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The Soul of the White House Foundation. AI-Generated.
The White House is more than stone and story, it is a living breath of the Republic. Behind its neoclassical gaze and beneath the arching porticos lies a foundation not only of mortar and marble, but of ideas, unyielding, storm-tested, and ever-renewing.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in History
The Truth About the Titanic Has Been Revealed. AI-Generated.
Scientists finally reveal the truth about the Titanic on April 14th 1912 at 11:40 p.m. RMS Titanic had a terrible accident that led to its ultimate demise three hours later by 2:20 a.m. in the early morning of April 15th the biggest ship of its time had completely disappeared under the ice-cold surface of the Atlantic Ocean the Titanic took more than 1500 lives with it as it sank to its watery grave that's more than two-thirds of all the people on board the cause of this horrible disaster leading to so many deaths was an iceberg the ship crashed into or so we've always been told but scientists most recent findings have debunked this theory in this article we'll tell you the whole truth that has been buried for over 100 years at 882 feet 9 inches long 92 feet wide 175 feet tall and with a usable volume of 46,000 328 tons. The Titanic seemed indestructible people could walk for miles along her myriad passages and decks even the ship's officers needed over two weeks to remember their way around this huge construction the Titanic had four massive smokestacks each of them weighed 60 tons and they extended 81.5 feet above the deck such an impressive height was necessary to avoid covering the passengers in 100 tons of soot blown off daily. The smokestacks were placed at a 30-degree angle to look even more astonishing and imposing no less inspiring was the cost of the ship its construction demanded 7.5 million dollars if we take into account modern exchange rates and inflation in 2016 they would be paying 166 million dollars surprisingly it would turn out cheaper than the production of the world-famous movie Titanic in 1997 cost 200 million dollars Harland and Wolff shipyard took on 3,000 men to build the ship even with a huge labor force working six days a week from 6:00 in the morning it still took 26 months to complete the monumental task it was a difficult and dangerous work imagine doing something at the height of a 20-story building with no safety ropes but these people needed money to support their families. The builders got 2 pounds a week which doesn't sound like much but it was a competitive wage back then unfortunately 8 people died during the building process and 246 were injured so it's really hard to fathom that such a complicated mechanism with all the work effort and money spent on its creation could just sank because of one iceberg well new findings give us reason to believe that the original cause of the catastrophe was not ice but fire journalist Sonam Maloney has been studying the fate of the Titanic for more than 30 years. It was he who discovered a huge 30-foot long black spot on the hull of the ship he noticed it after examining a photo taken before Titanic's departure the journalist got hold of an album of previously unpublished photographs that showed the construction of the ship and the preparations for her first and last journey the fire had to have been burning for three weeks at a very high temperature before somebody noticed it metallurgy experts are sure that such conditions could have easily weakened the metal reducing its strength by as much as 75 percent that's why the iceberg didn't have any problems tearing a hole in the side of the ship if not for the fire it would have been impossible but the fact that the iceberg hit exactly the spot with the compromised metal is one of the incredible links in the chain of the Titanic's tragic what-ifs the management of the project knew about the fire and the fact that the ship shouldn't have set off on that fateful voyage but it would have meant bankruptcy for the ship's owners the thing is that at the time miners all over the country were on strike. There was no coal to sustain the Titanic but the tickets had already been sold out and other ships had been cancelled since everybody wanted to be the first to sail on the largest ship known to mankind that's why the owners of the Titanic bought all the coal they could find and even the call from other ships canceling the trip seemed out of the question so to conceal the truth. The ship was turned in such a way that the marks from the fire faced away from the docks toward the sea therefore the passengers couldn't see them thus the journey began the interior of the Titanic was based on that at the Ritz Hotel in London the grand staircase went down seven out of the ten decks on the ship it was decorated with paintings bronze cherubs and oak paneling the facilities for the first-class passengers included a swimming pool with heated water a Turkish bath a gym a squash court and a beauty salon ladies could even order a stylist to help them get ready for dinner. They had an onboard newspaper called the Atlantic daily bulletin there was even a special place for first-class passengers dogs the pets were fed taken for walks and could even be trained during the voyage the meals for the first class included 13 courses each with its own wine they were a big occasion lasting about five hours there were one and a half thousand bottles of wine 20,000 bottles of beer and 8,000 cigars yet there were no binoculars why is this fact worth mentioning because having binoculars could have saved the Titanic here is another tragic coincidence in the chain of unfortunate events. There were no sonar systems in those times so to detect threats ahead of a liner special people kept watch using binoculars but the binoculars on the Titanic had been locked away in a special compartment the only person with the key to the locker second officer David Blair was replaced at the last minute he was in such a hurry to leave the ship that he forgot to hand the key over to his replacement this fateful forgetfulness was discovered only three days later when the ship was already at sea if the crew had gotten the binoculars they would have noticed the iceberg earlier and would have just enough time to avoid the crash perhaps the crash could also been avoided if the ship hadn't been breaking the speed limit. They were falling behind schedule and this was unacceptable as it could ruin the Titanic's reputation that's why the ship was moving at a speed much higher than the was designed for another criminal negligence was connected with the lifeboats in order to contain all the people on board the Titanic needed about sixty lifeboats the chief designer Alexander Carlyle planned to equip the ship with only 48 boats but eventually the number was reduced even more to 20 this was done purely for cosmetic reasons since the deck looked too cluttered with 48 these 20 boats could seat only 1/3 of all the people on the ship surprisingly such a hugely insufficient amount of lifeboats was technically legal according to the laws of that time the number of boats depended not on the number of passengers but on the tonnage of a ship what's more at the time of the Titanic's construction lifeboat drills were standard practice on ocean liners this way the crew could prepare passengers for an emergency should it occur but this type of drill never took place on the Titanic Captain Edward John Smith canceled the drill scheduled on the morning of the day. The Titanic sank nobody knows the reasons for his decision especially considering the fact that other ships had been passing on warnings about ice in the water in that vicinity perhaps this is why it took the crew over a half an hour to launch the lifeboats instead of the standard 10 minutes some people also blame captain Smith for allowing the first batch of lifeboats to leave half empty the first boat with 65 seats contained just 27 passengers why weren't they packed full in the beginning people were reluctant to leave the ship and didn't realize that they were in grave danger. In 2012 researchers found out that Captain Smith had failed his first exam in navigation eventually he passed but who knows maybe this too played its own role in the disaster as the Titanic was sinking the crew sent several distress signals however a ship sailing near by the California ignored the emergency flare shot in the sky the captain of the Californian later lost his job after this fact came out but modern researchers have managed to prove his innocence well better late than never the reason nobody noticed the signals from the Titanic could be due to the phenomenon of light refraction when layers of cold air are positioned below layers of warmer air it causes thermal inversion thermal inversion in turn leads to the light refracting abnormally in short all this creates mirages and such mirages had been recorded by several other ships sailing in that area historian Tim Moulton is also convinced that light refraction that night could be the reason why the lookouts missed the iceberg completely criminal negligence tragic and unfortunate chain of coincidences fire or ice whatever it was it took the lives of hundreds of people and still keeps the minds of scientists busy to this day what theory about the catastrophe do you believe share your opinion in the comments section.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in History
Message of Condolences For Those Who Lost Their Family Members On India Plane Crash. AI-Generated.
