Biography.

Zhang was born in 1881 in Yi County (now Laizhou) in Shandong. His family was poor; his father worked as head shaver and trumpeter, while his mother was an exorcist. In his teens, his family moved to Manchuria, where Zhang became involved in petty crime in Harbin. He eventually became a bandit in the countryside, though served as auxiliary for the Imperial Russian Army during the Russo-Japanese War in 1904–1905. Following the conflict, he returned to crime and rose to lead his own bandit gang. His activities during the Xinhai Revolution of 1911 are unclear, though he offered his band's services to the army of Jiangsu's military governor. By 1913, he commanded an army division, and served in various military factions during the Warlord Era's early stages.  He returned to Manchuria in 1922, and joined the Fengtian clique of warlord Zhang Zuolin. He made a good impression, with one story being that he rose in popularity one year at Zhang Zuolin's birthday party: in contrast to other guests who showered the warlord with expensive gifts, Zhang Zongchang sent him two empty coolie baskets and failed to turn up himself. Zhang Zuolin was baffled until the purpose of the gift was ascertained: Zhang Zongchang's empty basket implied he was a man willing to shoulder whatever heavy responsibilities the warlord entrusted him with. He was subsequently rewarded with a command position in his army, though only after proving himself in battle did Zhang Zongchang visit his superior in person.  Zhang Zongchang proved to be one of the more capable warlord generals, making effective use of armoured trains manned by experienced White Russian mercenaries. He recruited up to 4,600 White Russian refugees from the Russian civil war, from which he formed a cavalry regiment, complete with pseudo-Tsarist uniforms and regalia. He was also one of the first Chinese generals to incorporate women into the military on a large scale, including using a regiment of nurses consisting entirely of White Russian women. They trained their Chinese counterparts, resulting in greater efficiency in taking care of Zhang's wounded troops, a significant boost for morale and combat capability.  In 1924, he took part in the Second Zhili–Fengtian War and helped partition Shanghai between the opposing forces. In April 1925 he conquered Shanghai proper and then seized Nanjing, both for the glory of Zhang Zuolin's Fengtian clique. He was subsequently appointed military governor of Shandong, which he ruled as warlord until May 1928. Zhang traveled to Shanghai for frequent carousing sessions with Zhang Zuolin's son, Gen. Zhang Xueliang. Both men enjoyed opium, for which Shanghai was a key site in the smuggling trade, and the Fengtian economy became increasingly reliant on the drug. In an infamous incident in 1925, an argument in Zhang's headquarters over who among a group of officers should receive the biggest payment from an opium deal led to a shootout which saw three of them kill each other.  In 1928, during the Northern Expedition, Gen. Bai Chongxi led Kuomintang forces that defeated and destroyed Zhang Zongchang's army, capturing 20,000 of his 50,000 troops and almost capturing Zhang himself, who escaped beyond the Great Wall to Manchuria. He fled to Japanese protection in Dalian, though remained unwilling to accept his reduced status. From Dalian, he plotted to regain his former territories. Possibly enjoying covert support by Japan, Zhang, his long-time follower Chu Yupu and another warlord, Huang Feng-chi, returned to Shandong in 1929 and launched a major rebellion against Liu Zhennian, the Nationalist-aligned "de facto" ruler of eastern Shandong at the time. Gathering tens of thousands of demobilized soldiers who were still loyal to them, the three warlords fought for several months against Liu's followers, thereby causing great destruction and many casualties among the civilian population. In the end, the rebellion was defeated, though Zhang managed to escape back to Dalian. Later that year, he was living quietly in Beppu, Japan, with his mother, though he was thrown into the spotlight again when he "accidentally" shot Prince Xiankai (憲開), a cousin of the deposed emperor Puyi. According to Zhang the gun he was holding while standing at his hotel window happened to go off and shoot the young prince in the back, killing him instantly, though it was more likely he killed the playboy prince for dallying with one of Zhang's many concubines. He was charged, found guilty by a Japanese court and given the choice between 15 days' imprisonment or a $150 (US) fine. He chose the fine.  While visiting Shandong in 1932, he was assassinated by the nephew of one of his many victims, who was in turn given clemency and pardoned by the Kuomintang government. Contemporary claims were made that the "filial murder" might have been part of a plan set up by a local governor to remove Zhang as a political rival.

Personal life.

Nicknames and titles.

In course of his career, Zhang gained a great number of nicknames, most of them derogatory:

Character.

Zhang Zongchang was one of the most infamous Chinese warlords. Being of impressive height and physically strong, he was often regarded as a brute and loathed by his victims, though he could also be very sociable, charming and commanded the respect of his troops as well as superiors. Zhang Zongchang was often described as behaving "mindlessly brutal" during his military campaigns and having "the physique of an elephant, the brain of a pig and the temperament of a tiger". Writer Lin Yutang called Zhang "the most colorful, legendary, medieval, and unashamed ruler of modern China". Former Emperor Puyi remembered Zhang as "a universally detested monster" whose ugly, bloated face was "tinged with the livid hue induced by heavy opium smoking". A brutal man, Zhang was notorious for his hobby of splitting the skulls of prisoners with his sword, which he called "smashing melons". He loved to boast about the size of his penis, which become part of his legend. He kept some 30 to 50 concubines of different nationalities, who were given numbers since he could not remember their names nor speak their language. According to the "Time", several of his concubines had been forcibly seized from rich families in Shandong. He was free with his gifts, lavishly squandering money and concubines on superiors and friends. As a result, his commanders were very loyal to him, contributing to his military success. According to the wife of Wellington Koo:  Zhang Zongchang was also known for writing poetry, though his works (such as the "Poem about bastards", the "Daming Lake poem", "Visiting Penglai Pavilion" and "Pray for Rain") are generally considered to be quite bad. However, some sources have disputed these poems as being fabrications made by his political opponent Han Fuju to slander Zhang Zongchang.  Though not very pious, Zhang was reportedly superstitious. According to David Bonavia, he was strongly influenced by a Daoist diviner who had allegedly convinced the warlord of his powers by successfully prophesying that a train would derail. It was rumoured that the diviner had ensured this outcome by bribing some peasants to sabotage the tracks. Zhang also refused to drink any water except that which came from a minor tributary stream of the Jinan River. He preferred to drink the water directly from the stream, often excusing himself from dinner to go drink from the stream. After he participated in the partioning of Shanghai, he began drinking water solely from the Huangpu River. He claimed the water tasted "divine, as if the urine of heaven." In preparation for his military campaigns, he would instruct his soldiers to gather large quantities of drinking water from his favorite river at the time, which he would not allow others to drink. Whether near or far from his favorite river, his soldiers would present him with water from the nearest available source and claim it was water from his preferred river. There are no known accounts of Zhang disputing the water's origin. Zhang was regularly seen to relieve himself in both rivers.  While having a reputation as one of the most brutal and ruthless warlords, he was also one of the most colourful. After defeating the army of general Wu Peifu by making his enemy's forces defect, he rewarded the defectors by allowing them to keep their original ranks. He then promoted his own officers, but since there was not enough metal to make the gold and silver stars for their rank insignia, he ordered the stars to be made from the gold and silver paper foil in cigarette packages. During the mass promotion ceremony, the officers were surprised to find their insignia already torn even before the ceremony had ended. During one of his campaigns, he publicly announced he would win the battle or come home in his coffin. When his troops were forced back he was true to his word—he was paraded through the streets, sitting in his coffin and smoking a large cigar. It was also a matter of public amusement that he kept his aged mother with him at all times, except when on campaign, when he left her at his opulent palace.  During the Famine of Northwestern China in 1928–1930, a famine that struck Shandong particularly hard, Zhang Zongchang was reported to have gone into a temple of Zhang Xian where there were many people praying for rain and offering gifts to the deity, then walking up to the statue, he slapped it and said "Fuck your sister! How dare you make Shandong's people suffer by not giving us rain!" He then left the temple, the next day ordering his artillery to shoot into the sky until it rained. It rained the next day. This is also where his nickname of "72-Cannon Chang" came from.

Zhang Zongchang (13 February 1881 – 3 September 1932), was a Chinese warlord in Shandong in the early 20th century. "Time" dubbed him China's "basest warlord". He was known by many nicknames such as the "Dogmeat General" ().

Zhang Zongchang (張宗昌) ( – ), était un seigneur de la guerre chinois dans la province du Shandong au début du.


Facilities.

The correctional complex sits on Point San Quentin, which consists of on the north side of San Francisco Bay. The prison complex itself occupies, valued in a 2001 study at between $129 million and $664 million.  As of April 30, 2020, San Quentin was incarcerating people at 122.5% of its design capacity, with 3,776 occupants.

Death row.

Men condemned to death in California (with some exceptions) must be held at San Quentin, while condemned women are held at Central California Women's Facility in Chowchilla. As of December 2015, San Quentin held almost 700 male inmates in its Condemned Unit, or "death row." As of 2001, San Quentin's death row was described as "the largest in the Western Hemisphere"; as of 2005, it was called "the most populous execution antechamber in the United States." The states of Florida and Texas had fewer death row inmates in 2008 (397 and 451 respectively) than San Quentin.  The death row at San Quentin is divided into three sections: the quiet "North-Segregation" or "North-Seg," built in 1934, for prisoners who "don't cause trouble"; the "East Block," a "crumbling, leaky maze of a place built in 1927"; and the "Adjustment Center" for the "worst of the worst." Most of the prison's death row inmates reside in the East Block. The fourth floor of the North Block was the prison's first death row facility, but additional death row space opened after executions resumed in the U.S. in 1978. The adjustment center received solid doors, preventing "gunning-down" or attacking persons with bodily waste. it housed 81 death row inmates and four non-death row inmates. A dedicated psychiatric facility serves the prisoners. A converted shower bay in the East Block hosts religious services. Many prison programs available for most inmates are unavailable for death row inmates.  Although $395 million was allocated in the 2008–2009 state budget for new death row facilities at San Quentin, in December 2008 two legislators introduced bills to eliminate the funding. The state had planned to build a new death row facility, but Governor Jerry Brown canceled those plans in 2011. In 2015 Brown asked the Legislature for funds for a new death row as the current death row facilities were becoming filled. At the time the non-death row prison population was decreasing, opening room for death row inmates. the San Quentin death row has a capacity of 715 prisoners.

