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John Smith Of Jamestown

John Smith of Jamestown

John Smith (1580-1631) was an English soldier and sailor, now chiefly remembered for his role in establishing the first permanent English settlement in North America, and his brief association with the Native American princess Pocahontas. Smith was baptized in Willoughby near Alford, Lincolnshire where his parents rented a farm from Lord Willoughby. He led an interesting life, although his boastful nature makes it difficult for historians to separate fact from fiction. Smith left home at age 16 after his father died, and ran off to sea. He served as a mercenary in the army of King Henry IV of France against the Spaniards and later fought against the Ottoman Empire. Smith was promoted to captain while fighting in Hungary, for the Habsburgs, in the campaign of Mihai Viteazul in 1600-1601. After the death of Mihai Viteazul, he fought for Radu Serban in Wallachia against Ieremia Movila, but in 1602 he was wounded, captured and sold as a slave. Smith claimed the Turk sent him as a gift to his sweetheart, who fell in love with Smith and inadvertently helped him escape. Smith then travelled through Europe and Northern Africa, returning to England in 1604. There he became involved with plans to colonize Virginia for profit by the Virginia Company, which had been granted a charter from King James I of England. The expedition set sail in three small ships on December 20, 1606. On May 13, 1607 the settlers landed at Jamestown. Harsh weather, lack of water and attacks from Algonquian Indians almost destroyed the colony, and in December 1607, Smith was captured and taken to meet the local chief, Powhatan. Although he feared for his life, Smith was eventually released without harm and later attributed this in part to the chief's daughter, Pocahontas, who was around the age of 11 to 13 at the time. He said she threw herself on him to prevent his execution, but there is considerable uncertainty about this story. Powhatan Later, Smith left Jamestown to explore the Chesapeake Bay region and search for badly needed food. He was eventually elected president of the local council in September 1608 and instituted a policy of discipline, encouraging farming with a famous admonishment: "He who does not work, will not eat." The settlement grew under his leadership, but Smith was seriously injured by a gunpowder burn and had to return to England for treatment in October 1609, never to return to Virginia. In 1614 he returned to the New World in a voyage to the Maine and Massachusetts Bay areas, which he named New England. He spent the rest of his life writing books until his death in 1631 at age 51.

In fiction and modern-day media

John Smith is one of the main characters in Disney's 1995 film Pocahontas and its straight-to-video sequel Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World. As the movie has a distorted view of the actual events of 1607, both Pocahontas and John Smith are portrayed as adults. Smith is also at the center of the forthcoming Terrence Malick film The New World played by Colin Farrell.

Further reading


- David A. Price, Love and Hate in Jamestown, Alfred A. Knopf, 2003

1631

Events


- February 5 - Roger Williams emigrates to Boston.
- May 10 - During the Thirty Years' War imperial troops storm the German city of Magdeburg and commit a massacre. About 20,000 inhabitants are killed.
- May 18 - In Dorchester, Massachusetts, John Winthrop takes the oath of office and becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts.
- June 20 - Algerian pirates sack Baltimore, County Cork in Ireland.
- October 10 - A Saxon army take over Prague.
- Moses Amyraut's Traite des Religions is published.
- The bell "Emmanuel" in Notre Dame de Paris is recast.

Births


- February 20 - Thomas Osborne, 1st Duke of Leeds, English statesman (d. 1712)
- March 16 - René Le Bossu, French critic (d. 1680)
- July 15 - Jens Juel, Danish diplomat (d. 1700)
- August 19 - John Dryden, English writer (d. 1700)
- September 3 - William Stoughton, American judge at the Salem witch trials (d. 1701)
- November 4 - Mary, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange (d. 1660)
- December 14 - Lady Anne Finch Conway, English philosopher (d. 1679) See also :Category:1631 births.

Deaths


- March 31 - John Donne, English writer and prelate (b. 1572)
- May 6 - Robert Bruce Cotton, English politician
- June 17 - Mumtaz Mahal, favorite wife of Shah Jahan (b. April 1593)
- July 28 - Guillén de Castro y Bellvis, Spanish dramatist (b. 1569)
- December 23 - Michael Drayton, English poet (b. 1563)
- John Smith of Jamestown, English soldier and colonist (b. 1580) See also :Category:1631 deaths. Category:1631 ko:1631년

Pocahontas

: Pocahontas (c.1595 – March 21, 1617) was an Algonquian Indian of the Powhatan tribe whose life has formed the basis of highly romanticized legends. Her real name was Matoaka: 'Pocahontas' was actually a childhood nickname referring to her frolicsome nature (her name means "little wanton" or "playful frolicsome girl" in Powhatan). She was the daughter of Powhatan, a Native American chief who controlled almost all of Tidewater Virginia (called Tenakomakah at the time). Because Pocahontas never learned to write, everything now known about her was transmitted to later generations by others; and the thoughts, feelings, and motives of the historical Pocahontas remain largely unknown. Her story has thus become a perfect breeding-ground for romantic hyperbole, in the centuries following her death (the Disney movie Pocahontas being an example).

Life of Pocahontas

Pocahontas is said to have stopped her father from executing colonialist John Smith in the year 1607. This was very probably a ritual, that was used to accept John Smith as a "friend" of the tribe, and was only symbolic. The truth of this story cannot be verified; Pocahontas was only thirteen years old at the time and could not have known Smith for long, as he had arrived from England that year. Smith did not speak the Powhatan language at that time, and may have misunderstood what was actually happening. One theory of the event- if, indeed, it ever occured- is that Powhatan created a ritual in which Smith would be 'saved' by Pocahontas, a favored younger wife unrelated to Matoaka. It would have shown the kindness of Powhatan's people over his logical treatment of an enemy. Smith's account was long considered to be a "fabrication", in part because he never mentioned the event in any of the sundry monographs about the colony that he published in the twenty years following his return. Some recent researchers assert that there is little reason to doubt his veracity, but the more "romanticized" popular versions of the story are unquestionably dubious. Whatever really happened, a friendly relationship with Smith and the rest of the colony of Jamestown, Virginia was initiated, and Pocahontas would often come to the settlement and play with the children there. During hard times, Pocahontas also helped to save the Jamestown colony from extinction by supplying it with food. In 1612, Pocahontas was captured and held hostage by the Jamestown colonists, in the hope that they could ransom her for the release of some of their own people held in captivity by Pocahontas's tribe. During this time, she learned English and was baptized by Alexander Whitaker. There is evidence[http://www.apva.org/history/pocahont.html] that she was already married to someone of her own tribe by the name of Kocoum two years before she was kidnapped. After her baptism, however, she married John Rolfe, who had established the growing of tobacco in Virginia, on April 5, 1614, and her name was changed to Rebecca Rolfe. They lived together at Rolfe's plantation, Varina Farms, which was located across the James River from Henricus. Their marriage was unsuccessful in winning the captives back, but it did create a climate of peace between the Jamestown colonists and Powhatan's tribes for several years. The Virginia colony's sponsors found it difficult to lure new colonists to Jamestown, and to find investors for such ventures; and so used Pocahontas as a "marketing ploy" to convince people back in Europe that the New World's natives could be "tamed", and the colony made "safe". In 1616, she was brought to England, living in Brentford between 1616 and 1617, to meet King James I and his court. There she was promoted as an "Indian princess," which created a sensation in England, becoming America's first international "celebrity" from the New World. The plan to win more backing for the Virginia colony and to gain royal favor, was a great success. Rolfe was eager to return to Virginia to raise tobacco; but Pocahontas became ill, and died of smallpox, pneumonia, or tuberculosis (accounts differ) during the journey, in Gravesend. Her only child was Thomas Rolfe, born at Varina Farms, through whom she has living descendants.

