Early life.

Ruth Prawer was born in Cologne, Germany to Jewish parents Marcus and Eleanora (Cohn) Prawer. Marcus was a lawyer who moved to Germany from Poland to escape conscription and Eleanora's father was cantor of Cologne's largest synagogue. Her father was accused of communist links, arrested and released, and she witnessed the violence unleashed against the Jews during the Kristallnacht. The family was among the last group of refugees to flee the Nazi regime in 1939, emigrating to Britain. Her elder brother, Siegbert Salomon Prawer (1925–2012), an expert on Heinrich Heine and horror films, was fellow of The Queen's College and Taylor Professor of German Language and Literature at the University of Oxford.  During World War II, Prawer lived in Hendon in London, experienced the Blitz and began to speak English rather than German. Charles Dickens' works and Margaret Mitchell's "Gone With the Wind" kept her company through the war years and the latter book she read while taking refuge in air raid shelters during the Luftwaffe's bombing of London. She became a British citizen in 1948. The following year, her father died by suicide after discovering that 40 members of his family had died during the Holocaust. Prawer attended Hendon County School (now Hendon School) and then Queen Mary College, where she received an MA in English literature in 1951.

Literary career.

Years in India.

Jhabvala lived in India for 24 years from 1951. Her first novel, "To Whom She Will", was published in 1955. It was followed by "Esmond in India" (1957), "The Householder" (1960) and "Get Ready for Battle" (1963). "The Householder", with a screenplay by Jhabvala, was filmed in 1963 by Merchant and Ivory. During her years in India she wrote scripts for the Merchant-Ivory duo for "The Guru" (1969) and "The Autobiography of a Princess" (1975). She collaborated with Ivory for the screenplays for "Bombay Talkie" (1970) and "ABC After-school Specials: William - The Life and Times of William Shakespeare" (1973).  In 1975, she won the Booker Prize for her novel "Heat and Dust" which was later adapted into a movie. That year, she moved to New York where she wrote "The Place of Peace".  Jhabvala "remained ill at ease with India and all that it brought into her life." She wrote in an autobiographical essay, "Myself in India" (published in the "London Magazine") that she found the "great animal of poverty and backwardness" made the idea and sensation of India intolerable to her, a "Central European with an English education and a deplorable tendency to constant self-analysis." Her early works in India dwell on the themes of romantic love and arranged marriages and are portraits of the social mores, idealism and chaos of the early decades of independent India. Writing of her in the "New York Times", novelist Pankaj Mishra observed that "she was probably the first writer in English to see that India's Westernizing middle class, so preoccupied with marriage, lent itself well to Jane Austenish comedies of manners."

Life in the United States.

Jhabvala moved to New York in 1975 and lived there until her death in 2013, becoming a naturalised citizen of the United States in 1986. She continued to write and many of her works including "In Search of Love and Beauty" (1983), "Three Continents" (1987), "Shards of Memory" (1995) and "East Into Upper East: Plain Tales From New York and New Delhi" (1998) portray the lives and predicaments of immigrants from post-Nazi and post-World War Europe. Many of these works feature India as a setting where her characters go in search of spiritual enlightenment only to emerge defrauded and exposed to the materialistic pursuits of the East. The "New York Times Review of Books" chose her "Out of India" (1986) as one of the best reads for that year. In 1984, she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.  In 2005 she published "My Nine Lives: Chapters of a Possible Past" with illustrations by her husband and the book was described as "her most autobiographical fiction to date".

Reception.

Her literary works were well received with C. P. Snow, Rumer Godden and V. S. Pritchett describing her work as "the highest art", "a balance between subtlety, humour and beauty" and as being Chekhovian in its detached sense of comic self-delusion. Salman Rushdie described her as a "rootless intellectual" when he anthologised her in the "Vintage Book of Indian Writing" while John Updike described her an "initiated outsider".  Jhabvala was initially assumed to be an Indian among the reading public because of her perceptive portrayals of the nuances of Indian lifestyles. Later, the revelation of her true identity led to falling sales of her books in India and made her a target of accusations about "her old-fashioned colonial attitudes".  Jhabvala's last published story was "The Judge's Will", which appeared in "The New Yorker" on 25 March 2013.

Merchant Ivory Productions.

In 1963, Jhabvala was approached by James Ivory and Ismail Merchant to write a screenplay for their debut black-and-white feature "The Householder" based on her 1960 novel. During their first encounter, Merchant later said Jhabvala, seeking to avoid them, pretended to be the housemaid when they visited. The film, released by Merchant Ivory Productions in 1963 and starring Shashi Kapoor and Leela Naidu, met with critical praise and marked the beginning of a partnership that resulted in over 20 films.  "The Householder" was followed by "Shakespeare Wallah" (1965), another critically acclaimed film. There followed a series of films including "Roseland" (1977), "Hullabaloo Over Georgie and Bonnie's Pictures" (1978), "The Europeans" (1979), "Jane Austen in Manhattan" (1980), "Quartet" (1981), "The Courtesans of Bombay" (1983) and "The Bostonians" (1984). The Merchant Ivory production of "Heat and Dust" in 1983 won Jhabvala a BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay the following year.  She won her first Academy Award for her screenplay for "A Room with a View" (1986) and won a second in the same category for "Howards End" six years later. She was nominated for a third Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay the following year for "The Remains of the Day".  Her other films with Merchant and Ivory include "Mr. and Mrs. Bridge" (1990), "Jefferson in Paris" (1995), "Surviving Picasso" (1996), "A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries" (1998) (the screenplay for which she co-authored with Ivory), "The Golden Bowl" (2000) and "The City of Your Final Destination" (2009) which was adapted from the eponymous novel by Peter Cameron and was her last screenplay. "Le Divorce" which she co-wrote with Ivory was the last movie that featured the trio of Merchant, Ivory and Jhabvala before Merchant's death that year.  In an interview for the British Film Institute, British actor James Wilby claimed that Jhabvala refused to write the screenplay of the 1987 film "Maurice," despite being "the normal writer" for Merchant-Ivory films. Wilby further surmised that Jhabvala may have been uncomfortable with the central subject matter of the film, based on a posthumously published novel by E. M. Forster, which depicted a gay relationship set in Edwardian England. Ivory was reportedly "quite upset" by Jhabvala's decision, given the fact that their friendship was "incredibly close." For her own part, Jhabvala apparently did provide notes for "Maurice", but claimed she didn't wish to write the screenplay"," as the novel was “sub-Forster and sub-Ivory."  The Merchant-Ivory duo was acknowledged by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest collaboration between a director and a producer although Jhabvala, too, was a part of the trio from the very beginning. She introduced the composer Richard Robbins, who went on to score music for almost every production by Merchant-Ivory beginning with "The Europeans" in 1979, to the duo after meeting him while he was the director of Mannes College of Music, New York. "Madame Sousatzka" (1988) was the one film she wrote which was not produced by Merchant Ivory.

Awards and Nominations.

Academy Awards Golden Globe Awards British Academy Film Awards Writers Guild of America Awards

Personal life.

In 1951, Prawer married Cyrus Shavaksha Hormusji Jhabvala, an Indian Parsi architect and, later, head of the School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi. The couple moved into a house in Delhi's Civil Lines where they raised three daughters: Ava, Firoza and Renana. In 1975 Jhabvala moved to New York and divided her time between India and the United States. In 1986, she became a naturalised citizen of the United States.

Death.

Jhabvala died in her home in New York City on 3 April 2013 at the age of 85. James Ivory reported that her death was caused by complications from a pulmonary disorder. Reacting to her death, Merchant Ivory Productions noted that Jhabvala had "been a beloved member of the Merchant Ivory family since 1960, comprising one-third of our indomitable trifecta that included director James Ivory and the late producer Ismail Merchant" and that her death was "a significant loss to the global film community".

Neuchâtel or Neuchatel (,, ; ; both from "new" and "castle"; ; or ; outdated or ) is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel.

Neuenburg ( [], familiär [], [], veraltet'und ') ist der Hauptort des westschweizerischen Kantons Neuenburg. Die politische Gemeinde hat etwa 34'000 Einwohner, die Agglomeration mit den anschliessenden Nachbargemeinden etwa 78'000 Einwohner.


The town of Apeldoorn.

