Etymology.

In ancient literature, Goa was known by many names, such as "Gomanchala",

History.

Prehistory.

Rock art engravings found in Goa exhibit the earliest traces of human life in India. Goa, situated within the Shimoga-Goa Greenstone Belt in the Western Ghats (an area composed of metavolcanics, iron formations and ferruginous quartzite), yields evidence for Acheulean occupation. Rock art engravings (petroglyphs) are present on laterite platforms and granite boulders in Usgalimal near the west flowing Kushavati river and in Kajur. In Kajur, the rock engravings of animals, tectiforms and

Early history.

In the 3rd century BC, Goa was part of the Maurya Empire, ruled by the Buddhist emperor, Ashoka of Magadha. Buddhist monks laid the foundation of Buddhism in Goa. Between the 2nd century BC and the 6th century AD, Goa was ruled by the Bhojas of Goa. Chutus of Karwar also ruled some parts as feudatories of the Satavahanas of Kolhapur (2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD), Western Kshatrapas (around 150 AD), the Abhiras of Western Maharashtra, Bhojas of the Yadav clans of Gujarat, and the Konkan Mauryas as feudatories of the Kalachuris. The rule later passed to the Chalukyas

Portuguese period.

In 1510, the Portuguese defeated the ruling Bijapur sultan Yusuf Adil Shah with the help of a local ally, Timayya. They set up a permanent settlement in Velha Goa. This was the beginning of Portuguese colonial rule in Goa that would last for four and a half centuries,

Contemporary period.

After India gained independence from the British in 1947, India requested that Portuguese territories on the Indian subcontinent be ceded to India. Portugal refused to negotiate on the sovereignty of its Indian enclaves. On 19 December 1961, the Indian Army

Geography and climate.

Geography.

Goa encompasses an area of. It lies between the latitudes 14°53′54′′ N and 15°40′00′′ N and longitudes 73°40′33′′ E and 74°20′13′′ E.  Goa is a part of the coastal country known as the Konkan, which is an escarpment rising up to the Western Ghats range of mountains, which separate it from the Deccan Plateau. The highest point is the Sonsogor, with an altitude of. Goa has a coastline of.  Goa's seven major rivers are the Zuari, Mandovi, Terekhol, Chapora, Galgibag, Kumbarjua canal, Talpona and the Sal. The Zuari and the Mandovi are the most important rivers, interspaced by the Kumbarjua canal, forming a major estuarine complex. These rivers are fed by the Southwest

Climate.

Goa features a tropical monsoon climate under the Köppen climate classification. Goa, being in the tropical zone and near the Arabian Sea, has a hot and humid climate for most of the year. The month

Subdivisions.

The state is divided into two districts: North Goa and South Goa. Each district is administered by a district collector, appointed by the Indian government.  Panaji is the headquarters of North Goa district and is also the capital of Goa.  North Goa is further divided into three subdivisions – Panaji, Mapusa, and Bicholim; and five "talukas" (subdistricts) – Tiswadi/"Ilhas de Goa" (Panaji), Bardez (Mapusa), Pernem, Bicholim, and Sattari

Government and politics.

The politics of Goa are a result of the uniqueness of this region due to 450 years of Portuguese rule, in comparison to three centuries of British colonialism experienced by the rest of India. The Indian National Congress was unable to achieve electoral success in the first two decades after the State's incorporation into India. Instead, the state was dominated by the regional political parties like Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party and the United Goans Party.

Government.

In the Parliament of India, Goa has two seats in the Lok Sabha (House of the People), one representing each district, and one seat in the Rajya Sabha (Council of the States).  Goa's administrative capital is Panaji in English, Pangim in Portuguese, and Ponjê in the local language. It lies on the left bank of the Mandovi. The seat of the Goa Legislative Assembly is in Porvorim, across the Mandovi from Panaji. As the state comes under the Bombay High Court, Panaji has a bench in it. Unlike other states, which follow the British Indian model of civil laws framed for individual religions, the Portuguese Goa civil code, a uniform code based on the Napoleonic code, has been retained in Goa.  Goa has a unicameral legislature, the Goa Legislative Assembly, of 40 members, headed by a speaker. The Chief Minister heads the executive, which is made up from the party or coalition elected with a majority in the legislature. The Governor, the head of

Flora and fauna.

Equatorial forest cover in Goa stands at, most of which is owned by the government. Government-owned forest is estimated at whilst private is given as. Most of the forests in the state are located in the interior eastern regions of the state. The Western Ghats, which form most of eastern Goa, have been internationally recognised as one of the biodiversity hotspots of the world. In the February 1999 issue of "National Geographic Magazine", Goa was compared with the Amazon and the Congo basins for its rich tropical biodiversity.  Goa's wildlife sanctuaries boast of more than 1512 documented species of plants, over 275 species of birds, over 48 kinds of animals and over 60 genera of reptiles.  Goa is also known for its coconut cultivation. The coconut tree has been reclassified by the government as a palm (like a grass), enabling farmers and real estate developers to clear land with fewer restrictions.  Rice is the main food crop, and pulses (legume), "Ragi" (Finger Millet) and other food crops are also grown. Main cash crops are coconut,

Economy.

Goa's state domestic product for 2017 is estimated at $11 billion at current prices. Goa is India's richest state with the highest GDP per capita – two and a half times that of the country – with one of its fastest growth rates: 8.23% (yearly average 1990–2000). Tourism is Goa's primary industry: it gets 12% of foreign tourist arrivals in India. Goa has two main tourist seasons: winter and summer. In winter, tourists from abroad (mainly Europe) come, and summer (which, in Goa, is the rainy season) sees tourists from across India. Goa's net state domestic product (NSDP) was around US$7.24 billion in 2015–16.  The land away from the coast is rich in minerals and ores, and mining forms the second largest industry. Iron, bauxite, manganese, clays, limestone, and silica are mined. The Mormugao port handled 31.69 million tonnes of cargo last year, which was 39% of India's total iron ore exports. Sesa Goa (now owned by Vedanta Resources) and Dempo are the lead miners. Rampant mining has been depleting the forest cover as well as posing a health hazard to the local

Demographics.

Population.

A native of Goa is called a Goan. Goa has a population of 1.459 million residents as of 2011, making it India's fourth smallest (after Sikkim, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh). The population has a growth rate of 8.23% per decade. There are 394 people for each square kilometre of land which is higher than national average 382 per km. Goa is the state with highest proportion of

Languages.

The Goa, Daman and Diu Official Language Act, 1987 makes Konkani in the Devanagari script the sole official language of Goa, but provides that Marathi may also be used "for all or any of the official purposes". Portuguese was the sole official language during Portuguese colonial rule. The government also has a policy of replying in Marathi to correspondence received in Marathi. Whilst there have been demands for according Konkani in the Roman script official status in the state, there is widespread support for keeping Konkani as the sole official language of Goa. It is however notable to mention that the entire

Religion.

According to the 2011 census, in a population of 1,458,545 people, 66.1% were Hindu, 25.1% were Christian, 8.3% were Muslim and 0.1% were Sikh.  Due to the economic decline of Portuguese India from the 18th century, there was a large-scale migration of Goan Catholics. The local Indian Christians were called "indiacatos"

Tourism.

Tourism is generally focused on the coastal areas of Goa, with decreased tourist activity inland. In 2010, there were more than 2 million tourists reported to have visited Goa, about 1.2 million of whom were from abroad., Goa was a destination of choice for Indian and foreign tourists, particularly Britons and Russians, with limited means who wanted to party. The state was hopeful that changes could be made which would attract a more upscale demographic.  Goa stands 6th in the Top 10 Nightlife cities in the world in National Geographic Travel. Notable nightclubs in Goa include Chronicle, Mambos and Sinq.  One of the biggest tourist attractions in Goa is water sports. Beaches like Baga and Calangute offer jet-skiing, parasailing, banana boat rides, water scooter rides, and more. Patnem beach in Palolem stood third in CNN Travel's Top 20 Beaches in Asia.  Over 450 years of Portuguese rule and the influence of the Portuguese culture presents to visitors to Goa a cultural environment that is not found elsewhere in India. Goa is often described as a fusion between Eastern and Western culture with Portuguese culture having a dominant position in the state be it in its architectural, cultural or social settings. The state of Goa is famous for its excellent beaches, churches, and temples. The Bom Jesus Cathedral, Fort Aguada and a new wax museum on Indian history, culture and heritage in Old Goa are other tourism destinations.

Historic sites and neighbourhoods.

Goa has two World Heritage Sites: the Bom Jesus Basilica and churches and convents of Old Goa. The basilica holds the mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier, regarded by many Catholics as the patron saint of Goa (the patron of the Archdiocese of Goa is actually Saint Joseph Vaz). These are both Portuguese-era monuments and reflect a strong European character. The relics are taken down for veneration and for public viewing, per the prerogative of the Church in Goa, not every ten or twelve years as popularly thought and propagated. The last exposition was held in 2014. Goa has the Sanctuary of Saint Joseph Vaz in Sancoale. Pilar monastery which holds novenas of Venerable Padre Agnelo Gustavo de Souza from 10 to 20 November yearly. There is a claimed Marian Apparition at the Church of

Museums and science centre.

Goa has three important museums: the Goa State Museum, the Naval Aviation Museum and the National Institute of Oceanography. The aviation museum is one of three in India

Culture.

Having been a Portuguese territory for over 450 years, Goan culture is an interesting amalgamation of both Eastern and Western styles, with the latter having a more dominant role. The tableau of Goa showcases religious harmony by focusing on the Deepastambha, the Cross and Ghode Modni followed by a chariot. Western royal attire of kings is as much part of Goa's cultural heritage as are regional dances performed depicting a unique blend of different religions and cultures of this State. Prominent local festivals are Christmas, Easter, Carnival, Diwali, Shigmo, Chavoth, Samvatsar Padvo, Dasara etc. The Goan Carnival and Christmas-new year celebrations attract many tourists.  The Gomant Vibhushan Award, the highest civilian honour of the State of Goa, is given annually by Government of Goa since 2010.