After her death

While in England, Simon Van de Passe engraved Pocahontas's portrait on a copper plate. This engraving is the only portrait of Pocahontas made during her lifetime. Despite being dressed in European clothing to signify her submission to European culture, her Native American features remain robust, and the engraving suggests a strong personality. More than a century later, an unknown artist made an oil painting of Pocahontas based on the earlier engraving. Though she is dressed exactly the same, her non-white features are "watered down", giving her skin a paler cast; her hair a lighter shade of brown, and her face a more European appearance. Notice also the angular shape of her once oval-like chin. The stern look in her eyes from the earlier engraving is also relaxed, giving her a more gentle and "tame" appearance. After the death of Pocahontas, the story of Smith's rescue by Pocahontas went public in his books New England Trials (1622) and The Generall Historie (1624), providing the ingredients for romantic inflation. By the 19th century, Pocahontas had become one of the most important icons of America, and the romantic literature surrounding her at the time depicted her as a "Noble Savage", who was "Christian in behavior" even before being baptized. With the Indian Removal Act underway, and the preparation for colonists to move westward, taking the land and assimilating the Indians, the story of Pocahontas converting to Christianity and accepting European culture struck a chord among 19th century Americans, as they battled with Natives who were defiantly resisting assimilation. To them, the success of Pocahontas's transformation validated the mission of the colonists. This can be seen in an 1840 painting by John Chapman called The Baptism of Pocahontas, which was hung in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol. A government pamphlet went into circulation entitled The Picture of the Baptism of Pocahontas, explaining the characters in the painting and congratulating the Jamestown settlers for introducing Christianity to the "heathen savages", thus doing more than to just "exterminate the ancient proprietors of the soil, and usurp their possessions". Around this time, romantic stories about Pocahontas would often adapt her vague story to fit their own beliefs. Her marriage to Rolfe when it was Smith whom she rescued, did not seem right to some, and so at least one author, John R. Musick, retold the story to "clarify" the relationship between the three. In Musick's account, Rolfe is a back-stabbing liar who, seeing the opportunity to marry "royalty," tells Pocahontas that her true love, Smith, is dead. She then reluctantly agrees to marry Rolfe. After the two begin preparations to leave for England, Pocahontas encounters Smith, still alive. Overcome by emotion and recollections, she dies of a broken heart three days later. Like much of the 19th-century poetry and novels surrounding Pocahontas, The Walt Disney Company's 1995 animated feature Pocahontas presents a highly-romanticized and distorted view of the events surrounding Pocahontas' meeting with John Smith. The sequel, Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World, loosely depicts her journey to England. See Pocahontas (movie) for a list of films surrounding this story. The New World, a film by writer/director Terrence Malick, starring Colin Farrell, is a live-action film version of the story, scheduled to be released in December, 2005.

Mistaken assumption about a Bush family relation

Although both Presidents Bush are descended from Native Americans, genealogists who have attempted to link Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush with Pocahontas, have been in error. Their mistaken assumption was that Robert Bolling Jr. (a 10th generation ancestor of George W. Bush) was the son of Robert Bolling and Jane Rolfe (granddaughter of Pocahontas). This connection has been disproved by many other genealogists, who point out that Rolfe died in 1676, six years before the birth of the younger Bolling. Robert Bolling Jr. was evidently the son of Anne Stith, whom his father married after Jane Rolfe's death. The Bush family, therefore, is not descended from Pocahontas.

Pocahontas legacy and disambiguation

Through their son, Thomas Rolfe, the marriage between John Rolfe and Pocahontas helped bring peace between the tribes and the British settlers of Virginia for a generation. Many of the prominent First Families of Virginia trace their lineage to descendants of Thomas Rolfe. There are several notable places and landmarks that take their name from Pocahontas. First Families of Virginia
- Pocahontas was the namesake for one of the richest seams of bituminous coal ever found in Virginia and West Virginia, and the Pocahontas Land Company, a subsidiary of the Norfolk and Western Railway.
- The town of Pocahontas, Virginia is named after her.
- The newest of four car-carrying ferryboats, the Pocahontas operates for the Virginia Department of Transportation's Jamestown Ferry service which carries Virginia State Highway 31 (John Rolfe Highway) across the James River between Scotland in Surry County and Jamestown.
- The Pocahontas Parkway (Virginia State Highway 895) near Richmond is named after Pocahontas, and the nearby Powhite Parkway is named after a branch of the Powhatan Indian tribe. Powhatan County, Virginia, although actually lying outside of the tribal lands, was also named by settlers after her tribe.
- Matoaca, Virginia is located in Chesterfield County. Matoaca High School is also named after Pocahontas.
- Matoaka, West Virginia named after her, is located in Mercer County.
- Pocahontas, Arkansas named after her is located in Randolph County.
- Po-ca-hon-tas, or The Gentle Savage is a 19th-century burlesque about the woman by John Brougham In Henrico County, Virginia, where Pocahontas and John Rolfe lived together at the Varina Farms Plantation, a middle school has been named after each of them. Pocahontas Middle School and John Rolfe Middle School thus reunite the historic couple in the local educational system -- Henrico being one of 5 remaining original shires that date to the early 17th century of the Virginia Colony.

Further reading


- David A. Price, Love and Hate in Jamestown, Alfred A. Knopf, 2003

External links


- [http://www.virginiaplaces.org/nativeamerican/poca.html Pocahontas]
- [http://www.vahistorical.org/sva2003/pocahontas.htm Virginia Historical Society page on Pocahontas] (With a copy of the only known authentic portrait of her. Compare to the Victorian version.)
- [http://pocahontas.morenus.org/ The Real Pocahontas] compares the historical Pocahontas to the Disney version
- [http://vision.stanford.edu/~birch/pocahontas.html Did Pocahontas Save Captain John Smith?] a critical review of the historical evidence against Smith
- [http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues99/jan99/object_jan99.html A Smithsonian article on Pocahontas]
- [http://xroads.virginia.edu/%7ECAP/POCA/POC-home.html Pocahontas: Icon At The Crossroads Of Race And Sex]
- [http://www.powhatan.org/pocc.html The Pocahontas Myth - Powhatan Renape Nation] The modern tribe dispels myths upheld by the Disney movie. Category:1595 births Category:1617 deaths Category:Native American people Category:American folklore Category:Characters from Pocahontas Pocahontas ja:ポカホンタス

Alford, Lincolnshire

Alford (pronounced "Olford") is a town in Lincolnshire, England, with a population of about 3,500 people. Alford lies at the foot of the Lincolnshire Wolds, thirteen miles north-west of Skegness, and is known for its five-sailed windmill, which still produces flour. The town is also known for its Manor House, where a Craft Market has been held each August Bank Holiday since the 1970s. Notable inhabitants of Alford have included Captain John Smith, Anne Hutchinson and Thomas Paine, who was an excise officer in the town.