To the hearts left broken, to the arms left empty, To every mother who still sets the table for a child who won’t return, To every father who now searches the sky, not for planes but for peace,
By taylor lindani7 months ago in Poets
The True Scale Of Modern Nuclear Weapons. AI-Generated.
Attention we are now at deathcon one security lock down Russian nukes in Space the country recently tested a nuclear capable Hypersonic missile Hypersonic missiles and aircraft could be the future of warfare one of the most powerful nuclear weapons in the world is the b83 nuclear bomb the heavyweight of the US Arsenal weighing about 2,400 lb or 1,100 kg and stretching 12 ft or 3.7 m in length with a diameter of 18 in or 46 cm. It's roughly the size of a small car but within this imposing frame lies a force of unimaginable destruction the b83 is a gravity bomb meaning it's dropped from an aircraft and relies solely on gravity to reach its Target no Rockets or propulsion systems just a Free Falling descent this might sound simple but the devastation it can unleash is anything but carried by strategic bombers like the B2 Spirit stealth bomber and the B-52 Strat Fortress. The b83 can be delivered deep into enemy territory with a blast year field of up to 1.2 megatons of TNT the b83 is approximately 80 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hoshima which had a yield of about 15 kilotons to put that into perspective imagine the explosive energy of 1.2 million tons of TNT detonating in a single moment. The b83 isn't just about raw power it's designed to penetrate underground bunkers burrowing into the Earth before detonating as for how many of these weapons exist while exact numbers are classified experts estimate that there are about 650 b3s and it is thought there are about 200 b83 bombs in active service, this number has decreased over the years due to Arms reduction treaties and modernization efforts in fact there are plans to retire the b83 altogether in favor of more advanced lower yield nuclear weapons to grasp the true magnitude of the b83 destructive power imagine a single one detonated as an air burst over Beijing China. The immediate Fireball would engulf an area over 4 Square km or 1.5 Square mil vaporizing everything within its radius buildings would collapse within a 7.5 km or 4.6 M radius radius due to the intense blast pressure flattening much of the city center Windows would shatter up to 21 km or 13 M away sending glass shards flying and causing injuries even in distant neighborhoods. The thermal radiation would cause third degree burns to anyone within 13 km or 8 Mi covering an area of over 500 square km or over 200 square miles in terms of human cost such a detonation could result in an estimated 1.5 million immediate fatalities and over 3 million injuries and that's just from a single b83 bomb the United States operates about 76 B52 Strat Fortress bombers which were once capable of carrying up to 8 b83 nuclear bombs however by 2010 us strategic command removed nuclear gravity bombs from The B-52's Arsenal as the aircraft was no longer longer considered capable of surviving modern air defenses today only the US Fleet of 19 B2 Spirit stealth bombers is tasked with delivering nuclear gravity bombs including the b83 with each capable of carrying up to 16 b83 nuclear bombs. This means the potential for Devastation isn't limited to one bomb but could involve numerous simultaneous detonations exponentially increasing the destructive impact in Imagining the true scale of modern nuclear weapons at number four on the list is the Trident 2 missile a Cornerstone of the US and UK nuclear deterrent unlike gravity bombs like the b83 the Trident 2 is a submarine launched ballistic missile or slbm the Trident 2 missile is an engineering Marvel weighing about 59,000 kg or 130,000 lb and stretching 13.5 M or 44 ft in length it's a three-stage solid fuel rocket capable of traveling over 12,000 km or 7,500 mil this incredible range allows it to strike targets virtually anywhere on the globe from submarines hidden deep beneath the ocean's surface what truly sets the Trident 2 apart is its use of multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles or mes each missile can carry up to eight nuclear war heads typically the w88 each with a yield of 475 kilotons that's about 30 times the power of the Hiroshima bomb for each Warhead this means a single Trident 2 missile can deliver devastating blows to multiple targets across a wide area effectively multiplying its destructive capability the missiles guidance system is highly Advanced combining Astro inertial navigation with GPS updates to ensure remarkable accuracy it's capable of hitting within 100 m of its Target after traveling thousands of miles the Trident 2 is deployed on Ohio class submarines for the US Navy and Vanguard class submarines for the Royal Navy providing a stealthy and survivable second strike capability that is crucial for nuclear deterrence to grasp the potential impact of this weapon imagine a single Trident 2 missile launched toward Moscow with all eight Warheads targeting the same area for maximum. Effect the combined explosive yield would be approximately 3.8 megatons of TNT upon detonation as an air burst the immediate Fireball would engulf an area over 10 square km or close to 4 Square Mi vaporizing everything within its radius buildings would be obliterated within an 11 km or closer to 7 m radius flattening much of the city center thermal radiation would cause third Dee Burns to anyone within 22 km or close to 14 M from Ground Zero covering an area of over 1,500 square km or 580 squ mil the human cost would be staggering estimated at over 2.8 million immediate fatalities and 4.6 million injuries and remember this is from just one Trident 2 missile the United States operates 14 Ohio class nuclear submarines each capable of carrying up to 20 Trident 2 missiles that adds up to 280 Trident 2 missiles lurking in the depths of the oceans, with each missile carrying up to eight Warheads at 475 kilotons a piece we're looking at a total of 2,240 nuclear warheads if you calculate the combined explosive power it amounts to an astonishing 1,64 megatons of TNT that's the equivalent of over 70,000 Hiroshima bombs worth of destructive energy concealed Beneath the Sea this immense force is constantly on patrol ready to be Unleashed if ever called upon at number three is China's df5 intercontinental ballistic missile specifically the df5 C variant. This missile is a true giant standing over 106 ft tall and weighing approximately 183 tons first introduced in the 1980s the df5 has remained a Cornerstone of China's nuclear deterrent ever since the df5 has an impressive range of up to 15,000 km or about 9,300 Mi which means it can reach almost any Target on the globe from launch sites within