Dance and music.

Traditional Goan art forms are Dekhnni, Fugdi, Corridinho, Mando, Dulpod and Fado. Goan Catholics are fond of social gatherings and Tiatr (Teatro). As part of its Portuguese history, music is an integral part of Goan homes. It is often said that "Goans are born with

Theatre.

Natak, Tiatr (most popular) and Jagor are the chief forms of Goa's traditional performance arts. Other forms are Ranmale, Dashavatari, Kalo, Goulankala, Lalit, Kala and Rathkala. Stories from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata along with more modern social subjects are narrated with song and dance.  "Jagor", the traditional folk dance-drama, is performed by the Hindu Kunbi and Christian Gauda community of Goa, to seek the Devine Grace for protection and prosperity of the crop. Literal meaning of Jagor is "jagran" or wakeful nights. The strong belief is that the night long performance, awakens the deities once a year and they continue to remain awake throughout the year guarding the village.  Perni Jagor is the ancient mask dance – drama of Goa, performed by Perni families, using well crafted and painted wooden masks, depicting various animals, birds, supernatural power, deities, demons, and social characters.  Gauda Jagor,

Konkani cinema.

Konkani cinema is an Indian film industry, where films are made in the Konkani language, which is spoken mainly in the Indian states of Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka and to a smaller extent in Kerala. Konkani films have been produced in Goa, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Kerala.  The first full-length Konkani film was "Mogacho Anvddo", released on 24 April 1950, and was produced and directed by A. L.Jerry Braganza, a native of Mapusa, under the banner of ETICA Pictures. Hence, 24 April is celebrated as Konkani Film Day.  Since 2004, starting from the

Food.

Rice with fish curry ("xit koddi" in Konkani) is the staple diet in Goa. Goan cuisine is famous for its rich variety of fish dishes cooked with elaborate recipes. Coconut and coconut oil are widely used in Goan cooking along with chili peppers, spices, and vinegar is used in the Catholic cuisine, giving the food a unique flavour. The Goan cuisine is heavily influenced by Portuguese cuisine.  Goan food may be divided into Goan Catholic and Goan Hindu cuisine with each showing very distinct tastes, characteristics, and cooking styles. Pork dishes such as Vindalho, Xacuti, chouriço, and Sorpotel are cooked for major occasions among the Goan Catholics. An exotic Goan vegetable stew, known as Khatkhate, is a very popular

Architecture.

The architecture of Goa is a combination of Goan, Ottoman and Portuguese styles. Since the Portuguese ruled and governed for four centuries, many churches and houses bear a striking element of the Portuguese style of architecture. Goan Hindu houses do not show

Media and communication.

Goa is served by almost all television channels available in India. Channels are received through cable in most parts of Goa. In the interior regions, channels are received via satellite dishes. Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster, has two free terrestrial channels on air.  DTH (Direct To Home) TV services are available from Dish TV, Videocon D2H, Tata Sky & DD Direct Plus. The All India Radio is the only radio channel in the state that broadcasts on both FM and AM bands. Two AM channels are broadcast, the primary channel at 1287 kHz and the Vividh Bharati channel at 1539 kHz. AIR's FM channel is called FM Rainbow and is broadcast at 105.4 MHz. A number of private FM radio channels are available, Big FM at 92.7 and Radio Indigo at 91.9 MHz. There is

Sports.

Normally other states are fond of cricket but association football is the most popular sport in Goa and is embedded in Goan culture as a result of the Portuguese influence. Its origins in the state are traced back to 1883 when the visiting Irish priest Fr. William Robert Lyons established the sport as part of a "Christian education". On 22 December 1959 the "Associação de Futebol de Goa" was formed, which continues to administer the game in the state under the new name Goa Football Association. Goa, along with West Bengal and Kerala is the locus of football in India and is home to many football clubs in the national I-League. The state's football powerhouses include Salgaocar, Dempo, Churchill Brothers, Vasco, Sporting Clube de Goa and FC Goa. The first Unity World Cup was held in Goa in 2014. The state's main football stadium, Fatorda Stadium, is located at Margao and also hosts cricket matches. The state hosted few matches of the 2017 FIFA U-17

Education.

Goa had India's earliest educational institutions built with European support. The Portuguese set up seminaries for religious education and parish schools for elementary education. Founded circa 1542 by Saint Francis Xavier, Saint Paul's College, Goa was a Jesuit school in Old Goa, which later became a college. St Paul's was once the main Jesuit institution in the whole of Asia. It housed the first printing press in India and published the first books in 1556.  Medical education began in 1801 with the offering of regular medical courses at the Royal and Military Hospital in the old City of Goa. Built in 1842 as the Escola Médico-Cirúrgica de (Nova) Goa (Medical-Surgical School of Goa), Goa Medical College is one of Asia's oldest medical colleges and has one of the oldest medical libraries (since 1845). It houses the largest hospital in Goa and continues to provide medical training to this day.  According to the 2011 census, Goa has a literacy rate of 87%, with 90% of males and 84% of females being literate. Each taluka is made up of villages, each having a school run by the government. Private schools are preferred over government-run schools. All schools come under the Goa Board of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education, whose syllabus is prescribed by the state education department. There are also a few schools that subscribe to the all-India ICSE syllabus or the NIOS syllabus. Most students in Goa complete their high school with English as the medium of instruction. Most primary schools, however, use Konkani and Marathi (in private, but government-aided schools). As is the case in most of India, enrolment for vernacular media has seen a fall in numbers in favour of English medium education. Per a report published in "The Times of India", 84%

Transportation.

Air.

Goa International Airport, is a civil enclave at INS Hansa, a Naval airfield located at Dabolim near Vasco da Gama. The airport caters to scheduled domestic and international air services. Goa has scheduled international connections to Doha, Dubai, Muscat, Sharjah

Road.

Goa's public transport largely consists of privately operated buses linking the major towns to rural areas. Government-run buses, maintained by the Kadamba Transport Corporation, link major routes (like the Panaji–Margao route) and some remote parts of the state. The Corporation owns 15 bus stands, 4 depots and one Central workshop at Porvorim and a Head Office at Porvorim. In large towns such as Panajiand Margao, intra-city buses operate. However, public transport in Goa is less developed, and residents depend heavily on their own transportation, usually motorised two-wheelers and small family cars. Goa has four National Highways passing through it. NH-66 (ex NH-17) runs along India's west coast and links Goa to Mumbai in the north and Mangalore to the south. NH-4A running across the state connects the capital Panaji to Belgaum in east, linking Goa to cities in the

Rail.

Goa has two rail lines – one run by the South Western Railway and the other by the Konkan Railway. The line run by the South Western Railway

Sea.

The Mormugao Port Trust near the city of Vasco handles mineral ore, petroleum, coal, and international containers. Much of the shipments consist of minerals and ores from Goa's hinterland.

Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the region known as the Konkan, and geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is surrounded by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the east and south, with the Arabian Sea forming its western coast. It is India's smallest state by area and the fourth-smallest by population. Goa has the highest GDP per capita among all Indian states, two and a half times that of the country. It was ranked the best-placed state by the Eleventh Finance Commission for its infrastructure and ranked on top for the best quality of life in India by the National Commission on Population based on the 12 Indicators.

Goa () est un État de la côte sud-ouest de l'Inde. Colonie portugaise à partir du, Goa est annexé par l'Inde en 1961, en même temps que Daman et Diu. Il devient un État le.


Plot.

In ancient times, Earth was involved in a massive conflict between Mental, an evil extraterrestrial being who wants to rule the universe, and the Sirians, a technologically advanced sentient alien race that left many of its artefacts to be discovered by humanity. In the 22nd century, Mental and his army of grotesquely twisted monsters return to Earth intending to destroy humanity. The humans are quickly overwhelmed and driven back to Earth. As a last resort, humanity uses the "Time-Lock". This mysterious Sirian artefact contains the power to transport a single person back to a chosen point in time. Because of his bravery in fighting these monsters, Sam "Serious" Stone is chosen to use the Time-Lock in hopes that he will defeat Mental and change the course of history. As the game opens, Sam appears in Egypt. He travels from one Egyptian monument to the next, fighting against the monsters Mental sent after him along the way. During Sam's journey, Sam is able to find and activate a hidden Sirian communicator in the shape of an obelisk located in Luxor, which summons a Sirian starship to Earth from deep space. Sam rushes to the Great Pyramids of Giza in order to rendezvous with the starship, only to be cornered by Mental's general, Ugh Zan III. After defeating the giant, Sam then teleports himself onto the starship. While Sam is aboard the "SSS Centerprice", he leaves a phone message to Mental telling him that "he has a special delivery package for him" and sets a course to Sirius, the Sirian homeworld.

Reception.

Kevin Rice reviewed the PC version of the game for "Next Generation", rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "Hmmm, should you get "Deer Hunter XXII Extreme Plus" [...] or "Serious Sam" for the same price? This is a no-brainer purchase for any FPS gamer."  In the United States, "Serious Sam: The First Encounter" sold 83,000 copies by October 2001.  "The First Encounter" was the recipient of various editorial and consumer praise, with an overall review ratio of 87/100 on Metacritic. It also received numerous awards, including multiple Game of the Year awards.  "Serious Sam" won "The Electric Playground"s "Best Independent PC Game" prize, and was a nominee in the show's "Best Shooter for PC", "Best Graphics in a PC Game" and "Best Action Game for PC" categories.

