Jack Ramsay (politician)

F.J. "Jack" Ramsay (born August 23, 1937) is a former Reform Party of Canada member of the House of Commons of Canada. Ramsay is also a former Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer and was later convicted for indecent assault for actions during his time as an officer.
Western Canada Concept.
Ramsay took over the leadership of the Western Canada Concept, a party that advocated the separation of western Canada to form an independent nation, at the end of 1982. He acted as its leader until 1987, the year he joined the Reform Party. In April 1982, the party's executive drew up a Statement of Independence which committed any future WCC government to "prepare for independence in a peaceful and democratic manner". While the WCC under Ramsay's leadership had a brief period when it pursued a Triple E Senate as an alternative to outright independence, in late 1986 Ramsay declared the WCC would revert to its Western separatist goals. Only two years after making this renewed commitment to Western separatism as WCC leader.
Reform Party.
Ramsay first ran as a Reform candidate in the staunchly conservative riding of Crowfoot in the 1988 election. He did surprisingly well in the riding, coming in second to Progressive Conservative Arnold Malone by 7,685 votes, which at that time had been the narrowest margin of victory by any winner in the history of the riding. It was also the best showing of any Reform Party candidate.
Malone retired before the 1993 federal election, and Ramsay ran again for the Reform Party. This time he won a resounding victory, owing partly to the collapse of the Tories throughout western Canada. He finished some 17,000 votes ahead of his nearest opponent. He was re-elected in the 1997 election.
He served as the party's Justice Critic from 1996 until 1998, and as Citizenship and Immigration Critic from 1998 until 2000.
Criminal charges.
On November 24, 1999, Ramsay was convicted of attempted rape of a 14-year-old Cree girl, committed while he was an RCMP officer in Pelican Narrows 30 years previously. While questioning the girl as a crime victim, he had asked her to physically demonstrate her understanding of the concept of sexual intercourse.
He was sentenced to nine months imprisonment. The Reform Party voted to remove him from caucus the following morning, although he refused to resign his seat in the House of Commons on the grounds that he had not yet been sentenced and continued to protest his innocence of the crime. He subsequently appealed the conviction, and a new trial was ordered due to errors in the judge's instructions to the jury. His removal from the Reform Party caucus was also suspended pending the outcome of the appeal.
He continued to sit as a member of the Reform Party, and its successor the Canadian Alliance, until April 5, 2000, when he faced new criminal allegations related to a separate incident in which Ramsay was alleged to have confined a 15-year-old girl and made threats of a sexual nature. He then sat as an "Independent Canadian Alliance" member from April 6, 2000 until June 27, 2000, at which point his membership in the party was terminated. He sat as an independent Member of Parliament until that Parliament was dissolved.
Ramsay's trial on the unlawful confinement charges began in May 2000. He was acquitted on these charges two days later.
Ramsay ran in the 2000 federal election as an independent candidate, but was overwhelmingly defeated by Canadian Alliance candidate Kevin Sorenson.
In the retrial on the original charges, Ramsay pleaded guilty in October 2001 to a lesser charge of indecent assault, and was sentenced to one year's probation and community service. He subsequently sued the RCMP, the Attorney General of Saskatchewan and the Attorney General of Canada for malicious prosecution.


Dave Robbins (trombonist)

Dave Robbins (1923–2005) was an American-Canadian trombonist, composer, arranger, and teacher. Born in Greensburg, Indiana, Robbins studied music education at Sam Houston State Teachers' College and the University of Southern California. After a stint in the United States Marine Corps, Robbins worked as a trombonist in symphony orchestras and in Harry James' band (1948–1954). He moved to Vancouver in 1951 and became a Canadian citizen in 1965.
From 1955 to 1970, Robbins was the principal trombonist with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and performed with other local orchestras. He organized and led show bands featured in Vancouver nightclubs, and led some of city's most popular big bands. In the 1960s his big band was featured regularly on national radio programs. His original compositions included Jazz Impressions of the Middle East (1967).
Robbins taught young musicians at Vancouver Community College and the University of British Columbia. His students included Herb Besson, Hugh Fraser, R&B saxophonist Gordie Bertram of the Powder Blues Band, and New Orleans-based saxophonist and jazz educator John Doheny.


WWII/Korea LVT Museum

The WWII/Korea LVT Museum is located in a Quonset hut-style building at Camp Del Mar, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, near the Assault Amphibian School Battalion Training Command. It houses exhibits on landing vehicles tracked (LVTs) from World War II and the Korean War, including six vintage models used by the US Marine Corps. The museum highlights the service of the "Alligator" Marines during the amphibious assaults of World War II and the Korean War. In 1996, the museum won the prestigious Colonel John H. Magruder III Award from the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation.


Navy League of the United States

The Navy League of the United States, commonly referred to as the Navy League, is a national association with nearly 50,000 members who advocate for a strong, credible United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, United States Coast Guard and U.S. Merchant Marine.
It was founded in 1902, at the suggestion of Theodore Roosevelt. The Navy League describes itself as "a civilian organization dedicated to the education of our citizens, including our elected officials, and the support of the men and women of the sea services and their families."
Publications.
"Seapower" magazine and the "Almanac of Seapower" are the official publications of the Navy League. "Seapower" is published monthly and focuses on maritime defense news. The "Almanac of Seapower" is published annually in January.


USA Federal Credit Union

United Services of America Federal Credit Union (often referred to as USA Federal Credit Union or USA Fed) was a credit union headquartered in San Diego, California, chartered and regulated under the authority of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) of the U.S. federal government.
As of April 2009, USA Federal Credit Union had over $600 million USD in assets, and over 61,000 members.
USA Fed was one of 19 credit unions based in San Diego, California.
History.
USA Federal Credit Union began in November 1953 with ten members as N.T.C. San Diego Employees Federal Credit Union. The employee-organized federal credit union was initially formed to serve the civilian employees of the Naval Training Center San Diego. In 1955, all military personnel working at N.T.C. were added to the field of membership. As the credit union grew, the field of membership expanded internationally allowing for USA Fed's presence in the Pacific Rim.
From 2004 until 2007, the credit union marketed itself as USA Federal, unveiling a unified brand image across printed collateral materials and their online presence.
In 2008, the credit union began promoting the use of the shortened name USA Fed. On March 26, 2010, USA Fed announced to members that their official web site address would be changing to usafed.org.
On September 22, 2010, USA Fed announced plans to merge with Navy Federal Credit Union, stating that joint operations would begin October 4, 2010 under the Navy Federal banner.
Membership.
USA Fed's field of membership was set by the NCUA. As with all credit unions, membership in USA Federal is limited to individuals sharing the common bond defined in its credit union charter. Membership in USA Fed is limited to:
Organization.
USA Fed was chartered with NCUA. Like all credit unions, USA Fed was governed by a board of volunteers, elected by and from its membership.
Services.
USA Fed offered the typical suite of account services offered by most financial institutions, including savings accounts, checking accounts, IRA accounts, and certificates. The savings product is named "Share Savings" to reflect the fact that a member's initial savings deposit ($5) literally represents their share of ownership in the credit union. USA Fed also offers members consumer loans, credit cards, mortgages and home equity lines of credit, as well as some small business services. USA Fed's Credit Union Service Organization (CUSO), CUSO Financial Services, L.P. (CFS), offers more extensive investment services, online brokerage services, and insurance.
By June 30, 2010, USA Fed closed their Las Vegas, Nevada branch, one of several inherited from another credit union they absorbed years ago, bringing the total branched to 19. As of March 9, 2009, USA Fed has 20 branches and 23 ATMs, located both inside the United States (California and Nevada) and abroad (Japan and Korea).
Scholarship programs.
In 1987, the Board of Directors at USA Federal established a Student Scholarship Program awarding five scholarships to college-bound high school seniors.
In 2001, following the untimely death of the USA Federal CEO, the Board renamed the Scholarship Program the Martin P. Cassell Scholarship Program in his honor.
In 2006, the Board of Directors established The CDR Timothy R. McMaster, USN, Scholarship Program in memoriam of a distinguished Board Member who provided 22 years (1984–2006) of volunteer service to USA Federal Credit Union. One scholarship will be awarded to a college-bound high school senior who is the child of an active duty military member.
Community involvement.
USA Fed was a long-time supporter of San Diego Fleet Week, where Director of Military Affairs and former prisoner-of-war, Jim Bedinger, has served in several officer positions, including Treasurer for the San Diego Fleet Week Foundation.
Since 2004, USA Fed has been a sponsor of Walk on the Wild Side, an event benefiting the San Diego Zoo.


Tin Can Sailors

Tin Can Sailors is the name of The National Association of Destroyer Veterans in the United States. It currently numbers approximately 20,000 members as of the end of 2010.
"Tin can sailor" is a term used to refer to sailors on destroyers.
The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors is a book by James D. Hornfischer about the Battle off Samar on October 25, 1944, in which destroyers saw off a much larger force of Japanese ships.
"Tales from a Tin Can: The USS Dale from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay" is a book by Michael Keith Olson which follows the destroyer USS "Dale" throughout World War II. The exploits of her sailors are told in their own words.
"Tin Can Sailors Will Not Be Forgotten" is a 53-minute-long documentary film directed by Greg Berg, which follows the destroyer USS "Morris" through her 15 battle stars earned in The Pacific War. The sailors themselves tell the story as recollections from a modern-day reunion.