China what makes it particularly formidable is its payload the latest versions like the DF 5B and DF 5c are equipped with mvs allowing them to carry up to 12 nuclear warheads each with a yield of 1 Megaton of TNT to understand the scale remember that the Hiroshima bomb was just 15 kilotons of TNT so each Warhead on the df5 is about 66 times more powerful if all 12 Warheads were directed at the same Target area. The combined explosive power would be a staggering 12 megatons that's 800 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima let's imagine that a single df5 C missile launched toward Washington DC with all 12 Warheads impacting the same area the fireball would engulf an area with a radius greater than 3 km or 2 miles effectively vaporizing everything in that zone the blast would cause most residential buildings to collapse within a 16 km or close to 10 m radius and third degree burns could affect people up to 35 km or close to 22 M away the human cost would be unimaginable estimated fatalities could exceed 1 million with over 1.8 million more injured what's even more alarming is that this level of Destruction comes from just one df5 missile China is believed to have around 20 to 30 df5 missiles in its Arsenal at number two on the list is the Russian r36 ICBM better known by its NATO designation as the Satan missile developed during the Cold War this missile is one of the most powerful ever built designed to deliver massive nuclear payloads across vast distances the r36 is a colossal missile standing over 32 M or about 106 ft tall and weighing close to a staggering 210,000 kg which is close to half a million pound. It's a two-stage liquid fueled rocket designed to deliver nuclear warheads across continents with an operational range of up to 16,000 km or close to 10,000 mil this means it can reach targets virtually anywhere in the world from launch within Russia what makes the Satan missile particularly fearsome is its payload capacity it can carry up to 10 mes each armed with a nuclear warhead ranging up to one Megaton of TNT this means a single missile can unleash a total explosive yield of up to 10 megatons of TNT about 666 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima A fitting figure for the Satan missile some variants of the r36 were equipped with a single massive Warhead with a yield of up to 20 megatons that's over 1300 times. The power of the Hiroshima bomb designed to obliterate hardened targets like missile silos and command bunkers now imagine if a single r36 missile were to detonate over San Francisco with a single 15 Megaton Warhead the immediate Fireball would engulf an area over 30 square km or 12 square mil vaporizing everything within a 3 km or close to a 2m radius buildings would be flattened within a 17 km or over 10 m radius decimating much of the Bay Area thermal radiation would cause third degree burns to people up to 40 km or over 24 M away covering an area of nearly 4,800 Square km or 1,850 Square Mi the human toll would be catastrophic estimated fatalities could exceed 1 million with over 1.3 million more injured. This is the impact of just one missile Russia is believed to have around 46 operational r36 M2 vood missiles the most advanced variant of the ss18 each of these missiles can carry multiple Warheads significantly multiplying their destructive potential with such an Arsenal the sheer scale of power held Within These weapons is almost Beyond Comprehension finally at the top of the list is the Russian rs28 samat missile ominously nicknamed the Satan 2 this intercontinental ballistic missile represents the Pinnacle of modern nuclear weaponry developed to replace the Aging r36 M Satan missiles the rs28 samat is designed to evade missile defense systems and deliver massive payloads across the globe the samat is a three-stage liquid fueled missile that weighs over 208 tons and measures over 35 M or about 116 ft in length. It's capable of carrying a variety of Warhead configurations including up to 10 heavy mvs or 15 lighter ones along with Advanced counter measures to bypass missile defenses its range exceeds 18,000 km or over 11,000 Mi allowing it to reach targets anywhere on Earth one of the most concerning features of the rs28 is its ability to utilize a fractional orbital bombardment system or fobs this means the missile can enter a low earth orbit and approach targets from any direction including over the South Pole effectively bypassing traditional early warning systems that are oriented toward the north some reports speculate that the sarmat could theoretically carry a payload of up to 50 megatons equivalent to the Zar bomber the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated while such a massive yield is more hypothetical and not practical for modern military use imagining its potential impact is sobering consider a scenario where a 50 Megaton Warhead is detonated over New York City. The immediate Fireball would engulf an area with a radius of over 5 km or over 3 Mi vaporizing everything within 83 Square km or 32 square Mi the intense blast wave would cause heavy destruction up to 26 km or 16 M away leveling buildings and structures in more than 2,000 square km or close to 800 square mil third degree burns could be inflicted on people up to 60 km or 37 M away covering an area of close to 11,000 square km or over 4,200 Square mil the human toll would be unimaginable estimated fatalities could exceed 7 million people with over 6 million I more injured and this is just from a single rs28 sarmat missile assuming the theoretical payload of 50 megatons of TNT to put this into perspective when the 50 Megaton Zar bomber was detonated in 1961 The Flash was visible as far away as Norway over a th000 km from the test site similarly a 50 Megaton explosion over New York City would be visible with the naked eye all the way to Columbia South Carolina nearly a, kilom away, but what does all this mean for us today? Despite Russia's impressive Arsenal on paper recent events have cast doubt on its true capabilities Russia's new sarmat ballistic missile known as the Satan 2 reportedly blew up during a test launch leaving a massive crater at the site combined with the setbacks and debacles Russia has faced in its aggressor war in Ukraine it seems that Russia might not be as for able as many once thought but merely a paper tiger yet in a full-scale nuclear exchange even a few missiles from Russia's nearly 6,000 nuclear warheads would cause unimaginable damage to the United States but the real challenge isn't about who has the biggest bomb but about ensuring these weapons are never used because in a nuclear war there are no winners only a world left in Ruins where everyone loses.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in Humans
The Israel-Iran War Just Changed Everything. AI-Generated.
