1.
Hebrew calendar
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The Hebrew or Jewish calendar is a lunisolar calendar used today predominantly for Jewish religious observances. It determines the dates for Jewish holidays and the public reading of Torah portions, yahrzeits. The present Hebrew calendar is the product of evolution, including a Babylonian influence, when to add it was based on observation of natural agriculture-related events in Israel. Through the Amoraic period and into the Geonic period, this system was displaced by the mathematical rules used today. The principles and rules were codified by Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah in the 12th century. Maimonides work also replaced counting years since the destruction of the Temple with the modern creation-era Anno Mundi, the era used since the Middle Ages is the Anno Mundi epoch. As with Anno Domini, the words or abbreviation for Anno Mundi for the era should properly precede the date rather than follow it, AM5777 began at sunset on 2 October 2016 and will end at sunset on 20 September 2017. The Jewish day is of no fixed length, the Jewish day is modeled on the reference to. there was evening and there was morning. In the creation account in the first chapter of Genesis, based on the classic rabbinic interpretation of this text, a day in the rabbinic Hebrew calendar runs from sunset to the next sunset. In most populated parts of the world this is always approximately 24 standard hours, halachically, a day ends and a new one starts when three stars are visible in the sky. The time between sunset and the time when the three stars are visible is known as bein hashmashot, and there are differences of opinion as to which day it falls into for some uses. This may be relevant, for example, in determining the date of birth of a child born during that gap, there is no clock in the Jewish scheme, so that the local civil clock is used. The civil clock is used only as a reference point – in expressions such as, Shabbat starts at. In Judaism, an hour is defined as 1/12 of the time from sunrise to sunset, so, during the winter, an hour can be less than 60 minutes. This proportional hour is known as a shaah zmanit, a Jewish hour is divided into 1080 halakim or parts. A part is 3⅓ seconds or 1/18 minute, the ultimate ancestor of the helek was a small Babylonian time period called a barleycorn, itself equal to 1/72 of a Babylonian time degree. These measures are not generally used for everyday purposes, instead of the international date line convention, there are varying opinions as to where the day changes. One opinion uses the antimeridian of Jerusalem, the weekdays start with Sunday and proceed to Saturday, Shabbat
2.
Uppsala University
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Uppsala University is a research university in Uppsala, Sweden, and is the oldest university in Sweden and all of the Nordic countries, founded in 1477. It ranks among the best universities in Northern Europe in international rankings, the university uses Gratiae veritas naturae as its motto and embraces natural sciences. Uppsala also has an important historical place in Swedish national culture, identity and for the Swedish establishment, in historiography, literature, politics, many aspects of Swedish academic culture in general, such as the white student cap, originated in Uppsala. It shares some peculiarities, such as the student nation system, with Lund University, Uppsala belongs to the Coimbra Group of European universities. The university has nine faculties distributed over three “disciplinary domains” and it has about 24,000 full-time students and 2,400 doctoral students. It has a staff of roughly 1,800 out of a total of 6,500 employees. Twenty-five per cent of the 674 professors at the university are women, of its turnover of SEK5.9 billion in 2013, 30% was spent on education on basic and advanced level, while 66% was spent on research and research programs. Architecturally, Uppsala University has traditionally had a presence in the area around the cathedral on the western side of the River Fyris. Despite some more contemporary building developments further away from the centre, as with most medieval universities, Uppsala University initially grew out of an ecclesiastical center. The archbishopric of Uppsala had been one of the most important sees in Sweden proper since Christianity first spread to this region in the ninth century, Uppsala had also long been a hub for regional trade, and had contained settlements dating back into the deep Middle Ages. As was also the case with most medieval universities, Uppsala had initially been chartered through a papal bull, Uppsalas bull, which granted the university its corporate rights, was issued by Pope Sixtus IV in 1477, and established a number of provisions. Among the most important of these was that the university was given the same freedoms. This included the right to establish the four faculties of theology, law, medicine, and philosophy, and to award the bachelors, masters, licentiate. The archbishop of Uppsala was also named as the universitys Chancellor, Swedish students generally travelled to one of the Protestant universities in Germany, especially Wittenberg. The Meeting of Uppsala in 1593 established Lutheran orthodoxy in Sweden, and Charles, Theology still had precedence, but in the privileges of 1593, the importance of a university to educate secular servants of the state was also emphasized. Three of the seven professorial chairs which were established were in Theology, of the other four, a fourth chair was given to Ericus Jacobi Skinnerus, who was also appointed rector, but whose discipline was not mentioned in the charter. Of the professors, several were taken over from the Collegium Regium in Stockholm, an eighth chair, in Medicine, was established in 1595 but received no appointee for several years. In 1599 the number of students was approximately 150, in 1600 the first post-reformation conferment of degrees took place
3.
