1.
French language
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French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages, French has evolved from Gallo-Romance, the spoken Latin in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues doïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to Frances past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, a French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French. French is a language in 29 countries, most of which are members of la francophonie. As of 2015, 40% of the population is in Europe, 35% in sub-Saharan Africa, 15% in North Africa and the Middle East, 8% in the Americas. French is the fourth-most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union, 1/5 of Europeans who do not have French as a mother tongue speak French as a second language. As a result of French and Belgian colonialism from the 17th and 18th century onward, French was introduced to new territories in the Americas, Africa, most second-language speakers reside in Francophone Africa, in particular Gabon, Algeria, Mauritius, Senegal and Ivory Coast. In 2015, French was estimated to have 77 to 110 million native speakers, approximately 274 million people are able to speak the language. The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie estimates 700 million by 2050, in 2011, Bloomberg Businessweek ranked French the third most useful language for business, after English and Standard Mandarin Chinese. Under the Constitution of France, French has been the language of the Republic since 1992. France mandates the use of French in official government publications, public education except in specific cases, French is one of the four official languages of Switzerland and is spoken in the western part of Switzerland called Romandie, of which Geneva is the largest city. French is the language of about 23% of the Swiss population. French is also a language of Luxembourg, Monaco, and Aosta Valley, while French dialects remain spoken by minorities on the Channel Islands. A plurality of the worlds French-speaking population lives in Africa and this number does not include the people living in non-Francophone African countries who have learned French as a foreign language. Due to the rise of French in Africa, the total French-speaking population worldwide is expected to reach 700 million people in 2050, French is the fastest growing language on the continent. French is mostly a language in Africa, but it has become a first language in some urban areas, such as the region of Abidjan, Ivory Coast and in Libreville. There is not a single African French, but multiple forms that diverged through contact with various indigenous African languages, sub-Saharan Africa is the region where the French language is most likely to expand, because of the expansion of education and rapid population growth
2.
Garden
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A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials, the most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has traditionally been a more general one. Zoos, which wild animals in simulated natural habitats, were formerly called zoological gardens. Western gardens are almost universally based on plants, with garden often signifying a shortened form of botanical garden, some traditional types of eastern gardens, such as Zen gardens, use plants sparsely or not at all. Xeriscape gardens use local plants that do not require irrigation or extensive use of other resources while still providing the benefits of a garden environment. Gardens may exhibit structural enhancements, sometimes called follies, including features such as fountains, ponds, waterfalls or creeks, dry creek beds, statuary, arbors, trellises. Some gardens are for ornamental purposes only, while some also produce food crops, sometimes in separate areas. Food-producing gardens are distinguished from farms by their scale, more labor-intensive methods. Flower gardens combine plants of different heights, colors, textures, Gardening is the activity of growing and maintaining the garden. This work is done by an amateur or professional gardener, a gardener might also work in a non-garden setting, such as a park, a roadside embankment, or other public space. Landscape architecture is a professional activity with landscape architects tending to specialise in design for public. See Grad for more complete etymology, the words yard, court, and Latin hortus, are cognates—all referring to an enclosed space. The term garden in British English refers to an enclosed area of land. This would be referred to as a yard in American English, garden design is the creation of plans for the layout and planting of gardens and landscapes. Gardens may be designed by garden owners themselves, or by professionals, professional garden designers tend to be trained in principles of design and horticulture, and have a knowledge and experience of using plants. Some professional garden designers are also landscape architects, a formal level of training that usually requires an advanced degree. Garden design can be divided into two groups, formal and naturalistic gardens. All of these considerations are subject to the limitations of the budget, most gardens consist of a mix of natural and constructed elements, although even very natural gardens are always an inherently artificial creation
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Symmetry
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Symmetry in everyday language refers to a sense of harmonious and beautiful proportion and balance. In mathematics, symmetry has a precise definition, that an object is invariant to any of various transformations. Although these two meanings of symmetry can sometimes be told apart, they are related, so they are discussed together. The opposite of symmetry is asymmetry, a geometric shape or object is symmetric if it can be divided into two or more identical pieces that are arranged in an organized fashion. This means that an object is symmetric if there is a transformation that moves individual pieces of the object, an object has rotational symmetry if the object can be rotated about a fixed point without changing the overall shape. An object has symmetry if it can be translated without changing its overall shape. An object has symmetry if it can be simultaneously translated and rotated in three-dimensional space along a line known as a screw axis. An object has symmetry if it does not change shape when it is expanded or contracted. Fractals also exhibit a form of symmetry, where small portions of the fractal are similar in shape to large portions. Other symmetries include glide reflection symmetry and rotoreflection symmetry, a dyadic relation R is symmetric if and only if, whenever its true that Rab, its true that Rba. Thus, is the age as is symmetrical, for if Paul is the same age as Mary. Symmetric binary logical connectives are and, or, biconditional, nand, xor, the set of operations that preserve a given property of the object form a group. In general, every kind of structure in mathematics will have its own kind of symmetry, examples include even and odd functions in calculus, the symmetric group in abstract algebra, symmetric matrices in linear algebra, and the Galois group in Galois theory. In statistics, it appears as symmetric probability distributions, and as skewness, symmetry in physics has been generalized to mean invariance—that is, lack of change—under any kind of transformation, for example arbitrary coordinate transformations. This concept has one of the most powerful tools of theoretical physics. See Noethers theorem, and also, Wigners classification, which says that the symmetries of the laws of physics determine the properties of the found in nature. Important symmetries in physics include continuous symmetries and discrete symmetries of spacetime, internal symmetries of particles, in biology, the notion of symmetry is mostly used explicitly to describe body shapes. Bilateral animals, including humans, are more or less symmetric with respect to the plane which divides the body into left
4.
Gardens of Versailles
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The Gardens of Versailles occupy part of what was once the Domaine royal de Versailles, the royal demesne of the château of Versailles. Situated to the west of the palace, the gardens cover some 800 hectares of land, in addition to the meticulous manicured lawns, parterres of flowers, and sculptures are the fountains, which are located throughout the garden. Dating from the time of Louis XIV and still using much of the network of hydraulics as was used during the Ancien Régime. On weekends from spring to early autumn, the administration of the museum sponsors the Grandes Eaux – spectacles during which all the fountains in the gardens are in full play. In 1979, the gardens along with the château were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, one of thirty-one such designations in France. With Louis XIII’s final purchase of lands from Jean-François de Gondi in 1632 and his assumption of the role of Versailles in the 1630s. Records indicate that late in the decade Claude Mollet and Hilaire Masson designed the gardens and this early layout, which has survived in the so-called Du Bus plan of c.1662, shows an established topography along which lines of the gardens evolved. This is evidenced in the definition of the main east-west. From this point forward, the expansion of the gardens of Versailles followed the expansions of the château, accordingly, Louis XIVs building campaigns apply to the gardens as well. At every stage the prescribed tour was managed, under the Sun Kings directions. First building campaign In 1662, minor modifications to the château were undertaken, existing bosquets and parterres were expanded and new ones created. Most significant among the creations at this time were the Orangerie, the Versailles Orangery, which was designed by Louis Le Vau, was located south of the château, a situation that took advantage of the natural slope of the hill. It provided an area in which orange trees were kept during the winter months. The Grotte de Thétys, which was located to the north of the château, formed part of the iconography of the château, the grotto would be completed during the second building campaign. By 1664, the gardens had evolved to the point that Louis XIV inaugurated the gardens with the fête galante called Les Plaisirs de l’Île Enchantée. The event, which officially was to celebrate his mother, Anne d’Autriche, guests were regaled with fabulous entertainments in the gardens over a period of one week. As a result of this fête – particularly the lack of housing for guests, Louis realized the shortcomings of Versailles and began to expand the château and the gardens once again. With this new phase of construction, the gardens assumed the topographical and iconological design vocabulary that would remain in force until the 18th century. ”
5.
Landscape architect
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A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The title landscape architect was first used by Frederick Law Olmsted and this definition of the profession of landscape architect is based on the International Standard Classification of Occupations, International Labour Office, Geneva. Some notable Australian landscape architects include William Guilfoyle, Ina Higgins, Edna Walling, after at least two years of recognised professional practice, graduates may submit for further assessment to obtain full professional recognition by the AILA. The Landscape Institute is the recognised body relating to the field of Landscape architecture throughout the UK, to become a recognised landscape architect in the UK takes approximately 7 years. To begin the process, one has to study a course by the Landscape Institute to obtain a bachelors degree in Landscape Architecture or a similar field. Following this one must progress onto a Postgraduate Diploma in the field of Landscape Architecture covering the subject in far greater detail such as urban planning, construction. Following this, the trainee must complete the Pathway to Chartership and those in this field work both to create an aesthetically pleasing setting and also to protect and preserve the environment in an area. The actual activities however are common to most human cultures around the globe for several millennia, in the U. S. a need to formalize the practice and name were resolved in 1899 with the formation of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Developing policies and plans and implementing and monitoring proposals for conservation and recreation such as national parks. Contributing to the planning, aesthetic and functional design, location, management and maintenance of such as roads, dams, wind farms and other energy. Undertaking landscape assessments including environmental and visual impact assessments to prepare policies or inform new developments, monitoring the realisation and inspecting the construction of proposals to ensure compliance with plans, specifications of work, cost estimates and time schedules. Project management of large scale landscape planning and design projects including management of other such as engineers, architects. Acting as a witness in Development and Environment Courts Kerb 15. Launched by Charles Waldheim, April 2007, content includes articles and interviews from Charles Waldheim, Mohsen Mostafavi, Alejandro Zaera-Polo, Kathryn Gustafson, Bart Brands and Richard Weller. Landscape design software List of landscape architects Job Description at the U. S. Department of Labor
6.