The Cold War has turned hot overnight in the early hours of June 13th Israel launched preemptive strikes on Iran multiple explosions were heard across Thran with online footage showing blasts lighting up the capital but the fire that started in the city didn't stop there additional explosions occurred in Isvahan Tabris Karman Sha Hamadan K and Piranha cities that host nuclear military or strategic sites separate strikes also hit the Natans nuclear site the Arak heavy water reactor and the Parchin military complex satellite imagery for instance shows considerable but likely superficial damage at Natans. Either way the initial 24 hours have been nothing short of a disaster for the Iranians Israeli jets are flying almost uncontested over Iranian airspace Mossad operatives are roaming freely launching drones and anti-tank guided missiles at key Iranian systems all while Hezbollah remains on the sidelines already multiple senior nuclear scientists and highranking military leaders have been killed as was bound to happen Iran responded harshly and launched waves of loitering munitions and ballistic missiles at Israel most of these were intercepted in the air. Some made it through tel Aviv was hit multiple times and significant damage has been reported at Israel's central military command center what we're seeing is unlike anything the region has witnessed before the firepower unleashed makes Hezbollah and Hamas rockets look like toys by comparison meanwhile Netanyahu has urged Israeli citizens to prepare for a prolonged conflict and so it begins when sirens replace speeches war is no longer coming it has arrived.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in Viva
Pride Under Pressure—A Love That Refuses to Vanish. AI-Generated.
There is a weight to being seen. A sharp, unrelenting pressure that presses against the ribs, constricts the breath, and warns—too much visibility will cost you. It is the unspoken lesson of survival, passed down through glances, through silences, through doors that close quietly when you walk into a room. Be careful. Be small. Be quiet.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in Poets
Fear in Freefall, What If You Never Land?. AI-Generated.
There is a moment in silent, suspended, where the world splits open beneath you. The ground that once held your weight dissolves, and you plummet into the unknown. You reach, grasp, clutch at the air, but there is nothing solid to hold onto. This is the terror of freefall not the moment of impact, not the wound of collision, but the unrelenting uncertainty of never landing at all.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in Poets
June 4, 1989 – Tiananmen Square Protests Memories. AI-Generated.
Tiananmen square Beijing 1989 the Chinese government sends tanks into the square shooting at unarmed civilians and students an abrupt end to political reforms that once brought people so much hope and today the protest movement remains a taboo in China this statue was called to the goddess of democracy she represented what the Tiananmen students were dreaming of democracy and liberty but the movement for democracy was met with a bloody crackdown why what happened let's start from the death of Huyao bang Huyao bang was the general secretary of the communist party of china. On 15th April 1989 he died Huyabang was seen as a liberal he was loved by the people college students pour onto the streets to mourn his passing soon mourners become protesters they turn Tiananmen square the country's symbol of sovereignty into a hub of dissent and protest they want a crackdown on corruption they want freedom of press they call for an awakening to reform and progress in china. The 1980s the old communist states are beginning to open up Mikhail Gorbachev the last communist leader of the soviet union is pushing for market reform in Russia china is walking out of the devastating shadow of the cultural revolution Deng Xiaoping the real leader of the communist party behind the scenes had launched the open door policy which introduced market economy to china it brought prosperity as well as moral liberty in this relatively free atmosphere. People begin to talk about political reform now china lack of democracy lack of freedom especially freedom of press do you think you get an accurate picture of the world from the news or do you think you get propaganda yeah some part propaganda this agitates the conservatives within the core of the communist party. 22nd April Huyabang's funeral is held tens of thousands of students gather outside three of them kneel at the entrance begging to have a dialogue with the premier Li Peng their plea falls on deaf ears with the consent of the most senior leaders in the communist party its official mouthpiece the people's daily publishes an editorial vowing to take a clear-cut stand against disturbances in the cultural revolution the term labeled anyone against the government as a danger to society that needed to be purged within hours campus wars are lined with handwritten posters condemning the editorial and its wording those who were protesting in Tiananmen square were about to leave now they are reignited and enraged college students set up the Beijing students autonomous federation. They demand dialogue with the government and a withdrawal of the April 26 editorial the government does not give in as standoff begins the April 26 editorial becomes the defining moment of the protest movement eventually it will lead to a military crackdown and determine the fate of thousands of young people in china we do not want to challenge with our government we just want to ask our government to talk with delegation i think what they really wanted was a channel to participate in making decisions in government or to participate in politics uh many of the people on the square were communist party members they were not there to overthrow the government 4th may more than 100 000 college students march across Beijing to mark the anniversary of another protest that happened in 1919 against world war one's treaty of Versailles which handed a German colony in China over to the Japanese. The students are joined by Beijing residents workers and civil servants from national agencies Zhao Zhiyang the communist party chief calls the protest patriotic and some of the students take comfort in this and return to campus the moment of quiet will be short-lived students like Wang Dan Chiling and work Kaisi strive to keep the protest going 13th may a few hundred students who had been camping in Tiananmen square since the beginning begin a hunger strike the protests. Continued five days into the hunger strike some students begin to faint men and women across Beijing one after another rush food and drink to them people go onto the street this time to show their support for the starving students mid-may a month in and things begin to get complicated 18th may premier Li Pung finally agrees to meet the students at the great hall of the people student leader and hunger striker work Heisi comes in in a hospital gown he interrupts