title: Katana

text: The idea that the blade of a sword in the Kamakura period is the best has been continued until now, and as of the 21st century, 80% of Japanese swords designated as National treasure in Japan were made in the Kamakura period, and 70% of them were "tachi".


title: Katana

text: The arrival of Matthew Perry in 1853 and the subsequent Convention of Kanagawa caused chaos in Japanese society. Conflicts began to occur frequently between the forces of "sonnō jōi" (尊王攘夷派), who wanted to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate and rule by the Emperor, and the forces of "sabaku" (佐幕派), who wanted the Tokugawa Shogunate to continue. These political activists, called the "shishi" (志士), fought using a practical "katana", called the "kinnōtō" (勤皇刀) or the "bakumatsutō" (幕末刀). Their "katana" were often longer than 90 cm (35.43 in) in blade length, less curved, and had a big and sharp point, which was advantageous for stabbing in indoor battles.


title: Katana

text: During the Meiji period, the "samurai" class was gradually disbanded, and the special privileges granted to them were taken away, including the right to carry swords in public. The Haitōrei Edict in 1876 forbade the carrying of swords in public except for certain individuals, such as former samurai lords ("daimyō"), the military, and the police. Skilled swordsmiths had trouble making a living during this period as Japan modernized its military, and many swordsmiths started making other items, such as farm equipment, tools, and cutlery. The craft of making swords was kept alive through the efforts of some individuals, notably Miyamoto Kanenori (宮本包則, 1830–1926) and Gassan Sadakazu (月山貞一, 1836–1918), who were appointed Imperial Household Artist. The businessman Mitsumura Toshimo (光村利藻, 1877－1955）tried to preserve their skills by ordering swords and sword mountings from the swordsmiths and craftsmen. He was especially enthusiastic about collecting sword mountings, and he collected about 3,000 precious sword mountings from the end of the Edo period to the Meiji period. About 1200 items from a part of his collection are now in the Nezu Museum.


title: Katana

text: Military action by Japan in China and Russia during the Meiji period helped revive interest in swords, but it was not until the Shōwa period that swords were produced on a large scale again. Japanese military swords produced between 1875 and 1945 are referred to as "guntō" (military swords).


title: Katana

text: During the pre-World War II military buildup, and throughout the war, all Japanese officers were required to wear a sword. Traditionally made swords were produced during this period, but in order to supply such large numbers of swords, blacksmiths with little or no knowledge of traditional Japanese sword manufacture were recruited. In addition, supplies of the Japanese steel ("tamahagane") used for swordmaking were limited, so several other types of steel were also used. Quicker methods of forging were also used, such as the use of power hammers, and quenching the blade in oil, rather than hand forging and water. The non-traditionally made swords from this period are called "shōwatō", after the regnal name of the Emperor Hirohito, and in 1937, the Japanese government started requiring the use of special stamps on the tang ("nakago") to distinguish these swords from traditionally made swords. During this period of war, older antique swords were remounted for use in military mounts. Presently, in Japan, "shōwatō" are not considered to be "true" Japanese swords, and they can be confiscated. Outside Japan, however, they are collected as historical artifacts.


title: Katana

text: Between 1945 and 1953, sword manufacture and sword-related martial arts were banned in Japan. Many swords were confiscated and destroyed, and swordsmiths were not able to make a living. Since 1953, Japanese swordsmiths have been allowed to work, but with severe restrictions: swordsmiths must be licensed and serve a five-year apprenticeship, and only licensed swordsmiths are allowed to produce Japanese swords ("nihonto"), only two longswords per month are allowed to be produced by each swordsmith, and all swords must be registered with the Japanese Government.


title: Katana

text: Outside Japan, some of the modern "katanas" being produced by western swordsmiths use modern steel alloys, such as L6 and A2. These modern swords replicate the size and shape of the Japanese "katana" and are used by martial artists for "iaidō" and even for cutting practice ("tameshigiri").


title: Katana

text: Mass-produced swords including "iaitō" and "shinken" in the shape of "katana" are available from many countries, though China dominates the market. These types of swords are typically mass-produced and made with a wide variety of steels and methods.


title: Katana

text: According to the Parliamentary Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Japanese Swords, organized by Japanese Diet members, many "katana" distributed around the world as of the 21st century are fake Japanese swords made in China. The "Sankei Shimbun" analyzed that this is because the Japanese government allowed swordsmiths to make only 24 Japanese swords per person per year in order to maintain the quality of Japanese swords.


title: Katana

text: Many swordsmiths after the Edo period have tried to reproduce the sword of the Kamakura period which is considered as the best sword in the history of Japanese swords, but they have failed. Then, in 2014, Kunihira Kawachi succeeded in reproducing it and won the Masamune Prize, the highest honor as a swordsmith. No one could win the Masamune Prize unless he made an extraordinary achievement, and in the section of "tachi" and "katana", no one had won for 18 years before Kawauchi.


title: Katana

text: Typical features of Japanese swords represented by "katana" and "tachi" are a three-dimensional cross-sectional shape of an elongated pentagonal to hexagonal blade called "shinogi-zukuri", a style in which the blade and the tang ("nakago") are integrated and fixed to the hilt ("tsuka") with a pin called "mekugi", and a gentle curve.


title: Katana

text: When a "shinogi-zukuri" sword is viewed from the side, there is a ridge line of the thickest part of the blade called "shinogi" between the cutting-edge side and the back side. This "shinogi" contributes to lightening and toughening of the blade and high cutting ability.


title: Katana

text: "Katana" are traditionally made from a specialized Japanese steel called "tamahagane", which is created from a traditional smelting process that results in several, layered steels with different carbon concentrations. This process helps remove impurities and even out the carbon content of the steel. The age of the steel plays a role in the ability to remove impurities, with older steel having a higher oxygen concentration, being more easily stretched and rid of impurities during hammering, resulting in a stronger blade. The smith begins by folding and welding pieces of the steel several times to work out most of the differences in the steel. The resulting block of steel is then drawn out to form a billet.


title: Katana

text: At this stage, it is only slightly curved or may have no curve at all. The "katana"'s gentle curvature is attained by a process of differential hardening or differential quenching: the smith coats the blade with several layers of a wet clay slurry, which is a special concoction unique to each sword maker, but generally composed of clay, water and any or none of ash, grinding stone powder, or rust. This process is called "tsuchioki". The edge of the blade is coated with a thinner layer than the sides and spine of the sword, heated, and then quenched in water (few sword makers use oil to quench the blade). The slurry causes only the blade's edge to be hardened and also causes the blade to curve due to the difference in densities of the micro-structures in the steel. When steel with a carbon content of 0.7% is heated beyond 750 °C, it enters the austenite phase. When austenite is cooled very suddenly by quenching in water, the structure changes into martensite, which is a very hard form of steel. When austenite is allowed to cool slowly, its structure changes into a mixture of ferrite and pearlite which is softer than martensite. This process also creates the distinct line down the sides of the blade called the "hamon", which is made distinct by polishing. Each "hamon" and each smith's style of "hamon" is distinct.


title: Katana

text: After the blade is forged, it is then sent to be polished. The polishing takes between one and three weeks. The polisher uses a series of successively finer grains of polishing stones in a process called glazing, until the blade has a mirror finish. However, the blunt edge of the "katana" is often given a matte finish to emphasize the "hamon".


title: Katana

text: Japanese swords are generally made by a division of labor between six and eight craftsmen. "Tosho" ("Toko", "Katanakaji") is in charge of forging blades, "togishi" is in charge of polishing blades, "kinkosi" ("chokinshi") is in charge of making metal fittings for sword fittings, "shiroganeshi" is in charge of making "habaki" (blade collar), "sayashi" is in charge of making scabbards, "nurishi" is in charge of applying lacquer to scabbards, "tsukamakishi" is in charge of making hilt, and "tsubashi" is in charge of making tsuba (hand guard). "Tosho" use apprentice swordsmiths as assistants. Prior to the Muromachi period, "tosho" and "kacchushi" (armorer) used surplus metal to make "tsuba", but from the Muromachi period onwards, specialized craftsmen began to make "tsuba". Nowadays, "kinkoshi" sometimes serves as "shiroganeshi" and "tsubashi".


title: Katana

text: Historically, katana have been regarded not only as weapons but also as works of art, especially for high-quality ones. For a long time, Japanese people have developed a unique appreciation method in which the blade is regarded as the core of their aesthetic evaluation rather than the sword mountings decorated with luxurious lacquer or metal works.


title: Katana

text: It is said that the following three objects are the most noteworthy objects when appreciating a blade. The first is the overall shape referred to as "sugata". Curvature, length, width, tip, and shape of tang of the sword are the objects for appreciation. The second is a fine pattern on the surface of the blade, which is referred to as "hada" or "jigane". By repeatedly folding and forging the blade, fine patterns such as fingerprints, tree rings and bark are formed on its surface. The third is "hamon". Hamon is a white pattern of the cutting edge produced by quenching and tempering. The object of appreciation is the shape of hammon and the crystal particles formed at the boundary of hammon. Depending on the size of the particles, they can be divided into two types, a "nie" and a "nioi", which makes them look like stars or mist. In addition to these three objects, a swordsmith signature and a file pattern engraved on tang, and a carving inscribed on the blade, which is referred to as "horimono", are also the objects of appreciation.


title: Katana

text: The Hon'ami clan, which was an authority of appraisal of Japanese swords, rated Japanese swords from these artistic points of view. In addition, experts of modern Japanese swords judge when and by which swordsmith school the sword was made from these artistic points of view.


title: Katana

text: Generally, the blade and the sword mounting of Japanese swords are displayed separately in museums, and this tendency is remarkable in Japan. For example, the Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum "Nagoya Touken World", one of Japan's largest sword museums, posts separate videos of the blade and the sword mounting on its official website and YouTube.


title: Katana

text: In Japan, Japanese swords are rated by authorities of each period, and some of the authority of the rating is still valid today.


