Kraków Old Town is the historic central district of Kraków, Poland. It is one of the most famous old districts in Poland today and was the center of Poland's political life from 1038 until King Sigismund III Vasa relocated his court to Warsaw in 1596; the entire medieval old town is among the first sites chosen for the UNESCO's original World Heritage List, inscribed as Cracow's Historic Centre. The old town is one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments chosen in the first round, as designated September 16, 1994, tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland; the Old Town is known in Polish as Stare Miasto. It is part of the city's first administrative district, named "Stare Miasto," although it covers a wider area than the Old Town itself. Medieval Kraków was surrounded by a 1.9 mile defensive wall complete with 46 towers and seven main entrances leading through them. The fortifications around the Old Town were erected over the course of two centuries; the current architectural plan of Stare Miasto – the 13th-century merchants' town – was drawn up in 1257 after the destruction of the city during the Tatar invasions of 1241 followed by raids of 1259 and repelled in 1287.

The district features the centrally located Rynek Główny, or Main Square, the largest medieval town square of any European city. There is a number of historic landmarks in its vicinity, such as St. Mary's Basilica, Church of St. Wojciech, Church of St. Barbara, as well as other national treasures. At the center of the plaza, surrounded by kamienice and noble residences, stands the Renaissance cloth hall Sukiennice with the National Gallery of Art upstairs, it is flanked by the Town Hall Tower. The whole district is bisected by the Royal Road, the coronation route traversed by the Kings of Poland; the Route begins at St. Florian's Church outside the northern flank of the old city walls in the medieval suburb of Kleparz, it leads down Floriańska Street through the Main Square, up Grodzka to Wawel, the former seat of Polish royalty overlooking the Vistula river. In the 19th century most of the Old Town fortifications were demolished; the moat encircling the walls was turned into a green belt known as Planty Park.

The first mention of Kraków dates back to the second half of the 9th century. By the end of 10th century the city was incorporated into the Polish state under the rule of Piast dynasty; the episcopal bishopric was awarded to Kraków in 1000 and around that time, it became the residence of Polish kings for centuries to come. The history of the old city of Kraków revolves around its Old Town District of today. Here, the regalia were stored and, back in early a cathedral school was erected. Around 700 A. D. local tribes initiated the process of forming the Vistulan State by uniting with each other. Numerous remains of a once massive earth embankment encircling Wawel Hill survived till this day. A chest with 4,200 iron axes weighing about 4 tons was found in a basement of a house at Kanoniczna 19 street; these axes were known under the name of "płacidłos", a word derived from the Polish verb "płacić" – to pay. As it happens the axes were a main legal tender in the neighboring Great Moravian State; the value of the treasure chest is the greatest to be discovered thus far and testifies to Kraków's significant wealth and power in the region.

At Wawel's foot, in the place where now Kanoniczna and other neighboring streets are located, remains of a Vistulan settlement called Okół were found. This settlement, the beginnings of which can be dated at least back to the early 9th century, was surrounded by an enormous oak palisade and, in the place where now the Straszewska and St. Gertrude's streets run, by one of Vistula's arms. Near Main Market Square – near Church of St. Wojciech and Church of St. Mary and Bracka street - another discovery was made. Found were the relics of craft workshops and of dwelling houses which were raised near Vistula. What is more, under St. Wojciech's Church parts of a wooden temple were discovered. In those days Vistula had many arms. Kazimierz was one of such islands, it is possible that Okół, Wawel and the Main Market Square were islands separated from the main land by moats or Vistula's arms. Many structures were found on Wawel but it is difficult to establish when they were built; the bishops residing at Wawel and the prince's court provided a strong intellectual atmosphere.

