Location.

The delta reaches into the northeasternmost part of the Sea of Azov, which the Ancient Greeks called Lake Maeotis. The site of ancient Tanais is about 30 km west of modern Rostov-on-Don. The central city site lies on a plateau with a difference up to 20 m in elevation in the south. It is bordered by a natural valley to the east, and an artificial ditch to the west.

History.

The site of Tanais was occupied long before the Milesians founded an emporium there. A necropolis of over 300 burial kurgans near the ancient city shows that the site had already been occupied since the Bronze Age, and that kurgan burials continued through Greek and into even Roman times. Greek traders seem to have been meeting nomads in the district as early as the 7th century BC without a formal, permanent settlement. Greek colonies had two kinds of origins, "apoikiai" of citizens from the mother city-state, and "emporia", which were strictly trading stations. Founded late in the 3rd century BC, by merchant adventurers from Miletus, Tanais quickly developed into an "emporium" at the farthest northeastern extension of the Hellenic cultural sphere. It was a natural post, first for the trade of the steppes reaching away eastwards in an unbroken grass sea to the Altai, the Scythian Holy Land, second for the trade of the Black Sea, ringed with Greek-dominated ports and entrepots, and third for trade from the impenetrable north, with furs and slaves brought down the Don. Strabo mentions Tanais in his "Geography" (11.2.2).  The site for the city, ruled by an archon, was at the eastern edge of the territory of the kings of Bosporus. A major shift in social emphasis is represented in the archaeological site when the propylea gate that linked the port section with the agora was removed, and the open center of public life was occupied by a palatial dwelling in Roman times for the kings of Bosporus. For the first time there were client kings at Tanais: Sauromates (AD 175-211) and his son Rescuporides (c. AD 220), who both left public inscriptions.  In AD 330 Tanais was devastated by the Goths, but the site was occupied continuously up to the second half of the 5th century AD. Increasingly, the channel silted up, probably the result of deforestation, and the center of active life shifted, perhaps to the small city of Azov, halfway to Rostov.  The city was refounded around the 13th century by the Venetians. Later it was acquired by the maritime Republic of Genoa, who administered it 1332-1471 as Tana nel Mare Maggiore, being an important place for trade with the Golden Horde, like all their Black Sea colonies controlled by the Genoese Consul at Kaffa. It decayed again after 1368. In 1392 it was conquered by Timur, by the Ottoman Turks in 1471, by the Russians in 1696, again by the Turks in 1711 and by the Russian Empire in 1771.

Ecclesiastical History.

Circa 1300, under Venetian rule, was established a Diocese of Tana as territory not previously served, maintained under Genua. Most bishops were members of two major and missionary orders. It was exempt, i.e. directly subject to the Holy See, not part of any ecclesiastical province.  In 1471, under Ottoman Muslim control, the bishopric was suppressed.

Titular see.

In 1925 the diocese was nominally restored as Latin titular bishopric of Tana, which from 1929 was called Tanais (exclusively from 1942).  It is vacant, having had the following near-consecutive incumbents, all of the fitting episcopal (lowest) rank :

Archaeology.

In 1823, I. A. Stempkovsky first made a connection between the visible archaeological remains, which were mostly Roman in date, and the "Tanais" mentioned in the ancient Greek sources.  Systematic modern excavations began in 1955. A joint Russian-German team has recently been excavating at the site of Tanais, with the aim of revealing the heart of the city, the agora, and defining the extent of Hellenistic influence on the urbanism of the Bosporan Greek city, as well as studying defensive responses to the surrounding nomadic cultures.  In the book "Jakten på Odin", author Thor Heyerdahl advanced a highly controversial idea postulating connections between Tanais and ancient Scandinavia. In preparation of the book, he conducted some archaeological research on the site of Tanais. Heyerdal`s idea was based on the old Norse sagas of Snorri Sturlason. (1178 - 1241)  Tanais Tablets are the most important historical discoveries in region of Tanais.

Genetics.

9 Y-chromosome markers were obtained from a skeleton. The result was 389I=13, 389II=30, 458=15, 385=11, 393=13, 391=11, 635=23, 437=14, 448=19. This result is characteristic for haplogroup R1a.

Tanais ( "Tánaïs"; ) was an ancient Greek city in the Don river delta, called the Maeotian marshes in classical antiquity. It was a bishopric as Tana and remains a Latin Catholic titular see as Tanais.

Tanais () war eine antike griechische Stadt an der Mündung des gleichnamigen Flusses (heute der Don) an der Küste des Pontos Euxeinos (Schwarzes Meer). Die Reste liegen etwa 30 km westlich von Rostow am Don und etwa 20 km nördlich von Asow.


Private life.

Gülşen Aktaş was born in Tunceli, Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey in 1957. Her father died at an early age. Her mother moved without the children to Germany to work as a Gastarbeiter. She worked for years in a factory to provide for her four daughters in Turkey. Gülşen Aktaş grew up with relatives and homes in Turkey. She graduated from high school in Şanlıurfa, and became a primary school teacher in Diyarbakır Province.  At the age of 21, Gülşen Aktaş followed her mother to Germany. First in Frankfurt am Main and later in Berlin, she completed a degree in political science.

Career.

After graduating, she worked in one of the first women's shelters in Berlin, and worked in various immigrant and women's projects. In 2004, she supervised and advised pupils and parents of various origins at the Neumark primary school in Schöneberg, where she lives. She founded a women's network for Armenian, Turkish, Kurdish, Bosnian and Arab women, mothers and girls.  Since 2007, she has been managing the "Huzur", Turkish for peace, tranquility, for senior citizens, which is frequented by first-generation migrants. self-help potential is promoted in this institution, which realizes intercultural dialogue between different ethnic groups of all ages. Additionally, in the facility, integration through education and leisure activities are organized. Other offerings are literacy class, the choir, new project ideas, such as retreat Nordic walking in the Tiergarten or senior Karaoke. Excursions on the subject of "History of Germany" find great popularity.

Awards.

For her extraordinary projects related to migrants of diverse ethnic groups, she was awarded the 2009 "Kosmopolita" Prize.  On 30 September 2011, the Governing Mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit awarded her the "Order of Merit of Berlin" ().

Gülşen Aktaş (born 1957) is a Turkish educator and social worker. Living in Schöneberg, Berlin, she serves for the needs of migrant women in Germany. She was awarded with "Kosmopolita" in 2009 and "Order of Merit of Berlin" in 2011.

Gülşen Aktaş (* 1957 in Ostanatolien) ist eine türkische Lehrerin und Politologin, die sich in Deutschland für die Belange von Migrantinnen einsetzt.


College career.

Jacoby started off as an offensive tackle for the University of Louisville from 1978 to 1980.

Professional career.

After college, Jacoby went undrafted. He signed a free agent contract with the Washington Redskins in 1981, where he embarked on an enviable career—four Super Bowl appearances, of which his team won three (XVII in 1983, XXII in 1988, and XXVI in 1992), plus four consecutive Pro Bowl selections from 1983 to 1986.  Along with Jeff Bostic, Mark May, George Starke and Russ Grimm, Jacoby was a founding member of the Redskins' renowned "Hogs" offensive line of the 1980s and early 1990s (deemed one of the best front fives of NFL history), which was a mainstay of the Redskins' glory years during the first Joe Gibbs era.  Jacoby was the lead blocker on John Riggins' famous touchdown run which ensured the Redskins' Super Bowl XVII win over the Dolphins in 1983. In that game, the Redskins set a Super Bowl record for most rushing yards with 276. The Hogs helped the Redskins break that record five years later in Super Bowl XXII, in which Washington trampled over the Denver Broncos with 280 rushing yards en route to the second of the Redskins' three championships.

Personal.

One year after the Redskins' third Super Bowl victory in 1992, Jacoby retired, after which he became the owner of an auto dealership in Warrenton, Virginia.  Jacoby became an assistant football coach at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia. He began as a part-time volunteer in 2008 and was hired as a full-time employee in 2009. In 2014, Jacoby was hired as the offensive line coach for Concordia University Chicago.  Jacoby has a wife, Irene, and two daughters.

Joseph Erwin Jacoby (born July 6, 1959) is a former American football offensive lineman for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL), where he won three Super Bowls during his tenure with the team. Many Redskins' fans and analysts consider Jacoby the greatest Redskins player not currently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Joseph Erwin „Joe“ Jacoby (* 6. Juli 1959 in Louisville, Kentucky) ist ein ehemaliger US-amerikanischer American-Football-Spieler. Er spielte als Offensive Tackle in der National Football League (NFL) bei den Washington Redskins.


History.

2009.