Louis XIV of France
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Louis XIV, known as Louis the Great or the Sun King, was a monarch of the House of Bourbon who ruled as King of France and Navarre from 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the longest of any monarch of a country in European history. In the age of absolutism in Europe, Louis XIVs France was a leader in the centralization of power. Louis began his rule of France in 1661, after the death of his chief minister. By these means he became one of the most powerful French monarchs, under his rule, the Edict of Nantes, which granted rights to Huguenots, was abolished. The revocation effectively forced Huguenots to emigrate or convert in a wave of dragonnades, which managed to virtually destroy the French Protestant minority. During Louis reign, France was the leading European power, and it fought three wars, the Franco-Dutch War, the War of the League of Augsburg. There were also two lesser conflicts, the War of Devolution and the War of the Reunions, warfare defined Louis XIVs foreign policies, and his personality shaped his approach. Impelled by a mix of commerce, revenge, and pique, in peacetime he concentrated on preparing for the next war. He taught his diplomats their job was to create tactical and strategic advantages for the French military, Louis XIV was born on 5 September 1638 in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, to Louis XIII and Anne of Austria. He was named Louis Dieudonné and bore the title of French heirs apparent. At the time of his birth, his parents had married for 23 years. His mother had experienced four stillbirths between 1619 and 1631, leading contemporaries thus regarded him as a divine gift and his birth a miracle of God. Sensing imminent death, Louis XIII decided to put his affairs in order in the spring of 1643, in defiance of custom, which would have made Queen Anne the sole Regent of France, the king decreed that a regency council would rule on his sons behalf. His lack of faith in Queen Annes political abilities was his primary rationale and he did, however, make the concession of appointing her head of the council. Louis relationship with his mother was uncommonly affectionate for the time, contemporaries and eyewitnesses claimed that the Queen would spend all her time with Louis. Both were greatly interested in food and theatre, and it is likely that Louis developed these interests through his close relationship with his mother. This long-lasting and loving relationship can be evidenced by excerpts in Louis journal entries, such as, but attachments formed later by shared qualities of the spirit are far more difficult to break than those formed merely by blood
7.
Palace of Versailles
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The Palace of Versailles, Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. Versailles is therefore not only as a building, but as a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime. First built by Louis XIII in 1623, as a lodge of brick and stone. The first phase of the expansion was designed and supervised by the architect Louis Le Vau and it culminated in the addition of three new wings of stone, which surrounded Louis XIIIs original building on the north, south, and west. After Le Vaus death in 1670, the work was taken over and completed by his assistant, charles Le Brun designed and supervised the elaborate interior decoration, and André Le Nôtre landscaped the extensive Gardens of Versailles. Le Brun and Le Nôtre collaborated on the fountains, and Le Brun supervised the design. During the second phase of expansion, two enormous wings north and south of the wings flanking the Cour Royale were added by the architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart. He also replaced Le Vaus large terrace, facing the garden on the west, with became the most famous room of the palace. The Royal Chapel of Versailles, located at the end of the north wing, was begun by Mansart in 1688. One of the most baffling aspects to the study of Versailles is the cost – how much Louis XIV, owing to the nature of the construction of Versailles and the evolution of the role of the palace, construction costs were essentially a private matter. Initially, Versailles was planned to be a residence for Louis XIV and was referred to as the kings house. Once Louis XIV embarked on his campaigns, expenses for Versailles became more of a matter for public record. To counter the costs of Versailles during the years of Louis XIVs personal reign. Accordingly, all materials that went into the construction and decoration of Versailles were manufactured in France, even the mirrors used in the decoration of the Hall of Mirrors were made in France. While Venice in the 17th century had the monopoly on the manufacture of mirrors, to meet the demands for decorating and furnishing Versailles, Colbert nationalised the tapestry factory owned by the Gobelin family, to become the Manufacture royale des Gobelins. In 1667, the name of the enterprise was changed to the Manufacture royale des Meubles de la Couronne, the Comptes meticulously list the expenditures on the silver furniture – disbursements to artists, final payments, delivery – as well as descriptions and weight of items purchased. Entries for 1681 and 1682 concerning the silver used in the salon de Mercure serve as an example. 5 In anticipation, For the silver balustrade for the bedroom,90,000 livres II
8.
Parterre
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A parterre is a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of plant beds, typically in symmetrical patterns, which are separated and connected by paths. The borders of the plant beds may be formed with stone or tightly pruned hedging, the paths are constituted with gravel or turf grass. French parterres originated in the gardens of the French Renaissance of the 15th century, later, during the 17th century Baroque era, they became more elaborate and stylised. The French parterre reached its greatest development at the Palace of Versailles, claude Mollet, the founder of a dynasty of nurserymen-designers that lasted into the 18th century, developed the parterre in France. His inspiration in developing the 16th-century patterned compartimens, i. e. C, clipped boxwood met with resistance from horticultural patrons for its naughtie smell as the herbalist Gervase Markham described it. By the 1630s, elaborate parterres de broderie appeared at Wilton House in Wilton, England that were so magnificent that they were engraved, which engraving is the only remaining trace of them. Parterres de pelouse or parterres de gazon denominate cutwork parterres of low growing herbs, e. g. camomile, the separation of plant beds of a pareterre is denominated an alley of compartiment. Parterre gardens lost favour in the 18th century and were superseded by naturalistic English landscape gardens, level substrates and a raised vantage point from which to view the design were required, and so the parterre was revived in a modified style. At Kensington Palace the planting of the parterres was by Henry Wise, whose nursery was nearby at Brompton, subsidiary wings have subsidiary parterres, with no attempt at overall integration. To either side, walls with busts on herm pedestals backed by young trees screen the parterre from the garden spaces. Formal baroque patterns have given way to symmetrical paired free scrolling rococo arabesques, little attempt seems to have been made to fit the framework to the shape of the parterre. Beyond paired basins have central jets of water, in the UK, modern parterres exist at Trereife Park in Penzance, at Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfriesshire and at Bodysgallen Hall near Llandudno. Examples can also be found in the Republic of Ireland, such as at Birr Castle, sentinel pyramids of yew stand at the corners. Some early knot gardens have been covered over by lawn or other landscaping, an example of this phenomenon is the early 17th-century garden of Muchalls Castle in Scotland. At Charlecote Park in Warwickshire the original parterre from the 1700s has been recreated on the terrace overlooking the river, making of a modern parterre This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chambers, Ephraim, ed. article name needed. Cyclopædia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences, james and John Knapton, et al
9.
Orangerie
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The orangery provided a luxurious extension of the normal range and season of woody plants, extending the protection which had long been afforded by the warmth offered from a masonry fruit wall. As imported citrus fruit, pineapples, and other tender fruit became generally available and much cheaper, the orangery originated from the Renaissance gardens of Italy, when glass-making technology enabled sufficient expanses of clear glass to be produced. This soon created a situation where orangeries became symbols of status among the wealthy, the glazed roof, which afforded sunlight to plants that were not dormant, was a development of the early 19th century. The 1617 Orangerie at the Palace of the Louvre inspired imitations that culminated in Europes largest orangery, notable for his 1851 design of the Crystal Palace, his great conservatory at Chatsworth House was an orangery and glass house of monumental proportions. The orangery, however, was not just a greenhouse but a symbol of prestige and wealth, owners would conduct their guests there on tours of the garden to admire not only the fruits within but also the architecture without. Often the orangery would contain fountains, grottos, and an area in which to entertain in inclement weather, as early as 1545, an orangery was built in Padua, Italy. The first orangeries were practical and not as ornamental as they later became, most had no heating other than open fires. In England, John Parkinson introduced the orangery to the readers of his Paradisus in Sole, the building of orangeries became most widely fashionable after the end of the Eighty Years War in 1648. Orangeries were generally built facing south to take advantage of the possible light, and were constructed using brick or stone bases, brick or stone pillars. Insulation at these times was one of the biggest concerns for the building of these orangeries, straw became the material used. An early example of the type of construction can be seen at Kensington Palace, domestic orangeries also typically feature a roof lantern. The first examples were basic constructions and could be removed during summer, notably not only noblemen but also wealthy merchants, e. g. those of Nuremberg, used to cultivate citrus plants in orangeries. This became further influenced by the demand for beautiful exotic plants in the garden. This created the demand in garden design for the wealthy to have their own exotic private gardens. This in turn created the need for orangeries to be constructed using even better techniques such as underfloor heating, creating microclimates for the propagation of more and more exotic plants for the private gardens that were becoming creations of beauty all around Europe. At a length of 28 metres, it was the largest glasshouse in Britain when it was built, although designed as an arcade with end pavilions to winter oranges, the light levels under its solid roof were too low for it to be successful. The orangery at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, was designed in 1761 by Sir William Chambers, the orangery at Margam Park, Wales, was built between 1787 and 1793 to house a large collection of orange, lemon, and citron trees inherited by Thomas Mansel Talbot. The original house has been razed, but the surviving orangery, an orangery dating from about 1700 is at Kenwood House in London, and a slightly earlier one at Montacute
10.
Grand Trianon
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The Grand Trianon is a château situated in the northwestern part of the Domain of Versailles. The Grand Trianon is set within its own park, which includes the Petit Trianon, in 1668, Louis XIV purchased Trianon, a hamlet on the outskirts of Versailles, and commissioned the architect Louis Le Vau to design a porcelain pavilion to be built there. The façade was made of white and blue Delft-style porcelain tiles from the French manufactures of Rouen, Lisieux, Nevers, construction began in 1670 and was finished in 1672. By 1687, the ceramic tiles had deteriorated to such a point that Louis XIV ordered the demolition of the pavilion. Commission of the work was entrusted to the architect Jules Hardouin Mansart, hardouin-Mansarts new structure was twice the size of the porcelain pavilion and the material used was red marble of Languedoc. Begun in June 1687, the new construction was finished in January 1688 and inaugurated by Louis XIV and his secret wife, the Grand Trianon would often play host to the King and his wife. The first set of Grands apartments lasted from 1688 to 1691, the next was from 1691 till 1701, then 1701 till his death at Versailles in 1715. From 1703 to 1711, the building was the residence of le Grand Dauphin, the domain was a favourite of the Duchess of Burgundy, the wife of his grandson Louis de France, the parents of Louis XV. In the later years of Louis XIVs reign, the Trianon was the residence of the Kings sister-in-law Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, Dowager Duchess of Orléans and her son, Philippe dOrléans, future son-in-law of Louis XIV and Regent of France, lived there with his mother. The Kings youngest grandson Charles de France and his wife Marie Louise Élisabeth dOrléans also resided there. In 1717, Peter the Great of Russia, who was studying the palace and gardens of Versailles, resided at the Grand Trianon, Louis XV did not bring any changes to the Grand Trianon. In 1740 and 1743, his father-in-law, Stanislas Leszczynski, former king of Poland stayed there during his visits to Versailles. Later, it was during a stay at Trianon that Louis XV fell ill before being transported to the Palace of Versailles, no more than his predecessor had, Louis XVI brought no structural modifications to the Grand Trianon. During the French Revolution of 1789, the Grand Trianon was left to neglect, at the time of the First French Empire, Napoleon made it one of his residences, and furnished it in the Empire Style. Napoleon lived at Trianon with his second wife Marie Louise of Austria, to the Hungarians, the word Trianon remains to this day the symbol of one of their worst national disasters. 1963 saw Charles de Gaulle order a renovation of the building, a popular site for tourists visiting Versailles, it is also one of the French Republic presidential residences used to host foreign officials
11.