title: Katana

text: In 1719, Tokugawa Yoshimune, the 8th shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate, ordered Hon'ami Kōchū, who was an authority of sword appraisal, to record swords possessed by "daimyo" all over Japan in books. In the completed ""Kyōhō Meibutsu Chō"" (享保名物帳) 249 precious swords were described, and additional 25 swords were described later. The list also includes 81 swords that had been destroyed in previous fires. The precious swords described in this book were called ""Meibutsu"" (名物) and the criteria for selection were artistic elements, origins and legends. The list of "Meibutsu" includes 59 swords made by Masamune, 34 by Awataguchi Yoshimitsu and 22 by Go Yoshihiro, and these three swordsmiths were considered special. "Daimyo" hid some swords for fear that they would be confiscated by the Tokugawa Shogunate, so even some precious swords were not listed in the book. For example, "Daihannya Nagamitsu" and "Yamatorige", which are now designated as National Treasures, were not listed.


title: Katana

text: Yamada Asaemon V, who was the official sword cutting ability examiner and executioner of the Tokugawa shogunate, published a book ""Kaiho Kenjaku"" (懐宝剣尺) in 1797 in which he ranked the cutting ability of swords. The book lists 228 swordsmiths, whose forged swords are called ""Wazamono"" (業物) and the highest ""Saijo Ō Wazamono"" (最上大業物) has 12 selected. In the reprinting in 1805, one swordsmith was added to the highest grade, and in the major revised edition in 1830 ""Kokon Kajibiko"" (古今鍛冶備考), two swordsmiths were added to the highest grade, and in the end, 15 swordsmiths were ranked as the highest grade. The "katana" forged by Nagasone Kotetsu, one of the top-rated swordsmith, became very popular at the time when the book was published, and many counterfeits were made. In these books, the three swordsmiths treated specially in ""Kyōhō Meibutsu Chō"" and Muramasa, who was famous at that time for forging swords with high cutting ability, were not mentioned. The reasons for this are considered to be that Yamada was afraid of challenging the authority of the shogun, that he could not use the precious sword possessed by the daimyo in the examination, and that he was considerate of the legend of Muramasa's curse.


title: Katana

text: At present, by the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties, important swords of high historical value are designated as Important Cultural Properties ("Jūyō Bunkazai", 重要文化財), and special swords among them are designated as National Treasures ("Kokuhō", 国宝). The swords designated as cultural properties based on the law of 1930, which was already abolished, have the rank next to Important Cultural Properties as Important Art Object ("Jūyō Bijutsuhin", 重要美術品). In addition, The Society for Preservation of Japanese Art Swords, a public interest incorporated foundation, rates high-value swords in four grades, and the highest grade Special Important Sword ("Tokubetsu Juyo Token", 特別重要刀剣) is considered to be equivalent to the value of Important Art Object. Although swords owned by the Japanese Imperial Family are not designated as National Treasures or Important Cultural Properties because they are outside the jurisdiction of the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties, there are many swords of the National Treasure class, and they are called ""Gyobutsu"" (御物).


title: Katana

text: Currently, there are several authoritative rating systems for swordsmiths. According to the rating approved by the Japanese government, from 1890 to 1947, two swordsmiths who were appointed as Imperial Household Artist and after 1955, six swordsmiths who were designated as Living National Treasure are regarded as the best swordsmiths. According to the rating approved by The Society for Preservation of Japanese Art Swords, a public interest incorporated foundation, 39 swordsmiths who were designated as "Mukansa" (無鑑査) since 1958 are considered to be the highest ranking swordsmiths. The best sword forged by Japanese swordsmiths is awarded the most honorable Masamune prize by The Society for Preservation of Japanese Art Swords. Since 1961, eight swordsmiths have received the Masamune Prize, and among them, three swordsmiths, Masamine Sumitani, Akitsugu Amata and Toshihira Osumi, have received the prize three times each and Sadakazu Gassan II has received the prize two times. These four people were designated both Living National Treasures and "Mukansa".


title: Katana

text: "Katana" were used by "samurai" both in the battlefield and for practicing several martial arts, and modern martial artists still use a variety of "katana". Martial arts in which training with "katana" is used include "aikidō", "iaijutsu", "battōjutsu", "iaidō", "kenjutsu", "kendō", "ninjutsu" and "Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū".""


title: Katana

text: However, for safety reasons, katana used for martial arts are usually blunt edged, to reduce the risk of injury. Sharp katana are only really used during tameshigiri (blade testing), where a practitioner practices cutting a bamboo or tatami straw post.


title: Katana

text: If mishandled in its storage or maintenance, the "katana" may become irreparably damaged. The blade should be stored horizontally in its sheath, curve down and edge facing upward to maintain the edge. It is extremely important that the blade remain well-oiled, powdered and polished, as the natural moisture residue from the hands of the user will rapidly cause the blade to rust if not cleaned off. The traditional oil used is chōji oil (99% mineral oil and 1% clove oil for fragrance). Similarly, when stored for longer periods, it is important that the "katana" be inspected frequently and aired out if necessary in order to prevent rust or mold from forming (mold may feed off the salts in the oil used to polish the blade).


title: Katana

text: Multiple sword world records were made with a katana and verified by Guinness World Records. Iaido master Isao Machii set the record for "Most martial arts katana cuts to one mat (suegiri)", "Fastest 1,000 martial arts sword cuts", "Most sword cuts to straw mats in three minutes", and "Fastest tennis ball (708km/h) cut by sword". There are various records for Tameshigiri. For example the Greek Agisilaos Vesexidis set the record for most martial arts sword cuts in one minute (73) on 25 June 2016.


title: Katana

text: Under the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act 1990 (Offensive Weapons) (Amendment) Order 2009, katanas made post-1953 are illegal unless made by hand according to traditional methods.


title: Katana

text: As of April 2008, the British government added swords with a curved blade of 50 cm (20 in) or over in length ("the length of the blade shall be the straight line distance from the top of the handle to the tip of the blade") to the Offensive Weapons Order. This ban was a response to reports that "samurai" swords were used in more than 80 attacks and four killings over the preceding four years. Those who violate the ban would be jailed up to six months and charged a fine of £5,000. Martial arts practitioners, historical re-enactors and others may still own such swords. The sword can also be legal provided it was made in Japan before 1954, or was made using traditional sword making methods. It is also legal to buy if it can be classed as a "martial artist's weapon". This ban applies to England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This ban was amended in August 2008 to allow sale and ownership without licence of "traditional" hand-forged "katana".


title: Order of the Garter

text: The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George Cross. The Order of the Garter is dedicated to the image and arms of Saint George, England's patron saint.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Appointments are at the sovereign's sole discretion and are usually in recognition of a national contribution, for public service, or for personal service to the sovereign. Membership of the order is limited to the sovereign, the Prince of Wales, and no more than 24 living members, or Companions. The order also includes supernumerary knights and ladies (e.g. members of the British royal family and foreign monarchs).


title: Order of the Garter

text: The order's emblem is a garter with the motto (Middle French for 'Shame on him who thinks evil of it') in gold lettering. Members of the order wear it on ceremonial occasions.


title: Order of the Garter

text: King Edward III founded the Order of the Garter around the time of his claim to the French throne. The traditional year of foundation is usually given as 1348 (when it was formally proclaimed). However, "The Complete Peerage", under "The Founders of the Order of the Garter", states the order was first instituted on 23 April 1344, listing each founding member as knighted in 1344. The list includes Sir Sanchet D'Abrichecourt, who died on 20 October 1345. Other dates from 1344 to 1351 have also been proposed. The King's wardrobe account shows Garter habits first issued in the autumn of 1348. Also, its original statutes required that each member of the Order already be a knight (what would now be referred to as a knight bachelor) and some of the initial members listed were only knighted that year. The foundation is likely to have been inspired by the Spanish Order of the Band, established in about 1330.


title: Order of the Garter

text: At the time of its foundation, the Order consisted of King Edward III, together with 25 Founder Knights, listed in ascending order of stall number in St George's Chapel:


title: Order of the Garter

text: They are all depicted in individual portraits in the Bruges Garter Book made c. 1431, and now in the British Library.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Various legends account for the origin of the Order. The most popular involves the "Countess of Salisbury", whose garter is said to have slipped from her leg while she was dancing at a court ball at Calais. When the surrounding courtiers snickered, the king picked it up and returned it to her, exclaiming, ""Honi soit qui mal y pense!"" ('Shame on him who thinks ill of it!'), the phrase that has become the motto of the Order. However, the earliest written version of this story dates from the 1460s, and it seems to have been conceived as a retrospective explanation for the adoption of what was then seen as an item of female underclothing as the symbol of a band of knights. In fact, at the time of the Order's establishment in the mid-14th century, the garter was predominantly an item of male attire.


title: Order of the Garter

text: According to another legend, King Richard I was inspired in the 12th century by St George the Martyr while fighting in the Crusades to tie garters around the legs of his knights, who subsequently won the battle. King Edward supposedly recalled the event in the 14th century when he founded the Order. This story is recounted in a letter to the Annual Register in 1774:


title: Order of the Garter

text: The motto in fact refers to Edward's claim to the French throne, and the Order of the Garter was created to help pursue this claim. The use of the garter as an emblem may have derived from straps used to fasten armour, and may have been chosen because it held overtones of a tight-knit "band" or "bond" of knightly "supporters" of Edward's cause.


title: Order of the Garter

text: There is a connection between the Order of the Garter and the Middle English poem "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" (late 14th century).


title: Order of the Garter

text: The motto is inscribed, as "hony soyt qui mal pence", at the end of the text in the sole surviving manuscript in the British Library, albeit in a later hand. In the poem, a girdle, very similar in its erotic undertones to the garter, plays a prominent role. A rough equivalent of the Order's motto has been identified in Gawain's exclamation "corsed worth cowarddyse and couetyse boþe" ("cursed be both cowardice and coveting", v. 2374). While the author of that poem remains disputed, there seems to be a connection between two of the top candidates and the Order of the Garter, John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, and Enguerrand de Coucy, seventh Sire de Coucy. De Coucy was married to King Edward III's daughter, Isabella, and was given admittance to the Order of the Garter on their wedding day."


title: Order of the Garter

text: Soon after the founding of the Order, women were appointed "Ladies of the Garter", but were not made companions. King Henry VII discontinued the practice in 1488; his mother, Margaret Beaufort, was the last Lady of the Garter before Queen Alexandra.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Except for female sovereigns, the next Lady of the Garter named was Queen Alexandra, by her husband King Edward VII. King George V also made his consort, Queen Mary, a Lady of the Garter and King George VI subsequently did the same for his wife, Queen Elizabeth. Throughout the 20th century, women continued to be associated with the Order, but save for foreign female monarchs, they were not made companions.