The oldest known reference to Apeldoorn, then called Appoldro, dates from the 8th century. The settlement came into being at the point where the old road from Amersfoort to Deventer crossed that from Arnhem to Zwolle. A 1740 map refers to it as A"pp"eldoorn.  Close by is the favourite country-seat of the royal family of the Netherlands called the palace het Nieuwe Loo (now Het Loo). It was originally a hunting lodge of the dukes of Gelderland, but in its present form dates chiefly from the time of the then Stadtholder William III of England (1685–1686). The younger sister of Princess Beatrix, Princess Margriet, lives nearby the palace Het Loo, with her husband Pieter van Vollenhoven.  Apeldoorn was a relatively insignificant place until the major building projects of the 19th century and those of the period following World War II. The Protestant church was restored after a fire in 1890. The Roman Catholic Mariakerk is a national monument.  Apeldoorn possesses large paper-mills, many offices (Centraal Beheer, an insurance company; the Dutch Tax services; the "Kadaster", the government land registry service; and some more), a newspaper company, some hospitals and nursing homes. With over 95,000 people working in the municipality, Apeldoorn is one of the most important employment centres in the eastern Netherlands. Apeldoorn also has several important educational institutes, such as the Saxion University of Applied Sciences (hotel and facility management), the Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences, the Netherlands Police Academy and the Theological University of Apeldoorn.  In 2008 the largest paper mill of what was left of "Van Gelder Papier" after reorganizations went bankrupt, in 1996 a devastating fire destroyed the remnants of the last part of the original factory, other parts of the production facility that remained are now in use as production facility by AFP (Apeldoorn Flexible Packaging B.V.), Loparex B.V. and Owens Corning Veil Netherlands B.V. On the entire industrial estate now known as "Van Gelder Park" are now also located a local head office of Rabobank and it also houses the main police and fire department offices among with some other local companies like Futurumshop sporting goods, Akos engineering and Werklust load lifters, On the west side of this estate at the Laan van Westenenk there are still the buildings of one of the largest news printing companies of the region, Wegener, moved to this location in 1993, but they closed definitely in 2016 after reorganization, the buildings are now in use by other companies. Apeldoorn has been well known in the past as a town of paper making and clothing wash company's because of the clean filtered groundwater that seeps through the sand of the ice age formed (in Dutch)”stuwwallen” down to the “Ijselvallei” on the east of Apeldoorn.  Apeldoorn has also now a considerable meat processing industry with production and storage facilities of among others; Vion, Van Drie Group (ESA, Ekro), Grolleman Groep (cold stores, transport and meat processing), Amsterdam Meat Company (Ameco), other big/larger companies or ones that are of local importance are, among others; Hanos international (horesca), Hamer B.V. (installation), HSL Locistics but this will be as of January 2018 merged with GVT Logistics, Sandd (postal services), HCA Holland Colours (industrial plastics coloring), Remeha (heating boilers), Royal Reesink N.V., UPS, DHL, FedEx, Royal Talens (artist materials manufacturers and suppliers), VDL Weweler (international bus and truck parts manufacturing company), I.T.S. BV., Beekman transport, Kisjes transport and container rental, (others maybe added later).  Sandd postal services has been merged with PostNL, as a result of this the Sandd location in Apeldoorn will be closed indefinitely in the first week of February 2020, there has been some job losses, uncertain wat will happen to the location site.  In August 2018 PostNL opened a large package sorting center at the Oude Apeldoornseweg, newly build at the industrial area now known as “FizzionParc” but once was known as an industrial estate of Philips Data Systems, the new PostNL location will provide work for around 400 employees.  On November 27, 2018 a rapid spreading fire completely destroyed the largest store of “Karwei” DIY centers in The Netherlands, located at the Laan van de Dierenriem in Apeldoorn, no one was injured.  Apeldoorn is also known for its (historical) large number of used car dealers.  Apeldoorn had until a few years ago a production facility that produced basic materials for medicine production operated by Akzo Diosynth, but production was seized here, and the terrain located at the Vlijtseweg is now renamed after the product that was produced here before that, Zwitsal, it is now known as “Zwitsal Apeldoorn” and the former facility now houses lots of new local businesses like beer brewery “De Vlijt”.  Apenheul is a zoo which hosts a number of different types of apes and monkeys, some of which are free to walk around the visitors. It is situated at the western edge of Apeldoorn and can easily be reached by local bus 2, 3 and 5 (see Apeldoorn railway station, Bus Services). There is also an amusement park situated in Apeldoorn, called the Koningin Juliana Toren (Queen Juliana Tower). It is situated nearby the Apenheul and lies on the road to Hoog Soeren. It is called the Koningin Juliana Toren because of the tower, which was built in 1910 and was later named after Queen Juliana.  The local hospital is the Gelre Hospital "Lukas", offering secondary health care to Apeldoorn and the surrounding towns.  Apeldoorn railway station is, among regular national and international services, the terminus for the Veluwse Stoomtrein Maatschappij, a preserved steam railway that runs to Dieren via Beekbergen.  In April 2009 Apeldoorn made world news, when eight people were killed after a man tried to attack the Dutch royal family during a Queen's Day celebration by crashing his car near the royal family's bus.  The southwestern corner of the municipality is part of the Hoge Veluwe National Park. It is the final Battle Honour of The Royal Canadian Regiment who took part in the town's liberation in World War II.

House of Orange-Nassau.

Paleis Het Loo reflects the historical ties between the House of Orange-Nassau and the Netherlands. The central part of the palace and the lateral pavilions show how the palace was inhabited by the House of Orange for three centuries starting with the King Stadtholder William III of England up to and including Queen Wilhelmina.  In November 1684 Prince William III of Orange, then Stadtholder of Gelderland, purchased Het Loo with the intentions of building a palatial hunting lodge somewhere on the property. On April 5, 1685 the first contract was tendered and in September of the same year the stonework of the middle section (or corps de logis) of what came to be known as Het Loo was completed. In 1686, the year given on the facade of the building, the wings, originally linked by colonnades to the corps de logis were added, the walls were built and the gardens were laid out.  Het Loo became the favorite hunting seat and country palace of William III and his wife Princess Mary II, and until his death in 1702 furnishings and decorations both inside and outside underwent repeated alterations and embellishments. At that time symmetry was considered ideal and the design for the building and grounds featured a central axis with mirror image components on either side. Inside the palace the axis consisted of the Entrance Hall, the Staircase and the Great Hall on the first floor. West and east of the Great Hall respectively were the apartments of William III and Mary II. The apartments of the courtiers and the Dining Room were on the ground floor.  In 1689 William III became King of England, Scotland and Ireland and this elevation of his position and power brought an enlargement of Het Loo in its wake. Between 1691 and 1694 the colonnades which linked the corps de logis to the wings on either side were replaced by four pavilions. These pavilions contained the new apartments of William III and Mary II, a new Dining Room, a Long Gallery and a Chapel. Queen Mary did not return to the Netherlands after 1689 and never saw the enlargement.  On the death of King William III in 1702 there was disagreement about his inheritance, but eventually, in 1732, Het Loo descended to Willem IV (1711–1751) who was, from 1747, Stadtholder of all the provinces. Both Willem IV and his son Willem V (1748–1806) used the palace in the 18th century as a summer residence.

Geography.

Climate.

Apeldoorn experiences an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification "Cfb") similar to almost all of the Netherlands.

Population centres.

"Very small hamlets are printed in italics."

Economy and infrastructure.

Transport.

There are four railway stations in Apeldoorn, these are:  The bus services in the city are provided by Syntus and has 18 lines.

Culture.

Sport.

Until early 2013, Apeldoorn housed the professional football club AGOVV Apeldoorn (Eerste Divisie), that played its matches in the Sportpark Berg & Bos stadium in the western part of Apeldoorn. However, AGOVV was forced to declare bankruptcy on January 10, 2013 because of an €400,000 tax debt. In 1958 the AGOVV stadium was used to promote Dutch Rugby Football, by staging a match between an English touring XV Thomas Cook's Rugby Club and RC Hilversum in front of 2,671 spectators. It was a 3 points draw. See film clip of first overseas tour to Holland 1958 The present rugby club, Rams RFC, was founded in December 1971.  The most successful club in Apeldoorn is the SV Dynamo volleyball team, who are the 12-fold champion in the Dutch A-League, most recently in 2010. Another successful volleyball club in Apeldoorn, and a big competitor to Dynamo, is Alterno.  Because of the growth of Apeldoorn, and the population's interest in sports, Apeldoorn has built a new stadium for volleyball, indoor athletics and track cycling. The stadium, Omnisport Apeldoorn, opened in 2008 and has hosted the 2011 UCI Track Cycling World Championships and the European Track Championships in 2011 and 2013. In 2016 the city hosted the opening time-trial stage of the Giro d'Italia.  Apeldoorn houses the following football clubs:

2009 car attack.

On April 30, 2009, the Dutch national holiday Koninginnedag "(Queen's Day)", a man drove his car at high speed into a parade which included Queen Beatrix and other members of the Royal family.  The driver hit members of the public lining the street leaving twenty-two injured and eight dead, including the driver himself, who died the following day. Although the Royal family was unharmed, it is believed to be the first attack on the Dutch royal family in modern times.

Apeldoorn () is a municipality and city in the province of Gelderland in the centre of the Netherlands. It is a regional centre. The municipality of Apeldoorn, including villages like Beekbergen, Loenen, Ugchelen and Hoenderloo, had a population of in. The western half of the municipality lies on the Veluwe ridge, the eastern half lies in the IJssel valley.

Apeldoorn () ist eine Gemeinde und eine Großstadt in den Niederlanden. Sie ist das regionale Zentrum der Veluwe in der Provinz Gelderland. Auf die Fläche bezogen ist Apeldoorn die viertgrößte Gemeinde der Niederlande (nach Het Hogeland, Noordoostpolder und Midden-Drenthe). Die Gemeinde hat Einwohner (Stand ). Durch den Bau der neuen Stadtviertel Zonnehoeve und Zuidbroek wird die Stadt in den nächsten Jahren auf etwa 170.000 Einwohner anwachsen.


Life.

Early years.

Wartime in Germany.

Regine Radischewski was born in Berlin during the war, the second of her parents' two recorded children. Her father was a pianist who worked as an accompanist at the National Ballet Academy.  Her mother would later own a small tobacconist shop. When she was two the family were evacuated from central Berlin to countryside far to the east of Germany, and shortly after that they were bombed out, losing most of their material possessions.

Growing up.

The war ended in May 1945 and the family ended up back in Berlin. For the first five or six years of her schooling she attended a school in a western occupation zone of the city ("West Berlin"), but as the political division between the Soviet occupation zone and the western occupation zones became more stark and, it seemed, more permanent, her parents opted on her behalf for a school in the Soviet zone in what had by now become known as East Berlin. The family home was in the city centre along Bernauer Straße (""Bernau Street"") which formed the (initially hard to spot) political border between East Berlin and West Berlin, and afforded Regine a ring-side seat in the cold wall drama until September 1961 when the family were forcibly relocated in connection with the building of the Berlin Wall. In October 1961 she co-founded and joined the at Berlin's (Protestant) Cathedral, which now flourished under the musical direction of a man called Herbert Hildebrand.

Middle years.

The student.

From 1959-64, she studied biology at the Humboldt University in East Berlin.  She had never joined the Free German Youth (FDJ/"Freie Deutsche Jugend"), which was in effect the youth wing of the young country's ruling SED party. Her failure to join seems to have been a result of timetable clashes involving her commitment to singing in the church choir. Failure to enroll in the FDJ had nevertheless led to her application for the university course to be initially rejected; and subsequent failure as an adult to become a Party Member would constrain her career opportunities right up until 1989.