Embroidery
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Embroidery is the handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate materials such as, pearls, beads, quills. Today, embroidery is most often seen on caps, hats, coats, blankets, dress shirts, denim, stockings, Embroidery is available with a wide variety of thread or yarn color. The process used to tailor, patch, mend and reinforce cloth fostered the development of sewing techniques, indeed, the remarkable stability of basic embroidery stitches has been noted, It is a striking fact that in the development of embroidery. There are no changes of materials or techniques which can be felt or interpreted as advances from a primitive to a later, on the other hand, we often find in early works a technical accomplishment and high standard of craftsmanship rarely attained in later times. The art of embroidery has been found world-wide and several examples have been found. Works in China have been dated to the Warring States period, depending on time, location and materials available, embroidery could be the domain of a few experts or a wide-spread, popular technique. This flexibility led to a variety of works, from the royal to the mundane, in 18th century England and its colonies, samplers employing fine silks were produced by the daughters of wealthy families. Embroidery was a marking a girls path into womanhood as well as conveying rank. Conversely, embroidery is also an art, using materials that were accessible to nonprofessionals. Examples include Hardanger from Norway, Merezhka from Ukraine, Mountmellick embroidery from Ireland, Nakshi kantha from Bangladesh and West Bengal, many techniques had a practical use such as Sashiko from Japan, which was used as a way to reinforce clothing. Embroidery was an important art in the Medieval Islamic world, the 17th century Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi called it the craft of the two hands. Because embroidery was a sign of social status in Muslim societies. Craftsmen embroidered items with gold and silver thread, Embroidery cottage industries, some employing over 800 people, grew to supply these items. Taste for fine material has become general, and the drapery of embroidered fabrics used at feasts surpasses every description. The development of embroidery and its mass production came about in stages in the Industrial Revolution. The earliest machine embroidery used a combination of machine looms and teams of women embroidering the textiles by hand and this was done in France by the mid-1800s. The manufacture of machine-made embroideries in St. Gallen in eastern Switzerland flourished in the half of the 19th century
12.
Gardens of the French Renaissance
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In 1495, King Charles VIII and his nobles brought the Renaissance style back to France after their war campaign in Italy. They reached their peak in the gardens of the royal Château de Fontainebleau, the Château de Blois, the Château dAmboise, and the Château de Chenonceau. They became an extension of the châteaux that they surrounded, and were designed to illustrate the Renaissance ideals of measure and proportion, King Charles V of France ordered a French translation in 1373, and the new Italian style began to appear in France. This became a feature of Renaissance gardens. All these elements were to appear in French Renaissance gardens, in 1495, Charles VIII invaded the kingdom of Naples, and he and his court saw the luxury of the palaces and gardens in Italy. When he returned to France, he back with him a number of Italian artists, including priest. Charles ordered the addition of Renaissance features to his residence of the Château dAmboise on the banks of the Loire. Mercogliano extended the terrace of the château, surrounded it by galleries, besides the parterres of flowers, the gardens produced a wide variety of vegetables and fruits, including orange and lemon trees in boxes, which were taken indoors in winter. The building that sheltered them, still standing, was the first orangerie in France, the gardens were on the site of the present-day Place Victor-Hugo and the site of the railways station. The last vestiges of the garden were destroyed in 1890 by the construction of the Avenue Victor-Hugo. At about the time, Mercogliano designed gardens for the Château de Gaillon, owned by Cardinal Georges dAmboise, a Minister of King Henry IV. The gardens, built on different levels below the old medieval château, were planted in parterres of flowers, the parterre at the entrance of the garden featured the coat of arms of France in flowers. Bushes were trimmed into the shapes of men on horseback, ships and it was also decorated with imposing fountains of marble. The gardens of the Château de Bury were built between 1511 and 1524 by Florimont Robertet, a Secretary of State for both Louis XII and Francis I, Robertet had visited the villa Medici in at Fiesole, and wanted to reproduce the terraced gardens he saw there. The château, departing from the design of castles, was integrated closely with its gardens. Visitors passed through a garden inside the castle and out into two geometric gardens behind the château, decorated with fountains and surrounded by a wooden gallery. The axis went from the entrance to the chapel, at the far end of the garden, like Italian Renaissance gardens, the gardens of Bury were elocated on the edge of a hill, with a fine view of the forest of Blois. In the center of the court of the château, Robertet placed a copy of Michelangelos David
13.
Italian Renaissance garden
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The style was imitated throughout Europe, influencing the gardens of the French Renaissance and the English garden. The Italian Renaissance garden broke down the wall between the garden, the house, and the landscape outside, the Italian Renaissance garden, like Renaissance art and architecture, emerged from the rediscovery by Renaissance scholars of classical Roman models. Pliny the Younger described his life at his villa at Laurentum. a good life and a genuine one and you should take the first opportunity to leave the din, the futile bustle and useless occupations of the city and devote yourself to literature or to leisure. A garden was a place to think, relax, and escape, the first Renaissance text to include garden design was De Re Aedificatoria, by Leon Battista Alberti. He drew upon the principles of Vitruvius, and used quotations from Pliny the Elder and Pliny the Younger to describe what a garden should look like. He argued that a villa should both be looked at and a place to look from, that the house should be placed above the garden, where it could be seen and the owner could look down into the garden. Alberti wrote, The construction will give pleasure to the visitor if, toward this end, I would place it on a slightly elevated place. I would also have the road climb so gently that it fools those who take it to the point that they do not realize how high they have climbed until they discover the countryside below. Within the garden, Alberti wrote. You should place porticos for giving shade, planters where vines can climb, placed on marble columns, vases and amusing statues and you should also have rare plants. Trees should be aligned and arranged evenly, each tree aligned with its neighbours, a popular romance, The Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, published in 1499 in Venice by the monk Francesco Colonna, also had an important influence on the gardens of the Renaissance. It described the voyage and adventures of a traveller, Poliphile, through fantastic landscapes, looking for his love, the garden was a form of political theater, presenting the power, wisdom, order, beauty and glory that the Medici had brought to Florence. The fountain-maker, an engineer who designed the water system. Concealed fountains which drenched unsuspecting visitors, a grove of trees inspired by the groves where pagans would worship. In Renaissance and especially mannerist gardens, this section was filled with statues of animals, giants. An enclosed private garden within the garden, inspired by the cloisters of Medieval monasteries, a place for reading, writing or quiet conversations. Simples, or medicinal plants and herbs, the oldest existing Italian Renaissance garden is at the Villa Medici in Fiesole, north of Florence. It was created sometime between 1455 and 1461 by Giovanni de Medici the son of Cosimo de Medici, the founder of the Medici dynasty, unlike other Medici family villas that were located on flat farmland, this villa was located on a rocky hillside with a view over Florence. The garden has two terraces, one at the ground floor level and the other at the level of the first floor
14.