title: Order of the Garter

text: In 1987, however, it became possible to install "Ladies Companion of the Garter" under a statute of Queen Elizabeth II.


title: Order of the Garter

text: In 2022, Baroness Amos became the first Black "knight or lady companion" member of the order since its foundation.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Membership in the Order is strictly limited and includes the monarch, the Prince of Wales, not more than 24 companion members, and various supernumerary members. The monarch alone can grant membership. Monarchs are known as the "Sovereign of the Garter", and the Prince of Wales is known as a "Royal Knight Companion of the Garter".


title: Order of the Garter

text: Male members of the Order are titled "Knights Companion" and female members are called "Ladies Companion". Formerly, the Sovereign filled vacancies upon the nomination of the members. Each member would nominate nine candidates, of whom three had to have the rank of earl or higher, three the rank of baron or higher, and three the rank of knight or higher. The Sovereign would choose as many nominees as were necessary to fill any vacancies in the Order. They were not obliged to choose those who received the most nominations. Candidates were last nominated in 1860, and appointments have since been made by the Sovereign acting alone, with no prior nominations. The statutes prescribing the former procedure were not amended, however, until 1953.


title: Order of the Garter

text: From the 18th century, the Sovereign made their choices on the advice of the Government. In 1946, with the agreement of Prime Minister Clement Attlee and Leader of the Opposition Winston Churchill, membership of the United Kingdom's highest ranking orders of chivalry (the Order of the Garter, the Order of the Thistle and the dormant Order of St Patrick) became a personal gift of the Sovereign once again. Thus, the Sovereign personally selects Knights and Ladies Companion of the Garter, and need not act on or solicit the advice of the Government. Appointments are typically announced on Saint George's Day (23 April).


title: Order of the Garter

text: The Order includes supernumerary members, who do not count towards the limit of 24 companions. Several supernumerary members, known as "Royal Knights and Ladies of the Garter", belong to the royal family. These titles were introduced in 1786 by King George III so that his many sons would not count towards the limit on the number of companions. He created the statute of supernumerary members in 1805 so that any descendant of King George II could be installed as such a member. In 1831, this statute was extended again to include all descendants of King George I.


title: Order of the Garter

text: With the installation of Emperor Alexander I of Russia in 1813, supernumerary membership was extended to foreign monarchs, who are known as "Stranger Knights and Ladies of the Garter". Each such installation originally required the enactment of a statute; however, a 1954 statute authorises the regular admission of Stranger Knights or Ladies without further special enactments.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The Sovereign may "degrade" members who have taken up arms against the Sovereign. From the late 15th century, there was a formal ceremony of degradation, in which Garter King of Arms, accompanied by the rest of the heralds, proceeded to St George's Chapel. While the Garter King of Arms read aloud the Instrument of Degradation, a herald climbed up a ladder and removed the former knight's banner, crest, helm, and sword, throwing them down into the quire. Then the rest of the heralds kicked them down the length of the chapel, out of the doors, and into the castle ditch. The last such formal degradation was that of James, Duke of Ormonde, in 1716.


title: Order of the Garter

text: During the First World War, two Royal Knights and six Stranger Knights, all monarchs or princes of enemy nations and including Wilhelm II, German Emperor, and Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria, were struck off the roll of the Order or had their appointments annulled in 1915. The banner of Victor Emmanuel III of Italy was removed from the chapel after Italy entered World War II against the United Kingdom and her Allies in 1940. The banner of Emperor Hirohito of Japan was removed from St George's Chapel when Japan entered World War II in 1941, but that banner and his knighthood were restored by Elizabeth II in 1971, when Hirohito made a state visit to the United Kingdom. The Emperor was particularly pleased by the restoration of his banner as a Knight of the Garter.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The Order has six officers: the Prelate, the Chancellor, the Register, the Garter Principal King of Arms, the Usher, and the Secretary. The offices of Prelate, Register, and Usher were created on the order's establishment; those of Garter Principal King of Arms and Chancellor, in the 15th century; and that of Secretary, in the 20th century.


title: Order of the Garter

text: William of Edington, Bishop of Winchester, was the first Prelate of the Order, and that office has since been held by his successors at Winchester, traditionally a senior bishopric of the Church of England.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The office of Chancellor is now held by one of the companions of the order. For most of its existence, the Bishop of Salisbury has held the office, although laymen held it from 1553 to 1671. In 1837, after boundary changes made Windsor Castle fall in the diocese of Oxford, the Chancellorship was transferred to the Bishop of Oxford. A century later, the Bishop of Salisbury challenged this transfer, on the grounds that the Chancellorship had been attached to his office regardless of the diocese in which the chapel of the order lay; and that, in any event, St George's Chapel, as a Royal Peculiar, was not under diocesan jurisdiction. The office of Chancellor was removed from the Bishop of Oxford (the outgoing bishop, Thomas Strong, had been outspoken in the abdication crisis of Edward VIII), and so it was withheld from his successor, Kenneth Kirk, and has since been held by one of the Knights Companion.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The office of Register has been held by the Dean of Windsor since 1558. The Garter Principal King of Arms is "ex officio" the senior officer of the College of Arms (the heraldic authority of England), and is usually appointed from among the other officers of arms at the College. As the title suggests, Garter Principal King of Arms has specific duties as the Order's officer of arms, attending to the companions' coats of arms and banners of arms, which are exhibited in the chapel. The Secretary, who acts as deputy to Garter in the ceremonial aspects of the Order, has since 1952 also been selected from the other officers of the College of Arms. The office of Usher is held by the Usher of the Black Rod, who is also the Serjeant-at-Arms of the House of Lords.


title: Order of the Garter

text: At the founding of the Order of the Garter, 26 "poor knights" were appointed and attached to the Order and its chapel. This number was not always maintained, and by the 17th century, there were only thirteen such knights. King Charles II increased the number to 18 (in large part because of funds allocated from Sir Francis Crane's will) after his coronation in 1660. After the knights objected to being termed "poor", King William IV redesignated them in the 19th century as the Military Knights of Windsor.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The poor knights were impoverished military veterans, required to pray daily for the Knights Companion. In return, they received a salary and lodging in Windsor Castle. The knights are no longer necessarily poor, but are still military pensioners. They participate in the Order's processions, escorting the members, and in the chapel services. However, they are not considered members of the Order.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The poor knights originally wore red mantles, each of which bore St George's Cross, but did not depict the Garter. Queen Elizabeth I replaced the mantles in the 16th and 17th centuries with blue and purple gowns, but the red mantles returned in the 17th century under King Charles I. When the knights were renamed, the mantles were abandoned. The military knights now wear the old military uniform of an "army officer on the unattached list": black trousers with red stripe, a red double-breasted swallow-tailed coat, gold epaulets and brushes, a cocked hat with a plume, and a sword on a white baldric.


title: Order of the Garter

text: For the Order's ceremonial occasions, such as the annual Garter Day, the members wear elaborate vestments and accoutrements, which include:


title: Order of the Garter

text: Up until the middle part of the 20th century, it was customary to wear Tudor style under-dress, consisting of white silk embroidered doublet, breeches, full hose, white doeskin pumps with satin bows and a sword belt with sword, under the robes. Nowadays, morning dress or a lounge suit is worn, except for coronations when Tudor under-dress is worn by the canopy-bearers.


title: Order of the Garter

text: On the death of a member, the Lesser George and breast star are returned personally to the Sovereign by the former member's nearest male relative, and the other insignia to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood, save the riband, mantle and hat.


title: Order of the Garter

text: The chancellor carries a purse, which is embroidered with the royal arms impaled by the Cross of St George. The purse contains the seal of the Order. Garter Principal King of Arms carries his baton of office. The usher carries their staff of office, the Black Rod.


title: Order of the Garter

text: St George's Chapel in Windsor is the mother church of the Order of the Garter and the location of special services in relation to the Order.


title: Order of the Garter

text: During their lifetime, all members of the Order of the Garter are entitled to display their heraldic crests and banners in St George's Chapel. While the Garter stall plates (see below) stay in the chapel permanently, the crests and banners of deceased knights are, following presentation at the High Altar, removed from the chapel. Sometimes they are then given to institutions that were connected with the late knight, or kept privately depending on family wishes. Originally after a knight's death, the crests became the property of Garter King of Arms, and these crests have been the subject of occasional exhibitions in the Earl Marshal's Court at the College of Arms.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Garter stall plates are small enamelled and engraved brass plates located in St George's Chapel as memorials to Knights of the Garter.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Each June, on Garter Day, the members of the Order, wearing their habits and garter insignia, meet at Windsor Castle. When any new Knights of the Garter are due for installation, an investiture ceremony is held in the Throne Room of Windsor Castle on the morning of Garter Day. This ceremony is attended by all Knights Companions of the order, wearing the ceremonial habits and garter insignia, and also by their spouses. The wording of the oath sworn by the new knights at this ceremony and of the Admonitions addressed to them in turn by the prelate and chancellor of the order when the several items of insignia are placed upon them are extremely similar to the traditions of the past.


title: Order of the Garter

text: At the investiture ceremony, two senior knights of the order assist the Sovereign by placing the garter around the left leg of the new knight and in the fastening of the riband and Lesser George about the body of the new knight, and in the adjustment of the mantle and the collar. After the investiture ceremony at Windsor is concluded, a state luncheon is held in the Banqueting Room. This is attended by the royal family, by all the Companions of the Order and their spouses, and by the Officers of the Order. After the banquet all the knights and ladies of the order, together with the prelate, chancellor and other officers of the order, in their mantles and ceremonial robes, led by the Military Knights of Windsor, move in procession, watched by a great crowd of spectators, through the castle, down the hill, which is lined with troops, to Saint George's Chapel for a worship service, before which the formal installation of the new knights takes place.