Since the 14th century, Kraków was the site of royal coronations. Under Casimir III the Great the Jagiellonian University, one of Europe's oldest institutions of higher learning, was founded. In 1386 the Polish throne was entrusted to Lithuanian prince Władysław Jagiełło, husband of Queen Jadwiga. Jagiełło founded the Jagiellon dynasty. Kraków became the capital of a large monarchy which propelled the city's political and cultural development. Many great artists did their work in Kraków at that time; the Old Town saw considerable development during the Renaissance. It was when, for instance, Wawel Cathedral was rebuilt to include the architectural features of the Italian Reneissance. Bona Sforza, the second wife of Sigismund I of Poland, asked Bartolommeo Berrecci, Francisco the Florentian, Giovanni Maria Padovano, Santi Gucci and others to do this task; as a result, Kanoniczna Street became a part of the Old Town. It carries many features. With the passing of the last Jagiellon king, the po

The pot-de-fer was a primitive cannon made of iron. It is known as the first metal cannon, was used by the French in the Hundred Years' War; the name means "iron pot" in French. In Italy, pots-de-fer were known as vasi or vasii, meaning "pot" or "vase". Though made with cast bronze, the pot-de-fer was an iron bottle with a narrow neck, it was loaded with an iron arrow-like bolt, feathered with iron. It is believed that the middle of the bolt was wrapped in leather for a snug fit, necessary to enhance the thrust from the gaseous pressure within the cannon. However, this feature is not shown in manuscript illuminations; the cannon was set off through a small-diameter touchhole, where a red-hot wire could be thrust to set off an explosion and fire the cannon. The pot-de-fer was first depicted in a manuscript, De officiis regum of 1326, by Walter de Millimete, an illuminated manuscript of 1327, presented to Edward III upon his accession to the English throne; the manuscript shows a large vase lying on a table, with an armored man behind it holding a rudimentary linstock near the bottom.

A bolt, called a garrot, protrudes from the muzzle. Although illustrated in the treatise, no explanation or description was given; the pot-de-fer was used by the French in the Hundred Years' War in a raid on Southampton and in battles in Périgord and Quesnoy. They may have been used against the Scottish by the English. An early reference to the name in French is; such a ` pot de fer' had a bottle shape. The unusual vase-like shape of the cannon, coupled with the depicted arrow projectile, caused many modern historians to doubt the efficiency — or existence — of the weapon. In order to establish these points, researchers at the Royal Armouries reconstructed and trialled the weapon in 1999; the walls of the chamber were thick to prevent explosion, leaving a cylindrical bore, loaded by a wooden arrow with bronze flights, of 135 cm length. Estimating the size of the cannon from the illustrated man standing beside it, the reconstructed cannon was 90 cm long, 40 cm at its widest point; the subsequent trials showed.

Battle of Crécy Bombard Gunpowder

All Saints Episcopal Church is an historic Carpenter Gothic Episcopal church located at Hall and Harrison streets, in DeQuincy, Louisiana in the United States. The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 20, 1983; the church was built in 1885 for Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Patterson, over 160 miles east of DeQuincy. Holy Trinity closed when its membership dwindled and it stood unused for several years. In 1942 it was bought by All Saints which had it dismantled and taken to DeQuincy, where it was reassembled, it was reconsecrated by a bishop in 1946 as All Saints Episcopal Church. The move and the addition of a side wing did not alter its architectural significance. All Saints is no longer an active parish, but is still owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Western Louisiana. National Register of Historic Places listings in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana All Saints Church National register listings for Calcasieu Parish DeQuincy News feature on All Saints for the DeQuincy Centennial Celebration, 2007 Archiplanet listing for All saints http://www.lat-long.com/ShowDetail-323-Louisiana-All_Saints_Episcopal_Church.html

Zen Master Daewon Moon Jae-hyeon is a Korean Zen master in South Korea. A disciple of Zen Master Jeongang, he received Dharma transmission from his teacher and thereby becoming the 78th patriarch in the Dharma Lineage of the Buddha in 1962. After a period spent in isolation in 1988 he founded Moonzen and the Moonzen Zen Centers in order to spread the teaching he received from his master, Zen Master Jeongang. Zen Master Daewon trains his disciples at Moonzen Zen Centers around the country. Faced with the many phenomena that accompany climate change, in 2009 Zen Master Daewon established the International Union to Prevent Desertification, he is active in participating in the resolution of climate change. For example, through IUPD, Zen Master Daewon opened the measures to prevent the desertification at the UNCCD and made an agreement with Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger in order to stop the desertification. At present, after a successful test, the process to change barren desert into grass land is in steady process in the two countries.