USCG Activities Europe

United States Coast Guard Activities Europe (ACTEUR) is a Coast Guard Marine Safety unit located in Schinnen, The Netherlands.
Unit History.
At the request of the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) established offices throughout Europe near the end of World War II. Their mission was initially to handle the influx of U.S. merchant ships and merchant seaman. However, after the war, the workload declined and offices remained only in London, Bremerhaven and Rotterdam. In the 1960s the name Activities Europe (ACTEUR) was first given to the office in London and they were tasked as the centralized support for CG LORAN stations throughout Europe.
In 1975 the other remaining USCG offices were consolidated and a Marine Inspection Office (MIO) was established in Rotterdam. This was the first MIO established outside the U.S. and its mission was similar to that of today's unit. However, in June 1982 MIO Rotterdam was closed for budgetary reasons and the overseas inspection responsibilities in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East were transferred to MIO New York. From June 1982 until July 1995, MIO New York conducted overseas inspections using a combination of inspectors from the U.S. and personnel from ACTEUR London.
With the turn-over of the LORAN stations to the "host" countries in the early 1990s, ACTEUR London was closed. A new command, Activities/Marine Inspection Office Europe, was commissioned on July 11, 1995 in Rotterdam.
The unit has continued to grow and evolve during the Coast Guard's transition to the Department of Homeland Security and today our maritime security role continues to expand. Between 2004 and 2007, additional people were assigned to ACTEUR as International Port Security Liaison Officers (IPSLO). IPLSOs work with 83 different countries to align maritime security efforts and share best practices.
In December 2012 the office moved again as a tenent of U. S. Army Garrison Schinnen, in Schinnen Netherlands.
Missions.
Flag Administration, Safety, Security, and Pollution Prevention For US Flag.
U.S. Vessel Inspections – Safety, security, and environmental protection inspections on U.S. flag vessels account for the majority of our flag administration workload. The somewhat transient U.S. fleet that operates within the AOR includes offshore oil industry vessels and Mobile Offshore Drilling Units working in West Africa and on the North Sea and Arabian Sea, and U.S. deep draft cargo ships (both commercial and U.S. government owned), which navigate throughout the Area of Responsibility (AOR).
ACTEUR's marine inspectors focus on the structural integrity, vital systems, propulsion, seaworthiness, hazardous conditions, lifesaving, firefighting, safety of navigation, etc., on U.S flag commercial vessels. Our marine inspectors travel to over 30 countries throughout the AOR to ensure compliance with U.S. laws and regulations and international conventions.
In addition to the fleet in operation, ACTEUR also oversees any major U.S. flag new-building projects under construction within the AOR, prototype & production testing of primary lifesaving appliances for formal USCG Approval, and of third party organizations that have been authorized to conduct relevant work on behalf of the USCG.
U.S. Vessel Investigations - ACTEUR also investigates marine casualties (including incidents accidental or purposeful) involving U.S. vessels operating within the AOR. Primarily to identify safeguards and prevent re-occurrence, our investigators attempt to determine the causes, evaluate the actions of USCG licensed & documented mariners and, as appropriate, initiate legal actions.
Port State Control Activities.
Although ACTEUR does not have Captain of the Port jurisdiction, we play a key role in the USCG Port State control program for European built cruise ships, foreign flag tank vessels and compressed gas carriers. The overwhelming majority of cruise ships that trade in the U.S. are being built in European shipyards and ACTEUR marine inspectors, working in conjunction with U.S. counterparts, conduct expanded Port State Control exams during the construction of these vessels to ensure compliance with international safety regulations, especially those concerning structural fire protection and lifesaving arrangements.
International Port Security Program.
In 2004 ACTEUR became home to a team of International Port Security Liaison Officers (IPSLOs) who work with all maritime trading countries in the AOR. The IPSLOs are a vital part of the Coast Guard's International Port Security (IPS) Program. Their mission is to learn about maritime port security efforts and implementation of the ISPS Code in all countries that conduct maritime trade with the U.S.
This is accomplished by continual engagement with fellow maritime nations. At times engagements are less formal and conducted by the IPSLO alone and other times more formal and include a delegation of IPS Program managers from Washington DC or Portsmouth, Virginia. In all cases, engagements provide the opportunity to conduct on-site information exchanges, share best practices, and observe each country's efforts on maritime port security. IPSLOs also facilitate reciprocal visits to the U.S. allowing other nations to view first hand security practices in U.S. ports.
International Outreach.
ACTEUR carries out a wide variety of outreach and engagement activities. As the USCG's primary representative in the region we work with U.S. embassies, coast guards, international organizations, and the international maritime community to share information and improve understanding of USCG roles, missions, and objectives. We actively participate in various international maritime industry & regulatory forums. Working with our international maritime colleagues, we attempt to improve maritime security and safety and work together to eliminate substandard shipping throughout the world. As a result, we regularly participate in International Maritime Organization (IMO) activities, the Paris and Black Sea Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control groups, the European Commission's MARSEC, and the International Organisation for Standardisation.


USCGC Chelan

USCGC "Chelan" (1928) was a belonging to the United States Coast Guard launched on 19 May 1928 and commissioned on 5 September 1928 . After 13 years of service to the Coast Guard, she was transferred to the Royal Navy as part of the Lend-Lease Act, and named HMS "Lulworth" (Y60) .
During the war "Lulworth" served in a convoy Escort Group for Western Approaches Command
She returned to the U.S. Coast Guard after World War II.
Construction and commissioning.
"Chelan" was laid down by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation at Quincy, Massachusetts, on 14 November 1927 and launched on 19 May 1928. She was commissioned into U.S. Coast Guard service as USCGC "Chelan" on 5 November 1928.
Career.
U.S. Coast Guard - "Chelan" (pre-war).
After commissioning, "Chelan" was homeported at Seattle, Washington, and assigned to the Bering Sea Patrol. After wintering at Seattle during 1928–1929, she departed for her first Bering Sea patrol on 17 April 1929. She continued these patrols on an annual basis, spending winters at Seattle.
In 1931, "Chelan" was at Squaw Harbor in the Territory of Alaska when she received word that the captain of the 21-Gross register ton motor vessel "Gladiator" had arrived at a lighthouse and reported that his vessel had drifted ashore and been wrecked on the coast of Unimak Island in the Aleutian Islands northeast of Cape Sarichef () on 22 September after her steering gear broke in a gale
during a voyage from Nome, Territory of Alaska, to Seattle with a crew of three and a 7-ton cargo of oil, Alaska curios, and other items aboard. "Chelan" steamed to the lighthouse, picked up "Gladiator"′s captain, then proceeded to the wreck site. "Chelan"′s lifeboat was wrecked in harsh weather conditions while trying to rescue "Gladiator"′s other two crewmen from the beach, but "Gladiator"′s crew and that of the lifeboat all reached shore safely and hiked to the lighthouse, where "Chelan" picked them up. "Chelan" transported "Gladiator"′s crew, one of whom was critically ill, to Seattle, where the ill man recovered after receiving medical treatment.
On 8 July 1936, "Chelan" departed on a special cruise with a Congressional party aboard. She transferred the Congressional party to the cutter on 1 August 1936.
On 22 January 1937, "Chelan" was assigned a new home port at Boston, Massachusetts, and she began patrols in the North Atlantic Ocean in 1937. On 22 March 1937, she responded to a distress call from the 1,600-gross register ton Norwegian steamer SS "Bjerkli" in a gale. She took aboard 16 officers and crew from "Bjerkli" on 23 March 1937 and transported them to Boston.
On 9 March 1939, "Chelan" was assigned to inaugurate the International Ice Observation Service in the North Atlantic for 1939. On 3 January 1940, she was assigned to operate as part of the International Ice Patrol during 1940.
Royal Navy - "Lulworth" (World War II).
Under the Lend-Lease Act, "Chelan" was transferred to the Royal Navy on 2 May 1941, and the British commissioned her into naval service the same day. Rated as a sloop-of-war, she served in the Royal Navy with the name HMS "Lulworth" (Y60).
She crossed the Atlantic to the Clyde, her crew partyly drawn from the battleship HMS "Resolution", then underwent repair in Cardiff including fitting out for RN service as a convoy escort. In July 1941 she joined Western Approaches Command with her base in Londonderry Port, Northern Ireland. Her first escort was Convoy OS4 to Bathurst, Gambia.
On 27 August 1941, "Lulworth" rescued 27 survivors of the Norwegian motor cargo ship "Segundo", which the German submarine had torpedoed and sunk in the North Atlantic west of Ireland in an attack on Convoy OS-4, picking up two of them from life rafts about 30 minutes after "Segundo" sank, then 23 more from lifeboats, and finally two more clinging to floating debris after about two hours. On 23 September 1941, she picked up 37 survivors of the British steam cargo ship "Niceto de Larrinaga", which the German submarine "U-103" had torpedoed and sunk on 22 September 1941 in the North Atlantic southwest of the Canary Islands in an attack on Convoy SL 87. On 24 September 1941 she rescued five survivors of the British steam cargo ship "St. Clair II", also from Convoy SL-87, which the German submarine had torpedoed and sunk in the North Atlantic that day west-northwest of the Canary Islands. She landed the survivors from the sunken merchant ships at Derry on 4 October 1941.
On 31 October 1941, "Lulworth" picked up 22 survivors from lifeboats from the Dutch steam cargo ship "Bennekom", which the German submarine "U-96" had torpedoed and sunk that evening in the North Atlantic about west of Cape Clear, Ireland in an attack on Convoy OS 10. She took aboard another 25 "Bennekom" survivors from the sloop-of-war , which had rescued them from a life raft and a floating hatch cover. She landed all 47 of the survivors at Bathurst, New Brunswick, Canada, on 30 November 1941.
On 14 July 1942, "Lulworth" was escorting Convoy SL 115 when she depth charged the Italian submarine and forced her to surface. She then opened fire on "Pietro Calvi", further damaging her; "Pietro Calvi"s crew scuttled her and abandoned ship; 35 members of "Pietro Calvi"s crew survived.
In July 1943, "Lulworth" went into refit and preparation for serving in the East. Coming out of refit she sailed to Gibraltar, on to Alexandria then to Aden and began service in the Indian Ocean escorting convoys between Kilindini, Aden and Durban.
In 1945 she transferred to Trincomalee for escorting convoys as part of the operations in Burma. This included Operation Dracula and Operation Zipper
"Lulworth" remained in Royal Navy service through the end of World War II in 1945. The Royal Navy transferred "Lulworth" back to the U.S. Coast Guard on 12 February 1946.
U.S. Coast Guard - "Chelan" (post-war).
After her return to the U.S. Coast Guard, the vessel returned to the name USCGC "Chelan". She was sold on 23 October 1947.


