1.
Religious order
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The order is composed of initiates and, in some traditions, ordained clergy. Religious orders exist in many of the worlds religions, in Buddhist societies, a religious order is one of the number of monastic orders of monks and nuns, many of which follow under a different school of teaching, such as Zen. A well-known Chinese Buddhist order is the ancient Shaolin order in Chan Buddhism, a Catholic religious institute is a society whose members pronounce vows that are accepted by a superior in the name of the Church and who live a life of brothers or sisters in common. Catholic religious orders and congregations are the two categories of Catholic religious institutes. Religious institutes are distinct from secular institutes, another kind of institute of consecrated life, in the Catholic Church, members of religious institutes, unless they are also deacons or priests in Holy Orders, are not clergy, but belong to the laity. Several religious orders evolved during the Crusades to incorporate a military mission thus became religious military orders, hence they cannot move – nor be moved by their abbot or abbess – to another abbey. An independent house may occasionally make a new foundation which remains a dependent house until it is granted independence by Rome, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, there is only one type of monasticism. The profession of monastics is known as tonsure and is considered by monks to be a Sacred Mystery, the Rite of Tonsure is printed in the Euchologion, the same book as the other Sacred Mysteries and services performed according to need. Religious orders in England were dissolved by King Henry VIII upon the separation of the English church from Roman primacy, with the Catholic Revival in the Church of England and worldwide Anglicanism in the middle of the nineteenth century, several orders appeared. In 1841, the first order for women was established, there are presently thirteen active religious orders for men, fifty-three for women, and eight mixed gender. The Methodist Church of Great Britain, and its ancestors, have established a number of orders of Deaconesses, the Methodist Diaconal Order currently admits both men and women to the Order. Since the functions of a deacon are primarily pastoral, the MDO may therefore be regarded as an order of Regular clerics, the Order of Saint Luke is a religious order in the United Methodist Church dedicated to sacramental and liturgical scholarship, education, and practice. While Martin Luther had concerns with the value of monastic life, there are Lutheran religious orders in the United States. This order has strong ties to Lutheran Benedictine orders in Sweden, in 2011, an Augustinian religious order, the Priestly Society of St. Augustine was established by the Anglo-Lutheran Catholic Church. Its headquarters is at Christ Lutheran Church ALCC, jens Bargmann, Ph. D. is the Grand Prior. Among their corporations, the Religious Order of Jehovahs Witnesses cares for matters specific to Jehovahs Witnesses special full-time servants, in a particular branch, traveling overseers, special pioneers, and branch staff are considered members of the Order of Special Full-time Servants and the Bethel Family. Globally, their order is the Worldwide Order of Special Full-Time Servants of Jehovah’s Witnesses, male and female members of such religious orders typically make a formal vow of poverty and are granted certain status and exemptions by many governments. Jehovahs Witnesses do not have a separate class, but consider an adherents qualified baptism to constitute his ordination as a minister
2.
Serbian Orthodox Church
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The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. It is the second oldest Slavic Orthodox Church in the world, the Serbian Orthodox Church comprises the majority of population in Serbia, Montenegro, and the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is organized into metropolises and eparchies located primarily in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Croatia, the Serbian Orthodox Church is an autocephalous, or ecclesiastically independent, member of the Orthodox communion. Serbian Patriarch serves as first among equals in his church, the current patriarch is Irinej, the Church achieved autocephalous status in 1219 under the leadership of St. Sava, becoming independent Archbishopric of Žiča. Its status was elevated to that of a patriarchate in 1346 and this patriarchate was abolished by the Ottoman Turks in 1766. The modern Serbian Orthodox Church was re-established in 1920 after the unification of the Patriarchate of Karlovci, the Metropolitanate of Belgrade, Christianity spread to the Balkans beginning in the 1st century. Florus and Laurus are venerated as Christian martyrs of the 2nd century, Constantine the Great, born in Niš, was the first Christian Roman Emperor. Several bishops seated in what is today Serbia participated in the First Council of Nicaea, in 380, Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius decreed that his subjects would be Christians according to the Council of Nicea formula. Greek was used in the Byzantine church, while the Roman church used Latin, with the definite split in 395, the line in Europe ran south along the Drina river. Tim Judah says that the Roman split resulted in that Serbs are Orthodox, among old Christian heritage is the Archbishopric of Justiniana Prima, established in 535, which had jurisdiction over the whole of present-day Serbia. However, the Archbishopric did not last, as the Slavs and Avars destroyed the region sometime after 602, in 731 Leo III attached Illyricum and Southern Italy to Patriarch Anastasius of Constantinople, transferring the papal authority to the Eastern Church. Slavs invaded and settled the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries, the history of the early medieval Serbian Principality is recorded in the work De Administrando Imperio, compiled by the Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus. The DAI drew information on the Serbs from, among others, the Serbs were said to have received the protection of Emperor Heraclius, and Porphyrogenitus stressed that the Serbs had always been under Imperial rule. The Christianization was due partly to Byzantine and subsequent Bulgarian influence, at least during the rule of Kocel in Pannonia, communications between Serbia and Great Moravia, where Methodius was active, must have been possible. This fact, the pope was presumably aware of, when planning Methodius diocese as well as that of the Dalmatian coast, there is a possibility that some Cyrillomethodian pupils reached Serbia in the 870s, perhaps even sent by Methodius himself. Serbia was accounted Christian as of about 870, the first Serbian bishopric was founded at Ras, near modern Novi Pazar on the Ibar river. According to Vlasto, the affiliation is uncertain, it may have been under the subordination of either Split or Durazzo. The early Ras church can be dated to the 9th–10th century, the names of Serbian rulers through Mutimir are Slavic dithematic names, per the Old Slavic tradition
3.
Diocese
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The word diocese is derived from the Greek term διοίκησις meaning administration. When now used in a sense, it refers to a territorial unit of administration. This structure of governance is known as episcopal polity. The word diocesan means relating or pertaining to a diocese and it can also be used as a noun meaning the bishop who has the principal supervision of a diocese. An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese, an archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or have had importance due to size or historical significance. The archbishop may have authority over any other suffragan bishops. In the Latter Day Saint movement, the bishopric is used to describe the bishop himself. Especially in the Middle Ages, some bishops held political as well as religious authority within their dioceses, in the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated in a larger unit, the diocese. With the adoption of Christianity as the Empires official religion in the 4th century, a formal church hierarchy was set up, parallel to the civil administration, whose areas of responsibility often coincided. With the collapse of the Western Empire in the 5th century, a similar, though less pronounced, development occurred in the East, where the Roman administrative apparatus was largely retained by the Byzantine Empire. In modern times, many dioceses, though later subdivided, have preserved the boundaries of a long-vanished Roman administrative division, modern usage of diocese tends to refer to the sphere of a bishops jurisdiction. As of January 2015, in the Catholic Church there are 2,851 regular dioceses,1 papal see,641 archdioceses and 2,209 dioceses in the world, in the Eastern rites in communion with the Pope, the equivalent unit is called an eparchy. Eastern Orthodoxy calls dioceses metropoleis in the Greek tradition or eparchies in the Slavic tradition, after the Reformation, the Church of England retained the existing diocesan structure which remains throughout the Anglican Communion. The one change is that the areas administered under the Archbishop of Canterbury and Archbishop of York are properly referred to as provinces and this usage is relatively common in the Anglican Communion. Certain Lutheran denominations such as the Church of Sweden do have individual dioceses similar to Roman Catholics and these dioceses and archdioceses are under the government of a bishop. Other Lutheran bodies and synods that have dioceses and bishops include the Church of Denmark, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, the Evangelical Church in Germany, rather, it is divided into a middle judicatory. The Lutheran Church-International, based in Springfield, Illinois, presently uses a traditional diocesan structure and its current president is Archbishop Robert W. Hotes. The Church of God in Christ has dioceses throughout the United States, in the COGIC, each state is divided up into at least three dioceses that are all led by a bishop, but some states as many as seven dioceses
4.
