rejected the red coloring and continued using a mixture of purple and red instead. Due to the countrys subtropical desert climate, the colors were prone to being tinted darker by the sun. The white portion of the flag symbolizes the peace procured from signing anti-piracy treaties with the British, Qatar National Day Flag of Qatar Qatar at Flags of the World
43.
Flag of Saudi Arabia
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The flag of Saudi Arabia is the flag used by the government of Saudi Arabia since March 15,1973. It is a flag featuring in white an Arabic inscription. The inscription is the Islamic creed, or shahada, the green of the flag represents Islam and the sword stands for the strictness in applying justice. The flag is manufactured with identical obverse and reverse sides, to ensure the shahada reads correctly, from right to left, the sword points to the left on both sides, in the direction of the script. The flag is hoisted, meaning that it is hoisted to the left of the flagpole. The flags green is Pantone 349 C Because the shahada is considered holy, Saudi Arabia protested against its inclusion on a planned football to be issued by FIFA, bearing all the flags of the participants of the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Saudi officials said that kicking the creed with the foot was completely unacceptable, the flag is never lowered to half-mast as a sign of mourning, because lowering it would be considered blasphemous. Similarly, the flags of Afghanistan, Somaliland, and Iraq are also never at half-mast The normal flag cannot be hoisted vertically according to Saudi legislation. Special vertical flags are manufactured both the inscription and the emblem are rotated, although this is rare, as most Arab countries traditionally do not hoist flags vertically. The Al Saud, the family of Saudi Arabia, has long been closely associated with the Wahhabi religious movement. The Wahhabis, since the 18th century, had used the shahada on their flags, in 1902 Abdulaziz Abdulrahman Al-Saud, leader of the Al Saud and the future founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, added a sword to this flag. The design of the flag was not standardized prior to March 15,1973, by 1938, the flag had basically assumed its present form, except the sword had a different design and it, along with the shahada above, took up more of the flags space. The precursor states to Saudi Arabia were Nejd and Hejaz, the state flag of Nejd followed todays Saudi flag pattern very closely. The state of Hijaz followed the patterns seen in countries like Palestine, from 1744 a crescent was present. From 1902 until 1921 a different Arabic inscription was used, one of the primary opponents to the Saudis was the Al Rashid family in the north of the peninsula, until their defeat in 1921. The civil ensign, for use by merchant vessels at sea, is a flag with the state flag in the canton with a white border. The royal standard is the flag with the palm tree. Saudi Arabia at Flags of the World World Flags Information, Saudi Arabian page Saudi Arabian flag and associated information
44.
Flag of Western Sahara
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It has been used since the disengagement of the Spanish forces in 1976, when the Polisario proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, as the state that represents the territory. The flag of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is a combination of the Pan-Arab colors of black, green, white, and red, on 27 February 1976 the flag was adopted as the official flag of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. It was slightly modified in June 1991 and it is said to be designed by El Uali Mustapha Sayed, the first president of the SADR. This flag is referred to as the flag of Western Sahara. The flag is a tricolor of three horizontal stripes overlaid by a red triangle issuing from the hoist. There is a red star and crescent in the middle stripe, the flag is extremely similar to the flags of the Baath Party, Jordan, Palestine, and the Arab Federation all of which draw their inspiration from the Arab Revolt against Ottoman rule. Prior to being the flag of Palestine, it was the flag of the short lived Arab Federation of Iraq, the flag of the Arab Revolt had the same graphic form, but the colours were arranged differently. Its design is based on that of the Palestinian flag, which in turn was derived from the used in the Arab Revolt. The star and crescent are considered symbols of Islam, and can be seen on flags of other neighbouring Islamic countries such as Algeria and Mauritania, Morocco has not adopted a flag for Western Sahara and uses the national flag of Morocco. On May 8,2010, a Moroccan flag with a size of 60,409.78 meters squared and it was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest flag ever draped until it was bested by a Lebanese flag. In the late 19th-century, Western Sahara became a Spanish colony, after the Madrid Accords of 1975, Spain disengaged itself leaving the territory to Morocco and Mauritania, who split the territory, giving two thirds to the former. The Polisario Front rejected this and declared in exile, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as the representing a independent Western Sahara. In 1979, Mauritania signed a treaty with the Polisario front. A U. N. -brokered ceasefire was signed in 1991 between the two parties, but the sovereignty of the territory remains unresolved pending ongoing peace-talks, in the 1976–1997 provincial division of Morocco, three provinces included parts of Western Sahara. The provinces were, however, reorganized in 1997, consequently, some of these flags are no longer in official use. Flag of Morocco Coats of arms of Western Sahara Gallery of flags with crescents Western Sahara at Flags of the World
45.