A career in research.

Between 1964 and 1978 Regine Radischewski worked in a management position involving Quality Control in the pharmacology department of VEB, a major conglomerate in East Berlin. Hildebrandt combined her responsibilities in the pharmaceuticals department with a medicines research project at the Humboldt University which led to her receiving her doctorate in 1978. In 1978 she took a senior research position at Berlin's Centre for the Study of Metabolism Illnesses and Diabetes, heading up the Diabetes department until 1990. During this period she had numerous research papers published.

Family matters.

During these years she also found time, in 1966 to marry, brother of the musical director of the choir in which they sang. The two had known each other through the church since 1950: they had also been near neighbours, with a shared childhood experience of living along the East–West front-line before 1961. The marriage produced three children, born in 1969, 1971 and 1974. Her research career left her with enough space to devote time to the family, which was very important to her. Her husband later recalled that they ate together each evening six days per week, and on Sundays had a family lunch in the middle of the day after getting back from church. When she died, aged 60, she would still be living with younger family members in a large "multi-generational family house" they had been able to have built after 1990.

Interaction with the state.

The family participated the political life of the one-party dictatorship only when they felt they had to. They did not vote in the country's sham elections because §22 of the constitution did not oblige them to vote (although the resulted, typically, in a reported turnout of 99.74%). Regine Hildebrand did join the national Trade Union Federation (FDGB/"Freier Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund") because not to have done so would have deprived her research colleagues of vital funding. When fraternal tanks appeared on the streets of Prague to crush political reform, the Hildebrandts joined in a protest demonstration outside the Czechoslovak embassy in Berlin.  They would write letters of protest to the Party Central Committee and to Neues Deutschland, the party's mass-circulation official daily newspaper. Hildebrand assiduously read Neues Deutschland and followed other official media, if only to keep herself up to date with The Party's politically correct linguistic contrivances of the moment. The family never owned a television set, but news came from radio programmes broadcast from West Berlin or London, and from friends who visited from the west and were permitted (unlike East German citizens) to return to the west afterwards.

Politics.

The summer of 1989 brought a dramatic change in her life when she, together with her husband, Jörg, was among the co-founders of Democracy Now, which sought an alliance of Christians and critical Marxists "to think about our future, to think about a society based on solidarity".

The Social Democrats.

On 12 October 1989 she joined the Social Democratic Party (SPD) which (in East Germany) had been re-founded five days earlier. The Hildebrandts valued the embracing compassionate socialism of the moderate left which had been nurtured and demonstrated by iconic (western) SPD figures from the recent past such as Kurt Schumacher and Willy Brandt. A year later, following reunification, in October 1990 the party would merge formally with the West German Social Democratic Party (SDP).

National ministerial office.

1990 was the year in which, for rather less than a year, she became an important Social Democratic participant in the national politics of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). National elections in the GDR had traditionally operated according to a single list system which offered the voters only one list of (carefully preselected) candidates. Anyone wishing to vote against the list could do so by placing the ballot paper in a separate ballot box while the officials looked on: few did. But on 18 March 1990 the German Democratic Republic conducted its first (and as matters turned out, last) democratically configured general election. The Social Democrats took 21.9% of the vote which entitled them to 88 seats in the country's first freely elected National legislative assembly ("Volkskammer"). One of the seats went to Hildebrand, representing the Berlin electoral district. She also joined the coalition government of Lothar de Maizière, serving between April and August 1990 as the East German Minister for Labour and Social Affairs.  A political decision had been taken to convert East German currency into western Marks at a one-for one rate (except in respect of very large amounts), and Hildebrandt's priority as a government minister was tackling growing unemployment in east Germany, following economic disruption associated with the ongoing reunification process.  The governing coalition started to splinter in August 1990 leading to the withdrawal of the Social Democrats from it, as a result of which Regine Hildebrandt terminated her career as a government minister at the national level. The next month, however, in 1990 she was elected to the national committee of the SPD (for the whole of Germany, even though national reunification would not be formally enacted till October).

Minister in Brandenburg.

Hildebrandt now became a key SPD figure in the state politics of Brandenburg. In October 1990, the state tier of government was reintroduced to what had been the German Democratic Republic, and as part of the process elections took place for a new state parliament in Brandenburg on 26 October. Hildebrandt and then appointed to under minister-president Manfred Stolpe: from 1 November 1990 onwards she served as Brandenburg's Minister for Labour, Social affairs, Health and Women, in effect an expanded version of the ministerial portfolio she had been handling nationally earlier in the year.  She was a popular and effective minister, often hitting the headlines with less than diplomatic outbursts, always charmingly reasonable but also forcefully persuasive with key colleagues when, as often happened, issues within her ministerial ambit came down to arguments about funding. In the popular media she frequently attracted the soubriquet "Mother Courage".  In the 1999 Brandenburg state election the Social Democrats lost their absolute majority and minister-president Manfred Stolpe prepared to form a "grand coalition" with the centre-right CDU party. Hildebrand was already seriously ill and had strongly campaigned for an alternative alliance, with the left-wing PDS. She resigned from the state government.  The Hildebrandts and the state prime minister Manfred Stolpe had known one another since the 1960s through their church connections, though they had not been aware at every level of Stolpe's complicated and possibly at times collaborative relationship with the Ministry for State Security during the years of the dictatorship. After her resignation from the government Hildebrand and Stolpe would continue to treasure one another's friendship, and remain political allies, until Hildebrandt's death in 2001.  Nationally in December 1999 and again in November 2001, a few weeks before she died, Hildebrand topped the polls in the elections to the of the Social Democratic Party.

Death.

In July 1996 it became known that Regine Hildebrandt had breast cancer. She died at age 60 on 26 November 2001 in Woltersdorf, Brandenburg.

Regine Hildebrandt (née Radischewski; 26 April 1941 – 26 November 2001) was a German biologist and politician (Social Democratic Party of Germany).

Regine Hildebrandt (geborene "Radischewski"; * 26. April 1941 in Berlin; † 26. November 2001 in Woltersdorf bei Berlin) war eine deutsche Politikerin (SPD).


History.

Documents record the Old High German name "Oadalrich" or "Uodalrich" from the later 8th century in Alamannia. The related name "Adalric" (Anglo-Saxon cognate "Æthelric") is attested from the 6th century (Athalaric King of the Ostrogoths; Æthelric of Bernicia). The name of Agilolfing duke Odilo (fl. 709–748) may represent a short form of the name.  Count Udalrich I (fl. 778–814), a son of Gerold of Vinzgau, founded the Alamannic Udalriching dynasty, ancestral to the counts of Bregenz. The given name occurred frequently in the Alamannic Hunfriding dynasty in the 9th to 10th centuries; examples include Odalric, Count of Barcelona (fl. 850s) and Odalric, Count of Thurgau (fl. 920s). The name is recorded in an Icelandic form as "Óðalríkr" only in the later medieval period.  In the Middle High German period the name generally commemorated Saint Ulrich, Bishop of Augsburg (c. 890 – 4 July 973), who twice defended Augsburg from attacks by Magyars.  The Swiss Reformer Ulrich Zwingli etymologized his given name as "Huldrych" ("Huldricus, Huldaricus"), i.e. "rich in grace". In the wake of Zwingli, during the 16th century and well into the 18th century, it became a fashion - especially for Protestant writers - to latinise the given name "Ulrich" as "Huldricus".  The name was popularly given in 20th-century Switzerland, especially from the 1940s to the 1960s, peaking at rank 16 in 1947, but dropping below rank 100 in 1972. In Czechoslovakia, "Oldřich " was popularly given in the 1940s to 1950s, peaking at rank 18 during 1946–1951.

Variants.

The German given name was adopted in Czech and Slovak as "Oldřich", "Oldrich" and in Scandinavian as "Ulrik", in Slovenian as "Urh", in Latvia as Uldis.  Common German hypocoristics are "Uli" or "Ulli" (Swiss "Ueli") and historically "Utz". A Czech/Solvak hypocoristic is "Volek" and a Polish one "Ryczek".  A feminine form "Ulrike, Ulrica" is recorded from the early modern period.

Ulrich (), is a German given name, derived from Old High German "Uodalrich", "Odalric". It is composed of the elements "uodal-" meaning "(noble) heritage" and "-rich" meaning "rich, powerful". Attested from the 8th century as the name of Alamannic nobility, the name is popularly given from the high medieval period in reference to Saint Ulrich of Augsburg (canonized 993). The surname Ulrich is most prevalent in Germany and has the highest density in Switzerland. This last name was found in the United States around the year 1840. Most Americans with the last name were concentrated in Pennsylvania, which was home to many German immigrant communities. Nowadays in the United States, the name is distributed largely in the Pennsylvania-Ohio region.

Ulrich ist ein männlicher Vorname, der schon im Mittelalter wegen des Heiligen Ulrich von Augsburg bekannt war. Er tritt auch als Familienname auf.


Attractions.

One of the town's main attractions is the Netherlands' smallest church (Kerkje "De Rietstap"), another one is a border museum ("Grenslandmuseum").

Transportation.

The nearest train stations are Aalten railway station and Terborg railway station, with train service operated by Arriva every half-hour. Bus number 40 connects Dinxperlo to Terborg station and bus number 195 connects Dinxperlo to Aalten station. Both services start in the Willem van Oranjeplein. The service runs from Arnhem (Arnhem railway station) to Doetinchem and Winterswijk stopping at various places on the way.

Dutch-German border.