Kosovo
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Kosovo is a disputed territory and partially recognised state in Southeastern Europe that declared independence from Serbia in February 2008 as the Republic of Kosovo. Kosovo is landlocked in the central Balkan Peninsula, with its strategic position in the Balkans, it serves as an important link in the connection between central and south Europe, the Adriatic Sea, and Black Sea. Its capital and largest city is Pristina, and other urban areas include Prizren, Pejë. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, the Republic of Macedonia to the southeast, Montenegro to the west, while Serbia recognises administration of the territory by Kosovos elected government, it still continues to claim it as its own Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. In antiquity, the Dardanian Kingdom, and later the Roman province of Dardania was located in the region, the area was inhabited by several ancient Illyrian tribes. In the Middle Ages, it was part of the Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian Empires, Kosovo was the core of the medieval Serbian state and it has been the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church from the 14th century when its status was upgraded into a patriarchate. After being part of the Ottoman Empire from the 15th to the early 20th century, the war ended with a military intervention of NATO, which forced the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to withdraw its troops from Kosovo, which became a UN protectorate under UNSCR1244. On 17 February 2008 Kosovos Parliament declared independence and it has since gained diplomatic recognition as a sovereign state by 111 UN member states, Taiwan, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, the Cook Islands and Niue. Serbia refuses to recognise Kosovo as a state, although with the Brussels Agreement of 2013 it has accepted the legitimacy of Kosovar institutions, the entire region is commonly referred to in English simply as Kosovo and in Albanian as Kosova or Kosovë. The name of the plain was applied to the Kosovo Province created in 1864, Albanians refer to Kosovo as Dardania, the name of a Roman province located in Central Balkans that was formed in 284 AD which covered the territory of modern Kosovo. The name is derived from the Albanian word dardha/dardā which means pear, the former Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova had been an enthusiastic backer of a Dardanian identity and the Kosovan flag and presidential seal refer to this national identity. However, the name Kosova remains more widely used among the Albanian population, the official conventional long name of the state is Republic of Kosovo, as defined by the Constitution of Kosovo, and is used to represent Kosovo internationally. This arrangement, which has dubbed the asterisk agreement, was agreed in an 11-point arrangement agreed on 24 February 2012. By the independence declaration in 2008, its long name became Republic of Kosovo. In prehistory, the succeeding Starčevo culture, Vinča culture, Bubanj-Hum culture, the area in and around Kosovo has been inhabited for nearly 10,000 years. During the Neolithic age, Kosovo lay within the area of the Vinča-Turdaş culture which is characterised by West Balkan black, bronze and Iron Age tombs have been found in Metohija. However, life during the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age is not confirmed yet, therefore, until arguments of Paleolithic and Mesolithic man are confirmed, Neolithic man, respectively the Neolithic sites are considered as the chronological beginning of population in Kosovo. From this period until today Kosovo has been inhabited, and traces of activities of societies from prehistoric, ancient, whereas, in some archaeological sites, multilayer settlements clearly reflect the continuity of life through centuries
5.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
6.
World Heritage Site
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A World Heritage Site is a landmark which has been officially recognized by the United Nations, specifically by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Sites are selected on the basis of having cultural, historical, scientific or some form of significance. UNESCO regards these sites as being important to the interests of humanity. The programme catalogues, names, and conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common culture, under certain conditions, listed sites can obtain funds from the World Heritage Fund. The program was founded with the Convention Concerning the Protection of the Worlds Cultural and Natural Heritage, since then,192 state parties have ratified the convention, making it one of the most adhered to international instruments. As of July 2016,1052 sites are listed,814 cultural,203 natural, in 1959, the governments of Egypt and Sudan requested UNESCO to assist their countries to protect and rescue the endangered monuments and sites. In 1960, the Director-General of UNESCO launched an appeal to the Member States for an International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia, the campaign, which ended in 1980, was considered a success. The project cost $80 million, about $40 million of which was collected from 50 countries, the projects success led to other safeguarding campaigns, saving Venice and its lagoon in Italy, the ruins of Mohenjo-daro in Pakistan, and the Borobodur Temple Compounds in Indonesia. UNESCO then initiated, with the International Council on Monuments and Sites, the United States initiated the idea of cultural conservation with nature conservation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature developed similar proposals in 1968, the Convention came into force on 17 December 1975. As of June 2016, it has been ratified by 192 states, including 188 UN member states plus the Cook Islands, the Holy See, Niue, a country must first list its significant cultural and natural sites, the result is called the Tentative List. A country may not nominate sites that have not been first included on the Tentative List, next, it can place sites selected from that list into a Nomination File. The Nomination File is evaluated by the International Council on Monuments and Sites and these bodies then make their recommendations to the World Heritage Committee. There are ten selection criteria – a site must meet at least one of them to be included on the list, up to 2004, there were six criteria for cultural heritage and four criteria for natural heritage. In 2005, this was modified so there is now only one set of ten criteria. Nominated sites must be of outstanding value and meet at least one of the ten criteria. Thus, the Geneva Convention treaty promulgates, Article 53, PROTECTION OF CULTURAL OBJECTS AND OF PLACES OF WORSHIP. There are 1,052 World Heritage Sites located in 165 States Party, of these,814 are cultural,203 are natural and 35 are mixed properties
7.
Medieval Monuments in Kosovo
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The construction was founded by members of Nemanjić dynasty, the most important dynasty of Serbia in the Middle Ages. The sites are located in the territory of Kosovo. In 2004, UNESCO recognized the Dečani monastery for its universal value. Two years later, the site of patrimony was extended as a serial nomination, in 2006 the property was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger due to difficulties in its management and conservation stemming from the regions political instability. There is a controversy over Kosovos bid to join the UNESCO. These monuments have come under attack, especially during the violence in 2004, during Kosovos UNMIK rule. In October 2015 Kosovo was recommended for membership by the UNESCO Executive Board, the bid for membership was voted at the UNESCO General Conference in November 2015. Tomislav Nikolić, President of Serbia, posted at his YouTube channel a video about the destruction of churches, isa Mustafa, Prime Minister of Kosovo stressed the positive campaign that Kosovo is leading for its UNESCO bid. He condemned the Serbian leadership for their string of attacks that have nothing to do with the truth. Mr. UNESCO has not accepted Kosovo as a member, the failed to gain a two-thirds majority at the organizations General Conference in Paris on November 9,2015. The church is subject to constant looting - even of its construction material, specifically valuable lead has repeatedly been stolen from the roof
8.
Serbia
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Serbia, officially the Republic of Serbia, is a sovereign state situated at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and the central Balkans. Relative to its territory, it is a diverse country distinguished by a transitional character, situated along cultural, geographic, climatic. Serbia numbers around 7 million residents, and its capital, Belgrade, following the Slavic migrations to the Balkans from the 6th century onwards, Serbs established several states in the early Middle Ages. The Serbian Kingdom obtained recognition by Rome and the Byzantine Empire in 1217, in the early 19th century, the Serbian Revolution established the nation-state as the regions first constitutional monarchy, which subsequently expanded its territory. During the breakup of Yugoslavia, Serbia formed a union with Montenegro which dissolved peacefully in 2006, in 2008 the parliament of the province of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence, with mixed responses from the international community. Serbia is a member of organizations such as the UN, CoE, OSCE, PfP, BSEC. An EU membership candidate since 2012, Serbia has been negotiating its EU accession since January 2014, the country is acceding to the WTO and is a militarily neutral state. Serbia is an income economy with dominant service sector, followed by the industrial sector. The country ranks high on the Social Progress Index as well as the Global Peace Index, relatively high on the Human Development Index, located at the crossroads between Central and Southern Europe, Serbia is found in the Balkan peninsula and the Pannonian Plain. Serbia lies between latitudes 41° and 47° N, and longitudes 18° and 23° E. The country covers a total of 88,361 km2, which places it at 113th place in the world, with Kosovo excluded, the area is 77,474 km2. Its total border length amounts to 2,027 km, all of Kosovos border with Albania, Macedonia and Montenegro are under control of the Kosovo border police. The Pannonian Plain covers the third of the country while the easternmost tip of Serbia extends into the Wallachian Plain. The terrain of the part of the country, with the region of Šumadija at its heart. Mountains dominate the third of Serbia. Dinaric Alps stretch in the west and the southwest, following the flow of the rivers Drina, the Carpathian Mountains and Balkan Mountains stretch in a north–south direction in eastern Serbia. Ancient mountains in the southeast corner of the country belong to the Rilo-Rhodope Mountain system, elevation ranges from the Midžor peak of the Balkan Mountains at 2,169 metres to the lowest point of just 17 metres near the Danube river at Prahovo. The largest lake is Đerdap Lake and the longest river passing through Serbia is the Danube, the climate of Serbia is under the influences of the landmass of Eurasia and the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea
9.
Serbian Cyrillic alphabet
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The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet is an adaptation of the Cyrillic script for the Serbian language, developed in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two used to write standard modern Serbian, Bosnian and Montenegrin, the other being Latin. During the same period, Croatian linguists led by Ljudevit Gaj adapted the Latin alphabet, in use in western South Slavic areas, using the same principles. As a result of this joint effort, Cyrillic and Latin alphabets for Serbo-Croatian have a complete one-to-one congruence, with the Latin digraphs Lj, Nj, and Dž counting as single letters. Vuks Cyrillic alphabet was adopted in Serbia in 1868, and was in exclusive use in the country up to the inter-war period. Both alphabets were co-official in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and later in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, in Serbia, Cyrillic is seen as being more traditional, and has the official status. It is also a script in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, along with Latin. The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet was used as a basis for the Macedonian alphabet with the work of Krste Misirkov, Cyrillic is in official use in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Serbian language in Croatia is officially recognized as a minority language, however, Cyrillic is an important symbol of Serbian identity. In Serbia, official documents are printed in Cyrillic only even though, according to a 2014 survey, Glagolitic appears to be older, predating the introduction of Christianity, only formalized by Cyril and expanded to cover non-Greek sounds. Cyrillic was created by the orders of Boris I of Bulgaria by Cyrils disciples, the earliest form of Cyrillic was the ustav, based on Greek uncial script, augmented by ligatures and letters from the Glagolitic alphabet for consonants not found in Greek. There was no distinction between capital and lowercase letters, the literary Slavic language was based on the Bulgarian dialect of Thessaloniki. Part of the Serbian literary heritage of the Middle Ages are works such as Vukan Gospels, St. Savas Nomocanon, Dušans Code, Munich Serbian Psalter, the first printed book in Serbian was the Cetinje Octoechos. Vuk Stefanović Karadžić fled Serbia during the Serbian Revolution in 1813, there he met Jernej Kopitar, a linguist with interest in slavistics. Kopitar and Sava Mrkalj helped Vuk to reform the Serbian language and he finalized the alphabet in 1818 with the Serbian Dictionary. Karadžić also translated the New Testament into Serbian, which was published in 1868 and he wrote several books, Mala prostonarodna slaveno-serbska pesnarica and Pismenica serbskoga jezika in 1814, and two more in 1815 and 1818, all with the alphabet still in progress. In his letters from 1815-1818 he used, Ю, я, Ы and Ѳ, in his 1815 song book he dropped the Ѣ. The alphabet was adopted in 1868, four years after his death
10.