In 2009, Buffalo Flash made its debut in the Great Lakes (formerly Northern) Division of the Central Conference, lining up against teams from Hamilton, Laval, London, Ottawa, Quebec City, Rochester and Toronto. It finished second, with a regular season record of 9–2–3 from their 14 matches, undefeated in their seven games on the road, and with 40 goals scored, and 10 conceded. In the post-season playoffs, the Flash reached the Central Conference semi-final, to end their inaugural season with a 10–3–3 record. They were beaten 3–0 by FC Indiana, the only other full-time professional outfit in the league.  The 2009 team roster included players from six countries across four continents. There were four local players from Western NY, various US players from numerous states (including two with USA U-20 National Team experience), players from the full Italian National Team, Portuguese National Team, South African National Team, and also from Spain and Japan. To aid team bonding, the squad were housed in the same apartment complex.

2010.

Before the 2010 season Buffalo Flash signed English trio Gemma Davison, Eartha Pond and Ann-Marie Heatherson. Mele French and Kelly Parker arrived from German club SC Freiburg. Kimberly Brandão returned despite attending a training camp with Sky Blue FC, but Erika Sutton left for the Boston Breakers and Sarah Wagenfuhr joined St. Louis Athletica.  In 2010 Buffalo Flash competed in the Midwest Division of the USL W-League, finishing the regular season 14–0–2 against Chicago Red Eleven, Cleveland Internationals, Kalamazoo Outrage and London Gryphons. Buffalo Flash won the W-League Championship by defeating the Vancouver Whitecaps 3–1 at Harry Welch Stadium in Santa Clarita, California. They finished the season undefeated, while Kelly Parker was named W-League MVP.

2011.

The team made plans to move to Women's Professional Soccer for the 2011 season. In September 2010, team president Alex Sahlen and coach Aaran Lines—both of whom have played for Rochester-based soccer teams—indicated that the team was looking at playing up to half of its WPS home games at Rochester's Marina Auto Stadium (now Rhinos Stadium). On September 24, WPS officially confirmed that the new team would indeed join the league. The name of the WPS team was announced as the Western New York Flash on December 1, 2010. The September announcement confirmed that the team would play half its home games at Marina Auto Stadium. The remaining games were originally intended to be played at Niagara Field, a smaller facility on the campus of Niagara University in Lewiston that was set to be expanded to 4,000 for the 2011 WPS season. The league also attempted to negotiate a deal with All-High Stadium in Buffalo, although the owners of the field, Buffalo Public Schools, never responded. However, the December announcement indicated that the entire 2011 home schedule would be in Rochester.  The Flash selected Alex Morgan with the first pick in the 2011 WPS Draft.  On January 25, 2011, the Flash signed 2009 and 2010 WPS MVP and WPS Golden Boot Marta.  With a 13–2–3 regular season record, the Flash earned the regular season title and the right to host the WPS Championship presented by Citi. On August 27, 2011, Western New York Flash capped their inaugural season in WPS by capturing the 2011 WPS Championship title 1–1 (5–4) in a penalty kick shootout in front of the largest championship crowd in league history.

2012.

When it was announced that WPS had suspended its 2012 season, the Flash announced their plans to continue playing and shortly thereafter joined the new Women's Premier Soccer League Elite. During the 2012 playoffs, the Flash won the championship in penalty kicks.

2013.

The Flash joined the newly formed National Women's Soccer League for its inaugural 2013 season. The team won the first-ever NWSL Shield after finishing in first during the regular season though they ended the season tied for first place with both FC Kansas City and Portland Thorns FC, but won the tiebreak over both teams to claim the shield. With the number one seed, the Flash earned home field advantage through the playoffs, and drew No. 4 Sky Blue FC for its semifinal match.  The team shutout Sky Blue 2–0 in the opening game, earning the right to host the Thorns in the 2013 NWSL Championship at Sahlen's Stadium in Rochester. The Flash ultimately finished second, losing to Portland in the championship game to the score of 2–0, denying the Flash a bid for a record-breaking fourth-straight title in a fourth different league.

2014.

The Flash had one of their first down years during the 2014 season, unable to reach the heights of the previous season. They missed the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, placing seventh out of nine teams in NWSL.

2015.

The Flash once again had a disappointing season, once again missing the playoffs with a seventh-place finish out of nine teams. The low finishes for the team in the past two seasons caused for quite a few cases of transition, most notably with long time head coach Aaran Lines who was eventually replaced by Paul Riley.

2016.

The Flash had quite a bit of roster turnover as well as a new coach so expectations were low for the season, but the Flash ended up making the playoffs for the first time since the inaugural NWSL season. The semi-finals saw the Flash upset the top seed Portland Thorns FC away from home after scoring two goals during extra-time, thus partially avenging their NWSL Cup loss to the Thorns in 2013. The NWSL Championship saw the Flash face the Washington Spirit in Houston. The Flash eventually came out on top, winning their first ever NWSL Championship. This ended up being the final season for the WNY Flash in NWSL, with the franchise rights being sold to the owners of North Carolina FC, moved to Cary, North Carolina, and rebranded as the North Carolina Courage.

2017.

On March 7, 2017, the Flash announced that they would join the United Women's Soccer for their upcoming season, with the team playing matches in Buffalo for the first time since 2010. This is the fifth league overall that the Flash have played in during their nine years of existence. Gary Bruce, an assistant under Paul Riley, was named the new head coach.

Stadiums.

In 2009 the team played their home games at Orchard Park High School Field, in Orchard Park, New York, 15 miles south-east of downtown Buffalo, New York, and trained daily at the nearby Sahlen's Sports Park in Elma, New York. In 2010 the team played home games at the Demske Sports Complex at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York.  In February 2011, the Sahlen family obtained the naming rights to Marina Auto Stadium in Rochester, which was called Sahlen's Stadium from 2011 through 2015. After that time, the team played their home games in Rochester.  The stadium has a seating capacity of 13,768. The stadium's highest attendance record was set on July 20, 2011 at 15,404 during a match between the Flash and magicJack (led by player-coach and Rochester native, Abby Wambach) after the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup. The game was also the largest single-game crowd in WPS history.  The UWS Flash play most of their home matches at Niagara University, with one match in 2017 played at All-High Stadium.

Colors and badge.

The Flash's home colors were white and away colors are red. The Flash logo was designed to reflect that of Sahlen's, the team's parent company.

Players.

Notable former players.

Former members of the team who have represented their respective senior national teams are:

Coaching staff.

From 2009 to 2015, Aaran Lines led the team as head coach winning three consecutive league championships and the inaugural NWSL Shield. After he resigned in 2015, Paul Riley led the team to its first NWSL Championship in 2016, with Scott Vallow as an assistant and interim head coach during Riley's suspensions. Charlie Naimo served as Technical Director from 2014–2016.  Gary Bruce serves as head coach of the Flash's United Women's Soccer team.

The Western New York Flash (WNY Flash) was an American soccer club based in Elma, New York that competed in the United Women's Soccer league. They have won league championships in four different leagues: the USL W-League in 2010, Women's Professional Soccer in 2011, Women's Premier Soccer League Elite in 2012, and the National Women's Soccer League in 2016.

Western New York Flash ist ein Frauenfußballverein aus Elma, New York. Es wurde 2008 gegründet und spielte 2011 in der WPS und von 2013 bis 2016 in der National Women’s Soccer League, der jeweils höchsten Liga im Frauenfußball in den USA. Der Hauptsitz des Vereins ist Elma, eine Vorstadt von Buffalo. Die Heimspiele wurden im circa 100 km entfernten Rochester Rhinos Stadium in Rochester, New York ausgetragen. Nach der Saison 2016 wurde die NWSL-Lizenz verkauft und ab dem Jahr 2017 spielt der Verein nicht mehr in den oberen US-Ligen.


First bridge proposals.