Serious Sam: The First Encounter is the first game in the first-person shooter "Serious Sam" series, created by Croteam. It had been in the making since 1996 and had a video showing its early gameplay in 2000. "The First Encounter" was originally developed by Croteam as a demonstrator for their engine and this is the reason why some countries saw its initial release priced at less than half the price of other games in the genre.

Serious Sam : Premier Contact est un jeu vidéo de tir à la première personne sorti en 2001 sur PC. Le jeu a été développé par Croteam puis édité par Gathering of Developers. Il fait vivre les aventures de Sam "Serious" Stone contre "Mental" et ses armées de monstres.


Biography.

Early life.

Goodis was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the oldest child of William Goodis and Mollie Halpern Goodis. William Goodis was a Russian-Jewish émigré born in 1882 who had arrived in America with his mother in 1890. David Goodis's mother, Mollie Halpern, was born in Pennsylvania also into a family of Russian-Jewish émigrés. In Philadelphia, Goodis's father co-owned a newspaper dealership and later went into the textile business as the William Goodis Company. A brother, Jerome, born in 1920, died of meningitis at age three. In 1922, another brother, Herbert, was born into the family.  Goodis attended Simon Gratz High School and was engaged in student affairs, editing the school newspaper, serving as student council president, and participating in athletics as a member of both the track and swim teams. He also had the distinction of being chosen valedictorian for the graduating class of 1935, delivering a speech entitled "Youth Looks at Peace". As a college student, he continued and expanded on the interests he had pursued as a high school student, contributing to the student newspaper as both writer and cartoonist. It was during this period that he purportedly tried his hand at novel writing with a book titled "Ignited". The novel was never published, and no copy of it has been discovered. Goodis later claimed: "The title was prophetic. Eventually, I threw it into the furnace." Goodis graduated from Temple University in 1938 with a degree in journalism.

Pulp magazines.

While working at an advertising agency, Goodis started writing his first published novel, "Retreat from Oblivion". After it was published by Dutton in 1939, Goodis moved to New York City, where he wrote under several pseudonyms for pulp magazines, including "Battle Birds", "Daredevil Aces", "Dime Mystery", "Horror Stories", "Terror Tales" and "Western Tales", sometimes churning out 10,000 words a day. The first pulp story published under his own name, titled "Mistress of the White Slave King", appeared in "Gangland Detective Stories" (November 1939). Over a five-and-a-half-year period, according to some sources, he produced five million words for the pulp magazines. While the quantity of his output far eclipses that of his predecessors Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, unlike theirs, the vast majority of his pulp stories have never been reprinted.

Radio and screenplays.

During the 1940s, Goodis scripted radio adventure serials, including "Hop Harrigan", "House of Mystery", and "Superman". Novels he wrote during the early 1940s were rejected by publishers, but in 1942 he spent some time in Hollywood as one of the screenwriters on Universal's "Destination Unknown". His big break came in 1946 when his novel "Dark Passage" was serialized in "The Saturday Evening Post", published by Julian Messner, and filmed for Warner Bros. with Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall heading the cast. Delmer Daves directed what is now regarded as a classic "film noir", and a first edition of the 1946 hardcover is valued at more than $800.  Arriving in Hollywood, Goodis signed a six-year contract with Warner Brothers, working on story treatments and scripts. In 1947, Goodis wrote the script for "The Unfaithful", a remake of Somerset Maugham's "The Letter". Some of his scripts were never produced, such as "Of Missing Persons" and an adaptation of Raymond Chandler's "The Lady in the Lake." Working with director Delmer Daves, he wrote a screen treatment for "Up Till Now", a film which Daves described as "giving people a look at themselves and their [American] heritage". This film, too, was never made, but Goodis used some of its elements in his 1954 novel "The Blonde on the Street Corner".  Goodis is also credited with writing the screenplay to "The Burglar," a 1957 film noir directed by Paul Wendkos that was based on his 1953 novel published by Lion Books. It was the only solely authored screenplay by him to be produced as a movie. It was remade in 1971 by Henri Verneuil as the French-Italian film "Le Casse" starring Omar Sharif and Jean-Paul Belmondo.

Marriage and divorce.

Until recently, it was generally believed that Goodis never married. His friend Harold "Dutch" Silver said Goodis never spoke of a wife, and no wife was mentioned in Goodis's obituary. Attorney correspondence also repeatedly stated that Goodis never married.  However, research by Larry Withers and Louis Boxer has produced a marriage license for Goodis and Elaine Astor. It shows that they were married on October 7, 1943, by Rabbi Jacob Samuel Robins, Ph.D., at Ohev Shalom Congregation, 525 South Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles. According to a divorce decree found in the attic of Philadelphia's City Hall, Astor received a divorce on January 18, 1946.  Withers is Astor's son by a later marriage. He learned about her marriage to Goodis only after her death in 1986 from a stroke.

Return to Philadelphia.

In 1950, Goodis returned to Philadelphia, where he lived with his parents and his schizophrenic brother Herbert. At night, he prowled the underside of Philadelphia, hanging out in nightclubs and seedy bars, a milieu he depicted in his fiction. "Cassidy's Girl" (1951) sold over a million copies, and he continued to write for paperback publishers, notably Gold Medal. There was a renewed interest in his works when François Truffaut filmed his 1956 novel "Down There" as the acclaimed "Shoot the Piano Player" (1960).  Goodis died at 11:30 pm on January 7, 1967, at Albert Einstein Medical Center, Northern Division, not far from his home. He was 49. His death certificate lists "cerebral vascular accident," meaning a stroke, as the cause of death. Days earlier, Goodis had been beaten while resisting a robbery. Some have attributed his death to his injuries. It is also said that he keeled over while shoveling snow. He was buried in Roosevelt Memorial Park in Pennsylvania.

"The Fugitive" and the lawsuit.

In 1963, ABC television began airing "The Fugitive", the fictional story of Richard Kimble, a doctor wrongfully convicted of murdering his wife. In the plot, Kimble subsequently escapes and begins a long search for the "one-armed man", the person he believes to be the real killer.  Goodis stated that "The Fugitive" was based on his novel "Dark Passage". In 1965, he sued United Artists-TV and ABC for $500,000, alleging copyright infringement. His cousin's law firm, Goodis, Greenfield, Narin and Mann, represented him, and several groups supported him, including the Authors League of America, the Dramatists Guild, and the American Book Publishers Association. Coudert Brothers represented United Artists and ABC.  During a deposition on December 9, 1966, Goodis stated that "The Saturday Evening Post" had serialized "Dark Passage", a fact that would become critical to the case.  One month later, Goodis was dead. After his death the lawsuit continued to wind its way through the courts.  The dispute did not so much concern whether the theme of "Dark Passage" had been used, but whether the book was in the public domain. In a victory for UA and ABC, the District Court held that Goodis had, in effect, "donated his work to the public domain" when he published it in "The Saturday Evening Post" without using a copyright notice that listed his name.  The Goodis estate appealed. In 1970, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case for trial. The decision is reported at "Goodis v. United Artists Television, Inc., 425 F.2d 397 (2nd Cir. 1970)". The court wrote, "We unanimously conclude that where a magazine has purchased the right of first publication under circumstances which show that the author has no intention to donate his work to the public, copyright notice in the magazine's name is sufficient to obtain a valid copyright on behalf of the beneficial owner, the author or proprietor." "(425 F.2d 398-399)"  By then, Goodis's main beneficiary, his brother Herbert, was also dead. So in 1972, the Goodis estate agreed that the case now had only "nuisance value" and accepted $12,000 to settle the matter. Despite the significant difference between the initial claim and the final monetary settlement, the case is still regarded as a landmark decision in intellectual property rights and copyright law.

Influence.

After his death, his work went out of print in the United States, but he remained a popular favorite in France. In 1987, Black Lizard began to reissue Goodis titles. In 2007, Hard Case Crime published a new edition of "The Wounded and the Slain" for the first time in more than 50 years. Also in 2007, "Street of No Return" and "Nightfall" were re-published by Millipede Press. His novel "Down There" was reprinted as part of "American Noir of the 1950s" in the Library of America. In March 2012, the Library of America published a selection of Goodis's novels under the title "David Goodis: Five Noir Novels of the 1940s and 50s."  Goodis has influenced contemporary crime fiction writers, notably Duane Swierczynski and Ken Bruen. A character in Jean-Luc Godard's 1966 film "Made in U.S.A." was named after Goodis. However, in Godard's 1972 film "Tout va bien", the character Jacques (played by Yves Montand), a filmmaker, says he moved into making commercials as more "honest" work when, after May 1968, he was asked to direct a film based on a Goodis detective novel and decided he couldn't see himself making something so stupid.

Filmography.

Although Goodis's novels were occasionally adapted by Hollywood, it was mainly French filmmakers (François Truffaut, René Clément, Jean-Jacques Beineix,...) who were interested in his work.  The following is a list of adaptations in reverse chronological order.  A film adaptation of "Cassidy's Girl" was being developed by director Edward Holub in 2004.  A filmography of works based on Goodis's novels is appended to Eddie Duggan's 1988 article "Life's a Bitch: Paranoia and Sexuality in the novels of David Goodis".

David Loeb Goodis (March 2, 1917 – January 7, 1967) was an American writer of crime fiction noted for his output of short stories and novels in the noir fiction genre. Born in Philadelphia, Goodis alternately resided there and in New York City and Hollywood during his professional years. According to critic Dennis Drabelle, "Despite his [university] education, a combination of ethnicity (Jewish) and temperament allowed him to empathize with outsiders: the working poor, the unjustly accused, fugitives, criminals."

David Goodis, né le, à Philadelphie où il est mort le, est un écrivain américain de roman noir.


Main uses.