title: Order of the Garter

text: While knights continued to be invested with their ensigns, the formal installation of knights at St George's Chapel ceased in 1805. Installation, along with the annual Garter service, returned in 1948; on the occasion of the order's 600th anniversary.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Members are assigned positions in the order of precedence, coming before all others of knightly rank, and above baronets. The wives, sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Companion are also assigned precedence. Relatives of Ladies Companion are not, however, assigned any special positions. (Generally, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their wives.) The Chancellor is also assigned precedence, but since 1837 the office has been held by a diocesan bishop of the Church of England or a peer, who have a higher precedence than that bestowed by the Chancellorship.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Knights Companion prefix "Sir" and Ladies Companion prefix "Lady" to their forenames. Wives of Knights Companion may prefix "Lady" to their surnames, but no corresponding privilege exists for husbands of Ladies Companion. Such forms are not used by royalty, peers, peeresses, or Anglican clergymen, who instead use only the post-nominal letters.


title: Order of the Garter

text: Knights and Ladies Companion use the post-nominal letters "KG" and "LG" respectively. When an individual is entitled to use multiple post-nominal letters, those of the Order of the Garter appear before all others, except "Bt" or "Bart" (Baronet), "VC" (Victoria Cross) and "GC" (George Cross).


title: Order of the Garter

text: In their heraldic achievements, members of the Order of the Garter may encircle their escutcheon with the Garter. Knights and Ladies Companion are also entitled to receive heraldic supporters, a privilege granted to few other private individuals. While some families claim supporters by ancient use, and others have been granted them as a special reward, only members of the Royal Family, peers, Knights and Ladies Companion of the Garter, Knights and Ladies of the Thistle, and Knights and Dames Grand Cross of the junior orders of chivalry are automatically entitled to them.


title: Mank

text: Mank is a 2020 American black-and-white biographical drama film about screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz and his development of the screenplay for "Citizen Kane" (1941). It was directed by David Fincher based on a screenplay by his late father Jack Fincher and was produced by Ceán Chaffin, Douglas Urbanski, and Eric Roth. It stars Gary Oldman in the title role, alongside Amanda Seyfried, Lily Collins, Arliss Howard, Tom Pelphrey, Sam Troughton, Ferdinand Kingsley, Tuppence Middleton, Tom Burke, Joseph Cross, Jamie McShane, Toby Leonard Moore, , and Charles Dance.


title: Mank

text: Jack Fincher wrote the script in the 1990s, and David originally intended to film it after he completed "The Game" (1997), with Kevin Spacey and Jodie Foster as the leads. It never came to fruition, and Jack Fincher died in 2003. Eventually, the project was officially announced in July 2019, and filming took place around Los Angeles from November 2019 to February 2020. To pay homage to the films of the 1930s, "Mank" was shot in black-and-white using RED cameras.


title: Mank

text: "Mank" had a limited theatrical release on November 13, 2020 and began streaming on Netflix on December 4. The film received critical acclaim, and was praised for Fincher's direction, as well as the acting (particularly Oldman and Seyfried), cinematography, production values, and musical score. The film earned a leading ten nominations at the 93rd Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Oldman), and Best Supporting Actress (Seyfried), and won for Best Production Design and Best Cinematography. It also received a leading six nominations at the 78th Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture – Drama.


title: Mank

text: In 1940, Orson Welles is given complete creative freedom for his next project by RKO. For the screenplay, Welles recruits Herman J. Mankiewicz, who is in Victorville, California, recovering from a broken leg he sustained in a car crash. Herman dictates the script to his secretary, Rita Alexander, who notices similarities between the main character (Charles Foster Kane) and William Randolph Hearst. Producer John Houseman is concerned about Herman's dense, nonlinear screenplay, while Herman's brother Joseph worries that it may anger the powerful Hearst.


title: Mank

text: In 1930, Herman visits an MGM location where he and the female lead, Marion Davies, recognize each other. She introduces him to Hearst, her benefactor and lover, who takes a liking to Herman. In 1933, Herman and his wife Sara attend Louis B. Mayer's birthday party at Hearst Castle with many Hollywood bigwigs. They discuss the rise of Nazi Germany and the upcoming gubernatorial election, in particular candidate Upton Sinclair. Herman and Marion go for a stroll, where they bond over discussions on politics and the film industry.


title: Mank

text: In 1940, Houseman grows impatient over Herman's lack of progress. Rita is also concerned with the timing of the writing and Herman's alcoholism. He does finish the screenplay in time. Houseman is impressed but reminds Herman that he will receive no credit for his work.


title: Mank

text: In 1934, Herman and Joseph begin working at MGM under Mayer. Studio executives, including Irving Thalberg, actively work against Sinclair's gubernatorial campaign. The studio produces propaganda films for a smear campaign, funded by Hearst, against Sinclair. Herman approaches Marion to pull the films but is unsuccessful as she has already left the studio for Warner Bros. Herman and Sara later attend an election night watch party at the Trocadero Nightclub, where Mayer announces the winner, Frank Merriam. Herman's colleague, director Shelly Metcalf, shoots and kills himself after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and guilt-ridden over his role in the smear campaign, despite personally supporting Sinclair.


title: Mank

text: In 1940, Charles Lederer picks up the screenplay from Herman to deliver to the studio. Joseph visits Herman after reading it, warning him of Hearst's reaction and how it might affect Marion. He does, however, believe that it is the finest thing Herman has ever written. Marion also visits and does her best to persuade Herman to change the screenplay but to no avail. She tells Herman she will try to stop the picture from getting made.


title: Mank

text: In 1937, Herman crashes a party at Hearst Castle, where he drunkenly pitches the idea for the film he will later write, offending everyone present, including Hearst, Mayer, and Marion. An enraged Mayer reveals that Herman is on Hearst's payroll and calls him a court jester. Hearst tells him an allegory about a monkey and an organ grinder and sees him out.


title: Mank

text: In 1940, despite pressure from Hearst, Welles is determined to make the film and intends to do a re-write without Herman. He visits Herman and offers him a buyout from the studio. However, reneging on the terms of his contract, Herman requests credit for the script, declaring it his greatest work. An upset Welles tells Herman that he has gone to bat for him before leaving angrily. Herman ultimately receives joint credit with Welles, and they win the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the film ("Citizen Kane") two years later.


title: Mank

text: Many other Hollywood icons are portrayed, including George S. Kaufman, Greta Garbo, Josef von Sternberg, Norma Shearer, Eleanor Boardman, Joan Crawford, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Billie Dove, Rexford Tugwell, Bette Davis, Clark Gable, Charles MacArthur, Darryl F. Zanuck, S. J. Perelman, Carole Lombard, and Eddie Cantor.


title: Mank

text: "Mank" was officially announced in July 2019, when David Fincher said he would direct the film, with Gary Oldman set to star. The screenplay was written by Fincher's father, Jack Fincher, prior to his death in 2003. It was originally going to be Fincher's follow-up to "The Game" (1997) with Kevin Spacey and Jodie Foster set to star but never came to fruition due to Fincher's insistence on shooting in black-and-white. Additional casting was announced in October, with Amanda Seyfried, Lily Collins, Tuppence Middleton, Arliss Howard, and Charles Dance among the new cast added.


title: Mank

text: Fincher reunites with much of his usual filmmaking team, including production designer Donald Graham Burt, editor Kirk Baxter, and composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, using only period-authentic instruments. Fincher opted for cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt, with whom he worked on his Netflix series "Mindhunter".


title: Mank

text: The 120-page draft of the initial script revealed that Jack Fincher closely followed a claim voiced by Pauline Kael in her 1971 "New Yorker" article "Raising Kane" that Welles did not deserve screenwriting credit. The article angered many critics, including Welles's friend and fellow filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich who rebutted Kael's claims point by point in "The Kane Mutiny", an October 1972 article for "Esquire". Her argument was discredited by several film scholars through the years, including Robert L. Carringer in his study of "The Scripts of "Citizen Kane"."


title: Mank

text: Many current academics and critics were sparked to action by "Mank"'s many-times over debunked premise that the script was Mankiewicz's alone, including "NY Times" writer Ben Kenigsberg, and Jonathan Rosenbaum, editor of the Welles-Bogdanovich book "This Is Orson Welles", who wrote "...Finchers Senior and Junior, willing and eager to accept and further spread Kael’s inaccurate assertion that Herman J. Mankiewicz was the only screenwriter on Citizen Kane, not bothering to research the matter."


title: Mank

text: "Mank" producer Eric Roth reportedly polished the script prior to filming, with David Fincher saying he felt early drafts were too anti-Welles. When asked about the controversy surrounding authorship, Fincher stated that his movie does not aim to settle the issue: "It was not my interest to make a movie about a posthumous credit arbitration. I was interested in making a movie about a man who agreed not to take any credit. And who then changed his mind. That was interesting to me."


title: Mank

text: Filming began on November 1, 2019, in Los Angeles. It also took place in Victorville, California, and wrapped on February 4, 2020. The film was shot in black and white on Fincher's preferred RED digital camera and made reference to the aesthetics of "Citizen Kane" cinematographer Gregg Toland. Dance stated that a scene involving a drunken Mankiewicz took over 100 takes, while Seyfried said that one of her scenes took over a week and 200 takes to shoot. She stated, "It does feel like "Groundhog Day", in a way, but that's how [Fincher] captures things that most people don't." The moonlight stroll between Mankiewicz and Davies was filmed at Huntington Gardens and a Pasadena mansion during the day, although it takes place at night. This was done using the day for night technique. Shooting it during the day was necessary for the lighting Messerschmidt needed for the scene.


title: Mank

text: For designing the costumes, costume designer Trish Summerville and production designer Donald Graham Burt used the noir and monochromatic filters on their iPhones to see how they would look in black and white. Because the film was shot in black and white and not converted afterwards, it meant Summerville had to pick colors that would pop. She looked at photos from 1930s Hollywood to see what was worn at the time.


title: Mank

text: Fincher's frequent collaborators Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross composed the score for "Mank". Forgoing their usual synth-heavy style, Reznor and Ross used period-authentic instrumentation from the 1940s to accompany the film. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, each member of the orchestra recorded their sections for the score from home. The entire soundtrack is composed of songs written and performed by Reznor and Ross and runs for 52 tracks at over an hour and a half, and was released by The Null Corporation on December 4, 2020, the same day coinciding with the film's release. An extended soundtrack (featuring unreleased music and demos not featured in the film) that runs over three hours with 87 tracks, was released through Bandcamp the following week, December 11.


title: Mank

text: "Mank" was released in a limited theatrical release in the United States on November 13, 2020, before beginning to stream worldwide on Netflix on December 4, 2020.