Albanian language
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Centuries-old communities speaking Albanian-based dialects can be found scattered in Greece, Southern Italy, Sicily, and Ukraine. Due to the large Albanian diaspora, the number of speakers is much higher than the native speakers in Southeast Europe. The first audio recording of Albanian was made by Norbert Jokl on 4 April 1914 in Vienna, the Albanian language is part of the Indo-European language group. In general there is insufficient evidence to connect Albanian with one of those languages, Albanian is now considered an isolate within Indo-European, no extant language shares the same branch. The only other languages that are the surviving member of a branch of Indo-European are Armenian. Although Albanian shares lexical isoglosses with Greek, Balto-Slavic, and Germanic languages, in 1995, Ann Taylor, Donald Ringe and Tandy Warnow described as surprising their finding, using quantitative linguistic techniques, that Albanian appears to comprise a subgroup with Germanic. This theory is reinforced by subsequent research by the same authors, Albanian also shares two features with Balto-Slavic languages, a lengthening of syllabic consonants before voiced obstruents and a distinct treatment of long syllables ending in a sonorant. Other conservative features of Albanian include the retention of the distinction between active and middle voice, present tense and aorist. In another but uncommon hypothesis, Albanian is grouped with both Balto-Slavic and Germanic based on the merger of Proto-Indo-European *ǒ and *ǎ into *ǎ in a northern group. However, this shift is now regarded as only part of a larger push chain that affected all long vowels. The earliest loanwords attested in Albanian come from Doric Greek, whereas the strongest influence came from Latin, curtis, the loanwords do not necessarily indicate the geographical location of the ancestor of Albanian language. However, according to linguists, the borrowed words can help to get an idea about the place of origin. The period during which Proto-Albanian and Latin interacted was protracted and drawn out roughly from the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD. This is borne out into three layers of borrowings, the largest number belonging to the second layer, which may be compared to, for example. The first, with the fewest borrowings, was a time of less important interaction, the final period, probably preceding the Slavic or Germanic invasions, also has a notably smaller number of borrowings. Other formative changes include the syncretism of several case endings, especially in the plural. Such borrowing indicates that the Romanians migrated from an area where the majority was Slavic to an area with a majority of Albanian speakers and their movement is probably related to the expansion of the Bulgarian Empire into Albania around that time. Jernej Kopitar was the first to note Latins influence on Albanian, Kopitar gave examples such as Albanian qiqer from Latin cicer, qytet from civitas, peshk from piscis and shigjetë from sagitta
11.
Monastery
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A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone. A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which may be a chapel, church or temple, a monastery complex typically comprises a number of buildings which include a church, dormitory, cloister, refectory, library, balneary and infirmary. These may include a hospice, a school and a range of agricultural and manufacturing such as a barn. In English usage, the monastery is generally used to denote the buildings of a community of monks. In modern usage, convent tends to be applied only to institutions of female monastics, historically, a convent denoted a house of friars, now more commonly called a friary. Various religions may apply these terms in specific ways. The earliest extant use of the term monastērion is by the 1st century AD Jewish philosopher Philo in On The Contemplative Life, in England the word monastery was also applied to the habitation of a bishop and the cathedral clergy who lived apart from the lay community. Most cathedrals were not monasteries, and were served by canons secular, however, some were run by monasteries orders, such as York Minster. Westminster Abbey was for a time a cathedral, and was a Benedictine monastery until the Reformation. They are also to be distinguished from collegiate churches, such as St Georges Chapel, in most of this article, the term monastery is used generically to refer to any of a number of types of religious community. In the Roman Catholic religion and to some extent in certain branches of Buddhism, there is a more specific definition of the term. Buddhist monasteries are generally called vihara, viharas may be occupied by males or females, and in keeping with common English usage, a vihara populated by females may often be called a nunnery or a convent. However, vihara can also refer to a temple, in Tibetan Buddhism, monasteries are often called gompa. In Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, a monastery is called a wat, in Burma, a monastery is called a kyaung. A Christian monastery may be an abbey, or a priory and it may be a community of men or of women. A charterhouse is any monastery belonging to the Carthusian order, in Eastern Christianity, a very small monastic community can be called a skete, and a very large or important monastery can be given the dignity of a lavra. The great communal life of a Christian monastery is called cenobitic, as opposed to the life of an anchorite. In Hinduism monasteries are called matha, mandir, koil, or most commonly an ashram, jains use the Buddhist term vihara
12.
Prokletije
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Prokletije, also known as the Albanian Alps and the Accursed Mountains, is a mountain range on the western Balkan peninsula, extending from northern Albania to Kosovo and eastern Montenegro. Its peak in Albania, Maja Jezercë at 2,694 m, is the highest point, both the highest peak in Montenegro, Zla Kolata at 2,534 m and the highest in Kosovo, Gjeravica at 2,656 m, are here. The highest peak in Albania, however, is Mount Korab, part of the Korab range, at 2,764 m high, the southernmost glaciers in Europe were recently discovered in the Albanian part of the range. The regional economy is based mainly on agriculture, immigrant remittances, ptolemy mentioned Mons Bertiscus, which has been connected to Prokletije. Serbo-Croatian Prokletije and Albanian Bjeshkët e Namuna both mean the accursed, possibly because they are perceived as insurmountable and wild, in Albanian, another name for the mountain range since the 20th century is Alpet Shqiptare, meaning Albanian Alps. The Prokletije mountains, the southernmost part of the Dinaric Alps and these points are at 42°45 and 42°15 N in the Mediterranean zone of the western Balkan Peninsula. The southern boundary of the Prokletije is found at the river Drin, in a broader sense the Prokletije also include the mountain ranges to Kosovska Mitrovica with the Hajla and Mokna massifs. Some authors, however, see the river Lim as the boundary of the Prokletije in geological terms. From Skadar lake, the mountains stretch northeast along the Cijevna river area, from here, the Prokletije turn northwards over the Bogićevića massif and Čakor pass, and continue with another row of mountains. The Prokletije finish in the area of upper Ibar river valley near the city of Kosovska Mitrovica, just after the Suva Planina massif that encircles Metohija basin from the north, the Prokletije are ethnographically and sociologically diverse due to many tribes living in the region as sheep herders. Names of various tribes - Hoti, Gruda, Kelmendi, Kastrati, Dukagjini, Shkreli, Shala, Nikaj, Krasniqi, Gashi, the Prokletije are a subrange of the 1,000 km long Dinaric Alps. The Prokletije are a high mountain range with a pronounced steep topography. Maximum relief differences of 1800 meters are found in the Valbona, Grbaja and Ropojani, overhanging walls and ridges forming pointed peaks are typical of the western and central Prokletije. The eastern mountains are rugged with lower relief. The valleys show characteristic effects of Pleistocene glaciation, most of the area was modified by glacial activity with karstic areas in the western parts. The range was formed by the folding resulting from the collision of the African and Eurasian plates, nowhere in the Balkans have glaciers left so much evidence of erosion. After the Alps, these mountains are the most glaciated in Europe south of the Scandinavian ice sheet and they have very steep limestone slopes with abundant karst features. The Prokletije is a large, rugged, pathless range and it is one of the rare mountain ranges in Europe that has not been explored entirely
13.