Bismuth compounds account for about half the production of bismuth. They are used in cosmetics, pigments, and a few pharmaceuticals, notably bismuth subsalicylate, used to treat diarrhea. Bismuth's unusual propensity to expand as it solidifies is responsible for some of its uses, such as in casting of printing type. Bismuth has unusually low toxicity for a heavy metal. As the toxicity of lead has become more apparent in recent years, there is an increasing use of bismuth alloys (presently about a third of bismuth production) as a replacement for lead.

History.

Bismuth metal has been known since ancient times, although it was often confused with lead and tin, which share some physical properties. The etymology is uncertain, but possibly comes from the German words "weiße Masse" or "Wismuth" ("white mass"), translated in the mid-sixteenth century to New Latin "bisemutum" or "bisemutium". The name "bismuth" dates from around the 1660s, and is of uncertain etymology. It is one of the first 10 metals to have been discovered. Bismuth appears in the 1660s, from obsolete German ', ','(early 16th century); perhaps related to Old High German'("white"). The New Latin'(due to Georgius Agricola, who Latinized many German mining and technical words) is from the German ', perhaps from "", "white mass". The element was confused in early times with tin and lead because of its resemblance to those elements. Because Bismuth has been known since ancient times, no one person is credited with its discovery. Agricola, in "De Natura Fossilium" (c. 1546) states that bismuth is a distinct metal in a family of metals including tin and lead. This was based on observation of the metals and their physical properties. Miners in the age of alchemy also gave bismuth the name "," or "silver being made," in the sense of silver still in the process of being formed within the Earth.  Beginning with Johann Heinrich Pott in 1738, Carl Wilhelm Scheele and Torbern Olof Bergman, the distinctness of lead and bismuth became clear, and Claude François Geoffroy demonstrated in 1753 that this metal is distinct from lead and tin.  Bismuth was also known to the Incas and used (along with the usual copper and tin) in a special bronze alloy for knives.

Characteristics.

Physical characteristics.

Bismuth is a brittle metal with a white, silver-pink hue, often with an iridescent oxide tarnish showing many colors from yellow to blue. The spiral, stair-stepped structure of bismuth crystals is the result of a higher growth rate around the outside edges than on the inside edges. The variations in the thickness of the oxide layer that forms on the surface of the crystal cause different wavelengths of light to interfere upon reflection, thus displaying a rainbow of colors. When burned in oxygen, bismuth burns with a blue flame and its oxide forms yellow fumes. Its toxicity is much lower than that of its neighbors in the periodic table, such as lead, antimony, and polonium.  No other metal is verified to be more naturally diamagnetic than bismuth. (Superdiamagnetism is a different physical phenomenon.) Of any metal, it has one of the lowest values of thermal conductivity (after manganese, and maybe neptunium and plutonium) and the highest Hall coefficient. It has a high electrical resistivity. When deposited in sufficiently thin layers on a substrate, bismuth is a semiconductor, despite being a post-transition metal. Elemental bismuth is denser in the liquid phase than the solid, a characteristic it shares with germanium, silicon, gallium and water. Bismuth expands 3.32% on solidification; therefore, it was long a component of low-melting typesetting alloys, where it compensated for the contraction of the other alloying components to form almost isostatic bismuth-lead eutectic alloys.  Though virtually unseen in nature, high-purity bismuth can form distinctive, colorful hopper crystals. It is relatively nontoxic and has a low melting point just above 271 °C, so crystals may be grown using a household stove, although the resulting crystals will tend to be lower quality than lab-grown crystals.  At ambient conditions bismuth shares the same layered structure as the metallic forms of arsenic and antimony, crystallizing in the rhombohedral lattice (Pearson symbol hR6, space group Rm No. 166), which is often classed into trigonal or hexagonal crystal systems. When compressed at room temperature, this Bi-I structure changes first to the monoclinic Bi-II at 2.55 GPa, then to the tetragonal Bi-III at 2.7 GPa, and finally to the body-centered cubic Bi-IV at 7.7 GPa. The corresponding transitions can be monitored via changes in electrical conductivity; they are rather reproducible and abrupt, and are therefore used for calibration of high-pressure equipment.

Chemical characteristics.

Bismuth is stable to both dry and moist air at ordinary temperatures. When red-hot, it reacts with water to make bismuth(III) oxide.  It reacts with fluorine to make bismuth(V) fluoride at 500 °C or bismuth(III) fluoride at lower temperatures (typically from Bi melts); with other halogens it yields only bismuth(III) halides. The trihalides are corrosive and easily react with moisture, forming oxyhalides with the formula BiOX.  Bismuth dissolves in concentrated sulfuric acid to make bismuth(III) sulfate and sulfur dioxide.  It reacts with nitric acid to make bismuth(III) nitrate.  It also dissolves in hydrochloric acid, but only with oxygen present.  It is used as a transmetalating agent in the synthesis of alkaline-earth metal complexes:

Isotopes.

The only primordial isotope of bismuth, bismuth-209, was traditionally regarded as the heaviest stable isotope, but it had long been suspected to be unstable on theoretical grounds. This was finally demonstrated in 2003, when researchers at the Institut d'Astrophysique Spatiale in Orsay, France, measured the alpha emission half-life of to be (3 Bq/Mg), over a billion times longer than the current estimated age of the universe. Owing to its extraordinarily long half-life, for all presently known medical and industrial applications, bismuth can be treated as if it is stable and nonradioactive. The radioactivity is of academic interest because bismuth is one of a few elements whose radioactivity was suspected and theoretically predicted before being detected in the laboratory. Bismuth has the longest known alpha decay half-life, although tellurium-128 has a double beta decay half-life of over. Bismuth's extremely long half life means that less than one billionth of the bismuth present at the formation of the planet Earth would have decayed into thallium since then.  Several isotopes of bismuth with short half-lives occur within the radioactive disintegration chains of actinium, radium, and thorium, and more have been synthesized experimentally. Bismuth-213 is also found on the decay chain of neptunium-237 and uranium-233.  Commercially, the radioactive isotope bismuth-213 can be produced by bombarding radium with bremsstrahlung photons from a linear particle accelerator. In 1997, an antibody conjugate with bismuth-213, which has a 45-minute half-life and decays with the emission of an alpha particle, was used to treat patients with leukemia. This isotope has also been tried in cancer treatment, for example, in the targeted alpha therapy (TAT) program.

Chemical compounds.

Bismuth forms trivalent and pentavalent compounds, the trivalent ones being more common. Many of its chemical properties are similar to those of arsenic and antimony, although they are less toxic than derivatives of those lighter elements.

Oxides and sulfides.

At elevated temperatures, the vapors of the metal combine rapidly with oxygen, forming the yellow trioxide,. When molten, at temperatures above 710 °C, this oxide corrodes any metal oxide, and even platinum. On reaction with base, it forms two series of oxyanions:, which is polymeric and forms linear chains, and. The anion in is actually a cubic octameric anion,, whereas the anion in is tetrameric.  The dark red bismuth(V) oxide,, is unstable, liberating gas upon heating. The compound NaBiO is a strong oxidising agent.  Bismuth sulfide,, occurs naturally in bismuth ores. It is also produced by the combination of molten bismuth and sulfur. Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl, see figure at right) and bismuth oxynitrate (BiONO) stoichiometrically appear as simple anionic salts of the bismuthyl(III) cation (BiO) which commonly occurs in aqueous bismuth compounds. However, in the case of BiOCl, the salt crystal forms in a structure of alternating plates of Bi, O, and Cl atoms, with each oxygen coordinating with four bismuth atoms in the adjacent plane. This mineral compound is used as a pigment and cosmetic (see below).

Bismuthine and bismuthides.

Unlike the lighter pnictogens nitrogen, phosphorus, and arsenic, but similar to antimony, bismuth does not form a stable hydride. Bismuth hydride, bismuthine (), is an endothermic compound that spontaneously decomposes at room temperature. It is stable only below −60 °C. Bismuthides are intermetallic compounds between bismuth and other metals.  In 2014 researchers discovered that sodium bismuthide can exist as a form of matter called a “three-dimensional topological Dirac semi-metal” (3DTDS) that possess 3D Dirac fermions in bulk. It is a natural, three-dimensional counterpart to graphene with similar electron mobility and velocity. Graphene and topological insulators (such as those in 3DTDS) are both crystalline materials that are electrically insulating inside but conducting on the surface, allowing them to function as transistors and other electronic devices. While sodium bismuthide () is too unstable to be used in devices without packaging, it can demonstrate potential applications of 3DTDS systems, which offer distinct efficiency and fabrication advantages over planar graphene in semiconductor and spintronics applications.

Halides.

The halides of bismuth in low oxidation states have been shown to adopt unusual structures. What was originally thought to be bismuth(I) chloride, BiCl, turns out to be a complex compound consisting of Bi cations and BiCl and BiCl anions. The Bi cation has a distorted tricapped trigonal prismatic molecular geometry, and is also found in, which is prepared by reducing a mixture of hafnium(IV) chloride and bismuth chloride with elemental bismuth, having the structure. Other polyatomic bismuth cations are also known, such as Bi, found in. Bismuth also forms a low-valence bromide with the same structure as "BiCl". There is a "true" monoiodide, BiI, which contains chains of units. BiI decomposes upon heating to the triiodide,, and elemental bismuth. A monobromide of the same structure also exists. In oxidation state +3, bismuth forms trihalides with all of the halogens:,,, and. All of these except are hydrolyzed by water.  Bismuth(III) chloride reacts with hydrogen chloride in ether solution to produce the acid.  The oxidation state +5 is less frequently encountered. One such compound is, a powerful oxidizing and fluorinating agent. It is also a strong fluoride acceptor, reacting with xenon tetrafluoride to form the cation:

Aqueous species.