Azerbaijani Armed Forces

The Armed Forces of Azerbaijan () were re-established according to the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the Armed Forces from 9 October 1991. The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) had originally formed its own armed forces from 26 June 1918 but were dissolved after Azerbaijan was absorbed into the Soviet Union as the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic from 28 April 1920. After the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991–92, the armed forces were reformed based on Soviet bases and equipment left on Azeri soil.
The armed forces have three branches: the Azerbaijani Land Forces, the Azerbaijani Air and Air Defence Force, and the Azerbaijani Navy. Associated forces include the Azerbaijani National Guard, the Internal Troops of Azerbaijan, and the State Border Service, which can be involved in state defense under certain circumstances.
According to the Azerbaijani media sources the military expenditures of Azerbaijan for 2009 were set at US$2.46 billion, however according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, only $1.473 billion was spent in that year. IISS also suggests that the defence budget in 2009 was $1.5 billion. The Ministry of Defence Industry of Azerbaijan supervises the design, manufacturing, regulation and maintenance of military equipment. In the future, Azerbaijan hopes to start building tanks, armored vehicles, military planes and military helicopters.
Overview.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan has been trying to further develop its armed forces into a professional, well trained, and mobile military. Azerbaijan has been undergoing extensive modernization and capacity expanding programs, with the military budget increasing from around $300 million in 2005 to $2.46 billion in 2009. The total armed forces number 56,840 men in the land forces, 7,900 men in the air force and air defence force, and 2,200 men in the navy. There are also 19,500 personnel in the National Guard, State Border Service, and Internal Troops. In addition, there are 300,000 former service personnel who have had military service in the last 15 years. The military hardware of Azerbaijan consists of 220 main battle tanks, an additional 162 T-80's were acquired between 2005 and 2010, 595 armored combat vehicles and 270 artillery systems. The air force has about 106 aircraft and 35 helicopters.
Azerbaijan has acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as a non-nuclear weapons state. Azerbaijan participates in NATO's Partnership for Peace. Azerbaijan joined the multi-national force in 2003. It sent 150 troops to Iraq, and later troops to Kosovo. Azeri troops are still serving in Afghanistan.
Despite the rise in Azerbaijan's defence budget, the armed forces were assessed in 2008 as not having a high state of battle readiness and being ill-prepared for wide scale combat operations.
However, in 2017 Global Firepower ranked Azerbaijan 59th among 127 countries for its military strength. It was the best performance among the countries of South Caucasus.
History of the Azerbaijani armed forces.
Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.
The history of the modern Azerbaijan army dates back to Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in 1918, when the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan Republic were created on 26 June 1918. First "de facto" Minister of Defense of ADR was Dr. Khosrov bey Sultanov. When the Ministry was formally established Gen. Samedbey Mehmandarov became the minister, and then Lt-Gen. Ali-Agha Shikhlinski his deputy. Chiefs of Staff of ADR Army were Lt-Gen. Maciej Sulkiewicz (March 1919 – 10 December 1919) and Maj-Gen. Abdulhamid bey Gaitabashi (10 December 1919 – April 1920).
The Red Army invaded Azerbaijan on 28 April 1920. Although the bulk of the newly formed Azerbaijani army was engaged in putting down an Armenian revolt that had just broken out in Karabakh, the Azeris did not surrender their brief independence of 1918–20 quickly or easily. As many as 20,000 of the total 30,000 soldiers died resisting what was effectively a Russian reconquest. The national Army of Azerbaijan was abolished by the Bolshevik government, 15 of the 21 army generals were executed by the Bolsheviks.
Russian Civil War.
After the Sovietisation of Azerbaijan, the newly formed Azerbaijani Red Army replaced the previous army, taking part in the Russian Civil War, and the invasion of Georgia.
World War II.
During World War II, Azerbaijan played a crucial role in the strategic energy policy of Soviet Union. Much of the Soviet Union's oil on the Eastern Front was supplied by Baku. By a decree of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR in February 1942, the commitment of more than 500 workers and employees of the oil industry of Azerbaijan was recognised with orders and medals.
Operation Edelweiss carried out by the German Wehrmacht targeted Baku because of the importance of its oil fields to the USSR.
Some 800,000 Azerbaijanis fought within the ranks of the Soviet Army of which 400,000 died. Azeri national formations of the Red Army included the 223rd, 227th, 396th, 402nd, and 416th Rifle Divisions. Azeri Major-General Hazi Aslanov was awarded a second Hero of the Soviet Union after a long post-war fight for recognition of his accomplishments.
Dissolution of the Soviet armed forces.
During the Cold War, Azerbaijan had been the deployment area of units of the Soviet 4th Army whose principle formations in 1988 included four motor rifle divisions (23rd Guards, 60th, 75th, and 295th). The 75th Motor Rifle Division was isolated in Nakhchivan. The 4th Army also included missile and air defense brigades and artillery and rocket regiments. The 75th Division's stores and equipment were apparently transferred to the Nakhchivan authorities. Azerbaijan also hosted the 49th Arsenal of the Soviet Main Agency of Missiles and Artillery, which contained over 7,000 train-car loads of ammunition to the excess of one billion units.
The first president of Azerbaijan, Ayaz Mutallibov, did not wish to build an independent army, wanting to rely instead largely on Soviet troops. Even when the Parliament decided that an army should be formed in September 1991, disagreements between the government and the opposition Azerbaijani Popular Front Party impeded creation of a unified force. Around this time, the first unit of the new army was formed on the basis of the 18–110 military unit of mechanized infantry of the Soviet Ground Forces (probably part of the 4th Army) located in Shikhov, south of Baku. At the time of the parliamentary decision, Lieutenant-General Valeh Barshadli became the first Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan, from 5 September to 11 December 1991. Later from May to 4 September 1992 he served as Chief of General Staff of Azerbaijani Armed Forces.
Newly formed military.
In summer 1992, the nascent Defense Ministry received a resolution by the Azerbaijani president on the takeover of units and formations in Azerbaijani territory. It then forwarded an ultimatum to Moscow demanding control over vehicles and armaments of the 135th and 139th Motor Rifle Regiments of the 295th Motor Rifle Division. In July 1992, Azerbaijan ratified the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE), which establishes comprehensive limits on key categories of conventional military equipment. Azerbaijan approved the CFE flank agreement in May 1997.
The transfer of the property of the 4th Army (except for part of the property of the 366th Motor Rifle Regiment of the 23rd Guards Motor Rifle Division captured by Armenian armed formations in 1992 during the regiment's withdrawal from Stepanakert) and the 49th arsenal was completed in 1992. Thus, by the end of 1992, Azerbaijan received arms and military hardware sufficient for approximately four motor rifle divisions with prescribed army units. It also inherited naval ships. There are also reports that 50 combat aircraft from the disbanded 19th Army of the Soviet Air Defence Forces came under Azeri control.
The Azeri armed forces took a series of devastating defeats by Armenian forces during the 1992–1994 Nagorno-Karabakh War, which resulted in the loss of control of Nagorno-Karabakh proper and seven surrounding rayons, comprising roughly 20% of the territory of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani sources insist that Armenian victory was largely due to military help from Russia and the wealthy Armenian diaspora. Armenians partially deny the allegation, claiming that Russian side was equally supplying Armenian and Azerbaijani sides with weapons and mercenaries. During the war, the Azeri armed forces were also aided by Turkish military advisers, and Russian, Ukrainian, Chechen and Afghan mercenaries.
21st century.
A number of Azerbaijani human rights groups have been tracking non-combat deaths and have noted an upward trend in early 2010s. Based on Defense Ministry statistics that had not been released to the public, the Group of Monitoring Compliance with Human Rights in the Army (GMCHRA) has recorded the deaths of 76 soldiers to date in non-combat incidents for 2011, and the injury of 91 others. In comparison, there were 62 non-combat deaths and 71 cases of injury in 2010. The string of non-combat deaths raises questions about the reform progress of the military. Factors behind the deaths include bullying, hazing, and the systemic corruption within the Azeri military.
Second Karabakh War.
The Second Karabakh War (also known in Azerbaijan as "The Patriotic War" or "Operation Iron Fist") began on the morning of 27 September 2020 along the Line of Contact. On the seventh day of the war, a major offensive was launched by the ground forces, advancing in the north, making some territorial gains while the fighting gradually shifted to the south. Following the capture of Shusha, the second-largest settlement in Nagorno-Karabakh, by Azeri forces, a ceasefire agreement was signed between Azerbaijan, and Armenia, ending all hostilities in the area. Under the agreement, Armenia returned the surrounding territories it occupied in 1994 to Azerbaijan while Azerbaijan gained land access to its Nakhchivan exclave. Total casualties were in the low thousands.
On 10 December, a victory parade was held in honor of the Azerbaijani Army on Azadliq Square, with 3,000 distinguished military servicemen marching alongside military equipment, unmanned aerial vehicles and aircraft.
Structure.
Command.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, there have been attempts in the defence ministry to reform the military to be more in line with the Turkish/NATO model, resulting in Soviet-legacy officers such as Rovshan Akbarov and Najmeddin Sadikov being removed from power.
