title: Monism

text: In Advaita Vedanta, Brahman is the eternal, unchanging, infinite, immanent, and transcendent reality which is the Divine Ground of all matter, energy, time, space, being, and everything beyond in this Universe. The nature of Brahman is described as transpersonal, personal and impersonal by different philosophical schools.


title: Monism

text: Advaita Vedanta gives an elaborate path to attain moksha. It entails more than self-inquiry or bare insight into one's real nature. Practice, especially Jnana Yoga, is needed to "destroy one's tendencies (vāasanā-s)" before real insight can be attained.


title: Monism

text: Advaita took over from the Madhyamika the idea of levels of reality. Usually two levels are being mentioned, but Shankara uses sublation as the criterion to postulate an ontological hierarchy of three levels:


title: Monism

text: All Vaishnava schools are panentheistic and view the universe as part of Krishna or Narayana, but see a plurality of souls and substances within Brahman. Monistic theism, which includes the concept of a personal god as a universal, omnipotent Supreme Being who is both immanent and transcendent, is prevalent within many other schools of Hinduism as well.


title: Monism

text: Tantra sees the Divine as both immanent and transcendent. The Divine can be found in the concrete world. Practices are aimed at transforming the passions, instead of transcending them.


title: Monism

text: The colonisation of India by the British had a major impact on Hindu society. In response, leading Hindu intellectuals started to study western culture and philosophy, integrating several western notions into Hinduism. This modernised Hinduism, at its turn, has gained popularity in the west.


title: Monism

text: A major role was played in the 19th century by Swami Vivekananda in the revival of Hinduism, and the spread of Advaita Vedanta to the west via the Ramakrishna Mission. His interpretation of Advaita Vedanta has been called Neo-Vedanta. In Advaita, Shankara suggests meditation and Nirvikalpa Samadhi are means to gain knowledge of the already existing unity of "Brahman" and "Atman", not the highest goal itself:


title: Monism

text: Vivekananda, according to Gavin Flood, was "a figure of great importance in the development of a modern Hindu self-understanding and in formulating the West's view of Hinduism." Central to his philosophy is the idea that the divine exists in all beings, that all human beings can achieve union with this "innate divinity", and that seeing this divine as the essence of others will further love and social harmony. According to Vivekananda, there is an essential unity to Hinduism, which underlies the diversity of its many forms. According to Flood, Vivekananda's view of Hinduism is the most common among Hindus today. This monism, according to Flood, is at the foundation of earlier Upanishads, to theosophy in the later Vedanta tradition and in modern Neo-Hinduism.


title: Monism

text: According to the Pāli Canon, both pluralism ("nānatta") and monism ("ekatta") are speculative views. A Theravada commentary notes that the former is similar to or associated with nihilism ("ucchēdavāda"), and the latter is similar to or associated with eternalism ("sassatavada").


title: Monism

text: In the Madhyamaka school of Mahayana Buddhism, the ultimate nature of the world is described as "Śūnyatā" or "emptiness", which is inseparable from sensorial objects or anything else. That appears to be a monist position, but the Madhyamaka views – including variations like "rangtong" and "shentong" – will refrain from asserting any ultimately existent entity. They instead deconstruct any detailed or conceptual assertions about ultimate existence as resulting in absurd consequences. The Yogacara view, a minority school now only found among the Mahayana, also rejects monism.


title: Monism

text: Within Buddhism, a rich variety of philosophical and pedagogical models can be found. Various schools of Buddhism discern levels of truth:


title: Monism

text: The Prajnaparamita-sutras and Madhyamaka emphasize the non-duality of form and emptiness: "form is emptiness, emptiness is form", as the heart sutra says. In Chinese Buddhism this was understood to mean that ultimate reality is not a transcendental realm, but equal to the daily world of relative reality. This idea fitted into the Chinese culture, which emphasized the mundane world and society. But this does not tell how the absolute is present in the relative world:


title: Monism

text: This question is answered in such schemata as the Five Ranks of Tozan, the Oxherding Pictures, and Hakuin's Four ways of knowing.


title: Monism

text: Sikhism complies with the concept of Priority Monism. Sikh philosophy advocates that all that our senses comprehend is an illusion; God is the sole reality. Forms being subject to time shall pass away. God's Reality alone is eternal and abiding. The thought is that Atma (soul) is born from, and a reflection of, ParamAtma (Supreme Soul), and "will again merge into it", in the words of the fifth guru of Sikhs, Guru Arjan Dev Ji, "just as water merges back into the water."


title: Monism

text: God and Soul are fundamentally the same; identical in the same way as Fire and its sparks. "Atam meh Ram, Ram meh Atam" which means "The Ultimate Eternal reality resides in the Soul and the Soul is contained in Him". As from one stream, millions of waves arise and yet the waves, made of water, again become water; in the same way all souls have sprung from the Universal Being and would blend again into it.


title: Monism

text: Jewish thought considers God as separate from all physical, created things and as existing outside of time.


title: Monism

text: According to Maimonides, God is an incorporeal being that caused all other existence. According to Maimonides, to admit corporeality to God is tantamount to admitting complexity to God, which is a contradiction to God as the first cause and constitutes heresy. While Hasidic mystics considered the existence of the physical world a contradiction to God's simpleness, Maimonides saw no contradiction.


title: Monism

text: According to Hasidic thought (particularly as propounded by the 18th century, early 19th-century founder of Chabad, Shneur Zalman of Liadi), God is held to be immanent within creation for two interrelated reasons:


title: Monism

text: The Vilna Gaon was very much against this philosophy, for he felt that it would lead to pantheism and heresy. According to some this is the main reason for the Gaon's ban on Chasidism.


title: Monism

text: Christians maintain that God created the universe "ex nihilo" and not from his own substance, so that the creator is not to be confused with creation, but rather transcends it. There is a movement of "Christian Panentheism". Even more immanent concepts and theologies are to be defined together with God's omnipotence, omnipresence and omniscience, due to God's desire for intimate contact with his own creation (cf. Acts 17:27). Another use of the term "monism" is in Christian anthropology to refer to the innate nature of humankind as being holistic, as usually opposed to bipartite and tripartite views.


title: Monism

text: In "On Free Choice of the Will", Augustine argued, in the context of the problem of evil, that evil is not the opposite of good, but rather merely the absence of good, something that does not have existence in itself. Likewise, C. S. Lewis described evil as a "parasite" in "Mere Christianity", as he viewed evil as something that cannot exist without good to provide it with existence. Lewis went on to argue against dualism from the basis of moral absolutism, and rejected the dualistic notion that God and Satan are opposites, arguing instead that God has no equal, hence no opposite. Lewis rather viewed Satan as the opposite of Michael the archangel. Due to this, Lewis instead argued for a more limited type of dualism. Other theologians, such as Greg Boyd, have argued in more depth that the Biblical authors held a "limited dualism", meaning that God and Satan do engage in real battle, but only due to free will given by God, for the duration that God allows.


title: Monism

text: In Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, while human beings are not ontologically identical with the Creator, they are nonetheless capable with uniting with his Divine Nature via theosis, and especially, through the devout reception of the Holy Eucharist. This is a supernatural union, over and above that natural union, of which St. John of the Cross says, "it must be known that God dwells and is present substantially in every soul, even in that of the greatest sinner in the world, and this union is natural." Julian of Norwich, while maintaining the orthodox duality of Creator and creature, nonetheless speaks of God as "the true Father and true Mother" of all natures; thus, he indwells them substantially and thus preserves them from annihilation, as without this sustaining indwelling everything would cease to exist.


title: Monism

text: Some Christian theologians are avowed monists, such as Paul Tillich. Since God is he "in whom we live and move and have our being" (Book of Acts 17.28), it follows that everything that has being partakes in God.


title: Monism

text: Latter Day Saint theology also expresses a form of dual-aspect monism via materialism and eternalism, claiming that creation was ex materia (as opposed to ex nihilo in conventional Christianity), as expressed by Parley Pratt and echoed in view by the movement's founder Joseph Smith, making no distinction between the spiritual and the material, these being not just similarly eternal, but ultimately two manifestations of the same reality or substance.


title: Monism

text: Parley Pratt implies a vitalism paired with evolutionary adaptation noting, “these eternal, self-existing elements possess in themselves certain inherent properties or attributes, in a greater or less degree; or, in other words, they possess intelligence, adapted to their several spheres.”


title: Monism

text: Parley Pratt’s view is also similar to Gottfried Leibniz’s monadology, which holds that “reality consists of mind atoms that are living centers of force.”


title: Monism

text: Brigham Young anticipates a proto-mentality of elementary particles with his vitalist view, “there is life in all matter, throughout the vast extent of all the eternities; it is in the rock, the sand, the dust, in water, air, the gases, and in short, in every description and organization of matter; whether it be solid, liquid, or gaseous, particle operating with particle.”


title: Monism

text: The LDS conception of matter is “essentially dynamic rather than static, if indeed it is not a kind of living energy, and that it is subject at least to the rule of intelligence.”


title: Monism

text: John A. Widstoe held a similar, more vitalist view, that “Life is nothing more than matter in motion; that, therefore, all matter possess a kind of life… Matter… [is] intelligence… hence everything in the universe is alive.” However, Widstoe resisted outright affirming a belief in panpsychism.


title: Monism

text: Vincent Cornell argues that the Quran provides a monist image of God by describing reality as a unified whole, with God being a single concept that would describe or ascribe all existing things.


title: Monism

text: But most argue that Abrahamic religious scriptures, especially the Quran, see creation and God as two separate existences. It explains that everything has been created by God and is under his control, but at the same time distinguishes creation as being dependent on the existence of God.


title: Monism

text: Some Sufi mystics advocate monism. One of the most notable being the 13th-century Persian poet Rumi (1207–73) in his didactic poem "Masnavi" espoused monism. Rumi says in the Masnavi,


title: Monism

text: Other Sufi mystics however, such as Ahmad Sirhindi, upheld dualistic Monotheism (the separation of God and the Universe).