Boboli Gardens
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The Boboli Gardens is a park in Florence, Italy, that is home to a collection of sculptures dating from the 16th through the 18th centuries, with some Roman antiquities. The Gardens, directly behind the Pitti Palace, the seat of the Medici grand dukes of Tuscany at Florence, are some of the first and most familiar formal 16th-century Italian gardens. The openness of the garden, with a view of the city, was unconventional for its time. The gardens were very lavish, considering no access was allowed to anyone outside the immediate Medici family, the Boboli Gardens were laid out for Eleonora di Toledo, the wife of Cosimo I de Medici. The name is a curruption of Bogoli, a family from whom land had been bought to construct the garden, the elaborate architecture of the grotto in the courtyard that separates the palace from its garden is by Buontalenti. The garden lacks a water source. To water the plants in the garden, a conduit was built from the nearby Arno River to feed water into an irrigation system. The primary axis, centered on the rear façade of the palace, at the center of the amphitheater and rather dwarfed by its position is the Ancient Egyptian Boboli obelisk brought from the Villa Medici at Rome. This primary axis terminates in a fountain of Neptune, with the sculpture of Neptune by Stoldo Lorenzi visible against the skyline as a visitor climbs the slope, Giulio Parigi laid out the long secondary axis, the Viottolone or Cyprus Road at a right angle to the primary axis. In 1617, Parigi constructed the Grotto of Vulcan along this axis, the gardens have passed through several stages of enlargement and restructuring work. They were enlarged in the 17th century to their present extent of 45,000 meters², the Boboli Gardens have come to form an outdoor museum of garden sculpture that includes Roman antiquities as well as 16th and 17th century works. In the first phase of building, the amphitheatre was excavated in the hillside behind the palace, the small Grotto of Madama, and the Large Grotto, were begun by Vasari and completed by Ammannati and Buontalenti between 1583 and 1593. Even while undergoing restoration work in 2015, the Large Grottos statues are still on display, decorated internally and externally with stalactites and originally equipped with waterworks and luxuriant vegetation, the fountain is divided into three main sections. Other rooms in the Grotto contain Giambolognas famous Bathing Venus and an 18th-century group of Paris, in the hillside above the amphitheatre is a double ramp, leading to the Fountain of Neptune. The main feature is a basin with a central bronze statue of Neptune by Stoldo Lorenzi. The conceit here recalls the story of the competition of Athena, in that legend, Neptune struck the ground with his trident to spring forth water from the land. Higher up on the hillside is a statue of Abundance, the Isolotto is an oval-shaped island in a tree enclosed pond nearly at the end of the alternative Viottolone axis. In the centre of the island is the Fountain of the Ocean, while in the moat, there are statues of Perseus
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Fountain
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A fountain is a piece of architecture which pours water into a basin or jets it into the air to supply drinking water and/or for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were originally purely functional, connected to springs or aqueducts and used to drinking water and water for bathing and washing to the residents of cities, towns. Until the late 19th century most fountains operated by gravity, and needed a source of higher than the fountain, such as a reservoir or aqueduct. In addition to providing drinking water, fountains were used for decoration, Roman fountains were decorated with bronze or stone masks of animals or heroes. In the Middle Ages, Moorish and Muslim garden designers used fountains to create versions of the gardens of paradise. King Louis XIV of France used fountains in the Gardens of Versailles to illustrate his power over nature, the baroque decorative fountains of Rome in the 17th and 18th centuries marked the arrival point of restored Roman aqueducts and glorified the Popes who built them. By the end of the 19th century, as indoor plumbing became the source of drinking water. Mechanical pumps replaced gravity and allowed fountains to recycle water and to force it high into the air, the Jet dEau in Lake Geneva, built in 1951, shoots water 140 metres in the air. The highest such fountain in the world is King Fahds Fountain in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, fountains are used today to decorate city parks and squares, to honor individuals or events, for recreation and for entertainment. A Splash pad or spray pool allows city residents to enter, get wet, the musical fountain combines moving jets of water, colored lights and recorded music, controlled by a computer, for dramatic effects. Drinking fountains provide clean drinking water in buildings, parks. Ancient civilizations built stone basins to capture and hold precious drinking water, a carved stone basin, dating to around 2000 BC, was discovered in the ruins of the ancient Sumerian city of Lagash in modern Iraq. The ancient Assyrians constructed a series of basins in the gorge of the Comel River, carved in rock, connected by small channels. The lowest basin was decorated with carved reliefs of two lions, the ancient Greeks were apparently the first to use aqueducts and gravity-powered fountains to distribute water. In the 6th century BC the Athenian ruler Peisistratos built the fountain of Athens. It had nine large cannons, or spouts, which supplied drinking water to local residents. Greek fountains were made of stone or marble, with water flowing through bronze pipes, most Greek fountains flowed by simple gravity, but they also discovered how to use principle of a siphon to make water spout, as seen in pictures on Greek vases. The Ancient Romans built a system of aqueducts from mountain rivers and lakes to provide water for the fountains
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Waterfall
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A waterfall is a place where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of drops in the course of a stream or river. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of an iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls are commonly formed in the course of a river. At these times the channel is narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens slowly, as the watercourse increases its velocity at the edge of the waterfall, it plucks material from the riverbed. Whirlpools created in the turbulence as well as sand and stones carried by the increase the erosion capacity. This causes the waterfall to carve deeper into the bed and to recede upstream, often over time, the waterfall will recede back to form a canyon or gorge downstream as it recedes upstream, and it will carve deeper into the ridge above it. The rate of retreat for a waterfall can be as high as one, eventually, the outcropping, more resistant cap rock will collapse under pressure to add blocks of rock to the base of the waterfall. Waterfalls normally form in an area due to erosion. After a long period of being formed, the water falling off the ledge will retreat. Eventually, as the pit grows deeper, the waterfall collapses to be replaced by a steeply sloping stretch of river bed, a river sometimes flows over a large step in the rocks that may have been formed by a fault line. Waterfalls can occur along the edge of a trough, where a stream or river flowing into a glacier continues to flow into a valley after the glacier has receded or melted. The large waterfalls in Yosemite Valley are examples of this phenomenon, another reason hanging valleys may form is where two rivers join and one is flowing faster than the other. Waterfalls can be grouped into ten classes based on the average volume of water present on the fall using a logarithmic scale. Class 10 waterfalls include Niagara Falls, Paulo Afonso Falls and Khone Falls, young Wrote Waterfalls, form and process this work made waterfalls a much more serious topic for research for modern Geoscientists. Ledge waterfall, Water descends vertically over a cliff, maintaining partial contact with the bedrock. Block/Sheet. Classical, Ledge waterfalls where fall height is equal to stream width. Curtain, Ledge waterfalls which descend over a larger than the width of falling water stream
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Grotto
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A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or liable to flood at high tide, sometimes, artificial grottoes are used as garden features. The Grotta Azzurra at Capri and the grotto at the villa of Tiberius in the Bay of Naples are examples of popular natural seashore grottoes, the word grotto comes from Italian grotta, Vulgar Latin grupta, and Latin crypta. It is also related by an accident to the word grotesque. The rooms had sunk underground over time, the Romans who discovered this historical monument found it very strange, a sentiment enhanced by the fact that it was uncovered from an underworld source. This led the Romans to give it the name grottesche, or grotesque, grottoes were very popular in Greek and Roman culture. Spring-fed grottoes were a feature of Apollos oracles at Delphi, Corinth, the Hellenistic city of Rhodes was designed with rock-cut artificial grottoes incorporated into the city, made to look natural. According to tradition, Praenestes sacred spring had a native nymph, Tiberius, the Roman emperor, filled his grotto with sculptures to create a sense of mythology, perhaps channeling Polyphemus cave in the Odyssey. The numinous quality of the grotto is still more ancient, in a grotto near Knossos in Crete, Eileithyia was venerated, even farther back in time, the immanence of the divine in a grotto is seen in the sacred caves of Lascaux. The popularity of artificial grottoes introduced Mannerist style to Italian and French gardens of the mid-16th century, two famous grottoes in the Boboli Gardens of Palazzo Pitti were begun by Vasari and completed by Ammanati and Buontalenti between 1583 and 1593. One of these grottoes originally housed the Prisoners of Michelangelo, before Boboli grotto, a garden was laid out by Niccolò Tribolo at the Medici Villa Castello, near Florence. At Pratolino, in spite of the dryness of the site, there was a Grotto of Cupid, with water tricks for the unsuspecting visitor. The Fonte di Fata Morgana at Grassina, not far from Florence, is a garden building. It is decorated with sculptures in the Giambolognan manner, the outside of garden grottoes are often designed to look like an enormous rock, a rustic porch or a rocky overhang. Damp grottoes were cool places to retreat from the Italian sun, in Kuskovo at the Sheremetev estate there is a Summer Grotto, built in 1775. Grottoes could also serve as baths, an example of this is at the Palazzo del Te, in the Casino della Grotta, courtiers once bathed in the small cascade that splashed over the pebbles and shells encrusted in the floor and walls. Grottoes have also served as chapels, or at Villa Farnese at Caprarola and they were often combined with cascading fountains in Renaissance gardens. The grotto designed by Bernard Palissy for Catherine de Medicis château in Paris, there are also grottoes in the gardens designed by André Le Nôtre for Versailles
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Labyrinth
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In Greek mythology, the labyrinth was an elaborate structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur eventually killed by the hero Theseus, Daedalus had so cunningly made the Labyrinth that he could barely escape it after he built it. Even as the designs became more elaborate, visual depictions of the mythological Labyrinth from Roman times until the Renaissance are almost invariably unicursal, branching mazes were reintroduced only when garden mazes became popular during the Renaissance. In English, the labyrinth is generally synonymous with maze. As a result of the history of unicursal representation of the mythological Labyrinth, however, many contemporary scholars. In this specialized usage refers to a complex branching multicursal puzzle with choices of path and direction. A labyrinth in this sense has a route to the center and back. Unicursal labyrinths appeared as designs on pottery or basketry, as body art, the Romans created many primarily decorative unicursal designs on walls and floors in tile or mosaic. Many labyrinths set in floors or on the ground are large enough that the path can be walked, unicursal patterns have been used historically both in group ritual and for private meditation, and are increasingly found for therapeutic use in hospitals and hospices. Labyrinth is a word of Pre-Greek origin, which the Greeks associated with the palace of Knossos in Crete and this designation may not have been limited to Knossos, because the same symbols were discovered in other palaces in Crete. Labrys was a cult-word that was introduced from Anatolia, where such symbols have been found in Çatal Höyük from the Neolithic age. In Labraunda of Caria the double-axe accompanies the storm-god Zeus Labraundos and it also accompanies the Hurrian god of sky and storm Teshub. Labrys, however, comes from Lydian, not Minoan, the Linear B inscription
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Charles VIII of France
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Charles VIII, called the Affable, French, lAffable, was a monarch of the House of Valois who ruled as King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13 and his elder sister Anne of France acted as regent jointly with her husband Peter II, Duke of Bourbon until 1491 when the young king turned 21 years of age. During Annes regency, the great lords rebelled against royal centralisation efforts in a known as the Mad War. Preoccupied by the succession in the Kingdom of Hungary, Maximilian failed to press his claim. Upon his marriage, Charles became administrator of Brittany and established a union that enabled France to avoid total encirclement by Habsburg territories. The coalition formed against the French invasion of 1494-98 finally drove out Charles army, Charles died in 1498 after accidentally striking his head on the lintel of a door. Since he had no heir, he was succeeded by his cousin Louis XII of France from the Orléans cadet branch of the House of Valois. Charles was born at the Château dAmboise in France, the surviving son of King Louis XI by his second wife Charlotte of Savoy. Charles succeeded to the throne on 30 August 1483 at the age of 13 and he was regarded by his contemporaries as possessing a pleasant disposition, but also as foolish and unsuited for the business of the state. She would rule as regent, together with her husband Peter of Bourbon, Charles was betrothed on 22 July 1483 to the 3-year-old Margaret of Austria, daughter of the Archduke Maximilian of Austria and Mary, Duchess of Burgundy. The marriage was arranged by Louis XI, Maximilian, and the Estates of the Low Countries as part of the 1482 Peace of Arras between France and the Duchy of Burgundy. Margaret brought the Counties of Artois and Burgundy to France as her dowry, in 1488, however, Francis II, Duke of Brittany, died in a riding accident, leaving his 11-year-old daughter Anne as his heiress. The Regent Anne of France and her husband Peter refused to countenance such a marriage, however, since it would place Maximilian and his family, the Habsburgs, on two French borders. The French army invaded Brittany, taking advantage of the preoccupation of Frederick III and his son with the succession to Mathias Corvinus. Anne of Brittany was forced to renounce Maximilian and agree to be married to Charles VIII instead, in December 1491, in an elaborate ceremony at the Château de Langeais, Charles and Anne of Brittany were married. The 14-year-old Duchess Anne, not happy with the arranged marriage, however, Charless marriage brought him independence from his relatives and thereafter he managed affairs according to his own inclinations. Queen Anne lived at the Clos Lucé in Amboise, there still remained the matter of Charles first betrothed, the young Margaret of Austria. Although the cancellation of her betrothal meant that she by rights should have returned to her family, Charles did not initially do so
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Henry II of France
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Henry II was a monarch of the House of Valois who ruled as King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis III, Duke of Brittany, as a child, Henry and his elder brother spent over four years in captivity in Spain as hostages in exchange for their father. Henry pursued his fathers policies in matter of arts, wars and he persevered in the Italian Wars against the House of Habsburg and tried to suppress the Protestant Reformation, even as the Huguenot numbers were increasing drastically in France during his reign. Henry suffered a death in a jousting tournament held to celebrate the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis at the conclusion of the Eighth Italian War. The kings surgeon, Ambroise Paré, was unable to cure the infected wound inflicted by Gabriel de Montgomery and he was succeeded in turn by three of his sons, whose ineffective reigns helped to spark the French Wars of Religion between Protestants and Catholics. Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris and his father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by the forces of his sworn enemy, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and held prisoner in Spain. To obtain his release, it was agreed that Henry and his brother be sent to Spain in his place. They remained in captivity for four years. Henry married Catherine de Medici, a member of the family of Florence, on 28 October 1533. The following year, he became involved with a thirty-five-year-old widow. They had always very close, she had publicly embraced him on the day he set off to Spain. Diane became Henrys mistress and most trusted confidante and, for the next years, wielded considerable influence behind the scenes. Extremely confident, mature and intelligent, she left Catherine powerless to intervene and she did, however, insist that Henry sleep with Catherine in order to produce heirs to the throne. When his elder brother Francis, the Dauphin and Duke of Brittany, died in 1536 after a game of tennis and he succeeded his father on his 28th birthday and was crowned King of France on 25 July 1547 at Reims Cathedral. Henrys reign was marked by wars with Austria and the persecution of Protestants, Henry II severely punished them, particularly the ministers, for example by burning at the stake or cutting off their tongues for uttering heresies. Even those only suspected of being Huguenots could be imprisoned and it also strictly regulated publications by prohibiting the sale, importation or printing of any unapproved book. It was during the reign of Henry II that Huguenot attempts at establishing a colony in Brazil were made, persecution of Protestants at home did not prevent Henry II from becoming allied with German Protestant princes at the Treaty of Chambord in 1552. Simultaneously, the continuation of his fathers Franco-Ottoman alliance allowed Henry II to push for French conquests towards the Rhine while a Franco-Ottoman fleet defended southern France, an early offensive into Lorraine was successful
21.
