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Johann Michael Graff
Johann Michael Graff (; sometimes also Johann Michael Graaf, Johann Michael Graaff, Johann Michael Graf or Johann Michael Kraff, fl. c. 1765-68), was a German Rococo sculptor and plasterer. Among his most celebrated decorations are those at Schönhausen Palace, Germany, and Rundāle Palace, Latvia. Graff came from a family of stucco decorators from Bavaria who were members of the so-called Wessobrunner School. He seems to have moved to Brandenburg at some point, where he was influenced by the decorative style predominant in and around Berlin. He very probably made decorations for Schönhausen Palace before being hired by the Duke of Courland, Peter von Biron, to decorate his residences in present-day Latvia. He is known to have decorated Jelgava Palace (decorations destroyed during World War II) and Rundāle Palace for the Duke. In present-day Estonia, he also made lavish stucco decorations for Põltsamaa Castle (destroyed during World War II), and possibly at Kabala Manor. Galle ...
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German People
Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, implemented in 1949 following the end of World War II, defines a German as a German nationality law, German citizen. During the 19th and much of the 20th century, discussions on German identity were dominated by concepts of a common language, culture, descent, and history.. "German identity developed through a long historical process that led, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, to the definition of the German nation as both a community of descent (Volksgemeinschaft) and shared culture and experience. Today, the German language is the primary though not exclusive criterion of German identity." Today, the German language is widely seen as the primary, though not exclusive, criterion of German identity. Estimates on the total number of Germ ...
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Jelgava Palace
Jelgava Palace () or historically Mitau Palace (, ) is the largest Baroque-style palace in the Baltic states. It was built in the 18th century based on the design of Bartolomeo Rastrelli as a residence for the Dukes of Courland in their capital of Mitau (today's Jelgava, in the Semigallia region of Latvia). The Dukes of Courland also had a summer palace by Rastrelli, about 40 kilometers to the southeast, called Rundāle Palace. History Construction of the palace started in 1738 on an island between the Lielupe river and its branches. The site had borne the residence of the former Courland dukes of the Kettler dynasty and, before that, a medieval castle belonging to the Livonian Order. Following Ernst Johann von Biron's fall from grace in 1740, all construction work was stopped, even though the roof of the palace had not yet been completed. Most of the building materials and interior elements were moved to St. Petersburg where Rastrelli used them in building of other palaces. ...
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18th-century German Sculptors
The 18th century lasted from 1 January 1701 (represented by the Roman numerals MDCCI) to 31 December 1800 (MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the Atlantic Revolutions. Revolutions began to challenge the legitimacy of monarchical and aristocratic power structures. The Industrial Revolution began mid-century, leading to radical changes in human society and the environment. The European colonization of the Americas and other parts of the world intensified and associated mass migrations of people grew in size as part of the Age of Sail. During the century, slave trading expanded across the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, while declining in Russia and China. Western historians have occasionally defined the 18th century otherwise for the purposes of their work. For example, the "short" 18th century may be defined as 1715–1789, denoting the period of time between the death of Louis XIV of France and the start of the French Revolution, ...
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Rococo Sculptors
Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, and ''trompe-l'œil'' frescoes to create surprise and the illusion of motion and drama. It is often described as the final expression of the Baroque movement. The Rococo style began in France in the 1730s as a reaction against the more formal and geometric Louis XIV style. It was known as the "style Rocaille", or "Rocaille style". It soon spread to other parts of Europe, particularly northern Italy, Austria, southern Germany, Central Europe and Russia. It also came to influence other arts, particularly sculpture, furniture, silverware, glassware, painting, music, theatre, and literature. Although originally a secular style primarily used for interiors of private residences, the Rococo had a spiritual aspect to it which led to ...
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German Male Sculptors
German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also German nationality law **Germanic peoples (Roman era) * German diaspora * German language * German cuisine, traditional foods of Germany People * German (given name) * German (surname) * Germán, a Spanish name Places * German (parish), Isle of Man * German, Albania, or Gërmej * German, Bulgaria * German, Iran * German, North Macedonia * German, New York, U.S. * Agios Germanos, Greece Other uses * German (mythology), a South Slavic mythological being * Germans (band), a Canadian rock band * "German" (song), a 2019 song by No Money Enterprise * ''The German'', a 2008 short film * "The Germans", an episode of ''Fawlty Towers'' * ''The German'', a nickname for Congolese rebel André Kisase Ngandu See also * Germanic (disambig ...