title: Monism

text: The most influential of the Islamic monists was the Sufi philosopher Ibn Arabi (1165–1240). He developed the concept of 'unity of being' (Arabic: "waḥdat al-wujūd"), which some argue is a monistic philosophy. Born in al-Andalus, he made an enormous impact on the Muslim world, where he was crowned "the great Master". In the centuries following his death, his ideas became increasingly controversial. Ahmad Sirhindi criticised monistic understanding of 'unity of being', advocating the dualistic-compatible 'unity of witness' (Arabic: "wahdat ash-shuhud"), maintaining separation of creator and creation. Later, Shah Waliullah Dehlawi reconciled the two ideas maintaining that their differences are semantic differences, arguing that the universal existence (which is different in creation to creator) and the divine essence are different and that the universal existence emanates (in a non-platonic sense) from the divine essence and that the relationship between them is similar to the relationship between the number four and a number being even.


title: Monism

text: The doctrine of "waḥdat al-wujūd" also enjoys considerable following in the rationalist philosophy of Twelver Shi'ism, with the most famous modern-day adherent being Ruhollah Khomeini.


title: Monism

text: Although the teachings of the Baháʼí Faith have a strong emphasis on social and ethical issues, there exist a number of foundational texts that have been described as mystical. Some of these include statements of a monist nature (e.g., "The Seven Valleys" and the "Hidden Words"). The differences between dualist and monist views are reconciled by the teaching that these opposing viewpoints are caused by differences in the observers themselves, not in that which is observed. This is not a 'higher truth/lower truth' position. God is unknowable. For man it is impossible to acquire any direct knowledge of God or the Absolute, because any knowledge that one has, is relative.


title: Monism

text: According to nondualism, many forms of religion are based on an experiential or intuitive understanding of "the Real". Nondualism, a modern reinterpretation of these religions, prefers the term "nondualism", instead of monism, because this understanding is "nonconceptual", "not graspable in an idea".


title: Monism

text: To these nondual traditions belong Hinduism (including Vedanta, some forms of Yoga, and certain schools of Shaivism), Taoism, Pantheism, Rastafari, and similar systems of thought.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: Lunch atop a Skyscraper is a black-and-white photograph taken on September 20, 1932, of eleven ironworkers sitting on a steel beam above the ground on the sixty-ninth floor of the RCA Building in Manhattan, New York City. It was arranged as a publicity stunt, part of a campaign promoting the skyscraper. The photograph was first published in October 1932 during the construction of Rockefeller Center. It was later acquired by Corbis Images in 1995.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: The image is often misattributed to Lewis Hine; the identity of the photographer remains unknown. Evidence emerged indicating it may have been taken by Charles C. Ebbets, but it was later found that other photographers had been present at the shoot as well. Many claims have been made regarding the identities of the men in the image, though only a few have been definitively identified. Ken Johnston, manager of the historic collections of Corbis, referred to the image as "a piece of American history". The 2012 documentary film "Men at Lunch" is based on the photograph.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: The photograph depicts eleven men eating lunch while sitting on a steel beam above the ground on the sixty-ninth floor of the near-completed RCA Building (now known as 30 Rockefeller Plaza) at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, New York City, on September 20, 1932. These men were immigrant ironworkers employed at the RCA Building during the construction of Rockefeller Center. They were accustomed to walking along the girders. The photograph was taken as part of a campaign promoting the skyscraper. Other photographs taken depict the workers throwing a football and pretending to sleep on the girder. Central Park is visible in the background.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: The photograph was first published in the Sunday supplement of the "New York Herald Tribune" on October 2, 1932, with the caption: "Lunch Atop a Skyscraper".


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: In 1995, Corbis Images, a company that provides archived images to professional photographers, bought a collection of over eleven million images called the Bettmann Archive. The "Lunch atop a Skyscraper" photograph was in the Acme Newspictures archive, a part of the Bettmann Archive collection, although it was uncredited. According to Ken Johnston, manager of the historic collections of Corbis, the image was initially received in a Manila paper envelope. The original negative of the photograph was made of glass, which had broken into five pieces. It is stored in a humidity and temperature-controlled preservation facility at the Iron Mountain storage facility in Pennsylvania.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: The identity of the photographer is unknown. It was often misattributed to Lewis Hine, a Works Progress Administration photographer, from the mistaken assumption that the structure is the Empire State Building. In 1998, Tami Ebbets Hahn, a resident of Wilmington, North Carolina, noticed a poster of the image and speculated that it was one of her father's (Charles C. Ebbets; 1905–1978) photographs. In 2003, she contacted Johnston. Corbis hired Marksmen Inc., a private investigation firm, to find the photographer. An investigator discovered an article from "The Washington Post", which credited the image to Hamilton Wright. The Wright family, however, was not familiar with the photograph. It was common for Wright to receive credit for photographs taken by those working for him; Hahn's father had worked for the Hamilton Wright Features syndicate. In 1932, Ebbets had been appointed the photographic director of Rockefeller Center, responsible for publicizing the new skyscraper. Hahn found her father's paycheck of $1.50 per hour (equivalent to $ per hour in ), the ironworkers photograph, and an image of her father with a camera, which appeared to be of the same place and time. Analyzing the evidence, Johnston said: "As far as I'm concerned, he's the photographer." Corbis later acknowledged Ebbets's authorship. It was later discovered that photographers Thomas Kelley, William Leftwich, and Ebbets were present there on that day. Due to the uncertain identity of the photographer, the image is again without credit.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: According to a "New York Post" survey, numerous claims have been made regarding the identities of the men in the image. The film "Men at Lunch", based on the photograph, traces some of the men to be of possible Irish origin, and the director reported in 2013 that he planned to follow up on other claims from Swedish relatives. The film confirms the identities of two men: Joseph Eckner, third from the left, and Joe Curtis, third from the right, by cross-referencing with other pictures taken the same day, in which they were named at the time. The first man from the right, holding a bottle, has been identified as Slovak worker Gustáv (Gusti) Popovič. The photograph was found in his estate, with the note "Don't you worry, my dear Mariška, as you can see I'm still with bottle" written on the back.


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: The photograph has been referred to as the "most famous picture of a lunch break in New York history" by Ashley Cross, a correspondent of the "New York Post". It has been used, imitated, and varied in many artworks. It has been colorized and a statue of the photograph has been created by Sergio Furnari, which was displayed near the World Trade Center site after the September 11 attacks for about five months. The image has been a best seller for Corbis. Although critics have referred to the photograph as a publicity stunt, Johnston referred it to as "a piece of American history". Taken during the Great Depression, the photograph became an iconic emblem of New York City and it has often been re-created by construction workers. "Time" included the image in its 2016 list of the 100 most influential images of all time. Discussing the significance of the image in 2012, Johnston said:


title: Lunch atop a Skyscraper

text: There's the incongruity between the action – lunch – and the place – 800 feet in the air – and that these guys are so casual about it. It's visceral: I've had people tell me they have trouble looking at it out of fear of heights. And these men – you feel you get a very strong sense of their characters through their expressions, clothes and poses.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels "North and South" by John Jakes. The 1985 first installment, "North and South", remains the seventh-highest rated miniseries in TV history. "North and South: Book II" (1986) was met with similar success, while 1994's "Heaven and Hell: North and South Book III" was poorly received by both critics and audiences.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: The saga tells the story of the enduring friendship between Orry Main of South Carolina (Patrick Swayze) and George Hazard of Pennsylvania (James Read), who become best friends while attending the United States Military Academy at West Point but later find themselves and their families on opposite sides of the war. The slave-owning Mains are rural planters from outside Charleston, South Carolina, while the Hazards, who reside in a small Pennsylvania mill town, profit from ownership of iron manufacturing and industry capital, their differences reflecting the divisions between North and South that eventually led to the Civil War.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: The initial 1985 miniseries cast Patrick Swayze as Orry Main and James Read as George Hazard with Lesley-Anne Down as Orry's love interest Madeline and Wendy Kilbourne as George's future wife Constance. Kirstie Alley played George's outspoken abolitionist sister Virgilia, with Genie Francis as Orry's "good" sister Brett and Terri Garber as his selfish and wicked sister Ashton, as well as Philip Casnoff as Elkanah Bent, George and Orry's nemesis. All of these actors returned for the 1986 sequel, and the roles of George's brother Billy Hazard and sister-in-law Isabel Hazard were recast with Parker Stevenson and Mary Crosby.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: "North and South" (1985) also featured many well-known actors as guest stars, including Elizabeth Taylor as bordello proprietor Madam Conti, David Carradine as the sadistic Justin LaMotte, Hal Holbrook as U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, Gene Kelly as Bent's father Senator Charles Edwards, Robert Mitchum as Colonel Patrick Flynn, M.D., Johnny Cash as abolitionist John Brown, Jean Simmons as Orry's mother Clarissa Main, Mitchell Ryan as Orry's father Tillet Main, John Anderson as George's father William Hazard, Jonathan Frakes as George's older brother Stanley Hazard, Inga Swenson as George's mother Maude Hazard, Robert Guillaume as abolitionist Frederick Douglass, Morgan Fairchild as Burdetta Halloran, David Ogden Stiers as Representative Sam Greene, and Olivia Cole as Madeline's devoted but doomed servant Maum Sally. John Jakes' wife Rachel also made an appearance in Episode 6 as Lincoln's wife Mary. "North and South: Book II" (1986) saw the return of Carradine as LaMotte, Holbrook as Lincoln, and Stiers as Greene, as well as new guests Lloyd Bridges as Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Anthony Zerbe as Ulysses S. Grant, Nancy Marchand as Dorothea Dix, James Stewart as Miles Colbert, Wayne Newton as Captain Thomas Turner, and William Schallert as Robert E. Lee, with Linda Evans as Rose Sinclair and Olivia de Havilland as Mrs. Neal. 1994's "Heaven and Hell" featured Peter O'Toole as "louche actor" Sam Trump and Billy Dee Williams as Francis Cardozo.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: Filming of the miniseries resulted in four marriages among the cast and crew. Read and Kilbourne, who played opposite each other, married in 1988 and now have two children. Frakes and Francis, who had previously played opposite each other on the failed NBC soap "Bare Essence", also married in 1988. Lesley-Anne Down married assistant cameraman Don E. FauntLeRoy in 1986. They met during filming of "Book I" when both were married to other people, and eventually obtained divorces. Garber married screenwriter Chris Hager, whom she met in 1985 when he worked as a grip on the set of "North and South: Book II". They had a daughter, Molly, in 1986, and later divorced.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: "North and South" (1985) was directed by Richard T. Heffron, from a script adaptation by Patricia Green, Douglas Heyes, Paul F. Edwards, and Kathleen A. Shelley. It was produced by David L. Wolper, Paul Freeman, Rob Harland, and Chuck McLain, with music by Bill Conti and Stevan Larner as cinematographer. Wolper also produced 1986's "North and South: Book II" with his son Mark Wolper, as well as Stephanie Austin and Robert Papazian. Conti returned as composer, with Kevin Connor directing, Jacques R. Marquette as cinematographer, and a script by Heyes and Richard Fielder. "Heaven and Hell: North and South Book III" (1994) was directed by Larry Peerce from a script by Suzanne Clauser. Hal Galli produced the miniseries, with music by David Bell and Don E. FauntLeRoy as cinematographer.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: The "North and South" miniseries were nominated and/or awarded with many different awards around the world, among which the most significant are:


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: "North and South" Books I and II were released on NTSC VHS in the United States. Book III was never released on VHS in the United States. Books I, II and III were released on PAL VHS in Europe.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: All three Books were released on Region 1 DVD in October 2004. This release also included a bonus featurette with John Jakes and David Wolper talking about the books and the miniseries; James Read, Lesley-Anne Down, and Patrick Swayze discussing their characters; general thoughts of other cast and crew members; plus information about the historical background and trials of its reconstruction for the miniseries.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: The Region 2 DVD release contained only Books I and II at first, but eventually Book III also became available, with the bonus featurette included. All volumes were sold as separate boxes, but later on they were also available in one box.