External links


- Alford is located at 1.
- [http://www.alfordtown.co.uk Alford Town Council website]
- [http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?GridE=0.18330&GridN=53.26330&client=public&lon=0.18330&lat=53.26330&place=Alford,Lincolnshire&db=freegaz&local=&type=&start=&limit=&overviewmap=&scale=100000&lang=&db=freegaz Location map of Alford]
- [http://www.multimap.com/map/photo.cgi?client=public&X=545000&Y=376000&scale=25000&width=700&height=400&gride=545721.000400574&gridn=376254.10281484&lang=&db=freegaz Aerial view of Alford]
- [http://www.alford.info Alford Town Website] Category:Towns in Lincolnshire

Peregrine, 13th Baron Willoughby de Eresby

Peregrine Bertie, 13th Baron Willoughby de Eresby (1555-1601) was the son of Richard Bertie and Katherine, 12th Baroness Willoughby de Eresby. Richard was Katherine's second husband, the first being Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk. Owing to religious politics, the parents had to move outside England and the boy was born at Wesel on the River Rhine.

Early life

Born on 12 October, 1555, he was baptized at the church of Saint Willibrord on 14th October. On Elizabeth's accession to the throne in 1558, his parents returned to England and applied for a patent of naturalization for him. He formally became English on 2 August 1559. In the later 1570s he married Mary de Vere, daughter of the Earl of Oxford. When his mother died in 1580, he applied to assume her title and he took his seat in the House of Lords on 16 January 1580/1.

Diplomat

In 1582 he was commissioned to escort the Duke of Anjou from Canterbury to Antwerp. The French royal duke had arrived as a suitor of the un-married Elizabeth. In the same year Peregrine was sent to Denmark to invest Frederick II with the Order of the Garter. Peregrine arrived at Elsinore on 22 July and left on 27 September 1582. His ulterior purpose was to obtain an understanding whereby English merchant ships would not be molested while in Danish waters. In 1585, he returned to Denmark on behalf of Elizabeth in support of Henry of Navarre and to obtain Danish help for England's efforts on behalf of the independent Netherlands. These journeys were made at Peregrine's expense as his correspondence with Francis Walsingham made clear, he was becoming desperate to be paid or to escape from the diplomatic duties. After two and a half months of working on the Danish king, peregrine got him to offer to try to persuade the Spanish king to retire from the Low Countries. Frederick also agreed to send 2,000 horse to back up the English force already in the Netherlands. On achieving this much, Peregrine set off for England by way of Hamburg, Emden and Amsterdam.

Soldier

In the Netherlands, after the Battle of Zutphen, in 1586, he was made General of the English forces in the United Provinces. He made a name for himself in Flanders in the period before the Spanish Armada of 1588. Subsequently, he fought for the Huguenots under Henry of Navarre.

Landowner

It was on Peregrine's estate at Willoughby, Lincolnshire that the parents of John Smith of Jamestown rented a farm which was the site of John's birth.

Henry IV of France

Henry IV of France (French: Henri IV de France; December 13, 1553–May 14, 1610), was the first of the Bourbon kings of France, reigning from 1589 until his death. As a Huguenot, Henry was involved in the Wars of Religion before acceding to the throne; to become king he converted to Catholicism and in 1598 promulgated the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed religious liberties to the Protestants and thereby effectively ended the civil war. One of the most popular French kings, both during and after his reign, Henry showed great care for the welfare of his subjects and displayed an unusual religious tolerance for the time. He was murdered by a fanatical catholic, François Ravaillac. Henry was nicknamed Henry the Great (Henri le Grand), and in France is sometimes called le bon roi Henri ("good king Henry") or le Vert galant ("the Green gallant").

Genealogy

Henry IV was the son of Antoine de Bourbon, Duke of Vendome and Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of Navarre. He was born in Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the south-west of France. At the death of King Henry III of France, who had no son, the crown passed to Henry IV, in application of the Salic Law, as Henry was the descendant of the eldest surviving male line of the Capetian Dynasty. The new king, however, had to fight for some years to be recognized as the legitimate king of France by the Catholics, most of whom were opposed to his Protestant upbringing. Here is a short genealogy, that explains how Henry IV descends in male line from the Capetian Dynasty:
- Henry IV was the 9th cousin of King Henry II, and the 9th cousin once removed of kings Francis II, Charles IX, and Henry III. He was the son of:
- Antoine de Bourbon (1518 – 1562), 8th cousin of kings Charles VIII and Francis I, who was the son of:
- Charles IV, Duke of Bourbon (1489 – 1537), 7th cousin of kings Louis XI and Louis XII, who was the son of:
- François de Bourbon-Vendôme (1470 – 1495), 6th cousin of King Charles VII, who was the son of:
- Jean de Bourbon-Vendôme (1428 – 1478), 5th cousin of King Charles VI, who was the son of:
- Louis de Bourbon-Vendôme (1376 – 1446), 4th cousin of King Charles V, who was the son of:
- Jean de Bourbon-La Marche (1344 – 1393), 3rd cousin of kings John I Posthumus and John II, who was the son of:
- Jacques de Bourbon-La Marche (1315 – 1362), 2nd cousin of kings Louis X, Philip V, Charles IV, and Philip VI, who was the son of:
- Louis I, Duke of Bourbon (1279 – 1342), 1st cousin of King Philip IV, who was the son of:
- Robert, Count of Clermont (1256 – 1317), brother of King Philip III, who was the son of:
- King Louis IX (Saint Louis) (1214/1215 - 1270) It should be noted that in reality, the line of Bourbon-Busset, descending from Peter I, Duke of Bourbon (1310 – 1356), was actually the eldest surviving male line of the Capetian Dynasty, whereas the line of Bourbon-Vendôme, to whom Henry IV belonged, only descended from Jacques de Bourbon-La Marche (1315 – 1362), the younger brother of Peter I of Bourbon. Thus, at the death of Henry III the crown should have passed to César de Bourbon-Busset (1565 – 1630), 7th cousin once removed of Henry IV. However, the great-great-grandfather of César de Bourbon-Busset, called Louis de Bourbon (1438 – 1482), Bishop of Liège, and 4th cousin of François de Bourbon-Vendôme (1470 – 1495), had married without the approval of his cousin King Louis XI, before becoming bishop. The king had thus annulled his marriage, and declared his children illegitimate. It still remains a matter of debate whether the customs of the kingdom actually gave Louis XI the right to exclude from royal succession the children of Louis de Bourbon. What is certain is that the Bourbon-Busset never claimed the crown, and César de Bourbon-Busset played no particular role when his cousin Henry IV became king. The eldest male descendant of the Bourbon-Busset was the French writer Jacques de Bourbon Busset (1912 – 2001), member of the French Academy. President Charles de Gaulle was once quoted telling him: "Had it not been for the decision of King Louis XI, you may well be head of state of France today, instead of me."