He is recognized as a disciple of Zen Master Jeongang, the 77th patriarch and Zen Master of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. Zen Master Daewon received Dharma Transmission from Zen Master Jeongang; when Master Daewon was 12, his father died in front of his eyes, this experience left an indelible imprint on the young man's view of the world. As soon as he was able to leave his house, in 1954 he entered into the large monastery, Hae-in-sa temple under the mentorship of his preceptor Master Pak In-gok. Since he was motivated to understand about life and death he searched around the country for an enlightened master with whom he could practice with. After practicing for several years he was able to meet with the famous Zen Master Jeongang sunim. In 1962 while he was practicing at Dong-hwa-sa temple the following story has been left behind. Prior to the summer monastic retreat, the abbot of the Dong-hwa-sa temple, Wolsan sunim had publicly announced that the Zen Master Jeongang would be overseeing the 3 month retreat so meditators from around the country gathered there to practice.

One evening, during a session of sitting meditation, all of the seats in the meditation hall were empty except for those of a couple elder monks. The young Daewon thought this to be unusual and saw a young monk furtively call him out waving at him from outside the hall; when he went to him, the young monk told Daewon sunim that a group of monks were waiting for him up on the mountain out back. Daewon sunim followed the young monk into the mountain and found a gathering of twenty monks, waiting for him in stony silence. Upon seeing Daewon sunim, one of the monks named Beopseong, called out to him, "Say something about Bodhidharma's'I don't know.' Kong-an." Daewon sunim answered without a moment's hesitation, "Revealed." Songam sunim, standing nearby asked him about the Ansujeongdeung Kong-an, "How would you save yourself?" Daewon sunim spoke loudly, "An! Su! Jeong! Deung!" All the gathered monks stood still with their lips pursed in silence as Daewon sunim turned around and walked away. The next day after breakfast, Myeongheo sunim, serving as monitor for the retreat, called a temple hearing to find out why the monks had been absent without notice the night before.

During the hearing, all that had happened up on the mountain was laid out in the open and as a result, the monks, absent during the sitting meditation session assumed their formal robes and bowed in penance before Zen Master Jeongang, serving as the Josil of the temple at the time. The next day, Zen Master Jeongang called on Daewon sunim, he told Daewon that his first Song of Enlightenment was clear evidence of his enlightenment but that a Song of Enlightenment is customarily kept short. To this, Daewon sunim recited the second Song of Enlightenment he had composed when he saw the sun and the moon in the setting sky while passing the fields of Gimje. After Zen Master Jeongang heard the second Song of Enlightenment, he again asked Master Daewon to make up another song on the spot that would encapsulate the same stage of enlightenment. Upon this request, Master Daewon produced the following song: Over the rock the wind passes through the pine trees, And below the mountain flies the golden oriole.

There is not a trace of the entire universe, But the monkey cries loudly under the moonlight. Zen Master Jeongang listened to the first two lines with his eyes closed. However, he did not stop there and asked once more, "When the others called you out on the mountain and Beopseong asked you to speak on the'I don't know.' Kong-an, you said,'Revealed.' If you were Emperor Wu of Liang, how wouldyou respond to Bodhidharma's'I don't know.'?" "If I was Emperor Wu of Liang, I'd respond by saying'Even though there is no such thing as a saint, wouldn't it be much better to enjoy the flowering of my virtue together, just like this?' and take him by the hand." Zen Master Jeongang spoke with astonishment, "How have you reached such a stage?" "How could one say that he has reached it, that he has it, or that it is of his nature? It is only just like this." In this manner, the reverend Daewon, received Dharma Transmission from the Master Jeongang and in 1962 became the 78th patriarch in the Korean tradition of Zen.

At his ordination ceremony in 2009, Zen Master Daewon was received into the Academic Lineages of Buddhist Doctrine by Zen Masters: Hoegwang Saseonbul and Yongseong Jinjong. Zen Master Daewon has translated and published c