Metohija
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Metohija or Dukagjini ) is a large basin and the name of the region covering the southwestern part of Kosovo. The region covers 35% of Kosovos total area, according to the 2011 census, the population of the region is 700,577. In Albanian the area is called Rrafshi i Dukagjinit and means the plateau of Dukagjin, the 1974 constitution dropped the term Metohija, and Kosovo became the official term for the province as a whole. The change was not accepted in Serbia, where the old name continued to be in use, Metohija is 23 km wide at its broadest point and about 60 km long, at an average altitude of 450 m above sea level. Its principal river is the White Drin, the geographic division between Metohija and eastern Kosovo causes differences between the two areas flora and fauna. Metohija has the characteristic influences of the Mediterranean, while eastern Kosovos ecology does not differ from Central Serbias, Metohija consists of fertile arable land with many small rivers which provide water for irrigation and, in combination with the Mediterranean climate, give excellent fields except for cereals. This area is known for its high-quality vineyards, fruit orchards. The geographical region of Metohija is further divided into four parts, Podgor, Prekoruplje, Reka, based on archaeology, the region of Kosovo and Metohija and the Morava Valley were interconnected in the Neolithic and Eneolithic. The Triballi of Morava entered Kosovo in two waves in the 8th and 7th centuries BC, then took part in the genesis of the Dardani, necropolises near Zhur suggest that the southwesternmost part of Metohija at the end of 6th century BC was subject to Illyrian influx. After the Roman conquests, the Metohija region was divided into Dardania, coinciding with the decline of the Roman Empire, many barbarian tribes passed through the Balkans, most of whom did not leave any lasting state. The Slavs, however, overwhelmed the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries, the Principality of Serbia included the city of Destinikon, which is mostly believed to have been in Metohija. The region was conquered by Bulgaria in the early 10th century, stefan Nemanja was recognized independent in 1190, most of Kosovo and Metohija were in Serbian hands. During the Fall of the Serbian Empire, the Branković family held most of the region of Metohija, Metohija was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and incorporated into the Vilayet of Kosovo after the fall of Serbia in 1459. The area was taken by the Kingdom of Montenegro in the 1912 First Balkan War except Prizren area, during the First World War, Montenegro was conquered by the Austro-Hungarian forces in 1915. The Central Powers were pushed out of Metohija by the Serbian Army in 1918, Montenegro subsequently joined the Kingdom of Serbia, which was followed by the formation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The Kingdom was reformed into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929, after Italys treaty with the Allies in 1943, the Germans took direct control over the region, supported by the local Albanian collaborationists. After numerous rebellions of Serb Chetniks and Yugoslav Partisans, Metohija was captured by Serb forces in 1944, in 1946, it became part of Serbias Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija, within the transitional Democratic Federal Yugoslavia. On 17 February 2008, Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia, the country still considers Metohija part of its sovereign territory
14.
Kingdom of Serbia (medieval)
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The Kingdom of Serbia, or Serbian Kingdom, was a medieval Serbian state that existed from 1217 to 1346, ruled by the Nemanjić dynasty. The Grand Principality of Serbia was elevated with the coronation of Stefan Nemanjić as king by his brother, bishop Sava, after inheriting all territories unified by their father, the kingdom was proclaimed an empire on 16 April 1346. Each province had its own nobility and institutions, and each acquired a member of the Vojislavljevići to head as Župan, the Byzantine Empire launched a campaign on Duklja between 1089 and 1091 and possibly captured Bodin. A civil war broke out in the realm among Bodins relatives, Vukan took the opportunity to assert himself and broke away, claiming the title of Grand Prince of Serbia. Rascia, Bosnia, and Zahumlje all became independent in 1091, up to this point, Duklja had been the center of the Serbian realm, as well as the main resistance to Byzantium in the Balkans. After 1091 Rascia became the most powerful of the Serbian states, under the rule of the Vukanović dynasty, Rascia also replaced Duklja as the main opponent of Byzantine rule in the 12th century. Bodins heirs were forced to recognize Byzantine overlordship, and now only the small territories of Duklja. During the reign of Vukans son Uroš I, the Byzantines invaded Duklja and sought to conquer Rascia as well, Uroš II initially fought the Byzantines, but he gave oaths of servitude to the Emperor after he was defeated in war. Stefan Nemanja was succeeded by his middle son Stefan, whilst his first-born son Vukan was given the rule of the Zeta region, Stefan Nemanjas youngest son Rastko became a monk and took the name Sava, turning all his efforts to spreading religion among his people. In Byzantium, Sava managed to secure autocephaly for the Serbian Church, in the same year Sava published the first constitution in Serbia — St. Savas Nomocanon. The Nomocanon was a compilation of Civil law, based on Roman Law and its basic purpose was to organize the functions of the young Serbian kingdom and the Serbian church. Thus the Serbs acquired both political and religious independence, the next generation of Serbian rulers — the sons of Stefan Prvovenčani, Radoslav, Vladislav, and Uroš I — marked a period of stagnation of the state structure. All three kings were more or less dependent on some of the neighbouring states — Byzantium, Bulgaria, the ties with the Hungarians played a decisive role as Uroš I was succeeded by his son Dragutin, whose wife was a Hungarian princess. Thus, some of these became part of the Serbian state for the first time. His new state was named Kingdom of Srem, in that time the name Srem was a designation for two territories, Upper Srem and Lower Srem. The Kingdom of Srem under the rule of Stefan Dragutin was actually Lower Srem, after Dragutin died in 1316, his son, king Vladislav II, became king and ruled until 1325. Under Dragutins younger brother, King Milutin, Serbia grew stronger despite having to fight wars on three different fronts. King Milutin was an apt diplomat much inclined to the use of a customary medieval diplomatic and dynastic marriages and he was married five times, with Hungarian, Bulgarian, and Byzantine princesses
15.
Franciscans
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The Franciscans are a group of related mendicant religious orders within the Catholic Church, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. These orders include the Order of Friars Minor, the Order of Saint Clare, Francis began preaching around 1207 and traveled to Rome to seek approval from the Pope in 1209. The original Rule of Saint Francis approved by the Pope disallowed ownership of property, the austerity was meant to emulate the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Franciscans traveled and preached in the streets, while boarding in church properties, Saint Clare, under Franciss guidance, founded the Poor Clares in 1212, which remains a Second Order of the Franciscans. The extreme poverty required of members was relaxed in final revision of the Rule in 1223, the degree of observance required of members remained a major source of conflict within the order, resulting in numerous secessions. The Order of Friars Minor, previously known as the Observant branch, is one of the three Franciscan First Orders within the Catholic Church, the others being the Capuchins and Conventuals. The Order of Friars Minor, in its current form, is the result of an amalgamation of smaller orders completed in 1897 by Pope Leo XIII. The latter two, the Capuchin and Conventual, remain distinct religious institutes within the Catholic Church, observing the Rule of Saint Francis with different emphases, Franciscans are sometimes referred to as minorites or greyfriars because of their habit. In Poland and Lithuania they are known as Bernardines, after Bernardino of Siena, the name of original order, Friars Minor, means lesser brothers, and stems from Francis of Assisis rejection of extravagance. Francis was the son of a cloth merchant, but gave up his wealth to pursue his faith more fully. Francis adopted of the tunic worn by peasants as the religious habit for his order. Those who joined him became the original Order of Friars Minor and they all live according to a body of regulations known as the Rule of St Francis. First Order The First Order or the Order of Friars Minor are commonly called simply the Franciscans and this Order is a mendicant religious order of men, some of whom trace their origin to Francis of Assisi. Their official Latin name is the Ordo Fratrum Minorum, St. Francis thus referred to his followers as Fraticelli, meaning Little Brothers. Franciscan brothers are informally called friars or the Minorites and they all live according to a body of regulations known as the Rule of St Francis. These are The Order of Friars Minor, known as the Observants, most commonly simply called Franciscan friars, official name, the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin or simply Capuchins, official name, Friars Minor Capuchin. The Conventual Franciscans or Minorites, official name, Friars Minor Conventual, Second Order The Second Order, most commonly called Poor Clares in English-speaking countries, consists of religious sisters. The order is called the Order of St. Clare, but in the century, prior to 1263, this order was referred to as The Poor Ladies, The Poor Enclosed Nuns
16.
Kotor
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Kotor is a coastal town in Montenegro. It is located in a part of the Gulf of Kotor. The city has a population of 13,510 and is the center of Kotor Municipality. The old Mediterranean port of Kotor is surrounded by fortifications built during the Venetian period and it is located on the Bay of Kotor, one of the most indented parts of the Adriatic Sea. Some have called it the southern-most fjord in Europe, but it is a ria, together with the nearly overhanging limestone cliffs of Orjen and Lovćen, Kotor and its surrounding area form an impressive and picturesque Mediterranean landscape. In recent years, Kotor has seen an increase in tourists. Visitors are attracted both by the beauty of the Gulf of Kotor and by the old town of Kotor. Kotor is part of the World Heritage Site dubbed the Natural and Culturo-Historical Region of Kotor and it is located in a secluded part of the Gulf of Kotor. Kotor has a subtropical climate. Kotor, first mentioned in 168 BC, was settled during Ancient Roman times, Kotor has been fortified since the early Middle Ages, when Emperor Justinian built a fortress above Acruvium in 535, after expelling the Ostrogoths. This town was named as Kotor in 9th century and it is possible that the vase derives from the notion of vassal and possessive adjective cataro. One can not exclude the possibility that the Vasekatro was a refuge and/or settlement of Katars because they have the root of vase Latin term for the noun vase. When, according to Mihajlo Solinjanin, arrived in Risan, announced their intention to raise the fortress in which to be sure. When they learned citizens of the settlement Ascrivium, urged that the planned cost of investing in the construction of a current city, and that combined live as true friends and citizens. These are not accepted by Ascrivians, or later, under the influence of its bishops are agreed to throw the draw, and Draw outbursts in favor of Kotors Bosnians. The city was plundered by the Saracens in 840, Kotor was one of the more influential Dalmatian city-states of romanized Illyrians throughout the Middle Ages, and until the 11th century the Dalmatian language was spoken in Kotor. The city was part of Byzantine Dalmatia in that period, in 1002, the city suffered damage under the occupation of the First Bulgarian Empire, and in the following year it was ceded to Serbia by the Bulgarian Tsar Samuil. It was already an episcopal see, and, in the 13th century, during the Nemanjić dynasty-era, the city was autonomous
17.