Battle of Lepanto
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The battle was in essence an infantry battle on floating platforms. It was the largest naval battle in Western history since classical antiquity, over the following decades, the increasing importance of the galleon and the line of battle tactic would displace the galley as the major warship of its era, marking the beginning of the Age of Sail. It has long been compared to the Battle of Salamis both for tactical parallels and for its importance in the defense of Europe against imperial expansion. On 1 August, the Venetians had surrendered after being reassured that they could leave Cyprus freely, however, the Ottoman commander, Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha, who had lost some 50,000 men in the siege, broke his word, imprisoning the Venetians. The members of the Holy League were the Republic of Venice, the Spanish Empire, the Papal States, the Republic of Genoa, the Duchies of Savoy, Urbino and Tuscany, the Knights Hospitaller and others. The banner for the fleet, blessed by the Pope, reached the Kingdom of Naples on 14 August 1571. There, in the Basilica of Santa Chiara, it was consigned to John of Austria. All members of the alliance viewed the Ottoman navy as a significant threat, the combined Christian fleet was placed under the command of John of Austria with Marcantonio Colonna as his principal deputy. The various Christian contingents met the force, that of Venice, in July and August 1571 at Messina. John of Austria arrived on 23 August, see Battle of Lepanto order of battle for a detailed list of ships and commanders involved in the battle. This fleet of the Christian alliance was manned by 40,000 sailors, Ali Pasha, the Ottoman admiral, supported by the corsairs Mehmed Siroco of Alexandria and Uluç Ali, commanded an Ottoman force of 222 war galleys,56 galliots, and some smaller vessels. The Turks had skilled and experienced crews of sailors but were deficient in their elite corps of Janissaries. The number of oarsmen was about 37,000, virtually all of them slaves, the Ottoman galleys were manned by 13,000 experienced sailors—generally drawn from the maritime nations of the Ottoman Empire, namely Berbers, Greeks, Syrians, and Egyptians—and 34,000 soldiers. An advantage for the Christians was their numerical superiority in guns and cannon aboard their ships and it is estimated that the Christians had 1,815 guns, while the Turks had only 750 with insufficient ammunition. The Christians embarked with their much improved arquebusier and musketeer forces, serious conflict had broken out between the Venetian and Spanish soldiers, and Venier enraged Don Juan by hanging a Spanish soldier for impudence. Despite bad weather, the Christian ships sailed south and, on 6 October, they reached the port of Sami, Cephalonia, early on 7 October, they sailed toward the Gulf of Patras, where they encountered the Ottoman fleet. While neither fleet had immediate strategic resources or objectives in the gulf, on the morning of 7 October, after the decision to offer battle was made, the Christian fleet formed up in four divisions in a north-south line. At the northern end, closest to the coast, was the Left Division of 53 galleys, mainly Venetian, led by Agostino Barbarigo, with Marco Querini and Antonio da Canale in support
4.