Land Forces.
The Azerbaijani Land Forces number 85,000 strong, according to UK Advanced Research and Assessment Group estimates. The 2,500 men of the National Guard are also part of the ground forces. In addition, there are 300,000 former service personnel who have had military service in the last 15 years. Other paramilitary agencies consist of Interior Ministry Internal Troops of Azerbaijan, 12,000 strong, and the land component of the State Border Service, 5,000 strong.
Azerbaijan has signed numerous contracts to strengthen its armed forces and to train its military with Turkey's assistance. Over the last 15 years, Azerbaijan has been preparing its military for possible action against Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Land Forces consist of five army corps:
The Land Forces include 23 motor rifle brigades, an artillery brigade, a multiple rocket launcher brigade, and an anti-tank regiment. The IISS Military Balance reported in 2007 that the Land Forces had an estimated 40 SA-13 Gopher, SA-4 Ganef, and SA-8 Gecko air defence missile systems, with '80–240 eff.' to support the army in the battlefield. (IISS 2007, p. 157)
The peacekeeping forces of Azerbaijan are mostly supplied from the Land Forces, though the Internal Troops of Azerbaijan do also supply some. As of March 2011, 94 peacekeepers were deployed with the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. In the past, it also actively supported the peacekeeping operation in Kosovo and Iraq.
The Azeri peacekeeping unit deployed in Iraq consisted of 14 officers, 16 sergeants and 120 privates, a total of 150 troops. The unit secured the hydroelectric power station and reservoir in Al Haditha from August 2003. In December 2008, Azerbaijan withdrew the unit from Iraq.
Reportedly in December 2014 Azerbaijan created the Separate Combined Arms Army in Nakhchivan. Karam Mustafayev became commander of the corps. The army was created based on the Nakhchivan 5th Army Corps to strengthen defense capability of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, increase of combat capability of military units and formations of the Armed Forces, improve central control, reports quoting the Defence Ministry said.
Air forces.
The Azerbaijani Air and Air Defence Force is a single unified service branch. Some 8,000 men serve in the air force and air defence force. The Air and Air Defence Force has around 106 aircraft and 35 helicopters. The country has four major airbases. Nasosnaya (air base) has fighters, Kyurdamir Air Base a bomber regiment, Ganja Air Base transports, and Baku Kala Air Base the helicopter unit. There are also four other airbases which do not appear to have aircraft based there. These are Dollyar Air Base, Nakhchivan Airport, Sanqacal Air Base, and Sitalcay Air Base.
The Azeri Air Force uses MiG-21, MiG-23, Su-24 and Su-25 aircraft, as well as the MiG-29 purchased from Ukraine in 2006 and Il-76 transport aircraft. The MiG-29 have been designated as the standard aircraft for the AzAF. Azerbaijan is holding talks with either the People's Republic of China or Pakistan to purchase JF-17 Thunder aircraft. MiG-25s previously in service have been retired seemingly in the 2007–09 period.
Azerbaijan's helicopter force is concentrated at Baku Kala Air Base and according to the IISS consists of a single regiment with around 14–15 Mi-24, 12–13 Mi-8 and 7 Mi-2. Jane's Information Group and the IISS give figures which agree with only a single aircraft's difference. Recently, end of 2010 Russian Rosvertol announced that Azerbaijan armed forces signed a deal for 24 pieces of Mi-35M (Hind-E) gunships what would further enhance the Azeri ground attack formations.
The Air Force has L-29 and L-39 advanced training aircraft in store. The Azerbaijan Border Guard and Voluntary Society of Defense, Patriotism and Sport have Yakovlev light training aircraft.
Azerbaijan has missile and radar systems intended to defend Azeri airspace. There are at least 2 divisions of S-300PMU2. Thereby the country has one of the most capable SAM surface-to-air missile system in the region. Azerbaijan also operates two S-200 (SA-5 GAMMON) batteries near Baku and Mingachevir; the S-300PMU-2 represents a logical replacement for these systems offering coverage of the majority of the nation. The country also has about 100 NATO designated SA-2 Guideline (original name S-75), SA-3 Goa (S-125 Pechora-2M), and the SA-5 Gammon (S-200) are in static installations. These may be around Baku and the central part to cover the whole Azeri aerospace.
However, August 2011 investigations shows that after purchase of S-300 surface-to-air missiles, the largest apparent gap in Azerbaijan's air defense system may have been filled.
Also in Azerbaijan there was a former Soviet early warning radar. The Gabala Radar Station was a bistatic phased-array installation, operated by the Russian Space Forces. The contract was signed in 2002 and was due to expire in 2012 where it was to be given back to the Azerbaijani government. The contract costed Russia $7 million per year. The radar station had a range of up to , and was designed to detect intercontinental ballistic missile launches as far as from the Indian Ocean. In December 2012 Russia announced that negotiations had been unsuccessful and that they had stopped using the radar station. The site was given back to Azerbaijan and all the equipment dismantled and transported to Russia. Nowadays, Russia covers the area from the Armavir Radar Station.
Navy.
The main naval base of the Soviet Union in the Caspian Sea was based in Baku. When the Soviet Union collapsed, Azerbaijan inherited the naval base and parts of the Caspian Sea Flotilla. The Azerbaijan Navy has about 2,200 personnel. In 2010 the navy had a Petya class light frigate, "Qusar" (G 121), and a number of patrol craft, including one Turk class, "Araz," P 223, one Brya (Project 722) class, P 218, one Shelon (Project 1388M) class, P 212, one Poluchat class (Project 368), P 219, one Luga class (Project 888), T 710, and four Petrushka (Polish UK-3 class), P 213, P 214, P 215, and P 216. There are four minesweepers consisting of 2 Sonya class minesweeper and 2 Yevgenya class minesweepers. (Jane's Fighting Ships 2010)
The Navy is also attributed with 5 landing craft, 3 Polnochny and 2 Vydra,(IISS 2007) plus three research ships, 1 Project 10470, A 671, ex Svyaga, 1 Balerian Uryvayev class survey vessel (AG) and one Vadim Popov class survey vessel (AG).
The U.S. Navy has helped train the Azeri Navy. There is also an agreement to provide US support to refurbish Azeri warships in the Caspian Sea. In 2006, the US Government donated 3 motorboats to the Azerbaijani navy. In 2007 an agreement between Azeri Navy and a US military company was concluded, which stated that a part of the Azeri Navy would be equipped with advanced laser marksmanship systems. The US company specialists were also to give training on the use of the new equipment. A number of separate U.S. programmes are underway under the Caspian Guard Initiative, focused mostly on enhancing Azerbaijani and Kazakh maritime border security.
In May 2011, President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic Rovnag Abdullayev stated that Azerbaijan to start production of national warships after 2013.
The Naval Intelligence of Azerbaijan maintains the 641st Special Warfare Naval Unit. The special forces were trained by the U.S. Navy SEALs Unit 641 has several midget submarines such as Triton-1M and Triton 2 at their disposal as well as underwater tool motion for individual divers. The special unit is composed of 3 reconnaissance groups, 2 groups for mountainous warfare and one diving group. Obligatory training includes parachute jumping day and night, on land and on water.
Special forces.
The Special Forces of Azerbaijan are part of the Ministry of Defence. It was established in April 1999 with officers and warrant officers who had participated in the First Nagorno-Karabakh War of 1991–1994. The Turkish Special Forces Command played a role in the formation of the unit. During the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War, personnel of the Special Forces reclaimed the city of Jebrayil and nine surrounding villages from the Armenian Army. On November 8, Aliyev congratulated the commander of the Special Forces on their "liberation of Shusha". The war was considered to be first time Azerbaijan has actively used all of its special forces units.
Defense industry.
The Ministry of Defence Industry of Azerbaijan directs domestic military supplies for Azerbaijan. It was established in 2005. The Defence Industries Ministry subsumed the State Department for Military Industry and for Armaments and the Military Science Center, each of which was formerly a separate agency within the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.
The defense industry has emerged as an autonomous entity with a growing production capability. The ministry is cooperating with the defense sectors of Ukraine, Belarus and Pakistan. Along with other contracts, Azerbaijani defence industries and Turkish companies, Azerbaijan will produce 40mm revolver grenade launchers, 107mm and 122mm MLRS systems, Cobra 4×4 vehicles and joint modernization of BTR vehicles in Baku.
The major military companies of Azerbaijan are:
In early 2008, reports indicated that an agreement with Turkey had been signed which would lead to Azerbaijan producing armoured personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles, and small calibre artillery pieces.
International cooperation.
Azerbaijan cooperates with about 60 countries in the military-technical sphere and has an agreement on military-technical cooperation with more than 30 countries.
Turkey.
In December 2009, an agreement on military assistance was signed by Turkey and Azerbaijan. The agreement envisions Ankara's supplying Azerbaijan with weapons, military equipment and, if necessary, soldiers in case war with Armenia over Karabakh resumes.
Turkey has provided Azerbaijan with infantry weapons, tactical vehicles (jeeps, trucks, etc.) professional training, military organization, technology transfer, licensed military hardware production and other services. Due to help from Turkish specialists and instructors, thousands of Azerbaijani officers have been trained to western standards.
The military position as international importance of Azerbaijan increased with agreement between Azerbaijan and Turkey on the participation an Azerbaijani peacekeeping platoon in the staff of Turkish battalion in Kosovo.
Since 1992, Azerbaijan and Turkey have signed more than 100 military protocols, some of the major protocols include:
In May 2011, Azerbaijan had discussed the purchase of long-range rockets from two Chinese companies, the minister of the defence industry has said. Other arms deals were signed with Turkey. Turkish Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul and Yaver Jamalov signed a protocol of intent on future joint production of two types of output – 107-mm rockets and the national rifle, possibly the Mehmetçik-1. A protocol of intent was signed the same day with the Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation MKEK on the joint production of 120-mm mortar launchers. This project will come into force in a few months time. Agreement has also been reached with Turkish company Aselsan on the production of some types of defence output in Azerbaijan, specifically the latest types of weapons' sights. These projects will probably happen in the near future too. Recently, Turkish defense industries secretariat told that an export version of the T-155 Firtina self-propelled howitser is almost done and could start production. T-155 has been powered by a German MTU power pack, which restricts the sale to some countries like Azerbaijan. The Turkish manufacturer MKEK, has announced that they have found an alternate supplier for the power pack where Azerbaijan showed interest to buy the high tech, more capable 155mm 52 caliber from Turkish authorities.
United States.
Section 907 of the United States Freedom Support Act bans any kind of direct United States aid to the Azerbaijani government. Since a waiver was made in 2001 there has been extensive U.S. military cooperation with Azerbaijan. This has included Special Forces and naval aid, consultations with United States European Command, and linkages through the U.S. National Guard State Partnership Program.
On 19 May 2006, Azerbaijani Defense Minister Safar Abiyev and the then commander of United States Air Forces in Europe General Tom Hobbins met in Baku to discuss military cooperation. He said the objective of his visit was to become familiar with the state of Azerbaijani armed forces. Hobbins pointed to the progress made in the NATO-Azerbaijan relations, saying that the successful implementation of the NATO Partnership for Peace program in Azerbaijan has brought the country even closer to the alliance. He said that the two countries' air forces will expand cooperation.
The U.S. state of Oklahoma is linked with Azerbaijan through the U.S. National Guard State Partnership Program (SPP). Oklahoma National Guard troops have been sent on training and humanitarian missions to Baku.
Russia.
Russia is one of Azerbaijan's main supplier of arms. "As of today, military and technical cooperation with Russia is measured at $4 billion and it tends to grow further," President Ilham Aliyev said after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Baku in 2013.
Israel.
Azerbaijan and Israel cooperate on numerous areas of the defense industry. Israel is Azerbaijan's largest weapon supplier with $4.85 billion in sales during 2016 alone. Azerbaijan has shown great interest in Israeli technology over the years. In particular, an agreement was reached over the construction of the factory of intelligence and combat drones in Azerbaijan.
The Israeli defense company Elta Systems Ltd has had cooperation from Azerbaijan in building the TecSAR reconnaissance satellite system, which can take high-definition photos of ground surfaces in all weather conditions. According to Azerbaijani military experts, the TecSAR system will be indispensable for military operations in the mountainous terrains of Azerbaijan.
As of June 2009, Israel and Azerbaijan had been negotiating on the production of Namer armoured infantry fighting vehicles in Azerbaijan. There is no further information as to whether any agreement has been made.
NATO.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Azerbaijan actively cooperate on defence institutional reforms and have developed practical cooperation in many other areas. Azerbaijan's Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP) and its Partnership for Peace (PfP) linkages lay out the programme of cooperation between Azerbaijan and NATO.
The Azerbaijani government has however delayed implementing IPAP-recommended reforms, however, in part at least because no decision had been taken to seek NATO membership. This is because Azerbaijan's foreign policy 'seeks to balance interests with the U.S., EU, Russia and Iran.'
According to a NATO diplomatic source some key officials at NATO headquarters in Brussels were pushing hard for engaging Azerbaijan on the membership question. "Turkey, Romania, Italy, Poland, the United Kingdom and the Baltic states," are among the member-states also backing a fast track for Azerbaijan's NATO membership.
However, Azerbaijan made its policy of not being aligned with a geopolitical/military structure official when it became a full member of the Non-Aligned Movement in 2011.
There is also a limited amount of military cooperation with the other countries of GUAM: Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and Moldova.
Personnel.
Educational system.
The purpose of Azerbaijani military education & training is to train soldiers, officers, and non-commissioned officers to have independent and creative thinking and commitment to the Azerbaijani people and the government. Military education in the Azerbaijani Armed Forces have been described as either being Secondary education, Further education, or Higher education.
Azerbaijani pilots were formerly trained in the Azerbaijan Air Force School, where they would then develop their skills in operational units. Azerbaijan has an experience exchange with Turkey, Ukraine, the United States and a number of NATO countries. The Turkish Air Force School has a great role in the training of Azeri military pilots. Azerbaijani pilots are also trained in Ukraine's Pilot Training School.
The following is a list of educational institutions in the armed forces:
Military Justice.
Military Courts act as courts of first instance deals. The Military Court is composed of a President and judges. The following military courts exist in Azerbaijan:
Women and ethnic minorities in the armed forces.
During the first war, Russians, who were a large minority in Azerbaijan at the time, served in the units of the Azerbaijani Army, many of whom formerly served in the Soviet Army. According to the Russian Ministry of Defence more than 300 officers of the 7th Army, based in the capital of Baku, refused to leave Azerbaijan at the outset of the war. During the Second Karabakh War, the death of an ethnic Russian Azerbaijani soldier, Dmitry Solntsev, was reported. There was also Denis Aliyev (born as Denis Pronin) from the Xətai raion, who was killed in Jabrayil. He was later posthumously awarded the Medal "For the Liberation of Jabrayil" in December. Cossacks, associated with the Association of Cossacks of Azerbaijan, often join the Azerbaijani Armed Forces.
Female military personnel in the military are generally involved in education, office work, medical care, and the development of international cooperation. They also serve in the rear, signal troops, and intelligence forces. Women are exempt from conscription, which means that female service is purely on a voluntary basis. There are currently 1,000 female personnel in the Azeri military, accounting for 3% of the armed forces. During the Karabakh Conflict, 2,000 of the 74,000 Azerbaijani soldiers were women, and 600 of them directly took part in military operations, with a women's battalion being established in 1992. The enrollment of females in Azerbaijani higher military schools began in 1999. According to soldier Tehrana Bahruzi in her book, “Zakir Hasanov: the Ideal Minister", Defence Minister Zakir Hasanov was responsible for launching the first female unit in the Special Forces of Azerbaijan. In October 2020, the first female military casualty was reported, a combat medic who died while taking wounded soldiers from the battlefield.
Personnel medals and awards.
Today 'National Hero of Azerbaijan' is the highest national title in the country, awarded for outstanding services of national importance to Azerbaijan in defense, as well as other deeds in other spheres.
Traditions and military institutions.
Military oath.
The Military oath () is taken by conscripts as a legal basis of the beginning of their military service. The oath is administered by the commanding officer of the unit. The following is the text for the current version of the oath:
Battle flags and pennants.
A battle flag for a military unit is a symbol of honor which remains forever in the unit unless it is dissolved. By military law, if the battle flag is lost in battle, the commander of the military unit and the servicemen under its command are brought to court, and the unit is abolished. Battle flags have the color of the State Flag, with the slogan "For Azerbaijan" being embroidered with golden silk on a blue stripe along the upper edge of the fabric. Outside the battle flag, the Azeri military also utilizes the Turkish military tradition of pennants as symbols.
Military holidays.
These are the military holidays observed by all service personnel the Armed Forces:
Azerbaijan Military History Museum.
Azerbaijan Military History Museum is a structure under the Ministry of Defense. It was established on 10 December 1992 by the order of the Minister of Defense and in accordance with a decree signed on 29 October 1992 "On the transfer of the Museum of Combat Glory of the VI Army Garrison of the Commonwealth of Independent States". Today, the museum displays 5 tanks, 9 armored personnel carriers, 16 artillery pieces, 6 aircraft, 4 helicopters, 6 different military equipment of the Air Force. Currently, the number of exhibits totals 11,000.
Republican Veterans Organization.
After the Second World War, veterans movements were launched in Azerbaijan, with the Baku Veterans Committee being established on 10 June 1960. The activity of the committee was limited to Baku until the early 1970s. During the leadership of First Secretary Heydar Aliyev, there was a revival in the veteran movement, during which the committee gradually expanded to the republic. The establishment of the Republican Veterans Organization took place on 21 March 1987. Despite the official registration of the RVO with the Ministry of Justice, the activity of the organization was largely formal due to the tensions in the country with the Karabakh War, as well as the attitude of the government towards Red Army veterans in general. One of the first laws signed by the President Aliyev was the Law "On Veterans" (28 June 1994), which restored the mandate for the RVO.