Hegumen
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Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns is called a hegumenia or ihumenia, the term means the one who is in charge, the leader in Greek. Initially the title was applied to the head of any monastery, after 1874, when the Russian monasteries were secularized and classified into three classes, the title of hegumen was reserved only for the lowest, third class. The head of a monastery of the second or first class holds the rank of archimandrite, in the Greek Catholic Church, the head of all monasteries in a certain territory is called the protohegumen. The duties of both hegumen and archimandrite are the same, archimandrite being considered the senior dignity of the two, in the Russian Orthodox Church the title of Hegumen may be granted as an honorary title to any hieromonk, even one who does not head a monastery. A ruling hegumen is formally installed in a ceremony by the bishop, among the Russians, the pastoral staff for a Hegumen tends to be of wood, rather than metal. The hegumen is awarded the gold pectoral cross by the bishop, during divine services the hegumen wears a simple black monastic mantle, while the higher ranking archimandrite wears a mantle similar to one worn by a bishop. An archimandrite also wears a similar to one worn by a bishop. A hegumen may carry his pastoral staff in processions and when giving blessings in the church, when outside the church, a hegumen may use a wooden walking stick similar to that used by a bishop or archimandrite, only not adorned with a silver knob. In the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria the rank is used in the capacity of an archpriest, on the other hand, the rank of archimandrite fell into disuse in the Church of Alexandria from the late 16th century. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Brockhaus
18.
Ana-Neda
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Ana-Neda was the Empress consort of Bulgaria briefly in 1323 -1324 as the spouse of Despot of Vidin Michael Shishman who was elected as Emperor of Bulgaria in 1323. She was the daughter of Serbian King Stefan Uroš II Milutin, from the marriage with Michael, they had three sons, one of whom was Ivan Stephen of Bulgaria, later briefly the Emperor of Bulgaria. She was the daughter of Serbian King Stefan Uroš II Milutin, some believe that her mother was Elizabeth of Hungary. Anna Neda and her children were sent out of Turnovo into the countryside, in 1330, Michael Shishman died and was succeeded by his firstborn son Ivan Stephen of Bulgaria. She took monastic vows and received the name Jelena and she was buried in the Dečani monastery. She was consecrated in the Serbian Orthodox Church as Venerable St. Jelena of Dečani, fine, John Van Antwerp, The Late Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest, University of Michigan Press, ISBN 978-0-472-08260-5 Gjuzelev Vassil
19.
Gregory Tsamblak
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Gregory Tsamblak or Grigorij Camblak, was a Bulgarian writer and cleric, metropolitan of Kiev between 1413 and 1420. He was born in the capital of the Bulgarian Empire Tarnovo into a rich family and his cousin was Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev. Tsamblak was a disciple of the prominent Bulgarian hesychast, writer and follower of Patriarch Evtimiy of Bulgaria, Tsamblak stayed in Serbia from 1402 until his departure Rus. In 1409 Gregory Tsamblak came to Kyiv, continued action of metropolitan of Kyiv Cyprians. In 1414 he became the metropolitan of Kyiv, participated in Council of Constance and called for the agreement and church connections. Tsamblak has been well-known and much appreciated in Kyivan Rus, Serbia, Tsamblak Hill on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Gregory Tsamblak
20.
World War I
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World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany
21.
Austro-Hungarian Army
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The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts, the joint army, the Imperial Austrian Landwehr, and the Royal Hungarian Honved, with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 the new tripartite army was brought into being. It existed until the disestablishment of the Austro-Hungarian Empire following World War I in 1918, all of the Honvédség and the Landwehr regiments were composed of three battalions, while the joint army k. u. k. In September 1915, field gray was adopted as the new uniform color. The last known surviving member of the Austro-Hungarian Army was World War I veteran Franz Künstler, Austria-Hungary avoided major wars in the era between 1867 and 1914 but engaged in a number of minor military actions. Nevertheless, the general staff maintained plans for major wars against neighboring powers, especially Italy, soldiers under the command of Conrad von Hotzendorf were also used against Italian rioters in Trieste in 1902. The most significant action by soldiers of the Dual Monarchy in this period was the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia, despite setbacks at Maglaj and Tuzla, Sarajevo was occupied in October. Austro-Hungarian casualties amounted to over 5,000 and the violence of the campaign led to recriminations between commanders and political leaders. In 1868, the number of active-duty troops in the army was 255,000, however, this was significantly less than the European powers of France, the North German Confederation and Russia, each of which could field more than one million men. Though the population of the empire had risen to nearly 50 million by 1900, the size of the army was tied to ceilings established in 1889. Thus, at the start of the 20th century, Austria-Hungary conscripted only 0. 29% of its population, the 1889 army law was not revised until 1912, which allowed for an increase in annual conscriptions. From a religious standpoint, the Austro-Hungarian army officer corps was dominated by Roman Catholics, in 1896, out of 1000 officers,791 were Roman Catholics,86 Protestants,84 Jews,39 Greek-Orthodox, and one Uniate. Of the pre–World War military forces of the major European powers, while the Jewish population of the lands of the Dual Monarchy was about 5%, Jews made up nearly 18% of the reserve officer corps. Franz Ferdinand was also accused of discriminating against Protestant officers, following the 1867 constitutional arrangements, the Reichsrat was dominated by German Liberals, who generally regarded the army as a relic of feudalism. In Budapest, legislators were reluctant to authorize funds for the joint army but were generous with the Hungarian branch of the army, the Honvédség. Despite increases throughout the 1850s and 1860s, in the half of the century Austria-Hungary was still spending less on its army than were other major European powers. Attempts to increase the intake of recruits were proposed but repeatedly blocked by officials in Budapest until an agreement was reached in 1912. In the emerging field of aviation, Austria-Hungary lagged behind other European states
22.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
23.
Fascism
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Fascism /ˈfæʃɪzəm/ is a form of radical authoritarian nationalism that came to prominence in early 20th-century Europe. The first fascist movements emerged in Italy during World War I, opposed to liberalism, Marxism, and anarchism, fascism is usually placed on the far-right within the traditional left–right spectrum. Fascists saw World War I as a revolution that brought changes to the nature of war, society, the state. The advent of war and the total mass mobilization of society had broken down the distinction between civilians and combatants. A military citizenship arose in which all citizens were involved with the military in some manner during the war, Fascism rejects assertions that violence is automatically negative in nature, and views political violence, war, and imperialism as means that can achieve national rejuvenation. Fascists advocate a mixed economy, with the goal of achieving autarky through protectionist and interventionist economic policies. Since the end of World War II in 1945, few parties have openly described themselves as fascist, the descriptions neo-fascist or post-fascist are sometimes applied more formally to describe parties of the far right with ideologies similar to, or rooted in, 20th century fascist movements. The Italian term fascismo is derived from fascio meaning a bundle of rods and this was the name given to political organizations in Italy known as fasci, groups similar to guilds or syndicates. According to Mussolinis own account, the Fascist Revolutionary Party was founded in Italy in 1915, in 1919, Mussolini founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento in Milan, which became the Partito Nazionale Fascista two years later. The symbolism of the fasces suggested strength through unity, a rod is easily broken. Similar symbols were developed by different fascist movements, for example, historians, political scientists, and other scholars have long debated the exact nature of fascism. Each interpretation of fascism is distinct, leaving many definitions too wide or narrow, according to many scholars, fascism—especially once in power—has historically attacked communism, conservatism and parliamentary liberalism, attracting support primarily from the far right. Roger Griffin describes fascism as a genus of political ideology whose mythic core in its various permutations is a form of populist ultranationalism. Griffin describes the ideology as having three components, the rebirth myth, populist ultra-nationalism and the myth of decadence. Fascism is a revolutionary, trans-class form of anti-liberal, and in the last analysis. Fascist Philosophies vary by application, but remain distinct by one theoretic commonality, all traditionally fall into the far-right sector of any political spectrum, catalyzed by afflicted class identities over conventional social inequities. John Lukacs, Hungarian-American historian and Holocaust survivor, argues there is no such thing as generic fascism. He claims that National Socialism and Communism are essentially manifestations of populism, Fascism was influenced by both left and right, conservative and anti-conservative, national and supranational, rational and anti-rational
24.
