Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld was a German painter, chiefly of Biblical subjects. As a young man he associated with the painters of the Nazarene movement who revived the florid Renaissance style in religious art, he is remembered for his extensive Picture Bible, his designs for stained glass windows in cathedrals. Schnorr was born in Leipzig, the son of Veit Hanns Schnorr von Carolsfeld, a draughtsman and painter, from whom he received his initial artistic education, his earliest known works being copies of the Neoclassical drawings of John Flaxman. In 1811 he entered the Vienna Academy, from which Johann Friedrich Overbeck and others who rebelled against the old conventional style had been expelled about a year before. There he studied under Friedrich Heinrich Füger, became friends with Joseph Anton Koch and Heinrich Olivier, both of whom would have an important influence on his style. Schnorr followed Overbeck and the other founders of the Nazarene movement to Rome in 1815; this school of religious and romantic art tended to reject modern styles, attempting to revert to and revive the principles and practice of earlier periods.

At the beginning of his time in Rome, Schnorr was influenced by his close study of fifteenth-century Italian painting the works of Fra Angelico. Soon however, he abandoned this refined simplicity, began to look towards more elaborate High Renaissance models. From its outset the Nazarene movement made an effort to recover fresco painting and monumental art, Schnorr had an opportunity to demonstrate his powers when commissioned to decorate the entrance hall of the Villa Massimo near the Lateran with frescoes illustrating the works of Ariosto. Other cycles in the house were begun by Johann Friedrich Overbeck. Schnorr married Maria Heller, the stepdaughter of Ferdinand Olivier, in 1827, their son Ludwig Schnorr von Carolsfeld was an operatic tenor who died at the age of 29. He had just begun to gain renown as the first to sing Wagner's Tristan. Schnorr's brother, Ludwig Ferdinand was a painter. Schnorr died in Munich in 1872; the second period of Schnorr's artistic output began in 1825, when he left Rome, settled in Munich, entered the service of Ludwig I of Bavaria, transplanted to Germany the art of wall-painting which he had learned in Italy.

He showed. He painted a series of scenes from the lives of Charlemagne, Frederick Barbarossa and Rudolph of Habsburg. Schnorr had wanted to create a complex symbolic programme in which these German historical subjects were combined with scenes from the Old Testament; this however was rejected by Ludwig, leaving Schnorr to complain that he was left with the task of painting a mere "newspaper report of the Middle Ages". Critics considered these compositions to be creative, learned in composition, masterly in drawing, but exaggerated in thought and extravagant in style. In 1846 Schnorr moved to Dresden to become a professor at the academy there; the next year he was appointed director of the Gemäldegalerie. Schnorr's third period was marked by his Biblical illustrations, he was a Lutheran, took a broad and un-sectarian view. His Picture Bible was published in Leipzig in 30 parts in 1852–60, an English edition followed in 1861; the Picture Bible illustrations were complex and cluttered. His style differs from the simplicity and severity of earlier times, exhibiting instead the floridity of the Renaissance.

Schnorr's biblical drawings and cartoons for frescoes formed a natural prelude to designs for church windows, his renown in Germany secured commissions in Great Britain. Schnorr was one of ten artists who provided designs for a scheme of stained-glass for Glasgow Cathedral, commissioned in 1856–7 and manufactured at the royal factory in Munich, he designed windows for St Paul's Cathedral in London; this Munich glass provoked controversy: medievalists objected to its lack of lustre, stigmatized the windows as mere coloured blinds and picture transparencies. The opposing party, claimed for these modern revivals "the union of the severe and excellent drawing of early Florentine oil-paintings with the colouring and arrangement of the glass-paintings of the latter half of the 16th century." Four windows by Schnorr were installed at St Paul's: one at the west end. Most of the Munich glass at Glasgow was removed during the 20th century. Paintings This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed..

"Schnorr von Karolsfeld, Julius". Encyclopædia Britannica. Cambridge University Press. German masters of the nineteenth century: paintings and drawings from the Federal Republic of Germany, a full text exhibition catalogue from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which contains material on Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld Media related to Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld at Wikimedia Commons

The Key to the Kingdom is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kyoko Shitou. The manga was serialised in Kadokawa Shoten's Asuka Fantasy DX; the manga is licensed and published in North America by CMX and in Taiwan by Kadokawa Shoten's subsidiary Kadokawa Media. Kadokawa Shoten released the manga's 6 bound volumes between March 29, 2003 and December 25, 2004. CMX released the manga's 6 tankōbon volumes between September 19, 2007 and December 30, 2008. There once was a great nation, comprising Certes in the north, Romul in the east and Landor in the middle. Three men battled over the right to the throne. After 300 years, the war between the split countries continues. In one of those wars, the King and Prince, Winslott, of Landor fall in battle, leaving the burden of governing the country to the young Prince Astarion. Unlike his brother, who participated in wars and was admired for his courage, Astarion has little interest in learning to hold the sword, his unwillingness to succeed the throne is the cause to allow the quest for The Key to The Kingdom, a legendary item that would grant the one who finds it the right to be crowned King.