Sri Lanka Army Order of Precedence

For the purposes of parading, the regular army & the volunteer force of the Sri Lanka Army is listed according to an order of precedence.


Technical Research Ship Special COMMunications

TRSSCOMM (Technical Research Ship Special COMMunications), an early U.S. Navy earth-moon-earth satellite communication system that relayed ("bounced") messages directly from intelligence-gathering ship to Washington DC by bouncing a microwave signal off the moon, used first on the USS Oxford (15 December 1961). This system consisted of a 16-foot, dish-shaped antenna mounted on a movable platform and capable of bouncing a 10,000 watt microwave signal off a particular spot on the moon and down either to the receiving station at the National Security Agency, Fort Meade, Maryland, or to one of the other Navy SIGINT ships. TRSSCOMM had the advantage of being able to transmit large quantities of intelligence information very rapidly without giving away the ship's location to hostile direction-finding equipment or interfering with incoming signals. Its major disadvantage is that it could only work if the moon was visible and the shipboard hydraulic stabilization system worked properly. This system was replaced by creation of a network of artificial military satellites.


Order of battle of the Waterloo campaign

This is the complete order of battle for the four major battles of the Waterloo campaign.
French Army order of battle.
Headquarters.
L'Armée du Nord under the command of Emperor Napoleon I.
"Major Général" (Chief of Staff): Marshal Soult, Duke of Dalmatia.
Commander of artillery: General of Division Charles-Étienne-François Ruty.
Field commanders under the direct command of Emperor Napoleon:
Anglo-allied Army order of battle.
Combined British, Dutch and Hanoverian forces were under the supreme command of Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. The order of battle included below reflects all units of the Anglo-allied Army including those that were not present for the battles themselves (units spread across the area or on garrison duty). The casualty numbers include all the casualties suffered by each regiment over the three days of fighting during the campaign from 16 June 1815 to dawn on 19 June 1815.
Present at the Battle of Waterloo, Wellington had 71,257 soldiers available, 3,866 officers and 65,919 other ranks. By the end of the day's fighting the army had suffered 16,084 casualties (3,024 killed, 10,222 wounded and 2,838 missing) a loss of 24.6%.
I Corps.
I Corps fielded 24,844 (1,233 officers and 23,383 other ranks) on 18 June 1815 taking into account those not present in the Order of Battle and the casualties on the previous two days.
II Corps.
With so much of the Dutch Belgian contingent not present at the battle, only 579 officers and 8,677 men (9,256 in total) were fielded by II Corps.
Cavalry Corps.
With only three regiments not present at the battle the Cavalry Corps was the most complete at Waterloo fielding 16,133 (933 officers and 13,897 men) after taking into account the small losses at Quarte-Bras and during the retreat on 17 June 1815.
Reserves.
The reserves, 34,394 men and 56 guns, came under the direct command of Wellington during the Battle of Waterloo. The British 7th Infantry Division under Major General Kenneth MacKenzie was not present at the battle as the brigade manned various garrisons around the area. The Hanoverian Reserve Division was also not present, again manning garrisons on behalf of the army. Actual combatants from the Reserve present at the battle numbered 18,964 with 56 guns.
Prussian Army order of battle.
The Prussian Army was led by Field Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Prince of Wahlstadt and his chief of staff August von Gneisenau and remained independent from the allied Anglo-Dutch-German army during the course of the campaign.
Staff.
Major General Karl von Grolman, was Quartermaster General.


United States Navy Customs

The United States Navy Customs mission is one that is assigned to the Commander, Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG). The mission is overseen in the Central Command Theater of Operations by Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group Forward Headquarters, as well as the Commander, USCENTCOM.
The Navy Customs mission is detailed by Navy Reserves and augmented by the active-duty Navy; they are mobilized for a period of 320 days. Upon receipt of orders for mobilization, the reserve members report to a Navy Mobilization Processing Site for processing and screening to ensure they are fit for duty and have no issues that will preclude them from carrying out their primary mission. This process usually takes approximately two weeks from when they report in until they are sent to NAVELSG for training.
Upon arrival at NAVELSG, the sailors undergo a month of training in everything they need to know to operate in the USCENTCOM theater of operations in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom. They are trained in the use of weapons, driving tactical vehicles, first aid, small unit tactics, hand-to-hand combat and the procedures and standards required of items and personnel re-entering the United States from overseas. Upon completion of training, they are certified as Customs Border Clearance Agents, with the authority to carry out customs inspection on equipment and personnel within USCENTCOM only.
Upon arrival in the theater of operations, all personnel check in with the US Army Personnel Support Battalion located at the Army Life Support Area (ALSA), Ali Al Salem, Kuwait. From there, each company then heads to its base of operations, either at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, the Kuwait Naval Base, Camp Patriot, Ali Al Salem, or Camp Beuhring, Camp Virginia; or they stay at ALSA for further training before deploying to Balad, Iraq or Afghanistan. Fly away missions to Jebel Ali, Jordon and the UAE are frequent.
The divisions within the battalions are now split into four sections, Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Afghan. Divisions are led by the top Petty Officers within each camp and are held to the highest standards.
There have been a total of fifteen (15) Customs Battalions deployed for this mission. In order, they are:
Navy Customs Battalion Oscar
Navy Customs Battalion Papa
Navy Customs Battalion Quebec
Navy Customs Battalion Romeo
Navy Customs Battalion Sierra
Navy Customs Battalion Tango
NAVELSG FWD HOTEL
NAVELSG FWD INDIA
NAVELSG FWD JULIET
NAVELSG FWD KILO
NAVELSG FWD LIMA
NAVELSG FWD MIKE
NAVELSG FWD NOVEMBER
NAVELSG FWD OSCAR
NAVELSG FWD PAPA
After the departure of PAPA rotation on 11 October 2013, the customs mission was handed over to the USAF's 387th Air Expeditionary Squadron. After the departure of USAF rotation on 1 April 2014, the customs mission was handed over to the United States Marine Corps USMC 2D Law Enforcement Battalion.


Idflieg

The Idflieg ("Inspektion der Fliegertruppen" - "Inspectorate of Flying Troops") was the bureau of the German Empire that oversaw German military aviation prior to and during World War I.
Founded in 1911, the Idflieg was part of the "Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches" (Imperial German Flying Corps) which became the "Luftstreitkräfte" in 1916, handling administration, including regulation of service names applied to aircraft produced by domestic companies, characterised according to the armament, wing configuration, crew and role which was intended for the aircraft.


LGBT in the United States Coast Guard


USCGC Sebago

USCGC "Sebago" has been the name of two cutters of the United States Coast Guard:

Decline.
It was long believed that Rycote House burned down in 1745 and that its remains were demolished in 1807, apart from one corner turret and some outbuildings. However, in 2001 Channel 4's "Time Team" investigated Rycote Park looking for the remains of the Tudor Rycote House and established that Rycote had been rebuilt after the fire. The Bodleian Library in Oxford holds records of sales of contents and fabric from Rycote, indicating that the Tudor house was sold by lot for removal between 1779 and 1802. In about 1920 the extensive stables were converted into the present Rycote House. Later Rycote belonged to the Member of Parliament and prominent Rugby Union player Alfred St. George Hamersley (1848–1929). In the chapel there is a memorial to Hamersley made by the sculptor Eric Gill.