Life

On 18 August 1572 Henry married Marguerite de Valois, sister of the then King Charles IX. In the same year he became King Henry III of Navarre, succeeding his mother Jeanne d'Albret, who had brought him up as a Huguenot. Jeanne herself was also a Protestant, and had declared Calvinism the religion of Navarre. Henry's marriage was part of a plan to help quell the French Wars of Religion. As part of this plan, he was forced to convert to Roman Catholicism on 5 February 1576, and kept in confinement, but later that year he gained his freedom and resumed Protestantism. He became the legal heir to the French throne upon the death in 1584 of François, Duke of Alençon, brother and heir to the Catholic King Henri III, who had succeeded Charles IX in 1574. Since Henry of Navarre was a descendant of King Louis IX, King Henry III had no choice but to recognize him as the legitimate successor. Salic law disinherited the king's sisters and all others who could claim descent by the distaff line. In December 1588 King Henry III had the Duke of Guise murdered, along with the Duke's brother, Louis Cardinal de Guise. Henry III had to flee Paris, and joined forces with Henry of Navarre, but was assassinated shortly thereafter. On the death of the king in 1589, Henry of Navarre became nominally the king of France. But the Catholic League, strengthened by support from outside, especially from Spain, was strong enough to force him to the south, and he had to set about winning his kingdom by military conquest. The League proclaimed Henry's Catholic uncle, the Cardinal de Bourbon, King as Charles X, but the Cardinal himself was Henry's prisoner. Henry was victorious at the Ivry and Arques, but failed to take Paris. After the death of the old Cardinal in 1590, the League could not agree on a new candidate. While some supported various Guise candidates, the strongest candidate was probably Infanta Isabella, the daughter of Philip II of Spain, whose mother Elisabeth had been the eldest daughter of Henry II of France. The prominence of her candidacy hurt the League, which thus became suspect as agents of the foreign Spanish, but nevertheless Henry remained unable to take control of Paris. With the encouragement of the great love of his life, Gabrielle d'Estrée, on 25 July 1593 Henry declared that Paris vaut bien une messe ("Paris is worth a Mass") and permanently renounced Protestantism. His entrance into the Roman Catholic Church secured for him the allegiance of the vast majority of his subjects, and he was crowned King of France at the Cathedral of Chartres on 27 February, 1594. In 1598, however, he declared the Edict of Nantes, which gave circumscribed toleration to the Huguenots. Henry's first marriage was not a happy one, and the couple remained childless. The two had separated, even before Henry had succeeded to the throne, in August, 1589 and Marguerite de Valois lived for many years in the chateau of Usson in Auvergne. After Henry had become king, various advisers impressed upon him the desirability of providing an heir to the French Crown, in order to avoid the problem of a disputed succession. Henry himself favored the idea of obtaining an annulment of his first marriage, and taking Gabrielle d'Estrée as a bride, whom had already borne him three children. Henry's councillors strongly opposed this idea, but the matter was resolved unexpectedly by Gabrielle d'Estrée's sudden death in April 1599, after she had given birth prematurely to a stillborn son. His marriage was annulled in 1599, and he then married Marie de Médicis in 1600. Henry IV proved to be a man of vision and courage. Instead of waging costly wars to suppress opposing nobles, Henry simply paid them off. As king, he adopted policies and undertook projects to improve the lives of all subjects, that would make him one of the country's most popular rulers ever. His supposed statement Si Dieu me prête vie, je ferai qu’il n’y aura point de laboureur en mon royaume qui n’ait les moyens d’avoir le dimanche une poule dans son pot ("If God allows me to live, I will see that there is not a single labourer in my kingdom who does not have a chicken in his pot every Sunday") epitomizes the peace and relative prosperity he brought to France after the decades of religious war. During his reign, Henry IV worked through his right-hand man, the faithful Maximilien de Bethune, duc de Sully (1560-1641), to regularize state finance, promote agriculture, drain swamps to create productive crop lands, undertake many public works, and encourage education, as with the creation of the College Royal Louis-Le-Grand in La Flèche (today Prytanée Militaire de la Flèche). He and Sully protected forests from further devastation, built a new system of tree-lined highways, and constructed new bridges and canals. He had a 1200m canal built in the park at the Royal Chateau at Fontainebleau (which can be fished today), and ordered the planting of pines, elms and fruit trees. The king renewed Paris as a great city, with the Pont Neuf, which still stands today, constructed over the River Seine to connect the Right and Left Banks of the city. Henry IV also had the Place Royale built (since 1800 known as Place des Vosges), and added the Grande Galérie to the Louvre. More than 400 meters long and thirty-five meters wide, this huge addition was built along the bank of the Seine River, and at the time was the longest edifice of its kind in the world. King Henry IV, a promoter of the arts by all classes of peoples, invited hundreds of artists and craftsmen to live and work on the building’s lower floors. This tradition continued for another two hundred years, until Emperor Napoleon I banned it. The art and architecture of his reign has since become known as the Henry IV style. King Henry's vision extended beyond France, and he financed several expeditions of Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts and Samuel de Champlain to North America that saw France lay claim to Canada. Although he was a man of kindness, compassion, and good humor, and much loved by his people, and after escaping many murder attempts (for example by Pierre Barrière), King Henry IV was assassinated on 14 May, 1610 in Paris, by a fanatic called François Ravaillac, and was buried at Saint Denis Basilica. Henry's widow, Marie de Médicis, served as Regent to their 9-year-old son, Louis XIII, until 1617. The reign of Henry IV made a lasting impact on the French people for generations after. Although the statue of Henri IV in Paris was destroyed during the French Revolution, as well as those of all the other French kings, it was the first one to be rebuilt when the monarchy was restored in 1814, and it still stands today on the Pont Neuf of Paris. A real cult surrounding the personality of Henri IV emerged during the Restoration. The restored Bourbons were keen to downplay the contested reigns of Louis XV and Louis XVI, and instead emphasized the reign of the benevolent Henry IV. The song Vive Henri IV ("Long Live Henry IV") was used during the Restoration, as an unofficial anthem of France, played in the absence of the king. Also, when Princess Maria Carolina of the Two Sicilies managed to give birth to a male heir to the throne of France, seven months after the assassination of her husband Charles Ferdinand, duc de Berry by a Republican fanatic, the boy was conspicuously called Henri in reference to his forefather Henry IV (see Henri, comte de Chambord). The boy was also baptized in the traditional way of Béarn/Navarre, with a spoon of vinegar and some garlic, as had been done when Henry IV had been baptized in Pau, although this custom had not been followed by any Bourbon king after Henry IV. Today, while the rest of France marks the end of monarchist rule each year on Bastille Day, in Henry's birthplace of Pau, his reign as king of France is celebrated. It is a testament to the people's love and affection for Henry IV, of whom the French people call, 'le Grand' or 'The Great'.

Marriages

On August 18, 1572, he married, firstly, Marguerite de Valois, annulled in 1599, with no children. On December 17 1600, he married, secondly, Marie de Médicis with six children:

Children


- Louis XIII (September 27, 1601 - May 14, 1643)
- Elisabeth de France (November 22, 1602 - October 6, 1644) - married Philip IV of Spain on November 25, 1615 in Bordeaux.
- Christine Marie (February 12, 1606 - December 27, 1663) - who married Victor Amadeus I of Savoy on February 10, 1619 in Paris.
- Nicholas Henri, Duc d'Orléans (April 16, 1607 - November 17, 1611).
- Gaston, Duke of Orleans (April 25, 1608 - February 2, 1660) - who first (1626) married Marie de Bourbon, Duchess de Montpensier (1605 - 1627), who died in childbirth, and then (1632) Margaret de Lorraine (1615 - 1672).
- Henriette-Marie (November 25, 1609 - September 10, 1669) - who married Charles I of England on June 13, 1625, in Canterbury Cathedral. Additionally, Henry IV had at least 11 bastards, 3 of them with Gabrielle d'Estrée. See - http://genealogy.euweb.cz/capet/capet40.html

Reference


- Mousnier, Roland The Assassination of Henry IV : the tyrannicide problem and the consolidation of the French absolute monarchy in the early seventeenth century, New York : Scribner, 1973 ISBN 0684133571.