In aqueous solution, the Bi ion is solvated to form the aqua ion in strongly acidic conditions. At pH > 0 polynuclear species exist, the most important of which is believed to be the octahedral complex [].

Occurrence and production.

In the Earth's crust, bismuth is about twice as abundant as gold. The most important ores of bismuth are bismuthinite and bismite. Native bismuth is known from Australia, Bolivia, and China.  According to the United States Geological Survey, the world mining production of bismuth in 2016 was 10,200 tonnes, with the major contributions from China (7,400 tonnes), Vietnam (2,000 tonnes) and Mexico (700 tonnes). The refinery production in 2016 was 17,100 tonnes, of which China produced 11,000, Mexico 539 and Japan 428 tonnes. The difference reflects bismuth's status as a byproduct of extraction of other metals such as lead, copper, tin, molybdenum and tungsten. World bismuth production from refineries is a more complete and reliable statistic.  Bismuth travels in crude lead bullion (which can contain up to 10% bismuth) through several stages of refining, until it is removed by the Kroll-Betterton process which separates the impurities as slag, or the electrolytic Betts process. Bismuth will behave similarly with another of its major metals, copper. The raw bismuth metal from both processes contains still considerable amounts of other metals, foremost lead. By reacting the molten mixture with chlorine gas the metals are converted to their chlorides while bismuth remains unchanged. Impurities can also be removed by various other methods for example with fluxes and treatments yielding high-purity bismuth metal (over 99% Bi).

Price.

The price for pure bismuth metal has been relatively stable through most of the 20th century, except for a spike in the 1970s. Bismuth has always been produced mainly as a byproduct of lead refining, and thus the price usually reflected the cost of recovery and the balance between production and demand.  Demand for bismuth was small prior to World War II and was pharmaceutical — bismuth compounds were used to treat such conditions as digestive disorders, sexually transmitted diseases and burns. Minor amounts of bismuth metal were consumed in fusible alloys for fire sprinkler systems and fuse wire. During World War II bismuth was considered a strategic material, used for solders, fusible alloys, medications and atomic research. To stabilize the market, the producers set the price at $1.25 per pound (2.75 $/kg) during the war and at $2.25 per pound (4.96 $/kg) from 1950 until 1964.  In the early 1970s, the price rose rapidly as a result of increasing demand for bismuth as a metallurgical additive to aluminium, iron and steel. This was followed by a decline owing to increased world production, stabilized consumption, and the recessions of 1980 and 1981–1982. In 1984, the price began to climb as consumption increased worldwide, especially in the United States and Japan. In the early 1990s, research began on the evaluation of bismuth as a nontoxic replacement for lead in ceramic glazes, fishing sinkers, food-processing equipment, free-machining brasses for plumbing applications, lubricating greases, and shot for waterfowl hunting. Growth in these areas remained slow during the middle 1990s, in spite of the backing of lead replacement by the United States federal government, but intensified around 2005. This resulted in a rapid and continuing increase in price.

Recycling.

Most bismuth is produced as a byproduct of other metal-extraction processes including the smelting of lead, and also of tungsten and copper. Its sustainability is dependent on increased recycling, which is problematic.  It was once believed that bismuth could be practically recycled from the soldered joints in electronic equipment. Recent efficiencies in solder application in electronics mean there is substantially less solder deposited, and thus less to recycle. While recovering the silver from silver-bearing solder may remain economic, recovering bismuth is substantially less so.  Next in recycling feasibility would be sizeable catalysts with a fair bismuth content, such as bismuth phosphomolybdate. Bismuth used in galvanizing, and as a free-machining metallurgical additive.  Bismuth in uses where it is dispersed most widely include certain stomach medicines (bismuth subsalicylate), paints (bismuth vanadate), pearlescent cosmetics (bismuth oxychloride), and bismuth-containing bullets. Recycling bismuth from these uses is impractical.

Applications.

Bismuth has few commercial applications, and those applications that use it generally require small quantities relative to other raw materials. In the United States, for example, 733 tonnes of bismuth were consumed in 2016, of which 70% went into chemicals (including pharmaceuticals, pigments, and cosmetics) and 11% into bismuth alloys.  Some manufacturers use bismuth as a substitute in equipment for potable water systems such as valves to meet "lead-free" mandates in the U.S. (began in 2014). This is a fairly large application since it covers all residential and commercial building construction.  In the early 1990s, researchers began to evaluate bismuth as a nontoxic replacement for lead in various applications.

Medicines.

Bismuth is an ingredient in some pharmaceuticals, although the use of some of these substances is declining.

Cosmetics and pigments.

Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) is sometimes used in cosmetics, as a pigment in paint for eye shadows, hair sprays and nail polishes. This compound is found as the mineral bismoclite and in crystal form contains layers of atoms (see figure above) that refract light chromatically, resulting in an iridescent appearance similar to nacre of pearl. It was used as a cosmetic in ancient Egypt and in many places since. "Bismuth white" (also "Spanish white") can refer to either bismuth oxychloride or bismuth oxynitrate (BiONO), when used as a white pigment. Bismuth vanadate is used as a light-stable non-reactive paint pigment (particularly for artists' paints), often as a replacement for the more toxic cadmium sulfide yellow and orange-yellow pigments. The most common variety in artists' paints is a lemon yellow, visually indistinguishable from its cadmium-containing alternative.

Metal and alloys.

Bismuth is used in metal alloys with other metals such as iron. These alloys are used in automatic sprinkler systems for fires. It forms the largest part (50%) of Rose's metal, a fusible alloy, which also contains 25–28% lead and 22–25% tin. It was also used to make bismuth bronze which was used in the Bronze Age.

Lead replacement.

The density difference between lead (11.32 g/cm) and bismuth (9.78 g/cm) is small enough that for many ballistics and weighting applications, bismuth can substitute for lead. For example, it can replace lead as a dense material in fishing sinkers. It has been used as a replacement for lead in shot, bullets and less-lethal riot gun ammunition. The Netherlands, Denmark, England, Wales, the United States, and many other countries now prohibit the use of lead shot for the hunting of wetland birds, as many birds are prone to lead poisoning owing to mistaken ingestion of lead (instead of small stones and grit) to aid digestion, or even prohibit the use of lead for all hunting, such as in the Netherlands. Bismuth-tin alloy shot is one alternative that provides similar ballistic performance to lead. (Another less expensive but also more poorly performing alternative is "steel" shot, which is actually soft iron.) Bismuth's lack of malleability does, however, make it unsuitable for use in expanding hunting bullets.  Bismuth, as a dense element of high atomic weight, is used in bismuth-impregnated latex shields to shield from X-ray in medical examinations, such as CTs, mostly as it is considered non-toxic.  The European Union's Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) for reduction of lead has broadened bismuth's use in electronics as a component of low-melting point solders, as a replacement for traditional tin-lead solders. Its low toxicity will be especially important for solders to be used in food processing equipment and copper water pipes, although it can also be used in other applications including those in the automobile industry, in the European Union, for example.  Bismuth has been evaluated as a replacement for lead in free-machining brasses for plumbing applications, although it does not equal the performance of leaded steels.

Other metal uses and specialty alloys.

Many bismuth alloys have low melting points and are found in specialty applications such as solders. Many automatic sprinklers, electric fuses, and safety devices in fire detection and suppression systems contain the eutectic In19.1-Cd5.3-Pb22.6-Sn8.3-Bi44.7 alloy that melts at This is a convenient temperature since it is unlikely to be exceeded in normal living conditions. Low-melting alloys, such as Bi-Cd-Pb-Sn alloy which melts at 70 °C, are also used in automotive and aviation industries. Before deforming a thin-walled metal part, it is filled with a melt or covered with a thin layer of the alloy to reduce the chance of breaking. Then the alloy is removed by submerging the part in boiling water.  Bismuth is used to make free-machining steels and free-machining aluminium alloys for precision machining properties. It has similar effect to lead and improves the chip breaking during machining. The shrinking on solidification in lead and the expansion of bismuth compensate each other and therefore lead and bismuth are often used in similar quantities. Similarly, alloys containing comparable parts of bismuth and lead exhibit a very small change (on the order 0.01%) upon melting, solidification or aging. Such alloys are used in high-precision casting, e.g. in dentistry, to create models and molds. Bismuth is also used as an alloying agent in production of malleable irons and as a thermocouple material.  Bismuth is also used in aluminium-silicon cast alloys in order to refine silicon morphology. However, it indicated a poisoning effect on modification of strontium (Sr). Some bismuth alloys, such as Bi35-Pb37-Sn25, are combined with non-sticking materials such as mica, glass and enamels because they easily wet them allowing to make joints to other parts. Addition of bismuth to caesium enhances the quantum yield of caesium cathodes. Sintering of bismuth and manganese powders at 300 °C produces a permanent magnet and magnetostrictive material, which is used in ultrasonic generators and receivers working in the 10–100 kHz range and in magnetic memory devices.

Toxicology and ecotoxicology.

Scientific literature indicates that some of the compounds of bismuth are less toxic to humans via ingestion than other heavy metals (lead, arsenic, antimony, etc.) presumably due to the comparatively low solubility of bismuth salts. Its biological half-life for whole-body retention is reported to be 5 days but it can remain in the kidney for years in people treated with bismuth compounds.  Bismuth poisoning can occur and has according to some reports been common in relatively recent times. As with lead, bismuth poisoning can result in the formation of a black deposit on the gingiva, known as a bismuth line. Poisoning may be treated with dimercaprol; however, evidence for benefit is unclear.  Bismuth's environmental impacts are not well known; it may be less likely to bioaccumulate than some other heavy metals, and this is an area of active research.

Bioremediation.

The fungus "Marasmius oreades" can be used for the biological remediation of bismuth in polluted soils.