In 1835 the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (N&CR) Act authorised the line to approach Newcastle to a terminus at Redheugh, on the south bank of the River Tyne, close to the end of the present-day New Redheugh Bridge. The Act also authorised a crossing of the Tyne there, giving rail access to the north shore quays. The river was shallow at this point, and the bridge would have been at a low level, only above high water. The line would then have climbed to a terminus at the Spital, near Neville Street and the east end of the present-day Newcastle Central station. The climb was to be at a gradient of 1 in 22 and would have been operated by a stationary steam engine with rope haulage.  Hitherto railways in the region had had a local focus, but now the Great North of England Railway (GNER) obtained authorising Acts to build from Newcastle to York, forming part of a continuous trunk railway network to connect to London; the project was controlled by George Hudson, the so-called "Railway King". At first the GNER was content to get access to the N&CR Newcastle terminus, by connecting with the N&CR at Redheugh and running over its line across the Tyne and up to the Spital. This had the advantage of avoiding a separate, and expensive, crossing of the river, but would have meant a steep descent to Redheugh as the GNER line approached on high ground from the Team Valley, only to climb once again to the Spital. Moreover, William Brandling had made known his intention to reach Newcastle from his line by running at a high level through Gateshead. On 25 April 1837 the N&CR decided to build to their south side, low-level terminus at Redheugh, but to leave the issue of the Tyne crossing open.  Richard Grainger was a developer in Newcastle, and had acquired lands at Elswick (on the north bank of the Tyne west of the proposed Redheugh crossing). Now in 1836, he published a pamphlet recommending a crossing of the Tyne there, and the formation of spacious railway terminal accommodation there. Drawing attention to the limited scope for extending eastwards from the Spital, and "in the event of an Edinburgh Railway also terminating in this situation, the interchange of passengers, goods, and cattle would be greatly increased".  Grainger's plan was not adopted, and the Brandling Junction Railway reached Gateshead in 1839. The GNER ran out of money and it was superseded in Hudson's railway empire by the Newcastle and Darlington Junction Railway, which opened its line using the Brandling Junction Railway from the south east instead of through the Team Valley. The Brandling Junction line had a terminus in Gateshead at Greenesfield at a high level, and the N&CR line was built climbing on an inclined plane at a gradient of 1 in 23 from Redheugh to reach that. The Newcastle and Darlington Junction Railway opened its line from the south to Pelaw, allowing its trains to reach Gateshead over the Brandling Junction line, in 1844. The tables had been turned, and indeed for a while Greenesfield was the de facto main station for the conurbation of Newcastle and Gateshead.  John and Benjamin Green were a father and son architectural practice active in Newcastle. In 1841 Benjamin Green had proposed a high level bridge for road traffic, substantially on the alignment of the actual High Level Bridge; and sensing the commercial climate he explained how it could be adapted for railway use. He failed to get any financial support, but in 1843 George Hudson was looking for ways to extend his railway network northwards, and the Greens' scheme fitted with his takeover of the Newcastle and Darlington Junction Railway; the line got its authorising Act on 22 May 1844, and the Act included the road bridge.

Definite plans.

The Newcastle and North Shields Railway had opened in 1839 from its own terminus at Carliol Square, on the north-east edge of Newcastle. As a purely local concern, the disconnection was not important, but interest gathered in a railway to central Scotland; the "Edinburgh Railway" foreseen by Grainger. A Scottish concern, the North British Railway, had got its Act of Parliament the previous year to build as far south as Berwick (later known as Berwick-upon-Tweed.  Now Hudson was intent on capturing the line to Edinburgh for his empire, and he encouraged the development of railway plans to get there; the route such a line might take continued to generate considerable controversy. There was still ambiguity about Hudson's intentions for the bridge—an easier crossing point at Bill Quay, two miles downstream had been considered—and Newcastle Town Council sought undertakings from him. In addition, he promised a footway crossing; this was apparently not a sweetener to the Town Council, but a commercial decision, expected to bring in £250 a week. The footway crossing was later extended to include horse-drawn vehicles.  Finally, the Newcastle and Berwick Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament of 31 July 1845. The line would cross the Greens' high level bridge, starting from the Gateshead Greenesfield station, and commitments made to the building of a bridge by the Newcastle and Darlington Junction Railway were transferred to the Newcastle and Berwick Railway.

Design.

The bridge was to be designed by Robert Stephenson; T E Harrison did the detailed design work.  The height of the railway, at about above high water, was determined by the level of the Brandling Junction line in Gateshead. A double-deck configuration was selected because of road levels on the approaches, and to avoid the excess width of foundations which a side-by-side arrangement would require. The deck width was determined by the useful roadway width plus the width of structural members, which gave the railway deck the width for three tracks.  The foundations were to be difficult because of the poor ground conditions in the river, and this ruled out an all-masonry structure, so cast iron or wrought iron was inevitable for the superstructure. A tied arch (or bow-string) design was favoured because the outward thrust imposed by an arch is contained by the tie; no abutments capable of resisting the thrust could be provided here.  Stephenson had used this configuration before; he recorded that, "The earliest railway bridge on the bowstring principle is that over the Regent's Canal, near Chalk Farm, on the London and Birmingham Railway".  The arch would consist of iron ribs. Fawcett says, "The reasons for not using wrought iron was due to some engineers' distrust of rivetting, the relatively small size of wrought iron plates then available, and the higher cost... On 1 October 1845 when the Newcastle and Berwick Board instructed T E Harrison for their bridges, none of the uses of wrought iron had been developed far enough to be considered as an alternative to cast iron for the High Level Bridge. A tubular bridge might have been considered by Robert Stephenson but the distance between solid and reasonably shallow foundations would have given a span much larger than the Britannia Bridge."  The depth of rock in the riverbed resulted in a height of from there to the superstructure. Three river piers were permitted by the Tyne Improvement Commissioners, and therefore four river spans of were decided on; there were additional subsidiary spans on the shore.  The cast iron arch ribs are deep at the crown, increasing to at the springing, with flanges; the flanges and webs were three inches thick; in the case of the inner ribs, and two inches for the outer ribs. The rise was, determined by the desired geometry to confine the horizontal thrust within bounds. Each arch was cast in five sections, bolted together.  Stephenson described the tie bars:  The ties consist of flat wrought-iron bars, 7 inches by 1 inch of best scrap iron, with eyes of 31⁄2 inches diameter, bored out of the solid, and pins turned and fitted closely. Each external rib is tied by four of these bars, and each internal rib by eight. The sectional area of each external tie is 28 [square] inches, and of each internal tie 56 [square] inches, giving a total area of 168 square inches. These bars were all tested to 9 tons on the square inch.  The rail deck is supported above the arches by twelve 14 inch square columns at 9 ft 11in centres. Suspension rods supported the road deck, and both decks had two layers of diagonally laid three-inch deck timbers on suitable wrought iron cross girders (and rail-bearers in the case of the rail deck).  The main contractors for the ironwork were Hawks, Crawshay, and Sons, who were assisted by John Abbot and Co., of Gateshead Park Works, and Losh Wilson and Bell, of Walker Ironworks, in the production of the castings. The tender was accepted at £112,000. The contract for the bridge piers and land arches and for the Newcastle Viaduct were won by John Rush and Benjamin Lawton of York for £94,00 and £82,500 respectively. The total cost of the contracts at 1999 prices would be over £30 million.

Construction.