the premier school the students have certain requirements which must be met otherwise they won't leave the square tensions rise the talks fall apart. The communist party chief who had comforted the students weeks earlier comes to the square and asks the student to stop their hunger strike his plea doesn't work 20th may the students ignore a newly imposed curfew in Beijing for the next few days Tiananmen square becomes an Island of liberty, freedom of speech rules it will not last 9 50 p.m third June Beijing's municipal government tells people to stay away from Tiananmen square for their own safety what the public doesn't know is that hundreds of thousands of soldiers are assembled on the outskirts of Beijing they are waiting for the order to charge to enforce eviction two hundred thousand soldiers move into the square from different directions. They shoot at students and residents along their way noise of gunfire is heard throughout the night. Early morning 4th June soldiers move into Tiananmen square they dragged down the statue of the goddess of democracy which had come to represent the protest movement they seal the fate of its failure. No one knows the death toll even today estimates run from several hundred to over ten thousand some argue that by shooting at civilians the communist party lost its legitimacy to rule and with it an opportunity for political modernisation, others believe the crackdown brought stability to china a price it had to pay to secure economic progress and to maintain the status quo thirty years on it is still impossible to openly mark the anniversary in mainland China vigils are held every year in Hong Kong attended by tens of thousands but people are still seeking the truth and the effort to hold those accountable for the bloody crackdown.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in History
June 2, 1953 – Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation Memories. AI-Generated.
on one of the coldest June days of the century after 16 months of planning and watched by millions of people throughout the world Her Majesty the queen set out to be crowned. One of the world's oldest ceremonies was to Mark the dawn of a new Elizabethan age now in what has become the longest reign of any British monarch the queen talks for the first time about that day we're not taking part in something you don't actually see it Her Majesty reveals her intimate knowledge of the crown jewels he handed that that way that I put it on when he hands it and I put it on straight so there are some disadvantages to crowns but otherwise they're quite important things no British monarch has ever talked about their coronation on camera until now with unprecedented access to the Royal collection. This program unlocks the story of the crown jewels the crown jewels matter they are conductors for a feeling that we have about our country and and that is something that's that comes alive when they're actually used we meet those who witnessed the events of that day everybody thought the queen had arrived so everybody stood up 8 000 people stood up when from underneath the organ Loft came four cleaners with carpet sweepers in a Britain recovering from war and austerity nothing could be allowed to go wrong under there we had a file of smelling sauce finally after 65 years we tell the inside story of the crown jewels. The Queen's coronation I mean I've seen one one coronation and been the recipient and the other which is pretty remarkable, today the two crowns used in the Queen's coronation have just left their heavily guarded home in the Tower of London for an unprecedented assignment at Buckingham Palace for the first time since her coronation Her Majesty. The queen has agreed to talk about the ceremony that marked the start of her Reign 65 years ago with coronation expert Aleister Bruce she is about to reacquaint herself firstly with the crown she has only ever worn once at the moment of coronation since Edward's Crown was made in 1661 for the coronation of Charles II only be handled by the Queen the Archbishop of Canterbury and the crown Jeweler. Today it's been summoned from its Fortress home to Her Majesty's throne room encrusted with 440 precious and semi-precious stones and with a frame of solid gold it weighs five pounds but is it still as heavy yes it is it weighs a ton it's very solid isn't it um I don't suppose you've seen it much no I haven't since thank goodness and it's impossible to tell which is front and back I suppose it's identical I think the crowning with Saint Edward's Crown is the centerpiece of the coronation it's the ceremony that marks the moment when the new Sovereign is formally recognized in front of God and their people and it goes back more than a thousand years the ritual of the coronation has been being performed pretty much exactly along the same lines other than being translated into English and Latin since um since the the Anglo-Saxon period and that is an extraordinary thing the order of service was written down more than 600 years ago in a medieval manuscript it outlines the five stages of the coronation they move from the recognition where the Monarch shows they aren't an imposter byronose and an anointing to the crowning and finally the Lords of the land pay their homage to the monarch and Central to each stage are the crown jewels in the collection there are 140 items containing more than 23 000 precious stones most are used in the coronation and are known as the regalia we have this incredible continuity in this country in the form of the coronation other countries still have a monarchy but very very few have a medieval fat none has a medieval coronation in the way that we do and that we have a collection of regalia that is used for that um is is is astonishing the concept of the crown dates back at least 2 000 years originally a simple band a Halo of light it represents the Sovereign as head of the nation then there are the other sacred items in the collection that throughout the ceremony symbolize different aspects of the Monarch's powers. The orb is an expression of religious and moral Authority receptor embodies power the ampulla and Spoon represent the most holy part of the ceremony when the Monarch is Anointed with the coronation oil and the sovereign's ring known by some as the wedding ring of England symbolizes the lifetime commitment of the monarch. It is an amazing thing to see these objects which in a way very familiar to people from afar but to see them up close like this actually that proximity is extraordinary because you can really appreciate what astonishing objects they are for many the role of the crown jewels has been largely forgotten of 65 years without a coronation they're not just objects of tremendous Beauty and and and skill and craftsmanship and so on they are an expression of the way in which authority has worked in this country the the relationship between the Sovereign and the subject. There is a kind of an expression of all of our history in that in that relationship in those objects the most important