Bismuth is a chemical element with the symbol Bi and atomic number 83. It is a pentavalent post-transition metal and one of the pnictogens with chemical properties resembling its lighter group 15 siblings arsenic and antimony. Elemental bismuth may occur naturally, although its sulfide and oxide form important commercial ores. The free element is 86% as dense as lead. It is a brittle metal with a silvery white color when freshly produced, but surface oxidation can give it an iridescent tinge in numerous colours. Bismuth is the most naturally diamagnetic element, and has one of the lowest values of thermal conductivity among metals.

Le bismuth est l'élément chimique de numéro atomique 83, de symbole Bi. C'est le cinquième et dernier élément du groupe des pnictogènes (groupe ). Il est toxique mais moins que le plomb qu'il tend donc à remplacer pour certains usages, et ce n'est pas un oligo-élément : il n'a aucun rôle physiologique connu. Réputé très faiblement présent dans les organismes animaux, sa cinétique environnementale et dans les organismes a été peu étudiée (contrairement à celle d'autres métaux lourds proches).


Family and early life.

Claudius was born on 1 August 10 BC at Lugdunum (modern Lyon, France). He had two older siblings, Germanicus and Livilla. His mother, Antonia, may have had two other children who died young.  His maternal grandparents were Mark Antony and Octavia Minor, Augustus' sister, and he was therefore the great-great grandnephew of Gaius Julius Caesar. His paternal grandparents were Livia, Augustus' third wife, and Tiberius Claudius Nero. During his reign, Claudius revived the rumor that his father Drusus was actually the illegitimate son of Augustus, to give the appearance that Augustus was Claudius' paternal grandfather.  In 9 BC, his father Drusus unexpectedly died on campaign in Germania, possibly from illness. Claudius was then left to be raised by his mother, who never remarried. When Claudius' disability became evident, the relationship with his family turned sour. Antonia referred to him as a monster, and used him as a standard for stupidity. She seems to have passed her son off to his grandmother Livia for a number of years.  Livia was a little kinder, but nevertheless often sent him short, angry letters of reproof. He was put under the care of a "former mule-driver" to keep him disciplined, under the logic that his condition was due to laziness and a lack of will-power. However, by the time he reached his teenage years his symptoms apparently waned and his family took some notice of his scholarly interests.  In AD 7, Livy was hired to tutor him in history, with the assistance of Sulpicius Flavus. He spent a lot of his time with the latter and the philosopher Athenodorus. Augustus, according to a letter, was surprised at the clarity of Claudius' oratory. Expectations about his future began to increase.

Public life.

His work as a budding historian damaged his prospects for advancement in public life. According to Vincent Scramuzza and others, Claudius began work on a history of the Civil Wars that was either too truthful or too critical of Octavian—then reigning as Augustus Caesar. In either case, it was far too early for such an account, and may have only served to remind Augustus that Claudius was Antony's descendant. His mother and grandmother quickly put a stop to it, and

Assassination of Caligula (AD 41).

On 24 January 41, Caligula was assassinated in a broad-based conspiracy involving the Praetorian commander Cassius Chaerea and several senators. There is no evidence that Claudius had a direct hand in the assassination, although it has been argued that he knew about the plot—particularly since he left the scene of the crime shortly before his nephew was murdered. However, after the deaths of Caligula's wife and daughter, it became apparent that Cassius intended to go beyond the terms of the conspiracy and wipe out the Imperial family. In the chaos following the murder, Claudius witnessed the German guard cut down several uninvolved noblemen, including many of his friends. He fled to the palace to hide.

As Emperor.

Claudius took several steps to legitimize his rule against potential usurpers, most of them emphasizing his place within the Julio-Claudian family. He adopted the name "Caesar" as a cognomen, as the name still carried great weight with the populace. In order to do so, he dropped the cognomen "Nero" which he had adopted as "paterfamilias" of the Claudii Nerones when his brother Germanicus was adopted out. As Pharaoh of Egypt, Claudius adopted the royal titulary "Tiberios Klaudios, Autokrator Heqaheqau Meryasetptah, Kanakht Djediakhshuemakhet" ("Tiberius Claudius, Emperor and ruler of rulers, beloved of Isis and Ptah, the strong bull of the stable moon on the horizon").  While Claudius had never been formally adopted either by Augustus or his successors, he was nevertheless the grandson of Augustus' sister Octavia, and so he felt that he had the right of family. He also adopted the name "Augustus" as the two previous emperors had done at their accessions. He kept the honorific "Germanicus" to display the connection with his heroic brother. He deified his paternal grandmother Livia to highlight her position as wife of the divine Augustus. Claudius frequently used the term "filius Drusi" (son of Drusus) in his titles, in order to remind the people of his legendary father and lay claim to his reputation.  Since Claudius was the first Emperor proclaimed on the initiative of the Praetorian Guard instead of the Senate, his repute suffered at the hands of commentators (such as Seneca). Moreover, he was the first Emperor who resorted to bribery as a means to secure army loyalty and rewarded the soldiers of the Praetorian Guard that had elevated him with 15,000 sesterces. Tiberius and Augustus had both left gifts to the army and guard in their wills, and upon Caligula's death the same would have been expected, even if no will existed. Claudius remained grateful to the guard, however, issuing coins with tributes to the Praetorians in the early part of his reign.  Pliny the Elder noted, according to the 1938 Loeb Classical Library translation by Harris Rackham, "... many people do not allow any gems in a signet-ring, and seal with the gold itself; this was a fashion invented when Claudius Cæsar was emperor."  Claudius restored the status of the peaceful Imperial Roman provinces of Macedonia and Achaea as senatorial provinces.

Expansion of the Empire.

Under Claudius, the Empire underwent its first major expansion since the reign of Augustus. The provinces of Thrace, Noricum, Lycia, and Judea were annexed (or put under direct rule) under various circumstances during his term. The annexation of Mauretania, begun under Caligula, was completed after the defeat of rebel forces, and the official division of the former client kingdom into two Imperial provinces. The most far-reaching conquest was that of Britannia. In 43, Claudius sent Aulus Plautius with four legions to Britain ("Britannia") after an appeal from an ousted tribal ally. Britain was an attractive target for Rome because of its material wealth – particularly mines and slaves. It was also a haven for Gallic rebels and the like, and so could not be left alone much longer. Claudius himself traveled to the island after the completion of initial offensives, bringing with him reinforcements and elephants. The latter must have made an impression on the Britons when they were displayed in

Judicial and legislative affairs.

Claudius personally judged many of the legal cases tried during his reign. Ancient historians have many complaints about this, stating that his judgments were variable and sometimes did not follow the law. He was also easily swayed. Nevertheless, Claudius paid detailed attention to the operation of the judicial system.  He extended the summer court session, as well as the winter term, by shortening the traditional breaks. Claudius also made a law requiring plaintiffs to remain in the city while their cases were pending, as defendants had previously been required to do. These measures had the effect of clearing out the docket. The minimum age for jurors was also raised to 25 in order to ensure a more experienced jury pool.  Claudius also settled disputes in the provinces. He freed the island of Rhodes from Roman rule for their good faith and exempted Ilium (Troy) from taxes. Early in his reign, the Greeks and Jews of Alexandria sent him two embassies at once after riots broke out between the two communities. This resulted in the famous "Letter

Public works.

Claudius embarked on many public works throughout his reign, both in the capital and in the provinces. He built two aqueducts, the Aqua Claudia, begun by Caligula, and the Anio Novus. These entered the city in 52 and met at the Porta Maggiore. He also restored a third, the Aqua Virgo. He paid special attention to transportation. Throughout Italy and the provinces he built roads and canals. Among these was a large canal leading from the Rhine to the sea, as well as a road from Italy to Germany – both begun by his father, Drusus. Closer to Rome, he built a navigable canal on the Tiber, leading to Portus, his new port just north of Ostia. This port was constructed in a semicircle with two moles and a lighthouse at its mouth. The construction also had the effect of reducing flooding in Rome.  The port at Ostia was part of

Claudius and the Senate.

Because of the circumstances of his accession, Claudius took great pains to please the Senate. During regular sessions, the Emperor sat among the Senate body, speaking in turn. When introducing a law, he sat on a bench between the consuls in his position as holder of the power of Tribune (the Emperor could not officially serve as a Tribune of the Plebes as he was a Patrician, but it was a power taken by previous rulers). He refused to accept all his predecessors' titles (including Imperator) at the beginning of his reign, preferring to earn them in due course. He allowed the Senate to issue its own bronze coinage for the first time since Augustus. He also put the Imperial provinces of Macedonia and Achaea back under Senate control.  Claudius set about remodeling the Senate into a more efficient, representative body. He chided the senators about their reluctance to debate bills introduced by

Plots and coup attempts.

Several coup attempts were made during Claudius' reign, resulting in the deaths of many senators. Appius Silanus was executed early in Claudius' reign under questionable circumstances. Shortly after, a large rebellion was undertaken by the Senator Vinicianus and Scribonianus, the governor of Dalmatia, and gained quite a few senatorial supporters. It ultimately failed because of the reluctance of Scribonianus' troops, which led to the suicide of the main conspirators.  Many other senators tried different conspiracies and were condemned. Claudius' son-in-law Pompeius Magnus was executed for his part in a conspiracy with his father Crassus Frugi. Another plot involved the consulars Lusiius Saturninus, Cornelius Lupus, and Pompeius Pedo.  In 46, Asinius Gallus, the grandson of Asinius Pollio, and Titus Statilius Taurus

Secretariat and centralization of powers.