Executions.

As noted above, all executions in California, of both male and female prisoners, must occur at San Quentin. The execution chamber is located in a one-story addition in proximity to the East Block. Women executed in California would be transported to San Quentin by bus before being put to death.  The methods for execution at San Quentin have changed over time. Prior to 1893, the counties executed convicts. Between 1893 and 1937, 215 people were executed at San Quentin by hanging, after which 196 prisoners died in the gas chamber. In 1995, the use of gas for execution was ruled "cruel and unusual punishment", which led to executions inside the gas chamber by lethal injection. Between 1996 and 2006, 11 people were executed at San Quentin by lethal injection.  In April 2007, staff of the California Legislative Analyst's Office discovered that a new execution chamber was being built at San Quentin; legislators subsequently "accuse[d] the governor of hiding the project from the Legislature and the public." The old lethal injection facility had included an injection room of and a single viewing area; the facility that was being built included an injection chamber of and three viewing areas for family, victim, and press. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger stopped construction of the facility the next week. The legislature later approved $180,000 to finish the project, and the facility was completed.  In addition to state executions, three federal executions have been carried out at San Quentin. Samuel Richard Shockley and Miran Edgar Thompson had been incarcerated at Alcatraz Island federal penitentiary and were executed on December 3, 1948, for the murder of two prison guards during the Battle of Alcatraz. Carlos Romero Ochoa had murdered a federal immigration officer after he was caught smuggling illegal immigrants across the border near El Centro, California. He was executed at San Quentin's gas chamber on December 10, 1948.  On March 13, 2019, after Governor Gavin Newsom ordered a moratorium on the state's death penalty, the state withdrew its current lethal injection protocol, and San Quentin dismantled and indefinitely closed its gas and lethal injection execution chambers.

History.

Though numerous towns and localities in the area are named after Roman Catholic saints, and "San Quintín" is Spanish for "Saint Quentin", the prison was not named after the saint. The land on which it is situated, Point Quentin, is named after a Coast Miwok warrior named Quentín, fighting under Chief Marin, who was taken prisoner at that place.  In 1851, California's first prison opened; it was a 268-ton wooden ship named the "Waban", anchored in San Francisco Bay and outfitted to hold 30 inmates. After a series of speculative land transactions and a legislative scandal, inmates who were housed on the" Waban" constructed San Quentin which "opened in 1852 with 68 inmates." A dungeon built at San Quentin in 1854 is thought to be California's oldest surviving public work.  One example of a noteworthy leader at San Quentin was Warden Clinton Duffy from 1940 to 1952. Warden Duffy was a man of contradictions. His public persona was quite positive because of his fresh insights informing the reorganization of the prison structure and reformation of prison management. Prior to Duffy, San Quentin had gone through years of violence, inhumane punishments and civil rights abuses against prisoners. The previous warden was forced to resign. Duffy had the offending prison guards fired and added a librarian, psychiatrists, and several surgeons at San Quentin. Duffy's press agent publicized sweeping reforms; however, San Quentin remained a brutal prison where prisoners continued to be beaten to death. The use of torture as an approved method of interrogation at San Quentin was banned in 1944.  In 1941 the first prison meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous took place at San Quentin; in commemoration of this, the 25-millionth copy of the AA Big Book was presented to Jill Brown, of San Quentin, at the International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  In 1947, Warden Duffy recruited Herman Spector to work as assistant warden at San Quentin. Spector turned down the invitation to be assistant warden and chose instead to become senior librarian if he could institute his theories on reading as a program to encourage pro-social behavior. By 1955, Spector was being interviewed in library journals and suggesting the prison library could contribute significantly to rehabilitation.  The dining hall of the prison is adorned by six sepia toned murals depicting California history. They were painted by Alfredo Santos, one-time convicted heroin dealer and successful artist, during his 1953–1955 incarceration.  Lawrence Singleton, who raped a teenaged girl and cut off her forearms, spent a year on parole in a trailer on the grounds of San Quentin between 1987 and 1988 because towns in California would not accept him as a parolee. Between 1992 and 1997, a "boot camp" was held at the prison that was intended to "rehabilitat[e] first-time, nonviolent offenders"; the program was discontinued because it did not reduce recidivism or save money.  A 2005 court-ordered report found that the prison was "old, antiquated, dirty, poorly staffed, poorly maintained with inadequate medical space and equipment and overcrowded." Later that year, the warden was fired for "threaten[ing] disciplinary action against a doctor who spoke with attorneys about problems with health care delivery at the prison." By 2007, a new trauma center had opened at the prison and a new $175 million medical complex was planned.

In media.

Fiction, literature and publications.

Gang-pulp author Margie Harris wrote a story on San Quentin for the short-lived pulp magazine "Prison Stories". The story, titled "Big House Boomerang," appeared in the March 1931 issue. It used San Quentin's brutal jute mill as its setting. Harris' knowledge of the prison came from her days as a newspaper reporter in the Bay Area, and her acquaintance with famous San Quentin prisoner Ed Morrell.  The 1915 novel "The Star Rover" by Jack London was based in San Quentin. A framing story is told in the first person by Darrell Standing, a university professor serving life imprisonment in San Quentin State Prison for murder. Prison officials try to break his spirit by means of a torture device called "the jacket," a canvas jacket which can be tightly laced so as to compress the whole body, inducing angina. Standing discovers how to withstand the torture by entering a kind of trance state, in which he walks among the stars and experiences portions of past lives.

San Quentin State Prison (SQ) is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated town of San Quentin in Marin County.

La prison d'État de San Quentin ("San Quentin State Prison" en anglais) est une prison d'État de Californie (États-Unis), gérée par le "California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation", située à Point San Quentin au nord de San Francisco, dans le comté de Marin.


History of discovery.

In 1989, during a field exploration conducted by the Mongolian and Russian Paleontological Expedition in the Gobi Desert, examining the outcrops at Khongil, South Central Mongolia, many dinosaur fossil discoveries were made. About 5.6 km away from the Khongil locality, a large and mostly disarticulated partial theropod skeleton was discovered in fine-grained, medium sandstone/gray mudstone that was deposited dating back to the Late Cretaceous epoch at the Burkhant locality, Bayan Shireh Formation. The preserved specimen was found in association with a left maxilla preserving nine teeth and two alveoli, four cervical vertebrae, three dorsal vertebrae and eight caudal vertebrae, a nearly complete pelvic girdle compromising both pubes, right illium and right ischium, both femora and left tibia, left metatarsals III and IV, manual and pedal phalanges with some unguals, right scapulocoracoid, an isolated radius, two ribs and caudal chevrons. Traces of tail tendons were found too, but mostly isolated. It was collected and exceptionally prepared by the assistant paleontologist Namsarai Batulseen and stored as MNUFR-15. Ten years later, the unusual specimen was formally described in 1999 and became the holotype for the new genus and species: "Achillobator giganticus". It was identified as a dromaeosaurid taxon, a large one. The description was performed by the Mongolian paleontologist Altangerel Perle, and North American paleontologists Mark A. Norell and James M. Clark.  However, the description was published in a very preliminary format, being not complete at all, having a few issues with the preserved elements and numerous typographical errors. For instance, metatarsals II and III (of unknown position) were claimed as preserved elements, but in further pages there is no mention of them, a similar case may apply to the preserved left metatarsals III and IV, which at some point are attributed to the left pes, but afterwards to the right one. The paper was likely published without the knowledge of the two latter paleontologists, as indicated by a draft left in Mongolia in 1997. Due to a misinterpretation, the supposed pedal ungual II was claimed to be preserved and to articulate with the pedal phalanx II, however, this was corrected by Senter in 2007 and this ungual actually represents a manual one. In terms of etymology, the generic name, "Achillobator", is derived from the Latin word Achillis (genitive singular of Achilles) in reference to the large Achilles tendon that supported the second pedal ungual (known as "sickle" claw) of most dromaeosaurids, and the old Mongolian word баатар (baatar, meaning hero). The specific name, "giganticus", is derived from the Ancient Greek word γιγαντικός (gigantikós, meaning gigantic) in reference to the large size of the holotype, which exceeds most dromaeosaurids.

Chimera hypothesis.

The pelvic girdle of "Achillobator" features plesiomorphic saurischian characteristics compared to other dromaeosaurids. For instance, the pubis is aligned vertically and has a relatively large pubic boot (a wide expansion at the end), unlike most other dromaeosaurids, where there is generally a much smaller boot. The preserved vertebrae are very robust and features a series of pleurocoels. The above differences and led Burnham et al. 2000 to suggest that the holotype of "Achillobator" in fact, represents a paleontological chimera, arguing that only the pedal unguals may have come from a dromaeosaurid-grade dinosaur. However, the specimen was actually found in semiarticulation and therefore the assignment of remains to a single individual is validated. Although "Achillobator" features unusual and primitive characteristics compared to other relatives, the genus keeps being recovered as a dromaeosaur taxon.

Description.

They were among the largest dromaeosaurs; the holotype and only known individual of "Achillobator" was originally estimated to be three times as big as "Deinonychus". Overall, they were massive and ponderous animals, estimated to have reach lengths from and weights ranging from. Nevertheless, there are alternative body size estimates. During the description of "Mahakala" in 2007, Turner and colleagues used body mass equations to estimate weight and length in many paravians. "Achillobator" were estimated at long with weights of. In 2008 Novas and colleagues gave a length of and a weight of. In the large taxonomic revision of the Dromaeosauridae performed by Turner and colleagues in 2012, they estimated the weight under and they noted that this genus represents the second largest dromaeosaurid taxon (after "Utahraptor") with a tibial length of.  "Achillobator" were deep-bodied and relatively short-armed animals with stocky and robust hindlimbs. Some of the most prominent features consisted in the strongly vertical pubis and the robustly built skeleton such as the deep maxilla and femur. The holotype was found lacking traces of feather integument, however, there are strong evidence coming from other relatives that suggest the likely presence of plumage on "Achillobator", such as the smaller and also Asian taxa "Velociraptor" and "Zhenyuanlong", or the North American "Dakotaraptor" and "Dineobellator". According to the revised diagnosis by Turner and colleagues in 2012, "Achillobator" can be distinguished based on the following combination of characteristics and autapomorphies: the promaxillary fenestra is completely exposed, the promaxillary and maxillary fenestrae are elongate and vertically oriented at same level in the maxilla, metatarsal III is wide on the upper end, the femur is longer than the tibia, the pelvis is propubic, the obturator process on the ischium is large and triangular situated on the upper half of ischial shaft, the boot at distal symphysis of pubis is developed in a cranial and caudal aspect.