items used in the coronation are the monarchs two crowns the queen has only worn Saint Edward's Gold Crown once she is much more with this the diamond encrusted Imperial State Crown she wore it at the end of her coronation and for most State openings of parliament since you see it's it's much smaller isn't it I mean it was it was the same height you know it would be it would have been up to about there when my father wore it I mean it was huge then yes very un unwieldy it's difficult to always remember that diamonds are Stones I said it very heavy yes fortunately my father and I have about the same sort of shaped head but once you put it on it stays I mean it just remains itself you have to keep your head very still yes and you can't look down to read the speech you have to take the speech up because if you did your neck would break would it fall off so there are some disadvantages to crimes but but otherwise they're quite important things can I ask if the crown could be brought a little bit closer to the queen this is what I do when I wear it can I look at this end yes certainly I like the black princess Ruby this Crown contains the story of a thousand years of the history of the British Monarchy the Ruby actually a semi-precious Stone mined in Afghanistan is said to have been worn by Henry V in 1415 at the Battle of Agincourt he is supposed to have placed a feather in the hole drilled into the Ruby it's fun to see I think with it with the idea that his plume was was put into the stone for his on his helmet bit rash but that was the sort of thing they did I suppose and there's it four pearls hang underneath the Arches two of them were said to have belonged to Mary Queen of Scots and were bought by her rival Elizabeth the first after Mary's execution they were meant to be Queen Elizabeth's earrings um but they're not very happy now no they don't look very happy now like to be sort of living creatures. They've just been out hanging out here for years it's all said so they don't look very happy I quite dead well I'm afraid so I mean the trouble is that pearls are are sort of live things and and they need they need warming the Queen's relationship with the regalia began in 1937 that her father King George VI coronation Her Majesty is about to look at footage of what happened when her father was crowned the coronation didn't quite go to plan the Archbishop of Canterbury who conducts the service thought he'd cunningly marked the front of Saint Edward's crown with a piece of cotton but at the vital moment he couldn't find it now this is when they'd lost the little piece of thread that they organizers are placed through the front Arch the king written his diary I never did know whether it was put on the right way or not I don't think the King was best pleased. Father was determined that his daughter's coronation would run more smoothly I remember my father making me write down what I remembered about his coronation it was very valuable everyone who never seen it the Queen's own account written in a child's exercise book contains remarkable insights. I thought it all very very wonderful and I expect the Abbey did too The Arches and beams at the top were covered with a sort of haze of Wonder as Papa was crowned at least I thought so the events left a lasting impression on the queen you remember that one almost better than yours because I wasn't doing anything I'm just sitting there from that moment on Guided by her father the queen Was preparing for her own coronation no one was more aware of the importance of the crown jewels to the coronation and to the nation than the Queen's father in the second world war when Britain faced the threat of Nazi invasion the King was intimately involved in plans to keep the jewels out of Hitler's hands to protect them they were taken from the tower only a handful of people knew where they were hidden until now recently uncovered private correspondence reveals that the crown jewels were actually hidden under Windsor Castle. Librarian Oliver urkutelvin who discovered the letters is showing Aleister Bruce their specially built secret hiding place 60 feet below the castle. It was accessed by a medieval tunnel known as a sally port secret passage with a concealed entrance that was used in times of Siege, oh my goodness look down there you better lead us down yes absolutely Castle, one imagines that you know the King was determined to make sure that right down here the Nazis would never find the crown jewels so here are the chambers built to hold the rules it is far bigger than I thought and so literally all the symbols the regalia of this nation that go back centuries held here of all the things that were to be kept close by and guarded most securely had a lot of something significant to the Royal palaces and fortresses it is those actual jewels and I think that is uh that's a measure really the importance which he attached to the jewels the correspondence also reveals that some key items were prized from their settings and placed in a Biscuit tin it meant they could easily have been Spirited Away to an even more secure location had the Nazis closed in on Windsor Castle for her majesty the queen it's an intriguing and unknown story you think they were at Windsor they were definitely the librarian guides the principal stains out of the crown jewels and put them into a wrap them up put them into a jar and put them in a bath Oliver tin hmm and hit them brilliant absolutely brilliant did you remember where he put them because he might have died in the middle I think the King was told man the queen like the crown jewels spent the war at Windsor but she was never aware of the treasure beneath her feet when we would turn nothing when we were only children then but but I mean we didn't know anything that was well I mean all the pictures disappeared and all the everything disappeared and someone was never told anything it was it was you know a secret I suppose the road to the Queen's own coronation began on February the 6th 1952. 