Battles of Saratoga
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The Battles of Saratoga marked the climax of the Saratoga campaign giving a decisive victory to the Americans over the British in the American Revolutionary War. Burgoyne fought two battles to break out. They took place eighteen days apart on the ground,9 miles south of Saratoga. Trapped by superior American forces, and with no relief in sight, Burgoyne retreated to Saratoga and his surrender, says historian Edmund Morgan, was a great turning point of the war because it won for Americans the foreign assistance which was the last element needed for victory. Burgoynes strategy to divide New England from the colonies had started well. He won a tactical victory over General Horatio Gates and the Continental Army in the September 19 Battle of Freemans Farm at the cost of significant casualties. His gains were erased when he attacked the Americans in the October 7 Battle of Bemis Heights. Burgoyne was therefore compelled to retreat, and his army was surrounded by the much larger American force at Saratoga and this battle also resulted in Spain joining France in the war against Britain. The first battle, on September 19, began when Burgoyne moved some of his troops in an attempt to flank the entrenched American position on Bemis Heights, Benedict Arnold, anticipating the maneuver, placed significant forces in his way. While Burgoyne did gain control of Freemans Farm, it came at the cost of significant casualties, skirmishing continued in the days following the battle, while Burgoyne waited in the hope that reinforcements would arrive from New York City. Militia forces continued to arrive, swelling the size of the American army, disputes within the American camp led Gates to strip Arnold of his command. Burgoyne attacked Bemis Heights again on October 7 after it became apparent he would not receive relieving aid in time, when the American Revolutionary War approached the two-year point, the British changed their plans. Giving up on the rebellious New England colonies, they decided to split the Thirteen Colonies and isolate New England from what the British believed to be the more loyal middle, the British command devised a grand plan to divide the colonies via a three-way pincer movement in 1777. The northern pincer was to proceed southward from Montreal, and the three forces were to meet in the vicinity of Albany, New York, severing New England from the other colonies. In June 1777 British General John Burgoyne, known as Gentleman Johnny for his manners, after his early capture of Fort Ticonderoga, his campaign had become bogged down in difficulties. Elements of the army had reached the upper Hudson as early as the end of July, one attempt to alleviate these difficulties failed when nearly 1,000 men were killed or captured at the August 16 Battle of Bennington. Furthermore, news reached Burgoyne on August 28 that St. Legers expedition down the Mohawk River valley had turned back after the failed Siege of Fort Stanwix. Faced with the need to reach defensible winter quarters, which would require either retreat back to Ticonderoga or advance to Albany, consequent to this decision he made two further crucial decisions
5.
Battle of Kings Mountain
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Ferguson had arrived in North Carolina in early September 1780 to recruit troops for the Loyalist militia and protect the flank of Lord Cornwallis main force. Ferguson issued a challenge to the militias to lay down their arms or suffer the consequences. In response, the Patriot militias led by Benjamin Cleveland, James Johnston, William Campbell, John Sevier, Joseph McDowell, receiving intelligence on the oncoming attack, Ferguson decided to retreat to the safety of Lord Cornwallis army. However, the Patriots caught up with the Loyalists at Kings Mountain near the border with South Carolina, achieving a complete surprise, the Patriot militiamen attacked and surrounded the Loyalists, inflicting heavy casualties. After an hour of battle, Ferguson was fatally shot while trying to break the rebel line, although victorious, the Patriots had to retreat quickly from the area for fear of Cornwallis advance. Later they executed nine Loyalist prisoners after a short trial, the battle was a pivotal moment in the Southern campaign. The surprising victory of the American patriot militia over the Loyalists came after a string of defeats at the hands of Lord Cornwallis. With Ferguson dead and his Loyalist militia destroyed, Cornwallis was forced to abandon his plan to invade North Carolina, Major Patrick Ferguson was appointed Inspector of Militia on May 22,1780. The Battle of Musgrove Mill, August 19,1780 occurred near a ford of the Enoree River, the whole battle took perhaps an hour and within that period, sixty-three Tories were killed, an unknown number wounded, and seventy were taken prisoner. The Patriots lost only four dead and twelve wounded. Shelby’s forces covered sixty miles with Ferguson in hot pursuit before making their escape, William Campbell and his 400 Virginia men at the Sycamore Shoals muster in advance of the October 7,1780 Battle of Kings Mountain north of present day Blacksburg, South Carolina in North Carolina. On September 2, Ferguson and the militia he had already recruited marched west in pursuit of Shelby toward the Appalachian Mountain hill country on what is now the Tennessee/North Carolina border. North Carolina Patriot militia leaders Isaac Shelby and John Sevier, from the Washington District, met, the detachments of Shelby, Sevier and Campbell were met by 160 North Carolina militiamen led by Charles McDowell and his brother Joseph. Campbells cousin, Arthur Campbell, brought 200 more Virginians and their movement had been made possible by easing tensions with the Cherokee, thanks to diplomacy by Benjamin Clevelands brother-in-law, Indian agent Joseph Martin. The Overmountain Men crossed Roan Mountain the next day, and proceeded in a direction for about thirteen days in anticipation of fighting the British Loyalist forces. By September 30, they had reached Quaker Meadows, the Burke County, North Carolina home of the McDowell brothers, meanwhile, two deserters from the Patriot militia reached Patrick Ferguson and informed him of the large body of militia advancing towards him. The request did not reach Cornwallis until one day after the battle, on October 1, Ferguson reached North Carolinas Broad River, where he issued another pugnacious public letter, calling the local militia to join him lest they be pissed upon by a set of mongrels. On October 4, the Patriot militia reached Fergusons former camp at Gilbert Town, on October 6, they reached Cowpens, South Carolina, where they received word that Ferguson was east of them, heading towards Charlotte and Cornwallis
6.