Crania.

The preserved maxilla is partially complete, missing pretty much of its nasal processes. It measures in length and the lateral side is smooth compared to the dorsal areas, although its structure is very robust. It preserves 11 alveoli, of which 9 are filled with well-preserved teeth. The teeth display marked homodonty (teeth of similar size) and they are serrated and recurved with the posterior serrations being slightly larger than the anterior serrations. Along with the posterior serrations, there are 15 or 18 denticles per near the center of the teeth., although the anterior serrations have 17 to 20 denticles per. Given the dimensions of the preserved maxilla, Perle and colleagues suggested that "Achillobator" had a relatively large skulls, competing to those of Carnosaurs.

Postcrania.

Well preserved material is known from the axial area, compromising very robust and somewhat large cervical, dorsal and caudal vertebrae. There are about four cervicals preserved. As stated by the authors, the anterior series of cervical vertebrae are sharply-angled developed, with the anterior articulation facet of the centrum developed over the posterior facet. These characteristics are indicators of a S-shaped neck, as seen in most maniraptorans. Three dorsals were preserved with apparently two dorsal ribs. The dorsals are stocky and have pleurocoels at the lateral surfaces, some dorsals have two. Their centrum articulation facets are rounded and concave in shape. In general, the neural processes of the dorsal vertebrae show resemblance to those of large ratites such as the extinct moa and extant emu, ostrich and cassowary. They feature protruding interspinous ligaments scars that indicates a robust and similar back to those birds. Eight caudals were found with one of the caudals belonging to the transitional series (anteriormost), three to the middle area and four to the posterior end. These four were found in articulation. Some traces of tail tendons were found isolated, probably indicators of a riged tail. In all the caudal vertebrae the centrum is amphiplatian (flat on both ends) with the posterior articulation facet being more concave than the anterior one. As indicated by the transitional caudal, the anterior neural spines are elongated and progressively disappear on posterior caudals.  Regarding the shoulder girdle, only the right scapulocoracoid and a radius were preserved, the latter was not described. However, the radius was measured at long. In the posterior area of the acromion process, the scapula preserves a small tubercle that attached area for the muscle "scapulohumeralis" in life. The glenoid is located at the bottom area facing to the lateral side. The scapula is relatively elongated and flattened at the scapular blade. The blade is thickened and slightly curved to the inner side following the rounded shape of the rib cage. The coracoid is robust and broad, measuring long and in height. The anterior edge is coarsely textured, likely for the articulation with cartilaginous tissue. A large foramen is located from the front to the back, probably acting as a channel for blood vessels and nerves.  Both femora were nicely preserved. In general terms, the femur is highly robust and longer than the tibia, a rare trait in dromaeosaurids, measuring in length. It preserves detailed information of muscle attachments. On the anterior inner surface, there's a large, sculptured, concave surface that likely worked as the insertion for the m. "iliofemoralis internus" in life, and the lesser trochanter preserves the insertion for the m. "pubo ischio femoralis" on the lower edge. On the upper lateral surface of the femur, bottom-oriented to the greater trochanter, there is a tubercle that formed the attachment for the m. "iliofemoralis". Insertions for m. "ilio trochantericus" and "ischio trochantericus" are located on the posterolateral surface at the proximal end of the femur. In the inner side, on the proximal third part of the shaft, a coarse, concave area is preserved, likely an attachment for m. "pubo ischio femoralis externus-3". Below this area, a small, convex tubercle attended the insertion for m. "pubo ischio femoralis-2". The left tibia is a little bit less robust than the femur, but more straight, it measures in length. The surface of the shaft center is smooth, without traces of muscles. In front and towards the back surface of the cnemial crest however, there is a coarse and microsculptured area that worked as the attachment for m. "ilio tibialis" and "ambiens". Additional tissue traces in the preserved tibia are situated on the lower surface and toward the posterior aspect. Here, a depression with a somewhat coarse surface likely attached prominent aponeurosis of the connected ligaments to the tibia and fibular head when the animal was alive. Apparently no other tissue surfaces are preserved.  Left metatarsals III and IV are stocky, measuring and respectively, indicating that the length of the metatarsus was under the 50% of the tibial length. As in other maniraptorans, the metatarsals were closely united. The top end of metatarsal III is side to side flattened and is not pinched at the upper end, therefore lacking an arctometatarsalian condition. The lower end of metatarsal IV has a joint where motion is restricted to one plane and the lateral condyle is short.  The most emblematic element from the holotype is the striking pelvis, being virtually complete; it preserves the right illium, ischium and both pubis. Although complete, the remains are slightly crushed and deformed. The illium is prominently tall measuring in length and in height with a preacetabular situated from top to bottom. It is full of tissue traces: in an inner side view, both m. "caudofemoralis" are preserved. On the anterior edge there are microstriations that likely gave form to the m. "iliofemoralis" in life, behind to this area, traces of the m. "ilio tibialis-2" are also preserved. The pubis measures long and is very straight having a large distal pubic boot; striking resemblance to Carnosaurs. For instance, other dromaeosaurids have a very opisthopubic pelvic configuration, "Achillobator" however, has a primitive, propubic configuration. The large pubic boot preserves very coarse areas on the dorsal surface, indicators for the m. "pubo ischio femoralis internus ventralis" attachment. Its lateral view is very flat and sculptured, having numerous microstriations that probably originated the m. "pubo ischio femoralis externus". The preserved ischium is shorter than the latter elements, measuring in length. A large ridge is formed on its shaft and expands to the anterior edge, likely forming the m. "adductor femoris" in life. This ridge-like structure is heavy-built compared to other dromaeosaurids. At the side and away from the main body, the surface is very rough, possibly attaching m. "flexor tibialis internus-1" in life as seen in other theropods and crocodiles.

Classification.

"Achillobator" is classified as a dromaeosaurid, a group of very bird-like, maniraptoran dinosaurs. In its original description, "Achillobator" was placed as a close relative of "Dromaeosaurus" with an ambiguous position in the family. In more recent and solid research the genus is considered to be part of the Eudromaeosauria, a group of dromaeosaurids that were obligate terrestrial and hypercarnivore animals, better known as the "true dromaeosaurids". They strongly differ from other dromaeosaurs, such as the arboreal microraptorians or amphibious halszkaraptorines.  Eudromaeosauria was first defined as a node-based clade by Nicholas R. Longrich and Philip J. Currie in 2009 as the most inclusive natural group containing "Dromaeosaurus", "Velociraptor", "Deinonychus", and "Saurornitholestes", their most recent common ancestor and all of its other descendants. The various "subfamilies" have also been re-defined as clades, usually defined as all species closer to the groups namesake than to "Dromaeosaurus" or any namesakes of other sub-clades.  The recent phylogenetic analysis conducted by Hartman and colleagues in 2019, surprisingly recovers "Achillobator" as the sister taxon of "Yixianosaurus", not only that but Currie and Evans 2020 have recover the position of the genus within the Velociraptorinae. Although some analyses have place the genus in unusual positions, "Achillobator" has been recovered as a dromaeosaurine very related to "Utahraptor" and "Dromaeosaurus" in most phylogenetic analyses. Even more similarities within "Achillobator" and "Utahraptor" were found with the osteological reexamiation of "Utahraptor" specimens, supporting their close relationships.  During the description of "Halszkaraptor" in 2017 and the coined Halszkaraptorinae, new affinities for dromaeosaurids were proposed in order to include this new subfamily. "Achillobator" was recovered in a basal position outside a clade formed by "Dromaeosaurus" and "Utahraptor". But in the results for the Eudromaeosauria phylogeny based on the phylogenetic analysis conducted by Jasinski and colleagues in 2020 during the description of "Dineobellator", "Achillobator" was again recovered in the traditional "Utahraptor"+"Achillobator" clade but this time outside the Dromaeosaurinae.  Left cladogram as in Cau et al. 2017, and right cladogram in Jasinski et al. 2020:

Paleobiology.

The structure of the hindlimbs and pelvic region of "Achillobator" indicates that the animal had massive thighs and robustly built legs suited for moderate fast-running. In addition, the prominent pelvis of "Achillobator" has its own specialized femoral muscle retractors that seem to indicate a strong ability for leaping. However, it appears to be that dromeosaurids were not a highly cursorial group of dinosaurs. In 2016, Scott Persons IV and Currie examined the limb proportion of numerous theropods and found that compsognathids, troodontids and tyrannosauroids were cursorial animals with many taxa recovered with relatively high CLP (Cursorial-limb-proportion) scores, but dromaeosaurids being recovered with low CLP scores. "Achillobator" was recovered scoring −5.3, indicating that, despite having powerful legs which are more related to ambush predators, they were animals not adapted to maintain high speeds for extended amounts of time.  Manning et al. 2009 tested the function of the "sickle claw" of dromaeosaurids by analyzing the biomechanics of how stresses and strains would be distributed along the claws and into the limbs, and using comparisons within the curvature of the dromaeosaurid "sickle claw" on the foot with curvature in modern birds and mammals. They found that they were ideal for climbing and for a ground-dwelling life style. Peter Mackovicky stated that the analysis might be correct on primitive dromaeosaurids (such as "Microraptor") being tree-climbers, however, this doesn't explain why giant animals like "Achillobator" or "Utahraptor" retained "sickle claws" when they were way too large to have climbed trees. Mackovicky suggested that larger dromaeosaurids adapted the claw to be used exclusively for a more aggressive predatory behaviour.  The striking resemblance between the feet and legs of dromaeosaurids and those of accipitrid birds of prey, led Fowler et al. 2011 to propose that dromaeosaurids hunted in a similar way to those raptorial birds. They found that the feet and legs of dromaeosaurs resemble those of eagles and hawks by having an enlarged second claw and a similar range of flexion, but the metatarsals share more resemblance to those of owls. The model RPR (Raptor Prey Restraint), proposes that dromaeosaurs leaped into their prey, immobilizing it with their body weight, and then hold it tightly with the large, sickle-shaped claws; afterwards, the dromaeosaur would start to feed on the animal while it's still alive and the death will eventually came from blood loss and organ failure. The arms or "wings", that were likely covered in long feathers (evidenced on "Zhenyuanlong"), may have been flapped by the dromaeosaur in order to stabilize its balance while restraining prey, along with this, the long, feathered tail probably worked as a counter-balance to the main body. Lastly, the snout would have been useful for finishing off its prey. With these observations, they established that dromaeosaurids and troodontids were niche partitioned as large and small prey predators, respectively.