Walter E. Hoffman United States Courthouse

The Walter E. Hoffman United States Courthouse, formerly known as the U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, is a courthouse of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Norfolk, Virginia. Built in 1932, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, reflecting Art Deco architecture. Historically it served as a courthouse and additionally as a post office.
Significance.
The courthouse, located in downtown Norfolk, was constructed as a Post Office and Courthouse in 1932–34. Local Norfolk architects, Benjamin F. Mitchell and the firm of Rudolph, Cooke, and VanLeeuwen, were jointly responsible for the architectural design. Although built during the Depression, the building is quite lavish in its design and finishes. Upon its completion, this four-story, gray limestone building was considered at the time to fall "little short of magnificence", according to the local paper, the "Virginian-Pilot". The elaborate Art Deco interior is marked with a high level of craftsmanship.
During the first two decades of the twentieth century, the city of Norfolk experienced an explosion of prosperity, in part due to the rapid growth of the Naval Base. The need for a new, larger courthouse and post office was becoming so acute that temporary postal stations were established to handle the overflow of postal congestion. At the time, the courthouse and Post Office were both housed in the circa 1898 Federal Courthouse at 235 E. Plume Street. In 1915, a committee was appointed and headed by Norfolk's Mayor Wyndham R. Mayo to petition Congress for an appropriation of funds for the construction of a new Federal building in the city. The committee included Postmaster Major Clinton L. Wright, as well as many civic and business leaders. This petition was never approved, despite being submitted and resubmitted throughout the 1920s as the need for more space increased. In 1922, funds to acquire temporary housing for mail operations were allocated.
In 1929, Congress made a tentative allocation of $1.15 million for the Norfolk Federal building. Menalcus Lankford, Congressman elect from Norfolk, and Postmaster Major Wright, successfully realized $2.05 million in appropriations for the federal building. A site was selected on January 12, 1931. The location consisted of two small blocks between Brambleton Avenue on the north, East Bute Street on the south, Monticello Avenue on the east and Granby Street on the west, bisected by York Street. The site consisted of approximately 81,000 square feet, part of which had been occupied by St. Luke's Episcopal Church, destroyed by fire ten years earlier.
On April 9, 1931, the "Virginian-Pilot" announced that a team formed by local architect Benjamin F. Mitchell in association with the firm of Rudolph, Cooke and VanLeeuwen was selected to design the new building. B.F. Mitchell, an architect of many Norfolk projects, had worked for the city in the planning and building of the City Market. He designed Booker T. Washington High School and Southgate Terminal, one of the largest construction projects in the area. The firm of Mitchell, Rudolph, Cooke and VanLeeuwen was known for designing several apartment buildings, the addition to the Virginia Beach Casino, and several buildings in North Carolina. Among the architects assigned to the team was Mary Brown Channel, who joined the firm after her graduation from Cornell University in 1933; in 1935 she would become the first woman licensed to practice architecture in the commonwealth of Virginia.
Bids were opened in Washington on April 11, 1932 for the construction of the foundation of Norfolk's new Federal Building. The Virginia Engineering Company of Newport News won the contract with the lowest offer of $210,000. Part of the bid required that the foundation of the building was to be completed in 120 days.
The construction of the remainder of the building was opened for bid on October 21, 1932. Shortly after this time, the Treasury Department decided to reduce the building to four stories in height instead of five stories. The construction contract was awarded to Consolidated Engineering Company (Baltimore, MD) with the low bid of $1,034,000. Although the height of the building was scaled down, measures were taken during construction to allow for the addition of a fifth story at a future date. Although more than $2 million had been appropriated for the construction, the funding was later cut to $1,925,000. The building's total cost was $2.71 million, including $575,000 for the purchase of the site and $210,000 for construction of the foundation.
John Rapelye was selected to serve as the consulting engineer by the Treasury Department in January, 1933. By the following September, the cornerstone was laid "with solemn rites" (The Virginian-Pilot, September 8, 1933). Postmaster General James A. Farley and Virginia Senator Harry Byrd were among the special guests who spoke at the ceremony. The building was officially complete on October 14, 1934, when the keys to the building were turned over to the Post Office by Rapelye. However, the Post Office did not move into its quarters until the following week, October 21, 1934. The courthouses were moved in shortly afterwards. The Post Office remained in the building for 50 years, moving to a separate facility in 1984. At this time the remainder of the building was rehabilitated for additional courthouses for the U.S. District Court of Eastern Virginia. The building, renamed the Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse, was entered on the National Register of Historic Places in October, 1984.
Although this outstanding Art Deco building is one of only a few Art Deco federal buildings in the Tidewater area, the building reflects a national trend in Federal building design of the 1930s that became the Art Moderne style of the 1930s and 1940s. These new federal buildings were monumental in scale, a tribute to the democratic ideals of the 1930s, with reference to the strength of the government. A Virginian-Pilot article from September 22, 1934 noted that the building was "fashioned in conservative modernistic design and giving the impression of unlimited stability and bulk." Compared to the earlier Beaux Arts style, the designs were restrained in ornament, expressing a new attitude that was fresh, clean-lined and modern in the simplicity of the forms and materials. The building illustrates the strong rectilinear qualities associated with the Art Deco style, and later Art Moderne style, and incorporates classical features popular in earlier governmental buildings.
Also typical of the Art Deco style was the choice and use of the materials. Limestone is the primary exterior material, with a contrasting dark granite base and decorated aluminum spandrels between aluminum-framed windows. On the interior, the design and use of slick materials, such as granite, marble, aluminum, are presented in a simply composed geometric design with a high level of refinement. All of the cast aluminum designs are the work of a young local artist, Wyatt Hibbs. "All the appointments here are ultramodern, combining beauty with utility to a high degree" (Virginian-Pilot, September 8, 1934). It is the materials and their exquisite design and treatment that separates the building from the general body of Depression era work. Although the buildings designed and constructed under the WPA/PWA programs present similar stylistic devices and some of the same materials, the economic situation forced a more restrained approach, eventually resulting in a distinct style - the Art Moderne. Significant to the building's history is the short period of time required for its construction, just over two years. Today, having undergone a complete rehabilitation, with relatively few exceptions, both the exterior and interior are in excellent condition.
The Walter E. Hoffman Courthouse stands as a significant Federal building, contributing to the architectural and historic character of Norfolk. It specifically enhances its streetscape as part of a planned complex of civic structures.
Architectural description.
The Walter E. Hoffman U.S. District Courthouse is a trapezoidal-shaped building located on an irregular-shaped lot covering a two-city block area. The building is four stories in height, plus a basement. The primary (west) elevation fronts directly onto Granby Street and is 311 feet wide. The north elevation, facing Brambleton Avenue, is 218 feet wide. The south elevation, facing Bute Street, is the smallest side at 140 feet wide, and the east elevation, facing Monticello Avenue, is the longest at 321 feet wide.
The building illustrates many significant characteristics of the Art Deco style that were popular in the 1920s and 1930s. Its streamlined, elegant, and rectilinear designs and polished materials are mixed with simplified classical features that are typical of nationally designed government buildings.
The stepped-back, simplified ziggurat massing of the building establishes a long east–west horizontal axis with smaller, vertical axes at the main and secondary entrances. The second through fourth stories are stepped back from the partially below-ground basement and first story. The exterior walls terminate with a decorative parapet at both the first story and roof. The form and massing combined with two types of carved ornament also serve to distinguish the separate services of post office and courthouse.
All of the exterior elevations of the building are clad in light gray limestone wall panels set above a substantial base of polished black granite, approximately seven feet in height. Ordered fenestration, typically paired one-over-one aluminum-framed windows, organizes all facades. At the basement level, the original paired metal windows with metal louvers provide natural light and ventilation.
The building's main entrance is located on the west elevation, with three secondary entrances (now fire exits) on the west and east elevations. The full-height main entrance bay projects beyond the main facade and extends to the penthouse level on the roof. The secondary entrances are alike in design, and rise three stories in height. The architectural features at these entrances are similar to the main entrance, but are smaller in scale and simpler in decoration. All of the entrances feature simple aluminum-framed plate glass doors with brass hardware in a distinctive Art Deco design.
On the north elevation, the first and last bays project as one-story wings. The original loading dock platform and canopy for the postal area, located between the one-story wings, was removed in 1985. The area was infilled using replicated materials, features, and design motifs from adjoining facades: carved stone banding, aluminum double-hung windows, and polished black granite base. A new ramp with polished black granite walls has been installed to provide barrier-free access to the building. The upper part of the north elevation is flanked on either end by two full-height limestone-clad towers that handle furnace exhaust.
An interior court originally featured three skylights which provided natural light to the first floor postal workroom below. These have been removed and the openings infilled with a flat roof slab. These skylights were originally designed to provide natural light to the first floor postal workroom.
Since the postal function was removed in 1983, the building functions only as a courthouse, with several of the historic courtrooms largely intact on the third floor. Although additional courtrooms have been added, all have been executed with a high level of craftsmanship, featuring solid wood full-height paneling and carved wood details. Many secondary spaces throughout the building have been rehabilitated and renovated over the years, but were carefully fitted with replications of the original wood details: solid wood base, chairrail, window sills and stools, door casings, and paneled doors. In many cases the original materials were cleaned or refinished and reinstalled. In many of the secondary spaces and hallways, modern dropped ceilings and fluorescent lighting have been added, concealing the original plaster ceiling.
The first and third floors are historically the most elaborate with a lavish application of marbles, terrazzo, and ornamental cast aluminum finishes. The first floor L-shaped Main Lobby features full-height marble wall panels in a "crotch mahogany" or butterfly pattern. The marble floor is presented in a herringbone design with alternating tones of pink and rose marble, edged with a green marble border. Three of the six original oblong writing tables, made of marble and cast aluminum, remain in the north–south portion of the Main Lobby.
The original main courtroom on the third floor (USDC Courtroom #1), and adjoining Courtroom Lobby and Judge's Chambers, are equally lavish. Cream-colored mansota marble lines the walls of the Courtroom Lobby; the Main Courtroom, largely intact, features a mansota marble wainscot and classically detailed acoustic stone walls and pilasters.
The original, utilitarian postal workroom and offices on the first and second floors have been carefully rehabilitated for judicial offices and courtrooms. The basement houses the major machinery and provides storage space. The building has been adapted for barrier-free use and dead-end corridors were eliminated to comply with fire codes.
The organization of the site and its landscape treatment is typical of freestanding urban buildings. The building is approached from Granby Street, with reserved parking on the Bute Street and Brambleton Avenue sides. The building retains its original pink granite curbs and steps. The landscaping has been confined to a narrow strip between the building and the sidewalk on the east and west elevations. Minimal plantings remain on the south elevation, originally designed as an open grass panel surrounded by an oval grove walk and a ring of plantings.


Greenwich Castle

Greenwich Castle was a hunting lodge used during the reign of Henry VIII, located in Greenwich Park, in Greenwich, England. The Royal Observatory, Greenwich now stands on the site. Greenwich Castle was apparently a favourite place for Henry VIII to house his mistresses, as it was within easy travelling distance of Greenwich Palace at the foot of the hill.
The castle was previously known as Duke Humphrey's Tower after its builder, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, a younger brother of King Henry V.