One street in Dinxperlo, "Heelweg", is partly German in the village of Suderwick, (district Borken). The road itself lies in the Netherlands, but one side of the housing zone is in Germany (where it is called "Hellweg"). The unique boundary line is delimited by a treaty between Germany and the Netherlands signed in April 1960, which resulted in the return of Suderwick to then West Germany on 1 August 1963 after the Netherlands annexed the village soon after the Second World War as part of claims for war reparations.  The treaty also provides for the access arrangements of those living in German territory but with only access via Heelweg which is Dutch territory. The houses there belong to the small town of Suderwick, which might be translated as "southern area". Also, Dinxperlo houses a shared Dutch-German police station.  Besides Dutch and German, at both sides of the border a common dialect is spoken, which is a variety of Low Saxon.

Dinxperlo () is a town and former municipality (7442 inhabitants) in the eastern Netherlands (Achterhoek region), situated directly at the Germany-Netherlands border.

Dinxperlo ist ein Ort im Osten der Niederlande. Er gehört zur Gemeinde Aalten in der Provinz Gelderland und liegt an der Grenze zum deutschen Bundesland Nordrhein-Westfalen.


Activities.

International law recognizes that governments in exile may undertake many types of actions in the conduct of their daily affairs. These actions include:  In cases where a host country holds a large expatriate population from a government in exile's home country, or an ethnic population from that country, the government in exile might come to exercise some administrative functions within such a population. For example, the WWII Provisional Government of Free India had such authority among the ethnically Indian population of British Malaya, with the consent of the then Japanese military authorities.

Current governments in exile.

Governments in exile may have little or no recognition from other states. Some exiled governments have some characteristics in common with rump states. Such disputed or partially in exile cases are noted in the tables below.

Deposed governments of current states.

These governments in exile were created by deposed governments or rulers who continue to claim legitimate authority of the state they once controlled.

Deposed governments of former states.

These governments in exile were created by deposed governments or rulers who continue to claim legitimate authority of the state they once controlled but whose state no longer exists.

Current government regarded by some as a "government-in-exile".

Government of the Republic of China: The currently Taipei-based Republic of China government does not regard itself as a government-in-exile, but is claimed to be such by some participants in the debate on the political status of Taiwan. In addition to the island of Taiwan and some other islands it currently controls, the Republic of China formally maintains claims over territory now controlled by the People's Republic of China as well as some parts of Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Japan, Myanmar, Pakistan, Russia, and Tajikistan. The usual formal reasoning on which this "government-in-exile" claim is based relies on an argument that the sovereignty of Taiwan was not legitimately handed to the Republic of China at the end of World War II, and on that basis the Republic of China is located in foreign territory, therefore effectively making it a government in exile. By contrast, this theory is not accepted by those who view the sovereignty of Taiwan as having been legitimately returned to the Republic of China at the end of the war. Both the People's Republic of China government and the Kuomintang in Republic of China (Taiwan) hold the latter view.  However, there are also some who do not accept that the sovereignty of Taiwan was legitimately returned to the Republic of China at the end of the war nor that the Republic of China is a government-in-exile, and China's territory does not include Taiwan. The current Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan is inclined to this view, and supports Taiwanese independence.

Deposed governments of current subnational territories.

These governments in exile claim legitimacy of autonomous territories of another state and have been created by deposed governments or rulers, who do not claim independence as a separate state.

Alternative governments of current states.

These governments have been created in exile by political organisations and opposition parties, aspire to become actual governing authorities or claim to be legal successors to previously deposed governments, and have been created as alternatives to incumbent governments.

Alternative separatist governments of current subnational territories.

These governments have been created in exile by political organisations, opposition parties, and separatist movements, and desire to become the governing authorities of their territories as independent states, or claim to be the successor to previously deposed governments, and have been created as alternatives to incumbent governments.

Exiled governments of non-self-governing or occupied territories.

These governments in exile are governments of non-self-governing or occupied territories. They claim legitimate authority over a territory they once controlled, or claim legitimacy of a post-decolonization authority. The claim may stem from an exiled group's election as a legitimate government.  The United Nations recognizes the right of self-determination for the population of these territories, including the possibility of establishing independent sovereign states.  From the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988 in exile in Algiers by the Palestine Liberation Organization, it has effectively functioned as the government in exile of the Palestinian State. In 1994, however the PLO established the Palestinian National Authority interim territorial administration as result of the Oslo Accords signed by the PLO, Israel, the United States, and Russia. Between 1994 and 2013, the PNA functioned as an autonomy, thus while the government was seated in the West Bank it was not sovereign. In 2013, Palestine was upgraded to a non-member state status in the UN.  All of the above created an ambiguous situation, in which there are two distinct entities: The Palestinian Authority, exercising a severely limited amount of control on the ground under the tutelage of an Israeli military occupation; and the State of Palestine, recognized by the United Nations and by numerous countries as a fully sovereign and independent state, but not able to exercise such sovereignty on the ground. Both are headed by the same person—as of February 2016, President Mahmud Abbas—but are judicially distinct. For example, a dissolution of The Palestinian Authority and resumption of full rule on the ground by Israel would not in itself affect the State of Palestine, which could continue to exist as a government-in-exile diplomatically recognized by the UN and by numerous countries. The historic country "Yakthung Laje Limbuwan (Kirat)" had its own territory that fall on presently in the western part of the north-east India and eastern part of the Nepal. The ten Limbu Kings had ruled over long years in the territory then after, the Gorkha king had practiced to invade many more times but failed to overrun to it and the two countries made treaty in 1774 A.D. The treaty led to form the Nepal with the division of equal kingship and ruling occupation. No sooner than the treaty was violate by the Gorkha kings that led to devastate the Yakhung laje Limbuwan territory and misused the power over the contemporary Limbu Yakhung rulers that is why, the thirty two thousands of Limbus were fled away to be safe from the atrocities and torture made by the Gorkha kings. So, they had to left their motherland and exiled in different countries like Burma, Bhutan and India. As well as, the territory had divided into two countries because of the Sugoulee Treaty that held in 1815 A.D. between Nepal and East India Company while the eastern part the Mechi river to Teesta river has given to the East India Company. The Yakthung rulers were not asked and for the historic tasks made by Gorkha King. Unfortunately, the Yakthung Limbus were divided into two nationals and lost their land original Yakthung Limbuwan nationality.  Now, the Yakthung Limbuwan nationalists claiming their land while it is remained as stateless nation for long time. The different movements and revolutions are being held for the Limbuwan land however, the unification of the divided nationalities and the territory were not much on loud sound till yet. But, Yakthung Laje Limbuwan National Council (YLLNC) has formed to unite the nationalities and to form the independent Yakhung Laje Limbuwan country in the presidency of Nir Kumar Sambahangphe Limbu in 2018.A paper presented " Yakthung Laje Limbuwan as a Stateless Nation: Independent Movement" by president of Yakthung Lage Limbuwan National Council (YLLNC), Mr Nir Kumar Sambahangphe Limbu In 22 Dec, 2019 in Tejpur, Assam, India. The council has proclaimed the independent and sovereign country "Yakhung Laje Limbuwan" but the two governments of India and Nepal has made deaf ear on the issues that would led to compel to form the government in exile for Yakthung Laje Limbuwan.

Exiled governments with ambiguous status.

These governments have ties to the area(s) they represent, but their claimed status and/or stated aims are sufficiently ambiguous that they could fit into other categories.

Past governments in exile.

World War II.

Many countries established a government in exile after loss of [[sovereignty]] in connection with [[World War II]].

Governments in London.

A large number of European governments-in-exile were set up in London. !Name!Leaders [[Category:Exile organizations]] [[Category:Governments in exile| ]]

A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group which claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in another state or foreign country. Governments in exile usually plan to one day return to their native country and regain formal power. A government in exile differs from a rump state in the sense that a rump state controls at least part of its former territory. For example, during World War I, nearly all of Belgium was occupied by Germany, but Belgium and its allies held on to a small slice in the country's west. A government in exile, in contrast, has lost all its territory.

Eine Exilregierung ist die Regierung eines Landes, die außerhalb ihres Staatsgebietes oberste Funktionen eines Staates beansprucht und wahrnimmt, weil sie an deren Ausübung auf eigenem Territorium gehindert ist. Hinderungsgründe können darin liegen, dass das Staatsgebiet von einer anderen Macht besetzt ist oder von einer anderen, als illegitim angesehenen Regierung kontrolliert wird.


Ancient mortar.

The first mortars were made of mud and clay, as demonstrated in the 10th millennia BCE buildings of Jericho, and the 8th millennia BCE of Ganj Dareh.  According to Roman Ghirshman, the first evidence of humans using a form of mortar was at the Mehrgarh of Baluchistan in the Indus Valley, Pakistan, built of sun-dried bricks in 6500 BCE.  Gypsum mortar, also called plaster of Paris, was used in the construction of many ancient structures. It is made from gypsum, which requires a lower firing temperature. It is therefore easier to make than lime mortar and sets up much faster, which may be a reason it was used as the typical mortar in ancient, brick arch and vault construction. Gypsum mortar is not as durable as other mortars in damp conditions.  In the Indian subcontinent, multiple cement types have been observed in the sites of the Indus Valley Civilization, with "gypsum appearing at sites" such as the Mohenjo-daro city-settlement that dates to earlier than 2600 BCE.  Gypsum cement that was ""light grey and contained sand, clay, traces of calcium carbonate, and a high percentage of lime"" was used in the construction of wells, drains, and on the exteriors of ""important looking buildings"." Bitumen mortar was also used at a lower-frequency, including in the Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro.  In early Egyptian pyramids, which were constructed during the Old Kingdom (~2600–2500 BCE), the limestone blocks were bound by a mortar of mud and clay, or clay and sand. In later Egyptian pyramids, the mortar was made of gypsum, or lime. Gypsum mortar was essentially a mixture of plaster and sand and was quite soft.  2nd millennia BCE Babylonian constructions used lime or pitch for mortar.  Historically, building with concrete and mortar next appeared in Greece. The excavation of the underground aqueduct of Megara revealed that a reservoir was coated with a pozzolanic mortar 12 mm thick. This aqueduct dates back to c. 500 BCE. Pozzolanic mortar is a lime based mortar, but is made with an additive of volcanic ash that allows it to be hardened underwater; thus it is known as hydraulic cement. The Greeks obtained the volcanic ash from the Greek islands Thira and Nisiros, or from the then Greek colony of Dicaearchia (Pozzuoli) near Naples, Italy. The Romans later improved the use and methods of making what became known as pozzolanic mortar and cement. Even later, the Romans used a mortar without pozzolana using crushed terra cotta, introducing aluminum oxide and silicon dioxide into the mix. This mortar was not as strong as pozzolanic mortar, but, because it was denser, it better resisted penetration by water.  Hydraulic mortar was not available in ancient China, possibly due to a lack of volcanic ash. Around 500 CE, sticky rice soup was mixed with slaked lime to make an inorganic−organic composite sticky rice mortar that had more strength and water resistance than lime mortar.  It is not understood how the art of making hydraulic mortar and cement, which was perfected and in such widespread use by both the Greeks and Romans, was then lost for almost two millennia. During the Middle Ages when the Gothic cathedrals were being built, the only active ingredient in the mortar was lime. Since cured lime mortar can be degraded by contact with water, many structures suffered over the centuries from wind-blown rain.