title: Mank

text: IndieWire reported the film played in 75 theaters during its opening weekend and did "similar business" as other new indie releases "The Climb" and "Ammonite", which each averaged about $300 per venue (which would mean a $22,500 debut for "Mank"). Upon the film's release onto Netflix, it only managed to finish in the top-10 on its first day. IndieWire wrote that it just "didn't gain the attention of other high-profile originals like "Da 5 Bloods", "The Trial of the Chicago 7", and "Hillbilly Elegy"," all of which debuted in first or second place.


title: Mank

text: Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports that of critic reviews were positive, with an average rating of . The site's critics consensus reads: "Sharply written and brilliantly performed, "Mank" peers behind the scenes of "Citizen Kane" to tell an old Hollywood story that could end up being a classic in its own right." According to Metacritic, which compiled 52 reviews and calculated a weighted average score of 79 out of 100, the film received "generally favorable reviews".


title: Mank

text: Eric Kohn of "IndieWire" gave the film a "B+" and wrote: "However much credit Mankiewicz deserves for "Kane," Fincher's remarkable movie makes a compelling argument for appreciating the prescience behind its conception. His life had a rough ending, but the movie about it gives him one last bitter laugh." Writing for the "Los Angeles Times", Justin Chang said, ""Mank" demands your surrender, but also your heightened attention. It's a pleasurably discombobulating experience, sometimes playing like mordant drawing-room comedy and sometimes flirting with expressionist nightmare, as when Welles' dark silhouette looms over a bedridden Mank and his mummified leg."


title: Mank

text: Owen Gleiberman of "Variety" praised the performances and production design, saying, ""Mank" is a tale of Old Hollywood that's more steeped in Old Hollywood – its glamour and sleaze, its layer-cake hierarchies, its corruption and glory – than just about any movie you've seen, and the effect is to lend it a dizzying time-machine splendor." Peter Travers, reviewing the film for ABC News, wrote: ""Mank" is the most gorgeous piece of cinema you'll see anywhere. Brilliantly shot in black-and-white by Erik Messerschmidt, with costumes to die for by Trish Summerville and a period-authentic score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross that somehow isn't defeated by the retro mono sound, "Mank" is meant to match the look and feel of its era, as if it's eight decades ago and you just bought a ticket."


title: Mank

text: Jason Bailey of "The Playlist" was more mixed and gave the film a "C+" grade, calling it a "gorgeously mounted but ultimately distant biopic". "The A.V. Club"'s Ignatiy Vishnevetsky thought it was "conventional to a fault", writing that parts of the film "bear an uncanny resemblance to the kind of awards-bait middlebrow drama usually essayed by BBC-trained hacks."


title: Mank

text: "Mank" appeared on 50 critics' year-end top-10 lists, including four first-place rankings and five second place ones.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz. The name comes from the Koine Greek αμέθυστος "amethystos" from α- "a-", "not" and μεθύσκω (Ancient Greek) / μεθώ (Modern Greek), "intoxicate", a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness. Ancient Greeks wore amethyst and carved drinking vessels from it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst, a semiprecious stone, is often used in jewelry and is the traditional birthstone for February.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is a purple variety of quartz (SiO) and owes its violet color to irradiation, impurities of iron and in some cases other transition metals, and the presence of other trace elements, which result in complex crystal lattice substitutions. The hardness of the mineral is the same as quartz, thus making it suitable for use in jewelry.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst occurs in primary hues from a light lavender or pale violet to a deep purple. Amethyst may exhibit one or both secondary hues, red and blue. High-quality amethyst can be found in Siberia, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Uruguay, and the Far East. The ideal grade, called "Deep Siberian", has a primary purple hue of around 75–80%, with 15–20% blue and (depending on the light source) red secondary hues. "Rose de France" is defined by its markedly light shade of the purple, reminiscent of a lavender/lilac shade. These pale colors were once considered undesirable, but have recently become popular due to intensive marketing.


title: Amethyst

text: Green quartz is sometimes incorrectly called green amethyst, which is a misnomer and not an appropriate name for the material, as the proper terminology is prasiolite. Other names for green quartz are vermarine or lime citrine.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst frequently shows color zoning, with the most intense color typically found at the crystal terminations. It is the most prized variety of quartz. One of a gem cutter’s tasks is to make a finished product with even color. Sometimes, only a thin layer of a natural, uncut amethyst is violet colored, or the color is very uneven. The uncut gem may have only a small portion that is suitable for faceting.


title: Amethyst

text: The color of amethyst has been demonstrated to result from substitution by irradiation of trivalent iron (Fe) for silicon in the structure, in the presence of trace elements of large ionic radius, and to a certain extent, the amethyst color can naturally result from displacement of transition elements even if the iron concentration is low. Natural amethyst is dichroic in reddish violet and bluish violet, but when heated, turns yellow-orange, yellow-brown, or dark brownish and may resemble citrine, but loses its dichroism, unlike genuine citrine. When partially heated, amethyst can result in ametrine.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst can fade in tone if overexposed to light sources, and can be artificially darkened with adequate irradiation. It does not fluoresce under either short-wave or long-wave UV light.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is found in many locations around the world. Between 2000 and 2010, the greatest production was from Marabá and Pau d'Arco, Pará, and the Paraná Basin, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Sandoval, Santa Cruz, Bolivia; Artigas, Uruguay; Kalomo, Zambia; and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lesser amounts are found in many other locations in Africa, Brazil, Spain, Argentina, Russia, Afghanistan, South Korea, Mexico, and the United States.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is produced in abundance in the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil where it occurs in large geodes within volcanic rocks. Many of the hollow agates of southwestern Brazil and Uruguay contain a crop of amethyst crystals in the interior. Artigas, Uruguay and neighboring Brazilian state Rio Grande do Sul are large world producers, with lesser quantities mined in Minas Gerais and Bahia states.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is also found and mined in South Korea. The large opencast amethyst vein at Maissau, Lower Austria, was historically important, but is no longer included among significant producers. Much fine amethyst comes from Russia, especially near Mursinka in the Ekaterinburg district, where it occurs in drusy cavities in granitic rocks. Amethyst was historically mined in many localities in south India, though these are no longer significant producers. One of the largest global amethyst producers is Zambia in southern Africa, with an annual production around 1000 tons.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst occurs at many localities in the United States. The most important production is at Four Peaks, Gila and Maricopa Counties, Arizona, and Jackson's Crossroads, Wilkes County, Georgia.


title: Amethyst

text: Smaller occurrences have been reported in the Red Feather Lakes, near Fort Collins, Colorado; Amethyst Mountain, Texas; Yellowstone National Park; Delaware County, Pennsylvania; Haywood County, North Carolina; Deer Hill and Stow, Maine, and in the Lake Superior region of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is relatively common in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Nova Scotia. The largest amethyst mine in North America is located in Thunder Bay, Ontario.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst is the official state gemstone of South Carolina. Several South Carolina amethysts are on display at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst was used as a gemstone by the ancient Egyptians and was largely employed in antiquity for intaglio engraved gems.


title: Amethyst

text: The Greeks believed amethyst gems could prevent intoxication, while medieval European soldiers wore amethyst amulets as protection in battle in the belief that amethysts heal people and keep them cool-headed. Beads of amethyst were found in Anglo-Saxon graves in England. Anglican bishops wear an episcopal ring often set with an amethyst, an allusion to the description of the Apostles as "not drunk" at Pentecost in Acts 2:15.


title: Amethyst

text: A large geode, or "amethyst-grotto", from near Santa Cruz in southern Brazil was presented at a 1902 exhibition in Düsseldorf, Germany.


title: Amethyst

text: The meaning of amethyst varies from time to time and culture, which is why amethyst has different meanings in Feng Shui and focuses on increasing wealth. In ancient China, it was also used as a powerful tool to remove negative energies and drive away the hazards of daily life.


title: Amethyst

text: Synthetic (laboratory-grown) amethyst is produced by a synthesis method called hydrothermal growth, which grows the crystals inside a high-pressure autoclave.


title: Amethyst

text: Synthetic amethyst is made to imitate the best quality amethyst. Its chemical and physical properties are the same as those of natural amethyst, and it cannot be differentiated with absolute certainty without advanced gemmological testing (which is often cost-prohibitive). One test based on "Brazil law twinning" (a form of quartz twinning where right- and left-hand quartz structures are combined in a single crystal) can be used to identify most synthetic amethyst rather easily. Synthesizing twinned amethyst is possible, but this type is not available in large quantities in the market.


title: Amethyst

text: Treated amethyst is produced by gamma ray, X-ray, or electron-beam irradiation of clear quartz (rock crystal), which has been first doped with ferric impurities. Exposure to heat partially cancels the irradiation effects and amethyst generally becomes yellow or even green. Much of the citrine, cairngorm, or yellow quartz of jewelry is said to be merely "burnt amethyst".


title: Amethyst

text: The Greek word "amethystos" may be translated as "not drunken", from Greek "a-", "not" + , "intoxicated". Amethyst was considered to be a strong antidote against drunkenness, which is why wine goblets were often carved from it. In his poem "L'Amethyste, ou les Amours de Bacchus et d'Amethyste" (Amethyst or the loves of Bacchus and Amethyste), the French poet Remy Belleau (1528–1577) invented a myth in which Bacchus, the god of intoxication, of wine, and grapes was pursuing a maiden named Amethyste, who refused his affections. Amethyste prayed to the gods to remain chaste, a prayer which the chaste goddess Diana answered, transforming her into a white stone. Humbled by Amethyste's desire to remain chaste, Bacchus poured wine over the stone as an offering, dyeing the crystals purple.


title: Amethyst

text: Variations of the story include that Dionysus had been insulted by a mortal and swore to slay the next mortal who crossed his path, creating fierce tigers to carry out his wrath. The mortal turned out to be a beautiful young woman, Amethystos, who was on her way to pay tribute to Artemis. Her life was spared by Artemis, who transformed the maiden into a statue of pure crystalline quartz to protect her from the brutal claws. Dionysus wept tears of wine in remorse for his action at the sight of the beautiful statue. The god's tears then stained the quartz purple.


title: Amethyst

text: This myth and its variations are not found in classical sources. However, the goddess Rhea does present Dionysus with an amethyst stone to preserve the wine-drinker's sanity in historical text.