External link


- [http://www.hfac.uh.edu/gbrown/philosophers/leibniz/BritannicaPages/Henri-IV/Henri-IV.html Biography] Category:1553 births Category:1610 deaths Category:Natives of Aquitaine Category:French monarchs Category:Heretics Category:Knights of the Garter Category:Navarrese monarchs Category:House of Bourbon ja:アンリ4世 (フランス王) simple:Henry IV of France

Hungary

The Republic of Hungary (Magyar Köztársaság ), or Hungary (Magyarország ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia. It is known locally as the Country of the Magyars.

History

Main article: History of Hungary In the time of the Roman Empire, the Romans called the region Pannonia (west from the Danube river). After Rome fell the Migration Period brought on many invaders. First came the Huns, who built up a powerful empire under Attila. The name "Hungary" may be influenced by the name of the Hun people, although it probably comes from the name of a later, 7th century state called Onogur (or possibly from the name of the city Ungvár, which was possibly the first major city the Magyars occupied). After the Hunnish rule faded, Germanic tribes Lombards and Gepids ruled in Pannonia for about 100 years, during which the Slavic tribes also began migrating south. In the 560s, these were supplanted by the Avars who would maintain their supremacy of the land for over two centuries. The Franks under Charlemagne from the west and the Bulgars from the southeast finally managed to overthrow the Avars in the early 9th century. Soon after, the Franks retreated, and the Slavonic kingdom of Great Moravia and the Balaton Principality controlled much of Pannonia until the end of the century. Finally, the Magyars migrated to Hungary in the late 9th century. Tradition holds that the Country of the Magyars (Hungary) was founded by Árpád, who led the Magyars into the Pannonian plains after 895. The Kingdom of Hungary was established in 1000 by King St. Stephen I. Initially the history of Hungary was developed in a triangle with that of Poland and Bohemia, with the many liaisons with Popes and Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. Hungary was partially demolished with a great loss of life in 1241–1242 by Mongol (Tatar) armies of Batu Khan. Gradually Hungary under the rule of the dynasty of the Árpáds turned into an independent kingdom which formed a distinct Central European culture with ties to greater West European civilisation. Ruled by the Angevins since 1308, the Kingdom of Hungary briefly extended its control over Wallachia and Moldavia. The non-dynastic king Matthias Corvinus, son of John Hunyadi, ruled the Kingdom of Hungary from 1458 to 1490. He strengthened Hungary and its government. Under his rule, Hungary (notably the northern parts, some of which are in Slovakia today) became an important artistic and cultural centre of Europe during the Renaissance. Hungarian culture influenced others, for example the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Together with Polish and Czech lands, Hungary formed the Visegrád group of countries. Today an alliance of the same name exists again with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland. Hungarian independence ended with the Ottoman conquest at the beginning of the 16th century; the parts of Hungary that were not conquered by the Ottomans were annexed by Austria (the rulers of which were Hungarian kings at the same time) in the West, and became the independent Principality of Transylvania in the East, where thus Hungarian statedom was preserved. After 150 years, Austria and her Christian allies retook also the territory of today's Hungary by the end of the 17th century from the Islamic Ottoman Empire. After the final retreat of the Turks, struggle began between the Hungarian nation and the Habsburg kings for the protection of noblemen's rights (thus guarding the autonomy of Hungary). The fight against Austrian absolutism resulted in the unsuccessful popular freedom fight led by a Transylvanian nobleman, Ferenc II Rákóczi, between 1704 and 1711. The revolution and war of 1848–1849 eliminated serfdom and secured civil rights. The Austrians were finally able to prevail only with Russian help. Thanks to the victories against Austria by the French-Italian coalition (the Battle of Solferino, 1859) and Prussia (Battle of Königgratz, 1866), Hungary would eventually, in 1867, manage to become an autonomous part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (see Ausgleich). Having achieved this, the Hungarian government took an effort to nationally unify the kingdom by Magyarisation of the various other nationalities. This lasted until the end of World War I, when the Austro-Hungarian empire collapsed. On November 16, 1918, an independent Hungarian Republic was proclaimed. In March 1919 the communists took power, and in April, Béla Kun proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic. This government, like its predecessor, proved to be short lived; after some initial military successes against the Czechoslovak army, the Romanians attacked to prevent a campaign in Transylvania. By August more than half of present-day Hungary, including Budapest, was placed under Romanian occupation, which lasted until November. Rightist military forces, led by the former Austro-Hungarian Admiral Miklós Horthy, entered Budapest in the wake of the Romanian army's departure and filled the vacuum of state power. In January 1920, elections were held for a unicameral assembly, and Admiral Horthy was subsequently elected Regent, thereby formally restoring Hungary to a kingdom, although there were no more Kings of Hungary, despite attempts by the former Habsburg king to return to power. Horthy continued to rule with autocratic powers until 1944. In June 1920, the Treaty of Trianon was signed, fixing Hungary's borders. Compared with the pre-war Kingdom, the size and population of this new Hungary were reduced by about two-thirds; about one-third of the Magyar population became minorities in the neighbouring countries. Therefore, Hungarian politics and culture of the interwar period were saturated with irredentism and revisionism (the restoration of 19th century "greater Hungary" by whatever means necessary). Horthy made an alliance with Nazi Germany in the 1930s, in the hope of revising the territorial losses that had followed World War I. The alliance did lead to some territories being given to Hungary in the two Vienna Awards. Hungary then assisted the German occupation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, occupying the Banat right afterwards, and finally entered World War II in 1941, fighting primarily against the Soviet Union. In October 1944, Hitler replaced Horthy with the Hungarian Nazi collaborator Ferenc Szálasi and his Arrow Cross Party in order to avert Hungary's defection to the Allied side, which were constantly threatened since the Allied invasion of Italy. Hungary passed a series of anti-Semitic laws throughot the 1920s and thirties, and some massacres of Jews by Hungarian forces took place in the early part of the Second World War, but Hungary initially resisted large scale deportation of its Jewish population. Ultimately, however, during the German occupation, the Arrow Cross Party and government authorities participated fully in the Holocaust: in May and June of 1944, Hungarian police deported nearly 440,000 Jews in more than 145 trains, mostly to Auschwitz [http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/index.php?ModuleId=10005458]. Ultimately, over 533,000 Jews in Hungary were killed during the Holocaust, as well as several tens of thousands of Roma. Following the fall of Nazi Germany, Hungary became part of the Soviet area of influence and was appropriated into a communist state following a short period of democracy in 1946–1947. After 1948 Communist leader Mátyás Rákosi established a Stalinist rule in the country, which was barely bearable for the war-torn country. This led to the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and an announced withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact which were met with a massive military intervention by the Soviet Union. From the 1960s on to the late 1980s Hungary enjoyed a distinguished status of "the happiest barrack" within the Eastern bloc, under the rule of late controversial communist leader János Kádár, who exercised autocratic rule during this period. In the late 1980s, Hungary led the movement to dissolve the Warsaw Pact and shifted toward multiparty democracy and a market-oriented economy. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Hungary developed closer ties with Western Europe, joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union on May 1, 2004. See Also: Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary before the Magyars

Politics

Main article: Politics of Hungary The President of the Republic, elected by the parliament every 5 years, has a largely ceremonial role, but powers also include appointing the prime minister. The prime minister selects cabinet ministers and has the exclusive right to dismiss them. Each cabinet nominee appears before one or more parliamentary committees in consultative open hearings and must be formally approved by the president. The unicameral, 386-member National Assembly (the Országgyűlés) is the highest organ of state authority and initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the prime minister. National parliamentary elections are held every 4 years (the last was in April 2002). A 15-member Constitutional Court has power to challenge legislation on grounds of unconstitutionality.