The first masonry was laid on 12 January 1847. A temporary timber viaduct on the east side was ready on 20 August 1848.  Timber coffer dams were constructed; they were by with two skins, the space between being filled with puddle clay. James Nasmyth had a novel design of steam pile driver; it had first been used in Devonport Docks in 1845; it could deliver 60 to 70 blows a minute; the cycle time with the hand-operated pile drivers formerly in use was four minutes. The drop weight was 11⁄2 tons and its stroke was ; one was purchased from Nasmyth.  The ground gave considerable trouble during construction; Stephenson recorded:  Many difficulties occurred in driving the piles which considerably retarded the progress of the work, and, among others, the peculiar effect of ebb and flow during this operation is worthy of note. At flood-tide, the sand became so hard as almost totally to resist the utmost efforts of driving, while at ebb the sand was quite loose, and allowed of doing so with facility. It was therefore found necessary to abandon the driving on many occasions during high water. The difference between high and low water is 11 feet 6 inches. Another difficulty arose from the quicksands beneath the foundations. Although the piles were driven to the rock bottom, the water forced its way up, baffling the attempts to fill in between them; this, however, was remedied by using a concrete made of broken stone and Roman cement, which was continually thrown in until the bottom was found to be secure.  The arch ribs were erected in section by travelling crane; each arch was temporarily erected at the contractor’s works. The first was placed on 10 July 1848, and the erection of the ironwork was quick.  Already on 29 August 1848, it was possible to pass a special train over the first arch, and over a temporary structure for the rest of the crossing:  The High Level Bridge Over the Tyne: This important junction between the York and Newcastle and the Newcastle and Berwick Railway has been completed, and the event was celebrated on Tuesday last. In the afternoon of that day, a train of [specially invited] passengers passed along the temporary timber viaduct from the station at Gateshead to the station at Newcastle. Mr Hudson and several other Directors of the York, Newcastle, and Berwick line, who had been visiting Sunderland... proceeded in a special train from that town to Gateshead... Several carriages were then added to the special train, and an open truck placed at each end, in which bands of music were stationed. The shrill sound of the whistle gave the signal for a royal salute, under the booming of which the train passed along the line, the band playing, and the thousands assembled to witness the event, rending the air with joyous acclamation Upon reaching the bridge, the bands struck up the well-known local air of "The Keel Row" which they continued till the train had reached the solid ground on the northern side of the river... The train proceeded to the Newcastle and Berwick station, where the company alighted and walked in procession to the Queen’s Head Inn, where a magnificent entertainment had been provided for the Directors and their friends, by the Mayor of Newcastle.  [From the south abutment of the High Level Bridge] and the river pier on the south side, the cast iron arch and road-way are nearly completed, and the second arch will be in progress in the course of a few weeks. From the middle of the first arch, the line curves to a temporary timber viaduct erected along the west side of the intended bridge. The height of this viaduct is one hundred and twenty feet to the level of the rails; it is built upon piles, which are driven between thirty and forty feet into the bed of the river. Its stability was sufficiently tested on Monday, when Captain Leffan (sic), the Government Inspector of Railways, examined it preparatory to the opening. On that day, two powerful engines weighing upwards of seventy tons, traversed it at different degrees of speed for between two and three hours; the weight would be about one ton to a foot, being four or five times greater than the temporary structure will ever be required to bear, and the result was, in the highest degree, satisfactory.  Among the company in the train were four ladies, who are deserving of honourable mention, from the courage they displayed in accompanying it, namely, Mrs Nichs. Wood, and Miss F. Wood, Mrs I. L. Bell, and her sister, Miss Pattinson of Washington. As the train passed steadily over the bridge the anxiety of the immense multitude seemed intense, and the scene was truly exciting, yet fearful—not only from the lofty eminence occupied by the train but, from the apparent narrowness and nakedness of the platform on which it rolled along. It seemed from its noiselessness, rather an aerial flight, than the rattling sweep of the iron horse.  Ordinary traffic appears to have used the temporary single line structure after this date.  The eastern track was ready for an inspection by Captain Laffan, Inspecting Office for the Board of Trade, when he visited on 11 August 1849; a load test with four tender locomotives and eighteen wagons loaded with ballast, a total weight of 200 tons. Laffan approved the bridge:  I believe all the works of the bridge are completed, and that I believe it to be perfectly secure and safe. The Company have as yet only laid one line of rails over this structure, and I beg to recommend that permission be given to open that one line.  The first passenger train crossed the completed structure on the morning of 15 August 1849.  Queen Victoria formally inaugurated the bridge on passing through by train on 28 September 1849.  The Queen at Newcastle: Her Majesty yesterday honoured this ancient borough with her presence. The event was one of universal and all-engrossing interest... The morning, unfortunately, was dull and the weather unsettled, giving forebodings of a wet and uncomfortable day... Notwithstanding, however, the unfavourable weather dense crowds assembled at every spot in this locality, where a view of the royal carriage could be obtained, and many remained for hours exposed to the weather in order that they might retain the places which at an earlier period of the morning they had secured. The bridge was densely lined with people, and the platform was well covered, though not inconveniently crowded. A profusion of banners were displayed on this elegant and substantial structure, and from nearly all the public and many of the private buildings both in Newcastle and Gateshead. The vessels in the river hoisted their flags mast-high on the occasion, and the church bells of the two towns rung many a merry peal in honour of the royal visit... Pursuant to a request issued by the Mayor, most of the shops were closed about 11 o’clock, and the manufacturers were desired by our worthy chief magistrate "not to produce smoke between that hour and one," with which we believe, they generally complied... At precisely twenty minutes past twelve, the royal carriage appeared in sight, and when it reached the Spital, a splendid locomotive, built by the celebrated house of Stephenson and Co., gaily decorated and bearing on its front "God save the Queen" surmounted by a crown, and a suitable inscription encircling the boiler, was attached to the train. It then slowly proceeded to the centre of the colossal fabric, amidst bursts of loud and rapturous cheering from the assembled thousands, her Majesty repeatedly acknowledging these marked demonstrations of loyalty and affection from her faithful and attached subjects. The Mayors of Newcastle and Gateshead presented a formal address. The queen travelled in the royal carriage belonging to the London and North Western Railway.  In other carriages were members of her Majesty’s suite and the directors of the York, Newcastle, and Berwick Railway. The engine drawing the royal train was under the direction of Mr T. E. Harrison, the resident engineer, and driven by Mr Thos. Carr... After staying altogether from five to ten minutes, the train was again put in motion, and amidst firing of artillery and rapturous plaudits from the dense throng, proceeded en route to Darlington.  The bridge and its immediate approaches had cost £243,000.

Road use.

The company charged tolls on use of the road crossing; a pedestrian paid a halfpenny, and the crossing was open from 5 am until 6 pm, although from June 1871 twenty-four-hour access was made available.  About 1880 a horse bus service was operated across the bridge; the fare was a halfpenny, the same as the pedestrian toll; the bus operator paid a toll of 4d.  Addyman considers that road vehicle toll income was less than might have been expected (£2,000 in 1853), and attributes this to the success of suburban passenger railway business.  In the twentieth-century street passenger tramways built up in Newcastle and Gateshead, and in 1920 agreement was reached to connect the two systems by running across the High Level Bridge. This was implemented in 1923.  On 10 May 1937, the tolls on the road crossing were removed; Newcastle and Gateshead corporations paid the London and North Eastern Railway, now the owner of the bridge, £160,000 in commutation of the tolls.

Threatened by fire.

On 24 June 1866 there was a serious fire in a corn mill close to the line on the Newcastle shore. The fire grew and became a total conflagration, and the timber decking of the High Level Bridge caught fire. It appeared this might engulf the entire bridge.  Under the superintendence of the engineers, workmen were told off to cut through the carriage and foot roads, that being the only way of preventing the flames from spreading along the bridge. The men worked with goodwill and soon succeeded in cutting several holes through the asphalt and timber. How to play with the water on the underside was a difficulty soon got over. Four or five men, with a courage most commendable, volunteered to be lowered down, through the holes in the pathway, by means of ropes, enabling them to direct the water directly on to the burning woodwork. For a long time their efforts seemed to be without effect; no sooner was the fire put out in one part of the bridge than another beam burst into flames. For several hours streams of water were thrown against the bridge, ultimately with success. In order to put the spreading of the fire beyond doubt, the workmen on the bridge cut through the entire width of the carriage and footway, making a gap at both the Newcastle and Gateshead side... In no way, however, is the safety of the bridge endangered. The railway traffic was suspended from about half-past eight o'clock in the morning, until two in the afternoon, not from any apprehensions that the upper level was insecure, but on account of the smoke and flames, and also because of the hose which was lying across the rails.  So serious damage to the bridge was averted, and after a thorough inspection the following day, trains were allowed to resume normal running. The cost of the damage to the bridge was estimated at between £2,000 and £3,000.

Increasing loads.

When Laffan carried out the load test on opening of the bridge, the locomotives of the day weighed typically 20 tons; it was said at the time that the load test imposed "a greater weight in all probability than will ever pass along the bridge again".  In fact, locomotive weights increased considerably in the succeeding years. The cross-girders supporting the track were cast iron and by 1890 they were considered to require strengthening, which was done with steel box girders.  In 1922 the trams were to start crossing the bridge, and the cast iron longitudinal members supporting the roadway were replaced with steel beams and a new deck was provided. In 1937 Newcastle City Council took over responsibility for maintenance of the road surface, but a 9-ton weight limit was imposed; this was increased to 10 tons in 1967.  Between 1955 and 1959 the timber deck of the rail level was replaced by steel, and ballasted track was substituted for the earlier way beam track structure, adding 150 tons of dead load to each span of the bridge.  In 1983 a further analysis of the capacity of the bridge led to the reduction of the weight limit to 7.5 tons. By this time rail vehicles of 100 tonnes gross laden weight were operating, and one of the three railway tracks was removed to reduce extreme loading on the structure.

Listed status.

In 1950, the High Level Bridge was classified as a Grade I listed structure by the Department of the Environment.

A second crossing.

The High Level Bridge was an important node on the railway network, and as branch line passenger services and mineral traffic built up it became a bottleneck. This was exacerbated by the location of the main locomotive depot for Newcastle being located at Gateshead; as many train services changed engines at Newcastle this generated a huge number of light engine movements to and from the depot across the bridge.  At the beginning of the twentieth-century proposals were brought forward to build a second, rail-only bridge. This became the King Edward VII Bridge, located a few hundred yards to the west of the High Level Bridge. This started carrying traffic on 1 October 1906, having been formally inaugurated by the King on 10 July 1906. Trains from the southern and south-western districts generally crossed the Tyne on the new bridge, which carried four tracks. Through express passenger trains no longer had to reverse in Newcastle station, and where no engine change was required, a significant time saving was possible.

Restoration.

To carry out work to ensure its long-term future the bridge was closed to road traffic in February 2005. Maintenance included replacement of timber supports beneath re he road deck. The bridge re-opened on 2 June 2008 as severe cracks were found in some of its iron girders. In March 2006 the bridge's footpath, which was to have been kept open during the restoration project, was closed at the request of Network Rail due to vandalism and the increasing scale of required works.  Extra crash barriers on each side of the roadway were added leaving space for only one lane of traffic.  Where the road deck met the land on the northern side of the river was inside the castle precinct, a complex multi-period archaeological site. Archaeological mitigation work, a standing building recording on the approach arches, and an excavation in advance of the piling required to strengthen the arches was carried out by AAG Archaeology.

The present day.

The road deck was re-opened only in a southbound (towards Gateshead) direction and carries only buses and taxis; the one-way operation is required because of width considerations after protection to the structural members was inserted. Pedestrians and cyclists use the bridge freely. Railway traffic continues in full use of the bridge, although the majority of mainline trains use the King Edward VII bridge for reasons of convenience.