title: Amethyst

text: Tibetans consider amethyst sacred to the Buddha and make prayer beads from it. Amethyst is considered the birthstone of February. In the Middle Ages, it was considered a symbol of royalty and used to decorate English regalia. In the Old World, amethyst was considered one of the cardinal gems, in that it was one of the five gemstones considered precious above all others, until large deposits were found in Brazil.


title: Amethyst

text: Until the 18th century, amethyst was included in the cardinal, or most valuable, gemstones (along with diamond, sapphire, ruby, and emerald), but since the discovery of extensive deposits in locations such as Brazil, it has lost most of its value. It is now considered a semiprecious stone.


title: Amethyst

text: Collectors look for depth of color, possibly with red flashes if cut conventionally. As amethyst is readily available in large structures, the value of the gem is not primarily defined by carat weight. This is different from most gemstones, since the carat weight typically exponentially increases the value of the stone. The biggest factor in the value of amethyst is the color displayed.


title: Amethyst

text: The highest-grade amethyst (called "Deep Russian") is exceptionally rare. When one is found, its value is dependent on the demand of collectors. The highest-grade sapphires or rubies are still orders of magnitude more expensive than amethyst.


title: Amethyst

text: The most suitable setting for gem amethyst is a prong or a bezel setting. The channel method must be used with caution.


title: Amethyst

text: Amethyst has a good hardness, and handling it with proper care will prevent any damage to the stone. Amethyst is sensitive to strong heat and may lose or change its colour when exposed to prolonged heat or light. Polishing the stone or cleaning it by ultrasonic or steamer must be done with caution.


title: Amethyst

text: Kostov, R. I. 1992. "Amethyst. A Geological-Mineralogical and Gemmological Essay." Union of Scientists in Bulgaria, Sofia, 249 p. (in Bulgarian with English abstract)


title: Amethyst

text: Lieber, W. 1994. "Amethyst. Geschichte, Eigenschaften, Fundorte". Christian Weise Verlag, München, 188 S.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee (; , or ) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern North Carolina, southeastern Tennessee, edges of western South Carolina, northern Georgia, and northeastern Alabama.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee language is part of the Iroquoian language group. In the 19th century, James Mooney, an early American ethnographer, recorded one oral tradition that told of the tribe having migrated south in ancient times from the Great Lakes region, where other Iroquoian peoples have been based. However, anthropologist Thomas R. Whyte, writing in 2007, dated the split among the peoples as occurring earlier. He believes that the origin of the proto-Iroquoian language was likely the Appalachian region, and the split between Northern and Southern Iroquoian languages began 4,000 years ago.


title: Cherokee

text: By the 19th century, White American settlers had classified the Cherokee of the Southeast as one of the "Five Civilized Tribes" in the region. They were agrarian, lived in permanent villages, and had begun to adopt some cultural and technological practices of the white settlers. They also developed their own writing system.


title: Cherokee

text: Today, three Cherokee tribes are federally recognized: the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians (UKB) in Oklahoma, the Cherokee Nation (CN) in Oklahoma, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) in North Carolina.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee Nation has more than 300,000 tribal members, making it the largest of the 574 federally recognized tribes in the United States. In addition, numerous groups claim Cherokee lineage, and some of these are state-recognized. A total of more than 819,000 people are estimated to have identified as having Cherokee ancestry on the U.S. census; most are not enrolled members of any tribe.


title: Cherokee

text: Of the three federally recognized Cherokee tribes, the Cherokee Nation and the UKB have headquarters in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and most of their members live in the state. The UKB are mostly descendants of "Old Settlers", also called Western Cherokee: those who migrated from the Southeast to Arkansas and Oklahoma about 1817 prior to Indian Removal. They are related to the Cherokee who were later forcibly relocated there in the 1830s under the Indian Removal Act. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is located on land known as the Qualla Boundary in western North Carolina. They are mostly descendants of ancestors who had resisted or avoided relocation, remaining in the area. Because they gave up tribal membership at the time, they became state and US citizens. In the late 19th century, they reorganized as a federally recognized tribe.


title: Cherokee

text: A Cherokee language name for Cherokee people is Aniyvwiyaʔi (, also spelled Anigiduwagi), translating as "Principal People". "Tsalagi" () is the Cherokee word for the Cherokee language.


title: Cherokee

text: Many theories, though all unproven, abound about the origin of the name "Cherokee". It may have originally been derived from one of the competitive tribes in the area. For instance, the Choctaw word "Cha-la-kee" means "people who live in the mountains", and Choctaw "Chi-luk-ik-bi", means "people who live in the cave country". The Cherokee did live along rivers in mountainous areas.


title: Cherokee

text: The earliest Spanish transliteration of the name, from 1755, is recorded as "Tchalaquei", but it dates to accounts related to the Hernando de Soto expedition in the mid-16th century. Another theory is that "Cherokee" derives from a Lower Creek word "Cvlakke" ("chuh-log-gee"), as the Creek were also in this mountainous region.


title: Cherokee

text: The Iroquois Five Nations, historically based in New York and Pennsylvania, called the Cherokee "Oyata'ge'ronoñ" ("inhabitants of the cave country"). It is possible the word "Cherokee" comes from a Muscogee Creek word meaning “people of different speech”, because the two peoples spoke different languages.


title: Cherokee

text: Anthropologists and historians have two main theories of Cherokee origins. One is that the Cherokee, an Iroquoian-speaking people, are relative latecomers to Southern Appalachia, who may have migrated in late prehistoric times from northern areas around the Great Lakes. This has been the traditional territory of the "Haudenosaunee" nations and other Iroquoian-speaking peoples. Another theory is that the Cherokee had been in the Southeast for thousands of years and that proto-Iroquoian developed here. Other Iroquoian-speaking tribes in the Southeast have been the Tuscarora people of the Carolinas, and the Meherrin and Nottaway of Virginia.


title: Cherokee

text: James Mooney in the late 19th century recorded conversations with elders who recounted an oral tradition of the Cherokee people migrating south from the Great Lakes region in ancient times. They occupied territories where earthwork platform mounds were built by peoples during the earlier Woodland and Mississippian culture periods.


title: Cherokee

text: For example, the people of the Connestee culture period are believed to be ancestors of the historic Cherokee and occupied what is now Western North Carolina in the Middle Woodland period, circa 200 to 600 CE. They are believed to have built what is called the Biltmore Mound, found in 1984 south of the Swannanoa River on the Biltmore Estate, which has numerous Native American sites.


title: Cherokee

text: Other ancestors of the Cherokee are considered to be part of the later Pisgah phase of South Appalachian Mississippian culture, a regional variation of the Mississippian culture that arose circa 1000 and lasted to 1500 CE. There is a consensus among most specialists in Southeast archeology and anthropology about these dates. But Finger says that ancestors of the Cherokee people lived in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee for a far longer period of time. Additional mounds were built by peoples during this cultural phase. Typically in this region, towns had a single platform mound and served as a political center for smaller villages.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee occupied numerous towns throughout the river valleys and mountain ridges of their homelands. What were called the Lower towns were found in what is present-day western Oconee County, South Carolina, along the Keowee River (called the Savannah River in its lower portion). The principal town of the Lower Towns was Keowee. Other Cherokee towns on the Keowee River included Etastoe and Sugartown ("Kulsetsiyi"), a name repeated in other areas.


title: Cherokee

text: In western North Carolina, what were known as the Valley, Middle, and Outer Towns were located along the major rivers of the Tuckasegee, the upper Little Tennessee, Hiwasee, French Broad and other systems. The Overhill Cherokee occupied towns along the lower Little Tennessee River and upper Tennessee River on the western side of the Appalachian Mountains, in present-day southeastern Tennessee.


title: Cherokee

text: During the late Archaic and Woodland Period, Native Americans in the region began to cultivate plants such as marsh elder, lambsquarters, pigweed, sunflowers, and some native squash. People created new art forms such as shell gorgets, adopted new technologies, and developed an elaborate cycle of religious ceremonies.


title: Cherokee

text: During the Mississippian culture-period (1000 to 1500 CE in the regional variation known as the South Appalachian Mississippian culture), local women developed a new variety of maize (corn) called eastern flint corn. It closely resembled modern corn and produced larger crops. The successful cultivation of corn surpluses allowed the rise of larger, more complex chiefdoms consisting of several villages and concentrated populations during this period. Corn became celebrated among numerous peoples in religious ceremonies, especially the Green Corn Ceremony.


title: Cherokee

text: Much of what is known about pre-18th-century Native American cultures has come from records of Spanish expeditions. The earliest ones of the mid-16th-century encountered peoples of the Mississippian culture era, who were ancestral to tribes that emerged in the Southeast, such as the Cherokee, Muscogee, Cheraw, and Catawba. Specifically in 1540-41, a Spanish expedition led by Hernando de Soto passed through present-day South Carolina, proceeding into western North Carolina and what is considered Cherokee country. The Spanish recorded a "Chalaque" people as living around the Keowee River, where western North Carolina, South Carolina, and northeastern Georgia meet. The Cherokee consider this area to be part of their homelands, which also extended into southeastern Tennessee.


title: Cherokee

text: Further west, De Soto's expedition visited villages in present-day northwestern Georgia, recording them as ruled at the time by the Coosa chiefdom. This is believed to be a chiefdom ancestral to the Muscogee Creek people, who developed as a Muskogean-speaking people with a distinct culture.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1566, the Juan Pardo expedition traveled from the present-day South Carolina coast into its interior, and into western North Carolina and southeastern Tennessee. He recorded meeting Cherokee-speaking people who visited him while he stayed at the Joara chiefdom (north of present-day Morganton, North Carolina). The historic Catawba later lived in this area of the upper Catawba River. Pardo and his forces wintered over at Joara, building Fort San Juan there in 1567.


title: Cherokee

text: His expedition proceeded into the interior, noting villages near modern Asheville and other places that are part of the Cherokee homelands. According to anthropologist Charles M. Hudson, the Pardo expedition also recorded encounters with Muskogean-speaking peoples at Chiaha in southeastern modern Tennessee.