Blackshirts
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Its members were distinguished by their black uniforms and their loyalty to Benito Mussolini, the Duce of Fascism, to whom they swore an oath. The founders of the groups were nationalist intellectuals, former army officers and young landowners opposing peasants. Their methods became harsher as Mussolinis power grew, and they used violence, in 1943 the MVSN was integrated into the Italian armed forces. The Blackshirts were established as the squadristi in 1919 and consisted of disgruntled former soldiers. It was given the task of leading fights against their bitter enemies – the Socialists and they may have numbered 200,000 by the time of Mussolinis March on Rome from 27 to 29 October 1922. The Italian Social Republic, located in the areas of northern Italy occupied by Germany, Benito Mussolini was the leader, or Commandant-General and First Honorary Corporal, of the blackshirts, but executive functions were carried out by the Chief of Staff, equivalent to an army general. The MVSN was formed in imitation of the ancient Roman army, as follows, instead, they derive from the structure of the armies of ancient Rome. Zona = division Legione = regiment, each legion was a unit consisting of a small active cadre. 7th CCNN Division - The 7th CCNN Division Cirene was never deployed overseas or even fully equipped before it was disbanded, the rifle companies had three platoons. Each Legion had a MMG company with four platoons of three weapons each, the Blackshirts replacements battalions were organized as the Blackshirts Rifle Battalions, but its platoon were overstrength and with only 1 x LMG in each platoon. The Blackshirt Divisions contained regular soldiers and volunteer militia from the Fascist Party, after the campaigns in Northern Spain in October 1937, the 2nd CCNN Division was consolidated with the 1st CCNN and renamed the XXIII de Marzo Division Llamas Negras. In 1940 the MVSN was able to muster 340,000 first-line combat troops, Mussolini also pushed through plans to raise 142 MVSN combat battalions of 650 men each to provide a Gruppo di Assalto to each army division. These Gruppi consisted of two cohorts plus Gruppo Supporto company of two machine gun manipoli and two 81 mm mortar manipoli. These mobile groups suffered heavy casualties due to being undermanned, under equipped, the three divisions were destroyed in combat in North Africa. The MVSN fought in every theater where Italy did, all other ranks closely approximated those of the old Roman army as follows. The paramilitary fascist Iron Guard members in Romania wore green shirts. G, wodehouse Axis History Factbook/Italy/Militia Comando Supremo
25.
Royal Italian Army
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The Royal Italian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Italy from the unification of Italy in 1861 to the birth of the Italian Republic in 1946. In World War II the Royal Army fought first as part of the Axis, after the monarchy ended, the army changed its name to become the Italian Army. The Regio Esercito dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, on 4 May 1861, Manfredo Fanti signed the creation decree, by which the new army was to replace the previous Armata Sarda and the Army of the Two Sicilies. On 20 September 1870, the IV Corps captured Rome, which had remained under Papal control up until then, on 8 February 1885, a corps of fewer than 1,000 soldiers landed at Massaua, Eritrea, starting the creation of an Italian colonial empire. The Italian advance was halted by a defeat at the Battle of Adwa by Ethiopian forces. The following year, as part of the Italian collaboration with the pacification program after the revolt against the Turkish domination in Cyprus. On 14 July 1900, another force was constituted to suppress the Boxer Rebellion in China in defense of the European protectorates. On 3 October 1911, Italy invaded Libya as part of the Italo-Turkish War, the war against the Ottoman Empire ended with the signing of the First Treaty of Lausanne in Ouchy, near Lausanne, Switzerland. The Royal Italian Armys first experience with modern warfare was in World War I, the war was fought mostly on the Italian Front in Northern Italy, costing the Italian Army serious casualties, including some 700,000 dead. The Regio Esercito was one of the largest ground forces in World War II, many Italian divisions were reinforced by a MVSN Gruppo di Assalto of two battalions due to the small size of the divisions. In 1943, Italy surrendered and split into the Italian Social Republic, which fielded its own army, the Kingdom was ultimately replaced by the Italian Republic in 1946, and the Royal Army accordingly changed its name to become the Esercito Italiano
26.
Kosovo War
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The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 5 March 1998 until 11 June 1999. After attempts at a diplomatic solution failed, NATO intervened, justifying the campaign in Kosovo as a humanitarian war and this precipitated a mass expulsion of Kosovar Albanians as the Yugoslav forces continued to fight during the aerial bombardment of Yugoslavia. The war ended with the Kumanovo Treaty, with Yugoslav and Serb forces agreeing to withdraw from Kosovo to make way for an international presence, Kosovos borders did not precisely match the areas of ethnic Albanian settlement in Yugoslavia. Kosovos formal autonomy, established under the 1945 Yugoslav constitution, initially meant relatively little in practice, the secret police cracked down hard on nationalists. In 1956 a number of Albanians went on trial in Kosovo on charges of espionage, the threat of separatism was in fact minimal, as the few underground groups aiming for union with Albania had little political significance. Demaci himself was imprisoned in 1964 along with many of his followers, Yugoslavia underwent a period of economic and political crisis in 1969, as a massive government program of economic reform widened the gap between the rich north and poor south of the country. Student demonstrations and riots in Belgrade in June 1968 spread to Kosovo in November of the same year, however, Tito conceded some of the students demands—in particular, representative powers for Albanians in both the Serbian and Yugoslav state bodies and better recognition of the Albanian language. The University of Pristina was established as an independent institution in 1970, the lack of Albanian-language educational materials in Yugoslavia hampered the Albanisation of education in Kosovo, so an agreement was struck with Albania itself to supply textbooks. In 1974 Kosovos political status improved further when a new Yugoslav constitution granted a set of political rights. Along with Vojvodina, Kosovo was declared a province and gained many of the powers of a fully-fledged republic, power was still exercised by the Communist Party, but it was now devolved mainly to ethnic Albanian communists. Titos death on 4 May 1980 ushered in a period of political instability, worsened by growing economic crisis. The disturbances were quelled by the Presidency of Yugoslavia proclaiming a state of emergency, sending in riot police and the army, hard-liners instituted a fierce crackdown on nationalism of all kinds, Albanian and Serbian alike. Kosovo endured a heavy secret-police presence throughout most of the 1980s that ruthlessly suppressed any unauthorised nationalist manifestations, according to a report quoted by Mark Thompson, as many as 580,000 inhabitants of Kosovo were arrested, interrogated, interned or reprimanded. Thousands of these lost their jobs or were expelled from their educational establishments, during this time tension between the Albanian and Serbian communities continued to escalate. Such concerns did attract interest in Belgrade, stories appeared from time to time in the Belgrade media claiming that Serbs and Montenegrins were being persecuted. There was a perception among Serbian nationalists that Serbs were being driven out of Kosovo, in addition to all this, the worsening state of Kosovos economy made the province a poor choice for Serbs seeking work. Albanians, as well as Serbs, tended to favor their compatriots when hiring new employees, Kosovo was the poorest entity of Yugoslavia, the average per capita income was $795, compared with the national average of $2,635. 33 nationalist formations were dismantled by Yugoslav police, who sentenced some 280 people and seized arms caches, in Kosovo an increasingly poisonous atmosphere between Serbs and Albanians led to wild rumors being spread and otherwise trivial incidents being blown out of proportion
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Kosovo Liberation Army
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Along with Yemeni fighters with Saudis and Egyptians, reportedly funded by Islamist organizations. The Kosovo war ultimately featured a campaign by NATO against FRY armed forces during March–June 1999. Former Kosovo Liberation Army leaders also entered politics, some of them winning high-ranking offices, in April 2014, the Assembly of Kosovo considered and approved the establishment of a special court to try cases involving crimes and other serious abuses committed in 1999-2000 by members of the KLA. A key precursor to the Kosovo Liberation Army was the Peoples Movement of Kosovo and this group, who argued Kosovos freedom could be won only through armed struggle, traces back to 1982, and played a crucial role in the creation of the KLA in 1993. Fund-raising began in the 1980s in Switzerland by Albanian exiles of the violence of 1981, Slobodan Milošević revoked Kosovan autonomy in 1989, returning the region to its 1945 status, ejecting ethnic Albanians from the Kosovan bureaucracy and violently putting down protests. In response, Kosovar Albanians established the Democratic League of Kosovo, headed by Ibrahim Rugova, its goal was independence from Serbia, but via peaceful means. To this end, the LDK set up and developed a state with a particular focus on education. The KLA made their name known publicly for the first time in 1995, the birth of the KLA in 1996 coincided with the appointment of Hansjoerg Geiger as the new head of the BND. The BND men were in charge of selecting recruits for the KLA command structure from the 500,000 Kosovars in Albania, former senior adviser to the German parliament Matthias Küntzel tried to prove later on that German secret diplomacy had been instrumental in helping the KLA since its creation. Serbian authorities denounced the KLA as a terrorist organisation and increased the number of security forces in the region and this had the effect of boosting the credibility of the embryonic KLA among the Kosovo Albanian population. Not long before NATOs military action commenced, the U. S, committee for Refugees and Immigrants reported that Kosovo Liberation Army. Attacks aimed at trying to cleanse Kosovo of its ethnic Serb population, the Yugoslav Red Cross had estimated a total of 30,000 refugees and internally displaced persons from Kosovo, most of whom were Serb. The NATO North Atlantic Council had stressed that KLA was the initiator of the violence. By 1999, Western intelligence agencies estimated that over $250m of narcotics money had found its way into KLA coffers. After the NATO bombing of 1999, KLA-linked heroin traffickers again began using Kosovo as a supply route, in 2000. Between 5 and 7 March 1998, the Yugoslav Army launched an operation on Prekaz, the operation followed an earlier firefight in which four policemen were killed and several more were wounded, Adem Jashari, a KLA leader, escaped. In Prekaz,28 militans were killed, along with 30 civilians, amnesty International claimed that it was an extermination operation. On 23 April 1998, the Yugoslav Army ambushed the KLA near the Albanian-Yugoslav border, the KLA had tried to smuggle arms and supplies into Kosovo