The High Level Bridge is a road and railway bridge spanning the River Tyne between Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead in North East England. It is considered the most notable historical engineering work in the city. It was built by the Hawks family from 5,050 tons of iron. George Hawks, Mayor of Gateshead, drove in the last key of the structure on 7 June 1849, and the bridge was officially opened by Queen Victoria later that year.

Die High Level Bridge ist eine kombinierte Straßen- und Eisenbahnbrücke über den Tyne zwischen Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead in Nordostengland.


History.

Cristóbal Balenciaga opened his first boutique in San Sebastián, Spain, in 1917, which expanded to include branches in Madrid and Barcelona. The Spanish royal family and the aristocracy wore his designs, but when the Spanish Civil War forced him to close his stores, Balenciaga moved to Paris.  Balenciaga opened his Paris couture house on Avenue George V in August 1937, and his first fashion show featured designs heavily influenced by the Spanish Renaissance. Balenciaga's success in Paris was nearly immediate. In the period of two years, the French press lauded him as a revolutionary, and his designs were highly sought-after. Carmel Snow, the editor of "Harper's Bazaar", was an early champion of his designs.  Customers risked their safety to travel to Europe during World War II to see Balenciaga's clothing. During this period, he was noted for his "square coat," with sleeves cut in a single piece with the yoke, and for his designs with black (or black and brown) lace over bright pink fabric.  However, it was not until the post-war years that the full scale of the inventiveness of this highly original designer became evident. His lines became more linear and sleek, diverging from the hourglass shape popularized by Christian Dior's "New Look". The fluidity of his silhouettes enabled him to manipulate the relationship between his clothing and women's bodies. In 1951, he totally transformed the silhouette, broadening the shoulders and removing the waist. In 1955, he designed the tunic dress, which later developed into the chemise dress of 1958. Other contributions in the postwar era included the spherical balloon jacket (1953), the high-waisted baby doll dress (1957), the cocoon coat (1957), the balloon skirt (1957), and the sack dress (1957). In 1959, his work culminated in the Empire line, with high-waisted dresses and coats cut like kimonos. His manipulation of the waist, in particular, contributed to "what is considered to be his most important contribution to the world of fashion: a new silhouette for women."  In the 1960s, Balenciaga was an innovator in his use of fabrics: he tended toward heavy fabrics, intricate embroidery, and bold materials. His trademarks included "collars that stood away from the collarbone to give a swanlike appearance" and shortened "bracelet" sleeves. His often spare, sculptural creations—including funnel-shape gowns of stiff duchess satin worn to acclaim by clients such as Pauline de Rothschild, Bunny Mellon, Marella Agnelli, Hope Portocarrero, Gloria Guinness, and Mona von Bismarck—were considered masterworks of haute couture in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1960, he designed the wedding dress for Queen Fabiola of Belgium made of ivory duchess satin trimmed with white mink at the collar and the hips. Jackie Kennedy famously upset John F. Kennedy for buying Balenciaga's expensive creations while he was President because he feared that the American public might think the purchases too lavish. Her haute couture bills were eventually discreetly paid by her father-in-law, Joseph Kennedy.

Protégés.

Several designers who worked for Balenciaga would go on to open their own successful couture houses, notably Oscar de la Renta (1949), Andre Courreges (1950), Emanuel Ungaro (1958), but his most famous and noted protégé was Hubert de Givenchy, who was the lone designer to side with Balenciaga against the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture Parisienne and also the press over the scheduling of his shows.

Battle against the press.

In 1957, Balenciaga famously decided to show his collection to the fashion press the day before the clothing retail delivery date, not the standard four weeks before the retail delivery date the fashion industry followed at the time. By keeping the press unaware of the design of his garments until the day before they were shipped to stores, he hoped to curtail ongoing piracy and copying of his designs. The press resisted, finding it nearly impossible to get his work into their print deadlines, but Balenciaga and protégé Givenchy stood firm, seriously impacting their coverage and press of the era. His supporters would argue that rival Christian Dior would gain acclaim from copying Balenciaga's silhouettes and cuts, claiming them as his own original work; because Balenciaga was not interested in press coverage, the media, and consumers never knew.  In 1967, both designers reversed their decision and joined the traditional schedule.

Battle against the Chambre.

Balenciaga defiantly resisted the rules, guidelines, and bourgeoisie status of the Chambre syndicale de la haute couture parisienne, and, thus, was never a member. Although he is spoken of with immense reverence, technically, Balenciaga couture was never haute couture.  Cristóbal Balenciaga closed his fashion house in 1968 and died in 1972. The house lay dormant until 1986.

Balenciaga today.

In 1986, Jacques Bogart S.A. acquired the rights to Balenciaga, and opened a new ready-to-wear line, "Le Dix". The first collection was designed by Michel Goma in October 1987, who remained at the house for the next five years to mixed reviews. He was replaced in 1992 with Dutch designer Josephus Thimister who began the restoration of Balenciaga to high-fashion status. During Thimister's term, Nicolas Ghesquière would join as a license designer, and eventually was promoted to head designer in 1997.  In 1992, for the Summer Olympic Games, House of Balenciaga designed the French team's clothes.  Balenciaga is now owned by Kering, formerly known as PPR, and its womenswear and menswear was headed by Nicolas Ghesquière. Ghesquière, like Balenciaga, is a self-taught designer, and apprenticed to Jean-Paul Gaultier and Agnes B. The fresh interpretation of Balenciaga classics, such as the semifitted jacket and the sack dress, caught the attention of the media as well as such celebrities as Madonna and Sinéad O'Connor.  In 2002, Balenciaga's star, Nicolas Ghesquiere, imitated the work of Kaisik Wong, a designer from San Francisco. Ghesquiere created a patchwork vest in his spring collection that resembled one that Wong designed in 1973. Ghesquiere admitted in an interview in Paris that he had copied the garment.  There was some conflict within the House of Balenciaga on Ghesquiere's designs, with the Gucci group saying that if Balenciaga didn't make any money in 2007 they would replace him. Ghesquière's F/W 2005 line showed that the house was not only making money, but also attracted a number of celebrity customers including editor-in-chief at "Vogue", Anna Wintour.  The House of Balenciaga designed the dresses worn by Jennifer Connelly and Nicole Kidman to the 2006 Academy Awards, as well as the wedding gown Kidman wore when she married Keith Urban. Kylie Minogue also wore a Balenciaga dress for her "Slow" and "Red Blooded Woman" music videos and for her concert tour.  Today, the brand is best known for its line of motorcycle-inspired handbags, especially the "Lariat". Balenciaga has eight exclusive boutiques in the United States. One Balenciaga store is located on 22nd St in New York City, New York. A second store is located in Los Angeles, California, on Melrose Avenue. Recently, a third store opened at the South Coast Plaza, in Costa Mesa, California. This store is and includes coffin-like inset displays. The New York and Los Angeles boutiques carry both men's and women's ready-to-wear, while the South Coast Plaza boutique carries only women's clothing. A fourth, located in Las Vegas inside Caesars Palace, carries only accessories. An additional location on the Las Vegas Strip, in Crystals at CityCenter, sells accessories as well as women's ready-to-wear. The boutique at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, offers men's and women's ready-to-wear and accessories. There is a store at the Bal Harbour shops in Bal Harbour, Florida. An eighth store is opening spring 2014 in Dallas, Texas, at the Highland Park Village to become the first boutique in Texas. The Highland Park Village boutique is opening next to Christian Dior and will carry men's and women's ready to wear and accessories. All of the boutiques employ spirited architecture, with white paneling, marble, and glass work as well as black leather seats and light green, black and navy carpets or white tiles, emphasizing the brand's lean toward avant-garde and the drama of fashion.  Balenciaga's Fall/Winter 2007 show impressed "Teen Vogue" editor-in-chief Amy Astley so much that an entire spread in the magazine, titled "Global Studies" and shot in Beijing, was influenced by it. The line included skinny jodhpurs, tight, fitted blazers, beaded embellished scarves, and other multicultural mixes.  Balenciaga is known for creating avant-garde structural pieces, straddling the edge of fashion and forecasting the future of women's ready-to-wear fashion. Vintage Balenciaga garments are very popular among influential fashion editors, Hollywood stars, and top models, and have been seen on Sienna Miller, Lara Bingle, Raquel Zimmerman, Caroline Trentini, Emmanuelle Alt, Tatiana Sorokko, Hilary Rhoda, Jennifer Garner, and Stephanie Seymour, among others. Balenciaga is also frequently worn by actress Chloë Sevigny, who is also a muse of Nicolas Ghesquiere. On 24 March 2011 at San Francisco's M. H. de Young Museum, House of Balenciaga celebrated the opening of Balenciaga and Spain, a 120-piece fashion retrospective of Cristóbal Balenciaga's career. The exhibition included many Balenciaga designs from the museum's encyclopedic costume collection, which boasts impressive holdings of creations by the designer. "You can't even measure it," said Rodarte designer Laura Mulleavy of Cristóbal Balenciaga's influence. The $2,500-a-ticket fund-raiser for the museum drew 350 guests, including Denise Hale, Marissa Mayer, Vanessa Getty, Victoria Traina, Vanessa Traina, Jamie Tisch, Gwyneth Paltrow, Orlando Bloom, Balthazar Getty, Maggie Rizer, Connie Nielsen, Maria Bello, and Mia Wasikowska.  On 5 November 2012, Balenciaga announced that it was parting with creative director Nicolas Ghesquière, ending his 15-year tenure. The brand announced Alexander Wang its new creative director. Wang presented his first collection for the label on 28 February 2013 at Paris Fashion Week. In 2014, the Tribunal de grande instance de Paris set a trial date for the lawsuit between Balenciaga vs. Ghesquière. Kering-owned Balenciaga claimed that Ghesquière's comments in the magazine "System" had hurt the company's image. The highly publicized suit was mediated out of court.  On 30 July 2015, Balenciaga announced it was parting with creative director Alexander Wang after three years. The Spring/Summer 2016 show was his last, featuring white lounge wear made from soft, natural fabrics. In early-October 2015, the brand announced Demna Gvasalia as its new creative director.