title: Cherokee

text: Linguistic studies have been another way for researchers to study the development of people and their cultures. Unlike most other Native American tribes in the American Southeast at the start of the historic era, the Cherokee and Tuscarora people spoke Iroquoian languages. Since the Great Lakes region was the territory of most Iroquoian-language speakers, scholars have theorized that both the Cherokee and Tuscarora migrated south from that region. The Cherokee oral history tradition supports their migration from the Great Lakes.


title: Cherokee

text: Linguistic analysis shows a relatively large difference between Cherokee and the northern Iroquoian languages, suggesting they had migrated long ago. Scholars posit a split between the groups in the distant past, perhaps 3500–3800 years ago. Glottochronology studies suggest the split occurred between about 1,500 and 1,800 BCE. The Cherokee say that the ancient settlement of "Kituwa" on the Tuckasegee River is their original settlement in the Southeast. It was formerly adjacent to and is now part of Qualla Boundary (the base of the federally recognized Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians) in North Carolina.


title: Cherokee

text: According to Thomas Whyte, who posits that proto-Iroquoian developed in Appalachia, the Cherokee and Tuscarora broke off in the Southeast from the major group of Iroquoian speakers who migrated north to the Great Lakes area. There a succession of Iroquoian-speaking tribes were encountered by Europeans in historic times.


title: Cherokee

text: In the 1830s, the American writer John Howard Payne visited Cherokee then based in Georgia. He recounted what they shared about pre-19th-century Cherokee culture and society. For instance, the Payne papers describe the account by Cherokee elders of a traditional two-part societal structure. A "white" organization of elders represented the seven clans. As Payne recounted, this group, which was hereditary and priestly, was responsible for religious activities, such as healing, purification, and prayer. A second group of younger men, the "red" organization, was responsible for warfare. The Cherokee considered warfare a polluting activity. After warfare, the warriors required purification by the priestly class before participants could reintegrate into normal village life. This hierarchy had disappeared long before the 18th century.


title: Cherokee

text: Researchers have debated the reasons for the change. Some historians believe the decline in priestly power originated with a revolt by the Cherokee against the abuses of the priestly class known as the "Ani-kutani". Ethnographer James Mooney, who studied and talked with the Cherokee in the late 1880s, was the first to trace the decline of the former hierarchy to this revolt. By the time that Mooney was studying the people in the late 1880s, the structure of Cherokee religious practitioners was more informal, based more on individual knowledge and ability than upon heredity.


title: Cherokee

text: Another major source of early cultural history comes from materials written in the 19th century by the "didanvwisgi" (), Cherokee medicine men, after Sequoyah's creation of the Cherokee syllabary in the 1820s. Initially only the "didanvwisgi" learned to write and read such materials, which were considered extremely powerful in a spiritual sense. Later, the syllabary and writings were widely adopted by the Cherokee people.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1657, there was a disturbance in Virginia Colony as the "Rechahecrians" or "Rickahockans", as well as the Siouan "Manahoac" and "Nahyssan", broke through the frontier and settled near the Falls of the James River, near present-day Richmond, Virginia. The following year, a combined force of English colonists and Pamunkey drove the newcomers away. The identity of the "Rechahecrians" has been much debated. Historians noted the name closely resembled that recorded for the "Eriechronon" or "Erielhonan", commonly known as the Erie tribe, another Iroquoian-speaking people based south of the Great Lakes in present-day northern Pennsylvania. This Iroquoian people had been driven away from the southern shore of Lake Erie in 1654 by the powerful Iroquois Five Nations, also known as "Haudenosaunee", who were seeking more hunting grounds to support their dominance in the beaver fur trade. The anthropologist Martin Smith theorized some remnants of the tribe migrated to Virginia after the wars (1986:131–32), later becoming known as the Westo to English colonists in the Province of Carolina. A few historians suggest this tribe was Cherokee.


title: Cherokee

text: Virginian traders developed a small-scale trading system with the Cherokee in the Piedmont before the end of the 17th century. The earliest recorded Virginia trader to live among the Cherokee was Cornelius Dougherty or Dority, in 1690.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee gave sanctuary to a band of Shawnee in the 1660s. But from 1710 to 1715 the Cherokee and Chickasaw allied with the British, and fought the Shawnee, who were allied with French colonists, forcing the Shawnee to move northward.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee fought with the Yamasee, Catawba, and British in late 1712 and early 1713 against the Tuscarora in the Second Tuscarora War. The Tuscarora War marked the beginning of a British-Cherokee relationship that, despite breaking down on occasion, remained strong for much of the 18th century. With the growth of the deerskin trade, the Cherokee were considered valuable trading partners, since deer skins from the cooler country of their mountain hunting-grounds were of better quality than those supplied by the lowland coastal tribes, who were neighbors of the English colonists.


title: Cherokee

text: In January 1716, Cherokee murdered a delegation of Muscogee Creek leaders at the town of Tugaloo, marking their entry into the Yamasee War. It ended in 1717 with peace treaties between the colony of South Carolina and the Creek. Hostility and sporadic raids between the Cherokee and Creek continued for decades. These raids came to a head at the Battle of Taliwa in 1755, at present-day Ball Ground, Georgia, with the defeat of the Muscogee.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1721, the Cherokee ceded lands in South Carolina. In 1730, at Nikwasi, a Cherokee town and Mississippian culture site, a Scots adventurer, Sir Alexander Cuming, crowned Moytoy of Tellico as "Emperor" of the Cherokee. Moytoy agreed to recognize King George II of Great Britain as the Cherokee protector. Cuming arranged to take seven prominent Cherokee, including "Attakullakulla", to London, England. There the Cherokee delegation signed the Treaty of Whitehall with the British. Moytoy's son, Amo-sgasite (Dreadful Water), attempted to succeed him as "Emperor" in 1741, but the Cherokee elected their own leader, Conocotocko (Old Hop) of Chota.


title: Cherokee

text: Political power among the Cherokee remained decentralized, and towns acted autonomously. In 1735 the Cherokee were said to have sixty-four towns and villages, with an estimated fighting force of 6,000 men. In 1738 and 1739 smallpox epidemics broke out among the Cherokee, who had no natural immunity to the new infectious disease. Nearly half their population died within a year. Hundreds of other Cherokee committed suicide due to their losses and disfigurement from the disease.


title: Cherokee

text: British colonial officer Henry Timberlake, born in Virginia, described the Cherokee people as he saw them in 1761:


title: Cherokee

text: From 1753 to 1755, battles broke out between the Cherokee and Muscogee over disputed hunting grounds in North Georgia. The Cherokee were victorious in the Battle of Taliwa. British soldiers built forts in Cherokee country to defend against the French in the Seven Years' War, which was fought across Europe and was called the French and Indian War on the North American front. These included Fort Loudoun near Chota on the Tennessee River in eastern Tennessee. Serious misunderstandings arose quickly between the two allies, resulting in the 1760 Anglo-Cherokee War.


title: Cherokee

text: King George III's Royal Proclamation of 1763 forbade British settlements west of the Appalachian crest, as his government tried to afford some protection from colonial encroachment to the Cherokee and other tribes they depended on as allies. The Crown found the ruling difficult to enforce with colonists.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1771–1772, North Carolinian settlers squatted on Cherokee lands in Tennessee, forming the Watauga Association. Daniel Boone and his party tried to settle in Kentucky, but the Shawnee, Delaware, Mingo, and some Cherokee attacked a scouting and forage party that included Boone's son. The American Indians used this territory as a hunting ground by right of conquest; it had hardly been inhabited for years. The conflict in Kentucky sparked the beginning of what was known as Dunmore's War (1773–1774).


title: Cherokee

text: In 1776, allied with the Shawnee led by Cornstalk, Cherokee attacked settlers in South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, and North Carolina in the Second Cherokee War. Overhill Cherokee Nancy Ward, Dragging Canoe's cousin, warned settlers of impending attacks. Provincial militias retaliated, destroying more than 50 Cherokee towns. North Carolina militia in 1776 and 1780 invaded and destroyed the Overhill towns in what is now Tennessee. In 1777, surviving Cherokee town leaders signed treaties with the new states.


title: Cherokee

text: Dragging Canoe and his band settled along Chickamauga Creek near present-day Chattanooga, Tennessee, where they established 11 new towns. Chickamauga Town was his headquarters and the colonists tended to call his entire band the Chickamauga to distinguish them from other Cherokee. From here he fought a guerrilla war against settlers, which lasted from 1776 to 1794. These are known informally as the Cherokee–American wars, but this is not a historian's term.


title: Cherokee

text: The first Treaty of Tellico Blockhouse, signed November 7, 1794, finally brought peace between the Cherokee and Americans, who had achieved independence from the British Crown. In 1805, the Cherokee ceded their lands between the Cumberland and Duck rivers (i.e. the Cumberland Plateau) to Tennessee.


title: Cherokee

text: The traders and British government agents dealing with the southern tribes in general, and the Cherokee in particular, were nearly all of Scottish ancestry, with many documented as being from the Highlands. A few were Scots-Irish, English, French, and German (see Scottish Indian trade). Many of these men married women from their host peoples and remained after the fighting had ended. Some of their mixed-race children, who were raised in Native American cultures, later became significant leaders among the Five Civilized Tribes of the Southeast.


title: Cherokee

text: Notable traders, agents, and refugee Tories among the Cherokee included John Stuart, Henry Stuart, Alexander Cameron, John McDonald, John Joseph Vann (father of James Vann), Daniel Ross (father of John Ross), John Walker Sr., John McLemore (father of Bob), William Buchanan, John Watts (father of John Watts Jr.), John D. Chisholm, John Benge (father of Bob Benge), Thomas Brown, John Rogers (Welsh), John Gunter (German, founder of Gunter's Landing), James Adair (Irish), William Thorpe (English), and Peter Hildebrand (German), among many others. Some attained the honorary status of minor chiefs and/or members of significant delegations.


title: Cherokee

text: By contrast, a large portion of the settlers encroaching on the Native American territories were Scots-Irish, Irish from Ulster who were of Scottish descent and had been part of the plantation of Ulster. They also tended to support the Revolution. But in the back country, there were also Scots-Irish who were Loyalists, such as Simon Girty.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee lands between the Tennessee and Chattahoochee rivers were remote enough from white settlers to remain independent after the Cherokee–American wars. The deerskin trade was no longer feasible on their greatly reduced lands, and over the next several decades, the people of the fledgling Cherokee Nation began to build a new society modeled on the white Southern United States.