The 2000 Football League Cup Final was played between Leicester City, in their third final appearance in four years, First Division side Tranmere Rovers at the Wembley Stadium on 27 February 2000. Leicester became the last team to win the League Cup at the original Wembley Stadium. Scott Taylor's successful tackle on Robbie Savage forced the ball out for a corner, Matt Elliott headed home Leicester's first goal courtesy of a Steve Guppy cross from the right. Leicester came close to scoring a second goal in the 60th minute when Emile Heskey passed the ball to an unmarked Muzzy Izzet in the penalty box, who hesitated and his shot flew wide of the goal. Referee Alan Wilkie suffered an injury in the right leg in the 62nd minute, was stretchered off. Phil Richards, the fourth official, was brought on to replace him. Clint Hill picked up his second booking and was sent off after a deliberate foul on Heskey in the 63rd minute. Several Tranmere players protested. Tranmere, down to ten men and their persistence paid off when they equalised in the 77th minute when a fine header found its way to an unmarked David Kelly who, after narrowly escaping Matt Elliott's attempted tackle, shot low to the left past goalkeeper Tim Flowers.

Yet, just three minutes Elliott scored another towering header from another Guppy corner kick from the right, the League Cup went to Leicester

Sonal Mansingh is an Indian classical dancer and Guru Bharatanatyam and Odissi dancing style. She has been nominated by the President of India to become a Member of Rajya Sabha. Sonal Mansingh was born in Mumbai, second of three children to Arvind and Poornima Pakvasa, a noted social worker from Gujarat and Padma Bhushan winner in 2004, her grandfather was Mangal Das Pakvasa, a freedom fighter, one of the first five Governors of India. She started learning Manipuri dance at age four, along with her elder sister, from a teacher in Nagpur at age seven she started learning Bharatnatyam from various gurus belonging to the Pandanallur school, including Kumar Jayakar in BombayShe has "Praveen" and "Kovid" degrees in Sanskrit from Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and B. A. degree in German Literature from Elphinstone College, Bombay. Though, her real training in dance started when at age 18, despite her family's opposition, she went to Bangalore, to learn Bharatanatyam from Prof. U. S. Krishna Rao and Chandrabhaga Devi at age 18, abhinaya from Mylapore Gowri Ammal, started learning Odissi from Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra in 1965.

Mansingh was married to former Indian diplomat Lalit Mansingh. The couple decided to divorce later, her father-in-law Mayadhar Mansingh introduced her to Kelucharan Mohapatra where she had her training in Odissi. Sonal Mansingh dancing career which started in 1962, after her arangetram in Mumbai, in 1977, she founded, Centre for Indian Classical Dances in New Delhi. Over the years, dance has taken her all over the world and brought her many awards, including the Padma Bhushan, Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1987, the Padma Vibhushan, India's the second highest civilian award, in 2003; this was followed by Kalidas Samman of Madhya Pradesh government, in 2006 and on 21 April 2007, she was conferred with Doctor of Science by G. B. Pant University, Uttarakhand at Pantnagar and Doctor of Literature by Sambalpur University. To mark the completion of her 40 years in dancing in 2002, noted Hindi film director, Prakash Jha made a documentary film on her, title Sonal, which won the National Film Award for Best Non-Feature Film for the year.

Indradhanush Manavatta Mera Bharat Draupadi Gita Govinda Sabras Chaturang Panchkanya Devi Durga Aatmayan Samanavaya "A dancer is not just a dancer. He/She is part of this environment. He/She does not exist in a vacuum. Society and its happenings have an impact on all individuals artists. If an art form does not reflect the existing milieu, it stagnates." "Radha is a grand image too but she's a personification of love without which there is no creation. In our male-dominated mythology the image of Krishna at the feet of Radha, begging for her love, is most unusual. Gita Govind invokes deep spiritual thoughts, packaged in beautifully written verses"; the Penguin Book of Indian Dance by Sonal Mansingh, Penguin Books Australia. ISBN 0-14-013921-4. Classical Dances by Avinash Pasricha, Varsha Das. 2007, Wisdom Publications. ISBN 81-8328-067-6. Draupadi, by Sonal Mansingh. Devpriya conversation with Sonal naan Singh by yatindra Mishra vaani publication. Sonal Mansingh Contribution to Odissi Dance by Jiwan Pani.

1992, Centre for Indian Classical Dances. ISBN 81-7304-002-8. Bharata Natyam: Indian Classical Dance Art, by Sunil Kothari. MARG Publications, 1979. Page 169-170. Indian women in dance Untold Story About Sonal Mansingh India’s 50 Most Illustrious Women by Indra Gupta