Flag of Somalia
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The Flag of Somalia, also known as the Somali Flag, is the official flag of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Adopted on October 12,1954, it was designed by Mohammed Awale Liban the flag was used for the nascent Somali Republic and it was originally conceived and serves as an ethnic flag for the Somali people. The flag of Somalia was created in 1954 during the trusteeship period of the nations history. It was personally designed by the Somali scholar Mohammed Awale Liban, the flag was first used in the Trust Territory of Somaliland and the short-lived, which united on July 1,1960, to form the Somali Republic. The Somali flags light blue backdrop was originally influenced by the flag of the United Nations, however, it now officially denotes the sky as well as the Indian Ocean, which flanks the country. The flags blazon, or heraldic description, is, Azure, a mullet Argent
46.
Flag of Somaliland
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The flag of Somaliland is used in Somaliland, a self-declared republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region of Somalia. Having established its own government in 1991, the regions self-declared independence remains unrecognized by any country or international organization. It contains the Pan-Arab colors of green, black, white, on the green stripe, there is the Sunni Shahada in white script, similar to that of the Saudi Arabian flag. The Constitution of Somaliland, as approved on May 31,2001, by referendum, Article 7, The Flag, the Emblem, the government set out principles on how to use the flag. It should be treated with respect and used carefully and sensitivity. Because the Shahada has huge importance in Islam, the first pillar of Islam etc and it is forbidden for Somalis to fly the flag at half mast because it has the Shahada written on it so it will be an un-Islamic and disrespectful way to treat the flag. Even if the President or someone with a high Somaliland governmental status dies, moreover, if a person is seen lowering the flag at half-mast, they might be taken to jail or to court and it would be considered as a criminal offense. Similar rules, for the reason, also apply to the flags of Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia. Although the aforementioned Article 7 clearly states that the bottom of the flag is red, another variation is the orientation of the star, many Somaliland flags have the star pointing the opposite direction from other flags, this upside-down star version is used quite widely. Some flags have a green band, without the Shahada, hence may be exempt from the half-mast rule. Most Somaliland flags are of the ratio 2,1 and it is based on the official ratio of the Union Flag of the United Kingdom, the former colonial power. Pictures of flags on the internet etc. often erroneously show a shorter flag, when the British annexed and occupied northwestern present-day Somalia in 1903, they established a protectorate and made it part of the British Empire. The British adopted a new flag for the region, like many Commonwealth countries, the flag had a defaced Blue Ensign, a blue field with the Union Flag in the upper hoist quarter of the flag. There was an image of a Kudu on a white disc, the flag was flown on ships owned by residents of British Somaliland or on government buildings in the territory. In 1950 The Protectorate of British Somalilands badge and flag changed, the flag still had the Union flag on the quarter-hoist. The Kudus head and shoulders were retained and taken off to form the most dominant feature on the new arms, between its horns, the Royal crown was inserted to symbolize the Royal family and the British Empire in general. The green portion contained an image of a white minaret, moreover, on the blue quarter, an Arabian dhow in full sail on waves of the sea, with a golden anchor in the base. The Kudus head was facing forward to the observer instead of facing left on the earlier version, above, the Kudu was the Royal Crown between the horns
47.
Flag of Sudan
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The flag of Sudan was adopted on May 20,1970, and consists of a horizontal red-white-black tricolor, with a green triangle at the hoist. The flag is based on the Arab Liberation Flag shared by Egypt, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, prior to the 1969 military coup of Gaafar Nimeiry, a blue-yellow-green tricolor design was used. According to World Flags 101, Red, white, black and green are called the colors and have been historically linked to the Arab people. The colors stand for Arab unity and independence, the red stripe represents Sudans struggle for independence and many other struggles, and the sacrifices of the countrys martyrs. The white represents peace, light and optimism and it also represents the White Flag League which was a nationalist group that rose up against colonial rule in 1924. The black represents Sudan, in Arabic Sudan means black and it also represents the black flag of nationalists who fought colonial rule during the Mahdist Revolution, late in 19th century. Green represents Islam, agriculture and the prosperity of the land, in 1881, at the beginning of the Mahdist War, the Mahdi Muhammad Ahmad appointed Abdallahi ibn Muhammad as one of his four caliphs and handed him a black flag. Abdallahi used his black flag to recruit Baggara Arabs and other tribes from the west, the other caliphs used differently colored flags. The black horizontal stripe in the current Sudanese flag is a reference to this Mahdist-era black flag, between 1899 and 1956, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan was administered jointly as a condominium by Egypt and the United Kingdom. The condominium did not have its own flag, instead the flag of Egypt, a flag did exist as a rank flag for the British Governor General of the Sudan. As no badge or coat of arms existed for Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, upon independence from Egypt and the United Kingdom on 1 January 1956, Sudan adopted a blue-yellow-green tricolor as its national flag. This flag remained in use until 1970, when the current flag was adopted, the colours of the flag represented the River Nile, the Sahara Desert and farmlands. They were chosen as they were neutral between ethnic groups and political parties, Sudan Emblem of Sudan Flag of South Sudan Sudan at Flags of the World
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