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Kosovo Force
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The Kosovo Force is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation-led international peacekeeping force which was responsible for establishing a secure environment in Kosovo. KFOR entered Kosovo on 12 June 1999, two days after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, at the time, Kosovo was facing a grave humanitarian crisis, with military forces from the FRY and the KLA in daily engagement. According to NATO, Serb forces had committed ethnic cleansing of Kosovo Albanians, nearly one million people had fled Kosovo as refugees. KFOR has gradually transferred responsibilities to the Kosovo Police and other local authorities, as of 23 May 2016, KFOR consisted of 4,600 troops. The Contact Group countries have said publicly that KFOR will remain in Kosovo to provide the security necessary to support the provisions of a settlement of Kosovos status. KFOR contingents were originally grouped into 4 regionally based multinational brigades, the brigades were responsible for a specific area of operations, but under a single chain of command under the authority of Commander KFOR. At its height, KFOR troops numbered 50,000 and came from 39 different NATO and non-NATO nations, the official KFOR website indicated that in 2008 a total 14,000 soldiers from 34 countries were participating in KFOR. The following is a list of the number of troops which have participated in the KFOR mission. According to Amnesty International, most women trafficked into Kosovo from abroad are from Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, since the KFOR entered Kosovo in June 1999,168 NATO soldiers have been killed, mostly in accidents. On 19 October 2004, it was confirmed that 115 NATO soldiers had killed during the operation. After that 50 more NATO soldiers were confirmed to have died, eight UNMIK police officers have been killed in Kosovo since 1999, in addition to the KFOR fatalities. The fatalities by country are,3 American,1 Indian,1 Jordanian,1 Nigerian,1 Ghanaian and 1 Ukrainian police officer, in July 2011, following the Kosovo Polices attempts to seize two border outposts and consequent clashes that followed, KFOR troops intervened. In 2013, KFOR was involved in an operation of the last restaurant bears in Kosovo. The bears are now kept at the Bear Sanctuary Prishtina, KFOR Placemap KFOR official site K-For, The task ahead First deaths in K-For operation Memorial honors soldiers sacrifices June 2002,68 soldiers have died since KFOR entered Kosovo. Nato force feeds Kosovo sex trade Radio KFOR
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Romani people in Kosovo
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Romani people in Kosovo living usually in Mahalas are part of the biggest minority in Europe. Mainly there are historical differences claimed, Roma speak Roma language in most cases. However also the language/s that surrounds them such as Serbian and Albanian, many Romani were targeted by Kosovo Albanians with the Serbs during the Kosovo War as being considered to be allied with Serbs and Serbian national interests. Romani in Kosovo are much depleted from their former numbers, and have been in both stationary and nomadic residence there since the 15th century. Kosovo Liberation Army expelled 50,000 Romani from Kosovo, forcing them to refuge in central Serbia. In 2011 there were 36,694 Romani, Ashkali and Egyptians living in Kosovo, as in other parts of the Balkans, the denomination of Romani has always been subject to outside pressure. In the official census, the labels Romani and Egyptians were used, after the war and encouraged by the international community, the label Romani, Ashkali and Kosovo Egyptians and its abbreviation RAE became more common. Whereas the Ashkali and Kosovo Egyptians maintain their distinct origin, this is contested by Kosovo Romani who claim that all three groups are actually Romani subgroups. While all the three groups claim ethnic differences between them, they frequently intermarry, Romani weddings to non-Romani is extremely rare. Egyptians, Romani and Ashkalija however do not classify one another as Gadje and they have been subject to nativisation and assimilation, with many having Albanian names depending on the power profile of the day. Most also have their own naming system for use among their own people, Romani in Kosovo, like Serbs and other minorities, today live in constant fear of further ethnic unrest. Romani unhoused in North Kosovo are today housed in lead-infested camps in North Kosovska Mitrovca, there is ongoing campaign for rehousing and proper health provisions for the families affected, and a fatality estimate ranges from 27 to 81. Serbianising and Albanianising also lead to the Romani sliding from the educational mainstream, third level is not attained by the majority of Rom, and of those who do, they are mostly only half Romani, with there being Serb, Turk or Albanian heritage too. Returning IDPs were housed by NATO / UNMIK in North Kosovska Mitrovica in a mine site. They were helped by NGO the KRRF, led by Paul Polansky, Ashkali and Balkan Egyptians Romani people in Albania Who we Were, Who we Are, Kosovo Roma Oral History Collection. The most comprehensive collection of information on Kosovos Roma in existence
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Joe Biden
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Joseph Robinette Joe Biden Jr. is an American politician who was the 47th Vice President of the United States from 2009 to 2017, having been jointly elected twice with President Barack Obama. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Delaware as a United States Senator from 1973 until becoming Vice President in 2009, Biden was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, in 1942, and lived there for ten years before moving to Delaware. He became an attorney in 1969, and was elected to the New Castle County council in 1970 and he was first elected to the Senate in 1972, and became the sixth-youngest senator in U. S. history. He was re-elected to the Senate six times, and was the fourth most senior senator at the time of his resignation to assume the Vice Presidency in 2009 and he was a long-time member and former chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. He opposed the Gulf War in 1991, but advocated U. S. and he voted in favor of the resolution authorizing the Iraq War in 2002, but opposed the surge of U. S. troops in 2007. He chaired the Judiciary Committee during the contentious U. S. Supreme Court nominations of Robert Bork, Biden unsuccessfully sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988 and in 2008, both times dropping out after lacklucster showings. In the 2008 U. S. presidential election, Barack Obama chose Biden to be his mate in the race. He became the first Roman Catholic, and the first Delawarean, in 2011, he opposed going ahead with the military mission that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden. Obama and Biden were re-elected in 2012, in October 2015, after months of speculation, Biden chose not to run for President of the United States in 2016. On January 12,2017, Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, after leaving office, Biden was named the Benjamin Franklin Presidential Practice professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Biden was born on November 20,1942, at St. Marys Hospital in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to Catherine Eugenia Jean Biden and Joseph Robinette Joe Biden Sr. He was the first of four siblings in a Catholic family, with a sister, Valerie and his mother was of either Irish or Northern Irish descent, with roots variously attributed to County Louth or County Londonderry. His paternal grandparents, Mary Elizabeth and Joseph H. Biden, an oil businessman from Baltimore, Maryland, were of English, French and his paternal great-great-great grandfather, William Biden, was born in Sussex, England, and immigrated to the United States. His maternal great-grandfather, Edward Francis Blewitt, was a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate, Bidens father had been very well-off earlier in his life, but suffered several business reversals by the time his son was born. For several years, the family had to live with Bidens maternal grandparents, when the Scranton area went into economic decline during the 1950s, Bidens father could not find enough work. In 1953, the Biden family moved to an apartment in Claymont, Delaware, Joe Biden Sr. was then more successful as a used car salesman, and the familys circumstances were middle class. He played on the team as well. During these years, he participated in an anti-segregation sit-in at a Wilmington theatre, academically, he was an above-average student, was considered a natural leader among the students, and was elected class president during his junior and senior years
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Vice President of the United States
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The executive power of both the vice president and the president is granted under Article Two, Section One of the Constitution. The vice president is elected, together with the president. The Office of the Vice President of the United States assists, as the president of the United States Senate, the vice president votes only when it is necessary to break a tie. Additionally, pursuant to the Twelfth Amendment, the president presides over the joint session of Congress when it convenes to count the vote of the Electoral College. Currently, the president is usually seen as an integral part of a presidents administration. The Constitution does not expressly assign the office to any one branch, causing a dispute among scholars whether it belongs to the executive branch, the legislative branch, or both. The modern view of the president as a member of the executive branch is due in part to the assignment of executive duties to the vice president by either the president or Congress. Mike Pence of Indiana is the 48th and current vice president and he assumed office on January 20,2017. The formation of the office of vice president resulted directly from the compromise reached at the Philadelphia Convention which created the Electoral College, the delegates at Philadelphia agreed that each state would receive a number of presidential electors equal to the sum of that states allocation of Representatives and Senators. The delegates assumed that electors would typically choose to favor any candidate from their state over candidates from other states, under a plurality election process, this would tend to result in electing candidates solely from the largest states. Consequently, the delegates agreed that presidents must be elected by a majority of the number of electors. To guard against such stratagems, the Philadelphia delegates specified that the first runner-up presidential candidate would become vice president, the process for selecting the vice president was later modified in the Twelfth Amendment. Each elector still receives two votes, but now one of those votes is for president, while the other is for vice president. The requirement that one of those votes be cast for a candidate not from the electors own state remains in effect. S, other statutorily granted roles include membership of both the National Security Council and the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. As President of the Senate, the president has two primary duties, to cast a vote in the event of a Senate deadlock and to preside over. For example, in the first half of 2001, the Senators were divided 50-50 between Republicans and Democrats and Dick Cheneys tie-breaking vote gave the Republicans the Senate majority, as President of the Senate, the vice president oversees procedural matters and may cast a tie-breaking vote. As President of the Senate, John Adams cast 29 tie-breaking votes that was surpassed by John C. Calhoun with 31. Adamss votes protected the presidents sole authority over the removal of appointees, influenced the location of the national capital, on at least one occasion Adams persuaded senators to vote against legislation he opposed, and he frequently addressed the Senate on procedural and policy matters