Leonardo da Vinci
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He has been variously called the father of palaeontology, ichnology, and architecture, and is widely considered one of the greatest painters of all time. Sometimes credited with the inventions of the parachute, helicopter and tank, many historians and scholars regard Leonardo as the prime exemplar of the Universal Genius or Renaissance Man, an individual of unquenchable curiosity and feverishly inventive imagination. Much of his working life was spent in the service of Ludovico il Moro in Milan. He later worked in Rome, Bologna and Venice, and he spent his last years in France at the home awarded to him by Francis I of France, Leonardo was, and is, renowned primarily as a painter. Among his works, the Mona Lisa is the most famous and most parodied portrait, Leonardos drawing of the Vitruvian Man is also regarded as a cultural icon, being reproduced on items as varied as the euro coin, textbooks, and T-shirts. Perhaps fifteen of his paintings have survived, Leonardo is revered for his technological ingenuity. He conceptualised flying machines, a type of armoured fighting vehicle, concentrated power, an adding machine. Some of his inventions, however, such as an automated bobbin winder. A number of Leonardos most practical inventions are nowadays displayed as working models at the Museum of Vinci. He made substantial discoveries in anatomy, civil engineering, geology, optics, and hydrodynamics, today, Leonardo is widely considered one of the most diversely talented individuals ever to have lived. Leonardo was born on 15 April 1452 at the hour of the night in the Tuscan hill town of Vinci. He was the son of the wealthy Messer Piero Fruosino di Antonio da Vinci, a Florentine legal notary, and Caterina. Leonardo had no surname in the modern sense – da Vinci simply meaning of Vinci, his birth name was Lionardo di ser Piero da Vinci, meaning Leonardo. The inclusion of the title ser indicated that Leonardos father was a gentleman, little is known about Leonardos early life. He spent his first five years in the hamlet of Anchiano in the home of his mother and his father had married a sixteen-year-old girl named Albiera Amadori, who loved Leonardo but died young in 1465 without children. When Leonardo was sixteen, his father married again to twenty-year-old Francesca Lanfredini, pieros legitimate heirs were born from his third wife Margherita di Guglielmo and his fourth and final wife, Lucrezia Cortigiani. Leonardo received an education in Latin, geometry and mathematics. In later life, Leonardo recorded only two childhood incidents, one, which he regarded as an omen, was when a kite dropped from the sky and hovered over his cradle, its tail feathers brushing his face
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Francis I of France
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Francis I was the first King of France from the Angoulême branch of the House of Valois, reigning from 1515 until his death. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and he succeeded his cousin and father-in-law Louis XII, who died without a male heir. Francis reign saw important cultural changes with the rise of absolute monarchy in France, the spread of humanism and Protestantism, Jacques Cartier and others claimed lands in the Americas for France and paved the way for the expansion of the first French colonial empire. For his role in the development and promotion of a standardized French language, he became known as le Père et Restaurateur des Lettres. He was also known as François au Grand Nez, the Grand Colas, following the policy of his predecessors, Francis continued the Italian Wars. In his struggle against Imperial hegemony, he sought the support of Henry VIII of England at the Field of the Cloth of Gold. When this was unsuccessful, he formed a Franco-Ottoman alliance with the Muslim sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, a controversial move for a Christian king at the time. Francis was born on 12 September 1494 at the Château de Cognac in the town of Cognac, which at that time lay in the province of Saintonge, today the town lies in the department of Charente. Francis was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. His family was not expected to inherit the throne, as his third cousin King Charles VIII was still young at the time of his birth, as was his fathers cousin the Duke of Orléans, later King Louis XII. However, Charles VIII died childless in 1498 and was succeeded by Louis XII, the Salic Law prevailed in France, thus females were ineligible to inherit the throne. Therefore, the four-year-old Francis became the heir presumptive to the throne of France in 1498 and was vested with the title of Duke of Valois. In 1505, Louis XII, having fallen ill, ordered that his daughter Claude and Francis be married immediately, Claude was heiress to the Duchy of Brittany through her mother, Anne of Brittany. Following Annes death, the took place on 18 May 1514. Louis died shortly afterwards and Francis inherited the throne and he was crowned King of France in the Cathedral of Reims on 25 January 1515, with Claude as his queen consort. As Francis was receiving his education, ideas emerging from the Italian Renaissance were influential in France, some of his tutors, such as François Desmoulins de Rochefort and Christophe de Longueil, were attracted by these new ways of thinking and attempted to influence Francis. His academic education had been in arithmetic, geography, grammar, history, reading, spelling, Francis came to learn chivalry, dancing, and music and he loved archery, falconry, horseback riding, hunting, jousting, real tennis and wrestling. He ended up reading philosophy and theology and he was fascinated with art, literature, poetry and his mother, who had a high admiration for Italian Renaissance art, passed this interest on to her son
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Palace of Fontainebleau
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The Palace of Fontainebleau or Château de Fontainebleau is located 55 kilometres southeast of the centre of Paris, and is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The medieval castle and later château was the residence of French monarchs from Louis VII through Napoleon III, Napoleon I abdicated his throne there before being exiled to Elba. Today, it is a museum and a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is located in the commune of Fontainebleau. The earliest record of a castle at Fontainebleau dates to 1137. It became a residence and hunting lodge of the Kings of France because of the abundant game. It took its name one of the springs, the fountain de Bliaud, located now in the English garden. He commissioned the architect Gilles le Breton to build a palace in the new Renaissance style and it included monumental Porte Dorée, as its southern entrance. As well as a monumental Renaissance stairway, the portique de Serlio, beginning in about 1528, Francis constructed the Gallery Francis I, which allowed him to pass directly from his apartments to the chapel of the Trinitaires. He brought the architect Sebastiano Serlio from Italy, and the Florentine painter Giovanni Battista di Jacopo, known as Rosso Fiorentino, another Italian painter, Francesco Primaticcio from Bologna, joined later in the decoration of the palace. Together their style of decoration became known as the first School of Fontainebleau and this was the first great decorated gallery built in France. Broadly speaking, at Fontainebleau the Renaissance was introduced to France, in about 1540, Francis began another major addition to the chateau. Using land on the east side of the chateau purchased from the order of the Trinitaires, he began to build a new square of buildings around a large courtyard. It was enclosed on the north by the wing of the Ministers, on the east by the wing of Ferrare, the chateau was surrounded by a new park in the style of the Italian Renaissance garden, with pavilions and the first grotto in France. Primaticcio created more monumental murals for the gallery of Ulysses, following the death of Francis I, King Henry II decided to continue and expand the chateau. The King and his wife chose the architects Philibert Delorme and Jean Bullant to do the work and they extended the east wing of the lower court, and decorated it with the first famous horseshoe-shaped staircase. In the oval court, they transformed the loggia planned by Francois into a Salle des Fétes or grand ballroom with a coffered ceiling. Facing the courtyard of the fountain and the pond, they designed a new building. At Henris orders, the Nymphe de Fontainebleau was installed at the entrance of Château dAnet
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Provence
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The largest city of the region is Marseille. The Romans made the region into the first Roman province beyond the Alps and called it Provincia Romana and it was ruled by the Counts of Provence from their capital in Aix-en-Provence until 1481, when it became a province of the Kings of France. While it has been part of France for more than five hundred years, it retains a distinct cultural and linguistic identity. The coast of Provence has some of the earliest known sites of habitation in Europe. Primitive stone tools dated to 1 to 1.05 million years BC were found in the Grotte du Vallonnet near Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, tools dating to the Middle Paleolithic and Upper Paleolithic were discovered in the Observatory Cave, in the Jardin Exotique of Monaco. The Paleolithic period in Provence saw great changes in the climate, with the arrival, at the beginning of the Paleolithic period, the sea level in western Provence was 150 meters higher than it is today. By the end of the Paleolithic, it had dropped 100 to 150 metres lower than sea level. The cave dwellings of the inhabitants of Provence were regularly inundated by the rising sea or left far from the sea. The changes in the sea led to one of the most remarkable discoveries of signs of early man in Provence. In 1985, a diver named Henri Cosquer discovered the mouth of a submarine cave 37 metres below the surface of the Calanque de Morgiou near Marseille, the entrance led to a cave above sea level. Inside, the walls of the Cosquer Cave are decorated with drawings of bison, seals, auks, horses and outlines of human hands, dating to between 27,000 and 19,000 BC. The end of the Paleolithic and beginning of the Neolithic period saw the sea settle at its present level, a warming of the climate and the retreat of the forests. The disappearance of the forests and the deer and other easily hunted game meant that the inhabitants of Provence had to survive on rabbits, snails, since they were settled in one place they were able to develop new industries. Inspired by the pottery from the eastern Mediterranean, in about 6000 BC they created the first pottery to be made in France. Around 6000 BC, a wave of new settlers from the east and they were farmers and warriors, and gradually displaced the earlier pastoral people from their lands. They were followed in about 2500 BC by another wave of people, also farmers, known as the Courronniens, traces of these early civilisations can be found in many parts of Provence. A Neolithic site dating to about 6,000 BC was discovered in Marseille near the Saint-Charles railway station, and a dolmen from the Bronze Age can be found near Draguignan. Between the 10th and 4th century BC the Ligures were found in Provence from Massilia as far as modern day Liguria and they were of uncertain origin, they may have been the descendants of the indigenous neolithic peoples
25.