Administrative divisions

Main article: Counties of Hungary Hungary is subdivided administratively into 19 counties, in addition to which there is one capital city (főváros): Budapest. There are also 23 so-called urban counties (singular megyei jogú város), These are:
Urban countiesCounties (County Capital)

- Békéscsaba
- Debrecen
- Dunaújváros
- Eger
- Érd
- Győr
- Hódmezővásárhely
- Kaposvár
- Kecskemét
- Miskolc
- Nagykanizsa
- Nyíregyháza
- Pécs
- Salgótarján
- Sopron
- Szeged
- Székesfehérvár
- Szekszárd
- Szolnok
- Szombathely
- Tatabánya
- Veszprém
- Zalaegerszeg
- Bács-Kiskun (Kecskemét)
- Baranya (Pécs)
- Békés (Békéscsaba)
- Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén (Miskolc)
- Csongrád (Szeged)
- Fejér (Székesfehérvár)
- Győr-Moson-Sopron (Győr)
- Hajdú-Bihar (Debrecen)
- Heves (Eger)
- Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok (Szolnok)
- Komárom-Esztergom (Tatabánya)
- Nógrád (Salgótarján)
- Pest (Budapest)
- Somogy (Kaposvár)
- Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg (Nyíregyháza)
- Tolna (Szekszárd)
- Vas (Szombathely)
- Veszprém (Veszprém)
- Zala (Zalaegerszeg)
See also: List of historic counties of Hungary

Geography

List of historic counties of Hungary Main article: Geography of Hungary Hungary's landscape consists mostly of the flat to rolling plains of the Carpathian Basin, with hills and lower mountains to the north along the Slovakian border (highest point: the Kékes at 1,014 m). Hungary is divided in two by its main waterway, the Danube (Duna); other large rivers include the Tisza and Dráva, while the western half contains Lake Balaton, a major body of water. The largest thermal lake in the world, Lake Hévíz (Hévíz Spa), is located in Hungary. The second largest lake in the Carpathian Basin (and probably the largest artificial lake in Europe) is Lake Theiss (Tisza-tó).

Climate

Hungary has a continental climate, with cold, cloudy, humid winters and warm to hot summers. Average annual temperature is 9.7 °C (49.5 °F). Temperature extremes are about 38 °C (100 °F) in the summer and −29 °C (−20 °F) in the winter. Average temperature in the summer is 27 to 32 °C (81 to 90 °F), and in the winter it is 0 to −15 °C (32 to 5 °F). The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 mm (24 in). A small, southern region of the country near Pécs enjoys a Mediterranean climate. The relative isolation of the Carpathian Basin makes it susceptible to droughts and the effects of global warming are already felt. According to popular opinion, and many scientists in the latest decades the country became drier, as droughts are quite common; and summers became hotter, winters became milder. Because of these reasons snow has become much more rare in the area than before. Popular opinion also states that the four-season system became a two-season system as spring and autumn are getting shorter and shorter, even vanishing some years. Most of Hungary is surrounded by thick forests and mountainous plains.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Hungary Hungary continues to demonstrate strong economic growth as one of the newest members of the European Union (since 2004). Together with Slovenia and the Czech Republic, Hungary provides one of the highest standard of living among Eastern European countries. The private sector accounts for over 80% of GDP. Hungary gets nearly one third of all foreign direct investment flowing in to Central Europe. Foreign ownership of and investment in Hungarian firms are widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment totalling more than US$23 billion since 1989. Hungarian sovereign debt was upgraded in 2000 to the second-highest rating among all the Central European transition economies. Inflation and unemployment – both priority concerns in 2001 – have declined substantially. Economic reform measures such as health care reform, tax reform, and local government financing have not yet been addressed by the present government. The Hungarian government has expressed a desire to adopt the euro currency in 2010, but the introduction of the currency is currently only in the early planning stages.

Demographics

Historical


- Circa 900 AD- according to various sources 250,000 - 400,000 Magyars settled in the Pannonian plain, inhabited predominantly by Slavs
- 1222 - 2,000,000 at the time of Golden Bull
- 1242 - 1,200,000 after the Mongol-Tatars invasion
- 1370 - 2,500,000 at the time of Angevin kings
- 1490 - 4,000,000 before the Ottoman conquest (3.2 million Magyars)
- 1699 - 3,300,000 at the time of Treaty of Karlowitz (less than 2 million Magyars)
- 1711 - 3,000,000 at the end of Kuruc War (1.6 million Magyars)
- 1790 - 8,000,000 (39% Magyars)
- 1828 - 11,495,536
- 1846 - 12,033,399
- 1880 - 13,749,603 (46% Magyars)
- 1900 - 16,838,255 (51,4% Magyars)
- 1910 - 18,264,533 (54,5% Magyars, 5% Jews)
- 1920 - 7.516.000 after the Treaty of Trianon (90% Magyars, 6.1% Jews)

Present

Main article: Demographics of Hungary For some 95% of the population, mostly Hungarians, the mother tongue is Hungarian, a Finno Ugric language unrelated to any neighbouring language. Several ethnic minorities exist: Roma (2%), Germans (1.2%), Romanians (0.8%), Slovaks (0.4%), Croats (0.2%), Serbs (0.2%) and Ukrainians (0.1%). The largest religion in Hungary is Catholicism – Roman and Greek – (approx 50% of the population), with a Calvinist minority (around 30%) and Lutherans (5%). However, these formal figures are not wholly representative, since the Hungarian population is not particularly religious; no more than 25% actively practice their faith. Due to historical reasons, significant Hungarian minority populations can be found in the surrounding countries, notably in Ukraine (in Transcarpathia), Slovakia, Romania (in Transylvania), and Serbia (in Vojvodina). Austria (in Burgenland), Croatia, and Slovenia are also host to a number of ethnic Magyars.