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: A soundtrack CD published by Varèse Sarabande in 1985 (VCD47250) contains tracks from the Bill Conti scores to "North and South" and "The Right Stuff". It includes the following tracks from "North and South":


title: North and South (miniseries)

text: The Varèse Sarabande Soundtrack Club released the entire score to "North and South" (1985) in a four-CD box set on February 25, 2008. The tracks in this set are the original recordings used in the production of the series, with three discs devoted to Conti's score and a fourth to the source music from the series. The entire score to "North and South: Book II" (1986) was released on October 3, 2008, and includes three CDs. On December 4, 2015, "North and South: Highlights", a 76-minute disc featuring selections from the first miniseries score, was released. David Bell scored "Heaven and Hell: North and South Book III" using Conti's thematic material.


title: Republic of China Army

text: The Republic of China Army (ROCA), retroactively known as the Chinese Nationalist Army or Nationalist Revolutionary Army and unofficially as the Taiwanese Army, is the largest branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces. An estimated 80% of the ROC Army is located on Taiwan, while the remainder are stationed on the Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, Dongsha and Taiping Islands.


title: Republic of China Army

text: Since the Chinese Civil War, no armistice or peace treaty has ever been signed, so as the final line of defense against a possible invasion by the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the primary focus is on defense and counterattack against amphibious assault and urban warfare.


title: Republic of China Army

text: The ROC Army's current operational strength includes 3 armies, 5 corps. As of 2005, the Army's 35 brigades include 25 infantry brigades, 5 armoured brigades and 3 mechanized infantry brigades. All infantry brigades stood down and transferred to Reserve Command after 2005.


title: Republic of China Army

text: This update reflects the ROCA order of battle at the conclusion of the Jinjing Restructuring Plan in 2008.


title: Republic of China Army

text: A new type of unit called defense team () is being introduced. These are formed by elements of de-activated brigades under each area defense command. The strength of a defense team may vary from one or more reinforced battalions, making it roughly equal to a regiment. The team CO is usually a full colonel.


title: Republic of China Army

text: In the event of war most of the high command would retreat to underground bunkers, tunnel complexes, and command posts.


title: Republic of China Army

text: The Republic of China Military Academy, established in 1924, trains officers for the army in a four-year collegiate course of study, after which they graduate with an officer's commission and a bachelor's degree.


title: Republic of China Army

text: The Republic of China Army originated from Chinese National Revolutionary Army, which was founded by Sun Yat-sen's Kuomintang (KMT) in 1924, when the Whampoa Military Academy was established with Soviet military assistance. Whampoa Military Academy, which was presided by Chiang Kai-shek, was tasked with the objective of training a professional Chinese revolutionary army () to unify China during the Warlord Era. It participated in the Northern Expedition, the Second Sino-Japanese War (during World War II) and the Chinese Civil War before withdrawing with the ROC government to Taiwan in 1949.


title: Republic of China Army

text: After 1949, the ROC Army has participated in combat operations on Kinmen and the Dachen Archipelago against the PLA in the Battle of Kuningtou, and in the First and Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. In addition to these major conflicts, ROCA commandos were regularly sent to raid the Fujian and Guangdong coasts. Until the 1970s, the stated mission of the Army was to retake the mainland from the People's Republic of China. Following the lifting of martial law in 1987 and the democratization of the 1990s, the mission of the ROC Army has been shifted to the defense of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu from a PLA invasion.


title: Republic of China Army

text: With the reduction of the size of the ROC armed forces in recent years, the Army has endured the largest number of cutbacks as ROC military doctrine has begun to emphasize the importance of offshore engagement with the Navy and Air Force. Subsequent to this shift in emphasis, the ROC Navy and Air Force have taken precedence over the ROC Army in defense doctrine and weapons procurement. Recent short-term goals in the Army include acquisition and development of joint command and control systems, advanced attack helicopters and armored vehicles, Multiple Launch Rocket System and field air defense systems. The Army is also in the process of transitioning to an all volunteer force.


title: Republic of China Army

text: During the COVID-19 pandemic Army chemical warfare units were used to disinfect public areas and to do spot disinfections around known disease clusters. In January 2021 the 33rd Chemical Warfare Group was deployed to Taoyuan City to deal with a cluster of infections around a hospital there.


title: Republic of China Army

text: From the 1990s onwards, the Republic of China Army launched several upgrade programmes to replace outdated equipment with more advanced weapons, also increasing its emphasis on forces that could be rapidly deployed and were suited for combat in Taiwan's heavily urbanized environment. Orders were placed with the United States for M60A3 Patton tanks, M109A5 "Paladin" howitzers and AH-1W SuperCobra attack helicopters, as well as updating existing equipment.


title: Republic of China Army

text: Along with the other ROC military branches, the ROC Army has extensive experience in the construction and utilization of tunnels and bases gained during the People's Republic of China's bombardments of Kinmen and Matsu during the Cold War and many facilities are rumoured to be located underground in undisclosed locations.


title: Republic of China Army

text: The U.S. Government announced on October 3, 2008 that it plans to sell $6.5 billion worth of arms to Taiwan ending the freeze of arms sales to Taiwan. Amongst other things, the plans include $2.532 billion worth of 30 AH-64D Apache Longbow Block III Attack helicopters with night-vision sensors, radar, 173 Stinger Block I air-to-air missiles and 1000 AGM-114L Hellfire missiles. and 182 Javelin missiles will also be available with 20 Javelin command launchers and is estimated to cost $47 million.


title: Republic of China Army

text: On January 29, 2010, US Government announced 5 notifications to US Congress for arms sales to Taiwan. Of the total 6.392 billion US dollars in the 5 announcements, ROC Army will receive 60 UH-60M and other related things for cost of 3.1 Billion.


title: Republic of China Army

text: In July 2007 it was reported that the ROC Army would request the purchase of 30 AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopters from the US in the 2008 defence budget. In October 2015 it was announced that 9 AH-64E had been grounded due to oxidation of components in the helicopters' tail rotor gearboxes and comprehensive safety checks were made on all Apaches. The 2008 defense budget also listed a request for 60 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters as a partial replacement for the UH-1Hs currently in service.


title: Republic of China Army

text: As of 2019, the ROC army has 480 M60A3s, 450 CM11s (modified M48 turrets mated to M60 chassis), and 250 CM12s (CM-11 turrets mated to M48 hulls). The design and technology used in the tanks date back to the 1940s and 1950s, including their 105mm rifled gun and utilizing traditional steel armor plating rather than composite materials used in modern armored fighting vehicles. It is expected that majority of the ROC Army’s armored units would continue to be equipped with legacy tanks in upgraded form after the army acquires the newer modern tanks. As of 2015, some CM11 tanks are observed to be upgraded with explosive reactive armor around the turret and hull.


title: Republic of China Army

text: In October 2017, Taiwan announced an upgrade program for 450 M60A3s consisting of replacing the main gun with a new 120 mm weapon, as well as upgrading the ballistics computer, turret hydraulics, and other systems. Testing and evaluation are expected to be completed in 2019 and application of new features to start in 2020. However, in July 2018 the Ministry of National Defense renewed its interest in acquiring Abrams, and had set aside US$990 Million to purchase 108 M1A2s while modernization of existing M60A3s in service continues.


title: Republic of China Army

text: On June 7, 2019, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense confirmed that Taiwan has signed a $2 billion dollar weapons deal with the Trump administration, which includes a purchase of 108 M1A2T (M1A2C export variant for Taiwan) Abrams battle tanks. Taiwanese defense officials intend to use the M1A2T Abrams battle tank to replace its army's M60A3 and M48H CM11 tanks. On July 8, 2019, The U.S. State Department has approved the sale to Taiwan of new M1A2T Abrams tanks despite People's Republic of China's (PRC) criticism and protest of the deal. The deal includes 122 M2 Mounted Machine Guns, 216 M240 machine guns, 14 M88A2 HERCULES vehicles, and 16 M1070A1 Heavy Equipment Transporters. General Dynamics Land Systems will build the tanks at Anniston Army Depot, Alabama, and at Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio. The final signing of the Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) is confirmed on December 21, 2019. The tanks are the first sale of new tanks for ROC Army in decades from the US. Surplus M1A1 tanks were previously rejected by previous US administrations, including George W. Bush in 2001. Current ROC tanks are used M60A3 tanks and locally manufactured M48 tanks in which the initial variants are first produced in between the 1950s and 1960s.


title: Republic of China Army

text: Some criticisms were made of these M1 Abrams purchases, some analysts expressed that Taiwan's terrain and some of its bridges and roads are unsuitable for the 60-tonne M1A2. However, Taiwan's current tanks have older 105-millimeter guns that may not be able to readily penetrate the frontal armor of modern People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Type 96 and Type 99 tanks, which can easily penetrate the Patton’s old-fashioned steel armor with their 125-millimeter guns. The M1A2T tank's 120-millimeter gun is capable of destroying PLA tanks without reliance on anti-tank missiles. Moreover, tanks can be used as mobile reserves for counterattacks against PLA beach landings, which was successful during the Battle of Guningtou. ROC Army Chief of Staff, Yang Hai-ming, said that China's best tank, the heavy Type 99 tank, would not be able to be transported in an amphibious invasion during a potential war with Taiwan and the PLA would have to rely on the much lighter 20-ton Type 63A tanks. Due to this logistics issue for the PLA there is less concern about the M1A2T tanks having to deal with China's most modern tanks during an amphibious invasion.