Diane de Poitiers
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Diane de Poitiers was a French noblewoman and a prominent courtier at the courts of king Francis I and his son, King Henry II of France. She became notorious as King Henrys favourite, because of this, she wielded much influence and power at the French Court, which continued until Henry was mortally wounded in a tournament accident. It was during this tournament that his lance wore her favour rather than his wifes, the subject of paintings by François Clouet as well other anonymous painters, Diane was also immortalised in a statue by Jean Goujon. She was born the daughter of Jean de Poitiers, Seigneur de Saint Vallier and Jeanne de Batarnay. When still a girl, she was briefly in the retinue of Anne de Beaujeu, eldest sister of King Charles VIII, Diane was educated according to the principles of Renaissance humanism, in music, hunting, manners, languages, the art of conversation, and dancing. She learned how to read Latin and Greek, and became a hunter and sportswoman. At the age of 15, she married Louis de Brézé, seigneur dAnet and he was a grandson of King Charles VII who served as a courtier of King Francis I. She bore him two daughters, Françoise de Brézé and Louise de Brézé, in 1524, her father Jean, was accused of treason as an accomplice of the rebellious Connétable de Bourbon. His death sentence was commuted, but he would be confined to prison until the Treaty of Madrid in 1526. When Louis de Brézé died in 1531 in Anet, Diane adopted the habit of wearing the colours of black and white, her personal trademark for the rest of her life. These were among the permitted colours of mourning, which as a widow she was required to wear and they played on her name, Diane, which derived from Diana, the name of the beautiful Roman goddess of the moon. Her keen interest in matters and legal shrewdness became apparent for the first time during this period. She retained her late husbands emoluments as governor and grand-sénéchal of Normandy and she challenged in court, the obligation to return Louis de Brézés appanages to the royal domain. The king allowed her to enjoy the income until the status of those lands has been totally clarified. When still the wife of Louis de Brézé, she became lady-in-waiting to Queen Claude of France, after the queen died, she served in the same capacity to Louise of Savoy, then Eleanor of Austria. After the capture of Francis I by Charles Vs troops during the battle of Pavia, because the ransom was not paid in time, the two boys had to spend nearly four years isolated in a bleak castle, facing an uncertain future. Henry found solace by reading the knight-errantry tale Amadis de Gaula, the experience may account for the strong impression that Diane made on him, as the very embodiment of the ideal gentlewomen he read about in Amadis. As his mother was dead, Diane gave him the farewell kiss when he was sent to Spain
26.
Catherine de' Medici
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Catherine de Medici, daughter of Lorenzo II de Medici and of Madeleine de La Tour dAuvergne, was an Italian noblewoman who was Queen of France from 1547 until 1559, as the wife of King Henry II. As the mother of three sons who became kings of France during her lifetime, she had extensive, if at times varying, for a time, she ruled France as its regent. In 1533, at the age of fourteen, Caterina married Henry, second son of King Francis I, under the gallicised version of her name, Catherine de Médicis, she was Queen consort of France as the wife of King Henry II of France from 1547 to 1559. Throughout his reign, Henry excluded Catherine from participating in state affairs and instead showered favours on his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. Henrys death thrust Catherine into the arena as mother of the frail fifteen-year-old King Francis II. When he died in 1560, she became regent on behalf of her ten-year-old son King Charles IX and was granted sweeping powers, after Charles died in 1574, Catherine played a key role in the reign of her third son, Henry III. He dispensed with her only in the last months of her life. Catherines three sons reigned in an age of almost constant civil and religious war in France, the problems facing the monarchy were complex and daunting but Catherine was able to keep the monarchy and the state institutions functioning even at a minimum level. At first, Catherine compromised and made concessions to the rebelling Protestants, or Huguenots and she failed, however, to grasp the theological issues that drove their movement. Later she resorted, in frustration and anger, to hard-line policies against them, some historians have excused Catherine from blame for the worst decisions of the crown, though evidence for her ruthlessness can be found in her letters. In practice, her authority was limited by the effects of the civil wars. Without Catherine, it is unlikely that her sons would have remained in power, the years in which they reigned have been called the age of Catherine de Medici. According to Mark Strage, one of her biographers, Catherine was the most powerful woman in sixteenth-century Europe. Catherine was born on 13 April 1519 in Florence, Republic of Florence, the child of Lorenzo de Medici, Duke of Urbino, and his wife, Madeleine de la Tour dAuvergne. The young couple had married the year before at Amboise as part of the alliance between King Francis I of France and Lorenzos uncle Pope Leo X against the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. According to a chronicler, when Catherine was born, her parents were as pleased as if it had been a boy. King Francis wanted Catherine to be raised at the French court, Catherine was first cared for by her paternal grandmother, Alfonsina Orsini. After Alfonsinas death in 1520, Catherine joined her cousins and was raised by her aunt, the death of Pope Leo in 1521 interrupted Medici power briefly, until Cardinal Giulio de Medici was elected Pope Clement VII in 1523
27.
Philibert de l'Orme
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Philibert de lOrme was a French architect and writer, and one of the great masters of the French Renaissance. His surname is also written De lOrme, de LOrme, or Delorme and he was born in Lyon, the son of Jean de LOrme, a master mason. At an early age Philibert was sent to Italy to study and was employed there by Pope Paul III, under Charles IX, however, he returned to favour, and was employed to construct the Tuileries, in collaboration with Jean Bullant. Much of his work has disappeared, but his fame remains, an ardent humanist and student of the antique, he yet vindicated resolutely the French tradition in opposition to Italian tendencies, he was a man of independent mind and a vigorous originality. His work is seen at Chenonceau and other famous châteaux. He wrote two books on architecture, Nouvelles inventions pour bien bastir et à petits frais and Le premier tome de lArchitecture, catherine de Medicis building projects Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, influenced by Philibert Delorme F. Lemerle & Y. Un architecte dans lhistoire, Arts - Sciences - Techniques, Turnhout, Brepols Publishers,2016, ISBN 978-2-503-56560-6 Blunt and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. De LOrme, Philibert. Catholic Encyclopedia article Philibert de lOrme Hoffmann, Volker, LOrme, Philibert de in The Dictionary of Art,34 volumes, edited by Jane Turner. Philibert De lOrme, Architecte du roi, Philibert de LOrme, Figures de la pensées constructive
28.
Vaux-le-Vicomte
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The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte is a baroque French château located in Maincy, near Melun,55 kilometres southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne département of France. At Vaux-le-Vicomte, the architect Louis Le Vau, the landscape architect André le Nôtre, and their collaboration marked the beginning of the Louis XIV style combining architecture, interior design and landscape design. The gardens pronounced visual axis is an example of this style, Fouquet was an avid patron of the arts, attracting many artists with his generosity. When Fouquet became King Louis XIVs superintendent of finances in 1657, he commissioned Le Vau, Le Brun and Le Nôtre to renovate his estate, fouquet’s artistic and cultivated personality subsequently brought out the best in the three. To secure the necessary grounds for the plans for Vaux-le-Vicomte’s garden and castle. The displaced villagers were employed in the upkeep and maintenance of the gardens. It was said to have employed 18 thousand workers and cost as much as 16 million livres, the château and its patron became for a short time a focus for fine feasts, literature and arts. The poet Jean de La Fontaine and the playwright Molière were among the close to Fouquet. At the inauguration of Vaux-le-Vicomte, a Molière play was performed, along with an event organized by François Vatel. The celebration had been too impressive and the superintendents home too luxurious, Fouquets intentions were to flatter the king, part of Vaux-le-Vicomte was actually constructed specifically for the king, but Fouquets plan backfired. Jean-Baptiste Colbert led the king to believe that his ministers magnificence was funded by the misappropriation of public funds, Colbert, who then replaced Fouquet as superintendent of finances, arrested him. Later, Voltaire was to sum up the famous fête, On 17 August, at six in the evening Fouquet was the King of France, La Fontaine wrote describing the fête and shortly afterwards penned his Elégie aux nymphes de Vaux. After Fouquet was arrested and imprisoned for life and his wife exiled, the king seized, confiscated or purchased 120 tapestries, the statues and all the orange trees from Vaux-le-Vicomte. He then sent the team of artists to design what would be a larger project than Vaux-le-Vicomte. Madame Fouquet recovered her property 10 years later and retired there with her eldest son, in 1705, after the death of her husband and son, she decided to put Vaux-le-Vicomte up for sale. Marshal Claude Louis Hector de Villars became the new owner without first seeing the chateau, in 1764, the Marshals son sold the estate to the Duke of Praslin, whose descendants would maintain the property for over a century. In 1875, after thirty years of neglect, the estate was sold to Alfred Sommier in a public auction, the château was empty, some of the outbuildings had fallen into ruin and the famous gardens were totally overgrown. The huge task of restoration and refurbishment began under the direction of the architect Gabriel-Hippolyte Destailleur, when Sommier died in 1908, the château and the gardens had recovered their original appearance
29.