Moscow Yaroslavsky railway station

Moscow Yaroslavsky railway station () is one of the nine main railway stations in Moscow.
Situated on Komsomolskaya Square (close to the Kazansky and Leningradsky Stations), Moscow Yaroslavskaya has the highest passenger throughput of all nine of the capital's main-line terminuses. It serves eastern destinations, including those in the Russian Far East, being the western terminus of the world's longest railway line, the Trans-Siberian. The station takes its name from that of the ancient city of Yaroslavl which, lying 284 rail kilometres (176 miles) north-east of Moscow, is the first large city served by the line.
History.
The early history of Yaroslavsky railway station is mainly linked to the construction of a number of railway lines in the north of the European part of Russia. These routes, which connect cities such as Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Arkhangelsk or Vologda with Moscow and each other, all emerged in the second half of the 19th century, during a railway construction boom in the Russian Tsarist Empire. At that time, they were operated by a public limited company, the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk Railway Company (Общество Московско-Ярославско-Архангельской железной дороги), which was financed by private investors. This distinguished the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk railway from the Nikolaibahn, which was built a few years earlier and which was state-owned from the outset because of its strategic importance.
The oldest part of the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk railway was built just a few years after the company was founded on 29 May 1859. It is about 70 kilometers long railway line between Moscow and the city of Sergiyev Posad, where the famous Trinity Monastery was located. Since the latter is worshiped in the Russian Orthodox Church as a sanctuary and therefore had regularly attracted pilgrims, recognized in the 1850s, some entrepreneurs saw the benefits of a railway connection of this place to the old Tsar capital. From a continuation of the route over Sergiev Posad addition was initially not mentioned. The main initiator of the track construction was the military engineer Baron Andrei Ivanovich Delwig (1813-1887), later chief inspector of the Russian Railways and founder of one of the first railway technical schools in Russia. He and the co-founders were able to convince a number of merchants of the expected high profitability of the future rail line, which the necessary seed capital for the public company could be collected without major delays.
A few months before the founding of the company, which initially bore the abbreviated name of the Society of the Moscow-Yaroslavl Railway, the initiators requested permission from Tsar Alexander II to plan and construct the railway line. This came in July 1858 with an order to complete the track construction by mid-1862 at the latest and at the same time to begin the planning work for a possible route continuation to Yaroslavl. Since the technical and legal conditions for the route relocation to Sergiev Posad had been good, they were able to be erected without great delays, in compliance with the deadline. On 22 July 1862, after a little more than two years of construction, the first sample train left the newly built head station in Moscow. On 18 August of the same year the railway line was solemnly handed over to regular passenger traffic, initially with two train pairs per day. A few months later, freight traffic between Moscow and Sergiyev Posad was also started. As early as 1864, the track was double-railed along its entire length.
Originally, the route was known as the Trinity train, because it had the railway connection of the Trinity monastery to the target. This should change however already eight years after the opening. With a total of over 450,000 carried passengers in the first three years of their operation, the railway proved to be very successful, which left the Board of the Moscow-Yaroslavl railway company no doubt about the profitability of an extension to the northeast. Thus, the 210 kilometers long, already planned for the construction of the Trinity train continuation of the route to the Volgametropole Yaroslavl in February 1870, after one and a half years of construction, put into operation. In 1872, a narrow gauge line from Yaroslavl to Vologda was built (it was rebuilt as broad gauge in 1915), 1887 the railway line from Yaroslavl to Kostroma and 1898 finally the narrow gauge railway from Vologda to the old northern port city of Arkhangelsk.
The length of the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk Railway at the turn of the century was already over 1100 kilometers, the previously built over 60 branches for the people, goods or industrial traffic as well as some smaller local railway lines not included. In 1900, the company of the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk Railway was bought up by the Russian state and later renamed the Northern Railway (Северная железная дорога) section of the Russian Railways - a name which this department still bears today. With the construction of more than 700 kilometers long railway line from Vologda to Vyatka in 1905, the northern railway was linked directly to the simultaneously relocated Trans-Siberian Railway, bringing the sections Moscow-Yaroslavl, Yaroslavl-Danilov, Danilow-Bui and Bui-Vyatka part of this longest artery Russia.
Since the route built by the company of the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk railway was originally intended to go only to Sergiev Posad, the first plans for their Moscow terminus station did not provide for a major facility. For the location of the future hub, several locations within the former city limits were available. The decision to build the station next to the existing Nikolaibahnhof was made in October 1860. At the same time it was decided to build the planned terminus of the railway line from Moscow via Ryazan to Saratov, today's Kazan station, on the south side of the same square. Strictly speaking, the present day seat of the three stations did not constitute an inner-city square at that time, but a large unpaved area near the eastern outskirts of Moscow. To the left of the Nikolaibahnhof were some residential and warehouse buildings of the Nikolaibahn and further to the left of it the 23-hectare Red Pond (Красный пруд), which was filled in during the expansion work for the station square and is now completely overbuilt.
After preparation of the building plot 1861 began work on the construction of the station facilities. These as well as all station buildings could be inaugurated exactly to the admission of the regular train traffic, on 18 August 1862, solemnly. The platforms and tracks of the new station received a similar arrangement as the Nikolaibahnhof: In the backyard of the reception building, which had an approximately Π-shaped plan, along its two side extensions, two platforms were built, of which the right for the exit and the left for the arrival of the trains was used. In total, the station in its original design comprised six tracks, two of which were used for passenger traffic. In addition to the tracks, a reception building for passenger transport, a workshop, a steam locomotive depot and a wagon hall were built.
The design of the reception building was commissioned by the architect Michail Lewestam, whose original design was later modified by the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts Professor Roman Kusmin. The two-storey, up to 12-meter-high brick building was similar in style to a simple classicist functional building: It had two floors and a strictly symmetrical outside look with a flag pole in the middle part of the roof. This made the station look like an ordinary Russian administration building at that time. The house consisted of three parts: the prestigious central part and two lateral, rear-extended extensions. On the ground floor of the right-hand extension, which extended along the departure platform, there were waiting rooms of the first, second and third class, while on the left-hand side there was a space for the loading and storage of luggage and the administrative seat of the railway company. The central part of the building, which faced the present-day Komsomolskaya Square with its front facade, housed counter halls, a telegraph office and an entrance hall, via which passengers could directly access the platforms from the square. On the upper floor of the entire reception building, service rooms and staff apartments were accommodated.
Expansion.
The first significant expansion of the Yaroslavlsky railway station took place in 1868 in the course of the extension of the railway to Yaroslavl. Above all, it aimed at increasing capacity for the expected increase in passenger flows. The central part of the reception building remained unchanged, but the two side extensions were extended, the left extension received an additional floor.
There was another expansion shortly after the acquisition of the Moscow-Yaroslavl-Arkhangelsk railway company by the state. Since the total length of the railway lines and the number of passengers had risen significantly up to then compared to the 1860s, the capacity of the last station, which was extended in 1868, was no longer sufficient in 1900 to ensure smooth handling. However, the expansion headed by Moscow-based architect Lew Kekushev was largely limited to upgrading the platform facilities, while the reception building did not undergo any significant changes this time. Kekushev had a new platform built with a canopy, which was supported by architecturally striking arched portals column constructions, with a covering of black granite. These pillars are still preserved as part of the interior of one of the waiting rooms. In addition, a water tower was built next to the reception building to supply water to the station and the steam trains.
Since this conversion measure could not meet the ever-increasing numbers of passengers, was at the beginning of the 20th Century, a fundamental expansion of the entire station needed. Fjodor Schechtel, at that time one of the most renowned Art Nouveau architects, submitted a draft in 1902, according to which the station was to be equipped, above all, according to its significance as the northern entrance gate of Moscow. He intended a reconstruction in traditional Moscow styles, which, however, have a clear reference to the ancient architecture of northern Russian towns and thus should express a close connection of Moscow to the Russian north. This idea of Schechtel was accepted with approval, so that the Moscow Governor-General issued the conversion permit in August 1902. The construction work under Schechtel's direction lasted from 1902 to 1904, the solemn inauguration of the renewed station took place on 19 December 1904.
When reconstructing the existing reception building, two new supplementary buildings were erected on both sides, and the two rear building sections were extended. The old central part of the building has been completely redesigned by adding three tower constructions and making massive changes to the front façade. The 1900 water tower was integrated into the left tower of the central reception building. Schechtel's conversion enabled the capacity of Yaroslavl railway station to be roughly tripled. In addition, Schechtel managed to keep the conversion costs relatively cheap: these amounted to about 300,000 rubles, while the much simpler earlier works had devoured 220,000 rubles.
To date, the 1904 completed Yaroslavl railway station is one of the best known works of Fyodor Schechtel. Since it, like all other buildings of his, is a listed building, all later station modifications were limited to extensions of the building from behind and to redesign and installation of platforms and tracks, while the front facade of the reception building to see today largely in its original state from 1904.
The following major expansion of the Yaroslavl railway station took place in 1965–1966. Here, in the basement rooms of the station building originally used for the heating systems, luggage storage compartments were set up, whereby additional space on the ground floor could be obtained. In addition, the building received in its rear, the track-facing part of a two-story extension with a reinforced concrete and glass facade held. Today, this extension houses a ticket hall for public transport and part of the waiting room. Built in 1900 by Lew Kekuschew platform was integrated into it. Since then, its black granite pillars have been inside the building, while all platforms have been moved a few meters to the north. In particular, new space for long-distance traffic clearance was gained in this reorganization: The total area of the premises designated for this purpose was increased by more than 70 percent.
In the mid-1990s and beginning of the 2000s, further expansion and modernization measures for the Yaroslavl railway station followed, with which the handling capacity could be doubled again by fundamentally redesigning the interiors of the reception building. At the same time, the front facade was repainted, the roof renewed and the furnishings of the waiting rooms brought to the state of the art.
On 3 August 2001, the station hit the headlines after Kim Jong-il arrived there at 9:40 pm with an armored special train. The North Korean leader was on a state visit to Russia and traveled across the Trans-Siberian route from Vladivostok, which is close to the Russian-North Korean border, to Moscow, where he was received by President Vladimir Putin. On the evening of his arrival in Moscow, the entire Yaroslavl railway station was evacuated for several hours, and all trains departing or arriving at that time were canceled or diverted.
Trains and destinations.
Long-distance from Moscow.
Yaroslavsky is served by all trains to the Russian Far East. The only international railway lines are Pyongyang (rare) and Beijing (owned by Chinese Railways and Russia Railways).
» : through coach(es)
Suburban destinations.
Suburban commuter trains ("elektrichka") connect Yaroslavsky Rail station stations and platforms of the Yaroslavsky suburban railway line, in particular, with the towns of Mytishchi, Korolyov, Shchyolkovo, Monino, Ivanteyevka, Fryazino, Pushkino, Krasnoarmeysk, Khotkovo, Sergiyev Posad, and Alexandrov.