Paleoecology.

The remains of "Achillobator" were unearthed from the Burkhant locality at the Bayan Shireh Formation. This formation has been divided into upper and lower parts, with some localities representing Lower and Upper Cretaceous boundary. Burkhant, the type locality of "Achillobator", has been identified as a Upper Cretaceous-boundary locality, meaning that is part of the upper Bayan Shireh. Analyses on the magnetostratigraphy of the formation indicate that the entire Bayan Shireh lies within the Cretaceous Long Normal, which lasted only until the end of the Santonian stage, giving a Cenomanian-Santonian age. The recent calcite U–Pb analyses performed by Kurudama and colleagues in 2020 have confirm the age of the Bayan Shireh Formation from 95.9 ± 6.0 million to 89.6 ± 4.0 million years ago, also supporting a Cenomanian-Santonian age.  Over the time, a strong correlation with the Iren Dabasu Formation has been proposed by numerous authors mainly based on the similar fossil assemblages. This hypothesis may be also supported by the similar ages: based on U–Pb, paleomagnetic and biostratigraphic analyses, the Iren Dabasu Formation has been dated about 95.8 ± 6.2 million years ago, very similar to Bayan Shireh.  Therizinosaurs were some of the most abundant theropods in terms of biodiversity across the formation, as evidenced on the remains of "Enigmosaurus", "Erlikosaurus", "Segnosaurus" and an unnamed two-fingered therizinosaur that remains undescribed. Hadrosauroids appear to have been pretty abundant too, with remains discovered at numerous localities of the formation, particularly at Baynshire. Furthermore, the relatively new genus "Gobihadros" is known from at least three localities. Most ecological niches appear to have been well established in the formation. While other dromaeosaurids filled a variety of specialized ecological niches like the slender unenlagiines, eudromaeosaurs, such as the ponderous "Achillobator", retained a conservative life-style and filled the niche of large-bodied predators of often medium to large-sized prey. "Achillobator" may have been predators of large-sized prey. Apparently, there was niche partitioning among species, such is the case of high browsers "Erlikosaurus" and "Segnosaurus," or the grazers "Talarurus" and browsers "Tsagantegia". "Erketu", a genus of long necked sauropods from the formation, may have been the tallest herbivores.  The re-examination of the maxillae in eudromaeosaur taxa indicates that Asian and North American eudromaeosaurs were separated by snout morphology and ecological strategies. The maxilla is apparently a reliable reference when inferring the shape of the premaxilla and overall snout. For instance, most Asian species have elongated snouts based on the maxilla (animals like "Velociraptor" are known from complete skulls though), indicating a selective feeding, such as picking up small, fast prey. "Achillobator" however, are an exception for Asian eudromaeosaurs, featuring robust and deep maxillar morphology and thus indicating a strong connection and relationships to North American members, which have stocky and deep snouts. The adaptations of "Achillobator" and North American eudromaeosaurs demonstrate a conservative ecology mainly based on large-sized prey.

Environment and paleoflora.

The presence of caliche, fluvial and lacustrine sedimentation at various localities indicates a semi-arid climate with large water bodies, such as rivers, lakes and streams. The Bayan Shireh Formation was considered to be partially lacustrine by Samoilov and Benjamini in 1996, however, large scale cross-stratifications on various sandstone layers at the Baynshire locality are indicators of prominent meanders, in addition to this, it is implied that the presence of large river bodies drained the eastern part of the Gobi Desert. The cornaceans "Bothrocaryum gobience" and "Nyssoidea mongolica" have been reported from the Khara Khutul locality, which has also yielded the therizinosaurs "Enigmosaurus" and "Segnosaurus". Additional findings on this locality and Bor Guvé seem to reflect the large presence of angiosperm plants across the formation, with numerous fossil fruits recovered which bear a superficial resemblance to the modern-day okra, however, the taxonomic affinities are quite unclear.

Contemporaneous paleofauna.

Paleofauna that were contemporaneous with the large dromaeosaurids in the upper Bayan Shireh (or Late Cretaceous beds), included a rich diversity of dinosaur and non-dinosaur genera. Fellow dinosaur genera included the medium-sized theropods "Erlikosaurus", "Garudimimus", "Segnosaurus" and possibly "Alectrosaurus". Heavy-built ankylosaurs "Talarurus" and "Tsagantegia". Small marginocephalians "Amtocephale" and "Graciliceratops". The basal hadrosauroids "Gobihadros" and the large, long-necked sauropods "Erketu".  Non-dinosaur taxa was present as well, mostly compromising semiaquatic and terrestrial reptiles like the turtles "Lindholmemys", "Gobiapalone" and ""Trionyx"". Crocodylomorphs are represented by "Paralligator" and a reported ichnotaxon that was made by a swimming individual. Fishes are also known from the formation. The primitive sharks "Hybodus" and the remains of osteichthyan fish at various localities are fine representatives.  Several unnamed and/or undescribed taxa have been reported from localities across the formation, mostly dinosaur taxa: unnamed azhdarchid with one specimen also found at Burkhant, unnamed giant caenagnathid preserving a lower jaw that is extremely similar to that of "Gigantoraptor", unnamed hadrosauroid (apparently smaller than "Gobihadros"), unnamed two-fingered therizinosaur, unnamed titanosaur known from the locality of "Erketu" and an unnamed velociraptorine-grade dromaeosaurid.

Achillobator ( ; meaning '"Achilles hero") is a genus of large dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous period about 96 million to 89 million years ago in what is now the Bayan Shireh Formation. The first remains were found in 1989 during a mongolian-russian field expedition in Mongolia and later described in 1999. The genus is currently monotypic, only including the type species A. giganticus. Since the first discovery and description, no more specimens have been found. It represents the first and largest dromaeosaurid taxon known from the Bayan Shireh Formation.

Achillobator (« guerrier d'Achille ») est un genre éteint de dinosaures théropodes du Crétacé supérieur ayant vécu dans l'actuelle Mongolie. C'était un carnivore bipède possédant une grosse griffe en forme de faucille sur le deuxième orteil de chaque pied arrière. Il s'agissait d'un grand dromaeosauridé mesurant entre 4,60 et, du museau au bout de la queue.


Early life.

Birth.

Costa e Silva was born in Taquari in Rio Grande do Sul state on October 3, 1899. While several sources erroneously suggest that Costa e Silva's parents were Portuguese from Madeira, both his parents were Brazilians, although one of his great-grandparents was a Portuguese immigrant from Lisbon.

Military career.

Costa e Silva began his military career by entering the Military College of Porto Alegre, where he finished first of his class and commander of the cadet corps. He then entered the "Escola Militar de Realengo" in Rio de Janeiro in 1918, where he finished third of his class. Made an aspirant on January 18, 1921, he was commissioned 2nd Lieutenant in 1922 and was stationed with the 1st Infantry Regiment in Vila Militar until July 5, 1922, when he was involved in Tenentist rebellion and imprisoned for six months. He then married Iolanda Barbosa Costa e Silva, officer's daughter.  As part of a joint program, he was trained in the United States of America from January to June 1944, after having been an assistant instructor of general tactics at the School for Command and the Army General-Staff. He served as a military attaché in Argentina from 1950 to 1952, and was then appointed to command the 3rd Military Region (Rio Grande do Sul) from 1957 to 1959, and to command of the 4th Army (Pernambuco) from August 1961 to September 1962. He was then appointed chief of the General Personnel Department and later the chief of the Department of Production and Works.  Costa e Silva was promoted to general on August 2, 1952 and reached rank of Army General on November 25, 1961.

Involvement in politics.

During the Presidency of João Goulart, Costa e Silva put down left-wing student demonstrations that broke out in the Northeast and subsequently was removed from command of the 4th Army.  By the end of 1963 he actively participated in the plot that overthrew Goulart, who was accused of aligning with Communists during the Cold War tension. After the 1964 Brazilian coup d'état Costa e Silva was appointed the Minister of War on April 1, 1964 and remained in that post during the Presidency of Castelo Branco.  As Minister of War, Costa e Silva defended interests of hard-liners, the ultra-right faction of the Armed Forces. As such he was considered an acceptable candidate to succeed Castelo Branco, who was judged to be too liberal. This also served well to isolate from power more moderate soldiers – such as future President Ernesto Geisel and his future chief aide Golbery do Couto e Silva.

Presidency (1967-1969).