In this quest, those of royal blood can take part, if one finds the key within two years time, he or she will become the ruler. Otherwise the throne will pass to Prince Astarion, he too participates in this quest half-hearted, with no enthusiasm at all, because he only cares about ending the conflict peacefully with no bloodshed and despair. Casey Brienza from Anime News Network commends the manga for its "exquisite artwork, entertaining storyline and characters". A review by Casey Brienza criticises the manga for ending the series "a bit rushed, so the series does not end as as it should have" but commends the manga for "brilliant high fantasy storyline and breathtaking art". In 2009, The Key to the Kingdom was listed as Great Graphic Novels for Teens by the Young Adult Library Services Association; the Key to the Kingdom at Anime News Network's encyclopedia The Key to the Kingdom at author's homepage

The November 1994 Battle of Grozny was an attempt to oust the separatist Chechen government of Dzhokhar Dudayev and aided by the government of the Russian Federation, by seizing the Chechen capital of Grozny. The attack was conducted by armed formations of the opposition Provisional Council, led by Umar Avturkhanov, with a clandestine support of Russian Federation's armor and aircraft on 26 November 1994; the fighting subdued after the first 10 hours. The Russian government denied military involvement in the operation, but supported the Provisional Council; the attack ended with 70 Russian soldiers being captured. Dudayev threatened to execute the Russian prisoners under Islamic law, prompting the government in Moscow to demand that rebels free the captives and lay down their arms within 48 hours or face military intervention; the incident led to the large-scale military invasion of the republic that began in December 1994. In the summer of 1994 the FSK began an active co-operation with leaders of the Chechen internal opposition against Dudayev, uniting them in a body named the Provisional Council of the Chechen Republic.

Forces of Umar Avturkhanov and Beslan Gantemirov received from Moscow not only money but training and arms, including heavy weapons. The months of August and September saw the outbreak of fighting between the opposition and Dudayev's forces. By this time, the opposition had established a well armed force of several hundred men, equipped with armoured vehicles and covertly backed by Russian helicopters operating from an air base at Mozdok, Republic of North Ossetia–Alania; this military campaign climaxed in an attack on Grozny on 15–16 October, when the militias of Gantamirov and Ruslan Labazanov unsuccessfully attempted to take the city by a joint assault for the first time. Disappointed by their failures and aware of their military weakness up to and after the October assault, the Chechen opposition, aided by an ethnic-Chechen former Chairman of the State Duma, Ruslan Khasbulatov, intensified their lobbying with the FSK and Russian president Boris Yeltsin's staff in favour of more direct involvement on Moscow's part.

As a result and Gantemirov, who by have joined their militias, received all the weapons, instructors and media support they requested, setting the ground for the final assault. In October, Russia's Defense Minister General Pavel Grachev ordered the formation of a special task force of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, led by the Deputy Chief of the Main Operations Directorate Anatoly Kvashnin and General Leontiy Shevtsov. Active duty tank crewmen from Russia's elite formations in the Moscow Military District, as well as other Russian personnel such as 18 helicopter crewmen from the North Caucasus Military District, were recruited as a mercenaries, provided with fake documents and sent into Chechnya. A transport of 50 additional armored vehicles were brought in by the FSK; the issues of recruitment and transfer of weapons involved the Deputy Director of the FSK in charge of supervising the Caucasus, General Sergei Stepashin and Russia's Deputy Minister for Nationalities, General Alexander Kotenkov, as well as his direct superior, Nikolai Yegorov.

On 22 November, the Provisional Council began preparing their final assault on Grozny. A large group of Russian officers led Chief of General Staff, Mikhail Kolesnikov, flew from Moscow to Mozdok, the direct supervision of combat operations was entrusted to the deputy commander of Russia's 8th Guards Army Corps from Volgograd, General Gennady Zhukov. A convoy of Russian armored vehicles entered the territory of Chechnya; the first clash took place 10 kilometers from the border near Tolstoi-Yurt, when a small group of Dudayev's supporters ambushed the convoy and disabled two tanks. On the following day, en route towards Urus-Martan, the convoy was again attacked near the settlement of Alkhan-Kala resulting in a loss of another tank. In spite of this, the pro-Dudayev's forces in Grozny were believed to be unable to organize resistance to such a large-scale attack. On the morning of 26 November, the Russian and their Chechen allies entered the capital in the motorised columns advancing from two directions, Nadterechny District and Urus-Martanovsky District, supported by several unmarked federal attack aircraft.

According to Chechen commander Dalkhan Kozayev, the coup force in Grozny numbered 42 T-72 main battle tanks, eight BTR-80 armoured personnel carriers, various other vehicles, a number of aircraft, more than 3,000 men. Russian sources give similar figures of about 40–42 tanks, supported from air by six helicopters and six Sukhoi Su-27 air superiority fighters, but give much lower figures of no more than 1,000–1,500 allied Chechen militiamen; the attack was met with an improvised but fierce defense by the Chechen government forces and loyalist militias in the city center, including an ambush near the Chechen presidential palace and the fighting at the State Security h