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Scottish Sword Dance
The Sword dance is one of the best known of all Highland dances, an ancient dance of war. Performance of sword dances in the folklore of Scotland is recorded from as early as the 15th century. Related customs are found in the Welsh and English Morris dance, in Austria, Germany, Flanders, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Romania. * In ''Ghillie Callum'' or "Scottish sword dance" the dancer crosses two swords on the ground in an "X" or a "+" shape, and dances around and within the 4 quarters of it. * The dirk dance involves either one or two dancers, each holding a single dirk. History of the Scottish sword dance Origins Gillidh Callum was a figure in Scottish apocryphal folk belief, said to be Noah's bagpiper. According to these beliefs, Noah, upon first drinking fermented wine, crossed two vines and danced above them while Gillidh Callum played the bagpipes, thus inventing the ancestor of the Highland sword dance (''gillie callum''). There are many theories surrounding the ...
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The Sword Dance By David Cunliffe, 1853
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with nouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of the archaic pronoun ''thee'' ...
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Mary, Queen Of Scots
Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scotland, Mary was six days old when her father died and she inherited the throne. During her childhood, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland was governed by regents, first by the heir to the throne, James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, and then by her mother, Mary of Guise. In 1548, she was betrothed to Francis II of France, Francis, the Dauphin of France, and was sent to be brought up in Kingdom of France, France, where she would be safe from invading Kingdom of England, English forces during the Rough Wooing. Mary Wedding of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Francis, Dauphin of France, married Francis in 1558, becoming queen consort of France from his accession in 1559 until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary Entry of Mary, Q ...
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Matachines
Matachines ( Spanish singular ''matachín''; sword dancers dressed in ritual attire called bouffon) are a carnivalesque dance troupe that emerged in Spain in the early 17th century inspired by similar European traditions such as the moresca. The term ''danza de matachines'' is also used to refer to their characteristic dance and music. The dance was documented in the 1642 treatise ''Discursos sobre el arte del dançado'' by Juan de Esquivel Navarro. The tradition was imported into Latin American countries such as Mexico and Peru. In America Currently, the ''matachines'' are societies of North and South American Native dancers who perform ritual dances. They are found from Peru up to northern New Mexico where the Spanish first influenced the New World and introduced Christianity. In Bernalillo, New Mexico, the Matachines de San Lorenzo have been performing for more than 300 years. The ''Danza de Matachines'' is explained by oral tradition among most Indian Tribes as the Dance ...
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Hampton Court
Hampton Court Palace is a Listed building, Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. Opened to the public, the palace is managed by Historic Royal Palaces, a charity set up to preserve several unoccupied royal properties. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Archbishop of York and the chief minister of Henry VIII. In 1529, as Wolsey fell from favour, the cardinal gave the palace to the king to try to save his own life, which he knew was now in grave danger due to Henry VIII's deepening frustration and anger. The palace went on to become one of Henry's most favoured residences; soon after acquiring the property, he arranged for it to be enlarged so it could accommodate his sizeable retinue of Courtier, courtiers. In the early 1690s, William III of England, William III's massive rebuilding and expansion work, which was intended to rival the Palace of V ...
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Christophe De Harlay, Count Of Beaumont
Christophe de Harlay, Count of Beaumont (1570–1615) was a French politician and diplomat who served as ambassador to England. He was the son of Achillee de Harlay, seigneur de Beaumont (1504–1572) and Catherine de Thou. He married Anne Rabot in June 1599. She was a daughter of Ennemond Rabot d'Illins (1543–1603). At the court of Elizabeth I Beaumont came to England in November 1601 to advise on maritime issues and subsequently replaced the resident French ambassador, Monsieur de Boissise. In March 1602 Beaumont reported news that James VI of Scotland would send 2,000 men to fight in Ireland. He used the word "sauvages", savages, for these soldiers. Beaumont heard that the King of Spain was bankrolling a faction in Scotland, and Henry IV's ambassador to Scotland, Charles Cauchon de Maupas de Tour, should know about it. De Tour was bringing a gift of mules and dogs to James VI. In July 1602 his wife attended Elizabeth I at Greenwich Palace and gave her maids of honour gifts ...
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Anne Of Denmark
Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I. She was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and List of English royal consorts, Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until Death and funeral of Anne of Denmark, her death in 1619. The second daughter of King Frederick II of Denmark and Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Anne married James at age 14. They had three children who survived infancy: Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, who predeceased his parents; Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia, Princess Elizabeth, who became Queen of Bohemia; and James's future successor, Charles I of England, Charles I. Anne demonstrated an independent streak and a willingness to use factional Scottish politics in her conflicts with James over the custody of Prince Henry and his treatment of her friend Barbara Ruthven, Beatrix Ruthven. Anne app ...