Under the Constitution of 1967, the President was to be elected indirectly, by an absolute majority of both houses of Congress. Costa e Silva was nominated as the candidate of the military-backed National Renewal Alliance Party (ARENA); he was the only candidate. In any event, ARENA's dominance of Congress was so absolute that the presidential campaign essentially ended with Costa e Silva's nomination. He was duly elected on October 3, 1966 by a vote of 295-0, with 41 abstentions and 136 members not voting. He was sworn in on March 15, 1967. While Costa e Silva was campaigning for the Presidency of the Republic, he barely escaped death during a left-wing guerrilla attack at Guararapes International Airport in Recife on July 25, 1966. The attack happened while he was waiting with around 300 other people at the airport. Since the airplane that was supposed to take him had broken down earlier that day in João Pessoa, Costa e Silva decided to leave Recife by automobile, thereby avoiding the assault which left several men dead or injured in what became known as the "Attack of the Guararapes".  As President, he outlawed the Broad Front ("Frente Ampla"), an opposition movement that had brought together politicians from the pre-1964 period. He fought against inflation, revised government salaries and enlarged foreign trade. He also began a reform of the administrative organs, expanded the communication and transportation systems, but failed to resolve the problems in the education system. His time in power initiated the "Brazilian Miracle" – a growth rate ranging from 9–10% per year. In 1968 the death of college sophomore Edson Luís de Lima Souto in a confrontation with a police officer provoked a massive protest (The One Hundred Thousand March) in Rio de Janeiro. The political situation worsened in August, when Congressman Márcio Moreira Alves suggested in a speech that young women should refuse to dance with military cadets in an act of protest against the military regime. The government asked the National Congress to prosecute the deputy. This was too much even for the ARENA-dominated legislature, which turned down the request. Costa e Silva then convened the Council of National Security and enacted the Institutional Act 5. It gave him the power to close Congress or any state legislature, rule by decree, dismiss state governors, and suspend citizens' political rights. It also instituted heavy-handed censorship, abolished habeas corpus for political crimes, and gave the federal government nearly unlimited authority to intervene in state and local affairs. Almost as soon as Costa e Silva signed this decree, he used its provisions to close Congress, as well as the legislatures of all states except São Paulo, and assumed full legislative powers. For all intents and purposes, AI-5 placed Brazil under a tight dictatorship. Congress remained shuttered for the remainder of Costa e Silva's term.

Resistance.

Armed resistance against Costa e Silva's government intensified in 1969. The most serious case of terrorism took place on June 26, 1969 when Diógenes José Carvalho de Oliveira, Pedro Lobo de Oliveira and José Ronaldo Tavares de Lira e Silva, members of an eleven-man terrorist cell that was part of the People's Revolutionary Vanguard (VPR), managed to detonate a bomb at the General Headquarters of the 2nd Army in São Paulo. The car-bomb was launched without a driver towards the compound's front gate. The guards fired on the vehicle, which hit the external wall of the headquarters. Mário Kozel Filho, a soldier who was completing his compulsory military service and serving as a sentry on that day, left his post and ran towards the vehicle, trying to see if anyone was trapped inside. At that moment the car, filled with 50 kilograms of dynamite, exploded, damaging everything within a 300-meter radius around it. Kozel's body was ripped to pieces from the force of the explosion, and six other soldiers were seriously wounded. In response to this terrorist attack, the government intensified its repressive and subversive activities.

Illness and death.

After suddenly suffering a cerebral thrombosis, Costa e Silva was removed from duties on August 31, 1969. Although civilian Vice President Pedro Aleixo should have succeeded him, the three armed forces ministers instead took power as a military junta under the 12th Institutional Act. Costa e Silva legally remained President until October 14, when he was formally removed from office by the 16th Institutional Act. Costa e Silva died on December 17 of that same year, the victim of a heart attack.  Taking advantage of the opportunity, the military junta introduced new amendments to the 1967 Constitution that gave the already highly authoritarian document an even more repressive tone. Despite this, it was less repressive than the AI-5. Shortly after this "Constitutional Amendment no. 1", sometimes referred to as the Constitution of 1969, was passed into law by the junta, Congress was summoned from its two-year recess and charged with electing a successor. General Emílio Garrastazu Médici was the sole candidate, and was elected unanimously.  Due to the heavy press censorship of the time, many people did not accept the official version of events about Costa e Silva's illness, instead believing that he had been removed by the more conservative elements of the military regime. Regardless of such theories, there is no proof that Costa e Silva was anything else but seriously ill at the time of his removal.

Artur da Costa e Silva (; October 3, 1899 – December 17, 1969) was a Brazilian Army General and the second President of the Brazilian military government that came to power after the 1964 coup d'état. He reached the rank of Marshal of the Brazilian Army, and held the post of Minister of War in the military government of President Castelo Branco.

Artur da Costa e Silva est un maréchal des forces armées brésiliennes et homme d'État ( à Taquari, Rio Grande do Sul- à Rio de Janeiro) qui fut président "de facto" de la République fédérative du Brésil de à, leader de la dictature militaire (1964-1985). Il fut le chef militaire qui orchestra le coup d'Etat de 1964 contre João Goulart, qui mit le maréchal Castello Branco au pouvoir. Aux élections d', il se présenta comme candidat à la présidence, fut élu et prit le pouvoir au printemps suivant. Ses plans de réformes sociales n'avaient que très peu progressé lors de son retrait de la politique en raison d'une santé déclinante.


Early life and education.

Cushing was born in South Boston on August 24, 1895. The third of five children, he was the son of Patrick and Mary (née Dahill) Cushing. His parents were both Irish immigrants; his father was originally from Glanworth, County Cork, and his mother from Touraneena, County Waterford. His father, who came to the United States in 1880, worked as a blacksmith and earned $18 per week in the trolley repair pits of the Boston Elevated Railway.  Cushing received his early education at Perry Public Grammar School in the City Point section of South Boston, since there was then no parochial school for boys in Gate of Heaven Parish. Cushing dropped out of high school in his freshman year because of his compulsive truancy. He subsequently entered Boston College High School, a Jesuit college preparatory school. His tuition there was paid by his cousin, who was a priest of the Archdiocese of New York. He graduated from high school in 1913, receiving honors for Latin and Greek. Cushing was torn for a time between religion and politics. He originally wanted to be a politician, even earning money by speaking for politicians from the back of wagons. He twice considered joining the Jesuits, but came to the conclusion he "was cut out more for the active life and not the teaching apostolate."  He entered Boston College in 1913, becoming a member of the first freshman class following the college's move to Chestnut Hill. At Boston College, he was active in the Marquette Debating Society and elected vice-president of his sophomore class. Following the sinking of the RMS "Lusitania" in 1915, Cushing enlisted in the United States Army but was medically discharged for his asthma after a few weeks. After attending Boston College for two years, he began his studies for the priesthood at St. John's Seminary in Brighton in September 1915. He was assigned to continue his studies at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, but the escalation of U-boat activity prevented him from sailing across the Atlantic.

Priesthood.

On May 26, 1921, Cushing was ordained a priest by Cardinal William Henry O'Connell at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. His first assignment was as a curate at St. Patrick's Church in Roxbury, where he remained for two months. He was afterwards transferred to St. Benedict's Church in Somerville. In 1922, Cushing appeared unannounced at the residence of Cardinal O'Connell to request an assignment as a missionary. The young priest declared he wanted to "take heaven by storm." O'Connell denied his request, and instead appointed him assistant director of the Boston office of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, an organization dedicated to raising funds for missions. He later served as director of the Society from 1929 to 1944. He was raised to the rank of Monsignor on May 14, 1939.

Episcopal career.

On June 10, 1939, after Bishop Francis Spellman was named Archbishop of New York, Cushing was appointed auxiliary bishop of Boston and titular bishop of "Mela" by Pope Pius XII. He received his episcopal consecration on the following June 29 from Cardinal O'Connell, with Bishops John Bertram Peterson and Thomas Addis Emmet, SJ, serving as co-consecrators, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. He took as his episcopal motto: "Ut Cognoscant Te" (Latin: "That they may know thee").  As an auxiliary bishop, Cushing continued to serve as director of the Society for the Propagation of Faith, and was also named pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Newton Centre. Following the death of Cardinal O'Connell in April 1944, he served as apostolic administrator of the archdiocese.

Archbishop of Boston.

Cushing was named the third Archbishop of Boston on September 25, 1944, following Cardinal O'Connell's death. During his tenure, Boston would see the excommunication of Fr. Leonard Feeney for his stringent interpretation of the Catholic doctrine that there is no salvation outside the Church. Feeney refused to back down from his position, although it has been reported that he was ultimately reconciled with the church before his death.  After the death of Pius XII, Cushing published a moving tribute to him. In 1959, Cushing published a biography of the late Pope Pius XII (1939–1958), depicting the late pope as "Pope of Peace".  His work contributed to making the Roman Catholic Church acceptable to the general American population at the time of then-Senator John F. Kennedy's run for the White House. Part of this work included reaching out to the non-Catholics of Boston after "the muscular style of involved Catholicism that Cardinal O'Connell brought to bear on issues of his day - religious, social, and political - in Boston and Massachusetts".  Archbishop Cushing was honored by B’nai B’rith as "man of the Year" in 1956 for ""a lifetime of distinguished service to the cause of human brotherhood under God and in further recognition of great leadership in the fields of education and community relations"."  Cushing was created Cardinal-Priest of Santa Susanna by Pope John XXIII in the consistory of December 15, 1958. He was one of the cardinal electors in the 1963 papal conclave, which elected Pope Paul VI.  The Cardinal was a close friend of the Kennedy family. He officiated at the marriage of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Lee Bouvier in 1953, at which he also read a special prayer from Pope Pius XII, and baptized many of the Kennedy children. Cushing gave the prayer invocation at Kennedy's inauguration in 1961. The Cardinal also celebrated President Kennedy's funeral Mass in 1963 at St. Matthew's Cathedral in Washington, D.C., following his assassination in Dallas, Texas.  The day before the funeral, he gave a televised eulogy for the President. Cushing later defended Jacqueline Kennedy after her marriage to Aristotle Onassis in 1968. He received a large amount of hate mail and was contradicted by the Vatican.

Biography of Pope Pius XII.

In 1959, Cushing published his only book, a biography of the late Pope Pius XII (1939–1958). It is an almost hagiographic biography, written shortly after the death of the Pontiff. Cushing depicted him as the "Pope of Peace" who, armed only with the spiritual weapons of his office, triumphed over insidious attacks that seemed about to destroy the center of Christendom.

Second Vatican Council.

At the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), Cushing played a vital role in drafting "Nostra aetate", the document that officially absolved the Jews of deicide charge. His emotional comments during debates over the drafts were echoed in the final version:  He was deeply committed to implementing the council's reforms and promoting renewal in the church. In an unprecedented gesture of ecumenism, he encouraged Catholics to attend Billy Graham's crusades. Cushing strongly condemned Communism, particularly the regime of Josip Broz Tito in Yugoslavia.  Cushing's resignation as Boston's archbishop was accepted on September 8, 1970. Upon his resignation, Senator Ted Kennedy stated: "For three-quarters of a century [Cushing's] life has been a light in a world that cries out for illumination. He will never have to account for his stewardship, for if his goodness is not known to God, no one's ever will be."