Claudius was hardly the first emperor to use freedmen to help with the day-to-day running of the Empire. He was, however, forced to increase their role as the powers of the "princeps" became more centralized and the burden larger. This was partly due to the ongoing hostility of the Senate, as mentioned above, but also due to his respect for the senators. Claudius did not want free-born magistrates to have to serve under him, as if they were not peers.  The secretariat was divided into bureaus, with each being placed under the leadership of one freedman. Narcissus was the secretary of correspondence. Pallas became the secretary of the treasury. Callistus became secretary of justice. There was a fourth bureau for miscellaneous issues, which was put under Polybius until his execution for treason. The

Religious reforms.

Claudius, as the author of a treatise on Augustus' religious reforms, felt himself in a good position to institute some of his own. He had strong opinions about the proper form for state religion. He refused the request of Alexandrian Greeks to dedicate a temple to his divinity, saying that only gods may choose new gods. He restored lost days to festivals and got rid of many extraneous celebrations added by Caligula. He re-instituted old observances and archaic language.

Public games and entertainments.

According to Suetonius, Claudius was extraordinarily fond of games. He is said to have risen with the crowd after gladiatorial matches and given unrestrained praise to the fighters. Claudius also presided over many new and original events. Soon after coming into power, Claudius instituted games to be held in honor of his father on the latter's birthday. Annual games were also held in honour of his accession, and took place at the Praetorian camp where Claudius had first been proclaimed Emperor.  Claudius organised a performance of the Secular Games, marking the 800th anniversary of the founding of Rome. Augustus had performed the same games less than a

Marriages and personal life.

Suetonius and the other ancient authors accused Claudius of being dominated by women and wives, and of being a womanizer.  Claudius married four times, after two failed betrothals. The first betrothal was to his distant cousin Aemilia Lepida, but was broken for political reasons. The second was to Livia Medullina Camilla, which ended with Medullina's sudden death on their wedding day.

Plautia Urgulanilla.

Plautia Urgulanilla was the granddaughter of Livia's confidant Urgulania. During their marriage she gave birth to a son, Claudius Drusus. Drusus died of asphyxiation in his early teens, shortly after becoming engaged to Junilla, the

Aelia Paetina.

Soon after (possibly in 28), Claudius married Aelia Paetina, a relative of Sejanus, if not Sejanus's adoptive sister. During their marriage, Claudius

Valeria Messalina.

Some years after divorcing Aelia Paetina, in 38 or early 39, Claudius married Valeria Messalina, who was his first cousin once removed and closely allied with Caligula's circle. Shortly thereafter, she gave birth to a daughter, Claudia Octavia. A son, first named Tiberius Claudius Germanicus, and later known as Britannicus, was born just after Claudius' accession.  This marriage ended in tragedy. The ancient historians allege that Messalina was a nymphomaniac who was regularly unfaithful to Claudius—Tacitus states she went so far as to compete with a prostitute to see who could have the most sexual partners in a night—and manipulated

Agrippina the Younger.

Claudius did marry once more. The ancient sources tell that his freedmen put forward three candidates, Caligula's third wife Lollia Paulina, Claudius's divorced second wife Aelia Paetina and Claudius's niece Agrippina the Younger. According to Suetonius, Agrippina won out through her feminine wiles. The truth is probably more political. The attempted coup d'état by Silius and Messalina had probably made Claudius realize the weakness of his position as a member of the Claudian but not the Julian family. This weakness was compounded by the fact that he did not yet have an obvious adult heir, Britannicus being just a boy.  Agrippina was one of the few remaining descendants of Augustus, and her son Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (the future Emperor Nero) was one of the last males of the Imperial family. Coup attempts could rally around the pair and Agrippina was already showing such ambition. It has been suggested that the Senate may have pushed

Claudius' affliction and personality.

The historian Suetonius describes the physical manifestations of Claudius' affliction in relatively good detail. His knees were weak and gave way under him and his head shook. He stammered and his speech was confused. He slobbered and his nose ran when he was excited. The Stoic Seneca states in his "Apocolocyntosis" that Claudius' voice belonged to no land animal, and that his hands were weak as well.  However, he showed no physical deformity, as Suetonius notes that when calm and seated he was a tall, well-built figure of "dignitas". When angered or stressed, his symptoms became worse. Historians agree that this condition improved upon his accession to the throne. Claudius himself claimed that he had exaggerated his ailments to save his life.  Modern assessments of his health have changed several times in the past century. Prior

Scholarly works and their impact.

Claudius wrote copiously throughout his life. Arnaldo Momigliano states that during the reign of Tiberius – which covers the peak of Claudius' literary career – it became impolitic to speak of republican Rome. The trend among the young historians was to either write about the new empire or obscure antiquarian subjects. Claudius was the rare scholar who covered both.  Besides the history of Augustus' reign that caused him so much grief, his major works included "Tyrrhenica", a twenty-book Etruscan history, and "Carchedonica", an eight-volume history of Carthage, as well as an Etruscan dictionary. He also wrote a book on dice-playing. Despite the general avoidance of the Republican era, he penned a defense of Cicero against the charges of Asinius Gallus. Modern historians have used this to determine the nature of his politics and of the aborted chapters of his civil war history. He proposed a reform of the Latin alphabet by the addition of three new letters. He officially instituted the change during his censorship but they did not survive his reign. Claudius also tried to revive the old custom of putting dots between successive words (Classical Latin was written with no spacing). Finally, he wrote an eight-volume autobiography that Suetonius describes as lacking in taste. Since

Death.

The consensus of ancient historians was that Claudius was murdered by poison—possibly contained in mushrooms or on a feather—and died in the early hours of 13 October 54.  Nearly all implicate his final wife, Agrippina, as the instigator. Agrippina and Claudius had become more combative in the months leading up to his death. This carried on to the point where Claudius openly lamented his bad wives, and began to comment on Britannicus' approaching manhood with an eye towards restoring his status within the imperial family. Agrippina had motive in ensuring the succession of Nero before Britannicus could gain power.  Some implicate either his taster Halotus, his

After death.

Divine honours.

Already, while alive, he received the widespread private worship of a living "princeps" and was worshipped in Britannia in his own temple in Camulodunum.  Claudius was deified by Nero and the Senate almost immediately. Those who regard this homage as cynical should note that, cynical or

Views of the new regime.

Agrippina had sent away Narcissus shortly before Claudius' death, and now murdered the freedman. The last act of this secretary of letters was to burn all of Claudius' correspondence—most likely so it could not be used against him and others in an already hostile new regime. Thus Claudius' private words about his own policies and motives were lost to history. Just as Claudius had criticized his predecessors in

Flavian and later perspectives.

The Flavians, who had risen to prominence under Claudius, took a different tack. They were in a position where they needed to shore up their legitimacy, but also justify the fall of the Julio-Claudians. They reached back to Claudius in contrast with Nero, to show that they were good associated with good. Commemorative coins were issued of Claudius and his son Britannicus, who had been a friend of the Emperor Titus (Titus was born in 39, Britannicus was born in 41).

Views of ancient historians.

The main ancient historians Tacitus, Suetonius, and Cassius Dio all wrote after the last of the Flavians had gone. All three were senators or "equites". They took the side of the Senate in most conflicts with the Princeps, invariably viewing him as being in the wrong. This resulted in biases, both conscious and unconscious. Suetonius lost access to the official archives shortly after beginning his work. He was forced to rely on second-hand accounts when it came to Claudius (with the exception of Augustus' letters, which had been gathered earlier). Suetonius painted Claudius as a ridiculous figure, belittling many of his acts and attributing the objectively good works to his retinue.  Tacitus wrote a narrative

In modern literature, film and radio.

In literature, Claudius and his contemporaries appear in the historical novel "The Roman" by Mika Waltari. Canadian-born science fiction writer A. E. van Vogt reimagined Robert Graves' Claudius story, in his two novels, "Empire of the Atom" and "The Wizard of Linn".  The historical novel "Chariot of the Soul" by Linda Proud features Claudius as host and mentor of the young Togidubnus, son of King Verica of the Atrebates, during his ten-year stay in Rome. When Togidubnus returns to Britain in advance of the Roman army, it is with a mission given to him by Claudius.

Claudius ( ; Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was Roman emperor from AD 41 to 54. Born to Drusus and Antonia Minor at Lugdunum in Roman Gaul, where his father was stationed as a military legate, he was the first Roman emperor to be born outside Italy. Nonetheless, Claudius was an Italic of Sabine origins and a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Because he was afflicted with a limp and slight deafness due to sickness at a young age, his family ostracized him and excluded him from public office until his consulship, shared with his nephew Caligula in 37.

Claude, né le 10 av. J.-C. à Lugdunum (Lyon) et mort le à Rome, est le quatrième empereur romain, régnant de 41 à 54


History.

Traces of a Roman road and coins finds indicate an early settlement in the municipality. Epesses is first mentioned in 1453 as "Espesses". The name comes from the Latin word spissa (meaning dense, thick) probably in reference to the spruce.  With the conquest by Bern of Vaud in 1536, the village came under the administration of the Bailiwick of Lausanne. After the collapse of the ancien régime, between 1798 and 1803 it was part of the Canton of Léman during the Helvetic Republic and then fell under the Canton of Vaud. In 1798 it was assigned to the district of Lavaux.  It was not until 1824, when the community was split from Villette, that Epesses attained the status of an independent political municipality. A project to merge the independent municipalities Cully, Epesses, Riex, Grandvaux, and Villette failed in a vote on 27 February 2005 due to the resistance of the population of Grandvaux. The project is therefore not being pursued.

Geography.