Ordinary Portland cement mortar.

Ordinary Portland cement mortar, commonly known as OPC mortar or just cement mortar, is created by mixing powdered Ordinary Portland Cement, fine aggregate and water.  It was invented in 1794 by Joseph Aspdin and patented on 18 December 1824, largely as a result of efforts to develop stronger mortars. It was made popular during the late nineteenth century, and had by 1930 became more popular than lime mortar as construction material. The advantages of Portland cement is that it sets hard and quickly, allowing a faster pace of construction. Furthermore, fewer skilled workers are required in building a structure with Portland cement.  As a general rule, however, Portland cement should not be used for the repair or repointing of older buildings built in lime mortar, which require the flexibility, softness and breathability of lime if they are to function correctly.  In the United States and other countries, five standard types of mortar (available as dry pre-mixed products) are generally used for both new construction and repair. Strengths of mortar change based on the mix ratio for each type of mortar, which are specified under the ASTM standards. These premixed mortar products are designated by one of the five letters, M, S, N, O, and K. Type M mortar is the strongest, and Type K the weakest. The mix ratios and are always expressed by volume of formula_1.  These type letters are apparently taken from the alternate letters of the words "MaSoN wOrK".

Polymer cement mortar.

Polymer cement mortars (PCM) are the materials which are made by partially replacing the cement hydrate binders of conventional cement mortar with polymers. The polymeric admixtures include latexes or emulsions, redispersible polymer powders, water-soluble polymers, liquid thermoset resins and monomers. It has low permeability, and it reduces the incidence of drying shrinkage cracking, mainly designed for repairing concrete structures. One brand of PCM is MagneLine.

Lime mortar.

The setting speed can be increased by using impure limestone in the kiln, to form a hydraulic lime that will set on contact with water. Such a lime must be stored as a dry powder. Alternatively, a pozzolanic material such as calcined clay or brick dust may be added to the mortar mix. Addition of a pozzolanic material will make the mortar set reasonably quickly by reaction with the water.  It would be problematic to use Portland cement mortars to repair older buildings originally constructed using lime mortar. Lime mortar is softer than cement mortar, allowing brickwork a certain degree of flexibility to adapt to shifting ground or other changing conditions. Cement mortar is harder and allows little flexibility. The contrast can cause brickwork to crack where the two mortars are present in a single wall.  Lime mortar is considered breathable in that it will allow moisture to freely move through and evaporate from the surface. In old buildings with walls that shift over time, cracks can be found which allow rain water into the structure. The lime mortar allows this moisture to escape through evaporation and keeps the wall dry. Re−pointing or rendering an old wall with cement mortar stops the evaporation and can cause problems associated with moisture behind the cement.

Pozzolanic mortar.

Pozzolana is a fine, sandy volcanic ash. It was originally discovered and dug at Pozzuoli, nearby Mount Vesuvius in Italy, and was subsequently mined at other sites, too. The Romans learned that pozzolana added to lime mortar allowed the lime to set relatively quickly and even under water. Vitruvius, the Roman architect, spoke of four types of pozzolana. It is found in all the volcanic areas of Italy in various colours: black, white, grey and red. Pozzolana has since become a generic term for any siliceous and/or aluminous additive to slaked lime to create hydraulic cement.  Finely ground and mixed with lime it is a hydraulic cement, like Portland cement, and makes a strong mortar that will also set under water.

Firestop mortar.

Firestop mortars are mortars most typically used to firestop large openings in walls and floors required to have a fire-resistance rating. They are passive fire protection items. Firestop mortars differ in formula and properties from most other cementitious substances and cannot be substituted with generic mortars without violating the listing and approval use and compliance.  Firestop mortar is usually a combination of powder mixed with water, forming a cementatious stone which dries hard. It is sometimes mixed with lightweight aggregates, such as perlite or vermiculite. It is sometimes pigmented to distinguish it from generic materials in an effort to prevent unlawful substitution and to enable verification of the certification listing.

Radiocarbon dating.

As the mortar hardens, the current atmosphere is encased in the mortar and thus provides a sample for analysis. Various factors affect the sample and raise the margin of error for the analysis. The possibility to use radiocarbon dating as a tool for mortar dating was introduced as early as the 1960s, soon after the method was established (Delibrias and Labeyrie 1964; Stuiver and Smith 1965; Folk and Valastro 1976). The very first data were provided by van Strydonck et al. (1983), Heinemeier et al.(1997) and Ringbom and Remmer (1995). Than the methodological aspect were developed by different groups (an international team headed by Åbo Akademi University, and teams from CIRCE, CIRCe, ETHZ, Poznań, RICH and Milano-Bicocca laboratory. To evaluate the different anthropogenic carbon extraction methods for radiocarbon dating as well as to compare the different dating methods, i.e. radiocarbon and OSL, the first intercomparison study (MODIS) was set up and published in 2017.

Mortar is a workable paste which dries to bind building blocks such as stones, bricks, and concrete masonry units, to fill and seal the irregular gaps between them, and sometimes to add decorative colors or patterns to masonry walls. In its broadest sense, mortar includes pitch, asphalt, and soft mud or clay, as used between mud bricks. The word "mortar" comes from Latin, meaning crushed.

Mörtel (von lat. "mortarium" „Mörser“, „Mörtelgefäß“; regional auch "Speis", "m.") ist ein Baustoff, der aus einem Bindemittel (beispielsweise Kalk oder Zement), Gesteinskörnung mit höchstens 4 mm Korngröße sowie Zugabewasser besteht, gegebenenfalls noch aus Betonzusatzstoffen und -zusatzmitteln, und der durch chemische Reaktion der Bindemittel erhärtet. Eine Kenngröße für die Zusammensetzung ist der Wasserfeststoffwert. Der Mörtel dient in erster Linie zur Verbindung von Mauersteinen und zum Verputzen von Wänden und Decken. Seine Herstellung erfolgt entweder im Werk oder vor Ort auf der Baustelle.


Religious traditions.

Western churches.

Roman Catholics and high church Anglicans traditionally celebrate Midnight Mass, which begins either at or sometime before midnight on Christmas Eve. This ceremony, which is held in churches throughout the world, celebrates the birth of Christ, which is believed to have occurred at night. Midnight Mass is popular in Poland (pasterka) and Lithuania (piemenėlių mišios).  In recent years some churches have scheduled their "Midnight" Mass as early as 7 pm. This better suits the young children, whose choral singing has become a popular feature in some traditions. In Spanish-speaking areas, the Midnight Mass is sometimes referred to as "Misa de Gallo", or "Missa do Galo" in Portuguese ("Rooster's Mass"). In the Philippines, the custom has expanded into the nine-day "Simbang Gabi", when Filipinos attend dawn Masses (traditionally beginning around 04:00 to 05:00 PST) from 16 December, continuing daily until Christmas Eve. In 2009 Vatican officials scheduled the Midnight Mass to start at 10 pm so that the 82-year-old Pope Benedict XVI would not have too late a night.  A nativity scene may be erected indoors or outdoors, and is composed of figurines depicting the infant Jesus resting in a manger, Mary, and Joseph. Other figures in the scene may include angels, shepherds, and various animals. The figures may be made of any material, and arranged in a stable or grotto. The Magi may also appear, and are sometimes not placed in the scene until the week following Christmas to account for their travel time to Bethlehem. While most home nativity scenes are packed away at Christmas or shortly thereafter, nativity scenes in churches usually remain on display until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord.  Whilst it does not include any kind of Mass, the Church of Scotland has a service beginning just before midnight, in which carols are sung. The Church of Scotland no longer holds Hogmanay services on New Year's Eve, however. The Christmas Eve Services are still very popular. On Christmas Eve, the Christ Candle in the center of the Advent wreath is traditionally lit in many church services. In candlelight services, while singing "Silent Night", each member of the congregation receives a candle and passes along their flame which is first received from the Christ Candle.  Lutherans traditionally practice Christmas Eve Eucharistic traditions typical of Germany and Scandinavia. "Krippenspiele" (Nativity plays), special festive music for organ, vocal and brass choirs and candlelight services make Christmas Eve one of the highlights in the Lutheran Church calendar.  Christmas Vespers are popular in the early evening, and midnight services are also widespread in regions which are predominantly Lutheran. The old Lutheran tradition of a Christmas Vigil in the early morning hours of Christmas Day (Christmette) can still be found in some regions. In eastern and middle Germany, congregations still continue the tradition of "Quempas singing": separate groups dispersed in various parts of the church sing verses of the song "He whom shepherds once came Praising" ("Quem pastores laudavere") responsively. Methodists celebrate the evening in different ways. Some, in the early evening, come to their church to celebrate Holy Communion with their families. The mood is very solemn, and the only visible light is the Advent Wreath, and the candles upon the Lord's Table. Others celebrate the evening with services of light, which include singing the song "Silent Night" as a variety of candles (including personal candles) are lit. Other churches have late evening services perhaps at 11 pm, so that the church can celebrate Christmas Day together with the ringing of bells at midnight. Others offer Christmas Day services as well.  The annual "Nine Lessons and Carols", broadcast from King's College, Cambridge on Christmas Eve, has established itself a Christmas custom in the United Kingdom. It is broadcast outside the UK via the BBC World Service, and is also bought by broadcasters around the world.