In popular culture.

On January 29, 2014, the character Myrtle Snow cries "Balenciaga!" as her dying words on the season finale of FX television show "".  The brand is mentioned in the single "New Americana" by Halsey. Nicki Minaj references the brand in her first single from the album "Pink Print", "Bed of Lies": "Balenciaga's on my boot with the python strap". It is also mentioned in A$AP Rocky's song "Fashion Killa" and Tee Grizzley's "F*** It Off" with Chris Brown. Ghanaian rapper EL makes reference to the brand in his hit single "Koko"—"See me rocking my Balenciaga for my God oo." The brand is also referenced to by Bronx rapper A Boogie wit da Hoodie in his song "Not a Regular Person" with the lyrics "I'm done with these Balenciagas..." Cheat Codes has a song called Balenciaga. In the single OKRA by rapper Tyler, the Creator, Balenciaga is referenced in the lyric "F*** it travel bag Balenciaga 30, 000 just for luggage"  The brand is mentioned in the single “P Secondiglian” by New Trap Neapolitan Singer Geôlier.  "RuPaul's Drag Race" contestant Elijah Kelly uses the brand as the last name of his drag persona, Mariah Paris Balenciaga.  Film Director Paul Thomas Anderson was inspired to make Phantom Thread when he became interested in the fashion industry after reading about designer Cristóbal Balenciaga.  In 2018, singer Ozuna released a single featuring Ele a el Dominio called "Balenciaga".  In Cardi B's hit single I Like It, the rapper references the brand in the line, "I like those Balenciagas, the ones that look like socks." On the same song, featured artist J Balvin mentions the brand in Spanish: "Mis tenis Balenciaga, me reciben en la entrada."  6LACK and Offset also released a song called "Balenciaga Challenge" in his album "East Atlanta Love Letter.  Global AzN references the brand in his song "Dark out" stating that the brand is on him everytime he walks outside.

Controversies.

On April 25, 2018, a Chinese customer was allegedly assaulted by a group of other customers who refused to enter the Printemps Balenciaga store in Paris in an orderly fashion. The Chinese customer, who is an elderly lady, protested to the group of queue-jumping customers, who responded by allegedly shoving the Chinese customer. A skirmish broke out in front of the fashion house between the Chinese customer's son and the group of queue-jumping customers. Employees for the fashion house and department store security reacted quickly to contain the incident. Security guards apparently wearing Balenciaga uniform can be seen restraining the son of the Chinese customer. Employees for the fashion house were also heard insulting the Chinese customer and her son, who were ultimately removed from the premise.  A viral video of the incident quickly swept through Chinese social media website Weibo, which enraged Chinese customers, and are calling for a boycott of the fashion house.  On April 27, 2018, two days after the incident, the House of Balenciaga issued a public notice and apology concerning the April 25, 2018, incident. The fashion house apparently suspended the management staff present during the incident and is working closely with Printemps store management to investigate the matter.  Users on social media are questioning the sincerity of the fashion house's public apology.  The hashtag #Boycott BalenciagaDiscriminatesChinese have been viewed 23 million times on Weibo as of Friday, April 27, 2018.

Balenciaga is a luxury fashion house founded in Spain by Cristóbal Balenciaga, a designer born in Guetaria, Spain. The brand is now owned by the French multinational company Kering. Balenciaga had a reputation as a "couturier" of uncompromising standards and was referred to as "the master of us all" by Christian Dior. His bubble skirts and odd, feminine, yet "modernistic silhouettes" became the trademarks of the house.

Balenciaga bzw. die Balenciaga S.A. ist ein 1937 von dem spanischen Modeschöpfer Cristóbal Balenciaga in Paris gegründetes Modeunternehmen. Mode von Balenciaga galt besonders zwischen den 1940er und 1960er Jahren international als Inbegriff der hochpreisigen französischen Haute Couture und setzte wegweisende Trends für die Modewelt. Cristóbal Balenciaga ist bis heute als Meister der gehobenen Damenmode bekannt. Nach seinem Tod 1972 wechselte das Unternehmen mehrmals den Besitzer und konzentrierte sich bis Anfang der 1990er Jahre hauptsächlich auf die eigene Parfümsparte. Erst ab 1997 stieg Balenciaga mit einem neuen Designer und ab 2001 mit einem neuen Eigentümer durch gefragte Prêt-à-porter-Modekollektionen für Damen und seit 2002 auch für Herren sowie Accessoires im oberen Preissegment wieder in die Riege der führenden Pariser Modekonzerne auf. Seit 2004 gehört die Balenciaga S.A. zu der heutigen Kering S.A.


Plot summary.

The story is told by the protagonist, Marion Stone. He and his conjoined twin Shiva are born at Mission Hospital (called "Missing" in accordance with the local pronunciation), Addis Ababa, in September 1954. Their mother, Sister Mary Joseph Praise, an Indian Carmelite nun, dies during childbirth. Their father, Thomas Stone, the English surgeon of Missing, abandons them and disappears. Orphaned at birth, the pair grow up in the household of two physicians of Missing, both from Madras, the obstetrician Kalpana Hemlatha (Hema) and Abhi Ghosh, who fall in love while caring for the infants. Hema names them Marion (after J. Marion Sims) and Shiva (after the Hindu deity). Ghosh teaches himself surgery to replace Stone. The tissue link between the twins has been separated at birth and the two grow up together being very close initially.  Both twins are exposed to the changing political environment in Ethiopia. There is an unsuccessful rebellion by Haile Selassie’s bodyguard, General Mebratu. Ghosh is imprisoned, then released, in the aftermath of the coup, due to his friendship with Mebratu. Through their parents, both boys are exposed to medicine and taught at the hospital.  Over time, though, individual differences begin to become pronounced. When entering puberty their relationship to Genet, the daughter of Rosina, a domestic help, finally tears them apart. Marion is in love with Genet and intends to marry her, but it is Shiva who, interested in sexual pursuits, becomes her first lover. Marion feels betrayed. Rosina forces Genet to submit to female genital mutilation and commits suicide shortly thereafter. Genet will later join the Eritrean liberation movement. While Marion goes to medical school, his brother stays at Missing. Focused on the repair of birth-related fistulas, he takes up his surgical training with Hema eschewing a formal medical education. On his death bed, Ghosh has three wishes for Marion - to get the best medical education, to find Stone, and to forgive his brother.  When Genet and her comrades hijack an Ethiopian Airlines airplane in 1979, Marion is on a list of her connections. To avoid arrest he flees the country overnight to Kenya. He goes to New York City where he finds a position at Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, a hospital in the Bronx. There, he enters a surgical residency. One day, assisting his senior in a complicated trauma operation, an unknown surgeon enters looking them over the shoulder. It is Thomas Stone, by now a well-renowned liver surgeon from Boston. Marion's encounter with his biological father redirects his life leading to a painful reconciliation and reunion with his estranged brother.

Medical topics.

The book contains descriptions of many medical diseases and interventions. The title relates to the oath of Hippocrates that calls his acolytes not to cut for (bladder) stones. Marion's mother dies during a complicated delivery (conjoined twins) from a uterine rupture. The babies are born premature. Shiva becomes an expert in the repair of vesico-vaginal and recto-vaginal fistulas. A vasectomy is described in detail "so charming and surgically precise, it could serve, in a pinch, as a how-to-manual."  The surgery of an intestinal volvulus establishes a relationship between Ghosh and Mebratu, but leads to his later imprisonment. Ghosh later dies from leukemia possibly related to his handling of outdated x-ray equipment. Genet undergoes female genital mutilation (female circumcision) and suffers from its complications. The book describes conditions in a tuberculosis sanatorium where Stone's mother dies from a ruptured aneurysm, the underlying condition acquired from her husband who has syphilis, or more specifically, tabes dorsalis. Marion's participation in the setting of an atriocaval shunt (a "Shrock") during trauma surgery in New York sets the scene when he encounters his biological father. The reader is further confronted with typhoid fever and hepatitis with liver failure. Other topics covered are depression, appendicitis, amputation, rickets, intestinal cancer, phlebitis, and intracranial hemorrhage.