title: Republic of China Army

text: CM-32 Yunpao, an 8x8 armoured personnel carrier locally manufactured, will replace ageing M113s and V-150 armoured vehicles. It is a modular vehicle platform capable of accepting various configurations for specific combat requirements. As of 2019, an IFV version of Yunpao armed with Orbital ATK 30mm Mk44 Bushmaster II cannons, CM-34, is planned for production. Production of a version with a 105-mm assault gun, which is modeled on that of the CM-11 Brave Tiger main battle tank, is also scheduled to be completed by 2023.


title: Republic of China Army

text: Long and medium range air defense systems are operated by the Republic of China Air Force with the Army assuming much of the SHORAD mission. The most modern air defense system of the Army is the US-made Avenger.


title: Republic of China Army

text: The ROCA is in the process of fielding the Surface-to-Air TC-2 medium range air defense system. Development of a surface launched TC-2 began with the ROCN in 1994.


title: Republic of China Army

text: On June 7, 2019, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense confirmed that Taiwan has signed a $2 billion weapons deal with the Trump administration, which includes a purchase of "250 surface-to-air Stinger missile systems." Taiwan's ROC Army already has 2,223 Stinger missile systems.


title: Republic of China Army

text: On September 23, 2019, former Defense Minister Yen De-fa () confirmed the Republic of China Armed Forces has requested the purchase of M109A6 Paladin self-propelled howitzers from the United States. On August 4, 2021, the Biden administration approved a potential $750 million sale of 40 M109A6 self-propelled howitzers and other supporting equipment, including up to 1,698 kits for precision-guided munitions.


title: Republic of China Army

text: As of 2019, the ROC Army’s current artillery in service consists of M109A2 and M109A5 systems, 8 inch M110A2 self-propelled howitzers and 155mm M114 towed howitzers. These systems have exceeded their service life with the oldest being the M114, which has been in service for 68 years, while the youngest artillery system, the M109A5, has been in service for 21 years. The last artillery system that entered service is the M109A5s, which are ordered in 1996 and taken delivery in 1998.


title: Tuvans

text: The Tuvans () are a Turkic ethnic group indigenous to Siberia who live in Russia (Tuva), Mongolia, and China. They speak Tuvan, a Siberian Turkic language. They are also regarded in Mongolia as one of the Uriankhai peoples.


title: Tuvans

text: Tuvans have historically been cattle-herding nomads, tending to herds of goats, sheep, camels, reindeer, cattle and yaks for the past thousands of years. They have traditionally lived in yurts covered by felt or chums, layered with birch bark or hide that they relocate seasonally as they move to newer pastures. Traditionally, the Tuvans were divided into nine regions called "khoshuun", namely the Tozhu, Salchak, Oyunnar, Khemchik, Khaasuut, Shalyk, Nibazy, Daavan and Choodu, and Beezi. The first four were ruled by Uriankhai Mongol princes, while the rest were administered by Borjigin Mongol princes.


title: Tuvans

text: Besides prehistoric rock-carvings to be found especially along the Yenisei banks, the first internationally important archaeological findings have been near Arzhan, in the north central Tuva. Here, Scythian kurgan burials are being researched, revealing the earliest (7th, 6th century BC) and easternmost remains of these people who spread all the way from Central Asia. Their story and fantastic gold treasures can be appreciated in the National Museum in Kyzyl.


title: Tuvans

text: The Xiongnu ruled over the area of Tuva prior to 200 AD. At this time, a people known to the Chinese as Dingling 丁零 inhabited the region. Chinese chroniclers further associated the Dingling with the Tiele, one of whose tribes was named Dubo (都波) and was located in the eastern Sayans. The word "tuwa" also occurs three times in the Inscription of Hüis Tolgoi. While it is not clear what it means, Dieter Maue suggested that it could be related to the tribal name "Dubo". This name is recognized as being associated with the Tuvan people and is the earliest written record of them. The Xianbei 鮮卑 (descendants of the Donghu 東胡, once conquered by the Xiongnu) attacked and defeated the Xiongnu and they, in turn, were defeated by the Rouran 柔然. From around the end of the 6th century, the Göktürks held dominion over Tuvans ("Doubo" 都播), who constituted one of the three Wooden-Horse Turkic tribes, up until the 8th century when the Uyghurs took over.


title: Tuvans

text: Tuvans were subjects of the Uyghur Khanate during the 8th and 9th centuries. The Uyghurs established several fortifications within Tuva as a means of subduing the population. There are plans being discussed to restore the remains of one of these fortresses, Por-Bazhyn in lake Tere-Khol in the southeast of the country. The memory of Uyghur occupation could still be seen up until the end of the 19th century due to the application of the name "Ondar Uyghur" for the Ondar Tuvans living near the Khemchik river in the southwest. Uyghur dominance was broken by the Yeniseian Kyrgyz in 840 AD, who came from the upper reaches of the Yenisei.


title: Tuvans

text: In 1207, the Oirat prince Quduqa-Beki led Mongol detachments under Jochi to a tributary of the Kaa-Khem river. They encountered the Tuvan Keshdims, Baits, and Teleks. This was the beginning of Mongol suzerainty over the Tuvans. After the collapse of the Naiman Khanate, Tuvans moved to modern Mongolia and some Naimans moved to modern Kazakhstan territory.


title: Tuvans

text: Tuvans came to be ruled for most of the 17th century by Khalka Mongol leader Sholoi Ubashi Altan-Khan. It was at this time in 1615 that the first Russians, Vasily Tyumenets and Ivan Petrov, visited Tuva as emissaries to the Altan-Khan. Russian documents from this time record information about different groups that contributed to the composition of modern Tuvans. Tyumenets and Petrov describe the Maads, who became Russian subjects in 1609, living in the Bii-Khem basin, 14 days' ride from Tomsk. The Maads travelled to the area of the Khemchik and Ulug-Khem next to the lands of the Altan-Khan near the lake Uvs Nuur. The ambassadors also described the Sayan raising reindeer with the Tochi (Todzhi) from the Sayan to the Altai mountain ranges. The descendants of the Ak-Sayan and Kara-Sayan live mostly around Tere-Khol rayon.


title: Tuvans

text: The Altan-Khan's control over the area lessened over time due to constant warring between the Oirat and the Khalka of Jasaghtu Khan aimag. The Tuvans then became part of the Dzungarian Empire ruled by the Oirats. The Dzungars ruled over all of the Sayano-Altay Plateau until 1755. It was during this time of Dzungarian rule that many tribes and clans broke up, moved around, and intermingled. Groups of Altayan Telengits settled in western Tuva on the Khemchik and Barlyk rivers and in the region of Bai-Taiga. Some Todzhans, Sayans, and Mingats ended up in the Altay. The Siberians (Xianbei) established Manchu-Qing Dynasty migrated other Tuvans north across the Sayan range and they became known as Beltirs (Dag-Kakpyn, Sug-Kakpyn, Ak-Chystar, Kara-Chystar). The languages of the Beltirs and Tuvans still contain common words not found in the language of the other Khakas (Kachins or Sagays). Other Russian documents mention Yeniseian Kyrgyz (Saryglar and Kyrgyz), Orchaks (Oorzhaks) and Kuchugets (Kuzhugets) moving into Tuva from the north.


title: Tuvans

text: Besides the Turkic tribes mentioned above, there is indication that modern Tuvans are descended also from Mongolic, Samoyedic, and Yeniseian groups of peoples. Of the extinct Southern Samoyed groups, Mator, Koibal, Kamas, and Karagas were assimilated mostly into the eastern Tuvans such as the Todzhins, Tofalars, Soyots, and Dukha. The Irgit tribe is also suggested as being from Samoyedic ancestors. The Tuvan name for the Yenisei river may stem from an ancient Samoyedic name. Tribes such as Tumat, Mingat, Mongush, and Salchak are recognized as having a Mongolic origin.


title: Tuvans

text: According to Ilya Zakharov of Moscow's Vavilov Institute of General Genetics, genetic evidence suggests that the modern Tuvan people are the closest genetic relatives to the indigenous peoples of the Americas. A recent (2016) study suggests that Tuvans assimilated a small number of Yeniseian people, which are closely related to the Paleo-Eskimo groups.


title: Tuvans

text: There does not seem to exist a clear ethnic delineation for the application of the name "Uriankhai". Mongols applied this name to all tribes of "Forest People". This name has historically been applied to Tuvans. In Mongolia there are peoples also known by this name. A variation of the name, "Uraŋxai", was an old name for the Sakha. Russian Pavel Nebol'sin documented the "Urankhu" clan of Volga Kalmyks in the 1850s. Another variant of the name, "Orangkae" (오랑캐), was traditionally used by the Koreans to refer indiscriminately to "barbarians" that inhabited the lands to their north.


title: Tuvans

text: They are two groups under the name Uriankhai: Mongol Uriankhai, Uriankhai (Tuva) of mixed Turkic-Mongol origin. All clans of the Mongol Uriankhai are Mongol, and Tuva Uriankhais have both Turkic and Mongol clans. In the beginning of the Mongol Empire (1206–1368), the Mongol Uriankhai (Burkhan Khaldun Uriankhai) were located in central Mongolia but in the mid 14th century they lived in Liaoyang province of modern China. In 1375, Naghachu, Uriankhai leader of the Mongolia-based colonial dynasty in Liaoyang province invaded Liaodong with aims of restoring the Mongols to power. Although he continued to hold southern Manchuria, Naghachu finally surrendered to the Chinese Ming dynasty in 1387–88 after successful diplomacy of the latter. After the rebellion of the northern Uriankhai people, they were conquered by Dayan Khan in 1538 and mostly annexed by the northern Khalkha. Batmunkh Dayan Khan dissolved Uriankhai tumen and moved them to Altai Mountains and Khalkha land.


title: Tuvans

text: Currently, Tuvans form the majority of the population in Tuva Republic. According to the 2010 Russian census, there was a total of 249,299 Tuvans who resided within Tuva. This represented 82.0% of the total population of the republic. In addition, Tuvans have a much higher fertility rate than Russians and the other Slavic peoples, while the median age of the Tuvan population is much lower than Russians. This basically ensures that the Tuvan population would continue to grow during the foreseeable future.