Eastern churches.

In the Byzantine Rite, Christmas Eve is referred to as Paramony ("preparation"). It is the concluding day of the Nativity Fast and is observed as a day of strict fasting by those devout Byzantine Christians who are physically capable of doing so. In some traditions, nothing is eaten until the first star appears in the evening sky, in commemoration of the Star of Bethlehem. The liturgical celebration begins earlier in the day with the celebration of the Royal Hours, followed by the Divine Liturgy combined with the celebration of Vespers, during which a large number of passages from the Old Testament are chanted, recounting the history of salvation. After the dismissal at the end of the service, a new candle is brought out into the center of the church and lit, and all gather round and sing the Troparion and Kontakion of the Feast.  In the evening, the All-Night Vigil for the Feast of the Nativity is composed of Great Compline, Matins and the First Hour. The Byzantine services of Christmas Eve are intentionally parallel to those of Good Friday, illustrating the theological point that the purpose of the Incarnation was to make possible the Crucifixion and Resurrection. This is illustrated in Eastern icons of the Nativity, on which the Christ Child is wrapped in swaddling clothes reminiscent of his burial wrappings. The child is also shown lying on a stone, representing the Tomb of Christ, rather than a manger. The Cave of the Nativity is also a reminder of the cave in which Jesus was buried.  The services of Christmas Eve are also similar to those of the Eve of Theophany (Epiphany), and the two Great Feasts are considered one celebration.  In some Orthodox cultures, after the Vesperal Liturgy the family returns home to a festive meal, but one at which Orthodox fasting rules are still observed: no meat or dairy products (milk, cheese, eggs, etc.) are consumed (see below for variations according to nationality). Then they return to the church for the All-Night Vigil.  The next morning, Christmas Day, the Divine Liturgy is celebrated again, but with special features that occur only on Great Feasts of the Lord. After the dismissal of this Liturgy, the faithful customarily greet each other with the kiss of peace and the words: "Christ is Born!", to which the one being greeted responds: "Glorify Him!" (the opening words of the Canon of the Nativity that was chanted the night before during the Vigil). This greeting, together with many of the hymns of the feast, continue to be used until the leave-taking of the feast on 29 December.  The first three days of the feast are particularly solemn. The second day is known as the Synaxis of the Theotokos, and commemorates the role of the Virgin Mary in the Nativity of Jesus. The third day is referred to simply as "the Third Day of the Nativity". The Saturday and Sunday following 25 December have special Epistle and Gospel readings assigned to them. 29 December celebrates the Holy Innocents.  Byzantine Christians observe a festal period of twelve days, during which no one in the Church fasts, even on Wednesdays and Fridays, which are normal fasting days throughout the rest of the year. During this time one feast leads into another: 25–31 December is the afterfeast of the Nativity; 2–5 January is the forefeast of the Epiphany.

Meals.

Bulgaria.

In Bulgaria, the meal consists of an odd number of lenten dishes in compliance with the rules of fasting. They are usually the traditional sarma, bob chorba (bean soup), fortune kravai (pastry with a fortune in it; also called "bogovitsa", "vechernik", "kolednik"), stuffed peppers, nuts, dried fruit, boiled wheat. The meal is often accompanied with wine or Bulgaria's traditional alcoholic beverage rakia, in the past "olovina" (a type of homemade rye beer). The meals used to be put on top of hay, directly on the floor, together with a ploughshare or a coulter.

France.

In French-speaking places, Réveillon is a long dinner eaten on Christmas Eve.

Italy.

While other Christian families throughout the world celebrate the Christmas Eve meal with various meats, Italians (especially Sicilians) celebrate the traditional Catholic "Feast of the Seven Fishes" which was historically served after a 24-hour fasting period. Although Christmas fasting is no longer a popular custom, some Italian-Americans still enjoy a meatless Christmas Eve feast and attend the Midnight Mass. In various cultures, a festive dinner is traditionally served for the family and close friends in attendance, when the first star (usually Sirius) arrives on the sky.

Poland.

A similar tradition ("Wigilia", or 'Christmas Vigil') exists in Poland. The number of dishes used to be traditionally an odd number (usually 5, 7, 9, or 11.) According to the "Słownik etymologiczny języka polskiego" ("Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language") by Aleksander Brückner, the number of dishes was traditionally related to social class: the peasants' vigil consisted of 5 or 7 dishes, the gentry usually had 9, and the aristocracy, 11 dishes, but the even number 12 is also found today to remember the 12 disciples. It is obligatory to try a portion of all of them. Some traditions specify that the number of guests cannot be odd.  In Poland, gifts are unwrapped on the Christmas Eve, as opposed to the Christmas Day.

Lithuania.

Lithuanian Christmas Eve blends pagan and Christian traditions as initially it was a celebration of winter solstice. Traditionally, Lithuanians believed that animals could talk on that night, and it was possible to predict the future. "Kūčios" ("Holy Meal") is the most important event of the year and family reunion. Dead relatives are remembered with an empty plate set at the table. The feast starts after the rise of the evening star. No products made from meat, milk and alcohol are allowed during the Kūčios. In all, 12 dishes are served, all of them rustic, made from grains, fish, dried fruit or mushrooms including "kūčiukai". Small biscuits soaked in poppy seed milk are served. After the dinner is over the table is left uncleared overnight for the feast of "vėlės" (spirits or soul).

Russia, Ukraine.

In Russia, Ukraine, traditional, meatless, 12-dishes Christmas Eve Supper is served on Christmas Eve before opening gifts. The table is spread with a white cloth symbolic of the swaddling clothes the Child Jesus was wrapped in, and a large white candle stands in the center of the table symbolizing Christ the Light of the World. Next to it is a round loaf of bread symbolizing Christ Bread of Life. Hay is often displayed either on the table or as a decoration in the room, reminiscent of the manger in Bethlehem. The twelve dishes (which differ by nationality or region) symbolize the Twelve Apostles.  The Holy Meal was a common Eastern Orthodox tradition in the Russian Empire, but during the era of the Soviet Union it was greatly discouraged as a result of the official atheism of the former regime. It is coming back in Russia and continues to be popular in Ukraine.  The main attributes of Holy Meal in Ukraine are kutia, a poppy seed, honey and wheat dish, and uzvar, a drink made from reconstituted dried fruits. Other typical dishes are borscht, Varenyky, and dishes made of fish, phaseolus and cabbage.

Serbia.

In accordance with the Christmas traditions of the Serbs, their festive meal has a copious and diverse selection of foods, although it is prepared according to the rules of fasting.  As well as a round, unleavened loaf of bread and salt, which are necessary, this meal may comprise roast fish, cooked beans, sauerkraut, noodles with ground walnuts, honey, and wine.  Families in some Slavic countries leave an empty place at the table for guests (alluding to Mary and Joseph looking for shelter in Bethlehem).

Gift giving.

During the Reformation in 16th- and 17th-century Europe, many Protestants changed the gift bringer to the Christ Child or "Christkindl", and the date of giving gifts changed from 6 December to Christmas Eve. It is the night when Santa Claus makes his rounds delivering gifts to good children. Many trace the custom of giving gifts to the Magi who brought gifts for the Christ child in the manger.  In the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia and Hungary, where Saint Nicholas (sv. Mikuláš/szent Mikulás) gives his sweet gifts on 6 December, the Christmas gift-giver is the Child Jesus (Ježíšek in Czech, Jézuska in Hungarian, Ježiško in Slovak and Isusek in Croatian).  In most parts of Austria, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic and Switzerland, presents are traditionally exchanged on the evening of 24 December. Children are commonly told that presents were brought either by the Christkind (German for Christ child), or by the Weihnachtsmann. Both leave the gifts, but are in most families not seen doing so. In Germany, the gifts are also brought on 6 December by "the Nikolaus" with his helper Knecht Ruprecht.  In Estonia "Jõuluvana", Finland "Joulupukki", Denmark "Julemanden", Norway "Julenissen" and Sweden "Jultomten", personally meets children and gives presents in the evening of Christmas Eve.  In Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Denmark, Estonia, the Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Quebec, Romania, Uruguay, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and the Czech Republic, Christmas presents are opened mostly on the evening of the 24th – following German tradition, this is also the practice among the British Royal Family since it was introduced by Queen Victoria and Albert, Prince Consort – while in Italy, the United States, the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, English Canada, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia, this occurs mostly on the morning of Christmas Day.  In other Latin American countries, people stay awake until midnight, when they open the presents.  In Spain, gifts are traditionally opened on the morning of 6 January, Epiphany day ("Día de Los Tres Reyes Magos"), though in some other countries, like Mexico, Argentina and Uruguay, people receive presents both around Christmas and on the morning of Epiphany day.  In Belgium and the Netherlands Saint Nicholas or Sinterklaas and his companion Zwarte Piet deliver presents to children and adults alike on the evening of 5 December, the eve of his nameday. On 24 December they go to church or watch the late-night Mass on TV, or have a meal.

Christmas Eve around the world.

Christmas Eve is celebrated in different ways around the world, varying by country and region. Elements common to many areas of the world include the attendance of special religious observances such as a midnight Mass or Vespers and the giving and receiving of presents. Along with Easter, Christmastime is one of the most important periods on the Christian calendar, and is often closely connected to other holidays at this time of year, such as Advent, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, St. Nicholas Day, St. Stephen's Day, New Year's, and the Feast of the Epiphany.