Robert Surcouf
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Surcouf started his career as a sailor and officer on the slave ships Aurore, Courrier dAfrique and Navigateur. Having risen to captain, and in spite of the prohibition of trading by the National Convention in 1793. He then captained the merchantman Émilie, on which he engaged in commerce raiding despite lacking a letter of marque and he preyed on British shipping, capturing the East Indiaman Triton, before returning to Île de France, where his prizes were confiscated. He then returned to France, where he obtained money from the government. Returning to the Indian Ocean, Surcouf captained the privateers Clarisse and Confiance, raiding British, American and he captured the East Indiaman Kent on 7 October 1800. Returning to France, he was awarded the Legion of Honour and he briefly returned to the Indian Ocean in 1807 on the custom-built Revenant before returning to France. There, he armed privateers and merchantmen, after the Bourbon restoration, he organised fishing expeditions to Newfoundland and amassed a considerable fortune. He died in 1827 and is buried in a graveyard at Saint-Malo, Robert Surcouf was born 12 December 1773 in Saint-Malo to a family of ship-owners. His father, Charles-Ange Surcouf de Boisgris, was the grandson of Robert Surcouf de Maisonneuve, on his mothers side, Robert was a distant relative of René Duguay-Trouin. When his parents sent him to Dinan college to become a priest, he fled at age thirteen to enlist on the merchantman Héron, on 3 March 1789, he enlisted as a volunteer on the 700-ton Aurore, under Captain Tardivet, a slave ship bound for India. Aurore sailed to Pondicherry and ferried troops bound for Isle de France, on her next journey, seeking to purchase slaves on the Horn of Africa, Aurore was wrecked in Mozambique Channel, drowning 400 black slaves chained in the orlop. Promoted to officer, Surcouf enlisted on the Courrier dAfrique, another slave ship, Captain Tardivet then brought him over as Lieutenant on his new ship, Revanche. On Revanche, Surcouf made several expeditions off Madagascar, Surcouf enlisted as a helmsman on the French Royal Navys 20-gun fluyt Bienvenue, under Lieutenant Haumont, bound for France. Bienvenue arrived at Lorient on 2 January 1792, where Surcouf discovered the political changes France had undergone in the wake of the French Revolution, after six months, Surcouf enlisted as a lieutenant on the slave ship Navigateur, under Captain Lejoliff. She departed on 27 August 1792 for Mozambique before sailing to Isle de France, rising to the rank of captain, Surcouf took command of the brig Créole, a four-gun slave ship. Upon his return to Isle de France, agents of the Committee of Public Safety inspected Créole for evidence of slave trading, but left empty-handed as Surcouf had already sold his slaves. When British naval forces arrived to blockade Isle de France, he served as an ensign on the 40-gun frigate Cybèle. In the spring in 1795, Surcouf took command of the 180-ton, privateer schooner Modeste, renamed Émilie, with a 32-man crew and four 6-pounder guns, armed by Malroux and Levaillant
7.