title: Tuvans

text: There are two major groups of Tuvans in Tuva: Western or the Common Tuvans and Tuvans-Todzhins (Тувинцы-тоджинцы). The latter ones live in Todzhinsky District, Tuva Republic and constitute about 5% of all Tuvans.


title: Tuvans

text: A people similar by language to Tuvans live in Okinsky District of Buryatia (autonym: Soyots (сойоты), sometimes referred to as Oka Tuvans).


title: Tuvans

text: A noticeable proportion of Tuvans lives in Mongolia. The Dukha live in Khövsgöl Aimag. The largest population of Tuvans in Mongolia are the "Tsengel Tuvans". Around 1,500 live in the Tsagaan Gol River Valley, Altai Tavan Bogd National Park, Tsengel Sum of Bayan-Ölgii Aimag. Other Tuvans live in Khovd Aimag and in Ubsunur Hollow.


title: Tuvans

text: Tuvans in China, who live mostly in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, are included under the Mongol ethnicity. Some Tuvans reportedly live at Lake Kanas in the northwestern part of Xinjiang in China where they are not officially recognized, are counted as a part of the local Oirat Mongol community that is counted under the general label "Mongol". Oirat and Tuvan children attend schools in which they use Chakhar Mongolian and Mandarin Chinese.


title: Tuvans

text: The famous bogtag headdress worn by women seems to have been restricted to married women of very high rank. In the 13th century, it was worn only by Tuvan women of very high rank.


title: Tuvans

text: The Tuvan language belongs to the Northern or Siberian branch of the Turkic language family. Four dialects are recognized: Central, Western, Southeastern and Northeastern (Todzhinian). In writing, a variety of the Cyrillic script is used. A talking dictionary is produced by Living Tongues Institute.


title: Tuvans

text: The traditional religion of Tuvans is a type of Tengriism, or Turkic animistic shamanism. During the 18th century, the Tuvans converted to Tibetan Buddhism via contact with the Mongols. However, many shamanistic elements continued to be widely practiced along with the new religion the Tuvans adopted.


title: Tuvans

text: The Tuvans were mainly semi-nomadic livestock herders. They raised sheep, goats, camels, horses, reindeer, cattle, and yaks. Today, some Tuvans still retain their semi-nomadic way of life. The mobile dwellings of the Tuvans were usually circular yurts used in the steppes or conical hide tents when they were near or inside a forest.


title: Tuvans

text: A unique form of music exists in Tuva – commonly known as throat singing or as khoomei. There are various techniques of khoomei, some giving the effect of multiple tones by emphasizing overtones. Some famous groups from Tuva who feature throat-singing are Yat-Kha, Huun-Huur-Tu, Chirgilchin and the Alash Ensemble.


title: Tuvans

text: A documentary called "Genghis Blues" was made in 1999 about an American blues/jazz musician, Paul Pena, who taught himself overtone singing and traveled to Tuva to compete in a throat-singing competition. This is where he also met famous Khoomeizhi Kongar-ol Ondar one of the masters of Khoomei.


title: RC Lens

text: Racing Club de Lens (, commonly referred to as RC Lens or simply Lens) is a French professional football club based in the northern city of Lens in the Pas-de-Calais department. Its nickname, "les sang et or" ("the blood and gold"), comes from its traditional colours of red and gold. Their traditional rivals are their northern neighbours Lille, with whom they contest the "Derby du Nord".


title: RC Lens

text: The club was established in 1906 in Lens by local students who enjoyed playing football on the city's Place Verte (the current Place de la République). The name "Racing Club de Lens" was chosen as a reference to Racing Club de Roubaix and Racing Club de France, both popular clubs at the time.


title: RC Lens

text: The club's first board of directors was formed by the parents of those students. The club originally played in green and black to represent the founding location; they wore green to represent the name of the home pitch, "Verte", (meaning 'green' in French), and black to represent the omnipresence of the coal mining industry in the surrounding area.


title: RC Lens

text: Between 1907 and 1912, the players were forced to change home grounds twice before settling at the Parc des Glissoires, situated between Avion and Lens.


title: RC Lens

text: During World War I, in common with all French sports clubs, the team's activities were stopped and did not restart until 1919. By this time, Lens had changed their playing colours to sky blue.


title: RC Lens

text: It was in 1924 that the red and gold colours first appeared. One legend says that Pierre Moglia, president of the club from 1923 to 1930, chose the colours of the Spanish flag after a colleague from the club remarked that the Saint-Léger church ruins, which they had walked past one evening, were the last visible remains of the local Spanish domination in 1648. Some people also say that the colours were derived as a reference to the local coal mines: the red for the blood of the miners and the gold for the coal which was valuable at the time.


title: RC Lens

text: It was also in 1924 that the club was authorised to play at the newly built municipal stadium Raoul Briquet (nowadays Léo Lagrange). The first match for the club in their new colours was played for the inauguration of the stadium.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1926, British footballer Kid Fenton was the first star who played for Lens. He stayed for eight seasons and became a strong favourite with the club's supporters. This was also the year the first supporters group was formed, and also saw the first occasion that Lens captured the Championnat d'Artois.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1929, Lens won the North championship and won promotion for the first time to the Division d'Honneur of the Ligue du Nord with the clubs Olympique Lillois, RC Roubaix, Excelsior Athlétic Club de Roubaix and AC Amiens.


title: RC Lens

text: In the Artois League, the club steadily gained prestige, and in 1932 the club inaugurated the Stade Félix Bollaert.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1937, Lens gained access to the first division after finishing first in the second division, led by such players as Stefan Dembicki and Spechtl. Lens even managed to reach the last 16 of the Coupe de France, although the team was eventually eliminated by the Red Star, 3–2.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1943, Lens won the first division of the Northern Zone thanks to Dembicki, who scored 43 goals in 30 games. A year earlier, in a Coupe de France match, he had scored 17 goals, which still remains to this day the world record for goals scored by one player in a single competitive match.


title: RC Lens

text: Immediately following World War II, Lens finished in sixth place in the 1945–46 season, but they were relegated the following year. In 1948, the club played its first Coupe de France final, which they lost 3–2 against Lille. A year later, Lens was promoted to the first division, and Maryan Wisnieski was recruited, in 1953. Problems with the board, however, made him quit the club; he joined Italian club UC Sampdoria Genoa, though without much success.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1962, the city of Lens' mines were shut down and the future of the club was at stake, given that most of the players were miners by profession. Between 1956 and 1968, survival was hard. Nevertheless, in 1964, Lens finished third, with Ahmed Oudjani the top scorer with 30 goals. Another famous player, Georges Lech, joined Lens, although the club was relegated in 1968. The following year, the mine's administrators rescinded their ownership of Lens, which signalled the end of professional football at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis. Lens was now once again an amateur club, one year after its relegation, and the long-term future looked very bleak.


title: RC Lens

text: However, better days arrived in 1960 after the town council took interest in Racing Club de Lens. Lens' mayor, André Delelis, was a long-term supporter and recognized the importance of the club's success to the overall morale of the city. With the future president, Jean Bondoux, the mayor brought together volunteers and subscriptions to help the club survive. Moreover, the city recovered ownership of the stadium from the closing mine industry.


title: RC Lens

text: The following twenty years saw a slow but steady improvement in the club's fortunes. In 1972, Lens reached the semi-finals of the Coupe de France, and the arrival of two Polish players helped the club win promotion to the first division. In 1975, Lens once again reached the final of the Coupe de France against the powerful Saint-Étienne, but lost the game 0–2.


title: RC Lens

text: As finalist of the Coupe de France, Lens had the opportunity to participate in its first UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, but the team was knocked out quickly by the Dutch club ADO Den Haag.


title: RC Lens

text: Lens' steady progress continued, and after finishing second in the league behind Nantes, they managed to qualify to the UEFA Cup. They knocked out Swedish club Malmö FF, and more impressively, the strong Italian club Lazio. After an away defeat (2–0), they won 6–0 at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis after extra-time. Unfortunately, after this rare international exploit for a French club, they were then eliminated by East German side 1. FC Magdeburg. Worse still, the club went back to the second division in 1978.


title: RC Lens

text: The step backwards was very brief and immediate promotion back to the French elite level was achieved in 1979 with Roger Lemerre as head coach. During the 1980s, Gérard Houllier and Joachim Marx succeeded him. These were great gains to the team, even though the club lost important players such as Didier Sénac, Gaëtan Huard and Philippe Vercruysse.


title: RC Lens

text: In August 1988 Gervais Martel, a wealthy local businessman, bought control of the club, with the help of Serge Doré. During the same year, Arnaud Dos Santos was named head coach of the club, and led the club back to the first division in 1991.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1993 and 1994, Lens' strongest team to that date were highly competitive at the top of the league, and the team qualified for the UEFA Cup twice in a row. Lens also reached the semi-final of the Coupe de France after knocking out Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes, although the team lost to Montpellier.


title: RC Lens

text: In 1998, "es Sang et Or" wrote the best page of their history under Daniel Leclercq ("the Druid"): French champions, Coupe de la Ligue semi-finalists and finalists of the Coupe de France (against PSG, a 2–1 defeat). Like a symbol, it is a player who started his career in Lens, Yohan Lachor, who scored the goal in Auxerre giving Lens the title in front of Metz. Under the "Druid", Lens won its second major title in 1999 with the Coupe de la Ligue against Metz, with a goal from Daniel Moreira. That year, in the UEFA Champions League, Lens also became the only club to have beaten English team Arsenal at the famous Wembley Stadium (1–0, with a goal from Mickaël Debève), although they were knocked out on aggregate score over two matches.


title: RC Lens

text: During the next season, Leclercq was fired, but Lens nonetheless did well to reach the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup. François Brisson's men were eventually eliminated by Arsenal, after they won against 1. FC Kaiserslautern (a 4–1 win in Germany), Atlético Madrid and Celta de Vigo.


title: RC Lens

text: In the 2001–02 season, Joël Muller was named head coach. Lens finished second that season and qualified for its second Champions League campaign. The club, however, finished in eighth for the next two years. Muller was replaced during his fourth season by Francis Gillot, who managed to qualify Lens for the UEFA Intertoto Cup, which Lens won, ensuring qualification for the UEFA Cup.