Celebrations.

Among Christians, as well as non-Christians who celebrate Christmas, the significant amount of vacation travel, and travel back to family homes, that takes place in the lead-up to Christmas means that Christmas Eve is also frequently a time of social events and parties, worldwide.

In Jewish culture.

Nittel Nacht is a name given to Christmas Eve by Jewish scholars in the 17th century.

In contemporary American-Jewish culture.

With Christmas Day a work holiday throughout the United States, there is a space of unfilled free time during which much of American commerce and society is not functioning, and which can give rise to a sense of loneliness or alienation for American Jews.  Jews also typically do not engage in the family gathering and religious worship activities that are central to Christmas Eve for Christians.  Typical contemporary activities have usually been limited to "Chinese and a movie"—consuming a meal at a Chinese restaurant, which tend to be open for business on the Christmas holiday, and watching a movie at the theater or at home, stereotypically a rerun of "It's a Wonderful Life".  Since the 1980s a variety of social events for young Jews have sprung up, and become popular, on Christmas Eve. These include the Matzo Ball, The Ball, and a number of local events organized by Jewish communities and local Jewish Federations in North America.

In Chinese culture.

In Mandarin, Christmas Eve is called 平安夜 ("peaceful night"). People exchange apples, because the word for "apple" (果) is a rhyming wordplay with "peace" (安).

Historical events.

A number of historical events have been influenced by the occurrence of Christmas Eve.

Christmas truce.

During World War I in 1914 and 1915 there was an unofficial Christmas truce, particularly between British and German troops. The truce began on Christmas Eve, 24 December 1914, when German troops began decorating the area around their trenches in the region of Ypres, Belgium, for Christmas. They began by placing candles on trees, then continued the celebration by singing Christmas carols, most notably "Stille Nacht" ("Silent Night"). The British troops in the trenches across from them responded by singing English carols. The two sides shouted Christmas greetings to each other. Soon there were calls for visits across the "No man's land" when small gifts were exchanged. The truce also allowed a breathing space during which recently killed soldiers could be brought back behind their lines by burial parties. Funerals took place as soldiers from both sides mourned the dead together and paid their respects. At one funeral in No Man's Land, soldiers from both sides gathered and read a passage from Psalm 23. The truce occurred in spite of opposition at higher levels of the military command. Earlier in the autumn, a call by Pope Benedict XV for an official truce between the warring governments had been ignored.

Apollo 8 reading from Genesis.

On 24 December 1968, in what was the most watched television broadcast to that date, the astronauts Bill Anders, Jim Lovell and Frank Borman of Apollo 8 surprised the world with a reading of the Creation from the Book of Genesis as they orbited the Moon. Madalyn Murray O'Hair, an atheist activist, filed a lawsuit under the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The trial court dismissed the lawsuit, which was upheld on appeal.  In 1969, the United States Postal Service issued a stamp (Scott# 1371) commemorating the Apollo 8 flight around the Moon. The stamp featured a detail of the famous photograph, "Earthrise", of the Earth "rising" over the Moon (NASA image AS8-14-2383HR), taken by Anders on Christmas Eve, and the words, "In the beginning God...".

Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation of Christmas Day. Together, both days are considered one of the most culturally significant celebrations in Christendom and Western society.

Der Heilige Abend am 24. Dezember, auch Heiligabend oder Weihnachtsabend genannt, ist der Vorabend des Weihnachtsfestes; vielerorts wird auch der ganze Vortag so bezeichnet. Am Abend findet unter anderem in Deutschland, der Schweiz, in Liechtenstein und in Österreich traditionell die Bescherung statt. Als Heilige Nacht oder als Christnacht wird die Nacht vom 24. auf den 25. Dezember bezeichnet.


Responsibilities.

IANA is broadly responsible for the allocation of globally unique names and numbers that are used in Internet protocols that are published as Request for Comments documents. These documents describe methods, behaviors, research, or innovations applicable to the working of the Internet and Internet-connected systems. IANA maintains a close liaison with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and RFC Editorial team in fulfilling this function.  In the case of the two major Internet namespaces, namely IP addresses and domain names, extra administrative policy and delegation to subordinate administrations is required because of the multi-layered distributed use of these resources.  IANA is responsible for assignment of Internet numbers which are numerical identifier assigned to an Internet resource or used in the networking protocols of the Internet Protocol Suite. Examples include IP addresses and autonomous system (AS) numbers.

IP addresses.

IANA delegates allocations of IP address blocks to regional Internet registries (RIRs). Each RIR allocates addresses for a different area of the world. Collectively the RIRs have created the Number Resource Organization formed as a body to represent their collective interests and ensure that policy statements are coordinated globally.  The RIRs divide their allocated address pools into smaller blocks and delegate them to Internet service providers and other organizations in their operating regions. Since the introduction of the CIDR system, IANA has typically allocated address space in the size of /8 prefix blocks for IPv4 and /23 to /12 prefix blocks from the 2000::/3 IPv6 block to requesting regional registries as needed. Since the exhaustion of the Internet Protocol Version 4 address space, no further IPv4 address space is allocated by IANA.

Domain names.

IANA administers the data in the root nameservers, which form the top of the hierarchical Domain name system (DNS) tree. This task involves liaising with top-level domain "Registrar-of-Record"s, the root nameserver operators, and ICANN's policy making apparatus.  IANA operates the int registry for international treaty organizations, the arpa zone for Internet infrastructure purposes, including reverse DNS service, and other critical zones such as root-servers.

Protocol assignments.

IANA maintains protocol registries in tables of protocols and their parameters and coordinates registration of protocols. As of 2015 there were over 2,800 registries and subregistries.

Time zone database.

The IANA time zone database holds the time zone differences and rules for the various regions of the world and allows this information to be mirrored and used by computers and other electronic devices to maintain proper configuration for timekeeping.  IANA assumed responsibility for the database on October 16, 2011, after the "Astrolabe, Inc. v. Olson et al." decision caused the shutdown of the FTP server which had previously been the primary source of the database.

History.

IANA was established informally as a reference to various technical functions for the ARPANET, that Jon Postel and Joyce K. Reynolds performed at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and at the University of Southern California's Information Sciences Institute. On March 26, 1972, Vint Cerf and Jon Postel at UCLA called for establishing a socket number catalog in RFC 322. Network administrators were asked to submit a note or place a phone call, "describing the function and socket numbers of network service programs at each HOST". This catalog was subsequently published as RFC 433 in December 1972. In it Postel first proposed a registry of assignments of port numbers to network services, calling himself the "czar of socket numbers".  The first reference to the name "IANA" in the RFC series is in RFC 1083, published in December, 1988 by Postel at USC-ISI, referring to Joyce K. Reynolds as the IANA contact. However the function, and the term, was well established long before that; RFC 1174 says that "Throughout its entire history, the Internet system has employed a central Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA)..."  In 1995, the National Science Foundation authorized Network Solutions to assess domain name registrants a $50 fee per year for the first two years, 30 percent of which was to be deposited in the Intellectual Infrastructure Fund (IIF), a fund to be used for the preservation and enhancement of the intellectual infrastructure of the Internet. There was widespread dissatisfaction with this concentration of power (and money) in one company, and people looked to IANA for a solution. Postel wrote up a draft on IANA and the creation of new top level domains. He was trying to institutionalize IANA. In retrospect, this would have been valuable, since he unexpectedly died about two years later.  In January 1998, Postel was threatened by US Presidential science advisor Ira Magaziner with the statement "You'll never work on the Internet again" after Postel collaborated with root server operators to test using a root server other than Network Solutions' "A" root to act as the authority over the root zone. Demonstrating that control of the root was from the IANA rather than from Network Solutions would have clarified IANA's authority to create new top-level domains as a step to resolving the DNS Wars, but he ended his effort after Magaziner's threat, and died not long after.  Jon Postel managed the IANA function from its inception on the ARPANET until his death in October 1998. By his almost 30 years of "selfless service", Postel created his de facto authority to manage key parts of the Internet infrastructure. After his death, Joyce K. Reynolds, who had worked with him for many years, managed the transition of the IANA function to ICANN.  Starting in 1988, IANA was funded by the U.S. government under a contract between the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Information Sciences Institute. This contract expired in April 1997, but was extended to preserve IANA.  On December 24, 1998, USC entered into a transition agreement with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ICANN, transferring the IANA project to ICANN, effective January 1, 1999, thus making IANA an operating unit of ICANN.  In June 1999, at its Oslo meeting, IETF signed an agreement with ICANN concerning the tasks that IANA would perform for the IETF; this is published as RFC 2860.  On February 8, 2000, the Department of Commerce entered into an agreement with ICANN for ICANN to perform the IANA functions.  On October 7, 2013 the Montevideo Statement on the Future of Internet Cooperation was released by the leaders of a number of organizations involved in coordinating the Internet's global technical infrastructure, loosely known as the "I*" (or "I-star") group. Among other things, the statement "expressed strong concern over the undermining of the trust and confidence of Internet users globally due to recent revelations of pervasive monitoring and surveillance" and "called for accelerating the globalization of ICANN and IANA functions, towards an environment in which all stakeholders, including all governments, participate on an equal footing". This desire to move away from a United States centric approach is seen as a reaction to the ongoing NSA surveillance scandal. The statement was signed by the heads of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the Internet Engineering Task Force, the Internet Architecture Board, the World Wide Web Consortium, the Internet Society, and the five regional Internet address registries (African Network Information Center, American Registry for Internet Numbers, Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre, Latin America and Caribbean Internet Addresses Registry, and Réseaux IP Européens Network Coordination Centre).  In October 2013, Fadi Chehadé, current President and CEO of ICANN, met with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in Brasilia. Upon Chehadé's invitation, the two announced that Brazil would host an international summit on Internet governance in April 2014. The announcement came after the 2013 disclosures of mass surveillance by the U.S. government, and President Rousseff's speech at the opening session of the 2013 United Nations General Assembly, where she strongly criticized the American surveillance program as a "breach of international law". The "Global Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance (NET mundial)" will include representatives of government, industry, civil society, and academia. At the IGF VIII meeting in Bali in October 2013 a commenter noted that Brazil intends the meeting to be a "summit" in the sense that it will be high level with decision-making authority. The organizers of the "NET mundial" meeting have decided that an online forum called "/1net", set up by the I* group, will be a major conduit of non-governmental input into the three committees preparing for the meeting in April.  In April 2014 the NetMundial Initiative, a plan for international governance of the Internet, was proposed at the Global Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance (GMMFIG) conference (23–24 April 2014) and later developed into the NetMundial Initiative by ICANN CEO Fadi Chehade along with representatives of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (Comitê Gestor da Internet no Brasil), commonly referred to as "CGI.br".  The meeting produced a nonbinding statement in favor of consensus-based decision-making. It reflected a compromise and did not harshly condemn mass surveillance or include the words "net neutrality", despite initial support for that from Brazil. The final resolution says ICANN should be under international control by September 2015. A minority of governments, including Russia, China, Iran and India, were unhappy with the final resolution and wanted multi-lateral management for the Internet, rather than broader multi-stakeholder management.  A month later, the Panel On Global Internet Cooperation and Governance Mechanisms (convened by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the World Economic Forum (WEF) with assistance from The Annenberg Foundation), supported and included the NetMundial statement in its own report.