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2004 unrest in Kosovo
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Violent unrest in Kosovo broke out on 17 March 2004. Kosovo Albanians, numbering over 50,000, took part in wide-ranging attacks on the Kosovo Serb minority and it was the largest violent incident in Kosovo since the Kosovo War of 1998–1999. The events were compared by the then Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica to ethnic cleansing, in Serbia the events were also called the March Pogrom. More than 164,000 members of Kosovos minorities had fled the province in the aftermath of the war. This is especially true in the case of Serbs and Romani. S, State Department for the NATO intervention in Yugoslavia. In 2000, there were riots and unrest in Kosovo and those Serbs that remained organized themselves into enclaves guarded by peacekeeping forces. Low-level violence continued after the war, the Serb minority claimed to have been subjected to persistent intimidation and harassment, though the level of violence was reported to have declined somewhat since the end of the war. In 2003, six Serbs were shot at in an enclave, there were repeated attacks on Serbian Orthodox churches, shrines and other cultural monuments, with over a hundred being destroyed or damaged. Clashes had also broken out between Serbs and Albanians in the ethnically Serb-dominated north of Kosovo, with Albanians harassing Serbs, on 15 March 2004 an 18-year-old Serb, Jovica Ivić, was murdered in a drive-by shooting in the village of Čaglavica in the central region of Kosovo. The pro-KLA, anti-UNMIK protests, with 18,000 protesters, on 16 March, three Albanian children drowned in the Ibar River in the village of Čabar, near the Serb community of Zubin Potok. It was speculated that he and his friends had been chased into the river by Serbs in revenge for the shooting of Ivić the previous day, but this claim has not been proven. UN police spokesman Neeraj Singh said the boy had been under intense pressure from ethnic Albanian journalists who had suggested what he should say. His version of events differed from that of two children who had also been in the river, Singh told a news conference in Pristina. The spokesperson said there were very significant inconsistencies in the accounts given by the child during two separate interviews, and a lack of corroboration of his story, in fact, it is logically at odds in several respects with other evidence, Mr. Singh said. The UN found no evidence that Serbs were responsible for the drowning the three Albanian children, thousands of Albanians gathered at the south end of the bridge across the Ibar at Kosovska Mitrovica, which divides the Serb and Albanian districts of the town. A large crowd of Serbs gathered at the end to prevent the Albanians from crossing. Peacekeepers from the NATO-led Kosovo Force blockaded the bridge, using gas, rubber bullets. However, gunmen on both sides opened fire with guns and grenades, killing at least eight people and wounding over 300
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Molotov cocktail
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A Molotov cocktail, also known as a petrol bomb, bottle bomb, poor mans grenade, fire bomb or just Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of bottle-based improvised incendiary weapons. They are primarily intended to set targets ablaze rather than obliterate them, the name Molotov cocktail was coined by the Finns during the Winter War. The name was a reference to Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov. The Finns sarcastically dubbed the Soviet cluster bombs Molotov bread baskets in reference to Molotovs propaganda broadcasts, when the hand-held bottle firebomb was developed to attack Soviet tanks, the Finns called it the Molotov cocktail, as a drink to go with the food. The wick is soaked in alcohol or kerosene, rather than petrol. In action, the wick is lit and the bottle hurled at a target such as a vehicle or fortification. When the bottle smashes on impact, the cloud of petrol droplets and vapour ignites. Other flammable liquids such as fuel, methanol, turpentine, jet fuel. Improvised incendiary devices were used for the first time in the Spanish Civil War between July 1936 and April 1939, before they became known as Molotov cocktails, after that, both sides used simple petrol bombs or petrol-soaked blankets with some success. Tom Wintringham, a veteran of the International Brigades, later publicised his recommended method of using them, We made use of petrol bombs roughly as follows, take a heavy curtain, half a blanket, or some other heavy material. Wrap this over the mouth of the jar, tie it round the neck with string, when you want to use it have somebody standing by with a light. Put a corner of the material down in front of you, turn the bottle over so that petrol soaks out round the mouth of the bottle and drips on to this corner of the material. Turn the bottle right way up again, hold it in right hand, most of the blanket bunched beneath the bottle. When near enough, your pal lights the petrol soaked corner of the blanket, throw the bottle and blanket as soon as this corner is flaring. See that it drops in front of the tank, the blanket should catch in the tracks or in a cog-wheel, or wind itself round an axle. Do not play with these things, the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, a border conflict of 1939 ostensibly between Mongolia and Manchukuo, saw heavy fighting between Japanese and Soviet forces. Short of anti-tank equipment, Japanese infantry attacked Soviet tanks with gasoline-filled bottles, Japanese infantrymen claimed that several hundred Soviet tanks had been destroyed this way, though Soviet loss records do not support this assessment. On 30 November 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Finland, starting what came to be known as the Winter War, the Finns perfected the design and tactical use of the petrol bomb
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Grenade
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A grenade is a small bomb typically thrown by hand. A variety of hand grenades exist, the most common being explosive grenades designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time, Grenadiers were originally soldiers who specialized in throwing grenades. The word grenade derives from the French word for an explosive shell. Its first use in English dates from the 1590s and it is likely derived from Old French pomegranate and influenced by Spanish granada, as the fragmenting bomb is reminiscent of the many-seeded fruit. Rudimentary incendiary grenades appeared in the Eastern Roman Empire, not long after the reign of Leo III. Byzantine soldiers learned that Greek fire, a Byzantine invention of the century, could not only be thrown by flamethrowers at the enemy. The use of Greek fire spread to Muslim armies in the Near East, in China, during the Song Dynasty, weapons known as Zhen Tian Lei were created when Chinese soldiers packed gunpowder into ceramic or metal containers. In 1044, a military book Wujing Zongyao described various gunpowder recipes in which one can find, according to Joseph Needham, the Chinese also discovered the explosive potential of packing hollowed-out cannonball shells with gunpowder. The mid-14th-century book Huolongjing, written by Jiao Yu, recorded an earlier Song-era cast iron cannon known as the flying-cloud thunderclap cannon, the manuscript stated that, The shells are made of cast iron, as large as a bowl and shaped like a ball. Inside they contain half a pound of divine fire and they are sent flying towards the enemy camp from an eruptor, and when they get there a sound like a thunder-clap is heard, and flashes of light appear. If ten of these shells are fired successfully into the enemy camp, the first cast iron bombshells and grenades did not appear in Europe until 1467. A hoard of several hundred ceramic greandes were discovered during building works in front of a bastion of the Bavarian City of Ingolstadt. Lots of the grenades obtained their original blackpowder loads and igniters, most probably the grenades were intentially dumped the moat of the bastion before the year 1723. In 1643, it is possible that Grenados were thrown amongst the Welsh at Holt Bridge during the English Civil War and these grenades were not very effective and, as a result, saw little use. Improvised grenades were used from the mid-19th century, being especially useful in trench warfare. In the American Civil War, both sides used hand grenades equipped with a plunger that detonated the device on impact, the Union relied on experimental Ketchum Grenades, which had a tail to ensure that the nose would strike the target and start the fuse. The Confederacy used spherical hand grenades that weighed about six pounds and they also used Rains and Adams grenades, which were similar to the Ketchum in appearance and mechanism. Improvised hand grenades were used to great effect by the Russian defenders of Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War
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President of Serbia
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The President of Serbia, officially styled as the President of the Republic, is the head of state of Serbia. The current office holder is Tomislav Nikolić who was elected on 20 May 2012, the term of office of the President of the Republic shall last five years and begin from the day of taking of the oath before the National Assembly. No one shall be elected to a position of the President of the Republic more than twice. The term of office of the President of the Republic shall end with expiry of the period of time for which he or she has been elected, the President of the Republic shall tender his/her resignation to the Chairman of the National Assembly. Politics of Serbia Prime Minister of Serbia Official website of the President of Serbia People´s Office of the President
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Serbia