Granite Railway
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The Granite Railway was one of the first railroads in the United States, built to carry granite from Quincy, Massachusetts to a dock on the Neponset River in Milton. From there boats carried the stone to Charlestown for construction of the Bunker Hill Monument. The Granite Railway is popularly termed the first commercial railroad in the United States, the last active quarry closed in 1963, in 1985, the Metropolitan District Commission purchased 22 acres, including Granite Railway Quarry, as the Quincy Quarries Reservation. In 1825, after a search throughout New England, Solomon Willard selected the Quincy site as the source of stone for the Bunker Hill Monument. After many delays and much obstruction, the railway itself was granted a charter on March 4,1826, businessman and state legislator Thomas Handasyd Perkins organized the financing of the new Granite Railway Company, owning a majority of its shares, and he was designated its president. The railroad was designed and built by railway pioneer Gridley Bryant, Bryant used developments that had already been in use on the railroads in England, but he modified his design to allow for heavier, more concentrated loads and a three-foot frost line. The railway ran three miles from quarries to the Neponset River and its wagons had wheels 6 ft in diameter and were pulled by horses, although steam locomotives had been in operation in England for two decades. The wooden rails were plated with iron and were laid 5 ft apart, by 1837 these wooden rails had been replaced by granite rails, once again capped with iron. In 1830, a new section of the called the Incline was added to haul granite from the Pine Ledge Quarry to the railway level 84 ft below. Wagons moved up and down the 315-foot long incline in a conveyor belt. The incline continued in operation until the 1940s, the railway introduced several important inventions, including railway switches or frogs, the turntable, and double-truck railroad cars. Gridley Bryant never patented his inventions, believing they should be for the benefit of all, the novelty of the new railroad attracted tourists who journeyed out from Boston to witness the revolutionary technology in person. Notable visitors such as statesman Daniel Webster and English actress Fanny Kemble were early witnesses to the new railway, miss Kemble described her 1833 visit in her journal. The Granite Railway was the site of one of the first fatal accidents in the United States, on July 25,1832. Achuas, of Cuba, derailed as he and three tourists were taking a tour. The accident occurred while the wagon—empty of stone but now carrying the four passengers—was ascending the Incline on its return trip, the occupants of the car were thrown over a cliff, approximately 35 ft. Mr. Achuas was killed and the three passengers were badly injured. This portion of the Old Colony Railroad through Quincy and Milton was later absorbed into the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad and later closed
8.
Battle of La Motta (1513)
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A Venetian army under Bartolomeo dAlviano was decisively defeated by the Spanish/Imperial army commanded by Ramón de Cardona and Fernando dAvalos. The Venetian commander, Bartolomeo dAlviano, unexpectedly left without French support, retreated into the region of Veneto, while the Spanish were unable to capture Padua, they penetrated deep into Venetian territory and in September were in sight of Venice itself. The Spanish Viceroy of Naples, Ramón de Cardona, attempted a bombardment of the city that proved ineffective, then, having no ships with which to cross the lagoon. The Venetian army commanded by Bartolomeo dAlviano, finally confronted Cardonas army outside Vicenza and this was a severe blow, forcing the Venetians to flee, and scattering DAlvianos entire army. The forces of the two continued to skirmish in the Italys most North-Eastern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia for the rest of 1513. Although the Venetians were decisively defeated by the Spaniards, the Holy League failed to follow up on these victories, the death of the King of France, Louis XII, on 1 January 1515, brought Francis I to the throne. Having assumed the title of Duke of Milan at his coronation, a combined Swiss and Papal force moved north from Milan to block the Alpine passes against him, but Francis avoided the main passes and marched instead through the valley of the Stura. The French vanguard surprised the Milanese cavalry at Villafranca, capturing Prospero Colonna, meanwhile, Francis and the main body of the French confronted the Swiss at the Battle of Marignano on 13 September. War of the League of Cambrai Battle of Marignano Italian Wars List of battles of the Italian Wars
9.