title: Cherokee

text: George Washington sought to 'civilize' Southeastern American Indians, through programs overseen by the Indian Agent Benjamin Hawkins. He encouraged the Cherokee to abandon their communal land-tenure and settle on individual farmsteads, which was facilitated by the destruction of many American Indian towns during the American Revolutionary War. The deerskin trade brought white-tailed deer to the brink of extinction, and as pigs and cattle were introduced, they became the principal sources of meat. The government supplied the tribes with spinning wheels and cotton-seed, and men were taught to fence and plow the land, in contrast to their traditional division in which crop cultivation was woman's labor. Americans instructed the women in weaving. Eventually, Hawkins helped them set up smithies, gristmills and cotton plantations.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee organized a national government under Principal Chiefs Little Turkey (1788–1801), Black Fox (1801–1811), and Pathkiller (1811–1827), all former warriors of Dragging Canoe. The 'Cherokee triumvirate' of James Vann and his protégés The Ridge and Charles R. Hicks advocated acculturation, formal education, and modern methods of farming. In 1801 they invited Moravian missionaries from North Carolina to teach Christianity and the 'arts of civilized life.' The Moravians and later Congregationalist missionaries ran boarding schools, and a select few students were educated at the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions school in Connecticut.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1806 a Federal Road from Savannah, Georgia to Knoxville, Tennessee was built through Cherokee land. Chief James Vann opened a tavern, inn and ferry across the Chattahoochee and built a cotton-plantation on a spur of the road from Athens, Georgia to Nashville. His son 'Rich Joe' Vann developed the plantation to , cultivated by 150 slaves. He exported cotton to England, and owned a steamboat on the Tennessee River.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee allied with the U.S. against the nativist and pro-British Red Stick faction of the Upper Creek in the Creek War during the War of 1812. Cherokee warriors led by Major Ridge played a major role in General Andrew Jackson's victory at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. Major Ridge moved his family to Rome, Georgia, where he built a substantial house, developed a large plantation and ran a ferry on the Oostanaula River. Although he never learned English, he sent his son and nephews to New England to be educated in mission schools. His interpreter and protégé Chief John Ross, the descendant of several generations of Cherokee women and Scots fur-traders, built a plantation and operated a trading firm and a ferry at Ross' Landing (Chattanooga, Tennessee). During this period, divisions arose between the acculturated elite and the great majority of Cherokee, who clung to traditional ways of life.


title: Cherokee

text: Around 1809 Sequoyah began developing a written form of the Cherokee language. He spoke no English, but his experiences as a silversmith dealing regularly with white settlers, and as a warrior at Horseshoe Bend, convinced him the Cherokee needed to develop writing. In 1821, he introduced Cherokee syllabary, the first written syllabic form of an American Indian language outside of Central America. Initially, his innovation was opposed by both Cherokee traditionalists and white missionaries, who sought to encourage the use of English. When Sequoyah taught children to read and write with the syllabary, he reached the adults. By the 1820s, the Cherokee had a higher rate of literacy than the whites around them in Georgia.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1819, the Cherokee began holding council meetings at New Town, at the headwaters of the Oostanaula (near present-day Calhoun, Georgia). In November 1825, New Town became the capital of the Cherokee Nation, and was renamed New Echota, after the Overhill Cherokee principal town of Chota. Sequoyah's syllabary was adopted. They had developed a police force, a judicial system, and a National Committee.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1827, the Cherokee Nation drafted a Constitution modeled on the United States, with executive, legislative and judicial branches and a system of checks and balances. The two-tiered legislature was led by Major Ridge and his son John Ridge. Convinced the tribe's survival required English-speaking leaders who could negotiate with the U.S., the legislature appointed John Ross as Principal Chief. A printing press was established at New Echota by the Vermont missionary Samuel Worcester and Major Ridge's nephew Elias Boudinot, who had taken the name of his white benefactor, a leader of the Continental Congress and New Jersey Congressman. They translated the Bible into Cherokee syllabary. Boudinot published the first edition of the bilingual 'Cherokee Phoenix,' the first American Indian newspaper, in February 1828.


title: Cherokee

text: Before the final removal to present-day Oklahoma, many Cherokees relocated to present-day Arkansas, Missouri and Texas. Between 1775 and 1786 the Cherokee, along with people of other nations such as the Choctaw and Chickasaw, began voluntarily settling along the Arkansas and Red Rivers.


title: Cherokee

text: In 1802, the federal government promised to extinguish Indian titles to lands claimed by Georgia in return for Georgia's cession of the western lands that became Alabama and Mississippi. To convince the Cherokee to move voluntarily in 1815, the US government established a Cherokee Reservation in Arkansas. The reservation boundaries extended from north of the Arkansas River to the southern bank of the White River. Di'wali (The Bowl), Sequoyah, Spring Frog and Tatsi (Dutch) and their bands settled there. These Cherokees became known as "Old Settlers."


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee, eventually, migrated as far north as the Missouri Bootheel by 1816. They lived interspersed among the Delawares and Shawnees of that area. The Cherokee in Missouri Territory increased rapidly in population, from 1,000 to 6,000 over the next year (1816–1817), according to reports by Governor William Clark. Increased conflicts with the Osage Nation led to the Battle of Claremore Mound and the eventual establishment of Fort Smith between Cherokee and Osage communities. In the Treaty of St. Louis (1825), the Osage were made to "cede and relinquish to the United States, all their right, title, interest, and claim, to lands lying within the State of Missouri and Territory of Arkansas..." to make room for the Cherokee and the "Mashcoux", Muscogee Creeks. As late as the winter of 1838, Cherokee and Creek living in the Missouri and Arkansas areas petitioned the War Department to remove the Osage from the area.


title: Cherokee

text: A group of Cherokee traditionalists led by "Di'wali" moved to Spanish Texas in 1819. Settling near Nacogdoches, they were welcomed by Mexican authorities as potential allies against Anglo-American colonists. The Texas Cherokees were mostly neutral during the Texas War of Independence. In 1836, they signed a treaty with Texas President Sam Houston, an adopted member of the Cherokee tribe. His successor Mirabeau Lamar sent militia to evict them in 1839.


title: Cherokee

text: Following the War of 1812, and the concurrent Red Stick War, the U.S. government persuaded several groups of Cherokee to a voluntary removal to the Arkansaw Territory. These were the


title: Cherokee

text: "Old Settlers", the first of the Cherokee to make their way to what would eventually become Indian Territory (modern day Oklahoma). This effort was headed by Indian Agent Return J. Meigs, and was finalized with the signing of the Jackson and McMinn Treaty, giving the Old Settlers undisputed title to the lands designated for their use.


title: Cherokee

text: During this time, Georgia focused on removing the Cherokee's neighbors, the Lower Creek. Georgia Governor George Troup and his cousin William McIntosh, chief of the Lower Creek, signed the Treaty of Indian Springs in 1825, ceding the last Muscogee (Creek) lands claimed by Georgia. The state's northwestern border reached the Chattahoochee, the border of the Cherokee Nation. In 1829, gold was discovered at Dahlonega, on Cherokee land claimed by Georgia. The Georgia Gold Rush was the first in U.S. history, and state officials demanded that the federal government expel the Cherokee. When Andrew Jackson was inaugurated as President in 1829, Georgia gained a strong ally in Washington. In 1830 Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, authorizing the forcible relocation of American Indians east of the Mississippi to a new Indian Territory.


title: Cherokee

text: Jackson claimed the removal policy was an effort to prevent the Cherokee from facing extinction as a people, which he considered the fate that "...the Mohegan, the Narragansett, and the Delaware" had suffered. There is, however, ample evidence that the Cherokee were adapting to modern farming techniques. A modern analysis shows that the area was in general in a state of economic surplus and could have accommodated both the Cherokee and new settlers.


title: Cherokee

text: The Cherokee brought their grievances to a US judicial review that set a precedent in Indian country. John Ross traveled to Washington, D.C., and won support from National Republican Party leaders Henry Clay and Daniel Webster. Samuel Worcester campaigned on behalf of the Cherokee in New England, where their cause was taken up by Ralph Waldo Emerson (see Emerson's 1838 letter to Martin Van Buren). In June 1830, a delegation led by Chief Ross defended Cherokee rights before the U.S. Supreme Court in "Cherokee Nation v. Georgia".


title: Cherokee

text: In 1831 Georgia militia arrested Samuel Worcester for residing on Indian lands without a state permit, imprisoning him in Milledgeville. In "Worcester v. Georgia" (1832), the US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall ruled that American Indian nations were "distinct, independent political communities retaining their original natural rights," and entitled to federal protection from the actions of state governments that infringed on their sovereignty. "Worcester v. Georgia" is considered one of the most important dicta in law dealing with Native Americans.


title: Cherokee

text: Jackson ignored the Supreme Court's ruling, as he needed to conciliate Southern sectionalism during the era of the Nullification Crisis. His landslide reelection in 1832 emboldened calls for Cherokee removal. Georgia sold Cherokee lands to its citizens in a Land Lottery, and the state militia occupied New Echota. The Cherokee National Council, led by John Ross, fled to Red Clay, a remote valley north of Georgia's land claim. Ross had the support of Cherokee traditionalists, who could not imagine removal from their ancestral lands.


title: Cherokee

text: A small group known as the "Ridge Party" or the "Treaty Party" saw relocation as inevitable and believed the Cherokee Nation needed to make the best deal to preserve their rights in Indian Territory. Led by Major Ridge, John Ridge and Elias Boudinot, they represented the Cherokee elite, whose homes, plantations and businesses were confiscated, or under threat of being taken by white squatters with Georgia land-titles. With capital to acquire new lands, they were more inclined to accept relocation. On December 29, 1835, the "Ridge Party" signed the Treaty of New Echota, stipulating terms and conditions for the removal of the Cherokee Nation. In return for their lands, the Cherokee were promised a large tract in the Indian Territory, $5 million, and $300,000 for improvements on their new lands.


title: Cherokee

text: John Ross gathered over 15,000 signatures for a petition to the U.S. Senate, insisting that the treaty was invalid because it did not have the support of the majority of the Cherokee people. The Senate passed the Treaty of New Echota by a one-vote margin. It was enacted into law in May 1836.