Epesses is located at above sea level, east-southeast of the capital of the canton of Lausanne (as the crow flies). The village is located on a small flat surfaces on steep slopes amid the vineyards of Lavaux on the slopes of Mont de Gourze in a scenic location about above the lake level of Lake Geneva.  Epesses has an area,, of. Of this area, or 62.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 29.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 8.2% is settled (buildings or roads), or 1.3% is either rivers or lakes and or 0.6% is unproductive land.  Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 1.3% and transportation infrastructure made up 6.9%. Out of the forested land, all of the forested land area is covered with heavy forests. Of the agricultural land, 3.8% is used for growing crops and 23.9% is pastures, while 35.2% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is in lakes.  The municipality was part of the Lavaux District until it was dissolved on 31 August 2006, and Epesses became part of the new district of Lavaux-Oron.  The area is small and covers a section of the Lavaux at the northeastern shore of Lake Geneva for. The municipal land extends northward from the shore of Geneva up the steep slope and down to the wooded heights to the east of Mont de Gourze. The slope is drained by the Enfer River into Lake Geneva. The highest point, Bois de Romont is above sea level.  Epesses consists of the village, the two hamlets Crêt-Dessus ( above sea level) and Crêt-Lingerie ( above sea level), located respectively on the Enfer, and a few detached farms. Epesses borders the municipalities of Cully, Riex, Forel and Puidoux.

Coat of arms.

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is "Per bend Argent and Gules, overall three Pine-trees Vert."

Demographics.

Epesses has a population () of 332., 17.3% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999–2009 ) the population has changed at a rate of 3.1%. It has changed at a rate of -5.9% due to migration and at a rate of 9% due to births and deaths.  Most of the population () speaks French (273 or 88.6%), with German being second most common (10 or 3.2%) and Portuguese being third (10 or 3.2%). There are 5 people who speak Italian.  Of the population in the municipality 117 or about 38.0% were born in Epesses and lived there in 2000. There were 99 or 32.1% who were born in the same canton, while 31 or 10.1% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 55 or 17.9% were born outside of Switzerland.  In there were 5 live births to Swiss citizens and 1 death of a Swiss citizen. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 4 while the foreign population remained the same. At the same time, there were 7 non-Swiss men and 11 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was an increase of 3 and the non-Swiss population increased by 18 people. This represents a population growth rate of 6.7%.  The age distribution,, in Epesses is; 35 children or 10.6% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 39 teenagers or 11.8% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 36 people or 10.9% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 57 people or 17.2% are between 30 and 39, 55 people or 16.6% are between 40 and 49, and 39 people or 11.8% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 25 people or 7.6% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 30 people or 9.1% are between 70 and 79, there are 11 people or 3.3% who are between 80 and 89, and there are 4 people or 1.2% who are 90 and older. , there were 137 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 137 married individuals, 18 widows or widowers and 16 individuals who are divorced. , there were 131 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.3 persons per household. There were 47 households that consist of only one person and 6 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 134 households that answered this question, 35.1% were households made up of just one person and there were 2 adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 32 married couples without children, 41 married couples with children There were 8 single parents with a child or children. There was 1 household that was made up of unrelated people and 3 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing.  The historical population is given in the following chart:

Economy.

Most of the houses in the village center are occupied by tenants who cultivate the 52 hectares of vineyards in this municipality. The cultivation of grapes and wine production now forms the main livelihood. It produces dry white wines, mainly from the Chasselas grape variety, but also reds (Pinot Noir, Syrah, etc.) and specialties. Notable vineyards exist at "Calamine" which is south of the village center by Lake Geneva and "Le Dézaley" in the east, already partly located in the communities of Puidoux and Rivaz. , Epesses had an unemployment rate of 2.4%., there were 84 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 20 businesses involved in this sector. 24 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 4 businesses in this sector. 64 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 8 businesses in this sector. There were 168 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 40.5% of the workforce. , there were 42 workers who commuted into the municipality and 94 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 2.2 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 11.3% used public transportation to get to work, and 50% used a private car.

Politics.

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the FDP which received 33.68% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the Green Party (14.93%), the SVP (12.68%) and the LPS Party (12.29%). In the federal election, a total of 118 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 52.9%.

Transport.

Although the municipality is located outside of the more urban areas of the district, it still has well-developed transport links with a link road from Cully to Chexbres. The nearest motorway junction is the A9 road which was opened in 1974 to connect Lausanne with Sion and crosses Chexbres, about 3 km from Epesses.  On 2 April 1861, a railway station was established on the Lausanne-Villeneuve. There is also a daily bus service which serves the route from Cully to Chexbres.

Sights.

Epesses contains part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site: Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces.  The entire village of Epesses is designated as part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites  Epesses villages has some densely packed wine growers houses, mostly dating from the 17th to 19th century, offering a picturesque townscape. The Saint-Jacques Church in Epesses is dated from the 14th to the 16th century and has been restored several times since then. The Bovard century, dated to the 15th century is a listed building.

Twin Town.

Epesses is twinned with the town of Berthoud, Switzerland.

Religion.

From the, 71 or 23.1% were Roman Catholic, while 163 or 52.9% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 9 members of an Orthodox church (or about 2.92% of the population), and there was 1 individual who belongs to another Christian church. There was 1 person who was Buddhist and 1 individual who belonged to another church. 44 (or about 14.29% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 18 individuals (or about 5.84% of the population) did not answer the question.

Education.

In Epesses about 94 or (30.5%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 53 or (17.2%) have completed additional higher education (either University or a "Fachhochschule"). Of the 53 who completed tertiary schooling, 58.5% were Swiss men, 20.8% were Swiss women and 13.2% were non-Swiss women.  In the 2009/2010 school year there were a total of 39 students in the Epesses school district. In the Vaud cantonal school system, two years of non-obligatory pre-school are provided by the political districts. During the school year, the political district provided pre-school care for a total of 665 children of which 232 children (34.9%) received subsidized pre-school care. The canton's primary school program requires students to attend for four years. There were 21 students in the municipal primary school program. The obligatory lower secondary school program lasts for six years and there were 18 students in those schools. , there were 20 students in Epesses who came from another municipality, while 48 residents attended schools outside the municipality.

Epesses is a former municipality in the Swiss canton of Vaud, located in the district of Lavaux-Oron on Lake Geneva. It is noted for its wine production.

Épesses est une localité de la commune de Bourg-en-Lavaux et une ancienne commune suisse du canton de Vaud, située dans le district de Lavaux-Oron.


History.

Although Sargon of Akkad is often referred to as the "founder" of Akkad, the city itself probably existed before his rule; a pre-Sargonic inscription refers to it by name and the name "Akkad" itself is not actually of the Akkadian language of Sargon and his successors. Sargon's reign does however mark the transition of Akkad from a city-state into the first known great empire, with the Akkadian king ruling all Mesopotamia. His rise to power began with the defeat of the Sumerian king Lugal-zage-si, who had ruled Lower Mesopotamia from Uruk, and the conquest of his empire. Through military campaigns, Sargon subjugated regions as far west as the Mediterranean and as far north as Assyria, which he boasted of in his inscriptions.  Sargon's successors consolidated his vast realm and continued expanding the borders of the Akkadian Empire. Sargon's grandson and the fourth king of Akkad, Naram-Sin, brought the empire to its greatest extent and assumed a new title to illustrate his great power, "King of the Four Quarters", which referenced the entire world. He was also the first king in Mesopotamia to be deified in his lifetime, being addressed as "the god of Akkad".  Although at least seven kings would rule Akkad after him, the Akkadian Empire quickly collapsed after Naram-Sin's reign and prominent central authority under a singly king would not be restored in Mesopotamia until the rise of the Neo-Sumerian Empire. It's likely that the region reverted to local governance under kings of city-states in the time between the two empires. A major cause of this collapse was the invasion of Mesopotamia by a people referred to as the Gutians, who would be defeated and driven away by the founder of the Neo-Sumerian Empire, Ur-Nammu.

Kings of Akkad.

Final kings of Akkad (c. 2189 – 2154 BC).

The final kings to rule Akkad, Dudu and Shu-turul are assumed to have been related to the original ruling dynasty and as such are often regarded as members of the Sargonic dynasty.

King of Sumer and Akkad.

Although Akkad and what remained of its empire was destroyed, its power and prominence led to rulers of later Mesopotamian empires wishing to claim its prestige and legacy for themselves. Ur-Nammu, who founded the Neo-Sumerian Empire in the aftermath of the Gutian rule of Mesopotamia assumed the title "King of Sumer and Akkad". Although the title was meant to justify his rule over both southern (Sumer) and northern (Akkad) Mesopotamia, it also clearly connected Ur-Nammu to the old Akkadian kings, who may have been against linking Sumer and Akkad in such a fashion even though they had ruled both regions.  Ur-Nammu's title would endure for more than 1,500 years. It was assumed by Hammurabi, founder of the Old Babylonian Empire, and used by Babylonian kings up until the 8th century BC. It was also prominently used in the Middle and Neo-Assyrian Empires and in the Neo-Babylonian Empire. For Assyrian kings, "King of Sumer and Akkad" was used as a marker of their control of Babylon (which was in the South, e.g. Sumer) and only those Assyrian kings who actually controlled Babylon used the title in their inscriptions.  The final king to assume the title of "King of Sumer and Akkad" was Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid Empire, who reigned from 559 to 530 BC. In the Cyrus Cylinder, written in Akkadian cuneiform script following Cyrus's conquest of Babylon, he assumed several traditional Mesopotamian royal titles, most of which were not used by his successors.

The King of Akkad (Akkadian: "šar māt Akkadi", lit. "King of the land of Akkad") was the ruler of the city of Akkad, and its empire, in ancient Mesopotamia. In the 3rd millennium BC, from the reign of Sargon of Akkad to the reign of his great-grandson Shar-Kali-Sharri, the Akkadian Empire represented the dominant power in Mesopotamia and the first known great empire.

Voici la liste des rois de l'empire d'Akkad, un empire important de la Mésopotamie antique, au. La zone de l'ancien empire est située dans la région couvrant l'Irak, l'est de la Turquie et le nord de la Syrie.