title: RC Lens

text: During the 2006–07 season, the "Sang et Or" finished the first part of the season in second, behind Lyon. But due to a chaotic second half, however, they only finished fifth. A few days later, Francis Gillot resigned.


title: RC Lens

text: On 5 June 2007, Guy Roux made his comeback, although it only lasted three months: He resigned after a 2–1 defeat at Strasbourg. Jean-Pierre Papin took over, but Lens could not make up any ground throughout the season, finishing 18th, two points behind Toulouse, resulting in relegation to Ligue 2 for the next season. Lens finished the season with just 40 points, winning only 9 times in 38 matches.


title: RC Lens

text: After a slow start in their only year in Ligue 2, they managed to finish as leaders during the first half of the season. Earning 13 out of 15 points in their first five games of the second half, everything looked set for a quick return to the first league. After only taking five points of the next six games, however, the promotion race was open again, although Lens recovered and became champions, securing promotion to Ligue 1 for 2009–10. After the 2010–11 season, however, they again dropped to Ligue 2.


title: RC Lens

text: On 16 May 2014, Lens sealed promotion back to Ligue 1 on the final day of the season following a 2–0 win at Bastia. On 27 June, however, the League's National Directorate of Management Control (DNCG) blocked Lens' promotion to the top flight due to irregularities in the club's proposed budget for its next season. The issue was a €10 million payment due from major shareholder Hafiz Mammadov that was missing from the accounts. Lens president Gervais Martel claimed a public holiday in Mammadov's native Azerbaijan had resulted in the delay and said the club would appeal. On 15 July, however, their promotion was in jeopardy after an appeal commission upheld their appeal since the missing funds still had not yet arrived in the club's accounts. Lens immediately declared their intention to appeal to the French Olympic Committee (CNOSF), which has the power to overrule the DNCG. On 25 July, the CNSOF recommended Lens should be allowed to play in Ligue 1. Because the Stade Bollaert-Delelis was being renovated for UEFA Euro 2016, Lens played their home matches for the 2014–15 Ligue 1 season at the Stade de la Licorne, home of Amiens, and at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis.


title: RC Lens

text: It was announced on 29 January 2015 that Lens' promotion from Ligue 2 at the end of the 2013–14 season has been ruled invalid, and will thus be automatically relegated to Ligue 2 for the 2015–16 season, regardless of where the team places. Thus, in August 2015 Lens returned to Ligue 2, albeit playing at the renovated Stade Bollaert-Delelis. They drew an average home attendance of 28,996 in the 2016–17 season, the highest in Ligue 2 but missed promotion to the Ligue 1 during a tumultuous last day of the season.


title: RC Lens

text: In the 2017–18 Ligue 2 season, Lens lost their first seven matches in a row, the worst start to a season in the club's history. On 18 September, Lens finally got their first win of the season over US Quevilly-Rouen 2–0.


title: RC Lens

text: In the 2018–19 Ligue 2 season, Lens finished 5th on the table and reached the promotion play off final against Dijon FCO. After a 1–1 draw in the first leg, Lens would lose the second leg and the tie 3-1 after two goalkeeping blunders by Jérémy Vachoux cost his side a chance of promotion to Ligue 1.


title: RC Lens

text: On 30 April 2020, Lens were promoted to Ligue 1 after the LFP decided to end the seasons of both Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 early due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France. Lens were second on the table in Ligue 2 at the time of the decision.


title: RC Lens

text: In the 2020–21 season, Lens finished 7th on the Ligue 1 table after an impressive first season back in France's top flight. They finished seventh again the following season.


title: RC Lens

text: Three Lens players won the gold medal in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games: defender Didier Sénac, as well as strikers François Brisson and Daniel Xuereb who scored a goal apiece in France's triumph over Brazil 2–0 in the final at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in front of a crowd of 103,000.


title: RC Lens

text: Former coaches include two ex France coaches: Gérard Houllier (1982–85) managed France between July 1992 and November 1993, and Roger Lemerre (second half of the 1996–97 season, then as assistant coach 1997–98), who coached France between July 1998 and July 2002.


title: French Communist Party

text: The French Communist Party (, "PCF" ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group.


title: French Communist Party

text: Founded in 1920, it participated in three governments: the provisional government of the Liberation (1944–1947), at the beginning of François Mitterrand's presidency (1981–1984), and in the Plural Left cabinet led by Lionel Jospin (1997–2002).


title: French Communist Party

text: It was also the largest party on the left in France in a number of national elections, from 1945 to 1960, before falling behind the Socialist Party in the 1970s. The PCF has lost further ground to the Socialists since that time.


title: French Communist Party

text: From 2009, the PCF was a leading member of the Left Front ("Front de gauche"), alongside Jean-Luc Mélenchon's Left Party (PG). During the 2017 presidential election, the PCF supported Mélenchon's candidature; however, tensions between the PCF and Mélenchon's movement, La France Insoumise, have led the two movements to campaign separately for the general elections. Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a strong influence in French politics, especially at the local level. In 2012, the PCF claimed to have had 138,000 members, 70,000 of whom had paid their membership fees.


title: French Communist Party

text: The French Communist Party (PCF) originated in 1920, when a majority of members resigned from the socialist French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) party to set up the French Section of the Communist International (SFIC), with Ludovic-Oscar Frossard as its first secretary-general; Ho Chi Minh, liberator of Vietnam, was one of the notable agitators who participated in its creation. The new SFIC defined itself as revolutionary and democratic centralist. The 1920s saw a number of splits within the party over relations with other left-wing parties and over adherence to Comintern's dictates. The party entered the French parliament, but also promoted strike action and opposed colonialism, a position that was isolated in the French political landscape at the time. The Intercolonial Union, created in 1922, brought together activists from the French colonies around demands for political equality (the right to vote) and social equality ("equal pay for equal work"). The communists thus called for fraternization with the Moroccan insurgents during the Rif war (1925-1926) and to the evacuation of Morocco by the French army, they called for an end to the fighting and the independence of French Syria during the Great Syrian Revolt of 1925-1927, and denounced the festivities of the centenary of the colonization of Algeria, organizing in particular a campaign to boycott the Paris Colonial Exposition (1931).


title: French Communist Party

text: The party was organized around leaders who were mostly from the working class, setting up training and promotion schemes and encouraging the presentation of working-class candidates in elections. The Maurice Thorez, Jacques Duclos and Benoit Frachon team, who had been miners, metalworkers and pastry cooks respectively, had an exceptional longevity and led the French party for almost three decades. The railroad worker Pierre Semard had been secretary general of the party from 1924 to 1929.


title: French Communist Party

text: Pierre Sémard sought party unity and alliances with other parties; but leaders including Maurice Thorez (party leader from 1930 to 1964) imposed a Stalinist line from the late 1920s. With the rise of Fascism after 1934 the PCF supported the Popular Front, which came to power under Léon Blum in 1936. The party supported the Spanish Republicans, and opposed the 1938 Munich agreement with Hitler. It was the only political party in France to denounce this agreement.


title: French Communist Party

text: The party was banned by the government of Édouard Daladier as a result of the German–Soviet Non-aggression Pact, due to its membership in the Comintern, which opposed the War (prior to the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany). The leadership, threatened with execution, fled abroad. After the German invasion of 1940 the party began to organise opposition to the occupation. Shortly before Germany invaded the Soviet Union the next year, the PCF formed, in May 1941, the National Front movement within the broader Resistance, together with the armed "Francs-Tireurs et Partisans" (FTP) group. At the same time the PCF began to work with de Gaulle's "Free France" government in exile, and later took part in the National Council of the Resistance (CNR).


title: French Communist Party

text: By the time the German occupation ended in 1944, the party had become a powerful force in many parts of France. It was among the leading parties in elections in 1945 and 1946, and entered into the governing Tripartite alliance, which pursued social reforms and statism. However, amid concerns within France and abroad over the extent of communist influence, the PCF was excluded from government in May 1947. Under pressure from Moscow, the PCF thereafter distanced itself from other parties and focused on agitation within its trade union base. For the rest of the Fourth Republic period the PCF, led by Thorez and Jacques Duclos, remained politically isolated, still taking a Stalinist line, though retaining substantial electoral support.


title: French Communist Party

text: Although the PCF opposed de Gaulle's formation of the Fifth Republic in 1958, the following years saw a "rapprochement" with other left-wing forces and an increased strength in parliament. With Waldeck Rochet as its new secretary-general, the party supported François Mitterrand's unsuccessful presidential bid in 1965. During the student riots and strikes of May 1968, the party supported the strikes while denouncing the revolutionary student movements. After heavy losses in the ensuing parliamentary elections, the party adopted Georges Marchais as leader and in 1973 entered into a "Common Programme" alliance with Mitterrand's reconstituted Socialist Party (PS). It provided for an increase in wages and social benefits, a reduction in working hours, a retirement age of 60 for men and 55 for women, the expansion of workers' rights and freedoms, the abolition of the death penalty and nuclear disarmament. Under the Common Programme, however, the PCF steadily lost ground to the PS, a process that continued after Mitterrand's victory in 1981.


title: French Communist Party

text: Initially allotted a minor share in Mitterrand's government, the PCF resigned in 1984 as the government turned towards fiscal orthodoxy. Under Marchais the party largely maintained its traditional communist doctrines and structure. Extensive reform was undertaken after 1994, when Robert Hue became leader. This did little to stem the party's declining popularity, although it entered government again in 1997 as part of the Plural Left coalition. Elections in 2002 gave worse results than ever for the PCF. Under Marie-George Buffet, the PCF turned away from parliamentary strategy and sought broader social alliances. To maintain a presence in parliament after 2007 the party's few remaining deputies had to join others in the Democratic and Republican Left group (GDR). Subsequently a broader electoral coalition, the Left Front (FG), was formed including the PCF, the Left Party (PG), Unitary Left, and others. The FG has brought the French communists somewhat better electoral results. Pierre Laurent was leader from 2010 to 2018.


title: French Communist Party

text: The PCF, in contrast to weaker and more marginal communist parties in Europe, is usually seen as a left wing, rather than far-left, party in the French context. While the French far-left (LCR/NPA, LO) has refused to participate in government or engage in electoral alliances with centre-left parties such as the PS, the PCF has participated in governments in the past, and still enjoys a "de facto" electoral agreement with the PS (mutual withdrawals, the common practice since 1962 and in 1934–1939). Nonetheless, some observers and analysts classify the PCF as a far-left party, noting their political proximity to other far-left parties.