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Marguerite Wood
Marguerite Wood (30 August 1887 – 19 August 1954) was a Scottish historian and archivist who specialised in Scottish history. She served as Keeper of the Burgh Records of Edinburgh and was a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a member of the Scottish Records Advisory Council. Early life and education Marguerite Wood was born in Edinburgh on 30 August 1887. Her family had a strong interest in history: her great-grandfather John Philip Wood (1762–1838) published a history of Cramond and her paternal grandfather John George Wood (1804–65), was a member of an antiquarian society, the Spalding Club. Her maternal grandfather was Hugh Lyon Tennent a founding member of the Edinburgh Calotype Club. Wood studied French at the University of Edinburgh, gaining a master's degree in 1913. During the First World War, she served in the Women's Army Auxiliary Core (which became known as Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corp in 1918) in France. The actual dates of her service are n ...
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Entry And Coronation Of Anne Of Denmark
On 17 May 1590, Anne of Denmark was crowned Queen of Scotland. There was also a ceremony of joyous entry into Edinburgh on 19 May, an opportunity for spectacle and theatre and allegorical tableaux promoting civic and national identities, similar in many respects to those performed in many other European towns. Celebrations for the arrival of Anne of Denmark in Scotland had been planned and prepared for September 1589, when it was expected she would sail from Denmark with the admirals Peder Munk and Henrik Gyldenstierne. She was delayed by accidents and poor weather and James VI of Scotland joined her in Norway in November. They returned to Scotland in May 1590. September 1589 On 30 August 1589 James VI declared to the commissioners of his burgh towns that his marriage negotiations were concluded, and his bride Anne of Denmark was expected to arrive in Scotland. She would be accompanied by Danish aristocrats and dignitaries. James VI wanted the towns to advance £20,000 Scot ...
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Scottish Highland Dance
Highland dance or Highland dancing () is a style of competitive dancing developed in the Scottish Highlands in the 19th and 20th centuries, in the context of competitions at public events such as the Highland games. It was created from the Gaelic folk dance repertoire, but formalised with the conventions of ballet, and has been subject to influences from outside the Highlands. Highland dancing is often performed with the accompaniment of Highland bagpipe music, and dancers wear specialised shoes called ghillies or pumps. It is now seen at nearly every modern-day Highland games event. Highland dance should not be confused with Scottish country dance, cèilidh dancing, or clog dancing, although they too may be performed at Highland games and like competitions. Basic description of Highland dancing Highland dancing is a competitive and technical dance form requiring technique, stamina, and strength, and is recognised as a sport by the Sport Council of Scotland. In Highland ...
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Mornay Plot
The Mornay plot was a plot in 1574 to assassinate John III of Sweden, free the imprisoned Eric XIV of Sweden and place him or Charles IX of Sweden upon the Swedish throne.Charles de Mornay, urn:sbl:17458, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av Ingvar Andersson.), hämtad 2020-08-01. The plot was hatched and planned by Charles de Mornay, a Swedish courtier of French Huguenot origin with international contacts. It was one of three major plots to free the imprisoned Eric XIV, preceded by the 1569 Plot and succeeded by the 1576 Plot. Plot In the summer of 1572, the French envoy to Denmark, Charles de Dançay, conducted secret negotiations with unidentified Swedish aristocrats about a deposition of John III of Sweden. It appears that the future Henry III of France was suggested as a candidate for the Swedish throne.Charles de Mornay, urn:sbl:17458, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av Ingvar Andersson.), hämtad 2020-08-03. In 1573 Charles de Mornay is confirmed to have been Dançay's ...
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Banquet
A banquet (; ) is a formal large meal where a number of people consume food together. Banquets are traditionally held to enhance the prestige of a host, or reinforce social bonds among joint contributors. Modern examples of these purposes include a charitable gathering, a ceremony, or a celebration. They often involve speeches in honor of the topic or guest of honour. The older English term for a lavish meal was feast, and "banquet" originally meant a specific and different kind of meal, often following a feast, but in a different room or even building, which concentrated on sweet foods of various kinds. These became highly fashionable as sugar became much more common in Europe at the start of the 16th century. It was a grand form of the dessert course, and special banqueting houses, often on the roof or in the grounds of large houses, were built for them. Such meals are also called a "sugar collation". Social meanings Banquets feature luxury foods, often including ...
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Monarch
A monarch () is a head of stateWebster's II New College Dictionary. "Monarch". Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power in the Sovereign state, state, or others may wield that power on behalf of the monarch. Usually, a monarch either personally inheritance, inherits the lawful right to exercise the state's sovereign rights (often referred to as ''the throne'' or ''the Crown, the crown'') or is elective monarchy, selected by an established process from a family or cohort eligible to provide the nation's monarch. Alternatively, an individual may self-proclaimed monarchy, proclaim oneself monarch, which may be backed and Legitimacy (political), legitimated through acclamation, right of conquest or a combination of means. If a young child is crowned the monarch, then a regent is often appointed to govern until the monarch reaches the requisi ...
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