Reception.

By February 2012 the book had been on the bestseller list of the New York Times for more than two years, and over one million copies had been sold. Paula Bock praises the book finding the epic "absorbing, exhilarating, and exhausting." Aida Edemariam notes that Verghese "interweaves (the characters') story with that of Ethiopia's past half century" and likes "the variety and colour of Verghese's world, its earthiness and drama, its concreteness and unselfconscious swing." She criticizes "a certain brutality... in the gender politics" of the novel and that in real life things do not work out so neatly as narrated. Erica Wagner gives a mixed review finding "the novel to be capacious, not to say baggy" and "tinged, albeit lightly, with a sense of magic". While she admires the vivid descriptions of surgery, she suggests that the medical details sometimes interfere with the flow of the story. She criticizes that Verghese attempts "to cram in every last fact about (his characters)." However, John Irving wrote that "I've not read a novel wherein medicine, the practice of it, is made as germane to the storytelling process, to the overall narrative, as the author manages to make it happen here."  In 2011, President Barack Obama said he had chosen "Cutting for Stone" as one of the five books on his summer vacation reading list.  In February 2012 it was announced that Susanne Bier has signed on to direct a movie version of "Cutting for Stone." Scott Teems will write the screen adaption.

Cutting for Stone (2009) is a novel written by Ethiopian-born Indian-American medical doctor and author Abraham Verghese. It is a saga of twin brothers, orphaned by their mother's death at their births and forsaken by their father. The book includes a deep description of both medical procedures and explores the human side of medical practices.

Rückkehr nach Missing (Originaltitel: Cutting for Stone) ist der Debütroman des indisch-amerikanischen Arztes Abraham Verghese aus dem Jahr 2009. Verghese lässt wie schon in seinen beiden autobiographisch geprägten Sachbüchern persönliche Erlebnisse, hier seine Jugend in Äthiopien, in die Familiensaga einfließen, wenn er auch betont, dass das Werk nicht ganz autobiographisch ist.


Background and writing.

In May 1995, Collins wrapped his Both Sides of the World Tour in support of his 1993 album, "Both Sides". During the tour he announced his separation from his second wife, Jill Tavelman, and his intention to file for divorce, which finalised in 1996. By this time, Collins's relationship with Orianne Cevey, who later became his third wife, had a positive change in his overall well-being. These events, plus the influence he had from listening to Youssou N'Dour, Bob Dylan, and African music while on tour, influenced ideas for songs that Collins had for a follow-up album. Unlike his recent material, Collins found himself writing more up-tempo and songs focused on rhythm.  After putting down some early ideas while touring, Collins did not revisit the new material until he started work on a new album in his home in Switzerland, at the end of 1995. In a contrast to his usual method of songwriting, Collins deliberately wrote the songs on the album with greater use of the guitar and less on keyboards. Despite not being a guitarist, Collins used guitar samples which dramatically altered the way he approached a song. Before the songs were fully arranged, Collins had decided to bring in a producer so he could take a break from the material and leave them to their duties later. This marked a change as for "Both Sides" he found himself "living, breathing and sort of dying" with the material and recorded and produced the album himself. For "Dance into the Light", Collins hired Hugh Padgham, who had co-produced most of Collins's solo studio output and had worked with him with Genesis.  The album features more musicians as opposed to "Both Sides", which saw Collins as the sole performer. Collins wanted them to either play what he had outlined on the demo or build on the original part. His longtime friend Ronnie Caryl, who had played with him in the late 1960s as a member of Flaming Youth, started playing rhythm guitar over the demos which gave it "an edge" because of his "very rough character".  He thought that having the word "Dance" in the title was something different that would make people curious as to what the album might be like. Another title that he liked was "Out of the Woods".  In the liner notes, Collins states that he removed all the drum machine parts from the music and performed on a real set of drums. This was following the disappointment he had learned from listeners who were expecting to hear more of his drum work on "Both Sides". He said that playing on a real kit made the music more lively as a result.  An interview with Collins about the making of the album was recorded in Geneva in August 1996 and released on a separate disc.  In his 2016 autobiography "Not Dead Yet", Collins stated that he was inspired by the new at the time Britpop scene to write "guitar songs". After the album's release Collins and his wife Orianne Cevey met Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher who had slagged Collins off previously and referred to him as the "anti-christ of music". Gallagher's at the time wife who was with her husband at the time of the meeting and who had seen the music video for "It's In Your Eyes", in which Collins played a guitar he borrowed from a fellow left hander Paul McCartney, criticised Collins for posing as a guitarist, informing him that he "wasn't fooling anyone", though Collins stated that it wasn't his intention and that it just felt good. On television show "Room 101" in 2005, Collins spoke about Oasis, describing the Gallagher brothers as "horrible guys", "rude" and "not as talented as they think they are", but praised the band itself for their music, claiming to have heard the music before he found out what they were like as people.

Recording.

The album was recorded in a chateau in France that Collins rented during the off season. He wished to return home while making the album, so a mobile studio owned by Sting was used to allow recording on location.

Songs.

"Dance into the Light" was the only song from the album to appear on Collins' "...Hits" collection.  "The Times They Are a-Changin'" is a cover of the Bob Dylan song.

2016 reissue.

In 2016, "Dance into the Light" was reissued as a Deluxe Edition as part of Collins's remastered album campaign. Each album features updated artwork with Collins adopting the same poses and expressions that he did on the originals. He maintained that the new artwork for "Dance into the Light" was in fact real, "so spot on that people will think it's Photoshopped." The booklet and artwork includes a strip film of Collins attempting the various positions to prove it was genuine.

Release.

"Dance into the Light" was released on 8 October 1996 in the US by Face Value Records, Collins's imprint that was licensed to Atlantic Records, his former label. Its UK release followed on 28 October.

Reception.

Reviewing for AllMusic, critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote of the album "his polyrhythms are surprisingly stiff for a drummer, which sinks all of the more experimental tracks. The remainder of the album is pleasant, but offers no distinctive melodies, which means that the albums sounds fine while it's on, but leaves nothing behind once it's finished."  "Entertainment Weekly" critic David Browne wrote, "Despite the sonic overhaul, the music feels less experimental than it does derivative. The world-music tracks are, ironically, watered-down versions of the work of his former band mate Peter Gabriel, and 'Wear My Hat' is an outright Xerox of Paul Simon's 'I Know What I Know', but with cutesy lyrics about groupies."

Personnel.

Credits adapted from the CD's liner notes.  Musicians  Production

Dance into the Light is the sixth solo studio album by English drummer and singer-songwriter Phil Collins, released on 8 October 1996 in the United States and on 28 October 1996 in the United Kingdom by Face Value Records. It features guest backing vocalists, including Arnold McCuller, and Amy Keys. It was the first album that Collins released as a full-time solo artist, having left Genesis earlier that year.

Dance into the Light ( für „in das Licht tanzen“ oder „tanze in das Licht“) ist das sechste Studioalbum des britischen Sängers Phil Collins. Es erschien im Oktober 1996 und erreichte Platz eins der deutschen Charts und in der Schweiz sowie Platz 4 in Großbritannien.


Background.

The album was initially produced by Glyn Johns and recorded at Olympic Studios in London, but during the making of the album, disagreement arose between the Eagles and their producer. As the band tried to lean towards a more hard rock sound, they felt that producer Glyn Johns was overemphasizing their country-influenced rock sound. Johns however felt that the Eagles were not capable of what the band wanted and told the band: "You are not a rock-and-roll band, The Who is a rock-and-roll band, and you're not that." The band—Glenn Frey in particular, but not Don Henley—were also unhappy with the no-drug policy of Johns during the recording; furthermore they did not feel at home recording in London. The band was concerned about the lack of success of the previous album "Desperado", and were more assertive in wanting more input into the album, which Johns was unwilling to allow. The Eagles spent six weeks recording in London, with both the band and the producer becoming frustrated with each other and frequent arguments between Johns and Frey. The band then took a break, decided to find a new producer and discarded all the recordings except for two usable tracks, "Best of My Love" and "You Never Cry Like a Lover".  The band relocated back to California and hired Bill Szymczyk, who had produced "The Smoker You Drink, the Player You Get" by Joe Walsh—who was also managed by their manager Irving Azoff and who would go on to join the Eagles in late 1975—that interested the band. The band recorded the rest of the album at the Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles. They were allowed more input in how the album was made and enjoyed more freedom with Szymczyk in the making of the album. Szymczyk suggested they bring in a harder-edged guitarist to add slide guitar to the song "Good Day in Hell". Bernie Leadon suggested his old friend Don Felder, whom they had met and jammed with on a few occasions. The band was so impressed that they invited Felder to become the fifth Eagle. The only other track on this album on which he appeared was "Already Gone". They credited him as a late arrival on the album's liner notes.  On the difference in sound between Johns' and Szymczyk's productions, Henley said: "There’s a lot less echo with Bill, for one thing. There’s more of a raw and funky presence. Glyn had a stamp he put on his records which is a deep echo that is really smooth like ice cream". He thought that the production on the two songs that Johns produced was good and necessary. Frey, however, found that L.A. country-rock records were "all too smooth and glassy", and wanted a "tougher sound". Their friend and collaborator J. D. Souther ascribed the change of producer to "Eagles’ desire to get more of a live, thin sound on the albums".  The first two singles released were more rock-oriented; Frey was reluctant to release the Johns-produced "Best of My Love" as a single, and held off its release for some months. However, when it was finally released, the label had truncated the song–without the band's knowledge or approval–so that it would be more radio-friendly. "Best of My Love" would become their biggest hit thus far, and their first No. 1 on the charts.