title: French Communist Party

text: In the 1980s, under Georges Marchais, the PCF mixed a partial acceptance of "bourgeois" democracy and individual liberties with more traditional Marxist–Leninist ideas. During this same period the PCF was run on democratic centralist lines and structured itself as a revolutionary party in the Leninist sense and rejected criticism of the Soviet Union. Under Robert Hue's leadership after 1994, the PCF's ideology and internal organization underwent major changes. Hue clearly rejected the Soviet model, and reserved very harsh criticism for Soviet leaders who had "rejected, for years, human rights and 'bourgeois' democracy" and had oppressed individual liberties and aspirations. Today, the PCF considers the Soviet Union as a 'perversion' of the communist model and unambiguously rejects Stalinism. It has not attributed the failure of the Soviet Union as being that of communism, rather stating that the failure of Soviet socialism was the failure of one model "among others", including the capitalist or social democratic models. It also tried to downplay the PCF's historic attachment to Moscow and the Soviet Union.


title: French Communist Party

text: Since then, the PCF's ideology has been marked by significant ideological evolution on some topics, but consistency on other issues. Some of the most marked changes have come on individual rights and immigration. After having vilified homosexuality and feminism as "the rubbish of capitalism" in the 1970s, the PCF now fully supports both gay rights and feminism. In the 1980s, the PCF supported reducing the age of consent for homosexual relationships, and opposed attempts to re-penalize homosexuality. In 1998, the PCF voted in favour of the civil solidarity pact (PACS), civil unions, including for homosexual couples. The PCF supports both same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption. On 12 February 2013, PCF deputies voted in favour of same-sex marriage and adoption rights in the National Assembly, though PCF deputy voted against. The PCF also supports feminist movements, and supports policies to further promote gender equality and parity.


title: French Communist Party

text: Despite its moral conservatism in the 1930s and 1960s, the PCF was the most feminist party in France throughout the 20th century. Committed to women's right to vote since the 1920s, in 1946, it elected seventeen of the first thirty-three women deputies. In 1956, there were only nineteen women in the National Assembly, but fifteen were Communists.


title: French Communist Party

text: On the issue of immigration, the PCF's positions have also evolved significantly since the 1980s. In the 1981 presidential election, Georges Marchais ran a controversial campaign on immigration which was harshly criticized by anti-racism organizations at the time. In 1980, the PCF's leadership voted in favour of limiting immigration. The same year, Marchais supported the PCF mayor of Vitry-sur-Seine who had destroyed a home for Malian migrant workers; the PCF claimed that the right-wing government was trying to push immigrants into ghettos in Communist working-class cities. The "Libération" newspaper also alleged that PCF municipal administrations had been working to limit the number of immigrants in housing projects. However, today the PCF supports the regularization of illegal immigrants.


title: French Communist Party

text: One historical consistency in the PCF's ideology has been its staunch opposition to capitalism, which must be "overcome" because according to the PCF the capitalist system is "exhausted" and "on the verge of collapse". The PCF has interpreted the current course of globalization as a confirmation of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels's view on the future evolution of capitalism. The party feels that the financial crisis of 2007–2008 and the Great Recession have further justified its calls to overcome capitalism. However, the PCF has remained somewhat vague on how capitalism will be 'overcome' and what will replace it, placing heavy emphasis on utopic models or values.


title: French Communist Party

text: The text adopted at the XXXVI Congress in February 2013 reiterated the party's call on the need to "overcome" capitalism, fiercely denounced by the PCF as having led to "savage competition", "the devastation of the planet" and "barbarism". It contrasts its vision of capitalism with its proposed alternative, described as an egalitarian, humanist, and democratic alternative. It emphasizes human emancipation, the development of "each and every one", the right to happiness and the equal dignity of each human being regardless of gender, race or sexual orientation. The party further posits that such an egalitarian society is impossible within capitalism, which "unleashes domination and hatred".


title: French Communist Party

text: For the 2022 French legislative election, the party joined the New Ecologic and Social People's Union (NUPES) bloc of left-wing and green parties. In the alliance, they were the only party to support nuclear energy.


title: French Communist Party

text: Jean-Luc Mélenchon and the FG's platform in the 2012 presidential election was broken up into nine overarching themes.


title: French Communist Party

text: The platform also supported same-sex marriage, same-sex adoption, voting rights for resident foreigners, euthanasia, and constitutional recognition of abortion.


title: French Communist Party

text: The French Communist Party inherited from the Jacobins the concept of France as a centralised, French-speaking, unitary state, with a unitary culture and it is opposed to the separatism and regional identity of other European minority groups native to the area of what consists the French Republic. For instance in 1984, the Soviet ethnographer Solomon Bruk (who had worked under Sergey Tolstov) published a study on France and mentioned the existence of other ethnic groups in the state such as Bretons, Corsicans, Alsatians, Basques, Catalans, Flemish and others. In response to this work, General Secretary Georges Marchais wrote a letter of protest in February 1984, complaining bitterly to the Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.


title: French Communist Party

text: The PCF does not, as of May 2022, have any MEPs. It has two Presidents of the General Council – in the Val-de-Marne and Allier. The PCF lost Seine-Saint-Denis, which it had held since the 1960s, to the PS in 2008.


title: French Communist Party

text: The PCF has traditionally been a "mass party", although Maurice Duverger had differentiated it from other mass parties because the PCF kept a tight control over membership and regularly expelled unsuitable members. In its heyday, the PCF maintained a large base of members and the party's political and electoral actions were supported in society by a trade union, the General Confederation of Labour (CGT); a newspaper, "L'Humanité"; and a large number of front organizations or associations in civil society which organized a large number of political or non-political social activities for PCF members. One such activity which still exists today is the annual "Fête de l'Humanité" organized by the "L'Humanité". French and foreign left-wing parties, organizations or movements are represented and the activities feature musical performances.


title: French Communist Party

text: Since the PCF's decline began in the 1970s, however, it has seen its membership base slowly dry up and its allied organizations disappear or distance themselves from the party. The PCF claimed 520,000 members in 1978; 330,000 in 1987; 270,000 in 1996; and 133,000 in 2002. In 2008, the party claimed that it had 134,000 members of which 79,000 were up to date on their membership fees. In the 2011 internal primary, 69,277 members were registered to vote and 48,631 (70.2%) did so. The party likely has about 70,000 members as of today, but only about 40 to 50 thousand seem to actively participate in the party's organization and political activities.


title: French Communist Party

text: According to studies by the CEVIPOF in 1979 and 1997, the makeup of the PCF's membership has also changed significantly since 1979. The most marked change was a major decline in the share of manual workers ("ouvriers") in the party's membership, with a larger number of employees and middle-classes, especially those who work in the public sector. The form of political action taken by members has also changed, with less emphasis on direct political or electoral action but a greater emphasis on social work and protests.


title: French Communist Party

text: The party's structures were democratized at the 1994 Congress, dropping democratic centralism and allowing for the public expression of disapproval or dissent with the party line or leadership. The party's top posts, like that of 'secretary-general', were renamed (secretary-general became national-secretary). The party, since 2000, is now led by a national council, which serves as the leadership between congresses; and the executive committee, which is charged with applying the national council's decisions. The national-secretary is elected by delegates at the congress. Likewise, the national council is elected by list voting at every congress. A reform of statutes in 2001 has allowed "alternative texts" - dissent from the text proposed by the PCF leadership - to be presented and voted on; dissident lists to those backed by the leadership may also run for the national council.


title: French Communist Party

text: The General Confederation of Labour (CGT) was dominated by the PCF after 1946, with almost all its leaders between 1947 and 1996 (Benoît Frachon, Georges Séguy, Henri Krasucki, Louis Viannet) also serving in the PCF's national leadership structures. For years, the CGT and the PCF were close and almost indissociable allies - notably in May 1968 when both the CGT and PCF were eager for a restoration of social order and welcomed the Grenelle agreements. While the CGT has remained the largest trade union in France, it has taken its independence vis-à-vis the PCF. Louis Viannet spectacularly quit the national bureau of the PCF in 1996 and Bernard Thibault, the CGT's leader between 1999 and 2013, left the PCF's national council in 2001.


title: French Communist Party

text: "L'Humanité" has retained closer ties with the PCF. The newspaper was founded by Jean Jaurès in 1904 as the socialist movement's mouthpiece, and it followed the communist majority following the split in 1920. After having been the official newspaper of the PCF, with a readership of up to 100,000 in 1945, the newspaper's readership and sales declined substantially partly due to the PCF's concomitant decline. In 1999, the mention of the newspaper's link to the PCF was dropped and the PCF no longer determines its editorial stance. It sold an average of 46,929 newspapers per day in 2012; down from 53,530 in 2007.


title: French Communist Party

text: There are no formal organized factions or political groupings within the PCF. This was originally due to the practice of democratic centralism, but even after the democratization of the PCF structure after 1994 the ban on the organization of formal factions within the party remained. According to party statutes, the PCF supports the "pluralism of ideas" but the right to pluralism "may not be translated into an organizations of tendencies". Nevertheless, certain factions and groups are easily identifiable within the PCF and they are "de facto" expressed officially by different orientation texts or lists for leadership elections at party congresses.


title: French Communist Party

text: At the XXXIV Congress in 2008, for the election of the national council, the majority's list won 67.73% from the congress' delegates against 16.38% for Marie-Pierre Vieu's "huiste" list backed by the "refondateurs", 10.26% for André Gerin's orthodox list and 5.64% for Nicolas Marchand's "novateur" list.


title: French Communist Party

text: Currently, the PCF retains some strength in suburban Paris, in the Nord section of the old coal mining area in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais, the industrial harbours of Le Havre and Dieppe, in some departments of central France, such as Allier and Cher (where a form of sharecropping existed, in addition to mining and small industrial-mining centres such as Commentry and Montceau-les-Mines), the industrial mining region of northern Meurthe-et-Moselle (Longwy) and in some cities of the south, such as the industrial areas of Marseille and nearby towns, as well as the working-class suburbs surrounding Paris (the "ceinture rouge"), Lyon, Saint-Étienne, Alès and Grenoble. The PCF is also strong in the Cévennes mountains, a left-wing rural anti-clerical stronghold with a strong Protestant minority.