Sexual abuse scandals in the Boston archdiocese.

Cushing was archbishop during some of the sexual abuse incidents in the Boston archdiocese, revealed publicly after his death under his successor Cardinal Law, who became the first high-level Catholic Church official to be accused of actively participating in the cover-up of child molestation by predatory priests.  The notorious child-molesting priest John Geoghan committed many of his crimes, as did others, during Cushing's tenure as archbishop.

Death.

Less than two months after his resignation, he died from cancer in Boston at the age of 75 on the feast of All Souls Day, and was buried in Hanover, Massachusetts at the Portiuncula Chapel on the grounds of the Cardinal Cushing Centers.

Works.

This is an incomplete list of the various writings of Richard Cardinal Cushing.  Articles  Works on Richard Cardinal Cushing

Richard James Cushing (August 24, 1895 – November 2, 1970) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Boston from 1944 to 1970 and was made a cardinal in 1958. Cushing's main role was as fundraiser and builder of new churches, schools, and institutions. He was on good terms with practically the entire Boston elite, as he softened the traditional confrontation between the Catholic Irish and the Protestant upper-class. Cushing built useful relationships with Jews, Protestants, and institutions outside the usual Catholic community. He helped presidential candidate John F. Kennedy deflect fears of papal interference in American government if a Catholic became president. Cushing's high energy level allowed him to meet with many people all day, often giving lengthy speeches at night. Cushing was not efficient at business affairs, and when expenses built up he counted on his fund-raising skills instead of cost-cutting. Cushing, says Nasaw, was "fun-loving, informal, and outgoing. He looked rather like a tough, handsome, Irish cop and behaved more like a ward politician than a high church cleric." His major weakness in retrospect was overexpansion, adding new institutions that could not be sustained in the long run and had to be cut back by his successors.

Richard James Cushing ( - ) est un prélat américain de l'Église catholique, archevêque de Boston (deuxième plus grand diocèse aux États-Unis) de 1944 au, date à laquelle il s'est retiré pour des raisons de santé.


Committee for a Workers' International (1974)

History.

Founding.

The origins of the CWI can be traced to a group of British trotskyists which were expelled from the USFI in 1965, after disagreements regarding the Colonial Revolution, Gurrilerism, Studentism and the post war boom. But it is not till 1974 that they set about building an international. The founding conference of the CWI was held in London on 20 to 21 April 1974 and attended by supporters of what was then called Militant (or the Militant tendency), from 12 countries including Britain, Ireland and Sweden. In the early years of the international, sections generally pursued a policy of entryism into social democratic or labour parties. As such, the CWI was originally secretive because to organise openly risked the expulsion of its sections from the parties in which they were working.

End of entryism.

The CWI largely ended its strategy of entryism in the early 1990s. The international developed an analysis that many social democratic parties had fundamentally changed in nature and become outright capitalist parties, their main example being the UK Labour Party. This was strongly resisted by Ted Grant, one of Militant's founders. After a lengthy debate and special conference in 1991 confirmed overwhelmingly the position of the CWI in the England and Wales section, Grant and his supporters sought official faction status within the organisation, which was granted for some time, but later was revoked by the leadership. Ted Grant and his supporters set up a rival office, staff and fundraising, and left Militant to form the International Marxist Tendency.  Since their Open Turn CWI sections have, in a number of countries, stood candidates under their own name. One section has representation in a state parliament, the Socialist Party, which has three TDs in Dáil Éireann in the Republic of Ireland. The CWI also has elected members in a number of regional legislatures or local councils in Sweden; (Germany) (members of The Left); Pakistan; Sri Lanka; and the United States, where Socialist Alternative elected Kshama Sawant to Seattle City Council in 2013 and again in 2015. In the 2005 Sri Lankan presidential elections the CWI affiliate, the United Socialist Party, came third (with 0.4%).  Supporters of the CWI launched a youth organisation, International Socialist Resistance, in 2001.

New mass workers' parties.

CWI members played a leading role in founding the Scottish Socialist Party. However, the SSP broke with the CWI in 1999, with a minority of members loyal to the CWI establishing the International Socialists. When Tommy Sheridan resigned from the SSP in 2006 and established a new party in Scotland, Solidarity, the International Socialists joined in conjunction with the Socialist Workers Party.  CWI members stood as National Conscience Party candidates in the 2003 Nigerian legislative elections, winning 0.51% of the national vote. In Germany CWI members have been active in the new WASG since its foundation in 2004 and in December 2005 were elected part of the new leadership of its Berlin district that ran candidates on a clear anti-cuts programme in the 2006 Berlin regional election, gaining 3.1% and several borough council seats, but the Berlin WASG later merged into Die Linke. In Brazil, CWI members helped found the P-SOL Socialism and Liberty Party after left wing parliamentarians were expelled from the PT.  In the 2011 Irish general election the CWI's Irish affiliate, the Socialist Party won two seats in the Dáil as a part of the wider left group, the United Left Alliance which won five seats in total in Dáil Éireann. However, one of the elected members of the Socialist Party has since left the party to continue as an independent. In the by-election in Dublin West in 2014, the Socialist Party gained a second seat in the Dáil again, and a third seat in the 2014 Dublin South-West by-election as part of the Anti-Austerity Alliance.

Structure.

Split.

In 2019, a dispute developed around the questions of socialism and identity politics; the role of the trade unions and the working-class movement; and under what programme and how should Marxists organise internationally and domestically, which ultimately led to a four ways split. One group continues to operate as the CWI, while another is now called International Socialist Alternative.  Some of the key documents relating to the split are published at marxist.net and some of the documents published by the 'In Defence of a Working Class Trotskyist CWI' faction are collected in the book "In Defence of Trotskyism".

The Committee for a Workers' International (CWI) was an international association of Trotskyist political parties. Today, two groups claim to be the continuation of the CWI.

Le Comité pour une Internationale ouvrière (CIO) est une internationale se réclamant des idées de Marx, d’Engels, de Lénine et de Trotsky ainsi que sur les principales décisions des quatre premiers Congrès de fondation de la IIIe Internationale et des documents du Mouvement marxiste depuis 1938. Se réclamant du trotskisme, elle se considère comme l'embryon de la future Quatrième Internationale, l'actuelle étant considérée comme dégénérée. Son but est de former des partis révolutionnaires de masse à l'échelle mondiale. Elle possède des sections dans une quarantaine de pays sur les cinq continents.


Priory.

Burford Priory is a country house that stands on the site of a 13th-century Augustinian priory hospital. In the 1580s an Elizabethan house was built incorporating remnants of the building. It was remodelled in Jacobean style, probably after 1637, by which time the estate had been bought by William Lenthall, Speaker of the House of Commons in the Long Parliament. After 1912 the house and later the chapel were restored for the philanthropist Emslie John Horniman, MP, by the architect Walter Godfrey.  From 1949 Burford Priory housed the Society of the Salutation of Mary the Virgin, a community of Church of England nuns. In 1987, due to declining numbers, it became a mixed community including Church of England Benedictine monks. In 2008 the community relocated and sold the property which is now a private dwelling.  A "Time Team" excavation of the Priory in 2010 found pottery sherds from the 12th or 13th century.

Economic and social history.

The town began in the middle Saxon period with the founding of a village near the site of the modern priory building. This settlement continued in use until just after the Norman conquest of England when the new town of Burford was built. On the site of the old village a hospital was founded which remained open until the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King Henry VIII. The modern priory building was constructed some 40 years later, in around 1580.  The town centre's most notable building is the Church of St John the Baptist, a Church of England parish church, which is a Grade I listed building. Described by David Verey as "a complicated building which has developed in a curious way from the Norman", it is known for its merchants' guild chapel, memorial to Henry VIII's barber-surgeon, Edmund Harman, featuring South American Indians and Kempe stained glass. In 1649 the church was used as a prison during the Civil War, when the New Model Army Banbury mutineers were held there. Some of the 340 prisoners left carvings and graffiti, which still survive in the church.  The town centre also has some 15th-century houses and the baroque style townhouse that is now Burford Methodist Church. Between the 14th and 17th centuries Burford was important for its wool trade. The Tolsey, midway along Burford's High Street, which was once the focal point for trade, is now a museum.  The authors of "Burford: Buildings and People in a Cotswold Town" (2008) argue that Burford should be seen as less a medieval town than an Arts and Crafts town.

English Civil Wars – the Banbury Mutiny.

On 17 May 1649, three soldiers who were Levellers were executed on the orders of Oliver Cromwell in the churchyard at Burford following a mutiny started over pay and the prospect of being sent to fight in Ireland. Corporal Church, Private Perkins, and Cornet Thompson were they key leaders of the mutiny and, after a brief court-martial, were put up against the wall in the churchyard at Burford and shot. The remaining soldiers were pardoned. Each year on the nearest weekend to the Banbury mutiny is commemorated as 'Levellers Day'.

Bell foundry.

Burford has twice had a bell foundry: one run by the Neale family in the 17th century and another run by the Bond family in the 19th and 20th centuries.  Henry Neale was a bell founder between 1627 and 1641 and also had a foundry at Somerford Keynes in Gloucestershire. Edward Neale had joined him as a bell-founder at Burford by 1635 and continued the business until 1685. Numerous Neale bells remain in use, including at St Britius, Brize Norton, St Mary's, Buscot, St James the Great, Fulbrook and SS Peter and Paul, Steeple Aston. A few Neale bells that are no longer rung are displayed in Burford parish church.  Henry Bond had a bell foundry at Westcot from 1851 to 1861. He then moved it to Burford where he continued until 1905. He was then succeeded by Thomas Bond, who continued bell-founding at Burford until 1947. Bond bells still in use include four of the ring of six at St John the Evangelist, Taynton, one and a Sanctus bell at St Nicholas, Chadlington and one each at St Mary the Virgin, Chalgrove and St Peter's, Whatcote in Warwickshire.

Easter Synod.