Minorities

Several ethnic minorities exist: Roma (2%), Germans (1.2%), Romanians (0.8%), Slovaks (0.4%), Croats (0.2%), Serbs (0.2%) and Ukrainians (0.1%). As regards education, there are special problems associated with the Roma minority. Currently slightly more than 70 percent of Roma children complete primary schooling, but only one third continue studies into the intermediate (secondary) level. This is far lower than the more than 90 percent proportion of children of non-Roma families who continue studies at an intermediate level. The situation is made still worse by the fact that a large proportion of young Roma are qualified in subjects that provide them with only limited chances for employment. Less than 1 percent of Roma hold higher educational certificates.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Hungary
- List of Hungarians
- List of Hungarian rulers
- List of Hungarian writers
- List of universities in Hungary
- List of colleges in Hungary
- Public holidays in Hungary
- Music of Hungary
- Hungarian cuisine
- Eastern name order used in Hungarian personal names
- Common Hungarian surnames
- Hungarian jokes
- Magyar Cserkészszövetség (HUngarian Scout Association)
- Curse of Turan

Miscellaneous topics


- Communications in Hungary
- Foreign relations of Hungary
- [http://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Hungarian Wikipedia]
- List of cities in Hungary
- Military of Hungary
- Name days in Hungary
- Transportation in Hungary
- History of the Jews in Hungary

External links

General info


- [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07547a.htm A detailed article on Hungary from a Christian point of view] (Catholic Encyclopedia)
- [http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/hungary/ Country Profile Hungary] – tons of material and links
- [http://hungary.lap.hu/ Link collection for foreign visitors and residents of Hungary]
- [http://www.parlament.hu/parl_en.htm Official site of the National Assembly]
- [http://www.magyarorszag.hu/angol/ Hungarian Government Portal] with comprehensive information
- [http://www.keh.hu/index_en.html Official site of the President of Hungary]
- [http://www.meh.hu/english Official site of the Prime Minister of Hungary]
-
- [http://www.visitors.hu/index_en.html Hungary for Visitors] – Descriptions of the main regions for tourists
- [http://www.demos.hu/Audit Hungary's Strategic Audit 2005] – Comprehensive analyses of Hungary's past 15 years and current state of development (click the Union Jack to see the English language version)
- [http://www.mythinglinks.org/euro~east~finno~Hungary.html A short, but valid summary about Hungary in English]

History


- [http://www.hungarianhistory.com History of Hungary – The Corvinus Library]
- [http://cityguide.budapestrooms.com/hungary/history1.htm History of Hungary – Chronological Survey: 2500 BC – AD 2004]
- [http://www.hunmagyar.org/hungary/history/index.html Hungarian History] (Turanian Lands, Turanian Peoples)
- [http://www.bh.org.il/V-Exh/hungary/index.html In The Land of Hagar - The Jews of Hungary] – A Virtual Exhibition

Culture


- [http://www.hungarianbookfoundation.hu/Html/Translation_grant.htm Hungarian Book Foundation]
- [http://www.pafi.hu/kiirok/mfordhaz.htm Funds available for translators of Hungarian works - in Hungarian]
- [http://translations.bookfinder.hu/indexa.htm Translation of Hungarian literary works - a database] Category:European Union member states Category:Republics Category:Landlocked countries fiu-vro:Ungari als:Ungarn zh-min-nan:Magyar-kok ko:헝가리 ms:Hungary ja:ハンガリー simple:Hungary th:ประเทศฮังการี

Mihai Viteazul

Michael the Brave (Romanian: Mihai Viteazul) (1558-9 August 1601) was the Prince of Wallachia (1593-1601), of Transylvania (1599-1600), and of Moldavia (1600). During his reign the three principalities largely inhabited by Romanians were united under one rule for the first time. He is regarded as one of Romania's greatest national heroes. Romania Michael became the Ban of Mehedinţi in 1588, the stolnic, or commissioner, at the court of Mihnea Turcitul by the end of 1588, and the Ban of Craiova in 1593 during the time Wallachia was ruled by Alexandru cel Rău (Alexander the Evil). In September 1593 with the help of the Ottoman Turks, he became the Voivode of Wallachia, starting his effective rule on October 11. It was not long before he began to fight back against the Ottomans. The next year he adhered to a Christian alliance against the Turks and signed treaties with Sigismund Bathory of Transylvania and Aron Vodă of Moldavia. He started a campaign against the Turks in the autumn of 1594, conquering several citadels near the Danube, including Giurgiu, Brăila, Hârşova, and Silistra. In 1595, at Alba Iulia, Michael signed a treaty with Sigismund Bathory in which Wallachia became a dependency of Transylvania, requiring it to send aid to fight the Turks. Transylvania On August 13 1595, at the Battle of Călugăreni near the Neajlov river, Michael defeated a Turkish army led by Sinan Pasha, then continued by liberating Târgovişte, Bucharest and Brăila. The fight against the Turks continued in 1596, when Michael made several incursions south of the Danube at Vidin, Pleven, Nicopolis, and Babadag. On October 18, 1599, he obtained an important victory in the Battle of Şelimbăr against Cardinal Andrew Bathory, gaining control of Transylvania. Michael entered stately Alba Iulia (Gyulafehérvár) with impressive pomp, receiving the keys to the fortress from the bishop Napragy. When on May 8, 1600, Michael's forces defeated the combined Polish and Moldavian army of Ieremia Movilă at Bacău, the Romanian principalities were for the first time unified under one ruler. However, neighboring states were alarmed by this upsetting of the balance of power, especially the Hungarian nobility from Transylvania who rose against Michael in rebellion. With the help of the Austrian general Giorgio Basta, they defeated Michael at the Battle of Mirăslău, forcing Michael to leave Transylvania. A Polish army led by Jan Zamoyski drove the Wallachians from Moldavia, and defeated Michael at Năieni, Ceptura, and Bucov. The Polish army also entered eastern Wallachia and established Simion Movilă as the ruler. Forces loyal to Michael remained only in Oltenia. Oltenia Desperate to find help, Michael asked for assistance from Rudolf II, the reigning Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary. However, he received help only when the emperor heard that Basta had lost control of Transylvania to the Hungarian nobleman lead by Sigismund Bathory. Meanwhile, forces loyal to Michael in Wallachia, after a first unsuccessful attempt, drove out Simion Movilă and prepared to reenter Transylvania. Michael, allied with Basta, defeated the Hungarian noblemen at Gurăslău (Goroszló). However, this union did not last; Basta treacherously ordered the assassination of Michael, which took place in Câmpia Turzii on 9 August 1601. Michael's legacy is that of being the first Romanian ruler to unite all the principalities in the Romanian space, albeit for only a short period of time. Many 19th century nationalists referred to his actions in order to mobilize Romanians to unite into one country.

See also


- Moldavian Magnate Wars Category:1558 births Category:1601 deaths Category:Rulers of Wallachia Category:Rulers of Moldavia

1600

:See also 1600 (number), 1600s

Events

January


- January 1 - Scotland adopts January 1st as being New Year's Day

February


- February 17 - Giordano Bruno burned at the stake for heresy in Rome

July


- July 2 - Battle of Nieuwpoort: Dutch forces under Maurice of Nassau defeat Spanish forces under Archduke Albert in a battle on the coastal dunes.

October


- October 6 - Jacopo Peri's Euridice, the earliest surviving Opera, is premiered in Florence.
- October 8 - San Marino gains its written constitution.
- October 21 - Battle of Sekigahara in Japan, in which Tokugawa Ieyasu defeated Ishida Mitsunari, setting the stage for the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate. End of the Azuchi-Momoyama period and beginning of the Edo period.