title: French Communist Party

text: Communist traditions in the "Red Limousin", the Pas-de-Calais, Paris proper, Nièvre, Finistère, Alpes-Maritimes and Var have been hurt significantly by demographic changes (Var, Alpes-Maritimes, Finistère), a loss of voters to the Socialist Party due to good local Socialist infrastructure or strongmen (Nièvre, Pas-de-Calais, Paris) or due to the emergence of rival parties on the radical left (the Convention for a Progressive Alternative, a party of reformist communists, in the Limousin and Val-de-Marne).


title: French Communist Party

text: There exists isolated Communist bases in the rural anti-clerical areas of southwestern Côtes-d'Armor and northwestern Morbihan; in the industrial areas of Le Mans; in the shipbuilding cities of Saint-Nazaire, La Seyne-sur-Mer (there are no more ships built in La Seyne); and in isolated industrial centres built along the old Paris-Lyon railway (the urban core of Romilly-sur-Seine, Aube has elected a Communist general councillor since 1958).


title: French Communist Party

text: During the course of the Twentieth Century, the French Communists were considered to be pioneers in local government, providing not only efficient street lighting and clean streets, but also public entertainment, public housing, municipal swimming pools, day nurseries, children’s playgrounds, and public lavatories. In 1976, for instance, the Communist mayor of Sarcelles, Henry Canacos, was named "best mayor in the Paris region" by Vie Publique (a trade periodical for urban planners and administrators) for enriching Sarcelles' public spaces with new restaurants, movie theatres, cafes, more parks, a large shopping mall, and better transportation. Education also became, in the words of one text, an "identifiable characteristic of Communist government at the local level". A study of municipal budgets that was completed in 1975 (but using data from 1968) found that while Communist local government spent 34% less than non-Communist Left governments and 36% less than moderate-Right governments for maintenance, it nevertheless spent 49% more than moderate Right governments and 36% more than non-Communist Left governments for education and educational support.


title: French Communist Party

text: Traditionally, it was also the owner of the French daily "L'Humanité" ("Humanity"), founded by Jean Jaurès.


title: French Communist Party

text: The paper is sustained by the annual "Fête de L'Humanité" festival, held in La Courneuve, a working class suburb of Paris. This event remains the biggest festival in France, with attendees during a three-day period.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Prince Joachim of Denmark, Count of Monpezat, (; Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian; born 7 June 1969) is a member of the Danish royal family. The younger son of Queen Margrethe II, he is sixth in the line of succession to the Danish throne, following his elder brother, Crown Prince Frederik and his four children.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Prince Joachim was born on 7 June 1969 at Rigshospitalet, part of the Copenhagen University Hospital in Copenhagen. He was christened Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian on 15 July 1969 in Aarhus Cathedral, the first member of the royal family to have been christened outside of Copenhagen. His godparents were his maternal aunt, Princess Benedikte of Denmark; his paternal uncle, Jean Baptiste de Laborde de Monpezat; his mother's first cousin, Princess Christina of Sweden; and King Harald V (then Crown Prince of Norway).


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Prince Joachim attended school as a private pupil from 1974 until 1976 at Amalienborg Palace and then from 1976 until 1982 at Krebs' Skole in Copenhagen. In the period 1982–1983 the Prince studied as a boarder at École des Roches in Normandy, France. In 1986, Prince Joachim graduated from Øregård Gymnasium. In 1993, he completed his studies in agrarian economics at Den Classenske Agerbrugskole Næsgaard. The Prince's first language is Danish, but he also speaks French (his father's language), English and German.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: In 1993, Prince Joachim took over the estate of Schackenborg Castle in the town of Møgeltønder, in Southern Jutland, having been granted the estate in the will of Count Hans Schack in 1978.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Joachim and his first wife, now the Countess of Frederiksborg, received 13 million DKK collected by the people of Denmark as a national gift, reserved for restoration of the estate. The restoration was completed in 1999. The couple was divorced in 2005, whereupon Countess Alexandra moved with their two sons to Copenhagen. Joachim remained at Schackenborg – from 2007 alongside his second wife – until 2014 when the estate was handed over to the Schackenborg Foundation, which consists of Prince Joachim, Bitten and Mads Clausens foundation, Ole Kirks Foundation, and Ecco Holding. Joachim, Marie and their children moved from the castle to Klampenborg, north of Copenhagen, but still holiday at the castle.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: In 1987, Joachim enlisted as a recruit in the Queen's Life Regiment, where from he first entered the NCO School and where after the lieutenant school. Between 1989 and 1990, he served as platoon commander in the 3rd tank squadron/1st Battalion (3/I/PLR) of the Prince's Life Regiment.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: In 1992 He entered the Royal Danish Military Academy's course for reserve officers to become a captain


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Between 1996 and 2004, he served as squadroncommander of 3rd tank squadron/2nd Battalion (3/II/PLR) also in the Prince's Life Regiment.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: In 2005 he was an staff officer in the staff of Danske Division and from 2011 He was liaison officer at the Defence Region of Fuen and South Jutland.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: During the summer of 2019, Prince Joachim, Princess Marie and their two children moved to Paris, France, while the Prince had been admitted to the highest-ranking military educational program at École Militaire by invitation from the French Minister of Defense. Prince Joachim graduated on 26 June 2020, being the first Danish Officer to complete the two-part special education.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Earlier in June 2020, the Danish Secretary of Defense promoted the Prince to Brigadier General due to his new acquired educational merits at École Militaire. He was subsequently named Military Attaché at the Royal Danish Embassy in Paris, France, by the Danish Ministry of Defense. A position he is expected to hold for at least three years while maintaining his patronages and royal engagements in Denmark when possible. Joachim commenced his new position on 1 September 2020.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: On 24 July 2020, while on holiday in Château de Cayx, Prince Joachim was admitted to Toulouse University Hospital for surgery on a blood clot in his brain. He was discharged from hospital in early August.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: On 18 November 1995, at Frederiksborg Palace Church in Hillerød, near Copenhagen, Joachim married Alexandra Christina Manley, a Hong Kong-born former sales and marketing deputy chief executive of English, Chinese, and Austrian ancestry. The couple had two sons, Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: The couple announced their separation on 16 September 2004; their divorce was final on 8 April 2005. The couple shared custody of their sons until they came of age. Alexandra received the title of Countess of Frederiksborg, and was permitted to retain the courtesy title of princess pending remarriage. She subsequently remarried and forfeited the royal title, but retained the title of countess. She continues to live in Denmark.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: On 3 October 2007, the Danish court announced that Prince Joachim had become engaged to French native Marie Cavallier. Their wedding took place on 24 May 2008 in Møgeltønder Church near Schackenborg Castle. The wedding date marked the 73rd anniversary of the wedding of Joachim's grandparents, King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid of Denmark. The couple have two children, Prince Henrik and Princess Athena.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: None of Joachim's four children are styled as Royal Highnesses but simply as "Highnesses" per the Danish court. It was announced by the Danish Royal House on 28 September 2022 that from 1 January 2023 all four of his children will be known as His or Her Excellency Count/Countess of Monpezat. They will no longer hold a princely title. The prince expressed his sadness at his mother's decision.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Joachim enjoys historic motor sports car racing and has participated in the Copenhagen Historic Grand Prix multiple times.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: In 2019, Joachim presented the documentary series "Prins Joachim fortæller" for Danmarks Radio. In the six-part series that he also co-produced, Joachim investigates the ideas and events that shaped Denmark's history.


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: Joachim was originally styled "His Royal Highness Prince Joachim of Denmark". Since 29 April 2008, he has been known as "His Royal Highness Prince Joachim of Denmark, Count of Monpezat".


title: Prince Joachim of Denmark

text: The Dansk Rugby Union (DRU) website names Prince Joachim as the patron of the DRU. He participated in a classic-car race, part of the GTC-TC championship: he drove a BMW 2002, sharing the ride with Derek Bell.


title: Still D.R.E.

text: "Still D.R.E." is a song by American rapper-producer Dr. Dre, featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on November 2, 1999 as the lead single from Dre's multi-platinum second studio album, "2001" (1999).


title: Still D.R.E.

text: The single itself was popular, helping the album reach multi-platinum status, announcing Dre's return to the forefront of the hip-hop scene. "Still D.R.E." debuted and peaked at number 93 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 in 1999 before re-entering and peaking at number 23 in 2022. It was more successful in the United Kingdom, where it reached number 6. The song is featured in the crime, drama, and thriller "Training Day" (2001), in the in-game radio station, West Coast Classics, in the video game "Grand Theft Auto V" (along with "The Next Episode"), and was also featured on the American drama series "Prison Break". The song has been performed live numerous times by both Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. Notable performances include the 2000 Up in Smoke Tour and as the final song in the Super Bowl LVI halftime show on February 13, 2022 alongside fellow American rappers Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar, 50 Cent. and Anderson .Paak, with the latter on drums.


title: Still D.R.E.

text: Dr. Dre released his highly acclaimed debut solo album "The Chronic" in 1992. After this, Dre went seven years without releasing an album. During this time he featured on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart-toppers "California Love" and "No Diggity", while also producing Snoop Dogg and Eminem's debut studio albums "Doggystyle" and "The Slim Shady LP", respectively. The stakes were higher for the sequel to "The Chronic", so Dre recruited Jay-Z to ghostwrite lyrics for the former's comeback single, "Still D.R.E.". "At first, he wrote about diamonds and Bentleys," Dre told "Blaze" magazine in 1999. "So I told Jay to write some other shit. Jigga sat for 20 minutes and came back with some hard-ass, around-the-way L.A. shit." In an interview on "The Breakfast Club", Snoop Dogg elaborated on Jay-Z's contributions on the song. "He wrote Dre’s shit and my shit and it was flawless," he said. "It was 'Still D.R.E.' and it was Jay-Z and he wrote the whole fucking song."


title: Still D.R.E.

text: The music video, directed by Hype Williams, consists mainly of The D.O.C., Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre driving and riding in lowrider cars (a reference to the "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" music video from "The Chronic" album). It features several cameos: Eminem chasing a group of women across a beach, Xzibit driving a lowrider, Funkmaster Flex with Dr. Dre, and Warren G riding with several women. In the background the individual throwing up the W with the crowd next to Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre right next to the lowrider car was Coldhard from the Chicago-based rap group Crucial Conflict. The music video was released for the week ending on October 3, 1999. The video performance was officially uploaded via VEVO to Dr. Dre YouTube Channel on 27 October 2011. As of February 14, 2022, after the Super Bowl LVI halftime show, the music video reached 1 billion views.