For many years before the 7th century there had been strife between the Celtic Church and the Early Church over the question of when Easter Day should be celebrated. The Britons adhered to the rule laid at the Council of Arles in AD 314, that Easter Day should be the 14th day of the Paschal moon, even if the moon were on a Sunday. The Roman Church had decided that when the 14th day of the Paschal moon was a Sunday, Easter Day should be the Sunday after.  Various Synods were held in different parts of the kingdom with the object of settling this controversy, and one was held for this object at Burford in AD 685. Monk deduces from the fact of the Synod being held at Burford, that the Britons in some numbers had settled in the town and neighbourhood. This Synod was attended by Æthelred, King of Mercia, and his nephew Berthwald (who had been granted the southern part of his uncle's kingdom); Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury; Bosel, Bishop of Worcester; Seaxwulf, Bishop of Lichfield; Aldhelm, Abbot of Malmesbury; and many others.  Aldhelm was ordered at this conference to write a book against the error of the Britons in the observance of Easter. At this Synod Berthwald gave 40 cassates of land (a cassate is enough land to support a family) to Aldhelm who afterwards became Bishop of Shereborne. According to Spelman, the notes of the Synod were published in AD 705.

Battle of Burford and the Golden Dragon.

Malmesbury and other chroniclers record a battle between the West Saxons and Mercians at Burford in AD 752. In the end Æthelhum, the Mercian standard-bearer who carried the flag with a golden dragon on it, was killed by the lance of his Saxon rival. The "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle" records "A.D 752. This year Cuthred, king of the West Saxons, in the 12th year of his reign, fought at Burford, against Æthelbald king of the Mercians, and put him to flight." The historian William Camden (1551–1623) wrote "... in Saxon Beorgford [i.e. Burford], where Cuthred, king of the West Saxons, then tributary to the Mercians, not being able to endure any longer the cruelty and base exactions of King Æthelbald, met him in the open field with an army and beat him, taking his standard, which was a portraiture of a golden dragon."  The origin of the golden dragon standard is attributed to that of Uther Pendragon, the father of King Arthur of whom Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote: [Uther Pendragon] "... ordered two dragons to be fashioned in gold, in the likeness of the one which he had seen in the ray which shone from that star. As soon as the Dragons had been completed this with the most marvellous craftsmanship – he made a present of one of them to the congregation of the cathedral church of the see of Winchester. The second one he kept for himself, so that he could carry it around to his wars."  In the late 16th or early 17th century the people of Burford still celebrated the anniversary of the battle. Camden wrote: "There has been a custom in the town of making a great dragon yearly, and carrying it up and down the streets in great jollity on St John's Eve". The field traditionally claimed to be that of the battle is still called Battle Edge.  According to Reverend Francis Knollis' description of the discovery, "On 21 November 1814 a large freestone sarcophagus was discovered near Battle Edge below ground, weighing with the feet pointing almost due south. The interior is long and wide. It was found to contain the remains of a human body, with portions of a leather cuirass studded with metal nails. The skeleton was found in near perfect state due to the exclusion of air from the sarcophagus." The coffin is now preserved in Burford churchyard, near the west gate.  "Whose fame is in that dark green tomb? Four stones with their heads of moss stand there. They mark the narrow house of death. Some chief of fame is here! Raise the songs of old! Awake their memory in the tomb." – Ossian

Amenities.

Burford County Primary School is the town's primary school. Burford School, a mixed comprehensive school, is the town's secondary school. The primary school fête, held every summer, includes a procession (including a dragon) down High Street to the school, where there are stalls and games.  The Blue Cross National Animal Welfare Charity is based at Burford. In September 2001 Burford was twinned with Potenza Picena, a small town in the Marche, on the Adriatic coast of Italy.  In April 2009 Burford was ranked sixth in "Forbes" magazine's list of "Europe's Most Idyllic Places To Live".

Local legend and literature.

Local legend tells of a fiery coach containing the judge and local landowner Sir Lawrence Tanfield of Burford Priory and his wife flying around the town that brings a curse upon all who see it. Ross Andrews speculates that the apparition may have been caused by a local tradition of burning effigies of the unpopular couple that began after their deaths. In real life Tanfield and his second wife Elizabeth Evans are known to have been notoriously harsh to their tenants. The visitations were reportedly ended when local clergymen trapped Lady Tanfield's ghost in a corked glass bottle during an exorcism and cast it into the River Windrush. During droughts locals would fill the river from buckets to ensure that the bottle did not rise above the surface and free the spirit.  Burford is the main setting for Cynthia Harnett's historical novel for children, "The Wool-Pack".

Burford is a small medieval town on the River Windrush, in the Cotswold hills, in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England. It is often referred to as the 'gateway' to the Cotswolds. Burford is located west of Oxford and southeast of Cheltenham, about from the Gloucestershire boundary. The toponym derives from the Old English words "burh" meaning fortified town or hilltown and "ford", the crossing of a river. The 2011 Census recorded the population of Burford parish as 1,410 and Burford Ward as 1,847.

Burford est une petite ville des Cotswolds, à côté du fleuve la Windrush dans l'Oxfordshire, en Angleterre. Elle se trouve à 27 kilomètres à l'ouest d'Oxford.


In the novel.

Dom Claude Frollo is a pious and highly knowledgeable man who was orphaned along with his younger brother Jehan when their parents died of the plague. His studies led him to become the Archdeacon of Josas, which is his position during the events of the novel. He also has a small fief which brings him a little money, most of which goes to fund his brother's alcoholism.  During a holiday at Notre Dame called Quasimodo Sunday, he rescues a deformed hunchback child whom he finds abandoned on the cathedral's foundlings bed. He adopts the boy, names him "Quasimodo" after the holiday, raises him like a son, and teaches him a sort of sign language when Quasimodo is deafened by the cathedral’s bells. Frollo is a respected scholar and studies several languages, law, medicine, science and theology. However, he becomes infatuated with alchemy, which leads townspeople to spread the rumor that he is a sorcerer. He also believes strongly in fate. All this, along with his extreme and irrational fear of women, contribute further to his isolation from society.  Frollo also has strong passions, even though he is a celibate due to his station within the church. These passions erupt in him through his contact with the beautiful gypsy girl Esméralda, and eventually, they prove his undoing. He considers her to be a temptation sent by the Devil to test his faith, and curses her as a demon. He finds that he cannot resist her, however, and determines to give in to temptation. Esmeralda, however, is repulsed by his advances. Frollo orders Quasimodo to abduct her, and then abandons him when the hunchback is suddenly captured by Captain Phoebus de Chateaupers and his guards. Frollo even ignores Quasimodo when he sees him being publicly humiliated for the crime. When Frollo discovers that Esmeralda is in love with Phoebus, he spies on the meeting between them which Esmeralda has arranged – with Phoebus' consent, as Phoebus only wants one night of passion. As Phoebus and Esmeralda are about to make love, Frollo, in a jealous rage, stabs Phoebus, and kisses Esmeralda when she faints before fleeing.  Frollo does not attempt to intercede when Esmeralda is turned over to the magistrate on charges of witchcraft and attempted murder, but he stabs himself during her torture and shows her the wound as a proof of his lust for her. She is unmoved, however, as she is still in love with Phoebus. Shortly before the day she is to be executed, Frollo leaves Paris in a feverish madness, not realizing that Quasimodo – who is in love with her – has rescued her from the gallows. When he returns to the news that Esmeralda is still alive, he becomes as jealous of Quasimodo as he was of Phoebus. Frollo later attempts to rape her at her sanctuary in the cathedral, but Quasimodo – who doesn't realize who Esmeralda's attacker is at first – comes to the girl's defense and beats him up. Angered and humiliated, Frollo decides to rid himself of Esmeralda by handing her over to the authorities.  Frollo's time comes when a group of scoundrels, enraged by news that the French monarchy has ordered Esmeralda to be taken from the cathedral and hanged within three days, arm themselves to assault Notre Dame Cathedral. While Quasimodo is busy fighting off the scoundrels, Pierre Gringoire, Esmeralda's husband – whom she only married to save his life – and a hooded figure sneak into the Cathedral and convince Esmeralda to sneak out with them. The man's face is hidden behind a hood, leaving Esmeralda to guess his identity. They flee to a boat on the River Seine, then separate when they head to shore, with Gringoire taking her goat, Djali, and leaving Esmeralda with the unknown man. The hooded figure drags Esmeralda to a nearby gallows and identifies himself as Frollo by removing his hood.  Frollo issues Esmeralda his final ultimatum: either she must submit to him, or he will hand her over to the authorities. She rejects him, so he leaves her to an anchoress to hold her for the royal soldiers coming to hang her and goes back to Notre Dame Cathedral. He then walks up to one of the cathedral's towers to watch the girl being hanged, unaware that Quasimodo has spotted him and followed him upstairs. He watches calmly while Esmeralda is taken to the gallows.  When Quasimodo sees him laughing at Esmeralda's hanging, he becomes enraged and pushes Frollo off the balustrade. A gargoyle stops his fall, and he cries out to Quasimodo for help, but Quasimodo remains silent. Then Frollo falls down off the cathedral, colliding with the roof of a house. He slides down the roof, hits the pavement of the town square and dies.

Adaptations.

Victor Hugo's novel has been adapted to film on numerous occasions. Due to policy of the NAMPI Thirteen Points, the filmmakers of the 1923 film adaptation would not portray a member of the Roman Catholic Church in a negative and controversial light. As a result, Claude Frollo is not the villain, but instead a good-hearted archdeacon of Notre Dame, and the villain of the film is actually his younger brother Jehan (played by Brandon Hurst). The 1939 film had a similar change for the same reason due to policy of the Hays Production Code; the only difference is that Claude is portrayed as the Archbishop of Paris and Jehan (played by Sir Cedric Hardwicke) is portrayed as King Louis XI's chief justice of Paris. In Disney's 1996 animated film, Claude is Paris' judge/Minister of Justice and the villain as in the novel, the Archdeacon of Notre Dame is a separate character entirely (and voiced by David Ogden Stiers), and the character of Jehan is omitted.  However, Jehan appeared as he was originally portrayed in the novel in the following adaptations:  Among the actors who played Claude Frollo over the years in each adaptation of the novel are:

Disney version.