Songs.

"Already Gone", "James Dean", and "Best of My Love" were released as singles from the album, and information on the songs can be found in their respective articles. The following are other noteworthy tracks from the album:

"My Man".

Bernie Leadon's "My Man" is a tribute to Gram Parsons, who had died of a drug overdose in September 1973. Leadon and Parsons had been members of the pioneering country-rock band The Flying Burrito Brothers. In the lyrics, Leadon makes reference to Parsons' song "Hickory Wind" ("like a flower he bloomed till that old hickory wind called him home") which appeared on the Byrds' groundbreaking country-rock album "Sweetheart of the Rodeo" in 1968, the only Byrds album Parsons appeared on.

"On the Border".

A hard rock song, the track was inspired by the Watergate scandal and fears of the government overstepping its bounds and infringing on people's privacy. Barely audible at the end of the song, Glenn Frey can be heard whispering "Say Goodnight, Dick," a line made famous by Dan Rowan of Rowan and Martin but in this case referring to Richard Nixon's resignation. Nixon would indeed resign five months after the release of the album. Henley however judged the song they wrote a "clumsy, incoherent attempt" as they were still learning how to write. According to Henley, the song was supposed to be "an R&B-type song" but missed the mark.  In the liner notes, T.N.T.S. was credited for the vocals on the track – it refers to Tanqueray 'n' tonic, a drink favored by the producer Szymczyk. According to Henley, the drink "“helped out“ on the hand-clap overdub and the Temptations-like background vocals on the title track" by adding an element of spontaneity to the song.

"Ol' 55".

David Geffen played to Glenn Frey a demo of three songs by Tom Waits; Frey loved this song and took it to Henley suggesting that they split the vocals on the song. Frey said: "It’s such a car thing. Your first car is like your first apartment. You had a mobile studio apartment! “Ol’ 55” was so Southern California, and yet there was some Detroit in it as well. It was that car thing, and I loved the idea of driving home at sunrise, thinking about what had happened the night before."

"Good Day in Hell".

According to Henley, the song was written by Frey as a tribute to Danny Whitten and Gram Parsons. He also described the song as another of their "running commentaries on the perils of the music business and the lifestyle that often comes with it".

Critical reception.

In an early review, Janet Maslin of "Rolling Stone" found the album "competent and commercial", but was disappointed that it did not live up to the potential for bigger things shown in "Desperado". She also thought that with three guitarists in the band, there were "just too many intrusive guitar parts here, too many solos that smack of gratuitous heaviness. Many of the arrangements seem to lose touch with the material somewhere in mid-song." Overall, she judged the album "a tight and likable collection, with nine potential singles working in its favor and only one dud ("Midnight Flyer") to weigh it down," and that it's "good enough to make up in high spirits what it lacks in purposefulness." William Ruhlmann of "AllMusic" noted in his retrospective review the R&B direction in its title track that would be pursued more fully in later albums, and considered the album "which looked back to their earlier work and anticipated their later work" to be "a transitional effort that combined even more styles than most of their records did."

Commercial performance.

The album became the band's most successful album of the three released thus far. It debuted at number 50 on the US Billboard 200 chart in its first week of its release, peaking at number 17 in its sixth week on the chart. On March 20, 2001, the album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of 2 million copies.

Personnel.

Eagles.

Additional musician

On the Border is the third studio album by American rock group the Eagles, released in 1974. Apart from two songs produced by Glyn Johns, it was produced by Bill Szymczyk because the group wanted a more rock‐oriented sound instead of the country-rock feel of the first two albums. It is the first Eagles album to feature guitarist Don Felder. "On the Border" reached number 17 on the "Billboard" album chart and has sold two million copies.

On the Border ist das 1974 erschienene dritte Studioalbum der US-amerikanischen Rockband Eagles. Das in den Vereinigten Staaten mehr als zwei Millionen Mal verkaufte Album markiert die stilistische Weiterentwicklung vom Country-Rock zum Mainstream-Rock und ist das erste Album mit Gitarrist und Sänger Don Felder, der die Band zu einem Quintett erweiterte.


Early life and family.

Vining was born in Dover in the Delaware Colony, son of John and Phoebe Wynkoop Vining. His father was a prominent and successful lawyer and landholder, who had been a Speaker of the Colonial Assembly and Chief Justice of Delaware. He was also the good friend of Caesar Rodney, who stood as godfather for his son John, the subject of this article. Vining's father died when his son was eleven years old, and from him John and his sister inherited a large fortune. On November 29, 1790, while he was a U.S. Representative in New York City, he married Anna Maria Seton, a poet, musician, and daughter of William Seton of New York. She fit well into Vining's social circle, and they had four sons, John, William, Benjamin, and Charles, but she died prematurely in 1800.

Political career.

Vining studied law under George Read in New Castle, Delaware, and was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1782, starting a practice in Dover. Because of his family's wealth and prominence he was elected three times to represent Delaware in the Continental Congress. First elected April 8, 1784, he served until October 27, 1786, although, like many of his contemporaries, his attendance was irregular. He was then elected to the 1787/88 and 1788/89 sessions of the Delaware House of Assembly.  In a special election on January 7, 1789, Vining defeated four other candidates to win election as the only Delawarean delegate to the 1st U.S. House of Representatives. Two years later he was re-elected to a second term. Although he arrived weeks late for every session, he was an energetic and conscientious legislator, consistently voting in support of the administration, particularly favoring a strong executive. He served on thirty-eight committees in the 1st U.S. House, including the committee considering the first proposed amendments to the Constitution, and the joint committee on rules.  Vining's positions were generally loose-constructionist, or Hamiltonian. Accordingly, he strongly favored the federal assumption of the state's revolutionary war debts. In the debate over the location of a national capital, he sought consideration for Wilmington, Delaware, but once that lost, supported an immediate move to Philadelphia, and the later construction of a city on the Potomac River.  In 1793 he returned to Dover, Delaware as a State Senator, but was soon elected to the U.S. Senate. He served there for five years, from March 4, 1793 until his resignation on January 19, 1798, and subsequent retirement from public life.

Death and legacy.

Vining died in Dover and is buried in an unmarked grave in the Christ Episcopal Church Cemetery at Dover.  Vining was a handsome, friendly, and outspoken member of a prominent and wealthy family. He was described as a "colorful," speaker who "brandished a florid metaphor," but also as "verbose" and "not above resorting to inflammatory language." His sister, Mary, who was a frequent companion of Anthony Wayne, lived with Vining, and together they entertained frequently and lavishly. Because of this hospitality and generosity he was known as "the pet of Delaware." But he spent through his fortune and suffering from alcoholism, and the death of his wife, went through a rapid decline on the way to an impoverished and premature death. His sister dedicated herself to raising Vining's four sons, but they died young as well, within a year of her death in 1821.  Elizabeth Montgomery in her "Reminiscences in Wilmington" wrote: "His brilliant talents, not nourished by application, withered in the bud. Indolence and generosity engendered extravagance that wasted his substance."

Almanac.

Elections were held October 1. Members of the General Assembly took office on October 20 or the following weekday. The State Councilmen were elected for a three-year term and the State Assemblymen for a one-year term. They chose the Continental Congressmen for a one-year term. U.S. Representatives took office March 4 and have a two-year term. The General Assembly chose the U.S. Senators, who took office March 4 for a six-year term.  After 1792 elections were moved to the first Tuesday of October and members of the General Assembly took office on the first Tuesday of January. The Legislative Council was renamed the State Senate and the House of Assembly was renamed the State House of Representatives.

John Middleton "Jack" Vining (December 23, 1758February 1802) was an American lawyer and politician from Dover, in Kent County, Delaware. He was a Continental Congressman from Delaware, and a member of the Federalist Party, who served in the Delaware General Assembly and as United States Representative and United States Senator from Delaware.

John Middleton Vining (* 23. Dezember 1758 in Dover, Delaware; † Februar 1802 in Wilmington, Delaware) war ein US-amerikanischer Politiker der Föderalistischen Partei. Von 1789 bis 1798 saß er für den US-Bundesstaat Delaware im US-Repräsentantenhaus und im US-Senat.