Nicolas Fouquet
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Nicolas Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Île, vicomte de Melun et Vaux was the Superintendent of Finances in France from 1653 until 1661 under King Louis XIV. He had a career, and acquired enormous wealth. He fell out of favor, accused of peculation and lèse-majesté, the king had him imprisoned from 1661 until his death in 1680. While still in his teens, he held positions of responsibility. In 1640, he married the rich Louise Fourché, who died a year later, during Mazarins exile, Fouquet remained loyal to him, protecting his property and keeping him informed of the situation at court. Fouquet received around 160,000 Livres from the marriage dowry, as minister of finance, he soon had Mazarin almost in the position of a supplicant. His closest friend, and maybe mistress, was Suzanne de Rougé, Colbert, perhaps seeking to succeed Fouquet, fed the kings displeasure with adverse reports upon the deficit and made the worst of the case against Fouquet. The extravagant expenditures and displays of the superintendents wealth served to intensify the ill will of the king, Fouquet had bought the port of Belle-Île-en-Mer and strengthened the fortifications with a view to taking refuge there in case of disgrace. Here he gathered the rarest manuscripts, paintings, jewels and antiques in profusion, the table was open to all people of quality, and the kitchen was presided over by François Vatel. Jean de La Fontaine, Pierre Corneille and Paul Scarron were a few of the artists who enjoyed his patronage. The coat of arms of Fouquets family traditionally showed a squirrel, the symbol can be found in many rooms and decorations at Vaux-le-Vicomte. The choice of this animal derives from the name foucquet, which in the dialect of Angers means squirrel, by August 1661, Louis XIV was already set upon Fouquets destruction. Louis was entertained at Vaux with a fête rivaled in magnificence by only one or two others in French history, at which Molières Les Fâcheux was produced for the first time, the splendour of the entertainment sealed Fouquets fate. But the king, then only 22 years old, was afraid to act openly against so powerful a minister, as Superintendent, Fouquet headed the enormously wealthy and influential corps of partisans, who, if challenged as a group, could have caused the king serious trouble. By crafty devices, Fouquet was induced to sell his office of procureur général, thus losing the protection of its privileges, after his visit to Vaux, the king announced that he was going to Nantes for the opening of the meeting of the provincial estates of Brittany. He required his ministers, including Fouquet, to go with him, when Fouquet was leaving the council chamber, flattered with the assurance of the kings esteem, he was arrested by Charles de Batz-Castelmore dArtagnan, lieutenant of the kings musketeers. The trial lasted almost three years, and its violation of the forms of justice is still the subject of frequent monographs by members of the French bar, Louis acted throughout as though he were conducting a campaign, evidently fearing that Fouquet would play the part of a Richelieu. A report of his trial was published in the Netherlands, in 15 volumes, in 1665-67, a second edition under the title of Oeuvres de M. Fouquet appeared in 1696
30.
Louis Le Vau
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Louis Le Vau was a French Classical architect who worked for Louis XIV of France. He was born and died in Paris and he was responsible, with André Le Nôtre and Charles Le Brun, for the redesign of the château of Vaux-le-Vicomte. His later works included the Palace of Versailles and his collaboration with Claude Perrault on the Palais du Louvre, sulpice, and Hôtel Lambert, on the Île Saint-Louis, Paris. La peinture à Versailles, XVIIe siècle, Louis Le Vau, Mazarins Collège, Colberts Revenge. La Collection de portraits de lAcadémie royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, Peintures entrées sous le règne de Louis XIV (1648–1715, université de Paris IV,1994, pp. 164–166. Portraits des premiers architectes de Versailles, Revue des Arts, March 1955, françois dOrbay, Architecte de Louis XIV. Media related to Louis Le Vau at Wikimedia Commons
31.
Charles Le Brun
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Charles Le Brun was a French painter and art theorist. Declared by Louis XIV the greatest French artist of all time, he was a dominant figure in 17th-century French art, born in Paris, he attracted the notice of Chancellor Séguier, who placed him at the age of eleven in the studio of Simon Vouet. He was also a pupil of François Perrier, in Rome he remained four years in the receipt of a pension due to the liberality of the chancellor. There he worked under Poussin, adapting the latters theories of art, on his return to Paris in 1646, Le Brun found numerous patrons, of whom Superintendent Fouquet was the most important, for whom he painted a large portrait of Anne of Austria. Employed at Vaux-le-Vicomte, Le Brun ingratiated himself with Mazarin, then secretly pitting Colbert against Fouquet, Colbert also promptly recognized Le Bruns powers of organization, and attached him to his interests. Together they took control of the Academy of Painting and Sculpture, and the Academy of France at Rome, another project Le Brun worked on was Hôtel Lambert. The ceiling in the gallery of Hercules was painted by him, Le Brun started work on the project in 1650, shortly after his return from Italy. The decoration continued intermittently over twelve years or so, as it was interrupted by the renovation of Vaux le Vicomte. In 1660 they established the Gobelins, which at first was a school for the manufacture, not of tapestries only. He was the originator of Louis XIV Style and gave a direction to the national tendencies which endured centuries after his death, the King had declared him the greatest French artist of all time. From this date all that was done in the palaces was directed by Le Brun. In 1663, he director of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. While he was working on The Battles, Le Bruns style became more personal as he moved away from the ancient masters that influenced him. Le Bruns decoration is not only a work of art, it is the monument of a reign. This contributed to the illness which on 22 February 1690 ended in his death in his private mansion, Le Brun primarily worked for King Louis XIV, for whom he executed large altarpieces and battle pieces. His most important paintings are at Versailles, besides his gigantic labours at Versailles and the Louvre, the number of his works for religious corporations and private patrons is enormous. Le Brun was also a fine portraitist and an excellent draughtsman, but he was not fond of portrait or landscape painting, what mattered was scholarly composition, whose ultimate goal was to nourish the spirit. For Le Brun, a painting represented a story one could read, nearly all his compositions have been reproduced by celebrated engravers
32.
Apollo
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Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in classical Greek and Roman religion and Greek and Roman mythology. The ideal of the kouros, Apollo has been recognized as a god of music, truth and prophecy, healing, the sun and light, plague, poetry. Apollo is the son of Zeus and Leto, and has a twin sister, Apollo is known in Greek-influenced Etruscan mythology as Apulu. As the patron of Delphi, Apollo was an oracular god—the prophetic deity of the Delphic Oracle. Medicine and healing are associated with Apollo, whether through the god himself or mediated through his son Asclepius, yet Apollo was also seen as a god who could bring ill-health and deadly plague. Amongst the gods custodial charges, Apollo became associated with dominion over colonists, as the leader of the Muses and director of their choir, Apollo functioned as the patron god of music and poetry. Hermes created the lyre for him, and the instrument became an attribute of Apollo. Hymns sung to Apollo were called paeans, Apollo and Helios/Sol remained separate beings in literary and mythological texts until the 3rd century CE. The name Apollo—unlike the related older name Paean—is generally not found in the Linear B texts, the etymology of the name is uncertain. The spelling Ἀπόλλων had almost superseded all other forms by the beginning of the common era and it probably is a cognate to the Doric month Apellaios, and the offerings apellaia at the initiation of the young men during the family-festival apellai. According to some scholars the words are derived from the Doric word apella, apella is the name of the popular assembly in Sparta, corresponding to the ecclesia. R. S. P. Beekes rejected the connection of the theonym with the noun apellai, several instances of popular etymology are attested from ancient authors. Thus, the Greeks most often associated Apollos name with the Greek verb ἀπόλλυμι, in the ancient Macedonian language πέλλα means stone, and some toponyms may be derived from this word, Πέλλα and Πελλήνη. The role of Apollo as god of plague is evident in the invocation of Apollo Smintheus by Chryses, the Hittite testimony reflects an early form *Apeljōn, which may also be surmised from comparison of Cypriot Ἀπείλων with Doric Ἀπέλλων. A Luwian etymology suggested for Apaliunas makes Apollo The One of Entrapment, Apollos chief epithet was Phoebus, literally bright. It was very commonly used by both the Greeks and Romans for Apollos role as the god of light, like other Greek deities, he had a number of others applied to him, reflecting the variety of roles, duties, and aspects ascribed to the god. However, while Apollo has a number of appellations in Greek myth. Aegletes, from αἴγλη, light of the sun Helius, literally sun Lyceus light, the meaning of the epithet Lyceus later became associated with Apollos mother Leto, who was the patron goddess of Lycia and who was identified with the wolf
33.