In Disney's 1996 animated film version of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", Judge Claude Frollo was voiced by Tony Jay, whom directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale chose for the role based on his brief appearance as Monsieur D'Arque in their previous film, "Beauty and the Beast" (1991) and animated by Kathy Zielinski. The character's features were inspired by those of the actor Stewart Granger and, only specifically his appearance in the 1953 film "The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T", of Hans Conreid. The film's producer, Don Hahn, stated that the character of Frollo was inspired by Ralph Fiennes' performance as Amon Göth from "Schindler's List", who murders Jews yet desires his Jewish maid. Screenwriter Tab Murphy made Frollo Paris' justice minister rather than an archdeacon, thus avoiding religious sensibilities in the finished film.  Frollo is portrayed in the film as the cruel, infamous, ruthless, self-righteous, and fanatically religious Minister of Justice of Paris. He despises Paris’ Gypsy population and desires to wipe out their entire race. Like his original character in Victor Hugo's novel, Frollo lusts after Esmeralda to the point of obsession, and demands her to choose to be his or die. Frollo believes everything he does is in accordance with God's will, despite frequent disagreements with the Archdeacon of Notre Dame. While in the novel Frollo genuinely cares for Quasimodo, in this film he is Quasimodo's reluctant guardian and took him in only out of fear of God’s punishment and the hope that the hunchback will someday be useful to him. Trousdale described the film's Frollo as "a horrible, horrible person", while Jay compared him to Hannibal Lecter in "The Silence of the Lambs".  In the beginning of the film, Frollo and his soldiers capture a group of Gypsy peasants attempting to sneak illegally into Paris on a boat. A Gypsy woman in the group attempts to flee with her deformed baby, but Frollo kills her outside Notre Dame Cathedral. He tries to kill the baby as well, but the cathedral's archdeacon intervenes and accuses Frollo of murdering an innocent woman. Fearing divine retribution, Frollo reluctantly agrees to raise the deformed child in Notre Dame as his son, naming him "Quasimodo", and teaching him that the world outside the cathedral is a sinful place full of people who would hate him for his deformity.  Twenty years later, in the Palace of Justice, Frollo appoints a new Captain of the Guard, Phoebus, stating his intent to eradicate the city's Gypsy population by discovering their sanctuary, the "Court of Miracles". While attending the annual Festival of Fools, Frollo discovers a Gypsy dancer, Esmeralda, who attracts him with her beauty. He finds that Quasimodo has left the bell tower and joined the Festival. Quasimodo is humiliated by the crowd after two of Frollo's guards start a riot. Frollo refuses to help Quasimodo, going so far as to refuse Phoebus' request to stop it, and he is angered when Esmeralda defiantly decides to help Quasimodo. Esmeralda rebukes Frollo before claiming sanctuary inside the cathedral.  Frollo soon develops lustful feelings for Esmeralda and begs the Virgin Mary to save him from her "spell"; he then resolves that “she will be mine, or she will burn”. When Frollo learns that she has escaped Notre Dame, he instigates a citywide manhunt for her, even going as far as capturing and bribing Gypsies and burning countless houses in his way. Phoebus is appalled by Frollo's actions and openly defies him, and Frollo sentences him to death. While fleeing on Frollo's horse, Phoebus is struck by an arrow and falls into the River Seine, but Esmeralda rescues him just in time and takes him to Notre Dame for refuge.  Frollo returns to Notre Dame later that night and discovers that Quasimodo had helped Esmeralda escape. He lies to Quasimodo, saying that he knows about the Court of Miracles and that he intends to attack at dawn with 1,000 men. Following Quasimodo and Phoebus to the Court of Miracles, Frollo and his men capture all the Gypsies present. Frollo prepares to burn Esmeralda at the stake, but offers to spare her life if she submits to his desires. A disgusted Esmeralda refuses and spits on his face, and Frollo prepares to execute her. Quasimodo rescues her, however, and brings her to the cathedral. Frollo orders his soldiers to attack and seize the cathedral. Phoebus releases the Gypsies and rallies the citizens of Paris against Frollo and his men. Quasimodo pours molten lead onto the streets to ensure that no one enters, but Frollo manages to get inside. Frollo attempts to kill Quasimodo, but Quasimodo overpowers him, and openly rejects everything that Frollo raised him to believe. Frollo pursues Quasimodo and Esmeralda to the balcony, where he taunts Quasimodo with the truth about his mother. Frollo knocks Quasimodo over the edge, but Quasimodo manages to hold on and ends up pulling Frollo along with him. Frollo climbs onto a gargoyle and raises his sword to strike at Esmeralda, but the gargoyle crumbles underneath him, causing him to lose his balance. In a vision, Frollo sees the gargoyle's face transform into that of Satan. Terrified, Frollo screams as the gargoyle breaks off entirely, sending him falling to his death into the molten lead below.

"Monseigneur" Claude Frollo () is a fictional character and the main antagonist of Victor Hugo's 1831 novel "The Hunchback of Notre-Dame" (known in French as "Notre-Dame de Paris"). He is the Archdeacon of Notre Dame.

L'archidiacre Claude Frollo est un des personnages centraux du roman "Notre-Dame de Paris" de Victor Hugo. Archidiacre de Notre-Dame de Paris, prêtre et alchimiste, Claude Frollo est l'archétype de l'intellectuel, passionné de science, quêteur d'absolu. Sa découverte tardive de l'amour, de la femme, du corps, dans sa passion pour la Esmeralda, bouleversera tout ce qui le structurait au préalable. Perdu par cette révélation, il entraînera dans sa chute la jeune fille, ainsi que ses proches.


History.

Gun Owners of America was founded in 1975 by the NRA board member and California state senator H. L. Richardson when legislation to ban all handguns was introduced in California. Richardson was the chairman of Gun Owners of America until his death in 2020. Richardson also founded Gun Owners of California, which deals specifically with gun ownership rights in California. GOA's current executive director as of 2018 is Erich Pratt, son of the previous director Larry Pratt, who also hosts GOA's audio webcast, Live Fire.

Goals.

Gun Owners of America is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization whose main goal is to preserve and defend the Second Amendment. Gun Owners of America sees the right to bear arms as a fundamental freedom issue. GOA's stance is to "never compromise" and not to accept the status quo. According to Gun Owners of America's official website, its board contends that Americans have lost some of their gun rights, and GOA strives to get them back. For 30 years, Gun Owners of America has been building a nationwide network of lawyers to aid in challenging gun control legislation in the courts. Gun Owners of America has been involved in legal proceedings in almost every state in the hopes of maintaining and advancing pro-gun legislation and rights.

Branches.

By its own account, Gun Owners of America spent over $1.75 million lobbying Congress in 2004, and over $18 million between 1998 and 2004. Gun Owners of America's Federal Political Action Committee is "Gun Owners of America Inc. Political Victory Fund" (C00278101). It raises funds to support the election of pro-gun candidates at all levels of government.  Gun Owners Foundation is an educational nonprofit foundation. It acts as the research arm for GOA. Its main objective is to hold seminars around the country to inform the public, media outlets, and various government officials on Second Amendment issues. The Gun Owners Foundation around 2008 began a new campaign by creating Public Service Announcements to promote what it calls "PROPER Gun Safety". According to Gun Owners Foundation, its campaign objective is "to generate public awareness of the dangers of not having a gun ready for protection and to encourage gun owners not to lock up their best means of self-defense". The public service announcements focus mainly on trying to persuade their target audience, American adults in gun owning households, to not lock up fire arms, but instead to keep them ready and accessible. According to the public service announcements:

Recent campaigns.

Gun Owners of America publicly denounced then-President-elect Barack Obama, stating that "Based on his voting record in the Illinois state senate and in the U.S. Senate, President-elect Barack Obama will be the most anti–Second Amendment president in the history of America." Gun Owners of America was worried that with the Democratic Party majority in the 111th Congress, having Obama alongside Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (both rated F− by the GOA), will mean Second Amendment–protected rights could be affected. Gun Owners of America concerns about the Obama administration and current Congress include:  Gun Owners of America failed in its battle against New York Senator Chuck Schumer's NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007. The group claimed the bill ( and S 2084) would give authorities—including courts, psychiatrists, and in some cases psychologists—the ability to revoke the Second Amendment rights of veterans who had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Gun Owners of America contended that this would be an infringement on the rights of veterans with mental disorders.

GOA victories.

On June 6, 1995, Gun Owners of America helped in lobbying the House of Representatives to vote against the Moran Amendment, by a vote of 278 to 149. The amendment would have banned.50 caliber weapons from being licensed for export.  On July 13, 2006, Senator David Vitter saw an 84–16 vote for his amendment prohibiting the use of federal money for federal agents to confiscate weapons during a declared state of emergency. This bill was passed less than a year after the devastation in Vitter's home state from Hurricane Katrina.  On June 27, 2007, the Pence Amendment passed. The bill, named after then-Representative Mike Pence, was passed by a vote of 309–115. According to Gun Owners of America, the amendment blocked the Federal Communications Commission's ability to use the Fairness Doctrine to limit the free speech allowed by organizations like Gun Owners of America over the airwaves.  On August 9, 2007, Gun Owners of America supported Vitter's work in pushing through a bill stating that no U.S. funds can be used by the United Nations or any group affiliated with the United Nations to restrict or tax Second Amendment rights. If they attempt to do so, the U.S. can withdraw their funds from the organization. This bill, HR-2764, also known as the Consolidated Appropriations Act, passed by an 81–10 vote.  On February 25, 2008, Senator Jim DeMint amended bill S-1200, the Indian Health Care Improvement Act. The act stated that the funds were to be used for "violence prevention". Once the funds were attempted to be used for gun buybacks, DeMint pushed through an amendment to the act stating that the money cannot be used for any anti-gun programs. DeMint's amendment passed by a margin of 78–11.

Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a gun rights organization in the United States with over two million members. It makes efforts to differentiate itself from the larger National Rifle Association (NRA) and has publicly criticized the NRA on multiple occasions for what it considers to be compromising on gun rights.

, ou GOA est, en termes d'importance, la deuxième organisation pro-arme des États-Unis, derrière la NRA. Elle se distingue de la NRA par sa plus grande radicalité et ses positions sans compromis. De fait, à de nombreuses reprises, la GOA a émis publiquement des critiques sévères à l'encontre de la NRA, accusant cette dernière de desservir, par ses positions trop modérées et consensuelles, la cause du mouvement pour le droit à la détention d'armes aux États-Unis.