Province of Massachusetts Bay
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The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a crown colony in British North America and, from 1776, one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7,1691, by William and Mary, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland. The charter took effect on May 14,1692, and included the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Plymouth Colony, the Province of Maine, Marthas Vineyard, Nantucket, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick. The modern Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the successor, Maine has been a separate U. S. state since 1820. The name Massachusetts comes from the Massachusett, an Algonquian tribe, the name has been translated as at the great hill, at the place of large hills, or at the range of hills, with reference to the Blue Hills, and in particular, Great Blue Hill. Colonial settlement of the shores of Massachusetts Bay began in 1620 with the founding of the Plymouth Colony, over the next ten years there was a major migration of Puritans to the area, leading to the founding of a number of new colonies in New England. By the 1680s the number of colonies had stabilized at five, in addition to Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts Bay was the most populous and economically significant, housing a sizable merchant fleet. The colonies at times struggled against the Indian population, which had suffered a decline in population prior to the arrival of the first permanent settlers. In the 1630s the Pequot tribe was destroyed, and King Philips War in the 1670s resulted in the expulsion, pacification. The latter war was costly to the colonists of New England. Massachusetts and Plymouth were both somewhat politically independent from England in their days, but this situation changed after the restoration of Charles II to the English throne in 1660. Charles sought closer oversight of the colonies, and to introduce and enforce economic control over their activities, the Navigation Acts passed in the 1660s were widely disliked in Massachusetts, where merchants often found themselves trapped and at odds with the rules. These issues and others led to the revocation of the first Massachusetts Charter in 1684, when James was deposed in the 1688 Glorious Revolution, Massachusetts political leaders conspired against Andros, arresting him and other English authorities in April 1689. This led to the collapse of the Dominion, as the other colonies then quickly reasserted their old forms of government, the Plymouth colony had never had a royal charter, so its governance had always been on a somewhat precarious footing. Massachusetts, however, was placed into constitutional anarchy by the uprising, provincial agents traveled to London where Increase Mather, representing the old colony leaders, petitioned new rulers William and Mary to restore the old colonial charter. When King William learned that this result in a return to the predominantly entrenched religious rule. Instead, the Lords of Trade decided to solve two problems at once by combining the two colonies, accordingly, on October 7,1691, they issued a charter for the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and appointed Sir William Phips its governor. Although the effect of change has been subject to debate among historians
10.
Royal Proclamation of 1763
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It rendered worthless land grants given by the British government to Americans who fought for the crown against France. The Proclamation angered American colonists who wanted to continue their expansion into new farm lands. The Royal Proclamation continues to be of importance to First Nations in Canada. Lawrence Divide from there northwards through New England, the Treaty of Paris was the official conclusion of the Seven Years War, of which the French and Indian War was the North American theater. Under this treaty, France ceded ownership to Britain all of continental North America east of the Mississippi River, including Quebec, Spain received all French territory west of the Mississippi. Both Spain and Britain received some French islands in the Caribbean, France kept a few small islands used by fishermen, modern-day Haiti and the rich sugar island of Guadeloupe. Besides regulating colonial expansion, the Proclamation of 1763 dealt with the management of inherited French colonies from the French and it established government for four areas, Quebec, West Florida, East Florida, and Grenada. Some Native American peoples—primarily in the Great Lakes region—had a long and close relationship with France and they missed the gifts the French bestowed and the amicable relationship with the French, neither of which they had with the British. Pontiacs Rebellion, a war launched by a group of natives around the Great Lakes, however tribes were able to take over a large number of the forts which commanded the waterways involved in trade within the region and export to Great Britain. The Proclamation of 1763 had been in the works before Pontiacs Rebellion, British officials hoped the proclamation would reconcile American Indians to British rule and help to prevent future hostilities. At the outset, the Royal Proclamation of 1763 defined the limits of the conquered territory. Out of what had been the Canada colony of New France, a new colony. The territory northeast of the St. John River on the Labrador coast was placed under the Newfoundland Colony, the proclamation created a boundary line between the British colonies on the Atlantic coast and American Indian lands west of the Appalachian Mountains. It was also not designed as a boundary, people could cross the line. Its contour was defined by the headwaters that formed the watershed along the Appalachians, the proclamation outlawed the private purchase of Native American land, which had often created problems in the past. Instead, all future land purchases were to be made by Crown officials at some public Meeting or Assembly of the said Indians, furthermore, British colonials were forbidden to settle on native lands, and colonial officials were forbidden to grant ground or lands without royal approval. The proclamation gave the Crown a monopoly on all future land purchases from American Indians, British colonists and land speculators objected to the proclamation boundary since the British government had already assigned land grants to them. Many settlements already existed beyond the line, some of which had been temporarily evacuated during Pontiacs War