December


- December 31 - Royal charter incorporates the British East India Company in London

Undated


- Sumo Wrestling becomes a professional sport in Japan.
- William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream is first performed.
- William Gilbert publishes De Magnete which describes the Earth's magnetic field and is the beginning of modern Geomagnetism.
- Fabritio Caroso's Nobiltà de dame is published.
- Battle of Suceava - Prince Sigismund Bathory of Transylvania is defeated by the Voivode Michael the Brave of Moldavia as part of the internecine conflict in Hungary and the Danubian Principalities.
- Ulster chieftains with the lead of Hugh O'Neill, 2nd Earl of Tyrone, resist English reconquest of Ireland

Births


- January 1 - Friedrich Spanheim, Dutch theologian (d. 1649)
- January 17 - Pedro Calderón de la Barca, Spanish playwright (died 1681)
- January 28 - Pope Clement IX (died 1669)
- February 2 - Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (died 1653)
- November 19 - King Charles I of England, Scotland, and Ireland (died 1649)
- November 19 - Leo Aitzema, Dutch historian and statesman (d. 1669)
- Jonas Bronck, Swedish colonist in America (died 1643)
- Edmund Calamy the Elder, English presbyterian (died 1666)
- Piaras Feiritéar, Irish language poet (died 1653)
- Gheorghe Ghica, Prince of Wallachia (died 1664)
- Marin le Roy de Gomberville, French poet and novelist (died 1674)
- Samuel Gorton, English sectary (died 1677)
- Sir Richard Grenville, 1st Baronet, English Royalist leader (died 1658)
- Peter Heylin, English ecclesiastical writer (died 1662)
- Antoine de Laloubère, French Jesuit mathematician (died 1664)
- John Ogilby, English writer and cartographer (died 1676)
- Anna Alojza Ostrogska, Polish noblewoman (died 1654)
- William Prynne, English puritan politician (died 1669)
- Samuel Rutherford, English theologian and controversialist (died 1660)
- Brian Walton, English divine and scholar (died 1661)
- Tokugawa Yoshinao, Japanese nobleman (died 1650) See also :Category:1600 births.

Deaths


- February 13 - Gian Paolo Lomazzo, Italian painter (b. 1538)
- February 17 - Giordano Bruno, Italian philosopher (burned at the stake) (born 1548)
- July 17 - Hosokawa Gracia, Japanese noblewoman (born 1563)
- September 1 - Tadeáš Hájek, Czech physician and astronomer (born 1525)
- September 26 - Claude Le Jeune, French composer (born 1530)
- October 12 - Luis Molina, Spanish Jesuit (b. 1535)
- October 21 - Toda Katsushige, Japanese warlord (born 1557)
- November 3 - Richard Hooker, Anglican theologian (born 1554)
- November 6 - Ishida Mitsunari, Japanese feudal lord (decapitated) (born 1560)
- November 6 - Konishi Yukinaga, Japanese Christian warlord (born 1555)
- November 8 - Natsuka Masaie, Japanese warlord (born 1562)
- November 17 - Kuki Yoshitaka, Japanese naval commander (born 1542)
- Jose de Acosta, Spanish Jesuit missionary and naturalist (born 1540)
- Thomas Deloney, English writer (born 1543)
- Abe Masakatsu, Japanese nobleman (born 1541)
- Thomas Nashe, English pamphleteer (born 1567)
- Nicholas Remy, French Catholic priest (born 1534)
- John Ruthven, 3rd Earl of Gowrie, Scottish conspirator (born 1577)
- Mizuno Tadashige, Japanese nobleman (born 1541) See also :Category:1600 deaths.

References


- Spielvogel -- Western Civilization -- Volume II: Since 1500 (5th Edition), p.401 Category:1600 ko:1600년 simple:1600

Wallachia

: This article is about the region in what is now Southern Romania. There are other regions called Wallachia, such as the Moravian Wallachia and the Thessaly Wallachia; See: Vlachs#Wallachia. Vlachs#Wallachia Wallachia (also spelt Walachia; Romanian: Ţara Românească - literally "Romanian country"; also Vlahia or Valahia; Turkish: Eflak) formed a Romanian principality in eastern Europe from the late Middle Ages until the mid-19th century. Its name is derived from the Vlachs, another name for Romanians. (see also: Etymology of Vlach)

Geography

Wallachia was situated north of the Danube and south of the Carpathian Mountains. It was divided by the river Olt into two regions: the eastern part Muntenia and the western part Oltenia. Its neighbours were Bulgaria, after that the Ottoman Empire to the south, Transylvania to the north-west and Moldavia to the north-east. The capital city changed over time, from Curtea de Argeş to Târgovişte and finally Bucharest.

History

Beginning with the 10th century, Byzantine, Bulgarian, Slavic and Hungarian sources, and later Western ones mention the existence of small states peopled possibly also by Romanians under leaders known as knyazes (Slavonic: prince, ruler) and voivods (Slavonic: military leader) - at first in Transylvania, then in the 12th-13th centuries in the territories east and south of the Carpathian Mountains. A specific characteristic of Romanian history from the Middle Ages to modern times is that Romanians lived in three adjacent principalities - Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania, separated by the Carpathian mountains. In the 14th century, along with the decline of the neighboring Byzantine, Bulgarian, Hungarian and Tatar states, several feudal states formed in the south and the east of the Carpathian Mountains - Wallachia under Basarab I (around 1330) and Moldavia under Bogdan I (around 1359). In the second half of the 14th century, a new threat appeared - the Ottoman Empire. After having first gained a foothold in Europe in 1354, the Ottoman Turks reached the south bank of the Danube in 1396. Alone or allied with the neighbouring Christian countries, Mircea the Elder (1386-1418) and Vlad Tepes (1456-1462) of Wallachia fought many defensive battles against the Ottomans, preventing them from expanding into Central Europe. Mircea the Elder extended Wallachia to the mouths of Danube around 1400. As the whole Balkan Peninsula became Turkish territory and following the fall of Constantinople to Mehmed II in 1453, the Romanian principalities had to accept the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire for more than three centuries, though there were a few attempts to regain independence: (Michael the Brave in 1600 managed to unite for a short period of time all the three principalities). The tribute paid to the Turks allowed Wallachia (and Moldavia too) to maintain its autonomy. After 1716, the Ottomans decided to cease choosing the voivod from among the Romanian boyars and established the Phanariote regime: the rulers were to be appointed from the influential Greeks of the Phanar neighbourhood of Istanbul. The Phanariote rule ended only after the uprising of 1821 of Tudor Vladimirescu. In 1831 an act resembling a constitution ("Règlement Organique") was adopted. In 1859, Wallachia voted to unite with Moldavia to form the state of Romania, under the rule of Alexander John Cuza.

Important rulers


- Litovoi, on the east side of the Olt river, 1247-1277,
- Seneslau, on west side of the Olt river, at Arges, c.a.1247
- Bărbat, c.a.1277-c.a.1290
- Tihomir, c.a.1290-c.a.1310
- Basarab I, about 1310 - 1352
- Vladislav I or Vlaicu-Vodă, 1364-c.a.1377
- Mircea cel Bătrân (Mircea the Elder), 1386-1418
- Vlad Ţepeş (Vlad the Impaler), 1448, 1456-1462, 1476
- Neagoe Basarab, 1512-1521
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