Louis XV of France
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Louis XV, known as Louis the Beloved, was a monarch of the House of Bourbon who ruled as King of France and Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five, Cardinal Fleury was his chief minister from 1726 until the Cardinals death in 1743, at which time the young king took sole control of the kingdom. During his reign, Louis returned the Austrian Netherlands, territory won at the Battle of Fontenoy of 1745, Louis also ceded New France in North America to Spain and Great Britain at the conclusion of the Seven Years War in 1763. He incorporated the territories of Lorraine and Corsica into the kingdom of France and he was succeeded by his grandson Louis XVI in 1774. French culture and influence were at their height in the first half of the eighteenth century, however, many scholars believe that Louis XVs decisions damaged the power of France, weakened the treasury, discredited the absolute monarchy, and made it more vulnerable to distrust and destruction. Evidence for this view is provided by the French Revolution, which broke out 15 years after his death, norman Davies characterized Louis XVs reign as one of debilitating stagnation, characterized by lost wars, endless clashes between the Court and Parliament, and religious feuds. A few scholars defend Louis, arguing that his negative reputation was based on propaganda meant to justify the French Revolution. Jerome Blum described him as a perpetual adolescent called to do a mans job, Louis XV was born in the Palace of Versailles on 15 February 1710 during the reign of Louis XIV. His grandfather, Louis Le Grand Dauphin, had three sons with his wife Marie Anne Victoire of Bavaria, Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Philippe, Duke of Anjou, and Charles, Duke of Berry. Louis XV was the son of the Duke of Burgundy and his wife Marie Adélaïde of Savoy, the eldest daughter of Victor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy. At birth, Louis XV received a title for younger sons of the French royal family. In April 1711, Louis Le Grand Dauphin suddenly died, making Louis XVs father, the Duke of Burgundy, at that time, Burgundy had two living sons, Louis, Duke of Brittany and his youngest son, the future Louis XV. A year later, Marie Adélaïde, Duchess of Burgundy, contracted smallpox and her husband, said to be heartbroken by her death, died the same week, also having contracted smallpox. Within a week of his death, it was clear that the two children had also been infected. The elder son was treated by bloodletting in an unsuccessful effort to save him. Fearing that the Dauphin would die, the Court had both the Dauphin and the Duke of Anjou baptised, the Dauphin died the same day,8 March 1712. His younger brother, the Duke of Anjou, was treated by his governess, Madame de Ventadour. The two year old Dauphin survived the smallpox, on 1 September 1715, Louis XIV died of gangrene, having reigned for 72 years
34.
Bagnolet
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Bagnolet is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 5.2 km from the center of Paris, on 1 January 1860, the city of Paris was enlarged by annexing neighboring communes. On that occasion, a part of the commune of Bagnolet was annexed to the city of Paris. At the same time, the commune of Charonne was disbanded and divided between the city of Paris, Bagnolet, and Montreuil, Bagnolet received a small part of the territory of Charonne. On 24 July 1867, a part of the territory of Bagnolet was detached and merged with a part of the territory of Romainville, the town used to be the home of the Château de Bagnolet. Bagnolet is served by Gallieni station on Paris Metro line 3, international and National coaches serve Bagnolet at Gallieni Metro station. In July 2014, the court in Montreuil revoked the citys motion to grant Abdallah honorary citizenship. The commune has ten public preschools, nine elementary schools. Bagnolet is twinned with, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy Communes of the Seine-Saint-Denis department INSEE Official website 48°52′07″N 2°25′04″E aerial photos
35.
Seine-Saint-Denis
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Seine-Saint-Denis is a French department located in the Île-de-France region. Locally, it is referred to colloquially as quatre-vingt treize or neuf trois. The learned and rarely used demonym for the inhabitants is Séquano-Dionysiens, Seine-Saint-Denis is located to the northeast of Paris. It has an area of only 236 km², making it one of the smallest departments in France. Seine-Saint-Denis and two other departments, Hauts-de-Seine and Val-de-Marne, form a ring around Paris, known as the Petite Couronne. They form, together with Paris the Greater Paris since January 1st 2016, Seine-Saint-Denis is made up of three departmental arrondissements and 40 communes, Seine-Saint-Denis was created in January 1968, through the implementation of a law passed in July 1964. It was formed from the part of the Seine department to the north and north-east of the Paris ring road, Seine-Saint-Denis has a history as a veritable left-wing stronghold, belonging to the ceinture rouge of Paris. The French Communist Party especially has maintained a strong presence in the department. A commune of Seine-Saint-Denis, Clichy-sous-Bois, was the scene of the death of two youths which sparked the riots of autumn 2005. In October - November,9,000 cars were burned and 3,000 rioters were arrested, Seine-Saint-Denis is the French department with the highest proportion of immigrants,21. 7% at the 1999 census. This figure does not include the children of immigrants born on French soil as well as some native elites from former French colonies, the ratio of ethnic minorities is difficult to estimate accurately as French law prohibits the collection of ethnic data for census taking purposes. However estimates suggest there are 500,000 Muslims out of a population of 1.53 million. Saint-Denis is home to the Union of French Islamic Organizations in the Bourget district, in 2005,56. 7% of young people under 18 were of foreign origin including 38% of African origin. Islam is believed to be the most practiced religion in the department, Seine-Saint-Denis was scheduled to be the site of a 2004 International Exhibition. Website of the General council Prefecture website Seine-Saint-Denis Tourist Board
36.
Seine-et-Marne
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Seine-et-Marne is a French department, named after the Seine and Marne rivers, and located in the Île-de-France region. Seine-et-Marne is one of the original 83 departments, created on 4 March 1790 and it had previously belonged to the former province of Île-de-France. With 60% of the used as farmland, Seine-et-Marne is where most agricultural activity occurs within the Île-de-France. Cereals and sugar beet are the exports from Seine-et-Marne. The other key structures are the refinery at Grandpuits and the Snecma research plant. The two new towns are the centre of tourism for the department, mainly due to parks such as Disneyland Park. Seine-et-Marne has a temperate Atlantic climate, the average rainfall is based upon that of Fontainebleau, giving an average rainfall of 650 mm, which is higher than the average of Île-de-France. Average temperature in Melun during the 1953–2002 period was 3.2 °C for January and 18.6 °C for July, the storm of 26 December 1999 led to five deaths in Seine-et-Marne and caused several trees to fall. Seine-et-Marne forms a part of the region, the department covers 49% of the regions land area. It is bordered by Val-dOise, Seine-Saint-Denis, Val-de-Marne, Essonne to the West, Loiret and Yonne to the South, Aube and Marne to the East, the department has many natural reserves, notably Brie and Gâtinais. The highest point of the département is Saint-Georges Hill, people from Seine-et-Marne are known as the Seine-et-Marnais. Originally Seine-et-Marne was very rural and lightly populated, over the past 50 years, however, its population has tripled, due to the development of the Paris conurbation and the building of new towns in the northwest of the region. The population was estimated to be 1,267,496 inhabitants in 2006, the region has changed from consisting only of small villages to forming a large part of the Paris conurbation. Seine-et-Marne as a whole shares a sister city relationship with Orlando, Florida, United States, mutualité, assurance et cycles de lincendie
37.
Madame de Pompadour
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She took charge of the king’s schedule and was a valued aide and advisor, despite her frail health and many political enemies. She secured titles of nobility for herself and her relatives, and built a network of clients and she was particularly careful not to alienate the Queen, Marie Leszczyńska. On February 8,1756, the Marquise de Pompadour was named as the lady in waiting to the queen, a position considered the most prestigious at the court. She was a patron of architecture and decorative arts, such as porcelain. She was a patron of the philosophes of the Enlightenment, including Voltaire, Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, otherwise known as Reinette to her friends, was born on 29 December 1721 in Paris to François Poisson and his wife Madeleine de La Motte. It is suspected that her father was either the rich financier Pâris de Montmartel or the tax collector Le Normant de Tournehem. Her younger brother was Abel-François Poisson de Vandières, who became the Marquis de Marigny. Poisson was intelligent, beautiful and refined and she spent her early childhood at the Ursuline convent in Poissy where she received a good education. At the age of 9 in 1730 she returned to Paris under the care of her mother Madame Poisson, the fortune teller told her then that she would one day be the mistress of King Louis XV. From then on Madame Poisson thought, her daughter was destined for greatness and she must provide the means and opportunities to help her achieve it. So her mother took charge of her education at home by hiring tutors who taught her to recite entire plays by heart, play the clavichord, dance, sing, paint. She became an actress and singer, and also attended Pariss Club de lEntresol. On 15 December 1740, Tournehem made his nephew his sole heir, disinheriting all his nephews and nieces. These included the estate at Étiolles, a gift from her guardian. With her husband, she had two children, a boy who died a year after his birth in 1741 and Alexandrine-Jeanne, born 10 August 1744 and died June 1754. Contemporary opinion supported by artwork from the considered the young Mme dÉtiolles to be beautiful, with her small mouth. Her young husband was soon infatuated with her and she was celebrated in the world of Paris. She founded her own salon, at Étiolles, and was joined by many philosophes, as Jeanne Antoinette became known in society, King Louis XV came to hear of her
38.
Eure-et-Loir
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Eure-et-Loir is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. Eure-et-Loir is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4,1790 pursuant to the Act of December 22,1789 and it was created mainly from parts of the former provinces of Orléanais and Maine, but also parts of Île-de-France. The current department corresponds to the part of the land of the Carnutes who had their capital at Autricum. The Carnutes are known for their commitment, real or imagined, a holy place in the Forest of the Carnutes used to host the annual Druidic assembly. In the north of the department another pre-Roman people, the little-known Durocasses, had their capital at Dreux, the inhabitants of the department are called Euréliens. Its agricultural economy is heavily dependent on economic and regulatory environment of the markets for crops. The Eure-et-Loir region is the first grain producer of France and it is also the national leader in the production of rapeseed and peas. Wheat production is by far the most dominant in the area, nearly 40% of all farmland is devoted to the cultivation of wheat, which has generated an average of 29% of the commercial agricultural production of the department over the last 5 years. The Cosmetic Valley represents 2.5 billion euros of turnover, includes 200 companies, collaborates with the Universities of Orleans and Paris, the pharmaceutical industry, around Dreux and the Polepharma cluster. The cluster represents 50% of drug production in France and 30,000 jobs, the Pharma cluster is also one of the creators of the inter-regional alliance Pharma Valley that has partner networks, Polepharma, CBS and Grepic. This alliance represents 60% of the sites located in France and 2.5 billion euros of turnover. The agri-food industry, promoted by Agrodynamic, with two companies in the sector, Ebly at Chateaudun and an Andros at Auneau. Woodcraft and furniture industry around the association Perchebois, the rubber and plastics industry, through the cluster Elastopole]]. The elevator manufacturer Octé has its office in Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais The department also has the lead in renewable energy. Given in February 2011 by the General Council to the operator, EDF Energies Nouvelles, the President of the General Council is Albéric de Montgolfier of the Union for a Popular Movement. The most important tourist attraction is the cathedral of Chartres, with its magnificent stained-glass windows, british intellectual, friend of Thomas Becket. Bishop of Chartres from 1176 to 1180, bernard of Tiron, founder of the monastic order of Tiron and of the abbey of Thiron-Gardais