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18th-century German Male Artists
The 18th century lasted from 1 January 1701 (represented by the Roman numerals MDCCI) to 31 December 1800 (MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the Atlantic Revolutions. Revolutions began to challenge the legitimacy of monarchical and aristocratic power structures. The Industrial Revolution began mid-century, leading to radical changes in human society and the environment. The European colonization of the Americas and other parts of the world intensified and associated mass migrations of people grew in size as part of the Age of Sail. During the century, slave trading expanded across the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, while declining in Russia and China. Western historians have occasionally defined the 18th century otherwise for the purposes of their work. For example, the "short" 18th century may be defined as 1715–1789, denoting the period of time between the death of Louis XIV of France and the start of the French Revolution ...
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Kabala, Järva County
Kabala is a village in Türi Parish, Järva County in central Estonia. From 1991 to 2005 it was the administrative seat of Kabala Parish. Kabala manor Kabala () became an independent manorial estate in 1638. It has belonged to several different Baltic German families. The present house was erected around 1770, when Hans Georg von Uexküll was the landowner, in a late Baroque style. The building still contains some very fine examples of original baroque and rococo interiors. These include two fine tiled stoves as well as stucco decorations, some of them possibly executed by master stucco craftsman Johann Michael Graff, who is famous for his extraordinary work at Rundāle Palace in Latvia. In the 19th century, further additions to the interior were made, such as the study with its richly carved and decorated wainscoting, neo-baroque stoves and stair balusters. Jüri Lossmann, a long distance runner and silver medalist in the marathon at the 1920 Summer Olympics (1891–1984) wa ...
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Põltsamaa Castle
Põltsamaa Castle (; ), also Põltsamaa Order Castle, (), is a castle in Põltsamaa, Jõgeva County, in eastern Estonia. History The castle was founded by the Livonian Order in 1272, as a purely defensive Ordensburg, crusader fortress. During the course of the Livonian War, the castle was for a period occupied by Polish troops and between 1570 and 1578 served as the official residence of Magnus, Duke of Holstein, Duke Magnus of Holstein, who aspired to create a Kingdom of Livonia, Livonian kingdom with the help of Ivan the Terrible, Tsar Ivan the Terrible of Russia. In 1623, king Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden gave the estate to Field Marshal Herman Wrangel as a gift. Wrangel started to transform the castle from a medieval fortress into a stately late-renaissance home. During the course of the Great Northern War, however, the castle was burnt and the interiors destroyed. After the war, Emperor Peter the Great in his turn gave the castle as a gift to reformer Heinrich von Fick. Thro ...
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Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Russia. The territory of Estonia consists of the mainland, the larger islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa, and over 2,300 other islands and islets on the east coast of the Baltic Sea. Its capital Tallinn and Tartu are the two largest List of cities and towns in Estonia, urban areas. The Estonian language is the official language and the first language of the Estonians, majority of its population of nearly 1.4 million. Estonia is one of the least populous members of the European Union and NATO. Present-day Estonia has been inhabited since at least 9,000 BC. The Ancient Estonia#Early Middle Ages, medieval indigenous population of Estonia was one of the last pagan civilisations in Europe to adopt Christianity following the Northern Crusades in the ...
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World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks in World War II, Tanks and Air warfare of World War II, aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the List of wars by death toll, deadliest conflict in history, causing World War II casualties, the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Allied-occupied Germany, Germany, Allied-occupied Austria, Austria, Occupation of Japan, Japan, a ...
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Peter Von Biron
Peter von Biron (15 February 1724 – 13 January 1800) was the last duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1769 to 1795, when it was annexed by the Russian Empire. Life and reign Peter was born in Jelgava () as the oldest son of Ernst Johann von Biron, future Duke of Courland, and his wife Benigna von Trotha. From 1730 until 1740, he and his family lived in Moscow and St. Petersburg, where his father was a lover and favorite of Anna of Russia. When he was 16 years old, he was forced to follow his family into their exile, first to Tobolsk Governorate in Siberia, then from 1742 until 1762 in Yaroslavl. In 1765, he married Princess Caroline of Waldeck and Pyrmont, but the union produced only one son, who was stillborn, in 1766. In 1769, he was given the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia by his father. However, he had acted as ''de facto'' duke for several years already. In 1770, he gave an oath to the Courland Knighthood. He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in ...
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Rococo
Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, and ''trompe-l'œil'' frescoes to create surprise and the illusion of motion and drama. It is often described as the final expression of the Baroque movement. The Rococo style began in France in the 1730s as a reaction against the more formal and geometric Louis XIV style. It was known as the "style Rocaille", or "Rocaille style". It soon spread to other parts of Europe, particularly northern Italy, Austria, southern Germany, Central Europe and Russia. It also came to influence other arts, particularly sculpture, furniture, silverware, glassware, painting, music, theatre, and literature. Although originally a secular style primarily used for interiors of private residences, the Rococo had a spiritual aspect to it which led to ...
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