25 year old princess Elizabeth was on Royal duties in Kenya standing in for her father George VI the king suffering from lung cancer was too ill to travel princess filmed these images of the famous Treetop Safari Lodge they were taken at a moment when the princess's life was about to change forever. Hours later on the morning of the 6th of February the king died at Sandringham in his sleep at that moment in Africa the princess became Queen losing a parent for anyone is tough particularly if like the princess you're as close as she was to her father but knowing that everything has changed now she's not the Queen the head of state it's very lonely place to be the queen flew home for the lying in state of her beloved father the Imperial State Crown the scepter and the orb were taken from the tower to lie on the king's coffin in Westminster Hall. After a period of mourning the date for the coronation was set Tuesday the 2nd of June 1953 there were 16 months to get everything ready preparations were overseen by a coronation committee chaired by the Duke of Edinburgh in charge was the formidable Bernard Duke of Norfolk he had masterminded George VI coronation since 1386 the Dukes of Norfolk have had a role in organizing great state occasions even though the 1953 everyone in that possession will either Drive in a carriage ride a horse or walk and there will not be any mechanization at all. To coronation for a new Elizabethan age in a country still suffering from the ravages of War was still in place the country was still physically very visibly damaged by the impact of War this was an opportunity to celebrate both the future and the past that the accession of a a young woman as Sovereign provided a wonderful opportunity to do that to sort of feel like it was a fresh start the very long period of time that it took between the death of George VI and the coronation of the queen was used to design something that would have a Hollywood movie glamor to it as well as all the ancient tradition to it the plan included organizing food and accommodation for 30 000 troops from across the Commonwealth and building 27 miles of seating along the processional route it put the whole country to work to achieve the greatest coronation show ever used to make a great coronation carpet at a factory in Glasgow when it is completed the carpet will measure 188 feet long by a 17 feet wide home to every coronation since that of King Harold in 1066 is Westminster Abbey it's witnessed the crowning of 39 kings and queens John Hall is the dean of Westminster it is the dean's responsibility to ensure the Abbey becomes the perfect stage for the coronation for six months they closed the alley they laid a railway track down the center of the Abbey bringing in tons and tons of wood and iron foreign takes place is called the theater. A specially raised platform at the Central Crossing of the Abbey the rest of the Abbey had to be transformed into a stadium for thousands of guests I think there were 400 people in the choir and they were they were all up there and there was an orchestra on the Cross Creek 2 200 people can sit on the on the floor of the Abbey 8 000 people were in here in 1953 they took a long time actually to get the whole thing ready but all these impressive preparations were no guarantee that the Queen's coronation would run smoothly in the past they'd gone notoriously wrong I think Queen Victoria's coronation here was absolutely amazing because they hadn't got much of a clue how to handle it and she writes very clearly about how chaotic the whole thing is how long it lasts it goes on forever and she and she goes into into the uh Saint Edwards Chapel behind the high altar earlier than she should and she finds the whole place a litter of bottles and sandwiches and is rather disgusted by this afterwards the Archbishop of Canterbury wondered if they should have had a full rehearsal. In May 1953 with a month to go building work within the Abbey was complete outside London was being transformed with giant stands for The Spectators temporary accommodation in World War II air raid shelters and attempted City in Kensington Gardens. As the day approached the rehearsals to deliver the perfect coronation reached fever pitch the queen practiced at Buckingham Palace and attended several rehearsals at The Abbey in secret the Press offered workmen 50 pounds to find out what had happened, lady Anne Glen Connor then aged 19 was chosen by the queen as one of her six Maids of Honor we had to be Daughters of Earl's Marcus's or dukes and it had sort of nice figures and that sort of thing in post-war Britain they provided much needed glamor in those days there weren't any sort of girl bands back there and I always perhaps was simply say we were all like the Spice Girls because suddenly we were in all the newspapers the Press followed us well this is my box I got my own Asian dressing a huge box it's very very fragile my address the maids of honors costumes were designed by Norman Hartnell the designer of the Queen's coronation dress it's all a beautifully more embroidered pearls and gold and I think they're zircons. There are leaves Little Golden Leaves there and it was all hand embroidered and we just felt like princesses actually because I was but we all brought up in the war when there were um rationing and clothes coupons and we never had an amazing rest like this the rehearsals were so secret even the dresses were kept Under Wraps the last rehearsal they said you wear your dress is but they didn't say completely top secret and you got to wear a coat so anyway I just had a white shawl and as we came out there was a wind blowing it blew my shawl back. The Queen said there was I exposed head to toe this wonderful dress and so embarrassing on the front of a newspaper head done saying she didn't know it was a secret so I felt I thought well I'm going to be struck off I'm going to get telephone call by the Duke of Norfolk saying sorry you know we're going to have I have to find somebody else but anyway it didn't happen for the final dress rehearsal four days before the coronation all the key participants other than the queen were brought together for the first time the ring Master Bernard Duke of Norfolk was in his element that brings back lots of memories there are my second from the right uh by the train the Duke of Norfolk was absolutely fantastic he had done the coronation of the late King so he knew exactly every detail about exactly what we were to wear uh what the jewelry the height of our shoes Duke Bernard was an absolute stickler for discipline when a bishop took an unauthorized holiday the Duke sent a police car to drag him back I think it must have been pretty scary to be at a rehearsal with Bernard Norfolk he knew minute by minute where every single person should be and when you see the plans it is literally a ballet things move everything moves precisely and when Randolph Churchill who was the son of Winston Churchill thought it looked like a bit of an untidy ballet very quickly Bernard's representative came over and said I think you need to remember there's room in the tower still. The dress rehearsal Bernard's wife The Duchess of Norfolk stood in for the queen there is the crown Duchess of Norfolk is being crowned all seems so much all real we realized what it was going to look like, on the eve of the Carnation two million people descended on the Rainy capital, 6500 extra trains and 6 000 coaches had been laid on to get them there I went The Umbrellas on went the raincoats and under the shelter of blankets and newspapers they stuck it out as people settled down for the night Crown Jaws were brought to the Abbey James Wilkinson was a 12 year old choir boy at the coronation and has subsequently written about the event this is the most historic room, this is the Jerusalem chamber and this is where the night before the coronation the regalia is set out and now it comes with 12 Yeoman Waters of the tar and it's set out on this table and they were all armed with revolvers and they each had 12 rounds of ammunition uh what would have happened if they'd