Oversight.

IANA was managed by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) under contract with the United States Department of Commerce (DOC) and pursuant to an agreement with the IETF from 1998 to 2016. The Department of Commerce also provided an ongoing oversight function, whereby it verified additions and changes made in the DNS root zone to ensure IANA complied with its policies. The Internet Architecture Board (IAB), on behalf of the IETF, could terminate the agreement under which ICANN performs IANA functions with six months notice.  ICANN and the Department of Commerce made an agreement for the "joint development of the "mechanisms methods, and procedures necessary to effect the transition of Internet domain name and addressing system (DNS) to the private sector" via a "Joint Project Agreement" in 1998.  On January 28, 2003, the Department of Commerce, via the Acquisition and Grants Office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, issued a notice of intent to extend the IANA contract for three years. In August 2006, the U.S. Department of Commerce extended the IANA contract with ICANN by an additional five years, subject to annual renewals.  Since ICANN is managing a worldwide resource, while the IANA function is contracted to ICANN by the US Department of Commerce, various proposals have been brought forward to decouple the IANA function from ICANN.  On October 1, 2009 the "Joint Project Agreement" between ICANN and U.S. Department of Commerce expired, replaced by an "Affirmation of Commitments". On March 14, 2014, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced its intent to transition key Internet domain name functions to a global multi-stakeholder community.  In August 2016 ICANN incorporated Public Technical Identifiers, a non-profit affiliate corporation in California, to take over the IANA functions once the current contract expired at the end of September. The Department of Commerce confirmed that its criteria for transitioning IANA Stewardship to the Internet multistakeholder community had been met, and that it intended to allow its contract with ICANN to expire on September 30, 2016, allowing the transition to take effect. On October the contract between the United States Department of Commerce and ICANN to perform the IANA functions was allowed to expire and the stewardship of IANA functions was officially transitioned to the private-sector.

The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) is a standards organization that oversees global IP address allocation, autonomous system number allocation, root zone management in the Domain Name System (DNS), media types, and other Internet Protocol-related symbols and Internet numbers.

Die Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA, etwa: "Behörde für die zugewiesenen Nummern des Internets") ist eine Abteilung der ICANN und für die Zuordnung von Nummern und Namen im Internet, insbesondere von IP-Adressen, zuständig. Sie ist eine der ältesten Institutionen im Internet.


History.

The origins of Vianden date back to the Gallo-Roman age when there was a castellum on the site of the present castle. The original name of Vianden was Viennensis. The valley was covered in vineyards in Roman times, the first historical reference to Vianden was in 698 when there is a record of a gift in the form of a vineyard "in Monte Viennense" made by Saint Irmina to the Abbey of Echternach. Vianden possesses one of the oldest charters in Europe, granted in 1308 by Philip II, count of Vianden, from whom the family of Nassau-Vianden sprang, and who was consequently the ancestor of William of Orange.  In the Middle Ages, Vianden's craftsmen were recognised for their skills as tanners, drapers, weavers, barrelmakers, masons, locksmiths and goldsmiths. In 1490, they created guilds for their various trades. Over the years pig-farming and leathermaking became the major industry with the establishment of two tanneries at the end of the 19th century which finally closed in the mid-1950s. The castle was built between the 11th and 14th centuries and became the seat of the counts of Vianden. It was further developed until the 18th century but with the departure of the Counts of Luxembourg to the Netherlands combined with the effects of fire and an earthquake, it slowly deteriorated. The final blow came in 1820 when William I of the Netherlands sold it to a local merchant who in turn sold off its contents and masonry piecemeal, reducing it to a ruin. There were several attempts at restoration but these were hampered by problems of ownership. Still, the chapel which forms part of it was restored in 1849 by Prince Henry of the Netherlands, and during one of his visits to the town Victor Hugo lived in the castle for three months in 1871. Not until 1977, when Grand Duke Jean ceded the castle to the State, was it possible to undertake large-scale work, most of which has now been completed.  Vianden is also remembered as the site of multiple battles in World War II. In November 1944 it saw fierce combat between the Luxembourg Resistance and German forces. It was the last place in Luxembourg to be freed from the Germans in February 1945 when the Americans completed Luxembourg's liberation. A memorial to the west of the town, overlooking the castle, commemorates this final battle.  The first Boeing 747-8F built, RC501, is named "City of Vianden" and is operated by Cargolux Airlines.

Geography.

Vianden is a drive from Luxembourg town. It can also be reached by bus from Diekirch or Clervaux which have rail connections to the city of Luxembourg. There are also buses to Bitburg in Germany. Many visitors arrive by bicycle taking the signposted cycle tracks from the south along the Our valley.

Climate.

Like the city of Luxembourg, Vianden (altitude ca. 200 m) has a temperate climate with warm summers (average day temperature around 24°C, on occasion as high as 35 °C) and chilly winters (daytime average 5 °C but sometimes as low as −15 °C at night). Rainfall is moderate, but on average it rains less than 10 days per month. The prevailing wind is south-westerly. The summer evenings are particularly pleasant, often with temperatures of around 25 °C until 11 pm. Very occasionally there are short periods of drought but the vegetation seldom loses its rich green for very long. Daylight extends from about 5 am to 10.30 pm in June and from 8 am to 4.30 pm in December.  In the summer, temperatures can be quite warm and in the case that the preceding winter is particularly mild, there is a higher chance that insect populations will over-reproduce. During these summers, fruit fly and mosquito populations increase significantly becoming a nuisance for residents and tourists.

Economy.

The scenic atmosphere and various local attractions have made Vianden a popular tourist destination in Luxembourg with many tens of thousands of visitors every year, especially from the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. With its 14 hotels, four campsites and youth hostel, there is a wide selection of accommodation. In addition, Vianden benefits from the large numbers of day-trippers who take advantage of its restaurants, cafés, souvenir shops and sports facilities. The economy is however not without problems. While the hydro-electric pumping plant continues directly and indirectly to provide employment for the local population, the closure of the Electrolux plant a couple of years ago has resulted in a considerable loss of jobs. The commune is now planning to encourage the establishment of skilled craft industries in the area by making land available for development.

Attractions.

Vianden is one of Luxembourg's main tourist centres with large numbers of holidaymakers and local visitors at all times of the year. In particular, the recently restored castle set spectactularly on the rocks above the town has become a museum which traces its history and its links with the royal families of Europe back to the Middle Ages. Then there are links with Victor Hugo who visited Luxembourg in 1862 and 1865 and spent a longer period in Vianden in 1871. His sketches and letters can be seen in the museum located in the house where he stayed next to the bridge over the Our. There is also a museum of arts and crafts (Musée d'Art rustique) and a doll and toy museum (Musée de la Poupée et du Jouet).  But many people just visit Vianden to wander through its hilly, historic streets or as a centre for walking, camping or cycling in the north of Luxembourg. There is a pleasant cycle route up the Sauer and Our valleys to Vianden and there are many signposted walks in the area.  During the summer months, a chairlift operates from the banks of the river in the lower part of the town taking you high above the castle with magnificent views over the landscape.  Vianden also has a number of annual events and celebrations. The most famous of these is the nut market in October when the local walnuts are on sale together with walnut cakes, walnut confectionery, walnut brandy and walnut liqueurs.  Finally, there is an interesting attraction a few kilometers to the north of Vianden, the Vianden Pumped Storage Plant, which provides pumped-storage hydroelectricity storage and generation systems to benefit from the surplus electric power at night, and provide extra energy during peak hours.

Historic monuments.

In addition to the castle, Vianden has a number of interesting historic monuments.

Coat of arms.

The arms of Vianden (see top right-hand box) have not changed since 1288 when Godefroid I adopted the arms of Louvain-Perwez. The city was granted the right to use the same arms sometime during the 14th century. The arms were registered in the "armorial général de France" in 1696 by order of the King of France.

Famous people.

Many royal families and heads of state have associations with Vianden or have at least visited it. However, several other figures are worthy of note:

Twin towns — sister cities.

Vianden is twinned with:

Vianden () is a commune with town status in the Oesling, north-eastern Luxembourg, with over 1,800 inhabitants. It is the capital of the canton of Vianden, which is part of the district of Diekirch. Vianden lies on the Our river, near the border between Luxembourg and Germany.

Vianden () ist eine Gemeinde im Großherzogtum Luxemburg. Vianden ist Hauptort des gleichnamigen Kantons Vianden und einer der wichtigsten Touristenorte Luxemburgs.