had to discharge it, I don't know it would have left a few holes around this very significant room I would have thought that these days they would have probably had slightly more sophisticated ways of of making sure that the crown jewels are untouched amongst the most valuable items guarded that night were two gems from one of the most famous diamonds ever discovered the cullinan number one sits in the scepter and is the largest colorless cut diamond in the world its smaller sister the cullinan number two is mounted in the Imperial State Crown in total nine diamonds were fashioned from the legendary cullinan it was discovered in 1905 and astonishingly sent to Britain in the post. In 1908 The Cutting of this Priceless rough diamond was entrusted to Antwerp Jeweler Joseph Asher he was reputedly the best Diamond Cutter in the world I always wish I'd been there when they smashed it into pieces these are the chips that were left and there are two other two or three other bits too he he hit it with this whatever you had a diamond was to get the right thing and he spent hours looking at it you know and then he fainted when he'd done it but I don't know whether that's just a story it had a brown floor in it he hit it and and all the bits fell out and the brown bit disappeared these we've never seen each other since they were smashed really that is as Dawn broke on June the 2nd 1953 the scene was set for The Greatest Show on Earth Parliament Square quarter to six this morning many had never been out so early before yet here they were rapidly filling every Vantage for him more than 8 000 specially invited guests rushed to their places in the Abbey before the doors closed at 8 European royalty mingled with shakes Sultans and maharajas thousands of aristocrats in their Urban pick their way through the puddles. Many had hidden strong drink and sandwiches in their coronets to get them through the day among the 8 000 was the choir of 400 voices today James Wilkinson is meeting three of his fellow choristers from The Abbey Choir School at the time Richard Watts William Wallace and David Brown were aged between 9 and 13. Well it's a very long time since I was here my goodness me but it hasn't changed very much what a superview you get yeah and we're so close to where we were I mean you David was standing just there on the corner absolutely right on that corner there we were just lined up on the front two rows and it was extremely cramped if you remember yeah by 11 AM. The Abbey was ready for the arrival of the queen and the penultimate procession was the procession of the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret everybody got terribly excited because the next one was the queen and then there was a sort of bustle at the West End and everybody thought the queen had arrived so everybody stood up 8 000 people stood up when from underneath the organ Loft came four cleaners with carpet sweepers and started to sweep the carpet to restore it to its pristine station everybody got laughed and and sat down again at Buckingham Palace the queen is viewing film of her coronation cameras filmed throughout the day and even though the queen commissioned some of the footage it's the first time she has ever reviewed the event a very long day we're not taking part in something we don't actually see it no I don't suppose you've seen these films very often man I don't suppose I've ever seen it as the Queen's Carriage left the palace Courtyard her children remained at home now there are your children watching and Prince Charles says that you rehearsed wearing the crown before the event in fact he says at bath times it's rather sweet because only Prince Charles actually witnessed it hasn't that Princess Anne stayed back here and he only came for 10 minutes away what did the two children do for most of the day can you remember man no idea it wasn't there no it wasn't there I have no idea what they did but there are a lot of other people in the in the palace as well. I think lots of children the queen set out for Westminster Abbey in the gold State coach it weighs nearly four tons horrible it's not meant for terribly installed I mean it's just not it's only sprung on leather so it rocks around a lot it's not really comfortable were you in it for a long time Halfway Around London really we must have gone about four or five miles we can only go to walking pace yeah the horses couldn't possibly go any faster right it's so heavy really but you look really high up there so I presume it is very high I mean look at the size of the man yeah said. As the carriage approached the Abbey lady Anne's first task was to greet the queen there he is that's the gold and the lovely golden coach it has me about me looking through the window well this is a queen Coming well there's a Duke of Norfolk there's me on the left um taking up my bit of a tree like though I am going past it was so exciting to seeing her I mean she looked absolutely beautiful you know um we hadn't seen her in her dress and she had the tiniest waist and the most wonderful complexion and I it's just beautiful absolutely beautiful and of course the November looked pretty dishy too but he was a little bit fussy I think he wanted it all to go perfectly so he was sort of telling us no you know now I'm going to do this and I'll do that sort of thing after a moment's pausing the annex it was time. She hadn't said anything people said did you say something when she arrived and we said no nothing and we were all waiting and it was you know we were all like this and uh she just turned around and she said ready girls we've no idea you know an off we went the 8 000 guests were packed to the rafters to see a 27 year old crowned queen thank you they were they were so high up they messed up in the I mean we were in the bottom and everything that was happening you know they were all sitting at the top it was so full but that it all the takes away the height of it and here we are coming up I'm on the right there, as a queen but of course at that point she hasn't got any of her regalia answer we we felt she should have had some flowers or something that wasn't correct. The Queen's coronation dress was embroidered in silk with pearls and gold and silver bullion thread well I remember one where a moment when I was going against the tile of the carpet and I couldn't move at all really yes they hadn't thought of that in the organ Loft choir boy David Brown was one of three soloists there were just four bars intro and I came in and there were three of us who were going to do this solo and I think looking back to have three boys on standby as it were to do the solo you never know what's likely to happen in a situation like that nerves weren't the only difficulty for the choir they were so spread out they needed three conductors some will require were stuck further back or even somewhere they couldn't see anything that was being. I think they needed to sort of relay a system of conducting yes the tradition dates back to the year 973.
By taylor lindani7 months ago in History
